Four people who were acquitted from a wrongful conviction of 13 years ago have each received 2.27 million yuan ($330,000) from the state, the Jiangxi Higher People's Court said.

Cheng Lihe (second from the left), Fang Chunping (third from the left), Cheng Fagen (fourth form the left), three of the four men from Jiangxi Province who were sentenced to death in 2003 on charges of robbery, rape and homicide that happened in 2000. The four are expected to receive over 2.27 million yuan each from the state as compensation, citing a document issued by the High People's Court in Jiangxi Province on August 4, 2017. [File Photo: Wechat]

Huang Zhiqiang, Fang Chunping, Cheng Fagen and Cheng Lihe were sentenced to death by the Intermediate People's Court of Jingdezhen city in July 2003 for murder, rape and robbery on May 23, 2000 in Leping City, in central China's Jiangxi Province. The appeal process has been continuing since 2003.

In 2016, the Jiangxi Higher People's Court ruled that the facts were unclear, the evidence insufficient, and the authenticity and legitimacy of their confessions in doubt.

Xia Keqin, vice president of Jiangxi higher court, made an apology to the four after their acquittal.
Its been a year since the Traore family suffered repression and humiliation at the hands of the state and the justice system, said Assa Traore in a remote suburb of Paris on July 22. She was addressing the thousands of people who gathered in Beaumont-sur-Oise to commemorate the first anniversary of her brother Adamas untimely death.

One July afternoon last year, Adama was arrested as he was riding his bike in the suburb alongside his brother. The gendarmes drove by looking for his brother, Bagui, in connection with a case. Adama knew the officers would ask him for an ID and as he did not have any on him, he tried to run. The young black man was planning to celebrate his 24th birthday that evening, but he never made it home. He was dead only a couple of hours after his arrest.





Adama was transferred to a police station after his arrest. During transport, his condition worsened. Police said they immediately called paramedics when they noticed Adama was not well, but they were unable to save him.

Officers involved in his arrest eventually admitted that the young man complained about having difficulty breathing when he was being restrained, but they deny using excessive force to this day.

Adama died on Tuesday, July 19. But until Thursday morning, July 21, his family had been prevented from accessing the body.

News of Traores death caused anger and despair in the suburbs. Days of protests followed and some members of the local community clashed with police, setting cars and buildings alight.

His family immediately filed a wrongful death complaint. As the police inquiry into the incident continues, the officers involved in Adamas arrest are still in office a year later.

READ MORE: France sees itself as a white country

The Traore family still believe that they do not know the full story regarding Adamas death. They tried everything to get justice for their son and find out what actually happened during his arrest, but they faced institutional obstacles at every step of the way.

In every case of suspected police brutality, French institutions shown a reluctance to allow a thorough investigation, meaning that the families, like the Traore family, are still waiting for a proper explanation about what happened. by

At first, officials claimed that Adama had succumbed to heart disease. Later, they said that the young man died as a result of a serious infection affecting multiple organs. They also claimed that he had been drinking and smoking cannabis before his arrest. Adamas relatives immediately denied these claims, and asked for further investigation into the cause of his death.

Ten months later, a new expert, who assessed the case at the Traore familys request, did not find any signs of heart disease or infection. Toxicology reports for cannabis and alcohol also came back negative. He concluded that Adama Traores cause of death was asphyxiation.

The Traore family wanted to organise marches and solidarity meals in public spaces to keep their plea for justice alive, but the municipality repeatedly turned down their requests, citing concerns about security. Adamas sister, Assa, declared that by refusing to assist the Traore family in their efforts to find the truth, the authorities placed themselves on the side of police violence.

In response to Assas words, the authorities decided to file a defamation complaint and the municipal council arranged a meeting to discuss whether the city should be bearing legal costs that may arise as a result.

Dozens of Beaumont-sur-Oise residents wanted to attend the vote to show their support for the Traore family, but they were denied entry into the building by a cordon of 50 gendarmes and municipal police officers. Bagui and Youssouf Traore, two of Adamas brothers, were arrested during the confrontation between the members of the public and the gendarmes. The brothers were charged with violence and death threats on persons holding public authority. They were already being prosecuted for attempted assassination of security forces following their participation in protests after the death of their brother in July 2016. To this day, the two brothers are still incarcerated.

Adama Traore is not the first person to die in police custody in France and the Traore family is not the first French family to break down as a result of police actions. There are many families all over the country struggling to get justice for their loved ones who died in similar circumstances.

READ MORE: In France, Black Lives Matter has become a rallying cry

For example, 28-year-old Amine Bentounsi was shot in the back and killed by police during a chase in a northern Paris suburb in 2012. After a long trial, and an initial acquittal, the officer involved, Damien Saboundjian, was found guilty of deliberate assault resulting in death and given a five-year suspended sentence. He will not spend a day in prison and he is allowed to continue working as a police officer.

In June 2007, 25-year-old Lamine Dieng died in a police van after his arrest in Paris. Police initially argued that his death was due to intoxication. A consequent autopsy determined that the most likely cause of his death was asphyxiation  even though he was intoxicated at the time of his arrest. His family recently lost their last legal battle against the authorities in France and they were sentenced to pay 2,000 euros to the eight police officers involved in Diengs arrest. All officers are still on duty to this day.





The devastating stories of these men who lost their lives in police custody raise concerns about institutional racism that is plaguing the French police. Just like the majority of police victims in France, Adama Traore, Amine Bentounsi and Lamine Dieng were not white.

In January 2017, an investigation by the Defenseur des Droits, an independent constitutional authority, revealed that young men perceived as Arabs or blacks are 20 times more likely to undergo an identity check in France than the rest of the population. The same report also showed that 95 percent of these identity checks did not lead to an arrest.

As a result of this racial bias, black and Arab men are more likely to be victims of police brutality in France.

In February, six experts, mandated by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, questioned the French government about the excessive use of force by the police concerning three people of African descent. One of these three people was Adama Traore. The experts called on the French government to end the impunity of the police.

Amnesty International had already sounded the alarm about police brutality in France in 2009 and 2011 and warned of the dangers of the restraint techniques used by police officers. The prone restraint  or face-down restraint  involved the detainee being pinned on a surface and physically prevented from moving out of this position. Research has suggested that restraining a person in this position can lead to asphyxia and the technique has been banned in countries such as Belgium and Switzerland, as well as Los Angeles and New York in the US. In France, this is still a lawful and acceptable restraint technique.

In every case of suspected police brutality, French institutions showed a reluctance to allow a thorough investigation, meaning that the families, like the Traore family, are still waiting for a proper explanation about what happened.

France has long been known as the country of enlightenment. Now, our country needs to show that it did not usurp this title.

Rokhaya Diallo, French journalist, writer and filmmaker, is widely recognised for her work in favour of racial, gender and religious equality. She is a BET-France host and has produced and/or directed documentaries, TV and radio programmes.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel to take Department of Justice to court against a federal immigration crackdown.

Chicago will sue President Donald Trumps administration over threats to withhold public safety grant money from so-called sanctuary cities, Mayor Rahm Emanuel has said.

Emanuel said on Sunday that Chicago wont be blackmailed into changing its values as a welcoming city, escalating a pushback against a federal immigration crackdown.

The lawsuit will be filed on Monday.

It comes less than two weeks after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) would bar cities from a public safety grant programme unless they share information with federal immigration authorities.

Sanctuary cities generally offer undocumented immigrants safe harbour by declining to use municipal resources to enforce federal immigration laws.

Chicago will not let our police officers become political pawns in a debate, Emanuel, a Democrat, said at a news conference.

READ MORE: Can New York remain a sanctuary city?

Chicago will not let our residents have their fundamental rights isolated and violated. And Chicago will never relinquish our status as a welcoming city.

The city stands to lose about $3.2m under the new policy.

The grant was to go towards purchasing police equipment.





Emanuel said the lawsuit would prevent the Trump administration from setting a precedent that could be used to target other funding.

The DOJ did not immediately comment on Sunday.

Last week, Sessions decried sanctuary cities, saying they make all of us less safe and impede law enforcement by setting criminals free.

He said cities would be barred from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants unless they allow immigration authorities unlimited access to local jails, and provide 48 hours notice before releasing anyone wanted for immigration violations.

Police and city officials in sanctuary cities say deporting undocumented immigrants, who are not accused of serious offences, harms public safety, because it discourages them from reporting crimes.

Dozens of local governments and cities, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, have joined the growing sanctuary movement.

The Trump administration has already faced legal battles over its sanctuary city policies.

Last month, a US judge refused to revisit a court order that blocked an executive order denying broader federal funds to such jurisdictions, in a case filed by San Francisco and the California county of Santa Clara.
Unknown number of gunmen open fire inside a church in Nigerias south, killing at least 12 and wounding several others.

At least 12 people have been shot dead at a church in southeast Nigeria, with authorities suggesting the bloodshed was due to a local feud.

Witnesses said five gunmen stormed St Philips church in Ozubulu, near the city of Onitsha, at 6am local time, and opened fire on worshippers.

The police, however, said the killing was the work of a lone attacker.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Garba Umar, the Anambra State police chief, said the violence was tied to a feud within the local community.

The information at the disposal of the police is that the gunman had been hired to kill a particular family person believed to be among the worshippers, he said.

OPINION: Is Nigeria on the brink of another civil war?

Witnesses described chaos and bloody scenes at the church.

I saw my fellow church members dead in a pool of their own blood and many others were screaming in pain, said Chukwuma Emeka who entered the church after the shooting.





A worker at the Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital said 12 people have been confirmed dead, and many others with gunshot wounds were also receiving treatment there.

Local rights activist Emeka Umeagbalasi said his information about the motive largely concurred with that of the police version.

The gunmen went to the church looking for the son of a local chief, and opened fire on the parishioners when they could not find him, Umeagbalasi said.

Attacks on churches are rare in southern Nigeria, which is predominantly Christian.

Authorities said they do not believe that the armed group Boko Haram was behind the attack.

Boko Haram fighters have attacked hundreds of churches and mosques in Nigerias mainly-Muslim north since 2009.

The rebellion has killed at least 20,000 people and forced some 2.6 million others to flee their homes, sparking a dire humanitarian crisis in the countrys northeast.
Social media users slam purported double standard of media and government as Muslim worshippers targeted in US state.

Social media users have voiced frustration at what they described as a double standard after a mosque was bombed in the United States.





The explosion at around 5am local time (09:00 GMT) at the Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, Minnesota, caused damage but did not cause any casualties.

Worshippers had been preparing for the dawn prayer when the attack happened.

There were between 15 and 20 people inside the building at the time, according to Star Tribune, a local newspaper.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has sent agents to track down who was behind the attack, which it says was caused by an improvised explosive device.

The mosque, like many others in the US, received threats of attack prior to the bombing.

For many, the response, or lack of it, revealed a double standard.

Some questioned why US President Donald Trump failed to respond to what they described as a terrorist attack targeting Muslims.

Mark Follman, an editor at the progressive-leaning Mother Jones magazine, said Trumps silence was due to the target of the attack.

Apparently there was a terrorist bombing in Minnesota today. Take one guess why Trump has said nothing about it. https://t.co/4PoyfCY4YT  Mark Follman (@markfollman) August 5, 2017

In normal times, the bombing of a house of worship with an IED would not go unacknowledged by the president of the United States, he continued, after posting a list of previous attacks committed by far-right attackers that Trump had also not responded to.

Marty Parrish asked: Did I miss Trumps statement of concern for the victims of this bombing and members of the Mosque? Adding: Does he care?

Did I miss Trump's statement of concern for the victims of this bombing and members of the Mosque? Does he care?

https://t.co/WIWOCewIt4  Marty (@Marty_Parrish) August 6, 2017

But Trump was not the sole target of anger, with some railing against the purported lack of media coverage.

Some US-based outlets did publish stories on the attack, but that did not assuage the anger.

A Twitter user named Brown Saraah wrote: Someone bombed a mosque in Minnesota recently. You probably didnt hear about this because mainstream media likes to demonize Muslims.

Someone bombed a mosque in Minnesota recently. You probably didn't hear about this because mainstream media likes to demonize Muslims.  Saraah  (@BrownSugaSaraah) August 6, 2017

Activist Simran Jeet Singh accused the media of avoiding the term terrorism.

Are you kidding with this headline right now? Can you not [call] it terrorism because Muslims were the targets? Why the double-standard? He said, in response to a New York Times article, which used the term explosion to describe the attack.

Are you kidding with this headline right now? Can you not cal it terrorism because Muslims were the targets? Why the double-standard?  Simran Jeet Singh (@SikhProf) August 5, 2017

https://twitter.com/HasibMN/status/893970109533831168

As with other recent attacks, well-wishers were quick to make donations to the mosque to help it repair damage to the mosque.

By the time of publishing, hundreds of people had donated a total of $12,000 to repair the damage on two fundraising pages.

If you'd like to donate to rebuild the mosque in Bloomington, MN that was damaged by a bomb on Saturday morning: https://t.co/hVyyk7yhUI  Naomi Kritzer (@NaomiKritzer) August 6, 2017

The latest attack comes amid rising Islamophobic sentiment.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has said that discrimination against Muslims swelled during the 2016 election campaign and has continued to rise following Trumps election victory.

The US president campaigned on a platform that promised a blanket ban on Muslims entering the country, as he vowed to closely monitor mosques.

Today, five years after the #OakCreek tragedy, a firebomb was thrown into a Minnesota mosque. We live with hate violence everyday.  Arjun Sethi (@arjunsethi81) August 5, 2017
Officials say up to 40 people killed in ongoing fighting in Mirzawalang village in northern Sar-e-Pul province.

Armed men have attacked a village in the northern Afghan province of Sar-e Pul, killing as many as 40 people, including women and children, officials have said.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday condemned the killings that he dubbed a war crime.

This barbaric act of them is deemed a direct violation of human rights and a war crime, Ghani said in a statement.

Mohammed Zaher Wahdat, the governor of Sar-e Pul, said that as many as 30 to 40 innocent people  were brutally shot and killed in the provinces predominately Shia village of Mirzawalang after Taliban fighters captured it on Saturday.

The governor told AFP news agency that several mosques were set ablaze and an unknown number of villagers were taken hostage following a 48-hour battle between the fighters and Afghan security forces.

At least 12 fighters and seven Afghan troops were killed in the fighting, he said.

Many details of the attack, including the identity of the fighters, were not immediately clear.

READ MORE: Father of robotics team member killed in Herat attack

The Taliban said it had captured Mirzawalang, but rejected reports of civilian casualties as hollow propaganda by the enemy.

The fighting is still ongoing.

Earlier in the day, a spokesman for Wahdat told Reuters that the attackers included foreigners.

A senior government official in the capital, Kabul, told Reuters that security forces, including Afghan Air Force attack aircraft, were being sent to the scene.

Fighting has intensified this year across Afghanistan, with dozens of security incidents recorded every day.

In the first half of the year, 1,662 civilians were killed and 3,581 injured, according to the UN figures.

In a recent report, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), a US oversight body, said 60 percent of Afghanistans districts are under government control, while the remaining 40 percent are held by the Taliban or other armed groups.

At least 2,531 Afghan troops were also killed between January and May, SIGAR said.

Thousands of US forces have been stationed in Afghanistan since 2001, when the US forces drove the Taliban from power. But the armed group has since regrouped and now poses a major security challenge for the Western-backed government in Kabul.
State-backed commission rejects UN report of mass killings and systematic rape of Muslim minority by security forces.

A government-appointed commission has cleared Myanmar security forces of systematic rape, murder and arson against Rohingya Muslims, dismissing UN allegations of widespread abuses during a recent crackdown.

The commission examined the deadly violence which began in northwestern Rakhine state in October last year after suspected Rohingya fighters killed nine policemen in coordinated attacks on border guard posts near Bangladesh.

In the ensuing military operation, security forces allegedly shot villagers at random, raped Rohingya women and burned down more than 1,000 houses.

Hundreds were killed.

READ MORE: Myanmar  UN probe can only aggravate Rakhine tension

The commissions findings were released as the government is refusing to allow a three-member UN mission to conduct its own probe into whether the security response amounted to ethnic cleansing of the stateless Rohingya minority.

Giving their conclusions on Sunday, the state-backed commission revealed that any excessive actions were likely committed by low-rank individual members of the security forces.

Some incidents [of abuse] appeared to be fabricated  others had little evidence, the commission said in a press release.

Hundreds of deaths

It also took aim at a detailed report by the UNs Human Rights Office released in February this year.

The UN report said it was very likely that crimes against humanity had been committed during the crackdown.

The area clearance operations have likely resulted in hundreds of deaths, the UNs human rights office said.

OPINION: Myanmar needs to get serious about peace

Based on interviews with 204 witnesses who fled to Bangladesh, the UN alleged Myanmar security forces gang-raped Rohingya women, butchered children and tortured men.

The government commission refuted the UN findings, saying no such cases were uncovered in its work.

It also said the UN report lacked balance and failed to recognise the gravity of the attacks by Rohingya fighters.

The commission conceded that foreign media and NGOs should have been granted access to the zone during the conflict to dispel misconceptions.

HRW: Myanmars bullying tactics

Myanmars government is facing increasing pressure from human rights campaigners to grant the UN investigators entry to Rakhine state.





The UN team was due to begin its work this month, but Aung San Suu Kyis government declined to grant them visas, saying it would only aggravate the situation on the ground.

John Fisher, Geneva director of Human Rights Watch, said on Thursday the United Nations must stand up to Myanmars bullying tactics of threatening visa denials.

Granting entry to the [UN team] would send a signal that the government is prepared to work collaboratively with the international community to help identify perpetrators of serious crimes, and deter future crimes by all parties to Myanmars armed conflicts, he said.

READ MORE: The faces of Myanmars internally displaced

The Rohingya are reviled in Myanmar and widely seen as illegal immigrants.

Roughly one million of the Muslim group are hemmed into the impoverished border zone near Bangladesh, which remains locked down and under curfew.

On Friday, up to 50 warning shots were fired at a Rohingya village during a raid.

In a separate incident, the bodies of three men and three women bearing machete and gunshot wounds were discovered near the Maungdaw township in Rakhine on Thursday.

Last week, seven Buddhists were found dead in the conflict area.
Doha-based network denounces the decision to revoke credentials of its journalists and close its offices in Jerusalem.

Israel plans to revoke media credentials of Al Jazeera journalists and close the networks office in Jerusalem, the countrys communication minister has announced.

Ayoub Kara made the announcement on Sunday during a press conference in Jerusalem, where Al Jazeera was barred from attending.

READ MORE: Al Jazeera  Call for closure siege against journalism

We have based our decision on the move by Sunni Arab states to close the Al Jazeera offices and prohibiting their work, Kara said, adding that the channel is being used by groups to incite violence  an accusation the network has denied.

Kara said he expects Israels parliament, the Knesset, to consider his request in the next session.

I will go through the [legislatorial] mechanism to create the authority in which I can act freely. We will try to end it as quickly as possible.

Al Jazeera denounces measures

In a statement, the Doha-based media network denounced the measures from a country it says claims to be the only democracy in the Middle East.

Al Jazeera stresses that it will closely watch the developments that may result from the Israeli decision and will take the necessary legal measures towards it, the statement read.

Al Jazeera also denied the charges its coverage of al-Aqsa Mosque unrest was unprofessional.

READ MORE: Al Jazeera statement on Israels plan to ban network

Al Jazeera will continue to cover the events of the occupied Palestinian territories professionally and accurately, according to the standards set by international agencies, such as the UK Office of Communications (Ofcom).

The pan-Arab networks offices in the Palestinian territories of Gaza and the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah would not be affected by the current Israeli move.

The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, also known as Adalah, challenged the plan, saying it would be subject to scrutiny before the Supreme Court, adding that it would fail the test of legality.

Al Jazeeras Scott Heidler, reporting from Jerusalem on Sunday, said that the request to revoke the credentials cover all the networks journalists in both the Arabic and English channels.





It was unclear when the government will act on the request.

Our correspondent reported that Israel is also seeking to shut down Al Jazeeras cable and satellite transmissions in the country.

During the press conference, Kara also said that the interior ministry will also be involved in shutting down Al Jazeeras office in Jerusalem.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly threatened to shut Al Jazeeras operations in the country, accusing the network of inciting violence against Israel. His most recent attack on July 27 accused the network of inciting violence.

Marwan Bishara, Al Jazeera senior political analyst, said the latest move by Israel shows a synergy of dictatorships in the Arab world and dictatorship of military occupation in Palestine.

It is as if closing down a network will diminish violence, when everyone knows that repression and military occupation and aggression is the reason for violence in the region. Not reporting it, he said.

Attack on press freedom

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Rami Khouri of the American University in Beirut, denounced the plan saying it is very typical of regimes in the region.

Regimes that want to control power will almost always go after two targets  the media and the foreigners. Everybody goes after the media.

Aidan White, director of the London-based Ethical Journalism Network, called Israels decision a full frontal attack on press freedom.

It is a shocking statement, and it completely undermines Israels claims to be the only democracy in the region, because it gets to the heart of one of the most important institutions of democracy.

This attack on Al Jazeera is really an attack on all critical independent journalism.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has also criticised the Israeli move.

Censoring Al Jazeera or closing its offices will not bring stability to the region, but it would put Israel firmly in the camp of some of the regions worst enemies of press freedom, CPJ Middle East and North Africa Programme Coordinator Sherif Mansour said in a statement.

Israel should abandon these undemocratic plans and allow Al Jazeera and all journalists to report freely from the country and areas it occupies, it said.

In recent months, Saudi Arabia and Jordan both shut down Al Jazeera bureaus as part of a coordinated diplomatic and economic campaign against Qatar, where the headquarters of Al Jazeera Media Network is located.

Al Jazeeras signal has also been blocked in the United Arab Emirates.

Egypt, which is also part of the blocking group, banned Al Jazeera several years ago.
Man held after allegedly capturing young woman and advertising her for best offer on pornography sites, police say.

A man has been arrested in Italy after allegedly kidnapping a young British woman he planned to auction on an online slavery market.

The 20-year-old model was under the impression she was travelling to Milan for a photoshoot, but instead was drugged, hustled away in a suitcase and handcuffed in a house in northern Italy before being freed, Milan police said on Saturday.

Police released a photograph of the suspect who they identified as Lukasz Pawel Herba, a Polish citizen based in the UK.

Herba advertised the sale of the woman on the dark web, while at the same time demanding ransom from the womans agent of $300,000 (about 260,000 euros), police said.

Authorities said as far as they know, no ransom was paid.

Herba was jailed for suspected kidnapping for extortion purposes.

Police official Lorenzo Bucossi told reporters the victim was abducted on July 11 and freed on July 17.

Attacked, drugged, handcuffed

A statement from Milan police detailed the womans ordeal.

Attacked, drugged, handcuffed and closed inside a suitcase, thats how a 20-year-old English model was kidnapped on July 11 in Milan to be sold to the best offer on pornography sites, the statement said.

Herba was arrested on July 18, the day after he allegedly released the woman and dropped her off at the British consulate in Milan.

The woman had arrived in Milan on July 10 and was supposed to do the photography session the next day, according to officials.

A photographer had booked the session through the models agent, but as soon as she stepped inside the Milan apartment for the appointment, she was attacked by two men, according to the police account.

The kidnappers loaded the suitcase with the girl [inside] into a car trunk and drove to a rural home in a hamlet outside Turin, the statement said.

In the house, the model was kept handcuffed to a wooden dresser in a bedroom until she was released on July 17, police said.

Investigations are being conducted Poland, Britain and Italy.

Investigators are trying to determine if the suspect had accomplices and was motivated by a ransom, or was attempting to defraud someone who may have been willing to pay money online for the woman, police said.

They did not identify the models agent.

Milan daily Corriere della Sera said the kidnapper let his victim go because he discovered she had a child and considered her unsuitable for the sex trade but the police official, Bucossi, told reporters it was unclear why the woman was released.

Around 46 million people worldwide lived in some form of slavery in 2016, according to the Global Slavery Index.
Marcus Hutchins is accused of creating malware  unrelated to the ransomware attack he was credited with halting in May.

A US judge has set bail of $30,000 for a well-known British cybersecurity researcher accused of creating and distributing software designed to steal online banking credentials and credit card information.

Marcus Hutchins, gained celebrity status within the hacker community in May when he was credited with neutralising the global WannaCry ransomware attack which brought servers in Britains National Health Service to a standstill  and later spread to 150 countries.

Hutchins, who is also known as MalwareTech, was arrested by the FBI while he was returning to the UK after joining Def Con 25, the annual international cybersecurity gathering, at Las Vegas.

The 23-year-olds Twitter account shows he sent several tweets on Wednesday, but later went silent.

Priority boarding so you can add to the time you're sat on a plane that is nowhere near ready to fly   MalwareTech (@MalwareTechBlog) August 2, 2017

His lawyer said the 23-year-old hacker would contest the charges but added he would not be released until Monday because there was not enough time to post bail after Fridays afternoon ruling in Las Vegas.

Hutchins has broad support in the information-security community.

WATCH: Who is to blame for the massive ransomware attack? (24:45)

Lawyer Adrian Lobo said: He is going to be released pending certain conditions that he has attached to the bond, and that he has to post a $30,000 cash bond  thats coming from a variety of sources, he has tremendous community support, local and abroad and in the computer world.

Support from MP

In a statement issued on Friday, British MP Peter Heaton-Jones expressed his concern at Hutchins arrest.

He says in his statement he had written to British Foreign Minister Alan Duncan seeking urgent assurance that Hutchins was receiving consular assistance and would get independent legal representation.

I am contacting the Foreign Office about #ndevon resident Marcus Hutchins (@MalwareTechBlog) to ensure he receives urgent Consular support. https://t.co/XfvXZlf3lG  Peter Heaton-Jones (@PeterNorthDevon) August 3, 2017

I will continue to monitor his case carefully and to seek the necessary assurances from the government that the UK is doing everything in its power to assist Marcus and his family at this very difficult time, he said.

Fundraising campaign

Activists and friends of Marcus have initiated a fundraising campaign for his legal support.

This campaign is intended to fund MalwareTechs legal fees, costs, and expenses, wrote hacker Tara Wheeler on Lawpay.

These funds are to be spent solely on Marcus legal fees, costs, and expenses, or in the event its not all used up, donated to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, she added.

Nicholas Thompson, the editor of Wired Magazine, voiced doubts about the circumstances of Hutchins arrest.

Three months ago, Marcus Hutchins was a hacking hero. Now hes arrested and something seems fishy, he wrote on Twitter

READ MORE: Ransomware attack causes disruptions across globe

Kronos trojan

US prosecutors say Hutchins created the malware known as Kronos  marketed as a way to steal logins for banking websites  and sold it for $2,000 back in 2015.

If downloaded from email attachments, Kronos left victims systems vulnerable to theft of banking and credit card credentials, which could have been used to siphon money from bank accounts.

Hutchins lawyer says he denies all charges and many cybersecurity experts say arresting him could backfire.

It creates a disincentive for anybody in the information security industry to cooperate with the government by Tor Ekeland, Cybersecurity lawyer

They are essentially saying dont cooperate with us, because if you do, you are going to attract our attention and well, potentially, going to throw you in jail. I just dont understand why they are doing this, said Tor Ekeland, the managing partner of Tor Ekeland PC.

READ MORE: Global cyberattack alert as experts warn of more havoc

The so-called WannaCry ransomware attack had infected about 200,000 computer systems in 150 countries, with Russia, Ukraine and Taiwan being the top targets.

Hutchins came up with a way of stopping the ransomware when he accidentally discovered a kill switch.

According to a US official, the allegations are unrelated to the WannaCry attack he was credited with halting.

The hacker might face decades in prison in the United States if he is found guilty.
FBI launches investigation after bomb attack at the Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center damaged imams office.

A mosque in the US state of Minnesota was bombed early on Saturday, while worshippers gathered inside for morning prayers.

No one was injured in the attack at the Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, but police say the imams office had been damaged.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched an investigation into the attack, which took place at around 5am local time (09:00 GMT).

READ MORE: CAIR  Dramatic surge in anti-Muslim incidents in 2016

Richard Thorton, the special agent in charge of the FBIs Minneapolis Division, said that the investigation will determine whether the incident was a hate crime and who may have been behind it.

Thorton added that the explosion was caused by an improvised explosive device, and that investigators had recovered components of the device to figure out how it was put together.

Unimaginable attack

Worshippers managed to extinguish the blaze before firefighters arrived, according to a statement from the Muslim American Society of Minnesota.

The groups director, Asad Zaman, told reporters that a witness saw something being thrown at the imams office window from a van or truck before the blast.

Mohamed Omar, the mosques executive director, added that the vehicle immediately sped away.

The predominantly Somali mosque, like many other mosques around the country, has received threatening calls and emails, Omar told local media.





It was 5am. The whole neighbourhood was calm. People were supposed to be sleeping, that how peaceful this should be, he said.

I was shocked to learn this happened.

Yasir Abdalrahman, a worshipper at the mosque, said the explosion was unimaginable.

We came to this country for the same reason everyone else came here: freedom to worship, Abdalrahman said.

And that freedom is under threat. Every other American should be insulted by this.

Anti-Muslim crimes

The Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center serves as a religious space and community organising platform for Muslim activists and leaders in the area, according to the Muslim American Society of Minnesota.









The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) urged Islamic centres and mosques across the country to step up security.

The local chapters civil rights director, Amir Malik, said that if a bias motive is proven, this attack would represent another in a long list of hate incidents targeting Islamic institutions nationwide in recent months.

CAIR and the mosque are offering a $10,000-reward each for information that leads to an arrest or conviction.

READ MORE: How US groups spread hate via the Islamophobia industry

The attack comes amid a dramatic rise in the number of anti-Islam bias incidents in the United States, according to CAIR.

The group found that there were 2,213 such incidents last year, a 57 percent increase from 2015.

A recent report also said hate crimes spiked in 2016, which was the worst year on record for anti-Muslim incidents since the group began its documentation system in 2013.

The Southern Poverty Law Center also found that the number of anti-Muslim hate groups in the US has nearly tripled since Donald Trump launched his presidential campaign in 2015.

It reported that the number of organisations opposing Muslims leaped from 34 in 2015 to 101 last year.

In June, partial enforcement of Trumps Muslim ban came into force.

New visa applicants from Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Iran and Yemen and all refugees must prove a relationship to a close relative already in the US in order to be eligible for a US visa.
2017 is an eventful year for China, with several marquee activities on the political calendar, including the upcoming 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 90th anniversary of the People's Liberation Army early this week.

The world's attention has once again shifted to China with the CPC as the center of that attention.

Tasked with leading the country to rejuvenation, the CPC also has its own mission: to be the strongest party in the world.

The mission is determined by China's national conditions. The country's vast population, unbalanced economy, and the pressure of its two centennial goals require the leadership of a stronger CPC.

The mission is also the CPC's response to the international community. Under the CPC's leadership and endeavors of the generations of Party members, China's progress in social development has made the Party an example to all and the world looks forward to its contribution to global governance.

Over the years, the CPC has established an efficient organizational structure and strict party discipline, which helped it survive wars and revolutions and to continue to thrive after almost a century.

But the Party never rests on its laurels. The leadership has repeatedly warned that the biggest threat to the Party is corruption and the CPC must better serve the people and lead the second largest economy in the world.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, an anti-corruption campaign has swept across the country, putting at least 240 senior officials under investigation.

The campaign has reinforced people's confidence in the Party. In a survey conducted by Pew Research Center in 2016, 64 percent of the interviewees believed that corruption would lessen over the next five years.

Grassroots Party members and organizations are crucial to the strength of the Party. The CPC is setting up a better appraisal mechanism to allow more mobility within its organizational structure, so that any capable candidate from its 89 million members has a chance to shine.

Over the past year, the catchphrase of the Party has been "staying true to our founding mission", which is to serve the people.

"We won't have the support of the people if we cannot strive for the people's benefit," said Mao Zedong, the founder of the People's Republic of China, in 1934.

"To meet the people's desire for a happy life is our mission," said Xi Jinping when meeting the press after being elected as general secretary of the CPC Central Committee in 2012.

Considering the achievements of China, the CPC is fulfilling its promise.

More than 700 million people have been lifted out of poverty since 1978. In the past more than four years alone, China has seen over 55 million reach a reasonable standard of living.

Under the leadership of the Party, China is sharing the benefits of its economic boom with the people.

Antaeus, the giant in Greek mythology, can absorb inexhaustible power from the earth. Similarly, as long as the CPC stays close to the people, it will never lose its vitality.

Throughout its history, the CPC has debunked and defanged so many prejudices and stereotypes. Now, as China finds itself at a critical point of its revival, the world is waiting to see how the CPC continues to impress.
Candidate and ex-PM Raila Odinga says he is prepared to stop an alleged plot by the presidents ruling Jubilee party.

Nairobi, Kenya  Kenyas opposition leader Raila Odinga has warned against rigging the result of the general election, just two days before Kenyans cast their votes.

The ODMs Odinga, the countrys former prime minister, will challenge President Uhuru Kenyatta of the Jubilee party in a closely contested vote on Tuesday, which many fear could see violence.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, the former Kenyan prime minister said his party has put in place efforts to stop an alleged plot to tamper with results.

There are attempts to manipulate the results, Odinga said. The only way Jubilee can win this election is by rigging.

They have no other way. We are more than confident that we are going to get a decisive victory on Tuesday.

READ MORE: Why Kenyas presidential election on August 8 matters

The veteran politician is running for the presidency for a fourth time.





The country descended into violence in 2007 after the opposition, led by Odinga, claimed the election results were rigged in favour of the then incumbent Mwai Kibaki.

More than 1,000 people were killed in post-election violence and some 600,000 were displaced.

The chaos stopped after Kibaki and Odinga agreed to form a power-sharing government.

Any attempt to try to cheat Kenyans of their victory will not be tolerated this time around, Odinga said.

Kenyatta, while addressing a campaign rally last week, denied attempts to rig the elections and said the allegations by opposition leaders were a ploy to form a coalition government.

They [opposition] wasted their time on press conferences and fighting the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) in courts and now they have realised that they are headed for a defeat, Kenyatta told the crowd.

That is why they are bringing up these baseless rigging claims, he said.

Msandos murder

The rigging claims come a week after the disappearance and murder of a senior electoral official.

The opposition, National Super Alliance (NASA), said the death of Chris Msando is linked to his role in the electoral body.

Msando who was the head of the election bodys information, communications and technology.

OPINION: Kenyas election: What is at stake for the region?

It is telling that the key person who was perhaps holding very vital passwords has been eliminated at this delicate time, NASAs Musalia Mudavadi told a press conference last week.

Police said in a statement that they were treating the death as a crime of grave proportions and a  special homicide team has been set up to investigate the murder.

Polls have shown the election to be too close to call.

More than 19 million have registered to cast their vote in Tuesdays election.
At least 12 civilians, including nine from same family, died in Saada province in attacks blamed on Saudi-led coalition.

A top UN official in Yemen has said reported Saudi-led air raids, in which at least 12 civilians including children were killed, were an example of the disregard for civilians safety shown by all sides in Yemens civil war.

At least 10 others were also wounded in Saada province after attacks on Friday on a house and a private vehicle, the UNs Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen Jamie McGoldrick said, citing reports from fellow aid groups.

Three women and six children from the same family were killed in an air attack by the Saudi-led coalition on their home in the area, a local health official told the Reuters news agency.

A spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition did not respond to a request for a comment.

Disregard for the protection of civilians

Yemen has been torn apart by a civil war in which the exiled government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, backed by the Saudi-led coalition, is trying to push back gains made by Houthi rebels and their allies, who control most of the north, including the capital Sanaa.

The latest attacks exemplified the brutality of the conflict, McGoldrick said in the statement in which he expressed deep concern.

All parties to the conflict continue to show a disregard for the protection of civilians and the principle of distinction between civilians and combatants in the conduct of hostilities.

Saada, a Houthi stronghold, has been repeatedly hit by air raids since the Saudi-led coalition of Arab states joined the war in March 2015.

The Yemen war has killed more than 10,000 people, displaced more than three million and ruined much of the impoverished countrys infrastructure.

In December, the coalition acknowledged it had made limited use of British-made cluster bombs, but said it had stopped using them.

Nearly half of Yemens 22 provinces are on the verge of famine, according to the UN World Food Programme.
Fresh UN sanctions come amid ASEAN meeting, where Chinese minister is urging North Korean official to abide by measures.

The United States, China, Japan and South Korea have all welcomed tough new UN sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Sunday praised the approval of new UN sanctions agreed a day earlier, calling the move a very good outcome.

The Security Council unanimously adopted the US-led resolution, which bans mineral and seafood exports worth more than $1bn, after North Korea tested two intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) last month.

Chinas Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the sanctions were the right response, but repeated a call for dialogue.

South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha echoed Tillersons praise for the approved sanctions as a very, very good outcome.

READ MORE: Three things to know about North Koreas missile tests

Meanwhile, Japan said it was time to exert more efffective pressure on Pyongyang rahter than to pursue dialogue.

Now is not the time for dialogue but the time to increase effective pressure on North Korea so that they will take concrete actions towards de-nuclearisation, deputy foreign ministry spokesman Toshihide Ando told a news conference in Manila.

The diplomats are meeting in Manila, the Philippine capital, as foreign ministers from across Asia gather for a regional ASEAN summit.





Tillerson said he and his South Korean counterpart plan to discuss the sanctions during their meeting, along with next steps to pressure North Korea.

Washington wants eventually to talk to North Korea, Tillerson has said, but thinks such discussions would be futile if Pyongyang intends on maintaining its nuclear weapons.

The US secretary of state is also due to meet diplomats from China and other countries central to the North Korea debate.

Jean Lee, a fellow at the Wilson Centre, said it was not the right time for Tillerson to engage with his North Korean counterpart.

The US and its allies will be looking for some proof and concrete steps taken by the North Korean side to show that they are willing to discuss a freeze or step back from the nuclear provocations, before they even begin discussing engagement, she told Al Jazeera from Seoul, South Koreas capital.

China urges calm

Meanwhile, Wang held bilateral talks with North Koreas top diplomat, Ri Yong-ho, on the sidelines of the ongoing Manila summit.

We had an intensive conversation, China urges North Korea to remain calm in dealing with the recent decision given by the UN Security Council, the Chinese minister said, adding he urged North Korea not to violate the UN decision.

We would like to urge other parties, such as the US and South Korea, to stop increasing tensions. The Korean Peninsulas situation has reached a critical point. In the meantime, its also a turning point for resuming negotiations, he said. At this critical moment, we urge every party to remain calm, to take a decision that helps to reduce tensions, resume negotiations and secure regional peace development.

When asked by a journalist about North Koreas reaction, Wang said: I think you have already anticipated North Koreas reaction.

Chinas vote on new UN sanctions helped clear the way for the 15-0 vote on Saturday.

Al Jazeeras Rob McBride, reporting from Beijing, said that China is always careful when dealing with North Korea.

The last thing China wants to see is North Korea being pushed to the point of its own self-destruction, he said. That is almost a worst-case scenario.

United Nations Resolution is the single largest economic sanctions package ever on North Korea. Over one billion dollars in cost to N.K.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2017

US President Donald Trump on Saturday touted the new UN measures, saying they will have a very big financial impact.

He wrote on Twitter: The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!

A few hours later, the US president commended the Security Council and said he appreciated the cooperation of China and Russia in passing the resolution, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement.
Monitor says government troops have taken last ISIL-held town in Homs as army advances towards ISIL strongholds in east.

Syrian government troops and allied forces have taken the last major ISIL-held town in Homs province, according to a monitor.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said on Saturday that the Syrian army had taken the town of al-Sukhna from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) as government troops advanced towards ISIL strongholds in the east of the country.

Al-Sukhna lies some 50km away from the neighbouring Deir Az Zor region, which is almost entirely under ISIL control.

The town lies along a highway that would allow Syrian government forces to push into ISIL territory.

Earlier on Saturday, the monitor reported clashes between government troops and ISIL fighters while the army advanced slowly inside the city.

There was no official confirmation from the Syrian government regarding the capture, but Syrian state news agency SANA said earlier on Saturday that the army was moving into al-Sukhna from three directions.

Battle for Raqqa

ISIL is losing ground fast in Syria to separate campaigns waged by the Russian-backed Syrian government on the one hand, and to US-backed Kurdish forces and their allies on the other.

Government forces have also been advancing against ISIL in Hama province and in southern areas of Raqqa province.

US-led operations against ISIL are currently focused on taking the city of Raqqa in northern Syria.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a Kurdish-led fighting coalition backed by US-led coalition air raids, have made steady advances from the eastern and western side of Raqqa.

READ MORE: Syrias war explained from the beginning

The SDF began its assault on the ISIL stronghold on June 6.

On Friday, a senior US official said that there were about 2,000 ISIL fighters who remained in Raqqa.

Today in Raqqa, ISIS is fighting for every last block  and fighting for their own survival, Brett McGurk, US special envoy for the coalition against ISIL, told reporters.

Last week, the US-led coalition said 45 percent of Raqqa was under control of the SDF.

The United Nations said late last month that more than 200,000 people have fled their homes in the area around the city.

It also said that an estimated 20,000 to 50,000 civilians remained in Raqqa.
President Maduro says two people killed in attack paid for by anti-government forces based in Miami and Colombia.

Two people have been killed and at least eight others captured in an armed attack by terrorists on a Venezuelan military base, President Nicolas Maduro announced on state television.

A previous count by army chief General Jesus Suarez Chourio said that one died and one was gravely wounded in the attack on Sunday on the base in the northwestern city of Valencia, which the military said was quickly put down.

Maduro also said that 10 other men have escaped and authorities were hunting for them.

One of the attackers was badly wounded during the assault, army chief Chourio said.

The Venezuelan president said 20 men in all entered the Paramacay base shortly before 4am local time. He said soldiers assigned as night guards were caught by surprise and the intruders were able to work their way to the bases weapons supply.

The president said troops battled with the intruders for about four hours.

READ MORE: Venezuela crisis  Whats next?

The president alleges the attack was paid for by anti-government leaders based in Miami and Colombia.

Diosdado Cabello, the Socialist Partys deputy, earlier said troops acted quickly to quash the assault.

Meanwhile, an opposition party official said that a local leader was shot dead at a protest near the military base. It is unclear, however, if Haydee Franco was referring to one of the two fatalities mentioned by Maduro.

Military officials said the rebels, whom they described as terrorists, were trying to steal weapons.

Earlier on Sunday, a small group of men dressed in military fatigues, some armed with assault rifles, released a video declaring an uprising in Carabobo state, where Valencia is located.

In the video, a man identifying himself as Captain Juan Caguaripano said that any unit refusing to go along with its call for rebellion would be declared a military target.

We demand the immediate formation of a transition government, Caguaripano said. He was flanked by about a dozen men in military uniforms.

Militares de 41 Brigada Blindada de Naguanagua en Carabobo (Venezuela) se alzan contra Gobierno de Nicolas Maduro pic.twitter.com/rs8nphD6WF  Perro de la Calle (@Leydelpueblo) August 6, 2017

This is not a coup detat, he said. This is a civic and military action to re-establish constitutional order. But more than that, it is to save the country from total destruction.

One witness in the area told the Reuters news agency of hearing gunshots before dawn.

Al Jazeeras John Holman, reporting from Caracas, said a civil society group that monitors the military has raised questions about Caguaripano and the attack on Paramacay.

Citing Control Ciudadano, our correspondent said: Whats strange about this man who speaks in the video, who says hes a captain in the army, is that he was wanted by the government in 2014, also for trying to organise some sort of insurrection.

So how is he free? And how is he once again doing the same?

Venezuela has been rocked by a wave of anti-government protests in the past several months that have left more than 100 people dead.

The reported attack in Paramacay comes two days after government allies inaugurated a new legislative super body that the opposition and dozens of countries denounced as a power grab by President Nicolas Maduro.

In its first act on Saturday, the Constituent Assembly ordered the dismissal of the countrys attorney general, Luisa Ortega, a vocal government critic.

The opposition is struggling to regain its footing in the face of the governments tactics and re-emergence of old, internal divisions.
Wife says Leopoldo Lopez under house arrest after days in military jail, as government fires dissident chief prosecutor.

Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez was returned to house arrest on Saturday after being detained in military prison for four days, his wife Lilian Tintori said.

They just moved Leopoldo home, Tintori wrote on Twitter. We continue with more conviction and strength for peace and freedom in Venezuela!

Lopez, 46, was already under house arrest when he was picked up by Venezuelan intelligence services overnight Monday, one day after a vote to choose a powerful Constituent Assembly tasked with rewriting the Constitution.

He was first arrested in 2014 and released to home detention last month.

Another prominent dissident, 62-year-old Antonio Ledezma, was released back to house arrest Friday after being hauled away the same day as Lopez. He had already been in home detention since 2015.

Following their arrests, the Venezuelan Supreme Tribunal alleged that they had been planning to flee, either into hiding in the country or abroad.

Institutions taken hostage

News of Lopez came as the opposition said Venezuelas institutions have been taken hostage by President Nicolas Maduro and his party after Luisa Ortega, the countrys chief prosecutor, was fired by the new super-assembly packed with Maduro allies.





One hand, one political party has taken total control through an undemocratic mechanism that is utterly dictatorial, the leader of the opposition-controlled legislature, Julio Borges, told reporters on Saturday.

Security forces had earlier surrounded Ortegas office, preventing her from entering.

Do you know what they are trying to do? Hide the evidence of corruption and human rights violations in Venezuela, Ortega told reporters. I will continue to denounce and expose them.

READ MORE: Venezuelas crisis explained from the beginning

Ortega  a one time loyalist turned vocal government critic  has said the new assembly was fraudulently elected.





The assembly has also ordered her to go on trial for alleged irregularities while in office.

Ortega has been replaced by Ombudsman Tarek Williman Saab, who was recently sanctioned by the US for failing to protect protesters from abuses in his role as the nations top human rights official.

The new Constituent Assembly supersedes Venezuelas opposition-controlled National Assembly. It can rewrite the constitution, rearrange state institutions and allow Maduro to rule by decree.

It said it planned to operate as Venezuelas supreme power for up to two years.

Maduro contends that the assembly is the solution for Venezuelas political standoff and dire economy.

But the opposition, which boycotted last Sundays vote, views it as a way for Maduro to hold onto power.

Stop with this!

Meanwhile on Saturday, the foreign ministers of Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Brazil urged Maduro to dismantle the Constituent Assembly and immediately start a political transition.

We are saying: Stop with this! Enough with the deaths, enough with the repression. It is not possible to inflict such torture to the people, Aloysio Ferreira, Brazils foreign minister, told the South American countries at an emergency meeting in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

The countries indefinitely suspended Venezuela from the South American trading bloc Mercosur for its rupture of the democratic order.

The United States and the office of the head of the Organization of American states, Luis Almagro, endorsed the suspension.

Venezuela had been temporarily suspended in December.

At least 120 people have died and hundreds more have been jailed in Venezuelas four-month crisis.
Carla del Ponte said a lack of political backing from the UN Security Council had made the job impossible.

A member of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria said on Sunday she was quitting because a lack of political backing from the UN Security Council had made the job impossible, Swiss national news agency SDA reported.

Carla del Ponte, 70, who prosecuted war crimes in Rwanda and former Yugoslavia, told a panel discussion on the sidelines of the Locarno Film Festival that she had already prepared her letter of resignation.

I am quitting this commission, which is not backed by any political will, she said, adding that her role was just an alibi.

I have no power as long as the Security Council does nothing, she said. We are powerless, there is no justice for Syria.

OPINION: Can refugees return to Syria, as many want them to?

Del Ponte, a former Swiss attorney general, joined the three-member Syria inquiry in September 2012, chronicling incidents such as chemical weapons attacks, a genocide against Iraqs Yazidi population, siege tactics, and the bombing of aid convoys.

The UN Commission of Inquiry said in a statement that del Ponte had informed colleagues in June of her decision to leave in the near future. It said the investigations would continue.

It is our obligation to persist in its work on behalf of the countless number of Syrian victims of the worst human rights violations and international crimes known to humanity, it said.

Del Pontes departure leaves only two commissioners, Brazils Paulo Pinheiro and Karen Koning AbuZayd from the United States.

We have no tribunal

The commission was set up in August 2011 and has regularly reported on human rights violations, but its pleas to observe international law have largely fallen on deaf ears.

Although the United Nations is setting up a new body to prepare prosecutions, there is no sign of any court being established to try war crimes committed in the six-and-a-half year-old war, nor of any intention by the UN Security Council to refer the situation to the International Criminal Court in the Hague.





Del Pontes determination to be independent made her outspoken and occasionally controversial. She shocked Western governments in May 2013 by declaring that the UN had strong suspicions of Syrian rebels using sarin gas.

Two years later, she said justice would catch up with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, even if he remained in power under a negotiated peace settlement.

The continued violence in Syria has left more than 330,000 people dead and displaced millions.

Earlier this year, when the commission reported on Syrian government aircraft deliberately bombing and strafing a humanitarian convoy, del Ponte hinted at her frustration with the inability to bring the perpetrators to justice.

What we have seen here in Syria, I never saw that in Rwanda, or in former Yugoslavia, in the Balkans. It is really a big tragedy, she added. Unfortunately, we have no tribunal.
 Flash

Photo taken on Aug. 5, 2017 shows the United Nations Security Council voting on a resolution on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) at the UN headquarters in New York. UN Security Council adopted resolution on Saturday in response to DPRK's two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests in July. (Xinhua)

The United Nations Security Council on Saturday unanimously adopted a U.S.-drafted resolution that aims to slash by a third the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's 3 billion U.S. dollars annual export revenue over Pyongyang's two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests in July.

The resolution would ban DRPK's exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It would also prohibit countries from increasing the current numbers of DPRK's laborers working abroad, ban new joint ventures with DPRK and any new investment in current joint ventures.

Resolution 2371 (2017), adopted unanimously by the Security Council on Saturday, strengthens UN sanctions on the DPRK in response to its two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests conducted on July 3 and July 28, respectively.

As such, this resolution "sends a clear message" to the DPRK that the Security Council is united in condemning its violations and demanding the country give up its prohibited nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

Resolution 2371 (2017) includes the strongest sanctions ever imposed in response to a ballistic missile test. These measures target DPRK's principal exports, imposing a total ban on all exports of coal (DPRK's largest source of external revenue), iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood.

Banning these exports will prevent the DPRK from earning over one billion U.S. dollars per year of hard currency that would be redirected to its illicit programs, according to the resolution.

The DPRK earns approximately 3 billion U.S. dollars per year from its exports. Additional sanctions target the DPRK's arms smuggling, joint ventures with foreign companies, banks, and other sources of revenue.

A resolution needs nine votes in favor, and no vetoes by the United States, China, Russia, France or Britain, to be adopted.

The measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on DPRK since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006.
Throughout the entire 2016 election and onward, a tired line heard from within the Progressive Christian camp was that it was Senator Bernie Sanders, a self-declared "democratic socialist," who spoke from a policy platform most comparable with the New Testament ethic. The assumption is that Jesus was himself a quiet socialist, and that his charity while acting as Lord, feeding without profit and giving without return, was to become the governmental archetype for any system built upon the imperative of public utility. Too often, this assumption is met with shrugged indifference, forcing Christians choosing the moniker of capitalist to do so beneath a darker cloud of judgment.

It must be said that Jesus was and is not a socialist by anyone's definition, save those of his revisionists. The Gospels do not speak of a heavenly economy of democratic access. Instead, they speak of the Kingdom of God as the advent of an impending regime change whose topsy-turvy standard of behavior threatens the lives of the unprepared. Where Jesus stands in the face of government saying his kingdom is not of this world, those aligned with him, the corpus mysticum, stand as a historical reminder that power itself is fleeting and its programs destined for collapse. With king as his lexical base, Jesus contends for all our titles, and his seat at the right hand of God is the fulfillment of an all-conquering, one-world rule originally of Israel's national vision.

It is this image of Christ the Contender that thrusts the conversation into its most fundamental conflict. The question is something like this: has the individual an inalienable right to private ownership, or has power the obligation to ensure a common equity? From the raw data of the world's wealth concentrations, some draw the conclusion that competition and cooperation are mutually exclusive and that the ever pressing reality of competition has blinded populations from the possibility of human benevolence as a guiding principle of government. Thus is the new expectation for the Christian eschaton, when a final install of programmatic distribution makes fruit possible without labor and labor without the pressure of personal improvement. Such an expectation is foreign to that of the prophets, who gave the image of one sitting "under his own vine" as an anticipated era of peace when one's self-sufficiency goes uninterrupted.

Moreover, outside the point of exchange between producer and consumer, there is cooperation, where two or more parties agree to compete beneath the same body of rules. The ethic of competition is that the boundaries of human interaction are set, and within these boundaries, one's worth becomes intrinsic to one's quality of behavior. What duty one has toward the rights of his competitor is an equality of access upon the same ground of risk and possibility of reward. After all, to review the etymology of "compete" lands one at the Late Latin competere or "to strive in common." Where there is competition, so there is, too, a commonality that appraises victory as an end worthy of mutual struggle.

The most glaring deviation of socialism from the Christ of the Gospels is that for the socialist, human suffering is a problem of economy, whereas Christ's language of salvation assumes a robust moral definition of sin as an adverse world state requiring its reset. By neglecting bad behavior as a condition of the spirit, socialism treats individuals as "personification[s] of economic categories"  not as the imago dei, but as the "bearers of class-relations and class-interests." Where its use of religion ends at religion's philanthropy, the secular becomes offended by appeals to order beyond its span of control. Life is more than food. The body is more than stuff. And so, as one free from envy is immune from want of another's commodity, so one becomes a barrier to progress if progress is but the solution to an unshared problem.

Standing on a hillside in rural Palestine, Jesus silences all the whispers of messianic militancy, choosing instead to challenge the assumption that resistance is the right of the righteous. Neither his commands to charity nor his chosen company of disrepute sealed his execution. But because to him was ascribed the office of highest power despite his very public cynicism of existing political structures, Jesus's death was declared a necessity to spare those structures. When pressed by the experts about the rightness of taxes, he is frustratingly noncommittal. When enquired by the state about the nature of his kingship, his speech is aloof. His example in the midst of power is one above its dominion.

That the lordship of Jesus is her basic Christian confession makes the church a political alternative whose presence is a nagging witness that neither system nor system actors can be improved into utopia and a sign that the reign of humans over human affairs has ended. So, then, when anyone attributes the qualities of Christ to one whose enterprise of salvation is getting more stuff to more people, their conclusion of what ails the whole of history is of critical departure from him whose definition of poverty assumes a hunger alleviated without food, a thirst without drink, and whose social ethic persists already in the lives of changed people. As it pertains to his interpretive history, the image of Jesus as Christ is given to the recurring comedown of premiere humanitarian rather than resurrected Lord, which imputes a certain foolishness upon the Gospel writers, who wrote of Jesus's act of self-sacrifice as an example to follow for an audience already in peril.

To make Jesus of Nazareth a socialist is to give credence to an alternative account in which he is useful only when he speaks of someone else's finances. The socialist structure demands giving without first inspiring generosity and getting without gratitude, but as for the Kingdom of Heaven, the object of its judgment is the inner life, ignoring status, and calling to account the conduct of the slave as a slave and the master as a master. It is her witness to this judgment that makes the church a body of grave opposition to those like Bernie Sanders. For above one who seeks power in his or her image, there looms the Kingdom of Heaven, whose agency has begun in the lives of those who are poor and do not suffer, and who do not participate in democratic processes expecting Heaven on Earth by means of imperfect systems replacing imperfect systems.
The five people killed in the Holy Land on the Jews ancient Temple Mount at the end of last month consisted of two Israeli policemen and the three Muslims using weapons previously smuggled onto the Mount who murdered them, and in turn were killed by other Israeli police in the area.

This bloodshed then led to the closing of the entrances to the Temple Mount for Muslims in order to allow Israeli police to search for other weapons possibly planted on the site. The closure enraged Muslims, because never before in fifty years had Israel done that so completely -- though for years, on days of political and religious tension, Israel does limit the age of those who may enter to 50 and older because the younger they are, the more likely they will try to throw rocks from the Mount down below onto the heads of Jews praying at the Western (wailing) Wall.

Israel then installed identical metal detectors identical to those used throughout the city for Jews and gentiles to pass through. This was styled a second aggression in Muslim minds. How dare the infidels inspect Believers in the One True Faith like this at their Third Holiest shrine? Jews examining them like this would be a humiliation.

Before long, as is common in such episodes, angry crowds of Arab youths gathered, rocks in hand. Israeli TV archives bulge with footage of such teenagers, heads and faces wrapped in keffiyas, who come to throw rocks and Molotov cocktails at Israeli soldiers and police. In the wake of the death of the three Muslim murderers of the Israeli policemen, their co-religionists praised each as a shahid/martyr for Islam, which ignited the passion of another homicidal Muslim maniac who, on the following Friday night in Samaria, broke into a gated Jewish community and politely knocked on a Jewish familys front door. The family, in the middle of enjoying their traditional Sabbath Eve meal, innocently opened the door, which allowed the Muslim wielding a big knife to jump in and start butchering them, slashing and plunging the blade again and again, murdering three, wounding others, splattering their blood all over the table set for the festive meal; all over the floor, the furniture, the walls. In a flash, this Jewish familys home was turned into a human abattoir.

What followed politically was a crisis for Israel and Jordan that administer the top of the Temple Mount. Violent mobs of Arab males attacked Israeli security forces; frantic diplomacy erupted between Jerusalem, Washington, Riyadh, and Amman, where the killing of the three Muslim assassins inspired a Jordanian Muslim maintenance man at the Israeli Embassy to stab an Israeli security guard with a screwdriver, who of course shot him dead and, inadvertently, an innocent bystander.

As the boiling cauldron of feelings, fears, and threats percolated in the region, Arab-Muslim behavior was characterized by indignant protestations against Israel for its imagined aggression against Al-Aqsa Mosque by shutting down and installing security devices, which of course was meant to detract attention from the double homicide by the trio of suicidal Muslim assassins. The Deputy Head of the Muslim Waqf that administers the top of the Temple Mount said the Israelis closed it down after the killing, not in order to search for other hidden weapons, as they claimed, but to inject chemicals into the walls of Al-Aqsa Mosque to make them crumble.

In Istanbul, too, tens of thousands of Muslim men and boys rallied to shout their hatred of al-Yahud/the Jews for wanting to destroy Al-Aqsa Mosque, and they were joined all over the Arab and Muslim worlds by people who hate the Jews for their dastardly plot to destroy Al-Aqsa.

In 2000 too, when the so-called Second Intifada erupted, the fuse was lit when Ariel Sharon dared to walk innocently on the Temple Mount past the grey-domed mosque. That is all he did, which was nonetheless perceived as an insult to Islam. Indeed, the historical record does show that in some Muslim jurisdictions, a Jew walking past a mosque had to remove his shoes as a sign of respect for the One True Faith, or face punishment. Sharons walk then licensed Yasir Arafat, the son of the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood in Mandatory Palestine, to summon the Arab street to begin another intifada, like the one in 1987 that led to the Oslo retreat engineered by those old Jewish Lefties Rabin and Peres.

And so it was. The ensuing Al-Aqsa Intifada, as it was soon nicknamed, would take over five years for Israel to suppress, during which time over one thousand Jews were murdered in terrorist horrors and thousands more who survived them were maimed, mutilated and crippled for the rest of their lives.

Even seventy-one years before then, there was August 1929 when the leader of the Muslims in Mandatory Palestine, the Grand Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini, fabricated doctored photographs of the mosque seemingly in flames, which he sent around the country with the fake news that al-Yahud had not only done this to Al-Aqsa; they had also slaughtered five hundred Believers.

The result: pogroms in various locations, the worst of all, in Hebron. Countrywide over three days, one hundred thirty-seven Jews were massacred.

So, it was hardly news at the end of last month that there was murder in cold blood, ghastly and grisly in a Jewish home, and riots, and all the result of Muslim delusions about Jews scheming to harm Al-Aqsa Mosque. It is always about Al-Aqsa.

It is a repeating pattern in the behavior of the Arabs in Israel who masquerade as Palestinians. The politically correct, antireligious MSM in Israel goes along when covering these events by always referring to the terrorists as Palestinians, never Muslims. When this latest outrage eventually abated, an Israeli newspaper posted a photo of a mass of them on the Temple Mount once again kneeling in prayer, assuming the position of slaves, face to the floor, for Islam means submission. It is a religion that hates its opposite -- freedom of the mind and individual liberty -- with the caption beneath reading, Palestinians at prayer on the Temple Mount yesterday.

But why? There is absolutely nothing Palestinian about any of the men in this picture. These Palestinians insist that they are the indigenous people of Palestine, but if so, why dont they speak the indigenous language of the country, which is Hebrew? The provenance of their Mother Tongue (mamaloshen) is the Arabian Peninsula. They also five times daily bow down in the direction of the Peninsula and its holiest city, Mecca.

In sum, the reason that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is in Danger gambit has a history is that there is no Palestinian history to draw on to rally the troops. It is always Islam that lights their fire. In fact, for the first biblical generation of forty years following the League of Nations Mandate to create a jurisdiction called Palestine that thirteen centuries of Islam never knew existed, the official Arab line was that of the Grand Mufti, who said there was no such country with that name. It is never mentioned in the Quran. The land was all southern Syria, Haj Amin said, and even published a newspaper with that name, Al-Suria al-Janubia. This is why for the quarter-century lifetime of the League of Nations (1920-1945), not a word about any Palestinians was committed to paper.

And neither was this putatively Paleolithic people ever mentioned in the documents of the UN for its first twenty-five years. Not until November 1970, three years after the historic Israeli victory in the Six-Day War and Jewish conquest of Holy Jerusalem, did a UN General Assembly resolution contain the word Palestinian as it is used today to refer to not the indigenous people of the Holy Land -- the Jews who speak its indigenous language -- but a nationality that is wholly Judenrein/Jew-free, a favorite Nazi word.

And this is the reason why the violence against the Jews in the Holy Land never stops: the antisemitic delusion of a Jew-free Palestinian people with rights to a state on the land the Jews stole from them and wont give back. This, of course, bears no relation to the historical record of the last 150 years. Decades before the world ever heard of Palestinians, the Muslims were at war with the Jewish resurrection of the Holy Land that the Muslims kept as wasteland.

On the contrary, the principle, literally backstabbing murderers of Jews these days are the same homicidal-suicidal Muslim psychopaths who brought down the World Trade Center and have been responsible for all the major jihadi massacres of innocents for decades.

There is no record thus far of any Muslim terrorist murdering innocent people and being slain in the climax of his passion who shouts, Long Live Palestine! It is always Allahu Akbar! and there is no hope for peace until this truth is recognized. President Trump is wrong that the enemy is radical Islamic terrorism. No, the enemy is Islam, just Islam, plain and simple.

Shai ben-Tekoas PHANTOM NATION: Inventing the Palestinians as the Obstacle to Peace is available at Amazon.com.
In the United States, the two groups that most ardently support Israel are Jews and evangelical Christians. Jewish support is easy to explain, but why should certain Christians, most of them politically quite conservative, be so devoted to Israel? There is a second puzzle: despite their support for a Jewish state, evangelical and fundamentalist Christians are disliked by many American Jews.

The evidence about evangelical attitudes is clear. In 2006, a Pew survey found that evangelical Christians were more favorable toward Israel than the average American wasand much more sympathetic than either mainline Protestants or secularists. In another survey, evangelical Christians proved much likelier than Catholics, Protestants, or secular types to back Israeli control of Jerusalem, endorse Israeli settlements on the West Bank, and take Israels side in a Middle Eastern dispute. Among every religious group, those who are most traditional are most supportive of Israel.

Evangelical Christians have a high opinion not just of the Jewish state but of Jews as people. That Jewish voters are overwhelmingly liberal doesnt seem to bother evangelicals, despite their own conservative politics. Yet Jews dont return the favor: in one Pew survey, 42 percent of Jewish respondents expressed hostility towards evangelicals and fundamentalists. In comparison, in a study of religious attitudes on a national scale, two scholars from Baruch College have shown, a much smaller fractionabout 16 percentof the American public has similarly antagonistic feelings toward Christian fundamentalists.

So what is it about Christians and their support for Israel that makes some Jews at times uneasy? I can even imagine what makes Jews - especially liberal Jews - nervous about this huge group of Israel lovers: their conservative values, an uncompromising stance on the Middle East peace process and support for Israel; the theological slant of their support for Israel.

Christians love to love Israel unconditionally, and express love for Jews unconditionally. There is something almost non-Jewish about it. Jews usually do not talk about unconditional love. It's not something that usually turns us on. We are more into debate, questioning, challenging and rattling the cage. Christians love to love. Jews love to kvetch.

So why do we find so little expression of unconditional love among Jews? Is it because we Jews confuse love with supporting official policy? That is, if we disagree with Israel's policies, do we find it difficult - even impossible - to express unconditional love for Israel? Moreover, how many Israel supporters who disagree with Israel's policies can honestly say that their love for Israel is, in fact, unconditional?

When one considers the worldwide movement in recent years to de-legitimize the State of Israel, that is, the enemies of Israel are not looking for a debate. Their aim is not to engage or interact but to undermine and demonize. Their opposition is not open to reason or good will. In short, their hatred is unconditional. This being the current geo-strategic reality challenging Israel, than why should some Jews be uneasy by Christians unconditional love toward Israel?

How better to fight unconditional hatred than with unconditional love? What better weapon against the forces working to delegitimize Israel than a force that unequivocally expresses love of Israel? Of course, we Jews should never stop doing what we do best: argue, debate, challenge and unconditionally Kvetch. However, this must be conducted within a common consensus meaning that Israel must remain the national homeland of the Jewish people.

But we can't love the process more than we love Israel itself. For Israel supporters, unconditional love is the emotion that ought to trump all others; the emotion that fuels and gives meaning to our actions. I can challenge my child and rebuke him, but I can never forget to show him unconditional love. Many of our debates about Israel have become coarse and divisive. One reason is that in our zeal to express tough, critical love, we have forgotten about pure love, unconditional love so common among our Christian supporters throughout the United States.

Two weeks ago, on the final day of the yearly Christians United For Israel (CUFI) Washington Summit, thousands of CUFI activists took to The Hill to lobby their congressman to stand with Israel and to support the Taylor Force Act ending funding to the Palestinian Authority who have for years been making monthly stipends to convicted and imprisoned terrorists and their families. A kind of social security payment for Palestinian mass murderers of innocent children, Israelis, and tourists. These Christian supporters of Israel made their voices heard on Capitol Hill, showing that America stands with Israel.

We have much to learn from our Christian supporters and how they express unconditional love for Israel. It is this unconditional love that can bind us together, Christians and Jews in our undivided support for the State of Israel and send a strong message of deterrence to Israel's enemies.

The writer, a 25-year veteran of the I.D.F., served as a field mental health officer. Prior to retiring in 2005, served as the Commander of the Central Psychiatric Military Clinic for Reserve Soldiers at Tel-Hashomer. Since retiring from active duty, he provides consultancy services to NGOs implementing Psycho trauma and Psycho education programs to communities in the North and South of Israel. Today, Ron is a strategic advisor to the at the Office of the Chief Foreign Envoy of Judea and Samaria. To contact: medconf@netvision.net.il
Every day it becomes clearer why former National Security Adviser Gen. Michael Flynn was unmasked and the early target of a series of illegal leaks targeting Team Trump. Flynn was an unabashed critic of President Barack Hussein Obama and someone who would take a bullet for Trump in any political battle. He had to be dispensed with and someone less loyal to Trump and more accommodating to the resistance put in his place.

That man was to be General H.R. McMaster, and the story of how he got to be President Trumps National Security Adviser speaks volumes about his true loyalties. As journalist Caroline Glick notes in a recent article:

 there is the issue of how McMaster got there in the first place. Trump interviewed McMaster at Mara a Lago for a half an hour. He was under terrible pressure after firing Flynn to find someone. And who recommended McMaster? You wont believe this. Senator John McCain. Thats right. The NSA got his job on the basis of a recommendation from the man who just saved Obamacare. Obviously, at this point, Trump has nothing to lose by angering McCain. I mean what will he do? Vote for Obamacare?

President Trump has expressed his continued support for McMaster, even after a letter McMaster sent to Benghazi liar and serial unmake Susan Rice was revealed in which McMaster said he was perfectly fine with a person who should be a target of her very own special prosecutor retaining her security clearance. As Fox News Politics reported on August 5:

President Trump gave H.R. McMaster a vote of confidence after the national security adviser's rivals seized on a letter McMaster sent to his Obama predecessor Susan Rice giving her continued access to classified information. Trump issued a statement late Friday supporting McMaster. "General McMaster and I are working very well together," the statement read. "He is a good man and very pro-Israel. I am grateful for the work he continues to do serving our country." McMaster already had been in the spotlight for the series of firings hes ordered on the National Security Council. Most recently, he ousted Ezra Cohen-Watnick, the senior director for intelligence at the National Security Council who had been viewed as a Trump loyalist. But Circa first reported Thursday that McMaster sent a letter giving Rice access to classified material, weeks after her alleged role was disclosed in unmasking identities of Trump associates in intelligence reports.

McMaster may have served his country well while in uniform, but he is not serving his country well as National Security Adviser. McMaster insists the letter to Rice was a pro forma letter sent to every former national security adviser and every former president. But Susan Rices record is anything but pro forma and precedent can be broken, especially when the individual arguably should be in jail and not in public service.

McMasters activities and personnel decisions belie his loyalty to the current administration and certainly question his alleged pro-Israel credentials.

McMaster in contrast is deeply hostile to Israel and to Trump. According to senior officials aware of his behavior, he constantly refers to Israel as the occupying power and insists falsely and constantly that a country named Palestine existed where Israel is located until 1948 when it was destroyed by the Jews. Many of you will remember that a few days before Trumps visit to Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu  ?????? ?????? and his advisers were blindsided when the Americans suddenly told them that no Israeli official was allowed to accompany Trump to the Western Wall. What hasnt been reported is that it was McMaster who pressured Trump to agree not to let Netanyahu accompany him to the Western Wall. At the time, I and other reporters were led to believe that this was the decision of rogue anti-Israel officers at the US consulate in Jerusalem. But it wasnt. It was McMaster. And even that, it works out wasnt sufficient for McMaster. He pressured Trump to cancel his visit to the Wall and only visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial  ala the Islamists who insist that the only reason Israel exists is European guilt over the Holocaust.

McMasters actions have raised the question of just whose side he is on. As has been noted here, McMaster has retained all of former staffers that Ben Rhodes installed, when he was Obamas assistant to the president and deputy national security adviser for strategic communications. The question of who is leaking classified information for political purpose remains.

That under covered story was brought up by retired U.S. Army Col. Tony Schaffer on Lou Dobbs show on Fox Business:

Ben Rhodes and Barack Obamas staff are still in the National Security Council. H.R. McMaster has not fired any of them. Instead he fired the man who agrees with Trumps agenda, Col. Harvey. McMaster doesnt see it as a problem. Theres no such thing as a holdover, H.R. McMaster said back in July, referring to the career professionals who stayed on the council after the presidential transition. McMaster added that career staffers are loyal to the president. Lt. Col. Schaffer reacted on Fox Business. One of the things I heard today was H. R. McMaster has not fired a number of people who worked for Obama. In fact those who worked for some of the staffers, Ben Rhodes for example, well Ben Rhodes has got, his staff is still there. Its like having a rattle snake next to your bed and thinking some how if youre just nice enough to the snake its going to be nice. Its not like that.

In a Facebook post, Glick, comments on McMasters keeping of Ben Rhodes staff members while purging Trump loyalists:

McMaster disagrees and actively undermines Trump's agenda on just about every salient issue on his agenda. He fires all of Trump's loyalists and replaces them with Trump's opponents, like Kris Bauman, an Israel hater and Hamas supporter who McMaster hired to work on the Israel-Palestinian desk. He allows anti-Israel, pro-Muslim Brotherhood, pro-Iran Obama people like Robert Malley to walk around the NSC and tell people what to do and think. He has left Ben (reporters know nothing about foreign policy and I lied to sell them the Iran deal) Rhodes' and Valerie Jarrett's people in place.

Trump appreciates loyalty and is loyal to those who faithfully share his agenda. Clearly H.R. McMaster does not fit the bill. Trumps loyalty to him is misplaced and a good step in draining the swamp would be to summon McMaster and utter those famous words, Youre fired!

Daniel John Sobieski is a free lance writer whose pieces have appeared in Investors Business Daily, Human Events, Reason Magazine and the Chicago Sun-Times among other publications.
Since we're going to be getting a lot of these, might as well start on this immigrant sob story from NBC News that suggests any rule of law in the U.S. is cruel and unusual punishment.

The woman in question, from Peru, was a legal immigrant, but used that privilege to illegally cast ballots in Illinois and then fought a ten-year battle in courts to shield herself from any consequences.

Everything in her story is designed to tug at the heartstrings, whip up public sympathy, and support Democrats who favor non-citizen voting. Everything else in that story evades the hard questions that need to be asked around the serious problem of voter fraud that NBC News is dismissing.

The headline alone gets the ball rolling: Grandmother. Tears.

She's not much of what a typical grandmother, given that she looks about 40 or so in her pictures. Somehow the media either never thought to ask the single mom of three, or else declined to write that she refused to give her age, or most likely, collaborated with her to keep her age off the story in a bid to keep that title of 'grandmother' live. Why was she a single mom, anyhow, given that her fundraising page makes such big claims to 'keeping families together'? Earlier news reports said she married her way into the U.S. and acquired legal residency status from that, while NBC says she had three kids in Peru meaning another man was in the picture there previously. And somehow the love with the American didn't last, which a real reporter might raise questions of marriage green card fraud, too, but the question goes unasked. As for tears, you'd think she'd be all cried out after a ten-year court battle, instead of suddenly surprised by bad news. In any case, what she did was a crime - she disenfranchised an American citizen's ballot by cancelling it out with her own illegal votes. Had she gone to the pokey for check-writing fraud or Medicaid scams, would she have any fewer tears? Somehow NBC News would have you think we should forget forever about the integrity of our elections because it might make some "grandmother" cry.

What's more, the report tries to lay her deportation on Trump. Fact: The deportation moves started under President Obama and only went to court stage during President Trump's term.

But who cares about facts when there's a narrative to push. NBC News gives its narrative, along with some heartstring-tugging photo lagniappe in this report:

Fitzpatrick left Peru in 2001 and legally came to the U.S. to seek a better life in America with her three daughters. She found it. She decided to study English and earn a certificate as a medical translator. Eventually, she married and got a green card as she pursued a career in nursing. Her three daughters, born in Peru, became naturalized U.S. citizens. She applied for an Illinois driver's license in 2005, presenting her Peruvian passport and her green card. On one form, she declined to register to vote. But she said a clerk asked her if she wanted to register to vote. When she asked the clerk if she was "supposed to," she said the clerk responded: "It's up to you." "Non-citizens should not be asked this question  period," Fitzpatrick said. On another form, she checked the "yes" box next to the question: "Are you a U.S. citizen?" She said she thought that was the closest thing to her status  "legal permanent resident." Then she voted  in two elections. She claimed she only voted for a local school superintendent candidate, because her daughters were in the schools. It wasn't until she applied to become a citizen in 2007 that she said she learned those votes had been illegal. She admitted to the immigration officer what she did. The government soon started efforts to deport her.

O.K., let's take a look at what she signed as to falsely declaring herself a U.S. citizen:

It's bad enough that this great nursing graduate, which hardly a gut major, couldn't figure out how to answer 'no' to the question of being a citizen, which she most certainly knew she wasn't. It's that she couldn't read the print below it, which explicitly has her sign to say: The information I have provided is true ... If I have provided false information, I may be fined, imprisoned, or if I am not a U.S. citizen, deported from or refused entry into the United States.

Does it get any clearer what the consequences of lying are than that?

As for the transaction with the clerk that she thinks is more important than the mere paperwork she puts her name to in an official document, does it occur to any reporter to ask why the clerk in corruption-filled Chicago with its ward-heel politics, might have some incentive to get every non-citizen to vote? That's how the city is run, and it would be hard to think that after showing the brains to get a nursing degree, she would be entirely innocent of how that city works, particularly with the Obama and even Bush Junior administrations failing to enforce immigration law. Far more likely she did what she did because she knew the politics all too well and knew she could get away with it.

More heartstrings from NBC News:

"I am not a criminal," she said. "I am a nurse. I am a grandmother  and I am a mother."

Yep, and you are a vote-fraudster, too, who disenfranchised a U.S. citizen with your own illegal votes. Is she saying nurses and mothers never commit crimes, or are exempt from the consequences of their actions? Apparently so.

Here's a whopper NBC could have caught easily:

Then she voted  in two elections. She claimed she only voted for a local school superintendent candidate, because her daughters were in the schools. It wasn't until she applied to become a citizen in 2007 that she said she learned those votes had been illegal. She admitted to the immigration officer what she did. The government soon started efforts to deport her.

Ah, the old 'I only voted in local elections' excuse, which is also a favorite nose-under-the-tent tactic for winning illegal immigrants the right to vote of the La Raza crowd.

If she only voted in local elections, why do the court papers show she voted in a federal election in 2006? You know, the year, Nancy Pelosi became Democratic House Speaker in a Democratic wave election? Scattered news reports say she voted in 2007, too, so the courts obviously didn't catch everything.

Fitzpatrick's protestation that she "only" voted in local elections is not only false, the tiny insignificance of the election she claims to have voted solely in suggests she knew that voting in a federal election was wrong at the time and didn't want to draw attention to it.

The report continues on with rubbish and flapdoodle, quoting Fitzpatrick as saying:

"I am truly sorry for this error," she said. "I could never have done anything against this country."

which is nonsense, she already did something against this country in casting illegal ballots to cancel out the votes of Republicans. Meanwhille, her Indiegogo crowd-funding page seems to think the U.S. is lacking in justice as she demands it, beginning with: Our Family is determined to fight for justice.

The sad thing is, she just doesn't see any need for there to be any consequences for her actions. Cast an illegal ballot, lose your green card. What does she think people who cast illegal ballots should be held accountable for?

More hypocritical still, her claim that going back to Peru, Latin America's fastest-growing economy, is somehow a death sentence. How much does she think an English-speaking nurse witih an American degree is worth in that boombing economy? She's very likely going to be living a lot richer in Peru than she will be here. Will someone in the mainstream media ask her that? Not on your life.

There's just too much sob-story narrative to promote.
Former Obama administration Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes has been caught leading the charge to smear another member of the Trump administration.

According to Twitchy:

White House adviser Stephen Millers heated exchange with CNNs Jim Acosta revolving around the poem on the Statue of Liberty sparked any number of hot takes. Among the Lefts talking points: Millers knowledge of a detail about when The New Colossus was added to the Statue of Liberty was a clue that hes a well, heres former Obama Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes making the accusation: Perhaps because Stephen Miller is a white supremacist. https://t.co/c16J1gX4IH  Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) August 5, 2017

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Perhaps because Stephen Miller is a white supremacist. https://t.co/c16J1gX4IH  Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) August 5, 2017

There is zero basis for Rhodes' charge that Miller's knowledge of basic American history has anything to do with white supremacism. Is he trying to say that only whites can know history? Or what is his bizarre claim.

But it's worse than just that surface risibility. Miller is Jewish. To call a Jewish person a white supremacist is the height of offensiveness, and absolutely a blood libel and smear. Hitler was a white supremacist and given that Miller is Jewish and the name 'Miller' is a very common German name, it would not be impossible that Miller may have had relatives lost in the Holocaust. Ben Rhodes goes straight for that offensive - and baseless claim because there is no bottom to how low he will go.

It brings up that Rhodes, who majored in creative writing in college, is a spin doctor. Spin doctors make up things.

There might be a perception out there that Rhodes' speciality is to make up unicorn "narratives" about his former boss, Barack Obama and how wise and wonderful he is. On that, he certainly does effortlessly, no matter what the facts.

There's also a perception that spin-doctor Ben makes up phony "narratives" to fool the American people, as he did with the Iran Deal, claiming he set up a media echo chamber to mislead the American public, and with his Libya scandal, where he had then-United Nations ambassador Susan Rice repeat his phony Benghazi talking points to mislead the American public on the reason an American ambassador was murdered in Libya, claiming it was the work of a spontaneous mob when in fact it was a full-blown planned al-Qaida attack.The idea was to perpetrate the Obama myth that al-Qaida was "on the run" as the 2012 election day approach rather than growing stronger than ever.

But there's a more important third reality, not just perception, that Rhodes's real game is to smear political opponents and anyone his masters below might find themselves displeased with. Rhodes now leads the Twitter charge against Miller, but he has also been caught attacking perfectly blameless people such as Sebastian Gorka, smearing him with false "Nazi" charges every bit as disgusting as the smears he is now leveling at Miller. In fact, there are a long chain of Rhodes targets in this vein.

This is Rhodes' real game. He plays Deep State with his holdover buddies still in the White House, as well as his former superiors such as Susan Rice and Barack Obama. But he also acts as Mister Smear for this crowd, consistently leading false charges and spreading libellous innuendo.

What kind of person is this? He's beyond disgusting. But by putting some daylight to his game, the overturned rock of his smear-minded agenda should keep whatever is crawling around under there wriggling from exposure.
The feminist owner of a vegan cafe in Melbourne, Australia is charging men an 18% "man tax" to get her customers thinking about the unfair treatment of women.

Women also receive priority seating over men.

The Sun:

Owner Alex OBrien told Broadsheet website: I do want people to think about it, because weve had this (pay discrepancy) for decades and decades and were bringing it to the forefront of peoples minds. I like that it is making men stop and question their privilege a little bit. Ms OBrien says the response from her customers has been positive, with one man even donating $50 (30) to the cause. She said: Theres been nothing but positivity from everyone, males and females. But the reaction on social media has been mixed, with some praising while others are outraged. One Twitter user said: This makes me sick. What the hell is wrong with these stupid women. Rules for men to enter? While Jack Saba tweeted: Your cafe is sexist. The extra money will be donated to the Elizabeth Morgan House which supports Aboriginal women and children. It comes as a row broke out over the gender pay gap after the salaries of top BBC earners were revealed. The broadcaster published a full list of the 96 people who earn more than 150,000exposing a huge disparity in wages, with just one woman  Claudia Winkleman  featuring in its top ten best-paid stars.

There is a gender pay gap, the question is why? As for studies to back your argument, take your pick. The one factor that seems to jump out of every study that contributes most to the pay gap is motherhood. A large percentage of women who have babies leave the work force for 6 months to two years. Many of them get off the fast track to advancement and promotions - far more than men who have children.

Is this penalizing women for having babies? I suppose yes. But what is to be done about it? If a woman chooses to nurture her children by working fewer hours and giving less of herself to the job, what does that do to her value to the company that employs her?

Charging a "man tax" is stupid and will no doubt lead to the failure of the business. You can't antagonize 50% of your potential customers and hope to stay afloat. And as far as thinking about the unfair treatment of women, the simplemindedness of focusing exclusively on the pay gap will only convince those already disposed to supporting your position.

The workforce is changing as is the concept of work itself. Many companies are going with flex hours, shorter work weeks, and offering child care benefits. But none of these changes materially affects the wage gap because some employees will always be willing to give more to the company than others, increasing their value to the business. That most of those employees are men says more about the culture than it does discriminatory practices against women.
Drain the swamp. Clean house. However you want to put it, some major work is to be done to fix the federal bureacracy.

The Hill is reporting that some federal workers are becoming increasingly willing to criticize or defy the policy initiatives of Trump appointees.

A handful of current and former career staffers in the Interior Department and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have openly shredded their superiors within the last several weeks, continuing a trend that has developed throughout the government over the course of Trumps tenure in the Oval Office. The growing opposition in the executive branch comes as the White Houses legislative agenda has stalled in Congress and Trump turns to his Cabinet agencies to change course in several policy areas. It also is emanating from career staffers or political holdovers whose resistance to Trump has, at times, been rooted in deep opposition to the presidents agenda. From our point of view, its kind of obvious, said Jeff Ruch, the executive director of the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) group, when asked about staffers growing pushback. You have Donald Trump, who ran and said he would drain the swamp, meaning them. Trumps allies have often cast the president as the victim of the deep state, an entrenched, liberal bureaucracy bent on damaging his agenda through leaks and resistance. They argue the deep state extends from agencies such as the EPA, where employees could be angered with Trumps decision to pull out of the Paris climate deal, to career service intelligence agency staff who leak damaging information about the president. Former Speaker Newt Gingrich on Friday even accused special counsel Robert Mueller, the former FBI director now investigating Russias involvement in last years election, as representing the deep state at its worse. Conservatives are unsurprised by the opposition from federal employees. Chris Horner, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, pointed to news reports about upset employees, social media campaigns and civil disobedience training for staffers looking to push back against the White House. GOP strategist Matt Mackowiak, a contributor to The Hill, attributed the blowback to a host of factors, from the political make-up of civil servants to the use of holdover officials in government offices that are still waiting for the Senate to confirm Trump political appointees. He said there is also a real industry now behind recruiting whistleblowers inside the resistance movement, and creating public outcry about the administration.

This is nuts. Who do these people think they work for? The Civil Service Act hasn't been reformed for decades. Now's the time to do it.

Make it easier to fire these saboteurs. Much easier. Make insubordination a first time firing offense.

Force political appointees to leave on the first day of the new president's term. Sure, there would be holes to fill. But better that than defiance in carrying out policy they disagree with.

This is arrogant bureaucrats who refuse to do the job they were hired to do. The political appointees serve at the pleasure of the president. No doubt he is displeased with the actions of these arrogant bureaucrats and should make that known by firing the lot.
Lawyers, grievance groups, and their media touts are salivating at the prospect of cutting themselves in on the high technology industry, which has too few women, Hispanics, and blacks to suit them. At Google, a Department of Labor investigation into extreme gender disparities screams deep pockets to class action lawyers, and whispers, be quiet to Google executives and lawyers.

Google long has embraced progressive causes, a posture that cynics see as an attempt to buy off predation from the progressive grievance groups. On Easter Sunday in 2013, it chose to commemorate Cesar Chavez, a left wing hero.

Shhh...nobody tell Google that Chavez opposed illegal immigration because it depressed farmworker wages. That might be awkward when it comes to H1-B visas.

So, when an anonymous Google employee circulated a devastating critique of that companys wrongheaded diversity policies -- because they are based on politically correct assumptions that are inconsistent with human nature  it went internally viral. The website Motherboard was first to catch wind of the samizdat late Friday.

At least eight Google employees tweeted Friday about a document that was circulated within the company calling for replacing Google's diversity initiatives with policies that encourage "ideological diversity" instead. The document, which is the personal opinion of one senior software engineer, was shared on a company mailing list but has since gone "internally viral," according to a Google employee who spoke with Motherboard. Today's rage-read (at work): doc essentially saying that women are unsuited for tech because they like people, whilst men like things.  Aimee (@aimeeble) August 4, 2017 Motherboard has not viewed the full document, but a screenshot we reviewed shows it's titled "Google's Ideological Echo Chamber." Descriptions of its contents were tweeted publicly by Google employees, and it was described in detail to me by a Google employee, who requested anonymity because of the company's notoriously strict confidentiality agreement. (A lawsuit against the company was filed in a San Francisco court last year over the company's "spying program" to prevent leaks.)

After the story broke, Gizmodo was able to obtain and publish the full contents of the memo, minus a couple of charts. Read it there, as it is an exclusive. Here is Gizmodos summary:

In the memo, which is the personal opinion of a male Google employee and is titled Googles Ideological Echo Chamber, the author argues that women are underrepresented in tech not because they face bias and discrimination in the workplace, but because of inherent psychological differences between men and women. We need to stop assuming that gender gaps imply sexism, he writes, going on to argue that Googles educational programs for young women may be misguided.

Googles management responded with a memorandum to employees.

The author issued a response to the controversy:

I value diversity and inclusion, am not denying that sexism exists, and dont endorse using stereotypes. When addressing the gap in representation in the population, we need to look at population level differences in distributions. If we cant have an honest discussion about this, then we can never truly solve the problem. Psychological safety is built on mutual respect and acceptance, but unfortunately our culture of shaming and misrepresentation is disrespectful and unaccepting of anyone outside its echo chamber. Despite what the public response seems to have been, Ive gotten many personal messages from fellow Googlers expressing their gratitude for bringing up these very important issues which they agree with but would never have the courage to say or defend because of our shaming culture and the possibility of being fired. This needs to change.

The genie is out of the bottle at Google, and perhaps eventually in court.
The United Nations Security Council voted unanimously to impose new sanctions on North Korea. Both China and Russia, who usually oppose sanctions as being unproductive, voted with the US to slap restrictions on North Korea's export of coal, as well as limiting the number of North Korean workers who can be employed overseas.

Negotiations with China over the sanctions took place over the last few weeks, with Russia being brought in as well. The vote was a strong indication that the Security Council recognizes the huge threat that North Korea poses to its neighbors as well as the US.

Australian Broadcast Company:

The Security Council unanimously approved the sanctions on North Korea, including banning coal and other exports worth over $1 billion. The US-drafted measure, negotiated with North Korea's neighbour and ally China, is aimed at increasing economic pressure on Pyongyang to return to negotiations on its nuclear and missile programs. Mr Trump wrote on Twitter that China and Russia voted with the US to pass what he called "the single largest economic sanctions package ever" on North Korea. Mr Trump's national security adviser, HR McMaster, stressed in an interview that aired earlier in the day that it is "impossible to overstate the danger" posed by North Korea. In an interview with MSNBC's Hugh Hewitt, Mr McMaster said Mr Trump has been "deeply briefed" on the strategy on North Korea. Tensions have mounted with Pyongyang's two recent successful tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles. Mr McMaster reiterated the administration's position that all options, including a targeted military strike, are on the table. Still, he acknowledged this "would be a very costly war, in terms of  terms of the suffering of mainly the South Korean people". McMaster continued: "So what we have to do is  is everything we can to  to pressure this regime, to pressure Kim Jong Un and those around him such that they conclude it is in their interest to denuclearise." The comments came as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was in the Philippines for a regional summit expected to focus heavily on concerns with North Korea. Mr Tillerson has no plans to sit down with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho at the event. He said this week that such talks would have to be predicated on the North giving up its nuclear weapons aspirations and that the conditions for such talks have not yet been met by North Korea's Government.

Make no mistake, this is a very big deal. China is the single biggest buyer of North Korean coal and cutting off exports will severely impact the North Korean economy - as if it already isn't a basket case. But it's a good start.

The US-drafted resolution bans North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It also prohibits countries from increasing the current numbers of North Korean laborers working abroad, bans new joint ventures with North Korea and any new investment in current joint ventures. "We should not fool ourselves into thinking we have solved the problem. Not even close," US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told the council.

Russia wanted assurances that the US would not attempt regime change or try to reunite the Korean peninsula, while Beijing wanted to water down some of the restrictions fearing an economic collapse of the Kim regime would lead to a tidal wave of refugees pouring into China.

In the end, the principles were on the same page and the rest of the Council went along.

Kudos to UN Ambassador Nikki Haley who did most of the leg work on the sanctions resolution. Her success highlights just how seriously the international community views the threat of the Kim regime.
Brett McGurk, the Department of States senior envoy to the anti-Islamic State coalition, told the Washington Post that President Trump's policies are directly responsible for the significant gains made by the anti-ISIS coalition in the last 6 months.

Trump tweeted:

Daily Caller:

Brett McGurk, the Department of States senior envoy to the anti-Islamic State coalition, said Friday that Trumps policies, including delegating decision-making to U.S. military commanders in the field, have dramatically accelerated progress against the militant group. About a third of territory captured from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria since 2014 has been taken in the past six months, according to McGurk. Trump publicized that assessment on Twitter, sharing The Washington Posts story, headlined, Under Trump, gains against ISIS have dramatically accelerated.' McGurk told reporters Friday that ISIS losses in Iraq and Syria add up to about 27,000 square miles of territory from the groups peak holdings in 2015. About 8,000 square miles of that territory have been retaken under Trump, he said. The anti-ISIS envoy said delegating authority to commanders in theater has allowed U.S. forces to be more responsive to changing conditions on the ground. The administrations campaign of annihilation  promoted by Defense Secretary James Mattis  has put U.S.-backed forces on the verge of victory in Raqqa, the principal ISIS stronghold in Syria. McGurk said Friday he expects that 2,000 militants most likely will die in Raqqa. McGurk, who was envoy to the anti-ISIS coalition during the Obama administration, said Trumps polices have also lead to progress on the humanitarian front. The displacement of civilians in Syria and Iraq has nearly stopped, and hundreds of thousands of previously displaced people have been able to return to their homes in territory once controlled by ISIS, McGurk said.

The progress has not come without cost. Civilian deaths in Syria and Iraq are up 60% in the last six months. But the terrorists have been using civilians as human shields for years. Taking the shackles off the military may have led to more civilian casualties, but it has also brought this phase of the war nearer to an end.

And it's not like we're targeting civilians like President Assad and the Russians. The collateral damage is a direct result of ISIS hiding behind the skirts of women. The terrorists hoped that international outrage about civilian deaths would drive the US out of Syria. Instead, it has encouraged members of the anti-ISIS coalition to redouble their efforts to end the carnage as quickly as possible.

With Raqqa on the brink of being captured by the coalition, strategists are looking ahead to the next phase of the conflict with ISIS which is more likely to be played out on the streets of Europe than on a battlefield in the Middle East. Estimates are that there will be up to 20,000 ISIS fighters that will survive being kicked out of Syria and Iraq. Some will almost certainly make their way to Europe and the US.

Their defeat will only embolden them to attack civilian targets around the world, making it much more difficult to wipe the scourge of ISIS off the face of the earth.
For years, it's been assumed that despite its depredations, Venezuela was a sovereign state and its leaders elected democratically. The worst that was ever said was that Venezuela's leader (at the time, Hugo Chavez) "was elected democratically but does not govern democratically," as former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and later President Obama each said. As for Venezuela's neighbors, most never even said that much, they just went along with whatever Chavez dished out, not wanting Chavez to stir up revolution in their own countries in retaliation.

Well, now it's coming back to bite.

Reuters reports:

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Venezuela's deepening political and economic crisis has provoked a surge of asylum seekers to Mexico this year, government figures show, with applications to stay in Mexico setting a record pace. During just the first six months of this year, 1,420 Venezuelans have sought asylum in Mexico, a nearly four-fold jump compared to the 361 total Venezuelan asylum applicants for all of 2016. No Venezuelans applied for asylum in Mexico in 2014 or 2015. "It's not normal for so many Venezuelans to come here," Socorro Flores, Mexico deputy foreign minister for Latin America and the Caribbean, told Reuters in an interview.

Venezuela is in a crisis now, chiefly fueled by that curse of all socialism, what Lady Thatcher described as "running out of other people's money."

Refugees are pouring out of that country at a furious pace, in their millions, with some ten percent of the country's 28 million people already out. Venezuela is the number one country for asylum claims in the U.S. now, and a very high number of refugees.

The first waves. of educated people, are over, now it's the poor who are running. And it's those very poor who make up the human waves that are now the logical consequence of the Venezuelan socialist experiment. Most nations were content with this scenario, certain that the U.S. would pick up the pieces, what with its look-the-other-way illegal immigration policy, and Colombia, with its geographic proximity.

Turns out it's a lot more nations than just those. Brazil has reported its borderlands flooded with Venezuelan refugees and Peru has seen a stark rise in refugee claims. Central America, particularly Panama, sees many asylum claims, too, But now it seems the refugee wave has spread to Mexico.

Yes, some may be headed to the U.S. But because it is a real refugee crisis, and not one of these events cooked up by asylum NGOs as seen in Europe, it's a reality that the refugees will run any place that will take them. Mexico is now being flooded. You can bet most other nations in the vicinity are, too.

This is the wages of ignoring a blatantly growing dictatorship as none of one's business and assuming any refugees that come of it will be some other country's problem. Mexico will just have to deal with the consequences of its own unwillingnes to look at the hellhole in its midst.
Martin Shkreli convicted on 3 counts in fraud case

Martin Shkreli, aka Pharma Bro, has been found guilty of three felony criminal charges, including securities fraud. He was cleared of five other charges at a court in New York.

The Washington Post notes:

Were delighted in many ways, Shkreli said outside the courtroom, saying he was glad to be exonerated on many of the charges. This was a witch hunt of epic proportions, he said. They may have found some broomsticks.

What with this being America, Shkreli, 34, will most likely not serve any time in prison  the maximum terms behind bars for his crimes is 20 years  and just pay his way out.

The mixed decision perplexed many in the courtroom, including the 34-year-old Shkreli, who first drew widespread public scorn in 2015 for raising the price of a lifesaving drug by more than 5,000 percent. You will recall Shrekli from his ealier work, outlined by CNBC: The charges against Shkreli were unrelated to his decision, while CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, to raise the price of the drug Daraprim from $13.50 per pill to $750 per pill in 2015.

Spiking the price of the life-saving drug earned Shrekli the sobriquet The Most Hated Man In America.

Was he hard done by? Fortune writes:

Robert C. Hockett, a Cornell University law professor, said the U.S. Justice Department is still smarting from criticism that it didnt hold top executives accountable after the widespread fraud leading to the 2007 financial crisis. With limited resources, prosecutors also often factor in extreme moral turpitude as a tie-breaker in cases where its not clear whether to move forward, he said. Zealously pursuing a notorious and widely loathed character like Shkreli offers a great deal of bang for the buck where demonstrating prosecutorial seriousness is concerned, Hockett said.

Hes served his purpose. Will he do his time?

Anorak

Posted: 6th, August 2017 | In: Money Comment | TrackBack | Permalink


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Spanish vice president Soraya Saenz de Santamaria apparently told Catalan MP Jordi Xucla that her government would win the conflict culminating on October 1 by ten to nil. However, I believe that the ambition for a 10-0 winning score reaches much further. In a pursuit that started a long time ago, Spains Partido Popular wants to win, unopposed, the war to bring back the same old unitary Spain that was upset by the transition to democracy after General Francos death, just like in 1931. A word of warning: I do not believe that Spains elite and public opinion are homogenous. I would not play down the differences between the PP and the PSOE or Podemos, nor the various attitudes towards Catalonia among conservatives or on the left. Having said that, though, it is equally true that regrettably Spains nationalistic right has set the agenda and dominates, to a great extent, the political initiative and discourse.

The notion of the State embodied by the PP simply cannot tolerate difference. It cannot even tolerate Gibraltar. The PP wishes to travel back to the past and drag us along in the process. Starting with their first outright majority in 2000, they have been permanently campaigning for this objective. And, as I said, they want a ten-to-nil win. Their campaign strategy is divided into four phases:

Firstly, they aim to re-centralise Spain and effectively end regional home rule. They have made much progress in that direction. For instance and this was no coincidence, the first decision taken by the PP government in 2011 was to halt the process whereby Barcelonas airport would have been managed individually. And recently and perhaps more importantly the deplorable Committee of experts on Spains regional finance system (1) has agreed that the Ministry of Finance should be given carte blanche in exchange for absolutely nothing, with the sole outright opposition of the Balearics and the absence of the Catalan representative. It was pathetic.

Secondly, the PP intends to break Catalonia and bring her in line with their unitary system, and it has been an uphill struggle. They hope that Catalonia will be like a French region and Barcelona, like Lyon. Not only are French regions entirely dependent on Paris, but they are also happy to be that way. This is the PP leaderships dream. And when it comes to the Catalan language, you only need to look at what they have been encouraging in Valencia and the Balearics: turning it into a picturesque, degraded patois. Make no mistake: once they have got rid of the current system of devolved regional governments, they will not allow a Catalan exception. In the past they set up a system of 17 autonomous regions precisely to avoid making an exception with Catalonia (Catalonia is a nation but so is everyone else) and now they are disposing of it with the same intention (We are not a nation, and neither is Catalonia).

If they manage to liquidate the Catalan difference, the third phase will involve eroding the Basque Countrys home rule. I am not sure if the Basques realise this, but Catalonias resistance is what safeguards their exceptionality. At the moment it suits the PP to conceal their intent (Ciudadanos are more transparent about it). But as far as the essentialist unitary State, nothing is forever. No exceptions will be made.

The fourth phase is, in fact, an ongoing effort: the aggrandising of Madrid city. Granting the Spanish capital a unique deal is not exceptional, but part and parcel of the political architecture promoted by centralism. This is routinely taken to an exasperating extreme. The fact that Madrid hoards all of the States institutions is not enough. They also want it to have the best infrastructures and to become the natural habitat of the wealthy and the economys decision-making centres. That is why Madrid needs to be allowed a more favourable fiscal system than Spains provinces. One of the conclusions drawn by the Committee of experts actually makes sense: inheritance tax must be harmonised across Spain. Yet they wont do it. As a matter of fact, the new regional finance system will likely perpetuate Madrids fiscal exception (my apologies: its necessary preeminence).

And that is where they intend to get to. They believe this avenue will open up, provided they win on October 1 by ten to nil. Some of my friends think that Catalonia has acted in haste, that the CUPs support is troublesome, that the outcome of the election on September 27 did not allow for any definite dates to be set. In other words: we have made mistakes. I tell them that I can share their views, but that neither them nor I want, here and now, the Spanish vice president to win ten to nil. Therefore, on October 1 we must stage a massive, peaceful show of democratic dignity so that on October 2 we may get up in the morning holding our heads high and with a morale boost.



Translators notes:

(1) A revised finance system for Spains regional governments is long overdue.
Taiwan-based company Foxconn might be coming to Wisconsin. Foxconn is best known for assembling Apple iPhones in China. Thats not what would be made at the Wisconsin plant. It would manufacture liquid crystal display screens used in computers, televisions self-driving cars, aircraft systems and other products if they build here.

Why wouldnt they build it? Foxconn has promised to build plants around the world and backed out. Foxconn promised in 2013 to invest $30 million and hire 500 workers for a new factory in Pennsylvania that was never built. Foxconn also had promised to build plants in Vietnam, India and Indonesia.

Wisconsins offer to Foxconn includes up to $1.5 billion in income tax credits for job creation, $1.35 billion in income tax credits for capital investment and up to $150 million in sales tax exemptions for the purchase of construction materials, and it will pay no corporate income tax in Wisconsin.

Not a bad deal is it? Wouldnt you like a deal like that especially if you had revenues of $132 billion last year.

And you may wish to think about this. In an editorial on Sunday July 30, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel informed us that in all likelihood the state of Wisconsin (you and I) will write a check for $200 million over the next 15 years to Foxconn.

I have several fundamental questions. First why would Foxconn choose to build in Racine and or Kenosha counties? (Guess where Speaker of the House Paul Ryans district is?) Why would Wisconsin pump such money as a gift to Foxconn? (They promise to create 13,000 jobs). Could Wisconsin use the $3 billion to help our own citizens? (probably).

The most fundamental question I have is why should I, in the village of Lake Hallie, subsidize jobs in the southeast part of the state again? If you want to bring jobs to Wisconsin, what is wrong with Chippewa County? Where was Congressman Sean Duffy or for that matter Ron Kind? That answer is simple in the scheme of things Sean Duffy is so far down the ladder in Congress the leadership does not know he exists, and Ron Kind is a Democrat.

Household income in the Eau Claire Metro Area is $50,611 while in the Racine/Kenosha area it is $54,142. I think household income up here could us a $4,000 boost, dont you? Of course you could call your area state legislator and ask them to put the heat on Gov. Walker, Assembly Speaker Robin Voss or Scott Fitzgerald the Senate Majority Leader, but you are wasting your time and theirs. Its a done deal.

This area of Wisconsin probably has the most experience with the electronics, computer and associated assemblies. The one caution we have all learned up here is that todays electronic fad is tomorrows electronic bust. Chippewa County has a dedicated workforce, and heaven knows that people need jobs up here, but we never quite seem to make the cut.

We in Chippewa County had better wake up to the fact that we dont count. It does not matter who we send to Madison from up here. Oh sure, the governor comes up every so often, and the presidential candidates fly in for campaign stops. They pat us on the head, but after that we are just a collection of blue skies, deer, pine trees and wood ticks.

The last and only senator from Chippewa County was Alexander Wiley, who served from 1939 to 1963. He lost to Gaylord Nelson, and Chippewa County faded into history. It is time to ask any political candidate who beats on your door, Tell me not what you will do for the country/state but tell me what you will do for Chippewa County.

The good Governor Walker can count me among, in his words, a lemon sucker. The nice thing about sucking a lemon is you know exactly what you are getting. The lemon tells you the truth about itself, and you know the cost of the lemon.

I may be a minority in this state, but I am tired of subsidizing profitable corporations who promise big and dont deliver. Yes I appreciate bringing jobs to this state, but for $3 billion, we have other priorities like roads, health care and the Cobban Bridge.
You have to wonder a little why Lucy Kirkwoods new play (at the Dorfman, National Theatre, directed by the NTs head honcho, Rufus Norris) is called Mosquitoes. The nasty wee beasties are the special research interest of one of the minor characters in this drama of love and loss against a background of trailblazing science  and his big idea is to wipe out malaria by targeting the mosquito at the point in its life cycle that it actually becomes dangerous. To which his interlocutor replies: Kill the old and save the young! Its brilliant. In one way, however, its a conceit too far; the converse happens in this gripping few hours in the round, with its sometimes alarming theatrical bells and whistles (by designer Katrina Lindsay, lighting designer Paule Constable, composer Adam Cork and video designers Finn Ross and Ian William Galloway) representing nothing less than the Large Hadron Collider and the search for the Higgs Boson particle.

Kirkwood, the hugely gifted 30-something British playwright who has previously given us the post-Tiananmen Square Chimerica and the post-Apocalypse The Children, now takes us to Geneva where a pair of sisters, Jenny, played by Olivia Colman and Alice, played by Olivia Williams, prove that their mutual chemistry is at least as worthy of our attention as the greatest-ever experiment in high energy particle physics, which is going on under their feet. Its not just incidents of sibling rivalry set against the hunt for the Higgs Boson; its the children who suffer collateral damage.

Alice is a physicist working at CERN in Geneva, whose husband has left her and their clever son Luke; he hates his school and is having the sort of troubled adolescence only made possible by the invention of the smartphone. He is superbly portrayed by Joseph Quinn, who captures exactly the gawky body language of a 17-year-old boy, and adds to it just enough abrupt movement that we wonder whether he isnt a touch on the spectrum himself. Though warm and motherly, Alice is sacrificing Luke, who longs to return to England, to her own career. She appears to be stable, with her black Swiss boyfriend, Henri (Yoli Fuller), and the respect of her colleagues. The two Olivias are the stars of the moment, and Kirkwood has made them opposites. Alices insecurities and emotional wobbles only emerge slowly in the course of the play; Jenny wears hers on the sleeves of the coat she wears on her trip with their mother, Karen, from Luton to Geneva in September, 2008.

Theyve come because Jenny is in grief for the loss of her infant daughter. But the timing is not entirely convenient for Alice, as the day of their arrival is the very day the massed scientists are expecting to detect the first beam of protons racing around the Hadron Collider. Kirkwood has written a puzzling scene in which a vain TV journalist, who thinks she understands the science, tries to get one of the boffins to admit that they might have constructed a black hole factory, which will result in Armageddon.

It takes a little recollection in tranquillity to see that this is parallel to Jennys situation. Her daughter has died because she believed the wicked doctor (so recently in the news), and the naive, vile campaign linking the MMRI vaccine with autism (which began with a fraudulent research paper in 1998), and did not have her baby inoculated with the MMRI vaccine. Who is to blame? Jenny, for getting and believing her information from Googling? (Is Jenny really as thick as Alice so frequently says she is  as reflected in Jenny reminding Alice of her prejudice that Im Forrest Gump and youre the Wizard of fucking Oz) Or, as Jenny says, is Alice to blame for not insisting that the baby be immunised  as Alice is the only person from whom Jenny would take orders? But is the plays centre the quality of information  the science-blind fools who prattle on about creating black holes and vaccines causing autism? Or is it the family bonds  between the sisters, between them and their mother, Karen (a fine performance by Amanda Boxer), or between Luke and his mother and aunt? Karen, who fears encroaching dementia, has her own family issues  she blames her scientist husband for cheating her of the Nobel Prize that was rightly hers. Poor Luke has his problems, too. Betrayed by his attractive, intelligent sixteen-year-old, sexting girlfriend, his amour propre is restored by his Aunt Jenny in an inspired comic scene, almost as melancholy-funny as the spanking administered to Jenny herself by her aged mother.

There is another major character in the play, called the Boson (Paul Hilton) hes the Higgs, ok, but theres a hint that hes also Alices estranged husband and Lukes father. The ambiguity is pleasing, but the characters role less so. Its The Bosons job to set the scientific scene, starting with the Creation in Act I and going on to list five ways for the world to end in Act III, in a two-page monologue. The tech guys do a wonderful job of illustrating his speech with sound, lights and projections  but my sole criticism of this riveting drama is how much better it would be if this necessary narrative task had been achieved in dialogue. Theres an enormous amount of sheer information that has to be conveyed by Rufus Norriss production, and while The Boson might not be the ideal means of doing this, the staging is elastic and crisp. Although its hard to imagine a less likely or more moving account of dysfunctional family chemistry against a background of particle physics, like all the best plays involving science, from Faustus to Copenhagen, Lucy Kirkwood succeeds in making the far-fetched feel awfully familiar.
Cognizant has a total of 2.56 lakh workforce in India and it is estimated that a major chunk of these 400 people could be Indians.

New Delhi: About 400 senior executives of Cognizant have accepted the company's voluntary separation package (VSP), a move that the US-based company said will help it save about USD 60 million annually.

In May, the company had initiated a voluntary separation programme, offering up to nine months of salary as part of it to some of its top-level executives in the US and India.

Cognizant has a significant chunk of its total 2.56 lakh workforce in India and it is estimated that of the 400 people who opted for the separation, a large number could be from India.

However, the company did not disclose the number of Indian executives who have accepted the offer. "Of the USD 39 million of realignment charges, USD 35 million was for the roughly 400 associates who accepted our VSP. We expect approximately USD 60 million of annualised savings as a result of the VSP," Cognizant CFO Karen McLoughlin said at a recent investor call.

She added that Cognizant expects to incur additional cost related to advisory fees, severance, lease termination, and facility consolidation costs in the remaining part of 2017.

McLoughlin said the company has also made "good headway" in the June quarter driving utilisation rates higher by "slowing the pace of our hiring and improving resource alignment" to its re-skilling and multi-skilling programmes.

She explained that these "adjustments" will help improve the company's profitability.

Cognizant's overall headcount decreased by about 4,400 people at the end of June from March 2017 quarter, even though it had hired 10,800 people (gross) during the June quarter.

"Our attrition level was higher than normal given reductions resulting from performance evaluations and the voluntary separation programme," McLoughlin said.

She added that while the company will carefully manage headcount, it will continue to hire and invest in critical skills needed to grow Cognizant's digital business.

The annualised attrition rate for Cognizant stood at 23.6 per cent, including BPO and trainees, during the June quarter from 17.1 per cent in the year-ago period. "... We expect attrition to decline in the coming months," she said.

The over USD 13 billion-Cognizant has also raised the lower end of its revenue outlook for the year and now expects its topline to grow 9-10 per cent, instead of 8-10 per cent growth expected earlier.

This confidence, it said, is based on the "strong first- half results" that were driven by robust growth in verticals like healhcare and digital services.

Cognizant President Rajeev Mehta said the company is investing "tens of millions of dollars" this year to continuously deepen and broaden skills in areas like analytics, artificial intelligence, data science, and digital security.
The appointment came after former NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya on August 1 decided to resign.

Dr Rajiv Kumar was declared as the new Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog.

New Delhi: Economist Dr Rajiv Kumar was on Saturday night named as the new Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog, five days after the incumbent Arvind Panagariya announced that he would quit to return to academics.

The government also appointed Dr Vinod Paul, a paediatrician at the AIIMS, as a member of the NITI Aayog, an official spokesman said.

Kumar, who holds a DPhil in economics from Oxford and a PhD from Lucknow University, is a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research (CPR).

Earlier, he was Secretary General of the FICCI and had also served as Director and Chief Executive of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER).

He was a member of the National Security Advisory Board between 2006 and 2008.

He has also served as the chief economist of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and held senior positions in the the Asian Development Bank, the Indian Ministry of Industries, and the Ministry of Finance.

Kumar is also a member of boards of several international and national institutions, including the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Riyadh, the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and Asia in Jakarta, the State Bank of India, and the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.

Paul has done substantial work in public health.

The appointment for the post of NITI Aayog Vice Chairman was necessitated as the incumbent Panagariya on August 1 had announced that he will leave the government think tank on August 31 and return to Columbia University.

Panagariya, an Indian-American, had joined as the Niti Aayog in January 2015.
The Ministry of Health has also appointed a nodal officer for the GST and is working to disseminate information to all stakeholders.

New Delhi: People may have to shell out more for availing of some of the healthcare services such as dialysis, pacemaker implantation, support devices in orthopaedics and cancer treatment due to levying of the GST, the Union Health Ministry has said.

The GST cell of the Ministry has said this on its website in answer to one of the frequently asked questions on the Goods and Services Tax and its impact on the health sector.

However, in reply to another question, the ministry has said that life-saving drugs, healthcare services, and medical devices would continue to be tax-free under the GST. "Dialysis (5 to 12 per cent), pacemaker (5.5 to 12-18 per cent), support devices in orthopaedics (5 to 12 per cent), and all support devices for cancers except blood cancer (5 to 7-12 per cent) are the services that will face increased taxation due to GST," the ministry said in reply to the question as to what are the services likely to cost more due to the GST.

According to a government official, diagnostic kits, except for those used in the detection of Hepatitis and radiology machines, will come under the high-end ambit of 28 per cent tax and thus diagnosis will get costlier.

As far as medical tourism is concerned, with the rollout of the GST, the cost of insurance, pharmaceuticals and international travel is expected to come down which would result in better prospects for medical tourism in the country.

The Ministry of Health has also appointed a nodal officer for the GST and is working to disseminate information to all stakeholders and address their concern.
Gadkari said Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but will link India to Afghanistan and then Russia.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that once Chabahar Port in Iran becomes operational, there will be no looking back as it will be a gateway to golden opportunities.

New Delhi: Keen on rolling out infrastructure projects in Iran and Afghanistan, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that once Chabahar Port in Iran becomes operational, there will be no looking back as it will be a gateway to golden opportunities.

As a special envoy of India, deputed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Road Transport and Shipping Minister Gadkari is in Tehran and represented India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani for the second term.

"Talks are on for building railways and roads through Chabahar till Afghanistan and then we have access to Russia. Once Chabahar is operationalised, which we are hopeful to be in 12 to 18 months time, it will prove to be a gateway to golden opportunities to boost trade and business," Gadkari told PTI.

Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation's southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from India's western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

"We are hopeful of ratification of Trilateral Transit and Transport Agreement by Iran and once approvals are given, the work will start," Gadkari said.

The trilateral pact was inked during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tehran in May 2016.

The pact envisages establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor between India, Iran and Afghanistan using Chabahar Port as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran besides multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.

The Cabinet and the President had ratified the pact in November and December, 2016 respectively.

A government official said Afghanistan has also ratified it but Iran is yet to complete the internal processes of the ratification. Gadkari said operationalisation of the Port will not accelerate the infrastructure projects but will be a "win-win situation" for the nations as it would give tremendous boost to trade and offer vast opportunities to investors.

"Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but we will be closer to Afghanistan and then Russia....We can export goods till Russia. This will be a direct route," he said.

India has already built the Zaranj-Delaram Road in Afghanistan where the cargo reaching Zehedan can connect to.

"The rail route is aimed at connecting the existing rail network of Iran at Zahedan, and subsequently to Mashad in north area, thereby providing access to Turkmenistan as well as northern Afghanistan through its connection to the Bafq- Mashad route," an official said.

This project will significantly enhance the opportunity for trade and business among the nations.

Chabahar-Zahedan Railway line project is located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province in eastern Iran.

Gadkari's visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work on the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at the port. "Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine," the minister had said.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including a USD 150 million credit from Exim Bank.

It also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of USD 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of USD 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of the equipment will be transferred to the Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of USD 150 million in accordance with the MoU.

As per the pact, operations of the two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract.

Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest USD 500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.
The actor said after his National Award win, his wife Twinkle Khanna has stopped taunting him about not getting awards.

Akshay Kumar and Twinkle Khanna have two children, Aarav and Nitara.

Jaipur: Akshay Kumar said after his National Award win, his wife Twinkle Khanna, who is the daughter of Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia, has stopped taunting him about not getting awards.

Akshay won the Best Actor award for 'Rustom' at the 64th National Film Awards.

"My wife used to taunt me that all her family members have got several awards but not me. The taunting stopped when I got the National award," the 49-year-old actor quipped during an education festival here on Saturday.

When asked about his take on documentary films, the actor said very few people watch documentaries, but such films give important messages.

Akshay said he feels very connected to the city of Jaipur as he has shot several films here.
According to the BMC, there were at least 491 confirmed cases of swine flu in Mumbai till early July.

Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan and his wife Kiran Rao have contracted swine flu. The actor, who was scheduled to appear at the Satyamev Jayate Water Cup Awards in Pune on Sunday, informed those attending the event through video-conferencing that he had contracted the H1N1 virus.

Mr Khans illness went viral on social media site Twitter, after senior journalist Anupama Chopra tweeted that the actor and his wife Kiran, would not be able to make it to the Pune event due to swine flu. In her tweet, she said, Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao couldnt be here because of swine flu. The actor is believed to have requested Shahrukh Khan to attend the event on his behalf, Ms Chopra informed.

Mr Khan confirmed his illness through video conferencing, saying, After so much of hard work, we were waiting for this event the entire year. When the time came for us to celebrate, we are ill, with swine flu. Such illnesses spread rapidly, which is why we chose not to come. I and Kiran will have to remain in the house for an entire week, he said.

Swine flu, a vector-borne disease, has so far claimed 330 lives in Maharashtra, making it the worst swine flu-hit state in the country. According to the BMC, there were at least 491 confirmed cases of swine flu in Mumbai till early July.
Besides Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan coming together for a brief moment yet again in Aanand L. Rais next, the two actresses may star together too.

If words to be believed, Aanand L. Rais yet untitled next was originally christened Katrina Meri Jaan. The actress, obviously a part of the movie, was also rumoured to be starring as herself. Interestingly, Anushka Sharma too is supposed to be a part of the movie.

At the trailer launch of Aanands production Shubh Mangal Savdhan, he was asked about his ambitious project and he said, Right now, weve finished a few portions with Shah Rukh Khan, and have completed a song as well. Probably by next month we will be shooting some portions with Katrina. It will be in Mumbai, as well as outstation.

Confirming Anushkas portions in the movie, Aanand said, After having finished Katrinas portions, Anushkas portions will be shot some time in October. On being prodded about the movie further, Aanand smiled, You need to wait and watch!

The movie, which will have Shah Rukh starring as a dwarf, will be a story of a small town man, who sets out to meet his Bollywood idol. Whats more interesting now is that besides Anushka and Katrina, the film has a cameo by Salman Khan.

They may be foes-turned-friends, but Shah Rukh has already made a cameo in Tubelight, and Salman seems to be returning the favour.

Confirming the news, our source says, A song sequence was being picturised in the Yash Raj studios. Salman and SRK shared the screen space in this dance sequence, and had innumerable dancers around. It was really amazing to watch both acting spontaneously. However, we cannot give away the lyrics of the song. Its been rendered by ace musician, Pritam.

On condition of anonymity, another source adds, The film is being shot very aesthetically. SRK is shown as a dwarf and with VFX, watching it on the screen looks utterly magnificent.

Now with SRK and Salman sharing screen space, will Anushka and Katrina too be in the same frame, after having missed the connection in Jab Tak hai Jaan? Only time will tell.
Abdullah has revealed that a person named Faizan is the one running the mission.

Lucknow: After the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) nabbed a Bangladeshi national from Muzaffarnagar on Sunday morning, the Additional Director General (ADG) of UP said that the main suspect is still absconding.

Speaking at a press conference, Anand Kumar, ADG Law and Order in Uttar Pradesh said that the arrested Bangladeshi national, named Abdullah, has revealed that a person named Faizan is the one running the mission.

"He named quite a few people during inspection and named a guy called Faizan. Faizal inspired him to do all this. When we raided Faizan's home, he wasn't there but we found quite a few objectionable objects," he said.

Kumar added that all the evidence found in Faizan's house points towards a Bangladesh-based terrorist organization named 'Ansarullah Bangla team'.

According to Kumar, this organization helps Bangladeshis enter India illegally and provides them with employment opportunities. He also said that Ansarullah has been banned in Bangladesh.

The UP ATS along with Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and Shamli police is carrying out an arrest and investigation drive in three districts on the order of Saharanpur Deputy inspector general of police.
The ATS teams of Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and the local police of Shamli are conducting searches after Abdullahs arrest.

File photo of suspected Bangladeshi terrorist Abdullah, associated with Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Anti Terrorist Squad from Muzaffarnagar. (Photo: PTI)

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh anti-terrorist squad on Sunday arrested a suspected Bangladeshi terrorist, associated with the Islamic extremist group Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), Muzaffarnagar district.

UPs ADG (law and order) Anand Kumar told reporters here that the man, identified as Abdullah, was held from Muzaffarnagar district, and that fake stamps, documents related to bomb-making and other incriminating documents were recovered from his possession.

IG (ATS) Asim Arun said Abdullah had been arrested from the Kutesara locality in the Charthawal area of Muzaffarnagar district, where he had been staying.

The UP ATS said Abdullah had entered India illegally and that the police had recovered an Aadhaar card and a passport from him. He is also said to have arranged fake identification documents for many others. He had earlier been staying in Saharanpur since 2011.

Preliminary interrogation has revealed that Abdullah used to help militants, primarily from Bangladesh, get safe passage in India by getting fake identification documents made for them. Three others have been called in for questioning over the matter.

The Ansarullah Bangla Team is a Bangladeshi militant outfit inspired by Al Qaeda. Among other crimes, it is believed to be behind the series of attacks and murders targeting atheist bloggers in Bangladesh.

The ATS teams of Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and the local police of Shamli are conducting searches after Abdullahs arrest.

During interrogation, Abdullah told the ATS sleuths that he used to prepare fake identity proofs with the help of one Faizan, a resident of Deoband, IG Asim Arun said. Based on this, Faizans house in Deoband was searched but he was not found there, the ATS official said. However, a lot of jihadi literature in Bangla, literature on the making of bombs, a colour printer and a number of fake IDs had been recovered from there, he added.
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The government of India will deal with China in its own way, but we must boycott Chinese goods, says Indresh Kumar.

Its no secret that New Delhi suspects that the proposed road that China wants to build through Doklam in Bhutanese territory will bring Chinese troops closer to Indias Chicken neck that connects the heartland with Indias north-eastern states. (Photo: Twitter | ANI)

New Delhi: Chinese hopes of an early harvest in signing a new boundary convention with India to finalise the Sino-Indian border in the Sikkim sector have received a severe setback in the wake of the Doklam stand-off.

Its no secret that New Delhi suspects that the proposed road that China wants to build through Doklam in Bhutanese territory will bring Chinese troops closer to Indias Chicken neck that connects the heartland with Indias north-eastern states. China regards Doklam as its territory and calls it Dong Lang.

The Chinese and Indian sides have been in discussion on making the boundary in the Sikkim sector an early harvest in the settlement of the entire boundary question during the meetings between the special representatives on the China-India boundary question, the Chinese foreign ministry had recently said in a 15-page fact-sheet on the Doklam stand-off that was released from Beijing. New Delhis position is that while the status of Sikkim as a part of India has been decided and recognised by China, the exact border in the Sikkim sector is yet to be mutually agreed on by both sides.

But the Chinese action in Doklam - which both India and Bhutan regard as Bhutanese territory - have put New Delhi on alert. Consequently, Chinas hope of an early settlement on the border in the Sikkim sector is expected to be dashed, given the tension generated by Beijings belligerence in the six week-long Sino-Indian military stand-off in the Doklam area.

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj had recently informed Parliament, During the 8th special representatives meeting in June 2006, the Chinese side had in fact handed over a non-paper for separate agreement on the boundary in Sikkim sector. The non-paper had proposed that both sides may, based on the above mentioned historical treaty, i.e. 1890 Convention, verify and determine the specific alignment of the Sikkim sector and produce a common record.

The minister had added, On this basis as the initial result of the boundary settlement, both sides may negotiate a final agreement on the boundary alignment in the Sikkim sector to replace the historical treaty. Subsequently, in the special representatives meeting, the Chinese side has made the proposal for finalising the boundary in Sikkim sector terming it as an early harvest of the special representatives process, thus clearly confirming that the boundary in the Sikkim sector is not yet finalised. Otherwise they would not have used this term early harvest, as we say, low hanging fruit.
The ED had registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Mr Shah and Wani.

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Sunday arrested Mohammad Aslam Wani, an alleged hawala dealer, in connection with a decade-old case pertaining to alleged hawala terror financing that involved separatist Shabir Shah.

Sources in the Central probe agency said Wani was arrested from Srinagar by the ED sleuths with the help of the Jammu & Kashmir police. The ED recently got a non-bailable warrant issued against him from a Delhi court. The agency also issued multiple summons for his appearance in the case, but he never made an appearance.

The warrant has been executed and Wani will now be confronted with Mr Shah and others to take the probe forward, sources said.

Mr Shah, in custody, was similarly picked up by ED from Srinagar on July 26. The ED action against the two was in pursuance of an August 2005 case, wherein the Delhi polices special cell had arrested Wani, an alleged hawala dealer, who had claimed that he passed on `2.25 crore to Mr Shah.

In 2010, a Delhi court had cleared Wani of terror funding charges, but had convicted him under the Arms Act.

The ED had registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Mr Shah and Wani.

Wani was arrested allegedly with cash worth Rs 63 lakh, received through hawala from the West Asia and a large cache of ammunition on August 26, 2005.

During questioning, he told the police that Rs 50 lakh was to be delivered to Mr Shah and Rs 10 lakh to Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) area commander in Srinagar Abu Baqar and the rest was his (Wani) commission.

Wani, who hails from Srinagar, had claimed he delivered around `2.25 crore to Mr Shah and his kin in multiple instalments over the past year. As per sources, in this case, the ED wanted to investigate into the proceeds of crime of alleged terror financing.
Pakistan would not compromise over the issue of Kashmir, says Khawaja Asif.

Islamabad: Pakistan foreign minister Khawaja Asif on Sunday alleged that India was disturbing the situation at the western border, besides at Line of Control (LoC).

Speaking to reporters in Sialkot, Mr Asif said that Pakistani government wanted to normalise ties with India but the neighbouring government was not taking any step towards it. Indian troops are violating ceasefire at LoC and the government is also pushing for disturbance at the western end, he said.

The foreign minister said ties between Pakistan and India could improve with one-sided efforts of Pakistan. Pakistan is fighting terrorism for many decades and the armed forces are to be accredited for the successful curbing of violence and terror attacks across the country, he added.

He alleged that the atrocities in Kashmir continued to take place, adding that Pakistan would not compromise over the issue of Kashmir. Mr Asif said peace in India and Pakistan was linked to Kashmir and without resolving the issue durable peace could not be achieved. He said that the foreign policy was in line with the wishes of Pakistanis and the countrys interests. The minister said that efforts were underway to bring relations with India back on track but Pakistan was not getting a positive answer. Mr Khawaja Asif was named the new foreign minister last week.
All passengers were asked to alight from the aircraft at Jodhpur, following which it was thoroughly searched by authorities as per rules.

The aircraft was flying on the Delhi-Jodhpur-Jaipur sector. The passenger was handed over to authorities at Jodhpur for his misbehaviour and threat.

New Delhi: A male passenger on an Air India flight claiming to be an officer from one of the three services threatened that he had planted a bomb in the aircraft after his request to suddenly disembark at Jodhpur was turned down by both airline staff and security personnel at the Jodhpur airport.

The passenger had purchased a ticket for Jaipur. The aircraft was flying on the Delhi-Jodhpur-Jaipur sector. The passenger was handed over to authorities at Jodhpur for his misbehaviour and threat.

When the aircraft (flight AI-475) with 175 passengers on board landed at Jodhpur, the passenger demanded that he wanted to disembark at Jodhpur, instead of Jaipur, but his request was turned down by the Air India crew as it was against rules. The flight had taken off at 12.53 pm on Sunday from New Delhi and landed at Jodhpur at about 2.05 pm.

According to an Air India official, the man then demanded to be allowed to meet security personnel at Jodhpur airport but they too turned down the request. It was then that the passenger reportedly made the threat, following which the aircraft was searched by the bomb-disposal squad.

All passengers were asked to alight from the aircraft at Jodhpur, following which it was thoroughly searched by authorities as per rules. The claim was declared a hoax and the alleged offender was handed over to authorities for necessary action.
While Doordarshan has a terrestrial network spanning a major part of the country, the reach of AIR is even more than DD.

Doordarshan claims to reach more than 90 per cent of the Indian population through a network of more than 1,416 terrestrial transmitters.

New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government is finalising a proposal to consolidate and strengthen the news flow from its public service broadcasters, Doordarshan and All India Radio.

The two premier news outfits, operating as public service broadcasters, would work together to improve the news gathering and dissemination abilities of the broadcasters. In an effort to streamline news flow through national broadcasters, the government is contemplating to have a single person to head the news operations.

Sources said that the government is considering to have one director-general head operations in both organisations. It is learnt that the proposal for having one DG for Doordarshan and AIR was made as it was felt that the resources of these organisations were being underutilised.

By combining the resources  correspondents, studios, telecast facilities and other logistics  the government hopes to get news and broadcast it in the most efficient way.

The move would also be significant as private FM channels are permitted to carry news bulletins of AIR in exactly same manner and are not allowed to source and broadcast news through any other medium, sources said.

While Doordarshan has a terrestrial network spanning a major part of the country, the reach of AIR is even more than DD. Moreover, the number of correspondents at the disposal of the national broadcasters would also be increased if such a move is made.

Doordarshan claims to reach more than 90 per cent of the Indian population through a network of more than 1,416 terrestrial transmitters. There are about 67 Doordarshan studios producing TV programmes today.

AIRs home service comprises 420 stations today located across the country, reaching nearly 92 per cent of the countrys area and 99.19 percent of the total population. AIR originates programming in 23 languages and 146 dialects.
In the meetings, both sides reviewed and positively assessed the progress in implementation of the decisions taken during the PMs visit to Iran.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended an invitation to re-elected Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to visit India. Minister of road transport, highways and shipping Nitin Gadkari represented India at the inauguration of the second tenure of Mr Rouhani on Saturday and also met him.

In the meeting, development of Chahbahar Port was discussed and both countries reiterated their commitment to complete and operationalise the port at the earliest.

In the meetings, both sides reviewed and positively assessed the progress in implementation of the decisions taken during the Prime Minsters visit to Iran, last year, including the progress in the development of Chahbahar Port. Both sides reiterated their commitment to complete and operationalise the Port at the earliest that would contribute to bilateral and regional trade and economic development and also provide alternate access to landlocked Afghanistan to regional and global markets, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) said.

Minister of road transport, highways and shipping Nitin Gadkari represented India at the inauguration of the second tenure of H.E. Dr Hassan Rouhani as the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran on August 5, 2017. During his two-day visit on August 5 and 6, 2017, Mr Gadkari interacted with President Rouhani, called on the first vice-president Eshaq Jahangiri and held detailed exchange of views with the minister of roads and urban development of Iran Dr Abbas Akhoundi.

Mr Gadkari handed over the letter of felicitation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to President Rouhani, in which the Prime Minister extended an invitation to the President of Iran to visit India, the MEA added.
The sources did not rule out the possibility of Ulfa-I rebels outsourcing the job of planting explosives to some other outfits.

The sources said though the team of armed rebels was led by a Ulfa-I commander, some cadres belonging to other militant outfits were also part of the team. (Representational image)

Guwahati: The security forces have been alerted that separatist outfits may try to launch an offensive to make their presence felt in the run-up to Independence Day in Assam, sources told this newspaper, and there were disturbing intelligence inputs that a seven-member team of Ulfa-I rebels led by Uday Asom had managed to sneak into India from their hideouts in Myanmar.

The sources said the group of armed rebels was now roaming close to the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border areas and waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Referring to intelligence inputs, the sources said that the groups members were constantly in touch with the Ulfa-I top leadership, including Nayan Medhi and Arunodoi Asom. The sources said they had even managed to enter the Kakopathar area of Assam but fearing police action had retreated back to Arunachal Pradesh.

The sources said though the team of armed rebels was led by a Ulfa-I commander, some cadres belonging to other militant outfits were also part of the team. The sources said Ulfa-I was now desperate to make its presence felt in the state as its failure to carry out any major strike in the past few months had demoralised its cadres.

In the run-up to Independence Day, Ulfa-I is likely to target the security forces, and it is learnt it is also trying to rope in sympathisers to plant explosives in crowded localities. The sources did not rule out the possibility of Ulfa-I rebels outsourcing the job of planting explosives to some other outfits.

The Unified Command of the security forces has chalked out elaborate plans to thwart the designs of the militant groups, and security measures stepped up in and around all areas where the Independence Day celebrations will take place, the sources said, adding that all district police chiefs were asked to ensure a peaceful Independence Day in the state.
Earlier, the CM had said that it was not right to punish BJP leader Subhash Barala for his son's crime.

Vikas Barala was arrested on Saturday on the charges of stalking and harassing the IAS officer's daughter in Chandigarh. (Photo: PTI/File)

Hisar (Haryana): Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday assured that the son of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president Subhash Barala, who has been accused of allegedly stalking a woman, will be punished once found guilty.

"I have complete faith on the Chandigarh Police. Justice will prevail. The accused will be punished once found guilty. This is my official stand on this matter. This case has nothing to do with Subhash Barala. Such act is highly condemnable if proved correct," the Chief Minister told the media here.

This was the second statement by the Chief Minister as earlier he reiterated that it was not right to punish BJP leader Subhash Barala for his son's crime.

"I came to know about this incident. Chandigarh Police has filed the complaint and I believe they will take appropriate action. This matter is not related with Subhash Barala but with an individual. So action would be taken against his son," Khattar told media.

Meanwhile, the victim thanked Chandigarh Police for rescuing her on time, and pointed out that if she was a common man's daughter the case would not be taken so seriously.

"I was coming back to my home when they started stalking me. They tried to threaten me by trying to stop my car. Suddenly, they came in front of my car and blocked the way. I reversed my car immediately and called the police. Police heard whole the matter and assured me of providing the help. Soon the police came and arrested the accused. I am very thankful to Chandigarh Police who came to my rescue on time," the victim, who is the daughter of an IAS officer, told the media.

The victim narrated the entire horrified incident on social networking site Facebook.

"I would like to share with you all a horrendous experience we went through last night. My daughter was returning home around midnight yesterday in her car when a couple of goons started following her in a Tata safari... They tried to block her car at the traffic signal, but she showed presence of mind and sped away. Chandigarh police was pretty efficient and helpful. They intercepted the goons, were responsive to her distress calls, and were neutral in filing the complaint," he said in Facebook post.

Vikas Barala was arrested on Saturday on the charges of stalking and harassing the IAS officer's daughter in Chandigarh. He was however, granted bail on the same day.

A case was registered by the Chandigarh Police against Vikas and other youth under under Section 354 D (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 185 (Motor Vehicle Act) of the CRPC on the basis of complaint filed by the woman.
This came after the Enforcement Directorate submitted an application before a Delhi court for further remand of Shah.

The ED remand of Shah was also extended for six days. (Photo: File/PTI)

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Sunday sent Aslam Wani, close aide of Separatist leader Shabir Shah from Srinagar, to an Enforcement Directorate (ED) remand till August 14.

The ED, earlier in the day, arrested Aslam Wani in connection with terror funding case.

Earlier in the day, the ED remand of Shah was also extended for six days.

This came after the Enforcement Directorate submitted an application before a Delhi court for further remand of Shah.

In its remand application, the ED submitted before the court that Shah is in continuous contact with anti national elements/ terrorists residing in Pakistan in garb of the Kashmir issue.

On July 26, Shah was produced in the Patiala House Court, following which he was sent to seven-day ED custody.

On July 25, Shah was arrested from his residence, where he was under house detention for a very long time, in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has been tough on Separatists regarding the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir.

On July 24, the NIA arrested seven separatists over money laundering charges, for funding terror in the Kashmir Valley.

All seven separatist leaders - Altaf Shah, Ayaz Akbar, Peer Saifullah, Mehraj Kalwal, Shahid-ul-Islam, Naeem Khan and Bitta Karate - were later sent to 10-day NIA custody.

The accused have been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The NIA visited Srinagar in May to probe the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir, and questioned several Separatist leaders on the issue of raising, collecting and transferring funds via the Hawala route and other channels to fund terror activities in Kashmir.
With Venkaiah Naidu securing over 68 per cent of valid votes the margin between two contestants at 272 was higher than Gandhi's tally.

New Delhi: Nearly two dozen MPs of opposition parties defied their leadership and voted for the NDA's vice-presidential candidate M Venkaiah Naidu, BJP sources said on Saturday.

Naidu secured 516 votes against the pledged support of around 495.

With the former Union minister securing over 68 per cent of valid votes against 32 per cent of the opposition's candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi, who received 244 votes, the margin between two contestants at 272 was higher than Gandhi's tally.

Outgoing Vice-President Hamid Ansari had prevailed over his rivals by 252 and 233 votes in 2012 and 2007 polls, respectively.

What should cause concern among the opposition, including the Congress, the Left and the TMC, is that their candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi got only 19 votes more than their presidential nominee Meira Kumar even though 40 more MPs had pledged support to him.

Kumar had received votes of 225 MPs, while Gandhi was supported by 244. President Ram Nath Kovind had received support of 522 MPs.

The BJD, which has 28 members in Parliament, and the JD (U) with 12 MPs had switched over to the opposition camp after supporting the NDA in the presidential poll.

Despite desertion by 40 MPs, the NDA's vote count went down by only six, underlining major cross-voting in its favour.

In an electoral college of 785 eligible members, 771 votes were cast out of which 11 were declared invalid, according to officials.

Among the 14 members who could not cast their votes for a variety of reasons, four belonged to the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC, two each to the BJP, Congress and the IUML, and one each to the NCP and PMK. One nominated and one Independent member also could not cast their votes.

Polling officials said this was the highest turnout in the vice-presidential election. Before it, the highest number of votes in the poll was 759 in 2002 when BJP candidate Bhairon Singh Shekhawat had won the election.
Missouri Department of Public Safety(TULSA, Okla.) -- A series of powerful storms tore through Tulsa, Oklahoma, overnight, damaging businesses and leaving at least 26 people injured, according to a local hospital.

The National Weather Service of Tulsa issued warnings overnight of thunderstorms, flash flooding and a possible tornado in the area. Photos released by the Tulsa Fire Department show parts of the city shrouded in darkness, with businesses and street signs mangled.

As many as 11,000 people were left without power as a result of the storm, according to a report in Tulsa World.

Lauren Landwerlin of Saint Francis Hospital in Tulsa confirmed to ABC News that it received 26 patients overnight with storm-related injuries. None of the patients had critical injuries, and most were treated for lacerations, Landwerlin said.

A flash flood warning remained in effect for the area until 1 p.m. Sunday afternoon, according to the U.S. National Weather Service, which is warning against driving through flooded areas.

Rain may exceed 3 inches in parts of Tulsa and its surrounding areas, the weather service warned, which may cause river levels to rise.

Flooding in New Orleans and Kansas City

Meanwhile, flash flooding submerged parts of Kansas City and New Orleans in water this weekend.

Up to 6 inches of rain were reported across parts of Kansas City, where highway I-35 had to be shut down.

Photos posted on social media by the Missouri Department of Public Safety show vehicles submerged up to the windows in water.

In New Orleans, parts of Jefferson Parish were pummeled with heavy rains that accumulated close to 8 inches in some areas, according to Nola.com.



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In secret, behind locked gates, our Nation's Oldest City dumped a landfill in a lake (Old City Reservoir), while emitting sewage in our rivers and salt marsh. Organized citizens exposed and defeated pollution, racism and cronyism. We elected a new Mayor. We're transforming our City -- advanced citizenship. Ask questions. Make disclosures. Demand answers. Be involved. Expect democracy. Report and expose corruption. Smile! Help enact a St. Augustine National Park and Seashore. We shall overcome!
Gohil also denied reports in a section of the media that the MLAs would first be flown to New Delhi to meet party chief Sonia Gandhi.

New Delhi: The 44 Gujarat Congress MLAs who have been camping at a resort near Bengaluru for the past few days are all set to return to Ahmedabad on Monday, a day before the all-important Rajya Sabha election in the state on Tuesday. Fearing defections and threats, the Congress had shifted its MLAs from Gujarat to party-ruled Karnataka, and kept at a resort to secure them from threats. The party had claimed the ruling BJP in Gujarat was threatening the Congress MLAs with the help of the administrative machinery and forcing them to join the BJP.

Congress MLA and spokesman Shaktisinh Gohil said: All the MLAs who are in Karnataka will be flying to Ahmedabad soon. The BJP is spreading all kinds of canards, but all of us are together. Earlier, the 44 MLAs had also met Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala, who hails from Gujarat and has been a minister in that state and an MLA from Rajkot.

Once they are back in Ahmedabad, they will be kept in a secure location in order to ward off threats. Insiders said they would celebrate Raksha Bandhan with their families at the safe location.

Shaktisinh Gohil

Mr Gohil also denied reports in a section of the media that the MLAs would first be flown to New Delhi to meet party chief Sonia Gandhi, and told reporters that they would be returning to Gujarat directly. He said the reports of the MLAs going to Delhi was a canard being spread by the BJP.

Over the past month, eight of the Congress 57 MLAs had deserted the party, out of which three have already joined the BJP and three others are in touch with the saffron party. Two other MLAs  including former CM Shankarsinh Vaghela and his son Mahendrasinh Vaghela  both elected on a Congress ticket, have also left the party, which has reduced the Congress strength from 57 to 49. Besides the eight Congress MLAs who have openly left the party, there are at least three others who have expressed their desire to quit. If this happens, it will further reduce the strength of the Congress to 46.

There are now three Rajya Sabha vacancies in the state. The BJP has itself put up three candidates  including party president Amit Shah, Union minister Smriti Irani and former Congress MLA and now BJP candidate Balwantsinh Rajput. The Congress has put up Ahmed Patel, political secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, for a fifth term. As per the Assembly strength of these parties, the first two BJP candidates should win easily, but there will be a contest between Mr Patel and Mr Rajput.

With the effective strength of the Assembly reduced to 176 due to the Congress resignations, every candidate now requires 44 votes to win. The Congress claims it will get an easy victory as it has 44 MLAs and two NCP MLAs and one JD(U) MLA have pledged support to the partys candidate.
Buddhism and Hinduism were complementary to each other and preached tolerance: UP CM

Lucknow: UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said that Buddhism was more relevant in present times than it was earlier and the religion was also closely linked to Hinduism.

Speaking at a function in Myanmar, the chief minister said that he was a monk belonging to the Nath sect which was an amalgamation of Hinduism and Buddhism.

According to an official release issued by the state information department, the chief minister said that Guru Gorakhnath is revered as one of the 84 Maha Siddhas of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition.

He said Buddhism and Hinduism were complementary to each other and preached tolerance. The Narendra Modi government worked on the inclusive philosophy of Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas.

The chief minister also underlined the need for debate and discussion. Our culture prefers this method instead of forcing ones belief on the people. In ancient India, this was regularly used between scholars and intellectuals who discussed and debated views and philosophy with others before arriving at any conclusion, he said.

Recalling the names of places like Sarnath, Kushinagar, Shravasti, Kapilvastu and Kaushambhi as places of Buddhist importance, Mr Adityanath said that it was a matter of pride that Uttar Pradesh was home to several important places related to Lord Buddha. He added that these places were being developed under the Buddhist circuit.

The chief minister said that his government would ensure that travel to these places was easier and more comfortable than before.
Jaitley claimed that Kerala always witnessed a spurt in political violence whenever a Left Democratic Front government came to power.

Thiruvananthapuram: Union finance minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday hit out at the ruling CPI(M) in Kerala for the political violence in the state, and accused it of using its cadres to eliminate the workers of rival parties. He claimed that Kerala always witnessed a spurt in political violence whenever a Left Democratic Front government came to power, and that the onus of putting an end to the culture of violence lay with it. The state government must ensure that perpetrators of such heinous crimes are brought to book and the police is fair, he said at a press conference.

At a condolence meeting here after visiting the family members of slain RSS worker Rajesh Edavakode, Mr Jaitley said the RSS and BJP could not be suppressed with violence, and asked the CPI(M) to introspect. He also questioned the complete silence on the continuing saga of violence in Kerala of those who otherwise speak against any similar incidents elsewhere in the country.

Read: Free, fair probe needed to end political violence: Arun Jaitley

CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan alleged, meanwhile, that political violence had increased in the state after the visit of BJP president Amit Shah in early June. The BJP, he said, was implementing Amit Shahs plan in Kerala by attacking party strongholds.
The state has already banned use of pan masala and tobacco products in the Secretariat and all other government buildings.

Lucknow: The Yogi government is planning to ban manufacture and sale of paan masala and gutka in the state.

The state has already banned use of pan masala and tobacco products in the Secretariat and all other government buildings. Health minister Siddhartha Nath Singh told reporters that the present government has already taken a very serious view of the consumption of the tobacco products. He said very soon the government would take measures for closing factories manufacturing gutka and paan masala in the state.
The tumour was growing in her uterus for 7 years and made her look heavily pregnant.

Tumours are known to be life threatening and life is nothing short of an ordeal for people living with tumours in vital parts of their body. While they can be extremely painful, rare conditions lead to tumours that can make people suffer discrimination over their appearance.

A woman in Guatemala looked heavily pregnant at first glance but there was something much more serious taking shape under the surface. She had a tumour growing in her uterus for seven years, and it weighed a shocking 32 kg by the time it was removed.

(Photo: YouTube)

The biggest ever uterine tumour caused the woman to look pregnant with multiple children when she arrived at the hospital as the circumference of her stomach stretched to 137 cm. The woman suffered from leiomyoma, a benign cancer which may become a cancer.

The previous record for the largest ever fibroid was held by a 30 kg tumour which was removed at a hospital in Karnatakas Raichur. The woman had refused surgical treatment to her condition seven years back due to personal and cultural reasons.

The woman is now stable and the chances of growing another tumour are less if she was postmenopausal.
Earlier in the day, the court had ordered Mr Commando's custody when he appeared before the court.

The prosecution said that Mr Commando was deliberately not appearing before the court, despite directions by the court.

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party MLA Surender Commando, who was remanded to judicial custody by a Delhi court for repeated non-appearance in a case relating to defacement of public property in 2014, was later granted bail by the court. Additional chief metropolitan magistrate Ashu Garg released the AAP politician on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 20,000 and a surety of like amount, said advocate V K Shahi.

Earlier in the day, the court had ordered Mr Commando's custody when he appeared before the court. Despite the court's directions, he was not appearing before the court for the last few occasions despite orders. The prosecution said that Mr Commando was deliberately not appearing before the court, despite directions by the court.

The case relates to defacement of public property in the Naraina area in west Delhi allegedly by putting up posters and hoardings. Surender Singh is an AAP MLA from Delhi Cantonment constituency. The counsel of commando later moved a plea before the court seeking for bail. The court after hearing the argument of prosecution and the defence counsel on the bail plea decided to release the MLA.

He won the seat, defeating the incumbent, Karan Singh Tanwar of the Bharatiya Janata Party by 355 votes. In the 2015 election, he was again declared the AAP candidate for Delhi Cantonment. He won the seat by polling 40133 votes with his nearest rival Karan Singh Tanwar of BJP polling 28,935 votes.
It was also alleged in the complaint that the man threatened the child and warned of killing her if she disclosed the matter to anyone.

New Delhi: A 32-year-old man has been sent to jail for five years by a Delhi court for sexually assaulting an eight-year-old girl and threatening to kill her if she disclosed the incident to anyone.

Additional Sessions Judge Ashwani Kumar Sarpal, while awarding 5 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposing a fine of Rs 10,000 on east Delhi resident Dashrath, held him guilty under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.

"When the statement of victim and other witnesses is reliable, then delay in reporting the matter to police is not a serious issue. Otherwise also, this delay is only of two days which can be pardoned in the present facts and circumstances where the heinous offence was committed with a minor aged about eight years," the court said.

According to the complaint filed by the child's mother, on June 13, 2014, Dashrath grabbed the girl and tried to remove her clothes while she was playing on the terrace of her house.

It was also alleged in the complaint that the man threatened the child with a knife and warned of killing her if she disclosed the matter to anyone.

"It appears that victim could not tell about the incident even to her parents immediately due to fear of the accused. The threats were very apparent and had affected the victim badly because she started weeping loudly when her mother took her to the house of the accused after coming to know about the incident two days later," the court observed.

Dashrath, however, denied all the allegations and claimed innocence. He also told the court that he had some dispute with the maternal uncle of the child which had led to the filing of this case.

The court after considering the facts and circumstances of the case, the statements of the victim and the witnesses, sentenced him to five years in jail.
The retired sub-inspector's wife alleged that about three inches of her hair was cut off around 3:45 pm while she was sleeping in her room.

New Delhi: The hair of a 45-year-old woman was allegedly cut off while she was sleeping at her home in southwest Delhi's Dwarka on Saturday, the police said.

The retired sub-inspector's wife alleged that about three inches of her hair was cut off around 3:45 pm while she was sleeping in her room, they said.

Her son and mother-in-law were present at the house in Sector 9 of Dwarka and her husband had gone outside when the incident happened, the police said.

On the woman's complaint, a probe into the incident has been initiated, they said.
According to Hindu mythology, during the legendary sagar manthan, gods and demons discovered several objects, one of them being a poison pot.

New Delhi: The holy month of Shravan has turned out to be a boon for flower traders in Chhattarpur and Ghazipur phool mandis. People buy more items of poisonous plants to worship Shiva, therefore we have a higher trade in this market, said Kailash, a flower vendor.

According to Hindu mythology, during the legendary sagar manthan, gods and demons discovered several objects, one of them being a poison pot. Lord Shiva drank the poison to save the universe from its effects. Following this, the gods danced to protect Shiva from the harmful effect of the poison and keep him awake for a night. Thereafter, the devotees started offering water, milk, dhatura, bhaang, and akwan flowers to Shivas idol. We get orchids from Assam and Thailand, which is a rare variety here. Carnations come from Himachal and Bengaluru, said H.L. Rawal, who has been in this business for the past 20 years. Another trader, Sunil Kumar, said, Big marigold flowers come from Rajasthan and Haryana, especially during Diwali.
Strict legal action would be taken under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 318 against the guilty, the police has assured.

A case has been registered in this regard and reportedly an autopsy on the foetus would be conducted on Monday.

New Delhi: A foetus was found wrapped in a cloth near the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) garbage dumping site in Madangir area in Delhi on Sunday.

Reportedly, the 4-month-old male foetus was found around 9:15 am.

Strict legal action would be taken under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 318 against the guilty, the police has assured.

A case has been registered in this regard and reportedly an autopsy on the foetus would be conducted on Monday.
A separate case has also been filed against members of the band for allegedly abusing a policeman and tearing his uniform.

New Delhi: A scuffle took place between employees of a popular cafe in south Delhi and members of a music band in the wee hours on Saturday, following which cross cases have been filed by the two parties, the police said.

A separate case has also been filed against members of the band for allegedly abusing a policeman and tearing his uniform under the influence of alcohol, they added.

The band named 'The Cosmic Truth' was performing at the Turquoise Cottage on Friday. The sound engineer of the band, Mayank Tiwari, had ordered some drinks at the bar.

After the band's performance, when he went to settle the bill, the waiter allegedly argued about the order quantity, Sahil Sharma, a member of the band alleged in his complaint.

Sharma alleged that he tried to speak to the manager but a bartender by the name of Harpal Singh, along with two bouncers, started thrashing him and Tiwari.

In his complaint, Sharma has also claimed that the bouncers even tried to strangulate him. They later dragged him in the stairs for two floors while punching and kicking him, he told police.

Sharma sustained injuries to his head. He also alleged that the police did not allow his brother to accompany him while he was being taken.

Singh has also filed a case against Sharma for allegedly fighting with him.

Police have registered cross cases. When Sharma and his band members were taken to the police station, they allegedly fought with the personnel from the Police Control Room van and tore the uniform of one of the personnel, said a senior police officer.

On the complaint of the policeman, a case was lodged against Sharma and other band members.
Venture out for first time after weeks stay at resort on outskirts of Bengaluru.

Bengaluru: Venturing out for the first time after a weeks stay at a plush resort on the outskirts of Bengaluru, the 42 Gujarat MLAs put up a show of unity as they met Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala and visited the state secretariat here on Saturday ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls, which all-powerful Congress leader Ahmed Patel is contesting.

Gujrat MLAs raised slogans, Hum Sab Ek Hain, Hum Sab DKS Ke Saath Hain (We are united... We are with DKS), as soon as they saw Karnataka energy minister D.K. Shivakumar in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue at Vidhana Soudha. They had gathered to protest against the stone throwing incident targeting AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi in Gujarat on Friday. Sitting in front of the Mahatma statue, they chanted Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram.

After meeting Mr Vala, who also hails from Gujarat, Gujarat MLA and AICC spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil said that the BJP is spreading canards that party legislators were being held captive by Mr Ahmed Patel. When we rejected the offer of `15 crore made by the BJP to break us away from the party, we proved that we stood to defend democracy. We are here to expose BJPs machinations, he said.

Playing the victim card, he said that the BJP is using the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) to target Congress MLAs. Training his guns on BJP leaders in Gujarat, he said, If a national leader like Mr Rahul Gandhi is targeted in Gujarat, one can only imagine what would have happened to us if we had stayed back.

Dismissing media reports and BJPs accusations that Congress MLAs were having fun at the Bengaluru resort, while people in their constituencies in Gujarat were suffering because of floods, Mr Gohil said, If we wanted to have a good time, we would have accepted the Rs 15 crore from the BJP and stayed at some fancy resort.

On joining Mr Shivakumar near the Mahatma statue, Mr Gohil said, We have been subjected to threats and pressures, but we will not succumb. The BJP wants to spread an atmosphere of fear. A politician and businessman (Mr Shivakuamr) takes care of us and he is subjected to three days of raids and questioning. This is unheard of.

He said that the raids were not as innocent as is being claimed.

If they were only interested in questioning Mr Shivakumar, then why did they come to the resort and search? They could have asked him to step out and he could have been taken to his residence, he said.

The way IT sleuths descended on the resort and searched the rooms was only to scare us. But they did not succeed, he said.

The Gujarat MLAs were joined by embattled Mr Shivakumar, who had been sequestered in his house for the past three days by Income Tax officials who concluded the raids on Saturday morning.

After the IT officials left his residence, Mr Shivakumar visited a temple and met a seer before proceeding to the Raj Bhavan to join the Gujarat legislators. Mr Shivakumar refused to speak to the media about the raids.
Bystanders called for help when they saw Shaikh struggling in the stormy waters, but it was too late for him.

Mumbai: A 20-year-old youth from Surat, who was visiting the city, drowned in the sea off Bandstand in Bandra on Sunday evening. According to civic disaster management officials, the deceased, Sohail Sheikh had gone to Bandstand with his friend on the occasion of Friendship Day. The duo was clicking selfies when they both lost their balance and fell into the sea. While the friend was able to clutch on to the rocks and save himself, Sheikh was not so lucky. This follows the drowning of three teenagers on Saturday, off Dadar Chowpatty.

Bystanders called for help when they saw Shaikh struggling in the stormy waters, but it was too late for him. Some people standing at the shore had called out for help but by the time a few entered the sea, he was not to be seen. The lifeguard could not make it in time to rescue Shaikh. The civic personnel and fishermen later fished out his body, said a BMC official who is part of the disaster management wing. Shaikh was later taken to the Bhabha hospital where he was declared brought dead.

On Saturday, three students had drowned in the sea off Dadar Chowpatty. The trio had gone to play at the beach with seven other school kids without informing their parents and schoolteacher. Not realising the depth of the sea, four of them ventured into the sea. Three of them drowned but one could be saved. There was no civic life guard present at chowpatty as the stretch is declared dangerous due to the rocky shore. The deceased were students of Unal Mill High School.
According to reports, a man in Varanasi is building a two-pit toilet in his house for his sister as a Rakhi gift.

A young boy from Gonda village has gifted a toilet to his sister to avoid going out in the public. (Photo: ANI)

Gonda (UP): The whole nation is enthralled with rakhi celebrations and unlike all other gifts, a brother from Uttar Pradesh's Gonda district is celebrating ' raksha bandhan' by gifting a toilet to his sister.

A young boy from Gonda village has gifted a toilet to his sister to avoid going out in the public.

According to reports, a man in Varanasi is building a two-pit toilet in his house for his sister as a Rakhi gift.

Dilip, who is a resident of Phoolpur village in Varanasi wants to gift his sister with a toilet facility as he does not appreciate her defecating in the open farm.

Last year, too, a brother was seen gifting a toilet to this sister on Raksha Bandhan.

Last year, Jharkhand's Pintu, who is a resident of Ramgarh, constructed a toilet at this house for his sister in a support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Swachh Bharat mission that argued against open defecation in India.
Several worshippers with gunshot wounds were receiving treatment at the hospital, the source said.

Witnesses said five gunmen in masks stormed the church and opened fire on worshippers. (Photo: AP)

Warri (Nigeria): Gunmen stormed a Catholic church in a town in southeast Nigeria early Sunday, killing 12 worshippers, hospital sources and witnesses said.

The attack took place at around 6 am at St. Philip's church in Ozubulu, near the city of Onitsha, witnesses said.

"So far, 12 persons have been confirmed dead and deposited in the mortuary here while several persons are receiving medical attention," a staff worker at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital in Nnewi, where the victims were admitted, said.

Read: At least 8 killed after suicide bombers hit camps in Nigeria

Several worshippers with gunshot wounds were receiving treatment at the hospital, the source said.

Witnesses said five gunmen in masks stormed the church and opened fire on worshippers. They feared that up to 20 people may have died.

In contrast, Anambra State Police Commissioner Garba Umar said the attacker was a lone gunman, who "went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding" worshippers.

Read: Gun attack in Nigeria market kill 17, says police

Witness Chukwuma Emeka said he had just stepped out of the church to stretch his legs "when I heard gunshots and screaming and people running inside."

"When the chaos subsided I went inside, I saw my fellow church members dead in a pool of their own blood and many others were screaming in pain."

Security agents were said to have cordoned off the church.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf member moves to file FIR against lawmaker Gulalai.

Lahore: Malik Jalal Khan Wazir, a member of grand tribal jirga from North Waziristan Agency to which Ayesha Gulalai belongs, has asked her to produce relevant evidence about the allegations she has levelled against Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chairman Imran Khan.

Tribesmen have warned that they will besiege the house of MNA Ayesha Gulalai. Gulalai neither belonged to Waziristan nor was she a tribal woman, because whatever she had done during last four days was against the norms of tribal people, the Dawn quoted Wazir, as saying.

We cannot expect a tribal woman to adopt such lifestyle. The woman is unaware of the South and North Waziristan Agencies because she is not a resident of the tribal region, Wazir claimed.

The tribal elder asked Gulalai to present her Blackberry to any relevant forum to clear her position. He said her allegations against Imran had earned her disrespect in the hearts of people. He asserted that according to their tribal tradition,daughters are not allowed to show up before media or irrelevant people. But, he said Shamsul Qayyum, the father of Gulalai, used her for the sake of money only.

Ayesha Gulalai

Jalal Wazir demanded an inquiry against Qayyum for bringing a bad name to the tribal people for his own personal interests. The tribal people want to know as to how much money Gulalai has taken for levelling such allegations, he demanded.

Wazir claimed that Gulalai's statement about Imran Khan sending her inappropriate messages on her mobile had not only insulted the Pakhtuns but also disgraced a large number of women workers affiliated with PTI.

Meanwhile, a Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf worker has approached a police station in Peshawar to invoke section 499/500 of Pakistan Penal code to register an FIR against MNA Ayesha Gulalai for defaming the party and its chairman, Imran Khan.

On Friday, Muhammad Amir Khan, chairman of the PTIs youth revival committee submitted an application to the SHO of Peshawars Hayatabad police station, requesting him to lodge an FIR against Gulalai. Khan claimed that Gulalai made allegations against Imran at Muqam and Rehams behest.

The SHO Hayatabad said they had received the application but it could not be entertained because it had no legal grounds. The PTI worker has submitted an application but the crime has not been taken place in my area so he should instead go to the court and file a writ petition, Dawn quoted him as saying.

No FIR can be filed on the grounds provided in his application.

The application said Gulalai put him under immense mental agony as she lied through electronic and print media by making false allegations against my party chairman Imran Khan and my party PTI.

Gulalai on August 1 resigned from the PTI after accusing Imran and his 'gang' of immoral behaviour against women. Gulalai had claimed that the PTI chief had been sending her obscene messages since 2013, a charge vehemently refuted by the PTI.

PTI Imran Khan has accused Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz of coordinating with media group to malign him over former PTI member Ayesha Gulalai harassment allegation. He suspected the PML-N had used Gulalai and their old smear tactics to achieve their own ends.

Khan claimed he was taken by surprise by the MNA's allegations, especially because he had met her only 24 hours before her explosive press conference on Tuesday. She was there with the NA-1 delegation; we discussed the seat as she wanted a ticket and asked me to let her campaign there... [and] give a speech, the Dawn quoted Khan, as saying.

I told her that her performance in the assembly was not good and we had given her a reserved seat. I thought she had a lot of potential...; she performed very well in the beginning.... I don't know what happened to her, the PTI chief said.
The commission examined the deadly violence began in Rakhine State in Oct last year after attacks by Rohingya militants on Police posts.

Based on interviews with 204 witnesses who fled to Bangladesh, the UN alleged Myanmar security forces gang-raped Rohingya women, butchered children and tortured men. (Representational Image/AFP)

Yangon: A government-appointed commission on Sunday cleared Myanmar security forces of systematic rape, murder and arson against Rohingya Muslims, dismissing UN allegations of widespread abuses during a recent crackdown.

The commission examined the deadly violence which began in northwestern Rakhine State in October last year after attacks by Rohingya militants on police posts near the Bangladesh border.

The government is refusing to allow a UN fact-finding team to conduct its own probe into whether the security response amounted to "ethnic cleansing" of the stateless Rohingya minority.

Giving their conclusions on Sunday, a state-backed commission said it found no evidence that Myanmar security forces carried out a systematic campaign of rape, murder or arson.

Instead any "excessive actions" were likely committed by low-rank "individual members of the security forces". "Some incidents (of abuse) appeared to be fabricated others had little evidence," according to a press release by the commission. It also took aim at a detailed report by the UN's Human Rights Office released in February this year. That report said it was "very likely" that crimes against humanity had been committed during the crackdown.

Based on interviews with 204 witnesses who fled to Bangladesh, the UN alleged Myanmar security forces gang-raped Rohingya women, butchered children and tortured men.

But "no such cases were uncovered" by the government commission, which said the UN findings lacked balance and failed to recognise the gravity of the attacks by Rohingya militants.

Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is a nobel peace prize winner, is blocking a visit by a UN team. She says the government commission is an adequate response to the violence, which left scores dead and displaced tens of thousands of Rohingya to Bangladesh.

The Rohingya are reviled in Myanmar and widely seen as illegal immigrants. Stateless, poor and subject to tight controls on movement, education and work, roughly one million of the Muslim group are hemmed into the impoverished border zone which remains locked down and under curfew.

The commission conceded that foreign media and NGOs should have been granted access to the zone during the conflict to dispel "misconceptions."

It also called for rights training for low-level security officers, urged local officials to tackle corruption and called for swift and fair trials of suspected militants.

Rakhine State remains violent and on edge.

The government says foreign-backed Rohingya militants are still active in the conflict area, accusing them of killing perceived state collaborators and running "terror" training camps.

Last week seven Buddhists were found dead in the conflict area. Rohingya villages also continue to be raided. On Friday up to 50 "warning shots" were fired at a Rohingya village during a raid.

Unverifiable images on social media showed several people wounded by bullets allegedly fired in the episode.
Pak's new law to remedy slow-moving court system, promotes village councils as an alternative solution to small civil disputes.

The recent ruling, which allowed a rape victim's brother to sexually assault another innocent girl, has unsettled Raja Ram, home to some 3,000 people. (Photo: File/Representational)

Raja Ram (Pakistan): The rape of a teenage girl in revenge for a crime committed by her brother has left residents of Raja Ram in central Pakistan shaken and questioning a deeply entrenched system of village justice.

In July, a council of village elders ordered the rape of the 16-year-old victim after her brother was accused of raping a 12-year-old girl.

The ruling highlighted the role such councils- known as panchayats, or jirgas- play in the lives of many rural Pakistanis, who see the country's courtrooms as a distant presence.

The councils have traditionally enjoyed broad support, thanks to their ability to offer immediate justice, compared to courts that can take years to settle a criminal case, and as much as a decade to resolve a civil dispute.

But the recent ruling, which allowed a rape victim's brother to sexually assault another innocent girl, has unsettled Raja Ram, home to some 3,000 people.

"May God have mercy, it was such a strange day and it was such a big injustice," said villager Amina Bibi. "In our area there is neither a school nor a hospital, and poverty and ignorance rules here... This incident is a mark of this ignorance," said 46-year-old Imtiaz Matila.

"It's a stain on the name of the panchayat," agreed another villager, 65-year-old Manzoor Hussain. The girls have since been taken to a women's shelter in conservative Multan, Pakistan's fifth-largest city. Raja Ram is just a few kilometres down the road, but feels a world away from urban life. Men sit around on charpoys, sheltering from the blistering heat, while women are conspicuous only by their absence, shielded from view behind the rough stone walls that surround each of the crudely built, single-storey houses.

'Nothing more dishonourable'

Central Punjab is also home to one of Pakistan's most prominent advocates for women's rights- Mukhtar Mai, whose own story offers a window into jirga justice and its brutal mistreatment of women.

In 2002, a jirga ordered Mai to be gangraped after her brother was falsely accused of rape.

Mai, who lives a few hours north of Multan, made the unusual decision to defy her rapists and take them to court.

But in one of South Asia's most infamous miscarriages of justice, her attackers walked free, and people continued to rely on panchayats, even as she went on to become a high-profile activist.

"It's an honour-based system and there's nothing more dishonourable than the rape of a woman within your family," explained women's rights activist Aisha Sarwari.

The men of the aggressor's family must be shamed through the loss of their women's dignity, Sarwari explained.

"That's the balance of power in these communities, which makes sure that women are some kind of collateral."

'Jirga law'

The Supreme Court, trying to bring jirgas to heel, declared them illegal in 2006. But in an apparent backtrack in 2017 aimed at unclogging the slow-moving court system, the government passed a new law that promotes village councils as an alternative solution to small civil disputes.

The decision, dubbed the "Jirga Law" by activists, has raised concerns about women's rights, given the precedents set by the panchayats.

"The decisions of the jirgas have always had a negative impact on the lives of women," said women's rights activist Samar Minallah.

The new law does not suggest penalties for decisions like the one made by the council in Raja Ram, added Minallah, who brought the original 2006 anti-jirga petition to the Supreme Court.

But the uproar surrounding the rapes at Raja Ram has spurred the court to demand a full investigation.

Despite her concerns, Minallah is confident that the court will "step in at one stage or another to remind the state that these jirgas are against the constitution and humanity".

Whatever the court decides, for some in Raja Ram at least, faith in the traditional system has been shaken.

"There used to be wise people in the old days who were making good panchayat decisions," recalled resident Matila. "They used to know the realities of the village... but now, these are the panchayat," he said, dismissively.
This marks the first time that the allegation of Pak supporting terrorism has been attributed to President Trump.

In a July 19 meeting at the White House, President Trump berated his generals for not winning the war in Afghanistan and for allowing it to continue for more than 16 years. (Photo: AP)

Lahore : US National Security Advisor Gen HR McMaster has conveyed President Donald Trump's stern message to Pakistan to change its 'paradoxical' policy of supporting the Taliban, Haqqani network and other militants who are causing the country great losses.

US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad vehemently denies, but this marks the first time that the allegation has been attributed to President Trump.

"The President has also made clear that we need to see a change in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," the Dawn quoted McMaster as saying.

"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups. I mean, this is of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but they've done so really only selectively," he added.

Defending President Trump's strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country, McMaster said, "The president has said that he does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat."

"He has lifted those restrictions, and you're beginning to see the payoff of that - as well."

In a July 19 meeting at the White House, President Trump berated his generals for not winning the war in Afghanistan and for allowing it to continue for more than 16 years.

Trump also "repeatedly suggested" to his senior military advisors that they should replace Gen John Nicholson, the commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan , with a new general who could win the war.

But McMaster seems to disagree with this suggestion and said "I've known him for many years. I can't imagine a more capable commander on any mission."
There are criminal cases and Sharif is seeking to build up pressure against NAB and the accountability court, he said.

Islamabad: Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan on Sunday said that ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was attempting to destroy the judicial system.

In a statement, the PTI chief expressed concerns over the ex-premiers plan to travel to Lahore in a cavalcade on GT Road and said that the plan was a deliberate attempt to continue undermining the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

He added that Panama case verdict was a unanimous decision by five SC judges after a thorough investigation. By challenging the SC, Nawaz Sharif is attempting to destroy the judicial system of the country. Having become redundant politically after his disqualification, and knowing he can now never become PM, Nawaz Sharif is prepared to destroy the whole democratic system, Mr Khan said. The PTI chairman asserted that Mr Sharifs second purpose in driving to Lahore via the GT Road was to pressurise National Accountability Bureau (NAB)  which is set to open cases against the former premier.

There are criminal cases and Sharif is seeking to build up pressure against NAB and the accountability court, he said. While PTI called off its protests once SC took up the rigging and corruption cases, Nawaz Sharif has chosen to take to streets after being found guilty and having been disqualified, he added. Mr Khan alleged Mr Sharif was continuing to use state resources to destroy the judiciary and thereby the democratic system.
Narendra Modi is scheduled to attend the summit of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa being hosted by Chinese Prez Xi Jinping.

The summit will discuss the organisations role in global governance, a faltering economic recovery and setbacks in globalisation, the Xinhua commentary said. (Photo: AP)

Beijing: Notwithstanding the India-China tension over the Doklam standoff, Beijing is upbeat about the next months BRICS summit to be held in the Chinese city of Xiamen, expecting concrete cooperation among the five emerging economies.

I think this years summit in Xiamen will produce more practical and concrete cooperation, and improve trust and confidence among BRICS, Shen Yi, director of the centre for BRICS studies at Fudan University was quoted by state-run Xinhua news agency in a commentary on the upcoming summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to attend the summit of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) being hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Read: Border spat between India-China casts shadow ahead of BRICS summit

There is no word yet here whether the two leaders would be meeting on the sidelines of the summit as the standoff between Indian and Chinese troops continues at the Doklam area of the Sikkim Sector, making it the longest stalemate between the two militaries in recent years.

India and China have been locked in a prolonged standoff in the area in the Sikkim sector since June 16 after Chinese troops began constructing a road near the Bhutan trijunction.

Bhutan has protested to China, saying the area belonged to it and accused Beijing of violating agreements that aim to maintain the status quo until the boundary dispute is resolved.

Read: Amid Sikkim standoff, China hints at Doval-Yang bilateral at BRICS NSAs meet

India says the Chinese action to construct the road was unilateral and changes the status quo. It fears the road would allow China to cut off Indias access to its northeastern states.

The summit will discuss the organisations role in global governance, a faltering economic recovery and setbacks in globalisation, the Xinhua commentary said.

BRICS: stronger partnership for a brighter future will bring together the leaders of all the five countries, it said.

The gold bricks countries  a Chinese translation of BRICS  represent emerging markets and are the voice of the worlds developing countries, it said, without referring to the current round of India-China tensions over Doklam.

Read: BRICS countries reaffirm commitment to implement Paris deal

The Xinhua commentary also highlighted Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yis assertions in the past about BRICS Plus under which China says the five-member bloc should expand cooperation with developing countries.

Last year, India which hosted a summit in Goa invited leaders of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic) in which Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal are members.

China is yet to release its list of guests to meet on the sidelines of the BRICS summit.

China does not want to limit future cooperation to the five nations. In March, Foreign Affairs Minister Wang said that China would explore expansion modalities for BRICS Plus and build a wider partnership through dialogue with developing countries and international organisations, the commentary said.

BRICS plus will provide opportunities for other economies and inject impetus into economic globalisation, it quoted the chief economist of the Eurasian Development Bank Yaroslav Lissovolik as saying.

Read: Cabinet nods MoC between India and BRICS countries on tax matters

The proposals of Minister of Foreign Affairs of China Wang Yi regarding the expansion of the BRICS partnership zone are not only timely in the light of Chinas presidency of BRICS, but they are also aimed at giving new impetus to integration processes in the complicated conditions of protectionisms spread in the world economy, Lissovolik said.

Observers say that BRICS is consensus based organisation and consent of the five required for its expansion.

Strong economic growth means BRICS are now key players in the world economy and in global governance, the Xinhua commentary said.

Together, the five countries accounted for 23 per cent of the 2016 global economy, almost double their share in 2006. The five have been the source of more than half of global growth in the past ten years.

BRICS cooperation has not only helped the countries themselves, but enhanced the right to speak on global issues for all developing countries, said Ruan Zongze, executive vice president of the China Institute of International Studies.

Read: BRICS nations sign MoU on tax co-operation, hail India's GST regime

As the holder of the BRICS presidency this year, China is hosting the series of meetings which usually precedes the leaders summit.

Earlier this week, trade ministers met in Shanghai and agreed to unite against protectionism and to do all they can to ensure the survival of the multilateral trade system.

In late July, a BRICS security meeting was held in Beijing, with discussions on global governance, anti-terrorism, the internet, energy, national security and development.

In June, finance ministers and central bank governors agreed to strengthen cooperation in several fiscal and financial areas, including the BRICS New Development Bank and regulatory collaboration.

With the progress of the past ten years and a more inclusive attitude, BRICS are prepared not only for the Xiamen summit, but for another golden decade to come, the commentary said.
by Mathias Hariyadi

Jonathan Cho was a lonely and lazy boy, and now he is very committed to environmental protection initiatives. Sumbal Tariq: "Inspired by the encyclical, I am committed to planting trees and protecting water sources." Bishop Pius Riana Prapdi, bishop of the Ketapang diocese: "The two boys have been able to bring the spirit of the encyclical into their lives and become a good example for others." Fr. Yohanes "Holy" Dwi Harsanto: "Learn courage to spread the values of the Churches' social doctrine and teachings.

Yogyakarta (AsiaNews) - Laudato si ', the encyclical written by Pope Francis on the theme of protection and respect for the environment, inspired and changed the life of two young Asian Catholics.

Jonathan Cho, a native of Hong Kong, and Sumbal Tariq, a student of Islamabad (Pakistan), shared their own experience with young people who took part in one of the meetings organized on the second day of the Asian Youth Day in Yogyakarta (3 August, Photos 1 and 2).

During the debate Msgr. Pius Riana Prapdi, bishop of the diocese of Ketapang, province of West Kalimantan (Indonesia) and Fr. Yohanes "Holy" Dwi Harsanto, diocesan priest of Semarang, the host diocese, and member of the Organizing Committee.

Jonathan Cho was a lonely and lazy boy who fled socializing opportunities in favor of his technology gadgets. However, thanks to a Bible study group, he read and appreciated the Pope's encyclical. This profoundly and radically changed him, transforming his from a lifestyle "centered on myself" to one "aimed at society". Since then Jonathan has become a true lover of nature and is very committed to initiatives for the protection of the environment. "Ecology and the environment are not significant topics in Hong Kong. Our daily life is more focused on economic issues, such as financial investment."

Sumbal Tariq explained to those present how much water and its preservation are issues of crucial importance in his city. "Inspired by the Laudatesi" said the young man, "I began to engage in planting trees and protecting the springs of water like rivers, trying to prevent waste from being dumped."

Bishop Prapdi reiterated that the two boys, albeit coming from diverse social and environmental contexts, both represent a model of young Catholics who have been able to bring the spirit of the encyclical into their lives and become a valid example for others. The bishop then recounted the series of environmental challenges he faces each day in his diocese, extending over a vast and remote territory. Numerous mines, legal and illegal, and deforestation for palm plantations are just two of the threats to the West Kalimantan ecosystem.

Fr. Yohanes "Holy" Dwi Harsanto finally invited all those present to learn from the testimonies of Jonathan and Sumbal, from whom all AYD's students can learn the courage to spread the values of the social doctrine and teachings of the Catholic Church.

On the same day, during the plenary session on "appreciating and celebrating our diversity", Msgr. Prapdi accompanied on stage Fr. Dominicus Bambang Sutrisno (photo 3). He is a diocesan priest of the diocese of Semarang who attends hundreds of elders in the Domus Pacis of Yogyakarta, a retirement home for priests. As a child, Fr. Sutrisno is suffering from a disability t, which now forces him into a wheelchair and influences his pastoral work. The elder priest told the young men present about his personal "spiritual battle" to fight the frustration of his infirmity, before he found comfort in the presence of God who allowed him to socialize with his neighbor. In his appeal to not worry about physical disabilities, Fr. Sutrisno said, "When you have no more courage then you are no longer young."
Among the signatories of the letter there are many friends of AsiaNews. In three years there have been at least 600 violent attacks against churches, pastors, faithful, religious and rapes of nuns. There is also a rise in violence against Dalits and Muslims. Hate is also spread by ministers and public figures. It is necessary to act "before it is too late".

New Delhi (AsiaNews) - "Safeguard the plurality and cultural diversity of India, the constitutional values of the republic, such as secularism and socialism." This is the reason why 101 intellectuals write and publish an open letter addressed to Leaders of the Christian Churches to act "before it is too late". The problem that they want to stop is the "saffronization" of society, slipping towards an increasingly intolerant hindu society toward other religious communities and those outside the caste system.

Among the signatories there are some long-time associates of AsiaNews: Fr. Cedric Prakash, journalist John Dayal, Ajay Kumar Singh, Dominic Emmanuel, and many others working in the field of education, law and social activism.

The Open Letter states The number of violent acts against Christians alone during the last 3 years (2014-2016) are over 600, including an increasing trend at social boycott that impinges on the right to life, food and livelihood. This includes physical violence, stopping of worship in churches, attacks on churches, arrests of pastors and their companions, and rapes of Nuns. The National Crime Records Bureau documented 47,064 acts of violence against Dalits in 2014, up from 32,643 in 2010. The violence against Muslims is reaching an alarming peak. The hate spewed not just by non-state actors and political functionaries, but even by Members of Parliament and sometimes by ministers forms the backdrop of this violence, as it also smothers voices seeking justice.



"What used to be fringe, has now become mainstream. There is a systematic design to undermine the Constitution. Official machinery often seems working in tandem with the vigilantes. Street lynching, victims charged as accused, stage-managed trials; all on the basis of ones religious and caste identities. Media seems mute, silent in self-censorship, coerced by the state, or leashed by its corporate ownership. Fake News is the final straw."

The 101 signatories criticize ecclesial leaders for their silence, although in the past the Christian community has been prophetic in defending justice, human rights and freedom, especially for the oppressed and marginalized.

"The Church, guided by you, needs to act before it is too late. This is the lesson we learn from history. It is time to stand with the victims to be the voice of poor and marginalised; time to collaborate and partner with the civil society to spread the truth; and time to take bold initiatives and action to prevent further erosion of our humane and constitutional values.



We humbly call upon you, all Christian leaders and Heads of Churches, to reflect and lead the community in the path of truth, love and justice."
The new pastor was installed today. Bishops emeritus Card. John Tong and Card. Joseph Zen, the current local governor, Carrie Lam, along with representatives of the Christian Churches present. In his homily, Msgr. Yeung emphasizes that "without the Cross we are not disciples of the Lord." Commitment to "healing relationships" with the faithful and families. Attention to economic poverty, but also to the spiritual one, the elderly and the young. Hong Kong must be concerned not just about economics but also about education, homes, environment, and political reforms. The ceremony on video.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews) - Bishop Michael Yeung, appointed new ordinary bishop of Hong Kong on 1 August by Pope Francis, was installed today in the episcopal bishopric of the diocese with Mass attended by at least 1000 faithful.

Representatives of Protestant Christian communities in the Territory attended the ceremony at 15 pm (local time), which saw the presence of the two cardinals, both bishops emeritus of the diocese,

Card. John Tong and Card. Joseph Zen, in addition to the Auxiliary Bishop Msgr. Joseph Ha and the Bishop of Macau, Msgr. Stephen Lee Bun Sang.

One hundred priests accompanied the procession through the faithful who crowded the aisles of the cathedral. Places of honor were also reserved for the current head of the Hong Kong executive, Carrie Lam, co-chaired by Donald Tsang, also former head of the executive.

The ceremony took place in Chinese (Cantonese) and in English. After the introduction and a brief exhortation, the Emeritus Bishop, Card. John Tong, accompanied Msgr. Yeung to the chair leaving him in place. Immediately after the new bishop received the obedience of priests, missionaries, religious and religious, lay people and young people, with their promise to preserve the unity of the community and work for the evangelization of society.

Bishop Yeung, visibly moved, approached them and while everyone bowed - in Chinese style - in front of him authority, he embraced them one at a time.

In his homily, pronounced first in Chinese and then in English, Msgr. Yeung thanked the two bishops emeritus for their testimony and the authorities and the faithful for their attendance at the celebration.

Then, referring to the Gospel of the Mass (that of the Feast of the Transfiguration of Jesus), he quoted Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis, pointing out that "without the Cross we are not disciples of the Lord." He then traced the horizon of his mission and of the diocese, showing "compassion and accompaniment" to "the last, the least, the lost." The poverty that must be cared for is not only economic, but also spiritual, of those who are not loved and are not welcomed. There were no references to China or the Church in China.

"Healing Relationships" with the Faithful and Families is the pastor's daily task, he further stressed. The areas which he said need more attention include the elderly, many of whom are abandoned, homeless, in difficult economic situations. But he also mentioned the youth, recalling that they are also suffering from abandonment, their rejection of authority, their lack of hope in a possible future.

The population of Hong Kong he concluded, should not just concern itself with the economy, but also housing, education, the environment, and political reforms.

Click on the following link to see the video of the ceremony https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ6lVACpUAM
Vatican City (AsiaNews) - The event of the Lord's Transfiguration, which the Church celebrates today, "invites us to meet Jesus and to be at the service of our brothers" suggests a way to live the holidays because "rest and detachment from everyday occupations, can re-energize the forces of the body and spirit, deepening the spiritual path. "

Pope Francis explained in this way the mystery of the transfiguration of Jesus, in front of the disciples Peter, James and John, led up a high mountain" (Mt 17: 1), binding it to the way in which to use the time of summer break, without forgetting "the summer of those who cannot do holidays" for illness, economic reasons, or work.

"The ascension of the disciples to Mount Tabor - he explained - leads us to reflect on the importance of detaching ourselves from worldly things, to make a way up and contemplate Jesus. This is to give us a careful and prayerful listening to Christ, the beloved Son of the Father, searching for moments of prayer that allow the docile and joyful reception of the Word of God. We are called to rediscover the peaceful and rejuvenating silence of the Bible's gospel, leading to a destiny of beauty, of splendor and joy. And when we put the Bible into our hands, we feel this inner joy that the word of God produces in us. In this perspective, summer time is a providential moment to increase our commitment in seeking and meeting with the Lord. During this period, students are free from school and many families take their holidays; in this period of rest and detachment from daily occupations, it is important that the body and spirit forces can be renewed, deepening the spiritual path. "

"At the end of the admirable experience of the Transfiguration, the disciples came down from the mountain (cf v. 9) with eyes and hearts transfigured by the encounter with the Lord. It is the path that we can follow. The more and more living rediscovery of Jesus is not an end in itself, but leads us to "come down from the mountain," recharged with the power of the divine Spirit, to decide new steps for conversion, and to constantly witness charity as the law of daily life. Transformed by the presence of Christ and by the ardor of His Word, we will be a concrete sign of God's vivifying love for all of our brothers, especially those who suffer, those who are in solitude and abandonment, the sick and that multitude of men and women who, in different parts of the world, are humiliated by injustice, bullying and violence. "

"In the Transfiguration - he concluded - the voice of the heavenly Father is heard, saying," This is my Son, the beloved. Listen to him! "(v.5). We look up to Mary, the listening Virgin, always ready to welcome and keep in her heart every word of the divine Son (cf. Lk 1:51). May our Mother and Mother of God help us to come in tune with the Word of God so that Christ can become light and guide in our whole life. We entrust to Her the holidays of everyone, that they can be serene and profitable, and above all the summer of those who cannot take holidays because they are prevented from age, health or work reasons, economic constraints or other problems, so that it can be in any way a relaxing time, cheered by friendly appearances and happy moments. "
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Three juvenile males, who were speeding down Tampa Rd. in a stolen vehicle, were killed Sunday morning after crashing into a citizens car.

Three juveniles killed in crash

Juveniles speeding in stolen vehicle; crashed into car

Deceased had extensive criminal history

The crash occurred around 4 a.m. at the intersection of Tampa Rd. and US 19.

Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri held a news conference Sunday morning with details on the fatal crash.

Sheriff Gualtieri said six juvenile males were speeding down Tampa Rd. in two stolen vehicles before one of the vehicles crashed.

The two vehicles, a Chrysler Sebring and Ford Explorer, were stolen on Aug. 3 from Platinum Plus Autos in Clearwater.

The incident started around 1 a.m. Sunday when a deputy spotted the black Ford Explorer and tried to stop it. The stolen vehicle fled and the deputy did not follow, Sheriff Gualtieri said.

Hours later around 4 a.m., another deputy saw the Explorer and Sebring go into the East Lake Woodlands subdivision.

Sheriff Gualtieri said the juveniles have a history of burglarizing vehicles and homes.

Deputies set up a perimeter searching for the stolen vehicles and later spotted them speeding westbound down Tampa Rd. playing a cat and mouse game.

Gualtieri said the sheriff's office does not pursue stolen vehicles and the deputies turned around before the crash occurred.

The Explorer was speeding over 100 mph when it crashed into a citizens car at the intersection of US 19, the sheriff said.

The Explorer went airborne and smashed into the car lot and hit a billboard before in rolled down the road and burst into flames.

Three of the juveniles in the car were killed. A fourth male was transported to Bayfront Medical Center.

The Sebring was not involved in the crash and fled towards Sunset Point and Keene Rd., Gualtieri said, where the two juvenile males in the vehicle fled on foot. They were caught and taken into custody.

Sheriff Gualtieri said the three deceased black males had extensive criminal histories. One was just released from jail on July 31.

He also mentioned in the news conference that one deceased male was still wearing the gloves used for car burglaries. Gualtieri also said there were dozens of cell phones found in the vehicle.

Sheriff Gualtieri said charges are expected against the two males in custody and the one in the hospital.

Gualtieri said law enforcement is doing everything they can to curb this kind of behavior.

This is a sad situationand its gotta stop, he said.

This is a developing story, please check back for updates.
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Sherry Madera, the City of London Corporation's special adviser for Asia, said retaining business volumes should be the focus

Investors pulling money out of The City pose a greater risk to London's financial dominance than banks exiting the UK because of Brexit, according to a Square Mile official.

Sherry Madera, the City of London Corporation's special adviser for Asia, said retaining business volumes should be the focus as opposed to banking jobs because transactions underpin the financial centre's success.

Her comments came as she shed light on how Asian nations view Brexit, with Singapore seeing the divorce as a "net gainer" in its attempts to bolster its position as a global financial centre.

Speaking to the Press Association, Ms Madera said: "As much as we talk about the qualitative reasons for London being a global financial centre, it does come down to that density of practitioners and the volume of transactions.

"If we take care of those and we take care of our investors who come here to take advantage of that, in some ways the rest takes care of itself.

"If we think about banks leaving the City of London, or leaving the UK, actually what we should be more concerned with is investors leaving.

"Because the banks are here to service the investors, professional services firms are here to service investors, the entire ecosystem is here to make sure that money is used as efficiently, effectively and profitably.

"The investors are driving this. So keeping an eye on that is going to be really important, the retention and the volume there."

Ms Madera, who joined the authority after serving as minister-counsellor and director of the British Embassy in Beijing, said China and India had a more "relaxed" view on Brexit because they have financial operations spread throughout the UK and Europe.

While the two nations saw Europe "as a place to play", she said London remained the location where they wanted to do global business.

However, she said Chinese banks had used Brexit uncertainty to acquire talent within the City of London.

The 43-year-old, who has a dual British Canadian citizenship, added: "Chinese banks are seeing a great opportunity to hire great talent who (think) now could be an interesting time to shift to an international player.

"They are finding this environment of uncertainty to be an opportunity".

In contrast to China's measured perspective, Japan has been more bullish on Brexit.

The country, which heavily invested in London as a financial gateway to Europe, sent a letter to the Government urging Britain to keep free movement of people and remain in the single market and customs union.

Despite this political pressure, Japanese banks have started to bulk up their operations outside the UK capital.

Investment bank Mizuho Securities announced last week that it plans to set up a subsidiary in Frankfurt to secure its EU client base after Brexit.

It joins a string of Japanese banks who have chosen the German financial centre as an EU hub, including Daiwa, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) and Nomura.

Focusing on Singapore, Ms Madera said the nation sees Brexit as a chance to win more business from London.

While London has a long-standing reputation as a global leader in green finance, Ms Madera said Singapore was now making a strong play to gain more business in that field.

She said: "Singapore is really heavily promoting green bonds on its own exchange and providing incentives for issuing green bonds in the country.

"Singapore has also done a fantastic job of really coalescing its promotion, its incentives and its regulation around attracting fin-tech."
Representatives of the controversial Britain First party address the Northern Ireland Against Terrorism crowd at Belfast City Hall. Britain First Leader Paul Golding

The Anti-Internment parade makes its way to North Queen Street in Belfast

Dissident republican Dee Fennell in the anti-internment parade in Belfast

Representatives of the controversial Britain First party address the Northern Ireland Against Terrorism crowd at Belfast City Hall. Pictured: 'British patriot' Banksy

Three controversial marches held in Belfast have passed off relatively peacefully, following an order from the Parades Commission to keep them apart.

Loyalist protesters from the Loyal People's Protest (LPP) had listed the possibility of up to 10,000 supporters taking part.

After a morning of heavy rain however, a relatively small crowd gathered at Belfast City Hall around midday.

Yards away the Northern Ireland Against Terrorism (NIAT) group held a separate rally attended by about 50 people with two leaders from the far right group Britain First speaking.

Opposing their presence was a further group of demonstrators called Belfast Says No to Fascism with police keeping the groups apart.

It's understood one person was arrested after a tin of juice was thrown at a member of Britain First.

Otherwise, no serious trouble was reported.

Meanwhile, a Republican anti-internment parade had been ordered by the Parades Commission not to pass beyond North Queen Street and to stay out of the city centre.

Ten police land rovers and around 30 officers lined up along the road to prevent the protesters going any further.

Shortly before 1pm the group of around 300 people, holding banners calling to "End British Internment" along with a marching band appeared.

The marchers stopped briefly around 200 metres from the police line, before walking face to face with police.

One of the march organisers, Dee Fennell, addressed the crowds and spoke about being denied entry to the city centre.

Some individuals directed insults at the police officers, but in all the atmosphere was not highly charged when the band started and the marchers turned around 15 minutes later.
General view of the republican Anti Internment League parade as it leaves Ardoyne in north Belfast to Dunville Park.

General view of the republican Anti Internment League parade as it leaves Ardoyne in north Belfast to Dunville Park.

General view of the republican Anti Internment League parade as it leaves Ardoyne in north Belfast to Dunville Park.

Dee Fennel joins the republican Anti Internment League parade as it leaves Ardoyne in north Belfast to Dunville Park.

General view of the republican Anti Internment League parade as it leaves Ardoyne in north Belfast to Dunville Park.

General view of the republican Anti Internment League parade as it leaves Ardoyne in north Belfast to Dunville Park.

A large policing operation is expected in Belfast today, as four protest events are to take place simultaneously. The Loyal People's Protest (LPP),pictured outside Belfast city hall.

General view of the republican Anti Internment League parade as it leaves Ardoyne in north Belfast to Dunville Park.

Dee Fennell speaks as the Anti-Internment parade makes its way to North Queen Street

The Anti-Internment parade makes its way to North Queen Street in Belfast

The Anti-Internment parade makes its way to North Queen Street in Belfast

The Anti-Internment parade makes its way to North Queen Street in Belfast

General view of the republican Anti Internment League parade as it leaves Ardoyne in north Belfast to Dunville Park.

A large policing operation is expected in Belfast today, as four protest events are to take place simultaneously. Representatives of the controversial Britain First party pictured at Belfast city hall.

A demonstration by Belfast Says No to Fascism at Belfast city hall was also held, which its organisers say is to show that Britain First's views are "not welcome in Belfast".

The Anti-Internment parade makes its way to North Queen Street in Belfast

A number of political rallies taking place in the centre of Belfast have been hit with rainy conditions.

Protesters heading out have been met with wet conditions that are due to continue through until around 5pm.

Members of the controversial far-right Britain First party are appearing at a rally part-organised by independent unionist councillor Jolene Bunting and being held "in memory of the victims of terrorism".

A parade opposing this called Belfast Says No to Fascism is also being held, with its organisers saying its purpose is to show that Britain First's views are "not welcome in Belfast".

An anti-interment march coming in through north and west Belfast is also taking place and will skim the city centre, but has been banned by the Parades Commission from passing down Royal Avenue.

A separate anti-terrorism march, the Loyalist People's Protest, is also taking place at City Hall and has also been banned from passing along Royal Avenue.
Detectives from Serious Crime Branch have launched a murder investigation following the death of a 45 year old man at a property in the Victoria Street area of Lurgan. Photo by Freddie Parkinson / Press Eye Sunday 6 August 2017

Detectives from Serious Crime Branch have launched a murder investigation following the death of a 45 year old man at a property in the Victoria Street area of Lurgan. Photo by Freddie Parkinson / Press Eye Sunday 6 August 2017

Police in Lurgan have launched a murder investigation following the death of a 45-year-old man at a property in the Victoria Street area of the town.

Police were called to the scene shortly after 2.15pm on Sunday.

A 45-year-old man has been arrested at the scene and remains in police custody at this time.

The death is being investigated by detectives from the Serious Crime Branch.

In a statement, Detective Inspector Darren McCartney said:

"I am appealing for anyone with any information that can assist with the investigation to contact detectives in Lurgan on 101 quoting reference number 769 of 06/08/17. Information can also be passed anonymously via the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111."

Expand Close Detectives from Serious Crime Branch have launched a murder investigation following the death of a 45 year old man at a property in the Victoria Street area of Lurgan. Photo by Freddie Parkinson / Press Eye Sunday 6 August 2017 / Facebook

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Whatsapp Detectives from Serious Crime Branch have launched a murder investigation following the death of a 45 year old man at a property in the Victoria Street area of Lurgan. Photo by Freddie Parkinson / Press Eye Sunday 6 August 2017

Upper Bann DUP MLA Carla Lockhart described the murder as "horrendous news".

"Local residents are in shock and the area is currently cordoned off with PSNI investigations ongoing.

"I would encourage anyone who has any information to come forward and report it to the PSNI on 101."
The PSNI are appealing for information after officers were bottled while dealing with a large group of teenagers.

Saturday evening officers were called to an incident in the Ballyclare area involving around 100 young people aged 12 to 17 who were drinking alcohol and causing a disturbance.

On arriving at the scene the police had to deal with an intoxicated young woman who had sustained an injury and was required to be taken to hospital by ambulance while accompanied by police.

While dealing with the incident, a number of youths threw bottles at the officers.

In a statement a spokesperson for the PSNI Newtownabbey, who have responsibility for the Ballyclare area, said: "Not only are police concerned about the intoxicated state of some of the young people but also by their actions, which could ultimately result in a criminal record."

They also said that if parents are aware of their children being out in the area that they should contact them.
Deya used to run an evangelical church in Peckham (Michael Stephens/PA)

A Kenyan pastor has been extradited from Britain to face charges of child trafficking amid accusations that he stole children, including newborn babies, to prove miracles.

Gilbert Deya was charged in a Kenyan court with five counts of child stealing, involving children under the age of 14.

The children were allegedly to be offered as proof of miracles Deya claimed he had conducted to make barren women pregnant.

He used to run an evangelical church in Peckham, south-east London.

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Deya had fought extradition for more than 10 years but in July he lost a High Court battle to stay in Britain.

He was initially arrested in the UK in December 2006 following the issuing of an international arrest warrant by the chief magistrates court in Nairobi.

His wife Mary was sentenced to three years in prison in 2014 for stealing a baby.

Deya has denied the charges against him. He has been remanded in prison until August 10, when the court will rule on whether to release him on bail pending trial.
One man has died and two more are missing feared dead after a boat sank following a suspected collision off the south coast.

A major search and rescue operation was launched after the vessel went down off Shoreham in West Sussex early on Sunday.

The vessel left Shoreham harbour just after midnight on Sunday for a leisure fishing trip and was apparently struck by a larger vessel around two hours later, Sussex Police said.

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The alarm was only raised shortly before 6am when a fourth man was discovered by a fishing boat crew clinging to a buoy, two miles west of the towns harbour.

The four men on board were all Romanian, two living in London and two in Brighton, police said.

Two of them are related but officers did not reveal any further details.

The 45-year-old survivor, from London, is stable in hospital after being rushed to shore.

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Matt Pavitt, the Maritime and Coastguard Agencys south east coastal operations area commander, told the BBC: Anybody that spends that length of time, numerous hours potentially, in the sea without any protective equipment, at this time of year its a nice day but the sea is still cold, is very, very lucky to be alive.

Up to 15 boats and ships, aided by two coastguard helicopters from Lydd and Lee-on-Solent, were involved in the search before it was suspended early on Sunday afternoon.

They included lifeboats from Shoreham and Brighton and some 10 vessels from the nearby Rampion offshore wind farm.

Coastguard Rescue Teams from Shoreham and Littlehampton were also involved in a search that included combing beaches between Brighton and Worthing on the Sussex coast.

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The body of the dead man was found at around 8.15am.

Coastguard controller Andy Jenkins saying: Following an extensive search of the area using multiple assets nothing further has been found at this time so the decision has been made to suspend the search pending further information.

A review of the incident details will be ongoing through the rest of the day.

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Sussex Police and the Marine Accident Investigation Branch have launched an investigation into the tragedy.

Detective Chief Inspector Rachel Carr said: We are now trying to establish the circumstances and to identify the other vessel involved.

An earlier appeal for information prompted a significant number of calls and I would like to thank people for their prompt responses, which enabled us to quickly identify who had been involved.

Our thoughts are with the families and friends of all those who have been involved in this tragic incident.
Kim Jong Uns nuclear ambitions could be catastrophic for the world, the UK warned, as the United Nations Security Council backed an escalation of sanctions against Pyongyang.

The UK ambassador to the UN, Matthew Rycroft, said North Koreas development of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) had significantly extended the threat posed by the secretive regime.

Calling on North Korea to halt and reverse its nuclear and missile development programmes, Mr Rycroft said the country should forgo the path of provocation.

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He said: North Korea bears full responsibility for the measures we have enacted today. By acting in flagrant violation of its legal obligations, by going against the will of the Security Council expressed in countless resolutions, North Korea has chosen the path it now finds itself on.

It is a path that, at a minimum, will lead to further suffering for its own people and at most could prove to be catastrophic for the whole world.

It does not have to be this way. North Korea should forgo the path of provocation, forgo the path of further escalation.

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At a meeting in New York the Security Council unanimously approved new sanctions including banning exports worth over a billion US dollars (770 million).

The resolution also bans countries from giving any additional permits to North Korean workers  a crucial source of foreign currency for the regime but a situation labelled a form of modern slavery by Mr Rycroft.

The sanctions follow North Koreas first successful tests of ICBMs capable of reaching the United States last month.

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The resolution bans North Korea from exporting coal, iron ore, lead and seafood products  the lifeline exports that sustain Kim Jong Uns deadly aspirations, Mr Rycroft said.

He added: North Korea is no longer a threat faced by a single country or a single region. It is instead a threat that confronts us all.

He said as the regimes missile capabilities advanced so too does their contempt and disregard for this Security Council.

We must meet this belligerence with clear, unequivocal condemnation and with clear, unequivocal consequences.

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The resolution, drafted by the US but negotiated with North Koreas neighbour and ally China, is aimed at increasing economic pressure on Pyongyang to return to negotiations on its nuclear and missile programmes.

US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said: The price the North Korean leadership will pay for its continued nuclear and missile development will be the loss of one third of its export and hard currency.

This is the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation.

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Foreign Office Minister Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon said: The UK and our international partners are united in opposing and standing firm against the threat posed by North Korea.

This resolution will cut the resources that North Korea is abusing to fund its reckless and illegal pursuit of nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.

North Korea has chosen this extremely dangerous and destabilising path. The regime is prioritising the pursuit of these weapons over and above its people, peace and stability in the region.

The North Korean regime needs to change its course immediately and the UK calls on all countries to implement these new measures fully and robustly.
A British model who was kidnapped in Milan and detained for six days while her captor tried to auction her online has reportedly returned to the UK.

The 20-year-old woman, named in reports as Chloe Ayling, was attacked on July 11 by two men as she attended an arranged photo shoot.

She is believed to have been drugged and transported in a bag to Borgial, an isolated village near Turin, before being released on July 17, Italian Police said.

Ms Ayling has now flown back to the UK and returned to her home in Coulsdon, south London, according to reports.

Speaking on her doorstep she told how she had feared for her life throughout the terrifying experience.

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A Polish man, who lives in Britain, was arrested on July 18 on suspicion of kidnap and extortion, state police said.

Officials have released a mugshot of the suspect, named as 30-year-old Lukasz Pawel Herba.

It is alleged two men tried to sell Ms Ayling online for more than 300,000 dollars (230,000) and demanded the models agent pay to secure her safe release.

She was kept handcuffed to furniture but was freed after six days and taken to the British consulate in Milan, despite the ransom not being paid.

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It has been reported the captor demanded 50,000 upon her release and threatened to kill her if she told police about the incident.

Milan police officer Lorenzo Bucossi told reporters the group the suspect was allegedly working for offered mercenary services on the dark web.

According to a translation on Sky News, Mr Bucossi said: Certainly the author of this very serious crime is a dangerous person, dont forget he was also ready to carry out a final solution, as he called it.

He was a killer and was working for an organisation on the deep web that is offering mercenary services such as bombing attacks, kidnapping and the selling of girls on the dark web.

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Italian police said they are working with officials in Britain and Poland as they continue to investigate.

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said an address in Sampson Close in Oldbury was raided on July 18 in connection with the investigation.
Carla del Ponte is resigning from the UN's independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria after five years (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP, File)

Renowned former war crimes prosecutor Carla Del Ponte is resigning from the UN's Syria panel after a five-year stint, criticising the Security Council's inaction in holding criminals accountable.

In comments to Blick magazine published on Sunday, Ms Del Ponte expressed frustration about the independent commission of inquiry and criticised both President Bashar Assad's government and the opposition.

The former prosecutor for the international war crimes tribunals that investigated atrocities in Rwanda and Yugoslavia has repeatedly decried the Security Council's refusal to appoint a similar court for Syria's civil war, now in its seventh year.

Permanent member Russia is a key backer of Assad's government.

The commission issued a statement insisting its work "must continue" to help bring perpetrators in Syria to justice.
Mr McMaster said the US president has been "deeply briefed" on strategy regarding on North Korea (AP)

US president Donald Trump's national security adviser HR McMaster has stressed that it is "impossible to overstate the danger" posed by North Korea.

In an interview with MSNBC's Hugh Hewitt, Mr McMaster said Mr Trump has been "deeply briefed" on the strategy on North Korea.

Tensions have mounted with Pyongyang's two recent successful tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Mr McMaster reiterated the administration's position that all options, including a targeted military strike, are on the table.

Still, he acknowledged this "would be a very costly war, in terms of ... the suffering of mainly the South Korean people."

McMaster continued: "So what we have to do is .... everything we can to pressure this regime, to pressure Kim Jong Un and those around him such that they conclude it is in their interest to denuclearise."

The comments came as US secretary of state Rex Tillerson arrived in the Philippines for a regional summit expected to focus heavily on concerns with North Korea.

Mr Tillerson has no plans to sit down with North Korean foreign minister Ri Yong Ho at the event.

Mr Tillerson's reluctance to meet his North Korean counterpart is despite his growing push for Pyongyang to return to the negotiating table with the US.

The US secretary of state said this week that such talks would have to be predicated on the North giving up its nuclear weapons aspirations and that the conditions for such talks have not yet been met by North Korea's government.

The UN Security Council has unanimously approved new sanctions on North Korea, including banning exports worth over one billion dollars.

AP
Kenny Korth believes a decision on the possible consolidation of churches in the Omaha Archdioceses could rock parishioners.

Personally, I think it would have a great impact on the faithful. They certainly would have their faith shaken, the Platte Center man said.

Korth is among the approximately 370 members of St. Joseph Catholic Church, one of several churches that could close based on recommendations from a pastoral plan that suggests merging some parishes with larger congregations.

A study was completed on 31 rural parishes in the southwest and central areas of the Archdiocese of Omaha. The review, which began in September, was conducted by Milwaukee-based Meitler, a planning firm that assists faith-based institutions with preparations for the future.

St. Joseph in Platte Center and St. Stanislaus in Duncan were identified for consolidation with Columbus churches St. Isidore and St. Anthony, respectively. The Platte Center and Duncan churches would become chapels used for special occasions such as weddings, funerals and other events.

The archdiocese has welcomed feedback from parishioners on the proposal and will consider suggestions from parish planning teams before a final decision is made in November by Archbishop George Lucas.

Korth, 30, is the fourth generation of his family to belong to St. Joseph, where he serves on the pastoral committee. He said parishioners have expressed a lot of hurt since the plan was released.

I have a lot of feelings. The biggest feeling is disappointment that it has gotten to this point. Im hopeful that we can keep churches from being chapels, he said.

This isnt the first time the archdiocese has considered closing churches to maximize its resources. It conducted a similar study in Omaha six years ago that resulted in the restructuring of parishes and schools, leaving some church attendees seeking weekend services from another church.

Korth said he doesnt want to drive to Columbus for Mass.

I probably would, but I dont want to. I value my faith and my relationship with the church and Jesus. I dont want that to go away. I do a lot of volunteer work at St. Joseph and I dont see myself doing that at St. Isidore, he said.

Another parishioner, Angela Dolezal, was a religious education teacher at St. Joseph for 25 years. She said it would be devastating if the plan holds true.

A lot of people are very emotional. Theres anger, naturally, she said.

Her husband, Ken Dolezal, said there will be a negative impact on Platte Center if the church, which was founded there in 1884, closes.

It isnt just about the Catholic faith, he said. Losing a church is like losing a city grocery store or a lumberyard. It hurts a community.

The couple hasnt decided if they would attend Mass at St. Isidore in Columbus or another location. They did say they wont lose their faith, no matter what happens.

Similar thoughts are shared among those in Duncan.

Its just upsetting, said Bernie Slusarski.

She's worshiped at St. Stanislaus, which has 289 members, for years and was baptized in the church. She said ideas have been passed around on how to keep the church open, something she's praying will happen.

Slusarski also said there would be a lasting effect on Duncan if that church closes.

It would definitely hurt, like when they closed our school, she said.

Duncan Elementary School shut its doors after the 2007-08 school year, a recommendation made by Columbus Public Schools then-Superintendent Paul Hillyer because of rising operational costs and declining enrollment.

Also based on the study, the archdiocese advises clustering churches to share personnel and resources, and that some schools form a regional system or networks with the Archdiocesan Office for Schools.

It's recommended the four Catholic schools in Columbus establish an early childhood center to provide child care and formation for children.

The study considers a number of criteria, including parish membership, finances and the projected number of priests available to serve in the archdiocese. According to the study, the number of priests is expected to fall from 134 in 2015 to 93 in 2045.

Korth is concerned about spreading priests too thin by giving them larger congregations and additional travel to the rural communities like Platte Center.

A total of 1,200 people are parishioners in the churches identified to become chapels.

Other churches that would become chapels under the pastoral plan include Ss. Peter and Paul in Krakow, St. Peter in Clarks, St. Michael in Tarnov, Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Tilden, St. Bonaventure in Raeville and St. Francis De Sales in Schoolcraft. St. John the Baptist in Petersburg would merge with another church but continue to offer Sunday Mass.
Von: PAUL RONZHEIMER and GIORGOS MOUTAFIS

Raqqa  She knows the city in the worst possible way. In her eyes, the ISIS terrorists were brutal animals who used her as a sex slave. She thought that she would die in Raqqa, Syria  the terrorists capital.

But Hiza (21) is alive. We meet her at a base, a few kilometres away from the frontline in Raqqa. This is where the women from the Kurdish YPG unit recover. Hiza has joined them after she managed to escape half a year ago. She says: I have experienced unbelievable things. Now it is time to take revenge.

Auch interessant

When the ISIS terrorists conquered more and more areas in Iraq and Syria in the summer of 2014 and also invaded the Yazidi region at the Sinjar Mountains, they killed the men and took the women. Thousands were abducted and were brought to Mosul in Iraq or further on to Syria. The stories of these women are so appalling that it is almost unbearable to listen to them. Moreover, the Yazidi women are ashamed of what was done to them.

Hiza says: Nobody can imagine the suffering that was brought upon us, upon our entire people. This is why she now feels satisfied standing at the frontline with the Kurdish female YPG fighters. She has no fear. Why should I be afraid, after what Ive seen?

Lesen Sie auch

Mirkan (22) feels the same. She was not a sex slave for ISIS, but came from Germany to join the war in Raqqa. She has a German passport, and her family lives in Bremen. Mirkan: When I heard and read what is happening here, I wanted to fight. I knew I would leave Germany. I am very proud of what we are achieving here.

The war around Raqqa is for many a war of revenge. Many male fighters from the Kurdish units also have personal motives. Many lost their houses in Raqqa. Their parents and friends were killed. ISISs terror reign was particularly dramatic for homosexuals.

Anyone who was identified as gay by the terrorists had to expect being thrown from the roofs of the city.

According to Newsweek, there is now even a homosexual combat unit that fights in Raqqa. It mostly consists of international fighters and apparently calls itself The Queer Insurrection and Liberation Army  TQILA for short. A photo shows six soldiers posing with weapons and a banner which reads: Faggots are killing fascists.

The aim of the organisation is to destroy binary gender codes, to promote the revolution for womens rights, and the sexual revolution.

However, not everybody is happy about the LGBT unit publicly announcing its activities. Its establishment caused a stir in Syria. Kurdish units publicly distance themselves and declare that TQILA does not fight together with them. A Kurdish officer says to BILD: It is not good that this was made public. This is asking too much of the Arabian population. The focus should now solely be the fight against ISIS.
AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Mike Pence is not planning a 2020 run for the Oval Office, despite what the New York Times is reporting, according to the vice president's chief of staff and press secretary.

Pence press secretary Marc Lotter tweeted that such a claim is merely "wishful thinking."

Claims @VP preparing for 2020 run are ridiculous #FakeNews and nothing more than wishful thinking by New York Times   Marc Lotter (@VPPressSec) August 5, 2017

Nick Ayers, who was sworn in by Pence as chief of staff late last month, tweeted that the New York Times published a "total lie."

.@alexburnsNYT @jmartNYT print total lie in #fakenews article. Said I've "signaled to multiple donors @VP wants to be ready for 2020" (cont)  Nick Ayers (@nick_ayers) August 5, 2017

Ayers continued in a subsequent tweet that the New York Times was "unable to name one donor that has ever heard me say that."

...Yet they are unable to name one donor that has ever heard me say that...because I haven't. #shameful #fakenews https://t.co/j3CZQIPFH2  Nick Ayers (@nick_ayers) August 5, 2017

According to the New York Times article, published Saturday, "multiple advisers to Mr. Pence have already intimated to party donors that he would plan to run if Mr. Trump did not."

The article continues, "Though it is customary for vice presidents to keep a full political calendar, he has gone a step further, creating an independent power base, cementing his status as Mr. Trumps heir apparent."

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Gardai have identified a Dublin murder victim and renewed their appeal for information about the investigation.

Michal Kurek's body was discovered in a laneway of the Ballyboughal to Oldtown Road area on Friday.
The following people were sentenced on July 25 in Cumberland County Court of Common Pleas. All sentences include costs and run concurrently with other sentences unless otherwise specified. Probation is unsupervised unless indicated otherwise. Driving under the influence (DUI) offenses generate different mandatory-minimum sentences based on an offenders prior convictions in the past 10 years.

Sentenced to State Correctional Institute

Camp Hill

Ethan Andrew Trumper: Eighteen months to four years for two counts of robbery. (Ebert)

Sentenced to Cumberland County Prison

Carlisle

Erick John Hale: Six to 18 months, $100 fine and restitution of $337.08 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition, credit of 149 days. (Brewbaker); One to 4 months and $100 fine for retail theft. (Brewbaker)

Victoria Joan Mcmillen: Thirty-one days to 23 months and $100 fine for aggravated harassment by prisoner. (Peck)

Dillsburg

Jose R. Ramirez: Nine to 23 months, $200 fine and restitutions of $9,052.56 and $5,884.18 for aggravated assault. (Peck)

Duncannon

Chad Daniel Smith: One year probation and $100 fine for resisting arrest or other law enforcement; five days to 6 months in Cumberland County Prison for DUI, second offense. (Peck)

Harrisburg

Rashad Calvin Cobb: Five days to 6 months and $300 fine for DUI, second offense; 24 months probation and 36 hours of community service for tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, consecutive. (Placey)

Michael Anthony Floyd: Seventy-two hours to 6 months and $500 fine for DUI, high rate. (Masland)

Enrique Rene Feliciano Serrano: Seventy-two hours to 6 months and $1,000 fine for DUI; $25 fine for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Brewbaker)

Louis Jules Steffens: One to 12 months and $200 fine for unsworn falsification to authorities. (Ebert)

Donte Allexus Wedderburne: One to 23 months, $150 fine and restitution of $3,964.81 for burglary-not adapted to overnight accommodation-no person present. (Ebert)

Lemoyne

Matthew Farley Moore: Seventy-two hours to 6 months and $1,000 fine for DUI, highest rate. (Masland)

Mechanicsburg

Tristan Cole Gilliland-Kunkle: Thirty days to 6 months and $750 fine for DUI, second offense. (Peck)

Troy Thomas Holtzman: Nine to 23 months and $1,500 fine for unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule I controlled substance-Marijuana. (Brewbaker)

Kamerin Terell Lee Simpson: Ten days to 78 months and $500 fine for DUI, consecutive; 60 days and $500 fine for driving while under suspension-DUI related. (Ebert)

Alan Clark Skelly: Fifteen days to 6 months and $300 fine for DUI, second offense. (Brewbaker)

Middletown

Erik Anthony Stiles: Thirty days to 1 year for retail theft, followed by 24 months probation and 24 hours of community service. (Placey)

Newville

Gregory Keith Berrier: Five days to 6 months and $300 fine for DUI, second offense. (Masland)

Shippensburg

Daniel Lee Johnson: Ten days to 6 months, $300 fine for DUI, second offense; $50 fine for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Ebert)

Nadir Dequan Jones: Five to 23 months, $300 fine and restitution of $2,694 for criminal conspiracy to burglary-adapted overnight accommodation-no person present. (Brewbaker); Five to 23 months and $300 fine for criminal attempt to burglary. (Placey)

Other

Brandon Dale Stutzman: One day to 23 months, $100 fine and restitution of $926.79 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Brewbaker)

Marcos Olivera-Leon: Two to 6 months and $100 fine for access device fraud, credit of 61 days. (Peck)

Sentenced to Electronic Monitoring

Harrisburg

Mannix M. Martinez: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for 60 days for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

York

Heather L. Baer: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for 30 days for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

York Springs

Travis W. Jeffers: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for 60 days for driving while under suspension-DUI-related. (Brewbaker)

Other

Fred Lawrence Walker: Sentenced to 30 days of electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

Diane Frances Witman: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for 90 days for driving while under suspension-DUI-related. (Brewbaker); Sentenced to electronic monitoring for 30 days for driving while under suspension-DUI-related. (Brewbaker)

Sentenced to Fine

Mechanicsburg

Bailey Christopher Morris: Sentenced to $100 fine for unlawful possession of Schedule I controlled substance. (Peck)

Sentenced to Probation

Camp Hill

Colton John Mattus: Eighteen months probation and $100 fine for prohibited offensive weapons; $100 fine for unlawful possession of a Schedule II controlled substance-Cocaine; $25 fine for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Ebert)

Carlisle

Donald George Wert: Twelve months probation and 48 hours of community service for false swearing. (Placey)

Duncannon

Chad Daniel Smith: Six months probation for DUI. (Peck)

Gardners

Jimmy John Ramos: Sentenced to $200 fine for driving while under suspension; 18 months probation and $300 fine for recklessly endangering another person. (Brewbaker)

Harrisburg

Warren James Mayo Jr.: Twenty-four months probation, $300 fine and restitution of $169.89 for criminal conspiracy to retail theft, credit of 184 days. (Brewbaker)

Jennifer Ashawn Mcfarland: Eighteen months probation and $100 fine for simple assault. (Peck)

Mechanicsburg

Bailey Christopher Morris: One year probation and $100 fine for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Peck); One year probation and $100 fine for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Peck)

Middletown

Barry Leroy Keefer II: Six months probation and $300 fine for DUI; $25 fine for restriction on alcoholic beverages. (Ebert)

Shippensburg

Eric Raymond Mckee: Six months probation and $300 fine for DUI. (Guido)

Holly J. Thrush: Twenty-four months probation and restitution of $866 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Placey); Twenty-four months probation and 24 hours of community service for theft by unlawful taking or disposition, consecutive. (Placey)

Resentencings

Sentenced to State Correctional Institute

Harrisburg

Lawrence Placido: Eighteen months to 36 months for two counts of luring a child into a motor vehicle. (Ebert)
A US state governor has condemned the bombing of a suburban mosque as "so wretched".

Mark Dayton, governor of Minnesota, was speaking after the attack on the premises in suburban Minneapolis.
A British model who was kidnapped in Milan and detained for six days while her captor tried to auction her online has reportedly returned to the UK.

The 20-year-old woman, named in reports as Chloe Ayling, was attacked on July 11 by two men as she attended an arranged photo shoot.

She is believed to have been drugged and transported in a bag to Borgial, an isolated village near Turin, before being released on July 17, Italian Police said.

Ms Ayling has now flown back to the UK and returned to her home in Coulsdon, south London, according to reports.

Speaking on her doorstep she told how she had feared for her life throughout the "terrifying experience".

A Polish man, who lives in Britain, was arrested on July 18 on suspicion of kidnap and extortion, state police said.

Officials have released a mugshot of the suspect, named as 30-year-old Lukasz Pawel Herba.

It is alleged two men tried to sell Ms Ayling online for more than US$300,000 and demanded the model's agent pay to secure her safe release.

To see this post on Facebook, click here.

She was kept handcuffed to furniture but was freed after six days and taken to the British consulate in Milan, despite the ransom not being paid.

It has been reported the captor demanded 50,000 upon her release and threatened to kill her if she told police about the incident.

Milan police officer Lorenzo Bucossi told reporters the group the suspect was allegedly working for offered "mercenary services" on the dark web.

According to a translation on Sky News, Mr Bucossi said: "Certainly the author of this very serious crime is a dangerous person, don't forget he was also ready to carry out a 'final solution', as he called it.

"He was a killer and was working for an organisation on the deep web that is offering mercenary services such as bombing attacks, kidnapping and the selling of girls on the dark web."

Italian police said they are working with officials in Britain and Poland as they continue to investigate.

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said an address in Sampson Close in Oldbury was raided on July 18 in connection with the investigation.
Military troops quickly put down an attack at an army base in Venezuela today, clashing with a group that said it was out to "re-establish the constitutional order" but was dismissed by officials as a band of civilians working with a deserted lieutenant and a former officer.

The incident happened during the early morning hours at the Paramacay base in the central city of Valencia.

Residents who live nearby said they heard repeated rounds of gunfire starting around 4:30am.

Dozens of locals gathered outside the base chanting, "Freedom!" and troops dispersed them with tear gas.

The clashes sparked just as a video showing more than a dozen men dressed in military fatigues, some carrying rifles, began circulating widely on social media.

In the recording, a man who identified himself as Captain Juan Caguaripano said the men were members of the military who oppose the government of embattled President Nicolas Maduro and called on other units to declare themselves in open rebellion.

"This is not a coup d'etat," he said.

"This is a civic and military action to re-establish the constitutional order."

Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez characterised the attackers as a "paramilitary" expedition carried out by civilians dressed in uniforms.

He did not name any of the participants but said they included a lieutenant who had abandoned his post and that a former officer dismissed three years ago after being charged with rebellion and betraying the homeland had recorded the video.

In 2014, Capt Caguaripano released a 12-minute video denouncing Mr Maduro during a previous wave of anti-government unrest.

He later reportedly sought exile after a military tribunal ordered his arrest, appearing in an interview on CNN en Espanol to draw attention to discontent within the ranks.

He returned to Venezuela to lead Sunday's uprising, said Giomar Flores, a mutinous naval officer who said he is a spokesman for the group from Bogota, Colombia.

Mr Padrino Lopez alleged the men were recruited by "right-wing extremists" working with unspecified foreign governments.

He said some of them managed to steal some weapons but the attack was quickly suppressed.

At least seven people were detained and expected to be put before military tribunals.

"Today's terrorist attack is no more than a propaganda show," Mr Padrino Lopez said.

For four months Venezuela has been in the throes of political upheaval that has left at least 120 people dead.

Opposition leaders have called on the military, which historically has served as an arbiter of political disputes, to break with Mr Maduro over what it considers violations of the constitution.

But the president is believed to still have the institution's support.

He and his predecessor, the late president Hugo Chavez, worked diligently to assure their allegiance.

Like Sunday's uprising, most manifestations of dissent among the troops have been small and isolated thus far.

"It's still very hard to know to what extent there are significant divisions within the military," Michael Shifter, president of the Washington-based Inter-American Dialogue said recently.

The attack capped an already tense weekend when a new constitutional assembly that will rule with nearly unlimited powers voted to remove chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz.

Ms Ortega Diaz, a longtime government loyalist who has become one of Mr Maduro's most outspoken critics, reiterated her refusal to recognise the decision.

"I am still Venezuela's chief prosecutor," she said on Sunday in a public appearance with leaders of the opposition.

The assembly swore in as her replacement Ombudsman Tarek William Saab, who was recently sanctioned by Washington for failing to protect protesters from abuses in his role as the nation's top human rights official.

Meanwhile jailed opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez was returned home to serve under house arrest his 13-year sentence for inciting violence at protests, days after being hauled back to prison in the middle of the night in a move that drew international condemnation.

Mr Lopez's wife, Lilian Tintori, said in a Saturday night message on Twitter that she and her husband remain committed to achieving "peace and freedom for Venezuela".
US vice president Mike Pence has hit back after a news report suggested he is laying groundwork for a possible presidential bid in 2020 if President Donald Trump does not run.

In a statement released by the White House, Mr Pence said today's story in The New York Times "is disgraceful and offensive to me, my family, and our entire team".

He added: "The allegations in this article are categorically false."

The formal rebuttal of a news report by the vice president was an unusual move.

In it, Mr Pence also said his team will "focus all our efforts to advance the president's agenda and see him re-elected in 2020".

The report details efforts of several Republicans looking ahead to 2020, calling it a "shadow campaign".

It notes Mr Pence's political schedule and active fundraising, though it also says unnamed advisers have signalled that he would only run if Mr Trump does not.

The article noted Mr Pence has set up a fundraising committee.

Called the Great America Committee, it can accept cheques of up to 5,000 dollars from individual donors.

Mr Pence raised about one million dollars at a Washington fundraiser last month, attended by dozens of politicians and featuring remarks from White House adviser Ivanka Trump.

Mr Trump has not suggested he will not seek a second term.

But his first six months in office have been turbulent, marked by staff infighting, legislative struggles and a series of investigations.

White House counsellor Kellyanne Conway also dismissed the report and said Mr Pence is readying to run in 2020 "for re-election as vice president".

"Vice President Pence is a very loyal, very dutiful, but also incredibly effective vice president, and active vice president, with this president," said Ms Conway on ABC's This Week.

''He is a peer to the president in the West Wing."

New York Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha said in an emailed statement: "We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting and will let the story speak for itself."
Swinging voters think ex-PM Tony Abbott is a sook. Credit:Andrew Meares "Do something, like same-sex marriage," said a younger Melbourne participant. Regardless of individual voters' views on the issue, she said, it was important that Mr Turnbull "just do something". A woman in the group of older voters in western Sydney said: "John Howard was able to change the Marriage Act it in an afternoon," when he defined marriage as an act between a man and a woman. "Why is it taking us 15 years to change one word?" Bill Shorten was not widely considered a strong alternative Prime Minister to Malcolm Turnbull. Credit:Peter Eve When asked to name anything that Mr Turnbull had accomplished in nearly two years as Prime Minister, people in the groups were unable to name anything that affected their lives.

They were able to nominate only a single decision - a rearrangement of government agencies for the pending creation of the Home Affairs department. One Nation senator Pauline Hanson. Credit:Andrew Meares Ipsos surveyed four groups in all, two in each city. The Home Affairs decision was mentioned in two. In the other two, participants could think of nothing at all. And among the group of voters aged under 45 in Sydney, Mr Turnbull's high-profile recent announcements on national security and terrorism were greeted with "absolute cynicism about the real threat of terrorism in Australia amongst the 20 somethings," as Ms Demasi put it. "There was such a strong consensus in this group of the idea that the threat of terrorism in Australia is seriously overblown and is being manipulated to the benefit of the government, namely as a source of distraction from other issues. I was blown anyway by this  I've never seen this before."

A younger western Sydney voter said terrorism was used as a political distraction: "It's like smoke and mirrors - 'look over here while we ruin your lives over there'." And another: "My friend is terrified to catch the bus. Why do they want to make you feel like that?" A third said: "They are instilling fear. Leave it out of the papers - just do it behind closed doors." Asked by the moderator whether Islamic State were a real threat, the eight voters around the table shook their heads. One man remarked: "One person a year dies of terrorism, less." A woman added: "I don't want to say they should spend less money on terrorism because they seem to be doing a good job, but I don't think they should concentrate on it so much." Among older voters, however, terrorism was nominated as a real concern; some voters linked it to the issue of border control. Among other issues, the long-standing concerns over health care, education and government debt were overtaken by a surging new one - housing affordability.

In the western Sydney groups: "They agreed that Shorten is not an appealing alternative, even amongst 2016 Labor voters, who believed he could not be the leader they were looking for - but had no idea who could," Ms Demasi observed. It was not much better among the Melbourne groups, although one voter said that Mr Shorten was "more in tune with me and my needs". A participant in the group aged over 40 said: "Trust, he's a snake." Both main parties were held in disdain for "chopping and changing" their own leaders: "They get in and hardly have time to warm the seat and they're looking to topple them," said one voter. "We thought the Liberals were better than that, but they're just as bad," remarked another. Sydney's first focus group contained undecided voters aged over 45, who voted Liberal in the last federal election, while a second group had undecided voters aged 18-45 who voted Labor in 2016.
Beach-goers returning from the Sunshine Coast face significant delays heading back to Brisbane on Sunday afternoon, after a rollover on the Bruce Highway.

A car towing a trailer rolled about 3.30pm on the northbound side at Landsborough, causing congestion for both directions.

A rollover caused significant delays for returning beach-goers on Sunday afternoon. Credit:Department of Transport and Main Roads

Australian Traffic Network reporter Olympia Kwitowski said by 5pm, northbound congestion covered seven kilometres, while southbound delays stretched back six kilometres to Caloundra Road.

Ms Kwitowski added that the Sunshine Coast had received rain on Sunday and more was expected, meaning delays could get worse into the evening.
The ghosts of Brisbane's past have been brought back to life in a new book, which looks into the stories of those buried under the tombstones in cemeteries across the region.

Among the ghost stories in the Brisbane edition of Grave Tales is English conman Walter Thomas Porriott, who is accused of being Jack the Ripper - the man responsible for a series of gruesome murders in Whitechapel, London.

Authors of Grave Tales, Helen Goltz and Chris Adams.

The horrific killings took place between August and November in 1888 in east London. While the murders of 11 women over several decades have been attributed to the serial killer, London police believe only five of the deaths during the three-month period were in fact connected to Jack the Ripper.

The five victims were all prostitutes and mutilated to different extents, with the most brutal killing involving a woman's body parts being severed and rearranged.
After hundreds of complaints from Queensland drivers, an independent investigation into the towing industry has been finalised and promises to get rid of tow-truck sharks.

The report, led by former District Court Judge Michael Forde, was revealed on Sunday and included recommendations to stop drivers being ripped off by rogue tow-truck operators.

Hundreds of drivers lodged official complaints as part of the report, raising concerns about exorbitant release fees and intimidating tactics used by rogue tow-truck operators. Credit:Louie Douvis

Acting Main Roads and Road Safety Minister Steven Miles said Queensland motorists could now "breathe a sigh of relief".

"The comprehensive report makes a range of recommendations and highlights some related matters for further consideration by government," he said.
Are you the kind of person who cant help but sing along to the radio or tap your foot to an old familiar song? Is playing a musical instrument on your bucket list? If you answered yes to any of these, then you have the opportunity to attend an evening of music, song and friendship that will leave you tapping your foot, singing your heart out and checking off an item your list.

Building on the love of music and a family-friendly evening, the Farmington Uke Hoot will hold its first hootenanny at 5 p.m. on Aug. 20 at the Farmington Presbyterian Church.

Based on the idea of hootenannies from the folksy 1960s and 1970s where people would get together to sing and play music, the Uke Hoot is trying to accomplish the same thing - bringing the joy of music, peace and friendship together for an hour or so.

Who doesnt like to sing around a campfire? said Kay Taylor, a co-coordinator for the hoot. Its like that but its a Uke Hoot instead. We will be playing fun songs in a relaxed setting. It will definitely be a feel-good time.

Holding a Uke Hoot stemmed from the enjoyment the Farmington Presbyterian string band had playing together during Sunday services where they would play old time gospel hymns or some toe-tapping bluegrass music.

Our string band started playing together a little over a year ago, said Regina Brown, the music coordinator at the Farmington Presbyterian Church. We have members playing ukuleles, a guitar, a bass guitar, and there have been times when we have had someone on a violin and a mandolin join in as well.

For Brown, introducing the ukulele to the string band wasnt a hard decision. As a music teacher in the Farmington School District, she has seen how much fun her students in the fifth and sixth grade have when introduced to the instrument.

I was first introduced to ukuleles while teaching music at Lincoln Intermediate, Brown said. We have 30 ukuleles for our fifth and sixth grade general music class, and we spend time introducing the instrument to them. They all seem to really enjoy it.

But the real catalyst for the Uke Hoot, and actually the string band itself, Brown added, was Taylors love of the instrument.

The string band got rolling because of Kays love of the ukulele, Brown said. It was something her extended family does during their annual float trip and reunions.

In addition, part of the appeal of playing the ukulele, according to Brown, is its simplicity and how quickly someone without any training can learn to play a song.

Ukes are so much fun to play, Brown said. Its small, easy to handle and it has a funky unique sound. It is also a good introduction to playing other string instruments, especially if you have never played before.

When Misty Seers of Ste. Genevieve, a Farmington High School graduate, heard about the Uke Hoot, she immediately knew she was going to attend the big event.

I am always looking for an opportunity to learn a new instrument and make music with others, said Seers. I think it is wonderful that a group like this is available in our area. I cant wait to attend.

Besides getting people to try something new, such as playing an instrument for the first time, the Uke Hoot has another goal and that is to simply have fun.

I think everyone will have a good time, said Brown. What better way is there to spending an evening than making music and hanging out with friends, old and new?

The ukulele has been around for several years, but the popularity of the instrument has grown over the years. In fact, according to Brown, its appeal has grown world-wide and even some famous musicians are known to enjoy playing.

I belong to a uke group on Facebook, Brown said. There are people from all over the world in this group and some of them have rather large and expensive collections of ukuleles. You also see some famous people who enjoy playing on the page as well. Recently, a picture was posted of Paul McCartney and the late George Harrison playing ukuleles.

The two Beatles are not the only musicians who enjoy playing the unique instrument. Many people who grew up in the 70s still remember Tiny Tim playing a soprano ukulele on The Tonight Show.

While researching different ways the Presbyterian String Band could utilize its ukuleles, Brown first learned about a program at the Atlanta Public Library that gave her the idea to organize a local uke hoot.

I was reading online about a librarian in Atlanta who was loaning out ukuleles just like books and holding monthly classes," Brown said. "I was interested in what she was doing, so I tracked her down and called her. She was very surprised when I called her, but she was very sweet and explained their program to me, even telling me about some their success stories.

One story the librarian told Brown seemed to sum up the whole idea behind the Uke Hoot and why she needed to start one in Farmington.

She told me about a woman from Germany who had recently moved to Atlanta and came into the library asking to check out a ukulele and the song book," Brown said. "The woman didnt speak much English but took the instrument and left. At the next class, the German woman attended. She had taught herself how to play almost all of the songs in the book.

Just learning how to play and being able to attend that next meeting made her feel at home - like she was a part of something - and that is what music is all about.

As a result, Brown and Taylor have joined forces to start the first monthly Uke Hoot base on the same premise of the Atlanta library. If someone is interested, but doesnt have a ukulele, the group will lend you one and give you the music as well.

We would like to see this grow into a monthly event where people come together to enjoy playing music and having a good time, Brown-Vaughn said. If you play the guitar, or any other instrument and would like to join us, feel free. We would love to have you.

While preparing for the Uke Hoot and talking to local music dealers, Brown discovered ukuleles sales are actually growing, even in Farmington. In fact, Music Makers in Farmington has trouble keeping them in stock.

In the last three or four years, we have seen an increase in uke sales, said Jimmy Palmer, the assistant manager at Music Makers. Sales are actually still climbing, and they are actually hard to keep in stock.

Although the string band plays mostly gospel and bluegrass music during services, the musical possibilities played during the Uke Hoot are endless.

During services we typically play old gospel and bluegrass, but during the hoot, we plan on playing a variety of music, Brown said. For the Uke Hoots, we will be playing some old time rock and roll, some folk music, some modern rock and even a little gospel. I really think we will have something for everyone.

In recognition of the first total eclipse in the area since 1492, Brown has selected a few musical pieces that will highlight the event.

We are thinking about starting off with 'Bad Moon Rising' by Creedence Clearwater Rival, 'Satellite' by Guster and maybe 'Sunshine in My Soul,'" Brown said. As we approach the holidays, we will learn fitting songs for that time of the year.

For information about the Uke Hoot, or to reserve a ukulele, contact the Farmington Presbyterian Church at 573-756-4482 or visit Brown's webpage at rbvaughn3932.wixsite.com/mysite.
Flying cars could be one step closer thanks to a study on dark matter and energy conducted by Australian and international scientists.

The researchers were part of an international team that included 400 scientists across six continents.

This Hubble Space Telescope composite image shows a ghostly "ring" of dark matter in the galaxy cluster. Credit:NASA/ESA

The Dark Energy Survey led to the creation of the most accurate map of universe and supported the theory that 26 per cent of the universe was dark matter and energy.

Dark matter has never been observed and researchers only knew what it was not, but the theory of its existence would explain anomalies which have puzzled scientists.
Nigeria: - Gunmen killed 11 people and wounded 18 others in a church in south-eastern Nigeria on Sunday in an attack arising from a feud between members of the local community, officials said.

However, police believe that a man the gunmen were hunting for was not present in the church and so escaped the attack.

Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano said the attack stemmed from a feud between members of the local community who were living outside Nigeria.

The attackers struck the church in Ozubulu early in the morning, said Garba Umar, head of police in Anambra state.

They were believed to have been trying to kill a local man, who was not identified by the authorities.
Paris: French prosecutors have opened a counter-terrorism investigation after a man with a knife tried to force his way in to Paris' Eiffel Tower late on Saturday, a judicial source said.

The incident at the world-famous tourist site was initially treated as a criminal matter, but was later designated a counter-terrorism case because of the suspect's statements to police and his apparent radicalisation, the source said.

The Eiffel Tower, like other Paris landmarks, has seen a heightened security presence throughout France's state of emergency. Credit:AP

The company that operates the Eiffel Tower said in a statement early on Sunday that a man with a knife tried to force his way through a security check at around 10.30pm local time on Saturday before being stopped.

No one was injured, but the tower was evacuated while police checked the entire site.
Washington: US Vice-President Mike Pence on Sunday denounced as false a New York Times article suggesting he is eyeing a 2020 run for president, calling it "disgraceful and offensive."

"The allegations in this article are categorically false and represent just the latest attempt by the media to divide this Administration," Mr Pence said in a statement.

The report story said some Republicans were moving to form a "shadow campaign" for 2020 on the assumption President Donald Trump may not be involved.

It said multiple advisers to Mr Pence "have already intimated to party donors that he would plan to run if Mr Trump did not."
London: Britain is prepared to pay up to 40 billion ($59 billion) as part of a deal to leave the European Union, according to reports.

Senior government officials have concluded that such an offer - the first time a precise figure has been proposed - is the only way to break the deadlock in Brexit negotiations.

British Prime Minister Theresa May will set out the next steps next month. Credit:AP

However, the UK will only agree to pay the 36 billions if the EU negotiates the financial settlement as part of a deal on future relations, including a trade deal.

The deal was first reported by London's Sunday Telegraph newspaper, citing three unnamed sources familiar with Britain's negotiating strategy.
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Over 1,200 mail-in votes added to Montco totals; Bucks still in limbo

Two of Montgomery County's three commissioners said they did not support disenfranchising more than 1,200 voters because of a handful of rule breakers
No amount of time would be enough to grieve the latest loss, but in this Orphan Black episode, Sarah hardly gets any before news reaches her that her sestra has been taken (again). Finding and saving her means making some bold moves (especially on Arts part) and having to rely on Rachel for information.

One Fettered Slave also offers a look at Helenas life, at how she became the blonde sestra-killer we met in Season 1 who once cut into her own back.

Orphan Black: The 5 Best Reactions to Being Told the Clone Secret>>>

In a series of flashbacks, we see how Helena catches a nun masturbating. That nun bleaches Helenas hair and locks her in a closet, where she remains until Tomas takes her away and trains her to hate the dirty copies that pervert His original, His light and to cleanse them from this Earth.

But after he deems her ready to do just that and kills a Leda in a church, shes shocked to find that this copy look just like her. Shes the original, Tomas tells her.

Saying Goodbyes

Before the clone craziness begins again, everyone (or at least everyone who can be there) gathers to say goodbye to Mrs. S. And while Alison and Cosima arent there to see it, they know that Sarahs being strong for Kira. She always has to be strong, Alison says. Its not right. But theyll be there to pick her back up.

Some of you know what weve been through more than others, Sarah says at the funeral. But you all knew S didnt go anywhere without a fight, and that fight was for all of us, her people, her network, her family.

S left them a letter, and while Sarah comforts her daughter, Felix reads it: Just remember, my loves, death is nothing at all. Ive only slipped into the next room. You can call me by my old familiar name, put no sorrow in your tone. I promise we will laugh at this difficult passing when we meet again. All my love, S.

Soon after Art has made sure Sarah knows that whatever you need, however, whenever, since S sacrifice was for his family too, Sister Irina shows up at S house with Helenas journal. They realize she was taken, and Gracie likely sold her out to Coady again.

What they dont know is that Gracie is dead  and neither does Mark. Coady tells him shell join them after the birth as they transport Helena to a makeshift hospital room in an abandoned building.

But this is an instance where Sarah knows she cant go off chasing down leads; Kira needs her after she just lost her grandmother. (Lets pause here for a moment to appreciate Sarah stopping in front of the height chart for her, Felix and Kira at S house and holding one of her jackets.)

Instead, Felix joins Art in visiting Rachel to find out where Coady might have taken Helena  and they learn shes not necessarily going to the island.

Thats because John, formerly known as P.T. Im a lying liar who lies Westmorland, is no longer there. Instead, after sending Mr. Frontenac to continue with his cleanup (Al-Khatib is next on the list), hes pretty much dropped the charade (along with his hair) and cant wait for Helena to deliver the twins. No, really, he cant (and wont) wait, ordering Coady to cut them out if she has to and settling for hormone induction.



Its not safe on the island for John anymore, Rachel explains. Everyone rebelled and abandoned him, and powerful people have been exposed and are vengeful. Enger going AWOL the day of Helenas abduction likely isnt a coincidence because the detective is devoted to the cause. Since they dont want Rachel skipping town when she can be useful, Felix and Art leave Scott to watch her.

At the police station, Art finds out that Interpol has taken over two fresh murder cases, and Engers saying enough about him that the agency is listening. Fortunately, his lieutenant is police like Art and Beth, and he sends Art off to dig deeper on the DL, with the case files of the Neo murders (Van Lier and Francine Bernard). With information from Rachel and research by Hell Wizard, Clone Club is able to figure out that three (out of nine) Board members are still alive, including Al-Khatib. Rachel says he may know Johns plans. Now to find him.

Since theyve synthesized the Castor pathogen, John is ready to move on from the male clones, and that means that he wants Coady to put down the last of them, Mark. She knows he ordered Gracies murder to force this, but hes not leaving her with a choice.

Just when I think that Coady might show a tiny sliver of humanity  theres none of that left in her. I dont know why Im the least bit surprised, considering this is the woman who sent her boys out to sterilize women and chose which one of them to send away by drawing straws.

Poor Mark. Even though he was working for Coady and led her to Helena, he thinks Coady is giving him the cure as he chatters away about his and Gracies plans for the future and remembers swimming races with his brothers. But this is his end, and Coady tells him as much (though he doesnt know it) with her assurance, When you wake up, youll be that much closer to Gracie. Whats even worse is his goodnight, Mom, to which she replies, goodbye, Mark.



How Far Will They Go?

When Helena begs Coady not to take her babies away because they need their mother, Coady maintains that thats not true, that Helenas a killer, that she killed her own sisters. What kind of mother could you possibly be? she asks the clone. (Oh, I cant wait for Coady to get what she deserves.)

Al-Khatib meets with Mr. Frontenac in the Board room and tries to convince him that he wont talk despite opening up a dialogue with Interpol on the advice of his lawyer. Hes basically begging for his life when Art and Felix show up, and when Mr. Frontenac raises his gun, Art kills him.

Mr. Frontenac was their best shot at finding out where John took the science, Al-Khatib claims, and we get a nice, unexpected moment of Rachel correcting him with her name is Helena. (Listen, Rachel is never going to be a member of the Clone Club family, but as has been proven, there are worse people out there.)

Once Sarah calls to inform them that Kira senses that Helena is in trouble and the babies are coming, Rachel offers the money man two options: they hand him over to John, or they hand him over to the authorities. But Art offers a third option: he pulls the trigger for the second time that day. (Remember when Art pulled a gun on Enger earlier this season and there was a question of whether hed have pulled the trigger? I dont think we have to ask that question anymore.) All Al-Khatib can offer is that Rachel has the biggest target on her back. That means they give her up.

And yes, giving up Rachel means having Al-Khatib leave a car with Sarah-as-Rachel in the trunk for Enger to pick up for John, with a tracker on the car so Art can follow them. Rachel knows John will want to talk to her, so Sarah just has to keep him busy.

But they better hurry, because despite being resourceful enough to get her hands on a pair of scissors, Helena cant cut her way out of the cuffs keeping her bound to the bed. You deserve better than me, she tells her babies. You will not be an experiment too. I set you free. And with that, she stabs the scissors down into her wrist, and by the time Coady sees what she did, Helenas lost quite a lot of blood.

But where do John and Coady have Helena? As the others realize when Art follows Enger, the old wing right next to the Dyad building. Thanks to Hell Wizards time working security there, he can get them in.

Enger delivers Rachel to John, and he orders the detective and Coady (who reminds him that its his turn to snip loose ends like she did with Mark) to leave them. He knows her secrets, he tells the clone, all the things he saw through her camera eye. Father, you could have had everything if you trusted me, Sarah says. That stops him. Father? Rachel never called him that before. He knew it was how she felt, she says, and he cups the side of her face and  pulls off the eye-patch and wig.

One Problem Solved, But 

No longer having to pretend to be Rachel, Sarah swipes at John with a knife and manages to cut the side of his neck. When Enger comes in to restrain her, John takes the detectives gun, ready to end Sarah. But Coady rushes in, stopping him because Helena needs a compatible transfusion. Sarah can save her sister.



Sarah protests when Coady wants to perform a C-section since Helena is unconscious; her sestra has lost enough blood as it is. Fortunately, Helena comes to, and when Sarah asks why she did that to herself, Helena tells her shes sorry.

Meanwhile, Hell Wizard gets Scott into Dyad under the pretense of transporting a live organ; the cooler really holds his gear so that he can get Scott into the old wing. There, Scott lets Art in, the alarm sounding when he opens the door to the Restricted Area so Art can get first drop on whoever checks it out. (And Art should be happy since Coady sends Enger to do just that.) Scott wants to help, but Art tells him its his turn now.

After Coady gets Helena the water she requests, all it takes is the clones look to Sarah to have a good idea of what shes about to do. Helena slams Coadys head down on the bed over and over until shes no longer a problem. But freeing the sisters from their bindings is the easy part, because when Helena goes to stand, her water breaks. Babies coming, Helena says. Uh-oh.

Do you wish one of the Castors had survived until the end? What did you think of the plan to get to Helena? Should Scott have maybe stuck around to help Sarah get Helena out while Art takes care of Enger? Are you ready for the series finale?

Orphan Black season 5 airs Saturdays at 10/9c on BBC America. Want more news? Like our Facebook page.

(Image courtesy of BBC America)
A blog about life under, and resisting, a dictatorship
Rutgers vs. Michigan State: 5 takeaways from the Scarlet Knights' loss

Rutgers football suffered a loss to Michigan State as it failed to take advantage of a vulnerable Spartans team.
A protest has been held outside Burnham-On-Sea library over potential cutbacks by Somerset County Council to local library services.

The local branch of the Labour Party held a demonstration outside Burnham Library on Saturday, as pictured here, to raise awareness about the forthcoming consultation on changes to the library service across Somerset.

As we reported here, the council was forced to shelve its plans to withdraw funding to 11 libraries in 2011 after a judicial review, but the authority is now considering whether to hand over the running of the service to local groups.

Council Leader David Fothergill said: We have to find different models of operating libraries which may mean we wont be operating them directly.

He said the council has had 100m of its budget cut by the government over the past few years. We havent put in any savings for this year for libraries  what we want to do is go out to consultation and find out the best way to provide our library services, he said. If money is being taken off us as a county council by central government we have to [be] reviewing the services we deliver.

The proposals may also involve fewer libraries being run in the county by the local authority.

During Saturdays protest outside Burnham Library, John Fones from North West Somerset Branch Labour Party said: When we saw this article we wanted to do something about it immediately. It is important for people in Burnham and Highbridge to know that the Labour Party is concerned about local issues such as the threat to Library Funding.

Libraries and librarians have been part of our cultural landscape since the founding of the first public library in Peterborough, New Hampshire in 1833 and the Public Libraries Act 1850 in the UK.

On Saturday in Burnham, we met parents and children, retired people, working people and all said they were shocked at the very idea of County Council funding being stopped.

People come in to use all the things that libraries now offer  we spoke to one person who says he is unemployed and has no Internet at home  but he can always use the library to apply for jobs online.

Two children wanted to sign our petition and were very upset when they heard the library was threatened. I am sure the County Council has to keep strict control over its finances, but the notion of Conservative County councillors complaining about Conservative government cuts is just too ludicrous. Do they have no sense of irony at all?

He added: The Labour Party has been campaigning across the Wells constituency since the General Election and locally in Highbridge, Rooksbridge and Burnham. People are worried about the Health Service and Social care. People are worried about local transport. People are worried about their jobs, about local policing.

People are worried about schools  we know that the local secondary school has an inadequate OFSTED inspection report. Parents and children value the learning that takes place through the local library and yet we learn that funding may be cut. If funding is cut, then the service will not survive in its present form.

The Labour Party is not complacent about the library. The Labour Party are not just holding up our hands and complaining about central government cuts. The Labour Party is campaigning on this and will be lobbying hard to ensure this idea hits the rails now. There is no need for any consultation  there is no need to cut this funding.

The campaigners are inviting residebnts sign a petition here to stop the possible cuts.
Conscience of a Conservative

Jeff Flake

Random House

140 pages; $27

It seems safe to say that Senator Jeff Flakes new anti-Trump book is politically contraindicated. His approval ratings in his home state, Arizona, are so low they are somewhere down in a missile silo; according to Politico, the president has privately said he would spend $10 million in the Republican primary to whisk Flake out of the Senate with a broom.

Then again, maybe this is what a man whos facing political expiration does: speaks his mind, goes for broke. Or perhaps hes simply fed up. Flake was one of the few Never Trumpers in Congress to remain so right through Election Day.

Whatever his reasons, Flake has gone Bulworth on us, emulating that movies devil-may-care, truth-telling politician. Its striking how many influential figures in this slim volume he manages to impale with a stick and then lightly spit-roast. Newt Gingrich (a character with extraordinary talents for self-promotion). Michael Flynn (conspiracy theorist). Alex Jones (one of the most egregious polluters of civil discourse in America).

But above all others: Donald J. Trump.

Flake calls the presidents Twitter posts all noise and no signal, then adds: Volatile unpredictability is not a virtue. We have quite enough volatile actors to deal with internationally as it is without becoming one of them.

He also offers a shockingly astute insight into Trumps modus operandi  and modus vivendi  during the presidential campaign. Far from conservative, Flake writes, the presidents comportment was rather a study in the importance of conflict in reality television  that once you introduce conflict, you cannot de-escalate conflict. You must continually escalate.

No wonder the senator wrote this book in secret. As a Republican member of Congress, he is declaring Trump a domestic and international menace. Other conservatives in the news media and strategist class have been saying just this for well over a year, of course, but they dont depend on a radicalised base to keep their jobs. Flake is the first elected official to cross this particular rhetorical Rubicon, and he seems to be imploring his colleagues to follow. He offers a despairing, unsparing indictment of everyone in Congress who went along with Trumps election.

Conscience of a Conservative takes its title directly from Barry Goldwaters 1960 manifesto. Like Goldwater  who was also a Republican senator from Arizona  Flake bemoans the crisis facing conservatives, and like Goldwater, he believes that conservatives have only themselves to blame.

The contexts are different, naturally. In 1960, liberalism was ascendant; the problem, Goldwater wrote, was that conservatives seemed unable to demonstrate the practical relevance of their philosophy  free markets, limited government, a strong defence. Today, conservatism is ascendant, at least in name, with Republicans controlling both the legislative and the executive branches of the federal government. But it has been drained of precisely the principles Goldwater cherished, principles to which Flake very badly wants to return and for which he rebuilds a case. What, Flake wonders, would Goldwater have made of a Republican commander in chief who threatens to dismantle free trade agreements, undermines his own intelligence agencies and cozies up to autocrats?

This book will no doubt make Flake the baron of the rubber-chicken-dinner circuit, should he want the title, and a momentary darling of the left. (Not that the left shares anything in common with him politically. His politics are basically anathema to the left.) And Conscience of a Conservative has an undeniable rhetorical power  it is fluid, well written, mature in tone. But Flake also has the material power to change things. How reconcilable are his words with his deeds?

In the Senate, Flake has shown himself to be a pleasant fellow of integrity. He tweeted warmhearted congratulations to his friend Tim Kaine when Hillary Clinton selected him as her running mate; he condemned the lock her up chants at Trump rallies; he worked on the bipartisan Senate immigration bill in 2013. In his book, he says outright that he never voted for Trump.

But Flake has also cast most of his votes in favour of Trumps policies. Just last week, he voted for the bill to repeal Obamacare without replacing it, and then he voted for the hastily assembled skinny repeal. The primary intellectual failing of Conscience of a Conservative is that it doesnt untangle the dysfunction in Washington from the dysfunction of his own party. Republicans havent just embraced Trumps nativism and politics of resentment because its politically expedient. Many Republicans have peddled anti-immigrant sentiment for years, and a return to Goldwaters principles probably wouldnt remedy that; the rejection of free trade agreements also has complex roots.

But if you take Flake at his word, its not just Republican principle thats at stake right now. Its democracy itself, imperiled less by one mans philosophical incoherence (Flakes word) than by his disrespect for our institutions and his highly erratic character. Which means that its the moral duty of Flakes colleagues to act.

Under our Constitution, there simply are not that many people who are in a position to do something about an executive branch in chaos, Flake writes. But members of Congress can. Too often we observe the unfolding drama along with the rest of the country, passively, all but saying, Someone should do something! without seeming to realise that that someone is us, he writes.

What he has in mind, he does not say. I hope someone will ask him.

2017 The New York Times News Service
Plant, the only steel manufacturing facility among the public sector unit (PSU) steel plants that have no captive iron ore mine, sees little chances of getting one under the present auction route owing to unmatched competition from private players.
Godrej Interio, the furniture arm of Godrej Group, will be investing around Rs 400 crore in the next three years to enhance its production capacity, a company official said.

"We are looking at an overall investment of close to Rs 400 crore in the next three years, with new facilities coming up. We are coming up with a facility at Khalapur to expand our production capacity. The facility will be more for steel furniture and we are already in the process of expanding for mattresses and sofa in Haridwar," Chief Operating Officer Anil Mathur told PTI.

The commissioning of the plants will start in the middle of the second quarter of the next financial year.

"We are looking at a CAGR of at least 15 per cent for the next five years and the capacities are being added based on the bottlenecks which are there," Mathur added.

This year the company is eyeing a revenue of Rs 2,500 crore at a growth of 18 per cent.

"Our revenue projection for this year is close to Rs 2,500 crore and we are growing at 18 per cent. The revenue last year was Rs 1,920 crore. The growth is coming from metros as well as tier II cities. We are seeing a substantial growth coming from tier II cities," he said.

Branded furniture accounts for a large portion of the company's revenues and Mathur said the company is coming with two different types of furniture, which can be distributed through multi-brand outlets and through various retail outlets.

"The focus is on designing and developing products which are multi-functional and also suiting the changing lifestyles of people," he said.

Godrej Interio, which has 52 company-owned stores, will add another 8-10 stores and Mathur said the company is now working more on a franchisee model.

The company also plans to launch its e-commerce platform by the end of this year.

Furniture is placed under the 28 per cent tax slab in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime and the company is trying to hold on to the prices.

"We are holding on to the price and we are absorbing because for us the impact is 2-3 per cent. We are looking at products which are at 2 per cent, how we can absorb those and where the benefit we are accruing is much higher than the impact of GST, we have already started passing the benefit to the customer," he said.

The city-based firm also exports office furniture to the Middle East and is now looking at healthcare and laboratory furniture.
Optimistic about increasing its market share in the batteries and flashlights segment, along with growing its small appliances and LED businesses, post the Goods and Services Tax (GST) rollout, Ltd (EIIL) is eyeing a 10-15 per cent growth in the ongoing financial year.
is planning to bring smaller towns into its orbit with ATR-72 planes, according to the schedule submitted by the airline to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
Tamil Nadu-based cement manufacturer is planning to invest around Rs 1,095 crore in various projects, including expansion of its satellite grinding unit capacity, said a senior management official. The company is expecting the cement demand to be growing in the near future.
An Air India flight to Delhi from the Jodhpur Civil Airport was delayed by over three hours on Sunday following a bomb threat which turned out to be a hoax, officials said.

The flight was scheduled to take off from here at 2.55 pm but there was a mention of the bomb by a passenger in an argument with the flight staff which triggered the panic, airport officials said.

Security officials and Air India staff immediately evacuated the passengers from the flight and checked the plane. After a green signal by the officials, the flight finally took off at 6.30 pm, said G K Khare, the director of the airport.

The ground staff has given a complaint against the passengers to the police, who have initiated investigation, Khare said.

Deputy commissioner of police (East) Amandeep said the passenger had an altercation with the ground staff of the Air India which led to the bomb threat.

"The passenger had to de-board at Jaipur but he wanted to de-board the flight at Jodhpur itself, which was not allowed by the flight staff," said the DCP.

The threat led the police, the Central Industry Security Force (CISF) and other security agencies to swing into action swifty and a bomb disposal squad was called in to deal with any exigency.

"After an intensive search of the entire plane, we did not find anything suspicious and the threat turned out to be a mere hoax," said the officer.

All passengers of the flight, in the meantime, were accommodated at the airport lounge and attended by the staff, officials said.

Khare said the usual route of this flight is Delhi to Jodhpur and back to Delhi. But, in a new arrangement for Sundays only, the flight on return goes to Delhi via Jaipur.
The son of Haryana's ruling BJP chief was on Saturday arrested along with his friend for allegedly stalking a girl here.

Both the accused, Vikas Barala and Ashish Kumar, were released later on bail as they were booked under bailable sections of the IPC and the Motor Vehicles Act.

As the issue triggered a political outcry, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said the law will take its own course.

chief Subhash Barala said he respects the law and the "truth" will come out through the court.

The incident came to light when a girl called up the police last night, complaining that two boys were chasing her.

"We received a complaint from a girl (who was driving a car) that somebody was chasing her. We flashed the number of vehicle and found two boys sitting in the SUV. Then PCR staff located them and apprehended them," UT Chandigarh Police DSP Satish Kumar told reporters here today.

"After getting complaint from the girl, we booked both Vikas Barala and Ashish Kumar and arrested them immediately," the DSP said.

He said the accused had allegedly chased the girl from for some distance. "They even tried to stop the (girl's) vehicle twice or thrice. They also banged the girl's vehicle with hands," the DSP said while quoting the complaint of girl.

"We got the medical (examination) conducted of both the boys and found the presence of alcohol in them," said DSP.

Police then impounded the vehicle of boys.

Both Vikas, who is a student of LLB, and his friend Ashish were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), the police said.

After the girl recorded her statement before the area magistrate here under section 164 of the CrPC, police added another section 341 (Punishment for wrongful restraint) in the FIR.

"After going through the girl's statement, we have added section 341 and legal opinion will be taken to see if more sections can be added," said DSP.

When asked why sections 365 (kidnapping) and 511 of the IPC were not added in the FIR, the police official said these sections were not applied as there was no mention in the girl's statement given under section 164 of CrPC that there was an attempt to abduct her.

"Earlier, we saw the possibility of adding sections 365 and 511 in the FIR. But when we received the original copy of the girl's statement, we found that there was no mention that any attempt was made to abduct her. The girl did not mention about her abduction. Therefore, we did not find possibility of adding these sections," he said.

"But we will take legal opinion in this regard. We will send the statement of girl for legal opinion and if any other section can be added, we will add it," he added.

When asked whether the police faced any political pressure to save the son of Haryana's ruling party leader, the DSP said there was no political pressure on the police.

"There is no political pressure. There was no phone call (of politicians). Whatever action has been taken in this case was on the basis of girl's statement," insisted the DSP.

He further said that there was a difference between the girl's statement on her Facebook account and the statement given under section 164 of the CrPC.

Commenting on the matter, the chief minister said, "I have come to know that Chandigarh police had registered a case and I think that Chandigarh police will investigate the matter properly. I believe in the law."



On opposition INLD's demand for ouster of the chief, Khattar said, "This issue is not of Subhash Barala. It is an individual issue and law will take its own course."



Meanwhile, Vikas Barala's father, in a statement here, said he had full faith in the law of the land.

"We respect the law and law has taken its course. Truth will soon come out through the court. I have full faith in the law," said Barala.

INLD leader Abhay Chautala earlier tweeted, "Whose son was found caught while kidnapping a girl? They talk about saving girls (Beti Bachao). If it (party) has a little bit of self respect, it should remove such a president."



Haryana Congress chief Ashok Tanwar condemned the incident and demanded public apology from Barala on the issue.

"The arrogance of power in the BJP, the party which talks about saving girl child, has reached such a level that the son of sitting MLA dared to commit such crime," he said.

He said the Congress workers will protest across the state tomorrow against the act of state BJP chief's son.
In a major blow to Team India, all-rounder was on Sunday suspended for the third and the final Test against Sri Lanka after accumulating six demerit points over a 24 month period.

During the third day's play in the Colombo Test against Sri Lanka on Saturday, Jadeja was found guilty of breaching ICC Code of Conduct which relates to "throwing a ball" in a "dangerous manner" during an International Match.

Saturday's incident happened on the final delivery of the 58th over when Jadeja, after fielding off his own bowling, threw the ball back at the batsman who had not left his crease. The on-field umpires deemed the throwing "in a dangerous manner" as it narrowly missed Dimuth Karunaratne.

The left-handed, who had received a 50 percent fine and three demerit points during the Indore Test against New Zealand in October 2016 for violating the code, with the addition of Saturday's three demerit points, reached the threshold of four demerit points.

As a result, the 28-year-old has been suspended from the Pallekele Test beginning August 12.

India registered a comprehensive win against Sri Lanka in the Colombo Test and took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

Jadeja, the no. 1 ranked bowler and all-rounder in the world, was the pick of the Indian bowlers as he scalped yet another five-wicket ball.

The left-hander has adjudged Man of the Match for his match figures of 7-236 in 61 overs apart from unbeaten 70 with the bat in the first innings.
A suspected Bangladeshi terrorist associated with Islamic extremist group Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) was on Sunday arrested by the Uttar Pradesh anti-terrorist squad (ATS) from Muzaffarnagar.

Abdullah was arrested from the Kutesara locality in the Charthawal area of Muzaffarnagar district by an ATS team, ATS IG Asim Arun said.

He was living in the area for the past one month. Earlier, he had been residing in Saharanpur's Deoband area since 2011 and had also gotten his Aadhaar card and passport prepared on a fake identity, the officer said.

Abdullah is associated with Ansarullah Bangla Team and was involved in preparing fake identity proofs for terrorists, especially from Bangladesh, and in helping them get safe hideouts in India.

Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) is an al Qaeda-inspired Islamic extremist group in Bangladesh.

ATS teams of Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar, and the local police of Shamli are conducting searches after his arrest.
The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh is sewing collaborations with Bollywood personalities for promoting its socioeconomic agenda as brand ambassadors or advisors.This is unfolding as the Yogi government, which assumed power on March 19, has completed its first 100 days in office and is now nearing the end of its euphemistic honeymoon period of 6 months, when things ought to move on the ground.
The retail investors experience with central public sector enterprises exchange-traded fund (CPSE-ETF) hasnt been too bad. Except for a blip in the calendar year 2015, when the funds net asset value fell 14 per cent, returns in 2014 and 2016 were 29 per cent and 18 per cent, respectively  substantially higher than the BSE Sensexs returns of 23 per cent and 1.9 per cent for the corresponding periods. The going was reasonably good even in 2017, with return of 7.8 per cent till August 4. And there was a 5 per cent discount in the new fund offer and follow-on offers for retail investors.

But, returns were good because of a single reason: This energy-heavy index (60 per cent in energy stocks) was able to perform as the sector was doing well. It is a thematic fund. So, investors betting on the sector would have been able to make good returns, said a fund manager. With the rally being more broad-based in 2017, returns from the Sensex surged 21.4 per cent till August 4.

The governments latest exchange-traded fund (ETF), Bharat-22, is different. It resembles a broader index, like the Sensex, more closely. Besides stocks being increased from 10 to 22, it is more diversified in terms of sectors. While the CPSE ETF was energy-heavy, Bharat-22 has capped sectoral exposure to 20 per cent and stock exposure to 15 per cent.

There is balance between earnings growth and stability. This will ensure investors are neither too disappointed, nor is there high volatility in the index, said an investment manager closely linked with the structuring of the ETF.

The ETF will also attract global pension funds, which are comfortable with average but safe returns.

Fund managers are happy with the mix. A chief investment officer of a leading fund house said: All government-owned companies are in sensitive sectors such as industrials, finance and utilities. With the economy expected to do better in the coming quarters, these companies should do well. And that will give good returns.

Fund managers have already purchased some of these stocks, especially State Bank of India, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation, said Kaustabh Belapurkar, head-research, Morningstar. This would not be a purely diversified or thematic fund because it does not represent many sectors in which the government does not have stakes. It would also be interesting to see whether there is a discount for retail investors, he said.

Some investors might be worried that even before the launch, stocks such as L&T at 17.1 per cent and ITC at 15.6 per cent have already breached the cap set by the ETF. And, what if the stock prices rise sharply before the launch and tilt the index in favour of single stocks or sectors?

Mutual fund sectoral sources pointed out the index was formed in March, when these stocks were within the 15 per cent cap. Since then, these stocks have risen sharply, leading to this breach of cap. If stock prices of these two companies were to go up further, re-balancing might happen before the launch. Otherwise, it would happen in March 2018.

Investors should take keen interest in this part because if re-balancing does happen before the launch in September-October, the annual re-balancing would happen every year at the same time. Of course, if the fund books a profit to reduce weight of a particular stock, there could be a chance it could go up and cause some loss to investors.

This is a good move in terms of maintaining ETF discipline because that way any particular stock will not be overweight, added Belapurkar.

On the whole, investment advisors said this was a good option for the moderate investor, one who has put 50 per cent of his money in equities and can live with volatility of 15-20 per cent. For new investors or conservative ones, a purely diversified fund or broader index-based ETFs would still be the best option.
ABC News(WASHINGTON) -- Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway dismissed reports that Vice President Mike Pence is eyeing a 2020 presidential run.



"It is absolutely true the vice president is getting ready for 2020 -- for re-election as vice president," Conway told ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos in an interview on This Week Sunday.



A New York Times report published Saturday said that just six months into Trump's first term, Republican shadow campaigns for the 2020 presidential election are already taking shape, including by Pence.



"That is complete fiction. That is complete fabrication," Conway responded. "Vice President Pence is a very loyal, very dutiful, but also incredibly effective vice president."



Conway said she has "zero concern" about any possibility of Pence running for president in the next cycle, noting that the vice president and his team have pushed back strongly on the report.



The presidential counselor added that Pence plays an important role in the Trump White House, saying, "He is a peer to the president in the West Wing."



Trump plans to be in the White House for seven and a half more years, Conway added, saying, "He plans on being a two-term president."



Conway also addressed new poll numbers out this week, showing President Trump's approval rating sinking to new lows, with support among his base also taking a dip.



She acknowledged that "his approval rating among Republicans and conservative and Trump voters is down slightly."



But she said the message from Trump's supporters is for the president to push ahead on his agenda.



"They are telling him, 'Just enact your program. Don't worry about a Congress that isn't supporting legislation to get big-ticket items done.' "



Stephanopoulos asked Conway if the president would commit to not firing special counsel Robert Mueller, who is leading the FBI investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election and possible ties to Trump associates.



Conway responded, "I'm not the president's lawyer here, but I will tell you, as his counselor, he is not discussing that. You have to listen to his special counsel, Ty Cobb, who works in the White House now and has said very clearly, George, this week that we will continue to cooperate with Bob Mueller and his investigation."

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Uncle Sam once went camping with his four friends -- a Korean, a Japanese, a Chinese and a Russian -- on a Korean mountain. As his Korean friend had fallen ill on the way, Uncle Sam handed a cooking pot with the ingredients to his Chinese friend who was a Korean food expert. The Chinese, however, rejected his request. Pushing back the cooking pot to Uncle Sam, he said that making Korean broth was not his responsibility but required joint efforts from all sides. Uncle Sam quoted a proverb in response: "Too many cooks spoil the broth."While both men wasted much valuable time pushing the cooking pot to each other, the ghost of Uncle Sam's great-grandfather appeared suddenly in the dim moonlight. "What variant of Taiji are you guys practising with a cooking pot? My dear great-grandson, the more you exhaust yourself with such an unnecessary exercise, the more I feel our good old days are over. You may get an inkling of what to do next after listening to my story."Taking a short pause, the apparition continued: "A long time ago during a mountain trekking trip with my two friends in Japan, we arrived at a small hut. As the door was not locked, we pushed open the door but found nobody inside. As we were very hungry, we went at once into the kitchen to look for something that could keep us trekking on our stomachs. I found some ingredients for making Japanese broth, but alas, it was too little for my big stomach. Without requesting help from others, I wasted no time making dashi and kept it all for myself, just giving a few drops to my Chinese friend. My Russian friend got none, but he was crafty enough to pocket four dried baby anchovies quietly while I was attending to the broth."Casting a glance at the Chinese and the Russian who were cowering in a corner, the spectre broke into laughter and and faded away gradually into the thin air.
Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said the rollout of Goods and Services Tax (GST) was 'extremely smooth' in the country.

"It has been an extremely smooth turnover without any disruption" the Union Finance Minister told reporters here.

He rejected the argument that trade registration under GST was less and said a record number of registrations have taken place.

On the alleged irregularities connected with MCI clearance to a private medical college involving a BJP functionary in Kerala, Jaitley said the state BJP had taken prompt action against the worker.

"We are the only political party in the country, which,as part of self-introspection, takes action, he said, adding that in several states, people have been caught for improprieties and parties were strongly trying to defend them.

"If a party sets a precedent by dismissing a member for irregularities, it is a good action and also a good step in Indian politics", Jaitley said.

BJPs Kerala unit came under a cloud after an internal party report purportedly said that a functionary allegedly took Rs 5.60 crore bribe to facilitate approval from the Medical Council of India for the college at nearby Varkala.

After the issue surfaced in the media, the BJP dismissed R S Vinod, convener of BJPs co-operative cell in the state, whose name was mentioned in the purported party report.
The of India (IWAI) is planning a Rs 660-crore bond sale to domestic investors by March, a top official said.

"We raised Rs 340 crore last year at a very competitive rate and will be raising the remaining Rs 640 crore from the Rs 1,000-crore leg-room given to us, this year," IWAI vice- chairman Pravir Pandey told PTI over the weekend.

The debt raising will help augment the resource base for the authority, which has a target to invest Rs 1,700 crore this fiscal on multiple projects as it goes out to develop the cheaper, safer and eco-friendly river water networks for goods movement.

The authority has tie-ups with the World Bank for its funding requirements and is also expecting accruals worth Rs 2,000 crore from the money set aside for it in the Central Road Fund (CRF), he said.

Pandey said 5 per cent of the CRF corpus, collected through higher duties and levies on the sale of motor fuels, has been set aside for developing inland waterways.

The Cabinet will be clearing a proposal to help the money flow to IWAI and Parliament is likely to clear the same in the winter session, he explained.

He said the authority last year sold debt at 7.9 per cent coupon, which was the same rate at which Power Finance Corporation raised debt.

It has a panel of eight selected merchant banks it works with for the fund raising activities and will continue with the same, he said.

The authority gets money from the World Bank at 0.25 per cent per annum plus the hedging costs, he said, adding it wants to reduce its reliance on the multilateral institution going forward. "We value the partnership more because of the technical help which we get from the World Bank.

(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.)
Chinas foreign minister said on Sunday new UN Security Council sanctions on North Korea were the right response to a series of missile tests, but dialogue was vital to resolve a complex and sensitive issue, now at a critical juncture.
Taliban insurgents launched coordinated attacks from three different directions on Sayad district in northern Sari Pul province killing at least seven security forces, said a provincial official.

Zabi Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said today that insurgents seized control of the strategic Mirzawalang area in Sayad district earlier in the day after two days of intense gun battle with the Afghan Security forces.

"We requested reinforcement for the central government, unfortunately couldn't get any support, that is why the forces lost control of Mirzawalang," said Amani.

Qari Yusouf Ahamdi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attack in an email addressed to media. Amani said that 10 Taliban fighters, including two group leaders, were also killed in the battles and four Afghan security officers were wounded.

The Taliban have stepped up their attacks on the country's northern provinces recently. The group seized control several months ago of another district in the same province, from where they organised and initiated their attack, according to local officials.

There have been unconfirmed reports of more than a dozen civilians, as well as local police, being killed after the insurgents took control of the area, added Amani.

Elsewhere, the provincial director of the counter- narcotics unit in western Ghor province was killed by two gunmen, said the spokesman for the provincial police chief in Ghor province, Iqbal Nezami, today.

Two men on a motorbike shot and killed counter-narcotics chief Noorudin Shairfi in the province's capital Faroz Koh, said Nezami. "No one has been arrested, but the police have launched an investigation," he added.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack in Ghor. Meanwhile, in southern Kandahar province a member of the Afghan police force was shot and killed by NATO advisers before he was able to attack their forces, according to a NATO-led Resolute Support mission statement.

The statement released today said the incident took place near Kandahar Airfield after the advisers had completed scheduled law enforcement training and were attacked by a police officer as they were preparing to return to their base.

The Romanian soldiers, who were providing security for the Train, Advise and Assist Command south advisers, returned fire in self-defense and killed the gunman, it said.

A wounded Romanian soldier is being treated at Kandahar Airfield's medical facilities and another Afghan policeman who was wounded in gunfire exchange is being treated at an Afghan medical facility, it added.
Britain is prepared to pay up to  40 billion ($47 billion) as part of a deal to leave the European Union (EU), the Sunday Telegraph newspaper reported, citing three unnamed sources familiar with Britains negotiating strategy.

The EU has floated a figure of  60 billion and wants significant progress on settling Britains liabilities before talks start on issues such as future trading arrangements.

The government department responsible for talks declined to comment on the article. So far, Britain has given no official indication of how much it would be willing to pay.

The newspaper said British officials were likely to offer to pay  10 billion a year for three years after leaving the EU in March 2019, then finalise the total alongside detailed trade talks.

Payments would only be made as part of a deal that included a trade agreement, the newspaper added.

We know (the EUs) position is  60 billion, but the actual bottom line is  50 billion. Ours is closer to  30 billion but the actual landing zone is  40 billion, even if the public and politicians are not all there yet, the newspaper quoted one senior Whitehall source as saying.

Whitehall is the London district where most British government departments and ministers are based.

A second Whitehall source said Britains bottom line was  30 billion to  40 billion and a third source said Prime Minister Theresa May was willing to pay north of  30 billion, the Sunday Telegraph reported.

Britains minister David Davis said on July 20 that Britain would honor its obligations to the EU but declined to confirm that would require net payments.

British foreign secretary Boris Johnson, a leading Brexit advocate, said last month the EU could go whistle if it made extortionate demands for payment.

Pro-Brexit campaign group Leave Means Leave said speculation about a divorce bill was unhelpful.

With the EU Brexit negotiations, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, said the groups co-chair Richard Tice.

The focus should be on accelerating talks with the aim of concluding them at the end of 2017. This would enable businesses to adapt during the 15 months leading to March 2019.

The Telegraph said advisors in Mays office had warned bosses in Londons financial sector that Britain walking out of Brexit talks was a real possibility if the impasse over the bill cannot be broken.

Former European Commision head Romano Prodi told the Observer newspaper said it would be economic suicide for Britain to fail to reach a compromise on Brexit, and called on the EU to preserve as much trade with Britain as possible to avoid damaging both sides.

($1 = 0.8495 euros)
At the airport here, there is a reminder to travellers of the jobs that global trade can bring. A shiny 2017 Volkswagen Passat is stationed near the entryway and labelled: Designed in Germany. Built in Chattanooga.
Paving the way for launch of trade, the Reliance ADAG-anchored Indian Commodity Exchange (ICEX) is commencing mock trading on Monday, to create awareness among existing and potential participants in the commodity value chain.
The Taliban insurgents suffered heavy casualties after their coordinated attack was repulsed by the Afghan security forces in eastern Nangarhar province of Afghanistan on Sunday.

"Several Taliban insurgents launched coordinated attack on security check posts in Momand Dara," Khaama Press quoted a provincial government media office statement.

The statement further said that Taliban's attack received a befitting response from the security forces, resulting into the casualties of several Taliban insurgents, including one of their senior leaders.

The local officials are saying that several foreign insurgents are also among those killed, including their shadow district governor Abdul Aziz were wounded, but the identities of them have not been disclosed.

Anti-ISIS as well as anti-Taliban operation is underway to eliminate the presence of ISIS affiliates in Nangarhar province and U.S. forces are providing airstrikes support to the Afghan forces during the operations.

The officials further said that the security personnel and local residents did not suffer any casualties during the clashes.

No official statement has been made by Taliban insurgents.

Anti-government armed militant groups have increased their insurgency activities in some parts of the Nangarhar province during the recent years.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Air India's Delhi-Jodhpur-Jaipur flight had to make an emergency landing after an on board naval officer threatened the crew that he had planted a bomb in the aircraft.

The naval officer had booked a ticket from Delhi to Jaipur but when the flight landed in Jaipur, he insisted to de-board. However, the staff didn't allow him to de-board, on which he started threatening the crew.

He told the crew that he has planted a bomb in the aircraft following which plane had to make an emergency landing.

After a thorough search of the aircraft by the airport authorities, it was confirmed that threat was a hoax.

The police have taken the naval officer under its custody and investigating the matter.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A defence expert on Monday called on all the political parties of Jammu and Kashmir for a unanimous condemnation of the Amarnath terror attack.

Speaking to ANI here, defence expert PK Sehgal said, "All political parties of Jammu and Kashmir, including hurriyat and the separatists in one voice should condemn this attack because nobody wants attack on Amar nath yatris for the simple reason that their livelihood for the entire year of lakh of Kashmiris is dependent on this yatra."

Reacting to the reports that Pakistani terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was behind the terror attack on the Amarnath Pilgrim, Sehgal said that there was absolutely no denying that the attack was executed by the former.

"A very professional and a very thorough investigation has been carried out which has brought out beyond an iota of doubt that this attack was masterminded by Let of Pakistan. Their aim was to create communal violence," he added.

He further noted that the Indian forces reacted in a very sane and matured manner and no communal violence took place in Amarnath.

Another defence expert Praful Bakshi raised questions about the preparedness of the Indian armed forces against terrorism.

"This information was already there will be the intelligence that attack is going to come. India forces should have stopped the attack before taking place. Which they failed to do," said Bakshi.

"By doing so the Pakistan army will feel the pinch and they will start coming to negotiation table," he added.

The Kashmir Police on Sunday said that Pakistani terrorist organisation LeT was behind the terror attack on the Amarnath Pilgrim ,claiming that they are quite near and hopefully would "eliminate" the militants involved pretty soon.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Munir Khan said that three accused persons have also been arrested. "After the hard work by Kashmir Police and Special Investigating Team (S.I.T), three accused persons namely Bilal Rishi, a shopkeeper of Iqbal Mohalla Bijweara, Ajaz Ahmad medical representative of a pushkariri Sirigufara and Zahoor Ahmad Sheikh a SRTC driver at Khir valley, have been arrested.

Khan further stated that these three accused helped the terrorists in carrying out the attack and have 'have completely revealed everything' to the police.

"Investigation established has conducted that these three accused persons in association with four terrorists of LeT i.e. Ismail alias Harum, Mavia from Pakistan, Furkan, a Pakistani and a local named Yavar Bashir code Ayan son of Bashir Ahmed Wani a resident of a village named Hablsih, carried out the attack," IGP Khan said.

As many as seven people were killed and fifteen others injured after a group of terrorists opened fire on a bus carrying 17 pilgrims from Baltal to Mir Bazar earlier on July 10.

The incident occurred on July 10 at 8:20 pm when the bus, carrying 17 pilgrims from Baltal to Mir Bazar, became victim to the terror attack.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Shakespeare's Ophelia is a pitiable character; a woman who bows to the whims and wishes of both her sweetheart and her father and loses herself in the process.

Had she had a place of her own  a safe, structured and supportive place where she could learn to rely on her own strengths  the story of "Hamlet" might have been very different indeed.

Organizers of Ophelia's Place in Eugene are hoping to use their program to help young women write just such a new story for themselves. They're 12 years into their work in Eugene and hoping to expand into Albany this fall.

Created in 2005 by philanthropist Rosaria Haugland, co-founder of Molecular Probes and founder of the Rosaria P. Haugland Foundation, Ophelia's Place is both a physical center and an umbrella for a number of programs.

The organization is a prevention-based nonprofit dedicated to helping all girls make healthy choices for their lives. Instead of targeting the usual at-risk scene  girls who might struggle in school, drop out, become pregnant, turn to substance abuse or suffer abusive relationships  it aims to build girls up through education and empowerment so they never fall into those categories at all.

'Too good not to share'

In Eugene, Ophelia's Place offers an afternoon drop-in site at 1577 Pearl St. four days a week through the school year and much of the summer. There, girls ages 10 to 18 can participate in dance, fitness or art workshops; hang out with friends; finish homework or just settle back with a book.

During the school year, trained staff with Ophelia's Place offer classroom presentations for fifth through 12th grade, everything from conflict resolution and media and body images to sexual harassment and healthy dating relationships.

They also organize girls-only "empowerment groups" to address friendships, peer pressure, communication skills, stress management and self care.

The classroom and empowerment groups will be the starting point for Ophelia's Place in expanding in Albany, after a pilot program at West Albany High School earlier this year.

"Down the road, it would be nice if we actually had a physical location," said Verna Wise, the program's executive director. "It's a definite goal."

Wise is a former Albany resident who became the Albany Business-School Partnership coordinator in 1995 and later joined Greater Albany Public Schools as its community-school resources director.

She followed former GAPS superintendent Nancy Golden to the University of Oregon in 2002 and learned about Ophelia's Place after Golden joined its board of directors. Golden introduced Wise to Haugland, and Wise has been with Ophelia's Place since 2007.

Ophelia's Place received a donation last year from a donor, who asked to remain anonymous, wanting to see the work expand to Albany. Because of her Albany ties, Wise reached out to Susie Orsborn, principal of West Albany High School, and invited her to visit.

Orsborn asked Wise to start a pilot project there last year, with classroom presentations and a girls support group. The plan is to expand that partnership this fall to other Albany middle and high schools this fall, Wise said.

"What we do," she said, "is too good not to share."

Strength for life

Haugland, the founder, came up with the idea for Ophelia's Place after serving on a board of directors for an organization that supports victims of domestic violence. Many of the women served, she learned, came to need the help in part because of poor decisions they made as teens.

Research indicates girls experience dramatic social, physical and cognitive development changes as they enter adolescence, making it a critical time for intervention. Ophelia's Place is meant to help girls develop their personal strengths and the self-confidence to make the life decisions that will keep them from needing later intervention.

"She is all about prevention, prevention, prevention," Wise said of Haugland.

Girls who make good choices also strengthen the economy as a whole, she added. They don't take as long to get through school. They're often eligible for better-paying jobs. They depend less on social services. "It strengthens the community's network in a positive way; in a strength-based way," Wise said.

Ophelia's Place doesn't offer similar services for boys, but is open to helping any agency who might want to form one, Wise added.

In Eugene, every part of the 5,800-square-foot center on Pearl Street contains messages of strength and encouragement. The emphasis is on safety, emotional as well as physical. No negative talk is allowed, especially about one's self.

In the "chill out" room, with its books and comfortable throw pillows, photos on display showcase local women who have motivated and inspired others: Kitty Piercy, mayor of Eugene. Jan Eliot, "Stone Soup" syndicated cartoonist. Toni Pimble, founder of the Eugene Ballet. Louise Shimmel, who started the Cascades Raptor Center.

In the conference room, visitors who came to an open house were invited to fill a bulletin board with answers to the question, "What advice would you give to your 13-year-old self?" Among the messages: "You are enough." "If you don't make mistakes you don't learn." "Middle school sucks for almost everyone, but it ends." "Your hair will calm down."

It's important for girls to know they aren't alone, it's OK to ask for help, and nobody needs to do everything all by herself, Wise said. And every time that message is shared, she hears, "I didn't know there were girls like me."

"It's this isolated thought process that is fictional," she said.

Expansion north

In Albany, specially-trained Ophelia's Place staff members led seven West Albany High School freshman girls in a 10-week girl empowerment group last year.

Aisling Malone, one of the participants, wrote a statement for the Albany School Board in support of expanding the pilot program. "It gives us the strength to stand up and believe in our emotional and physical strengths," she said. "We were some of the lucky few who got the chance to experience what should be ours in the first place."

Wise said she envisions starting this fall with classroom presentations and more empowerment groups, working with larger numbers at West Albany and bringing in at least two or three other schools as it is able.

Memorial Middle School is a particular focus. The middle school isn't participating in any Ophelia's Place programs but agreed to provide two years' worth of survey information from its students as part of a study conducted on Ophelia's Place by the Ford Family Foundation. As a thank you, Wise said, she's offering Memorial the same kind of classroom presentations and empowerment groups to be made available at West.

After that, Wise said, it's just a matter of which schools are willing to make space, time and staff members available for the program.

Ophelia's Place provides trained staff to lead the school programs and also trains others to keep them going, Wise said. One of the program's needs is a source of interns to keep the personnel coming: Oregon State University's Human Development and Family Services division has agreed to fill that role for Albany, she said.

Ophelia's Place is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with a budget of a little more than $1 million, funded through donations, grants, special events and school partnerships.

School districts contribute funding to provide the classroom presentations and support groups. The cost to Albany will be about $100,000, of which $60,000 already has been secured, Wise said. If the balance isn't obtained, she said, partnerships are still possible, just on a smaller scale.

"Were going a little bit on faith," she said. "We have a year to secure the rest. I lived in Albany. I know the people there. This makes sense for that community.

Girls also are asked to pay individually, as they are able, for counseling and skill-building classes, Wise said. That will be the case in Albany as activities are made available.

Costs range from $1 to $60, but no girl is turned away for lack of ability to pay. "Our generous donors and fundraising efforts allow us to serve all girls and we are incredibly grateful," she said.

One potential source of funding Ophelia's Place has never tapped is health insurance coverage for any therapy it might provide, Wise said.

Counseling services are an important part of what Ophelia's Place does, Wise said. Independent and group sessions are run by master's-level therapists who have achieved their degrees and are now interns working to obtain their licenses. The therapists provide the service, but the lack of insurance billing allows the organization to avoid sending a message that the girls need "fixing."

"The reason that we dont charge for insurance is diagnosing a girl means we give a girl a label. We dont want to give a girl a label," Wise said. "And wed also have to say were treating. The message to the girl is were going to 'fix' her.

Shaping futures

Although it has always surveyed participants before and after support groups and class presentations, Ophelia's Place is only now becoming the subject of a study to see whether girls who participate in its programs have better outcomes for their lives than those who don't.

The two years of data the Ford Family Foundation is collecting at Memorial Middle School will be a part of a comparative study by the Oregon Research Institute, with results expected to be released this fall, Wise said. But in the end, it's hard to prove a negative: Do girls who make healthy choices do so because they participated in Ophelia's Place, or would they have made those choices regardless?

The way Wise sees it, Ophelia's Place has a role to play in strengthening overall cultures: of a class, a school or a community as a whole.

Through the program, girls build on their self-esteem, identify the differences between healthy and unhealthy relationships, and form a community of support and trust. Whether that can be measured and quantified might direct some programming decisions but won't change the overall mission.

Shakespeare's Ophelia struggled to be someone different for everyone in her life, Wise said. "What we do here at Ophelia's Place is help girls hold onto their true selves."
After stating that Pakistani terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was behind the terror attack on the Amarnath Pilgrim which took place last month, the Kashmir Police on Sunday claimed that they are quite near and hopefully would "eliminate" the militants involved pretty soon.

Addressing the media, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Munir Khan said that three accused persons have also been arrested.

"After the hard work by Kashmir Police and Special Investigating Team (S.I.T), three accused persons namely Bilal Rishi, a shopkeeper of Iqbal Mohalla Bijweara, Ajaz Ahmad medical representative of a pushkariri Sirigufara and Zahoor Ahmad Sheikh a SRTC driver at Khir valley, have been arrested.

Khan further stated that these three accused helped the terrorists in carrying out the attack and have 'have completely revealed everything' to the police.

"Investigation established has conducted that these three accused persons in association with four terrorists of LeT i.e. Ismail alias Harum, Mavia from Pakistan, Furkan, a Pakistani and a local named Yavar Bashir code Ayan son of Bashir Ahmed Wani a resident of a village named Hablsih, carried out the attack," IGP Khan said.

He further said that Yavar had joined the Let in February 2017 and before that he was a student of religious seminary in Sri Nagar.

The IGP also revealed that the attack was initially planned for July 9, but that day there was no movement of a Central Reserve Police Force (C.R.P.F) vehicle or a yatri vehicle "in isolation."

Khan also revealed that the terrorists had kept code words, for CRPF vehicle it was "Bilal", while for the yatri vehicle it was "Shokat."

He added that, "On July 10, the terrorists repeated the modus operandi, and unfortunately yatri bus was attacked."

"Our aim was to know how it happened because there were so many speculations going out in media houses, in our circles, but now everything is clear, these are the guys, who were involved and who planned it," he said.

As many as seven people were killed and fifteen others injured after a group of terrorists opened fire on a bus carrying 17 pilgrims from Baltal to Mir Bazar earlier on July 10.

The incident occurred on July 10 at 8:20 pm when the bus, carrying 17 pilgrims from Baltal to Mir Bazar, became victim to the terror attack.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Kashmir Police on Sunday made it clear that the Amarnath pilgrim attack that shook the whole nation, was carried out by Pakistani terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) only.

Addressing the media, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Munir Khan said that they stick to their initial statement that LeT was involved in the attacks.

"In our initial statement after the attack we said Lashkar was involved and also that the accused has been identified. So, today after the investigation has been almost completed we stick to that stand. Lashkar was involved and the accused has been identified," IGP Khan said.

Khan emphasized the fact that on the day of the attack, the Police didn't have any knowledge about the "ground work" of this particular group.

"We never knew how the attack was planned, where it was planned and who provided the logistics for them but once the investigation was started it was revealed that Ismail Kod Harun, a Pakistani militant of Lashkar and along with him two other Pakistani militants and one local Kashmiri militant carried out the actual attack," he said.

He also said that a few days back two militants were killed in a "chance" encounter and the Police had claimed that they were suspects in the pilgrim attacks as well, for that IGP khan said, "Their involvement is investigated and is under progress."

"Our emphasis is to investigate the cases, crack them and bring the investigation to a logical conclusion," Khan said.

As many as seven people were killed and fifteen others injured after a group of terrorists opened fire on a bus carrying 17 pilgrims from Baltal to Mir Bazar earlier on July 11.

A group of terrorists had earlier opened fire at a bus carrying the Amarnath pilgrims in the Anantnag district and killed seven pilgrims including five women.

The incident occurred on July 11 at 8:20 pm when the bus, carrying 17 pilgrims from Baltal to Mir Bazar, became victim to the terror attack.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Addressing Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Minister of State for External Affairs V. K. Singh said that ASEAN occupies a central place in the security architecture of the Asia-Pacific region and the ability to harmonize larger interests of the beyond it.

Singh made the opening remarks at the 15th ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Manila where Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and their counterparts from other Asian and Pacific nations will discuss security issues of the Asia Pacific region.

"From the Indian perspective, ASEAN occupies a central place in the security architecture of the Asia-Pacific region. It is our view that precisely because ASEAN represents the cultural, commercial and physical cross-roads of the region, it has a unique ability to reflect and harmonize larger interests of the beyond it," Singh said.

"During these 50 years, ASEAN had put behind it many of the post-decolonization debates of this region. It navigated the Cold War very adeptly to usher in an era of high economic growth that served as a model to others. Weathering the impact of the Asian financial crisis in 1997, it then went on to expand its footprint through the East Asia Summit process," Singh further said.

"It is my privilege to be participating in this Special ASEAN India Foreign Ministers Meeting. I compliment Philippines for the excellent arrangements and hospitality extended to me and my delegation. I look forward to attending the Grand ceremony on 8th August to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the Bangkok Declaration which gave rise to ASEAN," he added.

Elaborating about the India-Philippines bilateral ties, Singh said, "On our 25th anniversary, the flower of our relationship, which spans thirty dialogue mechanisms including an annual summit and seven ministerial dialogues, is in full blossom, with the strategic, political, economic and cultural petals aglow."

Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and their counterparts from other Asian and Pacific nations will meet in the Philippines from Sunday to Tuesday to tackle regional issues.

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The U.S. military aircraft and boats scoured waters off Australia's east coast for three Marines involved in what the Marines Corps called a "mishap" with an MV-22 aircraft.

"The aircraft involved in the mishap had launched from the USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) and was conducting regularly scheduled operations when the aircraft entered the water," the Marine Corps said in a statement.

23 of the 26 personnel on board have been rescued, the statement added.

According to the Marine Corps, small boats and aircraft from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group carried out the search and rescue operation.

The Marine authorities are investigating the incident.

United States President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull have been briefed up on the situation.

The Australian authorities said no Australian personnel were on board.

The U.S. military has been in the area for training exercises with the Australian military. The recent joint military exercise took place largely in Shoalwater Bay and involved more than 30,000 U.S. and Australian personnel, according to Australian Defence Department.

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The local public transport division BEST's Workers' Union on Sunday threatened to go on a strike starting midnight of August 6, if the Mumbai Corporation does not render a written acceptance of their demands.

"It is the responsibility of the Mahanagara Palike to give us a written acceptance of our demands. We are fighting for our rights. We work day and night; we must be entitled to our salary. We will protest if a written acceptance is not given to us," BEST Workers' Union General Secretary Shashank Rao told ANI.

"We are a force of 36,000 workers who are backing this strike. We have been in talks for three months, but there has been no proactive solution to our problems. We will demand what is rightfully ours," he added.

The people of Mumbai may face problem commuting on 'Raksha Bandhan' as the public transport division BEST Workers' Union are expected to go on strike.

All the nine unions of 36,000 employees have supported the decision. If the union goes ahead with the strike, lakhs of commuters will face inconvenience amid festival rush in the business capital.

Earlier today, the union had meeting with the Mumbai Mayor, who has assured them to accept their one of the important demands to get the employees their salary on 10th of every month.

However, the union is adamant to get their demands accepted in writing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a major blow to Team India, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was on Sunday suspended for the third and the final Test against Sri Lanka after accumulating six demerit points over a 24 month period.

During the third day's play in the Colombo Test against Sri Lanka on Saturday, Jadeja was found guilty of breaching ICC Code of Conduct which relates to "throwing a ball" in a "dangerous manner" during an International Match.

Saturday's incident happened on the final delivery of the 58th over when Jadeja, after fielding off his own bowling, threw the ball back at the batsman who had not left his crease. The on-field umpires deemed the throwing "in a dangerous manner" as it narrowly missed Dimuth Karunaratne.

The left-handed, who had received a 50 percent fine and three demerit points during the Indore Test against New Zealand in October 2016 for violating the code, with the addition of Saturday's three demerit points, reached the threshold of four demerit points.

As a result, the 28-year-old has been suspended from the Pallekele Test beginning August 12.

India registered a comprehensive win against Sri Lanka in the Colombo Test and took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

Jadeja, the no. 1 ranked bowler and all-rounder in the world, was the pick of the Indian bowlers as he scalped yet another five-wicket ball.

The left-hander was adjudged Man of the Match for his match figures of 7-236 in 61 overs apart from unbeaten 70 with the bat in the first innings.

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Vice President elect M. Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday said that Centre in collaboration with states should work towards the upliftment of poorest of the poor in the country.

Speaking for the first time after being elected as the Vice President of India Naidu said, "We should work together irrespective of political ideologies, whether you belong to any party or government, be it centre or state we should work for the development of poorest of the poor".

"We all should work for the mission 'Making of Development India', that's why I call it "MODI". We should also sustain our great culture and heritage", he added.

Yesterday Democratic Alliance (NDA) nominee and former union minister Naidu had won the Vice Presidential polls defeating Opposition nominee Gopalkrishna Gandhi by more than 270 votes.

Naidu was Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Information and Broadcasting in the Narendra Modi Government before he was nominated for the post of Vice President.

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The Congress on Sunday lambasted the Narendra Modi led- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, describing sobriquet NaMo as "No Agriculture Mal-governance Only".

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi on Sunday took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing the BJP-led central government of indulging in vendetta politics. He also said that the current political scenario in the country doesn't go with the idea of a democracy.

Speaking in a press conference in Lucknow, he said, "The Chief Minister has done a terrible job with respect ro the situation of the farmers. The number of farmer suicides has increased ever since his government came into place."

Making a cheeky dig on the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh, he said that the government has done an 'excellent' job at increasing the rate of the onions, describing it as a 'Get Rich Quicker' scheme for the government.

Commenting on the CBI raids against Opposition leaders, Singhvi said, "CBI is conducting raids at houses of members of Opposition. Why was it sleeping during Vyapam investigation?" He also challenged the CBI to take up the Vyapam Scam and investigate into the matter.

He pointed out the names of a number of leaders like the Chief Minister of Chattisgarh Raman Singh and his son, Abhishek Singh, as members of BJP who have been previously accused of corruption.

Earlier this week, the Income Tax department had carried out searches at 64 locations and properties linked to Karnataka Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, who was overseeing the stay of 44 Congress MLAs from Gujarat at a resort near Bengaluru, in connection with a case of alleged tax evasion. Similar searches were also conducted against other Opposition leaders in Delhi, Tamil Nadu and Bihar.

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US National Security Adviser Gen H.R. McMaster has conveyed President Donald Trump's stern message to Pakistan to change its 'paradoxical' policy of supporting the Taliban, Haqqani network and other militants who are causing the country great losses.

US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad vehemently denies, but this marks the first time that the allegation has been attributed to President Trump.

"The President has also made clear that we need to see a change in the behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," the Dawn quoted McMaster as saying.

"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups. I mean, this is of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but they've done so really only selectively," he added.

Defending President Trump's strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country, McMaster said, "The president has said that he does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat."

"He has lifted those restrictions, and you're beginning to see the payoff of that - as well."

In a July 19 meeting at the White House, President Trump berated his generals for not winning the war in Afghanistan and for allowing it to continue for more than 16 years.

Trump also "repeatedly suggested" to his senior military advisers that they should replace Gen John Nicholson, the commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, with a new general who could win the war.

But McMaster seems to disagree with this suggestion and said "I've known him for many years. I can't imagine a more capable commander on any mission."

Although the White House has not announced a comprehensive strategy on Afghanistan yet, McMaster said "the president's already made some important decisions on Afghanistan".

(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.)
After meeting the grieving family of slain Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker Rajesh Edavakode here on Sunday, Union Minister Arun Jaitley said that such violence will neither suppress the party's ideology in Kerala.

Addressing a gathering after meeting Rajesh's kin, Jaitley condemned the dastardly attack and said that "even enemies would not be as brutal as those who are involved in the murder".

"I visited the family of our deceased karyakarta, who was slaughtered in the most barbaric manner...he was an ideal karyakarta..This kind of violence will neither suppress ideology in Kerala nor it will be able to scare our workers. It will only increase their determination to work harder against those who are perpetuating this operation," he added.

"He belonged to the weaker section of the society. . Rajesh belonged to a poor family and now his family has no means of a livelihood. He was stabbed mercilessly and there were 70-80 wounds inflicted on his body, even enemies would not be as brutal as those involved in the murder. In the past few months party officers are being attacked, our workers are being attacked and their houses are being set ablaze," he added.

A series of clashes between CPM and BJP-RSS activists had rocked Thiruvananthapuram last month in which the 34-year-old RSS worker was murdered in Kozhikode.

Earlier, the RSS urged the Central and state Government to take strict action towards bringing this series of murders to an end in Kerala.

"Centre must intervene in state sponsored violence in Kerala," said RSS Joint General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale

RSS also passed a resolution in RSS Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal meet regarding these attacks on the RSS by CPM cadres in the state.

Eight suspects were detained in connection with the murder.

Earlier Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan condemned the murder and called for an all-party meeting on August 6 regarding the same.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had called on Vijayan to nab the perpetrators and bring them to justice expeditiously.

He even requested the Chief Minister to curb the political violence in the state and said, "I expect that the political violence in Kerala is curbed and that the perpetrators are brought to justice expeditiously."

The Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on July 4 issued notice to Kerala Government over growing incidents of political violence in the state and sought a report on the issue within four weeks.

The Commission also asked the State Chief Secretary and Director General of Police to take effective measures to stop such incidents.

(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.)
Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.

Morality cannot be legislated, but behavior can be regulated. Judicial decrees may not change the heart, but they can restrain the heartless.

A right delayed is a right denied.Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. Hate destroys a man's sense of values and his objectivity. It causes him to describe the beautiful as ugly and the ugly as beautiful, and to confuse the true with the false and the false with the true.

Martin Luther King Jr.

No one is born hating another person People must learn to hate and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.

Nelson Mandela

We can disagree and still love each other, unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist

James Baldwin

There is a fine line between free speech and hate speech. Free speech encourages debate whereas hate speech incites violence.

Newton Lee

The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.

Albert Einstein
The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) on Sunday, while welcoming the new Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog Dr. Rajiv Kumar, said the chamber has now become increasingly crucial, owing to the emphasis of the current government on cooperative federalism.

"NITI Aayog has increasingly gained in importance given the focus the current government has placed on the subject of cooperative federalism. FICCI welcomes the appointment of Dr. Rajiv Kumar as the new Vice Chairman of the organisation," the chamber said.

Lauding the Centre for its immediacy in recruiting a new Vice Chairman following the resignation of Arvind Panagariya, the FICCI said it will help the think tank in maintaining its momentum of work.

"NITI is working in an array of areas that promote cross-learning and sharing of experiences amongst states for enhancing growth and development. This decision of the government will help NITI maintain continuity in its policy advocacy work," it noted.

A DPhil holder in Economics from Oxford University and a PhD holder from Lucknow University, Dr Kumar is currently a senior fellow at the Center for Policy Research (CPR), a non-governmental think thank on public policy.

Dr Kumar will be succeeding Panagariya, who resigned from his post as vice chairman on August 1, with August 31 being his last day.

The Indian American economist is reportedly returning to the United States to resume his academics.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had appointed Panagariya as the first vice-chairman of NITI Aayog on January 5, 2015.

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A foetus was found wrapped in a cloth near the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) garbage dumping site in Madangir area here on Sunday.

Reportedly, the four-month-old male foetus was found around 9.15 a.m.

Strict legal action would be taken under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 318 against the guilty, the police has assured.

A case has been registered in this regard and reportedly an autopsy on the foetus would be conducted tomorrow.

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Urging for stringent action against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Haryana chief Subhash Barala's son, the Congress Party on Sunday called for implementation of law without fear.

Congress leader Manish Tewari said that under political pressure, steps are being taken to safeguard 23-year old Vikas Barala, son of Subhash Barala, while adding that irrespective of the fact that the legal process in the case is being stymied, strict action should be taken and an example needs to be set by bringing the guilty to justice.

"What has happened is extremely unfortunate. If you read the posts which have been put out by the family members, they are absolutely heart rendering. The law was tightened in wake of the Nirbhaya incident. There is a need to apply the law without fear of favour. No attempt should be made in order to save this gentleman and there is a cover up which is taking place," said Tewari.

"Under political pressure attempts are being made to save this gentleman. What is most disappointing is the tweet by the Haryana Chief Minister that how he can hold the father responsible for the alleged crimes of his son. This person must be brought to justice. An example needs to be set up," he added.

Subhash drew ridicule from another Congress leader, Salman Khurshid, who said that an environment, which projects an image that the powerful and the rich cannot be brought to book, has enveloped the nation.

Kurshid, while expressing his grief over the incident, said that the nation needs another Mahatama Gandhi who can cleanse the nation.

"The whole episode is saddening. This is not our culture. I will like to ask the government that why there is no implementation of promises," said Khurshid.

"There is an environment which has enveloped the nation that if one has money or political power nothing can happen to them, they cannot be questioned. From where should we bring another mahatma Gandhi who can cleanse the nation," he added.

However, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar earlier in the day assured that the son of Subhash Barala, who has been accused of allegedly stalking a woman, will be punished once found guilty.

"I have complete faith on the Chandigarh Police. Justice will prevail. The accused will be punished once found guilty. This is my official stand on this matter. This case has nothing to do with Subhash Barala. Such act is highly condemnable if proved correct," the Chief Minister told the media here.

Vikas Barala was arrested on Saturday on the charges of stalking and harassing the IAS officer's daughter in Chandigarh. He was, however, granted bail on the same day.

A case was registered by the Chandigarh Police against Vikas and other youth under under Section 354 D (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 185 (Motor Vehicle Act) of the CRPC on the basis of complaint filed by the woman.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Following the arrest of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president Subhash Barala's son for stalking a girl in Chandigarh, the Shiv Sena on Sunday ridiculed the saffron party for boasting about its various "schemes" for women when on the other hand its leaders are harassing women.

"On one hand the Bharatiya Janata Party boasts about its various schemes for women and giving them honor and on the other hand we have a BJP leader whose son is stalking a woman. It is very embarrassing," Shiv Sena leader Manish Kayande told ANI.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Meem Afzal demanded the resignation of Subhash Barala on moral grounds.

"In Haryana, there is hooliganism everywhere. First lynching in the country has also started from this Haryana. The BJP chief should step down on moral grounds," he added.

The victim, who is an IAS officer's daughter, thanked Chandigarh Police for rescuing her on time, and pointed out that if she was a common man's daughter the case would not be taken so seriously.

"I was coming back to my home when they started stalking me. They tried to threaten me by trying to stop my car. Suddenly, they came in front of my car and blocked the way. I reversed my car immediately and called the police. Police heard whole the matter and assured me of providing the help. Soon the police came and arrested the accused. I am very thankful to Chandigarh Police who came to my rescue on time," she told the media.

"I'm lucky, it seems, to not be the daughter of a common man, because what chance would they have against such VIPs? I'm also lucky, because I'm not lying raped and murdered in a ditch somewhere," the woman wrote in a Facebook her post, pointing that the two men she accused of perturbing her "are from influential families with political connections".

However, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said it was not right to punish the BJP leader for his son's crime.

"I came to know about this incident. Chandigarh Police has filed the complaint and I believe they will take appropriate action. This matter is not related with Subhash Barala but with an individual. So action would be taken against his son," Khattar told media.

Vikas Bharala was arrested yesterday on charges of stalking daughter of an IAS officer.

On the basis of complaint filed by daughter of the IAS officer, a case was registered against Vikas and other youth under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.

Following the incident, the Congress has urged the state government and the police to do the needful.

"This is an unfortunate incident. Now, the law and order should take its own course. The government and the police must act," Congress leader Ashok Tanwar told ANI.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
If you think that you know everything about Princess Leia, then this fact about her will really surprise you.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, not only did Princess Leia have a Ph.D., but also she earned it at 19.

The revelation was pointed out by Twitter user Becca Harrison, a University of Glasgow student, who discovered the news in the book Superwomen: Gender, Power, and Representation by Carolyn Cocca.

According to Cocca, George Lucas said in the 2004 commentary for A New Hope that Leia obtained her doctorate, among other accolades, while Luke was a "naive farm boy."

"She's like a very sophisticated, urbanized ruler, a senator, so she's a politician.She's accomplished, graduated, got her Ph.D. at 19 and she rules people," said Lucas, according to the book.

The discovery was so popular, even Twitter pointed it out in a Moments collection.

Carrie Fisher's Gen. Leia Organa will make her final appearance in the upcoming franchise installment 'The Last Jedi'.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Japanese city of Hiroshima on Sunday observed 72nd anniversary of U.S. atomic bombing at its annual memorial ceremony, with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calling on all states including Japan to work toward a free of nuclear weapons "in their own ways".

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for all states to work toward a free of nuclear weapons "in their own ways" in a message read on his behalf by Izumi Nakamitsu, U.N. undersecretary-general and high representative for disarmament affairs, Japan Times reported.

"Hiroshima's message of peace and the heroic efforts of hibakushas have reminded the of the devastating humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons. .The United Nations stands with you in our shared pursuit of a world free of nuclear weapons," the message said.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe avoided any mention of the ban treaty in his speech at the ceremony as Japan has refused to join nuke ban treaty.

"For us to truly realize a 'world without nuclear weapons,' the participation of both nuclear weapon states and non-nuclear weapon states is necessary," he said.

"By firmly maintaining our three non-nuclear principles (of not producing, possessing or allowing nuclear weapons on Japanese territory) and continuing to appeal to both sides, Japan is determined to lead the international community," Abe added.

A global treaty has been approved to ban the nuclear weapons, a move that supporters hope will lead to the eventual elimination of all nuclear arms. The treaty was endorsed by 122 countries at the United Nations headquarters to comprehensively prohibit nuclear weapons.

Mayor Kazumi Matsui called on the Shinzo Abe government to help realize a treaty banning nuclear weapons.

In the city's annual Peace Declaration, Matsui demanded that Japan join the treaty to ban nuclear weapons,but urged the government to "manifest the pacifism in our Constitution by doing everything in its power to bridge the gap between the nuclear weapon and non-nuclear weapon states, thereby facilitating the ratification."

He said the countries that adopted the treaty "demonstrated their unequivocal determination to achieve abolition," and that now is the time for all governments to "strive to advance further toward a nuclear weapon-free world."

A moment of silence was observed at 8:15 a.m., when a uranium-core atomic bomb dubbed "Little Boy" dropped by a U.S. bomber exploded about 600 meters above Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, killing an estimated 140,000 people by the end of that year.

A second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on Aug. 9 and Japan surrendered six days later, bringing an end to World War II.

The combined number of hibakusha stood at 164,621 as of March, down 5,530 from the year prior. Their average age was 81.41.

Matsui demanded in his speech that the government give more compassionate assistance to aging hibakusha, as well as to "the many others also suffering mentally and physically from the effects of radiation."

More than one hundred forty thousand people were killed in the world's first atomic bomb attack of August 6, 1945 on Hiroshima.

The pact's preamble uses the Japanese term hibakusha in its mention of "the unacceptable suffering" of survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings that killed an estimated 214,000 people by the end of 1945.

The ceremony was attended by representatives of about 80 nations plus the European Union. The nuclear states Britain, France, the United States and Russia were scheduled to attend, as well as India, and Pakistan, which are known to possess atomic weapons but are not signatories to nonproliferation treaties. Israel, which is widely believed to have nuclear weapons, had also been scheduled to attend.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday met the grieving family members of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker Rajesh Edavakode, who was killed during political clash in Kozhikode.

A series of clashes between CPM and BJP-RSS activists had rocked Thiruvananthapuram last month in which the 34-year-old RSS worker was murdered in Kozhikode.

Earlier, the RSS urged the Central and state Government to take strict action towards bringing this series of murders to an end in Kerala.

"Centre must intervene in state sponsored violence in Kerala," said RSS Joint General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale

RSS also passed a resolution in RSS Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal meet regarding these attacks on the RSS by CPM cadres in the state.

Eight suspects were detained in connection with the murder.

Earlier Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan condemned the murder and called for an all-party meeting on August 6 regarding the same.

He said that party offices and workers' houses can't be attacked and political parties should be more vigilant and ask workers to keep away from such incidents.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had called on Vijayan to nab the perpetrators and bring them to justice expeditiously.

He even requested the Chief Minister to curb the political violence in the state and said, "I expect that the political violence in Kerala is curbed and that the perpetrators are brought to justice expeditiously."

The Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on July 4 issued notice to Kerala Government over growing incidents of political violence in the state and sought a report on the issue within four weeks.

The Commission also asked the State Chief Secretary and Director General of Police to take effective measures to stop such incidents.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Pakistani-origin woman has claimed that she has been tying Rakhi to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for over 20 years.

Speaking to ANI here, Qamar Mohsin Shaikh said, "I have been tying Rakhi to Narendra bhai for the last 22-23 years, excited to do it this time too."

Shaikh, who came to India from Pakistan after marriage and has been living here since then, also said that two days back she received a call from Prime Minister Modi.

"This time I thought PM Modi must be busy but two days back he called up, I was very happy to know that; started preparing for Raksha Bandhan, said the Pakistan lady.

Recollecting her memories, she said that her first Rakshan Bandhan with Prime Minister Modi was when he was a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker.

"When I first tied rakhi to Narendra bhai, he was a karyakarta but with his sheer hardwork and vision he has become the PM," she narrated.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The people of Mumbai may face problem commuting on 'Raksha Bandhan' as the public transport division BEST Workers' Union has announced to go on strike from August 7.

The union has threatened that unless demands of their employees are fulfilled or they are given an assurance in writing, they will go on a strike from today midnight.

All the nine unions of 36,000 employees have supported the decision. If the union goes ahead with the strike, lakhs of commuters will face inconvenience amid festival rush in the business capital.

Earlier today, the union had meeting with the Mumbai Mayor, who has assured them to accept their one of the important demands to get the employees their salary on 10th of every month.

However, the union is adamant to get their demands accepted in writing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Following the furore over the case of a woman being stalked by the son of Haryana BJP state president Subhash Barala, the father of the victim took to social media and called on the nation to fight against such crimes, or forever face injustice for their own daughters.

"If we do not persist in trying to bring the guilty to justice, more and more daughters will suffer this hurt. Maybe some may not be as lucky as her. Someone has to stand up. We are standing. So long as we can," he said in a Facebook post.

Vikas Barala was arrested on Saturday on the charges of stalking and harassing the IAS officer's daughter in Chandigarh. He was however, granted bail on the same day.

The IAS officer narrated the entire incident and thanked the Chandigarh Police for helping them.

"I would like to share with you all a horrendous experience we went through last night. My daughter was returning home around midnight yesterday in her car when a couple of goons started following her in a Tata safari... They tried to block her car at the traffic signal, but she showed presence of mind and sped away. Chandigarh police was pretty efficient and helpful. They intercepted the goons, were responsive to her distress calls, and were neutral in filing the complaint," he said in Facebook post.

He further said the goons tried to abduct his daughter but she escaped due to her courage and presence of mind.

"As would be expected, the goons are from influential families. We all know most such cases of harassment go unpunished and even unreported. Most people would not want or dare to take on goons from influential families. I feel if people with some privileges like us cannot stand up to such criminals, nobody in India can," he added.

Earlier, the victim thanked Chandigarh Police for rescuing her on time, and pointed out that if she was a common man's daughter the case would not be taken so seriously.

Meanwhile, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said it was not right to punish the BJP leader Subhash Barala for his son's crime.

"I came to know about this incident. Chandigarh Police has filed the complaint and I believe they will take appropriate action. This matter is not related with Subhash Barala but with an individual. So action would be taken against his son," Khattar told media.

A case was registered by the Chandigarh Police against Vikas and other youth under under Section 354 D (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 185 (Motor Vehicle Act) of the CRPC on the basis of complaint filed by the woman.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Active Shooter by Nancy Ohanian



L.A. Times' Cathleen Decker The' Cathleen Decker reported that "[m]ore than two dozen voters gathered in Phoenix this week delivered a bipartisan broadside against President Trump, Republicans and Democrats, dismissing the political class as serving its wealthy benefactors and abandoning everyday Americans. Their fiercest disappointment was aimed at Trump." One of the participants said that "said she will not vote for Trump again unless he fulfills his campaign promises-- specifically his pledge to provide better healthcare at a cheaper price. She noted that he had ultimately supported GOP healthcare plans that did 'the opposite.'" Oops... and here Trump has lived his whole life thinking that words, specifics and promises don't ultimately matter.





Even funnier, a 70 year old Republican donor in Virginia, Bob Heghmann, is suing the Republican Party for fraud . His suit claims that "the national and Virginia Republican parties and some GOP leaders raised millions of dollars in campaign funds while knowing they werent going to be able to overturn the law also known as Obamacare. The GOP 'has been engaged in a pattern of Racketeering which involves massive fraud perpetrated on Republican voters and contributors as well as some Independents and Democrats,' the suit said. Racketeering, perhaps better known for use in prosecuting organized crime, involves a pattern of illegal behavior by a specific group." He may sound like a crank-- and the only Bob Heghmann I found in the FEC files to have contributed to Republicans was one in New Hampshire who gave 3 contributions totaling $750 about 4 years ago-- but its easy to understand why he's so disappointed in his party. He's far from the only one.













NY Times that could have been written any day in the last 6 months, A few weeks ago Peter Baker wrote a piece for thethat could have been written any day in the last 6 months, Trump White House Tests a Nations Capacity for Outrage . "Remember that time," he asked tongue planted firmly in cheek, "President George W. Bush told his attorney general to investigate Al Gore for his 'crimes'? Or President Barack Obama called for a Justice Department prosecution of John McCain?"

Neither did that, of course, nor has any president in modern times sought to prosecute the candidate he beat at the ballot box. But when President Trump publicly declared last weekend that his Justice Department should investigate Hillary Clinton, his exhortation generated relatively little reaction.



Indeed, when he repeated it on Twitter on Monday, more attention was paid to the fact that he described his attorney general, Jeff Sessions, as beleaguered-- a condition that, if true, was due in large part to Mr. Trump himself, who last week said that he regretted appointing Mr. Sessions because the attorney general had recused himself from overseeing the Russia investigation.



After six months in office, Mr. Trump has crossed so many lines, discarded so many conventions, said and done so many things that other presidents would not have, that he has radically shifted the understanding of what is standard in the White House. He has moved the bar for outrage. He has a taste for provocation and relishes challenging Washington taboos. If the propriety police tut tut, he shows no sign of concer... [T]his is a president who refused to release his tax returns or divest from his private businesses, who put his son-in-law and daughter on the White House staff, who accused his predecessor of illegally tapping his phones without proof, who fired the F.B.I. director leading an investigation into the presidents associates and who has now undercut his beleaguered attorney general in public. When he talked politics, jabbed the news media and told stories about Manhattan cocktail parties before tens of thousands of children at the nonpartisan National Scout Jamboree here in West Virginia on Monday, it was hardly surprising.





Yesterday, Jonathan Chait went even further, asserting that the Trumpanzee presidency has already collapsed . And a 33% job approval rating-- a rating that drops by a percentage point a month-- and would, at the current rate, "hit zero in September 2020. (A highly unlikely possibility, though with Donald Trump, anything is possible.) Measured in less quantifiable terms, Trumps political decline has not occurred in so linear a fashion. It has happened, as Ernest Hemingway wrote about bankruptcy, gradually and then suddenly."

After half a year of comic internal disarray, even in the face of broad public dismay, Trumps administration had, through most of July, managed to hold together some basic level of partisan cohesion with a still-enthusiastic base and supportive partners in Congress. This has quickly collapsed.



Signs of the disintegration have popped up everywhere. The usual staff turmoil came to a boil in the course of ten days, during which the following occurred: The president denounced his own attorney general in public, the press secretary quit, a new communications director came aboard, the chief of staff was fired, the communications director accused the chief strategist of auto-fellatio in an interview, then he was himself fired. Meanwhile, the secretary of State and national-security adviser were both reported to be eyeing the exits. (Against this colorful backdrop, the ominous news that Robert Mueller had convened a grand jury barely registered.)



More disturbingly for Trump, Republicans in Congress have openly broken ranks. When the Senate voted down the latest (and weakest) proposal to repeal Obamacare, Trump demanded the chamber resume the effort, as he has before. This time, Republican leaders defied him and declared the question settled for the year. When the president threatened to withhold promised payments to insurers in retribution, Republicans in Congress proposed to continue making them. Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Charles Grassley, responding to the presidents threat to sack Jeff Sessions, announced he had no time to confirm a new attorney general. Many Republican senators have endorsed bills to block the president from firing the special counsel.



The most humiliating rebuke came in the form of a bill to lock in sanctions on Russia, passed by Congress without the presidents consent. The premise of the sanctions law is that Congress cannot trust the president to safeguard the national interest, treating him as a potential Russian dupe. It passed through both chambers almost unanimously. Trump delayed signing the bill for days, then submitted to its passage in the most begrudging fashion possible, releasing a statement that reads less like something a president would publish to commemorate the signing of a law than a petulant handwritten note a grounded teen might tape to the bedroom door. Congress could not even negotiate a health-care bill after seven years of talking, wrote the president of the United States. I built a truly great company worth many billions of dollars. That is a big part of the reason I was elected.



During his very brief tenure as communications director, Anthony Scaramucci blurted out something very telling: There are people inside the administration that think it is their job to save America from this president. The conviction that Trump is dangerously unfit to hold office is indeed shared widely within his own administration. Leaked accounts consistently depict the president as unable to read briefing materials written at an adult level, easily angered, prone to manipulation through flattery, subject to change his mind frequently to agree with whomever he spoke with last, and consumed with the superficiality of cable television. In the early days of the administration, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and thenHomeland Security Director John Kelly secretly agreed that one of the two should remain in the country at all times to keep tabs on the orders rapidly emerging from the White House, the Associated Press reported recently.



And the insurrection appears to be creeping outward. When Trump tweeted that he would ban transgender Americans from military service, the Defense Department announced there had been no modifications to the current policy and that, in the meantime, we will continue to treat all of our personnel with respect. When Trump gave a speech to police urging them to rough up suspects, several police chiefs and even the head of his own Drug Enforcement Agency registered their public objections. The accretion of these acts of defiance is significant. The federal government has flipped on its chief executive.



Barring resignation or removal from office  which would require the vote of a House majority plus two-thirds of the Senate  we are stuck with a delegitimized president serving out the remaining seven-eighths of his term. Politically gridlocked presidencies have become normal, but for the office to be occupied by a man whose own party elites doubt his functional competence and even loyalty is, to borrow a term, unpresidented. Trumps obsession with humiliation and dominance has left him ill-prepared to cope with high-profile failure. He seems unlikely to content himself with quiet, incremental bureaucratic reform.



And yet it is difficult to see what Trump can do to reverse the situation. His next major domestic-agenda item, a regressive tax cut, is highly unpopular. He has inherited peace and prosperity. Nobody in the administration has been indicted. It is far easier to imagine conditions changing for the worse than the better.

Chait worries that Trump could turn to trying "to gain popularity by launching (or suffering) an attack," either starting a war or manufacturing some kind of a "terrorist attack" on America. He concludes that "[a] chaotic, still-understaffed administration led by a novice commander-in-chief who has alienated American allies deserves no benefit of the doubt. Everything from Trumps incompetent management of the Department of Energy, which safeguards nuclear materials, to the now-skeletal State Department, to his blustering international profile has exposed the country to an elevated risk of a mass tragedy. A long-term task of the opposition is to prevent the crumbling presidency from transmuting that weakness into strength."
Former Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader and MNA Ayesha Gulalai reiterated claims that party chairman Imran Khan had been sending her "indecent, inappropriate messages" during an interview for Dawn News.

She further entailed about how the decision of finally slapping the charges against Imran Khan came around.

"As my father was a professor, he started the discussion in a decent way; but Khan refused to accept his mistake and tried to divert the discussion," she said, adding that "the messages continued to come in after the meeting. As a result, I was turned off from politics and went off screen."

Refusing to provide further details, she said that Khan initially used to send her "inappropriate and indecent" messages, but later talked about a marriage proposal before her father intervened in the matter.

Gulalai said that she always responded in a decent manner.

"I also expressed my anger and at times adopted a harsh tone. What the bottom line is that me and my family suffered mental torture due to the entire episode. It was the main reason behind my decision to quit the party," she reiterated.

Gulalai said that Khan did not propose to her directly, but "talked about it in a veiled manner in his text messages," in the interview to the Dawn News.

"He proposed to me before his wedding with Reham Khan," she claimed, adding that "after he parted ways with Reham, in July he again tried indirectly to contact me".

"I spoke out for the sake of Pakistani women. I did not do any thing wrong," she said, defending her decision to go public with the matter.

Gulalai added, "They call themselves unbiased but have launched a [vindictive] inquiry against me in the provincial accountability commission. Till today, the PTI circles considered me a fair person who was struggling against corruption: now, all of a sudden, I am this bad person to them."

"They have launched a campaign against me, they have activated a private channel and some individuals against me while promising them party tickets or money. They have asked them to issue statements against me," she claimed.

"They do not have any proofs against me, so they are changing statements. At times, they said that it [the press conference] was done after my meeting with Amir Muqam. Then they said that the issue was based on the NA-1 party ticket and then they said that the dispute was in connection with fundraising. At least they should stick to one allegation," she said.

Talking about the proposed jirga, she said that she know the culture of jirgas very well as she herself had led a few. "A handful of people will assemble there under their own agenda. Why would I appear before any meeting of such a group of people?"

She claimed that a larger tribal jirga had recently approached her and expressed their desire to summon the members of the jirga called by the PTI leader, but she had asked the tribal leaders to be patient as she was not willing to take things so far.

Reiterating a statement she made earlier, Gulalai said that she will forgive Imran Khan "if he accepts his mistake" and apologises for sending her unsolicited text messages.

"If Imran Khan accepts that he has done it and seeks forgiveness from God, the nation and its women, I will forgive him," Gulalai said, adding that it would not matter even if he apologised in private.

Earlier, Malik Jalal Khan Wazir, a member of grand tribal jirga from North Waziristan Agency to which Gulalai belongs, asked her to produce relevant evidence about the allegations she has levelled against Khan.

Tribesmen warned that they will besiege the house of Gulalai.

"Gulalai neither belonged to Waziristan nor was she a tribal woman, because whatever she had done during last four days was against the norms of tribal people," the Dawn quoted Wazir, as saying.

"We cannot expect a tribal woman to adopt such lifestyle. The woman is unaware of the South and North Waziristan Agencies because she is not a resident of the tribal region," Wazir claimed.

The tribal elder asked Gulalai to present her Blackberry to any relevant forum to clear her position. He said her allegations against Imran had earned her disrespect in the hearts of people.

He asserted that according to their tribal tradition,daughters are not allowed to show up before media or irrelevant people. But, he said Shamsul Qayyum, the father of Gulalai, used her for the sake of money only.

Jalal Wazir demanded for an inquiry against Qayyum for bringing a bad name to the tribal people for his own personal interests. "The tribal people want to know as to how much money Gulalai has taken for levelling such allegations," he demanded.

Wazir claimed that Gulalai's statement about Imran Khan sending her inappropriate messages on her mobile had not only insulted the Pakhtuns but also disgraced a large number of women workers affiliated with PTI.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A protest was organized outside the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Sunday afternoon to highlight the anger and frustration that still exists among Indians over incidents of terror and over media reports of terror outfits, including well known ones like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) being bankrolled by financial institutions that operate out of countries in the Middle East such as the United Arab Emirates.

Sunday's protest was organized by the Delhi-based NGO Serve for Humans.

Speaking to ANI on the sidelines of the protest outside the UAE embassy, Harish Malkoti, President and Project Development Officer of the NGO, said, "We are conducting a peaceful protest against the UAE, as newspapers are showing news that Dubai funded Pakistani banks for the 26/11 attack in India. We want India to take immediate and stringent action against the UAE."

He further said, "Terrorism and friendship can't go hand in hand. That has been our nation's policy. All countries are important for us, whether it is China or the UAE. If any country wants to spread terrorism in our country, we won't redeem any relations with them.

When told that terror attacks are also taking place in Pakistan, he said, "Pakistan is a poor country. From where is it getting the funds to spread terrorism? The government should conduct a probe in this regard."

To another question regarding the ongoing trilateral border impasse between India, China and Bhutan in the Doklam region, Mr. Malkoti said, "We want the government to take necessary steps and boycott Chinese products."

and international media have widely reported in the past that the UAE financed Pakistani banks and in turn these funds reportedly bankrolled terror attacks against India such as 26/11 that claimed the lives of 166 people and maimed over 300 others.

It may be recalled that the Investigation Agency (NIA) had registered a case on May 30 against Kashmiri separatist and secessionist leaders, including members of the Hurriyat Conference, who have reportedly been acting in connivance with active militants of the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, Dukhtaran-e-Millat, Lashkar-e-Taiba, other outfits and gangs.

The case was registered for raising, receiving and collecting funds through various illegal means, including Hawala, for funding separatist and terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir and for causing disruption in the Kashmir Valley by way of pelting security forces with stones, burning schools, damaging public property and waging war against India.

In June this year, the NIA conducted raids at multiple locations in Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi and Haryana.

During the course of searches, Pakistani currency (a few thousand) and currencies belonging to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia were found and seized apart from other incriminating material.

At that time, 23 places were raided in Kashmir, Delhi and Haryana in connection with funding received from Pakistan for terror and violence in the Kashmir Valley. Search operations were also carried out at the residences and offices of separatist leaders. Some of them and their associates have since been detained for questioning.

Several papers like the Daily Beast, The Telegraph, Huffington Post and Al-Jazeera have also reported that some Gulf countries were used to receive funds from banks in Pakistan and UAE owned by the UAE royal family to allegedly finance terror strikes in the U.S. in 2001 and Mumbai in 2008.

Banks like the Dubai Islamic Bank in UAE, and the Bank Al Falah and United Bank Ltd. in Pakistan owned by the Abu Dhabi Royal family reportedly cleared financial transactions of terrorist outfits like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), both of which have been named by India as being squarely involved in the 26/11 attacks. They were reportedly involved in terror-related financing for the 9/11 strike as well.

American citizens are said to have started filing cases in their courts against some of these Gulf nations, claiming to have evidence of their roles not only in 9/11, but also in the November 26-29 terror attacks in Mumbai.

Media reports are saying that some of these documents that may soon appear in the public domain reportedly suggest for instance that the family of one of the Americans who died in Mumbai in 2008, has filed a case against the royal family of Abu Dhabi, which owned banks that financially helped the LeT and the JuD.

Indians are looking for closure and that will come only after the Indian Government initiates an enquiry into the matter and takes action against the perpetrators.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Concerned over the ceasefire violations in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Sunday discussed Syrian de-escalation zones with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu on the sidelines of ASEAN forum in Manila.

"The ministers substantively discussed the situation in Syria, including within the context of implementing the memorandum on creation of de-escalation zones in the Syrian Arab Republic, strengthening the ceasefire regime in the country and promoting the establishment of the political settlement's process," the ministry said in a statement.

Russia's representatives in the Russian-Turkish commission on the Syrian truce have registered seven violations of the ceasefire regime during the past 24 hours, while Turkey informed about six cases, Russia Today quoted the Russian Defense Ministry statement.

According to the ministry, most cases of in-selective firing from small arms were registered in the areas controlled by Daesh and al-Nusra Front terrorist groups.

Negotiations on joining the ceasefire regime continued with units of armed opposition in the provinces of Aleppo, Damascus, Homs, Hama, Idlib and Quneitra, the Russian ministry said.

Meanwhile, four ceasefire agreements have been signed with representatives of Khmira, Musel-Hele, Tumin and Abu-Darda inhabited areas of the province of Hama. within 24 hours.

The memorandum on the establishment of four de-escalation zones in Syria was signed in Astana in May, with Russia, Iran and Turkey acting as the guarantors of the ceasefire regime.

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The Enforcement Directorate on Sunday arrested Aslam Wani, close aide of Separatist leader Shabir Shah from Srinagar, in connection with terror funding case.

Wani will be brought to Delhi today.

Earlier, the ED remand of Shabir Shah, a Democratic Freedom Party (DFP) chairman, was extended for six days.

This came after the Enforcement Directorate submitted an application before a Delhi court for further remand of Shah.

In its remand application, the ED submitted before the court that Shah is in continuous contact with anti elements/ terrorists residing in Pakistan in garb of the Kashmir issue.

On July 26, Shah was produced in the Patiala House Court, following which he was sent to a seven-day ED custody.

On July 25, Shah was arrested from his residence, where he was under house detention for a very long time, in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar.

The Investigation Agency (NIA) has been tough on Separatists regarding the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir.

On July 24, the NIA arrested seven separatists over money laundering charges, for funding terror in the Kashmir Valley.

All seven separatist leaders - Altaf Shah, Ayaz Akbar, Peer Saifullah, Mehraj Kalwal, Shahid-ul-Islam, Naeem Khan and Bitta Karate - were later sent to 10-day NIA custody.

The accused have been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The NIA visited Srinagar in May to probe the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir, and questioned several Separatist leaders on the issue of raising, collecting and transferring funds via the Hawala route and other channels to fund terror activities in Kashmir.

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The head of Venezuela's ruling party, Diosdado Cabello, said the "terrorist" attack at a military base in Valencia was averted with the help of troops loyal to the government.

A video emerged showing a group of armed men dressed in military fatigues on Sunday launching an attack on miltary base in Valencia and declaring it as an uprising against President Nicolas Maduro to restore democracy in Venezuela.

In a video, armed men declared themselves as rebels calling for rebellion against President Nicolas Maduro in Carabobo state, where Valencia is located.

In the video, a man identifying himself as Capt Juan Caguaripano said that any unit refusing to go along with its call for rebellion would be targeted by them.

But Venezuelan authorities said they had suppressed a military rebellion near the central city of Valencia. "There had been a "terrorist attack" at a Valencia military base controlled by troops loyal to the government and several people had been arrested," the Guardian quoted the ruling Socialist Party's deputy, Diosdado Cabello as saying.

Venezuela is wracked by tension and violence, as the unpopular Maduro government seeks to hold on to power.On Saturday chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega was removed and replaced after her office was surrounded by soldiers.

International pressure against Venezuela's election has been increasing as the United States, Mexico and Colombia said they're freezing assets and imposing other restrictions on certain current and former Venezuelan government officials.

The U.S. Treasury Department slapped sanctions against 13 Venezuelan government officials. The sanctions come ahead of the planned July 30, 2017, election orchestrated by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of a National Constituent Assembly that will have the power to rewrite the Venezuelan constitution and dissolve all government institutions.

"As President Trump has made clear, the United States will not ignore the Maduro regime's ongoing efforts to undermine democracy, freedom and the rule of law," Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said in a statement.

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The Enforcement Directorate (ED), on Sunday questioned Kashmiri Separatist Shabir Shah's wife in the ongoing money laundering case.

This comes after Delhi court on Sunday sent Aslam Wani, close aide of Separatist leader Shabir Shah from Srinagar, to an Enforcement Directorate (ED) remand till August 14.

The ED, earlier in the day, arrested Aslam Wani in connection with terror funding case.

Earlier on July 24, the Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested seven separatists over money laundering charges, for funding terror in the Kashmir Valley.

On July 25, Shah was arrested from his residence, where he was under house detention for a very long time, in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar.

Meanwhile, on July 26, Shah was produced in the Patiala House Court, following which he was sent to seven-day ED custody.

All seven separatist leaders - Altaf Shah, Ayaz Akbar, Peer Saifullah, Mehraj Kalwal, Shahid-ul-Islam, Naeem Khan and Bitta Karate - were sent to 10-day NIA custody.

The accused have been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The NIA visited Srinagar in May to probe the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir, and questioned several Separatist leaders on the issue of raising, collecting and transferring funds via the Hawala route and other channels to fund terror activities in Kashmir.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Minister of State (MoS) for Prime Minister's office Jitendra Singh on Sunday said that the Centre is leaving no stone unturned in restoring peace in the valley, while adding that Kashmir will not witness any untoward incident anymore.

Singh while addressing the media, after the District Executive Committee meeting said that because of swift action of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government the militants and the terrorist organizations are under a lot of pressure.

Singh said that the investigation that was started by the Central Government in the Valley will churn positive results.

"The way Pakistan intruded earlier, things are better under our government and they have been given a strong answer. Militants and the terrorist organizations are under a lot of pressure," Singh said.

"I am sure that the procedure and investigations that has been started will reach its end. And this will be the last round of militancy in Kashmir," he said.

The Kashmir Police in a Press Conference earlier today, said that Pakistani terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was behind the terror attack on the Amarnath Pilgrim which took place last month, and als0 claimed that they are quite near and hopefully would "eliminate" the militants involved, pretty soon.

The statement comes after they claim to have arrest three accused persons who helped the terrorist's logistics.

Earlier on July 10, a bus carrying 17 pilgrims from Baltal to Mir Bazar, became victim to the terror attack, killing seven people and fifteen others injured after a group of terrorists opened fire on the bus.

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United States President Donald Trump has come to the defence of his National Security Advisor, H.R. McMaster, in the wake of a sustained attack on the army general from the far-right.

The President, in a statement on Friday, described McMaster as a "good man", and said they were "working very well together".

"General McMaster and I are working very well together. He is a good man and very pro-Israel. I am grateful for the work he continues to do serving our country," the statement said.

Few stories of a news website had described McMaster as "increasingly volatile" and said he "frequent blows his top". A certain story's headline said he was "deeply hostile to Israel and to Trump".

Trump's son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner, who has been often portrayed as a rival to McMaster, also lent his support, telling the New York Times the latter was "a true public servant and a tremendous asset".

The anti-McMaster campaign reportedly was ignited by the firing of three White House officials - Ezra Cohen-Watnick, the national security council (NSC) senior director for intelligence programmes; Derek Harvey, the NSC senior director for the Middle East; and Rich Higgins, the director for strategic planning - known to be allies of McMaster's predecessor as national security advisor, retired general Michael Flynn.

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Turkey has sent a military convoy with five howitzers to the border with Syria, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

The new artillery units, sent on Saturday, aim to reinforce rather than replace the artillery already in place military.

Turkey considers the YPG as the Syrian arm of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been waging an over three decade insurgency against the Turkish state.

Both have exchanged fire in the border region several times in recent months, after which Turkey threatened to launch another cross-border offensive.

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At a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government is making relentless efforts in digitizing India, Rajasthan's Udaipur irrigation department has issued notice banning the use of smart phones by employees inside official premises.

According to the notice, the implementation of the order will be brought in effect from August 8.

The Rajasthan Government has also declared a fine Rs. 500 for the defaulters.

In the order it has been made clear that the use of smart phones has been banned to prevent employees from using social media sites and ensure uninterrupted work environment.

However, employees in the office have shown their resentment towards the circular.

Interestingly visitors will be also not allowed to carry a smart phone inside the office premises.

"In case any visitor has a smart phone, he or she needs to deposit it outside the office. In case they are found using a smart phone they will be also fined Rs 500 which will be deposited in the treasury," order states.

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White House National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster has said that North Korea possessing nuclear weapons capable of reaching the United States would be "intolerable" and could lead to a U.S. military response.

McMaster, in an interview to MSNBC, said, "If they had nuclear weapons that can threaten the United States, it's intolerable from the President's perspective. Of course, we have to provide all options to do that, and that includes a military option."

When asked how concerned the American people should be about the possibility of a war with North Korea to end its nuclear threat, McMaster said Pyongyang poses an extreme danger.

"I think it's impossible to overstate the danger associated with a rogue, brutal regime, I mean, who murdered his own brother with nerve agent in an airport. I mean, think about what he's done, in terms of his own brutal repression of not only members of his regime but his own family," he said.

He added that he expects U.S. allies to recognise North Korea is a global threat that "requires global action."

On the topic of sanctions against Russia, McMaster said that country "must play a much more responsible role in the -- if it's going to be a full-fledged, welcomed member of the international community."

"What the President has asked us to do is, and -- and the secretary of state is doing -- is to counter Russia's destabilizing behavior where it affects our interests, to take actions to deter any -- any-- escalation of conflicts or anything that could lead to a confrontation," McMaster said.

He added that Russia is undertaking a "sophisticated campaign of subversion and disinformation and propaganda," including its role tampering in the U.S. election, while also saying that Russia's destabilising activities in the United States and Europe and alliances with Syria and Iran do not mean Washington should stop trying to have a relationship with Moscow.

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The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) will join the "Tiranga Yatra" on August 8 to continue their demand of Gorkhaland and also to protest against the "colonial rule" of the West Bengal government.

The rally will coincide with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for the same to mark the 75th anniversary of the Quit India Movement.

"On the call from Honourable PM of India to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of Quit India Movement, the people of India will be participating in "Tiranga Yatra" across the nation from August 9 to 15. The rally seeks to pay homage to our forefathers, and the nation will reverberate with the slogans of "Vande Mataram" and "Bharat Mataki Jai", GJM chief Bimal Gurung said in a statement.

He added that the rally in Darjeeling will not only celebrate "our glorious freedom struggle" but protest "Bengal's colonial rule" and therefore, will be marked with slogans such as 'Bengal - Darjeeling Chodo'.

"Celebrating the momentous occasion in India's freedom struggle, it has been decided that Darjeeling hills, Terai and Dooars will also be participating in the "Tiranga Yatra". Just as how the British had enslaved us Indians and exploited and tortured us, the West Bengal government has also kept the people in Darjeeling hills, Terai and Dooars in a slave like condition. Despite 70 years since independence, the people living in our region have not been accorded any freedom, we are still living under a colonial rule," the statement added.

Therefore, he said, when they participate in the "Tiranga Yatra" they will not only be celebrating the freedom struggle, but also be protesting against the Bengal's colonial rule.

"Therefore, along with the slogans of "Vande Mataram" and "Bharat Mataki Jai" we will also be chanting "Bengal - Darjeeling Chodo," "We want Gorkhaland" and "Jai Gorkha, Jai Gorkhaland".Together we will march for our nation and our state - Gorkhaland," he said.

Meanwhile, GJM supporters on Saturday took out rallies in various parts of the Hills, demanding restoration of Internet services, which have been suspended since June 18, and an immediate withdrawal of police personnel from the region.

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As many as 12 militants were killed in incidents in two northern Afghan provinces, the police said on Sunday.

The police repelled an attack at a security checkpoints in Raghistan district of Badakhshan province that left six militants dead and three others injured on Saturday night, Xinhua news agency quoted a police official as saying.

No troops or civilians were hurt in the gunfight, the official said.

Six other militants were killed in Faryab province when the Afghan Air Force launched an airstrike in Rahmat Abad village of Daulat Abad district, army official Nastratullah Jamshidi told Xinhua.

"The operation codenamed 'Nawid-3' is ongoing in Daulat Abad, Shirin Tagab and Khawja Sabzposh districts," he said.

Fighting has escalated as the Taliban insurgency spreads from its traditional strongholds in southern and eastern Afghanistan to the once peaceful northern region.

The Taliban militants have yet to make comments.

--IANS

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Amid China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea and on border disputes with neighbours, India on Sunday said that the 10-nation Asean bloc plays a central role in the security of the Asia-Pacific region.

"From the Indian perspective, Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) occupies a central place in the security architecture of the Asia-Pacific region," Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh said in his speech at the 15th Asean-India Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Manila, Philippines.

"It is our view that precisely because Asean represents the cultural, commercial and physical cross-roads of the region, it has a unique ability to reflect and harmonise larger interests of the world beyond it," he said.

His comments came even as Indian and Chinese troops are in a tense standoff situation in the Sikkim sector of the international border since mid-June with China claiming that the Doklam area is its territory and seeking withdrawal of Indian troops. New Delhi, however, wants pullout of troops from both sides.

Singh's speech also came as India and the Asean which comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, are marking the 25th year of a dialogue partnership.

The Philippines holds the Chair of the Asean this year, the 50th year of the bloc's formation.

Singh said that the Philippines, as Chair, was ably stewarding the golden jubilee celebrations with the overall theme of "Partnering for Change, Engaging the World".

"In consonance, the theme of our silver jubilee celebrations (25th year of India-Asean dialogue partnership), which commenced earlier this year, aShared Values, Common Destiny', is an acknowledgement of our shared socio-cultural, economic and political destiny," he said.

"On our 25th anniversary, the flower of our relationship, which spans 30 dialogue mechanisms, including an annual summit and seven ministerial dialogues, is in full blossom, with the strategic, political, economic and cultural petals aglow."

Singh said that the silver jubilee of the dialogue partnership is being celebrated through a broad range of governmental, business, diaspora, cultural and civil society interactions in India as also in Asean nations, culminating in a special Asean India Commemorative Summit, which "would be an affirmation of our shared quest for prosperity, stability and security".

India is actively boosting its economic and strategic security ties with the Asean nations under the government's Act East Policy.
Union Minister Prakash Javadekar has said it will be good for the BJP to have party President Amit Shah in the Rajya Sabha.

It would be "good for the party when Amit Shah wins Rajya Sabha election", he said in an interview to the Zee Group, a statement said.

He also lauded newly-elected Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu, saying he will work taking everyone on board.

Javadekar noted that it is "very unfortunate" that many bills are held up in the upper house despite the mandate the Narendra Modi government has earned.

Rejecting the idea of a united opposition as "a myth", he said that the Congress is a one-family party while his Bharatiya Janata Party is a cadre-based party.

Condemning the stoning of Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi's car, he said that the BJP believes in defeating the Congress, but not in "stone pelting tactics".

About Karnataka Minister D.K. Shivakumar, Javadekar said the Congress has to answer the recoveries made from his properties after the Income Tax raids.

--IANS

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A Pakistani newspaper on Sunday hailed the decision to resume cross-LoC trade in Jammu and Kashmir and urged Islamabad to attend to Indian concerns over smuggling of drugs in the garb of barter.

"It is a rare bright spot in the otherwise dismal state of bilateral relations" between India and Pakistan, the Dawn said in an editorial.

India on July 21 shut down one of the routes in the trade across the Line of Control (LoC) dividing Jammu and Kashmir between the two countries. New Delhi has said this will be resumed by August 8, the daily noted.

The Dawn said while small-scale, barter-based trade across the LoC would not transform the economic prospects of the region, it was vital to keep the trade ties alive and help sustain a constituency for peace.

"The resumption of trade is also a welcome reminder of how effective intra-Kashmir confidence-building measures can be," it said.

"There is no sign yet that India and Pakistan are seeking to resume (their) dialogue, but the Kashmir trade ought to be protected.

"The Indian allegations of narcotics smuggling have highlighted a problem that ought to be addressed (by Islamabad)," it added.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
India on Sunday said that the 10-nation Asean bloc plays a central role in the security of the Asia-Pacific region.

"From the Indian perspective, Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) occupies a central place in the security architecture of the Asia-Pacific region," Minister of State for External Affairs V.K. Singh said in his speech at the 15th Asean-India Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Manila.

"It is our view that precisely because Asean represents the cultural, commercial and physical cross-roads of the region, it has a unique ability to reflect and harmonise larger interests of the world beyond it," he said.

This year is being commemorated as the 25th year of the dialogue partnership between India and Asean which comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The Philippines holds the Chair of the Asean this year, the 50th year of the bloc's formation.

Singh said that the Philippines, as Chair, was ably stewarding the golden jubilee celebrations with the overall theme of "Partnering for Change, Engaging the World".

"In consonance, the theme of our silver jubilee celebrations (25th year of India-Asean dialogue partnership), which commenced earlier this year, 'Shared Values, Common Destiny', is an acknowledgment of our shared socio-cultural, economic and political destiny," he said.

"On our 25th anniversary, the flower of our relationship, which spans 30 dialogue mechanisms, including an annual summit and seven ministerial dialogues, is in full blossom, with the strategic, political, economic and cultural petals aglow."

Singh said that the silver jubilee of the dialogue partnership is being celebrated through a broad range of governmental, business, diaspora, cultural and civil society interactions in India as also in Asean nations, and culminating in a special Asean India Commemorative Summit, "which would be an affirmation of our shared quest for prosperity, stability and security".

India has been actively boosting its economic and strategic security ties with the Asean nations under the government's Act East Policy.

--IANS

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The Brics summit in the Chinese city of Xiamen will be a good opportunity for member nations to narrow differences and expand cooperation, a leading expert on international affairs has said.

Waheguru Pal Singh Sidhu, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told Xinhua news agency on Saturday that the upcoming summit is important because it sets a stage to resolve differences among Brics nations and extend cooperation from economic issues to other areas.

The expert, who is also a visiting professor at the Centre for Global Affairs at the New York University, made the comments nearly a month before the ninth annual Brics summit from September 3-5.

The Brics summit brings together Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, along with participants from across the globe.

Sidhu expected member states to sustain the momentum on the Brics' New Development Bank (NDB), as well as other economic arrangements such as infrastructure investment.

The NDB was set up with an initial authorised capital of $100 billion during the sixth Brics summit in Brazil in 2014. It officially opened in Shanghai in 2015.

According to the expert, the NDB is very crucial for Brics countries in both geopolitical and financial dimensions.

"Brics countries like China and India are important players in the international financial institutions, but they are not being able to get the right amount of weightage that they deserve," said Sidhu.

He said reforms in the existing structure such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have been very slow, which lead to the creation of new and alternative structures, including the NDB.

In terms of finance, the bank plays a critical role in generating new sources of funding for projects in infrastructure and sustainable development, "not only in Brics countries, but other nations as well".

The professor called for more cooperation in climate change, cyber security, trade, energy and counter-terrorism issues.

He said that once the bilateral differences between Brics countries are resolved, it could really "open up the opportunity to take Brics to a new level to make it a very important multilateral player".

--IANS

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Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has revealed that he waits every year during Rakhi for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's wishes.

"Every year I wait for an important wish. Didi's Rakhi wishes on Raksha Bandhan day. I am looking forward to that call this year too," Shah Rukh said during a promotional of his latest flick "Jab Harry Met Sejal".

The 51-year-old superstar was accompanied by Anushka Sharma and director Imtiaz Ali.

"I did not have a chance to talk to her since I arrived in Kolkata. I will call her by tomorrow morning."

Shah Rukh suffered an injury before heading to Kolkata and tweeted about it. He said, "Be there in 10 mins. Apologies to keep u waiting had to get a bit of dressing done after a lil hurt. So had to c a doc."

"I am fine now," Shah Rukh later told media.

"It was a love hit as I say it. Some fans during a promotional wanted to shower love and accidentally I got hit on the back and since it was raining it became bad and I had to dress it," Shah Rukh added.

--IANS

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Occasional aberrations notwithstanding, the Indian Constitution had matured over the years with frictions between the Centre and the states declining, said Vice-President-elect M. Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday.

"In spite of occasional aberrations in the working of the Constitution, the unitary-federal mechanism has matured over the years, with frictions between the Centre and the states steadily declining," he said at a felicitation ceremony here.

The decline in frictions was happening with consolidation and manifestation of the spirit of cooperative federalism, he reiterated at the event organised by Bengaluru citizens.

Naidu, 68, represented Karnataka as a lawmaker in the Rajya Sabha for three consecutive terms till May 2016.

Noting that the executive was becoming more sensitive to the need of empowering citizens to fulfill aspirations of a young India, Naidu, who will be sworn-in on August 11 said competition among the states was more evident.

"Rajya Sabha is the federal chamber of Parliament, with a mandate to protect the interests of the states. I deem it an honour to preside over it as its Chairman. I feel happy that I am the second person after B.D. Jatti to get such an opportunity, with deep connections with the soil of Karnataka," he said.

Karnataka-born Jatti was the fifth Vice-President from 1974 to 1979. He was also Acting President from February 11 to July 25, 1977.

As a believer in equal partnership of the states and the union in the country's progress, Naidu said he visited all the states to know their problems in implementing the various welfare schemes when he was the Rural Development Minister in the Vajpayee government (1999-2004) and continued over the last three years as a Union Minister.

According to Naidu, the country's name stood for "Integrated, National, Development, Impacting, All citizens equally".

"India belongs to all of its citizens irrespective of their place of birth, caste, creed, religion and status," he said.

Lauding the Indian polity, Naidu said its strength and majesty was in full play during the last two weeks when two "humble sons of the country" were chosen to the two highest constitutional posts of President and Vice President.

"Soon after I was announced as the Vice Presidential candidate, my first thought was to visit Karnataka after my election. I owe a lot to the people of Karnataka for choosing me as one of their representatives for 18 long years. I am here to thank its people for taking me warmly in their lap for such a long time," said Naidu, who hails from the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh.

Union Ministers H.N. Ananth Kumar and D. V. Sadananda Gowda, former Chief Justice of India M. N. Venkatakachaliah and BJP's state unit president B.S. Yeduyurappa were present on the occasion.

--IANS

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Hiroshima, the city that suffered US atomic bombing in 1945 during World War II, commemorated on Sunday the 72th anniversary of the tragedy, with its mayor calling for peace and a world free of nuclear weapons.

Over 50,000 people, including survivors of the attack, their descendants, peace activists and representatives from about 80 countries, attended the ceremony at the Peace Memorial Park, Xinhua news agency reported.

Mayor Kazumi Matsui in a peace declaration to the audience mentioned the loss of lives and culture and the sufferings caused by the bombing.

He urged the Japanese government to "do all in its power" to facilitate a nuclear weapon-free world.

The mayor urged the government to give more support to the victims of the attack and "many others who also suffered mentally and physically from the effects of radiation".

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in a speech at the ceremony made no mention of the historical background for the bombings or the country's war against its neighbours.

"By firmly maintaining our three non-nuclear principles (not producing, possessing or allowing nuclear weapons on Japanese territory) and continuing to appeal to both nuclear and non-nuclear states, Japan is determined to lead the international community," he said.

While Abe spoke, shouts of protest rang out from around the park, against his long-held ambition of revising the pacifist Constitution and other policies that could bring Japan to war.

Hundreds of protesters gathered around the park, holding banners and shouting slogans such as "Oppose war and Constitution revision" and "Abe shall step down".

"I'm against Abe attending this ceremony, for his administration only protects the interests of some people and he tries to revise the pacifist Constitution and could drag Japan into war," said Takehiko Matsumoto, a protester from Sendai.

To accelerate Japan's surrender in the WWII, the US dropped two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki respectively on August 6 and August 9 in 1945.

Japan surrendered to the Allied Forces on August 15, bringing an end to WWII.

--IANS

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Prince Harry has flown his rumoured girlfriend and actress Meghan Markle to Africa to celebrate her birthday amid speculation that he is planning to propose her.

They looked casual as they strolled across the runway to get into the jet, reports dailymail.co.uk.

According to a source to The Sun, Harry was planning the holiday for a long time.

"Who knows what will happen when they're watching a sensational African sunset together? Maybe he'll get down on one knee. Harry's done a lot of conservation work in Africa with endangered elephants and black rhinos and he'll show them to the woman he wants to marry," added the source.

After wrapping filming for "Suits", which is aired in India on Comedy Central, Markle flew to London, where the pair then went to Africa.

--IANS

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Actress Hilary Duff has lashed out at critics and said she does have flaws in her body but she is still proud of her body.

Duff was trolled by people on her bikini body during a Hawaii holiday.

She took to Instagram on Friday to share a photograph of herself in swimsuit carrying her five-year-old son Luca, reports aceshowbiz.com.

"I am posting this on behalf of young girls, women and mothers of all ages. I'm enjoying a vacation with my son after a long season of shooting and being away from him for weeks. Since websites and magazines love to share 'celeb flaws' -- well I have them," Duff wrote alongside the image which shows her backside.

"My body has given me the greatest gift of my life: Luca, five years ago. I'm turning 30 in September and my body is healthy and gets me where I need to go.

"Ladies, lets be proud of what we've got and stop wasting precious time in the day wishing we were different, better and un-flawed. You guys (you know who you are!) already know how to ruin a good time, and now you are body shamers as well," she added.

--IANS

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Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Sunday condemned a stalking incident allegedly involving Haryana BJP President Subhash Barala's son in Chandigarh and demanded punishment for the guilty.

"Condemn the attempt to kidnap and outrage the modesty of a young lady in Chandigarh. BJP government must punish the guilty; not collude with culprits and mindset they represent," he said in a tweet.

On Saturday, Chandigarh Police said Vikas Barala, the son of Haryana Bharatiya Janata Party chief Subhash Barala, and his accomplice had been arrested on charge of stalking a senior IAS officer's daughter.

Condemn attempt to kidnap&outrage modesty of young lady in Chdgrh.BJPGovt mst punish the guilty;not colludeW/culprits&mindset they represent  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) August 6, 2017

The victim later shared her traumatic experience in a Facebook post.

Subhash Barala is a state legislator from Tohana seat.

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Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Sunday that Moscow "is ready to normalise its dialogue" with Washington if Washington abandons its "confrontational approach" with Moscow.

Lavrov met with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN ministers' meetings in the Philippine capital, Xinhua reported.

Both sides discussed Russia's countermeasures to US sanctions.

"Naturally, such actions (the U.S. sanctions), including the illegal seizure of our diplomatic property since December last year, could not be left unanswered," Lavrov said in a statement issued through the TASS Russian News Agency.

"This will be in this way from now on. At the same time, we are ready to normalize the dialogue, if Washington gives up the confrontational line," he added.

In the same statement, Lavrov said he "had a lengthy meeting with Rex Tillerson."

"He (Tillerson) wanted to know, first of all, and he started with this, the details of those decisions, which we had to take in response to the law on anti-Russian sanctions adopted in the U.S. Congress. We gave these explanations," Lavrov said.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Enforcement Directorate on Sunday arrested Muhammad Aslam Wani, an aide to senior separatist leader Shabir Shah, on charges of funding terrorist activities in the Kashmir Valley.

"He is being flown to Delhi," an informed source said.

Shah himself was arrested last month in Srinagar and shifted to New Delhi in connection with a terror funding hawala racket being probed by the Enforcement Directorate.

The Enforcement Directorate and the National Investigation Agency have arrested many Kashmiri separatist leaders in the past one month.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A collection of horrific and emotional tales of the Partition of India with over 4,300 witness interviews is set to go public for the first time this week, it was announced on Sunday.

A portion of the complete oral history interviews will be released online on August 10 from Stanford University Library's Digital Repository, US-based Guneeta Singh Bhalla, founder of The 1947 Partition Archive, told IANS.

Bhalla said the remaining collection, deemed too delicate or sensitive for open accessibility, would be available to researchers and interested parties only by visiting select university libraries in collaboration with the project, including Ashoka University, University of Delhi and Guru Nanak Dev University in India; and Lahore University of Management Sciences and Habib University in Pakistan.

The archive contains more than 4,300 oral history interviews and over 30,000 digital documents and photographs, collected from 12 countries in 22 languages, making it the largest oral history archive on any topic in South Asia, said the founder of The 1947 Partition Archive.

It is among one of the largest video based oral history archives in the world. The end goal is to record at least 10,000 oral history interviews from surviving witnesses.

"We are excited to be releasing this work into the public domain so that it is accessible to all, giving each of us an opportunity to discover our rich history for ourselves," Bhalla, 37, was quoted in an official statement as saying.

Stanford University librarian Michael Keller said the project is tremendously important as part of the historical record and to make readily available for deeper discovery and research.

The material is of particular interest to Stanford as research efforts are underway at the Center for South Asia and the Handa Centre for Human Rights and International Justice.

According to Bhalla, this archive is the world's first and the largest attempt at documenting the people's history and memorialising partition.

A pilot adoption of the collection into the three Indian university libraries is being supported by Tata Trusts.

"The 1947 Partition Archives of oral histories is of particular interest in this 70th year of India's Independence as time erases direct testimonies, so vital in firsthand authenticity," Tata Trusts' arts and culture head Deepika Sorabjee said.

Historian Priya Satia of Stanford University said: "It's important because for the last 70 years we have been telling the story of Partition through the lens of high-political negotiations among figures like Jinnah, Gandhi, Nehru, Mountbatten."

"But none of these political elites foresaw the shape that the Partition would take. We can only understand it by looking at the stories of the people who gave it that shape," Satia added.

--IANS

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Three persons died after inhaling toxic gases while cleaning a sewer line here on Sunday afternoon, police said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Romil Baaniya said the incident occurred in Lajpat Nagar area of south Delhi.

The Delhi government has ordered an inquiry into the incident.

Police identified the deceased as Joginder, 32 and Annu, 28, both residents of Khichdipur area, while the third who seemed to be in his mid-20s is yet to be identified.

Baaniya said that a police team reached the spot after being informed of the incident and took the three to All India Institute of Medical Sciences where they were declared dead.

Delhi Water Minister Rajendra Gautam tweeted: "I am very sad to know that 3 workers are expired during cleaning of sewer at Lajpat Nagar I have set up an inquiry."

He also said that the workers were neither Delhi Jal Board employees nor authorised by it.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
More than six months into Donald Trump's young presidency, optimism among his core supporters and American voters at large is starting to fade, a new poll has revealed.

After Trump's surprise victory in November, six in 10 American voters said they were mostly optimistic about his presidency. But that number slipped to 52 per cent in March and 43 per cent currently, CNN quoted the Quinnipiac University poll as saying on Saturday.

A majority of registered voters (53 per cent) now say they are mostly pessimistic about the next few years of Trump's time in office.

Optimism for the Trump presidency among Republican voters dropped from a virtually unanimous 96 per cent in January and March down to 84 per cent now, with one in six Republicans now saying they are mainly pessimistic about his tenure, the poll showed.

In another poll conducted by Gallup, whites without a college degree have also shown a slight but steady decline, CNN reported.

Trump started at 62 per cent approval with this key group when he took office in January, but has since slipped from 56 per cent in May to 54 per cent in June and to 53 per cent in July.

Still, Republicans have mostly stayed on board in Gallup's approval ratings over the last six months, which means Trump's low approvals are actually largely driven by Democrats and independents.

--IANS

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What happens when a national park becomes so popular that the crush of visitors makes each visit less enjoyable? During the one month of June, 2017, Zion National Park saw over half a million visitors, and 70,000 during the 2016 Memorial Day weekend. In 2007, the park received 2,679,181 visitors, that increased to 4,317,028 in 2016.

On popular days, the line of vehicles approaching the South Entrance Station reaches back through the town of Springdale, snarling traffic for town residents and visitors alike. The parking lot for the Visitor Center and shuttle departures is often full. Cars line the east road so people can walk back to the main canyon road to catch a shuttle. Visitors wait in line to get on the shuttles. Hikers encounter long lines of people using popular trailheads.

The National Park Service is searching for a way to limit park visitors, putting together a new Visitor Use Management Plan. This plan has three alternatives including Alternative A which is the typical take no action where everything would stay as it is.

Alternative B would use a reservation system. Visitors would need to pay for a reservation ahead of time covering the day or days they want to visit. Only a certain number of reservations would be permitted on each day.

This would shorten the lines at the entrance station since the entrance fee would already be paid. Visitors would ride the shuttle and hike the trails with fewer other visitors.

Alternative C would require reservations for each place or trailhead in the main canyon. A visitor would select the places they want to visit and get daily reservations for those spots. Popular spots like the Narrow, Emerald Pools or the Grotto (the trailhead for Angels Landing) would only receive a certain number of visitors or hikers each day. Although the plan does not specify, apparently people would be allowed to get off the shuttle at a stop only if they could show reservations for that stop on that day.

Another bottleneck is always the large tunnel. When it was built in 1930, vehicles were much smaller. Now, large vehicles, such as RVs and delivery trucks, can only travel down the center of this tunnel. This necessitates one-way traffic during most of the day and long lines of vehicles form at each end waiting for their turn to go through the tunnel.

Alternative B would restrict any large vehicle, RV or delivery truck, to traverse the tunnel only at certain times of the day, probably early morning and evening. During the rest of the day, regular vehicles would traverse the tunnel using both lanes with no restrictions. An RV approaching the park from the East Side would need to travel south through Kanab, west to Hurricane, then back north and east to the South Park Entrance. A 30-mile trip to the visitors center through the tunnel, would become a trip of about 100-miles looping around to the South Entrance. Alternative C would eliminate large vehicles from the tunnel at all times.

Thousands of comments have been received about these alternatives. Many comments state something needs to be done to reduce the number of visitors. Some interesting comments worry about a black market developing, where people buy reservations and then offer them at higher prices. Some say with a reservation system, tour buses should be eliminated or very restricted since commercial companies would need to receive enough reservations to fill their buses. Others say Utah residents and then U.S. residents should receive a higher priority to get reservations, although the NPS states these priorities will not happen. A few state visitors should be required to take an online course before getting reservations, learning about the park and visitor etiquette.

Under these alternatives, future visits to Zion would require careful planning months in advance. The lucky ones receiving reservations would have a more enjoyable national park experience, sharing the park with fewer people. The unlucky ones would simply go elsewhere.
Britain is willing to pay up to 40 billion euros ($47.1 billion) to the European Union to settle the Brexit divorce bill, a media report said.

According to a report in the Telegraph, the UK will only agree to pay the sum if the EU considers it as part of the deal for future trading arrangements.

The offer marks the first time Britain has put a figure on its Brexit bill and is the only way to break the current deadlock in negotiations, senior Whitehall officials said.

Three sources in Whitehall and the government with knowledge of the UK's negotiating strategy confirmed the figure to the Telegraph, dismissing previous reports that Prime Minister Theresa May would agree to a 50 billion-euro bill as "too high".

"We know (the EU's) position is 60 billion euros, but the actual bottom line is 50 billion euros. Ours is closer to 30 billion euros but the actual landing zone is 40 billion euros, even if the public and politicians are not all there yet," the daily quoted one senior Whitehall source as saying.

Another Whitehall source told the daily that Britain's offer was "30 billion euros to 40 billion euros" while a third source said May was prepared to pay "north of 30 billion euros".

Britain has dismissed an ultimatum by the EU to pay a "divorce bill" of around 60 billion euros before sitting at the negotiating table.

In July, British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson criticised the EU over Brussels' demand, saying, "The sums I have seen that they propose to demand from this country appear to be extortionate."

The UK is currently due to leave the EU at the end of March 2019 after nearly 52 per cent of Britons in an referendum in June last year opted to leave the bloc. The country formally triggered the Brexit process on March 29 and negotiations officially began on June 19.

During their second round of talks held in July, the EU and UK Brexit teams failed to reach an agreement on 22 of the 44 issues under negotiation.

The two sides still had "fundamental" differences over Britain's exit bill and over the rights of EU citizens living in the UK, EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said after the second round of negotiations.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The UN Security Council has passed a resolution imposing new sanctions on North Korea for its continued intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) testing and violations of UN resolutions, the media reported.

US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley, speaking at the Security Council meeting where the vote took place on Saturday, said: "Monday (July 31), we said that the time for talking was over and that it was time for action. Today you're going to see the action.

"It's going to hit hard but it's going to make a strong point to North Korea that all this ICBM and this nuclear irresponsibility has to stop," CNN quoted Haley as saying.

With 15 votes in favour, Resolution 2371 was passed unanimously.

The resolution targets North Korea's primary exports, including coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore, seafood and other revenue streams, such as banks and joint ventures with foreign companies.

The sanctions will slash North Korea's annual export revenue of $3 billion by more than a third, according to a statement from Haley's office.

The resolution represents "the strongest sanctions ever imposed in response to a ballistic missile test", the statement said.

Pyongyang tested two ICBMs in July, claiming it now had the ability to hit the US.

Haley praised the unanimous vote on the resolution, saying that the UN "spoke with one voice".

"To have China stand with us, along with Japan and (South Korea) and the rest of the international community telling North Korea to do this, it's pretty impactful," the UN ambassador told CNN in an interview after the vote.

"This was a strong day in the UN, it was a strong day for the United States and it was a strong day for the international community. It was not a good day for North Korea."

In response, China's ambassador, Liu Jieyi, said the resolution showed that the world was "united in its position regarding the nuclear position on the Korean peninsula", the BBC reported.

UK ambassador Matthew Rycroft said: "North Korea bears full responsibility for the measures we have enacted today.

"It does not have to be this way. North Korea should forgo the path of provocation, forgo the path of further escalation."

A resolution needs nine votes in favour, and no vetoes by the US, China, Russia, France or Britain, to be adopted.

The measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006.

--IANS

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The market zoomed past the Nifty 10,000 mark despite increasingly disturbing macro data and the index ended Friday above that level, despite some unloading from tired bulls. Valuations are optimistic to say the least, especially in the face of an open-ended disruption like the goods and services tax (GST) implementation. Globally, there are storm clouds hovering over the US, with President Donald Trump looking increasingly likely to be called out for Russia-gate.
Members of Parliament (MP) are each getting Rs 15,000 as telephone allowance. With 245 MPs in the Rajya Sabha and 545 in the Lok Sabha, the amount comes to Rs 1,18,50,000.
The textile industry in Surat went on strike as the goods and services tax (GST) was implemented. So did the fireworks and match industry in Sivakasi. Both have strong connects to the informal economy and both will lack offsets for the unorganised elements in their respective value chains. The tax incidence for these will rise with .
An application has been moved in the Supreme Court seeking early hearing of the politically- sensitive Rs 64 crore Bofors payoff case after a fresh media report suggesting a financial quid pro quo for the Rs 1,437 crore Howitzer gun deal in 1986.

The plea by BJP leader and advocate Ajay Agrawal has also alleged apparent collusiveness by CBI with the accused persons in the Bofors scam, saying the agency did not challenge the Delhi High Court's May 31, 2005, judgement quashing all charges against the Europe-based Hinduja brothers.

He has challenged the judgement in the apex court which had on October 18, 2005, admitted his petition that was filed after the CBI failed to approach the top court with the appeal within the 90-day deadline after the High Court verdict.

In the application, the lawyer-turned-politician said he had filed the appeal in public interest because the CBI did not come forward and it was reported that the Law Ministry then had not given permission to the agency, despite the fact that the High Court order was illegal.

To substantiate the allegation of collusiveness between the CBI and the accused persons, Agrawal in his application has narrated the sequence of events that led to the defreezing of the London bank account of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, alleged middleman in the deal, in 2006, for which the then Additional Solicitor General B Dutta had visited England.

He said such a step was undertaken despite the fact that the then UPA government and the CBI were aware that his appeal has been admitted by the apex court.

Agrawal, who had contested the Rai Bareli Lok Sabha elections in 2014 against Congress President Sonia Gandhi, also claimed that the CBI did not bother to inform the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, which was seized of the Quattrocchi matter, to inform about its move to defreeze the accounts.

He said that on August 3, he had written a letter to the CBI seeking re-investigation of the entire and the trail of alleged bribe money deposited in Quattrocchi's London bank account and the subsequent developments after the defreezing of the account on January 16, 2006.

Fresh developments assume significance in the wake of a demand in Parliament by ruling BJP MPs for reopening of the probe into the Bofors kickback scandal after the media reports quoting Swedish chief investigator Sten Lindstrom's suggested payment of alleged bribery at the top level.

After the developments in Parliament, Agrawal also wrote a letter to the Enforcement Directorate seeking an investigation into the trail of the kickback money under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

In the July 28 letter to the ED, he claimed that the alleged crimes were committed continuously till 2006 when two London accounts held by Quattrochi, who has been accused as one of the middlemen in the deal, were de-freezed.

The BJP leader said the CBI should file an affidavit about the facts and course of an investigation into the case, as during the brief hearing on December 1, 2016, the agency had told the apex court that the authorities had not permitted it to file an appeal against the May 31, 2005, verdict.

He said he would try to convince the apex court through his petition that the "High Court had quashed the charges against the accused persons on technical grounds and the order was totally perverse which is liable to be set aside."



Justice R S Sodhi, since retired, of the Delhi High Court had on May 31, 2005, quashed all charges against the Hinduja brothers -- Srichand, Gopichand and Prakashchand -- and the Bofors company and castigated the CBI for its handling of the case saying it had cost the exchequer about Rs 250 crore.

Before the 2005 verdict, another judge of the Delhi High Court, Justice J D Kapoor (since retired) on February 4, 2004, had exonerated late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in the case and directed framing of charge of forgery under Section 465 of the IPC against the Bofors company.

The matter was last listed on February 28 this year when it was adjourned.

The apex court had on October 18, 2005, allowed Agrawal to file an appeal agaDecemberh court verdict in the absence of any appeal by CBI.

The December 1, 2016, hearing had taken place after a gap of almost six years since August 12, 2010.

The Rs 1,437 crore deal between India and the Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors for the supply of 400 155mm Howitzer guns for Indian Army was entered on March 24, 1986.

The Swedish Radio on April 16, 1987, had claimed that the company had paid bribes to top Indian politicians and defence personnel.

The CBI on January 22, 1990, had registered the FIR for the alleged offence of criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery under the IPC and other sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act against Martin Ardbo, the then President of AB Bofors, alleged middleman Win Chadda and Hinduja brothers.

It had alleged that certain public servants and private persons in India and abroad had entered into a criminal conspiracy between 1982 and 1987 in pursuance of which the offences of bribery, corruption, cheating and forgery were committed to the extent of Rs 64 crore in the contracts for the supply of Bofors guns.

The first charge sheet in the case was filed on October 22, 1999, against Chadda, Quattrocchi, then Defence Secretary S K Bhatnagar, Ardbo and the Bofors company. A supplementary charge sheet against Hinduja brothers was filed on October 9, 2000.

A special CBI court in Delhi On March 4, 2011, had discharged Quattrocchi from the case saying the country cannot afford to spend hard-earned money on his extradition which has already cost Rs 250 crore.

Quattrocchi, who had fled from here on July 29-30, 1993, has never appeared before any court in India to face prosecution. He passed away on July 13, 2013. The other accused persons who have died are Bhatnagar, Chadda and Ardbo.
A "humbled" on Saturday expressed gratitude towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the MPs who voted for him, and promised to uphold the Constitution and the dignity of the upper house of Parliament.

NDA nominee Naidu was on Saturday elected as India's next vice-president, receiving an overwhelming two-third of votes against opposition candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi.

Thanking the prime minister and all party leaders for their support, Naidu said, "I will seek to utilise the vice presidential institution to strengthen the hands of the president and uphold the dignity of the upper house."



The vice-president is also the chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

"It's an honour for me to become vice-president from a family of an ordinary farmer. This speaks for the beauty & strength of our democracy," he added.

Naidu got 516 votes out of total 771 votes cast, while Gandhi could manage 244 votes. Of the total 771 votes polled, 11 were found to be invalid.

"I promise to uphold the Constitution and the high standards set by my esteemed predecessors," he said in series of tweets.
Ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls, BJP chief Amit Shah on Sunday held a meeting with the party leaders in Gujarat, including Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, at his residence here.

State BJP president Jitubhai Vaghani, party's state in-charge Bhupendra Yadav and Minister of State for Home Pradeepsinh Jadeja and other leaders met Shah in the morning for the of August 8, party sources said.

According to the state party unit, Shah, who arrived here late last night, would stay here till the completion of the Rajya Sabha polls, in which, he is one of the four contestants from the state.

The BJP has maintained that Shah is in the city to celebrate Raksha Bandhan and has no official engagements.

However, party sources said the party chief discussed various issues regarding the polls with the leaders in today's meeting.

They added that it is expected that similar rounds of meetings would continue tomorrow.

For the three Rajya seats falling vacant in Gujarat, the BJP has fielded Shah, Union minister and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Smriti Irani and former Congress MLA Balwantsinh Rajput, who had joined the saffron party a week ago.

Of the total 11 Rajya Sabha members from Gujarat, the term of three - Smriti Irani and Dilipbhai Pandya (both BJP), and Congress' Ahmed Patel - is ending on August 18.

Patel has been re-nominated as the party's candidate for the August 8 Rajya Sabha election.

The polls have become crucial for both the parties as new equations are emerging every day after the dramatic exit of Gujarat Congress strongman Shankersinh Vaghela from the party followed by the resignation of six of the party's MLAs.

With this, the Congress tally has reduced to 51 in the 182-seat Gujarat Assembly.

While the Congress claimed to have the support of 44 Congress MLAs, who were shifted to Bengaluru a week ago, seven others, who are still here, have not opened their cards yet.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today said an additional 1,000 villages in the state will get round-the-clock electricity supply from August 15.

Line losses in the state have reduced from 30 to 25 percent as a result of the initiatives being taken by the government under the 'mhara gaon jagmag gaon' (Our village, illuminated village) scheme to make the power discoms in the state profitable and to provide adequate electricity to the people, he said in an official release.

"The line losses are expected to further drop to 20 per cent in the next two years. This would make possible 24-hour power supply in the entire state.

"While more than 500 villages are presently being provided with 24-hour power supply, 1,000 more villages, along with Ambala and Gurgaon districts would be able to avail this facility from August 15," he said.

He further added that his government is considering to establish airports within a 250 km radius of the national capital and he will hold a meeting in this regard with officials of the state civil aviation department tomorrow.

The chief minister said he would visit every district in the state over a period of two days review development works and address people's grievances.

During a 'janata darbar' here, Khattar asked the Haryana Police department to register an FIR on receipt of complaint in any matter.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As many as 12 public sector including PNB, Bank of India and Indian Bank have lined up plans for raising funds from markets to shore up their capital base to meet global risk norm, Basel III.

About 6-7 lenders including Andhra Bank expect to close their capital raising plan by the end of the current fiscal, sources said.

The remaining would raise funds through follow on public offer (FPO) or Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) from the market during course of the next fiscal, they added.

Lenders including Allahabad Bank, Andhra Bank, Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Dena Bank, IDBI Bank, Indian Bank and Punjab National Bank (PNB) have already got permission from the government to raise capital from the market through QIP or FPO or preferential allotment.

Similarly, Syndicate Bank, UCO Bank, United Bank of India, Vijaya Bank also got approval from the government and some of them have already started the process.

For example, Allahabad Bank has already obtained shareholders' nod in order to raise equity capital aggregating up to Rs 2,000 crore through different modes like QIP, FPO or a rights issue.

Board of PNB has given its approval for raising equity capital to the tune of Rs 3,000 crore through FPO, QIP or rights issue.

At the same time, Dena Bank also obtained shareholders' nod to offer equity shares aggregating up to Rs 1,800 crore to QIP at such issue prices including premium with face value of Rs 10 each.

As per the Indradhanush roadmap, public sector need to raise Rs 1.10 lakh crore from markets, including follow-on public offer, to meet Basel III requirements, which kick in from March 2019.

This will be over and above the Rs 70,000 crore that will get as capital support from the government. Of this, the government has already infused Rs 50,000 crore in the past two fiscals and the remaining will be pumped in by the end of 2018-19.

In June, SBI raised Rs 15,000 crore by selling 52.2 crore shares through QIP, the largest share sale in the secondary market by a bank.

SBI said the total proceeds of the issue will be used to augment its capital adequacy ratio and for general corporate purposes.

(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.)
ELKO  An achievement 50 years in the making was celebrated at El Aero last week with the presentation of the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award to Ron Cassinelli.

In front of family and colleagues, Cassinelli received the honor, called the most prestigious award the FAA issues to certified pilots, from Federal Aviation Administration Safety Team Program Manager Larry Cheek and Susan McGinnis, president of El Aero.

The Master Pilot Award recognizes a pilot who has 50 years or more of civil and military flying experience, calculated from the date of his first solo flight, according to the FAA.

To earn the award, pilots must also meet several requirements, including taking an exam, having a clean flying record, and being the master of the aircraft where the successful outcome is never in doubt, Cheek said.

Cassinelli became interested in flying after he watched planes at the Reno Airport and attended the first Reno Air Races.

Already fascinated with flight from a young age, Cassinelli pursued aviation science classes at Sparks High School when he became a junior.

I was in heaven, Cassinelli said.

After becoming the top student in the now-defunct program, Cassinelli earned the Aviation Science Pro-Solo Scholarship.

A little more than two months after beginning his flight training, Cassinelli soloed his first plane on Aug. 7, 1966, at the age of 17. He earned his license in 1974.

Cassinelli joined the U.S. Army after graduation and trained as an air traffic controller. He completed one tour in the Vietnam War, and after being discharged, was stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia, and resumed his flight training.

Back in Reno, Cassinelli became a certified flight instructor for commercial and instrument planes. He later worked for Lockheed and a farming company in California, before moving to Elko 22 years ago.

At El Aero, Cassinelli was hired as the chief pilot and became the director of operations.

McGinnis said she was happy to see Cassinelli receive the award and was proud of his achievement.

Were all very grateful to Ron flying for us at El Aero, McGinnis said.

Cheek hands out four to five Wright Brothers awards each year and said it was a privilege to present the award to Cassinelli, noting that his achievement can be attributed in part to youth programs that helped young people get their start in aviation.

This is the second pilot to receive the award in Elko, said Cheek, who presented another Wright Brothers Masters Pilot Award at El Aero last year to Chief Pilot John M. Kelly.
At least four terrorists were killed today during a raid carried out by security forces in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province.

A senior security official said the raids were part of the Raad ul Fasaad operation being carried out in the country against foreign and local terrorists and networks.

In Karachi, three terrorists were arrested in another operation.

The official said the terrorists had retaliated in the Kohlu and Dera Bugti areas and were killed in the firing while one soldier was wounded.

"Their network has been destroyed and arms, ammunition and communication equipment seized," he said.

The Balochistan province for years has been the target of separatists and militants who have carried out sectarian attacks and also targeted the police and security forces and installations in parts of the province.

The security forces also dismantled a terrorist network in Zhob of Balochistan to thwart a plan to target independence day celebrations.

In Karachi, three activists of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan were arrested and confessed to being involved in the killings of policemen in the city.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
About 400 senior executives of Cognizant have accepted the company's voluntary separation package (VSP), a move that the US-based company said will help it save about $60 million annually.

In May, the company had initiated a voluntary separation programme, offering up to nine months of salary as part of it to some of its top-level executives in the US and India.

Cognizant has a significant chunk of its total 256,000-strong workforce in India and it is estimated that of the 400 people who opted for the separation, a large number could be from India.

However, the company did not disclose the number of Indian executives who have accepted the offer.

"Of the $39 million of realignment charges, $35 million was for the roughly 400 associates who accepted our VSP. We expect approximately $60 million of annualised savings as a result of the VSP," Cognizant CFO Karen McLoughlin said at a recent investor call.

She added that Cognizant expects to incur additional cost related to advisory fees, severance, lease termination, and facility consolidation costs in the remaining part of 2017.

McLoughlin said the company has also made "good headway" in the June quarter, driving utilisation rates higher by "slowing the pace of our hiring and improving resource alignment" to its re-skilling and multi-skilling programmes.

She explained that these "adjustments" will help improve the company's profitability.

Cognizant's overall headcount decreased by about 4,400 people at the end of June from March 2017 quarter, even though it had hired 10,800 people (gross) during the June quarter.

"Our attrition level was higher than normal given reductions resulting from performance evaluations and the voluntary separation programme," McLoughlin said.

She added that while the company will carefully manage headcount, it will continue to hire and invest in critical skills needed to grow Cognizant's digital business.

The annualised attrition rate for Cognizant stood at 23.6 per cent, including BPO and trainees, during the June quarter from 17.1 per cent in the year-ago period.

"... We expect attrition to decline in the coming months," she said.

The over $13 billion-Cognizant has also raised the lower end of its revenue outlook for the year and now expects its topline to grow 9-10 per cent, instead of 8-10 per cent growth expected earlier.

This confidence, it said, is based on the "strong first- half results" that were driven by robust growth in verticals like healthcare and digital services.

Cognizant President Rajeev Mehta said the company is investing "tens of millions of dollars" this year to continuously deepen and broaden skills in areas like analytics, artificial intelligence, data science, and digital security.
Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan and his wife Kiran Rao have contracted swine flu, and both of them are being treated at their residence here, sources said.

The 52-year-old actor and Kiran were scheduled to attend an event of their NGO Paani Foundation today in Pune.

"Today, during the video conferencing of Paani foundation he confirmed that he has got it (swine flu). He is getting treated at home," sources close to the actor told PTI.

At the event, Aamir, 52, said he found out that he has swine flu after blood tests and now won't be attending any events for at least a week.

"As a result of the infection they (Aamir and Kiran) were not able to be present for the most important day of Paani Foundation, the annual prize distribution," the source added.

Instead of Aamir, Shah Rukh Khan attended the event.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan and his wife Kiran Rao have contracted swine flu, and both of them are being treated at their residence in Mumbai.

The actor, through video-conferencing during the 'Satyamev Jayate Water Cup 2017' event organised this evening in Pune by his NGO Paani Foundation, revealed that he has been diagnosed with swine flu.

The 52-year-old actor was scheduled to attend the event, but had to skip it due to the infection.

"We really wanted to attend the ceremony, but recently, after a test, I was diagnosed with H1N1, that is swine flu...I have been asked to take rest and cannot go and attend any public function so I am skipping the event so that others do not contract it," Aamir told the audience.

His wife Kiran Rao, co founder of Paani Foundation, was seen sitting next to him during his video address.

A source close to the actor told PTI, "Today, during the video conferencing of Paani Foundation he confirmed that he has got it (swine flu). He is getting treated at home".

"Kiran contracted it from Aamir. As a result of the infection, they (Aamir and Kiran) were not able to remain present for the most important day of Paani Foundation- the annual prize distribution," the source said.

Superstar Shahrukh Khan attended the event on Aamir's behalf.

Talking about it, Aamir said, "Since today is friendship day, I requested my friend Shahrukh to attend the function on my behalf and he readily accepted".

The 'Lagaan' actor congratulated all the villages, who took part in 'Satyamev Jayate Water Cup 2017'.

Maharashtra Chief minister Devendra Fadanvis, Reliance Foundation founder Neeta Ambani, industrialist Rajiv Bajaj were also present.
An Afghan official says that at least 30 people including women and children have been killed by Taliban fighters in northern Sari Pul province.

Zahir Wahdat, the provincial governor for Sari Pul, said today that the victims are mostly civilians and some local security forces.

The shootings took place yesterday after the Taliban seized control of the strategic Mirzawalang area in Sayad district.

Wahdat says Afghan forces retreated form the area after they couldn't gain ground or air support from the central government.

Earlier reports indicated that over a dozen people had been killed by the Taliban.

Qari Yusouf Ahamdi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attack, but not the civilian deaths.

Ten Taliban fighters were also killed, according to Zabi Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Afghan president Ashraf Ghani condemned today the reported massacre of dozens of civilians in a remote area of the war-torn country where the Taliban claimed a victory against military forces.

"Criminal terrorists have once again killed civilians, women and children in Sayad district of Sar-e Pul province, adding to their crimes.

"This barbaric act of them is deemed a direct violation of human rights and a war crime," Ghani said in a statement.

The comments came after the governor of Sar-e Pul said that "as many as 30 to 40 innocent people... Were brutally shot and killed" in the province's predominately Shiite village of Mirzawalang after insurgents captured it today.

Mohammad Zaher Wahdat, the provincial governor, added that several mosques were set ablaze while an unknown number of villagers had also been taken hostage following a 48-hour battle between insurgents and Afghan security forces.

He said 12 insurgents and seven Afghan troops had been killed in the fighting.

The village is situated in an extremely remote part of the country, where both the Taliban and Islamic State group fighters have a presence, and AFP was unable to confirm the reports with independent sources.

The Taliban said in a statement that it had captured Mirzawalang village but rejected reports of civilians casualties, calling it "hollow propaganda by the enemy".

The incident comes after the Afghan government claimed last month that Taliban fighters had killed 35 people in an attack on a hospital in central Ghor province.

Officials later backtracked though, underscoring the difficulty of verifying information from poor, mountainous areas of Afghanistan made inaccessible by fighting and with patchy communications.

The Taliban is at the peak of its summer fighting season and has carried out a number of deadly attacks in recent days, including the killing of two US soldiers in a suicide bomb attack in Kandahar on Wednesday.

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Al-Jazeera "deplores" Israel's decision to close the broadcaster's offices in the Jewish state and will pursue the matter through legal channels, an official at the Doha-based channel said today.

"Al-Jazeera deplores this action from a state that is called the only democratic state in the Middle East and considers what it has done is dangerous," said the official who declined to be named.

He said the broadcaster "will follow up the subject through appropriate legal and judicial procedures".

Israeli Communications Minister Ayoob Kara announced the plan to close Al-Jazeera at a Jerusalem conference, accusing it of being a "tool" of jihadist Islamic State group, Shiite Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.

He also noted that countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt "have concluded that Al-Jazeera incites terrorism and religious extremism".

Saudi Arabia leads four Arab countries, including Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, which broke ties with Doha in June, accusing it of fostering extremism and who later demanded Al-Jazeera's closure.

"Al-Jazeera is surprised by the announcement of the Israeli minister of communications in his justification that the decision is consistent with what has been done by Arab countries... Namely Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Egypt," the official told AFP in Doha.

The official defended Al-Jazeera's coverage of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, saying it is "professional and objective" and gives both sides of events.

He said Al-Jazeera would issue a formal statement in the next few hours.

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Moeen Ali's dashing fifty all but put the fourth Test beyond South Africa's reach as England moved towards a series win at Old Trafford today.

When rain ended the third's play at 1615 GMT, England were 224 for eight in their second innings -- a lead of 360 runs -- with Ali unbeaten on 67.

South Africa already needed to set a new ground record if they were to end this four-match series all square at 2-2 as no side have made more in the fourth innings of a Test at Old Trafford to win than England's 294 for four against New Zealand in 2008.

Ali made South Africa pay for Dean Elgar dropping him on 15 when a low slip chance off left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj did not stick.

He may come in at No 8 for England but off-spinner Ali -- who earlier in this match took 20 wickets in a Test series for the first time in his career -- made his name with Worcestershire as a top-order batsman.

Ali, who bats left-handed, was especially severe on Maharaj, hitting him for three resounding sixes.

The second of those, a straight drive that saw Ali complete a 49-ball fifty -- was 'caught' on the England dressing-room balcony by wicket-keeper Jonny Bairstow to the delight of the crowd.

England were bidding for a first home Test series win over South Africa since 1998, with Joe Root seeking a victory in his first Test series as England captain.

South Africa resumed on 220 for nine and were soon all out for 226 when Stuart Broad dismissed last man Duanne Olivier.

That gave England a healthy first-innings lead of 136.

Olivier's exit meant James Anderson, England's all-time leading wicket-taker -- was denied a maiden five-wicket Test innings haul on his Lancashire home ground.

But figures of four for 38 in 17 overs gave Anderson, who'd struck four times from the newly-named James Anderson End yesterday, his best innings return in seven Tests at Old Trafford.

South Africa fast bowler Morne Morkel then removed both Alastair Cook (10) and Tom Westley (nine) with the aid of gully catches.

At lunch, England were 53 for two, with Keaton Jennings -- dropped in the slips on nought -- 17 not out.

But South Africa-born Jennings was unable to cash in on his reprieve.

The Durham left-hander had added just one to his interval score when, he edged a cut off Kagiso Rabada to first slip Hashim Amla.

Prior to today's innings, there had been widespread speculation that the 25-year-old would be dropped for the start of England's upcoming three-Test series at home to the West Indies, which precedes an Ashes tour of Australia.

Jennings -- the 11th batsman chosen as an England opening partner for Cook since former captain Andrew Strauss retired in 2012 -- moved nearer the axe after totalling just 127 runs in four Tests this series at an average of 15.88.

Finding batsmen good enough to cement a place in the top order alongside Cook and Root has long been a problem for England's selectors.

Dawid Malan, out for scores of one and 10 on Test debut during England's 239-run victory in the third Test at The Oval, was looking for a big score after falling for 18 in the first innings of this match.

But the Middlesex left-hander, born in London but brought up in South Africa, exited for six -- having been dropped on five -- when Maharaj had him caught off bat and pad at short leg.

Root (49) and Ben Stokes (23), however, then shared a stand of 57.

They both fell to paceman Olivier, only playing this match after back injuries ruled out both Vernon Philander and Chris Morris.

Olivier, who also dismissed Bairstow, ended the day with fine figures of three for 38 but that was scant consolation to his side.

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Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh today expressed grief over the demise of Kapurthala royal family scion Kanwar Vishwajit Prithvijit Singh, who passed away at a private hospital here after a brief illness.

Kanwar Vishwajit was a friend whose loss would be severely felt, Amarinder said in a statement.

The two had become close friends while they were studying in the Doon School in Dehradun, the statement said.

The chief minister described Vishwajit as a man full of life who inspired one and all with his vivacity and dynamism.

He said the former Rajya Sabha member was a "multifaceted personality" with qualities of the head and the heart.

"Kanwar Vishwajit Prithvijit Singh was a fine human being and a disciplined soldier of the (Congress) party and above all a noble soul," the statement quoted Amarinder as saying.

Vishwajit, considered close to late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, was first elected to the Rajya Sabha in April 1982 from Maharashtra and returned for a second term in April 1988.

According to the family, Vishwajit was unwell for the past few days and was flown into Delhi from Dublin through a special air ambulance as his condition deteriorated.

He was admitted at the Escorts hospital here where he breathed last today.

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Cutting across party lines, various people in the US have called for combating racism, intolerance and violence during the fifth anniversary of the tragic Oak Creek massacre that killed six innocent Sikhs five years ago.

Paul Ryan, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, said: "Over the last five years, the people of Oak Creek have proved they're stronger than hate and division."



Ryan represents the Congressional district in Wisconsin where a white supremacist went on a shooting rampage at a Sikh Gurdwara on August 5, 2012.

"Five years ago, Oak Creek was rocked by a heinous attack on the Sikh Temple, and today we look back on that act of violence with solemn remembrance of those who were lost," he said in a statement.

"The Sikh community is in our thoughts on this fifth anniversary of the Oak Creek attack," said Senator Ron Johnson.

"Today, we join together as one community on the fifth anniversary of the horrific attack on the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin," said Senator Tammy Baldwin.

"I'm also incredibly proud of our Sikh community. Their grace and hopeful message of peace moved an entire nation," she added.

"Five years after the senseless shooting in Oak Creek, we continue to remember the innocent victims who were killed in this horrible attack," said Grace Meng, Democratic lawmaker from New York.

"For many generations, the Sikh-American community has made important contributions to our nation and it is unacceptable that they continue to be targets of violence and bigotry. We must combat racism, intolerance, and violence wherever it exists," she said.

Five years ago, America was struck by a "cowardly and tragic act of violence" that took the lives of six innocent worshippers in a Sikh gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, said House Democratic Chairman Joe Crowley.

"As we grieve for the victims, their loved ones, and the greater Sikh American community, we are reminded that much work remains to be done. Whether it is a gurdwara in Oak Creek, a church in Charleston, or a mosque in Quebec City, an attack on one faith is an attack on all," he said in a statement.

"On this somber anniversary, we must reaffirm our commitment to fighting intolerance anywhere and everywhere," Crowley said.

"A neo-Nazi killed six people at a Sikh temple five years ago. Remember Oak Creek and resist hate in all its forms," said Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapala.

Eminent Indian-American from Indiana Gurinder Singh Khalsa said, the Oak Creek tragedy was a wakeup call for the Sikh community.

"The community needs to engage, educate and empower. Sikhs need to do more on the awareness front," said Khalsa, founder and head of the Sikhs Political Action Committee.

At a time when divisive rhetoric has taken over our country, Sikhs have to remain vigilant while still staying in steadfast to their ur beliefs and principles," said Baldev Singh from the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Wade Michael Page, a known white supremacist, shot and murdered six people and injured four others at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. This was one of the worst shooting incidents in the recent American history.

Those who were killed in this shooting spree were Paramjit Kaur, Satwant Singh Kaleka, Prakash Singh, Sita Singh, Ranjit Singh, and Suveg Singh.

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Remember President Trumps terrible budget cuts?

Promises Little but Pain, warned The New York Times.

Harsh and shortsighted, cried The Washington Post.

Then Congress passed a budget. President Trump signed it. Do you notice the pain?

I follow the news closely, but until I researched this column, I didnt know that Congress actually raised spending on the very agencies Trump wanted to cut.

Trump called for a $4.7 billion dollar cut to the Agriculture Department. Congress increased the departments appropriation by $12.8 billion.

He called for a $15 billion cut to Health and Human Services. Congress instead gave them $2.8 billion more.

Trump wanted a $6.2 billion cut to Housing and Urban Development. Congress gave HUD a half-billion-dollar increase.

Trump wanted the Commerce Departments budget cut by $1.4 billion. Congress made no cut.

And so on.

Why wasnt that news? Because in Washington, and in the medias eyes, spending increases are expected. And cuts are always terrible.

America continues on its road to bankruptcy.

What will those departments do with their new money?

The Agriculture Department says its mission is to promote agricultural production that better nourishes Americans. Politicians claim we need the Department to guarantee an adequate food supply.

Nonsense.

Because of the free market, agricultural entrepreneurs provide plenty of food. Fruit and vegetable farmers rarely get subsidies, but there are ample supplies of fruits and vegetables.

We dont need an Agriculture Department any more than we need a Hollywood movie department or iPhone department.

Most of what the Department does is corporate welfare. Americas richest corn and grain farmers collect most of the money.

Politicians eagerly give money to people who visit their offices and pour out tales of need.

Corn and grain farmers visit and whine because they have millions of dollars at stake.

You dont visit because each subsidy costs you just a few bucks.

So the corporate welfare continues.

Members of Congress might stop the wasteful spending if they spent their own money. But they dont. They spend ours.

Congress ignored Trumps request to cut the Commerce Department, too.

Commerces biggest program is NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA pushes climate change alarmism, producing PSAs that warn Arctic ice is thinning at an alarming rate!

If thats a serious problem, NOAAs spending wont stop it. NOAAs bureaucrats got caught buying a $300,000 yacht  and using it to go fishing.

The Department says what they do is critical. They fund centers in every state that consult with companies facing technological problems.

Government is good at fixing tech problems? News to me.

The Department claims every dollar of federal investment ... generates around $30 because each $2,400 investment creates a job.

Im sure they help some politically savvy companies, but their claim ignores the good things your money would have done had it stayed in the private sector. Thats the unseen cost of funding every Department. Well never know what our dollars might have done had they not been taken from us by government.

Maybe a new Steve Jobs would have invented a...

I dont know. Well never know, because government grabbed the money.

President Trump seems to understand that government wastes money, but after proposing cuts to some departments, he was eager to increase military spending. So Congress did. The military got the biggest increase.

Defense, at least, is a proper role of government. Government should keep us safe. But our current military is wasteful and involved in needless foreign entanglements.

We spend as much as the next seven countries combined  eight times more than Russia spends. Many of the missions our politicians give the military  interventions in places like Iraq, Libya and Syria  made us less safe by destabilizing the Middle East and creating new terrorists.

Congress should cut spending to the military and to the departments Trump wanted to cut.

But politicians almost never cut. Despite all those headlines about harsh, painful, terrible cuts, government increased spending again.

We are going broke. Later this year, the national debt will reach $20 trillion. Yet Congress appropriated more  a Republican-majority Congress.

Politicians sure are generous with other peoples money.

One small positive note: Im told the city government in Toronto is bringing down the price of that $65,000 staircase I wrote about last week to $10,000. Keep cutting.
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today congratulated M Venkaiah Naidu on winning the vice-presidential election.

Sonowal, in a telephonic conversation with Naidu, wished him the best for a remarkable and eventful tenure as Vice-President of the country and chairman of Rajya Sabha.

"The high victory margin by Naiduji shows that he got votes from the Opposition as well and it shows his wider acceptability," an official release quoting Sonowal said.

"After a busy and long political innings spanning several decades, Naiduji is going to occupy one of the top constitutional posts in the country," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BJP youth wing leader Jayesh Darji, arrested for allegedly throwing a stone at the vehicle of Congress vice president in flood-hit Banaskantha district, was Monday sent to judicial custody by a magisterial court.

Dhanera judicial magistrate, first class, V S Thakor, sent Darji to jail, rejecting police's prayer for his four-day remand, additional public prosecutor Prakash Joshi said.

The judge also rejected the bail application of the accused, Joshi said.

The Gujarat police has, meanwhile, launched a manhunt for three more persons allegedly involved in the attack.

Police had arrested Darji after some local Congress workers identified him as the one who threw a concrete brick at the vehicle.

The opposition party members also claimed three more people were involved in the conspiracy to attack the Congress leader's vehicle. They have been identified as Bhagwandas Patel, Mor Singh Rao and Mukesh Thakkar.

Police said the three accused are absconding and efforts are on to apprehend them.

The police had yesterday arrested Darji, an office-bearer of the BJP's youth wing in Banaskantha, after his name cropped up during investigation, an official said.

Gandhi, who was on a visit to the flood-affected Dhanera town in Banaskantha district in Gujarat on Friday, escaped unhurt after a brick was thrown at his car.

He had to cut short his address to a gathering in the Lal Chowk area of Dhanera after black flags were shown to him by some of those who turned up for the meeting.

The state government had claimed that Gandhi had not taken the bullet-proof vehicle provided to him and instead decided to travel in the car of a party worker.

Darji and three others have been booked under IPC sections relating to voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from discharging his duty, causing hurt by act endangering life, and mischief causing damage to property".
Venezuela's military said it repelled a "terrorist" attack on a base in the city of Valencia, led by an army deserter allegedly linked to "foreign governments."



Two of the attackers were killed and eight were captured, President Nicolas Maduro said on state television, claiming the group of "mercenaries" -- whose total number he put at around 20 -- had ties to Colombia and the United States.

Officials insisted afterward that all was normal across the country.

Still, the incident heightened fears that Venezuela's deepening political and economic crisis could explode into greater violence.

In Valencia, a major northwestern city, military helicopters flew overhead as tactical armored vehicles patrolled the streets in a climate of tension.

Locals said a nighttime curfew had been imposed, as flaming barricades set up in the street by anti-government protesters spewed black smoke.

The armed forces said in a statement "a group of civilian criminals wearing military uniforms and a first lieutenant who had deserted" carried out the attack, during which a number of weapons were stolen.

The lieutenant and several of the attackers were arrested but "an intense search" was on for the others who made off with the arms, the military said.

Maduro said the captured lieutenant was "actively giving information and we have testimony from seven of the civilians."



Maduro congratulated the army for its "immediate reaction" in putting down the attack, saying they earned his "admiration."



Venezuela has become increasingly isolated internationally as Maduro has tightened his hold on power through a contested loyalist assembly that started work this week.

The opposition, which controls the legislature, has been sidelined. Its leaders are under threat of arrest after organizing protests, fiercely countered by security forces, that have left 125 people dead in the past four months.

One prominent leader, Leopoldo Lopez, was returned to house arrest after being hauled off to military prison four days ago.

The new Constituent Assembly, packed with Maduro allies including the president's wife and son, has quickly used its supreme powers to clamp down on dissent.

On Saturday, it ordered the dismissal of the attorney general, Luisa Ortega, who had broken ranks with Maduro to become one of his most vociferous critics.

Yesterday it announced -- then suspended -- the creation of a "truth commission" sought by Maduro to probe alleged crimes by the opposition.

The United States accuses Maduro of installing an "authoritarian dictatorship" that has turned Venezuela into an international pariah.

The United States, Colombia, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Peru have slammed the "illegal" sacking of Ortega.

And Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Brazil have indefinitely suspended Venezuela from the South American trading bloc Mercosur for its "rupture of the democratic order."



"Each step by the Constituent Assembly is a step towards the precipice by this government," the leader of the opposition parliament, Julio Borges, told a conference in Caracas yesterday.

"The only thing it has left is brute force... The only thing it wants is to cling to power," he said, calling for more protests.

The opposition has repeatedly urged the military to abandon Maduro.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Australian police today released another man arrested during counter-terrorism raids for questioning over an alleged terror plot to bring down a passenger plane.

Khaled Merhi, 39, was released from custody after being charged by New South Wales police and the Australian Federal Police with one count of possessing a prohibited weapon.

He was released on bail to face court later this month.

Merhi was in custody for eight days, with authorities using special terrorism powers to hold him.

Two other men who were arrested in the raids have already faced court over the alleged plot to bring down a plane.

Khaled Khayat and Mahmoud Khayat have been remanded in custody to appear in court again in November.

Merhi's brother, Abdul El Karim Merhi, was also arrested but police released him without charge on Wednesday.

The men were arrested last month in raids across Sydney, and homes in Surry Hills, Lakemba, Punchbowl, Wiley Park and Bankstown were searched.

Australian Federal Police last week said that a plot was "disrupted" on July 15, after an improvised explosive device was taken as far as the international terminal at Sydney Airport.

The police have called the plan "one of the most sophisticated terror plots attempted on Australian soil".

"With assistance from the IS commander, the accused assembled the IED...Into what we believe was a functioning IED to be placed on that flight," Deputy Commissioner Michael Phelan said.

"At no stage did the IED breach security.

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A suspected Bangladeshi terrorist, associated with Islamic extremist group Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), was today arrested from Muzaffarnagar by the Uttar Pradesh police's Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS), an official said.

Abdullah was arrested from the Kutesara locality in Charthawal area of Muzaffarnagar district, IG, ATS, Asim Arun said.

He was living in the area for the past one month, Arun said adding that before that, since 2011, Abdullah had been residing in the Deoband area of Saharanpur district.

Abdullah had managed to get an Aadhaar card and passport prepared on the basis of fake identity, the officer said.

He was associated with the ABT and involved in preparing fake identity proofs of terrorists, especially from Bangladesh, and help them find safe hideouts in India, Arun said.

According to the police, ABT is an Al-Qaeda inspired Islamic extremist group based in Bangladesh.

ATS teams from Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and the district police team from Shamli conducted searches after Abdullah's arrest, the police said.

During interrogation, Abdullah told ATS sleuths that he used to prepare fake identity proofs with the help of one Faizan, resident of Deoband, IG Arun said.

Based on this information, Faizan's house in Deoband was searched but he was not found there, the ATS official said.

He however claimed that 'jehadi' literature in Bangla, literature regarding making of bombs, a colour printer and a number of fake ids were recovered from there.

It has come to the fore that Faizan was also associated with the ABT, Arun added.

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Police in Berlin say two Chinese tourists were detained for performing banned Nazi salutes in front of the German parliament.

Officers saw the two men, aged 36 and 49, taking photos of each other making the gesture in front of the Reichstag.

Police said in a statement that the men were questioned at a nearby precinct but later released after leaving a security deposit of 500 euros (USD 593) each.

They face a criminal investigation for using symbols associated with organizations that are considered to be in breach of Germany's constitution. Convictions can incur a fine or a prison sentence of up to three years.

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The Competition Commission plans to hire people for nearly two dozen vacancies at its investigative arm as the fair trade watchdog continues to grapple with staff crunch.

Candidates will be hired on a deputation basis for seven joint director general and 13 deputy director general posts, according to a communication issued by the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

These positions are at the DG office.

The appointments will be initially for 3 years and could be extended up to 5 years.

The CCI carries out probes into cases where there is prima facie violation of competition norms, through the Director General (DG) office.

Around 37 per cent of the total 197 sanctioned posts are lying vacant at the regulator, which keeps a tab on anti- competitive business practices across sectors. This translates into 73 vacancies.

According to the communication, the candidates should have experience in investigation under any economic law such as income tax, Customs and enforcement or "gathering of intelligence".

"Applicants must be employees of central or state governments, government companies or autonomous bodies or regulatory authorities or universities or academic or research or judicial institutions etc of central or state governments," the communication said.

Last month, the government informed the Lok Sabha that a total of 73 positions were vacant at the CCI and the DG office.

"CCI notifies the existing vacancies, normally, three or four times in a year, for filling them up as per the prescribed mode of recruitment. Recently, nine candidates have been selected for appointment on deputation to various posts in the office of DG," Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal had said in a written reply on July 21.

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Keen on rolling out infrastructure projects in Iran and Afghanistan, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that once in Iran becomes operational, there will be no looking back as it will be a gateway to golden opportunities.

As a special envoy of India, deputed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Road Transport and Shipping Minister Gadkari is in Tehran and represented India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani for the second term.

"Talks are on for building railways and roads through Chabahar till Afghanistan and then we have access to Russia. Once Chabahar is operationalised, which we are hopeful to be in 12 to 18 months time, it will prove to be a gateway to golden opportunities to boost trade and business," Gadkari told PTI.

Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation's southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from India's western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

"We are hopeful of ratification of Trilateral Transit and Transport Agreement by Iran and once approvals are given, the work will start," Gadkari said.

The trilateral pact was inked during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tehran in May 2016.

The pact envisages establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor between India, Iran and Afghanistan using as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran besides multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.

The Cabinet and the President had ratified the pact in November and December, 2016 respectively.

A government official said Afghanistan has also ratified it but Iran is yet to complete the internal processes of the ratification.

Gadkari said operationalisation of the Port will not accelerate the infrastructure projects but will be a "win-win situation" for the nations as it would give tremendous boost to trade and offer vast opportunities to investors.

"Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but we will be closer to Afghanistan and then Russia....We can export goods till Russia. This will be a direct route," he said.

India has already built the Zaranj-Delaram Road in Afghanistan where the cargo reaching Zehedan can connect to.

"The rail route is aimed at connecting the existing rail network of Iran at Zahedan, and subsequently to Mashad in north area, thereby providing access to Turkmenistan as well as northern Afghanistan through its connection to the Bafq- Mashad route," an official said.

This project will significantly enhance the opportunity for trade and business among the nations.

Chabahar-Zahedan Railway line project is located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province in eastern Iran.

Gadkari's visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work on the and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at the port.

"Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine," the minister had said.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including a USD 150 million credit from Exim Bank.

It also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of USD 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of USD 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of the equipment will be transferred to the Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of USD 150 million in accordance with the MoU.

As per the pact, operations of the two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract.

Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest USD 500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.
Keen on boosting bilateral trade and ties, India and Iran have expressed commitment to operationalise the strategic Chabahar Port at the earliest.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, who is on a two-day visit to Tehran as a special envoy of India deputed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inauguration of the second tenure of Hassan Rouhani as the President of Iran, extended the PM's invitation to Rouhani to visit India while handing over a letter of felicitation to him and held talks with him and other Iranian officials.

In the meetings, both sides reviewed and positively assessed the progress in implementation of the decisions taken during Prime Minister's visit to Iran last year, including the progress in the development of Chabahar Port, Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

"Both sides reiterated their commitment to complete and operationalise the port at the earliest that would contribute to bilateral and regional trade and economic development and also provide alternate access to landlocked Afghanistan to regional and global markets," the statement said.

Hopeful of rolling out infrastructure projects in Iran and Afghanistan, Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Gadkari has said that once Chabahar Port in Iran becomes operational, there will be no looking back as it will be a gateway to golden opportunities.

"Talks are on for building railways and roads through Chabahar till Afghanistan and then we have access to Russia. Once Chabahar is operationalised, which we are hopeful to be in 12 to 18 months time, it will prove to be a gateway to golden opportunities to boost trade and business," Gadkari told PTI.

Gadkari, during his two-day visit, apart from meeting President Rouhani, also called on Iran's First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri and Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Abbas Akhoundi and held talks on bilateral cooperation.

Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation's southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from India's western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

"We are hopeful of ratification of Trilateral Transit and Transport Agreement by Iran and once approvals are given, the work will start," Gadkari said.

The trilateral pact was inked during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tehran in May 2016.

The pact envisages establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor between India, Iran and Afghanistan using Chabahar Port as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran besides multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.

The Cabinet and the President had ratified the pact in November and December, 2016 respectively.

A government official said Afghanistan has also ratified it but Iran is yet to complete the internal processes of the ratification.

Gadkari said operationalisation of the Port will not accelerate the infrastructure projects but will be a "win-win situation" for the nations as it would give tremendous boost to trade and offer vast opportunities to investors.

"Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but we will be closer to Afghanistan and then Russia....We can export goods till Russia. This will be a direct route," he said.

India has already built the Zaranj-Delaram Road in Afghanistan where the cargo reaching Zehedan can connect to.

"The rail route is aimed at connecting the existing rail network of Iran at Zahedan, and subsequently to Mashad in north area, thereby providing access to Turkmenistan as well as northern Afghanistan through its connection to the Bafq- Mashad route," an official said.

This project will significantly enhance the opportunity for trade and business among the nations.

Chabahar-Zahedan Railway line project is located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province in eastern Iran.

Gadkari's visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work on the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at the port.

"Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine," the minister had said.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including a USD 150 million credit from Exim Bank.

It also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of USD 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of USD 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of the equipment will be transferred to the Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of USD 150 million in accordance with the MoU.

As per the pact, operations of the two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract.

Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest USD 500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Time was when romance steamed up when the boy asked the girl out for coffee, and firmed up when her family invited him over for a cup of tea at their home.

But the script has changed. The humble chai has undergone a sophisticated makeover, moving out of kitchens and dhabas to specialised tea salons and cafes that don?t just mean cold coffee and cappuccino.

Coffee may not be everybody?s cup of tea, entrepreneurs have realised.

And though the jury is still out on whether elders have moved on from their home brewed 'kadak adrak' chai, the young certainly are looking beyond coffee dates.

Outlets such as Chaayos, Chai Stop, Chai Story and Chai Thela are giving stiff competition to coffee biggies like Starbucks and Cafe Coffee Day.

"There was this impression that chai is something you get only at home. You had good places for coffee, but for chai there was either a thela or the substandard chai available in five-star hotels. We wanted to create a premium place for our customers? with chai just the way they like it," Raghav Verma, co-founder of Chaayos, told PTI.

When Chaayos started in 2012, there were some 100 tea places against the 2,000-2,500 cafes serving coffee in India. But growth has been swift. In the last five years, Chaayos already has 40 outlets in Delhi, Chandigarh and Mumbai.

Kaushal Dugar, the founder of Teabox, an online direct- to-consumer tea brand, suggests Indians are on their way to being part of the ultimate tea experience -- which is not just a concoction of water, sugar and milk.

"Tea places will be taking away people away from coffee. But then sooner or later people will also migrate to pure tea such as Chamomile, Darjeeling or Assam," Dugar told PTI.

Elite hotel brands are also reading the tea leaves, realising that Indians are already learning to choose between Assam and Darjeeling, first flush and second flush.

The Courtyard by Marriott is one of those catching on to the tea trend. It has set up a new counter -- Masala Chai Specialist ? at the Mumbai International Airport.

"Cafes and restaurants across India are enhancing the variety of their chai offerings. After this counter was set up, many of our regular visitors have switched from coffee to tea," said chef and counter in-charge Rajeev Dhuri.

"On a normal day, I end up making 20 litres of tea for customers," said Dhuri.

Wagh Bakri, the over 100-year-old tea making company, has also gone the lounge way.

"We opened these lounges for our brand promotion. We wanted to make people aware of our packaged tea. But we are doing pretty good with profits, too," said Neeraj, manager Wagh Bakri tea lounge, Connaught Place.

The company, which has over 10 tea lounges, sells over 250 flavours of tea. Chaayos offers 1,200 personalised tea options.

"People can vary the tea leaves? choose more milk or less milk and so on," Verma said.

So are Indians okay doing chai pe kharcha?



"People are spending Rs 100-150 for the same experience in a coffee place. Here, we promise to serve your favourite tea at a lower price. So how is it expensive," asked Verma.

The cheapest chai at Chaayos costs around Rs 50, while a normal espresso in a coffee bar costs Rs 90-140.

With over 42 per cent repeat customers in Chaayos cafes, Verma said his brand is not in competition with coffee houses.

"The scope for chai is way higher than coffee's. Data suggests that for every coffee 30 cups of chai consumed are in India," he said.

Delhi resident Neha Jindal is among those who frequent tea bars.

"I have always been an ardent coffee lover. But with these new swanky chai places, I really don't mind ditching coffee. Also after many visits, I have started liking tea, which just wasn't the case earlier," she said.

With India one of the largest tea consuming and producing countries in the world, this was perhaps a transformation just waiting in the wings.

American giant Starbucks recently introduced its tea brand Teavana in 88 stores in India, indicating that the tea business is growing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chanakya Investments and five other entities have paid a total of over Rs 13 lakh to Sebi as part of settlement related to alleged violation of disclosure norms.

In two separate orders dated August 4, Sebi settled the "proposed adjudication proceedings" related to delay in making disclosures under the SAST (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Regulations against the firm and the five entities.

While the firm, which is presently known as Antariksh Industries, paid Rs 5,77,500 towards settlement, the five other entities -- Laser Shaving India, Laser Shaving Products, Malhotra Fincon, Malhotra International and Watco Engineering Company -- shelled out Rs 7,31,250.

They had filed separate applications with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) under a settlement mechanism providing for settlement of cases without admitting or denying the charges.

The settlement terms proposed by the entities were considered by Sebi's High Powered Advisory Committee (HPAC), which recommended the case for settlement on payment of Rs 5,77,500 by Chanakya Investments and Rs 7,31,250 by the five entities.

The recommendations of HPAC were also accepted by the panel of whole-time members of the regulator.

Last month, Chanakya Investments and the other entities paid the settlement amount and accordingly, Sebi disposed of the proposed adjudication proceedings.

However, Sebi said if any representation made by the firm and the five other entities in the settlement proceedings is subsequently discovered to be untrue, enforcement actions including commencing of proceedings can be initiated against them.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi says he urged his North Korean counterpart to abide by UN resolutions and stop provoking "the community's goodwill" with missile launches and nuclear tests.

Wang spoke to reporters in Manila after meeting with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on the sidelines of a regional meeting after the UN Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions to punish Pyongyang for its escalating nuclear and missile programs.

Wang said the two had an intensive conversation during which China urged North Korea to maintain calm. He says he told Ri "do not violate the UN decision or provoke the community's goodwill by conducting missile launches or nuclear tests."



Wang also urged the US and South Korea "to stop increasing tensions" and said that all sides should return to negotiations.
The dairy industry has immense potential in West Bengal as both raw material and demand are present and Amul has already firmed up a Rs 200 crore new processing plant in the state.

"In West Bengal dairy is growing at just two to three per cent against national average of five per cent, despite the fact that the state has everything from raw material to demand," R S Sodhi, Managing Director of GCMMF, owner of Amul brand told PTI.

What is required is organising dairy farmers and procurement of milk processes and Amul is keen in hand holding the state government in offering knowhow and technical support to increase yeild, he said.

The state produces five million tonne of raw milk against a demand of 10-12 million tonne.

Amul has already firmed up to set up a centralised milk processing plant on a 17 acre plot at Sankrail food park in Howrah from West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation.

"We will have the plant ready in the next one year, " Sodhi said.

The proposed plant will manufacture UHD milk, yoghurt and ghee, besides normal milk.

Amul in a tieup has set up a 200 tpd cattle feed plant meant for farmers in Amul's fold and also for selling in the market.

Meanwhile, Indian Dairy Association Chairman (east) R Chattopadyay said an international dairy conference would be held in Bengal in 2019 to bring the state in focus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The city police today busted a drug-peddling racket and apprehended two persons, including a Nigerian national, and 180 grams of cocaine was seized from them.

The Nigerian national, Ogugua John Basco, and another accused identified as Mohammed Jaharullah, were apprehended from Yousufguda here, the city police said in a statement.

According to police, Basco, who is the prime accused in the case, is a kingpin of the drug peddling racket in Mumbai.

He came to India on a business visa in June last year and has been staying in Mumbai and doing garments export business, they said.

"From Mumbai, he delivers drugs to the agents in Hyderabad and other metropolitan cities. Jaharullah came in contact with Basco, from whom he purchased cocaine and sold it to his customers in Hyderabad," it said.

The drug peddlers had been supplying cocaine for Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,500 per gram to the agents in Hyderabad and they in turn sold it to customers for Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 per gram, the release added.

Further probe into the case is on.

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The head of the European Union delegation to Yemen is visiting the country for talks with Shiite Houthi rebels over a UN plan regarding a disputed key port.

Houthi officials say Ambassador Antonia Calvo Puerta arrived in Sanaa on Sunday to discuss the UN proposal for Hodeida port to be run by a third neutral party under UN supervision.

The Red Sea port of Hodeida, currently under Houthi control, is a vital lifeline for most of the country's population.

Yemeni officials in the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbou Mansour Hadi say they welcome the UN plan.

A Saudi-led coalition, backing Hadi's government and battling the Houthi rebels, has long planned to seize the port but held back over fears it would impede humanitarian aid deliveries.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
British FMCG major RB has said GST implementation in India is expected to result in reduction of its net revenue by 50 million pounds for the ongoing year.

The company, however, said the impact of GST implementation on its profit is expected to be small.

India is among the top five global markets for RB, which sells a host of items under popular brands like Dettol, Harpic, Durex, Colin, Disprin, Air Wick, Cherry Blossom, Lizol, Mortein and Strepsils.

"The underlying performance in India business remains strong and in growth for the half year but has been negatively impacted by demonetisation and, to a greater extent, destocking by our customers in the lead up to GST changes introduced on July 1, 2017," RB said in an earnings communication.

It further said the full year accounting impact of the move to GST is expected to be a reduction of 50 million pounds (in currency terms) in net revenue, which will be adjusted in like-for-like net revenue reporting.

"The ongoing impact on profit is expected to be small," the company said.

In the second quarter ended June, RB said its growth was impacted by India, which witnessed decline "due to some customers delaying orders ahead of the implementation of GST on July 1".

"Volatility has been seen in India, particularly in Q2 as many customers delayed their orders due to the implementation of GST," it said.

In the second quarter, RB's net revenue declined 2 per cent to 2,479 million pounds and 1 per cent in the first half to 5,017 million pounds on like-for-like growth basis



Besides GST implementation in India, RB also cited continuing humidifier sanitiser issue in South Korea and cyber-attack on company database responsible for decline in growth in the second quarter.

Last year, the company's top management had apologised for its Oxy product causing harm to people in South Korea after a government probe suggested a link between lung damage and humidifier disinfectants.

RB also said the global cyber-attack on June 27 also impacted it and impeded its ability to ship and invoice orders in the days leading up to the half year.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The families of three east London schoolgirls who fled to join the Islamic State terror group in Syria nearly two years ago fear they have been killed in the war-torn country, a media report said today.

Relatives have not heard from any of the girls for more than a year when one of the teenagers Kadiza Sultana died in an air strike in the Syrian city of Raqqa, the de-facto capital of the Islamic State (ISIS) in the Middle East.

The families of the three other girls had previously been in intermittent contact via telephone and the Internet but have not heard from them since May 2016, 'The Sunday Times' reported.

"They fear the worst but live in hope," said Tasnime Akunjee, a lawyer who has been representing the families.

A relative of Sharmeena Begum, the first of the four school friends to travel to Syria, said "Only Allah knows. It's heartbreaking for the family".

The schoolgirls, who were high-scoring pupils at an academy in Bethnal Green, east London, made headlines when they became the youngest British recruits to join the ISIS, aged only 15 and 16, from December 2014 to February 2015.

At least three of the girls, Shamima Begum, Amira Abase and Sultana, married terrorist fighters after leaving the UK together.

Shamima, who was 15 when she left Britain, is said to have married an American recruit who left her after she became pregnant, according to the widow of a British fighter who spent time with the girls in Raqqa, the report said.

Amira's father Abase Hussen last week pleaded to know his daughter's fate.

"You need to find out whether she is [alive] or not," he said.

Theschoolgirlsare among more than 800 Britons who are believed to have left the UK to jointhe ISISor other militant groups in Syria and Iraq.

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A class 10 girl suffered a "mental shock" and was hospitalised in Reasi district after being told that she was not eligible to appear in pre-board examination as her name did not figure in school records.

The girl, a resident of Tuksan village, received the shocker yesterday when she was told by the school authorities that she was not eligible to fill the form for the upcoming pre-board exams, as her name did not figure in school records, Station House Officer Mohammad Tariq Bhat told PTI today.

The pre-board exams will be conducted by the state education board shortly, he said.

The girl was in tension and approached a local court here with here parents yesterday, the SHO said.

The court took a serious note of the matter and asked police to investigate the case and submit its findings by next week, the officer said, adding the situation took another turn when the girl, apparently due to mental stress, fell unconscious at her home.

According to Bhat, the girl's family members thought that she had made an attempt at ending her life due to fear or humiliation, and took her to a hospital.

"The girl was not in a state to give a statement when we visited her in the hospital last night. The doctors informed this morning that there was no trace of any poisonous substance in her body and hence discharged the girl after recommending some medicines," the officer said.

Bhat said the statement of the girl was being recorded. "We have already registered an FIR and started investigations. We are also in the process of checking the school records to know the facts," he said.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the girl had taken admission in the school in March.

"She had deposited her fee to the school teachers who are under our scanner now," he said.

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Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje today said girls should have the liberty to choose their career and to decide when to marry.

Families and the society should give opportunities to girls to progress in their lives, she said on the second day of an education festival here.

"Girls should have the liberty to choose their career and to decide when to marry. Education empowers girls and by getting educated, they can stand for their rights and honour," Raje said.

The chief minister said, "There should be no disparity in education of girls and boys, and this is the way to eradicate sex discrimination in schools, workplace and at other places."



There is ample opportunities for women and girls today in the digital era, she said.

Parents and students are now taking interest in state-run schools because of the efforts of the Rajasthan government to improve education and infrastructure, Raje said.

In another session with actress Sushmita Sen, Raje said success obtained through hard work sustains, and one should be dedicated and honest to achieve success.

In a dialogue with Raje, Sen said, "One can learn many things through real life experiences which one cannot learn from books."



Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy also attended a session on skill development.

State ministers Kiran Maheshwari, Rajendra Rathore, Prabhu Lal Saini and others also attended the event organised by the state government and Gems Education India.

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Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images(LONDON) -- Prince Harry has whisked Meghan Markle off to Africa for a romantic 36th birthday vacation. The couple were photographed on the tarmac Friday by The Sun Newspaper as they landed.



The prince has spoken often of the tranquility he enjoys in the African bush and he has reportedly decided to share that with his American girlfriend in Botswana, which holds special significance to Harry.



He's described it as a place where he feels at one with nature and where he has friends and contacts to shield him from the paparazzi who stalk his every move. He can move freely in Botswana and enjoy the special birthday celebration with Markle with some level of security that he won't be chased.



"I've been lucky enough to visit Botswana for more than 20 years and am incredibly fortunate to be able to call it my second home," Prince Harry said in January on a trip to tag rhinos for the charity Rhino Conservation Botswana



Earlier this year he shared that Botswana will always have sentimental value to him: "I first came in 1997, straight after my mum died. My dad told my brother and me we were going to Africa to get away from it all."



"This is where I feel more like myself than anywhere else in the world," he said. "I have this intense sense of complete relaxation and normality here."

In 2013, Harry brought his then-girlfriend Cressida Bonas for a safari holiday in the Okavanga Delta, which also prompted engagement speculation. He vacationed in Botswana with first love Chelsy Davy on numerous occasions. Prince Harry and the Zimbabwean born lawyer, who were widely tipped to marry, spent much of their relationship enjoying the spectacular nature in Africa and the privacy it offered them.

Prince Harry's personal video from his summer visit to southern Africa. Read his story: https://t.co/3jo6v2lPtZ pic.twitter.com/O1HqrglfZL  Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) December 2, 2015

In the summer of 2015, after he left his job as an Apache pilot, Harry spent several months in Africa on a mission to draw attention to the senseless slaughter of elephants and rhinos because of the lucrative poaching trade.



"My love of Africa has never been any secret, its just been a huge part of my private life," the prince said during the 2015 visit.



In 2010, Harry and his brother, Prince William, did their first joint Royal tour overseas in Botswana, South Africa and Lesotho, where Harry started his AIDS charity Sentebale in honor of his mother Princess Diana.



"I've always wanted to keep it like that until I had the experience of age to give something back to a place that has given me and so many others the freedom and space we all crave," Harry said. "This continent has given me thousands of happy memories since 1997 and for that I am indebted to it."



In 2016, Prince Harry said he hoped to share Africa one day with his own children.



"I have this love of Africa that will never disappear. And I hope it carries on with my children as well," he said.



William, of course, proposed to Kate atop Mt. Kenya.



Earlier this year British newspapers reported that Prince Harry was seen visiting Queen Elizabeth's jeweler Harry Collins and was designing an emerald and diamond engagement ring from a bracelet of Princess Diana's that she often wore with her iconic emerald choker.



All eyes are now on Harry and his American girlfriend and whether she will return from the romantic 36th birthday getaway with a ring on her finger.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has said his government is prepared to host the next edition of the Defence Expo in the coastal state in 2018.

The biennial event, organised by the Defence Ministry, was held at Naqueri-Quitol village in South Goa last year.

The chief minister said though the government is ready to hold the event in the state next year, it has not yet decided whether to make Naqueri-Quitol as its permanent venue.

"The Defence Expo 2018 will be in Goa. That is a decision for thisedition, which has nothing to do with the other proposal to have a permanent venue (for the event) in Goa," Parrikar told reporters yesterday in Calangute.

He said the state government wants to convert the site at Naqueri-Quitol into a permanent venue for hosting such exhibitions, but that would be done only after taking the locals into confidence.

The Defence Expo is an exhibition of various defence-related products. It provides a platform to the exhibitors to display their latest technologies and products, and an opportunity to explore/tap the market and business potential for mutual benefits.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Gold exchange traded funds (ETFs) continued losing popularity as an investment class with investors pulling out over Rs 250 crore from the instrument in April-July of this fiscal, preferring equities over them.

Trading in gold ETF segment has been tepid during the last four financial years. It has witnessed outflows of Rs 775 crore in 2016-17, Rs 903 crore in 2015-16, Rs 1,475 crore 2014-15 and Rs 2,293 crore in 2013-14.

On the other hand, equity and equity-linked saving scheme (ELSS) saw an infusion of more than Rs 41,000 crore during the first four months (April-July) of the current financial year.

Stock markets have been on an upswing, touching new highs this year.

According to Vidya Bala, head of MF Research at Fundsindia.Com, gold is losing steam as an investment asset class due to gradual rate hike in the US and a possible squeezing in Europe by 2018.

"This is because, when debt as an asset delivers higher yields, gold, which has no underlying fundamentals, tends to underperform," she said.

Gold ETFs are passive investment instruments that are based on price movements and investments in physical gold.

"While demand from India has traditionally buttressed gold prices globally, sound rally in the Indian equity markets has meant that gold as an asset class has not been favoured. The global rate tightening and a strong Indian equity market may mean a sober outlook for gold," Bala added.

Further, demonetisation and lower gold price from a strengthening rupee has kept its prices low although imports of the metal shot up. Gold imports for half year ending June this year crossed the entire imports of 2016, Bala said.

According to the latest data available with Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi), a net sum of Rs 256 crore was pulled out in 14 gold-linked ETFs during April-July period of the ongoing financial year, as compared to Rs 411 crore in the same period last fiscal.

The outflow meant assets under management (AUM) of gold funds plunged to Rs 5,098 crore at July-end from Rs 5,480 crore at the end of March.

Withdrawal of Rs 66 crore was seen in April this year, Rs 71 crore in May, Rs 81 crore in June and another Rs 38 crore in July.

Gold ETFs have been continuously seeing a withdrawal. It has last seen an inflow of Rs 20 crore in October. Prior to that, an inflow of Rs 5 crore was witnessed in such instruments in May 2013.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
One prisoner died and five were injured in a clash involving some 50 inmates in Guatemala, state prison authorities said.

Special forces of the Pavon Prison, located just outside the country's capital, intervened to regain control of the institution that houses some 4,000 inmates, prison system spokesman Rudy Esquivel told journalists.

He said the cause of the clash was under investigation, adding that victims showed signs of blows and wounds "presumably" caused by knives.

The prison was the scene of a July 2016 riot that left more than a dozen dead, including an ex-soldier imprisoned for killing a Roman Catholic bishop almost two decades ago.

The Guatemalan Penitentiary System administers 21 prisons nationwide with a maximum capacity of 6,809 prisoners -- but 22,574 people are currently in custody, according to official data.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Gujarat government will hold talks with Patel quota agitators and other community leaders in the coming days to resolve the sensitive issue "at the earliest", Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said here today.

He said the key points to be discussed with the agitators as well as community organisations will be providing compensation or jobs to the kin of the Patidar "martyrs" and withdrawal of cases filed against protesters.

Patel claimed people associated with both the bodies (the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti and the Sardar Patel Group) are ready to hold talks with the government to arrive at a "compromise formula".

"Recently, various community organisations as well leaders of both the agitating bodies have conveyed to us that they want to hold discussion with us to bring an amicable solution regarding the ongoing quota stir. Just like them, state government is also keen to resolve this issue at the earliest," an official release quoted Patel as saying.

"Key issues to be discussed include providing financial help or jobs to the kin of martyrs and withdrawal of cases against agitators. Since the government is also very keen to solve this matter, we will hold meetings with agitators and community leaders as soon as possible" he said.

The Patidar community has been holding protests, though intermittently, since July 2015 seeking OBC status and reservation in government jobs and educational institutions.

The agitation turned violent after the largest demonstration was held in Ahmedabad on August 25, 2015.

Subsequently, incidents of violence and arson were reported across the state, resulting in a curfew in several cities and towns.

Politically, Patidars are believed to be supporters of the BJP, which is trying to win them back ahead of the Assembly polls, due later this year.

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Senior bureaucrat S Aparna, presently Principal Secretary to Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, has been appointed as an Executive Director in the World Bank in the US.

Aparna, a 1988-batch IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre, has been appointed to the post for three years, an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said.

As the Executive Director, she will represent the constituency of India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka in the World Bank, it said.

Aparna has been appointed in place of S C Garg, who has recently taken over as Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, in the Union Finance Ministry.

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The Madras High Court has come to the rescue of a mother who has been fighting for nearly 25 years to get compensation for the death of her son, a truck driver, in a road mishap.

Negating the objection of an insurance company, Justice N Seshasayee of the Madras High Court confirmed the compensation of Rs 3,47,000 with interest passed by the Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal (MACT).

Lokeswaran died on May 18, 1993 following a head-on collision with a bus. His mother first moved the competent authority (Commissioner) under the Workmen's Compensation Act for compensation, but lost the claim.

Since the autopsy report did not mention the victim's name, the bonafides of the claim was suspected and the matter was decided against the claimant by the Commissioner.

When she moved MACT, the insurance firm objected, saying the claimant should not move the motor accident tribunal and may only prefer an appeal under the WC Act.

MACT, however, held that the claimant would be entitled to compensation and awarded Rs 3.47 lakh with interest at 7.5 per cent to the woman.

The insurance firm appealed against it, contending that the claimant had already elected to move one of the forums seeking compensation. It is impermissible for her to make a claim twice over and hence the petition was not maintainable in law as per the doctrine of election, it contended.

The judge said that in respect of a tribunal under the WC Act, it implies a decision on quantification of a claim by computing the value of loss of life and in the present case it was not done.

"Sorry, we have kept you waiting this long to secure your right," he told the victim's mother.

The judge noted that the Workmen's Compensation Tribunal had not even felt it their duty to compute the value of loss of a life.

The judge further said the tribunal also had not analysed if the mother of the victim can be blamed for the fault of the doctor who did the autopsy and deny her compensation.

As regards the doctrine of election cited by the insurance firm to object to the claim of the victim's mother, the judge noted that it would operate only when the forum of first choice had conclusively quantified the compensation payable and it was not applicable to the present case.

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Actor Hilary Duff has called out online trolls for criticising her body.

The mother of two fired back at the body shamers while proudly showing her "flaws" in a bathing suit after many posted nasty comments about her body during her recent Hawaii holiday, reported Ace Showbiz.

"I am posting this on behalf of young girls, women, and mothers of all ages. I'm enjoying a vacation with my son after a long season of shooting and being away from him for weeks at a time over those months," she captioned a photo.

"Since websites and magazines love to share 'celeb flaws' - well I have them! My body has given me the greatest gift of my life: Luca, 5 years ago. I'm turning 30 in September and my body is healthy and gets me where I need to go."



Duff said women should be be proud of their bodies and stop wasting their precious time in the day "wishing we were different, better, and unflawed.

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The Delhi High Court has sought the response of the government and the Delhi Police on a PIL initiated by it on the basis of a report that a gunshot victim was denied treatment by a private hospital fearing harassment from cops.

A bench of Justices G S Sistani and Chander Shekhar asked the Centre and the police to file their replies and status reports before the next date of hearing on August 11.

The PIL was initiated by the high court after the report was brought to its attention by a lawyer who sought directions to hospitals, both private and government-run, not to deny treatment in such cases.

The lawyer, Varun Gosain, has also sought directions from the court to the police for a speedy probe and proper protection to the eye-witnesses, as four of the five accused in the incident are still absconding.

According to the report, a 57-year-old dhaba owner and his 26-year-old son were shot dead allegedly by five men after a dispute over a cooler in outer Delhi's Najafgarh area on the night of July 26.

The accused wanted the cooler to be turned towards them but the dhaba owner, Shyam Verma, and his son Mayank did not agree, which led to a fight.

One of the persons in the group of five allegedly pulled out a pistol and shot Mayank in the neck and when his father tried to stop them, he was shot in the head.

While the dhaba owner died on the spot, his son succumbed to injuries later, the report had said.

The report had also quoted one of the relatives of the victims as saying that Mayank would have survived if the first hospital where he was taken would have admitted him.

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An "improvised explosive device " caused blast at a suburban Minneapolis mosque when worshippers were gathering for morning prayers, according to the FBI.

No one has been arrested yet. Congregants and neighbours expressed relief that there were no injuries, but also reacted with shock and dismay.

According to authorities, no one was hurt in the explosion at the Bloomington Islamic Center, but heavily damaged an imam's officeand sent smoke wafting through the large building.

Windows in the office were shattered, either by the blast or by an object thrown through them.

When police arrived, they found smoke and fire damage to the building, said Bloomington Police Chief Jeff Potts.

Agents from the FBI and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives soon joined the investigation.

At a news conference Special Agent in Charge Richard Thornton said an "improvised explosive device" caused the blast, but that investigators still must determine "who and why."



Mohamed Omar, the centre's executive director, who was in the building when the explosion erupted, said one worshipper saw a pickup truck speed out of the parking lot after the blast.

At a news conference that included clergy from several faiths, Asad Zaman, director of the local Muslim American Society, described the attack as a firebombing.

"Something blew up, we don't know what, but there was a lot of smoke, and the fire suppression system kicked in and stopped the fire," he said.

Neighbours reported waking up to a loud bang or pop, some even feeling the concussion reverberate through windows.

Minnesota law enforcement reported 14 anti-Muslim bias incidents last year, according to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, a record high even as other categories have been on the decline.

Governr Mark Dayton decried the incident and vowed to stay in close tough with law enforcement about the investigation.

"Every place of worship, for all Minnesotans of every faith and culture, must be sacred and safe," he said.

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A 40-year-old man was arrested here for allegedly bludgeoning his two minor daughters to death after an argument with his wife, police said today.

An argument broke out between accused Mukesh Yadav and his wife at their rented accommodation in New Palam Vihar area around 10 pm yesterday over the food for dinner and he thrashed her, an official said.

Yadav, who cuts and polishes stones for a living here, was allegedly in inebriated when the incident happened, Gurgaon Police PRO, Ravinder Kumar told PTI.

"The accused killed his daughters in a fit of rage," Kumar said.

Yadav's neighbours had informed the police about the incident, who reached the spot and took Yadav into custody.

"He (Yadav) was under the influence of alcohol and indulged in fight with his wife over the dinner. He first thrashed his wife and when his daughters, aged 3 and 5 years, clung to their mother and cried for help, he attacked them with bricks," Ram Mehar, a neighbour of Yadav, claimed.

Yadav has been booked on murder charges and sent to judicial custody, the police officer said.

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A 28-year-old Indian doctor has been arrested for allegedly groping a minor girl who was sitting next to him on a New Jersey-bound United Airlines flight, according to media reports.

The 16-year-old girl, who was travelling alone on July 23, was asleep on the flight when a stranger's hand on her thigh awakened her, the Washington Post reported.

The man, identified as Vijakumar Krishnappa, sitting next to her quickly removed his hand, according to a federal court complaint, and the teenager went back to sleep. Then, she woke up again - and this time, the man was groping her, the complaint says.

She reported the incident to the airline crew and was allowed to move seats.

Once the flight from Seattle landed at Newark Liberty Airport, the girl, from Washington state, called her parents. While she did, the accused left the airport, said Johnny McCray, an attorney for the girl's family.

The girl's family has filed a complaint against United Airlines for neglecting to detain Krishnappa after the alleged assault, the report said.

The FBI was called to handle the investigation. It used the flight manifest to track down Krishnappa, a doctor from India. The girl identified him from a photo array, ABC reported.

Krishnappa was charged in the federal court in Newark, a day after the incident, according to court records filed by the FBI charging him with criminal sexual contact.

Court records show he was arrested and charged with knowingly engaging in sexual contact with a minor female, the report said.

He has been released on bond, placed on electronic monitoring, and ordered to not have any contact with minors while the criminal case is pending, according to court records.

The doctor's court-appointed attorney, John Yauch, told the Post that his client "adamantly denies the charges and deserves to be considered an innocent man."



Krishnappa is studying medicine in the United States through a months-long fellowship that allows for doctors from foreign countries to learn from experts in the US, the daily said.

A spokesman from the Federal Aviation Administration told the daily that the airlines typically notify law enforcement about incidents before landing.

"The safety and security of our customers is our top priority. We take these allegations seriously and continue to work closely with the proper authorities as part of their review," a spokesperson for United Airlines said in a statement.
An Indian man in the UAE today hit a jackpot by winning a whopping dirham 5 million ($1.3 million) in a mega raffle draw in Abu Dhabi.

Krishnam Raju Thokachichu, who works as a detailing checker in the construction industry, won the huge sum in the latest edition of 'Big 5 Ticket Draw'.

The event held at the Abu Dhabi Airport was attended by all the big 10 millionaires from series 181.

Unlike many other winners who share the ticket prize with other raffle draw participants, Thokachichu will be enjoying the grand prize for himself.

"I used to buy tickets with other friends, but this time I decided I'll just shoulder the cost alone - and I got lucky this time," Thokachichu told Gulf News.

The winning could not have come at a better time for Thokachichu as he had been struggling to pay back his loans and was facing financial hardships.

The Indian based in Ras Al Khaimah had been buying tickets for the draw for the last three years, the report said.

"Every month, I'd set aside money to pay for the ticket. It was indeed a surprise when I got the call from the raffle organisers. I got so excited that I had to call my mother in India right away," he said.

Thokachichu, who first came to the UAE in 2008 and makes less than dirham 10,000 a month, said he will save a portion of the money to pay for the education of his four-year-old child.
At least eight domestic and international flights were today cancelled at Pakistan's Benazir Bhutto International Airport due to internet disruption caused by a submarine cable fault.

The disruption was caused due to a fault in the main submarine cable near Jeddah, an official of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) said.

Apart from hitting other activities, the interruption forced authorities to cancel two domestic and six international flights at capital's only airport.

An aviation official said flight schedule and bookings could not be confirmed due to slow internet, which resulted in cancellation of flights.

The air traffic would become normal after full restoration of internet services.

A spokesman of Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) said that alternative arrangements were being made to improve internet communication.

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Israel said today it planned to close the offices in the Jewish state of Al-Jazeera, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the Arab satellite broadcaster of incitement.

Netanyahu had said on July 27 that he wanted Al-Jazeera expelled amid tensions over a sensitive Jerusalem holy site.

"Al-Jazeera has become the main tool of Daesh (the Islamic State group), Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran," Communications Minister Ayoob Kara, a member of the Druze community from Netanyahu's Likud party, told a press conference.

He accused the Qatar-based broadcaster of "inciting violence which has provoked losses among the best of our sons", referring to two Druze policemen who were killed in a July 14 attack near the Al-Aqsa compound in east Jerusalem.

Netanyahu tweeted his congratulations to the minister "who on my instructions took concrete steps to end Al- Jazeera's incitement" in Israel.

The communications ministry said that "nearly all countries in the region including Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan, have concluded that Al-Jazeera incites terrorism and religious extremism."



It had become "ridiculous that the channel continued to broadcast from Israel".

The ministry said it would also demand the revocation of the credentials of journalists working for the channel and cut its cable and satellite connections.

The closure of Al-Jazeera's offices would come under the remit of security officials.

Israeli authorities would also seek to limit access by the Jewish state's Arab citizens to the station's broadcasts in Arabic, the communications ministry statement said without elaborating.

Arab Israelis, the descendants of Palestinians who stayed after the state of Israel was created in 1948, make up 17.5 per cent of the country's population.

Regional kingpin Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt broke ties with Qatar on June 5, accusing it of fostering extremism and later issuing 13 demands, including Al-Jazeera's closure.

"The Al-Jazeera channel continues to incite violence around the Temple Mount," Netanyahu wrote in a Facebook post, referring to the Haram al-Sharif compound in Jerusalem, known to Jews as the Temple Mount.

Protests erupted at the contentious site after Israel last month installed new security measures including metal detectors, following the shooting dead of the two Israeli policemen by attackers who emerged from the compound.

"I have appealed to law enforcement agencies several times to close the Al-Jazeera office in Jerusalem," Netanyahu said on July 27 in calling for the channel's expulsion.

"If this is not possible because of legal interpretation, I am going to seek to have the necessary legislation adopted to expel Al-Jazeera from Israel."



Israel has regularly accused the broadcaster of bias in its coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Netanyahu heads what is seen as the most right-wing government in Israeli history.

He has frequently criticised the media, accusing outlets of seeking to undermine his government.

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Jammu and Kashmir minister Abdul Haq Khan today met students from the state studying in various colleges in Mumbai and discussed problems faced by them.

During his interaction, the minister asked the students to become the ambassadors of Jammu and Kashmir and help in breaking the negative image of Kashmir, built by a section of media.

"On the direction of Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, Minister for Law and Justice Abdul Haq Khan today met Kashmiri students studying in various colleges of Mumbai to get the firsthand account of the issues being faced by them outside the state," an official spokesman said.

He said, during the interaction, it came fore that the students had to face problems due to the negative image of Jammu and Kashmir being portrayed by blowing minor issues out of proportion.

Khan said that studying outside the state could be a blessings in disguise for the students as they could bridge the gap by knowing more about the people and diverse cultures and help in removing negative images.

"Once people talk to each other, the negative notions against each other get demolished and real picture comes to fore," the minister was quoted as saying. He further added that it was the only way that people of Kashmir can counter the negative image being portrayed by a section of media.

Making an appeal to media to be a part of the solution instead of fuelling trouble, he said it can be done by facilitating in bridging gap and helping in addressing the alienation of Kashmiri youth.

The students told the minister about hardships being faced by them in finding rented accommodation.

They also demanded setting up of a special helpline in the state on which the students can contact the government in case of any need.

The minister assured that all the measures would be taken in safeguarding the interest of the students who are studying outside the state, the spokesperson said.

Khan advised the students to get in touch with the Chief Minister's Grievance Cell through social networking sites or call it directly in case they need any help from the government.

"The Chief Minister's grievances cell is functional 24X7 and monitored continuously," he said, adding that the safety and security of the students studying outside the state was the prime responsibility of the government.

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Union Minister Jitendra Singh today said the people of Kashmir, particularly the youth, have started questioning the separatists who he alleged have acquired "riches overnight".

"The people have begun to understand and raise the question as to which model of struggle from the history of the world is being followed by the so-called freedom fighters of Kashmir," Singh told reporters.

"Is this (Mahatma) Gandhi Model or (Nelson) Mandela Model or King Martin Luther model wherein you (separatists) have privilege of overnight becoming leaders and make overnight fortunes and gathering overnight riches and enjoying all the amenities and facilities of life? he asked.

Singh was replying to a question on the NIA raids and arrest of some separatists.

Taking a swipe at the separatist leaders, the minister said, "You ensure your children are well settled in the most lucrative positions and placed in peaceful areas of India and other parts of the world and at the same time, you instigate poor men's children to become martyrs."



"If that is the model, then it should be Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji model, who sacrificed all his children before asking for the sacrifice of the others' children," he said.

Earlier in the day, the minister reviewed the status of ongoing works under various centrally-sponsored schemes in Udhampur district.

Singh, who paid a day-long visit to Udhampur, held a meeting with district officials.

Singh represents Udhampur in the Lok Sabha.

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Telangana ideologue K Jayashankar who dedicated his entire life for the cause of separate state and its progress would continue to remain a guiding spirit, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said today.

"Telangana can never forget Prof (late) K Jayashankar who worked relentlessly in his entire life for achieving statehood for Telangana," Rao said on the occasion of Jayashankar's 83rd birth anniversary.

Various functions were held across the state to mark the anniversary of the ideologue.

"Jayashankar sacrificed his entire life in spreading the concept of separate Telangana among the people from the time Hyderabad State merged with the Andhra Pradesh State till the second phase of separate Telangana movement," Rao said.

Kothapalli Jayashankar, popularly known as Professor Jayashankar, was an academic and social activist who made an immense contribution to the cause of Telangana.

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Small appliances brand Kenstar is looking at 30 per cent sales growth this fiscal on account of portfolio expansion, entry into newer geographies and advantages from the Goods and Services Tax (GST) rollout.

Post GST implementation, the company is expecting the sale of branded air coolers to rise as the new indirect tax regime will remove the huge price differential advantage the unorganised market was enjoying.

"We expect sales growth of 30 per cent in the current fiscal on account of beefing up of our products range, introduction of GST and entry into newer geographies," Kenstar COO Rajiv Kenue told PTI.

The company, without disclosing its financial details, said 60-65 per cent of its sales comes from air coolers. It reported a sales growth of 22 per cent in the previous fiscal.

"With introduction of GST, we expect share of unorganised market in sale of air coolers to fall drastically as they will no longer have huge price differential advantage compared with branded players," he added.

At present, 70 per cent of air coolers market is dominated by unorganised players. Kenue said with GST, price difference in products of unorganised and organised players will be just 10 cent as against 30 per cent earlier.

"We are aiming to be number 1 player in the air cooler segment by fiscal 2020 across India," he said.

The company is also focusing on increasing exports out of India to newer geographies in Africa, South East Asia and Latin America.

"At present, exports account for 5-10 per cent of our sales but we are looking at increasing it to 15 per cent by end of next fiscal as we enter into new markets," Kenue said.

Elaborating on new products launches, he said: "This year we are looking at expanding our range of induction cooking, launch slow juicers, rice cookers and wine chillers."



Next fiscal, Kenstar plans to launch air purifier and industrial air cooling solutions. It is also exploring getting into water purifiers segment.

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Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today expressed concern over the state's depiction as a "trouble-torn" region and called for coordinated efforts of all the political parties to put an end to violence.

Talking to reporters after an all-party meeting, convened to discuss the political situation in the aftermath of the recent killing of an RSS worker here, he said the "propaganda" that Kerala was a trouble-torn state would adversely impact the its investment prospects.

Leaders of all the major political parties, including the ruling CPI(M), opposition Congress and BJP participated in the meeting and extended total support to the government's peace initiatives.

"The propaganda that Kerala is a trouble-torn state is a matter of concern. Such a false propaganda will adversely impact its investment and development prospects," said Vijayan.

The chief minister also said that the incidents of political violence in the state should come to an end.

Earlier, the all-party meeting observed that the social media played a key role in spreading violence and tension in the state.

It was also decided to see criminals as criminals, irrespective of their party affiliations.

Leaders of the political parties should also go to those places, from where the incidents of violence were reported, to create an environment of peace, the meeting said, adding that the police should take more stringent action in such cases.

CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan, party MLA O Rajagopal, opposition leader in the state Assembly Ramesh Chennithala and Kerala Congress president M M Hassan attended the all-party meeting.

The state government decided to convene the meeting after Governor P Sathasivam summoned the chief minister on July 30 and asked him to hold it to restore peace in the state, in view of a series of incidents of violence and the killing of the RSS functionary here on July 29.

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may be a greater public hazard than obesity, according to a study which found that social isolation may put people at an increased risk of early death.

"Being connected to others socially is widely considered a fundamental human need - crucial to both well-being and survival," said Julianne Holt-Lunstad, professor at Brigham Young University in the US.

"Extreme examples show infants in custodial care who lack human contact fail to thrive and often die, and indeed, social isolation or solitary confinement has been used as a form of punishment," said Holt-Lunstad.

"Yet an increasing portion of the USPopulation now experiences isolation regularly," she said.

To illustrate the influence of social isolation and on the risk for premature mortality, Holt-Lunstad presented data from two research reviews.

The first involved 148 studies, representing more than 300,000 participants, and found that greater social connection is associated with a 50 per cent reduced risk of early death.

The second study, involving 70 studies representing more than 3.4 million individuals from North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, examined the role that social isolation, or living alone might have on mortality.

Researchers found that all three had a significant and equal effect on the risk of premature death, one that was equal to or exceeded the effect of other well-accepted risk factors such as obesity.

"There is robust evidence that social isolation and loneliness significantly increase risk for premature mortality, and the magnitude of the risk exceeds that of many leading indicators," said Holt-Lunstad.

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PDP leader and Bengaluru serial blast accused Abdul Nasser Madani arrived in Kerala today to visit his ailing mother and attend his son's marriage.

Madani (51), an accused in the 2008 serial blasts case, was accompanied by a team of police officials from Karnataka.

He had been permitted by the NIA court to visit his parents in Kerala.

The Supreme Court had permitted him to attend the wedding of his son on August 9 at Thalassery in Kannur district.

The court had criticised the Karnataka government for demanding Rs 14.8 lakh from the PDP leader to escort him to Kerala.

The state government later reduced the amount to Rs 1.18 lakh.

Hundreds of Madani's supporters had gatherred at Kochi International airport, where security was tight, to greet the PDP leader.

On his arrival, Madani said he was grateful to all those who had stood by him during his fight for justice.

While granting Madani the permission to visit Kerala to attend his son's wedding, the apex court had on July 31 asked him to bear the expenses incurred on his escort provided by the Karnataka police.

The PDP leader's visit had run into trouble after the Karnataka police sought Rs 14.79 lakh towards security expenses during his visit to Kerala.

Madani had visited Kerala on three previous occasions between 2013 and 2016.

During the first two visits, no amount was insisted on and in the third visit, Rs 50,000 was required to be paid.

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An man has been arrested for an alleged sexual assault on a seven year old girl in the posh Sushant Lok area of Gurgaon, the police said today.

The accused, identified as Amresh, 26, was arrested on Saturday night from a restrobar in the sector 29 area.

"His arrest was made on the basis of a tip off. The police identified him after examining the CCTV footage as the culprit involved in raping a minor girl", Gurgaon Police PRO, Ravinder Kumar said.

The incident occurred on April 29, last, year when the accused allegedly lured the child by offering sweets while she was playing outside her residence in Sushant Lok area, Kumar said.

The accused escaped after committed the crime, he claimed. An injured victim was later admitted to a hospital.

Police teams searched for the accused who hails from the a village in Madhya Pradesh, the officer added.

He had escaped to his native place but returned back in Gurgaon couple of months ago, he said.

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The Gujarat Congress legislators, camping at a private resort near here, would be flown back to their home state directly and not to Delhi as has been reported in a section of the media, party sources said here on Sunday.

The Gujarat Congress had sent 44 of its MLAs here on July 29 to fend off the "poaching" attempts by the BJP, ahead of the August 8 Rajya Sabha poll in that state, in which Ahmed Patel, the political secretary to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, is contesting.

Denying the reports that the MLAs would first be flown to Delhi to meet Sonia, Congress spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil told reporters here that they would be returning to Gujarat "directly".

However, he declined to disclose when would the MLAs return to their home state.

"One thing that has been decided is that all of us (the 44 MLAs) will fly to Gujarat, not Delhi," he said.

Gohil alleged that it was the BJP, which was spreading "canards" that the Congress MLAs would first be flown to the capital to meet Sonia.

He also charged that the saffron party was spreading "false reports" that the MLAs would use the 'NOTA' option in the upcoming Rajya Sabha poll to defeat Patel.

The Congress has objected to the 'NOTA' option in the Rajya Sabha poll, which is being seen as a prestige battle for the party in Gujarat.

Gohil asserted that all the Congress MLAs were "united" and that they would vote for Patel in the August 8 election.

Six of the 57 Congress MLAs in Gujarat have quit the party recently with three of them joining the BJP on July 28.

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Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi and the nation's opposition chief Afonso Dhlakama met today for the first since 2015, a step toward peace after years of instability.

The men spoke in the remote Gorongosa mountains, where Dhlakama retreated in October 2015 with 800 former fighters demanding a greater share of power.

"The two leaders discussed and agreed on the next steps in the peace process, which they hope to be completed by the end of the year," the presidency said in a statement.

They last got together in 2015, before Dhlakama fled into the mountains where he is awaiting the elections set for 2019.

Dhlakama's Renamo is an armed insurgent group that led a 16-year rebellion and an opposition political party that took up arms again in 2013.

Clashes between the ruling Frelimo party government and Renamo last year revived the spectre of Mozambique's civil war that ended more than 20 years ago.

Renamo members, who hold seats in parliament, have called for greater decentralisation of the state and better integration of their people into the police and military.

Dhlakama declared a unilateral ceasefire in 2016, which he prolonged indefinitely in May.

Mozambique is still recovering from its bloody 1976-1992 civil war when one million people died during years of sporadic fighting between Frelimo and Renamo.

The more recent fighting has often focused on Mozambique's main roads, with Renamo attacking government convoys and civilian vehicles, and soldiers ruthlessly targeting suspected Renamo rebels in nearby villagers.

The death toll is unknown but scores of people are reported to have been killed in 2016, with both the Frelimo and Renamo parties also suffering assassinations of local politicians.

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Hiroshima's appeal of "never again" on the anniversary today of the world's first atomic bomb attack has gained urgency as North Korea moves ever closer to acquiring nuclear weapons, showing its growing prowess with increasingly frequent missile launches.

When the US dropped the bomb on August 6, 1945, Toshiki Fujimori's mother was carrying him, then just a year old, piggyback to the hospital. The impact of the explosion threw them both to the ground, nearly killing him.

"Obviously tensions are growing as North Korea has been pushing ahead with nuclear tests and development," said Fujimori. "Nuclear weapons just are unacceptable for mankind."



Many Japanese and others in the region seem resigned to North Korea's apparent newfound capacity to launch missiles capable of reaching much of the continental United States.

But the threat lends a deeper sense of alarm in Hiroshima, where 140,000 died in that first A-bomb attack, which was followed on August 9, 1945, by another that killed more than 70,000 people in Nagasaki.

"This hell is not a thing of the past," Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui said in his peace declaration at Sunday's ceremony. "As long as nuclear weapons exist and policymakers threaten their use, their horror could leap into our present at any moment. You could find yourself suffering their cruelty."



Today, a single bomb can cause even greater damage than the bombs dropped 72 years ago, he said. "Humankind must never commit such an act," he said, urging nuclear states, as well as Japan, to join the nuclear weapons ban treaty adopted by the United Nations in July.

Fujimori said that each August 6, his late mother, who also survived, insisted on retelling the story of the attack to children in their neighborhood, saying she had to keep reminding them to help prevent the same mistake from happening again.

Decades later, 73-year-old Fujimori himself is a leader of Hidankyo, a major organization of atomic bomb survivors.

"We must eradicate nuclear weapons from the earth to make the world a safe place to live," he said in an interview.

"There is still a lot to do and we must keep working on it."



He said the adoption of the UN nuclear weapons ban, which was boycotted by all nuclear-armed nations, shows that most of the world supports that cause.

Two recent test-firings of Hwasong-14 inter-continental ballistic missiles suggest that major US cities such as Los Angeles and Chicago are within range of North Korean weapons.

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A Maoist section commander, carrying a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh on his head, was arrested from Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit Dantewada district, police said today.

Based on specific inputs, the rebel identified as Kesha Markam (21), was apprehended from Palnar village last evening while a joint team of district force and CRPF was carrying out a search operation in Kuakonda police station limits, Deputy Inspector General (Dantewada range) Sundarraj P told PTI.

Markam, who was active as a section commander of Maoists Janmilitia Platoon in the region, was allegedly involved in Burgum Dorapara gun-battle in Dantewada, wherein five Naxals and two police jawans were killed, he said.

"He was also allegedly involved in the attacks on security forces by triggering blast, damaging roads on Sameli-Aranpur route and others," the DIG said adding that he was carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh on him.

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Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today urged the Centre to allocate funds "liberally" to strengthen the subordinate judiciary in the state in order to provide speedy justice to the litigants.

"We (BJP and JDU) have come together. It must also reflect (in the allocation of funds). Bihar is a big state with 38 districts and 101 sub-divisions and you (Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad) are saying Rs 50-60-70 crore will be given to it to strengthen the subordinate judiciary.... It will not serve the purpose," he said at a function here.

Stating that Bihar's budget, which was around Rs 25,000 crore to Rs 26,000 crore in 2005-06, had now increased to over Rs 1.40 lakh crore, Kumar said, "If you (Centre) want to give to the state, allocate funds liberally...I am talking about the funds for strengthening the subordinate judiciary."



He added that his government had already sanctioned Rs 169 crore for the expansion project of the Patna High Court.

The chief minister was addressing a function to launch the 'Tele Law: Mainstreaming Legal Aid Through Common Service Centre' scheme.

As per the scheme, which was launched in the state today, a common villager can have access to legal aid services with the help of the para-legal volunteers at the Common Service Centre (CSC), which would be equipped with computers and Internet facility.

Prasad, who spoke before Nitish, expressed happiness that the scheme was being launched after the BJP and the JDU joined hands in the state.

"Bihar has been given Rs 50 crore in 2016-17 for strengthening the subordinate judiciary. I will increase it to Rs 60-70 crore the next time, provided a utilisation certificate is furnished by the authority concerned," he said.

This was the first big function in the state capital after the formation of the JD(U)-BJP-led NDA government in Bihar, where an Union minister and the chief minister shared the dais.

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Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said today his government will not tolerate corruption and "remove" all those found involved in graft cases.

Wickremesinghe's comments came amid a controversy over Foreign Minister Ravi Karunanayake who has faced calls for resignation following his testimony at a probe on the issuance of Central Bank of Sri Lanka's bonds during 2015 and 2016.

Karunanayake is unlikely to resign.

Wickremesinghe said all allegations of corruption under his government would be investigated and action will be taken depending on the outcomes.

"There is no place for robbers in our government. We will remove them," Wickremesinghe said in the hill town of Hatton.

He said all allegations of corruption under his government will be investigated and action will be taken depending on the outcomes.

He said a senior minister's quizzing for wrongdoing by the Attorney General reflected the freedom his government has brought in.

"We have filed cases against the Rajapaksa government's corruption. Cases are ongoing. When the Central Bank Bond issue allegations were made against my government, I appointed an internal probe and later it was referred to a parliamentary committee headed by an opposition member," Wickremesinghe said.

The current unity government formed in 2015 with the ouster of the former Mahinda Rajapaksa regime by Wickremesinghe and President Maithripala Sirisena has faced its biggest scandal in the form of the Central Bank Bond issue.

Perpetual Treasuries, a Central Bank primary dealer, has been accused of benefiting through insider information during the Governorship of Arjuna Mahendran whose son in law Arjun Aloysius is linked to the firm.

Mahendran, Wickremesinghe's close friend, was later removed from the job by Sirisena.

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One person was killed and another was badly wounded in a paramilitary attack on a Venezuelan military base today, army chief General Jesus Suarez Chourio said.

"What happened today was a terrorist, paramilitary, mercenary attack paid for by the right (the opposition) and its collaborators, paid for by the North American empire (the US), and we have one of them taken out and one who was badly wounded," he said on state television.

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Senior RSS leader Indresh Kumar said today that people should boycott chinese products and emphasised that the focus should be on 'swadeshi' products.

"The government of India will deal with China in its own way, but we must boycott chinese goods," Kumar said here while attending a programme on the eve of Rakshabandhan, according to a statement.

His comments come in the backdrop of the Doklam stand- off.

He claimed that the government of India has already put Pakistan and China in the dock in the global context, the statement said.

Kumar also stressed that the people should accept 'swadeshi' or made in India products in their lives.

Speaking about the Rakshabandhan, Kumar said it was a festival to honour women.

"A society which honours the women, divinity dwells there," he said.

He also stressed on respecting the armed forces. "Our independence, honour and culture is safe thanks to the Army. We must respect them," Kumar said.

He also emphasised on the importance of cleanliness. Cleanliness must start from us and we should pledge not to spread litter in public places, he said.

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A police sub-inspector was today killed and a constable was injured in a gun-battle with naxals in insurgency-hit forest area of Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district.

The skirmish took place this afternoon when a specialised unit of the district force was out on an anti-maoist operation in the jungle of Gatapar police station area, Inspector General of Police (Durg Range) Dipanshu Kabra told PTI.

A team of E-30, an anti-naxal force of district police, was cordoning off the forests near Bhave village, over 150 kms from here, when it came under heavy fire from a group of ultras, leading to the encounter.

However, on finding security personnel zeroing on them, the rebels fled into core forests, he said.

"A sub-inspector of police Yugal Kishore Verma was killed in the incident while constable Krish Sahu sustained injuries," the official added.

After being informed of the incident, reinforcements were being rushed to the spot and the body of slain official was being recovered from the forest. The injured jawan was also being evacuated, he said.

A 2008 batch SI rank official, Verma was resident of Palari area in the state's Balodabazar district.

A major portion of Rajnandgaon is bordering Gondia and Gadchiroli (Maharashtra) and Balaghat (Madhya Pradesh) where maoist activities have been continuously reported.

As per the maoist documents recovered recently from Bastar region, naxals are now trying to set up their new base in this tri-junction region.

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Press does not have any exclusive right or special privilege to comment, criticise or make imputations or allegations which are sufficient to ruin a citizen's reputation, a Delhi court has said.

Further, journalists do not have greater freedom than others, it has said while reminding that the responsibility of the scribes was higher as they have power to disseminate information.

The court's order came as it restrained the managing editor of a magazine from publishing any libellous articles against a man who has alleged that he was defamed.

It also directed the magazine editor and another person to pay Rs 30,000 and Rs 20,000 respectively to the man as "symbolic damages".

"Further, journalists are in no better position than any other person. The press does not enjoy any exclusive rights under our Constitution, apart from those enjoyed by a citizen as a concomitant of the freedom of speech and rights against unlawful deprivation of life and liberty guaranteed under Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution," Additional District Judge Raj Kapoor said.

The court said the press enjoys no special privileges to comment, criticise or even to investigate the facts of any case and rights of press persons are not higher than that of the common man.

"In fact the responsibilities of a journalist are higher. The common man has limited means and reach in which he acts.

"A journalist on the other hand has a wider reach and power to disseminate information and therefore such power has the potential to cause irreparable damage to a matter under enquiry in a court of law or in a given case has greater propensity to scandalise ... The dignity, majesty or reputation of an individual or an institution," it said.

The man, a share broker and member of a housing society, had alleged that an article was published in the magazine in December 2007 to tarnish his image by using defamatory words.

He said when he issued a legal notice to the defendants, instead of apologising, they again defamed him by writing defamatory words against him to government agencies.

However, the founder and managing editor of the magazine claimed before the court that there was no defamatory article naming the man and that the magazine was not distributed among the business or connected circle of the man.

The second defendant, the then president and a resident of the same housing society, alleged that the man was indulging in unlawful activities in the society and he had filed a civil suit for removal of unauthorized encroachment there.

The court, however, said the two defendants had connived and published the articles in the magazine which were defamatory in nature and harmed the reputation of the man.

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Seeking to remove Devendrakula Velalar community from SC caste category and include it in MBC list, Puthiya Tamizhkam will hold a demonstration in Chennai on October six.

As the SC tag has become the "biggest obstacle" for them in getting the deserved reservation, Puthiya Tamizhakam founder president, Dr K Krishnasamy told reporters here today.

About five lakh people from the community will take out a march to Secretariat on that day, Krishnasamy said.

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Russia's top diplomat said today his country was ready for more engagement with the United States on North Korea, Syria, Ukraine and other pressing matters, even as Moscow braced for new sanctions from the Trump administration.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, after meeting with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson for the first since the US imposed the additional penalties, said Russian and the US had agreed to resume a suspended high-level diplomatic channel and Washington would send its Ukraine envoy to Moscow for negotiations.

Lavrov's upbeat assessment came amid what the US has called a diplomatic low point unseen since the end of the Cold War.

It wasn't immediately clear whether the US shared Lavrov's rosy view of the meeting. The US offered no comment about what the diplomats discussed, and Tillerson didn't respond to shouted questions from journalists allowed in briefly for the start of the hour-plus meeting in the Philippines.

"We felt that our American counterparts need to keep the dialogue open," Lavrov said. "There's no alternative to that." Lavrov said Tillerson had asked him for details about Moscow's recent move to expel American diplomats and shutter a US recreational facility on the outskirts of Moscow. Lavrov said he explained to Tillerson how Russia will carry out its response, but did not publicly disclose details.

Last month, the Kremlin said the US must cut its embassy and consulate staff in Russia by 755 people, a move that echoed former President Barack Obama's action last year to kick out Russian diplomats in punishment for Moscow's meddling in the 2016 American election.

The Russian announcement has caused confusion because the US is believed to have far fewer than 755 American employees in the country.

Word that US special representative Kurt Volker plans to visit the Russian capital was the latest sign that Washington is giving fresh attention to resolving the Ukraine conflict.

The US cut military ties to Russia over Moscow's annexation of Crimea and accuses the Kremlin of fomenting unrest in eastern Ukraine by arming, supporting and even directing pro-Russian separatists there who are fighting the Kiev government.

In recent days, the Trump administration has been considering providing lethal weaponry to Ukraine to help defend itself against Russian aggression.

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The has cleared the decks for selection and appointment of over 3500 Sub- Inspectors and Platoon Commanders in Uttar Pradesh Police, which has been stalled for over six years.

The apex court stayed the directions passed by both benches of the High Court at Allahabad and Lucknow from time to time and restrained them from entertaining any petition with regard to selection and appointment process of police officials which started in 2011 when the BSP government was in power.

The erstwhile Samajwadi Party government's attempt to take it forward also did not yield results due to multiple litigations.

The incumbent BJP government told the apex court that there was a dire need of police personnel as no appointment for the Sub-Inspector posts has been made for six years.

A bench of Justices Kurian Joseph and R Banumathi, while hearing a batch of appeals, directed the state government to resume the training process within two weeks, which will be continued and completed till the last among the 3533 candidates undergoes the training.

"In the above circumstances, we are of the view that it will be appropriate if the State is permitted and directed to complete the process of appointment of the candidates who had already commenced the training. In case, any one of them has completed the training, it will be open to the State to appoint him/her straightaway," the bench said.

The apex court clarified that successful completion of the training will be followed by their appointment and posted the matter for further hearing on August 22.

The recruitment process for 4010 vacancies had started on May 19, 2011, but after the final selection list was published, some candidates challenged the entire process which eventually led to the stalling of selection and appointment of police officials in the state.

The Uttar Pradesh government told the apex court that was in dire need of police personnel as no appointment in the post of Sub-Inspectors has been made by way of direct recruitment during the past six years.

The bench was informed that a total of 3533 candidates had been sent for training in November, 2015 and they have almost completed it.

The state government told the court that as far as 291 candidates for the post of Platoon Commanders are concerned, 132 were sent for training and 75 of them have already completed it.

The apex court also directed the state government to take the remaining tests (group discussions, physical fitness and medical examination) of all the 237 candidates, who had challenged the selection process by way of 37 petitions, provided they have cleared the written examination.

It directed the state government to file a status-cum- compliance report within two weeks and apprise it about the 810 candidates whose results were withheld as the selection list was allegedly tampered with by using whitener.

On May 19, 2011, an advertisement was issued by the state government for selection of 4010 candidates (Sub-Inspectors and Platoon Commanders).

The qualifier preliminary examination for selection was held on December 11, 2011. Results of preliminary examination was announced on January 1, 2013 and based on the results, the main examination was conducted on September 14, 2014.

The results of the main examination was announced on October 23, 2014 and all the successful candidates were invited for the next stage of Group Discussion, which was held from December 11, 2014 to January 10, 2015.

The final select list of 3784 candidates was published on March 16, 2015. Based on the final selection list 3533 candidates were sent for training which completed in November, 2016.
The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal filed by the CBI challenging a Delhi High Court order that had quashed charges of alleged corruption and conspiracy against a former central excise commissioner posted here.

The apex court upheld the November 2013 judgement of the high court which had discharged former excise commissioner Anup Kumar Srivastava from the case after allowing his plea against the alleged charges framed against him by the trial court in a graft case.

A bench, comprising Justices A K Sikri and R K Agrawal, said that intercepted telephonic conversations, on which CBI was heavily relying, lacked object and purpose to prove his complicity in the alleged offence and there was no evidence that he had demanded or accepted bribe.

"The high court was well within its powers while quashing the order framing charge as there was no material on record to connect the respondent (Srivastava) with the offence in question," the bench said while dismissing CBI's appeal.

The CBI had in February 2012 chargesheeted Srivastava and others for alleged offences of criminal conspiracy under the IPC and under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, claiming they had obtained "illegal gratification" by corrupt means in a raid conducted here in 2011.

Srivastava had denied the allegations levelled against him by the probe agency.

The agency had alleged that a team of Delhi Central Excise had conducted an illegal raid at the premises of Dilip Aggarwal and Anand Aggarwal here and Srivastava, through a private person, had negotiated for illegal gratification of Rs 60 lakh in lieu of not taking any action against them.

It had claimed that the private person, who had acted as a middleman, was in regular touch with the officials of the excise department as well as owners of the premises and had received Rs 20 lakhs in cash along with a cheque of Rs 20 lakhs as security for the remaining bribe amount.

The CBI had also alleged that Srivastava was in touch with the alleged middleman as well.

While assailing the high court's verdict, CBI had argued in the apex court that the order was based on "assumption and hypothesis" and ignored the crucial evidence in the form of intercepted telephonic conversations which proved involvement of Srivastava in the alleged offence.

Srivastava's counsel had contended before the top court that there was no evidence against the former officer and he was falsely implicated in the case.

"There is no direct or circumstantial evidence to prove that the respondent (Srivastava) has demanded any illegal gratification and has accepted or obtained any such illegal gratification," the apex court said.

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The ED on Sunday arrested Mohammad Aslam Wani, an alleged hawala dealer, in connection with its about a decade-old money laundering case against Kashmiri separatist Shabir Shah.

A senior official in the central probe agency said Wani was arrested from Jammu and Kashmir's summer capital Srinagar by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) with the help of the state police.

The official said Wani (36) is being flown in from Srinagar and will be produced by evening before a special judge in Delhi for his further custody.

The ED had recently got a non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against him from a Delhi court. The agency had issued multiple summonses for his appearance in the case but he never appeared.

"The warrant has been executed and Wani will now be confronted with Shah and others in order to take the probe forward", he said.

Shah, now in ED custody, was similarly arrested by the agency from Srinagar on July 26.

The ED action against the two is in pursuance of an August 2005 case, wherein the Delhi Police's Special Cell had arrested Wani, dealer, who had claimed that he passed on Rs 2.25 crore to Shah.

In 2010, a Delhi court had cleared Wani of terror funding charges but had convicted him under the Arms Act.

The ED had registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Shah and Wani.

Wani was arrested allegedly with Rs 63 lakh, received through 'hawala' channels from the Middle East, and a large cache of ammunition, on August 26, 2005.

During questioning, he had told the police that Rs 50 lakh was to be delivered to Shah and Rs 10 lakh to Jaish-e- Mohammad area commander in Srinagar, Abu Baqar, and that the rest was his commission.

Wani, who hails from Srinagar, had also claimed that he delivered around Rs 2.25 crore to Shah and his kin in multiple instalments over the past year.

The ED, sources said, wants to probe the "proceeds of crime" of alleged terror financing in this case.
Online marketplace ShopClues is entering the unboxed and refurbished electronic gadgets category and targets doubling its gross merchandise value with a customer count of 9 million by the end of this fiscal.

The company aims to organise the mostly unstructured category of used and unboxed electronics, it said.

"With a focus on the 're-new' gadgets category, ShopClues is structuring the massive opportunity around unboxed and refurbished electronics.

"Extensive primary research has informed us that there is a huge need gap when it comes to consumers buying unboxed and refurbished gadgets, especially with awareness, availability, and quality assurance," Radhika Aggarwal, co-founder and chief business officer, ShopClues.Com said here.

It is targeting to grow its gross merchandise value (GMV) by two-times, with a customer base of 9 million, she added.

ShopClues currently services 30,000 PIN codes and is targeting a GMV of about Rs 20,000 crore by the end of this fiscal.

The e-commerce company will be among the first marketplaces to enter this category.

"Our product teams have also solved the fundamental problem of trust and quality through a specific surety badge - Surety Re-New - which signifies that the product has gone through 5 levels of quality checks, something that no local seller can replicate," she added.

The company plans to focus on tier-III and IV towns like Bankura, Tiruvallur, Krishna and Godavari, in the South.

The company has tied up with top selling brands like Nokia, Samsung, OnePlus and Motorola, Xiaomi and Asus.

It aims to move beyond the consumer-to-consumer nature in this market and add value to products in this category.

Going forward, the company plans to grow this category to include TVs, watches and more, it said.

ShopClues has over 20 million listed products, with five lakh merchants and 7,000 online brand stores.

The company received 'Series E' funding from sovereign wealth fund GIC. Its other investors include Tiger Global, Helion Venture Partners and Nexus Venture Partners.

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Six policemen, including a Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), were today injured when a mob threw stones at the cops when they tried to remove a road blockade put by villagers in Bihar's Sheohar district.

Superintendent of Police (SP) P N Mishra said that SDPO Pritish Kumar was among six policemen injured when a mob threw stones at the cops at Basantpatti village while they were trying to remove road blockade put by the villagers demanding compensation to next of kin of a boy who died after being hit by a motorcycle.

As many as six villagers were also injured in the lathicharge by the police, eyewitnesses claimed.

The local people claimed that the police fired in the air to disperse the mob, but the SP denied police firing in the air.

SDPO Pritish Mishra's bodyguard Ramiz Raja has been referred to a hospital in Muzaffarpur in view of his serious condition, Mishra said, adding that the other injured policemen are - Nandkishore Sharma, Neeraj Kumar, Alok Kumar, Saroj Mishra and Misha have been admitted in Sadar hospital.

The SP said that he was camping in the village with the District Magistrate Raj Kumar in view of tension prevailing in the area.

After hearing about the of the death of the 12 year-old injured boy in a hospital last night, the villagers gathered at Basantpatti village this morning and put up a road blockade demanding compensation to the family of the victim.

The policemen from Puranhia police station rushed to the spot and tried to pacify the mob to lift the blockade which pelted stones on the cops prompting them to lathicharge the protesters to disperse them from the spot.

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Swathes of southern Europe sweltered in a heatwave that has claimed several lives, cost billions in crop damage and is, scientists warned, a foretaste of worse to follow in coming decades.

At least five deaths in Italy and Romania have been attributed to the extreme conditions since the heatwave set in around the start of August.

Unusually high, sometimes unprecedented temperatures, are being recorded across an area spanning much of Spain and Portugal, southern France, Italy, the Balkans and Hungary.

The mercury has regularly risen above 40 degrees Celsius across the affected areas, exacerbating the impact of an extended drought and the lingering impact of a July heatwave which sparked wildfires that claimed 60 lives in Portugal.

Hospital admissions have spiked 15-20 per cent in Italy, where at least three people have died.

Italians longing for the beach have dubbed the hot spell "Lucifero", or Lucifer, after the biblical archangel said to have been condemned forever to the flames of hell.

The latest victim was a woman whose car was swept away overnight by an avalanche of water and mud as humid conditions near the Alpine ski resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo broke into torrential rain.

That tragedy follows the deaths on Thursday of two pensioners caught up in wildfires in the central region of Abruzzo and near Matera in the south of the country.

In Romania, two deaths were linked to the weather, including a farmworker who collapsed after working in fields in the northeast of the country, while Spanish TV station TVE reported that a 51-year-old man died as a result of the heat on the Mediterranean island of Majorca.

In Italy, humidity and other factors are making it feel much hotter with the so-called "perceived" temperature in Campania, the region around Naples, estimated at a broiling 55 Celsius (131 Farenheit) on Friday.

Hospital admissions are running 15-20 per cent above seasonal norms and food producers are forecast to suffer billions of euros in losses as a result of reduced crop yields.

Italian wine and olive production is tipped to fall 15 and 30 per cent respectively this year.

In Rome, tourists have been risking recently introduced fines for splashing in the Eternal City's fountains to cool off.

But there has yet to be any sign of visitors to southern Europe's summer hotspots being deterred by the rising temperatures.

Tourists were queuing once more yesterday outside Florence's Uffizi museum, which was forced to close Friday after its air conditioning broke down because of a lack of water from the dried up River Arno.

Health authorities in France have warned citizens to be particularly aware of the risks faced by the sick and the elderly.

The country is still haunted by memories of a 2003 heatwave which resulted in an estimated 15,000 avoidable deaths among pensioners, some of whom had been left on their own by holiday-making relatives.

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A man allegedly burnt his 70-year-old father to death in Nadia district for refusing to give him a share of the money he had earned by selling some trees, the police has said.

Baidyanath Biswas, a farmer, recently sold some trees for Rs 90,000 and his son Abodh wanted a share of the money but his father refused, a police officer said.

An angry Abodh allegedly poured petrol on his father while he was sleeping and set him on fire at Rabanbar village under Ranaghat police station area on Friday night.

His mother Saraswati, who was sleeping on the same bed, suffered burn injuries while making an effort to save her husband.

Abodh too was injured in trying to save his mother, the officer said.

All of them were taken to Ranaghat Anulia Hospital, where Baidyanath was declared brought dead, he said.

While his wife was shifted to Kalyani JNM Hospital, Abodh was initially admitted to the Ranaghat hospital. Later, he too was referred to JNM Hospital, police said.

Baidyanath's other son Subodh lodged a complaint against Abodh at the Ranaghat police station.

The officer said Abodh, who suffered 50 per cent burns, would be arrested after he is released from hospital.

Baidyanath's body was handed over to his family after post mortem.

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Sri Lankan Airlines, which recently recommenced its operations to Colombo from here, has recorded around 75 per cent capacity of passengers on its four flights a week, a senior official has said.

On an average, the Airlines has recorded 70 to 75 per cent passenger load and full capacity on Thursdays, Sri Lankan Airlines Area Manager, V Suresh told reporters here last night on the sidelines of an event.

He also said that the Airlines expected full capacity in another two months, as the demand was growing, especially from leisure segment, followed by business trips.

Besides, those who want to travel to Los Angeles, also prefer the Airlines, which has air connectivity to Doha from Colombo, he added.

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An IAS officer, whose daughter was allegedly stalked by the son of a senior Haryana BJP leader, today took to social media and urged people to fight crime against women while also sharing the ordeal his family had gone through.

The victim also expressed her anguish in a post saying she was lucky not to be the daughter of a commoner or else who knows what her fate could be.

"If we do not persist in trying to bring the guilty to justice, more and more daughters will suffer this hurt," said victim's father, in a Facebook post.

The son of Haryana's ruling BJP chief Subhash Barala was yesterday arrested along with his friend for allegedly stalking the woman here.

Both the accused, Vikas Barala (23) and Ashish Kumar (27), were released later on bail as they were booked under bailable sections of the IPC and the Motor Vehicles Act, amid political outcry.

The incident had come to light when the woman, around 28 years of age, called up the police on Friday night and complained that two youth were chasing her.

The father of the victim in his Facebook post thanked the Chandigarh police for being helpful and efficient in handling the matter.

While stating how his family had gone through a "horrendous experience", he said that it will take a long time for his daughter "to go back to a normal life."



Giving reasons for the Facebook post, the father said, "Our clear intention is to bring the culprits to book."



The woman in her complaint had alleged that two youth in an SUV followed her when she was driving from the Sector 8 market in Chandigarh towards Panchkula on the intervening night of August 4 and 5.

"There were two guys inside the SUV, and they seemed to really be enjoying harassing a lone girl in the middle of the night, judging by how often their car swerved, just enough to scare me that it might hit me," the woman wrote on her Facebook post.

"I'm lucky, it seems, to not be the daughter of a common man, because what chance would they have against such VIPs? I'm also lucky, because I'm not lying raped and murdered in a ditch somewhere. If this can happen in Chandigarh, it can happen anywhere," she said.

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had said that the law will take its own course in the case while Haryana BJP president Subhash Barala had said he respects the law and the "truth" will come out through the court.

Meanwhile, the opposition Congress today held protests at various places against the incident.

State Congress chief Ashok Tanwar led one such protest in Faridabad.

"The arrogance of power in the BJP, the party which talks about saving and educating girl child, has reached to such a level that son of a state BJP chief dared to commit such crime," he said.

Senior Congress leader and MLA from Haryana, Randeep Singh Surjewala also strongly condemned the incident.

"Shocking & preposterous assault! Salute the brave girl and her parents. Your grit & determination makes us proud," Surjewala tweeted today.

Opposition party INLD and the leader of opposition Abhay Chautala demanded resignation of Barala on the issue.

Police yesterday said after receiving complaint, the PCR staff located the vehicle of the youth and apprehended them.

"They even tried to stop the (woman's) vehicle twice or thrice. They also banged the woman's vehicle with hands," Chandigarh police DSP Satish Kumar had said yesterday quoting from the complaint of the woman.

Both Vikas, who is a student of LLB, and his friend Ashish were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), the police said.

After the woman recorded her statement before the area magistrate here under section 164 of the CrPC, the police added another Section 341 (Punishment for wrongful restraint) in the FIR, according to officials.

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The government has formulated a detailed action plan with timelines for smooth implementation of WTO's (TFA), an official said.

Members of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) including India has ratified TFA, which aims at easing customs procedures, expediting movement, release and clearance of consignments.

For the implementation of the pact, the government has last year set up Cabinet Secretary-headed National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF).

The official said recommendations made by four working groups on legislative changes, time release study, outreach programme and infrastructure augmentation are included in the National Trade Facilitation Action Plan (2017-20).

Implementation of the plan, which also includes suggestions of the private sector, has been divided into short term (0-6 months), medium term (6-18 months) and long term (18-36 months).

The short term action plan includes augmentation of storage infrastructure for perishable goods and clearance of such goods within 12 hours of landing for import and 8 hours for export.

The plan for mid term includes updation of all regulatory information available on the internet on a single window portal; to put in place adequate bio-security measures for livestock imports and publication of all fees on a singe window website.

Cargo release time, both for export and import purposes, would also be reduced within a time period.

For imports, sea and air cargo release time would be reduced to three and two days respectively. Similarly, for exports, sea cargo release time would be brought down to two days and air cargo the same day.

The CBEC and the commerce ministry would also work on streamlining policy for e-commerce which includes cutting documentation requirements and providing single submissions.

Further, as part of the action plan, legislative changes have been proposed in the Customs Act 1962 for processing of documents among other things.

The agencies and ministries involved in the implementation process include Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), Directorate General of Foreign Trade and Animal & Plant Quarantine, textiles and environment ministries.

The 164-member Geneva-based WTO is engaged in making rules for free and fair trade across the globe.

Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), which is involved in the action making exercise, said that India is ahead in implementing provisions, which it has committed in the TFA.

"We have two years for implementing category A commitments. We are ahead in most of the things. TFA will help boost global trade," FIEO Director General Ajay Sahai said.

Category A contains those provisions which a developing member country designates for implementation upon entry into force of this agreement.

ACTION PLAN
Three sanitation workers died allegedly due to asphyxiation while cleaning a drain in southeast Delhi's Lajpat Nagar today, police said.

The incident was reported around 1 PM, they said.

The workers were cleaning a sewer line in Lajpat Nagar near the Kabir Ram temple. They had gone inside the sewer and inhaled toxic fumes and were later found unconscious there, they said.

They were rushed to the AIIMS Trauma Centre where the doctors declared the "brought dead".

Two of the victims were identified as Joginder (32) and Annu (28), while the identity of the third was yet to ascertained, police said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Asserting that President Donald Trump will no longer "tolerate" any support to militants, US National Security Adviser Gen H R McMaster today asked Pakistan to change its "paradoxical" policy of supporting selective terror groups.

US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad denies.

"The president has also made clear that he, that we need to see a change in- in behaviour of those in the region, which includes- those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," the National Security Advisor, McMaster, was quoted by MSNBC as saying.

"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to- that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups," he said, in response to a question on Afghanistan and terrorism in the region.

He said that Trump is making clear that the US will no longer "tolerate" any support for the Taliban or related groups.

"Of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but they've done so really only selectively," he said.

Pakistan's two neighbours -- both India and Afghanistan - have accused it of being selective in its war against terrorism.

McMaster said that Trump has lifted restrictions on US armed forces in Afghanistan.

He also defended Trump's strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country.

"The president has said that, "He does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat".

"He has lifted those restrictions, and you are beginning to see the payoff of that as well," the top US national security advisor said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Fishermen at a Tunisian port today prevented a ship carrying far-right anti- immigration activists from docking, dealing a fresh blow to a controversial mission aimed at disrupting the flow of migrant boats from north Africa to Europe.

Faced with the prospect of being blocked by the fishermen in Zarzis, the ship, the C-Star, moved up the Tunisian coast, and was expected by opponents tracking its path to try to land at either Sfax or Gabes on Monday.

Chartered by extremist group "Generation Identity", the C-Star passed through waters off Libya on Saturday.

It briefly tailed the Aquarius, operated by French group SOS Mediterranee, one of several NGO boats conducting search and rescue operations in an area notorious for deadly migrant boat sinkings.

Having left Cyprus on August 1, the 40-metre (130-foot) C-Star needs to land in Tunisia for supplies but appeared to have been caught off guard by the strength of opposition among local fishermen, as well as rights groups.

"If they come here we'll close the refuelling channel," Chamseddine Bourassine, the head of the local fishermen's organisation, told AFP.

"It is the least we can do given what is happening out in the Mediterranean," he added.

"Muslims and Africans are dying."



An official at the port, who asked to remain anonymous, said: "What? Us let in racists here? Never!"



The C-Star headed straight from Cyprus to Libyan waters after being discouraged from attempting to dock en route in Greece and Sicily, with authorities concerned about the prospect of protests.

The self-styled "Defend Europe" mission has not got off to the best of starts.

Their boat was held up for a week in the Suez Canal by Egyptian authorities looking for weapons.

Then, after it landed in the Cypriot port of Famagusta last month, several of its crew jumped ship and asked for asylum in Europe -- exactly the kind of thing the mission was set up to prevent.

The C-Star crew say their main goal is to expose collaboration between NGO rescue ships and the traffickers who launch boats from Libya packed with migrants.

Humanitarian groups say Generation Identity is engaged in a publicity stunt and that any attempt to turn migrant boats back to Libya would be potentially very dangerous and illegal under international law.

Since the start of 2014, some 600,000 people from Africa, the Middle East and South Asia have been rescued from traffickers' boats and taken to Italy.

Over 10,000 have died en route and serial sinkings have resulted in privately funded or charity-run boats joining a multinational search and rescue operation coordinated by Italy's coastguard.

NGO boats have rescued around one third of the nearly 100,000 people picked up this year, but their relations with Italy have become strained as pressure to stem the flow of migrants has mounted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two IPS officers in Chhattisgarh were removed from the service by the government for alleged non-performance, a home ministry official said.

A M Juri, who belonged to the 2000-batch of the Indian Police Service, and K C Agrawal, who joined the IPS in 2002, were removed following a recommendation of the Chhattisgarh government as they were found to be "dead wood", the official said.

The order removing them was issued by the home ministry yesterday, after an approval of the Appointments Committee of Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The performance of both the DIG-rank officers were reviewed after completion of their 15 years of service in the IPS and both of them were found unfit to continue in the service, the official said.

Juri, who joined the state police service in 1983, was promoted to the IPS in 2000, while Agrawal joined the state police service in 1985 and was promoted to IPS in 2002.

They were removed as per the All India Services Rules- 1958 "in the public interest" after extensive review of the service performance of the two officers, who have completed 15 years of qualifying service.

"Performance review of IPS officers was conducted to weed out dead wood," the officer said.

Performance review of an all-India service officer is conducted twice- first after the completion of 15 years of qualifying service, and then after 25 years.

According to the service rules, the Central Government may, in consultation with the state government concerned, require a member of the service to retire in public interest, after giving at least three-month notice in writing or as many month's pay and allowances in lieu of such notice.

Another home ministry official said there were complaints of alleged misconduct by the two officers.

In January, Mayank Sheel Chohan, a 1998-batch Union Territory cadre officer, and Raj Kumar Dewangan, a-1992 batch Chhattisgarh cadre officer, were removed from the service on similar grounds.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two terrorists have been killed during raids carried out by the army in Egypt's restive North Sinai governorate, officials said today.

Army spokesperson Tamer el-Refae said that the Takfiri terrorists were "very dangerous" and wanted by the authorities.

A main tunnel on the Sinai border line was discovered and destroyed, he said.

Egypt's North Sinai has witnessed many terror attacks since January 2011 uprising that toppled ex-president Hosni Mubarak.

The attacks, targeting police and military, increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 by military following massive protests against his rule.

Hundreds of police and army personnel have been killed since then.

The military has launched security operations in the North Sinai area where some terrorists are based.

The security forces have arrested suspects and demolished houses that belong to terrorists, including those facilitating tunnels leading to the Gaza Strip.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Non-EU visitors including Indians arriving in the UK will soon be no longer required to fill the "outdated" landing cards as part of the ongoing digital transformation of border controls, the Home Office has said.

Landing cards are filled out by an estimated 16 million international visitors from outside the European Union (EU), including Indians, annually.

Under proposals published yesterday, the UK Home Office said the paper-based system, which costs the UK public around 3.6 million pounds ($4.6 million) each year, will be replaced as part of the UK Border Force's ongoing digital transformation of border controls.

"We are modernising border technology to ensure Border Force staff stop dealing with outdated paperwork and can continue to focus on security and protecting the public," said Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis.

"In addition, this change will improve the experience for arriving passengers so they get an even better welcome when they land in the UK," he said.

The withdrawal of landing cards, filled out by non-EU passengers since 1971, will not result in the loss of any data that is used for security checks, the Home Office said.

All passengers arriving from outside the EU will continue to be checked against the variety of police, security and immigration watch lists which are used to verify the identity and confirm the status of every passenger arriving at the British airports.

The Home Office has launched a four-week consultation with carriers/airlines, ports and those that use statistics gathered from landing card data before it comes into force later this year.

According to the department, the changes are expected to free up staff and enable Border Force to better deploy their resources.

At the same time, the changes will improve the experience for travellers as passengers will no longer need to fill out the paper cards while on board the flight or in queues at airports and ports.

The airports and ports, on the other hand, will no longer have to purchase and distribute them.

It is expected that queue lengths will be shortened and passenger flows improved at British airports, a move welcomed by Heathrow airport, the largest UK hub.

Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye said in a statement: "We warmly welcome this proposed change which would give visitors to Britain an improved experience, whilst maintaining a secure border into the UK".

"In post-Brexit Britain, it will be even more important to show we are open for business and make sure that we give investors, tourists and students a great welcome to our country.

"We look forward to continuing to work closely with the new Immigration Minister and Border Force over the coming years to keep improving the passenger experience at the UK's border," Holland-Kaye said.

The proposals have been characterised as part of the Home Office's ongoing transformation at the border which is enhancing Border Force's ability both to facilitate legitimate travel and ensure the security of the border.

"This programme of work has already seen the introduction of 232 e-gates at 21 ports and since June has seen more than a million passengers use them each week. This has enabled Border Force officers to work on other security and intelligence matters," the Home Office said.

The changes are in addition to the ongoing Digital Services at the Border (DSAB) programme, which is modernising technology at the border to improve intelligence gathering on goods and passengers and increase security.

The UK Border Force has also increased the use of Advance Passenger Information, with systems in place to receive data on 100 per cent of scheduled flights for all international journeys to and from the UK.
The UN Security Council unanimously backed a US-drafted resolution to strengthen sanctions on North Korean exports in response to Pyongyang's intercontinental ballistic missile tests.

The 15-member body yesterday strongly condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launches on July 3 and 28 which the country has stated were of "intercontinental" range.

The US-drafted resolution includes the strongest sanctions ever imposed in response to a North Korean ballistic missile test and targets its main exports, slashing their annual revenue by $1 billion.

"The Security Council increased the penalty of North Korea's ballistic missile activity to a whole new level. North Korea's irresponsible and careless acts have just proved to be quite costly to the regime.

"This resolution is the single largest economic sanctions package ever leveled against the North Korean regime. The price the North Korean leadership will pay for its continued nuclear and missile development will be the loss of one-third of its exports and hard currency. This is the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation," US Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Nikki Haley said.

"The United States is taking - and will continue to take - prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies. Our annual joint military exercises, for instance, are transparent, and defense-oriented. They have been carried out regularly and openly for nearly 40 years. They will continue.

"Our goal remains a stable Korean peninsula, at peace, without nuclear weapons. We want only security and prosperity for all nations - including North Korea. Until then, this resolution and prior ones will be implemented to the fullest to maximize pressure on North Korea to change its ways," she said.

The Council reaffirmed previous Council decisions that North Korea not conduct further launches using ballistic missile technology, nuclear tests, or any other provocation.

The UNSC moved to significantly strengthen the sanctions on North Korea, imposing a full ban on the export of coal, iron and iron ore from the country. Previously these items could be exported for livelihood purposes, for a limited amount.

The Council also prohibited countries from increasing the total number of work authorisations for North Korean nationals. It banned new joint ventures or cooperative entities with North Korean entities or individuals as well as additional investments in existing joint ventures.

Member States are requested to report to the UNSC, within 90 days of the adoption of this resolution, on concrete measures they have taken to effectively implement this resolution.

The Council also designated several additional individuals for a travel ban and assets freeze, as well as designating entities for an assets freeze.

On the political front, the Council calls for resumption of the Six-Party Talks and reiterated its support for the commitments set forth in the Joint Statement of September 2005 issued by China, North Korea, Japan, south Korea, Russia and the United States.

The commitments included that the goal of the Six-Party Talks is the verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner, and that the United States and the North Korean respect each other's sovereignty and exist together peacefully.
The government today said weavers will be able to avail a wide range of government services like Aadhaar and PAN card from WSCs which is poised to become a one-stop-shop for them apart from rendering technical help.

"Textiles Minister Smriti Zubin Irani has announced that weavers will henceforth be able to avail a wide array of Government services from Weavers' Service Centres (WSCs)," the Ministry of Textiles said in a statement.

The weavers, the minister said, will also be able to pay their electricity bills and go for online courses at the WSCs.

"The Minister informed that the Ministry of Textiles will enter into an MoU tomorrow with Common Service Centres, which will enable WSCs to provide the aforementioned services, beginning from this year itself," it added.

There are 28 WSCs under the Office of Development Commissioner (Handlooms), Textiles Ministry, functioning in different parts of India, the statement added.

Weavers visit these WSCs frequently, in order to avail technical assistance in relation to their profession, it said.

The statement also contained a tweet of Irani which said that "On the eve of 3rd #NationalHandloomDay, inaugurated a camp for Weavers MUDRA & Hathkargha Samvardhan Sahayata Schemes at Bijoynagar in Assam."



Recalling Prime Minister Narendra Modi's words that the development of the North Eastern Region is imperative for the development of India, the minister informed the weavers that the main event of third National Handloom Day will be held in Guwahati, as per the statement.

The minister said that around 25 crore citizens have got their bank accounts opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna in the last three years.

"Noting that seven banks are participating in the camp for distribution of loans today, Irani asked the women weavers how often banks come to them to provide banking services," the satement said.

Irani expressed her satisfaction that more than 250 women applied for MUDRA loans in just an hour after the camp started functioning.

She said that handloom weavers in Sambalpur, Odisha, were able to improve their earnings by more than 60 per cent within three months of availing MUDRA loan.

The textiles minister distributed MUDRA loan sanction letters to 50 weavers on the occasion, and appealed to all weavers to apply for the loan and improve their income.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 48-year-old wheelchair-bound man has been arrested at an airport in Bangladesh while trying to smuggle 25 kg gold into the country, custom officials said, calling it the biggest haul of the year.

Jamil Akter, a native of Nilphamari, flew to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport here from Singapore yesterday. He had kept 250 gold bars worth 12.5 crore taka in a vest kept between his legs, Dhaka Tribune reported.

"Acting on a tip-off, our team confronted the man when he was crossing the green channel on a wheelchair, pretending to be unwell," Dhaka Customs House Preventive Team Assistant Commissioner Ahsanul Kabir was quoted by the report.

"He denied having any gold initially, but admitted to it later, during interrogation. We found 250 gold bars in a vest kept between his legs. The man has a chips shop in Singapore. He went in and out of the country 13 times in the last six months," the customs official added.

Customs officials were preparing to hand over him to police after filing a criminal case.

Another team found 6 kg gold abandoned in a flight of US-Bangla Airlines.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury today asked why Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah are "silent" over the alleged stalking of a girl by the son of Haryana's BJP chief.

Yechury raised the question after Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala's son Vikas was arrested yesterday for allegedly stalking a girl, and was later released on bail.

Taking to Twitter, the Marxist leader also alleged that "someone" was helping the accused.

"Clearly someone is helping the accused here. Why are the PM and BJP president so silent about stalking of women?" he sought to know on the micro-blogging site.

Vikas and his friend Ashish Kumar were arrested and released on bail later for allegedly stalking the girl in Chandigarh.

The girl had accused Vikas and his friend of stalking her Friday night after which they were arrested, police said.

Both were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), they said.
A wildfire raging in northern Portugal amid scorching temperatures forced the evacuation of a water park and the closure of a highway, firefighters said.

Over 70 firefighters backed by 21 vehicles were battling the blaze in scrubland near Vila Caiz, located about 55 kilometres northeast of Porto, the civil protection agency said.

Firefighters evacuated the Parque Aquatico de Amarante and closed a stretch of the A4 highway as a precaution, according to Commander Jose Pereira, the head of the firefighters in the nearby town of Avintes.

"It was mainly because of the smoke," he told public television RTP adding it was not immediately clear how many people were in the water park at the time.

Portugal's national weather office placed 13 regions on a yellow alert, the third highest level in a four-tier alert system, yesterday because of the heat



Temperatures reached 38 degrees Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) in some southern areas.

After an uncommonly dry winter and spring, almost 79 percent of the Portuguese mainland was enduring extreme or severe drought at the end of July, according to the national weather office.

In June over 60 people were killed, and more than 250 were injured, in a giant wildfire at Pedrogao Grande in central Portugal that raged for five days.

Many of the victims were trapped in their cars by the flames.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
For the jawans posted in Jammu region, away from their homes, Raksha Bandhan came early as school girls and women thronged various security installations for the past two days to tie rakhis on the wrists of soldiers.

Although the festival, which celebrates the brother- sister bond, will be observed across the country tomorrow, groups of women yesterday and today visited various camps in Poonch, Udhampur and Samba districts and tied rakhis on the wrists of the jawans who are posted away from their homes, the officials said.

Two days back, school girls accompanied by their teachers visited various camps of the BSF, Army and CRPF here and places including Suchetgarh, Digyana and Sunjwan to celebrate Raksha Bandhan with the jawans.

Women and girls celebrated Raksha Bandhan with soldiers also in Kathua and Samba over the past few days, the officials said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bhumi Pednekar says she will not let go of a good role due to the fear of being typecast.

The 28-year-old actor made her debut with 2015 film "Dum Laga Ke Haisha", where she played a small-town girl who battles patriarchy.

In her upcoming projects, "Toilet: Ek Prem Katha" and "Shubh Mangal Saavdhan", Bhumi appears to be portraying similar characters.

"I have thought about getting stereotyped. But I am not going to miss out on a role because I am scared that people will only see me as a small-town girl," the actor tells PTI.

Bhumi says she has worked hard at making her characters stand apart and hopes the audiences appreciate her effort.

"It's a bigger challenge for me to make every character different. They belong to the same economic stratum and are courageous... This is the only similarity.

"I really hope people don't feel the characters are same because I've tried recreating myself in all these films by staying true to my character."



Bhumi says watching diverse cinema has influenced her choice of films.

"I think I naturally have a tendency to pick such roles. I've been brought up in an environment where we were made socially responsible at a very young age. The kind of films we were exposed to, while growing up, were more niche.

"The kind of taste I developed as an audience was more towards meaningful films that were entertaining. So, I naturally tend to pick up characters which have some strength," she adds.

Bhumi is glad that films today offer well-etched characters to women.

"In the last five years, there has been such a huge change in the kind of roles written for women and the kind of films coming out. Even the audience is open today to watch good films and content is the king. They are intelligent and exposed to world cinema."



Her latest, "Toilet: Ek Prem Katha", where she will be seen opposite Akshay Kumar, will release next week, followed by "Shubh Mangal Saavdhan" in September.

Bhumi features opposite her "Dum Laga Ke..." co-star Ayushmann Khurrana in "Shubh..." and she hopes the movie recreates the magic.

"I really hope it has that sort of an impact. 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha' was an endearing love story and 'Shubh...' is about this sweet couple, madly in love but they have there is situation which is going on (referring to story of the film). But it's a family entertainer.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Suicide bomb in Ouro-Kessoum N. Melo

The suicide bomb attack in Ouro-Kessoum in the Far North Region took place on Saturday, security sources. The suicide attack is said to have been carried out by members of the Islamist militant Boko Haram group operating in the Far North of Cameroon.

The report revealed that 8 civilians were among does killed and 4 people seriously injured in the alleged Saturday attack,in the locality of Ouro-Kessoum in The Mayo Sava Division, a few kilometres from Amchide, a neigbouring town close to Nigeria.

Reports from the Far North Region of Cameroon say 9 people have been killed (8 civilians) and 4 others seriously injured in a suicide bomb attack allegedly carried out by Boko Haram militants Saturday, August 5, 2017. The attack took place in the locality of Ouro-Kessoum near Amchide in the Mayo Sava Division. Military and Local sources have confirmed.

Still in the Far North, another suicide bomb attack carried out by suspected Boko Haram militants still on Saturday, August 5, 2017 at Waza in the Logon and Chari division, left the suicide bomber dead and 5 other civilians seriously injuried

The Far North Region of Cameroon, especially areas along the border with Nigeria, regularly experience significant violence, attributed to Boko Haram militants. While Boko Haram's main stronghold is in Nigeria, the group is continually increasing its attack along the Logon and Chari, Mayo Sava and Mayo Tsanaga Divisions of the Far North.
Bishop Bala Jean-Marie Archives

In his very shattering homily at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Victories, Archbishop Joseph Akonga Essomba denounced the animosity of the Church in Cameroon.

Troubling, embarrassing, annoying are some qualifiers of the words to the virulent limit of Archbishop Akonga Essomba visibly surpassed by events.

This was in the presence of 800 priests and 50 bishops. The Christian faithful numbered in thousands, a delegation of members of the government and other authorities did not go unnoticed. His Excellency Paul Biya, the Head of State of Cameroon was also there through his personal representative, the Minister of Justice, Laurant Esso.

The requiem Mass began, and then the preacher of the day, Monsignor Joseph Akonga Essomba, goes up to the pulpit. He took the opportunity to denounce the persecution suffered by the Catholic Church in Cameroon. "Our bishop was brutally murdered! "He said.

The remarks were followed by a thunderous applause on the side of the crowd (It was almost after each declaration), the majority of which were favorable to the assassination thesis.

" hapless is all these men in suit and black glasses sitting on reserved vip chairs! hapless is all these priests who are obliged to be there to pretend to sympathize while it is by refusing the homosexuality of these priests that our bishop is dead! "

He said indignantly.

For Archbishop Akonga Essomba, this bishop of the ecclesiastical province of Yaounde and childhood friend of Bishop Bala, the latter could in no case drown. "Jean-Marie knew how to swim!" When we were fighting on the shores, he signaled us more than 200m in the middle of the lake! "He explained, before wondering," So how did he drown ? "

"all this for power. Yet true power knows no violence. This power so sought by some false members of this church. I address myself to all those who are in the shade kill the priests ... How does the Catholic Church interfere with you? " He complained.

Therefore, he warned: "You Satan's servants in the shadow, you can not do anything against those whom the Lord has chosen ... Who wants to measure himself with God will have it on his behalf"
A spokeswoman for Project Wing said there would be no changes sought to the restrictions that their drones may not fly within 15 metres of people or property who provided consent.
He overturned the woman's conviction for making a false accusation in the first alleged sexual assault on a technicality, after he found issues with the way tenancy evidence linked to that claim was used.
"That's why we say it's a double standard, the exile status is not the reason but who you are dealing with is the reason," he said.
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.

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Erik de Castro(MANILA) -- Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is on the offense at a summit as he tries to increase the pressure on, and isolation of, North Korea after the U.N. Security Council imposed new sanctions against the country's rogue regime.



Tillerson is in Manila for an annual summit hosted by Southeast Asian countries collectively known as ASEAN. Hes meeting with regional partners, including Russia and China, just days after North Korea tested its second intercontinental ballistic missile in a month.

Secretary Tillerson is in Manila, where he will participate in #ASEAN2017 and discuss #DPRK, regional security. https://t.co/7E3z6J3WEK pic.twitter.com/V0crG9eCDz  Department of State (@StateDept) August 6, 2017



The new sanctions were drafted by the U.S. in consultation with China and passed unanimously at the U.N. on Saturday. These block North Korean sales of coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, and seafood. The sanctions also halt any expansion of North Koreas guest-worker programs in other countries.



The revenue from these different sectors is believed to fund North Koreas expensive ballistic missile and nuclear programs. North Korea earns approximately $3 billion per year from exports, according to the U.S. mission to the U.N., meaning the sanctions could block as much as one-third of North Koreas revenue.



The resolution also prohibits any new joint business ventures with North Koreans, limits existing ones and blacklists 13 new North Korean individuals and entities, including its primary foreign exchange bank.



It was a good outcome, Tillerson told reporters ahead of his meeting with South Korean foreign minister Kang Kyung-wha. A senior aide to Tillerson told ABC News that China signing off on anything is a major accomplishment.

Tillerson on new UN sanctions: "It was a good outcome"

ROK FM: "It was a very, very good outcome," thanks US for consultation on it pic.twitter.com/yLU4H9Tpzc  Conor Finnegan (@cjf39) August 6, 2017

Secretary Tillerson meets with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, Kang Kyung-wha, in Manila. https://t.co/zKJSat6WPk pic.twitter.com/qzLHcBWPyf  Department of State (@StateDept) August 6, 2017

But it remains to be seen how strongly China, North Koreas largest trading partner, will implement the new sanctions.



Its certainly a good step that theyve moved ahead to broaden the sanctions, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and Pacific Susan Thornton told reporters Sunday, but the implementation is something that well be tracking and taking action on as necessary, including possible unilateral U.S. sanctions on Chinese banks, firms and individuals.



For its part, China took a stronger line on its neighbor publicly, with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi warning, Do not violate the U.N.s decision or provoke the international societys goodwill by conducting missile launches or nuclear tests.



China urged restraint from the U.S. and South Korea as well, calling on all sides to negotiate.



Sanction is necessary, but sanction is not the ultimate purpose," Wang told reporters. "Our purpose is to bring all parties involved in the nuclear issues back to the negotiation table."



China has suggested the U.S. and South Korea halt joint military exercises in exchange for a halt to North Koreas nuclear and ballistic missile testing. Thornton reiterated Sunday that the U.S. rejects such a freeze-for-freeze, calling it a false moral equivalency.



But the Trump administration has said it is open to negotiations once North Korea halts its illegal ballistic missile and nuclear programs. This pressure campaign, the sanctions -- its all about trying to convince the North Koreans that the best way forward is for them to come back to the table and talk, Thornton added.



In the meantime, the push to isolate North Korea continues, including in Manila. The U.S. is still pushing for North Koreas expulsion from the ASEAN Regional Forum, a 27-member body that deals with security issues, and some members have been receptive to the idea, according to Thornton.



Still, the Chinese delegation held a one-on-one meeting with North Korea, noting it was normal because North Korea is Chinas neighbor.



Back in the U.S., President Trump also celebrated the new sanctions with several tweets and a statement from his press secretary Sarah Sanders late Saturday night.

The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2017



Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
VW, BMW and Daimler have reached an agreement with German authorities to update 5.3 million cars with Euro 5 and Euro 6 diesel engines to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions.



Auto Express reports that the three automakers will apply a simple software tweak to reduce emission levels by 25 to 30 per cent. VW accounts for the majority of the cars in question, 3.8 million to be exact, while 900,000 come from Daimler and the remaining 300,000 are BMW models.

The software update will be free of charge to owners and if customers of older and heavily-polluting diesels want, an incentive scheme has been established to allow them to trade in their vehicles for a newer and more efficient alternative.

In a statement discussing the software update, chairman of the board of management at BMW, Harald Krueger said The meeting [between BMW and German authorities] was an important step. We support the initiative and are investing in the Sustainable Urban Mobility fund. State-of-the art diesels will definitely play an important role in future mobility as well.

PHOTO GALLERY
German company Terra E is getting ready to announce the location of a new lithium-ion battery plant that will rival the output of Teslas Gigafactory.



The company will choose between five candidate sites in Germany or a neighboring country next month to build its 34 gigawatt-hour battery factory, according to Terra Es CEO Holger Gritzka who spoke to Bloomberg.

The project, which has lined up no less than 17 partners and has won the support of the German government, is set to break ground in late 2019 and reach full capacity in 2028.

The new battery factory is the latest indication of the German industrys preparation for a new age in the energy revolution. Lithium-ion battery packs can be used not only in plug-in hybrid cars but also on electricity networks where they can help stabilize intermittent flows of wind and solar power.

Battery-making capacity is set to more than double by 2021 globally, with Tesla to become the worlds second largest battery maker, once the 35 gigawatt-hour Gigafactory in Nevada is completed.

Terra Es battery factory will focus more on batteries for stationary units, according to Gritzka as they aim to tap an emerging market for mobile and non-automotive applications.

Note: Tesla Gigafactory pictured

PHOTO GALLERY
Toyota is gearing up to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Prius by taking a look back at the original model which was introduced in 1997.



The story begins in 1993 when the company began discussing a vehicle for the 21st century. These discussions paved the way for the creation of the G21 Project which would eventually be known as the Prius.

The project originally had the goal of raising fuel efficiency performance to 1.5 times the level of that of conventional engines, but that target was later increased to twice the level of conventional engines. The company toyed with several ideas but the development team finally decided to go with a hybrid powertrain when management wanted to show a concept at the 1995 Tokyo Motor Show.

The concept was unveiled in the fall of that year and it featured a 1.5-liter D4 engine, a continuously variable transmission, and a capacitor which acted as an energy storage device. This, along with an engine start/stop system, enabled the car to return 70.5 mpg (30km/L) which was roughly twice as much as other vehicles in the same class.

The production model was launched two years later and became the worlds first mass-produced hybrid. The car remained relatively faithful to the original concept but it returned a slightly less impressive 65.8 mpg (28.0 km/L).

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Perhaps the most appealing Bugatti Chiron weve stumbled across has just landed in Cannes, shortly after it was delivered to its fortunate owner from the Middle East.



Unlike many other Chirons weve seen delivered, the owner of this example didnt opt for any bright colors and has instead had the front portion of the hypercar painted white while the rest of it is bathed in gloss carbon fiber. The black and silver wheels also make it look especially refined.

At the latest count in March, Bugatti said that half of the Chirons 500-unit production run had already been accounted for. At the time, Europe was the biggest market with 37 per cent of orders, North America with 30 per cent and the Middle East with 26 per cent.

If Bugatti does encounter any difficulties in finding homes for those remaining 250, theres one solution; break the production car world speed record in the French hypercar.

Word on the street says Bugatti will attempt to do just that in 2018 by knocking off the Veyron Super Sport and its 268 mph (431 km/h) record speed. Considering how much more power the Chiron has, we think a new record is inevitable.

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Photo: RCMP A Williams Lake man who set off fireworks has been slapped with over $1,000 in fines.

It may be hot, dry and dangerous but that didn't stop a Williams Lake man who celebrated his return to town after a wildfire evacuation order was lifted by setting off fireworks early Saturday morning, police report.

His actions prompted an immediate emergency response.

RCMP officers arrested the intoxicated male after vigilant members of the community reported fireworks being set off in the Carson Road area.

Police identified the alleged perpetrator after finding several empty fireworks canisters on the mans property.

The 34-year-old Williams Lake man later told police that he set the fireworks off in celebration of returning home after his evacuation, said Cpl. Jesse ODonaghey, RCMP spokesperson. It is careless acts such as this that have the real potential to trigger even more interface wildfires in the area.

O'Donaghey said the man sobered up overnight in RCMP cells.

The man was later released from custody but fined in excess of $1,000 for allegedly dropping, releasing or mishandling a burning substance, as well as for failing to comply with high risk activity restrictions under the BC Wildfire Act.

RCMP wish to thank those astute members of the community who called in the complaint, had this mans actions been overlooked the outcome could have been dire for the entire community, O'Donaghey said.

The Cariboo region has seen more land burned this wildfire season than any other area of the province, according to the BC Wildfire Service.
Photo: BC Wildfire Service The Precipice wildfire is burning outside of Tweedsmuir Park.

A 4,300 hectare wildfire has spread beyond the boundary of Tweedsmuir Park on the Cariboo Plateau, officials confirmed Saturday.

The Precipice wildfire is burning about 52 kilometres east of Bella Coola.

The lightning-caused fire started on July 7.

As of the afternoon of Aug. 5, this fire covered about 4,300 hectares and had spread beyond the park boundary, said a BC Wildfire Service release.

Firefighters continue to work in challenging conditions, including a lack of road access, plenty of forest fuel and smoke that has impeded aircraft operations.

An evacuation order for several cabins and homesteads on the Cariboo Plateau was expanded July 10.

On Aug. 3, wind activity pushed the fire eastward and the BC Wildfire Service recommended that the local government consider issuing an evacuation alert for a larger area.

The Cariboo Regional District has now issued an evacuation alert for the Anahim Lake, Charlotte Lake and Nimpo Lake areas.

To report a wildfire, columns of smoke or an open burning violation, call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cellphone.
Photo: Randy Millis Kelowna's delayed Canada Day fireworks light up the night sky. Click here to view gallery Photo: Randy Millis Photo: Randy Millis Photo: Randy Millis Photo: Randy Millis They were more than a month late but what a show Saturday as Kelowna's delayed Canada Day fireworks lit up the night sky. The big display marked Canada's 150th birthday.

Postponed to the BC Day long weekend due to Okanagan Lake flooding, residents watched in awe as the sparklers flew from a barge in the lake.

We have video below.
A wall display in the Google store in the Soho neighborhood of New York in October 2016. (Richard B. Levine)

In a screed that rocketed around Silicon Valley this weekend, a software engineer at Google blasted the company's efforts to increase the number of minorities and women in its ranks and leadership positions.

The essay, reported by Motherboard and posted by Gizmodo, was posted on an internal Google forum by a male software engineer and titled "Google's Ideological Echo Chamber."

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The author has not been publicly identified, but his words have sparked a backlash. Critics say his sentiments reflect a tech company culture that's unwelcoming or even hostile to women and minorities. Another fear: The engineer's words reflect the unspoken thoughts of many others in an industry dominated by white men.

Google, which has announced efforts to increase diversity and is being investigated over allegations of gender pay inequality, did not respond to a message from The Washington Post seeking comment Sunday. The company did address the essay in an internal letter to employees.

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The essay argues that Google should stop its campaigns to increase gender and racial diversity and focus instead on "ideological diversity."

It says the reason women don't make up half of the company's technological and leadership positions is because of "genetic differences" in their preferences and abilities.

"These differences may explain why we don't see equal representation of women in tech and leadership," the engineer wrote. "We need to stop assuming that gender gaps imply sexism."

The author says the company's diversity efforts have "created a politically correct monoculture that maintains its hold by shaming dissenters into silence" and makes it easier for "extremist and authoritarian policies" to take root.

He says Google's efforts to achieve more equal gender and race representation - special programs for HBCUs for example, or coding camps for girls - have led to "discriminatory practices," specifically against conservatives.

In the essay, the author says he has received support from others in the company for "bringing up these very important issues," which others "would never have the courage to say or defend because of our shaming culture and the possibility of being fired."

The essay comes as the Mountain View, California, company has been trying to increase the stubbornly unbudging percentage of women and minorities in its ranks and is being investigated by the Labor Department for a disparity in pay between men and women.

Responding to the essay in a message to Google employees, Danielle Brown, the company's new vice president of diversity, integrity and governance, said the essay "advanced incorrect assumptions about gender."

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"Diversity and inclusion are a fundamental part of our values and the culture we continue to cultivate," Brown said. "We are unequivocal in our belief that diversity and inclusion are critical to our success as a company, and we'll continue to stand for that and be committed to it for the long haul."

As The Washington Post's Jena McGregor wrote in March, just 1 percent of Google's technology employees are black - a percentage that hasn't moved since 2014.

To become more diverse, McGregor wrote, "the company has expanded its recruiting to a broader range of schools, trains its workers on 'implicit biases' and re-examines resumes to make sure recruiters don't overlook diverse talent."

Slack engineer Erica Baker, whom CNBC called an "outspoken critic of systematic bias in the tech industry," said the engineer's diatribe was shocking but not surprising.

"Google has seen hints of this in the past, with employees sharing blog posts about their racist beliefs and the occasional internal mailing list question, 'innocently' asking if Black people aren't more likely to be violent," she wrote on her blog Saturday.

"The most important question we should be asking of leaders at Google and that they should be asking of themselves is this: Why is the environment at Google such that racists and sexists feel supported and safe in sharing these views in the company?"

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Yonatan Zunger, a former senior Google employee, also took issue with the software engineer's post. He wrote on Medium that the essay shows a misunderstanding of the way Google tries to address the world's problems:

"Essentially, engineering is all about cooperation, collaboration, and empathy for both your colleagues and your customers. If someone told you that engineering was a field where you could get away with not dealing with people or feelings, then I'm very sorry to tell you that you have been lied to."
LAS VEGAS  A Las Vegas federal judge set bail of $30,000 on Friday for a celebrated young British cybersecurity researcher accused by U.S. prosecutors of creating and distributing malicious software designed to steal banking passwords.



The attorney for Marcus Hutchins, who has broad support in the information-security community, said the 23-year-old hacker would contest the charges. She said he would not be released until Monday because there wasn't enough time to post bail after Friday's afternoon ruling.



Hutchins is due in federal court in Milwaukee on Tuesday.



The U.K. resident gained overnight fame with quick thinking in May when he helped curb the spread of the WannaCry ransomware attack that had crippled thousands of computers worldwide.



Much of the cybersecurity community rallied around Hutchins after his arrest Wednesday, calling him a principled, ethical hacker.



The conditions of his release came as a relief for his supporters.



"This is excellent news," said Nicholas Weaver, a computer scientist at the University of California at Berkeley. "The indictment is remarkably shallow even by indictment standards, which is disappointing because it adds considerable uncertainty and fosters distrust with the general security community."



Las Vegas-based attorney Adrian Lobo said money for Hutchins' bond would come from a variety of supporters and family in the U.S. and abroad. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital leading civil liberties non-profit, said it helped arrange Hutchins counsel and was working to find him an attorney to provide "the best possible defense."



"Security researchers are vital to protecting the computers we rely upon every day," EFF general counsel Kurt Opsahl said via email. "Mr. Hutchins' arrest has unfortunately deepened the divide between the research community and the government."



Weaver said federal prosecutors and the FBI were making a mistake by not providing more details about the crimes it alleges Hutchins committed. "Having more information would act to reassure the larger security community," he said.



At the hearing, assistant U.S. attorney Dan Cowhig said Hutchins admitted to authorities in an interview following his arrest that he was the author of the malware code and sold it. He said the government has evidence of chat logs in which Hutchins discussed with an associate the sale of the Kronos banking Trojan.



Magistrate Judge Nancy Koppe said Hutchins is not a danger to the community and has sufficient community support to not be a flight risk.



She ordered him to surrender his passport and said he could fly to Wisconsin, where he was indicted last month, without identification.



"The most recent charge in the indictment is in July of 2015. That's two years ago that the defendant has been free to roam the world during that period of time," she said.



Hutchins did not enter a plea at Friday's hearing. He was arrested while preparing to return home from the Def Con convention for computer security professionals.



He stands accused of creating and distributing malware known as the Kronos banking Trojan. Such malware infects web browsers, then captures usernames and passwords when an unsuspecting user visits a bank or other trusted location, enabling cybertheft.



Computer law expert Tor Ekeland described the evidence so in the case far as flimsy.



"This is a very, very problematic prosecution to my mind, and I think it's bizarre that the United States government has chosen to prosecute somebody who's arguably their hero in the WannaCry malware attack and potentially saved lives and thousands, hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars over the sale of alleged malware," Ekeland said.



The indictment alleges that Hutchins and another defendant  whose name was redacted  conspired between July 2014 and July 2015 to advertise the availability of the Kronos malware on internet forums, sell the malware and profit from it. The indictment also accuses Hutchins of creating the malware.



Programs, however, can often include code written by multiple programmers. Prosecutors might need to prove that Hutchins wrote code that targeted specific institutions.



U.S. Justice Department officials on Friday declined to answers questions about the case. The FBI's Milwaukee field office, which led the 2-year investigation, didn't return requests for comment.



Ekeland said that what is notable to him from the indictment is that it doesn't allege any financial loss to any victims  or in any way identify them. Besides that, laws covering aspects of computer crime are unclear, often giving prosecutors broad discretion.



"The only money mentioned in this indictment is ... for the sale of the software," he said.



Jake Williams, a respected cybersecurity researcher, said he found it difficult to believe Hutchins is guilty. The two men have worked together on various projects, including training material for higher education for which the Briton declined payment.



Hutchins lives with his family in the town of Ilfracombe, England, and worked out of his bedroom.



His mother, Janet, who has been frantically trying to reach her son, said she was "outraged" by the arrest and that it was "hugely unlikely" her son was involved because he spends much of his time combatting such attacks.



Back in May, the curly-haired computer whiz and surfing enthusiast discovered a so-called "kill switch" that slowed the unprecedented WannaCry outbreak.



He then spent the next three days fighting the worm that crippled Britain's hospital network as well as factories, government agencies, banks and other businesses around the world.



Though he had always worked under the moniker of MalwareTech, cracking WannaCry led to the loss of his anonymity and propelled him to cyber stardom. There were appearances and a $10,000 prize for cracking WannaCry. He planned to donate the money to charity.



"I don't think I'm ever going back to the MalwareTech that everyone knew," he told The Associated Press at the time.
Cross of Gold:

Nothing too elaborate  just a low-alcohol, easy drinking golden ale  but it's the place to start for those intimidated or unfamiliar with long and winding beer menus. Not only accessible, it's also good; Cross of Gold won a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival in 2012.

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Hero hop series: Revolution has undertaken a stellar series of seasonal India pale ales featuring the name "Hero," and there hasn't been a clunker in the bunch. Citra Hero and Crystal Hero stood out in particular, but they're all relatively safe bets for hop-forward deliciousness. Next up in the series is Local Hero, which is brewed with Michigan hops. (Note: the brewery's year-round Anti-Hero IPA isn't part of the series, but it, too, is a good bet for IPA fans.)

Fistmas: Honestly, this is an odd beer. And that's what I like about it. Revolution's holiday seasonal is a red ale with ginger root and orange peel. It's available from October through February, and was my beer of the month in November 2012.

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A Little Crazy: Available between January and May, this is an interesting, but approachable hybrid of Belgian zest and juicy American hops (plus pilsner malt gives A Little Crazy a welcome crispness). Ideal with food or on its own.

(Ask your server): The most creative breweries  like Revolution  are always tapping a new keg of something. Ask your server what limited-run beers are on tap that you might never have the chance to try again. This is good practice at any brew pub.

jbnoel@tribune.com | Twitter @joshbnoel
I'm assuming  hoping, really  that Jason Chan is running out of challenges.

The restaurateur, who battled throat cancer to open Juno (which quickly became one of the most popular restaurants in town, and clearly one of the two or three best restaurants to open in 2013), watched helplessly as an upstairs apartment fire in January knocked his fledgling restaurant out of commission, then endured nearly eight months of rebuilding (Chan wryly noted the date on which Juno had been closed longer than it had been open) before unveiling the new Juno in mid-September.

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This guy has earned a few years of boredom, don't you think?

Juno is back, arguably better than before, its unparalleled sushi work now augmented by an ambitious program of hot dishes. Can it reclaim the momentum that the fire stole?

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For those who had gotten into Juno the first time around, Juno 2.0 will not be a visual revelation. The front room, the only area directly affected by fire, has been redone; it's still a very simple space, just a bit more coherent, outfitted with a lowered-height bar for pre- or post-dinner cocktails. The main dining area is exactly as before, a soaring space of white walls and natural-wood tables, and the long, onyx-trimmed sushi bar.

(Nearly all of the fire and consequent water damage occurred in the basement, home to the prep area and all those boring mechanicals  electric, plumbing, heating and ventilation  that allow a restaurant to function.)

What has changed is the menu: Chan and his partner, sushi master B.K. Park, took the involuntary sabbatical to look at their creation with fresh eyes ("We had the opportunity to make things better," says Chan, a glass-half-full guy if ever there were one) and devised a more tightly focused menu that makes the best use of Chan's artistry and creativity. And they piped aboard Sam McDermott, a former underground chef (Buttermilk Social, Buttermilk Bento) who also logged seven months cooking at Elizabeth, to run the hot side of the kitchen.

Some standbys remain, such as Park's smoked sashimi, which arrives to the table under a glass dome filled with applewood smoke; the smoke doesn't insinuate itself into the fish excessively, but the rising aroma has the effect of fully engaging the diner. You'll be happy with the plump oysters, anointed with beet and passion fruit juices or yuzu, wasabi and Moroccan-spice foam, and the uni shooters, single-shot pieces of sea urchin with orange zest and wasabi caviar.

New to the mix are Park's special king (akami-wrapped crab) and queen nigiri (salmon-wrapped scallop), both with crunchy-potato toppings and good jolts of spice, and a trio of freshwater and sea eels. The freshwater eel is much like every seared unagi you've had, but the subtly poached and seasoned sea eels (shiro anago and aka anago) are revelations. It's never a bad idea to place the evening in Park's hands, whether by ordering the beautifully presented chef's choice sashimi or nigiri assortments, or by reserving a seat at the chef's choice omakase table (this requires two days' notice).

The hot side of the menu is not yet a strength  nor was it in Juno's first iteration  but McDermott gives us reason to hope. His October menu included a couple of bad ideas, chiefly a disastrous gyoza and pastrami on rye mashup, and soba noodles with a chalky walnut sauce. But his November offerings show dramatic improvement; the takoyaki octopus puffs have the light texture they lacked a month ago, and the chef makes a chawan mushi, the savory custard bolstered by matsutake, truffle and gelatinized pearls of concentrated shrimp, served in an artfully jagged eggshell.

McDermott really shines with his "deer" plate, an audience participation dish in which raw venison cuts are cooked, shabu-shabu style, by swishing them in a pot of murky, mushroom-rich broth. What makes the dish particularly interesting is McDermott's sushi chef approach to the butchery; the meats are presented in varying thicknesses, providing a range of mouthfeels and flavor concentrations.

Desserts, also under McDermott's care, are bold and beautiful. Beautiful describes the pine ice cream with shards of mango meringue; the pine presence is more subtle than one might expect, and the mango presence surprisingly forceful, and it's a lovely little sweet. The bold, by which I mean "requiring boldness on the diner's part," is the koji-miso brownie, which gets its not-quite-chocolate flavor from a mix of beets, bananas and pig's blood (that's not a typo) and is topped with koji ice cream, which has a funky, fermented malt flavor. If the idea of the dessert doesn't make you run for the door, you just might enjoy it.

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The occasional overreach aside, Juno is back as one of Chicago's very best Japanese restaurants, and let's hope it gets to stay put for a while. For Chan, rapidly becoming the Chicago dining scene's icon of survival, I wish nothing more pulse-raising in the future than the hectic life of a successful restaurateur.

Watch Phil Vettel's reviews weekends on WGN-Ch. 9's "News at Nine" and on CLTV.

pvettel@tribpub.com

Twitter @philvettel

Juno

2638 N. Lincoln Ave.

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773-935-2000

junosushi.com

Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. >

Tribune rating: Three stars

Open: Dinner Tuesday-Sunday

Prices: Main courses $17-$29

Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V

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Reservations: Strongly recommended

Noise: Conversation-friendly

Ratings key: Four stars, outstanding; three stars, excellent; two stars, very good; one star, good; no stars, unsatisfactory. The reviewer makes every effort to remain anonymous. Meals are paid for by the Tribune.
Note: This review originally was published in the Chicago Tribune on Nov. 12, 1993.

Look up the word bistro in the dictionary, and there ought to be a picture of Le Bouchon alongside it.

A classic at just five months, Le Bouchon embodies the bistro spirit in an altogether charming manner. The cooking is simple and hearty-French comfort food at its best-and prices are low. Moreover, there is a communal spirit at Le Bouchon, a sense of place and, even for occasional visitors, a sense of belonging.

Le Bouchon isn't the best restaurant in town operating under the bistro label, but it may be the purest. Un Grand Cafe probably has better food, but it's bigger and more bustling. Kiki's Bistro has the bistro feel and no shortage of charm, but Kiki's has culinary ambitions that extend well beyond bistro limits.

Le Bouchon didn't have to wait long to be discovered. Chef/owner Jean-Claude Poilevey operated the late lamented bistro Jean Claude for many years before selling it and heading to the Bucktown neighborhood, taking over the shuttered Gavroche. A great many of the Jean Claude faithful have followed him here, with the result that every night is a busy night at Le Bouchon. Showing up without a reservation, even mid-week, entails the risk of being turned away. The restaurant seats only 40; a week ago Thursday, Poilevey served 106 people.

It's remarkable, given the crowds, that Poilevey and company are so good about honoring reservations. In a place this small, it takes only one miscalculation or a couple of inconsiderate table-hoggers to throw everything into a cocked hat, but in general, things work the way they should.

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Of course, one Saturday night there were several table-hoggers in attendance, making a shambles of the 8 p.m. seating. No restaurant owner can get away with saying this to customers, so I will: If you are finished with dinner at 8 p.m., and can see a dozen or more people crowding around the bar, take your third cup of coffee and your small talk somewhere else. That $11 entree price is not a down payment on the damn table, comprenez-vous?

There. I feel better.

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If you ever ate at Jean Claude, you'll recognize much of Le Bouchon's menu. The signature appetizer, in fact, is the Jean Claude onion tart, a classic blend of crispy pastry and sweet carmelized onions. Delicious. Almost as good is the special of sauteed wild mushrooms under an oversized crouton.

Heartier appetites should steer toward specials such as saucisson or, when offered, delicious rilletes of duck arranged around a pile of frise e splashed with raspberry vinaigrette.

Lentil soup is the perfect prescription for a bitter cold night, a hearty broth well-stocked with still-chewy lentils. The potage St. Germain comes off as a pedestrian split-pea soup by comparison.

House salad is straightforward and good, but the salad Lyonnaise is a star. Mixed greens, croutons, plenty of sinful lardons-and on top, a poached egg. You break the egg and mix the yolk in and make a mental note to feel guilty later. If it makes you feel better, split the salad with someone else; it's certainly large enough.

Steak with frites, that definitive bistro entree, is in fine form here; we got a good-sized butt steak, cooked exactly medium rare, and the flavor was excellent. The fries were good, too, though they could have been a touch crispier.

But the menu offers much more. Hunter-style rabbit is a fabulous dish; the rabbit has real character, full-flavored and substantial with a rich chasseur sauce, above a generous portion of bowtie pasta. Thyme-scented guinea hen is another treat, served with a natural jus accented with potatoes, mushrooms, pearl onions and lardons.

Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. >

Good specials include tenderloin tips, tender and juicy in a luscious sauce dotted with perfumy morel mushrooms; and seared red bass, served on a bed of ratatouille-not a classic ratatouille, but a julienne of those vegetables lightly sauteed in olive oil and garlic.

However hearty the entrees, it would be a mistake to skip dessert. Chocolate marquis, served with espresso creme anglaise, is soothing and satisfying. Crispy fruit tarts, whether apple or some combination of fruits, are delicious. There also is a very light poached pear, served with a judicious bit of Grand Marnier sabayon.

And if you have a bit of wine left over, you may opt for a cheese plate, three or four solid cheeses served with crispy apple slices.

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The wine selection is worthy of a bistro, full of young reds and crispy whites. There are a couple of premium bottles, but mostly the list is low-priced, with a good number of bottles less than $20.

We encountered just a few missteps along the way. Escargots arrived curiously cool to the touch. The toast served with the duck rillettes was badly overdone. A little extra time under the broiler had made the ceramic container holding the creme brulee scorchingly hot, which we learned the hard way. And on two occasions a waitress arrived to take our order, only then realizing she had neglected to present the list of specials.

Le Bouchon, which literally means "the button" but also is a term used for bistros in Poilevey's native Lyon, is decorated simply but prettily. Cream colored walls are hung with framed photographs, some depicting the French countryside, others of Paris markets. The overly tall walls end at a pressed-tin ceiling, also cream colored. A small bar midway in the restaurant will seat a handful of people. It used to be drafty by the front door, but Poilevey recently installed a partition that reduces this problem greatly.

If you are sensitive to cigarette smoke, Le Bouchon is not for you. Half the restaurant is given to nonsmokers, but the line of demarcation is effectively imaginary.

If you miss Jean Claude, you'll love Le Bouchon. The location is more accessible, there's plenty of parking (lots of street spots, and Le Bouchon also has an adjoining parking lot that'll hold perhaps 10 cars) and Poilevey's cooking is as good as ever.

Rating: 2 stars

Le Bouchon, 1958 N. Damen Ave., 312-862-6600.
Rama Diallo, 21, of Chicagos Kenwood neighborhood, will graduate from Arrupe College at Loyola University this month and head to Loyola to study biology in the fall. (Kristen Norman / Chicago Tribune )

Loyola University Chicago was Blanca Rodriguez's dream school.

The Jesuit institution's $42,000 tuition was out of the question for her family, but Rodriguez soon will be a Loyola graduate anyway thanks to a program for low-income students designed to get them halfway to a bachelor's degree with little or no debt.

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Rodriguez is in the first graduating class of Arrupe College, a two-year program run by Loyola at its Water Tower Campus in the Gold Coast neighborhood. Established in 2015, Arrupe offers three types of associate degrees, mostly fulfilling general education requirements that will enable students to segue into bachelor's programs at other schools.

Arrupe's students are among the city's most vulnerable  and not just because they often cannot afford tuition. Many students or their parents are living in the U.S. illegally and face a threat of deportation. Some experience homelessness or food insecurity. Others are young parents. Many live in crime-plagued neighborhoods, have lost close relatives to gun violence and avoid taking late-day classes because they are scared to use public transportation at night.

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Rodriguez will get her associate degree in social and behavioral sciences on Aug. 12 and then is heading to Dominican University in River Forest to study psychology.

Getting a bachelor's degree isn't just for her own benefit, she said. As a first-generation college student, it's also so that she can be a role model for her two younger brothers.

"I'm that figure that makes my brothers believe that there is a future  that they don't have to just get a job," said Rodriguez, of the Archer Heights neighborhood. "We have an opportunity to have higher education, as well. The doors are open for them."

Arrupe leaders say their model can be a critical bridge between high school and college for low-income, first-generation college students. The early results are encouraging. About 5 percent of full-time students nationally complete an associate degree in two years, according to nonprofit Complete College America. About 51 percent of Arrupe's first cohort is finishing an associate degree this month.

"We're all wringing our hands in higher education over the affordability and access issue  who gets to go and who doesn't?" said the Rev. Steve Katsouros, Arrupe's dean and executive director. "This is a rigorous, demanding program. We don't want (students) languishing for three or four years in a dead-end program. We want them to take advantage of what we have to offer, buckle down, focus, do well in the courses and move on to the next chapter in their lives."

The effort recently got a big boost from longtime Loyola benefactors, John and Kathy Schreiber, whose multimillion-dollar gift will support dozens of students for six years.

The college is named for the Rev. Pedro Arrupe, a former superior general of the Jesuits. It's the brainchild of former Loyola president Rev. Michael Garanzini.

Around the time Garanzini was considering the idea, then-Jesuit Superior General Adolfo Nicolas gathered the country's 28 Jesuit college leaders and encouraged them to recommit to principles of cura personalis, meaning care of the whole person; and homonis pro allis, people caring for others.

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"He said, it's great that you're so established, it's great that you're so successful. But you're becoming too elite and you're leaving the poor behind," Katsouros said.

Tuition and fees run $13,000 but many students can get Pell and Monetary Award Program grants that cover most of the cost, Katsouros said. Students are asked to pay about $1,200 and Arrupe raises money to make up the difference.

Temple Payne, principal of Christ the King Jesuit College Prep, has sent 11 students to Arrupe College. Payne said the low-cost entryway to college is "life-changing" for students at the South Austin school, where the typical income for a family of five is $25,000.

A bonus, she said, is that her alums also can continue their studies in the Jesuit tradition.

"Our education really teaches them to focus on what they can do for others," Payne said. "This program is an example of the institution being dedicated to social justice and giving back. That's modeling for them that these aren't just words; these are really the values that we live by."

Arrupe started with 159 students in fall 2015, and more than 80 percent proceeded to their second year of studies, Loyola spokesman Steve Christensen said. About 260 students are now enrolled.

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Nearly all of Arrupe's students are minorities and the first in their families to go to college. About 54 percent come from Chicago Public Schools high schools, with the rest coming from Catholic and charter schools. Their average high school grade point average is 2.8 and their average ACT score is 17, Katsouros said.

"We understand that a lot of our students are sometimes coming from under-resourced schools, so their academic experiences probably are not always up to par with other students," said Isabel Reyes, associate director of admission. "We also understand that there can be issues at home or gross economic issues that they experience that can lead them to have lower GPAs than other students. But there are a lot of students who have a lot of potential and have a lot of motivation."

Arrupe's students receive a battery of academic and social support resources, including programs an advising strategy leader describes as "intrusive."

New students attend a mandatory summer retreat. Students meet with their advisers before classes and take a one-credit course in their first term to help teach them about on-campus resources, note-taking and time management skills, and how to communicate professionally, Reyes said.

The one-building campus also has a writing center, peer tutoring center, a social worker, career counselor, financial aid counselor and alumni coordinator.

Arrupe professors also serve as advisers, Katsouros said. Class sizes are kept small, ensuring that administrators remain acutely aware of student progress and respond quickly to potential problems.

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"They always notice if something is wrong," said Rama Diallo, 21, of the Kenwood neighborhood. "I know people who go to community colleges. The feedback I get from them compared to what I'm experiencing at Arrupe is really different. They can barely talk to their professors, and they wish they had somebody to talk to."

Jackie Cruz, 20, said she did not feel she always needed such close monitoring, but she appreciated the environment it created.

"They really tracked us down and made sure we were staying on track," said Cruz, of Humboldt Park. "I didn't even get that kind of attention in high school."

That earnest approach to advising and mentoring impressed the Schreibers, who are donating $6 million. The Schreibers previously gave $10 million to Loyola's Quinlan School of Business.

Half of the funding will support 75 students for two years at Arrupe between 2017-18 and 2022-23. The other half will fund tuition for up to 15 Arrupe graduates to pursue bachelor's degrees at Loyola.

John Schreiber praised the comparatively high rate of Arrupe students finishing the program in two years.

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"If you look at the percentage of students who graduate high school, go on to college, and the percentage that finish college, it keeps going down as you go through that process," he said. "Can we move more of the underperformers into performers, through college access and college graduation, and change their outcome in our society?"

A 2014 University of Chicago report showed that CPS students struggled to complete an uninterrupted path between a high school diploma and a bachelor's degree. Forty percent of CPS graduates enrolled in a four-year school the following fall and 49 percent of those students finished within six years.

For students who took a less traditional route, such as going to a two-year college and transferring to a bachelor's program, just 3 percent earned a degree in six years.

With its first group of associate degrees handed out, Arrupe leaders will start to see how well they've prepared their students to go a step further. Diallo is going to Loyola in the fall to study biology. Cruz is off to the University of Wisconsin-Madison to major in nursing.

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Isaac McKeever, 20, of the Austin neighborhood, also is going to Loyola. He said the road through Arrupe wasn't always positive. With the intense advising, he began over-relying on his mentors for things he could handle himself  like due dates for assignments.

But for Cruz, the opportunity has been transformative.

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The 20-year-old had ruled out University of Illinois campuses in Urbana-Champaign and Chicago because of cost. Then her counselor at Lane Tech College Prep helped her land a last-minute interview at Arrupe.

Cruz also secured a big scholarship, leaving her to pay only for books.

"This is a blessing for me. I'm so grateful for this," Cruz said. "I think it's important to have institutions like this to let students like me go to school."

drhodes@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @rhodes_dawn
Bail was denied Saturday for a West Pullman man who authorities said fled to the Atlanta area after fatally shooting a suburban man during a heated dice game last month.

Rynalder Williams, 23, made his first court appearance Saturday at the Leighton Criminal Court Building on first-degree murder charges.

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Williams, of the 12900 block of South Eggleston Avenue, had no reaction as Judge Maria Kuriakos-Ciesil called him a "danger to the community" in denying him bail in the July 17 slaying of Willie D. Smith, 22.

Last week, FBI agents from the agency's Atlanta field office and DeKalb County sheriff's officers arrested Williams in DeKalb County on a murder warrant just a week after the shooting.

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In court, prosecutors said Williams and Smith were shooting dice at a home in the 13900 block of South Wabash Avenue in Riverdale when they began quarreling. During the argument, Williams pulled a .40-caliber handgun and shot Harris once in the top of his head and fled, prosecutors said.

If convicted, Williams could face life in prison.

He is expected to return to court in Markham next week.

wlee@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @MidNoirCowboy
ASEAN Foreign Ministers take photo at the opening ceremony

of the 50th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM 50) (Source: VNA)

In his opening remarks, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said the ministers will discuss regional progresses in implementing important initiatives as well as future orientations for building the ASEAN community, realising the ASEAN Political-Security Community Blueprint 2025, and preparation for the 31st ASEAN Summit and related meetings in November this year.They will also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual concern such as the East Sea, the Korean Peninsula, anti-terrorism and extremism fight, navigation security and other non-traditional security matters.

At a plenary session, the FMs will have an in-depth discussion on working groups meetings with 17 dialogue countries, including the US, Russia, Japan and China.

Such issues as the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula and settlement of territorial disputes in the East Sea, terrorism, violent extremism, and cross-border crimes are expected to be deliberated at the event.

The ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights will update the FMs on the human rights situation so as to help them devise measures to promote and protect human rights in ASEAN based on the commissions Terms of Reference and ASEAN Human Rights Declaration.

The AMM 50 and related meetings will run until August 8th.

On August 7th, foreign ministers of ASEAN and 17 dialogue partners are scheduled to meet at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF)  an important multilateral security dialogue  to discuss hot issues in the region./.
Trenton Cornell-Duranleau, 26, left, was found dead July 27, 2017, in a high-rise apartment belonging to Wyndham Lathem, center, a Northwestern University professor. Lathem and Andrew Warren, an employee at Oxford University, face charges of first-degree murder. (Family and police photos)

As Northwestern University Professor Wyndham Lathem sat in an California jail cell the day before his first court appearance, from 2,100 miles away, his Chicago-based attorney described Lathem's outlook as "hopeful."

Cook County authorities on Monday issued a warrant for Lathem's arrest in the slaying of Trenton Cornell-Duranleau, 26, who was found dead of multiple sharp force injuries in Lathem's apartment July 27.

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On Friday, Lathem turned himself in at the Oakland federal building. A second man who has been charged in Cornell-Duranleau's death, Andrew Warren, also turned himself in Friday.

Just a few days before Cornell-Duranleau was found dead, Warren, an employee at Oxford University in England, had left his home in Oxfordshire and boarded a plane to the United States without telling those close to him where he was going or why.

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Cornell-Duranleau had lived in the 2200 block of South Wood Street in the Heart of Chicago neighborhood on the Near Southwest Side, according to the medical examiner's office. He grew up in Michigan, according to public records. Cornell-Duranleau earned a state license as a cosmetologist in 2011, according to the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.

Cornell-Duranleau's homicide and the subsequent manhunt for the suspects has drawn international attention.

"The police are investigating, and we are conducting our own investigation alongside them," said Lathem's lawyer, Adam Sheppard. "We hope his role in the matter, ultimately, will lead to innocence. We are conducting an investigation to reveal facts that possibly justify that."

Lathem has retained the father-son law firm of Barry and Adam Sheppard, whose services he'd never before employed, Adam Sheppard said on Sunday. The firm, which advertises as concentrating "in defense of serious sex offenses, drug offenses and white collar crimes," then reached out to professional acquaintance Kenneth Wine, who is to represent Lathem when he appears before an Alameda County, California, judge at 9 a.m. Monday.

It wasn't immediately clear when or where Warren was to appear. Sheppard said his firm was not representing Warren.

"They didn't surrender together, obviously, but we were not in contact with the other suspect at all, we're solely representing Wyndham," he said.

At the appearance, Lathem is expected to waive his right to an extradition hearing, meaning his legal team doesn't intend to argue that he should be tried in California.

"He's not contesting his transport back to Chicago; he's not insisting on staying in California," Sheppard said. "We expect it to be a very brief hearing. He wants to continue in his vein of cooperation and come back here and face the charges."

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Sheppard said Lathem has been cooperative ever since the charges were filed. He said "once the information became known, that authorities were asking him to surrender," and Lathem secured an attorney, the team got to work arranging his surrender.

"He was calm and surrendered without incident. He voluntarily surrendered, this is not a case where he was caught on the run at all," Sheppard said.

If the hearing goes as expected, Lathem could be back in Illinois by the end of the week. When extraditing suspects, authorities use a number of transportation options, which could include a bus, a train or in some cases, a plane. It is not known how Lathem could be transported. That will be based on how quickly authorities want to get him in front of a Cook County judge, Sheppard said.

Once here, he will have a bond hearing to determine whether he will be allowed to be released from jail while he awaits trial.

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It wasn't immediately clear whether his family would travel to California for the hearing, but Sheppard said one friend made an attempt to visit Lathem at the Alameda County Jail on Sunday. Sheppard explained that a number of "really distinguished and well-respected" people already have written letters in support of Lathem.

"My sense from talking to local counsel is that he is trying to stay as optimistic as possible. Among his friends and family, there has been an outpouring of support. We intend on attaching (the letters) as an exhibit to our motion to set bail when there's a bond hearing here in Illinois. We've done that before with some success," Sheppard said.

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At one point Sunday, Sheppard had to hang up the phone to speak with Lathem's mother, who was calling on Sheppard's other line. He said Lathem has the full support and backing of his loved ones.

When he called back, he amended his earlier wording.

"You asked me how his attitude was and I said 'optimistic.' That's not the word I was searching for. Hopeful. I'd describe him as hopeful," Sheppard said.

kdouglas@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @312BreakingNews
In this June 18, 2014, photo, police investigate an SUV where a toddler died near Marietta, Ga., when the father forgot to drop his child off at day care and went to work. (Ben Gray / AP)

Jennifer Hilton is a loving mother who would never put a child in danger. Until the day she did.

On Oct. 6, 2010, Hilton forgot to drop her son Chris at day care  a job her husband usually did  and instead left the toddler in the car when she went to work in south suburban Crestwood. Luckily, Chris was found before he died of heatstroke.

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Hilton, who has moved out of state, said she now knows this could happen to anyone. She volunteers to speak on the issue through KidsAndCars.org, a Kansas-based safety advocacy group.

"You mix exhaustion with a change of routine and stress and you're waiting for a bomb to explode," said Hilton, 41.

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Despite two decades of public education about the dangers of leaving children in cars, the number of vehicular heatstroke deaths of children in the U.S. has remained about the same  an average of 37 each year since 1998. So safety advocates are now backing federal legislation that would mandate a technological solution, requiring new cars to be equipped with a visual and audio alarm system to alert caregivers if a child is left behind.

"Education is good, but it's not the ultimate solution. That's why we need technology," said Jackie Gillan, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, a Washington, D.C.-based group.

"My car reminds me when I get out of the car and the keys are in there  how can we not remind the driver to check the backseat?" said Illinois Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, co-sponsor of the legislation in the U.S. House. The proposal is part of a bill about autonomous vehicles. Companion legislation also was introduced in the U.S. Senate.

If the proposal passes, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would have two years to come up with rules to mandate what the technology must do, and then automakers would have another two years to put it in all new vehicles. Similar legislation requires new cars to have "back-up" cameras that help prevent drivers from hitting children behind their car; those regulations kick in next year.

The proposed heatstroke legislation does not prescribe a particular type of technology but sets out a performance standard, which allows for different answers, Gillan said. General Motors has technology that alerts a driver if he or she opens a rear door at the start of a trip, but then doesn't open it again at the end of it. Another device can detect a baby's breath in the back, Gillan said. A driver could be alerted repeatedly through iPhone messages that a child was left behind.

More than 800 children have died of vehicular heatstroke deaths since 1990, including at least 20 in Illinois, according to KidsAndCars.org. Texas and Florida, both populous hot-weather states, saw the most fatalities between 1990 and 2016, with 113 and 82, respectively.

More than half of the children were unknowingly left in the car (55 percent), 28 percent climbed in on their own and another 13 percent were knowingly left, according to KidsAndCars.org. Of all fatalities, 87 percent were children ages 3 or younger.

So far this year, 30 children have died, an increase from 25 from this time last year. Amber Andreasen, director of KidsandCars.org, said that increasing temperatures resulting from climate change could play a role. "The warmer it is, the faster a child can succumb to heatstroke," she said.

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Car interiors heat up quickly in the sunshine. Even if the windows are cracked open, the temperature can reach 125 degrees in minutes, according to KidsAndCars.org.

A child's body overheats three to five times faster than an adult body. If a child's body temperature reaches 107 degrees, the child will die, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Children can die even when the outside temperature is 60 degrees. Pets left in cars also are at risk.

The number of children who have died of heatstroke in vehicles has been consistent since the late 1990s, when there was a movement nationwide to require children to be in the backseat to prevent them from being killed by overpowered airbags, Andreasen said.

"One of the unintended consequences of that safety move is that children are out of sight of the driver," Andreasen said. In 1992, four children died in hot cars  last year it was 39, while the number of children killed by airbags dropped from more than 30 in 1998 to zero in the last few years, according to KidsAndCars.org.

Why would a loving parent leave a child in a car? A change in daily routine, lack of sleep, stress, hormone changes, fatigue and distractions are things all parents experience and can be factors, according to KidsandCars.org.

It can happen when people are multitasking, get out of their usual routine and go into "autopilot," said David Diamond, a professor in the department of psychology, molecular pharmacology and physiology at the University of South Florida, who has studied the problem. The same kind of mental lapse can cause a police officer to leave a loaded gun on the toilet paper holder in a public bathroom.

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"The common factor is not just stress, but the parent is on a drive that typically does not include the child, so the brain goes into autopilot mode that takes the parent from point a to point b, and the day care is not along that route," said Diamond, who has interviewed parents of children who died of vehicular heatstroke. "The parent is driving, the mind is wandering to plans for the day, and the awareness of the child is lost."

Diamond said parents' brains can fill in the memory of dropping children off with caregivers and really believe it happened. They talk about their children at work, have pictures of their children on their desks and even tell co-workers that they have to leave early to go to the day care.

"Then they come out and find their child dead," said Diamond. Besides the trauma of losing their child, these parents have to suffer from the judgment from others, Diamond said. He said technology is "absolutely" the answer to the problem.

Hilton said when she got back to her car, it was surrounded by emergency vehicles. When police told her she was under arrest for leaving her son in the car, "I looked right at them and said 'My son's in day care." When Hilton learned what had happened, she began to scream.

Though Schakowsky said the heatstroke legislation has bipartisan support and that she is "optimistic" it will pass, it could be several years before new cars are required to have alerts to notify parents that a child is left behind.

For now, safety advocates recommend the following procedures:

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 Look before you lock  always check the back seat before you lock the car and walk away.

 Keep a stuffed animal or other memento in your child's car seat when it's empty, and move it to the front seat as a reminder when your child is in the back. Or place your phone, briefcase, or purse in the back when traveling with your child.

 If someone else is driving your child, or your routine has been altered, always check to make sure your child has arrived safely. Set a reminder on your phone to call.

 Keep your vehicle locked and keys out of reach  nearly three in 10 heatstroke deaths happen when an unattended child climbs into a car.

 If you see a child alone in a vehicle, call law enforcement immediately and free the child. Illinois has no "Good Samaritan" law to protect from civil or criminal liability people who break into cars to save children but are not trained as first responders, said secretary of state spokesman Dave Druker.

But you should help anyway.

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Answer to transit quiz

Last week's transportation song quiz asked: What big-band song about a train gets a sly reference in the Mel Brooks' movie "Young Frankenstein"? It's "Chattanooga Choo Choo," and the winner is Chicago resident Joe Prill, of West Town, who was first with the correct answer.

Here's a new question  the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority named its fare card after a song character. Who is it, and what's the song? Email or Tweet me the answer. The winner will take home a book by the Chicago Tribune's personal advice columnist Amy "Ask Amy" Dickinson.

mwisniewski@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @marywizchicago
A former Chicago man was ordered held without bail Saturday on charges that he strangled a woman and dumped her body on a Southwest Side street back in 2009 before fleeing to Guatemala.

The man, Norvin Ortiz, returned to the United States and at some point settled in a Denver suburb before he was recently arrested there on a murder warrant and extradited to Chicago.

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Ortiz, 38, of Westminster, Colo., was charged with first-degree murder in the Jan. 18, 2009, slaying of Bree Gregory.

Judge Maria Kuriakos-Ciesil ordered Ortiz remanded to custody pending trial.

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Prosecutors said Ortiz admitted to Chicago police that he called Gregory on the day of the killing for sex but became angry when they met and she refused to have sex. Ortiz then choked the 30-year-old woman to death and pushed her body out of his car in the 4600 block of South Drake Avenue upon seeing that she was dead, said Assistant State's Attorney Kathryn Roy.

Police found Gregory lying in the snow, partially clothed and suffering from numerous abrasions on her face, hands and ankle, authorities said. An autopsy showed that Gregory died of strangulation, and her death was ruled a homicide.

Authorities secured a warrant after Ortiz's brother submitted DNA to police, which matched with material found under Gregory's fingernails.

wlee@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @MidNoirCowboy
A former Uber driver was charged with reckless homicide related to a multi-vehicle crash on the Northwest Side in June that killed a married father and injured his wife.

A Cook County judge on Saturday ordered Richard Massenburg held on $250,000 bail at the Leighton Criminal Courts Building on a count of reckless homicide and numerous traffic citations in the June 11 crash in the Belmont-Cragin community.

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Prosecutors said Massenburg had marijuana in his bloodstream and was driving his 2015 Nissan Altima 81 mph when he sped through a red light at Diversey and Cicero avenues and struck the first of several cars in the intersection about 9:50 a.m.

The first collision killed Javier Castrejon, 38, and injured his 42-year-old wife, according to Assistant State's Attorney Kathryn Roy. The crash sent Castrejon's car into the car ahead of them, injuring a 28-year-old woman. Despite the collisions, Massenburg continued north on Cicero until he struck another car stopped at the red light.

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Castrejon was rushed to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead from massive trauma to his head and torso, authorities said. The graduate of Schurz High School and father of two was a sales clerk for a tool retailer and worked as a security guard at a banquet hall, according to an obituary printed in the Tribune. His wife, who was knocked unconscious in the collision, was treated for multiple fractures and a concussion.

Massenburg, 52, was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he tested positive for the active ingredient in marijuana, Roy said. In court, prosecutors identified Massenburg as a driver for the ride-sharing service and said the app was open at the time of the crash, though he had no passengers at the time.

An Uber spokesman said Massenberg was fired as soon as the company became aware of the crash.

Two witnesses also identified Massenburg as the driver of the speeding car, and red light cameras and surveillance cameras from a nearby gas station captured the crash, prosecutors said.

Massenburg was arrested Friday when he appeared for his Traffic Court hearing. He is scheduled to return to court next week.

wlee@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @MidNoirCowboy
A 33-year-old man died early Sunday after he came into contact with the electrified third rail on the CTA Red Line at 128 N. State St. in the Loop, according to officials.

About 5:55 a.m., fire officials were called to the Red Line tracks for a man who was on the third rail, according to the Chicago Fire Department.

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He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Chicago police.

The incident happened near the former Washington CTA station, which is just south of the State/Lake CTA station, said Tammy Chase, a CTA spokesperson.

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It's unclear what the man was doing on the tracks or how he got there, Chase said.

Red Line trains had to be temporarily rerouted to the elevated tracks early Sunday. Regular service for Red Line trains resumed just before 6:40 a.m.

Check back for updates.
A man was hit and killed by a freight train in the West Beverly neighborhood Sunday morning, officials said.

About 4:30 a.m., Chicago Fire Department crews were called to the 10300 block of South Maplewood Avenue. A man was pronounced dead at the location, in the West Beverly neighborhood, a fire department spokesman said.

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The man, whose name and age weren't immediately available, was hit by a CSX freight train traveling from Chicago to North Baltimore, Ohio, according to Rob Doolittle, assistant vice president of media and communications for CSX.

"First responders confirmed to CSX that the person was fatally injured, and our thoughts are with everyone impacted by this tragic event," Doolittle wrote in a statement.

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Doolittle also said CSX personnel are cooperating with local authorities investigating this incident.

The train consisted of two locomotives and 23 cars. As of 9:48 a.m. normal traffic had resumed.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Monday that North Korea could show it is ready for negotiations by stopping missile launches, and said he told Russian diplomats that the Kremlin's meddling in U.S. elections had created "serious mistrust" of them among Americans.

In remarks to reporters at a regional conference in which North Korea's missile and nuclear tests have dominated discussions, Tillerson held out an olive branch to Pyongyang by saying the United States will sit down for talks "when conditions are right" to discuss denuclearization and steps to ensure North Korea can feel secure and prosperous.

"The best signal that North Korea could give us that they're prepared to talk would be to stop these missile launches," he said. "We've not had any extended period of time where they have not taken some type of provocative action by launching ballistic missiles. I think that would be the first and strongest signal they could send to us, would be to stop these missile launches."

Pressed for a time frame, Tillerson said, "We'll know it when we see it."

"We're not going to give someone a specific number of days or weeks," he added. "This is not 'Give me 30 days and we're ready to talk.' It's not quite that simple. It is all about how we see their attitude in approaching a dialogue with us."

Tillerson has used the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathering here in the Philippine capital to hold meetings on the sidelines with allies and adversaries. He said that when he met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Sunday, he tried to drive home the point that Russia's meddling in the 2016 presidential election had a deep and divisive effect on relations between the two countries.

Tillerson described his conversation with Lavrov as "trying to help them understand just how serious this incident had been and how seriously it had damaged the relationship between the U.S. and the American people and the Russian people - that this had created serious mistrust between our two countries and that we simply have to find some way to deal with that."

Tillerson said he also told Lavrov the United States has still not decided how to respond to Russia's move to expel hundreds of U.S. diplomats. He said a response would come by Sept. 1.

Earlier Sunday, China delivered frank advice to North Korea, its outcast neighbor, telling Pyongyang to make a "smart decision" and stop conducting missile launches and nuclear tests.

The statement by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi came on the heels of a U.N. Security Council decision to impose additional sanctions on North Korea and its exports, and it suggested that the American push to further isolate the regime of Kim Jong Un is reaping some dividends. But Wang also called on the United States to dial back the tension.

After meeting with North Korea's top diplomat at the ASEAN gathering here, Wang said that the situation on the Korean Peninsula is critical - but that it could be a turning point for negotiations over North Korea's nuclear proliferation.

"Do not violate the U.N.'s decision or provoke international society's goodwill by conducting missile launching or nuclear tests," Wang said after talks with Ri Yong Ho, North Korea's foreign minister. Wang, however, quickly added, "Of course, we would like to urge other parties like the U.S. and South Korea to stop increasing tensions."

Tillerson arrived in Manila on Saturday night in what State Department officials said would be a concerted effort to enlist other countries in the campaign to get North Korea to abandon its missile and nuclear tests. Concern has mounted that North Korea is developing its missile technology more quickly than expected, after tests last month of missiles that experts said are capable of striking the U.S. mainland, perhaps as far inland as Chicago.

"Certainly we want to resolve this issue through negotiations, and this pressure campaign, the sanctions, it's all about trying to convince the North Koreans that the fast way forward is to come back to the table and talk," said Susan Thornton, assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific affairs.

President Trump, who is at his golf club in New Jersey, tweeted on Sunday night: "Just completed call with President Moon of South Korea. Very happy and impressed with 15-0 United Nations vote on North Korea sanctions."

In the hour-long phone call, Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed to cooperate and apply maximum pressure and sanctions on North Korea in a telephone call on Monday, the South's presidential office said, according to Reuters.

Moon was quoted as saying there is a need to show North Korea that the door to dialogue is still open, should Pyongyang give up its nuclear program.

In Washington, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway reveled in the vote, which took place Saturday. On ABC's "This Week," she said Sunday: "And then you also just yesterday saw a unanimous rebuke of North Korea. The greatest economic sanctions package ever levied against them, it'll cost about $1 billion. Even allies in the region like China, Japan, South Korea, all agreeing with the United States that North Korea and its nuclear capabilities must be stopped."

But Tillerson also has pointedly stated several times that the United States does not seek regime change or a rapid reunification of the Koreas, which have been in a state of suspended hostility since an armistice was declared in 1953.

On Sunday, he declared the latest U.N. sanctions a "good outcome." That prompted South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha to correct him slightly. "It was a very, very good outcome," she said.

South Korean officials told reporters that Kang and Tillerson had agreed to pursue the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through peaceful measures.

But the diplomatic road ahead is rocky. U.S. officials rejected Beijing's call for the North to halt its nuclear program in exchange for the United States and South Korea suspending joint military exercises, which Pyongyang considers a prelude to an invasion and regime change.

"This kind of moral equivalency that's implied by the freeze for freeze, which is between the North Koreans shooting off missiles that are prohibited and our reasonably defensive exercises that we undertake in our alliance with the South Koreans to protect them from these launches, is not a reasonable kind of a trade," Thornton said.

Thornton also said the United States would be "watchful" to ensure that China did not slip from its adherence to the new sanctions, which she characterized as the strongest in a generation.

"We want to make sure China is continuing to implement fully the sanctions regime," she said. "Not this kind of episodic back and forth that we've seen."

The United States has unsuccessfully lobbied for the 27 members of the ASEAN Regional Forum to suspend North Korea's membership. The response has been polite but noncommittal.

U.S. officials have been adamant that there will be no direct meetings with North Koreans in Manila, even among lower-level officials.

The ASEAN conference also addressed other issues of regional concern.

Delegates are working to establish the framework for a code of conduct in the South China Sea that would reaffirm respect for the freedom of navigation and overflight, and outline how to arbitrate disputes. The demands that China stop expanding and reinforcing man-made islands in the sea, however, have been watered down from a year ago as more pressing demands have risen to the forefront.

The United States is particularly concerned about Islamist militants gaining a foothold in the Philippines after being pushed out of Syria and Iraq. In the city of Marawi in the country's south, Philippine forces are fighting militants who claim to be affiliated with the Islamic State.

Tillerson started the day on a somber note when he visited the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, where 17,000 American and Philippine troops who fought in the Pacific during World War II are buried.

After touring the site and walking past large stone slabs inscribed with the names of more than 36,000 men and women missing in action in the theater between 1941 and 1945, Tillerson signed a visitors' book, adding after his signature, "Let us never forget - FREEDOM."
Since 2006, the nation's largest police departments have fired at least 1,881 officers for misconduct that betrayed the public's trust, from cheating on overtime to unjustified shootings. But The Washington Post has found that departments have been forced to reinstate more than 450 officers after appeals required by union contracts.

Most of the officers regained their jobs when police chiefs were overruled by arbitrators, typically lawyers hired to review the process. In many cases, the underlying misconduct was undisputed, but arbitrators often concluded that the firings were unjustified because departments had been too harsh, missed deadlines, lacked sufficient evidence or failed to interview witnesses.

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A San Antonio police officer caught on a dash cam challenging a handcuffed man to fight him for the chance to be released was reinstated in February. In D.C., an officer convicted of sexually abusing a young woman in his patrol car was ordered returned to the force in 2015. And in Boston, an officer was returned to work in 2012 despite being accused of lying, drunkenness and driving a suspected gunman from the scene of a nightclub killing.

The chiefs say the appeals process leaves little margin for error. Yet police agencies sometimes sabotage their own attempts to shed troubled officers by making procedural mistakes. The result is that police chiefs have booted hundreds of officers they have deemed unfit to be in their ranks, only to be compelled to take them back and send them back to the streets with guns and badges.

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"It's demoralizing, but not just to the chief," said Charles H. Ramsey, former police commissioner in Philadelphia and chief in the District. Philadelphia and the District together have had to rehire 80 fired officers since 2006, three of them twice.

"It's demoralizing to the rank and file who really don't want to have those kinds of people in their ranks," Ramsey said. "It causes a tremendous amount of anxiety in the public. Our credibility is shot whenever these things happen."

The Post's findings illustrate the obstacles local police agencies face in holding their own accountable at a critical moment for policing: President Trump's administration has indicated that the federal government will curtail the strategy of federal intervention in departments confronted with allegations of systemic officer misconduct, even as controversial police shootings continue to undermine public confidence.

Nationwide, the reinstatement of fired officers has not been studied or comprehensively tracked. No national database logs terminations. Some firings receive local publicity, but many go unreported. Some states shield police personnel records  including firings  from public disclosure.

To investigate how often fired officers were returned to their jobs, The Post filed open records requests with the nation's 55 largest municipal and county police forces. Thirty-seven departments complied with the request, disclosing that they had fired a combined 1,881 officers since 2006. Of those officers, 451 successfully appealed and won their jobs back.

The officers' names and details were available in about half of the reinstatement cases: 151 of the officers had been fired for conduct unbecoming, and 88 had been terminated for dishonesty, according to a review of internal police documents, appeals records, court files and news reports.

At least 33 of the officers had been charged with crimes. Of these, 17 had been convicted, most of misdemeanors.

Eight officers were fired and rehired by their departments more than once.

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"To overturn a police chief's decision, except in cases of fact errors, is a disservice to the good order of the department," said San Antonio Police Chief William McManus, who in February was ordered to reinstate Officer Matthew Belver for a second time. "It also undermines a chief's authority and ignores the chief's understanding of what serves the best interest of the community and the department."

In the District, arbitrators have ordered the city to rehire 39 officers since 2006, more than half of them because arbitrators concluded that the department missed deadlines to complete its internal investigations. One officer, convicted of assault after he was caught on video attacking a shoe store employee, was fired in 2015 and reinstated in 2016 after an arbitrator concluded that police had missed the deadline by seven days, arbitration records show.

D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said he disagreed with the arbitrators' conclusions on when the clock started in those cases. "The public has to suffer because somebody violated an administrative rule," Newsham said, adding that two-thirds of the officers reinstated because of missed investigative deadlines are no longer on the D.C. force.

Police unions argue that the right to appeal terminations through arbitration protects officers from arbitrary punishment or being second-guessed for their split-second decisions. Unions contend that police chiefs are prone to overreach, especially when there is public or political pressure to fire officers. In interviews, local and national union officials said some of the 451 reinstated officers should never have been fired in the first place.

"They're held to a higher standard," said James Pasco, executive director of the national Fraternal Order of Police. "Their work is constantly scrutinized to a far higher degree. You very seldom see any phone-cam indictments of trash collectors or utility workers."

Local police departments have often been criticized in recent years as not holding their officers accountable in fatal shootings, or in cases of brutality and corruption. To address the outcry from the public, the Department of Justice has employed its authority to investigate police departments for civil rights violations and to force reforms. Under President Barack Obama, Justice launched dozens of these investigations. The tactic was used, for example, in the aftermath of the 2014 fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo.

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The Trump administration, however, has indicated that local officials should take the lead in policing their own departments. "I think there's concern that good police officers and good departments can be sued by the Department of Justice when you just have individuals within a department who have done wrong," Attorney General Jeff Sessions said during his Senate confirmation hearing this year.

Justice Department officials recently told The Post that the department will be more judicious in launching civil rights investigations.

"The Attorney General has explicitly said that 'police officers who abuse their sacred trust are made to answer for their misconduct' and that 'the Department of Justice will hold accountable any law enforcement officer who violates the civil rights of our citizens by using excessive force.' Any assertion to the contrary is flat out wrong and incredibly irresponsible," said Ian D. Prior, a Department of Justice spokesman, in a written statement.

"What the Attorney General does not believe, however, is that the unconstitutional actions of one police officer should result in onerous and ineffective agreements between the Department of Justice and local police departments that prevent law enforcement from reducing violent crime and protecting the public,'" Prior said in the statement.

But in a speech to law enforcement officers last week, President Trump made comments that were widely interpreted as condoning police violence against "thugs" who are taken into custody. He told officers: "[P]lease don't be too nice."

"When you guys put somebody in the car and you're protecting their head. ... I said, you can take the hand away, okay?" Trump said.

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The White House later said the president had been joking.

The 37 departments that complied with the The Post's request for records employ nearly 91,000 officers. The nearly 1,900 firings and the 451 rehirings show both how rare it is for departments to fire officers and how difficult it is to keep many of those from returning.

"It's the frustrating part of my job," said Boston Police Commissioner William B. Evans, who has been compelled to rehire four officers. "Most of the people we terminate [it] is clearly for good reason."

Firings undone

In case after case, arbitrators have required police chiefs to take back officers the chiefs no longer want in their ranks.

In the District, police were told to rehire an officer who allegedly forged prosecutors' signatures on court documents. In Texas, police had to reinstate an officer who was investigated for shooting up the car of his ex-girlfriend's new man. In Philadelphia, police were compelled to reinstate an officer despite viral video of him striking a woman in the face. In Florida, police were ordered to reinstate an officer fired for fatally shooting an unarmed man.

"He is being paid to protect and serve us as citizens. But he takes my child's life," Sheila McNeil, the mother of the man who was killed by the officer in Florida, said at a public meeting in 2015. "I don't understand how he can still be out here on the street. What fairness is that?"

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The 37 departments that reported rehiring officers have one commonality: a police union contract that guarantees an appeal of disciplinary measures.

Police unionization began around the turn of the 20th century and spread rapidly in the 1960s and '70s as states passed laws allowing collective bargaining by public workers. Today, most public employees, including police officers, have some form of collective-bargaining rights.

On most police forces, officers accused of wrongdoing are subject to internal affairs investigations to determine whether they violated department policies. If the officers are found to have breached department policies, police chiefs, superintendents or police boards can discipline them.

The multiyear contracts negotiated by police unions ensure that any discipline may be appealed  typically through arbitration, a process that brings in outside parties, often lawyers who specialize in labor law, to review the punishments and rule on the appeals.

That is how police Sgt. John Blumenthal returned to work in Oklahoma City.

On July 7, 2007, a man was lying handcuffed on the ground when Blumenthal ran up and kicked him in the head, according to several other officers. Blumenthal's fellow officers reported the incident to internal affairs, and months later Blumenthal was fired and convicted of misdemeanor assault and battery.

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Two years later, an arbitrator ordered the department to return Blumenthal to work. The reasons are unclear, because the records of the proceedings are not public. Today, Blumenthal, who did not respond to requests for comment, is a motorcycle officer.

"The message is huge," said Oklahoma City Police Chief Bill Citty, who said he loses about 80 percent of arbitration cases. "Officers know all they have to do is grieve it, arbitrate it and get their jobs back."

One of the primary determinations an arbitrator makes is whether a department adhered to the rules when disciplining an officer.

"Were all of the correct investigative steps followed?" said Arnold Zack, a former president of the National Academy of Arbitrators who teaches labor law at Harvard University. "And was there a violation of any policy, and if so, what should the discipline be?"

Zack said that police chiefs often bemoan arbitration but that many cases fall apart because the departments fail to properly investigate the allegations. In one Florida case, a sheriff's deputy who was fired after being accused by prosecutors of trafficking in pain pills was reinstated because the arbitrator found that the department did not adequately investigate the allegations before firing him.

Many of the arbitrators who handled the cases examined by The Post declined to be interviewed about their decisions, saying that they do not discuss their rulings.

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In Chicago, union officials say the appeals process saved the job of an officer who was unfairly fired for failing to pay his parking tickets.

In October 2015, Bill Caro, at the time an officer with 28 years' service in the Chicago Police Department, was terminated after he failed to pay nine parking tickets totaling $1,471. The department had warned him to pay the unpaid fines and had given him a deadline that he missed.

Caro eventually paid the tickets, but the department fired him anyway, records show.

He appealed, and in August 2016, a local judge who served as arbitrator in the case deemed the punishment "excessive" and ordered that Caro be returned to the force. His firing was reduced to a five-year suspension without pay, meaning he will not report to work until 2020. Caro could not be reached for comment.

For 239 officers in The Post's study whose firings were made public, the majority had their terminations reduced to suspensions; at least 43 received no discipline at all. Most of the reinstated officers were awarded back pay for the time they were off the force, which can stretch to several years.

"The arbitrator is bound by the contract language just as much as the department," Zack said. "If the contract says you have five days to investigate, and you take six days, then the firing has to be overturned.

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"Does that mean some bad guys will get away with some things? Yes."

CASE STUDY 1

Getaway driver: His cousin is a fugitive. He's patrolling Boston.

In 2012, the Boston Police Department was forced to rehire Baltazar "Tate" DaRosa two years after stripping him of his police powers for what the department said was his role in a murder.

One year after he joined the department, DaRosa was asked to help investigate the 2003 killing of his cousin, who had been ambushed by a masked gunman as he sat in a car with his girlfriend. DaRosa, then 25, and his cousin had relatives in Cape Verde, a group of islands off the coast of West Africa. Frustrated at their inability to generate leads in the tightknit Cape Verdean community, detectives asked DaRosa to help.

"[The detective] sent me around asking family members and Cape Verdeans, but being a police officer, no one really told me" anything about the case, DaRosa later told investigators, according to internal affairs records and arbitration documents.

On a cold night in January 2005, DaRosa was off-duty at the Copa Grande Oasis, a nightclub outside Boston, records show.

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DaRosa was supposed to have been working but had called in sick from his overnight police shift. He and Carlos DePina  the brother of DaRosa's murdered cousin  were at the club together. Also at the club that night was a man named Jose Lopes, a known gang member who eventually would be identified as a suspect in the killing of DaRosa's cousin.

The officer, his cousin DePina and two friends drank and danced until the club lights came on about 1:45 a.m., signaling closing time. DaRosa headed out to his car and popped in a CD as he waited for DePina to return.

But when DePina arrived at the car, he turned and walked back toward a group of people in the parking lot, according to DaRosa's account.

About five minutes later, his cousin ran back to the car "out of breath," saying he had heard gunshots, DaRosa said.

"'Let's get out of here,'" DePina said, according to DaRosa.

DaRosa, with DePina as a passenger, drove away, passing a police cruiser with flashing lights speeding toward the club.

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Back in the parking lot, Lopes was dying from numerous gunshot wounds to the chest and back.

Several witnesses told police they saw people run to DaRosa's car, records show. Another witness told police of seeing DaRosa driving from the scene with the shooting suspect in the car.

The department placed DaRosa on paid administrative leave and opened an internal investigation. But DaRosa refused to cooperate, invoking his constitutional right against self-incrimination, records show.

In July 2005, five months after the killing, DaRosa was arrested, charged with being an accessory to murder and placed on unpaid administrative leave by the department. His cousin, who is still at large, was charged with murder.

In September 2006, a jury acquitted DaRosa.

Once his trial was complete, DaRosa agreed to cooperate with internal affairs investigators, telling them he thought his cousin was mistaking some other sound when he said he heard shots. He also expressed regret for not stopping to help police. "I assumed that if something did happen that the cruisers were there for it," he said.

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Detectives later learned that DaRosa and his cousin DePina had been arrested at the club during a Cape Verdean-themed night three months before the shooting. Police said that DaRosa's cousin had been drunk and causing a disturbance and that DaRosa had bloodshot eyes and reeked of alcohol. At the station, police eventually let the men go.

The internal investigation of DaRosa's possible role the night of the shooting was completed in 2007, and in December 2010, the department fired DaRosa, saying both events at the nightclub had violated department policies  abuse of alcohol, neglect of duty, and a lack of truthfulness, records show.

DaRosa appealed the firing. His union attorney argued that there was no prove DaRosa used his influence to interfere with his cousin's arrest months before the shooting or that DaRosa knew Lopes was at the club the night of the shooting or that he had suspected his cousin was the shooter.

In July 2012, after a three-day, closed-door hearing at City Hall, arbitrator Richard G. Boulanger, a Boston-area lawyer, sided with the union. He concluded that DaRosa "was not poised as a get-away driver or that he had knowledge that Carlos was involved in Jose's shooting."

Nearly two years after his firing, and seven years after the shooting, DaRosa was reinstated and awarded $50,111 in lost pay and overtime, records show.

DaRosa, a union attorney, and former Boston police commissioner Kathleen O'Toole, who led the department at the time of the shooting, did not respond to requests for comment.

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"I feel very happy for Baltazar," Bryan Decker, a lawyer who handled the case for the police union on DaRosa's behalf, told a local reporter at the time. "He's an upstanding member of the community, and I think that he is just excited to get back to work helping the people of Boston."

Today, DePina is a fugitive, believed to have fled the country. His cousin DaRosa is a bike patrol officer.

CASE STUDY 2

The drive-by shooting: A truck was shot up, and a limo was pulled over.

Early New Year's Day, 2007, Fort Worth police officer Jesus "Jesse" Banda Jr. sat in his car outside an all-night party where his ex-girlfriend was with another man. Banda called a dispatcher and ran a check of the license plate of the truck the man was driving to determine his address. Days later, the truck was found blasted with nearly a dozen rounds from a shotgun.

Banda, who had seven years' service at the time, told investigators he knew nothing about the damage to the truck, according to internal affairs and arbitration documents. In the end, police could not tie Banda to the shooting, but the department concluded that he had lied about why he had called in the license plate.

Then-Police Chief Ralph Mendoza put the officer on restricted duty, ultimately suspending him indefinitely  the same as firing him  in June 2007 for being untruthful and violating the department's ethical standards. Banda was told not to represent himself as a police officer while internal affairs investigated the matter.

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During that time, Banda was a passenger in a limousine pulled over by a Fort Worth officer. The officer said he saw the vehicle and, as he watched, the driver passed a Bud Light to passengers in the back. The officer said that when he asked Banda to get out of the vehicle, Banda handed the officer his police credentials.

The department opened a second internal affairs investigation.

An arbitrator ruled in August 2008 on Banda's firing over the check of the license plate. He said Banda had clearly used department resources to run the license tags "for personal reasons"  but also said that firing him was too harsh, compared with punishments given to other officers. The arbitrator ordered him reinstated, reduced his firing to a 90-day suspension and awarded nearly a year of back pay, records show.

Banda was back on the force only one month when he was fired a second time, this time by new Police Chief Patricia Kneblick for misrepresenting himself as an officer during the traffic stop.

Again, Banda appealed.

This time, Banda's union attorney argued that there was no proof that Banda had showed his work ID during the traffic stop and that the department's investigation had been shoddy and incomplete. Bill Detwiler, who was the hearing examiner, agreed: "The hearing examiner finds the investigative process used in this case to be fatally flawed."

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Detectives had followed up with just three of eight potential witnesses and had done "little or nothing to source such information" including tracing the license plate of the limo and interviewing the driver, Detwiler said in his ruling. And, Detwiler noted, the detective investigating possible criminal charges lacked formal training and experience.

Seven months after Banda's second firing, in April 2009, Detwiler reinstated the officer with partial back pay.

Banda, through the police department, declined to comment.

"The hearing examiner took issue with the same problems that we took issue with," Terry Daffron Hickey, Banda's attorney, told a local TV station at the time. "I think when you're in a situation where you're investigating a police officer and it's a serious accusation and their job is on the line, there's a duty out there to do a thorough, fair and complete investigation."

In 2015, Banda, 45, was promoted to detective, records show. Current Fort Worth Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald declined to comment.

CASE STUDY 3

The eight-year firing: The officer was convicted of sexually abusing a young woman.

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In the District, the Metropolitan Police Department fired officer Michael Blaise Sugg-Edwards after he was convicted of misdemeanor sex abuse over an incident with a teenager in his police car.

Eight years later, the department is still fighting to keep the 35-year-old off the force after the agency in 2015 was ordered to rehire him.

Sugg-Edwards, who was born and raised in the District, joined the department in 2005. He was nominated to be rookie officer of the year and to receive an achievement medal for stopping an armed rape.

On Nov. 16, 2007, Sugg-Edwards was on patrol when he saw a 19-year-old woman dressed in full white walking alone near Love, a now-closed warehouse nightclub off New York Avenue in Northeast, court records show.

The woman was there to celebrate her 19th birthday with friends but had to go back to a friend's car because she needed her identification to enter the club.

Sugg-Edwards pulled up in his marked patrol car. He allegedly told the woman that a club supervisor had sent him to escort her safely to her friend's car and invited her to get into the patrol car, according to court records.

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She said that once she was in his vehicle, he drove to a gas station and parked between two tractor trailers. Sugg-Edwards asked her, "What are you trying to do to get into the club?" she told police, adding that he began touching her thigh, genitals and breasts.

She said she pushed him away, got out of the car and reported the sexual assault to two off-duty officers at the nightclub. She was seen on video from outside the club getting out of the squad car, and officers reported that she was crying when she approached them.

Sugg-Edwards was the only uniformed officer in the area who fit the description that she gave to police. A police official called Sugg-Edwards and asked whether he had "picked up a female near the Club 'Love'?" according to an affidavit for his arrest. " 'Yes, I did,' " he said.

Sugg-Edwards said he drove her to a gas station to use the bathroom but denied assaulting her, according to court records.

"The official reminded the defendant that he had been warned in the past about talking to female patrons near the night club," the affidavit said.

The department put Sugg-Edwards on unpaid leave, and records show that he began working at a toy store in Maryland.

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In June 2008, Sugg-Edwards was convicted at a bench trial of misdemeanor sexual abuse. He was sentenced to a 100-day suspended sentence, one year supervised probation and $1,000 in court fees.

Then-D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier recommended to the trial board - a group of three officers - that Sugg-Edwards be fired.

The trial board, however, concluded that firing Sugg-Edwards was too harsh a penalty and recommended a reprimand. Fellow officers testified that Sugg-Edwards had an otherwise clean record, a reputation as a "nice guy" and that the sexual assault was "totally out of Officer Sugg-Edwards' character," records show.

On Sept. 14, 2009, the department's human resources director decided to fire Sugg-Edwards anyway, saying that the trial board "ignored evidence proving the grievant was guilty" of the misconduct.

The police union filed an appeal arguing that the D.C. code and municipal regulations barred the department from imposing discipline harsher than what the trial board recommends.

That appeal was not decided until January 2015, more than five years later. Attorneys for the union and the police department blamed the delay on a backlog of arbitration cases.

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Arbitrator Sean J. Rogers ruled that although there was enough evidence to prove Sugg-Edwards's misconduct, the union's contention was correct. Rogers ordered Sugg-Edwards reinstated with back pay and benefits.

City officials tried again to keep him off the force: They appealed the arbitrator's ruling to the Public Employee Relations Board, which resolves disputes between the District and labor organizations. The department argued that it had the authority to fire the officer, even if the trial board disagreed.

The review board upheld the arbitrator's original ruling in April 2015.

The police department then appealed the review board's decision in court. The case is pending.

For now, Sugg-Edwards remains off the force, and the city has yet to pay him as ordered by the arbitrator. His annual salary was $58,759 when he left the department eight years ago.

Sugg-Edwards did not respond to calls and emails from The Washington Post seeking comment.

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Police union attorney Marc L. Wilhite said that Sugg-Edwards wants to go back to policing and that the department needs to "follow the law" and reinstate him.

Police officials, citing union rules and local privacy laws, declined to discuss the case. Police Chief Peter Newsham said that in general he is frustrated that the department has been compelled to reinstate officers with histories of misconduct. Since 2006, the department has had to rehire at least 39 officers, records show.

"Police officers go into people's homes ... and they have the authority to take people's freedom," Newsham told The Post. "And you're going to return somebody into that role, somebody who has that responsibility and authority, who's been involved in extreme misconduct? I don't think anybody is comfortable with that."

CASE STUDY 4

A challenge to fight: An officer is fired twice and put back on the force twice.

On Dec. 3, 2015, an official with the criminal division of the Bexar County District Attorney's Office in Texas was concerned about the dashboard-camera video of a recent arrest by a San Antonio police officer.

"Can you take a look at this video?" the official asked in an email to the city attorney's office. "The officer has the suspect handcuffed, in custody and challenges him to fight while unhandcuffing him."

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Soon, the police department's internal affairs unit launched an investigation into the officer involved: Matthew Belver, then 43 and with nine years' service in the department. Belver also worked part-time as a security guard at a local church. The video was eventually made public under pressure from the local media.

The video depicted the August 2015 arrest of then-48-year-old Eloy Leal, who told internal affairs investigators that he had gone outside to investigate after someone had been injured during a shooting in his neighborhood. Leal said that he saw bullet casings on the street near the scene and that he pointed them out to Belver, who was one of the responding officers, according to internal affairs and arbitration documents.

Then, Leal said, he criticized Belver for missing the casings and announced that he was walking home to get a camera to document the evidence. As Leal began walking away, Belver arrested him, records show.

The next 17 minutes were captured on the camera mounted on Belver's dashboard. Belver was recorded telling Leal, who was handcuffed in the back seat of the squad car, that he could go free if he was willing to fight.

"If you beat my a--, don't f------ kill me," Leal pleaded as Belver uncuffed him.

"Naw, as soon as they come off, I'm going to beat your ass," Belver responded.

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The officer ordered Leal to get out of the squad car and run or fight, but Leal refused.

Belver recuffed Leal, who asked what he was being charged with.

"I'll think of something," Belver responded, driving away with Leal in the back seat. Leal was charged with interfering with the duties of a public official, a charge that prosecutors later dropped. Leal could not be reached for comment.

The incident was not the first time that Belver had been accused of misconduct by people he arrested. The department had fired Belver in 2010 after two other allegations that led to separate investigations by internal affairs.

In the first incident, Belver was accused of unlawfully entering a home and roughing up two men who were accused of threatening neighbors with a gun.

In the second, two weeks later, Belver arrested Carlos Flores, a San Antonio mechanic, on suspicion of drunken driving. Then, according to a complaint from Flores, Belver challenged him to a fight.

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Belver "told me that if I could kick his ass, he would let me go," Flores said in his complaint. By the time Flores reached the police detention center, he had a bruised left eye, injuries to his back and neck, and a large bruise across his face, an internal affairs investigation would later determine. Flores, who could not be reached for comment, was fined for driving while intoxicated, and a separate charge of assault on a public servant was dropped.

But Belver and his union attorneys won the officer's job back after his 2010 firing, negotiating a "last chance agreement" that allowed Belver to return to work as long as he had no further misconduct and agreed that he would not patrol alone.

After the 2015 video surfaced of Belver challenging Leal to a fight, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus fired Belver again - writing on Feb. 12, 2016, that the officer had violated several department policies as well as his last-chance agreement.

Once again, Belver appealed his firing.

During the two-day hearing last September, Belver's attorney argued that because the last-chance agreement was limited to two years, it had expired eight months before the Leal encounter. The attorney also noted that the union contract prohibited the department from considering discipline for matters older than 180 days, which would exclude the prior two allegations of assault made against Belver.

Arbitrator Lynne M. Gomez, a labor lawyer, agreed with the union and said that the union contract and wording of the last-chance agreement meant the department had to treat the Leal incident as a first offense. In the revised circumstances, a firing was too harsh, she ruled.

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"While the Chief testified that he thinks the Grievant is a 'disaster waiting to happen' ... just cause generally requires that discipline be applied progressively to achieve a corrective goal," Gomez said in her ruling.

Gomez in February issued Belver a 45-day suspension and ordered that he be returned to work with back pay, which city officials said will be $66,662.

Reached by email, Belver declined to be interviewed, referring questions to the head of the police union, who he said would be "familiar with both this incident and the arbitration process that followed."

Mike Helle of the San Antonio Police Officers Association said in an interview with The Washington Post that Belver was in the wrong because he had placed himself, his fellow officers and the public at risk. But Helle, the president of the officers association, said he supports the arbitrator's decision because not every infraction merits termination.

"Arbitration creates an environment in which the final say-so of whether the termination is justifiable or not is in the hands of a third party," Helle said. "It creates a bit of fairness. It takes the emotion out of the argument."

McManus, the police chief, declined to be interviewed about the Belver case or the other 29 officers whom the San Antonio Police Department has been compelled to rehire since 2006.

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"I'm sure many police chiefs across the country share the same frustrations that I do when an arbitrator overturns a termination," McManus said in a statement.

CASE STUDY 5

Fatal force: An officer is fired twice and put back on the force twice.

On Feb. 10, 2011, in Miami, police detective Reynaldo Goyos was working with a dozen undercover officers taking part in a sting at a local strip club known to be frequented by gang members.

Shortly after 11 p.m., one of the undercover officers spotted what she described as two intoxicated men being ejected from the club. Travis McNeil and his cousin Kareem Williams stumbled across the parking lot and climbed into a burgundy Kia Sorrento. As they drove off, a half-dozen officers, including Goyos, followed them, worried that the men would come back and cause a disturbance, according to an arbitrator's account that was based on witness statements and internal police files.

"We get three or four blocks from the club, and all of a sudden police was surrounding us," Williams told The Washington Post.

Goyos drew his gun and got out of the passenger seat of an unmarked Chevrolet Suburban. "Show me your hands!" he yelled.

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"I looked at the driver," Goyos would later tell police internal affairs investigators. "He was staring right at me. He looked like he wasn't paying attention, like he's very incoherent. [He] was disobeying my ... commands."

Goyos told internal affairs that as he approached the driver's side door he could see that both men had their hands in their laps. But then McNeil, in the driver's seat, reached toward his waistband and then toward the floorboard of the vehicle, according to the officer.

Standing about two feet from the Kia's open driver's side window, Goyos fired his weapon three times - striking McNeil in the chest and Williams in the wrist and hip. McNeil was dead at the scene.

On the driver's side floorboard, investigators found two cellphones. There were no weapons in the vehicle.

None of the five other officers surrounding the car, who also had drawn their weapons, had fired. They would all later tell internal affairs investigators that Goyos was the only officer with a clear view into the car. The shooting quickly drew local media scrutiny.

The department completed its internal investigation in November 2012. The next month, the city's Firearms Review Board - made up of three assistant chiefs, a police major, and a police attorney - concluded that the shooting was not justified. The board said that neither Goyos nor anyone else had been in imminent danger and questioned whether the physical evidence supported Goyos's version of events.

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Police officials concluded that the location of McNeil's fatal wound was inconsistent with Goyos's assertion that he saw a black object in McNeil's hand.

In January 2013, then-Miami Police Chief Manuel Orosa fired Goyos, who had been with the department since 2005, arguing that he should have sought cover instead of approaching the vehicle.

Goyos appealed, prompting a four-day arbitration hearing in late 2013. Goyos and his union attorney argued that Goyos did not violate the department's use-of-force policy and reasserted Goyos's claim that he had seen a black object in McNeil's hand.

"There was no misconduct on the part of officer Goyos," said Eugene Gibbons, Goyos's attorney, who has defended many police officers accused of wrongdoing. "He was simply doing his job to the best of his ability that evening."

In a text message to The Post, Goyos declined to be interviewed and added, "It was all political."

In August 2014, arbitrator Martin Soll, a labor lawyer, sided with Goyos's legal team, writing that the physical evidence supported Goyos's account and that there was no evidence that his actions had violated department policy.

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"Just or proper cause did not exist to discharge or otherwise discipline City of Miami Detective Reynaldo Goyos," Soll wrote.

Soll ordered that Goyos be reinstated and awarded him $74,400 in back pay, an outcome that made local headlines.

"It's been frustrating, but there is no other option," said current Miami Police Chief Rodolfo Llanes. "I have no other choice but to have a conversation with the person that's being brought back and tell them that I expect nothing but excellent work from now on."

In 2015, the city settled a federal civil rights suit with McNeil's family, agreeing to pay them nearly $1 million.

CASE STUDY 6

Missed deadline: D.C. police took six days too long to fire an officer.

The nine-year effort to fire D.C. police officer Daxzaneous Banks began in March 2008 when a court employee asked why the undercover officer had signed in as having attended a criminal trial that had been rescheduled. Banks had been paid for being available to testify, although the trial had not occurred.

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Internal affairs began to investigate and found that on at least 10 occasions, he had allegedly forged the signatures of several prosecutors on his time sheets, records show.

"You affixed these signatures knowing them to be improper and fraudulent," according to an account of the case filed in court by the D.C. Attorney General's Office.

Banks's conduct forced prosecutors to abandon charges against a suspected cocaine dealer because the officer was the sole witness to the alleged drug transaction, according to the records. The accusations of forgery, prosecutors told internal affairs, raised "serious veracity issues" about his potential testimony in criminal cases, according to their account.

Police investigators concluded that Banks had violated four policies: being involved in the commission of an act that would constitute a crime; conduct unbecoming an officer; inefficiency; and fraud.

On Sept. 9, 2008, then-Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier recommended to the trial board, a three-member panel that oversees officer discipline, that Banks be fired. After a two-day hearing in March 2009, the board found Banks guilty of violating three of the four policies, and in June 2009, he was fired.

Shortly thereafter, the union appealed Banks's firing, arguing that the department had missed its deadline to discipline the officer.

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Marc L. Wilhite, the union attorney who represents Banks, said the officer denies forging the signatures. Banks "expressed repeatedly he believed he had a case scheduled that day," according to the District's summary of the case.

In the appeal, the union argued that the citybegan its investigation in April 2008 and was required by law to discipline Banks within 90 business days of starting the investigation. Wilhite said Lanier's September 2008 recommendation to fire Banks was made at the end of 96 days  six days past the 90-day deadline set by District code.

The department argued that its investigation did not truly begin until May 2008 and that it had met the 90-day deadline.

Because of a backlog of union arbitration cases, Banks's appeal languished until 2016, according to Wilhite. He said Banks, meanwhile, worked as a lifeguard and at other jobs.

Finally, in September of last year, arbitrator Homer C. La Rue sided with Banks.

"It is clear that the department failed to meet its obligation to bring charges against Ofc. Banks within 90 days of the incident," wrote La Rue, a local labor attorney.

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La Rue ordered that Banks  after seven years off the force  be reinstated with full back pay and lost benefits, and that his personnel record be expunged of the termination. At the time of his firing, Banks was earning $68,023 annually.

The District appealed the decision to the Public Employee Relations Board, which reviews disputes between the District and unions, but the reinstatement was upheld.

In January, the D.C. Attorney General's Office appealed the case in D.C. Superior Court, arguing that any harm caused to Banks by missing the deadline is outweighed by the police department's interest. The appeal is pending. To date, the Metropolitan Police Department has not returned Banks to active status.

Wilhite said that Banks, the son of a District police officer, wants his job back and has been under pressure from his family to return to policing.

Banks is one of 26 officers nationwide ordered reinstated since 2006 because arbitrators ruled that police officials had missed deadlines as outlined in local laws or union contracts. Of those, 23 were from The District. Six of those officers were ordered reinstated in the past two years, records show.

The deadline issue has troubled the department for decades, and has been documented in stories in The Washington Post and in the Washington City Paper.

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Many departments have time limits under union contracts or local laws to complete internal investigations to prevent cases from dragging on. The District's deadlines are among the shortest: A survey last year of 81 major police departments found that at least 21 departments imposed deadlines, ranging from 30 days to three years, according to Campaign Zero, a police accountability group.

For many years, the District code imposed a 45-day deadline for a city employee accused of wrongdoing to be investigated and discipline recommended, said Mark Viehmeyer, an attorney for the police department and acting director of its labor relations branch.

The City Council repealed the rule in 1998, calling the deadline arbitrary. In 2004, the City Council took the issue up again because the police and fire unions were complaining that officials were taking too long to pursue disciplinary cases, Viehmeyer said. The council then imposed a 90-day deadline for the police and fire departments, he said.

Separately, he said, the police union contract since the early 1980s has imposed a second deadline: Police officials have 55 days to fire an officer once they decide to do so.

District officials said in interviews that they are meeting the deadlines and that cases are overturned because arbitrators misinterpret when the clock begins.

D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said the department in the past two years has taken steps to eliminate the ambiguity about when the internal affairs investigation begins so that authorities can meet arbitrators' interpretation of the 90-day deadline.

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"That was our main point of contention with the arbitrators," Newsham said. "They were continually changing when the 90-day clock started ticking."

Viehmeyer said that in many of the cases in which the department was ordered to rehire officers, the underlying misconduct was never in dispute.

"There are a lot of cases where the arbitrator's analysis I think is sort of belied by some of the facts in the case," he said.

Wilhite, who has represented many of the officers who were reinstated, said the rules are clear.

"There are lots of other angles that MPD has been using to try and avoid the reality, which is once the 90 days has been violated, that case must be dismissed," Wilhite said

CASE STUDY 7

No due process: A department fails to investigate an officer's arrest.

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Broward Sheriff's Sgt. John Goodbread was in his doctor's office in Florida for a routine physical sometime in 2003 or 2004 when he felt the pain in his lower back.

"He had me do one of these exercises as part of the physical, bend over type of thing, touch your toes, see what your range of motion," Goodbread would later tell police. "As I was bending over, I stopped because the lower back just seized up."

The doctor issued Goodbread a prescription for hydrocodone. It was the first of multiple pain-medication prescriptions from several doctors that would ultimately result in criminal charges against Goodbread.

In March 2011, a detective in Palm Beach County got a tip suggesting that Goodbread and his wife "may be involved in doctor shopping" - a practice in which someone seeks the same or similar prescriptions from multiple doctors, according to a summary of the case later included in the arbitrator's ruling.

Criminal investigators began looking into the allegations that Goodbread and his wife had obtained prescriptions for the pain medications from four doctors' offices, according to court records.

On April 8, 2011, Goodbread and his wife were arrested and eventually charged in state court with trafficking Oxycodone and withholding information from a practitioner, both felonies. The couple's arrest made local headlines, and the Broward County Sheriff's Office suspended Goodbread without pay.

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"I was completely caught off guard," Goodbread, a former narcotics officer who has consistently maintained his innocence, said in an interview with The Washington Post. "Somebody else had used my name to get those 'scripts. I had nothing to do with anything."

In April 2012, his then-wife, Heather Goodbread, pleaded guilty to withholding information from a practitioner and was put on probation under an agreement that withheld an adjudication of guilt. She would later testify during her husband's arbitration hearing that she was the one who had called in prescriptions in her husband's name and that he had not been aware of her scheme. She eventually completed her probation, court records show. Neither she nor her attorney could be reached for comment.

In January 2013, Goodbread pleaded no contest to one count of withholding information from a practitioner under an agreement that deferred criminal prosecution. He was ordered into a pretrial intervention program, which he completed in a matter of months, and the case was dismissed.

The Broward Sheriff's office fired him.

The local police union appealed. The union argued that the department had not conducted a full internal affairs investigation but instead had relied on evidence gathered during the criminal probe. Therefore, the union argued, Goodbread's firing had been based on "hearsay."

"His wife had admitted to misrepresenting herself to get the medication," said Michael Braverman, the attorney who represented Goodbread. "But the department didn't give [Goodbread] even the most minimal amount of due process."

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In a Dec. 20, 2013, ruling, arbitrator Robert Hoffman sided with the union. He concluded that there had not been an adequate internal investigation by police and that Goodbread had been denied due process.

Hoffman acknowledged that Goodbread's participation in a diversion program could be considered conduct unbecoming an officer, but the arbitrator questioned whether it merited his firing, given the inadequate internal affairs probe.

"Lesser discipline could result if the record did not contain serious due process concerns," he wrote.

Hoffman ordered that Goodbread be reinstated in his job and receive back pay.

In a video posted on Facebook, Goodbread thanked the police union for helping him get his job back.

Broward Sheriff's Col. Jack Dale, who currently oversees officer discipline, said the department had handled the case poorly, because firing Goodbread while criminal charges were pending had impeded its ability to investigate fully.

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"If a criminal case is ongoing, your best move is to wait until the criminal case is done before you terminate them," Dale said.

Goodbread told The Post that without arbitration, he would still be out of a job for something he did not do.

"Have I seen it where the arbitration process may not work perfectly? Sure," Goodbread conceded. "But it's there to protect the rank and file. ... Basically, it's our union looking out for us to make sure that we don't [get] wrongly terminated."

CASE STUDY 8

A rush to judgment: An officer is fired quickly after a punch goes viral.

In Philadelphia, Aida Guzman cradled a bottle of beer in one hand and clutched a can of Silly String in the other as she bounced along with the music playing after the city's annual Puerto Rican Day Parade on Sept. 30, 2012.

A few feet away, Lt. Jonathan Josey of the Philadelphia Police Department's highway patrol unit was one of more than a dozen officers dealing with a vehicle doing doughnut turns nearby.

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In the next few seconds, what transpired between Josey and Guzman would become a criminal matter. One thing is undisputed: Josey's hand connected with Guzman's face.

A bystander captured the encounter on video. Guzman was walking from the street toward the sidewalk, and then Josey approached. The officer swung with an open hand  striking Guzman in the face and knocking her to the ground. Guzman, bleeding from the mouth, was arrested and cited for disorderly conduct.

Josey would later tell investigators that he felt himself get hit with liquid and Silly String, prompting him to turn around, see Guzman and approach her.

The video of Josey's smacking Guzman quickly went viral, and then-Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey acted quickly. He reviewed the video and the use-of-force report filled out by Josey, in which the officer said he had been trying to knock the beer out of Guzman's hand and accidentally hit her in the face, according to a summary of the case later compiled by the city.

Four days later, on Oct. 4, Ramsey suspended Josey, concluding that he had falsified his use-of-force report by claiming he had personally seen Guzman throw beer on him and several other officers. On Nov. 1, 2012, Ramsey fired Josey for conduct unbecoming an officer and for use of excessive force.

Prosecutors charged Josey with simple assault, a second-degree misdemeanor.

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The charges and Josey's firing outraged the police union and fellow officers, who packed the courtroom during the 2013 trial, according to news reports at the time. The union argued in the local news media that department leadership and prosecutors were bending to political pressure.

Other officers present that day told the judge that they heard Josey instruct Guzman to drop her beer. Josey testified at trial that he was trying to swat the beer bottle from Guzman's hand and that at that very moment Guzman slipped on a can on the ground, according to local coverage of the trial. As she stumbled, the officer said, the swat intended for her beer bottle instead struck her face.

"The video looks disturbing but, obviously, it's not what it appears to be," Josey said in court. "I was kind of shocked when I saw her go to the ground. I didn't expect to come into contact with her face."

Judge Patrick F. Dugan ultimately concluded that Josey was not guilty.

"It was a complete joke," Guzman attorney Enrique Latoison said in an interview with The Washington Post. "A mockery of a trial."

Josey then appealed his firing. Arbitrator David J. Reilly held a two-day hearing in June 2013 and concluded that Josey should not have been fired.

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His decision letter is not subject to public records laws, but The Post obtained a 2014 report on arbitration from the city's Police Advisory Commission that summarized Reilly's rationale.

According to the report, Reilly wrote that after viewing the video frame by frame, he believed Josey's account and concluded that his use of force was reasonable. Reilly also decided that although Josey incorrectly claimed he had seen Guzman throw beer on him, that was insufficient grounds to fire him.

Reilly ordered that Josey be rehired and that all references to his firing be removed from his personnel file.

Guzman, a mother of three, sued over the incident. In May 2013, the city paid her a $75,000 settlement. Latoison said he remains outraged at Josey's acquittal and reinstatement.

"If you accidentally hit somebody, if you accidentally step on your puppy or accidentally swat your child, everybody, universally has the same reaction, 'Oh, I'm sorry!'" Latoison said. "His immediate reaction was to rough her up, put her in handcuffs, throw her in a police van and charge her with disorderly conduct."

Josey and the union that represents Philadelphia officers did not respond to multiple requests for comment. When Josey was reinstated, his criminal defense attorney told local reporters that "Jon didn't do anything wrong that day other than do his job."

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"I've said before and I'll say again," Fortunato Perri, the attorney, added in a recent interview with The Post. "The people of Philadelphia are very fortunate to have someone like Jon Josey working for the Philadelphia PD."

This article was produced in partnership with the Investigative Reporting Workshop at American University. Students Teaganne Finn, Josephine Peterson, Matt Hanan, Taylor Hartz, Jordan Houston and Shaun Courtney contributed reporting to this article.

Dalton Bennett and Alice Crites also contributed to this report.
INDIANAPOLIS  Indianapolis police say a gunshot that grazed an officer near the end of a police funeral at Bankers Life Fieldhouse appears to have been accidentally discharged from another officer's holstered weapon.

Sgt. Kendale Adams said Sunday a female Marion County sheriff's deputy was hit in the leg and has been released from a hospital. Her name isn't being released.

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Adams says a preliminary investigation indicates the shot came from an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer's gun that never left its holster and "may have been some type of equipment malfunction." He says it's being treated as an accident.

It occurred while hundreds of police officers attended Saturday's funeral for Southport police Lt. Aaron Allan. He was fatally shot July 27 by a motorist he tried to help after a crash.
A 15-year-old boy was killed Friday night after the stolen car he and three other teens were riding in crashed head-on into a Pace bus in Dolton, police said.

Jamal Williams, of the 14700 block of Vine Avenue in Harvey, was the front-seat passenger in the car, Dolton police said. He was taken to Ingalls Memorial Hospital in Harvey, where he was pronounced dead at 11:30 p.m., according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

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The three other teens and the driver of the Pace bus, which had no passengers at the time of the crash, were hospitalized with injuries of varying severity, Dolton police said.

The crash occurred just before 10:30 p.m. at the intersection of Sibley Boulevard and Wentworth Avenue, police said. The 2005 Chevrolet Aveo was eastbound on Sibley when the driver lost control and crossed into the west lane, hitting the Pace bus, police said.

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The car, which had been reported stolen out of Indiana, was fleeing an attempted traffic stop in neighboring Phoenix prior to the crash, police said. It's unclear whether that pursuit continued up until the crash or had been terminated before the collision.

The 15-year-old boy who was driving the stolen car was taken to Ingalls, where he was treated and released, police said. He was in police custody Saturday night and being questioned at the Dolton police station.

One of the car's back-seat passengers, also 15, was in serious condition at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, police said. The other back-seat passenger, age 18, was being treated at Ingalls for non-life-threatening injuries, according to police.

The 59-year-old bus driver was also in Ingalls in serious condition, police said. Pace did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

zkoeske@tribpub.com

Twitter @ZakKoeske
Businesses in Saitama prefecture exchange with overseas Vietnamese students (Photo: VNA)



Ambassador Nguyen Quoc Cuong said Saitama is one of the Japanese prefectures that pioneer in boosting all-aspect relations with Vietnam.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc visited the prefecture during his official visit to Japan in June, Cuong noted.

The ambassador said he was impressed when visiting a racing car engine manufacturing factory in Saitama where a lot of Vietnamese engineers are taking on important stages and have many initiatives to bring benefits to the company.

The workshop creates an opportunity for Vietnam and Japan to boost cooperation in human resources, he said, hoping Japanese firms could find potential employees through the event.

The workshop, the second of its kind, attracted 11 businesses in Saitama and about 70 overseas Vietnamese students./.
A 14-year-old boy was shot to death Friday night in Posen, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Alex Saldana, of the 14600 block of South Division Avenue, was pronounced dead at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn at 11:52 p.m. He suffered a gunshot wound to the chest, the medical examiner's office said.

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Posen police said they "had no information at this time" when reached by phone about the incident, which occurred on the block in which the teen lived.

zkoeske@tribpub.com

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Twitter@ZakKoeske
The PACE van driver who was injured in a crash involving a stolen vehicle in Dolton Friday night has been released from the hospital, police said.

The 59-year-old driver had been taken to Ingalls Memorial Hospital in serious condition after a 2005 Chevrolet Aveo struck his van.

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The Aveo was driven by a 15-year-old boy who was fleeing an attempted police traffic stop before crashing into the PACE van about 10:30 p.m.

The vehicle had been reported stolen out of Indiana and one of its passengers, Jamal Williams, 15, of Harvey, was fatally injured in the crash.

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Two other passengers, a 15-year-old and an 18-year-old, and the driver of the stolen car also sustained injuries.

Dolton Police Chief Robert Collins said police were continuing to investigate the crash, and charges were pending from the State's Attorney's Office.

Frank Vaisvilas is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
Pueblo East, Pueblo West football teams knocked out of playoffs

Both Pueblo West and Pueblo East high schools had their faced stiff competition Friday night on the road.
It is not a bad thing for us, that the route known as the Goldene Strae or the Golden Road as we will get to know it- has escaped the attention of so many. It has been spared being overrun by hordes of tourists and as you will discover the
The ageing Hungaroring circuit is finally about to get its long-awaited revamp, with work set to start in 12 months time.

The venue has finally secured state approval for the much-needed updating of the circuit. Hungary government ministers have agreed a 103 million package to support the programme.

According to Autosport magazine, the state payments will be made in three phases. Work will commence immediately after next year's Hungarian Grand Prix.

"We have a plan now," said Zsolt Gyulay, president and chief executive officer of the Hungaroring. "The minister has said it's guaranteed

"It's 100 per cent sure. It was delayed, because we wanted to start in January. But this is government!"

The track management will start to review architectural proposals at the end of the month.

"The first step is the outside, the stands, and the second one is inside the circuit, the pits, in 2020," Gyulay explained. The latter phase will also include a new race control building.

Some of the facilities haven't had significant upgrades since the original Hungarian Grand Prix in 1986.

As well as rebuilding the main grandstands and public areas, there are plans to create a modern stadium section by reprofiling the final corner and along the pit straight.

"Everything will be new. We will have more seats, like a modern stadium," said Gyulay.

Last year, Hungary agreed to extend its deal to host the Hungarian Grand Prix until at least 2026. The deal was signed with Bernie Ecclestone before the sport's take over by Liberty Media and its new CEO Chase Carey.

"I think Mr Carey is an absolute gentleman," said Gyulay. "We have a long contract, and I feel it's a little bit easier to work with them."



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Siemens is to build two tech centers in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan province, the company announced on Saturday.

Siemens will build its industrial software global R&D center and Siemens Intelligent Manufacturing Innovation Center in Chengdu. The centers will cost one billion yuan (about 147 million U.S. dollars) and be located in the Chengdu high-tech development zone.

Wang Haibin, executive vice president of Siemens China, said the new centers will narrow the gap between demand and supply to the Chinese market, he said.

In October, 2011, Siemens and Chengdu started to build the company's largest factory in China.

Siemens' investment in Chengdu dates back to 1996 when it built its optical fiber works in the city.
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Direct flights have begun between Sanya, a tourist destination in south China's Hainan Province, and Jakarta in Indonesia.

Flight JT2871 leaves Jakarta every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 6:55 p.m. local time and arrives in Sanya at 11:50 p.m. The return flight departs from Sanya at 1 a.m. and arrives in Jakarta at 6 a.m. local time.

The flight is jointly operated by a local airline company in Hainan and Indonesia's Lion Air. Operations already started on Saturday night.

Indonesia is the sixth ASEAN country connected with Sanya by air. There are plans to connect Sanya with Laos and Myanmar.

Sanya is directly connected with 21 foreign cities. Sanya has seen more than 3,500 international flights this year, a year-on-year increase of 27.6 percent. The number of inbound and outbound tourists has increased 121 percent to 470,000.
A total of 77 suspects in telecom and online fraud cases have been brought back to China from Fiji, the Ministry of Public Security announced Saturday.

Suspects in telecom and online fraud cases are brought back to China from Fiji at Changchun Longjia International Airport, Changchun, northeast China's Jilin Province, Aug. 5, 2017. A total of 77 suspects in telecom and online fraud cases have been brought back to China from Fiji, the Ministry of Public Security announced Saturday. The suspects are accused in more than 50 cases involving more than 6 million yuan (892,000 U.S. dollars). (Xinhua/Lin Hong)

It was the first time for Chinese police to bring back so many suspects from an Oceanian country.

The suspects are accused in more than 50 cases involving over 6 million yuan (892,000 U.S. dollars).

On Sept. 22, 2016, one of the victims in northeast China's Jilin Province was swindled out of 1.3 million yuan and committed suicide, which triggered large-scale investigations at provincial and state levels.

An illegal online gambling and lottery gang was soon revealed, directing to more than 200 suspects based in China, Indonesia and Fiji, with nearly 100 million yuan illegal gains involved. Victims were from over 20 provinces and municipalities across China.

Chinese police sent a team to Fiji on July 2 to work with local police. On July 18, they took action, destroying five dens, arresting 77 suspects and confiscating equipment, including mobile phones, computers and bank cards.

In the meantime, police busted eight dens and two technical teams, arresting 83 suspects in China.

In a separate case, the ministry announced on Friday that it had brought 143 such suspects to China from Indonesia. Another 10 suspects, who had been arrested, remained in Indonesia under investigation. Their cases involved more than 20 million yuan, said the ministry.
Outer Space is the new frontier for business. Aspects that were once the realm of science fiction are now moving closer to reality. [China.org.cn]

The race to space is on. Perhaps one might say it has been on for years now. However, space exploration, and the launching of new-generation satellites, have been much in the news recently, taking on added significance with important regulatory implications.

Since 1970 when China launched its first satellite, through to sending its first Taikonaut into space in 2003, and landing the Jade Rabbit rover on the moon in 2013, China has become a space exploration superpower and, along with India, it has been making significant inroads towards a capacity to commercialize outer space.

Russia, Kazakhstan, the Ukraine, and Japan have also been active, and, just a few weeks ago, there were calls for Australia to become more proactive in space technology. In Africa, Ghana launched its first satellite GhanaSat-1, heralding the advance of more developing countries into space. In the Mid-East, the UAE is planning to build a city on Mars by 2117.

In general, commercialization of outer space has sometimes led by government; at other times by public private partnerships and most recently has been taken up by major commercial players. In Europe, for example, since 1980 the semi-private firm Arianespace was created and has been active in commercial space launches. However, the cost has generally been prohibitive.

However, the cost of launching pay loads is set to drop with the emergence of new technologies. Elon Musks SpaceX has already set the pace by outpricing competitors Arianspace and ULA.

With the launching of its Long March rocket series and plans to complete its first space station in 2020, China has signalled the arrival of affordable, if not cheap commercialization of space and is potentially making it possible for developing countries to launch their own satellites.

Commercial opportunities in space

The attraction of space-based resources is a big incentive. In 2015, the U.S. Congress passed the Space Act which legalized and recognized the rights of American citizens to engage in space mining.

Diverse opportunities abound in this new frontier. In addition to telecommunication satellites and remote sensing, others (e.g. Deep Space Industries with its Prospector-1 mission) focus on resource mining, of nearby asteroids with estimates of trillions of dollars of potential resources on offer.

Entrepreneurs like Britains Richard Branson and Virgin Galactic are focusing on space tourism. A surprising number of people have already signed up and committed to travel.

Space-based solar panel farms are also being considered as a way to get cheap and reliable renewable energy for a post-fossil based resource world.

The pharmaceutical industry is also interested in space, for example through its potential for zero-gravity research and testing and possibility of producing products such as improved quality crystals to replace synthesized proteins for the next generation of drugs.

Meanwhile, the advertising industry is already looking for opportunities for branding and other promotions related to outer space exploration.

Yet, major obstacles exist in relation to outer space commercialization. The first one is political. Individual nation states are reluctant to recognize the rights of others in outer space. There is little enforceable law governing this new area of human activity. Understandably, countries are using their space expertise to advance their own agendas.

China is using its outer space telecommunications/satellite infrastructure to support all countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative. Similarly, India is working with the 18th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to launch a SAARC satellite to provide communication services free of charge to SAARC members, with the exception of Pakistan which has opted out.

Chinas and Indias initiatives show the importance of avoiding a space divide between those nations that have the capacity to exploit outer space and those who dont.

Absence of an agreed legal framework governing outer space exploration is a big concern. Among the areas needing clarification are property rights, space registration and liability regime, rules governing launching services, telecommunications services, national space legislation and international space cooperation.

Another potential obstacle is the 1967 Outer Space Treaty which provides that no celestial body is subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means.

Quite apart the obvious legal obstacles, space exploration is a risky business and fraught with perils. Commercial players especially require insurance products to manage such risks.

Another challenge is that of space wastes, junk and other debris. Thus far, there are only the Interagency Space Debris Mitigation Coordination Committee Guidelines, endorsed by the UN General Assembly, but remaining voluntary.

Finally, space commercialization efforts require huge sums of capital that have to be advanced for a risky venture. Such capital has never been easy to come by.

Eugene Clark is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:

http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/eugeneclark.htm

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors only, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
 Flash

Photo taken on July 15, 2014 shows the melting ice of Purog Kangri Glacier in Shuanghu County, Nagqu, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. As the highest terrain in the world's mid-latitude regions, China's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is now under negative influence of the global warming. Purog Kangri Glacier, the third largest in the world, has shrunk by 50 meters over the past 30 years. (Xinhua file photo/Tang Zhaoming)

Russian Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Sergei Donskoi on Saturday criticized the U.S. decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement as "terrible mistake."

"It is a terrible mistake!!! President Trump will actually pull the United States -- the largest player -- out of the Paris Agreement," Donskoi wrote on Facebook.

"There is nothing unexpected in terms of history: He repeated the U.S. withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol, the first international pact on combating climate change," Donskoi said.

The United States on Friday submitted a notice to the United Nations (UN) formally announcing its intent to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change, after President Donald Trump announced the decision in June, citing concerns about the accord's threat to the U.S. economy.

"The decision by the United States to withdraw from the Paris Agreement is a major disappointment for global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote global security," said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric in a note sent Friday night to correspondents.

Under article 28 of the Paris Agreement, a party may withdraw at any time after three years from the date on which the agreement has entered into force for that party.

The United States accepted the Paris Agreement on Sept. 3, 2016 and the agreement entered into force for it on Nov. 4, 2016. This means that the United States must stay in the pact until at least 2019.

The Paris Agreement aims to tackle climate change by cutting greenhouse gas emissions and sets a global target of keeping the rise in the average temperature no higher than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho, Cambodia's Foreign Minister Prak Sokhon, Canada's Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, Brunei Darrussalam's Foreign Minister Lim Jock Seng, Bangladesh's Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali, Australia's Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi link arms during the Gala Dinner of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers Meeting (AMM) and Related Meetings in Manila, Philippines, August 6, 2017.[Photo/Agencies]

In a significant step toward building peace and stability in the South China Sea and the region at large, the foreign ministers of China and the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations endorsed the framework for a Code of Conduct in the waters in Manila on Sunday.

It once again underscores the strong political will of China and the ASEAN countries to work together to maintain stability in the South China Sea and sustain the positive momentum they have established in their relations.

The drawing up of a framework outline for the proposed code of behavior designed to prevent clashes in the South China Sea has been a significant achievement. And as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi pointed out in Manila, the agreement on the framework has laid a solid foundation for substantive consultations on the Code of Conduct.

With their joint efforts to reach agreement, China and the members of ASEAN have also sent a strong message to the international community that they are fully capable of handling issues of common concern in the region without any interference from a third party.

For while China and ASEAN are looking to the future and seeking new prospects from working together for peace, stability, and prosperity, some countries outside the region seem intent on stirring up trouble and stoking tensions in the South China Sea.

This year, US President Donald Trump has continued the controversial practice of his predecessor and sent warships to the waters under the duplicitous pretext that such a show of force is to safeguard the freedom of navigation of commercial shipping.

The United States likes to accuse Beijing of trying to militarize the South China Sea, but it is the US and its close allies that are doing that: The United Kingdom being the latest to jump on the freedom of navigation bandwagon by proposing to send warships to the South China Sea next year.

If these outside forces really cared about freedom of navigation they would be supporting China and ASEANs efforts to promote peace and stability in the region rather than trying to undermine them.

To give substance to their words, they should join hands with China and ASEAN to safeguard and build on the hard-won positive momentum so that the South China Sea is a seaway for peace, friendship and cooperation.
BEIJING - 2017 is an eventful year for China, with several marquee activities on the political calendar, including the upcoming 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 90th anniversary of the People's Liberation Army early this week.

The world's attention has once again shifted to China with the CPC as the center of that attention.

Tasked with leading the country to rejuvenation, the CPC also has its own mission: to be the strongest party in the world.

The mission is determined by China's national conditions. The country's vast population, unbalanced economy, and the pressure of its two centennial goals require the leadership of a stronger CPC.

The mission is also the CPC's response to the international community. Under the CPC's leadership and endeavors of the generations of Party members, China's progress in social development has made the Party an example to all and the world looks forward to its contribution to global governance.

Over the years, the CPC has established an efficient organizational structure and strict party discipline, which helped it survive wars and revolutions and to continue to thrive after almost a century.

But the Party never rests on its laurels. The leadership has repeatedly warned that the biggest threat to the Party is corruption and the CPC must better serve the people and lead the second largest economy in the world.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, an anti-corruption campaign has swept across the country, putting at least 240 senior officials under investigation.

The campaign has reinforced people's confidence in the Party. In a survey conducted by Pew Research Center in 2016, 64 percent of the interviewees believed that corruption would lessen over the next five years.

Grassroots Party members and organizations are crucial to the strength of the Party. The CPC is setting up a better appraisal mechanism to allow more mobility within its organizational structure, so that any capable candidate from its 89 million members has a chance to shine.

Over the past year, the catchphrase of the Party has been "staying true to our founding mission", which is to serve the people.

"We won't have the support of the people if we cannot strive for the people's benefit," said Mao Zedong, the founder of the People's Republic of China, in 1934.

"To meet the people's desire for a happy life is our mission," said Xi Jinping when meeting the press after being elected as general secretary of the CPC Central Committee in 2012.

Considering the achievements of China, the CPC is fulfilling its promise.

More than 700 million people have been lifted out of poverty since 1978. In the past more than four years alone, China has seen over 55 million reach a reasonable standard of living.

Under the leadership of the Party, China is sharing the benefits of its economic boom with the people.

Antaeus, the giant in Greek mythology, can absorb inexhaustible power from the earth. Similarly, as long as the CPC stays close to the people, it will never lose its vitality.

Throughout its history, the CPC has debunked and defanged so many prejudices and stereotypes. Now, as China finds itself at a critical point of its revival, the world is waiting to see how the CPC continues to impress.
SANYA -- Direct flights have begun between Sanya, a tourist destination in South China's Hainan province, and Jakarta in Indonesia.

Flight JT2871 leaves Jakarta every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 6:55 pm local time and arrives in Sanya at 11:50 pm. The return flight departs from Sanya at 1 am and arrives in Jakarta at 6 am local time.

The flight is jointly operated by a local airline company in Hainan and Indonesia's Lion Air. Operations already started on Saturday night.

Indonesia is the sixth ASEAN country connected with Sanya by air. There are plans to connect Sanya with Laos and Myanmar.

Sanya is directly connected with 21 foreign cities. Sanya has seen more than 3,500 international flights this year, a year-on-year increase of 27.6 percent. The number of inbound and outbound tourists has increased 121 percent to 470,000.
MANILA -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday called on both the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), and the United States and South Korea to exercise restraint and make right choices.

They should be accountable to their people and regional peace in making such choices, he noted.

Wang made the remarks while meeting his DPRK counterpart Ri Yong-ho on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings in the Philippines.

Wang expounded on China's principles and position on the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula, noting that the situation on the peninsula is highly sensitive and complex, which has affected the China-DPRK relations.

While stressing that the situation of the Korean Peninsula is currently getting close to the critical point of crisis, the Chinese minister said it is also at a turning point to make a decision to resume peace talks.

He called on the DPRK not to violate UN Security Council resolutions any more, while urging the United States and South Korea not to escalate tension on the peninsula.

The parties concerned should exercise restraint and take positive signals released by related parties, Wang said.

Ri reiterated the DPRK's stance on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, saying Pyongyang is willing to maintain communication with China in this aspect.
MANILA -- China is satisfied with the achievements in relations between China and ASEAN and the situation in the South China Sea has "stabilized remarkably" in the past year, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Sunday.

Wang made the remarks while meeting with his Lao and Brunei counterparts separately on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings in Manila.

China and ASEAN countries agreed on a framework of the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea before schedule, and it indicates China and ASEAN countries are confident, capable and wise enough to manage divergences and maintain regional peace and stability, Wang told Lao Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith.

Wang said he hoped key achievements made in China-ASEAN relations, including the South China Sea issue, in the past year, can be demonstrated objectively in the foreign ministers' meetings held here.

In the past year, China and Laos have cooperated closely and overcome interference to push ahead bilateral relations and China-ASEAN relations, Wang said.

He called Laos a friendly and close neighbor of China, saying the two countries have always understood, trusted and supported each other and China is willing to support Laos in speeding up development, boosting national power and improving people's livelihood.

Saleumxay said China and Laos have been long-term strategic partners, maintaining frequent contacts on high levels and Laos appreciates China for its assistance and support in Laos' development.

Both ASEAN and Laos consider China as an important partner and are committed to strengthening cooperation with China, the Lao minister said.

In his meeting with Brunei's Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Lim Jock Seng, Wang Yi said China is satisfied with the important achievements in relations between China and ASEAN.

"With joint efforts, China and ASEAN have reached an agreement on the framework of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea ahead of scheduled time, and this has won positive evaluations from the international community," Wang said.

The situation in the South China Sea has achieved a positive change and important progress has been made in the past year, Wang stressed.

Wang pointed out that China and Brunei are enjoying very good relations with both sides understanding each other and supporting each other.

Lim said Brunei and ASEAN attach great importance to developing relations with China, adding that a good relationship between China and ASEAN is essential to peace and development in the region.

Lim said Brunei and ASEAN are very happy with the agreement on the framework of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, saying this important development is conducive to enhancing the confidence of regional countries to safeguard peace in the region.
KUNMING -- A rare wild monkey has recently become a trouble-maker by attacking a villager, pigs and stealing fruit in Southwest China's Yunnan province.

Dai Yongcui, a resident of Galabo Village in Gongshan Dulong and Nu autonomous county, was attacked by an Assam macaque, a Class I protected wild animal in China, on her way home on Thursday. The monkey bit her thighs and ears.

"I did not see clearly what it was, and I thought I was bitten by a dog," Dai said. She later had stitches and rabies vaccination.

On Friday, another villager said he saw the monkey stealing pig fodder and peaches. It also bit five pigs a villager raised.

Police used a tranquilizer to catch the monkey when it came back to the village for food on Saturday.

The wild animal has been sent to a nature reserve for treatment and observation. It is in stable condition.
Guizhou Dixi.[Photo/VCG]

Heavy drums beat out among the clapping and shouting of the audience. Red, green and yellow flags flutter in the wind. In the center, dozens of brave, black-bearded fighters in wooden masks and long-sleeved costumes try to kill each other with long swords.

It's a depiction of the bloodthirsty fight between two leaders of a rebel army after the collapse of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), Xiang Yu and Liu Bang.

But when the performers take off their masks, the crowd are surprised to find that all are women.

"In the past, basically men played all the roles in Dixi. Female performers were rare," said Chen Qi, head of Meiqi village in Anshun city, Southwest China's Guizhou province.

Dixi is local opera of in Anshun. The work has been passed down for hundreds of years.

Guizhou is at the frontline of China's poverty-relief campaign with more than 3.7 million people living under the poverty line. Many men in Guizhou have left the rural areas to seek work in the cities, leaving behind the elderly, women and children at home.

"Only a few men are still in the village, and few of them are willing to take part in Dixi," said 71-year-old villager Pan Rongde.

Pan has been performing Dixi for about 40 years.

"We simply cannot find young men to pass on the skills." Scared that the art might die out, Pan recently formed the all-women Dixi troupe, which consists of about 30 members, all of them housewives in the village.

Liu Qin, 34, is a mother of two. She recently joined Pan's troupe. Liu started learning the art with several women in the village and has spent a lot of time learning the performing skills.

"We once practiced for about three months, day and night," Liu recalled. "To prepare a show for Spring Festival, we just stood next to a stove and danced till the middle of the night."

Liu said that she joined the troupe to "help carry on the Dixi culture," but she gradually fell in love with the art after all the practice.

For Zhan Yunxian, 38, learning to play her part in Dixi became a new way of relaxation.

"We used to watch men performing Dixi and I had never seen a woman do it," Zhan said. "So when Pan asked me to join the troupe, I felt awkward."

Zhan said that after she saw other women joining the troupe, she relaxed and carried on.

Now, performing Dixi and dancing in public squares have replaced watching TV and playing Mahjongg in Zhan's leisure time. Dixi has boosted the women's confidence.

To get performing opportunities and deliver great performances, many of the performers practice as much as possible.

"Even when I work in the field, I try to recite the lines, because I know I want to be a better performer," Zhan said.
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The United Nations Security Council votes on a resolution to expand its DRPK blacklist after its repeated missile tests, at the UN headquarters in New York, US, June 2, 2017. [Photo/Agencies]

UNITED NATIONS - The United Nations Security Council on Saturday unanimously adopted a US-drafted resolution that aims to slash by a third the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's $3 billion annual export revenue over Pyongyang's two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests in July.

The resolution would ban DRPK's exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It would also prohibit countries from increasing the current numbers of DPRK's laborers working abroad, ban new joint ventures with DPRK and any new investment in current joint ventures.

Resolution 2371 (2017), adopted unanimously by the Security Council on Saturday, strengthens UN sanctions on the DPRK in response to its two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests conducted on July 3 and July 28, respectively.

As such, this resolution "sends a clear message" to the DPRK that the Security Council is united in condemning its violations and demanding the country give up its prohibited nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

Resolution 2371 (2017) includes the strongest sanctions ever imposed in response to a ballistic missile test. These measures target DPRK's principal exports, imposing a total ban on all exports of coal (DPRK's largest source of external revenue), iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood.

Banning these exports will prevent the DPRK from earning over $1 billion per year of hard currency that would be redirected to its illicit programs, according to the resolution.

The DPRK earns approximately $3 billion per year from its exports. Additional sanctions target the DPRK's arms smuggling, joint ventures with foreign companies, banks, and other sources of revenue.

A resolution needs nine votes in favor, and no vetoes by the United States, China, Russia, France or Britain, to be adopted.

The measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on DPRK since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006.
The United Nations Security Council votes on a resolution to expand its DRPK blacklist after its repeated missile tests, at the UN headquarters in New York, US, June 2, 2017. [Photo/Agencies]

China has urged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to abide by UN Security Council resolutions after the council imposed new sanctions on the country over its recent missile launches.

The new sanctions, agreed to on Saturday, are expected to cut one-third of the DPRK's $3 billion annual export revenues.

"China urged the DPRK to abide by relevant UN Security Council resolutions and cease to take actions that might further escalate tensions on the peninsula," China's Ambassador to the UN Liu Jieyi said after the vote at the UN headquarters in New York.

"We hope relevant parties will immediately take effective actions to prevent the situation from further escalation, create conditions for the resumption of talks and make efforts to bring the issue at the earliest date, back to the right track of seeking a peaceful solution through dialogue and consultation."

The US-drafted resolution was adopted unanimously by the 15-member Security Council. It bans all exports of DPRK's coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It prohibits new joint ventures or cooperative commercial entities with DPRK and additional investment in existing ones. It also bans countries from accepting additional numbers of laborers from DPRK.

The sanction also blacklisted nine DPRK individuals operating abroad as representatives of designated entities. Their assets have been frozen and a travel ban is in force.

Four DPRK commercial entities have also had their assets frozen.

DPRK launched two intercontinental ballistic missiles on July 3 and July 28.

China opposed the DPRK's launches which are in violation of UN Security Council resolutions and against the will of the entire international community, Liu said.

"China has always insisted on realizing the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, maintaining peace and stability on the peninsula and seeking a solution through dialogue and consultation. China has opposed chaos and conflicts on the Korean Peninsula," Liu said, adding that these are what the Resolution 2371 was all about

The fact the resolution was adopted unanimously demonstrates that the international community is united in its position regarding the nuclear issue on the peninsula, he said.

The new resolution, as Liu put it, has three components: further sanctions against DPRK's nuclear programs; no intention to have adverse effect on activities that are not prohibited by the resolution, such as economic activities and cooperation, food and humanitarian aid; calling for resumption of Six-Party Talks, expressing commitment to a peaceful, diplomatic and political solution to the situation and stressing the importance of working to reduce the tension in the peninsula.

"All parties should implement the provisions in the resolution fully and earnestly," Liu said.

This resolution is the single largest economic sanctions package ever leveled against the DPRK, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said.

"The resolution we've passed is a strong, united step toward holding North Korea accountable for its behavior," Haley said. "The US is taking  and will continue to take  prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies."

She said the US' joint military exercises with the Republic of Korea will continue.

China hopes the "realistic and feasible" China-Russia joint initiative, which put forward a road map for resolving the nuclear issue on the peninsula, can get response and support from relevant parties, Liu said.

The joint initiative issued on July 4 is based on China's proposal for a dual track approach and "suspension for suspension initiative" and Russia's step-by-step approach.

Dual track urges advancing denuclearization of the peninsula while establishing peace mechanism on the peninsula. The "Suspension for suspension initiative" calls for DPRK's suspension of its nuclear programs and suspension of large-scale military exercises by the US and the ROK.

Liu said that China has noted recent remarks from the United States that it's not seeking a regime change nor a regime collapse in the DPRK, it's in no hurry to push for the reunification of the peninsula and its troops will not cross the 38th parallel north.

"It's our hope that the US side will translate these four notes into concrete policies toward the DPRK," Liu said.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last week said that the US is willing to sit down for talks with the DPRK on the condition that it gives up its nuclear programs.

At the meeting, Liu also urged a halt to the US missile defence system deployment process in the Republic of Korea and dismantling of related equipment.

"The deployment of THAAD will not bring a solution to the issue of DPRK's nuclear tests and missile launching," he said. "It will seriously undermine the strategic balance of the region and is detrimental to the strategic security interests of countries in the region including China."
A Chinese woman recently found dead in Yosemite National Park might have drowned while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, according to park management.

The results of an investigation are expected to be released this week.

Wang Chaocui, 27, was last seen by other hikers on July 17. Her body was recovered from a river in Kerrick Canyon late last month.

Wang, also known as Tree, had lived in Shanghai before she quit her job to fulfill her dream of hiking the iconic Pacific Crest Trail, a 2,600-mile route that runs up the West Coast and draws thousands of long-distance hikers each year, according to Chinese media reports.

She was about 1 kilometer downstream of the trail crossing. It is unknown if she had moved downstream or upstream from the trail before trying to cross.

"She was a sweetheart. She always had such an amazing attitude and smile," said a hiker under the name "Rhaven" in a comment posted on reddit.com. Rhaven said they climbed the Forester together four weeks earlier.

Another hiker, "cantor0101", said the reason she was alone was probably because "she had made it through the heart of the Sierras and was almost out of the really treacherous stuff".

"I have no idea if there was friction between her and her hiking mates or what, but it seems like she thought she could make it," Cantor0101 said. "It was a seemingly small decision that had delayed consequences."

This winter's heavy rains have swollen rivers and obscured some segments of the Pacific Crest Trail by snow, making summertime hikes on the route more treacherous than usual.

Stories have been reported that some hikers slipped into fast creeks and were swept away by the current.

Only a week prior to Wang's death, the body of a Japanese tourist who was hiking the Pacific Crest Trail was found in a river in Kings Canyon National Park.

The body of 32-year-old Rika Morita was found on July 23 submerged in the south fork of the Kings River at the 3,000-meter level of the park.

In late May, Marvin Novo, of Turlock, California, died while hiking near Whitewater Preserve. He was 58 and had been planning his PCT hike for at least a decade. It is suspected that his death was heat related, according to a post at the Pacific Crest Trail Association's website.

"For all its beauty and splendor, the wilderness can be a cruel teacher. The PCT remains a wilderness trail with real risk. The elements can be harsh and know no boundaries or show no mercy," Jack Haskel wrote in the post.

Family members of Wang have arrived in the United States and were in contact with the authorities.

The increasing number of incidents and accidents involving tourists has raised safety concerns and affected the tourism industry, Chinese Consul General in San Francisco Luo Linquan said in a previous interview.

In recent years, incidents involving Chinese travelers in the US have risen, from highway accidents to terrorist attacks, shootings and other crimes. The consulate receives over 10 reports of Chinese traveler and student casualties every month. In many cases, the victims were in their 20s.

liazhu@chinadailyusa.com
BEIJING - On June 18, Indian border troops crossed the China-India boundary in the Sikkim sector at the Duo Ka La (Doka La) pass and advanced more than 100 meters into Chinese territory.

The illegal crossing of a delimited boundary and entering the territory of a neighboring country violate China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, international law and basic norms governing international relations.

India has invented various excuses to justify its illegal action. The following are the facts:

A Foreign Ministry photo released on Wednesday shows Indian troops encroaching on Chinese territory. Provided to China Daily

What happened on June 18?

On June 16, the Chinese side was building a road in the Dong Lang area (Doklam), located in Yadong county of the Tibet autonomous region of China. On June 18, over 270 Indian border troops, carrying weapons and driving two bulldozers, crossed the boundary in the Sikkim sector and advanced more than 100 meters into Chinese territory to obstruct the road building of the Chinese side, causing tension in the area.

The trespassing Indian troops, reaching as many as 400 people at one point, put up three tents and advanced over 180 meters into Chinese territory. As of the end of July, there were still over 40 Indian border troops and one bulldozer illegally staying in Chinese territory.

Does the Dong Lang area belong to China?

Yes.

The main focus of the dispute is the Dong Lang area.

In 1890, China and Britain signed the Convention Between Great Britain and China Relating to Sikkim and Tibet. Article I of the Convention stipulates that "The boundary of Sikkim and Tibet shall be the crest of the mountain range separating the waters flowing into the Sikkim Teesta and its affluents from the waters flowing into the Tibetan Mochu and northwards into other Rivers of Tibet. The line commences at Mount Gipmochi (currently known as Mount Ji Mu Ma Zhen) on the Bhutan frontier, and follows the above-mentioned water-parting to the point where it meets Nipal territory."

According to the Convention, the Dong Lang area, which is located on the Chinese side of the China-India boundary, is indisputably Chinese territory.

The stability and inviolability of boundaries are a fundamental principle enshrined in international law. The China-India boundary in the Sikkim Sector as delimited by the 1890 Convention has been continuously valid and repeatedly reaffirmed by both the Chinese and Indian sides. Either side shall strictly abide by the boundary which shall not be violated.

Is Bhutan involved in the incident?

No.

The 1890 Convention has made it clear that the China-India boundary in the Sikkim Sector commences at Mount Ji Mu Ma Zhen on the Bhutan frontier. Mount Ji Mu Ma Zhen is the eastern starting point of the China-India boundary in the Sikkim Sector and it is also the boundary tri-junction between China, India and Bhutan.

The Indian troops' trespassing occurred at a place on the China-India boundary in the Sikkim Sector, more than 2,000 meters away from Mount Ji Mu Ma Zhen. Matters concerning the boundary tri-junction have nothing to do with this incident.

China and Bhutan have been engaged in negotiations and consultations to resolve their boundary issue since the 1980s. Although the boundary is yet to be formally delimited, the two sides have had 24 rounds of talks, conducted joint surveys in their border area and have reached basic consensus on the actual state of the border area and the alignment of their boundary.

What are the consequences of India's illegally crossing the China-India border?

According to the United Nations (UN) General Assembly Resolution 3314 adopted on Dec. 14, 1974, no consideration of whatsoever nature, whether political, economic, military or otherwise, may serve as a justification for the invasion or attack by the armed forces of a State of the territory of another State.

To cross a delimited boundary and enter the territory of a neighboring country on the grounds of so-called "security concerns," for whatever activities, runs counter to the basic principles of international law and basic norms governing international relations.

As a third party, India has no right to interfere in or impede the boundary talks between China and Bhutan, nor does it have the right to make territorial claims on Bhutan's behalf. India's intrusion into Chinese territory under the pretext of Bhutan has not only violated China's territorial sovereignty, but also challenged Bhutan's sovereignty and independence.

The Chinese government urges the Indian government to immediately withdraw its trespassing border troops back to the Indian side of the boundary and conduct a thorough investigation into the illegal trespassing so as to swiftly and appropriately resolve the incident and restore peace and tranquility to the border area between the two countries.
I had the privilege or reading a pre-release version of "God Shines Forth: How the Nature of God Shapes and Drives the Mission of the Church." Here are 20 quotes from the book, which you should pick up.
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KPRC anchor Dominique Sachse spent her family summer vacation trekking across Italy's gorgeous landscapes and she has the photos to prove it.

The veteran local news personality has shared dozens of pictures documenting her vacation with her husband Nick Florescu and their children.

OTHER LOCALS: Check out how Houston's TV celebs spent their summer vacations

Story continues below...

According to her Instagram, her trip started on July 24 when she traveled to Rome. After spending a few days there - and visiting iconic sites including the Colosseum and the Trevi Fountain - she packed her bags and headed to the Italian island of Sardinia.

From Sardinia, sailing excursions around Tavlara and Molara Island and Capo Ceraso filled the last days of her trip.

While she was out sailing, she came across a ship that she believes her late father sent her way.

"Can't.Even.Believe.It! While cruising around in our water Fiat, we spot a Sailing Yacht A, a German-built, Russian-owed, Philippe Starch-designed sailing vessel estimated to cost around 400M," Sachse writes in an Instagram post about the ship. "My dad was a naval architect. I think he intended for me to see this... Love you Papi."

RECORD-BREAKER: Dominique Sachse helps raise record amounts for local charity

On Saturday, August 5, Sachse shared a photo of her and her husband in front of a beautiful landscape on Capo Ceraso saying, "So long sundresses and sandy beaches. So long backdrop rock and fresh peaches. Till next time Mediterranean Sea. You've left your mark on my family and me.."

Click through the gallery above to see all of the photos Sachse shared of her incredible European travels this summer.
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Houston Fire Department arson officers are investigating the cause of a fire that broke out Sunday inside the consulate of the People's Republic of China in Montrose.

HFD fire crews spotted smoke coming from the fifth floor about 1:30 p.m. Sunday when they pulled up to the consulate at 3417 Montrose.

"They made their way to the fifth floor and knocked the fire down," said HFD District Chief Blake White.

He said the fire was confined to a single room in what appeared to be apartments inside the fortress-like building.

"Some people actually live on the fifth floor," White said. "I'm not aware if anyone was on that floor at the time."

About 70-80 Houston firefighters were sent to the scene. The blaze was initially thought to be a high-rise fire although the consulate does not actually meet that criteria, officials said.

The blaze was brought under control within 30-40 minutes. There were no reports of any injuries. There was some water and smoke damage to the lower floors of the consulate, officials said.

White said several people were were still inside the consulate when firefighters arrived. Most of them had already made their way to the lobby.

"We had a number of people who wanted to stay in the building," White said. "They seemed to be concerned with certain areas of the building. We had to get them out of harm's way."

Several people seen coming from the consulate declined to comment.

A consulate is considered sovereign territory, in this case of the People's Republic of China. By international law, host nations are not allowed inside without permission. That doesn't seem to be the case with Sunday's fire.

"We did not formally go through that request," White said. "We had an active fire."

Even after the blaze was extinguished, Houston firefighters were still coming in and out of the consulate building. White said their concerns was for the safety of the staff.

"We have to make sure it's clear for them to go in," he said.

Lindsey Ellis and Dylan Baddour contributed
A woman was hospitalized Sunday morning after jumping out of a moving vehicle in northern Harris County when the driver began shooting at another car during an apparent road rage incident.

Around 4 a.m., a car was headed along Airline when the gunfire broke out, according to police.
Authorities are searching for a self-proclaimed MS-13 gang member who is a suspect in the fatal stabbing of a 60-year-old man early Thursday morning in East Montgomery County.

The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office is seeking the public's help in locating Guillermo Fernandez, aka Jose Alvarez-Fernandez, a 23-year-old Hispanic male. He is described as being 5 feet 3 inches tall, weighing 140 pounds and sporting a marijuana leaf tattoo on one of his forearms. He also has his last name tattooed on one of his triceps and a devil face tattoo on his left calf, according to law enforcement.
The U.S. Army has ordered its members to stop using drones made by the world-leading SZ DJI Technology Co Ltd because of "cyber vulnerabilities" in the products.

Service members who use DJI drones and systems that use DJI components or software should "cease all use, uninstall all DJI applications, remove all batteries/storage media and secure equipment for follow-on direction," according to an Army memo posted online on Wednesday.

SZ DJI is a Chinese drone manufacturer based in south China's innovation-hub Shenzhen.

The memo said DJI drones are the most widely used by the Army among the off-the-shelf equipment of that type.

DJI said in a statement that it was "surprised and disappointed" at the Army's "unprompted restriction on DJI drones as we were not consulted during their decision."

The company seeks to contact the Army to determine what it means by "cyber vulnerabilities" and wants to work with the Pentagon to address concerns.

DJI had about 70% share of the global commercial and consumer drone market, Goldman Sachs and Oppenheimer estimated in 2016. Goldman analysts estimated the drone market, including military, to be worth more than 100 billion U.S. dollars over the next 5 years.

DJI's ability to produce high-quality drones has effectively knocked others out of the drone market. On August 1, a California-based drone company 3D Robotics (3DR) announced partnership with the Chinese company, equivalent of IBM partnering with Apple. Under the deal, 3DR would integrate site-scanning software and would give DJI drones its Site Scan technology.
The Apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:11, "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned in what so ever state I am, therewith to be content." Somebody said that Paul could not be a Texan because he said he is "content in whatever state he is in." A true Texan could only be content in the state of Texas. We know Paul was saying that regardless of the circumstances of life, he chose to make himself content.

Jesus said, "In this world you shall have tribulations." This means there will be times when troubles, tribulations, conflicts and disappointments. In II Corinthians 11, Paul listed some of the tribulations he experienced: prison cells, stripes on his back, shipwreck, beaten with rods and stoned and left for dead. However he made a decision to be content in his walk with God.
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Parents with a stretched budget, particularly when there is more than one child in the home, are happy to save any way that they can and area merchants who value their business are rolling out the red carpet to keep them in town during the annual Sales Tax Holiday slated for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, Aug. 11-13.

"Most folks won't hear the back-to-school bell for another week or so, but it's never too early to take advantage of the opportunity to save money on everything from ball caps to ballpoint pens," said Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar. "As the father of three young children, I know how these expenses can add up."

The law exempts most clothing, footwear, school supplies and backpacks priced below $100 from sales tax, saving shoppers about $8 on every $100 they spend during the weekend.

This year alone, shoppers will save an estimated $87 million in state and local sales taxes during the sales tax holiday.

"All of our school supplies -- paper, notebooks, folders, crayons, markers, pens, pencils and rulers, all of that good stuff will be on sale," said Tammy Oneal, assistant manager at Thrif-tee. "We carry the basics and every single year we stock up and put up displays of our supplies."

Oneal said it is a hectic weekend with parents gobbling up the items with reduced prices.

"It stays very busy around that time here," Oneal said.

The assistant manager also pointed out that they will also have sales on other related items.

Variety packs of chips, Lunchables, Capri drinks, and much more will also be on sale.

Just down the road from Thrif-tee, Brookshire Brothers is also in full swing, ready for the additional business the holiday brings.

"We have school supplies but they're about to dwindle down," said Jeff Fitzgerald, manager at Brookshire Brothers in Dayton.

The store has bundled basic school supplies in a single bag and priced it at an even $10 and made it convenient for families or friends helping to pick up a bag and go.

"We also have school supplies for individual campuses and each grade," Fitzgerald said, matching the lists from Dayton ISD.

Pencils, glue, paper and many other items on the state list will be available in large quantities on sales tax holiday weekend.

Fitzgerald said shoppers wouldn't only find back to school items marked down, but a number of related grocery items as well.

"Lunchables, Hawaiian punch, cereal, fruit snacks and more items are at 10 for $10," he said. "This is a way for us to keep folks here in town for these items."

Brookshire Brothers underwent a major renovation five years ago that enlarged and brightened up the entire store.

"I believe it's helped us keep people here," he said, "and we can tell by our numbers."

Like other area merchants, if Brookshires doesn't have what the customer is shopping for, they are willing to purchase it and keep it here.

"We should have plenty in stock, but I wouldn't wait until the last minute," he said.

Brookshires, when they can, buys from local farmers to fill their produce. Kumquats seem to be a local favorite and one Fitzgerald says they buy for their produce section from a local farmer, he said.

Lists of apparel and school supplies that may be purchased tax-free can be found on the Comptroller's website at TexasTaxHoliday.org.

Texas' tax holiday weekend has been an annual event since 1999.
Despite threats of being rained out, locals came out for the annual White Linen Night in the Heights.

Houstonians put on their best white outfits and headed to 19th Street to shop a variety of vendors, enjoy some local food and explore different works of art by featured at the event.
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A naked man threatening suicide interrupted students' SAT prep Saturday morning at a Las Vegas church before he was shot by police, according to authorities and local reports.

Police swarmed the parking lot of Life Springs Christian Church around 11 a.m., responding to reports of a man threatening to kill himself with a handgun, according to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department spokesman Jeff Clark. Canines and air units were called in to assist.
Where can you find the best burger in the area? Ask an area resident, and chances are you'll get a passionate, detailed answer on an admittedly subjective topic. Here are some of the places that locals say they go when craving a hamburger.

According to many, the best ones aren't always found at a traditional burger joint.

Silver sycamore

When the Silver Sycamore opened in Pasadena 12 years ago, it was a rustic getaway with a tea room and a wedding venue complete with suites and tiny cottages. About three years ago, the tea room was turned into a traditional cafe, but that just-like-home quality remained, according to Aubrey Spiegener, the marketing director for Silver Sycamore. The restaurant features all its hamburgers during its 'burger week,' which comes around every few months and includes a specialty burger featured each day.

The Pine Street Cafe burger is simple, with no frills.

"Our meat is never frozen; we don't pre-make them," Spigener said.

"We do everything home-style, what you would expect at Mom's or Grandma's house when you were a kid."

Pine Street Cafe's weekend 'brunch burger' has an added pick-me-up for those too late for breakfast but not quite ready for an afternoon meal on a Saturday morning.

"It's topped with a fried egg, so it's a little different, and delicious," Spigener said.

The Pine Street Cafe at Silver Sycamore is at 5111 Pine Ave,

It is open daily from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., with breakfast served 8-11 a.m.

For information, call 281-487-4033.

STAR BURGER

Since 1983, Star Burger and Shrimp Galley has served fried shrimp and hamburgers that have gained many local fans.

The restaurant has just one type of burger on the menu, and that is all that's needed, owner James Jung said.

A traditional quarter-pounder, the 'Star burger' is dressed with lettuce, mustard, mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, bacon and jalapeno (and cheese if you want) on a toasted bun.

"We make everything here, including our burgers, fresh daily," Jung said.

"Customers tell us that compared to other burger places, ours are the best," he said.

Star Burger and Shrimp Galley is at 2213 Strawberry Road, Pasadena.

The restaurant is open from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

For information, call 713-477-0097.

CHAR BURger

Since 1970, Char Burger has been a Deer Park staple for simple, down-home food.

George Phillipos took over the family owned business and credits dedication to quality with the popularity of the restaurant's burgers.

"We make them with love and care, with fresh ingredients, and that's about it," Phillipos said.

Char Burger, 1921 Center Street in Deer Park, is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

For information, call 281-479-1143.

the health nut

For 38 years, the Health Nut has been a go-to place in Deer Park, and one customer favorite is the bison burger.

In addition to selling vitamins, minerals and herbs, the Health Nut serves lunch five days a week.

Two years ago, it introduced the bison burger, the only hamburger on its menu, alongside it's avocado sandwich and soups.

Cooked daily, the quarter-pound bison burger offers a leaner alternative to beef.

The meat is served on a whole wheat or white bun with lettuce, pickles and tomatoes, with or without cheese.

The store serves about six bison burgers - with veggies and dip - every day.\

That may not sound like much, said Health Nut owner, Karen Guidry, but it's a more adventurous order.

And anyway, she added, "When people come here, they're not really looking for burgers.

"It's just like a hamburger, but it tastes better and it's better for you," she said of the meat which comes from "free-range buffalo."

"The buffalo graze the land just like they did thousands of years ago,l" Guidry said.

"That makes them leaner."

The restaurnt's burger is a particular favorite of local police officers.

The Health Nut, 2606 Center Street in Deer Park, is open for lunch from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

For information, call 281-479-7713.
(Xinhua) 10:36, August 06, 2017

ASEAN Foreign Ministers link hands "The ASEAN Way" at the opening ceremony of the 50th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting at the Philippine International Convention Center Saturday, Aug. 5, 2017. [Photo: AP/Mohd Rasfan]

The foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) endorsed on Saturday the framework of the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea for eventual adoption at the ASEAN-China meeting on Sunday, a government spokesman said.

Robespierre Bolivar, the acting spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs, said, "The ministers endorsed the framework of the COC for eventual adoption at the ASEAN-China ministerial meeting on Aug. 6."

The framework, which was negotiated by China and the ASEAN, will help both sides move forward in negotiating an effective Code of Conduct, according to Bolivar.

Bolivar has earlier said the framework of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea is one of the major outcome documents of the week-long ASEAN ministerial meetings that kicked off on Saturday.The Philippines is the rotating chair of ASEAN this year.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
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Under the state's complex public school funding system, the Montgomery Independent School District's high property wealth per student actually is creating a budget shortfall, leaving the district so cash-strapped that it will not be able to open a planned elementary school for the 2017-18 school year or provide teacher raises.

Lincoln Elementary was scheduled to open Aug. 22 with the start of the school year as a prekindergarten through fifth-grade campus. Previously, Lincoln had been Montgomery Intermediate School serving solely fifth-graders. And as part of the $265.75 million bond referendum passed by voters in May 2015, Lincoln was scheduled to be renovated this summer to create another elementary school and accommodate the district's projected growth and upgrade aging facilities.

COLLEGE RANKINGS: Where Texas schools land according to Forbes

However, enrollment growth has not met projections over the past couple of years while the district's property appraisals have continued to rise, including by 11 percent in 2016. That resulted in an estimated property wealth per student of $551,250 in 2017-18 -- well above the state's threshold of $515,000 per student. Exceeding the maximum wealth value per student means the Montgomery ISD will be forced to pay $3.7 million back to the state this year.

The news of the recapture payments under the Chapter 41 "Robin Hood" state funding plan not only meant the postponement of Lincoln Elementary but also resulted in a freeze on raises for district educators. Districts subject to Chapter 41 of the Texas Education Commissioner are required to share their wealth with other property poor school districts.

Based on preliminary information provided by Texas Education Agency Information Specialist DeEtta Culbertson, the agency estimates the district will owe $3.7 million. That district budget for 2016-17 was around $91 million, including the general fund, child nutrition and debt service.

"As wealth goes up, the amount you have to pay in recapture can increase," Culbertson said. "One thing to remember is these are still estimates that can go up or down depending on what your enrollment is next year. It's all still preliminary  we just have to follow what the law says as does the districts."

House Bill 21 this past legislative session could have lowered the recapture payment to $1.3 million. However, the bill failed.

"We must reform our school finance system by reducing recapture payments, which will help our local schools," state Rep. Will Metcalf, R-Conroe said in a statement to The Courier. "I voted in favor of House Bill 21 this session, which would provide for a new school finance system across our state and would have provided an additional $2 million for Montgomery ISD. I will continue working towards these reforms to our school finance system to support our public school system in House District 16."

Compounding the problem with the appraisal hikes was the fact that two demographic companies contracted by MISD missed their enrollment growth projections, according to Montgomery ISD Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Sonja Lopez.

Enrollment, based on 2 percent growth projections, was supposed to be 8,400. However, it sat at 8,276 as of May 1, she said.

Montgomery ISD has been subject to recapture payments at least 12 times since 2004, with payments ranging from $53,000 to $2.69 million, and totaling more than $9.8 million over that time, according to the district's recapture payment history.

"We anticipated recapture payments could be as much as $1 million dollars," information from Lopez stated.

Lopez said the district cannot adjust the property tax rate of $1.34 per $100 valuation. However, the district did open enrollment and still anticipates growth in the area with upcoming development.

The district will be subject to the recapture payments until it falls under the property wealthy threshold, which is possible if the district sees the projected influx of student growth, according to Culbertson and Lopez.

Lincoln Elementary Reassignment

Montgomery ISD's new plan is to combine those Lincoln Elementary students with students from the old Montgomery Elementary campus, which is being transformed into a multipurpose district facility. Both of those student populations will go to the former Montgomery Middle School campus, repurposed to be the new Montgomery Elementary School located on FM 149.

The changes bring the total enrollment to just over 800 students at the newly renovated Montgomery Elementary School, which has a capacity of 900 students.

The adjustments also meant that 37 staff members scheduled to work at Lincoln Elementary were reassigned to other campuses. The district does not plan to hire any more personnel for the school year.

"No one is losing their job this year," Lopez said. "That's the good part."

Lopez does not anticipate Title 1 funding to be affected as both Lincoln Elementary and MES are subject to the funds.

The plan now is to renovate and open Lincoln Elementary by August 2018.

Budget and Savings

The district projects that it will save about $400,000 in utilities and operating expenses and up to $1.2 million in personnel and operating expenses by postponing the opening of Lincoln Elementary and the MISD Administrative Offices at the old Montgomery Elementary campus by using the staff to fill vacancies created through retirement and attrition.

"We are also working to shorten the contractors scheduled construction time since they will now be able to complete the renovations at Lincoln without having to stage their work around staff and students," district information stated. "That will also be a savings to the district in construction costs."

According to a letter sent out by Rees to teachers and staff, Montgomery ISD will not be able to provide raises for the 2017-18 school year.

"This is the first time in four years that we have not provided at least a 3 percent midpoint raise for all positions," Rees stated in the letter sent in May.

This will be the third time in the past six years that Montgomery ISD has undergone significant budget reductions," Rees said in a statement to The Courier.

"All non-instructional budgets will be reduced, and we will defer maintenance and capital expenditures," he stated. "If needed, we will use our savings of 11.7 million dollars to balance the budget. We are not broke or insolvent. We are simply trying to make decisions in the best interests of our students, staff, and taxpayers to deal with what I believe is a broken school finance system. This is a perfect example of what is wrong with Texas School Finance."

Bond Recap

The fund from the 2015 bond cannot be used to pay for the recapture payments; they must go toward the construction projects as planned.

The bond breakdown includes $205 million to address growth with the new Lake Creek High School set to be completed in August 2018 and serve grades 9-12 at FM 2854 northwest of Rabon Chapel Road; a new Oak Hills Junior High to serve grades 6-8 and the new Keenan Elementary School to serve grades pre-K through fifth grade, both located at Keenan Cutoff Road starting this school year; and land for future school sites.

The package also includes $35.75 million for existing facility renovations, additions, and improvements; $7 million for safety and security at all campuses, and $9 million for technology and transportation.
Aleppo's Old City, shelled, burned and shot up during years of fighting in Syria's civil war, can be rebuilt, the local representative of the United Nations cultural body UNESCO said.

"Our vision is to rebuild the Old City exactly as it was before the war, with the same stones where we can," said Mazen Samman, UNESCO's associate programme coordinator in Aleppo.

There are detailed plans for the Old City's great medieval mosques, souks, bath houses and citadel from an earlier restoration that should allow exact reconstruction, he said.

But while that may be true of the most treasured monuments, whole districts of less celebrated alleyways and traditional houses that gave the Old City its character are also now rubble.

Reviving the Old City is important for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad both as a symbol of the returning power of his state, but also because of Aleppo's economic importance.

The fighting in Aleppo ended in December when the Syrian army drove out rebels, but they still hold swathes of the country and Assad's government is hobbled by Western sanctions.

Now gradual efforts are being made to revive the city, one of the oldest in the Middle East.

The United Nations and international cultural agencies say they are committed to preserving and restoring Syrian heritage, but it will ultimately rely on local effort.

It needs local government to ensure work fits the character of the Old City, both architecturally and in how land is divided between shops, houses and public spaces.

It depends on the Old City's 100,000 former residents choosing to return to their homes and businesses, many of which are now piles of stones and concrete.

But it also needs the skills of Aleppo craftsmen, many of whom left the city during the war, some killed, others departing with the rebels or starting new lives as refugees abroad.

"We are thinking of making a school for craftsmen," Samman said.

Master Craftsman

One of the craftsmen who might help set up that school is Mustafa al-Now, a worker in the ornate, painted wood panels, windows, doors and ceilings that adorn old Aleppo houses.

Since the rebels took control of his district in the Old City, his workshop has been located in a west Aleppo park. Carved panels, painted with delicate floral patterns in red, gold, black, brown and green, stand against the walls.

His was one of three workshops where the craft was practised in Aleppo, he said. The others are now closed and many of the skilled workers are gone.

"I have to teach a new generation," he said.

A few miles to the east, in the Hamidiya quarter of the Old City, Now's old house and former workshop are strewn with rubble instead of the antiques that used to fill the shaded courtyard.

He left his home suddenly in 2012, fleeing across the rooftops, fearing rebel reprisals because his workshop featured photographs of Assad, who had visited during a tour of the city.

Now he stoops to pull a dusty, faded fragment of painted wood, his own work, from under a large fallen stone. In a nearby alleyway, still mostly intact, he shows a wooden bay window that he restored years ago for a hotel in an old house.

But in Jedaidah, a warren of narrow alleys dipping under stone archways, there is terrible damage. In an old restaurant by an alleyway, where oil drums marked a front line, and with an unexploded gas canister bomb in the courtyard, the woodwork is all burned.

Return

Outside the Citadel, the huge fortress on a steep hill above the Old City, hundreds of families gathered in the early evening to watch the setting sun soak its pale stones in gold.

The area was a favourite destination for Aleppans and tourists alike before the war but was for four years a front-line no-man's land of sniper bullets and shellfire.

Loud blasts still rang out as people sat at the one reopened cafe or strolled around the long moat, but the noise was from artillery pounding rebels outside the city and nobody paid it any heed.

Any sustainable restoration of the Old City would depend on drawing back its established residents and business owners. But even where their property has not been destroyed, possessions and wealth were looted.

In Jedaidah quarter, a modest doorway led to a pretty little courtyard shaded by a fig tree and a grape vine, an arched niche standing by a stone stair leading up to the roof.

The work benches with low-hung lights in a side room with elegant tiled floor showed it had once been a jewellery or gold workshop. On the courtyard floor lay two metal safes, crudely cut open and empty. Such remains of looting are present in areas that were controlled by each side during the fighting.

Despite such losses, there was evidence in every part of the Old City visited by Reuters, accompanied by a government official, of people returning.

In Souk al-Qamash, a covered textile market surmounted by three high domes and ringed by a frieze of scallop-carved stones, Mohammed Maymi, short and amiable, was repainting his shop.

During the fighting he visited it from his home in a government-controlled area every time the corridor across front lines was open. "I just wanted to smell the smell of the souk. If I couldn't smell it, I would explode," he said.

His example, clearing and cleaning his shop despite the charred black walls of the souk around, points to the chance that Aleppo's Old City might one day be resurrected.

Such things have happened before. Last year, the 16th-century Ottoman Ferhadija mosque in Banja Luka reopened, recreated from its original stones 23 years after it was blown up during the war in Bosnia.

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Two Boy Scouts died Saturday in an East Texas boating accident, officials said.

Two teens and an 11-year-old from Hallsville were on a Boy Scout outing on Lake O' The Pines when their catamaran sailboat collided with an overhead power line.

The boat burst into flames, and the boys may have been electrocuted. All three members of Troop 620 were wearing personal flotation devices at the time.

By the time game wardens arrived at the Alley Creek area of the lake near Avinger around 2 p.m., they found the boat ablaze and the 16-year-old dead in the water. The 18-year-old, who was still in the boat, was also dead and had suffered severe bodily injuries.

The 11-year-old was found in a nearby vessel, where good Samaritans were performing CPR. He was taken to the LSU Medical Center-Shreveport.

The crash is under investigation by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department's statewide boating accident reconstruction and mapping team.
Adrian Heath said he does not regret casting a vote in the May 2010 Woodlands Road Utility District board election that ultimately landed him in a state prison for almost six months on a voter fraud conviction and still maintains he did nothing illegal.

The 60-year-old Heath was paroled and released last week from a three-year sentence handed down in 2012. A a jury convicted him and three others of illegally voting in that 2010 election, a third-degree felony. Ten individuals changed their voting address to that of a Woodlands hotel, checked into the hotel and ousted the RUD board incumbents in a 10-2 vote.

However, the three incumbents, Gene "Ed" Miller, Bill Neill and Winton Davenport, filed suit alleging the results were obtained by illegal votes. A visiting judge ruled that the 10 Montgomery County residents who changed their voting address to the hotel and voted in the RUD election did not reside within the WRUD boundaries and their votes were thrown out. Miller, Neill and Davenport were reinstated to the board.

Soon after, someone filed a complaint with the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office, which led to the Texas Attorney General's Office (then under the direction of Gov. Greg Abbott) prosecuting Heath, Jim Jenkins, Sybil Doyle and Roberta Cook. Voters Peter Goeddertz and Thomas Curry received pretrial probation in order to avoid prosecution, while the remaining other four never were charged.

Doyle has since passed away.

Heath was allowed to stay out of prison on an appeal bond while appellate courts reviewed his conviction. In June 2014, Heath appealed his conviction to the 9th Court of Appeals in Beaumont, although his case was transferred to the 14th Court of Appeals in Houston about two weeks later. The 14th Court affirmed Heath's conviction and sentence in May 2016, which led Heath to file a petition for discretionary review to the Court of Criminal Appeals about two months later.

Then in December 2016, the Court of Criminal Appeals declined to review Heath's case. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to review his case as well.

After the courts ultimately upheld Heath's conviction and prison sentence, he was taken into custody in February. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles approved his release July 14, and he was reunited with his family in The Woodlands on Wednesday.

"It's the experience of a lifetime," said Heath, who also ran as an independent for county judge against incumbent Alan B. Sadler in the November 2010 general election. "I'm grateful. I'm hugely grateful. I owe a load of thanks to God, principally, and my wife, who's suffered greatly in this ordeal."

It's been a seven-year-long roller coaster for Heath since his legal battles started after casting his vote. He still thinks he's done nothing wrong and, to the contrary, believes checking into a hotel for two nights and voting in the RUD election was the only right thing he could do in the face of his perceived corruption within the RUD.

"I regret that all the powers that be ruled against me," Heath said. "But what we did was right, and it was never a 'risk versus reward' question. It was whether it was right or wrong. Is truth relative, or is it absolute? We believe it's absolute."

Heath maintains his innocence and claims to have consulted with prosecutors and election officials prior to casting his vote. In his petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, he claimed the fact he and the nine others showed up as registered voters on certified voter rolls provided by Montgomery County Elections Central proved they were legally able to vote in the RUD election.

"(Prosecutors) had in their discovery, in their evidence, they had that letter certifying us as eligible voters in the district two weeks before the election, and they still went ahead with the prosecution," Heath said. "Everybody ignored that letter."

However, a voter's name appearing on such a ledger does not necessarily mean the voter is legally capable of voting in the election, according to Montgomery County Elections Coordinator Suzie Harvey. She said when her office employees receive voter registration applications, they essentially have to take voters "at their word" when it comes to whether they are registering at an eligible address.

Election workers ensure the address is in Montgomery County and then make a list of each political subdivision within which the address falls for voting purposes. That's basically all Elections Central is allowed to do under state law.

"If we know that it's a P.O. box or a business, we'll send them a confirmation card, which just has them confirm the address to us," Harvey said. "But we don't have any authority to say, 'You can't live at a mailbox or a Kroger.'"

The only way a person's address can truly be challenged is if the election results themselves are questioned in a civil suit filed inside a district court, which is what the RUD did soon after the election in May 2010. The Woodlands-based attorney James Stilwell, who represented the RUD in that lawsuit, said there is no ambiguity in the election laws that the four illegal RUD voters were convicted of violating.

"There is nothing unclear about 'don't vote where you don't live,'" Stilwell said. "I think these cases have worn that out. Don't vote where you don't live."

While waiting on appeals, Heath ran a political campaign online shedding light on special district creation through temporary voters, dubbed rent-a-voters, and how he thought prosecutors selectively chose to charge him and not the rent-a-voters.

Rent-a-voters are residents who are often housed on undeveloped land inside municipal utility districts for the sole purpose of voting in bond elections for infrastructure. The creation of MUDs and the passage of those bonds prevent developers from needing to pay for infrastructure - such as water, sewer, roads, recreational facilities, etc. - themselves.

Rather than an up-front cost to the developer, it is paid by future property owners/taxpayers in the developments through bonds over long periods of time.

"It's absolutely wrong that developers get to control districts, a unit of government, a subdivision of the state of Texas, as their own little private pocket government and that they get to recruit voters at will and give them free rent in exchange for their vote," Heath said. "And I'm going to prison? That's unconscionable.

"People should be disturbed by that."

Heath's political activity, however, might be stifled by conditions of his parole. He declined to state which specific condition he would be violating by voicing his opinions politically but said he's more immediately focused on finding employment and paying a $10,000 fine to the state assessed at trial.

He will remain on parole for the next 30 months.

Jenkins' case could be retried after a recent appellate decision. His conviction was overturned by an appeals court because jurors were not informed they could consider "mistake of law" in determining guilt or innocence. No motion for a retrial had been filed as of Friday.
Two Afghan police officers were killed and a NATO soldier was wounded in an apparent insider attack in southern Afghanistan on Saturday, officials said.

The so called "green on blue" attack happened at Kandahar airfield when NATO advisors, who had completed a training session with their Afghan counterparts, were returning to their base, NATO said.

"Romanian soldiers... returned fire in self-defence and killed the gunman," the statement said, adding that the attacker was a member of the Afghan National Civil Order Police.

A Romanian soldier was wounded in the attack," NATO said.

Police spokesman Abdul Hamid Mubarez told AFP that foreign troops opened fire on their forces after a "verbal clash" with them.

He said one police officer was killed at the scene and another who was wounded died later in hospital.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but Western officials say most insider attacks stem from personal grudges and cultural misunderstandings rather than insurgent plots.

The incident comes as the United States ponders sending more American troops to Afghanistan and it came at the end of a difficult week for foreign forces in the war-torn country.

Two US soldiers died when a Taliban suicide bomber rammed a vehicle filled with explosives into their convoy in Kandahar on Wednesday.

The next day a Georgian soldier was killed in a Taliban suicide bomb attack on a convoy of foreign forces near Bagram Airbase.

In June, three US troops were killed and another wounded in an insider attack during a joint operation in Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar province.

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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.
The victim's foot got stuck in the rails and he was then hit by the train, according to eyewitnesses

A man died early on Sunday when he was hit by a train while crossing railway tracks in Gizas Al-Ayyat district, Al-Ahram Arabic website reported.

The man was running to catch a train to work when his foot got caught in the rails, eyewitnesses told the prosecution.

Details of the victim's identity have not yet been made public.

Giza prosecutors are conducting further investigations into the incident.

Al-Ayyat was the scene of another deadly incident in December, when a train collided with a microbus on a railway crossing. Two people were killed in the incident, while the railway worker responsible for operating the crossing was said to have been sleeping at the time.

In January 2016, a train collided with a car on a crossing at Al-Ayyat, resulting in the deaths of seven people.

Egypt's railway system has been largely operated manually, with employees responsible for managing the crossings by communicating with the drivers  a practice that is considered unreliable and unsafe.

The government has embarked on programs to automate the crossings but said repairing and developing the railway system would take two to three years.

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CLEVELAND, Ohio - A shiver of worry went through the Cleveland Museum of Art last winter when Tom Campbell, the controversial director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, announced his resignation.

Would William Griswold, the popular and admired director and president of the Cleveland Museum of Art since August, 2014, be tapped to fill one of the biggest job openings in the art museum world?

"We assumed he would be at least talked to,'' said Jeffrey Strean, the museum's veteran director of design and architecture. "Whenever I hear of a new opening, the Met being the most major, you get nervous, particularly if you have somebody good here at the moment."

Griswold, 57, who joined the museum after having led the Morgan Library & Museum in New York, said in a recent interview he wouldn't have considered the Met because he's fully committed to Cleveland.

Others left; Griswold stays

Last month, he settled any doubts by signing a contract extending his tenure here through 2024.

"It would be very, very hard for me to overstate how much I love being here," he said. "I know it sounds like a throwaway, but it's not."

According to staff members, trustees and outside observers, Griswold's first three years have been a success in part because he has stabilized an institution that felt damaged after three years under his predecessor, David Franklin.

There's also the matter of tone and personal style.

Tall and slim with close-cropped sandy hair, pale horn-rimmed glasses and a sunny, buoyant air, Griswold is in many ways the opposite of Franklin, who struck many observers as nervous and never quite comfortable leading the museum, his first job as a director.

The Franklin meltdown

The former chief curator and deputy director of the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, Franklin stepped down from his Cleveland post in 2013 after trustees confirmed he had lied to them to cover up an affair with an employee.

Griswold, who held top administrative posts at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, and who led the Minneapolis Institute of Art from 2005 to 2007, and the Morgan from 2008 to 2014, is seen as completely unlike Franklin.

"He's a straight-shooting kind of guy," Strean said. "I think he's incredibly ethical and conscientious, and understands his role is to be above criticism as much as possible. He comes in on time every day, walks the halls, and says hi to everybody."

In other words, Strean said, Griswold is "the antidote to what had been going on."

Muffling a milestone

Franklin's departure coincided with the museum's completion of a highly ambitious, eight-year $320 million expansion and renovation designed by globally renowned architect Rafael Vinoly.

In addition to muting the celebrations over the completed expansion, Franklin's resignation highlighted the museum's inability to retain directors.

Griswold is the fourth top executive at the museum since 1999, when Robert P. Bergman died after the sudden onset of a blood ailment.

Bergman's successor, Katharine Reid, launched the Vinoly project, but retired abruptly after five years. Timothy Rub, her successor, left Cleveland after three years to run the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the only museum, he said, that could have lured him away.

'Burned' staff

The Franklin years were notable for ways in which they left the museum's staff feeling "burned," a word Trustee Peter Raskind, who became president of the museum's board in 2016, used to describe the mood.

After Franklin, the museum settled down for the better part of a year under the interim directorship of Trustee and arts impresario Fred Bidwell before landing Griswold, who had earned kudos in Manhattan for freshening the once dowdy Morgan with exhibitions and installations of contemporary art.

Griswold said he's very much aware of the fallout Franklin caused inside and outside the museum.

"It just takes a while to heal," he said. "I believe we have largely worked through that. It's something I try to remain aware of, because it's important we get beyond it."

He's also eager to affirm his love for the institution and the city that created and sustains it.

"What I found when I got here is that not only do we have one of the great museums in the world and one of the greatest collections and one of the great, great teams and a really dedicated audience of visitors and supporters, but we have a fantastic community."

Such statements reflect Griswold's sincere feelings, and his upbeat character, observers say.

New direction

"Bill is the perfect steward for the [Cleveland] institution at this moment," said Christine Anagnos, executive director of the Association of Art Museum Directors, the membership organization for leaders of top U.S. art museums.

"He's a longstanding director, steeped in scholarship and community," she said, "and he's probably one of the happier people I've ever met, truly one of the happier souls I know. That makes him all around a really, really solid director."

"He's representing the museum extraordinarily well," said David Abbott, executive director of the Gund Foundation.

Rebuilding has been Griswold's main agenda so far.

He rallied the museum's staff to produce events and exhibitions to celebrate the museum's centennial in 2016. And he filled nine top administrative posts, including vacancies left by four curators who left during the Franklin years or their aftermath.

As for setting a new tone, Griswold has gracefully handled news, both good and bad, on his watch.

Handling bad news

After discovering twice that the museum owned antiquities with deeply compromised ownership histories, or provenances, Griswold contacted Italy and Cambodia - the countries involved - and initiated negotiations over returning the objects, rather than waiting for them to complain and put the museum on the defensive.

In both instances, the museum bought the objects, an ancient Roman portrait of Drusus Minor, and a statue of the Hindu monkey god Hanuman, in good faith before discovering their true histories.

Griswold's outreach efforts have been fruitful, especially in the case of Cambodia, which gave the museum a critical fragment it needs to more completely reassemble its large statue of Krishna Govardana.

Cambodia is also lending Cleveland a massive stone relief carving comprised of 53 stone blocks creating a wall 9 feet high by 10 feet wide. That work goes on view Oct. 14 in an exhibition entitled, "Beyond Angkor: Cambodian Sculpture from Banteay Chhmar."

Professional colleagues have taken notice of Griswold's handling of the antiquities issues.

"It's not just that Bill is ethical; it's that he has the judgment and experience to understand how to approach those circumstances, which he obviously wasn't responsible for creating," said Brent Benjamin, director of the St. Louis Art Museum.

Slimmer checkbook

As for acquisitions of art, Griswold's first three years have coincided with stunning price increases in the global art market and with diminished buying power, thanks to a judicial ruling allowing it to divert up to $75 million in investment income from its art purchase endowments over 10 years to help pay for its expansion and renovation.

Griswold said the museum has used $40 million of income so far, and that he plans to use the full $75 million available by 2022.

"It won't surprise you that I wish we had that $40 million to spend right this minute on art," he said, "but we are working through this, and I think it was the right thing to do."

Nevertheless, the museum is feeling the pinch.

"It has not had a negative impact on the quality of our acquisitions," Griswold said, "but it has an impact necessarily on our capacity to secure the really top-end works of art in a very competitive market for masterpieces of world art."

Picking up what Turner started

Despite that hardship, Griswold's directorship in many ways represents a resumption of a broader thrust initiated in 1983 under the museum's fourth director, Evan H. Turner, who led the institution until 1993.

Turner, and Bergman, who followed him, made it their mission to open up an institution perceived as a forbidding bastion in a white marble palace on Wade Lagoon.

After 20 years in which the museum concentrated primarily on planning and building its architecturally dramatic expansion and renovation, Griswold wants to pick up where Turner and Bergman left off.

He said he wants to "reinforce a direction that was established as early as tenure of Evan Turner, a direction that makes the museum ever more accessible and relevant to a broad and diverse audience."

After three years on the job, with a vote of confidence from his trustees in the form of his new seven-year contract, Griswold is ready to dig in on that promise.
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Investigators have determined excessive corrosion caused a ride malfunction that killed a man and injured seven other people last month at the Ohio State Fair.

Investigators for KMG, the Dutch company that manufactures the Fireball thrill ride that broke apart July 26 in Columbus, determined corrosion dangerously reduced the thickness of the ride's interior support beam. The ride was 18 years old, the company said in a statement posted on its Facebook page.

Tyler Jarrell, an 18-year-old student at Franklin Heights High School, was killed when one of the ride's seat cars became detached from the ride. Seven other people were injured.

KMG investigators inspected the ride during a visit to the Ohio State Fair. They also reviewed video of the deadly malfunction.

The company is instituting new safety protocols for inspecting and maintaining rides, KMG product manager Albert Kroon said in the statement.

Ohio State Fair organizers shuttered rides after the deadly malfunction. The rides reopened days later after they were re-inspected.

Jarrell's family has hired a civil attorney to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit, according to the Associated Press.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- No arrests have been made in a shooting that wounded a 16-year-old boy early Sunday on Cleveland's East Side.

The shooting happened about 5 a.m. on East 93rd Street near Kinsman Road. The intersections sits at the border between the city's Kinsman, Woodland Hills and Union-Miles Park neighborhoods.

The 16-year-old boy was taken to MetroHealth for treatment. His condition was not immediately available Sunday morning.

The shooting remains under investigation.

To comment on this story, visit Sunday's crime and courts comments page.
Impaired driving, I-90: A 37-year-old Cleveland man rolled his 2015 Nissan Rogue July 28 while exiting I 90 westbound at Crocker Road. He also struck another vehicle on the ramp from behind, injuring the driver, another 37-year-old Cleveland man. A passing private ambulance crew aided the first man and took him to St. John Medical Center, while the Westlake Fire Department transported the other driver. The suspect admitted using heroin and Adderall and was cited for operating a vehicle while impaired and failure to control. Police are awaiting results of his hospital blood test.



Unauthorized use of a motor vehicle: A Bay Village woman lent her 1998 Nissan 200SX to her ex-boyfriend, a 37-year-old Lakewood man, July 19. She got tired of waiting for its return and on July 28 filed an unauthorized use report with Westlake police. She terminated the one-month relationship when she found out the car was in Pennsylvania and that the suspect first stalled her on returning it and then would not tell her where he and the car were. The Beaver County Sheriff's Office in Pennsylvania located it July 30 and impounded it. A warrant has been issued for the former love interest.



Theft, King James Parkway: A $250 watch was delivered to a residence July 27 and it was stolen from the vestibule.



Pot and weapon charges, I-90: An officer stopped a 21-year-old Lorain man July 29 on I-90 eastbound for a traffic infraction. Police found some pot and a .45-caliber handgun in the car with him. He was cited for possession of marijuana, display of plates, and arrested for improper handling of a firearm.



Theft, First Street: A Florida girl's purse was stolen July 29 from a business. It was found later minus two cell phones worth a total of $130.



Juvenile misbehavior, Hedgewood Avenue: A group of misbehaving young people drew the attention of a passing patrolman July 30. An intoxicated 17-year-old Rocky River boy was arrested for underage consumption, misidentification, curfew, and possession of tobacco. A 17-year-old Westlake girl was cited for curfew, and another 17-year-old Westlake girl was cited for curfew and drug paraphernalia.



Burglary, Center Ridge Road: Employees arriving for work Aug. 1 found their business had been entered via an unlocked window. T computers worth $2,000 were stolen.



Fraud: A Detroit Road man was hoodwinked out of $26,000 by Jamaican telephone con men. They called him repeatedly July 27-Aug. 2, claiming that he had won a $250,000 prize but had to pay taxes upfront. The victim's brother got wind of this and intervened. The final parcel of $3,100 cash had not left the private shipper's office and will be returned. The Ohio Attorney General will also investigate.



Break-in, Dover Center Road: Family members clearing out their mom's home found a break-in Aug. 2. The back door was forced open and fire pokers are missing.



Impaired driving, Hilliard Boulevard: A 38-year-old Cleveland man was reportedly driving his 2007 Jeep erratically Aug 2. He was stopped on Hilliard and police determined he was under the influence. He was arrested for operating a vehicle while impaired and child endangering. His 8-year-old son was a passenger. The boy's mom made arrangements to have him picked up by his step-dad.



Theft, Westford Circle: A woman Aug. 2 found that all four wheels had been stolen off her boyfriend's 2017 Honda Accord. He was out of town.



Theft, Center Ridge Road: A church reported $200 missing Aug. 2. A cleaner who had been fired for sleeping in the building is a suspect in the theft, which occurred July 25.



Attempted fraud: A 63-year-old Westlake woman came close to losing $4,000 through the grandma phone scam. On Aug. 3, she received a call from a male that her granddaughter had been in an accident and needed bail. She bought the gift cards the caller demanded and called the number back; she was told to go buy different gift cards. She became suspicious and called her grandchild, who was safe at work. The calls originated from Canada and the gift card vendor will cancel the cards and reimburse her.

To comment on this story, please visit our crime and courts comments page.
Past Provost Angel Jordan Helped Lead CMUs Rise to Prominence

August 05, 2017

Angel Jordan, who played a pivotal role in establishing Carnegie Mellon University as one of the leading engineering, computer science and robotics institutions in the world, died Friday. He was 86.

Jordan, University Professor Emeritus and a member of the prestigious National Academy of Engineering, served as CMUs provost from 1983 to 1991, and was dean of the College of Engineering from 1979 to 1983.

Among his many leadership roles, he was also head of the Electrical Engineering department, where he was instrumental in establishing the colleges focused strengths in engineering design and computer engineering. He made key hires as department head, establishing CMU as highly ranked nationally in several key areas: computer engineering (Sam Fuller, Dan Siewiorek), magnetic recording later an NSF Engineering Center DSSC (Mark Kryder), and design automation (Steve Director, Ron Rohrer)  all five became members of the National Academy of Engineering. He had founding roles in several of CMUs signature programs and institutions, including the School of Computer Science, the Software Engineering Institute and the Robotics Institute.

Angel helped shape the university we know today, and set it on a trajectory to global prominence, said Farnam Jahanian, CMUs interim president. Beyond his landmark achievements, his decades-long dedication to Carnegie Mellon and to colleagues and students here made him a beloved member of this community.

"Angel Jordan helped to define the spirit of Carnegie Mellon  technically excellent, creative and entrepreneurial. We will miss him dearly, but he has embedded in us these important qualities that make us Carnegie Mellon," said College of Engineering Dean James H Garrett, Jr.

I am heartbroken, he has had a tremendous impact on ECE, and the entire university. I fondly remember when he would stop by to see how I was doing as a young department head, said Jelena Kovacevic, Hamerschlag University Professor and head of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department.

Jordan was dean of the College of Engineering in 1979 when he joined with Raj Reddy, a computer science professor, and Tom Murrin of Westinghouse Electric Corp. to create the worlds first Robotics Institute. The institute was the first to establish a Ph.D. program in robotics and remains the worlds largest academic robotics research center.

Reddy, who would become the first director of the Robotics Institute and would later serve as SCS dean, said Jordans roles as head of the electrical engineering department, dean of engineering and provost placed him at the center of some of the most important transformations of the university from 1970 to 2000.



He was actively involved in all of it, Reddy said. Even after his retirement, Jordan was an active participant in the Software Engineering Institute, he said, continuing to direct programs there.

Later, as provost, Jordan championed the idea of elevating the Computer Science Department to the college level, creating the School of Computer Science, which is consistently ranked at the top of U.S. graduate programs in computer science and whose graduates are highly prized by industry.

Andrew Moore, dean of CMUs School of Computer Science, said many in the school are grateful for his huge contributions to CMU and SCS.



I know that throughout my entire career I have benefited from his warm advice, and the way that he was a role model in being a warm and decent human being, Moore said.

Jordan also played a lead role, along with A. Nico Habermann, head of the Computer Science Department, in convincing the Department of Defense to establish its Software Engineering Institute (SEI) at CMU.

For over three decades, the (SEI) has been helping government and industry organizations to acquire, develop, operate and sustain software systems that are innovative, affordable, enduring and trustworthy. The SEI is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) sponsored by the Defense Department.

Nico and I knew something big was about to happen, Jordan recalled in 2014. There was competition. We did a lot of lobbying. Some people called it the software war, but we won.

Jordan was born in Pamplona, Spain, and received an undergraduate degree in physics at University of Zaragoza in 1952. In 1956, he came to Pittsburgh to what was then the Carnegie Institute of Technology (later CMU) to earn a Ph.D. in electrical engineering.

He joined the faculty as an assistant professor of electrical engineering after receiving his degree in 1959. He became a full professor in 1966. He would chair the electrical engineering program from 1969 through 1978, before becoming dean of the college.

His own research interests primarily focused on semiconductor devices; integrated circuits; thin films; environmental and biomedical instrumentation; and intelligent sensors. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1986, for contributions to solid-state device research, and for innovative leadership in engineering education.

Jordan became a professor emeritus in 2003. In May 2017, several family members were on hand as the College of Engineering celebrated the awarding of the first Angel Jordan Early Career Professorship to Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Vyas Sekar.

Services will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Angel Jordan Early Career Professorship fund.
Two militants were killed in the raid on the tunnel, according to the military statement

Egypt's army has destroyed a major illegal tunnel crossing the Egyptian border in North Sinai, a military spokesman said in a statement on Sunday.

Security forces killed two "very dangerous" militants in the raid on the tunnel, with two 4x4 vehicles also destroyed, according to the statement.

The army said it discovered the tunnel while carrying out operations to stem Islamist insurgency operations in North Sinai  an insurgency that has killed hundreds of police and army personnel in recent years.

Since 2011, Egypt's military has been destroying illegal tunnels running from North Sinai to Gaza, with the aim of halting the smuggling of weapons and ammunition to militants.

North Sinai has borders with both Gaza and Israel.

In October 2014, Egypt said it destroyed a total of 1,813 tunnels used for weapons smugging. The army continues to periodically discover tunnels and destroy them.

In July 2015, the Egyptian cabinet issued a decree banning 4x4 vehicles in those parts of North Sinai designated by the military as areas of ongoing anti-insurgency operations.

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Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said on Sunday that the state has increased its spending on scientific research by 47 percent over the past three years.

El-Sisi, who took office in mid-2014, said spending rose from EGP 11.8 billion in 2014-15 to EGP 17.5 billion in 2016-17.

The Egyptian president made the comments at a ceremony in Cairo celebrating Science Day, at which he honoured the country's leading scholars and students.

El-Sisi said the government would create a new fund to sponsor scientists and innovators, co-financed from state coffers and the private sector.

In addition, the government will increase the number of awards given to scholars and double their financial value, he said.

Minister of Higher Education Khaled Abdel-Ghaffar was also at Sunday's ceremony, delivering a speech in which he highlighted Egypt's favourable ranking among nations publishing scientific research.

Abdel-Ghaffar said Egypt ranked 35th out of 233 countries in terms of the amount of scientific research published internationally in 2017, according to the SCImago Journal & Country Rank.

The ranking was announced in June by the Egyptian Scientific Research Indicator (ESRI), pointing out that Egypt's 2017 ranking was an improvement on 2015, when it ranked 37th.

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A BBC Spotlight interview championing the Sidmouth Folk Festival was a bit more revealing than it should have been, after a young woman flashed the camera during a live broadcast.

During the 6.30pm bulletin on Friday night, an interview with one of the performing acts at Britain's oldest festival , a passer-by unexpectedly bared all.

None of the crew or those being interviewed appeared to spot the naughty act which was broadcast across the Westcountry.

One viewer who spotted the gaffe, Jamie Reeves, wasn't offended by the unexpected nudity - and found the whole thing hilarious.

The live report marked the launch of the 63rd Folk Week at the East Devon seaside town, running until August 11.

Popular with the locals and tourists alike, the event was awarded a prestigious blue plaque earlier this year for its contribution to music.

It involves more than 700 events from headline and intimate live gigs, dance parties, children's activities, dance displays and local food and drink.
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Police have confirmed that a man was tragically killed on the railway tracks near Exeter earlier today (Sunday August 6).

Devon Live reported earlier today that the British Transport Police had been called to the line at Clapperbrook Crossing near Exeter at 8.37am, after a man was hit by a train.

Devon and Cornwall Police and paramedics from South West Ambulance Service also rushed to the incident.

Sadly, the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

It is not yet known where the man was from or how old he was.

The incident this morning meant that all lines between Exeter St Davids and Newton Abbot were closed, leading to delays for people in Cornwall travelling out of the county, as well as other people across the South West, as the majority of lines head through the two busy stations.

National Rail said that there would be delays for passengers between the stations for up to 60 minutes throughout the morning and afternoon.

However, the company confirmed that the trains were running normally again by 12pm this afternoon.

Police have said that they are not treating the death as suspicious.

Officers have prepared a file for the coroner.
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Our weekend morning emails feature the very best news and exclusive content from our team of reporters

There's a long-standing rivalry between Cornwall and Devon that people never understand unless they live here.

This week, it emerged the Germans had no idea that Devon was even a different place to Cornwall. They thought it was all Cornwall.

But the historic border along the River Tamar marks a dividing line between two counties with a sometimes bitter, but mostly friendly, rivalry between them,

Both would both claim to be better than the other. But we know Cornwall is oh so much better in every way.

There's really no contest and we've put together a list to prove it...

1. Cornwall is practically a country

The Tamar is one of the oldest borders in Europe. We're Celts and very proud of it. We're owned by the Duchy and that makes us different. And we're not just a county, like Devon.

2. We have our own language

Kernewek may have almost died with Dolly Pentreath in 1777, but it's making a revival. Devonians just sound like bumpkins.

3. Our beaches are way better

Sennen, Porthmeor, Fistral, Pendower - from unspoilt gems to surfing meccas, we've got it all in Cornwall.

4. We've got a castle, on an island

The island of St Michael's Mount has its own tidal causeway, a castle with a Lord and Lady, living inside and a twin castle in France... Castle Drogo doesn't really cut it.

5. We've got the Isles of Scilly

Devon's got Lundy.

6. We let our visitors in for free

For some reason, we're made to pay to go to Plymouth. What's that about.

7. We had the first Trago

The original Cornish Disneyland. That fake castle at Newton Abbot is just a poor relation.

8. Poldark and Doc Martin

Devon's got Lorna Doone.

9. Kernow King and Jethro

Even Dawn French has made her home on the better side of the Tamar.

10. The pasty

It's ours. That's why it's called a Cornish pasty , End of.

11. Jam first

Oh my eyes. This picture offends me. Unquestionably the right way to make your scone is by spreading the jam on first, then the cream on top. And we're the home of clotted cream. So we must be right.

12. We invented the steam engine and the gas lamp

Proper Cornishmen were Richard Trevithick and Humphry Davy. Devon invented the Jack Russell dog and the taxi.

13. We've got Land's End

It's a proper landmark. Devon's got Westward Ho! And what is it with that apostrophe anyway?

14. The Eden Project

Those biomes are amazing. And unique. And now it's going global . What's Devon got? Otter Valley Nurseries?

15. Festivals

Boardmasters and Port Eliot vs MTV Crashes and Beautiful Daze. I know where I'd be rocking out .

16. It's further from London

And that's generally a good thing. The DFLs head to Devon first.

17. The Man Engine

He started his journey in Tavistock. But he was conceived and created and is now concealed in Cornwall. Behold the Man Engine !

18. Bodmin Moor

OK, we may have to concede this one - given that we're still not over the A30 roadworks. And Dartmoor is probably better.

19. But Cornwall wins everything else

Every year, Cornwall smashes Devon in the tourism awards and is named the best UK holiday destination. Plus this year, Falmouth was voted the best place to live in the UK by readers of the Sunday Times. And Penzance was named as one of the coolest cities to visit in 2017 (we'll gloss over the fact that it most definitely isn't a city).
Egyptian air forces began on Sunday joint military exercises with their Kuwaiti counterparts in Egyptian airspace, Egypt's army said on Sunday.

The drills aim to "bolster joint air capabilities using air forces from the two sides and strengthen military cooperation," the army spokesman said in a statement.

The exercise involved carrying out offensive and defensive sorties and conducting aerial reconnaissance and flight formations.

The last round of the joint Egyptian-Kuwaiti military exercise Yarmouk was held in April 2016 in Kuwait.

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Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has pledged to increase sanctions on the Gaza Strip, drawing a fresh attack from its Hamas rulers.

Abbas, the leader of the internationally-recognised Palestinian government based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has been seeking to weaken Islamists Hamas by cutting power supplies to Gaza.

The strip is home to two million Palestinians and has been struggling with an all-out Israeli seige since 2007.

On Saturday, he said he would continue with sanctions on the coastal strip, despite UN concerns that it amounts to collective punishment of its residents.

"We will continue the gradual stopping of financial allocations to the Gaza Strip until Hamas commits to reconciliation" with the Abbas administration, the president said.

"Since the coup, we have paid a billion and a half dollars to the Gaza Strip," Abbas said, referring to the 2007 overthrow of his Fatah movement by Hamas in Gaza.

"We will not allow this to continue," the WAFA official Palestinian news agency reported him as saying in Arabic.

"Either things will go as they are meant to be, or we will continue to reduce these funds," he said, accusing Hamas of stealing some of the funds.

The Islamist group responded late Saturday in a statement: "Attacking Hamas and threatening the people of Gaza with more sanctions is a blow to reconciliation efforts."

It accused Abbas's Palestinian Authority of working with Israel to isolate Gaza and bring suffering to its people.

Both sides have previously committed to reconciliation, but repeated attempts have failed.

The Palestinian Authority had been paying for some electricity to be delivered to Gaza since 2007, but in recent months has reduced the amount.

Gazans now receive only a couple of hours of electricity a day, delivered from the territory's own power station.

Egypt has recently started to supply Gaza with fuel to help generate electricity.

The Palestinian Authority has also cut stipends to its former Gaza staff forced out of office by Hamas, in a move analysts see as seeking to sow discontent in the strip.

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Within, students could find information on everything from the menstrual cycle to contraception to sex positions. With regards to birth control and abortion, it gave students everything they could possibly need to know, from information on procedures to broaching the subject in conversation to price guides and reviews of local clinics. As one reader makes clear, "women were desperate for this information, so starved for information ... you wanted it, in as much detail as you could get, as graphic as it could be made."

Canadian Museum of Human Rights

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AND HOW.

The publication of the pamphlet was made possible by donations from students, as well as secret funding from Princeton University and the University of Maine, and boy did they do a lot with it. Between 1968 and 1975, they'd distributed a staggering three million copies of the handbook -- a figure boosted by horny students in the U.S. writing to get their hands on this mythical book that they'd heard about via whispers in sexual backrooms.

There was another illicit sex guide before this. In the 1830s, The Fruits Of Philosophy informed sex-havers everywhere about the science of birth control. Although most of it is hilariously antiquated, it was one of the first publications to espouse the benefits of vaginal douching with a spermicide post-sex. Unlike the Canadians, the author of this pamphlet, Charles Knowlton, was found out by The Man, fined $50 for flouting obscenity laws, and sentenced to hard labor. You'll be glad to know though that this didn't hurt his cause, because his cause was awesome. Case in point: Not only did a member of the jury that convicted him ask for a copy of the book, so did the prosecutor and the judge. It turns out that while they were duty-bound to impose the law, they didn't agree with it.
The head of the European Union delegation to Yemen is visiting the country for talks with Shia Houthi rebels over a UN plan regarding a disputed key port.

Houthi officials say Ambassador Antonia Calvo Puerta arrived in Sanaa on Sunday to discuss the U.N. proposal for Hodeida port to be run by a third neutral party under UN supervision.

The Red Sea port of Hodeida, currently under Houthi control, is a vital lifeline for most of the country's population.

Yemeni officials in the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbou Mansour Hadi say they welcome the UN plan.

A Saudi-led coalition, backing Hadi's government and battling the Houthi rebels, has long planned to seize the port but held back over fears it would impede humanitarian aid deliveries.

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Be a hero to the internet; come to the U.S. and get arrested. That is the situation that shook the security community when the FBI arrested British security researcher Marcus Hutchins after he left Def Con.

Hutchins, aka MalwareTech, was arrested Aug. 2 for allegedly creating the banking trojan Kronos. Earlier this year, Hutchins was dubbed a hero for finding the WannaCry ransomware kill switch and was then doxed by reporters as a show of gratitude. His bail was set at $30,000, yet he spent the weekend in jail because there wasnt enough time to pay the bail before the clerks office closed on Friday.

After he is released on Monday, Hutchins will remain in the U.S. with GPS monitoring and go to Wisconsin where he will face a six-count federal indictment; it alleges he created and sold Kronos. He will not be allowed to use a computer or access the internet.

The U.S. government claims that between July 2014 and 2015, Hutchins created, advertised, distributed and profited from the Kronos malware. Another defendant is also named in the indictment, but that name was redacted and the person is still at large.

The redacted co-defendant allegedly advertised Kronos for sale on the darknet marketplace AlphaBay. A video showing off Kronos, the government said, was posted on a publicly available website by the co-defendant before that person tried to sell the trojan for $3,000. Prosecutors told a Las Vegas court that undercover officers bought the code from Hutchins and his co-defendant for $2,000 during a sting operation.

The BBC added that prosecutor Dan Cowhig told the court Hutchins confessed during a police interview. Cowhig said, He admitted he was the author of the code of Kronos malware and indicated he sold it.

The government allegedly has chat log evidence of Hutchins complaining about not receiving a fair share from that sale.

The government also claimed Hutchins poses a risk to the public and should not be released on bail because he visited a touristy gun range and went shooting. Judge Nancy Kobbe didnt buy into that.

Hutchins attorney, Adrian Lobo, said Hutchins pled not guilty.

Regarding the six counts in the indictments, which range from conspiracy to violate CFAA and wiretapping, attorney and professor Orin Kerr said the governments theory of the case is fairly aggressive and will lead to some significant legal challenges.

People who believe he is innocent, as well as those who dont, are digging into the case; that includes finding old IRC chat logs, an old tweet and blog post, and interviewing a Kronos banking malware dealer.

Hutchins is being painted as a white hat and a black hat, depending on who is talking. Some media outlets, such as the Daily Mail, claimed Hutchins was really living it up while visiting Las Vegas, such as by renting a Lamborghini and a mansion. Those misreported facts were later swatted down.

Security researchers have long been wary that their research will land them in hot legal water; the case against Hutchins has only intensified that fear. As the BBC reported, Hutchins had previously tweeted that someone stole his code and used it in Kronos. Thats a far cry from what the government claims. If indicted, Hutchins could face decades in prison.

If interested, there is the crowdfunding campaign for Hutchins; there's a page for U.S. users and one for users overseas.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yion on Sunday urged his North Korean counterpart to abide by U.N. resolutions and stop provoking "the international community's goodwill" with missile launches and nuclear tests.

Wang spoke to reporters in Manila after meeting with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on the sidelines of a regional meeting, hours after the U.N. Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions to punish Pyongyang for its escalating nuclear and missile programs.

Wang said the two had an intensive conversation during which China urged North Korea to maintain calm. He said he told Ri "do not violate the U.N. decision or provoke the international community's goodwill by conducting missile launches or nuclear tests."

Wang also urged the U.S. and South Korea "to stop increasing tensions" and said that all sides should return to negotiations.

In an earlier statement Sunday, Wang Yi appealed to other governments to resume the six-nation talks that involve the North, the United States, Russia, Japan and South Korea, as well as Beijing.

"The aim is to bring the peninsula nuclear issue back to the negotiating table and seek a solution through negotiations until the denuclearization of the peninsula and the stability of the peninsula are achieved," Wang said.

North Korea pulled out of the talks in 2009 to protest international condemnation of a long-range rocket launch. Last month, it test-launched two intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has said Washington wants eventually to talk to North Korea, but thinks discussions would not be productive if Pyongyang comes with the intention of maintaining its nuclear weapons.

Wang's statement repeated Beijing's proposal for a "double suspension," or a halt to North Korean nuclear development and to joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises. It said that was the most reasonable way to ease tensions and create conditions for new talks.

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TRUMBULL  A Daniels Farm Road resident was injured Saturday night after a man forced himself into a residence and bit the persons finger, police said.

The robbery began at about 11 p.m. when police were called to the home over a report that a man was banging on the door and damaging items on the porch.
Insurgents attacked a village in the northern Afghan province of Sar-e Pul, killing as many as 50 people, including women and children, officials said on Sunday.

Zabihullah Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said the fighters, who included foreign militants, attacked a security outpost in the Mirza Olang area of Sayaad district overnight, torching 30 houses.

He said fighting was still going on but as many as 50 people, including children, women and elderly men, most of them members of the largely Shia Hazara community, may have been killed, according to local village elders.

"They were killed in a brutal, inhumane way," he said. Seven members of the Afghan security forces were also killed as well as a number of insurgents.

Many details of the attack, including the identity of the insurgents, were not immediately clear. Amani said they were a mixed group of Taliban and Islamic State fighters but the Taliban itself denied any involvement, dismissing the claim as propaganda.

Although the Taliban and Islamic State are usually enemies, the allegiance of their forces is sometimes fluid, with fighters from both groups sometimes changing sides or cooperating with militants from other groups.

A senior government official in Kabul said that security forces, including Afghan Air Force attack aircraft, were being sent to the scene.

Fighting has intensified this year across Afghanistan, with dozens of security incidents recorded every day. In the first half of the year 1,662 civilians were killed and 3,581 injured, according to United Nations figures.

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France has seen 271 Islamists militants return from war zones in Iraq and Syria and all of them are subject to investigation by public prosecutors, the country's interior minister said in a newspaper interview.

Some 700 French nationals are estimated to have fought in Islamic State group ranks in Iraq and Syria, and like other European countries France has been wrestling with how to handle the flow of so-called returnees.

The number of Islamist militants to have returned to France included 217 adults and 54 minors, with some of them currently in detention, Gerard Collomb said in an interview with Le Journal du Dimanche.

Asked how many French Islamist militants had been killed in Iraq and Syria, Collomb told the Sunday newspaper that it was difficult to corroborate information.

The head of France's special forces said in June that his units were directly involved in street battles in the Iraqi city of Mosul but denied they were specifically targeting French-born jihadis fighting for Islamic State.

France has participated in a U.S.-led coalition battling Islamic State group in Iraq, and it also intervened in Mali to push back an Islamist rebellion in the west African state.

French military interventions overseas have exposed it to attack by Islamist militants at home. Gunmen and suicide bombers killed 130 people in and around Paris in November 2015 and over 100 were killed in other Islamist attacks in France in the past two-and-a-half years.

Collomb said the threat of militant attacks was "very high", citing two incidents targeting police on Paris' Champs Elysees and seven foiled plots so far this year.

An increasing number of people were being flagged under a preventative monitoring system for radicalised behaviour, with more than 18,500 people reported, he said.

France has been subject to state of emergency legislation, giving police extended powers, since the November 2015 attacks, and the government plans to incorporate some of these measures into ordinary law through a counter-terrorism bill to be put before parliament in the coming months.

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The workshop program runs from 3 to 5 September in Venice

The Egyptian-German documentary Dream Away is set to take part in the Final Cut workshop programme of the Venice Film Festival, held from 3 to 5 September in Italy.

The workshop aims to assist in the completion of Arab and African films that are still in the production phase by exposing producers and directors to international film professionals, distributors, and potential partners.

At the end of the workshop, financial prizes are awarded as a means to support the films in their post-production phase. This year a new prize of 5,000 euros will be awarded for the best film in post-production.

For this edition, six films have been selected to benefit from the three days of activities, screenings, meetings and other networking events.

Dream Away is co-directed by Marouan Omara from Egypt and Johanna Domke from Germany, who previously worked together on the documentary Crop.

Dream Away follows the struggle of rural youth from modest backgrounds working in the tourist industry in the Egyptian resort city Sharm El-Sheikh.

In this Westernised environment, some seem to find the values of freedom and independence to which they have aspired since the 2011 Revolution, while others seem to equate vacationers behaviours with sin.

To all of them, life in Sharm El-Sheikh is balanced between ancient, deeply-rooted traditions and the Western model of consumption, independence and sexual freedom.

The film is Omaras first feature-length documentary. After studying filmmaking at the Art and Technology of Cinema Academy, he went on to direct several short and mid-length films and documentaries.

The filmmakers latest work, the mid-length documentary One Plus One Makes a Pharaoh's Chocolate, was screened as part of 67th Berlinale Forum Expanded.

Domke is a video artist who since 2002 has exhibited her work in France, Denmark and Germany, among other countries. She won the Award of the International Video Art Forum in Hamburg in 2006.

Dream Away is co-produced by German company Monokel, an independent development studio for film, game and transmedia narratives, and the Alexandria-based Fig Leaf Studios.

Fig Leaf Studios aims to provide a meeting space and expression platform for activist and independent film and media makers of all kinds.

The fifth edition of Final Cut is organised by the Venice Production Bridge in collaboration with a number of international institutions, including, for the first time, El-Gouna Film Festival.

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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Were all going on a summer holiday  no more worries for a week or two Eh?

Now August and the busiest travel weekend of the year is upon us as, Queuemageddon conveniently cripples European airports, I admit: Ive been worrying about the annual week-long fam hol in Greece all year.

My main suite of anxieties was actually not about queues, or the hardening border, but the fact that our charter flight from Gatwick to Greece this w/e as usual left at 5.30am. Im not a morning person (not an evening person either, for that matter) but Ive been lying awake, dreading the reveille of bleary kidults at 2.30am, the harrying and rushing, to make the flight.

One year I insisted we sleep the night before in the Premier Inn at the airport but we almost missed the flight then too. We got through security OK but the boys disappeared to McDonalds without telling us. After frantic searching in the food village, we located them waiting at the counter.

Hundreds of thousands of British families had been stuck in airport queues of up to four hours to have passports checked under tough new security rules

It was final boarding. But weve already paid for our Egg McMuffins! they protested, remaining rooted to the spot. Ill never forget my husbands exasperated cry of Its either Egg McMuffins or a holiday in Greece as he pelted off solo to the gate. You choose!

But after developments last week  in fact, over the past 14 months  I predict we will look back to such traditionally panicked transits with something akin to nostalgia. For a start, the exchange rate (now down 12 to 14 per cent since the EU referendum in June 2016).

Ive just been in France on a short trip which was hot and sunny  but with the pound now almost level- pegging the euro, pricey. It even felt steep at the Pret at the Gare de Lyon, where my light lunch came to 25. This seemed a lot for a couple of sandwiches, drinks, and coffees.

It was. Thanks to the weak pound, the modest picnic cost me the equivalent of 22, while if Id bought it all at my local branch, I worked out it would have set me back 15 quid.

So the pound in your pocket doesnt go as far as it did. Nor, it appears, shall we, if the new long queues at European airports are anything to go by, as anti-terror checks on passengers from outside the border-free Schengen Zone (ie us) are being applied.

At least  for now  we Britons waiting patiently in line in our hundreds for processing can use our mobiles freely to pass the time, to inform loved ones of delays, missed flights, and yak to our girlfriends without worrying about being gouged by service providers for using our devices abroad (we are currently benefiting from the helpful recent roam like home laws which stop us being stuck with huge bills after downloading films and other data while travelling in Europe).

The pound in your pocket doesnt go as far as it did. Nor, it appears, shall we, if the new long queues at European airports are anything to go by

That may well change after we leave the EU, as might our rights to flash our blue NHS cards to receive medical treatment, maybe even drive around, as we do now.

Look, I dont want to cast too much shade: after all, according to a poll published last week, six out of ten of those who want out of the EU think significant damage to the British economy is a price worth paying for gaining what they regard as independence, while four out of ten wouldnt even care if their own kith and kin got sacked as a result of our departure from the union.

Which tells us Brexit has become a belief system, with true believers prepared to sacrifice almost anything to achieve the desired rapture from Europe. No doubt many would claim theyd die in a ditch in some corner of a foreign field rather than have it dragging on. I get this.

But holidays? Really, everyone?

If deciding to take back control messes with our sacred annual leave, and turns holidays even more into hellidays than they are already, then Im not so sure this is going to fly at all.

If its going to take hours to enter the EU no cheap sun and sangria and we have eye-watering phone bills again, then Brexit may still mean Brexit, but Leave will actually mean Stay.

Flackers has one VAST advantage over all those doe-eyed girlies...

Love Island's Mike, 24, is allegedly pursuing the shows presenter Caroline Flack, via texts

Let us transit while we can Love Island, where Muggy Mike, 24, is allegedly pursuing the shows presenter Caroline Flack, via texts.

Flackers has more personality than all the doe-eyed, fakeeyelashed twentysomething girls put together.

Of course Mike is cracking on to Flackers, 37: shes a WOMAN.

Princess Dianas swimwear was supplied by Rigby & Peller.

The brassiere doyenne June Kenton has sworn she will not reveal the late Princesss vital statistics even if you put me in front of a firing squad.

Odd. The famed USP of Rigby & Peller is its crack operatives can tell your cup size at a glance.

Shoot me now, Mrs Kenton, but Di was clearly a 34D.

Every time I see that picture of Chris Evanss son Eli in his shiny green ball dress going to see Gangsta Granny, it cheers me up. Aww. The country may be at war with itself, but the kids are all right

Sam Cam says her Cotswold spread, a family nest with its risque nudes on the walls, is slightly falling down.

The only time I dared to let a photographer into my dwelling on Exmoor, it led to a story in our sister paper headlined WHY are posh peoples houses SO dirty? My family nest really is falling down, too.

When a builder went in to give a recent quote, his email began: When I entered the property I assumed the damp cottage was derelict.

As both President Trump and the former PMs wife proclaim their respective swanky cribs are dumps, all I can say is get a load of mine.
Speed bumps are solidified selfishness. They are there because far too many drivers refuse to be careful or considerate.

I dont like them, but if they go, well have to have something else.

Id recommend taking those largely useless speed cameras away from main roads, and putting them on every suburban street instead, set at 20mph.

For a few months theyd make millions in fines. Then people might just change their behaviour.

The car advertisements sell us the idea that, cradled in our shiny toy, we need only to touch the gas pedal to be roaring along deserted roads

I seethe with rage when I see the way normal, kindly, considerate people hurtle heedlessly down such roads at 30 or 40 miles an hour at the wheel of a ton of steel, rubber and glass.

What if a small child runs out into the road, which is almost always cluttered by parked cars these days?

Do they have any idea what might then happen?

Of how, without warning, they could be standing grey-faced at the roadside pleading with the paramedics for reassurance that their victim is going to be all right, and getting silence in return?

They act as if they dont have any such idea. And yet, as I say, these are otherwise good people. Why is this?

I suspect it is because it is absolutely true that power tends to corrupt  and for most of us, the biggest taste of power we get is when we slide behind the wheel of a car.

The car advertisements sell us the idea that, cradled in our shiny toy, we need only to touch the gas pedal to be roaring along deserted roads.

The dreary truth, that most car journeys are slower than going by bicycle, waiting for lights, waiting at junctions, waiting for pedestrians to cross the road, crawling past roadworks, is hard to bear.

Even if youre in a Lamborghini, and most of us are not, you can rarely use the power you have.

So at the first hint of an even slightly open road, even if its a suburban street, down goes the foot.

The dreary truth, that most car journeys are slower than going by bicycle, waiting for lights, waiting at junctions, waiting for pedestrians to cross the road, crawling past roadworks, is hard to bear

This is fairly new. Until quite recently, the average family car accelerated like a pensioner. Its brakes were feeble. The absence of seatbelts and airbags meant a likely journey to hospital via the windscreen if anything went wrong.

But modern cars make selfishness safer, and offer temptations those sluggish old Hillmans and Austins never had.

And that is why we ended up with speed bumps. Because too many people drove angrily and selfishly, and the large part of the population who dont drive quite reasonably didnt like it.

The trouble was, the speed bumps just made them angrier, so they drove even more foolishly when there were no bumps.

If you dont want speed bumps or speed cameras, just imagine what it would be like to hit a child at the speed youre doing.

And slow down.

A Razor-sharp expose of our broken society

One of the greatest men of our age is a retired prison doctor and psychiatrist, Theodore Dalrymple. For decades he worked in a major British jail, listening to the excuses and self-justifications of people who had done terrible things to others, and to themselves.

Refusing to follow fashion, and genuinely concerned for these often very sad characters, he treated them as adults, urging them to take responsibility for their actions instead of offering excuses for them.

Many, who had come to despise authority, were glad to be up against someone they could not easily fool.

My guess is that many of those he treated benefited greatly from his tough-minded approach. He didnt fill them with pills or substitute one drug for another.

His observations of the way heroin abusers feign terrible discomfort, after arriving in prison and being deprived of their drug, is both funny and a badly needed corrective to conventional wisdom.

All this is to be found in a short, hugely readable new book called The Knife Went In.

The title, a quotation from an actual murderer, is an example of the way such people refuse to admit they had any part in the crimes they commit. The knife somehow got there and went into the victim, by itself.

It is a series of short, gripping real-life stories in which he recounts his experiences with our broken, lying penal system with its fake prison sentences, its ridiculous form-filling as a substitute for action.

It is mainly about prisons and crime, but it tells a deep truth about the sort of society we have become. It is one in which almost nobody is, or wants to be, responsible for anything.

A future historian, a century hence, will learn more about 21st Century Britain from this book than from any official document. So will you. Please read it.

If we really faced imminent doom from Islamic State, would this armed-to- the-teeth robocop have time to enjoy a laugh with the ladies of Goodwood?

Isnt security a joke? If we really faced imminent doom from Islamic State, would this armed-to- the-teeth robocop have time to enjoy a laugh with the ladies of Goodwood?

Of course not. Hed be scanning the crowd incessantly for danger. As it is, what are he and his colleagues even doing there? Security excuses stupidity.

As far as I know, British holidaymakers played no part in recent terror attacks in Paris and Brussels.

Indeed, you can travel between these two cities without a passport. Ive done it, as have many drug-addled Islamist fanatics.

So why are these outrages the excuse for forcing thousands of British holidaymakers to stand in airport passport queues for long, miserable hours?

Why do we accept this drivel so meekly?

The REAL villain behind your surging electricity bill

I feel sorry for British Gas, attacked for raising the price of electricity. I still find it confusing a gas company sells electricity, but the facts are quite simple.

British Gas and the other power companies are raising charges because we have a mad Government. Under New Labours unhinged Climate Change Act, backed by the Tories and virtually unopposed in Parliament, we are steering straight into an iceberg.

Perfectly good coal-fired power stations all over the country are being shut down and blown up so they cant be reopened, because of crazed Green regulations.

In some cases, they are being converted to burning wood chips imported from the USA. If this did any good (which is, er, unproven) it would be immediately cancelled out by the huge number of new coal-fired power stations recently built in India and China.

Our nuclear generators are slowly dying. Plans to replace them are hopelessly behind. The Government assumed that the growing gap between what we use and what we generate would be met by new gas-fired stations, but nobody has built them.

So instead, it hopes to meet the need with French nuclear electricity brought under the Channel, which we cant rely on if the French need it more; and on power generated by wind, which doesnt blow all the time, and sun which doesnt shine all the time.

And it is the cost of subsidising the sun and wind power which is forcing up electricity prices. So is the need to link remote windmills expensively to the grid. Theres also the cost of setting up special parks of diesel generators to prevent power cuts if all else fails.

Diesel? Yes, the devilish fuel were trying to drive off the roads could be what saves you from a Christmas blackout.

Currently, the Green levy, the main reason for the latest price rise, makes up at least 73 of an average 562 annual electricity bill. Its going to go up a lot more. I think the power companies should put this on their bills in big letters. Then Parliament might be forced to rethink its mad warmist dogma, and follow a sane power policy.

If you want to comment on Peter Hitchens, click HERE.
Young children often dress up as their favourite Disney heroes - but one makeup artist is giving the villains a run for their money with these eye-popping looks.

Audrey Logeais, from Paris, uses the skills she honed as a cosmetics artist to transform herself and her friends into the evil antagonists of the best-loved children's movies.

In a striking gallery of her work, Audrey creates her looks by relying on little more than make up and a few accessories.

Explaining the process behind the looks, she told MailOnline: 'From a technical point of view, to successfully adapt the characters, I start with preparatory drawings on my computer that I directly sketch on a picture of my model, to know how to handles the volumes and salient features.

Audrey Logeais uses make up to transform herself into Disney villains, (pictured here as Yzma from the Emperor's New Groove)

'I endeavor to overlook my model's actual features to focus on rendering the character's design as much as I can.'

Audrey previously worked in the animation industry for nine years before attending college to learn how to apply professional makeup.

She added: 'I am now mainly involved in fashion photo shoots but my long-term goal is to work on feature-length American films and why not even on live-action Disney movies! That would be fantastic.'

To look like Ego from Ratatouille, Audrey, who is planning to do Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians for her next project, used her make up expertise to age up her model

This model was completely transformed into Scar from The Lion King just be using make up they also wore a long furry wig to resemble the antagonist of the film, released in 1994

Another image sees Audrey's subject styled to look like Hades from the 1997 film Hercules, with bright blue hair and matching face paint

In one picture, Audrey's partner Ahmed can be seen dressing up as Jafar from the 1992 film Aladdin
Careful to always look down first before raising her head to one side to reveal a coy smile.

It was a gaze that became Princess Diana's signature look and one she cultivated to hide her sharp angles and 'big' nose.

A former royal press secretary has now given an insight into the ways Diana used the media and learnt how to model herself in front of the lens to hide her flaws and ensure she was always picture perfect.

Dickie Arbiter, who was the Queen's press secretary from 1988-2000 as well as Prince Charles and Diana's media manager, revealed that the princess knew how to work the camera for the paparazzi.

Diana knew how to work her angles and get the perfect picture for the waiting photographers. She would very often only look three quarters of the way up keeping her chin lowered

Diana's relationship with the paparazzi was a tumultuous one, from happy smiles, to revealing scandals, as well as carefully constructed stories

'Diana wasnt pretty, she was attractive,' he explains in the new documentary from Quest Red looking at Diana's relationship with the media.

'You had to get her at the right angle because she had a bit of a big nose.

'Diana was very aware of that, she knew her best angle and she would make sure she would be in the best possible position for them.'

The mother of Princes William and Harry had an illustrious relationship with the paparazzi, who documented her every single move whether it was willingly or not.

And the documentary charts her entire life in the public eye - from the moment she first spoke to the press, as the obsession with her grew, raising her children in the media, to her humanitarian work and then her tragic death.

Dickie Arbiter is now a royal commentator after spending 12 years as the Queen's press secretary

However, what Diana quickly learnt after being thrown into the public eye was how to get the perfect shot - looking down first before gently raising her head three quarters of the way to reveal a coy smile, mostly careful of hiding her sharp angles from full view.

Every snapper thought she was turning for them, yes she knew exactly what the media wanted and what would work for them,' Dickie says.

'She would give them an opportunity to give them what they wanted.'

Dickie had a somewhat unique aspect of the furore surrounding Diana, who herself knew that she could manipulate the waiting hoards of photographers to create the story she wanted.

'I think Diana was as fascinated with the press as they were with her,' he reflects.

'There wasnt a time she wasnt been talked about, she was constant media fodder.'

Quest Red documentary Diana and the Paparazzi looks back at the role the princess played in the public eye and how she dominated the media. (Right) Diana in the infamous 'break-up' dress she wore to the Serpentine Gallery after her separation from Prince Charles was announced

Princess Diana, pictured holding a landmine in Huambo, Angola, during a Red Cross campaign visit in January 1997 just months before she died

Referring to her visit to Angola where the princess walked through an active landmine that had not been cleared, Dickie surmises that despite the negative press surrounding her landmine campaign by her critics, Diana was still able to control the story.

'She brought that whole landmine campaign to life, because she said wherever I go there will be 80 photographers following me.'

The documentary comes as part of the 20th anniversary of Diana's death, who died aged 36 in Paris on August 31, 1997, after the limousine carrying her and lover Dodi al-Fayed crashed in a tunnel as it tried to escape paparazzi who were chasing them on motorbikes.

Diana and the Paparazzi is on Quest Red, Sunday 13th August at 10pm
A model who received a heart transplant has revealed she wants to meet her donor's family to thank them in person for her second chance at life.

Bec Craven, from the Gold Coast, suffered a chronic heart failure after she contracted a mystery virus during a holiday in Bali in 2013.

The now 28-year-old was fitted with an artificial pump until she underwent a life-saving surgery in January 2016 after her organ deteriorated.

With someone else's heart beating in her body, the young woman said she knows nothing about the donor, including his or her background, age or the circumstances of their death - but she wants to meet their family to thank them personally.

Bec Craven, from Queensland, received a heart transplant after being struck down with a virus

The 28-year-old was fitted with a mechanical heart after she struggled with a heart failure

'I can write a letter to say thank you, but I can't say who I am or where I live,' she told 7 News.

'I've tried to write it so many times, but a letter isn't enough for me.'

Anonymous letters sent between organ donors' families and their recipients are strictly moderated through transplant units for privacy purposes by law.

Since the surgery, Ms Craven said she doesn't know anything about the person who saved her life but has noticed a new obsession with rap and hip hop music.

Ms Craven - who is still recovering from the transplant - said she had to learn how to walk and eat again.

Her latest interview comes just days after she told Mamamia that while she waited in the ward for her new heart, she couldn't help but think about her second chance coming at an incalculable emotional cost for the donor's family.

'While I waited in the ward, I couldn't stop thinking that someone had died and their family had chosen to donate their organ. I wondered what had happened to them,' she said.

She said that at first, she used to struggle with her scar the transplant left (pictured), admitting it made her cry - but now she feels like Xena the Warrior Princess and wears it with pride

The artificial heart was fitted after Ms Craven contracted a mystery virus in Bali and was later treated for pneumonia and heart failure (pictured in hospital following the transplant)

She also opened up about the realities of living with a mechanical heart.

'Every day was a struggle with bad thoughts... After my first open heart surgery I hated my scar. It made me cry,' she told Mamamia.

Since she was fitted with the artificial pump in 2015, the model has had countless ups and downs with the device.

As well as needing 24-hour care and supervision from her family in the first six months, Ms Craven later struggled with accepting the scar her transplant left - and the fact that she felt as though she was missing out.

'After my heart transplant I felt like absolute cr*p,' she said.

'I was thinking, "Oh my god, I got this mechanical heart and I ended up feeling great and now I have the gift I've been wanting for so long and I feel like I have to start all over again".'

She added that she used to 'ask the nurses to cover [my scar] with a bandage'.

'After my heart transplant I felt like absolute cr*p,' she said (pictured: an X ray of the mechanical pump) - she felt as though she had to 'start all over again'

She said she also used to 'ask the nurses to cover [my scar] with a bandage' (pictured in hospital)

Ms Craven's artificial heart - or left ventricular assist device (LVAD) - was fitted and was later treated for months for pneumonia, before the doctors realised it was heart failure.

WHAT IS A LEFTVENTRICULAR ASSIST DEVICE (LVAD)? * The left ventricle is the large, muscular chamber of the heart that pumps blood out to the body. * A left ventricular assist device (LVAD) is a battery-operated, mechanical pump-type device that's surgically implanted. * It helps maintain the pumping ability of a heart that can't effectively work on its own. Source: Heart.org Advertisement

'They [the doctors] thought I'd caught a virus again and it's gone straight back to my heart and I got sick quite quickly,' Ms Craven told Daily Mail Australia at the time.

'That's when they started to bring up the transplant. My heart was getting worse. It was really hard to deal with.

'I couldn't walk to the bathroom without being puffed. Having a transplant that would be awesome, to have a new heart, because I can't do much with this one.'

As the cardiomyopathy took its toll, Ms Craven was told she would only have one month to live if she did not have the lifesaving open heart surgery to put a left ventricle assist device (LVAD) - a mechanical pump - into her body to help the organ function better.

'It's like carrying a handbag around that's 2kg... it's a better quality of life but in saying that there's things I want to do that I can't do with this bag,' she said of the device at the time.

However, over time, the inspirational 28-year-old has learned to embrace both her heart and the mark it has left on her body

'I have similar dreams to what I had before,' Ms Craven said - 'Some of them have been twisted a little and some have been outright squashed'

However, over time, the inspirational 28-year-old has learned to embrace both her heart and the mark it has left on her body.

She said she feels like she's Xena the Warrior Princess and is no longer afraid to show it - whether she is in swimwear or clothes.

A recent upload to her Instagram profile shows Ms Craven having been swimming with a manta ray - a 'bucket list goal to tick off the list' since her transplant.

The model and animal lover has also been swimming with humpback whales, surfing and more in the past twelve months.

'I have similar dreams to what I had before,' Ms Craven said.

'Some of them have been twisted a little and some have been outright squashed. I want to prove to the world that imperfections are beautiful and nothing can stop you. You are as strong as what the world makes you.'

For more information on organ donation, click here.
Her striking resemblance to Gigi Hadid caught the attention of the beauty industry and gained her fans across Australia.

But now Sammy Robinson has come into her own as an established blogger with her own hacks, advice and regimes to get the most out of skin care, and optimising make-up looks.

The stunning influencer, who boasts over 320,000 followers on Instagram, opened up to Daily Mail Australia sharing the best parts of her journey so far and revealing insight into achieving the youthful and glowing skin she has become renowned for.

Sammy Robinson (pictured) has come into her own as an established blogger with her own hacks, advice and regimes to get the most out of skin care, and optimising make-up looks

Her striking resemblance to Gigi Hadid caught the attention of the beauty industry and gained her fans across Australia

'I generally use a light amount of foundation and base products.

'My general rule is, to create a natural look use cream products that will melt into the skin and then when you want to amp up the drama I will layer some powders to really lock it down.'

Robinson, who doesn't shy away from using drugstore products, said when she's switching between glam and natural make-up, there's only a few tweaks that make the difference.

'When I want to make my natural look more glam, I bump up the lashes to full extreme, overdraw my lips slightly usually with a darker matte brown, and just make sure to powder and layer a few extra products just to ensure it stays intact and doesn't fade.'

When it comes to removing make up the 21-year-old said she goes between different products.

'I love micellar water with cotton pads to remove my makeup.

'I also use cleansing oil which melts any excess product off my face and then go in with a lightweight cleanser to really clean the skin.

'My micellar water is Garnier and a cleansing oil that's lovely is by Simple which can both be purchased at drugstores.'

Famed for her specialised make up vlogs and tutorials, Robinson says there have been many opportunities granted recently that have made her feel blessed.

Robinson, who doesn't shy away from using drugstore products, said when she's switching between glam and natural make-up

Visiting the United States on a recent trip with high-end beauty retailer Mecca Maxima stands out as a moment she will never forget

The gorgeous YouTube star said visiting the United States on a recent trip with high-end beauty retailer Mecca Maxima stands out as a moment she will never forget.

'I got to meet so many incredible brands and their creators who were all just so inspiring.

'On top of that we got to do a shoot with Smashbox and the amazing celebrity photographer Davis Factor, to be on all the mecca windows around Australia.

Robinson said the store used to be the place where she developed a passion for make-up and skin care products, although she wasn't able to afford much.

'To be taken on a trip and put up on all their windows around Australia was the craziest thing that's ever happened to me.'

In July the countrys leading beauty influencers collaborated with the Versace brand for a content shoot on location at the Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast.

The crew included Robinson, Rachael Brook, Michelle Crossan, Karima McKimmie and Holly Phillips who were chosen to work with the prestigious Versace fragrance brand and share their trip across their social media channels along the way.

When it comes to removing make up the 21-year-old said she goes between different products

In July the countrys leading beauty influencers collaborated with the Versace brand for a content shoot on location at the Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast

Irish-born beauty and beauty Blogger Michelle Crossan also joined Sammy Robinson on the trip

Robinson said it was one of 'pinch me' moments.

'Everything was just so beautiful and the Versace brand is just so luxurious.

'Growing up I was always so infatuated by my mums makeup, skincare and all things beauty and I knew I would do something involving it one day, so I guess from a young age I have always strived for it.

'It was just so easy to shoot amazing shots when you were surrounded by such a beautiful location that was the Palazzo Versace.'

Despite loving what she does, Robinson admits their are struggles that come with being in the spotlight, and being scrutinised by others around the clock.

Robinson says there have been many opportunities she's been granted recently that have made her feel blessed

The beauty guru has multiple exciting things coming up including launching her own brand, she said

'This is a tough industry and you have to have a very very tough skin. Dealing with judgment 24/7 is pretty hard on your esteem levels.'

She thinks that anyone coming into the industry needs to be doing it for the right reason and suggests not following trends just because everyone else might be into it.

Robinson said she has many exciting things coming up including launching her own brand.

'I know exactly what I want to do but it's finding the time and resources to make it happen.

'I'm passionate and willing to create something beautiful so hopefully it will happen in the near-ish future.'
The Tourism and Antiquities Police have caught red-handed an Egyptian citizen conducting illegal excavation beneath his home in the Upper Egyptian city of Minya, where he uncovered a collection of stone blocks dating back to the reign of ancient Egyptian King Seti II, officials said on Sunday.



The suspect has been arrested and all the excavated items have been confiscated, said Ayman Ashmawi, the head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Department at the Ministry of Antiquities.

Gamal El-Semestawi, head of the antiquities ministry's Middle Egypt Antiquities Department, told Ahram Online that the seized items include two limestone reliefs; one engraved with the cartouche of King Seti II and the second bearing the half crown of the king.

A Roman-era basin and a collection of clay pots were also discovered.

An archaeological committee has been assigned with conducting further excavation at the site.

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They regularly send fans wild with their cut-price copies of expensive designer products.

And the latest Primark offering to send fans wild is a pair of 14 trainers that bear a striking resemblance to Nike's sold-out Roshe One Flyknit Premium style.

Unveiled on Instagram this week, the budget retailer's Two-Tone Trainers, which appear to change colour when viewed from different angle, are giving their Nike counterparts a run for their money.

An image of men's trainers on social media has racked up more than 100,000 views and 18,000 likes in a matter of hours - with fashion fans desperate to get their hands on a pair.

They're at it again! Primark's Two-Tone men's trainers, costing just 14, have racked up more than 100,000 views and 18,000 likes - with fashion fans desperate to get their hands on them

Look familiar? The designers at Primark appear to have taken inspiration from Nike's Roshe One trainers, which come in a similar dark green hue, and retail online for around 99

One wrote: 'Gonna get them in yellow and save a fortune!'

Nike's Roshe One trainers, which come in a similar dark green hue, have sold out but retail online for around 99.

The trendy running shoes, made from leather and Flyknit material, contain high-strength fibre and heat-fused TPU yarns which create a water-protective shield.

But they aren't the only high-tech Nike trainers Primark appear to have taken inspiration from; the budget retailer has also created a pair of 12 pink shoes that are strikingly similar to the Roshe Two style - currently available online for 69.99.

The trainers are just the latest in a long list of copycat Primark items that have sent fans into a frenzy.

In June, the store unveiled a budget version of Gucci's iconic 530 slip-on loafers - and shoppers were desperate to get their hands on them.

Cut-price copy: The budget retailer has also created a pair of 12 pink shoes (pictured) that are strikingly similar to the Roshe Two style - currently available online for 69.99

Nike's trendy Roshe Two trainers (pictured in the Atomic Pink Sail Turf Orange colourway) cost almost six times the price of the Primark version

The shoes look strikingly similar to Gucci's popular Jordaan loafers, which have been spotted on a plethora of celebrities this summer.

And back in May, the high street chain unveiled 8 flat backless mules that were uncannily similar to Prada's 530 Velvet & Bow Point Toe Mule Slides.

While the Italian luxury label's suede slipper will set you back 470, Primark's cut-price version flew off shelves thanks to its price tag.

Its pointed bow mule, which comes in three colours - nude, black and denim - made its Instagram debut three months ago and had shoppers scouring stores up and down the country to track down a pair in their size.

Back in June, budget store Primark unveiled a 8 budget version, left, of Gucci's iconic 530 slip-on loafers, right - and shoppers were desperate to get their hands on them

Hot off the runway: The fast fashion retailer's 8 mule, which hit stores in May, is strikingly similar to a Prada style with fashion fans in the US begging UK shoppers to ship them a pair
A mother-of-two who lost her leg an a mortar attack in Iraq says she's more proud of surviving PTSD than the blast that claimed her limb.

Former Army lance corporal Hannah Campbell, from Northampton, was given just a one in ten chance of surviving the horrific injuries she sustained after being buried alive in the 2007 Basra attack.

But the 33-year-old amputee, who has since battled suicide and post-traumatic stress disorder, now sees her scars as a 'badge of honour'.

She told the Sunday People: 'I dont see these things as flaws any more, I see them as a part of my history and part of me.'

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Brave: Hannah Campbell (pictured in 2016) was given just a one in ten chance of surviving the terrible injuries she sustained after being buried alive in the 2007 Basra attack

Miss Campbell, mother to Milly, 12, and three-year-old Lexi-River, still has shrapnel lodged in her thigh, a titanium prosthetic leg, a scarred stomach and just 20 per cent vision in her left eye.

She is campaigning for proper treatment of PTSD in the Armed Forces as part of the newspaper's Save our Soldiers campaign.

The mother-of-two was gravely injured when a mortar bomb hit the building in Basra she was guarding while serving with 19 Tank Transporter Squadron in 2007, as a young mum with a three-year-old daughter.

Miss Campbell was blinded in one eye, her left hand was split in two and her left leg was shattered. Shrapnel damaged her abdomen, with doctors warning hed never be able to have another child.

Two years after the blast, and after 18 operations, she elected to have her leg amputated, as the unbearable pain had left her housebound.

Dark time: In the aftermath of the blast, Hannah was left wheelchair-bound, ballooned to 21st and unable to play with her little girl because she was in so much pain

But in 2012, she began suffering from PTSD and suicidal thoughts. Miss Campbell told the Sunday People: 'I was haunted by nightmares and felt so ashamed.

'I didnt feel I could confide in anyone and my only escape was drowning myself in a bottle, so I drank for two weeks solidly. I contemplated suicide, but my love for Milly stopped me going through with it.'

With the help of doctors, the veteran rebuilt herself with a 52,500 'makeover' including a prosthetic leg, make-up which is tattooed on, Botox, gastric band weight loss treatment, a tummy tuck and hair extensions. She even treated herself to breast enlargements.

Hannah defied the odds to have a 'miracle' second child, Lexi-River, in March 2014 despite the shrapnel damage to her womb

She also defied the odds to have a 'miracle' second child, Lexi-River, in March 2014 despite the shrapnel damage to her womb.

But after celebrating daughter Lexi-Rivers first birthday, the former Army corporal battled fresh agony after nearly dying from a mystery illness following the birth.

Miss Campbell was struck down with a condition that caused her stomach to rupture, leaving her fighting for her life in intensive care, and feared she would not be there to help Lexi-River blow out the candles on her cake.

As she struggled to recover, her relationship broke down with long-term partner, Lexi-Rivers father Anthony McMorrow - though the pair described their eventual split as 'amicable'.

Hannah previously recounted her own story in her book Never Broken, serialised in The Mail on Sunday.

She hit headlines again last year after striking up a romance with Sergeant Rick Clement, one of the most badly wounded British soldiers ever to survive his injuries.

And this year, she has bravely posed for a photo wearing nothing but Union Jack body paint to mark ten years since the blast - and to celebrate her battle scars.
She was spotted enjoying a few beers at Brighton Pride on Saturday and it seems that Michaella McCollum was set to continue the party as she stepped out on Sunday.

The 24-year-old ex-convict, from County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, was seen leaving a house in the seaside town clutching a bottle of Corona and was joined by a male companion.

The pair attended the LGBTQ+ celebration yesterday where they were seen holding hands as they joined the 30,000 others who had gathered in the South Coast City.

Michaella McCollum was spotted leaving a house in Brighton with a mystery man on Sunday

McCollum, who was jailed in Peru alongside Melissa Reid in 2013 for trying to smuggle 1.5million's worth of cocaine into Europe, appeared fresh faced despite a day of partying.

She made the most of the good weather in a pair of high rise blue shorts and a black sleeveless vest as she stepped out into the sunshine.

Showcasing her flair for style McCollum a slipped into a pair of metallic sneakers as she headed out on Sunday.

The couple were spotted together at Brighton Pride on Saturday where they were seen holding hands

It seems that the pair were set on continuing the party as left the house clutching bottles of beer on Sunday

The pair were spotted enjoying breakfast together earlier this morning before heading back home to change.

In spring, McCollum was spotted living it up in the party centres of Ibiza and Marbella enjoying sun, sea and cocktails.

How the former drugs smuggler has funded her holidays is unclear, but she has been linked to a number of potentially lucrative opportunities.

The pair were spotted enjoying breakfast together earlier this morning before heading back home to change

Her mystery companion appeared to be in a particularly good mood as they enjoyed their breakfast alfresco

It has been reported that she has been offered a 250,000 tell all book deal detailing her criminal exploits and time behind bars in Lima.

She and Reid - dubbed the 'Peru Two'  had each been sentenced to six years and eight months in jail after admitting to trying to smuggle cocaine out of the country.

The pair, who initially protested their innocence, were found in possession of 11kg of cocaine hidden inside food packets in their luggage as they prepared to board a flight from Lima to Madrid.

McCollum made the most of the good weather in a pair of high rise blue shorts and a black sleeveless vest as she stepped out into the sunshine

Showcasing her flair for style McCollum a slipped into a pair of metallic sneakers as she headed out on Sunday

McCollum was released on parole in March 2016 after serving less than half of her sentence but was initially required to stay in Peru, where she carried out voluntary work.

Reid was released from prison in June last year, flying back to Scotland shortly afterwards.

The Pet Shop Boys are headlining the event in Brighton and Hove in what will be the duo's first Pride performance in 20 years, organisers said.

Other acts include Years & Years, Louisa Johnson, David Morales and KStewart while a carnival parade entertained crowds at Hove Lawns from 11am.

The pair appeared to be particularly close as they enjoyed a stroll through the seaside town
She is marking her 36th birthday with a romantic getaway at a 'honeymoon hotspot' in Botswana after being whisked away by her prince.

But Meghan Markle has reminded fans her life hasn't always been a fairytale after opening up in a candid interview about race.

The Suits actress spoke to Pride magazine about growing up 'ethnically ambiguous' with a black parent - and being at the receiving end of racist jokes.

Miss Markle, who also recalled her African-American mother Doria being called the N-word, told the magazine she felt an 'obligation' to speak about being half-black.

Miss Markle (pictured in 2016) has opened up on growing up 'ethnically ambiguous' with a black parent - and being at the receiving end of racist jokes

Appearing on the cover of Pride magazine's July issue, Meghan told how she has overheard racist jokes from people who did not realise she had a black parent.

She said: 'I dont care if Im fair-skinned and I dont care what it is, thats who I am and thats my family.

'My hope is for the world to get to a place where its colour blind.'

Her activism and willingness to speak out on issues she feels strongly about are said to be among the things that Prince Harry loves about the actress.

She described in the interview the 'countless black jokes people have shared in front of me, not realising I am mixed', and added that she feels an 'obligation now to talk about discrimination... or even to talk about the fact that most people can't tell that I'm half black'.

Meghan may soon have something to celebrate as bookies have slashed the odds on Harry getting down on one knee this week.

Insiders say Harry has had marriage on his mind for months - but this week's romantic getaway has sent the rumour mill into overdrive.

After wrapping filming for Suits last month, Meghan flew to London, where the pair then went onto southern Africa for their adventure.

The royal author Penny Junor has written of the 'significance' of Harry's decision to take his girlfriend to Botswana, where she says he wears his 'royalness' most lightly.

She has described it as an opportunity for the Prince to show his love the 'real man behind the royal persona'.

Ladbrokes have cut the odds to 6/4 that Harry will propose to his actress girlfriend while on holiday. A spokesperson for the betting company said: 'Its a case of when and not if'

Meghan (pictured with Harry at the polo on May) also recalled her mother Doria being called the N-word - and told Pride magazine she felt an 'obligation' to speak about being half-black

Botswana is close to Harry's heart thanks to his work with wildlife conservation - and he has also romanced former flames Natalie Pinkham, Chelsy Davy and Cressida Bonas there.

According to the Sunday Express, Ladbrokes have cut the odds to 6/4 that Harry will propose to his actress girlfriend while on holiday.

A spokesperson for the betting company said: 'Its a case of when and not if Harry pops the question and royal punters are convinced it will be while the happy couple are on holiday.'

The pair met in Orlando, Florida in May 2016 and have gone to great lengths to keep their trans-Atlantic love affair under wraps.

While Meghan celebrated turning 36 on Friday, her boyfriend will turn 33 in just a few weeks' time.
UNESCO awards heritage status to natural or cultural places with outstanding universal value.

From the Great Barrier Reef to Venice, you could spend a lifetime working your way through their list. Best start now!

LUXURY IN THE LAKES

Only this year UNESCO listed the Lake District for its harmonious landscape in which mountains are mirrored in the lakes

Only this year UNESCO listed the Lake District for its harmonious landscape in which mountains are mirrored in the lakes.

INSIDER TIP: Sail from Glenridding to Pooley Bridge and walk to the waterfalls at Aira Force, Ullswater.

DETAILS: Stay at new hotel Another Place, Ullswater, from 160.

FRENCH FANTASY

The palace of Fontainebleau, set amid parkland outside Paris, has hosted kings, queens and cardinals

The palace of Fontainebleau, set amid parkland outside Paris, has hosted kings, queens and cardinals.

INSIDER TIP: Marvel at the silk brocaded bed designed for Marie Antoinette, who never slept in it.

DETAILS: Stay in grand style nearby. Chateau de Bourron has rooms from 180 (161) a night, sawdays.co.uk. Return flights to Paris around 75, easyjet.com.

INDIAS RARE RAILWAYS

Three of Indias mountain railways are UNESCO rated  Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (pictured), Nilgiri Mountain Railway and Kalka Shimla Railway. Ride them all on this trip

Three of Indias mountain railways are UNESCO rated  Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, Nilgiri Mountain Railway and Kalka Shimla Railway. Ride them all on this trip.

INSIDER TIP: The DHR climbs 7,000ft to the summit at Ghum.

DETAILS: The 21-day tour departs on February 18, 2018 from 4,995pp (two sharing), ffestiniogtravel.com.
Scam: Carol Ann Joyce got six months in jail

A million patients have been fined for wrongly claiming free NHS prescriptions after the Government finally got tough on fraud, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Hundreds of thousands more have also been penalised for claiming free dental treatment they were not entitled to in a major crackdown.

Health service bosses clawed back a staggering 23 million in the past year alone in fines and unpaid bills as a result of the drive. This was nearly ten times what they recouped in 2014-15.

Health Minister Philip Dunne last night told The Mail on Sunday: Claiming a free prescription when you are not entitled to it puts pressure on NHS services, taking money away from where it is needed more.

In the past two years weve increased the amount the NHS recovers from 2.5million to 23 million through checking prescriptions where charges have not been paid and claiming back the money from patients who have wrongly had a free prescription.

Community pharmacists in England last year dispensed 1.1 billion prescriptions, costing some 9.2 billion. The vast majority  89.4 per cent  were handed out free, mostly to pensioners or children but also to people on low incomes.

Yet a large number of patients falsely claim they deserve free medicines in order to avoid the prescription charge, which is 8.60 per item. They only have to tick a box on a form to receive the drugs free, with no checks at the counter.

It has been estimated that the scale of false claims for free prescriptions  revealed by The Mail on Sunday four years ago  costs the NHS as much as 237 million a year.

In 2014, a quango called the NHS Business Services Authority began carrying out checks on prescriptions written across England, rather than leaving it to individual trusts. Anyone found to have lied on prescription forms could then be given a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) of up to 100, though typically fines were significantly lower than this.

Drain: False claims are now estimated to cost the NHS 237million a year

Figures disclosed in the Department of Healths annual report show that 1.6 million fines were issued between September 2014 and last March  with a million of these handed out in the past year alone. Another 689,770 PCNs have been issued for dental fraud, with 385,770 of them being sent in the last year to patients who wrongly claimed free treatment because they were on benefits. Sums recouped from fraudsters have soared from 2.5 million in 2014-15 to 22.9 million in 2016-17, with another 3.7 million collected since April this year. The cash is kept for health services rather than being taken by HM Treasury.

NHS bosses believe the stricter regime is also saving money as fewer patients are tempted to make false claims. Where fraudsters go to extreme lengths to rip off the NHS, however, they can be prosecuted.

Bills: Pharmacists dispensed 1.1 billion prescriptions last year, the majority free

Carol Ann Joyce, 63, of North Wales, was jailed for six months over a scam in 2014. She had become addicted to a painkiller and so travelled to different surgeries to obtain prescriptions, claiming she was living in temporary accommodation or a refuge.

A man was also prosecuted after he spent 12 years registering himself and his wife with GPs around the country to get prescriptions for an addictive painkiller. He would claim they were on holiday and give a fake address in a scam that was said to have cost the NHS 31,520. Dr Dan Poulter, an NHS hospital doctor and former health minister who helped champion plans to target the problem, said it was right that the NHS was now focusing on fraud as well as patient care.

He added: Money saved through simple and efficient fraud prevention is money that can be reinvested back into frontline services.
Women are being denied fertility treatment as a result of health budget cuts.

NHS bosses are restricting access to IVF, with some considering limiting services to those aged 30 to 35.

Thirteen areas in England have introduced cuts or stopped providing fertility treatment completely since the start of the year. A further eight are consulting on restricting services, according to figures from Fertility Network UK.

The number of clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) that offer the recommended three full IVF cycles has dropped by almost half, from 50 in 2013 to 27.

NHS bosses are restricting access to IVF, with some considering limiting services to those aged 30 to 35

Budget cuts are increasingly rendering IVF a postcode lottery as CCGs defy national guidelines.

NICE, which sets the guidelines, says women under 40 with fertility problems should be offered three cycles of IVF. Those aged 40 to 42 should be offered one cycle in some circumstances.

But CCGs in Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire are consulting on restricting treatment to women aged 30 to 35 only. They would be the first to limit services to such a narrow range. Cambridgeshire and Peterborough CCG is consulting on cutting all IVF services except in rare circumstances  such as women who face chemotherapy or other treatments likely to render them infertile.

Professor Simon Fishel, who was part of a team that pioneered IVF in the UK, told the Guardian: What is the point of having NICE guidelines if they are not adhered to? If the country decides it will not fund IVF then fine, that is a decision that affects everyone... but what I cannot abide is the local variation for something like this.

Croydon has already become the first London borough to stop funding IVF.

Its CCG took the decision in a bid to save 836,000 a year.

In Swindon and most of Cheshire, IVF funding has been cut from three cycles per patient to one.

And in February, the Mail reported on a north-south IVF divide, which means many couples in southern England can have fertility treatment on the NHS only in exceptional circumstances.

Thirteen areas in England have introduced cuts or stopped providing fertility treatment completely since the start of the year

The Department of Health said: Fertility problems can have a serious and lasting impact on families and the NHS should provide access to services, including IVF, for all patients that meet the criteria set out by independent experts at NICE. NHS England said: Ultimately these are legally decisions for CCGs, who are under an obligation to balance the various competing demands on the NHS locally while living within the budget Parliament has allocated.

Dr Gary Howsam, chair of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough CCG, said: We are now in the difficult position where we have to evaluate every service we commission.

A spokesman for Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire CCGs said: We know how hard it can be for couples who are struggling to conceive and will continue to offer fertility treatment to hundreds of people every year.

Clinical evidence shows that treatment between the ages of 30-35 offers the highest possible chance of success. A cycle of IVF typically costs the NHS 5,000.

In 2013, 49,636 women in the UK had a total of 64,600 cycles.

A study published in 2015 revealed that the cumulative chance of a live birth was 30 per cent for the first cycle, increasing to 45 per cent after two cycles and 54 per cent after three.

Couples had a 65 per cent success rate after six attempts.
Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets

Cert: 12A 2hrs 17mins

Rating:

Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets is one of those films in which nothing is quite what it seems.

For a start, its so-called city is a space station that has simply grown and grown; but there are also huge bazaars that are cloaked, planets that may or may not have been destroyed, and enemies that, of course, lie hidden within. Should be intriguing, right?

The disaster for Luc Besson, one of the few French film-makers to make it big in Hollywood, is that it definitely is not.

Cara Delevingne (above) is a revelatory, spirited joy as Laureline, proof that Besson has lost none of his talent for extracting great performances from inexperienced young actresses

Yes, Valerian  we can take the rest of the title as a given from now on  shares some of the qualities of The Fifth Element, the cult sci-fi favourite he made back in 1997. Both films have an undeniable visual inventiveness, superb effects and a driving sense that science fiction can be fun.

But while The Fifth Element also had a decent story, narrative drive and a pretty classy cast, Valerian has none of these. The result is often pretty to look at but also long-winded, uninvolving and dull.

At its narrative heart is Alpha Station, a space community of humans and aliens that has grown so big over 400 years that it cannot remain in Earths orbit and is pushed into outer space. Elsewhere, we meet the Pearls, a tall, slim, androgynous species who live an idyllic-looking life until one day burning spaceships start crashing from the sky.

But the real problems start when the human strand of the story begins with Major Valerian and his pretty sidekick, Sergeant Laureline, who break into the dimensionally concealed Big Market and steal back something called the converter. Which turns out to be a small, armadillo-like creature with a prehensile nose and amazing talents.

The real problems start when Major Valerian and his pretty sidekick, Sergeant Laureline, break into the dimensionally concealed Big Market and steal back the converter

This may make sense to fans of the French comic-book series on which it is based, but its so disappointing.

You can trace the origins of what Besson is trying to do  deliver a rollicking, sci-fi fantasy romp  right back to Barbarella, Flash Gordon, David Lynchs Dune and most of the sci-fi films made by Terry Gilliam. But for all this visual creativity, Valerian simply fails to fly.

You can trace the origins of what Besson is trying to do, deliver a rollicking, sci-fi fantasy romp. But for all this visual creativity, Valerian simply fails to fly

At one point, a minor character breaks into the Gene Wilder song from Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory with those famous lines Come with me and youll be in a world of pure imagination. Its as if Besson is saying that if we come with him and surrender to his imagination, everything will be all right, but the simple fact is it isnt.

Obviously, most of the blame must lie with Besson  the hugely experienced director of La Femme Nikita, Leon: The Professional and, more recently, Lucy. He doesnt seem to notice that Dane DeHaan  a young actor Ive lauded in the past  is close to hopeless as Valerian.

Its clear that there is supposed to be sexual chemistry between Valerian and Laureline (above) but theres no sign of it on the screen

From the moment we meet the two characters, its clear that there is supposed to be sexual chemistry between Valerian and Laureline but theres no sign of it on the screen.

DeHaan isnt funny, isnt sexy and is hampered by a hairstyle that makes him look about 14. Aged 31 in real life, he simply doesnt have the presence to anchor this film, which Besson  who cast Bruce Willis, then at the top of his game, in a similar role in The Fifth Element  should have realised.

Dane DeHaan (above) isnt funny, isnt sexy and is hampered by a hairstyle that makes him look about 14. Aged 31 in real life, he simply doesnt have the presence to anchor this film

Cara Delevingne, by contrast, is a revelatory, spirited joy as Laureline, proof that Besson has lost none of his talent for extracting great performances from inexperienced young actresses, as the like of Anne Parillaud (La Femme Nikita), Natalie Portman (Leon: The Professional) and Milla Jovovich (The Fifth Element) can attest.

But while that should do great things for her career, its not enough to stop Valerian & Co from crashing and burning on take-off.

Most of the blame for this flop must lie with Besson  the hugely experienced director of La Femme Nikita, Leon: The Professional and, more recently, Lucy

SECOND SCREEN

The Emoji Movie (U)

Rating:

England Is Mine (15)

Rating:

Maudie (12A)

Rating:

The Ghoul (15)

Rating:

The Emoji Movie is fast becoming one of the worst reviewed films of 2017 and, at first, its difficult to see why. After all, its colourful, energetic and based in one of those secret inner worlds that are the key to success of so many great animated feature films.

But while the excellent and markedly similar Inside Out brought the emotions of an unhappy young girl to life, The Emoji Movie deals with the inner workings of a mobile phone and, particularly, the emoji characters living in the city of Textopolis. Its here that Gene (T J Miller), a young meh emoji  used to express world-weariness  is preparing for his first day of work.

But he blows it and, faced with deletion, he makes a run for the Cloud, accompanied by a hacker known as Jailbreak (Anna Faris) and the Hi-Five emoji voiced by a horribly over-indulged James Corden. Yup, were off on a redemptive journey again.

The script is thin and derivative, and much of the humour falls flat. But the main problem is the use of apps from the real world, some of which cost money and most of which are owned by giant corporations that certainly shouldnt be benefiting from this level of product placement in a childrens cartoon.

Gene (T J Miller), a young meh emoji, makes a run for the Cloud, accompanied by a hacker known as Jailbreak (Anna Faris) and the Hi-Five emoji voiced by James Corden

Morrissey is best known as the melancholic frontman of the Eighties band The Smiths and for writing that much-quoted line Heaven knows Im miserable now. Sadly, were all going to be miserable after watching England Is Mine, the story of his early years in Manchester, which, infuriatingly, features barely a note of The Smiths or, indeed, much of the wonderfully evocative music of the period at all.

Instead, director and co-writer Mark Gill concentrates on Morrisseys less than thrilling 1976-82, when apparently he spent a lot of time being miserable at home, being miserable working at the Inland Revenue and being regularly rescued from despair by improbably pretty young women.

In England Is Mine, director and co-writer Mark Gill concentrates on Morrisseys less than thrilling 1976-82, when apparently he spent a lot of time being miserable at home

Early nomination for Most Irritating Film of the Year goes to Maudie, based on the true story of a small, slightly physically impaired Nova Scotia woman who was abandoned by her family and found solace working for a brutish fish peddler, only to marry him and discover a talent for naive art. The tone is mawkish, the pace slow and both Sally Hawkins and Ethan Hawke overact horribly.

Early nomination for Most Irritating Film of the Year goes to Maudie; the tone is mawkish, the pace slow and both Sally Hawkins and Ethan Hawke (above) overact horribly

The Ghoul is at its best when we think its a psychological crime thriller but loses energy once we discover its more about mental illness. Despite the come-on of the title and having Ben Wheatley as an executive producer, theres no need to rush.
North By Northwest

Theatre Royal, Bath

Until Saturday, 2hrs 10mins

Rating:

Was Alfred Hitchcocks comedy-thriller North By Northwest the inspiration for all the James Bond movies? Its not just the story, which many familiar with the 1959 original will remember: a dapper, debonair ad exec in a well-cut suit, armed with little more than a tireless supply of saucy innuendo, gets himself out of the tightest, near-fatal and utterly preposterous squeezes with scheming villains without losing his cool or his smile, and finishes up in a squeeze with a curvy blonde.

Its also the tone  perfectly captured by playwright Carolyn Burns, as well as director and designer Simon Phillips (assisted by Nick Schlieper)  in their stage adaptation, in which everything is served up with a knowing and playful nod and a wink.

Jonathan Watton as Thornhill

Jonathan Watton and Olivia Fines as Eve

The driving force, however, is a mix of inspiration and perspiration, silliness and steam. This comes from the exertions of a dozen actors playing a cast of hundreds (many of them cameo villains) and from Olivia Fines, who is not as inscrutable as Eva Marie Saints femme fatale Eve Kendall but minces minxishly, hot to trot.

It also comes from the theatres own steam machine, which is frequently conspicuously pressed into action. Never more triumphantly than for the famous scene where our hero (a likeable Jonathan Watton, who doesnt quite pull off the impossible and erase the memory of Cary Grant) is attacked by a crop-duster plane while waiting for a bus on an Indiana prairie.

IT'S A FACT While on location at Mt Rushmore for the 1959 film, Eva Marie Saint discovered Cary Grant would charge fans 15 cents for an autograph. Advertisement

More mechanics are on display on either side of the stage, where different backdrops are slotted into a projector and hands push a model car or a train  or light a match to create the explosion when the plane hits a truck on the prairie. Also, four heads perch on cut-outs in a black stand in a wickedly funny re-creation of the presidents faces carved into Mount Rushmore, the scene of the chases climax.

A hilarious homage to Hitchcock  but only if you know what you are celebrating.

Road

Royal Court Theatre,

London

Until Sept 9, 2hrs 30mins

Rating:

Recently I made a plea never again to see another abandoned shopping trolley on the stage, a tired theatrical shorthand for urban deprivation. Rhys Ifanss Fool sleeping in one in the storm in King Lear finished me off.

Well, I take it all back. For in one of several soaring moments in John Tiffanys revival of Road, Lemn Sissays Scullery, the homeless and oddly unappealing narrator guiding us along this grim and grimy backstreet, finds a dumped trolley with which he whirls and swirls in a balletic pas de deux to the tune of the main theme of Swan Lake.

In another transcendent scene, a couple of lads surprise the girls they have brought home by not immediately wanting to cop off but instead putting on Otis Reddings Try A Little Tenderness, and suggesting they all shut their eyes and listen.

Tenderness is not something these drunk, ground-down slappers have ever tried and we watch this tough pair visibly tenderising. And it unleashes their despair, which pours out in a burst of ugly, jagged, intense poetry. Poverty wants me. Everythings soiled. Nowts nice. Were soft, gone hard, says Carole (Liz White). Whys the world so tough? Its like were walking through meat in high heels, says her friend Louise (Faye Marsay).

Jim Cartwrights string of vignettes is very much of its time  1986, Thatchers Britain  but theres nothing dated about the hopelessness of the jobless as they scratch together money, get dolled up (or not) and go out, to get smashed and laid, then pay for the consequences.

Roads first half is a dramatic cul de sac, not deep enough to engage. But the characters aching hearts break ones own, none more than seeing one sex-starved womans attempt to seduce a drunk squaddie, cleaning his mouth out after he has thrown up and then snogging him. You may want to laugh but can only cry.

Georgina Brown
The Art Of Reading

Damon Young

Scribe 9.99

Rating:

Sir John Betjeman was about to attend a lecture by his friend Lord David Cecil on The Pleasures of Reading, only to decide against when he realised that Lord Cecil was not going to talk about the town of Reading.

I thought of this charming little story when I saw the title of this book. Surely we already know about the art of reading: might a little book on the art of Reading not be more illuminating?

Yet, when you think about it, reading remains a mysterious pastime. Our brain converts tiny little shapes on a page into things that make us laugh or cry, that enthuse us or infuriate us, that invent or describe characters we would never have a chance of meeting, that take us into realms far beyond our experience or imaginations.

Marilyn Monroe reading James Joyces Ulysses

Small wonder that some of us spend more of the day with a book than without one. People say that life is the thing, said the elegant Edwardian essayist Logan Pearsall Smith, but I prefer reading.

At the same time, it is possible to read badly: not simply in your choice of books, but in the way you go about the act itself. All but the most diligent reader will know about skimming and skipping, about letting your mind wander, or reading only for the plot. And how critical should you be? Is it better to let the authors arguments engulf you, or to hold every paragraph to account?

And what to read next? Should you plot a dogged course through literature, or let chance be your guide? After ten minutes in a large bookshop, I often find myself in such a whirl of indecision that I feel completely unable to pick a book. After all, what are the odds against the book you choose being the one that would suit you best?

Damon Young has written a neat little book addressing many of these questions, and a whole lot more besides. His aim, he says, is to provide a public reflection on this often private art. He refers to two recent surveys in America. The first found that three out of every four people want to write a book. The second found that only one out of every four have actually read a book in the past year. One of the key aims of The Art Of Reading is to sharpen our interest in reading, and to train us to read more intelligently.

His own reading has been as haphazard as most peoples. Though a highbrow, he has often dived low, though not without guilt. For nearly 30 years, he confesses, he has been following Star Trek on television, in films and prose. Furthermore, more than a third of the fiction archived on my tablet is from the Star Trek franchise. This is quite a confession, coming from a man who is, his authors blurb assures us, not only an Honorary Fellow at the University of Melbourne but a prize-winning philosopher and writer.

His Star Trek binge was followed by remorse. Buying sequel after sequel, pausing for Earl Grey but not thought, I felt addicted, and this habit was ugly to me. What I found repugnant in myself was called akolasia by Aristotle: intemperance, indulgence. A true academic, he feels obliged to throw in a gratuitous reference to Aristotle, as though needing the reassurance of a life-rope while descending into the vulgar unknown.

And his confession does not end there. His Star Trek craze was, he says, a psychological disorder, an obsession and a badly managed craving for psychological repose. Come, come, Mr Young, dont beat yourself up about it! Speaking for myself, I am perfectly happy to read the back of a Corn Flakes packet without feeling the need for therapy. But there is something of the puritan about Damon Young: though he calls his book a celebration of reading, he often makes it seem more like a solemn duty.

He argues forcefully for a serious approach to literature, but only in his account of his childhood reading does he let seriousness blossom into enjoyment. What I finally took from Conan Doyles mysteries was not savoir faire but freedom: the charisma of an independent mind. This Victorian London, with its shadows and blood, was mine I willed this strange world into being, with help from Conan Doyle. The author was less like an entertaining uncle, and more like a conspirator. We met in private to secure liberation from schools banality and homes atmosphere of violence.

IT'S A FACT Getting your nose into a book wasnt always a safe pastime. In the 19th century you could be committed to an asylum for the act of novel-reading. Advertisement

Even when he is dealing with the Batman Dark Knight books, he cant shed his academic wariness of delight. Celebration comes cloaked in the dusty gown of waffle: Batman is less a single character, and more the name for a family of traits  they share not some essential soul but what Ludwig Wittgenstein, in his Philosophical Investigations called family resemblances.

Is the expression family resemblances made any clearer by putting Wittgenstein alongside it? Young sometimes goes mad with his literary name-dropping, as though no thought, however banal, can be voiced without reference to a big-wig. In one paragraph, loosely on the subject of the ninja books he read as a child, he writes: We are born in what the poet Horace called in medias res: in the middle of things. Later in the same paragraph, he begins a sentence: As Alfred North Whitehead observed, and in the next paragraph we hear that Death is the most terrible of all things, said Aristotle.

In this age of instant opinion, unfettered by knowledge, he makes a good case for reading authors who prefer ambiguity, opacity and mystery. Yet he himself can be curiously strident and impatient. For instance, he sets out to praise Henry James, but his praise is so grudging that it ends up reading more like a condemnation. Basically, Young argues that its worth putting up with the long-winded prose because what he calls the slog is eventually worth it. He makes it sound a bit like embarking on a course of antibiotics.

Now, I know some people find Henry James too much like hard work, but fans  of whom I am one  love him for his elaborate, endlessly qualifying style, and dont just see it as a means to a virtuous end. In fact, the example Young offers of what he calls Jamess agonisingly protracted prose is a sentence from The Golden Bowl that strikes me as perfectly clear and straightforward, as well as beautifully crafted. Its odd that an advocate of serious literature should confess quite so often to finding it all a bit heavy-going. And when he offers praise, it often sounds grudging and headmasterly. Jamess work demonstrates rare talent and merits some forbearance, he concludes.

This is quite a confession, coming from a man who is, he assures us, a prize-winning philosopher and writer

Though the book is short  just 140 pages, if you cut out the notes  many of its sentences are twice as long as they need be. Patience is not a sexy virtue, but it is prized because the benefits of reading are never instantanaeous. It is impossible to make sense of modern life without recognising clock time and its continually increasing progression.

Children can no more abstract themselves into maturity than the elderly can shrug off their decades. If you take away the flim-flam, these sentences all boil down to the bleeding obvious: You Cant Rush Things; Time Flies; With Age Comes Experience. Other sentences sound clever, but you need to read them three or four times before you can work out what theyre on about, for example: Because it leapfrogs the immediate, curiosity can leave the actual too far behind.

I wanted to like The Art Of Reading, but in the end I found it too irritating. Who knows? I might have found it more enjoyable had it come with a companion volume called The Art Of Reading The Art Of Reading.
A museum displaying the history of Egypt's northern Marsa Matrouh governorate is set to open at Matrouh's National Library at the end of August.

The project is part of a cooperation protocol signed between the Ministry of Antiquities and Marsa Matrouh governorate.

Marsa Matrouh governorate has offered part of its National Library to the ministry for the establishing of an archaeological museum that relates the history of the governorate through all the artefacts discovered within its borders, head of the Museums Sector at the Ministry of Antiquities Elham Salah told Ahram Online.

The project is entirely financed by Marsa Matrouh governorate.

The museum will consist of two levels and exhibit 1,000 artefacts excavated in Marsa Matrouh over the years.

The exhibit aims to highlight the role Marsa Matrouh, the country's northwest governorate which borders Libya, has played along the span of Egyptian history, with a focus on its role as a hub for trade with neighbouring countries and as a border city.

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Seurat To Riley: The Art Of Perception

Compton Verney, Warwickshire Until October 1

Rating:

Bridget Riley, queen of Op Art and star of this sensational show, defined the mid-Sixties with paintings that conjured movement out of obsessively repeated black-and-white patterns, but shes not the first artist to have played tricks on our eyes and messed with our heads.

The show begins with a sign that reads: WARNING: Please note that some of the art works in this exhibition may cause visual disturbances. Above: Liz West's 2016 Our Spectral Vision

M C Escher, Marcel Duchamp, Victor Vasarely and the British vorticist Helen Saunders also experimented with the observers perceptions. They are all present at an exhibition that follows an occasionally zig-zagging line back to the 19th-century pointillist Georges Seurat, to prove that painters have been challenging the way we see things for 150 years.

Rileys approach was the most extreme of the bunch. It was once reported that security guards at a gallery needed sunglasses because her work gave them headaches. Accordingly, Compton Verneys new show begins with a sign on the entrance door that reads: WARNING: Please note that some of the art works in this exhibition may cause visual disturbances. It should really say Prepare to be thrilled for, among its treasures, this show delivers a handful of pieces by Riley that still work a strange and unsettling magic.

Vasarely saw Op Art as a branch of socialism, a quasi-scientific approach that created a vocabulary of shapes and colour interactions. Above: Drawing by Lothar Gotz

Blaze IV, from 1964, is a monochrome whirlpool of chevrons that drags the viewer spinning down into a bright light in the heart of the composition that proves, on closer observation, simply to be white paint. Theres more trickery with Over, from 1966, a swooning curve of parallel lines that appears to turn itself inside out. The remarkable Fall, from 1963, resembles a giant square of patterned silk, dropped and folding down on itself in a series of waves and tubes. Look long enough and colour emerges from the black and white  exactly, you might argue, what the Sixties were about.

Bridget Riley's Blaze IV, from 1964, is a monochrome whirlpool of chevrons that drags the viewer spinning down into a bright light in the heart of the composition

Op Art first revealed itself to the wider world at the Responsive Eye show at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1965, featuring 75 artists, including Riley, her fellow Briton Peter Sedgley, Vasarely and others who all used optical illusion to various degrees. Vasarely, born in 1906, was known as the grandfather of Op Art, but he was as good as the kids, better perhaps. The Hungarian-French artists Banya, from 1964, is one of the many highlights here, earthy paprika tones flashing against green in a grid of shifting shapes.

Vasarelys work would be used on the cover of David Bowies Space Oddity, but Riley had an even bigger effect on popular culture. The Who wore T-shirts printed with Blaze IV, and Jean Shrimpton and Twiggy appeared in Riley-inspired Op Art shoots.

Look long enough and colour emerges from the black and white  exactly, you might argue, what the Sixties were about. Pictured: Pulse O5, 2012, by Sara Moorhouse

But the first Riley we see at Compton Verney is not from the Sixties. The richly hypnotic Ecclesia, from 1985, lays vertical stripes of colour against each other and is shown alongside the shows two paintings by Seurat, the large landscape La Luzerne, St Denis, from 1884-85, and the shimmering riverside miniature The Morning Walk, from 1885.

The comparison makes sense. In La Luzerne, St Denis, Seurat placed small strokes of colour alongside each other, in effect allowing the viewer to mix the paint on the canvas. A young Riley first encountered Seurats famous Bathers At Asnieres, from 1884, at the National Gallery. It had a strong effect. In the late Fifties Riley produced pointillist landscapes and even copied Seurats Le Pont De Courbevoie (not in the show).

One of the show's two paintings by Georges Seurat is the shimmering riverside miniature The Morning Walk, from 1885

It would have been nice to have seen more Seurats here, but what Riley mainly took from his work was his consistency of approach  doggedly applying one technique across the years, though she did calm the monochrome down. Coloured Greys II, from 1972  13 lines of white waves on grey  is less drastic than the earlier work; the movement is gentle, soothing. Song Of Orpheus IV, from 1978, is a rippling contour of curved lines and pale colours that seems to come out to the viewer and then recede.

Song Of Orpheus IV hangs near two dazzling works by Sedgley. Cycle, from 1965, pulls our focus to the centre of the painting, but rather than Rileys bright light, Sedgley finds an ominous darkness.

Vasarely saw Op Art as a branch of socialism, a quasi-scientific approach that created a vocabulary of shapes and colour interactions he called planetary folklore. Riley, still active today at 86, rejected science and politics. She had no aim other than exploring our perceptions. It was enough to keep her work timeless.

Matisse In The Studio

Royal Academy of Arts, London Until November 12

Rating:

Henri Matisse called it his working library  referring to the hundreds of objects he collected over the years, which would appear and reappear in his paintings. These included Congolese masks, Andalucian vases and octagonal Moroccan chairs. None of them was particularly expensive but they were highly valuable to Matisse, who insisted they be packed up and travel with him whenever he changed studios or took a longish-term trip. As he observed in his 80s: Ive worked all my life before the same objects The object is an actor. A good actor can have a part in ten different plays; so an object can play a role in ten different pictures.

The exhibition Matisse In The Studio includes numerous items from the artists collection, alongside 65 of his art works, the aim being to show what sort of creative stimulus the former were for the latter.

The artists love of Islamic textiles, which  when depicted in paintings such as The Moorish Screen, 1921 (above)  are so sumptuously striking in pattern and colour, they dominate the scene

Its a hit-and-miss affair. Masterpieces such as Yellow Odalisque (on loan from Philadelphia Museum of Art) are almost worth the admission fee alone. Theres also a revelation to be had in the room where Matisses paper cut-outs  subject of a smash-hit 2014 show at Tate Modern  are shown alongside a wooden panel of Chinese calligraphy hed acquired.

The similarity in shape between the Frenchmans motifs and the Oriental characters is remarkable, and not something Id ever noticed before: both manage to be orderly and sinuous at the same time. (As if to ram the point home, theres a photo of an aged Matisse in bed  scissors in hand, making cut-outs  with the Chinese panel on the wall above him.)

Much better-known is the artists love of Islamic textiles, which  when depicted in his paintings  are so sumptuously striking in pattern and colour that they dominate the scene, even though technically theyre in the background. A few appliqued North African wall hangings called haiti are on display, but these highlight the shows fundamental problem. They, like the pewter jugs and silver chocolate pots, just arent that interesting in themselves. A Venetian chair, with its seat and back both shaped like a scallop shell, is actually quite ugly.

It was Matisses genius to use the meagre objects in his collection to create some of the most brilliant art of the 20th century. Pictured: an Andalucian Vase, early 20th Century

It was Matisses genius to use the meagre objects in his collection to create some of the most brilliant art of the 20th century. We gain little by beholding them. Theres a world of difference between discovering a magicians tricks and simply seeing his props.

Alastair Smart
My partner doesn't find me attractive

Zelda reads all your letters but regrets that she cannot answer them all personally

I am 63 and for the past three years I have been in a relationship with a man who is ten years younger than me. I was physically attracted to him from the start, but when we began having a sexual relationship, I could tell that he didnt feel the same way. It seemed as though he was just making an effort to please me, but not enjoying it himself. We are like chalk and cheese. I am overweight and have body issues, whereas he goes to the gym and keeps himself in good shape. My friends think he is gorgeous. I feel as though he is repulsed by my body. He never touches me intimately  even kissing me seems to be a problem. I bought some sexy underwear, but he made a sarcastic remark about me wearing it. If I try to discuss it, he gets angry. He misses his mother who died a few years ago, but adores mine and gets on brilliantly with my children and grandchildren and loves doing things with all of us. Part of me knows that I should get out of the relationship, but there is a little bit inside me that hopes one day things will change.

To make love to a man who is unenthusiastic is soul-destroying. Unfortunately, it sounds as though he is not really attracted to you, but enjoys your company and loves spending time with you and your family. I suspect this could be because he is missing his mother, or perhaps he didnt have a good family life, so is drawn to yours. I wish I could say that he should love you as you are, but sadly men are often not wired this way. Some dont mind if their partner is overweight, but I know from my postbag that other men do. I receive many letters from men who say that although they love their wives, they are not attracted to them or dont want to make love any more because they have become overweight, which has caused a big problem in their marriages. The fact that he gets angry when you try to discuss your worries is also a cause for concern, so you probably need to end it and find someone more supportive.

Is our son hiding a drug problem?

My 23-year-old son, who lives at home, is causing my husband and I great concern. He is an only child and we brought him up to appreciate the value of things. But we feel as though weve failed in some way. Its become evident that he has been stealing small amounts of money from his fathers business, although he blatantly denies it. He is reasonably paid in his job and has few financial commitments. After a night out with his friends, he sleeps for the whole day and seems unable to wake up  and when he does, he is verbally abusive. He has been like this for two years and we fear he has a mental health issue or drug addiction, which he denies. But as he wont admit it, we feel powerless to help. Where can we turn?

Please dont feel you have failed  you have obviously tried to be good parents to the son you love very much. He could be taking money to fund his drug habit. In the early days, young people taking drugs often deny it  especially to their parents. Gently say to him: We know you are taking money and drugs. If you want to talk to us about it, we will be understanding and want to help. Most importantly, you and your husband need support, so contact Families Anonymous (famanon.org.uk, 0845 120 0660). It runs meetings where parents can support each other and has online forums. One woman, whose son took drugs but has now stopped, said to me: These meetings saved my sanity. She felt she would have struggled to survive without them. You could also contact Adfam (adfam.org.uk), which has local support groups and DrugFam (drugfam.co.uk, 0300 888 3853), which runs a helpline for family members.

I lost my friends as well as my job

I suffer with severe depression and anxiety and have not been able to work for the past year, leading to me losing my job two weeks ago. Friends from work kept in touch and one visited me regularly. I was often asked to contribute to collections for things such as birthdays while I was off, which I did, as we had all worked together for ten years. When I was dismissed, I got a card signed by my friend on behalf of everyone and some flowers and chocolates. I am not ungrateful but feel bitter as everyone usually signs cards personally. It would have been a lovely keepsake. I know my mental health problems can make me paranoid at times. Am I overreacting?

It is so hard losing your job on top of everything else. Maybe your friend just took the initiative and signed the card on their behalf? I dont think they meant to hurt you, but they should have taken the time to sign it personally. Sadly, a lot of people still dont know how to act around people who suffer with mental health problems because they simply dont understand how it feels. I would gently talk to the friend who gave you the card and explain your feelings. Try not to get angry, just tell her how much it would have meant to you if they had all signed it. I spoke to the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service about you losing your job. Your company should have tried to help you to return to work, perhaps part time or in an alternative role. You can contact them at acas.org.uk or call 0300 123 1100 for advice. I hope you are getting help for your depression and anxiety.

If you have a problem, write to Zelda West-Meads at: YOU, Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TS, or email z.west-meads@you.co.uk

Zelda reads all your letters but regrets that she cannot answer them all personally
For a unique, totally natural spa experience, Iceland is hard to beat. But it has much more to offer than just the famous Blue Lagoon, as our YOU tester discovered when she visited the Ion Adventure Hotel in Southwest Iceland, an hours drive from Reykjavik.

Lying in a geothermal outdoor pool, surrounded by stunning scenery while listening to the sonorous notes of a gong, has to be one of the most relaxing experiences Ive ever had. The Yoga & Gong class started with stretches in warm water while taking deep breaths of the cool, pure air. I felt the tension melt away from my body. Then our teacher, Arnbjorg, encouraged us to lie back and relax while she began playing gongs and a copper xylophone. Their sounds seemed to harmonise with the untamed landscape.

Teacher Arnbjorg encouraged participants to lie back and relax while she began playing gongs and a copper xylophone

Gongs have been used in sound healing for millennia in ancient cultures. Each has a different pitch or resonance and is played softly at first, then increasingly louder. As the sound grows it envelops you  its called a sound bath for good reason  and I found myself in an almost dream-like state. Apparently, the wandering rhythm persuades your brain waves to change from beta, our usual doing daytime state, to alpha, linked to daydreaming, and then theta waves, which occur during dreams and deep meditation. Gong healing is said to calm your mind  which it certainly did  and may help some physical problems.

Gongs have been used in sound healing for millennia in ancient cultures

At a naturally heated pool, I tried a flotation session, donning a special Flothetta cap and leg supports that allow you to relax every muscle while you drift in the water, followed by a muscle-soothing natural hot tub. There were lots of other activities including trips to see the hot springs at Geysir  too hot for a dip!  and the dramatic Gullfoss waterfall. I went inside a dormant volcano in a special lift and rode a (pony-sized) Icelandic horse, returning to the hotel each evening to relax in the thermal pool or to admire the views  it barely gets dark in summer.

My final night was spent at the Alda Hotel in Reykjavik, with its lively cafes and bars. But you cant leave Iceland without a visit to the Blue Lagoon, one of the largest and most popular geothermal pools in the world, conveniently situated in a lava field near the airport. Two hours relaxing there, using locally sourced silica mud as a face mask, ensured I left feeling completely rejuvenated with silky soft skin.

Iceland Beyond (icelandbeyond.com) offers a four-day, three-night break from 1,990 per person including flights with Wow Air (season dependent)

FOR AT-HOME RELAXATION Invest in a CD of gong music, such as Tibetan Chakra Healing: Gong Bath Immersion , from 8.28, amazon.co.uk. Turn off your mobile phone and tablet. Fill a bath with warm water and add some aromatherapy oil; alternatively, arrange plenty of soft cushions on the floor to lie on. If you dont have any gong music, play the simplest, most soothing music you have. Lie there peacefully for as long as you can, letting your thoughts drift away as you listen to the notes and release the tension from your body and mind. If your brain starts racing, bring it back to listen to the sounds. Advertisement

3 OF THE BEST NATURAL SUMMER TREATS

Soupologie chilled dairy- and gluten-free soups from 2.99 from Selfridges, 3.39 from Ocado. Five delicious plant-based chilled soups that make filling snacks (or even a meal). Our favourite is protein-packed Pea, Edamame & Cashew.

Soupologie protein-packed Pea, Edamame & Cashew soup

Plant for Peace superfood fruit bar, 2.99 for four from Sainsburys. These low-calorie snacks pack a double feelgood whammy. They are made from nutrient-rich mulberries grown on small Afghan farms, and for each bar sold, a mulberry tree is planted with the aim of replacing heroin fields with mulberries. Choose Mulberry Chia Seed, Mulberry Cocoa Orange or Mulberry Apple.

Plant for Peace superfood fruit bars

Pip & Nut nut butter squeeze pack, 1.19 each, from Holland & Barrett. These yummy and nutritious natural roasted nut spreads are perfect on toast or, as one colleague prefers, squeezed from the sachet when her blood sugar is diving. In Almond, Coconut Almond or Peanut flavours.

Pip & Nut nut butter squeeze packs

Always consult your doctor if you have a medical problem

Photographs: Getty Images, Lisa Atkinson
Ines de la Fressange

French style icons Ines de la Fressange and accessories label Roger Vivier are a match made in good-taste heaven. We caught up with the 59-year-old model and designer (left, her eponymous store on Rue de Grenelle is well worth a visit when youre next in Paris) ahead of her latest campaign for the fashion house.

What do you wear when you have five minutes to get ready?A white shirt, white jeans, indigo jacket and Roger Vivier loafers, which are great in all seasons.

The wardrobe item you'll never throw away?A brown corduroy jacket from Japanese label Journal Standard  it looks vintage and unique and the cut is great. I have a feeling that if I lost it, I would never find anything similar.

The colour you wear most? Navy. Its flattering on the skin if you look tired.

The trend you just don't get? Lycra leggings  they can be unflattering on people of all sizes. Despite this, its a trend that has stuck around a long time.

On your winter wish list? It is a long list. A large raincoat from Parisian brand Soeur, oversized trousers from a label called 45RPM and a huge, navy, cashmere sweater  even though I buy one every year! Also Pascale Monvoisin bracelets and various pieces from the menswear collection I designed for Uniqlo, which launches at the end of summer. And furry Roger Vivier sliders, because each season I add a touch of fashion victim, too!

Your date-night outfit? A silk blouse and pyjama trousers with velvet Roger Vivier slippers.

What will you be packing for getaways this month? Rondini sandals, Nadia Dafri shirts, a Siyu bathing suit and a sweater from my store in Paris.

Who should we follow on Instagram? Marin Montagut (@bonjourmarinmontagut), a talented, handsome young man; Dominique Lionnet (@dom_beautytalks), who is the best cosmetics expert in the world, and Elie Top (@elietopofficial), former assistant to Yves Saint Laurent.

The secret to looking better with age? Pay attention to whats happening around you, dont complain, sleep a lot and laugh more. Dont dress in only expensive clothes  mix things up. Oh, and always take your make-up off properly.

Your most overused emoji? The smiley face with tears; ie, hysterics!

The Learner, 14.99, Per/se, perse.london

The design duo behind Per/se (twins Hardeep and Mandeep Kaur) believe that great style must come with self-reflection; the very antithesis of fast fashion and lunchtime Zara splurges. They have produced The Learner, a book of wise words on how to live a more considered life. Get yours alongside the brands signature coats, produced on a strict bi-monthly basis. Were converts.

WE LOVE: Kensington, Kurt Geigers It-bag of 2017; new colours drop into stores this week. 129, kurtgeiger.com

The original brains behind Issa (of Kate Middleton engagement dress fame), last year Daniella Helayel launched new label Dhela, which has fast become one of Front Rows ports of call for flattering dresses that work day-to-day as well as for snazzy events  and the odd monumental engagement. From 145, dhela.com.

WEAR WHERE
For decades, left-wing extremists have launched hit-and-run attacks against security forces from jungle camps across swathes of poor and rural central, eastern and southern India known as the red corridor.

But now, Maoist fighters swarming across swathes of Indian territory cannot target the big cat so easily.

Forest ministers of states, which are considered hotbeds of leftwing extremism, and top officials of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) say that 'where tigers roar, LWE takes a back step and virtually retreats'.

Tigers are pushing back

'In the last five years or more, we created about two lakh man-days of work and employed about 2,500 forest inhabitants.

'This comes to about 15,000 people, including the tribes, under the Project Tiger works in the country's top tiger reserves in Maoist-infested states such as Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh,' said Debabrata Swain, member secretary of NTCA and additional director-general of Project Tiger.

Citing the cases of Simlipal and Satkosia in Odisha, Indravati in Chhattisgarh, Palamu in Jharkhand and Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam in Andhra-Telangana region, ministry of home affairs data shows that there has not been a single big Maoist attack since 2009, around the time when Project Tiger work picked up momentum in these tiger reserves.

Locals are earning between `5,000 and `20,000 a month as drivers, forest guards, GPS-enabled guides who take big parliamentary delegations inside the parks, informers to watch and ward as well as fire watchers.

Induction of Chenchu tribespeople as tiger trackers, protection watchers and base camp staff, above

Many of the forest tribes and villages deep inside these reserves were used as shields and hideouts by the rebels.

But once ensured of jobs and better livelihood, the locals have started putting up a tough resistance to the fighters.

'No more daily complaints of extortion, violence and torching of villages come to me as compared to five years ago,' said Mahesh Gadga, forest minister of Chhattisgarh.

Gadga's constituency is Bijapur under which comes the Indravati Tiger Reserve, a strong LWE zone.

MHA figures show that Bijapur saw the last Maoist attacks in 2009 and 2010.

But since then, the dreaded red terror attacks in Chhattisgarh have occurred mostly in Dantewada and Sukma in 2013, 2014 and 2017.

The state witnessed about 621 Maoist attacks in 2010 and the figure dropped down to 395 in 2016 and 221 in 2017 till July 15.

Naxal attacks in Odisha have come down from 218 in 2010 to 86 in 2016, with 41 recorded till July 15 this year

'We formed samitis in these villages under Project Tiger. There are about 700 samitis in Indravati alone.

'About 6,000 to 7,000 people are living on the Project Tiger works in the 60 villages in my Bijapur constituency.

'The state government schemes and works allocated by the forest department are encouraging the local tribes and forest dwellers to become informers and protectors of tigers and forests ... they know that this is their livelihood source,' said Gadga.

'Today, Chhattisgarh has 46 tigers; the number was 26 in 2014 and 24 in the 2010 tiger census,' Gadga added.

Bodies are seen by a roadside near the mangled wreckage of a bus which hit a landmine in Dantewada district on May 17, 2010. Maoist rebels blew up a bus carrying police and civilians in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh May 17, killing more than 20 people (stock photo)

Naxal attacks in Odisha have come down from 218 in 2010 to 86 in 2016, with 41 recorded until July 15 this year.

And there have been none recorded in Simlipal and Satkosia tiger reserves since 2010.

Major Maoist attacks in the state in recent years have been confined to Balimela, Malkangiri, Koraput, Kalhandi and areas adjoining Chhattisgarh.

Odisha's forest minister Baijayshree Routray told Mail Today: 'Until about 2009, unabated poaching of herbivores by the locals, probably under the pressure of LWE cadres living in the dense forests inside, was a concern in hampering tiger conservation.

Tiger track or footprint in the mud, India

'But once the Project Tiger works gained pace after 2010 and nearly 1,200 locals got employed in these two tiger reserves, news about more tiger sightings by the tribes and locals are coming to us.

'There are about 28 tigers in Simlipal alone and we heard of 10 more cubs of which nine have survived.'

The villagers working in Project Tiger in Simlipal and Satkosia have helped directly in tiger conservation, said Routray.

'Their involvement as informers, guides and watch and ward, monitored centrally through a GPS in the dense jungles, have pushed the LWE out of core tiger reserve areas.

'Herbivore population is growing in Simlipal, indirectly helping the tigers to survive and breed,' he said.

It is a similar case at the Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve (NTSR), spread over five districts in the Andhra-Telangana region and where about 500 local Chenchu tribe members have been employed as 'tiger trackers' and 'watchers'.

The induction of Chenchus as tiger trackers, protection watchers, fire watchers and as base camp staff helped in regular surveillance

Andhra Pradesh, once the hotbed of red terror, has seen the attacks come down from 100 in 2010 to 17 in 2016.

'There have been none reported in NSTR, at least, between 2010 and 2015 during the time I was posted there,' said Rahul Pandey, former field director of NSTR.

Pandey attributes this to employing the local forest inhabitants in Project Tiger.

'The induction of Chenchus as tiger trackers, protection watchers, fire watchers and as base camp staff helped in regular surveillance.

'Chenchus are the ones completely aware of the terrain inside and they worked as anti-poaching squads and in land and river patrolling parties. Some were posted at check posts for monitoring vehicular traffic and in tiger-counting exercise,' Pandey added.
Sixty-year-old Narayani lives in the quaint town of Pinarayi. She lives in a small house by the main road all alone.

Narayani underwent three operations on her hip and finds it difficult to do things on her own.

Her husband Uthaman was a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker.

RSS cadres during a march in Kerala

He was active in party politics and that is why he was targeted and murdered in 2002 allegedly by Communist Party of India (Marxist) workers, she alleges.

Little did she know that in 2016, 14 years after her husband's death, the bloody party politics would claim her son's life as well.

'I don't have anyone. They murdered my husband and my son. They hacked him to death right in front of my house.

'My daughter and I witnessed the incident. He was someone who did not even vote. He was murdered just because his father was active with the BJP and he believed in their ideology', said Narayani.

Violence in the area has claimed many victims

Her son, 26-year-old Remith, gave up his job in Saudi and settled in Pinarayi to help his mother.

He was just 12 when his father died.

'Whatever little I could get from tailoring I used up to raise my children. Remith knew we were going through difficult times, which is why he took up odd jobs to help. He would deliver newspaper in the area and would also help a nearby grocer with delivering goods', said his mother.

'The murder took place at 10:30 am. He was hacked to death on the main road by a group of CPI(M) workers.

'As long as he (Pinarayi Vijayan) remains chief minister, my son will not get justice. If I ever meet him, I want to ask why my son was murdered', said Narayani.

Barely a kilometre-and-a-half down the road from Narayani's house stands a big white house.

Kannur, the home district of CM Pinarayi Vijayan, has witnessed several party workers losing their lives due to political rivalry

This property belongs to none other than Pinarayi Vijayan.

'He lives here, he passes by but not once has he come in and met me', she added.

Kannur has witnessed many political killings since 1969.

Since 2016 the district has witnessed 10 political murders.

Map showing the location of Kerala

Cadres from both RSS (Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh) - BJP and the CPI (M) are losing lives for just one reason  vendetta.

Payyanoor is a village in Kannur district which has also witnessed much violence in recent times.

In July last year, CV Dhanaraj, an active member of the CPI (M) was hacked to death in front of his family.

His mother Madhavi tried saving him till he breathed his last.

'Masked men came on three vehicles and slashed his leg first so that he could not escape.

'But still he ran into the backyard, but they managed to catch hold of him and stabbed him repeatedly until they were sure he was dead', recounts his mother.

Dhanaraj was killed at about 9:30 pm and within the next three hours of his death, the score was settled.

Payyanoor saw another murder, and this time it was a Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) member CK Ramachandran who was hacked to death, again in front of his family.

'Around 10 people attacked the house at 12:30 am. The windows were broken and the men started banging the door.

'They broke open the door, entered the house and stabbed my husband to death right in the middle of our living room.

'They did it in front of me and my children. My 13-year-old son is a witness to his father's death. No one came to help us. I identified most of the men as CPI(M) workers and one of them is even related to us', said 41-year-old Ranjini.

Delhi BJP supporters shouting slogans against CPI(M) leadership to protest the attacks on RSS workers in Kerala at CPI(M) HQ at Gole Market on October 10, 2016 in New Delhi, India (stock photo)

Ramachandran was an auto-driver and an active member of BMS, a wing of the BJP.

He contested the Municipal elections. Around two years ago the family received threats from the CPI(M), according to his wife Ranjini.

'Our auto was set on fire and there was a wreath kept at the doorstep with a message saying, "next time we will behead you".

'I never thought they would actually enter the house and kill him'.

Ranjini and Sajjni, both victims to a political vendetta, reiterate the same allegation: the accused walked away Scot-free after the murders.

People are not scared of the law in Kannur and there is not going to be an end to it anytime soon.

And in July this year, the memorial gathering held for CV Dhanaraj was attacked.

CPI(M) cadre were injured in the petrol bomb attack. They alleged that this was carried out by the BJP-RSS camps.

Within no time, battle was declared. BJP-RSS offices were vandalised and then the workers attacked from both sides of the fence.

The CPI(M) suffered losses as did the BJP-RSS. The rule of Kannur politics is very simple  'one life for another'.
A major health project, which is a ray of hope for thousands of cancer patients in India at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at Jajjhar, needs a big push.

Construction work on ground of the central government's ambitious health project shows that it will take at least two years to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi's deadline, even if it begins straight away.

While PMO's deadline to start the first OPD of NCI was December 2017, the project is delayed and only skeleton buildings have been put up.

Mail Today visited NCI only to find construction work of one of the biggest health project worth `2035 crore, going at a turtle's pace.

The cancer project is in the slow lane

A worker at the construction site said: 'Forget about OPD in December 2017. It is delayed by a year.

'We lack manpower. We are only done with few half-constructed buildings. There are still no equipment, beds, diagnostic tools,' he said.

'Work started in December 2015 and its first OPD should start by December 2017. A full-fledged cancer institute should be functioning by September 2018.

'The project is expected to be completed with next three years. The delay is visible,' said a senior doctor.

'We are not done with power supply sub-station and water connection. Constructing an electricity sub station takes at least 10 months.

'We are awaiting a meeting with the Haryana government,' said sources in AIIMS.

There are hundreds of patients who fight to get treatment at Dr B R Ambedkar Institute Rotary Cancer Hospital

The institute is being built in a 32-acre Badsha village of Haryana.

It is being constructed on the lines of the National Cancer Institute of USA, as the government of India made a MoU with the USA NCI during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's October-2014 visit to America.

The institute will have 710 beds, of which 200 beds will be dedicated to Translational Research in India specific cancers.

When Mail Today contacted AIIMS director Dr Randeep Guleria, he said: 'We are having weekly meetings on the progress of the NCI project.

Cancer patients and families at AIIMS

'Even if it is being delayed, we want to launch OPD in a holistic manner. Purchase of equipments, recruitments of faculty, technicians and staff is yet to be done.

But we are hoping to be able to meet the deadline.'

There are hundreds of patients who fight to get treatment at Dr B R Ambedkar Institute Rotary Cancer Hospital.

A senior AIIMS doctor, on the condition of anonymity, said AIIMS' cancer department saw about 1,500 patients a day, with only around 300 receiving treatment.
Rebrand: the Association of British Inconsiderates

It is time for the Association of British Insurers, the flag waver for insurance companies bad and good, to undergo a rebrand.

Rather than pay expensive consultants to do the makeover, I have decided to offer my services for free (gratis).

From now on, it should be called the Association of British Inconsiderates, which means it can still use its new jazzed-up ABI logo (a logo which no doubt did not come cheap, like much of the insurance its members peddle).

I am sure you will agree, the Association of British Inconsiderates has a nice, honest ring to it and better reflects how the organisation's members (nasty insurers) go about their business.

That is, being inconsiderate to those customers who have remained loyal to them through thick and thin.

Harsh? No way, although no doubt the association and its members will think otherwise (I can feel a stroppy letter or two coming my way already).

Let me give you two examples of how this inconsiderate behaviour manifests itself and then judge for yourself whether I am being fair or not. Even better, tell me what you think (email address is below).

The first 'inconsideration' is to loyal motorists and homeowners who religiously renew their insurance with the same company every year. Customers who, you would have thought, should get special loving treatment because of their unbending devotion.

But no, they get exploited with premiums rising every year, irrespective of the fact that they have never made a claim.

As a consequence, their cover ends up far more expensive than if they were someone buying the same cover from their insurer for the first time. New over old. Loyalty costs, it does not pay.

Insurance companies are taking customers for a ride by failing to reward loyalty

Outrageous? Absolutely. Scandalous? Without a doubt.

Earlier this year, research by Consumer Intelligence showed that those who moved their home insurer after just one year saved 37 as a result.

Switching after five years saved them 78 while those who moved after nine or more years saved around 127  paying 124 for new cover against the 250 they would pay if remaining loyal. Similar savings from switching motor cover rather than staying loyal were also identified.

The Financial Conduct Authority now requires insurers to show on renewal letters for health, home and motor cover both the previous year's premium and the new one.

Such information, it hopes, will encourage more people to switch or renegotiate the price of their existing cover. Yet it should not be the responsibility of loyal customers to get on the phone to their insurer and negotiate a discount. It should be offered as a matter of course. 'Thank you for being loyal,' should be the message.

Aviva is one of the few insurers which accepts the current price discrimination against long-standing customers cannot go on with boss Mark Wilson describing the market as 'dysfunctional'.

In announcing the company's impressive interim results last week  healthy profits plus a shareholder-friendly dividend  he confirmed that the insurer was 'trialling' a new pricing structure which rewarded loyalty.

The quicker this is introduced the better, although no doubt there will be some devil in the detail as is always the case with policy small print.

The second inconsideration relates to loyal customers who are not price discriminated against but who are left with outdated cover. It was an issue we touched upon seven days ago.

It is prevalent in critical illness cover, an insurance designed to pay out a lump sum in the event of serious illness  cancer, heart attack, stroke and multiple sclerosis.

Many policies bought today are superior to those purchased a decade ago, covering a wider range of illnesses and cancers.

But unless longstanding holders of such insurance have the good fortune and common sense to use a respectable financial adviser, they will have no idea that their cover is outdated. Certainly, their insurer will not tell them that it could be in their best interests to upgrade.

No doubt the inconsiderates argue that it would cost them  and their shareholders  too much to inform customers about the benefit of upgrading.

But that is just yet another excuse. If they can jam my letterbox with unsolicited offers of everything from home insurance through to an equity release plan (I have none to release, thank you) they can certainly afford to do the decent thing and look after their most loyal customers.

The Association of British Inconsiderates. Shame on you.

jeff.prestridge@mailonsunday.co.uk
Financial watchdogs on both sides of the Atlantic are poised to roll back regulations  and we should be worried.

In the US it is thought the regulators are planning to re-write rules that ban big investment banks gambling on the markets with their own money.

The so-called Volcker rule, introduced in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, was brought in to curb the danger that banks would make risky investments with their own money, exposing themselves to big losses and fuelling instability.

Under Donald Trump, a review is underway to ease off on those rules. Details are unknown but already bank shares in the US are surging.

Reckless: Under Donald Trump, a review is underway to ease off on financial regulations. Details are unknown but already bank shares in the US are surging

In the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority is looking at relaxing the rules to make it easier for large groups controlled by foreign governments to list on the London stock market.

Though no one says it explicitly, this seems clearly aimed at luring Saudi oil giant Aramco to list its shares in London.

This would be a short-term boon to the City and it is hard not to feel that in some ways the rules adjustments are partly motivated by a desire to offset the risk Brexit poses to the City.

In the long run it may come back to haunt the Square Mile if  though I suspect when  a major foreign-owned company clashes with minority UK shareholders and the small investor, or even a City institution finds it is overwhelmed by the power of a state-controlled group.

These developments in the US and UK point to an environment in which the valuable lessons of recent years are being forgotten in pursuit of a short-term boost to financial markets.

The relaxing of UK listing rules has even drawn criticism from the Institute of Directors, not typically known for its love of regulation. But the IoD recognises that a key attraction of the London market is its reputation for stability, reliable rules and a system that protects the rights of all shareholders.

There are valid fears that relaxing the rules for big foreign state-owned groups will undermine the rights of smaller shareholders. The last thing the UK needs if it is to hold its own as a financial centre is a reputation for bending the rules for short-term gain.

How the US Volcker rule will be amended is unclear. But I do not have much faith that the Trump administration will oversee changes with the appropriate caution.

The lessons learnt from crises and scandals are all eventually forgotten, but it usually takes a generation or more. I have a worrying feeling that memories are getting shorter.
MS L.R. writes: After several unsolicited calls, my parents were under the impression British Gas would be calling to provide advice on how to save on their energy bills. In fact they were visited by a salesman from National Heating Solutions Limited.

He was in their home for three hours, selling a new heating system costing 10,000.

Dad is not in good health and had to lie down, but the salesman told Mum that if a 2,000 deposit was not paid that day, the price would rise to 15,000, so she should disturb Dad to get his bank debit card.

When I returned home from work, we discussed the pros and cons and they decided to cancel the order the next day. Now the firm's contact number goes straight to voicemail and no one calls back.

A firm called National Heating Solutions tried to push an expensive heating system on an elderly couple who were under the impression they were dealing with British Gas

What you describe is like the worst of old-fashioned foot-in-the-door sales tactics.

Your parents are in their 70s, and you calculated that any savings from a new heating system would bring no benefit in their lifetime, which is why they tried to cancel the order.

National Heating Solutions says it operates a 28-day refund policy, but no refund arrived, your emails were ignored, and calls were not returned.

So you contacted me, and I contacted the company's sole director, John Rowan, 51, who lives in Glasgow.

He said he was 'not happy' with what you told me. He added: 'We regret that most of the information is wholly inaccurate, and we would not give our permission to publish such false and misleading information. We are currently collating our evidence against the claims.'

The matter was in the hands of his lawyers, he told me.

I replied, saying I looked forward to hearing from his lawyers. But when neither they nor Rowan offered any further comment, I politely explained that I did not need any permission from him to go ahead and publish.

Equally politely, I also told him I knew all about his previous company, JR Marketing Limited, which operated a telephone call centre.

This company failed to pay bills and did not file accounts legally due. The taxman won a court order to shut the business, and Rowan then failed to hand over the firm's books and records to the liquidator.

He was also unable to deliver a statement of affairs about its finances and debts. JR Marketing was dissolved two weeks ago.

Surprise, surprise, rather than comment further, Rowan has now wound up National Heating Solutions. It is too soon for the liquidator to produce details of its debts but Rowan has told Companies House it cannot pay its bills.

The good news though is that after getting in touch with me you contacted Trading Standards and your father's bank, Lloyds, which managed to snatch back the 2,000.

Officially, the bank has waited to see whether Rowan might lodge a protest. But with his company now bust, I think it is safe to say Lloyds has come to the rescue and your father's money is secure.

AA comes to rescue over its 20 voucher Mrs M.H. writes: I joined the AA and was supposed to get a 20 voucher to spend at Marks & Spencer. Despite numerous telephone calls, I have still not received the voucher. The AA = is usually pretty efficient at delivering its marketing gifts, so I asked what had gone wrong. The explanation is that the voucher is not sent by post, but by email, and you have to click on a link to activate it. I believe you are 81 years old, and while you do have an email address, you may not have understood how to generate the voucher. But, no problem. The AA has now phoned you and offered a 20 cheque instead, and you have said you are delighted to accept this.




Once solely the preserve of VIP passengers, airport lounges are now available to everyone  at a price  and can get your holiday off to a flying start.

Lounges allow passengers to escape the chaos of the airport terminal and chill out with comfortable seating, unlimited food and drink and free wi-fi.

But with entry to the most luxurious lounges costing 40 or more, the price tag might put some off. Yet there are ways to cut costs, especially for regular travellers.

Flying visit: Airport lounges can offer a welcome relief from the chaos in the departure lounge

AIRLINE VERSUS AIRPORT LOUNGES

It is important to understand the distinction between airline lounges and airport lounges. Airline offerings tend to be the exclusive preserve of first and business class passengers. They are also often open to frequent flyers.

These lounges offer the swankiest facilities. Typically, they provide unlimited food and drink, waiter service, showers, sleeping pods, spa services, wi-fi and workstations. Some offer great views of the runway too.

Facilities vary between airlines and locations with the poshest lounges found at the airline's main hub  for example, Heathrow for British Airways. In some cases passengers with other class tickets, or travelling with other airlines, can pay for access.

By contrast, airport lounges are owned and run by independent operators. Plaza Premium Lounges has more than 140 lounges in 35 worldwide airports including Heathrow, Abu Dhabi, Singapore and Beijing.

No. 1 Lounges has facilities at London's Gatwick and Heathrow as well as Birmingham and Edinburgh airports. Swissport runs Executive, Aspire and Aspire-Plus lounges with facilities at most major UK airports as well as key hubs in Europe, North America and Africa.

Airport lounges are easier to access than airline lounges  you can pay per visit or join a membership scheme.

Style: The opulent airport lounge at Heathrow's Terminal 5. Airline offerings tend to be the exclusive preserve of first and business class passengers

PAY PER VISIT

Lounge passes can be purchased in advance either directly from a lounge operator or via a third party such as Lounge Buddy, Lounge Pass or Holiday Extras. These websites are a great way to compare deals. Prices depend on the lounge brand and location, but range from 25 to 40. Passes tend to be for two, three or six hours.

Donna McSherry, owner of Sleeping in Airports which sells passes via Lounge Pass, says: 'When you are trying to work out the value of paying for an airport lounge, you should look at the services and amenities you are going to use.

'For many passengers on a long layover it is valuable to have access to a shower, a meal or a drink or two, and to be able to relax in a comfortable seat.'

It is wise to book ahead. To keep their exclusive feel, facilities will have a cap on the number of people who can be admitted at any one time.

Buying a pass in advance can also save money. A three-hour pass to the No. 1 Lounge at Gatwick costs 30 in advance but 37.50 on the door.

Some lounges offer sleeping or spa facilities, but you will pay extra for these. For example, passengers flying from Heathrow Terminal 5 can pay 34.99 to access the Aspire lounge and spa, but a package including a 20-minute spa treatment will set you back 55.

It is worth checking cashback websites before you buy a lounge pass. Topcashback is currently offering a 15 per cent cashback on lounge passes bought via Holiday Extras, and rival Quidco is paying 11 per cent cashback on No. 1 Lounges and 8 per cent on Swissport.

Facilities vary between airlines and locations with the poshest lounges found at the airline's main hub  for example, Heathrow for British Airways

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP

Regular flyers are often better off buying an annual pass for access. Tyler Dikman, chief executive of LoungeBuddy, says: 'Annual passes can be worthwhile if you are a frequent traveller and believe you will be utilising lounge access frequently. If you plan to use an airport lounge at least ten times in one year, it is probably more economical to buy an annual pass.'

Swissport offers annual membership starting from about 260. This provides unlimited access to Aspire and Swissport lounges for the member and one guest. The price jumps to 400 for access to AspirePlus lounges too.

Schemes with access to more than one lounge brand tend to offer better value. The two most popular are DragonPass and Priority Pass.

DragonPass covers about 800 airport lounges around the world including those run by Swissport, Plaza Premium and No. 1 Lounges. Members also get up to 25 per cent discount on airport restaurants bills.

It has three membership options. Classic costs $99 (76) a year and includes one lounge visit. Preferential membership costs $219 (168) and permits eight visits. Prestige membership offers unlimited lounge access and costs $399 (306). In each case extra visits or guests cost $27 (21) a time.

Priority Pass offers access to more than 1,000 lounges worldwide including Plaza Premium and No. 1 Lounges. It has three membership options and, to celebrate its 25th anniversary, has reduced its membership costs for new members.

If you sign up this year, standard membership costs 51 for a year but you also pay 15 per lounge visit. Standard Plus costs 127 and includes ten visits with additional visits priced at 15.

Prestige membership, offering unlimited lounge visits, costs 233. In each case members can take a guest for 15 a time. The normal annual fees are 69, 159, and 259 respectively.

FREE AND DISCOUNTED PASSES

Packaged bank accounts and premium credit cards offer a raft of benefits which sometimes include airport lounge access. In general, these cards are not worth buying for lounge access alone, but if you have one already it makes sense to use it.
Search: Joe Bauernfreund looks for undervalued stocks

British Empire is something of an investment oddball. But shareholders are none the worse for its unusual investment approach as evidenced by the bumper returns they have enjoyed over the past year.

The trust is managed by London-based Asset Value Investors and, in particular, Joe Bauernfreund who has had a handle on the fund's investments for the past 15 years.

In broad terms, he scours the corporate world in search of businesses where he believes seriously undervalued assets exist.

He then takes a stake in the hope of these assets being properly recognised at some stage. This 'value' may crystallise through a company selling a previously undervalued subsidiary at a profit.

Or it could result from a holding in an investment fund acquired when its share price was trading at a discount but where that discount has been eliminated.

It is a particular investment strategy that involves meticulous research. It also requires a mix of patience, opportunism and occasionally working with company boards to force through necessary change.

Apart from British Empire, only two other investment trusts  Lazard World and Miton Global Opportunities  have such a modus operandi.

All have delivered investors more than satisfactory returns over the past year  33 per cent, 27 per cent and 43 per cent respectively. Over the same period the FTSE All-Share Index has increased in value by 18 per cent.

Bauernfreund currently has three main strings to his investment bow. First, some 40 per cent of the portfolio is invested in big sprawling family- controlled businesses where he and his four strong team has identified locked-in value.

These stakes will take a while to bear fruit, with the trigger point being a corporate event: a disposal, restructuring or listing of a previously unlisted business.

French-listed Wendel is a case in point. The Wendel family has a 37 per cent stake in the company which in turn holds positions in a portfolio of businesses including South African insurer Saham and French multinational Saint-Gobain.

Wendel is British Empire's biggest holding and Bauernfreund is confident that over the next 12 months, it will add to the trust's performance as a number of unlisted companies it holds  including mobile phone mast owner IHS  are sold.

Another 40 per cent of the trust's portfolio is in a mix of closed ended funds where Bauernfreund is looking to benefit from a narrowing of their share price discounts. A recent success story was a stake in investment fund DWS Vietnam which British Empire took three years ago when the fund's share price was sitting at a 40 per cent discount to the underlying assets.

Bauernfreund was instrumental in getting the fund to stick to a promise made at launch to allow investors to get out at net asset value after 10 years, enabling British Empire to bank a tidy profit.

The final string is a portfolio of 'special situations', primarily comprising positions in a dozen Japanese companies which Bauernfreund believes will reward shareholders as they improve corporate governance.

Combined, the three strings make for what Bauernfreund describes as an 'eclectic' portfolio with 90 per cent of the trust held in just 25 core holdings.

A recent profile of the trust by London-based Kepler described British Empire as a 'highly active, benchmark agnostic' portfolio. An investment oddball through and through, albeit highly effective.
The technology industry is warning that new companies will be hit by a multi-million pound funding gap unless the UK remains part of a key international investment scheme after Brexit.

Trade group techUK  which represents 950 tech companies  said it is vital any Brexit deal allows Britain to continue to benefit from the European Investment Fund.

TechUK chief executive Julian David warned that a Government plan to boost investment in new firms, which was unveiled last week, could never replace the funds currently being funnelled through Europe. These amount to an average of 500 million each year.

TechUK said it is vital Britain continues to benefit from the European Investment Fund

David said: 'Right now the real priority for Government must be ensuring the UK remains part of the European Investment Fund.

'The EIF continues to be a key investor into UK tech and any new post-Brexit system must seek to maintain the UK's link to this Europe-wide fund.'

The EIF is backed by the EU and helps to channel private investment to new companies. It led to at least 2 billion being poured into smaller British innovative firms from 2011-2015.

Last week, Chancellor Philip Hammond announced proposals to launch a UK-based investment fund in the event that Britain ceases to benefit from cash injections from the EIF.

The Treasury said this would 'help ensure that firms still have access to the funding they need should our relationship with the European Investment Fund end when the UK leaves the EU'.

However, David said: 'A new national fund would struggle to compete with such an established source of support sitting just across the Channel. We should not be looking to reinvent the wheel.'

The key concern for the sector is the gap between funding for tech firms in the UK and their rivals in the US.

David said: 'The UK tech industry is the European leader in securing venture capital funding, but we still lag behind the US on the longer term investment that helps businesses scale up.

'If we want to compete globally then this has to change.'

He added: 'Determining how the UK can improve its own funding mechanisms to help businesses of the future grow must sit alongside continuing to be part of established European systems post-Brexit.'
Call: BCC bvoss Adam Marshall says change is vital

Schools and colleges should recruit more business executives to work as governors to help close the gap in skills and work ethic among many young people, according to the head of the British Chambers of Commerce.

Dr Adam Marshall, director general of the BCC, said Britain was facing a shortage of 'employability skills' such as teamwork, respect and even simply turning up on time.

Marshall said the skills gap was a more pressing problem than Brexit. He called for a change in attitudes towards vocational education, adding that work-related education should be valued as much as academic learning.

He also criticised what he described as the 'university at all costs' approach to education.

Marshall called for more interaction between businesses and schools. In addition to wanting to see more business chiefs becoming school governors, he said that many teachers, not just school pupils, would benefit from work experience in business.

He said: 'Business people have served for many years on school governing bodies and what they report back is that schools often don't have a deep understanding of business and enterprise.

'It's an area where many teachers don't have direct experience themselves because they'll have gone straight into the teaching profession from their own education.'

Asked what skills were missing from many new workers, Marshall said: 'Some of this is down to what we call 'employability skills', the kind of things which people learn from both families and education about teamwork, problem-solving, turning up on time, respect for customers and for managers, dedication and grit.

'And business people, when they see those skills in young people they are really, really keen to develop them and propel them forward.'
Leading hotel chains are preparing to launch a volley of business rate appeals over the meteoric rise of Airbnb, which they argue has had a huge impact on their business.

The appeals follow a major review of business rates, which has seen many hotels' bills more than double  just as Airbnb has created a vast network of rooms and properties to rent that pay no business rates at all.

The website's bookings are said to be the equivalent of hundreds of new hotels springing up.

In just two years, the number of Airbnb bookings in London alone has sprung up by the equivalent of ten Shards

Companies can ask for a reduction in their business rates bill if they believe there has been a 'material change' in their circumstances.

And rating specialists at property consultant Colliers International are advising hoteliers they have a strong case to argue that Airbnb and other hotel business 'disruptors' have done exactly that.

The problem is particularly acute in London. John Webber, head of rating at Colliers, told The Mail on Sunday: 'We're still in a buoyant market for hotels, and occupancy levels are up, due in part to the exchange rate. The problem will be when the music stops.

'Hoteliers will then look round and notice that Airbnb has bookings for millions of nights and from a rating point of view that does make a difference.'

Airbnb, whose site allows people to rent out spare rooms to visitors for a night at a time, is growing rapidly.

New research carried out by Colliers and hospitality institute Hotelschool The Hague found that nights booked in London with Airbnb more than doubled from 2 million in 2015 to 4.6 million in 2016.

Airbnb's share of overnight stays also more than doubled to 9 per cent, while the number of active properties listed so far in 2017 has risen by 80 per cent year-on-year.

Threat: Hotels such as the Dorchester must compete with Airbnb bookings

Webber said: 'If a hotel is built down the road from your hotel, that's a material change and grounds for an appeal against your business rates. Hoteliers should look at how many Airbnb rooms are booked near them and, if appropriate, use that as grounds for appeal.

'If you translate those 2.6 million extra Airbnb nights plus the 55 per cent rise so far this year, it's the equivalent of ten Shards, or several hundred new hotels across the UK. If that was happening on the ground you would notice it.

The problem is it can slip under the radar and if your turnover is still going up you might not notice it straightaway.

'We act for a number of hotel operators and there are plenty of appeals that we will be making over the coming weeks because of this.'

Ufi Ibrahim, head of the British Hospitality Industry, said she would 'absolutely support' hotels taking action, but feared delays, adding: 'Waiting for the Valuation Office to process all these appeals  and the volume is going to be high  while hotels are seeing their margins eroded would be very worrying.

'The rise in business rates is too high. The system needs to be fundamentally reformed and we need the Chancellor to act quickly, otherwise businesses are going to be squeezed post-Brexit.'

Like other businesses, hotels saw huge increases in their business rates from April 2017. The Dorchester in Mayfair is seeing rates rise by 131 per cent, while one hotel in Belgravia is facing a rise of 194 per cent. Several in Victoria are seeing rises of more than 150 per cent.

Vital income: The average UK host on Airbnb shares their space for less than four nights a month to help boost their income

Ibrahim accused platforms such as Airbnb of operating in 'Wild West-style'. She said: 'Half the Airbnb room nights in London are offered by professional landlords who are not complying with the law, either by letting out multiple properties, or for more than 90 nights a year. And they are using the platform to circumvent planning regulations, health and safety regulations and tax, and particularly business rates.'

An Airbnb spokesman told The Mail on Sunday: 'Hotels are making near record profits and appear to be doing all they can to avoid paying taxes.

Airbnb is an economic lifeline for families, and hosts are not typically businesses or professionals.

The average UK host on Airbnb shares their space for less than four nights a month to help boost their income, which is subject to personal taxes like income and council tax.'

The company added that Airbnb has attracted support from within the hotel industry  such as Taleb Rifa, secretary-general of the UN World Tourism Organisation, who recently said hotel chains need to stop complaining about companies such as Airbnb and instead embrace the opportunity.

Bookings in the boroughs of Westminster, Kensington & Chelsea, Hackney and Tower Hamlets, accounted for nearly half of all London Airbnb stays last year.

Webber said hotels in these areas should take particular note, and begin appeals against rate bills, as should hotels in cities such as Oxford and Bath that attract tourists and hence Airbnb operators.

'Everyone quotes the financial advantage Amazon has over traditional retailers, by not paying the same business rates, but the hotel industry is similarly affected.

'Hoteliers need to fight back and point out 'the material change' created by operators such as Airbnb to get their rate bills under control.'
Guy Hands injected 13.3m into his loss-making country house hotel chain last year

Financier Guy Hands injected 13.3 million of cash into his loss-making country house hotel chain last year, to add to the millions he has already invested in the company.

Hand Picked Hotels, run by his wife Julia, owns 20 hotels across the British Isles, including the Grand Jersey hotel and spa and Bailbrook House, Bath.

Guy Hands put in the funds via Alscot, his Luxembourg-incorporated vehicle, which controls the chain, to add to the 4.6 million invested the year before.

The firm also owes Guy Hands 11.2 million and Julia Hands 14 million.

Accounts just filed for Hand Picked Hotels show turnover of 61.9 million for the year to November 24, 2016, down from 62.4 million, due in part to the disposal of Priest House hotel in Derby in February 2016, while pre-tax losses rose from 2.3 million to 3.5 million.

Julia Hands said: 'On a like-for-like basis turnover rose by 1.8 per cent or 1.1 million, with growth in occupancy and average room rates.

We continue to invest heavily in improving quality, and 2016 saw the reopening of our spa and health club at St Pierre Park Hotel in Guernsey as well as extensive room refurbishments at Hotel L'Horizon in Jersey and Rhinefield House Hotel in Hampshire, continuing to drive our market-leading customer satisfaction scores.'
A woman who has spent 20 years tasting Australia's best beers has shared her top tips for enjoying a cold brew.

Tina Panoutsos is a beer expert and sensory and consumer science manager for Carlton and United Breweries.

She conducts in-house training and consumer research, is involved in product development, and has judged some of the world's largest beer competitions.

Ms Panoutsos has some dos and don'ts for getting the best out of a beer, and a couple of unexpected suggestions for what foods go well with certain brews.

Tina Panoutsos (pictured) is a beer expert who has been in the industry as a scientist for 2 years

The Carton United Breweries sensory and science manager has some great tips for drinkers (pictured, stock image) to get the most out of a cold brew

Beer (pictured, stock image) needs to be consumed fresh, says Ms Panoutsos, and advises people to read best before dates and not buy in bulk

The beer scientist told Daily Mail Australia the sensory aspect of Australia's favourite drink concerned a brew's appearance, aroma and taste.

She stresses beer is a food product and cannot be stored indefinitely or taste and aroma will suffer.

'Some beers don't age as well as others. Most beers shouldn't be cellared, except for your high alcohol content ones like Belgian triples,' she says.

'A lot of people buy large amounts of beer in bulk to save money but it can't be kept forever.'

Up to two-thirds of the aroma can be lost if people drink beer (pictured, stock image) from the bottle, Ms Panoutsos says

Heat will also shorten the shelf life of beer (pictured, stock image), and most beers should never be cellared

The best before date on a bottle is calculated for each individual brew, she says, and is designed to deliver the freshest product.

Ms Panoutsos also warns beer connoisseurs to keep their chosen drop out of the sun, which is 'one of the biggest killers of beer'.

Beer that has been in the sun too long will start to smell like an old pub barmat and develop a flavour known in the industry as 'lightstruck,' or 'catty,' 'skunky' in the US.

She warns that heat in general can rapidly accelerate the aging process, and take months off a best-before date, as shelf lives are based on ambient temperatures.

On the question of what receptacle - bottle, can or glass - is best to drink beer from, Ms Panoutsos answers without hesitation.

'If I had one wish at this point in my life it would be for everyone to drink beer out of a glass,' she said.

'Drinking out of a bottle misses two thirds of the aroma,' she explains, but says the glass must be 'clean, clean, clean'.

She says sampling a beer from a bottle and from a glass can leave the drinker with totally different impressions.

Ms Panoutsos has some unconventional advice regarding food choices, and suggests people try a beer (pictured, stock image) with dessert, as bitterness cuts sweetness

Everyone has a different palate though, and her advice to people who don't like a particular food and beer (pictured, stock image) combination is to move on

'When you are trying something new try it out of a glass - give it its due.'

Perhaps the most surprising advice CUB's beer scientist has to offer is in regards to food combinations.

'When you are looking at the flavour of beer and the flavour of food you are looking to compliment, contrast or cut,' Ms Panoutsos said.

'I like to contrast a big rich bitter stout with a decadent chocolate cake - there is nothing better than cutting sweetness with bitterness.'

'People are always shocked to hear it but then they try it and it blows them away. Dessert wine is sugar on sugar and leaves a cloying taste in your month.'

But she stresses everyone has a different palate and the same combinations are not for everyone.

'If you don't like a combination, move on,' Ms Panoutsos told Daily Mail Australia.

'I've never understood oysters and stout, but a lot of people love it.'

Ms Panoutsos also says that beer (pictured) can be sipped and doesn't have to be sculled or consumed in huge quantities

'Try a stout in a small tulip glass and drink it slowly, the whole experience changes,' she said as part of one of her beer drinking (pictured, stock image) tips

Chips and lager is another no-no for her, she laughs, and suggests pairing a curry with a fruity beer instead, something crisp and clean to cut the spice.

Ms Panoutsos also says that beer can be sipped and doesn't have to be sculled or consumed in huge quantities.

Top Tips from Carlton United's Beer Scientist - Don't bulk buy - Read best before dates - Sunlight is the biggest beer killer - Heat damages beer - Always drink from a glass - Glasses must be clean clean clean! - The right glass for the right beer - Use bitter beers cut sweet food - Drink clean crisp beers with curries - Try sipping a stout from a tulip glass Advertisement

'Try a stout in a small tulip glass and drink it slowly, the whole experience changes,' she said.

Ms Panoutsos is often asked what it is like being a female in a male-dominated industry, and she says it has never been an issue.

'When I started I was one of six females out of 45 people in the lab,' she said.

'I haven't felt disadvantaged and I've been offered a lot of opportunities. It's about whether you are capable and qualified.'

In the past decade and a half, Ms Panoutsos has seen big changes in the beer industry, as local consumers learn more about beer and refine their tastes.

Craft beer has been a big influence, as has access to more international beers, especially from Europe.

Although the beer industry (pictured, stock image) has changed brewers are as dedicated, precise, and passionate as ever

When she started at Carlton United Breweries (pictured, stock image) Ms Panoutsos was one of only six women in the lab

'People are learning more about the raw materials that go into beer, more about the different styles, such as lagers, wheat beers and pale ales.'

On the other hand, there are still many people looking for a more reliable sensory experience who prefer familiar styles and flavours.

Ms Panoutsos notes the growth in beer knowledge has also affected the industry, and changed the way beer is marketed.

'Twenty years ago we drove consumer choice, but now we are also being driven by consumer choice,' she said.

Some things have not changed at all, however, most notably the precision, dedication and passion of Australian brewers.

'People stay for life,' she said.
Teacher Cameron White is pictured here with some of his young male students

A teacher jailed for sex with three of his students was convicted of supplying and possessing MDMA at a music festival - but kept teaching and committing vile acts with teenagers.

Cameron Peter White, 39, from Sydney's south, was this week jailed for sex acts with a 14-year-old boy and two teenage girls over several occasions between 2007 and 2013.

And Daily Mail Australia can now reveal startling new details of White's history - including his 2010 drug convictions and chilling student reviews in the school yearbook.

In the yearbook, one student recalled: 'Every topic we did somehow related to what we did on the weekend or what he did.

'There were so many stories and I'm still waiting to hear the rest of them when we're all 18 and signed out!'

Another of the geography teacher's students recalled White making the bizarre comment: 'Look man, if you're homosexual, that's cool, I don't judge'.

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Mr White is a former personal trainer who trained young men at the gym, sources said

'Mr White': It's understood the troubled teacher (left and right) taught geography at various schools

Court papers revealed White, from Sutherland, south of Sydney, was convicted in 2010 with supplying and possessing 32 MDMA pills at the Harbourlife music festival.

White purportedly told the court he had found the 32 multi-coloured pills at the Chinese Laundry nightclub, where he worked as a bouncer.

He admitted planning to supply the pills to his friends and keep half for himself, the court was told.

Several of his sex offences took place after his drug convictions.

White taught at three different school campuses for periods between 2007 and 2015, including Woolooware High School and the Peakhurst and Oatley campuses of Georges River College.

Under the Education Department's code of conduct, 'the outcome of criminal proceedings against employees may be considered as possible breaches of the Code of Conduct and action, including disciplinary action, may be taken.'

Cameron Peter White, 39, appears a far cry from his former self in this exclusive mugshot

It's understood the Department may not have been made aware of White's drug convictions, which resulted in White being slapped with a good behaviour bond.

The department was approached for comment but did not respond.

Some of White's sex crimes involved a 14-year-old boy, who he called 'my b****'', the others with teenage girls.

During the trial, White told the court of one of the girls was like his 'little sister' - infuriating one of the victims who said she'd been left feeling ashamed in the years since.

The 19 offences included White receiving oral sex in the school fire escape and intercourse at his flat after the Year 12 formal.

Bizarrely, one sexual rendezvous was at his mother's house. Another was with a teen who he picked up after she visited the beach with friends.

One of his students asked him for a written career recommendation. He said yes, but only if she had anal sex with him.

Handing down his judgment, District Judge James Bennett SC said White was seen by the student body as a 'cool' teacher.

It was a position he 'abused' and 'exploited' for his own sexual benefit, the court was told. Also one that he showed no remorse for, Judge Bennett said.

SOME YEARBOOK ENTRIES ABOUT 'EASYGOING' MR WHITE Student: 'Every topic we did somehow related to what we did on the weekend or what he did. 'There were so many stories and I'm still waiting to hear the rest of them when we're all 18 and signed out!' Another student recalled Mr White told the class: 'Look man, if you're homosexual, that's cool, I don't judge' A third added: 'Another said it 'didn't feel like I learned one thing but I went well' Advertisement

White worked at three different school campuses when the offences were committed (stock photo)

Court appearance: Judge Bennett noted White is entering his 40th year and pegged his crimes at the mid-range of seriousness

He was caught with 32 MDMA pills at the Harbourlife music festival (stock photograph)

A drug sniffer dog detected the MDMA pills on White that day

White, who came from a 'good family', protested his innocence throughout the criminal trial.

At the sentencing on Wednesday afternoon, the judge grew hoarse as he handed down his decision.

'He abused his position as a teacher and exploited their vulnerability for sexual gratification,' the judge said.

'But he was a very immature man'.

White will serve a minimum six years and a maximum of 11 years' imprisonment.

Do you know more? Email this reporter - tips@dailymail.com
The chilling moment a killer walked into a resort in Florida before shooting dead two employees was caught on surveillance footage and released by police.

Security guard Kevin Carter, 51, and front desk manager Timothy Hurley, 59, were fatally shot early Friday morning at the Zota Beach Resort on Longboat Key, Florida, a barrier island off Sarasota.

Longboat Key Police released security footage that shows the killer walking into the lobby of the hotel.

The person is carrying a gun and appears to be wearing a mask and can be seen making an ominous gesture, swiping his hand across his throat.

Later, the person can be seen leaving the lobby carrying a cash drawer.

The chilling moment a killer walked into the Zota Beach Resort on Longboat Key, Florida, before shooting two employees was caught on surveillance footage and released by police. The killer is pictured swiping his hand across his neck in an ominous gesture

In a different video clip after the first, the shooter can be seen leaving the hotel lobby with a cash drawer under his arm (pictured). The shooting happened around 2.41am between the time of the clips showing the shooter entering and leaving the lobby

The shooting happened around 2.41am between the time of the clips showing the person entering and leaving the lobby, ABC News reported.

Police were called to the hotel around 3.30am when a guest who was leaving for the airport discovered Carter and Hurley, who had died from their gunshot wounds.

Officers are calling the incident a 'robbery gone bad' because the killer took a few hundred dollars from the cash register, according to Longboat Key Police Chief Pete Cumming.

He described the shooting as 'isolated', adding he has 'no concerns for residents or visitors on the island'.

Officers from agencies in Sarasota and Manatee counties spent 12 hours at the crime scene, according to ABC.

The incident happened at the Zota Beach Resort (pictured) on Longboat Key, Florida, a barrier island off Sarasota

Zota Beach Resort, (pictured) on Florida's Gulf Coast, was closed after the shooting while police investigated the crime scene, but it has since been reopened

Cumming said police have not ruled out the possibility of a second suspect.

Police are offering a reward for up to $19,000 for any information leading to an arrest, the Bradenton Herald reported.

The Longboat Key Police Department and the Manatee County Sheriff's Office are investigating the double homicide.

Zota Beach Resort, on Florida's Gulf Coast, was closed after the shooting while police investigated the crime scene, but it has since been reopened, according to ABC 13.

This case is the first murder in the Longboat Key community in 15 years, according to the outlet.

Hurley's family released a statement Sunday asking for prayers as they mourn his loss.

'Tim was the glue that held our family together,' they said. 'We feel lost and hopeless without him. He worked in the hospitality industry because he loved to serve people.

'He was the most selfless, loving and compassionate man that we have ever known. Our lives will never be the same without him. Please keep our family in your prayers.'
A four-month-old girl died after her grandmother forgot the baby was in her car and left her there for hours while she was working, authorities say.

Investigators were called around 5.30pm Friday to the parking lot of the Apple Creek Learning Center daycare in Luther, Oklahoma, where they found the child dead in the car's back seat.

Oklahoma County Sheriff's Office spokesman Mark Opgrande said the grandmother has full custody of the infant and intended to drop her off at the daycare on her way to work in Oklahoma City, where the outside temperature reached 88 degrees.

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A four-month-old girl died after her grandmother forgot the baby was in her car and left her there for hours while she was working in Oklahoma City on Friday

Investigators were called around 5.30pm Friday to the parking lot of the Apple Creek Learning Center (pictured) daycare in Luther, Oklahoma, where they found the child dead in the car's back seat

'The intention was to drop the child off here at the learning center but that didnt happen, and so the only thing we can surmise is that the child was in  apparently  the back of the vehicle at the grandmothers place of work for the entire day,' Opgrande told KFOR.

At the end of the day she arrived at the daycare to pick up the child.

'They informed her that she did not drop off the child and they went, proceeded to look for the child inside the daycare,' Opgrande said.

'They couldnt find her. Thats when they went out to the vehicle, and then discovered her outside in the back of the car. She was deceased.'

The grandmother was questioned by police and has since been released.

'Shes obviously distraught,' he said. 'This is a tragic situation and thats why we remind parents all the time. Its hot out and things like this arent supposed to happen, but they do.'

Oklahoma County Sheriff's Office is investigating the child's death at the request of Luther Police.

Opgrande said a report will be forwarded to prosecutors to consider charges.

The names of the infant and the grandmother have not yet been released by police.
An American Airlines flight landed after experiencing 'severe turbulence' shortly before landing, sending 10 people to the hospital for their injuries.

Three passengers and seven of the airline's crew members were rushed to a local hospital after a shaky flight from Greece to Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon.

The shaky in-bound plane encountered 'severe turbulence' right before flight 759 touched down at Philadelphia International Airport.

Flight attendants had just finished handing out drinks before the plane lurched, causing drinks to go flying and people to slam into the ceiling, according to reports.

Passengers described the event as terrifying and one claims a flight attendant dislocated his shoulder in the commotion.

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American Airlines flight 759 (file photo) had 'severe turbulence' before landing at Philadelphia International Airport on Saturday. Three passengers and seven crew members were taken to the hospital for their injuries

Passengers described the event as terrifying and one claims a flight attendant dislocated his shoulder in the commotion

Thirty minutes before landing, the plane 'lurched', causing people to become injured, according to reports. The plane was traveling from Athens to Philadelphia

Passenger Ian Smith retold the events of the flight to ABC 6, and said the plane was 30 minutes out when it suddenly fell through the sky.

He said: 'Thirty minutes out. They were giving us our drinks. The flight attendants were in the last couple rows when they said "fasten your seat belts."

'And then they said for the flight attendants to get to their seats, and they didn't even have time.

'It started shaking, then it took a big drop. Babies screaming, people in front of us hitting the ceiling.'

ProPublica reporter Jessica Huseman was another flier who went through the terrifying experience.

She wrote on Twitter: 'No warning at all. Plane lurched thru the air. Honestly, terrifying.

'Turbulence on flight was so insane and unexpected a flight attendant dislocated his shoulder.'

Flight attendants had just finished serving drinks when the turbulence happened, according to reports. Drinks went flying, 'soaking' the plane. Pictured: A passenger took photos of 'spilled coffee inside the lights' (left) and 'coffee staining the ceiling' (right)

American said in a statement: 'We are taking care of our passengers and our crew members at this time and want to thank our team members for keeping our passengers safe.' Pictured: Philadelphia International Airport

Huseman added: 'Some passengers are injured as well. We all used our fleece blankets to mop the ceiling of the plane down after drinks went flying.

'They'd *just* handed out drinks. This plane (that I'm still on) is soaked. Soaked. They'll be hosing this out for hours.'

The flight landed at 3.10pm but it was originally expected to land at 3.45pm, according to the airline's flight arrival times.

There were 287 passengers and 12 crew members on the flight coming from Athens.

The injured were taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation. There was no immediate word on their injuries or whether any would be admitted.

American said in a statement: 'We are taking care of our passengers and our crew members at this time and want to thank our team members for keeping our passengers safe.'
Fox News said Saturday that it has suspended Eric Bolling, the co-host of its late-afternoon news program 'The Specialists,' while it investigates allegations he sent a lewd photo to co-workers.

The network said in a statement that Bolling 'has been suspended pending the results of an investigation' into claims that he sent unsolicited images of his genitals to three female Fox News employees several years ago,The Huffington Post reported Friday evening.

Fox News said that an investigation 'is currently underway,' with attorney Paul Weiss leading the proceedings.

Fox News Host Eric Bolling (Pictured) was suspended Saturday from the network

The female employees said they knew it came from Bolling because of the phone number used in the message, with The Huffington Post citing more that dozen sources in their report.

The publication said that two female colleagues at the Fox Business Network and one co-worker at Fox News were the recipients of the tawdry text.

The identities of the women have not been released to the public.

Bolling has denied all allegations against him.

'The anonymous, uncorroborated claims are untrue and terribly unfair,' Bolling's attorney Michael J. Bowe wrote in an email.

'We intend to fully cooperate with the investigation so that it can be concluded and Eric can return to work as quickly as possible.'

Arguably Fox News' biggest star, Bill O'Reilly (Pictured) was fired in April after it was reported that he had harassed numerous women at the network for years

Roger Ailes (Pictured) resigned as the network's leader in July 2016 amid numerous harassment allegations. He died in May 2017

Bolling first joined Fox News in 2008 after leaving CNBC, hosting the Saturday morning business show hosts 'Cashin In' at 11.30am.

The Fox network also said in their statement released Saturday that 'Cashin In' was taped yesterday morning per usual and was pulled last night once FNC was made aware of the allegations via the Huff Post inquiry/story.'

Charles Payne (Pictured) was suspended in July after it emerged that he harassed a female political analyst

Rotating hosts will fill in for Bolling until the investigation is complete.

The suspension is the latest in a string of sexual harassment complaints against personalities who appear on Fox News and its business network.

In July, Fox Business Network host Charles Payne was suspended after the Los Angeles Times reported using anonymous sources that he harassed a female political analyst.

Payne remains on suspension while an investigation into the allegations continues.

Other harassment allegations have been leveled against Fox News' former star, Bill O'Reilly, who was fired in April after several women reported being harassed by the host.

The network's founding leader Roger Ailes resigned in July 2016 because of harassment allegations. He died in May after a fall at his home.

Ailes' protege, Bill Shine, temporarily took over running the Fox News empire following his mentor's departure, only to resign several months later over his own harassment scandal which surfaced in May.
An Oxford University worker and a professor wanted over a sex game murder have handed themselves in to police after more than a week on the run across the US.

Andrew Warren, 56, a senior treasury assistant at Somerville College, was taken into custody in California with Wyndham Lathem, 42, police said yesterday.

The pair allegedly stabbed hairdresser Trenton Cornell-Duranleau multiple times at Lathems Chicago flat on July 27.

Warren, of Faringdon, Oxfordshire, had boasted of bondage sex and torture games in an online dating profile  leading police to believe the 26-year-old victim may have been lured to his death.

Northwestern University professor Wyndam Lathem, pictured left, and Oxford University employee Andrew Warren, pictured right, handed themselves over to police after more than a week on the run

After fleeing 2,000 miles with Lathem, Warren handed himself in to police in San Francisco on Friday. Lathem, who worked at Northwestern University, then gave himself up in nearby Oakland.

Officers found a bloody knife at Lathems flat with the end of the blade snapped off.

Police sources said they believed it had been broken in a frenzied attack. The victim also had his genitals slashed, police said.

After the knifing, Warren and Lathem allegedly made a $1,000 (766) donation in the name of their victim at a library 80 miles away.

Lathem sent a mobile-phone video to friends saying: Ive made the biggest mistake of my life.

Lathem and Warren were wanted on first-degree murder charges in the July 27 stabbing death of 26-year-old hair stylist Trenton H. James Cornell-Duranleau, pictured

Warren left his home on July 24 to fly to the US without telling his family or long-term boyfriend.

Police said that the two men would appear in court in California over the coming days, then return to Chicago for questioning.
Malcolm Turnbull could face a High Court challenge if he goes ahead with a postal vote on gay marriage.

The warning from top constitutional lawyers comes as the prime minister prepares to hold an emergency meeting with Liberal MPs on redefining marriage.

Liberal MPs from the party's right faction want a postal vote on gay marriage, in a bid to thwart any attempt by moderate MPs to support a conscience vote in parliament.

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Malcolm Turnbull (with former Today entertainment reporter Richard Reid) has called an emergency Liberal Party meeting to resolve a postal vote on gay marriage

Barrister Ron Merkel, QC, says a postal vote on gay marriage could be unconstitutional

However, constitutional lawyers Ron Merkel, QC and Christopher Tran have prepared legal advice which argues a postal vote on gay marriage would be invalid unless it was underpinned by new laws, The Sun-Herald reported.

Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays campaigner Shelley Argent told the newspaper she would 'not hesitate to take the government to the High Court' based on this advice.

Gay Liberal politicians Tim Wilson, Trevor Evans, Trent Zimmerman and Dean Smith have threatened to cross the floor and vote with Labor and the Greens if there is a conscience vote on gay marriage.

The prime minister is declining to take a position on the issue, and has promised to hold a secret ballot if it comes to that.

Right-wing Liberal MPs, including Immigration Minister Peter Dutton, are pushing for a postal vote on gay marriage, after the Senate rejected Mr Turnbull's election promise of a plebiscite on redefining marriage.

Tony Abbott's former chief-of-staff Peta Credlin said on Wednesday night a postal vote could be the 'safety valve' that preserves Mr Turnbull's leadership.

Trevor Evans (pictured) is another Liberal MP who wants to see the matter decided via conscience vote

Malcolm Turnbull has called an emergency meeting of the Liberal Party to decide if there should be a postal vote to replace the controversial same sex marriage plebiscite

Peta Credlin (pictured) says a postal vote may be the 'safety valve' Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull needs to save his leadership

Speaking on The Bolt Report, Ms Credlin said a postal vote could happen before Christmas and help to satisfy growing rumbles in the Liberal party room.

Liberal ministers are confident a conscience vote would be shut down in both a Liberal and a Coalition party room.

But under Liberal Party rules, backbenchers are permitted to cross the floor and vote against their party.

There is yet to be a firm vow to cross the floor from any of the rogue MP's, who are currently leading the way in calls for changes to the Liberal policy.

Backbencher Dean Smith (pictured) is expected to introduce the idea of a conscience vote to the party room when Parliament resumes next week
Two children were left trapped in a car and their mother killed after a head-on crash in Sydney's south-west.

A 41-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene on Wednesday, while an eight-year-old and 13-year-old were taken to hospital requiring urgent medical treatment.

Paramedics just 10 minutes from the scene were delayed from attending however, with two ambulances at the nearby Bankstown 'super station' allegedly unable to be used.

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Two children were left trapped in a car and their mother killed after a head-on crash with a Mitsubishi 4WD (pictured) in Sydney's south-west on Wednesday

One ambulance was reportedly unstocked for a 'deep clean', while another intensive care vehicle was on hold for an incoming crew.

Five other crews from the station were also unable to attend the crash, because they were stuck waiting to unload patients or were attending other emergencies, according to The Daily Telegraph.

The crash happened about 5.45pm Wednesday on Heathcote Road in Voyagers Point.

A woman driving a Toyota Corolla reportedly collided with a Mitsubishi 4WD before slamming head-on into a tree.

The male driver of the Mitsubishi was uninjured, while the woman was pronounced dead at the scene and her children rushed to Liverpool Hospital.

The children were later transferred in serious but stable condition to The Children's Hospital at Westmead in Sydney.

A 41-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene on Wednesday, while two children, aged eight and 13, were taken to hospital requiring urgent medical treatment

Paramedics just 10 minutes from the scene were delayed from attending however, when two ambulances at the nearby Bankstown 'super station' were unable to be used (stock photo)

The crash happened about 5.45pm Wednesday on Heathcote Road in Voyagers Point, when A woman driving a Toyota Corolla reportedly collided with a Mitsubishi 4WD before then slamming head-on into a tree

Fire crews at the crash tried to resuscitate the woman, with an ambulance officer then arriving from Liverpool Ambulance station.

He called for four ambulances to attend the scene, with a nearby crew at Bankstown refused access to two vehicles, according to News Corp.

Other ambulances were sourced by the control centre, with the first medical aid arriving at the scene just after 6pm.

The NSW division of the Australian Paramedics Association claims it took more than half an hour though for all the requested vehicles to arrive at the scene.

Fire crews at the crash tried to resuscitate the woman, with an ambulance officer then arriving from Liverpool Ambulance station

Four ambulances were called to attend the scene, with a nearby crew at Bankstown refused access to two vehicles, according to News Corp

They called the scramble for resources 'unacceptable,' given the new super-station was designed to improve 'response performance'.

However, a NSW Ambulance spokesperson said the crash had occurred in the Liverpool response area and no ambulances were held up at hospitals.

'A total of eight ambulance resources responded to this incident, with the first crew on scene responding from Liverpool Hospital,' they said.

'At the time of this incident, NSW Ambulance data indicates there were no ambulances delayed at nearby hospitals which would have affected NSW Ambulance response performance.'

Police are investigating the crash and have spoken with the driver of the Mitsubishi as well as a number of witnesses at the scene.

Police are investigating the crash and have spoken with the driver of the Mitsubishi as well as a number of witnesses at the scene
A three-year-old Sydney girl who died after she was pulled unconscious from a Bali pool has been honoured with a 'memorial paddle.'

More than 100 friends and family members gathered at Newport Beach to say goodbye to Kawa Sweeney at 8am on Sunday.

The crowd, which were asked to dress in white, floral or Hawaiian shirts, were seen placing flowers and shells on the sand in the shape of a wreath.

Those close to the young girl then headed into the water for a traditional 'paddle out'.

They could be seen holding hands as they floated in the shape of a circle and splashed their hands in the water.

Kawa Sweeney was honoured with a 'memorial paddle' in Sydney's northern beaches on Sunday (pictured)

Kawa's mother Dee Tang talks with a friend during the memorial (pictured)

Kawa's father Desmond (pictured) is seen carrying the couple's youngest child

Kawa Sweeney (pictured) who was pulled unconscious from a pool while on holiday with her family in Bali had been declared brain dead

Kawa Sweeney's parents Dee Tang and Desmond Sweeney made the agonising decision to switch off her life support on July 27, after hearing from doctors their daughter won't recover from the accident.

The youngster was airlifted to Perth for medical treatment after she was found at the bottom of a pool at the resort her family were staying at in Uluwatu on Sunday morning.

Her family announced their decision to turn off Kawa's life support through their GoFundMe page.

'Unfortunately, in spite of all the hopes and prayers, Kawa has lost her battle. The family are saying goodbye today,' they said in a statement.

Desmond was seen holding Kawa's one-year-old sister before the 'paddle out'

Desmond is comforted by a friend during the emotional memorial

Kawa's mother Dee was seen holding a necklace of flowers and another bouquet in her arms

Friends and family could be seen holding hands as they floated in the shape of a circle and splashed their hands in the water

Kawa's mother and father took part in the 'paddle out'

Kawa's name was spelled out in the sand in shells brought by friends and family

Friends and family were asked to wear colourful Hawaiian shirts

A large bouquet of palm ferns and bright red, pink and red flowers was placed on the sand

Desmond is comforted by a friend as he holds his youngest daughter, who can be seen peering over his shoulder

Kawa's family encouraged guests to dress in floral attire for the memorial

'Unfortunately, in spite of all the hopes and prayers, Kawa has lost her battle. The family are saying goodbye today,' they said in a statement

Three-year-old Kawa is pictured with her mother Dee, father Desmond and one-year-old sister

Kawa was resuscitated by a Perth doctor, Grant Booth, who happened to be nearby when she was pulled out of the pool.

She was flown back to Australia for treatment at Princess Margaret Hospital for Children in Perth on Monday after a GoFundMe campaign quickly raised the $42,000 needed for a medivac. It has now raised more than $88,000.

After a series of tests by doctors at Princess Margaret Hospital, the Sweeneys were informed their daughter was not responding.

'We would like to thank everyone who has gone above and beyond in all of this,' the family's statement adds.

'Thank you to Grant and Kelly, everyone who helped us in Bali, the medivac team, the doctors and the incredible nurses at Princess Margaret Hospital in the PICU who have been with us 24/7 since arriving in Perth.

'Thank you to everyone who has supported us with their thoughts, prayers, love and donations.

'We are overwhelmed with your generosity and are grateful for all that you have given us in this difficult time.'

Kawa Sweeney was airlifted to Perth for medical treatment after she was found at the bottom of a pool at the resort her family were staying at in Uluwatu on Sunday morning

Kawa (pictured, with her one-year-old sister Rafa) was on the last day of a family trip to Bali

Kawa was pulled out of a pool unconscious on what was to be the family's last day in Bali

Ms Tang, who runs homewares brand Kawaiian Lion, planned the trip for work as well as a family getaway.

Ms Tang's sister Christine Walsh told Daily Mail Australia was pulled out of a pool unconscious on what was to be the family's last day of a week-long trip to the popular Indonesian island.

'Basically, she was in a drowning accident. They pulled her out of the pool and she was unconscious,' she said on Monday.

She added that a doctor who happened to be nearby at the time performed CPR on the little girl for 45 minutes.

Kawa Sweeney was on a trip with her parents when she was found unconscious in a pool on the Indonesian island on Sunday morning

Kawa's mother Dee Tang (pictured with her daughters) runs homewares brand Kawaiian Lion
The mother of a young man whose death sparked riots in East London two months ago sobbed, 'Why? Why? Why?', before she herself passed away.

Edir Frederico Da Costa, also known as Edson, died six days after he was stopped in a car by police in Newham in June.

Police said he died after swallowing a large quantity of drugs - but the family argued he suffered brutal injuries.

Now Edson's father has revealed his heartbreaking last conversation with his mother, Manuela Araujo, who was consumed by grief over the death of her son.

'She kept saying, 'Why? Why? Why? Why did they not look after him, why did they use force on him?' Ginario told the Guardian.

Edir Frederico Da Costa, known as Edson, died after swallowing a package when he was stopped by police in Newham in June

His mother Manuela Araujo, right, died this week, less than two months later, with her family saying the loss of her son weighed on her heart

He went on to say that Araujo, who was planning to visit the UK from Portugal to pay her respects, kept asking why policemen had used force on her son.

The family said in a statement: 'The circumstances surrounding her son's death and the involvement of the police came as a terrible shock and weighed down on her heart.'

Police were said to use force and CS gas on the father-of-one when he was stopped in Newham in June.

Ginario Da Costa, Edson's father, said the mother, aged 45, could no longer cope with the death of her son.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is still investigating his death and the 25-year-old has not been buried.

Jair Tavares, Edson's cousin, wrote on a blog: 'Manuela learnt of Edson's death while she was in Portugal and the circumstances surrounding her son's death and the involvement of the police came as a terrible shock. This weighed down on her heart.'

Edson's death is being investigated by the IPCC and the family has been unable to bury him

In a recent IPCC statement, made in June, said: 'The preliminary post mortem found that Mr Da Costa did not suffer a broken neck, or any other spinal injury during his interaction with the police. It found he did not suffer a broken collarbone or bleeding to the brain. Rigorous investigations into the cause of Mr Da Costa's death are continuing, including into the use of force.

'We are releasing this information now out of concern at the rapid spread of false and potentially inflammatory information. Our robust and independent investigation will seek to explain the circumstances around Mr Da Costa's death. In the meantime, false information could have very dangerous consequences, so please don't share it.'

An additional statement said: 'Following a preliminary post mortem on Thursday 22 June, the pathologist stated that there was no fracture of the neck or spinal injury, no broken collarbone and no bleeding on the brain.

Edson's death sparked riots in the streets of east London, but his family condemned them

'The pathologist removed a number of packages from Mr Da Costa's throat. The contents of those packages will undergo further analysis.'

Edson's death sparked riots in east London, which were widely condemned by his family.

Last week, figures released for the first time showed Metropolitan Police officers used 'force' at a rate of around once every 10 minutes.

There were 12,605 incidents of force against people by individual officers registered in the three months to the end of June.

The data showed 45 per cent of the individuals subject to force were white, 36 per cent black and 10 per cent from the Asian community.
A British model was lured to a fake photoshoot in Italy before being drugged, bundled into a suitcase and held hostage for six days while her captor demanded 270,000 for her return, police revealed last night.

The UK-based kidnapper then allegedly threatened to sell the 20-year-old woman for sex in an online auction on the so-called Dark Web if his demands were not meant.

The alleged captor, named by Italian police as Polish national Lukasz Herba, 30, lived in Oldbury in the West Midlands and is believed to be part of a sex-trafficking gang.

Police in Italy say Lukasz Herba , pictured, 'kidnapped and tried to sell a British model on the dark web for 270,000'

A police officer poses in a bag like the one the 20-year-old was tied up and put into after she was drugged with ketamine

Italian police revealed that Herba allegedly tried to kidnap the same model in Paris in April, having organised a photoshoot at an address in the French capital, but the bid was apparently aborted.

Herba was in custody last night as officers in Britain and Poland joined a huge manhunt for his unidentified accomplice.

The models agency was contacted on July 10 by Herba, posing as a photographer. The woman, who cant be named, was asked to go to an address in Milan the next day.

But when she arrived at a nondescript office building, it is alleged Herba and another man assaulted her and injected her with the powerful sedative ketamine.

They handcuffed her, stuffed her into a suitcase and locked her in the boot of a car, it is claimed, and drove to a remote farmhouse 90 miles south-west of Milan.

Footage in Italy showed a female police worker reconstructing the models ordeal. Investigators said the victim was kept shackled for a week as Herba demanded 270,000 from her agency using an encrypted online account.

It is thought that she was bundled into a car and taken to an abandoned industrial unit, where her kidnapper attempted to sell her on the dark web

Herba allegedly threatened to put the model up for auction on the Dark Web if the agency did not pay up by July 16, posting semi-naked pictures of the woman with her personal details on an auction site.

However, Herba reportedly decided to release the model after finding out that she had a two-year-old son. According to Italian police, the rules of his gang apparently ban kidnapping mothers.

Herba reportedly then drove the model back to the British consulate in Milan, where he was arrested. Before taking his victim to the consulate, he is said to have demanded 45,000 from her and threatened to kill her if she told anyone about her ordeal.

Police found a small bedroom, pictured, in the property but it is unclear whether it was used by the model or the kidnapper

The Foreign Office said: We have been providing consular support to a British woman in Italy and are in touch with the local authorities.

Detectives believe Herba may be part of the notorious Black Death gang and investigators discovered he had organised previous auctions for the sale of girls, including a description and opening price. However, it is unclear whether these involved real women.

Last night, neighbours at Herbas council flat in Oldbury said the property was raided two weeks ago by police. One neighbour, who lives opposite Herba, said: It was 2.30 in the morning and really loud.

Police said the model was driven 120 miles to a farmhouse in Turin, pictured, and officers are now looking for accomplices after the model told them she was 'attacked by two people'

I jumped out of bed to see them [police] smashing their way into the flat.

Others described Herba as a freak. Carpenter Ciaran Williams, 34, said: Hes an unorthodox character and a bit shady.

He walked around with a dirty big rat sat on his shoulder and never spoke to anyone. He liked to wear a suit which is unusual for round here and owned two cars  a Merc and an Audi.
There's no shortage of beautifully crafted naked bodies on display at the V&A. But some staff draw the line at the real thing  even when it involves breast-feeding.

Kat Joyce was so bemused at being asked to cover up by workers, she tweeted a picture of herself with her baby alongside a sculpture of a breast-feeding woman, saying: For the first time ever I was just asked to cover up by a member of V&A Museum staff who spied a nanosecond of nipple. Am perplexed...

Ms Joyce, 37, an artistic director of a theatre group in London, pointed out that there were dozens more naked statues of the female form

Ms Joyce, 37, an artistic director of a theatre group in London, pointed out that there were dozens more naked statues of the female form at the South Kensington museum.

She said: If people really want an eyeful of boob there are plenty to choose from, mostly far more exquisite than mine and unimpeded by a writhing toddler.

Museum director and former Labour MP Tristram Hunt apologised last night, saying: Our policy is clear: women may breast-feed wherever they like, wherever they feel comfortable.

Adding to the embarrassment for the V&A, the incident happened during World Breast-Feeding Week.
A Liberal MP has come out about why his 'shortest interview in history' was cut off after just 29 seconds.

Tim Wilson was booted off Sky News last week when he refused to answer a question on gay marriage.

The gay backbencher from Melbourne has returned to a television studio to explain why Sky News presenter Peter van Onselen had very quickly lost his patience with him.

'I never said I didn't want to discuss it. It's just that I had nothing new to say. That's all I said and that was my view at the time,' he told Weekend Sunrise on Sunday.

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MP Tim Wilson (right) told Sunrise host Monique Wright and Andrew O'Keefe (left) why his earlier interview ended after just 29 seconds

Liberal backbencher Tim Wilson was booted off Sky News after refusing to answer a question

Since that trainwreck Sky News interview went to air on Thursday afternoon, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has called an emergency meeting of Liberal MPs for Monday afternoon to discuss the idea of a postal vote on gay marriage.

Mr Wilson, who has threatened to cross the floor in parliament and vote with Labor to support a conscience vote on gay marriage, told Sunrise he now had something new to say.

'Since then, we've had a special party room meeting that's been called,' he told the Seven Network.

'We're in a situation where we're going to have to deal with the issue so let's deal with it head on.

'My view's always been clear on the issue, it's always will be clear on the issue: I voted for the plebiscite.'

Liberal MP Tim Wilson said he just had 'nothing new to say' when he fronted Sky News

However, the Senate has rejected the plebiscite policy which Mr Turnbull took to the 2016 election.

Mr Wilson said this justified the Liberal Party allowing its own MPs a free vote on gay marriage.

'We should have a discussion to try and get the parliament to do its job,' he said.

He also wants civil celebrants to be allowed to abstain from having to conduct any gay marriage ceremony if it is was against their conscience.

On Thursday, Mr Wilson had nothing to say on the issue when asked by Sky News presenter, Peter van Onselen, about the idea of a secret ballot in the party room to sort out the Liberal Party's position.

Sky News presenter Peter van Onselen wouldn't tolerate having an MP avoid the first question

Tim Wilson (right) says the emergency meeting of Liberal MPs means he has something to say

'Thanks, Peter. I've said everything I've had to say on this issue and I make no plans to make any other comment at this time,' Mr Wilson said.

'I'd rather talk about something else that actually matters to the Australian population: the economy, energy prices, what's going on with Labor's tax slug.

'You pick it. I'm happy to talk about it. I've said what I've said on this issue.'

Mr van Onselen, a former Liberal staffer who supports gay marriage, was not prepared to put up with that.

'Tim Wilson, thanks for your company,' he said just 29 seconds after starting a live cross from Sky News' Sydney studio to Melbourne.

Mr Wilson was asked on Twitter by Sydney ABC Radio presenter Dom Knight why he as a 'gay man in a loving relationship' was not prepared to discuss the issue.

Tim Wilson told ABC Radio's Dom Knight he just had 'nothing more to say right now'

The member for Goldstein, in Melbourne's south-east, is among a small group of Liberal MPs who are planning to defy Mr Turnbull and cross the floor if there is a conscience vote on gay marriage.

This would undermine the Turnbull Government's election pledge last year to held a plebiscite on the matter.

Fellow gay Liberal politicians Trevor Evans, Trent Zimmerman and Dean Smith have also threatened cross the floor.

They also have support from former crocodile farmer Warren Entsch as they work to force a parliamentary free vote on gay marriage.
Dennis Strickland, 33, reportedly tried to deposit a $1million bill in Sioux City, Iowa, on Thursday. Police said they found meth on him

An Iowa man was arrested after police allegedly found meth on him when he attempted to deposit a million-dollar bill.

Dennis Strickland's get rich quick scheme was busted after he allegedly tried to deposit an unusually large bill at a bank in Sioux City, Iowa, on Thursday.

The 33-year-old was arrested after police were called to the scene over the suspicious transaction.

When officers asked if he had any more of the bills in his pocket, Strickland pulled out a baggie of meth instead, police said.

Strickland allegedly attempted to become a millionaire at Northwest Bank on West 7th Street in Sioux City.

A bank teller alerted police over the transaction because Strickland never had more than $500 in his account at a time, reported Kelo Land.

The deposit was also suspicious because the United States Treasury has never printed such a bill.

A bank teller at Northwest Bank (pictured) alerted police over the transaction because Strickland never had more than $500 in his account at a time

When police arrived at the scene, they said Strickland appeared to be anxious and kept fidgeting with something in his pocket.

Officials claimed they heard paper rustling and asked Strickland if he had any more million-dollar bills.

Strickland then began to empty his pockets and out came a small packet of methamphetamine, according to police.

He was then arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance but wasn't charged over the million-dollar bill dispute.

Strickland is currently being held at Woodbury County Jail on a $1,000 bond.

The highest denomination bill currently in circulation is the $100 bill. The highest note ever produced was the $100,000 bill from December 1934 to January 1935.

It was used for transactions between Federal Reserve Banks, according to Info Please.

However, there are fake $1million bills for sale, easily found online and at novelty shops. They can be purchased for as little as a dollar.
Theresa May was lambasted for having no Brexit plan B yesterday  as she prepared to set out demands for the EU.

The Prime Minister was accused by former Bank of England governor Mervyn King of wasting a year.

The pro-Brexit peer said Mrs Mays failure to spell out a fallback position meant her threat to walk away if talks broke down was not credible.

His comments came as it emerged Mrs May will begin a big push on Brexit when she returns from holiday.

Concerns: Mervyn King has accused Theresa May of 'wasting' a year

It follows criticism of the Government for failing to prepare for the next round of talks at the end of this month. Brexit Secretary David Davis was called slapdash after arriving at the first round of talks last month with no notes while his European counterparts had bundles of documents.

The Government is expected to issue position papers on key areas, including customs and the Irish border next week.

Officials denied reports that the position papers showed Chancellor Philip Hammond had won his battle for a soft Brexit against hardline Ministers such as International Trade Secretary Liam Fox. No 10 did not comment, but a senior Government source said: Serious work has been going on in relation to our Brexit position and its no surprise that we will be publishing further details.

Lord King said more work was urgently needed to convince the EU that Britain was serious about walking away. He said: We need to be able to say if we cant reach an agreement we will nevertheless leave and we can make it work.

It has got to be a credible fallback position  otherwise those negotiating on the other side will not take any notice. Why should they, if we had absolutely no alternative but to give in to what they demand?

Mrs May has said that if the EU fails to offer the UK a good Brexit deal, she will walk away and instead rely on World Trade Organisation rules

Mandarins should help Ministers draw up a practical plan, said Lord King, who ran the Bank from 2003 to 2013. He added: Weve probably wasted a year but we need to be much further along the road.

Mrs May has said that if the EU fails to offer the UK a good Brexit deal, she will walk away and instead rely on World Trade Organisation rules.

Separately, Brexit Minister Steve Baker has insisted the Government will be ready for a no-deal outcome. In a letter to pro-EU Labour MP Chuka Umunna, Mr Baker said Ministers were preparing for all possible results.
Another factor was Mrs Mays dismal performance and Mr Corbyns much-praised campaign. Pictured: The prime minister

The growing demand for a soft Brexit was one of the main reasons that Theresa May flopped in the General Election and Jeremy Corbyn did so well.

Tory Remain supporters held their noses and voted Labour as the best way to keep Britain in the EU single market and stop a hard Brexit.

That is the surprise verdict of the most comprehensive and independent survey of voting trends in the June 8 Election.

The British Election Study of 30,000 voters found Brexit was more than three times as important as any other issue, with terrorism second, then the NHS, immigration and the economy.

Another factor was Mrs Mays dismal performance and Mr Corbyns much-praised campaign, according to Professor Ed Fieldhouse and Dr Chris Prosser of Manchester University.

Labour had a massive lead over the Tories among those who regarded full access to the single market as vital, while the reverse was true among those who put immigration first. Pictured: Jeremy Corbyn

They say: One of the reasons Labour did so well among Remainers is that, by the time the Election was called, the Brexit debate was not so much about Leave or Remain but about how to leave. In effect, the Tories were the party of hard Brexit, while Labour was the party of soft Brexit.

Pictured: The key factors in the election

Despite uncertainty over its position on the single market, Labour was seen as the best bet by those wanting to keep closer ties with Europe, the study said.

Not only did it win over a large number of Remainers from the Conservatives, but also from the pro-EU Greens and Lib Dems.

Though they had the clearest pro-EU position and a promise of a second referendum, the Lib Dems failed to pick up many more anti-Brexit voters than they lost to other parties.

Voters were asked if it was more important to protect access to the single market or gain full control of immigration.

Labour had a massive lead over the Tories among those who regarded full access to the single market as vital, while the reverse was true among those who put immigration first.

For all the attempts by Mrs May and Mr Corbyn to focus on other issues, in the minds of voters the 2017 Election was the Brexit Election, the authors conclude, adding: Actions speak louder than words and voters were not only concerned by Brexit but actually voted accordingly.

More than one in three said Brexit or the EU was the biggest issue, compared to just one in 20 who chose the economy.

Labours success among those who favoured a soft Brexit is all the more surprising given Mr Corbyns apparent reluctance to back staying in the single market, despite heavy pressure from Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer. Sir Keirs pro-single market stance has prompted speculation of a Commons alliance with Tory MPs who back a soft exit from the EU in order to block a hard Brexit.

The authors also placed blame for Tory losses on the PMs weak campaign, saying: The Conservative strategy to pin so much on their strong and stable leader appears to have been a spectacular mistake which cost them an overall majority.

The British Election Study has tracked the same 30,000 voters over three years, asking them hundreds of questions about their political views and choices on 13 occasions.
A New Zealand man has incredibly avoided death for the second time in his life after walking away from a horror car crash.

Luke Wigram was driving through hail and snow near Little Akaloa on Friday July 28 when he lost control of his car and slid off the road.

The 39-year-old's vehicle rolled more than 500 metres down a hill before finally stopping, the car reduced to mangled wreckage. Mr Wigram suffered only a few broken ribs and fingers.

In 1994 a school excursion turned to tragedy when a Paparoa National Park platform collapsed, claiming the lives of 13 students and a field officer. Mr Wigram was on the same platform with his class a day earlier.

'If I have a guardian angel, it is probably taking a well-deserved break now,' he told Star Kiwi.

Luke Wigram was driving through hail and snow near Little Akaloa on Friday July 28 when he lost control of his car and slid off the road

The 39-year-old's vehicle rolled more than 500 metres down a hill before finally stopping, the car reduced to mangled wreckage. Mr Wigram suffered only a few broken ribs and fingers

Mr Wigram said his last thoughts during the car accident before he passed out was keeping his limbs inside the vehicle.

After regaining consciousness he was in pain, but was able to climb out of his vehicle and call emergency services with his phone.

'I just stayed on the line with the dispatcher who kept me going. Asking me questions about what injuries I had, could I hear sirens, that sort of thing,' Mr Wigram said.

'There was a general surprise that I could survive the roll down the bank and have few injuries,' he said.

He was airlifted by rescue helicopter to Christchurch hospital where he spent four days. He was released on Tuesday

He was airlifted by rescue helicopter to Christchurch hospital where he spent four days. He was released on Tuesday.

Police say he is 'incredibly lucky' to be alive after visiting the crash scene.

'About 450m off the side of the road was the engine, a further 50m were a couple of wheels wedged into a fence and about 100m down from that was what was left of the car,' Senior Constable Tim Johnson said.
Hundreds of victims of butcher breast surgeon Ian Paterson have been forced to take legal action against private hospitals which are refusing to compensate them.

Spire Healthcare has told Patersons devastated victims it is not responsible for the botched breast operations the evil consultant performed at two of its West Midlands hospitals between 1998 and 2011.

The Medical Defence Union (MDU) has also refused to pay out because a clause in the surgeons policy said he was not covered in the event of a criminal conviction.

The MDU  a mutual society  exists to help medics pay damages in the event of a claim for clinical negligence.

'Butcher' breast surgeon Ian Paterson, pictured, had hundreds of victims of the operation scams he performed at two private West Midlands hospitals between 1998 and 2011

Paterson, 59, was jailed for 15 years in May after he was found guilty of 17 counts of wounding with intent and unlawful wounding over breast operations he needlessly carried out to cash in on his patients cancer fears.

But on Thursday the jail term was increased to 20 years by Court of Appeal judges who ruled the original sentence was unduly lenient.

The trial heard that Paterson, who treated thousands of patients on the NHS and privately, exaggerated or invented cancer risks to claim payments for more expensive procedures.

Hundreds of his NHS victims have already received around 18 million in compensation from the public purse.

But 700 of his private patients have yet to receive a penny. Now they are taking their case to the High Court in October to demand a payout from Spire or the MDU.

Cheryl Iommi, 51, from Birmingham, had three lumps removed from her breasts which Paterson told her were cancerous.

But she later learned they were just scar tissue from a previous operation. She said: I feel like he is getting away with this all over again.

Cheryl Iommi, 51, pictured, from Birmingham, had three lumps removed from her breasts which Ian Paterson told her were cancerous. She's looking for compensation

He escaped justice for years and even now he is in jail I am having to go through the courts to get a penny back. The pain goes on. We are the victims in all of this and we are just being brushed under the rug.

More than 500 of Patersons victims are being represented by Thompsons Solicitors.

Spokesman Tom Jones said: Many of these peoples lives have been devastated physically and emotionally by Paterson and here they are still waiting while Spire and the MDU decide what they are prepared to do. It is so ghastly.

Spire Hospitals, which made profits of 53 million last year, said the High Court case was an appropriate way of determining who is responsible for Patersons actions and securing compensation and justice.

The MDU declined to comment.
A naked gunman reportedly threatening to kill himself was shot Saturday by Las Vegas police, authorities said.

The shooting happened about 11.00am in the parking lot of the Life Springs Christian Church, at 2075 E. Warm Springs Road, near Eastern Avenue, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal.

The suspect was reported to be threatening suicide and was found sitting there without clothes on and armed with a handgun, Metropolitan Police Department Sgt. Jeff Clark told the Review Journal.

A naked gunman was found in a church parking lot threatening suicide on Saturday morning (Pictured: Life Springs Christian Church)

The gunman initially appeared to be complying with their commands to put the gun down on the ground and walk away from it, but then he turned around and ran toward the gun, police said.

An officer then fired a single shot at the man after a K9 dog was unsuccessfully used to try to arrest him, police said.

The man was taken to nearby hospital in stable condition.

No officers were hurt.

This is the 16th police shooting in Las Vegas so far this year, a sharp increase from the 10 total police shootings in 2016.

The unidentified man had initially complied with police and set aside his weapon (Pictured: Metropolitan Police Department Sgt. Jeff Clark)

After a K9 unit failed to apprehend the man, he ran back for his weapon, forcing officers to open fire. The man was hit once and taken to the hospital in stable condition

The Saturday shooting also marks the eighth instance where officers were shot or shot at in the past seven weeks.

On Tuesday, a man in a stolen truck died in a shootout with police, which also left an officer injured.

Miguel Salas, 25, died from a gunshot wound to the head following the incident, according to the Clark County Coroner's office on Friday.

Last week, Las Vegas authorities shot and killed Miguel Salas (pictured), 25, after he fired nine bullets at a police officer

Body cam footage belonging to one of the Las Vegas officers shows police ordering Salas to step out of his vehicle.

The video shows Salas refuse to comply with Officer Richard Nelson demands as he holds the suspect's wrist.

'Step out of the car,' Nelson is heard saying.

'Why do you need me to step out of my car?' Salas said. 'I'm not doing nothing!'

'Yes, you are. You're not listening to our command. Do you want to get tased?' the officer asks.

Suddenly, Salas reaches for a concealed weapon in the car and fires off nine rounds, striking Nelson once in the lower left chest on his bullet-proof vest.

'Shots fired! I've been hit! Shots fired, I've been hit!,' Nelson tells dispatch after firing a number of rounds, fatally hitting Salas with one bullet.

Police units had originally stopped Salas after receiving a report of suspicious vehicle parked in front of a business in the 4100 block of West Tompkins Avenue at 4.15pm in connection with a stolen cell phone.
A man who went missing for three days in the Western Australian outback has been found alive and well.

Anthony Collis, 32, disappeared Thursday afternoon after he and a 39-year-old woman he was travelling with became separated.

The four-wheel-drive enthusiast was found early Sunday morning, suffering dehydration and exposure but was 'otherwise fine'.

Anthony Collis, 32, (pictured above centre) was found alive on Sunday after spending three days in the Western Australian outback

Mr Collis was found about a kilometre north of Lake Disappointment and was taken by helicopter (pictured) to Newman Hospital for treatment

The pair had left Newman in Western Australia and were travelling along the Canning Stock Route on their way to Darwin in the Northern Territory.

Police were alerted to Mr Collis' disappearance Thursday night after his companion walked into Georgia Bore Camp, eight kilometres north of Lake Disappointment.

The 39-year-old was 'disoriented and dehydrated' but recovered enough to help police in their search for her travel partner.

The pair's white Mitsubishi Triton was discovered Friday afternoon, just one kilometre from the lake, however Mr Collis was not with the vehicle.

The 32-year-old suffered dehydration and exposure after he disappeared Thursday afternoon when he and a 39-year-old woman he was travelling with became separated

The pair's white Mitsubishi Triton, believed to be the one pictured from Mr Collis' Facebook page, was discovered Friday afternoon just one kilometre from the Lake

Multiple air and ground crews took part in the search, including the police airwing, tactical response group trackers, State Emergency Services volunteers and local police.

Mr Collis was found about a kilometre north of Lake Disappointment and was taken by helicopter to Newman Hospital for treatment.

Originally from Wiltshire in England, according to PerthNow, a Facebook account for Mr Collis shows that he now resides in Perth.

The social media account also shows a white vehicle similar to the one found by police.
Dunkirk star Sir Mark Rylance has launched a damning attack on plans to dredge a sandbank that is the final resting place of dozens of Battle of Britain airmen.

The Oscar-winning actor questioned what outcry there would be if it was announced France was going to dredge the sands of Dunkirk to make concrete and other construction products.

Dover Harbour Board wants to dredge Goodwin Sands, off the Kent coast, near Deal, to expand cargo facilities and build a marina.

But at least 60 RAF and German aircraft are believed to have crashed over the ten-mile stretch of shifting sandbanks during fierce aerial battles in 1940. Many of the airmens bodies were never recovered.

Actor Sir Mark Rylance, pictured in Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, has blasted plans to dredge Goodwin Sands, off the Kent coast, in order to expand cargo facilities and build a marina

The sands have also seen more than 2,000 shipwrecks. In the Great Storm of 1703, on one night alone 1,200 men were lost on its banks.

Campaigners say the plan to remove 2.5 million cubic metres of sand and gravel will not only disturb wrecks but will cause coastal erosion and endanger delicate ecosystems and wildlife.

Rylance, 57, said: What is the problem with us, that we are so disrespectful of these honourable souls who perished in the English Channel defending the rest of us from fascism?

After hearing his remarks, the Port of Dover issued a scathing rebuke, claiming it was inappropriate to compare the Dunkirk Evacuation with a small dredge of the Goodwin Sands  which have been dredged numerous times since the war.

Dover Harbour Board wants to dredge Goodwin Sands, off the Kent coast, near Deal, pictured, to expand cargo facilities and build a marina

A spokesman said the sad truth was that Dover families, who survived Hellfire Corner [the heavy German shelling and bombing of Dover during the war], could be deprived of the regeneration theyve wanted for more than 70 years.

The Mail on Sunday first reported on the campaign against the plans, which has now amassed more than 13,000 signatories to a petition, last year.

Rylance, whose great-grandfather was a resident of Dover and captained cross-Channel ferries, stars in the summer blockbuster Dunkirk as the captain of one of the little ships who volunteered to cross the Channel and help evacuate British servicemen from France in May 1940.

Approximately 338,000 men were rescued, but about 3,500 Britons were killed.

The 9,000 ton American steamer 'Luray Victory', pictured, broke her back on the Goodwin Sands after being stranded for three days. Her crew of 49 were brought ashore in very rough seas by the Walmer Kent lifeboat

Rylances comments come as a third consultation is due to be held later this year over the plans to dredge Goodwin Sands.

Joanna Thomson, of the Goodwin Sands SOS campaign, said: It beggars belief that the Port of Dover would accuse Mark Rylance of being inappropriate when they are the ones who want to desecrate these graves.

The Marine Management Organisation, which is responsible for making a decision over the project, said: The application to dredge the Goodwin Sands is a live application and we are unable to go into detail.
Tobias Ellwood, MP, was one of those who tried to save the life of PC Keith Palmer

Hero Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood has told Jeremy Corbyn to phone his 'friend', Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, and tell him to stop the 'beatings and killings' following the country's controversial elections.

Mr Ellwood, was praised for trying to save PC Keith Palmer, who was stabbed to death earlier this year in a terror attack outside Parliament.

He called on the Labour leader to take direct action. 'Corbyn & the Venez Pres are FRIENDS,' he tweeted. 'Corbyn could CALL Maduro and ask him to STOP the beatings & killings. But he's SILENT.'

Mr Ellwood's intervention came as Mr Corbyn continued to resist calls to criticise socialist dictator Maduro after hundreds of political opponents in Venezuela were attacked or seized in a brutal crackdown.

Those opposed to Mr Maduro have vowed to keep protesting after last weekend's election, called to pick a new assembly which will rewrite the country's constitution and potentially give the president unlimited power.

Mr Corbyn, who idolised Venezuela's former socialist leader Hugo Chavez, refused to interrupt his holiday to speak out.

Crackdown: a soldier fires his shotgun at protesters in the capital of Caracas as protests continue

Mr Ellwood launched an explosive tweet aimed at Jeremy Corbyn and criticised him for staying silent

Ex-Royal Green Jackets officer Mr Ellwood, 50, said: 'At the very moment when his intervention could help, the Labour leader chooses to sit on his hands.

'His silence will be seen as tacitly supporting the escalation of violence as his president friend seeks to cling to power. Mr Corbyn has spent decades developing a network of confidants and relationships across the world with undesirable characters who do not fit well with Britain's place in the world.

Tobias Ellwood tried to save the life of PC Keith Palmer, who was stabbed to death in the Westminster terror attack in March

'For a man who aspires to the highest elected political office, Mr Corbyn's inaction here shines a beacon of light on the dangerous socialist path he would like to lead Britain down.'

A spokesman for Mr Corbyn said Labour was watching 'developments in Venezuela closely', adding that the party had made clear 'our position on the importance of respect for the rule of law and human rights'.
MS-13 isn't the only gang sowing violence and terror from Central America to the US: meet Barrio 18.

Arch-rivals to MS-13, Barrio 18 has an estimated 30,000 to 50,000 members across 20 US states and is linked to drugs, murder, kidnappings and other violent crime from Central America to Canada.

'With thousands of members across hundreds of kilometers, and interests in a number of different illicit activities, Barrio 18 is one of the more significant emerging criminal threats in the region,' write analysts for the think-tank InSight Crime.

Last week, US Attorney General Jeff Sessions visited his counterpart in El Salvador to discuss ways to crack down on transnational gangs - MS-13 and Barrio 18 chief among them.

But if history is any guide, eradicating Barrio 18 will be easier said than done.

Barrio 18 is a terrifying gang that spreads from the US to Central America, rivals to MS-13

A Barrio 18 member displays his tattoos, including 'Brown Pride' and XVIII, on the gang's turf in Los Angeles. The gang has a reported presence in 20 US states

The gang is also known as the 18th Street Gang. Pictured: Members in the Quezaltepeque jail outside of San Salvador in El Salvador

Also known as 18th Street, the gang has its roots in Los Angeles of the 1960s, where it was originally composed of Mexican immigrants.

WHAT IS BARRIO 18? The gang was founded in Los Angeles decades ago, and has spread across the US and Central America. Members: Estimated 30,000 to 50,000 in the US Colors: Blue and black Allied with: Mexican Mafia Enemies of: MS-13 Activities: Drug dealing, burglary, assault, extortion, prostitution, human trafficking, homicide Advertisement

Over the decades, though, Barrio 18 threw open its recruitment to members from Central America as well, often targeting the elementary and middle-school children of immigrants.

As the gang's ranks grew, it became the target of FBI and police crackdowns, sending many of its veteran members to prison.

But time behind bars just gave Barrio 18's shot-callers a fertile new recruiting ground, and it quickly swelled its ranks in federal prisons.

Stepped up deportations also had an unintended effect, spreading the gang's reach to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras as hardened members were shipped back to their native countries, where they have battled brutally with MS-13.

A Barrio 18 member is seen in the 'gang cage' in El Salvador. His tattoos include BEST (for 'Barrio Eighteenth Street'), 666 (for 6+6+6=18) and X8, which stands for absolute gang loyalty

The Barrio 18 gang was founded in Los Angeles and was initially ethnically Mexican, but has grown enormously in Honduras, El Salvador and Guatamala. Pictured: Members in El Salvador

The gang is notorious for enforcing strict rules and absolute obedience among its ranks

Barrio 18 members are seen in a transfer to the San Francisco Gotera penitentiary in 2015. The El Salvadoran government transferred 1,177 members to the US in an effort to curb the gang

Loosely coordinated between cells or 'cliques' even at the local level, Barrio 18 isn't believed to have a 'godfather'-style leader

Loosely coordinated between cells or 'cliques' even at the local level, Barrio 18 isn't believed to have a 'godfather'-style leader.

That's made it difficult to target under racketeering laws, the tactic that brought down many Mafia families.

BARRIO 18 TATTOOS 18, XVIII or XV3 666 or 99 (for 6+6+6=18 or 9+9=18) BEST (for 'Barrio Eighteenth Street') 8P (for having killed a police officer) X8 (total loyalty to the gang) Advertisement

The gang is nevertheless notorious for enforcing strict rules and absolute obedience among its ranks, and failure to show proper respect can bring severe punishment, including execution.

Barrio 18 cliques have been linked to the international drug trade, and the gang is closely allied with the Mexican Mafia, another Hispanic organized crime ring with its origins in US prisons.

Their colors, blue and black, even pay tribute to the Mexican Mafia: blue for the allied gang, and black for Barrio 18's original color.

Barrio 18 tattoos can include: 18, XVIII, XV3, BEST (for 'Barrio Eighteenth Street) and 8P (stands for killing a police officer).

Another tattoo, X8, stands for absolute loyalty to the gang.

Members of the Barrio 18 gang are presented to the media after a police raid in San Salvador

The gang has sown terror from its origin in Los Angeles throughout Central America. Pictured: A grandmother and her grandson walk past Barrio 18 graffiti in San Salvador

Barrio 18 and MS-13 have waged a bloody gang war with each other spanning several countries

Barrio 18 members are the sworn enemies of MS-13, another gang with its origins in California that has since spread in Central American countries with weakened governments.

'These two gangs have turned the Central American northern triangle into the area with the highest homicide rate in the world,' the US Justice Department wrote in a 2013 report.

Like MS-13, the decentralized structure of Barrio 18 has made it incredibly resistant to decades of efforts to eradicate it.

'They're worse than a cancer,' gang expert Gabriel Kovnator told the Los Angeles Times all the way back in 1996.

'A cancer you can kill. These guys keep growing.'
On Anniversary of Assyrian Massacre, Kurdish Leader Urges Unity With Christians

On the 84th anniversary of the of the former Iraqi Kingdom's attack that killed thousands of Assyrian people in northern Iraq, Kurdish President Masoud Barzani has stated that steps towards independence from Iraq are the only way to ensure history doesn't repeat itself. "The only medicine for all our pains and the only guarantee to ensure that disasters are not repeated is to take steps toward independence," wrote Barzani in a statement on Sunday.

From August 7 to August 11 in 1933, the armed forces of the Kingdom of Iraq attacked 63 Assyrian villages in what are now located in the provinces of Nineveh and Duhok. The campaign left around 3,000 Assyrians dead, according to a 2003 report from the International Federation for Human Rights. The Assyrians are one of the oldest ethnic groups in Mesopotamia and northern Iraq, tracing their own history back 6,767 years. Religiously, they are now predominately Christian and locally split along Chaldean, Syriac, and Ashuri sects. "On occasion of the 84th anniversary of this disaster which is concurrent with the third anniversary of the ISIS brutal attack on Christian brothers and sisters and other communities in Nineveh plains," Barzani wrote, "I reiterate that Christian brothers and sisters along with all the other communities of Kurdistan in the past, now and in the future, times of pain and success, have been involved and share the same destiny." According to 1987 Iraqi census, 1.4 million Christians, including the Assyrian community, lived in Iraq. But many have since migrated to the West after years of persecution and economic hardship. "The Simele massacre is part of the hardship and calamities which happened to all the people of Kurdistan," Barzani added. "It is also strong evidence that partnership has been meaningless in the state of Iraq, genocide, extermination and massacres have been the share of social and religious makeup of the country." Local community leaders now estimate that about 400,000 Christians were living in Iraq (including the Kurdistan Region) prior to the rise of ISIS in 2014. About half that many still remain in 2017, with nearly 200,000 having immigrated to places like Lebanon, Sweden, Australia and other western states. "And now that the nation of Kurdistan is taking steps toward independence, the demands and rights of Christian brothers and sisters in Kurdistan will be protected in all stages, fraternity and coexistence in Kurdistan will be stronger," Barzani wrote. The Kurdistan Region plans to hold a referendum on independence on September 25. The minister for Kurdistani areas outside of the Kurdistan Regional Government's administration has announced preparations for the vote. Iraq's Shiite-led Hashd al-Shaabi paramilitary units and Kurdish Peshmerga now have largely provided security in Christian areas across Nineveh. Most Christians in Iraq fled to the Kurdistan Region when ISIS came in 2014. Fractured along their own political and sectarian lines, some Christian families have begun returning to their villages in places like Qarakosh, Bartella, Tel Skof and Al-Qosh, as they continue to call for further protection -- often from the international community. The director of media for the Assyrian Democratic Movement spoke with Rudaw English about what his community is doing to remember the atrocities of 1933. "For us, this is a like a genocide," Kaldo Ramzi, a Chaldean from Ankawa said. "Every year we remember this as a symbol of our suffering and surviving in Iraq." He explained that tomorrow there will be events between Chaldeans, Assyrians, and Syriacs to remember this and other massacres their people have faced. Ramzi believes that Baghdad and Erbil should stop struggling for control in Nineveh because this is such a diverse area. On the topic of Christian IDPs or those who are in Nineveh or elsewhere participating in the referendum, Ramzi said they have expressed in three meetings with President Barzani that if the KRG wants to tell the world it is inclusive, then they need to back it up with actions. "We have emphasized that our name, symbols and language haven't been incorporated into Kurdistan," Ramzi explained. "We do need some people to participate, but they shouldn't feel obligated to participate."
A Liberal senator says the death of Lindt cafe manager Tori Johnson made him support gay marriage.

Mr Johnson was murdered at the end of a 16-hour terror siege in December 2014, leaving behind his long-term partner of 14 years, Thomas Zinn.

West Australian Liberal senator Dean Smith, who is also gay, said the death of the 34-year-old Sydney cafe manager convinced him of the need for gay marriage.

'His life was taken in such a tragic way,' he told the ABC's Insiders program on Sunday.

'That moved me and it just reinforced my resolve and I came to the conclusion very quickly, with great clarity, that it's now time to legislate by parliamentary vote same-sex marriage in Australia.'

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Tori Johnson (right) left behind his partner of 14 years Thomas Zinn (left) in December 2014

Tori Johnson (left) and his partner Thomas Zinn (right) never had the change to get married

Senator Smith began to publicly voice support for gay marriage in February 2015.

He is one of four gay Liberal politicians who are threatening to cross the floor of parliament and back gay marriage if there is a conscience vote on the issue.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has called an emergency meeting of Liberal MPs, for Monday, to decide the issue of gay marriage.

The Coalition was very narrowly re-elected last year after promising a plebiscite on gay marriage.

But that proposal, which was backed by right-wing Liberal MPs and the Nationals, was rejected by the Senate.

Senator Smith and fellow gay Liberal politicians Trevor Evans, Tim Wilson and Trent Zimmerman are threatening to defy their party and vote with Labor if a private member's bill in favour of gay marriage came before the parliament.

While the Liberal Party normally allows free votes for backbenchers, the plebiscite pledge has stopped MPs from exercising a conscience vote.

Liberal senator Dean Smith (pictured) and and other gay Liberal politicians are threatening to defy their party and vote with Labor

The death of Tori Johnson at the end of Sydney's Lindt cafe siege in 2014 moved Senator Smith

Fellow gay Liberal MP Tim Wilson is also backing a conscience vote on gay marriage

Senator Smith, from Perth, said Tori Johnson and Thomas Zinn were left in the same legal limbo as 'many gay and lesbian Australians are waiting to get married'.

Mr Wilson, a Melbourne backbencher, said the Senate's rejection of the plebiscite, which he actually supported, meant a conscience vote was needed.

'We should have a discussion to try and get the parliament to do its job,' he said.

'We're in a situation where we're going to have to deal with the issue so let's deal with it head on.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull (right) with Liberal backbencher Trevor Evans (left) who supports a free vote on gay marriage

Barrister Ron Merkel, QC, has provided legal advice questioning a postal vote on gay marriage

'My view's always been clear on the issue, it's always will be clear on the issue: I voted for the plebiscite.'

Senator Smith and Mr Wilson are doing television interviews on the eve of the Liberal Party meeting in Canberra to decide whether to proceed with a postal vote on gay marriage.

It comes as constitutional lawyers Ron Merkel, QC, and Christopher Tran release legal advice arguing a postal vote without the passage of new laws would see the plan challenged in the High Court.

Peta Credlin, who has chief-of-staff to Mr Turnbull's predecessor Tony Abbott, last week said a postal vote on gay marriage was the only thing that could possibly save the prime minister's leadership.
Four 'adult entertainers' allegedly shot dead a good Samaritan inside his Missouri home after he helped them change their flat tire.

Brittany Curry, 28, Ponesha Taylor, 23, Johniesha Simmons, 19, and 23-year-old Lauteshia Dotson were charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Ralph Edward Cross.

Cross, 55, was found dead inside his home on Tuesday. Authorities said he died of a gunshot wound to the back.

Acting Sheriff Branden Caid told KFVS that Curry was the one who shot Cross.

'Adult entertainers, Brittany Curry (left), 28, Ponesha Taylor, 23, Johniesha Simmons, 19, and Lauteshia Dotson, 23, were charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Ralph Edward Cross (right). Authorities said Curry was the one who allegedly shot Cross

Cross, 55, was found dead inside his home (pictured) on Tuesday. Authorities said he died of a gunshot wound to the back

Witnesses told investigators that Cross was seen with four women on Monday, when the women had a flat tire.

Cross then offered to help the women. Investigators believe bought them a new tire and invited them back to his home where they stayed until his body was discovered on Tuesday morning, according to the station.

The good Samaritan was last seen in his house around 6.30 to 6.45am on August 1, shortly before his death.

A witness told authorities that Cross was arguing with three of the women while the fourth woman sat in a white car parked in front of the home.

That witness told investigators that Cross was walking down the street toward his own home, he heard a noise and saw the three women hurry out of the house and get into the car.

Investigators lifted a fingerprint from that car that came back to Dotson.

Witnesses told investigators that Cross was seen with four women on Monday, including Lauteshia Dotson (left) and Johniesha Simmons (right), when the women had a flat tire

Authorities said the fourth person involved in the shooting death was Ponesha Taylor (pictured)

The witness confirmed that she was one of the women inside the home arguing with Cross shortly before he was killed.

Authorities said they believe the motive in the crime was robbery. Police also said the women were in Missouri after advertising escort services online.

Investigators said couch cushions were turned over and pockets had been turned out of pants, indicating the home had been searched.

Authorities said a 9mm shell casing was found at the scene of the crime, but the handgun has not been found.

The women turned themselves in at the Mississippi County Sheriff's Office on August 3.

All four women admitted to being at Cross' home on July 31 and August 1. But none of them would admit to the murder or identify what role they played in it. Police released surveillance footage of one of the women involved in Cross' death

All four women admitted to being at Cross' home on July 31 and August 1, according to the news station.

But none of them admitted to the murder or identified what role they played in it.

Neighbors told the station that Cross was well-known for the way he treated the kids in town.

They said he helped some of them with their back-to-school supplies.

Cross' neigbors said they will always remember Cross for the good he did for the community.

In addition to the first-degree murder charge, all four women were charged with armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon.

Curry, Taylor, Simmons and Dotson are all being held in separate facilities without bond.
When Hell's Angels bikie Christopher Hudson went on a drug-fuelled shooting rampage in July 2007 the lives of those who crossed his path changed forever.

A decade on the brave survivors are speaking out about the harrowing experience, talking of moment they stared death in the face.

After a boozy night at Spearmint Rhino in central Melbourne, 31-year-old Hudson assaulted a stripper and chased his girlfriend, Kaera Douglas, with a gun.

Brave survivors of the 2007 Melbourne CBD shooting rampage (pictured) have spoken out about the traumatic event 10 years on

Christopher Hudson (pictured) was 31-years-old at the time of the shooting rampage and has been jailed for life

Natalie Gullace (pictured) has spoken out about the bone-chilling moment she came face-to-face with bikie killer Christopher Hudson

Bystanders Brendan Keilar and Paul de Waard came to Ms Douglas's aid but Hudson shot at them, killing Mr Keilar and wounding Mr de Waard and Ms Douglas.

Natalie Gullace saw Hudson's injured girlfriend in distress and walked towards her, only to find herself staring down the barrel of the bikie's gun.

'He just went bang, bang, bang,' she told 60 Minutes.

'All I remember is locking eyes with him and just staring at the end of the gun.'

After watching Hudson shoot Mr Keilar execution-style as he lay in the street and fire another shot at Mr de Waard, Ms Gullace thought she would be next.

Peter de Waard (pictured) was 25-year-old Dutch backpacker at the time of the drug-fuelled rampage

Father-of-three Brendan Keilar (pictured) was killed by Hudson after trying to help Kaera Douglas

Luckily the gun was empty and the killer fled, dumping the body of Mr Keilar in a construction site before going on the run.

Mr Keilar, a 43-year-old father of three, died after being shot in the head and 25-year-old Dutch backpacker Mr de Waard returned to the Netherlands to recover.

Ms Douglas lost a kidney as a result of her injuries.

As the initial target of Hudson's rage, Ms Douglas has long felt responsible for those who put their lives on the line to save her.

She had been in an abusive relationship with the outlaw motorcycle gang member, who had held his gun to her head and put it in her mouth in the past.

Peter de Waard (pictured) says he would do the same thing again if he had the choice, speaking of the moment he came to the aid of Hudson's terrified girlfriend

One man died and two suffered gunshot wounds when a bikie went on a drug-fueled rampage in Melbourne in July 2007 (pictured)

On the morning of the shooting spree he told her, 'I've decided you need to go. Today you're going to die. Today's the last day of your life.'

After years avoiding the spotlight, she has finally decided to go public with her version of events, revealing the shocking level of violence she was exposed to.

Mr de Waard has said he would do the same thing again, despite the years of rehabilitation he has needed to deal with the traumatic event.

After two days in hiding the violent criminal turned himself in at a police station in Wallan, north of Melbourne.

Hudson pleaded guilty to the murder of Mr Keilar and was sentenced to life in jail.
Potential radicals at risk of joining IS are being encouraged by police experts to study and work instead.

At least 60 people have been deemed at risk of becoming a terrorist and are being monitored by the Queensland police panel, according to The Courier Mail.

The panel, which includes representatives from the state's employment and education departments, is working to find jobs for those listed as part of the continued war on terror.

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Potential radicals at risk of joining IS are being encouraged by a Queensland panel of experts to study and work instead as part of the continued war on terror

It comes just days after two Sydney men, Khaled (pictured) and Mahmoud Khayat, were charged over an alleged plot to bring down an Etihad plane

Khaled Khayat (pictured) and his brother allegedly turned to gas after their first alleged plot to bomb a plane failed

Police Acting Deputy Commissioner Tracy Linford told the publication the group's job is to take a proactive approach.

'We go and engage them, engage their families and look at what can we do to assist that person or their family to deradicalise that individual or make sure they're not getting radicalised,' she said.

'We've got examples of where we help people find employment; where we link people with mental health services; where we get people back into the education stream, into youth groups.

'As a group, the panel can discuss what might be a good plan for engaging with this individual and what we might be able to offer to steer them on to a good path as opposed to being drawn into getting radicalised. There would be at least 60 people who have been referred through that service.'

Ms Linford's said the people referred to the panel had not been accused of terror offences.

Her comments come just days after two Sydney men were charged over an alleged plot to bring down an Etihad plane with a bomb.

The men, Khaled and Mahmoud Khayat, allegedly also planned a chemical attack on Sydney's public transport network.

Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Michael Phelan said the men planned to release the toxic gas hydrogen sulphide using a purpose-built device.

Public transport (pictured, stock image) is a tempting target for terrorists due to lack of security and the potential to cause mass panic

Their alleged target is believed to have been crowded public areas and public transport but the plot was in its early stages, the Daily Telegraph reported.

'The second plot related to the building of an improved chemical dispersion device. We will allege these individuals attempted to create an improvised dispersion device [to] release a highly toxic hydrogen sulphide,' Mr Phelan said.

'They were talking about crowded enclosed spaces, potentially public transport and so on ... I want to make it quite clear that while it may have been a hypothetical plot for the people ... we were a long way from having a functional device.'

Charles Sturt University counter-terrorism Associate Professor Nick O'Brien said Sydney's public transport network could be a tempting target for terrorists.

'Public transport is a good target for terrorists because it can put large portions of the population in fear and when the strike is in a capital city it can paralyse transport systems,' he said.

Hydrogen sulphide is a colourless gas that smells like rotten-egg. It is flammable, and fatal if high levels are inhaled.

It can be produced from common household items, and cannot be detected by airport scanners.

Khaled and Mahmoud Khayat were allegedly put in contact with ISIS heavyweight 'The Controller' by their older brother Tarek Khayat, the Daily Telegraph reports.

They were allegedly planning to sacrifice their own brother in the attack - by planting the bomb which was disguised as a meat mincer in his luggage.

Police believe Tarek Khayat, the eldest of the three brothers allegedly involved in the terror plans, had never even met the younger brother who was to be sacrificed.

It has also been revealed that Tarek had fought in Syria alongside other extremists before ISIS established a caliphate there.

Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Michael Phelan (right) with NSW Deputy Commissioner David Hudson

The alleged meat-mincer bomb is believed to have been made with 'military-grade explosives' sent from Turkey after exchanging messages with 'The Controller'.

Khaled Khayat, 49, accompanied his unwitting brother to Sydney airport ahead of his flight to Abu Dhabi, allegedly knowing his luggage contained an explosive hidden in a kitchen meat mincer.

Mr Phelan revealed that the luggage never make it on the plane and Khayat took it from the airport.

'There is a little bit of conjecture as to why it didn't go ahead,' Mr Phelan told reporters on Friday. 'It did not get through security.'

The beginnings of the alleged plot to bring down the Etihad Airways EY 451 was hatched on April 14 when Khaled Khayat allegedly contacted a senior Islamic State operative in Syria, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

Mr Khayat is alleged to have kept in contact with the commander leading to bomb components being sent from Turkey to Sydney by air cargo.

Following information being sent through on chemical reactions, Mr Khayat responded in a message with: 'Thanks be to God', according to the publication.

Police allege Mr Khayat and his younger brother Mahmoud worked on the bomb for three months.

But upon arriving at Sydney Airport the bag never made it through check-in and was taken back to Mr Khayat's Lakemba home.

'This is one of the most sophisticated plots that has ever been attempted on Australian soil,' Police Commissioner Mike Phelan said.

Police patrolling Parramatta Court ahead of the appearance of two alleged terrorists alleged to be behind a plane bombing plot

After the bomb returned to Lakemba, it is alleged an IS member contacted Mr Khayat on how to create an 'improvised chemical dispersion device'.

Messages allege the IS member and Mr Khayat had talked about placing the gas device in a crowded place, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

Authorities allege a second attack was planned after the first plot failed.

'It was designed to release the highly toxic hydrogen sulfide,' Mr Phelan said, but he stressed the alleged conspirators 'were a mile-and-a-half from having a functioning chemical dispersion device'.

Khayat, 49, of Lakemba and another brother, Mahmoud Khayat, 32, of Punchbowl had their first court mention at Parramatta Local Court on Friday.

Each have been charged with two counts of acting in preparation for, or planning, a terrorist act.

An alleged ISIS-inspired terror plot to smuggle an improvised explosive device onto an Etihad Airways flight out of Sydney could have killed more than 400 people. File photo

Their lawyer, Michael Coroneos, said his clients were 'entitled to the presumption of innocence'.

'Once the brief of evidence is served we can assess their legal position,' Mr Coroneos told reporters outside court.

The men, who were refused bail ahead of another hearing on November 14, face a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

A third man remains behind bars held under special anti-terror laws. He can be detained until the weekend.

Mr Phelan said the aborted July 15 plot involved a high-end explosive being concealed in a meat grinder.

The brother who flew to Abu Dhabi has not returned to Australia and is not facing charges.
Anthony Scaramucci was reportedly turned down for a $9 million Manhattan home that he shopped for with Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle long before his wife filed for divorce.

The former White House communications director was turned down by the co-op board at the Beresford apartment home on Central Park West.

According to Showbiz 411, he was shopping for the home with Guilfoyle, who lives in the building in a $3.4 million third floor apartment.

Scaramucci actually bought the three-bedroom and three-bathroom apartment located on the 20th floor, but the contract was never finalized.

He then approached other places on the Upper West Side with Guilfoyle by his side.

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Anthony Scaramucci was reportedly turned down for a $9 million Manhattan home that he shopped for with Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle (pictured) long before his wife, Deidre Ball, filed for divorce

The former White House communications director was turned down by the co-op board at the Beresford apartment home on Central Park West. He was reportedly shopping for the home with Guilfoyle, who lives in the building in a $3.4 million third floor apartment

Scaramucci technically bought the three-bedroom and three-bathroom apartment located on the 20th floor, but the contract was never finalized. He then approached other places on the Upper West Side with Guilfoyle (pictured together in 2016) by his side

Another source said that if Scaramucci was turned down in June 'he was looking for a place at least in May'. Pictured is the Beresford apartment at 7 W 81st St in Manhattan

Sources told the news site that they were confused about whether Guilfoyle was his wife, something that became clearer when he was fired from the White House and it was revealed that his wife, Deidre Ball, filed for divorce.

'They didn't understand if he was in the middle of a divorce, or what was going on,' a source told the site. 'It seemed like she was his girlfriend and he was getting divorced.'

Another source said that if Scaramucci was turned down in June 'he was looking for a place at least in May'.

But Deidre didn't file for divorce until July 6th, while she was still pregnant with their second child.

On Wednesday, Scaramucci spoke out for the first time since he was fired and revealed his anger at the DC gossip-fueled rumors of an affair between him and Guilfoyle - which he strongly denies.

In a wide-ranging interview with the Huffington Post, Scaramucci explained the series of events that unfolded during his very short-lived career as the White House communications director.

At the top of the list were the Guilfoyle rumors, the publication of his now infamous expletive-laden rant aimed at some of Trump's top aides and revelations that he missed the birth of his son.

But Deidre (pictured) didn't file for divorce until July 6th, while she was still pregnant with their second child

On Wednesday, Scaramucci spoke out for the first time since he was fired and revealed his anger at the DC gossip-fueled rumors of an affair between him and Guilfoyle (above) - which he strongly denies

The Mooch said he knew rumors would swirl when Guilfoyle's name was mentioned after the previous speculation - and that he saw the tweets as 'an attack'.

Scaramucci denies having a sexual relationship with Guilfoyle, who was spotted returning alone to her pricey Upper West Side apartment late Tuesday evening.

The Fox host also confirmed - via a Fox spokesperson - that she is only friends with Scaramucci.

Trump confidant Roger Stone, who is also a friend of Guilfoyle, told the Huffington Post's Vicky Ward that the pair are just 'very close friends'. He added: 'He is way too short for Kimberly.'

One of the reporters tweeting about the dinner was New Yorker reporter Ryan Lizza who later published his rant about 'paranoid schizophrenic' Reince Priebus and Steve Bannon 'sucking his own c***'.

Scaramucci said he called Lizza when he got home from the dinner and that conversation, which included the expletive-laden rant about Priebus and Steve Bannon, made headlines the following day when it was published.

He repeatedly pressured Lizza to reveal the source of his tweet about the dinner, threatening to fire his entire communications staff if he wouldn't reveal who did it.

The Mooch said he knew rumors would swirl when Guilfoyle's name was mentioned after the previous speculation - and that he saw the tweets as 'an attack'

Scaramucci said he called Lizza when he got home from the dinner and that conversation, which included the expletive-laden rant about Reince Priebus and Steve Bannon, made headlines the following day when it was published.

'The Lizzas and Scaramuccis have been friends for over 50 years. My dad knew his dad from construction, and we were building a personal relationship. Most of what I said was humorous and joking.

'Legally, it may have been on the record, but the spirit of it was off. And he knew that,' Scaramucci said of the phone call, which he said he felt burned by.

Lizza denies being old family friends with Scaramucci.

Scaramucci's wife Deidre filed for divorce while she was eight months pregnant.

Deidre delivered a baby boy on July 24, during Scaramucci's fourth day on the job. Scaramucci was not present for the birth and was instead on Air Force One with Trump en route to the national Boy Scout Jamboree.

The baby was born with health problems and was whisked to neonatal intensive care, but Scaramucci didn't return to New York to visit his newborn son for several days.

Reports emerged that he greeted news of his expanded family by sending Deidre a text message that read: 'Congratulations, I'll pray for our child.'

Scaramucci told the Huffington Post that the way the chain of events was played out was unfair and not in context.

Scaramucci's wife Deidre (pictured) filed for divorce while she was eight months pregnant. Deidre delivered a baby boy on July 24, during Scaramucci's fourth day on the job. Scaramucci was not present for the birth and was instead on Air Force One with Trump

This photo was taken on board Air Force One at the same time Scaramucci's wife gave birth to their second son

He said his wife gave birth two weeks early so he had no reason to believe that he would miss it by jumping on the plane with Trump.

Scaramucci claims his estranged wife texted him after the birth saying she needed space.

But Deidre's lawyer Jill Stone disputed this, saying: 'Any texts of that nature had nothing to do with the baby or seeing the baby.'

The Mooch was sacked after just 10 days on the job.

But TMZ reported that the short-lived stint inside the White House could still benefit Scaramucci with lucrative engagements on the public speaking circuit.

As a hedge fund magnate and entrepreneur, the site reports he was already worth between $25,000 and $50,000 per speech.

But having inside knowledge of the Trump administration could push that price-tag to $75,000, though it is unlikely that ever-loyal Mooch would turn on his former paymaster in order to make quick cash.
Hundreds of indigenous Australians put on an enthusiastic display to mark the second day of this year's Garma Festival.

Young and old dancers put their best foot forward during celebrations at the cultural festive held annually at Gulkula's Bunggul grounds in north-east Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory.

But the festival did kick off with more a sombre tone with hundreds of people paying an emotional tribute to the late indigenous musician Dr G Yunupingu.

At the start of the Garma Festival, Malcolm Turnbull said he was heartened to see the Yolngu concept of makarrata or coming together after a struggle was the theme of the festival

Young and old dancers put their best foot forward during celebrations at the cultural festive held annually at Gulkula's Bunggul grounds in the Northern Territory

Indigenous dancers perform on the second day of the Garma Festival in north-east Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten and hundreds of guests joined hands on Friday to remember Australia's most prominent indigenous musician.

Dr G Yunupingu died last week following a long battle with kidney and liver disease, chronic illnesses afflicting many disadvantaged Aboriginal Australians.

'He brought the Yolngu language to all Australians, his music will be forever cherished,' Mr Turnbull said on Friday.

Mr Turnbull was praised for starting his speech to the Garma Festival in the Northern Territory in an Aboriginal dialect.

'In a language so ancient on earth. Particularly in this country of ours. It must have been really daunting for him. His pronunciations were excellent,' a woman from the audience told the program.

Reconciliation Australia director Djapirri Mununggirritj told ABC's Q&A from the Northern Territory it was important for leaders to have an understanding of the nation's native language.

Reconciliation Australia director Djapirri Mununggirritj told ABC's Q&A from the Northern Territory it was important for leaders to have an understanding of the nation's native language

At the start of the Garma Festival, Malcolm Turnbull said he was heartened to see the Yolngu concept of makarrata or coming together after a struggle was the theme of the festival

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten and hundreds of guests joined hands at Gulkula's Bunggul grounds on Friday

'I was pretty amazed with how the Yolngu words were spoken by the prime minister,' she said.

'It gave an understanding to the Yolngu in such a way that it actually, in amongst the audience, they would say, 'I wish I knew how to speak Yolngu Matha.'

Prominent Aboriginal Australian Noel Pearson said Australia has never recognised the existence of Indigenous languages.

'We must first formally recognise the existence of these languages and provide support for their preservation and continuation and survival,' he told Q&A.

Prominent Aboriginal Australian Noel Pearson said Australia has never recognised the existence of Indigenous languages

Young and old dancers put their best foot forward during celebrations at the cultural festive held annually at Gulkula's Bunggul grounds in the Northern Territory

Many of these languages in Australia are extremely precarious and will be lost to the planet. If we don't provide for their safety and growth and continuity.'

The coalition leader's wife Lucy Turnbull wept with grief-stricken female Gumatj clan members after a minute's silence was held and Yolngu traditional owners sang one of Dr G Yunupingu's songs about their gurtha or sacred fire.

Gumatj clan leader Galarrwuy Yunupingu pointed to the Referendum Council's recent Uluru Statement from the Heart and report, which calls for changes to the nation's founding document to allow an indigenous advisory body in parliament, a treaty-making mechanism and a reconciliation commission.

The coalition leader's wife Lucy Turnbull wept with grief-stricken female Gumatj clan members after a minute's silence was held and Yolngu traditional owners sang one of Dr G Yunupingu's songs about their gurtha or sacred fire

Turnbull was praised for starting his speech to the Garma Festival in the Northern Territory in an Aboriginal dialect

'At Uluru we started a fire. A fire that we hope burns bright for Australia,' he said.

'We live side by side but we're not yet united ... this is the perfect place for us to find our path to a settlement.'

Mr Turnbull said he was heartened to see the Yolngu concept of makarrata or coming together after a struggle was the theme of the four-day festival.

'Our journey of reconciliation is made up of many steps, practical and symbolic,' he said.

'From little things, big things grow.'
A former classmate of two Brisbane siblings, who vanished almost 25 years ago, has spoken out citing she suspects they were murdered by a person they knew.

After dropping off their younger brother at school on November 23, 1992, Chad and Melony Sutton disappeared, The Courier-Mail reported.

Investigations lead police to believe the pair, who wanted to travel to Western Australia to be with their father, were murdered.

But a childhood friend claims the teenagers were bullied and thinks their tormentors may have been involved.

The former classmate of two Brisbane siblings, who vanished almost 25 years ago, has spoken out citing she suspects they were murdered by a person they knew (pictured: Chad Sutton)

Investigations lead police to believe the pair, who wanted to travel to Western Australia to be with their father, were murdered (pictured: Melony Sutton)

'My thoughts are that either it was [the bullies] or their families. If it wasn't them, I wouldn't know who it would have been,' friend Clare Snow said.

She said three tormentors would often beat up 16-year-old Chad and 14-year-old Melony, often at times outside their own home.

The former Inala High School pupil said it was always the Sutton children versus the families of the bullies.

'The main [story] was [the Suttons] were taken to the bush that used to be at the back of Inala before the bush was knocked down to build houses.'

Searches were conducted after the pair went missing but no evidence or their bodies were found.

A childhood friend claims the teenagers were bullied and thinks their tormentors may have been involved

Ms Snow admitted she believed the bullies would be capable of killing the Sutton kids.

'Oh yeah, for sure. They were very nasty people,' she said.

Ms Snow was also a victim to the violent trio, with one hitting her on the head with a plank of wood in one instance.

The information she provided has been passed on to the Queensland Police Service's Missing Persons Unit and Homicide Unit for consideration.
The novel explains the dangers of ignorance and stubborn pride

Kelly reread the book when he appointed Secretary of Homeland Security and again with his promotion at the White House

Kelly notes how he interprets C.S. Forester's 1936 novel 'The General' differently with each promotion

Since he was 25, he has reread the same book each time he gets a promotion

President Donald Trump's new chief of staff has a reputation of being studious as he is disciplined.

John Kelly has cultivated that standing through every step of his career, from a distinguished Marine General, to Secretary of Homeland Security, and now as the President's most senior adviser.

And it was revealed recently that the man who will act as the White House's most stalwart gatekeeper has a peculiar affinity for a piece of historical literature that has guided him since he was a 25-year-old Marine officer heading off to fight in Vietnam.

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John Kelly (pictured) was appointed President Donald Trump's chief of staff on Monday, replacing Reince Priebus

C.S. Forester's 1936 novel 'The General' has never left Kelly's side since those young adult years, reading the book each time he's ever received a promotion in his esteemed career.

The feat is a testament to the incredible rigor he's applied in becoming 'a real professional,' as he put it in the 'The Leader's Bookshelf,' a collection of essays written by four-star generals about their favorite books.

Kelly, 67, recalls how a young captain's simple words seared an impression on his character that has propelled him to highest echelon's of power both in the military and in government.

'A doctor who doesn't read peer articles and stay attuned to the developments in his field is not the kind of doctor you would want to go to, and the same is true for officers in the Marine Corps,' Kelly recalls the young captain telling him.

'He got me going on reading,' Kelly continues, 'specifically focused on military things, and I just never stopped.'

Kelly rereads the same book, Forester's 1936 novel 'The General', every time he receives a promotion

The novel explains the dangers of ignorance and stubborn pride set against the backdrop of World War I

That affinity for the written word, especially on 'military things,' steered him towards Forester's tome, about the perils of hubris, the pitfalls of patriotism and duty unaccompanied by critical thinking.

Kelly went through it once again after he was sworn in as chief of staff on Monday, according to The Wall Street Journal, to reacquaint himself 'of what to avoid as a leader.'

'The General' tells the fictional story of an unremarkable British soldier who rises to power mostly through dumb-luck and the incompetence of his superiors.

Set against the backdrop of World War I, he is eventually put in charge of 100,000 men... the majority of which meet their demise under his command.

Despite his incompetence, he's hailed as a hero on his arrival back to Britain.

The book is essentially a critique on the unexamined ethos of military culture at the time, marked by a reckless close-mindedness and stubborn pride. A blind-sense of patriotism in lieu of critical thinking that led, in Forester's mind, to the unnecessary deaths of thousands of British lives.

Kelly served as Secreatry of Homeland Security before taking the job at the White House

'It might have been more advantageous for England if the British Army had not been quite so full of men of high rank who were so ready for responsibility, so uninchingly devoted to their duty, so unmoved in the face of difculty, of such unfaltering courage,' Forester wrote.

Kelly writes in 'The Leader's Bookshelf' that each time he picks up the novel, he notes where he is at that point in his life, and how the novel's lesson resonates with him.

He wrote: 'Depending on as you get older and higher in rank, it's a different book every time you read it.'

'When a lieutenant reads that book it's different from when a lieutenant general reads it. ... it's just [something] I've done over the years and with this book in particular just to remind me of the critical importance of thinking.'

Lets hope for the sake of the nation those lessons are always present in the mind of Trump's new chief of staff.
A Hong Kong teenager has died after a plane crashed into a Melbourne paddock.

Student pilot Nicholas Cheung, 19, and his instructor John Dwyer, in his 30s, were trapped in the wreckage for hours at Clyde North on Thursday morning.

Mr Cheung died in The Alfred Hospital on Sunday after doctors were unable to treat his life-threatening injuries.

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Nicholas Cheung, 19, has died after a plane crashed into a Melbourne paddock

Mr Cheung was originally in a critical condition with facial, chest and spinal injuries. Police confirmed his death in a statement on Sunday afternoon.

The 25-year-old pilot remains in intensive care at Royal Melbourne Hospital.

The aircraft was registered to Learn to Fly Melbourne based at Moorabbin Airport.

Recreational Aviation Australia will be investigating the crash as the governing body for ultralight aircraft and pilots.

'We will have two investigators on scene this afternoon and all day tomorrow,' Mr Linke said on Thursday.

It was too early to comment on the cause of the crash but investigators would look at environmental, human and mechanical factors to determine the cause, he said.

Mr Cheung, 19,was trapped in the wreckage for hours after the aircraft crashed

The aircraft was registered to Learn to Fly Melbourne based at Moorabbin Airport.

Recreational Aviation Australia will be investigating the crash

Witness Kane Loveday who was driving in the area, told the Seven Network he suspected a lack of poweer caused the crash.

'It sounded like a lack of power basically and before I could see anything it was below the tree line.'

Civil Aviation Safety Authority spokesman Peter Gibson said the ultralight was on a training flight.
Jillian Michaels is stranded in Italy after chartering a $60k yacht to sail the Amalfi Coast, because the crew demand more money due to mobsters in Capri.

The Biggest Loser star is currently holed up in a hotel with members of her family after a luxurious vacation took a disastrous turn, she revealed on Saturday.

Michaels said she hired a pricey yacht to cruise around the coast for 12 days only to find out the boat was disgusting, had no hot water or wi-fi and had electrical problems.

The 43-year-old trainer said the crew demanded more money for fuel on the third day of the trip because the gas cash had been drained by mobsters in Capri.

Michaels shared details of the harrowing experience on her Facebook page and wrote: 'Things became so escalated we literally feared for our safety.'

Jillian Michaels revealed she went on a horror vacation in Italy on Saturday. The trainer, 43, claims she rented a yacht to sail the Amalfi Coast and the crew demanded more money because the 'Mafia in Capri' had depleted the fuel fund

Michaels posted photos of what she claims to be of the disgusting boat online (pictured). She said she paid $60k for the yacht for 12 days

The Biggest Loser star said the craft had no hot water or wi-fi and had electrical problems. Pictured: What appears to be an exposed electrical outlet

Michaels took the vacation with friends, family members and her daughter, after finding pictures of the boat online and booking it through an online company.

Michaels is currently in a hotel and attempted to contact the FBI and the State Department, out of fear of her safety, but had no luck, reported TMZ.

She told the news outlet the yacht broker explained to her that the money for gas was gone 'because of Mafia in Capri.'

When she didn't pony up the extra cash immediately, the crew allegedly refused to take Michaels ashore, only doing so when she paid them.

She wrote in a lengthy Facebook post: 'The boat was shown in pictures as pristine. It was not only filthy, but it had no hot water, no air con when not docked, no wifi, partial electricity, it was clearly in total disrepair.'

Pictured: Holes in wooded surfaces said to be on the yacht that Michaels rented

Michaels took the vacation with friends, family members and her daughter, after finding booking the yacht through an online company. Pictured: What appears to be dirtied panels of the said yacht

She continued: 'By the third day of our charter we were being extorted for money and things became so escalated we literally feared for our safety.

'Bottom line - this stuff is no joke. You could lose a lot of money and that sucks, but in some instances there is real danger. Be so so careful when dealing with rentals.'

When she initially complained about the condition of the boat, she was credited 6,700 euros, according to TMZ.

Michaels used her harrowing experience to warn her followers to be wary of booking things online and said this was the third time she was 'scammed'.

The fitness guru uploaded several photos of what she said her luxury yacht looked like when she arrived.

Photos appear to show rusted walls, blackened substances at the bottom of a fridge, loose electrical wires and holes in wooden surfaces.

DailyMail.com has reached out to the charter company for comment.

Michaels shared the photos to warn her followers about online scams and shared tips on what they could do to protect themselves from being victims of such circumstances

Photos appear to show rusted walls, blackened substances at the bottom of a fridge, loose electrical wires and holes in wood surfaces

Michaels signed off on the post by telling her followers what they could do to protect themselves from being victims of scams.

She wrote: 'Beware... You guys know I keep my social pretty straight forward. Fun memes, nutrition tips, fitness videos etc. But I feel compelled to ask you all to be VERY CAREFUL with any holiday rentals you book on line.

'You could lose a lot of money and that sucks, but in some instances there is real danger. Be so so careful when dealing with rentals.

'Ultimately, at the end of the day it's just money. Don't put yourself in harms way. If you start to sense real danger leave the situation immediately and if you are out of the country contact your embassy.

'They have a fraud investigator apparently and can help you. BE SAFE PLEASE AND ALWAYS TAKE PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY.'
Two brothers accused of trying to take down an Etihad flight allegedly planned on setting their devastating gas bomb off at Sydney Airport if they could not get it onto a plane, a source has claimed.

Accused terrorists Khaled and Mahmoud Khayat allegedly initially planned to sacrifice their own brother by planting a bomb disguised as a meat mincer in his luggage on July 15.

Khaled, 49, accompanied his unwitting brother to Sydney airport ahead of his flight to Abu Dhabi, but the luggage never made it onto the plane and Khayat took it from the airport, police said.

After the plan was thwarted, a Daily Mail Australia source claims the brothers allegedly began plotting to set off a bomb inside the Sydney airport at the same time a second bomb was detonated on public transport.

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Two brothers accused of trying to take down an Etihad flight allegedly planned on setting their devastating gas bomb off at Sydney Airport (pictured) if they could not get it onto a plane

Accused terrorists Khaled (pictured) and Mahmoud Khayat allegedly initially planned to sacrifice their own brother by planting a bomb disguised as a meat mincer in his luggage on July 15

After the plan was thwarted, a Daily Mail Australia source claims the brothers (pictured is Khaled )allegedly began plotting to set off a bomb inside the Sydney airport at the same time a second bomb detonated on public transport

The pair were charged with terror offences after police foiled their alleged plot, which officers described as sophisticated, and raided their homes in Surry Hills and Lakemba on July 29.

A Daily Mail Australia source has claimed it was just 'a fluke' the Khayat brothers were caught before the alleged second attempt which was 'very close' - even just days or hours from happening.

'Our tip said if they were going back to the airport, they would let it off in there if they couldn't get it on a plane,' the source said.

Letting the alleged terrorists back through the doors of the country's busiest airport was not an option, the source said.

Public transport (pictured, stock image) is a tempting target for terrorists due to lack of security and the potential to cause mass panic

The alleged ISIS-inspired terror plot to smuggle an explosive device onto an Etihad Airways flight out of Sydney could have killed more than 400 people (stock image)

'We were told to act if we saw them go to the airport,' the source told Daily Mail Australia.

The source said authorities took the tip seriously and it was the most dangerous operation they have been involved in because of how far along the alleged plot was.

Khaled and Mohammad had never been on the radar before, the source said.

They said that despite the imminent threat, teams could not act right away.

'There was a hold up because we knew about a second bomb but didn't know where it was,' the source alleged.

But within a few days they had the information they needed.

Police believe the brothers were sent key bomb-making tools through the mail from ISIS contacts they had been introduced to through their eldest brother, Tarek Khayat, who fought alongside extremists in Syria.

The men were allegedly put in touch with ISIS heavyweight 'The Controller' by Tarek.
The stunning sexual motivation behind a massive arson spree that rocked a rural community has been revealed.

The dark secret behind Charles Robert Smith III and girlfriend Tonya Susan Bundick's 2012 arson rampage across Accomack County, Virginia was revealed last month in a new book by Washington Post reporter Monica Hesse.

In American Fire, Hesse traces the investigation that kept a community on edge, with firefighters sleeping in the station instead of going home, and police staking out abandoned buildings as blazes sprang up nearly every night.

At the end of the Smith and Bundick's rampage, the couple was convicted of torching 67 buildings, but the question has always remained: why did they do it?

The dark secret behind Charles Robert Smith III and girlfriend Tonya Susan Bundick's 2012 arson rampage across Accomack County, Virginia was revealed last month in a new book

The pair were convicted of setting 67 fires in the coastal Virginia community over the course of 142 days, a reign of fire terror that paralyzed the residents with fear

Smith, a former captain of the Tasley Volunteer Fire Department, was an auto mechanic with a history of drug troubles.

He met Bundick at Shucker's Roadhouse, about the only nightlife option in the community on the Delmarva Peninsula jutting between the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean.

Smith thought she was out of his league and was a little intimidated by her - Bundick once showed up at Shucker's wearing nothing but her lingerie, Hesse writes.

But the pair hit it off, and soon they were even talking about getting married, planning a wedding the unusual theme of the Guns & Roses music video for November Rain.

Money was tight for the couple, as Bundick tried to open a boutique clothing shop and Smith opened an auto body shop.

'They were broke, they were isolated from their families,' Hesse writes. 'They were low on work, and they were going to the Food Lion and they were eating garbage.'

Bundick once showed up at local nightlife hotspot Shucker's wearing nothing but her lingerie

Smith, a former captain of the Tasley Volunteer Fire Department, was an auto mechanic with a history of drug troubles

But the trigger for the crime was a frustration of a more personal nature.

'The moment I fell in love with her, my d--k stopped working,' Smith later told cops.

The arson spree started out as a twisted attempt to satisfy his girlfriend, Smith later confessed.

'I want you to set that house on fire,' Bundick told her boyfriend abruptly one November night in 2012, as the two were driving in their car, Hesse writes.

Smith agreed, got out of the car and came back saying he'd done it, although he hadn't actually gone through with setting the blaze.

But Bundick, seemingly excited by the idea of the fire, went back to check and found Smith hadn't set the fire.

'Never send a man to do a womans job,' she said, according to Hesse.

The went back together and burned the house down together, launching a 142-day arson spree that terrorized the county.

This fire destroyed the Whispering Pines Motel in Tasley, Virginia on March 12, 2013. Smith and Bundick were caught leaving the scene of another fire a few weeks later

Neighbors eyed each other with suspicion for months, and police set up road blocks across the county.

Winter passed, and on March 14, 2013 Bundick wrote about the arson on her Facebook page.

'I have often wondered if arsonist is reading and laughsI myself am not afraid just cautiousI am always on lookout when my animals start barking and when my livestock start making noise. Make (yourself) aware of the little things,' she wrote.

The couple were caught red-handed in the early morning hours of April 2, 2013, shortly after an abandoned home in Melfa, Virginia was set ablaze.

Smith pleaded guilty to setting the fires but refused to implicate Bundick in any way.

Bundick, on the other hand, denied any involvement and tried to pin the entire arson spree on her boyfriend.

When Smith learned that Bundick had started seeing another man while he was behind bars, he changed his tune and testified against her. She pleaded no contest.

Smith is currently serving 15 years in prison for the fires. Bundick is serving 17 years.
One of the world's most infamous divorcees, 'Catwoman' Jocelyn Wildenstein, stepped out in New York on Saturday to discuss becoming a bride for the second time.

DailyMail.com revealed last week that the flamboyant New York socialite, famed for her feline features, got engaged to her fashion designer boyfriend Lloyd Klein, again.

Jocelyn and Klein were spotted in matching black as they arrived to the Baccarat Hotel for a photoshoot and discussion about their engagement.

One of the world's most infamous divorcees, 'Catwoman' Jocelyn Wildenstein, stepped out in New York on Saturday with her fiance Lloyd Klein to discuss becoming a bride for the second time

The lovebirds cozied-up to one another as they flashed their smiles while speaking about their engagement

The couple's 14-year romance appeared to be over last December when 71-year-old Jocelyn sank her claws into Klein in a now-notorious catfight. But on Saturday she was all smiles as she gushed over her soon-to-be husband

Klein bought the 32-carat diamond engagement ring (pictured) 'worth millions' with a black gold and platinum setting and proposed at the Versace Mansion in Miami

Lloyd recalled meeting her: 'Of course I knew who the famous Jocelyn Wildenstein was. But when I saw her, wow! She looked like a sculpture'

The couple's 14-year romance appeared to be over last December when 71-year-old Jocelyn sank her claws into Klein in a now-notorious catfight.

However the loved-up pair say the headline-grabbing tussle that saw them both thrown behind bars only made them realize how much they couldn't bear to be apart.

The lovebirds cozied up to one another during their interview on Saturday as Jocelyn flaunted her 32-carat diamond ring.

Lloyd has been secretly plotting his fairy tale proposal ever since the charges were dismissed. He selected the ring 'worth millions' as the ultimate token of his love.

He told the DailyMail.com last week that he designed the black gold and platinum setting himself in the shape of a coiled serpent then finally presented it to a thrilled Jocelyn at a sumptuous dinner last month at the Versace Mansion in Miami.

'It was romantic, dramatic and wonderful. I showed Jocelyn the ring and she said "yes!" - she was in heaven,' Lloyd told DailyMail.com.

While the 50-year-old couturier won't reveal the exact figure he paid, the stunning sparkler is so pricey that head over heels Jocelyn has only worn it on a handful of special occasions.

Two armed bodyguards are on hand to escort it back to a safe the moment she slips it off her finger.

Klein, 50, started plotting his fairy tale engagement to Jocelyn, 71, after charges against her for felony assault were dismissed earlier this year

The ring is so lavish, Jocelyn has only worn it a handful of times. After the photo shoot with DailyMail.com, two armed bodyguards were on hand to escort it back to a safe the moment she slipped it off her finger

Klein chose to pop the question at Gianni Versace's former mansion, the Villa Casa Casuarina, on the Miami oceanfront

Klein swooned over his bride-to-be, saying she had enchanting eyes and one of the most beautiful bodies he had ever seen

Jocelyn paraded the giant gem this week in an exclusive photo-shoot with DailyMail.com - but played down its extraordinary extravagance.

'It doesn't matter how much it cost. I have many rings and pieces of jewelry. I love this one because it came from the heart,' she said, posing playfully in a figure-hugging pink Versace mini-dress.

The couple liken their ups and downs to the tumultuous romance between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, who famously bought her a 68-carat diamond ring in 1969 for $1,050,000.

'Richard bought Elizabeth this ring so why shouldn't Jocelyn have the same,' Lloyd laughed.

'She is whimsical, magical, she has something to offer that nobody else in the world does.

'Her eyes are enchanting and she also has one of the most beautiful bodies I've ever seen. And I should know - as a fashion designer I've seen many beautiful bodies.'

Klein likened their tumultuous love story to Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton's relationship. Burton bought the actress a 68-carat diamond ring in 1969 for $1,050,000

Four years after her divorce, Klein saw Jocelyn at a New York fashion show. He said she reminded him of a sculpture

Jocelyn became the world's most recognizable divorcee in 1999, having landed a then-record $2.5 billion settlement from her late ex-husband, the art dealer Alec Wildenstein.

She had been single for about four years when she agreed to step in at the last minute when a friend needed an extra runway model at a New York fashion show.

'I was sitting at the end of the runway and she came walking towards me in a fur coat,' Lloyd recalled 'Of course I knew who the famous Jocelyn Wildenstein was. But when I saw her, wow! She looked like a sculpture.

'In Paris, where I grew up, they would put paper on the tables in the cafes and when I waited for my food I would always sketch a woman's face. 'I realized at that moment that that face looked exactly like Jocelyn. I knew then and there she was the star of my life.'

But while smitten Lloyd continued to pester mother-of-two Jocelyn for dates she took a little longer to warm to his advances.

Jocelyn became one of the most famous divorcees in the world in 1999 after landing a then-record $2.5 billion settlement from her late ex-husband, art dealer Alec Wildenstein

After a horrific car crash in Paris that nearly killed Klein in February of 2004, the pair became inseparable. He underwent major reconstructive surgery to his face

'When I got divorced I was so happy. I love to be spontaneous, I was enjoying my freedom,' Jocelyn, also a proud grandmother, explained. 'We met maybe four or five times but for me it takes a while to develop something. You never know if you're ready for a relationship.'

Lloyd hoped he had finally won Jocelyn's heart when the pair both happened to be in Miami months later and they met for a plush dinner date at the famous Delano South Beach hotel.

'I was staying in the penthouse. I invited her back to my suite but she refused,' Lloyd lamented.

'But that just made me all the more determined.'

What finally sealed their love was not a romantic gesture or a passionate clinch, but rather a devastating car accident that nearly claimed Lloyd's life in February 2004.

Lloyd was driving to a Paris airport to catch a flight to New York when his car crashed in foggy conditions, leaving him critically injured. The designer was headed to the US to stage his seventh show at New York Fashion Week and was due to celebrate his birthday with Jocelyn the next night.

Instead, he spent two days in a coma and had undergone major reconstructive surgery to his face by the next time the lovebirds met.

'I was expecting to see him but he didn't show up. The next morning there was no news,' Jocelyn said. 'I didn't know what to think.'

'Then his mother rang me to tell he was in intensive care. I wanted to see him but his life was literally hanging between life and death.

'I was so worried, I realized how much he meant to me.' Lloyd would overcome his injuries and the pair became a couple, splitting their time between his LA home and Jocelyn's sprawling Manhattan apartment which occupies an entire floor of the Trump World Tower.

She was expecting to celebrate Klein's birthday with him in 2004 but he never showed up. The next day his mother called her to tell her he was in critical condition

Jocelyn said she realized how much her fiance meant to her when he was in a coma hanging between life and death in 2004

Mercurial Jocelyn insists she always shunned interviews and publicity but her extravagant lifestyle and alleged $5 million worth of plastic surgery meant she was rarely out of the tabloids.

Lloyd continued to design clothes for countless A-list celebs including Joan Collins, Tyra Banks, Eva Longoria, Nicki Minaj and Pink.

In 2013 however his fashion career was forced on to the back foot after he was diagnosed with lymphoma cancer.

Doctors removed a tumor the size of an orange from under Lloyd's armpit and he underwent months of chemotherapy before eventually going into remission.

'He was losing his hair, losing his eyebrows, but the light in his eyes never changed,' said Jocelyn. 'He was still so handsome - and he still looked great naked.'

Of course their relationship would face one further test in December last year when a blazing late night argument resulted in Jocelyn getting arrested for scratching Klein's face and chest.

Lloyd escaped by bundling her into a closet but, wrongly believing she was trapped, she called the police herself, igniting a tabloid storm in the process.

In December, the couple got into an altercation at Jocelyn's apartment at Trump World Tower

Jocelyn put her $13 million New York condo for sale following the brawl that nearly ended their relationship

Shocked Lloyd would face the ignominy of arrest himself when, days later, police accused him of pushing Jocelyn when he went back to collect his belongings.

The pair were banned from going within 1,000 yards of one another or communicating by phone, email or text but Jocelyn said they continued to message in secret - like 'naughty schoolchildren' in the back of class.

Authorities dropped all charges after they both insisted the incident was blown out of all proportion and they were still in love.

'The fight was just one night. It could have destroyed our relationship but it didn't,' Jocelyn said.

'We were not supposed to speak directly afterwards but he sent me sweet messages through friends.

'I think the police made too much out of the incident. The police officer put his fingers into my skin so deeply that he left me with a scar.

'But this is just the circle of life. Bad things happens, just like the car crash. You cannot erase them but we never change who we are.'

For Lloyd, the troubling experience reminded him of what he cared most about in the world - his beloved Jocelyn.

Coming from a family of diamond dealers, he set about acquiring the huge 'D flawless,' pear-cut stone from Belgian jewelers, Anvers, which he encrusted in his ornate gold reptile skin design for extra flourish.

And so, some 14 years after setting his heart of one of the world's most recognizable women, he asked Jocelyn to marry him over a dinner to mark the 20th anniversary of Gianni Versace's death on July 15.

The meal was hosted at the late fashion icon's former mansion, the Villa Casa Casuarina on the Miami Beach oceanfront.

'We were sat outside but when the rain came down they moved us into Versace's private dining room. It was the perfect setting,' recalled Lloyd, whose brother is the renowned painter Yves Klein.

'I said: "Jocelyn this was the day Versace died and this is the day we will live."'

'Bad things happen, just like the car crash': Klein told DailyMail.com the couple has moved on from the headline-grabbing fight

The couple will unveil more of their wedding plans after Lloyd's new collection debuts at New York Fashion Week in February.

Guests are likely to include many of their celebrity pals, famous faces from the world of fashion and Lloyd's 30-year-old son Mathias, who lives in the Swiss town of Basel. They will also extend an invitation to Jocelyn's son Alec Junior and daughter Diane, and Diane's two boys Noah and Leon.

Jocelyn is not on speaking terms with either of her children after she accused her ex-husband's family of cutting off her multi-million dollar annual maintenance in 2015.

But Lloyd offered an olive branch, saying: 'I hope they come. I love them both. Diane is great. Alec Junior is like his mother, very wild. I hope they will reunite.'

But will Jocelyn ditch her famous second famous name to become Mrs Klein - and in doing so finally escape another of her tabloid monikers, the 'Bride of Wildenstein?'

'Who knows,' she told DailyMail.com with a typically enigmatic smile. 'I don't program my life. Life for me is about going with the flow.

'Never speak of the past and never worry about the future - just enjoy the present because you never know what is around the corner.'
A top Venezuelan opposition leader has been returned home to serve his sentence under house arrest, days after being hauled back to prison in the middle of the night.

As the country spirals further out of control, Leopoldo Lopez was returned to his home in Caracas after being swept up in a midnight raid four days earlier, his wife Lilian Tintori said on Twitter.

'We continue with even more conviction and firmness to achieve peace and freedom for Venezuela!' Tintori wrote in Spanish.

Lopez was first placed under house arrest on July 8 after serving three years of a 13-year sentence on charges of inciting violence at opposition rallies. Many human rights groups considered him a political prisoner.

Leopoldo Lopez was returned to his home in Caracas after being swept up in a midnight raid four days earlier, his wife Lilian Tintori said on Twitter

Lopez first placed under house arrest on July 8 after serving three years of a 13-year sentence on charges of inciting violence at opposition rallies

Socialist President Nicolas Maduro (right) last week presided over a widely criticized vote to install his loyalists in an all-powerful constitutional assembly with no checks on its powers

Mad Max-style violence has gripped Venezuela as the socialist economy has collapsed, with widespread food shortages. Protesters are seen here in Caracas on Friday

But he was taken back into custody last Tuesday along with former Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma in what many believed was a renewed crackdown on the opposition to the socialist regime of President Nicolas Maduro.

Some saw his return home as a sign Venezuelan officials may be rethinking the crackdown.

Meanwhile, Maduro's newly formed, all-powerful constitutional assembly ousted the country's defiant chief prosecutor on Saturday.

The assembly has given itself ultimate power over all of the country's other institutions, and is composed entirely of Maduro supporters.

The 545 delegates voted unanimously on Saturday to remove top prosecutor Luisa Ortega from her post and replace her with a staunch Maduro loyalist, as cries of 'traitor' rang from the floor.

They said they were acting in response to a ruling by the Maduro-stacked Supreme Court, which banned Ortega from leaving the country and froze her bank accounts.

Ortega, a former Maduro loyalist who broke with his socialist government in April, refused to recognize the decision and vowed to continue defending the rights of Venezuelans from Maduro's 'coup' against the constitution 'with my last breath'.

An opposition activist stands by on Friday during a protest against Maduro's powerful new assembly. Protesters say socialist Maduro is burying democracy in his crisis-hit country

Top prosecutor Luisa Ortega (center) was barred from entering her office by dozens of national guardsmen in riot gear who took control of the entrance to the building on Saturday

Maduro's constitutional assembly ousted chief prosecutor Ortega and replaced her with socialist loyalist Tarek Saab (right), who was recently sanctioned by the US government

Demonstrators clash with riot security forces in Caracas on Friday. Maduro has installed an all-powerful constitutional assembly composed entirely of loyalists to his socialist regime

'This is just a tiny example of what's coming for everyone that dares to oppose this totalitarian form of government,' Ortega said.

'If they're doing this to the chief prosecutor, imagine the helpless state all Venezuelans live in.'

Earlier Saturday, Ortega was barred from entering her office by dozens of national guardsmen in riot gear who took control of the entrance to the building.

She alleged that authorities were desperate to get their hands on dossiers containing information on dirty dealings by high-level officials, including sensitive details about millions of dollars in bribes paid by Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht.

Assembly delegates later swore in as her replacement Ombudsman Tarek William Saab, who was recently sanctioned by the US government for failing to protect protesters from abuses in his role as the nation's top human rights official.

The constitutional assembly was seated despite strong criticism from the United States, other countries and the Venezuelan opposition, which fear that it will be a tool for imposing dictatorship. Supporters say it will pacify a country rocked by violent protests.

Its installation is virtually certain to intensify a political crisis that has brought four months of protests in which at least 120 people have died and hundreds more have been jailed.

The constitutional assembly was seated despite strong criticism from the United States, other countries and the Venezuelan opposition

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro installed a powerful new assembly packed with his allies, dismissing an international outcry and protests saying he is burying democracy

The opposition is struggling to regain its footing in the face of the government's strong-arm tactics

Maduro also wants the assembly to strip opposition lawmakers of their constitutional immunity from prosecution.

While members of congress say they will only be removed by force, the opposition is struggling to regain its footing in the face of the government's strong-arm tactics and the re-emergence of old, internal divisions.

In a sign of its demoralized state, only a few hundred demonstrators showed up for a Friday protest against the constitutional assembly, one of the smallest turnouts in months.

Those who did turn out said fear of arrest - rights groups claim there are more than 600 'political prisoners' jailed during the protests - may be keeping people at home but urged Venezuelans to remain mobilized.

'We shouldn't think the government is winning,' said Julio Borges, president of the opposition-controlled congress, making an emotional plea for Maduro's opponents to remain on the streets. 'The only thing it's doing is destroying itself and committing suicide.'

President Juan Manuel Santos of neighboring Colombia called Saturday's removal of Luisa Ortega 'the first dictatorial act' of an 'illegitimate' assembly and vowed solidarity with the Venezuelan people.
A Muslim group has complained to the Australian Federal Police for using the term 'Islamic-inspired terrorism' to describe an alleged plot to bomb a passenger plane.

AFP Commissioner Andrew Colvin used the phrase late last month when asked by a journalist if the four men arrested across Sydney were connected with ISIS.

'We do believe it's Islamic inspired terrorism,' he told reporters as he stood next to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

Three of the four men arrested during the raids have since been charged.

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Australian Federal Police Commissioner Andrew Colvin said the alleged plot to bring down a passenger plane was 'Islamic-inspired terrorism'

Islamic Council of Queensland spokesman Ali Kadri complained about the AFP's Islam phrase

Brisbane-based Muslim activist Ali Kadri protested to the AFP for using the word 'Islamic'

'Exactly what is behind this is something that we will need to investigate fully,' Commissioner Colvin told reporters.

The Islamic Council of Queensland's media spokesman Ali Kadri was so angry at that phrase he initially complained to the ABC, which had aired the live media conference.

However, after realising the national broadcaster had quoted the AFP commissioner in one of its stories, he lodged a complaint with the Australian Federal Police on behalf of the Islamic Council of Queensland, Council of Imams Queensland and the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils.

'Had a chat with AFP's media team to register my protest,' he told his Facebook followers.

Police collect evidence at Lakemba in Sydney's west, during raids that saw four men arrested

One of the men arrested at Surry Hills, near the city, during raids across Sydney in late July

'It is disappointing that such language was so casually used.

'I hope it was an oversight and quickly rectified.'

An AFP spokesman said 'community liaison teams' had reached out to the Islamic community but he declined to comment on the phrase 'Islamic-inspired terrorism'.

'Violent extremism is a challenge to the most fundamental Australian values,' he told Daily Mail Australia on Sunday.

'Together we reject who seek to impose their world views on others through intimidation and violence.'

The arrested men are accused of plotting to smuggle a bomb on to an Ethihad Airways plane disguised as a meat grinder

Four Lebanese men, from two father and son duos, were arrested on July 29 during Saturday raids at Surry Hills, near the city, and at Lakemba, Punchbowl and Wiley Park in western Sydney.

It is alleged they were part of an ISIS-inspired terror plot to smuggle an improvised explosive device, disguised as a meat grinder, on to an Etihad Airways flight out of Sydney that could have killed more than 400 people.

A 39-year-old man was charged on Sunday with one count of possessing a prohibited weapon and released from police custody.

He was given bail to appear at Downing Centre Local Court on August 24.

Three of the four men arrested in Sydney police raids late last month have been charged (police collecting evidence in Lakemba on July 31 pictured)

On Thursday, a 49-year-old Lakemba man and a 32-year-old Punchbowl man were charged with two counts of acts done in preparation for, or planning, a terrorist act.

They face a maximum penalty of life in jail if convicted.

A 50-year-old man was released from police custody on August 1, without charge.

Daily Mail Australia revealed last week they had allegedly targeted flight EY 451, bound for Abu Dhabi shortly after 3pm on July 15.

Police revealed the plot was aborted at the last minute, possibly because the bag containing the bomb was too heavy for check-in.

The Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, with a capacity for up to 412 people, was scheduled to depart at 3.20pm Sydney time, but left nine minutes early.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Mr Kadri for comment.
Dozens gathered for prayer outside of a Minnesota mosque that was firebombed early Saturday morning.

No-one was hurt in the incident, which damaged the imam's office at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington.

Officials said the explosion was caused by a bomb thrown through a window as people were preparing for morning prayers around 5am.

The local police department tweeted that a preliminary investigation shows that a destructive device caused the explosion, 'in violation of federal law', and that the FBI has taken the lead in the investigation.

Despite the horrifying incident, dozens gathered outside the mosque for afternoon prayer led by Mohamed Omar, the executive director of the center.

Dozens gathered for prayer outside of a Minnesota mosque that was firebombed early Saturday morning. No-one was hurt in the incident, which damaged the imam's office at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington.

A group of women take part in afternoon prayers led by Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center Executive Director Mohamed Omar outside the police tape surrounding the center on Saturday

The explosive device was thrown through the window (above) of the imam's office at the center. Witnesses say they saw someone here, and a truck fleeing later

There were 15 to 20 people inside the mosque when the blast happened, and worshippers managed to extinguish the blaze before firefighters arrived, the Muslim American Society of Minnesota said.

One room was damaged and the mosque flooded with smoke.

The society's director, Asad Zaman, said at a news conference that a witness saw something being thrown at the imam's office window from a 'van or truck' before the blast.

Omar told the Star Tribune that the center occasionally receives threatening calls and emails.

'The whole neighborhood was calm. People were supposed to be sleeping, that's how peaceful this should be. I was shocked to learn this happened,' he said.

The mosque was previously known as the Al-Farooq Youth & Family Center. It serves the Somali community in the town.

In a statement outside the mosque, Rev Curtiss Deyoung commented that he and others in his congregation had visited during Ramadan, and that they stand by the worshipers there.

Flowers were placed outside the Dar Al Farooq Center Islamic Center hours after the explosion

There were 15 to 20 people inside the mosque when the blast happened, and worshippers managed to extinguish the blaze before firefighters arrived, the Muslim American Society of Minnesota said. Law enforcement officals are seen investigating the explosion

Yasir Abdalrahman, a worshipper at the mosque, said after the blast: 'We came to this country for the same reason everyone else came here: freedom to worship. And that freedom is under threat'. Officials continued their investigation throughout the day

'An attack on a mosque is an attack on a synagogue, is an attack on a church - it's an attack on all faith communities,' he said, surrounded by people holding signs saying: 'We (heart) our neighbors.'

'So we stand with you, a million protestants,' he added, to applause.

Trevin Miller, who lives across the street, told the Tribune that the explosion woke him up.

Yasir Abdalrahman, a worshipper at the mosque, said after the blast: 'We came to this country for the same reason everyone else came here: freedom to worship.

'And that freedom is under threat. Every other American should be insulted by this.'

The mosque serves as a religious center and community organizing platform for Muslim activists and leaders in the area, said the society, which is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest or conviction.

The mosque has been the subject of consternation among some members of the local community since it opened in 2011.

On August 1 last year, a group represented by lawyer Larry Frost called on the city to lean on the mosque, which they say is a nuisance.

No-one was injured or hurt as a result of the blaze. The center has been a source of contention among some locals since it was established in 2011

Some locals have accused the center of being a nuisance and operating improperly, though the city says the complaints mostly come from two particular women

The mosque (now named Dar al Farooq Mosque) serves as a religious center and community organizing platform for Muslim activists and leaders in the area, said the society, which is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest or conviction

Frost said that during Ramadan the mosque crowds out with 2,000 worshipers - 1,500 more than its maximum capacity, City Pages reported.

He also accused it of attracting bad drivers.

'I don't know if this is true of Somalis,' said Frost, who served in the Army in Egypt. 'I'm familiar with Arabs, but in Egypt the drivers ignore the traffic law all the time.

'Kind of a cultural thing. I don't know if it's a cultural thing in Somalia, but the neighbors are saying they're driving through there a lot faster than 25 miles per hour.'

He also accused the mosque of opening a full-use restaurant and university without receiving permission from the local government.

Local officials told City Pages at the time that most of the complaints about the mosque come from two individuals, Ally Ness and Violet Rozek, both of whom were named in Frost's petition.

A city manager told the paper that he has not seen any evidence of 2,000 people gathering at the site. He added that while it does hold seminars and have a canteen, it does not act as a university or restaurant.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is also working with the FBI on the investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call Bloomington Police on 952-563-4900.
The fourth man arrested over the alleged plot to blow up an Etihad flight has been released and charged with possessing a prohibited weapon.

Khaled Merhi was arrested on July 29 with three other men - including accused terrorists Khaled and Mahmoud Khayat.

After spending eight days behind bars Mehri was released on Sunday afternoon, a day after the non-terror related charge was brought against Merhi on Saturday.

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Khaled Merhi (pictured), the fourth man arrested over the alleged plot to blow up an Etihad flight, was charged with possessing a prohibited weapon on Saturday and released from jail

Mehri is driven by Australian Federal Police out of police headquarters in Surry Hills, Sydney, on Sunday afternoon

After spending eight days behind bars, the non-terror related charge was brought against Merhi on Saturday afternoon (not pictured)

Australian Federal Police drove Mehri out of police Sydney headquarters on Sunday, after he was granted bail and ordered to appear in court on August 24.

His lawyer Moustafa Kheir took to Twitter just minutes after the car drove out of the Surry Hills police headquarters to tell of his release.

'My client Khaled Merhi has also been released. Cleared of any terror allegation,' Mr Kheir tweeted.

A third man who was arrested under special anti-terror laws was released without charge earlier this week.

Mehri's lawyer Moustafa Kheir took to Twitter on Sunday afternoon to tell of his client's release

Khaled (pictured) and Mahmoud Khayat allegedly hatched a second plot to carry out a gas attack on Sydney's public transport network

After the plan was thwarted, a Daily Mail Australia source claims the brothers (pictured is Khaled) allegedly began plotting to set off a bomb inside the Sydney airport at the same time a second bomb detonated on public transport

Khaled Khayat and Mahmoud Khayat have each been charged with two counts of acting in preparation for, or planning, a terrorist act.

The men, who were refused bail ahead of another hearing on November 14, face a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

It comes as more details about the alleged terror plot involving the planned downing of an Etihad flight were revealed by a source to Daily Mail Australia.

Accused terrorists Khaled and Mahmoud Khayat allegedly planned to sacrifice their own brother by planting a bomb disguised as a meat mincer in his luggage on July 15.

A third man who was arrested under special anti-terror laws was released without charge earlier this week

Two brothers accused of trying to take down an Etihad flight allegedly planned on setting their devastating gas bomb off at Sydney Airport (pictured) if they could not get it onto a plane

Khaled, 49, accompanied his unwitting brother to Sydney airport ahead of his flight to Abu Dhabi, but the luggage never made it onto the plane and Khayat took it from the airport, police said.

After the plan was thwarted, a Daily Mail Australia source claims the brothers allegedly began plotting to set off a bomb inside the Sydney airport at the same time a second bomb was detonated on public transport.

A Daily Mail Australia source has claimed it was just 'a fluke' the Khayat brothers were caught before the alleged second attempt which was 'very close' - even just days or hours from happening.

The pair were charged with terror offences after police foiled their alleged plot, which officers described as sophisticated, and raided their homes in Surry Hills and Lakemba on July 29.
An embattled Islamic businessman has described as 'a larrikin' himself and a Sydney radio broadcaster who called for Muslim airport workers to be suspended.

Muslim activists are encouraging the public to complain about 2GB presenter Chris Smith's discriminatory suggestion.

'One of the first things I think that needs to be done is to determine who is working within our airport system that could be a threat,' Smith told his listeners.

'Now, I'll cop a barrage for this but is it not time we consider suspending all Muslim workers at Australian airports Australia wide?

'Yes, it is a discriminatory rule.

Islamic Council of Queensland spokesman Ali Kadri called for people to complain about Chris Smith's comments about banning all Muslim workers from all Australian airports (pictured)

'Most of those men and women are doing the right thing: working and providing for their families but there is only one link to radical Islamic insiders working for IS and that's the Islamic religion.'

On Friday, four days after that controversial 2GB broadcast on Monday afternoon, embattled Halal Certification Authority president Mohamed Elmouelhy went on Smith's afternoon program to explain his own controversial comments about white Australians.

However, he justified them be saying he was a maverick like Smith.

'You are a confrontational person just like I am. Youre a larrikin, as I am,' Mr Elmouelhy said.

Mr Elmouelhy didn't mention Smith's controversial statement made on Monday last week.

2GB presenter Chris Smith's (pictured) derogatory comments were made days before Mohamed Elmouelhy called them both confrontational 'larrikins'

Mr Elmouelhy (pictured) posted an offensive Facebook post saying Muslim men had a duty to 'fertilise' Australian women and keep them 'surrounded by Muslim babies'

However, Muslims activists are encouraging their supporters on social media to complain about Smith's comments.

Islamic Council of Queensland spokesman Ali Kadri urged his supporters to make a complaint about Smith to the Australian Press Council, even though it's the Australian Communications and Media Authority which handles complaints about radio broadcasts.

'I urge everyone to make a complaint against advocacy of discrimination from mainstream media,' Mr Kadri posted to social media.

Islamophobia Register Australia is also running a Facebook campaign against 2GB.

This comes after Mr Elmouelhy posted an offensive Facebook post saying Muslim men had a duty to 'fertilise' Australian women and keep them 'surrounded by Muslim babies'.

Mr Elmouelhy made his racist comments after Hebrew University in Jerusalem published research which showed sperm counts in men from Australia, New Zealand, North America and Europe had declined by more than 50 per cent in less than 40 years.

'Your men are a dying breed, Australian women need us to fertilise them and keep them surrounded by Muslim babies while beer swilling, cigarette smoking, drug injecting can only dream of what Muslim men are capable of,' he said.

'Muslims have a duty to make your women happy.'

Mr Elmouelhy said Australia's white race 'will be extinct in another 40 years' if the country is 'left to bigots'.

The Muslim businessman called on these 'bigots' to kill themselves or plan to die.
A young girl got her tongue stuck in a glass drink bottle leaving fire fighters baffled by the unique situation.

An eight-year-old Brisbane girl had to be sedated at Redlands Hospital after her tongue became swollen, making it difficult to remove the glass bottle which had an enlarged neck and marble.

Queensland Fire Emergency Services (QFES) senior firefighter Greg Newberry told News Corp he hadn't seen anything like it during his 35 years of service.

An eight-year-old Brisbane girl got her tongue stuck in a glass drink bottle which was something firefighters had never seen (stock image)

The young girl (stock image) had to be rushed to hospital before being sedated and spending night in Redlands Hospital but is expected to make full recovery

'You must have to push the glass bead to get the liquid to come into your mouth and in the process of doing that it has created some sort of vacuum that's dragged her tongue in and gotten it stuck in the bottle,' Mr Newberry said.

Firefighters and paramedics were called to the Capalaba house, south east of Brisbane, but after removing two thirds of the glass bottle the girl had to be sent to hospital where she stayed overnight.

'She was a really brave little thing,' Mr Newberry said.
Hela Jaffar (pictured) says her husband forbade her from going to see a gynaecologist

An Iraqi woman who migrated to Australia said she had been married for two years before she went to see a gynaecologist.

Hela Jaffar said neither she or her husband had much understanding of their sex drives or the physical act itself, but she was not permitted to see anyone about it.

'He didn't allow me to see a gynaecologist, so I went without his consent,' she told the Sydney Morning Herald.

For Ms Jaffar, who now works at the Migrant Resource Centre in Parramatta, she said even asking her now ex-husband for sex could bring a new frost to their 'hellish' two years of marriage.

'When I asked for sex, I was said to be a b**** and abused with words,' she said.

She said she was often frightened of her former partner, who would threaten to take her kids away, but she was also afraid of being left feeling humiliated.

Ms Jaffar said she was unable to win in the situation, having been told off for her inadequacy in the bedroom, and then again for going out and learning more about sex.

She says that when she did it anyway, her now ex-husband called her a 'b****' and verbally abused (stock image)

'On one side you're not supposed to know anything about sex because that means you might have tried it [before marriage],' she said.

'On the other side they blame you because you don't know anything.'

A recent study into migrant women's attitudes towards sex showed many women shared similar experiences, revealing they too were under-educated about sex and intimacy, and discouraged from learning more.

'The culture does not permit such conversation,' Iraqi immigrant Arifa told researchers.

'We are not allowed to talk about sex, and some sexual conversations we are not allowed to talk about, not even in our bedroom there are some issues we can never talk about, its a taboo.'
Diana's bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones, the only survivor of her fatal car crash 20 years ago, has returned home still bearing the scars of the tragic accident.

The ex-paratrooper now lives in a 500,000 home in Oswestry, Shropshire.

He was the front-seat passenger in the Mercedes during the August 1997 crash in Paris, that also killed her lover Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul.

Trevor Rees-Jones (left) was the front-seat passenger in the Mercedes during the August 1997 crash in Paris, that also killed her lover Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul

He broke every bone in his face and suffered serious chest injuries.

Friends say Trevor, now using his single surname Rees, earned a fortune as security director for oil company Halliburton in Houston, Texas, according to The Sun.

One friend said: 'He had an important job and as far as I know they gave him a promotion which meant them all moving to America.

'He has done really well for himself and no one would begrudge him that.'

Diana arrived in Paris on 30 August 1997 with her boyfriend Dodi Fayed after spending nine days together on his father Mohammed Al-Fayed's yacht in Sardinia

Diana arrived in Paris on 30 August 1997 with her boyfriend Dodi Fayed after spending nine days together on his father Mohammed Al-Fayed's yacht in Sardinia.

The pair dined at the Ritz hotel, owned by Dodi's father, and left after midnight to travel to an apartment in Rue Arsene Houssaye, just off the Champs Elysees.

The Ritz's deputy head of security Henri Paul was tasked with driving a black Mercedes away from the main entrance of the hotel on Place Vendome to fool the waiting papparazzi, while Diana and Dodi exited via the rear entrance on Rue Cambon.

CCTV footage showing Diana, Princess of Wales with Dodi Fayed, Trevor Rees-Jones and Henri Paul inside the Ritz Hotel

Photographers pursued them into the underpass and Paul, who was under the influence of alcohol and speeding, lost control of the Mercedes 280S while trying to outrun the press pack and careered into a support pillar.

Henri Paul and Dodi Fayed were killed instantly, but Diana was still alive and was removed from the wreckage.

She suffered a cardiac arrest and died in hospital several hours later.

Friends say Trevor (pictured), now using his single surname Rees, earned a fortune as security director for oil company Halliburton in Houston, Texas

An inquest concluded that Diana's death was 'caused, or contributed to, by the speed and manner of the driver of the Mercedes and the speed and manner of the following vehicles'.

The Flame of Liberty, a replica of part of the Statue of Liberty, which stands on the Place de l'Alma has become an unofficial monument to the Princess, and is still visited by royal fans who lay pictures and flowers beside it.
Jeremy Clarkson has said he will be 'out of action for quite some time' after being diagnosed with pneumonia.

The former Top Gear host, 57, was struck down by the dangerous infection during a holiday in Majorca and is still recovering in hospital there.

He posted a message on Drive Tribe on Sunday which said: 'Thanks for all the good wishes.

Jeremy Clarkson has said he will be 'out of action for quite some time' after being diagnosed with pneumonia ' Pictured drinking on a holiday last month

Replying to a message from his friend Jemima Goldsmith on Twitter, he said he was currently 'in a wheelchair, connected up to tubes, in a hospital'

'And to keep you up to date, I'll be out of action for quite some time apparently.

'It's really really annoying because I've never had one day off work since I started in 1978.'

Clarkson's co-presenter Richard Hammond tweeted a link to the message and joked: 'Wow. I didn't know he had a job.'

In a separate message to his friend Jemima Goldsmith on Twitter, he said he was currently 'in a wheelchair, connected up to tubes, in a hospital'.

Yesterday, Clarkson posted an image on Instagram showing his arm with a drip attached and covered in hospital identity tags, writing: 'Not the sort of bangles I usually choose on holiday.'

Clarkson was on a break with his family after shooting his Amazon Prime show with co-hosts Richard Hammond and James May, when he fell ill. He had planned to return to work after his holiday.

The television host's daughter Emily wrote his weekly newspaper column, published yesterday.

Clarkson's message on Drive Tribe posted on Sunday, a day after he announced his health scare

Clarkson was rushed to hospital with severe pneumonia while on holiday with family in Majorca. He posted an image on Instagram yesterday showing his arm with a drip attached and covered in hospital wrist bands

The Grand Tour host wrote alongside the image: 'Not the sort of bangles I usually choose on holiday'

An insider said: 'He's told friends not to expect to hear too much from him over the next few weeks which is very unlike him, and obviously his family are concerned,' according to The Sun.

WHAT IS PNEUMONIA? Pneumonia is an infection which causes the normal air-containing spaces within the lungs (called the alveoli) and the smaller bronchial tubes to become inflamed and fill with fluid. Special white blood cells then travel to the lungs to fight off the infection. This all leads to impairment of the lungs' main function, which is to get oxygen from the air into the bloodstream and then around the whole body. Pneumonia can sometimes be a complication that arises from repeated or prolonged bouts of flu, so it's important to be aware of its symptoms, particularly at this time of year. It can be a very serious health condition and can lead to death if not treated promptly. Advertisement

The source added: 'Inevitably people close to him are saying it's time to think about the way he looks after himself  cutting back on the booze and fags  but he's never been one to take that sort of guidance on board.'

A spokeswoman for The Grand Tour said: 'Jeremy Clarkson was admitted to hospital on Friday morning during a family holiday in Spain, and is being treated for pneumonia.'

This is not Clarkson's first health scare. In 2015, two days before assaulting a BBC producer, he was told by a doctor that he might have cancer.

Speaking in detail about the incident that resulted in his sacking from the Top Gear show, Clarkson said being given the warning was one of the most stressful experiences of his life.

In an attempt to explain his state of mind at the time of the attack, he said: 'Two days before the 'fracas', I had been told, sternly, by my doctor that the lump on my tongue was probably cancer and that I must get it checked out immediately. But I couldn't do that.

'We were in the middle of a Top Gear series. And Top Gear always came first.'

Clarkson said he had now been given the all-clear, but wrote in his column in The Sunday Times: 'That was the most stressful day I have ever had in 27 years at the BBC.

'It was beyond-belief stressful, everything was gong wrong, and then you know... there you go. But everyone has stressful days, and they manage to cope better than I had.'

Clarkson was sacked by the Corporation after an 'unprovoked physical and verbal' attack in Hawes, North Yorkshire that left his victim, Oisin Tymon, 36, in need of hospital treatment.

This is not Clarkson's first health scare. In 2015, two days before assaulting a BBC producer, he was told by a doctor that he might have cancer

The presenter said the show about cars had come to dominate his life after his divorce from wife Frances and the death of his mother Shirley, and he worried about all parts of the programme.

His latest health scare comes two months after co-host Hammond was airlifted to hospital when his car crashed while filming The Grand Tour.

Hammond, 47, was driving an electric super car in Switzerland when it crashed and burst into flames.

He escaped the crash, which left the vehicle scorched and on its roof, with no serious injuries.

The NHS website describes pneumonia as 'swelling (inflammation) of the tissue in one or both lungs', which is usually caused by a bacterial infection.

Other types include viral pneumonia, aspiration pneumonia, fungal pneumonia and hospital-acquired pneumonia.

The condition affects around eight in 1,000 adults in the UK each year and it is more widespread in autumn and winter.

MailOnline has contacted Clarkson's representatives for further comment.
Ryanair is threatening to punish cabin crew if they fail to flog enough products to passengers during flights, it has been reported.

A company memo is believed to have said staff 'must sell every day... one perfume, one meal deal and one item of fresh food and eight scratchcards per crew member'.

'Not reaching their targets daily will be met with by their supervisor and further action taken,' it read, adding that sale will be 'closely monitored'.

A company memo is believed to have said staff 'must sell every day... one perfume, one meal deal and one item of fresh food and eight scratchcards per crew member'

A further notice sent to staff in Barcelona, said to have the worst sales record, said 'under performing' staff would be moved, the Mirror reported.

One employee told the website they are worried about the situation, saying: 'Cabin staff are always afraid they will be demoted.

'When you are bottom of the monthly sales chart you receive a letter asking you to improve your performance or they will reconsider your position.

But Ryanair, which announced annual profits of 1.1billion, said: 'There is no 'pressure' on crew.

'Crew are incentivised to sell ancillary products on board and are rewarded with sales bonuses.'
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A British model was drugged, stuffed in a bag, driven to a farmhouse and auctioned as a sex slave by a Dark Web gang has today described how she woke up shackled inside a bag with tape over her mouth.

Online criminal group, known as Black Death, lured Chloe Ayling, 20, to an abandoned shop near Milan's Central Station with the promise of a photoshoot.

She was shoved into the boot and driven 120 miles to a farmhouse in Turin where she was kept for six days. But she was set free when they found out she was a mother of a two-year-old boy.

Describing her horrific ordeal, Miss Ayling, said in a police statement: 'A person wearing black gloves came from behind and put one hand on my neck and one on my mouth to stop me from screaming.

'A second person wearing a black balaclava gave me an injection in my right forearm. I think I lost consciousness. When I woke up I was wearing a pink bodysuit and the socks I am wearing now.

'I realised I was in the boot of a car with my wrists and ankles handcuffed, adhesive tape on my mouth. I was inside a bag and was only able to breathe through a small hole.'

Chloe Ayling was drugged, handcuffed and loaded into a car boot in Milan before being driven 120 miles to a farmhouse in Turin where she was kept for six days. But she was set free when they found out she was a mother of a two-year-old boy

Chloe Ayling, 20, talking from her doorstep in South London this afternoon after her horrific ordeal in Italy and Paris

The British model, pictuered, who was drugged, stuffed in a bag, driven to a farmhouse and auctioned as a sex slave by a Dark Web gang has described how she woke up shackled inside a bag with tape over her mouth

It is thought that she was bundled into a car and taken to an abandoned industrial unit, where her kidnapper attempted to sell her on the dark web

Model Chloe Ayling at home with her dog in Coulsden, Surrey after returning from Milan following a kidnapping by Polish terror gang

When officers arrested him he was found in possession of a pamphlet on Black Death which offers the sexual services of women for auction

An image supposedly uploaded to the dark web by Black Death shows a woman alongside details including measurements and nationality, although the picture is believed to be a scene from a pornographic film

Having been flown back to the UK, speaking at her three-bedroom terraced home in Coulsdon, south London, Miss Ayling said she 'feared for her life' during her ordeal.

On her doorstep today, the 20-year-old model said: 'I've been through a terrifying experience. I've feared for my life, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour.

'I'm incredibly grateful to the Italian and UK authorities for all they have done to secure my safe release.

'I have just arrived home after four weeks and haven't had time to collect my thoughts.

'I am not at liberty to say anything further until I have been debriefed by the UK police.'

It is the second time the young model has been left fearing for her life this year having been caught up in the terror attack on the Champs-Elysees in Paris.

She was walking down the world famous avenue having visited the city for a photoshoot in April when ISIS gunmen with AK-47s started spraying bullets in an attack that killed policeman Xavier Jugele.

Having been flown back to the UK speaking from her three-bedroom terraced home in Coulsdon, south London, Chloe Ayling spoke of her horrific experience

The online criminals, known as Black Death, lured the model, 20, whose identity has not been revealed, from Paris to an abandoned shop near Milan 's Central Station with the promise of a photoshoot

Chloe Ayling, pictured, describing how she woke up shackled inside a suitcase with her mouth covered in tape

In a list of terms and conditions, the advert states: 'Girls can be transported globally, we have contractors for that, for a price ... EU delivery is free, might take time dependant on current location and drop-off point.' It notes the British model's details as 'Born in UK; Abducted in Italy; Held in Germany; 19 year old; Caucasian; 34DD-25-35; Beginner model; Starting bid $300,000. Auction takes place 16.7.2017'

Police in Italy say Lukasz Herba , pictured, 'kidnapped and tried to sell a British model on the dark web for 270,000'

Two pairs of handcuffs were among the evidence which was seized by police following the discovery of the kidnapped model

Chloe Ayling's family feared they would never see her again having been lured from the UK with the promise of a photoshoot

Her family admitted they thought they would never see her again and a friend told the Daily Mirror: 'They thought they would never see her alive again. She has been through hell. We just want to get her home'.

A spokesman for her agency said: 'She has been with the police visiting the crime scene. I have been in touch with her family the whole time. Our prime concern now is to get her back safely.'

At a sensational police press conference in Milan her captor was named as Polish-born Lukasz Herba, 30, who is accused of trying to sell her on the internet for 300,000 Euros (270,000) through bitcoin. When officers arrested him he was found in possession of a pamphlet on Black Death which offers the sexual services of women for auction.

A picture supposedly uploaded to the organisation's website showed a topless woman tied up alongside details including measurements and nationality in an apparent advertisement - although the image is believed to have been taken from an unrelated pornographic film.

In a list of terms and conditions the advert, which was released by police in Italy, states: 'Girls can be transported globally, we have contractors for that, for a price... EU delivery is free, might take time dependant on current location and drop-off point.'

It notes the British model's details as 'Born in UK; Abducted in Italy; Held in Germany; 19 year old; Caucasian; 34DD-25-35; Beginner model; Starting bid $300,000. Auction takes place 16.7.2017'.

Chloe was described as: 'Born in UK; Abducted in Italy; Held in Germany; 19 year old; Caucasian; 34DD-25-35; Beginner model; Starting bid $300,000. Auction takes place 16.7.2017'

Describing her horrific ordeal, Chloe Ayling (pictured left and right) said: 'A person wearing black gloves came from behind and put one hand on my neck and one on my mouth to stop me from screaming,' the woman told police

She was drugged with ketamine at an abandoned office, pictured, an Italian court heard, where she was told the photoshoot would take place

Officers have since cordoned off the property and say she was going to be released by the kidnappers because 'she was a mother with a two-year-old child'

She was loaded into the back of the vehicle and kept in the bag for two-and-a-half hours during the 120-mile drive from Milan to Turin, pictured

According to media reports, Herba rented the cottage in Turin telling the property's owner that he was an artist who wanted to find 'inspiration' for his paintings.

Italian police say the offender demanded 50,000 Euros (45,000) to free her and 'threatened to kill her' if she told officers what happened to her.

Authorities said the kidnappers were going to release her 'because she had a two-year-old child' and their 'rules exclude kidnapping mothers'.

In a letter sent to the victim upon her release, Black Death told her that a 'mistake' had been made in capturing her.

It added that she had been let go after one of its men made 'a clear and solid stance in your case'.

The National Crime Agency aided the Italian authorities by carrying out a raid on Herba's second-floor Birmingham flat shortly after he was arrested.

An NCA spokesperson confirmed the address was linked to Herba's family and was searched in connection with the investigation in Italy.

The spokesperson said: 'The National Crime Agency and the East Midlands Special Operations Unit have been providing support to the Italian authorities during this investigation.'

The NCA is also believed to be investigating the Black Death Group, the mysterious organisation that operates on the dark web and claimed responsibility for the kidnapping.

He said: 'We collaborate with our international partners in order to make the dark web a less attractive place for criminals to operate, however we do not comment on specific websites or operations.'

'THIS IS JUST BUSINESS': WHAT BLACK DEATH TOLD THE MODEL 'You are being released as a huge generosity from Black Death Group. Your release does, however, come with a warning and you should read this letter very carefully. 'You are certainly aware of your value on human slavery market (sic) and must make a note that this isn't personal, this is business. For your release we have taken a number of factors into consideration. 'A mistake was made by capturing you, especially considering you are a young mother that should have in no circumstances be lured into kidnapping. Second important factor (sic) you are very well aware of is your overall protection by one of our main and very well respected men who made a very clear and solid stance in your case. 'You will, upon your landing in your home country cease any investigation activities related to your kidnapping. You also agreed to sneak a pre-determined set of information in to the media and we will expect to see evidence that has been done in the near future. 'You and your family will, in no way ever talk about us in bad language and without respect. You have been treated fairly, with respect and we expect to hear exactly the same about us in return. You can release any information you have heard from MO while your holding as he would never give you any information that could harm our activities. We will not tolerate lying about anything that has happened. 'You have also agreed to pay outstanding costs of your release of $50,000. We expect that money to be paid in BitCoins within one month. 'Any sort of disobedience with the above will result in your elimination.' Advertisement

Officers seized Herba, who is believed to live in the West Midlands, near the British Consulate on July 17 as he was accompanying the model there and said he confessed to the crime.

Police said she was held for a week in abandoned offices in the city and officers are now looking for accomplices after the model told them she was 'attacked by two people'.

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said an address in Sampson Close in Oldbury was raided on July 18 in connection with the investigation.

Prosecutors in Italy said Herba was linked to the 'Black Death' criminal organisation that works on the dark web.

They also alleged Herba had dealings in 'chemicals and poisons' as he faced a pre-trial hearing before magistrate Anna Magelli in Milan on Friday.

Police said the model was driven 120 miles to a farmhouse in Turin, pictured, and officers are now looking for accomplices after the model told them she was 'attacked by two people'

Pictured: The interior 'dungeon' of the farmhouse where the model was kept for six days before she was taken back to Milan to be released

Police found a small bedroom, pictured, in the property but it is unclear whether it was used by the model or the kidnapper

Prosecutors in Italy said Herba was linked to the 'Black Death' criminal organisation that works on the dark web

Police also released an image of Herba's passport in which he went by another name, Daniel Zawada, as well as a card with a bizarre image that appears to contain contact details for the 'Black Death' group

A court heard she had been lured to Milan from Paris but was kidnapped in a 'very well organised seizure' at the shop, pictured

Reports in Italy said the woman has given statements to police and prosecutors aided by lawyers from the British Consulate.

A Milan court heard the woman arrived in Milan on July 11 and was seized near the central station when she was drugged with ketamine.

Prosecutors described the kidnapping as a 'very well-organised seizure' and added he was contacted over the internet two days later with requests to 'buy' her for sexual purposes.

Police say they are still unclear whether the kidnappers were running an online scam to con 'buyers' out of money or whether they actually intended to sell her on.

Police found several items belonging to the model. pictured, in the shop in Milan as well as a card with a picture relating to the 'Black Death' group

It appears the model was stripped of some of her clothing with items found abandoned on the shop floor by police

The shop, pictured, has been sealed off while a vehicle belonging to Herba was searched with the woman's hair found inside

Police say they have not established whether the online auction was a scam or if the kidnappers actually intended to sell the model

Prosecutors added Herba was contacted over the internet two days later with requests to 'buy' her for sexual purposes while she was at the Turin farmhouse, pictured

MYSTERY OF ONLINE CRIME SYNDICATE: WHO OR WHAT IS BLACK DEATH? Little is known about the Black Death criminal syndicate that is said to operate on the dark web. They are said to have been set up during the early days of the internet in 1994 and are involved in various crimes. When police arrested Herba they found a pamphlet associated with the group which said they operate in 'disturbing' areas including bombing, drug dealing, human trafficking and arms dealing. A note was also found addressed to the victim saying she was being released due to the 'huge generosity' of the group. It went on to say one of their members 'made a case' to release her which was granted due to her 'status as a young mother', with her kidnapping branded 'a mistake'. A leaflet advertising Black Death's services was found by police alongside a note to the victim explaining why she was being released But it came with a warning not to tell authorities about the kidnapping and she was told 'never to talk about us in bad language and without respect'. The note said the model had been 'treated fairly and with respect' and the group expected the same. A picture also showed a cartoon of doctors from the mid 1300s wearing 'plague masks' with hooked noses which they believed would protect them from 'putrid air' which was thought to carry the disease. There has been some debate as to whether Black Death is real or an online scam. Writer Joseph Cox who works for internet site Motherboard said he tried to investigate their dealings in 2015 and tried to enter an auction for a woman. After exchanging numerous emails, the group wrote to him: 'We don't invite strangers to auctions. We don't want popularity. No Europol. No people just looking around. No journalists or bloggers. Just serious business.' Advertisement

Officers went through Herba's phone and computer and said they found photos of the woman and material stating she was for sale, while hair from both the model and Herba was found in the boot of his car.

It is understood the police investigation involved reconstructing the kidnapping scene and studying CCTV footage from the area.

They also traced his mobile phone and tracked down a taxi driver who gave him a lift and were able to lie in wait at the Consulate for him.

But reports in La Stampa alleged Herba had contacted the model's agent and demanded the same 270,000 price for her freedom.

The agent then contacted police and Herba reportedly negotiated a 50,000 ransom with them which he expected to receive at the Consulate.

The Foreign Office confirmed it was providing assistance to the woman in Italy and is also cooperating with local authorities.

Neighbours confirmed that Lukasz lived alone in a small block of flats off a residential street in Oldbury, Birmingham.

They reported that police had search the property two weeks ago, but that Lukasz himself had not been there for three weeks.

According to neighbours he would come and go often, speeding up to the front of the building in a red Toyota wearing a suit.

A car has been found and is being treated as evidence by police in the investigation into the model's kidnapping

One neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said: 'Police came here about two weeks ago and kicked the door down.

'It was 2:30 in the morning and really loud. I had no idea what was going on, and I jumped out of bed to see them smashing their way into the flat.

'I never really used to talk to him as he was often out. As far as I know he lived alone. I never saw anyone else go into the flat.

'I had no idea he had travelled to Milan. I was completely shocked to hear about him being arrested.'

Another neighbour, who works as a quality controller for Dreams bedroom store, said: 'The last time I saw him was three weeks ago.

'He used to drive a red Toyota and come racing up to the front door before driving off again about half an hour later. He was never in the flat for long.

'He was always dressed in suits, but he never said anything. He never gave the impression of being friendly.'

Opposite the abandoned shop to where the kidnapping took place last month is a modelling agency.

Samuele Cammilleri, who lives in the area, said: 'There's a modelling agency behind the sliding gate. We see a lot of models every day. They come here for casting at about 1pm. There's about 15 or 20 in each group.'

Mr Cammilleri said that building had remained closed for some time.

He added: 'It was an old shop but it has been closed for five years, maybe more. I have never seen anyone go in or out of it. It was a textiles storage shop I think, but I'm not sure.

'Two weeks ago the police came and opened the gate and went in. The area is very quiet and calm. No one could imagine what was happening.

'It's very strange that they used this place because there are a lot of people here during the week.'

A pair of trainers is among the evidence being examined by police following the shock discovery that the model had been kidnapped

It is understood the police investigation involved reconstructing the kidnapping scene and studying CCTV footage from the area

David Grifone, 28, who lives next to the building, said: 'There was often a big car that used to stop in front of the building.

'I never saw anybody go in but my girlfriend's father saw a man on a few occasions.

'We thought it was maybe drug trafficking but when we saw the news yesterday it was a shock.

'We used to see the guy waiting. We thought maybe he was waiting for a friend.

'The car used to be outside for maybe two days a week. We had seen them outside for about two weeks.

'I think for a month maybe they came back here to give her food.

'We heard nothing. We didn't hear any voices.'

Stefania Cappelletti, 39, who also lives in the flats next door and has lived in the area since she was little, said: 'I found out about it yesterday on the television.

'We found the paper that said the shop was closed for the police. It was such a shock.

'It was a shop for private deliveries but then it was closed and they did some work inside. It was a delivery shop for a long time.

'The painting was done one or two weeks before the start of July at the start of summer.

'I never saw the man in the street. The only man I saw inside was the painters. I thought they wanted a new look to the shop.

'It's shocking because I work at night and I come back at midnight sometimes and I never noticed anything.

'The first thing I though was did she hear me try to feed the cats and try to shout? It was very strange to me.

'The only thing I thought was that the man might have used it because there's a casting place opposite. When there's casting here there are a lot of girls.

'The buildings have the same owner but I don't think there's a connection.'

A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: 'We have been providing consular support to a British woman in Italy and are in touch with local authorities.'
Police investigating the hit-and-run attack on an 18-year-old girl ordered reviewed CCTV footage from the wrong night allowing killer Levi Bellfield to remain free and kill his third confirmed victim.

Bellfield attempted to kill Kate Sheedy by driving his white Toyota Previa directly at her in Iselworth, west London on May 28, 2004.

The attack took place shortly after midnight, but police only reviewed footage of the area from the previous night.

Former wheel clamper Levi Bellfield, left, was convicted of the attempted murder of Kate Sheedy, right, after he ran her down in Iselworth, west London on May 28, 2004

Former Detective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton, left, admitted the failure to review the correct CCTV footage of Ms Sheedy's attack led to the murder of French student Amelie Delagrange

According to the Sunday Times, it took six months for officers to review the correct tape, where they clearly spotted Levi Bellfield's car.

By the time officers had spotted their mistake, Bellfield and murdered French exchange student Amelie Delagrange on August 20, 2004.

Former detective chief inspector Colin Sutton, who led the investigation into Bellfield, traveled to Paris, France, to apologise to Ms Delagrange's parents.

Ms Sheedy managed to crawl home despite being hit by Bellfield's car. The killer even reversed over the teenager, who was out celebrating the final day at Gumley House Convent School, where she was the head girl.

Ms Sheedy suffered a ruptured liver, punctured lung, broken rips and a broken collar bone. Despite her horrific injuries, Ms Sheedy managed to crawl home and was able to give police an accurate description of Bellfield's car.

Officers secured CCTV footage from the Country Arms pub which was near the scene of the attack.

Ms Sheedy gave police an accurate description of Bellfield's Toyota Previa, pictured

Former DCI Sutton, who reviewed the case and spotted the blunder, told the Sunday Times: 'There is no doubt that spotting the vehicle earlier could have saved Amelie. There was an intelligence report linking him to the Previa. He hadn't registered it in his name, but he had been stopped by police in it.'

The former officer went to visit Ms Delagrange's family to apologise for the failure.

He said: 'It's much better to be honest about these things, so I went to meet with them in Paris. They were incredibly accepting of the mistake. They said that mistakes happen and people are only human. It was amazing, really.'

Officers believe Bellfield, who is serving a whole life tariff, was responsible for a string of other attacks on women.

Bellfield is serving a whole life tariff for the 2002 murder Milly Dowler, pictured

The former wheel clamper is appealing his conviction for the 2002 murder of Ms Dowler.

He was also found guilty of the murders of Ms Delagrange and Marsha McDonnell as well as the attempted murder of Ms Sheedy.

Bellfield has since denied killing Ms Dowler, although former DCI Sutton described his claims as 'breathtaking'.

He said: 'I am almost lost for words on this. He has been toying around with the police and also the victims' families, particularly the Dowlers.

'It is even beyond the cruel, wicked games that I know he was capable of. This is almost beyond what I thought even he was capable of.'

Ms Dowler was snatched from the street while on her way from school to her home in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, in March 2002. Bellfield was found guilty of abducting and killing her following a trial at the Old Bailey.

Mr Sutton said that Bellfield's retraction of his confession was 'yet another (example of) the ever-growing and expanding catalogue of Levi Bellfield's cruelty on the Dowler family.'

He added: 'But of course he's got nothing else to do in some ways. He's in prison forever, he may as well just make mischief, and certainly he's capable of making the most wicked kind of mischief and that could be what he's doing.

'It could well be that he's just playing games. But it could backfire on him because he could be doing it under the impression that Surrey can't prove that he did say it when in fact they can. In some ways I hope that's the case, because it would certainly be the best outcome for Surrey Police.'
Inmates should wear Guantanamo-style jumpsuits and shackles to help combat prison violence, a union boss has said.

Mark Fairhurst, acting chairman of the Prison Officers Association, also suggested locking them up for 23 hours a day if they misbehave and putting them behind glass during visits.

'The American experience is the only one left,' said Mr Fairhurst of HMP Liverpool. 'Maybe it's time we tried that.'

Guantanamo Bay, a US military prison located in Cuba, has been widely been accused for detaining prisoners without trial and faced allegations of torture.

Amnesty International has branded the prison, dubbed the most expensive in the world, a 'major breach of human rights'.

His controversial remarks come less than a week after 'Tornado' riot teams had to wrestle back control of HMP The Mount, in Hertfordshire.

Two wings of the prison were taken over by furious inmates who had gone weeks without a shower or change of clothes, an expert has revealed.

Inmates (pictured taking a selfie in prison) should wear Guantanamo-style jumpsuits and shackles to help combat prison violence, a union boss has said

Mark Fairhurst, acting chairman of the Prison Officers Association, also suggested locking them up for 23 hours a day if they misbehave (file photo of Guantanamo)

His controversial remarks come less than a week after 'Tornado' riot teams had to wrestle back control of HMP The Mount, in Hertfordshire (pictured)

Fairhurst went on to tell the Sunday Times that riot were inevitable due to staff shortages and budget cuts.

'We have turned the clocks back to the 1990s,' said Fairhurst who claimed staff are quitting with disorders including stress, anxiety and depression while prisoners are revolting due to poor conditions.

There are reported to have been 7,000 attacks on prison staff in 2016, 789 of which were serious.

The Ministry of Justice said it had introduced body-worn cameras and CCTV cameras as a precaution.

It said: 'Boosting the front line is also critical ... we have set out plans to increase the number of prison officers by 2,500.'

Only last week, the Mount prison's H and L Wings, which house 110 and 117 inmates respectively, were taken over by prisoners.

There are reported to have been 7,000 attacks on prison staff in 2016, 789 of which were serious. Pictured: Riot teams attending incident at the Mount Jail last week

Only last week, the Mount prison's H and L Wings, which house 110 and 117 inmates respectively, were taken over by prisoners (pictured)

Prison expert Alex Cavendish - who predicted the riots on social media just two days earlier - told MailOnline that prisoners have been subjected to squalid conditions because the jail is currently 47 officers short.

'A lot of the prisoners at the Mount are within the last year of their sentence, so the situation in there must be pretty desperate for those with an imminent releases on the cards to behaving like this,' he said.

'For the last two weeks there has been almost total lockdown, except for guards bringing cold food to their cells twice a day.

'Some of these prisoners may not have been able to take a shower for three weeks. No showers, no opportunities to call home, no opportunities to change dirty clothes.

'You can imagine that, two men, sitting in a cell with hot weather like we've been having, without the opportunity to do those things, it's going to be pretty unpleasant.

'Plus they have no means of calling their families, they have no way of knowing what is going on outside.

Guantanamo Bay, a US military prison located in Cuba, has been widely been accused for detaining prisoners without trial and faced allegations of torture

Amnesty International has branded the prison, dubbed the most expensive in the world, a 'major breach of human rights'

Last month, prisoners started rioting ahead of a total smoking ban across many UK jails.

Tobacco is to be gradually be outlawed in English jails from August 31 - but inmates have revealed that some started trouble as soon as the ban was announced.

Some 'nicotine addict' prisoners became violent and staged sit-ins knowing they would be moved to another jail where they can smoke freely.

Inmates in Drake Hall Women's Prison went berserk and sat on the roof after a ban was tested there in May, one insider said.
A secret ISIS unit responsible for attacks in Paris and Brussels is training Britons in Syria to launch a fresh wave of terror in the UK.

An ISIS fighter captured by Kurdish forces in Syria revealed how jihadists were inducted into the al-Kharsa brigade when they arrived in the terror group's so-called caliphate.

The would-be bombers were put through a harsh training programme at a secret camp before returning home to launch attacks.

A secret ISIS unit responsible for attacks in Paris (pictured) and Brussels is training Britons in Syria to launch a fresh wave of terror in the UK

'The attacks that happened in Paris and Brussels, the attackers were trained by them and left from Syria to Europe,' said the fighter, according to The Sunday Times.

He added: 'It is very hard. Every European who crosses the border to Syria, they are offered [the opportunity] to join. If 20 start the training, only five finish it. Then after that they go back to Europe and attack.'

The fighter revealed that around 50 jihadists, from the UK and other European countries, had successfully passed through the programme.

He also described how ISIS commanders are 'in contact with sleeper cells' in Britain.

An ISIS fighter captured by Kurdish forces in Syria revealed how jihadists were inducted into the al-Kharsa brigade when they arrived in the terror group's so-called caliphate. Pictured, an injured woman seen after the Brussels explosions in 2016

In March 2016, three coordinated explosions at Brussels airport and in the subway left more than 30 people dead and almost 200 - including two Britons - injured.

Bloodied and dazed travelers staggered from the airport after the explosions tore through crowds checking in for morning flights.

About 40 minutes later, another rush-hour blast ripped through a subway car in central Brussels as it left the Maelbeek station, in the heart of the European Union's capital city.

ISIS fighter also described how ISIS commanders are 'in contact with sleeper cells' in Britain (File photo)

In coordinated attacks across Paris in 2015, 130 people were left dead and hundreds more injured in the worst terrorist atrocity to hit France.

Islamic extremist suicide bombers - Frenchmen Omar Ismail Mostefai, 29, Samy Amimour, 28, and Foued Mohamed-Aggad, 23 - stormed into the concert hall as US rock band Eagles Of Death Metal performed, while jihadists also targeted cafes and the Stade de France.
An extraordinary video has emerged showing Diane Abbott claiming elections in the crisis-hit country of Venezuela are cleaner and fairer than those in Britain.

The shadow home secretary is seen talking to the Venezuelan Solidarity Campaign in the clip talking about democratic processes around the world.

Ms Abbott, Labour MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, also makes the remarkable claim the Venezuelan system is better than both the British and US systems.

More than a hundred people have died on the streets of Venezuela as a result of an uprising opposing President Nicolas Maduro's bid to over-rule the constitution.

Diane Abbott, pictured, who made the extraordinary claims in a video recording as she spoke to the Venezuelan Solidarity Campaign

Talking in 2012 following a trip to the country where she witnesses Hugo Chavezs victory, Ms Abbott said: 'I watched an election over there in October and I cannot stress enough that technically this a very clean and robust election process.

'And it's actually less liable to fraud and impersonation than the British election process, which I know well because I've fought five general elections.

'It's clearly a better system than the one the Americans had in the 2000 elections - remember that?

'It's a better process than they have there.'

MailOnline has approached Ms Abbott for comment, but nobody was immediately available.

It comes as hero Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood has told Jeremy Corbyn to phone his 'friend', Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, and tell him to stop the 'beatings and killings' following the country's controversial elections.

Tobias Ellwood, MP, was one of those who tried to save the life of PC Keith Palmer

Mr Ellwood, was praised for trying to save PC Keith Palmer, who was stabbed to death earlier this year in a terror attack outside Parliament.

He called on the Labour leader to take direct action. 'Corbyn & the Venez Pres are FRIENDS,' he tweeted. 'Corbyn could CALL Maduro and ask him to STOP the beatings & killings. But he's SILENT.'

Mr Ellwood's intervention came as Mr Corbyn continued to resist calls to criticise socialist dictator Maduro after hundreds of political opponents in Venezuela were attacked or seized in a brutal crackdown.

Those opposed to Mr Maduro have vowed to keep protesting after last weekend's election, called to pick a new assembly which will rewrite the country's constitution and potentially give the president unlimited power.

Mr Corbyn, who idolised Venezuela's former socialist leader Hugo Chavez, refused to interrupt his holiday to speak out.

Crackdown: a soldier fires his shotgun at protesters in the capital of Caracas as protests continue

Diane Abbott talking to a gathered crowd at the Solidarity with Venezuela organisation

Mr Ellwood launched an explosive tweet aimed at Jeremy Corbyn and criticised him for staying silent

Ex-Royal Green Jackets officer Mr Ellwood, 50, said: 'At the very moment when his intervention could help, the Labour leader chooses to sit on his hands.

'His silence will be seen as tacitly supporting the escalation of violence as his president friend seeks to cling to power.

'Mr Corbyn has spent decades developing a network of confidants and relationships across the world with undesirable characters who do not fit well with Britain's place in the world.

Tobias Ellwood tried to save the life of PC Keith Palmer, who was stabbed to death in the Westminster terror attack in March

'For a man who aspires to the highest elected political office, Mr Corbyn's inaction here shines a beacon of light on the dangerous socialist path he would like to lead Britain down.'

A spokesman for Mr Corbyn said Labour was watching 'developments in Venezuela closely', adding that the party had made clear 'our position on the importance of respect for the rule of law and human rights'.
The suspect, from Manchester, was held in an international operation that originated in Canada

A British teacher has been arrested in Spain on suspicion of distributing child pornography over the Internet.

The suspect, from Manchester, was held in an international operation that originated in Canada.

Spanish police said the man had secretly filmed his students and shared images, 'with clear sexual connotations' over the Internet with other paedophiles.

Detectives swooped on the English teacher, at his home in Valladolid, 120 miles north of the capital Madrid, after a top-off from Interpol.

Spain's National Police released a video showing the suspect being led away in handcuffs, while detectives trawled through his computer for evidence.

They found videos and images of a number of students, but the suspect appeared to be 'obsessed' with one girl, and had a folder on his computer dedicated to her.

The suspect, who has not been named, shared illegal images and videos on the Internet using a Cloud-based system.

The operation began in Canada, where detectives discovered that an email address based in Spain was being used to share illegal images.

Canadian officers alerted Spain through Interpol.

Detectives swooped on the English teacher, at his home in Valladolid, 120 miles north of the capital Madrid, after a top-off from Interpol

They found videos and images of a number of students, but the suspect appeared to be 'obsessed' with one girl, and had a folder on his computer dedicated to her

Spain's National Police said in a statement: 'Our officers have arrested an English teacher who stored and distributed images of child pornography through a storage system on the Cloud.

'The suspect obtained 'candid' images of his pupils - taken secretly and with clear sexual connotations - especially one girl with whom he demonstrated a special obsession.'

Police in Spain initially tracked the email address to Seville. But they discovered the teacher had moved north to the city of Valladolid.

They said: 'Once he was located, an urgent warrant was obtained and his address was searched.

'The investigators found a large number of archives with explicit sexual content involving minors.

'Among the material there were also numerous images obtained by himself of his underage students, which had not been shared by the suspect.

'An analysis of the material showed he had a special interest in one of the girls.

'We are now working to identify all the victims in the images.'
Fixer Upper's Chip Gaines has denied rumors he and his wife Joanna are heading towards divorce, saying it 'won't ever happen'.

Chip, 42, was responding to a fan's tweet when he made the comment on Saturday.

'I'm so sick of these "stories" claiming Joanna Gaines and Chip Gaines are breaking up. Leave this couple alone they are wonderful together,' the admirer wrote.

He replied: 'Won't ever happen.. you can take that to the bank!', adding the hashtag ' 'loveOfMyLife.'

Chip and Joanna live in Waco Texas, have four children together and have been married since 2003.

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Fixer Upper's Chip Gaines denied rumors he and his wife Joanna are heading for divorce, telling fans it 'won't ever happen'. The couple is pictured in October

Gaines made the comment while replying to a fan on Twitter on Saturday

Their marriage has been engulfed by speculation that a split is imminent in recent months.

The rumors come amid others which suggested Joanna, 39, was planning to leave the DIY show which made them famous to pursue her own skincare line.

She denied such claims in April.

In June, the pair took part in an in-depth interview with People where they even discussed having more children.

'I would love another baby  or twins! The kids are always asking me, "Mom, can you have another baby?"' Joanna told the magazine excitedly.

Her husband was less enthusiastic about adding to the brood.

Chip thinks were done,' she said.

They are already parents to Drake, 12, Ella, 10, Duke, 9, and Emmie Kay, seven.

Chip, 42, described Joanna as the 'love of my life'. The pair (above in June) live in Waco, Texas, and have been married since 2003

Chip and Joanna have four children together. They are Drake, 12, Ella, 10, Duke, 9, and Emmie Kay, seven

Chip faced his own controversy in April when he was sued by former business partners at his Texas real estate company for $1million.

The pair are seen above together on Fixer Upper which they have appeared in together since 2013

They accused him of deliberately cheating them out of profits by buying their stakes in the company for a low price two days before announcing his show had been picked up by HGTV in 2013.

The disgruntled partners are now seeking the money they claim they would have earned by selling their shares in Magnolia Real Estate once Chip was a star.

He denies fraud and claims not to have heard from the former partners for years.

The couple also has their own spin-off show called Fixer Upper: Behind The Design.

They also own a retail center called Magnolia Market, a vacation rental house and are planning to open their own restaurant.
Uruguay is set to sell a bronze eagle grasping a Nazi swastika recovered from the pocket battleship Graf Spee which was scuttled off Montevideo in December 1939 to help fund its military.

The German ship, which was one of the most advanced in the world, had been attacking merchant shipping in the south Atlantic with relative impunity following the outbreak of hostilities in September 1939.

However, the vessel, which was ambushed by the Royal Navy, suffered major damage in the Battle of River Plate and was forced to seek refuge in the neutral port of Montevideo for repairs to make her sea worthy.

The Uruguayan government is seeking to sell as giant bronze Nazi eagle recovered from the scuttled pocket battleship Graf Spree which was deliberately sunk outside Montevideo

The eagle was recovered by businessman Alfredo Etchegaray from the doomed vessel

The Graf Spee, pictured, as attacked off Uruguay by three Royal Navy ships in December 1939

The Royal Navy waited just outside Uruguayan territorial waters to attack the Graf Spee after it left port. However, Captain Hans Langsdorff scuttled the ship with a skeleton crew before it could be attacked - saving the vast majority of his crew.

The giant bronze eagle and swastika - which weighs between 300 and 400 kilograms was recovered from the seabed by businessman Alfredo Etchegaray in 2006.

The Uruguayan Supreme Court ruled the Nazi artifact now belonged to the nation, although it admitted Mr Etchegaray should receive 50 per cent of the sale price for recovering the object from the seabed.

Mr Etchegaray previously told the BBC the eagle could be worth up to 10 million.

Captain Langsdorff scuttled his vessel to prevent the allies from accessing his state-of-the-art technology.

The giant ship, pictured following the Battle of River Plate in December 1939, managed to limp into Montevideo after it was struck some 20 times by the Royal Navy during a ferocious battle

Although, he was condemned by the Nazi hierarchy for not rejoining battle with the Royal Navy and going down with his ship.

The German embassy in Montevideo has urged Uruguayan authorities not to put the object on public display because it could glorify the Nazi regime.

According to the BBC, Guido Westerwelle, who was the German foreign minister during a visit to Uruguay in 2010 told officials in Montevideo: 'We want the remains of the Graf Spee to be dealt with properly.

'We want to prevent wreckage from the ship, in particular the Nazi symbols, from landing on the market for military insignia.'

The Graf Spee's telemeter - which measured distance - is on display at the entrance to the city's harbour.

The confrontation was the first major naval battle of the war. It involved the heavy cruiser HMS Exeter and light cruisers HMS Ajax and Achilles.

The three Royal Navy vessels were considerably smaller and less well armed than the Graf Spee.

The Graf Spee hit HMS Exeter causing considerable damage as the first rounds of the 20-minute battle were fired.

Despite the theat, HMS Ajax and Achilles raced towards to German pocket battleship bringing it within the range of their guns.

However, it was HMS Exeter which caused the major damage on the German ship, which was forced to limp into Montevideo after being hit 20 times.

The Germans wanted 14 days to repair their damaged ship, but Uruguayan authorities, under pressure from the British, granted them 72 hours. If the Graf Spee was not able to return to see within that time, it was going to be interned for the duration of the war.

While raiding vessels in the south Atlantic, the Graf Spee sank 450,000 tonnes of shipping.
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If you were afraid Europe's 'Lucifer' heatwave might spread to Britain, you needn't worry as a new forecast shows the country is in for near-freezing temperatures in places tomorrow.

Weathermen are warning Britons not to leave the house without coats while one even suggested it was time to put the heating on.

Holidaymakers have been pictured enjoying the last of the warm weather today in Weymouth before forecasters predict a cold front will move in from this evening.

Dubbed 'Cool Britannia', from Monday Scotland and England will be up to 77F (25C) cooler than southern France, Spain and Italy as the continent sees its biggest heatwave in 14 years.

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Making the most of it: A couple pictured relaxing and enjoying the sunshine on Weymouth beach in Dorset this afternoon

Set to change: Holidaymakers packed out Weymouth's sandy shores on Sunday as forecasters predict a week of chilly temperatures and rain

Going sailing: A father and son making the most of the weather today before a cold front is predicted to move in tonight

Parts of the country have already experienced bizarre conditions for August with freak summer frost hitting Scotland for the third washout weekend in a row.

Parts of the Highlands went down to freezing as the Met Office told those living beyond the border to pack jackets this week as rain moves in.

On Monday the forecasters say there will be highs of 64F (18C) in some parts of the country, around 37F (3C) below average for August.

With Scotland is stuck on the cold side of the Atlantic jet stream.

'It's a summer chill out. Get the heating on,' STV weather presenter Sean Batty said.

Making a splash: A group of friends paddling off the Jurassic Coast on Sunday afternoon

Get the heating on: One weatherman is suggesting Brits crank up the central heating as temperatures dip below average for August from tomorrow (above, revellers on Weymouth's beach on Sunday)

The week ahead: Widespread cloud on Monday with sun and showers in Scotland. The Midlands gets heavy rain on Tuesday before it moves south on Wednesday with scattered spells of sunshine

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But the Met Office forecast hints of drier skies and more sunshine after next weekend.

The South of the UK is due to warm up as high pressure arrives, with a warm spell and 25C highs on the cards.

Scotland will be showery at times, but is set to see an improvement compared to current conditions.

Rain hit Scotland on Sunday after Saturday's nationwide showers.

It was Scotland's third wet weekend in a row after July 22 and 23's soakings - and July 29 and 30's deluge with two inches' rain in a day in Scotland.

Met Office forecaster Marco Petagna said: 'Be prepared for everything in the days ahead. People will certainly need a jacket at least for the rain.

'It's cool from Monday to Friday. Northerly breezes will be from Scandinavia at times.

'Highs look like 16C or so, 3C below 19C average highs. Chilly weekend mornings even saw grass frost in Scotland.

'Shower are ahead. Friday sees low pressure and rain. But more settled weather is due from the weekend for the South, with hints of warm temperatures towards the mid-20s.

'The jet stream looks like being pushed further north, with high pressure having more influence - although Scotland will be more changeable.'

The Weather Outlook forecaster Brian Gaze said: 'It's a case of 'Cool Britannia' while Europe roasts.

'It's mediocre for the UK now with showers or longer spells of rain for all regions. But there are signs of warmer and more settled conditions through the middle third of August.'

Europe on fire: A forest fire rages in Ourense, Galicia, northwestern Spain on Friday as southern Europe braces itself for days of temperatures above 104F

High spirits: A bride dressed in her wedding dress walks in a fountain in Kiev, Ukraine on Friday as temperatures rose about 104F in several European cities

Battle: This wildfire in Vilardevos, northwestern Spain is one of dozens sweeping across southern Europe yesterday

Hot dog: This pooch, struggling in the blazing heat, jumped around in the oasis of the Water Mirror fountain in Bordeaux as a way of keeping cool

Briton's forecast is a stark contrast to our European cousins who are facing their hottest summer since 2003.

Five deaths in Italy and Romania have been attributed to the extreme conditions in the past week, and the heatwave has been christened 'Lucifer'.

The Italian island of Sardinia hit a whopping 110F (43C) on Saturday afternoon.

The latest victim was a woman whose car was swept away overnight by an avalanche of water and mud as humid conditions near the Alpine ski resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo broke into torrential rain.

That tragedy follows the deaths on Thursday of two pensioners, a 79-year-old woman and an 82-year-old man, who were caught up in wildfires in, respectively, the central region of Abruzzo and near Matera in the south of the country.

In Romania, two deaths were linked to the weather, including a farmworker who collapsed after working in fields in the heat at Mogosesti in the northeast of the country.

The heatwave has caused billions of euros worth of crop damage, with Italy hit heavily by wildfires.

Hospital admissions have spiked by 15 to 20 percent in Italy, and people who travel to the affected countries have been urged to show extreme caution.

In Italy, humidity and other factors are making it feel much hotter with the so-called 'perceived' temperature in Campania, the region around Naples, estimated at a broiling 131F yesterday.

In Rome, tourists have been risking recently-introduced fines for splashing in the Eternal City's fountains to cool off.

But there has yet to be any sign of visitors to southern Europe's summer hotspots being deterred by the rising trend in temperatures.
Mel Harris, 15, (pictured) was reported missing Saturday afternoon from a bike trail in Yonkers. He was found that night trying to enter an Irish pub in Manhattan

An autistic teen who had been reported missing was found when he tried to enter a Manhattan bar.

Mel Harris, 15, had been last seen around 1pm Saturday entering a bike trail in Yonkers, New York.

Around 11.30pm that night, Harris tried to get into the Mean Fiddler during the Irish pub's karaoke night - approximately 26km away from where he was last seen.

Someone at the bar recognized the missing boy and officials were notified.

The missing child alert for Harris was cancelled before midnight.

Harris was reported missing by a family member around 3.30pm.

He was last seen on the South County Trailway, a bike trail that spans 14 miles through Westchester County.

Police said they used K9 units and even a Westchester County helicopter to look for the boy, CBS New York reported.

NYPD officials said Harris took a Metro-North train into Harlem and went from there to the bar on W 47th Street near 8th Avenue, according to New York Daily News.

The teen was found safe and was taken to Bellevue Hospital to be examined and reunited with his family.

Police said no crime is suspected in Harris's disappearance.

NYPD officials said Harris took a Metro-North train into Harlem and from there made his way to the Irish pub in midtown
Mick Ohman, 55, survived in the desert for two days. He took videos of himself (a grab from one is shown above) in case he did not make it out alive

A 55-year-old man claims to have survived in the desert for two days with a small stash of supplies.

Mick Ohman was on his way home to Phoenix, Arizona, after a day trip when his car broke down on a rugged road on July 27.

The 55-year-old was alone with no cell phone signal and with just a lunchbox containing a half-full bottle of water, two beers, a sandwich and some crackers.

Once he made his way through those, he survived on his own urine and water from a stream.

After 48 hours alone, during which time he recorded tearful goodbye messages to his family on his phone, Ohman was able to flag down a passing dirt biker who rescued him.

The man had gone for lunch in the town of Crown King and was on his way home when he decided to avoid highways for a more scenic route.

He followed directions from Google Maps which led him down a rugged side road which was too much for his Honda CRV.

Determined to survive, he went looking for water and help, leaving hand-written notes on his car describing his movements in case anyone came across the vehicle.

For two days no one came, leaving him to fear the worst. Frightened that he may not survive, he recorded cell phone videos for his relatives telling them how much he loved them.

In one of the videos, which was obtained by ABC News, he said through tears: 'I'm terrified'.

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Ohman's Honda CRV became stuck on a dirt road as he made his way back from Crown King to Phoenix in Arizona

The man had only a sandwich, two cans of beer, a half-full bottle of water and some crackers

After running out of water, Ohman was forced to drink his own urine to survive.

'I've really never felt that thirsty before. When I tried to swallow I couldn't. My throat stuck together. I had to urinate and I did and I was surprised it wasn't as obnoxious as I thought it would be.

'The temperature was what got me, as warm as it was,' he later said.

He found a small stream on the second day which provided him some clean water.

On the third day, he was able to flag down passing dirt biker Troy Haverland who took him to safety.

'All of a sudden, up over the horizon, Troy appeared. I'm screaming in his ear the whole way, "You know, today you can say you saved a life,"' he said.

After being checked over by doctors, Ohman returned to his home in Phoenix. He is arranging to have his car brought back to him.
Seven men have been arrested after Venezuelan forces suppressed a 'terrorist attack' at a military base as hundreds of citizens took to the streets to protest against the government.

The incident happened during the early morning hours at the Paramacay base in the central city of Valencia.

Residents who live nearby said they heard repeated rounds of gunfire starting around 4.30 a.m.

Some of the alleged plotters got away with weapons stolen from the base, and state security forces were 'intensely' searching for them, the defence ministry said in a statement.

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Venezuelan Bolivarian National Guard officers fire tear gas towards people trying to walk to the military base

Residents shout slogans against President Nicolas Maduro outside the base

Demonstrators build barricades while rallying against the government

President Nicolas Maduro, in a televised address, congratulated the armed services for beating back what he called Sunday's 'terrorist attack'.

Locals later gathered outside the base chanting, 'Freedom!' before troops dispersed them with tear gas.

The episode highlights how volatile Venezuela is after four months of sustained anti-government protests over what foes call a lurch into dictatorship in the midst of a bruising economic crisis.

The clashes sparked just as a video showing more than a dozen men dressed in military fatigues, some carrying rifles, began circulating widely on social media.

In the recording, a man who identified himself as Capt. Juan Caguaripano said the men were members of the military who oppose the government of President Maduro and called on other units to declare themselves in open rebellion.

'This is not a coup d'etat,' he said. 'This is a civic and military action to re-establish the constitutional order.'

Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez characterised the attackers as a 'paramilitary' expedition carried out by civilians dressed in uniforms.

Anti-government activists stand near a barricade burning in flames in Valencia

The barricade is cleared by members of the National Guard driving armoured vehicles

Protesters hit out against beleaguered President Nicolas Maduro (pictured) who has been accused of attempting to launch into a dictatorship

An ambulance enters to the Paramacay military base during the clash

He did not name any of the participants but said they included a lieutenant who had abandoned his post.

He added that a former officer dismissed three years ago after being charged with rebellion and betraying the homeland had recorded the video.

In 2014, Caguaripano released a 12-minute video denouncing Maduro during a previous wave of anti-government unrest.

He later reportedly sought exile after a military tribunal ordered his arrest, appearing in an interview on CNN en Espanol to draw attention to discontent within the ranks.

He returned to Venezuela to lead Sunday's uprising, said Giomar Flores, a mutinous naval officer who said he is a spokesman for the group from Bogota, Colombia.

Mr Padrino Lopez alleged the men were recruited by 'right-wing extremists' working with unspecified foreign governments.

A man argues with a lineup of Venezuelan Bolivarian National Guards officers

Protesters carrying a large Venezuelan flag shout slogans during a demonstration

A woman raises her arms as a surrender signal to a lineup of National Guards

A helicopter flies over the Military base. The episode highlights how volatile Venezuela is after four months of sustained anti-government protests

He said some of them managed to steal some weapons but the attack was quickly suppressed. At least seven people were detained and expected to be put before military tribunals.

'Today's terrorist attack is no more than a propaganda show,' Padrino Lopez said.

An official for the ruling Socialist Party added: 'These attacks only strengthen the morale of our armed forces and the Bolivarian people.'

His comments refer to the Bolivarian political ideology adopted by the Venezuelan government.

For four months Venezuela has been in the throes of political upheaval that has left at least 120 people dead.

Opposition leaders have called on the military, which historically has served as an arbiter of political disputes, to break with Maduro over what it considers violations of the constitution.

But the president is believed to still have the institution's support. He and his predecessor, the late President Hugo Chavez, worked diligently to assure their allegiance.
A mother is lucky to be alive after she was attacked by a stingray and stabbed in the foot.

Dawn North, 44, accidentally stepped on the animal while on holiday in Khao Lak, Thailand, and was jabbed through her foot with the painful and poisonous barb.

Dawn, from Blythe Bridge, Staffordshire, says she is lucky to be alive after the attack by the same type of fish that killed legendary crocodile hunter Steve Irwin.

The mother-of-three was enjoying a dip in the crystal clear water five days into her trip on March 2 when she felt a searing pain and saw her leg was covered in blood.

Dawn North (pictured before and after the incident) is lucky to be alive after she was attacked by a stingray and stabbed in the foot

Dawn, a police control room worker, said: 'I was walking into the crystal clear water and enjoying the view when I felt a searing pain on the bottom of my foot and screamed out in agony.

'I thought that I'd been bitten by something and didn't realise how bad it was until I lifted my leg out - and there was blood everywhere.

'Concerned I'd become shark bait if I stayed bleeding in the water, I screamed and shouted and my boyfriend Dave, 55, to come get me.

'He managed to swim over and carry me out of the water and dumped me on the sand.

Dawn North, 44, accidentally stepped on the animal while on holiday in Khao Lak, Thailand, and was jabbed through her foot with the painful and poisonous barb. Pictured, her foot after the attack

Dawn, from Blythe Bridge, Staffordshire, says she is lucky to be alive after the attack by the same type of fish that killed legendary crocodile hunter Steve Irwin

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO IF ATTACKED BY A STINGRAY... Alert a lifeguard and dial 999 to request an ambulance if you're stung by a stingray. There's no antidote to stingray venom, but the pain caused by a sting can be relieved by: immersing the affected area in hot water (as hot as can be tolerated) for 30-90 minutes

pain-numbing medication (local anaesthetic)

pain-relieving medication given directly through a vein (intravenously) Once the wound has been cleaned and the sting is removed, the doctor will be able to look for further damage. After being stung by a stingray, you'll usually be given antibiotics, as there's a high risk of the wound being contaminated by bacteria. The wound will initially be left open, before being closed with stitches after about 48 hours, if it hasn't become infected. In rare cases, surgery may be needed if the sting affects the tendons or blood vessels. Source: NHS Choices Advertisement

'People on the beach were trying to tell me that I had stepped on glass but I knew that wasn't the case.

'I had two stab wounds at the bottom of my foot that were bleeding profusely.'

Dawn was rushed to a nearby medical centre where she was stabilised and medics rushed to find out what was wrong with her.

She said: 'It didn't seem as if anyone knew what was wrong with me, until the consultant went away to Google my symptoms.'

'By this time, I was losing a lot of blood from my left foot, my vision was going and I was feeling nauseous.

'The doctor came back and said that I had been stung by the barb of a stingray and I needed to go to hospital right away.'

She was put in the back of an ambulance and blue lighted to the nearest hospital - more than two hours away in Phuket.

Dawn spent two days at the Phuket Hospital where she was given antibiotics, antihistamines and morphine.

After she was stabilised, Dawn tells how doctors told her that she was lucky to be alive.

She said: 'A doctor told me that I was a lucky girl, and the only reason I was alive was because it was a juvenile stingray and it attacked my foot, meaning that the poison didn't have a chance to get further up my system.'

The mother-of-three was enjoying a dip in the crystal clear water five days into her trip on March 2 when she felt a searing pain and saw her leg was covered in blood

The mother returned to the UK on March 5 and went straight to The Royal Stoke hospital.

She said: 'I went straight to A&E to be treated back in the UK and they didn't have a clue how to treat me.

'But they were brilliant, I had to wear a full knee to toe bandage for about two months to stop blood clots and had a district nurse come to my house every day to treat me.'

She had to take three months off work to recover from the injury and needed physiotherapy once a week to strengthen her leg.

She added: 'It was a really really traumatic event that I hope never happens again, it is a warning to all holidaymakers that you can never know what is hiding in the deep waiting to attack you.'

She said: 'A doctor told me that I was a lucky girl, and the only reason I was alive was because it was a juvenile stingray and it attacked my foot, meaning that the poison didn't have a chance to get further up my system' (Stock image)
British holidaymakers faced fresh queues at Barcelona airport today as security staff continued their industrial action.

Passengers waited an hour to clear security at the city's El Prat airport as workers and bosses met to try to negotiate a deal.

Staff from Eulen, the private firm which operates scanners, controls queues and searches passengers, were carrying out one-hour strikes at regular intervals today.

They will continue the mini-strikes today and next weekend - and will launch an all-out strike on August 14 if no deal is reached.

One British holidaymaker described the situation at the airport as 'security mayhem'.

British holidaymakers faced fresh queues at Barcelona airport today as security staff continued their industrial action

Passengers waited an hour to clear security at the city's El Prat airport as workers and bosses met to try to negotiate a deal

Staff from Eulen, the private firm which operates scanners, controls queues and searches passengers, were carrying out one-hour strikes at regular intervals today.

National newspaper El Pais said passengers were facing queues of up to an hour today, the second day of mini-strikes.

The workers are demanding a 30 per cent pay increase and increasing staffing levels - claiming they currently work 16-hour days.

Julio Gomez-Pomar, secretary of state for infrastructure, accused the workers of 'manipulating their ability to generate queues'.

He added: 'A salary increase of 30 per cent is out of the question. The workers should be realistic and make sensible demands which don't create a situation of conflict and great tension for the passengers.'

Barcelona mayor Ada Colau tweeted today: 'In these days of peak air traffic, Barcelona cannot allow its airport to collapse.

'A deal is necessary and we call on Aena (the airports authority) and Eulen to undertake their best efforts.'

National newspaper El Pais said passengers were facing queues of up to an hour today, the second day of mini-strikes

Spanish media said some passengers had arrived at the airport, the second busiest in Spain, six hours before take-off to make sure they did not miss flights

Passengers at Barcelona Airport, Spain's second biggest, queue to get through security in Terminal 1

A virtual adviser is seen lit up as passenger wait in large queues to get through security

Eulen said the workers' demands were 'unacceptable and disproportionate.'

Spanish media said some passengers had arrived at the airport, the second busiest in Spain, six hours before take-off to make sure they did not miss flights.

Last week the chair of the workers' strike committee was recorded saying the queues were necessary because they strengthened their bargaining position.

Passengers wait in a queue in front of security checkpoints, during workers partial strike at the Barcelona-El Prat Airport

The delays mean people risk missing their flights as staff have taken strike action

One British holidaymaker described the situation at the airport as 'security mayhem'

Thousands of people wait in queues to get through security at Barcelona Airport today

In a recording obtained by Spanish media, Genoveva Sierra told her colleagues: 'If there are no queues, everything is lost.

'If there are queues, everything is won. It's that simple. We call the shots.

'The media, the passengers and Aena (the Spanish airports authority) only care about the queues.'

In recent weeks some British passengers had faced long queues at departures and arrivals at European airports due to new EU regulations on border controls.
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Firefighters continue to battle wildfires across southern Europe amid a deadly heatwave that has already killed five people.

The deaths in Italy and Romania have been attributed to the extreme conditions since the heatwave, dubbed 'Lucifer', set in around the start of August.

Meanwhile, fires have already destroyed about 5,000 hectares on the island of Corsica and continue to wreak havoc.

Lucifer heatwave continues to cause havoc across Europe, including wild fires in Corsica which will rage for days

Smoke can be seen billowing over shrubland on the island of Corsica, France. Plumes of smoke rose above the bay of Calvi as firefighters battled the flames

Planes dropped huge amounts of water on the raging fires in a desperate effort to slow the spread of the flames

French authorities have ferried firefighters and trucks from the mainland to help battle a forest fire that has been raging for three days

The regional authority for southern Corsica warned Friday that the fire has spread north and it could take several days to extinguish the blaze on the Mediterranean island

Some 70 new firefighters and 15 vehicles were sent Friday from the mainland, but the regional authority said rough terrain and exceptionally hot, dry weather is complicating efforts

French authorities have ferried firefighters and trucks from the mainland to help battle a forest fire that has been raging for three days.

The regional authority for southern Corsica warned Friday that the fire has spread north and it could take several days to extinguish the blaze on the Mediterranean island.

Some 70 new firefighters and 15 vehicles were sent Friday from the mainland, but the regional authority said rough terrain and exceptionally hot, dry weather is complicating efforts.

This time the fire has touched material goods like cars but an exact figure on how much has been destroyed is still to be announced

A car burns as fire continues to spread through Corsica. Dozens of new firefighters have been drafted in to help

Planes carrying water to be dumped on the raging fires soar overhead as firefighters on the ground do their best to extinguish the flames

Firefighters douse flames on the island of Corsica. It is expected to take several days before the infernos are extinguished

A number of cars are pictured having been destroyed by the fire sweeping across parts of the island of Corsica

Dramatic images show roaring fires engulf parts of the island as firefighters desperately try stop the spread of the flames

A firefighter near Calvi, in Corsica, battles flames as raging wildfires spread across shrubland on the island

It comes as temperatures in southern Italy and Sicily today reached an intolerable 108F (42.2C)

Scientists have warned that deaths due to extreme weather in Europe could increase 50-fold from an estimated 3,000 per year recently to 152,000 by the end of this century

The fire broke out Wednesday in the Palneca forest, forced evacuations on a celebrated hiking route and threatened nearby towns at the height of vacation season. No one has been hurt.

It comes as temperatures in parts of southern Italy and Sicily today reached an intolerable 108F (42.2C).

Scientists have warned that deaths due to extreme weather in Europe could increase 50-fold from an estimated 3,000 per year recently to 152,000 by the end of this century.

Southern Europe will suffer most and heatwaves would account for 99 percent of the deaths, according to research conducted for the European Commission and published in The Lancet Planetary Health.

The conclusions were questioned by Korean peers of the researchers who suggested humans would become less vulnerable to extreme weather with experience of it.

Meteo France forecaster Frederic Nathan said he was sure recent heatwaves reflected global warning.

The forest fire in Verin, pictured on Friday, reportedly broke out on Thursday

Everyday heroes: Firefighters try to extinguish the Galician fire on Friday morning

Residents of Vilardevos village observe a forest fire in Verin where authorities activated 'situation 2' alert due to the closeness to population centers and main roads

On fire: People look on a forest fire as smoke rises above trees in the locality of Verin in Ourense, Galicia, Spain on Thursday

Battle: This wildfire in Vilardevos, northwestern Spain is one of dozens sweeping across southern Europe

Europe on fire: A forest fire rages in Ourense, Galicia, northwestern Spain on Friday as southern Europe braces itself for days of temperatures above 104F

'We have always had them but their length and intensity has notched up since the 1950s and 60s and they are increasingly coming earlier or later,' he said.

'If you look at records for France, the vast majority of new records being set are for high temperatures. Record cold is becoming increasingly rare.'

Scientists warned last week that large parts of South Asia, home to a fifth of the world's population, could become unbearably hot by the end of this century.

Swathes of southern Europe sweltered on Saturday in the heatwave that has claimed several lives and costed billions in crop damage

The two deaths in Romania were linked to the blisteringly hot weather sweeping across Southern Europe.

A helicopter spreads water over a forest fire started a day before close to the village of Segura de la Sierra, Jaen, southern Spain

Shaded: A tourist uses an umbrella to stay protected from the sun while taking a picture of gondolas in the Venice lagoon near St. Mark's square in Venice, Italy on Thursday

Too hot: Tourists walk past the Barcaccia fountain in downtown Rome, Italy, on Thursday

Cooling off: Children play with a ball in a water fountain in Pamplona, Spain

'Lucifer': A heatwave has hit the Mediterranean, with several southern European countries, including Spain, pictured is a busy Benidorm beach on Monday

They included a farmworker who collapsed after working in fields in the northeast of the country.

A Spanish TV station TVE also reported that a 51-year-old man died as a result of the heat on the Mediterranean island of Majorca.

And a woman whose car was swept away overnight by an avalanche of water and mud as humid conditions near the Alpine ski resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo broke into torrential rain.

Authorities in Macedonia say the country is receiving help from Bulgaria and Turkey in an effort to contain multiple forest fires around the country.

Play time: Children in Kiev, Ukraine, take advantage of the hot weather to play in a fountain

Don't forget to drink: People their bottles in a fountain on the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy

Dog's life: A dog shakes water off after his bath in the Lake of Zurich, Switzerland

Warning: Cities across Italy, like the capital Rome, pictured here on Thursday, have been subjected to the highest possible level of heat alert with tourists and residents alike warned to take action to protect themselves against the sun and carry water bottles

Tourists cool off in Florence, Italy, where 'perceived temperature' - determined by temperature, humidity and wind and has been reported at more than 122F

Feeling the heat: Kaputas Beach, located between Kalkan and Kas districts in southwest of Turkey, is packed with visitors in the hot weather

Astonishing video shows fire tearing across land in southern Italy as well as the aftermath of an avalanche of water and mud as humid conditions near the Alpine ski resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo

The government said Friday that additional water-dropping helicopters had been requested after fires intensified in the southwest of the country and were threatening homes, mostly in mountain villages.

The firefighting effort was being hindered by strong winds and temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).

The government requested that businesses give pregnant and elderly employees time off during the heatwave.

In Italy, humidity and other factors are making it feel much hotter with the so-called 'perceived' temperature in Campania, the region around Naples, estimated at a broiling 55 Celsius (131 Farenheit) on Friday.

A boy holds onto a rope as he swims to cool off in the waters of the river Drim in Struga, Macedonia on Saturday

Two boys cool off in the River Drim in Struga, Macedonia as the heatwave dubbed 'Lucifer' sweets southern Europe

The clear waters of the River Drim was an irresistible draw for youngsters, desperate to escape the blistering heat

Swathes of southern Europe sweltered on Saturday in the heatwave that has claimed several lives and costed billions in crop damage

Meteo France forecaster Frederic Nathan said he was sure recent heatwaves reflected global warning

Filling up: A tourist makes use of the free water at a fountain in Rome today

Found some shade! A girl shelters from the harsh sun in the shadow of the Pantheon shelter in Rome this afternoon

Cooling down: People fill their bottles with water from a fountain in front the Altare della Patria in central Rome

Splash! A child plays in a public fountain in Bucharest, Romania on Saturday afternoon

Keeping cool: A woman swims on a air bed in Ciuffenna river during a hot day in, Arezzo, Italy

Nap time: A man lays on a bench in the shadow under trees in front the Altare della Patria (the Unknown Soldier monument), in central Rome

Hospital admissions are running 15-20 percent above seasonal norms and food producers are forecast to suffer billions of euros in losses as a result of reduced crop yields.

Italian wine and olive production is tipped to fall 15 and 30 percent respectively this year.

But there has yet to be any sign of visitors to southern Europe's summer hotspots being deterred by the rising temperatures.

Tourists were queuing once more Saturday outside Florence's Uffizi museum, which was forced to close Friday after its air conditioning broke down because of a lack of water from the dried up River Arno.

And in Rome, tourists have been risking recently introduced fines for splashing in the Eternal City's fountains to cool off.

Health authorities in France have warned citizens to be particularly aware of the risks faced by the sick and the elderly.

The country is still haunted by memories of a 2003 heatwave which resulted in an estimated 15,000 avoidable deaths among pensioners, some of whom had been left on their own by holiday-making relatives




Val Kilmer has pulled out of several events last minute with vague excuses, prompting concerns for his health.

The 57-year-old actor missed two appearances in Tampa, Florida, in July for 'family stuff' and also dropped out of his own art exhibit opening in Los Angeles.

Kilmer only recently admitted on Reddit in April that he had cancer after repeatedly denying it for a year.

Concerns for Val Kilmer's health are rising after the actor has pulled out of several events at the last minute. The 57-year-old actor (pictured on Instagram in May) finally admitted on Reddit in April that he had cancer after repeatedly denying it for a year

Kilmer was supposed to attend a film screening on July 11 in Tampa for the film version of his one-man show Citizen Twain, however the day before, he tweeted that the event had to be rescheduled

He was supposed to return to Florida for the Tampa Bay Comic Con, however, he dropped out of that event at the last minute as well

The Top Gun actor was supposed to attend a film screening on July 11 in Tampa for the film version of his one-man show Citizen Twain.

However, on July 10 he tweeted the show had to be put off.

'Sorry to have to postpone the Florida shows until Dec. unavoidable family stuff that requires me in person. Thanks for being so supportive', he wrote.

Then later in the month, he was supposed to return for appearances at Tampa Bay Comic Con, which he also missed for 'family stuff'.

He tweeted on July 25: 'Unfortunately I've had to cancel visiting all my friends at Tampa Comicon this weekend. I've got family stuff that's got to be my priority.'

According to Page Six, the Tampa Bay Comic Con said his change in plans was 'certainly very last minute for a cancellation'.

The outlet also reported that Kilmer didn't attend the opening of his own art exhibition, Icon Go On, I'll Go On in LA on July 20.

He said he was 'delayed on a project', the outlet said, and a representative for Kilmer did not get back to Page Six.

Kilmer also missed the opening of his own art exhibition, Icon Go On, I'll Go On in Los Angeles on July 20 because he was 'delayed on a project'

The Top Gun actor admitted he had cancer for the first time during a discussion with a fan during a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) session in April

Kilmer admitted he had cancer for the first time during a discussion with a fan during a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) session in April.

The fan asked Val: 'A while ago, Michael Douglas claimed you had terminal cancer. What was the story behind that?'

Kilmer responded: 'He was probably trying to help me cause press probably asked where I was these days, and I did have a healing of cancer, but my tongue is still swollen altho healing all the time [sic].

'Because I don't sound my normal self yet people think I may still be under the weather.'

The unusual wording - 'a healing of cancer' - is likely due to Val's Christian Scientist beliefs.

The Christian denomination believes that sickness is a 'mental error' and that one can be healed of physical and mental illnesses through prayer.

The Christian sect used to avoid all medical practitioners but now many modern followers will see a doctor - but largely seek healing through a Christian Science practitioner.

Many have held fears for the Top Gun actor since 2015 when he was seen at UCLA Medical Center and then two months later in December with a tracheostomy tube in his neck. Kilmer is pictured in January

Actor Michael Douglas also said in an interview that his friend and fellow actor, Kilmer, was battling oral cancer, the same cancer Douglas had until going into remission in 2013. Kilmer is pictured in January

Many have held fears for the Top Gun actor since 2015 when he was seen at UCLA Medical Center and then two months later in December with a tracheostomy tube in his neck.

Actor Michael Douglas then went to say his friend and fellow actor was battling oral cancer, the same cancer Douglas had until going into remission in 2013.

Kilmer has previously denied having cancer saying he was suffering from a swollen tongue after a procedure.

In November, after Michael suggested the Batman star was 'dealing with exactly what I had', Kilmer took to Facebook and said: 'I love Michael Douglas but he is misinformed.

'The last time I spoke to him was almost two years ago, when I asked him for a referral for a specialist to get a diagnosis for a lump in my throat, which prevented me from continuing a tour of my play CITIZEN TWAIN.'

He added: 'I ended up using a team at UCLA and have no cancer whatsoever. I still have a swollen tongue and am rehabbing steadily.'

Kilmer also shared: 'Some fans have mistakenly thought my silence about my personal issues meant that somehow I wasn't being responsible to my health, because of my reliance on prayer and Love. Nothing could be further from the truth.

'Altho I am very grateful for all the support from around the world, when people found out I had a physical challenge.'
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The war against ISIS has taken dramatic strides since Donald Trump became president, with the US and its allies reclaiming swathes of Iraq and Syria.

In fact, of all the land reclaimed by the US-led coalition since 2014, nearly one third has been taken since Trump took office.

That's thanks to Trump's decision to delegate decisions and engage in a 'campaign of annihilation,' Brett McGurk, the State Department's senior envoy to the anti-Islamic State coalition, told the Washington Post.

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US-led coalition troops such as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF; members pictured) have retaken 78 per cent of ISIS-claimed areas in Iraq and 58 per cent in Syria, with almost a third of all reclaimed areas falling since Donald Trump took office

Brett McGurk, the State Department's senior envoy to the coalition, says that Trump's 'campaign of annihilation', in which cities are surrounded to ensure militants don't escape, has helped with the wins (pictured: a US airstrike in Mosul, Iraq, in July)

Trump's decision to delegate to his military has also allowed for faster and more fluid reactions to the changing situation on the ground, McGurk - who held the same position under Obama - said

Since its peak in early 2015, ISIS has lost 78 per cent of its occupied areas in Iraq and 58 per cent in Syria.

In total, that's around 27,000 square miles of territory, 8,000 of which has been taken since February of this year.

That has almost entirely stopped civilian displacements in the countries and seen thousands of people able to return to their homes, McGurk, who had the same role under Obama, said.

ISIS has also lost around 45 per cent of its control of Raqqa, the backwater Syrian city that became its nerve center and the capital of its supposed 'Caliphate'.

Losing Raqqa altogether would strike a massive blow to the organization.

McGurk believes the continued success of the coalition is down to operational changes made by Trump.

In particular, McGurk said, the campaign has benefited from Trump's decision to hand control over to his generals.

Delegating decisions to those with more experience on the ground has allowed for faster and more fluid reactions to changes in the theater of war, McGurk said.

He also cited the 'campaign of annihilation,' which sees enemy cities surrounded before battle begins, to minimize the number that are able to escape.

McGurk believes this will result in most of the 2,000 militants remaining in Raqqa dying there when it is retaken. The city also has 25,000 civilians.

He said the new administration had also renewed efforts to 'increase burden sharing from the coalition.'

There are 73 countries in the coalition, he said, most of whom are expected to help stabilize locations that have been taken back from ISIS by US airstrikes and on-the-ground work from local allies.

ISIS has lost around 45 per cent of its nerve center, Raqqa (pictured: two SDF troops running through the city), since Trump took over. McGurk says the 2,000 remaining militants there will most likely die in the city

McGurk also stressed that the US was working to clear and rebuild basic infrastructure, but would not take part in 'nation-building' - something Trump said he was opposed to during the election.

'People say, "We want you to run the hospital, the schools,"' he said. 'We say, "No, we're not very good at that." It's not our responsibility.'

Instead, the US is focused only on making sure electricity, water, sewers and other basic necessities are functional, he said.

He added that although relations between Russia and the US have deteriorated, he has not seen 'an effect on our engagement' in the region.

There is currently a ceasefire in southwest Syria, where Russian-backed troops for the country's president, Bashar al-Assad, had run into US-backed anti-Assad armies.

While the governments of the countries are at loggerheads - particularly after the US passed further sanctions on Russia last week - their respective militaries are in communication on a daily basis, he said.
A speed addicted shirtless gunman who brought Brisbane's busy CBD to a standstill has revealed the thoughts running through his head during those terrifying moments.

Lee Matthew Hillier, 38, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in jail after facing off with heavily armed police officers at Queen Street Mall for 90 minutes before it ended with Hillier being shot.

The father-of-three brought an unloaded gun to the busy shopping strip, terrified shoppers and forced the centre to be evacuated on March 8, 2013.

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Lee Matthew Hillier (pictured) reveals moment when he made Brisbane stand still during siege

Hillier wanted police to shoot him while he threatened to shoot himself (pictured) in 2013

Drug addicted gunman revealed he felt strong, thought police would 'laugh' if he put gun down

The siege lasted 90 minutes with Hillier revealing to psychiatrist it had gone out of control

Hillier told police to shoot him while brandishing a gun, believed to be loaded at the time, before threatening to take his own life.

'[It is] just me in the centre, with the gun, and 10 police all around me,' Hillier told psychiatrist Dr Michael Beech in late 2013, according to Fairfax Media.

'It's gone out of control. I couldn't put the gun down - that'd be weak and police would know and they'd laugh.'

Not wanting to negotiate with police officers, but not wanting to hurt anyone either, Hellier revealed he turned to CCTV cameras to say goodbye to his kids.

Police shot at Hellier, who was angry when he realised he was still alive.

Court documents allege Hillier was spending $800 a day on amphetamines and was injecting himself up to ten times a day. His long history of drug abuse started when he first smoked marijuana at the age of nine.

Police shot Hellier, thinking his gun was loaded, who said he was angry when realised still alive

Hellier will be released from prison next month after serving a four-and-a-half year sentence

After being clean for a month before the standoff with police, Hillier revealed to Dr Beech two months prior to the siege he shot off two of his fingers while drugged up.

'We all know I've got a drug addiction ... [they don't focus on] the good things that I've achieved whilst I've been in prison,' Hellier told court on Friday according to the publication.

Hellier is set to be released from prison next month.
Mike Pence has denounced a New York Times article suggesting he is eyeing a 2020 run for president as false, calling it 'disgraceful and offensive.'

The article, published Saturday, claims Pence has developed an 'independent power base, cementing his status as Mr Trump's heir apparent and promoting himself as the main conduit between the Republican donor class and the administration.'

On Sunday Pence said in a statement that the claims were 'categorically false' and accused the paper of attempting to 'divide' the administration.

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VP Mike Pence has angrily dismissed claims that he has been setting up a 'shadow campaign' for his election in 2020. The New York Times said he and his aides have been seeking funding

Pence released this statement, in which he called the claims that his aide asked an Indiana GOP figure for contributions if he ran for president 'categorically false'

According to the New York Times, Pence has made a number of moves that smack of a 'shadow campaign' to prepare for a Pence ticket in 2020.

It says that he created the Great America fund-raising committee, ignoring warnings from other Republicans that it would look like he had ulterior motives.

He also managed to make more in disclosed donations than Trump's own America First Action, it says.

The paper also says that Pence's decision to hire Nick Ayers, who has zero federal experience but has worked on campaigns before, as his chief of staff has also raised eyebrows.

Ayers' appointment is particularly notable because VPs usually promote people from within government, it said.

And one of Pence's aides, Marty Obst, reportedly approached Al Hubbard, an Indiana Republican and former economic official for George W Bush, in June.

He then asked Hubbard to fund Pence if he chooses to run in 2020, an unnamed source briefed on the meeting told the paper.

Pence hired a man for his chief of staff who has not worked in federal government but does have experience running campaigns, leading to suspicion, the NYT said

Obst told The New York Times that claim was 'beyond ridiculous'; Hubbard declined to comment.

It was also reported that Pence had made efforts to build support in Iowa and has 'opened his doors' to the Koch brothers, among others, at fund-raising dinners.

And it said that 'multiple advisers to Mr Pence have already intimated to party donors that he would plan to run if Mr Trump did not.'

In a statement on Sunday, Pence - who has previously s dismissed the claims as 'categorically false'.

'Whatever fake news may come our way, my entire team will continue to focus all our efforts to advance the President's agenda and see him re-elected in 2020,' he said.

'Any suggestion otherwise is laughable and absurd.'

Pence's statement was preceded by a litany of GOP voices saying the same thing.

Pence's press secretary tweeted this message, calling the claims 'fake news' and likening the reporters to Pinocchio. The Indiana GOP member declined to comment to the NYT

Kellyanne Conway also denied the claims saying Pence was only preparing for re-election as VP, not president, in 2020. Pence says he remains committed to Trump's agenda

Ayers tweeted: '.@alexburnsNYT @jmartNYT print total lie in #fakenews article. Said I've "signaled to multiple donors @VP wants to be ready for 2020" ... ...Yet they are unable to name one donor that has ever heard me say that...because I haven't. #shameful #fakenews'

Marc Lotter, Pence's press secretary, wrote: 'Claims @VP preparing for 2020 run are ridiculous #FakeNews and nothing more than wishful thinking by New York Times.' He accompanied the image with a Pinocchio emoji.

'I've worked with (Pence) for 10 years as his pollster, as his senior adviser and certainly daily in the White House,' Kellyanne Conway told ABC News.

'It is absolutely true that the Vice President is getting ready for 2020 for re-election as Vice President.

She added: 'That is complete fiction. That is complete fabrication. Vice President Pence is a very loyal, very dutiful, but also incredibly effective vice president.'

'He is a peer to the President in the West Wing. He just came off a trip to Eastern Europe and he'll go back, I believe, within the next week to South America to represent the country.'
Indianapolis police say a gunshot that grazed an officer near the end of a police funeral at Bankers Life Fieldhouse appears to have been accidentally discharged from another officer's holstered weapon.

Sgt. Kendale Adams said Sunday a female Marion County sheriff's deputy was hit in the leg during the funeral for Lt. Aaron Allan and has been released from a hospital.

Adams added that a preliminary investigation indicates the shot came from an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer's gun that never left its holster and 'may have been some type of equipment malfunction.'

A female Marion County sheriff's deputy was shot in the leg by another officer's holstered weapon during a funeral for Lt. Aaron Allan in Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana on Sunday

Sgt. Kendale Adams added that a preliminary investigation indicates the shot came from an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer's gun that never left its holster and 'may have been some type of equipment malfunction'

He says it's being treated as an accident.

Allan was killed on July 27 by a motorist he tried to help who then fired 15 shots, hitting him with 11

The woman - whose name is not being released - was taken to Ezkenazi Hospital and police say that she is in good condition after being released.

It occurred while hundreds of police officers attended Saturday's funeral for Southport police Lt. Aaron Allan. He was fatally shot July 27 by a motorist he tried to help after a crash.

As Allan attempted to assist the man - Jason Brown from Indianapolis - in his overturned 2004 BMW 325, the driver around 15 shots.

Allan suffered 11 gunshot wounds, including one to the heart, and died at Eskenazi later that day.

While Brown was charged with murder, it is unclear what motivated him to open fire.

Allan was the first Southport police officer to get killed in the line of duty.
At least four people were arrested on Sunday night, including an elderly man, as protesters occupied empty units marked for development.

People converged on High Street in Millers Point, which boasts stunning views of the harbour, allegedly using ladders to climb on to the balconies and hang protest signs.

They were shortly joined by police officers dressed in riot gear, who activists claim had to use power tools to break in to the building and arrest those inside.

Video taken by Lanz Priestley, who runs the tent city in Martin Place, shows police allegedly 'drag an elderly gentleman down the stairs'.

Police raided a set of empty apartments in Millers Point on Sunday night after activists occupied them with the intention of handing them over to the homeless

A large group of officers arrived to move on the protesters, and riot police were called to remove the small group who had broken in to the heritage apartments

Mr Priestley told Daily Mail Australia six police officers were involved in removing the man, who he believes to be about 65 years old from the building.

'To me, it was a clear instance of heavy handed policing,' he said.

'Six cops could quite easily have used restraining techniques to carry him down the stairs, but they just dragged him down.'

Barney, who lives nearby, claimed the man had been evicted from a home in Millers Point just six weeks earlier.

Pictured: Riot police preparing to enter the apartment following 'hours' of negotiations with the occupants

Police arrested four men, and a witness says one of the men was about 65 years old

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The homes were built as public housing for workers along the harbour, so they could live closer to where they worked, but have been slowly cleared out over the past three years.

Wendy, who moved in about 30 years ago and is the last person living on High Street, told a filming protester about 300 people had been moved out of Millers Point so far.

'I find this very very hard to handle, I'm the only person left here now,' she said.

The protesters were arguing that as the heritage-listed homes were left vacant, they should be used to house those sleeping rough in Martin Place.

It comes as more than 100,000 people are declared homeless throughout Australia, with nearly 30,000 of them being from NSW.

The man was later seen in video taken by Lanz Priestley being held against a car and groaning

Lanz Priestley (pictured) runs the tent city which has been set up in Martin Place. He says there are 67 vacant publicly owned homes on High Street alone, and 59 people sleeping in tents in Martin Place

Mr Priestley told a fellow protester on Sunday night the tent city in Martin Place is 'not only growing, it's flourishing'.

'In numbers, it's only getting bigger,' he said.

He told Daily Mail Australia the police interference, believed to have been ordered by the NSW Department of Housing was 'absolutely outrageous'.

'This [protest] has highlighted that in High Street alone there are 67 public housing buildings,' he said.

'A lot of them have been empty for a long time, and I hear there are 240 [vacant homes] in the area

'Tonight, we have 59 people staying in tent city.'

Tent city (pictured) has been 'flourishing' according to Mr Priestley, who claims there are more and more people coming to stay in the central city location

A spokeswoman from NSW Police said officers were called to the street at about 4.45pm, where they claim people had forced entry into a vacant building and were refusing to leave.

'Officers spent a number of hours negotiating with them as they barricaded themselves inside,' she said.

Police entered the building just before 9pm, but by this point the protesters had left.

Four men who had been protesting from the street, in a group of about 30, were arrested for allegedly attempting to stop police from gaining access to the building.

They were released on site and will face Downing Centre Court on September 6.

The NSW Minister for Housing, Pru Goward has been contacted for comment.
Parents should not allow their children to binge on social media in the school holidays, the Children's Commissioner for England has warned.

Anne Longfield said children should not be left to use their devices without 'agreed boundaries' as she launched a guide to promote a positive relationship with technology.

It is hoped the campaign, Digital 5 a Day, will help with what Ms Longfield describes as 'one of the modern parenting world's newest and biggest dilemmas'.

Parents should not allow their children to binge on social media in the school holidays, the Children's Commissioner for England has warned (Stock image)

In an interview with the Observer, she said that parents should be proactive in stopping their children from bingeing on the internet during the holidays.

'It's something that every parent will talk about especially during school holidays  that children are in danger of seeing social media like sweeties, and their online time like junk food,' she said.

In a blog post on her website, she added: 'You wouldn't let an eight-year-old eat a double cheeseburger and fries every day of the year, so it's important children aren't left to use smart phones, computers or tablets without agreed boundaries.

'It doesn't have to be about restriction and control - which is unlikely to win over any child anyway - but something children will often love: working out together a good way to be online.'

Anne Longfield (pictured) said children should not be left to use their devices without 'agreed boundaries' as she launched a guide to promote a positive relationship with technology

She points out the amount of time children are online is increasing, and says that very young children are routinely spending more than eight hours a week online, while 12-15-year-olds are spending more than 20 hours a week online.

The campaign suggests keeping a note of how much time is being spent online, with Ms Longfield's post saying: 'We hear that children often feel pressured by the constantly connected nature of the internet.

'While they might want to do other things, it can be difficult for them to put their phones down when apps are encouraging them to engage.

'Being mindful about the amount of time that your child is spending online - and encouraging them to be mindful about how this makes them feel - is important.

'Encourage children to come up with ways of managing this i.e. keeping a diary as way of logging the amount of time they are spending online or downloading an app that helps them manage their notifications.'

The Digital 5 a Day campaign is based on the NHS's five steps to better mental wellbeing.
A pub that survived the Blitz only to be illegally knocked down by developers is now being rebuilt brick-by-brick.

Regulars were left devastated when the Carlton Tavern, which survived Luftwaffe bombings was torn down by developers in April 2015.

The watering hole was being considered for Grade II listed status by Historic England.

Developers demolished the Carlton Lounge in Kilburn, pictured, in April 2015 despite not having the appropriate planning permission before officials could turn it into a listed building

The Carlton Tavern was built in the 1920 and survived the Second World War blitz

Developers CTLX knocked the pub down after they had a planning application for a smaller bar and ten flats was rejected by Westminster City Council in January 2015

The demolition breached planning laws, and the controversial decision sparked a fierce backlash from regulars, who demanded the 1920s building in Kilburn, north west London was returned.

The pub was the only building left standing on Carlton Vale after a Nazi bombing raid during the Second World War.

The developers and owners of the pub, CTLX, bulldozed it after an application for planning permission in January 2015 to replace it with a bar and block of ten flats was rejected.

Following the demolition, Westminster City Council made an unprecedented legal decision to hand the Israel-based developers an enforcement notice ordering to rebuild it brick by brick.

CTLX refused and appealed the decision - but a Planning Inspector found in favour of the council, following a public inquiry in May last year, and ruled it was to be rebuilt.

Locals, including Red Dwarf star Danny John Jules, pictured, campaigned to have the bar rebuilt and returned to its former glory by the developers who ordered its demolition

Shortly before its demolition, Historic England said the building should get a Grade II listing

Westminster City Council's planning chief Daniel Astaire said: This is a big step in our campaign to undo the damage caused by the illegal demolition of the Carlton Tavern

Work started at the site last week, which must be completed by July 2018.

At the time of the demolition Historic England was considering recommending the pub for Grade II listing, as part of a national project looking at inter-war public houses.

Daniel Astaire, the council's planning chief, said: 'This is a big step in our campaign to undo the damage caused by the illegal demolition of the Carlton Tavern.

'Westminster City Council has stood side by side with residents to demand that this pub should be rebuilt brick by brick and I look forward to seeing the Carlton Tavern standing once again.

'Today is a just reward for the work of all the local campaigners who have fought for this building to be restored. I hope our campaign sends a clear message to developers across the country that they cannot ride roughshod over the views of local communities.'

The council served an enforcement notice on the developers demanding the pub's rebuilding

John Simmance of the Friends of the Carlton Tavern described it as 'an act of vandalism'

The Israeli company behind the demolition have to rebuild the bar before July 2018

Dr Nigel Barker, of Historic England, said the pub was a strong candidate for listing at Grade II and its special interest was both 'historic and architectural.'

He told the inquiry last year: 'There is sufficient evidence to restore the main interior spaces for example the public bar, the saloon, the luncheon and the tea rooms, which illustrate the historic interest of the tavern as an example of an improved public house.

'The recovery of the architecture and design of the building is therefore achievable. Reinstating the building would once again enable people to be connected to the place, recovering some historic value.

'And for people who use the pub or for whom it figures in their collective memory it would restore some communal value.

'The rebuilding of the Carlton Tavern to match in facsimile the building as it stood prior to its demolition would therefore result in meaningful heritage restoration.'

The developers failed in an appeal to overturn the rebuilding order following a public inquiry

John Simmance, of the Friends of the Carlton Tavern, told the inquiry: 'It was an act of vandalism on a beautiful building.

'Since I was a kid, that pub stood there for the local community, and historically it was a beautiful pub.'

He said generations of families had used the pub as a place for 'weddings, christenings and funerals' and it was part of the community surviving the bombing during the Blitz and the huge redevelopment of the area since 1945.
They're due to move on to Paris and Milan for the second and third part of their honeymoon.

But Steve Mnuchin's new wife Louise Linton seemed just as eager to make a fashion statement in her hometown of Edinburgh on Saturday.

For the final night of their Scottish sojourn, the actress slipped in to a $2,000 Roland Mouret dress which she paired with an $850-pair of Valentino shoes.

Louise, 36, added a $3,500 bag from Chanel's newest collection and some elaborate pearl drop earrings to her look.

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin is pictured with his new wife Louise Linton in Edinburgh on Saturday night

She sashayed down the city's main street hand-in-hand with Mnuchin before settling at an outdoor table at the Tigerlily hotel and bar for a pre-dinner drink.

They were joined by Louise's brother David and one of his friends.

After a bottle of Veuve Clicquot on the patio, the group ventured inside for dinner.

The newlyweds arrived in Edinburgh on Friday, touching down with a large haul of suitcases no doubt stuffed with designer outfits.

For the transatlantic journey, Louise opted for a black Tom Ford ensemble which she paired with an elegant white coat by the same designer.

She carried an oversized $11,500 Hermes Birkin bag and added a $700 pair of Chanel sunglasses.

Louise wore a $2,050 Roland Mouret dress, a pair of $850 Valentino shoes and a $3,500 bag from Chanel's new collection

The couple enjoyed some champagne on the patio before venturing inside for dinner

Louise perused the menu before the group went inside. For added glamour, she wore a pair of diamond and pearl drop earrings

The bride's brother Andrew Linton (left) joined them with his friend Angus Thomson (right)

After checking in to the famed Caledonian Waldorf Astoria Hotel, they were seen catching up with friends for lunch on their first day in town.

Style-conscious Louise battled the wind and rain in Christian Louboutin pumps, a pair of leather trousers and a colorful Dolce & Gabanna blouse.

She added an oversized Chanel handbag, bringing the cost of her outfit up to around $10,000.

On Saturday, she joined her brother for a run around a local park.

The couple arrived in Edinburgh on Friday morning. Louise made a glamorous entrance in a black and white Tom Ford outfit which she paired with an Hermes Birkin bag and a Goyard cloth bag

On Friday, the bride slipped in to a pair of leather leggings, some Louboutin heels and a colorful blouse to take a damp walk through the city

The honeymoon comes several weeks after the couple's June wedding in Washington.

Vice President Mike Pence officiated the ceremony which President Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Ivanka and Jared all attended.

It is Mnuchin's third marriage and Louise's second. The pair met in 2013 in Los Angeles and were engaged two years later.
Internet giant Google has been accused by one of its own employees of 'alienating conservatives' with its politically correct left-wing bias.

A senior software engineer at the company claimed in a document that was distributed to colleagues that right-wing employees were forced to keep their views 'in the closet' to avoid hostility.

The unnamed employee's outburst also triggered a gender row as he suggested 'biological causes' and 'neuroticism' were responsible for the lack of women in top tech jobs.

His arguments that men have a higher drive for status and women are 'more prone to anxiety' triggered an angry backlash on social media with demands for the author to be fired.

The ten page document created by a senior software engineer asks for a reform of Google's current policies (Pictured Google HQ) and encourages a move towards 'ideological diversity' instead

The controversial 10-page document - which was first published by technology news site Motherboard and has been circulated on social media - argues that different traits between men and women are key to understanding why women are under-represented in technology companies.

The engineer claims Google's 'left bias' has created 'a politically correct monoculture that maintains its hold by shaming dissenters into silence'.

He adds: 'This silencing has created an ideological echo chamber where some ideas are too sacred to be honestly discussed.'

While Google and the U.S. government have set up programs to help women, if a man complains about a gender issue he risks being labelled as 'a misogynist and whiner', the author adds.

'In addition to the Left's affinity for those it sees as weak, humans are generally biased towards protecting females.'

'We need to stop assuming that gender gaps imply sexism,' writes the employee.

'I'm simply stating that the distribution of preferences and abilities of men and women differ in part due to biological causes and that these differences may explain why we don't see equal representation of women in tech and leadership.'

The Google worker claims that women are more interested than men in 'feelings and aesthetics rather than ideas' and a 'stronger interest in people rather than things.'

He claims that explains why women 'relatively prefer jobs in social or artistic areas,' adding that more men may like coding because it requires 'systemising' and why more women work on front end, which deals with 'both people and aesthetics'.

Google's new Vice President of Diversity, Integrity & Governance, Danielle Brown, (pictured) said the document is 'not a viewpoint that I or this company endorses, promotes or encourages'

The engineer claims Google's 'left bias' has created 'a politically correct monoculture that maintains its hold by shaming dissenters into silence'

In the internal document - titled 'Google's Ideological Echo Chamber' - the engineer also says women tend to be more cooperative rather than assertive and more agreeable.

'This leads to women generally having a harder time negotiating salary, asking for raises, speaking up, and leading,' he adds.

A SNAPSHOT OF GOOGLE'S ANTI-DIVERSITY MANIFESTO The anti-diversity manifesto claimed that Google should focus on 'ideological diversity'. It criticized company initiatives aimed at increasing gender diversity. The manifesto claims that biological differences between men and women is responsible for the underrepresentation of females in the tech industry. He said women tend to be more cooperative rather than assertive and more agreeable - meaning they have a hard time negotiating salary and leading. The author added that men have a higher drive for status on average The engineer behind the document said Google must stop alienating conservatives. Advertisement

The author blames 'neuroticism' which he describes as 'higher anxiety, lower stress tolerance', which may contribute, 'to the lower number of women in high stress jobs.'

'We always ask why we don't see women in top leadership positions, but we never ask why we see so many men in these jobs.

'These positions often require long, stressful hours that may not be worth it if you want a balanced and fulfilling life,' he writes.

'Women on average look for more work-life balance while men have a higher drive for status on average,' he says, suggesting that more part-time work can 'keep more women in tech'.

The writer says Google's affirmative action programs for people of a 'certain gender or race' and special priority for 'diversity' candidates is discriminatory.

'We're told by senior leadership that what we're doing is both the morally and economically correct thing to do, but without evidence this is just veiled left ideology that can irreparably harm Google,' he claims.

'Discriminating just to increase the representation of women in tech is as misguided and biased as mandating increases for women's representation in the homeless, work-related and violent deaths, prisons, and school dropouts,' he adds.

In a section of the document titled 'Stop Alienating Conservatives,' he argues for the importance of 'viewpoint diversity.'

'In highly progressive environments, conservatives are a minority that feel like they need to stay in the closet to avoid open hostility,' he claims.

'We should empower those with different ideologies to be able to express themselves.

'Alienating conservatives is both non-inclusive and generally bad business because conservatives tend to be higher in conscientiousness, which is require for much of the drudgery and maintenance work characteristic of a mature company.'

The author was being lambasted on social media.

'I believe he's frustrated that not all people are men who look like him. The struggle is real,' said one tweet.

'If HR does nothing in this case, I will consider leaving this company for real for the first time in five years,' another a Google worker wrote.

Google has distanced itself from the document.

'One of the aspects of the post that troubled me deeply was the bias inherent in suggesting that most women, or men, feel or act a certain way. That is stereotyping, and it is harmful,' wrote Ari Balogh, Google's vice president of engineering.

'Building an open, inclusive environment is core to who we are, and the right thing to do.'

Google's new Vice President of Diversity, Integrity & Governance, Danielle Brown, said the document is 'not a viewpoint that I or this company endorses, promotes or encourages'.

'Many of you have read an internal document shared by someone in our engineering organization, expressing views on the natural abilities and characteristics of different genders, as well as whether one can speak freely of these things at Google.

'And like many of you, I found that it advanced incorrect assumptions about gender.

'We are unequivocal in our belief that diversity and inclusion are critical to our success as a company, and we'll continue to stand for that and be committed to it for the long haul,' she said.
Hollywood star James Cromwell has spoken out for the first time since being thrown in jail for defying police at a sit-in environmental protest.

The 77-year-old actor served a seven-day jail sentence last month after he refused to pay a $375 fine and to serve 16 hours of community service following his arrest for traffic obstruction at a power plant protest in Wawayanda, New York.

Cromwell, an environmental activist, was protesting on the site of Competitive Power Ventures' prospective natural gas-fired power plant in December 2015.

The veteran Academy Award nominated actor, whose movie credits include Babe, The Green Mile, LA Confidential and American Horror Story: Asylum, to name a few, says his arrest and jail time served its purpose and tells DailyMail.com hes not scared of returning to prison for his beliefs.

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Hollywood star James Cromwell, 77 (pictured), has spoken out for the first time since being thrown in jail for defying police at a sit-in environmental protest

Cromwell (pictured) added that as a 'celebrity' he received special treatment because the authorities feared the 'bad press' that would result if something should happen to him inside and accused the penal system of being corrupt

He said: 'We did everything possible...nothing helps, because there is no interface between an ordinary citizen and the state. You have to go through gatekeepers.

'And the only way to get the attention of the media, which is what gets our issue across, because if you tell a politician, it dies right there; the only way to get across is to get arrested. Even when we were arrested: no publicity.

'Even when we were found guilty: no publicity. But when celebrities go to jail, of wow its a story suddenly.'

Reflecting on his prison experience he said prison staff suffer from a 'lack of humanity', adding that the penal system is corrupt.

'I was shocked that both the prisoners and the guards suffer from the lack of humanity and care that we assume that anyone who goes to prison deserves - even though we have over two million people in prison.

'If people dont know that the whole process is corrupted, obviously people now know that the police forces are corrupted. Do they know that their courts are corrupted? Do they know that their law is corrupted?

Cromwell said he had been in prison before and slammed the legal system for jailing 'ordinary' people on minor charges to avoid the cost of taking their cases to trial.

'So for a white person, a privileged white person, to understand what a black person driving around in Los Angeles experiences, its called "driving while black",' he said.

'We think, Oh no, it couldnt possibly be. Its not that bad. This is 2017. Then when you get into prison you see thats what its like. Thats what its like for ordinary people.'

Cromwell was arrested on July 24 after interrupting a show at SeaWorld to protest the captivity of orca whales (pictured)

Cromwell and PETA took issue with the park's treatment of animals, which has come under criticism in recent years over the very concept of keeping orca whales in captivity (pictured, protest)

He added that as a 'celebrity' he received special treatment because the authorities feared the 'bad press' that would result if something should happen to him inside.

'I had a little bit of privilege, because Im a celebrity, so they cant dehumanize me,' he said. 'They have to acknowledge my celebrity, because if I get screwed over, if I get beaten, in the general population it looks really bad in the press.

'So just by the fact that I am a celebrity and in the smallest, smallest ways they let you know you still have an identity, but for all the other people in there - the people of color, the two women who went in with me, one a 77-year-old Jewish grandmother, the other a woman of color, an Indian - no favors. No extra blanket, no towel, no telephone call.'

Cromwell says Hollywood stars must get more 'political' to save their industry and maintain some 'humanity'.

He explains: 'Martin Sheen would do it, Ed Asner would do it. There are a lot of people if push came to shove.

'This community has got to get more engaged. This community has got to get more political. More than our survival as an industry, our appropriateness is at stake. Whats really at stake is our humanity and all sentient life.'

The actor served a seven-day jail sentence last month after he refused to pay a $375 fine and to serve 16 hours of community service following his arrest for traffic obstruction at a power plant protest in Wawayanda, New York (pictured)

Environmental activist Cromwell was protesting on the site of Competitive Power Ventures' prospective natural gas-fired power plant in December 2015

Cromwell (left, December 2015, and right, May 2016) says more Hollywood stars must get more 'political' to save their industry and maintain some 'humanity'

In a further outburst Cromwell called President Donald Trump 'an idiot' and blamed politicians for not making a tougher stance on environmental issues.

In June President Trump announced the US would leave the Paris climate change agreement - the agreement which aims to prevent the Earth from heating up by two degrees Celsius since the start of the industrial age. Under the agreement, countries set their own national plans for cutting climate emissions.

'Its very easy to vilify an idiot who happens to be the President of the United States, but it doesnt solve the problem,' Cromwell said. 'We have to educate people. We have to educate people on the right.

'We cant demonize people because of their political stance. We have to say: "Look, it wont matter ultimately whether youre Republican, radical right, or progressive". All that will matter is that were able to drink the water, breathe the air, live on the land. Thats whats threatened.'

He urged people to look at the 'bigger picture' and to stop supporting the gas and oil industry, an industry he says is condemning the planet to extinction.

In a further outburst Cromwell called President Donald Trump 'an idiot' and blamed politicians for not making a tougher stance on environmental issues (Pictured, Cromwell as Arthur Hogget, left, and Magda Szubanski as Esme Cordelia Hoggett, right in the 1995 movie Babe)

He urged people to look at the 'bigger picture' and to stop supporting the gas and oil industry, an industry he says is condemning the planet to extinction (Pictured, Cromwell as Arthur Hogget, in Babe, a role for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar)

Cromwell also encouraged people from both sides of the political aisle to come together to work on making more bipartisan plans (Pictured, from left to right: Cromwell, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, and Kevin Spacey in the 1997 movie LA Confidential)

In a message to Trump and other politicians he added: 'Do the thing you were elected for, serve the people who elected you and not the people who pay your bills and corrupt the process and who are benefiting financially from exploitation of these natural resources.'

True to his word about not fearing the law Cromwell voluntarily found himself in handcuffs again on July 24 following a protest at SeaWorld.

The actor was handcuffed and escorted out of the park after interrupting a show.

Cromwell and a handful of protesters for the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) were removed from the park after the star began to talk to the crowd through a megaphone during the parks 'Orca Encounter' show.

Cromwell took issue with the parks treatment of animals, which has come under criticism in recent years over the very concept of keeping orca whales in captivity.

Cromwell spoke as he attended the opening night of the Earth Focus Environmental Film Festival last month. It was held by KCET public television in Los Angeles and independent satellite network Festival at Paramount Film Studios.

Other celebrities at the event included Marianne Jean-Baptiste (Training Day, Broadchurch), actor Mike Farrell (M.A.S.H.), actress Elaine Hendrix (The Parent Trap, Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll), actor Aidan Gallagher (Nicky, Ricky, Dicky and Dawn) and The Office's Oscar Nunez.
Father Frank Gelli is convinced the Princess would have married Dodi

A priest has revealed that Princess Diana asked him whether it was possible for her to marry her Muslim boyfriend Dodi Fayed shortly before she died.

She spoke with Father Frank Gelli not long before the tragic crash in a Paris underpass, on August 31 1997.

The Anglican priest was a curate of St Mary Abbots church in Kensington, West London, close to the Princess' former home at Kensington Palace.

In the months leading up to her death Princess Diana began attending the church, and would slip in at the back to keep a low profile.

Now Fr Gelli has spoken of how she stopped him on the way to the gym to ask about marriage  he is convinced that the Princess was seeking Christian approval to marry a Muslim man.

'She wanted to know if it was possible for two people of different religions to marry. I told her it was,' Fr Gelli told The Sunday Express.

'As we spoke her telephone range. It was obviously Dodi. Her eyes lit up. As she was leaving she asked me if I would be able to perform the service when she got married. Her love was obvious.'

'I feel sure that if Diana and Dodi had not been killed, they would have married,' added Italian-born Fr Gelli

The priest was asked to meet with her at Kensignton Pace after the holiday, but she and Dodi would die just days later in the horror crash

As she cruised the Mediterranean on Mohamed Fayed's yacht, the Princess phoned Fr Gelli to say she had good news.

The priest was asked to meet with her at Kensington Pace after the holiday, but she and Dodi would die just days later in the horror crash.

'I feel sure that if Diana and Dodi had not been killed, they would have married,' added Italian-born Fr Gelli.

He said that Diana was happy, in love with Dodi and looking forward to the future

The priest believed that the Princess marrying at his church would cause tension within the Church of England, which would have to face saying whether Dodi, a follower of Islam, could marry there

He said that Diana was happy, in love with Dodi and looking forward to the future.

He first spoke out three years after Princess Diana's death, but said that he was not betraying her trust.

He believed that the Princess marrying at his church would cause tension within the Church of England, which would have to face saying whether Dodi, a follower of Islam, could marry there.

Fr Gelli was also popular among businessmen and politicians during his eight years in Kensington.

The Princess' said she liked the priest because he was outgoing, confident and had an ability to listen.

And even though Diana asked that he call her by her name, Fr Gelli insisted on calling her 'Your Highness'.

At services to mark Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed's deaths, Father Gelli urged people to pray not only for the couple, but also Princes William and Harry

The Dodi Fayed and Princess Diana memorial at Harrods in Knightsbridge, London. Father Gelli

He said that she was keen to know his impression on Muslim lifestyle, especially in how women are treated in Islamic Society.

Fr Gelli said she was impressed with the respect she received from Dodi and she believed he could offer her love and security.

At on service to mark the anniversary of her death, held outside Kensington Palace, he said: 'Princess Diana was a wonderful, caring philanthropist.

'She would come sometimes into the church and sit at the back and pray.'

Father Gelli urged people to pray not only for the couple, but also Princes William and Harry.

The priest, who grew up in Rome and holds degrees in theology, education and Islamic studies, plans to hold a service later this month but has not decided on a location.
Nigeria is adamant that the sailors should be tried in court. The charges against them will be slapped once they reach the country.
A murderer serving 30 years in prison has released a rap album from one of the UK's highest-security prisons.

Terngu Agera, who stabbed the innocent Zydrunas Laurinavicius to death as he waited at a North London bus stop, is believed to have recorded vocals for the LP on a contraband mobile phone while behind bars.

The 15 track long album, titled Exit Wounds, was released this week on the online music service Spotify, therefore gaining access to its 140 million users worldwide, and the iTunes web store where it can be purchased for 6.99.

Mugshot of Terngu Agera the man who stabbed the innocent Zydrunas Laurinavicius to death as he waited at a North London bus stop

The front cover of the murderer's e 15 track long album, titled Exit Wounds

The 24-year-old, who operates under the rap pseudonym Mover, along with Spotfy and iTunes could benefit financially from the release.

Agera was able to record some of the tracks at category A Belmarsh in South London where high-risk inmates including terrorists are kept in maximum security.

Zydrunas Laurinavicius, from Lithuania, was murdered in front of his dad

His victim, Zydrunas Laurinavicius, 38, was murdered in front of his dad as he waited for a bus after a day's work in Hendon.

The hard-working builder was set upon by Agera and his gang, who were on their way back from a burglary.

His dad Pranas, 69, had a knife held to his throat as he saw his son slashed in the arm and stabbed in the left side of his torso with such force the weapon came out the other side.

Father-of-one Zydrunas, who had been in the UK only a few months after moving from Lithuania, was bleeding to death in the street when police arrived.

The criminal, who lied in court at his trial, claiming he was attacked first and had been racially abused, appears to allude to the grizzly murder in some of his songs.

The rapper can be heard saying: 'Hit man in his chest and neck then quick flee, looking at life cause was prints in the bloody car, two snitches due stitches, I move vicious.'

Another features the line: 'Murder squad got me 30 locked, my lawyer said he'll bring it down.'

The album artwork also features a picture of Agera and bloodstains, along with a parental advisory label warning of explicit lyrics.

Jailing him for a minimum of 30 years in May 2015, an Old Bailey judge said: 'The defence you constructed during this trial added cruelty to Zydrunas's family on top of your terrible violence.

'Your story that this all started with racist abuse was false.'

The victim's sister Indre Pedrieziene, 30, told the Sunday People: 'It's disgusting. It shouldn't be happening. He's in prison  it shouldn't be like this.

'I didn't know that he was making an album now. I thought he released one song and that was it. I thought it was done. I didn't know that he had kept going. It's not right that he is making money.'

Pedrieziene, who had to move from her East London home due to reprisal threats added: 'That hurts me and my family. My brother had a son. He was ten when his father died.

'My brother had been working to make money to send home to his wife and son. His boy came to visit the UK on holiday from Lithuania not knowing that he didn't have a father any more.

'When he arrived I had to tell him that his dad was dead.

The back over of the album.It wasreleased this week on the online music service Spotify, therefore gaining access to its 140 million users worldwide

A prisoner and escort walk within the walls of Belmarsh maximum security jail in south London

'How can a song be released from inside the most secure prison in the country? It looks like he has a mobile phone. How? This shows he hasn't learned his lesson. We are suffering a life sentence for this.

'I don't think people who took the life of somebody should be allowed back out.'

Last night a prison source told the Sunday People: 'The offender has been placed on report and may face extra punishment when investigations are complete.'

A Prison Service spokesman said: 'This behaviour is completely unacceptable and we are taking immediate action.

'We are clear that those who break the rules will be punished and can face extra time behind bars.'

Agera's most popular track has been listened to over 15,000 times online and fans have even praised him for his work.

One wrote on Twitter after downloading the album: 'How can you release a tape from the can with so much substance.'

Another added: 'Mover dropped one of the best UK rap tapes ever whilst riding a 30 stretch. No one can tell me he ain't the king.'
A 28-year-old chef has been charged with murdering his on-off girlfriend and dumping her body in a lake.

Lee Rodarte is accused of murdering 21-year-old Savannah Gold in his car while they argued in the parking lot of the restaurant where they both worked in Jacksonville, Florida.

Police say the pair were filmed by surveillance cameras getting in to the vehicle on Wednesday before Savannah's 5.30pm shift.

Rodarte was later filmed driving away from the Bonefish Grill and Savannah was never seen again.

Savannah Gold, 21, was murdered by her on-off boyfriend Lee Rodarte, 28, on Wednesday

She was reported missing after failing to show up for work. Police reviewed the surveillance footage and questioned Rodarte who confessed to the killing.

Once in custody, he led police to the lake where he dumped the 21-year-old's body.

It is not clear what the pair were arguing about when the murder took place.

Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said they had an 'on-off' relationship.

Rodarte confessed to the killing on Saturday

On Wednesday, Savannah was seen first approaching the man's car and speaking to him through the driver's seat window shortly before she was due to start work at 5.30pm.

She then got into the car on the passenger side.

'At 5.45pm, the video surveillance shows what appears to be a possible struggle inside of the vehicle,' a Jacksonville Sheriff's Office statement said of the footage.

After the struggle, Rodarte was filmed getting out of the vehicle and slashing the tires on Savannah's. He was also seen retrieving something from the driver's seat of her car.

At 6.04pm, he drove out of the parking lot.

When Savannah failed to appear for work, the restaurant contacted her family to report her missing.

Her father then received a suspicious text message which claimed she had run away with 'a really great guy'.

The text message was littered with spelling errors.

'I immediately knew it wasnt her. We text each other all day and every day, and this was not from my daughter. It was from someone else,' Savannah's mother Sherri Gold told Fox News.

The murder took place in the parking lot of the Bonefish Grill in Jacksonville, Florida, where they both worked

Police recovered what they believe to be Savannah's remains from a pond on Saturday

Rodarte first told police that he hadn't seen Savannah and had not been near the restaurant.

Deputies arrested him on Saturday for driving on a suspended license. Once in custody, he confessed to killing Savannah and took police to the lake.

An autopsy had not yet been carried out. Rodarte has been charged with murder and with tampering with evidence.

Savannah's family shared their grief on social media after learning that her remains had been found.

'My heart has burst. Z, my baby girl is gone,' Sherri Gold, her mother, said.

She attended Rodarte's first court appearance on Sunday and told friends afterwards: 'Dan and I just attended the killer's First Appearance in Court. We will be there for every single step of the way. I will never mention him by name.'

The restaurant where the pair worked was closed on Sunday.

The company which owns the restaurant said in a statement: 'We are deeply saddened by the loss of Savannah and will miss the joy and happiness she brought to work every day.

'Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with family and friends during this difficult time, including the people she worked with here at Bonefish Grill.'

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family pay for her funeral.
Three teenagers died and one was injured after they crashed a stolen Ford Explorer overnight.

Keontae Brown, 16, Jimmie Goshey, 14, and Dejarae Thomas, 16, died Sunday morning around 4am in Palm Harbor, Florida.

Another teen, Keondrae Brown, 14, was in the car with them and was injured. He was taken to the hospital.

Two other teens, Kamal Campbell, 18, and Deyon Kaigler, 16, were also arrested.

Three teenagers died and one was injured after they stole a Ford Explorer and crashed it overnight in Palm Harbor, Florida, early Sunday morning, police said. The crashed Explorer is pictured

Keontae Brown, 16, (bottom left) Jimmie Goshey, 14, (top left) and Dejarae Thomas, 16, (right) died around 4am. A fourth teen, Keondrae Brown, 14, was in the car with them, but he survived and was taken to the hospital

All six teens had been 'running in tandem' since they stole the Explorer and a Chrysler Sebring on Thursday, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said Sunday morning at a press conference.

He called the three teens who died 'prolific offenders' and said the incident was 'an unfortunate continuation of the epidemic of juveniles engaging in the deadly game of auto burglary and auto thefts', WFLA reported.

A deputy saw the two stolen vehicles around 1am Sunday, but was unable to apprehend the drivers. When he approached, they drove away and the deputy did not pursue them.

Gualtieri said the sheriff's office does not pursue stolen vehicles.

Police eventually put up a perimeter, but they were unable to find the stolen cars.

Two other teens were arrested Sunday morning. The six teens had been 'running in tandem' since they stole the Explorer and a Chrysler Sebring on Thursday, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said. Pictured are Keontae Brown (left) and Thomas (right)

Around 4am, just before the crash, a deputy saw the two stolen cars playing a 'cat-and-mouse' game, where the cars would speed up and slow down. Goshey, one of the deceased teens, is pictured

Around 4am, another deputy saw the cars again, this time playing a 'cat-and-mouse' game, Gualtieri said, where the cars would speed up and slow down.

The Explorer was going as fast as 100mph when it ran a red light and hit a car driven by 29-year-old Ricky Melendez at the intersection of US 19 and Tampa Road.

The stolen car then flew into the air, hit a billboard and rolled down the road before it burst into flames.

Melendez was taken to the hospital with minor injuries and is expected to be fine, WTSP reported.

The stolen Sebring was not involved in the crash and drove away from the scene.

Campbell and Kaigler, the teens inside the Sebring, eventually abandoned the car and ran on foot.

They were later taken into police custody.

The three deceased teens all have extensive criminal histories, with one who was released from jail as recently as last week.

Gualtieri said the teen in the hospital and the two in custody are expected to be charged, the Bradenton Herald reported.

The Explorer (pictured) was going as fast as 100mph when it hit a car driven by a 29-year-old Ricky Melendez. The stolen car then flew into the air, hit a billboard and rolled down the road before it burst into flames

The crash happened at the intersection of US 19 and Tampa Road (pictured) when the Explorer ran a red light
His new rule has been that all White House business must go through him.

And it seems not even the president is exempt from the rules of General John Kelly's regime.

According to unnamed staffers, Trump has agreed to show his tweets to his new Chief of Staff before posting them in a bid to hit the right tone after months of administration chaos.

Several sources told Bloomberg on Sunday that while General Kelly does not tell the president what to do or write, he has been helping Trump rephrase his tweets to avoid further controversy.

The president insisted on having the final say over what he can and cannot post but the sources said he is taking General Kelly's opinion seriously.

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White House officials say new Chief of Staff General Kelly is approving some of the president's tweets before he posts them

Over the weekend, while staying at Bedminster, New Jersey, the president fired off his signature string of Saturday and Sunday morning posts.

They were less inflammatory than in weeks past when he insulted the Chinese and called Congress 'fools' who were being laughed at.

This weekend's tweets were celebratory.

'The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!' said one.

Another congratulated Attorney General Jeff Sessions for 'taking action' on 'decades of leaks'.

A third insisted that his 17-day stay in Bedminster was not a vacation, as suggested, and that he remained hard at work.

Trump's tweets on Saturday and Sunday were overwhelmingly positive and celebratory

He hit out at speculation he may have been taking some time off on the golf course, insisting that he was still very much working from the Bedminster golf course where he is staying

'Working in Bedminster, N.J., as long planned construction is being done at the White House. This is not a vacation - meetings and calls!' Trump wrote.

Kelly's influence over the tweets is one of many changes he has implemented since taking the position of Chief of Staff last week.

He mapped out the rest in unequivocal terms during a stern meeting with the 200-plus White House staff last week, the officials said.

At the meeting, Kelly told employees there would be no more in-fighting or mud-slinging.

Trump crashed another wedding over the weekend after a round on the golf course. He was in high spirits as he spoke with the bridal party

General Kelly was sworn in on July 31 last week. He is pictured at an Oval Office press conference afterwards

He gave a stern warning to leakers, explaining that it was a crime to pass on classified information to anyone without the proper security clearance.

Kelly, a four-star retired Marine Corps general, has also shut off the revolving door of unannounced guests who were streaming through the Oval Office, they claimed.

Now, anyone who wishes to see the president must do so via an appointment which must be approved by him.

Kelly takes the place of Reince Priebus, the former RNC chair who stepped down last month after his simmering feud with the short-lived communications director Anthony Scaramucci bubbled over.

Firing the brash Scaramucci was one of Kelly's first orders of business.
A gruesome massacre of endangered polar bears has been discovered on a Russian Arctic island.

At least six bullet-riddled bodies were discovered and most had their heads and skins ripped off.

The carcasses will go on sale on the market where they can fetch as much as 13,000.

The shocking discovery came to light when Vladimir Putin sent an ecological team to clear Vilkitsky Island of Soviet-era toxic debris as part of his campaign to clean up the Arctic.

At least six bullet-riddled bodies were discovered and most had their heads and skins ripped off

The remains of the polar bears were visible due to the receding summer snow on the uninhabited Kara Sea island.

Shooting endangered polar bears is illegal under Russian and international law. Used gun cartridges were found at the scene.

Fears of a cover-up emerged when police in the Yamalo-Nenets autonomous region of Russia were initially reluctant to open a criminal investigation.

There are concerns elite poachers may have been behind the bloody massacre.

However regional prosecutors have now opened a criminal case.

Andrey Baryshnikov, head of the Russian Centre of Arctic Exploration, said: 'When they spotted the carcasses they immediately got in touch with me via satellite connection because this is a very serious case.

'We passed the information to the police.'

Shooting endangered polar bears is illegal under Russian and international law

It is unclear when the animals were shot, but investigations are underway to determine this, he said.

Deputy governor Alexander Mazharov said: 'There were many polar bears at Vilkitsky island and unfortunately poachers came to hunt them.'

He vowed the criminal investigation would unmask those behind the bloody attack.

'We will not let them get away with it,' he said.

The shocking find on Russia's Vilkitsky Island in the Arctic came after an ecological team was sent to clear the spot of Soviet-era toxic debris

Polar bears are endangered and it is feared the illegal killings may have left the island without any of the animals

Earlier this year poachers were arrested after skins were found on the island.

'The offenders were caught very quickly and as I heard they were sentenced already,' he said.

'These bears were not spotted then because they were under the snow obviously.'

One poacher called Stepan left a message to another illegal hunter scrawled on the island's lighthouse, reading: 'I was here, killed 5 bears, good luck to you.'

There may be as few as 20,000 polar bears left in the world.

Scientists have claimed climate change, as well as poaching, is leading to their potential extinction in the wild.
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The people of New Hampshire are hitting back at Donald Trump in the politest way possible after he dismissed their state as a 'drug-infested den'.

Trump made the remark while calling Mexican president Pena Nieto on January 27 call, according to a secret transcript obtained by the Washington Post.

'We have a massive drug problem where kids are becoming addicted to drugs because the drugs are being sold for less money than candy,' Trump said.

'I won New Hampshire because New Hampshire is a drug-infested den,' he added - although Hillary Clinton beat him in the state by 0.3 per cent.

Now the Granite State's residents are taking him to task online by sharing stunning pictures of the state under the hashtags #NewHampshire and #DrugInfestedDen.



New Hampshire residents are hitting back at Donald Trump after a leaked transcript from a January 27 phone call revealed that he called the state a 'drug-infested den'. Many are posting up pictures of the state's natural beauty

Others are posting up shots of man-made beauty. Trump made the remarks in a phone call to Mexican president Pena Nieto during his first week in office

This user swapped the phrase 'Drug-infested Den' for the state's motto, 'Live Free or Die,' on a license plate, arguing that locals 'all hated [it] anyway'

Trump had made the remark while trying to persuade Nieto to pay for the border wall, saying that he'd only won because the American people are upset by what he characterized as the flow of drugs up from Mexico

The state has suffered - along with many others - by the recent opioid epidemic that has swept across America. But this user joked that the state's blueberries were the real addictive substances

Trump had brought up the state while failing to get Nieto to pay for a border wall, arguing that he'd only won the US election because people were concerned about drugs in the country coming up from Mexico.

Earlier this week, Chris Sununu, New Hampshire's Republican governor, fired back saying that Trump is flatly 'wrong.'

'It's disappointing his mischaracterization of this epidemic ignores the great things this state has to offer,' Sununu said in a statement.

'We are already seeing positive signs of our efforts as overdoses and deaths are declining in key parts of the state. In spite of this crisis, New Hampshire remains the best place to live, work and raise a family.'

Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, both Democrats, leaped into the fray on Twitter.

'@realDonaldTrump's comments about New Hampshire are disgusting. As he knows, NH and states across America have a substance misuse crisis,' Hassan tweeted.

'To date, @POTUS has proposed policies that would severely set back our efforts to combat this devastating epidemic,' she added.

'Instead of insulting people in the throes of addiction, @POTUS needs to work across party lines to actually stem the tide of this crisis.'

Shaheen tweeted that '@RealDonaldTrump owes NH an apology & then should follow through on his promise to Granite Staters to help end this crisis.'

'It's absolutely unacceptable for the President to be talking about NH in this way - a gross misrepresentation of NH & the epidemic.'

These are probably not the piles of 'snow' one imagines when talking about drug-infested dens, but this is how Twitter user Brittany Pye sees her state

Lori used this photo of the stunning New Hampshire scenery to show off the state's incredible mountains

This user showed off her local 'dealer' - is that a 'deerler'? - and took the time to 'remind' Trump that he didn't actually win the New Hampshire election. Clinton took it with a tiny margin of 0.3 per cent

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that one-quarter of all U.S. drug overdose deaths in 2015 were heroin-related to heroin, up from 6 per cent in 1999.

Opioids, a category that includes both prescription painkillers and illicit heroin, killed more than 33,000 people in America in 2015.

That, the CDC reports, is a record.

And the New Hampshire government's Drug Monitoring Unit published a report this year showing a dramatic increase in fentanyl-overdose deaths, which rose 23-fold between 2012 and 2016.

In that same period, overall drug-overdose deaths statewide nearly tripled.

Sherry Frost showed off her own personal 'den' - what appears to be her sunny, greenery-filled back yard

New Hampshire comedian Nick Lavallee promised that the state was a 'hug infested den'
Silvia Mecati was sacked after bosses at the club accused her of stealing

A waitress at an exclusive London club was fired for trying to take her lunch home because she had not had time to eat it.

Bosses at the Oxford and Cambridge Club in Pall Mall searched Silvia Mecatis handbag as she left work and found a piece of vegetarian lasagne wrapped in tin foil.

Even though the club had provided the meal for free, the 43-year-old was accused of stealing and dismissed.

The institution  a private members club for Oxbridge graduates whose members have included Stephen Fry, Benazir Bhutto and Clement Attlee  argued that she had not sought permission from the chef or a manager to take her lunch home.

The waitress, who has been on a zero hours contract during her three years at the club, is appealing against the decision.

She said employees are given food during certain hours, but she had not had time to eat her lunch on June 27 because she was working two shifts.

The Italian, who has lived in Britain for four years, said: At lunch I had taken a piece of lasagne but I didnt have time to eat it so I left it on a plate. Near the end of my second shift I wrapped it in tin foil and put it in the fridge as I didnt want to throw it away.

But as I was leaving the night manager asked to check my bag. They had never checked my bag in three years.

I told him, I have my lunch with me because I didnt have time to eat it and wanted to take it home. He replied, Did you have written or verbal permission from the chef or a manger to take your lunch home? I answered no.

Miss Mecati was suspended at the end of her shift the following day. She was ordered to empty her locker, hand back her key fob and was escorted out of the building.

The Oxford and Cambridge club where Silvia Meca was sacked for taking her lunch home wrapped in foil.

She then received a letter from the club, saying: Your actions can be considered to be theft in circumstances where you do not have permission to take Club food from the premises, and therefore a breach of your contract of employment.

Miss Mecati was invited to a disciplinary hearing on July 6 where she was sacked. A letter sent to her that same day said: The Club believes it is left with no alternative other than to summarily dismiss you from its employment on the ground of gross misconduct.

Members of the club include actor Stephen Fry (left) and Benazir Bhutto, the first female Prime Minister of Pakistan and the first woman to govern a Muslim majority nation. She was assassinated in 2007

The gravity of your misconduct is such that the club believes the trust and confidence placed in you as its employee has been completely undermined.

It argued that she had broken rule 2.8 of the employee handbook which says: The removal of any item of Club property from the Club house without permission being granted from a Departmental Manager or the Duty Manager will be considered to be theft and therefore Gross Misconduct.

Miss Mecati has been left worrying about finding another job and paying her rent in Camberwell, South London.

Earl Atlee (left), the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 and the Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955 was a member of the institution. Mecati (right) stands outside the club

While membership at the club costs up to 1,250 a year, Miss Mecati earned just 8.30 an hour  80p above the minimum wage and 1.45 below the London Living Wage.

She claims the club fired her so she would not receive a 1,200 bonus she was due in July.

She said: I have never been in trouble or been disciplined before. They wouldve thrown the food away anyway. It was the last piece of lasagne and the kitchen was being cleared up. Its just an excuse to fire me.

A further disciplinary hearing will be chaired by an independent figure at a future date.

Nobody at the 200-year-old club was available for comment.
An immigrant couple who police claim tried to take their newborn daughter overseas to be genitally mutilated have been banned from leaving Australia.

The couple, who were both born overseas and arrived in Australia separately 10 years ago, were slapped with a travel ban after NSW police recorded them discussing female circumcision, according to The Australian.

The husband and wife have denied the claims and argued to have the family's ban lifted in court last week so they can visit family in their home country.

Just before the young girl was born in September 2014, Officers said they received a tip that the family was going to have the girl 'cut' overseas, the publication reported.

An immigrant couple who police claim tried to take their newborn daughter overseas to be genitally mutilated have been banned from leaving Australia (pictured: a traditional surgeon holds razor blades before carrying out female genital mutilation)

Immediately after the girl's mother was discharged from the hospital, police recorded a phone conversation between the father, the mother and her grandmother and cousin.

The conversation was not recorded in English, but police claim the translated comments proved confirmed the tip.

Police said the father told the group: 'So we do not talk to people from (our home country) that it (the baby) is going to be circumcised. Because just with one person reporting, we too will be investigated. Even if they are from (our country) or friends, we need not tell them.'

Later, a search of the family home revealed four plane tickets to their home country.

The girl's father told the court he was not recorded speaking about his own daughter, but a friend's daughter.

The couple, who were both born overseas and arrived in Australia separately 10 years ago, were slapped with a travel ban in 2014 after NSW police recorded them discussing female circumcision

'I was pointing out that I thought it was stupid to discuss with people that he had his daughter circumcised because if you just told one person they could report you which is what happened with (him) and he was investigated. I was not talking about having my daughter circumcised or sneaking her off to have it done away from Australia,' he said, according to The Australian.

The girl's mother revealed to the court she herself had been circumcised as a child because, in their country, it is believed girls are 'naughty' if they're not 'cut.'

The NSW Department of Family and Community Services encouraged Justice Anne Rees to lift the travel ban because police decided not to charge the family.

With the young girl still deemed 'at risk', Justice Anne Rees affirmed the ban.
The desperate search for a Queensland mother-of-two has ended in tragedy, with her body found 'wrapped in blankets' and dumped in a remote creek.

Police are treating the death of 42-year-old Donna Louise Steele, who was found dead in bushland north of Cooktown on Sunday, as murder.

But police won't confirm media reports that her body was found wrapped up and dumped in an isolated creek at Leggett's Crossing, north of Cooktown.

Ms Steele was last seen at a Cooktown supermarket on Wednesday, having been spotted the day before at a local caravan park.

Police are treating the death of 42-year-old Donna Louise Steele, who was found dead in bushland north of Cooktown on Sunday, as murder

Her friend Kath Pennell told The Cairns Post the remote community is in shock.

'I am so devastated that I can barely speak. I will say she was a beautiful mother and friend,' she said.

'She loved her children so much. I can't believe someone has done this to her.'

Far North police Det Insp Geoff Marsh told the paper several crime scenes had been established at the crossing and other sites around Cooktown, with specialist forensic officers sent to the scene.
A man who was questioned over the murders of two teenage girls in Indiana has admitted to shooting dead his uncle in a decade-old cold case.

Kevin Sellers, 39, was answering questions about the February killings of the two girls when he made the confession on Wednesday.

Sellers was charged with murder after allegedly admitting to shooting dead his 50-year-old uncle David Sellers at the home they shared in Logansport, Indiana in November 2007.

Kevin Sellers, 39, (left in his mugshot) was charged with murder after admitting to shooting dead his 50-year-old uncle David Sellers (right) in Logansport, Indiana in 2007

A tipster had told police investigating the murders of Liberty German, 14, and Abigail Williams, 13, that Sellers had killed his uncle a decade ago and gotten away with it, WLFI reports.

Sellers was interviewed at the time when his uncle was found shot dead in his bed but no charges were ever filed against him.

Prosecutors questioned Sellers on Wednesday about the killings of the two teenage girls, but then confronted him with evidence from his uncle's cold case.

'I surrender,' he is alleged to have said when presented with the evidence.

Prosecutors claim Sellers then gave a detailed description of how he allegedly murdered his uncle.

A tipster had told police investigating the murders of Liberty German, 14, (left) and Abigail Williams, 13, (right) that Sellers had killed his uncle a decade ago and gotten away with it

Liberty and Abigail vanished on February 13 while they were hiking near their hometown of Delphi. The last time they were known to be alive was when Liberty posted a Snapchat near the Monon High Bridge

He was jailed and is being held without bond.

Sellers has not been charged in the murder case involving the two young girls.

Liberty and Abigail vanished on February 13 while they were hiking near their hometown of Delphi.

Their bodies were found the following day around 60 feet from a creek, which is about three-quarters of a mile upstream from where they were last seen.

The last time they were known to be alive was when Liberty posted a Snapchat near the Monon High Bridge along the Delphi Historic Trails while out on their hike.

Police released a composite sketch in July of a man they wanted to question over Liberty and Abigail's killings.

It generated thousands of tips, including the one about Sellers allegedly murdering his uncle.
Two teenage Boy Scouts have died and a third is in critical condition after the boat they were sailing in on Saturday struck a power line.

The boys, aged 16 and 17, were at a troop camp out at a private residence near Alley Creek on the north shore of Lake O' the Pines, Daniel Anderson, chief operating officer for the East Texas Boy Scouts of America, told the Longview News-Journal.

The tragic accident happened around 2pm on Saturday when the boys took out a Catamaran and the mast came in contact with a power line as they were leaving the marina, Anderson said.

The two teens who died are believed to have been electrocuted, while an 11-year-old Scout was also injured.

Two teenage Boy Scouts have died and a third is in critical condition after the boat they were sailing in on Saturday struck a power line. Incident happened in Alley Creek Park on Lake O' the Pines (file above)

He was rushed to Louisiana State University Medical Center in Shreveport and is listed in critical condition.

The younger Scout was found unresponsive 'in a boat nearby' the Catamaran and was given CPR by 'good Samaritans,' a statement from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department reads.

All three boys had been wearing flotation devices.

The names of the boys have not been released, but they were members of Troop 620 in Hallsville.

A vigil is being held on Sunday at Hallsville City Park beginning at 8.30pm.

Lake O' The Pines is roughly 154 miles east of Dallas and is about 70 miles west of Shreveport, Louisiana.
Two toddlers' deaths were ruled as homicides after police claim their mother left them in a hot car for several hours in order to teach them a lesson.

Cynthia Marie Randolph was arrested after her two-year-old daughter Juliet and 16-month-old son Cavanaugh were found dead in Weatherford, Texas, on May 26.

Randolph, 25, was charged with two counts of first-degree injury to a child causing serious bodily injury on June 23.

It was revealed Sunday that a medical examiner ruled the young children's deaths as homicides, dying of heatstroke while they were inside the hot car on the 96F day.

Police said Randolph was trying to teach Juliet a lesson for not coming out of the car when asked. The mother allegedly went back inside to smoke pot and take a nap.

Cynthia Marie Randolph, 25, was arrested after her daughter Juliet, two, and son Cavanaugh, 16 months, were found dead in Weatherford, Texas, on May 26. Their deaths were ruled as homicides, it was revealed on Sunday

The deaths of Cavanaugh and Juliet were ruled as homicides and a medical examiner said they died of heatstroke while locked inside the car on the 96F day

Randolph put the children inside the car and then went inside the house and smoked marijuana before taking a nap for two to three hours, thinking the children would leave the car on their own when they were ready, according to police.

When the mother found the children in distress inside the car, she broke the window of the car to make the incident look like an accident, police said.

An arrest affidavit says Randolph later said her daughter refused to get out of the car so she locked both toddlers inside to teach them a lesson - thinking they'd exit on their own.

Randolph's story changed several times, investigators said. Initially, she told police that she was doing chores in the house when the children 'took off'.

Police said Randolph wanted to teach Juliet a lesson when she didn't exit the car when asked. They claim that Randolph went back inside to smoke pot and take a nap

Randolph's story changed several times, investigators said. Initially, she told police that she was doing chores in the house when the children 'took off'

In that version, she said she searched the property for some time before finding the children locked inside a four-door car, which they'd presumably entered themselves and locked from the inside.

Temperatures reached 96 degrees Fahrenheit that day.

After extensive interviews with police, investigators determined that Randolph actually intentionally left the children in the car to teach young Juliet a lesson.

Parker County records show Randolph remains jailed.

Investigators didn't immediately return a message Sunday on possible upgraded charges.
An investigation has revealed that corrosion to a metal support beam was the primary cause of a deadly malfunction to the Fireball ride at the Ohio State Fair.

Ride manufacturer KMG on Sunday released its findings in the malfunction that occurred in Columbus, Ohio on July 26, issuing a new inspection protocol for other Fireball rides in use elsewhere.

'It was determined that excessive corrosion on the interior of the gondola support beam dangerously reduced the beams wall thickness over the years. This finally led to the catastrophic failure of the ride during operation,' KMG Product Manager Albert Kroon said in a statement.

KMG also said that it had developed a new safety inspection protocol that would allow other Fireball rides, which are also sold under the name Afterburner, to reopen.

Ride manufacturer KMG released this statement on Sunday detailing the findings of its investigation into the fatal malfunction of a ride in Columbus, Ohio on July 26

The ride malfunction killed one rider and injured seven others at the Ohio State Fair

Remains: The pieces of The Fireball that broke off laying on the asphalt at the fair (above)

Aftermath: Corrosion to a metal support beam apparently caused one of the ride gondolas to detach from the ride, killing one and injuring seven

The catastrophic malfunction to the ride in Ohio, killed 18-year-old Tyler Jarrell, who had enlisted in the Marines five days before his death.

Highway Patrol as the young man who was killed while riding The Fireball.

He was thrown into the air when part of the amusement ride snapped and came down with such force that he was killed upon impact.

The tragedy occurred just five days after Tyler posted a photo to his Facebook page which showed him in a Marines Uniform and holding a plaque that read 'United States Navy' and 'Department of the Marine Corps.'

His decision to enlist meanwhile came a little over a month after he graduated from Franklin Heights High School in Columbus.

Tragedy: Tyler Jarrell, 18, of Reynoldsburg, Ohio, has been identified as the young man who was killed on July 26 at the Ohio State Fair (Tyler above enlisting as a Marine)

Big things: Tyler (above with Amber Duffield) had just joined the Marines five days before his death, posting photos of himself in his new uniform on July 21

Six of the seven victims were also identified by the State Highway Patrol, with the youngest of the group having his name withheld as he is just 14 and a minor.

Tamika Dunlap, 36, of Reynoldsburg; Russell Franks, 42, of Columbus; Keziah Lewis, 19, of Columbus; Jacob Andrews, 22, of Pataskala; Jennifer Lambert, 18, of Columbus; and Abdihakim Hussein, 19, of Columbus.

Keziah was Tyler's girlfriend, and only learned that he had passed when she woke up in the hospital, where she underwent two operations after badly damaging her pelvis, ankles and ribs.

Documents released on last month show that the Ohio Department of Agriculture gave The Fireball passing marks during an inspection that happened just a few hours before the fatal crash.

The Department also released the paperwork they received from Amusements of America showing that both the operator and attendant who were working that day had been trained and were aware of safety/emergency procedures.

Tragedy: Part of the ride snapped off on Wednesday night, sending people flying through the air (above)

Keziah and Tyler went to the carnival after a difficult day for the young woman, who attended her grandfather's funeral.

The University of Cincinnati journalism student, who just finished her second year at the school, wrote on Facebook about her grandparents finally being together again in death.

'It was hard and extremely sad to see you go but it's a blessing to know that you and Nana are reunited and living it up in Heaven,' wrote Keziah.

'Rest In Peace Vincent S. Williams, Sr. You will forever be in our hearts.'

Keziah's grandfather also served, having been a member of the Air Force.

The comments on that post soon filled with wishes of good will after people found out that she was one of the victims.

Keziah and Tyler have been together for approximately one year and worked together at McDonald's for two years, which is how they met.

Horrible news: Keziah Lewis (left) was Tyler's (right) girlfriend and learned about his death on Thursday after coming out of surgery as she remains in critical condition

Proud to serve: Tyler's decision to enlist was heralded by Marine Corps Recruiting South Columbus Ohio on Sunday (above)

Model citizen: Tyler was also very involved in the local police force, having joined The Columbus Division of Police Explorer Program (above)

Tyler was also a decorated member of the Boy Scouts (above with Amber and Karina Duffield)

Her mother Clarissa Williams told The Columbus Dispatch that she was the one who had to tell her daughter the devastating news when she kept asking for Tyler.

When asked what she thought about the accident and if she was angry, Williams said: 'I just feel something went terribly wrong, something was overlooked that they should have secured more.'

Williams revealed in the interview as well that her daughter was heading in for yet another surgery on Friday.

Marine Corps Recruiting South Columbus Ohio even posted a photo of Tyler on their Facebook page Sunday because they were so excited about his enlistment.

'Give him one! Tyler Jarrell is the first senior from Franklin Heights high school to enlist into the United States Marine Corps this year,' read the post.

'I'm proud to call him my brother. #FranklinHeights #Marines.'

Where's the food?: Governon John Kasich talks with fairgoers while he tours the Ohio State Fair on Thursday (above)

Tyler was also very involved in the local police force, having joined The Columbus Division of Police Explorer Program to see if he might be interested in becoming a cop.

Dillon King, who heads up that program, posted a photo on Thursday of Tyler posing in front of a paddy wagon in his police uniform.

He also commented on a photo of the young man by stating how much he looked up to the teenager.

That sentiment was echoed by almost everyone Tyler knew, both young and old, upon hearing the news.

Sharon Payne, who was Tyler's boss at McDonald's posted a photo of the young boy in his Marine uniform and wrote: 'He was a good kid who just passed his physical and was accepted into the marines last Thursday, i thought of him as my son and he called me mom.'

And in addition to his enlisting in the Marines and working with Police Explorer's and holding down a job at McDonald's, Tyler was also very involved in the Boy Scouts.

Not risking it: All rides were shut down the fairground Thursday in the wake of the incident

A young woman who was on the amusement ride detailed what happened just before the crash in an interview.

'It started normal, everything started normal, and then it started shaking. It was shaking real bad,' Devray Williams told ABC 6.

She said that the girl next to her also started to say her seat was shaking just moments before Devray watched the woman go flying off into the air when the machine snapped.

An emotional Devray then said through tears: 'And then the dude hit the ground. He wasn't breathing. None of them was, it was like five people. Nobody was breathing and then they came and tried to give him CPR but nothing was happening.'

Meanwhile, the young boy who filmed the fatal ride malfunction that occurred at the fair revealed that bystanders began screaming at the operator to slow down just moments before the crash.

Julian Bellinger was filming The Fireball as he stood in line with his friends to get on the ride when it suddenly broke, killing one person and injuring seven others.

He recounted what happened in an interview with Good Morning America, saying: 'We were just recording each other on Snapchat and we had deleted the video because we heard like commotion on the ride and there was people on the ride like, "Slow it down, it's too fast," and all this. So people on the ground beside me and in front of me in line... they all were like, "whoa, whoa, slow down."'

Julian said at that moment the operator 'pressed the emergency brake,' with the teenager stating that he had to turn his head away when he started to see people fall out of their harnesses and seats on the ride.'

Scene: Two of the victims are treated after the crash on Wednesday by first responders

Flung: Some of those on the ride managed to stay in their seats while others flung free
A man who allegedly brandished a knife at police and was shot by officers has died in hospital.

The 44-year-old was tasered and shot twice after police were called to reports of a disturbance in northern New South Wales Sunday.

He was taken to Grafton Base Hospital before being airlifted to Gold Coast University Hospital but died from his injuries, police said.



A 44-year-old man was tasered and shot twice after police were called to reports of a disturbance in northern New South Wales Sunday

Police were called to a unit on Turf St in Grafton at around 3.45pm Sunday, where they were 'allegedly confronted by a man with a knife'.

The man was reportedly involved in a domestic incident at the home, according to 9News.

He was told to drop his weapon and when he failed to do so police tasered him.

When the stun gun was unsuccessful police were reportedly forced to shoot, with the officers involved then treating the man at the scene before paramedics arrived.

The man suffered two gun shot wounds, one to his upper right leg and another to his chest, according to The Today Show.

A critical investigation team has taken over the case, with investigators scouring the Grafton unit for information overnight.

The man allegedly brandished a knife and refused to drop his weapon, with police first tasering the man before shooting him in the leg and chest

A critical investigation team has taken over the case, with investigators preparing a report for the coroner that will be examined in a separate independent review

A cordon was set up on North Street between Turf Street and Queen Street, according to The Daily Examiner.

Police from Grafton, Maclean, Yamba and Lawrence reportedly responded, along with detectives from Coffs Harbour.

A coroner's report will be prepared which will then be examined in a separate independent review.

Anyone with information or who witnessed the event is asked to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
The father of Henri Paul, Princess Diana's driver on the night she died, has claimed UK police told him she was murdered.

Henri's elderly father Jean, 85, fears he will die without knowing the full story behind the crash.

Mr Paul, the acting head of security at the Ritz Hotel in Paris, was at the wheel of the Mercedes which crashed in the Alma Tunnel in the early hours of August 31, 1997 with Diana and Dodi Al Fayed in the back.

He said: 'Diana was killed and my son was killed. I believe they were both murdered. My son was simply collateral damage of a plot to kill Diana and they killed him as well.

'I am 100% sure he [Henri] was not involved in this plot. He was too honourable and too honest.'

Henri Paul was at the wheel of the Mercedes which crashed in the Alma Tunnel in the early hours of August 31, 1997 with Diana and Dodi Al Fayed in the back

Despite an official inquest ruling Diana and Dodi were unlawfully killed due to the 'gross negligence' of Mr Paul, who had been drinking, Jean remains convinced it was part of an Establishment plot.

He even claimed some officers inside Scotland Yard believe there was a secret plot to kill Diana.

In an interview with the Daily Mirror he said: 'I have no real hope to know what really happened. Perhaps it will be known in 30 or 50 years. But I would really like to know before I die. But I don't think it will happen.'

The 85-year-old even sensationally suggested his son's blood sample was switched or tampered with to make it look like he had drink in his system.

He said: 'On that day there were over 20 autopsies that took place and it was easy for the authorities to switch blood samples to show alcohol was present in the sample they said was Henri's.

'That is what I believe happened.'

Princess Diana and with Dodi Fayed (pictured together on the night they died) were killed alongside Henri Paul (left) when the car crashed in a Paris tunnel

Many conspiracy theories have surrounded Diana's death, and Dodi's father, former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed, has always insisted he believes the couple were murdered.

However an inquest in 2008 found Diana and Dodi were unlawfully killed due to the 'gross negligence' of Mr Paul, who had been drinking. A lack of seatbelts also contributed to their deaths.

And in 2013, the Met dismissed reports claiming SAS troops were behind the couple's death, insisting there was 'no credible evidence' of secret service involvement.

Diana's first lover after her marriage to Prince Charles, bodyguard Barry Mannakee, was killed in a 1987 motorcycle accident three weeks after being sacked by the Royal Family following rumours of their romance.

Some of his family believe the secret services were behind the death, but that has never been proven.

Jean's wife, former teacher Giselle, 87, was traumatised by their son's death and is now living in a care home.

In a previous interview she said: 'We believe there was a plot to kill the Princess that terrible night in August 1997.

'We know in our hearts that our son was murdered and we still live with the hope that one day the truth will be known.'

The couple have outlived all but one of their five sons.

Princess Diana's final days

Who was really responsible for Princess Diana's death? Seven conspiracy theories

Everything you need to know about Princess Diana's funeral
Social care is in such crisis that four in ten homes fail inspections.

Watchdogs have reported on 5,300 care homes this year and 2,000 were found inadequate or in need of improvement.

It means 70,000 vulnerable residents and patients are at risk.

Inspectors found elderly who were left filthy and starving. Others were locked in their bedrooms with no natural light.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt (pictured) said that he expects 'significant improvements where care is below expectations

Many were given the wrong medication. Despite the litany of failings, the Care Quality Commission has successfully prosecuted just five homes over the past two years. The Daily Mail's audit of reports published by the watchdog reveals that:

38 per cent of care homes failed inspections this year;

More than half of those run by big firms including Bupa were said to be failing;

At least 9,000 vulnerable people are in homes that do not meet basic safety standards;

Police investigated a home where an elderly resident allegedly choked to death and another where a resident was left alone while having a seizure.

Responding to the findings, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said last night: 'Any instance of care falling short is one too many. We expect significant improvements where care is below expectations.'

Since October 2014, the CQC has inspected adult social care services using an Ofsted-style system. Homes are rated as outstanding, good, requiring improvement or inadequate.

Inspectors found elderly who were left filthy and starving, while some were locked in their bedrooms (stock photo)

Of 5,361 reports published this year, 38 per cent received the worst two ratings. Just 86 homes were outstanding. Another 262 were rated inadequate  leaving 9,000 residents with no guarantee of being protected from harm.

The Mail's findings suggest the crisis in care homes is far more severe than previously thought. Last month the CQC published a major report, which suggested that out of 14,900 care homes 22.5 per cent were failing. However, the figures related to reports since October 2014  rather than being broken down by year.

The Mail's findings suggest particular concerns with major private providers. Four Seasons Health Care, which houses 20,000 mostly elderly residents in 265 homes, promises that residents will be treated with 'courtesy and dignity'.

But out of 107 reports into its homes published this year, 54 were rated as failing. Bupa Care Services  the second largest private provider with 244 homes  says it has a 'person-centred approach'. Yet 45 of 90 of its homes reported on this year were found to be inadequate or requiring improvement.

The failure rate at HC-ONE, which has 230 homes, was 55 per cent.

Dr Hilda Hayo of the charity Dementia UK said: 'The news that so many care homes are failing in their duty to provide good quality care is disturbing.'

Four Seasons Health Care said if the previous year's figures were included, 64 per cent of its homes were rated as good.

TOOTHLESS WATCHDOG'S FIVE PROSECUTIONS IN TWO YEARS The Care Quality Commission has successfully prosecuted just five care homes in the past two years. Despite the huge number of homes failing inspections, the vast majority are given repeated warnings. Some of the worst have been in special measures for more than a year but have been allowed to keep running. If a care home does not meet basic safety requirements, it is given an overall inadequate rating. There are currently 535 across the country. In the most severe cases, where residents are deemed to be at immediate risk, the CQC can force the homes to shut down and residents are moved out. Inadequate homes that are not closed are immediately put into special measures, which means they are on warning to improve urgently. Within six months inspectors will visit again. In the meantime, the CQC can use enforcement powers to make improvements. It can fine providers or stop them taking new residents. The five homes prosecuted successfully by the CQC in the past two years incurred fines of up to 190,000. Homes are taken out of special measures only when their overall inadequate rating improves. If real improvement is not shown, the watchdog can then move to shut the home down. Of the 916 adult care services that have had a first rating of inadequate, almost a third have shut down. In some cases the provider will choose to close before being forced to stop running. The CQC would not say how many homes it has actively forced to close. Over two years 1,605 different types of enforcement action were taken. Advertisement

A spokesman rejected the idea that the CQC verdict of 'requires improvement' meant a home was failing.

A Bupa spokesman said the reports published this year did not reflect the company's overall performance.

Joan Elliott of Bupa Care Services said: 'We're proud of the care our staff provide and that the CQC has rated the majority of our homes as good or outstanding.'

An HC-ONE spokesman said: 'We have worked hard with our teams, from turnaround to transformation, to improve care standards and the quality of life for residents.

The figures used to outline the number of our homes that require improvement do not take into account the kind care that is delivered across other HC-One care homes across the country and at this time, HC-One has achieved a rating of 9.4 out of a maximum rating of 10 on carehome.co.uk.

Andrea Sutcliffe, chief inspector of adult social care at the CQC, said: 'While the majority of services are good and we are seeing improvements, we have made it clear that there is too much poor care.

'This has got to change. We are playing our part by driving improvement and holding providers to account to put a stop to poor care.'

On Saturday, Theresa May's former joint chief-of-staff said she must urgently reform social care to avoid defeat to Labour at the next election. Nick Timothy urged the Prime Minister to set up a royal commission.

Many patients in some UK care homes were given the wrong medication (stock photograph)

Grabbed by the throat, thrown on a bed and sworn at... by carers paid to look after her: Families tell Mail inquiry of sickening abuse of their loved ones

By Sara Smyth and Richard Marsden

They had no option but to put their loved ones into care homes.

But families have told the Daily Mail how they then discovered their relatives were being horrifically mistreated by the very people who were meant to be caring for them.

The Mail Investigations Unit today reveals how four in ten care homes reported on this year have been found to be inadequate or requiring improvement.

Reporters analysed thousands of Care Quality Commission findings and interviewed families of those who have lived at homes branded failing in reports this year. Some were so concerned about the welfare of their loved ones that they installed hidden cameras in their rooms  and were distraught when they watched back the shocking footage.

Confirming their worst fears, the videos showed their elderly relatives crying out in pain as carers manhandled them. Some of the disturbing cases are detailed below.

79-year-old ENDURED campaign of violence

Gladys Wright was grabbed by the throat, shoved into bed and sworn at by carers who were paid to look after her.

Six weeks into her stay at The Granary care home near Bristol the 79-year-old dementia sufferer was subjected to a horrific campaign of violence by night shift workers.

One tried to force her eyes open while she lay in bed. Another said 'f*** her' as he left Mrs Wright in soiled clothing. The mother of three was called an 'aggressive bitch' while her screams of pain were ignored.

The abuse came to light after her son James hid a camera in an alarm clock in her bedroom at the 800-a-week home. What he found was worse than a horror story, he said.

Gladys Wright (pictured) was grabbed by the throat, shoved into bed and sworn at by carers who were paid to look after her

'My mother was thrown around like a sack of potatoes and hit by the people who were supposed to protect her,' he told the Mail. In a particularly shocking piece of footage a carer used his weight to pin the pensioner's legs apart in order to provide personal care.

Nine carers were sacked, three of whom were prosecuted and found guilty of abuse. But only one received jail time  four months.

Mrs Wright suffered the abuse in 2012 and died in 2014.

The home, run by Shaw Healthcare, is still failing.

A spokesman for the firm said 'the CQC confirmed significant improvements had been made'.

Grandmother flinched in fear at sight of staff

A great-grandmother lived in fear at an NHS care home, her daughter said.

Retired nurse Bridget Rees, 92, had dementia, heart disease and a broken leg when doctors advised that she move to Mary Seacole Nursing Home in East London in the summer of 2014.

Her daughter Veronica Davis hid a camera in a clock after finding bruises on her mother's arms.

Retired nurse Bridget Rees, 92, (pictured) lived in fear at an NHS home, according to her daughter

During visits she grew concerned at how her mother winced when carers approached. And when her bedroom door opened, the widow pulled her bedclothes over her head. Footage then captured staff nurse Faderera Bello slapping and poking Mrs Rees and shouting 'Shut your mouth' while she was lying in bed.

Bello was sacked and later sentenced to four months in jail for ill treatment and wilful neglect.

Mrs Rees was moved to another home where she died of pneumonia in May 2015. At its last inspection Mary Seacole Nursing Home was rated as 'requires improvement'. A spokesman said: 'This case highlighted the appalling behaviour of an individual. We have made all staff aware that this kind of behaviour will not be tolerated.'

Charged 5,000 a month but left lying in urine

Brenda Hibberd thought a 5,000-a-month home would give her elderly mother with dementia the best possible care. But she says Elsie Reeves suffered terribly at Maples Care Home in Bexleyheath, south-east London.

Mrs Reeves, 95, begged staff for help when her legs became swollen and painful but her complaints were ignored for three weeks. She was eventually hospitalised with a severe deep vein thrombosis.

Her daughter found unexplained bruising on her mother's forearms after she moved to the home  then owned by Churchgate Healthcare  in November 2014. A few months later, she arrived for a lunchtime visit to find her mother lying in her own urine, still wearing her nightdress. She had not been fed all morning.

Elsie Reeves, 95, begged staff for help when her legs became swollen and painful but her complaints were ignored for three weeks

Mrs Hibberd hid a camera in her mother's bedroom in March 2015. In one clip, Mrs Reeves can be seen pleading with carers as they swing her precariously from a hoist.

One staff member tells another: 'We nearly dropped her the other day.' Another clip captures a male carer saying 'there's too much fat on your a***'.

'I was heartbroken and disgusted,' said Mrs Hibberd. She moved her mother to another home where she died in June 2016.

A CQC report into the home in March found it 'requires improvement'. A spokesman for the home, now owned by Canford Healthcare, said: 'We too were shocked by the events at Maples Care Home before we took over the ownership and management in July 2015. We are confident that our imminent inspection from CQC will confirm that substantial changes continue to be made at Maples.'

MY MOTHER HAD AN AEROSOL SPRAYED IN HER FACE Betty Boylan had an aerosol can sprayed in her face A care home worker sprayed an aerosol can in the face of great-grandmother Betty Boylan. The 78-year-old with vascular dementia was also grabbed by the back of the neck and shoved into a chair. Staff roughly combed her hair while calling her 'Betty Boo Boo'. The abuse was discovered after her family hid a camera in a television at Bupa's Perry Locks Care Home in Birmingham. Her daughter Bernadette Jarvis said the footage 'was horrific'. Last month Susan Draper, 44, was found guilty of ill treatment in a position of care after spraying body spray into Mrs Boylan's mouth. She was jailed for four weeks. Bina Begum, 49, was given a 12-month community order for shoving the pensioner into a chair. Mrs Jarvis said her family picked a Bupa home because of the company's 'first-rate reputation'. But they found bruises on retired nurse Mrs Boylan in September 2016, a year after she moved to the 1,000-a-week home. She also seemed frightened when carers approached. Inspectors said the home 'requires improvement'. Bupa Care Services said the behaviour of two individuals at Perry Locks was completely unacceptable. Susan Draper, 44, was found guilty of ill treatment in a position of care after spraying body spray into Mrs Boylan's mouth Advertisement

Horrific leg ulcer that went unnoticed by carers

A dementia patient with a simple cut on her leg developed a horrific ulcer because care home staff left it untreated for 15 months, her family claim.

After Jean Sass hit her leg on a wheelchair, staff at family-run Woolton Manor care home in Liverpool covered the cut with cotton wool and plasters.

But they gave it no proper treatment for more than a year and it became infected. The wound was only discovered when she was admitted to hospital with a chest infection late last year.

Her family say she was healthy and strong when she arrived at the home three years ago. But she weighed only five stone when doctors advised her to leave. She died at 88 in January this year, two months after the family removed her from Woolton Manor.

Her children Karen and Paul spent 60,000 in fees for the three years she was at the home.

Mr Sass said: 'The staff once tried to give her the wrong medication while on other occasions we found mum sitting in someone else's clothes. She was covered in pressure sores because she was left too long lying down.'

In January the home received an inadequate rating from the CQC. Last night the home declined to comment.

The toll of misery in homes across the country

By Sara Smyth, Investigations Reporter

Inspection reports seen by the Mail show how frail residents are suffering terribly in homes across the country.

In some cases, emergency inspections were prompted by families complaining about how their loved ones were being treated.

Here are some of the findings of CQC reports published this year into care homes found to be inadequate. They all remain open:

Two residents died and the manager quit during a three-day inspection at the Four Seasons BON ACCORD home for 31 elderly people with dementia in Hove, East Sussex. Inspectors reported concerns about some residents' access to sufficient quantities of food and drink as two people had lost more than a stone in six months.

Some went without medicine for days at the home which has been in special measures since February.

Inspection reports show how frail residents are suffering terribly in homes across the country

Four Seasons said the manager at the time of inspection has resigned and there has been a 'comprehensive programme of improvements'. The firm said the deaths were not suspicious.

At the MERRY HALL NURSING & RESIDENTIAL HOME in Fareham, Hampshire, a resident allegedly choked to death in March, triggering a police investigation and an emergency CQC inspection. Others at the home for 27 elderly people, some with dementia, were known to be at risk of choking but were allowed to eat and drink alone.

Merry Hall, owned by Buckland Care, has been in special measures since February 2016. A spokesman said 'new and experienced leadership is in place' at the home. Hampshire police said the death was not being treated as suspicious.

Inspectors were brought in at SOUTHWINDS, Burntwood, Staffordshire, after police launched an investigation into neglect at the home for 13 people with learning disabilities. One disabled resident was left in soiled clothes for two days in a row. Many were only given fresh clothes every five or six days.

Residents had to ask for toilet paper which was kept in an office. The home, which has been failing since July 2015 and in special measures since December 2016, is also chronically understaffed.

Southwinds, owned by a woman called Glenda Bundy, did not respond to requests for comment.

Staff at the TRALEE REST HOME for 21 elderly people saw dried faeces by the front door but did not clean it up. They used the same pair of latex gloves to clean the toilet, wash a sink and make a resident's bed. Inspectors said residents in the home in Whitstable, Kent, some of whom have dementia, 'were not provided with a clean environment in which to live'.

Staff swore at residents and inspectors heard them talking about them as if they weren't in the room. The home, owned by family-run Veecare Ltd, has been in special measures since June 2016 and was banned from taking new residents without CQC approval in September 2016. It did not respond to requests for comment.

One resident at LEIGHSWOOD went without painkillers for two days because the home for 22 elderly people in Walsall, West Midlands, ran out. Another had torn skin on their hands after seven accidents at the home  but staff had no plans to protect them from further harm.

Emergency inspections were prompted by families complaining about how their loved ones were being treated

A resident was also left sitting in urine-soaked trousers, and another sat with their head in their hands for an hour before carers checked how they were feeling.

The home has been failing since March 2016 and in special measures since January but CQC inspectors revisited in June and said care was being improved. A spokesman for Leighswood, owned by Quality Homes Midlands, said the manager has been replaced.

Residents with dementia were locked in their rooms overnight at ORCHARD MANOR CARE HOME, Chester, and forced to wake up at 5.30am, inspectors were told.

Four staff members ignored an elderly resident who walked by them wearing soiled nightwear. And one with Parkinson's was put at risk of scalding themselves when they were left alone with a hot cup of tea. Orchard Manor, a home for 93 elderly people with dementia owned by family company Fordent Properties, has been failing since August 2015. A spokesman for the firm said it has hired a new manager, adding that last month the home was revisited by inspectors who 'praised the significant positive progress we have made'.

A resident at the HC-One NEWLANDS NURSING & RESIDENTIAL HOME, Stockport, for 57 elderly people was given another person's medicine. A second missed their daily dose of blood pressure tablets when nurses couldn't find them. Inspectors described residents as 'unsafe, at risk of being given the wrong medication'. The home has been in special measures since August 2016.

An HC-One spokesman said it has implemented a 'robust and detailed action plan' and is 'working tirelessly' to address the issues raised by the CQC.
Jeremy Corbyn has backed the right of all prisoners to vote in elections, the Mail can reveal.

The Labour leader told a conference he believes very strongly that all inmates should be able to participate in elections.

He also endorsed a ruling in favour of prisoner voting by the European Court of Human Rights.

Jeremy Corbyn told a conference he believes very strongly that all inmates should be able to participate in elections

His comments, which were made before he became Labour leader, will raise fears the policy could be implemented if Mr Corbyn becomes PM.

Speaking to an Amnesty International Conference in 2012, Mr Corbyn said: When, for example, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that prisoners have a right to vote  which is something I personally believe very strongly, they do have a right to vote.

They have that right to vote in South Africa and I believe that should be a right that is extended all across Europe.

The Labour manifesto promised to reduce the voting age to 16 but made no mention of votes for prisoners.

Last night Tory MP Philip Davies  a long standing campaigner against votes for prisoners - said: This is just another example of why Jeremy Corbyn is completely unfit to be PM.

If prisoners are so keen to vote they would commit crimes in the first place.

It clearly isnt that important to them or they woulnt commit the offences that got them put in jail. Mr Corbyn probably thinks that by giving them the vote itll be another load of votes for Labour.

But Im afraid its completely unacceptable for people who are either serial or serious offenders  the only people in jail these days  to be able to vote for people who set laws in this country.

The refurbished C wing at Wormwood Scrubs prison. The Labour leader has backed the right of all prisoners in the UK to vote in elections

For more than a decade, successive governments have resisted pressure from the European Court of Human Rights to give votes to prisoners.

In 2005, the Strasbourg-based court, which is separate from the EU, ruled in favour of axe killer John Hirst, and said that the current blanket ban on prisoner voting was unlawful.

As PM, David Cameron resisted the move, saying the idea of letting prisoners vote makes him feel physically sick.

Two years ago, ministers informed the Council of Europe  the body which enforces decisions by the court  that inmates would not be getting the vote.

It led to the issue being kicked into the long grass.

In 2013, a crossparty panel of MPs and peers said the vote should be given to all inmates entering the final six months of their sentence.

Two years earlier the Commons voted by an overwhelming majority not to give prisoners the right to vote. They backed a motion opposing the move by a 234 to 22 - a majority of 212.
New images of a naked gunman reportedly threatening to kill himself in Las Vegas over the weekend were released on Sunday.

Police were called to the Life Springs Christian Church at 2075 E. Warm Springs Road, near Eastern Avenue, around 11.00am on Saturday after they received reports that a naked man armed with a gun was sitting in the parking lot, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal.

At the same time, Chris Mehri was inside the church taking a pre-SAT exam when the incident unfolded.

New images of a standoff between police and a naked gunman in Las Vegas emerged Sunday - visible in front of the man is a weapon on the floor

The gunman was found in a church parking lot threatening suicide on Saturday morning (Pictured: Life Springs Christian Church)

'The guard told us don't go out there,' Merhi explained to local NBC broadcaster KSNV-TV.

'There's a man outside. He's naked with a gun.'

Metropolitan Police Department Sgt. Jeff Clark later told the Review Journal the naked gunman was reportedly threatening to commit suicide.

Soon after authorities arrived, they began engaging in a dialogue with the suspect, who initially appeared to be complying with their commands to put the gun down on the ground and walk away.

Police said, however, that he suddenly turned around and ran back towards the weapon.

An officer then fired a single shot at the man, striking him in the arm, and was immediately taken to a nearby hospital in stable condition.

No officers were hurt.

During the standoff, Mehri was able to use his cellphone and take pictures of the suspect who had rested his back against a door.

'I was about five feet from him,' Mehri said. 'I could see him right through the glass door.'

'About 20 minutes later, a METRO police officer walked in and told us that they had engaged with him and shot him in the arm, and that he was rushed to the hospital and the scene was taken care of,' Merhi added.

This is the 16th police shooting in Las Vegas so far this year, a sharp increase from the 10 total police shootings in 2016.

The unidentified man had initially complied with police and set aside his weapon (Pictured: Metropolitan Police Department Sgt. Jeff Clark)

But after a brief standoff, the suspect ran back towards his weapon. Officers were forced to open fire and struck the man once on the arm

The Saturday shooting also marks the eighth instance where officers were shot or shot at in the past seven weeks.

On Tuesday, a man in a stolen truck died in a shootout with police, which also left an officer injured.

Miguel Salas, 25, died from a gunshot wound to the head following the incident, according to the Clark County Coroner's office on Friday.

Last week, Las Vegas authorities shot and killed Miguel Salas (pictured), 25, after he fired nine bullets at a police officer

Body cam footage belonging to one of the Las Vegas officers shows police ordering Salas to step out of his vehicle.

The video shows Salas refuse to comply with Officer Richard Nelson demands as he holds the suspect's wrist.

'Step out of the car,' Nelson is heard saying.

'Why do you need me to step out of my car?' Salas said. 'I'm not doing nothing!'

'Yes, you are. You're not listening to our command. Do you want to get tased?' the officer asks.

Suddenly, Salas reaches for a concealed weapon in the car and fires off nine rounds, striking Nelson once in the lower left chest on his bullet-proof vest.

'Shots fired! I've been hit! Shots fired, I've been hit!,' Nelson tells dispatch after firing a number of rounds, fatally hitting Salas with one bullet.

Police units had originally stopped Salas after receiving a report of suspicious vehicle parked in front of a business in the 4100 block of West Tompkins Avenue at 4.15pm in connection with a stolen cell phone.
Consumers who have unwittingly handed over personal information will be protected in future by having to tick a box before companies can harvest their data, it will be announced on Monday.

Social media firms will also be required to delete information on children and adults when asked under new laws aimed at giving people a greater right to be forgotten online.

The Data Protection Bill will make it simpler for people to control how companies use their personal details, with extra powers for the information watchdog to issue fines of up to 17 million.

A file photo of a woman on a computer. Consumers who have unwittingly handed over personal information will be protected in future by having to tick a box

The bill will also require people to give explicit consent for their information to be collected online by opting in, rather than firms relying on pre-selected tick boxes.

It will be a blow to social media giants such as Facebook, which harvests details people share on their profiles, including where they went to school, their interests and where they live.

People who sign in to social media sites are typically opted in automatically, allowing their data to be collected and shared.

Announcing Government plans to strengthen UK data protection law, Digital Minister Matt Hancock, said: Our measures are designed to support businesses in their use of data, and give consumers the confidence that their data is protected and those who misuse it will be held to account.

The new Data Protection Bill will give us one of the most robust, yet dynamic, set of data laws in the world.

It will give people more control over their data, require more consent for its use, and prepare Britain for Brexit.

We have some of the best data science in the world and this new law will help it to thrive.

Under the plans, individuals will have more control over their data by having the right to be forgotten and ask for their personal data to be erased.

This will also mean that people can ask social media channels to delete information they posted in their childhood.

They will be able to erase embarrassing information from the internet, such as posts on social networks or online dating sites.

The reliance on default opt-out or pre-selected tick boxes, which are largely ignored, to give consent for organisations to collect personal data will also be banned.

Facebook's home page. Social media firms will also be required to delete information on children and adults when asked under new laws aimed at giving people a greater right to be forgotten online

The legislation will allow people to ask for their personal data held by companies to be erased, and enable parents and guardians to give consent for their childs data to be used.

It will also expand the definition of personal data to include IP addresses, internet cookies and DNA and make it easier and free for individuals to require an organisation reveal the personal data it holds on them.

Under the plans, it will also create new criminal offences to deter organisations from intentionally or recklessly creating situations where someone could be identified from anonymised data.

The legislation will bring the European Unions General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) into domestic law.

This will help Britain prepare for Brexit because it will mean the systems are aligned when the UK leaves the bloc.

The Information Commissioners Office will be given significantly tougher powers, with the maximum fine it can levy being increased from 0.5m to 17 million, or 4 per cent of a firms global turnover.

The bill, which was announced in the Queens Speech, will be introduced in Parliament when MPs and peers return from the summer break in September.

Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham said: We are pleased the Government recognises the importance of data protection, its central role in increasing trust and confidence in the digital economy and the benefits the enhanced protections will bring to the public.

Julian David, chief executive of industry body techUK, said implementing the GDPR regulations in full puts the UK in a strong position to secure unhindered data flows once it has left the EU, and gives businesses the clarity they need about their new obligations.
Police should be allowed to chase violent moped gangs without fear of prosecution, Londons mayor said yesterday.

Sadiq Khans intervention came after it emerged that some thieves remove their helmets to discourage officers from following them in case there is an accident  and the police themselves end up in the dock.

He insisted the police must be granted greater freedom to pursue the perpetrators of the reckless and frightening snatch crimes that can involve the throwing of acid.

In the 12 months to June, Scotland Yard recorded 16,158 such thefts  three times as many as the previous year.

Getaway: Shameless moped muggers strike a pose in Knightsbridge

The Home Office is planning a crisis summit to draw up an action plan to tackle the menace.

A spokesman for Mr Khan said: It is important that the law and any guidelines protect and not hinder the police in their vital role of keeping Londoners safe, including when it comes to pursuing suspects on mopeds.

Moped crime is reckless, frightening and intimidating and will not be tolerated on the streets of London. The mayor views this crime as an extremely serious offence and fully supports the police to crack down on perpetrators. The Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, wants to change the law that exposes officers to prosecution for careless or dangerous driving in pursuits.

It is also calling for police chiefs to publicly back those who chase offenders and for investigations by the police watchdog into collisions during chases to be quicker.

Mr Khans spokesman said: Its important that officers feel confident and able to take appropriate action when pursuing suspects on mopeds.

Any representations for a change in the law would be listened to and supported if they will better protect and support police officers pursuing moped crime, the spokesman said.

The Government has been called on to act because attacks by moped thugs have become more violent, and in some cases fatal, with the perpetrators starting to believe they are untouchable.

Sadiq Khan has said police should be allowed to chase violent moped gangs without fear of prosecution

Police drivers are allowed to break the speed limit and run red lights while in pursuit, but they are not exempt from prosecution if injuries result.

Tory MP Chris Philp, who wrote to Mr Khan on the issue, said yesterday: Police officers should be trusted to use their judgment on the spot without having to refer up.

The rules need to change and we potentially need to legislate to effectively raise the bar for the police so they can act without fear of prosecution. Police minister Nick Hurd admitted that motorcycle-related offences were clearly of concern.

He said: This Government is determined to understand and get ahead of these emerging threats. People must be allowed to go about their business without fear of harassment or attack from these thugs.

But there is no single quick fix, which is why it is vital that we work together  industry, law enforcement, Government and civil groups  to understand the various drivers of this crime and how they can be met head-on.

Mr Hurd and Sarah Newton, the minister for crime, safeguarding and vulnerability, will lead the Home Office expert forum to find what can be done to stamp out the problem.

They will call in motor and insurance industry leaders, law enforcement partners, and local government agencies, as well as youth charities and motoring groups. This will enable them to confront the emerging threat of motorcycle-related crime, a spokesman said.

Flower tributes in Holloway for Henry Hicks, 18, who died when his moped crashed while police chased it

Police officers who have faced charges after pursuing moped criminals have sometimes had to wait years before having their names cleared. In December 2014, Henry Hicks, an 18-year-old carpenter from north London, died when his moped crashed while police chased it.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission decided four officers should face gross misconduct charges because they had conducted a pursuit without authorisation from a senior officer.

They face a misconduct hearing in October this year.

Campaigners have argued any investigation should be dealt with as quickly as possible and not drag on for years. Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, confirmed the criminals were changing tactics. They have all started taking their helmets off as theyve cottoned on to the fact we are not going to bother with them, he said.

Colleagues are saying it is not worth my career to pursue and they know they wont get any backing if they crash.

Police leaders should be supporting officers that pursue mopeds, even when they drive recklessly. We need to tackle this. We want to see clear guidelines saying no action will be taken against an officer who pursues someone who is not wearing a crash helmet.

If we do not tackle this modern-day highway robbery, this is going to spread beyond a pandemic in London.
Vince Cable sparked outrage last night by branding supporters of leaving the EU 'Brexit jihadis'.

The Liberal Democrat leader also attacked pensioners who voted Leave despite the economic risks, calling them 'martyrs' and saying they were guilty of 'shafting the young'.

His outburst was immediately condemned  with critics saying Sir Vince was guilty of 'contempt for ordinary voters'.

Vince Cable sparked outrage last night by branding supporters of leaving the EU 'Brexit jihadis'

Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage said: 'Cable shows his contempt for the views of ordinary people and the democratic process. The Lib Dems will continue to decline.'

Tory MP Andrew Bridgen said: 'Vince gets more like Victor Meldrew every day. He is a Brexit denier and he doesn't accept the will of the British people which was expressed again at the last general election which was why the Lib Dems only got 12 seats.'

'The second referendum and anti-Brexit politics of the Lib Dems failed at the recent election. They were rejected by the British people and he needs to accept that.'

Frank Field, the Labour MP for Birkenhead said: 'Not only is he patronising he is undermining his own base because he must have been elected by older voters.

'Should the minority in Twickenham (Sir Vince's constituency) who voted against him now have the right to a new vote?

'Here we see the birth of Britain's Donald Trump to lead the Remainers.'

In an article for the Mail on Sunday, Sir Vince, 74, defined Brexit martyrs as those who say economic pain is a price worth paying for getting away from Brussels.

He said there had been a 'subtle change in the arguments used by leading Brexiteers.

'They used to tell us about the money that would be saved for the NHS and jobs created through new trade agreements,' he wrote.

Now they 'largely accept' the economy will suffer, he claimed  but were happy to embrace 'economic pain as a price worth paying for 'taking back control': almost as a badge of honour'.

'To describe such masochism as 'martyrdom' is dangerous. We haven't yet heard about 'Brexit jihadis' but there is an undercurrent of violence in the language which is troubling.'

'We have already had the most fervent of Brexiteers, Nigel Farage, warning of civil unrest if the 'will of the people' is frustrated.'

Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage said: Cable words show 'his contempt for the views of ordinary people and the democratic process'

He added that the 'self-declared martyrs' appeared to be 'predominantly elderly', adding that the 'martyrdom of the old comes cheap, since few have jobs to lose'.

'The old have comprehensively shafted the young. And the old have had the last word about Brexit, imposing a world view coloured by nostalgia for an imperial past on a younger generation much more comfortable with modern Europe.'

He supporters of a 'hard Brexit' were 'becoming desperate'.

'Rather than closing down dissent, they might like to explain how Britain can flourish if it is cut off from the world's largest single market'.

'For the Brexit martyrs, paradise beckons'

And he attacked former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith for suggesting last week that anti-Brexit trade envoys should be sacked.

'This is how McCarthyism started', he said, adding: 'At this rate, we will have Brexit thought crimes before long.'

He referred to a YouGov poll which suggested 61 per cent of Leave voters would consider significant damage to the British economy to be a price worth paying for leaving the EU.
Hardline Tory Eurosceptics last night warned ministers they would try to block a Brexit divorce bill of 36billion.

MPs lined up to criticise the offer, calling it illogical, absurd and even illegal.

Downing Street dismissed a report that the Government was considering paying such an amount.

Prime Minister Theresa May speaks in Parliament as she announces that she has sent the letter to trigger the process of leaving the European Union in London, March 29

Downing Street dismissed a report that the Government was considering paying 36billion to leave the union

A source called it wrong and inaccurate speculation  and indicated internal estimates of the likely payment were much lower.

But the figure is among those being discussed in Whitehall as part of attempts to kickstart progress in EU exit talks.

The Sunday Telegraph reported that the Government will only agree to pay the sum if the EU treats it as part of a deal on future relations. It said the EU wanted 54billion but would accept nine billion less.

The UK would offer 27billion but could stretch to 36billion, it claimed  with the Government making net payments to the EU of around 10billion a year for up to three years after Brexit. The EU is insisting that trade talks cannot start until significant progress has been made on the financial settlement, citizens rights and the question of the border in Northern Ireland.

Any payment would be conditional on a full deal on a future relationship, including a full trade agreement.

No agreement has been reached within the Cabinet  including among senior figures in the Leave campaign such as Boris Johnson, Liam Fox and Michael Gove.

At 36billion it would fall far short of some of the numbers suggested by senior Brussels officials, who have demanded the UK pay up to 100billion euros  or 90billion. Theresa May has insisted that the days of vast annual payments to the EU will end.

But ministers, including those who voted to leave, accept privately that some payment will be made when we do  to cover programmes already agreed to by the UK, and liabilities such as pension payments for EU officials. Last night, arch-Eurosceptic MP John Redwood called the figure a nonsense.

He said: Its a bad idea to pay anything to get talks about trade, which they have to talk about at some point anyway. Ministers would have to pass an Act of Parliament to authorise an otherwise illegal payment.

I have told ministers, they have no power to make an ex-gratia payment to the EU. I would say the chances of it going through Parliament were pretty slim, because even some Labour MPs would see it was a choice between giving the EU 36billion and spending more money on health, education and welfare. Conservative MP Peter Bone said a Brexit fee of that magnitude was unlikely to get through Parliament.

'Brexiter' Jacob Rees-Mogg, MP for North East Somerset, said the figure was absurd

He said: One of the prime reasons the UK voted to leave the EU was to stop sending them billions of pounds per year, so it would be totally bizarre to give the EU any money, let alone 36billion, given also that over the years we have been in the EU or its predecessor we have given them over 200billion. So if there was going to be any transfer of money then it should be from the EU to the UK.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, MP for North East Somerset, said the figure was absurd.

There is no logic to this figure, legally we owe nothing, he said. We ought only to pay in for schemes that we wish to remain involved with.

Conservative MEP David Campbell Bannerman noted that the figure was close to the 38billion for two years of UK contributions to the existing EU Budget, which has been agreed to the end of 2020.

If Britain leaves without paying anything, the EU will have to find money from its remaining members to cover the UK, the second largest contributor to the EU budget.

 Manufacturing is on the rise and will help steer the UK back to growth, a report has claimed. Output among manufacturers is booming, with more businesses expecting healthy order books in the coming months, said accountants BDO. The business advisors output index rose to 95.1 last month from 94.9 in June  climbing into growth territory after last months contraction. The growth was driven by the improving performance of the manufacturing sector.
It's a debate thats raged in kitchens all over the land  just how long should you keep a washing-up sponge before throwing it away?

While some householders hang on theirs until theyre tatty, smelly brown lumps, others keep them fastidiously clean and bin them at the first signs of ingrained grubbiness.

Now scientists are urging us to replace them weekly after research showed just how easily they can become a breeding ground for germs.

The study found that a well-used kitchen sponge can be home to nearly five trillion bugs and is dirtier than toilet waste

The study found that a well-used kitchen sponge can be home to nearly five trillion bugs and is dirtier than toilet waste.

It also showed that microwaving or boiling does little to kill off bacteria and can lead to more germs taking hold.

Professor Markus Egert, a microbiologist at Furtwangen University in Germany, who led the study, said some bacteria his team found could harm children and the old.

Professor Markus Egert said: A cubic centimetre of sponge tissue contains seven to eight times more bacteria than there are human beings living on the Earth'

He said: Kitchen sponges are hotspots of microbial life, because they have a very large surface area, are usually wet and stored in a warm kitchen environment. Dirt and food residue provides nutrients for bacteria, too.

A cubic centimetre of sponge tissue contains seven to eight times more bacteria than there are human beings living on the Earth.

So instead of keeping your dirty old friend for too long, you should regularly replace it, in particular if you have ill or elderly people at home.
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Most of us would very much prefer to stay out of a foreign jail.

But those who'd like a taste of it, there's now a hotel in Thailand which is themed around just that.

Bangkok's Sook Station opened earlier this summer and offers adventurous guests a night in a cell behind bars for 30 per night.

Banged up abroad: Bangkok's Sook Station offers guests a taste of Thailand's penal system, albeit a more comfortable version

Enclosed by a perimeter fence topped with razor wire, the unconventional venue deliberately walks a fine line between custody and comfort.

Located in the up-and-coming Udomsook district, the budget inn boasts rooms with metal gates for doors, bunk beds and a lights-out curfew.

Each room - or rather, cell - measures just eight square meters.

Guests are treated to a mugshot upon checking in and are provided black and white striped pyjamas.

They are also given a 'criminal record' keepsake and an inmate number instead of a room key.

The hotel offers shared bathroom facilities, in keeping with a real jail.

Could you bear it? Enclosed by a perimeter fence topped with razor wire, the unconventional venue deliberately walks a fine line between custody and comfort

Cosy: In keeping with the cramped surroundings of Thai jails, each room measures just eight square meters

Communal space: The hotel offers shared facilities, much like a jail, including this dimly-lit bathroom

Sleep tight: Guests are treated to a mugshot upon checking in and are provided black and white striped pyjamas

Lights out! For added authenticity, there's even a curfew when the lights are shut-down

Thankfully, it's not all concrete cells and metal bars.

There's a also a hot tub, an office space and a lounge for relaxation, plus - somewhat randomly - teddy bears strewn around to offer comfort.

Outside, there are carefully manicured lawns decorated with overhead party lights.

Thailand's prison system is world-renowned for its brutality, which sees the central men's jail - Klong Prem - dubbed the Big Tiger because it is said to 'eat people alive'.

Meanwhile, the women's section is ironically referred to as the Bangkok Hilton.

Despite this, it still exerts a fascination for westerners and has long been the subject of cautionary tales from Hollywood.

Exterior: Located in Bangkok's up-and-coming Udomsook district, the budget inn costs 30 per person per night

Home comforts: Outside, there are carefully manicured lawns decorated with party lights

The real thing: Thailand's Klong Prem Central Prison (pictured) is dubbed Big Tiger because it is said to 'eat people alive'

Bridget Jones found herself in a Thai jail in The Edge of Reason, while Claire Danes and Kate Beckinsale co-starred in acclaimed thriller Brokedown Palace.

However, Midnight Express remains the most seminal moment in big-screen depictions, while the forthcoming A Prayer Before Dawn also looks set to warn people away from breaking the law on foreign soil.

Fortunately, curious holiday-makers can now find middle ground at Sook Station.
Rarely out of the headlines, Roxy is known for her glamorous style.

But over the weekend, Roxy Jacenko's wardrobe choice attracted controversy online.

After taking to Instagram to share a photo of herself in a fluffy coat, some fans assumed it was real fur - and they weren't happy.

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'Only ugly people wear fur!' Over the weekend, Roxy Jacenko's wardrobe choice attracted controversy online, as fans assumed her fluffy coat was made of fox fur

'Only ugly people and beautiful animals wear fur,' one follower commented. Another added: 'Fur, really? Spew.'

A fan asked 'Why fur???' and added the hash tag, 'Wear your own skin'.

Meanwhile, another social media user claimed to have found the coat online, saying it was 'fox fur'.

Roxy told Daily Mail Australia on Sunday she is not sure if it is real fur as she does not own the coat, and hence chose to delete the image.

'Wear your own skin': Roxy's post upset some of her followers, who expressed their anger in the comments section

Clarification: Roxy told Daily Mail Australia on Sunday she is not sure if it is real fur as she does not own the coat, and hence chose to delete the image

'As far as I am aware it was faux but it's not mine, used just for the shoot so rather than cause upset, I have removed the post,' Roxy said.

The photo was part of Roxy's promotional work for the Birkenhead Point premium outlets, with the coat coming from Bally and her top and pants from Harrolds.

On Sunday, Roxy revealed she became 'depressed' after her husband Oliver Curtis was sentenced to 12 months in prison for insider trading in June 2016.

Struggles: On Sunday, Roxy revealed she became 'depressed' after her husband Oliver Curtis (right) was sentenced to 12 months in prison for insider trading in June 2016.

The 37-year-old businesswoman told News.com.au she tried to hide her misery from the world after the father of her two young children was jailed.

Roxy, who did not seek professional help for depression but was treated for breast cancer last year, called the period the 'worst 12 months of (her) life'.

The Sweaty Betty PR founder confessed she reached her lowest point just weeks before Oliver's release from Cooma Correctional Centre, telling News Corp: 'I got to the eleven month point and I broke.'

She explained: 'Five days I'd come to work with puffy eyes and miserable... I'd then have to go to a function or an event and I'd have to turn it on. And yes I would turn it on, but I was crumbling inside. I couldnt cope anymore.'

Tough: Roxy, who did not seek professional help for depression but was treated for breast cancer last year, told News.com.au Oliver's jail sentence was the 'worst 12 months of (her) life'

Roxy admitted she tried to keep up the 'facade' everything was okay, when in reality she was devastated by Oliver's trial and the associated public scrutiny.

When Oliver was eventually sentenced, the Ministry Of Talent director revealed she 'had a lot of resentment' towards her husband, who had supposedly told her he would 'never' go to jail for his past criminal behaviour.

'Why did he let me have children if he could potentially go to jail? It's irresponsible, how could he have told me it would never happen?' she said. 'I was angry, and I was resentful.'

Putting on a brave face: Roxy admitted she tried to keep up the 'facade' everything was okay, when in reality she was devastated by Oliver's trial and the associated public scrutiny

Last week, Roxy told Daily Mail Australia she 'didn't think there was any hope' for her marriage after Oliver was released from prison a year into his sentence on a good behaviour bond.

'The reality is I didn't know whether we'd stay together, that's the truth. I really didn't think we would,' Roxy explained at the Birkenhead Point high-end precinct launch.

She also claimed Oliver's experience behind bars had made the privately-educated former investment banker 'more grounded'.

Oliver recently proposed again to Roxy, with the pair planning a second wedding.

If you, or someone you know, needs support please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit lifeline.org.au.
He's the Oscar-winning actor who is just as passionate about his beloved South Sydney Rabbitohs rugby league club as he is about turning in great performances.

But Russell Crowe was refused entry from a Souths Juniors match at Mascot Oval on Saturday because he had his blue heeler puppy, QueBlue, in tow.

The Sunday Telegraph reported the Gladiator star was 'apparently' not recognised by a female official at the dog-free ground and was politely told he could not enter with the animal.

Dog-gone! Russell Crowe (pictured) was refused entry from a Souths Juniors match at Mascot Oval on Saturday because he had his blue heeler puppy, QueBlue, in tow

However, it wasn't all bad news for the 53-year-old footy fan, with a friend stepping in to mind the adorable pup while Russell watched the match.

To add insult to injury, it was also reported that after Russell's incident another dog owner walked into the ground with a poodle, explaining to the official that the pooch was a team mascot.

Speaking to the publication, Russell said QueBlue, who lives on his sprawling property on the New South Wales mid-north coast, was too young to be left alone.

Pawful! The Sunday Telegraph reported Russell was 'apparently' not recognised by an official at the dog-free ground and was politely told he could not enter with his dog (pictured)

Furry fracas: Speaking to the publication, Russell said QueBlue - who lives on his sprawling property on the New South Wales mid-north coast - was too young to be left alone

'The pup is just a bit young to leave by himself in a car,' he said. 'He lives up in Coffs [Harbour] and is only visiting. Not a nice way to treat visitors from the bush.'

Russell added that the decision had him perplexed given the association of the colour blue with New South Wales rugby league.

'Besides, he's a blue heeler. Shouldn't that be revered in this state? Especially in league circles,' Russell joked.

An avid fan of the Rabbitohs since childhood, Russell, along with businessman Peter Holmes a Court, bought a 75 per cent stake in the club in 2006.

Holmes a Court sold his share to billionaire businessman James Packer in 2014.
She is currently in Queensland's Gold Coast filming superhero movie Aquaman with Jason Momoa.

But it seems US actress Amber Heard is not having the best luck Down Under, as the 31-year-old has reportedly split with billionaire Tesla co-founder Elon Musk, 46.

The news surprised many as the pair looked loved-up at the Splendour in the Grass music festival in Byron Bay, NSW just last month.

It's not the first time Amber has experienced bad luck in the country, as she ran into legal troubles after smuggling her dogs into Australia in 2015 while still married to Johnny Depp.

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An Australian curse? Amber Heard split from Tesla billionaire Elon Musk (pictured) following thier loved-up trip to Splendour after THAT Down Under dog debacle with ex Johnny Depp

According to Mail On Sunday, Amber was left 'devastated' by her and Elon's split, after the couple had dated for over a year.

'It's all over between Amber and Elon and she's devastated. It was his decision,' a source told the newspaper.

'He ended it a week ago. He'd heard certain things about her behaviour that didn't sit well with him. Amber can be very manipulative and selfish. Elon's back in LA while she's licking her wounds in Australia.'

A spokesman for Elon said: 'We don't have any comment on this story.'

Making headlines: With Amber filming Aquaman in Australia, it marks her return Down Under since appearing in court with ex-husband Johnny Depp on the Gold Coast

Amber and Elon were pictured by Pedestrian TV at the Splendour in the Grass music festival in Byron just last month.

In April, the pair were also seen zip-lining at the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary on the Gold Coast, joined by his children from a previous relationship.

Elon is worth a reported $14.9 billion, according to Forbes.

Going their separate ways: According to Mail On Sunday, Amber was left 'devastated' by her and Elon's recent split, after the couple had dated for over a year. Pictured in Australia

With Amber filming Aquaman in Australia, it marks her return Down Under since appearing in court with ex-husband Johnny Depp on the Gold Coast.

The former married couple had caused an uproar after illegally bringing pet dogs into the country in 2015.

Amber and Johnny, 54, who was filming a Pirates Of The Caribbean sequel, smuggled their terriers Pistol and Boo into the state via their private jet.

During the debacle, Australian politician Barnaby Joyce threatened to have the dogs euthanised if they failed to take them out of the country.

Controversy: Amber and Johnny, 54, had caused an uproar after illegally bringing pet dogs into the country in 2015, while he was filming a Pirates Of The Caribbean sequel

Dog gone! During the debacle, Australian politician Barnaby Joyce threatened to have the former couple's dogs euthanised if they failed to take them out of the country

Court case: A video of the former married couple (pictured) saying they are 'truly sorry' for sneaking their Yorkshire terriers into Australia was presented before a magistrate

'If we start letting movie stars  even though they've been the sexiest man alive twice  to come into our nation (with pets), then why don't we just break the laws for everybody?' Joyce said at the time.

'It's time that Pistol and Boo buggered off back to the United States,' he continued.

A video of Johnny and Amber saying they were 'truly sorry' for sneaking their Yorkshire terriers into Australia was presented before a magistrate, and she was given a one-month good behavior bond and a $1,000 fine over the incident.

In May last year, news emerged Johnny and Amber had split after 15 months of marriage, with her lawyers accusing him of domestic violence, which he denied.
She's the KIIS FM radio host who balances a busy career with family life.

And Jackie 'O' Henderson was spotted running errands with her husband and daughter in Sydney's Bondi Junction on Saturday.

The 42-year-old mother-of-one dressed casually in a khaki jacket and jeans alongside photographer Lee and their lively six-year-old, Kitty.

Mummy duties! Jackie 'O' Henderson, 42, opted for casual chic in a khaki jacket and black jeans while running errands in Sydney's Bondi Junction with her family on Saturday

Jackie looked stylish in a khaki jacket, which she paired with slim-fitting black jeans.

The personality accessorised with a black scarf, coordinating sneakers, tinted sunglasses and a beige shoulder bag.

Styling her signature blonde tresses in a side plait, Jackie's beauty look consisted of a flawless complexion and defined brows.

Hands-on parent: Jackie's husband Lee Henderson (left) and their daughter Kitty completed the family unit as they stepped out for a weekend stroll

The look: Styling her signature blonde tresses in a side plait, Jackie's beauty look consisted of a flawless complexion and defined brows

Jackie's husband Lee and their daughter Kitty completed the family unit as they stepped out for a weekend stroll.

Lee wore a black T-shirt, distressed jeans, Nike sneakers and a grey puffer vest.

Looking every inch the doting father, he was seen carrying the couple's child on his hip.

Daddy cool! Lee wore a black T-shirt, distressed jeans, Nike sneakers and a grey puffer vest

Family day: Kitty is Jackie and Lee's only child, and she was born in December 2010

Pals: Kitty brought along a friend for the outing

The family appeared to be running errands, with Jackie seen leaving a Chemist Warehouse and Lee carrying a Lowes shopping bag in one hand.

They were last spotted together in mid July, during a two-week getaway at Fiji's luxury Kokomo Private Island, with prices starting at $6,500 per night.

The four-star retreat offers total relaxation, with each villa featuring an infinity pool and private deck.

Working up an appetite! Lee enjoyed a quick bite to eat while walking along the pavement

Getaway: The family were last spotted together in mid July, during a two-week getaway at Fiji's luxury Kokomo Private Island, with prices starting at $6,500 per night
She claimed that she never gets 'grafted on' by men in real life.

But Amelia Lily became the object of two men's affections on Saturday night, as she got caught in an awkward love triangle with Sam Thompson and Chad Johnson.

The X Factor alum, 22, flirted all day with 'very handsome' Chad, 29, and even arranged to go on a date with him in the US - but later confessed she wanted to kiss Sam, who insisted they have a 'definite connection'.

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Awkward! Amelia Lily became the object of two men's affections on Saturday night, as she got caught in a love triangle with Sam Thompson and Chad Johnson

The blonde beauty kicked off the flirting with Chad on Celebrity Big Brother, by telling him in the bathroom: 'You're a very good looking man. I feel like it's getting me into bother.'

Brandi interjected: 'Not like a sexual bother. People think she's into you and she's really not.'

Chad looked speechless, joking: 'Thank you.'

Amelia explained, stuttering: 'I got really like - I felt like I was pushed into one corner last night. I get very embarrassed about stuff like that.

'I was just saying that you're a very handsome man. if any woman didn't think he was a handsome man... enough said.'

Getting amorous: She confessed she wanted to kiss Sam, who insisted they have a 'definite connection'

Cheeky: The X Factor alum, 22, flirted all day with 'very handsome' Chad and even arranged to go on a date with him in the US

Opening up: Amelia gushed: 'You really make me laugh Chad. I'm going to come and see you in the States. You need to take me out. You need to show me nightclubs over there'

They later arranged to party together once they leave the house, while chatting in the bedroom.

Amelia gushed: 'You really make me laugh Chad. I'm going to come and see you in the States. You need to take me out. You need to show me nightclubs over there.'

'Oh yeah, you're gonna come out?' Chad replied grinning.

'You need to take me,' Amelia insisted, to which Chad said flirtatiously: 'I'll show you how it's done.'

In the diary room, Chad boasted that he felt like things were going 'really well' with Amelia, and added that he 'really liked her'.

'I've been talking to her a lot this evening. It's going really well with her. I really like her. She gets really nervous when I'm talking to her. She shows a lot of emotion.

'I don't think shes just f**king with me. The plan is to talk to her without making it seem like I'm really trying to talk to her.

Oo-er: 'You need to take me,' Amelia insisted, to which Chad said flirtatiously: 'I'll show you how it's done'

Not holding back: In the diary room, Chad boasted that he felt like things were going 'really well' with Amelia, and added that he 'really liked her'

'I don't want to go in too hard. When I do talk to her, I just have to be Chad.'

However things got awkward later on, when Marissa Jade and Jemma Lucy put Amelia on the spot and asked who she would rather kiss out of Chad and Sam.

Amelia blushed and covered her face, protesting: 'I can't pick Chad!'

Sam then boldly said he would pucker up for Amelia, and she reciprocated: 'I'm gonna go Sam.'

As Sam whipped round the sofa to give her a lingering kiss on the cheek, she said guiltily: 'I'm sorry Chad. I can't kiss Chad now because I feel very awkward.'

In a chat with Amelia and Brandi, the Made In Chelsea star, 25, revealed his true feelings.

True feelings: Later Sam said: 'We've definitely got like the best connection in here. Obviously we're only three days in. There's an initial attraction. She's a really cool girl'

Blushing: Amelia became flustered, replying: 'I'm so embarrassed. It's quite flattering. You've actually got b***s Sam to say that'

Pucker up: The two also admitted that they would kiss each other during a game with the other housemates

'We've definitely got like the best connection in here. Obviously we're only three days in. There's an initial attraction. She's a really cool girl.'

Amelia became flustered, replying: 'I'm so embarrassed. It's quite flattering. You've actually got b***s Sam to say that.'

But taking the tense love triangle up another notch, Amelia and Chad then got cosy on the sofas after a night of drinking.

As Amelia insisted that men don't graft on her, she said giggling: 'Paul has made it out to look like I fancy you but I don't.'

Nudging closer to her, Chad murmured: 'Oh thank you, you really know how to make a man blush!'
He's the outspoken and controversial co-founder of the One Nation political party.

And on Saturday, Instagram's newest star, David Oldfield, took to the social media app to upload a bizarre video of Sam Frost, 28, happily dancing.

In the caption, the 59-year-old wrote a sincere, albeit unusual, message for the former Bachelorette, revealing that he 'felt sorry for her'.

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'I feel a bit sorry for her': David Oldfield shared a bizarre Instagram post offering life advice to Sam Frost (pictured) as he hoped her 'desire for fame' won't get in the way of her happiness

'With Sam Frost at channel 7 Yesterday,' David began the caption.

'I feel a bit sorry for her - hope she doesn't let her desire for fame get in the way of long term #happiness.

'Here's Sam doing a little dance for everyone. #priorities #family @lisalocks16.

'Sam Frost doing the little dance that she does. Soon to be the vixen on Home And Away,' he continued.

Thoughtful? David appeared concerned about former Bachelorette Sam's priorities in life

But the former politician's 371 followers didn't seem to be too impressed, accusing David of unnecessarily criticising Sam.

'It's a patronising, bizarre, and outright mean thing to say,' one follower wrote.

'But welcome to the Instagram community - hope you don't let your desire for fame get in the way of being a decent person,' they continued.

'It's a patronising, bizarre, and outright mean thing to say': The former politician's 371 followers didn't seem to be too impressed, accusing David of unnecessarily criticising Sam

But David's unimpressed fans didn't seem to bother him, assertively replying to all comments and dismissing a follower as a 'silly girl'.

But Instagram is not the only place David is set to come face-to-face with his critics.

Appearing on Sunday's premiere of Hell's Kitchen, the husband of Real Housewives of Sydney star Lisa Oldfield, has already been cast as the show's 'villain'.
They are the former topless waitresses competing for Matty Johnson's affections on The Bachelor.

But Leah Costa and Simone Ormesher appeared to put their rivalry aside on Friday when they met up outside a cafe in Melbourne's Chapel Street.

Leah was dressed to impress on her night out, wearing a sleeveless white blouse and a high-waisted sparkling black mini skirt.

Bachie night out! Leah Costa (pictured) and Simone Ormesher appeared to put their TV rivalry aside on Friday night when they met up outside a cafe in Melbourne's Chapel Street

She's a stage-five clinger! Leah was dressed to impress on her night out, wearing a sleeveless white blouse and a high-waisted sparkling black mini skirt

Carrying a small black leather purse, Leah styled her long blonde hair loosely and kept her accessories to a minimum.

The reality TV 'villain' finished her flirty ensemble with a pair of high heels.

Meanwhile, Simone wore a busty, low-cut red top below a black cardigan, a slinky black skirt and white heels.

Reality chic: Carrying a small black leather purse, Leah styled her long blonde hair loosely and kept her accessories to a minimum

Racy: Meanwhile, Simone wore a busty, low-cut red top below a black cardigan, a slinky black skirt and white heels

Fancy seeing you here! Leah looked delighted to spend time with her Bachelor pal, hugging Simone tightly from behind as they walked down the street

She accentuated her prominent cheekbones with blush and finished off her makeup look with a light pink lipstick.

Leah looked delighted to spend time with her Bachelor pal, hugging Simone tightly from behind as they walked down the street.

Despite their on-camera rivalry, the friends looked in a playful mood on their night out and appear to have settled their feud.

She finally got her rose! Simone was all smiles at St Saturday's nightclub in Melbourne, clutching the red flower in one hand

She's got some front! Simone's choice of top enhanced her ample bust and offered a glimpse of her taut torso

Looking good! Simone accentuated her prominent cheekbones with blush and finished off her makeup look with a light pink lipstick

Girls' night out! Despite their on-camera rivalry, the friends looked in a playful mood on their night out and appear to have settled their feud

Things took a bit of a 'deep and meaningful' turn when Leah and Simone grabbed a seat and shared a cheerful conversation.

Simone and Leah laughed and smiled during their lively chat, and didn't seem bothered by Melbourne's chilly weather.

At one point, Leah even reached out and put an arm around her Bachelor co-star.

But how did that make you feel? Things took a bit of a 'deep and meaningful' turn when Leah and Simone grabbed a seat and shared a cheerful conversation

Talking shop: Simone and Leah laughed and smiled during their lively chat, and didn't seem bothered by Melbourne's chilly weather

Warm reception: At one point, Leah even reached out and put an arm around her friend

Following The Bachelor's season premiere last month, Simone and Leah have both been exposed as former topless waitresses.

However, neither work in the industry anymore. Leah is studying architecture at university and Simone is employed in digital marketing.

Photos of lingerie-clad Simone entertaining guests at a party and a video of Leah whipping a man's bare buttocks surfaced online.

Controversial past: Following The Bachelor's season premiere last month, Simone and Leah have both been exposed as former topless waitresses

Laid bare: Photos of lingerie-clad Simone entertaining guests at a party and a video of Leah whipping a man's bare buttocks surfaced online
She's a stylist to the stars.

And Rachel Zoe looked every inch the celebrity herself as she rocked a sophisticated black gown for Jessica Alba's The Honest Co. event in New York on Saturday.

The 45-year-old fashion maven donned a long flowing dress as she enjoyed a day out in the Hamptons with husband Rodger Berman and their two sons, Sklyer and Kaius.

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Bewitched: Rachel Zoe, 45, rocked a sophisticated black gown for Jessica Alba's The Honest Co. event in New York on Saturday

Daring to impress, the Hollywood mainstay wore a black gown that did little to showcase her enviable figure.

She threw in a huge brown belt that cinched at her lithe waist as she threw a stylish purse across her chest.

Her wrists were adorned with gold bracelets and a watch as she rocked dangling earrings that grazed her collar bone.

She stomped around the glitzy affair in chunky thick-heeled dress pumps.

Star-studded: She posed alongside Jessica Alba who was hosting the party for her billion dollar business venture The Honest Company

Say cheese: A gorgeous family photo closed out the day as Rachel held Skyler - six - next to her husband Rodger, 47, and three-year-old son Kaius

Throwing caution to the wind, Rachel dared to go virtually makeup free as she used just a bit of berry on her lip.

Her trademark golden tresses were kept long and loose as she kept them parted down the middle.

She posed alongside Jessica Alba who was hosting the party for her billion dollar business venture The Honest Company.

Party time: Working some retro shades, Rachel looked at all the fun items on a table with her three-year-old son Kaius

In a look that said the cat dragged me in, back out, and then in again, fashion designer Stacey Bendet made quite an appearance next to Rachel.

Working some retro shades, Rachel looked at all the fun items on a table with her three-year-old son Kaius.

A gorgeous family photo closed out the day as Rachel held Skyler - six - next to her husband Rodger and son Kaius.
She's a proud mom and busy actress.

And on Saturday, Melissa McCarthy focused on her top priority - her family - as she stepped out into Los Angeles.

The star, 46, looked stylish in a black-and-white ensemble as she spent some time with her eldest child Vivian Falcone, 10.

Family time! Melissa McCarthy looked stylish in a black-and-white ensemble as she spent some time with her eldest child Vivian Falcone, 10, in Los Angeles on Saturday

Melissa layered a long-sleeve top over a pair of art-deco pants.

The Ghostbusters star accessorized with a set of hoop earrings, shades, a maroon purse and silver slides.

The comedian tied her hair back into a low bun.

Daughter Vivian paired a simple T-shirt with a set of zig-zag patterned pants.

Looking stylish: Melissa layered a long-sleeve top over a pair of art-deco pants

Cute: Daughter Vivian paired a simple T-shirt with a set of zig-zag patterned pants

Busy mom Melissa has a packed schedule ahead of her.

The Mike and Molly talent will star in four projects next year, as well as act as producer on movies between this year and the next.

Melissa is an executive producer and writer on the film, Life of the Party. She'll also produce The Happytime Murders, Super-Intelligence and the TV movie, Amy's Brother.

Working woman: Busy mom Melissa has a packed schedule ahead of her. The Mike and Molly talent will star in four projects next year, as well as act as producer on movies between this year and the next

As for her acting gigs, the Plainfield, New Jersey native will star as celebrity biographer-turned-fraud Lee Israel in Can You Ever Forgive Me?

Melissa will join her husband in the comedy, Life of the Party, which the two will both write, star and produce.

Melissa and her husband Ben have daughters Vivian and Georgette Falcone together.

Additionally, Melissa will take the lead in The HappyTime Murders and the animated flick, B.O.O.: Bureau of Otherwordly Operations.
Miles Teller's girlfriend Keleigh Sperry shared a snap Friday of them meeting The Who's founding frontman Roger Daltrey backstage at Caesars Palace's The Colosseum in Las Vegas.

Tickets ranged $76-$501 for the 73-year-old rocker and his bandmate Pete Townshend's sold-out six-show residency, which ends next Friday.

The English rock band - formed in 1964 - are one of the most influential acts of the 20th century, selling over 100M records worldwide.

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'The kids are alright': Miles Teller's girlfriend Keleigh Sperry shared a snap Friday of them meeting The Who's founding frontman Roger Daltrey backstage at Caesars Palace's The Colosseum in Las Vegas

Tickets ranged $76-$501: The 73-year-old rocker and his bandmate Pete Townshend's sold-out six-show residency, which ends next Friday (pictured July 29)

Setlist: The English rock band - formed in 1964 - are one of the most influential acts of the 20th century, selling over 100M records worldwide

The 30-year-old Sundance Jury Prize winner - who's also a Grateful Deadhead - has been nearly inseparable from the 24-year-old LA Model since 2013.

Miles' sighting came six weeks after he was 'arrested and booked for misdemeanor public intoxication' after partying at PB Shore Club in San Diego on June 18 - according to TMZ.

However, Teller - who boasts 986K social media followers - flatly denied he was charged with a crime in a June 19 tweet.

Fans can next catch the War Dogs actor as real-life firefighter Brendan 'Donut' McDonough in Only the Brave, which hits US theaters October 20 and UK theaters November 10.

'How sweet it is to be loved by you': The 30-year-old Sundance Jury Prize winner - who's also a Grateful Deadhead - has been nearly inseparable from the 24-year-old LA Model since 2013

Drunk? Miles' sighting came six weeks after he was 'arrested and booked for misdemeanor public intoxication' after partying at PB Shore Club in San Diego on June 18 - according to TMZ

'I was detained': However, Teller - who boasts 986K social media followers - flatly denied he was charged with a crime in a June 19 tweet

The Arizona flick - based on the 2013 Yarnell Hill Fire - also features Jeff Bridges, Jennifer Connelly, Josh Brolin, Andie MacDowell, and Taylor Kitsch.

The NYU Tisch grad will also play real-life Iraq War soldier Adam Schumann suffering from PTSD in Thank You for Your Service, which hits US theaters October 27.

Oscar-nominated screenwriter Jason Hall's directorial debut also stars Haley Bennett, Keisha Castle-Hughes, and Amy Schumer in her first dramatic role.

Based on the 2013 Yarnell Hill Fire: Fans can next catch the War Dogs actor as real-life firefighter Brendan 'Donut' McDonough in Only the Brave, which hits US theaters October 20 and UK theaters November 10
She's the beloved Australian actress who rose to fame in the hit 1994 comedy Muriel's Wedding.

And Toni Collette, 44, has revealed that she suffered a 'confronting' wardrobe malfunction while shooting one of the film's most iconic scenes.

Appearing on the Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, the United States of Tara actress revealed she had her period while wearing in a tight white jumpsuit in the famous Waterloo dance number.

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Embarrassing: Toni Collette has revealed she suffered a 'confronting' wardrobe malfunction while shooting one of Muriel's Wedding's most famous scenes

The confession came after a fan phoned in asking Toni to recall the best and worst things about making the cult classic.

'I remember they changed the shooting date - my period was due and I had to wear that very tight white suit to do the Waterloo dance,' Toni explained.

'They changed it, but my period jumped and just went with it so it came anyway. That was confronting. That was confronting,' she added.

Whoops! Appearing on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, Toni revealed she had her period while wearing a tight white jumpsuit for the famous Waterloo dance scene

While admitting that playing the affable Muriel Heslop changed her life, Toni added that she never thought the film would strike the chord it eventually did.

'When we were making it, I had no idea if there was even going to be an audience,' she told host Andy Cohen. 'It was only my second movie and I was having fun.'

Toni's star in the US continues to rise after landing roles in high-profile films like xXx: The Return of Xander Cage and Madame alongside Harvey Keitel.

'My period jumped and just went with it so it came anyway. That was confronting': The confession came after a fan asked Toni the best and worst things about making the cult classic

She is set to return to Australian TV on Sunday in two-part series Blue Murder: Killer Cop - a continuation of the 1995 series Blue Murder which followed the relationship of disgraced policeman Roger Rogerson and Sydney gangland figure Neddy Smith.

The new series follows Roger's more recent troubles after he was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Sydney student Jamie Gao.

Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, Toni - who plays Roger's wife Anne Melocco - said she enjoyed exploring the pair's relationship with co-star Richard Roxburgh.

'I thought it was fascinating that anybody would chose to be with someone like Roger,' she said. 'For this guy who is so extreme in his choices, it was interesting to me to help bring some normalcy to his world.'
She's the Fancy hitmaker, also known as an avid horseback rider.

But on Saturday in Westlake, Los Angeles, rapper Iggy Azalea looked noticeably downcast.

The 27-year-old, clad in equestrian attire, was a far cry to her usually upbeat persona.

Why the long face? Iggy Azalea, 27, looked particularly downcast, during a horseback riding session in Westlake, Los Angeles on Saturday

Iggy highlighted her famous curves in a white button-up shirt, tucked into a pair of black trousers that accentuated her ample derriere.

Complementing the look were a pair of black horseriding boots, a thin leather belt and an equestrian helmet.

Shielding her eyes behind a pair of round-rimmed reflective sunglasses, the Sydney-born star swept her signature blonde tresses into a sleek ponytail at the nape of the neck.

Keeping to a minimal makeup palette, Iggy sported a blemish-free complexion and a coating of gloss over her very plump pout.

Figure-hugging: The Fancy hitmaker highlighted her famous curves in a white button-up shirt, tucked into a pair of black trousers that accentuated her ample derriere

Details: Iggy was sure to accessorise, shielding her eyes behind a pair of round-rimmed reflective sunglasses

In the zone: Despite the downcast appearance, the Sydney-born personality looked to be in her element when on horseback

Despite the downcast appearance, Iggy looked to be in her element when on horseback.

The Black Widow star showed off her impressive equestrian skills at the practice facility.

Iggy is a veteran horseback rider, having Tweeted back in 2015: 'Jumping your horse and a rollercoaster is the same amount of excitement to me'.

She's a natural: The Black Widow star showed off her impressive equestrian skills at the practice facility

Sharing her enthusiasm: Iggy is a veteran horseback rider, having Tweeted back in 2015: 'Jumping your horse and a rollercoaster is the same amount of excitement to me'

Therapeutic: Last April at the Miami Beach Gay Pride Parade, the starlet, who parted ways with fiance Nick Young due to a cheating scandal, explained to PEOPLE how horseback riding gave her a therapeutic release: 'Sometimes I say they really saved my life and gave me my confidence back'

And in April last year at the Miami Beach Gay Pride Parade, the starlet, who parted ways with fiance Nick Young due to a cheating scandal, explained to PEOPLE how horseback riding gave her a therapeutic release.

'Sometimes I say they really saved my life and gave me my confidence back,' Iggy said of the horses.

Iggy also passed on her love of horses to her fellow artists, including Kesha, 30, who has been at the centre of an ongoing lawsuit with music producer Dr. Luke.

'She loved it so much afterwards, she asked me so many questions about riding...she was like, "I think I really might want to get into this, I really like this. It just feels so relaxing,"' Iggy continued to tell PEOPLE.

Sharing her passion: Iggy has also passed on her love of horses to her fellow music artists
Tori Spelling looked to be in great spirits on Saturday as she attended the Biggest Family Shower Ever, an expo held in Los Angeles at the California Market Center.

The 44-year-old actress held her five-month-old son Beau as she was flanked by her other children - Liam, 10; Stella, nine; Hattie, five; and Finn, four - at the expo, which featured more than 100 vendors with products and services geared toward growing families.

The daughter of late TV producer Aaron Spelling, who had her blonde locks partially-braided back, looked nice in a sleeveless green patterned dress with brown sandal heels at the event, where she spoke as one of the celebrities on hand, along with her husband, Dean McDermott.

Out and about: Tori Spelling, 44, held her baby son Beau at the Biggest Family Shower Ever at the California Market Center in LA. She was surrounded by her kids (L-R) Liam, 10; Finn, four; Stella, nine; and Hattie, five

McDermott wore a red T-shirt with black jeans and a paperboy cap to the proceedings, along with brown boots.

Tori and her family were later seen attending The Lion King Sing-Along at The Greek Theatre, where Tori changed into a denim vest over a ruffled pink dress.

Beaming: The mom-of-five posed in a summery green dress at the daytime event

Happy together: Tori and her husband Dean McDermott, 50, were among the celebrities advertised for the expo

Sharing her knowledge: The Beverly Hills, 90210 alum spoke to attendees

The Beverly Hills, 90210 star has often taken to social media to show off her lavish children's parties, most recently a huge unicorn-themed bash for her oldest daughter, Stella, in July.

Big City Moms co-founder Leslie Venokur said in a press release Saturday's event was to 'serve as an amazing platform for brands to speak face-to-face with expecting parents and parents with young children,' with 'interactive' activities available 'for the babies and children in attendance.'

The company is best known for its Biggest Baby Shower Ever, a baby expo which has been previously held in cities including Los Angeles, New York City and Chicago.

Circle of life: Tori later in the day was snapped at The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles for an event called The Lion King Sing-Along

Making it work: The couple has lasted through ups-and-downs, celebrating their 11th anniversary this past May
Karthik Nagesan accused Paul Danan of racism during a blazing row on Saturday night's episode of Celebrity Big Brother.

Tempers flared when the original Love Islander, 39, called The Apprentice star 'Qatar' instead of his actual name, Karthik - before later claiming he was joking.

However that didn't sit well with the businessman, 34, who defiantly quipped back: 'Are you being racist Paul? My name is Karthik dude. Qatar is a Middle Eastern airways!'

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Heated: Paul Danan, 39, was accused of racism during a blazing row with Karthik Nagesan, 34, on Saturday night's episode of Celebrity Big Brother

Blazing row! Tempers flared The Apprentice star was called 'Qatar' by the original Love Islander instead of his actual name, Karthik

The argument occurred when the former Hollyoaks actor called Karthik by another name - which he later when on to insist was 'a joke.'

Paul then saw red when an offended Karthik called him out on it and told him it wasn't too difficult to get his name right.

'I'm not going to say another thing yeah but don't play the racist card with me!' Paul yelled back at Karthik.

He went on to explain himself: 'I said Kathar because tonight on the nominations thing you said Kathar by accident.

'My name is Karthik dude. Qatar is a Middle Eastern airways!' While Paul claimed he was joking, Karthik didn't take it lightly

'Don't play the racist card with me!' Paul saw red when an offended Karthik told him it wasn't too difficult to get his name right

'All night, we've been saying Kathar. It's been jokes.'

He continued: 'I'm being called "dangerous" and everyone's being called different names. Then you brought out the racist thing.'

Trying to diffuse the heated situation, Karthik then claimed he was joking as well - causing Paul's anger to boil over.

'No you weren't. You brought out the racist card. Don't ever f***ing do that man. That's serious s*** in this house!' Paul quipped back.

Viewers also flocked to Twitter to show where they stood in the situation:

'It's been jokes': Paul defiantly told Karthik that the comments were all in good fun

'Don't ever f***ing do that man': Trying to diffuse the heated situation, Karthik then claimed he was joking as well - causing Paul's anger to boil over

'Yes that WAS racist of Paul and very disrespectful. The entitled white ppl (yes I am white) need to understand racism properly.'

'It's pathetic that Paul can't get Karthik's name right and it kinda does boil down to implicit racism.'

This is actually a visual representation of how white people get more offended with being called racist than racism itself.'

'So sad the Karthik has been talked down about, no matter whether he was offended or joking. Neither deserve hate.'

'Which is why white people are in NO position to ever tell a person of colour what is or isnt racist.'
She's known to be a doting mother, juggling her high-flying fashion career with looking after her boys.

And Victoria Beckham, 43, treated her loved ones to a meal at the exclusive Giorgio Baldi restaurant in Santa Monica, California on Saturday.

Wearing a satin finish black shirt and large sunglasses, the mother-of-four looked chic as she left the upmarket eatery.

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Fine dining: Victoria Beckham, 43, treated her loved ones to a meal at the exclusive Giorgio Baldi restaurant in Santa Monica, California on Saturday

The fashion designer was joined by her husband David, 42, and sons Brooklyn, 18, and Romeo, 14, who were dressed casually for the occasion.

Brooklyn opted for his typically edgy look, wearing a black beanie hat and distressed white T-shirt. The budding photographer has just celebrated the release of his new photography book, What I See.

Romeo, who has enjoyed a successful modelling career, landing a Burberry campaign when he was just 10 years old, wore a dark T-shirt and sported a closely cropped hairstyle.

Boys will be boys: The fashion designer was joined by her husband David, 42, and sons Brooklyn, 18, and Romeo, 14, who were dressed casually for the occasion

Handsome: David looked as handsome as ever, scraping his blonde locks back into a tight mini bun, and clad his muscular frame in a crisp white shirt

Keeping it casual: Romeo, who has enjoyed a successful modelling career, landing a Burberry campaign when he was just 10 years old, wore a dark T-shirt and sported a closely cropped hairstyle

Family day out: David is known to be a doting parent to his four children

Inked up: David displayed his extensive tattoo collection, which snakes all the way up his neck

David looked as handsome as ever, scraping his blonde locks back into a tight mini bun, and clad his muscular frame in a crisp white shirt.

Little Harper, 6, and Cruz, 12, appeared to have stayed home, as they were not spotted dining with their family.

However, they had taken lunch out with their famous father earlier in the day.

Edgy: Brooklyn opted for his typically edgy look, wearing a black beanie hat and distressed white T-shirt

Proud parents: Brooklyn, who is a budding photographer has just celebrated the release of his new photography book, What I See

Chic: Wearing a satin finish black shirt and large sunglasses, the mother-of-four looked chic as she left the upmarket eatery

Taking a sweet family photo while enjoying a spot of lunch in Los Angeles, Harper and Cruz looked adorable as they posed with their dad.

Romeo, who appeared to be with a friend, hung back in the snap as he scoured the menu. But as the group took a selfie, a figure barged into the frame.

That individual happened to be Justin Mikita, husband of Modern Family star Jesse Tyler Ferguson, 41.

Family fun! Cruz uploaded a group selfie of his lunch with David, Harper and Romeo, but was unknowingly photobombed

In the shot, David and Cruz endearingly go for matching hats. Cruz then proceeded to post the photo to his Instagram, apparently unaware of the identity of the photobomber.

He simply captioned the snap 'Hanging out in LA.'

Justin was apparently more on the ball, as the lawyer took to social media almost immediately to regram the image.

What a coincidence: The photobomber happened to be Justin Mikita (right), husband of Modern Family star Jesse Tyler Ferguson, 41

His caption was slightly cheekier, stating 'Beckham photo bomb?' before adding the lengthy hashtag '#IPromiseItWasAnAccident.'

Earlier in the day, the duo took to the social network to display their unique headgear.

Cruz posted another snap of the father and son looking trendy in their hats, with David pointing to his youngest son and grinning proudly.



Memorable: Earlier in the day, the duo took to the social network to brag about their unique headgear

Model looks: But the head games weren't over, as Cruz then posted a snap showing the pair pulling their hats low and breaking into a serious pose

'Hat game with @davidbeckham,' posted Cruz.

But the head games weren't over, as Cruz then posted a snap showing the pair pulling their hats low and breaking into a serious pose.

'Blue steel in the house @davidbeckham,' wrote Cruz, referring to the hilarious Zoolander movie franchise, where Blue Steel is a look practiced by main character Derek Zoolander.
She's currently vying for the affection of Matthew 'Matty J' Johnson on the latest season of The Bachelor.

But now, it appears love isn't the only thing Simone Ormesher may be looking for, with a latest sighting of the reality star indicating it's possible she is in talks to start a glamour modelling career.

On Friday, the 25-year-old was spotted in Melbourne enjoying an animated chat with model-turned-photographer Rosanna Faraci, who is well-known for shooting glamour models.

New gig? On Friday, The Bachelor star Simone Ormesher (left) was spotted linking arms with glamour photographer Rosanna Faraci (right) in Melbourne indicating she could be in talks to start her modelling career

The duo donned matching leather jackets for the outing and appeared to be quite close as they linked arms as they walked.

Simone, who made headlines last month after pictures emerged of her working as a topless entertainer, cut a casual-chic figure for the meeting.

Under her black leather jacket, the Manchester-born beauty wore a low-cut white shirt which she matched with distressed blue jeans, a skinny black belt and a oversized baby pink tote.

Brunette bombshell Rosanna, who has worked with the likes of Nicky Whelan, opted for an all-black ensemble, teaming her leather jacket with skinny jeans and a bag in a similar shade.

Business or personal? The duo were spotted catching up over coffee, possibly chatting about future work

Having a laugh! The beauties shared an animated conversation over coffee as Rosanna gripped Simone's hand

The pair were snapped having an animated conversation over coffee at a local cafe and at one point Simone laughed enthusiastically while Rosanna warmly gripped her hand.

Rosanna also took to Instagram on Saturday to gush about the busty blonde as she shared an image of the two women posing side by side.

Tagging in Simone, Rosanna wrote: 'Catchups with this beauty' and joked 'I will give you a rose.'

'Catchups with this beauty': Rosanna also took to Instagram to gush about Simone, joking in the caption: 'I will give you a rose'

A source previously told Daily Mail Australia in March that Simone was hoping to pursue a career in modelling.

In the past, the former topless waitress has worked as a Meter Maid on the Gold Coast, as well as 'a nightclub promo girl' in Melbourne.

The dating show hopeful, who runs in the same social scene as Justin Bieber's Australian 'party pals' Roze Cook and Nyssa Large, reportedly now works at a digital marketing company.

Next step? Simone is certainly not shy and has previously worked as a topless waitress
She's the nude model best known for being romantically linked to celebrities like Justin Bieber, Cody Simpson, and 5 Seconds of Summer's Luke Hemmings.

But in addition to stripping off on Instagram and rubbing shoulders with famous fellas, Sahara Ray also has her own range of skimpy swimwear.

And it turns out that the line actually has some celebrity fans, including the legendary Kim Kardashian herself.

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Not just a pretty face! Nude model and swimwear designer Sahara Ray was proud to announce that Kim Kardashian has worn her line

On Sunday, Sahara took to social media to share photos of the pop culture icon wearing a custom-made swimsuit from the line.

Sharing photos of the voluptuous Kardashian clad in her swimmers, the 24-year-old wrote: 'Custom made for queen K.'

Sahara can probably expect sales of her line to skyrocket now that Kim, one of the world's leading style icons, has worn her attire.

Talk about a sizable endorsement! Kim Kardashian flaunted her iconic curves in Sahara's skimpy swimmers

'Custom made for queen K,' wrote Sahara, referring to the reality TV royal

In June, Kim wore a necklace from Australian jewelry line BabyAnything on Instagram, and instantly sent sales of the necklace through the roof.

Much like Kim, Sahara is known for getting naked on social media.

Sahara, who is the daughter of surf legend Tony Ray, was born in the Australian coastal town of Torquay, but was raised in Santa Cruz, California.

Is it really you? The artificially-enhanced Australian has undergone quite the transformation over the years

Claim to fame: The 24-year-old is best known for her famous flings and X-rated Instagram pics

She found herself in the spotlight last year after she was spotted skinny dipping in Hawaii with Justin Bieber - whose impressive manhood was revealed to the world through some racy paparazzi photos.

The artificially-enhanced Australian has since made a name for herself thanks to her X-rated Instagram profile and rumoured flings with celebrities.

She's also received attention for her ever-changing appearance, which has left her looking virtually unrecognisable compared to her younger self.
They've been fighting over Matty J on the latest season of The Bachelor.

So it was no surprise to see Leah Costa sporting a nasty red scratch on her arm during a night out in Melbourne with co-star Simone Ormesher.

The pair's big night out comes after a number of major party planners in Melbourne told the Herald Sun that the current crop of Bachelor babes have been banned from most events for not being 'VIP' enough.

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Ouch! The Bachelor's Leah Costa sported a nasty red scratch on her arm when she stepped out to meet co-star

'The brief we had for a recent event was none of those Bachelor girls,' one unnamed party planner told the publication.

The ban could be the reason that the reality TV twosome were out at a cafe in Melbourne's Chapel Street, rather than a ritzy private event with notable socialites, influencers, and celebrities.

They added: 'I mean, who are they?'

You're not on the list! The pair's night out comes after a number of major party planners revealed that the current crop of Bachelor babes have been banned from press events

'We have had explicit instructions from our client that they dont want any Bachelor contestants.'

Despite the ban, Leah was dressed to impress in a leather mini-skirt and plunging tank top.

Meanwhile, Simone sported a revealing midriff top that highlighted her ample assets.

'I mean, who are they?' The current crop of Bachelor girls have been deemed not 'VIP' enough for entry in Melbourne's hottest parties

The Bachelor party ban could have something to do with Leah and Simone's controversial pasts.

Before appearing on the Channel Ten reality series, the pair both worked as topless entertainers.

Their saucy professions were exposed after racy topless photos of the busty blondes at work were exposed online.

You'll never be me! Season one Bachelor star Anne Heinrich has become a red carpet A-lister since her time on the show
The ex-assistant of former Spice Girl Mel B has made sensational claims against her ex-husband Stephen Belafonte while detailing what it had been like to work so closely with the pair.

The former aide, who chose not to be named, has claimed to The Sun that their time with the ex-couple had been 'complete chaos' and singled out Belafonte for being the 'scary' one in the relationship.

They alleged that the film producer had forced his staff to 'watch ISIS beheading videos', insisting they needed to be 'prepared' for anything in the real world.

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Shocking: The ex-assistant of Mel B has made sensational claims against Stephen Belafonte, accusing the film producer of forcing staff to watch videos of ISIS beheadings

'Stephen was the scary one in that relationship. The smallest thing would set him off, he would scream at you like a drill sergeant,' they claimed.

The former assistant had been hired by the couple in February 2015 following Mel's stint on The X Factor that had seen her appear on the live final sporting bruises on her arms.

The job had been described to them by Belafonte as 'crazy' and they were instructed to be 'on call 24/7', with the promise of lavish rewards including a 'private jet'.

While they claimed they had never seen any violence occur between the pair, the ex-assistant commented that 'there was no happiness' between the former couple and they were often embroiled in 'furious rows'.

'Stephen was the scary one': They alleged that the film producer - who Mel had filed for divorce from in March - had showed them the graphic videos to 'prepare them for the real world'

Volatile: While they claimed they had never seen any violence occur between Mel and Belafonte, the ex-assistant commented they were often embroiled in 'furious rows'

The former employee also appeared to hit out at Stephen for his excessive spending habits and claimed: 'One minute he would be blowing thousands, the next he'd be screaming at us for wasting a few bucks on the wrong shade of paint.'

Listing Belafonte's spending, they recalled the time he had paid '11,500 for first-class seats to Sweden' to check out a tattoo artist, before splashing out '6000 on the tattoo'.

They also claimed he had asked them to track his ex-wife for him, adding: 'He would want to know where she was at night.'

MailOnline have contacted a representative for Mel.

The Wannabe songstress filed for divorce from Belafonte, the father of her youngest child, in March after 10 years of marriage.

Past role: The former assistant had been hired by the couple in February 2015 following Mel's stint on The X Factor that had seen her appear on the live final sporting bruises on her arms

Expensive taste: The former employee also appeared to hit out at Stephen for his excessive spending habits - recalling the time he had paid '11,500 for first-class seats to Sweden' to check out a tattoo artist, before splashing out '6000 on the tattoo'

She successfully obtained a restraining order against him after alleging abuse. The spousal support hearing is slated for the end of this month.

It is reported that the furore around the divorce has cost Belafonte half a million dollars in contracts. He is said to be seeking $200,000 for his divorce lawyers.

The music star is said to be battling debts having spent the 38million fortune she accumulated during her time in the Spice Girls.

While he was granted access to Madison, Stephen lost his battle to regain contact with Mel's daughter Angel, who was born three months before the pair's wedding in 2007.

Following the hearing in late April, Mel's lawyer Larry Bakman immediately opposed giving Belafonte visitation rights, as he branded him a 'convicted domestic violence offender' with an 'extensive criminal history'.

Bitter split: Belafonte was granted access to Madison, Stephen lost his battle to regain contact with Mel's daughter Angel, who was born three months before the pair's wedding in 2007

Complicated: Following the hearing, Mel's lawyer Larry Bakman immediately opposed giving Belafonte visitation rights, as he branded him a 'convicted domestic violence offender'

He went on to claim that Stephen had been 'involved in adult pornography' and the 'importation of women from other countries' to work in the industry as well as 'possible money laundering'.

Mel filed for divorce on March 20 and said in court papers that she was the victim of 'multiple physical beatings' at the hands of her husband.

She also claimed he threatened to 'destroy' her career by releasing sex tapes of her. Lawyers for Stephen have branded the allegations 'outrageous and unfounded', and 'nothing more than a smear campaign.'

Meanwhile, Mel has reportedly 'spent thousands of pounds' on legal fees in a bid to gag her former nanny, according to The Mirror.

She is said to have filed five separate legal motions against her former nanny, Lorraine Gilles, in a bid to strike out the libel case against her, filed by Lorraine, from court.

Troubles: Mel is said to have filed five separate legal motions against her former nanny, Lorraine Gilles (above), in a bid to strike out the libel case against her, filed by Lorraine, from court

Costly: The America's Got Talent judge was hit with the suit after claiming 25-year-old Lorraine was one of the main reasons her marriage to Belafonte broke down in her divorce paperwork

In court documents obtained by MailOnline, the embattled hitmaker authorised her legal team to shut down her former employee's libel lawsuit against her, spending thousands of pounds to counter her case in the process.

The America's Got Talent judge was hit with the suit after she claimed that 25-year-old Lorraine was one of the main reasons her marriage to Belafonte broke down in her divorce paperwork.

To counter the case, Mel B's representation, the Buchalter law firm, submitted 403 pages of legal dockets in a frantic bid to urge Judge Dalila Lyons of Los Angeles Superior Court to rule the suit 'null and void under California law.'

The official court records reveal that the Leeds native's lawyers filed five 'Motion to Strike Plaintiff's Entire Action' in an attempt to have the LA judge to rule in her favour without hearing her former employee's case.

To counter the case, Mel B's representation, the Buchalter law firm, submitted 403 pages of legal dockets in a frantic bid to urge Judge Dalila Lyons of Los Angeles Superior Court to rule the suit 'null and void under California law'

The fevered display reveal Mel's attempts to counter a potential award of damages to Lorraine and mounting legal fees should the Judge proceed with a case, as Mel could be hit with a 3million payout plus her former staff member's legal fees.

The situation occurred after she alleged that the pretty blonde from Germany had an affair with Stephen and terminated a pregnancy after their secret trysts. The nanny heavily denied the allegations and filed a lawsuit against Mel for libel.

An LA legal source told the paper: 'Mel has spent thousands of pounds on lawyers to try and shut down the nanny. She knows a full-blown trial could cost her vast amounts in legal fees alone. If she loses it would be unthinkable for her financial status.

'Mel has told the judge her accusations about Lorraine were no smear campaign as she did not act in reckless disregard."'
She's an Australian television icon who's reached international acclaim for major roles in movies and television including Muriel's Wedding, Little Miss Sunshine, US series United States of Tara and more recently xXx: Return Of Xander Cage alongside Vin Diesel.

But now Toni Collette is returning to her roots, starring in upcoming Channel Seven miniseries, Blue Murder: Killer Cop.

Speaking with the Daily Telegraph, the 44-year-old actress revealed what is was that inspired her return to not only Australia, but to television.

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Spooky! Toni Collette, 44, will star in true crime miniseries set in the underworld of Kings Cross from 1989

Toni said along with being keen to work alongside her long-time idol Richard Roxburgh, the element of truth behind the story line had been a major draw card.

'The fact that it was a true story attracted me,' she said.

'As a basic story it is riveting, and I was a big fan of the original Blue Murder and also, since I was a teenager, of Richard. I had worked briefly with him in the past and wanted to work with him again.'

Bringing it to life: Toni said along with being keen to work alongside her long-time idol Richard Roxburgh (pictured above), the element of truth behind the story line had been a major draw card

Toni plays Anne Melocco, the wife of convicted murderer Roger Rogerson, who is brought to life by 55-year-old Richard.

With the plot already chilling enough, being set in the underworld of Sydney's Kings Cross from 1989, filming also took place while real life Roger was being convicted of murder.

'It was strange because we were pretty much filming in the street where they lived and at one point Anne drove past in her car while we were shooting,' Toni recalled.

Chilling: Filming took place while real life Roger was being convicted of murder

Toni added that producers had considered shooting in the same house, but she said that 'would have been too much'.

'I was aware that it was a real situation. I couldnt help but feel slightly responsible. There is a sense of making someone feel like a real person.'

The Golden Globe and Emmy Award winner said it was the the fact the story had given her goosebumps that encouraged her to 'jump in and get involved'.

The series will air on Sunday at 8.30pm and Monday at 8.45pm.
He was diagnosed with dementia nearly two years ago.

But despite his health battle, Monty Python star Terry Jones, 75, looked in good shape as he enjoyed a walk with his longtime friend and co-star Michael Palin, 74 in London on Tuesday.

The comedy genius, who played the eccentric nude organist on Monty Python's Flying Circus, cut a dapper figure in a slate grey suit and straw trilby as he enjoyed an afternoon with his close pal.

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Picture of heath: Monty Python star Terry Jones, 75, looked in good shape as he enjoyed a walk with his longtime friend and co-star Michael Palin, 74 in London on Tuesday

Firm friendship: The comedy genius, who played the eccentric nude organist on Monty Python's Flying Circus, cut a dapper figure in a slate grey suit and straw trilby as he enjoyed an afternoon with his close pal

Joined by his comedic partner-in-crime Michael and a friend, the twosome looked relaxed as they made their way down the street.

Michael donned a smart casual ensemble of a fitted white shirt, black jacket and navy chinos.

Michael has been a strong support for his friend since his diagnosis which has left him slowly losing his ability to speak.

Fighter: The star was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia, which gradually impairs ability to communicate, in September 2015

Pals: Joined by his comedic partner-in-crime Michael and a friend, the twosome looked relaxed as they made their way down the street

Looking good: The star looked in good spirits as he enjoyed a walk with his close friend

Bond: Michael has been a strong support for his friend since his diagnosis which has left him slowly losing his ability to speak

In sync: But despite his worsening health, Terry still enjoys long walks, alcohol and watching his favourite films including Some Like It Hot said Michael

Moving forward: Calling the condition 'dreadfully unfair' Michael told the Observer earlier this year: 'Terry still goes on very long walks across Hampstead Heath, often following the most obscure routes and it is very hard to keep up with him'

Friendship: The pair have been friends for more than 50 years

The star was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia, which gradually impairs ability to communicate, in September 2015.

As his speech deteriorated fast, the father-of-three began writing his thoughts and plans on a computer until they became too jumbled and he had to stop last autumn.

But despite his worsening health, Terry still enjoys long walks, alcohol and watching his favourite films including Some Like It Hot.

Candid: Michael continued: 'He likes to see old friends and we've got to carry on our friendship. It's not ended, it's just very sad he's got this form of dementia. He can't talk at any great length but he laughs at memories when I bring them up.'

Diagnosis: As his speech deteriorated fast, the father-of-three began writing his thoughts and plans on a computer until they became too jumbled and he had to stop last autumn

Revelation: The Welsh star's diagnosis was revealed after it was announced he was to receive a lifetime achievement award from Bafta Cymru but could no longer give interviews

Catching up: In 2014 he took part in the reunion with the remaining Pythons for ten shows at London's O2 Arena

Out and about: The pair looked close as they enjoyed some quality time together

Calling the condition 'dreadfully unfair' Michael told the Observer earlier this year: 'Terry still goes on very long walks across Hampstead Heath, often following the most obscure routes and it is very hard to keep up with him.

'He likes to see old friends and we've got to carry on our friendship. It's not ended, it's just very sad he's got this form of dementia. He can't talk at any great length but he laughs at memories when I bring them up.'

The duo, who met at Oxford, worked side-by-side on Twice a Fortnight and The Frost Report in the 1960s before they rose to fame in Monty Python alongside Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam and Eric Idle.

Terry also co-directed the film Monty Python And The Holy Grail, and was sole director on two further Python films The Life of Brian and Monty Python's Meaning Of Life

Active: Terry looked in good health as he stepped out with his old friend and a pal

Dapper: The comedy legend looked distinguished in his dark suit and hat

Blending in: The iconic duo looked like any other group of friends as they strode down the street

Day out: Terry is known for his stellar repertoire of work in the comedy field

Quality time: The stars looked comfortable in each other's presence as they walked

Inspirational: Terry looked relaxed as he enjoyed the day with his friend

The Welsh star's diagnosis was revealed after it was announced he was to receive a lifetime achievement award from Bafta Cymru but could no longer give interviews.

In 2014 he took part in the reunion with the other remaining Pythons  Chapman had died in 1989  for ten shows at London's O2 Arena.

In 2005 the comedian left first wife Alison Telfer for then-Oxford University student Anna Soderstrom, 33, and married her in 2012.

The couple have one daughter, Siri, seven.
It was a tight race to triumph on Sunday night's episode of The Block.

The Blockheads had been fighting tooth and nail to get their main bathrooms renovated in time - and impress the judges enough to take out the $10,000 cash prize for the best reveal.

When it came to crunch time, Josh and Elyse only just edged into the top spot after scoring just half a point more than their nearest competitors, Sticks and Wombat.

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Pole position: Renovators Elyse (left) and Josh (right) won The Block's main bathroom renovation challenge by just half a point on Sunday night's episode

The young couple notched up a score of 27 out of 30 after the judges Neale Whitaker, Shaynna Blaze and Darren Palmer were wowed by the pair choosing to add a round bathtub - the first of its kind in all 13 seasons of the show.

Elyse acknowledged that the round bath was a huge risk in the design plans, explaining: 'We spent a bit of money on it'.

After hearing the judges' feedback, which included that they thought the bathroom design was at a professional level, the blonde admitted: 'it paid off.'

Risky choice! The unusual choice to have a round bathtub helped Josh and Elyse edge to the number one spot

Shocker of a week: Hannah (left) and Clint (right) failed to complete their bathroom and scored a dismal 16 out of 30

Close behind the couple were Sticks and Wombat who scored 26.5 points for their efforts, with the judges particularly loving their skylight and finishes.

In stark contrast, former NRL star Clint and his wife Hannah had a shocker week and failed to complete their bathroom in time.

The dismal display was reflected in their scoring, with the pair receiving just 16 points in total.

Close but no cigar! Sticks and Wombat were just half a point behind with their bathroom

A few problems: Ronnie and Georgia came in at third place after being marked down for their music speaker sitting on the floor, among other issues

In the middle of the road were Ronnie and Georgia who scored 25.5 points after several problems plagued their renovation.

They were marked down for their music speaker sitting on the floor and for their bath taps being in front of the bath and in the way, among other things.

Meanwhile, Jason and Sarah finished on 24 points, and were told they had 'cluttered' their space with the styling.
Sara Sampaio has been on vacation in Europe this summer.

On Saturday the Victoria's Secret model was spotted getting wet in Ibiza.

The 26-year-old catwalker showed off her toned figure in a bikini as she dried off from a dip in the water aboard a yacht on Sunday.

Soaked: Sara Sampaio was spotted after taking a dip in the water off the coast of Ibiza Sunday

The brunette looker from Portugal looked at home on the pristine waters.

She stood on a boat in a deep red bikini that showed off her ripped abs and sculpted arms.

Sara held on to a pair of goggles from her underwater adventures as she mingled with friends back on the ship.

Model bod: The 26-year-old catwalker's impressive physique was on display on the yacht

Vacation time: The brunette looker from Portugal looked at home on the pristine waters

Summertime shine: Prior to leaving on her trip, she shot a few Victoria's Secret ad campaigns

Her pals appeared to be fine staying dry as Sampaio looked to be the only one who took a dip in the water.

The model has enjoyed teasing fans with glimpses from her European summer vacation which has also hit Italy and Spain.

Prior to leaving on her trip, she shot a few campaigns for VS and even appeared in a few promotional teaser videos for Justin Bieber and David Guetta's new song 2U.

Busy: She also recently appeared in teaser videos for Justin Bieber and David Guetta's song 2U

Lady goggle: Sara held on to a pair of goggles for her underwater adventures in the ocean

Though she's been enjoying the European coastlines, in her official Victoria's Secret profile, she listed Hawaii as her favorite place in the world.

She lists the five things she cannot go without as her cell phone, friends, the beach, lip balm and sun.

Apparently, she didn't have to do without any of those things on her trip.

Beach bum: She listed the beach as one of the five things she can't live without in her VS profile
She was forced to pull out of theatre production Funny Girl once again in June, after contracting mumps.

But Sheridan Smith certainly looked healthier - and happier - than ever on Sunday, as she arrived back in the UK with her rumoured new boyfriend Graham Nation.

The actress, 36, appeared besotted with the model as they headed home from London St Pancras station, after a romantic break in France.

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Funny Girl in love: Sheridan Smith certainly looked healthier - and happier - than ever on Sunday, as she arrived back in the UK with her rumoured new boyfriend Graham Nation

Back on track: The actress, 36, appeared in good spirits as she headed home from London St Pancras station with the model - after pulling out of Funny Girl once again due to illness

The Gavin and Stacey star appeared in good spirits as she headed home with her reported boyfriend Graham, following their long train journey from France.

The actress kept things casual but cool for the journey, slipping into heavily ripped jeans and a beige bomber jacket.

Upping the glamour of her look with wedged trainers, she then accessorised with a sporty navy cap and oversized shades as she returned to the UK from her refreshing trip away.

Rumoured romance: The Gavin and Stacey star appeared in good spirits as she headed home with reported boyfriend Graham (R), following their long train journey from France

Cosy: Perhaps proving their bond, Sheridan was seen Sheridan affectionately holding onto the tattooed hunk's arm as they walked out of the station

Meanwhile the tattooed hunk opted for a simple T-shirt and jeans combo as he made his way out of the station with Sheridan - who affectionately held onto his arm as they walked.

Proving to be a gentleman, Graham was then seen loading their bags into their car while the actress smiled playfully for cameras, before they headed off to enjoy the rest of their day.

It is not known how long Sheridan has been dating Graham, who is a model and hairstylist from Los Angeles.

We're back! They were later greeted by Sheridan's friend in the terminal, who they proceeded to head home with

Helping hand:Proving to be a gentleman, Graham was then seen loading their bags into their car while the actress smiled for cameras, before they headed off together

Low-key: The actress kept things casual but cool for the journey, slipping into heavily ripped jeans and a beige bomber jacket

Best foot forward: She upped the glamour of her look with wedged trainers

Finishing touches: She then accessorised with a sporty navy cap and oversized shades as she returned to the UK from her refreshing trip away

However the rumoured new couple were first spotted earlier this month at vegan restaurant Farmacy in Notting Hill, before they shared a sweet embrace on the street as they parted ways.

Her upbeat display with the hunk comes soon after she was forced to pull out of Funny Girl for the second time, after contracting mumps.

The blonde was on tour with the musical theatre production but had to quit her lead role due to the illness in June.

Feeling good: Sheridan pulled a few funny faces at the camera before heading off

Hotting up? It is not known how long Sheridan has been dating Graham, who is a model and hairstylist from Los Angeles

Quality time: However the rumoured new couple were first spotted earlier this month at vegan restaurant Farmacy in Notting Hill

Back on track: Meanwhile her display comes soon after she was forced to pull out of Funny Girl for the second time, after contracting mumps

Sheridan is thought to have jetted to luxury detox retreat LifeCo in Bodrum, Turkey immediately afterwards, in order to embark on a 'detox'.

A source told The Sun of her trip to the wellness centre, loved by supermodel Kate Moss: 'Spending a couple of weeks at the detox retreat will certainly sort her right out.

'Touring can be tough at the best of times but added with her illness, it really started to take its toll on Sheridan.

'She worked so hard to get into shape following her performance in TV series The Moorside but her spell on tour hindered her progress.'

Tough times: The blonde was on tour with the production but had to quit her role in June - and is thought to have immediately checked into a luxury detox resort in Turkey

It was reported that a stay at the famed resort, which includes everything from anti-ageing regimes to raw ketogenic eating, will help her recuperate.

MailOnline contacted a representative for Sheridan for comment at the time.

It is not the first time Sheridan has pulled out of the show - quitting its West End run at London's Savoy Theatre in May 2016, due to 'stress' and exhaustion'.

She also quit a previous run at the Menier Chocolate Factory in March, after her father Colin was diagnosed with cancer.
A summer party in New York luxury vacation spot The Hamptons is the epitome of A-list.

And on Saturday night Freida Pinto looked every bit the movie star while attending Women's Health's Party Under The Stars Benefit.

The 32-year-old Mumbai-born actress sported a monochrome look that was perfect for a summer night as she mingled with party guests like Olivia Palermo and Baywatch star Alexandra Daddario.

A-list: Freida Pinto attended the Women's Health Party Under The Stars Benefit on Saturday

Freida's white silk top flowed perfectly into the black-and-white maxi skirt she wore with flat black sandals for the chic affair.

Pinto was clearly still thinking about the bash on Sunday morning when she posted a beautiful shot of herself barefoot on the beach.

The L'Oreal spokeswoman wore her hair pulled back and a red lip for the night out.

Beaches: The 32-year-old stunner also shared a photo of herself on the beach from the same night

She captioned the photo 'La lune et moi' which translates to the moon and me.

Freida included the hashtag #summernights with her photo.

After rising to prominence in Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire, the actress has gone on to star in a string of big films - including Trishna, Immortals and Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Girls night: She mingled with Olivia Palermo and Baywatch star Alexandra Daddario

Squad: She enjoyed spending time with her equally-chic friends as they posed for a photo

Perhaps the reason behind her success, Freida recently admitted she only chooses roles that have meaning, and nothing to do with appearance.

She explained to Red in April: 'I enjoyed the films I made, but my full potential wasnt explored. I didnt want to play the pretty girl. I was fed up of playing those little roles. I didnt relate to them.

'I have no problem with supporting characters, but I wanted one worth my time, that moved the plot around.'
She's swapped the Essex cobbles for the golden beaches of Spain to film the latest series of TOWIE.

And Yazmin Oukhellou, 23, proudly showed off her new nose job when she greeted her co-stars at the Marbella airport on Sunday, after going under the knife in Turkey.

Embracing hew new look, James Lock's girlfriend was positively glowing as she exuded confidence in her LBD.

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New look: Yazmin Oukhellou, 23, proudly showed off her nose job when she greeted her TOWIE co-stars at the Marbella airport on Sunday, after going under the knife in Turkey

On trend as ever, the reality star showcased her slender legs in the thigh-skimming garment.

The Essex native drew attention to her face with deft touches of make-up, looking as glamorous as ever.

Yazmin let her brunette curls tumble down her shoulders in loosely tousled curls which framed her pretty features.

Different look: The TOWIE star (pictured in July 2017) was seeb leaving a clinic in Turkey, covered in bandages

Prepared for the sun-soaked stint in Spain, she armed herself with two suitcases, an over sized gym bag and a clutch jam-packed with her everyday essentials.

The reality star was in high spirits as she joined the rest of the TOWIE cast at the airport.

But no one looked more pleased to be there than former stars Lauren Pope and Mario Falcone, who are making a comeback this series.

Yazmin's stylish arrival marks her first public appearance after going under the knife overseas.

Revealed: It is the first time the star has stepped out since going under the knife in Turkey

Leggy lady: James Lock's girlfriend was positively glowing as she oozed confidence in her LBD

A-team! The style maven was in high spirits as she joined the rest of the TOWIE cast at the airport

In recent weeks, she was pictured leaving a clinic in Turkey covered in bandages following cosmetic surgery.

And Yazmin has since put the results of her recent nose job on display in a candid Instagram post.

The Only Way Is Essex star posed up a storm after she peeled off the wraps for the first time to debut her new look on social media.

'I was so nervous at first': Yazmin proudly put the results of her nose job on display in a candid Instagram post last Thursday

'So the cat is finally out of the bag,' Yazmin captioned the shot. I can confirm that I had a rhinoplasty... It has only been 2 weeks and I can already see the results are going to be amazing.'

The Essex native enthused about how 'amazing' the results of her rhinoplasty were going to be after decided to get the plastic surgery following an accident which left her with a broken nose.

She added: 'I had a previous broken nose and deviated septum so surgery was the only option for me. I am so glad I did it as I was nervous at first but so happy that I can now breathe properly and that the small bump has gone.'

Before and after: The Essex native explained she decided to have a nose job (R) after she broke her nose (L)

But James' girlfriend explained she wasn't encouraging people to have surgery

'As I have stated before in previous posts I am NOT telling people to run out and have cosmetic surgery due to vanity,' she wrote.

'I am saying that if you want to get surgery, have been thinking about it for a long time and like me I had no other option then people should feel comfortable to and feel they won't be judged.

'This is the reason I have decided to be so open about it and not lie like others have as it's my body and my choice and people need to stop judging others choices, shaming body's and appearances and just get on doing you.'

Feeling fabulous: The Essex native enthused about how 'amazing' the results of her rhinoplasty were going to be

In June, Yazmin was forced to deny she has split from her beau James after posting 'disgusted is an understatement,' on Twitter.

She later wrote: 'Just to clear the rumours! James and I are still going strong my tweet was in reference to a gym where I was mistreated!'

James and Yazmin have been dating for nine months, prior to which he was previously in a long-term romance with fellow TOWIE star Danielle Armstrong.

Yazmin has been continuing her beauty mission since returning to home turf in Essex after being away in Turkey.

She tweeted: 'She tweeted: 'OBSESSED with my Russian Eyelashes done by the beautiful @Spmubycerrone @soglamessex.'
PLEASE NOTE!

Due to the March 23, 2020 NM DOH Public Health Order, These Event Listings Are Not Accurate!

All non-essential businesses are closed, public gatherings are prohibited!

(One day some of these events will be rescheduled or will resume, but they are not happening now!)
Getting trolled by your fans is a big part of action hero fame.

And on Sunday, Tom Holland had a laugh on Instagram when a fan joked about an expression he's made on a few separate occasions.

'Ok Tom Holland is cute and all but he constantly looks like he's hiding a frog in his mouth,' a screen shot of a Tumblr post that Tom shared read.

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Good sport: Tom Holland shared a meme of a fan saying he looks like he has a frog in his mouth to Instagram on Sunday

Confirmed: The 21-year-actor wrote 'The rumours are true' about the joke in the viral photo

The descriptive critique continued: 'It's uncomfortably jumping around in there but he can't open his mouth or the frogs gonna escape.'

Holland, 21, responded by saying: 'This is hilarious. I can confirm that the rumours are true,' with three smile face emojis.

Another rumor the actor has spoken out on recently involves him dating his Spider-Man: Homecoming costar Zendaya Coleman.

Hiding something?: Holland made the expression during a press conference in Seoul on July 3

Nothing in here: At the same event, he happily smiled for photographers, proving there is in fact, not a frog stuck in his mouth

The young stars took to Twitter last month to respond to a report from People claimed the duo have been secretly together for a year.

'Wait wait...my favorite is when it says we go on vacations together HA!' wrote Zendaya on the social media platform, responding to the People story.

'I haven't been on a vacation in years!' she continued, before adding several hysterical emojis and asking 'hbu @TomHolland1996 ???'

Jet-setter: On Monday, Tom attended the Spider-Man: Homecoming premiere in Tokyo, Japan

Thumbs up: He appeared alongside the anticipated blockbuster's director Jon Watts

He's got the moves like Spidey: The pair showed off some interesting moves as he posed

Marching to the beat of his own drum: He enthusiastically banged on a drum on the red carpet

Tom soon responded sarcastically: '@Zendaya Does the press tour count?'

His young co-star then ended her rant by responding to his post with 'I'm done.'

The furore arose when the publication cited an anonymous source who supposedly had dirt on the secret relationship.

Dressed to impress: As he arrived at the event, he was handed a very stylish red kimono

Centre of attention: The star kept the crowds entertained as he got into the spirit of things

These boots were made for walking: He added edge to his smart look with heavy duty boots
Their brief post-Love Island romance has come to a bitter end after Jonny Mitchell dumped her on live TV and claimed Chyna Ellis cheated on him.

But now the Essex native has had her say in a very public Twitter spat with her former flame, venting her anger on social media on Saturday.

Declaring her innocence, the beauty revealed she was 'actually disgusted' by his behaviour and implied he was a snake by using four of the reptile emojis in a scathing tweet.

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'Actually disgusted': Love Island's Chyna Ellis branded her ex Jonny Mitchell a 'disgusting' snake in a scathing tweet after explosive claims she cheated on him

Chyna wrote: 'So apparently I'm seeing 4 different guys at once and now I am a monster what is wrong with this guy actually disgusted!' (sic)

Earlier in the week, she wrote: 'Some people really have zero loyalties it makes me sad :(.' (sic)

But Jonny, 26, wouldn't let sleeping dogs lie as he responded a number of hours later, hitting back at his scorned lover in an explosive tweet.

No Love (Island) lost here: The pair have been at each other's throats in a public Twitter spat

He wrote: 'Pretty random selection of names If I was lying though. #justsaying.'

There is no love lost between the pair after Chyna branded him a 'pr**k' for brutally dumping her during the live reunion show on Sunday night.

Jonny claimed Chyna 'completely f**ked' him by sleeping with Ex On The Beach star Adam Oukhellou behind his back.

He also claimed the Essex beauty was texting Calum Best and TOWIE star Jon Clarke - and alleged that she admitted to only dating him to 'piggyback on the fame'.

Explosive claims: Jonny has claimed Chyna 'completely f**ked' him by sleeping with Ex On The Beach star Adam Oukhellou behind his back

Jonny, who whisked Chyna away for a romantic holiday to Budapest, left viewers shocked after he was aloof about their status and said they were 'keeping it open', on the Love Island reunion show.

He claimed he acted coldly as just a day or two earlier, he had found out that Chyna had slept with Adam - and allegedly saw a message from him on her phone that basically read 'when am I seeing you again'.

'Obviously I was really taken aback and I was a bit pissed off,' he told The Sun.

He claimed that when he confronted Chyna about the text, she was 'very honest' and admitted to 'sleeping with' Adam.

Rumour has it: The 26-year-old also claimed she was texting Calum Best and TOWIE star Jon Clarke - and alleged that she admitted to only dating Jonny to 'piggyback on the fame'

Oh dear: Jonny, who whisked Chyna away for a romantic holiday to Budapest, left viewers shocked after he was aloof about their status and said they were 'keeping it open', on the Love Island reunion show

She also reportedly confessed to texting Calum Best and Jon Clark - who Love Island star Chloe Crowhurst just recently split with after rekindling things when she left the villa.

Jonny, a director in his dad's company, also alleged that Chyna got 'very drunk' after the reunion show, and told him she was only with him to boost her profile.

'She said to me that she was only with me to the piggyback on the fame anyway. She actually said that,' he said. 'She was like: screw you, I was only in it for the fame anyway, you've done me a favour.'

MailOnline has contacted representatives for Jonny and Chyna for comment.

Allegations: He claimed he acted coldly as just a day or two earlier, he had found out that Chyna had slept with Adam (pictured)- and allegedly saw a message from him on her phone that basically read 'when am I seeing you again'

Having fun? Jonny has been keeping busy since brutally dumping Chyna on the reunion show, and was pictured hanging out with a mystery woman on Wednesday night

He's certainly moved on! The woman he was pictured flirting with on his Instagram story is thought to be a Russian model

Jonny has been keeping busy since brutally dumping Chyna on the reunion show, and was pictured hanging out with a mystery woman thought to be Russian model on Wednesday night.

Meanwhile, Chyna was pictured posing cosily with Love Island star Theo Campbell, who Jonny famously came to blows with several times - and even branded a 'massive b***end'.

It comes as the couple found themselves at loggerheads over their relationship live on air during the Love Island reunion show that aired on Sunday night on ITV2.

Show host Caroline Flack quizzed the duo over the nature of their romance and when Jonny suggested the pair were 'keeping things open', his flame Chyna was left open-mouthed after what seemed like an on-air dumping.

'What the hell?' Chyna Ellis was left open-mouthed during Love Island's live reunion show on Sunday night as Jonny Mitchell claimed their romance was being 'left open' much to her shock

Oops: The dark-haired hunk appeared to land himself in it as he played down his and Chyna's relationship status

While the couple hadn't struck up a romance onscreen, sparks appeared to fly away from the cameras and Jonny and Chyna caused a stir on social media, after photos emerged of the duo kissing.

Jonny had insisted on his exit that he would be 'waiting' for Tyla Carr on the outside, but appeared quick to go back on his word as he put on a flirty display with fellow islander Chyna instead.

And things seemed to be heating up between them, as Jonny had whisked Chyna off to Budapest, where she claimed she'd had the 'best weekend'.

Hitting back: Chyna was quick to question her beau and pointed out that he had whisked her off to Budapest for the weekend

Much to her surprise, however, Jonny was keen to play down their relationship and when quizzed over his relationship status, he told Caroline: 'We're keeping it open.'

A visibly shocked Chyna was quick to repsond: 'Keeping it open? What the hell?'

An awkward Jonny then stuttered in response: 'We're just very good friends... we're having a bit of fun.'

Chyna then pointed out that Jonny's idea of having a 'bit of fun' involved taking her overseas, prompting Jonny's Love Island nemesis Theo Campbell to remark: 'Can I be a good friend?'

With tensions clearly rising between Jonny and Chyna, Caroline was quick to move on from the showdown, quipping that things had suddenly got very 'awkward' in the studio.

'We're just very good friends': Jonny tried to reason, prompting host Caroline Flack to brand the exchange 'awkward' and just move on

Ouch: Tensions were clearly rising between the duo, with Jonny's nemesis Theo joking that he too wanted to be a 'good friend' of Chyna's

But it seems Chyna wasn't willing to let Jonny's slip up lie and took to Snapchat branding her beau a 'pr**k'. Adding three gun emojis across a photo of Jonny, she added in a second snap: 'Can't deal.'

During the reunion show, that saw all 32 islanders come together to mark the end of the series, fans got to hear what the stars of Love Island's third series had been getting up to since their exits from the villa.

Montana Brown and Alex Beattie yet again denied recent rumours that they have 'secretly split' and insisted the claims were 'definitely not true'.

Alex hit back: 'We're just [living] at opposite ends of the country, but we're making it work.'

Not happy: Chyna had hit out at Jonny via Snapchat during the show branding him a 'pr**k'

He and Montana had made their romance official while starring on the dating show, but Alex was left red-faced when he had told his girlfriend he loved her and she hadn't reciprocated his feelings.

Asked if Montana had dropped the L-word yet, a frustrated Alex quickly replied: 'No not yet,' through gritted teeth before bowing his head.

Tyla and Mike Thalassitis confirmed that their brief romance has come to a complete halt, with Mike focusing on enjoying himself and 'doing bits' instead and Tyla insisting she was after a man that, like her, wants to actually settle down.

The final four couples, meanwhile, revealed how their relationship were faring now they were back on home soil.
She previously revealed she had been trolled for her 'weird' breasts since appearing on Love Island.

And Jessica Shears has jetted off to Prague for a breast reduction, sharing her journey with her 1.2million Instagram followers.

The buxom brunette, 24, posted several snaps of herself travelling to the Czech Republic before uploading a video of herself juggling her new implants during a consultation with her surgeon.

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Going under the knife: Jessica Shears has jetted off to Prague for a breast reduction, sharing her journey with her 1.2million Instagram followers

Trolled: The glamour model previously revealed she had been trolled for her 'weird' breasts since appearing on Love Island

Jess can be seen grinning with excitement as her surgeon juggles two more implants in the background.

'It's happening', she captioned the boomerang video, before adding, '@w1wellness so excited'.

The operation marks Jess' second boob job and she previously confessed she was unhappy with the results of her first breast augmentation.

Jetsetter: The 24-year-old star posted several snaps of herself travelling to the Czech Republic

Second time lucky? The operation marks Jess' second boob job and she previously confessed she was unhappy with the results of her first breast augmentation

Jess recently discussed the horrors of getting trolled over her 'weird boobs' - resulting in her now turning to breast reduction surgery.

The busty brunette - who has reunited with Dom Lever after he was given the boot from the raunchy show - admitted she didn't make a 'well-advised' decision which inevitably led to her implants being 'too heavy for the skin.'

Jess, who happily sizzles in a number of perilously plunging ensembles, revealed to OK! magazine: 'Yes, I had my boobs done when I was 20 or 21, but I didnt make a very well-advised decision about them.'

Putting on a brave front! Jess recently discussed the horrors of getting trolled over her 'weird boobs' - resulting in her now turning to breast reduction surgery

'They didnt turn out great and I suffered a lot of side effects. Ive been looking at getting them reduced,' she continued before confirming she had 'found a surgeon' for the reduction.

Lamenting her '120cc implants' further, Jess admitted that she shouldn't have gone that big 'at such a young age.'

She admitted: 'Ive got rippling and what they call bottoming out, which is when the implant is too heavy for the skin.'

'They didn't turn out great': The busty brunette - who has reunited with Dom Lever after he was given the boot from the raunchy show - admitted she didn't make a 'well-advised' decision which inevitably led to her large implants being 'too heavy for the skin'

'I suffered a lot of side effects': Jess, who sizzles in a number of perilously plunging ensembles, candidly admitted her troubles with her busty cleavage

This comes after Jess has slipped back into her partnership with Dom after they met in the Love Island villa.

Rumours of the tryst with fellow islander Mike Thalassitis had dogged Jess following her departure, however Dom insisted to Phil and Holly on This Morning, on Monday that he never had doubts about her loyalty.

Though he did admit to briefly feeling frustrated after being shown a clip of Mike and Jess' flirting on their Love Island date.

'It was a flirty date. It kind of brought everything back up. She was trying to reassure me but I was very annoyed,' he admitted.

'Ive got rippling': Jess admitted that her implants were 'bottoming out, which is when they are too heavy for the skin'

Correcting the problem: The sizzling star confirmed she had 'found' a surgeon for a breast reduction

'For a minuscule amount of time (I was annoyed), I'd never seen the date and never saw what happened on it. She said it's just how it is, you have to have a flirt on the date.

And discussing whether their love had flourished or faded since leaving the Island, Dom said: 'Obviously I feel like we're great. Being in the villa there's only so much you can accomplish and I feel like we did it all - other than being official.'

But nodding towards the future, he suggested that marriage was very much on the cards down the road.

'We've not spoken about it now we've come out but that is the natural step - not right now - but in time. She's all ready to go,' the handsome Mancunian star added.

Romance: This comes after Jess has slipped back into her partnership with Dom after they met in the Love Island villa

Rumours: Talk of a tryst with fellow islander Mike Thalassitis dogged Dom's girlfriend Jess Shears following her departure from the villa

Falling in love: Dom had a heart-to-heart with Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield on Monday's episode of This Morning where he spoke about his burgeoning relationship with the Devon-born beauty

Wedding bells: Nodding towards the future, he suggested that marriage was very much on the cards down the road

'Jess and I were on a really good run. If it carries on like that outside the villa then I do see myself proposing. I fell in love with her.

'It was so difficult for me to admit that to Jess. I cried when she left the villa. I've cried more in the last four weeks than I have in the last ten years of my life.'

Seperately, Jess has also been speaking about the pair's sex life, now that they are away from prying eyes and can enjoy their privacy.

They had been the first couple to sleep together on Love Island's current series and claiming the pair have been more 'experimental' now they are not in view of cameras, Jess told Daily Star: 'It's very grabby and rough, we're both up for experimenting.
Bachelor in Paradise alums Carly Waddell and Evan Bass are parents-to-be!

Waddell said she and Bass, who got married earlier this summer in a ceremony conducted by The Bachelor host Chris Harrison, are expecting their first baby together early next year.

'SECRET IS OUT GUYS!!!!' Waddell wrote on Instagram. 'Evan and I are SO EXCITED to announce we are HAVING A BABY!!! What a beautiful, wonderful, wild year it has been and the adventure continues Feb 2018!'

Expecting: Bachelor in Paradise's Evan Bass, 34, and Carly Waddell, 31, announced Sunday they're expecting their first child together. The duo was snapped in LA earlier this year

She told People on Sunday that they 'are so happy to be expanding our family as we welcome Baby Bass in 2018.'

Waddell, 31, and the 34-year-old Bass - who has three kids from a prior relationship - cultivated their romance filming the ABC summer show.

Bass proposed to Waddell on the show last September, telling her 'the love I feel from you is the most amazing, inexplicable, mind-blowing thing that I just never in a million years thought I would get.

'Carly, I wanna chase after the fairy tales, and go on all of the adventures, and find all of the interesting things in this world to explore ... I wanna start a life with you. I want you to be my wife,' he continued. 'Carly Waddell, will you freaking marry me?'

Special day: The duo exchanged vows in Mexico in June, with The Bachelor host Chris Harrison presiding over the ceremony

The 31-year-old beauty Waddell told the publication the nuptials were the rewarding conclusion of 'a long journey for [her] in Bachelor Nation.'

She added, 'I would do it a thousand times again. Because the next part is going to be bliss,' noting that 'everything happens for a reason.'

Waddell and Bass subsequently wed at the Mexican resort Vidanta Nuevo Vallarta June 17, in what they described to the outlet as 'the perfect day with friends and family.'

Countdown: The duo, seen here in an Instagram post last month, are expecting their first baby in February

Among the Bachelor personalities in attendance at the ceremony included couples such as Jade Roper and Tanner Tolbert, and Nick Viall and Vanessa Grimaldi.

Bachelor in Paradise returns to ABC August 14 at 8/7c.
Joyce Davis, left and her twin sister June, 89 from Columbus, Ohio, watch as the parade marches by during the annual Twins Days Festival in Twinsburg, Ohio

Something was in the air in this small Ohio town founded by identical twins 200 years ago: on Saturday, endless sets of twins made the singly born feel out of place.

Though the Twins Days Festival is open to all those of multiple birth, its essence is a celebration of what it means to be twins, identical or fraternal.

Organizers invited people taking part to dress in costume representing a country from which their family heralded, and most participants played along.

Events at the weekend festival included a talent show, a "double take" parade and contests for the twins who looked most and least alike.

Many in Twinsburg seemed to fit that unusual-for-others notion of two people with unmatchable closeness -- which started before they saw the light of day.

"Being twins, it's actually really awesome because you're automatically born with a best friend that you get to experience everything growing up together with. And nobody gets you like your twin," Carolyn Barrington said.

Added her twin brother Nathaniel: "Yep, couldn't have said it better myself."

Some twins tend to grumble about not having a birthday where the focus is all on them.

But then they often say, the family and social pluses make up for any little inconvenience. They don't usually get lonely, many say. After all, they didn't even get their own womb.

The Twins Days Festival is the world's largest gathering of twins and multiples and is held in Twinsburg, Ohio

For identicals, there is the odd twist of being not always identifiable -- even to one's own mom.

"It happens quite often -- even with our parents when they were alive," identical Jon Anderson told AFP.

His mother "would call me Jack, and I'd say, I'm Jon!"

"One time, I had to show her my driver's license because she didn't believe me," he laughed.

For at least a day, here, nobody was the odd one out.

"We're home! It feels like we're home," said Diane Fiebert with her womb mate Donna Dawson in tow.
Facing the prospect of limping through another three and a half years, Trump is settling on a strategy of shoring up the support of voters who propelled him to the White House with a series of right-wing policy announcements and red-blooded speeches

Beset by investigations, dire approval ratings and growing party dissent, Donald Trump is stirring up his base, hoping to mobilize an army of political shock troops to protect his presidency.

Revelations that a grand jury has been impaneled to investigate his finances and his campaign's ties to Russia raises the specter of indictments and subpoenas that would shake any administration.

But for Trump, who is just six months into his presidency, it represents more turmoil after an exodus of top White House officials and humiliating recent reverses in Congress.

Despite a healthy economy, a new poll by the Connecticut-based Quinnipiac University shows his approval rating at 33 percent -- the same level endured by Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal or George W. Bush after the grind of the Iraq war.

Facing the prospect of limping through another three and a half years, Trump is settling on a strategy of shoring up the support of voters who propelled him to the White House with a series of right-wing policy announcements and red-blooded speeches.

In little more than a week, Trump has encouraged police to dole out rough justice, summarily threatened to kick transgender personnel out of the military and played up the threat of Hispanic gangs.

After warning that neighborhoods are "becoming blood-stained killing fields" he appeared in the Roosevelt Room of the White House last week to champion a massive curb on legal immigration.

The next day, Trump addressed thousands of supporters at a rally where many of the themes that served him so well in the presidential campaign were dusted off again -- including blistering attacks on his defeated rival Hillary Clinton.

Hitting his notes on immigration and law and order, Trump painted the grand jury investigation into his campaign's ties with Russia as a personal threat to him and his supporters.

"The Russia story is total fabrication," he said, a "fake story that is demeaning to all of us and most of all demeaning to our country and demeaning to our Constitution."

Given that the thrice-wed New Yorker married an immigrant and once lectured Republicans on the need to defend gay rights, many critics have said his recent announcements smack of hypocrisy.

- Energizing the core -

Opposition to immigration is a rare common thread running through most of the US president's base, a loose coalition of conservatives, free marketers, cultural preservationists, anti-elites and the politically disengaged

There is still little clarity on how the ban on transgenders can be implemented while White House sources admit that the immigration proposal has scant hope of passing through Congress.

Emily Ekins, polling director at the CATO Institute, believes it is too simplistic to think of Trump voters as a homogenous group, but rather a loose coalition of conservatives, free marketers, cultural preservationists, anti-elites and the politically disengaged.

But, she says, opposition to immigration is a rare common thread running through most of the US president's base.

"The thing that really made this election distinctive were attitudes toward immigration, his core supporters were the most energized on the issue of immigration," Ekins told AFP.

"People ask 'is there anything he could have done to get his core supporters to abandon him?' There is one thing. If he were to back-track on immigration I think that would have been the thing to invalidate him in their eyes."

After losing a key vote on health care and then having his hands tied on dealing with Russia by a vote on sanctions that he has tried to disown, Trump has become openly critical of Congress -- even though his Republican party has a majority in both houses.

While Trump regularly railed against the Washington "swamp" on the campaign trail, he appeared to recognize the need to work with the Republican establishment once in power by bringing some of its main movers and shakers into the White House.

But the recent exits of his chief of staff Reince Preibus and chief spokesman Sean Spicer -- both of whom were senior figures in the Republican National Committee -- has made Trump's already difficult relationship with the GOP look ever-more tenuous.

If the Republican establishment is being kept at arms' length, it can appear at times as if Trump is looking to a Praetorian Guard of supporters as the main protectors of his presidency.

On Friday, Trump retweeted a friendly Fox News commentator who suggested there would be an uprising ahead if Trump or his family were targeted by the grand jury.

"There will be an uproar in this country if they end up with an indictment against a Trump family member just to get at POTUS," he retweeted.

Some worry Trump's embrace of that kind of message could portend a serious constitutional crisis ahead.

"We have never had a president call his supporters into the streets to resist a legal process. But it seems possible here. What then?" asked commentator and longtime Trump critic David Rothkopf.
The August 8 election is seen as a crucial test of Kenya's progress

Kenyans head to the polls Tuesday to vote in a knife-edge contest between incumbent Uhuru Kenyatta and his rival Raila Odinga which has heightened claims of vote rigging and fears of violence.

The final days of campaigning have been marred by the murder and torture of a top election official, opposition claims one of its vote tallying centres was raided by police and a feverish atmosphere of conspiracy and suspicion.

The August 8 election is seen as a crucial test of Kenya's progress since a disputed poll a decade ago led to two months of politically motivated ethnic clashes, which along with a police crackdown on protests left more than 1,100 dead and 600,000 displaced.

Kenyans will cast ballots in six different elections, but all eyes are on what is set to be the last showdown of a dynastic rivalry between the Kenyatta and Odinga families that has lasted more than half a century.

The men belong to two of the country's main ethnic groups, Kenyatta from the Kikuyu, the largest, and Odinga the Luo. Both have secured formidable alliances with other influential communities in a country where voting takes place largely along tribal lines.

Polls are so tight the vote is seen as too close to call, and turnout will be crucial to either side's success in the 48-million-strong east African nation.

The 72-year-old Odinga at the head of the National Super Alliance (NASA) coalition, is taking his fourth -- and what many suspect will be his last -- stab at the presidency. He claims both elections in 2007 and 2013 were stolen from him and is adamant Kenyatta's Jubilee party is trying to do the same this time around.

Kenyan presidents: from father to son

Mounting opposition distrust of the electoral commission has seen Odinga crying foul and urging his supporters to "protect their vote".

Both candidates are so certain of victory, that Nic Cheeseman, professor of African politics at Birmingham University, warns they may have "talked themselves into a corner" in which defeat is not an option.

"It seems almost inevitable that whoever loses will question the result. The question is not whether or not they will accept the result but what they will do when they don't accept it," he told AFP.

- Murder, deportation -

Observers agree that the most critical aspect to the election's success is whether a biometric system of voter identification and tallying works on the day.

This system was introduced in a bid to counter rigging and boost confidence in the process after the marred 2007 election. However in 2013 electronic glitches forced polling officials to resort to manual counting.

Odinga claimed there was rigging, however he took his complaints to the courts instead of the streets and despite a few riots after he lost his case, the process ended peacefully.

The tension around the electronic system reached breaking point last weekend after the poll commission's top IT manager Chris Msando was found strangled and tortured in a forest on the outskirts of Nairobi.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) said its system had not been compromised, and a dry run of the tallying process went off without a hitch this week.

Analysts say the most critical aspect to the election's success is whether a biometric system of voter identification and tallying works on the day

Then late Friday the opposition claimed its main parallel tallying centre -- which had been a point of dispute with the ruling party -- was raided and their equipment stolen.

The same evening, an American and a Canadian working with NASA on their poll strategy were detained before being deported the next day.

Cheeseman said both these events looked "like an attempt by a political faction to prevent the opposition from verifying and checking results. It is highly suggestive they intend some form of manipulation."

- Massive security -

Pre-election jitters have seen foreigners and Kenyans leaving the country or main cities and stocking up on provisions in case of trouble.

Up to 180,000 security forces will secure the poll in which Kenyans will also elect governors, lawmakers, senators, county officials and women's representatives in local races also rife with tension.

The two presidential candidates' fathers Jomo Kenyatta and Jaramogi Odinga were allies in the struggle for independence, but later became bitter rivals, setting the stage for decades of political rancour.

Kenyatta, 55, is seeking re-election after a first term in which he and his Jubilee Party were credited with a massive infrastructure drive and overseeing steady economic growth.

However polls show voters concerned about soaring food prices and massive corruption scandals.

More than 19 million Kenyans are registered to vote at over 40,000 polling stations. Voting will start at 6am local time (0300 GMT) and close at 5pm (1400 GMT).
Apple's removal of software allowing internet users to skirt China's "Great Firewall" from its app store in the country, the company confirmed has sparked criticism it is bowing to Beijing's tightening web censorship

Apple's decision to bow to Chinese officials by removing apps to sidestep online censorship underscores the dilemma faced by US tech companies seeking to uphold principles while expanding their business.

The iPhone maker is the latest from Silicon Valley to face a conundrum in balancing their value for human rights and free expression against a government intent on controlling online content.

Apple this week acknowledged it had removed applications for so-called VPNs or virtual private networks, despite objections.

"We would rather not remove the apps, but like in other countries, we obey the laws where we do business," Apple chief Tim Cook said during an earnings call.

"We are hopeful that over time, the restrictions we are seeing are loosened, because innovation really requires freedom to collaborate and communicate, and I know that is a major focus there."

The prospect of Apple scoring a hit with a 10th-anniversary iPhone model in the months ahead appeared to outweigh backlash from online rights activists who criticized the world's most valuable technology company for not standing up for online freedom.

"There is a belief that millennials really want companies to be more active in protecting people's rights and free speech," Silicon Valley analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group told AFP.

"There is obviously no connection between the rhetoric and buying behavior at this point."

Chinese internet users have for years sought to get around the so-called "Great Firewall" restrictions, including blocks on Facebook and Twitter, by using foreign VPN services.

"If other companies follow Apple's lead, it could soon be much harder for people in China to access information freely online," Amnesty International said in a blog post.

"Businesses have a responsibility to respect international human rights law... We would have expected a more robust stance from Apple, a company that prides itself on being a privacy champion."

- Under pressure -

Cook maintained that the App Store in China remained stocked with VPN apps, including creations from developers outside that country.

A commercial VPN securely relays internet communications through a private channel, hiding it from locals networks and, potentially, censors.

"This wasn't a choice they really wanted to make, and I'm not sure what they could have done about it," analyst Enderle said of Apple.

"They are not doing well in China, and ticking off the leaders would certainly not help."

Apple and Chinese censors will ultimately "face a barrage of pressures" from each other and from technology users in China, US-based internet rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) said in an online post.

"If Apple makes too great a stand against China's laws, it could be thrown out of the country," Eva Galperin and Amul Kalia of the EFF said in post.

"But if China pushes its censorship system too hard, it will have to face the growing frustrations of its own elite."

They reasoned that there was hope the crackdown on VPNs in China would recede when the political climate there improves.

- Android upside? -

Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, shakes hands with Apple CEO Tim Cook, right, during a gathering of CEOs and other executives at Microsoft's main campus in 2015

There is a history of US internet stars being humbled in China.

Yahoo a decade ago wound up having to make amends after going along with Chinese officials demanding help some identifying pro-democracy advocates who used Yahoo online message boards.

Microsoft has been doing business in China for some 20 years, staying within guidelines set by the government.

Seven years ago, Google pulled its search engine out of mainland China in a rare stand against censors and for internet privacy.

"Google stood up and left, and now they aren't a power in China," Enderle said of the cost of the move.

However, the removal of VPN applications in China by Apple could ramp up the popularity of iPhone rivals powered by Google-backed Android software that lets people get apps from unofficial marketplaces.

Apple's business model which requires users to install only approved applications, ironically, makes it easier for a regime like China to exert control, analysts point out.

Galperin and Kalia of the EFF said the Apple policy "creates a single chokepoint for free expression and privacy."
Raila Odinga is Kenya's veteran opposition leader and one-time prime minister

Below are key dates since post-election violence in Kenya in 2007-2008 left more than 1,100 dead, the worst violence in the east African country since independence in 1963:

- 2007-2008: post election violence -

On December 27, 2007, outgoing president Mwai Kibaki is proclaimed winner again but his challenger Raila Odinga says the vote was rigged.

Clashes in the following weeks kill more than 1,100 people and force 600,000 from their homes, in a country that had previously been renowned for its stability.

The epicentre of the violence is the Rift Valley, pitting members of the Kalenjin and Luo ethnic communities, who mainly back Odinga, against their Kikuyu neighbours, to which Kibaki belongs.

On February 28, 2008 an internationally-brokered power-sharing agreement is signed under which Kibaki keeps his job and Odinga becomes prime minister.

In March 2010 the International Criminal Court (ICC) authorises the opening of a probe for crimes against humanity over the 2007-2008 violence.

In 2012 its judges confirm accusations against four Kenyans, including Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto.

- 2013: Uhuru Kenyatta in power -

On March 4, 2013, Kenyatta, the son of Kenya's first post-colonial leader Jomo Kenyatta, narrowly wins the first round of the presidential vote with Ruto as his running-mate.

On April 9, Kenyatta is sworn in in the presence of several African heads of state, but in the absence of western leaders. Ruto becomes vice president.

- 2014: First sitting president before the ICC -

On October 8, Kenyatta becomes the first sitting head of state to appear before the ICC. But on December 5, the Court drops its case against him, while denouncing intimidation of witnesses.

The ICC's proceedings against Ruto, also for crimes against humanity for the 2007-2008 violence, are dropped in April 2016 due to lack of evidence.

- 2015: Massacre at Garissa -

Kenya has been targeted by a spate of attacks since its military intervened in neighbouring Somalia in October 2011 to fight Al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab militants.

On September 21, 2013, gunmen storm Nairobi's Westgate mall killing at least 67 people.

And on April 2, 2015 commandos attack the university at Garissa in eastern Kenya. They separate out Muslims and non-Muslims, killing the latter. 148 are killed in the attack, including 142 students. Shabaab claims responsibility.

- 2017: Violence mounts -

On July 22, 2017, a parliamentarian is arrested for inciting violence at a meeting attended by Odinga. He had already been charged in March for encouraging the invasion of land.

The region of Laikipia, which he represents, has sees periodic invasions of farms by herders seeking pasture for their livestock, against a background of drought.

On July 30, an attack takes place at the country home of deputy president Ruto, who is away. An attacker and a police officer die during a 20-hour siege. A day later a top official overseeing Kenya's electronic voting system, Chris Msando, is found dead, his body showing signs of torture.

Many observers express concerns over violence in the districts of Laikipia and Baringo, in the Rift Valley, which forces inhabitants to flee their homes.
Twenty-three personnel were quickly rescued following a "mishap" involving the MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor, the primary assault support aircraft for the Marines, on Saturday

The US Marine Corps Sunday ended efforts to rescue three missing service members after an American military aircraft crashed during an exercise off Australia.

Following the incident involving a MV-22 Osprey -- a hybrid helicopter-turboprop with a chequered safety record -- Japan's defence minister asked Washington to temporarily stop flying them in his country.

Twenty-three personnel were quickly saved following Saturday's incident off the Australia coast.

But three marines remained missing despite an air and sea search.

"Operations have now shifted to recovery efforts. The next-of-kin for the three missing Marines have been notified," US Marines based in Japan said in a statement.

"As the sea state permits, recovery efforts will be conducted to further search, assess and survey the area, in coordination and with assistance from the Australian Defence Force."

Defence Minister Marise Payne said Sunday the Royal Australian Navy was deploying a survey ship, HMAS Melville, as well as a navy dive team to the area to help the recovery operation.

"Our thoughts are with all those affected by this tragic event and the Australian government stands ready to support the US further in any way we can," she added.

The Marines said the recovery and salvage operations could take several months to complete, while the cause of the crash was being investigated.

The MV-22, which is half-helicopter half-turboprop, has two engines positioned on fixed wingtips that allow it to land and take off vertically. It can travel much faster than a helicopter.

The Japan-based aircraft was in the region as part of the Australian-US joint military exercise Talisman Sabre, which has just ended in Queensland state.

Japan's new Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said Sunday his ministry is seeking more information on the latest accident.

"I believe there are voices of concern in Japan as clear information (about the accident) is not immediately available," Onodera told reporters.

"I wish to make a request (not to fly the aircraft) on a voluntary basis."

A squadron of Ospreys is based at the Marines' Futenma base on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa.

There have been a series of deadly incidents, mostly in the United States, involving the aircraft.

In April 2000 19 Marines were killed in an MV-22 crash in the US.

Locals on Okinawa have protested against the deployment of the MV-22 to Futenma, which is sited in the middle of a crowded city.

In December a "controlled landing" of the hybrid aircraft just off the coast during a training flight sparked local anger. The aircraft was in pieces after the incident but no one was killed.

Okinawa campaigners who want the base moved off the island say they cannot tolerate the possibility of accidents, as well as noise and crimes committed by US service members.
Trouble could soon return to the heartland of Nigeria's oil industry

Months have passed since the Niger Delta Avengers have launched an attack on Nigeria's oil pipelines, yet leaders in the region are warning trouble is brewing in the southern swamplands.

A charm offensive led by Nigeria's acting president Yemi Osinbajo has kept the uprising at bay, with renewed amnesty payments buying calm in the creeks, helping boost production to around 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) from a low of 1.4 million bpd in August last year.

But now those in the Niger delta say the fragile peace is under strain as the Nigerian government takes time to carry out reforms ranging from the construction of a maritime university to cleaning up oil spills.

"The boys are impatient and they have been disturbing me with a series of telephone calls and messages, with some of them even giving notices to disown us," Niger delta leader Edwin Clark, who has been negotiating with the Nigerian government, told AFP.

As frustration has grown, Niger delta leaders have threatened to quit the talks, a new militant group announced it will attack pipelines and oil thieves are siphoning off crude in sabotage that is dragging down production, albeit not as dramatically as bombings.

"Government announced in March there will be $10 billion of investment in the Niger Delta, but of course money is tight and it will be a while before people notice any investment, so there is bound to be pressure," said Gail Anderson, lead Nigeria analyst at energy consulting firm Wood Mackenzie.

"As long as money keeps flowing then the militants will stay quiet. If the money stops flowing then things could flare up again."

The pressure comes at a time Nigeria desperately needs oil revenue to keep its battered economy running.

Central bank governor Godwin Emefiele described Nigeria's recovery from its worst recession in over two decades as "fragile", warning the country "could relapse in a more protracted recession" if the right policies aren't put in place.

Minimising output disruptions in the Niger delta is key to growth in Nigeria, which relies on oil revenues for infrastructure investments to diversify the economy, Udoma said, explaining that "you have to use what you have to get what you want."

- New threats -

The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), a group of regional stakeholders, had issued a November 1 ultimatum, saying if its demands aren't met it will pull out of peace talks with government.

But the ultimatum was withdrawn after the group met with government representatives led by Osinbajo on Thursday.

"No more ultimatum. We agreed on many things," Clark told reporters.

"We are satisfied. We have agreed to work together..." he said.

The presidency said in a statement that long-standing grievances were being addressed, including the opening of the maritime university by next year and approval of two modular refineries for each of the states in the region.

The annual budget for ex-rebels was doubled while funds have also been approved for the clean-up of devastated Ogoniland.

Yet others are calling for an immediate end to the negotiations and a return to violence.

On Sunday, a new militant group called the Niger Delta Revolutionary Crusaders announced they would begin fresh attacks on September 31, saying that Clark and PANDEF are failing the region.

"Our grievance with government is that after the consolatory statement of the government by Professor Osinbajo, nothing is on ground to show sincerity by government," the Crusaders spokesman said in a statement

There have been a rising number of attacks on soldiers patrolling the creeks, a violent reminder of simmering tension in the oil rich but poverty-stricken south.

From April to July, five marine policemen and seven soldiers spread across the Niger delta have been killed during attacks, while at least 15 have been injured.

- Stolen crude -

The militants may have stopped their blockbuster bombings but analysts point to a recent increase in crude theft as a concerning development.

"They don't have the support of communities anymore, so you can't carry out the militant attacks, you can't bomb pipelines. So the only option is to steal and we're seeing a resurgence of that," said Ecobank oil analyst Dolapo Oni.

"We're just going to see more of the oil thieves trying to break into the pipelines."

Last week, Shell shut its Trans Niger pipeline because of a "leak" -- the preferred euphemism in Nigeria for theft.

But for the cash-strapped Nigerian government, this smaller kind of sabotage is the lessor of two evils, said Oni.

"We're relatively ok," he said, "there is still no threat of any major disruptions."
It will be the first eviction in the neighbourhood since 2009, according to Israeli anti-occupation group Peace Now

Fahamiya Shamasneh, a 75-year-old Palestinian woman, refuses to pack her things despite a looming deadline for evacuating the home she has lived in for more than 50 years.

Israel's supreme court has ruled the family have until Wednesday to vacate the house in annexed east Jerusalem.

The family's supporters have no doubt the house will be handed over to Jewish Israelis, as part of a wider plan to boost Jewish settlements in the predominantly Palestinian neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

It will be the first eviction in the neighbourhood since 2009, according to Israeli anti-occupation group Peace Now, and has become part of a fight over the disputed status of Jerusalem.

Israel sees the city as its undivided capital, while the Palestinians want the eastern sector as their future capital.

Fahamiya, her sick husband Ayoub, 84, their son and his family have until August 9 to voluntarily leave the cramped,50-square-metre (540-sq-foot) basement of their building or be forced out.

"Fifty-three years here means leaving is not easy -- it is a lifetime. I was a young girl when I came to this house," said Fahamiya.

"The police are threatening us. We don't know what to do," she said, adding they had not found anywhere else to go.

Under a decades-old Israeli law, if Jews can prove their families lived in east Jerusalem homes before the 1948 war that led to the creation of Israel, they can demand that Israel's general custodian office release the property and return their "ownership rights".

During the war, thousands of Jews fled Jerusalem as Jordanian-led Arab forces seized the city, while hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled from land that was later to become Israel.

No such law exists for Palestinians who lost their land.

Israel occupied east Jerusalem in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

Around 200,000 Israeli Jews now live in east Jerusalem in settlement homes considered illegal under international law.

Israel's supreme court has ruled the Shamasneh family have until August 9 to vacate the house in annexed east Jerusalem

The Shamasneh family says it has paid 250 shekels ($70) a month to the general custodian since 1967, an arrangement used by the pro-settlers' side as proof that the family recognised their status as tenants.

In 2009, the original heirs along with the general custodian launched a legal process to force the family out, but the claimants later sold their rights to a US-registered company, according to Peace Now.

The NGO says such companies are often used to make it unclear exactly who is behind the push to evict people, a highly-charged political act.

Arye King, director at the Israel Land Fund and a de facto spokesman for much Jewish settlement growth in Jerusalem, denied any legal misconduct.

"This house is not changing hands -- it has belonged to Jews for about 90 years and it is returning to the owners after some people rented it," he told AFP.

In 2013, Israel's high court rejected an appeal by the family in favour of the claimants, concluding the family were not protected tenants.

-'Jewish neighbourhood'-

A spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas condemned the planned eviction.

Fahamiya said they had been told to leave peacefully or they would have to pay the cost of the eviction, about 60-70,000 shekels ($16-19,000).

A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas condemned the planned eviction

"We will not leave of our own will. Maybe if they force us, carry us and throw us on the streets, then well go. But for us to lock the door and tell them `here are the keys, thats impossible," she said.

Peace Now says the house is part of a "larger process the government is undertaking of establishing settlements in Sheikh Jarrah".

King, who does not dispute that, said the district is "going back to being a Jewish neighbourhood".

"It is happening slowly, slowly but thank God we are succeeding in returning Jews to the place they ran away (from) when the Jordanian legions bombed their houses," he told AFP.

Fahamiya laughs at the idea of Jewish heirs, saying she lived there for decades without any mention of any legal owners.
It's been synonymous with political power for most of the 70-years since independence.

But India's Congress party and its controlling Nehru-Gandhi dynasty hit a new low on Saturday with a shattering defeat in the vice-presidential election.

The nominee of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his ruling nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) crushed the Congress-backed candidate in the parliamentary ballot, meaning the party occupies the top three offices of state for the first time.

The crisis for Congress has raised fresh questions about the party's top leadership - especially 47-year-old Rahul Gandhi, great grandson of India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru

It heightened a crisis for Congress and raised fresh questions about the party's top leadership - especially 47-year-old Rahul Gandhi, great grandson of India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

Gandhi led the campaign in the disastrous 2014 general election which saw Congress win just 44 seats - an historic low. The party went on to defeat-after-defeat in state elections.

'The Congress faces two existential crises - lack of leadership and the absence of an aspirational, coherent vision for the future,' Milan Vaishnav, South Asia director at Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace think-tank, told AFP.

The defeat has thrown Congress, which has had a stronghold on power in Indian politics for the past seven decades, into crisis

'What is stunning is that the 2014 general election result exposed both of these infirmities, yet the party has made little to no progress remedying them. If current trends continue, the Congress risks terminal decline,' Vaishnav added.

While still short of an outright majority, the BJP last week snatched Congress' mantle as the largest party in the upper house, the Rajya Sabha, after almost six decades.

A favourable vice-president could also bolster Modi's legislative agenda as the vice president doubles as chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

The centre-left Congress has ruled India for more than 50 of the past 70 years, most of them with Nehru and his descendants at the helm.

Congress Party supporters have staged angry nationwide protests, blaming supporters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for pelting stones at the car of its leader Rahul Gandhi

Since Nehru, his daughter Indira Gandhi and grandson Rajiv Gandhi have been prime minister.

But the so-called 'natural-born leaders' have looked like political outsiders since the 2014 electoral drubbing.

Party number two to his Italian-born mother Sonia Gandhi, 70 - widow of the assassinated Rajiv - Rahul has suffered a string of key local election defeats including in the bellwether state of Uttar Pradesh in March.

'Today, unlike the past, the family needs the party more than the party needs the family,' R. Jagannathan, a Mumbai-based political commentator and editorial director of Swarajya, told news agency AFP.

Rahul Gandhi was attacked while on a tour of flood-affected areas of Gujarat last week

'I think that Gandhi name is past its sell-by date. His mother at least had AN interest (in politics), Rahul doesn't seem interested... he is unsuitable for leadership,' Jagannathan added.

Rahul Gandhi made an unsuccessful attempt to mediate between regional allies in a dispute that led to Bihar state falling to the BJP last month, and the loyalty he commands within the party is open to doubt.

Jagannathan suggested the once-dominant family should make way for 'real grassroot leaders,' but Sadanand Dhume of the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute, said a change in leadership would be problematic.

The nominee of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his ruling nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) crushed the Congress-backed candidate in the parliamentary ballot

'In theory it makes sense to suggest that Congress should outgrow its reliance on the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. In reality, the family is all that holds the party together. Take it out and Congress collapses like a proverbial house of cards,' Dhume said.

Rahul's younger sister Priyanka, who many see as an alternative leader, is hampered by a controversy over her husband's property dealings, and has so far refused to take a more prominent role.

With the opposition in disarray, the BJP and its allies now rule 18 of India's 29 states, and look set for more gains in the upper house.

'The Rajya Sabha is effectively the only real political check on Modi's power. Once the BJP gains control, Modi will be free to pursue an expansive legislative agenda on a range of issues,' Dhume said.

In the current opposition vacuum, even one-time Modi challengers like Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar now say Modi's victory in the 2019 national election is a foregone conclusion.
All eyes will be on US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's one-on-one talks with his Chinese and Russian counterparts

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson sought to build pressure on North Korea after securing a new round of United Nations sanctions as he launched into two days of high-level diplomacy Sunday.

Tillerson is in Manila for a meeting of the 10-nation ASEAN regional bloc, but all eyes will be on his one-on-one talks with his counterparts from Washington's great power rivals, Russia and China.

He will also for the first time be in the same room as North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Hong-Yo, who defied US attempts to isolate Pyongyang to attend the ASEAN regional forum.

Ahead of Sunday's talks, Tillerson visited the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial to pay tribute to more than 17,000 US and Filipino servicemen who died fighting as allies during World War II.

After that he and his senior aides sat down first with Myanmar's minister of state for foreign affairs, Kyaw Tin, then with South Korea's Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-Wha.

Tillerson told reporters that he and Kang would be discussing the next steps to take on North Korea. He would not go into detail, but said the sanctions vote had been a "good outcome."

Kang chimed in: "It was a very, very good outcome."

Tillerson was later expected to see Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and China's Wang Yi -- both key players in the North Korean nuclear standoff.

ASEAN Regional Forum

The State Department has previously ruled out holding any direct talks with North Korea's envoy Ri during Tillerson's stay in Manila.

Just hours before the meetings were due to start, the UN Security Council voted unanimously to back a US-drafted resolution to dramatically tighten the existing sanctions targeting North Korea.

The vote marked a victory for US moves to force the North to halt its development of a nuclear-armed missile that could threaten US cities, and took some pressure off Tillerson before his Manila meetings.

But the US envoy still wants to ensure that China, in particular, is ready to rigorously enforce the new trade bans and that Russia remains committed to the embargo despite other differences with Washington.

Having failed to persuade its Southeast Asian allies not to invite Pyongyang to the forum, US officials also want to use the platform to remind Kim Jong-Un's regime of its diplomatic isolation.
A Pakistani policeman (R) stands beside arrested members of a village council who ordered the rape of a teenage girl as punishment for a rape committed by her brother

The rape of a teenage girl in revenge for a crime committed by her brother has left residents of Raja Ram in central Pakistan shaken and questioning a deeply entrenched system of village justice.

Last month, a council of village elders ordered the rape of the 16-year-old victim after her brother was accused of raping a 12-year-old girl.

The ruling highlighted the role such councils -- known as panchayats, or jirgas -- play in the lives of many rural Pakistanis, who see the country's courtrooms as a distant presence.

The councils have traditionally enjoyed broad support, thanks to their ability to offer immediate justice, compared to courts that can take years to settle a criminal case, and as much as a decade to resolve a civil dispute.

But the recent ruling, which allowed a rape victim's brother to sexually assault another innocent girl, has unsettled Raja Ram, home to some 3,000 people.

"May God have mercy, it was such a strange day and it was such a big injustice," said villager Amina Bibi.

"In our area there is neither a school nor a hospital, and poverty and ignorance rules here... This incident is a mark of this ignorance," said 46-year-old Imtiaz Matila.

The rape of a teenage girl in revenge for a crime committed by her brother has shaken the residents of Raja Ram in central Pakistan

"It's a stain on the name of the panchayat," agreed another villager, 65-year-old Manzoor Hussain.

The girls have since been taken to a women's shelter in conservative Multan, Pakistan's fifth-largest city.

Raja Ram is just a few kilometres down the road, but feels a world away away from urban life.

Men sit around on charpoys, sheltering from the blistering heat, while women are conspicuous only by their absence, shielded from view behind the rough stone walls that surround each of the crudely built, single-storey houses.

- 'Nothing more dishonourable' -

Central Punjab is also home to one of Pakistan's most prominent advocates for women's rights -- Mukhtar Mai, whose own story offers a window into jirga justice and its brutal mistreatment of women.

In 2002, a jirga ordered Mai to be gang-raped after her brother was falsely accused of rape.

Mai, who lives a few hours north of Multan, made the unusual decision to defy her rapists and take them to court.

But in one of South Asia's most infamous miscarriages of justice, her attackers walked free, and people continued to rely on panchayats, even as she went on to become a high-profile activist.

"It's an honour-based system and there's nothing more dishonourable than the rape of a woman within your family," explained women's rights activist Aisha Sarwari.

The men of the aggressor's family must be shamed through the loss of their women's dignity, Sarwari explained.

"That's the balance of power in these communities, which makes sure that women are some kind of collateral."

- 'Jirga law' -

The Supreme Court, trying to bring jirgas to heel, declared them illegal in 2006.

But in an apparent backtrack this year aimed at unclogging the slow-moving court system, the government passed a new law that promotes village councils as an alternative solution to small civil disputes.

The decision, dubbed the "Jirga Law" by activists, has raised concerns about women's rights, given the precedents set by the panchayats.

"The decisions of the jirgas have always had a negative impact on the lives of women," said women's rights activist Samar Minallah.

The new law does not suggest penalties for decisions like the one made by the council in Raja Ram, added Minallah, who brought the original 2006 anti-jirga petition to the Supreme Court.

But the uproar surrounding the rapes at Raja Ram has spurred the court to demand a full investigation.

Despite her concerns, Minallah is confident that the court will "step in at one stage or another to remind the state that these jirgas are against the constitution and humanity".

Whatever the court decides, for some in Raja Ram at least, faith in the traditional system has been shaken.

"There used to be wise people in the old days who were making good panchayat decisions," recalled resident Matila.

"They used to know the realities of the village... but now, these are the panchayat," he said, dismissively.
Tech giants Apple and Amazon, too, have moved to limit their customers' access to VPNs in China in what has been seen as a voluntary move to get ahead of the impending crackdown

Enterprising internet users in China fear the tools they use to tunnel through the country's "Great Firewall" may soon disappear, as Beijing tightens its grip on the web.

Tens of millions of people are estimated to use Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to bypass Chinese internet restrictions -- getting access to blocked websites such as Facebook and Twitter.

Beijing has for years turned a blind eye to these holes in its Great Firewall, but recent events suggest the virtual tunnels may soon be bricked up.

In January China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) announced it would be banning the use of unlicensed providers of the services.

In the months since the rule's announcement, rumours have swirled that a crackdown was coming, but there was little clarity on what exactly the rule meant and how, or even if, it would be implemented.

In the past few weeks, however, omens of significant tightening seem to be everywhere.

Several luxury hotels in Beijing have said they will stop using the tools, which once provided unfiltered Internet as a convenience to their customers.

On Thursday, a cloud service provider in the capital notified users that it would practise shutting down and reporting VPN providers on the orders of Beijing's Public Security bureau.

Tech giants Apple and Amazon, too, have moved to limit their customers' access to the tools in China in what has been seen as a voluntary move to get ahead of the impending crackdown.

On Sunday, Apple said it was removing a number of the programs from its app store, while Amazon's Chinese partner said that customers would no longer be allowed to use "illegal" VPNs on its cloud service.

"There have been many rounds of government murmurings about VPN crackdowns, and foreign and Chinese businesses had grown used to only minor or temporary restrictions," said Graham Webster, a senior researcher scholar at Yale Law School.

But "this time appears different."

-- 'You cannot lock the heart' --

For now, however, it still remains unclear who will be able to access VPNs and under what circumstances, a situation that has left both companies and regular users on tenterhooks.

Ordinary people have reacted to the new rules with a mixture of annoyance and quiet defiance.

"You've blocked the last way to watch US TV dramas, as well as my Facebook friends!" one user of China's Twitter-like Weibo platform said after the Apple announcement.

"You can lock my cellphone, but you cannot lock my heart."

Firms are casting around for information about the developments and have expressed alarm at the potential impact on the way they do business.

In a statement, the European Chamber of Commerce told AFP it "has not seen any updated official document concerning restrictions on VPN use by companies," adding that in a recent survey of its members almost half expressed concern that the "continued strengthening of measures to tighten Internet control and access are having an even bigger negative impact on their companies".

"Our members' success depends on instantaneous access to information worldwide, and the ability to freely communicate with affiliates, suppliers and customers around the world," William Zarit, Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China said in a statement to AFP.

"Recent regulatory developments, including limiting VPN use, have created uncertainty for cross-border data communication."

Apple has come under fire for bowing to the rules, but in an earnings call Tuesday CEO Tim Cook said the firm had to follow local laws.

He said Apple was "hopeful that over time the restrictions we're seeing are lessened, because innovation really requires freedom to collaborate and communicate".

-- 'Tighten Internet control' --

Analysts said that Beijing was likely not looking to choke off VPNS completely, but was instead seeking to control them more tightly.

James Gong, an expert on Chinese cyber law at Herbert Smith Freehills, said that the regulations are not targeted at companies.

The government can "shut things down, but that's not their purpose," he said.

Instead "they want to drive all the traffic through the network operators so all of the connections will be transparent to them".

Paul Triolo, head of global technology at the Eurasia Group, said he believes that the ultimate goal is not to cut off all VPNs but to "get visibility on (their) use so that they know what is going in and out and can turn off selectively if they want to or need to".

In a statement to AFP last month, MIIT explained that under the new rules, companies will only be allowed to rent VPN services from "telecommunications operators that have set up an international communications entry and exit office in accordance with the law".

Previously released MIIT regulations state that only state-owned telecoms can set up the offices, effectively guaranteeing that all licensed VPNs are operated by the state.

A representative from state-owned telecom China Unicom confirmed to AFP that it was legally allowed to rent VPN services to businesses, as long as they provide proof of registration in China.

"It's highly unlikely that all VPN access would be eliminated," Yale's Webster said, but added in the future the software might be increasingly "expensive and government-controlled".
Tensions over the South China Sea have long vexed ASEAN, which has had to balance the interests of rival claimants and those members more aligned to China

Southeast Asian nations feuded Sunday over how to respond to Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea, with Vietnam insisting on a tough stance but Cambodia lobbying hard for Beijing, diplomats said.

The debates among foreign ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at a security forum in the Philippines were the latest in years of struggles to deal with competing claims to the strategically vital sea.

The ministers failed to release a customary joint statement after meeting on Saturday because of their differences on the sea issue, and follow-up negotiations on Sunday did not end the stand-off, two diplomats involved in the talks told AFP.

"There's still no consensus," one of the diplomats said, adding the disagreements over the wordings on the sea issue were holding up the release of the communique.

"Vietnam is adamant, and China is effectively using Cambodia to champion its interests. But the Philippines is trying very hard to broker compromise language."

Vietnam had insisted that tough language be inserted into the statement expressing concern over "land reclamation", a reference to an explosion in recent years of Chinese artificial island building in contested parts of the waters.

Cambodia, one of China's strongest allies within ASEAN, has firmly resisted, according to the diplomats involved in the talks in Manila, as well as an excerpt of proposed Cambodian resolution obtained by AFP on Sunday.

China claims nearly all of the sea, through which $5 trillion in annual shipping trade passes, and its artificial islands have raised concerns it could eventually build military bases there and establish de facto control over the waters.

Its sweeping claims overlap with those of ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.

- No consensus -

Tensions over the sea have long vexed ASEAN, which operates on a consensus basis but has had to balance the interests of rival claimants and those more aligned to China.

Critics of China have accused it of trying to divide ASEAN with strong-armed tactics and chequebook diplomacy, enticing smaller countries in the bloc such as Cambodia and Laos to support it.

The Philippines, under previous president Benigno Aquino, had been one of the most vocal critics of China and filed a case before a UN-backed tribunal.

The tribunal last year ruled China's sweeping claims to the sea had no legal basis.

But China, despite being a signatory to the UN's Convention on the Law of the Sea, ignored the ruling.

The Philippines, under new President Rodrigo Duterte, decided to play down the verdict in favour of pursuing warmer ties with Beijing. This in turn led to offers of billions of dollars in investments or aid from China.

"It's clear that China's pressure on individual ASEAN governments has paid off with few prepared even to reiterate statements that they have made many times before," Bill Hayton, a South China Sea expert and associate fellow with the Asia Programme at Chatham House in London, told AFP.

"Beijing's task has been made easier because the Philippines holds the (ASEAN) chair this year."

The ASEAN foreign ministers and their Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on Sunday adopted a framework for negotiating a code of conduct to defuse tensions in the sea.

Wang hailed this as a breakthrough.

But analysts cautioned not to place too much significance on the agreement on a framework, pointing out it came 15 years after a similar document was signed committing the parties to negotiating a code of conduct.

Philippine foreign ministry spokesman Robespierre Bolivar told reporters the ASEAN joint statement would be released by the time meetings with foreign ministers from other Asia-Pacific nations wrapped up in Manila on Tuesday.

But one diplomat involved in the talks told AFP that Vietnam and Cambodia were holding firm on Sunday.

"The atmosphere is still very tense due to the strong national interests of Vietnam and Cambodia," the diplomat said.
In this file picture, a Syrian army soldier takes aim from a position on the outskirts of Syria's Raqa region on February 19, 2016

Syrian government troops advanced overnight against the Islamic State group in the country's north and centre, drawing closer to the key battleground of Deir Ezzor, a monitor said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said the army had made "significant progress" south of Raqa city.

"There is now just four kilometres between regime forces and the town of Madan, which is the last town controlled by IS in the Raqa countryside," the Observatory said.

Madan lies next to the border between Raqa province and Deir Ezzor, an eastern province that is mostly held by IS.

Jihadists have besieged government forces and civilians inside the provincial capital Deir Ezzor city since 2015.

Syrian loyalist troops are battling IS in the south of Raqa province separately from an offensive by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, a militia that is fighting the jihadists inside Raqa city.

The regime is also fighting IS in central Homs province, where overnight they captured the last jihadist-held town in the area, the Observatory said.

The capture of Al-Sukhna opens the route for government troops to advance towards Deir Ezzor on a second axis.

There was no official confirmation of Sukhna's capture from Syria's government.

State news agency SANA said the army had surrounded the town from three sides.

Since May, Syria's army has been conducting a broad military campaign with Russian support to recapture the vast Badia desert region that separates the capital Damascus from Deir Ezzor.

The Observatory said at least 64 IS fighters were killed in clashes with the regime and air strikes across the Badia region on Saturday.

Among the dead were 30 killed in the fight for Al-Sukhna, the monitor said.

Already defeated in its Iraqi bastion of Mosul, IS is facing multiple assaults in Syria.

The SDF now control more than half of Raqa city, a key IS stronghold.
Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaratne celebrates after scoring a century on the fourth day of their second Test match against India, at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) Ground in Colombo, on August 6, 2017

Ravindra Jadeja claimed a five-wicket haul as India crushed Sri Lanka by an innings and 53 runs on day four of the second Test to clinch the series in Colombo on Sunday.

Left-arm spinner Jadeja claimed the big wicket of overnight batsman Dimuth Karunaratne for 141 to end Sri Lanka's resistance and second innings on 386.

The Indian bowlers completed the task in 116.5 overs to wrap up the game in the second session for an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

Jadeja received the man of the match award for his seven-wicket haul and an unbeaten 70-run knock in India's formidable first innings total of 622-9 declared.

Sri Lanka earlier handed India the advantage after being dismissed for 183 in their first innings, conceding a 439-run lead.

The hosts fought back during their follow-on through a defiant 191-run second-wicket partnership between the left-handed Karunaratne and Kusal Mendis, who fell for 110 before stumps on day three.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli kept rotating his bowlers at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground to keep the batsmen on their toes, and the strategy paid off.

"Today we said even if we don't get wickets early on we are going to enjoy these tough times as well, because they really improve you as a side," said Kohli, who became the only Indian captain to win two Test series in Sri Lanka.

"Success will come your way but you need patience. Very happy that we went through the difficult phases as well and you never get complacent as a side then."

The hosts, who resumed the day on 209-2, lost two wickets in the morning session, including that of skipper Dinesh Chandimal for two. The batsman was caught at slip off Jadeja's left-arm spin.

Karunaratne kept up the fight during his 69-run fifth-wicket stand with former captain Angelo Mathews, who made a gritty 36 from 66 balls before being caught behind off Jadeja.

Ravichandran Ashwin, who took five wickets in the first innings, and pacemen Hardik Pandya shared two wickets each.

The Indian batsmen had set up the victory with Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane hitting fine centuries.

Pujara, who top-scored with 133, and Rahane, who made 132, put together a 217-run stand after the tourists elected to bat first.

"Actually we were outplayed in the first innings with the bat and ball both. Credit goes to them, they batted brilliantly in the first innings and put us under huge pressure," said Chandimal.

"As a unit we fought back well and I am really happy how the boys played in the second innings. We just want to take the positives out of this game and are looking forward to next one," he added.

The final Test will begin in Pallekele on August 12.
Super Typhoon Noru is seen from the International Space Station over the north-western Pacific Ocean, on August 1, 2017

Strong typhoon Noru brought heavy rain and strong winds to southwest Japan, killing two people, local officials said on Sunday as they warned of landslides and floods.

A man in his 60s on the remote island of Yakushima died Saturday after strong gusts made him fall hard and hit his head, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said.

A man in his 80s on neighbouring Tanegashima island drowned Saturday after he went to check on his boat and was swept into the water, according to the agency and the Kagoshima prefecture government.

As of 3:00 pm (0600 GMT) Sunday, Noru was located just off the main southern island of Kyushu, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Noru, with gusts up to 162 kilometres (100 miles) per hour, was slowly moving northeast and was on course to make landfall in southwest Japan, possibly at Shikoku island, by early Monday.

The agency warned of possible landslides, floods, heavy rain, strong winds and high waves in the southwest.

"Because the typhoon is moving very slowly, some areas are facing increased risk of landslides and other disasters," it said.
A 39-year-old man, named by his lawyer as Khaled Merhi, was among four arrested during raids across Sydney last Saturday, which also led to tightened security at all major Australian airports

Australian police Sunday released a second man arrested during counter-terrorism raids, days after two others were charged with terrorism offences over an alleged plot to bring down a plane.

The 39-year-old man, named by his lawyer as Khaled Merhi, was among the four arrested during raids across Sydney last Saturday, which also led to tightened security at all major Australian airports.

"This investigation remains ongoing," Australian Federal Police and New South Wales state police said in a statement.

"A 39-year-old man, detained in relation to allegations regarding a potential terrorist attack, has been charged with one count of possession of prohibited weapon and released from police custody."

Merhi, whose detention by police had been extended by a magistrate, was due to be released Sunday if he was not charged. He is set to appear in court on the prohibited weapon charge on August 24.

Two other men -- Khaled Khayat, 49, and Mahmoud Khayat, 32 -- were charged with terrorism offences and refused bail Friday.

Another man, 50-year-old Abdul Merhi, was released without charge Wednesday.

Australian police alleged Friday that as part of the plans, a senior Islamic State commander directed a group of Australian men to build a bomb destined for an Etihad Airways flight out of Sydney.

The improvised explosive device was due to be smuggled onto the July 15 service, but the attempt was aborted before they reached security.

Police said they had also foiled a second alleged plot involving a "chemical dispersion device", designed to release hydrogen sulphide, but this was in the early stages.

The second plan was hatched after the first one failed, police said, and was not necessarily targeted at a plane.

Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Michael Phelan had described the plans as "one of the most sophisticated plots that has ever been attempted on Australian soil".

Khaled Khayat and Mahmoud Khayat face life imprisonment if convicted, with their case back in court on November 14.
A Palestinian man works at a metal workshop during the few hours of electricity supply the residents of the Gaza Strip receive per day, on July 11, 2017

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has pledged to increase sanctions on the Gaza Strip, drawing a fresh attack from its Hamas rulers.

Abbas, the leader of the internationally-recognised Palestinian government based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has been seeking to weaken Islamists Hamas by cutting power supplies to crowded Gaza.

On Saturday, he said he would continue with sanctions on the coastal strip, despite UN concerns that it amounts to collective punishment of its two million residents.

"We will continue the gradual stopping of financial allocations to the Gaza Strip until Hamas commits to reconciliation" with the Abbas administration, the president said.

"Since the coup, we have paid a billion and a half dollars to the Gaza Strip," Abbas said, referring to the 2007 overthrow of his Fatah movement by Hamas in Gaza.

"We will not allow this to continue," the WAFA official Palestinian news agency reported him as saying in Arabic.

"Either things will go as they are meant to be, or we will continue to reduce these funds," he said, accusing Hamas of stealing some of the funds.

The Islamist group responded late Saturday in a statement: "Attacking Hamas and threatening the people of Gaza with more sanctions is a blow to reconciliation efforts."

It accused Abbas's Palestinian Authority of working with Israel to isolate Gaza and bring suffering to its people.

Both sides have previously committed to reconciliation, but repeated attempts have failed.

The Palestinian Authority had been paying for some electricity to be delivered to Gaza since 2007, but in recent months has reduced the amount.

Gazans now receive only a couple of hours of electricity a day, delivered from the territory's own power station and others in Israel and Egypt.

The Palestinian Authority has also cut stipends to its former Gaza staff forced out of office by Hamas, in a move analysts see as seeking to sow discontent in the enclave.
Afghan security arrive at the site of a suicide blast last month: intelligence officials say they have found a huge cache of explosives in Kabul

Afghan intelligence officials said Sunday they seized a truck in Kabul carrying more than 16 tonnes of explosives hidden in boxes marked as poultry feed, months after a truck bomb killed about 150 people.

The truck, with Pakistani license plates, was seized in District 9 of the capital, the National Directorate of Security said in a statement, adding that five people were arrested.

"It was loaded with explosives to make bombs, suicide vests and conduct terrorist activities in Kabul," the statement said, adding that 16,500 kg of explosives was seized.

On May 31 a massive truck bomb ripped through the Afghan capital's diplomatic quarter during the morning rush hour, killing about 150 and wounding around 400 people, mostly civilians.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack that was caused by over 1,500 kg of explosives hidden in a sewage truck, according to Western officials.

Taliban militants rarely claim responsibility for attacks that kill large numbers of civilians.

The militants have intensified their attacks since they launched their "spring offensive" in late April, with civilians bearing the brunt of the conflict.

According to UN figures, more than 26,500 civilians have died and nearly 49,000 have been injured as a result of armed conflict in Afghanistan since January 2009.
Tunisian fishermen gather on August 6, 2017 in the port of Zarzis in southeastern Tunisia to protest against a possible berthing of the C-Star vessel

Fishermen at a Tunisian port on Sunday prevented a ship carrying far-right anti-immigration activists from docking, dealing a fresh blow to a controversial mission aimed at disrupting the flow of migrant boats from north Africa to Europe.

Faced with the prospect of being blocked by the fishermen in Zarzis, the ship, the C-Star, moved up the Tunisian coast, and was expected by opponents tracking its path to try to land at either Sfax or Gabes on Monday.

Chartered by extremist group "Generation Identity", the C-Star passed through waters off Libya on Saturday.

It briefly tailed the Aquarius, operated by French group SOS Mediterranee, one of several NGO boats conducting search and rescue operations in an area notorious for deadly migrant boat sinkings.

Having left Cyprus on August 1, the 40-metre (130-foot) C-Star needs to land in Tunisia for supplies but appeared to have been caught off guard by the strength of opposition among local fishermen, as well as rights groups.

"If they come here we'll close the refuelling channel," Chamseddine Bourassine, the head of the local fishermen's organisation, told AFP.

"It is the least we can do given what is happening out in the Mediterranean," he added.

"Muslims and Africans are dying."

An official at the port, who asked to remain anonymous, said: "What? Us let in racists here? Never!"

- 10,000 dead -

Migrants are still risking their lives attempting the perilous Mediterranean crossing from north Africa to Europe

The C-Star headed straight from Cyprus to Libyan waters after being discouraged from attempting to dock en route in Greece and Sicily, with authorities concerned about the prospect of protests.

The self-styled "Defend Europe" mission has not got off to the best of starts.

Their boat was held up for a week in the Suez Canal by Egyptian authorities looking for weapons.

Then, after it landed in the Cypriot port of Famagusta last month, several of its crew jumped ship and asked for asylum in Europe -- exactly the kind of thing the mission was set up to prevent.

The C-Star crew say their main goal is to expose collaboration between NGO rescue ships and the traffickers who launch boats from Libya packed with migrants.

Humanitarian groups say Generation Identity is engaged in a publicity stunt and that any attempt to turn migrant boats back to Libya would be potentially very dangerous and illegal under international law.

Since the start of 2014, some 600,000 people from Africa, the Middle East and South Asia have been rescued from traffickers' boats and taken to Italy.

Over 10,000 have died en route and serial sinkings have resulted in privately funded or charity-run boats joining a multinational search and rescue operation coordinated by Italy's coastguard.

NGO boats have rescued around one third of the nearly 100,000 people picked up this year, but their relations with Italy have become strained as pressure to stem the flow of migrants has mounted.

- Squalid camps -

Critics say the NGOs make it too easy for the traffickers to guarantee would-be migrants safe passage to Europe, allegedly fuelling the lucrative trade.

Italian authorities last week impounded one NGO boat, the Iuventa, which is operated by German association Jugend Rettet.

They accused its crew of being in direct contact with traffickers to organise pick-ups of boatloads of migrants from locations very close to the Libyan coast.

On Sunday, the Aquarius was on hand to help as an Italian coastguard patrol boat rescued around 100 people from a distressed dinghy.

The number of such rescues in international waters has fallen sharply over the last five weeks to under half the level of the same period last year.

Italian officials are cautiously optimistic that this reflects a breakthrough in their efforts to strengthen the Libyan coastguard's capacity to combat traffickers.

The Libyan navy told AFP that the coastguard, which has received training and new equipment from Rome, had intercepted six trafficker boats carrying a total of 1,015 people since Thursday.

Rights organisations have voiced concern over the focus on sending boats back to Libya, where migrants who fail to get to Europe often end up in detention in squalid camps where they risk torture, sexual violence and forced labour.

Italian officials defend the strategy as the only way to end a humanitarian crisis that is threatening to overwhelm the country's asylum system.

The crisis has also caused strains in Rome's relations with its EU neighbours, who have blocked migrants landing in Italy from travelling further north.
Iranian soldiers march during a parade marking the country's Army Day on April 18, 2017 in Tehran

At least four soldiers were killed and eight injured when one of their colleagues opened fire on a military air base in southern Tehran on Sunday, the Iranian military said in a statement.

The incident was "probably related to psychological problems of the soldier who suddenly started firing on his comrades," the statement said.

It took place on a shooting range, and could also have been the result of a gun misfiring, the statement added.

"The injured were transported to a medical centre and an investigation has been opened," it said.

State television reported a similar incident last month when a serviceman opened fire at a barracks in Abyek, around 40 kilometres northwest of Tehran, killing three and injuring six.

The gunman in that incident, who had reportedly been denied a transfer to his home town, shot himself but survived his injuries, according to the ISNA news agency.

Military service of two years is mandatory for Iranian men when they turn 19.
A Yemeni child suspected of being infected with cholera is checked by a doctor at a makeshift hospital operated by Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Yemen's Hajjah province , on July 16, 2017

Saudi Arabia has pledged $33.7 million to help the World Health Organization eradicate cholera in war-wracked Yemen, where the disease has killed nearly 2,000 people, the WHO said on Sunday.

Gregory Hartl, a spokesman for the organisation, confirmed that Saudi Arabia, which leads an Arab coalition battling rebels in Yemen, had signed an agreement committing the funds to help the WHO battle the spread of cholera.

The oil-rich Gulf kingdom, in a statement on Thursday, said the money committed to WHO was part of an overall effort to combat the cholera outbreak in Yemen.

Riyadh said it also pledged $33 million to the UN's children agency, UNICEF, for a project to improve water and sanitation facilities which are "drivers of the epidemic".

The Saudi aid was initially announced in June by Crown Prime Mohammed bin Salman.

Last week the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, also pledged $10 million to help the WHO stem the spread of cholera in Yemen.

The United Arab Emirates is a key member of the Saudi-led coalition that entered Yemen's conflict in 2015 on the side of the government against Iran-backed Shiite Huthi rebels.

Since then, the war in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula nation has killed more than 8,000 people, according to WHO figures.

The cholera outbreak has already claimed the lives of at least 1,915 people since April this year, with 436,000 suspected cases across the country.

A report by three UN agencies last week said the vicious combination of war, cholera and hunger has left 80 percent of Yemeni children in desperate need of aid.

It also warned that the number of cholera cases was expected to reach 600,000 by the end of the year.

The report was issued after executive directors of WHO, UNICEF and the World Food Programme visited Yemen to assess the situation.
A suicide bomb attack in the far north of Cameroon killed eight people, local officials and security sources said

A suicide bomb attack in the far north of Cameroon killed eight people, local officials and security sources said Sunday.

The attack happened on Saturday evening at the village of Ouro-Kessoum, two kilometres from the Nigerian border, said the head of a local security committee who asked to remain anonymous.

"There were eight killed and four wounded," in addition to the suicide bomber, he added

The attack and the toll were both confirmed to AFP by a security source in the region. The injured had been evacuated to Mora, the district capital, the source added.

The village lies in a region where Boko Haram jihadists carry out frequent attacks, to the point that some local villages have emptied of their residents.

In mid-July a double suicide attack killed 15 people in the town of Wasa, slightly further north and near the border with Nigeria.

The attack was part of a surge of jihadist violence in the region in recent weeks.
Migrants intercepted by the Libyan coastguard wait at a migration detention facility in the capital Tripoli on August 6, 2017

Libya's coastguard intercepted 137 migrants including five women and three children on Sunday as they attempted to reach Europe, a migration official told AFP.

Amine al-Boussefi, head of a government agency in Tripoli tackling clandestine migration, said "137 migrants were successfully rescued by the coastguard... then handed over to us".

The migrants, from several African countries, were aboard an inflatable boat intercepted Sunday morning around 40 kilometres (23 miles) north of Sayyad, a seaside village west of Tripoli, navy spokesman General Ayoub Qassem said.

The migrants were taken to a navy base in the capital where the Libyan authorities gave them food, water and medical treatment, an AFP photographer said.

They were then transferred by bus to the eastern Tripoli suburb of Tajoura and handed over to the anti-migration agency.

The AFP photographer saw dozens of migrants gathered in a courtyard there, sitting on the ground under the blazing sun as they waited to be put in detention centres.

Six years since a revolution that toppled dictator Moamer Kadhafi, Libya has become a key departure point for migrants risking their lives to cross the Mediterranean to Europe.

Hailing mainly from sub-Saharan countries, most board boats operated by people traffickers in the country's west, heading for the Italian island of Lampedusa 300 kilometres (190 miles) away.

More than 111,000 migrants have reached Europe by sea so far this year, the vast majority of them arriving in Italy, according to the latest figures from the International Organization for Migration.

Over 2,300 have died attempting the crossing.
A picture shows South Sudanese refugees at a UN camp in al-Waral, in Sudan's White Nile state in May 2017

Sudan is planning to split a camp housing tens of thousands of South Sudanese refugees into three separate units after a wave of violence, a minister said Sunday.

A group of youths went on a rampage this week at the Al Waral camp in Sudan's southern White Nile state -- the country's biggest camp, which houses more than 50,000 South Sudanese refugees.

They burned down administrative buildings and looted warehouses, UN refugee agency UNHCR said.

The violence started Tuesday after reports that a refugee youth had died in police custody, the agency said in a statement on Sunday.

At least 78 people were arrested in connection with the violence, according to the Sudanese Media Centre (SMC) which is close to Sudan's powerful intelligence agencies.

Minister of State for the Interior Babikir Digna told SMC the detainees would face trial, and that his ministry was planning to divide the camp into three units.

Authorities have identified three locations for the smaller camps, he said, adding that the move would help authorities monitor the camps.

Digna said new refugees would be required to register with the authorities before being allowed into the camps.

Noriko Yoshida, UNHCR's Sudan representative, appealed for calm and urged refugees at the camp to use appropriate, legal channels to express their concerns.

"Refugees, like everyone else, are subject to obey the law," she said, adding that South Sudanese refugees were "themselves victims of conflicts and violence seeking safety in Sudan".

About 416,000 South Sudanese refugees have arrived in Sudan since a brutal civil war erupted in their country in December 2013.

South Sudan gained independence from Sudan in 2011, but has been engulfed by war since 2013 after President Salva Kiir accused his rival and former deputy Riek Machar of plotting a coup.
Asylum seekers fearing deportation from the United States make their way towards the Canada/US border, which has seen a surge in new arrivals

The flow of migrants, mostly Haitians fearing expulsion from the United States, has surged in recent weeks on Canada's southern border, with requests for asylum tripling since mid-July, officials say.

At the Lacolle crossing point on the Quebec border, federal police have erected a tent on a logging road to check the identities of the new arrivals, who come on foot hauling suitcases and packages.

More than 100 people were processed Sunday morning, while 50 others waited patiently to register with the Canadian border services.

Most were Haitians but they also included some Yemenis and Somalis.

Once registered, the migrants are taken to a transit center, and from there sent on to Montreal, where they are housed while authorities consider their requests for asylum.

Montreal's Olympic stadium has been turned into a shelter for more than 1,000 people.

On Sunday, the new arrivals were cheered at the stadium by a group of two to three hundred supporters who staged a welcome rally.

A planned protest by those opposed to the influx of migrants was cancelled by its organizers, Radio Canada reported.

An estimated 450 to 700 migrants traverse the border each week at the Lacolle crossing point, according to the head of the union representing customs and immigration workers, Jean-Pierre Fortin.

Quebec's immigration minister Kathleen Weil said this week that asylum requests averaged 50 a day in the first half of July, but "the pace has surpassed 150 requests."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday promised that Canada would step up its efforts to handle the surge.

But he also appealed to those seeking asylum to go through proper immigration channels rather than cross the border illegally.

The wave of Haitians coming into the country stems from their loss of "temporary protected status" in the United States, which was granted to 60,000 Haitians after the Caribbean nation was devastated by a 2010 earthquake.

The US special status has been extended for six months, but is due to expire at the end of the year.
Israeli soldier Elor Azaria (C), pictured in court with his parents in July 2017, asked for a postponement of his imprisonment

Israeli soldier Elor Azaria, who was sentenced to 18 months' jail for killing a wounded Palestinian, on Sunday asked for a postponement of his imprisonment, a military spokesman said.

On July 30, a military court rejected his appeal against his conviction for manslaughter and upheld the prison term.

Azaria was to have presented himself to the authorities on Wednesday to begin serving his sentence.

"He submitted a request to the military prosecutor's office and the prosecution is examining it," a military spokeswoman told AFP on Sunday.

No further details were available.

The March 2016 shooting in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron was caught on video by a rights group and spread widely online.

It showed Abdul Fatah al-Sharif, 21, lying wounded on the ground, shot along with another Palestinian after stabbing and wounding a soldier, according to the army.

Azaria then shot him in the head without any apparent provocation.

He said he feared Sharif was wearing an explosive belt and could blow himself up, a claim judges rejected.
New Zealand's Tomas Walsh competes in the final of the men's shot put at the 2017 IAAF World Championships in London on August 6, 2017

Tomas Walsh of New Zealand won the men's shot put world title on Sunday with a stunning series of throws climaxing with a best of 22.03 metres.

The 25-year-old -- a former builder which he credits for his body strength -- edged out America's defending champion Joe Kovacs, who posted a best of 21.66.

"To pull it out on the last one is awesome," said Walsh, who revealed he had been undergoing treatment on his groin prior to the final.

"I knew that (Olympic champion) Ryan Crouser was going to attack on the last attempt and it is so special for me to know that I was able to attack, too.

"Whether it was a fierce throw or not, I tried my hardest in the last throw and it worked. I did not want to do 22m in the qualification and then lose it in the final."

There was a heated finale, though, when Kovacs's final throw, that appeared to be over 22m, was ruled out by a red flag.

He demanded an explanation but there was to be no going back on the decision as his trailing foot clipped the board as he launched the shot.

However, with the heat of battle having cooled Kovacs was satisfied with his silver although he took added satisfaction that he would have won if the throw had been allowed.

"I am happy to get on the podium, of course, but I was ready to come back for the gold," he said.

"My last throw, which I did protest, was long enough to win. Despite the result of the protest, I am just glad it was enough to win."

Croatia's Stipe Zunic took the bronze with 21.46m whilst there was crushing disappointment for Crouser, who could finish only sixth with 21.20m.

Walsh pumped the air with his fist after his second throw and he had good reason to as he took the lead from Kovacs, who had hurled his shot out to 21.46.

Walsh consolidated his lead with his third effort recording a mark of 21.75m but things weren't going well for Crouser, who slipped to fifth by the third round.

The American's third effort was a massive throw but it was ruled a foul.

The pressure increased on Crouser as his fourth throw also resulted in a foul and he went into the sixth and final round in sixth spot.

However, there was to be no grandstand finale for the 24-year-old.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The San Francisco park where three people were shot on a sunny afternoon underwent a $20 million renovation last year and immediately became one of the city's most popular destinations - and a magnet for drug use, gang activity and violence.

The new playground, additional bathrooms and improved amenities of the park in a gentrifying neighborhood of trendy restaurants and bakeries attracts dog walkers, families and young tech workers. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's $10 million home overlooks the park.

But the 13-acre (52,600 square-meter) park with spectacular skyline views and a high school across the street sits in the middle of the Mission District neighborhood, which is still dominated by gangs and homeless drug users.

Ryan Murphy, left, and Rose Sergeant, right, pick up needles and saline containers beneath the Dolores Park bridge in San Francisco Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Officials say the Thursday afternoon shooting took place on a bridge that connects the park to the neighborhood and may be gang related. Officials say police have stepped up patrols around the park, where the rapidly gentrifying Mission District is transforming from a gritty area to a popular neighborhood of expensive homes, trendy bars and restaurants. (AP Photo/Linda Wang)

The shooting Thursday afternoon at the park that sent families and other visitors scurrying for cover appeared to be a targeted incident, and investigators are looking into gang ties, San Francisco police spokesman Robert Rueca said. The assailants wore red shirts and bandanas covering their faces, witnesses said.

Supervisor Jeff Sheehy, whose district includes the park, called for a "top-to-bottom" review of security for the park and said a stepped-up police presence if necessary. "We have to do everything we can to make the park safer," he said.

Police said Friday they are increasing patrols of uniformed officers in the park.

Thursday's shooting occurred on a bridge that connects the park to the neighborhood and spans a train track. Police and others said the bridge is a source of many of the park's problems because drug use can be easily hidden and it offers easy escape.

A Feb. 9 police report showed two men told officers they were smoking methamphetamine under the bridge when two men walked up to them and asked "where you from" before one of the men shot one of the smokers in the arm.

Police said they could not immediately provide the number of times officers have been called to the park this year and last.

The park has been the location of several recent high-profile incidents, including a group of young attackers beating, stabbing and seriously wounding a 23-year-old man on the afternoon of May 17. Fights erupted in the park the night after the city's annual Gay Pride parade June 25. A woman was hit in the head with a bottle and a man was stabbed.

On July 10, a 20 -year-old man was stabbed during an afternoon brawl involving about a dozen youths, police reported. Skateboarders and police clashed violently last month after officers tried to break up an unsanctioned skating contest at the park.

"Everybody in the community is concerned," said Peter Lewis, a neighborhood activist. "It's getting worse."

Frank Diaz was tying helium balloons to picnic tables and laying out food for a company picnic Friday near the bridge where the shooting happened.

"Of course, I panicked," Diaz said about hearing about the shooting. "I have been planning this for months."

Diaz, 43, said he went ahead with the picnic after police assured him uniformed officers would patrol the park.

On Friday, underneath the bridge, Ryan Murphy and Rose Sergeant walked the train tracks with trash pickers, picking up discarded syringes and needles. The two spend about 10 volunteer hours a week picking up and disposing of used needles throughout the city. They said they found eight Friday morning.

"This is a place where we come often," Sergeant said.

___

This story corrects the spelling of Frank Diaz's first name.

Ryan Murphy picks up needles and saline containers beneath the Dolores Park bridge on Friday, Aug. 4, 2017, a day after a shooting took place at the popular San Francisco park. Officials say the Thursday afternoon shooting took place on a bridge that connects the park to the neighborhood and may be gang related. Officials say police have stepped up patrols around the park, where the rapidly gentrifying Mission District is transforming from a gritty area to a popular neighborhood of expensive homes, trendy bars and restaurants. (AP Photo/Linda Wang)

Employees of Orion Labs gather for a company picnic a few steps away from the Dolores Park bridge on Friday, Aug. 4, 2017, a day after a shooting took place at the popular San Francisco park. A human resources manager for the company says he was concerned after hearing about the shooting, but decided to still hold the company outing at the park the day after the attack after the San Francisco Police Department assured him there would be increased police presence. Officials say the Thursday afternoon shooting took place on a bridge that connects the park to the neighborhood and may be gang related. (AP Photo/Linda Wang)

Rose Sergeant picks up needles and saline containers beneath the Dolores Park bridge on Friday, Aug. 4, 2017, a day after a shooting took place at the popular San Francisco park. Officials say the Thursday afternoon shooting took place on a bridge that connects the park to the neighborhood and may be gang related. Witnesses say some of the men involved were wearing bandanas to cover their faces. Officials say police have stepped up patrols around the park, where the rapidly gentrifying Mission District is transforming from a gritty area to a popular neighborhood of expensive homes, trendy bars and restaurants. (AP Photo/Linda Wang)

Parents enjoy a day at Dolores Park with their children at the popular San Francisco park on Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. The San Francisco park where three people were shot on a sunny Thursday afternoon underwent a $20 million renovation last year and immediately became one of the city's most popular destinations - and a magnet for drug use, gang activity and violence. (AP Photo/Linda Wang)

People enjoy at Dolores Park hours after San Francisco Police responded to reports of a shooting at the park in San Francisco on Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017. At least one gunman opened fire Thursday at the popular San Francisco park packed with families and tourists, leaving a few people wounded and sending dozens of panicked people running for cover, witnesses and police said. (AP Photo/Linda Wang)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - Defying criticism from Washington to the Vatican, Venezuela's ruling party on Friday installed a new super assembly that supporters promise will pacify the country and critics fear will be a tool for imposing dictatorship.

The constitutional assembly's first order of business was selecting its head - former Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez, a loyal follower of President Nicolas Maduro.

The nomination was approved unanimously by the 545 delegates, who marched to the neo-classical legislative palace accompanied by hundreds of red-shirted government supporters carrying roses and giant portraits of the late Hugo Chavez, Maduro's predecessor and mentor.

Venezuela's Constitutional Assembly member Diosdado Cabello holds an image of Venezuela's late President Hugo Chavez as delegates including first lady Cilia Flores, left wearing pink, and Delcy Rodriguez, front left wearing red, gather for an official group photo after their swearing-ceremony, on the front steps of the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is heading toward a showdown with his political foes, after seating a loyalist assembly that will rewrite the country's constitution and hold powers that override all other government branches. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Some shouted, "He's returned!" as a jab at the opposition, which had ordered images of Chavez removed from an adjacent building when it won control of congress in 2015.

The assembly was scheduled to meet again Saturday, and Rodriguez pledged it would be taking action against Maduro's political opponents.

"Don't think we're going to wait weeks, months or years," she said. "Tomorrow we start to act. The violent fascists, those who wage economic war on the people, those who wage psychological war, justice is coming for you."

The installation of the all-powerful constitutional assembly is virtually certain to intensify a political crisis that has brought four months of protests that left at least 120 people dead and hundreds jailed. Maduro vows the assembly will strip opposition lawmakers of their constitutional immunity from prosecution, while members of congress say they will only be removed by force.

But the opposition is struggling to regain its footing in the face of the government's strong-armed tactics and the re-emergence of old, internal divisions. Several opposition activists have been jailed in recent days, others are rumored to be seeking exile and one leader has broken ranks from the opposition alliance to say his party will field candidates in regional elections despite widespread mistrust in Venezuela's electoral system.

In a sign of its apparent demoralized state only a few hundred demonstrators showed up for Friday's protest against the constitutional assembly, one of the smallest turnouts in months. They were halted by security forces firing tear gas and rubber bullets.

"This is what the constitutional assembly will bring: more repression," said opposition lawmaker Miguel Pizarro.

However, Maduro accuses his opponents of using violence and argues that the constitutional assembly is the best way to restore peace. On Friday he heralded members of the security forces who've been on the front lines of the daily street battles, claiming that 580 of them had suffered serious injuries from brutal attacks by "terrorist" protesters.

"I feel deeply the wounds of each one of you," Maduro said addressing a small group of injured national guardsmen scarred with burns, on crutches and wearing neck braces. "With your bodies as your shield, you have defended the right to peace."

Amid the rising tensions, an increasing number of foreign governments have sided with the opposition, refusing to recognize the constitutional assembly and further isolating Maduro's government.

On Friday, the Vatican urged Maduro to suspend the new body, expressing "deep worry for the radicalization and worsening" of the turmoil in Venezuela. President Donald Trump and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, agreed that Maduro must restore the rights of the Venezuelan people in a phone call Friday to discuss several ongoing international crises, according to a readout of the conversation by the White House.

Foreign ministers from several South American nations said they will gather Saturday in Brazil for an emergency meeting to decide whether to evict Venezuela from the Mercosur trade bloc for violating its democratic norms. Venezuela was suspended from the group in December.

The opposition boycotted the July 30 election of the constitutional assembly, saying the rules were rigged to further entrench Maduro's "dictatorship."

The results have come under mounting scrutiny after the international company that provided the electronic voting machines said that "without any doubt" the official turnout had been tampered with - a charge dismissed by Maduro and the National Electoral Council.

The U.S. State Department said Thursday the assembly was illegitimate, reiterating a call by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson for Maduro to leave office or face unspecified actions to "return the government processes back to the constitution."

The constitutional assembly is made up of an array of pro-government trade unionists, students and even representatives of Venezuelans with physical disabilities. But the agenda is expected to be set by bigger-name loyalists, including Maduro's wife, son and several ministers who resigned their posts to join the body.

It will have sweeping powers to upend institutions and in theory could even remove Maduro, a fact held up by government supporters as proof that it's not a partisan power grab. One of its first tasks, which may come as early as Saturday, could be the closure of the opposition-controlled congress and the removal of chief prosecutor, Luisa Ortega Diaz, a longtime supporter of Chavez who recently broke with Maduro.

Ortega Diaz filed a complaint Thursday seeking a court order to block installation of the new assembly. The request, filed to a lower court in an apparent attempt to circumvent the government-stacked Supreme Court, was dismissed Friday on procedural grounds.

She also ordered prosecutors to investigate the allegations of election tampering. Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica said Wednesday in London that results recorded by his company's systems and those reported by the National Electoral Council show the official turnout count of 8 million was off by at least 1 million votes. An independent poll suggested that fewer than 4 million people voted.

Opposition lawmakers have pledged to remain in power no matter what action is taken by the constitutional assembly, raising the possibility of two governing bodies operating side by side, with neither recognizing the other.

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Goodman reported from Bogota, Colombia. Associated Press writer Mike Weissenstein from Havana, Cuba contributed to this report.

Supporters of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro wave national flags outside the National Assembly during the swearing-in ceremony of the Constituent Assembly, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. The delegates marched to the legislative palace led by socialist party leader Diosdado Cabello and first lady Cilia Flores accompanied by hundreds of red-shirted government supporters. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

The President of Venezuela's Constituent Assembly, Delcy Rodriguez, smiles as she accepts the accolades of her fellow assemblymen after their swearing in ceremony, inside Venezuela's National Assembly, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is heading toward a showdown with his political foes, after seating a loyalist assembly that will rewrite the country's constitution and hold powers that override all other government branches.(AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Members of the Constituent Assembly are sworn in, inside the Venezuelan National Assembly, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is heading toward a showdown with his political foes, after seating a loyalist assembly that will rewrite the country's constitution and hold powers that override all other government branches. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Venezuela's Constituent Assembly sing the national anthem on the steps of the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Defying criticism from Washington to the Vatican, Venezuela's ruling party on Friday installed a new super assembly that supporters promise will pacify the country and critics fear will be a tool for imposing dictatorship. The assembly's first order of business was selecting its head - former Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez, pictured left center front. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

A supporter of Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro is tossed into the air before the start of a march to the National Assembly for the swearing-in ceremony of the Constitutional Assembly, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is heading toward a showdown with his political foes, preparing to seat a loyalist assembly that will rewrite the country's constitution and hold powers that override all other government branches. (AP Photo/Wil Riera)

Anti-government demonstrators prepare homemade petrol bombs that will be used against Venezuelan Bolivarian National Police, during a protest against the installation of a constitutional assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Defying criticism from Washington to the Vatican, Venezuela's ruling party on Friday installed a new super assembly that supporters promise will pacify the country and critics fear will be a tool for imposing dictatorship. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Masked anti-government demonstrators stend to a burning barricade during a protest against the installation of a constitutional assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Defying criticism from Washington to the Vatican, Venezuela's ruling party on Friday installed a new super assembly that supporters promise will pacify the country and critics fear will be a tool for imposing dictatorship. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

An anti-government demonstrator whacks a a wall to release pieces of concrete to throw at Venezuelan Bolivarian National Police, during a protest against the installation of a constitutional assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Defying criticism from Washington to the Vatican, Venezuela's ruling party on Friday installed a new super assembly that supporters promise will pacify the country and critics fear will be a tool for imposing dictatorship. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - The Latest on Venezuela's political crisis over installation of a special assembly to rewrite the constitution (all times local):

7:15 p.m.

President Nicolas Maduro is heralding security forces, portraying them as heroes fighting "terrorists" amid mounting criticism of their heavy-handed tactics quelling protests.

A masked anti-government demonstrator walks past a boarded up building with a spray-painted message that reads in Spanish: "Dictatorship!! Get out Maduro, loathsome" during a protest against the installation of a constitutional assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Defying criticism from Washington to the Vatican, Venezuela's ruling party on Friday installed a new super assembly that supporters promise will pacify the country and critics fear will be a tool for imposing dictatorship. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Speaking to the National Guard that have been on the front lines of four months of deadly protests, Maduro promised that more than 580 members of the force who he said had been attacked since the protest movement began would receive reparations as part of the work of the Constitutional assembly that convened for the first time Friday.

"I feel deeply the wounds of each one of you," Maduro said addressing a small group of injured national guardsmen with burns, on crutches and wearing neck braces. "With your bodies as your shield, you have defended the right to peace."

Several human rights groups and foreign government have denounced excessive use of force by members of the security forces and Venezuela's chief prosecutor is investigating several uniformed officers for firing live ammunition on protesters in apparent violation of the constitution.

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5:10 p.m.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is calling on Venezuela to adopt measures for the protection of its chief prosecutor, who has broken with President Nicolas Maduro amid a protracted political crisis.

The commission urges the Venezuelan government to do whatever necessary "to guarantee the life and physical integrity" of prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz.

Ignacio J. Alvarez is Ortega's representative to the proceedings in Washington. Alvarez said Friday that the court-dictated measures "are crucial to try to preserve the important role she is playing for human rights and what is left of democracy in Venezuela."

On Thursday, Ortega filed an injunction seeking to block the installation of a newly elected constitutional assembly with the authority to rewrite the nation's charter and trump all other branches of government. She also ordered an investigation into alleged election tampering in the vote to elect the assembly.

Maduro allies have said one of the body's first tasks will be to target Ortega. She was a longtime supporter of the late President Hugo Chavez but has been critical of Maduro's government and opposed some of its actions.

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2:10 p.m.

Former Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez has delivered a stern warning to government opponents in her first remarks as head of the special assembly rewriting Venezuela's constitution.

In her words, the "violent fascists, who are waging economic war on the people" will face justice. The country has been rocked by months of street protests against what the opposition sees as an increasingly authoritarian socialist government.

Her words were greeted with loud applause from the 545 pro-government delegates who had just begun meeting Friday for the first time.

Rodriguez said the all-powerful assembly will commence work Saturday.

She didn't say what lies ahead, but some fellow delegates have been pledging to target opposition lawmakers and remove chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega from office as part of their first order of business.

Ortega is a former loyalist who recently broke with President Nicolas Maduro, accusing him of breaking Venezuela's democratic order.

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1:10 p.m.

The controversial assembly charged with rewriting Venezuela's constitution has gotten to work, and its first act of business was selecting former Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez to lead the body.

The nomination made by socialist party leader Diosdado Cabello was approved unanimously by the 545 delegates.

Rodriguez led a cadre of close allies of President Nicolas Maduro who resigned top posts to run for the constituent assembly, which will have sweeping powers to upend institutions and go after the government's opponents.

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12:50 p.m.

Venezuela's pro-government constitutional assembly has gathered for the first time, kicking off the session by singing the country's national anthem.

Delegates marched to the neo-classical legislative palace accompanied by hundreds of red-shirted government supporters. Some were carrying roses and large portraits of the late Hugo Chavez, predecessor and mentor to President Nicolas Maduro.

Some shouted, "He's returned," as a jab at the opposition, which ordered images of Chavez removed from an adjacent building when it won control of congress in 2015.

Leading the procession was first lady Cilia Flores and socialist party leader Diosdado Cabello.

The assembly is charged with rewriting Chavez's 1999 constitution and has been given sweeping powers over other branches of government.

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12:30 p.m.

Representatives of the South American trade bloc Mercosur will meet to discuss the deteriorating situation in Venezuela.

Mercosur suspended Venezuela late last year over what member nations said was its failure to comply with commitments on democracy and human rights.

The Brazilian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the foreign ministers of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will meet Saturday. There's speculation they will evict Venezuela for violating the group's democratic norms.

Venezuela has increasingly cracked down on the opposition and many countries thoughout the region have denounced the allegedly tilted election of a pro-government assembly to rewrite the constitution.

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10:15 a.m.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has called the president of Mexico a "coward" - and has gotten a swift response in the same terms from Mexico's top diplomat.

Maduro says a transcript of a January phone call between Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and U.S. President Donald Trump showed deference and weakness on the part of Pena Nieto.

In the conversation, Pena Nieto repeats courteously that Mexico won't pay for Trump's proposed border wall, and Trump urges him to stop saying that in public.

Maduro said that showed Trump "gave him a public order" and called it "shameful."

Mexico's Foreign Relations Secretary Luis Videgaray shot back in a tweet to Maduro Thursday, saying: "You're the coward, for using the power of the government to dismantle democracy and attack your own people."

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8:35 a.m.

The Vatican is urging Venezuela's government to "avoid or suspend" the new assembly tasked with rewriting the constitution while holding near-absolute powers.

A statement issued Friday says steps such as the assembly "rather than favor reconciliation and peace, foment a climate of tension and confrontation."

President Nicolas Maduro says the assembly is scheduled to start its meetings on Friday.

The Vatican message expresses "deep worry for the radicalization and worsening" of Venezuela's political crisis and for the rising toll of casualties and prisoners from anti-government clashes.

Pope Francis invited the faithful worldwide to pray for the country and its people.

The message says Francis is closely following the crisis' "humanitarian, social, political, economic and also spiritual" developments.

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8:20 a.m.

A prominent Venezuelan opposition leader has been returned to his home after spending several days jailed.

The wife of Antonio Ledezma says on social media that the former Caracas mayor arrived home before dawn Friday.

Security forces forcibly entered Ledesma's apartment before dawn Tuesday and took him to a military prison. Officials accused him of violating the terms of his house arrest by posting anti-government messages on social media.

Also hauled back to jail for the same reason was opposition activist Leopoldo Lopez.

Foreign governments condemned the decision to jail both men, saying it could be the start of a new wave of repression against President Nicolas Maduro's opponents following a vote Sunday to choose delegates to a special assembly to rewrite the nation's constitution.

FILE - In this July 31, 2017 file photo, Venezuela's General Prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz speaks during a news conference at her office in Caracas, Venezuela. "I couldn't say that we've absolutely lost democracy. There are still some glimmers of it. But unfortunately if we continue down this road, we will lose all traces of democracy," Ortega said. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File)

Supporters of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro wave Venezuelan flags outside of the National Assembly during the swearing in ceremony of the Constituents Assembly, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is heading toward a showdown with his political foes, after seating a loyalist assembly that will rewrite the country's constitution and hold powers that override all other government branches.(AP Photo/Wil Riera)

Supporters of Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro prepare for a march to the National Assembly for the swearing in ceremony of the Constituent Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is heading toward a showdown with his political foes, preparing to seat a loyalist assembly that will rewrite the country's constitution and hold powers that override all other government branches. (AP Photo/Wil Riera)

A image of late Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez is raised by a supporters of Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro as they prepare for a march to the National Assembly for the swearing in ceremony of the Constituent Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is heading toward a showdown with his political foes, preparing to seat a loyalist assembly that will rewrite the country's constitution and hold powers that override all other government branches. (AP Photo/Wil Riera)

Pope Francis exchanges his skull-cap with a faithful as he arrives for his weekly general audience in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017. (L'Osservatore Romano/Pool Photo via AP)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - The Latest on the deadly explosion and partial building collapse at a Minneapolis school (all times local):

5:45 p.m.

Federal investigators say a father-son team was moving a gas meter at the time of a fatal explosion that leveled part of a Minneapolis school.

Emergency workers respond to an explosion at Minnehaha Academy in Minneapolis Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017. Assistant Fire Chief Bryan Tyner said it appears the explosion may have been caused by a ruptured gas line, but that the investigation is ongoing. (Aaron Lavinsky/Star Tribune via AP)

The National Transportation Safety Board said Friday that the work was being done Wednesday at Minnehaha Academy as part of gas company CenterPoint Energy's plan to move meters from inside buildings to outside for easier access.

The NTSB is investigating because it has jurisdiction over gas pipelines. NTSB board member Christopher Hart says investigators want to know as much as they can about the contractor, Master Mechanical, and the oversight conducted during the "hazardous operation."

Hart also said Friday that it will take time for investigators to get into the building and examine evidence. He says the building is structurally unsafe, and excavators need to remove debris before investigators can enter.

Wednesday's explosion and partial building collapse killed two longtime school employees.

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11:50 a.m.

The local medical examiner says the two people who were killed during an explosion at a Minneapolis school died from blunt force injuries sustained when part of a building collapsed.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner on Friday identified the victims as 47-year-old Ruth Denise Berg and 82-year-old John Ferm Carlson, both of Minneapolis.

Berg and Carlson were longtime employees of Minnehaha Academy, a private Christian school with about 800 elementary and high school students.

Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board are on site trying to determine what caused Wednesday's natural gas explosion. The blast ignited a fire and caused a portion of a school building to collapse.

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9:20 a.m.

The private school in Minneapolis where an explosion and partial building collapse killed two people and injured nine others is planning a memorial service for the school custodian who died in the blast.

Minnehaha Academy said on its Facebook page that the school will hold a service Sunday at 6 p.m. for John Carlson in the lower and middle school chapel. The school says Carlson's family will receive visitors before the service.

Carlson and another longtime school employee, receptionist Ruth Berg, were killed during the explosion Wednesday. Fire officials say their bodies were found on the south side of the collapsed portion of the building.

A team from the National Transportation Safety Board is on scene to determine what caused the natural gas explosion. The NTSB is investigating because it has jurisdiction over gas pipelines.

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8 a.m.

Administrators at a private Minneapolis school where an explosion and partial building collapse killed two people say the start of classes for some students will be delayed about two weeks.

In a memo to parents, Minnehaha Academy President Donna Harris says the start date for the damaged upper school will be postponed from Aug. 23 to Sept. 5. The academy's upper school houses the high school. The lower and middle school campus is about a mile and a-half away. It was not damaged in Wednesday's blast.

A team from the National Transportation Safety Board arrived in Minneapolis Thursday to begin the painstaking task of determining what caused the natural gas explosion, which killed two school workers.

Harris says administrators are working to find a facility to house classes for the upper school.

The Christian academy has a combined enrollment of about 825 students.

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12:05 a.m.

One man who was injured in a deadly explosion and partial building collapse at a Minneapolis school remains in critical condition.

The family of Bryan Duffey released a statement Thursday saying they've seen him make progress since Wednesday's blast at Minnehaha Academy. The statement also says Duffey will need more surgery.

The private Christian school says Duffey is a facilities team member.

School receptionist Ruth Berg and custodian John Carlson died in the building collapse. Two other adults remained hospitalized Thursday in satisfactory condition.

National Transportation Safety Board investigators arrived at the scene Thursday. NTSB member Christopher Hart says investigators are looking into whether the explosion occurred while a gas meter was being moved.

Emergency personnel move away as a gas fire continues to burn following an explosion at Minnehaha Academy Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017, in Minneapolis. Several people are unaccounted for after an explosion and partial building collapse Wednesday at a Minneapolis school, fire officials said. (David Joles/Star Tribune via AP)

Former Minnehaha Academy employees Elizabeth Van Pilsum, left, and Rick Olson, center, react after an explosion at the school Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017, in Minneapolis.Several people are unaccounted for after an explosion and partial building collapse Wednesday at the Minneapolis school, fire officials said. (David Joles/Star Tribune via AP)

Former Minnehaha Academy employees Elizabeth Van Pilsum, center, is comforted by friends Edie Olson, right, and Rick Olson, left, after an explosion at Minnehaha Academy Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017, in Minneapolis. Several people are unaccounted for after the explosion and partial building collapse Wednesday at the Minneapolis school, fire officials said. (David Joles/Star Tribune via AP)

A Minneapolis police officer puts up police tape following an explosion at Minnehaha Academy Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017, in Minneapolis. Several people are unaccounted for after the explosion and partial building collapse Wednesday at the Minneapolis school, fire officials said. (David Joles/Star Tribune via AP)

Emergency workers responded to an explosion at Minnehaha Academy Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017, in Minneapolis. Assistant Fire Chief Bryan Tyner said it appears the explosion may have been caused by a ruptured gas line, but that the investigation is ongoing. (Aaron Lavinsky/Star Tribune via AP)
LONDON (AP) - A member of the medical team that treated Charlie Gard has defended their care for the infant who died of a rare genetic disease while criticizing political and religious leaders who intervened in the case.

The health care worker wrote an anonymous opinion piece in the Guardian newspaper Saturday, saying staff at Great Ormond Street Hospital "loved this child to bits" but reached the point where they could do no more.

The worker argues Charlie's suffering was prolonged by high-profile comments from Pope Francis, President Donald Trump and U.K. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson. The social media sensation that followed triggered abuse of hospital staff.

The worker says: "You have contributed to the family's pain, you have been fighting a cause you know nothing about. It's not been helpful to anyone."
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - Rescuers in Vietnam have recovered 16 more bodies over the past three days, bringing the death toll from floods in four northern provinces to 23.

Flash floods triggered by heavy rains earlier this week also left 16 people missing and injured 21 others.

According to the Central Natural Disasters Committee Sunday, floods have destroyed 228 houses, damaged roads, crops and irrigation system. Nearly 5,000 soldiers, police and residents have been mobilized to search for the missing.

Vietnam is prone to floods and storms, which kill hundreds of people each year.
MANILA, Philippines (AP) - China's top diplomat said Sunday that talks for a nonaggression pact aimed at preventing clashes from erupting in the disputed South China Sea may start this year if "outside parties" don't cause a major disruption.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the start of talks for a "code of conduct" in the disputed waters may be announced by the heads of state of China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations at their annual summit in the Philippines in November if Beijing's conditions are met.

Wang told a news conference in Manila that those conditions include non-interference by "outside parties," apparently referring to the United States, which Beijing has frequently accused of meddling in what it says is an Asian dispute that should be resolved only by the countries involved.

Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, fourth left, applauds with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers and their representatives as they take part in the ASEAN-Canada ministerial meeting of the 50th ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting and its dialogue partners. Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017 in suburban Pasay city, south Manila, Philippines. The Philippines is the chair of the meeting which is represented by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Enrique Manalo, center. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, POOL)

China's territorial disputes in the strategic and potentially oil- and gas-rich waterway with five other governments intensified after it built islands in disputed waters and reportedly started to install a missile defense system on them, alarming rival claimant states, the U.S. and other Western governments.

"If there is no major disruption from outside parties, with that as the precondition, then we will consider during the November leaders' meeting, we will jointly announce the official start of the code of conduct consultation," Wang said.

The situation in the South China Sea should also be "generally stable," he said.

"China and ASEAN have the ability to work together to maintain regional peace and stability and we will work out regional rules that we mutually agreed upon so as to open up a bright future for our future relations," he said.

A Philippine government spokesman, Robespierre Bolivar, also announced that ASEAN and Chinese ministers have approved a framework for the code and agreed on steps to start negotiations on the maritime accord. He did not mention any preconditions.

Acting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Susan Thornton said countries locked in the sea disputes should halt provocative moves to foster a diplomatic resolution.

"We think all of the countries in the region should agree that while they have this diplomatic process going on that they would stop improving or expanding or militarizing any of their outposts," Thornton said.

China had long been perceived as delaying negotiations with ASEAN for the maritime code to allow it to launch and complete its land reclamations in the South China Sea without any such regulatory restrictions. Wang's mention of the vague conditions can allow China to delay or halt the planned talks for any reason.

While China has had robust economic ties with Southeast Asia, a diverse region of more than 600 million people with a combined GDP of $2.4 trillion, both have tangled for years over the territorial conflicts. Tensions flared alarmingly in recent years over China's island-building works in one of the most disputed regions, where U.S. naval and aerial patrols have challenged Beijing's claims.

ASEAN foreign ministers failed to promptly issue a joint communique after their annual gathering Saturday due to a disagreement over whether to include criticism, even indirectly, of China's increasingly assertive moves in the contested territories and the way to express concern over North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile tests, two Southeast Asian diplomats told The Associated Press on Sunday.

In a surprise move, the ministers defied China's steadfast stance and issued a joint communique late Sunday that indirectly criticized Beijing's land reclamation and military fortifications in the disputed waters.

They also mentioned in their 46-page statement a vague reference to an international arbitration ruling last year that invalidated China's historical claims to virtually all of the strategic waterway. As in past criticisms, they did not cite China by name.

A draft communique seen by the AP days before the ministers held their annual meeting in Manila on Saturday failed to mention the sensitive criticisms, which China has opposed to be discussed in multinational forums.

A Southeast Asian diplomat said Sunday that Vietnam had pushed for stronger language despite opposition from many of the ministers, whose countries rely heavily on China for trade and investment.

The envoys said they "took note of the concerns expressed by some ministers on the land reclamations and activities in the area, which have eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine peace, security and stability in the region."

Although it's not an ASEAN member, China can exert its influence on allies like ASEAN member Cambodia to reject any move it deems inimical to its interests. An unwieldy bloc of democracies, monarchies and authoritarian regimes, the regional grouping decides by consensus, meaning just one member state can shoot down any proposal.

Another diplomat said Cambodia also expressed concern over the ASEAN foreign ministers' issuance of a separate statement criticizing North Korea's two ICBM tests last month.

Washington has asked countries, including the ASEAN member states, to help isolate North Korea diplomatically to force it to stop provocative acts. While China agrees with sanctions on the North, Wang, the Chinese Foreign Minister, said Sunday that they should be aimed at forcing Pyongyang to return to negotiations directed at taming its nuclear ambitions.

"Sanctions are needed, but by no means the ultimate goal," Wang, who was in Manila for the talks with the ASEAN ministers, said in a statement posted on the Chinese foreign ministry's website.

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Associated Press writer Josh Lederman contributed to this report.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, center, is escorted by Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Zhao Jianhua, left, upon arrival to take part in the 50th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting and its Dialogue Partners, Saturday, Aug. 5, 2017, in suburban Pasay city south Manila, Philippines. Alarm over North Korea's missile tests, a tentative step to temper South China Sea disputes, and unease over a disastrous siege by pro-Islamic State group militants, will grab the spotlight at the annual meetings of Southeast Asia's top diplomats and their Asian and Western counterparts. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)
BEIRUT (AP) - As President Donald Trump recently stood beside the Lebanese prime minister praising his government for standing up to Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militants were busy demonstrating just how wrong he was. They were clearing the country's eastern frontier from al-Qaida fighters in a sweeping offensive and negotiating a complex prisoner deal with the group.

Far from being an ally in the fight against Hezbollah, the Lebanese government headed by Saad Hariri is based on a partnership with the Shiite group, whose clout and dominance in the tiny country is on the rise.

"Lebanon is on the front lines in the fight against (the Islamic State group), al-Qaida and Hezbollah," Trump said at the press conference in Washington, lighting up social media with comments from Lebanese who ridiculed his perceived ignorance of Lebanese politics.

This Saturday, July 29, 2017 photo, Hezbollah fighters stand on their army vehicle at the site where clashes erupted between Hezbollah and al-Qaida-linked fighters in Wadi al-Kheil or al-Kheil Valley in the Lebanon-Syria border. When President Trump praised the Lebanese government for fighting Hezbollah last week, the Iranian-backed group was busy demonstrating just how wrong he was, clearing the country's eastern frontier from al-Qaida and negotiating a complex prisoners swap with the militant group alongside the Lebanese government. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

The Lebanese government headed by Hariri was formed in December following an extended paralysis and a presidential vacuum that lasted nearly three years. Hariri, a Sunni politician squarely opposed to Hezbollah and Assad, was made prime minister only after an overall bargain was reached with Hezbollah that included the election of Michel Aoun, a Christian and Hezbollah ally, as president. Aoun has repeatedly said that Hezbollah's arms complement those of the Lebanese military.

Trump aside, there is much about Hezbollah's role in Lebanon that is sometimes difficult for outsiders to understand.

The Iranian proxy is the single most potent military and political force in Lebanon, with an arsenal surpassing that of the country's army. By many accounts, Hezbollah has brought disaster to the country by engaging in destructive wars with Israel, and, as Trump himself noted, it has fueled the humanitarian catastrophe in Syria where it has sent thousands of its fighters to shore up President Bashar Assad's forces.

But to its many supporters, the group is a stabilizing force in a fragile country with a historically weak central government that has been repeatedly battered by Israel and struggled against Sunni militancy, particularly since the eruption of the Syrian civil war.

The party, founded in the early 80s to fight Israeli occupation of parts of Lebanon, enjoys a support base that extends well beyond its Shiite constituency. It has been a mainstay of Lebanese politics for the past few decades, taking part in governments and offering state-within-a-state services to followers in its strongholds without trying to impose its religious views on the country's pluralist society.

The group has its own secure telecommunications network and a reach that extends across vital Lebanese installations and infrastructure, as well as veto power in the Lebanese cabinet.

Its decision to send fighters to Syria in 2013 remains highly controversial in Lebanon, but the group has to a large extent successfully portrayed its presence as a necessity to protect Lebanon from militant groups including Islamic State and al-Qaida, which proliferated in Syria and overran the border with Lebanon in 2014.

This week, the group took credit for ending the presence of al-Qaida elements in the border area, following a week-long military offensive and then a negotiated settlement that saw hundreds of al-Qaida-linked militants, their families and thousands of civilians, return to Syria. The Lebanese military, which has received more than $1 billion in U.S. security assistance in the past decade, took a back seat in the operation.

Hariri recognized Hezbollah's role - criticized by its opponents in Lebanon - saying that the end result was what mattered and calling it "a big achievement."

"We have our opinion and Hezbollah has its opinion, but in the end, we met on a consensus that concerns the Lebanese people for the (good of) the Lebanese economy, security and stability," he said.

In a clear distribution of roles, the army is now expected to spearhead an upcoming fight in another section of the border, this time against Islamic State group militants.

Declaring victory Friday night, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said the army was perfectly capable of winning that fight but offered his support should it be needed.

"We are at the service of the Lebanese army and under its command ... if they ask for any help we will help," he said in a televised speech.

It is this complex relationship between Lebanese governments and Hezbollah that foreigners often find so baffling.

"Both Lebanon and Hezbollah occupy a grey area: Lebanon isn't really a state, and Hezbollah isn't a terrorist group - or isn't only a terrorist group, depending on your view," said Faysal Itani, a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, explaining the misperceptions.

"So the American tendency is either to treat Hezbollah as controlling the state of Lebanon, or to see Lebanon as a sovereign entity fighting a terrorist group. Both are false."

Hariri, whose father, former Premier Rafik Hariri was assassinated with a ton of explosives in 2005 in a bombing some blamed on Hezbollah, has a tough balancing act to maintain. Hezbollah and its allies brought down a previous government headed by Hariri in 2011 by resigning while he was in Washington meeting the U.S. president.

During his visit to Washington, Hariri responded to questions about his uneasy coalition with Hezbollah, describing it as necessity to shield Lebanon from slipping into renewed civil war.

Following Trump's press conference, during which he described Hezbollah as a "menace to the Lebanese state" and the entire region, Nasrallah said he would not comment so as not to embarrass the Lebanese delegation headed by Hariri while it was still in Washington.

Hezbollah displayed its clout when it invited journalists on a border tour after ousting al-Qaida militants from the area, parading its fighters, armored personnel carriers and missiles on the barren mountains in surreal displays of confidence that stressed that Hezbollah, and not the U.S., was fighting terrorism.

During the offensive and on the tour, the group repeatedly stuck the yellow Hezbollah flag next to the Lebanese flag, suggesting the two cannot be separated.

Israeli officials have used such displays to emphasize that there's no line between the Lebanese state and Hezbollah, particularly with Aoun's election as president, suggesting the Lebanese state will pay heavily in any future war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Itani said Hezbollah has been infiltrating and co-opting parts of the Lebanese government for over 20 years.

"I do not see them as separate from the Lebanese government," he said.

FILE - This Saturday, July 29, 2017 file photo, Hezbollah fighters stand near a four-wheel motorcycle positioned at the site where clashes erupted between Hezbollah and al-Qaida-linked fighters in Wadi al-Kheil or al-Kheil Valley in the Lebanon-Syria border. When President Trump praised the Lebanese government for fighting Hezbollah last week, the Iranian-backed group was busy demonstrating just how wrong he was, clearing the country's eastern frontier from al-Qaida and negotiating a complex prisoners swap with the militant group alongside the Lebanese government. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein, File)

This Saturday, July 29, 2017 photo, a Hezbollah fighter stands at a watchtower at the site where clashes erupted between Hezbollah and al-Qaida-linked fighters in Wadi al-Kheil or al-Kheil Valley in the Lebanon-Syria border. When President Trump praised the Lebanese government for fighting Hezbollah last week, the Iranian-backed group was busy demonstrating just how wrong he was, clearing the country's eastern frontier from al-Qaida and negotiating a complex prisoners swap with the militant group alongside the Lebanese government. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

This Saturday, July 29, 2017 photo, Hezbollah fighters sit on their army vehicle at the site where clashes erupted between Hezbollah and al-Qaida-linked fighters in Wadi al-Kheil or al-Kheil Valley in the Lebanon-Syria border. When President Trump praised the Lebanese government for fighting Hezbollah last week, the Iranian-backed group was busy demonstrating just how wrong he was, clearing the country's eastern frontier from al-Qaida and negotiating a complex prisoners swap with the militant group alongside the Lebanese government. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

This Saturday, July 29, 2017 photo, Hezbollah fighters drive a four-wheel motorcycle positioned at the site where clashes erupted between Hezbollah and al-Qaida-linked fighters in Wadi al-Kheil or al-Kheil Valley in the Lebanon-Syria border. When President Trump praised the Lebanese government for fighting Hezbollah last week, the Iranian-backed group was busy demonstrating just how wrong he was, clearing the country's eastern frontier from al-Qaida and negotiating a complex prisoners swap with the militant group alongside the Lebanese government. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

FILE - a Hezbollah armored vehicle sits at the site where clashes erupted between Hezbollah and al-Qaida-linked fighters in Wadi al-Kheil or al-Kheil Valley in the Lebanon-Syria border. When President Trump praised the Lebanese government for fighting Hezbollah last week, the Iranian-backed group was busy demonstrating just how wrong he was, clearing the country's eastern frontier from al-Qaida and negotiating a complex prisoners swap with the militant group alongside the Lebanese government. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein, File)
MANILA, Philippines (AP) - The Trump administration has yet to decide how to respond to Russia's move to expel hundreds of American diplomats, but plans to deliver a response to Moscow by Sept. 1, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Monday.

A day after sitting down in the Philippines with Russia's top diplomat, Tillerson said he'd asked "clarifying questions" about the Kremlin's retaliation announced last month following new sanctions passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump. The Trump administration has struggled to determine how the move will affect the U.S. diplomatic presence in Russia, as well as the broader implications for the troubled relationship between the nuclear-armed powers.

Despite the Russian move, which seemed to plunge the two countries even further into acrimony, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov emerged from the meeting declaring a readiness for more engagement with the U.S. on North Korea, Syria and Ukraine, among other issues. Tillerson broadly echoed that sentiment, saying the two countries had critical national security issues to discuss despite deep disagreements on some matters.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson arrives at the Conrad hotel for his bilateral meeting with China on the sidelines of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM) and Related Meetings in suburban Pasay city, southeast of Manila, Philippines Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. (Mark Cristino/Pool Photo via AP)

"I don't think it is useful to just cut everything off on one single issue," Tillerson said following his first meeting with Lavrov since the new sanctions were imposed. "These are two very large countries and we should find places that we can work together, let's try to work together. Places we have our differences, we're going to have to continue to find a way to address those."

Tillerson also said that Russia has been showing "some willingness" to start talking about a resolution to the crisis in Ukraine, devoid of real progress for years. That assessment came as Lavrov announced that the Trump administration had committed to sending its new special envoy for Ukraine negotiations, Kurt Volker, to Moscow to discuss next steps.

Yet several obstacles hang over any attempt to pursue a more functional U.S.-Russia relationship: the new U.S. sanctions, Russia's retaliatory move to expel diplomats, and the ongoing U.S. Justice Department investigation into Russia's election meddling and potential Trump campaign collusion.

Fearing Trump might move inappropriately to ease sanctions on Russia, Congress last month passed new legislation that both added more sanctions and made it harder for the president to lift them. Trump and Tillerson opposed the legislation, but facing a likely veto override, Trump begrudgingly signed the bill.

Moscow's response to the sanctions was to announce it would force the U.S. to cut its embassy and consulate staff in Russia by 755 people. That move stoked confusion in Washington, given that the U.S. is believed to have far fewer than 755 American employees in Russia.

Lavrov, describing his meeting with Tillerson, said Russia and the U.S. had agreed to resume a high-level diplomatic channel that Moscow had suspended after a previous U.S. move to tighten existing Russia sanctions.

"We felt that our American counterparts need to keep the dialogue open," Lavrov said. "There's no alternative to that."

Trump's administration has argued there's good reason for the U.S. to seek a more productive relationship. Tillerson has cited modest signs of progress in Syria, where the U.S. and Russia recently brokered a cease-fire in the war-torn country's southwest, as a sign there's fertile ground for cooperation.

The Syrian cease-fire reflected a return of U.S.-Russia cooperation to lower violence there. The U.S. had looked warily at a series of safe zones in Syria that Russia had negotiated along with Turkey and Iran - but not the U.S.

Lavrov cited upcoming talks involving Russia, Iran and Turkey about how to ensure the truce in the last safe zone to be established, around the north-western city of Idlib. He predicted "it will be difficult" to hammer out the details but that compromise can be reached if all parties - including the U.S. - use their influence in Syria to persuade armed groups there to comply.

Tillerson said Russian meddling in the election had "created serious mistrust between our two countries." Although he and other Cabinet officials have maintained that position consistently, Trump has repeatedly questioned U.S. intelligence about Moscow's involvement while denying any collusion with his campaign.

Word that Volker, the Ukraine envoy, plans to visit the Russian capital was the latest sign that Washington was giving fresh attention to resolving the Ukraine conflict. The U.S. cut military ties to Russia over Moscow's annexation of Crimea and accuses the Kremlin of fomenting unrest in eastern Ukraine by arming, supporting and even directing pro-Russian separatists there who are fighting the Kiev government.

In recent days, the Trump administration has been considering providing lethal weaponry to Ukraine to help defend itself against Russian aggression.

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Associated Press writers Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow and Deb Riechmann in Washington contributed to this report.

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Reach Josh Lederman on Twitter at http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP
BRUSSELS (AP) - Belgian food safety authorities began investigating possible pesticide contamination in eggs in early June, several weeks before the public was made aware of a food safety scare now affecting several European countries.

Supermarkets have pulled millions of eggs from shelves after pesticide Fipronil was found in Dutch and Belgian poultry farms.

Kathy Brison of the Belgian food safety agency said Sunday that a Belgian farm alerted authorities to a possible contamination in June, and they began investigating and alerted Belgian prosecutors.

German authorities are frustrated by the apparent delay in informing European neighbors. German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt plans to speak to his Belgian counterpart about the issue Monday.

Brison said Belgian authorities thought it was an isolated incident and didn't realize the scale of the problem until late July.
BERLIN (AP) - The governor of one of Germany's biggest states says he allowed Volkswagen to vet a 2015 speech about the automaker's diesel scandal.

German weekly Bild am Sonntag has reported that VW, which is part-owned by Lower Saxony state, suggested removing some of the harsh criticism of its emissions trickery.

Governor Stephan Weil's office confirmed Sunday that the speech was sent to VW's chief lobbyist and lawyers, but denied softening his criticism of the company as a result.

File - In this Nov. 18, 2016 file photo Lower Saxony governor Stephan Weil sits in front of a wall with Volkswagen logos in Wolfsburg, Germany. Weil says he allowed Volkswagen to vet a 2015 speech about the automaker's diesel scandal. German weekly Bild am Sonntag reports that VW, which is part-owned by Lower Saxony state, suggested removing some of the harsh criticism of its emissions trickery. Governor Stephan Weil's office confirmed Sunday Aug. 6, 2017 that the speech was sent to VW's chief lobbyist and lawyers, but denied softening his criticism of the company as a result. (Philipp von Ditfurth/dpa via AP,file)

Weil's office said the aim was "to ensure that no legally or factually inaccurate statements were made" because of pending lawsuits in the U.S.

The incident adds to pressure on Weil, whose center-left coalition of Social Democrats and Greens face an early regional election after a lawmaker's defection cost his government its majority.
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - An Afghan official says that at least 30 people including women and children have been killed by Taliban fighters in northern Sari Pul province.

Zahir Wahdat, the provincial governor for Sari Pul, says Sunday that the victims are mostly civilians and some local security forces. The shootings took place Saturday morning after the Taliban seized control of the strategic Mirzawalang area in Sayad district.

Wahdat says Afghan forces retreated form the area after they couldn't gain ground or air support from the central government.

Earlier reports indicated that over a dozen people had been killed by the Taliban.

Qari Yusouf Ahamdi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attack, but not the civilian deaths.

Ten Taliban fighters were also killed, according to Zabi Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor.
NEW YORK (AP) - For the third time in six months, President Donald Trump is on the hunt for a new communications director. But in practice, the job is filled.

It's Trump who's the White House's leading expert and the final word on what and how he communicates with the public. Despite decrying most negative media coverage as "fake news" and personally insulting members of the media, he has inserted himself into the White House's press operations in an unprecedented fashion for a president.

Trump has dictated news releases and pushed those who speak for him to bend the facts to bolster his claims. He has ignored the advice of his legal team and thrown out carefully planned legislative strategies with a single 140-character tweet.

In this photo taken Aug 1, 2017, President Donald Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House in Washington. President Donald Trump has dictated press releases and pushed his press team to bend the facts. He has ignored the advice of his legal team and thrown out carefully-planned legislative strategies with a single 140-character tweet. He has cycled through three communications directors in six months. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

His direct, hands-on style helped him win the White House and still thrills his supporters. It also, however, poses increasing political and potentially legal risks. The clearest example is his involvement in crafting a statement for son Donald Jr. about a meeting with a Kremlin-connected lawyer. That declaration was quickly proven erroneous and raised questions about whether the president was trying to cover for his son.

Trump has struggled to find a communications adviser that meets his approval.

His first, Mike Dubke, stayed behind the scenes and never clicked with Trump, leaving after three months. Then Sean Spicer, Trump's oft-beleaguered press secretary, took on the communications director job as well. He resigned both posts last month when Trump brought in hard-charging New York financier Anthony Scaramucci. Scaramucci lasted only 11 days before being fired in the aftermath of an expletive-filled interview.

A fourth candidate for the post, campaign spokesman Jason Miller, was named to the job during the transition but turned it down days later, citing a need to spend time with his family.

More recently there have been some informal internal conversations about an increased communications role for White House aide Stephen Miller, according to an administration official who was not authorized to discuss private talks by name and requested anonymity. Those talks are still seen as preliminary. Miller recently clashed with some reporters over immigration policy at a contentious press briefing.

This past week, as White House staffers readied a statement accompanying Trump's signature on legislation approving toughened sanctions on Russia - a bill Trump criticized - word came down that the president wanted to add some off-topic language into the statement. That's according to two officials familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly talk about internal discussions.

"I built a truly great company worth many billions of dollars," the new section read. "That is a big part of the reason I was elected. As president, I can make far better deals with foreign countries than Congress."

That personal and boastful rhetoric is a far cry from the formal language normally found in presidential statements. It also appeared aimed at angering the same lawmakers he will need if he wants to pass any major legislation.

"All presidents are their own best messengers," said Ari Fleischer, press secretary for President George W. Bush. Fleischer said that Bush, too, would at times get involved with the White House press shop.

Fleischer noted there was always a safety net of advisers at work. That does not appear to exist around the current president - particular around his Twitter account.

"The lesson for this president is that it's perfectly fine to be involved and to, at times, go around the mainstream media with Twitter," Fleischer said. "But he needs to tweet smarter."

Corralling the president's impulses is a challenge that now falls to new White House chief of staff John Kelly, a four-star Marine general tasked with straightening out an unruly West Wing. But many Trump allies don't believe he'll alter his ways.

"The reality is President Trump is sitting in the Oval Office," said Sam Nunberg, a former campaign staffer. "And before that, he was a mogul with a business that spanned continents. He did it his way. He's not going to change. It got him where he is and it will keep him where he is."

Trump has long considered himself his own best spokesman and cares deeply about his public perception.

While a budding real estate magnate in New York in the 1980s and 1990s, he was known to call reporters to plant anonymously sourced scoops about himself. He vaulted to national stardom with "The Apprentice" and micromanaged aspects of his appearances, including his hair and lighting.

During the 2016 campaign, Trump was known to obsess over single images in a commercial or the font for an ad.

As president, he frequently has raged about his communications staff, blaming them for White House's stumbles while almost never taking responsibility himself.

An avid consumer of cable news, Trump scolds surrogates when he thinks they are not adequately defending him on television. His frequently shifting positions also challenge his staffers, who have grown to be fearful of answering basic questions about the president's beliefs for fear of later being contradicted, according to more than a half dozen White House officials and outside advisers speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.

And the president has pushed staff to defend untruths, including when he ordered Spicer, in Spicer's first White House briefing, to claim that the size of Trump's inauguration crowd was larger than his predecessor's, according to three White House officials and outside advisers familiar with the encounter.

More untruths have followed. In March, Trump tweeted without evidence that President Barack Obama had wiretapped Trump Tower. And soon after firing FBI Director James Comey, Trump tweeted a warning that Comey had better hope there were no tapes of their White House conversations. There weren't.

Another statement has received bipartisan condemnation and could face scrutiny from investigators probing possible collusion between Trump's campaign and Russian officials.

As news broke last month that Trump Jr. had met with Russians in June 2016, the president's eldest son released a statement - which was in part crafted on Air Force One by the president and a small group of aides while flying home from a summit in Europe - that claimed the meeting was about adoptions. But within days, Trump Jr. had to revise his story several times before eventually acknowledging that he was trying to procure damaging, Russia-produced information about Hillary Clinton.

"This was a bad decision by the president," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. "When you get caught in a lie about one thing, it makes it hard to just say let the other stuff go."

Press secretary Sarah Sanders said last week that Trump "weighed in as any father would, based on the limited information that he had."

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Follow Lemire on Twitter at http://twitter.com/@JonLemire
BEIRUT (AP) - The Lebanese army captured a number of strategic hilltops bordering Syria from Islamic State militants on Sunday amid mounting expectations for a campaign to decisively defeat them there, the army and state media said.

The National News Agency said the army captured several hills between the frontier towns of Ras Baalbek and Arsal, and the Army said in a statement it destroyed IS fortifications and killed several IS militants.

The militants have been a thorn in the country's side since they began filtering in from neighboring Syria, which has been in the throes of civil war since 2011.

In 2014, the IS and al-Qaida-linked militants briefly occupied Arsal before the Army joined forces with the militant group Hezbollah to drive them back out of the town. The authorities have blamed a string of terror blasts in the country dating back to 2013 on the two extremist groups. The explosions have killed dozens of people.

The reports Sunday came two days after Hezbollah's politically influential leader Hassan Nasrallah announced the Army would lead the fight to drive out IS from the border region once and for all.

The al-Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front agreed to vacate the frontier region in July, following a two-weeks-long military operation spearheaded by Hezbollah on the Lebanese side and the Syrian army on the other. More than 1,000 militants were given safe passage to Fatah al-Sham's stronghold in northwest Syria's Idlib province. Some 6,000 Syrian refugees accompanied them, preferring not to stay in Lebanon.
BRIDGEWATER, N.J. (AP) - Vice President Mike Pence has pushed back against a news report suggesting he is laying groundwork for a possible presidential bid in 2020 if President Donald Trump does not run.

In a statement released by the White House, Pence said Sunday's story in The New York Times "is disgraceful and offensive to me, my family, and our entire team." He added that "the allegations in this article are categorically false."

The formal rebuttal of a news report by the vice president was an unusual move. In it, Pence also said his team will "focus all our efforts to advance the president's agenda and see him re-elected in 2020."

Vice President Mike Pence speaks at the Young America's Foundation's 39th annual National Conservative Student Conference, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The report details efforts of several Republicans looking ahead to 2020, calling it a "shadow campaign." It notes Pence's political schedule and active fundraising, though it also says unnamed advisers have signaled that he'd only run if Trump doesn't.

The article noted Pence has set up a fundraising committee. Called the Great America Committee, it can accept checks of up to $5,000 from individual donors. Pence raised about $1 million at a Washington fundraiser last month, attended by dozens of lawmakers and featuring remarks from White House adviser Ivanka Trump.

Trump has not suggested he won't seek a second term. But his first six months in office have been turbulent, marked by staff infighting, legislative struggles and a series of investigations.

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway also dismissed the report and said Pence is readying to run in 2020 "for re-election as vice president."

"Vice President Pence is a very loyal, very dutiful, but also incredibly effective vice president, and active vice president, with this president," said Conway on ABC's "This Week." ''He is a peer to the president in the West Wing."

New York Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha said in an emailed statement: "We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting and will let the story speak for itself."
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - A second suspect has been arrested in the fatal shooting of an Italian tourist in Arkansas.

Police in Little Rock say 31-year-old Charina Fort of Little Rock surrendered Saturday after police earlier arrested 32-year-old Andre Jackson in the July 28 shooting death of 31-year-old Carlo Marigliano.

Both Fort and Jackson are jailed without bond on capital murder charges. Jail and court records do not list an attorney for them.

Police say Marigliano was shot and then crashed his vehicle into an apartment complex in Little Rock. Police say it isn't clear how he crossed paths with the suspects.

Family members told Little Rock television station KTHV that Marigliano was traveling with friends in the U.S. before leaving the group to visit other areas on his way to Arizona.
NEW YORK (AP) - A dwindling number of peep shows, strip clubs and adult DVD stores have survived New York City's two-decade legal war on smut and now, some of the survivors are worried a recent court decision could put them under for good.

In June, New York's Court of Appeals reinstated rules dating to 2001 barring any establishment with "live performances characterized by an emphasis on certain specified anatomical areas or specified sexual activities" as well as sexually explicit videos from all but carefully selected city zones.

It isn't the first time a court has sided with the city, only to have the regulations tweaked or overturned by another court later. But a lawyer who represents several X-rated shops said in an unsuccessful petition to the U.S. Supreme Court last month that if the city went ahead with long-delayed enforcement, it could put her clients out of business.

FILE - In this March 6, 1998, file photo a pedestrian walks past Peepland on Broadway in New York's Times Square, after a judge concluded the city had the legal right to force most of the city's X-rated shops to relocate. New York City's two-decade legal war on storefront pornography businesses has reached a new tipping point. While many of the provocative attractions were swept out years ago - especially ones in the now neon-lit, retail-filled Times Square - the state's highest court recently issued a ruling that would force the surviving ones to clear out. (AP Photo/Michael Schmelling, File)

"New York has the tradition of being the freest and most tolerant city in the country, if not the world," the lawyer, Erica Dubno, said. "And unfortunately, freedom of expression is being restricted and small businesses are in jeopardy."

Several dozen of the adult establishments are still hinging their hopes on freedom-of-speech legal challenges, she said.

For now, there's no urgency to clear out. The city is staying enforcement of the court decision pending a resolution of the legal loose ends.

In a statement, the New York City Law Department said it believed the city's approach to regulating the businesses was "reasonable and lawful to protect our quality of life" and were intended to stem "the widespread circumvention of zoning regulations."

New York's well-known efforts to clean up its once booming pornography industry began in the mid-1990s, with regulations barring adult businesses from operating near churches or schools and in most commercial and residential neighborhoods. The rules shuttered many of more than 170 such establishments around the city, with then-mayor Rudy Giuliani helping rout them out.

Times Square, where porn parlors and strip clubs thrived into the 1990s amid Broadway theaters, now bears little resemblance to its old self.

But a few adult establishments remained, some because they found ways to work around a rule defining a business as adult if it devoted 40 percent or more of its floor space to the sex business.

Some strip clubs divided themselves in two, with part of the building devoted to hosting private events. One opened a sushi restaurant on one of its floors. Adult DVD and book stores stocked up on titles that had nothing to do with sex, and which often gathered dust. Others did less to diversify, offering coat checks, pool tables or condoms in their "non-adult" sections.

The city argued that many of these tweaks were a sham.

In 2001, the City Council altered zoning regulations to reduce the significance of the 60/40 test. Those changes, and others, were the subject of the court ruling in June.

Dubno said she has asked the state appeals court to reconsider its June decision.

At Mixed Emotions, a small, dusty shop a few blocks north of Times Square, it's still business as usual. Sex gadgets and steamy videos filled walls and aisles last week, alongside single-occupancy peep booths that are often empty in an age of internet pornography.

Outside on West 50th Street, their store sign shines bright next to a boutique hotel, just steps from the Gershwin Theatre, where tourists flock daily to see Broadway's "Wicked."

Another survivor is the Show World Center, which opened in 1975 and once featured about 100 women working live peep shows. Show World's longtime owner, Richard Basciano, died in May at 92. The live shows are long gone, but the business still sells adult books and more.

"I'm nostalgic for the old New York," said Dubno, who represents both businesses. "Times Square has become like anywhere else, with the same stores, and New York has lost a lot of what made it so distinct. That's what makes America great - that people can have their views."

If the New York appeals court fails to reconsider its decision, Dubno will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to take a case, always a long shot.

"This is the last gasp," said Dubno.

In this May 9, 2017 photo neon-lighted signs glow in the doorway of the adult store Show World Center, off 42nd Street in New York's Times Square, near the Port Authority bus terminal. New York City's two-decade legal war on storefront pornography businesses has reached a new tipping point. While many of the provocative attractions were swept out years ago - especially ones in the now neon-lit, retail-filled Times Square - the state's highest court recently issued a ruling that would force the surviving ones to clear out. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

In this May 9, 2017 photo pedestrians walk by the adult store Show World Center, off 42nd Street in New York's Times Square, near the Port Authority bus terminal. New York City's two-decade legal war on storefront pornography businesses has reached a new tipping point. While many of the provocative attractions were swept out years ago - especially ones in the now neon-lit, retail-filled Times Square - the state's highest court recently issued a ruling that would force the surviving ones to clear out. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

In this Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017, photo, a man looks at a poster in the window of Show World Center, one of Times Square's last surviving pornography businesses, in New York. The city's two-decade legal war on storefront businesses like this one may have reached a new tipping point. While many of the grimy attractions were swept out of years ago, especially ones in retail-filled, neon-lit Times Square, the state's highest court recently issued a ruling that could force the surviving ones to shut down. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

In this Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017, photo, people walk past Mixed Emotions Video and Bare Elegance Gentleman's Club and Lounge, in New York's theater district just north of Times Square. New York's two-decade legal war on storefront pornography has reached a new tipping point. Most of the provocative attractions were swept out years ago from the now neon-lit, retail-filled Times Square. But the state's highest court recently made a decision that may force surviving X-rated stores out. Several dozen are still counting on freedom-of-speech court challenges. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

In this Aug. 3, 2017 photo, a sign advertises peep shows for 25 cents Show World Center near Times Square in New York. The city's two-decade legal war on storefront businesses like this one may have reached a new tipping point. While many of the grimy attractions were swept out of years ago, especially ones in retail-filled, neon-lit Times Square, the state's highest court recently issued a ruling that could force the surviving ones to shut down. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

FILE - This March 6, 1998, file photo shows a detail from a neon sign above a strip club in New York's Times Square photographed after a judge concluded the city had the legal right to force most of the city's X-rated shops to relocate. New York City's two-decade legal war on storefront pornography businesses has reached a new tipping point. While many of the provocative attractions were swept out years ago - especially ones in the now neon-lit, retail-filled Times Square - the state's highest court recently issued a ruling that would force the surviving ones to clear out. (AP Photo/Michael Schmelling, File)

FILE - This Oct. 4, 1984 file photo shows porn shops and peep shows in New York's Times Square. New York City's two-decade legal war on storefront pornography businesses has reached a new tipping point. While many of the provocative attractions were swept out years ago - especially ones in the now neon-lit, retail-filled Times Square - the state's highest court recently issued a ruling that would force the surviving ones to clear out. (AP Photo/Mario Cabrera, File)
SURFSIDE BEACH, S.C. (AP) - Authorities have identified a man who was shot and killed by a police officer in South Carolina.

The Sun News quotes Horry County Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard as saying that the man shot early Friday morning was 33-year-old Aaron Payne of the Surfside Beach area.

The newspaper reports that Payne lived in the neighborhood where he was shot.

Surfside Beach Fire Department chief Kevin Otte said Payne was a volunteer firefighter from late 2015 until July 2016.

Myrtle Beach Police have said the shooting happened as police were checking on a report of a suicidal man who refused to put a gun down and eventually pointed it at an officer.
LAND O'LAKES, Fla. (AP) - Florida officials have condemned two more homes due to a Florida sinkhole, bringing the total to six homes that are now unlivable.

Authorities in Pasco County, a suburban area north of Tampa, said in a news release Sunday that the two additional homes were being condemned. Two homes were condemned Saturday and two were destroyed when the ground caved in on July 14.

The sinkhole opened up July 14. It is now about 260 feet (79 meters) wide at its widest point.

FILE - This Friday, Aug. 4, 2017 file photo shows a large sinkhole in the Lake Padgett Estates community in Land O' Lakes, Fla. Florida officials have condemned two more homes due to a Florida sinkhole, bringing the total to six homes that are now unlivable. Authorities said in a news release Sunday that the two additional homes were being condemned. Two homes were condemned Saturday and two were destroyed when the ground caved in on July 14. (Luis Santana Tampa Bay Times via AP, File)

Crews brought in earth to stabilize the banks. Once the edges are stabilized, workers hope to remove debris.

Authorities hope to create a boat ramp so they can work from a barge, which will float on water in the sinkhole.
LODGE GRASS, Mont. (AP) - The Latest on the shooting deaths of three people on the Crow Indian Reservation in Montana (all times local):

2:50 p.m.

Authorities have released the names of three people who were killed in a residential shooting on the Crow Indian Reservation.

The Billings Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/2fjYkTf) that 27-year-old Leslie Frank Nomee Jr. and 30-year-old Nehemiah Brokenrope died at Crow-Northern Cheyenne Hospital after the Friday shootings.

Nomee's wife, 25-year-old Denise Stewart Nomee, was pronounced dead Saturday at St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings.

Terry Bullis is the Big Horn County Coroner. Bullis says all three died of gunshot wounds.

Authorities say the shootings at a home in the town of Lodge Grass were drug-related.

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11:15 a.m.

An overnight curfew remains in effect on the Crow Indian Reservation in southeastern Montana after a residential shooting that killed three people and injured two others.

The Crow Agency Police Department said Sunday the curfew "is a precaution" after Friday's shootings in Lodge Grass. The department declined to provide more information, and the victims' names haven't been released.

The tribe announced the curfew from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. until further notice.

The FBI, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Montana Highway Patrol and the Big Horn County Sheriff's Office are investigating.

FBI spokeswoman Sandra Barker said Sunday the investigation is continuing and that there have been no arrests.
Cristiano Ronaldo has hinted he would like to return to England after revealing his frustration over an investigation into his tax returns.

The 32-year-old Real Madrid striker, who played for Manchester United between 2003 and 2009, has denied charges of evading tax and hiding details of his income from the Spanish tax authorities.

Prosecutors allege Ronaldo evaded 14.7million euros (13.1million) in tax.

The Portuguese claims that, contrary to the argument of the Public Prosecutor, the transfer of his image rights to a company he owned took place in 2004 and not in 2010 just after he joined Real.

Journalists wait outside a court on the outskirts of Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo (Paul White)

Since 2015 the player said his image rights had been granted to an independent third party, registered in Spain, that pays tax for him.

The Public Prosecutors charge is limited exclusively to tax on the amounts earned by the player in 2014 for granting his image rights for the years from 2011 to 2020.

Ronaldo, who earlier this week appeared at magistrates court in a Madrid suburb to answer the charges, has reiterated his innocent plea.

He claims life was more straightforward in Manchester.

A Manchester United fan with a banner for Ronaldo in 2013 (PA)

In quotes carried by Spanish newspaper Cadena Ser, Ronaldo said: I never had this problem in England, thats why Id like to go back.

I remember when I arrived in England and they told me that thats how things worked. I went to Manchester as an 18-year-old and they advised me this was the best system I could use, just like the other players did. In Spain they told me Id have to pay more but that thered be no problems. Ive always paid what Ive had to pay.

Ronaldo has scored more than 400 goals for LaLiga champions Real since arriving in 2009 and he won three Premier League titles and the Champions League with United.
Tens of thousands of people have lined the streets in Brighton and Belfast to watch the colourful annual Pride parades.

In Brighton, a carnival parade started at Hove Lawns at 11am on Saturday followed by a ticketed event in Preston Park.

Lydia Bright, centre, at The Brighton Pride Community Parade (David Parry/PA)

EDITORIAL USE ONLY Lydia Bright (second left) onboard the blu float, in support of their aSomething Bettera campaign at The Brighton Pride Community Parade in East Sussex.

The first Brighton and Hove gay Pride march was staged in 1973 but its return was not seen until 1991 amid political anger over Section 28s ban on the promotion of homosexuality.

As the years passed, the event grew but it hit financial trouble in 2010 despite that years Brighton and Hove Pride attracting 160,000 revellers.

The blu float, in support of the Something Better campaign at The Brighton Pride Community Parade in East Sussex (David Parry/PA)

Lydia Bright, second left, onboard the blu float (David Parry/PA)

It underwent a revival with new management in 2012, and organisers say that over the years it has helped change attitudes and promote acceptance and equality.

Meanwhile, uniformed officers from the Police Service of Northern Ireland and An Garda Siochana took part in Belfasts gay Pride parade for the first time.

They were greeted with massive cheers from the crowds.

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Belfast pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Around 40 uniformed officers from Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and other UK police forces were amongst the 8,000 people who marched from Custom House Square in the city centre, watched by an estimated 15,000 supporters.

It was the biggest parade to take place in the region this year.

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

The PSNI has come under some criticism for allowing officers to join the parade, with accusations their participation will undermine the organisations stated neutrality in the region.

However, the PSNI has insisted that participation in the event is about inclusion and representation.

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Belfast Pride comes amid heightened scrutiny throughout the UK on LGBT issues in Northern Ireland after the Democratic Unionists parliamentary deal with the Conservative Party.

The regions continued ban on same-sex marriage is one of the issues preventing the restoration of a powersharing government in Belfast.

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Sinn Fein has said it will only agree to re-enter a coalition administration if the DUP stops blocking a law change.

The DUP has used a controversial Stormont voting mechanism  the petition of concern  to prevent a law change, despite a majority of MLAs supporting the move at the last vote.

The party rejects any suggestion it is homophobic, insisting it is instead protecting the traditional definition of marriage.

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Belfast Pride (Peter Morrison/PA)

Many participants in Saturdays parade carried banners and placards calling for the introduction of gay marriage.

A handful of posters with anti-DUP slogans were used by a small number of marchers.

Leo Varadkar (Peter Morrison/PA)

Earlier, Irish Premier Leo Varadkar attended a gay Pride breakfast in Belfast. He insisted it was not a political gesture, but a gesture of solidarity.
Sir Vince Cable has lashed out at hardline Brexit martyrs who view economic pain as a price worth paying to break away from Brussels.

The Liberal Democrat leader accused them of masochism and claimed older Brexit voters with views coloured by nostalgia from an imperial past had imposed their will on a younger generation more comfortable with the European Union.

Meanwhile, Whitehall sources sought to play down speculation that Theresa May would be prepared to pay a Brexit bill of 36 billion as part of a deal to strike a comprehensive free trade agreement with Brussels.

Sir Vince Cable

Piece in .@mailonsundaySTL. on #Brexit 'martyrs' in .@YouGov poll who think economic cost is worth paying. Mainly elderly: others will pay  Vince Cable (@vincecable) August 5, 2017

The so-called divorce bill has been one of the main stumbling blocks in Brexit negotiations between the Government and Brussels.

The Sunday Telegraph reported that the Government will only agree to pay the sum if the EU treats it as part of a deal on future relations  including the comprehensive trade agreement sought by the Prime Minister.

The EUs stance is that trade talks cannot begin until significant progress has been made on the financial settlement, citizens rights and Northern Ireland.

This Conservative Brexit Government doesn't have a plan A - let alone a plan B https://t.co/sybxZlqTJQ via @LibDems  Vince Cable (@vincecable) August 5, 2017

The newspaper quoted a senior Whitehall source as saying the EUs position was that the fee should be 60 billion euro (54 billion), but the actual bottom line was 50 billion euro (45 billion), the UKs position was 30 billion euro (27 billion) and the landing zone is 40 billion (36 billion) even if the public and politicians are not all there yet.

A senior Government source told the Press Association that no such figure has been agreed while another Whitehall source said it was speculation.

Officials at the Brexit department would not comment on the report but referred to David Davis acknowledgement that the Government would work with Brussels to determine a fair settlement of the UKs rights and obligations.

61% of Leave voters say significant economic damage would be a price worth paying for bringing Britain out of the EU https://t.co/14IqxkY5kN pic.twitter.com/LrLq4iPJ0d  YouGov (@YouGov) August 1, 2017

Lib Dem leader Sir Vinces strongly worded attack on Brexit martyrs came after a YouGov poll suggested 61% of Leave voters would consider significant damage to the British economy to be a price worth paying for leaving the EU.

Writing in the Mail on Sunday he said: To describe such masochism as martyrdom is dangerous. We havent yet heard about Brexit jihadis but there is an undercurrent of violence in the language which is troubling.

Sir Vince, 74, added that the self-declared martyrs appeared to be predominantly elderly.

Age a key factor: older Leave voters more likely to say economic damage/job losses a price worth paying for Brexit https://t.co/14IqxkY5kN pic.twitter.com/pwJzGEEDBF  YouGov (@YouGov) August 1, 2017

The martyrdom of the old comes cheap, since few have jobs to lose, he said.

The housing market, pensions and government policies  including some while he was in the Cabinet  had contributed to a growing rift between the generations.

The old have comprehensively shafted the young. And the old have had the last word about Brexit, imposing a world view coloured by nostalgia for an imperial past on a younger generation much more comfortable with modern Europe, he said.
Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva says he would love former Monaco team-mate Kylian Mbappe to join him at the Etihad Stadium.

Teenager Mbappe was a revelation for Monaco last season in their title-winning Ligue 1 campaign and during their run to the Champions League semi-finals.

He has attracted interest from a host of major clubs across Europe, with City among those reportedly admiring the 18-year-old striker.

(John Walton/EMPICS)

First training with the team as a @ManCity player!  pic.twitter.com/olTpPFHm9S  Bernardo Silva (@BernardoCSilva) August 1, 2017

Silva swapped Monaco for City over the summer and the Portuguese will leave it up to his new employers to decide if they want to reunite him with France international Mbappe.

I havent spoken to Mbappe  but he is a great player as well, Silva said, according to ESPN.

I would love to have him here, and you never know, but that is for City to decide.

Speaking after Manchester City won 3-0 against West Ham in Reykjavik on Friday, Silva said of Mbappe: He can be a superstar  in fact, I think he is already a little bit of a superstar.

He is a great player to play with because he is so intelligent with his movement. He can be one of the best in the world very soon.
One man has died and two more are missing feared dead after a boat sank following a suspected collision off the south coast.

A major search and rescue operation was launched after the vessel went down off Shoreham in West Sussex early on Sunday.

The vessel left Shoreham harbour just after midnight on Sunday for a leisure fishing trip and was apparently struck by a larger vessel around two hours later, Sussex Police said.

We are investigating after a man died and two others are missing after their boat sank at #Shoreham. Read more here.https://t.co/gZ4fjhkduQ  Sussex Police (@sussex_police) August 6, 2017

The alarm was only raised shortly before 6am when a fourth man was discovered by a fishing boat crew clinging to a buoy, two miles west of the towns harbour.

The four men on board were all Romanian, two living in London and two in Brighton, police said.

Two of them are related but officers did not reveal any further details.

The 45-year-old survivor, from London, is stable in hospital after being rushed to shore.

Our lifeboats and the helicopter joined by vessels in the area are searching for missing crew from a sunken boat off #Shoreham #mayday pic.twitter.com/GFBe4SO80C  Shoreham Lifeboat (@SLifeboatRNLI) August 6, 2017

Matt Pavitt, the Maritime and Coastguard Agencys south east coastal operations area commander, told the BBC: Anybody that spends that length of time, numerous hours potentially, in the sea without any protective equipment, at this time of year its a nice day but the sea is still cold, is very, very lucky to be alive.

Up to 15 boats and ships, aided by two coastguard helicopters from Lydd and Lee-on-Solent, were involved in the search before it was suspended early on Sunday afternoon.

They included lifeboats from Shoreham and Brighton and some 10 vessels from the nearby Rampion offshore wind farm.

Coastguard Rescue Teams from Shoreham and Littlehampton were also involved in a search that included combing beaches between Brighton and Worthing on the Sussex coast.

There is now an extensive search east to west involving @SLifeboatRNLI @RNLIBrighton @ShorehamCG 2 coastguard helicopters @RampionWindFarm  Shoreham Lifeboat (@SLifeboatRNLI) August 6, 2017

The body of the dead man was found at around 8.15am.

Coastguard controller Andy Jenkins saying: Following an extensive search of the area using multiple assets nothing further has been found at this time so the decision has been made to suspend the search pending further information.

A review of the incident details will be ongoing through the rest of the day.

The boat sank in the English Channel off the Sussex coast

Sussex Police and the Marine Accident Investigation Branch have launched an investigation into the tragedy.

Detective Chief Inspector Rachel Carr said: We are now trying to establish the circumstances and to identify the other vessel involved.

An earlier appeal for information prompted a significant number of calls and I would like to thank people for their prompt responses, which enabled us to quickly identify who had been involved.

Our thoughts are with the families and friends of all those who have been involved in this tragic incident.
By Sam Holmes

SINGAPORE, Aug 5 (Reuters) - The nephew of Singapore's prime minister, who faces contempt of court proceedings for comments he made suggesting the city-state's courts were not independent, said he would not be returning to Singapore.

The office of Singapore's attorney general said on Friday it would begin contempt of court proceedings against Li Shengwu, a U.S.-based academic, over Facebook posts he made on July 15.

The legal move is the latest twist in a family feud over the fate of the house left by the late Singapore founding father Lee Kwan Yew that gripped the nation last month.

It comes days ahead of Singapore's National Day celebrations next week, when the prime minister delivers an annual address to the 5.6 million residents of one the world's five richest nations based on per capital GDP.

In his post, Li, nephew of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and a son of Lee's brother, Lee Hsien Yang, described the Singapore government as "litigious" and its courts as "pliant".

Li, 32, is currently a junior fellow at Harvard University and told Reuters on Saturday from the United States he expected to start an assistant professor position with the university in the fall of 2018.

"I have no intention of going back to Singapore. I have a happy life and a fulfilling job in the U.S.," he said in an interview, adding he would defend himself through legal representation in Singapore.

The public spat between the Lee siblings, children of Lee Kuan Yew, flared in June over the future of the family home, in which the founding prime minister, who died at the age of 91 in 2015, lived for most of his life.

Lee Hsien Yang and sister Lee Wei Ling accused their elder brother of abusing power to try to save the house as a historic monument in defiance of his father's wishes.

That prompted the prime minister to call an extraordinary special sitting of parliament in July to "clear the air" over an issue that some people say has tarnished Singapore's image.

POLITICALLY MOTIVATED

Li said the prosecution against him was "politically motivated".

"The Attorney General's Chambers explicitly mentioned both my family relationships and recent political events in their cease and desist letter," said Li.

"I would like to spend my time doing research, but have somehow been swept into my uncle Lee Hsien Loong's personal political vendetta."

A spokesperson for the Prime Ministers Office declined to comment on the matter.

In a statement on Friday, the attorney general's chambers said it had previously instructed Li to remove the post and issue a letter of apology acknowledging that his comments about the judiciary were baseless.

It said since Li had failed to meet those requirements by the stipulated deadline of 0900 GMT, Friday, pushed back from July 28 at Li's request, it had filed the contempt proceedings in High Court.

Li said on Facebook he had amended his original July 15 post to clarify any misunderstandings. However, he said he did not believe the post was in contempt of court.

Li's July 15 post was shared on a privacy setting that allows content to only be viewed by his Facebook friends.

He said on Friday the intent of that post was to convey the "international media were restricted in their ability to report" on a recent feud between Prime Minister Lee and his siblings "due to the litigious nature" of the government.

"It is not my intent to attack the Singapore judiciary or to undermine public confidence in the administration of justice," he said. (Reporting by Sam Holmes; Editing by Alex Richardson and Bill Tarrant)
BERLIN/BRUSSELS, Aug 5 (Reuters) - German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt on Saturday expressed concern about news that Belgian authorities first learned about the possible contamination of eggs with an insecticide in June, a month before the issue became public.

Schmidt planned to call his Belgian counterpart on Monday to discuss the current situation and "particularly the new information," a ministry spokesman said. "Agriculture Minister Schmidt would have expected notification from officials in Belgium in a timely and comprehensive manner," the spokesman said.

Millions of eggs have been pulled from supermarkets in Germany and the Netherlands in a widening scandal over possible contamination by the insecticide fipronil that has triggered investigations by prosecutors in Belgium and the Netherlands, and the temporary shutdown of some poultry farms.

The issue has drawn widespread attention in Germany and discount supermarket chain Aldi on Friday said it was withdrawing all eggs from sale at its more than 4,000 stores in Germany as a precaution.

The Belgian food safety agency this week said it first learned of the issue at the start of June when one poultry company alerted them to the fact that they had found elevated levels of the insecticide fipronil in its products.

The World Health Organisation considers fipronil to be moderately toxic and says very large quantities can cause damage to the kidneys, liver and lymph glands.

Schmidt was responding to a report on Belgian broadcaster VRT which cited the food safety agency as saying it had not disclosed the possible contamination because it was investigating possible fraud.

A spokeswoman for the Belgian food agency said she could not provide further information as Belgian law prohibits commenting on judicial investigations.

While some individual producers have been blocked, Belgium has not recalled eggs from supermarket shelves as the levels of fipronil found were far below legal limits.

Blocked companies may only restart selling eggs if they can show that no more fipronil is found in their products.

A spokeswoman for the European Commission on Friday said the case was under investigation by Belgian and Dutch prosecutors.

She said the Belgian public prosecutor had opened a criminal investigation against the Belgian poultry service provider that is suspected of adding the substance to his products. Belgium has also opened a case on the EU Food Fraud Network asking assistance from the Netherlands. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Robert-Jan Bartunek; Editing by Stephen Powell)
UNITED NATIONS, Aug 5 (Reuters) - The United States "is taking and will continue to take prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies" from the threat posed by North Korea, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Saturday.

"The North Korean threat ... is rapidly growing more dangerous," Haley told the U.N. Security Council after the 15-member body imposed new sanctions on North Korea over its two long-range missiles tests in July.

"Further action is required." (Reporting by Michelle Nichols: Editing by Bernard Orr)
DOUALA, Aug 6 (Reuters) - A suicide bomber has killed at least seven people in a small town in northern Cameroon near the Nigeria border, a local official and a military source said on Sunday.

The attack occurred on Saturday near Amchide in Cameroon's Far North region, which has become a target for Boko Haram suicide bombers, many of whom are young women forced to enter populated areas with explosives strapped to their bodies.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack and the identity of the bombers is unknown.

Another suicide bomb exploded in the town of Waza in north Cameroon on Saturday, but no casualties were reported other than the bomber, the sources said.

Boko Haram's bid to establish an Islamic caliphate in northern Nigeria has spilled over into neighboring Cameroon, Chad and Niger, killing more than 20,000 people in the Lake Chad region and displacing nearly 3 million people, according to the United Nations.

Despite military gains by the Nigerian army and a regional force, attacks by Boko Haram continue unabated. Last month, suicide bombers killed at least 12 people and wounded over 40 others in Waza.

(Reporting By Josiane Kouagheu, writing by Edward McAllister; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
KINSHASA, Aug 6 (Reuters) - More than 50 people have been killed in clashes between ethnic groups in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, three local aid workers said on Sunday, the largest death toll in fighting between the two groups for months.

Violence has raged across much of Congo this year, killing hundreds and displacing millions amid a political crisis caused by President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step down when his constitutional mandate expired in December.

On Friday, a group of Twa pygmies attacked the Luba, a Bantu ethnic group, near Kalemi, in Tanganyika province, the aid workers said.

The pygmies, who live in Central Africa's Great Lakes region, have fought the Luba for decades over what activists say are inequalities between Bantu villagers and the Twa hunter gatherers, are exclued from access to land and basic services.

"According to information gathered, there were about 50 deaths in the attack on the group," Ilunga Musafiri, president of the local NGO Inter-church Council said.

A local activist said most of the casualties were Lubas.

U.N. officials are concerned that violence is spreading out of control in Congo with Kabila's complicity. Critics have said he may use the insecurity as an excuse to delay elections.

A U.N. report last week found 251 killings took place in three months this year in the diamond-rich central Kasai region in violence that has involved child soldiers and witchcraft.

The number of people displaced in Congo has more than doubled to 3.7 million since August 2016, the U.N. said in May. (Reporting by Amedee Mwarabu Kiboko; Additional reporting and writing by Edward McAllister; Editing by Louise Ireland)
Aug 6 (Reuters) - Iran's Revolutionary Guards clashed with a group of militants in the northwest of the country, killing two of them, the Tasnim news site reported on Sunday.

Brigadier General Mohammad Pakpour, the commander of the Guards ground forces, said that four militants were also wounded and some military material was confiscated, according to Tasnim.

The report said the clashes took place in West Azarbaijan province, which borders both Turkey and Iraq, but did not specify when the incident took place.

Clashes with Iranian Kurdish militant groups based in Iraq are common in the area. Last month, the Revolutionary Guards engaged in heavy clashes with gunmen on the border with Iraq, killing three of them and sustaining one fatality, the Guards said in a statement.

On June 7, Islamic State attacked parliament in Tehran and the mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini, killing at least 18 people. All of the attackers were Iranian Kurds.

The Revolutionary Guards fired several missiles at Islamic State bases in Syria on June 18 in response to that attack. (Reporting By Babak Dehghanpisheh; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
An objective analysis of Buddhism and science

Buddhism has been described by Buddhist Scholar S.N. Goenka as a pure science of mind and matter. He substantiates this on the basis that Buddhism uses precise, analytical, philosophical and psychological terminology and reasoning . The Buddha explained the reality of things in terms of cause and effect. Buddhism is firmly founded on the principle that effects arise from causation. The existence of misery and suffering in any given individual is due to the presence of causes.



Buddhism is undoubtedly the most profound and wholesome educational path available to mankind. It explains the true nature of life and the universe. In the Buddhist doctrine life refers to ourselves and the universe refers to the environment in which we live. Buddhism begins with mindfulness. One has to be mindful of the moment that is now, connected with what one is doing outside and what one is thinking and feeling inside. Thus, Buddhism is not only about withdrawal or detachment from this world but is also about living each moment meaningfully.



Buddhism is essentially a teaching for the intelligentsia. It is based on a systematic and rational analysis of the problems of life and the way to their solution. The Buddha emphatically admonished everyone to come and see; not to come and believe. Buddhism does not rely on blind faith. On the contrary one is encouraged to probe and verify personally what the Buddha preached.

Buddhism is undoubtedly the most profound and wholesome educational path available to mankind. It explains the true nature of life and the universe. In the Buddhist doctrine life refers to ourselves and the universe refers to the environment in which we live.

Buddhism has totally rejected belief by faith while encouraging personal conviction by investigation. Buddhism stands out singularly alone as the only system of thought that can be accepted by strict rationalization and comparison with already known phenomena. Every other religious system can be scientifically and rationally doubted. Buddhism is unique as in that not a single facet of its teaching can be disproved or even rationally doubted. On an intellectual basis, Buddhism has only one real contender to convince and that is the materialist. One does not need Buddhism to obviate the sparse rationalism of most religious systems. In fact most religions other than Buddhism are engaged in a desperate and pathetic struggle to keep up with the concepts of modern Science; so much so that with every new scientific discovery they have to adjust their sequence of thought and at times even the dogma.



Buddhism today is a hot topic in the science and religion dialogue. There is a basic understanding between Buddhist scholars and eminent scientists regarding the compatibility of Buddhism and science. The case is made that the philosophical and psychological teachings contained in Buddhism share commonalities with modern scientific and philosophical thought. For example Buddhism encourages the impartial investigation of nature or Dhamma Vicaya; the principal object of such study being oneself. In fact some popular conceptions of Buddhism connect it to discourses regarding evolution, quantum theory and cosmology. Moreover, Buddhism has been described as rational and non  dogmatic. There is ample evidence to prove that it has been so from the earliest period of history. Among the common philosophical principles shared between Buddhism and science are causality, empiricism and suspicion of absolutes.



Great scientist Albert Einstein has spelt out the common thread that binds Buddhism and science as follows. The religion of the future will be cosmic religion. It should transcend a personal god and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both the natural and spiritual it should be based on a religious sense arising from the experience of all things natural and spiritual and a meaningful unity. Buddhism answers to this description. If there is any religion that would cope with modern scientific needs it would be Buddhism.Likewise, many scientists have observed similarities between science and Buddhism. The American physicist Robert Oppenheimer saw in Buddhism a scientific parallel to the puzzling riddles of modern physics.



Science; The product of observations and experiments



Science is as old as man. It is also universal in the sense that the subjects of study, the methods employed and results obtained have been similar throughout history and across all civilizations. Science from its humble beginnings has come a long way. It has been successful in solving many human problems and making life ever more comfortable. Advances in medical science and new scientific inventions have contributed to relieving pain, eradicating disease, lengthening the life span and also made life healthier and more comfortable. But science up to date except in a few areas of human activity apparently has been oblivious to the damaging effect of fuelling the fires of human greed for more and more comforts and better quality of life.



Science is an understanding of matter whereas spiritualism is related to the consciousness of the individual. Usually we analyse them as separate entities. However in reality they are interdependent and inalienable parts of each other.In the west spiritualism is defined as a philosophical doctrine which perceives all reality as spiritual and not material. On the other hand science is knowledge gained by the study of the physical and natural world. The scientific method we use today in modern science is based on building up a hypothesis using data obtained through observations and arriving at a conclusion through experiments.



Science is defined as systematic observation of natural events and conditions in order to discover facts about them and to formulate laws and principles based on these facts. Modern science relies on inductive reasoning from multiple observations of nature; thus working up from basic observation or experiment to generalization. However, the entire body of knowledge generated by scientists is not true. Thus, most scientists test theories knowing that future evidence may cause refinement, revision or even rejection of todays theories that are held as true.



Experimentation in science is indispensable for it helps establish causal relationships. It is said that the ultimate purpose of science is to make sense of human beings and our nature. Science has discovered that all matter including human beings consist of particles. Further, it has been found that matter could be converted to energy and vice versa. Thus we are nothing but aggregates of energy. More than 2600 years ago the Buddha said that the atom is not the ultimate particle of matter; but that ultimate of matter exists in the form of energies. Modern science discovered the same about a three quarter of century ago.Likewise, there are many aspects of the teachings of the Buddha which we are unable to comprehend.



Science has not found an answer to the question why are we here? What is the meaning of life? May be before long science will find out the origin of life and the universe. However, science may not be able to solve the problem of human suffering. Also, science has not found a solution to the malaise of insatiable greed and acquisitive craving. The whole world and its economy and all policies of governments are driven by human greed. The Buddha has shown us that the cause of suffering is greed. Apart from that ignorance of the true nature of the world keeps human beings in bondage. The Buddha has said that bondage could be severed by getting rid of ignorance.



The development of modern science paved the way for a deep spiritual crisis in the West which resulted in an irrevocable split between the established the monotheistic religious faith and scientific reason. Buddhism being an atheistic philosophy has the ability to bridge the worlds of matter and spirit estranged due to certain findings of modern science. Buddhists do understand that objects and individuals are comprised of an ever changing composite of elements of reality called dharmas. Even though Darwinism met with great resistance in the West; Buddhists ingrained in the transient nature of things found no difficulty in accepting that humans evolved from lesser forms of life. Thus, Buddhism has the potential to satisfy post Darwinian needs of religious beliefs grounded in new scientific findings.



Similarities between science and Buddhism



There are many similarities between Science and Buddhism. Both agree that there is no creator. Buddhism rejects accepting things merely on a teachers authority. Buddhism emphasizes personal verification.One of the cardinal doctrines of Buddhismis that of dependent or conditioned co-production (patitya samutpada) according to which no being or event arises without a conditioning factor. One of the principles on which science operates is universal causation, which means that all material things are caused. According to Buddhism the cosmos consists of thousands of spherical worlds (chakkavatas). In each world system there are thousands of suns, moons, earths etc. This bears a close resemblance to the modern scientific understanding of the universe with its galaxies. Science states that matter and energy can neither be created nor destroyed but only transformed. Buddhism says the same thing and extends this principle to the mind.



In Buddhism mind means awareness of phenomena either conscious or unconscious and awareness of phenomena can neither be created nor destroyed but only be transformed. Thus, reincarnation is simply a transformation in the ongoing continuity of an individuals awareness of phenomena, but now with the physical basis of another body. There are two types of wisdom in Buddhism namely conventional wisdom and ultimate wisdom. Conventional wisdom relates to the understanding of the conventional world and how it functions including science. Ultimate wisdom refers to a direct realization which is non dualistic and contradicts the way in which we ordinarily perceive the world. There are two methods available to the human being to acquire knowledge. They are left brain centred intuition method and the left brain centred scientific method. The Buddha had used the intuition method while modern science uses the scientific method.



Buddhism is more consistent with the scientific method than traditional faith based religion. Accordingly the Kalama Sutta insists on a proper assessment of evidence, rather than a reliance on faith, hearsay or speculation. The general tenor of the Sutta is take no ones word for it. The following is a gist of the Kalama Sutta.  If you have a doubt do not be led by reports, or tradition or hearsay. Do not be led by authority of religious texts, not by mere logic or inference, nor by considering appearances nor by delight in speculative opinions, nor by seeming possibilities, nor by the idea this is our teacher. But when you know that certain things are unwholesome (Akusala) and wrong and bad then give them up. When you know that certain things are wholesome (Kusala) and good then accept them and follow them. Up to about the 1960s even though the super normal non materialistic knowledge flourished with ones spiritual development described in Buddhism as Panca Abihinna; those attainments did not receive scientific acceptance. However today with the advancement of Metaphysics and Parapsychology the five Abhinnas are now being accepted under the same classification given in Buddhism but with new names namely (1) Iddhivida nana or magical powers now called psycho kinesis (11) Dibba Sota Nana or divine ear now called clairaudience (111) Ceto Pariya Nana or penetration of mind now called telepathy (1V) Dibba Chakkhu Nana or divine eye now called clairvoyance and (V) Pubba Nivasanussati nana or remembering of former existences now called post cognition.



During the 1970s several experimental studies suggested that Buddhist meditation could produce insights into a wide range of psychological states. Interest in the use of meditation as a means of providing insight into mind states has recently been revived, following the availability of brain scanning technologies etc. It is worthy of note that in recent times Buddhist concepts have made most inroads into the psychological sciences. Some modern scientific theories such as Rogerian psychology show strong parallels with Buddhist thought. Some of the most interesting work on the relationship between Buddhism and science is being done in the area of comparison between Yogacara theories regarding the store consciousness and modern evolutionary biology especially DNA. It has been scientifically established that there is a co-relationship between Buddhist meditation and improved quality of life. It has been substantially proved that meditation thickens the brain tissues thus increasing attention and sensory processing . Also, it has been found that Pirith chanting not only has a sobering influence on the listener but also a beneficial impact on the heart function.



Buddhism and science can coexist harmoniously

Science works on the basis that nature fixes laws. But on the other hand Buddhism strives to solve the problem of human suffering which arises from both internal or mental and external or physical conditions, with an emphasis on human behaviour. At the same time Buddhism sees this as a natural process. Thus Buddhism has faith in nature as well as human beings. Science ignores human values; hence it has an incomplete or faulty view of nature. Sciences search for knowledge is both inadequate and incomplete because it ignores the internal nature of man. Science pays little attention to the development of the human being, whereas Buddhism pins great faith in the human potential and its full exploitation. Buddhist teachings rely on the ability of human potential to develop wisdom and realize the truth of the laws of nature.



In Buddhism, real insight or right view has the capacity to liberate and bring about peace and happiness. The findings of science are also typical insight; for they can be applied in technology as well as in our daily behaviour to improve the quality of life and happiness. Thus, Buddhists and scientists can share with each other the ways of studying and practice and can profit from each ones insights and experiences. The practice of mindfulness and concentration always brings insight. It can help both Buddhists and Scientists. Thus Buddhism and science can go hand in hand to promote more insight and bring greater liberation leading to a reduction of discrimination, separation, fear, anger and despair in the world.



The trend to link Buddhism and science has continued unabated so much so that today Buddhism and science are considered to be rivers leading to the same sea. Hence, the dire need for greater dialogue between Buddhist scholars and scientists to realize the importance of Buddhist wisdom to advance scientific wisdom.
The Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Yi Xianliang, on Saturday assured Sri Lankans that China will never use Sri Lankas strategic location in the Indian Ocean for its strategic and security needs Newsin.asia reported today.

Speaking at the reception to the Chinese naval hospital ship Ark Peace at the Colombo harbor, Yi said: From over 1000 years ago, Sri Lanka has enjoyed its strategic location because the island is in the middle of the silk route.

However the question is how do you use your potential? How do you make use of this opportunity which you have? The main answer is peace and development. So China will take every effort to support Sri Lankas economic and social development. That is the need of the people of Sri Lanka. We will never use this advantage of Sri Lanka for our strategic or security needs.

We support Sri Lankas development. You can check what China has done in Sri Lanka in the past. We have built infrastructure, hospitals, airport, harbour. Sri Lanka also is the first country to get the largest donation and financial assistance from China.

We do not have any navy soldiers or any other soldiers in Sri Lanka. We have no intelligence in Sri Lanka. We have no such people present in Sri Lanka except the Chinese diplomats present here and I am the representative of China to Sri Lanka.

But we have so many CEOs, Engineers, businessmen, teachers, professors in Sri Lanka. What are they doing here? They are strengthening the cooperation between China and Sri Lanka and assist Sri Lanka and develop this island country and develop the economy and social affairs. We do what we say and we have kept our promise. So trust the Chinese as we are true friends of Sri Lanka, Yi said.

Commander Sanath Uthpala, commander of the Sri Lankan navys Western Command said that Sri Lanka would be interested in buying Chinese ships and that some Lankan naval personnel would be going to China in September for training.

The Commander of PLA Navy Hospital Ship Ark Peace, Rear Admiral Guan Bai Lin, said that during the ships three-day sojourn in Colombo, the general could visit the ship and even seek medical treatment.

PLA Navy Hospital Ship Ark Peace has 381 officers on board and since it was commissioned in 2008, it has visited 29 countries, sailed 170,000 nautical miles and medically treated 12,000 people in various countries.

The ship, praised as an Envoy of Peace has 300 sick beds, eight operating theatres, a severe burns ward, an ICU, a dental section, and out-patient service and many other medical facilities. It has even been able to perform sophisticated surgeries.
A Hospital Ship of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLA Navy) of China Hepingfangzhou called at the Colombo Port today on a four-day goodwill visit.

The SL Navy said the State of the Art vessel had been constructed in a bid to engage swiftly in humanitarian response to disasters around the world and it is also popularly known as Ark Peace.

The ship, which is 178 m in length and 24 m in width, is comprised of a crew of 381.

She has treated over 120,000 people across the globe during her circumnavigation. Further, this modern platform is equipped with all in-house facilities such as; theaters, Intensive Care Units, consultant medical services, residential treatment units and Computerised Tomography Machines.

Meanwhile, the helicopter on-board can be utilised in swift transfer of patients at any given time of emergency.

During the four day official visit in Sri Lanka, Deputy Chief of Staff of East Sea Fleet, PLA Navy, Rear Admiral Guan Bailin, Commanding Officer of the ship Captain Guo Baofeng and senior officers of Ark Peace are expected to meet with the Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne.

The ship was welcomed by Sri Lanka Navy and Deputy Area Commander Western Naval Area, Commodore Sanath Uthpala.

Further, the medical staff of the ship partnering with the medical personnel of the Sri Lanka Navy is scheduled to conduct several medical camps as well. Moreover, arrangements have been made ready for Sri Lankan doctors and medical students to get on-board this Hospital Ship to experience a rare opportunity. The ship will leave the Colombo harbour on August 9. (Darshana Sanjeewa)
Two years after assuming office, the National Unity government is facing one of its biggest crises in the aftermath of the bombshell revelations made last Wednesday at the sittings of the Commission probing the alleged multi-million dollar bond scam in the Central Bank.



At the Centre of the crisis is the former Finance Minister and now Foreign Minister Ravi Karunanayake along with the Perpetual Treasuries boss Arjun Aloysius who is one of the main figures in the alleged bond scams.



Media reports say both President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe have urged Mr. Karunanayake to resign from his post at least until the Commission concludes its sittings at the end of October. At Wednesdays dramatic sittings, which hit the headlines in the mainstream and social media, Anika Wijesuriya, the daughter of millionaire businessman Nahil Wijesuriyatestified that she had met Arjun Aloysius and he had offered to pay a lease of Rs. 1.45 million a month for the Karunanayake family to move into the luxury Monarch apartment, next to the Cinnamon Grand Hotel. Mr. Karunanayake, during sometimes heated cross-examination by Additional Solicitor General Dappula de Livera, denied any knowledge of Mr. Aloysius involvement and said it was his family that had worked out the deal with the controversial Perpetual Treasurys boss. The Minister said he often worked at the Finance Ministry from 7am to 11 pm and therefore personal matters were worked out by his family. He also admitted that after the lease agreement ended, his family company had purchased a luxury apartment for Rs.165 million.



Responding to questions by the Additional Solicitor General and denying charges that he may be lying under oath, Mr. Karunanayake said he could not remember whether he had gone in the same flight with Mr. Aloysius to Singapore and how many times he had met him there. The other major allegation was that the Karunanayake family company chairman had paid for the apartment complex and its penthouse in cash that he brought in two bags, one containing Rs. 75 million and the other Rs. 70 million. This money was kept in the company safe, raising questions as to whether there was any link with money laundering which is alleged to have taken place in multimillion dollar proportion during the past decade.



Media reports also say several cabinet ministers representing both the United National Party (UNP) and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) had proposed that Mr. Karunanayake should step down from the portfolio because of the national and international embarrassment the revelations had caused to the national government.



In 2015, the President and the National Government had been elected to office with one of their main promises being that stern action would be taken against the former regimes VIPs who were allegedly involved in the plunder of billions of dollars in public funds. President Sirisena also calls for a simple and humble lifestyle by party leaders and other politicians. He said he would set the example in Alpechchathawaya and servant leadership. But two and half years after being elected to office, the President has publicly expressed concern over delays in probing allegations of large scale corruptions by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, his family members, top officials and associates.

The President also expressed concern that some UNP front-liners were delaying the investigations, though the reasons for it were not clearly spelt out. Some element of the mystery unfolded when former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, in a speech on Saturday said he had not signed the Joint Opposition motion of no-confidence against Mr. Karunanayake and would not vote for it.

President Sirisena also said he had quit the former regime because it was largely corrupt and would not remain in any corrupt government. Therefore the decision by the President and the Prime Minister to call for Mr. Karunanayakes resignation could also have some positive impact in showing that the current government would prosecute not only former VIPs but also present ones if there was substantial evidence of involvement in corruption or frauds.
Nikini is for restraining Sangha through a Dhamma Council

Monks staging a protest in Colombo

Elder Maha Kassapas Nikini Full Moon Dear Kassapa, please advise these Bhikkhus and guide them from faltering in their code of conduct. You must please counsel them regularly, now. Preach them the Dhamma too. Or else, I myself will have to do so. -Lord Buddha.



O Lord, these Bhikkhus are now highly indisciplined. They are not amenable to correction. They often resort to their own ways. They do not show obedience or patience. They are not willing to abide by advice given to them for their own welfare and progress; instead they often misconstrue and misunderstand it. -The First Sangayanawa [Convocation] was held on Nikini Poya



Bhikkhu Subhadda believed that the Buddha had been curtailing their freedom. The Thera, who became a monk in his old age, advised the mourning monks to celebrate the Parinibbana of the Buddha. Celebrate brothers, said Subaddha. He asked them not to weep, but, be happy that now they can do what they want, The Master is no more; we are now free.

O Lord, these Bhikkhus are now highly undisciplined. They are not amenable to correction. They often resort to their own ways. They do not show obedience...



Just 21 days after the Parinibbana of Buddha, Arahant Maha Kassapa decided that a great council must be held with the commencement of the rains retreat for the Sangha. It was held three months after the demise of the Buddha, at Sattapanni Rock Cave in Rajagaha, under the patronage of King Ajasatta. All matters concerning organising, planning and conducting were done under the auspices of Elder Maha Kassapa Maha Thera.



The council was attended by 499 Arahant Theras at the beginning and Ven. Mahakassapa Thera kept the 500th seat vacant for Ven. Ananda Thera, who attained Arahanthship on this Nikini Poya Day. The great Theravada Buddhist tradition flourishing today in countries such as Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, Laos and Cambodia had its beginnings in the first Council.



Maha Kassapa Thera sent a message to all the participants, which conveyed that they should assemble in the hall constructed in front of Sapta Parni Cave. In the morning Arahants took their seats according to seniority, in the gaily decorated hall. Arahant Upali, chief among Vinaya experts, took a seat especially arranged in the centre and in reply to Maha Kassapa; he collated the disciplinary code [VinayaPitake]

Being abused and exploited at Buddhist religious rituals; surprisingly, at Buddhist Peraheras, the majestic pachyderms are made to walk miles on hot tarred roads...



Next, Arahant Ananda Thera took that special seat. As questioned and guided by Maha Kassapa Thera, he collated the entire code of Dhamma covering all five Nikayas. It was well known that all of those five hundred Arahants were experts on Dhamma and Vinaya. Having come to the end of the first Sangayana [Council], Elder Maha Kassapa entrusted the responsibility of preserving through memorizing and passing down to posterity, all the books of the entire code on Vinaya [discipline] to the chief of Discipline, Arahant Upali Mahathera and his retinue of pupils. Similarly, the responsibility of memorizing and preserving, and passing down to posterity all of the thirty four long discourses grouped as Dighanikaya to Arahant Ananda Thera and his retinue of pupils. The Middle length discourses [Majjimanikaya] to Elder Sari Putta Thera and his pupils. The Samyuktha Nikaya, to himself and his pupils, while the Anguttra Nikaya to Arahant Anuruddha Thera and his pupils. Foremost Place, Protect, Responsibility Entrusted by Constitutional Charter

Foremost place and the responsibility guaranteed by Constitutional Charter to the Government through Clause 9 which reads as:



The Republic of Sri Lanka shall give to Buddhism the foremost place and accordingly it shall be the duty of the State to protect and foster the Buddha Sasana, while assuring protectionto all religions, the rights granted by Articles 10 and 14(1)(e).



The Government, in a sense, is given a free hand through this clause to act, directly intervene, question, acquire, obstruct, and proceed in any manner as it perceives as appropriate to preserve and uphold the moral behaviour of individuals, control of properties and financial discipline in relation to matters that lead to the protection, safety and fostering of the Buddha Sasana. It is rather depressing to learn that successive Governments had been guilty of dereliction of the sacred duty by the Sasana, even ignoring the Constitutional provision that the Buddhists had always clamoured for the inclusion and retention during compilation of a new Constitution.



Attempts by constitutional experts to delete the above provision from the nations basic law under the pretext of instituting a Secular State had been met with severe opposition from Maha Sangha and virtuous Buddhists, rather Sinhala-Buddhists.



Anujanami Bhikkave Vassane Vassan Udaganja - I advise oh monks! To observe the rainy retreat during the Rainy Season, under one roof. It is the foremost duty of the Government to pick up all those young saffron robe-clad monks parading the streets with lay students, at least during the rainy retreat four months. Senior Monks who engage in politics, conduct media shows decorate political rallies with their saffron robes should be rounded up and handed over to the Nayake Theras for further action.



Placing Buddhism above other faiths and ensuring foremost or privileged status to it for the simple reason that it is the religion of seventy percent of Lankans ignites a reverse process. This is totally against the principles of Dhamma, which are based on teachings of Buddha. The problem here is the superficial manner in which most of us have grasped the profound and unfathomable teachings of Buddhism. One of the most sacred ethical principles of Dhamma is equality and compassion.

Buddhism injects equality by the very sentence that tells to show sympathy and care for all beings.

Buddhism does not encourage special treatment to a particular group, sect, sex or religion. Any type of discrimination based on race, caste, academic success, social status, position, wealth, power has no place in the Sasana. Another major teaching in Buddhism is the inter-woven and interdependent nature of all things. So, there is no possibility of anything that can be unequal to anything else.



Nayake Theras de facto State



Issuing two controversial statements in quick succession, the Asgiriya Chapter of Siam Nikaya and the Tri Nikaya Mahanayake Theras [Chief monks of the three Buddhist Nikayas] gave notice to the Government warning against inaugurating a new Constitution as if they were being entrusted the task of running the country in parallel to the de jure State: It is a high-handed act by the prelates who failed to summon the political authority for talks prior to the release.



Kandy Esala Perahera faces elephant crisis News item



This day has a special significance since the annual Kandy Esala Perahera ends on Nikini Poya. This famous Perahera, as anyone who has seen and had the opportunity to witness it will tell you, is indeed an experience in itself and should not be missed.



Traditional rituals and slaughter of animals had been taking place for a long time. Whatever the purpose behind it, this is a barbaric act. Some religious leaders opted to kill animals to satisfy the Gods. In performing traditional rituals so many women had been burned alive just because they lost their husbands-[Sathi] . These rituals have to be changed as the world advances. The news further says:



This years Kandy Esala Perahera will be without its star attractions the tuskers Nadungamuwe Raja, Wasana and Kelaniye Raja, while two other tuskers belonging to the Sri Dalada Maligawa would not take apart in the Perahera.



The Maligawa officials said Nadungamuwa Raja and Wasana were among the elephants at the Kataragama Perahera while Kelaniye Raja would not be available for the Kandy Perahera beginning on July 29. He said usually three elephants were required to carry the sacred relic caskets, whereas only two other elephants would take part in the Perahera. Elephants form profound family bonds and live in firm matriarchal family groups of related females called a herd.



The herd is led by the oldest and often chief female in the herd, called a matriarch. Elephant calves and young elephants are being chained, roped and stretched, and hit with bull hooks. This is done to weaken the animals spirit so that they would comply with humans. The elephants often display signs of crippling injuries with brutal attacks. Biologists say with the help of the sensory cells in the feet of elephants, the vibrations pass through their bodies to their ear drums. [They even use these vibrations to be in touch with each other over fair distances.] Being abused and exploited at Buddhist religious rituals; surprisingly, at Buddhist Peraheras, the majestic pachyderms are made to walk miles on hot tarred roads, the cheapest mode of transport, which is extremely harmful to these nerve endings. This happens during long walks from home to temple abodes that help the organizers of such events to accumulate a-kusala kamma!



The news is encouraging; let them have even fewer animals next year. This callous disregard for the wellbeing of innocent animals in the name of the Buddha, the Great Compassionate One has to be stopped forthwith. May all beings be happy!
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe speaking at a public function in Hatton today said this government would not protect thieves, and would remove them, but stressed that there should be room for a transparent investigation.

Today there are so many investigations that ministers are brought before the Attorney General and are questioned. Was there a situation as such before? Those days, the Attorney General was an acolyte of the president. The Attorney General who questioned was removed from the department or else taken in a white van. Now there is room to question anyone. This government will not protect thieves. If anyone found committing frauds, we will act according to probe reports. The UNP is not a party of thieves. If there are thieves in the party we will remove them. Allow us to carry out a transparent and public investigation. The media in Sri Lanka dont have an ethical right to say that such and such things have happened. Why is that? They covered up corruption of the previous government. They all went shopping kade. Divaina, Ada, Lankadeepa, Dinamina, Silumina all went kade. Tell me who did not do it.

*Allow a transparent investigation

*Says media does not have an ethical right to talk about what happens now

*Says Daily Mirror wanted to him to resign from UNP leader post as he spoke about the loss of SriLankan Airlines, Hambantota Port

Lasantha Wickramatunga was trying to reveal corruption but he was killed. What happened to Eknaligoda? He also revealed about corruption and was abducted and killed. What are they (media institutions) saying now? Not to investigate on the killings of journalists now? When we try to conduct investigations on these and frauds they say it is a threat to security. They are attacking us when we conduct investigation on corruption. We got voted in because people wanted good governance. What the professionals, government servants and the average citizens of the country want is just and free society without corruption. If we do not do it we will not get votes next time. Also we do not want the votes of thieves. We will do everything which we can do to give what people want. Do not have a doubt about that. We will not shout about what we do. I have named some media institutions today. I can also name those who are in them but will not do it now. We have now established an open society today. If someone robs he will get caught. Now see investigations are carried out even against the family of President Donald Trump. If someone does wrong he will get punished.

I discussed with Minister Kabir Hashim about the losses incurred by Srilankan Airlines. The Airline was running at a loss. The Rajapaksa regime had bought eight A332 planes. Those luxury planes can fly at a stretch to Chicago in the US. However Srilankan only fly up to London. These planes could fly double the distance. What are we to do about these planes which have been purchased in such an irregular manner? The country has suffered a loss of RS 135 billion as a result. The country had also lost Rs 46billion on the Hambantota Port project. The total loss of these two is Rs 181 billion. What did Lankadeepa do when these losses happened? What did Daily Mirror do? Daily Mirror newspaper asked me to resign from the party leadership when I revealed losses happened during the last regime.

The Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the government had created an open society, and therefore anyone, indulging in fraud activities would get exposed.

He said, I am happy to launch bus service between Batticaloa and Hatton. It is an important step facilitating the movement of students who are from this area and study at the Eastern University in Batticaloa. I am grateful for conducting religious ceremonies at Buddhist temples, Mosques, Kovils to shower blessing on me marking my 40th year in politics. It is a pleasure for me to see all of you assembled here. Today, there is freedom of movement for you. We all got together and ensured the victory of President Maithripala Sirisena to achieve this. We have not had such a political era before. Freedom was confined only to a few. There is no need to talk about it. Today, people can live and move without any fear. There is no racism or religious fanaticism. We have to resolve our problems and forge ahead. We have set up Independent Commissions. Parliament is being empowered further. Parliamentary committees have been given more and more authority to summon any official for testifying. If any Minister does not attend to your problems, it can be complained to these committees. Did we ever have such a free society before?

He said, Let alone, we are proceeding with investigations into corruption. Nobody can be allowed to do corruption. The police have filed cases regarding some cases. We are seeking legal advice on some cases. If there are cases, we have to probe. There was an allegation regarding the bond transaction. First, I appointed an interim committee comprising lawyers. Then, it was referred to the COPE. Though we won the election, we gave the COPE chairmanship to an opposition MP. It was open to all. Afterwards, the President appointed a Presidential Commission.

Today, the Attorney General summons Ministers and questions them. At that time, the Attorney General was a yes-man of the President. I will tell one thing. We will not cover up fraudsters in the government. This is not a party of fraudsters. If there is any, we will expel him. Yet, let us have a transparent probe!

It is like in America. There are so many investigations against President Trump by the media, Congress and so on. Upon receipt of reports, wrongdoers step down. It is same in England. (Yohan Perera)
Fifteen Sri Lankan parliamentarians will visit China next week to attend a program on disaster management, the Asian News International reported.

China handed over the equipment estimated at 293,000 U.S. dollars to the Sri Lankan Parliament to boost parliament to parliament ties between the two countries.

While appreciating and accepting the donation, Sri Lankan Parliament Speaker Karu Jayasuriya said to date over 100 parliamentarians had visited China for several programs with the support of China.

Jayasuriya said a further 15 parliamentary members would visit China next week to undergo a program on disaster management. "We hope to strengthen this relationship further," Jayasuriya said.

China's Ambassador to Sri Lanka. Yi Xianliang, said China welcomed more local parliamentarians to visit China and would look forward to further boosting ties with the island country.

Yi said he would also encourage more Chinese companies and investors to invest in Sri Lanka.

Recently, China Merchants Port Holdings has signed a $1.12 billion agreement with the SriLanka Ports Authority to develop the Hambantota Port in southern Sri Lanka.(ANI)
A recent trade union protest by Ceylon Petroleum Corporation workers in Kolonnawa

Negotiations and allocations for the 2018 budget are underway. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe states there will be another round of liberalisation with the budget.



Trade unions are mounting struggles against the privatisation-push and policies that favour the wealthy. And the Govts response is baton charges, water cannons, tear gas and even the military to run essential services.



Corruption continues as the dominant discourse on the economy as both the Government and the Joint Opposition accuse each other of ransacking state resources. However, successive governments are continuing with the same economic policy trajectory, and for that matter, fighting hard to take forward the very same projects such as the port city, SAITM, Uma Oya and the Hambantota port. Economic policy priorities, including the consequences of financialisation, trade liberalisation and privatisation that are largely missing in the debates in the public domain.

The current Govt accuses the Rajapaksa regime of crony capitalism and claims only its liberalisation push will ensure economic prosperity. But is capitalism ever free of cronyism? And how does liberalisation affect society?



Political economic continuities



Governments may change, but there are longer-term continuities in the workings of state and capital that are important for analysing the political economy of a country. The lopsided investment in urban and other infrastructure, the promotion of financial institutions, the marketization of essential services and the expanded import of goods including luxury items, over the course of decades transform the economy. The political memory of such developments is short, as rhetoric and personalities dominate debates on the economy.



The current UNP-led govt is attempting to show the history of its liberalisation antecedent in positive light. The UNPs landslide victory in the elections of July 1977 initiated an era of open economic reforms. A month later in August 1977, anti-Tamil riots signalled the turn towards decades of ethnic violence and state repression. Draconian measures such as the Prevention of Terrorism Act and emergency rule came along with such liberalisation. Trade unions were crushed following the July 1980 strike. Inequalities drastically widened within the population and Colombo-centred uneven development characterised the economy.



The lesson we can draw from our history, as from around the world, is that liberalisation not only leads to economic disparities but also violence and repression. If it is not repression of the working and rural classes, it is attacks on minorities. The state and its repressive apparatuses are often mobilised to unleash such violence.



Capital and State



The capitalist class in Sri Lanka was historically weak compared to Western countries. Many of the state services towards some redistribution of wealth, including free healthcare and education, were consolidated during times when a range of class interests could influence the state. This was also the case in many other post-colonial societies where the modern state did not evolve in tandem with capitalist development. Rather, the state structures in those colonised countries were a creation of colonial power.

During the last four decades, the open economy with the influence of donors and the global finance capital set the economic trajectory. During this period, the weak Sri Lankan capitalist class in tandem with powerful external actors



During the last four decades, the open economy with the influence of donors and the global finance capital set the economic trajectory. During this period, the weak Sri Lankan capitalist class in tandem with powerful external actors have largely determined state policies on the economy.



The Sri Lankan states relationship to capital in recent times increasingly looks like the dynamics in modern western societies. In the Communist Manifesto of 1848, Marx and Engels describe the relationship of modern western states to their capitalist class, the bourgeoisie, as follows:

Each step in the development of the bourgeoisie was accompanied by a corresponding political advance of that class. An oppressed class under the sway of the feudal nobility the bourgeoisie has at last, since the establishment of modern industry and of the world market, conquered for itself, in the modern representative state, exclusive political sway. The executive of the modern state is but a committee for managing the common affairs of the whole bourgeoisie.

The times ahead are worrying with the liberalisation push. The working people should prepare for resistance in the face of further repression

Indeed, financialisation, free trade, privatisation and a singular focus on increasing profits, have become the primary role of the state as it manages the affairs of capital in Sri Lanka. These market oriented policies will definitely undermine the lives of the working people, and it may even undermine some businesses, but the state serves the overall interests of domestic businesses and global capital.

Market to the fore



In this context, liberalisation in essence involves the state surrendering more and more of its economic functions to the market. In fact, the states resources and repressive arms are used to promote the market. And that is what the current Govt is seeking to do. Furthermore, to differentiate itself from the Rajapaksa regime, it is labelling the latter as crony capitalist.



Now crony capitalism became a widely used term in the West during the Asian Economic Crisis of 1997, about the relationship of the political class controlling the state to businesses. The claim was that if it was only up to the market, such economic crisis would not happen, and that any recovery from such crisis should be through the market mechanism alone. Ultimately, the citizens of those Asian countries paid dearly as global capital pillaged those countries after the crisis; state debts were paid for by the people and assets were sold for a song to meet the conditions of the donor agencies.

Remarkably, the Western Economic Crisis of 2008 did not lead to the label of cronyism, not even when tremendous funds were put forward by the Western states to bail out major banks on the verge of bankruptcy due to speculation. Crony capitalism then is a derogatory term used by Western powers. It is neo-colonial term used against developing countries to further pry open their markets, as happened in South East Asia after the crisis.



The UNP government pushing forward liberalisation may want to be forewarned. That after any future crisis, caused by rising imports with increased trade and capital flight with financialisation, it too may be labelled as crony capitalist.



Liberalisation accelerated by the Govt will inevitably lead to dispossession of peoples livelihoods and hard won state services. As markets are promoted with state subsidies and support for business, under the guise of Public Private Partnerships, it will further increase inequalities in the country.

The Joint Opposition stands exposed by policies of the previous regime it is trying to legitimise. The formal opposition, TNA, has shamefully succumbed to white-washing state repression against strikers. All these actors, in different ways are statist in their thinking, and are only concerned about the common affairs of capital. The times ahead are worrying with the liberalisation push. The working people should prepare for resistance in the face of further repression.
Minister of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Mahinda Amaraweera said that he did not believe that anybody would have to bring in a No-Faith Motion against Minister Ravi Karunanayake, who is in the midst of a controversy over the Central Bank bond scam as what were to be done would be done before that.

However, he said that he had got to know about the MPs of United National Party having talked to the PM regarding a decision to be taken with regard to Minister Karunanayake.

"I am the person who complained first with regard to Bond Scam. There are many owners today in this regard. But I must tell that I am the first complainant," he stated.

He said that a decision had been taken to hold the Local Government Elections at the end of this year.

The Minister was responding to the questions raised by journalists when he came to inaugurate the housing scheme which is constructed in the island of Keeramandan in Kalpitiya.

"We think the Local Government Elections should be held before end of this year. That is why we are going from electorate to electorate all over the island to organise the necessary arrangements," he added. (Jude Samantha)
125 Years of Progress takes you inside The Daily Progress' archives every day in celebration of our 125 years serving Charlottesville and the rest of Central Virginia. Sponsored by Hanckel-Citizens Insurance Charlottesville

One hundred and fifty-one German prisoners of war arrived at the Prisoner-of-War Camp at White Hall yesterday afternoon, in time to help harvest the peaches in that area.

- The Daily Progress, Aug. 6, 1944

The summer of 1944 produced a bumper crop of peaches, much to the delight of local growers who had suffered a devastating crop loss the year before. Hoards of workers were called in for the harvest including about 200 Bahamans now at White Hall and some 200 workers from neighboring counties. The following day, approximately seventy-five college and business girls who have joined the Virginia Womens Land Army for the next two weeks arrived at Afton House to begin work in Albemarle County peach orchards.

Feeding the ever-growing pack of peach pickers presented problems.

Luther Dreggors, who is in charge of feeding the Bahamans, said last week that it has been next to impossible to secure meat, and the Camp is trying to provide  lb. of pork, beef or mutton, per person at least five days a week. Five from the Islands are the camp cooks, an arrangement which gives them the kind of food and the high seasoning to which they are used.

Peach picking is gaining momentum daily in the county orchards with the Bahamans, prisoners-of-war at White Hall, and Womens Land Army girls at Afton and Crozet working full time. Peach growers in general praised the Bahamans for their work, one employer citing that eight of them picked an average of over 63 bushels of peaches in a single day.

Further down the road, Harvesting of the largest peach crop in the history of Nelson County fruit growing started Monday with all available labor being called upon to save the fruit, which is ripening fast. Aid in the harvest is being furnished by women and teen-age laborers who are encamped on the Thomas Fortune Ryan estate at Oak Ridge. The laborers are from Richmond, Newport News, Roanoke and other parts of the state.
On the morning of Aug. 5, 2012, a neo-Nazi gunman murdered six Americans who gathered to pray at a gurdwara (Sikh house of worship) in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. The Oak Creek massacre ranks among the most lethal hate crimes in the modern history of our nation.

Five years later, as Sikhs solemnly remember the lives that were lost that day, I believe Americans of all backgrounds should redouble their efforts to prevent a repeat of this tragedy. At a time of rising hostility toward immigrants and religious minorities, I am concerned that hate will continue to pose deadly threats to our communities.

Guru Nanak founded the Sikh religion over five centuries ago in the Punjab region of South Asia. Sikh religious life centers on remembering God, earning an honest living, and sharing with the less fortunate. Devout Sikhs express their faith by wearing turbans, which signal a public commitment to leading an ethical life. Sikhs are also proud Americans. My own brother plans to enlist in the U.S. Army.

Unfortunately, many Americans have little to no knowledge about Sikhs. In the post-9/11 environment, some ignorant bigots have conflated Sikhs with turbaned followers of Osama bin Laden and subjected our community to harassment and violence rooted in hate.

Although hate continues to stalk the Sikh American community, this is a problem that affects millions of Americans. According to estimates by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Americans experienced 250,000 hate crimes on average between 2004 and 2015.

These figures do not account for hate speech and prejudice, which are precursors to hate crime and which pose latent threats to Virginia cities like Charlottesville. Removal of Confederate symbols have led to the visible presence of the Ku Klux Klan and alt-right groups protesting the action over the past two months.

It is no surprise that the University of Virginia has reported increases in hate speech through campus by fliers and invitations of outspoken racist leaders.

People dont commit bigoted acts of violence against others spontaneously; rather, they are taught to see other people as less than human.

I respect the right of free expression; however, we should not accept viewpoints designed to intimidate minority communities. For example, terrorist was spray-painted on the University of Virginia dorms of two Muslim students to insinuate that these individuals pose a threat to all of us. Such accusations can convince others that they can only fend off such a threat by violence.

We must collectively do more to address this problem. Parents and teachers can work together to ensure that schools adopt bias-prevention curricula and implement anti-bullying policies. If children are taught that it is unacceptable to demean others because of their race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation, our nation will be a more welcoming place for our future generations.

Government officials can proactively use their convening power to organize bias prevention task forces at the local level. The key here is being proactive. If interfaith groups, law enforcement agencies, school officials, and elected representatives meet on a regular basis to develop strategies to prevent the spread of hate in our local communities, I believe it will lead to measurable reductions in bullying and hate crime.

Lastly, ordinary citizens can reduce bias by simply getting to know each other. We should not wait for a KKK rally to promote unity in our communities. From community service projects to interfaith dialogue, we need to find ways to expand our social circles to include people who may look different and believe different things, but who share our common humanity.

Sikhs across Virginia will continue to welcome any dialogue with anyone about our religion and who we are. Dont hesitate to ask us about why we wear a turban or if you can visit one of the nine gurdwaras across the state. We have been in this country for over a century and want to continue getting to know our neighbors, classmates, and fellow countrymen.

Sim J Singh lives in Fairfax and is the national advocacy manager for the Sikh Coalition, the largest Sikh civil rights organization in the United States.
Mobile World to spend $111m on MA deals

Mobile World Corporation, one of the biggest mobile phone and accessory retailers in Viet Nam, is preparing to take over local electronics and pharmacy retail firms for VND2.5 trillion (US$111.1 million).









Inside a retail store of Mobile World Corporation in the northern province of Phu Tho.







The companys chairman Nguyen Duc Tai said at an event on Thursday that the management board is about to ask shareholders for approval.



If approved, the deals would be carried out right away as negotiations had been completed, he said.



Market researchers may find out what electronics and pharmacy retail chains are targeted, however, I cannot reveal details of the deals in public as they remain confidential.



Mobile World Corporation (MWG) said at its annual shareholder meeting, which was held in late March, that the company would acquire all electronics retail firms and pharmaceutical distributors via M&A deals for less than VND500 billion.



In the past quarter, MWG posted a yearly increase of 56 per cent in revenue, which reached VND15.6 trillion. Its net profit rose 22.5 per cent to VND511 billion in the second quarter.



After the first six months, MWG recorded VND31.2 trillion in revenue, a year-on-year increase of 59 per cent, and VND1.06 trillion in post-tax profit, an annual gain of 28 per cent.



The company targets to raise revenue by 35 per cent annually to VND63.28 trillion and increase post-tax profit by 29 per cent to VND2.2 trillion.



By the end of June, MWG had established 1,527 retail stores to sell electronics, digital devices, vegetables and consumer goods.



The company runs three major brands, which are The Gioi Di Dong, Dien May Xanh and Bach Hoa Xanh. The number of retail shops for those brands were 1,013, 404 and 110, respectively.



Potential targets



Local media reported that Tran Anh Digital World JSC (Tran Anh) could be the potential target for MWG as the company is headquartered in Ha Noi, which could help MWG expand its market coverage in the northern region.



If MWG plans to acquire Tran Anh, the deal would not be complicated as the ownership of Tran Anh is dense, with the two biggest shareholders holding nearly 90 per cent of the companys capital.



In the past quarter, Tran Anh posted VND1.05 trillion in net revenue, a decline of 4 per cent from the same period of 2016, and VND2.6 billion in post-tax profit, down 73 per cent year on year.



Shares of Tran Anh, listed on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange as TAG, soared 10 per cent to close at VND33,000 per share.



Meanwhile, the two potential names in the pharmaceutical distribution sector are Phano Pharmacy and Pharmacity.



Phano Pharmacy was established in March 2007 by five people. Four of them hold 85 per cent of the companys charter capital and the remaining stake is owned by Duy Tan Pharmaceutical JSC. By 2017, the company has established more than 60 drug stores, hiring more than 500 employees.



Pharmacity is a drug store chain managed by Pharmacity JSC. The company started operations in 2012 with four individual shareholders. The company now has more than 40 drug stores, most of which are located in HCM City.



VNS
The irony is that while the special counsel in the Russia probe is investigating Donald Trumps links with Russia, the Republican Party joined a rare bipartisan move in ordering sanctions against Russia, Iran and North Korea, a move that is certain to trigger an outright trade war. The situation may not yet sport all the contours of the First Cold War, but how far are we from another cold war?

If there is considerable angst in the international community over the recent goings on in the United States, it is not without good reasons. A directionless administration in Washington is giving allies and adversaries the jitters by seemingly putting in place all the ingredients for the start of a Second or a New Cold War just precisely when the world was looking at ways to strengthen ties economically and commercially. The debate of sanctions as a tool of foreign policy is not new in the United States Executive or Legislative branches; and if President Donald Trump is looking at the new Russia sanctions as a dangerously flawed piece of legislation that among other things takes foreign policy making away from the executive branch, he would not be the first American President to have taken umbrage at the role of Congress in foreign policy making.

The reaction from Moscow was truly scathing with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev making the point that a full fledged trade war has been declared against Russia and that the Trump administration had demonstrated complete impotence in the most humiliating manner by transferring executive powers to Congress. What hurts Russia in the new round of economic sanctions is the focus on the energy sector that is already hurting by existing 2014 sanctions and by the fall in crude oil prices. More than this, the sanctions legislation sailed through the House of Representatives and the Senate in an overwhelming manner with the proviso that the President cannot repeal the punitive measures without Congressional oversight. That provision has hurt the Trump White House badly.

The sanctions showed a full-fledged trade war. The Trump administration demonstrated complete impotence, in the most humiliating manner, transferring executive powers to Congress.

Dmitry Medvedev Russian Prime Minister

Ironically, the issue of Russia sanctions has been hurting President Trump almost from the day he stepped into the White House. Talking of taking the chill out of relations with Moscow during the campaign days was one thing. But it has become a totally different matter these days with many legally questioning if members of the Trump elections team did talk about the issue of easing the 2014 sanctions that were slapped in the aftermath of the crisis over Crimea and alleged Russian meddling in the Ukraine.

The Europeans were roped into the First Round of sanctions and many came around but only reluctantly. Analysts are making the point that the latest round of sanctions has left many wondering in the European Union if it would affect the regions energy security. American companies are said to be barred from any involvement in the energy sector if Russian firms have a stake of 33 per cent or more. The limitations on American investments have reportedly left a sense of unease in the home domestic business houses. Worse, foreign companies planning to be a part of Russian energy exploration sector could also come under the lens of sanctions. A case in point, it is being pointed out, are German firms involved in pipelines carrying natural gas to Europe.

But Russia and sanctions were not the only things that came between the Trump White House and Capitol Hill. A lot of the unease even within the Grand Old Party were allegations of Russian meddling in the last American Presidential Election by undermining the Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, may have dismissed meddling in American elections as nothing more than anti-Russia hysteria ; but the fact remains that evasive and non-answers on the subject from the American President together with his rants on the Attorney General and the Special Prosecutor have only made things worse. Generally too there has been a perception that the Trump administration is not well coordinated in foreign policy, especially between the White House and the State Department, leading to frequent divergent views or lack of coherence.

I just hope the final determination is a truly honest one, which is what the millions of people who gave us our win in November deserve and what all Americans want and deserve.

Donald Trump on outcome of Russia probe

While the American people surely hope for better relations with Russia, what this legislation truly represents is their insistence that [Russian President] Vladimir Putin and his regime must pay a real price for attacking our democracy, violating human rights, occupying Crimea, and destabilising Ukraine remarked Senator John McCain. But what senior law makers like McCain do know but conveniently forget is that Washington has also interfered in the politics of democracies and dictatorships and with impunity. The how can you do it to me is what bothers many in the Washington political circuits and coming to haunt the Trump White House.

The squeeze on Moscows energy and defence sectors through the new sanctions came at a time when the two countries were already jostling over diplomats and embassy properties. Responding to alleged Russian meddling in American Presidential elections, President Barack Obama seized two Russian diplomatic properties; and even before President Trump reluctantly signed off on the new sanctions Moscow had already given the marching orders to more than 750 American diplomatic employees with the promise that more could be on the way. Two American diplomatic properties were also confiscated by Russia.

The new sanctions on Iran and Russia passed the Senate by a 98-2 margin and after more than a month the House of Representatives added North Korea to the list and passed it by a margin of 419-3. President Trump was left with no option but to sign knowing full well that Congress would not hesitate to take action if he had used the veto power. More than the veto and the certainty of over-riding the veto, the Trump White House essentially cornered itself into a hole from where there was no escape. And all this for a President who wanted a roll back on the state of relations with Russia but on terms that were totally unacceptable to law makers.

Without a doubt Putin is keen on bringing back the glory, prestige and power the Soviet Union once enjoyed, be it in its backyard or beyond. In the last several years the Russian leader has kept himself busy in the realm of foreign policy that many American law makers may not find too appealing.

Much of the future of Washington-Moscow relations is going to hinge on the Trump White House and in the extent to which the American President is going to come away clean on the Russia investigations. Law makers are already perked up to the diatribes of President Trump towards his Attorney General and musings on Presidential pardons. Thus far there have been no conclusive findings on Russian involvement in American elections; but the White House rumblings on the scope of the Special Prosecutors enquiry may well set the stage for a political showdown that will not be in the best interests of either U.S.-Russia relations or the Trump administration itself. The bottom line is indeed quite clear and one that the Trump White House would have to play carefully.
New Delhi: Noted economist Rajiv Kumar on Sunday said he is looking forward to serve the country as the new Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog.

"Look forward to serve the nation with my role @nitiaayog @pmoindia," Kumar tweeted.

He was named the new Vice chairman of the government think-tank on Saturday, five days after the incumbent Arvind Panagariya announced that he would quit to return academia.

Kumar, who holds a DPhil in economics from Oxford and a PhD from Lucknow University, is a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research (CPR).

Earlier, he was Secretary General of industry chamber FICCI and had also served as Director and Chief Executive of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER).

He was a member of the National Security Advisory Board between 2006 and 2008. He has also served as chief economist of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and has held senior positions in the the Asian Development Bank, the Ministry of Industries and the Ministry of Finance.

Kumar is also on boards of several international and national institutions, including the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Riyadh, the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and Asia in Jakarta, the State Bank of India, and the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.

The appointment for the post of Niti Aayog Vice Chairman was necessitated as the incumbent Panagariya on August 1 had announced that he will leave the government think-tank on August 31 and return to Columbia University.

Panagariya, an Indian-American, had joined the Niti Aayog in January 2015.
The government has cleared setting up of a greenfield electronics manufacturing cluster in Telangana with a total project cost of Rs 437 crore, an official source said. (Representational Image)

New Delhi: The government has cleared setting up of a greenfield electronics manufacturing cluster in Telangana with a total project cost of Rs 437 crore, an official source said.

Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corp (TSIIC) had submitted the proposal to the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MEITY) to set up an electronics manufacturing cluster over 310 acres of land area.

"The project with a cost of Rs 437 crore has been approved by MEITY," an official source, who did not wish to be named, told PTI.

This is the second electronics manufacturing cluster (EMC) project approved by MEITY for Telangana. In July, it had approved an EMC proposed to be set up by TSIIC with total project cost of Rs 667 crore covering total area of about 600 acre.

Under the EMC scheme, the central government provides assistance of up to 50 per cent of the project cost subject to a ceiling of Rs 50 crore for every 100 acres of land.

The scheme aims to encourage setting up of industrial parks that can house entire ecosystem, ranging from factories, design houses to academic institutions, required for manufacturing of electronics products.

As per official data, the government had granted final approval for setting up 15 EMCs in the country.

After announcement of National Policy on Electronics, the government has received 233 investment proposals under Modified Special Incentive Programmes entailing investment of Rs 1.44 lakh crore. Out of this, the government has approved incentives for 97 proposals with proposed investments of Rs 20,809 crore.
There is no need for central government employees to visit banks to start pension as their copy of the Pension Payment Order (PPO) will be handed over to them at the time of retirement.

New Delhi: There is no need for central government employees to visit banks to start pension as their copy of the Pension Payment Order (PPO) will be handed over to them at the time of retirement, the Personnel Ministry has said.

Citing existing rules in this regard, the ministry, in a recent order issued to all central government departments, has said, "The pensioner is no longer required to visit the bank to activate the first payment of pension".

The rules also provide for an undertaking to be submitted by the retiring government servants or pensioners to the disbursing banks before the commencement of their pensions.

After ascertaining that the bank's copy (of PPO) has been dispatched by the Central Pension Accounting Office, the pensioner's copy is to be handed over to him at the time of retirement along with other retirement dues, the order said.

An employee posted at a location away from the head of office, or who for any other reasons feels that it would be more convenient to him to obtain his copy of the PPO from the bank, may inform the head of office of his option in writing while submitting his pension papers, it said.

In the recent past, many instances have come to the notice wherein the pensioner's copy of the PPO had not been handed over to him/her and instead had been sent to the bank and was lost in transit sometimes, thereby causing hardship to the pensioner, the order issued on August 1, said.

In view of these, all ministries/departments are once again requested to strictly follow the procedure henceforth and hand over the copy of the PPO to the pensioner at the time of retirement along with other retirement dues, except if the pensioner specifically requests for delivering his/her copy of the PPO through the bank, it said.

There are about 48 lakh central government employees and about 53 lakh pensioners.

The pension gets delayed either due to the delay in receipt of intimation by the pensioner that relevant papers have reached the bank or because of delay on the part of the pensioner in approaching the bank for submission of undertaking, the personnel ministry had said in one of its earlier orders.
Mumbai: Actor Hilary Duff has called out online trolls for criticising her body.

The mother of two fired back at the body shamers while proudly showing her "flaws" in a bathing suit after many posted nasty comments about her body during her recent Hawaii holiday, reported Ace Showbiz.

"I am posting this on behalf of young girls, women, and mothers of all ages. I'm enjoying a vacation with my son after a long season of shooting and being away from him for weeks at a time over those months," she captioned a photo.

"Since websites and magazines love to share 'celeb flaws' - well I have them! My body has given me the greatest gift of my life: Luca, 5 years ago. I'm turning 30 in September and my body is healthy and gets me where I need to go."

Duff said women should be proud of their bodies and stop wasting their precious time in the day "wishing we were different, better, and unflawed."
A month after separating from wife, Jeremy Meeks was spotted with his girlfriend Chloe Green recently in Barbadose. According to People.com, their day out included an outdoor shower after Jeremy performed a few somersaults and some impressive diving skills. The couple are in Barbados to attend Crop Over festival where Jeremy is making a public appearance.

Their romance first came in limelight last month, when a few photos emerged of the married 33-year-old Jeremy snogging Topman heiress Chloe on a 100,000-a-week yacht in Turkey. Prior to his new life in the spotlight, Meeks served a year in federal prison after he was caught with a loaded gun in violation of his parole.
Kozhikode: Two of the cholera-afflicted persons who were being treated at the government medical college hospital were discharged on Saturday. There were six cases reported, including two confirmed, all of them migrant labourers of Thengilakkadavu in Mavoor panchayat. District medical officer Dr. V. Jayashree said that chlorination and screening in the area would continue on alternate days.

We will expand the work to areas where there is a sizable migrant population. Already there is focused work in such areas, but it would be strengthened, she said. It was found that there were no basic facilities for the 20 migrant labourers crammed in a two-storey building at Thengilakkadavu. After cholera was reported, the owner of the house complained that there was no sufficient water or toilet facilities for a large number of people, said a health officer. Health department has blamed the local panchayat authorities for not taking action against accommodating a large number of people in unhygienic surroundings.

Additional DMO Dr Ashadevi said the problem should be tackled jointly by the health and labour departments and the local self- government institution concerned. On Saturday, as many as 1617 cases of fever were reported, according to the district medical office. The patients registered include 125 suspected and 44 confirmed cases of dengue, a suspected case of hepatitis A and two suspected cases of diphtheria. As many as 179 acute diarrhoeal disease cases were also reported besides a case each of malaria and chicken pox.
As citizens battle to save Bengalurus dying lakes, on which rampant encroachments wreaked havoc, the state government threw a spanner in the works by denotifying some 1,300 dead lakes. Water expert Professor T.V. Ramachandra and Sridhar Pabbisetty, CEO, Namma Bengalufu Foundation, make no bones about their opposition, as they tell Joyeeta Chakravorty about how the ramifications of destroying lakes, from a water crisis to increasing the chance of flash floods.

The state government has not exactly been kind to the environment as it forges ahead with projects in the name of development. Its latest move to denotify some 1,300 dead lakes has not been entirely surprising as a result, but it has sparked off protests among the greens, who see it as yet another ruse to take over water bodies and pander to the real estate lobby. Professor TV Ramachandra of the Centre For Ecological Sciences (CES) at the Indian Institute of Science, and Mr Sridhar Pabbisetty, CEO of Namma Bengaluru Foundation are clear the government is not on the right track and make no bones about their objection to its proposal.

"You cannot call an ecosystem dead and calling a lake dead is even more ridiculous. It is only when the water retention of lakes falls that they dry up. But the point to consider is why they dry up. Its because there is large scale development in their catchment areas," notes prof. Ramachandra.

Mr Pabbisetty interrupts to say regretfully, "The gross failure of the government to protect lakes is now being fixed by lay methods of identification. Instead it should hold officials responsible for protecting the lakes accountable and also those colliding with the land mafia."

Clearly agreeing with his point of view, prof. Ramachandra adds, This whole de-notification business is suicidal. It is irresponsible and shows the government is hand in glove with the land mafia."

Having done a study with Dr Bharath H Aithal of the CES warning that unplanned growth could make Bengaluru unlivable, he seems anxious the governments move could help his forecast come true.

Encroachments of storm water drains (rajakaluves) was always a bad idea. Bengaluru has an undulating topography and water moves from one lake to another. With encroachments we lose the link. This foolish narrowing of lakes and concretisation of storm water drains will prove extremely costly to our future. The concretisation will also increase the chance of floods as the velocity of water will increase," he continues.

"What the government should do is allow ground water recharge," nods Mr. Pabbisetty.

"Every year new spots are being flooded, which means the water flow pattern is being impacted. This happens because the authorities have been messing with the rajakaluves. Public money cannot be allowed to go to waste this way. BBMP engineers and the civic authorities should sit with us and come up with a solution rather than doing something that will heavily impact our future generations," the professor sums up.
Police said that the duo got into an altercation in United India colony in Kodambakkam when both of them exchanged verbal volleys about driving unsafe.

Chennai: A 40-year-old man, an autorickshaw driver succumbed to the injuries he suffered in a road rage brawl with a youth near Kodambakkam on Friday night. The accused, S Bharathi, an office assistant at an advertising firm in Samiyarmadam in Kodambakam was arrested on Saturday on charges of murder.

Police said that the duo got into an altercation in United India colony in Kodambakkam when both of them exchanged verbal volleys about driving unsafe. The deceased, identified as K. Micheal is a resident of Puliyurpuram in Kodambakkam and was returning home for lunch.

The accused, S. Bharathi is a resident of Foreshore Estate. He was on his way to a bank at United India colony for office work on his two-wheeler when the two of them got into a quarrel.

Both of them accused each other of driving rashly and in the melee they came to blows. The accused had hit the auto driver with his helmet and pushed him to the ground, a police officer said. Onlookers rushed to the aid of the auto driver who fell unconscious.

He was moved to the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital for further treatment where he died later in the night.

Kodambakkam Police altered the case to murder and arrested the youth.

He was produced before a court and remanded in judicial custody.
Police seized the material and gave it to Saroornagar police (Representational Image)

Hyderabad: The Rachakonda Special Operations Team raided a milk adulteration centre in Saroornagar on Saturday, Police said that one Subhash Goud was running a milk adulteration racket in a rented house in Madhavnagar since 30 years.

He manufactured milk by mixing adulterated milk powder and water. During the raids police found 200 litres of adulterated milk which were ready for dispatch and 29 packets of adulterated milk powder, packing material and machinery. Police seized the material and gave it to Saroornagar police.

Goud is absconding. Police registered a case and launched a hunt to track down the culprit.
BELAGAVI: An early morning surprise check by the police at Hindalga Central Prison on Sunday has brought to light the easy availability of drugs, cigarettes and mobile phones inside the prison and the involvement of jail officials.

Around 100 policemen, headed by Belagavi police commissioner T.G. Krishna Bhatt, raided the jail, which houses some of the countrys notorious criminals. The police team found that inmates were taking drugs and cigarettes and it was being procured from outside with the connivance of jail guards.

The prison authorities were in for a surprise when about 25 police vehicles entered the jail premises and they included top police officers from Belagavi, including the commissioner, ACPs and DCPs.

The police team took charge of the jail and searched almost all the cells and barracks to expose illegal activities. According to a police officer, who was part of the raiding team, ganja was recovered at several places inside the prison, besides cigarettes and mobile phones. The raiding team seized ganja, mobile phones and SIM cards from the inmates, he added.

The raids were conducted following a tip off. However, the police have not disclosed about the number of inmates taking drugs or the amount of ganja seized during the raid.

They questioned several inmates during the raid to find out who were involved in supplying ganja into the jail. So far, the police did not arrest anybody nor did they file a case against either jail officials or inmates, sources said. An inquiry was on to bring all those involved in the supply of ganja inside the jail to book, they added.

Numerous cases in past

It may be recalled that a few weeks ago, a woman was able to supply ganja to an inmate under the pretext of meeting him and handing over a tiffin box. She had stuffed ganja in the groundnuts by removing the shells and stuffing the nuts with ganja. She had managed to paste the shell of groundnuts back intact using the gum after filling the nuts with ganja.

However, a curious prison guard later took a groundnut from the box to eat and was shocked to find ganja stuffed inside it. The prison authorities had let off the woman and the inmate with a warning and no case was registered against them.

Numerous raids have been carried out in the prison in the recent years and drugs and mobile phones have been unearthed. During one such raid few years ago an inmate, a notorious gangster, was found using several SIM cards and phones from inside and was allegedly in touch with his associates.

A few years ago, Yusuf Bachkana, a sharpshooter who worked for underworld don Chota Rajan, had threatened a Mumbai-based builder by making calls from inside the Hindalga prison.
Hyderabad: Yet another case of an agent cheating a Gulf job aspirant came to light on Sunday. The victim, Syed Sadeq, a resident of Tallabkatta in Old City, had left for Saudi Arabia to work as helper in June 2016. We paid Rs1 lakh to an agent, Arshad of Attapur and he arranged the visa, promising a monthly salary of 1,200 Saudi riyals, said Syed Ali, father of Sadeq.

However, after reaching Riyadh, the employer took him to Al Hasa province in eastern Saudi Arabian where he was reportedly asked to look after camels. His friends met him and told me that he is suffering from psychiatrist problems and needs urged medical attention, said Mr Ali. The family has requested the External Affairs ministry to help in rescuing Sadeq from his employer.
Two people including a Nigerian were arrested and 180 grams of cocaine were seized by cops on Sunday.

Hyderabad: The Police on Sunday arrested two people in Secunderabad and recovered 180 grams of cocaine from their possession.

Ogugua John Bosco, 37, a native of Nigeria, has allegedly been smuggling drugs to Hyderabad and other south Indian cities from Mumbai. Mohammed Jaharullah sold the drugs Bosco supplied.

Investigating officers said that in order to hide their identities, Bosco's ways of operating was that in which the customer and the seller delete each other's contacts from their cellphones as soon as the drugs and money were exchanged.

Bosco in touch with Mumbai dealers

According to the police, Bosco came to India on a business visa in June 2016 and has been living in Mumbai. He exported garments bought from local manufacturers. A junkie himself, Bosco used to be in touch with African drug dealers in Mumbai and used to buy from them. In order to earn some extra bucks, he would smuggle the drugs to Hyderabad. He bought one gram of cocaine for Rs 2,000 and sold it for Rs 5,000 with the help of Jaharullah, said B. Limba Reddy, DCP of the Commissioners Task Force.

Four days ago, Jaharullah contacted Bosco and told him to bring 80 grams of cocaine to Hyderabad. As per their plan, Bosco came to Madhuranagar Park at Yousufguda and when he delivered the drug to Jaharullah, the Task Force officers caught them and arrested them.

Beside the 80 grams of cocaine with Jaharullah, police also found 100 grams of cocaine with Bosco, who later confessed that he was going to deliver it to another peddler in Hyderabad.

Police said that Jaharullah once had contacts with other drug suppliers. After those suppliers went underground, he got the contact of Bosco from Mumbai.
Injured pilgrims and passengers being taken to hospital by the rescue team of IAF at Air Force Station Jammu on July 16, 2017. At least 16 Amarnath pilgrims were killed and around 30 others injured when their bus skidded off the Jammu-Srinagar national highway and rolled down into a deep valley. (Photo: PTI)

Anantnag: Jammu and Kashmir Police on Sunday said three people, alleged conspirators in the July 10 attack on Amarnath pilgrims, have been arrested by its Special Investigation Team (SIT).

The men provided logistical help to four Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) militants who carried out the attack that left eight people dead, IGP Munir Khan told the media in Anantnag.

The men, who had allegedly helped the four terrorists by providing them with vehicles and shelter, were arrested recently and taken into remand for further questioning, the police said.

The police said the four LeT militants, led by Abu Ismail, a Pakistani national, had attempted an attack on Amarnath pilgrims on July 9, but were frustrated by heavy security arrangements.

Another militant in the group of four had been identified as Yawar, a local recruiter for the LeT, the police said.

Efforts are on to identify the other two, believed to be Pakistanis.

The police also released pictures of Abu Ismail and Yawar.

The three "co-conspirators" - Bilal Ahmed Reshi, Aizaj Wagey and Zahoor Ahmed - had carried out reconnaissance exercises and chosen Botengo near Khanbal as the spot where the attack could be carried out, the police added.

The trio had also provided shelter to the four militants in Khudwani and Sriguffwara of South Kashmir, Khan said.

Bilal's elder brother Adil, an alleged Lashker-e-Taiba terrorist, was killed by security forces earlier this year.

The Jammu and Kashmir Police had constituted an SIT led by Deputy Inspector General (South Kashmir) Swayam Prakash Pani to probe the attack on the pilgrims.

Eight people were killed when the militants fired at a bus carrying the pilgrims, returning from their Amarnath yatra.
Hyderabad: Muslim scholars in the city have urged the community to avoid killing of cattle. The advice comes in wake of skirmishes over cow slaughter across the country.

When someone gets hurt by any act, it is better to avoid it. There are other ways and they can be practised, noted a religious scholar at a meeting.

Mohammed Khan, president of Jamaat-e-Islami Telangana and Odhisa, said that certain groups are using the issue of cow slaughter to rake up communal violence. In such situation, the community should desist from killing the cattle for a year or two, Mr Khan said.

The meeting was attended by heads of various organisations and Muslim groups. A delegate, Sadiq Mohiuddin, said that there is unrest in the country over cow slaughter. It is up to the community to do it or not. It is voluntary, he said.

However, the Muslim United Forum, an umbrella of several religious organisations and eminent religious personalities, has asked the government to provide security during the festivals.

Every year, during the Bakri Eid, vehicles carrying cattle are stopped and the people are attacked. We urge the government to provide security to prevent any communal flare-up," said Moulana Mohammed Raheemuddin Ansari, president of the Muslim United Forum (MUF).
Thiruvananthapuram : Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley visiting the family members of slain RSS worker Rajesh Edavakode who was brutally killed last week allegedly by a group of CPI(M) supporters, in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday. (Photo: PTI)

Thiruvananthapuram: Condemning attacks on Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) members in Kerala, Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said that the state government needs to have a hold on its own cadres rather than letting them loose on the opposition party leaders.

"This sort of attack on political leaders has never happened in the past. Political will and determination by the state government is needed to discipline its own cadres rather than let them loose on political opponents. It is predominantly state government's responsibility to ensure peace restoration," Jaitley said while addressing a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram.

He added that the kinds of wounds inflicted on RSS activist Rajesh Edavakode would have embarrassed even terrorists.

"I had, since this morning, the opportunity of meeting a large number of victims of violence which has been going on in the state for the last several months. I must say that what, I have heard and seen, saddens me immensely as it should sadden and disturb every Indian. The state of Kerala and its people have huge potential. Therefore the state needs peace, it deserves a peaceful environment and it deserves civility," Jaitley asserted.

The Union Minister further said that in an environment of violence, people suffer, economy suffers, investment suffers and obviously the atmosphere of democracy suffers.

"I pray that this environment doesn't continue for long and hope that the state government takes action against recurrence of any such incident. It is sad that every time Left Democratic Front (LDF) is in power, incidents of violence increase. You witness political opponents being killed," Jaitley added.

Jaitley, earlier in the day, met the grieving family members of RSS worker Rajesh Edavakode, who was killed during political clash in Kozhikode.

A series of clashes between CPM and BJP-RSS activists had rocked Thiruvananthapuram last month in which the 34-year-old RSS worker was murdered in Kozhikode.

Earlier, the RSS urged the central and state government to take strict action towards bringing this series of murders to an end in Kerala.

"Centre must intervene in state sponsored violence in Kerala," said RSS Joint General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale

RSS also passed a resolution in RSS Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal meet regarding these attacks on the RSS by CPM cadres in the state.

Eight suspects were detained in connection with the murder.

Earlier, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan condemned the murder and called for an all-party meeting on August 6 regarding the same.

He said that party offices and workers' houses can't be attacked and political parties should be more vigilant and ask workers to keep away from such incidents.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had called on Vijayan to nab the perpetrators and bring them to justice expeditiously.

He even requested the Chief Minister to curb the political violence in the state and said, "I expect that the political violence in Kerala is curbed and that the perpetrators are brought to justice expeditiously."

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on July 4 issued notice to the Kerala Government over growing incidents of political violence in the state and sought a report on the issue within four weeks.

The Commission also asked the state Chief Secretary and Director General of Police to take effective measures to stop such incidents.
The Haj camp would commence on August 11 at Haj House, Nampally, and pilgrims would have to report 48 hours before the scheduled departure.

Hyderabad: The first flight carrying Haj pilgrims from the state will leave at 2.55 am on August 14, Prof. S.A. Shukoor, special officer the TS Haj Committe said. He said arrangements for smooth departure of the pilgrims.

The Haj camp would commence on August 11 at Haj House, Nampally, and pilgrims would have to report 48 hours before the scheduled departure time, he said.

All necessary formalities such as immigration, Customs check and luggage check-in would be completed at the Haj House, and pilgrims would be taken to the Haj terminal in RTC buses. Their luggage would also be transported to the airport, he said.
The 34-year-old RSS worker was murdered last month in Kozhikode. (Photo: ANI | Twitter)

Thiruvananthapuram: Union minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday met family members of slain Rastriya Swayam Sevak (RSS) functionary Rajesh, a victim of political violence in Kerala, at his house in Sreekaryam near Thiruvananthapuram.

During the visit, Jaitley spoke with the three-year old son of Rajesh and his aged parents.

Jaitley's visit is widely seen as an attempt by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to bring to national focus the issue of alleged increasing attacks on party cadres by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M).

State BJP leaders, including president Kummanam Rajasekharan, accompanied the Union Finance minister.

They explained to Jaitley the concern expressed by family members, including the widow of 34-year old Rajesh, who was hacked to death on July 29 by a gang led by an alleged historysheeter in Thiruvananthapuram.

The BJP has alleged that CPI-M activists were behind the gruesome murder, a charge denied by the ruling party.

BJP members recently raised the issue of political violence in the state in Parliament alleging that "Kerala has become a killing field."

Earlier, Jaitley arrived in Thiruvananthapuram by a special aircraft for an on-the-spot account of the political situation.

He was also likely to submit a report to the Central government, party sources said.

His visit comes in the backdrop of RSS leadership even favouring imposition of President's Rule in the state on the ground that law and order situation had collapsed under the LDF government led by Pinarayi Vijayan.

Jaitley is also slated to visit some of the BJP workers whose houses were attacked allegedly by CPI-M in Thiruvananthapuram in recent days.

State Governor P Sathasivam had on July 30 summoned Chief Minister Vijayan and state police chief Loknath Behra to ascertain the action taken in the backdrop of the murder of Rajesh and other violent incidents. They had apprised him of the arrests made in the murder case.

The CPI-M alleged that RSS-BJP was spreading a false propaganda on political violence.

To counter the BJP, the CPI-M on Sunday organised a dharna of relatives of 21 party workers allegedly killed by RSS-BJP activists in the district and also demanded Jaitley visit them also.

CPI-M state Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan alleged that political violence had increased in the state after the visit of BJP President Amit Shah in early June.

The BJP was implementing "Amit Shah's plan" in the state by allegedly attacking party strongholds, Balakrishnan charged.

Incidentally, the Chief Minister has convened an all-party meeting this evening.

The state had been witnessing a cycle of violence involving BJP-RSS and CPI-M workers with the capital district rocked by incidents of attacks on houses of rival partymen.
Thiruvananthapuram: After meeting the grieving family of slain Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker Rajesh Edavakode in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday, Union Minister Arun Jaitley said that such violence will not suppress the party's ideology in Kerala.

Addressing a gathering after meeting Rajesh's kin, Jaitley condemned the dastardly attack and said that "even enemies would not be as brutal as those who are involved in the murder".

"I visited the family of our deceased karyakarta, who was slaughtered in the most barbaric manner...he was an ideal karyakarta. This kind of violence will neither suppress ideology in Kerala nor will it be able to scare our workers. It will only increase their determination to work harder against those who are perpetuating this operation," he added.

"He belonged to the weaker section of the society. Rajesh belonged to a poor family and now his family has no means of a livelihood. He was stabbed mercilessly and there were 70-80 wounds inflicted on his body, even enemies would not be as brutal as those involved in the murder. In the past few months party officers are being attacked, our workers are being attacked and their houses are being set ablaze," he added.

A series of clashes between CPM and BJP-RSS activists had rocked Thiruvananthapuram last month in which the 34-year-old RSS worker was murdered in Kozhikode.

Earlier, the RSS urged the Central and state Government to take strict action towards bringing this series of murders to an end in Kerala.

"Centre must intervene in state sponsored violence in Kerala," said RSS Joint General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale

RSS also passed a resolution in RSS Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal meet regarding these attacks on the RSS by CPM cadres in the state.

Eight suspects were detained in connection with the murder.

Earlier Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan condemned the murder and called for an all-party meeting on August 6 regarding the same.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had called on Vijayan to nab the perpetrators and bring them to justice expeditiously.

He even requested the Chief Minister to curb the political violence in the state and said, "I expect that the political violence in Kerala is curbed and that the perpetrators are brought to justice expeditiously."

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on July 4 issued notice to Kerala Government over growing incidents of political violence in the state and sought a report on the issue within four weeks.

The Commission also asked the State Chief Secretary and Director General of Police to take effective measures to stop such incidents.
Mohammad Mansoor Hussain said he was implicated under a false case and jailed in Saudi Arabia. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: A Hyderabad resident, who served jail term in Saudi Arabia, on Saturday said he was implicated on fake charges.

Mohammad Mansoor Hussain reached Hyderabad on Friday.

While speaking to ANI about his time in Saudi Arabia, he said that he was implicated under a false case.

He said, "I was sentenced by the Saudi court. They charged me under a false case. I was allowed to go only on the terms of my good behaviour. Even the other part of my sentence (300 lashes) was exempted because of my good behaviour. I was falsely framed by my company"

He urged the Government of India to intervene. "I request the Indian government to help me get the compensation as I was falsely accused and didn't get any remunerations for it."

According to Majlis Bachao Tehreek (MBT), an organization in the Indian state of Telangana, Mansoor was looted by two armed robbers while he was going to the bank to deposit the company's money.

Amjadullah Khan, MBT spokesperson, told ANI said, Mansoor was looted on August 25, 2016 and he immediately reported the matter to the Saudi police. But, his company filed complaint a false complaint against Mansoor of misappropriation of money. He stayed in the police station for 45 days and then went to prison"

In addition to it, he asked the Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj to get in touch with the Saudi government and claim the compensation.
BSIM was founded in the June 2013 by Adhunika Prakash (who is now a certified Lactation Educator and Counsellor) with the intention of empowering women with information.

Bengaluru: On Sunday, BBMP park on MG Road witnessed an awareness walk done by new mothers holding banners and distributing placards about the myths surrounding breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding Support for Indian Moms (BSIM), a social media group opened by breastfeeding mothers, has now grown into a huge movement in the city. They try to help new mothers understand facts about breastfeeding and bust many myths surrounding it.

Encouraged by good response and numerous queries by new mothers, the administrators of the social media group soon took up the role of an NGO to widen their reach and organize activities like awareness camps to help new mothers.

With a modest start of just ten members, it has now grown to 50,000 new mothers. BSIM was founded in the June 2013 by Adhunika Prakash (who is now a certified Lactation Educator and Counsellor) with the intention of empowering women with information.

Initially, it was a Pune-based group, but as the number of members from across the country increased, the group witnessed an immense support from the city.

The Bengaluru chapter of BSIM has now crossed over 7000 volunteers and the activities are now being coordinated by Charulatha Varadarajan.

On the second Saturday of every month across various areas of Bengaluru she holds various activities along with other organisers like Dhanya M.A., Sapna Krishnan and Meena Gupta.

Earlier, it was just peer-to-peer counselling and responding to messages from new mothers. But now because of the huge response we conduct awareness walks, meet-ups, camps and fun activities as we have realised that there are no many parents who are unaware about breastfeeding and give in to many myths, said Charulatha, who is the city admin of BSMMI (Breastfeeding Support For Moms of Multiples India) and Bengaluru BSIM organiser.

Her personal journey and struggle with breastfeeding got Charulatha to connect with the group and since then she has been working with them. As a mom of 31 week preterm twins who were in NICU for 1.5 months, lack of information and myths in society made my initial parenting years tougher. I exclusively pumped and breastfed my twins and continued to pump for 21 months. It requires a village to raise a child, but I would say that BSIM is good enough to raise a child during the first few years, she stressed and added that such a group helps in huge ways.

The team includes lactation consultants, breastfeeding counselors, and experienced mothers. "The team consists of admins, moderators, and peer counselors. They are spread across the globe and across different time zones, this helps us in providing support 24 x 7. They understand our goals clearly - to help to breastfeed parents reach their breastfeeding goals, whatever they may be  regardless of their parenting ideologies and beliefs, said Charulatha.

Our mission not just to support mothers, but the entire family. The group is a mixed gender group and includes fathers, grandparents, and anyone with a deep interest in breastfeeding, she explained.

The groups ethos reiterates that breastfeeding is not about being a better or superior parent, but about aiming to give the baby the best possible nourishment. There is a wide belief that lactavists are anti-formula but that is untrue.

We aren't anti-formula; we are against the marketing strategies implemented by formula manufacturers that make breastfeeding parents question their milk supply, she said. The group's biggest concern regarding breastfeeding is the artificial baby milk.

It is the ubiquitous marketing of artificial baby milk that hampers the breastfeeding relationship in most cases. It is everywhere, on TV, hoardings, at supermarkets, and unfortunately, even doctors sometimes advocate formula before addressing the breastfeeding concern. A breastfeeding solution can be found, but most jump to artificial baby milk at the first instance.

The group has also become a registered charitable trust with a bank account where supporters of the cause can donate money. The money raised will be used to organise more educational campaigns and support activities on the ground. They hope to streamline their offline initiatives so that members who are looking for in-person support can benefit from it.
S. Monoharan, joint commissioner of police, Chennai (East zone) addresses the media on Sunday to inform the arrest of two Delhi based criminals (Photo: DC)

Chennai: In a security measure to curb the never ending chain snatching incidents in Chennai city, the east zone police, comprising 3 of the 12 police districts in the city, have installed as many as 3,000 surveillance cameras at hundreds of identified chain snatching points, a senior police officer said on Sunday.

On Sunday S. Monoharan, Joint Commissioner of Police, Chennai (East zone), said they had arrested two chain snatchers from the Chennai Central railway station for their suspected involvement in at least 23 snatching incidents.

The arrested were identified as A. Sanjay alias Vijaypaul (42) and

J. Sandeep (30), natives of Delhi who had reached Chennai by flight on July 4. Police who are on the lookout for three others, have recovered 25 sovereigns of gold and a bike from the arrested duo.

The official disclosed that they managed to nab the two with the help of CCTV footage.

The suspects were staying in a lodge in Sowcrpet and purchased a second-hand motorbike to ride around and commit the crime, police said. No footage of the crime was available but the police traced the suspects using the image of the bike captured from different CCTV footages of their travel routes after committing the crime.

The bike was finally spotted at the Central Railway Station, police said. The two were nabbed when they came to take the bike on Saturday evening, police said.

A special team has gone to Delhi to conduct inquiries and to nab the three persons who are still at large, said the officer, adding that the two have at least 30 cases pending in Delhi.
Its no secret that New Delhi suspects that the proposed road that China wants to build through Doklam in Bhutanese territory will bring Chinese troops closer to Indias Chickens Neck that connects the heartland with Indias north-eastern states.

New Delhi: Chinese hopes of an early harvest in signing a new boundary convention with India to finalise the Sino-Indian border in the Sikkim sector have received a severe setback in the wake of the Doklam stand-off.

Its no secret that New Delhi suspects that the proposed road that China wants to build through Doklam in Bhutanese territory will bring Chinese troops closer to Indias Chickens Neck that connects the heartland with Indias north-eastern states. China regards Doklam as its territory and calls it Dong Lang.

The Chinese and Indian sides have been in discussion on making the boundary in the Sikkim sector an early harvest in the settlement of the entire boundary question during the meetings between the Special Representatives on the China-India boundary question, the Chinese foreign ministry had recently stated in a 15-page fact-sheet on the Doklam stand-off that was released from Beijing.

New Delhis position is that while the status of Sikkim as a part of India has been decided and recognised by China, the exact border in the Sikkim sector is yet to be mutually agreed on by both sides.

But the Chinese action in Doklam  which both India and Bhutan regard as Bhutanese territory  have put New Delhi on alert. Consequently, Chinas hope of an early settlement on the border in the Sikkim sector is expected to be dashed, given the tension generated by Beijings belligerence in the six week-long Sino-Indian military stand-off in the Doklam area.

Move to agree on Sikkim border in 2006

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj had recently said that, During the Eighth Special Representatives meeting in June 2006, the Chinese side had in fact handed over a non-paper for separate agreement on the boundary in Sikkim sector. The non-paper had proposed that Both sides may, based on the above mentioned historical treaty i.e. 1890 Convention verify and determine the specific alignment of the Sikkim sector and produce a common record.

The minister had added, On this basis as the initial result of the boundary settlement both sides may negotiate a final agreement on the boundary alignment in the Sikkim sector to replace the historical treaty."
Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday reiterated that he will continue his struggle till the Centre reduces GST on ongoing projects of public importance that are being implemented by the state government.

Mr Rao, who announced on Saturday that he will write a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday on the GST issue, decided to wait for two more days in order to gather more details on how 12 per cent GST on work contracts would adversely impact the TS governments Mission Bhagiratha, Mission Kakatiya, irrigation projects, 2BHK housing scheme, power plants etc.

At a meeting on Sunday with senior officials at Pragathi Bhavan to finalise the contents of the letter to be sent to the PM, Mr Rao questioned the justification for imposing 12 per cent GST from July 1, 2017, on ongoing projects that started two years ago.

He said that in the previous VAT regime, there was five per cent tax on work contracts and the state government had made budgetary allocations for all these projects for 2017-18 based on that.

The TS government has been opposing GST on projects of public importance. Due to our resistance, the Centre on Saturday reduced GST from 18 per cent to 12 per cent. But we are not satisfied with this. We have entered into agreements with contractors for ongoing projects two years ago. Its not possible to change these agreements to incorporate GST now, Mr Rao told officials. We will wait for PMs response to our letter. If there is no positive response, we have no option but to wage a legal battle, Mr Rao said.

Officials were told to get more details about the impact of GST. One more meeting will be held on Monday before the letter to the PM is drafted and then sent on Tuesday.
One of the Amarnath pilgrims being treated after being injured in militants firing on July 10. (Photo: PTI | File)

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir police on Monday claimed that it has identified an 'over-ground' workers' group of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) that had extended logistical support to gunmen involved in the July 10 terror strike in Anantnag district, which led to the death of eight Amarnath pilgrims.

Inspector General of Police (Kashmir Range) Munir Ahmed Khan said that considerable progress has been made in the probe into the bloody incident, which evoked widespread condemnations in Jammu and Kashmir and rest of the country.

He said that the investigation has so far revealed that two Pakistani militants were involved in the terror act and that they received active support from two locals.

The over-ground workers of the terror group who provided logistical support have been identified by the police, he said.

Ahmed Khan added that the police are investigating thoroughly whether the two local LeT militants Jibran and Saad, who were killed at Bragpora on July 17, were in any way involved in the attack or not.

Khan said that four over-ground workers of the LeT have been arrested. They had been tasked with the job to transport arms and ammunition from north Kashmir to south region of the state.

We developed this input and identified a vehicle which they were using. Four days ago, in the evening that vehicle was intercepted but people inside that fled. The vehicle has been seized and we have recovered a magazine from it, he said.

Next day, we searched the area and arrested some persons. We also recovered an assault rifle. Four people have been arrested, so far, he added.
The Devadasi tradition's origin can be traced back to the seventh century in India, during the reign of the Cholas, Chelas and the Pandyas. They were women who lived in temples and were married to the gods. They were well versed in dance and music and held in high regard. Cut to the 21st century, they became nothing more than prostitutes. In walked Sudha Murty into one such district in Karnataka 20 years ago with an aim to eradicate this evil. She rescued 3,000 of these devadasis.

Philanthropist and author Sudha Murty has always written books that have a social message. From having chappals and tomatoes thrown at her and almost giving up her work because of despair, Mrs Murty gets candid in her latest book Three Thousand Stitches as she traces her journey with the Infosys Foundation through 11 true short stories.

This book is quite different than your previous books.

Yes, it is. These are the real life stories that I have experienced from the initial years of my work with the Infosys Foundation. The first story is called Three Thousand Stitches and it also adorns the cover, it is the story of the devadasis that I came across. The rest are my experiences with various other things.

As a collective, what are the various things you have spoken about in Three Thousand Stitches?

Once you read it, youll know (laughs). It encompasses the different times of my life. Some directly related, some not. Youll read short stories about Indian cinema, alcoholism, there are pieces about the evolution of food, how what we eat isnt Indian at all; experiences of a doctor in a village. There are early bits about my engineering college days where only boys went and I had to go without a toilet for four years! From prostitution to the glitz of Bollywood, the different eras, different sets of time came together. It was my work, it brought the two ends together. Giving me the opportunity to meet so many people, teaching me to take it as it is, a day at a time.

Why is it called Three Thousand Stitches?

The first story is that of the 3000 former devadasis of Raichur. Their life, their struggles and our interventions for 20 years and its results. They gifted me a bedsheet, as seen on the cover that has three thousand little stitches, one from each one of them. They told me that it would keep me warm in winter and cool during the summer. The book starts with it, hence....

Why write this book now?

You know, Im an emotional writer. Once the experiences become full, I have to let them out. I write. The lives of the devadasis are hard, working with them was harder, and Ive been doing it for two long decades. Looking back, I felt the need to let the stories spill over.

Being an instinctive, emotional writer, how long did it take for you to write this book?

It took me about 20 days to write (chuckles). I think I started in January. But it is the idea that takes me really long to shape. For example, my Bollywood story, story of its journey has been in my mind for the last 30-40 years. Scratch that, 50 years. It is set right in my mind. Im an engineer so that helps me write better (laughs). I treat it like a project, accurate and I dont change my concept at all. It has never happened to me in 27 years.

Youve written 22 books so far. All of them have done well. What keeps you going?

I never write because I have to. I dont write it to make money or name. I write it because I love it. I love to write, it is the exhibition of my emotions. Out of all my joys, writing is the highest one.

You wrote in Kannada too. How did you make a transition to English?

Kannada is the language I dream in. I breathe Kannada. It was easy for me to express my emotions at the time in the language coming from a vernacular medium. Then comes George (TJS George) one day telling me to write a column for his newspaper. How could I? I was so hesitant. But then he told me that language was a vehicle. I was asked to write a thousand words and I remember I physically counted them.

(The author has dedicated Three Thousand Stitches to journalist and author T. J.S George thanking him for his contributions to her writing career in English. This is also the only book of hers with a foreword at Mr. George has written.)
The Income Tax raids on a senior Karnataka Minister have become a point of contention between the Congress and the BJP both in the state and at the Centre. The debate surrounding the raids has multiple layers to it. There are four broad sets of issues involved. First, the conduct of the raids, secondly their timing, thirdly, the flow of information relating to them and finally their political implications.

For quite some time now, the role of money power in Indian politics in general and in elections in particular has become the focus of public debate and attention. Citizens have often been sceptical about the expenditure returns filed by candidates at the end of an election. It is an open secret that the accounted expenditure falls way below the actual. And the different sources of funding received by political parties have often been a mystery and largely unaccounted. Cleansing the electoral/political process has been high on the agenda of reforms. And so the fight against corruption and unaccounted wealth will always win public applause. For instance, the recent demonetisation of big currency notes was largely backed by the common citizen on this ground. Raids by the Enforcement Directorate and the Income Tax department are also welcomed by people as part of the larger fight against corruption, unaccounted wealth and black money. If there is a foolproof case for the conduct of a raid, people will unequivocally support it irrespective of the big names involved. Even Congress leaders have said they favour action against those who may be guilty of amassing wealth by illegal means.

But its on the timing of the raids that there is mixed response. The Union government has argued that the departments concerned have been working on the case for some time and conducted the raids only after all the necessary and valid evidence was collected. On the other hand, the `selectivity` of the raids has raised many an eyebrow. After the raids against those running the Delhi government and key political players of Bihar, the focus now seems to be on leaders in Karnataka. One also needs to take into account the criticism that no such high visibility raids have been conducted on political leaders close to the ruling party at the Centre. The report of the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) points out that although many Ministers of the Union government have cases registered against them, no action is being taken against them. Madhya Pradesh saw the massive Vyapam scam and while the probe may have exposed the political nexus involved, one sees very little action being taken by the agencies concerned. Critical in the fight against corruption is the impartiality and a-political nature of the investigation.

A third element of the recent raids is the wider political context in which they were conducted. The raids coincided with the Congress MLAs from Gujarat enjoying a brief sojourn in Karnataka to stop them from being poached in their home state and the Minister, who was raided, was incidentally in charge of them and was met by the investigating team at the very same resort they were staying in.

While all democratic polities need to have investigating agencies entrusted with ensuring probity in public life, they must be independent, autonomous and not accountable to the government of the day to ensure their impartiality. The fact that Union Ministers could make statements in Parliament on the raids even as they were being conducted raises questions about the autonomy and independence of these agencies.

Finally, what are the wider implications of the raids on the politics of the state, especially when the elections are less than a year away? Prior to the raids one saw the ruling Congress party in the state attempting to set the political/electoral agenda. It appeared to have united behind the Chief Minister, who was clearly projected as the leader under whom the party would contest the polls. A range of initiatives by the Chief Minister in the recent past had seen a new buoyancy in the ruling party. The debate on a separate flag for the state, the Bengaluru declaration on social justice at the end of the International Conference on Babasaheb Ambedkar, the short film evoking pride in Kannada and being Kannadiga and of course the move to give minority status to the Lingayats/Veerashaivas were all steps carefully crafted by the state government and its leadership to set an electoral agenda. The BJP was clearly on the backfoot in trying to respond to each of these issues.

The I-T raids and the politics that surround them seems to have (at least temporarily) altered the equations. In an election season, to be seen as fighting against corruption always helps one win political brownie points. In the coming days the BJP is likely to exploit this issue to the hilt and seek the maximum political advantage from it. Its response has not been immediate as it will then be seen as political vendetta, but with the passage of time and with more information being `leaked` to the public one is likely to see the BJP exploit this issue to gain the political upper hand. The Congress has been pushed to the defensive and while it has drawn attention to the timing of the raids, this is not likely to cut much ice with the voters for the simple reason that common citizens always favour action against what is perceived to be unethical.

The I-T raids have undoubtedly united the Congress party and one is likely to see this unity play out more clearly in the coming weeks. The party now has the daunting task of highlighting the political timing of the raids by the Centre even while ensuring that it is not seen as backing corruption and unethical practices.

In the coming months one is likely to see many more subtle twists to the political debate on the I-T raids in the state and as the assembly elections near the political temperature will surely rise.
KOCHI: The ongoing war of words between CPI and CPM, the two leading constituents of the ruling LDF, hit a new low on Saturday with the CPI Ernakulam district secretary P. Raju launching a severe attack against the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Inaugurating day and night struggle launched by the KSRTC workers affiliated with CPI controlled AITUC union, Mr Raju described the advisors of Pinarayi as dumb heads, responsible for misleading the Chief Minister.

Describing the Chief Minister as an individual prone to be afflicted with fever when scared, the CPI leader lashed out against Pinarayi for meeting the Governor when the latter summoned him to discuss the law and order situation in the state. Mr Raju later denied the charges of speaking against the Chief Minister and said his words were misconstrued by a section of the media. The CPI leader made the clarification following CPI state secretary Kanam Rajendran asking him to explain his remarks against the Chief Minister. Mr Raju said he will submit an explanation with the relevant evidence.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The RSS is dismayed that the BJP leaders could not whip up a national furore over the political killings of its workers in Kerala. Even the RSS threat to force the centre to dismiss the LDF government has evoked only ridicule from various corners. Though BJP national president Amit Shah made the party MPs raise the issue in the Lok Sabha, it also did not have any impact. RSS national joint general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale and RSS Bondhi Vibhag national Samyojak J. Nandakumar had met Mr Amit Shah in New Delhi and sought his intervention in the Kerala affair.

The BJP has deputed Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to visit the state and assess the situation and he will arrive here on Sunday. BJP national organising joint general secretary B. L. Santhosh has been touring five Parliament constituencies, Ernakulam, Chalakudy, Palakkad, Thrissur and Alathur. He is taking stock of the booth committee formation prior to the visit of Mr Amit Shah to Kerala on October 22, his birthday, said a top BJP leader. RSS state secretary and Prantha Karyavahak P. Gopalankutty Master told DC that the central RSS leadership had even thought of dismissal of the LDF government over the political violence in the state.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagawat will address a meeting of RSS officials of Palakkad city on August 14. He will also hold talks with RSS office-bearers belonging to Palakkad revenue district comprising Kollangode, Palakkad city and Ottapalam and hoist the national flag at a local school on August 15. RSS state leadership will organise a 24-hour womens baitak on August 14 which will be inaugurated by Mohan Bhagawat, said Gopalankutty Master. The BJP state leadership will also discuss the medical college scam and the violence in the state with Mr Bhagawat, it is learnt.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: BJP national president Amit Shah will lead a campaign, Red Terror in the state immediately after Onam. This has been conceived as per the directive of the national RSS leadership to lead a campaign against the Left Government in the state against their political violence. After the BJP central leadership sent union finance and defence minister Arun Jaitley to visit the slain RSS leader S. L. Rajeshs home, now it is the turn of Amit Shah to visit the state. A top State BJP leader told DC that Amit Shah would be arriving in the State by mid-September.

The dates are yet to be finalised as the programme is being envisaged by the central BJP leadership as per the directive of the RSS national leadership. The political campaign has been titled, Red Terror, and Amit Shah will arrive in the State immediately after Onam, said a top BJP leader. Earlier, Amit Shah had promised the State BJP leadership that he would be coming on October 22 to celebrate his birthday and was keen to see the strides the party had made in the State.

While the State leadership was actively working on the formation of booth committees, they got entangled in the medical college scam which rocked the BJP State leadership and even central leaders after Parliament witnessed pandemonium. The political violence has come as a blessing in disguise for the BJP and it has been focusing on the political campaign while the LDF is on the backfoot.
New Delhi: The 44 Gujarat Congress MLAs who have been camping at a resort near Bengaluru for the past few days are all set to return to Ahmedabad on Monday, a day before the all-important Rajya Sabha election in the state on Tuesday.

Fearing defections and threats, the Congress had shifted its MLAs from Gujarat to party-ruled Karnataka, and kept at a resort to secure them from threats. The party had claimed the ruling BJP in Gujarat was threatening the Congress MLAs with the help of the administrative machinery and forcing them to join the BJP.

Congress MLA and spokesman Shaktisinh Gohil said, All the MLAs who are in Karnataka will be flying to Ahmedabad soon. The BJP is spreading all kinds of canards, but all of us are together. Earlier, the 44 MLAs had also met Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala, who hails from Gujarat and has been a minister in that state and an MLA from Rajkot.

Once they are back in Ahmedabad, they will be kept in a secure location in order to ward off threats. Insiders said they would celebrate Raksha Bandhan with their families at the safe location.

Mr Gohil also denied reports in a section of the media that the MLAs would first be flown to New Delhi to meet party chief Sonia Gandhi, and told reporters that they would be returning to Gujarat directly.

Over the past month, eight of the Congress 57 MLAs had deserted the party, out of which three have already joined the BJP and three others are in touch with the saffron party.
Hyderabad: TRS MLA Aroori Ramesh has got RS 44 lakh compensation from state government for damage to equipment sustained in 2011.

Mr Ramesh was a contractor doing road works in Warangal district in 2011, when Maoists burnt his proclainer (excavator). He applied for compensation but the Congress government kept it pending. He joined the TRS and won from Wardhannapet Assembly seat in 2014.

He applied for compensation after becoming MLA. The government asked the Warangal collector to submit proposals. The collector wrote to the government in May and August 2015 recommending compensation. The finance department issued orders in April 2017 authorising the collector to pay Rs 44 lakh.

The Warangal Urban collector wrote in June stating that the account head under which this money was to be paid had no funds. The pay order was not displayed on the District Treasury website.

The finance department then issued orders on July 27 sanctioning Rs 34.8 lakh, and asked the collector to pay Rs 9.99 lakh from the districts budget.

All this was kept a secret, and not loaded on the website. Finally, the principal secretary to government, GAD (political), Adhar Sinha issued ord-ers on August 5, sanctioning Rs 44,78,963 to the MLA.

This is the first time that such a huge compensation has been paid to anyone for financial loss due to extremist violence. Normally, compensation is given to families of those killed or to those who sustained injuries in extremist violence.

Officials said since MLA cannot claim insurance for extremist violence, the government had sanctioned compensation.
Hyderabad: The Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen on Sunday severely condemned the demolition of Masjid-e-Ali situated in Eidpugalu in Kankipadu mandal of Krishna district earlier in the day by revenue officials of the AP government.

MIM president Asaduddin Owaisi said that the demolition of mosques, dargahs and graveyards in the name of road widening was illegally and arbitrary. No mosque can be shifted or demolished as it becomes the property of Allah and no one, even the one who built it, has the right to agree for its shifting or demolition, he said.

Since May 2016, the revenue authorities have resorted to arbitrary demolition of mosques, dargahs and graveyards. The centuries-old Masjid-e-Abu Bakr, Hazrat Shah Zahoor Musafir dargah, Tarapet masjid and Jannatul Firdous graveyard were demolished, Mr Owaisi alleged. This is in utter violation of laws for protection of religious places and ignoring the stay order of the courts, requests of the AP State Wakf Board and protests of local Muslims, he said.

He said that the AP revenue authorities had demolished the Nimra masjid, Mohammedia graveyards, Masjid-e-Bilal and idgah, Masjid-e-Ali at Eidpugalu in Kankipadu Mandal, Masjid-e-Tana Shah and graveyard at Nepally and a mosque and graveyard in Nodomolu in Pamarru mandal.

I had written to AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in May 2016 and May 2017 against these arbitrary demolitions of places of worship and action of the revenue authorities, Mr Owaisi said.

On Sunday he met AP Chief Secretary Dinesh Kumar and demanded that the AP government immediately stop the demolition of Muslims places of worship and initiate action against the revenue authorities. He demanded that reconstruction of mosques, dargahs and graveyards demolished so far.
Karachi: The problem is apparent. They wanted him out because he, like Asif Ali Zardari, is a stain on democracy. Zardari proved harder to get because he cloaked himself in the immunity of the presidency and the cult of Bhutto meant there were acolytes willing to take a political bullet for him. Nawaz Sharif they have managed to get because he wanted power and the office too. The office drew him out into the open, vulnerable to attack. The stain could be removed. But the stain  Nawaz  isnt going away. Hes out of office, but wants political validation. This caravan to Lahore isnt about driving off into the sunset. Its about topping-up on political capital. By itself, that would be fine. Run around, seek sympathy from the base, address a rally or two  the system can absorb it and will tolerate it. But theres more to it.

Only a fool would believe the official line the PML(N) is peddling for why Shahbaz is sticking around in Lahore and Khaqan will carry on till Parliaments end. Only the naive listen to the words. Trace instead the power. Khaqan as placeholder and Shahbaz as heir achieved two vital things. A 45-day PM helped stave off the anger of those who had missed out. The hunger to be PM is as real as the opportunity to become one is rare. Most would do unspeakable things just to be prime minister for a day. The only thing that would have eased the contenders pain was the thought of Khaqan being around just until Shahbaz arrived in Islamabad. A Sharif for a Sharif is an arrangement no non-Sharif can object to. The Khaqan-followed-by-Shahbaz formula held everything together in a moment of real peril for Nawaz. It threaded the needle that may have been unthreadable. And it did that by suggesting a magnanimity by Nawaz. And then, just as quickly, everything changed. Um, may be its better if Khaqan sticks around a bit longer. It doesnt look nice to chop and change.

And who will handle Punjab? Theres an election round the corner to think about. And just like that, Nawaz has an unabashed acolyte as PM and a brother whos still stuck in Lahore. All for the good of the party, of course. Two other, surely unintentional, benefits may also flow to Nawaz from the ruse. He may be freed of the prime ministers office, but the office is also freed of him. With Nawaz out, the inertia he brought to the prime ministership can be adjusted. So while there are only months left of this government, its final stretch could also be its most effective. Nawaz, freed from office, topping up his political capital in Punjab.

A fiercely loyal ally as PM till term end. A brother and his branch of the family stuck in Lahore. Ousting him was not easy. But the narrowness of the grounds on which he was ousted is an indication of the fierce desire to see the back of him. And where the attack came from indicates a double institutional disdain: one side for corruption, the other for his affection for India. They came all this way, shook up the system, only to see Nawaz quickly find a way to stay in control? And this time from a more protected position, the best one of all, not having any office he can be chucked out of? In taking the Zardari route, Nawaz is doing the smart thing for himself. But the Zardari route has also worked because he could be beaten back to Sindh and kept there. Nawaz? He cant be beaten back to Punjab and kept there It just cant work. Nawaz staying a winner in a system that wants him out may only mean one thing long term: this democracy business wont last.

By arrangement with Dawn
The 72 hour IT raids. It should have been the masterstroke! The one swift, single slice that emasculates the opponent, stops him in his tracks, unable to make a move. Chop, chop!

But a word to the wise What works in Lucknow and Patna, a DeMo that takes the black money out of the equation ahead of a poll or breaking Nitish out of the gathbandhan, and the political skullduggery that is par for the course in the distant reaches of our far flung nation, doesnt necessarily work here in our backyard. And certainly, not with D.K.Shivakumar. Consummate politician, survivor of numerous battles to tie him down, hes bounced back every time after hitting rock bottom.

Remember how cast down he was, when he lost out on becoming KPCC chief only weeks ago? Over the last 72 hours, hes risen from the ashes, meta-morphed seamlessly from shamed, dirty politician to victim, and has already begun to unashamedly milk this particular episode in his chequered career, for everything its worth.

Allowed to finally leave his home on Saturday, he was swanning it outside Raj Bhavan, and at the Gandhi statue, brazenly chanting the apostle of non-violences fave Raghupati Raghava bhajan, before he headed back to the resort with all 44 Gujarat MLAs chanting Jai ho, Shivakumar as he went back to openly flaunting his role as their protector the reason that many believe, he was targeted with the raids, in the first place!

I for one dont believe it stops with the Rajya Sabha poll but has everything to do with removing the Bengaluru moneybags from the Gujarat poll equation where Shankarsinh Vaghela notwithstanding, the BJP minus the sharp governance of Narendra Modi isnt on the strongest of wickets. Taking it further, the BJPs other target, Karnataka, the last of the handful of Congress ruled states, that is now heading for possible early polls where the head of the poll committee is you guessed it Mr. D.K.Shivakumar. The BJP couldnt afford another Nanjangud and Gundlupet where they projected bypoll victories based on B.S. Yeddyurappas mobilization of the Lingayat vote only to have DK steal it from under their nose.

Either way, before you finish reading this column, the man may have probably landed in the lions den of Ahmedabad, with the MLAs in tow, flying out overnight in a chartered flight, 24 hours before the crucial Rajya Sabha vote that the Congress bigwigs want won for their own man Ahmed Patel, pitted against the BJPs two top honchos, master strategist Amit Shah and the politically savvy information and broadcasting minister Smriti Irani.

Messing with that? Ooh, that had to be DkShis undoing. Except, this could be the point of no return for the BJP, and the turnaround for the Congress go to guy.

Heres why. Not so difficult to bounce back for someone who, people say, started at the very bottom of the heap, delivering milk to peoples doorsteps when he was a boy growing up in Sathnur. He went on from that early mapping of rural Bengaluru to becoming a student leader in the city who tapped into the violent underbelly of politics and business with ease, using every connection, dubious or otherwise, from caste and community, across parties, to further his political ambitions as he climbed the political ladder.

The shrill rhetoric on our television channels that has cast every aspersion possible at the man, from ownership of benami properties, and fronting businesses and secret bank accounts at home and abroad, FEMA violations, have remained just that! Aspersions. Karnatakas Panama. What about the cash you ask? The crores found in an apartment in Delhi? The crores found here in the city? Well, beyond the handout pictures of bags stuffed with cash, we in the press havent seen, touched or smelled it yet. Wheres the diary, the warrant that Shivakumar supposedly tore up? Wheres the Panchanama? An IT raid that goes on for three days, at over 60 locations and the man hasnt been arrested yet, or thrown into jail?

As he all but crowed to the television cameras, panchanama bandmele, naanu mathadthini

Theres one other point. In the BJPs grand calculus wrought in Delhi, the anger over the role DK plays in Karnataka politics being extended to Gujarat may have made him a prime target for the kind of treatment that ran the likes of Suresh Kalmadi and D. Raja out of politics.

But contrast the noise in the media with the deafening silence from the BJPs Vokkaliga leaders and you will see what Im getting at  the harassment of a Vokkaliga in a Vokkaliga dominated city like Bengaluru is nothing short of  well, for the want of a better term, not very smart.

Bengaluru Rural is a magnet for all the smaller rural conclaves that ring the IT capital, with Vokkaligas gravitating to the Mecca of business from Kanakpura and Channapatna, Mysuru and Mandya, Hassan and Magadi. DKs constituency Bangalore Rural is a mix of Muslims, Kurubas and Vokkaligas. Bangalore urbans upmarket Rajajinagar that has voted over and over for the BJPs Mr. Clean Suresh Kumar is a Vokkaliga dominated seat.

The silence of the BJPs Vokkaliga leaders barring Tejaswini Gowda is telling; As was the visit to the power ministers home of the Vokkaliga party JD(S) rebel leaders, Cheluvarayaswamy and Magadi MLA Balakrishna Gowda and five others.

This is the city that sent three BJP MPs to parliament and won 12 of the 28 assembly seats in the city for the BJP. All on the back of a solid Vokkaliga vote that the BJP does not make a song and dance about, focused as they are on Mr. Yeddyurappas not inconsiderable clout with the Lingayat maths in the rest of the state, that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is undeniably trying to mess with, by sowing this division in the Lingayat camp.

I wouldnt bet on it, but the masterly poll-winning strategies that now has the BJP in control of 18 states in the country, may just have hit a brick wall in caste driven Karnataka with the move to target the only Vokkaliga leader of some standing in the state, outside the H.D.Deve Gowda family pantheon, going sideways.

And jail or no jail, it wasnt even the Congress, reluctant to give him any such tag, thats made him into a Vokkaliga icon, its the BJP. In the span of three short days.
Sushil Kumar Modi, senior BJP leader, who became the deputy chief minister of Bihar for the third time, says that the newly-formed NDA government is committed to initiating action against those who have acquired benami properties through corruption. In an interview to Nayear Azad, Mr Modi also said that he may come out with documentary evidence of sand mafia funding the RJD and investing in Lalu Yadavs family assets.

Is this the ghar wapsi of Nitish Kumar?

If Nitish Kumar is back with the BJP then it is only due to Lalu Prasad Yadav. He was asked to explain the source behind all those properties he had acquired in last several years, specially when he was the railway minister. Nitish Kumar has always taken a consistent stand on corruption. He was the only CM who supported Prime Minister when he launched the demonetisation drive despite being in alliance with the RJD and the Congress. He never compromises on the issue of corruption and that is the reason why he took a stand when the CBI registered an FIR against Lalu Yadav and his family, including his son Tejashwi Yadav. Kumar was always comfortable with the BJP, he was with us for 17 years and that was the best period of his political career.

Tejashwi Yadav says that 75 per cent ministers in your Cabinet have cases against them?

Tejashwi must know the difference between serious corruption charges and political cases. Cases are often filed against political leaders while they are leading a march or an agitation. No one in our Cabinet has any serious criminal or corruption cases. I have five cases against me that include three defamation suits levelled by leaders like R.K. Rana, Sadhu Yadav and Pappu Yadav.

The cases Tejashwi is referring to are not as serious as corruption charges filed against him and Lalu Yadav. So cases of corruption cannot be equated with cases of political nature. Instead of giving statements they should start explaining people about properties they have acquired.

Do you think this time Nitish Kumar will be comfortable with the BJP?

We share a good rapport. Nitish has observed PM Narendra Modis work very closely. For almost seven years we have worked together and pulled Bihar out from backwardness. I dont think there will be any trouble in running the government.

Now that you are back as deputy CM can we expect a crackdown on Lalus properties?

We will act as per law. Earlier, when we were in the government in Bihar, we had made rules for the seizure of benami properties or those assets that were acquired through corrupt means. Between 2005 and 2013, our government had seized properties of half a dozen such persons including several officers. We will sit and review each and every detail.

You recently ordered a probe into soil scam case?

We are reviewing it but cases against Lalu Yadavs family are also of acquiring benami properties worth `1,000 crores. There are also reports that sand mafia has been funding RJD, the matter is being reviewed and as soon as we get enough documentary evidence against Lalu Yadavs links with sand mafia, we will expose him further.

Lalu Yadav says your party deliberately targeted and conspired against the government and the entire political drama was scripted by you. Your comments.

The allegation is completely baseless. I had no knowledge of the development until that very evening. When I heard that Nitish Kumar has resigned as CM, I discussed the matter with BJP MLAs and they suggested that we should support him in his fight against corruption and for the sake of Bihars development. Even JD(U) legislators advised the same thing to Nitish. After I got a go ahead from the Centre, I met Nitish and decided to form a government. Once again I must clarify here that Nitish resigned because he couldnt compromise with corruption. Its due to Lalu Yadavs ego that the Mahagathbandhan collapsed not due to the BJP.

Rahul Gandhi has called Nitish Kumar an opportunist. He says he was aware of the whole issue Your reaction.

If he was aware of the whole gameplan from the beginning then why he didnt say or do anything to save the alliance? Why he couldnt ask Lalu Yadav to persuade his son to resign? The fight was between principles and opportunism; Nitish would have remained with the RJD but his principles didnt allow him.

What kind of action can we expect now as you have started reviewing each department and file?

Departmental reviews are normal procedure. But with the RJD in the government, the situation was going out of hand. Lawlessness had returned and whatever developmental work you see in Bihar today is because of the previous NDA government.

Do you think that the Lalu Yadav factor will help the RJD in the next Assembly elections?

In 2010, we won elections despite the RJD contesting in alliance with other secular parties like the LJP. Even the Yadavs have been voting for us. In 2007, Muslim came forward and voted in large number for the JD(U)-BJP combine.

The voting pattern has changed; young Muslim and Yadavs only want development.

What will be the political implications of Nitish Kumars return to the NDA fold? Do you think his return will help you bag more seats in 2019 and 2020?

We firmly believe that we will sweep 2019 general elections and 2020 Bihar Assembly elections because we have the clean image of PM Modi and the BJP-JD(U) alliance in Bihar. The RJD-Congress combine has no face to project; people have already rejected Rahul Gandhi.

Will your party project Nitish Kumar as the chief ministerial candidate in 2020 Assembly elections?

Right now we are focusing on the general elections. Nitish Kumar is the leader of the alliance. How can anyone else be projected? However, such issues are always decided before the elections.

The RJD has planned a rally to expose BJPs failure. Lalu Yadav has named the rally BJP hatao, desh bachao rally. Reports coming from rural areas also suggest that the rally may turn out to be his biggest show of strength.

This rally should be named as Benami sampati bachao rally because a large number of political leaders who have been charged with acquiring benami properties will be participating. It wont have any effect as Lalu Yadav is himself a convict and cant even contest local body elections.
Sony Corporation announced that it has developed, in collaboration with IBM Research, located in Zurich, Switzerland, a magnetic tape storage technology with the industry's highest recording areal density for tape storage media, at 201 Gb/in2 (gigabits per square inch). This achievement was made possible by bringing together Sony's new magnetic tape technology employing lubricant with IBM Research - Zurich's newly developed write/read heads, advanced servo control technologies and innovative signal-processing algorithms.

The recording areal density of 201 Gb/in2is approximately 20x greater than conventional magnetic tape storage media (9.6 Gb/in2). The resulting technology can support high-capacity storage of approximately 330 terabytes (TB) per data cartridge, whereas conventional technology can only handle 15 TB per data cartridge.

These development results were jointly announced with IBM Research - Zurich on Wednesday, August 2, 2017 at The 28th Magnetic Recording Conference (TMRC 2017) at the Tsukuba International Conference Center in Tsukuba, Japan.

In recent years, developments in the Internet of Things, the popularization of cloud services, and the leveraging of big data have helped to create new markets, resulting in increased demand for high-capacity data storage media. Moreover, the importance of data storage is being reaffirmed in terms of ensuring reliable recovery of data in information systems such as databases and servers, as well as safe management of information. It is against this background that magnetic tape shows great potential as a storage media thanks to its various strengths, including its capacity for storing data over long periods of time, low power consumption, low cost, and space saving capabilities.

Closing the gap (spacing) between the magnetic tape and magnetic head is critical to achieving high-density recording capabilities for tape storage media. Reduced spacing entails increased friction at contact points between the tape surface and magnetic head, however, friction must be reduced and the tape surface must smoothly run along the magnetic head to enable high-capacity writing and reading at a high speed. Upon establishing this new magnetic tape technology, Sony developed a lubricant that is applied between the tape surface and magnetic head. This low-friction lubricant not only reduces friction between the tape surface and magnetic head, but also features a highly durable bond between the lubricant and magnetic layer of the tape.

Furthermore, this new technology made it possible to create a nano-grained magnetic layer with microscopic magnetic particles in extended tape length. Conventionally, a common problem is non-uniform crystalline orientation and disparities in grain sizes due to impurity gas generated from the surface of equipment during magnetic layer formation. A newly developed processing technology that reduces impurity gas is used in conjunction with sputter deposition, a method of forming a nano-grained magnetic layer with an average grain size of 7 nm, thereby resulting in extended tape length. With these advancements in processing technology, the foundation has been laid for production of tape storage cartridges that can hold more than 1000 meters of tape.

Combining this magnetic tape technology together with IBM Research Zurich's write and read heads, advanced servo control technologies and innovative signal-processing algorithms, Sony has achieved the industry's highest recording areal density of 201 Gb/in2  about 20x greater than the currentmainstream coated magnetic tape media for data storage.

Sony will build on this new development to forge ahead with development of magnetic tape technologies, aiming to commercialise next-generation tape storage media capable of high-capacity data recording and achieve even higher recording density.

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The 16-year-old girl, who was travelling alone on July 23, was asleep on the flight, when a stranger's hand on her thigh awakened her, the Washington Post reported. (Photo: AFP)

New York: A 28-year-old Indian doctor has been arrested for allegedly groping a minor girl who was sitting next to him on a New Jersey-bound United Airlines flight, according to media reports.

The 16-year-old girl, who was travelling alone on July 23, was asleep on the flight, when a stranger's hand on her thigh awakened her, the Washington Post reported.

The man, identified as Vijakumar Krishnappa, sitting next to her quickly removed his hand, according to a federal court complaint, and the teenager went back to sleep. Then, she woke up again and this time, the man was groping her, the complaint says.

She reported the incident to the airline crew and was allowed to move seats.

Once the flight from Seattle landed at Newark Liberty International Airport, the girl, from Washington state, called her parents. While she did, the accused left the airport, said Johnny McCray, an attorney for the girl's family.

The girl's family has filed a complaint against United Airlines for neglecting to detain Krishnappa after the alleged assault, the report said.

The FBI was called to handle the investigation. It used the flight manifest to track down Krishnappa, a doctor from India. The girl identified him from a photo array, ABC reported.

Krishnappa was charged in the federal court in Newark, a day after the incident, according to court records filed by the FBI charging him with criminal sexual contact.

Court records show he was arrested and charged with knowingly engaging in sexual contact with a minor female, the report said.

He has been released on bond, placed on electronic monitoring, and ordered to not have any contact with minors while the criminal case is pending, according to court records.

The doctor's court-appointed attorney, John Yauch, told the Post that his client "adamantly denies the charges and deserves to be considered an innocent man."

Krishnappa is studying medicine in the United States through a months-long fellowship that allows for doctors from foreign countries to learn from experts in the US, the daily said.

A spokesman from the Federal Aviation Administration told the daily that the airlines typically notify law enforcement about incidents before landing.

"The safety and security of our customers is our top priority. We take these allegations seriously and continue to work closely with the proper authorities as part of their review," a spokesperson for United Airlines said in a statement.
The summit will discuss the organisations role in global governance, a faltering economic recovery and setbacks in globalisation, the Xinhua commentary said. (Photo: AP)

Beijing: Notwithstanding the India-China tension over the Doklam standoff, Beijing is upbeat about the next months BRICS summit to be held in the Chinese city of Xiamen, expecting concrete cooperation among the five emerging economies.

I think this years summit in Xiamen will produce more practical and concrete cooperation, and improve trust and confidence among BRICS, Shen Yi, director of the centre for BRICS studies at Fudan University was quoted by state-run Xinhua news agency in a commentary on the upcoming summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to attend the summit of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) being hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

There is no word yet here whether the two leaders would be meeting on the sidelines of the summit as the standoff between Indian and Chinese troops continues at the Doklam area of the Sikkim Sector, making it the longest stalemate between the two militaries in recent years.

India and China have been locked in a prolonged standoff in the area in the Sikkim sector since June 16 after Chinese troops began constructing a road near the Bhutan trijunction.

Bhutan has protested to China, saying the area belonged to it and accused Beijing of violating agreements that aim to maintain the status quo until the boundary dispute is resolved.

India says the Chinese action to construct the road was unilateral and changes the status quo. It fears the road would allow China to cut off Indias access to its northeastern states.

The summit will discuss the organisations role in global governance, a faltering economic recovery and setbacks in globalisation, the Xinhua commentary said.

BRICS: stronger partnership for a brighter future will bring together the leaders of all the five countries, it said.

The gold bricks countries  a Chinese translation of BRICS  represent emerging markets and are the voice of the worlds developing countries, it said, without referring to the current round of India-China tensions over Doklam.

The Xinhua commentary also highlighted Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yis assertions in the past about BRICS Plus under which China says the five-member bloc should expand cooperation with developing countries.

Last year, India which hosted a summit in Goa invited leaders of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic) in which Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal are members.

China is yet to release its list of guests to meet on the sidelines of the BRICS summit.

China does not want to limit future cooperation to the five nations. In March, Foreign Affairs Minister Wang said that China would explore expansion modalities for BRICS Plus and build a wider partnership through dialogue with developing countries and international organisations, the commentary said.

BRICS plus will provide opportunities for other economies and inject impetus into economic globalisation, it quoted the chief economist of the Eurasian Development Bank Yaroslav Lissovolik as saying.

The proposals of Minister of Foreign Affairs of China Wang Yi regarding the expansion of the BRICS partnership zone are not only timely in the light of Chinas presidency of BRICS, but they are also aimed at giving new impetus to integration processes in the complicated conditions of protectionisms spread in the world economy, Lissovolik said.

Observers say that BRICS is consensus based organisation and consent of the five required for its expansion.

Strong economic growth means BRICS are now key players in the world economy and in global governance, the Xinhua commentary said.

Together, the five countries accounted for 23 per cent of the 2016 global economy, almost double their share in 2006. The five have been the source of more than half of global growth in the past ten years.

BRICS cooperation has not only helped the countries themselves, but enhanced the right to speak on global issues for all developing countries, said Ruan Zongze, executive vice president of the China Institute of International Studies.

As the holder of the BRICS presidency this year, China is hosting the series of meetings which usually precedes the leaders summit.

Earlier this week, trade ministers met in Shanghai and agreed to unite against protectionism and to do all they can to ensure the survival of the multilateral trade system.

In late July, a BRICS security meeting was held in Beijing, with discussions on global governance, anti-terrorism, the internet, energy, national security and development.

In June, finance ministers and central bank governors agreed to strengthen cooperation in several fiscal and financial areas, including the BRICS New Development Bank and regulatory collaboration.

With the progress of the past ten years and a more inclusive attitude, BRICS are prepared not only for the Xiamen summit, but for another golden decade to come, the commentary said.
Beijing: On Sunday, foreign ministers of Southeast Asia and China adopted a negotiating framework for a code of conduct in the South China Sea, a move they hailed as progress but seen by critics as tactic to buy China time to consolidate its maritime power.

The framework seeks to advance a 2002 Declaration of Conduct (DOC) of Parties in the South China Sea, which has mostly been ignored by claimant states, particularly China, which has built seven manmade islands in disputed waters, three of which are equipped with runways, surface-to-air missiles and radars.

All parties say the framework is only an outline for how the code will be established but critics say the failure to outline as an initial objective the need to make the code legally binding and enforceable, or have a dispute resolution mechanism, raises doubts about how effective the pact will be.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the adoption of the framework created a solid foundation for negotiations that could start this year, if the situation in the South China Sea is generally stable and on the premise that there is no major interference from outside parties.

He told reporters there had been really tangible progress so there was a need to cherish momentum on the South China Sea. Signing China up to a legally binding and enforceable code for the strategic waterway has long been a goal for claimant members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), some of which have sparred for years over what they see as Chinas disregard for their sovereign rights and its blocking of fishermen and energy exploration efforts.

Beijing insists its activities are for defence purposes, in areas it considers its waters. Malaysia, Taiwan, Brunei, Vietnam and the Philippines, however, all claim some or all of the South China Sea and its myriad shoals, reefs and islands.

Some critics and diplomats believe Chinas sudden interest in the code after 15 years of delays is to drag out the negotiating process to buy time to complete its strategic objectives in the South China Sea, through which more than $3 billion of ship-borne trade passes annually.

Opponents also say it is being pushed through at a time when the United States, long seen as a crucial buffer against Chinas maritime assertiveness, is distracted by other issues and providing no real clarity about its security strategy in Asia, thus weakening ASEANs bargaining position.

The framework has not been made public but a leaked two-page blueprint seen by Reuters is broad and leaves wide scope for disagreement.

It urges a commitment to the purposes and principles of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) but does not specify adherence to it, for example. A separate ASEAN document, dated May and seen by Reuters, shows that Vietnam pushed for stronger, more specific text in the framework, wanting mention of a dispute resolution mechanism and respecting sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction.

Sovereign rights cover entitlements to fish and extraction of natural resources. Several ASEAN countries, including Vietnam and the Philippines, have said they still favour making the code legally binding, something experts say China is unlikely to agree to.

Wang said he would not try to anticipate what the code will comprise, but said whatever is signed must be adhered to. Robespierre Bolivar, foreign ministry spokesman of host Philippines, said the adoption of the framework symbolised the commitment to creating a substantive and effective code.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday rubbished charges that the Indira Canteens were coming up on parks and playgrounds in the city.



Addressing reporters after winding up his city rounds, Siddaramaiah said, None of the notified parks and playgrounds is being used to construct Indira Canteens. We are building them on BBMP open spaces.





Twitter way



However, on Saturday morning, the chief minister took to Twitter to respond to DHs report on how the civic body is using a November 2015 notification, according to which Bengaluru has 283 designated open spaces that are neither parks nor playgrounds.



Have instructed @BBMPCOMM1 to not build #IndiraCanteen on parks and playgrounds. The poor also have a right over open spaces, the chief minister tweeted.



When asked during the press conference why the BBMP invested in developing these open spaces into parks, Siddaramaiah said such measures were taken to protect them from encroachment and dumping of waste.



The Indira Canteen scheme is aimed at feeding the poor. Nearly three lakh people will benefit from it everyday. Our opponents are not able to digest the success of this scheme, so they are protesting against it, the chief minister explained.



Rahul for inauguration



He said the government has decided to launch the Indira Canteen scheme on August 16 and Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi will most likely inaugurate them.

He was confident that 125 canteens will be ready by August 16 and the rest will be built before October 2.



Have instructed @BBMPCOMM1 to not build #IndiraCanteen on parks & playgrounds. The poor also have a right over open spaces. @DeccanHerald pic.twitter.com/7IReETkYqy  CM of Karnataka (@CMofKarnataka) August 5, 2017




Energy Minister D K Shivakumar on Saturday apologised for the controversial statements by his mother Gowramma, who blamed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for the income tax raids on her son.



Gowramma had attacked Siddaramaiah saying he repeatedly betrayed Shivakumar, when reporters sought her comments on the I-T raids. Her statement raised eyebrows, because it came at a time when the entire Congress party was blaming the BJP for using the I-T department to target Shivakumar. My aged mother is uneducated. She lacks enough knowledge to know under whose jurisdiction the Income Tax department falls. A section of the media took undue advantage of her innocence and incited her to speak against the chief minister, Shivakumar said in a statement. I apologise to the chief minister and people of the state for my mothers unintentional comments.



Besides blaming Siddaramaiah, Shivakumars mother, who was interviewed by TV channels at a farmhouse in Kodihalli, went on to say that her son had many enemies within the Congress party. Shivakumars brother and Bengaluru Rural MP D K Suresh was quick to initiate damage control. She was under pressure. She didnt mean whatever she said, Suresh had clarified.



Shivakumar went on to profusely praise Siddaramaiah. He has stood by my side and encouraged me, he stated, going on to thank Congress leaders, party workers and all good-hearted people for supporting him and his family during the crisis.


Beyond the obvious inferences, the cash seizures from Karnataka Energy Minister D K Shivakumars premises, if as depicted by the BJP, point to the failure of Prime Minister Narendra Modis signature policy of combating illicit currency hoards. If the tax authorities are indeed the source of these figures, they deserve compliments for an efficiency that even the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has with all its resources been incapable of.



Just days before the raids on Shivakumars premises, the Modi government suffered serious embarrassment in Parliament for being clueless about the impact of demonetisation of high-value currency notes last November. The RBI was still counting the number of notes that had flowed back into the banking system, and there was renewed speculation about a purely political motive for the decision. After all other explanations collapsed, one of the few that survived was that the intent of demonetisation was to trash the cash hoarded by rival parties before crucial state Assembly elections early this year.



The suggestion would seem outlandish except for the growing evidence of the lengths to which the BJP could go. In raiding Shivakumars premises, the tax authorities engaged the services of a central paramilitary force, normally only summoned to action on the explicit request of state authorities. This was a clear violation of convention and an affront to federal principles, but the BJP seems to have no time for such niceties.



Parliament to panchayat is the slogan that sums up the strategic vision Modi and his principal lieutenant, BJP president Amit Shah, have forged. It reflects their belief in the BJPs manifest destiny to emerge as Indias eternal ruling party. Every available trick could be used in this mission, to break down possible resistance.



Monetary reward is the first recourse, though the Opposition could even in its feeble state, neutralise this strategy in limited areas. In those situations, the coercive power of the official agencies comes into play. Events spanning Gujarat and Karnataka over the recent days, have laid out this bag of tricks for public display.



Ahmed Patel, the powerful adviser to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, is up for re-election to the Rajya Sabha and would normally have no reason for worries, given the partys existing strength in the Gujarat Assembly. But Shah holds him responsible for the brief imprisonment he suffered on allegations of ordering a number of custodial killings while a minister in the Gujarat Cabinet. Patels defeat would, moreover, be just the powerful message that Modi and Shah need to send when state Assembly elections are due later this year, that the Congress is into its death spiral.



The plan was flagged off by Shankarsinh Vaghela  a defector from the BJP  leading a bloc of Congress legislators out of the party late in July. In a clear crisis, the Congress mustered the resources to corral 44 Gujarat legislators in a venue near Bengaluru. Shivakumar reportedly led the operation and the vendetta was swift and certain. The political fallout will undoubtedly have a bearing on the state Assembly election in Karnataka early next year.



With Himachal Pradesh due to go to polls later this year, a case of disproportionate assets filed against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh in March conforms to a pattern of targeting likely impediments in the BJPs march to absolute power.



An early effort to transform a numerical disadvantage in Uttarakhand into a legislative majority was thwarted by judicial intervention. The chief justice of the Uttarakhand High Court, who presided over that verdict, has since by coincidence or otherwise, been reportedly denied a nomination to the Supreme Court.



Quick political reflex



In recent elections to the Goa and Manipur Assemblies, the BJP turned in worse performances than the Congress. But with quicker political reflexes and the deployment of a familiar bag of tricks, it managed to form the government by winning over smaller regional parties.



Delhi and Bihar, where the BJP faced overwhelming defeats, have witnessed similar stratagems. No fewer than 13 legislators of Delhis Aam Aadmi Party have at one time or the other been arrested on charges ranging from falsifying educational credentials to rioting to domestic violence. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwals office was raided by the CBI and his principal secretary, a senior civil servant, was jailed for a month on charges stemming from an earlier tenure in the state secretariat.



Bihar is where the BJPs strategy has achieved its most notable victory. In 2015, when Nitish Kumar had nowhere to go after breaking off ties with the BJP, he embraced Lalu Prasad, seemingly unconcerned with his dynastic claims and questionable acts during his past political life. Once enthroned as chief minister, Nitish had begun growing uneasy but needed a reason to return to the BJP fold. A number of fresh corruption charges against Lalu and his family provided him exactly that.



The BJPs older strategic vision was gradualist: it would assemble back the splinters as the rickety social alliances built by the Congress through the Nehru-Gandhi years fell apart. The resultant assemblage would be complex, but different in having no place for the principal Indian religious minority, except on terms vastly different than those granted by the Congress.



When it seemed that the BJP was set decisively on the pathway to a permanent lease in power, the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat during Modis first few months as chief minister, eroded the trust of its allies. This factor fused with the economic vulnerabilities of various classes the BJP had neglected to put the Congress back in power at the Centre for 10 years. Opportunity for the BJP came again in 2014 and the party now seems determined to close down even the slightest possibility of losing power. From filling in the spaces vacated by the Congress, the BJPs vision of a Congress-mukt Bharat now seems focused on destroying all Opposition. If inducement once had a place, the current strategy seems to rely almost exclusively on coercion and unsubtle threats.
The US economy continued robust job creation in July, with the unemployment rate falling back to a 16-year low amid strong hiring in restaurants and health care, government data showed.



The healthy jobs report was another dose welcome news for an embattled White House facing a stalled policy agenda and historically low public approval ratings.



Despite a government rule barring officials from commenting on economic data untile one hour after release, President Donald Trump immediately hailed the report on Twitter:

Excellent Jobs Numbers just released - and I have only just begun. Many job stifling regulations continue to fall. Movement back to USA!



The worlds largest economy added 209,000 net new positions for the month, well above analyst forecasts but below Junes 231,000, the Labor Department reported.



The gain meant the unemployment rate ticked back down a tenth a point to 4.3%, the same as in May, when it reached its lowest level in 16 years, states the government data.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said the government will bear 100% of the construction cost of up to Rs 5 lakh to construct single houses for BPL families belonging to SC/STs and minorities in the city.



During the city tour on Saturday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that the social welfare fund of Rs 700 crore is lying unused with the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike. This fund is exclusively reserved for SC/STs and other backward communities living in slums.



Addressing slum dwellers at Rajendranagar under BTM Layout after laying a foundation stone for one such single house, Siddaramaiah said, There are 625 houses to be built under the single house scheme. The estimated cost of construction is Rs 5 lakh each of which Rs 4.5 lakh is provided by the government. The rest is borne by the beneficiary. I will direct the BBMP commissioner to ensure that BBMP bears the share of balance Rs 50,000 for SC/STs and minorities. These communities will get the house free of cost.



During his visit to Church Street, the chief minister directed BBMP engineers to complete the work in three months. The Palike is laying granite slabs on pavements.

He inspected the remodelling of the stormwater drain at Adugodi. The convoy then moved to Mestripalya where the BBMP is developing a park next to the Mestripalya lake. He directed officials to improve the park and the lake by October. The park is being developed at a cost of Rs 7 crore.



The chief minister inspected the Swabhimani Udyana Vana at HSR Layout. On paper, the parks is spread across 11 acres and 22 guntas but in reality, it is just nine acres and 20 guntas. After residents prevented encroachment of the park, it is now being developed.



MLC V S Ugrappa complained that many illegal buildings have come up around the park where building byelaws have been given flouted.



Buildings are under construction on two sites without amalgamating them. At least six to seven storey structures have been built on a plot where the permission is only for four storeys, complained Ugrappa.



He accused BBMP ward engineer Venkatesh of ignoring the complaints. Heeding to the complaint, the chief minister directed the Palike commissioner to suspend him. Later, he said Swabhimani Udyana Vana will be developed into a model park.



He inspected the flyover work on the outer ring road as part of the signal-free corridor. The chief minister then visited the Indira Canteen at Kanakanapalya playground.



He said that on Church Street, utilities were being shifted and work will be completed in three months.






Two bike-borne suspects followed Sujatha Kheni, a resident of SBI Layout, while she was on the way to her relatives house and snatched her 70-gram gold chain at 7.30 pm.



Around 7.45 pm at KEB Layout, two men targeted Jai Kumari. While, one of them stopped her on the pretext of seeking directions towards an address, the other snatched her 50-gram gold chain, and the duo immediately fled on bike.



In the third incident, two men, with their faces masked, halted their bike near Bhanumathis residence on the Ex-Servicemen Road around 8 pm and snatched her 48-gram gold chain. In the fourth incident, around 9.15 pm two men followed Bharathi, a resident of BNS Layout, Banaswadi, and snatched her 15-gram gold chain.



Police suspect the involvement of a gang in all four incidents.

At least four chain-snatching incidents were reported in a span of two hours at Hebbal, Sanjaynagar, Ramamurthynagar and Banaswadi, during the Varamahalakshmi festival on Friday.
A 32-year-old man was hacked to death by four assailants on a vacant plot at Avalahalli on Friday night.



The police have identified the deceased Rahamathullah, a fruit vendor.



According to the police, Rahamathullah and his friends, Bhoopathy and Annamalai were drinking alcohol on the vacant site at around 9.30 pm on Sunday. A Santro car approached the site, four men wielding machetes and choppers alighted from the car and hacked Rahamathullah to death. They, however, did not assault two of Rahmatullah's friends.



The police suspect that the motive behind the murder could be a possible rivalry, but are unsure of the exact motive as the family members of Rahamathullah knew nothing about his friends. The victim's brother Azamathullah has lodged a complaint with Thalaghattapura police. The police have registered a case and have launched a manhunt for the assailants.




The air intelligence unit of the Customs at the Kempegowda International Airport are stumbling on newer modes of gold smuggling every time a suspected passenger is picked up.



Modes such as gold bars being converted into rods coated with silver and then carried with a fruit juicer to avoid suspicion and gold concealed as wires in suitcase linings, etc, have startled the sleuths.



In the first week of August, Customs officials seized more than 1,700 gm of gold worth Rs 50 lakh from three passengers, including a woman. The arrested were Ashfaque Ahmed Kakde (50), Farhana Begum (35) and Inshaf Mohammed (24), a Sri Lankan national.



Kakde had arrived from Dubai on the evening of August 4.



On interrogation, they got contradictory versions from him. A thorough scrutiny of his check-in baggage revealed concealment of gold in the juicer he was carrying. The gold was converted into a rod and placed in the hollow of the juicers support stand.



Kakde is a native of Bhatkal and ran a consumer goods business in Dubai. A Bhatkali friend requested him to carry the gold and deliver it to his friend in Bhatkal. He was assured of a commission on his return to Dubai, the sleuths said. His to and fro trip was also sponsored.



On the night of August 3, sleuths apprehended Farhana Begum, 35, who arrived from Bangkok. She had four biscuits of 100 gm each concealed in her undergarment.

Farhana is a city resident and a class X dropout. She left for Bangkok in search of a job at the behest of her friend. Her friend, however, asked her to carry the consignment to Bengaluru for Rs 10,000.

Another case



In another case, Inshaf Mohammed, a Sri Lankan national, was detained in the early hours of August 1.



He had come in a flight from Colombo. On checking his baggage, it was found that he had concealed three gold wires, totally weighing 511 gm, in the inner lining of his suitcase.



Mohammed told sleuths he was in the business of readymade garments, which he

procured from India, in Sri Lanka.

He was asked by a contact, who gave him the gold, to hand it over to a person waiting outside the Bengaluru airport for Rs 10,000.



Further investigation in the case is on.




According to the police sources here, the terrorist, who was identified as Abdullah, who was member of 'Ansarullah Bangla Team' (ABT), was nabbed from Kutesara area in the district.

Abdullah, who had been living in Muzaffarnagar for the past one month, helped the terrorists in procuring identification documents like Aadhar Cards. Abdullah had managed to procure an Aadhar Card and Passport for himself also, the sources said.

Police said that some fake Aadhar cards, stamps, passports and other documents, were recovered from the possession of Abdullah, who had earlier been living at Deoband in Saharanpur district of the state.

ATS sleuths conducted raids on a house at Deoband to nab another ABT member Faizan, whose name was revealed by Abdullah, but he was not found, sources said. Some 'jehadi' literature was recovered from Faizan's house, the officials said.

Police said that more raids were likely to be conducted to nab the accomplices of Abdullah and Faizan.



The Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) of the UP police on Sunday nabbed an alleged Bangladeshi terrorist from state's Muzaffarnagar district, about 500 kilometres from here.
An application has been moved in the Supreme Court seeking early hearing of the politically- sensitive Rs 64 crore Bofors pay-off case after a fresh media report suggesting a financial quid pro quo for the Rs 1,437 crore Howitzer gun deal in 1986.



The plea by BJP leader and advocate Ajay Agrawal has also alleged apparent collusiveness by CBI with the accused persons in the Bofors scam, saying the agency did not challenge the Delhi High Court's May 31, 2005 judgement quashing all charges against the Europe-based Hinduja brothers.



He has challenged the judgement in the apex court which had on October 18, 2005 admitted his petition that was filed after the CBI failed to approach the top court with the appeal within the 90-day deadline after the High Court verdict.



In the application, the lawyer-turned-politician said he had filed the appeal in public interest because the CBI did not come forward and it was reported that the Law Ministry then had not given permission to the agency, despite the fact that the High Court order was illegal.



To substantiate the allegation of collusiveness between the CBI and the accused persons, Agrawal in his application has narrated the sequence of events that led to the defreezing of the London bank account of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, alleged middleman in the deal, in 2006, for which the then Additional Solicitor General B Dutta had visited England.



He said such a step was undertaken despite the fact that the then UPA government and the CBI were aware that his appeal has been admitted by the apex court.



Agrawal, who had contested the Rai Bareli Lok Sabha elections in 2014 against Congress President Sonia Gandhi, also claimed that the CBI did not bother to inform the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, which was seized of the Quattrocchi matter, to inform about its move to defreeze the accounts.



He said that on August 3, he had written a letter to the CBI seeking re-investigation of the entire Bofors scam and the trail of alleged bribe money deposited in Quattrocchi's London bank account and the subsequent developments after the defreezing of the account on January 16, 2006.



Fresh developments assume significance in the wake of a demand in Parliament by ruling BJP MPs for reopening of the probe into the Bofors kickback scandal after the media reports quoting Swedish chief investigator Sten Lindstrom's suggested payment of alleged bribery at the top level.



After the developments in Parliament, Agrawal also wrote a letter to the Enforcement Directorate seeking investigation into the trail of the kickback money under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.



In the July 28 letter to the ED, he claimed that the alleged crimes were committed continuously till 2006 when two London accounts held by Quattrochi, who has been accused as one of the middlemen in the deal, were de-freezed.



The BJP leader said the CBI should file an affidavit about the facts and course of investigation into the case, as during the brief hearing on December 1, 2016, the agency had told the apex court that the authorities had not permitted it to file an appeal against the May 31, 2005 verdict.



He said he would try to convince the apex court through his petition that the "High Court had quashed the charges against the accused persons on technical grounds and the order was totally perverse which is liable to be set aside."



Justice R S Sodhi, since retired, of the Delhi High Court had on May 31, 2005 quashed all charges against the Hinduja brothers -- Srichand, Gopichand and Prakashchand -- and the Bofors company and castigated the CBI for its handling of the case saying it had cost the exchequer about Rs 250 crore.



Before the 2005 verdict, another judge of the Delhi High Court, Justice J D Kapoor (since retired) on February 4, 2004, had exonerated late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in the case and directed framing of charge of forgery under Section 465 of the IPC against the Bofors company.



The matter was last listed on February 28 this year when it was adjourned. The apex court had on October 18, 2005 allowed Agrawal to file an appeal against the high court verdict in the absence of any appeal by CBI.



The December 1, 2016 hearing had taken place after a gap of almost six years since August 12, 2010.



The Rs 1,437 crore deal between India and the Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors for the supply of 400 155mm Howitzer guns for Indian Army was entered on March 24, 1986.



The Swedish Radio on April 16, 1987 had claimed that the company had paid bribes to top Indian politicians and defence personnel.



The CBI on January 22, 1990 had registered the FIR for the alleged offence of criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery under the IPC and other sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act against Martin Ardbo, the then President of AB Bofors, alleged middleman Win Chadda and Hinduja brothers.



It had alleged that certain public servants and private persons in India and abroad had entered into a criminal conspiracy between 1982 and 1987 in pursuance of which the offences of bribery, corruption, cheating and forgery were committed to the extent of Rs 64 crore in the contracts for the supply of Bofors guns.



The first charge sheet in the case was filed on October 22, 1999 against Chadda, Quattrocchi, then Defence Secretary S K Bhatnagar, Ardbo and the Bofors company. A supplementary charge sheet against Hinduja brothers was filed on October 9, 2000.



A special CBI court in Delhi On March 4, 2011, had discharged Quattrocchi from the case saying the country cannot afford to spend hard-earned money on his extradition which has already cost Rs 250 crore.



Quattrocchi, who had fled from here on July 29-30, 1993, has never appeared before any court in India to face prosecution. He passed away on July 13, 2013. The other accused persons who have died are Bhatnagar, Chadda and Ardbo.
Southeast Asian nations were battling today to find a compromise on how to deal with Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea, with Cambodia lobbying hard for Beijing, diplomats said.



Foreign ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) failed to release a joint statement as scheduled on Saturday evening, and tense follow- up negotiations the next morning could still not end the stand-off, two diplomats involved in the talks told AFP.



China claims nearly all of the South China Sea, including waters approaching the coasts of ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.



The tense talks came after Vietnam, which also claims parts of the strategically vital sea, insisted that tough language be inserted into the statement expressing concern over Chinese land reclamation in the contested waters.



Cambodia, one of China's strongest allies within ASEAN, had firmly resisted, according to the diplomats involved in the talks in the Philippine capital, as well as an excerpt of proposed Cambodian resolution obtained by AFP on Sunday."Vietnam is adamant and China is effectively using Cambodia to champion its interests," one of the diplomats said.



"But the Philippines is trying very hard to broker compromise language." China has in recent years expanded its presence in the sea by building artificial islands, which are capable of holding military bases.

Tensions over the sea have long vexed ASEAN, which operates on a consensus basis but has had to balance the interests of rival claimants and those more aligned to China.



While senior officials pressed on with negotiations on the sea dispute Sunday, ASEAN foreign ministers went into a round of separate meetings with their counterparts from China, the United States and other Asia-Pacific nations.



ASEAN and China were due to approve a framework for a code of conduct in Manila on Sunday on how to deal with sea dispute. Analysts have cautioned not to place too much significance on the agreement on a framework.



They say it comes 15 years after negotiations on the issue first began, and China has used that time to cement its claims with the artificial islands, while an actual code likely remained many years away.



Diplomats said they were still hoping the joint ASEAN statement meant to be released on Saturday would be agreed on before all the other meetings hosted by the bloc ended today.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged North Korea today to make a "smart decision", after the United Nations imposed tough new sanctions on the isolated regime over its missile and nuclear programmes.



"It will help the DPRK to make the right and smart decision," Wang told reporters, according to a translator, after discussing the sanctions with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Hong-Yo ahead of a regional security forum in the Philippine capital Manila.



However Wang also emphasised that negotiations were the only way to solve the issue, after the United States had left open the possibility of military action against Kim Jong-Un's regime.



Wang called for a resumption of the stalled six-nation talks -- hosted by China and including the United States, Japan, Russia as well as the two Koreas -- aimed at curtailing the North's atomic ambitions.



"It's not that easy but it is a direction we need to work together towards," Wang said of the six-nation talks. "Only dialogue and negotiation is the correct way out to address the Korean peninsula issue."



The top diplomats from all those nations are in Manila for the ASEAN Regional Forum, an annual security forum, which begins on Monday.



US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has no plans to hold talks with Ri in the Philippines, his aides have said, but could meet him inside one of the meetings.



The UN Security Council on Saturday unanimously backed a US-drafted resolution that significantly strengthened sanctions on North Korea, imposing a ban on exports aimed at depriving Pyongyang of $1 billion in annual revenue.



The sweeping measures were the first of that scope to be imposed on North Korea since US President Donald Trump took office and highlighted China's willingness to punish its Pyongyang ally.



The resolution imposed a full ban on exports of coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore as well as fish and seafood by the cash-starved state -- stripping North Korea of a third of its export earnings estimated at $3 billion per year.



US Ambassador Nikki Haley said the stiffer measures brought the penalty imposed on North Korea for its ballistic missile tests "to a whole new level" and that the council had put Kim "on notice".
Foodgrain output in the ongoing 2017-18 kharif season is likely to surpass last year's record of 138.04 million tonnes due to higher acreage and good monsoon for the second straight year, Agriculture Secretary Shobhana K Pattanayak said today.



So far, more than 80 per cent of the sowing of kharif crops -- paddy, pulses, oilseeds, cotton, sugarcane and jute -- has been completed and the planting will continue in some parts till next month, Pattanayak told PTI in an interview.



About 19 lakh hectare of crop area has been affected by floods across the country and farmers are likely to take up other kharif crops once the water recedes, he said, expressing concern about poor rains in some parts of Karnataka.



"I am certain overall kharif foodgrain output will be more than last year," he said.

While there were floods in some states, there was drought -like situation in parts of Karnataka, he said, adding that there has still been close to 3 per cent jump in the acreage under kharif crops so far.



Pattanayak said farmers in flood-hit areas will replant other crops in 19 lakh hectare once water recedes, but the situation in Karnataka has not yet improved.



"South interior Karnataka continues to be problematic, but some rains had come, let's see," he said.

Till last week, farmers had sown kharif crops in 878.23 lakh hectare as against 855.85 lakh hectare in the year-ago period, as per the Agriculture Ministry's latest data.



Paddy - the main kharif (summer) crop - was sown in 280.03 lakh hectare, as against 266.93 lakh hectare, while pulses covered 121.28 lakh hectare as against 116.95 lakh hectare in the said period.



However, oilseeds acreage was down at 148.88 lakh hectare till last week of the kharif season from 165.49 lakh hectare in the same period last year.



This, Pattanayak said, should not be an issue. "It is lower so far, but the sowing window is not over. They (farmers) will take up little later on marginal lands. Overall, it is not bad."

He said the overall acreage for all pulses is higher, except tur.



With regard to cash crop, he said that the overall area sown to cotton and sugarcane is higher than last year so far and the output is also expected to be better.



"The cotton acreage has gone up substantially, but part of the area is affected in Gujarat due to floods. Farmers may grow other crops like pulses."



As per the data, cotton acreage has increased to 114.34 lakh hectare so far in the 2017-18 kharif season from 96.48 lakh hectare in the year-ago period on account of good rains and better prices.



Similarly, acreage under sugarcane has gone up to 49.71 lakh hectare from 45.64 lakh hectare in the said period because of good monsoon and timely payment of cane arrears by sugar mills.



In the 2016-17 kharif season, foodgrain output was record at 138.04 million tonnes while previous record was 128.65 MT achieved during the 2013-14 kharif season.



Production of paddy stood at 96.09 MT, pulses at 9.12 MT, coarse cereals at 32.84 MT, oilseeds at 22.8 MT, cotton at 30.5 million bales in the 2016-17 kharif season, as per the ministry's data.
It was wrong to term non-Hindi languages as regional and Tamil, Gujarati, Marathi, Bengali and others were also national languages, noted poet and lyricist Gulzar today said.



"It is wrong to term non-Hindi languages as regional. They are major languages of the country. Tamil is a classical language, and also a major language. And so are Gujarati, Marathi, Bengali and others," he told PTI.



He was speaking on the sidelines of Bengaluru Poetry Festival 2017, organised by 'Atta Galatta', a bookstore here.



The Padma Bhushan awardee also pitched for introduction of literary works including those of Kalidasa in the syllabus of Indian colleges along with English literary works.



"If in colleges, works like "Paradise Lost" can be taught, why cannot Kalidasa, Yudhistir and Draupadi be taught? These works are closer to our culture, which everybody across India can understand," said.

Gulzar, however, said he was not against Shakespeare's works being taught in colleges, though.



"One must read Shakespeare. I have read it and enjoyed it. We should read it," he added.

In the same breath, Gulzar said works of modern writers like Saadat Hasan Manto should also be taught in colleges.



Gulzar said India had achieved political independence, but not cultural independence.

"We have got political independence, no doubt, but not cultural independence. We are not free from the colonial mindset," he said.



Gulzar rued that poets too at times made the mistake of living in fragments by overlooking some of the incidents happening around them.



"I was saddened when Neil Armstrong died, for nobody in India wrote about him. To me, he was the symbol of humanity. I did write a poem. It is sad that we make a mistake of living in fragments, because we find it easy," he said.



He also said poetry was genuinely a statement of poets and they stood by it.

"I also wrote on Dr Kalburgi, who was shot dead in Dharwad, though we belonged to different geographical locations and wrote in different languages. I reacted to the incident and made my statement through poetry. Basically, poetry is nothing but a statement of a poet," he said
Jammu and Kashmir Police today said three people, alleged conspirators in the July 10 attack on Amarnath pilgrims, have been arrested by its Special Investigation Team (SIT).



The men provided logistical help to four Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) militants who carried out the attack that left eight people dead, IGP Munir Khan told the media here.



The men, who had allegedly helped the four terrorists by providing them with vehicles and shelter, were arrested recently and taken into remand for further questioning, the police said.



The police said the four LeT militants, led by Abu Ismail, a Pakistani national, had attempted an attack on Amarnath pilgrims on July 9, but were frustrated by heavy security arrangements.



Another militant in the group of four had been identified as Yawar, a local recruiter for the LeT, the police said. Efforts are on to identify the other two, believed to be Pakistanis.



The police also released pictures of Abu Ismail and Yawar.



The the three "co-conspirators"-- Bilal Ahmed Reshi, Aizaj Wagey and Zahoor Ahmed --had carried out reconnaissance exercises and chosen Botengo near Khanbal as the spot where the attack could be carried out, the police added.



The trio had also provided shelter to the four militants in Khudwani and Sriguffwara of South Kashmir, Khan said.



Bilal's elder brother Adil, an alleged Lashker-e-Taiba terrorist, was killed by security forces earlier this year.



The Jammu and Kashmir Police had constituted an SIT led by Deputy Inspector General (South Kashmir) Swayam Prakash Pani to probe the attack on the pilgrims.





Eight people were killed when the militants fired at a bus carrying the pilgrims, returning from their Amarnath yatra.
A 28-year-old Indian doctor has been arrested for allegedly groping a minor girl who was sitting next to him on a New Jersey-bound United Airlines flight, according to media reports.



The 16-year-old girl, who was travelling alone on July 23, was asleep on the flight, when a stranger's hand on her thigh awakened her, the Washington Post reported.



The man, identified as Vijakumar Krishnappa, sitting next to her quickly removed his hand, according to a federal court complaint, and the teenager went back to sleep. Then, she woke up again  and this time, the man was groping her, the complaint says.





She reported the incident to the airline crew and was allowed to move seats.



Once the flight from Seattle landed at Newark Liberty International Airport, the girl, from Washington state, called her parents. While she did, the accused left the airport, said Johnny McCray, an attorney for the girl's family.



The girl's family has filed a complaint against United Airlines for neglecting to detain Krishnappa after the alleged assault, the report said.



The FBI was called to handle the investigation. It used the flight manifest to track down Krishnappa, a doctor from India. The girl identified him from a photo array, ABC reported.



Krishnappa was charged in the federal court in Newark, a day after the incident, according to court records filed by the FBI charging him with criminal sexual contact.



Court records show he was arrested and charged with knowingly engaging in sexual contact with a minor female, the report said.



He has been released on bond, placed on electronic monitoring, and ordered to not have any contact with minors while the criminal case is pending, according to court records.



The doctor's court-appointed attorney, John Yauch, told the Post that his client "adamantly denies the charges and deserves to be considered an innocent man."



Krishnappa is studying medicine in the United States through a months-long fellowship that allows for doctors from foreign countries to learn from experts in the US, the daily said.



A spokesman from the Federal Aviation Administration told the daily that the airlines typically notify law enforcement about incidents before landing.



"The safety and security of our customers is our top priority. We take these allegations seriously and continue to work closely with the proper authorities as part of their review," a spokesperson for United Airlines said in a statement.
Asserting that President Donald Trump will no longer "tolerate" any support to militants, US National Security Adviser Gen H R McMaster today asked Pakistan to change its "paradoxical" policy of supporting selective terror groups.



US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad denies.



"The president has also made clear that he, that we need to see a change in in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," the National Security Advisor, McMaster, was quoted by MSNBC as saying.





"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups," he said, in response to a question on Afghanistan and terrorism in the region.



He said that Trump is making clear that the US will no longer "tolerate" any support for the Taliban or related groups.



"Of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but theyve done so really only selectively," he said.



Pakistans two neighbours -- both India and Afghanistan  have accused it of being selective in its war against terrorism.



McMaster said that Trump has lifted restrictions on US armed forces in Afghanistan.



He also defended Trump's strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country.



"The president has said that, "He does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat".



"He has lifted those restrictions, and you are beginning to see the payoff of that as well," the top US national security advisor said.
State irrigation department has banned the use of smart phones in the office and declared a fine Rs 500 to be charged from the employees in case they carry it.



The Udaipur office of the water resource department issued an order on August 4 in which it has made clear that use of smart phones has been banned to prevent employees from using social media sites and ensure smooth work. An order signed by the executive engineer of water resource department says, "The use of I phone, Android Phones and Windows phone is completely banned for all the employees of the office with effect from August 8, 2017".



The order has become the talk of the town after many employees circulated it on social media. The order also mentions about the quantum of punishment. It says, "Necessary steps will be taken against an employee if he is found carrying a smart phone in the office. Also, a fine of Rs 500 will be imposed on an employee in case he violates the order.



The order clearly mentions that as an attempt to keep a smooth working atmosphere in the office staff should use landline phones for disseminating information. According to the Executive engineer Hemant Kumar Pandiya the order is to manage work environment in the office. "I have realised that employees waste a lot of time and energy over smart phones. It has become a tool for socialising. Employees can use normal mobile phones for communication and can use smart phones after office hours. This will help to maintain a work culture in the office."



However, employees in the office have shown their resentment towards the circular, "Nowadays social media has become important. Smartphones are not only about chatting but lots of other works are connected with it. When our Prime Minister is so positive about and dreams of a digital India at the same time we are going one decade back by banning it for official use", an employee said.



Interestingly visitors will be also not allowed to carry a smart phone inside the office premises. "In case any visitor has a smart phone, he or she needs to deposit it outside the office. In case they are found using a smart phone they will be also fined Rs 500 which will be deposited in the treasury," order mentions.
The Madras High Court has come to the rescue of a mother who has been fighting for nearly 25 years to get compensation for the death of her son, a truck driver, in a road mishap.



Negating the objection of an insurance company, Justice N Seshasayee of the Madras High Court confirmed the compensation of Rs 3,47,000 with interest passed by the Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal (MACT).



Lokeswaran died on May 18, 1993 following a head-on collision with a bus. His mother first moved the competent authority (Commissioner) under the Workmen's Compensation Act for compensation, but lost the claim.



Since the autopsy report did not mention the victim's name, the bonafides of the claim was suspected and the matter was decided against the claimant by the Commissioner.





When she moved MACT, the insurance firm objected, saying the claimant should not move the motor accident tribunal and may only prefer an appeal under the WC Act.



MACT, however, held that the claimant would be entitled to compensation and awarded Rs 3.47 lakh with interest at 7.5 per cent to the woman.



The insurance firm appealed against it, contending that the claimant had already elected to move one of the forums seeking compensation. It is impermissible for her to make a claim twice over and hence the petition was not maintainable in law as per the doctrine of election, it contended.



The judge said that in respect of a tribunal under the WC Act, it implies a decision on quantification of a claim by computing the value of loss of life and in the present case it was not done.



"Sorry, we have kept you waiting this long to secure your right," he told the victim's mother.



The judge noted that the Workmen's Compensation Tribunal had not even felt it their duty to compute the value of loss of a life.



The judge further said the tribunal also had not analysed if the mother of the victim can be blamed for the fault of the doctor who did the autopsy and deny her compensation.



As regards the doctrine of election cited by the insurance firm to object to the claim of the victim's mother, the judge noted that it would operate only when the forum of first choice had conclusively quantified the compensation payable and it was not applicable to the present case.
After a fall in 2015, the crimes against women have witnessed a rise last year in the country with rape cases registering almost 11% increase.



According to provisional figures, the Ministry of Home Affairs has said that there were 3.51 lakh crimes reported against women in 2016 as against 3.31 lakh in the previous year.



Though the final figures for last year are yet to come, what may be a matter of concern for law enforcement agencies is the rise in numbers in 2016.



The year 2015 saw a dip from 3.40 lakh cases in 2014 and 3.37 lakh in 2013. Last year's figures have surpassed the that of the past three years.



One of the worrying signs would be the increase in cases of rapes, attempt to rapes and abductions.



Among the states, Uttar Pradesh reported the highest cases at 48,757 followed by West Bengal (34,205) and Maharashtra (31,308). Karnataka reported 14,250 crimes against women last year as against 13,993 in 2014 and 12,786 in 2015.



The figures the MHA placed in Parliament last week showed that there were 38,891 cases of rape reported last year compared to 34,651 in 2015, registering a rise of 10.90%. There were 36,735 rape cases in the country in 2014.



Similarly, the attempt to rape cases also rose from 4,234 in 2014 to 5,719 last year. Kidnapping and abduction of women rose by 12.74% to 64,618 compared to 2014's 57,311. In 2015, there were 59,277 cases.



Acid attacks also saw an increase from 134 reported in 2014 and 140 in 2015 to 167 last year.



The bulk of the cases relating to crime against women was registered under the head cruelty by husband or his relatives. Last year saw 1.10 lakh such cases, a decrease from 1.13 lakh cases in 2015 and 1.22 lakh in 2014.



Also, there was a slight decrease in dowry deaths -- from 8,455 in 2014 and 7,634 in 2015 to 7,623 in 2016. (Article Ends)







Crime Against Women



2014  3,40,826



2015  3,31,649



2016  3,51,948



Rape



2014  36,735



2015  34,651



2016  38,891



Kidnapping/Abduction



2014  57,311



2015  59,277



2016  64,618



SOURCE: Ministry of Home Affairs


Amid the ongoing 'braid cutting' scare, an incident of alleged ''beard cutting'' was reported from an Uttar Pradesh village giving a new twist to the mystery.



According to the police sources here, a man, who was a resident of Chichauli village in state's Rampur district, about 325 kilometres from here, alleged that someone cut his beard on Saturday night.



The police, however, attributed the claim to the prevailing psychological fear among the people and appealed to them not to believe in the rumours.



The scare led to the killing of a bird in state's Shahjahanpur district on Saturday, sources said. Reports said that some residents of Bagia locality in the town killed a bird, which looked like a bat, on suspicion that it had cut the braid of a woman in the area.



Police sources said that so far over fifty incidents of alleged 'braid cutting' had been reported from different parts of the state in the past few days. At least two women were allegedly assaulted and another was lynched to death by a mob in different parts of UP.



The authorities have directed the district officials to crack down on rumour mongers. Police were keeping a close watch on the social networking sites also to find out if they were being used to spread rumours.



An old woman, identified as Maan Devi, a resident of Mutnai village in Agra district, had allegedly been lynched by a mob at the village a few days back. The villagers alleged that the old dalit woman had cut the braids of some women. A case was registered in this connection and some people were also detained.
To honour the sacrifices and bravery of the Rajasthan Police and to bring a sense of safety among girls in the state, senior police officers visited Seth Anandilal Poddar school to get rakhis tie on their wrists.



This is for the second consecutive year when girls of this school meant for specially abled tied sacred Rakhi threads on the wrists of the police officials and distributed sweets among them. In return, the police officials showered their blessings and assured their little sisters of every help and protection throughout their life.



Around 110 girl students were elated when they found senior police officers of Jaipur police commissioner arrived at their school and participated in Rakshabandhan celebration with them. The ceremony kicked off when Ranu Kumari, a student of Class VI, tied the Rakhi to Jaipur Police commissioner Sanjay Agarwal. Following the trend other girls rakhis to other police officers including additional commissioner of police (Crime) Praful Kumar, deputy commissioner of police (headquarters) Gaurav Srivastav, deputy commissioner of police (East) Kunwar Rastradeep and other senior officers.



In return as a warm gesture, Police department organised a trip to amber for all the school children. They also distributed a special kind of card important numbers of the Jaipur police and its officials. According to the school principal, students were excited and waiting for their arrival. Shalu Jain, the 8th class student said, "We could recognise most of the faces of the cops. We were eagerly waiting for them to arrive on our campus. We not only feel happy by sharing a brother sister bond but at the same time we feel a sense of safety and we get realise someone is there to protect us."



Sanjay Agarwal, commissioner of police called it as an initiative to symbolizes bonds of mutual support and protection within families and societies. "This is the second consecutive year we visited the same school and got rakhis tied on our wrists. The idea is to deepen and the bond between these students and police fraternity.
An Afghan official says that at least 30 people including women and children have been killed by Taliban fighters in northern Sari Pul province.



Zahir Wahdat, the provincial governor for Sari Pul, said today that the victims are mostly civilians and some local security forces.



The shootings took place yesterday after the Taliban seized control of the strategic Mirzawalang area in Sayad district.



Wahdat says Afghan forces retreated form the area after they couldn't gain ground or air support from the central government.



Earlier reports indicated that over a dozen people had been killed by the Taliban.



Qari Yusouf Ahamdi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attack, but not the civilian deaths.



Ten Taliban fighters were also killed, according to Zabi Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor.




Taking a jibe at Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, albeit in a lighter vein, Nitish said the Union Minister had assured to give Rs 50 crore to strengthen subordinate judiciary which would be insufficient.



Bihar is a big State with 38 districts and 101 sub-divisions. When I took over as CM in November 2005, the Budget of the State was around Rs 25,000 crore, including the Plan and Non-plan expenditure. Today, Bihars Budget has increased to over Rs 1.4 lakh crore. So a dole of merely Rs 50 crore wont serve any purpose, Nitish told the gathering while looking at Ravi Shankar Prasad on the dais.



The Chief Minister was speaking at a function organised to launch Tele Law: Mainstreaming Legal Aid Through Common Service Centre Scheme here on Sunday.



Stating that large amount of fund was required to strengthen the judiciary, Nitish said his Government had already sanctioned Rs 169 crore for the expansion project of the Patna High Court. Now that a new Government has been established in Bihar with your (BJP) support, then it should reflect (your assistance) so. Hence I told you to be liberal in allocating funds to Bihar, reiterated Nitish while inaugurating the legal aid scheme.



As per the scheme, a common man can have access to legal aid services with the help of para-legal volunteers at the Common Service Centre (CSC). The CSC will be equipped with computer and internet facility.



The Supreme Court Judge Dipak Mishra, Chief Justice of Patna High Court Rajendra Menon, Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Sushil Kumar Modi and others were present on the occasion.



Nitishs jibe at Union Law Minister came soonafter Prasad said that he would increase the fund allocation from Rs 50 crore to Rs 60 crore provided a utility certificate was submitted on time.



More than a week after forming Government in the State with the help of BJP-led NDA, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday tried to extract his pound of flesh when he asked the Centre to be liberal in granting funds to Bihar.


While the incident occurred on Saturday the victim, a Class 10 student, died at a hospital in Madhura Nagar while undergoing treatment.



Police say that the victim, 15 year old Chinna a tenth standard student had a tiff with his junior over a week ago. A teacher intervened and tried to patch up the issue in the presence of their parents. However the junior have planned an attack on Saturday and picked a fight with Chinna near the school and thrashed him with the help of his elder brother and a friend.



Chinna who received grievous injuries to his head and vital organs collapsed on the spot. He died at a hospital in Madhuranagar on Sunday. Police arrested the boys and sent them to juvenile home.



Last year in July,in a similar incident asix year old boy died in Promising Scholars School in Tolichowki here four days after he was attacked by another boy just two years older than the victim. Parents took the boy to hospital only after they observed swelling on his private parts.





Three students beat up the senior at a school in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh resulting in his death on Sunday. According to Madhura Nagar police all the three eighth standard students are under police custody for allegedly killing their senior over a petty issue.
Poachers are killing Indias tigers in larger numbers than in previous years. According to the Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI), there were 50 poaching-related deaths in the country in 2016, the highest in 15 years. This is reason for concern. Trading in tiger parts is illegal as is the killing of tigers. Yet, it continues unabated. Poachers are reported to be using innovative methods to trap the big cats. Snares made of bicycle cable wires and live wires are being used to trap animals. Wildlife conservationists point out that since these traps do not discriminate one animal from another, they not only kill tigers but also other animals like deer on which the tigers prey. Hence, these snares deal multiple blows to wildlife. They trap tigers, shrink their prey base and also result in killing of other species. Importantly, the impact of a tiger being trapped by poachers goes beyond the loss of a single animal. The trapping and killing of a female tiger, for instance, often results in the death of her cubs too as cubs rarely survive in the wild without mothers protection.



Over a lakh tigers roamed Asias forests a century ago but their numbers dropped precipitously, prompting wildlife experts to declare it an endangered animal. Several countries, like India, which are tiger habitats, launched well-funded programmes to conserve this animal. The efforts paid off. Tiger numbers increased from 1,411 in 2006 to 3,891 in 2016. This is heartening but it is too early to celebrate as threats to tigers continue. Tiger habitats are shrinking and man-tiger conflicts are growing. And as the WPSI figures underscore, the threat from poachers persists.



Tiger parts are in demand as they are important ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine. The global trade in tigers is a lucrative one; it is said to be worth around $19 billion annually. Thus, there are powerful vested interests working to keep this business alive. Recently, authorities at the Corbett Tiger Reserve issued shoot-at-sight orders against poachers. While this is a stringent measure to deal with poachers, it is not always useful as the person who is shot or arrested is often a poor local tribal who helps carry the dead tiger, while those higher up in the chain, who orchestrate the operations, escape unscathed. The tiger trade is run by international criminal syndicates and these can be defeated only with inter-state cooperation. India, Nepal and Bhutan, which are major tiger habitats, need to work with China, the main market for tiger parts, to crack down on poaching. The police-poacher link needs to be broken. Preventing poaching is not easy but it is not impossible.


Prof R Venkat Rao, vice chancellor, NLSIU, became emotional when the audience plunged into silence when he paused for a while and said, We will now witness one of the most memorable chapters in the NLSIUs history.



He requested Tarang Jain, a 27-year-old woman from New Delhi, a cerebral palsy patient by birth, to come on to the stage and receive the degree from Chief Justice of India J S Khehar for successfully completing LLM (Business Laws). Tarang got a standing ovation when she slowly walked on to the stage, assisted by three of her friends.



Vice President of India M Hamid Ansari, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Governor Vajubhai Vala stood up and greeted Tarang for her determination to obtain a degree from NLSIU despite her health issues. Justice Khehar spoke to her for over five minutes on the stage and wished her the best.



Tarang is the youngest daughter of Dr J P Jain and Dr Alaka Jain. She moved to Bengaluru for pursuing LLM (Business Laws) after graduating in Law from Delhi University.



It was my dream to join.... I credit my success to my parents who ensured every kind of support, be it physical and emotional, Tarang told DH. She said she wants to enter judiciary and carve a niche for herself.



Dr J P Jain said his daughter had always been bold and, managed all her work by herself.

Arathya Sethia, who bagged two gold medals, said that the importance of law in society made him pursue a course at the varsity. He has been adjudged as the best outgoing student. He has won a scholarship for higher education at Yale Law School.







The PES University Auditorium, which was fully packed, witnessed some memorable and emotional moments on Sunday during the 25th convocation of National Law School of India University (NLSIU).


It declined to 23 in 2014. Women MPs constituted about 12.015% in 2014. Womens Reservation Bill of 2009 lapsed before the 2014 general polls, he stated.



Ansari expressed concern on decline in numbers of sittings of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. The decreased sittings have affected quality and productivity of the governments accountability. About 40% of bills were passed in less than one hour in the Lok Sabha, which is not a good sign, he said.



He stated that courts should fulfil their custodial responsibilities and assure that the Constitution and the law fairly apply to all in getting equality of status and opportunity.



He presented medals to toppers in various law programmes. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Governor Vajubhai R Vala and Chief Justice of India J S Khehar were present.







Vice President of India M Hamid Ansari on Sunday expressed concern over increasing hyper nationalism.Delivering the 25th National Law School of India University (NLSIU) convocation address, Vice President said that national ego was curbing the voice of dissent.India is a polity at war with itself as emotional integration among people has lost its strength. There is a need to end naxal insurgencies, distress in agriculture sector, issues of local language and excesses against weaker sections.Ansari said that democracy should not be judged by institutions in the system, but by the extent to which different voices from diverse sections were heard.Stratification, heterogeneity and hierarchy had not only created intersections in India, but also resulted in the exclusion of various sections in the democracy. The Parliament was increasingly becoming ineffective in eyeing on the governments works, he said.About 61% of MPs secured less than 50% votes in the 2014 general elections. Victory based on non-majority has affected the overall approach, pluralism and secularism. Muslims constitute 14.23 % of Indias population. The number of Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha members is 790, while the number of Muslim members was 49 in 1980, between 30 and 35 between 1999 and 2009.
The Centre has decentralised the mechanism to monitor the content of private FM and community radios, and take action against those violating the rules.

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) has authorised the state and the district-level monitoring committees to accept complaints against them and take action against any violation of the All India Radio broadcasting code by private radio stations.

Until now, they had permission to take up complaints against private satellite television channels only.



The decision was taken by the ministry recently in the wake of a Supreme Court advice.



The apex court, while hearing a matter earlier in January, has advised the Centre to formalise the existing complaint redressal mechanism for content monitoring of private satellite television channels and to finalise similar framework for private radio stations as well, a ministry official said.



Since the broadcast of the FM radio channels and community radio stations are in the nature of terrestrial transmission, monitoring of their content centrally was not feasible. The content aired by them is also local in nature. Hence it was decided to authorise the district and state level monitoring committees to look into the complaints against them, the official added. At least 19 states and five Union Territories have already set up monitoring committees in 327 districts. A district level committee is headed by the district magistrate or the senior-most police officer in-charge of the district.



The panel comprises principal of a womens college and an academician among others.

The I&B ministry has urged both the states and Union Territory administrations to set up committees wherever it has not been done so far to effectively monitor all types of contents including those aired by private radios.



These committees, set up by the respective state governments, can now take up any complaint against private radio channels and community radios in addition to those coming against satellite television channels,the official said.
Senior leader K S Eshwarappa staying away from the BJP state executive committee meeting in Bengaluru on Sunday was viewed with concern by party functionaries as the party is keen on putting up an united face in the run-up to the Assembly polls.



Eshwarappa has openly criticised the style of functioning of BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa, blaming him for taking unilateral decisions and denting the morale of party workers. However, there was a perception in the party that recent intervention by BJP national president Amit Shah had resulted in a patch-up between the duo.



Leaders attending the executive committee meeting felt that Eshwarappa should have attended the crucial meeting, cancelling any other prior commitments.



For his part, speaking to reporters in Shivamogga, Eshwarappa said his family conducts a pooja during the second week of Shravana month every year. I was attending the pooja. I have already informed all leaders about the reasons for my absence, he said.



BJP general secretary Shobha Karandlaje said several leaders could not make it to the meet due to prior engagements. The meeting was scheduled to be held during August end or September. We advanced it on short notice so that preparations for Amit Shahs three-day visit to the state from August 12 could be discussed at the executive meeting, she said.
The BJP on Sunday sounded the poll bugle at its state executive committee meeting in Bengaluru with party state president B S Yeddyurappa stating that BJP will strive to secure a thumping majority in the Assembly elections next year.



The Congress is hoping to win the Assembly polls on the basis of money. The next elections will be a fight between the ideology of the BJP and the money of the Congress, Yeddyurappa said at the meeting attended by around 600 party functionaries from across the state.



The former chief minister said the party will win a resounding majority in the Assembly polls as the people have rejected the policies of the ruling dispensation in the state. He said two internal surveys commissioned by the party had revealed that there was overwhelming support among the electorate for the BJP.



He said a large number of leaders from other parties will be joining the BJP three months ahead of the elections. Let us welcome them with open arms. Tickets have not been promised to anybody. It will be decided by (BJP national president) Amit Shah, he said. However, he did not reveal the names of the leaders joining the BJP.



BJP national general secretary in-charge of Karnataka P Muralidhar Rao said the partys Vistaarak (out reach) programme was a tremendous success in Karnataka. It is for the first time in Independent India that a mass contact programme on such a large scale was conducted by a political party, he said. More than 26,000 volunteers criss-crossed the state to reach out to the electorate. Rao charged the Congress government with looting and plundering the state.



The day witnessed the executive committee meeting pass two resolutions, one condemning the deteriorating law and order situation in the state and the other on the failures of the state government.



BJP state general secretary and MP Shobha Karandlaje told reporters that the state government had failed to provide relief to farmers reeling under severe drought.



Grants provided by the Centre had remained unutilised. The state government was creating hurdles to prevent schemes launched by the Centre reach the people, she charged.



She accused Chief Minister Siddaramaiah of trying to divide society for electoral gains by raising the issue of providing a separate religion tag for Veerashaiva-Lingayat dharma.
Amid the escalating tension on India-China border over the Doklam issue, the state BJP utilised its executive committee meeting on Sunday as a platform to give a call for boycott of Chinese goods and to go swadeshi.



Briefing reporters on the deliberations of the meeting in Bengaluru, BJP state general secretary and Lok Sabha member Shobha Karandlaje said the party was of the firm opinion that the security and interest of the nation cannot be compromised.



Our party cadre will create awareness among the people about the problems caused by China at the border and the need to boycott Chinese goods. They will also persuade traders not to sell made-in-China goods, she said.



Shobha said that even pooja items such as kumkum and camphor are being imported from China. The economy of China is largely dependent on Indian markets. The BJP state executive meeting felt that we should boycott their products to teach the neighbouring country a lesson, she said.



Shobha said the state executive meeting also felt that India should not hesitate to engage in a confrontation with China if the countrys security is threatened.


Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industries Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday called upon the party cadre to use social media platform to counter misinformation and negative campaign against the BJP ahead of the Assembly polls in Karnataka.



Inaugurating a day-long BJP Social Media Conclave in Bengaluru, Nirmala said detractors of the party are likely to step up negative campaign against the BJP in the run-up to the polls. Party functionaries can effectively use social media to counter them by giving correct information to the people, she said.



The BJP has already planned to use social media in a big way to reach out to the voters. It has taken up an initiative to create at least 5,000 WhatsApp groups. The plan is to create at least 25 WhatsApp groups in each of the 224 Assembly constituencies in the state. The groups will be segmented to cater to different sections of the citizens.



Nirmala, a Rajya Sabha member from the state, said social media volunteers should highlight local issues and problems in their posts. They should retweet the posts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party national president Amit Shah and other prominent leaders. She also called for involving more women in the partys social media initiative.





Highlight achievements



BJP national general secretary in-charge of Karnataka P Muralidhar Rao said volunteers should use social media platform to highlight the achievements of the Modi government.
Vice president-elect Venkaiah Naidu said on Sunday that he always held Karnataka in high regard.



He was addressing the gathering at a felicitation organised in his honour at the Palace Grounds. Naidu said, Our only aim is working towards the nations progress. For this, we need to discuss meaningful issues in the Rajya Sabha. I hope to gain everybodys trust and work effectively.



I have got more number of votes in the election, from Karnataka. Its not only from BJP, but I have received votes from people of other parties as well. This has increased my responsibility. This land has seen many a great leaders and it is a kind of rebirth for me, after being elected. I will always be grateful to this land, said Naidu. We need to create a forum in the Rajya Sabha to discuss new issues and create a movement. In my new role, it is my responsibility to talk less and see to it that others talk more. We need to uphold the Constitution, he said.



Former Chief Justice of India M N Venkatachalaiah, said, The next five years are going to be challenging for all developing countries. We need efficient leaders for a corruption-free country. It is indeed a pleasure that Naidu has been elected Vice President at this point in time.



Venkaiah Naidu is one of the finest leaders. He is going to enhance the prestige of the Rajya Sabha as its chairman, said Dr M R Doreswamy, chairman, PES.


The BJP top brass is upset with its Karnataka unit after it failed to launch an offensive against Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, who is facing an Income Tax probe.



Though the Congress leaders attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party national president Amit Shah over the use of the central agency, which they said was a move to instil fear among Gujarat MLAs camping in Bengaluru ahead of the August 8 Rajya Sabha polls, none of the Karnataka BJP leaders, barring two or three, utilised the I-T raids to take on Shivakumar and build a public perception that the state government was protecting the corrupt.



The party leadership suspects that black sheep among its Karnataka unit thwarted the opportunity to go full throttle against the latest instance of corruption involving a powerful minister in the Siddaramaiah government.



Shah, who will be visiting the state for three days from August 12, is likely to discuss a political strategy to expose instances of misgovernance and corruption against the Congress government in the run up to the Assembly polls likely to be held early next year.



At a time when the prime minister has taken a number of steps to check black money and curb corruption, the state leaders knee jerk reaction against the I-T raids surprised us, said a senior BJP leader. The leadership is not happy with the state units reluctance or lack of preparedness in fielding top leaders to defend the central governments action during television channel debates and, instead deputing small-time leaders, added the central leader.





Mere coincidence



Karnataka BJP leaders should have explained that it was mere coincidence that the I-T raids took place at a time when the Gujarat Congress MLAs were housed at a resort on the outskirts of Bengaluru.



The taxmen did not touch any MLAs but went to the resort only looking out for Shivakumar. This demonstrated that there was no malice behind the I-T action, a BJP source stated.



The central leaders have always found perplexing the state BJP units reluctance to highlight murky acts of the Siddaramaiah government. Despite the BJP being the principal Opposition party in the state, it is the Janata Dal (S) that has been at the forefront in taking on the Congress regime whether inside the House or outside, the BJP sources said.



Earlier, the BJP central leadership had pulled up the state unit for its failure to take to logical end the Arkavathy Layout land denotification issue. The state government had denotified certain portions of the land acquired for the mega housing project, citing a high court order.
BJP youth wing leader Jayesh Darji, who was arrested for throwing a stone at Congress vice president Rahul Gandhis car in the flood-hit Banaskantha district of Gujarat, was on Sunday sent to judicial custody by a magisterial court.



Dhanera Judicial Magistrate, First Class, V S Thakor, sent Darji to jail, rejecting the polices prayer for a four-day remand, additional public prosecutor Prakash Joshi said.



The judge also rejected the bail application of the accused, Joshi said.



The Gujarat Police have, meanwhile, launched a manhunt for three more persons involved in the attack.



Police had arrested Darji after some local Congress workers identified him as the one who threw a concrete brick at the vehicle.



Congress members also claimed that three more people were involved in the conspiracy to attack the Congress leaders vehicle.



They were identified as Bhagwandas Patel, Mor Singh Rao and Mukesh Thakkar.



The police said the three accused are absconding and that efforts to apprehend them are on. The police on Saturday had arrested Darji, an office-bearer of the BJPs youth wing in Banaskantha, after his name cropped up during the investigation, an official said.



Rahul, who was on a visit to the flood-affected Dhanera town in Banaskantha on Friday had escaped unhurt in the incident.



Later, he had to cut short his address to a gathering in the Lal Chowk area of Dhanera, after black flags were waved at him by some who had turned up at the gathering.



The state government said Rahul had not taken the bullet-proof vehicle provided to him and instead decided to travel in the car of one of his party-workers.



Darji and three others have been booked under IPC sections relating to voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from discharging his duty, causing hurt by an act endangering his life, and mischief causing damage to property.






She has personally made a rakhi for Modi. Widows living in Varanasi and Vrindavan will be presenting 1,500 specially made rakhis to Modi on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan.



The rakhis, carrying a colourful photograph of Modi, have been prepared by a group of old widows living at Meera Sahabhagini Ashram in Vrindavan, the town of Lord Krishna, about 400 km from here.



Vinita Verma, vice president of NGO Sulabh International, which has been taking care of the widows in Vrindavan and Varanasi, said her organisation was trying to get permission for a group of 10 widows to visit the prime ministers residence and tie him rakhi.





Nonagenarian Manu Ghosh, a widow, who has made Vrindavan her abode after being abandoned by her family, will travel to Delhi to tie Prime Minister Narendra Modi a rakhi, if the government permits.
By Rhianna Schmunk

30 July 2017

(CBC News)  Hundreds of people in B.C.s southern Cariboo region were under a wildfire evacuation order on Saturday night, but not everyone chose to leave town  something fire officials called concerning.The village of Clinton, which has a population of about 650, was told to evacuate due to the nearby Elephant Hill wildfire. Residents had been under an evacuation alert for weeks.Linda LePage has asthma and left her home early, while her husband stayed behind with the property.

The sky was all red. It was pretty scary, she said of her drive out of town. I couldnt breathe at all, I had to get out  I only had one headlight, so I drove to Barriere [188 kilometres away] and then I pulled over.

Im really stressed, LePage told CBC News after finally arriving in Kamloops. She said she was worried about another property she and her husband own in Horse Lake, not far from where another wildfire is raging. A heat wave is in the forecast for the southern part of the province this week, with temperatures expected to hit 40 degrees Celsius in the Interior  without any rain. [more]
3 August 2017 (CIRES)  On the North Slope of Alaska, snow is melting earlier in the spring and the snow-in date is happening later in the fall, according to a new study by CIRES and NOAA researchers. Atmospheric dynamics and sea ice conditions are behind this lengthening of the snow-free season, the scientists found, and the consequences are far reachingincluding birds laying eggs sooner and iced-over rivers flowing earlier.The timing of snowmelt and length of the snow-free season significantly impacts weather, the permafrost, and wildlifein short, the Arctic terrestrial system as a whole, said Christopher Cox, a scientist with CIRES at the University of Colorado Boulder and NOAAs Physical Sciences Division in Boulder, Colorado. The study has been accepted for publication in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society.Focusing on the transition seasons on the North Slopethe springtime snowmelt and the autumn onset of snowpackthe researchers found that since the mid-1970s, the spring melt has been happening earlier, and the first snow has been happening later. The end result: an increase in length of the snow-free season, by about one week per decade from 1975 to 2016. From 1975 to 2016, the spring snowmelt has arrived nearly three days earlier every decade, and from 1979-2016, snow onset has arrived later, by about 4.5 days every decade.CIRES and NOAA researchers and their colleagues analyzed long-term observations of snow cover and meteorology at the NOAA Barrow Atmospheric Baseline Observatory outside of Utqiagvik (formerly Barrow), Alaska, along with other records of environmental variables in the region.Despite natural swings up and down, a persistent, long-term warming trend emerged: eight of the 10 earliest melt dates have occurred since 1990, pointing to the influence of warming Arctic temperatures. 2016 experienced the earliest melt, the latest onset of snow in autumn, and the longest snow-free season in 115 years of record-keepingabout 45 percent longer than the average over the previous four decades.The researchers then began dissecting their data to find weather-related factors that might be contributing to these observed changes. They found different factors at work in spring versus fall. Changes in flow patterns of warm Pacific Ocean air from the south were driving earlier spring snowmelt, while decreasing summer sea ice had the greatest influence on later onset of snowpack in the fall.The researchers found that large-scale features of atmospheric circulationin particular, the strength and position of the Aleutian Low, a semi-permanent, subpolar area of low pressure located in the Gulf of Alaska near the Aleutian Islandslargely determined the timing of snowmelt during spring in Alaska, by either facilitating or inhibiting the transport of warm, moist air into the region.Conversely, in autumn, the amount of open water in the Beaufort and eastern Chukchi Seas appeared to be very influential in affecting the temperature at Utqiagvik and the subsequent timing of the onset of snowpack. The extent of open water in the region during autumn has increased significantly in the past several decades, a signal other studies have linked to Arctic amplification.The rapid expansion of the North Slopes snow-free season has had consequences for water resources, wildlife behavior, the plant growing season and more, the research team reported in the new paper. For example, on Cooper Island near Utqiagvik, where a colony of black guillemots has been monitored since 1975, researchers found that the timing of the seabirds egg laying correlates with Utqiagviks snowmelt, so earlier melt means earlier egg laying. The timing of snowmelt also influenced the timing of peak discharge from the North Slope river system and the start of the vegetative growing season, according to the researchers.Its remarkable how rapidly things are changing in the Arctic and how the longer snow-free season affects so many other patternsthe guillemots, vegetation growth, and fluxes of gases from the tundra, said Diane Stanitski, co-author of the paper and a scientist at the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory in Boulder, Colorado.This springs snowmelt date at Utqiagvik was late, on June 18, said lead author Cox. This late melt didnt make it into the paper, because analyses were done by then, but the atmospheric conditions that led to the later melt were consistent with the findings in the paper. Such variability underscores the need for continued monitoring of snow cover, Cox said. Long-term datasets from the region help scientists understand the reasons behind long-term changes and predict what the region will face in the future. This study takes an integrated approach that addresses the need to advance Arctic environmental research at the system level, a challenge that has been recognized by the broad scientific community as necessary to improve predictions of future change, said Cox.
By Ephrat Livni

1 August 2017

(Quartz)  The American Civil Liberties Union isnt exactly known for its sense of humor. But on 1 August 2017, the defenders of free speech filed a jocular amicus brief in perhaps the most comical case of 2017, a year thats proving pretty amusing for US courts.Still, the organization warns its serious about whats at stake in The Marshall County Coal Company v. John Oliver. In June, a group of coal companies filed a defamation claim in a West Virginia court after unflattering coverage of the industry on an episode of HBOs weekly show Last Week Tonight With John Oliver.The June 18 episode covered coal and the industrys promises to workers. The comedian called coal basically cocaine for Thomas the Tank Engine and began by laughing at US president Donald Trumps pledges that his policies would lead to otherwise under- or unemployed coal miners working their asses off during his administration. Oliver soon moved on to mocking industry insiders, like Bob Murray, the CEO of Murray Energy Corporation. The comedian said hed have to tread carefully with Murray, as the mining barons company had already sent him a cease and desist letter.
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A man was pronounced dead at the scene after being hit by a freight train in Exeter today.

The incident happened at a railway foot crossing near Clapperbrook Bridge, behind Exeter's Energy From Waste facility at Marsh Barton Trading Estate.

A spokesperson for British Transport Police, who were called to the scene at 8.30am, said a freight train from Dawlish was involved and the man died at the scene despite the arrival of paramedics.

Devon and Cornwall Police also attended the incident, receiving a call at 8.43am with reports of a man "under a train." They assisted South West Ambulance Service in locating the incident.

The incident happened near to site where the delayed 7.4m Marsh Barton railway station is set to be built.

Trains were halted because of the incident, with delays between Exeter St David's and Newton Abbot of up to 60 minutes continued until lunchtime.

Early police reports located the incident near Newton Abbot, however police soon updated their information.

British Transport Police said they were not treating the death as suspicious and a file will be prepared for the coroner.
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In his words of welcome and his homily Archbishop Eamon Martin said the title of bishop is not one of honour, but one of humble service. Archbishop Martin was speaking a short time ago at the Episcopal Ordination Mass of Bishop Alan McGuckian SJ at the Cathedral of Saints Eunan and Columba in Letterkenny.

Archbishop Martin, in a reference to the new Bishop of Raphoe's well documented connections with the Donegal Gaeltacht said he would encourage more parishes, not just those in the Gaeltacht, to introduce regular Sunday worship in our native language.

I know your affection for Donegal and its people has already been nurtured by your many visits to Rann na Feirste.

As we look forward to the launch later this year of the new Irish translation of the missal - a project in which Bishop Boyce was intimately involved - your familiarity with, and respect for the Irish language will be invaluable. I would be very pleased if more parishes, not just those in the Gaeltacht, could introduce regular Sunday worship in our native language, he said,

In a reference to the fact Bishop McGuckian is the first ever Jesuit appointed in Ireland, he said his familiarity with the thinking and spirituality of Saint Ignatius will help you live out, as a bishop, Pope Francis' call to discernment and for accompaniment of the real life situations of your people.

He said as bishops it is always important for us to learn new ways of presenting our sincerely held perspectives alongside the opinions of those of other faiths and none, and to encourage conversations at a national level on significant issues and values.

President Michael D Higgins's recent 'Ethics Initiative has identified the need for a debate in contemporary Ireland about what ethical values and principles we want to uphold and strengthen. We need to have conversations about what constitutes a 'good life' and flourishing life not just for individuals but also for communities.

The engagement of people of faith together with all people of good will in such conversations is to be encouraged and welcomed. In entering such a process we in the Catholic Church can draw upon our rich tradition of social teaching.

Addressing him directly he said: Father Alan, at this life-changing moment for you, and in these challenging, but exciting times to serve as a bishop, I encourage you to be always attentive to the voice of the Lord who is with us to the end of time. Listen to Him.

By discerning in prayer the signs of these times, find new ways to proclaim the Joy of His Gospel.

You have already shown, in your ministry with young people as a teacher and university chaplain, and through your creative gifts of communication, that you can engage with the challenges and questions of today, and do so with confidence, conviction and with humility.

He added: I encourage you to find strength in the witness of Saint Columba and Saint Eunan, from the love and protection of Mary, our Blessed Mother, and from your daily celebration and adoration of Christ's real presence in the Eucharist.

If you find yourself isolated and under pressure, listen to him! Listen for the voice of God's Beloved Son speaking in your heart and pray, as tradition tells us Saint Columba did: "Alone with none but thee, my God, I journey on my way, what need I fear when thou art near O King of night and day! More safe am I within thy hand than if a host did round me stand".

The Archbishop's welcome and homily in full is as follows:

Friends, we gather to celebrate and give thanks that God has brought us to this happy day for Father Alan, Bishop Philip and the people, priests and religious of this diocese. I welcome all of you who have come here from across the diocese of Raphoe; Father Alan's family members, brother Jesuits and close friends. I especially welcome Commandant Louise Cullen, Aide de Camp of President Higgins, Cardinal Brady, my brother bishops and the many priests who will join in concelebrating this Mass. We are grateful for the presence of so many representatives from other Churches and civic society.

Saint Eunan tells us that not long before he died, Saint Columba was meditating on Psalm 34. He stopped at verse 10 which reads: The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

Conscious of the great blessings that God has given all of us in bringing us to this special day, and aware of God's boundless mercy towards all those who seek Him, let us acknowledge our sins and so prepare ourselves to celebrate these sacred mysteries.



Archbishop Martins Homily:



My brothers and sisters, after listening to the Apostolic Letter our instinctive response is: Thanks be to God! Thanks be to God for calling a new shepherd to lead His flock here in the diocese of Raphoe. Thanks be to God for Father Alan's generosity in accepting this new challenge and for Bishop Philip's devoted service as shepherd over many years. Thanks be to God for the faith that has brought all of us to this special moment.



As Saint Peter said on the mountain of the Transfiguration: "It is wonderful for us to be here!" It is wonderful for us to be present at an occasion that only seldom comes around in the lifetime of any diocese - the consecration of a new bishop. Today's ceremony links us back to the time of Saint Peter and the apostles when they were filled with the Holy Spirit and sent out by the Lord Jesus to make disciples of all the nations. Since then, from generation to generation, Our Lord's 'great commission' has been passed down by the laying on of hands in an unbroken line of succession. Today's souvenir booklet records a timeline of the bishops of Raphoe since the days of Saint Eunan himself. Recently I stood and prayed for Father Alan at the graves of three previous bishops of this diocese who went on to become Archbishops of Armagh, (three in a row, from 1870!): Daniel McGettigan from Mevagh, Michael Logue from Carrigart, and Patrick O'Donnell from Glenties.



It is humbling for me, Eamon Columba, a native of Doire Cholmcille, and in the name of Saint Patrick of Armagh, to continue the line of Episcopal succession in Raphoe by joining with my brother bishops in the laying on of hands and prayer of consecration.



It is indeed wonderful for us to be here! When Saint Peter spoke those words on Mount Tabor, he did not realise the significance of what was happening at the Lord's Transfiguration. With his companions James and John, he fell down, overcome with fear at the slightest glimpse of the Lord's divinity. Later they came to understand that Jesus was preparing them that days for His suffering, death and Resurrection - just as He was when He later brought the same three disciples to another mountain - this time to witness his agony on the Mount of Olives. These events, at Tabor and Gethsemane, etched in their memory the mystery of our faith, that the agony of the Cross and the glory of the Resurrection fit together in God's plan for our salvation.



Dear brothers and sisters in the diocese of Raphoe, it is this same mystery of faith that Father Alan is called upon by God to teach among you - that by His Cross and Resurrection Christ has redeemed the world. Bishop Alan will be entrusted with the task of witnessing to the truth of the Gospel and fostering in you a spirit of justice and holiness. I encourage you to receive him as a minister of Christ and a steward of the mysteries of God.



My dear brother Alan, as Ireland prepares to host the World Meeting of the Families this time next year, I am grateful to your family, your late parents, Brian and Pauline, and to the various families of faith which have helped to nurture and sustain your vocation - your extended family; your brothers in the Society of Jesus; the people, religious and priests of the diocese of Down and Connor. Together this family of families has helped you grow in the knowledge and love of God. I trust you will continue to be uplifted, protected and supported - as I have - by the prayers of your people and all those who love you.



Remember that you are chosen by the Lord to serve. The title of bishop is not one of honour, but one of humble service. Today we reflect on the words of our Heavenly Father at the moment of the Transfiguration - words which echoed His message at our Lord's baptism: "This is my Son, the Beloved - Listen to him".



Father Alan, at this life-changing moment for you, and in these challenging, but exciting times to serve as a bishop, I encourage you to be always attentive to the voice of the Lord who is with us to the end of time. Listen to Him. By discerning in prayer the signs of these times, find new ways to proclaim the Joy of His Gospel. You have already shown, in your ministry with young people as a teacher and university chaplain, and through your creative gifts of communication, that you can engage with the challenges and questions of today, and do so with confidence, conviction and with humility.



No doubt your familiarity with the thinking and spirituality of Saint Ignatius will help you live out, as a bishop, Pope Francis' call to discernment and for accompaniment of the real life situations of your people. As the Holy Father himself puts it: "With the Merciful Heart of Jesus, the Church must draw near and guide the weakest of her members who are experiencing a wounded or lost love, by restoring confidence and hope, just as the beacon light of a port... illuminates those who have lost their way or find themselves in the midst of a storm".



Father Alan, as bishops we are called upon to love the poor and infirm, strangers and the homeless. Love all those whom God will place in your care, especially the priests and all who share with you the ministry of Christ. I am confident that you will encourage the lay faithful, religious and priests of the diocese to work closely with you. Your significant contribution to the 'Living Church' project in Down and Connor diocese has clearly demonstrated that you can listen willingly and bring out the best in others.



A Ailein, a Bhrathair, Ta fhios agam go maith an cion ata agat do Dhun na nGall agus a mhuintir, cothaithe ar ndoighe tri do chuairteanna iomadula ar Rann na Feirste. Taimid ag suil go mor i mbliana le seoladh an Leabhar Aifrinn Ghaeilge. Bhi lamh ag an Easpag O Buaigh sa tionscnamh sin. Cuideoidh do eolas agus do urraim don Ghaeilge go mor leis an sceim a chur chun cinn . Chuirfeadh se athas mor orm da dtiocfadh le nios mo paroisti bheith pairteach sa sceim, ni amhain paroisti sa Ghaeltacht, ach paroisti eile bheith reidh adhradh an Domhnaigh a chleachtadh go rialta inar dteanga dhuchais.



(I know your affection for Donegal and its people has already been nurtured by your many visits to Rann na Feirste. As we look forward to the launch later this year of the new Irish translation of the missal - a project in which Bishop Boyce was intimately involved - your familiarity with, and respect for the Irish language will be invaluable. I would be very pleased if more parishes, not just those in the Gaeltacht, could introduce regular Sunday worship in our native language).



My brother Alan, continue to proclaim the Good News of Christ whether it is welcome or unwelcome; do not be afraid to correct error with unfailing patience and sound teaching. Remember we seek to present in public discourse a coherent ethic of life encompassing our precious teaching about the sacredness of all human life and the dignity of the person, about the centrality of the family, about solidarity and the need for a fair distribution of goods in the world.



We stand for universal truths and values that are drawn from our personal encounter with the joy of God's love, together with an understanding of the human person that is rooted in the natural law and which strives for the common good. Ultimately everything we say is founded on the Gospel of Jesus Christ, our Risen Lord.



As bishops it is always important for us to learn new ways of presenting our sincerely held perspectives alongside the opinions of those of other faiths and none, and to encourage conversations at a national level on significant issues and values. President Michael D Higgins's recent 'Ethics Initiative has identified the need for a debate in contemporary Ireland about what ethical values and principles we want to uphold and strengthen. We need to have conversations about what constitutes a 'good life' and flourishing life not just for individuals but also for communities.



The engagement of people of faith together with all people of good will in such conversations is to be encouraged and welcomed. In entering such a process we in the Catholic Church can draw upon our rich tradition of social teaching.



Finally, my brother Alan, I encourage you to find strength in the witness of Saint Columba and Saint Eunan, from the love and protection of Mary, our Blessed Mother, and from your daily celebration and adoration of Christ's real presence in the Eucharist.



If you find yourself isolated and under pressure, listen to him! Listen for the voice of God's Beloved Son speaking in your heart and pray, as tradition tells us Saint Columba did: "Alone with none but thee, my God, I journey on my way, what need I fear when thou art near O King of night and day! More safe am I within thy hand than if a host did round me stand".



A Choilm agus a Adhamhnain guighigi ar ar son (Saint Columba, Saint Eunan, pray for us). Amen.
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David Oltmans argued well in his Aug. 2 letter to the editor's last paragraph: when climate activists say immediate climate action is necessary, but their lifestyles dont reflect the crisis they describe, it screams hypocrisy. I attended a climate conference (went by train). I was horrified when other conferees discussed sending kids to summer programs in Ecuador, and vacationing in Vietnam. I was angered: how can they advocate for responsible governmental action if they dont act responsibly about personal choices?

I appreciate journalists who cover climate news, and decide to stop flying. I respect activists who fly when its the only way to advocate effectively, but wont fly for personal reasons. I try to forgive activists who fly regardless.

Unlike Oltmans, I appreciate the Paris accord. Im sorry the discrepancies between what some activists say and do, distorts Oltmans analysis of the accord.

But the main problem with his essay is: most people in America (even most people in Houston County) think climate change will harm our children and future generations. Most people want America to regulate emissions, support renewables, and require utilities obtain 20 percent of electricity from renewables. Yale Climate Communications provides color-coded online maps, indicating by county and state, what Americans think about these topics.

Most Americans trust climate scientists. Climate scientists advise acting now to improve the situation facing our grandkids.

Most Americans understand that one individuals climate actions are insignificant. Without concerted state and national action, people feel helpless. Although I dont fly, eat meat, or own a car, I recognize that I'm nuts to curtail myself without concerted effort by everyone.

Readers should please support climate organizations that seek climate legislation, feel more hopeful, and be able to tell grandkids what you did about climate change when you realized it would be harmful to future generations.

Rabbi Judy Weiss

Brookline, Massachusetts
#World University Games Chuncheong named host of 2027 World University Games The South Korean central region of Chungcheong was named the host of the 2027 Summer World University Games on Saturday, bringing the biennial event to the country for the fourth t...

#football Injured star Son Heung-min named to S. Korean World Cup squad The injured South Korean football star Son Heung-min was named to the country's World Cup squad Saturday, as the football-crazed nation waits with bated breath to see if the belove...
The death occurred following a long illness on Friday May 12th of Margaret Fearon (nee McElroy) of Proleek, Mountpleasant, Dundalk, surrounded with the love of her devoted family.

Margaret was born in 1946 in Ballinagh, County Cavan to parents Frank and Katie McElroy (nee McCague). Following the death of her beloved father in 1951, the family returned to her parents birthplace of County Monaghan. Margaret developed a special affinity for the county and considered it her spiritual home, visiting it regularly.

After her mothers re-marriage to Bernard (Benny) McLoughlin in 1953, Margaret and her two siblings came to join the family at 31, Church Street Dundalk. On completion of her education at Saint Vincents Secondary School, Margaret successfully assisted with the management of the family business of the restaurant, B&B and gift shop until its closure in 1972.

She met her future husband Tommy in The Fairways Hotel on its opening night in 1967. They married on June 1st 1970 and settled first in Ard Easmuinn. They then built a home in Proleek, Mountpleasant, to which they moved in 1975 and where Margaret resided until her death.

They raised a family of three there  Angela, Cathal and Alice. Margaret was a devoted and supportive full-time mother to her children, always looking out for their welfare and providing counsel, guidance and reassurance throughout. She was equally supportive of her four grandchildren as they arrived, adored their company and played an important role in their upbringing.

She had a myriad of friends, some of them dating back to her early school years. Always sociable, she loved being out and about meeting old and making new friends. Family and friends were always made to feel welcome in her home where she loved to entertain.

The family enjoyed holidays in Ireland when the children were small and in later years she and Tommy ventured further afield to more exotic destinations with some of their lifelong friends.

Margarets talents were many; she was an avid reader of newspapers and could debate with the best of them on any subject. She had a remarkable memory and could recount stories and names, dates and times with precision. She loved the theatre and in particular The Abbey Theatre in Dublin. She was accomplished at needlework, both knitting and lacework and was a champion Irish dancer in her youth. Her strong faith, with Padre Pio being a particular favourite, led her to serve as a Eucharistic Minister for many years in Saint Marys Church, Ravensdale.

As Margarets illness progressed her family were fortunate to be able to care for her in the comfort of her home, due in part to her wonderful team of carers, especially Briege and Nicola. They developed a special rapport and were added to her circle of friends.

Margaret is survived by her beloved husband, Tommy, her much loved children, Angela (Magennis), Cathal and Alice (Hoey), her cherished grandchildren , Niamh and Donal Magennis and Ronan and Ellie Hoey and loving sisters and brother, Angela (Dundalk), Renee Kenny (Maidstone, UK) and Frank (Georgia, USA), her sons-in-law, Ciaran Magennis and Gerard Hoey, extended family and a large circle of friends. She was predeceased by her parents, Frank and Katie.

After reposing at her home, Margarets remains were taken to Saint Josephs Redemptorist Church for Requiem Mass which was celebrated before a large congregation by Father Patrick Rushe.

Before Mass gifts symbolising Margarets life were brought to the altar by her daughter, Alice, her niece, Stephanie Kenny and her sister-in-law, Mary Heeney. The Readings were read by her sons-in-law, Ciaran and Gerard. The Prayers of the Faithful were led by her grandchildren, Niamh, Donal, Ronan and Ellie.

The Offertory Gifts were brought to the altar by her sisters, Angela and Renee. Many of her favourite hymns and pieces of music were performed by soloist David Martin, organist Trevor Clarke and accompanied by Margarets cousin Mary McCague on the violin. She was laid to rest afterwards in St. Patricks Cemetery.

Margaret will be eternally loved and missed by her surviving family and friends.
The Internet Association, which represents 40 of the United States leading technology companies  including Facebook, Google, Amazon and others  on Monday filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission, urging it to maintain Net neutrality regulations enacted during the Obama administration.

The rules have created a level playing field that has helped fuel innovation in the broadband Internet space, according to IA, and any attempt to unravel them could have a disruptive impact on the industry.

Good for the Economy?

The 2015 Net neutrality rules not only were upheld in a 2016 court decision, but also have helped spur investment in the tech sector, notes the filing, submitted by Internet Association President Michael Beckerman and General Counsel Abigail Slater. The rules also helped accelerate a critical new cloud computing economy that would be hurt if they should be overturned.

Clear rules of the road have given edge-based apps and services the certainty needed to attract investment and growth without being concerned about ISPs acting as gatekeepers, states the IA document, and the growth of these services has driven demand for faster and better broadband access, which has led to continued ISP investment and broadband subscriptions.

The 2015 rules, which prevent ISPs from blocking, throttling speeds or biasing Web traffic, have come under intense scrutiny since new FCC Chairman Ajit Pai outlined plans in an April speech to roll back the regulations as part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to loosen government control over various business entities.

Investment has increased since the Net neutrality rules were enacted  including a 5.3 percent, or US$7.3 billion, increase in telecom investment by publicly traded companies, along with a 56 percent, or $89.9 billion, increase in cable investment since 2009, the Internet Association reported.

Implementation Is Key

Major technology companies and advocacy organizations have made a concerted effort to prevent the FCC from unraveling Net neutrality rules, a move that they argue could tip the delicate balance of fair competition and plunge a stable investment climate into chaos and uncertainty.

Depending on how the Net neutrality policies are implemented, they can impact the cost and performance of cloud services, noted managing director at ThinkStrategies.

They could give the advantage to cloud service providers that can package and price their offerings to best match the price needs and expectations of their target markets, he told the E-Commerce Times.

This could have huge implications for companies providing services over the Internet, especially if they compete with the carrier/service provider in any way, noted Jim McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias Research.

It may also allow the carrier/service provider to hold companies hostage for higher fees in exchange for higher bandwidth, he told the E-Commerce Times.

Arcane and Overreaching?

Verizon also submitted comments to the FCC Monday afternoon. The company called for changes to the Title II provisions of the 2015 Net neutrality regulations, which essentially designate broadband Internet to as a public utility for regulatory purposes.

That arcane price and service scheme  written for 19th Century railroad and early 20th Century telephone monopolies  doesnt fit todays fast paced and competitive Internet, Verizons filing states.

The regulations invite regulatory overreach, the company argues, citing attempts to investigate free data programs and further providing a framework for price regulation.

The American Cable Association also filed comments Monday, asking the FCC to remove the Title II regulations, which it says places an undue burden on small ISPs.

One such provider is Sjobergs  a cable and Internet service provider in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, serving 6,800 customers.

Its borrowing costs increased by 1 percent after the regulations were enacted, Sjoberg said, due to concerns about the financial feasibility of network investments. Sjoberg suspended the deployment of a Netflix caching device to lower transport costs, amid fears of being in violation of the regs. It also suspended data caps.

However, the backlash against the FCC likely will result in some form of compromise legislation, suggested Christopher Mitchell, director of community broadband networks at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, which advocates for more competition in rural areas.

I think the FCC and Pai will continue muddling around with repealing [Net neutrality] but not finish it, he told the E-Commerce Times, because of the outrage from the public and many businesses that fear giving AT&T and Comcast still more power over the economy.
In a stunning twist, U.S. authorities this week arrested a British cyber-researcher credited with stopping the spread of the WannaCry ransomware virus on charges he helped develop and deploy the Kronos banking trojan that attacked financial institutions around the world in 2014.

Following a two-year investigation, a federal grand jury in Wisconsin last month handed down a six-count indictment against Marcus Hutchins, a resident and citizen of the UK who operated under the name Malwaretech, according to U.S. Attorney Gregory Haansted, who oversees the Eastern District of Wisconsin.

Hutchins was arrested Wednesday at the McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, where he had been attending the Def Con hacking conference. The charges include one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud and abuse, three counts of distributing and advertising an electronic communication interception device, one count of endeavoring to intercept electronic communications, and one count of attempting to access a computer without authorization.

Origin Story

Hutchins created the Kronos malware, prosecutors have alleged.

A video showing the functionality of the Kronos banking trojan was posted to a publicly available website in July 2014, according to a copy of a sealed indictment the U.S. District Court posted July 12.

A defendant, whose name is blacked out, used the video to show how Kronos worked, the indictment says. A defendant, again with the name blacked out, offered to sell the Kronos banking trojan for US$3,000.

Defendants whose names were blacked out updated the Kronos malware early 2015, according to the indictment. In April of that year, a defendant with a name blacked out allegedly advertised the malware on the AlphaBay market forum.

In June 2015, a version of the Kronos malware was sold on the forum for $2,000 in digital currency. In July 2015, a defendant with the name blacked out offered cryptying services for Kronos  that is, computer code used to shield the malware from antivirus software, the indictment states.

Kronos was an ongoing threat; in late 2016, the Kelihos botnet was observed trying to load Kronos using an email phishing campaign. A Russian national, Peter Yuryevich Levashov, 36, was arrested in Barcelona this April on U.S. federal charges related to his alleged operation of Kelihos.

The Justice Department last month announced that AlphaBay, which is considered the largest criminal marketplace on the dark Web, was shut down following an international investigation. Alpha Bay had been used to sell everything from fentanyl and heroin to weapons, chemicals, stolen identification documents and hacking tools.

Authorities last month arrested Alexandre Cazes, a Canadian national living in Thailand, on charges he helped create and administer the site, but he reportedly took his own life while in Thai custody.

Arrest Fallout

Hutchins this spring was hailed as an international hero after he located the kill switch to end the WannaCry ransomware attack that had locked up thousands of computers across the globe.

However, his arrest does not appear to be directly related to WannaCry, said Mark Nunnikhoven, vice president of cloud security at Trend Micro.

The current case is particularly interesting because the charges indicate the arrest is based on the creation of Kronos, not its use, he said.

Basically, its saying that the only possible use of the software was malicious, Nunnikhoven told the E-Commerce Times.

Additional activity has been detected related to the WannaCry ransomware attack, specifically that the bitcoin wallet used in the attack had been emptied, noted James Pleger, managing director of global threat intelligence at Kudelski Security.

This came as a bit of a surprise, considering that many criminals try to cash out as quickly as possible, he told the E-Commerce Times.

The delay may have been related to the scrutiny investigators placed on the attack early on, Pleger said  and on a more ominous note, added that it may indicate that the same hackers could be ready for a new attack using different methods.

A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney in Wisconsin was not immediately available for comment. The FBI referred all questions on the case to the DoJ.
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President Donald Trump has made another visit to the old continent where he met with the same European leaders he met six weeks ago. American President has returned to Europe to attend a G20 summit in Hamburg  a meeting convened by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in her hometown, which has also become the setting for Donald Trumps first in-person meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

European leaders also hope that the American leader will offer assurances that he will hold Vladimir Putin accountable for various grievances including Crimea and provocative cyber activity. During President Trumps time in the northern German city, he will also meet with the leaders of eight other countries including Chinas President Xi Jinping.

Hamburg has thus likely become a stage for a number of confrontations over a broad set of issues where American and European leaders have previously disagreed, such as climate, migration and trade. On climate, Chancellor Merkel has convened a separate session and invited two of the worlds leading carbon emitters, China and India, both of whom say they will remain committed to the Paris agreement. The objective is to keep Donald Trump isolated on the climate issue, hoping that he will eventually align with the rest of the word.

The big question is whether he will repair some of the damage from the stops in Europe in May, or will they be compounded? commented Jeff Rathke, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. Before the Hamburg summit, President Trump made a stopover visit to Poland on Wednesday (5 July) where he showcased his commitment to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) while receiving a warm welcome by the countrys conservative government and pro-American population.
With the uncertainty of the hard fork behind it, bitcoin prices have again resumed their rally. On the other hand, the newly formed currency, bitcoin cash, is also gaining wider acceptance.

CBOE will commence offering bitcoin futures and options

John Deters chief strategy officer of CBOE parent CBOE Holdings told CNBC that cryptocurrencies are here to stay. Therefore, CBOE, in partnership with Gemini will integrate bitcoin futures and options, which will make it easier for the institutional and retail investors to benefit from trading cryptocurrencies.

Geminis key concerns in the cryptocurrency ecosystem have always been security, compliance, and regulatory oversight. By working with the team at CBOE, we are helping to make bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies increasingly accessible to both retail and institutional investors, said Tyler Winklevoss, the CEO of Gemini, reports newsbtc.

Elsewhere, the newly formed currency, bitcoin cash is also gaining wider acceptance.

Coinbase to support bitcoin cash

After initially deciding not to support bitcoin cash, the popular exchange did a U turn and has said that it will allow bitcoin cash withdrawals from January 1, 2018.

We are planning to have support for bitcoin cash by January 1, 2018, assuming no additional risks emerge during that time. Once supported, customers will be able to withdraw bitcoin cash, the exchange announced through its blog.

This announcement brings some relief to the customers of Coinbase who owned bitcoin on the day of the fork. They now have equal quantity of bitcoin cash in their portfolio.

Some doubt the longevity bitcoin cash

Bitcoin cash has been a bonus for the owners of bitcoin who kept their faith in the cryptocurrency and held it through the fork.

The new currency has been volatile since its birth on August 1. On August 2, bitcoin cash skyrocketed to $727 but gave up most of its gains within a few hours to settle at $310. Still, it is the fourth largest currency by market capitalization, behind its parent bitcoin, Ethereum, and ripple.

Nevertheless, a few experts are skeptical of the long-term potential of bitcoin cash.

"Over the longer term, Bcash's prospects are limited due to the relatively small size of the community maintaining its blockchain, developing its software and using the cryptocurrency," Aurelien Menant, founder and CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Gatecoin, told CNBC.
There is nothing like compulsory

If you don't have it, it's not the end of th world

You have to provide some other credible evidence instead



It's recommended that you provide it as it's a reliable 3rd party evidence



2nd company can you get a statement from your employer on their letterhead that you and all other employees were paid in cash as per company policy ? [Yes]



By any chance would you be depositing a part of the salary in the bank on regular basis after getting the same in cash ? [I was not depositing]



Was tax deducted from your salary in the company ?[Not sure, I will check with them]



Did you file income tax returns during that period ? [No]



Do you have Physically signed payslips for the period ? [Yes, We basically used to sign 2 slips, one for our record and one comapnys record]



These are some of the alternative evidence which come to mind

See how many you can get .



Cheers
Hi all, we are moving to larnaca in October and are weighing up the options of shipping our car or buying one when we arrive. As we are a large family we will need a people carrier type car with at least 6 seats. Can you get these in Cyprus? I've struggled to find any advertised!
If this is the scenario I am picturing: a young girl in her 20s with two children born out of wedlock, then the answer is yes, it is complicated.



She's probably too old to be sponsored by you for residency purposes. And you certainly wouldn't be able to sponsor the grandchildren, nor could she as she wouldn't have sponsorship.



The only realistic way to gain valid residency would be to set up your own company, even in paper only, and the company sponsors your daughter as an employee, and she in turn sponsors the children. But this is an expensive undertaking and not guaranteed to work in the case of a single mother with out of wedlock children.



Last but not least, packages on offer won't extend school fees to grandchildren. Schooling is extremely expensive in Dubai.



However, as your daughter and grandkids have UK passports, than can simply do monthly visa runs by popping across the border to Oman to stamp the passport, and then back into the country for another 30 days. If the grandkids are not of school or nursery age this could be a solution for a year or two. But be careful about health insurance as you won't be able to get local health insurance without a residency visa and would need to rely on private health insurance from the UK. And once the grandkids reach nursery age, they still won't be able to enrol in any nursery or school in Dubai without a residency visa.
My wife (Canadian) and I (EU citizen) will head to the EU/Schengen tomorrow (and from there on to France in about 3 weeks). I need to decide what financial or other documents to take with me.



We'll definitely take:



-marriage and birth certificates

-my employment letter from Canada

-proof of health insurance



My question is: for the Carte de Sejour application, what financial documents should I bring? Last 3 bank statements? Roughly how much money will we need proof for, given that we'll stay for 10 months? Is it acceptable to print online bank statements once I am in France (and leave paper originals here)?



I do have a bank account in France, but not too much is in it.



Related to this, my current employment letter does not state my salary. Will I need one that includes it?



Finally, somewhere I saw something mentioned of proof that my wife and I are living together, like lease or proof of joint bank account. Is this necessary? This could be difficult, since only my name is on our lease and we only recently started having a joint account.



Any help would be appreciated! Especially within the next 12 hours...
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RAYWOOD  Ray Stoesser rumbled around his fields in an SUV, noting the minute gradations of the land, which is subtly terraced to allow water to flow downhill, irrigating the fields in slow succession.

Were going uphill, believe it or not, Stoesser said.

After more than a half-century of farming, he knows what each field needs and when, harvest after harvest.

Just like taking care of your backyard, he said.

If Stoessers land hasnt changed, the economic conditions have.

Rice prices have declined for several years, averaging about 10 cents a pound last year, because of competition from huge rice producers such as Vietnam and Thailand as well as increases in agricultural productivity that have boosted supplies.

Over the past few decades, hundreds of rice farmers in Southeast Texas have given up the crop entirely.

But in mid-July, the Texas rice industry  which is worth about $100 million per year to farmers  was granted a reprieve: a deal to allow U.S. rice sales to China.

The industry estimates that China soon could buy 250,000 tons of U.S. rice per year, out of the 9 million tons it produces, which could boost prices significantly.

Although trade between the two countries had been liberalized when China entered the World Trade Organization in 2001, trade in rice remained off the table.

An agreement to allow exports has been in the making for nearly a decade, with talks launched by George W. Bush, continued under Barack Obama and ultimately concluded under Donald Trump.

The deal sets complex safety standards to prevent pests from entering China with rice imported from America, which, if met, opens a market of more than 1 billion rice eaters to U.S. farmers.

The agreement comes at a critical time as the Trump administration prepares to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement, potentially threatening agricultural exports to the rice industrys biggest customer, Mexico.

For the Stoesser farm, selling to China could mean a slightly bigger financial cushion in a business that can see a years income decimated by floods or drought or both.

If we could get to 16 cents instead of 10 cents a pound, it would take a lot of risk out, Stoesser said. Trade is the answer to our problems.

Family business

The past few decades have left the Stoessers feeling isolated.

The flat, humid counties east of Houston used to be full of rice fields  in 1968, 70 square miles of Liberty County were planted with the crop. Growing up in the area, Rays son, Neal, always saw the rice business as his future, and he didnt finish college.

I went to the University of Rice Farming, I guess, he said.

The Stoessers have owned land since Neals great-grandfather came to the area from Germany in the late 1800s, and Neal has been driving a combine since he was old enough to climb up into the cab, as his 8- and 4-year-old sons do now.

Over that time, the Stoesser farm has grown to cover several thousand acres as the family bought out surrounding farms.

The rest of Texas rice industry, however, has shrunk to 187,000 acres from more than 600,000 in the 1950s. In Liberty County, the 70 square miles of rice fields now is 8.

I hate to say it, but when I was in high school, there were 70 farmers, Neal said.

Now there are just three in Liberty County  Neal, his father and his brother, Grant.

Several reasons are behind the decline, including the encroachment of suburban housing developments, which raised land prices to the point where it made more sense to sell than keep farming. Today, Texas accounts for about 6 percent of U.S. rice production, far behind the leader, Arkansas, which accounts for about half.

But Texas rice farmers have a few things working in their favor. New seed varieties allowed them to nearly double the yield per acre, with the assistance of experts from Texas A&Ms field offices.

Also, federal crop subsidy programs have kept them afloat through thin years, paying out $1.8 billion to Texas rice farmers between 1995 and 2014, according to a database maintained by the Environmental Working Group, an advocacy organization that opposes farm subsidies.

Meanwhile, the rice industry has tried to expand its market by boosting Americans rice consumption. Stoesser runs the Texas Rice Council, which collects payments from the states rice farmers for joint marketing efforts, such as one that produced a bumper sticker on his Yukon SUV. Eat Rice, it reads. Potatoes make your butt big.

In one regard, theyve made progress. Americans now eat 26 pounds of rice per year on average, which is nearly triple their consumption in the 1970s. But that increase is driven largely by immigrant communities that favor jasmine and basmati varieties, mostly imported from Thailand, India and Pakistan, over American medium and long grain rice.

Ice to Eskimos

Back in 2005, Greg Yielding took a trip to China.

Voter Guide: What to know for the midterm election Your guide to the Texas and San Antonio races and candidates on the Nov. 8 ballot.

Nothing terribly official for the executive director of the Arkansas Rice Growers Association  just a few visits with people like the U.S. Department of Agricultures representative in China and the office of COFCO, Chinas state-owned food importer.

At that point, the prospect of selling rice to China seemed like a hopeless quest  The ultimate example of selling ice to the Eskimos, as one California official put it.

But Yielding heard differently. Chinese supermarket executives, he said, thought they could market American rice as a high-end, safer alternative to their own crops, which had suffered waves of contamination.

On successive visits, funded by grants from the USDA, Yielding engaged a market research company to have young women hand out samples of U.S. rice at luxury supermarkets in big cities.

I couldnt tell you that there was something better about it, but they tried it, they liked the taste of it, they liked the cooking quality, said Yielding, who soon started working for the U.S. Rice Producers Association. I just kept making contacts and finding out that the Chinese wanted to buy U.S. rice.

And at the time, China was about to undergo a much larger shift.

For decades, in the name of national security, China had maintained a goal of producing 95 percent of its grain domestically. About 2012, rocked by food safety scandals, China backed off that target, allowing it to slip to 85 percent. The U.S. went from exporting about $100 million in grain and feed in 2007 to a peak of $4.9 billion in 2015.

That 10 percent is big for agricultural exporters, said Luis Ribera, an agricultural trade expert at Texas A&M.

Rice, however, still was barred entirely, since the two countries hadnt agreed on a common food safety protocol. So, a few years ago, the USDA started facilitating trips by Chinese scientists to visit U.S. farms and rice mills. Ray Stoesser helped shepherd them around in Arkansas.

The Chinese were optimistic about what they saw, he said, extolling the quality and sanitation of U.S. facilities.

The Rice Producers Association, of which Stoesser is a member, wasnt the only group working for market access  the U.S.A. Rice Federation, a coalition of farmers and millers, was sponsoring exchanges as well.

Rice mills remove the tough husk from rice grains to make it edible. The millers were particularly keen on the Chinese market, since all the rice going there would be milled in the U.S., in contrast to the largely unmilled rough rice that goes to Mexico and South America.

Two years ago, USA Rices executive director, Betsy Ward, said she thought U.S. negotiators had a deal with China. But they never could get it signed by the Chinese, which Ward thinks may have had to do with the Obama administration having other trade priorities  such as the massive Trans Pacific Partnership, which pointedly didnt include China.

After Trumps agriculture secretary, Sonny Perdue, took office, Ward said her group met with him four times about getting the rice agreement done. Only a few weeks after Perdue visited China to celebrate a deal allowing exports of beef, the rice deal finally was signed.
Why was Artemisia Bowden, longtime administrator of St. Philips College, interred at the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Corpus Christi instead of somewhere in San Antonio?

 The Rt. Rev. David M. Reed, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas

This is a timely question, since Aug. 18 is the date when the Episcopal Church celebrates Bowden and her ministry as an educator at a historically black college. Since 2015, the national church has included her  the first person from the Diocese of West Texas  on the calendar that commemorates people cited in its liturgical publication, Holy Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints.

A prayer for that day gives thanks for gifts of perseverance, teaching and wisdom made manifest in (Bowden)  called far from home for the sake of educating the daughters and granddaughters of former slaves in Texas. The institution to which she devoted most of her life started in 1898 as a class for a few African-American girls held at St. Philips Episcopal Church. This was a historically black congregation founded in 1895 by the Rt. Rev. James S. Johnston, first bishop of the independent Diocese of West Texas, who is thus sometimes considered the founder of St. Philips College (covered here Feb. 23, 2014), although the title also is applied to Bowden.

She and the school grew up together. According to U.S. Census records, she was born in Georgia; various documents give the year as 1879, 1882 and 1883. It has been said that both her parents had been enslaved so she probably didnt have a birth certificate. Bowden had taught two years in Fayetteville, North Carolina, before being called in 1902  barely out of her teens  by Johnston to teach and serve as principal of the fledgling school.

The day school then occupied one small building, says the San Antonio Express, Sept. 19, 1954, on the occasion of her retirement. Its manual training branch consisted of a sewing class. But from the outset, Miss Bowden laid equal stress on academic and moral training. Supported by the Episcopal Diocese and local business people, Bowdens School, as it was informally known, grew in enrollment and ambition, evolving into St. Philips Normal and Industrial School for Girls and from 1926, St. Philips College, the citys first junior college for African-American students, moving from the East Side church to La Villita and finally to its present location.

During her long career, Bowden made a name for the school by putting its mission and accomplishments in front of all kinds of audiences. She spent summers in the 1910s on fundraising tours, speaking to African-American audiences in cities such as Baltimore, Philadelphia and Alton, Illinois. The rest of the time, she made shorter trips to cities within the Diocese of West Texas but concentrated most of her efforts in San Antonio.

In the Depression years of the 1930s, It was Miss Bowdens personal determination and persistence that kept the doors open, Clarence W. Norris, a former St. Philips dean, wrote in the San Antonio Light, Aug. 26, 1969. At the same time, she was lobbying to turn the private college over to the San Antonio public school board. The transfer was made in 1942, ensuring the schools continued survival.

As dean and president of St. Philips, Bowden was a public figure in a way few women and even fewer people of color were at that time. She spoke to womens groups, church groups and civic organizations. She chaired the Negro Hospital Committee and the Volunteer Health League, served on the board of the Bexar County Tuberculosis Association and the community organization committee of the San Antonio Council of Churches. She also was a fundraiser for (her) own race for the womens division of the Red Cross.

Toward her later years at St. Philips, she collected awards from diverse groups such as the Council of Pan American Relations, the National Council of Negro Women, the National Urban League and the Business and Professional Womens Club. For her work as a youth leader, she was awarded an honorary doctorate from Tillotson College (now Huston-Tillotson University) in Austin, another historically black institution.

Bowden never married. She lived at or near the school she led during her 67 years in San Antonio. She was a longtime member of St. Philips Church, and her funeral was held Aug. 22, 1969, four days after her death at 85 (as her age was ascribed at that time), in St. Marks Episcopal Church, the traditional cathedral of the diocese. Her surviving family, according to her Express obituary, Aug. 22, 1969, consisted of a brother, Rev. J.C. Bowden, of Montrose, N.Y., and two sisters, Mrs. Frances Coleman of New York City and Mrs. Minnie Cesar of Baltimore.

Yet her remains repose in a place with which she had no obvious connection. Her ashes are interred at Good Shepherd Church, Corpus Christi, in our Memorial Chapel, Niche No. 14, says parish secretary Susan Linnane. Our records indicate that her brother, Rev. H.J.C. Bowden, purchased the niche for her cremains on Nov. 15, 1969 and had the ashes interred.

Why Corpus? Good Shepherd doesnt know. Neither does the school she served for decades. Though St. Philips College has the largest archives in the Alamo Colleges District, to which it now belongs, a search turned up no documents that lead to additional information on Ms. Bowdens funerary arrangements, says spokesman John Dendy. A few years ago, our archives team contacted the staff at Porter Loring for more information. The funeral services provider found a file, says Dendy, but there was nothing in (it) other than her name, date of death and funeral date.

Bowdens home parish, St. Philips Church, doesnt have a columbarium (space for storage of funerary urns) or cemetery, says Elizabeth Applin, administrative assistant; and St. Marks didnt have a columbarium until the 1980s, says the Rev. Carol Morehead, associate rector. Maybe Bowdens family looked for a safe, respectful space for her remains and couldnt find exactly what they wanted in San Antonio. Or maybe the family had some largely unknown connection with the coastal city. Anyone who knows the answer may contact this column; replies will be shared and may be published in a future column.

historycolumn@yahoo.com

Twitter: @sahistorycolumn

Facebook: SanAntoniohistorycolumn
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Danny Fonseca knows what its like to have no place to call home.

Because of his criminal record, Fonseca, 64, has been unable to find anyone willing to rent him an affordable, clean place to live in San Antonio since January. He was last released from jail in 2013, completed his parole and received notice he can register to vote. But he has no apartment or home of his own.

Its sad and depressing. ... You cant do nothing about it, he said. You wish things were different. You wish the policies were different.

Fonsecas dilemma is a common one for former offenders who have finished their time in prison and are trying to return to a normal life.

And that dilemma presents a potential legal land mine for housing providers since black and Hispanic men are arrested and incarcerated at higher rates than white men, research has shown.

Sweeping policies banning all prospective tenants with criminal records could ultimately result in discrimination and violate the Fair Housing Act, according to notices issued by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as work published earlier this year by several University of Texas at San Antonio researchers.

If you have a blanket ban, say, on all felonies, then youre actually harming black men and also Hispanic men disproportionately because of that, said Rebecca Walter, a UTSA assistant professor of urban and regional planning. Shes one of three researchers at the university who recently published an article in the journal Housing Policy Debate examining the issue.

HUDs Office of General Counsel warned housing providers across the country last year of this potential for discrimination.

While having a criminal record is not a protected characteristic under the Fair Housing Act, criminal history-based restrictions on housing opportunities violate the Act if, without justification, their burden falls more often on renters or other housing market participants of one race or national origin over another, said the notice issued by HUD in April 2016.

The federal housing agency hasnt issued any updates or bulletins on the topic since then, but that alert to housing providers last year prompted many public housing authorities to start re-evaluating their admission policies for people with criminal records.

The San Antonio Housing Authority is still reviewing its policy, a spokeswoman there confirmed.

HUDs alert followed a 2015 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that housing providers could be held liable if their policies violate the Fair Housing Act  even if there is no intent to discriminate. That federal law protects people from discrimination when they try to rent or buy a place to live.

Almost all landlords conduct criminal background checks when evaluating whether to rent property to prospective tenants, Walter said. But Texas law does not require such a check for rental housing, she and her colleagues found.

And theres not much literature or research to show that a criminal record  or lack of one  predicts what kind of tenant someone will be, she said.

Its amazing that criminal records are used across the board. But they dont necessarily predict if a tenants going to be a successful tenant or not, Walter said.

HUD has urged housing providers to move away from sweeping bans denying admission to people with any convictions, encouraging they instead consider the circumstances  how long ago those convictions occurred, the nature and the severity of those offenses and what the offender has done since getting into trouble.

The federal agency also pushed housing providers to consider convictions rather than arrests when evaluating a prospective tenants criminal history.

The article published earlier this year by Walter and two other UTSA researchers, assistant professor Jill Viglione and associate professor Marie Skubak Tillyer, attempts to provide guidance to public housing authorities trying to update their admission policies. Viglione has since left to work at another university.

Past research has shown that a former offender who has not committed a crime in seven years has the same odds of getting into trouble as someone with no criminal history, the authors reported.

The likelihood of reoffending diminishes over time, Walter said. And after seven years, their likelihood (of getting in trouble) is just as much as somebody who has never committed a crime before.

Applicants who have convictions within the last seven years should not automatically be denied admission, Walter and her colleagues noted. More factors should be considered, they suggested. Housing providers might consider whether those convicted of drug- and alcohol-related offenses have completed substance abuse treatment programs, they said. Training programs or letters of support from a supervising probation or parole officer might also be taken into account.

Public housing authorities might also consider who will be living with the convicted offender and if granting admission could strengthen that persons family relationships, they said.

The availability of safe, affordable housing that keeps families together can minimize the risk of recidivism, the UTSA researchers noted in the article.

Previous federal laws in the 1980s and 1990s required public housing authorities to enact stricter admission and eviction policies. That stance relaxed somewhat in the past decade with President George W. Bush signing the Second Chance Act in 2008, a law aimed at helping former prisoners returning to society, and with the funding of numerous re-entry programs, the UTSA researchers reported.

Most people dont realize that public housing authorities today have flexibility to design their own admission policies, Walter said. They actually have a lot more leeway than most people realize, she said.

Federal law imposes lifetime bans on only two types of offenders at federally subsidized housing properties  those convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine in federally assisted housing and sex offenders required to register for the rest of their lives.

Neither of those lifetime bans apply to Fonseca, the San Antonio man unable to find a place to live. He also has no record of violent crime, but his past haunts him nonetheless.

Fonseca said he has been to prison four times. In 1991, he received his harshest punishment, 23 years in prison for delivery of heroin, records show. He was released on mandatory supervision in 2004, a Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman said. Fonseca said his last arrest happened in 2012 when a misdemeanor shoplifting case was enhanced to felony theft because of his prior convictions. For that, he served seven months in jail.

He also has a history of older theft and burglary convictions dating back to the 1970s, records show.

Fonseca said he previously rented a room from a landlord who knew about his criminal history. But he had to move out in January after the landlord decided to sell the house.

After one of his rental applications was denied during his search for a new place, Fonseca said he started telling landlords upfront about his criminal history so he wouldnt waste money submitting more applications that might be rejected.

He also visited several addresses on a list of housing options provided by the Bexar County Re-entry Program, which assists former offenders returning to the local area after incarceration, but said he became discouraged when he found those places to be unlivable, unsanitary and unreasonably overpriced.

The county program noted it does not have any control over landlords, how much rent they charge or the conditions of the places those landlords rent, but said it can remove a property from its resources list if presented with evidence of adverse living conditions.

We are advocates for our clients and want them to have good housing, Bexar County Re-entry Program Manager Debra Jordan said in an email to the San Antonio Express-News.

Fonseca has family members here in San Antonio, but said he doesnt want to burden them by asking if he can live with them. He also wants the freedom of his own place.

After vacating his prior address because of the landlords plans to sell, Fonseca and a friend lived in a car for months. That ended when a hit-and-run driver crashed into the vehicle, he said. He and his friend are now staying temporarily with one of her family members.

Ive been having this problem off and on for a long time, Fonseca said. Once I move from a place, I know Im going to have a hard time finding another place.

I want to get back into the mainstream of society. I want to be productive. But how can you do that when  theyre stopping you from making any progress?

Finding housing is the biggest challenge that former offenders face once they are released from prison or jail, said Suzi Malone, a re-entry specialist at the countys re-entry program. Its more difficult than finding a job or obtaining transportation, she said.

And often, even when they find a place willing to accept them as tenants, there can be a waiting period for a vacancy. It can be anywhere from a couple of days up to several years, Malone said.

pohare@express-news.net
AUSTIN  If you proclaim yourself fiercely, undeniably, passionately pro-life, does that mean you have a moral responsibility to help the most vulnerable children who are counting on help from the state to obtain crucial services and even to stay alive?

Well find out the answer that Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and a host of anti-abortion advocates in the Senate have for that question as the special session drives to its close.

The House gave its answer loud and clear when it voted to reverse cuts made in the Medicaid therapy program.

The vote was unanimous, from Democrats who believe strongly in the right of women to choose abortion  and in the need to open the states wallet a bit wider for key services  to the most conservative anti-abortion, fiscally frugal Republicans.

House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, made restoration of the funds a top priority in the regular session that ended May 29, but the Senate only would agree to adding a portion of the money. Straus is trying again in the special session.

Abbott, however, hasn't put the issue on the special session agenda, which he controls. The bill can be stopped on a point of order unless Abbott adds it.

This bill is not germane to the governor's call. Once the House and the Senate pass the other 20 items on the governor's agenda, he'll be happy to consider adding other items to the call, Abbott spokesman John Wittman reiterated Saturday.

Unfortunately for the children, the prospect of a clean sweep looks less likely every day.

The bill in question  House Bill 25 by Rep. Sarah Davis, R-West University Place  addresses funding cuts that were made after a state report indicated that rates were too high. She said its now clear the report was wrong.

A number of children with profound disabilities havent been able to receive services they need under the program, which is supported by state and federal funds. They include fragile children who were sustained a double blow because their health services were moved to a managed care model. That has made it difficult for some to get life-sustaining medications or supplies that their parents need to care for them at home.

The House unanimously approved HB25 after adding an amendment by one of its joint authors, Rep. Matt Krause, R-Fort Worth, to prevent the money from being taken directly out of the state rainy day fund. It has become an article of conservative faith that money from that savings account only should be used for one-time expenses.

Pushing to get the strongest possible vote for the bill, Krause instead proposed transferring about $70 million from disaster funds overseen by Abbott. The disaster money also comes from the rainy day fund, but lawmakers already have approved it for the budget that begins Sept. 1, so its not a new expenditure from the savings account.

Krause, a member of the tea-party-aligned Texas Freedom Caucus, was slammed by another tea-party entity, Empower Texans, over the initial proposal for rainy-day spending.

Cary Cheshire, Empower Texans Capitol bureau chief, wrote that the move would open Pandoras Box and encourage more spending.

Krause said days before offering his amendment that he doesnt mind criticism, and that he had reflected upon it. Ive been one of the ones who  has said hey, President Trump, we need to praise him when its warranted. We need to ... criticize him when its warranted, he said. Id be hypocritical if I did that to the president, then got upset when people did it to me.

Most important to Krause is helping the children.

It could be irreparable harm to some of these kids if they have to wait another 18 months for us to revisit this, said Krause, who recounted a meeting that some of the affected families had in his House district office.

They came in, these sweet little kids and their parents and their caretakers, he said. I really started understanding for the first time  what these funding cuts were going to do to them. As a father of five, I think you just envision your kid in that position, and you think we need to help these kids out.

Hannah Mehta of Flower Mound said Krause has been a huge champion for children with disabilities like her son, Aiden. She is working to try to convince the Senate to take up the issue.

But its unlikely that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who presides over the Senate, would allow the bill to move forward without Abbotts OK. The two are aligned against Straus on several contentious issues.

I dont even think its about the issue at its core. What its about is a political power struggle thats taking place at the top levels of our state government. Our kids have become pawns ... in this game, Mehta said. That is heartbreaking, because we are talking about childrens lives  literally life and death.

Abbott, who has put anti-abortion measures on the agenda of the special session, touts Texas as leading the way in protecting innocent life. But Mehta said, That kind of statement, you have to back that up. ... That innocent life doesnt just end once the babys born.
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Im one of two members of Congress out of 535 that takes no corporate cash, no political action committee money.

 Beto O'Rourke on March 31, 2017 in a U.S. Senate campaign kickoff event in Dallas

U.S. Rep. Beto ORourke, the punk rocker turned Democratic politician from El Paso, vowed to go against politics as usual in Washington while spreading the word about his quest to challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in the 2018 elections.

ORourke, addressing Dallas supporters at a March 2017 campaign kickoff event, provided some detail as to what that means to him. Toward the end of his remarks, he asked for personal campaign donations, adding to cheers and applause: Im one of two members of Congress out of 535 that takes no corporate cash, no political action committee money. I dont want you worried that when Im taking a vote, making a decision, writing a bill, looking at an amendment, that Im listening to anyone but you, the people that I want to serve and that I want to represent.

Nobody seeking federal office can legally accept direct corporate or union donations, the Federal Election Commission notes.

Yet political action committees  open to anyones contributions or founded and run by individuals working for corporations or affiliated with labor unions, membership organizations or trade associations  routinely fuel campaigns. In the 2016 elections, PACs gave $472.7 million to congressional candidates, according to the campaign finance tracking website OpenSecrets.org run by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. According to the site, PAC donations accounted for 35 percent of campaign funds for House Democrats, 39 percent for House Republicans, 15 percent for Senate Democrats and 27 percent for Senate Republicans.

ORourke amends

We inquired into the basis of ORourkes claim to near-uniqueness for not taking PAC money.

By email, ORourke replied that hed revise what he says going forward. What I should have said," ORourke said, "is that there are only two members of Congress who do not take PAC money and who also do not have a leadership PAC (which gives PAC contributions to other members), myself and Ro Khanna, a California Democrat.

In a March 2017 press release, Khanna said he and ORourke had introduced legislation barring members of Congress and aspirants from accepting PAC donations. That release grouped Khanna and ORourke among six House members who didnt accept PAC donations in the run-up to the 2016 elections. That count was based, the release said, on a December 2016 breakdown of candidate finance filings posted by Colorado-based CleanSlateNow, which focuses on changing how campaigns are funded.

ORourkes reply to us included a different count attributed to information on the OpenSecrets site. ORourke wrote: There are four members of Congress (based on the Open Secrets website) who did not take PAC money in the last cycle (either to their Congressional campaign or to their leadership PAC if they had one)  myself, Ro Khanna, John Sarbanes and Francis Rooney. Both Sarbanes and Rooney have PACs themselves that make PAC contributions to other candidates.

Reviewing web posts and records

Information on the OpenSecrets site indicates that into May 2017, Cruz had raised more than $1.9 million from PACs with the contributions accounting for 2 percent of more than $117 million hed raised starting from his 2012 election to the Senate.

The comparable entry for ORourke doesnt show a zero for his PAC donations. It indicates instead $297,969 in PAC contributions to ORourke campaigns, amounting to 5 percent of ORourkes $6.3 million in contributions since 2011, the year before his initial election to the House.

We asked ORourkes campaign about the tallied PAC contributions.

A senior adviser, David Wysong, said by phone that ORourke accepted such donations through his first couple of House elections but stopped doing so before seeking his third term in 2016. By email, Wysong provided a document he described as a February 2015 form letter from ORourke to possible PAC contributors after which, Wysong said, ORourke accepted no PAC donations.

From ORourkes letter: Starting with this election cycle, I plan to no longer accept PAC contributions. Ive made this decision in an effort to focus more of my campaign efforts on bringing new, smaller and local donors into the campaign. Wysong also emailed an example of ORourke turning back such such aid  an October 2016 letter from ORourkes campaign manager, Brianna Carmen, returning a donation from the Treasury Employees PAC.

Wysong noted, too, that according to an FEC summary page about ORourkes Senate finance report filed in July 2017, the candidate raised more than $2 million from April through June 2017, none of that from PACs.

Banana peels

With help from the centers research director, Sarah Bryner, we confirmed from the OpenSecrets site and FEC filings that ORourke did not bank any PAC contributions as he sought re-election in 2016 or in the first months of his Senate bid.

But this proved a slog to confirm because PAC names repeatedly appear in ORourkes contribution reports. His July 2017 filing with the FEC separately shows $14,580 in contributions from other candidate committees.

How unique?

Our first focus was on gauging the accuracy of ORourkes claim to being one of two members not accepting PAC aid.

After identifying each current senator and House member on the U.S. Congress website, we checked the OpenSecrets site for PAC contributions to each member; the site provides a summary page for each member showing her or his contributions by cycle and over the years. Candidate contributions are further broken down by categories including individual contributions, PAC contributions and self-financing.

From OpenSecrets posts, we identified five House members who did not get PAC contributions before the 2016 elections: ORourke; Khanna; Sarbanes, D-Md.; Jared Polis, D-Colo; Rooney, R-Fla--with Polis, Khanna and Rooney also fielding no PAC aid in their House careers.

A conflict we didnt settle: CleanSlateNow previously identified Rep. Phil Roe, R-Tenn., as not getting PAC help in his 2016 re-election bid. In contrast, OpenSecrets summary page for Roe indicates he got $6,000 in PAC donations before that election.

Next, we eyeballed FEC-posted information, focusing on campaign filings by House members principal campaign committees for 2015-16.

These records confirmed Khanna did not get PAC contributions that cycle. Otherwise, the records showed, Rooney received a $10,296 PAC contribution from Rooney Victory on Dec. 30, 2016; Sarbanes received donations from the VoteSANE PAC; and Polis logged contributions attributed to JStreetPAC, AmeriPAC and ActBlue. Similarly, our FEC search suggested that ORourkes campaign in 2015-16 received $110,721 attributed to PACs (including ActBlue, JStreetPAC and the New Democrat Coalition PAC). Of this total, $74,400 in contributions were designated for the 2018 Democratic primary.

So, candidates including O'Rourke took PAC aid?

Not so, we found, in that the donations were almost uniformly made by individuals whose personal contribution were routed through supportive conduit PACs  a phrase we hadnt heard before. It looked to us like the donation to Rooney came from a committee devoted to his candidacy.

On the FEC site, the respective 2016 donations marked as PAC to Sarbanes, ORourke and Polis were each accompanied by a column describing the donations as a conduit total, with a note stating the donation was earmarked through this organization.

We sought more information about ActBlue, the largest aggregator of individual contributions among the PACs linked to ORourke. The group says on its web site that it offers tools to help Democratic candidates but its not a traditional PAC that rounds up donations and obscures specific donors. ActBlue says it acts as a conduit federally and in most states, which means we provide the infrastructure for campaigns and organizations to fundraise online, but we dont fundraise on behalf of anyone. Unlike groups that spend large sums of cash from undisclosed sources, ActBlue offers grassroots donors a way to give fully disclosed donations to the candidates and causes they choose, the group says.

In July 2017, when we looked afresh at the OpenSecrets summary page for ORourke in 2017-18, it showed $29,160 in PAC contributions to ORourkes Senate campaign. A few days later, the chart indicated $43,740 in PAC donations.

Red flags? Negative, Bryner told us, saying the charts summarizing ORourkes Senate contributions were erroneous and would be rectified.

Significantly, Bryner also showed us how to query an FEC site that provides detailed files about all candidates, parties and other political committees. From the site, we fetched a July 23, 2017, commission list itemizing more than 45,000 PAC contributions to congressional candidates in the 2017-18 election cycle. That list showed no PAC contributions to ORourke.

Experts concur

We asked campaign finance experts to guide us to documentation distinguishing donations through conduit PACs from traditional PAC contributions.

Judith Ingram, press officer at the FEC, showed us that in quarterly filings, ActBlue donations present an individual name as a line item below each listing of ActBlue as a donor, along with a text field that explains the individual donation is part of a conduit total. Ingram further confirmed that the JStreet PAC contributions reported by ORourke were made by individual donors employing the PAC as a conduit.

Stephen Spaulding, chief of strategy at the nonpartisan watchdog group Common Cause, echoed Ingrams comments  that groups such as ActBlue act as intermediaries by processing payments that can be attributed to an actual donor, a human being. If a donation was a traditional PAC contribution, Spaulding explained, the listed contributor would be the PAC alone, and there wouldnt be a specific individuals name linked to it.

Our ruling

ORourke said: Im one of two members of Congress out of 535 that takes no corporate cash, no political action committee money.

Unsaid: no candidate can take corporate cash; thats illegal. Otherwise, we found, ORourke was one of at least five (not two) House incumbents to keep no PAC contributions in the run-up to the 2016 elections. He also hasnt accepted PAC aid into 2017 though he drew on about $297,000 in PAC donations in his House bids of 2012 and 2014  actions not recapped in his Dallas call for contributions.

We rate this claim HALF TRUE  The statement is partially accurate but leaves out important details or takes things out of context.

Go to Politifact.com/Texas/ for more on the six Politifact ratings and other fact checks.
Robert Pattinson says it has taken him 10 years to leave 'Twilight' behind.

Robert Pattinson

The 31-year-old actor shot to fame playing brooding vampire Edward Cullen in the 'Twilight Saga' franchise and Robert has admitted that the popularity of the movies made it difficult for people to see him as any other character.

He told The Hollywood Reporter's Awards Chatter podcast: "As soon as I signed on to do multiple sequels, I was like, 'It's gonna take 10 years to get over this.'"

However, Robert has never felt stifled by 'Twilight' and he acknowledges that he wouldn't have his career without it.

He said: "I've never really felt trapped by it. I've always known it was the right move. I wouldn't have done any of this other stuff if not for that."

Despite his appreciation for the franchise, Robert feared he had a "credibility deficit" for his post-'Twilight' career and he managed to overcome this by working with directors including David Cronenberg, Werner Herzog and Anton Corbijn.

He explained: "I was aware of a credibility deficit. And so you think, 'Well, if [Werner] Herzog and Anton Corbijn and all these people are hiring me, well, you're gonna have to s**t on your heroes if you want to s**t on me.'"

And despite finding huge commercial success early in his career, Robert doesn't care if his current movies make any money.

He said: "I don't even care if they make money at all. Like, literally. As long as I can get another one."
Prue Leith has admitted that she had to think long and hard before accepting the job on the revamped version of The Great British Bake Off, which will air for the first time this year on Channel 4 after a network move.

Prue Leith

Replacing former judge Mary Berry and starring alongside Paul Hollywood on the series  which will for the first time be hosted by Noel Fielding and Sandi Toksvig  Leith opened up about the process she went through before signing on the dotted line.

Speaking to The Sunday Times, she explained: I really thought twice about accepting Bake Off. Ive spent my life campaigning about children learning to cook and healthy meals in schools, but I reasoned that baking is the best way to get people into general cooking. And thats what we need the nation to do: get interested in the kitchen.

She also revealed that security was sent to her house when it was announced she would replace Mary Berry on the show.

Leith added: On the day that they announced who the line-up was, they wanted to send a close protection officer. I said, Dont be ridiculous, we absolutely do not need a cooper standing there looking.

But they said, No, no, no, we really must just to be on the safe side. What did they think is going to happen? Im not going to be trolled. This is a nice family show.

Whether or not fans will warm to the big changes remains to be seen, but what we do know is that The Great British Bake Off makes its return later this year on Channel 4.

by Daniel Falconer for www.femalefirst.co.uk

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Fethiye Times News  our pick of whats been going on in Fethiye and around the region over the last week.

Nightclub attack leaves one dead and four hurt in Bodrum

A teenager has been killed and four other people wounded in a shooting near two nightclubs in the popular resort of Bodrum.

A gunman approached the beach clubs in Bodrum, on Turkeys Aegean coast, before firing shots at random.

Hundreds of people were said to have been in or near the clubs at the time of the attack early on Sunday morning.

A manhunt is underway for the suspect, who reportedly fled the scene in a car.

The victim, who has been identified as 18-year-old Furkan Say, was shot many times and later died at a local hospital.

Mr Say was a member of staff at the Sess Beach Club, one of the two venues. Two other staff members at the club were also injured, along with two members of the public.

One eyewitness, Gokhan Balci, said that the suspect entered the Sess Beach Club before moving away and randomly opening fire

We lived a nightmare, he said.

The identity of the suspect is not yet known and the motive for the attack is unclear.

Security has been heightened at nightclubs in Turkey after Uzbek national Abdulkadir Masharipov killed 39 people in a mass shooting at the Reina club in Istanbul on New Years Eve in 2016.

Citizens of Israel, France, Tunisia, Lebanon, India, Belgium, Jordan and Saudi Arabia were among the victims.

Three killed after motorized yacht sinks off the Marmaris coast

A motor yacht sank off the coast of Marmaris in southern Turkey on Tuesday, killing three people.

The Anemone sank 200 meters off the shore of Bozburun, a seaside town 30 kilometres southwest of the popular resort of Marmaris. Coast guard, gendarmerie and Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) teams were dispatched to the region shortly after the incident.

Mugla Governor, Esengul Civelek told state-run Anadolu Agency that eight people, including Captain Mustafa Donka, were rescued but rescue teams had recovered the lifeless body of Ali Dogan Cayrloglu, the owner of the boat.

The bodies of two other missing people were also recovered later.

Bozburun Gendarmerie command ship said in a statement that the motorized yacht sank after water filled its stern 10 minutes after it set sail from the coast.

The motor yacht was later found sunk at a depth of 30 meters

Archaeological excavations to resume at Turkeys ancient site of Lagina

Archaeologists are set to resume excavations after a six-year hiatus in the 3,000-year-old site of Lagina, the sacred precinct of the Goddess Hekate.

Ottoman scientists first became interested in the site, located in the town of Turgut in southwestern Turkeys Mugla province, during the 19th century.

Modern excavation and restoration work began in 1993 under the guidance of the Mugla Museum and with an international team advised by Professor Ahmet Trpan from Pamukkale University. These excavations ended in 2011.

The new excavations of Lagina will be lead by Dr. Bilal Sogut, who explained that Lagina was the religious centre of the ancient city of Stratonicea, located about 11 kilometres away, and that excavations of the two sites would be carried out together starting in August.

Lagina holds significance for being home to the sanctuary of Hekate, the Greek goddess of witchcraft, magic and ghosts.

Holidaymaker falls 80m while hiking at Butterfly Valley

National Medical Rescue Squads (UMKE) rescued a hiker after a fall at Butterfly Valley, Faralya near Oludeniz on Saturday.

Omer Oztas, 29, who rolled from an altitude of about 80 meters, was rescued after 9 hours and taken by stretcher to the beach from where he was taken by boat to Belcekiz Beach at Oludeniz. There an ambulance was waiting to transport him to a local hospital.

Oztas, who had travelled from Konya with friends for a holiday, suffered multiple fractures.

Turkish Money

The British Pound bought 4.59 Turkish Lira (TL) by the close of business on Friday.

The week before it was selling for 4.63TL.

Weather Forecast

After Fridays storm in Fethiye, the weather is back to seasonal norms. Heres your weather forecast for the week ahead.
Mumbai: Legendary actor Dilip Kumar, who is undergoing treatment for kidney-related problems, on Saturday showed signs of improvement, said a senior official from Lilavati Hospital.

"He is stable, he has no fever, no breathlessness, he is conscious, he has eaten certain food prescribed by the doctors, his creatinine level is lower and his urine output is better, which is a good sign," Ajay Kumar Pande, Vice President, Lilavati Hospital, told IANS.

The 94-year-old actor is being treated by cardiologist Nitin Gokhale and nephrologist Arun Shah at the hospital in Bandra West here.

He was admitted on Wednesday evening due to dehydration and urinary tract infection. "As of today, he is stable and it's a good day."

Just a day ago, one of the attending team of doctors had said they were considering putting the actor on dialysis. Asked about it, Pande told IANS: "We're not thinking about that because his creatinine level is lower and urine output has improved. These are positive things."

Last seen on the big screen in Qila in 1998, the actor was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1994 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2015. He is known for films like Devdas, Mughal-e-Azam and Karma, and is married to actress Saira Banu.
It could only be dubbed a strange coincidence. A few days ago, when Anushka Sharma introduced Yash Raj Films (YRF) latest find Anya Singh to the world, little did people know that the role of a wedding planner in Band Baaja Baaraat, which shot Anushka Sharma to stardom was Anyas calling.

Dressed in a black top, the excitement to meet media and give interviews for her debut film Qaidi Band is palpable on Anyas face. The second floor corridor of YRF, where I am scheduled to meet Anya, has a bevy of rooms and a few of them have nameplates of Shah Rukh Khan, Ranveer Singh, Aamir Khan and Amitabh Bachchan pasted on the side of the doors. Anya too has one. So how does it feel? I wake up still trying to understand whats going on. For the longest time our film was called Production No. 56. We had a name for our film only a week before the trailer launch. Its a very proud feeling, almost surreal. Its a far fetched dream for me, says Anya.

The journey from Delhi to Mumbai, if not a difficult one, was also not an easy one for this Shri Venkateswara College, Delhi graduate. She was given statistic that its only 0.5 per cent outsiders who make it to the Hindi film industry. Its very difficult to crack the ceiling. I wont talk about others because everyones journey is different but I would say it was very hard for me. I dont have the height. I am not great looking and thats something I am okay with. I was mentally prepared about these facts. I know people said these things to me out of concern, but this was also the thing that I always wanted to do.

Luck has played a very important role in bringing Anya to the corridors of the YRF building. It was Shanoo Sharma, the casting director at YRF, who spotted Anya at a coffee shop when their paths crossed inside the washroom. It's definitely a dream journey for me. A lot of people dont believe when I tell them that Shanoo Sharma spotted me at a coffee shop. I was at the right place at the right time and I did not believe in it till the time it happened with me.

Anya recalls the time when she was called for audition, which according to her was a sort of Alice in Wonderland moment. She was so awestruck with the majestic building that for hours, she kept gazing at the huge wall near the corporate office that has paintings of stills from various YRF films over the years. Though its been more than a year, the memory of her first day visit to YRF is still vivid. It was 6 July and Sultan had just released in theatres and everyone in the office was very excited about it. Shanoo told me that we would be going to the fourth floor. Fourth floor is also the place where Aditya Chopra sits. I still remember that I almost blanked out and a million thoughts crossed my mind in a moment. When I met him, he informed me that I have got this film and that I need to work very very hard.

Before the shooting of Qaidi Band commenced, the cast was categorically instructed not to watch similar films lest they get influenced. The cast was given lots of books and reference videos, which were painstakingly researched by the director Habib Faisal himself.

Jail is a very different space to be in. I cant fathom what under trials have to go through. Though we did not visit any jail, Habib sir did the research on our behalf. My character in the film speaks flawless Hindi. Once the jail set was made, we were locked inside it for hours together without any phones just to understand the isolation part of it. I used to weep by the end of the day. It was a difficult space to be in. One of the materials that were handed over to the cast was also a book on Bocardo Prison in Oxford.

Trained in the art of Odissi dance form, Anyas exposure to the world of cinema is bit limited and is something one would normally not expect from a newcomer. Her education was at Mayo, the boarding school in Ajmer, where cinema viewing for students was a distant thing. It was only after she enrolled for her graduation in Delhi that her suppressed dance, drama and music desire came to the fore. During my college days I was also working as a wedding planner. Though it was remotely not similar to what we saw in Band Baaja Baaraat, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even after my job was over I used to stand in one corner of the sangeet hall and enjoy the blaring Hindi music for hours, recalls Anya.

Despite harboring dreams of acting in films since her school days, it was only much later that she broached the topic to her mother. My moms initial reaction was a terse No and she was sort of really shocked. She thought that it was some kind of fad, which kids at this age dream about. When I discussed the topic again after sometime, she realized that I was serious. I also discontinued my work of a wedding planner to pursue things in a serious manner.

The corridors of YRF also give one an opportunity of stargazing. So did Anya meet any one from the YRF talent pool? It was Ranveer Singh. Mr Habib Faisal introduced us. He was there to discuss something with Habib Sir. What I really admire about Ranveer is the fact that though we spoke for just two minutes, he was there. It was not a case of as if ten things were going on in his mind. He made me feel that he was talking to me. He is a busy person and so much is going on in his life but he included me in that conversation, recalls Anya.

For this debutante, who intends to spend rest of her life in the Tinsel Town, the journey has just begun. Come 25 August and we will know if she gets baptized or not.
Editor's note: In a prolific career spanning nearly four decades, Satyajit Ray directed 36 films, including feature films, documentaries and shorts. His films have received worldwide critical acclaim and won him several awards, honours and recognition  both in India and elsewhere. In this column starting 25 June 2017, we discuss and dissect the films of Satyajit Ray (whose 96th birth anniversary was this May), in a bid to understand what really makes him one of the greatest filmmakers of the 20th century.

The subject of fraudulent holy men has returned to the themes of Satyajit Rays works on several occasions and in several forms. In many of his short stories, novellas and novels  and a 65 minute film titled Mahapurush (The Holy Man), Ray had tried to address the issue and managed to show with great acumen the dangers of patronising such self-professed saints and voices of God in the name of religious piousness and devotion. In Mahapurush, Rays treatment of the subject is through comedy  a far cry from two of his other films which presented serious and all out criticisms of blind faith.

Adapted from a hilarious short story written by eminent Bengali author and humourist Rajshekhar Basu (more popularly known by his pen name Parashuram), Mahapurush tells the story of Birinchi Baba  a holy man who claims to have seen the founding of the city of Varanasi more than 2,000 years ago, or to have had arguments with Jesus Christ on the subject of wealth, or to have been friends with Plato, or to have taught the Theory of Relativity to a young fellow named Einstein  among several other such tall and outrageous claims.

Birinchi Baba meets an affluent old advocate, who has recently lost his wife, and has a profound impact on the widowers already bruised mind. The advocate invites Birinchi Baba and his assistant to his home in Kolkata, and the Baba makes a semi-permanent settlement in the old mans house, giving sermons and offering spiritual advice. In a matter of days, several devotees begin to throng the old mans house to meet the Baba and take his blessings  most of these people quite rich and affluent themselves, and capable of bribing their way to the front row, in order to have a closer proximity to the saint. When the advocate asks his daughter to become a disciple of the Baba, the girls lover  a young man named Satya  turns to his gang of friends for help, and the four men devise a plan to expose Birinchi Baba.

One of the most fascinating things about Satyajit Ray was that when tackling a social evil, religious fanaticism or superstition of any kind, he always used to study the subject very carefully, to fully understand it before criticising it. In this film too, Ray knew the importance of understanding exactly why a conman who garbs a saffron robe is able to make a fool of so many seemingly educated and intelligent men and women. And this led to making his antagonist seem like a worthy opponent, which is why he decided to spend more than half the film in exhibiting the many skills of Birinchi Baba  those that enable him to rule the hearts of his devotees with such amazing finesse. As the leader of the gang trying to plan the expose himself admits, Birinchi Baba has many admirable qualities. For instance, he is an actor of the highest order, extremely well read, one who has a very good understanding of mass psychology, has a photographic memory, has an astonishingly fertile imagination, commands a remarkable presence of mind, and above all  has the guts to pull off such a charade in front of all those present, day after day.

In his speeches, Birinchi Baba tells one lie after another, but he tells them with such flair, with so much imagination, that they dont seem like fabrications anymore, certainly not to the uninitiated or the poorly informed. He is a smooth talker, and a master manipulator of time as well, often saying the same things in many different ways, but not once making it seem like hes repeating himself. In his free time, he reads. As a man, he has an extremely pleasing personality, and despite being malicious in intent, is careful not to be excessively greedy.

Having spent enough time to paint his antagonists character well, Ray lay considerable emphasis in describing the gang who plans and executes the expose as well. The leader of the group is Nibaran Chakraborty  a professor in a college in the city. He is a man of few words, reads on a wide variety of subjects (from Madame Bovary to Shakespeare), loves chess, is a free thinker and despises hypocrites. Paramartha Chatterjee is a young insurance agent, who also tries his hands at Hatha Yoga in his free time. And the third member of the gang is a middle aged man named Nitai-da  a poor ledger keeper in a local merchant office, who is fed up of his routine existence and an incessantly nagging wife. What these rag tag group of individuals have in common, though, is an unquenchable thirst to do something interesting and meaningful in their lives from time to time. When Satya brings the news of Birinchi Baba to them, they come together to help him send the holy man packing and win his ladyloves heart in the process.

The film itself was part of a double feature, screened along with Rays Kapurush (The Coward). As with several other comedies of Satyajit Ray, Mahapurush too wasnt as well received by western audiences as some of his other, serious films. This is perhaps because it is difficult to absorb the nuances of a comic story outside its milieu, unless the comedy is presented in the form of more physical forms, such as slapstick or tomfoolery. Mahapurush was neither, and was primarily a dialogue-based comedy.

And that brings us to another remarkable aspect of Satyajit Rays approach to cinema. Despite knowing that a very large portion of his audience was from outside the country, Ray had never tried to target his films at them. As he himself claimed, his primary audience was always the average Bengali man and woman. It is for them that he used to make his films. And in consciously choosing to do so, he showed exceptional creative maturity, because working in Bengal, with Bengali actors, with a Bengali crew to make a film for an audience far removed from the Bengali way of life would have been a perfect recipe for an artistic disaster. Ray knew this, and was willing to sacrifice foreign critical acclaim on some of his subjects, only to be showered in praise for others. For him, the art and its execution always took greater precedence than what followed by way of reception, and it always showed in his films, without exception. In Mahapurush too, this is evident, and the film was extremely well received by the audience it was targeted at.

Bhaskar Chattopadhyay is an author and translator. His translations include 14: Stories That Inspired Satyajit Ray, and his original works include the mystery novels Patang, Penumbra and Here Falls The Shadow.
Srinagar: Indian police said Sunday a Pakistan-based Islamist militant group blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks was responsible for last month's killing of eight Hindu pilgrims in Kashmir.

Police said an investigation had concluded that Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Kashmiri accomplices were behind the 10 July attack that saw militants open fire on a bus carrying Hindus on the annual Amarnath pilgrimage.

"Lashkar was involved and the accused have been identified," Inspector General of Police Muneer Ahmed Khan told reporters in Anantnag district in Indian-administered Kashmir.

"Once the investigation was started it was revealed that... a Pakistani militant of Lashkar along with two other militants and one local Kashmiri Lashkar militant carried out the attack."

Three others who provided logistical support to the militants, including hiding places and vehicles, had been arrested.The July shooting was the worst such attack in the divided Himalayan region since 2000, when gunmen fired on a group of Hindu pilgrims and killed 32 people including two police officers.

Khan said the militants had carefully plotted to attack any police or tourist vehicle that crossed their path on the evening of the assault.

"They had kept separate code words for tourist and CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) vehicles... It was purely an act of terrorism carried out with an aim to spread fear," he said.

LeT has been blamed for a string of deadly attacks inside India, most notably the Mumbai carnage in November 2008 when heavily armed gunmen battled commandos on the streets of the financial capital.

It took the authorities three days to regain full control of the city and New Delhi has long said there is evidence that "official agencies" in Pakistan were involved in plotting the attack.Islamabad denies the charge.

Rebel groups, including LeT, have for decades fought Indian troops and police deployed in Kashmir, demanding independence or a merger of the former Himalayan kingdom with Pakistan.Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since the end of British colonial rule in 1947, but both claim the territory in full.
Anantnag: Jammu and Kashmir police on Sunday said three people, alleged conspirators in the 10 July attack on Amarnath pilgrims, have been arrested by its Special Investigation Team (SIT).

The men provided logistical help to four Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) militants who carried out the attack that left eight people dead, IGP Munir Khan told the media here.

Happy to tell you that 3 accused persons have been arrested & they have completely revealed everything: IGP Kashmir #Amarnath pic.twitter.com/likLk0MwGb  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

The men, who had allegedly helped the four terrorists by providing them with vehicles and shelter, were arrested recently and taken into remand for further questioning, the police said. The police said the four LeT militants, led by Abu Ismail, a Pakistani national, had attempted an attack on Amarnath pilgrims on July 9, but were frustrated by heavy security arrangements.

The attack was initially planned for July 9th,but that day there was no movement of CRPF or yatri vehicle in isolation:IGP Kashmir #Amarnath pic.twitter.com/9VlfWQ5Fz7  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

Another militant in the group of four had been identified as Yawar, a local recruiter for the LeT, the police said. Efforts are on to identify the other two, believed to be Pakistanis.

The police also released pictures of Abu Ismail and Yawar.

The the three "co-conspirators"-- Bilal Ahmed Reshi, Aizaj Wagey and Zahoor Ahmed --had carried out reconnaissance exercises and chosen Botengo near Khanbal as the spot where the attack could be carried out, the police added.

They had code word 'Shaukat' for yatri vehicle, 'Bilal' for CRPF vehicle. It was purely a terrorist act: IGP Kashmir Munir Khan #Amarnath pic.twitter.com/hymnYJRxX1  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

The trio had also provided shelter to the four militants in Khudwani and Sriguffwara of South Kashmir, Khan said. Bilal's elder brother Adil, an alleged Lashker-e-Taiba terrorist, was killed by security forces earlier this year.

We are quite near to them, hopefully will be neutralizing militants soon...it can be today,tomorrow: IGP Kashmir Munir Khan #Amarnath  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

The Jammu and Kashmir Police had constituted an SIT led by Deputy Inspector General (South Kashmir) Swayam Prakash Pani to probe the attack on the pilgrims.

Eight people were killed when the militants fired at a bus carrying the pilgrims, returning from their Amarnath yatra.
Aslam Wani, a close aide of separatist leader Shabir Shah, was arrested on Sunday in Srinagar, according to media reports.

He was arrested in connection with an Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation into alleged terror funding in Jammu and Kashmir.

Aslam Wani, close aide of separatist Shabir Shah arrested by ED from Srinagar in connection with terror funding case; will brought to Delhi. pic.twitter.com/K2HcjJNtXv  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

Aslam will be brought to Delhi later on Sunday, ANI reported.

Shabir Shah was arrested by ED on 25 July in connection with a decade-old money laundering case involving alleged terror financing.

The agency had earlier issued summons to Shah in connection with an August 2005 case in which the Delhi Police's special cell had arrested Wani, 35, an alleged hawala dealer.

According to the prosecution, Wani claimed he gave Shah Rs 2.25 crore.

The ED registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Shah and Wani.

Wani was arrested with a large cache of ammunition and Rs 63 lakh, allegedly received through 'hawala' channels from West Asia on 26 August 2005, it had said.

With inputs from PTI
WHY DONT YOU READ THESE?
New Delhi: CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury Sunday asked why Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah are "silent" over the alleged stalking of a girl by the son of Haryana's BJP chief.

Yechury raised the question after Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala's son Vikas was arrested Saturday for allegedly stalking a girl, and was later released on bail.

Taking to Twitter, the Marxist leader also alleged that "someone" was helping the accused.

"Clearly someone is helping the accused here. Why are the PM and BJP president so silent about stalking of women?" he sought to know on the micro-blogging site.

Clearly someone is helping the accused here. Why are the PM and BJP President so silent about stalking of women? https://t.co/BNR0dUX1z0  Sitaram Yechury (@SitaramYechury) August 6, 2017

Vikas and his friend Ashish Kumar were arrested and released on bail later for allegedly stalking the girl in Chandigarh. The girl had accused Vikas and his friend of stalking her Friday night after which they were arrested, police said.

Both were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), they said.
New Delhi: A juvenile accused of murder has been denied bail by a Delhi court which has said his life was in danger outside the observation home and there were possibilities that he could further commit crime.

The court, which upheld the order of a juvenile justice board (JJB) dismissing his earlier bail plea, said if he was granted the relief, he could tamper with evidence.

The boy, who was just over 15-year-old at the time of the offence on 24 March, was accused in a case of murder of one Vishal Suri. The dispute was between rival groups and there were other co-accused who were absconding.

Additional Sessions Judge Ashwani Kumar Sarpal dismissed the plea observing that though the JJ Act makes it mandatory to grant bail to a juvenile, it can be denied if there were reasons to believe that he can come in contact with any known criminal.

"The bail can be refused only if there appear reasonable grounds for believing that the release is likely to bring that person into association with any known criminal and to expose to moral, physical or psychological danger or his release would defeat the ends of justice," the court said.

Regarding the claim of the juvenile's father that he would send his son to a boarding school out of Delhi, the court said he was a tempo driver earning Rs 15,000 per month who has not explained how would he afford to do that.

"Moreover, living of the juvenile out of Delhi would create more chance to be accessed and approached by his own gang members or by opposite gang members.

"In both situations, the danger to life and association with criminals will cause much harm to him. He is already involved in highly serious offence of murder and his five co accused are still absconding," the court said.

It said the apprehension of juvenile's counsel that his studies would be affected if not released on bail was without any basis as he can be provided books by the observation home authorities and can be facilitated to take any exams.

The court noted that though a social background report given by child welfare police officer and social investigation report of the probation officer were in favour of the minor, some observations were against him, including his smoking habit, his addicted friends and criminal background.

According to the eye-witnesses of the incident, the juvenile and others came in cars in Preet Vihar area in east Delhi in the early hours and started firing at the opposite gang members including the victim and his companions.

Three eye witnesses who were accompanying with the victim ran away while Suri died due to bullet injuries.
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has sought the response of the governmment and the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on a PIL accusing one of its assistant professors of plagiarism.

A bench of acting chief justice Gita Mittal and justice C Hari Shankar issued notice to the assistant professor, who teaches Turkish language at the varsity, and sought his stand regarding the charges against him in the plea, which has also sought quashing of his appointment.

The matter has been listed for hearing on 21 September.

During arguments, the bench asked the varsity how the assistant professor was appointed when he had scored only 33 out of 100 in the viva-voce (oral exam) conducted by the Jamia Millia Islamia University where he had pursued a diploma in Turkish Language.

"He scored only 33 out of 100 in the viva and he is a professor. How," the court asked.

JNU said that he had scored over 70 marks out of 100 in his written exams.

However, the petitioners, a Turkish language student of Jamia and a law student, contended that he had failed the course as he had scored only 33 out of 100 in the an oral exam conducted by Jamia.

The petitioners have also alleged that the assistant professor had "plagiarised a literature work in Turkish language and published the same in 2012 with a title as 'A new approach to Turkish language learning'".

They have claimed that the entire material of the book has been "copied verbatim" from an online Turkish language class without giving a single reference to the online source.

The petition has alleged that while working with JNU and drawing a salary from there, he had pursued a Masters degree in Turkish language from Ataturk University in Turkey.

When the bench questioned JNU about this, it said that he was working as a guest faculty and only getting an honorarium.

Apart from seeking quashing of his appointment, the petition also seeks setting up of a high-level fact-finding committee for fixing the responsibilities of the intellectual plagiarism committed by him.

It has also sought a direction to the University Grants Commission to "constitute a high-powered committee as a permanent mechanism to effectively prevent the serious issue of the plagiarism in academic circle and universities".
Two persons, including the son of Haryana's BJP chief, were arrested and released on bail soon after for allegedly stalking a girl here, police said.

BJP Haryana Pres' son Vikas Barala & his friend detained by Police for stalking a girl; Police says accused followed girl's car & were drunk pic.twitter.com/eqlF9amy0L  ANI (@ANI_news) August 5, 2017

The girl had accused Vikas Barala, son of Haryana BJP Chief Subhash Barala, and his friend Ashish Kumar of stalking her after which they were arrested, the police said.

The two LLB students, as per Tribune India, were following the woman, a daughter of an IAS officer, in their car on Friday night. A medical examination later revealed both were reportedly drunk.

The woman was on her way home in a car at 12.30 am from Sector 9 in Chandigarh to Panchkula when a Tata Safari began following her from Sector 26. Barala and Kumar were arrested from Manimjara, on the border of Panchkula district in Haryana, reported Hindustan Times. She then called up the police control room (PCR) who swung into action and arrested the duo.

The case has been registered at the Sector-26 police station against both accused under Section 354 D (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 185 (Motor Vehicle Act) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). Satish Kumar, DSP (East) said the victim's statements were being recorder under Section 164 (recording confessions and statements) of the CrPC before a local magistrate, reported The Indian Express.

Subhash Barala was re-elected as the state BJP president for the second time in three years in January 2016. The 48-year-old Jat leader is an MLA from Tohana. He was earlier the BJP appointed chief of the state unit in November 2014.

With inputs from PTI
Chandigarh: An IAS officer, whose daughter was allegedly stalked by the son of a senior Haryana BJP leader, on Sunday took to social media and urged people to fight crime against women while also sharing the ordeal his family had gone through.

The victim also expressed her anguish in a post saying she was lucky not to be the daughter of a commoner or else who knows what her fate could be.

"If we do not persist in trying to bring the guilty to justice, more and more daughters will suffer this hurt," said victim's father, in a Facebook post.

The son of Haryana's ruling BJP chief Subhash Barala was on Saturday arrested along with his friend for allegedly stalking the woman in Chandigarh.

Both the accused, Vikas Barala (23) and Ashish Kumar (27), were released later on bail as they were booked under bailable sections of the IPC and the Motor Vehicles Act, amid the political outcry.

The incident had come to light when the woman, around 28 years of age, called up the police on Friday night and complained that two youth were chasing her.

The father of the victim in his Facebook post thanked the Chandigarh police for being helpful and efficient in handling the matter.

While stating how his family had gone through a "horrendous experience", he said that it will take a long time for his daughter "to go back to a normal life."

Giving reasons for the Facebook post, the father said, "Our clear intention is to bring the culprits to book."

The woman in her complaint had alleged that two youth in an SUV followed her when she was driving from the Sector 8 market in Chandigarh towards Panchkula on the intervening night of 4 and 5 August.

"There were two guys inside the SUV, and they seemed to really be enjoying harassing a lone girl in the middle of the night, judging by how often their car swerved, just enough to scare me that it might hit me," the woman wrote in her Facebook post.

"I'm lucky, it seems, to not be the daughter of a common man, because what chance would they have against such VIPs? I'm also lucky, because I'm not lying raped and murdered in a ditch somewhere. If this can happen in Chandigarh, it can happen anywhere," she said.

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had said that the law will take its own course in the case while Haryana BJP president Subhash Barala had said he respects the law and the "truth" will come out through the court.

Meanwhile, the opposition Congress on Sunday held protests at various places against the incident.

State Congress chief Ashok Tanwar led one such protest in Faridabad.

"The arrogance of power in the BJP, the party which talks about saving and educating girl child, has reached to such a level that son of a state BJP chief dared to commit such crime," he said.

Senior Congress leader and MLA from Haryana, Randeep Singh Surjewala also strongly condemned the incident.

"Shocking & preposterous assault! Salute the brave girl and her parents. Your grit & determination makes us proud," Surjewala tweeted on Sunday.

Shocking & preposterous assault!

Salute the brave girl and her parents.Your grit & determination makes us proud.https://t.co/wHd2Zhwsx8  Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) August 6, 2017

Opposition party INLD and the leader of opposition Abhay Chautala demanded resignation of Barala on the issue.

Police on Saturday said after receiving the complaint, the PCR staff located the vehicle of the youth and apprehended them.

"They even tried to stop the (woman's) vehicle twice or thrice. They also banged the woman's vehicle with hands," Chandigarh police DSP Satish Kumar had said on Saturday quoting from the complaint of the woman.

Both Vikas, who is a student of LLB, and his friend Ashish were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), the police said.

After the woman recorded her statement before the area magistrate here under section 164 of the CrPC, the police added another Section 341 (Punishment for wrongful restraint) in the FIR, according to officials.
In the course of my work over the years, I have spoken to hundreds of audiences and to tens of thousands and possibly lakhs of people. Often these are young college-goers from the middle class. The usual way in which the intercourse happens is that I speak for half an hour or forty minutes on some subject and then the audience offers its comments or asks questions. In the last few months, I have made a series of trips where I spoke to large groups in a few states, while reflecting on the common things I found in the audiences.

The first thing has to do with their perspective. It is clear to me, based on the large sample size that I have encountered, that Indian children are not rebellious. They are conventional. This extends to authority figures, whether in their classroom or in politics or elsewhere. They are reverential, unquestioningly so for the most part. This I think is unusual because college students are not respectful of authority in most parts of the world, certainly the western world. In Indian students, there is little or no intellectual rebellion and this is worrying.

The second thing is that, broadly speaking, our young women are more open to considering some ideas that are unconventional than our young men. For example, if I question the idea of nationalism, the women are more likely to nod their heads, less likely to ask angry questions at the end.

The third thing is that both sexes are uniformly unaware of the idea of social justice. For example, let us look at reservations. The audience I have encountered are almost never sympathetic to the plight of Dalits and Adivasis. Even after it is established that there are almost no Dalits and Adivasis in the audience  because they have been excluded thoroughly from the system  the view does not change. I have often said that I wish comments against reservations are preceded by an acceptance of the reality that these two communities face discrimination. This never happens. The only thing that the youngsters are angry about is that they want merit to triumph over reservations.

The fourth thing is that Kashmir has become, because of the media, the single biggest issue agitating them. I have pointed out to them that we have three areas in India where there is, what the government calls, terrorism. The most violent of these in the last 10 years has been the Naxal area, where 6,080 people have died. The second most violent of these is the North East, where 5,050 people have died. The third most violent is Jammu and Kashmir, where 3,378 people have died.

However, I never get questions about either the North East or about Naxal violence. Kashmir and stone-pelters greatly agitate our youngsters. And this agitation of theirs is not accompanied by any particular knowledge of the history of Article 370 and the behaviour of the Indian state. This is surprising because they are students. They hold the black and white view of national and anti-national shown on our channels.

Fifth, there are exceptions to the observations made above and generally speaking these come from students of fine arts, literature and that sort of fields. Engineering, commerce and science students are more likely to be the norm.

Sixth, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is very popular with students. He is thought to mean well and they like what they see in him. The students can easily dismiss objections about either his past or his performance.

Seventh, while they are uncomfortable with the lynchings linked to cattle slaughter and beef, they do not hold the government responsible for the violence.

Eighth, they never speak unprompted about their future or the jobs market in India. They seem to be either unaware of the debate about employment being one of the big issues or they are confident that their own future is sorted.

Ninth, I should say that the quality of questioning is basic and weak. We are not producing good students who are examining the issue independently of what they are being fed either by the media or their educators.

The last thing is that the quality of English language is poor. The higher education system is throwing out graduates who are not equipped for proper white collar work and many, if not most, of them lack basic communication skills that are required for high end work.
Jammu: A joint team of the Indian Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police has seized a huge cache of arms and ammunition, including two AK assault rifles and explosives during an operation in Rajouri.

During the 'Operation Clean-up', the security personnel searched the hills and natural caves in the Rajouri-Reasi belt with the help of sniffer dogs.

A joint team of the Rashriya Rifles and police has seized a cache of arms, including one AK-47 rifle, one AK 56 rifle, a Chinese pistol, two RPG rounds, five hand grenades, two magazines and 639 rounds of ammunition in the Kalakote area of the district on Saturday, a senior army officer said.
A group of prominent Assam citizens have written to Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, urging him to help the family of slain minority leader Lafiqul Ahmed.

Signed by 44 members of the Assam's intelligentsia, the letter praised the show of solidarity in Assam after Ahmed's murder, and added that the incident brought together people belonging to different communities in the militancy-ravaged state.

Calling Ahmed a "progressive youth leader", the letter acknowledged the slain leader's contribution in raising critical issues such as child marriage, polygamy, dowry and domestic violence plaguing the Bengali Muslim community.

The letter also added:

"Ahmeds murder leaves a big void in minority leadership in Assam, and void in the effort of all those, who, cutting across markers of identities, were working for peace and amity in the region. It will certainly take the minority community some time to heal from this tragedy."

Thanking the Sonowal government for writing to the CBI, the letter urged the government to do more than grant monetary compensation to the family.

Requesting the government to provide permanent employment to Ahmed's brother, the letter read, "We request the Honourable Chief Minister of Assam, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, to consider providing long-term support to Ahmeds family. This would go a long way not only in showing political goodwill, but also in establishing a sense of social justice."

On Friday, the Sonowal government wrote to the CBI, requesting an inquiry into Ahmed's murder. The government earlier formed a Special Investigation Team to inquire into the matter.

Praising Sonowal, the citizens asked him to follow up the case with the Centre.

Concluding their letter, they also requested the media to respect the privacy of Ahmed's family and stop "misreporting."

Kokrajhar has been on edge since two motorcycle-borne assailants gunned down Ahmed, president of All Bodo Minority Students' Union (ABMSU), on 1 August. Sporadic incidents of violence have been reported.

With inputs from PTI
Jammu and Kashmir may have a separate constitution but it is, unquestionably, part of India. Of late, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has been making bizarre statements which indicate some sort of desperation on her part towards the scenario unfolding in the Valley.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) crackdown on the leaders of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC), their arrest, allegations of terrorist links, illegal wealth, inciting youth and instigating violence have shaken the state.

In addition to Pakistan, these separatists were also reportedly receiving funds from outfits in London and Dubai. According to media reports, this information has been conveyed by Shahid-ul-Islam, a top aide of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, leader of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat, and one of the seven separatists arrested by the NIA. Despite all these facts, Mehbooba has stated that the NIA has no jurisdiction in Jammu and Kashmir.

Which clearly indicates that her sympathies lie with these Hurriyat leaders who are destabilising her state. The links between the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Hizbul Mujahideen seem to be deep rooted indeed. After the previous elections, her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed publicly thanked Pakistan in his speech in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

After Modi's visit to America, the United States branded Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). Significantly, the NIA also recovered a detailed protest calendar issued and signed by APHC chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani, thus exposing that the separatists had been coordinating with handlers in Pakistan to create instability which led to widespread violence. The documents reportedly listed dates when protests and other activities related to civil unrest were to be carried out in the Valley following the killing of Burhan Wani.

Everyone witnessed the violence, stone-pelting and killings. It was suspected that the protests, intended to fan radicalism, involved local clerics and separatist cadres as well as activists of Opposition parties and were funded by the Hurriyat in concert with Pakistani agencies. Geelani was allegedly the main coordinator. Separatists not only paid stone-pelters, but called for and funded protest assemblies, blocked roads and select government buildings, and radicalised youth in mosques by playing songs that called for 'azaadi' through loudspeakers.

All this happened right under Mehbooba's nose. She was being given intelligence by security agencies. Surely, she knew what was happening. The increase in violence  especially after Friday prayers  were obvious, what with Pakistani and Islamic State flags reportedly being waved and hoisted. Did she ever try and find out where those flags came from?

Given that she did not have access to Geelanis protest calendar, but the Hurriyats radicalisation diktat was being published in regional newspapers even before the killing of Burhan Wani. However, having discovered what Geelani and his ilk have been up to, what does she mean when she says that the NIA has no jurisdiction in Jammu and Kashmir.

At a recent function in New Delhi, Mehbooba made yet another peculiar statement: She said that if Article 35A (which deals with Jammu and Kashmir's special status) was tinkered with, there will be no one left to hold the National Flag, which her party and some other parties were carrying despite all risks.

This is a direct threat. But who is she referring to when saying there will be no one to hold the flag? Is it the radicalised four or five districts, a miniscule part of the state, which both main political parties have  by default or design  permitted to be radicalised? No political leader has ever called upon the clerics to refrain from radicalising youth.

Mehbooba's statement was termed 'shocking' by Union minister, Jitendra Singh who said that the Tricolour is "sacrosanct". He added, "If at all there is an issue pertaining to Jammu and Kashmir, it is only of how to retrieve the part of the state that remains under the illegal occupation of Pakistan.

Mehbooba has also asked the Centre not to block trade routes with Pakistan, despite NIA experts pointing out that separatists, and consequently terrorists are the only beneficiaries of trade. The NIA has, over the years, been reporting that goods moving from India into Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) were highly overpriced, and that the excess money was being used to fund terrorism, narco-terrorism, weapons and ammunition in Jammu and Kashmir. That the politicians and bureaucrats receive their cut is obvious, aside from Hurriyat separatists using such funds to amass individual wealth and property.

The link between the PDP and the Hizbul Mujahideen makes Mehbooba party to this entire scenario. Although they repeatedly urge the Centre to talk to the Jammu and Kashmir youth, the leaders of the major political parties in the state never do so themselves: Unless it's time to get votes.

The state economy has been going downhill. All the more reason that the youth should have been given a road map, explaining to them that violence and terror hinders development. The leaders should have highlighted the atrocities committed by Pakistani terrorists: Rapes, forced marriages and mutilations. But they haven't done so. Because their coffers were flush with ill-gotten gains and an unending flow of cash through hawala.

Where do we go from here? While the NIA continues to unearth more secrets and pull on threads that will unravel how terror is funded in Jammu and Kashmir, the political leaders must continue to be subject to the same scrutiny. Especially with Al-Qaeda and other terrorist organisations making headway in the state. They may even have links to many politicians, especially those openly calling for 'azaadi' and Sharia law across Kashmir. India's solution lies in looking to how China and Pakistan have responded to such challenges: By changing demographics.

The folly of prolonging Article 370 must be rectified. Put it to a vote. Let the anti-nationals not hoist the flag. We have enough remedies to take care of them. Focus must be on progress. Anti-India politicians, separatists and terrorists must not be allowed to take India hostage. The 'enemy within' must be identified and dealt with harshly.

The author is a retired lieutenant-general of the Indian Army
Yangon: A government-appointed commission on Sunday cleared Myanmar security forces of systematic rape, murder and arson against Rohingya Muslims, dismissing UN allegations of widespread abuses during a recent crackdown.

The commission examined the deadly violence which began in northwestern Rakhine State in October last year after attacks by Rohingya militants on police posts near the Bangladesh border.

The government is refusing to allow a UN fact-finding team to conduct its own probe into whether the security response amounted to "ethnic cleansing" of the stateless Rohingya minority.

Giving their conclusions on Sunday, a state-backed commission said it found no evidence that Myanmar security forces carried out a systematic campaign of rape, murder or arson.

Instead any "excessive actions" were likely committed by low-rank "individual members of the security forces".

"Some incidents (of abuse) appeared to be fabricated... others had little evidence," according to a press release by the commission.

It also took aim at a detailed report by the UN's Human Rights Office released in February this year.

That report said it was "very likely" that crimes against humanity had been committed during the crackdown.

Based on interviews with 204 witnesses who fled to Bangladesh, the UN alleged Myanmar security forces gang-raped Rohingya women, butchered children and tortured men.

But "no such cases were uncovered" by the government commission, which said the UN findings lacked balance and failed to recognise the gravity of the attacks by Rohingya militants.

Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is a nobel peace prize winner, is blocking a visit by a UN team.She says the government commission is an adequate response to the violence, which left scores dead and displaced tens of thousands of Rohingya to Bangladesh.

The Rohingya are reviled in Myanmar and widely seen as illegal immigrants.

Stateless, poor and subject to tight controls on movement, education and work, roughly one million of the Muslim group are hemmed into the impoverished border zone  which remains locked down and under curfew.

The commission conceded that foreign media and NGOs should have been granted access to the zone during the conflict to dispel "misconceptions."

It also called for rights training for low-level security officers, urged local officials to tackle corruption and called for swift and fair trials of suspected militants. Rakhine State remains violent and on edge.The government says foreign-backed Rohingya militants are still active in the conflict area, accusing them of killing perceived state collaborators and running "terror" training camps.

Last week seven Buddhists were found dead in the conflict area. Rohingya villages also continue to be raided.On Friday up to 50 "warning shots" were fired at a Rohingya village during a raid.

Unverifiable images on social media showed several people wounded by bullets allegedly fired in the episode.
New Delhi/Jodhpur: An Indian Navy officer was on Sunday detained after he created a security scare by claiming he was carrying a bomb aboard an Air India flight, which later turned out to be a hoax, a security official said.

An official of the CISF, which manages security at all airports in the country, said the accused, who has denied making any bomb claim, was detained by police in Jodhpur.

The Navy officer allegedly warned the airline crew of a bomb on the aircraft flying from Delhi to Jaipur via Jodhpur when he was denied permission to deboard at Jodhpur as he had booked the flight up to Jaipur.

"The officer had a tiff with the airline staff when the flight touched down at Jodhpur. He told them he wanted to deboard and threatened he was carrying a bomb when the crew stopped him from disembarking. The passenger has been handed over to local police," said the Central Industrial Security Force officer.

The bomb hoax delayed the flight by three hours.

The airline said the incident took place on AI 475 flight with 175 passengers onboard on the Delhi-Jodhpur-Jaipur route.

"At Jodhpur, a person who claimed to be a naval officer wanted to de-board. For security reason, deboarding was not allowed... he forcibly tried to deboard... he revealed he had planted a bomb on the flight and that was the reason he wanted to deboard," the AI spokesman said.

He said the CISF was alerted and all passengers evacuated.

"The aircraft was searched as per the standard operating procedure but nothing was found. The person has been detained by the CISF," the spokesperson said.

"The flight search and other security related procedures lasted from 2 pm to 6 pm and the flight took off from Jodhpur to Jaipur at 6.30 pm"
New Delhi: The three-decade old National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has been merged with another central police organisation  the BPRD  by the government on Friday with an aim to improve efficiency of development works related to policing.

The Union home ministry on 4 August issued an order on the merger in order to "improve administrative efficiency and optimal utilisation of resources".

The Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) chief Meeran C Borwankar said the merger will boost crime data collection and research efforts of the two organisations.

The BPRD Director General (DG) will be the head of the merged new entity, where the NCRB Director, an Additional DG will report to the former.

"It is a constructive idea.It will give proper back up of crime collection work done by the NCRB to the research work done by the BPRD," DG Borwankar told PTI.

The NCRB was created in 1986 as the central police organisation to collect crime data, on various parameters, from across all the states of the country.

It is also implementing the ambitious crime and criminal tracking network (CCTNS).

The BPRD, created in 1970, is the national police organisation to study, research and develop on subjects and issues related to policing.

Both the organisations function under the Union home ministry.
New Delhi: Keen on rolling out infrastructure projects in Iran and Afghanistan, Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said that once Chabahar Port in Iran becomes operational, there will be no looking back as it will be a gateway to golden opportunities.

As a special envoy of India, deputed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, road transport and shipping minister Gadkari is in Tehran and represented India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani for the second term.

"Talks are on for building railways and roads through Chabahar till Afghanistan and then we have access to Russia. Once Chabahar is operationalised, which we are hopeful to be in 12 to 18 months time, it will prove to be a gateway to golden opportunities to boost trade and business," Gadkari told PTI.

Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation's southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from India's western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

"We are hopeful of ratification of trilateral transit and transport Agreement by Iran and once approvals are given, the work will start," Gadkari said.

The trilateral pact was inked during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tehran in May 2016.

The pact envisages establishment of transit and transport corridor between India, Iran and Afghanistan using Chabahar Port as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran besides multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.

The cabinet and the president had ratified the pact in November and December, 2016 respectively.

A government official said Afghanistan has also ratified it but Iran is yet to complete the internal processes of the ratification.

Gadkari said operationalisation of the port will not accelerate the infrastructure projects but will be a "win-win situation" for the nations as it would give tremendous boost to trade and offer vast opportunities to investors.

"Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but we will be closer to Afghanistan and then Russia, we can export goods till Russia. This will be a direct route," he said.

India has already built the Zaranj-Delaram Road in Afghanistan where the cargo reaching Zehedan can connect to.

"The rail route is aimed at connecting the existing rail network of Iran at Zahedan, and subsequently to Mashad in north area, thereby providing access to Turkmenistan as well as northern Afghanistan through its connection to the Bafq-Mashad route," an official said.

This project will significantly enhance the opportunity for trade and business among the nations.

Chabahar-Zahedan Railway line project is located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province in eastern Iran.

Gadkari's visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work on the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at the port.

"Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine," the minister had said.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including a $ 150 million credit from Exim Bank.

It also authorised the shipping ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of $ 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $ 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of the equipment will be transferred to the Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of $ 150 million in accordance with the MoU.

As per the pact, operations of the two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract.

Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest $ 500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.
Islamabad: A Pakistani newspaper on Sunday hailed the decision to resume cross-LoC trade in Jammu and Kashmir and urged Islamabad to attend to Indian concerns over smuggling of drugs in the garb of barter.

"It is a rare bright spot in the otherwise dismal state of bilateral relations" between India and Pakistan, the Dawn said in an editorial.

India on 21 July shut down one of the routes in the trade across the Line of Control (LoC) dividing Jammu and Kashmir between the two countries. New Delhi has said this will be resumed by 8 August , the daily noted.

The Dawn said while small-scale, barter-based trade across the LoC would not transform the economic prospects of the region, it was vital to keep the trade ties alive and help sustain a constituency for peace.

"The resumption of trade is also a welcome reminder of how effective intra-Kashmir confidence-building measures can be," it said.

"There is no sign yet that India and Pakistan are seeking to resume (their) dialogue, but the Kashmir trade ought to be protected.

"The Indian allegations of narcotics smuggling have highlighted a problem that ought to be addressed (by Islamabad)," it added.
Sheohar: Six policemen, including a Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), were on Sunday injured when a mob threw stones at the cops when they tried to remove a road blockade put by villagers in Bihar's Sheohar district.

Superintendent of Police (SP) PN Mishra said that SDPO Pritish Kumar was among six policemen injured when a mob threw stones at the cops at Basantpatti village while they were trying to remove road blockade put by the villagers demanding compensation to next of kin of a boy who died after being hit by a motorcycle.

As many as six villagers were also injured in the lathi charge by the police, eyewitnesses claimed.

The local people claimed that the police fired in the air to disperse the mob, but the SP denied police firing in the air.

SDPO Pritish Mishra's bodyguard Ramiz Raja has been referred to a hospital in Muzaffarpur in view of his serious condition, Mishra said, adding that the other injured policemen are  Nandkishore Sharma, Neeraj Kumar, Alok Kumar, Saroj Mishra and Misha have been admitted to Sadar hospital.

The SP said that he was camping in the village with the District Magistrate Raj Kumar in view of tension prevailing in the area.

After hearing the news of the death of the 12-year-old injured boy in a hospital last night, the villagers gathered at Basantpatti village this morning and put up a road blockade demanding compensation to the family of the victim.

The policemen from Puranhia police station rushed to the spot and tried to pacify the mob to lift the blockade which pelted stones on the cops prompting them to lathi charge the protesters to disperse them from the spot.
Economist Dr Rajiv Kumar was appointed the new vice-chairman of NITI Aayog on Saturday, reports said. This comes five days after the incumbent vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya announced he was quitting the government think tank on 31 August to return to Columbia University.

Vinod Paul, a doctor by professsion, has been appointed as a member of the NITI Aayog. Paul is a paediatrician at AIIMS, and is known to have done substantial work in public health.

Kumar, a senior fellow at Centre for Policy Research (CPR), is also chancellor of the the Gokhale Institute of Economics and Politics in Pune, and is the founding director of Pahle India Foundation, an organisation that specialises in policy-oriented research and analysis.

He has openly supported two of the present government's most significant economic moves: implementing demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Kumar, in an editorial piece in April, has supported the government's move to demonetise high-value currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000, and condemned criticism against the move as "politically motivated".

In a piece titled 'Demonetisation and its outcomes', Kumar had written, "On 11 April, finance minister Arun Jaitley informed the Rajya Sabha that Rs 5,400 crore of undisclosed income had been detected since the 8 November announcement that demonetised 86 percent of the currency in circulation. Critics will surely latch on to this rather measly figure to declare that demonetisation has palpably failed in expropriating owners of 'illegal money'. Such criticism would only further display the inherent ideological bias and politically motivated opposition by these critics."

Kumar also hailed the government's move to implement the GST, terming it as a "transformational fiscal reform". He wrote:

"GST will help neutralise the centrifugal forces that are constantly in operation in this continental sized economy, with its unparalleled diversity and heterogeneity across multiple dimensions. This critical politically and socially unifying role of GST has been consistently underplayed and not received due attention in the hullabaloo of assessing its significant impact on economic activity."

Before joining CPR, Kumar was Secretary-General of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

He has also served as Director and Chief Executive of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), and chief economist of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII). Kumar has also held several government positions; he was an economic advisor in the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, and senior consultant at the Bureau of Costs and Prices. He was a member of the Indian government's National Security Advisory Board between 2006 and 2008.

He presently sits on the boards of several international and national institutions, including the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Riyadh, the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and Asia in Jakarta, the State Bank of India, and the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.

With input from agencies
Mathura: Widows from Vrindavan would tie rakhi on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's wrist in Delhi on Monday on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan that celebrates the brother-sister bond.

A special programme was organised at the five-century-old Gopinath temple in Vrindavan, where rakhis were packed in beautifully decorated baskets carrying sweets.

Widows living in Vrindavan's 'Meera Sahabhinini' ashram made a major contribution in the making of these scared threads.

The programme was organized by Sulabh International, a non-governmental organization, taking care of 1,000 widows of Vrindavan, Varanasi and Uttarakhand since 2012.

Madan Jha, media in-charge of the organization, said, "Tomorrow, on the occasion of Rakshabandhan, 5 widows from Vrindavan will visit the prime minister's residence in Delhi and tie rakhi to him."

Around 1,500 hand-made rakhis would be given to the prime minister.

94-year-old Manu Ghosh, while showing a rakhi carrying a picture of the prime minister, said, "I have made this rakhi with my own hands and I am very excited to tie it on the prime minister's wrist."

Vineeta Verma, the vice-president of the organisation, said, "A green signal has been received from the Prime Minister's Office. A team of these women and social workers will be leaving for Delhi today."
Lucknow: Senior RSS leader Indresh Kumar said on Sunday that people should boycott Chinese products and emphasised that the focus should be on 'swadeshi' products.

"The Government of India will deal with China in its own way, but we must boycott Chinese goods," Kumar said in Lucknow while attending a programme on the eve of Rakshabandhan, according to a statement.

His comments come in the backdrop of the Doka La standoff.

He claimed that the government of India has already put Pakistan and China in the dock in the global context, the statement said.

Kumar also stressed that the people should accept 'swadeshi' or made in India products in their lives.

Speaking about the Rakshabandhan, Kumar said it was a festival to honour women.

"A society which honours the women, divinity dwells there," he said.

He also stressed on respecting the armed forces. "Our independence, honour and culture is safe thanks to the Army. We must respect them," Kumar said.
A court in Surat issued an arrest warrant against Patidar quota agitation leader Hardik Patel for not appearing for the hearing of a sedition case against him on Saturday.

District judge Geeta Gopi issued a bailable arrest warrant against Hardik after he failed to appear for the consecutive second time. His lawyer Yashwant Vala said Hardik could not come because he was busy meeting members of the Patel community in Ahmedabad after a programme, scheduled for Saturday, could not be held.

Bright students from the community were to be felicitated at the programme, but it had to be cancelled at the last moment, he said, seeking exemption for his client.

Government pleader Nayan Sukhadwala pressed for a warrant against Hardik, pointing out that the Patel leader had failed to appear before the court for a second time.

The court issued a bailable warrant against him, posting the matter for hearing to 4 September.

The court had rejected Hardik's discharge application in the case on 30 June.

The Surat police registered a case of sedition under the Indian Penal Code against Hardik in 2015 after he allegedly exhorted a fellow activist to "kill policemen instead of committing suicide".

Ahmedabad police too registered a sedition case against him and five others for allegedly inciting Patel youths to resort to violence, in order to destabilise the government. Hardik is currently out on bail.
Rajnandgaon: A police sub-inspector and a constable were killed in a gun-battle with Naxals in insurgency-hit forest areas of Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district on Sunday.

The skirmish took place on Sunday afternoon, when a specialised unit of the district force was out on an anti-Maoist operation in the jungle under Gatapar police station area, inspector general of police (Durg range) Dipanshu Kabra told PTI.

A team of E-30, an anti-Naxal force of district police, was cordoning off the forests near Bhave village, over 150 km from Rajnandgaon, when it came under heavy fire from a group of ultras, leading to the encounter. However, on finding that security personnel were zeroing on them, the rebels fled into the core area of the forest, the IG said, adding that after being informed about the incident, reinforcements were being rushed to the spot.

"Sub-inspector of police Yugal Kishore Verma and constable Krish Sahu were killed in the incident," Kabra said, adding while Verma died on the spot, Sahu succumbed to injuries while being evacuated from the forest.

Bodies of the personnel have been brought to Rajnandgaon district headquarters from where they will be sent to their native places, the officer said.

Verma was a resident of Palari area in the state's Balodabazar district. A major portion of Rajnandgaon is bordering Gondia and

Gadchiroli in Maharashtra and Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh where Maoist activities have been continuously reported.

As per Maoist documents recovered from Bastar region recently, the Naxals are trying to set up their new base in this tri-junction region.
New Delhi: National Democratic Alliance's vice-presidential candidate M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday said he was "a non-party man" and that majority of the parties supported his candidature.

"I am confident that they all will vote today (Saturday)," Naidu told the media after leaving his residence for the Parliament to participate in the voting process.

Naidu said he was not contesting against anybody- individual or party. "I am contesting for the post of vice-president."

The 68-year-old said he was known to all members of the Parliament, and this was the reason that he did not campaign.

The former Union Minister was on 17 July fielded against Opposition candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi for the post of vice-president.

The voting to choose the next vice-president of India began in the Parliament at 10 am, and will go on until 5 pm.
Editor's note: From May 2017, Firstpost is featuring a fortnightly column by Mridula Ramesh, titled 'Climate Conversations'. In this column, we take a look at pressing issues pertaining to climate change  in an accessible way.

The frequency of extreme events is increasing.

This appears to be the year for breaking records.

Mt Abu, in Rajasthan, has had record rainfall this July  the highest in over 100 years. The combination of runoff from here, unusually heavy rain in Banaskantha and a canal breach have flooded parts of northern Gujarat. Ahmedabad may break a 100-year record for heaviest rainfall in July, receiving three times the normal amount. Several places in Gujarat received a large fraction of an entire seasons rainfall in 24 hours.

In another part of the country, Assam is flooded. Forty percent of the states area is flood prone  making this an annual tragedy. This year has been particularly potent: resulting in 15 times the usual economic damage. Potential solutions, including building storage to contain the rain received by the Northeast that causes the Brahmaputra to swell, are complicated by concerns of water politics with China, the dangers of dams and climate change.

As always, the rescue machinery  including the Army, Navy, the National Disaster Relief Force, the Police, Private citizens  swung into prompt action rescuing tens of thousands and providing succour.

But still, over 300 people have died until now. Tens of thousands have been evacuated. Thousands of crores lost. There are the predictable canal breaches, deaths, the crop damage, the spike in infection, and the visits of politicians.

There is also the destroyed lives, the splintered education, and the threat of human trafficking  more lasting scars of a fleeting tragedy.

It has become customary to blame climate change for such an event. It is often comforting to do so. Moreover, there is more than an element of truth in it.

But it is unhelpful.

A warmer climate is set to increase both the average rainfall India receives during its Southwest monsoon and the likelihood of extreme events such as the one Gujarat has experienced over the past month.

Moreover, in a vulnerability assessment by the Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, July rainfall for Gujarat is expected to go up, while the number of rainy days is set to remain roughly the same in the coming decades (another study shows fewer rainy days). This means more rain will fall on the same or fewer days. This sets the stage for the next prediction: The number of events with >100mm rainfall for three consecutive days is also expected to increase over most of the country. Translated: Last months floods will become more likely going forward.

In a twist of cruel irony, a warmer climate will also make drier parts of the country drier still. In a record of a different hue, South India experienced its worst drought in over a hundred years this past year. Which means flooding and drought co-existing simultaneously albeit in different parts of the country.

But why am I saying it is unhelpful to blame only climate change?

We are looking in the wrong place for answers

Because if you, the reader, were to believe that a warming climate were the only thing to blame for our problems, then you, very reasonably, would say lets cut greenhouse gas emissions of India. Shutter the coal plants. Increase subsidies for electric cars. But when Indias contribution to global greenhouse emissions is only about 6 percent, and our entire electricity sector (coal, gas, wind, nuclear, everything) contributes only 2 percent of global emissions, shuttering our coal plants will achieve littleif your goal is to stop these tragedies from happening. Especially as other countries, such as the US, who contribute a lot more are either playing hardball or making insufficient progress.

There is a scope for misunderstanding here, so let me be very clear: Yes, human-caused climate change will result in tremendous hardship, and we, as a world do need to slow and eventually stop our net carbon emissions. This needs to be a joint effort with all countries involved, especially the more developed countries who have contributed to the bulk of historical emissions and who have the deeper pockets to act.

But India, who faces the sharp end of climate change, and whose emissions are relatively small, needs to focus on setting its house in order. Because of the societal disarray, for the lack of a better phrase, the impact of climate change is mostly more acute than it needs to be. You see, the link between extreme rainfall and human tragedy is not set in stone. Extreme events need not translate into human tragedies. That part of the link has a lot to do with societal choices we make.

Take the Chennai floods that killed over 400 people in 2015. Yes, there was an unusual amount of rainfall in a very short time. But there was also disappearing water bodies, clogged drains and blocked rivers that played a huge role.

To better understand what I mean by societal choices, let me pose three questions

Do we build over a water body or not?

Do we dump construction debris into our rains and canals or not?

Do we allow slums to creep up in flood plains or not?

What we should do is theory.

Reality, as always, is different.

In practice, the answer is of course, we build over water bodies. Of course, we dump our debris into water channels. Of course, we allow our slums to be built on flood plains.

If we were to believe that this, our flouting of the should, is the root of the problem, our suggestions would then follow that we should preserve our water bodies, we should punish the builders for dumping the waste and we should find alternative housing for our slum dwellers.

Easy-peasy. Problem solved.

Only problem is that voices from across the social tableau have been saying precisely this, in differing levels of detail and shrillness, for decades. In the meantime, the problems have only gotten worse.

The next level of suggestions could be tightening regulation, tightening monitoring, and evict the slum dweller.

UmmOK. Sure. Good luck with that.

Let us go to the actor  in this case, our elected politician  who will need to frame the regulation and monitor its implementation.

Politicians do what will get them re-elected  thats the way their incentive works.

When disaster strikes, they make aerial surveys that are widely covered by the media  this shows empathy. If it hasnt already happened, they ensure the might of the state  the Army etc. to provide succour. They offer solatiums to the next-of-kin. And then they wait for the publics attention to shift. Which in this age of social media and ADHD television, they dont have to wait long. Apparently, humans now have a shorter attention span than does a goldfish!

Some of you may be thinking. This is cynical. There are heroes amidst the politicians. I agree, there are. But when we talk about processes, especially scalable processes, we cannot talk in terms of the heroes, we must talk in terms of incentives. And the incentive for the overwhelming number of politicians is to get re-elected. And they will take the most effective actions to do just that. In this case, that is to appear sympathetic, appear to be acting and move on to the next problem (which is just going to happen tomorrow).

We really cannot blame them.

We need to look deeper

If we really want to solve the problem, we need to dig deeper, and go to the wounds and whats causing them, rather than merely treat the pain.

Think of this, you are being hit repeatedly by a bully with a sharp club, and because of this, you bleed and feel pain. Its just that suddenly you need to wear a tighter belt that makes the wounds hurt that much more. Now, band-aids, a pain killer and a little rest will all help healing. But they wont solve the problem. Only confronting the bully will.

Now, a warmer, more temperamental climate is going to be pressing hard on the fissures in our social contract, that until now, we could live with. By placing more demands on our societys capacity  increased drought, increased flooding, increased farmer suicides, geopolitical unsettling, migration  the wounds could break open that much more often.

If you really want to stop the tragedies, we need to ask why and where our social contract is fraying.

We can begin by answering the same three questions:

Why do we build over a water body?

Why do we dump construction debris into our rains and canals with impunity?

Why do we allow slums to creep up in flood plains?

These answers will help uncover our actual social contract as it exists today. And understanding is the first step to creating a solution. For we will never get a lasting solution if we only look for answers in the sky.

This is part one of a three-part series on solutions to climate change. Next time, we will look at our social contract, and why it is broken; in the last part, we will look at what we need to shift it.

The writer is the founder of the Sundaram Climate Institute, cleantech angel investor, teacher and author of a forthcoming book on Climate Change and India. Follow her work on her website; on Twitter; or write to her at cc@climaction.net
Dehradun saw its first major event in support of LGBTQ rights in form of a Pride Walk on 30 July 2017. Organised by the the Prayojan Kalyan Samiti, Dehradun Pride was attended by over 100 people from all over Uttarakhand, as well as other states like Punjab, Haryana, Chennai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Madhya Pradesh. The walk began at Ashtley Hall, traversing through the Parade Ground Road, Sarvey Chowk and Tibetan Market  before finally, heading back to Ashtley Hall.

Uttarakhand, also known as Devbhoomi, is popular in India for being the site of religious pilgrimages like the Char Dham Yatra, holy significance, temples and conservative belief systems. While the place and its stories are rooted in Indian mythology and history, it was the first time that an event of such significance in the fight for universal sexual freedom was organised here.

As the participants of the Pride Walk traversed through some of the major market areas in Dehradun, the sounds of dhol accompanied them. Even the rain proved to be no impediment, as the participants danced along the route, chanting slogans like:

"Kaun si dhara sabse battar, 377, 377. Leke rahenge azadi, par pyaar se lenge azadi".

Natasha, 26, a local transgender resident and secretary of the Prayojan Kalyan Samiti, told Firstpost, "While we are slowly doing sensitisation programmes through cultural events and clean up drives trying to bring the LGBTQ community in Uttarakhand in the mainstream, organising a national event like Pride was always going to be a challenge, but we got more than we expected. The whole event and the days leading up to it became more memorable because we were hosting friends from other states as our guests and trying to make this happen. And the satisfaction comes from the fact that we started preparations only three weeks before, but pulled it off with the logistical support of many individuals. The footfall at the event wouldn't have been so high if it wasn't for people making an effort to travel all the way in the monsoons at such a short notice and supporting the march."

Here are vignettes from the Dehradun Pride Walk:
Bengaluru: The Gujarat Congress legislators, camping at a private resort near Bengaluru, would be flown back to their home state directly and not to Delhi as has been reported in a section of the media, party sources said on Sunday.

The Gujarat Congress had sent 44 of its MLAs to Bengaluru on 29 July to fend off the "poaching" attempts by the BJP, ahead of the 8 August Rajya Sabha poll in that state, in which Ahmed Patel, the political secretary to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, is contesting.

Denying the reports that the MLAs would first be flown to Delhi to meet Sonia, Congress spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil told reporters in Bengaluru that they would be returning to Gujarat "directly".

However, he declined to disclose when would the MLAs return to their home state.

"One thing that has been decided is that all of us (the 44 MLAs) will fly to Gujarat, not Delhi," he said.

Gohil alleged that it was the BJP, which was spreading "canards" that the Congress MLAs would first be flown to the national capital to meet Sonia.

He also charged that the saffron party was spreading "false reports" that the MLAs would use the 'NOTA' option in the upcoming Rajya Sabha poll to defeat Patel.

The Congress has objected to the 'NOTA' option in the Rajya Sabha poll, which is being seen as a prestige battle for the party in Gujarat.

Gohil asserted that all the Congress MLAs were "united" and that they would vote for Patel in the 8 August election.

Six of the 57 Congress MLAs in Gujarat have quit the party recently with three of them joining the BJP on 28 July.
Ahmedabad: Ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls, BJP chief Amit Shah on Sunday held a meeting with the party leaders in Gujarat, including Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, at his residence in Ahmedabad.

State BJP president Jitubhai Vaghani, party's state in-charge Bhupendra Yadav and Minister of State for Home Pradeepsinh Jadeja and other leaders met Shah in the morning for the Rajya Sabha elections of 8 August, party sources said.

According to the state party unit, Shah, who arrived in Ahmedabad late Saturday night, would stay in the city till the completion of the Rajya Sabha polls, in which, he is one of the four contestants from the state.

The BJP has maintained that Shah is in the city to celebrate Raksha Bandhan and has no official engagements.

However, party sources said the party chief discussed various issues regarding the polls with the leaders in Sunday's meeting.

They added that it is expected that similar rounds of meetings would continue on Monday.

For the three Rajya seats falling vacant in Gujarat, the BJP has fielded Shah, Union minister and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Smriti Irani and former Congress MLA Balwantsinh Rajput, who had joined the saffron party a week ago.

Of the total 11 Rajya Sabha members from Gujarat, the term of three  Smriti Irani and Dilipbhai Pandya (both BJP), and Congress' Ahmed Patel  is ending on 18 August.

Patel has been re-nominated as the party's candidate for the 8 August Rajya Sabha election.

The polls have became crucial for both the parties as new equations are emerging every day after the dramatic exit of Gujarat Congress strongman Shankersinh Vaghela from the party followed by the resignation of six of the party's MLAs.

With this, the Congress tally has reduced to 51 in the 182-seat Gujarat Assembly.

While the Congress claimed to have the support of 44 Congress MLAs, who were shifted to Bengaluru a week ago, seven others, who are still in Ahmedabad, have not opened their cards yet.
Bhopal: Senior Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said the Narendra Modi government was "misusing" the CBI and other agencies to target its opponents, which doesn't augur well for democracy in the country.

"A new politics is being played. Unfortunately, politics of narrow-mindedness, enmity, revenge and intolerance have taken centrestage in the last three years and an atmosphere of fear is prevailing in the country," the party spokesperson told reporters.

He said the trend will prove "detrimental" to democracy in the long run.

"The NDA government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is misusing the CBI and other agencies. RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and Karnataka energy minister DK Shivakumar have been targeted, which is totally undemocratic and unfair," Singhvi said, adding the Congress cannot be "cowed down" by such "threats".

Alleging that various agencies were taking "vindictive action" against the Opposition, Singhvi asked, "Why these agencies are not taking any action against the BJP leaders? Are all the BJP leaders upright and only the Opposition is full of tainted persons?"

Responding to a query, the Congress leader said the BJP's slogan of 'Congress-Mukt Bharat' is undemocratic and that the saffron party is "manifesting" it by targeting the Opposition to wipe out its rivals.

"This is unhealthy for democracy. I condemn this politics of revenge. The people of the country should unite and fight against this dirty game," he added.
Panaji: The Congress in Goa has come out in support of an RTI activist, against whom the state government has ordered an inquiry.

The Opposition party slammed the BJP-led government for ordering an inquiry into the assets of the activist, Kashinath Shetye, and said he should have been instead rewarded for exposing "misdeeds" of the ruling coalition.

On Friday, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar told the Assembly an ACB inquiry would be conducted against Shetye within eight days.

He said the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) will inquire if the activist, who is also a government servant, had amassed assets which are disproportionate to his known sources of income.

"I don't agree the state government should initiate an inquiry against the whistleblower. In fact, he should be rewarded for exposing misdeeds of the government," Congress leader Girish Chodankar said at a press conference on Saturday.

He said Shetye, a junior engineer in the electricity department, has been playing a "positive" role and should not be harassed for exposing "illegalities".

The RTI activist has filed several cases related to environment and other issues against government departments before the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court and the National Green Tribunal in Pune.

Parrikar told the House Shetye had filed 195 cases against the government in the last five years.

The chief minister said a separate probe will be instituted to find out how Shetye obtained a gun licence.
New Delhi: The Congress Working Committee (CWC) will meet on 8 August, the 75th anniversary of the historic 'Quit India' movement, as the party seeks to corner the BJP on the issue of nationalism, a senior leader said on Saturday.

The meeting of the CWC, the highest decision-making body of the Congress, will be chaired by party president Sonia Gandhi and it is likely to pass a resolution relating to the Quit India movement.

The leader said that the RSS, which is the ideological fountainhead of the ruling BJP, was not even a part of the movement while its current leadership is giving lessons on nationalism.

The Congress will also seek to highlight the role it played during the movement and the country's freedom struggle.

The Quit India movement was launched at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8 August, 1942, during World War II, demanding an end to British rule in India.
Panaji: The Congress candidate for the Panaji by-election, Girish Chodankar, on Sunday launched his election campaign with a beached offshore casino vessel in the background and attacked his opponent, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar.

Chodankar, who filed his nomination for the Panaji seat where he will face the former defence minister, said Parrikar had betrayed the country's defence interests despite border tensions to return to form a government in Goa.

"Our national leaders have ordered us to expose Parrikar who as defence minister kept coming to Goa for Goan food even as soldiers were being killed," Chodankar told reporters after launching his campaign.

He said Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi had encouraged him to take the fight to the Parrikar camp in Goa and expose the "duplicity of nationalism" which was being peddled by the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership.

"Parrikar and the BJP have betrayed the nation. When they want to form a government, they run down to Goa leaving sensitive ministries like the defence ministry. For them love for the country is secondary to love for power," Chodankar alleged.

He said the casino industry in Goa was being allegedly backed by the BJP leadership and would lead the state to doom, pointing out to the sixth proposed offshore casino vessel which has run aground at Miramar beach in Panaji.

There are five offshore casinos operational in the state. After promising to do away with the offshore casino industry, Parrikar told the monsoon session of the assembly that the offshore casinos would be moved onshore within three years.
While the Gorkhaland movement has gained lots of sympathy and support nationally, there are still hardliners in Bengal who have argued against the statehood, their three-point argument being:

a) Gorkhaland lies in the chicken neck region of India and can thus pose national security issues.

b) The geographical area and population of the region is too small to merit statehood.

c) It's economically unviable to allow it to become a state.

This article is meant to shed light on these issues, to highlight how a separate state of Gorkhaland will not only be financially independent but actually become revenue surplus.

Chicken Neck and National Security

Darjeeling district is home to the proverbial "chicken neck" region, a roughly 200-km stretch which borders four nations  Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Tibet  in distances varying from 25 kms to 60 kms. It has seen a large-scale influx of illegal migrants from Bangladesh, which started as a trickle in 1965 and turned into a gushing torrent post the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war, that lead to the creation of Bangladesh.

The 'Siliguri Corridor' has today become one of the most porous border regions in the world, and Pakistan's ISI has used this to operate its agents freely. In fact, in 2002, the writer Pinaki Bhattacharya had highlighted how the ISI was using the 'Siliguri Corridor' as a supply route to provide arms and ammunition via Bangladesh to insurgents in the North East. Following investigations into the Burdwan bomb blast, in May 2015, the National Investigating Agency released a report that explained how Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) had networks in West Bengal and lower districts of Assam, and that JMB had been using West Bengal as a safe sanctuary.

Firstpost did an exclusive story on how a network of sleeper cells helped terror modules flourish in West Bengal, and later also reported on how the main accused in Burdwan blast, Sajid, a Bangladeshi national and chief commander of JMB, was apprehended in West Bengal.

Given all this, if there is one state in India which is actually a safe haven for terrorists, it is West Bengal, and if the state government was capable of addressing national security concerns, it would have done so a long time ago. The presence of ISI modules and terrorists of various ilk in Bengal actually prove that the state government in Bengal isn't able to protect the vulnerable "chicken neck" area.

One possible reason for this could be that the state capital and its power centre, Kolkata, is located too far away from the region, because of which the state administration isn't able to focus much on the northern Bengal districts.

An independent state of Gorkhaland, including the hills of Darjeeling, Terai and Dooars, would therefore help ensure better safety and security for the "chicken neck" area. Smaller states are also easier to govern and the presence of the entire state machinery being in one region would help keep close tabs on infiltrators, unlike what is possible out of Kolkata.

Geographical area and population

Small geographical size and population is one of the key reasons why people argue against a separate Gorkhaland state. However, at 7,217 sq kms, the aspired state is larger than Sikkim and Goa, which measure 7,096 and 3,702 sq kms respectively.

In terms of population, a state of Gorkhaland would have over 40 lakh inhabitants, which is more than most North East states  Tripura, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh  and also Sikkim and Goa. So, given the area and inhabitants it would boast of, the state of Gorkhaland would also have a healthy population density.

Dr Vimal Khawas from Sikkim University said, "More than 50 percent of land in the proposed state of Gorkhaland will be arable, which would provide enough scope for the state to become sustainable and self-sufficient."

Economic feasibility

One of the most persistent questions asked of the aspired Gorkhaland state is the lack of revenue generation potential, and most of those questioning its economic viability represent the West Bengal government. Before I justify this, however, let us take a look at the state of the Bengal economy. If there is one state in India which became economically unviable, it is West Bengal. Its debt burden is so high that the total revenue generated by the government is not enough to meet the current needs, and "the repayment burden on account of market loans would increase from Rs 3,200 crore in 2016-17 to about Rs 11,610 crore in 2017-18."

In fact, the financial mismanagement in West Bengal under Mamata Banerjee is so acute that the debt burden rose 64 percent between 2011 and 2016.

In such a state, according to The Hindu, the district of Darjeeling alone contributes 15.2 percent of revenue to the state exchequer. From the data available with the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), the revenue receipts for West Bengal for Financial Year 2015-16 was Rs 86,514 crore. So, if we extrapolate this figure, we can see that the district of Darjeeling alone is contributing Rs 13,150.13 crore towards West Bengal's revenues. If we add to this the Dooars region, then we can easily see that the aspired Gorkhaland region has a revenue potential of around Rs 18,000 crore annually. This is much larger than the corresponding figures for other smaller states in India.

Notwithstanding the rhetorical opposition, facts clearly show that the proposed Gorkhaland state will not only become economically viable, but also have the potential to be one of the few revenue surplus states in the country.

World famous tea

Darjeeling tea is the first agricultural produce from India to have been accorded the 'Geographical Indication' status by the World Trade Organisation. 'Darjeeling' as a brand is recognised internationally today, so much so that even Prime Minister Narendra Modi took along Darjeeling tea as a gift when he met Queen Elizabeth of England. The demand for this tea is so high internationally that it has even been sold for Rs 1.1 lakh.

Reuters reported that the two-month agitation has already cost the tea industry Rs 250 crore. Going by this statistic, we can extrapolate that the annual revenue from tea is somewhere in the region of Rs 1,200 crore to Rs 1,500 crore. To this, if we add the produce from the Dooars region, you may start to get an idea about what the tea is actually worth if marketed properly. Much like wine from France's Bordeaux region, or scotch from the Scottish highlands, Darjeeling tea can become the main revenue source for the state of Gorkhaland.

Hydro potentials

Currently, West Bengal generates around 365 MW electricity from hydro dams in the Gorkhaland region. According to a recent report, with the shutting down of Teesta Stage III and Stage IV dams, the NHPC is incurring a loss of Rs 2.5 crores daily. These two dams contribute around 290 MW of electricity, which means the government earns a revenue of roughly Rs 86,000 per MW. So, the West Bengal government is currently earning Rs 3.15 crores everyday from the 365 MW, which translates to Rs 1,146 crore from the existing hydro dams alone.

Given that the Darjeeling region is richly endowed with gushing rivers, it is evident that the hydro potential can be further tapped. We may soon be looking at revenues of Rs 2,500 crore annually from the hydro dams alone.

Tourism and related activities

Darjeeling, Terai and Dooars region fall under one of the 32 biodiversity hotspots in the world, and are endowed with rich beauty and natural resources. Darjeeling is synonymous with tourism in India, and has immense potential as a revenue source. Close to 60,000 tourists visit this region, and the revenue generated from this is close to Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200 crore. And this despite zero marketing investment made by the West Bengal government. If the tourism potential is tapped to capacity, the revenues may actually double. But only a new state can make that happen.

Forestry, agriculture and horticulture

One of the main sources of revenue for the West Bengal Forest Development Corporation (WBFDC) has been the sale of timber and non-timber forest products harvested in the Darjeeling region. Annually, the WBFDC earns revenue of Rs 100-150 crore from the aspired Gorkhaland region, and earning potential from medicinal plants, organic agricultural and horticulture produce like oranges, ginger, cardamom and cinchona is immense. Yet, this potential has remained untapped due to the lack of initiatives on part of the West Bengal government.

Education and allied services

Darjeeling is home to some of the best schools in India, schools like St. Pauls, St. Joseph's, Loreto Convent, Dr. Grahms Home, Himali Boarding School, etc. These are home to students from all over India and the neighbouring countries. Due to the continued struggle for statehood, however, the education sector has suffered. But with a new state, brand 'Darjeeling' as an educational hub is sure to make an international comeback. The revenue potential from education and allied services alone is over Rs 100 crores.

Cross border trade

As stated earlier, the aspired Gorkhaland region borders four nations, and Siliguri is the lifeline to North East states. Given the central government's 'Look East' policy, the region's trade potential is immense. The annual revenue generation potential from cross border trade alone stands at between Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 crore annually.

Given all these facts, there is no doubt that Gorkhaland state, when formed, will go on to become one of the most prosperous and peaceful states in India, and will become another feather in India's cap, just like how smaller states like Sikkim, Goa and Mizoram have thrived.

Sad current reality

It has been 50 days since strikes were called in Darjeeling region, and the entire region has been shut in protest against the Bengal government's discriminatory policies and attitude towards the hills, Terai and Dooars in north Bengal, causing massive social, economic and political unrest. People today are convinced that they do not have any future in West Bengal, that they will continue to be discriminated against, that the economic plundering of this region will continue unabated as long as they are a part of West Bengal.

Even the central government seems to have turned a blind eye to the plight of the region's people.

Therefore, in the best interests of the people who live here, and indeed, the country at large, it would be prudent on its part to grant statehood to Gorkhaland.
Members of Communist Party of India (Marxist) staged protest outside Raj Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday as Union minister Arun Jaitley arrived in Kerala to visit the house of slain RSS functionary Rajesh, reported ANI.

Kerala: Union Minister Arun Jaitley visits family of slain RSS worker Rajesh Edavakode in Thiruvananthapuram. pic.twitter.com/7arSv34Qd6  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

Finance minister Arun Jaitley arrived in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday morning and paid a condolence visit to Rajesh's family.

"I visited the kin of our deceased karyakarta Rajesh who was slaughtered in the most barbaric manner," Jaitley told reporters after meeting the family, reported ANI.

This kind of violence will neither suppress ideology in Kerala nor it will be able to scare our workers: Arun Jaitley in Thiruvananthapuram pic.twitter.com/8Xm1QThBkQ  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

It will only increase their determination to work harder against those who are perpetuating this operation: A Jaitley in Thiruvananthapuram  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

He is also expected to visit the houses of BJP ward councillors, which were attacked allegedly by CPM activists in various parts of Thiruvanathapuram last week.

Kerala: CPI (M) members & their families stage protest outside Raj Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram, over attacks on party workers. pic.twitter.com/6bKyFANq7r  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

Jaitley's visit to the state comes on the backdrop of increasing clashes between BJP-RSS workers and CPM members. A series of violent incident between RSS activists and CPM members rocked Thiruvanathauram last week, which culminated in the killing of Rajesh, a 34-year-old swayansevak.

AK Ramya, whose husband, Sreejan Babu is battling for his life after he was attacked by RSS workers, has written an open letter to Jaitley, asking if he would also visit them, The News Minute reported.

Open letter to @arunjaitley by AK Ramya, wife of Sreejan Babu, who is battling for his life following a brutal attack by RSS-BJP in Kannur. pic.twitter.com/57GIBx6zq0  CPI (M) (@cpimspeak) August 5, 2017

On 30 July, a day after Rajesh's murder, the police took into custody five suspected CPM activists and impounded the two vehicles reportedly used by them. The BJP alleged that the CPM was behind the murder, a charge denied by the ruling party.

BJP MPs had visited the Union home minister Rajnath Singh seeking the Centre's intervention. BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi had also raised the issue of attack against BJP workers in Parliament recently.

Rajnath Singh then spoken to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and voiced concern over attacks on political workers in Kerala and said political violence was unacceptable in a democracy.

On 31 July, Vijayan met top BJP-RSS leaders and called for all-party meeting in Thiruvananthapuram to promote peace and shun violence.
Is there more to the bloodshed taking place in Kerala between Communist Party of India (Marxist) party workers and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) cadre? RSS has claimed that 14 of its workers have been killed since October 2016 in Kerala, and blamed the CPM-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) government for the violence. It said that incidents of violence and killing of its members have risen exponentially since the LDF assumed power in Kerala in 2016.

The crisis has gained national importance, underscored by Arun Jaitley's visit to the state on Sunday to take stock of the situation on ground and to mediate in the escalating tension.

Political watchers say they cannot recall a time in the immediate past when rivalry between the two groups in the state has assumed such national significance.

Importance of Arun Jaitley's visit

Jaitley arrived in Thiruvananthapuram and paid a condolence visit to RSS worker Rajesh's family. A series of violent incidents between RSS activists and CPM members rocked the state capital last week, which culminated in the killing of Rajesh, a 34-year-old swayamsevak.

Seeking immediate high-level intervention and a time-bound probe, RSS had written to then president Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and home minister Rajnath Singh to look into the matter. While slamming CPM over the growing violence and attacks on RSS-BJP workers in the state, Jaitley said, "Political enmity is bigger than enmity between nations."

The visit by Jaitley, one of the senior-most members of the central government, and a leader who is asked to act as a "fire-fighter" for the party and the government in situations of crisis, is likely to catapult the political violence issue on a national scale. It will also pile pressure on the state government and force it to confront the deteriorating law and order situation.

Jaitley will also be visiting those BJP ward councillors in various parts of the state capital, who were allegedly attacked by CPM cadre. "Jaitley's visit will obviously build pressure on the Vijayan government, as this is the first time a senior leader from the Centre has visited Kerala and spoken openly about the violence," said an RSS worker from Thiruvananthapuram who attended Jaitley's meeting.

According to sources, Jaitley will be followed by party president Amit Shah and chief ministers of BJP-ruled states, who are planning to visit Kerala and give "moral support" to the RSS-BJP workers, and urge them to "keep the heat on the LDF government".

RSS-BJP's rising influence

The RSS, in a recently-held press conference in New Delhi, claimed that the first murder of a Sangh swayamsevak took place in Kerala in 1969 "at the hand of the Marxists". The saffron party has not enjoyed much political success in the state since then despite substantial grassroots presence.

For instance, the current Kerala Assembly, comprising 140 members, has only one from BJP. That's O Rajagopal, a veteran party member who became the first BJP leader to win from Kerala, when he claimed the Nemom seat in last year's Assembly elections.

But while the CPM and the BJP-RSS combine seem to be arguing about who fired the first shot, it is surprising that the Left party should feel threatened about a political non-entity in Kerala. CPM's chief political rival here is Congress; since the state's formation in 1956, other than a few exceptions in between, the CPM-led LDF and Congress-led UDF have taken turns at ruling Kerala.

It may not be way off the mark to conjecture that the CPM, ensconced safely in its home ground, is beginning to feel the rumbles of the Narendra Modi juggernaut. It may still be way ahead in the future, but the Left, whose political fortunes have been on the decline in the subcontinent, is feeling insecure about its last remaining comfort zone, Kerala. Bengal, the other bastion of Red power, already waved goodbye to the communists, while the party's presence in Parliament has been reduced to just 19 MPs spread over various Left outfits.

For long, it has remained impossible to imagine the seed of Hindutva standing any chance of blossoming in 'God's Own Country', where Communism is said to be second nature to most. However, the Sangh has claimed that the Left has been caught "off-guard" following a large "exodus" of CPM cadre to the RSS.

The murder of CPM rebel TP Chandrasekharan is a case in point. "Communist parties never forgive apostasy. This is the reason TP was killed, and so were the other RSS men. With each murder of an apostate, the party hopes to thwart the inflow of cadres to BJP from CPM. Now, BJP is the only option for the comrades and that's why the party is being targeted," said Ganesh R, a political activist from southern Kerala.

According to Ganesh, around 80 percent of the murdered swayamsevaks were former CPM cadres. "And 80-85 percent of murders take place in party villages. Manoj, a 22-year-old swayamsevak who was recently murdered in Kannur, was originally from CPM and moved to RSS," he claimed.

Though the political violence has escalated after LDF came to power last year, RSS claimed that since 1969, "around 300 swayamsevaks have been brutally murdered by CPM cadres". "After the Emergency, there had been a growing migration of CPM workers to RSS, and this led to escalation in violent attacks on RSS," said 'sah sarkaryavah' Dattatreya Hosabale.

A study of Kerala's political history shows that it wasn't always a CPM versus RSS battle, Hosabale said. "Workers of other political parties like CPI, Congress, Muslim League, etc. have also been targeted. It's CPM versus everybody else," he said.

"The violent politics in Kerala has touched its nadir, after the CPM-led LDF came to power with Pinarayi Vijayan as the CM. He is himself from Kannur and was an accused in one such political murder. The CPM state secretary K Balakrishnan is also from Kannur and has been sheltering many criminals, alleged Hosabale.

The RSS has also alleged that the state police enjoys patronage of the ruling government, and acts in a partisan manner. "Kerala is probably the only place in the country where the police has a trade union and functions like one. It acts in a biased and arbitrary manner against non-CPM parties and their workers. Law and order situation in the state is in shambles," said J Nandkumar, a senior RSS leader and national convener of Prajna Pravah.

In 2016, Organiser, the Sangh's mouthpiece publication, came up with an extensive cover story, 'Killing fields of Kannur', based on ground reports, and it got the media's attention at the national level. It highlighted the growing violence and killings of RSS activists in Kerala, allegedly perpetrated by CPM cadre, and on the rise since the LDF government came to power.

Communist Party village

It all started in the villages of Kannur district. It's said that there are 40 villages or pockets in Kannur which are considered the CPM's bastion. Patyam, Mokeri, Kizhakke, Kathiroor, Kayyur, Chokli, Panthakkal, Madapeedika, Pookkom, Parad, Manantheri, are some of them. In some of these areas, one can even see signboards saying 'Welcome to Communist Party Village'. Others display posters announcing 'Che Guevara Gramam'. There are also posters openly declaring 'RSS banned area', 'No entry for communal RSS men'.

"You can see real Fascism here, but no human right activists are bothered about this. No flag posts or posters of non-communist parties are allowed to be exhibited here. It's nothing but a naked violation of fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution. Moreover, living standards and conditions of these villages reveal the hollowness of the claim of so-called "development activities" spearheaded by CPM. These villages are under the absolute control of CPM leaders, and no other voice is tolerated. Everything from a marriage to voting rights is controlled by the party. If you don't follow the diktat, you die," said a resident of Kannur, on condition of anonymity.

RSS and BJP workers have alleged that CPM has unleashed a 'Stalinist regime' in the state. They say the aim is to gag all anti-CPM voices through annihilation, using crude bombs and hatchets and swords as weapons of choice. They now fear that the model has expanded beyond Kannur.

"Due to cultural and political differences between the Left and the others, the CPM doesn't allow other voices to exist. They have been into systematic annihilation of RSS and BJP cadre. It was also taking place in the past, but the model has expanded beyond Kannur under the patronage of the current LDF government," Ganesh R added.

CPM's counter-allegation

The CPM, meanwhile, has accused BJP and the RSS of carrying out attacks on its party workers right from the day results of Assembly polls were declared in May 2016. The CPM politburo alleged that 13 of its workers have been killed by the RSS and the BJP since then, while 200 other workers and party sympathisers have been wounded.

"BJP's central leadership and a Union minister have raised baseless and partisan allegations against CPM. They resort to provocative actions and physical assaults against the CPM workers and claim the CPM is resorting to violence. They blame the Kerala government for not stopping such attacks," the Politburo alleged.

RSS counters CPM's allegations

"Let them come up with evidences like we have presented. It's a pre-scripted story by the CPM. It's not about RSS. In 1966, the first murder that took place was of a CPI leader. Since then, more than 40 Congress and eight Muslim League party workers have been murdered. Now, RSS is the sole target, because we're putting up a strong resistance," Nandkumar said.

"The violence in Kerala is unending. Our worker Rajesh was brutally killed. The gory details of bloodthirsty violence and gruesome murders make our blood curdle," Hosabale added.

Peace meetings

A "peace meeting" was called in Kannur on Saturday between CPM and RSS-BJP leaders. CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan urged party cadre to not indulge in violent politics. Another round of an all-party meeting is scheduled on Sunday evening.

However, as Jaitley reached Thiruvananthpuram on Sunday, a group of CPM workers staged a demonstration. "These peace meetings are a farce. Earlier too, after a murder took place, such a meeting was convened. Finally, nothing works. This time probably under mounting pressure from the Centre, the CPM state secretary gave a public statement," a local source said.
The hostility between the CPM and the BJP have been a part and parcel of Keralas political landscape but the present stand-off seems to be more than just the usual political one-upmanship.

In what looks like more of an irreversible do or die battle for supremacy in a state, which is the last recognised bastion of the Communist forces in the country, the RSS, which otherwise keeps away from getting caught in a political squabble, has certainly turned on the heat on its old adversary.

On Friday, when the Sah-Sarakaryvah or in simpler termed the joint general secretary of the RSS Dattatreya Hosabale, little known to the people of the Kerala, called a press meet at Delhi almost asking for the ouster of the Pinarayi Vijayan government on what he termed as a complete breakdown of law and order in the state, the message was clear: if the CPM does not rein its warring cadre in Kerala then the consequences would be bitter.

The BJP and the RSS have lost 14 of its workers to the CPM brutality in Kerala and the government is not doing enough to stop this cycle of violence. The RSS never advocates presidents rule but if the state government is not able to discharge its Constitutional duties, then is there any other option? Hosabale posed the question to mediapersons.

This is not the first time the RSS had raised the question of imposing the presidents rule in Kerala. It did that in January too when the violence in Kannur had reached suffocating levels with the BJP taking out a protest march in Delhi.

However, the present bout of political temperature is seen by many in Kerala as an attempt to not let the CPM and its chief minister wash their hands of their accountability. The RSS seems to have made up its mind to take control of the situation in Kerala and there are specific reasons for it. Towing the line of its ideological partner, the BJP has brought in Union minister Arun Jaitley whose visit to the state on Sunday would surely take this boiling issue to the brim.

Jaitley is set to visit the house of Rajesh, the RSS Karyavah from Thiruvananthapuram who was hacked to death by local goons owing allegiance to the CPM.

The defence minister who is expected to take part in a commemoration event for Rajesh would also meet other victims of alleged CPM brutality in the capital city.

If sources are to be believed, more such visits are likely in the coming few weeks.

RSS takes control

Political analysts in the state say that a strong intervention by the state RSS was inevitable considering the pitiable state of affairs that the BJP finds itself in.

That the BJP in the state had been on the back foot since the news of corruption stumbled out from within the party itself a few weeks ago, is a well-documented fact. If senior sources in the state unit are to be believed, Amit Shah has been terribly upset over the loss of face the party had suffered in Kerala.

We should realise that in Kerala the RSS had always been more powerful than the BJP at the grassroots. In fact, there are more RSS shakhas in Kerala than in Gujarat. Now with the BJP state leadership proving to be an utter failure, it was only a matter of time until the RSS intervened. But then the situation becomes more precarious for the CPM as dealing with the RSS is not like dealing with the BJP which is a political party, veteran journalist BRP Bhaskar told Firstpost.

The CPM leadership in Kerala which has gone into a huddle over these developments says that the RSS-BJP combines game plan is to break fragile peace process that has been set into motion by the Chief Minister at the behest of the State Governor this week.

The party claims that by stepping up tensions, the RSS is only helping the BJP to get away from the taint of corruption that has hit the state following revelations of taking kick back in the medical colleges' admission scam.

Understandably, the RSS wants to keep up the tensions in Kerala because they want to divert the focus from the rampant corruption charge that has shamed the BJP in the state. So they will try all sorts of provocations. But we have given strict orders to our cadre to be restrained during this time, Thomas Isaac, CPM leader and finance minister told Firstpost.

Political analysts also agree that keeping the focus on the present political tensions is a ploy to divert public attention from the corruption charges.

For the BJP perhaps the biggest tool that the party now has against the state government is to inflate the issue of law and order. Dattatreyas statement and Jaitleys visit should be seen in that light. I am not saying that the CPM has not played its part in the political killings. Certainly, they have blood on their hands. But the BJP has now got a big political tool to wriggle out of the corruption taint, noted political analyst NM Pearson told Firstpost.

CPM has itself to blame

Meanwhile, the central leadership of the CPM, which is equally upset over the turn of events, also agrees that if the BJP has been given a political tool on a platter then it is the state unit of the party that has to take the blame for it.

Sitaram Yechury is said to have spoken out on the issue at the polit bureau in Delhi which was then forced to issue a statement that portrayed the party as the victim of the alleged RSS attack in Kerala in reply to Dattatreyas allegations.

This was followed by CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan throwing an open challenge to Modi and team to dare dismiss the Pinarayi Vijayan government in Kerala.

But Kodiyeris statements seemed more like posturing as leaders such as Thomas Isaac went on to concede that the party had indeed fallen into BJPs game plan and to answer their provocations with an eye for an eye was nothing but political suicide.

Our cadre should have been more responsible because we are the party in power. Take the case of that CPM councillor who was caught on camera attacking the BJP state office in Thiruvananthapuram. He was certainly angry when his house was attacked by the RSS. But you cannot let such emotions get the better of you. It compromises the party politically and you ultimately play into the hands of the Opposition, Isaac added.

That the top brass of the CPM is shaken by this sustained political onslaught of the RSS is evident from Yechury's statement when he said that he was ready for a peace talk with the RSS supremo Mohan Bhagwat on the Kerala killings.

It is actually baffling that Yechury expressed his desire to talk with a non-political entity like the RSS on such an issue. This clearly shows that the CPM is actually worried and is playing into the hands of the RSS and BJP, added Bhaskar.

If the attack on the BJP state committee office at Thiruvananthapuram embarrassed the CPM, the killing of the RSS Karyavah put them totally on the back foot especially when the FIR claimed that the perpetrators had CPM connections.

It gave the BJP enough fodder to fire its cannons on the chief minister alleging that Vijayan has failed to prevent the deteriorating law and order situation especially when there was an intelligence input on the possibility of an attack on the BJP office.

A CCTV footage had clearly shown that those policemen standing guard at the BJP office were unable to prevent the attack and one police who tried to stop the attackers suffered injuries while other police personnel looked on as mute spectators.

That all this was happening in the heart of the city, in the dead of the night when the BJP state president was sleeping inside, helped the BJP inflame it as a total break down of law and order.

The government makes promises that it will do everything possible to stop the violence but does nothing. We have held such peace talks before also but the CPM has never ever stood by any of the promises they have made in the past. Whenever there is a political murder, CPM will justify it and go into denial mode. All this only shows that the CPM has no commitment to end this violence, BJP general secretary MT Ramesh told Firstpost.

Political activists point out that it is the lack of will on the part of the CPM leadership to restrain its cadre that is not giving a chance to end the cycle of violence.

The CPM is in power in Kerala and it needs to ensure that law and order is intact. But how will you do it when the party itself thrives on political violence to keep its cadre in high spirits. CPM can never survive without advocating violent politics especially at a time when the party is losing relevance everywhere, noted political activists CR Neelakandan told Firstpost.

The terror bogey

On Thursday and Friday, every English news channel in the country except the one facing the ire of the Income Tax department these days had gone to town with the political violence in Kerala. Keralas Killing Fields were among the top trending topics over social media on these days.

The CPM has alleged that the BJP government at the Centre is using a section of the national media to keep the topic alive in the public perception and has unleashed an anti-Kerala campaign across north India featuring only the murders of RSS and BJP workers while concealing the murders committed on CPM cadre over the last three decades in the state.

But perhaps, what exceeded all limits was a claim by the RSS that the state government in Kerala was hand-in-glove with Islamic State recruiters and the recent episode of youngsters from the state travelling to Syria to fight for Islamic State was a result of this appeasement and soft approach.

See the BJP is frustrated because in Kerala inspite of putting all efforts, they have so far not been able to polarise the voters or to get inroads the way they wanted. So now they are bringing in baseless allegations against the government so as to divide the people, CPM polit bureau member from Kerala MA Baby told Firstpost.

On Sunday, the BJP has made elaborate plans for Jaitley to meet families of RSS and BJP workers who have been killed or maimed in alleged CPM attacks. The CPM, on the other hand, has demanded that the Union minister should meet the CPM families also who have lost their near and dear ones. This battle is certainly not likely to end anytime soon.
Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday urged the Centre to allocate funds "liberally" to strengthen the subordinate judiciary in the state in order to provide speedy justice to the litigants.

"We (BJP and JD-U) have come together. It must also reflect (in the allocation of funds). Bihar is a big state with 38 districts and 101 sub-divisions and you (Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad) are saying Rs 50-60-70 crore will be given to it to strengthen the subordinate judiciary.... It will not serve the purpose," he said at a function in Patna.

Stating that Bihar's budget, which was around Rs 25,000 crore to Rs 26,000 crore in 2005-2006, had now increased to over Rs 1.40 lakh crore, Kumar said, "If you (Centre) want to give to the state, allocate funds liberally...I am talking about the funds for strengthening the subordinate judiciary."

He added that his government had already sanctioned Rs 169 crore for the expansion project of the Patna High Court.

The chief minister was addressing a function to launch the 'Tele Law: Mainstreaming Legal Aid Through Common Service Centre' scheme.

As per the scheme, which was launched in the state on Sunday, a common villager can have access to legal aid services with the help of the para-legal volunteers at the Common Service Centre (CSC), which would be equipped with computers and Internet facility.

Prasad, who spoke before Nitish, expressed happiness that the scheme was being launched after the BJP and the JDU joined hands in the state.

"Bihar has been given Rs 50 crore in 2016-2017 for strengthening the subordinate judiciary. I will increase it to Rs 60-70 crore the next time, provided a utilisation certificate is furnished by the authority concerned," he said.

This was the first big function in the state capital after the formation of the JD(U)-BJP-led NDA government in Bihar, where a Union minister and the chief minister shared the dais.
Jaipur: Union minister Prakash Javadekar on Saturday said that the incident of attack on Rahul Gandhi's vehicle in Gujarat was the result of infighting in Congress party.

"Levelling false allegation (on BJP) is their politics. Our job is to defeat them in elections and not pelting stone. We will do our job of defeating them in the elections," he told reporters here.

The minister said that it was the result of Congress infighting.

"The Congress has shifted its MLAs to Bengaluru from Gujarat and now the party workers are doing this (attacking Gandhi's car)," he said.

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's car was attacked on Friday by a stone in Banaskantha district of Gujarat during his visit to flood-hit areas.
Ahmedabad: The Gujarat Police is searching for three more persons allegedly involved in the attack on Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi's car in Banaskantha district.

Local Congress members claimed the three persons have been identified as Bhagwandas Patel, Mor Singh Rao and Mukesh Thakkar.

They are associated with the ruling BJP and are among the conspirators of the attack, the Congress members alleged.

The police had on Saturday arrested Jayesh Darji, an office-bearer of the BJP's youth wing in Banaskantha, after his name cropped up during investigation, an official said.

"We are trying to track down three more persons, who are on the run. Their names came up during the investigation into the attack on Gandhi's vehicle," said Dhanera circle police inspector JN Khant.

A stone was thrown at Gandhi's on Friday when he was on a visit to the flood-hit areas.

Darji and the three others have been booked under IPC sections relating to "voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from his duty, causing hurt by act endangering life and mischief causing damage to property".

Gandhi had escaped unhurt in the attack in which the glass pane at the rear of his car was broken.

He had to cut short his address to a gathering in the Lal Chowk area of Dhanera in Banaskantha district as black flags were shown to him by some of those who turned up for the meeting.

The state government had claimed that Gandhi had not taken the bullet-proof vehicle provided to him and had instead, decided to travel in the car of a party worker.

The incident has triggered sharp protests from the Congress.
Ahmedabad: Senior NCP leader Praful Patel on Sunday said his party has not decided yet about extending support to any party in the 8 August Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat.

The Sharad Pawar-led party, which had a pre-poll alliance with the Congress for the 2012 Assembly polls in the state, currently has two MLAs: Kandhal Jadeja and Jayant Patel.

These two MLAs had said they voted for the joint Opposition's presidential candidate Meira Kumar.

Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel, the high-profile political secretary to Sonia Gandhi, is seeking a fifth Rajya Sabha term from Gujarat.

The election has become interesting since the exit of Congress strongman Shankersinh Vaghela and the resignation of six MLAs of the party in the last few days, bringing down its tally in the 182-member House from 57 to 51. Three of these MLAs later joined the BJP, which has fielded one of them in the RS polls.

Patel, the NCP in-charge for Gujarat, said people are now "searching" for the two MLAs of his party given the current scenario where each vote is crucial.

"Though the NCP was part of the previous Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, there is no such alliance at present. Though we are a small party with only two MLAs, we have suddenly become important and people are now searching for these two legislators," he told reporters in Anand.

Patel said the decision about supporting any party in the Rajya Sabha polls would be taken in consultation with Pawar.

"Our two MLAs, along with other leaders of the party from Gujarat, would discuss this issue with Sharad Pawarji who would then take a call on supporting a particular party," the former Union minister said.

When asked about Congress shifting its 44 MLAs to Bengaluru to "protect" them from the BJP ahead of Rajya Sabha polls, Patel said the party itself was responsible for the current scenario.

"Usually, Rajya Sabha MPs used to get elected unopposed. It is just because of the Congress that a contest is taking place this time. Altogether 14 of their MLAs have either left the party or have made up their mind not to vote for the Congress candidate," he said.

In the 8 August polls, the BJP has fielded its president Amit Shah and Union minister Smriti Irani on two seats, and Congress defector Balwantsinh Rajput on the third against Ahmed Patel.

Patel requires 45 votes to win the election.

Though the Congress has claimed it has the support of 44 MLAs, remaining seven of the party's 51 legislators, who are not in Bengaluru, have not put their cards on table yet.

The BJP, with 121 MLAs in the House, can easily get Shah and Irani elected. However, the party falls 14 short of the 45 votes required for Rajput's victory.
Chennai: Tamil Nadu governor Vidyasagar Rao and Chief Minister K Palaniswami greeted M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday on his election as the vice-president.

"I am privileged to extend my heartiest congratulations and best wishes on being elected as Vice-President of India," Governor Rao said in a Raj Bhavan release.

"Hailing from an agricultural family, by sheer dint of hard work, perseverance, diligence and virtue of experience as a parliamentarian you have reached this high position," he said. "Your sagacity and articulation skills will bring you many more honours in your new assignment. I wish you all success in your distinguished service to the nation."

Chief Minister Palaniswami in his greetings extended heartiest congratulations for Naidu's resounding victory in the election.

"I wish to convey my heartiest congratulations to you on your resounding victory in the election to the post of vice-president," Palaniswami said.

"I wish to convey to you my own felicitations and also those of the people of Tamil Nadu for a historic tenure as Vice-President," he said.

AIADMK Deputy General Secretary TTV Dhinakaran and leaders of various political parties including DMK, PMK and DMDK also greeted Naidu.

Dhinakaran in his official twitter account said, "On behalf of party general secretary (V K Sasikala), I extend my wishes to Shri Venkaiah Naiduji on being elected as the Vice-President."

DMK working president MK Stalin expressed his greetings to Naidu on behalf of party president M Karunanidhi and his party.

On behalf of DMK & @kalaignar89 I extend my warm greetings to Hon'ble @MVenkaiahNaidu on his election as the Vice President of India today. pic.twitter.com/hLiaDJvJ8o  M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) August 5, 2017

"With vast experience in parliamentary procedures, I am quite confident that he will protect the plurality of our great nation," Stalin said.

Former chief minister O Panneerselvam, DMDK chief Vijayakanth, PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss were among those who extended their greetings to Naidu.
tech2 News Staff

"I may be nine but I think I would be fit for the job," wrote Jack Davis while applying for NASA's job listing for a Planetary Protection Officer. "My sister says I am an alien," was how Davis tried to explain his suitability for the position. NASA's Planetary Science Director, Jim Green wrote back to the child, encouraging Davis to study hard in preparation for a future career at NASA. NASAs Planetary Research Director, Jonathan Rall also gave a phone call to encourage Davis and congratulating him for showing interest in the position.

Green commented about the incident by saying, "At NASA, we love to teach kids about space and inspire them to be the next generation of explorers. Think of it as a gravity assist  a boost that may positively and forever change a person's course in life, and our footprint in the universe.""

The job of the Planetary Protection Officer is to prevent contamination of the Earth from returning spaceprobes in interplanetary missions, that may have microorganisms that have stowed away on board. At the same time, it is the job of the Planetary Protection Officer to prevent contamination of the other planets and moons in the solar system, by making sure that all spacecraft leaving the planet for these missions are properly sterlised.

The impact of alien organisms in a foreign ecosystem can be potentially deadly to one or both species. Some of the moons of the gas giants are known to have many of the ingredients necessary to support life. While the job of the Planetary Protection Officer was reported by some sections of the media as a job that required the planet to be protected from aliens, the position requires protecting the entire solar system. NASA explained this aspect in the reply to Davis, which can be seen below.
IANS

Security forces in Kashmir, particularly in its volatile south, are allegedly prying into cellphones of residents during roadside searches, raising privacy issues in a state where militants use social media to propagate their agenda and garner mass support.

Even as officials denied it was routine policing practice, dozens of incidents have been reported in recent weeks in which security forces have checked photos, videos and WhatsApp messages of civilians on their smartphones. And if anything "incriminating" related to militancy is found in the gallery of smartphones, a beating might follow, as happened with Mohammad Nadeem of Kulgam, who was on his way to Srinagar on his motorbike on July 2 when he was stopped by security forces near Awantipora. Nadeem said the security personnel went through the photo and video gallery of his phone and checked his WhatsApp messages.

"Suddenly, one of the security personnel noticed a photograph of a militant-funeral. Infuriated, he asked me to stand by the roadside and take off my shirt," Nadeem, 30, told IANS. He said he had participated in the Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Bashir Lashkari's funeral a day before where he had clicked few photographs that showed the slain militant's body and a few Pakistani flags in the backdrop. "They hit me with sticks and gun-butts, and kicked me," Nadeem alleged.

Deputy Inspector General South Kashmir Range, S.P. Pani denied knowing of any such incident even as he told IANS that if such things happened, complainants should contact the police who will take the cognizance of the matter. "I cannot tell you if this is a general police practice because I have not come across any such cases myself... But if you know somebody has undergone such an incident, they can come to the police and report it. Without knowing whose phone was checked and where, I cannot say anything about it," Pani said.

Jammu and Kashmir Police in March this year claimed to have traced connections of some 10,000 Facebook profiles to Pakistan and said militant groups control some 300 groups on WhatsApp. This increased police online surveillance amid fears that Kashmir youth are getting radicalised through widespread online militant propaganda. Musadiq Amin, 22, who studies in Degree College Pulwama, is another victim of police snooping. Amin said a group of policemen stopped him and snatched his phone when he was returning to home in Pulwama. "For 10 minutes, policemen checked my phone. But I was sure they would find nothing incriminating. When I saw two of them charging, wielding their bamboo sticks, I got jittery," Amin said. "They checked my WhatsApp and asked me about a group I was added in. It had Burhan's image as a display picture," Amin said.

The college student said he tried to tell them that it was merely a news group created by an acquaintance in which people from various villages would share news and updates about their areas occasionally. But he could not convince them. He alleged that his right shin was wounded as a result of the beating he received from the policemen, who also smashed his phone. As counter-insurgency operations intensified after Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani's killing in July last year, militant funerals have seen growing participation of locals who often capture videos and photos to circulate on social media.

But can police peep into a private cellphone?

Supreme Court advocate and renowned cyber law expert Pavan Duggal says "no" because this practice amounts to breach of privacy of a citizen. Duggal argued the fundamental right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution includes right to dignified human life, and no dignified human life can be lived without having the privacy of mobile phones and private messages stored therein. "This particular privacy cannot be deprived unless (and) until there is a special law which has authorised the checking of mobile phones and private messages. In the absence of such a law, the practice of checking the phones and private messages would amount to breaching the privacy of citizens," Duggal told IANS.

According to Duggal, the provisions of the Information Technology Act, 2000, are completely silent about physical checking of mobile phones, photo or video galleries, and WhatsApp of civilians. "The only direction where the law prescribes the provisions is giving powers to the government for direct interception, monitoring, decryption, and blocking. These have to be done at the network level," Duggal noted.

Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir's Coalition of Civil Societies (JKCCS) Khurram Parvez argued that in Kashmir any debate on privacy of citizens was out of context. "We know that the government, through its multiple agencies, is already monitoring phone calls and Internet; (checking phones) only deepens the crisis, because now even individual officers at the grassroots have access to private details of people, which will further increase the vulnerability of the citizens," Parvez told IANS.
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By Shefaly Yogendra

In the very first column in this series, I wrote about the loneliness of entrepreneurship. Add to that the stresses of building and running a fledgling business, with the worries of making cash last, making sales, making payroll, and just making it to the end of the month sometimes, and we have the makings of a psychological nightmare for founders. In the recent years, there has been more than one founder suicide, a sad outcome which is often preventable.

Nobody, no failed or successful founder, can tell you how it is supposed to be. A venture isn't about rational factors alone. As founders we give so much to it that we can lose the plot. If however getting out of bed gets harder, it is time for a rethink. Here are some pointers.

Recognise the signs.



There are signs when we aren't coping. Others can sometimes see them before we acknowledge them. These signs include (but are not limited to): poor sleep patterns; inability to concentrate or get anything done; messed-up appetite or eating patterns; loss of energy and focus; creeping substance abuse in the form of increasing use of caffeine, alcohol, cigarettes, pot etc. in the name of needing a kick, relaxation, help to fall asleep, stress relief.

Ignoring these is not wise. Inadequate or poor sleep affects our judgment including moral judgment. Poor nutrition affects energy levels but can also contribute to stress. The impact of substance abuse on judgment, motor skills and on general wellbeing is widely known too.

Ignoring any of these is unhelpful to your ability to be a good founder.

Take stock and distinguish busyness from strategic progress.



When I see stressed founders  and I include my former self in those  I ask if they stop and take stock. It is a simple step but powerful in its impact on focusing ones efforts.

Do you feel purposeful in your pursuit, or are you just cranking the handle? Can you distinguish busyness from strategic progress?

Being permanently busy hampers our ability to engage in deep and creative thinking.

Schedule leisure.



What is this life if, full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare.

Welsh poet William Henry Daviess ode to Leisure might be anathema to most founders, as they flinch when I ask what they do in their free time. I have no free time. But you have the same 24 hours as everyone else. Um.

Every once in a while, the question gets heard. And then they stop.

You schedule meetings, don't you? How about scheduling a form of downtime as you would an important meeting? This is after all just an appointment, one you keep with yourself.

What should your leisure look like? Anything you want it to look like, as long as it utterly distracts you from work, recharges you and energises you. Some find solace in nature walks and hikes, others in books. Yet others cook or find time to help social and charitable causes. A few engage in extreme sports. Find what works for you and commit time to it, weekly if not daily.

Talk to people not related to your work or Startuplandia.



And do that regularly. One of the key essentials as a founder, focused on ones narrow goals, is to keep perspective. That requires looking above the parapet and being open to being challenged.

The story of the well-known innovator Square comes to mind. The idea was to let small merchants accept cards using a square dongle. It worked well in the USA. But Europe and the UK were far more advanced in their card security features. The dongle had no capability to accept chip-and-pin enabled cards. The famous founder did not dig in his heels, but worked to understand the limitations of their offering and explored other avenues.

People not invested in your space may detract but many a time, they also have views which may make you think.

Build a wellness and self care routine.



It wont be much fun, would it, if your company is celebrating milestones and you are sitting under your desk rendered immobile by your anxiety, or worse, in hospital with stress related illness.

Wellness is not a hipster idea. Wellness - physical, mental, psychological, spiritual - enables us to follow our dreams, giving our best to all we do. And if we don't give the best to our startups, really, why are we bothering?

Shefaly Yogendra, PhD is a decision-making specialist, and advises founders and CEOs on technology, risk, branding and talent. She can be found on Twitter @Shefaly

This is the twentieth part in a series (part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 , 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19) on the startup ecosystem.
As many as 12 militants were killed in incidents in two northern Afghan provinces, the police said on Sunday.

The police repelled an attack at a security checkpoints in Raghistan district of Badakhshan province that left six militants dead and three others injured on Saturday night, Xinhua news agency quoted a police official as saying.

No troops or civilians were hurt in the gunfight, the official said.

Six other militants were killed in Faryab province when the Afghan Air Force launched an airstrike in Rahmat Abad village of Daulat Abad district, army official Nastratullah Jamshidi told Xinhua.

"The operation codenamed 'Nawid-3' is ongoing in Daulat Abad, Shirin Tagab and Khawja Sabzposh districts," he said.

Fighting has escalated as the Taliban insurgency spreads from its traditional strongholds in southern and eastern Afghanistan to the once peaceful northern region.

The Taliban militants have yet to make comments.
Doha: Al-Jazeera "deplores" Israel's decision to close the broadcaster's offices in the Jewish state and will pursue the matter through legal channels, an official at the Doha-based news channel said on Sunday.

"Al-Jazeera deplores this action from a state that is called the only democratic state in West Asia and considers what it has done is dangerous," said the official who declined to be named.

He said the broadcaster "will follow up the subject through appropriate legal and judicial procedures". Israeli communications minister Ayoob Kara announced the plan to close Al-Jazeera at a Jerusalem news conference, accusing it of being a "tool" of jihadist Islamic State group, Shiite Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.

He also noted that countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt "have concluded that Al-Jazeera incites terrorism and religious extremism".

Saudi Arabia leads four Arab countries, including Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, which broke ties with Doha in June, accusing it of fostering extremism and who later demanded Al-Jazeera's closure.

"Al-Jazeera is surprised by the announcement of the Israeli minister of communications in his justification that the decision is consistent with what has been done by Arab countries ... namely Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Egypt," the official told AFP in Doha.

The official defended Al-Jazeera's coverage of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, saying it is "professional and objective" and gives both sides of events. He said Al-Jazeera would issue a formal statement in the next few hours.
Colombo: Sri Lanka Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Sunday his government will not tolerate corruption and "remove" all those found involved in graft cases.

Wickremesinghe's comments came amid a controversy over foreign minister Ravi Karunanayake who has faced calls for resignation following his testimony at a probe on the issuance of Central Bank of Sri Lanka's bonds during 2015 and 2016.

Karunanayake is unlikely to resign.

Wickremesinghe said all allegations of corruption under his government would be investigated and action will be taken depending on the outcomes.

"There is no place for robbers in our government. We will remove them," Wickremesinghe said in the hill town of Hatton.

He said all allegations of corruption under his government will be investigated and action will be taken depending on the outcomes.

He said a senior minister's quizzing for wrongdoing by the Attorney General reflected the freedom his government has brought in.

"We have filed cases against the Rajapaksa government's corruption. Cases are going on. When the Central Bank Bond issue allegations were made against my government, I appointed an internal probe and later it was referred to a parliamentary committee headed by an opposition member," Wickremesinghe said.

The current unity government formed in 2015 with the ouster of the former Mahinda Rajapaksa regime by Wickremesinghe and President Maithripala Sirisena has faced its biggest scandal in the form of the Central Bank Bond issue.

Perpetual Treasuries, a Central Bank primary dealer, has been accused of benefiting through insider information during the governorship of Arjuna Mahendran whose son-in-law Arjun Aloysius is linked to the firm.

Mahendran, Wickremesinghe's close friend, was later removed from the job by Sirisena.
Manila: Southeast Asian nations feuded Sunday over how to respond to Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea, with Vietnam insisting on a tough stance but Cambodia lobbying hard for Beijing, diplomats said.

The debates among foreign ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at a security forum in the Philippines were the latest in years of struggles to deal with competing claims to the strategically vital sea.

The ministers failed to release a customary joint statement after meeting on Saturday because of their differences on the sea issue, and follow-up negotiations on Sunday did not end the stand-off, two diplomats involved in the talks told AFP.

"There's still no consensus," one of the diplomats said, adding the disagreements over the wordings on the sea issue were holding up the release of the communique.

"Vietnam is adamant, and China is effectively using Cambodia to champion its interests. But the Philippines is trying very hard to broker compromise language."

Vietnam had insisted that tough language be inserted into the statement expressing concern over "land reclamation", a reference to an explosion in recent years of Chinese artificial island building in contested parts of the waters.

Cambodia, one of China's strongest allies within ASEAN, has firmly resisted, according to the diplomats involved in the talks in Manila, as well as an excerpt of proposed Cambodian resolution obtained by AFP on Sunday.

China claims nearly all of the sea, through which $5 trillion in annual shipping trade passes, and its artificial islands have raised concerns it could eventually build military bases there and establish de facto control over the waters.

Its sweeping claims overlap with those of ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.

No consensus

Tensions over the sea have long vexed ASEAN, which operates on a consensus basis but has had to balance the interests of rival claimants and those more aligned to China.

Critics of China have accused it of trying to divide ASEAN with strong-armed tactics and chequebook diplomacy, enticing smaller countries in the bloc such as Cambodia and Laos to support it.

The Philippines, under previous president Benigno Aquino, had been one of the most vocal critics of China and filed a case before a UN-backed tribunal.

The tribunal last year ruled China's sweeping claims to the sea had no legal basis.

But China, despite being a signatory to the UN's Convention on the Law of the Sea, ignored the ruling.

The Philippines, under new President Rodrigo Duterte, decided to play down the verdict in favour of pursuing warmer ties with Beijing. This in turn led to offers of billions of dollars in investments or aid from China.

"It's clear that China's pressure on individual ASEAN governments has paid off with few prepared even to reiterate statements that they have made many times before," Bill Hayton, a South China Sea expert and associate fellow with the Asia Programme at Chatham House in London, told AFP.

"Beijing's task has been made easier because the Philippines holds the (ASEAN) chair this year."

The ASEAN foreign ministers and their Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on Sunday adopted a framework for negotiating a code of conduct to defuse tensions in the sea.

Wang hailed this as a breakthrough.

But analysts cautioned not to place too much significance on the agreement on a framework, pointing out it came 15 years after a similar document was signed committing the parties to negotiating a code of conduct.

Philippine foreign ministry spokesman Robespierre Bolivar told reporters the ASEAN joint statement would be released by the time meetings with foreign ministers from other Asia-Pacific nations wrapped up in Manila on Tuesday.

But one diplomat involved in the talks told AFP that Vietnam and Cambodia were holding firm on Sunday.

"The atmosphere is still very tense due to the strong national interests of Vietnam and Cambodia," the diplomat said.
Madrid: Spain will not set as a condition in Brexit talks that it recovers Gibraltar, its foreign minister said on Sunday in an interview that could ease tensions over the disputed British territory.

Nestled on Spain's southern tip, Gibraltar has been under British control since 1713 but Madrid has long wanted it back.

Authorities in the tiny rocky outcrop fear Spain will influence complex negotiations between the EU and Britain to leave the bloc to try and gain authority over Gibraltar.

But in an interview with Spain's conservative daily ABC, Alfonso Dastis said he didn't want to "jeopardise" the deal by demanding that Gibraltar change its status, a stance that Britain would likely never accept".

"I won't make an agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom conditional on recovering sovereignty over Gibraltar," he said.

He added that Spain's proposal of joint sovereignty over the Rock, which would see people in Gibraltar get the Spanish nationality on top of the British one, still stood.

"We will try to convince the Gibraltarians that this is a route worth exploring and that it would benefit them too," he said.

Spain has argued this will allow Gibraltar to stay in the 27-member bloc, but authorities there categorically reject the idea.

Gibraltarians had already rejected such a proposal in a 2002 referendum, and they want to stick with the Union Jack despite voting by 96 per cent to remain in the EU.

Dastis's comments appear conciliatory as tough Brexit negotiations are under way.

But Britain will still have to wrangle over a clause inserted into the EU's negotiating position which states that post-Brexit, Spain will have the right to veto any future relationship between the 27-member bloc and Gibraltar.

This clause caused huge tensions when it was unveiled in March, prompting British prime minister Theresa May to say she would "never" allow Gibraltar to slip from British control against the wish of Gibraltarians.
Beijing: Notwithstanding the India-China tension over the Doka la standoff, Beijing is upbeat about the next month's BRICS summit to be held in the Chinese city of Xiamen, expecting "concrete cooperation" among the five emerging economies.

"I think this year's summit in Xiamen will produce more practical and concrete cooperation and improve trust and confidence among BRICS," Shen Yi, director of the centre for BRICS studies at Fudan University was quoted by state-run Xinhua news agency in a commentary on the upcoming summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to attend the summit of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) being hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

There is no word yet here whether the two leaders would be meeting on the sidelines of the summit as the standoff between Indian and Chinese troops continues at the Doka la area of the Sikkim Sector, making it the longest stalemate between the two militaries in recent years.

India and China have been locked in a prolonged standoff in the area in the Sikkim sector since 16 June after Chinese troops began constructing a road near the Bhutan trijunction.

Bhutan has protested to China, saying the area belonged to it and accused Beijing of violating agreements that aim to maintain the status quo until the boundary dispute is resolved.

India says the Chinese action to construct the road was unilateral and changes the status quo. It fears the road would allow China to cut off India's access to its northeastern states.

The summit will discuss the organisation's role in global governance, a faltering economic recovery and setbacks in globalisation, the Xinhua commentary said.

"BRICS: stronger partnership for a brighter future" will bring together the leaders of all the five countries, it said.

The "gold bricks countries"  a Chinese translation of BRICS  represent emerging markets and are the voice of the world's developing countries, it said, without referring to the current round of India-China tensions over Doklam.

The Xinhua commentary also highlighted Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's assertions in the past about BRICS Plus under which China says the five-member bloc should expand cooperation with developing countries.

Last year, India which hosted a summit in Goa invited leaders of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic) in which Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal are members.

China is yet to release its list of guests to meet on the sidelines of the BRICS summit.

China does not want to limit future cooperation to the five nations. In March, Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi said that China would explore expansion modalities for "BRICS Plus" and build a wider partnership through dialogue with developing countries and international organisations, the commentary said.

"BRICS Plus" will provide opportunities for other economies and inject impetus into economic globalisation, it quoted the chief economist of the Eurasian Development Bank Yaroslav Lissovolik as saying.

"The proposals of Minister of Foreign Affairs of China Wang Yi regarding the expansion of the BRICS partnership zone are not only timely in the light of China's presidency of BRICS, but they are also aimed at giving new impetus to integration processes in the complicated conditions of protectionism's spread in the world economy," Lissovolik said.

Observers say that BRICS is consensus based organisation and consent of the five required for its expansion.

Strong economic growth means BRICS are now key players in the world economy and in global governance, the Xinhua commentary said.

Together, the five countries accounted for 23 percent of the 2016 global economy, almost double their share in 2006. The five have been the source of more than half of global growth in the past ten years.

"BRICS cooperation has not only helped the countries themselves but enhanced the right to speak on global issues for all developing countries," said Ruan Zongze, executive vice president of the China Institute of International Studies.

As the holder of the BRICS presidency this year, China is hosting the series of meetings which usually precedes the leaders' summit.

Earlier this week, trade ministers met in Shanghai and agreed to unite against protectionism and to do all they can to ensure the survival of the multilateral trade system.

In late July, a BRICS security meeting was held in Beijing, with discussions on global governance, anti-terrorism, the internet, energy, national security and development.

In June, finance ministers and central bank governors agreed to strengthen cooperation in several fiscal and financial areas, including the BRICS New Development Bank and regulatory collaboration.

With the progress of the past ten years and a more inclusive attitude, BRICS are prepared not only for the Xiamen summit but for another golden decade to come, the commentary said.
While most Indians perceive the conflict with China only in military terms, Beijing achieved its aim without a single shot being fired. We have not yet fully wrapped our heads around the other three battlegrounds of China in the 21st century.

Firstly, over a billion Indians who have been mired in ennui, did not bother to refrain from purchasing goods 'Made in China'. Hence, China knows very well that its grip over legitimately manufactured goods and global rip-offs will not be affected by the call of war. If the people of China do not care why would the rest of the world bother? Even as I look around me the TV, the mobile phone, the laptop, the coffee mug and toaster share a common genesis.

Secondly, we are refusing to recognise the potential of cyberspace. Recently, there has been the talk of dormant viruses being installed in computers and sold to military setups. The computers work perfectly well until the viruses are activated after which the machines go awry and malfunction. The possibility is not just in the realm of science fiction and one cannot choose to ignore the reality of the hazard. One of the threats that cannot be overlooked is the potential of manufacturing or assembling a remote control for the machines.

In an episode of Madame Secretary, a popular TV drama, the US is able to control Israeli strikes on Iran by shutting down the systems in the fighter jet hardware it had sold to Tel Aviv. It is all very convincing.

There is no reason why their high technology Trojan horses would not work. You would not even be aware of the virus that might be snugly hibernating in your infrastructure. In the same sphere of knowledge, is the power to hack and cause disruptions to transportation, urban mobility and mass transit, public amenities like electricity and water and traffic control which could add to the pre-war confusion. If the lights go off what war can you fight? It might sound cinematic but it is real.

India plans big purchases for its armed forces and with an annual budget of $53 billion, the country is the fifth largest weapon shopper. It has to be extremely careful of what it buys and from whom because, without a screening in combat, we could be a sitting duck for sure. This is specifically valid for computer systems that command the weaponry, be it ships, tanks or aircraft.

In the last two months of hostility, China has probably used fifth-century war strategist Sun Tzus tenth chapter on terrain as a guide. China's aggressive posture is accentuated by playing with the Indian psyche. This cat and mouse strategy is designed to mess with our minds and we must pay back and not be a pacifist. The psychology, after all, is a terrain.

China has observed India's strengths, assessed its political and military Indian reactions, felt the mood of the northeast and used the threat of aggression to attain a large amount of ground intelligence, as well as, nudge India at its will to see where its breaking point is. These litmus tests have been conducted with a sense of purpose. Whether right or wrong, it has attained these objectives without any shot being fired and China probably feels it can bide its time because even if the dragon goes back into the cave, it has infinite patience and can belch fire another day or simply make little forays to wear us down.

The neighbouring country has tested the waters seriously after a gap of 55 years and there was an intent to disrupt the status quo. Whether it is the road in Bhutans Doka La or a new mess in Kashmir, New Delhi and the rest of the country has to step up the vigil and upgrade its attention to the new fields of battle.

The Chinese are not backing off, they are simply achieving what they had set as targets and we would be dangerously wrong to celebrateinstead of pondering what China has gained from this dry run.
Jeddah: Saudi Arabia has pledged $33.7 million to help the World Health Organisation eradicate cholera in war-wrecked Yemen, where the disease has killed nearly 2,000 people, the WHO said on Sunday.

Gregory Hartl, a spokesman for the organisation, confirmed that Saudi Arabia, which leads an Arab coalition battling rebels in Yemen, had signed an agreement committing the funds to help the WHO battle the spread of cholera.

The oil-rich Gulf kingdom, in a statement on Thursday, said the money committed to WHO was part of an overall effort to combat the cholera outbreak in Yemen.

Riyadh said it also pledged $33 million to the UN's children agency, UNICEF, for a project to improve water and sanitation facilities which are "drivers of the epidemic". The Saudi aid was initially announced in June by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Last week the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, also pledged $10 million to help the WHO stem the spread of cholera in Yemen.

The United Arab Emirates is a key member of the Saudi-led coalition that entered Yemen's conflict in 2015 on the side of the government against Iran-backed Shiite Huthi rebels.

Since then, the war in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula nation has killed more than 8,000 people, according to WHO figures.

The cholera outbreak has already claimed the lives of at least 1,915 people since April 2017, with 436,000 suspected cases across the country. A report by three UN agencies last week said the vicious combination of war, cholera and hunger has left 80 percent of Yemeni children in desperate need of aid. It also warned that the number of cholera cases was expected to reach 600,000 by the end of the year.

The report was issued after executive directors of WHO, UNICEF and the World Food Programme visited Yemen to assess the situation.
For the first time in twenty years, Pakistan's Cabinet will have a Hindu member. President Mamnoon Hussain on Friday sworn-in the new Cabinet led by interim prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, which also included Dr Darshan Lal, a PML-N legislator from Sindh province.

According to Reuters, Lal was allotted the responsibility of overseeing co-ordination between the four provinces of Pakistan: Punjab, Sindh, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

According to The Indian Express, Lal used to be a doctor in Sindh's Ghotki district. Sindh is home to about 90 percent of Pakistan's Hindu population.

Lal was elected to the National Assembly for the second time under PML-N's minority quota, the report noted.

Reuters also noted that under former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, the PML-N courted the minority vote, using symbolic gestures at odds with its conservative base.

Pakistan has had a two Hindu Cabinet ministers in the past. While Jogendra Nath Mandal, a Scheduled Caste legislator from Bengal, was Pakistan's first law minister, Rana Chander Singh, a veteran leader from Umerkot, a Hindu-dominated district in Sindh, served as a Cabinet minister under Benazir Bhutto.

The new Cabinet largely retained old faces but some new leaders were included as ministers and ministers of state. There are 28 federal ministers and 19 state ministers in the new Cabinet, almost double Sharif's 25-strong Cabinet when he swept the 2013 polls.

Khawaja Asif was appointed as the country's first full-time foreign minister since 2013, when the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party came to power.

Ahsan Iqbal was appointed the interior minister and former trade minister Khurrum Dastigir Khan was given the defence portfolio.

However, the powerful former interior minister Nisar Ali Khan was excluded from the new Cabinet after he refused to join due to differences with the party leadership.

The transition to the new Cabinet happened a week after Sharif's ouster on 28 July. Abbasi, a die-hard Nawaz Sharif loyalist, was on Tuesday elected as the interim prime minister by the National Assembly. Shehbaz Sharif will take over from Abbasi after he is elected to the National Assembly in a by-election.

Pakistan's Supreme Court had ordered Nawaz to step down and ruled that graft cases be filed against him and his children over the Panama Papers scandal. It was the third time the 67-year-old veteran politician's term as premier has been cut short.

Nawaz was disqualified from holding his office as the judges ruled that he had been dishonest to parliament and the courts and could not be deemed fit for office. Finance minister Ishaq Dar and captain Safdar, who is a Member of National Assembly (MNA), were also disqualified from office.

With inputs from agencies
Washington: United States president Donald Trump commended China and Russia on Saturday for their support on a United States-drafted resolution ramping up sanctions on North Korea, saying he "appreciates" their votes.

"The President appreciates China's and Russia's cooperation in securing passage of this resolution," read a White House statement released after the United Nations Security Council's unanimous passage of the sweeping measures.

"He will continue working with allies and partners to increase diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea to end its threatening and destabilising behavior."
Bridgewater: White House counselor Kellyanne Conway says President Donald Trump is "not discussing" firing Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Speaking on ABC's "This Week," Conway says the White House has made clear it will cooperate with Mueller's investigation into possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia.

The Associated Press reported last week that Mueller was now using a grand jury in Washington as part of that probe.

Conway says Trump believes the Russia investigation is a "complete false and fabricated lie." But she says the president "has not even discussed" nor is "discussing" firing Mueller.

Senators introduced bipartisan bills last week creating judicial review procedures that could shield Mueller from firing by Trump.
Cairo: Two terrorists have been killed during raids carried out by the army in Egypt's restive North Sinai governorate, officials said on Sunday.

Army spokesperson Tamer el-Refae said that the Takfiri terrorists were "very dangerous" and wanted by the authorities.

A main tunnel on the Sinai border line was discovered and destroyed, he said.

Egypt's North Sinai has witnessed many terror attacks since January 2011 uprising that toppled ex-president Hosni Mubarak.

The attacks, targeting police and military, increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 by military following massive protests against his rule.

Hundreds of police and army personnel have been killed since then.

The military has launched security operations in the North Sinai area where some terrorists are based.

The security forces have arrested suspects and demolished houses that belong to terrorists, including those facilitating tunnels leading to the Gaza Strip.
Hiroshima: Hiroshima's appeal of "never again" on the anniversary Sunday of the world's first atomic bomb attack has gained urgency as North Korea moves ever closer to acquiring nuclear weapons, showing its growing prowess with increasingly frequent missile launches.

When the US dropped the bomb on 6 Aug, 1945, Toshiki Fujimori's mother was carrying him, then just a year old, piggyback to the hospital. The impact of the explosion threw them both to the ground, nearly killing him.

"Obviously tensions are growing as North Korea has been pushing ahead with nuclear tests and development," said Fujimori. "Nuclear weapons just are unacceptable for mankind."

Many Japanese and others in the region seem resigned to North Korea's apparent newfound capacity to launch missiles capable of reaching much of the continental United States. But the threat lends a deeper sense of alarm in Hiroshima, where 140,000 died in that first A-bomb attack, which was followed on 9 Aug, 1945, by another that killed more than 70,000 people in Nagasaki.

"This hell is not a thing of the past," Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui said in his peace declaration at Sunday's ceremony. "As long as nuclear weapons exist and policymakers threaten their use, their horror could leap into our present at any moment. You could find yourself suffering their cruelty."

Today, a single bomb can cause even greater damage than the bombs dropped 72 years ago, he said. "Humankind must never commit such an act," he said, urging nuclear states, as well as Japan, to join the nuclear weapons ban treaty adopted by the United Nations in July.

Fujimori said that each 6 Aug, his late mother, who also survived, insisted on retelling the story of the attack to children in their neighborhood, saying she had to keep reminding them to help prevent the same mistake from happening again. Decades later, 73-year-old Fujimori himself is a leader of Hidankyo, a major organization of atomic bomb survivors.

"We must eradicate nuclear weapons from the earth to make the world a safe place to live," he said in an interview. "There is still a lot to do and we must keep working on it."

He said the adoption of the UN nuclear weapons ban, which was boycotted by all nuclear-armed nations, shows that most of the world supports that cause.

Two recent test-firings of Hwasong-14 inter-continental ballistic missiles suggest that major US cities such as Los Angeles and Chicago are within range of North Korean weapons. Such missiles could be armed with nuclear, biological or chemical warheads, although many experts say North Korea hasn't fully mastered miniaturizing nuclear warheads and might not have the technology to ensure a warhead would survive re-entry into the atmosphere from space or even hit an intended target.

Such developments draw mixed feelings from Kim Ji Nho, a pro-Pyongyang ethnic Korean who was born in Hiroshima. Kim, 71, is a "hibakusha," or atomic-bomb survivor, who was exposed to radiation when his mother, pregnant with him, went to the ruins of the city to search for a daughter who went missing in the blast. He grew up in a community of ethnic Koreans in the city and has a relative who had since moved to North Korea.

He is critical of the US, and says only dialogue, not military actions or threats, can resolve tensions with the erratic leadership in Pyongyang.

But regarding nuclear weapons, "We 'hibakusha' and our groups share a clear goal, which is to abolish nuclear weapons from the world," Kim said. "Nuclear weapons should never be used."

Like his father, many Koreans were brought to Hiroshima, a wartime military hub, as forced laborers during Japan's colonization of the Korean Peninsula in the first half of the 20th century. They and their descendants have endured outright discrimination by Japanese. So have A-bomb survivors: Kim's father had told him to keep mum about his radiation exposure, because being "hibakusha" could only mean more trouble.

The two survivors said Japan's refusal to join the UN nuclear treaty, apparently because it's protected under the US nuclear umbrella, was heartbreaking.

Hopes that the US and Japan might support the nuclear weapons ban rose during former President Barack Obama's 2016 visit to Hiroshima. But such expectation has dimmed as North Korea's threat has escalated.

"What if that young leader (Kim Jong Un) pushes a nuclear weapons launch button? I think neighboring Japan has a risk of being hit," said Tamio Ishida, 59, whose father was a survivor. "I think tensions have risen and many people in Hiroshima share a sense of urgency."

Ayaka Kajihara, 18, a college student, says she imagined her late grandmother, also a "hibakusha," suffered greatly, though she was reluctant to discuss her past. Even so, she feels it was very important to learn what happened to the grandmother and her hometown 72 years ago.

More than 300,000 of the "hibakusha" have died since the attack, including 5,530 in the past year. The average age of the survivors is more than 81 years. Many suffer from long lasting effects of radiation.

"I hope more people from the rest of Japan and overseas will visit Hiroshima and just see and feel the reality of what the atomic bomb has done, and start from there," she said. "Because that's how I started thinking about peace  by meeting 'hibakusha,' including my grandmother and hearing their stories."
Tehran: India and Iran assessed progress in implementation of joint projects, including development of the Chabahar Port, as Union Minister for Road Transport, Highway and Shipping Nitin Gadkari visited Iran.

The minister was in Iran on a two-day visit from Saturday, to attend the inauguration of the Hassan Rouhani in his second tenure as Iran's president.

An official statement said Gadkari interacted with President Rouhani, called on the First Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri and held detailed exchange of views with Minister of Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi.

Both sides, in a series of meetings, reviewed and assessed the progress in implementation of the decisions taken during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Iran last year, including the progress in the development of Chabahar Port, a statement said.

"Both sides reiterated their commitment to complete and operationalise the Port at the earliest that would contribute to bilateral and regional trade and economic development and also provide alternate access to landlocked Afghanistan to regional and global markets," the statement said.

Gadkari also handed over to Rouhani a letter from Modi felicitating him and inviting him to visit India.

Chabahar port is located in the southeastern Sistan-Balochistan province, on the Gulf of Oman.

In May 2016, India and Iran signed a bilateral agreement in which India would refurbish one of the berths at Shahid Beheshti port, and reconstruct a 600-metre long container handling facility at the port

The port, intended to provide an alternative for trade between India and Afghanistan, is 800 kilometres closer to Afghanistan than Pakistan's Karachi.
Islamabad: Internet services were disrupted across Pakistan for about 38 hours due to a fault in the India-Middle East-Western Europe submarine cable, affecting flight services and other activities.

Internet services were restored on Sunday after the disruption caused by the fault in the undersea internet cable, a Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) spokesman said.

The disruption prevented airport officials confirming flight schedules and ticket bookings, as a result of which at least eight domestic and international flights at Islamabad's Benazir Bhutto International Airport were cancelled earlier, airport officials said.

Internet services were restored after the 38-hour-long disruption caused by a fault in the India-Middle East-Western Europe (I-ME-WE) submarine cable, the PTCL spokesman said. A fault in the submarine cable caused consumers and businesses across Pakistan to experience major internet disruptions, with many customers complaining of slow browsing speeds.

PTCL chief business development officer Sikander Naqi told Dawn that the disruption was caused by cuts in a PTCL cable, but the company had succeeded in restoring internet services across the country.

"A cable was cut in Saudi Arabia near Jeddah on Saturday morning," he said. "Experts initially thought the cut was under the sea but after a bit of research, they figured out that the cable that was cut is on land. It has now been repaired and services are back to normal."

"There are four PTCL cables, whereas private companies have two. Six cables are good enough for Pakistan. Unfortunately due to two cuts at the same time, service across the country was disrupted," he said.
Tehran: An Iranian soldier opened fire on his colleagues, wounding 10 of them at a military air base in south Tehran, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported onSunday.

The report offered no motive for the attack. State media did not immediately report the shooting, which Mehr said took place in Kahrizak, which is on the southern outskirts of Tehran.

All injured soldiers were taken to an Air Force hospital in southeast of the city, the report said.

The reported shooting is the latest to strike Iran.

In July, a soldier opened fire on his comrades, killing three and wounding six at a military base in the town of Abyek, some 100 kilometres west of Tehran.

The assailant reportedly shot himself in the incident, but survived and was taken to a nearby hospital.

In September, a soldier killed himself after shooting to death three of his comrades in the south of the country.

Military service of up to 24 months is mandatory for men age 19 and above in Iran.
Jerusalem: Israel on Sunday said it plans to ban Qatar's flagship Al-Jazeera news network from operating in the country, joining regional Arab states that shut down the broadcaster amid allegations that it incites to violence.

Communications minister Ayoob Kara said he plans to revoke the press credentials of Al-Jazeera journalists, effectively preventing them from working in Israel.

Kara said he has asked cable and satellite networks to block Al-Jazeera transmissions and is seeking legislation to ban them altogether.

The minister, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party, gave no timetable for such measures.

Doha-based Al-Jazeera did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Its Arab and English channels reported the news.

Walid al-Omari, the broadcaster's bureau chief in Jerusalem, said on air that his office has not been informed by Israeli officials of any possible measures the government might take.

Al-Jazeera, a pan-Arab satellite network funded by the Qatari government, already has been targeted by Arab nations now isolating Qatar as part of a months-long political dispute over Doha's politics and alleged support for extremists.

Jordan and Saudi Arabia have recently closed Al-Jazeera's local offices, while the channel and its affiliate sites have been blocked in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain.

"Lately, almost all countries in our region determined that Al-Jazeera supports terrorism, supports religious radicalisation," Kara said.

"And when we see that all these countries have determined as fact that Al-Jazeera is a tool of the Islamic State (group), Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, and we are the only one who has not determined that then something delusional is happening here."

Israeli officials have long accused Al-Jazeera of bias against the Jewish state. Defence minister Avigdor Lieberman has likened its coverage to "Nazi Germany-style" propaganda.
Jerusalem: Israel's communications minister has said he wants to shut down pan-Arab broadcaster Al Jazeera in the country.

Ayoob Kara, of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, said Sunday he wants the news network's press cards revoked and has asked cable providers to block their transmissions. He said he wants them banned altogether. No timetable for the measures was given.

Kara said the station is used by militant groups to "incite" violence.

He said it is "delusional" that Arab states in the region banned Al Jazeera for that reason but Israel has not. "Lately, almost all countries in our region determined that Al Jazeera supports terrorism, supports religious radicalization," Kara said.

"And when we see that all these countries have determined as fact that Al-Jazeera is a tool of the Islamic State (group), Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, and we are the only one who have not determined that then something delusional is happening here."

Jordan and Saudi Arabia have closed Al Jazeera's local offices, while the channel and its affiliate sites have been blocked in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain.

Doha-based Al-Jazeera did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Its Arab and English channels reported the news.

Walid al-Omari, the broadcaster's bureau chief in Jerusalem, said on air that his office has not been informed by Israeli officials of any possible measures the government might take.

Al Jazeera, a pan-Arab satellite network funded by the Qatari government, already has been targeted by Arab nations now isolating Qatar as part of a months-long political dispute over Doha's politics and alleged support for extremists.

Israeli officials have long accused Al Jazeera of bias against the Jewish state.
Manila: A Japanese foreign ministry spokesman on Sunday welcomed tougher UN sanctions on North Korea over its missile tests and said it was time to exert more "effective pressure" on Pyongyang rather than to pursue dialogue.

"Now is not the time for dialogue but the time to increase effective pressure on North Korea so that they will take concrete actions towards de-nuclearisation," deputy foreign ministry spokesman Toshihide Ando told a news conference in Manila, ahead of a regional security meeting attended by all parties involved in the standoff.

He also said Japan was gravely concerned about China's building of what he called "large-scale outposts" in the South China Sea.

China's foreign minister had earlier stressed that dialogue was needed as well as sanctions on North Korea.
Tripoli: Libya's coastguard intercepted 137 migrants including five women and three children on Sunday as they attempted to reach Europe, a migration official said.

Amine al-Boussefi, head of a government agency in Tripoli tackling clandestine migration, said "137 migrants were successfully rescued by the coastguard... then handed over to us".

The migrants, from several African countries, were aboard an inflatable boat intercepted Sunday morning around 40 kilometres north of Sayyad, a seaside village west of Tripoli, navy spokesman General Ayoub Qassem said.

The migrants were taken to a navy base in the capital where the Libyan authorities gave them food, water and medical treatment, an AFP photographer said.

They were then transferred by bus to the eastern Tripoli suburb of Tajoura and handed over to the anti-migration agency.

The AFP photographer saw dozens of migrants gathered in a courtyard at the agency, sitting on the ground under the blazing sun as they waited to be put in detention centres.

Six years since a revolution that toppled dictator Moamer Kadhafi, Libya has become a key departure point for migrants risking their lives to cross the Mediterranean to Europe.

Hailing mainly from sub-Saharan countries, most board boats operated by people traffickers in the country's west, heading for the Italian island of Lampedusa 300 kilometres away.

More than 111,000 migrants have reached Europe by sea so far this year, the vast majority of them arriving in Italy, according to the latest figures from the International Organization for Migration.

Over 2,300 have died attempting the crossing.
Islamabad: Pakistan's ousted premier Nawaz Sharif will travel to Lahore from Islamabad via the famous Grand Trunk Road next week in a bid to show his popularity among the people.

Sharif has not visited his home town and his stronghold, Lahore, since he was disqualified by the Supreme Court last week over the Panama Papers scandal.

The former premier wanted to go to Lahore via the Grand Trunk Road soon after his ouster as a show of strength but was persuaded by close advisors to avoid confrontation with the judiciary, sources in the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said.

He was also asked to delay his plan due to security issues, they said.

After the verdict, Sharif went to Murree and stayed there for about a week and then returned to Islamabad. Hundreds of supporters were present at different locations during the journey to welcome him. Encouraged by the support, he changed his plan and decided to travel by road to Lahore next week.

According to the initial programme, he was to go to Lahore through Motorway on Sunday.

Another reason for changing the day and route for travelling to Lahore was the insistence of his workers to address rallies at main cities along the Grand Trunk Road.

Sharif's spokesman Asif Kirmani said that the former premier would embark on his journey from Islamabad to Lahore via the Grand Trunk Road on Wednesday at 9 AM.

He would speak to supporters at selected places before addressing a huge gathering in Lahore, where already preparations for it are underway.

Analysts believe that PML-N wants to use the ouster of Sharif to gain sympathy in Punjab ahead of next year's elections.
Warri (Nigeria): Gunmen stormed a Catholic church in a town in southeast Nigeria early on Sunday, killing 12 worshippers, hospital sources and witnesses said.

The attack took place at around 6 am at St. Philip's church in Ozubulu, near the city of Onitsha, witnesses said. "So far, 12 persons have been confirmed dead and deposited in the mortuary here while several persons are receiving medical attention," a staff worker at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital in Nnewi, where the victims were admitted, told AFP.

Several worshippers with gunshot wounds were receiving treatment at the hospital, the source said.

Witnesses said five gunmen in masks stormed the church and opened fire on worshippers. They feared that up to 20 people may have died. In contrast, Anambra State Police commissioner Garba Umar said the attacker was a lone gunman, who "went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding" worshippers.

Witness Chukwuma Emeka said he had just stepped out of the church to stretch his legs "when I heard gunshots and screaming and people running inside." "When the chaos subsided I went inside, I saw my fellow church members dead in a pool of their own blood and many others were screaming in pain."

Security agents were said to have cordoned off the church.
Manila: Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte has asked lawmakers to approve the recruiting of 20,000 more soldiers to tackle increased security threats following a bloody urban siege in the south, his spokesman said on Sunday.

Almost 700 people have been killed, according to the official count, in over two months of fighting in the southern city of Marawi against Islamist militants who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group.

The militants, waving the black Islamic State flag, have occupied parts of Marawi since 23 May, prompting Duterte to declare martial law in the entire southern region of Mindanao.

"The request of the president for additional 20,000 troops is part of our intensified security posture to guard areas in the country where there are continuing security threats," spokesman Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

"The deployment of troops to Marawi and other points in Mindanao needs to be re-balanced to ensure maximum effectiveness," he added.

The Philippine military numbers about 125,000 and faces numerous threats including the Islamic State-inspired militants in Mindanao, communist guerrillas scattered all over the archipelago and territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea.

The military is among the region's most poorly-equipped, with only a dozen jet fighters and a fleet composed mainly of second-hand ships.

So many troops have been deployed to Marawi that other parts of the country have expressed concern that they are unprotected.

In a trip to Marawi last week, Duterte asked Congress for the funding for 20,000 additional troops but did not specify how much he needed.

Military spokesman Colonel Edgard Arevalo said on Sunday the defeat of the fighters in Marawi was coming soon but he would not give specifics.

"We are closer there now than before. We can say that we are really at the culminating part of our operations in Marawi," he said.
Washington: United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will press China and other Asian countries to take tougher action against North Korea when he attends regional meetings in Manila starting this week, a senior United States official said on Wednesday.

Susan Thornton, the acting assistant secretary of state for East Asia, said Tillerson would have the chance to engage with China's foreign minister at the meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Manila, but had no plans to meet North Korea's foreign minister there.

Thornton said Tillerson, who is due in Manila on Saturday, would be seeking greater cooperation in isolating North Korea and in enforcing United Nations sanctions over its missile and nuclear weapons programs. She said Washington wanted to see countries "drastically" reduce their dealings with Pyongyang.

"What we are trying to do is galvanise this pressure and isolate North Korea so it can see what the opportunity cost is over developing these weapons programs," she told reporters in a telephone briefing to preview Tillerson's trip.

Thornton said China had taken "significant steps, ... frankly unprecedented steps" to increase pressure on its neighbor North Korea, but it could do "a lot more" to step up enforcement of existing sanctions and to impose more.

"We would like to see more action faster and more obvious and quick results, but I think we're not giving up yet."

Thornton's remarks contrasted with those of United States president Donald Trump, who on Saturday accused Beijing of doing "nothing" to help on North Korea and pointed to the huge US trade deficit with China.

A senior Trump administration official said on Tuesday that Trump was close to a decision on how to respond to what he considers China's unfair trade practices and was considering action that could lead to tariffs or other trade restrictions on Chinese goods.

Thornton declined to comment on any possible action but stressed that despite Trump's tweets, North Korea and the trade issue were not linked in a "transactional," but "in a sort of philosophical way."

"Can we work together jointly on the key security challenge facing Northeast Asia, which is the North Korea challenge?" she said. "If we can work together to do that, surely we can have a productive, mutually beneficial economic relationship in which we both enjoy reciprocal and fair access to each other's markets."

Thornton said Tillerson would continue to press China on the South China Sea issue while in Asia, where the United State has been pressing for rapid adoption of a code of conduct over competing territorial claims.

She said the United States would "certainly" raise human rights with Philippine President Duterte's government.

United States criticism of Duterte's bloody war on drugs under Trump's predecessor Barack Obama damaged relations between the long-standing allies. Duterte has remained defiant, accusing critics of "trivialising" his drug campaign with human rights concerns.

Tillerson will also visit Thailand next Tuesday and then Malaysia. His visit to Bangkok will be the first by a United States secretary of state since before the military seized power in a 2014 coup.
Beirut, Lebanon: Syrian government troops advanced overnight against the Islamic State group in the country's north and centre, drawing closer to the key battleground of Deir Ezzor, a monitor said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said the army had made "significant progress" south of Raqa city.

"There is now just four kilometres between regime forces and the town of Madan, which is the last town controlled by Islamic State in the Raqa countryside," the Observatory said.

Madan lies next to the border between Raqa province and Deir Ezzor, an eastern province that is mostly held by the Islamic group.

Jihadists have besieged government forces and civilians inside the provincial capital Deir Ezzor city since 2015.

Syrian loyalist troops are battling Islamic State in the south of Raqa province separately from an offensive by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, a militia that is fighting the jihadists inside Raqa city.

The regime is also fighting Islamic State in central Homs province, where overnight they captured the last jihadist-held town in the area, the Observatory said.

The capture of Al-Sukhna opens the route for government troops to advance towards Deir Ezzor on a second axis.

There was no official confirmation of Sukhna's capture from Syria's government.

State news agency SANA said the army had surrounded the town from three sides.

Since May, Syria's army has been conducting a broad military campaign with Russian support to recapture the vast Badia desert region that separates the capital Damascus from Deir Ezzor.

The Observatory said at least 64 Islamic State fighters were killed in clashes with the regime and air strikes across the Badia region on Saturday.

Among the dead were 30 killed in the fight for Al-Sukhna, the monitor said.

Already defeated in its Iraqi bastion of Mosul, Islamic State is facing multiple assaults in Syria.

The SDF now control more than half of Raqa city, a key Islamic State stronghold.
United Nations: The UN Security Council unanimously backed a US-drafted resolution to strengthen sanctions on North Korean exports in response to Pyongyang's intercontinental ballistic missile tests.

The 15-member body on Saturday strongly condemned North Koreas ballistic missile launches on 3 and 28 July which the country has stated were of "intercontinental" range.

The US-drafted resolution includes the strongest sanctions ever imposed in response to a North Korean ballistic missile test and targets its main exports, slashing their annual revenue by $1 billion.

"The security council increased the penalty of North Korea's ballistic missile activity to a whole new level. North Koreas irresponsible and careless acts have just proved to be quite costly to the regime.

"This resolution is the single largest economic sanctions package ever leveled against the North Korean regime. The price the North Korean leadership will pay for its continued nuclear and missile development will be the loss of one-third of its exports and hard currency. This is the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation," US permanent representative to the UN ambassador Nikki Haley said.

"The United States is taking  and will continue to take  prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies. Our annual joint military exercises, for instance, are transparent, and defense-oriented. They have been carried out regularly and openly for nearly 40 years. They will continue.

"Our goal remains a stable Korean peninsula, at peace, without nuclear weapons. We want only security and prosperity for all nations  including North Korea. Until then, this resolution and prior ones will be implemented to the fullest to maximize pressure on North Korea to change its ways," she said.

The council reaffirmed previous council decisions that North Korea not conduct further launches using ballistic missile technology, nuclear tests, or any other provocation.

The UNSC moved to significantly strengthen the sanctions on North Korea, imposing a full ban on the export of coal, iron and iron ore from the country. Previously these items could be exported for livelihood purposes, for a limited amount.

The council also prohibited countries from increasing the total number of work authorisations for North Korean nationals. It banned new joint ventures or cooperative entities with North Korean entities or individuals as well as additional investments in existing joint ventures.

Member states are requested to report to the UNSC, within 90 days of the adoption of this resolution, on concrete measures they have taken to effectively implement this resolution.

The council also designated several additional individuals for a travel ban and assets freeze, as well as designating entities for an assets freeze.

On the political front, the council calls for resumption of the Six-Party Talks and reiterated its support for the commitments set forth in the joint statement of September 2005 issued by China, North Korea, Japan, south Korea, Russia and the United States.

The commitments included that the goal of the six-party talks is the verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner, and that the United States and the North Korean respect each other's sovereignty and exist together peacefully.
Washington: Asserting that President Donald Trump will no longer "tolerate" any support to militants, US National Security Adviser Gen HR McMaster on Sunday asked Pakistan to change its "paradoxical" policy of supporting selective terror groups.

US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad denies.

"The president has also made clear that he, that we need to see a change in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," the National Security Advisor, McMaster, was quoted by MSNBC as saying.

"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups," he said, in response to a question on Afghanistan and terrorism in the region.

He said that Trump is making clear that the US will no longer "tolerate" any support for the Taliban or related groups.

"Of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but theyve done so really only selectively," he said.

Pakistans two neighbours - both India and Afghanistan  have accused it of being selective in its war against terrorism.

McMaster said that Trump has lifted restrictions on US armed forces in Afghanistan.

He also defended Trump's strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country.

"The president has said that, "He does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat".

"He has lifted those restrictions, and you are beginning to see the payoff of that as well," the top US national security advisor said.
Caracas: Venezuelan Opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez was returned to house arrest after being detained in military prison for four days, his wife Lilian Tintori said.

"They just moved Leopoldo home," Tintori wrote on Twitter.

"We continue with more conviction and strength for peace and freedom in Venezuela!"

Lopez, 46, was already under house arrest when he was picked up by Venezuelan intelligence services overnight Monday, one day after a vote to choose a powerful constituent Assembly tasked with rewriting the constitution.

He was first arrested in 2014 and released to home detention last month. Another high-profile dissident, Antonio Ledezma, 62, was released back to house arrest Friday after being hauled away the same day as Lopez. He had already been in home detention since 2015.

Following their arrests the Venezuelan Supreme Court alleged that they had been planning to flee, either into hiding in Venezuela or abroad.

The arrests triggered stern international criticism, with US president Donald Trump saying the pair were "political prisoners being held illegally by the regime," which he dubbed "the Maduro dictatorship."

Also, on Saturday the new Assembly loyal to the embattled Maduro fired the country's attorney-general Luisa Ortega, one of the president's most vociferous critics, sparking a firestorm of condemnation from the US and Latin American nations.
Social Security is, for millions of retired Americans, a critical source of income during their golden years. According to data from the Social Security Administration (SSA), a little more than three out of five retired workers relies on their monthly check from the SSA to account for at least half of their monthly income. Without Social Security, millions of seniors would be living below the poverty level.

Unfortunately, this critical program is in deep trouble, and both lawmakers and the public have known it for quite some time. Major demographic changes are poised to turn Social Security on its head within the next two decades. These changes include the mass retirement of baby boomers, which is set to drive the worker-to-beneficiary ratio lower; Americans' growing life expectancies, which allow seniors to draw a payment for a longer period of time; and growing income equality, which means the wealthiest Americans have easier access to medical care and thus live to collect their larger benefit checks for years more.

Social Security's scariest charts

Just how bad could things get for Social Security? It's all spelled out in what could arguably be described as the scariest Social Security charts in the latest Board of Trustees report.

As you can see in the first chart below, the Board of Trustees is projecting that the program can continue to pay out benefits at current levels (including annual cost-of-living adjustments) through the year 2034. After that point, the program's costs would far exceed its projected revenue. Further, the gap widens as time passes, suggesting that the longer lawmakers wait to act, the more difficult it will be to get Social Security back in the black.

Based on the projections, Social Security would have to cut benefits by 23% across the board in order to keep the program solvent through 2091. Considering that the average retired worker brought home just $1,367.58 in May 2017, per the SSA, we can expect an estimated drop in payout, based on 2017 dollars, to $1,053.04 a month. This is barely above the federal poverty level.

What's more, if Congress fails to act and the program merely motors along for the next 75 years, another 4% cut to 73% of current payouts would be needed by 2091.

This forecast is especially troubling when you consider that that 45% of seniors choose to claim Social Security at the earliest age possible (age 62) and therefore accept a 25% to 30% reduction in their payout (depending on their full retirement age).

But that's far from the only scary prediction from the Board of Trustees. Not only will benefits need to be slashed in 2034 if Congress doesn't take action, but the magnitude of Social Security's cash shortfall is growing as well.

As you'll note in the chart below, Social Security's asset reserves are expected to tip the scales in the next few years at as much as $3 trillion. However, by 2022, as noted in the report, the program will begin paying out more in benefits than it's generating in revenue through the payroll tax, interest earned on its asset reserves, and taxes on benefits. By 2034, these asset reserves will be depleted.

But what's truly worrisome is the projection beyond 2034. According to the chart, the cash shortfall for the program, assuming we stay on the current cost trajectory, is a whopping $12.5 trillion by 2091. That's not chump change, and it's actually $1.2 trillion worse than was projected in the 2016 Trustees Report.

Essentially, Congress can let millions of current and future retirees deal with a benefits cut of up to 23%, or they can find a way to raise $12.5 trillion over the next 75 years. Considering how divided Washington is at the moment, the former scenario looks frighteningly plausible.

A bipartisan approach to fixing Social Security

Ironically, there are solutions aplenty on Capitol Hill. The issue is that both the Democrats and the Republicans have a viable way to fix Social Security, and therefore neither will back down from its stance and meet the other party in the middle. However, a bipartisan approach that combines the two core solutions of both parties would actually be a very strong solution, at least in my opinion.

The Democrats have long favored increasing taxation on the wealthy as a means to close the Social Security shortfall. As of 2017, all earned income between $0.01 and $127,200 is subject to the payroll tax of 12.4%. Most workers only pay half, or 6.2%, while their employer covers the other 6.2%. But the key here is that earned income above $127,200, which about 10% of workers earn each year, is exempt from the payroll tax. Democrats want to reinstitute that tax above, say, $250,000 or $400,000, requiring the rich to pay more into the program. The thinking here is that the wealthy are unlikely to be reliant on Social Security income, so they should therefore pay more. Similarly, this measure has plenty of support from the public, as 90% of workers pay into Social Security with every dollar they earn.

Conversely, Republicans want to fix Social Security by adjusting for Americans' increased longevity. Because we're living longer than ever, and Social Security was only designed to provide income for a few years, not 20-plus years, Republicans have suggested increasing the full retirement age from 67 (for those born after 1960) to perhaps 68, 69, or 70. Doing so would require seniors to wait longer to receive their full retirement benefit, or to accept a steeper benefit reduction if they filed for benefits early. Such a measure wouldn't impact current retirees, but future generations of retirees could receive less from Social Security if they're unwilling to wait until their full retirement age.

A blend of these two strategies would probably be an effective plan, as it would generate more revenue from the well-to-do and encourage future generations of retirees to save more and be less reliant on Social Security come retirement. But can Congress work on a bipartisan level on Social Security? That remains to be seen.

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Most Americans get their health insurance coverage through work, and so retirement can be an extremely disruptive event in terms of protecting yourself from the ever-rising cost of healthcare. Health insurance is tricky enough to understand when you're part of an employer's group health plan, but when you're on your own, getting the information you need to figure out your healthcare options can be even more difficult. Although Medicare plays a vital role for most retirees, not everyone who has retired is eligible for Medicare, and even those who do get Medicare coverage sometimes have to navigate some complex provisions to make sure they get all the benefits they need. The following three health insurance facts are especially important for those who've just retired as well as those who've been out of the workplace for a long time.

1. The coverage options that are available for retirees

When most people think of retirement healthcare, they first think of Medicare. Medicare provides healthcare coverage for millions of American retirees, but just because you retire doesn't mean you automatically become eligible for Medicare. Most people qualify for the federal government's healthcare program when they turn 65, so if you've retired early, you might not be able to get Medicare coverage right away.

Regardless of whether you're fortunate enough to be able to plan for retirement or whether it's thrust upon you due to job loss, there are a few helpful hints to keep in mind. The first is that the easiest way to get coverage is if you have a spouse who is still working and has group health coverage. As soon as you lose your own coverage, you can generally use a special enrollment period to get family coverage seamlessly.

Another option for early retirees are within 18 months of their 65th birthday is to use COBRA continuation coverage from their former employer. Coverage is mandated by federal law, but bear in mind that you'll owe the total cost of your insurance coverage plus a small add-on, not just the employee portion.

Apart from COBRA, individual coverage options can be slim. The Affordable Care Act created more access to health insurance for individuals, but the number of choices you have depends greatly on where you live. Non-ACA individual coverage is sometimes available, but prices can be extremely high. Also, check with various membership groups you belong to in order to see if they have group coverage options that you can use.

2. How Medicare interacts with employer-provided coverage

Once you become eligible for Medicare, your options get a lot better. Yet some retirees still have group health plan coverage from a spouse, and the inevitable question comes up about whether they should or need to sign up for Medicare.

The answer typically depends on the size of the employer in question. For companies with 100 or more employees, the group health plan continues to the primary coverage provider, and it's less likely that the employer will require you to sign up for Medicare when you turn 65. For those with fewer than 20 employees, Medicare becomes the primary coverage, and employers are typically able to require workers to sign up for Medicare when eligible. Those with employers with between 20 and 99 employees are in a gray area in which some employers are considered to offer large group health plans and others aren't. Those with large group health plans get primary coverage from them, while those with small group health plans have Medicare as their primary coverage.

The easiest way to find out what's required of you is to talk to the employer in question. You should get guidance about what you need to do to keep the coverage you have or whether switching solely to Medicare makes more sense.

3. Getting added coverage

Many people find that Medicare by itself isn't enough. As an alternative or supplement to traditional Medicare, Medigap supplemental policies or Medicare Advantage plans can give more complete coverage and fill in some gaps that regular Medicare doesn't cover.

Medicare Advantage plans replace traditional Medicare coverage, with private insurers providing all of the benefits of the regular Medicare program. Yet these plans also typically include additional benefits, such as out-of-pocket maximums and lower copayments for additional types of services for which Medicare either has no provision or has less attractive standards.

Medigap policies work in combination with traditional Medicare, with the private insurance product only covering what Medicare doesn't. The net effect is similar, however, in that retirees get benefits from Medigap policies that reduce their out-of-pocket costs compared to what they'd owe if they only had Medicare by itself. With many alternatives, shopping around takes some effort, but it's well worth it for added financial security.

If you've retired, health insurance is of paramount importance. By understanding these key facts, you'll be in a better position to protect your health in your golden years.

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Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD) recently unveiled a creative way to confront beer drinker preference for locally brewed suds: it is producing limited-time-only labels for its Budweiser brand that will feature the state in which the beer is brewed.

It's not going to dramatically reverse sales of its mass-produced beer, but it shows that the biggest brewer is continuing to address the changing landscape in beer brought on by the craft beer revolution.

Crafting a response

The demise of the craft beer industry has been greatly exaggerated. While growth slowed to just 6% last year from the double-digit rates it's scored year after year, a lot of factors when into the reduced growth rate.

For one, Anheuser-Busch has been buying up craft brewers hand over fist and taking out beer volumes from the calculation. Craft beer is still growing at such a pace that it's been able to replenish the amounts that can no longer be included in the equation and today there are more than 5,200 craft breweries operating, more than at any other time in the country's history.

While that has obviously impacted mega brewers like A-B InBev and Molson Coors, it's also hitting the biggest craft brewers like Boston Beer (NYSE: SAM), which continues to see depletions decline (depletions are shipments or sales to distributors and retailers and is considered a proxy for consumer demand). In its second quarter earnings report last week, Boston Beer said depletions fell 3% year over year, better than where it was, but still falling.

A good part of the reason has been beer drinkers looking ever closer to home for their favorite brews. It's part of the reason Anheuser-Busch began scooping up the craft brewers and why Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ) was willing to pay out $1 billion for Ballast Point Brewing.

While A-B said its craft beer portfolio gained share ahead of the the broader industry, its also putting pressure on its core beers (Budweiser and Bud Light0, which lost 40 and 80 basis points of share respectively over the last six months.

Home team advantage

That's why the mega brewer's new promotional campaign is intriguing. Running from the beginning of July through the end of September, bottles and cans of Budweiser will feature labels that reflect the breweries from whence the beer comes.

Anheuser-Busch has breweries in 11 different states and each will enjoy their own custom packaging:

The name "Budweiser" will be replaced with the name of each state

The medallion in the center of each label that usually features the "AB" monogram will be changed to the state's initials

"King of Beers" will be changed to each state's motto

"Anheuser-Busch Inc." will be replaced with each state's nickname

Moreover, each of the breweries will host open houses that will feature the Clydesdale horses.

Again, it's not going to boost sales all that much, except perhaps in the individual states where the breweries are situated, and to anyone who is a beer can collector (do people still do that?), but it does give a nod to the trend toward local.

One would think a national brewer like A-B or Molson could take it a step further and produce labels with each state's name -- regardless of where it was brewed -- much as when the U.S. Mint issued individual state quarters. Obviously there would be logistical issues in doing so, but a brewer with a national distribution network ought to be able to pull it off.

Ultimately, these kinds of gimmicks are just that, and it's going to be hard to fight the trend of drinkers swearing off mass brewed beer in favor of local craft, wine, and spirits. But, for a huge global operation like Anheuser-Busch InBev, its nice to see it paying tribute to what's driving the beer market today.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of August 1, 2017

Rich Duprey has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Anheuser-Busch InBev NV and Boston Beer. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The 401(k) is perhaps the most powerful retirement savings tool available to American workers. You can save huge sums of money in it -- up to $18,000 per year if you're under age 50, or $24,000 if you're 50 or older -- and you'll get some generous tax break for doing so. And assuming you like free money, most employers that offer 401(k)s will also match a portion of their employees contributions.

On top of all that, saving in a 401(k) is easy as can be. Just tell the person in charge of payroll how much of your wages you want to go into the account, then sit back and watch your savings grow with every paycheck.

Despite all those perks, only 41% of workers who are offered a 401(k) make use of it, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

What's also surprising is how participation rates break down by age. According to a recent study by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, younger workers aged 21 to 34 are the most likely to contribute money to a 401(k), followed by workers aged 35 to 49. Coming in dead last are older workers aged 50 to 68 -- the workers who are closest to retirement.

Here's why that's a problem: Most workers in that 50-to-68 age group don't have nearly enough money saved up to support themselves in retirement. Nearly half of them don't even have a penny, according to the Economic Policy Institute. The fact that more older workers aren't using their 401(k)s to play catch-up means that they've either given up hope or expect to get by primarily on Social Security. And neither scenario is good.

Why aren't older workers saving in 401(k)s?

You'd think younger workers would be the least likely to participate in their 401(k) plans. After all, they typically earn the lowest salaries and carry huge sums of student debt. But apparently, older workers have their own set of barriers to contend with. Some may be trying to pay off mortgages or putting their children's college education above their own retirement savings, for example. For others, however, it might be a matter of miseducation.

A large number of workers have been led to believe that Social Security provides enough income for seniors to get by in retirement, but that couldn't be further from the truth. The average Social Security enrollee currently receives around $1,360 a month, or $16,320 a year, in benefits. A dual-income household, therefore, collects $32,640 a year, on average. But neither amount comes close to allowing seniors to sustain themselves without additional income, especially when you consider that the average healthy 65-year-old couple today will spend a whopping $400,000 or more on medical costs in retirement, not including long-term care.

That's why it's crucial for older workers to ramp up their savings game, and opting into a 401(k) is one of the easiest ways to make that happen. Furthermore, because 401(k)s have such generous annual contribution limits, those in their 50s or even early 60s have a great opportunity to catch up, even if they're starting from nothing.

Imagine you're 55 years old with the goal of retiring at 67. If you begin maxing out your 401(k) immediately, and your investments generate a relatively conservative 5% average annual return, you'll accumulate $382,000, which can go a long way in retirement.

Even if you can't max out your 401(k), contributing something is better than passing up a key savings opportunity. Putting just $600 a month, or $7,200 a year, into a 401(k) will leave you $114,000 richer over a 12-year period, assuming that same 5% return. And while that's still a relatively small nest egg to work with, it's far better than entering retirement with no savings at all.

Now if you're in your early 60s, you'll really need to step up your savings if you want a shot at a secure retirement, but if you max out your 401(k) starting at age 62, and are willing to work until age 70, you'll come away with $229,000, assuming a 5% average yearly return. And again, that's an improvement over $0.

One final thing to keep in mind about 401(k)s is that 92% of companies that sponsor them also offer some type of matching incentive. Contribute enough to capitalize on that match, and you'll collect some free money to pad your nest egg. And that, combined with your last-ditch savings efforts, might allow you to salvage your retirement, even if you have been neglecting it thus far.

The $16,122 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook If you're like most Americans, you're a few years (or more) behind on your retirement savings. But a handful of little-known "Social Security secrets" could help ensure a boost in your retirement income. For example: one easy trick could pay you as much as $16,122 more... each year! Once you learn how to maximize your Social Security benefits, we think you could retire confidently with the peace of mind we're all after. Simply click here to discover how to learn more about these strategies.

The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Russian tourists are flocking to Montenegro despite warnings from Moscow against visiting its former ally and the latest NATO-member country.

Montenegro's tourism organization said Sunday that during the first six months of 2017, Russians accounted for more than 179,000 overnight visitor stays in the picturesque Adriatic Sea country, four times more than during the same period last year.

Even before Montenegro joined NATO in June, Russia's Foreign Ministry had warned Russians against visiting the nation that previously was a traditional Russian ally in the Balkans.

"There is an anti-Russian hysteria in Montenegro," the Foreign Ministry said.

Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned Russians they could face arrest or expulsion in Montenegro.

Russia has threatened economic and political retaliation against the tiny country's decision to join NATO, including a campaign to undermine the Montenegrin tourism industry, which relies heavily on Russian visitors. The Kremlin is accused of masterminding a coup attempt in October to prevent it from joining the Western military alliance.

Montenegrin officials said they have continued promoting the country as a vacation spot with a tourism campaign.

"The activities have shown we have been successful in increasing the tourist flow, including the Russians," tourism board director Zeljka Radak-Kukavicic.

An estimated 200,000 Russians visit Montenegro every year and thousands of Russians own property here.

During the past 15 days alone, about 13,000 Russians arrived at the seaside airport of Tivat, 15 percent more than during the same period last year.
CHICAGO/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Chicago will sue the Trump administration on Monday over threats to withhold public safety grant money from so-called sanctuary cities, escalating a pushback against a federal immigration crackdown, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced on Sunday.

The federal lawsuit comes less than two weeks after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the U.S. Justice Department would bar cities from a certain grant program unless they allow immigration authorities unlimited access to local jails and provide 48 hours' notice before releasing anyone wanted for immigration violations.

"Chicago will not let our police officers become political pawns in a debate," Emanuel, a Democrat, said at a news conference. "Chicago will not let our residents have their fundamental rights isolated and violated. And Chicago will never relinquish our status as a welcoming city."

Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants provide money to hundreds of cities, and the Trump administration has requested $380 million in funding next year. Chicago, a regular target of Republican President Donald Trump because of its murder rate, expected to receive $3.2 million this year for purchasing equipment.

Emanuel said the lawsuit would prevent the Trump administration from setting a precedent that could be used to target other funding.

Under Trump and Sessions, the federal government has sought to crack down on sanctuary cities, which generally offer illegal immigrants safe harbor by declining to use municipal resources to enforce federal immigration laws. Dozens of local governments and cities, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, have joined the growing sanctuary movement.

The Justice Department did not immediately comment on Sunday. Last week, Sessions decried sanctuary cities, saying they "make all of us less safe" and impede law enforcement by setting criminals free.

Police and city officials in sanctuary cities have said deporting illegal immigrants who are not accused of serious crimes harms public safety by discouraging immigrants from coming forward to report crimes.

Chicago's lawsuit is the first to challenge the department over the Byrne program, though city officials said they are in contact with other cities. California Attorney General Xavier Becerra is also considering a similar lawsuit, the Sacramento Bee has reported.

The Trump administration has already faced legal battles over its sanctuary city policies. Last month, a U.S. judge refused to revisit a court order that blocked Trump's January executive order denying broader federal funds to such jurisdictions, in a case filed by San Francisco and the California county of Santa Clara.

(Reporting by Chris Kenning in Chicago and Joseph Ax in New York; Additional reporting by Pete Schroeder in Washington; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
Following the United Nations Security Councils decision to put new sanctions on North Korea, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Sunday all options, including a military one, are still available.

The United States will respond based on North Koreas actions, Haley told Maria Bartiromo on Sunday Morning Futures. We hope that they dont do anything further. We hope that they stop this reckless activity, we hope we dont have to do anything, but all options have always been on the table and will continue to be on the table.

The resolution, approved unanimously by the Security Council on Saturday, comes as a result of the communist countrys multiple ballistic missile tests and efforts to develop a nuclear warhead, and targets North Koreas economy, including stopping the expansions of joint ventures and the exports of coal, lead, lead ore, iron, iron ore and seafood.

A third of their trade exports have been hit and we gave them basically a kick in the gut with a billion dollars of sanctions that theyre going to start to feel right away, Haley said. Its going to be very strong and its time for North Korea to realize were not playing anymore.

China and Russia, both of which are permanent members of the Security Council and had previously opposed placing new sanctions on the Hermit Kingdom, voted along with the 13 other nations after the latest actions from Kim Jong Uns regime.

The entire international community has to: One, make sure they follow through with these sanctions, but two, keep a united voice against North Korea and what theyre doing, said Haley, who added that the new resolution is the strongest resolution in a generation.

President Trump has pressured China, North Koreas largest trading partner, repeatedly to step in to help diplomatically with the North Korea situation.

While I greatly appreciate the efforts of President Xi & China to help with North Korea, it has not worked out. At least I know China tried! Trump tweeted in late June.

While I greatly appreciate the efforts of President Xi & China to help with North Korea, it has not worked out. At least I know China tried!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 20, 2017

Just over a week later, the U.S. Treasury Department barred Americans from doing business with the Bank of Dandong, a small Chinese bank on the North Korean border, deeming it a primary money-laundering concern." Additionally, the U.S. placed sanctions on a Chinese shipping company and two Chinese citizens with ties to North Korea.

Haley added that the U.S. is not seeking a regime change and that the goal is to create better living conditions for North Korean residents.

I think what youre seeing is a paranoid leader that thinks that the United States is trying to do something to his control, she said. The truth is, what were focused on is on the North Korea people, making sure that the human rights aspects improve, making sure that the regime realizes that were not going to tolerate this.
A deadly salmonella outbreak linked to papayas imported from Mexico sickened an additional 64 people and expanded to 16 U.S. states, federal health officials reported on Friday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the source of the salmonella outbreak was traced back to Caribena brand papayas from the Carica de Campeche farm. In July, at least one New York City resident died. Another 35 people were hospitalized with salmonella as of Friday.

"When in doubt, dont eat, sell, or serve them and throw them out," the CDC said.

People were first sickened after eating the fruit beginning on May 17, according to the CDC. The people infected were between ages less than 1 to 95.

Health officials tested the fruit found in the Mexican farm and identified five strands of salmonella that sickened at least 109 people.

"The agency is working to identify other brands of papayas that may have originated from Carica de Campeche and facilitate recalls," the CDC reported.

A recall was already issued on July 26 for papayas distributed by Grande Produce. The fruit was sold in U.S. markets between July 10 and July 19. The FDA plans to test more papayas imported from Mexico to identify other possible farms with contaminated fruit.
Elon Musk famously equated Artifical Intelligence with summoning the demon and sounds the alarm that AI is advancing faster than anyone realizes, posing an existential threat to humanity. Stephen Hawking has warned that AI could take off and leave the human race, limited by evolutions slow pace, in the dust. Bill Gates counts himself in the camp concerned about super intelligence. And, although Mark Zuckerburg is dismissive about AIs potential threat, Facebook recently shut down an AI engine after reportedly discovering that it had created a new language humans cant understand.

Concerns about AI are entirely logical if all that exists is physical matter. If so, itd be inevitable that AI -- designed by our intelligence but built on a better platform than biochemistry -- would exceed human capabilities that arise by chance.

In fact, in a purely physical world, fully-realized AI should be recognized as the appropriate outcome of natural selection; we humans should benefit from it while we can. After all, sooner or later, humanity will cease to exist, whether from the sun running out or something more mundane including AI-driven extinction. Until then, wouldnt it be better to maximize human flourishing with the help of AI rather than forgoing its benefits in hopes of extending humanitys end date?

As possible as all this might seem, in actuality, what we know about the human mind strongly suggests that full AI will not happen. Physical matter alone is not capable of producing whole, subjective experiences, such as watching a sunset while listening to sea gulls, and the mechanisms proposed to address the known shortfalls of matter vs. mind, such as emergent properties, are inadequate and falsifiable. Therefore, it is highly probable that we have immaterial minds.

Deep down, we all know were more than biological robots. Thats why almost everyone rebels against materialisms implications. We dont act as though we believe everything is ultimately meaningless.

Granted, forms of AI are already achieving impressive results. These use brute force, huge and fast memory, rules-based automation, and layers of pattern matching to perform their extraordinary feats. But this processing is not aware, perceiving, feeling, cognition. The processing doesnt go beyond its intended activities even if the outcomes are unpredictable. Technology based on this level of AI will often be quite remarkable and definitely must be managed well to avoid dangerous repercussions. However, in and of itself, this AI cannot lead to a true replication of the human mind.

Full AI  that is, artificial intelligence capable of matching and perhaps exceeding the human mind -- cannot be achieved unless we discover, via material means, the basis for the existence of immaterial minds, and then learn how to confer that on machines. In philosophy the underlying issue is known as the qualia problem. Our awareness of external objects and colors; our self-consciousness; our conceptual understanding of time; our experiences of transcendence whether simple awe in front of beauty or mathematical truth; or our mystical states, all clearly point to something that is qualitatively different from the material world. Anyone with a decent understanding of physics, computer science and the human mind ought to be able to know this, especially those most concerned about AIs possibilities.

That those who fear AI dont see its limitations indicates that even the best minds fall victim to their biases. We should be cautious about believing that exceptional achievements in some areas translate to exceptional understanding in others. For too many  including some in the media -- the mantra, question everything, applies only within certain boundaries. They never question methodological naturalism -- the belief that there is nothing that exists outside the material world -- which blinds them to other possibilities. Even with what seems like more open-minded thinking, some people seem to suffer from a lack of imagination or will. For example, Peter Thiel believes that the human mind and computers are deeply different yet doesnt acknowledge that implies that the mind comprises more than physical matter. Thomas Nagle believes that consciousness could not have arisen via materialistic evolution yet explicitly limits the implications of that because he doesnt want God to exist.

Realizing that we have immaterial minds, i.e. genuine souls, is far more important than just speculating on AIs future. Without immaterial minds, there is no sustainable basis for believing in human exceptionalism. When human life is viewed only through a materialistic lens, it gets valued based on utility. No wonder the young nones  young Americans who dont identify with a religion  think their lives are meaningless and some begin to despair. It is time to understand that evolution is not a strictly material process but one in which the immaterial mind plays a major role in human, and probably all sentient creatures, adaption and selection.

Deep down, we all know were more than biological robots. Thats why almost everyone rebels against materialisms implications. We dont act as though we believe everything is ultimately meaningless.

Were spiritual creatures, here by intent, living in a world where the supernatural is the norm; each and every moment of our lives is our souls in action. Immaterial ideas shape the material world and give it true meaning, not the other way around.

In the end, the greatest threat that humans face is a failure to recognize what we really are.

If were lucky, what people learn in the pursuit of full AI will lead us to the re-discovery of the human soul, where it comes from, and the important understanding that goes along with that.
Apart from hosting and possible maintenance costs, there are not exactly downsides to having your own website. Even if its just a personal blog it can always become more useful down the line, if you utilize it in the right manner. In other words, more
The first rule of Journalism Fight Club is: Dont totally embarrass yourself or your employer, especially on TV.

Then theres Jim Acosta. CNNs White House correspondent doesnt seem to care about all that stuff. He left journalism and moved into combative, left-wing activism. Only he still claims hes a reporter. Whats worse is that his bosses seem to embrace his antics as he embarrasses himself, his network and his industry.

This week, in his role as CNN's senior White House correspondent, Acosta pretended to teach Trump adviser Stephen Miller that what is written on the Statue of Liberty outranks the rule of law. Like a typical liberal, Acosta was all about the feels, as he took after Miller.

Miller smacked him down repeatedly in a slightly more than 7-minute exchange that accomplished two things. It boosted Acostas ego, if thats at all possible, and it proved Trumps complaints about the press true in hilarious fashion.

Miller was Acosta-ed.

Heres how the bout began: What you're proposing here, what the president's proposing here, does not sound like it's in keeping with American tradition when it comes to immigration, said Acosta. He then began quoting from the poem on the Statue of Liberty like it had the force of law, somehow confusing a statue with a statute.

Miller dodged and threw a few jabs of his own. The two of them went back and forth several times with Acosta repeatedly interrupting, which is his style. That lasted until Acosta truly left himself open for a knockout punch. He accused the administration of racism and revealed his own, well, racism. (Heres the transcript from CNN itself and the video, which is priceless.)

Acosta started talking green cards and such and then had this epic sentence. And, yes, they may learn English as a second language later on in life, but this whole notion of, well, they could learn -- they have to learn English before they get to the United States, are we just going to bring in people from Great Britain and Australia?

Yes, Acosta apparently thinks only people from Great Britain and Australia know English, in Millers words.

Point of fact, English is also the official language or de facto language for much of the world, including India with 1.2 billion people, about  the worlds population just there. And a bit more than Australia and Great Britain.

It didnt end there. Acosta took his battered ego back to the network to hear the cheers from The Resistance crowd. There co-host Chris Cuomo tried to recap the fight and pretend Acosta had won. It was like trying to pretend Apollo Creed had beaten Ivan Drago while Creeds body lay motionless on the canvas.

This is CNN.

Now on to the other worst stories of our week -- and there were plenty to choose from.

2. Journalists Dont Understand Immigration: Acosta was far from alone. Others in the news media tried to pile on to support the near-universal globalist view of journalists. Politico (D-DC) decided that when Stephen Miller accused Acosta of cosmopolitan bias, that was anti-Semitic code.

Only one problem, Miller is Jewish.

That should be a big problem since Politico ran close to 1,000 words to accuse Miller of anti-Semitism for using the word cosmopolitan. Can you imagine if he ordered the drink, too?

The story, headlined: The Ugly History of Stephen Millers Cosmopolitan Epithet, delved into cosmopolitan and how its a cousin to elitist, but with a more sinister undertone. Politico went so far to use that word choice to tie Miller to Soviet dictator Josef Stalin.

Some days its hard to take Politico seriously. OK, thats every day.

3. What Goes Up  Wont Get Talked About: The Dow just hit 22,000 and has set 31 record highs since Trump took office. In all, its jumped more than 10 percent in just about seven months. Not too shabby. But I bet you havent heard much about it. The reason is it doesnt fit the media agenda.

That agenda was set the day after the election by journalisms favorite economist, Nobel Prize winner and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman. As he struggled to cope with Trumps victory, Krugman told the world his economic prediction: If the question is when markets will recover, a first-pass answer is never.

Oops.

Imagine if you invested based on that, sold your stocks and prepared for the Trumpocalypse. Youd have lost a ton of money. So naturally, those record-high stock days dont make journalists too happy.

All three broadcast networks censored those highs 80 percent of the time. Imagine sitting in front of your TV, eager to see how the networks covered each of those 31 highs. Twenty-five times you would have found nothing -- even if you DVR-ed all three evening newscasts.

So when the president talks about good news in the economy, remember that stocks mean money in the pockets of investors, retirement funds, pensions and more. It just seldom means news stories.

4. A News Event To Keep The Left Happy: What do you call the star of a new documentary that gets an hour on CNN to promote the film? A liberal Democrat. In this case, former vice president Al Gore got the star treatment. He teamed up with liberal moderator Anderson Cooper to present an hour-long promo for An Inconvenient Sequel.

It was just one of many recent examples where the news media have been promoting his efforts. MSNBCs All in with Chris Hayes did its part. MTV launched one of the most-boring events in recent TV history with its own town hall. CBS This Morning, The Daily Show, Vice News Tonight, NBC Nightly News and on and on. They all joined in with the promo tour which got air time than most commercial buys. Only this was free.

Free publicity. Lots of it.

Its not to promote a movie. Its to push an agenda. Gores agenda. The medias agenda -- to keep the U.S. in the global climate non-treaty so we can ship billions of our dollars to the third world. Remember, journalists are globalists. They love expunging their guilt with your cash.

One of the best things about the town hall was Gore admitting he had been in Seattle the day before. That means he flew nearly 3,000 miles to New York to tell us not to use fossil fuels. Gore has a long history of energy and climate hypocrisy. He also got accused of using at least 21 times more energy than the average American, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Somehow that wasnt the focus of a CNN town hall. I guess they didnt have the energy.
Birthdays are a celebration of life, and Charlie Gards is no different. Even after his death.

On Friday, August 4, the British baby who broke the worlds heart would have turned 1. He didnt. According to his family, he ran out of time  time stolen by the UK courts, as Charlies hospital sought legal permission to remove his life support. But theres another, less obvious, time-devouring culprit: the media.

I see it as a culture editor, tracking their (non)-coverage of the Washington, D.C. March for Life. I see it as a young woman, perusing reports that insist my health care depends on abortion, the death of another.

But while the liberal media eagerly dance to deaths tune, one person is changing their beat. Like him or not, his impact is undeniable: President Donald Trump is forcing life into the national media spotlight. And little Charlies story is proof.

As an infant, Charlie was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition, mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome. Parents Chris Gard and Connie Yates challenged his London hospital and the British court system in a months-long effort to bring their son to the United States for experimental treatment. They ended their legal fight at the end of July.

Death is the liberal medias default.

[T]here is one simple reason why treatment cannot now go ahead, the father urged after an American specialist examined Charlie. A whole lot of time has been wasted.

That includes time by the media.

Charlie Gard may have been a British infant, but he was also an international story. An American story. As courts claimed to rule in Charlies best interests against prolonged suffering, several factors should have jumpstarted media interest: Pope Francis support, an outcry by pro-life leaders and conservative media, our countrys own health care debate.

But it wasnt until President Trump tweeted an offer to help little #CharlieGard that the media woke to the story. Hours after, the three broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC) began their news-show coverage of Charlie. That, in turn, was followed by support from hospitals around the world, celebrities and members of Congress.

Even then, the networks aired embarrassing discrepancies. As a judge revisited Charlies case following the outcry, they prioritized a highly anticipated photo of Beyonces healthy twins over sickly Charlie. They even covered the death of a baby orca more than the impending death of baby Charlie.

Then there was the ABC anchor who accused the parents of holding false hope, while a foreign correspondent described the situation as "a battle between parental instinct versus medical reason."

But how the networks covered it may not have been as vital as when they covered it. Time has been wasted.

They held out until a tweet from the president. And this isnt the first time he forced the networks to cover life. In years past, the news shows have dedicated mere seconds to the March for Life, the largest annual Washington, D.C., rally that condemns abortion. In 2017, I watched those seconds grow to more than 21 minutes. There was one big difference: President Trump, who tweeted support, sent his vice president and White House counselor to speak and called out an ABC anchor for censorship.

Death is the liberal medias default. Theres the inexcusable silence of the undercover Planned Parenthood videos. There was the blackout of the atrocities by Philadelphia abortionist Kermit Gosnell in 2013.Theres the networks defense of Planned Parenthood in 2012 when breast cancer charity Susan G. Komen for the Cure temporarily decided to the defund abortion giant.

And thats just abortion. Theres also the Lifetime euthanasia drama starring a doctor ending lives with dignity. Theres the 2016 assisted-suicide film, Me Before You. Theres the series by HBO and VICE that showed a woman dying on camera. The magazine world promoted a sons gift of death to his mother. And the liberal medias new standard became most noticeable in 2014 when they applauded Brittany Maynards ethical choice to die in California.

Instead of journalists voicing victims, they are creating them by censoring life and promoting death. We dont know what would have happened if Charlie had been treated, if it had been done quickly, if his story had been reported to the public sooner. But lets make an effort to know next time.

The media must pay attention, like someones life depends on it. Because it just might.
Last week I received an email from a prominent evangelical Christian organization with the subject line, A Win! The email began: A few days ago, President Trump announced that he has banned transgendered individuals from serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. President Trump demonstrated courage and rescinded President Obamas transgender policy in the military. What a relief!

Really?

Im not a liberal, pro-LGBT advocate. Im a conservative, evangelical Christian who is actually the senior pastor of a fairly large church in Pennsylvania. But Im still reeling from last week, peeved and grieved about two things: how the president is handling the transgender military issue, and how many conservative, evangelical Christians are celebrating. I know there are many English translations of the Bible available today, including the KJV, NKJV, NIV, ESV and more  but it seems that the hands-down favorite of many of too many conservative, evangelical Christians has become the RSV  the Reversed Standard Version. Im afraid many of us have reversed what the Bible teaches, and someone on the inside needs to say so loud and clear.

There is nothing courageous, humble or gracious about the behavior of our president or many conservative, evangelicals these days  and it frightens me big time. If it were possible, I think it would frighten Jesus.

Many Christians are preaching grace and mercy and were very good at saying folks dont need to get their acts together before coming to Christ as Savior  but our treatment of the lost contradicts our confession.

Many Christians are preaching grace and mercy and were very good at saying folks dont need to get their acts together before coming to Christ as Savior  but our treatment of the lost contradicts our confession. We dont own the message were preaching. Compassion? Love? Are you kidding me? Were very angry at sinners. Its obvious  and its twisted.

We wonder why people are turned off by Christianity. I have news for us: its not Jesus who is offending people much these days. Its us, his followers. I fear that a large sector of Christianity in America needs to get saved all over again, and I say that with tears, fear and a good deal of trembling.

In the past four years, five well-known American pastors from mega-churches either fell from grace or were disgraced by unethical practices that should have had conservative evangelicals up in arms (and Im not talking about worshipping on a Sunday morning).

One pastor bought his own books in an attempt to become a New York Times bestselling author.

Another built a 16,000 square foot home (dont worry, only 8,000sf was livable space, he explained), while his church promoted spontaneous baptisms that turned out to involve a good deal of planned psychological manipulation to solicit audience participation.

Drinking and anger issues cost another his church and marriage.

The fifth resigned suddenly and walked away  and within six months, his wife filed for divorce. His piece de resistance was that he assumed leadership of a church consulting company within weeks of resigning. In other words, he wants other church leaders to follow his example. Lord, save us.

Where were the conservative evangelical Christians during these high-profile meltdowns? I dont know, but one thing is certain: we didnt hear nearly as much from them as we did about the presidents transgender military move.

The recent release of a photo showing a select group of Christian leaders praying for and laying hands on President Trump is something I would expect to see from Pharisees, not pastors  unless, of course, there is a parallel. (Remember, the Pharisees were among Jesus staunchest enemies).

Im a huge advocate for praying for our president. Love him or hate him, he and our nation need a lot of prayer. But were supposed to be doing our acts of righteousness in private, not use them as a public relations tool to garner more name recognition.

I get it: the military exists to destroy the enemy. Accordingly, it must have standards that potential recruits must meet in order to achieve its objectives. Thats common sense. And, I agree that the military should not pay for gender reassignment surgeries. But, can we learn how to express ourselves with compassion for people who, in many instances, would love to have their sexuality as settled as the majority of Americans? Must we bludgeon people in our disagreement? Is that what Jesus did?

Sin is bad, and people definitely need to repent before they can follow Jesus. Im not disregarding that essential part of the gospel. What concerns me is that many conservative evangelicals have perverted the gospel and dont seem to realize it. We want people to be perfect before they come to know Christ, and neither Jesus nor the gospel work that way.

At the very time when America needs humble courage, aloof arrogance is running amok.

I think its time we put down the false RSV Bible and start reading one of the real translations.

Its not possible to follow Jesus otherwise.
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and N.J. Gov. Chris Christie on Sunday tempered news reports about special counsel Robert Mueller impaneling another grand jury in his Russia meddling-collusion case, suggesting the move doesnt mean the investigation is expanding or perhaps an indictment is now imminent.

It doesn't say anything about the likelihood of indictments, Rosenstein told Fox News Sunday. It's just a tool that we use like any other tool in the course of our investigations.

Rosenstein appointed Mueller in May to lead a federal investigation into whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia to influence the outcome of the 2016 White House race, after Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the probe.

Rosenstein declined to comment on the specifics of the case or on whether Mueller has indeed impaneled another grand jury, in addition to one reportedly looking into the financial records of Michael Flynn.

Flynn, a retired Army lieutenant general who was a campaigner for Donald Trump, was fired as White House national security adviser after failing to fully disclose at least one conversation with a Russian official.

Rosenstein made clear Sunday that using a grand jury is an appropriate way to gather documents and to bring in witnesses to make sure that you get their full testimony.

Amid reports that Mueller might be going beyond the defined scope of his investigation to dive into Trumps financial records, Rosenstein said the Justice Department doesn't engage in fishing expeditions.

Rosenstein also said Mueller, a former federal prosecutor and FBI director, would need special permission to pursue matters beyond the original scope of the investigation.

Christie, a former federal prosecutor, made similar comments about a grand jurys power to issue subpoenas and gather information, while downplaying the news about Mueller purportedly having impaneled another one, reported first by The Wall Street Journal.

The coverage about how monumental this was is just a fundamental misunderstanding of the way this process works, Christie said on CNNs State of the Union.

He called Muellers use of such a jury a normal step taken by a careful prosecutor who is doing a thorough investigation.
A new app thats becoming popular with teenagers can also be used for cyberbullying.

Sarahah is a messaging service that allows anyone with a link to send messages to those who register. The person receiving the messages has no way to respond or to know who sent them.

The app was created by a Saudi developer worried about workplace discrimination.

It started out with a good purpose. So people can expose the bosses that are mistreating certain employees, mother Rosanna Pastor told CBS. But then when it goes into the wrong hands, it goes from something positive to something negative, like cyberbullying.

Teenagers easy access to social media apps has prompted a rise in incidents of online bullying in recent years.

Honestly, Ive only gotten good messages, Sam, a high-school student from North Carolina, told New York magazine. It seems that more girls are getting kinda bullied because guys are commenting sexual stuff. Ive seen a few girls getting called hoes.

Ive used it a couple times to see what its all about, June told New York magazine, noting shed received both positive and negative comments, adding, I dont feel comfortable saying some of the stuff because the mean ones have vulgar language, and the nice ones are kinda personal.

Experts say parents need to talk to their children about the risks of apps and newer methods of communication and limit their time online.

The apps surge in popularity is linked to its recent integration with Snapchat.
This is a rush transcript from "Fox News Sunday," August 6, 2017. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

CHRIS WALLACE, HOST: Im Chris Wallace.

The Russia investigation hits up as the Trump White House deals with a barrage of leaks. Now, the attorney general vows to crack down.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF SESSIONS, ATTORNEY GENERAL: We will not allow rogue anonymous sources with security clearances to sell out our country and leakers will be held accountable.

WALLACE (voice-over): Well discuss if investigators can plug the leaks, and the latest developments in the Russia probe with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. Its a Fox News Sunday exclusive.

Then, as special counsel Robert Mueller takes evidence about Russian interference in the election to a grand jury, the president keep saying theres nothing there.

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: The Russia story is a total fabrication. Its just an excuse for the greatest loss in the history of American politics. Thats all it is.

WALLACE: Well talk with Republican Senator Thom Tillis, who was just introduced a bill to protect the special counsel for being fired.

Plus, as Congress leaves town for a long August recess, well ask our Sunday panel about all the unfinished business they will face when they come back after Labor Day.

All, right now, on Fox News Sunday.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: And hello again from Fox News in Washington.

If you still had any doubt how serious the leaks problem is, all you had to do this week was open your newspaper or turn on your television and see transcripts of President Trumps conversations with world leaders. And this comes as we learned, again through leaks, Robert Mueller is taking his Russia investigation to a grand jury.

On Friday, Attorney General Sessions announced measures to try and stop leaks he says endanger American security.

Joining me now for his first Sunday show interview is Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general and the man who appointed the special counsel after Sessions recused himself.

Mr. Rosenstein, welcome to Fox News Sunday.

ROD ROSENSTEIN, DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL: Thank you, Chris. Glad to be here.

WALLACE: Attorney General Sessions says that there has been a surge in criminal referrals from intelligence agencies about leaks of classified information since President Trump took office. He says there have been as many in just the six months as there were in the previous three years.

My question is, do you see a concerted effort by people inside this government to hurt, or takedown, or try to take down, President Trump?

ROSENSTEIN: Chris, you know, we evaluate every referral we receive based on the facts and circumstances of the particularly leak. And so, as the attorney general described, weve had a surge in referrals to the department, and we are responding appropriately. Were going to devote more resources, reevaluate procedures and make sure we investigate every one of those leaks, you know, in an appropriate way.

WALLACE: But you must have some thoughts about why there has been a surge in these referrals, as many in the six months of the Trump presidency as in the last three years of the Obama presidency.

ROSENSTEIN: Thats right, Chris. We have seen a surge in referrals. Weve seen an increase in the number of leaks and were going to respond appropriately and try to establish an effective deterrent. Criminal prosecution isnt the only way to prevent leaks, but its an important part of the solution.

WALLACE: The attorney general says your department is pursuing three times as many criminal investigations as you inherited from the Obama administration. Give us a sense of scale, are we talking 1-3, or are we talking more in the neighborhood of 10-30?

ROSENSTEIN: We dont publicize the precise number of leaks, precise number of referrals. Weve only talked about it in terms of the proportion. But thats significant increase has necessitated an increase in resources.

And so, we have to reprioritize our cases within the national security division. Were providing appropriate supervision at a high level. Weve created a new unit within the FBI to focus on those leaks, and were going to devote whatever resources are necessary to get them under control.

WALLACE: You say you cant give the exact number. Can you give us a sense of scale?

ROSENSTEIN: Well, that would give the number, Chris. I think weve been very clear about that. Weve only talked about the proportion, a tripling of the number of referrals so far this year.

WALLACE: But I take it if it were 1-3, this wouldnt be a serious problem that were talking about.

ROSENSTEIN: One to three wouldnt be as many as we have, thats true.

WALLACE: So, I had a feeling this would be a tough interview and Im preparing for it.

OK. Some of the people who engaged in leaks, I dont have to tell you, are not the so-called members of the deep state faceless bureaucrats inside intelligence agencies. They are White House officials. They are members of Congress. If you find any of them have committed these leaks, have disclosed classified information, will you prosecute?

ROSENSTEIN: Chris, what we need to look at in every leak referral we get, we look at the fact and circumstances -- what was the potential harm caused by the leak, what were the circumstances? Thats more important to us than who it is, who is the leaker. So, if we identify somebody, no matter what their position is, if they violated the law, in that case, warrants prosecution, will prosecute it.

WALLACE: Including White House officials and members of Congress?

ROSENSTEIN: Including anybody who breaks the law.

WALLACE: The attorney general says that you are going to also review the policy when it comes to reporters and whether or not you will try to subpoena information from them to disclose their sources.

Heres how Mr. Sessions put it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SESSIONS: We respect the important role that the press place and will give them respect, but it is not unlimited. They cannot place lives at risk with impunity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: But the head of the reporters committee for the freedom of the press says when the -- what the attorney general is suggesting is a dangerous threat to the freedom of the American people to know and understand what their leaders are doing and why.

Your response?

ROSENSTEIN: I think thats an overreaction, Chris. The attorney general has been very clear that were after the leakers, not the journalist. Were after the people who are committing crime. And so, were going to devote the resources we need to identify who is responsible for those leaks and who has violated the law and hold them accountable.

WALLACE: Well, there are a couple of aspects to that. First of all, you say you are after the leakers, not the reporters. President Trump has reportedly suggested at one point prosecuting the reporters if they leak -- if they publish classified information. Are you ruling that out?

ROSENSTEIN: Chris, we have the same position on that I think as Attorney General Holder, that is we dont prosecute journalist for doing their jobs. We look at the facts and circumstances of each case and we determine whether somebody has committed a crime and whether its appropriate to hold them accountable for it.

WALLACE: And you dont consider the publishing classified information as a crime?

ROSENSTEIN: Well, Chris, I dont think you can draw any general line like that, it depends upon the facts and circumstances. You know, generally speaking, reporters who publish information are not committing a crime. But there might be a circumstance where they do.

You know, I havent seen any of those today, but I wouldnt rule it out in the event that there were a case where a reporter was purposely violating the law, then they might be a suspect as well. But thats not our goal here. Our goal is to prevent the leaks. And so, thats what were after here. We havent revised a policy with regard to reporters.

WALLACE: OK. But theres another aspect of this, which is if a reporter gets information from somebody, puts it out in the beginning of the Obama administration, they were very aggressive in going after their sources. And if you subpoena information and they refused to disclose it, they can still end up in jail at the end of the Obama administration after a backlash from reporters, they loosened up on that. And first of all, it had to be approved specifically by the attorney general and it was kind of a last resort to go after reporters sources.

Are you are reviewing that?

ROSENSTEIN: Yes, Chris, thats a different issue. That policy has been in existence for a very long time. Attorney General Holder revised that in 2015. Its possible he got it exactly right but maybe he didnt. Were going to take a fresh look at that, and weve gotten feedback from our career prosecutors and agents that some of the procedural hurdles are delaying their investigation. So, I think its important for us to take a fresh look at it and evaluate whether or not there are any improvements that should be made.

WALLACE: And what that means in your effort to get sources that you end up putting a reporter who refuses to disclose that source in jail?

ROSENSTEIN: Im not going to answer a hypothetical, Chris. As I said, I think it depends upon the facts and circumstances in each case.

WALLACE: We learned this week that special counsel Robert Mueller is taking his case to a grand jury. I know you cant and wont talk about the details of that case, but as a general proposition, does the fact that a prosecutor takes a case to a grand jury, what does that say about the likelihood of indictments?

ROSENSTEIN: Chris, Im -- you are right that Im not going to comment on the case. Im not going to comment about whether Director Mueller has or hasnt opened a grand jury. You know, we read a lot about criminal investigations in the media and some of those stories are false.

We just dont comment on investigations. Thats important for a number of reasons. First of all, we dont want to disparage anybody who may be a subject of an investigation. Number two, we dont want to interfere with the investigation by --

WALLACE: But Im asking you a different question. What does it say when a prosecutor takes a case, in general, to a grand jury about the likelihood of indictments?

ROSENSTEIN: In general, Chris, it doesnt say anything about the likelihood of indictments because we conduct investigations and we make a determination that at some point in the course of the investigation about whether charges are appropriate.

WALLACE: And whats the advantage in terms of an investigation into taking a case to a grand jury?

ROSENSTEIN: Many of our investigations, Chris, involve the use of a grand jury. Its an appropriate way to gather documents, sometimes to bring witnesses in, to make sure that you get their full testimony. Its just a tool that we use like any other tool in the course of our investigations.

WALLACE: There are reports that Mueller has expanded his investigation to go into the presidents finances. He was asked about that recently.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

MICHAEL SCHMIDT, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Mueller is looking at your finances and your familys finances, unrelated to Russia, is that a red line?

MAGGIE HABERMAN, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Would that be a breach of what his actual --

TRUMP: I would say yes. I would say yes.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

WALLACE: When you -- now, I know Im very dangerous territory here, but hear me out on this because Im not asking about the investigation. When you appointed Mueller, and you were the one who did, you had to sign an order authorizing the appointment of a special counsel, and you said that he was authorized to investigate any coordination with Russia and -- I want to put these words on the screen -- any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation.

My question is, does that mean that there are no red lines that Mueller or any special counsel can investigate under the terms of your order, anything he finds?

ROSENSTEIN: Chris, the special counsel is subject to the rules and regulations of the Department of Justice, and we dont engage in fishing expeditions. Now, that order that you read, that doesnt detail specifically who may be the subject of the investigation --

WALLACE: Right.

ROSENSTEIN: -- because we dont reveal that publicly.

But Bob Mueller understands and I understand the specific scope of the investigation and so, its not a fishing expedition.

WALLACE: I understand its not a fishing expedition, but you say any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation. In the course of his investigation of the issues that he is looking at, if he finds evidence of a crime, can he look at that?

ROSENSTEIN: Well, Chris, if he finds evidence of a crime thats within the scope of what Director Mueller and I have agreed is the appropriate scope of the investigation, then he can. If its something thats outside that scope, he needs to come to the acting attorney general, at this time, me, for a permission to expand his investigation. But we dont talk about that publicly.

And so, the speculation youve seen in the news media, thats not anything that Ive said. Its not anything Director Mueller said. We dont know whos saying it or how credible those sources are.

WALLACE: I mean, people ask about this, of course, because you had Ken Starr and Whitewater, and this began with a failed real estate deal in Arkansas and ended up with Monica Lewinsky. To expand, he would need to get approval from you to expand the investigation?

ROSENSTEIN: Thats correct. Just as did Ken Starr. You know, Ken Starr received an expansion we believe was initiated by the Department of Justice by Janet Reno that resulted in that investigation.

WALLACE: In a speech on Thursday, the president called the Russia story a total fabrication and he said heres what Justice Department people should be investigating.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: What the prosecutors should be looking are Hillary Clintons 33,000 deleted emails.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Do you view that as an order from the president?

ROSENSTEIN: Chris, the president has put very responsible people in charge of the Department of Justice, Attorney General Sessions, Rachel Brand, whos been working with me, Chris Wray who just took office last week. And we have many other qualified and responsible officials who are going to be joining us as soon, as they get through Senate confirmation to join the department. I can assure you that we are going to do the right thing and follow the rule of law.

WALLACE: But when the president, because he can order the Justice Department to do things, when he says heres what prosecutor should be doing, they should be looking at Hillary Clinton, do you view that as an order?

ROSENSTEIN: No, Chris, I view what the president says publicly as something he said publicly. If the president wants to give orders to us on the department, he does that privately. And then if we have any feedback, we provide it to him.

WALLACE: And will you tell me whether or not hes given you an order in that?

ROSENSTEIN: I wont, Chris, but I can tell you, the president has not directed us to investigate particular people, that wouldnt be right. Thats not the way we operate.

WALLACE: OK. A couple of quick questions on other issues.

Lets turn to the departments crack down on illegal immigration. The attorney general sent a letter this week to four cities struggling with gun violence, warning they wont be eligible for federal money to fight drug trafficking and gang crime unless they cooperate with immigration officials.

How do you respond to critics who say the solution here, which is to cut off federal funding to the cities that have a real crime problem, is worse than the problem?

ROSENSTEIN: Chris, the challenge that the attorney general is addressing there is that cities that release criminal aliens put everybody at risk. They put citizens at risk and weve seen that most recently in these horrible case where we had an illegal alien who was subject to a detainer that was ignored by local authorities who released him, and he committed a violent crime.

And thats not the only thing, Chris. We put law enforcement officers at risk because when somebody is already in jail and theyre subject to deportation order, if the local authorities ignore that order, put them back out in the street, that means that our federal agency need to go out and track them down and that puts them at risk. Thats the kind of danger the attorney general is seeking to address.

WALLACE: Finally, the attorney general has told prosecutors to pursue the toughest sentences in all cases, including mandatory minimums. Conservatives like Senators Rand Paul and Mike Lee, who have been pushing for criminal justice reform, say the result of this, going to end up filling the prisons with nonviolent, low-level drug offenders instead of going after serious criminals, violent criminals. Your response that?

ROSENSTEIN: Well, Chris, first of all, our priority in the Department of Justice is to prosecute high-level drug dealers, not to fill our prisons with low-level drug dealers or drug users. And the attorney generals policy actually just returns the department to the traditional policy that weve been following since the Carter administration, and that is that the presumption in each case is to charge the most serious, readily provable offense.

But in the event that our prosecutors believe thats not justified, they can make an exception. They just need to document it. Thats the policy.

WALLACE: Mr. Rosenstein, thank you. Thank you for your time. Good to talk with you.

I got to say, it was a challenging interview but I really enjoyed it. It was really quite interesting. Thank you.

ROSENSTEIN: Thank you very much. Good to be with you.

WALLACE: Up next, Republican Senator Thom Tillis who has introduced a measure to protect the special counsel from being fired for improper reasons.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: A look outside the beltway at the Queen City, Charlotte, North Carolina.

As Robert Muellers investigation heats up, there is a move by senators from both parties to protect the special counsel from being fired.

Our next guest, Republican Senator Thom Tillis, cosponsored a bill this week to do just that.

Senator, why did you introduce the legislation and how would it work?

SEN. THOM TILLIS, R-N.C., JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: Well, the reason we introduce the legislation, this is something that I talked about last year, in the year before under the Obama administration, what this legislation does is codify the current procedures within the Department of Justice. The only thing it adds is a review after the fact, after a special counsel has been removed, subject to a three-judge panel, so that we can make sure it was done for proper cause.

WALLACE: Your cosponsor, Democratic Senator Chris Coons, said that the reason that this bill was introduced, this is up on the screen, to expressly design to restrain the presidents power to act in an abrupt and inappropriate way.

Now, you say youve been thinking about this for years. But there seems to be some belief, and there certainly is backed up by what Senator Coons said, concern about this president and his reaction, very negative reaction, to special counsel Robert Muellers investigation.

TILLIS: Well, I think thats right. Thats why we put the effective date back to the date of the hire of the current special counsel.

But this is an opportunity. Often times when you have the other party in the White House, people want these kinds of things but they dont have the majority support to do it. This is an opportunity to put something on the books that applies to this current situation, but it will be in effect going forward.

This is very important. Its an important part of what we need to do to reestablish the public trust in the Department of Justice. Thats why Im taking the opportunity to do it now because I know the very people on my side of the aisle who have some concerns with it would be pounding the table for this if we were talking about a President Hillary Clinton and similar circumstances and an investigation that may or may not involve her.

WALLACE: But is some of this directed at President Trump?

TILLIS: Well, theres no question that it is, because clearly, the date that weve made the bill retroactive to. But this is about the Department of Justice. This is about my confidence in the attorney general and my confidence in the Department of Justice to move forward in an appropriate manner.

We just want to have -- we dont want to restrict administrations authority or the Department of Justice from removing a counsel, we just want to make sure to the American people they can be convinced it was done for the right reasons.

WALLACE: Well, lets talk about confidence or lack of confidence in the Justice Department and this investigation. President Trump has in over recent months, as you know, called the Russian investigation a hoax and a witch hunt.

Heres what he said this week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: The Russian story is a total fabrication. Its just an excuse for the greatest loss in the history of American politics. Thats all it is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Senator, do you think the Russian story is a total fabrication and a hoax?

TILLIS: I dont know. I think what we -- what we have is an investigation that if we allow it to lead to its conclusion, we get a definitive answer to that question. I dont believe that the investigation is a witch hunt, for example. I think that this is just a way to put this behind us because, Chris, theres so many other things we want to get to, health care, tax reform, infrastructure. Im trying to do everything I can to remove these distractions so that I can continue to support the presidents agenda.

WALLACE: What do you make of the big news this week that the special counsel is taking his investigation to a grand jury?

TILLIS: I think that thats just a part of the process. I dont read anything into it. Grand juries are convened all over this country for good reasons.

I dont have a concern -- and Im not -- Im not an attorney. Im not a lawyer. Im not going to get into the procedures.

If it gets us to an expedient conclusion, Im for anything that does that. I happen to think it will probably turn out just fine. I want to get away from the distractions and get to our agenda.

WALLACE: Im going to get to the agenda in the minute. But I do want to ask you about something else apart from the Russian investigation thats surprising. Republicans have recently been pushing back on this president.

I want to put up a list. You passed a bill limiting his ability to lift sanctions on Russia. That was bipartisan, Republican and Democrat. Theres your bill to protect the special counsel from being fired, and Republicans are keeping the Senate technically in session to block recess appointments.

Senator, thats something that one party usually does to the president of the other party.

TILLIS: I think, actually, it may be the Republicans should get some credit for showing independence and not necessarily deferring to a White House that happens to share their party. One of the mistakes that Congress has have made over the past 70 or so years is convey a lot of authority down the street that they should never have allowed to leave the Congress.

Take a look at the difference is made to all these bureaucrats writing regulations with very little control on the part of Congress. Theres a number of things now that I think we should focus on that wrestle back power that is appropriately centered in the Congress, not down the street.

WALLACE: Lets turn to health care --

TILLIS: Its not about this president. This is about institutional --

WALLACE: No, I understand.

TILLIS: This is about our institution.

WALLACE: Lets turn to health care. The president said that Congress should stay in session and should move and try again to repeal and replace Obamacare. Senate Republican leaders decided to go on recess and are talking now about, quote, moving on from health care.

Where are you on this, sir?

TILLIS: Well, I signed a letter to extend into recess. We got a week. I would have been here all month. As much as I love being here in the Queen City, I prefer to be in D.C. fulfilling the promises that weve made, whether its health care or tax reform.

I still believe were going to continue to work. We have to have a solution to health care. The fact that we did not get the votes a few weeks ago doesnt mean that there isnt a problem. So, we have to stay on that and weve got to get onto tax.

WALLACE: Well, lets talk about the problem. Are you willing, because it seems now the repeal and replace is dead, to work with Democrats to try to find ways to help deal with the immediate problem, to stabilize the Obamacare marketplaces? And how would you respond to conservatives who may say, hey, look, instead of trying to repeal Obamacare, youre going to work now to prop it up?

TILLIS: Well, I think that propping up a failed platform is problematic. Im willing to look at anything that may soften the blow as we continue to convince our colleagues on the other side of the aisle and some in my own conference that we have got to fix this problem. I will continue to support a measure that would go to reconciliation, the 51-vote threshold. Im willing to look at what the Democrats maybe are willing to offer.

The problem is the going in position seems to be nothing more than nipping around the edges at a failed Obamacare platform, and we simply cant do that. We cant sustain it. It will -- it will continue to destabilize the markets and I think it will put people at risk, far more so than what we try to get done two weeks ago.

WALLACE: In the time we have left, lets do a lightning round, quick questions, quick answers. One of the things that you have to do when you get back is to raise the debt limit or the country is going to default on its obligations for its first time in history. Are you willing to pass a clean bill without attaching any spending cuts to it?

TILLIS: Yes. If thats whats necessary, I hope that we can get the spending cuts.

At the end of the day, Chris, the American people need to know, all we are doing is saying that were committed to paying our bills. This isnt about new spending. This is about agreeing to pay for the obligations that have already been made, many have which, incidentally, I disagree with. We shouldnt be spending the way were spending in this country.

WALLACE: What are the chances for tax reform this year, and remember, if you dont pass a budget you dont get the reconciliation process where you can pass tax reform with just 51 votes.

TILLIS: We have got to pass a budget so that we have that reconciliation vehicle. We did tax reform in North Carolina. Its had extraordinary results. We have to do it for the nation. Its a promise we made and its a promise we need to keep.

WALLACE: Finally, the president this week proposed cutting illegal immigration in half, especially cutting lower skilled, lower paid workers. Would that be good or bad for your state?

TILLIS: I think it could be bad. I mean, if you take a look at the number of the coastal communities, the agricultural community, we have -- we have an immigration system here thats broken. I dont know what the right numbers are, but I think an arbitrary cut without being driven by the data is problematic. After we just got the H-2B visas released a couple of weeks ago, there are a number of communities that have applied to them, up to and including Mar-a-Lago.

So, theres obviously a need out there thats not being fulfilled by the indigenous workforce, and it puts American jobs at risk if we dont get this policy right. Im glad that Senators Purdue and Cotton offered something, at least gets the debate going. But now, lets just get to the facts and make sure that were not harming American businesses and American jobs by doing this in a way thats not driven by information.

WALLACE: Senator Tillis, thank you. Thank you for joining us, sir.

TILLIS: Thank you.

WALLACE: Up next, well bring in our Sunday group to weigh in on the administrations plan to go after leakers.

Plus, what would you like to ask the panel about special counsel Robert Mueller taking his Russia investigation to a grand jury? Just go to Facebook or Twitter, @FoxNewsSunday, and we may use your question on the air.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Coming up, Attorney General Sessions vows to crack down on leaks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SESSIONS: This nation must end this culture of leaks. We will investigate and seek to bring criminals to justice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Well ask our Sunday panel if investigators can find out whos revealing classified information.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Most people know there were no Russians in our campaign. There never were. We didnt win because of Russia, we won because of you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: President Trump at a rally Thursday pushing back against the expanding investigations by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

And its time now for our Sunday group. Jason Riley from "The Wall Street Journal" and author of the new book "False Black Power?," Charles Lane of "The Washington Post," Rachel Bade who covers Congress for "Politico," and Rich Lowry, editor of "The National Review."

Well, there were two major developments in the Russia story this week. First of all, the fact that the special counsel, Robert Mueller, is taking his case to a grand jury. And, second, now reports that his investigators have gone to the White House and are asking for documents concerning the former national security advisor, General Michael Flynn.

Rich, where is this investigation now?

RICH LOWRY, EDITOR, "NATIONAL REVIEW": Well, I dont think Muellers going away until he indicts people. And, obviously, Michael Flynn and Paul Manafort are in a lot of jeopardy. Others could be as well. The signs are its an increasingly wide-ranging probe.

And the question is, how much tolerance does the president of the United States have for that? And I think President Trump needs to realize, if he fires Robert Mueller, theres some significant chance that eventually Mueller will be the lead witness in his impeachment hearings.

WALLACE: And, of course, if you get those -- those legislation, either the Tillis (ph) bill or the Graham bill passed, he may not be able to fire Robert Mueller.

LOWRY: Yes, Im -- Im skeptical whether those will pass. Im even more skeptical that they should pass because I think that has serious constitutional problems. You cant have a -- the judiciary deciding whether the header of the executive branch could fire someone who works for him or not.

WALLACE: Why do you think specially that Flynn and Manafort are in trouble?

LOWRY: Well, I think the -- just, Flynn, hes had to serially redo his financial disclosure forms. Some of these payments from this firm that might have been a cut-out for the Turkish government are highly suspect. So I think thats -- he -- thats the very center of the criminal investigation.

But one last point, Chris, and you -- you brought this up with the deputy attorney general. I think he may have made a really momentous mistake in not being more specific in that initial charge to Mueller about what exactly -- what specific crimes he should be investigating and make Mueller come back and be very public about what new crimes he might be investigating because theres no way to know now whether its a fishing expedition or not and Mueller might be fired on the presumption hes engaged in a fishing expedition that he isnt.

WALLACE: We asked you for questions for the panel and on precisely this issue of the grand jury we got this on Twitter from Tom H. He writes, "how does an investigation of Russian hacking in 2016 get to private business deals eight years past?"

Chuck, how do you answer Tom and -- and also this question -- and I obviously discussed it at considerable length with Rod Rosenstein -- what if the special counsels investigation goes into Donald Trumps finances over the years?

CHARLES LANE, "THE WASHINGTON POST": I guess the theory of Russian collusion has always depended on the Russians having some sort of leverage over Donald Trump, some ability to exercise blackmail-type control. You know, we have this famous dossier thats out there with some really salacious stuff in it, but the --

WALLACE: Completely uncorroborated.

LANE: Completely uncorroborated, we should add.

But the more possible theory of Russian leverage had to do with somehow Russian institutions financing his businesses -- his business enterprises over the last eight years and that thats somehow in some way connected back to the Kremlin and Vladimir Putin and so forth.

But I do think, and in some ways I guess Im agreeing with Rich, there is a risk for this investigation. If it becomes perceived as arranging way, way beyond the question of like who might have manipulated the 2016 election.

You know, the Michael Flynn stuff is fascinating because thats about Turkey now, not about Russia.

LOWRY: Right.

LANE: And, you know, undoubtedly, Michael Flynn has got all kinds of problems with his foreign agent registrations and so forth and so on. But, after all, he was only national security adviser for 24 days and its going to take some explain to link that somehow back to the ostensible mission of this investigation.

Presumably what Mueller is up to here, like a good prosecutor, is finding leverage on Flynn to flip him to tell what other things he may know about Russia.

WALLACE: Then there was, as we discussed with a deputy attorney general, the barrage of leaks this past week, and a new effort to find the leakers. Here is the director of national security, Dan Coats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN COATS, DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE: Understand this, if you improperly disclose classified information, we will find you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Jason, weve been through this before. Lots of administrations. Whats the likelihood that they can find the leakers and really stop the leaks? And I have to say, there has been a torrent of leaks since this president took office.

JASON RILEY, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Well, we should also distinguish between the types of leaks here. Theres leaking about whats going on in the -- in the -- in the West Wing in terms of personnel, and then theres the leak we had this week with regard to the conversations that -- that Trump is been having with other leaders, which I think are much, much more serious and of a different order. The president of the United States cannot speak in confidence to world leaders if there is --

WALLACE: Theres also been leaks, for instance, about Michael Flynn, that intel picked him up in surveillance.

RILEY: Those are going to be -- that -- that as well. The leaks, however, regarding the Russia investigation I think are going to be very difficult to stop. Ken Starr, the independent prosecutor under Bill Clinton, his office also had lots of leaking during that investigation. A lot of it was to gain leverage and witnesses, by the way. So theyre going to be very difficult to stop.

I think a problem that Trump has dates back to the campaign, though, and that has been his treatment of the intelligence community. He has a very dicey relationship with people who weaponized information for a living. And its dragged into his presidency and its still haunting him.

And -- and one thing that Attorney General Sessions said during that news conference this week is that the cabinet, the members of the administration, need to be more disciplined in terms of leaking. And I think hes absolutely right. But the president himself, I think, has to also take the lead here. And I think he has to change his tone in how hes been dealing with members of the intelligence community.

WALLACE: Rachel, as I discussed with Rod Rosenstein, it isnt just members of the so-called "deep state" who are leaking. We -- we know, and weve known this for years, members of Congress leak, their staff leaks, White House officials leak, often times for political gain. What do you make of -- of what Rod Rosenstein said in the interview, which is, look, if its a White House official or its a member of Congress, were going to prosecute them. And as you -- s somebody who covers Congress, how much concern is there up there where leaking, frankly, is rampant?

RACHEL BADE, "POLITICO": I think that certainly shows that the Department of Justice is suspicious of that, some of the stuff thats coming from The Hill. I think regarding the leaks announcement, it seems like this was sort of -- had some mixed reception when I talk to lawmakers about it after this press conference, and that was, on the one hand a lot of them are just as upset as Trump about these leaks. They find them to be a distraction from talking about their agenda. Theyre at press conferences talking about bills theyre working on regarding veterans and reporters are raising their hands and saying, what do you think about this latest leak, this conversational the president had with the -- you know, the leader of Mexico, his comments. So, in that regard, theyre happy about DOJ going after the leaks.

But the second piece of this, they seem a little wary about going after reporters. And I think that thats where you might see some of the Republicans on The Hill sort of stop short of praising. Right now the last thing the Republican Party needs when theyre trying to get their legislative agenda actually moving is a bunch of headlines saying that the Trump administration is jailing reporters who are refusing to give over their sources. And this is not something they want to see right now.

WALLACE: Rich, we got less than a minute left and I want to pick up on that.

Rosenstein seemed to be making a distinction, not where the president is apparently gone, which is prosecute reporters for doing the job. He said, no, were not going to do that but he indicated they might be tougher about trying to get reporters to disclose their sources so you can find out who the leakers are.

LOWRY: Right. Thats the most direct and simple way to find out whos leaking. Its also the most radioactive way. And if they end up subpoenaing reporters for their sources and theyre held in contempt because -- because they wont give them up and then theyre in jail, its going to be portrayed as a war on the press and it will also be portrayed as retaliation for negative coverage since pretty much all the coverage from all the press is negative.

WALLACE: How do you feel about that?

LOWRY: I dont think the press has immunity by any means. But I think in a highly damaging week that really hurts national security, as a last resort its something they should be willing to do.

WALLACE: All right, panel, we have to take a break here.

When we come back, Congress is off on summer break with a lot of unfinished business left behind. Will they get anything done when they return?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN CORNYN, R-TEXAS, MAJORITY WHIP: What we need to do, I believe, in Congress is, not be distracted by the stories of the day. I understand you all have to cover those, but we dont. What we need to do is maintain our focus on getting your work done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: The number two Republican in the Senate, John Cornyn, warning Congress cant afford to get sidetracked from its long legislative agenda when it returns from recess in September.

Were back now with the panel.

Rachel, as somebody who covers Congress, whats your read on health care? Is repeal and replace finished, dead, and what are the chances for a bipartisan compromise, what I was talking about with Senator Tillis, to try to stabilize the Obamacare markets?

BADE: Yes, theres no sugarcoating it, Trumps legislative agenda is in big trouble. From talking to Republicans before they left the hill for recess, I can tell you that most of them are saying privately they think repeal and replace is dead, at least for now. We are hearing a lot of chatter about a bipartisan bill to basically prop up Obamacare and make a few fixes, which is really interesting because its very different from what they campaigned on.

But Trump, in trying to get this moving, you know, was tweet at lawmakers calling them quitters, saying that they need to get this done, and he actually made a threat to unilaterally blow up the insurance exchanges by stopping federal payments for subsidies. And that has actually pushed Republicans closer to Democrats such that all the chatter Im hearing on The Hill right now is about a bipartisan fix that would force him to make these payments.

WALLACE: But as I was discussing with Senator Tillis, youre going to get a lot of people back home saying, you promised to repeal it, now youre propping it up.

BADE: Oh, yes. Absolutely. You talk to conservatives on The Hill, the Freedom Caucus, you know, Rand Paul, Mike Lee, a lot of these guys are saying, lets just repeal and then we can work on replace for the next few years. But the problem is, the Republican Party on The Hill, theyre so divided on this. You know, yes, everybody wants to get rid of Obamacare, but when it comes to actually putting together that replacement, they are all over the map right now.

WALLACE: Jason, health care is only part of it. When they get back in September, theyre only going to have a couple of weeks. Theyve got to fund the government. Theyve got to raise the debt limit. They really are nowhere on tax reform. And this Republican-controlled Congress has yet to pass and send to the president a single, major legislative goal.

BADE: Yes. And I think the difference here is that while the president doesnt seem to be particularly worried about big, legislative accomplishments, nor does his base, a lot of these Republicans up for election next year in both the Senate and in the House want something to run on. And so they need something to go back home and campaigned on.

I agree that I -- I think that the health care reform repeal and replace is probably dead. I think theyre going to have to bail out the insurers. Im hoping they can get something in return for doing that. Perhaps something with a the medical device tax, perhaps something on the individual mandate, but something in return because --

WALLACE: Ive got to tell you, I talked to Nancy Pelosi hearing last week and I said, well, what are you going to give in return? And she looked at me like I was speaking martian.

RILEY: Well, the Democrats are very emboldened right now. I think Chuck Schumer, as well as Nancy Pelosi, both leaders are very emboldened. But thats what I -- I hope that McConnell and folks can -- can wrangle something out of this in return.

But I do think -- this idea Trump has that they can let the exchanges fail and avoid being blamed, I dont think is realistic. I think both the media and the Democrats will blame Republicans if these exchanges fail. And if Obamacare goes -- if there is -- if theres no replacement in place yet.

WALLACE: Then there is the big news from the White House this week, and that is that retired four-star General John Kelly has taken over as chief of staff. President Trump gave his new man a big welcome.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We just swore in General Kelly. He will do a spectacular job, I have no doubt, as chief of staff.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Rich, how much of a difference do you think John Kelly can make?

LOWRY: I think he can make a pretty serious difference. The problem with Reince Priebus, he never really had the authority to do the job properly and that he didnt really have the -- hes a very nice guy and didnt have the personal bearing to make people pay attention to him. And thats not a problem with John Kelly on either score. He has the rein of authority from the president. He has his military bearings. A little intimidating to people and makes -- makes people pay attention to him.

The problem, obviously, ultimately is at the top. And theres no changing Donald Trumps character in the way he operates. Although he saw in the campaign, you know, there was a -- there was a marginal difference between Corey Lewandowski Trump and Kellyanne Conway, Stephen Bannon Trump. And that difference might have just been enough to get him over the top in the election. So hopefully the Kelly difference will also be telling here.

WALLACE: You know, even before he took office, which was this past Monday, Kelly already was assuming power. He apparently called Jeff Sessions, the attorney general, the beleaguered attorney general, to tell him he was safe in his job. In a fight with conservatives who were going after the national security advisor, another general, H.R. McMaster, he has sided -- Kelly has sided with McMaster and strengthened him.

And I want to put up this picture that has just come out. This is John Kelly, over there on the far left. This is in the old executive office building addressing the entire White House staff late this week and telling them, you know, their responsibilities, the chain of command and saying, your duties first to country, second to the president. And as far as your own self-interest is concerned, that doesnt count.

Some Trump supporters, Chuck, are suggesting that this could be a turning point in the Trump presidency. It that overly dramatic?

LANE: It -- you know, it depends on which kind of Trump supporters youre talking about. Some see John Kelly as a savior, somebody who will stabilize and it will be a turning point in that sense. There are some Trump supporters who see this as a betrayal of the true Trump, that John Kelly is in some way being brought into blunt the sharp ideological edges, the nationalism and so forth that Trump had promised.

And, look, that White House is a snake pit. You talk about the military bearing of John Kelly impressing people. Well, H.R. McMaster has, I believe, three stars on his shoulder, but his military bearings hasnt protected him from a campaign of vicious leaks coming from people within the White House who regard him as sort of a sell-out on foreign policy.

Kelly has to get --thats -- hes got his hands on that problem right now. And I think a lot of people inside the staff are looking to see if he can really get control of it because if he can, well, then I think hell have established his authority and people will do what he says. But if somehow people find ways to work around even John Kelly, if the back channeling directly to the president and sending him memos that, you know, reflect the latest Alex Jones conspiracy theory continues, then I think Kelly still has a problem on his hands.

WALLACE: You know, its so interesting because were learning a little bit more about the Trump White House under Priebus by hearing the changes that are being made now, Jason. One of the things that apparently -- that Kelly has done is he has closed the door to the presidents office because what used to happen is that people would just walk in, or people would bring in articles or --

RILEY: Like "Seinfeld." Sort of like "Seinfeld." People just barging in the door.

WALLACE: Yes. I hadnt thought of that.

RILEY: This is a good move, putting Kelly in charge. But weve seen these bouts of sanity before. They dont seem to last very long and thats the problem. And theres only so much Kelly can do. Obviously this week Trump was still out there commenting on an ongoing investigation regularly when he should have been answering questions as coyly as the deputy attorney general was with you earlier. I mean thats the way you handle this, yet the president continues to sound off on this.

And these rivalries in the White House that were talking about in the West Wing, I think this Russia investigation is going to be hanging over these rivalries. I mean with people from Steve Bannon to Jared Kushner to Corey Lewandowski, under oath, when they are questioned by investigators, assuming that they will be, you know, will they turn on one another? Trump has been encouraging the competition since the campaign. These different power centers. And I think all of these investigations are going to hang over all of this intrigue in the West Wing while Trump is trying to govern and pursue his agenda.

LANE: Chris there -- if I may, there was a really interesting contradiction between what Trump said about this is a -- a hoax or a fabrication, and his own lawyer, Ty Cobb, who almost the same day or the day before said, we look forward to cooperating fully. And thats the kind of stuff that just continues at the top.

WALLACE: Ive got about 30 seconds, Rachel, here.

The view from Capitol Hill, how much did they see dysfunction in his White House? How hopeful are they about Kelly?

BADE: Oh, I think everything is riding on Kelly right now. A lot of people are talking about what hes going to do in the White House. But this is an opportunity to push the reset button with The Hill. I think increasingly youre seeing a dynamic shift between Hill Republicans and this Trump White House. And -- and that is -- theyre souring on each other. You know, the presidents tweeting out lawmakers. Hes calling them fools. Hes calling them quitters.

And convers, really youre seeing a lot of lawmakers who are now pushing back against Trump and saying, we need to be a stronger check on him. The other day, in a Republican conference, somebody stood up and blamed the president for why health care field. So Kelly can repair those relationships, I think.

WALLACE: Thank you, panel. See you next Sunday.

Up next, Jane Goodall on her decades long work with chimpanzees and her continuing mission to save the planet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: She is an icon who set off to study a subject she loved since childhood. As we told you earlier this year, her findings are still inspiring generations. Heres our "Power Player of the Week."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. JANE GOODALL, ACTIVIST & PRIMATOLOGIST: Im away from home about 300 days a year. And thats, you know, all over the world.

WALLACE (voice-over): Jane Goodall is 83 now, but shes still on a mission, raising awareness and money to protect the planet and the animals who live here.

GOODALL: One of the greatest rewards I have is the number of people around the world who say thank you, Jane, you taught me that because you did it, I can do it too.

WALLACE (on camera): Why are you still keeping up such a schedule?

GOODALL: Because we humans, the most intellectual beings who have ever walked the planet, are very busily destroying our only home. How is that possible?

GOODALL: I have to find the (INAUDIBLE).

WALLACE (voice-over): It was 1960 when Goodall, then 26, set out for the Gombe Animal Preserve in what is now Tanzania. She was trying to find the link between man and ape.

GOODALL: Exciting moment when I first saw a chimpanzee eating meat.

WALLACE: Observing chimpanzees in the jungle by herself, she discovered a number of links. The chimps can show compassion or wage war, but most important, the way they use twigs to hunt for termites.

GOODALL: A chimpanzee, when he strips leaves off a twig, is actually modifying a natural object is suit it to a specific purpose.

WALLACE (on camera): Why was that such an important discovery?

GOODALL: Because science thought at that time that humans, and only humans, used and made tools. We were defined as man, the toolmaker.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lead to the possible redefinition of the word "man."

WALLACE (voice-over): In 1965, National Geographic did a film about Goodalls work that created a sensation.

GOODALL: It was kind of "Beauty and the Beast." And, I mean, the whole -- the whole thing wasnt really about the science, it was about this young woman going out into the jungle. I became the "Geographic" cover girl.

WALLACE (on camera): The fact that you were such a striking girl didnt hurt either, did it?

GOODALL: It didnt hurt at all.

WALLACE (voice-over): As Goodall bonded with the chimpanzees, she even learned their language.

GOODALL: If Im greeting you as a dominant male, because males are dominant and I would be (chimpanzee noises).

WALLACE (on camera): And if you were laughing?

GOODALL: (chimpanzee noises).

WALLACE: Thats a laugh?

GOODALL: (chimpanzee noises). Yes. Thats if Im being tickled.

WALLACE (voice-over): Goodall ended her career as a field biologist 30 years ago, but she set up the Goodall Institute to continue research on chimps, as well as Roots and Shoots, to turn young people to 98 countries into conservation activists. Time is something Goodall thinks about now.

GOODALL: I dont know how long I have. I dont know how far it is to the end. But the end is -- the older you get, the nearer you get to that end. And Ive still got so much to do.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: This year, at Jane Goodall Institute is celebrating its 40th anniversary. To learn more about JGI, please go to our website, foxnewssunday.com.

And thats it for today. Have a great week and well see you next Fox News Sunday.

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Ten people were hospitalized on Saturday after an American Airlines flight heading to Philadelphia experienced "severe turbulence" with nearly 300 people on board.

American Airlines Flight 759 was heading to Philadelphia International Airport after departing from Athens, Greece, when it "briefly encountered severe turbulence" just before it landed, the airline said in a statement to FOX29.

"The seat belt sign was on at the time. Three passengers and seven crew members were transported to a local hospital for evaluation. We are taking care of our passengers and our crew members at this time and want to thank our team members for keeping our passengers safe," the statement read.

There were 287 passengers and 12 crew members on board at the time.

Passenger Ian Smith told WPVI it was 30 minutes before landing when the flight attendants told everyone to get in their seats.

"Thirty minutes out. They were giving us our drinks. The flight attendants were in the last couple rows when they said 'fasten your seat belts,'" Smith recalled to the news station.

"And then they said for the flight attendants to get to their seats, and they didn't even have time," Smith said. "It started shaking, then it took a big drop. Babies screaming, people in front of us hitting the ceiling."

Passengers said the turbulence lasted for about 15 seconds. The flight landed safely just after 3 p.m.

Click here for more from FOX29.
Three people were killed and two others were injured in a shooting at a residence on the Crow Indian Reservation in southeastern Montana. The tribe has instituted an emergency curfew.

The FBI said Saturday that three people were shot and killed Friday afternoon in Lodge Grass. Big Horn County Coroner Terry Bullis said autopsies were planned Saturday.

Officials have not released the names and ages of the victims or the conditions of the injured. No arrests have been made.

The tribe announced a curfew from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. until further notice. All vehicles traveling on the reservation while the curfew is in effect are subject to being stopped, and all occupants being ordered to present valid identification.

The FBI, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Montana Highway Patrol and the Big Horn County sheriff's office are investigating.
There has been an outpouring of generosity in the U.S. for the families of two U.S. Army paratroopers who were killed in Afghanistan last week.

As of Saturday night, online campaigns had raised about $75,000 for the families of Spc. Christopher Michael Harris and Sgt. Jonathon Michael Hunter, who were killed in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, the Fayetteville Observer in North Carolina reported.

Both Harris and Hunter had been stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, before being deployed to Afghanistan.

The paratroopers were killed by an improvised explosive device (IED) used against their convoy, Pentagon officials said. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack.

A spokesman for the GoFundMe fundraising website confirmed that campaigns had been launched for the Harris and Hunter families, the Observer reported.

A campaign to benefit Harris's wife, Britt, had raised nearly $50,000 as of Saturday night. Mrs. Harris recently learned that she and her husband were expecting their first child. The Harris campaign is at gofundme.com/48091y8.

Meanwhile, two campaigns for Hunters family had raised more than $24,000 combined. The campaigns, to benefit Hunters wife, Whitney, and his father, Mark Hunter, are at gofundme.com/support-for-sgt-jonathon-hunter and gofundme.com/jonathon-hunter-funeral.

The soldiers were members of the 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, and had been deployed a little more than a month each, the Observer reported.

Harris, 25, was from Jackson Springs, North Carolina, while Hunter, 23, was from Columbus, Indiana. The two soldiers were in Afghanistan as part of the Resolute Support Mission to train and assist Afghan forces.

NATO officials in Afghanistan said four other soldiers were wounded, but their injuries were not considered life-threatening, the Observer reported.

Since the paratroopers were identified last week, social media sites have been filled with messages of support and condolences for the families.

The deaths of Hunter and Harris brought the total number of U.S. military deaths in Afghanistan this year to nine, Fox News reported.
The Latest on a reported explosion at a Minnesota mosque (all times local):

5:50 p.m.

An FBI official says investigators are looking for suspects after an explosive device detonated at a mosque in suburban Minneapolis.

Witnesses reported seeing something get thrown at the imam's office window from a vehicle just before the blast Saturday morning at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington.

Police say there were no injuries, but the explosion damaged a room in the mosque.

Richard Thornton is the special agent in charge of the FBI's Minneapolis Division. He says investigators have recovered components of the device to figure how it was put together.

The mosque primarily serves people from the area's large Somali community.

___

3:30 p.m.

A Muslim civil rights group is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the bombing of a suburban Minneapolis mosque.

The reward is being offered by the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR. It comes after a different group earlier said it was also offering a $10,000 reward.

The blast occurred around 5 a.m. Saturday at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington. Police say there were no injuries. The FBI is leading an investigation into the explosion.

CAIR's local chapter says its national office is urging Islamic centers and mosques to step up security.

The organization's civil rights director says the group hopes the reward will help authorities quickly apprehend the perpetrator of the "act of violence."

___

1:50 p.m.

Authorities say a preliminary investigation shows that an illegal destructive device caused an explosion at a suburban Minneapolis mosque.

The blast happened at around 5 a.m. Saturday at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington. The police department tweeted that the FBI field office in Minneapolis is now the lead agency investigating the explosion. An FBI spokesman didn't immediately reply to a phone message seeking comment.

Asad Zaman, director of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, says a witness saw something being thrown at the imam's office window from a "van or truck" before the blast. Mohamed Omar, the center's executive director, says a worshipper saw a pickup truck speeding away afterward.

The mosque primarily serves people from the area's large Somali community.

___

12 p.m.

The Muslim American Society of Minnesota says someone threw an explosive device that started a fire in the imam's office at a mosque near Minneapolis.

The society said in a statement that attendees extinguished the fire at Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington. Police say the explosion was reported at about 5 a.m. Saturday and there were no injuries.

There were 15 to 20 people were gathered for morning prayers when the explosion occurred. Bloomington police Chief Jeff Potts says that investigators are trying to determine the cause of the blast.

Asad Zaman, director of the society, told WCCO-TV that a witness saw someone standing by the imam's office window before the blast and also saw a truck flee the scene. He says the imam's window was broken and a small fire bomb was thrown inside.

___

11:05 a.m.

An official from a suburban Minneapolis mosque where an early morning explosion occurred says the blast happened in the imam's office during the first prayer of the day.

The Star Tribune reports that Mohamed Omar, executive director of the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, says the center occasionally receives threatening calls and emails.

Bloomington police Chief Jeff Potts said Saturday that investigators are trying to determine the cause of the blast.

Authorities say the explosion damaged one room but it didn't hurt anyone.

Asad Zaman, director of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, says the organization is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

___

This story has been corrected to show that the group is called the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, not the Muslim-American Association of Minnesota.

___

10:25 a.m.

Authorities say an explosion at a mosque near Minneapolis damaged one room and caused smoke but it didn't hurt anyone.

Bloomington police Chief Jeff Potts said Saturday that investigators are trying to determine the cause of the blast at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center.

The mosque didn't immediately reply to a phone message seeking comment.

The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are involved in the investigation.

___

9:53 a.m.

Authorities are investigating a reported explosion at mosque in a Minneapolis suburb.

WCCO-TV reports that police say no one was injured in the Saturday blast at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington.

Bloomington police tweeted that the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are assisting in the investigation.
A 73-year-old Florida man has been banned from several Florida beaches after a parent complained about business cards he was handing out that read, "Sugardaddy seeking his sugarbaby."

Volusia County Beach Safety Capt. Tammy Maris confirmed Saturday that Richard Basaraba has been told to stay off all the county's beaches and walkovers for six months for violating an ordinance that prohibits soliciting on the beach.

Basaraba told The Daytona Beach News-Journal he's "devastated" by what he considers an overreaction by officials. He said he wasn't trying to entice anyone into doing anything illegal when he handed a business card out to a group of girls on Daytona Beach on Saturday.

But the mother of a 16-year-old girl complained to authorities after her daughter told her about the incident. The girl told officials the man handed her 18-year-old friend the business card while they were at the beach. It featured a picture of a younger woman sitting on the lap of an older man wearing a business suit. Printed on the card were an email address and the accompanying text: "Ask me about your monthly allowance."

Basaraba told the newspaper he's been careful not to hand the cards, which he recently ordered, to anyone under 18.

A beach patrol report says Basaraba told the 16-year-old that she should contact him when she's 18.

The ban is a trespass order and Marris said someone who violates such an order can be arrested for trespassing. Basaraba wasn't arrested because police didn't see him handing out the business cards.

"I'm really upset about it," Basaraba said. "This really knocked me for a loop." He said recently bought a T-shirt that reads "Accepting application 4A sugar baby," which has also proved to be a "conversation starter."

"I've had women stop me and say, 'I want to take a picture with you in this shirt.' They want to put them on Facebook."

Basaraba was also putting the pictures on Facebook, but he says he's now deleted the account. "Anything I've ever posted gets only gets three or four likes," he said, adding that he got 78 likes when he posted a photo posing with the woman in a bikini.

He said 95 percent of the women "found it hilarious."

"Maybe the younger ones didn't as much but the older ones did," he said.

The retired engineer said he's embarrassed and would like to apologize to the teenager and her mother.

"I engaged (the younger girl) before I knew she was 16 because of her bust size," he said. "I did make the mistake of saying, 'You're the cutest one here. Call me when you're 18."

He said his wife died in 2003, he's never remarried and he has a daughter and granddaughter who live out of town.

"I read in the paper about men who have sex with underage women and their life is gone," he said. "I can show you my bank account. I don't have any assets. I don't have money, just enough to live. I don't have money for a sugar baby."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
After a hurricane or severe storm strikes, it can sometimes take months or years for families and businesses to recover.

Such was the case in Lumberton, North Carolina, where 68-year-old Lola Smith recently returned to her apartment, after nine months of living in shelters and motel rooms following the devastation of Hurricane Matthew last October.

The hotel was getting to be depressing, Smith told North Carolinas Fayetteville Observer. Living out of the suitcase is something you don't want to do. You have to dig through everything to find what you're looking for. All those things that we have now, I will never take them for granted. I will never take anything for granted.

Smith and others were able to return home in part because Robeson County, North Carolina, was able to secure about $70 million in federal disaster recovery money to repair and rebuild homes.

Other victims haven't been as lucky. In Brunswick, Georgia, the Calvary Baptist Church plans to reopen Sunday following Hurricane Matthew, mostly thanks to donations and the work of volunteers.

The ordeal has been horrible, the Rev. Don Spires, the churchs pastor, told a reporter. He notes that the church still needs $250,000 to finish its repair work.

Trump visits FEMA

On Friday, with weather trackers predicting a busier-than-normal hurricane season for this year, President Trump and Vice President Pence made it a point to visit the Washington office of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

The president used the visit as an opportunity to pledge commitment to the nations emergency preparation and response efforts, the Washington Times reported.

We are very strong on homeland security, and were very strong in respect to FEMA, Trump said at the agencys National Response Coordination Center in Washington. FEMA is something Ive been very much involved in already.

Already as president, Trump said, he has approved FEMA assistance following weather-related disasters in Michigan, Missouri and Nebraska.

Weve already taken care of many of the situations that really needed emergency funds, the president said. We do it quickly, we do it effectively. We have an amazing team.

Also attending the preparedness forum were FEMA Administrator William B. "Brock" Long, acting Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke, and several governors, including Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat from Louisiana, a state that was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Katrina and other past hurricanes, including Irene (2011) and Sandy (2012), have resulted in deaths, injuries and billions of dollars in destruction of property and overall economic impact.

Communication is critical

Participants at Fridays meeting talked about the importance of being better prepared to respond to future severe storms.

We are entering peak hurricane season, and its critically important for everyone  state, local, and federal officials  to be in constant communication and coordinating efforts, Edwards told Louisianas Livingston Parish News. We know all too well how important it is for state and federal officials to share information when a storm is approaching, and this briefing was extremely helpful.

"We are entering peak hurricane season, and it's critically important for everyone -- state, local, and federal officials -- to be in constant communication and coordinating efforts."  Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards

Long, whom Trump appointed to lead FEMA, has more than 16 years of emergency management experience, according to the FEMA website, and is a past director of Alabamas Emergency Management Agency. He most recently worked for Hagerty Consulting, a disaster-response firm based in Illinois.

This year, meteorologists forecast there will be an above-average number of major hurricanes.

The Weather Company forecasts 15 named storms and eight hurricanes in the Atlantic basin, three of which will be major hurricanes.

Its unknown exactly which areas may be affected by those coming storms, but the residents and businesses in those communities are counting on the Trump administration, FEMA, and the governors and other officials who attended Fridays meeting in Washington to live up to their pledges.

The Associated Press contributed reporting to this story.
The investigation into the February murders of two Indiana girls has helped crack a cold-case killing that had gone unsolved for a decade.

Kevin Sellers, 39, of Logansport, was quizzed Wednesday about the girls killings and then confessed to shooting to death his 50-year-old uncle in 2007, prosecutors said.

I surrender, Sellers said when presented with evidence investigators had gathered over the years in the death of David Sellers in Logansport, FOX59 Indianapolis reported Friday.

A tipster told cops investigating the killings of 14-year-old Liberty German and 13-year-old Abigail Williams that Sellers had killed his uncle some years before and had gotten away with it, WFLI-TV reported.

Cass County prosecutors charged him with murder Thursday. He was jailed and ordered held without bail.

Indiana police in July released a composite sketch of a man wanted for questioning in connection with the murders of Liberty and Abigail.

The sketch generated more than 1,000 tips including the one about Sellers, FOX59 reported.

The two girls vanished Feb. 13 while hiking near their hometown of Delphi. Their bodies were found the next day.

Sellers isn't charged in that case.

David Sellers was found dead in his bed with a gunshot wound to his forehead, the station reported.

Sellers reported finding the body, according to the station.

Authorities said the motive for the murder may have been money.

Investigators said Sellers was the sole beneficiary of his uncles estate, FOX59 reported.

Click for more from FOX59 Indianapolis.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A nationwide manhunt is underway for an Ohio rape suspect who overpowered a sheriff's deputy in a transport van Friday and stole his gun and ammunition.

Paulding County Sheriff Jason Landers said Saturday that FBI agents and U.S. Marshals have joined the search for Branden Powell, 32, after his escape around noon Friday on an 80-mile trip from a psychiatric hospital in Toledo to the Paulding County Jail in northwest Ohio.

Powell is wearing light colored clothing and has dark hair and a stubbled beard, WFFT reported.

According to Landers, Powell was in leg shackles and in handcuffs secured to a belly belt when he jumped over the seat and put the deputy in a headlock, causing the van to crash into a ditch.

Powell managed to get the deputy's gun during a struggle and ordered the deputy at gunpoint to remove his restraints.

Powell then handcuffed the deputy to the steering wheel and disabled the van's police radio and engine before fleeing with the deputy's wallet, cellphone, gun and 30 rounds of ammunition, Landers said.

The deputy suffered minor injuries.

"He fought as long as he could, and as well as he could," Landers told the AP.

There was no mesh or other barriers separating the front and back of the van. They will be added, Landers said.

Powell was jailed July 8 and subsequently indicted on rape, attempted rape and sexual battery charges for an alleged assault in the Paulding County village of Antwerp.

After being jailed, Powell slit his throat in a suicide attempt and underwent surgery at a hospital, Landers said. He was sent to Northwest Ohio Psychiatric Hospital on July 13.

Doctors at the psychiatric facility "obviously concluded he was fit for incarceration in our facility," Landers said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Florida police announced Sunday an arrest in the murder of a missing 21-year-old woman whose body was recovered from a pond.

Jacksonville deputies say Lee Rodarte, 28, killed Savannah Gold during a struggle in his car Wednesday. He led police to her body in the pond after confessing to the murder Saturday, the deputies said.

My heart has burst. Z, my baby girl, is gone, Sherri Gold said on Facebook Sunday after her daughters body was found.

The murder took place in the parking lot of the Bonefish Grill in Jacksonville where they both worked, Fox 30 Jacksonville reported.

Deputies said they had an off-and-on relationship, according to the station.

Police confronted Rodarte about Golds whereabouts after viewing surveillance video showing Gold getting into Rodartes car, the station reported.

"On video, it appeared a struggle took place in the car and the car was shaking and the door was opening and closing, Lt. Steve Gallaher of the Jacksonville Sheriffs Office said, according to WJXT-TV.

Rodarte exits the car after a few minutes, walks over to her car, takes an object out of it and puts it in his, he said. He then returns to her car and appears to puncture the front left front tire of her vehicle. He returned to his vehicle and after a few minutes he drove away and Savannah never exited the car."

Gold was reported missing when she didnt show up for the start of her shift at the restaurant at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.

About 30 minutes later, her father got a strange text from her phone saying she had run away with a great guy and would call later, Fox 30 reported. The text included misspelled words.

That was the moment her parents knew something was wrong, the station reported.

He showed it to me and I immediately knew it wasnt her, Golds mother said. We text each other all day and every day, and this was not from my daughter. It was from someone else.

Rodarte was jailed after being charged with murder and tampering with evidence.

A cause of death was pending an autopsy Monday.
The amusement ride that broke apart at the Ohio State Fair late last month, killing a man, was due to its excessive corrosion, investigators concluded on Sunday.

The Fireball, an 18-year-old fairground ride created by Dutch manufacturer KMG, broke mid-ride at the Ohio State Fair in Columbus on July 26. In addition to the death of a Marine recruit, seven other people were hurt.

In a response letter from the company, Product Manager Albert Kroon said the investigation into the incident determined that the ride malfunctioned from excessive corrosion on the interior of the gondola support beam, which dangerously reduced the beams wall thickness over the years. This finally led to the catastrophic failure of the ride during operation.

The Fireball ride's "passenger carrying gondola detached from the supporting sweep arm of the ride also known as a KMG Afterburner," according to Kroon.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol identified Tyler Jarrell, 18, as the sole person who died during the accident. Jarrell recently enlisted in the Marines and was scheduled to attend basic training camp in June 2018.

OHIO STATE FAIR ACCIDENT SPURS OTHER FAIRS TO CLOSE 'FIRE BALL' RIDES

Seven others were injured when the Fireballs gondola detached from the rest of the ride.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich ordered all rides at the State Fair be shut down until inspections of all fair rides were completed.
Twelve people were reported hurt Sunday after a ship leaked a flammable liquid near the Port of Long Beach in California.

A 6,000-gallon container aboard a ship left eleven vessel workers and a firefighter injured when it began leaking an unidentified flammable substance, Long Beach Fire Department Public Information Officer Brian Fisk told KNBC.

The incident occurred around 9:30 a.m., according to the department's Twitter account.

FOX ATTACKS NY WOMAN, CHASES HER INTO HOME, POLICE SAY

Ten of the ships employees were treated on scene and one was transported to a hospital with mild injuries, KNBC reported.

The firefighters injuries were not due to the substance leak, Fisk told the news station.

The fire department tweeted that "precautionary measures" were being taken to protect the environment, with crews setting up a perimeter around the ship.
A toddler was shot in the head and killed Saturday night in Alabama while he was in a car with his parents and another adult.

The boy was identified by family members as Ron'Narius Duke Austin, who just turned 2 last month.

The boy, his mother and a man all were hit by the gunfire. Birmingham police Sgt. Bryan Shelton Sunday afternoon said the man who was shot in the back was the car's driver. The boys mother was shot more than in the arm.

He went to sleep, but baby when he woke up, he was in paradise, one of his cousin's posted on Facebook. God has a reason for allowing things to happen. We may never understand His wisdom, but we simply have to trust His will.

4 FEMALE ESCORTS CHARGED WITH MURDER IN DEATH OF MAN WHO STOPPED TO FIX FLAT TIRE

It is not clear at this time what started the exchange of gunfire, Shelton said, reports Al.com. Information is still coming in, and at this time, we have no suspects or motive.

No arrests were immediately announced.

Anyone with information is asked to contacy Birmingham police.
Nearly 30 people were injured early Sunday after a confirmed tornado slammed parts of Tulsa, Oklahoma, officials said.

St. Francis Hospital told Fox 23 most of the emergency room patients' storm-related injuries were minor.

The storm damaged multiple businesses in the midtown section of the city, located southeast of downtown.

Rayvonne Marcheselli told The Associated Press she received a tornado warning on her phone about five minutes before the storm hit and was able to get her 16, 17, and 18-year-old sons downstairs in their two-story home.

"They pounced on the couch and then the 'boom' hit, and I was like 'what was that?"' Marcheselli said.

Later Sunday morning, she saw the damage. "Like a ... razor, it just took out a path of trees through here," Marcheselli said.

Some of the heaviest damage was reported near Interstate 44, where several buildings lost portions of their roofs, and signs were torn down.

The storm also damaged power poles and more than 11,000 customers were without power at one point. More than 9,000 remained without electricity Sunday morning.

The interstate was closed for a short period of time due to a fallen sign on the highway, according to Fox 23.

Officials at a nearby high school said in a Facebook post they are surveying damage at the school.

Bishop Kelley High School said the only extensive damage at the school is to the breezeway in front of the school's science and technology center.

National Weather Service meteorologist Amy Jankowski said tornadoes are generally associated with spring months and said an August tornado is uncommon, but not "outrageously rare."
A second suspect has been arrested in the fatal shooting of an Italian tourist in Arkansas.

Police in Little Rock say 31-year-old Charina Fort of Little Rock surrendered Saturday after police earlier arrested 32-year-old Andre Jackson in the July 28 shooting death of 31-year-old Carlo Marigliano.

Both Fort and Jackson are jailed without bond on capital murder charges. Jail and court records do not list an attorney for them.

Police say Marigliano was shot and then crashed his vehicle into an apartment complex in Little Rock. Police say it isn't clear how he crossed paths with the suspects.

Family members told Little Rock television station KTHV that Marigliano was traveling with friends in the U.S. before leaving the group to visit other areas on his way to Arizona.
Disagreements over North Korea's tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles and territorial disputes in the South China Sea are preventing foreign ministers from other Asia-Pacific countries from issuing a unified statement about North Korea's actions, diplomatic sources said Sunday.

Washington had hoped the region's countries, including members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), would issue a joint communique after their annual gathering in Manila. But Cambodia was concerned its views weren't adequately reflected in the statement being developed, causing a delay, a diplomat said.

The obstacle came one day after the U.N. Security Council on Saturday unanimously approved new sanctions against North Korea in the wake of the communist nation's first successful tests of ICBMs capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.

Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday urged his North Korean counterpart to abide by U.N. resolutions and stop provoking "the international community's goodwill" with missile launches and nuclear tests.

Wang spoke to reporters in Manila after meeting with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on the sidelines of the ASEAN meeting.

Wang said the two had an intensive conversation during which China urged North Korea to maintain calm. He said he told Ri, "Do not violate the U.N. decision or provoke the international community's goodwill by conducting missile launches or nuclear tests."

Wang also urged the U.S. and South Korea "to stop increasing tensions" and said that all sides should return to negotiations.



The sanctions resolution approved Saturday bans North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood  resources that are worth over $1 billion to the regime of Kim Jong Un. North Korea exported an estimated $3 billion worth of goods last year.

Nikki Haley, U.S. ambassador to the U.N., praised the new sanctions, telling council members after the vote that it is "the single largest economic package ever leveled against the North Korean regime."

But she warned that it is not enough and "we should not fool ourselves into thinking we have solved the problem -- not even close."



"The threat of an outlaw nuclearized North Korean dictatorship remains ... (and) is rapidly growing more dangerous," Haley told council members after the vote.

Countries are also banned from giving any additional permits to North Korean laborers -- another source of money for Pyongyang. And it prohibits all new joint ventures with North Korean companies and bans new foreign investment in existing ones.



The resolution was drafted by the U.S. and negotiated with North Korea's neighbor and ally China. It is aimed at increasing economic pressure on Pyongyang to return to negotiations on its nuclear and missile programs.

The Security Council has already imposed six rounds of sanctions that have failed to halt North Korea's drive to improve its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons capabilities.

"All of this ICBM and nuclear irresponsibility has to stop," Haley told reporters as she headed to the council to vote.

The resolution condemns the launches "in the strongest terms" and reiterates previous calls for North Korea to suspend all ballistic missile launches and abandon its nuclear weapons and nuclear program "in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner."

A Security Council diplomat said coal has been North Korea's largest export, earning $1.2 billion last year which was then restricted by the Security Council in November to a maximum $400 million. This year, Pyongyang was estimated to earn $251 million from iron and iron ore exports, $113 million from lead and lead ore exports, and $295 million from fish and seafood exports, the diplomat said.

The resolution also adds nine North Koreans, mainly officials or representatives of companies and banks, to the U.N. sanctions blacklist, banning their travel and freezing their assets. It also imposes an asset freeze on two companies and two banks.

The council diplomat, who was not authorized to speak publicly and insisted on anonymity, called the newly sanctioned Foreign Trade Bank "a very critical clearing house for foreign exchange."



The Mansudae Overseas Project Group of Companies, which was also added to the blacklist, is described in the resolution as engaged in exporting workers for construction, including of monuments, in Africa and Southeast Asia.



The resolution asks the Security Council committee monitoring sanctions against North Korea to ban the import of many more so-called dual-use items, which have commercial purposes but can also be used in conventional, biological, chemical or nuclear weapons.



It also gives the committee a green light to designate specific vessels that are breaking sanctions from entering ports all over the world and to work with Interpol to enforce travel bans on North Koreans on the sanctions blacklist.



The resolution expresses regret at North Korea's "massive diversion of its scarce resources toward its development of nuclear weapons and a number of expensive ballistic missile programs" -- a point stressed by Haley.



It notes U.N. findings that well over half the population lacks sufficient food and medical care, while a quarter suffers from chronic malnutrition.



"These sanctions will cut deep, and in doing so will give the North Korean leadership a taste of the deprivations they have chosen to inflict on the North Korean people," Haley said. "Revenues aren't going toward feeding its people. Instead, the North Korean regime is literally starving its people and enslaving them in mines and factories in order to fund these illegal missile programs."



Though the economic sanctions have teeth, Washington didn't get everything it wanted.



In early July, Haley told the Security Council that if it was united, the international community could cut off major sources of hard currency to North Korea, restrict oil to its military and weapons programs, increase air and maritime restrictions and hold senior officials accountable.



Neither oil nor new air restrictions are included in the resolution.



Its adoption follows U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's comments Wednesday reassuring North Korea that Washington is not seeking regime change or an accelerated reunification of the Korean Peninsula -- comments welcomed by China's foreign minister.



China's U.N. Ambassador Liu Jieyi said the Chinese government hopes the United States will translate these commitments "into concrete policies" toward North Korea.



Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said Moscow hopes Tillerson's assurances "would be clear that the United States is not seeking to dismantle the existing ... situation (in North Korea) or to force to reunite the country or militarily intervene in the country."



Tillerson also said the United States wants to talk eventually with North Korea but thinks discussions would not be productive if Pyongyang comes with the intention of maintaining its nuclear weapons.



North Korea has repeatedly said it will never give up its nuclear arsenal, which it sees as a guarantee of its security.



The resolution reiterates language from previous ones supporting a return to six-party talks with the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula; expressing the Security Council's commitment "to a peaceful, diplomatic and political solution to the situation"; and stressing the importance of maintaining peace and stability in northeast Asia.



Liu said "China has been making tireless efforts to promote denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to uphold peace and stability" and will keep working to convince other governments to support its suspension-for-suspension proposal.



Under the proposal and a roadmap supported by Russia, North Korea would suspend nuclear and missile tests in exchange for the U.S. and South Korea suspending their joint military exercises. It also includes security measures for both North Korea and South Korea leading to denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.



But Haley told the Security Council that U.S.-South Korean military exercises have been carried out regularly and openly for nearly 40 years and "they will continue."



Russia's Nebenzia stressed that sanctions "need to be a tool for engaging the country in constructive talks" and must not be used for "economic asphyxiation" of the country or "to deliberately worsen the economic situation."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Cuban authorities have ordered the closure of one of the island's fastest-growing cooperatives, days after announcing that they would stop issuing new permits for some private enterprise.

Scenius, which provides accounting and business consulting services, will have until Dec. 31 to completely liquidate, the cooperative's founder and director Luis Duenas told The Associated Press on Saturday.

Duenas said the Ministry of Finances and Prices told him the decision to close Scenius was "based on an analysis of our social purpose, or of the activities that we have approved."

Duenas called the decision an "error" that has no place in the policy of economic opening announced by Cuban officials.

On Tuesday, Cuba's government said it would suspend the issuance of permits for a range of occupations and ventures, including restaurants and renting out rooms in private homes.

The suspension included the growing field of private teachers as well as street vendors of agricultural products, dressmakers and the relatively recent profession of real estate broker. The announcement did not say when the issuing of permits would resume and said that enterprises already in operation can continue.

President Raul Castro expanded an opening of the economy to private-sector employment in 200 categories of business in 2010. The government says nearly 570,000 people are employed in the enterprises, including hundreds of restaurants and guest houses. It later also legalized nonagricultural cooperatives.

Both recent moves have created fears that Cuba is putting the brakes on plans to reform its centrally planned economy, though officials say the country is not going back on its economic opening.

Duenas regretted that Scenius' closing occurred days after the package of restrictions on independent work.

"There are many ways to do things, timing is very important, and the country is greatly affected by these things," Duenas said.

Scenius began in January 2015 with two or three partners and in two years had more than 200. All its 70 clients are state-owned enterprises or business groups in agriculture, industry and communications.

According to official figures, there are more than 400 non-agricultural cooperatives in Cuba.
Rescuers have ended their search for three U.S. Marines who had been missing after an aircraft crashed into the sea off the east coast of Australia while trying to land.

In a statement late Saturday, the Marine base Camp Butler in Japan confirmed that "operations have now shifted to recovery efforts."

The Marines' next of kin had been notified, and Australia's defense force was assisting the Americans with the recovery effort, the statement said.

The missing Marines were among 26 service members on board the MV-22 Osprey, which crashed at around 3 a.m. Sunday, local time. The other 23 service members were recovered safely.

The cause of the crash is under investigation. A White House official said President Donald Trump had been briefed by chief of staff John Kelly about the crash.

"We ask that you please respect the privacy of our families during this difficult time," Marine Expeditionary Force responded.

The Osprey had launched from the USS Bonhomme Richard and was conducting regularly scheduled operations when it crashed into the water, the statement said. The ship's small boats and aircraft immediately responded in the search and rescue efforts.

The Osprey is a tilt-rotor aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter, but flies like an airplane. They have been involved in a series of high-profile crashes in recent years.

In 2015, a U.S. Osprey crashed during a training exercise in Hawaii, killing two Marines. Last December, a U.S. military Osprey crash-landed off Japan's southern island of Okinawa. Its five crew members were rescued safely. And in January, three U.S. soldiers were wounded in the "hard landing" of an Osprey in Yemen.

The crash comes just weeks after a Marine Corps cargo plane spiraled out of the sky and into the Mississippi Delta, killing 15 Marines and a Navy Corpsman.

About 70 percent of the Marine Corps fighter jets can't fly due to a shortage of spare parts, and reduced flights hours after years of budget cuts, officials say. U.S. military non-combat aviation crashes have totaled 12 in 2017, compared to 8 during the same period in 2016.

The aircraft was in Australia for a joint military training exercise held by the U.S. and Australia last month in Shoalwater Bay. The Talisman Sabre exercise, a biennial event between the two nations, involved more than 30,000 troops and 200 aircraft.

Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne said Saturday's incident occurred off the coast of Shoalwater Bay in Queensland state.

"I can confirm no Australian Defence Force personnel were on board the aircraft," Payne said in a statement. "The United States are leading the search and recovery effort."

Payne said she had spoken with U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis "to offer Australia's support in any way that can be of assistance."

Fox News' Lucas Tomlinson, Jackie Pham and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
British model Chloe Ayling spoke out for the first time Sunday about her kidnapping ordeal.

A 30-year-old Polish man lured the glamourous model to a fake photo shoot in Milan last month before drugging her and holding her so that she could be auctioned off online, investigators said.

Speaking from her London home Sunday, Ayling told The Sun: Ive been through a terrifying experience. Ive feared for my life, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour."

Lukasz Pawel Herba, who has British residency, was arrested July 18 and jailed for investigation of suspected kidnapping for extortion purposes.

Ayling said she was grateful to the Italian and British authorities for all of their assistance in securing her release.

Ayling said that during her kidnapping she was told that all girls are for the Arab market, and when the buyer gets fed up of a girl bought at auction, he can gift her to other people, and when of no interest anymore, feed her to tigers.

The woman had arrived in the city on July 10 and was supposed to do the photography session the next day. A photographer had booked the session through the model's agent, but as soon as Ayling stepped inside the Milan apartment for the appointment, she said she was attacked by two men.

A person with black gloves placed a hand over my mouth from behind while a second person wearing a balaclava gave me an injection in my right arm," said Ayling.

WOMAN GETS LIFE FOR ROLE IN KIDNAPPING OF ASSISTANT DA

I believe I lost consciousness because when I woke up, I was wearing just my pink undershirt made of chenille, and the socks I am now wearing, and I realized I was in the coffin of a car, my ankles and wrists in handcuffs, with a black tape covering my mouth, inside a bag where there was just a small hole in the zipper that allowed me to breathe," the model told The Sun.

Police suspect Herba advertised the "sale" of the woman online, while at the same time demanding ransom from the woman's agent of more than $300,000.

The suspect was arrested the day after he allegedly released the woman and dropped her off at the British consulate in Milan.

Milan daily Corriere della Sera reported the kidnapper let her go because he discovered she had a child and considered her unsuitable for the sex trade. But police spokesman Lorenzo Bucossi told reporters it was unclear why the woman was released.

Authorities said as far as they know, no ransom was paid. An investigation is being conducted in Poland and Britain as well as in Italy. Investigators are trying to determine if the suspect had accomplices and was mainly after ransom, or was trying to defraud someone who might have been willing to pay money online for the woman, police said.

They didn't identify the model's agent.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Authorities in Nigeria say at least 11 people are dead and others were critically wounded when gunmen attacked a church in southeastern Nigeria.

Garba Umar, police commissioner of Anambra state, said a gunman attacked St. Philip Catholic Church early Sunday.

But one parishioner, Uche Nonoso, told The Associated Press there were in fact two gunmen and more than 15 killed at the church.

The Rev. Hygi Aghaulor, communications director for the Nnewi Diocese, said the community was praying for the wounded.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the police say a manhunt has been launched. Authorities said they did not believe Boko Haram was behind the attack. The group has burned hundreds of churches over the past decade.
A Syrian war monitoring group says pro-government forces have captured the last Islamic State group stronghold in the energy-rich Homs province in central Syria.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group says 30 IS militants were killed in the last 24 hours of battle for the town of al-Sukhna. It says the Russian air force provided air support and bombed the town.

The Observatory said al-Sukhna fell to pro-government forces on Saturday.

Syrian military media reported capturing the town on Sunday. The advance puts pro-government forces 68 miles (110 kilometers) from reaching companion forces trapped in the eastern city of Deir el-Zour. IS militants have held the city under siege since 2015. It has depended on risky supply flights and air drops for relief and weapons.
An Afghan official says that at least 30 people including women and children have been killed by Taliban fighters in northern Sari Pul province.

Zahir Wahdat, the provincial governor for Sari Pul, says Sunday that the victims are mostly civilians and some local security forces. The shootings took place Saturday morning after the Taliban seized control of the strategic Mirzawalang area in Sayad district.

Wahdat says Afghan forces retreated form the area after they couldn't gain ground or air support from the central government.

Earlier reports indicated that over a dozen people had been killed by the Taliban.

Qari Yusouf Ahamdi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attack, but not the civilian deaths.

Ten Taliban fighters were also killed, according to Zabi Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor.
Peter Mauer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) returned from a trip across war-torn Yemen last month, telling Fox News he is "profoundly concerned for the plight of its people."

"This outbreak is manmade. It is a direct consequence of more than two years of warfare. People are dying from easily treatable chronic diseases," he said. "Key services like garbage disposal have ceased to function."

Maurer also stressed that thousands of people have been detained by parties to the conflict, languishing in prison unable to contact their loved ones. He highlighted that while "humanitarian funding is more needed than ever, the international community must go a step further.

"It must actively seek out solutions to this enormous crisis, and wield influence over the behavior of warring parties as a matter of urgency," he said, adding that how easily - as in places like Syria - conflicts can become protracted.

"Yemen's fate can be different, but I see few signs of hope," Mauer noted. "The suffering of its people only grows in intensity. I've met families forced to make impossible choices about whether to buy bread, water or medicine for their children."

Donations to the ICRC'S Yemen appeal can be made here.
After 30 years of drilling drinking water wells in the Northern Neck, Todd Saunders can tell you about the biggest change to his businessthe water table is dropping.

Most of the wells are at the same depth, but over at least the last 10 years, the water table has probably dropped 20 feet in some areas, said Saunders, who owns L&H Co. in Montross. The King George area has dropped real fast over the last 20 years.

When Saunders drills a new well, hes actually tapping into water pressure. When water is pumped from an aquifer, it reduces pressure in the areas around any particular well, reducing how high water will rise within a well.

Now, when Saunders drills a new well, where he might have found the standing level of water at 100 feet, its at around 130 feet. He attributes it to increased development and industry.

Virginias Office of Water Supply, which oversees water use, has been aware of the problem for years. Last year, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, which makes recommendations to the General Assembly, confirmed what the Department of Environmental Quality and United States Geological Survey had been saying all along: The Tidewater Regions (east of Interstate 95) deep groundwater supplies, such as the heavily used Potomac Aquifer, are insufficient to meet the demands of current and future users.

Industry in Virginia accounts for about 140 permits issued for groundwater withdrawals greater than 300,000 gallons of water per day. During the last 18 months, DEQ, through its water supply office, has been dialing back the amount of permitted groundwater withdrawal by the states 14 largest users, according to water supply chief Scott Kudlas.

Collectively, they represented 87 to 90 percent of the withdrawal in the region, said Kudlas. The allocated withdrawal was in the neighborhood of 146 million gallons per day and now its down in the neighborhood of 70 million gallons per day.

DEQ wants to reduce withdrawals, particularly in what they deem as critical areas, to the point that rates of water level declines are substantially reduced or reversed by 2025. The new permits include a 10-year drawdown plan by users.

Thirteen of the 14 have the new permits. The one holdout, the city of Franklin, has appealed.

How effective are these cuts to permits toward reaching that goal?

The pressure response to either increasing or decreasing withdrawal is pretty rapid, said USGS groundwater hydrologist Randy McFarland. Its pretty much a direct relationship. The more you pump, the more the water levels come down. If you decrease or stop pumping, the water levels come back in a proportional amount.

He uses the International Paper mill in Franklin as an example. The mill had been the largest permitted groundwater user, with average daily withdrawals of over 30 million gallons before closing in April 2010. During the mill shutdown, DEQ observed water level aquifers showing a slow and irregular recovery in the Potomac Aquifer.

But that declined when the mill resumed operations in 2012, despite switching to a different product that decreased withdrawals to about 13 million gallons a day.

Reported groundwater withdrawals from locations within groundwater management areaswhich require a permit when more than 300,000 gallons per day is withdrawntotaled about 75.5 million gallons per day for 2015, or approximately 56 percent of all groundwater withdrawals in the state.

And its not just industry thats pulling out large amounts of groundwater.

Were concerned about the unpermitted portion of the withdrawals because of its size and that it appears to be the fastest-growing portion of the withdrawal, said Kudlas.

Unpermitted and unmanaged

A 2008 USGS report estimated that all the unpermitted withdrawal combined draw nearly 30 million gallons a day. Kudlas said that may be up to around 40 million gallons a day this year.

What that means is you have a bigger and bigger chunk of the withdrawal that is unmanaged, he said.

So who are those unpermitted users?

Kudlas says they are just regular folks.

They are individual homeowners and people who live in a subdivision on a public system who have a private well to irrigate their landscape. They are [people with] geothermal heat pumps, he said.

Last year, DEQ reached out to a community of diverse groundwater stakeholdersfrom paper mills to environmentalistsand appointed an advisory committee to come up with ways the state might ensure the long-term viability of the aquifer system for future growth and development.

When the group, known as the Eastern Virginia Groundwater Management Advisory Committee, looked into unpermitted users, they found limited data on homeowner wells.

The biggest data limitation is the pre-1990 and especially the pre-1982 wells because there was no permitting requiredthat is going to be a considerable number of wells, the committee noted during one meeting last year.

The panel also found that places such as Virginia Beach were allowing lawn irrigation systems that tapped into groundwater instead of the public water supply, to skirt drought prohibitions.

Every new house in the last 15 to 20 years almost always put in a well for irrigation, the committee noted. There is enabling legislation to govern/regulate these wells, but most localities have not opted to adopt the rules.

The group was also concerned with over-pumping leading to land subsidence, where land sinks from water being pumped out at rates faster than an aquifer can recharge. In parts of Virginia, water flows back in fairly quickly, but in the Coastal Plain, wells drilled into deep sand layers can intercept water that has traveled from recharge areas several counties away.

A study conducted by USGS in 2013 found that 25 percent of the land subsidence in the Coastal Plain could be attributed to the over-pumping of groundwater.

Groundwater remains contentious throughout the state, with issues ranging from a property owners rights to drill to the responsibility of an unpermitted user for the health of an aquifer. The group did not reach a consensus on all the issues, according to one member, but agreed on 12 recommendations to DEQ that will make their way to the General Assembly Nov. 1.

That about 25 percent of the aquifer is used by domestic wells took members by surprise.

There were a lot more there than was expected, members noted during one meeting. The drillers know that the Potomac Aquifer can produce.

Too much salt

The potential for salt water entering aquifers that are drawn down is also a concern.

Regions that are closest to salt water, as the Northern Neck is with the Chesapeake Bay, have the greatest potential for whats referred to as salt-water intrusion, where declining levels of fresh water is replaced by nearby salt water.

McFarland said it takes a long time for salt water to move into the aquifer, and as far as scientists can tell, that hasnt happened in the Tidewater Region.

He also said people who live along Coastal Plain have naturally occurring sodium in their well water. And the deeper the well, the more salt. Some of Northumberland Countys wells drill down some 800 plus feet to reach water.

Gerald Howard, a retiree who had moved back to his hometown in the Northern Neck, first noticed a problem with his well water in 2012. When he would wash his car, a white film remained. He joined 158 other homeowners around the Northern Neck in a state well-water testing clinic.

I was shocked with the results, said Howard, referring to the high levels of sodium found. According to EPA standards, it should be 20 milligrams per liter and the average was 90.17. It was 75.5 percent above the standard.

He went before the Northumberland Board of Supervisors with results to ask if they could do anything. Many on the board had heard the same complaints about salt from other residents.

They had no solution, with the exception of one board member, a plumber, who offered to sell Howard a reverse-osmosis filter.

Since then, Howard has bought his drinking water. But hes concerned for people in the community with high blood-pressure who dont know about the salt in their water. He said AfricanAmericans like him are prone to the disease, which can be exacerbated by excessive salt intake.

I think people should be informed, so they have a choice, he said. Every family has somebody with high blood pressure.

Erin Ling, who coordinates the state household water quality program, said high levels of salt in well water is definitely a concern and should be taken seriously, especially by people who are most at risk.

Most folks are consuming around 2,000 milligrams of sodium per day, so theyd have to drink a lot of water for it to impact their health, she said. We do see a fair amount of naturally occurring sodium out in the coastal plain. Its mostly just a function of the sediment.

Seeking solutions

In a state where one of five people rely on well water, more monitoring needs to be done, Kudlas said.

Some of the solutions the committee discussed included providing robust funding for monitoring, establishing an annual state water resources forum where stakeholders can obtain and share information, banking and/or trading credits for water usage and injecting treated wastewater into aquifers.

Hampton Roads Sanitation Districts Sustainable Water Initiative for Tomorrow (HRSD SWIFT) is currently underway as a pilot project that would inject treated wastewater into aquifers. Similar projects are being evaluated for New Kent and Hanover.

Still, for DEQ, the biggest problem may be the unpermitted wells.

Without addressing unpermitted withdrawals, we could end up in a situation similar to the [Chesapeake] Bay program, where significant costs are incurred by permitted withdrawals, committee members said in a draft final report. But, at the end of the day, it becomes apparent that the problem will not be solved without addressing unpermitted withdrawals.

The final report will be given to DEQ this month.
Their brutal killings, linked to a ribbon of road between Williamsburg and Yorktown more than 30 years ago, have never been solved.

Its not even clear whether the four young couples who died in the late 1980s in whats become known as the Colonial Parkway Murders were killed by the same person, two people working togetheror if the deaths are linked at all.

True crime writers Blaine Pardoe and his daughter, Victoria Hester, both residents of Culpeper County, are hoping that their latest book will generate tips to help solve the states most notorious cold case.

A Special Kind of Evil: The Colonial Parkway Serial Killings opens with the duo meeting Larry McCann, founder of the Virginia State Polices behavioral science unit, and his wife at the Silk Mill Grille in the town of Orange. McCann, who was involved in investigations into the slayings and lives in Montpelier, had agreed to meet them under one condition: if their work would help bring the cases to closure.

A PIECE OF THE PUZZLE

Their paperback, which was released on July 4, has already turned up some new information.

Danny Plott, a former investigator for the Virginia State Police who is now chief of the Colonial Beach Police Department, gave the authors information that cleared up a mystery that haunted the father of one of the victims until the day he died.

Richard Call was on his way to work the morning of April 10, 1988, when he spotted his 20-year-old sons car parked on the York River Overlook turnoff on the parkway and stopped to investigate. The drivers side door was slightly ajar, the keys werent in the ignition, and a purse belonging to 18-year-old Cassandra Hailey, Keith Calls date, was on the passenger seat. Richard Call figured the pair had walked down to the beach, so he drove on to work.

Park rangers, Plott said, already had discovered the Toyota Celica and initially thought it had been abandoned. They later told the FBI that theyd taken the key out of the ignition, gone through some of its contents in an attempt to locate the owners, and taken both victims clothing from the backseat. When they realized Keith Call and Hailey were unaccounted for, they tried to put everything back the way theyd found it.

The family never had been told about this, and Richard Call had wondered for the rest of his life how he could have missed seeing all their clothes.

Unlike the other three couples, Calls and Haileys bodies have never been found.

the other couples

Cathleen Thomas, 27, and Rebecca Dowski, 21, were the first to die in the bizarre string of slayings that left residents wary of driving the Colonial Parkway late at nightand even warier of stopping at any of the scenic overlooks often used as lovers lanes.

The two women, who were in a romantic relationship, were found strangled, with their throats cut, in Thomas car near a parkway pull-off on Columbus Day weekend of 1986. Someone had doused the white Honda Civic 1300 DX with diesel fuel in an unsuccessful attempt to set it on fire, and tried to push it into the York River.

Less than a year later, David Knoblings truck was found with its door open and the radio playing on Ragged Island Wildlife Management Area, a marshy area on the James River about 22 miles from the parkway. The bodies of Knobling, 20, and Robin Edwards, 14, whod been riding with him, were found along the James three days later.

Both had been shot in the back of the head execution-style. Knobling had also been shot in the shoulder, possibly as he tried to flee.

The killing spree, if thats what it was, ended with Annamaria Phelps, 18, and Daniel Lauer, 21. They were headed to Virginia Beach on Labor Day weekend in 1989, but never arrived. Lauers Chevy Nova was found with keys in the ignition and the passenger door locked in the rest area on the westbound side of Interstate 64, the opposite direction from what it should have been headed.

Hunters found their badly decomposed remains six weeks later in a heavily wooded area about a mile from where the car had been abandoned. Their killer, or killers, had placed them side by side and covered them with a blanket that was probably the one Lauers mother had given him before they left. Investigators used metal detectors to search for bullets, but none were found.

Theories have abounded over the decades about the identity of the killer or killers. Unlike All That Remains, Patricia Cornwells best-selling novel based loosely on the slayings, Pardoe and Hesters book doesnt come up with a solution.

But a comment left by a lawyer on Amazon about A Special Kind of Evil, offered a tantalizing tidbit. Hed represented two men authorities had considered suspects, and said one of them had given him a gun as payment for his services.

The lawyer signed the post only with his initials, but Bill Thomas, Cathy Thomas brother, reached out to former journalists to find out the mans name, tracked him down in Florida and turned the information over to the FBI.

You never know where these tips are going to turn up, Pardoe said.

It could be that one tip, added Hester.
FOR CHILDREN growing up today with much more technology than I had, its hard to overstate the importance of learning outside. At the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, we see a sense of discovery time and again on our educational field experiences. Its watching a bald eagle snag a fish on the Rappahannock River, hearing the rushing waters of the Shenandoah River, or pulling up crab pots from the waters of the Chesapeake Bay.

These are experiences that every young Virginian should have. They give perspective on whats real, connect us with where we came from, and help build a love for the world around us. Numerous studies have shown the many benefits of outdoor learning, from higher test scores to lower levels of stress and obesity.

Recently, 15 of Virginias future leaders joined the Chesapeake Bay Foundation on a journey from the headwaters of the Shenandoah to the Bay. The high school students saw firsthand how pollution fouls our rivers and flows downstream to the Chesapeake. They discussed what must be done to solve the problem.

At the end of the week, the group met on the shores of the Bay with four other teams who had taken similar trips. There, on the Chesapeake Bay Foundations 50th anniversary, they shared a vision for the future.

At a stop on the Potomac at Westmoreland State Park, former Virginia Secretary of Natural Resources W. Tayloe Murphy inspired the students, as noted in a recent Free Lance-Star article. Educate yourself on an environmental issue and speak to your elected leaders and they will hear you, he told the students. You are the face of the future.

However, there is still a long way to go before every Virginia student has the opportunity to take part in meaningful outdoor education experiences. A host of businesses and groups, with the leadership of Virginia Environmental Endowment, have formed Virginias No Child Left Inside Coalition.

The coalitions 42 members advocate for state and federal support for environmental education. Members range from environmental groups like Friends of the Rappahannock to businesses and associations, including the Virginia Chamber of Commerce.

This summer, the coalition is advocating for continued investment in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations Bay Watershed Environmental Training program (B-WET), which is at risk of being eliminated under the presidents proposed budget. Fortunately, the Senate Appropriations Committee has included this funding in its budget work.

Grants from this program are nearly doubled by matching local funds. They invest in local projects that help students learn and take care of waterways while meeting academic goals. Locally, B-WET has supported efforts by the Spotsylvania County School Board and Friends of the Rappahannock.

All of us who care about giving every kid the chance to learn outside can let their voices be heard. Encourage the Virginia Board of Education to highlight environmental literacy in the state standards of learning. Call or write your member of Congress urging support for B-WET.

Business, organizations and school systems can join Virginias No Child Left Inside Coalition. Find out more at vancli.org. Together we can make a difference for the next generation of Virginians.

Rebecca LePrell is the Virginia executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.
AMERICAS infrastructure is aging and in dire need of modernization. The American Society of Civil Engineers, in its latest Infrastructure Report Card, graded the condition of our nations infrastructure as a D-plus overall. The report also estimated that government needs to invest $2 trillion over current spending levels for the next 10 years to modernize the system.

These challenges are significant, but they are not insurmountable. Its promising that the Trump administration has been vocal about the need to rebuild and vastly improve our infrastructure, and Congress has also indicated its willingness to get to work on solutions. Without a doubt, its time for our leaders in Washington to take charge and tackle the problem with stable funding and a long-term plan.

For years, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has supported meaningful action to reinforce our once-unequaled infrastructure, and weve continued to offer a slate of potential solutions to prove it. Now comes the tough part: To turn ideas into action, America needs to make a significant commitment and investment. So how do we pay for it?

There are a number of answers to that question, including direct federal funding, revolving loan programs, tax-preferred financing and public-private partnerships (known as P3s).

The best funding solution would make use of all of these options. And lets not forget about the gas tax. It hasnt been raised since 1993. It will take courage on the part of lawmakers to raise it, but its a common-sense option that should be on the table. Moreover, a long-term, sustainable source for funding the Highway Trust Fund should serve as the anchor for any plan.

Outside of increased federal investment, there is a great opportunity to encourage more successful private investment. From the Interstate 95 and 495 express lanes project in Virginia, to the Port of Miami Tunnel, to the Eagle Public Transportation project in Denver and the 91 express lanes in Orange County, Calif., examples of successful, entrepreneurial, public-private projects abound.

Many nations understand that, in a globally competitive marketplace, private investment is a linchpin for economic development and innovation. Countries such as Saudi Arabia and Australia have expressed an interest in investing in American infrastructure. Unfortunately, according to Preqin, at the end of the first half of 2016 funds focusing on North American assets were sitting on $75 billion, still unused.

For now, we need to better leverage the tools that we have as we get down to business and develop policies that get this kind of equity off the sideline.

We have quite a few tools in our toolbox:

Federal Loan Programs: Direct federal loans are a critical tool to bringing private capital to the infrastructure market. The most successful loan program, the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, makes loans to highway and transit projects. With more resources in the Transportation Departments Build America Bureau, more project sponsors will find it easier to use the program.

Private Activity Bonds: Private Activity Bonds allow private-sector project sponsors to issue tax-exempt bonds when financing public-benefit infrastructure projects. There is currently a $15 billion cap on these issuances, but increasing or eliminating this cap will provide further incentive to increase private-sector investment in surface-transportation projects.

Tax-Credit Bonds: There are several competing proposals to leverage private-sector investment by creating a new category of bonds, including Build America Bonds and Transportation and Regional Infrastructure Project Bonds. Many of the proposals would provide a tax credit in lieu of paying the bondholder interest. These can be used as an additional tool to supplement other financing and funding sources.

Project Streamlining: By expediting permitting, modernizing procurement practices, promoting innovation and committing to project analysis that focuses on long-term risk management, the federal government can provide private investors greater certainty in the planning and approval processes. These critical reforms can also serve to encourage further private investment.

The bottom line is that a long-term federal infrastructure modernization program, followed by greater investment by state, local and private actors, can engender the partnership necessary to ensure our nation has a 21st-century infrastructure network. But without a serious commitment from federal lawmakers, its going to be difficult to make the kind of progress demanded by the challenges were facing.

Private investment can and should be an important component of a plan to ensure that our nations infrastructureand our economycontinue to grow and flourish.

Ed Mortimer is executive director for transportation infrastructure at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.

In a globally competitive marketplace, private investment is a linchpin for economic development and innovation. Countries such as Saudi Arabia and Australia have expressed an interest in investing in U.S. infrastructure.
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Officials from the EU and China are calling for 10 young farmers to join an exchange programme to share knowledge and farming experience.

Programmes for the fully funded trip are still being finalised but the aim is to include farm visits and discussions, visits to research institutes, government meetings and various training workshops.

The initiative was launched in April by EU agriculture commissioner Phil Hogan and Chinas farming minister Han Changfu.

See also: Case study: From contracting to first-time tenancy

In both Europe and China  and indeed anywhere else in the world  we need to encourage the next generation of young farmers and rural entrepreneurs to create a food and farming sector fit for the 21st century, said Commissioner Hogan.

I welcome this opportunity to strengthen the already positive and constructive relations between the EU and China in this area.

Sector challenges

The project will give young farmers the chance to see how their counterparts rise to farming sector challenges, said a British embassy spokeswoman in Beijing.

Sustainable farming techniques and environmental practices will be at the heart of the project and participants will have the chance to learn from each others experience on a series of study tours, she added.

The findings will then be translated into recommendations on sustainable farming, which will be shared with the wider farming community and with policymakers. The project recommendations will be shared at a final conference in China at the end of 2018.

The first 10 young farmers (under 40) are being sought from across the EU to visit China for two weeks in November this year.

A second group of 10 will visit in June 2018. The scheme is fully funded by the EU and China so there are no costs for the participants.

The closing date for applications is 10 September. For more information and to apply, go to the study programmes website.
Lack of supply. High demand. Affordability. Low rental vacancy rates. Homelessness. Housing issues have taken on a new urgency in the mid-valley  and statewide.

The Oregon Legislature has passed major housing measures at its past two sessions. In the 2016 short session lawmakers passed bills allowing construction excise taxes and inclusionary zoning and limited voter-approved annexation.

In the just-concluded full session the Legislature added a major piece of legislation, SB 1051, that addresses affordability criteria, density, accessory dwelling units, the review period for development applications and the standards municipalities use when considering housing development.

And legislators came within a whisker of implementing new tenant-friendly rules on rent control and evictions. Those issues will be back, legislators and building industry experts say.

Urgency felt

We wanted to find something to deal with the affordable housing crisis that is happening right now, said Andy Olson, Republican state representative for District 15. We know that a total of 110,000 market rate units need to be built. Thats how dire our crisis is right now.

Jon Chandler, CEO and chief lobbyist for the Oregon Home Builders Association, was asked about the level of legislative activity.

My best guess, Chandler said, is that it was a confluence of the crisis being perceived as exactly that, and key legislative leaders coming to understand that there were things that the Legislature could do to address the situation that were both politically palatable and likely to be productive.

All in all the Legislature seems to have generally understood that we need to build more housing in Oregon, of all types, to alleviate the price and rental pressure.

Urgency at the state level, however, takes time to percolate down to action at local jurisdictions, and area planners still are sifting through SB 1051 and assessing its impact. In fact, area planners still are working on implementing the 2016 measures.

Unfortunately there isnt much to share at this point, said Jeff Blaine, who handles public works, engineering and community development for the city of Albany. We are in the process of evaluating the results of the legislative session to better understand its impacts.

City of Corvallis officials agreed. This is a big bill with a lot of connected pieces, said Paul Bilotta, community development director, so we are still evaluating what it will mean for Corvallis.

New standards

Those in the building industry think SB 1051 will help move the needle forward, particularly its requirement that local governments approve applications for housing developments that meet their clear and objective standards.

It will be much for difficult for a city to shirk its housing responsibilities, said Dale Kern, a broker with Commercial Associates in Corvallis. It provides further clarity on laws that are currently on the books but (that) have historically been artfully flouted by various cities attempting to evade state-legislated requirements to allow and facilitate housing.

Kern added that the new rules should make it easier for the planned Ponderosa Ridge development in northwest Corvallis as well as projects he is working on with developers in the Timberhill region to be built.

The ADUs piece of SB 1051 is more likely to affect the Portland area than other parts of the state, officials said. Albany and Corvallis already have local regulations on ADUs, including restrictions that require owner-occupancy, and state Sen. Sara Gelser, Democrat from District 8, noted that ADUs in every backyard wont help.

The bill, which went through a variety of changes as it moved through the pipeline, at one point included duplexes in the section on ADUs, but it was taken out, an act that broker Deborah Weaver of Willamette West Real Estate said was met with considerable disappointment.

Duplexes are not always popular in established neighborhoods, but they bring affordability and rental housing into the picture.

SB 1051 also reduces the clock that starts ticking on an affordable housing development application from 120 days to 100 days, meaning cities and counties must act more quickly when reviewing projects.

The Corvallis land-use approval process places an emphasis on community notification and input beyond the minimums in state law, Bilotta said, so it is often a challenge to complete (an application) within 120 days. We will be continuing to explore opportunities to streamline that process to make the 100-day timeline.

Affordability

SB 1051 also changed the definition of affordable housing in certain circumstances, from affecting families with 80 percent of an areas median income to 60 percent. Corvallis' Bilotta noted that the standard means a smaller subset of the areas households will qualify, but they will be those with greater needs.

Beyond SB 1051 the legislature also boosted spending on emergency housing and state homeless assistance programs to $40 million. Local funding will be administered by the Albany-based Community Services Consortium, which serves Linn, Benton and Lincoln counties.

The homeless funding was a key goal for Rep. Dan Rayfield, Democrat for District 16.

I believe that by better addressing the causes of homeless and providing supports to get people back into permanent housing we can reduce the other negative health outcomes associated with homelessness, Rayfield said. I look forward to continuing the work that has been started this session until we provide adequate housing and services needed for all Oregonians.

The Legislature also approved $80 million in general obligation bonds to be used for multi-family rentals and low-income first-time homebuyers. Because of the types of bonds being used the state has to be a partner in the project. This approach mirrors what Willamette Neighborhood Housing Services has done with community land trust homes at Seavey Meadows in Corvallis and elsewhere.

Jim Moorefield, executive director of Willamette Neighborhood Housing Services, also praised legislative action to boost a program that will increase the availability of low-cost mortgage loans for multi-family rentals.

This program has been around a long time and is extremely helpful to our ability to finance the development of affordable housing, Moorefield said.

Key additions out of the 2017 Legislature, Moorefield noted, raise the amount of the tax credits available by $8 million and extends to sunset date from 2020 to 2025.

The legislative craft

As noted above SB 1051 was a different brand of sausage by the time it reached Governor Kate Brown. Both Gelser and Weaver called it a gut and stuff.

We wanted to move a bill, Olson said, noting that streamlining the process and ensuring the cities are synchronized with the state led lawmakers to remove a few controversial issues.

Im usually not a top-down guy, Olson said, but we need to have people in homes.

The speed at which 1051 moved proved too much for Gelser and she voted against it, along with three other Democrats and two Republicans. The bill passed the Senate 23-6 and was approved 59-0 by Rayfield, Olson and their House colleagues.

It lacked a good process and it did not have adequate hearings, said Gelser, who noted that some of the key work occurred during the 4th of July weekend. There was no public testimony on 1051, they were working hard to put stuff in in the final minutes and there were a lot of questions that could not be addressed until it got to the Senate floor.

We have a housing crisis in Oregon and I really appreciate the efforts to increase supply, Gelser said while noting the continuing challenge of landlords renting to Oregon State University students by the bedroom and how expensive that makes housing in Corvallis for families.

Olson also noted the speed at which the Legislature moved, admitting in an interview that he still was digesting the bill and getting up to speed on some of its components.

Tenant issues

The divisive issues of rent control and no-cause eviction rules did not pass in the 2017 session, with legislators, real estate professionals and other stakeholders only agreeing that the issue will return.

Im sure well see this one next session, broker Weaver said.

Weaver said that HB 2004 had numerous unintended consequences which, had it passed, would have put a damper on increasing our housing supply and (the) development of rental units.

Others disagreed.

Katrina Holland, executive director of the statewide Community Alliance of Tenants, called HB 2004 a landmark bill and added lets be honest; it is frustrating that it didnt pass, but she added we came closer than ever before.

Gelser is already on board.

Im disappointed that we werent able to move forward with (outlawing) no-cause evictions if they have been good tenants for a year, Gelser said.

2016 recap

Albany and Corvallis took different approaches to the excise tax, inclusionary zoning and annexation measures passed in the 2016 short session.

Albany took no action on the excise tax and inclusionary zoning, said planner manager Bob Richardson. The city had required voter approval for annexations until the passage of SB 1573, Richardson said, but since Brown signed it in March 2016 Albany will process future annexation requests according to SB 1573 and will not require voter approval. The City Council makes the final decision.

Corvallis also did not tackle inclusionary zoning, which is a tool that mandates affordable units in new developments, but the city implemented the excise tax and has challenged the annexation limit in court.

The excise tax, which is assessed on residential and commercial construction, has raised more than $130,000 since implementation in November 2016, said Kent Weiss, housing and neighborhood services manager. About $15,000 of that total goes to state programs, with Corvallis set to hire an affordable housing planner later in the 2017-18 fiscal year. All funds raised by the excise tax must be used toward affordable housing programs.

Corvallis was the first city in Oregon to use voter-approved annexations, passing a measure in 1976. The city, with support from the League of Oregon Cities and Philomath, which implemented annexation votes in 1995, lost its first two court battles in Benton County Circuit Court.

The case in now in the briefing stage before the Oregon Court of Appeals, said Jim Brewer, who serves as city attorney for both Corvallis and Philomath.
A Corvallis house caught fire Friday evening after rags covered in finishing varnish spontaneously combusted in hot temperatures, the Fire Department reported.

If youre refinishing wood, those rags and paintbrushes should be kept in a can with water, said Fire Prevention Officer Wil Canate. They do spontaneously combust in high heat temperatures.

No one was injured in the blaze, but two people were displaced from the home on the 2900 block of Northwest 13th Place, Canate said. The Fire Department responded at 6:45 p.m.

The fire started on the external front porch of the house and extended into the attic, Canate said. The house sustained smoke and heat damage, with damages amounting to about $185,000, he said.

The American Red Cross provided the residents with temporary housing, food, clothing and other items.
In the 2015 session of the General Assembly, Adam Ebin, a Democratic state senator from Alexandria, introduced a bill that would have radically transformed Virginias marijuana laws. Senate Bill 686 would have erased the criminal penalties for up to an ounce of pot and changed the offense to a civil matter, punishable with a $100 fine, no jail time and no criminal record.

In the Senate, the bill went before the Courts of Justice Committee where it died on a straight party-line vote of 9 to 5, with only the five Democratic members of the panel voting for it.

One of those nine no votes came from Tommy Norment, the powerful majority leader of the Virginia Senate, whos long been known as a strict law-and-order member of the legislature and a member of the Virginia State Crime Commission.

Between the 2015 and 2017 Assembly sessions, Sen. Norment did something we wish more politicians in America did: He went out in his Tidewater district and talked with constituents, asking them what they thought of how state law treated marijuana possession. And by November 2016, when he spoke to a Norfolk-area business group, hed changed his mind, saying it was conversations with young millennial voters that opened his mind to the possibility of change.

In the run up to the 2017 session, it was Norment who successfully pushed the crime commission to commit to undertake a study of Virginias marijuana laws with an eye toward possible decriminalization.

The commission has now commenced the study process, and one of the first steps is to solicit the publics input. Until Aug. 25, Virginians can submit comments to the panel that will become part of the official report to the General Assembly, due on Oct. 5. That email address, for anyone interested, is vsccinfo@vscc.virginia.gov.

Each year on average, police in Virginia arrest more than 20,000 for possession, at rate that, in 2015, was the 12th highest in the United States. Possession is a Class 1 misdemeanor, thats punishable by up to 30 days in jail, a $500 fine and a criminal record. But also in 2015, poll after poll showed Virginians were open to change. One poll by Christopher Newport University reported that 71 percent of registered Virginians supported decriminalization with only 26 percent opposing it. Polls earlier this year showed that support had increased to 78 percent.

Norment hopes the crime commissions study will lay the groundwork for the General Assembly to take up the question of decriminalization in 2018. That may be a bit optimistic, given the track record of past efforts. But the majority leader has indicated hell be pushing the issue hard.

We hope commission members and Norments Assembly colleagues will approach the topic with open minds. While not taking a stand right now on the issue  were waiting for the study, too  we believe it is always a good thing when elected officials look to evaluate laws long on the books and ask questions about their continued efficacy.
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A new precision machining program, a revamped alternative education curriculum and several new administrators will all greet Danville Public Schools students when they return to classrooms Wednesday.

Dozens of new training machines and a spacious multi-room workspace will be available to the 11 students in the new precision machining program at George Washington High School.

Precision machining instructor Porchia Russell  who grew up in Caswell County, North Carolina, and attended Danville Community Colleges precision machining program  said her program was modeled after the colleges workspace.

This is identical to the DCC atmosphere, yet conducive to the high school kids, Russell said.

The class will serve as a feeder program for students who want to continue their studies at DCC or another institution, Russell said.

Everything thats in this elective course ties directly into their general education studies, and Im excited to see how students translate what they do in here to their general education classes, Russell said.

The $1.6 million program was approved by the Danville City Council this spring.

Danville Superintendent Stanley Jones said the program was the future of learning and workforce training in Virginia and the United States.

Automation is the future, Jones said. Our world is getting more technical.

Russell said she was so excited to be able to offer a leg up for students.

I invested in this, and we are trying to pay it forward to give, Russell said.

Alternative program revamps

The Danville school district revamping its alternative education program at Langston Focus School to focus on individualized academic and behavioral plans, Jones said. Jones noted one of the primary goals of the program was to provide students with the help they need to graduate on time.

Whey kids dont graduate, its not just the school division, Jones said.

He explained that outside factors like family and the community that negatively impact the community also impact students.

Earlier this summer, Jones appointed former Bonner Middle School principal Daphne Wall as coordinator of the alternative education program. Jones said he tapped Wall and her team for their experience and attitude in helping struggling students.

We want people in the alternative education program who have the skill and the will to work with students who have struggled, Jones said. Ms. Wall certainly has that style of leadership and the staff in that program.

District shuffles administrators

After last minute-resignations at Westwood Middle School, Randall Stokes will be an associate principal and Lynn Kratochvil will be an assistant principal. Stokes was previously slated to be a coordinator of alternative education programs with Wall.

Additionally, Jay Lancaster will be moving to the principal position at George Washington after several years at Galileo Magnet High School. Other administrative changes include Thomas Takacs, principal of GLH Johnson Elementary School; Larry Toomer, assistant principal of GLH Johnson Elementary School; and Rhonda Wright, principal of Grove Park and Northside preschools.
(TNS) - As the seven-year anniversary of the devastating Fourmile Fire approaches, a new book by a Boulder author advances the proposition that so-called "megafires" have become far more common and for several reasons will likely only become more so.The book is "Megafire," by Michael Kodas, to be published Aug. 22 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Kodas is the deputy director of the Center for Environmental Journalism at the University of Colorado.The National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, defines a "megafire" as a blaze more than 100,000 acres in size, but Kodas doesn't believe it's quite that simple. He believes the Fourmile Fire of September 2010, which claimed 169 structures  but burned a far more modest 6,181 acres  qualifies for the label."I kind of came to the personal conclusion that there are lots of small fires that behave differently than they have in the past, and consume or destroy a lot of homes or destroy a lot of the infrastructure we depend on, destroy habitat for endangered species, or kill people, or kill firefighters, that are probably more 'mega' than a fire that destroys 100,000 acres in a remote wilderness, where fires have burned like that forever," Kodas said on Thursday."In the sense that it destroyed any number of homes, and it caused all kinds of environmental problems that trickled down to the city of Boulder, the impact of the Fourmile Canyon Fire is definitely mega," he said.Even using only the strict barometer of 100,000-plus acres as the qualifier, Kodas found that before 1995, the United States averaged one megafire a year. Between 2005 and 2014, the number jumped to 9.8 per year. And, since the 1990s, the federal price tag for fighting such fires leaped from $300 million a year to $3 billion annually.In the book's prologue, Kodas writes, "I also came to see that despite the size and ferocity of the last decade's fires, the biggest and baddest of them all are still to come."In 2015, for the first time, wildfires affected more than 10 million acres of U.S. forests."Fire scientists anticipate that within a few years, 12 to 15 million acres a year will burn, and U.S. Forest Service researchers warn that by mid-century, that number could reach 20 million  an area nearly the size of Maine," Korda writes.Kodas sees four factors that play into the surge in such fires, which very broadly can be broken down into forest management policies, increased development in the wildlands-urban interface, global warming and political and economic decision-making. He sees some of those factors as irreversible on any immediate basis."We've got a century of climate change already built into the system, just from the emissions we have already released," he said in an interview. "I don't think we're going to see a quick reversal of climate change, from any policy we have implemented ... We've got a lot of climate impact coming into our forests. That's in the system, on the conveyer belt, and that's definitely going to arrive."But he does see some promise in both policy and practice that can both be changed, or improved, to mitigate the damage of future fires. For example, he pointed to the findings of the 2012 Fourmile Canyon Fire study released by the U.S. Forest Service."The report showed that some 80 percent of the homes burned from ground fires," he said. "After the fire, there were aerial photos and other studies which showed we had hundreds or thousands of slash piles left lying on the ground" after thinning by government crews or property owners."If you don't remove the fuel altogether from the forest, you may be removing the hazard around the house, but you make the ground fires worse. You haven't removed the hazard; you've actually just changed it."He made the analogy of the difference between treating an illness with surgery versus doing so with a medication."A lot of people kind of see those (forest management) activities as surgery, a one-time thing. They think, 'If I just go and cut these trees down ... ' But it's a lot more like taking a pill, as you would take for a chronic illness. You've got to keep working on that. You're probably going to have to do that every year. And if you are not, you are not mitigating the hazard on the level you have to."As a former reporter at the Hartford Courant, now an academic charged with the education of fellow journalists, Kodas  also an instructor at CU  is conscious of the boundaries between strictly objective news writing and advocacy."As a journalist, I am a very strong advocate for transparency in government, and I consider myself an advocate for the First Amendment and freedom of the press, and I am an advocate for responsiveness for agencies that use taxpayer dollars in reporting how they spend that money," Kodas said.He sees "Megafire" as an argument for a wiser use of taxpayer dollars in society's approach to managing a natural phenomenon just about as old as the planet itself."I hope it has some influence on everything from the federal government, all the way down to individuals, to rethink how we deal with fire on the landscape," Kodas said, pointing out that fire-prone landscapes now are often some of the more desirable addresses."Everybody wants to live in Colorado, on the Front Range," he said. "We've seen this huge population increase throughout the West, and often where the hazards are much greater than the Plains or places like that."So yeah, I kind of hope the book would get individuals and governments to think differently about their relationship with wildfire, to recognize that wildfire is as natural to any forest as rain is and that forests need wildfire to be healthy. And as a consequence, we should think of it as a little less as a disaster every time we see smoke rising from the forest."Charlie Brennan: 303-473-1327, brennanc@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/chasbrennan2017 the Daily Camera (Boulder, Colo.)Visit the Daily Camera (Boulder, Colo.) at www.dailycamera.comDistributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
(TNS) - Six months ago, relentless winter storms dumped nearly 13 inches of rain in four days on the Sierra Foothills, tearing an enormous hole in the spillway at Oroville Dam, the nations highest, and leading to an unprecedented emergency that prompted the evacuation of 188,000 people from nearby towns.Today, what could have been ground zero for Americas worst dam disaster is now a hotbed of construction activity. Hundreds of construction workers are laboring 20 hours a day, six days a week with huge dump trucks, cranes, excavators, bulldozers, concrete pumps and other equipment to demolish and rebuild the 3,000-foot-long main spillway  a massive chute as wide as 15 lanes of freeway by Nov. 1, before the next winter rain season begins anew.We are on target. We have done about 95 percent of the demolition that needs to take place, and we are already placing new concrete for the new spillway, said Erin Mellon, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Water Resources, which owns the dam. Progress is pretty substantial.Led by Kiewit, a contractor from Omaha, Nebraska, that built Los Vaqueros Dam in Contra Costa County in the 1990s, construction workers are also shoring up Orovilles emergency spillway, with a new underground retaining wall being built into its hillside and layers of concrete being poured to reinforce its top.In all, for both spillways, crews will install 8.5 million pounds of steel rebar, and 55,000 feet of drainage pipe, enough to stack 10 miles high. They will pour 946,000 cubic yards of concrete over the next year  enough to fill nearly 100,000 dump trucks.But the crisis isnt over. Major questions remain. And disaster could happen again.An independent forensics team ordered by federal regulators to find what went wrong issued preliminary findings in May, citing defects from the dams construction in the 1960s to problems linked to poor maintenance and oversight by state and federal officials. Its final report is due this fall. A separate investigation by engineers at UC Berkeley concluded that construction workers laboring for former Gov. Pat Brown 50 years ago cut corners, building the main spillway on weak rock that should have been excavated, then constructing the structure as thin as four inches in some places and failing to anchor or reinforce it properly.Those dangerous shortcomings were compounded, the Berkeley report found, by trees that were allowed to grow along the spillway walls, clogging its drainage pipes with their roots, and an attitude of patch and pray from Department of Water Resources crews when the main spillway repeatedly developed cracks in recent decades.Its not that complicated, said engineer Bob Bea, founder of UC Berkeleys Center for Catastrophic Risk Management Its a tragedy of neglect. It was poorly built and poorly maintained.Meanwhile, the price tag is expected to reach at least $500 million. The state is hoping 75 percent will be paid by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and most of the rest will come from the agencies that receive water from the State Water Project, which include the Santa Clara Valley Water District and the Metropolitan Water District in Los Angeles.Outside dam experts say the current repairs  which are scheduled to finish in 2018  are only the beginning. The state Department of Water Resources needs to do far more to modernize other huge dams across California, they say, and to make additional fixes at Oroville, where the aging steel gates atop the dams main spillway have numerous cracks and a mysterious green spot in the face of the 770-foot-tall earthen dam has some people worried whether the dam is slowly leaking.There are safety issues that are still outstanding, said Ron Stork, policy director with Friends of the River, a Sacramento environmental group. They are going to need attention sooner or later.Residents of the area are watching nervously.In many ways things are back to normal because we dont have an imminent threat, said Larry Matthews, 66, who lives in Yuba City, south of Oroville. But people have a real concern that maintenance wasnt done correctly. They want it fixed correctly. Theres a certainly some paranoia but you cant blame people for that.Matthews moved to Oroville with his family from Los Angeles in 1963 when he was 12.I saw that dam being built when I was a teenager, he said. People were proud of it. You trust the people who built it. It lasted for 49 years without any major problems. When I saw all that concrete broken on the spillway, I said it cant be true. It looked like somebody photoshopped it.After the hole developed on Feb. 7, the issue became an international story. State officials closed the main spillway, and the lake level rose to the top. Five days later, on Feb. 12, as water poured over the emergency spillway, eroding so badly it threatened to collapse, Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea issued an emergency evacuation order with phrases like This is NOT a drill spread across social media, radio and TV. Chaos ensured. Matthews, who three years ago wrote a book, The Building of the Oroville Dam, collected up birth certificates, passports and other vital documents in a garbage bag and prepared to flee with his wife and 93-year-old mother-in-law.I tried to evacuate, he said. But the roads were so congested I couldnt even hardly get out of the driveway.Stores closed. Gas stations were overwhelmed. Panicked motorists drove on the shoulders of Highways 70 and 99. Matthews sat up all night watching TV news, ready to make a run for it with his family if he saw reports that the emergency spillway was collapsing, releasing Lake Oroville, which is 10 miles long and Californias second-largest reservoir, onto the towns below.State water officials made a gambit. They re-opened the badly damaged main spillway to lower the lake.They knew the water  flowing at 750,000 gallons per second  would rip it apart, and hoped the violently out-of-control flows would not start eroding away the face of the dam itself. The plan worked. The lake level dropped. Water stopped flowing over the emergency spillway. The dam held. And two days later the evacuation order was lifted.People are still concerned, said Beth Bello, an office manager who lives in Oroville. They are saying on Facebook Is the dam leaking? The construction workers are doing the best they can. But I do wonder how much the state is really telling us. They should have done more in the past. It could have been prevented.John Laird, Californias secretary of natural resources, who oversees the Department of Water Resources, said the incident brought back memories the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake, which destroyed Santa Cruzs historic downtown, where he once served as mayor.I knew that the dislocation I felt then, he said, was the dislocation being felt by the community evacuated in the Oroville area.Laird said the state, which has lowered the lake level by 110 feet, is committed to rebuilding the main spillway by this winter so it can handle new storms, and then finishing the job next year. The plan will be done in two stages, with the bottom 75 percent replaced now and the top replaced next year. He said the state plans to learn from the investigative reports.We must never let down our guard and we can always do better, he said.Bea, of UC Berkeley, also investigated levee failures in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and PG&Es 2010 pipeline explosion in San Bruno. He said the entire hillside at Orovilles emergency spillway should be armored with concrete, the steel gates on the main spillway should be replaced, and that the state needs to do an immediate, detailed investigation into the green spot on the dam, which state officials say is a harmless natural spring.Bea said California needs a top-to-bottom change in dam safety, with much more preventative work to avert future disasters that could kill thousands.There is no free lunch, he said. You pay a little now, or one hell of a lot later.2017 the San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.)Visit the San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.) at www.mercurynews.comDistributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
I've often thought about how I might be able to rig up a lawn sprinkler to protect my roof from a wildland fire that has embers cascading down on my "kindling" roof made out of cedar shakes. Well, someone took it a step further and developed a system that connects to a rain gutter. Check out, Wildfire Agencies Seriously Looking at Sprinklers to Protect Structures. Here in Washington state we are still getting smoke from the British Columbia Wildfires that have been burning for weeks at this point. The manufacturer of the system described above is Wildfire Automated Sprinkler Protection (WASP). As previous fires have shown, the fire does not need to be immediately next door. Wind- driven burning embers can travel very long distances.The system is not cheap, but compared to the cost and hassle of replacing one's home...I went ahead an ordered a kit for our own home. Mitigation!And, why would someone living in western Washington where it rains 8 to 9 months of the year buy one of these? See my op-ed from last month that was in the Seattle Times, Western Washington not immune from wildfire risk. And, our personal home setting is easy to see in this drone video of my garden. Wait until the end (less than two minutes) and you will see how the green belt behind our home and my neighbor's wood shake roofs make for my immediate neighborly risks.
Grants

The North Carolina Community Foundation is accepting grant applications for projects funded from the Womens Fund of North Carolina.

Grant funds are available for nonprofit organizations that sponsor programming that supports women and/or families. Programs must serve areas within the NCCF service area. Grant amounts typically range from $1,000 to $3,000. To apply, visit nccommunityfoundation.org. The deadline for submitting applications is Aug. 8.

***

A $25,000 gift in support of the YWCA Greensboros Courage and Commitment campaign was presented to the Campaign Leadership by Kim Blair, director of community relations at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina. The campaign is currently at more than 80 percent of its $5 million goal. The purpose of this campaign is to support a mission-centered space to enhance and expand programming and provide funding stability.

As a result of the campaign, the Shirley T. Frye YWCA has a permanent space with important features including an emergency family shelter, a commercial kitchen and ample meeting space.

Due to their gift, Blue Cross NC will have the opportunity to name one of the staff offices at the Shirley T. Frye YWCA facility.

Activities

Auburn College of Veterinary Medicine alumnus Dr. Larry Carter 62 and his wife, Nancy, recently presented a $200,000 gift from the Diane Carter Memorial Fund to support the Canine Performance Sciences Vapor Wake Detector Dog program.

Their late daughter, Diane Carter, a Greensboro native, was killed July 31, 2002 in a terrorist bombing attack at the Hebrew University in Israel. The Diane Carter Memorial Fund was established to support causes in her honor.

CPS is the successor of a research effort that began in 1990 at the College of Veterinary Medicine. The CPS mission is to innovate canine detection technology by exploring basic and applied research frontiers in olfaction, behavior, genetics and physical performance.

***

Community Housing Solutions built accessibility ramps at eight Guilford County homes July 24-27. The labor was provided by more than 50 young adult volunteers from Catholic Heart Work Camp, who stayed at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church.

Organizations sponsoring the effort included: First Friends Meeting, St. Pius X Catholic Church, St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, Westover Church, Catholic Charities, St. Benedict Catholic Church, Our Lady of Grace and the NC Housing Finance Agencys Urgent Repair Program.

For information about Community Housing Solutions, visit www.chshousing.org.
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As the legal process proceeds for a Milford restaurant owner suspected of using zapper software to shield $80,000 in receipts from Connecticut sales taxes, retailers and other companies face a major change this fall.

State authorities hope the change will bring to light as much as $200 million more in delinquent taxes each year that travel straight from cash tills into the pockets of proprietors without the state collecting its cut.

Starting in October, the state Department of Revenue Services will set the clock at two years to renew sales tax permits it issues from that point forward, jettisoning the current five-year renewal period. The shortened time frame will allow DRS to deny a new permit to taxpayers in arrears.

It is all part of a Connecticut effort to plug leaks in its revenue pipeline, with the state addressing both mom-and-pop stores and big dotcoms like Amazon and Airbnb, which both acceded state demands that they collect sales taxes at the point of sale.

Speaking in April in Hartford, DRS Commissioner Kevin Sullivan told legislators Connecticut has a $200 million sales-tax gap, representing collections it could use to finance government operations, whether the result of tax cheats or proprietors failing to meet their obligations for other reasons.

Either way, Sullivan expects the new permit schedule to pay immediate dividends for the state.

You have a moment where you can say to that business, All well and good (but) youve been in business for a number of years, you owe the state of Connecticut money. You are not going to get to continue until you have either worked out a payment plan or made whole the state of Connecticut (for what) you owe, Sullivan said during an April hearing in Hartford. It is an incredibly successful and powerful compliance tool for people who are grossly out of compliance.

Phantomware and zappers

If noncompliance remains an issue, so is outright tax evasion. At the tail end of July, authorities arrested Xiaoning Fan, 64, a New Haven resident who was charged with using a zapper device to artificially suppress dollar amounts recorded in ledgers that were collected from checks rung up at her Lao Sze Chuan restaurant in Milford.

It marked the first time DRS has sought to hold an individual accountable for using a zapper at the point of sale, with other states and municipalities nationally having pursued their own prosecutions over the past decade. In an April report, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development highlighted other high-tech tools fraudsters are using, to include phantomware software installed directly on point-of-sale devices and even sales suppression as a service in which a third-party service provides deletion, alteration and replacement of sales data over the web  a difficult knot for tax authorities to unwind, according to OECD.

The $200 million figure cited by Sullivan amounts to 5 percent of the sales and use taxes the state collected in the 2017 fiscal year that ended June 30. Connecticut sales tax collections increased 1 percent to $3.94 billion in fiscal 2017, putting an extra $40 million in the states coffers, according to preliminary DRS estimates.

At 6.35 percent of purchases, Connecticuts sales tax is the 12th highest among states, as determined in a Tax Foundation study published last January. But when factoring in local sales taxes charged in two-thirds of states, Connecticuts sales tax ranks just 32nd. Three states  New Hampshire, Delaware and Oregon  charge no sales tax, while Louisiana has the highest with a combined tax rate of 9.98 percent.

New York is ninth nationally and leads the Northeast with an estimated average combined sales tax rate of 8.5 percent. It was perhaps that large spread in comparison to Connecticut  in excess of 3 percent  that spurred Democrats in the Connecticut House of Representatives to mull hiking Connecticuts sales taxes to just short of 7 percent in an effort to close a budget deficit, a proposal that was criticized widely by those who prefer the state cut spending to make ends meet.

Living by the same rules

As the budget debate extends into August, legislators tackled a few small elements of the sales tax code that take effect in the coming year. Bed-and-breakfast inns and Airbnb hosts will now charge a flat 11 percent rate on their bill that includes both room and meals, sparing them from calculating separate 15 percent room taxes and 6.35 percent meal taxes that larger hotels must still remit.

And as of January 2018, DRS can require businesses that are chronically late remitting their sales taxes to make their weekly payments either from dedicated bank account audited by DRS or through external service providers similarly monitored. Currently, DRS is forcing several hundred businesses to pay their sales taxes on a weekly basis, according to Sullivan  a fraction of the some 150,000 businesses in Connecticut that pay sales and use taxes, but a number Sullivan expects to grow as DRS enforcement officers ferret out additional non-payers.

In two weeks, shoppers will get a brief window in which they can sidestep sales taxes on up to $100 in clothing rung up in any store, part of a state-sanctioned sales tax holiday held annually on the cusp of families hitting the stores for back-to-school shopping. This years tax-free week runs from Aug. 20 through the following Saturday.

If you have to ante up the other 51 weeks of the year for lifes basics, like clothing, at least youre not alone. And the possibility exists that DRS will get any others derelict in paying state sales taxes to cough up what they owe.

Its not that we live to make peoples life miserable, Sullivan said of the new powers of his DRS staff. I just think we have reached a point of saying to the people of the state of Connecticut that if there is $200 million or $300 million that is not being remitted, ... we have an obligation to the rest of the taxpayers of the state to make those people live by the same rules that everybody else is living by.

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-842-2545; www.twitter.com/casoulman
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While sitting at a glassy table in the center of Greenwich Avenues Saks: The Vault on a recent afternoon, New York City-based fine jewelry designer Temple St. Clair recalled one of her first memories behind such a desk.

Seated beside her mother, a 19-year-old St. Clair eyed the pieces at luxury Italian jeweler Bulgari as her mother decided what she wanted. In the end, the pair left with a ring displaying an imperial Roman coin wrapped in humble brown paper with red sealing wax, St. Clair said.

The piece that left such an impression on St. Clair was later stolen, and her mother asked for help replacing it while she was finishing her masters degree in Florence, Italy. In St. Clairs efforts to transform a Carthaginian coin into a necklace for her mother, she sought out a goldsmith in Florence and visited his studio in the ancient Palazzo dellOrafo. She worked with him, drawing sketches of how the piece would look, and I got taken into this culture, St. Clair said. I started buying other ancient coins and making them into necklaces to sell to friends.

A few years later, with the encouragement of some friends and jewelry buyers from Barneys New York, St. Clair founded her company in Florence.

Beauty in the details

In describing the foundations of her brand, which is celebrating its 30th year and the inclusion of some of St. Clairs work in The Louvre, the designer shared a series of stories. Her eyes gleamed as the afternoon sun illuminated The Vaults sparkling interior. She told of collecting shells and scrutinizing coral patterns during her many childhood beach explorations and how she, at one time, yearned to become a marine biologist.

It was evident that the lens of childlike awe through which she was captured by the worlds natural beauty growing up persists as she transitioned into describing more recent expeditions with her son.

To St. Clair, these stories and how they lend meaning to her career trajectory are essential to capturing why her designs have transcended changing fads, trends and business models. Just as stories are the key to understanding the designers success, they are also the basis for why Temple St. Clair fine jewelry appeals to its customers.

I create fine jewelry and what I term as true jewelry,  St. Clair said. And what I term as true jewelry lives beyond the jewels and craftsmanship. True jewelry must have an abstract quality of value of rare attention to the pieces integrity of design and storytelling.

St. Clair designs, which are sold in Fairfield County at The Vault, Greenwich Avenues Richards, Mitchells in Westport, Manfredi in New Canaan and Lux Bond & Green, entice mostly creative women seeking unique pieces to collect for themselves, she said.

My pieces arent for everyone, she said. And people dont dip into my work for a season. People collect it.

St. Clairs dedicated following meant it was easy for Saks to include her work in its recently opened downtown Greenwich shop, said Saks Shops Greenwich General Manager Joe Gambino, adding she has been important to the launch of our jewelry store.

How we edit our jewelry is really important, and shes a big part of that, Gambino said.

Jewelry as memories

A local admirer and collector of St. Clairs designs, Lara Laitala, who lives in Old Greenwich, has followed the designer for years. With a background in studying art and art history, Laitala said she regards St. Clair for how she taps deeply into the stores of creativity and strength that exist in those who are drawn to her aesthetic. Jewelry, to me, is a memory. Similar to a photograph, jewelry can bring forth emotions, vision of past events when a piece was worn, a sense of calmness, love and connectedness.

While growing up, Laitala gained a sense of comfort from the frequent noise made when her mothers wedding ring and band jostled together, she said.

Now the mother of four with her youngest, Mary Ellis, being her only daughter, Laitala intends to foster similar memories with two St. Clair angel pendants. I wear them both now so that my daughter sees them consistently and ascribes memories and love to them, she said.

For Laitala, the angels also symbolize spiritual guardian angels. Someday, Laitala hopes these layers of meaning will be infused in the pendants and that theyll be preserved as family heirlooms. Integral to Laitalas respect for St. Clair is also the quality of her gems, she said.

Once youve experienced that level of quality, its impossible to stop collecting, she said.

Though St. Clair and Laitala have never met, the designer is providing Laitala with a hand-written note to be passed on with the angel pendants.

Telling universal stories

The intimate way Laitala discusses her rationale for collecting St. Clair pieces mimics how the designer discusses her passion for creating jewelry. The parallelism is unsurprising, as St. Clair said she uses her collections to tell timeless stories and bind people together through the human experience.

I use jewelry to explore an array of themes with a unifying style, she said. I touch universal stories. We all have this human connectivity we forget about. Its the invisible connector.

Most of St. Clairs collections fit into an overarching theme, such as Amulettes, which are quintessential St. Clair with their roots in the earliest forms of self adornment; Celestial, which began in 2007; and Tree of Life that premiered in 2008.

Every St. Clair design still starts as a sketch and watercolor, which St. Clair shares with followers on her Instagram that she runs herself. Typically, she repeats a sketch over and over, refining and editing until its ready for the next step. St. Clair still works with her original goldsmiths in Italy, though shes added more from other parts of the world as her business has grown.

My values are the same as when I started, St. Clair said. Were just a bigger version now of where we started.

St. Clair has collected numerous top industry awards for her work over the years, but most recently, she became the third American whose work is installed permanently at The Louvre. That wont sink in for at least a decade, St. Clair said with a laugh.

One of her latest designs, The Lion collection, that will soon be on display at The Vault, will focus on the endangered species, and 10 percent of sales will go toward the Lion Guardians nonprofit.

While her companys 30th anniversary has prompted St. Clair to be reflective, shes simultaneously anticipating whats next, she said. For as long as she retains her infinite curiosity, and the magic of her childs view, she expects continued success.

Contact the writer at mbennett@greenwichtime.

com; Twitter: @Macaela_
We've traced the rise of the cameraphone before, but since we're in a lull in the megapixel race, we wanted to look back and check the milestones reached along the way to the Nokia 808 PureView - the 41MP monster that (five years later) is still the phone with the highest resolution camera (and only matched by Lumia 1020 since).

The Audiovox PM8920 may have been the first to cross the 1MP line with its 1.3MP camera in 2004. Niche brands aside, Motorola brought out the 1000 series phones that same year - the touch-focused A1000, the E1000 bar and V1000 flip. The Windows-powered MPx220 also joined in.



Motorola A1000  Motorola E1000  Motorola V1000  Motorola MPx220

Then in early 2005 Samsung unveiled the P850, a flip phone with a rotating screen and a 3.15MP camera. Sound familiar? You may be thinking of the Nokia N90 from a few months later and its 2MP camera (with Carl Zeiss optics). Before the year's end, the Nokia N80 matched Samsung at 3.15MP.



Samsung P850  Nokia N90  Nokia N80

The venerable Nokia N95 reached 5MP in early 2007. Sony Ericsson, an early player in the cameraphone market, put out the K850 and LG outed the KU990 Viewty (you may remember this one from previous installments, it's the first phone with slow-mo video).

Back in the day, we did a Grand 5MP shootout with these three plus the Nokia N82 and Samsung G600, which also came out in 2007.



Nokia N95  Sony Ericsson K850  LG KU990 Viewty

2008 was the year of the 8MP phone with a mix of sliders and bars. Samsung had the i8510 INNOV8 joined by the Pixon. LG answered with the KC910 Renoir as did Sony Ericsson with the C905.

We have an 8MP shootout too, if you want to see what these were capable of.



Samsung i8510 INNOV8  Samsung M8800 Pixon  LG KC910 Renoir  Sony Ericsson C905

In 2009, when 12MP was the bleeding edge, cameraphones still avoided Android. The Sony Ericsson Satio ran Symbian, the Samsung Pixon12 was a feature phone. Samsung's W880 was interesting because it had 3x optical zoom, something that never caught on (though some dual cameras of today do offer zooming functionality).



Sony Ericsson Satio (Idou)  Samsung M8910 Pixon12  Samsung W880 AMOLED 12M

Where was Nokia during that time? A year behind in terms of resolution - the N86 8MP came out in 2009, the 12MP N8 came in 2010. Granted, N8's 1/1.83" sensor is massive even by today's standards. The Finns have been drumming the "big pixel" drum forever, at 12MP the pixels were huge!



Nokia N86 8MP  Nokia N8

There was a brief flirtation with 13MP by Motorola and Toshiba, but Nokia put an end to the debate in 2012 with, yes, the Nokia 808 PureView - one of the best cameraphones of all time.

Its monstrous sensor was 1/1.2", the biggest we've seen on a mobile device. To put that in perspective, the sensor was 3 times the size of a 1/2.3" sensor like the ones we see in the Xperia XZ Premium, Google Pixel and a few others.

The sheer size of the sensor meant that despite its massive 41MP resolution, pixels were still quite large at 1.4m (the Nokia N8 was at 1.75m pixels). But the genius of the phone was elsewhere - mature image processing and leveraging on that resolution to enable high-quality digital zoom for 8MP photos. Advanced image processing is at the heart of the best cameras today.

Nokia kept things going for a bit longer, in 2013 it came out with the Lumia 1020 (running Windows Phone). It kept the 41MP resolution, though it shrunk the sensor to a still huge 1/1.5" (pixel size went down to 1.12m). However, megapixel counts dropped off quickly after that.



Nokia 808 PureView  Nokia Lumia 1020

Thin phones and an aversion to camera humps killed the large sensor phone, which limits the practical resolution to 20MP or so. Most makers actually took a step back from 16MP to 12MP to improve low light performance and since pixels are still fairly small, HDR+ or dual cameras are used to improve image quality.

Some makers tried to push Super Resolution, which combines multiple shots and upsamples them, but it's not the same. Zooming into a full resolution Nokia 808 photo was an experience all of its own and one (we're afraid) will not be repeated soon.




Haiti - FLASH : BAC 2016-2017 results per student for 7 departments





The Ministry of Education informs that the first results of the ordinary session of the exams of the Bac 2017 are available for 7 departements : West, North West, Center, South, Southeast, Nippes and Grand'Anse.



Thus, according to data provided by the National Bureau of State Exams (BUNEXE) by department :



Results for the academic year 2016-2017 :



West : Success rate 24.98%, out of 14,041 participants admitted out of 57,214 participants (23.87% in 2015-2016);

North West : Success rate 29.76% or 1.421 admitted out of 4,775 participants (28.69% in 2015-2016) ;

Center: Success rate 39.37%, or 2.056 admitted out of 5,222 participants (34.52% in 2015-2016);

South: Success rate 69.23%, or 2,860 admitted out of 4,131 participants (33.72% in 2015-2016);

Southeast: Success rate 33, 73%, or 1,016 admitted out of 3,012 participants (42.07% in 2015-2016);

Nippes : Success rate 41.1%, or 811 admitted out of a total of 1,973 participants (56.22% in 2015-2016) ;

Grand'Anse: Success rate 23, 92%, or 616 admitted out of 2,575 participants (28.91% in 2015-2016).



The results for the other departments will be communicated shortly



As was the case last year, the Ministry of Education is taking advantage of the possibilities offered by information technology to allow all candidates for the exams of the ordinary session of the Baccalaureat 2017 to have access to their results directly via the Internet.



To access your result, enter your 10-digit order number in the box below "Resultat du Bac Haitien 2017" and click on the button "Bac regulier".







NOTE : The special session of the bac is scheduled from Monday 21 to Thursday 24 August 2016. Candidates will compose only in the subjects for which they have not obtained their average.



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-21706-haiti-flash-bac-2017-results-per-student-for-4-departments.html



HL/ HatiLibre






















Haiti - Religion : Grants for the reconstruction of Churches





The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) Subcommittee on the Church in Latin America awarded nearly $4 million in funding in the form of 244 grants to support the pastoral work of the Church in Latin America and the Caribbean.



Projects that received funding for Haiti include :



- Haiti, Catechetical Formation: This project will provide formation for 400 pastoral agents from four parishes that were impacted by Hurricane Matthew. The formation will be centered around the theme of the Christian family, and will take place over the course of three days. Seminars, workshops and group discussions will be facilitated, along with opportunities for prayer and daily Mass.



- In addition, the first grant to help rebuild churches on the western part of Haiti after Hurricane Matthew was approved. More of these requests will be considered at future meetings of the Subcommittee.



"I am continually inspired by all of those who support the Collection for the Church in Latin America," said Bishop Eusebio Elizondo, auxiliary bishop of Seattle and chairman of the Subcommittee on the Church in Latin America. "The generosity of Catholics across the United States makes a difference in the lives of countless people in Latin America and the Caribbean. This generosity reflects the love and compassion of God. I can see this especially in the response we received to help the victims of Hurricane Matthew. With that help, we not only fund pastoral projects, but help rebuild churches in some dioceses of Haiti."



Other areas of funding include lay leadership training, seminarian and religious formation, prison ministry, and youth ministry. Grants are funded by the annual Collection for the Church in Latin America, taken in many dioceses across the U.S. on the fourth Sunday in January. The grants to Haiti are funded by the Special Collection for Haiti, which occurred after the 2010 earthquake. These reconstruction efforts are managed through the Partnership for Church Reconstruction in Haiti (PROCHE).



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Published on 2017/08/06

The New York Times follows up on the blacklisting scandal, a UCLA student creates jewellery and accessories inspired by Korean culture and Hangul, The Korea Herald interviews the director of the Korea National Contemporary Dance Company, and a new quarterly magazine for Korean photography launches in Seoul.

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"6 Ex-Officials in South Korea Are Sentenced for Blacklisting Artists"

A follow-up on the blacklisting scandal that rocked the country earlier this year: according to The New York Times, half a dozen top officials who were involved in the previous president's decisions to blacklisted hundreds of artists have now been sentenced to prison. "It's against the Constitution to exclude artists from government support programs according to the taste of political power", said the presiding judge, Hwang Byeong-heon.

...READ ON THE NEW YORK TIMES

"Alumna's jewellery designs rooted in Korean folklore and tradition"

Alumna Aein Hope, a UCLA Korean studies and Asian humanities alumni, creates jewellery and accessories inspired by Korean culture and Hangul (the Korean alphabet). In addition to drawing inspiration from Korea's culture and letters, Hope also looks to its rich and mystical mythology; she encountered the nine-tailed fox, the 'kumiho', for example, while watching the drama series, "My Girlfriend is a Nine-Tailed Fox".

...READ ON DAILY BRUIN

"[Herald Interview] Unlikely pairing of traditional instruments, contemporary dance"

"Through this work, I seek to instil in Korean people pride in our culture and also express the wish for its continued development in the future", said Ahn Sung-soo, the Korea National Contemporary Dance Company artistic director. In this interview with The Korea Herald, Sung-soo talks about his motivation for creating on the borderlands between traditional and modern music and dance. His recent show, "Music for Rites - The Afterimages of the Rose", recently concluded a three-day run at the CJ Towol Theater of the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul. "The safest way is to create works that people will feel good about, even when just listening to the music".

...READ ON THE KOREA HERALD

"Exhibition shows different narratives of Korea"

Korea Photo Review is a new quarterly magazine that aims to share "diverse stories and experiences about Korea through visual storytelling". The first issue, launched recently in Itaewon, features eight international photographers that, "showcases both up-and-coming as well as established photographers whose works reflect life in Korea". Joseph Chung, one of the new editors, hopes that the magazine "will be good enough so that even those who are not photographers can pick up an issue".

...READ ON THE KOREA TIMES
By William Schwartz | Published on 2017/08/05

A long time ago, director David Redman went to the National Library of France to inquire about Jikji, the first book in the world (that we know of) to be printed with movable metal type. Jikji predates the Gutenburg Bible by several decades, and yet nobody outside of Korea has ever heard of it. The obviously inherently interesting premise is no doubt how "Dancing with Jikji" was able to get funding, so it's a bit disappointing that writer/director Woo Kwanghoon's documentary is so...meandering.

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For a sense of perspective, when "Dancing with Jikji" starts out, it seems like what we're getting into is a story of academic indifference when it comes to Jikji. We do come back to that theme every so often. As attempts at research by the Jikji research team are frequently foiled by such villains as inaccurate information on the National Library of France's website, as well as overworked, disinterested officials.

The possibility of politically motivated officials at the National Library of France is somewhat more interesting. Apparently the National Library of France has a lot of issues in general with how a lot of their foreign artifacts were straight up plundered from weaker countries as part and parcel of imperialism. This leads to the irony of how, even though the National Library of France claims to be protecting Jikji, it is actually not in their best interest to let anyone with possible political motivations look at it. And pretty much any Korean person has possible political motivations, unless they're a non-academic dignitary who the French government wants to impress.

Of course, it must be noted that actually seeing the physical Jikji is not terribly relevant to the documentary's overall purpose, which is research. The premise is, did Gutenburg get the idea of a movable printing press from Jikji? The problem with that idea being that such a premise is fundamentally unprovable, since there aren't any accurate record from that long ago. One hilarious late stretch of "Dancing with Jikji" involves the documentary team realizing they can't even prove that Gutenburg invented movable metal type at all. That's how thin the information is, even if one significant breakthrough is made by the end.

But even broader historical knowledge is lacking. No one in "Dancing with Jikji" seems interested in explaining why movable metal type is important in the first place. Frequent late references to the Tripitaka Koreana do not mention that, impressive though it may be, the Tripitaka Koreana was made with wooden type, not metal type. So, what, the thesis is that the few Europeans who came to the Far East were aware that East Asian printing techniques were awesome, and talked about it in a line of people stretching all the way to Gutenburg?

While the idea is interesting the execution is way too scattershot. Evidence takes second fiddle to the adventures of David Redman and his crew, whose personal adventures are simply not all that important to the prompt. The Dan Brown style vibe created just serves to make their theory seem more dubious. The Korean title, Jikji Code, which comes from one of the documentary's many casual conversations, only highlights these problems.

Review by William Schwartz

"Dancing with Jikji" is directed by David Redman and Woo Kwanghoon.
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BRISTOL, Tenn.  Once a key business in the Bristol Mall, Misty Mountain Designs has evolved over the years to accommodate the changing landscape of shopping in Bristol. One of the secrets to the success of this small, locally owned store has been their commitment to the Bristol community.

When Sue Smith, 54, first came to Bristol in the early 1990s from Columbia, Maryland, she knew immediately shed found her home.

I fell in love with the area, Smith said. It was a little scary moving so far away, but I felt real-ly good about it. Bristol just felt right.

Smith and her then husband purchased 27 acres in Mendota and built a home. Smith, who had worked in the jewelry industry for years while living in Maryland, already had the idea for opening her own store from which to sell her own homemade jewelry. While gazing across the hills of her new home and watching the mist roll over the mountain, a classic rock song called Misty Mountain Hop by Led Zeppelin came on the radio and inspired the name of her shop.

In October of 1998, Smith opened the first location of Misty Mountain Designs. The store started as a small kiosk in Bristol Mall.

Jewelry was what I made with my hands, but I knew eventually I wanted to sell more, ex-plained Smith.

The store grew to carry not only jewelry, but also semi-precious stones, original clothing, wall tapestries, candles, incense and much more. Misty Mountain expanded from a small kiosk to a 500-square-foot store space in the mall. Over the years, the store moved to various locations within the mall, and Smith even had several offshoot specialty stores.

But over the two decades of Misty Mountains burgeoning business at the mall, the landscape of shopping began to change. Malls fell from popularity in favor of strip malls, and in Bristol, the downtown district came back to life and became a popular foot traffic destination. Before long, business at Bristol Mall began to decline.

We saw it coming for several years, Smith noted. The pattern had changed way before the mall closed. We knew that was going to happen. I saw the writing on the wall.

In October of 2013, Smith heeded her gut feeling and opened a second location on State Street in downtown Bristol. For several years, she operated both stores, but as the mall traffic dwindled, she decided to close up shop at that location. When Misty Mountain finally closed its doors at the mall in April 2017 after 20 years of business, there were only six stores left in the mall.

Though combining two store locations into one has presented its own brand of challenges, Misty Mountain has continued to draw customers and thrive at its downtown location. Smith has always been active in downtown events to support her community  Misty Mountain has had a presence at downtown events like Rhythm and Roots, Border Bask and Full Moon Jam for years. The State Street store has served to strengthen her ties with downtown Bristol.

We are very happy and fortunate to have Sue and Misty Mountain in downtown Bristol, stated Maggie Bishop, executive director of Believe in Bristol. Sue is a supporter of every event that we have downtown and welcomes the chance to do that. She is a friendly face that people come directly to downtown to see. She has got customers from all over who probably would not normally come to downtown Bristol if she was not located on State Street.

Smith has even joined with other business owners of the 500 block of State Street to form an informal coalition working together to promote downtown Bristol. They are collaborating on shooting a commercial promoting downtown, with the slogan that Bristol is State Street.

Aside from business, Smith never misses an opportunity to pay it forward. She is a strong be-liever in community, and welcomes any chance to help youth and community. Whether its giv-ing gift certificates for kids or organizations to raffle in fundraisers or donating clothes to special causes, Smith is a great advocate of giving back to her community.

It just behooves all of us to be a part of what happens in our communities, Smith pointed out. If the community is strong, were strong. The community has really supported us, and for me, that means we should give back to the community.

One cause that has been near and dear to Smiths heart is Red Legacy, an East Tennessee-based program that helps incarcerated women struggling with addiction to develop the skills they need to build a successful life when they are released. Red Legacy founder Angelee Murray points out that these women have often lost or gained weight while serving time, and when they get out, find that their clothes no longer fit. Smith has donated clothing and her time to the pro-gram to help these women as they try to start fresh.

Sue is a special person and we have always loved her and appreciate everything she has done for us, Murray said. Its not every day that you find someone local that is so generous and kind hearted.

Smith is also very dedicated to the youth of the community, and has given support to United Way, Boys and Girls Club, Big Brothers Big Sisters and Miss Virginia and Miss Tennessee, among others.

I had a hard time in high school, Smith remembers. My advisor and others in the commu-nity saw that there were these cracks that I was falling through. They had to give me some en-couragement, and that was really all it took  just somebody caring enough to make an effort.

Smith credits her turnaround to the people who gave her a chance and helped her when she was struggling, and says this has inspired her to do the same.

When I give a gift certificate or we do a fundraiser or I spend time helping something, I feel like that is a piece of me that Im giving back, and it feels good. It feels really good.

Longtime friend Camille Moseley remembers several years ago when an employees house burned to the ground, leaving her with nothing. When Moseley told her of the tragedy, Smith didnt hesitate to chip in.

She told me to have my employee come down to the shop and pick out some clothes, which Sue gave her, in addition to some money, to help her through that really difficult time, recalled Moseley. That is just the kind of person Sue is  always ready to help out and selflessly give to others. Bristol is lucky to have this amazing, generous lady as part of its community.
Part 2 of a 2-part editorial

On Saturday, we expounded the need to re-evaluate the stigma with those suffering from substance abuse and the personal responsibility of everyone who talks about them. Today, we pose a similar question of concern to the Overmountain Recovery Clinic itself: How will management shed the stigma associated with its own image to ensure the clinics success?

In case you missed it: The Bristol Herald Courier and others were invited to tour the clinic before its official opening in Gray, Tennessee. The management team  consisting of employees from Mountain States Health Alliance, ETSU and Frontier Health  held a group discussion focusing primarily on strategies to dispel the stigma associated with the label addict.

While indeed a fruitful conversation, the issue eclipses a single discussion or even a series of discussions. Sure, you have to start somewhere. But we think that somewhere might include management looking to start with themselves.

The irony here is that, while the representatives of the three organizations were concerned more about the stigma facing their clinics potential patients, their own stigmatized image  particularly from the proposed merger of two large health care providers and the role the industry plays in the opioid crisis  needs sufficient attention.

One question about transparency from the clinic, in particular, engaged interest and feedback from media in attendance. When the team leaders asked what they could do to help us provide exposure to the clinic, many responded with the need for accessibility and cooperation with obtaining the clinics operational figures, success rates and even what isnt working.

Wed take that a step further and say the organizations need to be transparent regarding their intentions.

Think about the proposed merger between Mountain States and Wellmont Health Systems and the stigma surrounding that. Many residents worry about the potential monopoly that could result  something that also raised eyebrows with the Federal Trade Commission, which disapproves of the merger  and questions about those intentions are already circulating.

Public attitudes about this proposal will undoubtedly infiltrate the clinics reputation once knowledge of Mountain States involvement becomes more common. Much like a universitys name bestows prestige on its students reputations, the clinics image will likewise reflect on its patients. If the clinic is to gain public trust and act as a resource, how they will both counter those attitudes and convey honest motivation are vital tasks that need to be part of their strategy.

Theres definitely a heightened sense of accountability  not just from those employed by the center, but from all three organizational entities  and the clinics management needs to anticipate reiterating that. During the discussion, each member of management revealed his or her experiences with those suffering from substance abuse, so their individual desires to participate seemed honorable enough. But those stories, albeit not intended for public dissemination, displayed a personal connection that gets lost in the corporate connection inherent in the clinic.

As another media representative in attendance noted, the clinic is essentially, a commercial venture. They will likely encounter some public attitudes that, because of the line of work specifically of Mountain States and Frontier Health, the clinic is a self-serving machine generating profit from the victims they either directly or indirectly created.

If there is real dedication to disintegrating the stigma surrounding possible patients as expressed, the organizations must convey that. We guarantee the public will be watching them and wont hesitate to transfer that perception to both the clinic and its patients, whether merited or not  and we hope thats not lost on Overmountains management.
Maryland cross country: Hubs' Stine, Leopards girls each finish second

North Hagerstown sophomore Lauren Stine had the top performance by a Washington County athlete, placing second in the Class 3A girls race.
Why IU lost to Ohio St.: Buckeyes too good, but QB Williams not too bad

The result of Indiana's game against No. 2 Ohio State was nothing if not expected. But at least QB Dexter Williams showed some flashes for Hoosiers.
Veteran actor Dilip Kumar, who is being treated for kidney-related ailments, is recuperating at a Mumbai hospital and will be kept under observation in the intensive care unit (ICU) for the next two-three days, a senior official said.

The 94-year-old actor was admitted to the city-based Lilavati Hospital in suburban Bandra on Wednesday morning due to dehydration and urinary tract infection. Today he has no fever, no breathlessness. He is conscious, the creatinine levels have come down as compared to yesterday, Ajaykumar Pandey, Vice President of Lilavati Hospital told PTI.

Due to his age, he is under observation and will be in the ICU for two-three days depending on how his body responds, he added. Cardiologist Dr Nitin Gokhale and nephrologist Dr Arun Shah are treating him.

The 94-year-old Devdas star was admitted to the Lilavati Hospital on Wednesday evening after he suffered dehydration and a urinary tract infection. One of the attending team of doctors told IANS on Friday that the actors creatinine and potassium levels were rising and haemoglobin was decreasing. Doctors have, however, clarified that he is not on ventilator.

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Veteran actor Dilip Kumar, who is admitted in Mumbais Lilavati hospital due to the kidney issues, is improving and doing much better now.

Tweets from the actors Twitter handle said, Dilip Saab is doing much better now. Pls remember him in your prayers. The excellent team of doctors and staff of Lilavati Hospital along with Saira Baaji are caring for Dilip Saab 24x7. The tweets were signed off as "FF. As per the bio of Dilip Kumars handle, the sign off means they are tweets are by @faisalmouthshut and on behalf of the actor.

Dilip Saab is doing much better now. Pls remember him in your prayers. -FF  Dilip Kumar (@TheDilipKumar) August 6, 2017

The excellent team of doctors and staff of Lilavati Hospital along with Saira Baaji are caring for Dilip Saab 24x7. -FF  Dilip Kumar (@TheDilipKumar) August 6, 2017

Earlier, doctors at Lilavati Hospital, where the 94-year-old actor is admitted, had also assured fans that the Devdas star was improving. His all vital parameters are reported to be stable, they added.

Previously, Dr Jalil Parkar revealed that condition of the Ganga Jamuna star, who was rushed to the hospital on Wednesday morning, was not good and he would need a dialysis. His haemoglobin is decreasing and potassium is increasing, creatinine is still rising, He will need a dialysis, Dr Parkar added.

This is the third time the actor has been admitted to the hospital.

He was last seen on the big screen in Qila in 1998. Known as the Tragedy King, Kumar has acted in over 65 films in his career and is known for his iconic roles in movies like Devdas (1955), Naya Daur (1957), Mughal-e-Azam (1960), Ganga Jamuna (1961), Kranti (1981), and Karma (1986).

(With ANI inputs)

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Call them partners in crime or soulmates for life actor Shraddha Kapoor and her BFF, Eshanka Wahi, an event manager, dont need a special day to celebrate their friendship. Going for exotic holidays, letting their hair down at parties, being part of each others family gatherings and enjoying most of their special days together, the two have been together since forever now.

Ive known Saha [as Shraddha fondly calls her best friend] since she was born, quips Shraddha, boasting that she happens to be a year and a half older to Eshanka. Glad to have found a friend for life in Shraddha, Eshanka adds, Imagine being born and coming into this world and already having a best friend. Isnt that great? I feel so lucky.

Today, on Friendship Day, in an exclusive chat with HT, Shraddha and Eshanka unravel some fun facts and little secrets too, about their bond theyve shared over the years.

 @eshankawahi #ShraSahaItalyTakeOver A post shared by Shraddha (@shraddhakapoor) on Jun 21, 2017 at 3:00pm PDT

How would you describe the bond you share with each other?

Shraddha: Weve known each other for our whole lives now, so it feels like she is an extension of me. Shes like a permanent tattoo that I know is going to be there forever. Its like a tattoo in my heart.

Eshanka: Its actually indescribable. Its surreal. Shes always been this guardian angel in my life, fixing everything for me. Even though I have an elder sister, I would always look up to Shraddha to solve my problems.

Did anything change after Shraddha became an actor, considering her busy schedule?

Eshanka: In my head, I cant believe that she is an actor. When we go on holiday and people call out for pictures, I keep on shouting saying what is this? Recently, we were in Italy and at a place where we didnt expect anybody to show up and ask for a photo. And there we saw a battalion of sardaars and I just cracked up.

Shraddha: See, shes the one who laughs about it all the time. We were in our swimwear by the pool at a private area, hanging out and chilling and when I heard my name being called out, Saha burst out laughing saying, you thought that you wont be found.

#Throwback @eshankawahi  #ShraSahaItalyTakeover A post shared by Shraddha (@shraddhakapoor) on Jul 16, 2017 at 9:36am PDT

Share one funny anecdote you remember from your childhood.

Shraddha: When we were growing up, we used to tell each other oh I wish I find a guy like you because we had sensed that theres no other company better than having each other.

Eshanka: Yeah and Ive married this guy very recently and his sun-sign, moon sign and ascendant are all Shraddhas. When I met him and we fell in love, I called her up and told her that I have found a guy version of you.

Has there ever been a sense of insecurity with someone else invading your space?

Eshanka: This bond is too secure, like fevicol ka jod. There are times when we havent met for a year or not spoken for months, but I never felt like shes not there.

Shraddha: Shes not just somebody who Ive gone to school with but Ive literally been in diapers with her. We are inseparable to the point that even our parents wonder how such a strong bond has happened.

Whats that one thing you dislike about each other?

Shraddha: I dislike the fact that she is sometimes so far away from me. Earlier she used to live in Delhi and now shes in Dubai, so we have to properly plan a holiday to meet and spend quality time.

Eshanka: We totally disagree on each others dressing sense. I know shes an actor but she has this very exclusively eccentric style of dressing and Id be like dude, you are an actor, a celebrity, you cant dress casually. She would probably hate this about me that I am brutally honest with her.

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Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan extended his support to the recently implemented Goods and Services Tax (GST) and said it will have a positive effect on the film industry in the long term.

Anushka Sharma and Shah Rukh Khan along with filmmaker Imtiaz Ali deboard a helicopter at a Gurugram University. (IANS)

GST will help the film industry in the long term. It is a good step, Shah Rukh told reporters to a question here last night. From figures I know, the ticket prices of Jab Harry Met Sejal havent risen as a result of GST, he said.

The Jab Harry Met Sejal actor debunked the theory that GST has caused escalation in ticket prices.

Speaking about relationships, SRK said, What does a relationship mean? It appears that these days relationships are based on practical considerations. You should love unreasonably. Dont you love your children without any reason?

Anushka Sharma, Shah Rukh Khan and Imtiaz Ali during promotions for Jab Harry Met Sejal. (IANS)

However, in the present age where everyone has so less time, I might be called old-fashioned, he added.

On whether the filmmaker, who has helmed films like Jab We Met and Rockstar, has lost his magic touch, Shah Rukh says, I have not watched any of Imtiazs previous films. But you are right, a film should go beyond the subject and create magic. But again speaking on his (Imtiaz) behalf, I think one should always try something new. And I think it is a wonderful film.

Shah Rukh, in recent years, has experimented with films like Fan and Raees. I have tried formula films. But sometime back I understood that I cant keep recreating the same magic.

Shah Rukhs Jab Harry Met Sejal co-actor Anushka Sharma and director Imtiaz were also present at the press meet.

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Actor Manoj Bajpayee has been invited to the Facebook Headquarters to interact with fans in San Jose, United States. This will be my first visit at the Facebook Headquarters, I have heard a lot about it and will soon see it. I am looking forward to spending some pleasant time with some wonderful people, says Bajpayee.

The actor will then travel to California, where he has been invited by Festival of Globe organisers and will be honoured for his contribution to Indian cinema.

I am also grateful to receive such an honour from the organisers of the festival in California who are giving me such a great honour and acknowledging my journey. I will be leaving for the festival in the second week of August and it will be a quick journey of around 5-6 days, says the actor, who was last seen in the film, Sarkaar 3.

Sources close to the actor add, He will also lead the India Day Parade as the chief guest and grand marshal to mark the landmark 70th independence of India on August 13.

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Chief of Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), Pahlaj Nihalani, has filed a police complaint against a journalist alleging harassment, intimidation and breach of privacy.

According to reports, Nihalanis complaint claims the reporter continuously harassed him in his office building premise exceeding all levels courteous behaviour and bullying the security guards and office staff into letting her enter.

The reporter on the other hand, has claimed the CBFC chief misbehaved with her. Media reports suggest the Mumbai reporter and her editor have said that Nihalani grabbed her arm, misbehaved and threatened her.

Asking questions cannot be labelled as exploitation and I won't be intimidated by the case, the reporter added.

Ever since NIhalani was appointed CBFC chief in 2015 after previous chairperson, Leela Samson, quit, he has been the centre of controversies. From suggested dozens of cuts be made in A-rated films like Udta Punjab to Babumoshai Bandookbaaz and Lipstick Under My Burkha, he has often been a roadblock to freedom of expression through films, and has even refused to grant certificates to movies like Lipstick... and Haraamkhor, citing reasons ranging from the content being too lady-oriented to it not being suitable for a sanskaari (traditional) audience.

A committee was formed last year, under filmmaker Shyam Benegal to suggest changes in the guidelines of the working procedure for CBFC. However, the recommendations are yet to be implemented.

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There is bad news for those Facebook warriors eager for a war with China and Pakistan. The report that the countrys Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has submitted to Parliament about the Indian army has some significantly disturbing findings. Despite all its bravery, our army is battling with a drastic shortfall of necessary ammunition.

The report is a follow-up to the conclusions of May 2015. Its objective was to evaluate the progress that has been made over the last three years. The CAG report on ammunition management reveals that the situation in September 2016 has not changed very much since March 2013.

The reason? Our ordnance factories have not improved their output or quality and the procurement process continues to run on the old pattern. The wishlist of weaponry that the army headquarters wanted to acquire which was on the governments files had not been fulfilled even till January 2017.

The CAG report also says that of the 170 kinds of ammunition in 2013, just 27% was ready for 20 days of intense fighting, while in September 2016, 80% ammunition was below the required levels. The situation has improved only marginally in the months that followed. The government has given the rights for procurement to the vice-chief of the army staff in the event of an emergency. With this, the risk has reduced but it hasnt entirely vanished.

In this situation the question that comes to ones mind is whether the government has set a standard where it should have a minimum level of arsenal and associated ammunition? The ministry of defence had devised a roadmap in 2013 according to which it had to procure 20 days of ammunition that was necessary to win a small-scale war, by 2015. It was also decided that these supplies would be increased to 40 days by 2019 so that we can prepare for bigger battles. Both these plans are hanging fire.

Even the best marksman and commando can forget his craft without adequate practice. According to this report, the army has had to cut down on its training drills in light of the shortage of essential resources. The shortfall in resources required for training is between 77% and 88%. Can you imagine any country winning a war without the requisite ammunition and training?

The situation continues to be so bad despite facing the repercussions of such shortfalls during the war with China in 1962. Even then, our soldiers were neither equipped with the requisite weapons, nor maps that are essential in the dangerous mountainous terrain.

We may have won the Kargil war in 1999, but at what cost? At the end of Operation Vijay, the shoulders of the Indian nation-state were drooping with the burden of 537 martyrs. Even during this war the shortfall of essential ammunition had been revealed. When the initial group of soldiers tried to scale the high peaks, they didnt have the requisite clothes and shoes required for snow-bound terrain. This has been the sorry picture of our military affairs from 1962 to 1999. Who should be held accountable for this mess?

With utmost humility, I hold the nations political class responsible for this. The manner in which the Bofors ghost was invoked and then used to pursue selfish political goals for years together instilled terror in Delhis political corridors. Politicians began to be reluctant to buy the ammunition essential for the army and an issue critical to the nations security was pushed into the background.

The time has come when our politicians should stop the mud-slinging and create a consensus on subjects of national interest. Just because our soldiers are not afraid of making the greatest sacrifice, none of us have a right to push them into the jaws of death. On July 26 this year, in the memory of Operation Vijay, the people organised a number of events and sang patriotic songs. But how many of those participating in this group were perturbed over the findings of the CAG report?

The countrys foreign and military policy should be guided by facts, not emotions. When we chose a government, we should also allow it to work. The government in Delhi these days displays adequate sensitivity towards our soldiers on international borders. You may recall that Prime Minister Narendra Modi spent last Diwali with the soldiers guarding our borders. The defence ministry is being led by the sharp and astute Arun Jaitley. We sincerely hope that the duo gets rid of this old malaise afflicting the country.

Shashi Shekhar is editor-in-chief Hindustan

letters@hindustantimes.com
Most economists would agree that Indias growth story has taken a pause  a rather long pause. The past two quarters have been a washout, largely because of demonetisation, and the outlook for the remaining part of this calendar year is overshadowed by disruptions caused by the introduction of the goods and services tax (GST). There has been some improvement in broader economic indicators, such as industrial production and exports, but not enough to suggest the worst is behind us.

More than the impact of demonetisation and GST, what keeps the economy from turning around fast is the sharp erosion in the ability of the banks in the country to lend for growth. A sustained accumulation of bad loans, or non-performing assets, which now stand at an alarming 9.6% of total lending, has left most banks, especially in the public sector, shy of financing new projects.

Underscoring the seriousness of the situation, the government brought an ordinance in May to empower the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to intervene and initiate insolvency process on specific stressed assets. Last week, the lower house of Parliament replaced the ordinance with an amendment to the Banking Regulation Act, in a move seen as providing political cover to the central bank in its actions against erring lenders and loan defaulters. The RBI has already asked banks to initiate bankruptcy proceedings against 12 large loan defaulters, accounting for a quarter of nearly Rs 9 lakh-crore that the banking system has piled up in bad loans. More cases will follow in the months to come.

These actions have raised hopes that the NPA-hit banks, mostly state-owned, will return to good health and provide the impetus that the economy needs to climb back to a high growth trajectory. It will be a long haul, however. And there are many imponderables.

Although the RBI is empowered to initiate insolvency resolution, there is nothing that stops a defaulter from going to court to challenge the central banks action. It will take some time before the ongoing bankruptcy proceedings set some precedents that can help pre-empt any defaulter from challenging the lenders actions.

It is also imperative that the central bank and the lenders move fast in initiating insolvency resolution. Banks run the risk of recovering less and less of their money as the value of the assets created with their loans falls with every passing day.

The other challenge facing the PSU banks relates to the capital they have. As they get down to cleaning up their balance sheets, some of their capital will get depleted. Already, the capital adequacy ratio in the case of several PSU banks has fallen below the internationally prescribed norms. The government has indicated it would infuse new capital, but has yet to make a firm commitment on the quantum and timing.

That said, the current actions are tailored to address the stock of bad debt, but not the causes behind the generation of bad loans. A three-part series in Hindustan Times, beginning Tuesday, offers a broader explanation on how Indias banking system ended up with such a big pile of bad loans. Why did the companies borrow so heavily? Why did the banks keep lending to defaulters? Where and how borrowers over-leveraged and lenders made wrong calls? Answers to these questions put the spotlight on issues of governance and credit discipline at banks that must be addressed to find a more sustainable solution to the current crisis.

Last, but not the least, as the central bank works to put the banking system back on track, the government needs to act on reviving fortunes of those sectors where most of the bad loans accumulated  power, telecom, construction, textiles and steel. These sectors are crucial to fueling economic growth and creating jobs, and, at this point, these are no-go zones for bankers. That must change. Otherwise, when the banks eventually return to good health they wont have enough borrowers to lend to.

The author is Chief Content Officer, Hindustan Times. Follow the author @rajeshmahapatra

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Soon one of the most effective performers in Parliament will disappear from our national legislature and both the Rajya Sabha and our democracy will be the poorer. I speak of Sitaram Yechury, the general secretary of the CPI(M), whose second term in the upper House ends this month. In not permitting him to serve another his party may have upheld its internal principles but its let down the bigger and more important interests of this country.

The CPI(M) has a convention that no person can serve more than two terms as a Rajya Sabha MP. More importantly, as general secretary, it was said that Yechurys parliamentary responsibility detracted from his duties as head of the party. That, after all, in the eyes of the CPI(M), is his primary task. So, for both these reasons, it was decided Yechury will not get a third term.

The problem  and the CPI(M) knows this extremely well  is that this deprives the opposition of one of its most forceful voices just when its badly needed. Whether it was on demonetisation, Aadhaar, the situation in JNU and Hyderabad universities, cow vigilantism, surgical strikes or relations with our neighbours, Sitaram Yechury was able to not just confront the government but often embarrass it.

Now, when the BJP has more Rajya Sabha MPs than Congress and when the NDA and its friends are no longer heavily outnumbered by the combined opposition, Yechury will be missing. This is particularly dismaying. Who, in his absence, will counter and check the forceful and often convincing performance of Arun Jaitley? On occasion, Kapil Sibal, P. Chidambaram, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Sharad Yadav and Jairam Ramesh can, but theres no MP whos done it as often, as effectively and on so many subjects as Yechury.

What makes this development even more inexplicable is that Yechury is the only person from the CPI(M) who could have been elected from Bengal. This is because the Congress publicly committed its support. But thats not available for any other person from the CPI(M). So the party knew this was not just a special gesture made by its opponents to retain Yechury in the upper House but, if it was not accepted, the CPI(M)s numbers would diminish. Now that is exactly what will happen.

So what does this suggest about the outcome the Communists have inflicted on themselves? Was it really impossible for Yechury to function both as general secretary and an MP? After all, hes done it without any credible complaints since April 2015. To me this seems more like an excuse than good cause for denying Yechury. In fact, I suspect the real reason is his rivals in the party saw this as an opportune moment to cut him to size. Petty personal squabbles have triumphed over the CPI(M)s interests and undermined the countrys.

I call this cutting your nose to spite your face. However, I would go further. This is also a gift to the BJP and it brings the prime minister a critical step closer to his goal of an opposition-mukt Bharat.

Sadly, its too late to reverse the situation but, by the same token, the moment has come for the CPI(M) to ask critical questions of itself. In 1996, when the party denied Jyoti Basu the prime ministership, he called it an historic blunder. The treatment of Sitaram Yechury is undoubtedly another. And if the CPI(M) continues to repeat such mistakes isnt it time to ask what on earth is this party upto?

The views expressed are personal

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DEHRADUN: The Ganga, which is central to Uttarakhands identity, is caught in the quagmire of politics. Headed by cabinet minister Satpal Maharaj, the cultural ministry plans to dissolve the Sparsh Ganga Board that was formed by former BJP chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank.

The move, officials said, is aimed at strengthening Prime Minister Narendra Modis ambitious programme Namami Gange, which is engaged in similar work like that of the Sparsh Ganga. Holding awareness programmes separately doesnt make sense, culture department director Beena Bhatt told Hindustan Times, confirming the plan of her department.

BJP sources said Nishank and Satpal - both front runners for the chief ministers chair before being upstaged by Trivendra Singh Rawat - are leaving no chance to make their presence felt in Delhi circles. Nishank is a former RSS pracharak, while Satpal is often seen with the Sangh brass. The timing of the plan raises many questions, especially when there is a chance of reshuffle in the Union Cabinet after Venkaiah Naidus election as vice president.

The departments decision has baffled Nishank. The Haridwar MP said the government must have considered a reasonable ground to dissolve the board, and held the previous Congress government responsible for this situation.

My idea behind the Sparsh Ganga was to sensitise people about cleaning the Ganga. The activities of the Sparsh Ganga came to standstill as the Congress government deliberately didnt release budget and made the board dormant, Nishank told Hindustan Times. I left no stone unturned to make the board active and I think the government must have a reasonable ground to take further action.

He added if the previous government took interest, the Ganga-related programmes could have reached to another level.

Nishank had launched the Sparsh Ganga when he was the chief minister in 2009. In the following years, the campaign saw some action with Nishank roping in BJP MP Hema Malini as brand ambassador. But the plans went awry after BC Khanduri replaced Nishank a few months before Uttarakhand went to the assembly polls in 2012.

The Congress said it has nothing to do with the Ganga politics. Why blame us? Nishankji is a seasoned leader and he better knows the politics behind the decision (to dissolve the board), Congress spokesperson MD Joshi asserted.

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The conviction of a top bureaucrat for corruption seems to have occasioned considerable anguish on the part of the Supreme Court judges who presided over the proceedings. Citing corruption and nepotism as priority tasks for this government, one of the apex court judges lamented the fact that despite constant efforts to deal with corruption, the evil is still very much among us. These are laudable sentiments but the truth is that rooting out corruption and nepotism is easier said than done. Dynastic politics, once thought to be the preserve of the Congress, is now evident across political formations. It is almost a matter of entitlement for the close relative of a neta to inherit his legacy. Relatives with no qualifications whatsoever for public life are used to reserve the chair for leaders who are not able to continue in office for a variety of reasons, most of them legal.

As for corruption we need to look no further than the latest report from an NGO, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), which has reported that 22 of the 29 ministers (76%) in the newly-formed Nitish Kumar cabinet face criminal charges. This is higher than the corresponding figure for his cabinet during the previous grand alliance government with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), in which 19 of the 29 ministers (69%) were tainted. And to think that Nitish Kumar left the alliance on the grounds that he could not tolerate the corruption of his allies. These are not trifling charges either. They range from murder, attempt to murder, dacoity, theft, fraud and atrocities against women. Things can only improve if political parties adopt a zero-tolerance approach to corruption. They should refrain from giving tickets to those with charges against them in the first place instead of splitting hairs about legalities. Few political parties have any form of internal democracy, a major factor for nepotism to thrive. It is incumbent upon the party leadership to ask their MLA or MP to step down if he or she is facing charges until cleared.

Today, the argument put forward is that the person charged has every right to be in office until proven guilty. While this is the law, political parties could set an example by being like Caesars wife and floating above the fray. Elected representatives are meant to be the gold standard for probity in public life in a country where people are imprisoned for years for the most minor of misdemeanours. The NDA came to power as a party which would have no truck with corruption. If it really means this, it should lead from the front on this as prescribed by the Supreme Court.
India is a diverse country. This line has been drilled into our heads since the time we were in school. Unfortunately, we have been unable to protect that diversity, especially when it comes to language. In the 1961 census, there were 1,652 mother tongues. That came down to 808 mother tongues in the 1971 census. In those 10 years, what happened to the rest? This question prompted GN Devy, an academic, to do a comprehensive survey of all living languages of India. The result: The Peoples Linguistic Survey of India report, which was released in Delhi last week.

Its not just the Indian languages that have grabbed his attention. He is also working on a Global Language Status Report, which proposes to cover nearly 6,000 living languages spoken in all parts of the world. Beginning with the languages in Africa and Australia, covered in the first phase, it hopes to assess the viability and the future of every language. The study will be done in collaboration with a large number of research institutes and universities and with the help of an extensive team of experts and cultural activists drawn from all countries in the world. The results of this comprehensive study will start getting published from 2022 and the entire report running into 15 volumes will be out by 2025.

All this brings us to a basic question: Why must we preserve dying languages? Other than being a part of living heritage, languages convey our unique culture; it also carries so much traditional wisdom. And more importantly, each language has its own world view and can provide insights into the neurology, psychology and the linguistic capacities of our species. For people, language is also power. Take for example, the plight of tribals in Chhattisgarh. There is an acute disconnect between them and the administration and one key reason is that while they cannot speak Hindi, the administrators cannot speak their local language. And as they say, much gets lost in translation. At the release of the report, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that much more needs to be done to preserve languages. We agree wholeheartedly.
The Indian Forest Service Association has demanded disciplinary action against additional chief secretary (ACS), forest and wildlife, SK Gulati who is accused of forcing forest officials to issue tree felling permission at the 52-acre Aravalli land that he declared non-forest.

Forest officials had also accused him of using unparliamentary and abusive language. IFSA wrote to chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday urging him to look into the matter immediately.

The letter by SP Yadav, secretary general, IFSA, to the chief minister includes copies of correspondences from ML Rajvanshi, IFS, conservator of wildlife Panchkula and Ranjitha, IFS, deputy conservator of forest, Faridabad, where they have alleged that Gulati threatened them with dire consequences, if they failed to follow his orders.

The forest officials were allegedly made to give permission for the chopping of more than 10,000 trees over 52 acres land at Sarai Khwaja village in Faridabad district in June. A group housing project is proposed to come up on the plot.

.M L Rajvanshi, IFS, also stated about disciplinary action of recorded warning to the officer without any enquiry/show cause notice and opportunity to the officer to present his position, which is against the principles of natural justice(sic), the letter states.

Earlier, on June 23, Vinod Kumar, conservator of wildlife, Gurgaon complained to the principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) PP Bhojvaid, claiming that Gulati had used objectionable language and asked him to change the status of land earmarked for the housing project.

Gulati had asked me to take into account the Survey of India map and change the status of the land. When I protested, he put pressure on me (sic), Kumar said in his letter.

Ranjitha, in her complaint on July 5, said, On June 23, the ACS asked me to give permission for felling trees on the Aravalli land. She also mentioned in the letter that she was verbally abused and threatened by Gulati.

The ACS, during a phone call,said I would be made to pay for not giving permission for tree felling, she said in her letter.

On Tuesday, the National Green Tribunal also observed that the Haryana chief secretary should take note of the allegations. The NGT was hearing a petition filed by Lt Col (retd) Sarvadaman Singh Oberoi demanding that construction of realty projects be banned in gair mumkin pahar (non-cultivable) area of the Aravalli, which is deemed forest land.

Read I Gurgaon lost five times more trees this year

Gulati refuted all allegations saying that the government could take any action it deems fit if he has done anything wrong.

The land is marked as gair mumkin, which is not forest land. We also have sub-categories for Aravalli forest as gair mumkin junglat (non-cultivable forest). This particular piece of land is not termed as junglat. The gair mumkin law pertains to the Shivalik ranges and is meant to protect the water sources there. The Act has nothing to do with forest land in the Aravallis, Gulati to Hindustan Times.

He also said, The Survey of India maps mark out every tree and has been keeping a record of the same since 1905. Hence, I asked the forest officer to take into account the SoI map. Vinod Kumar had refused to refer to SoI maps.

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Antibiotics are being routinely administered to chickens on Indian poultry farms in small doses to promote growth and keep disease at bay, almost as a replacement for nutrition and sanitation, says a new study led by Ramanan Laxminarayan, director of the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy, Washington DC and New Delhi. The study has been published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

Twelve of the 18 farms studied, or 67%, reported the use of antimicrobials as growth boosters. Tetracyclines and fluoroquinolones, antibiotics commonly used to treat cholera, malaria, respiratory and urinary tract infections in humans, were the most commonly used antimicrobials, with nine farms admitting their use.

This has serious implications for India  already the worlds biggest consumer of antibiotics for human useand the world because it contributes to the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Antibiotics fascinate Laxminarayan because they underpin our modern healthcare system, he said. As someone who has dedicated himself to the understanding of drug resistance as a problem of managing a shared global resource, he found the lack of awareness about antibiotics in India appalling. Consumers in India, it would seem, are largely indifferent to the circumstances in which their butter chicken is bred.

In an interview to IndiaSpend, Laxminarayan talked of the consumers role in reforming the poultry industry, particularly because of the fast-growing popularity of chicken in India and a 312% antibiotic-use increase projected for livestock.

Ramanan Laxminarayan is the director of the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy, Washington DC and New Delhi. (Photo courtesy: Indiaspend)

Laxminarayan is an engineer from the Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani, and earned a doctorate in economics and a masters in epidemiology from the University of Washington, Seattle, setting him up for a career in public health research, his passion. He continues to be associated with the University of Washington, as also with Princeton University, the University of Strathclyde, the John Hopkins School of Public Health and the University of Kwazulu Natal in South Africa. Between 2011 and 2015, he was responsible for expanding the research and policy programme at the Public Health Foundation of India.

Q: Chickens that are provided good nutrition, clean water and kept in hygienic pens dont need antibiotics. Consumers abroad are aware of concepts like free-range chicken farming and pastured poultry which require that animals be reared ethically. But Indian consumers remain largely ignorant of these issues. You found that here, antibiotics are being used as a cheap substitute for basic nutrition and treatment. In the 18 farms you visited, you found large flocks, more than 50,000 birds, kept in confined areas lacking proper sanitation. To what extent does the lack of consumer awareness in India impede reform? What are the laws on the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in the poultry industry in the US, the European Union and India?

As far back as 1986, Sweden banned the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in the poultry industry as a result of consumer awareness. Consumer movements in the EU and the US have played a major role in introducing poultry farming standards and legislation to regulate the use of antibiotics. In 2006, the EU banned the use of antibiotics used in humans as poultry growth promoters. In 2015, the US introduced the veterinary feed directive whereby the use of drugs on the veterinary feed directive list is permitted only under the professional supervision of a licensed veterinarian. This is a step in the right direction.

Government agencies in India including the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India have the regulatory authority to impose restrictions on the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in poultry but have not moved in this direction so far.

In India, low farmer awareness is as much a concern as low consumer awareness. In the absence of regulation, most of the poultry feed available in the market is medicated. But the majority of the farmers we surveyed reported being unaware of the presence of antibiotic growth promoters premixed in chicken feed purchased from feed mills. Some farmers are genuinely unaware of the potential harm from using antibiotics as growth promoters. One farmer noted that antimicrobials were more effective than hygiene or sanitation measures because the labour on poultry farms is unskilled. Of course, this is an excuse to continue misusing antibiotics. India saw demonetisation happen overnight. If a similar will is exercised by the state and central governments to check the rampant misuse of antibiotics, we could see great change happen soon.

Q: Indian consumers are mostly not aware that meat infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria could make you sick. Why does this happen? Doesnt cooking meat at high temperatures, as we do in India, kill all bacteria? Also, your study says that direct contact with livestock colonized with resistant bacteria is the most documented route of resistance transmission from the agricultural reservoir into human populations. This means that farm hands are more likely to spread antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections, especially considering that 67% of the workers you interviewed confessed to taking no precautions to protect themselves from poultry shed infections.

Multiple pathways exist whereby all people, including those consuming chicken raised on farms misusing antibiotics, are affected.

For instance, when you eat chicken sourced from poultry raised on growth promoters, you ingest antibiotic-resistant bacteria that were harboured within the chicken. Those bacteria can make you sick. However, those bacteria do not respond to conventionally prescribed antibiotics so your sickness is hard to treat or can even be untreatable. Cooking at a high temperature kills all bacteria but uncooked meat can harbour resistant bacteria. Also, heat cannot break down some of the antibiotic residues that may have remained within the meat.

Also, farm workers feet and other body parts are exposed to infected poultry or they breath in the antibiotic-resistant bacteria suspended in the air. Workers can acquire an infection that is not treatable, which they can spread, through direct contact with relatives or through the aerial route.

These and other pathways are all significant. We cannot predict which exposure route will prove to be more dangerous for Indian consumers.

Q: Consumers are bombarded with findings of pesticide residue in vegetables, fruit and milk. This has resulted in a certain resignation  that almost all (if not all) food products carry some toxin or the other, so they have little choice. Would you say that antibiotic-resistant bacteria are a bigger concern than pesticide residue in agricultural produce?

We hear of cyanide being used to artificially ripen farm produce and other pesticides being excessively used. Pesticide residues in vegetables and fruits gradually impact the body. These toxins gradually build up in the body and eventually can make you sick. Antibiotic-resistant bacterial residues in poultry are a problem when the meat is insufficiently cooked and there are food borne infections. Both these issues are serious concerns.

Q: Your study evaluated resistance to 11 antibiotics: ampicillin, ceftriaxone, cefuroxime, chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, co-trimoxazole, gentamicin, imipenem, nalidixic acid, nitrofurantoin and tetracycline. What diseases do these antibiotics help treat? Would medicine suffer a setback if these were no longer available?

Modern healthcare, as we know it, would be impossible to practice without antibiotics, and many of these 11 antibiotics play a major role. Most of these are broad-spectrum drugs prescribed for a variety of diseases like respiratory infections, diarrhoea, urinary tract infections, etc. Our study included ciprofloxacin, which belongs to the fluoroquinolone class, and is one of the most widely prescribed antibiotics for people in India. Losing these medicines would be a massive loss to humanity; it could cause many more people to die from common infectious diseases. Consumer awareness can play a major role in preserving these important tools of modern medicine.

Q: You found that poultry farms that produce meat were twice as likely as those that only produce eggs to harbour the ESBL-positive bacteria that is particularly difficult to treat in humans. Also, the prevalence of multiple-drug resistant bacteria in meat farms was 94% as against the 60% in egg farms. And, meat farms were between 2.2 and 23 times more likely than egg farms to harbour Escherichia coli (E. coli), a bacteria that causes diarrhoea and is resistant to multiple antibiotics. This includes ciprofloxacin, used to treat respiratory infections, and nalidixic acid, used for treating urinary tract infections. Is it correct to infer that it is less dangerous to consume eggs than it is to consume poultry (meat)?

From an antibiotic resistance standpoint, it may be safer to eat eggs than to eat poultry. Broilers (animals raised for meat) are fed more antibiotics than layers (hens laying eggs) since the producers goal is to increase weight gain over a short period of time.

Q: You found that independent farms had a higher risk of E. coli resistant to all the antibiotics tested (apart from nitrofuration) as compared to contracted farms. Why should the farm type impact the risk of antibiotic-resistant bacteria?

Contracted farming operations by large-scale poultry producers rely on small scale farmers to supply the land and labour to raise poultry. Contracted farm managers are obligated to adhere to all instructions, protocols and production processes established by the producer. All their input materials such as the day-old chicks, feed, antimicrobials, etc. are supplied by the contracting firm. It is possible that contract farms are using some good practices, but I must note that the difference between contract and independent farms was not statistically significant.

(Bahri is a freelance writer and editor based in Mount Abu, Rajasthan.)

(Indiaspend.org is a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit/FactChecker.in is fact-checking initiative, scrutinising for veracity and context statements made by individuals and organisations in public life.)
Beware! Studies suggest that people who live in social isolation are more prone to die earlier compared to obese people.

Researchers conducted two meta-analyses, the first involved 3,00,000 participants and found that greater social connection is associated with a 50 percent reduced risk of early death. The second study, involving more than 3.4 million individuals primarily from North America but also from Europe, Asia and Australia found that social isolation, loneliness or living alone had a significant and equal effect on the risk of premature death.

Study author Julianne Holt-Lunstad from Brigham Young University said being connected to others socially is widely considered a fundamental human need - crucial to both well-being and survival. Extreme examples show infants in custodial care who lack human contact fail to thrive and often die, and indeed, social isolation or solitary confinement has been used as a form of punishment.

Holt-Lunstad added that an increasing portion of the U.S. population now experiences isolation regularly. Approximately 42.6 million adults over age 45 in the United States are estimated to be suffering from chronic loneliness. In addition, the most recent U.S. census data shows more than a quarter of the population lives alone, more than half of the population is unmarried and since the previous census, marriage rates and the number of children per household have declined.

These trends suggest that Americans are becoming less socially connected and experiencing more loneliness, said the researchers. There is robust evidence that social isolation and loneliness significantly increase risk for premature mortality, and the magnitude of the risk exceeds that of many leading health indicators, said Holt-Lunstad.

The researchers recommended a greater priority be placed on research and resources to tackle this public health threat from the societal to the individual level. Greater emphasis could be placed on social skills training for children in schools and doctors should be encouraged to include social connectedness in medical screening. The research was presented at the 125th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association.

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Contrary to popular belief, the health sector in India does not face shortage of funds.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha on Friday, minister of state (health) Anupriya Patel stated that India aims at increasing the public health spend to 2.5% of the gross domestic product (GDP).

The National Health Policy 2017 proposes raising public health expenditure to 2.5% of the GDP in a time bound manner by 2025, Patel said.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley had increased the budget allocation for the health sector by almost 27% in the current Union Budget.

From Rs 37061.55 crore in 2016-17, the budget estimate for 2017-18 was increased to Rs 47352.51 crore (net).

The centre had cleared the much-awaited National Health Policy 2017 in March this year, after it had been in cold storage for about two years. In September 2016, the Supreme Court of India had directed the government to finalise the policy.

While the target is to increase the health spend from a little over 1% to 2.5%, the real challenge for the government lies in ensuring that states are able to spend the money allocated to them in a time-bound manner.

According to the Economic Survey 2016-17, expenditure by both central and state government on health as percentage of GDP for last three years saw a jump from 1.1% in the year 2014-15 and 1.3% in 2015-16 to 1.4% in 2016-17.

Our rate of spending has seen an improvement, said Union health minister JP Nadda.

The ministry had managed to spend more than 75% of 2016-17 budget money till the beginning of this year.

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Come September and a young man from Punjab could well be on his way to literally singing the American Dream. A song, composed, written and sung by Punjab-born Rahul Lakhanpal will feature in a Hollywood movie scheduled to be released next month.

My song Chicago Land has been selected for the Hollywood movie The Tiger Hunter, which is scheduled to release worldwide on September 22. The song aptly represents the theme of the movie -- an Indian boy chasing the love of his life in Chicago of the 1970s. The songs genre is influenced by legendary Rock n Roll Hall of Fame inductees and Chicago Blues artists such as Buddy Guy and Muddy Waters, Rahul told IANS.

Born in Jagraon, a small town around 40 km from Punjabs Ludhiana industrial hub, Rahul started learning music at the age of 10. He trained in Punjabi folk music, Indian classical and Sufi music.

My parents and teachers always taught me to chase my dreams without losing my focus on studies. I pursued a Bachelor of Architecture degree from GNDU (Guru Nanak Dev University), Amritsar, and Master of Science degree in Texas. In Texas, while studying and focusing on my career, I silently nurtured my dream to sing.

I was the lead vocalist of a band called Dhwani where I met my friend, and later my musical partner, Vineet Bailur. Along with my band, I performed across many universities in the US and received numerous accolades. It was a big boost to my confidence, Rahul explained.

Rahul, who is the composer and lyricist of the Chicago Land along with Vineet, is also its vocalist.

Having participated in Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, 2008 USA Edition, and ending up in the Top 5 category, Rahul says that his music style is Sufi rock, Bollywood, Bollywood rock, and urban Punjabi.

My all-time favourite artists are Nusrat Fateh Khan, Kailash Kher, Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, Mohammad Rafi, my guru Sukhdev Sahil, and poets Gulzaar and Bulleh Shah. I am deeply moved and inspired by live Sufi rock music, he added.

While studying in the field of science and architecture, Rahuls journey took a musical turn in the US with performances at various places. It was at one such performance in Los Angeles in 2012 that he met Hollywood producer Nazia Naz Khan, who has worked on films such as Oceans 13, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, World War Z, The Revenant, Moonlight, and many more.

Nazia was promoting her Hollywood film The Tiger Hunter, when she introduced me to the director Lena Khan, who gave me and my mate Vineet an opportunity to showcase our talent to the world. It appeared like a dream come true, and together we composed and produced three tracks, out of which one was selected by The Tiger Hunter team as the Main Credits Track, Rahul said.

For the moment, Rahul is keeping his fingers crossed -- waiting for his American Dream to become a musical reality.

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Karate Kid stars Ralph Macchio and William Zabka are all set to reprise their iconic roles as Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence, respectively. The duo will star in a 10-episode, half-hour series titled Cobra Kai on subscription service YouTube Red, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The series comes nearly three decades after the martial arts drama released.

The show, which will premiere in 2018, will be set 30 years after the 1984 All Valley Karate Tournament and follow the duo once again reigniting their rivalry.

While Johnny seeks redemption, a seemingly successful Daniel struggles to get through life without his mentor, Mr. Miyagi, who was originally played by late actor Pat Morita.

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Samajwadi Party (SP) national president and former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said bandookbaaz (gunmen) and pattharbaaz (stone-pelters)were active in BJP-ruled UP and Gujarat.

How can you stop stone-pelters? It is their job to throw stones (the reference was to stone-pelting on Congress vice president Rahul Gandhis car in Gujarat). And in UP those people are resorting to kind of stone-pelting on Samajwadis (socialists) by poaching MLCs, said Akhilesh on the sidelines of a function to pay tribute to the late Samajwadi Party leader Janeshwar Mishra.

But the people will give an apt reply to pattharbaaz, he said.

Three Samajwadi Party MLCs have recently joined the BJP.

Read more: Four months after UP defeat, Akhilesh Yadav going back to battle to launch SP campaign

Akhilesh said the Samajwadi Party will continue to struggle for the poor, uprooting evils in the society.

The SP will launch a statewide Desh Bachao, Desh Banao (Save the country, build the country) campaign on August 9 to rescue the country from the clutches of communal forces.

Akhilesh has adopted the same name for the rallies as that his father and then SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav had ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Akhilesh also said he would participate in an event to honour Kargil martyrs in Azamgarh on August 30. Maximum number of soldiers who died in Kargil were from UP. And among those a lot of them were from eastsern UP.

On the issue of reservation in jobs, Akhilesh said the government should not hurt any community. Each community should be given reservation proportionate to its population. The BJP government had claimed that it freed 5,000 acre of land from the clutches of land mafia. I would say the government should also reveal the names of the land mafiosi.

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A joint team of the army and Jammu and Kashmir Police has seized a huge cache of arms and ammunition, including two AK assault rifles and explosives during an operation in Rajouri.

During the Operation Clean-up, the security personnel searched the hills and natural caves in the Rajouri-Reasi belt with the help of sniffer dogs.

A joint team of the Rashriya Rifles and police has seized a cache of arms, including one AK-47 rifle, one AK 56 rifle, a Chinese pistol, two RPG rounds, five hand grenades, two magazines and 639 rounds of ammunition in the Kalakote area of the district yesterday, a senior army officer said.
The Gujarat Police is searching for three more persons allegedly involved in the attack on Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhis car in Banaskantha district.

Local Congress members claimed the three persons have been identified as Bhagwandas Patel, Mor Singh Rao and Mukesh Thakkar.

They are associated with the ruling BJP and are among the conspirators of the attack, the Congress members alleged.

The police had arrested on Saturday Jayesh Darji, an office-bearer of the BJPs youth wing in Banaskantha, after his name cropped up during investigation, an official said.

We are trying to track down three more persons, who are on the run. Their names came up during the investigation into the attack on Gandhis vehicle, said Dhanera circle police inspector J N Khant.

A stone was thrown at Gandhis car on Friday when he was on a visit to the flood-hit areas.

Darji and the three others have been booked under IPC sections relating to voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from his duty, causing hurt by act endangering life and mischief causing damage to property.

Gandhi had escaped unhurt in the attack in which the glass pane at the rear of his car was broken.

He had to cut short his address to a gathering in the Lal Chowk area of Dhanera in Banaskantha district as black flags were shown to him by some of those who turned up for the meeting.

The state government had claimed that Gandhi had not taken the bullet-proof vehicle provided to him and had instead, decided to travel in the car of a party worker.

The incident has triggered sharp protests from the Congress.
Keen on rolling out infrastructure projects in Iran and Afghanistan, Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said once Chabahar Port in Iran becomes operational, there will be no looking back as it will be a gateway to golden opportunities.

As a special envoy of India, deputed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, road transport and shipping minister Gadkari is in Tehran and represented India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani for the second term.

Talks are on for building railways and roads through Chabahar till Afghanistan and then we have access to Russia. Once Chabahar is operationalised, which we are hopeful to be in 12 to 18 months time, it will prove to be a gateway to golden opportunities to boost trade and business, Gadkari said.

Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nations southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from Indias western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

We are hopeful of ratification of Trilateral Transit and Transport Agreement by Iran and once approvals are given, the work will start, Gadkari said.

The trilateral pact was inked during Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Tehran in May 2016.

The pact envisages establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor between India, Iran and Afghanistan using Chabahar Port as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran besides multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.

The Cabinet and the President had ratified the pact in November and December, 2016 respectively.

A government official said Afghanistan has also ratified it but Iran is yet to complete the internal processes of the ratification.

Gadkari said operationalisation of the Port will not accelerate the infrastructure projects but will be a win-win situation for the nations as it would give tremendous boost to trade and offer vast opportunities to investors.

Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but we will be closer to Afghanistan and then Russia....We can export goods till Russia. This will be a direct route, he said.

India has already built the Zaranj-Delaram Road in Afghanistan where the cargo reaching Zehedan can connect to.

The rail route is aimed at connecting the existing rail network of Iran at Zahedan, and subsequently to Mashad in north area, thereby providing access to Turkmenistan as well as northern Afghanistan through its connection to the Bafq- Mashad route, an official said.

This project will significantly enhance the opportunity for trade and business among the nations. Chabahar-Zahedan Railway line project is located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province in eastern Iran.

Gadkaris visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work on the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at the port.

Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine, the minister had said.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including a $150 million credit from Exim Bank.

It also authorised the shipping ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of $85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of the equipment will be transferred to the Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of $150 million in accordance with the MoU.

As per the pact, operations of the two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract.

Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest $500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.
The 44 Congress legislators from Gujarat staying at a resort on the outskirts of Bengaluru since the last nine days are set to leave for their home state on Monday, according to sources.

The legislators were flown to the Karnataka capital to keep them safe from alleged poaching attempts by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections on August 8. Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel is the party nominee for the polls to the Upper House.

The legislators will be flown back in two batches and will move to a resort in Anand, said a source privy to the plan.

Following the resignation of six of its 57 MLAs in Gujarat, the Congress moved 44 legislators to Bengaluru on July 29. At least half-a-dozen of the remaining legislators are reportedly loyalists of Shankersinh Vaghela, a former chief minister recently expelled from the party. Patel, the political secretary of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, needs the support of 45 MLAs to be re-elected and the Congress is doing everything it can to keep its flock together.

Confirming the return plan, Mohansinh Rathwa, nine-time MLA from Chhota Udaipur, said the he and his colleagues were grateful to the people of Karnataka.The people here have been very hospitable towards us and we owe them a debt of gratitude.

Denying the reports that the MLAs would first be flown to Delhi to meet Sonia, Congress spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil told reporters they would be returning to Gujarat directly.

Rathwa said Patels victory was a certainty. He will sail through in the elections.

The legislators stay in the resort has not been free of controversy, especially because of the floods Gujarat faced. A birthday party held for an MLAs son too attracted criticism.

For the legislators, the stay was far from convenient. A Gujarati chef had to be arranged after MLAs showed signs of being homesick.

However, their stay gave the Congress a chance to teach the legislators about the partys ideology. Two persons from the Jawaharlal Nehru Leadership Institute, which is run by the All India Congress Committee, were sent to the resort as part of the partys efforts to make the legislators aware of the partys achievements.

Meanwhile, the legislators host, Karnataka energy minister DK Shivakumar, faced income-tax department raids, which the Congress claimed was done at the behest of the BJPs national leadership as an act of political vendetta.

The legislators had been kept under strict watch inside the resort and were only allowed a trip outside on Saturday, when they visited state Governor Vajubhai Vala, a former BJP minister from Gujarat, and also the Vidhan Soudha.

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The Ahmednagar police detained around 20 people on Saturday in connection with an alleged attack on `gau rakshaks (cow protectors) in Shrigonda (100-km from Pune) earlier on Saturday evening.

Seven gau rakshaks were severely injured and were admitted to a hospital following the attack.

Police said that the situation in Shrigonda was tense but under control. The administration has deployed heavy police force in Shrigonda and other sensitive places in Ahmednagar district considering communal nature of the incident.

The police have registered cases including attempt to murder against the 20 people who are likely to be formally arrested soon. Police were recording statements of the detained people and more arrests are likely to take place.

A mob had attacked cow protectors when they intercepted a mini truck, which allegedly was transporting cows to a slaughter house. The cows were allegedly picked up from Kashti in Ahmednagar district. Trouble started soon after Shishankar Swami (25), an activist from Pune, approached Shrigonda police after they discovered the transportation of cows.

Read more: Everyone has right to eat beef, cow vigilantes should be punished: Ramdas Athawale

Police intercepted the vehicle near Shrigonda and took it to the police station. Twelve cows were found in the mini truck. Police registered offences against the driver Fatturbhai Shaikh and his helper Sajid Gulkab Shaikh.

Tension rose when Swami insisted upon registering case against the arrested two. Police asked them to wait till senior officials arrived at the station. Swami and others were attacked by a mob when they were waiting outside the police station. According to the complaint, the mob attacked seven gau rakshaks with sticks and stones.

The seven were bleeding heavily when they were taken to the hospital for treatment, police said. They were shifted to Ahmednagar for further medical treatment.

Police immediately caught a few people after the attack and beefed up security in Shrigonda and few other places after the incident.

Swami is a known activist of Akhil Bharat Krushi Gosewa Sangh, founded by Mahatma Gandhi. Swami had intercepted vehicles transporting cows in the past as well.
Amid Chinas growing footprint in the Indo-Pacific region, India on Sunday said that the 10-nation ASEAN bloc plays a central role in the security of the Asia-Pacific region.

From the Indian perspective, ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) occupies a central place in the security architecture of the Asia-Pacific region, minister of state for external affairs VK Singh said in his speech at the 15th Asean-India foreign ministers meeting in Manila.

It is our view that precisely because ASEAN represents the cultural, commercial and physical cross-roads of the region, it has a unique ability to reflect and harmonise larger interests of the world beyond it, he said.

Singhs comments came even as Indian and Chinese troops are in a tense standoff situation along the Sikkim sector of the international border after a construction party of Chinas Peoples Liberation Army entered the Doklam region in Bhutan in mid-June ostensibly to build a road there.

While India and Bhutan have said that Chinas act violated the status quo in the India-Bhutan-China trijunction, Beijing has claimed that the area is a part of Chinese territory and called for the withdrawal of Indian troops from the area to resolve he issue through diplomatic dialogue. New Delhi is however firm on pullout of troops of both sides.

Sundays speech by Singh came as India and the ASEAN which comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, are marking the 25th year of a dialogue partnership.

The Philippines holds the Chair of the ASEAN this year, the 50th year of the blocs formation.

Singh said that the Philippines, as Chair, was ably stewarding the golden jubilee celebrations with the overall theme of Partnering for Change, Engaging the World.

In consonance, the theme of our silver jubilee celebrations (25th year of India-ASEAN dialogue partnership), which commenced earlier this year, Shared Values, Common Destiny, is an acknowledgment of our shared socio-cultural, economic and political destiny, he said.

On our 25th anniversary, the flower of our relationship, which spans 30 dialogue mechanisms, including an annual summit and seven ministerial dialogues, is in full blossom, with the strategic, political, economic and cultural petals aglow.

Singh said that the silver jubilee of the dialogue partnership is being celebrated through a broad range of governmental, business, diaspora, cultural and civil society interactions in India, as also in ASEAN nations, culminating in a special ASEAN India Commemorative Summit, which would be an affirmation of our shared quest for prosperity, stability and security.

India is actively boosting its economic and strategic security ties with the ASEAN nations under the governments Act East Policy.
Union finance and defence minister Arun Jaitley asked the CPI(M)-led Kerala government on Sunday to take immediate steps to end the politics of annihilation and allow the opposition to function freely.

Addressing journalists after visiting the house of RSS leader E Rajesh, who was hacked to death allegedly by CPI(M) workers last week, he said the way political opponents were executed in the state would put even terrorists to shame.

I am deeply concerned about the kind of environment prevailing in the state. Political opponents are done away with in a brutal manner. The kind of wounds inflicted on victim Rajesh will embarrass even terrorists, Jaitley said.

The RSS has demanded the imposition of Presidents rule in the state in the wake of growing political clashes.

Jaitley said if similar violence had occurred in an NDA-ruled state, awards would have been returned, parliament disrupted and vigorous nationwide campaigns launched. There cant be double standard on incidents of this magnitude, he said.

The senior BJP leader said that every time the Left came to power, political violence witnessed a rise.

Political will and determination by the state government needed to discipline its own cadres rather than let them loose on political rivals, he said adding the situation wont improve if the police were not given a free hand to conduct probe into such incidents

Meanwhile, the ruling CPI(M) paraded family members of 21 workers who were allegedly killed in RSS attacks. If the minister is serious to end violence he should also visit the family members of those who lost lives and or injured in the RSS attack, CPI (M) district secretary A Nagappan said. Jaitley said later he has no problem in meeting them.

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has claimed vested interests were trying to destabilise an elected government.

Nobody can browbeat us. People will realise follies of those who want to portray the state in bad light, he said.

The relation between the state and centre vitiated after the murder of the RSS activist in the state capital last week. The issue figured prominently in both Houses of parliament in past two days with BJP legislators dubbing the state as a god forsaken country due to the worsening law and order situation.

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Jammu and Kashmir police on Sunday said the July 10 attack on Amarnath pilgrims was carried out by four Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militants, including three Pakistanis, and there was a criminal conspiracy behind it.

It made the disclosure after arresting the Pakistan-based terror outfits three over-ground workers (OGWs), who allegedly provided logistic supports to the four attackers.

Incidentally, the LeT had condemned the attack, saying Islam does not allow violence against any faith.

Inspector general of police (Kashmir range) Muneer Khan told media in Anantnag that apart from three Pakistanis, a Kashmiri militant too was involved in the attack that left eight pilgrims dead and several others injured.

Khan identified the four as Ismail, Maviya, Furqan of Pakistan and Yawar Bashir, a local.

Yawar, according to the police, had joined the outfit in February after snatching a weapon from security forces. Prior to that, he was a student at a religious seminary in Srinagar.

Claiming that police have cracked the case in less than a month, Khan said it was purely a terrorist attack aimed at creating fear.

The militants used code word Bilal for a CRPF vehicle and Shaukat for the bus carrying the pilgrims, Khan said, debunking the theory that the civilian vehicle was caught in the cross fire and was not the actual target of the militants.

The police officer claimed the group initially planned the attack on July 9. It wanted to target either a CRPF or a civilian vehicle carrying pilgrims and had code words for both.

But it had to retreat after unsuccessfully waiting at Botengoo in Anantnag as there was no movement of any CRPF or pilgrims vehicle in isolation in the area that evening.

The following day the civilian bus was attacked after one of the arrested OGWs alerted the militants about the exact time of the movement of the Shaukat.

Khan identified three arrested OGWs as Bilal Reshi (a shopkeeper), Aizaj Ahmed Wagey (a medical representative) and Zahoor Ahmed Sheikh (an ad-hoc state road transport corporation driver).

They helped the attackers by providing them a place to stay, two vehicles (a Santro and an Alto) and a motorcycle to do a recce of the area and escape after the attack. They also worked as guides of the militants, the officer added.

The three are now in police remand. Police said they are non-combatant members of the outfit and were part of the conspiracy to attack the vehicle.

Khan said they have already zeroed in on the four actual perpetrators of the attack and will neutralise them soon.

He added two other militants who were recently eliminated in an encounter with security forces are also suspects in this attack and their role is being investigated.

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A man allegedly found carrying a kitchen knife caused a flutter at the entrance of the airport here when former Tamil Nadu chief minister O Panneerselvam was being received on his arrival on Sunday, police said.

He was later identified as Solairaja, a local AIADMK worker and supporter of Panneerselvam, they said.

As the AIADMK Puratchi Thalaivi Amma leader was being received by his supporters just outside the arrival entrance, the knife kept by Solairaja in his waist fell down.

Immediately, some supporters of Panneerselvam mistook it as an attempt to attack their leader and overpowered Solairaja, stated to be a professional cook, and handed him over to airport police.

During his interrogation, Solairaja told police that he was also a follower of Panneerselvam and did not intend to attack him.

He said he always used to keep the knife, police said adding further investigation was on.

Panneerselvam had been accorded CRPF security cover by the Centre from April 2 in the wake of incidents including, hurling of stones on his vehicle after he had revolted against AIADMK general secretary V K Sasikalas leadership in February this year.

He arrived in Tiruchirappalli to meet his supporters.
In yet another incident highlighting the condition of health services in the Bundelkhand region, a Dalit family had to carry their five-year old sons body on a handcart from the hospital to their home.

The incident occurred on Thursday night in Buxwaha town of Chhatarpur district.

On Thursday night, Gajendra Ahirwar, 5, died while undergoing treatment at the Buxwaha community health center.

His family members asked the hospital administration to provide a hearse vehicle for carrying the body to their home, which is roughly one and a half kilometres away from the hospital.

The hospital administration told them that they did not have a vehicle and asked them to make their own arrangements for taking Gajendras body.

The family somehow arranged a handcart on which they took the childs body home.

Sunil Ahirwar, Gajendras uncle spoke about their helplessness in the situation.

We are helpless. We do not have any vehicle of our own and neither does the hospital. We managed to get hold of a handcart so we are taking the body in that, he said.

Buxwaha tehsildar Vineeta Jain said the administration was in the process of acquiring vehicles.

I had inquired from the BMO about the matter and he told me that there is no hearse vehicle at the hospital or with the nagar panchayat. She added that the nagar panchayat has prepared a resolution to purchase a hearse vehicle. BMO Dr LL Ahirwar could not be reached for comment.

The episode comes just after another Dalit, Gyasi Chadar, had to carry his 13-year-old sons body on a bike after autopsy from the Badagao Community Health Center to his village.

The deceaseds father had asked the hospital authorities for a hearse vehicle but the hospital, as was the case in Buxwaha, did not have one.

In Tikamgarh district, where the incident took place, only two hearse vehicles are available. While one is stationed at the district hospital, the other is at Jatara CHC.
An Indian Navy officer was on Sunday detained after he created a security scare by claiming he was carrying a bomb aboard an Air India flight, which later turned out to be a hoax, a security official said.

An official of the CISF, which manages security at all airports in the country, said the accused, who has denied making any bomb claim, was detained by police in Jodhpur.

The Navy officer allegedly warned the airline crew of a bomb on the aircraft flying from Delhi to Jaipur via Jodhpur when he was denied permission to deboard at Jodhpur as he had booked the flight up to Jaipur.

The officer had a tiff with the airline staff when the flight touched down at Jodhpur. He told them he wanted to deboard and threatened he was carrying a bomb when the crew stopped him from disembarking. The passenger has been handed over to local police, said the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) officer.

The bomb hoax delayed the flight by three hours.

The airline said the incident took place on AI 475 flight with 175 passengers onboard on the Delhi-Jodhpur-Jaipur route.

At Jodhpur, a person who claimed to be a naval officer wanted to de-board. For security reason, deboarding was not allowed... he forcibly tried to deboard... he revealed he had planted a bomb on the flight and that was the reason he wanted to deboard, the AI spokesman said.

He said the CISF was alerted and all passengers evacuated.

The aircraft was searched as per the standard operating procedure but nothing was found. The person has been detained by the CISF, the spokesperson said.

The flight search and other security related procedures lasted from 2 pm to 6 pm and the flight took off from Jodhpur to Jaipur at 6.30 pm.
Senior NCP leader Praful Patel on Sunday said his party has not decided yet about extending support to any party in the August 8 Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat.

The Sharad Pawar-led party, which had a pre-poll alliance with the Congress for the 2012 Assembly polls in the state, currently has two MLAs Kandhal Jadeja and Jayant Patel.

These two MLAs had said they voted for the joint oppositions presidential candidate Meira Kumar.

Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel, the high-profile political secretary to Sonia Gandhi, is seeking a fifth Rajya Sabha term from Gujarat.

The election has become interesting since the exit of Congress strongman Shankersinh Vaghela and resignation of six MLAs of the party in the last few days, bringing down its tally in the 182-member House from 57 to 51. Three of these MLAs later joined the BJP, which has fielded one of them in the RS polls.

Patel, the NCP in-charge for Gujarat, said people are now searching for the two MLAs of his party given the current scenario where each vote is crucial.

Though the NCP was part of the previous Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, there is no such alliance at present. Though we are a small party with only two MLAs, we have suddenly become important and people are now searching for these two legislators, he told reporters in Anand.

Patel said the decision about supporting any party in the Rajya Sabha polls would be taken in consultation with Pawar.

Our two MLAs, along with other leaders of the party from Gujarat, would discuss this issue with Sharad Pawarji who would then take a call on supporting a particular party, the former Union minister said.

When asked about Congress shifting its 44 MLAs to Bengaluru to protect them from the BJP ahead of Rajya Sabha polls, Patel said the party itself was responsible for the current scenario.

Usually, Rajya Sabha MPs used to get elected unopposed. It is just because of the Congress that a contest is taking place this time. 14 of their MLAs have either left the party or have made up their mind not to vote for the Congress candidate, he said.

In the August 8 polls, the BJP has fielded its president Amit Shah and Union minister Smriti Irani on two seats, and Congress defector Balwantsinh Rajput on the third against Ahmed Patel.

Patel requires 45 votes to win the election.

Though the Congress has claimed it has the support of 44 MLAs, remaining seven of the partys 51 legislators, who are not in Bengaluru, have not put their cards on table yet.

The BJP, with 121 MLAs in the House, can easily get Shah and Irani elected. However, the party falls 14 short of the 45 votes required for Rajputs victory.
Nine high courts have objected to a plan for a country-wide exam for recruitment to lower judiciary, a proposal that has the backing of the Supreme Court.

The government has proposed an exam on the lines of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test, better known as Neet, held for medical course to select judicial officers to address concerns over the quality of junior judges and lack of uniformity in recruitment.

The high courts of Andhra Pradesh, Bombay, Delhi Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Patna and Punjab and Haryana are not in favour of the idea, the law ministry recently told a parliament panel.

They want the administrative control over the subordinate judiciary to remain with the respective high courts, the document sent by the ministry to the consultative committee on law says.

The courts stand is contrary to the views of Chief Justice of India JS Khehar who said the new system would ensure quick appointment of competent judges necessary for an effective judiciary. The exam would bring uniformity in the selection process and curb nepotism and favouritism in judiciary, the top court said on Friday.

The quality is a concern as many of those recruited as magistrates go on to serve in high courts.

Around 5,000 posts are vacant in the subordinate judiciary, nearly a fourth of the total 21,320 positions.

Around 27 million cases are pending in district courts, as per National Judicial Grid Data, hobbling Indias justice delivery system. Around 10% of these cases, or around 2.4 million, are more than 10 years old.

The Centre has no say in the recruitment of judicial officers that are made by the state services commissions and the 24 high courts.

Even after the exam is introduced, there will be little change in the arrangement. A merit list of successful candidates would be drawn up and states would be allowed to appoint judges as per their rules, the Centre has said, a point also backed by the top court.

There will be no interference in the appointment process and state would be allowed to follow their own procedure as per their rules and reservation policy, the court said on Friday in response to reservations expressed by West Bengal government and Calcutta high court.

The Calcutta, Jammu and Kashmir and Gauhati high courts are yet to respond to the proposal. The Sikkim and Tripura high courts are in favour of the exam. Their Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Allahabad, Manipur, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Uttarakhand and Orissa counterparts want changes in age, qualification, training and quota of vacancies to be filled through the proposed service, the ministry has told the panel.

Rajasthan and Jharkhand high courts are still considering their stand.

A bench of CJI Khehar, justice AK Goel and justice AM Khanwilkar told the counsel appearing for states and HCs that it had decided in principle to introduce a common test.

It asked senior advocate Arvind Datar  assisting the court in the case  to submit his concept note to the states for them to send in their response.

A centralised system would attract talent and incentivise eligible candidates to opt for judicial services, Datar said.

The bench said the reservation of states about were an ill-founded concern.

No foreign investors would invest in the country if judiciary is not efficient. We must put our best foot forward, the bench said.

The court began hearing the case in April after the law secretary wrote a letter to the registrar general, highlighting the need to fill the vacancies in lower judiciary.
Noted economist Rajiv Kumar said on Sunday he is looking forward to serve the country as the new vice chairman of Niti Aayog.

Look forward to serve the nation with my role @nitiaayog @pmoindia, Kumar tweeted.

Look forward to serve the nation with my role @nitiayog @pmoindia  Rajiv Kumar (@RajivKumar1) 5 August 2017

He was named the new vice chairman of the government think tank on Saturday, five days after the incumbent Arvind Panagariya announced that he would quit to return to academia.

Kumar, who holds a DPhil in economics from Oxford and a PhD from Lucknow University, is a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research (CPR).

Earlier, he was the secretary general of industry chamber FICCI and also served as director and chief executive of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER).

He was a member of the National Security Advisory Board between 2006 and 2008.

He has also served as chief economist of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and held senior positions in the Asian Development Bank, and the ministries of industries and finance.

Kumar is also on boards of several international and national institutions, including the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Riyadh, the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and Asia in Jakarta, the State Bank of India, and the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.

The appointment for the post of Niti Aayog vice chairman was necessitated as the incumbent Panagariya on August 1 announced that he will leave the government think tank on August 31 and return to Columbia University.

Panagariya, an Indian-American, had joined the Niti Aayog in January 2015.
Chief minister Nitish Kumar, on Sunday, urged the PM Modi-led NDA government at the centre to demonstrate its generosity towards Bihar, to celebrate the coming together of his party, the JD (U) and the BJP, to form a new government in Bihar, late last month.

If we have come together, it should also show (by way of disbursement of funds to Bihar). Mere Rs 50-60-crore will not do, in a big state like ours. When we came to power in Bihar in 2005, the states budget size was a mere Rs 25,000 crore. Now, it has grown to Rs 1,40,000-crore in 2017-18, he added.

Kumar was speaking at a function here to mark the launching in Bihar of the centres Tele Law facility, offered through common service centres (CSCs), in the presence of Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. He was also responding to Prasads offer of Rs 50-70 crore for the benefit of Bihars judiciary.

The CM indicated the amount suggested was meagre. The state has already offered Rs 169 core for a new building for the Patna high court. But meeting the requirements of the subordinate judiciary called for much bigger expenses, he said.

The Central government has launched Tele Law facility at 500 CSCs across the state with the help of legal volunteers at panchayat level, in a bid to provide free online legal assistance to those who could not afford to pay for it, . Bihar is fourth state to have the Tele Law facility, after UP, Assam and Jammu and Kashmir.

Lauding the national legal services authority (NLSA) for launching the facility, the CM exhorted the centre to extend the service to more CSCs. He said the state had also been using the online facility to usher in transparency in its delivery of services and it had yielded tangible results, particularly in public grievances redressal.

Citing records of disputes pouring in at the public grievances redressal cells, Kumar said land related disputes accounted for 60% of the petitions. The ongoing digitisation of updated land survey and settlement records would help the authorities resolve the disputes in a big way, he added.

Earlier, the union minister Prasad said it was good that the inauguration was taking place at a time when the BJP and JD (U) had come together. It will be a big step forward to ensure access to justice for all, he said, adding, the Centre had offered Rs 157 crore to Bihar in the last three years, for development of infrastructure for the judiciary .

Prasad said Nyaya Mitras would be appointed in large numbers to help the people avail free legal aid from the CSCs, which would focus on resolving cases pending in courts for more than 10 years. The CSCs will work as facilitation centres. They would serve as peoples interface with the police, administration and judiciary, he said.

Expressing his concern over heaps of pending cases, Prasad called upon the judges and legal bodies to reduce the burden of old cases. He said over 1.34 lakh cases were pending in the Patna high court alone, of which more than 18,000 were pending for 10 years or more.

Similarly, the subordinate judiciary is burdened with about 22 lakh cases, of which 2.07 lakh are more than 10 years old, he said, while urging the judiciary to use digital facility to dispose of the cases faster.

Senior judge of Supreme Court Dipak Mishra, who, as announced by Prasad, would to take over as Chief Justice of India, said the number of para legal volunteers in Bihar would be increased to 4,000 as against the existing strength of 1,800 by the month-end.

Their honorarium will also be hiked to Rs 500 per day vis-a-vis Rs 250 per day at the CSCs.

Deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi outlined crime, corruption and land disputes as the big challenges for Bihar. With the help of judiciary, many anti-socials were sent behind the bars through speedy trial. Now, time has come to use more and more technology to achieve the dream of crime and corruption-free Bihar, he added.

Patna high court chief justice Rajendra Menon said it was a historic occasion in the bid to make affordable and quality legal service available to all. We are committed to it, he added.

Many senior judges of Patna high court, union law secretary Snehlata Srivsatav and senior lawyers were present during the programme.

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Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday expressed concern over the states depiction as a trouble-torn region and called for coordinated efforts of all the political parties to put an end to violence.

Talking to reporters after an all-party meeting, convened to discuss the political situation in the aftermath of the recent killing of an RSS worker here, he said the propaganda that Kerala was a trouble-torn state would adversely impact the its investment prospects.

Leaders of all the major political parties, including the ruling CPI(M), opposition Congress and BJP participated in the meeting and extended total support to the governments peace initiatives.

The propaganda that Kerala is a trouble-torn state is a matter of concern. Such a false propaganda will adversely impact its investment and development prospects, said Vijayan.

The chief minister also said that the incidents of political violence in the state should come to an end.

Earlier, the all-party meeting observed that the social media played a key role in spreading violence and tension in the state.

It was also decided to see criminals as criminals, irrespective of their party affiliations.

Leaders of the political parties should also go to those places, from where the incidents of violence were reported, to create an environment of peace, the meeting said, adding that the police should take more stringent action in such cases.

CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan, party MLA O Rajagopal, opposition leader in the state Assembly Ramesh Chennithala and Kerala Congress president MM Hassan attended the all-party meeting.

The state government decided to convene the meeting after Governor P Sathasivam summoned the chief minister on July 30 and asked him to hold it to restore peace in the state, in view of a series of incidents of violence and the killing of the RSS functionary here on July 29.
After a prolonged administrative and legal process, the Amethi district administration has asked the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust to immediately vacate the 1.0360-hectare land at Rokha village in Jais, where it was imparting vocational training to the members of self-help groups, said officials.

They added that the said land was initially registered in the name of a vocational training centre but subsequently, it was allegedly captured by the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust.

The question regarding the ownership of the land was first raised by Union minister Smriti Irani, after she unsuccessfully contested the 2014 Lok Sabha polls from Amethi against Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi.

Four of the five assembly segments of the Amethi parliamentary seat come under the jurisdiction of the district administration.

Iranis protest, however, fell on deaf ears during the rule of the previous Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh.

After Yogi Adityanath of the Bharatiya Janata Party became the chief minister of the state earlier this year, the district administration took note of Iranis letter and sprung into action.

Subsequently, Amethi district magistrate Yogesh Kumar asked Tiloi sub-divisional magistrate Ashok Kumar Shukla to consider the matter with special attention.

The first notice to the trust was issued by District Development Officer (DDO) OP Pandey on March 27, which was followed by notices from chief development officer Om Prakash on April 10 and Shukla on April 28.

The notices asked the trust to produce the documents pertaining to the ownership or use of the land.

Shukla told PTI that the trust responded to them, but the response was neither clear nor sufficient.

Meanwhile, one Kiran Singh, claiming to be representing the self-help groups, the members of which were being trained by the trust, approached the Allahabad High Court, which asked the district administration to throw light on the status of the land and the activities of the self-help groups.

The SDM again asked the trust to furnish the documents pertaining to the use of the land. As the trust failed to do so, the SDM last week directed the Tiloi tehsildar to initiate the process to vacate the land.

The Congress blamed Irani for the development.

The current scenario is nothing but a result of the ill intentions of Irani, who lost the parliamentary poll against our popular leader Rahul Gandhi, district Congress chief Yogendra Mishra said.
Ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls, BJP chief Amit Shah held a meeting on Sunday with the party leaders in Gujarat, including Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, at his residence in Ahmedabad.

State BJP president Jitubhai Vaghani, partys state in-charge Bhupendra Yadav and Minister of State for Home Pradeepsinh Jadeja and other leaders met Shah in the morning for the Rajya Sabha elections of August 8, party sources said.

According to the state party unit, Shah, who arrived in the city late Saturday night, would stay here till the completion of the Rajya Sabha polls, in which, he is one of the four contestants from the state.

The BJP has maintained that Shah is in the city to celebrate Raksha Bandhan and has no official engagements.

However, party sources said the party chief discussed various issues regarding the polls with the leaders in todays meeting.

They added that it is expected that similar rounds of meetings would continue on Monday.

For the three Rajya seats falling vacant in Gujarat, the BJP has fielded Shah, Union minister and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Smriti Irani and former Congress MLA Balwantsinh Rajput, who had joined the saffron party a week ago.

Of the total 11 Rajya Sabha members from Gujarat, the term of three  Smriti Irani and Dilipbhai Pandya (both BJP), and Congress Ahmed Patel  is ending on August 18.

Patel has been re-nominated as the partys candidate for the August 8 Rajya Sabha election.

The polls have became crucial for both the parties as new equations are emerging every day after the dramatic exit of Gujarat Congress strongman Shankersinh Vaghela from the party followed by the resignation of six of the partys MLAs.

With this, the Congress tally has reduced to 51 in the 182-seat Gujarat Assembly.

While the Congress claimed to have the support of 44 Congress MLAs, who were shifted to Bengaluru a week ago, seven others, who are still here, have not opened their cards yet.
Following large-scale complaints of inefficient and inept inspection of its training centres being run under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) scheme, the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has stopped engaging the quality control watchdog, Quality Council of India (QCI).

NSDC has also wrested control of its Skill Management and AccReditation of Training Centres (SMART) portal from QCI.

Inspection of the skill centres is the first step towards granting accreditation and affiliation to them. Accreditation and affiliation are awarded by the National Council on Vocational Training (NCVT) on the basis of Quality Council of Indias (QCI) inspection report.

Rajiv Pratap Rudy, the minister of state (independent charge) skill development and entrepreneurship, said on the sidelines of an event that the NSDC has done away with the help of QCI following complaints.

Following complaints of inept and inefficient inspection of skill training centres, we have decided not to take help of QCI anymore. Some of the substandard centres were given good marking while good ones were ticked off. We took this decision after we found a large number of anomalies in their inspection process, the minister said.

According to the NSDC officials the pact with QCI was for the inspection of its centres till the period 2016-2020.

The NSDC has, instead, decided to rope in private agencies of global repute to do the job for it.

Officials admitted that the QCI inspected about 12,000 centres across India till July 28 and no work was given to it by the NSDC in August. They also said they have handed over the control of SMART back to NSDC.

According to Manish Kumar, CEO, NSDC, the control and management of the SMART portal on which the training centres get registered with NSDC for inspection, accreditation and distribution of targets to them, has been taken away from QCI.

QCI officials, however, refused to accept inapt inspection allegations and said that the entire system worked on the norms provided by the Sector Skill Councils and NSDC and QCI has no control over the norms they specify.
A suspected Bangladeshi terrorist associated with Islamic extremist group Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) was on Sunday arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Anti Terrorist Squad from Muzaffarnagar, officials said.

Abdullah was arrested from Kutesara locality in Charthawal area of Muzaffarnagar district, ATS inspector general Asim Arun said.

He was living in the area for the past one month and earlier was residing in Deoband area of Saharanpur since 2011 and had also got his Aadhar card and passport prepared on fake identity, the official said.

Abdullah, who has links with Ansarullah Bangla Team, was allegedly involved in preparing fake identity proofs for terrorists, especially those from Bangladesh, and help them get safe hideouts in India.

Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) is an al Qaeda-inspired Islamic extremist group in Bangladesh.

ATS teams of Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar, and local police of Shamli are conducting searches after his arrest.
The ED arrested on Sunday Mohammad Aslam Wani, an alleged hawala dealer, in connection with a decade-old money laundering case against Kashmiri separatist Shabir Shah.

A senior official in the central probe agency said Wani was arrested from Jammu and Kashmirs summer capital Srinagar by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) with the help of the state police.

The official said Wani (36) is being flown in from Srinagar and will be produced by evening before a special judge in Delhi for his further custody.

The ED had recently got a non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against him from a Delhi court. The agency had issued multiple summonses for his appearance in the case but he never appeared.

The warrant has been executed and Wani will now be confronted with Shah and others in order to take the probe forward, he said.

Shah, now in ED custody, was similarly arrested by the agency from Srinagar on July 26.

The ED action against the two is in pursuance of an August 2005 case, wherein the Delhi Polices Special Cell had arrested Wani, dealer, who had claimed that he passed on Rs 2.25 crore to Shah.

In 2010, a Delhi court had cleared Wani of terror funding charges but had convicted him under the Arms Act.

The ED had registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Shah and Wani.

Wani was arrested allegedly with Rs 63 lakh, received through hawala channels from the Middle East, and a large cache of ammunition, on August 26, 2005.

During questioning, he had told the police that Rs 50 lakh was to be delivered to Shah and Rs 10 lakh to Jaish-e- Mohammad area commander in Srinagar, Abu Baqar, and that the rest was his commission.

Wani, who hails from Srinagar, had also claimed that he delivered around Rs 2.25 crore to Shah and his kin in multiple instalments over the past year.

The ED, sources said, wants to probe the proceeds of crime of alleged terror financing in this case.
The Centre has compulsorily retired two IPS officers of Chhattisgarh cadre  AM Juri and KC Agarwal  in public interest on charges of being inefficient, sending message to officials to either perform or perish.

This is the second instance in recent months when the home ministry has acted tough against Indian Police Service (IPS) officers for inefficient performance or doubtful integrity, sending them on premature retirement.

More than 130 officers have been given premature retirement in the past over two years, Union minister Jitendra Singh told Rajya Sabha in a written reply last month.

Service records of 11,828 Group A and 19,714 Group B officers have been reviewed so far, he added.

I have received the governments order and going through it, Juri told Hindustan Times over phone. The other IPS officer KC Agarwal could not be reached for his reaction despite several attempts.

Juri is currently posted as assistant inspector general (planning and provisioning), while Agarwal was with police telecommunication department.

The action has been taken under All India Service Rule 16(3) that says the central government in consultation with the state government concerned can retire an officer of the service in public interest after serving them notice.

The officers have been served notice. This should not be construed as punishment said a home ministry official in Delhi on the condition of anonymity.

The officer added that the Centre reviews the performance of the three All India Services officers, namely the IPS, the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and the Indian Forest Service (IFoS) at two stages  on completion of 15 and 25 years of service.

In January, the home ministry acted against two other IPS officers-- Raj Kumar Dewangan from the 1992 batch of Chhattisgarh cadre and Mayank Sheel Chohan from the 1998 batch of the AGMU (Arunachal, Goa, Mizoram and Union Territory) cadreserving them notices of compulsory retirement.

Juri was scheduled to retire in 2019 and Agrawal was slated for retirement in 2020.

Juri and Agrawal were promoted to the IPS from state police in 2011 and were allotted 2000 and 2002 batch respectively.

Juri was earlier posted as SP Balod and SP Baloda bazaar and was for last few years attached to various departments in police headquarters at Raipur.

Agarwal, on the other hand, was SP Jashpur, SP Rail and then shifted to telecommunication department of the Chhattisgarh police.
He may have not heard of Rakhi, but women and girls of a remote Muslim-majority village symbolically named by an NGO after US President Donald Trump will send him 1,001 rakhis on the Hindu festival that celebrates the brother-sister bond.

The gesture by the residents of Marora village in the backward Mewat region represents the wish of the people that ties are further strengthened between India and the US, says the NGO which has adopted the village.

The village had come into limelight after Sulabh International Social Service Organisation (SISSO) chief Bindeshwar Pathak had announced to name it Trumps village.

Muslim girls from Marora village show their Trump Rakhis ahead of Raksha Bandhan. (PTI)

The district administration later said the move to rename the village was illegal, forcing the organisation to remove boards mentioning the new name.

The village, with a population of 1,800 people, is in Punhana Tehshil, some 60 km from Gurgaon.

The NGO has been conducting many welfare programs for women and girls in the village, said Monica Jain, vice president of the NGO.

These students have made 1,001 rakhis with photos of Donald Trump and 501 rakhis for Narendra Modi. Women and girls of the village consider them their elder brothers, she said.

The consignment of rakhis was sent through cargo so that it reaches the US President on Raksha Bandhan on August 7. The villagers are also sending invitations to the two leaders to visit the village.

Widows of the village also expressed a desire to meet Prime Minister Modi on Raksha Bandhan at his residence in the national capital and tie rakhis.

I made 150 rakhis within three days for Trump bhaiya. I also wrote in a letter to be sent to the White House that the girls of your village want you to visit it with PM Modi, said 15-year-old Rekha Rani, a resident of the village.

Sulabh recently constructed 95 toilets in Marora to implement Prime Minister Modis flagship programme to make every village in the country open defecation free.

The village has 140 houses and only 45 of them were equipped with toilet facility. Sulabh constructed the remaining 95 toilets, Jain said.
Elderly widows at an ashram in Vrindavan plan to present their brother Prime Minister Narendra Modi over 1,500 rakhis on Raksha Bandhan on Monday.

The rakhis, displaying pictures of Modi, were prepared by the inmates of Meera Sahabhagini ashram.

Ten of the ashram inmates will visit Delhi on Monday to present basketfuls of sweets and rakhis to brother Modi on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan that celebrates the love between brothers and sisters.

Sulabh International vice-president Vinita Verma said: We are awaiting a communication from the Prime Ministers Office to our request for permission to visit the Prime Ministers residence to tie rakhis on Modis wrist.
Even as the organisational changes in Congress are happening in bits and pieces, some senior functionaries have requested the party leadership to relieve them of all responsibilities.

The latest to join the list is outspoken party general secretary Digvijaya Singh, who is set to embark on a six-month spiritual, personal and apolitical Narmada Yatra in September.

Singh, who looks after party affairs in Andhra Pradesh, will undertake the 3,300-km yatra, known as Narmada Parikrama (circumambulation), covering parts of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.

Once an influential leader in the Congress, the 70-year-old Singh has already been cut to size and divested of the charge of the three states of Goa, Karnataka and Telangana. He had come under fire for his mishandling of the post-poll developments in Goa, where the Congress failed to form the government despite emerging as the single largest party. The BJP succeeded in cobbling together a coalition.

Even in Karnataka and Telangana, a rebellion had been brewing in the Congress. Many leaders and legislators from both states had complained to the Congress high command about Singhs style of functioning and demanded his removal.

Similarly, another general secretary, Ambika Soni, had repeatedly requested the party leadership to reduce her workload in view of her ill-health. She was handling the hill states of Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh.

During the Uttarakhand assembly elections in February-March this year, Soni, 74, had taken help from senior colleague Kumari Selja in running party affairs. She later told the party leadership that ill-health will prevent her from travelling in Himachal Pradesh, which goes to polls later this year. The Congress high command accepted her request and relieved her of the charge of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

While she continues to look after the party affairs in J&K, former Union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, 75, was appointed general secretary and given charge of Himachal Pradesh.

The third general secretary to having sought a replacement is BK Hariprasad, who had submitted his resignation after the partys debacle in this years panchayat elections in Odisha. The Congress leadership is worried over the BJPs expanding foothold in the eastern state as evident from the outcome of the panchayat polls. The BJP pushed the Congress to third spot and occupied the space of the principal opposition party.

The vote share of the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) also dropped. Of the total 846 zilla parishad seats for which polls were held in five phases from February 13, the BJD won 473 while the BJP bagged 297 and the Congress managed to win just 60.

While Hariprasad, 63, continues to hold charge of Odisha, the Congress leadership divested him of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand and gave the charge to PL Punia and RPN Singh respectively.

Prior to them, senior general secretary Janardan Dwivedi had on August 28, 2014, suggested that party leaders beyond 65 years of age should not hold important organisational posts. I am not saying they should retire but posts which require a lot of running around and physical capacity should be held by young people. Elders should keep away from active posts and take up other responsibilities, he had said.

Dwivedi, 71, had then made the remark in the backdrop of the BJPs move to drop veterans Atal Bihari Vajpayee, LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi from the partys parliamentary board.

His colleague, Jairam Ramesh, had also once proposed that leaders above 70 years of age should retire from active politics.

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Lack of manpower and expertise to deal with the menace is responsible for the gradual rise of cybercrime in the city, and also the fall in detection rate, revealed data from Maharastra Police.

According to the statistics, 10,419 cases were registered under the Information Technology (IT) Act between January 2012 and June 2017. These include the ones registered under additional sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Of the 10, 419 cases, 3,167 have been detected, putting the average detection rate for six years at 30%. Alarmingly, 72% of the 10,419 cases are cases under the IT Act read with the IPC. In these cases, the detection rate has decreased from 57% in 2012 to 25% in 2017.

Incidentally, Mumbai comprised 38% of the cybercrime in Maharashtra in 2016. Statistics procured from Mumbai Police shows that 928 cases were registered in 2016 and 203 were detected  21.8 % detection rate. In Maharashtra, in 2016, a total of 2,417 cases were registered.

Cyber expert Vijay Mukhi said, Our cops are not trained well. Secondly, I blame the government for not having special courts for cybercrime. The cyber -security industry is not trained and there is dire need for a cyber-security eco-system. Corporates do not file an FIR and spend money individually to improve their systems when they should file cases so that the accused are convicted.

Cyber-crime expert and high court lawyer Prashant Mali said, There is lack of coordination between the police department of different states. There is poor or no cyber intelligence. They lack training and understanding in handling electronic evidence. Often, finding IP addresses in a different country involves the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT), which is a lengthy process. Technically trained officers are transferred to physical security postings. Due to several reasons, there are instances where the police refused to file an FIR, which is unfortunate as these crimes go unreported.

Another expert, Ritesh Bhatia said, We need a separate cyber force where transfers take place within the department. Frequent transfers is also an issue. Most of the cases are of vishing and card cloning (ATM card frauds) where accused are Indians from other states, but many of them are not detected.

Cops look at ways to curb cyber menace

Maharashtra police are looking at three ways to curb cybercrime. It plans to have a cyber police station in all districts, cyber labs in all districts and implement the Cyber Security Project (CSP) in the next four years.

Deputy commissioner of police (cyber), Balsing Rajput, confirmed that the four-pronged project was underway from last year and is aimed to be completed in the next four years. In India, only Maharashtra has a cyber-police station in each district. Further, Mumbai will have five cyber police stations soon. The officials will be trained to investigate complicated cases.

This is followed by cyberlaboratories, equipped with high-end hardware and software tools, in each of the districts for digital forensic analysis. These labs will help collect evidence from mobile phones, CDs, Call Data Records (CDR) and social media.

The first component of CSP is a Central Processing Laboratory, a special dedicated network, which will coordinate with the district-level labs and handle the complicated cases.

The second component is a predictive police unit, which will gather all information related to cybercrime from police stations and all social media platforms to predict and take measures to prevent cybercrime.

The third component is to build a Maharashtra Cyber security centre of excellence where police officials, government officials like prosecutors and public will be apprised on cyber security and awareness.

The fourth component will be education where high-end academic knowledge will be provided to government officials, police and students. This will be an academic education which may be like a six month or one year course.

Former Maharashtra DGP D. Sivanandhan said, This cybercrime statistics with the state is just the tip of the ice berg. The actual cases are much more in number. People, corporates and banks are not coming forward to file FIRs. The police must try to ensure that all cases are reported to them. Cyber-crime will increase even more in future and hence it is going to cost us a lot if we are not able to quickly prepare ourselves to face it. Immediate need would be to train our men to investigate the cases by best in the country. There is a need for all agencies dealing with cyber-crimes to upgrade their capabilities and infrastructure.
Doctors treating veteran actor Dilip Kumar at Lilavati Hospital said on Sunday that his health was improving and he could soon be shifted to a general ward from the intensive care unit (ICU).

Dr Ravishankar, CEO, LiIavati Hospital, said there was a satisfactory improvement in the actors health. His renal functions are improving, creatinine and potassium levels are dropping, and he is passing urine on his own. Though he is in ICU under observation, he is stable, he said.

On Friday, doctors had said that continues derange in Kumars renal parameters could have been the reason behind his failing health. They had even considered putting him on dialysis had his condition deteriorated further. But the actor, who was admitted to the hospital last week, showed signs of recovery and has been responding well to the treatment.

A major cause of concern were the actors elevated creatinine levels  a sign of kidney problems  and a drop in his blood haemoglobin. The kidneys maintain blood creatinine, but a spike indicates dysfunction or disease.

The major issue was dehydration. Since it affects kidney and other organs momentarily, he [Kumar] suffered minor urinary issues, otherwise there is no major complication, said Ravishankar.

The 94-year-old actor has faced several medical complications in the recent years. Kumar was hospitalised last April for fever and nausea. He was again admitted to Lilavati in December for swelling in his right leg.
A man has been arrested for his alleged involvement in the Rs24 lakh diamond theft. This is the fifth arrest made by the Borivli police in the case, which includes two policemen.

According to the police, the man is the accomplice of the prime accused Raj, who was the agent of the jeweller from Gujarat. The Borivli police said that Raj and the journalist used to look out for jewellers who wanted to sell diamonds. They would plan to rob the jeweller with the help of the cops and a woman who would pose as the customer.

We checked the credential of the man, who claims to be a journalist and found that he did not work for any newspaper or media, said Vikram Deshmane, deputy commissioner of police (zone XI).

The investigating officer also said that it was this accused who introduced Raj to the local arms policemen. The arrested accused are not co-operating with investigations and repeating that this was the only case they have been involved, said Gunaji Sawant, senior police inspector of Borivli police station but added they were probing if in the past they committed any crime.

The police said fake raids were conducted to make easy money. Gavare and Gavas used to conduct fake raids when the accused were in the process of striking a deal and the jeweller would then be taken into custody with the duo claiming to take him to a police station.
You can expect overcrowded trains and a auto, cab shortage on Monday, with nearly 3,700 buses of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport undertaking (BEST) going off the roads on Monday. This will inconvenience 29 lakh-odd commuters, who use the service daily.

The BEST Sanyukta Kamgar Kriti Samiti, a joint action committee of all its labour unions, stayed firm on its decision of an indefinite strike by its 36,000 employees on Sunday because of non-payment of salaries in the past three months. This, despite efforts by BEST management, civic commissioner Ajoy Mehta and the ruling Shiv Sena leaders, including party chief Uddhav Thackeray, to reason with the committee late into the night.

App-based cabs are likely to get more expensive. And to make matters worse, the strike comes on the day of Raksha Bandhan, when demand for public transport is higher.

This committee ironically includes BEST Kamgar Sanghatana, the labour wing of the Sena in BEST, and the BEST Parivahan Kamgar Sangh, which is affiliated to the BJP. This raises questions on political duplicity of both the ruling party in the civic body and the ruling party in the state government in holding the city to ransom. It also points to larger politics with the saffron parties trying to blame the other for the crisis.

By 10 at night on Sunday, unions activists asked members to not report on duty affecting late-night bus services.

The committee had said unless the BMC civic commissioner gives them a written assurance of taking the entire responsibility of BEST, the strike would not be called off.

We do not trust the BMC commissioner and hence there is no question of calling off the strike until Mehta gives a written assurance of taking our responsibility, said Rao.

The unions have demanded BMC pay BEST employees in the first week of every month, refrain from curtailing salaries and allowances of employees as a part of cost-cutting measures, avoid wet lease (lease buses with drivers) of both AC and non-AC buses, besides helping fund the purchase of new buses.

In retaliation, the BEST undertaking warned action against the striking employees and the government has applied the Maharashtra Essential Services Maintenance Act (MESMA). For commuters, the state government has allowed private vehicles such as buses, tempos, trucks to ferry passengers till the time the strike gets called off.

The School Bus Owners Association, a body of school bus operators in the city, has also offered rides on their members buses to commuters for just Rs20 for every 10km from railway stations, on the request of transport department.

The day saw quick developments with mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar holding several meetings to ward off the strike, including one with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, BMC commissioner Ajoy Mehta and BEST general manager Surendra Bagde.

But, the efforts were in vain.

The unions began their agitation with a chain hunger strike at Wadala depot on August 1 and threatened an indefinite strike.

Thackeray has called a meeting of both the joint action committee of unions again on Monday to resolve the issue. It is likely he will talk to Fadnavis to bring about some compromise.

Rao also warned that other unions, including the autorickshaw union, will participate in the strike, if needed. But sources said it is less likely to happen and the union is just using pressure tactics.
A 26-year-old doctor from Mumbai was recently arrested by the Mumbai police after the Supreme Court rejected his bail plea. The man was booked for rape, unnatural offences and cheating a woman, along with sections of the Atrocities Act, after he made jibes about the womans caste.

The MIDC police said the 26-year-old woman and the doctor met in 2012 as they live in the same area. They dated for a year, after which he promised to marry her. However, he broke up with her and then started dating another doctor.

When the women insisted he marry her, the doctor made jibes about her case. In June last year, the woman asked police to file a case against him.

The doctor filed a pre-arrest bail plea in the sessions court and then the Bombay high court. However, both rejected him. He then approached the Supreme Court, which rejected his plea last month.

He surrendered before the MIDC police in Andheri (East) and was remanded in police custody. The sessions court case was transferred to an assistant commissioner of police.
The police arrested a 30-year-old man from Telangana for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor boys at knifepoint in Kandivli in June. Salim Madhark Shaikh, a native of Koratla district in Telangana, had been staying in Poiser for the past few years, said the police. He is a driver. He was brought to Mumbai from Kortala on August 3.

The boys, who are in school, were known to Shaikh.

According to the police, Shaikh sexually assaulted a 10-year-old boy from Kandivli in the first week of June and later he targeted a nine-year-old boy in the same area. He used the same modus operandi to lure the boys. He invited both the boys to his house to watch movies. Upon reaching home, he forced the boys to perform sexual acts. When the boys resisted his sexual advances, he would hit them and threatened at knife point, said police officer.

The incident came to light the nine-year-old boy revealed his ordeal to his parents. The parents approached the Kandivli police on June 15 and a case was registered under Section 377 (unnatural sex) of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. After getting to know about the FIR, Shaikh fled the city.

A police went to Koratla and found that Shaikh was working in hotel. We arrested him. He has confessed to the crime. He was brought to Mumbai on Thursday and handed over to the Kandivli police for further inquiry, said a crime branch officer.

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Mumbaiites, watch over your kids, data shows one in five raped children are from Maharashtra

Mumbai man arrested for sexually assaulting 2 minor boys
After writing to the chief minister several times about the elevated DN Nagar-Mankhurd metro line, which they said will pass through school grounds and other open spaces, residents of Bandra, Khar and Santacruz plan to take to the streets to protest against it. Residents, activists and school students will take part in the protest on SV Road on August 11 to ask for an underground metro line.

Experts and residents had proposed an underground line to avoid running over existing structures and causing more traffic congestion.

Architect Nitin Killawala said they had put up an online petition for an underground metro that would not only reduce the distance between Kurla and Mankhurd by 1.5km, but also save the open spaces from destruction.

The petition on change.org now has more than 1,300 signatures in addition to the 1,000 on paper.

Anandini Thakoor, trustee of Bandra (West) Federation, said, It has to be an underground metro or no metro. We are not against it, but an elevated line will hinder future development. We would rather have no metro at all.

Thakoor added that they will file a public interest litigation soon.

HT had reported last month that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) had finished the tendering process for the 23.5km metro line and could not adopt any suggestions now. The project, which costs about Rs10,000 crore is to be completed by 2019.

Ashish Shelar , Bandra MLA and chief of BJPs Mumbai unit, said, We will make sure schools are not affected while constructing the metro line. The MMRDA is going ahead with the project but I will take this up with the chief minister.
A day after three boys drowned off Dadar Chowpatty, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is again under attack for inadequate number of lifeguards at Mumbais six beaches Dadar, Juhu, Girgaum, Versova, Aksa and Gorai. Besides the manpower crunch, lifeguards are under-equipped, said one of them.

Only 38 lifeguards man the six beaches, which on average see one lakh visitors daily.

Of them, 11 are permanent while the rest work on contract basis. Many lifeguards said that the number of staff was not always constant, as many are sometimes on off or leave the contract for a better one.

At any given shift of eight hours, there are supposed to be two lifeguards on duty on the beach.

A lifeguard said, The BMC need to immediately hire more staff. The current number is too low. During high tide days, we get help from the fire brigade department but thats not enough to patrol and carry out rescue operations.

For instance, Juhu beach, which is stretched over 4 km and is one of the busiest beaches in the city, has two to three lifeguards in one shift. Currently, during high tide above 4.5 meter, the fire brigade employs 40 of its personnel to patrol beaches.

With an increase in the number of visitors, it was not possible to ensure safety of everyone, complained the lifeguard.

The spot where the drowning occurred at Dadar Chowpatty is designated as a dangerous area and swimming is prohibited. A board put there warns visitors against swimming.

Prabhat Rahangdale, chief fire officer, said that people needed to pay attention to the warning boards. It ((Dadar Chowpatty) is a rocky seashore. Lifeguards are posted on the beachfront.

He added that the fire brigade continued to patrol beaches during the monsoon and high tide, warning people to not venture into the sea.

Instead of deploying 40 fire brigade personnel during monsoon, the BMC has been planning to hire 86 lifeguards through a third-party.

These fire brigade personnel are stationed to increase the patrolling of the area and stop people from going near the sea during high tide. During high tide, the BMC has asked citizens to avoid sea shore completely.

Experts say that the fire brigade department, which provides safety equipment to lifeguards, needs to upgrade its rescue preparedness. The department is supposed to provide lifeguards with jet skis, semi-inflatable boats, ring buoys, surf rescue boats, spine boats, rescue tubes, rechargeable batteries and ropes.

However, several lifeguards at Juhu and Versova beaches said they had access to only life jackets, ring buoys and ropes.

Worse, the makeshift watchtowers at all beaches are not as tall as required. This has hampered lifeguards visibility and undermines their rescue operations, said a source. These wooden structures often work as resting place for life guards, said the source.

20-year-old drowns off Bandra Bandstand

A 20-year-old man drowned off after he was pulled in by a strong current off Bandra Bandstand on Sunday. Sohail Shaikh from Kurla (west) had gone to the beach with a friend for a stroll.

Sub-inspector Amol Powar from Bandra police station said, They were walking on the rocks. A big wave crashed on the rocks and they fell into the sea. Shaikhs friend swam to safety as he knew swimming. Shaikh was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The police have registered an accidental death report.

READ

More lifeguards for Mumbais Juhu and Versova beaches soon

Mumbai lifeguards to the rescue? Not quite, staff crunch and lack of vehicles hamper them

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Had the Great Odisha mining loot  a mining scandal of enormous proportions and one involving megabucks  continued unchecked, the iron ore reserves in the state would have been exhausted by 2040, leaving nothing for future generations.

Between 2001 and 2010 more than 2155 lakh metric tonnes of iron ore and mangenese ore worth Rs 17,576 crore was illegally mined in the state of Odisha. It destroyed not just the environment and forest but also caused untold misery to tribals living in the districts of Keonjhar, Sundergarh and Mayurbhanj.

Stepping in, the Supreme Court recently passed a landmark verdict directing the Odisha government to recover this money (Rs 17,567 cr) from the 187 mining companies. Top companies such as SAIL, Tata Steel, Aditya Birla groups Essel Mining and Odisha Mining Corp are in the dock for the violations.

Interestingly, the Shah Commission of Inquiry set up in 2010 by the central government to look into the mining irregularities in Odisha, had computed the loss at more than Rs 61,000 cr. But for the purpose the judgment in Odisha mining scam the Supreme Court has not relied on the figure of Rs 61,000 cr. The court has gone along with the recommendations of the centrally empowered committee.

Despite the reduced figure, the Odisha government will face problems in collection of these dues as out of the 187 mines, 102 are closed and the lease holders may not in a position to pay the penalty.

Expanding the environment jurisprudence, the court for the first time has held that violation of environment and forest laws amounted to illegal mining. And the value of the ore so produced or sold can be recovered from the mine owner.

Neither the Karnataka nor the Goa mining judgments delivered earlier dealt with this aspect.

This interpretation of law will have far-reaching repercussions. Environmentalists suggest that the judgment has opened the doors for recovering similar penalties from mine owners who illegally mined iron ore in Goa and Karnataka. Its only a a matter of time that petitions in the Supreme Court are filed to this effect.

In the past decade, Indias mining sector has been marred by countless controversies, including over-extraction of mineral ore, illegal selling, mining outside the lease area and carrying out mining in officially closed mines.

Alive to the fact that problems in the mining sector will not disappear with judgments such as this, the Supreme Court has directed the central government to revisit the national mineral policy and announce a fresh, meaningful policy and effective policy by the end of 2017.

The court in its judgment says: At present, keeping in mind the indiscriminate mining for operations in Odisha, it does appear that there is no effective check on mining operations nor is there any effective mining policy. The National Mineral Policy seems to be only on paper and is not being enforced perhaps due to the involvement of very powerful vested interests or a failure of nerve.

Besides calling for a change in the mineral policy, the court has also suggested setting up of another committee to identify the lapses that enabled rampant illegal and unlawful mining and to recommend preventive measures not only to the State of Odisha but generally to all other States where mining activities are proceeding on a large scale.

While this Supreme Court judgment deals just with financial penalties, the criminal liability of these companies is yet to be decided and one stakeholder that will be losing sleep in the matter is the private mining sector.
The Bihar government has set a deadline of March, 2019 to make the districts free from open defecation.

The government has also set a target of making 4,555 gram panchayats open-defecation free by the end of the current financial year 2017-18.

During the review meeting of Lohia Swachh Bihar Abhiyan, chief minister Nitish Kumar asked officials to speed up the process of achieving the target.

Nitish held a high-level meeting on Saturday evening to review the progress of work of rural development department and Panchayati Raj department.

While reviewing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), Kumar said the water conservation project, which was implemented in Nalanda district, should be considered a role-model and it should be implemented in all the districts of the state especially in south Bihar.

He also asked officials to take up the matter of afforestation in order to increase the forest coverage area in the state.

During the review of Jeevika, the CM stressed upon the need to speed up the process of creation of 10 lakh Self Help Gropus (SHGs) in the state by the end of December 2018, the release said.
Muktsar: At least 10 new cases of braid chopping were reported in the state on Saturday, with seven of them from Muktsar alone.

In Muktsar, Jasveer Kaur (45) of Chauntra village claimed she had a strange dream around midnight after which she fell unconscious. She found her braid chopped off when she woke up, she said.

Her son Jagseer Singh said they are in a state of panic since they are unable to get any clue how this happened.

Sonam (17) of Gidderbaha claimed that her hair was chopped off when she was sleeping in room with her grandmother. She claimed to have seen a shadow around midnight after which she fell unconscious. When she woke up in the morning, she claimed to have found her braid chopped off.

Ramandeep Kaur of Gidderbaha said she was sleeping with her husband and she heard the sound of scissors snapping during midnight and found hair removed in the morning. Tej Singh of village Kauni said that braid of his wife Karmjeet Kaur, 32 was chopped off. Tej Singh said that his wife is mentally upset.

Karmjeet Kaur, 63 of village Bharu also claimed that her hairs were chopped off on Saturday and she is unaware of how incident happened. Sarbjeet Kaur (17) of Tarkhanwala and Harpreet Kaur of Bheetiwala villages also complained of the same. Komalpreet Kaur (11) of Bharu village in Gidderbaha on Thursday and Preeti Kumari (13) of Guru Gobind Nagri of Malout had reported similar cases on Thursday and Friday.

Man barges into house, cuts hair

Ludhiana: A 60-year-old woman from Dakha subdivision in the district claimed someone chopped her braid and fled after scaling the walls on Saturday afternoon. The alleged incident took place when the woman was alone at her house at Mullanpur village. Police reached the spot and started investigating the matter. They, however, suspect the womans version. Paramjit Kaur, a widow, claimed that at 1pm a man barged into her house and asked her whom she had voted in the Vidhan Sabha elections. Before she could say anything he flashed a scissors and cut off her braid and fled, she said.

Woman claims hair cut while sleeping

Sangrur: A woman from Chandu village near Khanauri in the district on Saturday claimed her braid was chopped off last night when she was sleeping at her house. The complainant, Meena Devi, said she found her hair on the ground when she woke up to go to bathroom. Khanauri station house officer (SHO) Sukhchain Singh said they have received a complaint and found the claim suspicious.
Putting a brave face, Jaspal Kaur (60) of Chanarthal Khurd village in the district is consoling her daughter-in-law Rajbir Kaur (32) and eight-year-old granddaughter Amanpreet alias Ashu after her son Devinder Singh (32) committed suicide on Wednesday.

With three men having committed suicide, all related to farm debt, the family is left with only female members now. Whenever some men come to mourn the demise, Ashu calls her fathers cousin Fateh Singh, who lives in their neighbourhood, to attend to the visitors.

Jaspal Kaurs husband Gurlabh Singh (65) committed suicide last December after a decade-long struggle repaying debt the family owed to commission agents. The couples younger son Gurpreet Singh (21) died in 2009, when a commission agent sold their 4-acre land as debt repayment.

I cant afford to cry. If I become weak, it will be a problem. My daughter-in-law needs me as she lost husband at a young age, and so does my granddaughter, said Jaspal.

She says Rs 4 lakh debt finished her entire family. It all started in 1994 when we took Rs 2 lakh from a commission agent. We paid almost Rs 25 lakh, our land was sold and still Tiwana (commission agent) didnt settle our debt. Our land was sold for 60 lakh and debt and interest was Rs 25 lakh but he didnt give us our surplus money which he got by selling the land. The sale of land led to the suicide of my Son Gurpreet as he went under depression. My husband committed suicide during a protest against a commission agent, she says.

An inconsolable Rajbir says,  There is no justice here and no one takes care of farmers, she says. She is only Class 8 passout thus cant get a job. How she will take care of my daughter?

Admn sends team to help family

After the tragic suicide of Devinder, deputy commissioner Kanwalpreet Brar has sent a team of officials to extend help to the family. The DC said forms of Devinders mother for old age pension and his wife for widow pension have been filled.

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The information technology (IT) infrastructure in Mohali is set to get a boost, as Quark City  Punjabs first operational special economic zone for IT and IT-enabled services (ITES) sector in Phase 8B  will add another building on its 46-acre campus.

Chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh will be laying the foundation stone on Wednesday.

The seven-storeyed building, which is divided into two blocks, will be completed in three years and will house around 30 IT companies, with the potential of creating 6,000 jobs.

The total covered area will be 4-lakh square feet, with five floors dedicated to the office space.

For Mohali, which received a big jolt after the US IT giant Dell shut down its international services operations in the vicinity of Quark City two years ago, the expansion is seen as a significant development.

Though at a nascent stage, Mohali IT City in Sector 83 is yet another potential zone that is in the process of developing into a big IT cluster after Rajiv Gandhi IT Park in Chandigarh. 46 IT companies have already been allotted industrial plots there.

Quark Citys chief operating officer (COO) Rajesh Sharma said the expansion will definitely cement Mohali as the preferred destination of Indian and international IT companies.

When we began building infrastructure here in 2003, the citys resources were at its nascent stage  be it the air connectivity or quality manpower, said Sharma. Years on, things are changing. With the Punjab government focusing on developing IT as a major trade, Mohali will surely generate more employment and business for countrys IT industry.

At present, Quark City has two major buildings: Landmark Plaza and SP Infocity, developed by co-developer Shapoorji Pallonji. Both became operational in the past four years.

Both house 53 companies from India and abroad and employ nearly 8,000 skilled workforce. The total export is to the tune of Rs 2,500 crore every year, said Sharma.

Among major IT companies operating here are Emerson, Infosys, Fidelity, Bunge Ocrax, CHC consulting and Span InfoTech.

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A local court in Ludhiana granted anticipatory bail to actress Rakhi Sawant but ordered her to surrender before it on August 7 in a case related to objectionable remarks by her against Valmiki, the author of the epic Ramayana.

Accepting her application, district and session judge Gurbir Singh ordered the actress to appear before the magistrate (where her case is in process) on August 7 to furnish fresh bail bonds.

On July 7, the court of judicial magistrate Vishav Gupta rejected the bail plea of the actress and issued a fresh arrest warrant as she failed to appear before the court.

Advocate Narinder Adiya had filed the complaint against Rakhi on July 9 last year, claiming her comments, allegedly made on a private television channel, had hurt the sentiments of the Valmiki community.

The actress had tendered an unconditional apology to the Valmiki community after its members voiced outrage over her alleged remarks.

On March 9, the judicial magistrates court issued non-bailable warrants against Rakhi. Following the court orders in April, a team of the Ludhiana police was sent to Mumbai to arrest the actress. The team, however, returned empty-handed.
A Jharkhand high court judge has imposed a unique condition of community service through traffic management and helping OPD patients at hospital for granting bail to six incarcerated people allegedly involved in communal violence in Ranchi earlier this year.

The incident occurred at a Muslim-dominated Bargaiyn locality on June 3 in which a Hindu marriage procession was allegedly attacked by the members of the minority community leaving eight, including a five-year-old girl injured. The incident was allegedly the fall out of an objectionable Facebook post shared by the bridegrooms cousin.

The police arrested six people - Imtiyaz Ansari, a businessman, Mojibur Rahman, a central government employee, Shakiruddin, Firoz Alam, Mohammad Aman and Sahid Alam, all students, and a local court sent them to jail. All the six had moved the Jharkhand high court for bail.

Granting them provisional bail on Friday, justice S Chandrashekhar besides imposing other conditions asked the accused to render community service on October 3 and November 6 at the government-run Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Ranchi. It directed them to report to the RIMS superintendent at 8.30 am on the fixed dates. The superintendent would depute them to the hospitals main gate for managing the traffic or patients rush at OPDs for three hours.

The superintendent would submit a report to the investigating officer who would furnish the same along with an affidavit, highlighting the conduct of the accused to the court on the next date of hearing on December 14.

Service to the society by the accused persons would not only be appreciated by both the communities but it would also give solace to the injured persons, the judge said.

It also directed each of the six accused to deposit Rs 15,000 with the trial court, out of which Rs 20,000 would be paid to the five-year old girl Saumya Kumari who sustained grievous head injuries, and Rs 10,000 each would be paid to other seven injured persons.

According to the two FIRs lodged in this connection, 37 accused and 300-350 unknown persons had attacked the wedding party with bamboo sticks and stones. The attack took place when the wedding party was bursting crackers in the vicinity of a local mosque. Locals opposed it leading to a scuffle. A huge crowd later chased the wedding party and attacked it when it took a brief halt at localitys Panchdev Mandir.

The district administration intervened quickly to bring the situation back to normal the next day. A peace committee comprising elders of the locality was also formed to restore peace and harmony.

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A Jharkhand resident was on Sunday forced to carry his minor sons body after he was allegedly denied an ambulance service in Gumla district, following which chief minister Raghubar Das ordered an inquiry.

Karan Singhs 8-year-old son Suman was admitted at the Sadar Hospital in Gumla district after he complained of fever four days ago.

He died on Sunday as the medicines for Malaria prescribed by the doctors treating him were allegedly not available at the hospital.

Karan Singh wanted an ambulance to ferry the body to his home but was denied the same. So he carried the body on his shoulder, followed by his weeping wife.

After the incident was brought to the chief ministers notice, he ordered the probe.
Its Friendship Day today, and while youre busy exchanging greetings and gifts with your best friends around the world, heres something to make the day more meaningful for you. Weve compiled some lesser-known facts about this special day.

1. The idea of Friendship Day started as a fresh marketing strategy in the 1930s. It was Joyce Hall, founder of Landmark cards in 1919, who came up with the idea of celebrating the first Sunday of August every year as Friendship Day.

2. As the trend caught on, in 1935, the United States Congress announced the first Sunday of August as National Friendship Day.

3. It was a Paraguayan called Dr Artemio Bracho who proposed the idea of having a World Friendship Day and on July 30, 1958 Paraguay celebrated the first World Friendship Day.

4. As the trend became more popular, the United Nations General Assembly declared July 30 as the official International Friendship Day on April 27, 2011.

5. To mark the 10th anniversary celebrations of International Friendship Day, The Beatles released their hit song With a Little Help from My Friends in 1967.

6. Residents of Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador and Uruguay celebrate friendship every year on July 20.

7. The National Womens Friendship Day was first celebrated in 1999, by the Kappa Delta Sorority in Memphis, Tennessee, U.S on the third Sunday of September.

8. By 2009, the entire month of September started being celebrated as International Womens Friendship Month.

9. Winnie the Pooh was chosen in 1998 as the Ambassador of Friendship at the United Nations by Nane Annan, the wife of then UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

10. The cult sitcom Friends arrived at its title after being suggested names such as Friends like Us, Six of One, Across the Hall, Once Upon a Time in the West Village, and Insomnia Cafe. Well, it would have been a hit no matter what they would have named it!

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Friends are forever and these TV stars definitely do not need a special day to celebrate their friendship and the close bond they share. On Friendship Day today, we asked small screen stars to share with us their best moments with their BFFs who complete their existence.

Shashank Vyas on Adaa Khan

I dont have many friends in the TV industry. I met Adaa (Khan, actor) at Pratyushas (Banerjee) birthday party five years. We hit it off instantly, more so because of our love for travel and good food. Whenever we catch up, we discuss everything that is happening in our lives. We are just a call away from each other. In a city like Mumbai it is important to have few close friends. She is one of them. Since we are both from the same industry we often discuss work too. I am happy that she is doing well career wise. Its important to have right friends in life and Adaa is that friend for me.

Keith Sequeira on Rochelle Rao

She was with me one lovely, cool morning on a hot air balloon ride and it is where our friendship first took off. I would repeat it with her anytime forever. Though we are now engaged and will soon get married, she will always remain my best friend first.

Shakti Arora on Mahavir Mehta

More than a friend Mahavir (Mehta, share market consultant) is like a mentor to me. I look up to him for everythingthe kind of person he is, the way he runs his business and how he balances every area of his life. We have an age gap of a few years (Shakti is younger to Mahavir) but that has never been a problem because we think alike about almost everything. We are each others partners in crime. I consider him to be my brother from another mother.

Pankhuri Awasthi on Arushi Narang

She stays in Delhi and shes not just a partner in crime, Id say shes been my partner in everything for the last 14 years. Weve stayed together almost like a couple in both good and bad times. I think the one thing, we often did together and totally enjoyed was making prank calls to other close friends.

Vahbiz Dorabjee on Shefali Suvarna Shetty

In my life, my friends play an important part. They have always been a support system for me. In todays date, the person I consider my bosom pal is Shefali Suvarna Shetty (Salon owner). I love her to the bits. Shefali is a lovely human being. She laughs with me when I am happy and cries with me when I am sad. She is a genuine and helpful person, who is fiercely independent. I have learned a lot from her. Friendship means extended family. Those who understand even your silence and are there for you unconditionally are your true friends. We dont actually need a day to celebrate friendship because we celebrate it every moment.

Hunar Hale on Chavvi Pandey

We were shooting in Bhopal for our show and ventured out in the unknown city on our day off with our faces covered to try different types of street food famous in the city. I played a prank on her by telling her that some group of people is following us from the time we left the hotel and that got her shit scared and she started walking damn fast back to the hotel. I kept playing along and also acted scared. Later after reaching the hotel, I had a great laugh telling her that I played a prank.

Ssharad Malhotraa on Prateek Chakravorty

I am best friends with Prateek (Chakravorty, director and producer), who directed as well as produced my debut Bollywood film, From Sydney With Love (2012). During the making of the film, we had a blast. While working on the film we developed a great bond with each other. We are like brothers, who have been by each others side through thick and thin. I hope our friendship remains one that lasts a lifetime. In an industry where it is not easy to develop and maintain a friendship, ours stayed strongest. We know each other inside out.

Parul Chauhan on Chirag Thakkar

My best friend Chirag (Thakkar, actor) is very special to me. He is a very important part of my life. Chirag understands me so well that at times I feel he can read my silence too. We are each others pillar of strength. He is my go-to person for everything in my life. He has taught me how to live life on my own terms and made me strong emotionally. I respect Chirag a lot. I dont think we need a day to celebrate our friendship. Chirag is and always will be the person I can trust even with my eyes closed.

Jay Soni on Pooja Shah

My wife and I had an arranged marriage but we surely developed a strong friendship. We feel like we are growing up together, so all fun and pranks are together. She is my best friend today, we have our share of arguments and fun times too, but it only makes our bond stronger and I am glad we chose each other.

Jasmin Bhasin on Pankaj Bhalla

Friends play a very important role in our lives, so whats the harm if we have a day dedicated to them once a year. Friendship day, for me, is an occasion when we can make our closet companion feel special and express our love and gratitude towards them. My best friend is Pankaj (Bhalla, model and actor) We became friends when I did not know anybody in Mumbai and he was the one who helped me, accompanied me for auditions and was always there whenever I needed him, be it anytime of the day. He is like family to me.

Sahil Mehta on Esha Danait

We rode cycles on a highway in Austria that didnt allow cyclists but we did it to save time and energy, as it was a way shorter route. She was on for it more than I was. So about her Ill only say is that all circles are straight when shes with me.

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Malayalam actor Oviya, the controversial Bigg Boss Tamil contestant who allegedly attempted suicide in the house, walked out of the show.

Oviya shares the Bigg Boss stage with the shows host Kamal Haasan.

On Sunday, an Indian Express report said that she quit the show on Saturdays episode. I think I love Arav too much I am not able to control it. Thats why I want to go, it quoted her as saying while announcing her decision to walk out.

Arav is a TV actor who has worked in the Hindi serial Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon and Mahabharata.

I got what I came here for  experiences and love. I dont know if I will beat the show. But I have realised that true love never fails. I am happy, she added.

Oviya mad her onscreen debut in 2007s Malayalam film Kangaroo. She gained popularity with Tamil film Kalavani. However, the first season of Tamil Bigg Boss proved to be her true ticket to fame. She is known for her frank and no-nonsense attitude and has been getting a lot of support from fans.

The show is a little over a month old and Oviya has emerged as its most popular contestant. She got attention early in the shows run, when after an argument, she shut down co-contestant Ganja Karuppu with, Neenga Shutup Pannunga (With due respect, please shut up). The response became something of a slogan and is now featured on tees and other merchandise.

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At least four soldiers were killed and eight wounded when one of their colleagues opened fire on a military air base in southern Tehran on Sunday, the Iranian military said in a statement.

The incident was probably related to psychological problems of the soldier who suddenly started firing on his comrades, the statement said.

It took place on a shooting range, and could also have been the result of a gun misfiring, the statement added.

The injured were transported to a medical centre and an investigation has been opened, it said.

State television reported a similar incident last month when a serviceman opened fire at a barracks in Abyek, around 40 km northwest of Tehran, killing three and injuring six.

The gunman in that incident, who had reportedly been denied a transfer to his home town, shot himself but survived his injuries, according to the ISNA news agency.

Military service of two years is mandatory for Iranian men when they turn 19.
Cutting across party lines, various people in the US have called for combating racism, intolerance and violence during the fifth anniversary of the Oak Creek massacre, in which six Sikhs were gunned down.

Paul Ryan, speaker of the House of Representatives, said: Over the last five years, the people of Oak Creek have proved theyre stronger than hate and division. Ryan represents the Congressional district in Wisconsin, where a white supremacist went on a shooting rampage at a gurdwara on August 5, 2012.

Five years ago, Oak Creek was rocked by a heinous attack on the Sikh temple, and today we look back on that act of violence with solemn remembrance of those who were lost, he said in a statement.

The Sikh community is in our thoughts on this fifth anniversary of the Oak Creek attack, said Senator Ron Johnson.

Today, we join together as one community on the fifth anniversary of the horrific attack on the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, said Senator Tammy Baldwin. Im also incredibly proud of our Sikh community. Their grace and hopeful message of peace moved an entire nation.

Five years after the senseless shooting in Oak Creek, we continue to remember the innocent victims who were killed in this horrible attack, said Grace Meng, Democratic lawmaker from New York.

For many generations, the Sikh American community has made important contributions to our nation and it is unacceptable that they continue to be targets of violence and bigotry. We must combat racism, intolerance, and violence wherever it exists, she said.

Five years ago, America was struck by a cowardly and tragic act of violence that took the lives of six innocent worshippers in a Sikh gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, said House Democratic Chairman Joe Crowley.

As we grieve for the victims, their loved ones, and the greater Sikh American community, we are reminded that much work remains to be done. Whether it is a gurdwara in Oak Creek, a church in Charleston, or a mosque in Quebec City, an attack on one faith is an attack on all, he said in a statement.

On this somber anniversary, we must reaffirm our commitment to fighting intolerance anywhere and everywhere, Crowley said.

A neo-Nazi killed six people at a Sikh temple five years ago. Remember Oak Creek and resist hate in all its forms, said Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapala.

Eminent Indian-American from Indiana Gurinder Singh Khalsa said, the Oak Creek tragedy was a wakeup call for the Sikh community.

The community needs to engage, educate and empower. Sikhs need to do more on the awareness front, said Khalsa, founder and head of the Sikhs Political Action Committee.

At a time when divisive rhetoric has taken over our country, Sikhs have to remain vigilant while still staying in steadfast to their beliefs and principles, said Baldev Singh from the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Those who were killed in this shooting spree were Paramjit Kaur, Satwant Singh Kaleka, Prakash Singh, Sita Singh, Ranjit Singh, and Suveg Singh.
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China on Saturday called for a halt to the deployment of the THAAD US anti-missile defense system in South Korea and for relevant equipment to be dismantled, Chinas UN Ambassador Liu Jieyi told the UN Security Council.

The deployment of the THAAD system will not bring a solution to the issue of (North Koreas) nuclear testing and missile launches, Liu told the council after it imposed new sanctions on North Korea over two long-range missile launches.

He also urged North Korea to cease taking actions that might further escalate tensions.
A global pressure campaign on North Korea propelled by sharp new U.N. sanctions received a welcome boost Sunday from China, the Norths economic lifeline, as Beijing called on the pariah nation to halt its missile and nuclear tests.

The Trump administration cautiously embraced Chinas apparent newfound cooperation, while putting it on notice that the US would be watching closely to ensure it didnt ease up on Pyongyang if and when the worlds attention is diverted elsewhere. But there were no signs the US would acquiesce to Chinas call for a quick return to negotiations.

The diplomatic wrangling sought to build on the sweeping new North Korea sanctions passed by the U.N. Security Council a day earlier  the strongest in a generation, the US said. As diplomats gathered in the Philippines for an annual regional meeting, President Donald Trump was cheering the move from afar. He touted the very big financial impact of the sanctions and noted optimistically that both China and Russia had joined in the unanimous vote.

It was a good outcome, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in characteristically understated fashion as he met with South Koreas top diplomat.

For the U.S., it was a long-awaited sign of progress for Trumps strategy of trying to enlist Beijings help to squeeze Pyongyang diplomatically and economically. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, meeting with North Koreas top diplomat during the gathering in Manila, urged the North to maintain calm despite the U.N. vote.

Do not violate the U.N.s decision or provoke international societys goodwill by conducting missile launching or nuclear tests, Wang said, in an unusually direct admonition.

Though Beijing repeated its call for the United States and North Korea to resume talks, the U.S. said that was still premature, and rejected yet again a Chinese call for the US to freeze joint military exercises with South Korea in exchange for the North halting nuclear development. Pyongyang views the military exercises as rehearsals for an invasion.

The U.S. also warned it planned to rigorously monitor Chinas compliance with the new penalties. Susan Thornton, the top U.S. diplomat for Asia, said Beijing had historically cooperated with sanctions after flagrant North Korean violations but then slipped back over time.

We want to make sure China is continuing to implement fully the sanctions regime, Thornton told reporters in Manila. Not this kind of episodic back and forth that weve seen.

Infusing the diplomatic gathering with dramatic intrigue was the presence of Ri Yong Ho, North Koreas foreign minister, the odd man out at a meeting dominated by concerns about his nations nuclear proliferation. Indeed, the U.S. was floating a proposal to temporarily kick North Korea out of the 27-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum, although other member nations are divided about that idea.

Would Tillerson trade pleasantries with his North Korean counterpart as they cross paths at the regional gathering, or potentially even sit for a meeting? It was a question driving the hallway chatter at the gathering, but the U.S. summarily shot down the prospect.

Though Tillerson has emphasized the Trump administrations willingness to sit down with North Korea for negotiations, hes said that wont happen until the North agrees to abandon its nuclear aspirations. Even with new U.N. sanctions in place intended to drive Pyongyang back to the table, conditions still arent ripe for talks, U.S. diplomats said.

But Wang, the Chinese envoy, cast the North Korean foreign ministers presence in Manila as a positive, enabling him to hear the voices from other sides. Speaking in Chinese, Wang said that Ri also has the right to share his opinions.

The North Korean envoy hasnt spoken publicly since arriving in the Philippines. But a commentary in the ruling partys Rodong Sinmun newspaper said Washington had disregarded the warning the North sent with its intercontinental ballistic missile tests and was pursuing desperate efforts in the form of stepped-up sanctions.

Now the U.S. mainland is on the crossroads of life and death, the commentary warned.

The new sanctions could cut off roughly one-third of North Koreas estimated $3 billion in annual exports, ostensibly denying the nation of funds for its weapons programs. All countries are now banned from importing North Korean coal, iron, lead and seafood products, and from letting in more North Korean laborers whose remittances help fund Kim Jong Uns regime.

The U.S. drafted the sanctions resolution and negotiated it with China following North Koreas unprecedented test of an ICBM in July and a follow-up test weeks later. Those tests sharply escalated U.S. fears that Pyongyang is a key step closer to mastering the technology needed to strike American soil with a nuclear-tipped missile.

Yet despite deeming North Korea a top security threat, the young Trump administration has struggled to find a strategy that differs significantly from what the U.S. has tried in the past. Aside from calling for more sanctions, Trumps approach has centered on enlisting China  the Norths biggest trading partner  and others to lessen ties to Pyongyang.

Trumps initial optimism about Chinas willingness to help gave way to public exasperation, with Trump saying Chinese President Xi Jinping had tried but that it has not worked out. Trumps administration began floating potential plans to punish China for its trade practices in what was widely perceived as a reaction to Chinas inaction on North Korea.

But in recent days, the two powers have started to paper over some of those differences. Beijing praised Tillerson for declaring the U.S. wasnt seeking regime change in North Korea. Trump has held off, for now, on the trade actions. And China joined the 15-0 vote in the Security Council on Saturday on the new sanctions.

Who has been carrying out the U.N. Security Council resolutions concerning North Korea? It is China, Wang, the Chinese foreign minister, said Sunday. Who bore the cost? It is also China.
US President Donald Trump wants Pakistan to change its policy of supporting militants who have safe haven in the country and are causing great losses, the media reported on Sunday.

US National Security Adviser General HR McMaster on Saturday defended Trumps strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military, and said the President wanted Pakistan to change paradoxical policy of supporting militants in the neighbouring country, Dawn online reported.

US officials often accuse Pakistan of helping militants, a charge Islamabad vehemently denies, but this marks the first time that the allegation has been attributed to Trump.

The President has also made clear that we need to see a change in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others, McMaster said.

Banned outfits such as the Taliban and Haqqani Network operate and move freely in parts of Pakistan close to the border of Afghanistan. Kabul has repeatedly blamed Islamabad for violence in the country.

This is Pakistan in particular that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups. This is of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but theyve done so really only selectively, he said.

According to McMaster, the US President does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat.

The US media reported earlier this week that in a July 19 meeting at the White House, Trump berated his generals for not winning the war in Afghanistan and allowing the violence to continue for more than 16 years.

Trump also repeatedly suggested to his senior military advisers that they should replace General John Nicholson, the commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, with a new General who could win the war.

But McMaster disagrees with Trumps suggestion. For Nicholson, the General said: Of course. Ive known him for many years. I cant imagine a more capable commander on any mission.

Trump has authorised the Pentagon to take the lead on military decisions in Afghanistan, although he formed a separate team of experts for a new Afghan policy.
In July, Google emerged triumphant in its fight with the US Department of Labour over supplying pay gap data, but the ghost of discrimination came back to haunt the tech giant when an anti-diversity manifesto went viral inside the company, infuriating its employees.

According to a report by online news website Motherboard, the anti-diversity manifesto suggested that Google should halt initiatives aimed at increasing gender and racial diversity within the company and instead focus on ideological diversity.

The employee who wrote the document argued that the representation gap between men and women in software engineering persists because of biological differences between the two sexes, Motherboard cited public tweets from Google employees as saying.

It also said Google should not offer programmes for under-represented racial or gender minorities.

The document Googles Ideological Echo Chamber was first published on Friday and had been read by several employees who took to Twitter to slam the companys ideology. The document was still being shared among companys software engineering teams on Saturday.

Todays rage-read (at work): doc essentially saying that women are unsuited for tech because they like people, whilst men like things, an employee wrote.

Jaana Dogan, a software engineer at Google, tweeted that some people at the company at least partially agreed with the author.

Further, Googles new vice president of Diversity, Integrity and Governance Danielle Brown has issued her own memo to Google employees in response to the now-viral memo.

I value diversity and inclusion, am not denying that sexism exists, and dont endorse using stereotypes. When addressing the gap in representation in the population, we need to look at population level differences in distributions, she said.

If we cant have an honest discussion about this, then we can never truly solve the problem. Psychological safety is built on mutual respect and acceptance, but unfortunately our culture of shaming and misrepresentation is disrespectful and unaccepting of anyone outside its echo chamber, she added.

Brown thanked her fellow Googlers for bringing up the issue and vouched for a need to change.

The controversy comes following a string of harassment and discrimination allegations by several Silicon Valley giants, including Uber and high-profile venture capital firms.

Last month, Google emerged victor in its fight with the US Department of Labour over supplying pay gap data. The department alleged that the tech giant tried to restrict media coverage of the gender discrimination case.

The Department of Labour had accused Google of systematically underpaying women.
An Indian man in the UAE hit a jackpot on Sunday by winning a whopping dhirham 5 million ($1.3 million) in a mega raffle draw in Abu Dhabi.

Krishnam Raju Thokachichu, who works as a detailing checker in the construction industry, won the huge sum in the latest edition of Big 5 Ticket Draw.

The event held at the Abu Dhabi International Airport was attended by all the big 10 millionaires from series 181.

Unlike many other winners who share the ticket prize with other raffle draw participants, Thokachichu will be enjoying the grand prize for himself.

I used to buy tickets with other friends, but this time I decided Ill just shoulder the cost alone -- and I got lucky this time, Thokachichu told Gulf News.

The winning could not have come at a better time for Thokachichu as he had been struggling to pay back his loans and was facing financial hardships.

The Indian based in Ras Al Khaimah had been buying tickets for the draw for the last three years, the report said.

Every month, Id set aside money to pay for the ticket. It was indeed a surprise when I got the call from the raffle organisers. I got so excited that I had to call my mother in India right away, he said.

Thokachichu, who first came to the UAE in 2008 and makes less than dhirham 10,000 a month, said he will save a portion of the money to pay for the education of his four-year-old child.
Japan on Sunday marked 72 years since the worlds first nuclear attack on Hiroshima, with the nations traditional contradictions over atomic weapons again coming into focus.

The anniversary came after Japan sided last month with nuclear powers Britain, France and the US to dismiss a UN treaty banning atomic weapons, which was rejected by critics for ignoring the reality of security threats such as North Korea.

Japan is the only country to have suffered atomic attacks, in 1945.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, speaking at the annual ceremony at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park near the ground zero, said Japan hoped to push for a world without nuclear weapons in a way that all countries can agree.

Japan's PM Shinzo Abe speaks at the 72nd anniversary of the atomic bomb attack in Hiroshima on Sunday. (AFP)

For us to truly pursue a world without nuclear weapons, we need participation from both nuclear weapons and non-nuclear weapons states, Abe said in his speech at the annual ceremony.

Our country is committed to leading the international community by encouraging both sides to make progress toward abolishing nuclear arms, Abe added without directly referring to the UN treaty.

Japanese officials have criticised the UN Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty as deepening a divide between countries with and without nuclear arms. None of the nine countries that possess nuclear weapons took part in the negotiations or vote on the treaty.

People pray for atomic bomb victims in front of the cenotaph for the victims of the 1945 atomic bombing, at Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima. (REUTERS)

Japanese officials routinely argue that they abhor nuclear weapons, but the nations defence is firmly set under the US nuclear umbrella.

Japan suffered two nuclear attacks at the end of the World War II by the United States -- in Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 and in Nagasaki three days later.

The bombings claimed the lives of 140,000 people in Hiroshima and 74,000 people in Nagasaki. Some died immediately while others succumbed to injuries or radiation-related illnesses weeks, months and years later.

Japan announced its surrender in World War II on August 15, 1945.

Many in Japan feel the attacks amount to war crimes and atrocities because they targeted civilians and due to the unprecedented destructive nature of the weapons.

But many Americans believe they hastened the end of a bloody conflict, and ultimately saved lives, thus justifying the bombings.

Barack Obama became the first sitting US president to visit Hiroshima in May last year, paying moving tribute to victims of the devastating bomb.
Israel said Sunday it plans to ban Qatars flagship Al Jazeera news network from operating in the country over allegations it incites violence, joining Arab nations that have shut down the broadcaster amid a separate political dispute.

Communications Minister Ayoob Kara said he plans to revoke the press credentials of Al Jazeera journalists, effectively preventing them from working in Israel.

Kara said he has asked cable and satellite networks to block Al Jazeera transmissions and is seeking legislation to ban them altogether.

The minister, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus Likud Party, gave no timetable for such measures.

Doha-based Al Jazeera did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Its Arab and English channels reported the news.

Walid al-Omari, the broadcasters bureau chief in Jerusalem, said on air that his office has not been informed by Israeli officials of any possible measures the government might take.

Al Jazeera, a pan-Arab satellite network funded by the Qatari government, already has been targeted by Arab nations now isolating Qatar as part of a months-long political dispute over Dohas politics and alleged support for extremists.

Jordan and Saudi Arabia have recently closed Al Jazeeras local offices, while the channel and its affiliate sites have been blocked in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain.

Lately, almost all countries in our region determined that Al-Jazeera supports terrorism, supports religious radicalization, Kara said. And when we see that all these countries have determined as fact that Al Jazeera is a tool of the Islamic State (group), Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, and we are the only one who have not determined that then something delusional is happening here.

Israeli officials have long accused Al-Jazeera of bias against the Jewish state. Defence minister Avigdor Lieberman has likened its coverage to Nazi Germany-style propaganda.

Nitzan Chen, director of the Government Press Office, said press credentials are not issued if security officials deem the cards would be liable to endanger the security of the state. He said, Therefore, I have contacted the security echelon and have requested a professional opinion regarding the Al Jazeera network.

A decision will be made after receiving that opinion, he said.
Remember the nine-year-old kid, a self-proclaimed Guardian of the Galaxy, who applied for a job with NASA to protect the Earth from aliens?

Jack Davis won hearts on the Internet with his letter to the American space agency. Now, the New Jersey boy has gotten a reply.

NASAs Planetary Research director Dr James L Green called young Davis on phone, congratulating him for showing interest for the job.

At NASA, we love to teach kids about space and inspire them to be the next generation of explorers, Green said, in an official statement posted on NASAs website.

Think of it as a gravity assist -- a boost that may positively and forever change a persons course in life, and our footprint in the universe.

In the letter to Davis, Green asks him to study hard and do well in school so later he can apply at the agency with better scope.

NASA, the US space agency, generated much chatter on the internet as the job description did the rounds. The agency is looking for a Planetary Protection Officer who can keep contamination from space on Earth, or the other way around, to an absolute minimum.

Young Davis was among the many who sent in their resumes. His was a handwritten letter that showed his eagerness.

The nine-year-old insisted that since his sister calls him an alien and that he has seen almost all the space and alien movies, he is ready to be the Planetary Protection Officer.

The letter was uploaded on Reddit, a social media platform, by a user called millamber and it gained much positive attention on internet.

The Guardian of the Galaxy is an American science fiction movie based on space adventure.
Ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif will travel from Islamabad to Lahore via the famous Grand Trunk Road on Wednesday, in a bid to show his popularity among Pakistanis.

The former premiers spokesman Asif Kirmani said Sharifs schedule was changed at the eleventh hour. Initially, Nawaz was supposed to travel to Lahore via motorway  Pakistans high-speed highway on Sunday, but PML-N lawmakers persuaded him to travel via the GT Road. Security concerns resulted in the travel plans being pushed to Wednesday.

Sharif was disqualified by the Supreme Court on July 28 in connection with the Panama Papers leaks scandal. Immediately after the courts ruling, he and his family vacated the prime ministers official residence in Islamabad and travelled to Murree, where he received a warm reception from party supporters and workers.

On Sunday, the PML-N chief, along with family members and aides, departed his residence in Changla Gali  a small village near Murree  and was greeted by supporters in Bhara Kahu on his way to Punjab House in Islamabad.

Sharif now will use to trip to Lahore  his first since his disqualification  to garner support for himself and the PML-N. He is also expected to make several stops along the way. Kirmani said the first pitstop will be at Jhelum city, where he is expected to address a public gathering. Sharifs next stop will be in Gujranwala.

However, local police officers arent happy  they feel that Sharifs trip exposes him to unnecessary risks.
The fourth largest party in Nepal parliament split on Sunday, six months into its unification, with a senior leader applying to the election commission for registering a new party.

Pashupati Shamsher Rana of the pro-Hindu Rastriya Prajatantra Party Nepal (RPP-N) registered the new Rastriya Prajatantra Party Prajatantrik, with support from the majority of lawmakers and central working committee.

Rana, who had unified his party with RPP-N on November 21, 2016, is related to the royal family of Gwalior. His daughter Devyani Rana, who was at the centre of the palace massacre in 2001, was married to a close relative of Congress leader Arjun Singh.

The split came after a protracted tussle between Rana and RPP-N chairman Kamal Thapa over issues including joining the government of Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.

Rana has been accusing Thapa of running the party in an autocratic manner and imposing decisions without consulting others.

RPP-N is the only mainstream party in Nepal that openly bats for restoration of a Hindu state but is divided over restoration of monarchy.

Thapa was in favour of restoration of both the Hindu state and monarchy while Rana only favoured a Hindu state.

But ideological differences were not the only reason for the breakup, party leaders said.

Rana faction favoured joining the government while Thapa was reluctant to do so, they said.

This is a very unfortunate decision to split the party within the six month of party unification. Those signatures submitted to EC are fake. I urge party cadres not to unravel from it, Thapa tweeted after Rana registered the new party.

Once the process of registration of the new party is completed, it is likely to join the Deuba-led government.
The rape of a teenage girl in revenge for a crime committed by her brother has left residents of Raja Ram in central Pakistan shaken and questioning a deeply entrenched system of village justice.

Last month, a council of village elders ordered the rape of the 16-year-old victim after her brother was accused of raping a 12-year-old girl.

The ruling highlighted the role such councils -- known as panchayats, or jirgas -- play in the lives of many rural Pakistanis, who see the countrys courtrooms as a distant presence.

The councils have traditionally enjoyed broad support, thanks to their ability to offer immediate justice, compared to courts that can take years to settle a criminal case, and as much as a decade to resolve a civil dispute.

But the recent ruling, which allowed a rape victims brother to sexually assault another innocent girl, has unsettled Raja Ram, home to some 3,000 people.

May God have mercy, it was such a strange day and it was such a big injustice, said villager Amina Bibi.

In our area there is neither a school nor a hospital, and poverty and ignorance rules here... This incident is a mark of this ignorance, said 46-year-old Imtiaz Matila.

Its a stain on the name of the panchayat, agreed another villager, 65-year-old Manzoor Hussain.

The girls have since been taken to a womens shelter in conservative Multan, Pakistans fifth-largest city.

Raja Ram is just a few kilometres down the road, but feels a world away from urban life.

Men sit around on charpoys, sheltering from the blistering heat, while women are conspicuous only by their absence, shielded from view behind the rough stone walls that surround each of the crudely built, single-storey houses.

Nothing more dishonourable

Central Punjab is also home to one of Pakistans most prominent advocates for womens rights -- Mukhtar Mai, whose own story offers a window into jirga justice and its brutal mistreatment of women.

In 2002, a jirga ordered Mai to be gang-raped after her brother was falsely accused of rape.

Mai, who lives a few hours north of Multan, made the unusual decision to defy her rapists and take them to court.

But in one of South Asias most infamous miscarriages of justice, her attackers walked free, and people continued to rely on panchayats, even as she went on to become a high-profile activist.

Its an honour-based system and theres nothing more dishonourable than the rape of a woman within your family, explained womens rights activist Aisha Sarwari.

The men of the aggressors family must be shamed through the loss of their womens dignity, Sarwari explained.

Thats the balance of power in these communities, which makes sure that women are some kind of collateral.

Pakistani policemen escort the arrested members of a village council, who ordered the rape of a teenage girl as punishment for a rape committed by her brother, at a local court in Raja Ram village on the outskirts of Multan. (AFP Photo)

Jirga law

The Supreme Court, trying to bring jirgas to heel, declared them illegal in 2006.

But in an apparent backtrack this year aimed at unclogging the slow-moving court system, the government passed a new law that promotes village councils as an alternative solution to small civil disputes.

The decision, dubbed the Jirga Law by activists, has raised concerns about womens rights, given the precedents set by the panchayats.

The decisions of the jirgas have always had a negative impact on the lives of women, said womens rights activist Samar Minallah.

The new law does not suggest penalties for decisions like the one made by the council in Raja Ram, added Minallah, who brought the original 2006 anti-jirga petition to the Supreme Court.

But the uproar surrounding the rapes at Raja Ram has spurred the court to demand a full investigation.

Despite her concerns, Minallah is confident that the court will step in at one stage or another to remind the state that these jirgas are against the constitution and humanity.

Whatever the court decides, for some in Raja Ram at least, faith in the traditional system has been shaken.

There used to be wise people in the old days who were making good panchayat decisions, recalled resident Matila.

They used to know the realities of the village... but now, these are the panchayat, he said, dismissively.
Peace may have finally broken out in the White House, with US President Donald Trump publicly expressing support for two senior members of his team who had seemed in imminent danger of being ousted.

Attorney general Jeff Sessions and national security adviser Gen HR McMaster are safe, it seems, at least till his next Twitter-rage.

After many years of LEAKS going on in Washington, it is great to see the A.G. taking action! For National Security, the tougher the better! Trump tweeted on Saturday, whom he had earlier publicly criticised and mocked as beleaguered.

The pat-on-the-back for Sessionss came after he announced that the justice department had tripled the number of active leak investigations and that it be deploying more resources to tracking down leakers. The department may even consider issuing subpoenas to journalists.

Trump has been very angry with Sessions for recusing himself from the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 elections and holds him responsible for the eventual appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller, who may end up probing Trumps past business dealings.

As Republicans and even Trumps own base came to Sessionss defence, Trump seemingly backed off.

The previous day, Trump expressed support for McMaster, saying in a statement, Gen McMaster and I are working very well together. He is a good man and very pro-Israel. I am grateful for the work he continues to do serving our country.

McMaster has had serious policy differences on some key national security issues. He has been targeted by the nationalist faction of the White House led by Trumps chief strategist Steve Bannon and his allies outside, who accuse him of being anti-Israel and leading a purge of officials loyal to his predecessor Michael Flynn

He has also been criticised for renewing the security clearance for former President Barak Obamas NSA Susan Rice, which is not unusual  McMaster has done the same for all living NSAs from previous administrations, as is the practice.
Spain will not set as a condition in Brexit talks that it recovers Gibraltar, its foreign minister said on Sunday in an interview that could ease tensions over the disputed British territory.

Nestled on Spains southern tip, Gibraltar has been under British control since 1713 but Madrid has long wanted it back.

Authorities in the tiny rocky outcrop fear Spain will influence complex negotiations between the EU and Britain to leave the bloc to try and gain authority over Gibraltar.

But in an interview with Spains conservative daily ABC, Alfonso Dastis said he didnt want to jeopardise the deal by demanding that Gibraltar change its status- a stance that Britain would likely never accept.

I wont make an agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom conditional on recovering sovereignty over Gibraltar, he said.

He added that Spains proposal of joint sovereignty over the Rock, which would see people in Gibraltar get the Spanish nationality on top of the British one, still stood.

We will try to convince the Gibraltarians that this is a route worth exploring and that it would benefit them too, he said.

Spain has argued this will allow Gibraltar to stay in the 27-member bloc, but authorities there categorically reject the idea.

Gibraltarians had already rejected such a proposal in a 2002 referendum, and they want to stick with the Union Jack despite voting by 96% to remain in the EU.

Dastiss comments appear conciliatory as tough Brexit negotiations are under way.

But Britain will still have to wrangle over a clause inserted into the EUs negotiating position which states that post Brexit, Spain will have the right to veto any future relationship between the 27-member bloc and Gibraltar.

This clause caused huge tensions when it was unveiled in March, prompting British Prime Minister Theresa May to say she would never allow Gibraltar to slip from British control against the wish of Gibraltarians.
Syrian government and allied forces have taken the last major town in Homs province from Islamic State, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Saturday, as the army advances toward militant strongholds in the east of the country.

The town of al-Sukhna lies some 50 km (30 miles) northeast of the ancient city of Palmyra, which was captured by government forces in March.

al-Sukhna is some 50 km from the administrative frontier of Deir al-Zor province, which is almost entirely under Islamic State control.

A Hezbollah media unit said government and allied forces were making considerable progress inside the city of Sukhna. Lebanons Hezbollah group fights on the side of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian conflict.

Syrian state news agency SANA reported earlier on Saturday that the army was advancing into al-Sukhna from three directions.

Islamic State is losing ground fast in Syria to separate campaigns waged by the Russian-backed Syrian government on the one hand, and to US-backed Kurdish forces and their allies on the other.

Government forces, backed by the Russian air force and Iran-backed militias, have also been advancing against IS in Hama province and in southern areas of Raqqa province.

US-led operations against IS are currently focused on taking Raqqa city in northern Syria.
In a unanimous vote on Saturday, the United Nations security council put a third of North Koreas annual $3 billion exports under sanctions for continuing to violate the world bodys resolutions prohibiting it from conducting nuclear and missile tests.

Initiated by the United States, the new sanctions are the most severe yet and will affect its major exports  coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood.

The sanctions also apply to North Koreas Foreign Trade Bank and prohibits it from increasing the number of workers it sends abroad, whose earnings contribute the countrys foreign exchange revenues.

The sanctions marked a major diplomatic victory for US President Donald Trump, who tweeted, United Nations Resolution is the single largest economic sanctions package ever on North Korea. Over one billion dollars in cost to NK.

His ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, called the sanctions the most stringent  in a generation and said that they will cut deep, and in doing so, will give the North Korean leadership a taste of the deprivation they have chosen to inflict on the North Korean people.

The new sanctions came in the aftermath of North Korea in July conducting two tests of intercontinental ballistic missile, which experts say could potentially reach the US mainland.

The unanimous vote also reflected Beijings growing impatience with Pyongyang. China has long been North Koreas largest trading partner and, possibly its only ally providing it cover in times of global outrage caused by its nuclear and missile tests.

Trump had earlier sought to outsource the North Korea issue  he had been greeted by a string of tests by Kim Jong-un since his inauguration in January  to China urging it to use its considerable clout to rein in its tests. That didnt go too well according to him when he accused Beijing of failing to match its words with action. Its been just talk, he fumed in a tweet.

India, which is North Koreas second largest trading partner, notified compliance in April with an earlier UN sanction banning export of all goods  except food and medicines  that could be used in nuclear or missile programmes.
The United Nations Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions on North Korea on Saturday that could slash by a third the Asian states $3 billion annual export revenue over Pyongyangs two July intercontinental ballistic missile tests.

The US-drafted resolution bans North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It also prohibits countries from increasing the current numbers of North Korean labourers working abroad, bans new joint ventures with North Korea and any new investment in current joint ventures.

We should not fool ourselves into thinking we have solved the problem. Not even close. The North Korean threat has not left us, it is rapidly growing more dangerous, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told the council.

Further action is required. The United States is taking and will continue to take prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies, she said, adding that Washington would continue annual joint military exercises with South Korea.

North Korea has accused the United States and South Korea of escalating tensions by conducting military drills.

China and Russia slammed US deployment of the THAAD anti-missile defense system in South Korea. Chinas UN ambassador Liu Jieyi called for a halt to the deployment and for any equipment in place to be dismantled.

Liu also urged North Korea to cease taking actions that might further escalate tensions.

US President Donald Trump hailed the vote in a Twitter message on Saturday evening.

The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact! Trump wrote.

US pressure on China

Russias UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said he hoped recent remarks by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson were sincere - that the US is not seeking to dismantle the existing situation or to forcibly unite the peninsula or to militarily intervene in the country.

While the Security Council has been divided on how to deal with other international crises like Syria, the 15-member body has remained relatively united on North Korea. Still, negotiating new measures typically takes months, not weeks.

North Korea has been under UN sanctions since 2006 over its ballistic missile and nuclear programs. The new measures came in response to five nuclear weapons tests and four long-range missile launches.

The United States negotiated with China for a month on the resolution, then expanded negotiations to the full council on Friday.

Washington, frustrated that China has not done more to rein in North Korea, has threatened to exert trade pressure on Beijing and impose sanctions on Chinese firms doing business with Pyongyang.

We had tough negotiations this week, Haley told reporters. I think that the Chinese realized that the United States was going to push, but they responded and we appreciate how they cooperated with us during these negotiations.

Liu, asked about US negotiating pressure, said China has been consistent on trying to achieve denuclearization, peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and to re-launch negotiations to achieve this end.

He told reporters China was opposed to any unilateral sanctions outside the agreed framework set by the UN Security Council resolutions.

Russia/US cooperation

It had been unclear whether strained US-Russia relations would hamper negotiations on North Korean sanctions. On Wednesday, Washington imposed unilateral sanctions on Moscow to punish Russia over accusations of interference in the 2016 US presidential election and annexation of Ukraines Crimea.

We are not hostages to our relations when we have to work together on issues which are far more important, Nebenzia told Reuters.

The new UN resolution adds nine individuals and four entities to the UN blacklist, including North Koreas primary foreign exchange bank, subjecting them to a global asset freeze and travel ban.

I would think China and Russia signed on the sanctions hoping that they would force North Korea back to the negotiating table, said Thomas Byrne, president of the New York-based Korea Society. However, North Korea will try to evade the new sanctions.

The new resolution completely bans North Korean exports of coal. In November the Security Council capped the countrys coal exports at $400 million annually. China, its largest buyer, halted imports in February.

A UN diplomat said North Korea had been expected to earn an estimated $251 million from iron and iron ore in 2017, $113 million from lead and lead ore and $295 million from seafood. The diplomat said it was difficult to estimate how much North Korea was earning from sending workers abroad.

A United Nations human rights investigator said in 2015 that North Korea has forced more than 50,000 people to work abroad, mainly in Russia and China, earning between $1.2 billion and $2.3 billion a year for the countrys government.

Joseph DeThomas, a former State Department official who worked as an adviser on Iran sanctions and previous rounds of North Korea sanctions, said freezing foreign labour will be difficult to enforce.

Overall I doubt that $1 billion number. I doubt it will hit that hard in terms of economic damage, he said. You cannot expect North Korea to buckle for anything less than the sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990.

These sanctions, he said, remain a very long way from there.
The United Nations peacekeeping mission has uncovered mass graves in a region of northern Mali beset by conflict between rival groups, the mission said on Saturday.

Fighting between Tuareg groups has intensified in recent weeks in the north, threatening to derail a 2015 peace agreement.

The UN mission, known as MINUSMA, has investigated reports of human rights abuses, including in the village of Anefis, about 100 km (60 miles) southwest from the town of Kidal.

As for Anefis, the teams were able to observe on site the existence of individual graves and mass graves but are not able to establish at this stage either the number of people buried or the circumstances of their deaths, MINUSMA said in a statement.

It had confirmed 34 cases of human rights abuses in the area, including enforced disappearances of minors. Minors may have also been involved in the recent fighting, it said.

A Tuareg insurrection in 2012 created a power vacuum in northern Mali, once a popular destination for adventurous tourists, that has turned it into a launch pad for jihadist attacks across the Sahara and the Sahel to the south.

Former colonial master France intervened a year later to push the Islamists back but they have struggled to stabilise the country.
US Vice President Mike Pence on Sunday denied a New York Times report suggesting he is eyeing a 2020 run for president, calling it disgraceful and offensive.

The allegations in this article are categorically false and represent just the latest attempt by the media to divide this Administration, Pence said in a statement.

The New York Times story said some Republicans were moving to form a shadow campaign for 2020 as though President Donald Trump were not involved. It said multiple advisers to Pence have already intimated to party donors that he would plan to run if Mr. Trump did not.

But Pence called the article fake news and said his entire team was focused on advancing Trumps agenda and seeing him re-elected in 2020. Any suggestion otherwise is both laughable and absurd.

The Times said Pence had not only kept a full political calendar but also had created his own independent power base, including a political fund-raising group called the Great America Committee.

On a trip to Eastern Europe last week, Pence repeatedly made hawkish statements about Russia that differed from Trumps public comments.

During his trip, Pence condemned Russias presence in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, with which Moscow fought a brief war in 2008. He also said ties with Russia would not improve until Moscow changed its stance on Ukraine and withdrew support for countries like Iran, Syria and North Korea.

Trump only reluctantly signed into law a bill for new sanctions against Russia that had overwhelming support in Congress. He said US relations with Moscow were at an all-time low and blamed lawmakers for it.

White House senior counsellor Kellyanne Conway on Sunday also slapped down speculation about Pence.

Conway told ABCs This Week that Trump plans on being a two-term president and that she had zero concern that Pence was setting up a shadow campaign of his own.

It is absolutely true that the vice president is getting ready for 2020 - for re-election as vice president, Conway said.

Vice President Pence is a very loyal, very dutiful, but also incredibly effective vice president, and active vice president, said Conway, who added that she had worked for Pence for a decade as his pollster and senior adviser.

(Pence) is a peer to the president in the West Wing, she said.
A 48-year-old wheelchair-bound man was arrested at an airport in Bangladesh while trying to smuggle 25 kg gold into the country, custom officials said, calling it the biggest haul of the year.

Jamil Akter, a native of Nilphamari, flew to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka from Singapore on Saturday. He had kept 250 gold bars worth 12.5 crore taka in a vest kept between his legs, Dhaka Tribune reported.

Acting on a tip-off, our team confronted the man when he was crossing the green channel on a wheelchair, pretending to be unwell, Dhaka Customs House Preventive Team assistant commissioner Ahsanul Kabir was quoted as saying.

He denied having any gold initially, but admitted to it later, during interrogation. We found 250 gold bars in a vest kept between his legs. The man has a chips shop in Singapore. He went in and out of the country 13 times in the last six months, the customs official added.

Customs officials were preparing to hand over him to police after filing a criminal case.

Another team found 6 kg gold abandoned in a flight of US-Bangla Airlines.
A couple of years ago, Ramriddlz first landed on most of our radars after the release of his Sweeterman track, a cut that would eventually get the remix treatment from fellow Canadian artist Drake, and an OVO Sound Radio feature that serves as a major stride for any upcoming artist.

Saturday night, Ramriddlz once more received love via the OVO Sound Radio broadcast as his Sweeter Dreams song was premiered as the title track from his forthcoming Sweeter Dreams project.

In conjunction with the premiere, the young artist also took to social media to announce an official release date for the new body of work, selecting August 17th.

Sweeter Dreams will serve as the follow-up to 2016s Venis EP, the project that featured tracks like Bodmon and Hey Mr. RamRod.

Ramriddlz
SAN FRANCISCO - A company trying to recover from allegations of rampant sexism might reasonably think that hiring a female chief executive would help it restore credibility with customers and - perhaps more importantly - with potential employees in a tight marketplace for talent.

But what if no women wanted the job?

That looks to be the case for Uber, the troubled ride-hailing company trying to replace deposed chief executive Travis Kalanick after a reign defined by highflying growth and a toxic brand of corporate machismo. In the wake of Kalanick's departure, a number of A-list female executives have made it clear they are not interested in the role.

Indeed, after a nationwide search that involved copiously combing through binders full of women across corporate America, the company has come up short. There are no women left on its current shortlist, which is down to three CEO candidates, according to people familiar with the search who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the matter freely.

Facebook's chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, was a top pick for the board, but she didn't want the job. Neither did Susan Wojcicki, chief of Google-owned YouTube. General Motors chief executive Mary Barra and EasyJet CEO Carolyn McCall, were reportedly approached, but did not pan out. Last week, HP chief executive Meg Whitman prominently took herself out of the running with a post on Twitter.

"Normally I do not comment on rumors," she tweeted, "but the speculation about my future and Uber has become a distraction."

While it's not yet known who will become Uber's next chief executive - the board expects make a decision before Labor Day - the position is now likely to be filled by a white man, possibly one that hails from one of the most old-school of American industries. Outgoing GE chairman Jeffrey R. Immelt is among the top candidates, the people familiar with the search said. The names of the other two couldn't be learned.

In interviews, female executives and recruiters in Silicon Valley expressed frustration that Uber wasn't going to wind up with a woman at the helm after all -- and that the pickings were so slim to begin with.

"We are disappointed, of course," said Joelle Emerson, chief executive of Paradigm, a diversity consultancy for large tech companies and Silicon Valley start-ups. "It could have communicated a commitment on the company's part to having a more inclusive culture. Though certainly I don't think hiring a woman would have guaranteed that."

Workplace experts pointed to a phenomenon known to researchers as "the glass cliff," in which women are more often called into corporate leadership roles in times of crisis, and are therefore subject to more criticism if companies don't perform well. A 2013 review of CEO transitions in Fortune 500 companies over a 15-year period found that white women, as well as women and men of color, were more likely than white men to get promoted to CEO when firms were performing poorly.

"As much as I would love to see more women chief executives, too often women get the cleanup jobs, and I'd prefer to not always see women get the cleanup jobs," said Elizabeth Ames, senior vice president at the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology. She pointed to Marissa Mayer, who received outsized positive attention when she left her job as a Google executive to run Yahoo, and outsized negative attention when she failed to turn that company around. (It's unclear whether Mayer was asked to run Uber, despite her recent, oddly-timed praise of Kalanick's leadership).

Ellen Pao, who became CEO of the online discussion site Reddit during a time of tumult, was pushed out by angry Reddit users in 2015. Sheri McCoy is stepping down as CEO of Avon Products in response to activist investors. The CEO of food giant Mondolez, Irene Rosenfeld, is also resigning.

There is at least one example where such appointments turn out well. In 2008, Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg was brought on to be the "adult in the room" alongside then-24-year-old Mark Zuckerberg, Emerson said. Today Sandberg is widely considered to be one of the world's most successful executives.

"There are serious challenges for women who step into these roles. Because there are so few of them, the spotlight is much brighter, and if they don't succeed, they aren't judged in the same way a male CEO who didn't succeed would be," said Ames. She noted that there are many male CEOs whose failures were far less publicized and less damaging to them.

The female executives and consultants in Silicon Valley who were interviewed by The Washington Post were careful to say they did not know the particular motivations of each woman who turned down the Uber role. They noted that men had also turned down the position and that aside from sexism there were plenty of good reasons to do so.

Indeed, some noted that the expectation to create a welcoming culture to women is only one of the daunting tasks facing the person who becomes Uber's next leader. The new CEO also must shore up the company's badly-bruised reputation among customers, employees and drivers in a competitive environment that looks a lot more challenging than it did a year ago.

The company came under fire this week after a Wall Street Journal report found that it was leasing unsafe vehicles to drivers in Singapore.

The company has had to scale down its global ambitions considerably. It was forced to retreat in Russia and China, where it was quashed by local rivals. Meanwhile, Uber's U.S. nemesis, Lyft, is gaining ground by exploiting Uber's scandals: Lyft ridership more than doubled in the last year.

Even as Uber grows revenue -- net revenue was $6.5 billion last year, the company told Bloomberg -- it is still hemorrhaging cash, to the tune of $2.8 billion dollars in 2016. The new CEO will have to cut down those costs dramatically if he - and it most surely will be a he - is to take the company public.

Many of Uber's costs come down to convincing drivers to work for the company, and those costs will be hard to cut given the rising clout of Lyft and a legal battle over whether one of Uber's employees took secrets from Waymo, the self-driving initiative owned by Google's parent company. A loss in this case could limit Uber's ability to build self - driving cars, a technology that Kalanick said was "existential" to the company's future because it would reduce the costs of paying drivers.

There are other ways Uber could make room for female leaders. Many executives have resigned over the past year, leaving the company without a chief financial officer, a chief operating officer, a chief marketing officer, a communications executive and other senior positions. One recent study found that companies with positive reputations had higher-than-average numbers of women in senior leadership roles.

Then there is also Kalanick himself, who remains on Uber's board with a large number of controlling shares despite stepping down as CEO. A new chief executive would have to contend with his complicating influence.
More of Houston's office buildings are vacant than at any time since the slump of the 1980s, but downtown remains resilient, suggesting many big tenants are still interested in higher quality for a higher price.

Houston's eight trophy buildings have attracted 64 percent of deals larger than 20,000 square feet since 2016, despite comprising just 36 percent of the skyline inventory, according to a report released Thursday by JLL.
GreenSpace Holdings, a Houston-based self-storage developer, has launched its first project using recycled shipping containers to save money and help the environment.

The company has broken ground on a 1,017-unit facility to be operated by CubeSmart at 2515 Westminister Road in Pearland. Site work is just getting underway on a two-acre parcel in a growing area with new shopping centers near Pearland Parkway north of FM 518.

In the coming weeks, some 325 used shipping containers will arrive on site as the main building component of the climate-controlled facility. The containers will be arranged in a way that renders much of the concrete and structural steel typically used in such a project unnecessary. The building will be dressed up with stone, concrete masonry, glass and stucco.

GreenSpace Holdings co-owners Rick Stockton and David Ledoux came up with the concept more than two years ago, and have been working with TMS Contractors to hammer out details. They now have a patent pending for their design.

"We went to his house, thought through it and brainstormed, and just came up with this idea," Stockton said. "We actually sketched it on a napkin. We've got that napkin framed in our office."

Getting the containers won't be a problem because the U.S. imports more containerized goods than it exports. The company's local supplier has 14,000 containers on the yard at any given time. GreenSpace Holdings will pay about $1,500 a pop, or $480,000, for materials for the Pearland facility.

"It costs too much to move them back to China to fill them up with goods again, so they just stay here," Stockton said.

The process shaves four to six months off the typical construction time of 10 to 12 months, according to Stockton. The design cuts multi-story self-storage construction costs by up to 50 percent.

GreenSpace Holdings hopes to duplicate the process at 50 self-storage facilities across major cities in the U.S. over the next seven years. The company plans to retain some of the buildings, which generate cash flow, and sell some to investors.

Chris Bergmann of JLL represented the company in the land purchase in Pearland, as well as a second location on two acres at 1050 Brittmoore Road near Interstate 10 in west Houston.

TMS Contractors will also build the west Houston project. The 132,967-square-foot facility, also to be operated by CubeSmart, will have 1,401 units.

Even though a lot of self-storage projects have been going up in the Houston area, the buildings are staying relatively full.

The vacancy rate has fallen to 10 percent from 21.2 percent in 2011, according to Marcus & Millichap. Average rents for climate-controlled space inched up to $1.30 per square foot this year.

The Pearland site fit the formula of being in a high-growth area where people have enough disposable income to buy stuff, and also store it, Stockton said. The property will have 24-hour surveillance and electronic-access control.

Pearland's population doubled from 2000 to 2015, according to JLL. During that period, there was little construction of climate-controlled storage facilities.
Fox News Channel suspended longtime host Eric Bolling on Saturday, amid a report that he sent lewd texts to female co-workers at the network.

Bolling, co-host of the weekday Fox program "The Specialists" and former co-host of "The Five," is the latest Fox employee to be accused of inappropriate sexual behavior in the 13 months since the network was consumed by allegations of sexual harassment against its co-founder and then-chairman, the late Roger Ailes.

According to a report in HuffPost, Bolling, 54, texted a photo of male genitalia to two colleagues at Fox Business Network, and one to a co-worker at Fox News. The website didn't reveal the names of the alleged recipients, but said they are Bolling's current and former colleagues. The messages were sent several years ago and were unsolicited, it said.

In a statement issued Saturday afternoon, Fox said it had suspended Bolling "pending the results of an investigation, which is currently underway." The law firm Paul Weiss, which has conducted a series of investigations into harassment at the network, is investigating the allegations against Bolling.

Last summer, Ailes was forced out of his job after former "Fox & Friends" host Gretchen Carlson filed suit against him. Her suit - quickly settled for $20 million - unleashed a series of accusations against Fox executives and on-air personalities by women who work at the company.

In April, the network forced out its biggest star, Bill O'Reilly, after the New York Times reported that he and Fox had settled five harassment suits or complaints dating back more than a decade. Network president Bill Shine resigned soon after.

Bolling's attorney Michael Bowe told HuffPost that Bolling "recalls no such inappropriate communications, does not believe he sent any such communications, and will vigorously pursue his legal remedies for any false and defamatory accusations that are made."

In addition to "The Specialists," Bolling co-hosts a weekend business-discussion program on Fox called "Cashin' In." On Friday, Bolling taped an episode of that program, but Fox pulled it after HuffPost published its story.

Bolling, a conservative whose recently published book was endorsed by President Donald Trump, was merciless in his commentary when former Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., was involved in several incidents of sexting, beginning in 2014. After Weiner pleaded guilty in May to federal charges of exchanging lewd messages with an underage girl, Bolling called him "a sick human being, to continue to do this time and time again, continue to get caught, saying he's not going to do it again, gets caught again."

Bolling is one of several Fox News personalities who have reportedly been under consideration for positions in the Trump Administration. In November he was said to have discussed an appointment as commerce secretary, but recently signed a long-term contract extension with Fox.

In an interview with NJ.com in June, Bolling said he would eventually like to run for office: "When the lights go down on my TV career, the next step is running for Senate."

According to HuffPost, four people, in addition to the recipients, said they had seen the photo that Bolling allegedly sent. Eight others said the recipients had spoken to them about it.
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In space, bigger isn't always better when it comes to a good night's sleep.

On the International Space Station, about 250 miles above the Earth's surface, some American astronauts are too tall for their Russian-made sleeping bags. It's a daily inconvenience resulting from the fact that Russians tend to send shorter astronauts into space. The Americans are squeezing into sleeping bags that run a bit too snug.

So NASA's making a change - and they're using the work of Houston-area teenagers to help.

New sleeping bag liners manufactured by students and recent alumni from the Cy-Fair and Conroe Independent School districts will arrive at the International Space Station next month, the result of a unique collaboration between NASA and local high schools. The liners are slightly larger than the Russian products, allowing American astronauts additional wiggle room at night.

The lack of gravity in space makes a bed obsolete, so astronauts use a sleeping bag with a sheet-like liner for sleep. Students from the two districts will complete 96 of the liners. Six are in space already, a new batch will blast off next month and others will get used in training and educational settings.

"It didn't really hit me until I saw that NASA logo on it, even though I've been working on these all summer," said Emily Fernandez, a 2017 Cypress Woods High School graduate who is working on the project.

The liners are the product of HUNCH (High School Students United with NASA to Create Hardware), a governmental program that employs high school-age students to manufacture space-related hardware.

Students get hands-on experience crafting real-world products while NASA gets cost-effective labor and an opportunity to connect with the next generation of engineers, researchers and labor.

HUNCH has partnered with about 90 schools in 25 states. The agency provides the materials, equipment, training and safety protocols - as well as $10 per hour for the students. Recent projects include cargo bags, a storage locker and a galley table, all of which have been used on the International Space Station.

The products all undergo rigorous review to ensure quality, as students learned last month during a "fit test" at the Johnson Space Center. The smallest stain or slightly askew stitch gets noticed by NASA, said Mekayla Hughes, a soon-to-be junior at Cypress Ridge High School.

"The hardest thing is to be careful because if you snip a hole in there or something, the whole bag can be rejected and you have to restart," Hughes said.

At Cy-Fair ISD, the sleeping-bag liner project has been organized through teacher Maureen Thomas' fashion design class. Thomas said her students have learned how to sew, read a computer-assisted design layout and execute a long-term project, among other skills. Thomas said her students have completed two prior NASA HUNCH projects - modeling and making a cargo bag and a zero-gravity trash can - and received plaudits from agency officials.

"At first they just wanted to see how they were going to work and what quality we would produce," Thomas said. "But they said they were amazed at the quality and thought that they fit beautifully."
The United Nations Security Council voted unanimously Saturday to impose new sanctions on North Korea, banning exports that supply up to a third of the country's annual $3 billion earnings.

The U.S.-sponsored resolution was in response to North Korea's launch of two intercontinental ballistic missiles last month, activities prohibited under existing U.N. resolutions.

The sanctions ban North Korea's largest export, coal, along with exports of iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, and seafood. Together, those exports amount to more than $1 billion a year in income for Pyongyang.

U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley told the council that the vote showed Pyongyang that the world was united in seeking to end its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. But "we should not fool ourselves into thinking we have solved the problem," Haley said. "Not even close. The North Korean threat has not left us."

She said the United States had no plans to decrease its military exercises with North Korea, despite calls from China and Russia to do so, in exchange for gradual deescalation of its prohibited weapons activities.

Both Beijing and Moscow, in casting their votes for the new sanctions, said they appreciated statements by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last week that the United States does not seek North Korea's collapse, replacement of its government or "accelerated reunification" of the Korean peninsula, and has no intention of send troops there.

"Our hope is that the United States will translate these 'four no's' into a firm policy," Liu Jieyi, China's U.N. ambassador, told the council. In addition to reducing U.S. military exercises in the region, he repeated China's objection to deployment of sophisticated U.S. anti-missile systems, known as THAAD, in South Korea. "THAAD will not bring a solution," he said. "What it will do is to seriously undermine the strategic balance of the region."

China also called for the resumption of talks between North Korea, regional powers and the United States. In his Tuesday statement, Tillerson said Washington was interested in a "productive dialogue," but only on the basis of Pyongyang's acceptance of nuclear disarmament.

"We don't think having a dialogue where the North Koreans come to the table assuming they're going to maintain their nuclear weapons is productive," he said.

President Donald Trump has expressed disappointment in the failure of China, which accounts for 90 percent of North Korea's economic activity, to exert sufficient pressure on the rogue regime in Pyongyang. Passage of the new resolution follows nearly a month of U.S.-Chinese negotiations over the text, bolstered with administration warnings that it was preparing to lodge unrelated complaints against Beijing at the World Trade Organization.

It condemns the long-range missile tests, and reminds North Korea that tests of both the missiles and nuclear weapons are prohibited by previous resolutions.

In addition to banning exports, the resolution also prohibits all countries from increasing the number of North Korean laborers they employ, prohibits any new joint ventures and commercial agreements with North Korea, and increased investment in existing ventures. It also adopts new measures to strengthen previous measures and improve sanctions enforcement.

The goal is to prevent North Korea's access to hard currency, which Haley and other delegates at the council session said are not used for the welfare of the North Korean people. The United States had initially hoped to ban oil exports and additional banking and commercial penalties, which were opposed by China and Russia.

Although U.N. sanctions were first imposed in 2006 against North Korea, they have not prevented tests of five nuclear warheads and four long-range missile launches since then, including the two launches in July.
The ongoing outrage of Chinatown's constituency drew a slate of local law enforcement leaders to the southwest Houston community on Saturday to address the epidemic of robberies and burglaries that continue to plague the area.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg joined top brass from the Houston Police Department, a state representative, a local judge and other officials in meeting with more than 300 people gathered in the Chinese Community Center's gymnasium.

The three-hour meeting began as a safety seminar, with presenters offering tips to prevent crime, and ended as a town hall.

HPD Assistant Chief Wendy Baimbridge told the crowd that robberies in Chinatown were down but burglaries have increased.

She explained that "jugging" - stealing visible items from a car - and "sliding" - stealing a purse or other belongings from a vehicle while the occupant is fueling - are among the burglary of a motor vehicle crimes that have jumped 9 percent since last year.

Both are soul-shaking crimes against persons and property, she said.

"Lock your doors. Don't leave anything in your car that's in plain sight. It's called target-hardening your area and your person," Baimbridge said. "Look at what's going on around you. People will come up and just take your purse from you. We are seeing that. We are investigating that."

Ogg announced a new special unit in her office that will work to dismantle crews that commit robberies and burglaries - which she called "epidemic" in Houston.

"Those cases will be filed on at a level for engaging organized crime - not just robbery," Ogg said. "This means that the criminals will face more punishment, higher bonds and the ire of juries who are tired of our city's working-class citizens being victimized."

The district attorney said her office is committed to trying to stop robberies in Chinatown as well as across the county.

"Those groups also target people in international communities because they are counting on the fear in those communities of the police," Ogg said. "That fear is unjustified. Police are here to respond to crimes, and prosecutors are available to work with them to prosecute those perpetrators."

A stronger push for action began last year when immigration lawyer Jessica Chen was robbed outside the Chinatown mid-rise that houses her office. Two men took her purse and keys and sped off in her BMW SUV with her iPhone. Chen's stolen vehicle was found the next day in Fort Bend County after the teen driver rear-ended another vehicle.

Heightened awareness

Crime issues in Chinatown - which is centered generally east of the Sam Houston Tollway and north of Beechnut - have continued since last summer, when area leaders and business people wrote Mayor Sylvester Turner about the "increasingly intolerable" situation. The issue also sparked demonstrations staged in the Galleria area to gain greater attention.

Community awareness has been heightened in recent weeks by the videos posted by HPD's robbery division. That footage has circulated widely and sparked a particular concern in Asian communities, Chen said. Surveillance video showing a woman whose purse was stolen from a shopping cart as she loaded groceries into her car is footage from the parking lot of the Hong Kong Food Market location near the Gulf Freeway in southeast Houston.

State Rep. Gene Wu, whose district includes part of Chinatown, implored attendees to cooperate with police, call 311 or 911 for help and take protective measures.

"Do not leave a bag in the car - even if it's just a shopping bag. Nothing in your car. Take it and put it in the trunk. Be smart," he said. "If we help the police help us  we will no longer look like good victims to all the criminals."

HPD officer Jimmy Chau said that when he started with the force 34 years ago, there were just six Chinese officers. Now, there are more than 300 Asian officers.

"The robberies in Chinatown, the purse-snatching, it is an ongoing problem for the last 24 years. It's like a cycle," he said. "I'm glad you've come together to express your concerns and the problems."

Fort Bend County Assistant District Attorney Michael Hartman asked attendees for good information, strong evidence and willing witnesses to help his office prosecute the increasing number of car burglary cases.

"Many of the crimes  carry over into Fort Bend County," he said. "We have many instances of businessmen - working men and women - who come home from their jobs in Harris County and Houston who stop by the bank on their way home and they are followed home."

'Enormous challenge'

Chen also offered written suggestions to Ogg about tougher prosecutions, to HPD brass about more effective policing and to Wu about legislation to increase penalties for juvenile and repeat offenders.

"Our community is facing an enormous challenge. We need to be united, and we need help," she told the crowd. "We will take action to protect ourselves, protect our loved ones and protect our community.

Zhengwei Liu, a 38-year-old in the energy industry, shops and dines in Chinatown. He hasn't been robbed but has safety concerns about his wife and children when they visit the area alone.

"I know they are easier targets than me," he said while leaving the seminar. "It's really bad, you know. People get robbed when they go grocery shopping, and I feel really bad about that."

Vicky Neufer, a business banker who is Chinese, was alerted to the issue after Chen's attack last year.

Neufer worked in Chinatown for 15 years and still shops and eat in the area but now is more vigilant in parking lots. She recently walked away from her vehicle instead of opening the door when she noticed someone who could have been lurking.

"Every time I go to the parking lot, I look around. I watch a lot. We all need to watch out," she said. "Do we need to carry weapons? What do we need to do to protect ourselves from danger?"

A representative of the Southwest Management District also shared a crime hotline that can be reached at any time for the SEAL private security hired to patrol the Chinatown area. That number is 281-407-1160.
The Meyerland mom was on her way home last month with her 11-month-old son and 4-year-old daughter, having just gotten off the phone with her husband. They'd settled on spaghetti for dinner. It was about 5:15 p.m., and people were jogging along Brays Bayou on that Monday evening, families were headed home from day care and traffic was heavy on Beechnut.

She rounded a corner onto Mullins and heard four loud pops. Her son cried. She pulled over and called the local constable to report kids playing with fireworks or an air rifle, maybe, then drove the few blocks to her house.

That's when she saw the bullet hole and a car seat soaked in blood.

Three weeks later, on June 14, outside of an apartment complex blocks away, three men opened fire on a man holding his 10-month-old son, killing the baby.

Together, the shootings have shaken a sense of peace in a part of Southwest Houston otherwise known for its families, schools and synagogues.

"Neighbors are angry, and we are doing whatever we can to take action and make our voices heard, because we want our neighborhood back," the mother said.

At a town hall meeting Monday night at the Rubenstein Jewish Community Center of Houston, hundreds of residents sought answers about a perceived uptick in area crime, peppering Mayor Sylvester Turner and Police Chief Art Acevedo with questions.

Some wondered why there hadn't been a shelter-in-place order after the first shooting, with the suspect still loose and a police helicopter hovering overhead. Acevedo said he is looking into it, but the department generally doesn't ask residents to shelter unless they believe there's an immediate threat in the area.

There have been no arrests in the first shooting. Police published surveillance video showing a black Nissan Versa pursuing a damaged, gray Nissan Maxima. The mother, who asked not to be identified because the shooter is at large, said she had been driving a gray sedan and was likely targeted by mistake. Crimestoppers is offering up to $10,000 for information.

In the second shooting outside the Nob Hill Apartments on North Braeswood, police arrested Jared Balogun, 24. He remains jailed without bail on a charge of capital murder. Police say he confessed to killing baby Messiah Marshall. They are still seeking information about the other two men and said the shooting may have been a retaliatory act involving gangs. The two shootings are not related, Acevedo said.

Complexes eyed as unsafe

Residents and police have turned their attention to Nob Hill and a nearby complex, Villages at Meyerland.

"There's a lot of concern that the apartments over the last five to 10 years have degraded to the point where they are not what our community represents," said Alan Lipman, associate director of the community center.

Jeff Randolph, manager of the Villages at Meyerland, acknowledged crime is an issue and said the complex has two police officers living on site, recently added 42 surveillance cameras, and asked police to step up patrols.

"We actively enforce our lease terms and community rules and will evict any residents who take part or have guests who take part in criminal activity," he said.

Acevedo said he's looking into residents' complaints that screening processes for potential tenants at Nob Hill have changed. No one from the complex spoke at the meeting and its representatives did not return a message seeking comment.

Houston City Council member Ellen Cohen lived near Nob Hill for nearly 30 years.

She said she understands the angst her constituents are feeling but believes the shootings are an anomaly for the neighborhood.

"I think the complex itself is, from what I know, a good complex," she said in an interview. "We haven't had a tremendous number of calls from that area."

Still, Acevedo said that in his first six months on the job he's been applying data to target spikes in crime, and already had extra patrols in the area before the shootings. And he has asked commanders across the city to focus on the worst complexes.

"We're going to take back these apartments one complex at a time," he said.

Acevedo and Turner acknowledged that violent crime is up in Houston, and Turner made his oft-repeated plea that the voter-imposed property tax revenue cap, costing the city tens of millions a year, should be lifted so the city can, among other things, hire hundreds more police officers.

Meanwhile, the police department is trying to stave off murders by sending detectives to more aggravated assaults as they happen, resulting in more arrests, Acevedo said.

'I refuse to give in to' fear

The growing anxiety helped draw area residents a week ago to an active shooter training session at St. Philip's United Methodist Church. It was planned before the shootings, but took on a new tone in light of the violence, and the juxtaposition of God and guns seemed to symbolize the shattered calm Meyerland is feeling.

About 80 people sat in the dim sanctuary as they quietly contemplated what they would do if a person with a rifle stormed through the doors behind them and opened fire.

"I'm not going to let fear drive what I do," said Monna Rector, a 30-year Meyerland resident who attended the training. "I'll be more vigilant and more aware, but I refuse to give in to that."

In the Mullins shooting, the bullet struck the car seat, went through the boy's right leg, grazed his belly, entered his left leg, broke the femur, nicked an artery, then exited and lodged in the other side of the seat, sparing his sister. He missed a fatal arterial bleed by millimeters.

He has worn a cast for four weeks and will be a late walker. Doctors have him on aspirin to avoid dangerous blood clots.

His mother uses a different car and a different route home now.
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Dozens of diesel dump trucks and cement mixers barrel down Schurmier Road in south Houston, weaving to and from five concrete batch plants on the narrow, residential side street.

"That's the house," murmurs Bakeyah Nelson, the executive director of Air Alliance Houston, pointing from the passenger-seat window of a car as it passes by a small, white house with baby blue shutters. "That's who I need to talk to."

The house is near what likely will be the street's sixth concrete batch plant - that is, unless Nelson has her way. Since becoming head of Air Alliance Houston in April, the 37-year-old Nelson has scoured the city for residents affected by the facilities.

Advocating for relief and regulations across the state, Nelson has emerged as an indispensable lifeline for residents concerned about air pollution from these plants.

For more than 25 years, Air Alliance Houston has served as a powerful check on local industries, aimed at reducing air pollution in the region while protecting public health.

But Nelson's arrival coincides with a significant shift in strategy for one of Houston's most influential environmental advocacy groups, necessitated in some part by the election of President Donald Trump.

Trump has waged war against the Environmental Protection Agency, vowing to undo President Barack Obama's pollution regulations and appointing an EPA chief known for suing the agency. Once allied to air quality advocates in Houston, the EPA in recent months has "become more like Austin," where state leaders battle regulation in favor of unimpeded job creation, said Jonathan Ross, president of Air Alliance Houston's board of directors.

"We can't just call up our friends at the EPA for support any longer," Ross said. "We needed someone who could deal with that reality. Bakeyah is the kind of person who is able to galvanize support across organizations and communities to work together."

Sitting next to Nelson in the car, Theresa Henderson, president of the neighborhood association in the nearby Shamrock Manor neighborhood, briefly glances at the house, then points to one of the many nearby facilities producing ready-mix concrete.

"How would you like to live across the street from this place?" she said, her voice wavering, desperate to rid her community of the constant crushing of concrete and potentially harmful clouds of white dust.

The concrete batch plants, which produce ready-mix concrete vital for building new roads and buildings, are given license to locate in residential areas and operate around the clock.

Henderson is not alone in her frustration, Nelson knows. She has encountered dozens of other exasperated, disaffected Houstonians on tours like this across the city.

But from the state Legislature to Washington, D.C., Nelson faces an uphill battle.

"There is frustration across the board," Nelson said. "I tell people we will help you navigate through this process, we will come to your community, we will testify with you, we will connect you to people. But the reality is at the moment, there is little you can do to fight a facility from coming to your community."

County tops in plants

Stationed between concrete industry lobbyists and fellow environmental advocates, Nelson took her seat to testify before the Texas Senate Committee on Natural Resources & Economic Development in late April.

Wearing a sharp light-gray suit, Nelson argued in favor of two bills before the committee - one to create a task force to study the health effects of concrete and rock crushing facilities, the other to regulate where facilities can be located.

According to a Houston Chronicle analysis from February, Harris County has 188 facilities, more than any other county in Texas and twice the number in Dallas County. A study by the city last year of 40 batch plants found more than 40 violations, including inadequate dust control and visible emissions leaving property lines.

Hazard consequences

At the hearing, Nelson seamlessly explained the domino effect of how environmental hazards have economic consequences: The facilities emit dust that triggers asthma, causing children to miss school and making parents miss work.

"She's somebody who has access to public health data, is able to analyze public health trends in an area, and has the know-how to marshal that knowledge in her work," said Adrian Shelley, Nelson's predecessor at Air Alliance Houston, who also testified before the Senate.

The Washington, D.C., native first encountered public health issues while studying psychology at the University of Maryland. While interning at a psychiatric research center, she realized that many of the research participants partook in the drug studies because they did not have health insurance and they needed the medication.

"That was my first exposure to the idea that there are individual-level issues, but it is bigger than that," Nelson said.

She shifted course for her masters, pursuing a degree in applied sociology with an eye toward public health, and again realized the importance of public policy after being tasked with evaluating why participants were dropping out of an HIV-medication study.

Participants dropped out, not because they did not want the medication, Nelson said, but because they lacked basic needs, like food, affordable housing, jobs, or transportation.

"There were more immediate survival needs that they needed to address before they could even get to being able to access their medication," Nelson said. "I thought, OK, all of this is really about policy, and what policies we have in place to support people's health."

The mother of three then earned a doctorate in public policy, also from the University of Maryland, and moved to Houston in 2006, following a career opportunity for her husband.

Before joining Air Alliance Houston, Nelson worked in the Office of Policy and Planning at Harris County Public Health. There she was introduced to air quality advocacy while organizing a community health impact survey for Galena Park.

Nelson draws heavily on this background in public health in making arguments about environmental issues. It allows her to approach the subject with a broader perspective than some of her peers, thinking about, as she puts it, "how where we live, work, learn and play impacts our health."

'That's ridiculous'

The council chambers at Houston's City Hall fell silent. Sitting before a lectern in late July, Nelson stared down at her notes, and in a solemn, controlled voice began reading a list:

"Dogan Elementary School is 36 percent black, 63 percent Hispanic, and 86 percent economically disadvantaged. ... Bruce Elementary School is 69 percent black, 29 percent Hispanic, and 95 percent economically disadvantaged."

Each of the nine elementary schools Nelson read out to City Council serves economically disadvantaged, minority communities. All are within half a mile of a concrete batch plant.

Though concrete batch plants are located all across Harris County, they tend to concentrate in working-class, minority communities.

"How many are in my district?" asked Councilman Dwight Boykins, who represents District D, a predominantly black and Hispanic community.

"Eighteen," Nelson answered.

"Man, that's ridiculous," Boykins responded.

Sense of responsibility

The placement of these facilities fits in with decades of environmental racism in Houston, where minority communities are disproportionately burdened with environmental degradation, said Bob Bullard, a professor at Texas Southern University and described by many as the father of environmental justice.

Although communities of color often bear the consequences of environmental hazards, the advocacy organizations supporting them have historically been staffed by white individuals. An African-American woman, Nelson defies this trend.

"If you look at many of the major environmental issues, the most vulnerable population on the ground are often not represented," Bullard said, calling Nelson's appointment "very significant."

For her part, Nelson said she bears an overwhelming sense of responsibility to every community overburdened with environmental hazards.

"It's a weight that I carry around, and it's present in my mind a lot, that I'm responsible for making it better for these communities," she said.

Sitting in the rows behind Nelson at City Council, a half-dozen community members from across Houston showed up to testify, including Teresa Henderson.

"I'd like to thank Dr. Nelson for working with us," Henderson said into the microphone during her testimony. "We're hoping that with her help, we can get some solutions to our problems."
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Childbirth is the closest a woman can come to death.

That's what Houston state Rep. Shawn Thierry said on the House floor this past week. She was quoting her grandmother, born in 1920.

"Here we are, a century later in Texas," Thierry said. And for an alarming number of women, the saying is still true.

Texas has the highest rate, by far, of maternal mortality in the nation. And, with the exception of Mexico, Texas has the highest rate in the developed world.

Let that sink in.

In a state that boasts the world-renowned Texas Medical Center, a state where "pro-life" is a battle cry of powerful elected leaders, women are dying at troubling rates before, during and after giving birth from conditions such as hypertension, pre-eclampsia, sepsis and hemorrhage.

Good news came last week when Thierry, a Democrat, joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers to pass several bills out of the House that attempt to tackle the problem by, among other things, extending the life of a state task force studying it and improving data collection.

It was a bright moment in a bitterly divisive special session in Austin, but it was far too long in coming. State Rep. Armando Walle said he was alerted to the problem back in 2010 by Houston-area doctors. He filed his first bill to study the issue in 2011, and it went nowhere. Finally, in 2013, with bipartisan support, he helped pass a bill to establish the Texas Mortality and Morbidity Task Force, but it took more than a year to set it up.

Bills to give the task force more time, until 2023, to do its work and more resources were added to the special session by Gov. Greg Abbott, signifying that maternal mortality is a priority for the governor.

But how much of a priority?

It's one thing to study the issue. It's another to save women's lives.

Granted, this is a complex issue. The national media sometimes tries to portray it as the direct consequence of Texas' crusades against abortion rights and Planned Parenthood, which led to widespread clinic closures, and its draconian slashing of family planning funding in 2011.

But maternal mortality rates have risen nationwide, with black women bearing the greatest risk. It's a trend that is much worse in Texas but that began before the 2011 cuts.

Even Walle, a Houston Democrat, admits it's not a clear connection.

"A lot of reporters call me and ask me that question. As somebody who is as progressive on health care as anybody, I would truly like to find a way to make that argument. But it would be illegitimate on my part. I'd lose my credibility," he said. "The timelines don't match up."

Rate significantly high

Dr. Lisa Hollier, medical director of obstetrics and gynecology at Texas Children's Hospital who leads the state task force, said there's no one cause, and she points out that the Texas rate has dipped a bit in recent years.

"The rates are still over 30 per 100,000, which is still significantly greater than most other states," she said.

What is clear is that the best way to prevent pregnancy-related deaths is to improve access to health services. It was the No. 1 recommendation in a report by the task force last year. To increase access during the year after delivery, to improve continuity of care, promote birth spacing, among other suggestions.

And there's the rub.

Texas continues to lead in the nation in the number of uninsured. The rate fell from 25 percent to 16.8 percent in 2015, thanks to the Affordable Care Act, but we're still far worse than the national average, now in single digits.

Screen for problems

Studies suggest the number of Texas women once covered by a state-federal Medicaid program for reproductive care has plummeted since the state dropped Planned Parenthood from it in 2011. Lawmakers have prohibited the state from paying for abortions, but also have ostracized the century-old family planning agency for performing the procedure at all.

The move violated federal rules, costing Texas tens of millions in federal dollars per year, and provider networks collapsed as the state scrambled to create - and fund - its own program, Healthy Texas Women.

One positive development is that new mothers are no longer left scrambling for a doctor after their Medicaid coverage ends, 60 days after childbirth. With some exceptions, women are now automatically enrolled into the state's program, where they can be screened for chronic conditions, such as hypertension, and have access to limited treatment for postpartum depression, according to a spokeswoman with the Health and Human Services Commission.

Still, nearly 45,000 fewer Texas women receive state health services since 2011, according to a report released last week by the Austin-based Center for Public Policy Priorities, which advocates for low-income Texans.

Other studies have shown declines in access to contraception and a rise in Medicaid-paid births.

With this backdrop, the fight against maternal mortality would seem Sisyphean. What's the use of studying the issue when we already know our best weapon - improving access to care - is something some conservatives are loathe to support, at least openly?

Unless.

Unless the reality of Texas mothers dying preventable deaths, most of them nearly a year after delivery, is enough to change minds.

Progress gives hope

Hollier, the physician, isn't sure.

"I don't know if this is going to be the issue that changes the way we provide health care in Texas," she said. But in the meantime, Hollier said her clinic for at-risk pregnancy has already begun implementing solutions that don't need legislative approval. Risks from hemorrhaging, for instance, can be prevented by testing for anemia in advance, injecting iron intravenously, and having doctors lead drills in hospitals to hasten response times.

That kind of progress gives Walle hope, and so does all the attention the issue has gotten lately.

"Maybe this is a spark," he said. "I think it will take a couple of sessions to convince some folks, but the facts are the facts. If we don't address access to care, then we will continue to see a rise in maternal deaths. I don't think anybody would argue with that."

At least, nobody should. If the problem is truly a priority for state leaders, then the solution should be, too.
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WASHINGTON - A couple of influential Republicans from Texas sees a long trail of Kremlin money leading to a beige office building on a palm-lined street in Bermuda - and it has nothing to do with the investigations of Russian election meddling.

The cash, tagged to an offshore shell company housed in a law office inside, was not intended for the 2016 presidential election. Rather, they believe, it was part of a "covert anti-fracking campaign" to foster global dependence on Russian gas.

The theory, long a staple of alt-right websites and conservative groups, has been given new life in a recent letter from Texas U.S. Reps. Lamar Smith of San Antonio and Randy Weber of Friendswood, lawmakers with strong ties to the energy industry that has been the target of climate change activists opposed to hydraulic fracturing.

Environmentalists brand it a baseless conspiracy theory. But it got a big public nudge last month from former Gov. Rick Perry, now energy secretary under President Donald Trump, who famously attached himself to controversial conspiracy theories about former President Barack Obama's birthplace and the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

In a case of dueling Russian conspiracy narratives, Smith and Weber are asking the Trump administration to investigate allegations that the Bermuda entity served as a secret cash conduit for environmentalists in the U.S.

The allegations, spelled out in a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, come amid growing public angst about Russia as a disruptive force on the world stage, not only in elections, but in Syria, the wider Middle East, and world energy markets. They also illustrate the unsettling confluence of fact versus fiction in an age of political polarization and competing media narratives.

"These are fertile times," said Joe Barnes, a research fellow at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy who focuses on the geopolitics of energy. "What's curious about this is the extent to which the whole Trump-Russia nexus colors our view of a lot of policies."

Support from Perry

Activists in the anti-fracking movement see the letter from Weber and Smith as part of an oil industry attack on their credibility. The White House, already facing Russian investigations by Congress and independent counsel Robert Mueller, has remained publicly silent.

While Trump has questioned U.S. intelligence reports of Russian hacking in the election, the White House referred inquiries about the alleged Russian anti-fracking campaign to Mnuchin, whose spokesman declined comment.

Perry, however, said in a recent Fox News interview that he "absolutely" supported the Texans' call for an inquiry. He called Mnuchin a "very capable, very focused business individual who knows that this type of activity has got to be investigated. It's got to be halted."

Meanwhile, a congressional oversight probe is being spearheaded by Smith, a noted climate change skeptic who chairs the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, and Weber, chairman of the Energy Subcommittee.

"There's what we would call a money laundering scheme," Weber said in an interview. "So here's what the deal is: They're over here trying to keep our oil in the ground because Russia wants to sell oil and gas to Eastern Europe."

In a June 29 letter to Mnuchin, Weber and Smith pointed to $23 million in charitable contributions in 2010 and 2011 from Klein Ltd., a company registered in Bermuda. Records show that the money went to the California-based Sea Change Foundation, a nonprofit that has given millions to the Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, and other environmental groups.

Smith and Weber acknowledged in their letter that "the source of Klein's capital has not been documented," but they note that the firm's two principals, both attorneys at the Bermuda-based law firm Wakefield Quin, have long-standing business ties to Russian oil interests.

Wakefield Quin attorney Roderick Forrest said in an email that the charges that Klein is a pass-through for Russian funds are "completely false and irresponsible." He added: "We can state categorically that at no point did this philanthropic organization receive or expend funds from Russian sources or Russian-connected sources and Klein has no Russian connection whatsoever."

By incorporating in Bermuda, Klein is not required to disclose its donors' identities or countries of origin.

The Sea Change Foundation, largely funded by the family of wealthy Democratic megadonor Nathaniel Simons, maintains a very low public profile. It's website provides little information about the group, other than to say it doesn't accept unsolicited proposals.

But in a statement to the Chronicle, the group denied that there were Russian strings attached to Klein's contributions.

"This information has been a matter of record since May 2012 and no new funds have been received from the Klein Foundation since 2011," the foundation said in its statement. "The Klein Foundation grants were given as general support and no requirement was made that the funds be used for specific projects, programs, or activities."

Many of the allegations in Smith and Weber's letter repeat the charges of "dark money" that were made in a 2014 report by the Republican staff of the Senate's Environmental and Public Works Committee. The 92-page report was titled, "The Chain of Environmental Command: How a Club of Billionaires and Their Foundation Control the Environmental Movement and Obama's EPA."

Their research was continued in 2015 by an outside entity called "Big Green Radicals," a project of the Environmental Policy Alliance and the Center for Organizational Research and Education. Both groups have ties to Washington lobbyist Rick Berman, a controversial public affairs strategist who champions conservative causes.

Environmentalists have accused Berman's groups of being an oil industry front. Berman, for his part, was once profiled as "Dr. Evil" on the CBS news show "60 Minutes."

Will Coggin, director of research for the Environmental Policy Alliance, said that while the nonprofit that ran the project has received some support from the energy industry, the group's research speaks for itself.

"The false charge that we're a front group is intended to distract people away from the substance of our work, which our opponents can't rebut," he said.

The Big Green Radicals report has become a staple of conservative websites attacking Klein as a shell company that "only exists on paper," and based out of the same office as Wakefield Quin.

Connecting the dots

While Coggin's group was not able to identify Klein's funders, it did find a web of connections tying Forrest and other Wakefield Quin lawyers to several Russian business entities.

Forrest, for example, was reportedly a director of the IPOC Group, owned by Leonid Reiman, a Russian minister of telecommunications and longtime friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. IPOC was convicted in the British Virgin Islands in 2008 of providing false information in a money laundering case that resulted in a $45 million forfeiture. It was characterized by Big Green Radicals as a "sophisticated money laundering scheme that has been taking illegitimately obtained money out of Russia and cleaning that money for reinvestment."

That passage was quoted by Weber and Smith, who added, "the prior conduct of Wakefield Quin principals reflects a known strategy used to mask the funding of environmental groups."

Those and other business ties between the law firm and the Russian energy sector, Weber said, suggest the source of Klein's funders.

"In police work," he said, "they call that a clue."

A spokeswoman for Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Dallas, the ranking Democrat on the science committee, said she had no comment on the GOP request for an investigation. But a Democratic staffer on the panel said that "as of the moment, we have not been able to independently verify the claims."

That's putting it mildly, according to Sierra Club Legislative Director Melinda Pierce, who calls the claims "almost preposterous." She noted that the same allegations have been recycled inconclusively for years. "This is a typical Lamar Smith witch hunt, and an attempt at a distraction when the real news should be about Russia's interference in our election," she said.

Pierce said that the Sierra Club has ensured that its contributions from Sea Change come from "a private U.S. donor who likes the work of the Sierra Club and cares about fighting climate change."

Oil industry backers acknowledge that while the allegations are not new, they are ripe for a fresh look in a new administration. Thea McDonald, a spokeswoman for Smith, said in a statement that the congressman "relied upon publicly available documents to connect the dots and articulate the allegations in a letter he and Rep. Weber sent to Secretary Mnuchin."

One of the dots Smith connected involves former Secretary of State and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who reportedly warned of Russian funding for "phony" anti-fracking groups in a private speech in 2014, according to leaked emails obtained by WikiLeaks.

Suspicions were also fueled when WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange featured prominently via satellite link at the Green Party National Convention last year in Houston that nominated presidential candidate Jill Stein, a guest at the same 2015 Moscow gala thrown by RT, the same Russian state-owned broadcaster that was tied to former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn.

RT also figured into the appendix of declassified U.S. intelligence reports last January on Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and other Kremlin influence campaigns.

Among them: a flurry of anti-fracking reports by RT, the Russian media entity. "This is likely reflective of the Russian Government's concern about the impact of fracking and US natural gas production on the global energy market and the potential challenges to Gazprom's profitability," the intelligence report stated in a reference to the Russian company that supplies 30 percent of the European Union's natural gas.

The Clinton campaign refused to comment on the leaked documents of her speech but did not dispute their authenticity. However her running mate, Virginia U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, noted in a television interview at the time that "much of the hacking has been connected to the Russian government" and suggested they could have been manipulated.

Either way, the national security concerns about Russia's desire to maintain European dependence in imported Russian gas have long been shared on both sides of the Atlantic.

No hidden agenda

In some ways, the concerns mirror the arguments for the ongoing congressional and special counsel investigations of alleged Trump campaign collusion with Russia.

"American energy policy is tied to national security," Coggin said. "If foreign governments or actors are trying to secretly influence our domestic energy policy, it needs to be exposed."

Barnes, a career State Department diplomat, said that whatever the merits of the various Russian conspiracies, both sides have weaponized them in domestic politics.

"It's quite conceivable that these concerns are both real and politically expedient," he said.

Whether or not the Trump White House pursues a parallel Russia investigation at the behest of its conservative allies, climate change activists worry that the administration already is opening new areas for oil leases and eliminating restrictions on hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.

Meanwhile, environmentalists say there's little reason to look for hidden agendas in legacy organizations like the Sierra Club, which was founded in 1892.

"It should come as no surprise that our agenda is to move off of dirty energy and onto clean energy, and it's certainly not at the behest of Gazprom," Pierce said. "Taxpayers should be concerned that it's a waste of their money."

Weber said he has received no word from Mnuchin, but he doesn't expect a headline-making announcement.

"Before they start raising a big red flag," he said, "hopefully they'll be quietly going about doing their job."
Four years after Texas gave up millions of dollars in federal Medicaid funds so it could ban Planned Parenthood from participating in a family planning program for low-income women, the state is asking the Trump administration for the money back.

The request presents an important early test for the administration of President Donald Trump, who recently appointed an anti-abortion official to oversee federal family planning programs. Under President Barack Obama, federal health officials would not allow Medicaid funds to flow to the Texas program after it excluded Planned Parenthood, because federal law requires states to give Medicaid beneficiaries their choice of "any willing provider."

If the administration agrees to restore the funding for Texas, it could effectively give states the green light to ban Planned Parenthood from Medicaid family planning programs with no financial consequences.

"They're asking the federal government to do a 180 on its Medicaid program rules," said Elizabeth Nash, a policy analyst at the Guttmacher Institute, a research center that supports abortion rights. "And depending how this shakes out, you could see a number of other states follow suit."

The issue, and the principle at stake, has put abortion rights supporters in the unusual position of opposing Medicaid funding for family planning services.

The Texas program, now called Healthy Texas Women, provides contraception and screenings for cancer, HIV and sexually transmitted diseases, and as of last year, screening and treatment for diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure, to women ages 15-44, with income up to 200 percent of the poverty level - about $23,760 for an individual - who do not qualify for Medicaid.

It used to be what is known as a Medicaid waiver program, financed 90 percent by the federal government and 10 percent by the state. About half the states have similar programs for low-income women not otherwise eligible for Medicaid, Guttmacher said.

But Texas turned its version into an entirely state-financed program in 2013, when it cut out providers that "perform or promote elective abortions," or contract or affiliate with providers that do so.

Other states have recently expressed a willingness to forfeit Medicaid funds if doing so allows them to block Planned Parenthood from receiving tax dollars. This year, Missouri ended its Medicaid waiver program for family planning services and instead set up a state-financed program that excludes abortion providers. Iowa is planning to do the same.

The reduced funding in Texas has led to a drop in women receiving services through the program. The Texas program had an average monthly enrollment of about 79,000 last year, according to the state, down from 126,000 before it cut out Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers.

In the first 18 months after the change - which resulted in a loss of $35 million a year in federal Medicaid funds - thousands of women stopped getting long-acting birth control, and Medicaid pregnancies increased by 27 percent, according to a research paper published last year in The New England Journal of Medicine.

In its draft waiver application, the state said it hoped that by turning Healthy Texas Women back into a Medicaid waiver program, it would improve access and participation. The application noted that Texas had the nation's highest birthrate, with more than 400,000 births in 2015, more than half of which were paid for by Medicaid. It also noted than more than one-third of pregnancies in the state were reported as unintended, and that Texas had one of the highest teen birthrates in the country.

On Monday, at a public hearing on the plan in Austin, several women and representatives of health advocacy groups expressed concern about the request.

"A strong Healthy Texas Women program should include Planned Parenthood," said Blanca Murillo, 25, who said she relied on Planned Parenthood for contraception that helped treat her polycystic ovary syndrome when she was a student at the University of Texas. "I'm asking the state to choose the health of Texas women - which it has a duty to protect - over scoring political points."

Stacey Pogue, senior policy analyst at the Center for Public Policy Priorities, a liberal research group, pointed to the so-called freedom of choice provision in Medicaid and said she was concerned that "submitting the waiver as is would invite litigation."

A spokeswoman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, which oversees Medicaid waiver programs, declined to comment.

Carrie Williams, a spokeswoman for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, said, "We're been encouraged to present new and innovative ideas to CMS for discussion for possible funding. This is a new administration, and we're looking at what funding opportunities may exist for us."

Texas is also seeking to cut off all Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood; a federal judge blocked the effort earlier this year, but the state is appealing the decision.

Conservatives have long targeted Planned Parenthood because its network is the largest provider of abortions, although about half of its affiliates do not perform the procedure. And federal funding is never used to pay for it; since 1977, a law known as the Hyde Amendment has prohibited using federal money for abortions.

Still, Trump has made a priority of restricting abortions. In April, he signed legislation aimed at cutting off a separate stream of federal family planning money from Planned Parenthood and other groups that perform abortions. And the House bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act would defund Planned Parenthood for a year - so women on Medicaid could no longer seek care at its clinics - as well as ban the use of federal subsidies to buy insurance that pays for abortion.

(STORY CAN END HERE. OPTIONAL MATERIAL FOLLOWS.)

"There have been many statements out of this administration about its hostility toward Planned Parenthood," Nash said. "So this move by Texas is really testing all of that."

Raegan McDonald-Mosely, the chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said, "The Trump administration must shut down this latest attack on women, because if the rest of the nation goes the way of Texas, it would result in a public health crisis for millions of women."
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KIGALI, Rwanda - Rwandan President Paul Kagame won a third term in a landslide victory, extending his 17-year reign over the East African country that has been praised for economic growth but dogged by accusations of human-rights abuses.

Kagame, 59, received 98.6 percent of the vote in provisional results from Friday's election, the National Electoral Commission said.

The Democratic Green Party of Rwanda's candidate, Frank Habineza, had 0.47 percent, and the only other contender, Philippe Mpayimana, an independent, won 0.73 percent.

"This election was criticized so much due to me continuing to be your leader, especially people from outside the country because they oppose the will of Rwandans," the president told jubilant supporters Saturday. "But Rwandans have shown that it was not manipulated by anyone but their own will."

The United States said Saturday it was "disturbed by irregularities observed during voting" in Rwanda's election.

A State Department statement reiterated "long-standing concerns over the integrity of the vote-tabulation process."

The U.S. statement also said it remains "concerned by the lack of transparency in determining the eligibility of prospective candidates," and it commended Rwanda's media for reporting on complaints of harassment of some opposition candidates.

Kagame led a rebel army that ended a 1994 genocide in which about 800,000 people died, and he's been credited with turning Rwanda's economy into one of Africa's top performers by cutting red tape and improving infrastructure. Detractors such as Amnesty International say civil liberties have been cast aside and the vote's credibility was compromised by a violent crackdown on his opponents.

Kagame was able to seek re-election after a 2015 referendum backed amending the constitution to remove a two-term limit. After a new, seven-year term, he can run for two further terms of five years each, potentially remaining in office until 2034, when he would be 77.

Landlocked Rwanda's economy has expanded an average of more than 7 percent a year since Kagame took office in 2000, and is expected to grow 6.1 percent this year, according to the International Monetary Fund.

Its biggest industries and sources of foreign exchange are tea, coffee, tourism and mining.
Devastating floods in April 2016 damaged thousands of buildings and homes around Houston and left eight people dead.

Less known is that the network of bayous and waterways around Houston, many built and maintained to control floodwaters themselves, also took a pounding, and officials still are working to repair the damage.

Harris County Commissioners Court this week accepted nearly $10 million in grant funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, money they hope can help repair eroded waterways, cracked concrete lining and damaged culverts.

In all, the Tax Day floods caused more than $65 million in damage to flood control infrastructure, Harris County Flood Control District Director of Operations Matt Zeve said.

"We've made many submittals to many people. This is the first of, hopefully, more grants and reimbursements to help us recover from the Tax Day flood," Zeve said.

The damage from the floods was a significant hit for the district, which every year stretches a limited budget to try to cope with severe storms in a flood-prone county.

Zeve said the flood control district has roughly $100 million in its maintenance backlog, and spends about $9 million to $12 million on maintenance each year. That means that over time the district has gotten behind on its upkeep.

The City of Houston, also, grapples with a maintenance backlog. In the wake of the spring 2016 storms, Mayor Sylvester Turner created a "storm water action team" that would target 22 maintenance projects across the city - replacing sewer inlets, grates, regrading ditches, among other fixes - with $10 million.

Events like the Tax Day flood compound the problem. In late April 2016, more than 240 billion gallons of water rained down across the county, particularly in the northwest, resulting in one of the most devastating storms in Houston's history.

Zeve said damage was done to waterways in nearly every watershed across the county. To estimate the damage, the flood control district took high resolution aerial photos of the county after the Tax Day flood and compared the photos to those taken before the storm, eventually coming up with the $65 million figure.

The damage includes major erosion to Cypress Creek, Little Cypress Creek and Upper Langham Creek, Zeve said.

The nearly $10 million grant from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service was matched by nearly $3 million in flood control district funds. Zeve said the district is working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to seek more funds, and said the USDA could provide more.

"We're constantly working with them, locally and in Washington, D.C.," he said. "We're constantly working with all those agencies at the federal level and the local level."

Repairing eroded bayous, Zeve said, could protect bridges, water lines, sewer lines, gas lines and telecommunication lines, that run along or under the waterways.

Without the fixes, Zeve said, erosion will "keep getting worse."

"Every time it rains, something else breaks," he said. "It's constant."
Just south of the little Rio Grande Valley town of Alamo, on the banks of the Rio Grande, is the 2,028-acre Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, created by the National Park Service in 1943 for the protection of migratory birds. Managed by U.S. Fish and Wildlife, the refuge attracts some 400 species, not to mention thousands of birdwatchers from all over North America who come to see buff-bellied hummingbirds, great kiskadees and other species that can't be seen anywhere else in North America.

Ten minutes from ubiquitous strip malls and big city-busy freeways, the refuge is one of the last pieces of native habitat in the Valley. Inhabiting the thick brush beneath a dense canopy of mesquite, huisache, sabol palm and moss-draped ebony trees are rabbits, coyotes, armadillos, Texas tortoises and bobcats, as well as the endangered ocelot and jaguarundi. It's also home to some 300 butterfly species.

On a muggy afternoon last week, a flock of bronze cowbirds skittered through the branches of an old mesquite tree. Cottontail rabbits allowed a hiker to approach within a few feet before they scampered into the brush. Nearby, the green Rio Grande flowed silently toward the sea.

Santa Ana also is part of a wildlife riparian corridor that Fish and Wildlife Service has acquired piecemeal during the last 30 years at a cost of more than $30 million. As Melissa Del Bosque of the Texas Observer initially reported, this subtropical sliver, one of the most biologically diverse areas in the country, is about to face an implacable invasive species: the first stretch of Donald Trump's multi-billion-dollar wall.

Even though Congress hasn't appropriated funds for the president's border boondoggle, the Department of Homeland Security is already preparing to build atop river levees through the refuge and other environmentally sensitive areas nearby. Last week the House approved a spending bill that contained $1.6 billion to build segments of the wall in Texas and California. Construction is scheduled to begin as early as November.

The bill faces an uncertain fate in the Senate, where U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, has expressed reservations about ramming a wall through environmentally sensitive areas like the Santa Ana refuge. He has advocated for more use of ground sensors, drones and technology rather than a wall.

Cornyn surely must be aware that Trump's Wall would essentially block wildlife from getting to the river, their primary source of water. Birds can fly over the barrier; ocelots can't. Environmentalists say the Wall likely would push the small spotted cat into extinction in the United States.

"These refuges are national treasures and sacred places, and we have to do everything we can to stop the Trump administration from putting this wall into place," U.S. Rep. Filomen Vela said recently. The Brownsville Democrat accuses Homeland Security officials of operating in secret.

As the ocelot disappears and an invaluable refuge itself becomes endangered, we would do well to remember the origin of Trump's "big, beautiful wall." As Bloomberg Businessweek correspondent Joshua Green reveals in his new book, "Devil's Bargain," the Wall had less to do with undocumented immigrants and human traffickers and more to do with Trump's brain. It was a mnemonic device his campaign advisers came up with "for keeping their attention-addled boss on message."

In other words, bombast about a border wall was much easier to deliver to red cap-wearing devotees than a serious and thoughtful plan for comprehensive immigration reform.

Trump's Wall may never get built - just as transgender soldiers may never get drummed out of the military - but we have to take him seriously. With Big Bend National Park, Big Bend State Park, the Lake Amistad area and other environmentally sensitive areas along the 2,000-mile border potentially in Homeland Security's sights, we can't take the chance that something won't happen because it shouldn't. The man in the White House may not have thought seriously about the issues, but the rest of us, elected officials included, have to be dead serious about his addled notions. Congressman Vela has it right: When you're dealing with an opportunistic xenophobe, resistance is the only response.
Foreign aid equals self-aid

Regarding "Aid Central America" editorial (Page A14, Thursday), the editorial urging support for Central America is both prudent, wise and necessary. It is axiomatic that "foreign aid is self-serving" and that God has endowed our nation with both leadership and the strength of personal liberties that urge us to help and protect the weak, a reflection of our great good fortune.

American foreign policies embrace that ideal: 1) It is humanity at its best. 2) It expresses the blessings we recognize and enjoy more than perhaps any other nation in history. 3) It redounds to the greater good of both the receiving nations of our largesse and to us, as well.

These truths are totally evident in the editorial that points out that the lawlessness of certain Central American countries prompted mass emigrations to our country, yet we know that our cutoff of some funding for those countries had a role in the continued criminal violence and the subsequent departures for our country.

Our cutoff of funds was perfectly within our rights, but rights bring moral - or, at least, practical - responsibilities. It is self-serving to assist other nations in their needs. The absence of assistance in a time of need has brought on the illegal entry of many desperate families across our doorsteps. Lady Liberty has proven to be more than a statue. She is the personification of both prudence and generosity.

Robert N. Schwartz, Houston

Typhus in Texas

Regarding "Health scourge makes a comeback in Texas" (Page A1, Friday), four years ago on my birthday I came down with what I thought was the worst cold of my life. A week later, I was coughing so hard I was vomiting. I went to a local ER and told the doctor I had whooping cough. I had it as child and the symptoms are like nothing else. At first he didn't believe me. He had never seen whooping cough.

Medical doctors have rigorous education and extensive training, but they are not psychic. They rely on information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help them occasionally look for zebras when they hear hoof beats.

It seems like a particularly bad time to slash the budget of such an important agency with the resurgence of so many diseases we thought were a thing of the past.

Susan Miller Jackson, Houston
Misplaced honor

Regarding "Bill would restrict movement of monuments" (Page A7, Friday), Republican state Sen. Brandon Creighton of Conroe says that Texans shouldn't "erase our history. We should not delete evidence of our past to comply with current political correctness."'

It is not "political correctness" to remove monuments that celebrate what was, quite frankly, traitorous behavior. And I say this as someone who had many ancestors who regrettably fought on the side of the Confederacy.

These are monuments celebrating racism, slavery and traitors. We can better remember history by apologizing for and trying to repair the wrongs that were propogated.

Alan Jackson, Houston

People don't value 'free'

Regarding "Houston's overcrowded BARC offering up bargain adoptions this weekend" (Chron.com, Friday), I was very disappointed to hear that BARC is adopting out dogs, cats, puppies and kittens for $1 each. I realize the overcrowding problem that exists and that they are trying to get their "kill numbers" down, but I disagree that this is the way to accomplish that goal.

Do they not realize that people will take these small animals and use them to feed to their snakes or take the larger ones to use as bait dogs for dog fighting rings? Do they not realize that there are those who will, for $1, decide on a whim to get a dog or cat that they really didn't want all that badly and, having nothing invested in it, will turn it out onto the street the first time it messes in the house?

The only way Houston's massive unwanted animal problem will ever be solved is to have free spay/neuter clinics and by educating those backyard breeders who think nothing of letting their pets reproduce at will.

Kathy Bernhardt, Spring

Leadership mentality

Regarding "The U.S. needs a leader worth an avid pursuit" (Page A15, Thursday), Kathleen Parker's column on the "lack of leaders willing to lead" misses the real reason this is the case. Our society has morphed into a "cover your derriere at all times" mentality by having the ability to blame those working under you as the model. This is why businesses, schools and government agencies have so many levels of management. Multiple levels of bureaucracy are demonstrably inefficient as anyone who works in one knows. However, the upside is that this allows those who should be leading to insulate themselves from blame.

Trump's use of Twitter has flown in the face of the normal double talk and political correctness we typically hear from politicians and leaders. His lack of a filter appeals to some because it doesn't feel like he is arriving at "his core values" from pollsters - like so many politicians.

Leadership is difficult - not many people are willing to definitively say, or act on, what they truly believe - because that opens them up for criticism. So levels of bureaucracy obfuscate blame allowing "leaders" to remain in power. Hopefully, this new Twitter age will eventually lead to more leaders realizing that honesty is appreciated.

M. Donnelly, Pearland

Bathroom debate

Regarding "Dan Patrick says bathroom bill not discrimination" (Chron.com, Friday), trans people have been using bathrooms of their choice for years and nobody had a problem with it until now, thanks to radicals on both the left and right.

The only people who should decide bathroom policy are private businesses, not politicians in Austin. Let's focus on some real issues instead, please.

Christian Ehmling, posted via Facebook

Supplying America

Regarding "Fentanyl, 50 times more potent than heroin, quickly becoming a favorite of Mexican cartels" (Chron.com, Friday), if the U.S. didn't have millions of people who prefer to escape reality with any substance they can find and often more than one, the cartels wouldn't have such a big market.

T.J. Cain Ramsey, posted via Facebook
The U.S. Customs and Border Patrol plans to sidestep an environmental impact study on a section of the proposed border wall that would wall off most of the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in Texas. According to news reports, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plans to invoke a provision of the 2005 REAL ID Act to waive environmental laws. Between 2007 and 2009, environmental laws were waived to expedite much of the construction of the nearly 700 miles of existing border fencing.

Discussions about the U.S.-Mexico border frequently set up a false choice between security and environmental protection. Our research shows that America cannot have one without the other. Interagency initiatives between Border Patrol, Homeland Security and federal public land managers are working to protect our national security and our natural resources.

We have seen strides in cooperation between federal agencies along the area we study in Arizona, the state with the most public lands along the border. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, a spectacular borderlands environment and UNESCO biosphere reserve. Once considered too dangerous to fully open to the public - in 2011, a park ranger was shot and killed by a known drug smuggler - today the park is experiencing a boom in day visitors and family campers.

Organ Pipe staff now work closely with the Border Patrol to combat drug activity. Border Patrol worked with the park to plan and fund ecological restoration of areas that had been degraded by border crossers and agents on patrol. Roads no longer needed have been closed, new signage installed, and vegetation replanted. A memorandum of understanding among the departments of Homeland Security, the Interior and Agriculture states that any interagency conflicts about land management on the border should be resolved at the lowest level possible - by the local agency staff on the ground. That agreement was essential to guiding the success at Organ Pipe.

Every parcel of public land is unique. Solutions to protect it while also making it less hospitable for illegal activity will also be unique - far better developed by people on the ground than by bureaucrats or politicians in Washington. Plans to bypass environmental officials on the Texas wall construction fly in the face of this principle.

Organ Pipe and Border Patrol officials worked together to strike a balance between the need for undisturbed wilderness and the legitimate need for security access within the park. In a reopened Organ Pipe, there are both more Border Patrol Agents and more park staff devoted to law enforcement. Their cooperation makes the park safer for everyone.

We have seen the benefits of cooperation elsewhere. Environmental officials can identify and eradicate invasive brush before it provides a screen for people hiding from authorities. They can identify patterns of erosion that would endanger fencing or even a solid wall. Border Patrol can work with land managers to target routes where trafficking is heavy, but without compromising important ecological or archaeological resources. These conversations happen routinely at the local level, where the extent of illegal crossing and the remedies to it are best understood.

It is disappointing to us, as people who study and live in the region, to hear pundits say our country has no control over its own borders. Border Patrol apprehensions of people entering the U.S. illegally have declined 53 percent over the past three years, according to DHS. "The early results show that enforcement matters, deterrence matters and that comprehensive immigration enforcement can make an impact," then-DHS Secretary John Kelly said.

Do people still cross our borders illegally? Yes, everyday. Is drug-running across our border still a problem? Yes. Is the region utterly lawless? The families picnicking at Organ Pipe do not seem to think so.

We need to credit federal agencies for the success they have had and refrain from Washington-based dictates that endanger those successes. Current laws have fostered robust interagency cooperation, making the U.S.-Mexico border safer than it has been in a decade and protecting its natural and scenic resources. If the laws change, that cooperation will be impossible. We will lose important ecological information that has helped the Border Patrol. And, we will erode years of good will between Border Patrol agents and land managers. Ignoring the environmental health of our border region does not solve any problems, but it will create many more.

Baldwin is an assistant professor at the University of Arizona's School of Government and Public Policy, where Emerson is a professor of practice. Lopez Hoffman is an associate professor at the School of Natural Resources and Environment and associate research professor at the Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy of the University of Arizona.
I am a parent, a small business owner and a school board member in Lytle ISD, southwest of San Antonio. I am close to the operational challenges in my district. I can only assume that our state leaders don't know the facts about school districts like mine, otherwise they couldn't possibly be pushing the legislation they are pushing.

We are a small, rural district and 75 percent economically disadvantaged. Our property values are lower than many parts of the state, and we are on the low end of dollars allotted per student by the state. Even so, we are committed to engaging and sustained learning for our students over standardized test drill-and-kill preparation like many schools. We have been recognized statewide for our achievements.

We have a superintendent who knows how to get the most bang for our buck. But now we are at the point where the saying "you can't squeeze blood out of a turnip" is real. We have had to dip into our fund balance over the past few years, and the balance is dwindling.

The noose has tightened each of the last few years with unfunded state mandates; the gratuitous $1,000 teacher pay increases and the vouchers plan that Gov. Greg Abbott and many legislators are supporting will only further strangle our district.

As a school district, we have increased teacher pay to remain competitive with neighboring districts. The salary boost helps with hiring and retention. It's an easy choice for teachers to drive 10 miles down the road to make $10,000 more. We approved the pay increase as a leap of faith that we could continue to afford it in the years to come. We want to pay our teachers more, and we'd like for them to live in and be a part of our community.

We've cut positions as well as not rehired for some positions to help balance our budget. When you cut teachers, you cut courses/electives and increase class size. We've also cut some bus operations and put off large maintenance needs. We are now considering a bond issue as the only way to fund maintenance on our aging facilities. What happens when we've cut back all that we can and there is no fund balance left?

Vouchers only stand to decrease district funding further: Fewer students means less money and less teacher pay and fewer quality teachers. While the financial implications of vouchers are huge, I am also concerned about other aspects of vouchers. Vouchers for special-needs children are only a gateway to vouchers for everyone. I think the families that will be able to take advantage of vouchers are those who can more readily afford private education and can provide the transportation to a school outside of the community. That predominately leaves behind the economically disadvantaged, and promotes segregation. Further, pulling students out of the community breaks down the sense of community, which is a big reason people choose to live in rural communities. And we all know kids in areas like mine who only thrive through the support of their community.

School funding that is already inadequate and inequitable will only get worse with $1,000 pay increases and vouchers. And what do we do when we've cut back all that we can? Do we cut out band, theater arts and sports? Extracurricular activities are invaluable for character building, providing life lessons and helping students explore their gifts. They also provide a lot toward community cohesiveness and growth. If the schools decline, so goes the neighborhood.

Provide adequate and equitable funding so that local school districts have the resources needed to serve the diversity of students without discrimination. Proper funding results in better pay for teachers, more and quality teachers, a better education for all Texas students and stronger communities.

Boyd is a trustee for the Lytle Independent School District.
WASHINGTON - What better way to usher in the hissingly hot dog days of summer, otherwise known as August, than with a high-wire verbal duel between CNN senior White House correspondent (and well-known cosmopolitan) Jim Acosta and White House sniper (and senior adviser) Stephen Miller.

The sniping began during a news conference Wednesday, the same day President Trump endorsed Senate Republicans' plan to reform legal immigration from family-based to skill-based standards.

Reactions were swift, predictable and hysterical:

Oh-my-god, who's going to harvest the crops? This is so un-American! Trump is a bigot!

More or less.

Acosta contributed to the latter lament by citing what he called Trump's three issues: Muslims, Mexicans and media, all of which the president presumably dislikes - except when he's in Saudi Arabia, Mexico or appearing on Fox "News."

Passions intensified when Acosta further suggested that Trump only wants immigrants from English-speaking regions, prompting Miller to accuse him of having a "cosmopolitan bias," which seems like something one would like to have - or drink. Cosmopolitan means worldly, after all, and what's wrong with that? Perhaps some interpret worldliness as globalist or elitist, but then Miller, a Duke University graduate from California, probably isn't carving duck calls in his spare time.

As for Acosta, what could explain his apparent extrapolation that prioritizing English proficiency is tantamount to restricting immigration to certain races or ethnicities? Or that reforming immigration to emphasize skilled workers would exclude people from countries where English is not the first language? One might infer that Trump is a bigot in certain instances, but not necessarily in this one. Are there no other reasons besides bigotry to prefer skilled to unskilled workers?

Acosta's accosting of Miller is why so many Americans see the media as biased. Let's be honest: If Donald Trump discovered a cure for narcissism, no one would object if he used it first on himself, but most in the media would insist that the cure was simply further evidence that Trump is a narcissist.

To Acosta, the president's bias in favor of English-speaking people is obvious and runs counter to the nation's purpose as described in the poem on the Statue of Liberty welcoming the world's tired, poor and huddled masses. Acosta, his inner soliloquist liberated at last, engaged in a recitation, whereupon Miller gleefully retorted that said poem, written in 1883 by one Emma Lazarus, was tacked onto the statue years after it was erected.

In 2017, we can't welcome skilled workers, too?

Today's wretched excess, if you will, is the direct consequence of the well-intentioned Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which gave preference to extended family members of people already here. Long lines ensued and increased quotas followed, as did the flow of immigrants too impatient for the legal process. Legal immigration has increased from 296,697 annually in 1965 to more than 1 million today. Of those, 39 percent are from Asia. About one-third emigrate from Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America. Before the law, 70 percent of legal immigrants were from Europe and Canada, compared with just 10 percent today.

Perhaps these statistics account for Acosta's sense that Republicans want to keep Americans hablando ingles But might there also be other reasons to prefer skilled workers, who would find jobs waiting to be filled, pay taxes and contribute to the rising tide that lifts all boats?

If such preferences are tantamount to bigotry, then others have been equally guilty, including Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy, as well as civil rights leader Barbara Jordan, the Houstonian who in 1972 became the first African-American woman from the South to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. As head of an immigration special task force, Jordan worried that opening the floodgates to unskilled workers would rob American citizens of jobs and strain social services. She, too, suggested focusing more on skilled immigrants.

Kennedy, who in 1965 downplayed such concerns and supported the immigration bill, later changed his mind and in 2007 joined Sen. John McCain in a push for skills-based reforms. But then-presidential candidate Barack Obama and then-Sen. Hillary Clinton opposed the idea because, hold your air horns, they couldn't bear the thought that families (aka future Democratic voters) might be torn asunder.

Oh, the ironies. The GOP has finally defined exactly which families they value, while Democrats have clarified their need for the needy. It would seem we have a draw. Yet somewhere in all the squabbling is space for the "brain power" Jordan urged Americans to call upon for a rational conversation about immigration reform that best serves the national interest.

Meanwhile, thanks for the show, and enjoy ye dog days while ye may.

Parker's email address is kathleenparker@washpost.com.
It is the height of irony that the president should launch his immigration restriction initiative in West Virginia of all places. True, the Mountain State has a problem with immigrants: Almost none of them want to come. Immigrants there are almost as rare as coal miners. If immigrants were crowding out "real Americans" in the job market, West Virginia, along with Mississippi, should be optimal locations. They have among the lowest percentage of immigrants and the highest proportion speaking English only nationwide.

Instead, states with a high immigrant presence such as Texas (with the largest population gain in the previous decade) and California (with an economy larger than all but six nations of the world) are the ones that are thriving. It is difficult to say which is the chicken and which is the egg, but immigration and economic progress go hand in hand. Mainstream economists who have analyzed the impact of immigration conclude that it brings at least a modest benefit in the first generation, with more positive impacts by the second.

After Trump's anti-Mexican diatribe last year, his apologists argued that he was only targeting the undocumented, but a careful examination of his statement reveals nothing of the kind. It was a lie by the third word: "Mexico doesn't send ..." Mexico doesn't send anyone; they come of their own volition. But those who come illegally (more from Central American than Mexico) mostly take jobs the native-born do not want.

Republican trolls have been shedding crocodile tears for those allegedly most harmed by illegal immigration: African Americans. If they had bothered to ask, they would have found them more generous than the public at large in their attitudes toward the undocumented, with more than four-fifths of blacks wanting to let the undocumented stay if they meet certain conditions, and over half favoring a path to citizenship.

Now Trump's indiscriminate xenophobia is on full display. His new initiative echoes the claims of the anti-immigration lobby with the deceptive acronym FAIR, which denounces family visas for promoting chain migration and allegedly undermining the "quality" of U.S. immigration. In fact, chain migration has been the norm across the centuries. Family preference visas account for less than two-thirds of current immigration. On the eve of World War I when immigration of Europeans was virtually unrestricted, nearly 80 percent of those arriving were coming to join family. Chain migration actually cushions culture shock and promotes acculturation in the long run.

Another important point that FAIR neglects: People coming on family visas from countries that had little immigration before the 1965 reforms have similar backgrounds and aspirations as their resident sponsors who gained their initial toehold through educational/occupational visas. (The two are closely associated; seven-eighths of those granted green cards on occupational grounds were already present in the U.S. at the time.) Today, immigrants from Africa, the world's poorest continent, rival Asian immigrants for the top spot in their average levels of education.

Trump's preferences for English speakers is based on another misconception. The language transition is proceeding faster than it did in the past. Despite a considerable immigration from the British Isles, more of the foreign-born were unable to speak English in 1890 than in 2010. Cultural anxieties about the prospect of a "majority-minority society" by 2050 are also based on equally dubious assumptions, ironically promoted by two diametrically opposed groups: fearmongers convinced that "real Americans" like themselves are going to be outvoted and crowded out, and self-important and often self-appointed ethnic leaders trying to exaggerate the size and influence of the groups they "represent."

Both are based on the ahistorical assumption that ethnicity, in terms of both biology and identity, will continue undiluted across generations and keep people outside of the mainstream. In fact, mainstream America is as seductive as ever, and intermarriage and linguistic assimilation are progressing if anything more quickly than in the nation's past. Unless one applies the racist "one-drop rule," the majority-minority society will never come to pass.

Perhaps Trump's West Virginia foray has a certain logic after all, like his wall that even his GOP congressman on the border says is unnecessary, and his indiscriminate crusade against all undocumented. West Virginia is home to a multitude of poorly educated whites ill prepared for the 21st century economy, but badly in need of scapegoats of a darker shade. However, one principle applies across the economic spectrum, as business Republicans could tell Trump: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Or to paraphrase Hippocrates: "First, do no harm."

Kamphoefner teaches immigration history at Texas A&M University, having left his native Missouri in search of opportunity, which he found in the immigration hotspots of Los Angeles, Miami and Texas.
To get an abortion in Texas, some women have to drive a few hours and hundreds of miles to one of the legal providers in Texas. They might walk past protesters through a protected entrance featuring bullet-proof glass.

Abortion providers are required to give women a government booklet that includes false information about the link between abortion and breast cancer. Women must undergo a transvaginal ultrasound. Also, they have to wait 24 hours to undergo an abortion.

There are many reasons why women may want or need an abortion. All are legal. Yet, there is an incredible amount of scrutiny and regulation over this essential women's health service as opposed to other health care.

This stands in stark contrast to being able to purchase a deadly weapon in Texas. A woman could go to any number of retailers such as one of the many firearm shows held every weekend around Houston. If she goes to a private seller, she could buy a semi-automatic weapon without a waiting period or a background check.

I am a family physician who has cared for women with illnesses that make it unsafe for them to carry a pregnancy to term. I have cared for gun violence survivors who pass stool from a hole in their stomach wall and pee by sticking a tube in their penis. However, state legislators continue to make it harder for women to access abortion and easier for anyone to buy a firearm.

Abortion is safer than pregnancy. Four women died in America from complications of abortion in 2012, the year in which the most recent data is available. However, at least 135 women died from pregnancy complications in Texas annually from 2012-2014.

Despite these facts, the Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 8, or SB 8, during the regular session banning the safest second-trimester abortion procedure. It effectively legislates abortion out of existence because the alternative procedures are dangerous. Women's health providers will spend time and money challenging SB 8.

Texas already wasted taxpayer money defending House Bill 2, which was passed in 2013. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that these non-science-based abortion restrictions were unconstitutional because they caused an undue burden on women.

Currently, the Legislature is in the midst of a special session. Gov. Greg Abbott has several anti-choice bills listed among his legislative priorities. If the goal is to protect the health of women in Texas, there are other options, and they do not restrict women's legal rights.

First, members of the Legislature should vote against SB 8 / HB 214. This legislation would remove abortion coverage from private health insurance plans with no exclusions for rape or incest. These provisions make it harder for women to access safe, legal health care.

Another thing legislators can do is vote against SB 10/HB 13, which increases abortion-provider reporting requirements about medical complications. Health professionals already report complications. Increasing this administrative burden for abortion providers does not provide any benefit for women's health outcomes.

Additionally, state representatives should block SB 4/HB 14 because the proposal would add more regulations on governmental contracts with organizations like Planned Parenthood. The providers with the most experience providing essential women's preventive health services would be banned. Let local governments who are accountable to their voters decide how to best care for their population.

Finally, the state should pass HB9, HB 10 and HB 11 with the equivalent SB 17 and SB 82 to study pregnancy-related deaths and complications. Texas has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country, especially when it comes to African-American mothers. Despite modern medicine, women who were healthy enough to get pregnant are dying because of pregnancy-related causes. Examining health disparities and recommending best practices could save lives.

During the special session this month, state legislators should not waste time and taxpayer dollars working on bills that will not withstand judicial scrutiny.

Ask a gynecologist or midwife what life was like before Roe v. Wade, and he or she will describe women who took desperate measures. Some even died from infections and bleeding. Let's not go back to that deadly time. Let's support women's lives and decisions.

A responsible government should focus on providing safe, affordable, comprehensive women's health care so that people have the ability to plan their families and prevent serious problems in the future. Individuals should have the freedom and opportunity to make the best decisions for themselves and their families.

Nguyen (@bicmay) is a family physician who works in Sugar Land. She is a member of the National Physicians Alliance, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization whose motto is "patients over profit, profession over privilege."
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Here's a story you won't read in the press. EU citizens in the UK are going home. The number of EU workers arriving has gone down by 80% compared to the peak year of 2007. With the ugly anti-European atmosphere created by Brexit, Europeans working here feel less comfortable and sure of their welcome in Britain.

The BBC still insists on referring to the French, Spanish, Poles or Swedes living amongst us as "immigrants." That may be technically accurate but as the Guardian's media commentator, Roy Greenslade, noted the term "immigrant" is loaded.

Clive Lewis and David Lammy are two MPs who have spoken out in favour of maintaining free movement as a broad principle. This is also essential if the up to two million Brits who have retired to warmer regions of the EU or who simply live and work across the Channel are to keep the current rights to live and get the same medical and social security care as nationals of the countries where they have made a home.

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Yet still many Labour MPs and trade union leaders seem bewitched by an obsession with immigration controls. Put simply: the UK cannot win or even keep inward investment based on Single Market membership - the most dynamic source of working class job creation - if we insist on immigration controls that discriminate against fellow Europeans. Weasel words like "access" or "partnership" are meaningless. Like being pregnant you are either in the single market or you are not.

However, the words 'single market' and 'immigration' were not on the referendum ballot paper. It is perfectly possible to "leave" and not be a member of the EU and still have open borders as is the case in Norway and Switzerland.

There seems to be an assumption that there is a magic policy called 'immigration controls' which can be enacted and hey presto! all the long-standing tensions that have existed about the presence of foreign-born residents in the UK will subside.

Yet setting up a cumbersome, expensive bureaucracy of Home Office jobsworths to decide who is let in and who is denied access will turn Britain into an even meaner, nastier country than it has become under Tory rule. The latest proposal from the Government's Migration Advisory Committee that only 18-30 year old should be allowed in post-Brexit is surreal. Farewell Arsene Wenger and most premier league managers. If such a measure were to be reciprocated by EU27 member states there will be a mass exodus of British ex-pats who don't meet the youth criterion!

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Brexit most now agree was largely fought and won on immigration. It was a posthumous victory for Enoch Powell as the language he used against BAME immigrants in the 1960s and 1970 was identical to the line about European immigrants from Michael Howard, Theresa May and Nigel Farage this century.

That said the demand for a new approach so that the labour market is geared up to support fairly-paid jobs for British citizens is perfectly reasonable.

Labour or indeed a sensible government should set up a policy review to examine best practice in countries such as the Nordics, or Germany, the Netherlands or Switzerland where there are high levels of employment, and pay and working class purchasing power is better than the in UK.

Far better than quitting the single market is to argue for internal controls, by changing how the UK labour market is organised. Under EU rules, for example, no state agency is obliged to hire foreign workers. But successive health secretaries, including those under Labour, have failed to train enough British doctors, nurses and health care workers. The same is true for all craftworkers, such as electricians, plumbers, painters, carpenters and shop-fitters.

Britain could exercise control by making apprenticeships compulsory for UK firms, as they are in Germany, Nordic nations and other countries where local workers do not feel as under threat as British workers do from European colleagues.

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There already exists in EU law provisions for an emergency brake if too great a volume of Europeans arrives at too great a velocity and overwhelm local community public services. It is perfectly legal to require European citizens to return home if they have not found work after three months.

But that means we have to know who is here and who is at work - British or European. In Britain, the government hasn't the faintest idea. It was easy for Mrs May cheered on by Lib Dem MPs in the 2010 coalition to abolish an essential measure - a national ID card - that allows us to know who is in Britain legally. Other measures could include copying continental practice so that identity cards are needed to access health care and education. Strict enforcement of the EU Agency Workers and Posted Workers Directives would slow down the mass hiring by unscrupulous low-pay bosses of non-British workers. This is a way of controlling immigration by internal means, rather than quotas or crude blockages at frontiers.

Labour and trade unions can join with other sister parties in Europe to launch a campaign for a Fair and Free Movement EU Directive to insist that freedom of movement is not used to undercut existing wages and trade union agreements.

Simply repeating the mantra of "immigrant controls" is not enough. It is fairness at work that matters and that can be achieved without sending a signal that Britain is closed to Europeans.
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What is there left to say about Syria? The horrors have been reported on and reported on. Discussed and discussed. Outside of the human rights, diplomatic and aid communities, you suspect the wider public is finding it hard to focus on any more.

To be sure, things are still catastrophically bad for millions of people in Syria (as well as millions more forced into exile outside the country). And these harsh realities are still - fitfully - reflected in ongoing news reports about humanitarian aid, on sarin gas attacks, on fighting and its effect on beleaguered civilians, on the difficulties and perils of life as a Syrian refugee, and much else.

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But at the same time Syria has somehow faded into a semi-permanent backdrop to other world events. Which is why the deeper immersion provided by a documentary like Sara Afshar's film Syria's Disappeared: The Case Against Assad is so important.

Here we're forced to take a steady look at some of the individual horror stories from Syria. Mariam Hallak, the mother of a young dentistry graduate called Ayham Ghazoul, talks about her prolonged and increasingly desperate efforts to uncover what happened to him after he was arrested by government security forces. Only much later does she discover that he'd been killed in detention only days after his arrest.

We hear from a man called Mansour al-Omari who survived the horrors of torture in a government detention facility. In an unforgettable passage in the documentary, al-Omari describes how he and his fellow detainees, fearing they would all die in jail with their relatives never learning of their fate, hatched a plan to smuggle out a list of the detainees' names if any of them should be released. They tore strips of cloth from their own ragged shirts and scratched out their names using a fragment of chicken bone found on a cell floor. The ink was their own blood mixed with rust. When Mansour is in fact the one released, he wore the shirt in which the cloth strips had been secretly sewn into the cuffs and collar.

And we hear from another torture survivor, the human rights activist Mazen Alhummada. Or, I should perhaps say, we see Mazen Alhummada. Because, in a searingly powerful sequence, we watch Alhummada's face after he's asked how he feels about the people who tortured him in jail. He processes the question for 40 painfully-extended seconds. Tears form in his eyes, gradually rolling down his cheeks. The camera doesn't move. You can hear him swallow. Then, almost calmly though he's clearly struggling with his emotions, Alhummada says: "God will hold them to account. The law will hold them to account. I will not rest until I take them to court and get justice."

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Afshar's film tells us a lot about the mass arrests, the places where people were detained and tortured (including hospitals), and the ongoing investigations. International investigators have amassed huge dossiers of incriminating information comprising 600,000 pages of Syrian government documentation. Like the Nazis, those other bureaucratically-minded mass killers, some of Syria's human rights criminals could eventually be brought to justice because of their obsessive need to document their activities.

But Syria's Disappeared stays in the memory because of people like Mazen Alhummada, and in particular that moment of unbearable pain/calmness as he responds to the question about torture. To me it's reminiscent of the eerie stillness in some parts of The Horror In Homs, the award-winning Channel 4 film made by the French film-maker Mani in 2012. Asfar's documentary takes hold of you in a way that a 90-second TV news report on Syria is unlikely to. Allowing space for Mariam Hallak, Mansour al-Omari and Mazen Alhummada to speak at length (and even wait, think and eventually cry) is key to this.

One of the many tragedies of the Syria conflict is that after more than six years people not directly involved are finding it hard to be shocked or moved by it. In Even the appalling photographs of dead detainees we see in Syria's Disappeared (disfigured corpses photographed by the prison photographer "Caesar") have lost some of their power to shock. In her book Regarding The Pain Of Others, the writer Susan Sontag discusses the "adaptive" process whereby many people become accustomed to supposedly "shocking" images. "As one can become habituated to horror in real life, one can become habituated to the horror of certain images." Even photos of piles of dead bodies at Bergen-Belsen have lost some of their impact as they've become over-familiar. Sontag suggests there can be exceptions, that certain extremely horrific images can retain their potency, though I'm not really sure that's true. Repetition and familiarity eventually dull the senses.

My point about Sara Afshar's excellent Syria film is that what will stay with the viewer the longest is not the atrocity-porn-style photos of dead torture victims, dreadful though they are. It's the face of Mazen Alhummada. This mesmerisingly-watchable man, rather bird-like in his fluttering about in front of the camera, takes you into some small moment of unnameable horror as he thinks over the question of what should be done to rectify years of pain and suffering. It's this unbearable moment of stillness and Mazen's tears you'll remember.

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Looking at Grenfell is like peeling the layers of the onion. At the surface is a range of issues about building safety and the failure of services to respond adequately to an emergency and a tragedy.

Behind that is the history of systematic contempt, neglect and discrimination against the low paid the vulnerable and BME and migrant communities. This enabled those building regulations failures.

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But behind that is the reality of discrimination: the process that decides who it is gets burned to death and who sleeps happily in their comfortable homes. Many survivors have put their finger on that underlying reality: they were given unsafe housing and their attempts to make it safe refused or ignored because of who they are.

An then, it's about how those people are treated as citizens . That they effectively excluded from the important decisions and that compounds their disadvantage

Put simply, those in power value our lives less than they do the lives of the rich and powerful.

That is the fundamental cause of the regulations that failed to ensure our safety, and also why when people like us have raised concerns we have been systematically excluded, ignored and sidelined.

We have a fundamental right to life and the right not to be subjected inhumane or degrading treatment. What Grenfell tells us is that some people get those protections because of who they are and that some people don't because of who they, and those people are people on low income, the vulnerable and people form BME communities. Once in adequate or unsafe housing, they are not listened to. They tried all avenues that were available to them. Their concerns were dismissed. They were treated like second class citizens

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We want the inquiry to look at all the causes of the fire as Theresa put 'no stones will be unturned'. One of these stones is the manner in which people were treated and this partly led to tragic consequences. So we need to change the law, but not just on building regulations. We need to change how councils and other public authorities act so that they must listen to the people they are meant to represent. We need to have enforceable rights to protection that are supported by real consultation and real access to legal help when we need itWe need to invest in our communities which are the communities that built London and now find ourselves getting squeezed out by those who make nothing but have money.

So maybe we will see some changes, although the signs are not encouraging and just maybe those who are responsible will be held accountable. This in itself will not prevent another Grenfell tragedy from happening. It is a system that failed our friends and our neighbours, a system that cripples people like us. It is time we faced this reality and we tackled the root causes of this indifference.

It is not about widening the terms of references of this public inquiry: it is about dealing with the fundamental issues that caused this tragedy. Our community knows what caused the fire, our community warned the very public authorities that fail us again and again.

We will never forget what we witnessed on 14 June 2017: the pain, the despair and the suffering. This must never happen again.

For this inquiry to serve its purpose and to attract our confidence, it must listen to what we say. The terms of references have been the talk of the community for weeks. It is important to us. A group of residents, race equality organisations, academics, lawyers and experts have put in a submission to the panel and may ask to become core participants.

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Our community is bruised, confidence in public authorities is at its lowest and we cannot cope with any further disappointment, any further rejection. We want our views to be taken into account for a change.
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It turns out that Rashan Charles, a 20 year-old black man, who died after police contact, did not swallow an illicit substance, even though the police said he did.

For many this seems to vindicate their suspicions that the police overstepped their mark when they restrained him, an encounter that was viewed widely on CCTV footage. But in some ways the damage has already been done. The public already have a narrative formed around Charles' death. That police were apprehending a miscreant - a drug dealer. Someone relegated to the underclass. And protests in reaction were called riots - violence perpetuated by angry thugs. Riots some papers suggested were reminiscent of those that took place after the death of Mark Duggan.

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There is much that is reminiscent in Charles's case of what happened around Duggan's death on 4 August 2011. But so-called rioting isn't it.

Protests asking for answers around Charles's death did indeed escalate on Friday 28 July in Dalston, east London. The road was barricaded, firebombs were thrown and windows were smashed. But a riot on par with the unpredictable nation-wide reaction that summer of 2011 it was not. The 2011 riots prompted numerous opinion pieces, academic research and policy papers. And it pinned therootcauses of them to police mishandling and inequality.

One of those reports pointed its finger at another guilty party though - the media. And it feels eerily like groundhog day.

At the time of Duggan's death newspapers were wrongly reporting that Duggan had been armed. They were also saying he was a violent gangster but he had never done jail time and only had two minor convictions. And they were reporting this because of their reliance on police sources. Police organisations admitted however that the police may have misled journalists.

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The report 'Media and the Riots: A Call for Action' says that the media should be widening the net and that there should be more diversity in the sources it uses. But instead of raising the platform for representative voices, right wing media is diminishing those voices, working to discredit them. And they're doing this in the worst way.

Take Hackney MP Diane Abbott's statement after the protests on 28 July 2017. Her exact words were:

"The anger and upset at the death of Rashan Charles is understandable. But Rashan's family have explicitly spoken out against hostile actions. We must respect their wishes and any protests must be peaceful."

These words were spun into "local MP Diane Abbott defends rioters" in a newspaper headline.

The same was done to a young black Cambridge University student, Jason Osamede Okundaye, who heads up the institution's equality group. By cherry-picking and conflating tweets, his words were made to sound as though Okundaye was praising violence while calling all white people racist. But Okundaye insists this was not the case and his words were twisted and placed out of context. Concerning is that the story was re-run by a number of media outlets without Okundaye's response on the matter.

Abbott and Okundaye are perhaps two BAME figures that occupy a rare seat at the table of elite institutions like Parliament and Cambridge. A rare flag-wave for the under-represented, raising the agenda of their issues. But this concerted effort to equivocate them with violence or segregation instead sends a message that they somehow do not belong within these institutions.

The language of the media has thus diminished their voices again.

A film about the 2011 riots from the viewpoint of those at the heart of them quoted Martin Luther King at its beginning - "A riot is the language of the unheard".

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Are people being heard? Well we have rising inequality and between 10% and 30% of deaths after police contact are black men. Charles along with Edir Da Costa and Darren Cumberbatch are the most recent cases from the shocking statistics. And a perception that there still hasn't been any justice.




iciHaiti - Politics : PM seeks synergy with NGOs





Prime Minister Lafontant met recently with representatives of NGOs operating in the South of Haiti, in the presence of, among others, Aviol Fleurant, Minister of Planning, his Director of Cabinet and Josue Pierre Louis, Coordinator General of OMRH.



The objective of this meeting was to remind NGOs of the need to place their interventions on the ground in line with the priority actions of the government, while creating a synergy with all the actors of the development for the success of the Caravan of change.



Prime Minister renewed his call for strengthening cooperation based on a relationship of trust and strong partnership with NGOs. He took the opportunity to welcome their support to the Haitian State in its quest for the development of the country.



TB / iciHaiti






















iciHaiti - Court of Cassation : The recruitment process never ends





Following the call for applications, launched last February by the Senate https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-20226-haiti-flash-the-senate-launches-a-call-for-applications.html 32 personalities from the judicial world have applied for the 6 vacant seats.



After analyzing the candidates' files and the proximity surveys, 17 candidates were rejected.



The remaining 15 candidates, spoke front the Senate, demonstrated their knowledge, and explained the role they intended to play in the highest court of the country.



Following this exercise senators yet eliminated 3 candidates and now only has a list of 11 names, while it must give the Executive a list of 18 names (a choice of three candidates per seat).



Also, 6 months after the start of the process, the Senate is about to launch a new call for candidates shortly to choose 7 other candidates to bring the list to 18 for the 6 vacant seats...



To be continued...



IH/ S/ iciHaiti


























Uruguay is set to sell bronze eagle recovered from wreck of the Graf Spee to raise money for its armed forces

By Darren Boyle for MailOnline6 August 2017Uruguay is set to sell a bronze eagle grasping a Nazi swastika recovered from the pocket battleship Graf Spee which was scuttled off Montevideo in December 1939 to help fund its military.The German ship, which was one of the most advanced in the world, had been attacking merchant shipping in the south Atlantic with relative impunity following the outbreak of hostilities in September 1939.However, the vessel, which was ambushed by the Royal Navy, suffered major damage in the Battle of the River Plate on 13th December 1939 - the first naval battle of World War II - and was forced to seek refuge in the neutral port of Montevideo for repairs to make her seaworthy.The Royal Navy waited just outside Uruguayan territorial waters to attack the Graf Spee after it left port.However, Captain Hans Langsdorff scuttled the ship with a skeleton crew before it could be attacked - saving the vast majority of his crew.The giant bronze eagle and swastika - which weighs between 300 and 400 kilograms - was recovered from the seabed by businessman Alfredo Etchegaray in 2006.The Uruguayan Supreme Court ruled the Nazi artefact now belonged to the nation, although it admitted Mr Etchegaray should receive 50 per cent of the sale price for recovering the object from the seabed.Mr Etchegaray previously told the BBC the eagle could be worth up to 10 million.Captain Langsdorff scuttled his vessel rather than having to face the Royal Navy again.However, he was condemned by the Nazi hierarchy for not rejoining battle with the Royal Navy and going down with his ship.The German embassy in Montevideo has urged Uruguayan authorities not to put the object on public display because it could glorify the Nazi regime.According to the BBC, Guido Westerwelle, who was the German foreign minister during a visit to Uruguay in 2010, told officials in Montevideo: 'We want the remains of the Graf Spee to be dealt with properly.'We want to prevent wreckage from the ship, in particular the Nazi symbols, from landing on the market for military insignia.'The Graf Spee's telemeter - which measured distance - is on display at the entrance to the city's harbour.The confrontation was the first naval battle of the war. It involved the heavy cruiser HMS Exeter and light cruisers HMS Ajax and HMS Achilles.The three Royal Navy vessels were considerably smaller and less well armed than the Graf Spee.The Graf Spee hit HMS Exeter causing considerable damage as the first rounds of the 20-minute battle were fired.Despite the theat, HMS Ajax and Achilles raced towards the German pocket battleship bringing it within the range of their guns.However, it was HMS Exeter which caused the major damage on the German ship, which was forced to limp into Montevideo after being hit 20 times.The Germans wanted 14 days to repair their damaged ship, but Uruguayan authorities, under pressure from the British, granted them 72 hours. If the Graf Spee was not able to return to sea within that time, it was going to be interned for the duration of the war. After Graf Spee's captain Hans Langsdorff was told that his stay could not be extended beyond the 72 hours, he scuttled his damaged ship rather than face the overwhelmingly superior force that the British had led him to believe was awaiting his departure. On 19th December, Langsdorff shot himself.While raiding vessels in the south Atlantic, the Graf Spee sank 450,000 tonnes of shipping.Read more: Uruguay is set to sell bronze eagle saved from Nazi ship | Daily Mail Online Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
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With Brexit on the horizon, the UK is now looking for ways to open up trade with countries outside the EU. A trade deal with the US is one of the most significant options politicians are exploring and an agreement that would increase imports and exports of food and drink could be an important component of this. This has raised the possibility of the UK accepting US food standards, and a prominent example of this is the use of chlorine to wash chicken carcasses. This is currently banned in the EU.

Why are chickens washed with chlorine in the US?

It all comes down to money and efficiency of space. The majority of farmers do care about rearing their birds, but as profit margins can be very tight, animal welfare is sidelined to keep costs down. In the EU, cost is also important, but the law means it cant come at the expense of the birds basic welfare. There is a legal minimum amount of space, lighting and ventilation for EU poultry-rearing houses.

The more space the birds have to move around in, the fewer can be housed in a single area, which in turn has an effect on production costs. As there are no laws governing this in the US, the birds can be crammed in tightly so they have limited movement, with little light or ventilation. This reduces production costs but increases the risks of disease and contamination in a flock.

Washing the chickens in a strong chlorine solution (20-50 parts per million of chlorine) provides a brash, cost-effective method of killing any microorganisms on the surface of the bird, particularly bacteria such as species of Salmonella and Campylobacter. This helps prevent the meat being contaminated with microbes during slaughter and evisceration.

Why is the process banned in the EU?

US chicken has been banned in the EU since 1997 because of this chlorine-washing process. But this isnt because the treatment itself has been deemed dangerous. A report by the EU Scientific Committee on Veterinary Measures, for example, highlighted that the chemical cleaning treatment can be effective at removing food-borne pathogens depending on how it is used. The real fear is that heavily soiled birds may not be sufficiently disinfected, and that relying on chlorine washing could lead to poorer hygiene standards overall.

(Shutterstock (Shutterstock)

EU officials believe the food industry should be continually improving hygiene standards in all steps of processing  the farm to fork principle, and so have banned chickens washed in chlorine as a deterrent to poor practices. But in the US there are no poultry welfare standards so the process is common. There have also been reports, including undercover video evidence by the Humane Society of the United States, of both inhumane and unsanitary practices being carried out within poultry houses due to a lack of animal welfare regulation.

What are the potential health risks of chlorine washing?

Although there are some benefits to this chlorine washing, there are concerns about it. Some US abattoirs and processing plants rely heavily on chlorination because their other hygiene standards are so poor that they would be illegal in Europe. The process is also very good at removing odours and surface slime, meaning the meat can be passed off as fresh for much longer than it should be.

Chlorine isnt toxic at the levels used in the washing process and doesnt itself cause cancer. But studies have shown that the treatment can cause carcinogens such as semicarbazide and trihalomethanes to form in the poultry meat if the concentration of chlorine is high enough. The US Food Safety and Inspection Service does set limits to prevent this but there is always a risk they could be violated.
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An NHS Trust has come under fire after sending leaflets to terminally ill cancer patients advertising the latest technologies available through private health care.

Ali Schofield, 33, spoke of her disgust at the distressing messages she received through the post advertising private clinic Nova Healthcare. Ms Schofield, who has secondary breast cancer, said: I felt really cold when I saw the leaflet because it suggested that I would have better healthcare if I was to go private.

It offered me access to the latest technologies and made me think: so what am I getting now? Its disgusting. It puts the seed of doubt into you.

The lifestyle journalist and collage artist said the adverts, included with letters sent from St Jamess University Hospital in Leeds, where she receives her chemotherapy, would lead patients to believe the NHS was second class and that they should pay for private treatment.

Adverts like this give the impression that NHS cancer care is second class. Its unreasonable to have that pushed in your face at your NHS appointment.

It was very upsetting to feel someone was trying to make money out of cancer patients receiving NHS care, she told The Observer. It was appalling that the NHS had used her medical records for promotional purposes, she added.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 11 November 2022 City workers attend a Remembrance Day ceremony at Lloyd's of London, in the City of London, to mark Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of the First World War PA UK news in pictures 10 November 2022 A grey heron lands on the river Dodder in Dublin on a sunny autumn morning PA 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. 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Responding to the complaints, the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs St Jamess, admitted around 1,000 Nova Healthcare leaflets had been sent out to patients in total.

The hospital has also been criticised for putting up posters for Nova  which operates private appointments on site on a separate floor of the hospital - on the walls of the NHS oncology unit.

Ms Schofield said: The first floor is where the NHS patients go for oncology appointments and chemotherapy. You cant get into the place now without seeing adverts for Nova Healthcare.

It is preying on people who dont have the money and might not want private healthcare anyway. Its wrong.

A spokesman for Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust said: We are very sorry for any distress caused by the inclusion of the information about private healthcare in our patient letter.

As soon as we were able to look into our patients concerns, we apologised in person and publicly. We stopped sending the leaflet immediately and are reviewing its use.

The trust has a commercial relationship with Nova Healthcare under which the company leases accommodation on our campus at St Jamess University Hospital to provide consulting and daycare for private patients.

Nova Healthcare also apologised for the distress caused.
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We are in the midst of a information revolution, matched perhaps only by the printing revolution of the 15th century and the reading revolution of the 18th. The digital revolution has made writers, commentators, and publishers of us all  and we can reach potential audiences of millions at the touch of a button.

This level of reach would have been unfathomable in the 17th century, when a thousand copies was considered a huge print run. However 17th-century readers faced some of the same problems we encounter today. The challenge of finding unbiased, accurate reportage of relevant political issues was as daunting in the 1640s as it is now. We are told we live in a post-truth era  which suggests that there has, at some stage, been a golden age of truth. In fact, consumers of news have always been subject to the perils of misinformation or propaganda  its by no means the first era of fake news.

Our media today combines more information with faster distribution than ever before. However, acceleration like this has happened previously in times of intense political upheaval. During the 1640s and 1650s Western Europe stumbled out of the Thirty Years War only to be plunged straight back into revolts, civil wars and regicide. During this intense period the medium of print was pushed to new limits. Across France and England, royalists, frondeurs (political rebels), roundheads and cavaliers faced off not just on the battlefield but through the art and wiles of the pamphleteer. They presented clearly antagonistic and contradictory versions of the truth, purposefully offering dramatically different views of their actions for or against the state.

French letters

In France, news travelled in a variety of ways  through pamphlets, affiches, which were posted around cities, and billets  small card-sized reports that could be hidden or discarded quickly in the event of arrest. Low literacy rates did little to slow the spread of this news, particularly in urban areas. News was relayed (and redrafted) often by word of mouth  the social media of the age. Colporteurs peddled songs and stories on the streets, often scribbled down on notes, or sung aloud to an already well-known tune. Making the message memorable was half the battle  the other half could be covered by the outlandish or scandalous nature of the material.

Cardinal Mazarin was a particular target of malicious gossip

One of the best-known examples of seditious material during this decade was that of the Mazarinades during the French civil wars during the early years of Louis XIVs reign. These pamphlets, primarily attacking Louis XIVs prime minister Cardinal Mazarin, levelled charges of everything from corruption and treason to incest and sodomy and other sexual misdemeanours against the Italian cardinal.

The outlandish and extreme claims made by this particular set of pamphlets have echoed in the political sphere over the past year. Probably the best-known recent example of fake news was the Pizzagate case, in which a pizza parlour in Washington DC was targeted as a supposed hub of a paedophile ring led by high-ranking Democrats  leading to a shooting at the restaurant when one conspiracy theorist went to investigate further. This conspiracy theory shared a number of characteristics with Mazarins treatment, not least in that they both raised the issue of child abuse  conflating sexual disorder with political corruption is an old trick.

Not all readers were (or will be) misled. Many were exposed to a multitude of viewpoints, gaining a balance at least from a wider consumption of material, sometimes handed to them on the street, or simply listened to as they went about their daily business. Coureurs and coureuses (male and female runners) sang the latest news on the street and were hard to avoid  indeed these songs-of-news were better known as the original vaudevilles, literally what goes around the city. In the same way, any discerning internet surfer today can find a huge range of competing viewpoints  but the packaging of news online now presents a different set of problems.

Falsehood flies

Distinguishing between misinformation and disinformation is challenging. This leads to the charge of fake news being levelled at almost all outlets  Donald Trumps habit of accusing the mainstream media of lying has become a particular feature of his administration. This raises an urgent question: if the political establishment continues to undermine the value of the press and to erode its integrity by lumping investigative journalism with unsubstantiated rumour, what measures to control freedom of expression and means of communication will government deem justifiable?

Jonathan Swift: Falsehood flies

The latter decades of the 17th century were characterised by severe repression of the press, especially effective in Louis XIVs France, where many were persecuted for writing and publishing seditious material. Many fled the country, or published on the borders around France. In England rumour continued to weave political magic or havoc depending on ones perspective, not least in episodes such as The Popish Plot in the 1670s  the widely believed fake news that Jesuits were planning to do away with Charles II in favour of his Catholic younger brother James  but it tended to be a much safer place to be a journalist or pamphleteer, despite considerable political and religious tensions.

The role of the press during this period certainly gave commentators cause for concern. Jonathan Swift displayed his usual healthy cynicism when he noted that: Falsehood flies, and truth comes limping after it. But we can also take heart from the 1644 work Areopagitica, Miltons timely treatise on the importance of the freedom of expression:

For who knows not that Truth is strong  she needs no policies, nor strategems, nor licencings to make her victorious, those are the shifts and the defences that error uses against her power.

The advice of that age endures now  let falsity and deception serve as unavoidable counterpoints to what is accurate. They underline the necessity of identifying what is fake, disputing what is wrong, and the imperative of pursuing the truth.

Linda Kiernan is a lecturer in French history at Trinity College Dublin. This article was originally published on The Conversation (theconversation.com)
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A 12-year-old rape victim has spoken of her devastation after her attacker was spared jail because a judge thought she had been an "active participant" in sex with him.

The girl said she has attempted suicide following the decision to let Daniel Cieslak walk free after he pleaded guilty to raping her at a house party in Edinburgh in July 2015.

She believes Mr Cieslak, then aged 19, had sex with her while she was unconscious on a couch after drinking vodka and cherry cola during a night out with her 13-year-old friend.

A Scottish court gave Mr Cieslak a controversial absolute discharge in March this year after hearing that he believed the victim was over 16.

Lady Maggie Scott, the senior Scottish judge who sentenced the student, said: "The victim willingly participated in the sexual intercourse and there was, in fact, consent."

But the girl has hit back against the ruling, asking: "How can someone consent when they can't even talk?"

In an emotional letter published by the Daily Record, she says: "The guy Daniel said he didnt know my age. I can barely remember that night.

I have flashbacks, images ever since.

I had passed out in the living room then I remember him picking me up, and then waking up in a bed."

The victim, now 14 years old, says she suffers from anxiety and depression and takes tablets to help her get to sleep following the rape.

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Once a "confident, happy" youngster, she claims she now has to "fake a smile", and wrote: "I even tried to commit suicide because I was barely holding it together."

She said she had celebrated with her family when Mr Cieslak pleaded guilty to the rape of a girl under the age of 13 years, but explained: Then he walked free, nothing at all. I was devastated.

In her judgment, Lady Scott ruled that Mr Cieslak "had reasonable grounds to believe she was above the age of consent" after he met the victim and her teenage friend at 4am in a taxi queue in Edinburgh City Centre.

The trio agreed to go to a party at his friend's flat, and during the taxi journey Mr Cieslak said the girls claimed to be 16 and 17 years old.

The taxi driver said he believed the victim was 20 years old when he was questioned about the night.

Once at the party, Lady Scott said Mr Cieslak and the victim had sex - the judge said there was "no suggestion of her being distressed" when she left the following morning.

She revealed that police officers had spoken to the victim in the street before she met Mr Cieslak, and said they showed "no concerns about the age of the victim" while they were searching for a missing girl.

When explaining the reasons for Mr Cieslak's absolute discharge, Lady Scott cited the victim's "willingness to go to the flat to party and when she got there to engage in consensual sexual activity with you, in which she was an active participant".

Consent is not a defence to the charge because children under 13 are deemed legally incapable of giving consent.

The victim's mother was left furious at the sentence at Glasgow's High Court and told the Daily Record: I dont think it sank in for [my daughter].

"She asked me, What happens now mum? I told her, Basically nothing, darling. She asked, So hes just walked free?

She knows she shouldnt have been in town with her friend.

"For weeks she said, Its my fault. I shouldnt have been there. But now shes at the angry stage."

The mother insisted that "what happened to her wasnt consensual".

Mr Cieslak, now aged 21, cried and held his head in his hands when he was arrested and interviewed about the rape.

Lady Scott said the reaction supported "the fact that your belief she was 16 was genuine" and told the court there was no "need for, or public interest in, punishment".

The engineering student was not required to sign the Sex Offenders' Register.
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A "dangerous and disturbed" man who sexually assaulted five women in a single weekend, subjecting his final victim to a "horrific" knife-point attack, has been jailed for eight years.

Dorian Bell, 32, of Southwark, carried out the attacks on the weekend of 18 and 19 March this year, targeting women and teenaged girls in south London  one of whom was walking with her father when she was assaulted.

His first victim was young woman he attempted to engage in conversation as she walked home in Southwark at about 4am on 18 March, before sexually assaulting her. Bell ran off when he was disturbed by residents alerted by her screams.

Less than an hour later, at 4.50am, on New Kent Road, Walworth, Bell assaulted a woman as she walked home with a companion, putting his hands up her dress. He ran away when she fought back.

Bell struck again the next day in Beckway Street, Walworth, targeting a teenaged girl on her way to the shops at about 4.45pm. Without warning he grabbed her and shoved his left hand under her top before groping her.

Recommended Sex attacks on London transport rise by more than a third in one year

Less than an hour later at 5.25pm in Walworth, Bell assaulted another teenager as she was walking with her father, grabbing her right buttock and squeezing it for 5 to 10 seconds, the Metropolitan Police said.

Later that night at 11.40pm, Bell grabbed a woman as she walked down John Ruskin Street in Southwark, dragging her into an alleyway and punching her in the face, before producing a knife and telling her he would rape her.

Two passers-by were alerted by the victims screams and Bell again ran away.

The victim immediately called the police and officers on their way to her spotted Bell in a nearby street, apprehending him after a short chase. He then pulled out the knife in his possession and attempted to cut his wrists and neck with it, before he was eventually arrested.

Detectives said they were able to quickly link the attacks by the descriptions given by the victims and other evidence.

At Inner London Crown Court, Bell was sentenced to eight years imprisonment plus a further five years on licence, and placed on the sex offenders register indefinitely.

DC Robert Jamieson of the Mets Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command, welcomed the sentence and paid tribute to the courage of the victims.

Dorian Bell is an extremely dangerous and disturbed sexual predator who has complete disregard for his victims and the impact his actions have had on their lives.

He sexually assaulted five females in a series of attacks over one weekend, one of whom was subjected to a horrific knife-point attack.

I would like thank the victims and acknowledge their courage throughout this investigation. Due to the overwhelming forensic and CCTV evidence, Bell had no option other than to plead guilty.

He added: The sentence handed to Bell reflects the gravity of the offences and the effect that his actions have had on the victims since the attacks.

The Met declined to release an image of Bell.
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A British woman who says she was kidnapped in Milan and held captive for six days while a criminal gang tried to auction her online as a sex slave has spoken out.

Glamour model Chloe Ayling, 20, told reporters on the doorstep of her mothers home in Coulsdon, south London, that during the ordeal she had no idea if she would live to tell the tale.

"Ive been through a terrifying experience. Ive feared for my life, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour," she said.

Im incredibly grateful to the Italian and UK authorities for all they have done to secure my safe release.

 Police confirm British model, 20, kidnapped and 'auctioned on dark web' in Milan

I have just arrived home after four weeks and havent had time to collect my thoughts. I am not at liberty to say anything further until I have been debriefed by the UK police.

Ms Ayling gave a detailed account of the alleged abduction to Italian police.

It is believed she was drugged with horse tranquilliser ketamine, stuffed inside a bag then bundled into the boot of a car on 11 July after she was lured to Milan on the pretext of a photo shoot.

She was then said to have been kept in a house tied to furniture for six days while her alleged abductors apparently auctioned her on the dark web for 230,000.

In her statement, Ms Ayling described the moment she regained consciousness after being drugged.

When I woke up I was wearing a pink bodysuit and the socks I am wearing now," she said.

I realised I was in the boot of a car with my wrists and ankles handcuffed, adhesive tape on my mouth. I was inside a bag and was only able to breathe through a small hole.

It is claimed her captors released her without harming her or receiving any payment when they learned she has a child.

Milanese police believe she was transported in the bag to Borgial, an isolated village near Turin, before being released on 17 July.

An online advert is reported to have been created using a photograph of Ms Ayling showing her curled up with a calling card on her stomach offering sexual services and giving her vital statistics.

Italian newspaper Il Giornale reported Ms Ayling was told she would be sold outside of Europe.

He [one of the alleged kidnappers] told me ... That he alone had earned more than 15m (13.5m) in the last five years and explained to me that all the girls are destined for the Arab countries, the paper reported she said.

When the buyer gets tired of the girl bought by auction (they) can give them to other people, and when it is no longer of interest they are to become a tiger meal.

(Instagram, Chloe Ayling (Instagram, Chloe Ayling)

Black Death, the organised crime group suspected of her kidnap, claimed they released her after finding out she has a two-year-old child, Italian police said.

Investigators said they found a letter after searching a computer belonging to the gang, which read: You are being released as a huge generosity from Black Death Group. Your release does, however, come with a warning and you should read this letter very carefully.

You are certainly aware of your value on human slavery market and must make a note that this isnt personal, this is business. For your release we have taken a number of factors into consideration.

A mistake was made by capturing you, especially considering you are a young mother that should have in no circumstances be lured into kidnapping.

Second important factor you are very well aware of is your overall protection by one of our main and very well respected men who made a very clear and solid stance in your case.

You will, upon your landing in your home country cease any investigation activities related to your kidnapping. You also agreed to sneak a pre-determined set of information in to the media and we will expect to see evidence that has been done in the near future.

You and your family will, in no way ever talk about us in bad language and without respect. You have been treated fairly, with respect and we expect to hear exactly the same about us in return.

You can release any information you have heard from MO while your (sic) holding as he would never give you any information that could harm our activities.

We will not tolerate lying about anything that has happened.

You have also agreed to pay outstanding costs of your release of $50,000. We expect that money to be paid in BitCoins within one month.

Any sort of disobedience with the above will result in your elimination.

According to Ms Ayling's account to Italian investigators, she was told several potential buyers had been lined up before the kidnappers had a change of heart.

A Polish man, who lives in Britain, was arrested on 18 July on suspicion of kidnap and extortion, Italian police said.

Italian officials released a mugshot of a suspect, named as 30-year-old Lukasz Pawel Herba.

Police handout of 30-year-old suspect Lukasz Pawel Herba, who is wanted by Italian police in relation to the kidnap of Ms Ayling (Police handout)

It is alleged two men tried to sell Ms Ayling online for more than 230,000 and then demanded the model's agent, Phil Green, paid 50,000 to secure her safe release.

She was taken to the British consulate in Milan, despite the ransom not being paid.

Milan police officer Lorenzo Bucossi told reporters the group the suspect allegedly worked for offered mercenary services on the dark web.

According to a translation on Sky News, Mr Bucossi said: Certainly the author of this very serious crime is a dangerous person, don't forget he was also ready to carry out a 'final solution', as he called it.

He was a killer and was working for an organisation on the deep web that is offering mercenary services such as bombing attacks, kidnapping and the selling of girls on the dark web.

Italian police said they are working with officials in Britain and Poland as they continue to investigate.

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said an address in Sampson Close in Oldbury was raided on 18 July in connection with the investigation.
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The UKs first body farm, where decaying human remains are studied, could be created if forensic scientists can persuade the Government to allow it.

Dr Anna Williams, a forensic anthropologist at Huddersfield University, said cases like the murder of Milly Dowler could have been helped" with information of the type that we will get from such centres.

It would have allowed us to develop improved search and location techniques for finding bodies of people who had been missing for a long time. There is now an urgent need to establish one in this country, she said.

The Human Tissue Authority (HTA) is in regular contact with scientists including Dr Williams.

Our aim is to ensure that, were such a facility to be established in the UK, the consent of the individuals who donate their bodies would have primacy and the activities taking place would be subject to the same standards as those required in other areas of research where human tissue is used," a spokesperson said.

John Cassella, a professor of forensic science education at Staffordshire University, also called for a British body farm which would improve and enhance UK research.

He told The Guardian: We need to carry out experiments on corpses to understand the processes that take place in humans after they have died and that is just the sort of thing we would do at these centres.

In the United States, there are several body farms, or human taphonomic facilities as they are officially known. Taphonomy is the study of decaying organisms. The centres, run by the FBI, are where forensic scientists carry out research to understand what happens to a body after death.

Scientists uncover ancient human remains Show all 3 1 /3 Scientists uncover ancient human remains Scientists uncover ancient human remains 349364.bin AFP PHOTO/HO/Brett Eloff/COURTESY OF LEE BERGER /UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND Scientists uncover ancient human remains 349381.bin Paul Dirks/PA Wire Scientists uncover ancient human remains 349382.bin Paul Dirks/PA Wire

There are currently no places like this in the UK. Researchers would need a change in the law as it is illegal to use human remains for such a purpose.

However, a suggested short-term solution is if volunteers donate their body parts following operations.

UK researchers have been using pig carcasses which have physiological similarities to humans.

Glyndwr University in Wales has a taphonomic facility where pigs are buried in shallow graves, hung up or left to rot.

Dr Chris Rogers, who is in charge of the forensic science course, believes the research would be of great value to the police.

He said: We would be looking to determine new ways of estimating how long someone or something has been dead.
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Londons V&A museum has been forced to apologise after a breastfeeding mother was told to cover herself while feeding her baby.

Kat Joyce, 37, said she was perplexed by the incident, which happened to take place during National Breastfeeding Week.

Posting a picture on Twitter of herself with her son next to a sculpture of a breastfeeding woman, Ms Joyce said: Flashed a nanosecond of nipple while breastfeeding and was asked to cover up in V&A courtyard. Am perplexed

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It was the first time in three and half years of breastfeeding that she had received such a complaint, she said, pointing out that the Kensington museum contains dozens of images and statues of naked men and women.

She said: If people really want an eyeful of boob there are plenty to choose from, mostly far more exquisite than mine and unimpeded by a writhing toddler.

Museum director and former Labour MP Tristram Hunt apologised on the social media site, posting: [Very] sorry. Our policy is clear: women may breast-feed wherever they like, wherever they feel comfortable and should not be disturbed.

Ms Joyce was approached by staff and asked to cover up while feeding her child in the museum courtyard (Twitter)

Earlier this week, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health issued recommendations that the importance of breastfeeding is taught to children from school age to widen understanding.

The UK has one of the lowest rates of breastfeeding in Europe - with just a third of babies receiving breast milk at the age of six months.

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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 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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. 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Some argue this is a result of societal attitudes, whereby breastfeeding in public is still taboo.

Professor Neena Modi, president of the Royal College, said at the time: Regrettably the attitudes of a large part of society mean breastfeeding is not always encouraged; local support is patchy, advice is not always consistent and often overly dogmatic, support in the workplace not always conducive to continued breastfeeding.

And perhaps, most worryingly, breastfeeding in public is still often stigmatised. It is no wonder that for many mothers, there are too many barriers.

Following her own incident at the museum, Ms Joyce added that the reason it was important was because embarrassment about breastfeeding [is] still one of the most common reasons that women give up.

Responding to the debate on Twitter, a V&A spokesperson said: We are investigating what happened but women are welcome to breastfeed in the museum and we have quiet spaces for those who prefer privacy.
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Families who survived the Grenfell Tower disaster and the firefighters who rushed to save them are being offered hundreds of free, crowd-sourced holidays.

Hundreds of holiday stays are being made available by members of the Grenfell Tower Holiday Appeal group on Facebook, organised by two Devon women.

Angie Mays and Kay Gilbert, two friends from Ilfracombe, originally started the initiative to help firefighters come to terms with what they have experienced that night and after.

However, the pair soon extended the offers to families who survived the blaze.

Its just been amazing. Weve got over 400 holidays. Weve had messages from Australia, New Zealand, people offering their places, Ms Mays told Sky News.

Weve had people book to go on holiday in Spain, Yorkshire, just all over really. Theres no end to where people have messaged us from, its incredible, so much support.

Several organisations have also risen to the challenge, including charity Play Association and Felpham Sailing Club, which has offered families seaside holidays.

One family that took up the offer told Sky it has made a real difference.

Its amazing. From the moment I saw the sea. Breathing the air... its something different, Nabila, whose family has been unable to return to their home near Grenfell Tower since the fire, told the broadcaster.

In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Show all 51 1 /51 In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Police have released images from inside the tower where at least 58 people have died Metropolitan Police In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A still from a video shared by polices what appears to be a stationary bicycle sitting among the ashes In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A still from a video shared by police shows the remnants of a burnt-out bathroom In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Picture showing the lifts on an unknown floor Metropolitan Police In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Emergency crews outside the front entrance to the tower Metropolitan Police In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Fire crews inspecting flats in the burnt out tower London Metropolitan Police In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Grenfell Tower is seen in the distance PA In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A drone flies near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire 'Theresa May Stay Away' message written on the messages of support at Latymer Community Church for those affected by the fire Ray Tang/REX In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire An aerial view of the area surrounding Grenfall tower Getty In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Donated shoes sit in the Westway Sports Centre near to the site of the Grenfell Tower fire Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Messages of support for those affected by the massive fire in Grenfell Tower are displayed on a well near the tower in London AP In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A local resident stands on her balcony by the gutted Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Messages of condolence are left at a relief centre close to the scene of the fire that broke out at Grenfell Tower, EPA In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A police officer stands by a security cordon outside Latimer Road station Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Firemen examine the scorched facade of the Grenfell Tower in London on a huge ladder AP In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A search dog is led through the rubble of the Grenfell Tower in London as firefighting continue to damp-down the deadly fire AP In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn comforts a local resident (name not given) at St Clement's Church in west London where volunteers have provided shelter and support for people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower David Mirzoeff/PA In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn hugs councillor Mushtaq Lasharie as he arrives at St Clement's Church in Latimer Road, where volunteers have provided shelter and support for people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn meeting staff and volunteers at St Clementis Church in Latimer Road David Mirzoeff/PA In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Firefighters with a dog walk around the base of the Grenfell Tower REUTERS/Peter Nicholls In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Emotions run high as people attend a candle lit vigil outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Debris hangs from the blackened exterior of Grenfell Tower Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A woman speaks to Mayor of London Sadiq Khan outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Yui Mok/PA Wire In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A woman holds a missing person posters near the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Sadiq Khan speaking with a resident James Gourley/REX In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Ken Livingstone walks near the scene of the Grenfell Tower fire Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is confronted by Kai Ramos, 7, near Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Yui Mok/PA Wire In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Mayor of London Sadiq Khan speaks to a woman outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Yui Mok/PA Wire In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Volunteers distribute aid near Grenfell Tower Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People gather to observe a vigil outside St Clement's Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People light candles as they observe a vigil outside St Clement's Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A man distributes food from the back of a van near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A firefighter is cheered near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A T-shirt with a written message from the London Fire Brigade hangs from a fence near The Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A young girl on her way to lay flowers near Grenfell Tower Getty Images In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire The remains of residential tower block Grenfell Tower are seen from Dixon House a nearby tower block Getty In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Volunteers prepare supplies for people affected by the Grenfell Tower block which was destroyed in a fire REUTERS/Neil Hall In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Volunteers move a car to make space for a lorry picking up supplies for people affected by the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People distribute boxes of food near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower bloc REUTERS/Paul Hackett In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A woman touches a missing poster for 12-year-old Jessica Urbano on a tribute wall after laying flowers on the side of Latymer Community Church next to the fire-gutted Grenfell Tower AP In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A man looks at messages written on a wall near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Candles and messages of condolence near where the fire broke out at Grenfell Tower EPA In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Police carry a stretcher towards Grenfell Tower Rick Findler/PA Wire In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Emergency services at Grenfell Tower Rick Findler/PA Wire In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Police carry out a body from Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Rick Findler/PA Wire

Were really grateful, were so honoured to have this moment of a day and to see [the children] smiling and say it was the best day!

Less than a third of the Governments offers of housing have been accepted by survivors, with claims that a number of the properties were highly unsuitable.

The majority of the survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire, which killed at least 80 people, remain in emergency accommodation, seven weeks after the devastating blaze.

Additional reporting by PA
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Britains first black Shakespearean actor has been honoured with the unveiling of a blue plaque in Coventry.

Ira Aldridge became manager of the Coventry Theatre in 1828, after impressing the citys residents with his acting talent on a tour.

The actor, who died 150 years ago, put on performances that are believed to have inspired the people of Coventry to petition Parliament to abolish slavery.

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Aldridge was honoured by the city of Coventry on Thursday, with the Lord Mayor Tony Skipper unveiling a blue plaque celebrating his legacy as the UKs first black theatre manager.

Its very important, Professor Tony Howard, who leads Warwick Universitys Multicultural Shakespeare project.

Hes been admired and respected for a long time as the first black Shakespearean actor, but many people are less aware of the fact that he had also been the first black theatre manager.

The plaque was unveiled in Coventry on Thursday (Tony Howard)

The ceremony marked the 150th anniversary of his death and was attended by actor Earl Cameron, who is widely celebrated as one of the first black actors to break the colour bar in the UK.

Cameron was also trained by Aldridges daughter Amanda and was invited as a guest of honour at the plaque unveiling.

Aldridge was born in New York in 1807 and worked as an actor in the US until the 1920s when he migrated to England after being brutally beaten in racist attacks.

He rose to fame in the UK, managing to break down racial barriers, playing principal roles, including Romeo, Hamlet, Othello and later on, King Lear.

The actual theatre that Aldridge managed was demolished long ago, but the permanent memorial will mark the site where it would have stood.

Its a reminder of the fact that cities come and cities go; they go through periods of strength and depression. Thats why we have to honour those moments, when people do the unexpected, Professor Howard said.

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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

I think the city is very proud and very happy, he added.

Aldridge has already been honoured with a blue plaque in the London borough of Bromley at a home where he once lived as part of the English Heritage scheme.

The Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeares globe will also be honouring the actor with an event called Against Prejudice: A celebration of Ira Aldridge 19 September.
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Mary Beard has spoken about the Twitterstorm of abuse she received after arguing that Roman Britain was ethnically diverse.

The historian and television presenter said she received a torrent of aggressive insults for days after she said a BBC schools video that depicted a high-ranking solider and a father of a Roman Britain family as being black to be pretty accurate.

She argued that the character in the BBC cartoon was loosely based on Quintus Lollius Urbicus, a man from what is now Algeria, who became governor of Britain.

She spoke against the rubbish arguments about genetic evidence from alt-right commentators and their desire for certainty when it came to historical information that was not always possible to ascertain, such as the population of Britain during the Roman empire and the ethnic make-up.

It also feels very sad to me that we cannot have a reasonable discussion on such a topic as the cultural ethnic composition of Roman Britain without resorting to unnecessary insult, abuse, misogyny and language of war not debate (and that includes one senior academic)," she wrote in the Times Literary Supplement.

She was referring to comments from Nicholas Nassim Taleb who accused her of bullsh*tting.

Its a bit of a bleak outlook for how we might talk about modern ethnic diversity, she added.

Various high-profile figures came out in support of the historian.

J K Rowling tweeted: A historian gave her expert opinion on ethnic diversity in Roman Britain. What Happened Next Will Not Amaze You.

Labour MP Jess Phillips tweeted: Man alive @wmarybeard takes some crap on here. Remember women keep being clever and opinionated that's what decent people see and admire.
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The convicted murderer of schoolgirl Milly Dowler is suspected to have carried out at least 24 violent assaults against women in the 20 years before he was sent to prison.

Levi Bellfield, who was convicted of killing 13-year-old Dowler in 2002, is reportedly linked to a series of unprovoked attacks across London, Surrey, Middlesex, Sussex and Lancashire.

The data was collated by the National Crime Agency and reported by The Sunday Times.

The new possible crimes include six rapes of teenage girls, three rapes of older women, an attempted murder, one kidnap, an indecent assault and three hammer attacks, the newspaper reported, which would make Bellfield one of the UKs most prolific attackers against women.

Two suspected victims called the Metropolitan police to report that they had been clubbed over the head while walking alone.

One victim was Sarah Spurrell, who was hit over the head three times when she was walking to a friends house in Hastings in 2004.

Police reportedly suspected Bellfield, but did not inform Ms Spurrell and dropped the investigation when he was convicted of murder.

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Another woman was hit from behind at an empty petrol station in 1994 in Hinchley Wood, Surrey.

It has also been reported that after Bellfield attempted to kill 18-year-old Kate Sheedy in 2004 in west London, that police reviewed CCTV footage from the wrong night, which then allowed Bellfield to murder his third victim.

The attack on Ms Sheedy in Isleworth took place just after midnight, but officers only asked for footage of the previous night.

Bellfield then murdered 22-year-old French exchange student Amelie Delagrange just three months later in August 2004.

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The Sunday Times reported it took six months for police to review the correct tape, during which they saw Bellfields car.

There is no doubt that spotting the vehicle earlier could have saved Amelie, former detective chief inspector Colin Sutton told The Sunday Times.

There was an intelligence report linking him to the Previa [car]. He hadnt registered it in his name, but he had been stopped by police in it.

Mr Sutton said he went to France to personally apologise to Delagranges parents.

Its much better to be honest about these things, so I went to meet with them in Paris. They were incredibly accepting of the mistake. They said that mistakes happen and people are only human. It was amazing, really.

Bellfield reversed his car over Ms Sheedy on the evening that she had been celebrating her final day at Gumley House Convent School, where she was head girl.

Colin Sutton on Levi Bellfield

The attack resulted in a ruptured liver, punctured lung, broken ribs and collar bone, but she managed to crawl home and give police a description of Bellfields car.

Bellfield, who used to work as a wheel clamper and is father to 11 children, is appealing his 2010 conviction for murdering Dowler, one year after he finally confessed.

He was also found guilty of murdering Delagrange and 19-year-old Marsha McDonnell, who were bludgeoned to death, and of attempting to kill Ms Sheedy.

Bellfield was also tried for two of the unsolved cases, including the attempted murder of Irma Dragoshi, then 33, in West London, and the kidnap of Anna-Maria Rennie, 17. The jury did not reach a verdict.

Bellfield is being held in Durhams high security prison HMP Frankland, where he is serving life without parole.
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Journalist and Womens Equality Party founder Catherine Mayer is suing her former employer Time magazine for gender and age discrimination.

The lawsuit comes after the publication of BBC salaries sparked international outrage over gender and race pay gaps at the public broadcaster.

Ms Mayer, who was fired from her position as an editor at the US publication, says Time violated anti-discrimination and civil rights laws through a system of male cronyism by which men, especially former war correspondents were favoured over women in recruitment, dismissal and promotion decisions, The Guardian reported.

Recommended Top companies should be forced to pay female CEOs more

The lawsuit was filed on 24 July after a private settlement could not be reached, Ms Mayer said.

Initially what you want to do is move on with your life, she told The Guardian.

The last thing you want is to spend time thinking and worrying and going over all the stuff that has been painful. And as anyone in journalism will know, the other thing you dont want to do is put yourself out there.

Ms Mayer, who co-founded the Womens Equality party alongside broadcaster Sandi Toksvig in March 2015, worked at the publication for eight years before being appointed to the role of Europe regional editor.

She said the paper appointed Matt McAllester, a younger male reporter, to be her deputy, despite an agreement that said she would be able to choose the members of her team.

Ms Mayers lawsuit claims Mr McAllester, who became the editor-in-chief of Newsweek earlier this year, created an uncomfortable work environment at the magazine's London office, where Non-macho men and women who did not conform to traditional expectations of gender roles did not fare well.

Staff in London quickly concluded that McAllester was trying to oust plaintiff, it continues.

The journalist claims that when she raised concerns with the magazines international editor, Jim Frederick, she was not given support.

He responded simply, You are two of my favourite people and I am sure you will find a way to work things out.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 12 November 2022 The City of London Pride Group take part in the parade during the Lord Mayor's Show PA UK news in pictures 11 November 2022 City workers attend a Remembrance Day ceremony at Lloyd's of London, in the City of London, to mark Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of the First World War PA UK news in pictures 10 November 2022 A grey heron lands on the river Dodder in Dublin on a sunny autumn morning PA 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 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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 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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. 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She alleged the situation triggered serious health problems, including depression, migraines and insomnia.

Ms Mayer alleged that the company forced her to relinquish her title and later gave the position to Mr McAllester. Then, in April 2015, she was fired.

The journalist told The Guardian that she contested her dismissal immediately.

There was never a point when I accepted this was a valid redundancy, and never a point when I didnt fight back, she told the newspaper.

Of course money is relevant to this, but they were also doing me reputational damage.

Ms Mayer, a dual citizen of the US and UK, said despite her role as an advocate for gender equality, she had hoped to keep her dispute with Time out of the public eye by reaching a private settlement.

After a settle could not be reached, Ms Mayer said she decided to take legal action in New York, where Time and its senior staff are based.

Neither Time magazine nor Mr McAllester could be immediately reached for comment.
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A secretive Isis division has been teaching UK fighters to launch attacks on British soil, according to a fighter reportedly captured by Kurdish troops in Syria.

The militant described how the unit trained those involved in the Paris and Brussels attacks. He also revealed the ways in which the new recruits were initiated into the al-Kharsha brigade in Syria, according to a Sunday Times report.

British fighters are said to take part in a rigorous training regime before flying home to carry out attacks.

It takes seven months to be trained in al-Kharsa brigade, the fighter said while he was interviewed in front of his Kurdish captors.

It is very hard. Every European who crosses the border to Syria, they are offered [the opportunity] to join. If 20 start the training, only five finish it. Then after that they go back to Europe and attack.

Giving detailed information, the Isis fighter said that about 50 people went through the programme from countries including the UK, Belgium, France and Germany.

The instruction given at the Syrian camp involved bomb construction, religious ideology according to Isis as well as going through harsh physical endurance trials. All recruits had to be willing to give up their lives for the Isis cause, the militant said.

The unit was under the umbrella of the external operations arm of the so-called Islamic State, the Amniyat Amniyat al-Kharji. Its believed that the Amniyat is now focusing on working with sleeper cells.

According to the Sunday Times, past fighters included Belgian-born Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who led the Paris attacks in which 130 people were killed. Abaaoud was shot dead in a raid by French police five days after the massacre.

In pictures: Isis' weapons factories Show all 11 1 /11 In pictures: Isis' weapons factories In pictures: Isis' weapons factories A mortar round fin manufactured by Isis in Gogjali, Mosul, November 2016 Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories Isis rocket components discovered in Gogjali, Mosul, Iraq in November 2016 Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories Isis mortars discovered near Karamlais, Iraq, in November 2016 CAR In pictures: Isis' weapons factories An Isis rocket launch frame in Qaraqosh, November 2016 Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories A memo from Isis' COSQC on quality control at a manufacturing facility in Gogjali, Mosul, November 2016 Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories Electrically-operated initiators manufactured by Isis in forces Gogjali, Mosul, November 2016 Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories Isis mortar tubes at a manufacturing facility in Karamlais, November 2016 Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories An Isis mortar production facility discovered in Gogjali, Mosul, in November 2016 Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories An Isis weapons manufacturing facilities near Mosul in November 2016 Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories Stocks of French-manufactured Sorbitol, Latvian potassium nitrate and Lebanese sugar at an Isis weapons factory in Iraq Conflict Armament Research In pictures: Isis' weapons factories A destroyed Isis weapons facility in Qaraqosh, Iraq, November 2016 Conflict Armament Research

Gilles de Kerchove, the EU Counterterrorism Coordinator said that one-third of an estimated 5,000 European jihadis who were trained in Syria and Iraq have returned to their home countries, many undetected by authorities.

He estimated that there were some 2,000-2,500 European "foreign terrorist fighters" still in Syria and Iraq, according to Reuters.

De Kerchove added: "There are largely two categories of returnees: those in the majority who will drift back and those who will be sent back on specific missions, which are of most concern."

The captured Isis fighter gave an ominous warning on future reprisals from Isis. They will make more suicide attacks in Europe because the coalition is bombing them a lot, he said. They also want to carry out attacks in Lebanon.
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Downing Street sources have played down reports that the UK is prepared to pay a divorce bill of up to 36bn to try and force progress in stalled Brexit talks.

The figure amounting to some 40bn would be offered in a bid to push discussions on from withdrawal and towards a future trade deal, according to reports.

Theresa May is expected to give a speech towards the end of the summer fleshing out details of any offer to Brussels, while a series of papers are expected in coming weeks on how the UK proposes to manage a transition.

A Number 10 official told The Independent that reports the Government was preparing to offer the EU payments of 10bn every year for up to three years after Brexit were highly speculative and wrong.

It was claimed on Sunday that the commitment to the ongoing budget payments would then be supplemented with additional money to make up the 40bn figure that UK negotiators hope will break the deadlock in talks.

The Sunday Telegraph quoted a Whitehall source saying: We know that [the EUs] position is 60bn, but the actual bottom line is 50bn.

Ours is closer to 30bn, but the landing zone is 40bn even if the public and politicians are not all there yet.

In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Show all 12 1 /12 In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier listens at the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker speaking at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty Images In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of the Federal Republic of Germany, delivers his speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg EPA In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcomming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Michel Barnier, European Chief Negotiator for Brexit reacts during a meeting at the European Parliament in Strasbourg EPA In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Member of the European Parliament and former leader of the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) Nigel Farage wears socks with Union Jack flag at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty Images In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Nigel Farage, United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) member and MEP, addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcoming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier gestures during speeches at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions The President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker (L) speaks with European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcomming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier delivers a speech during a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions The European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France Getty Images

Brexit Secretary David Davis and Ms May have both said that the Government would work with Brussels to determine a fair settlement of the UK's rights and obligations.

News of the figure will be controversial among some Conservative MPs who believe the UK should not pay as much, or anything at all. Just three weeks ago Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said EU leaders could go whistle if they expected Britain to pay an exorbitant divorce bill.

Conservative MP Peter Bone said a 36bn Brexit fee is unlikely to get through Parliament.

He added: One of the prime reasons the UK voted to leave the EU was to stop sending them billions of pounds per year, so it would be totally bizarre to give the EU any money, let alone 36 billion, given also that over the years that we have been in the EU or its predecessor we have given them, net, over 200 billion.

So if there was going to be any transfer of money then it should be from the EU to the UK.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, MP for North East Somerset, said: There is no logic to this figure, legally we owe nothing.

 Michel Barnier seeks clarification over key issues in Brexit talks

Former Cabinet minister John Redwood told LBC Radio it was completely ridiculous to suggest the UK would have to pay to get Brussels to talk about trade because the EU "desperately" needed a deal.

But the European Unions chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier warned it is very unlikely talks can progress in October as planned if there is not better progress.

Ms May is preparing to give a speech close to the start of September in which she is expected to spell out details of the EU withdrawal agreement including a divorce bill.

Positioning papers on how the UK might manage customs arrangements during a transition and the issue of the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland are expected as early as next week.

There will also then be a string of other papers detailing various aspects of Ms Mays proposals, including the approach to the single market during transition, as the Government attempts to show it has a solid plan for Brexit.
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A former head of the European Commission has said a second Brexit referendum may be "impossible" for the UK, despite hopes from some Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs that the decision to leave the EU could still be reversed.

Romano Prodi, who served as president of the Commission from 1999 to 2004, warned that the UK risks committing economic "suicide" unless the Government is prepared to be flexible in its efforts to reach a trade deal with the EU.

With the Brexit negotiations apparently moving slowly and the clock ticking on the UK's exit, Mr Prodi, a former Italian Prime Minister and economist, weighed into the debate.

He called for historic compromise on both sides so that a deal can be brokered on the major sticking points of trade and free movement  but made clear he does not believe the UK should have a second referendum.

Maybe I am biased, being an economist, but it may be that there is still an imprecise [understanding] of the real economic consequences of Brexit, he said in an interview with the Observer.

This is why I am now looking deeper and deeper that a compromise must be reached. Not to repeat the referendum as is mentioned more and more often in private conversations  I think that is impossible, or very difficult  but to find a compromise to avoid suicide.

His comments come after some allies of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called for him to soften the partys official stance on Brexit and commit to retaining freedom of movement  although many Labour supporters backed Leave, citing concerns over immigration as their primary reason.

Around 50 senior figures on the left of the party have set up a new grouping, the Labour Campaign for Free Movement, and issued a rallying cry to the leadership that says Labour must be the party of all working people, regardless of where they were born.

Mr Prodi suggested some compromise must be reached on freedom of movement for certain sectors  including science  for the good of the British economy.

For example, we have joint scientific projects in which the UK has always had a strong position because of your universities and tradition, he said.

Clearly, movement of manpower in this sector is of deep interest and does not move any passion even in the core of anti-European British [voters]. In my opinion, you should start giving guarantees in all these fields in which there is a common interest to have an exception.

Mr Prodis call for some freedom of movement to be retained echoes the view of one of the UKs biggest union bosses, Dave Prentis, general secretary of Unison.

In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Show all 12 1 /12 In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier listens at the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker speaking at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty Images In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of the Federal Republic of Germany, delivers his speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg EPA In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcomming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Michel Barnier, European Chief Negotiator for Brexit reacts during a meeting at the European Parliament in Strasbourg EPA In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Member of the European Parliament and former leader of the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) Nigel Farage wears socks with Union Jack flag at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty Images In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Nigel Farage, United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) member and MEP, addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcoming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier gestures during speeches at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions The President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker (L) speaks with European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcomming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier delivers a speech during a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions The European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France Getty Images

The Government must give European workers the right to remain, or face losing skilled and experienced health and social care staff for ever.

Any trade deal should be without tariffs and guarantee future free movement of EU labour. It must protect employment standards, jobs, and economic growth. It should also provide for well-funded public services safe from any further privatisations," Mr Prentis said.

The TUC has also called on Mr Corbyn to support a softer form of Brexit which prioritises trying to remain in the single market.

Prime Minister Theresa May has consistently said that leaving the EU inevitably means leaving the single market and that there can be no compromise on freedom of movement  although the Government has said there will be transitional arrangements for EU workers.

If the UKs negotiating team does decide to pursue a soft Brexit, they could try to negotiate Norwegian-style membership of the European Economic Area, which would allow virtually full access to the single market, while letting it make deals outside of the EU. In return, the country would have to pay substantial amounts into the EU budget.

There is also the possibility of the Swiss option, based on various bilateral trade deals, which allows partial access to the single market in exchange for a smaller contribution than the Norwegian model.

If the UK crashes out of the EU without a deal in March 2019, businesses would be forced to revert to trading under World Trade Organisation rules, assuming its membership application was successful.
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Older Brexit voters with views coloured by nostalgia from an imperial past have shafted the young, Sir Vince Cable has said.

The Lib Dem leader has lashed out at hardline Brexit martyrs who view economic pain as a price worth paying to break away from Brussels.

Writing in the Mail on Sunday, he accused them of masochism and claimed older voters had imposed their will on a younger generation more comfortable with the European Union.

 The horrendous travel rules awaiting Britons after Brexit

Sir Vinces strongly worded attack came after a YouGov poll suggested 61 per cent of Leave voters would consider significant damage to the British economy to be a price worth paying for leaving the EU.

He wrote: To describe such masochism as martyrdom is dangerous. We havent yet heard about Brexit jihadis but there is an undercurrent of violence in the language which is troubling.

Sir Vince, 74, added that the self-declared martyrs appeared to be predominantly elderly.

The martyrdom of the old comes cheap, since few have jobs to lose, he said.

The housing market, pensions and government policies  including some which were brought in while he was in the Cabinet  had contributed to a growing rift between the generations.

The old have comprehensively shafted the young. And the old have had the last word about Brexit, imposing a world view coloured by nostalgia for an imperial past on a younger generation much more comfortable with modern Europe, he said.

In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Show all 12 1 /12 In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier listens at the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker speaking at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty Images In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of the Federal Republic of Germany, delivers his speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg EPA In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcomming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Michel Barnier, European Chief Negotiator for Brexit reacts during a meeting at the European Parliament in Strasbourg EPA In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Member of the European Parliament and former leader of the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) Nigel Farage wears socks with Union Jack flag at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty Images In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Nigel Farage, United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) member and MEP, addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcoming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier gestures during speeches at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions The President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker (L) speaks with European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcomming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier delivers a speech during a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions The European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France Getty Images

Meanwhile, Whitehall sources sought to play down speculation that Theresa May would be prepared to pay a Brexit bill of 36bn, as part of a deal to strike a free trade agreement with Brussels.

The so-called divorce bill has been one of the main stumbling blocks in Brexit negotiations between the Government and Brussels.

The Sunday Telegraph reported that the Government will only agree to pay the sum if the EU treats it as part of a deal on future relations  including the comprehensive trade agreement sought by the Prime Minister.

The EUs stance is that trade talks cannot begin until significant progress has been made on the financial settlement, citizens rights and Northern Ireland.

The newspaper quoted a senior Whitehall source saying the EUs position is that the fee should be 60bn (54bn), but the actual bottom line was 50bm (45bn).

The UKs position was quoted as 30bn (27bn) and the landing zone is 40bn (36bn), even if the public and politicians are not all there yet.

 Lord Sugar says Boris Johnson and Michael Gove should be in prison over Brexit 'lies'

A senior Government source told the Press Association no such figure has been agreed while another Whitehall source said it was speculation.

Officials at the Brexit department would not comment on the report but referred to David Daviss acknowledgement that the Government would work with Brussels to determine a fair settlement of the UKs rights and obligations.

Additional reporting by Press Association
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The leader of Theresa Mays Conservatives in the European Parliament has admitted the UK will not have the same access to the single market after Brexit as it enjoys now.

Ashley Fox MEP said it is inevitable Britain will lose ground in exporting goods and services to the continent, admitting there are some disadvantages to quitting the bloc. Speaking to The Independent he also said he believed the EU was set to do everything in its power to ensure that the UK is not in a better position outside the union.

It comes as Theresa May is set to face a cross-party push from Tory and Labour MPs to ensure the UK remains in the single market during a transition to new trading arrangements, a move backed by British business.

Mr Fox said: We will come to a deal with Europe that will not involve paying billions of pounds each year, it will involve a return of control of our borders to the UK. But it is unlikely that we will retain identical market access over all goods and services  I think that is inevitable.

He added that he believed there were both advantages and disadvantages to Brexit and noted that he understands why Europe would not be willing to allow Britain to have a deal of equal or better standing. He said: I think we will get a good deal, but there clearly will be an emphasis on the EU side that we shouldnt have a deal that puts in a better position than we have at the moment and we understand where they are coming from.

The MEP went on to add that being able to strike its own trade deals will be an advantage for the UK as it seeks to forge a new place for itself in the world.

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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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Criticising the EUs approach to international trade, he highlighted that strained years of negotiations that led up to the Ceta deal being signed with Canada. He went on: Canada is probably the most liberal democracy you could find anywhere in the world, yet still the negotiations were hung up on a manner of questions  it was just extraordinary.

That inability to strike free trade deals with the rest of the world has been a disadvantage to the UK.

Theresa May faces a Commons showdown next month when Labour and rebel Conservative MPs join forces to try to stop Britain crashing out of the EU single market on Brexit day. The MPs plan to force a September vote to keep the UK in the European Economic Area (EEA) for several years at least, to avert fears of severe economic damage when EU withdrawal is completed in 2019.

Crucially, Labours frontbench appears to have thrown its weight behind the move, with Brexit spokesman Sir Keir Starmer describing transition on current terms as essential.

In an interview this week Jean Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, has said Brexit would continue despite the UK becoming more aware of the complications that have arisen during the divorce negotiations. People will become more and more conscious of the density of problems on a daily basis, without always being able to provide a coherent answer to these problems, Mr Juncker told Politico.

The Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, reportedly said the difficulties provided "hopeful signs" that "Brexit will not happen"  a claim that Mr Juncker was keen to distance himself from. "I don't go as far as the Maltese Prime Minister who has not ruled out that it will not come to Brexit. My working hypothesis is that it will come to Brexit."
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An anti-Islam campaigner's Ukip leadership bid could be blocked by officials worried that her views will bring them into disrepute, according to party sources.

Anne Marie Waters was banned from being a candidate for the Eurosceptic party during their disastrous general election campaign after calling Islam "evil" and arguing that Islamic culture does not fit with ours.

Undeterred, the Sharia Watch UK founder announced her intention to stand in Ukip's leadership election following Paul Nuttall's resignation in June.

But the ambitious former Labour Party activist, who also launched the anti-Islam group Pegida UK with Tommy Robinson last year, could be excluded from the ballot by members of Ukip's National Executive Committee (NEC).

They will put all candidates through a vetting process to determine whether they meet the standards of the party's code of conduct.

Two Ukip sources told Buzzfeed officials will consider blocking Ms Waters' leadership bid due to fears she will alienate voters by driving the party further to the right.

The activist has said she realises the party will "try to stop me", but has hit back at detractors by insisting she is "not a racist or a neo-fascist".

When Ms Waters launched her leadership campaign in June, she told a cheering crowd in Manchester: "Islam is a killing machine."

Ukip treasurer John Bickley didn't comment on her, but told Buzzfeed: "The NEC has to ensure, for the sake of the party, that whoevers on the ballot paper is not going to come back and bite us in short order.

"Weve had an interesting 12 months in regards to leaders, and wed like to make sure that this time people on the ballot paper are not going to be a problem for us.

 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall quits after election drubbing

"We have to ensure there are no elephant traps after we elect a new leader."

Ukip has struggled to maintain relevance since Brexit was triggered, and former leader Nigel Farage warned that the party will be "finished" if it concentrates on anti-Islam policies.

During the general election campaign, Mr Nuttall was ridiculed for pledging to ban burqas, claiming the policy would boost vitamin D levels in Muslim women.

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His party's future is uncertain after they won just 500,000 votes in June and lost all but one of the council seat's they contested this year.

On Friday Ukip confirmed that so far 11 candidates wish to stand in their leadership election, including Jane Collins MEP, who was ordered to pay 358,000 in damages and costs after libelling three Labour MPs she claimed knew about child sex abuse in Rotheram.

Also in contention is John Rees-Evans, a former soldier who once claimed that a gay donkey tried to rape his horse, and revealed his plans to build an underground bunker in Bulgaria in case there is a "global meltdown".

London Assembly member David Kurten has vowed to stand against "militant transgender activism" in his bid to become Ukip's first ethnic minority leader, telling Buzzfeed: "People dont want their children to be confused by this kind of thing."

Around 15,000 Ukip members voted in the last leadership election, and the party's first-past-the-post system means the winner may only need a few thousand supporters.
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A post-Brexit trade deal with the US could see a massive increase in the amount of cancer-causing toxins in British milk and baby food, The Independent can reveal.

American regulations allow more than 20 times the quantity of harmful aflatoxins in food products, compared to the stricter regime imposed by the European Union.

US standards also allow products made with nuts and cereals to have higher levels of the carcinogens, which cause damage to DNA and make cells more prone to becoming cancerous.

While a direct link to liver cancer is widely accepted, the lower US standards allow American manufacturers to produce food more cheaply.

Critics are now warning that ministers pursuing a quick trade deal with Washington would be putting GDP growth ahead of public health if safety standards are weakened.

It follows a major furore over whether chlorinated chicken would flood the UK market, if a future trade deal allowed products to be sold in the UK but regulated by a more lenient American regime.

US regulations permit 0.5 micrograms per kg of aflatoxins in milk, cereals, nuts and dried fruits, but the EU restricts levels to 0.025 micrograms  twenty times lower.

In all milk and dairy products, EU limits are ten times lower at 0.05 micrograms per kg.

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

Simon Dawson, a lecturer in Food Science and Techonology at Cardiff Metropolitan University, told The Independent: Exposure [to aflatoxins] can have a number of detrimental effects on the body; therefore, levels should be kept as low as reasonably achievable due to their genotoxic and carcinogenic effects.

With babies and infants, their immune systems are not fully developed therefore toxins such as these can affect their bodies more so than how an adult would react.

The chemicals are produced by fungi found on agricultural crops such as maize, peanuts and tree nuts, and can contaminate crops in the field, at harvest and during storage.

People are exposed by eating contaminated products or consuming meat or dairy foods from animals that ate contaminated feed. Studies have shown a direct linked to liver cancer, as the toxins damage genes which suppress the growth of deadly tumours.

Mr Dawson said: Aflatoxins primarily attack the liver. Large doses will lead to severe illness and death, usually through liver cirrhosis.

Chronic low doses have both an immunological and nutritional effect on the body as they are classified as being genotoxic carcinogens. Studies have shown changes to behaviour, decreased nutrient digestion and absorption, reduced growth rate, risks of cancer and a range of other nasty effects.

 Liam fox says chlorine washed chickens are fine but claims UK wont reduce environmental standards

He said that there were no studies he is aware of that show a level of 0.5 micrograms per kg resulting in adverse effects, but added: Having said that, we should be aiming to produce foods with as low as reasonably achievable levels of aflatoxins, therefore importing products with levels that exceed EU legislation doesnt feel like we are making positive steps.

Unlike the EU, the US does not have a specific tighter limit on aflatoxins for babies and infant formula milk.

Brussels set its limits in 2006 taking into account extensive research and best available practice to detect the chemicals, which is continuously reviewed and updated  but the US standard has not been updated since 1977.

Since then, there have been incidents in Africa and Asia involving intense contaminations of aflatoxins, including one in Kenya in 2004 which claimed 124 lives.

Maize can carry the harmful aflatoxins (Getty)

American standards are not considered unsafe, but the more generous limits are part of the reason US farms can produce cereals more cheaply, and were a significant obstacle in the eventual breakdown of trade talks between the EU and US.

The Food Standards Agency told The Independent that the lower EU levels currently adhered to in the UK are there to help protect public health.

A spokesman said: The methods and criteria used to assess risk in the US are different to those used in Europe and the UK.

The maximum levels of aflatoxins allowed in foods is agreed upon at a European level on the basis of sound scientific evidence, and the levels in food are kept as low as possible in order to protect public health.

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He added that the lower limits remove the most contaminated products from the food chain and ensure food businesses apply stronger agricultural and manufacturing practices.

A spokesperson for the Department of International Trade said: We are committed to a mutually beneficial economic arrangement with the US but are clear that we are not going to dilute our high food safety standards or our high environmental standards in pursuit of any trade deal.

Discussions with the US about our future trading relationship are at a very early stage and its too early to say what exactly will be covered in a future agreement.

Cereals would undoubtedly form a major part of the agricultural aspects of any US/UK trade deal, with cheaper, lower production standards at risk of undercutting British manufacturers in much the same way as chlorine-washed chickens allows US farmers to deploy more intense production methods.

Labours Shadow International Trade Secretary Barry Gardiner said: We in the Labour Party have been absolutely clear that any trade agreement we come to with any country must not reduce the safety standards or animal welfare standards that we have already got in the UK.

We have been asking the Government for many months for clarity on this, and we have been receiving confusing messages.

Ian Murray MP, a leading figure in the campaign group Open Britain, said: "The Governments desperation to do a trade deal with Trumps America could put the health of British children and babies at risk.

Compromising our standards to allow a higher level of carcinogens in food and milk is absolutely unacceptable, and ministers must make that clear.
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An eviction company has caused outrage after an advert highlighting its services compared people renting homes to vermin.

The marketing campaign by the firm Remove a Tenant, which targets residential property owners, features a piece of cheese below the caption: Are your tenants pests?

They offer packages to landlords and agents across Britain for as little as 50 and claim to have significant expertise in dealing with housing benefits claims.

Campaigners for renters complained that the company's advert on Facebook was beyond unacceptable and should be taken down immediately.

They added that likening tenants to rodents was a "grim irony" given that one-in-nine rented homes has a pest problem.

The dispute came as a record number of renters have been evicted from their homes in Britain, with more than 40,000 thrown out in 2015, the latest figures show.

The website for Remove a Tenant, which is based in Hampton-in-Arden in Solihull in the West Midlands, states: It is often said that the law regarding tenant eviction is always on the side of the tenant.

This is true to a degree and forms part of the protection against eviction. Tenants, regardless of circumstances, do have rights and this is why the steps taken have to be carried out correctly in order to get a successful possession.

Housing campaigners said the company's advert on Facebook that compares renters to "pests" should be taken down immediately.

John Bibby, policy officer at the housing and homelessness charity Shelter, told the Observer: Its beyond unacceptable to see tenants being compared to rodents, and an especially grim irony when nearly one in nine private rented homes has recently had a pest problem.

Were amazed this advert was posted in the first place, and it should be taken down immediately. Between shelling out for colossal rents, being forced to live in flats crawling with mice or rats, and having the threat of eviction hanging over them, many renters have enough to deal with without this sort of rubbish.

Seb Klier, campaigns manager at Generation Rent, the operating name of the National Private Tenants Organisation, said comparing tenants to vermin gave an insight into the way renters are viewed by some landlords and agents.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 12 November 2022 The City of London Pride Group take part in the parade during the Lord Mayor's Show PA UK news in pictures 11 November 2022 City workers attend a Remembrance Day ceremony at Lloyd's of London, in the City of London, to mark Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of the First World War PA UK news in pictures 10 November 2022 A grey heron lands on the river Dodder in Dublin on a sunny autumn morning PA 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 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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

When trying to find a home, its common for renters to encounter a long list of prohibitions  no benefits claimants, no families, no pets  which not only reduces their choice on the market, but creates a negative atmosphere before anyone even moves in, he said.

This negativity increases in a market where a tenant who makes requests for repairs, or attempts to negotiate down proposed rent increases, is too often seen as a nuisance to be got rid of.

If we are serious about having a long-term, professional, private rented sector in the UK, its vital that tenants can treat where they are living as their actual home, and not just be viewed as a temporary inconvenience to the owner of the property.

An employee at Remove a Tenant said that the adverts had been designed by a marketing company some time ago and that it had not received any complaints about them.

It came as statistics last month revealed that a record number of renters are being evicted from their homes, with more than 100 tenants a day losing the roof over their head.

The spiralling cost of renting a property and a long-running freeze on housing benefit are being blamed for the rising number of evictions among Britains growing army of tenants.
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The US Navy and Marine Corps have suspended search and rescue operations for three Marines whose aircraft crashed off of Australia's northeast coast.

The rescue operations for the three men has shifted to a recovery effort, the Marine Corps said in a statement. The family members of the missing Marines have been notified.

The transition comes after teams led continuous sustained search efforts supported by aircraft and ships, the Corps said. As the sea state permits, recovery efforts will be conducted to further search, assess and survey the area, in coordination and with assistance from the Australian Defence Force.

The 23 other passengers and crew members onboard have been rescued.

The Marine Corps estimates the recovery effort could take months. The Australian government said it would deploy its armed forces to assist.

"Our thoughts are with all those affected by this tragic event and the Australian Government stands ready to support the U.S. further in any way we can," Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne said in a statement.

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. 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The aircraft crashed around 4 pm local time on Saturday. Australian meteorologists described the weather at the time as benign.

The Marines were members of the Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group, which was in Australia to participate in joint training manoeuvres involving more than 33,000 US and Australian military personnel.

The aircraft was launched off of the USS Bonhomme Richard while it conducted regular operations on the Coral Sea on Saturday. Small boats and aircraft from the ship responded to the crash immediately, and recovered the 23 other people aboard.

The marines were flying a MV-22 Osprey, which is designed to take off like a helicopter but fly like a plane. More than 20 Marines were killed in a test flight for the aircraft in 2000. Another Osprey crashed into the sea in December.

The aircraft has nonetheless become popular with the US military for its speed, range, and flexibility.
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Venezuelan authorities said they have suppressed a military rebellion near the central city of Valencia, shortly after a small group of men dressed in fatigues released a video declaring themselves in rebellion.

The ruling Socialist Partys deputy, Diosdado Cabello, said there had been a terrorist attack at a military base.

One person has died and one person has been badly injured.

His announcement came after a video emerged showing a group of men in military uniform, who said they were launching an uprising against controversial President Nicolas Maduro to restore democracy.

In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Show all 22 1 /22 In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela A girl scavanges for food in the streets of Caracas Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela A man scavenges for food next to girls in the streets of Caracas. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is resisting opposition efforts to hold a vote on removing him from office. The opposition blames him for an economic crisis that has caused food shortages Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Venezuelans line up to get the 'Fatherland's Card' at Bolivar Square in Caracas Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela The mother of Venezuelan Rebecca Leon, who scavenges for food in the streets of Caracas, feeds her grandson at their house in Petare shantytown. Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Venezuelan Rebecca Leon, who scavenges for food in the streets of Caracas, with her two-year-old son at her house in Petare shantytown Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Members of a pro-government community organisation work in an expropriated bakery in Caracas. Supported by popular militiamen, Venezuelan government inspectors oversee bakeries as bread comes out of the oven, to undermine an alleged plot to induce scarcity of this staple food Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Forensic police stand next to the body of a man outside a supermarket, where he died of a heart attack after waiting in a long line to buy food, in Caracas Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Venezuelan opposition activists take part in a protest against the government of President Nicolas Maduro at the Francisco Fajardo highway in Caracas Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela National guard throws a tear gas canister during a rally against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas, Venezuela Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Opposition supporter shouts at a police officer during a rally against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Opposition supporters clash with national guards during a rally against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela A boy wearing a t-shirt with the colours of the Venezuelan national flag, during a demonstration against President Nicolas Maduro's government at Foreign Affairs Ministery, in Buenos Aires, Argentina AP In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Protesters cover themselves from tear gas fired by the Venezuelan National Guard officers during a protest in Caracas AP In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Opposition supporters clash with national guards during a rally against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Venezuelan opposition activists take part in a protest -blocked by the National Guard- against the government of President Nicolas Maduro at the Francisco Fajardo highway in Caracas Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela A Venezuelan national guard reacts to the effect of pepper spray during a protest of opposition supporters against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Opposition supporters holding a Venezuelan flag protest against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government during a rally in Caracas Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Opposition supporters clash with riot police during a protest against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas, Venezuela Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Opposition supporters protest against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's government during a rally in Caracas Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Venezuela's Supreme Court abandoned measures to seize power from the opposition-controlled legislature after the moves drew international condemnation and raised pressure on President Nicolas Maduro. The president of Venezuela's National Assembly Julio Borges dismissed the court's gesture and told reporters that nothing had changed and the coup continued Getty Images In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Venezuelans living in Peru and other protesters take part in a rally against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government, outside the Venezuela embassy in Lima, Peru Reuters In pictures: The crisis in Venezuela Venezuelans living in Peru and other protesters take part in a rally against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government, outside the Venezuela embassy in Lima, Peru Reuters

One witness in the area of the military base in the town of Naguanagua reported hearing gunshots before dawn, but Mr Cabello said the situation had been brought under control.

Troops acted quickly to control the situation at the Paramacay base in the central city of Venezuela, he said on Twitter.

Officials said the rebels, whom they described as terrorists, were trying to steal weapons, and that seven people were detained after the attack on the base.

Mr Cabello, a former military man and Vice President under the late President Hugo Chavez, called the attackers mercenary terrorists.

Socialist party loyalists regularly use the term terrorist to describe opposition leaders and protesters.

 Opposition protesters clash with security forces in Venezuela

The announcement came after a small group of men, some armed with assault rifles, released a video declaring themselves in rebellion in Carabobo state, where Valencia is located.

In the video, a man who identified himself as Juan Carlos Caguaripano, a former National Guard captain, said: We demand the immediate formation of a transition government. He was flanked by about a dozen men in military uniforms.

This is not a coup detat, he said. This is a civic and military action to re-establish constitutional order. But more than that, it is to save the country from total destruction.

He said any unit refusing to go along with its call for rebellion would be declared a military target.

Anti-government activists set up barricades while protesting the elections (AFP)

Local reporters published videos appearing to show dozens of Venezuelans near the base in Valencia, taking to the streets to protest the government before being pushed back with tear gas.

Other videos circulating on social media showed a police convoy speeding down a road amid the sound of apparent gunfire.

The Paramacay base, surrounded by a residential neighbourhood in Valencia, is one of Venezuelas largest and houses some of the countrys most important armaments, including Russian-made tanks.

Government allies were quick to denounce the attack as a right-wing plot aimed at bringing down the Bolivarian revolution, started nearly 20 years ago by the late Hugo Chavez and carried on by his protege Mr Maduro.

These attacks, planned by delirious minds in Miami, only strengthen the morale of our armed forces and the Bolivarian people, tweeted Socialist Party official Elias Jaua.

The political crisis has left more than 100 dead, nearly 2,000 wounded and over 500 detained (Getty)

Mr Caguaripano, the leader of the alleged plot, has a history of rebellion.

In 2014, while a captain in the National Guard and amid a previous wave of anti-government unrest, he released a 12-minute video denouncing Mr Maduro.

He later reportedly sought exile after a military tribunal ordered his arrest, appearing in an interview on CNN en Espanol to draw attention to dissatisfaction within the ranks over Venezuelas demise.

Maduro celebrates election results after vote on his proposed Constituent Assembly (EPA)

The South American nation has for months been in the throes of a political crisis with protests that have left more than 100 dead, nearly 2,000 wounded and over 500 detained.

Last week, two opposition leaders were taken from their homes in the middle of the night by intelligence agents and hauled to prison.

It came days after the countrys president formed a legislative superbody, internationally condemned as a power grab.

On Saturday, Mr Maduros new constituent assembly removed the chief prosecutor from her post and ordered her to stand trial, confirming opposition fears that it would use its powers to root out critics of the government.

Additional reporting by agencies
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A widely shared internal Google memo arguing against gender diversity had prompted outrage from certain staff and members of the public.

The anti-diversity memo, published in full by Gizmodo, argued that the disparities in gender at the tech giant could be explained by biological differences between men and women.

We need to stop assuming that gender gaps imply sexism, he wrote, adding that Googles educational programmes for young women was one example of bias causing harm.

The 10-page document was written by one male employee in an engineering team and represents his own views, but it has been shared within the company and appeared to garner supportive responses.

Philosophically, I dont think we should do arbitrary social engineering of tech just to make it appealing to equal portions of both men and women, the document read.

An unnamed employee told Motherboard: Honestly, more people have been agreeing with it than I would like.

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

Jaana Dogan, a programmer at Google, tweeted that she was shaking in anger.

If HR does nothing in this case, I will consider leaving this company for real for the first time in five years, she said.

Google could not be immediately reached for comment.

The news comes as the company fights a US Department of Labour investigation into routine wage discrepancies between men and women.

Motherboard spoke to other supportive employees, including one who blasted the left bias and politically correct monoculture at the company.

 Jeremy Corbyn backs BBC women presenters in gender pay gap dispute

As seen on a thread on Blind, an app where employees with an active Google email address could post anonymous comments about the memo, some employees called the author brave and that he should not be reprimanded.

There was also a backlash on the thread.

BBC Wages Show all 11 1 /11 BBC Wages BBC Wages Graham Norton PA BBC Wages John Humphrys pa BBC Wages Huw Edwards PA BBC Wages Steve Wright PA BBC Wages Laura Kuenssberg PA BBC Wages Alan Shearer PA BBC Wages Andrew Marr Getty BBC Wages Danny Dyer Getty BBC Wages Adam Woodyatt Getty BBC Wages Peter Capaldi PA BBC Wages Alex Jones

The author is an idiot, grasping at pseudoscience to justify sexism. It's a struggle for anyone who's approached the issue with an open heart to read like this, another commenter wrote.

Responding to the memo via another internal note, Googles new Vice President of Diversity, Integrity and Governance, Danielle Brown, wrote that Google has the belief that diversity and inclusion are critical to our success as a company.

Googles Vice President of engineering, Ari Balogh, also spoke out on the debate.

One of the aspects of the post that troubled me deeply was the bias inherent in suggesting that most women, or men, feel or act a certain way. That is stereotyping, and it is harmful, he wrote.

Building an open, inclusive environment is core to who we are, and the right thing to do. Nuff said.
Federal investigators are examining whether former national security adviser Michael Flynn was secretly paid by the Turkish government to lobby against a critic of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to a report from The New York Times.

Investigators for Special Counsel Robert Mueller asked the White House for documents related to Flynn and questioned witnesses about whether he was paid by the Turkish government, according to the Times report. The document request was not a formal subpoena, the newspaper reported.

CNN reported Thursday that Mueller's investigators have focused on Flynn's lobbying work for the Turkish government.

Flynn's lawyers declined to comment to CNN Friday night. Flynn did not comment to the Times.

Ty Cobb, the White House special counsel, told CNN: "The White House will not be discussing any specific communications with the Special Counsel out of respect for the Special Counsel and his process. Beyond that, as I have stressed repeatedly, we continue to fully cooperate with the Special Counsel."

Cobb made a similar statement to the Times.

"We've said before we're collaborating with the special counsel on an ongoing basis," he told the newspaper.

"It's full cooperation mode as far as we are concerned," he said, according to the report.

Flynn's former lobbying firm, the Flynn Intel Group, was paid $530,000 to represent Ekim Alptekin, a Turkish businessman, during the final months of the US presidential campaign, according to foreign agent registration paperwork filed with the Justice Department. But the contract ended in mid-Novermber 2016, around the time that Flynn was announced as President Donald Trump's first national security adviser. Flynn was forced to resign in February after it was reported that he misled Vice President Mike Pence about the nature of his phone calls with the Russian ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak.

Since then, Flynn has become a target of both federal and congressional investigators. Leaders of the House Oversight Committee revealed last spring that Flynn may have broken the law when he failed to disclose payments from RT-TV, a Russian station, and the Turkish businessman in his application for a security clearance.

Athena Jones contributed to this report. Clarification: This story was updated to reflect that The New York Times reported Mueller's investigators asked the White House for documents related to Flynn and that CNN previously reported the investigators have focused on Flynn's lobbying work for the Turkish government.
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The FBI is looking for suspects in an explosion at a Minnesota mosque where worshippers had assembled for morning prayers. Officials are investigating whether the explosion was a hate crime.

The blast went off early Saturday morning at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, according to Bloomington Police Chief Jeff Potts. A room in the mosque was damaged, but no people were harmed.

Richard Thornton, special agent in charge of the FBI's Minneapolis Division, said the blast appeared to have been caused by an improvised explosive device. The FBI recovered pieces of the device from the scene.

The agency is now looking for the person responsible for the explosion, and seeking to determine whether it was a hate crime.

At this point, our focus is to determine who and why, Mr Thornton said at a press conference. Is it a hate crime? Is it an act of terror?"

They FBI have so far interviewed witnesses, sent evidence to labs, and collected video and cellphone data for analysis.

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 Bloomington Police thanked the FBI and the community as a whole for their help, tweeting: "Thank you Bloomington community for your kind words & support today. We will always be here for you & will serve to the best of our ability."

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke is also aware of the situation, and is in contact with federal and local authorities.

The Department of Homeland Security fully supports the rights of all to freely and safely worship the faith of their choosing and we vigorously condemn such attacks on any religious institution, the DHS said in a statement. We are thankful that there were no injuries, but that does not diminish the serious nature of this act.

Neighbours in the sleepy suburb reported waking up to a loud bang on Saturday morning. Windows in the imam's office at the mosque were shattered, and smoke poured through the building. Asad Zaman, director of the local Muslim American Society, described the attack as a "firebombing".

Mohamed Omar, the centre's executive director, said one member saw a pickup truck speeding away from the scene shortly after the explosion. He added that the mosque has received threatening phone calls and emails in the past.

The number of anti-Muslim hate crimes has almost doubled this year compared to the same time period in 2016, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. The Council documented 35 attacks on mosques in the first three months of this year.

One regular worshipper at Dar Al-Farooq condemned Saturday's attacks in an interview with the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

We came to this country for the same reason everyone else came here  freedom to worship, said Yasir Abdalrahman. And that freedom is under threat. Every other American should be insulted by this.
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The UN Security Council has voted unanimously to impose an estimated $1bn of new sanctions on North Korea, in an effort to contain the countrys rapidly expanding nuclear programme.

The US-drafted proposal passed the Security Council 15-0, securing support from North Korean allies China and Russia.

It is time for North Korea to realise, we are not playing anymore, said Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, on Fox News programme Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo.

Recommended China urges North Korea to end missile tests and accept UN sanctions

She added: A third of their trade exports have been hit, and we basically gave them a kick in the gut with a billion dollars of sanctions that they are going to begin to feel right away.

The UN resolution bans all North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It also limits the number of North Koreans permitted to work abroad, and bars countries from entering into new joint ventures with North Korea or investing in current ones.

The resolution also adds nine people and four entities  including North Koreas primary foreign exchange bank  to the UN blacklist.

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

It was a good outcome, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said at an annual meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Manila.

It was a very, very good outcome, added South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha.

However, both China and Russia condemned the US deployment of the THAAD anti-missile system in South Korea after the vote. China called for the systems deployment to be halted, and for existing pieces to be dismantled.

The vote comes after a month of private negotiations between the US and China on the issue. US President Donald Trump has criticised the country for not doing enough, tweeting that China had done NOTHING for us with North Korea, just talk.

South Korean Ambassador to the UN speaks to members of the security council (Getty) (EDUARDO MUNOZ ALVAREZ/AFP/Getty Images)

Earlier this month, the White House moved to start investigating Chinas trade practises, in what many saw as retaliation for their perceived inaction on North Korea.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, meeting with North Koreas top diplomat during the gathering in Manila, issued an uncharacteristically strong warning to the country.

Do not violate the UNs decision or provoke international societys goodwill by conducting missile launching or nuclear tests, he told the North Korean diplomat.

The White House thanked both China and Russia for their cooperation in a statement, adding: [Mr Trump] will continue working with allies and partners to increase diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea to end its threatening and destabilising behaviour.

The council voted 15-1 on a US-drafted resolution toughening sanctions on North Korea (Getty) (EDUARDO MUNOZ ALVAREZ/AFP/Getty Images)

North Korea tested two intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) capable of hitting the US last month, demonstrating a level of advancement that surprised even the Pentagon. The Department of Defence now predicts Pyongyang could have nuclear-capable ICBMs by 2018.

The test added pressure to an already tense situation with isolated North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. The US responded to the latest test by flying two supersonic bombers over the Korean Peninsula in a show of force. The US air force also successfully tested its own ICMB located in California.

North Korea has accused the United States and South Korea of escalating tensions by conducting military drills.

Several US officials have said the country is prepared to use force against the North Korean regime if necessary.

The President has been very clear that hes not going to tolerate North Korea being able to threaten the US, national security adviser HR McMaster told MSNBCs Hugh Hewitt on Saturday. So of course we have to provide all options to do that, and that includes a military option.

Senator Lindsey Graham said last week that he had discussed the military option with Mr Trump personally, telling NBC: If thousands die, theyre going to die over there. Theyre not going to die over here  and [Mr Trump] has told me that to my face.

The White House has said only that all options remain on the table.
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A Republican Senator has said he wished the Republican Party had done more to fight birtherism, the racist conspiracy theory surrounding former President Barack Obamas birthplace.

Jeff Flake of Arizona, who was advertising his new book about conservatism on NBC, was asked if the GOP was afraid to put country over party.

Well, I do think that we've seen more people ready to stand up. And I wish that we, as a party, would have stood up, for example, when the birtherism thing was going along. A lot of people did stand up but not enough, Mr Flake said.

He added that birtherism was particularly ugly.

Donald Trump propagated rumours that Mr Obama was not born in the US, and joined calls to see his birth certificate.

The theory was supported by his wife, Melania Trump, during a television interview.

Last September, two months before being elected as President, Mr Trump said at an event: President Barack Obama was born in the United States. Period.

Mr Flake also told NBC that he regretted the chants of lock her up at rallies and campaign events, referring to Hillary Clinton, and which were encouraged by Mr Trumps proposal to hire a special prosecutor to investigate her alleged misuse of her personal email server.

 Trump plays golf and greets wedding guests as White House denies he's on holiday

We shouldnt be the party for jailing your political opponents and anybody at that rally, anybody at those rallies, ought to stand up and say, Thats inappropriate, we shouldnt be doing that, and I wish we, as a party, and elected officials, would do more of that.

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 Flake has been a longtime critic of Mr Trump, even calling last year for him to withdraw his bid for the White House and claiming that America deserves far better.

In October he tweeted: Republicans should not be okay with @realDonaldTrump threatening to jail his opponent after the election. That is not who we are.

He also tweeted that Mr Trumps suggestion during the campaign that he might not accept the election results, when the polls were leaning in Ms Clintons favour, as beyond the pale.

In his new book, Conscience of a Conservative, Mr Flake argued that his party was in denial about the first few months of Mr Trumps presidency.
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says he has engaged in lengthy talks with the US Secretary of State, and feels the US is ready to continue dialogue with Russia.

Mr Lavrov and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meeting in Manila. It was the first conversation between the two men since the US imposed sanctions on Russia last week.

Mr Lavrov said Mr Tillerson was chiefly interested in the reduction of some 750 American diplomatic positions in Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the move was a response to the US sanctions, and to former President Barack Obamas expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats from the US earlier this year.

I decided that it is time for us to show that we will not leave anything unanswered, Mr Putin said in a Russian state media interview.

There has been confusion, however, over whether the US diplomats would be expelled from Russia, or simply removed from their positions.

"We provided an explanation," Mr Lavrov said, but did not disclose details.

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

The US Congress overwhelmingly voted to imposed sanctions on Russia in retaliation for the countrys alleged meddling in the 2016 election.

Three US intelligence agencies have accused Moscow of releasing damaging information on Hillary Clinton and spreading false reports via social media in an attempt to bolster Donald Trump's presidential campaign.

Federal investigators are also looking into whether Mr Trumps campaign colluded with the Russian government in this effort.

Mr Trump signed his countrys sanctions into law begrudgingly last week, under intense pressure from legislators. In a statement, Mr Trump called the sanctions seriously flawed, and said he would only sign the bill for the sake of national unity.

The President, who has repeatedly pushed for better relations with Moscow, wrote: We hope there will be cooperation between our two countries on major global issues so that these sanctions will no longer be necessary.

Later, Mr Trump declared US relations with Russia were at an "all-time low".

Mr Lavrov, recalling his discussions with Mr Tillerson, said he felt that the Americans need to keep the dialogue open," and added: There's no alternative to that."

Mr Tillerson did not comment on the discussions.'

Mr Lavrov said the two men also discussed sending special representative Kurt Volker, the US envoy to Ukraine, on a visit to Moscow. Mr Volker travelled to Ukraine last month to assess the conflict between government forces and pro-Russian separatists. The conflict is seen as a major obstacle to improved US-Russia relations in the US.

Mr Lavrov did not specify when Mr Volker would visit.

Mr Tillerson and Mr Lavrov also reportedly discussed the nuclear situation in North Korea, and how the US and Russia could withstand attacks.

They agreed that Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and US Under Secretary Thomas A Shannon would continue the discussion.
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Chicago has sued the Trump administration over its threats to withhold funding from sanctuary cities.

The lawsuit, filed in US District Court, claims the administration is forcing the city to choose between its constitutional rights and federal funding for law enforcement.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced his plans to sue at press conference last week, saying: "Chicago will not let our residents have their fundamental rights isolated and violated, and Chicago will never relinquish our status as a welcoming city."

Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently declared that the Justice Department would withhold federal grant money from so-called sanctuary cities  localities that refuse to comply with federal immigration enforcement.

The Justice Department has demanded cities allow immigration agencies unlimited access to their jails, and provide 48 hours notice before releasing anyone suspected of violating immigration laws.

Mayors like Mr Emanuel, however, have taken issue with the Trump administration's increased immigration enforcement activity. In particular, the leaders of many sanctuary cities object to the targeting of undocumented immigrants without criminal records.

"We're not going to actually auction off our values as a city, so Monday morning the City of Chicago is going to court; we're going to take the Justice Department to court based on this," Mr Emmanuel told local news station WLS.

He added: "We find it unlawful and unconstitutional to be, as a city, coerced on a policy."

Missing out on the federal Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants could potentially cost sanctuary cities millions of dollars. Chicago alone was slated to receive $3.2m from the grant program this year to purchase new police equipment.

The funding is especially sensitive in Chicago, which Mr Trump frequently criticises for its high crime rate. The Justice Department said in a statement that more Chicagoans were murdered last year than residents of Los Angeles and New York combined.

"It's especially tragic that the mayor is less concerned with that staggering figure than he is spending time and taxpayer money protecting criminal aliens and putting Chicago's law enforcement at greater risk, Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said.

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

This is not the first time the Trump administration has been taken to court over its sanctuary city policy. Last month, the court blocked a broader executive order that would have denied even more federal funds to these cities.

Judge William H Orrick sided with Santa Clara County, the city of San Francisco, and other jurisdictions, ruling that denying such funds could be unconstitutional.

The White House condemned the decision as an egregious overreach.

"Today's ruling undermines faith in our legal system and raises serious questions about circuit shopping, the White House said in a statement. But we are confident we will ultimately prevail in the Supreme Court, just as we will prevail in our lawful efforts to impose immigration restrictions necessary to keep terrorists out of the United States.
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US Vice President Mike Pence has denied reports that he will run for president in 2020, calling them "disgraceful and offensive".

"Today's article in the New York Times is disgraceful and offensive to me, my family, and our entire team," he said in a statement. "The allegations in the article are categorically false and represent just the latest attempt by the media to divide this administration."

Mr Pence spoke out in response to a Times article that detailed his notable political activity in recent months, including the creation of his own political action committee and meetings with Republican donors at his private residence.

The Times reported that multiple Pence advisers had signalled that he would run in 2020 if Donald Trump did not.

The White House moved quickly to shut down these reports. Pence spokesman Marc Lotter lashed out on Twitter, calling the article "fake news" and "wishful thinking".

Mr Pence released his statement shortly thereafter, condemning the claims as "laughable and absurd".

"Whatever fake news may come our way, my entire team will continue to focus all our efforts to advance the President's agenda and see him re-elected in 2020," he said.

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

Still, the Vice President has been markedly more active than previous inhabitants of his office, speaking at major Republican events and hiring a competitive political strategist, Nick Ayers, as his chief of staff. (Mr Ayers dismissed the Times report as a "total lie".)

Other Republicans in the field are said to be keeping an eye on Mr Pence's moves.

They see him moving around, having big donors at the house for dinner, longtime Washington lobbyist Charles R Black J told the Times. And theyve got to try to keep up.

Even if Mr Pence doesn't stage a run in 2020, there are plenty of other Republicans who seem eager to step into the ring.

Senator Tom Cotton, who appeared with the President just last week to promote his immigration legislation, is planning a $5,000-per-person fundraiser in New York next month. He has also frequented Iowa  the site of the first Democratic and Republican presidential caucuses every four years.

Advisers for Senator Ben Sasse, a frequent critic of the President, have reportedly been discussing the formation of an advocacy group to amplify his message across the country. (A spokesperson for Mr Sasse denied any interest in a 2020 presidential run.)

It's possible that these would-be challengers sense a popular backlash brewing against the President, who was never popular amongst establishment Republicans in the first place.

Mr Trump's approval ratings currently hover under 40 per cent, and he is losing ground with independent voters. His failure to sign any significant legislation  including a repeal of Obamacare  and the ongoing investigation of his ties to Russia have raised concerns as to his effectiveness.

[Republicans] see weakness in this president, Senator John McCain told the Times. Look, its not a nice business were in.
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Soldiers battled for three hours against a small band of anti-government fighters who snuck onto a Venezuelan army base, apparently intent on fomenting an uprising, President Nicolas Maduro said.

Troops killed two of the intruders, wounded another and captured seven, but 10 others got away, the embattled leader announced in his weekly broadcast on state television.

"We know where they are headed and all of our military and police force is deployed," Mr Maduro said. He said he would ask for "the maximum penalty for those who participated in this terrorist attack".

The incident happened during the early hours of Sunday morning at the Paramacay base in the central city of Valencia. Residents who live nearby said they heard repeated bursts of gunfire starting around 4.30am.

A video showing more than a dozen men dressed in military fatigues, some carrying rifles, began circulating widely on social media around that time. In the recording, a man who identified himself as Captain Juan Caguaripano said the men were members of the military who oppose Mr Maduro's socialist government and called on military units to declare themselves in open rebellion.

"This is not a coup d'etat," the man said. "This is a civic and military action to re-establish the constitutional order."

Twenty men entered the base, catching soldiers on night watch by surprise, Mr Maduro said. The intruders managed to reach the base's weapons depot before an alarm sounded, alerting troops to the incursion.

He said 10 of the invaders then escaped, some carrying off arms, while those left behind exchanged gunfire with soldiers until about 8am before all were either killed or captured.

"Today we had to defeat terrorism with bullets," Mr Maduro said.

Residents who live nearby and saw the dissident group's video online gathered around the military base chanting "Freedom!" Other protests also emerged spontaneously around Valencia into the afternoon.

Troops dispersed the protesters with tear gas and a man was fatally shot at a demonstration less than a mile from the base, said Haydee Franco, coordinating secretary of the Progressive Advance party. More than 120 people have been reported killed in unrest that began in early April.

Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez characterised the attackers as a "paramilitary" expedition, saying the intruders were civilians dressed in uniforms.

He did not identify any of the participants, but said they included a lieutenant who had abandoned his post. He said the man who recorded the video was a former officer dismissed three years ago after being charged with rebellion and betraying the homeland.

In 2014, Mr Caguaripano released a 12-minute video denouncing Mr Maduro during a previous wave of anti-government unrest. He later reportedly sought exile after a military tribunal ordered his arrest, appearing in an interview on CNN en Espanol to draw attention to what he said was discontent within military ranks.

He returned to Venezuela to lead Sunday's uprising, said Giomar Flores, a mutinous naval officer now in Bogota, Colombia, who said he is a spokesman for the group.

Mr Padrino Lopez alleged the attackers were recruited by "right-wing extremists" working with unspecified foreign governments. Mr Maduro said the attack was "paid for by Miami and Colombia"  cities with large numbers of Venezuelans who oppose his government. Neither provided specific details on how they had come to that conclusion.

"Today's terrorist attack is no more than a propaganda show," Mr Padrino Lopez said.

Venezuela's latest bout of political unrest erupted in protest to a Supreme Court decision in late March ordering the opposition-controlled National Assembly dissolved. Although the order was quickly annulled, near-daily demonstrations snowballed into a general protest calling for a new presidential election.

Opposition leaders have urged the military, which historically has served as an arbiter of Venezuela's political disputes, to break with Mr Maduro over what his foes consider violations of the constitution.

But the president is believed to still have the military's support. He and his predecessor, the late President Hugo Chavez, worked diligently to assure their allegiance.

Like Sunday's uprising, most manifestations of dissent among troops have been small and isolated thus far.

"It's still very hard to know to what extent there are significant divisions within the military," Michael Shifter, president of the Washington-based Inter-American Dialogue, said recently.

The attack capped an already tense weekend during which a new constitutional assembly that will rule with nearly unlimited powers voted to remove chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz.

Ms Ortega Diaz, a longtime government loyalist who has become one of Mr Maduro's most outspoken critics, reiterated her refusal to recognise that decision at a public appearance alongside opposition leaders on Sunday.

"I am still Venezuela's chief prosecutor," she said to applause.

The assembly ordered her replaced by Ombudsman Tarek William Saab, who was recently sanctioned by Washington for failing to protect protesters from abuses in his role as the nation's top human rights official.

Meanwhile, jailed opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez was returned home to serve out under house arrest his 13-year sentence for inciting violence at 2014 protests. He had been hauled back to prison in the middle of the night a few days earlier in a move that drew international condemnation.

Mr Lopez's wife, Lilian Tintori, said in a message on Twitter that she and her husband remained committed to achieving "peace and freedom for Venezuela".

Associated Press
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The Burmese governments inquiry into allegations of crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing during a crackdown against the Rohingya Muslim minority last year has concluded no such crimes happened.

Rohingya militants killed nine border guards in October, sparking a response in which the army was accused of raping Rohingya women, shooting villagers on sight and burning down homes, sending an estimated 75,000 people fleeing to Bangladesh.

A UN report in February said security forces instigated a campaign which very likely amounted to crimes against humanity and possibly ethnic cleansing. This led to the establishment of a UN probe which is being blocked by Burma.

The Burmese inquiry accused the UN of making exaggerated claims in its report.

 Aung San Suu Kyi pushes back against criticism of handling of Rohingya abuses

The countrys own 13-member investigation team  led by former head of military intelligence and now Vice President, Myint Swe  has been dismissed by human rights monitors as lacking independence to produce a credible report.

Speaking at the release of the Rakhine Investigative Commissions final report, Vice President Myint Swe  a former general  told reporters on Sunday that there is no evidence of crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights claimed.

He added that some people from abroad have fabricated news claiming genocide had occurred, but we havent found any evidence.

He also denied charges that there had been gang rapes by the military as it swept through Rohingya villages in a security clearance operation. The army was reacting to deadly attacks against border police posts by a previously unknown insurgent group in October 2016 in the Maungdaw area of Rakhine.

Rohingya mothers face persecution Show all 10 1 /10 Rohingya mothers face persecution Rohingya mothers face persecution Ramida Begum holds her 10-day-old daughter in their shelter in Kutupalang, an unregistered refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. 'The military caught my husband and burnt our house down a week before I left Myanmar. Since then I don't know whether my husband is dead or alive' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Minara Begum sits inside the shelter, cradling her one-month-old son Ayub. Minara fled to Bangladesh from Nasha Phuru village in Myanmar with her husband and mother-in-law. 'My child doesn't get enough breast milk as I don't eat enough nutritious food. I have to buy milk powder from local market though it's not very good for my son' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Amina, pictured with her 16-day-old daughter Sumaiyin, is in a refugee camp Balukhali that neighbours Ramida and Minara's. 'One and a half months ago the military came to our village and kept firing their guns. I ran away with my neighbours to save our lives. You see us alive here only because the God was so kind. They caught my uncle and my younger brother and we don't know whether they are dead or alive' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Fatema sits beside her one-day-old daughter Aasma in Kutupalang. Fatema fled to Bangladesh from Jambuinna village in Myanmar two months ago after her house was burnt down by the military. She crossed Naf River by boat during the night. 'Our situation is better than many other refugees as my husband Mohammad Alom works here as a day labourer. Many of the new refugees have no work here, so they have to rely on relief' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Jamalida cradles her two-month-old daughter Shahida. Jamalida came to Bangladesh with her husband from Nasha Phuru village in Myanmar Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Rehana Begum lays her one-day-old daughter in front of her inside their tarpaulin shelter. Rehana fled her village of Jambuinna in Myanmar three months ago. 'We were in our home and suddenly the military came to our village and started shooting. When we heard the sound of gun shots we immediately went to our relatives. We walked for four hours without any food and water to reach the border at 1 a.m. We paid 25,000 Myanmar kyat (14) to a broker to cross.' Intercepted by Bangladesh border guards, Rehana's family narrowly escaped being sent home. 'They wanted to send us back, but then we heard gunshots from the Myanmar side and the guards released us, saying, "Stay in Bangladesh and save your lives"' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Noor Begum sits next to her one-day-old daughter Sumaiya as she stares into the camera. Noor came to the camp one-and-a-half months ago from Nagpura village with her husband Jahangir Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Rajuma Begum observes her one-month-old son Raihan. 'I fled to Bangladesh because of fear, because I needed to save my children. I was pregnant and suffering from fever while crossing the border. I also have an 11-month-old boy, so it was very difficult to reach the border from our village Wabek in Myanmar. I had to rest frequently. After six hours of horrible walking we finally reached the border at 2am and crossed after paying a broker' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Eighteen-year-old Asmot Ara rests her newly born daughter on her lap. Asmot said she came to the camp one month ago with neighbours from Nagpura village. In Myanmar her father-in-law was killed and their home burnt down by the Myanmar military Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution As Marijaan holds her 25-day-old daughter Noor Habi, her son peers over her shoulder. Marijaan fled to Bangladesh from Khyeri Prang village in Myanmar one month ago after her house was burnt down by the Myanmar military. 'I reached the border at night and crossed by the boat. I paid the boatman to cross the Naf River' Reuters

The panel said that the report did not take into consideration violent acts committed by the insurgents, instead focusing on the activities of the security forces.

Rights groups have previously expressed their doubts over the commissions work, saying it lacked outside experts, had poor research methodologies and lacked credibility because it was not independent.

Women and girls have accused soldiers and police officers of rape and sexual assault during months of violence between Muslims and Buddhists in Burma (AFP/Getty) (HLA HLA HTAY/AFP/Getty Images)

The commissions report did accept that some things might have happened that broke the law, attributing it to excessive action on the part of individual members of the security forces.

The Burmese commission had received 21 reports from villagers of incidents of murder, rape, arson and torture by the security forces, but, unable to verify their veracity, it referred them to the authorities.

We opened doors for them to complain to the courts if they have evidence that they suffered human rights abuses, but no one came to open a lawsuit until now, Zaw Myint Pe, the secretary of the panel said.

The commission blamed the violence on the insurgents, accusing them of links to organisations abroad, set up to destabilise and harm Myanmar (Burma).

Rohingya men at Sittwes bustling fish market in Rakhine, Burma (Reuters) (Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters)

The treatment of the roughly one million Muslim Rohingya has emerged as majority Buddhist Burmas most contentious rights issue as it makes a transition from decades of harsh military rule.

The Rohingya are denied citizenship and classified as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, despite claiming roots in the region that go back centuries, with communities marginalised and occasionally subjected to communal violence.

Additional reporting by agencies
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The Chinese foreign minister has has urged his North Korean counterpart to abide by UN resolutions and stop provoking "the international community's goodwill" with missile launches and nuclear tests.

Wang Yi said he and Ri Yong Ho had an intensive conversation during which China urged North Korea to maintain calm after they met in Manila on the sidelines of a regional meeting.

Mr Wang also urged the US and South Korea "to stop increasing tensions" and said that all sides should return to negotiations.

North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho (left) poses with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi for a photo prior to their bilateral meeting in the sideline of the 50th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting and its Dialogue Partners, in Pasay city, south Manila, Philippines (AP/Bullit Marquez)

Their meeting came hours after the UN Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions to punish Pyongyang for its escalating nuclear and missile programmes.

In an earlier statement, Mr Wang appealed to other governments to resume the six-nation talks involving the North, the United States, Russia, Japan and South Korea, as well as Beijing.

"The aim is to bring the peninsula nuclear issue back to the negotiating table and seek a solution through negotiations until the denuclearisation of the peninsula and the stability of the peninsula are achieved," he said.

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

North Korea pulled out of the talks in 2009 to protest international condemnation of a long-range rocket launch.

Last month, it test-launched two intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the US mainland.

The US Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, has said Washington wants eventually to talk to North Korea, but thinks discussions would not be productive if Pyongyang comes with the intention of maintaining its nuclear weapons.

Mr Wang's statement repeated Beijing's proposal for a "double suspension," or a halt to North Korean nuclear development and to joint US-South Korean military exercises.

It said that was the most reasonable way to ease tensions and create conditions for new talks.

Susan Thornton, the top US diplomat for Asia, said the Washington isn't currently considering China's proposal to freeze US military exercises with South Korea in exchange for the North halting nuclear development.

She said the US rejects any "moral equivalency" implied by the proposal.
Estimados amigos,

Les doy cordialmente la bienvenida a este Blog informativo con articulos, analisis y comentarios de publicaciones especializadas y especialmente seleccionadas, principalmente sobre temas economicos, financieros y politicos de actualidad, que esperamos y deseamos, sean de su maximo interes, utilidad y conveniencia.

Pensamos que solo comprendiendo cabalmente el presente, es que podemos proyectarnos acertadamente hacia el futuro.

Las convicciones son mas peligrosos enemigos de la verdad que las mentiras.

There are decades when nothing happens and there are weeks when decades happen.

You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out.

No soy alguien que sabe, sino alguien que busca.

Only Gold is money. Everything else is debt.

Las grandes almas tienen voluntades; las debiles tan solo deseos.

Quien no lo ha dado todo no ha dado nada.

History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.

If you know the other and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.

We are travelers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share.This is a precious moment. It is a little parenthesis in eternity.
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A man has been found alive and well after wondering around lost in the Australian outback for three days.

Anthony Collis, 32, became separated from the woman he was travelling with and managed to survive the hot days and cold nights by burying himself in the dirt.

The alarm was raised on Friday and he was found early Sunday morning, suffering dehydration and exposure but was "otherwise fine", according to police.

Recommended Camel hunter survives six days in Outback by eating ants

He had no other injuries and was expected to fully recover.

Mr Collis, 32, and his travelling companion Debbie Blomfield, 39, were driving from Newman in Western Australia along the Canning Stock Route to Darwin in the Northern Territory.

After stopping for supplies, their car got stuck in boggy terrain.

Ms Blomfield walked into Georgia Bore Camp, about 8km north of Lake Disappointment. Somehow the pair became separated.

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. 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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. 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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 woman was disorientated and dehydrated but she managed to help police search for Mr Collis.

The pairs vehicle, a white Mitsubishi Triton, was discovered on Friday by the lake, but Mr Collis was not there. The car reportedly contained few supplies.

Emergency workers, including air and ground crews, volunteers and local police searched the area.

The 32-year-old was found in bushland, about 1km north of Lake Disappointment and 3km from his vehicle, as he waved to a helicopter above him and shouted for help.

He was airlifted to Newman Hospital for treatment where he stayed overnight. Ms Blomfield was discharged.

Mr Collis, from Wiltshire in England, resides in Perth, according to PerthNow.

Acting Inspector Garry Kosovich told the publication that the couple did not seem well-prepared for the trip in their four-wheel drive in rugged terrain.

Mr Collis was calling out and police heard the call, he said.

He was fairly weak at that point, but thankfully he was heard and we responded and located him.

He added that Mr Collis would have been discovered on Friday if he had remained with his vehicle.
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Belgium has admitted it knew in June that eggs from a Dutch farm might have been contaminated with an insecticide a month before it became public knowledge.

The countrys food safety agency said in a statement that the information was not shared because of a fraud investigation.

The World Health Organisation considers Fipronil to be moderately toxic and says the insecticide can damage the kidneys, liver and lymph glands, while also causing symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and eye irritation if absorbed into the skin. It is used to kill fleas, lice and ticks and is not allowed to be near food production chains in the EU.

Recommended Aldi recalls contaminated eggs in Germany after chemical fears

We knew since early June there was potentially a problem with Fipronil in the poultry sector, Belgiums food safety agencys spokeswoman Katrien Stragier told the BBC. We immediately launched an investigation and we also informed the prosecutor because it was a matter of possible fraud.

The spokeswoman said she could not provide further information as Belgian law prohibits commenting on judicial investigations.

The agency said it first learned of the issue at the start of June when a poultry company alerted them that they had found elevated levels of the insecticide in its products.

Use of this drug is not permitted in this sector, Belgiums food agency has said on its website. It said the product was unlawfully present in a blood lice product used for the treatment of laying hens.

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 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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 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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

Supermarket chain Aldi was forced to recall millions of eggs from its stores in Germany earlier this week after tests showed the possibility of Fipronil contamination. However, a spokesperson from Aldi UK said eggs sold throughout Britain should not be affected as all eggs sold in the stores UK locations are 100 per cent British. It emphasised that Aldi UK operates independently from its German counterpart.

German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt expressed concerns over the possible contamination on Saturday. He said he planned to call his Belgian counterpart on Monday to discuss the situation.

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Italian researchers found women living in the most polluted areas were three times more likely to show signs they were running low on eggs than those who lived in cleaner surroundings, potentially triggering an earlier menopause Getty/iStock Health news in pictures Junk food ads could be banned before watershed Junk food adverts on TV and online could be banned before 9pm as part of Government plans to fight the "epidemic" of childhood obesity. Plans for the new watershed have been put out for public consultation in a bid to combat the growing crisis, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said PA Health news in pictures Breeding with neanderthals helped humans fight diseases On migrating from Africa around 70,000 years ago, humans bumped into the neanderthals of Eurasia. While humans were weak to the diseases of the new lands, breeding with the resident neanderthals made for a better equipped immune system PA Health news in pictures Cancer breath test to be trialled in Britain The breath biopsy device is designed to detect cancer hallmarks in molecules exhaled by patients Getty Health news in pictures Average 10 year old has consumed the recommended amount of sugar for an adult By their 10th birthdy, children have on average already eaten more sugar than the recommended amount for an 18 year old. The average 10 year old consumes the equivalent to 13 sugar cubes a day, 8 more than is recommended PA Health news in pictures Child health experts advise switching off screens an hour before bed While there is not enough evidence of harm to recommend UK-wide limits on screen use, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health have advised that children should avoid screens for an hour before bed time to avoid disrupting their sleep Getty Health news in pictures Daily aspirin is unnecessary for older people in good health, study finds A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found that many elderly people are taking daily aspirin to little or no avail Getty Health news in pictures Vaping could lead to cancer, US study finds A study by the University of Minnesota's Masonic Cancer Centre has found that the carcinogenic chemicals formaldehyde, acrolein, and methylglyoxal are present in the saliva of E-cigarette users Reuters Health news in pictures More children are obese and diabetic There has been a 41% increase in children with type 2 diabetes since 2014, the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit has found. 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Agriculture Minister Schmidt would have expected notification [about the contamination] from officials in Belgium in a timely and comprehensive manner, a ministry spokesman said.

A spokeswoman for the European Commission confirmed on Friday that the case was under investigation by Belgian and Dutch prosecutors. She said the Belgian public prosecutor had opened a criminal investigation against a service provider suspected of adding the substance to his products.

Belgium has also opened a case on the EU Food Fraud Network appealing to the Netherlands for assistance.

Additional reporting by Reuters
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A woman in Germany narrowly avoided injury after she picked up a shiny object on a beach she believed to be amber, but which turned out to be part of a Second World War bomb that later burst into flames.

The 41-year-old was out walking on the banks of the Elbe river near Hamburg when she plucked the small stone-like item from wet sand and put it in the pocket of her jacket.

But the souvenir turned out to be a centimetre-long chunk of white phosphorus  which ignited just moments later in the incident near the town of Wedel.

Recommended Holocaust survivors issue stark warning over dangers of fascism in UK

Passersby alerted the woman that her jacket was ablaze where she had placed it on the ground, and she managed to avoid any injuries.

White phosphorus is highly flammable, ignites when exposed to the air and cannot be put out by dousing with water. It burns at up to 1,300C and can cause severe second and third-degree burns that typically require skin grafts.

The highly flammable material found on the banks of the Elbe river in the incident was part of an unexploded white phosphorus bomb left over from the Second World War. Most of the munitions were dropped from fighter planes but failed to detonate.

Firefighters who were called to the scene yesterday later combed the beach looking for more of the white phosphorus -- but failed to find any of the dangerous substance.

Social media users pointed out how the woman in the incident was fortunate to have avoided injury.

Will Popher wrote: Lucky escape!, while Jackie Griffiths posted: Crikey, close call.

Police later warned walkers in the area of the Elbe river of the dangers of picking up items like stones on the beach and putting them in their pocket.

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

They advised people to stow any objects that looked like amber on the beach into special cans and containers.

Unexploded bombs left over from the war are frequently discovered in Germany, nearly 75 years later.

The scare along the Elbe river came just weeks after police evacuated a prison in the south east German city of Regensburg after a live munition was found just a few metres away.

A total of 97 inmates were bussed out of the jail while disposal experts worked to defuse the device. Some 1,500 residents nearby were also ordered out of their homes.

The specialists disabled the 225-kilo device after carrying out two explosions on the bombs detonator in the incident on 1 July.
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Berlin police have arrested two Chinese tourists for making Hitler salutes in front of the Reichstag building, where the German parliament meets.

The two men aged 36 and 49, were spotted posing in the Nazi-era salutes and taking pictures of each other on their mobile phones. Use of the Hitler salute is a criminal offence in Germany, Slovakia and Austria.

"A probe on suspicion of using the symbols of anti-constitutional organisations was opened against the two Chinese men, aged 36 and 49," a police spokeswoman told AFP.

The pair were released on bail of 500 (450) each. They face charges of using symbols of illegal organisations and could be sentenced to three years in jail, according to police.

A police spokesman said that the Chinese tourists were allowed to leave Germany during the investigation into their illegal actions. If a fine was meted out, the bail money they have already hand over would cover the costs. She did not know if the men were still in Berlin or had already left Germany, the New York Times reported.

The Reichstag building was where the Third Reich met from 1933 - 1945 and was the location for many of Hitlers speeches. It was here that the Nazi leader declared war against the United States in 1941.

Symbols and images of the Nazis are banned in Germany and can only be used for educational or historical research. They can be included in documentaries or films that satirise the Nazi regime, according to Deutsche Welle.

The charges faced by the Chinese tourists are also used to prosecute members of the far right. Germanys military counterintelligence unit is investigating allegations of right-wing extremists in the armed forces.

Nazi war crimes: the hunt for Doctor Death Show all 2 1 /2 Nazi war crimes: the hunt for Doctor Death Nazi war crimes: the hunt for Doctor Death AP Photo/LKA Baden-Wuerttemberg Nazi war crimes: the hunt for Doctor Death Independent Graphics

In 2016, 143 incidents were reported and 53 so far in 2017, including one soldier who was heard saying Heil Hitler and sieg heil, comrades. Despite the case being given to the public and military prosecutors offices, the trooper escaped an early dismissal from duty and was not banned from service.

In another case, a soldier performed the Nazi salute while in Riga, the Latvian capital, Sky News reported. He was disciplined but allowed to keep his weapon.
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Israel's communications minister has said he wants to shut down pan-Arab broadcaster Al-Jazeera in the country.

Ayoob Kara, of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, said Sunday he wants the news network's press cards revoked and has asked cable providers to block their transmissions. He said he wants them banned altogether. No timetable for the measures was given.

Kara said the station is used by militant groups to "incite" violence.

He said it is "delusional" that Arab states in the region banned Al-Jazeera for that reason but Israel has not.

Jordan and Saudi Arabia have closed Al-Jazeera's local offices, while the channel and its affiliate sites have been blocked in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain.

Israeli officials have long accused Al-Jazeera of bias against the Jewish state.

AP
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Israel has stripped an Arab Israeli man of citizenship, claiming he "removed himself from society" by launching a car-and-knife rampage that left four people injured last year.

Activists claim the ruling, believed to be a legal first, will leave Alaa Raed Ahmad Zayoud "stateless" and may violate international laws.

But a judge said the move was a suitable and proportional response after Zayoud ploughed a car into a female Israeli soldier before stabbing three civilians near Kibbutz Gan Shmuel, northeast of Hadera, in October 2015.

Zayoud was convicted of four counts of attempted murder and sentenced to 25 years in jail following the "nationalistically motivated" attack, which came during a spate of stabbings and shootings in Israel.

The government's Interior Minister, Aryeh Deri, asked Haifa Magistrates' Court to revoke his citizenship following sentencing in June last year.

On Sunday the court's deputy president Avraham Elyakim agreed to the request, according to the Times of Israel.

For every citizen, alongside his rights, there are commitments, he said.

One of them is the significant and important commitment to maintain loyalty to the state, which is given expression also in the commitment to not carry out terror acts to harm its residents and their security.

Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Show all 12 1 /12 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict The fire in my heart is beyond my ribs. You left me beloved - Soliman Shaheen, 15 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict Let me get enough of you, as Im still hungry for your smile my son - Soliman Shaheen, 15 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict They besiege me in my homeland so I flew to heaven - Rodaina Al Agha, 16 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict And I am still facing the pain all by myself - Lama Shakshak, 15 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict My brother, I watched you go while my heart was tearing - Helen Mo'amar, 16 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict My new doll is lonely in the rubble - Ayah Sha'ath, 16 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict When a soul hugs another soul they never split, even in death - Ismail Matar, 16 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict Everyone is gone and I stayed alone to make the world witness the injustice done to me - Hamza Shaheen, 16 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict The hand that carries the arms carries roses too - Madeeha Al Majayda, 15 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict My eyes tell you about a dream that overcame the fence - Soliman Shaheen, 15 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict A childhood caught in an unjust siege - Hadeel Quidh, 16 Remembering the Israel-Gaza conflict Remembering Israel-Gaza conflict All the details are torn after you - Hamza Shaheen, 17

We cannot allow an Israeli citizen to impact the lives and dignity of other Israeli citizens and whoever decides to so in acts of terror, removes himself from the general society of the country."

The decision was criticised by Human Rights Watch Israel and Palestine director Omar Shakir, who tweeted: "Israeli court today revoked citizenship for first time ever; Palestinian Alaa Zayoud left stateless, a violation of int'l human rights law."

Adalah, an Arab human rights group, claimed the ruling set a "dangerous precedent" and said they would launch an appeal at Israel's Supreme Court.

In a Facebook statement, the organisation said that the Supreme Court previously refused to revoke the citizenship of Jewish right-wing extremist Yigal Amir, who was jailed for life after assassinating the Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995.

Zayoud's citizenship is set to be revoked in October, when he will be given temporary citizenship which can be extended at the discretion of the Interior Ministry when he completes his prison sentence.

The extremist, who claimed he wanted to "kill himself by killing Jews", was a resident of Umm al-Fahm, an Arab-Israeli city in the Haifa District of Israel.

His father, who is not an Israeli citizen, has been informed that the Interior Ministry will not renew his residency in the country.

Mr Deri welcomed the ruling and said: The court decision strengthens the deterrent and strengthens our campaign to protect the security of the country.

The decision unequivocally defines that anyone who damages the state or its citizens cant be a part of it.
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A senior United Nations official in Yemen has condemned the Saudi-led air strike which killed at least 12 civilians, including children, saying it showed a complete disregard for human life.

Three women and six children from the same family were killed as they slept in the dawn air strike by the Saudi-led coalition opposing the Houthi rebels in the Yemeni civil war, according to Reuters.

The youngest of the children killed was just two years old, according to medical officials.

The civilians were killed and ten others wounded in the attack on their home in the Saada province, according to the UKs humanitarian coordinator in Yemen, Jamie McGoldrick, and other aid groups.

Mr McGoldrick expressed deep concern about the Saudi-led action in an official statement in which he accused the coalition of violating international law.

While these new incidents are still being investigated by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, they are an example of the brutality in which the conflict is being conducted.

All parties to the conflict continue to show a disregard for the protection of civilians and the principle of distinction between civilians and combatants in the conduct of hostilities.

As I have said before, even wars have rules and such rules must be respected.

The situation in Yemen Show all 14 1 /14 The situation in Yemen The situation in Yemen Houthi supporters trample on a US flag during a gathering mobilizing more fighters into several Yemeni battlefronts, in Sana'a, Yemen EPA The situation in Yemen People carry the coffins of men, who were killed in the recent Saudi-led airstrikes during their funeral, in the Old City of Sanaa, Yemen AP The situation in Yemen Pro-government fighters give food to Yemeni children on the road leading to the southwestern port city of Mokha. Yemeni rebels are putting up fierce resistance in a key Red Sea port city where they are encircled by pro-government force Getty Images The situation in Yemen A Yemeni stands in front of a graffiti protesting US military operations in war-affected Yemen, in Sana'a, Yemen. According to reports, US Special Forces troops allegedly disembarked from US helicopters in the Yemeni town of Yakla and attacked several houses belonging to members of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, killing three high-ranking Al-Qaeda members and nine civilians, six women and three children. One American serviceman has been killed and three injured in the attack EPA The situation in Yemen US Special Forces troops allegedly disembarked from US helicopters in the Yemeni town of Yakla and attacked several houses belonging to members of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, killing three high-ranking Al-Qaeda members and nine civilians, six women and three children. One American serviceman has been killed and three injured in the attack EPA The situation in Yemen A Yemeni female fighter supporting the Shiite Huthi rebels, and carrying weapons used for ceremonial purposes, takes part in an anti-Saudi rally in the capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen Yemeni female fighters supporting the Shiite Huthi rebels, and carrying weapons used for ceremonial purposes, take part in an anti-Saudi rally in the capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen A boy shouts slogans next to pro-Houthi fighters, who have been injured during recent fighting, during a rally held to honour those injured or maimed while fighting in Houthi ranks in Sanaa, Yemen Reuters The situation in Yemen Balls of fire and smoke rise from a Houthi-held military camp following alleged Saudi-led airstrikes, in Sana'a, Yemen EPA The situation in Yemen Yemenis search under the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen A Yemeni boy looks on as Yemenis search under the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa Getty The situation in Yemen A Yemeni boy sits amidst the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa AFP/Getty The situation in Yemen Marine One with US President Donald Trump flies with a decoy and support helicopters to Dover Air Force Base in Dover, Delaware, for the dignified transfer of Navy Seal Chief Petty Officer William 'Ryan' Owens who was killed in Yemen Getty Images The situation in Yemen US President Donald Trump aboard the Marine One to greet the remains of a US military commando killed during a raid on the al Qaeda militant group in southern Yemen on Sunday, at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, US Reuters

Yemen has been torn apart by the civil war in which the exiled government of President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, supported by the Saudi-led coalition, is fighting the Iran-allied Houthi group.

The Houthi group hails from the Zaidi branch of Shia Islam and controls much of the north of the country.

Its stronghold is in the capital city, Sanaa, which has been hit by multiple air strikes since the coalition of Arab states joined the civil war in March 2015. The group opposed what it regards as Irans attempt to expand its influence in Yemen.

The Saudi government has so far declined to comment on the latest air strike, which has been roundly condemned by human rights groups.

It was not clear if the house was hit by mistake, but the coalition maintains that it does not target civilians.

The war has led to one of the worse humanitarian crises in recent history, displacing more than three million people and killing at least 10,000 through famine and the worst outbreak of cholera in living memory.

The Red Cross has warned an estimated 600,000 people could contract cholera as the epidemic sweeps through Yemen, where around 70 per cent of the population of 27 million is now reliant on some form of humanitarian aid.

A total of 14.5 million people do not have regular access to clean water and 7.3 million live on the brink of famine, while less than half of the countrys medical centres are still functional.

Saudi Arabia and its allies have been accused of exacerbating the crisis by obstructing the delivery of fuel for UN planes, which are attempting to bring aid into the starving country.

Western governments, including the UK, have been criticised for enabling the conflict by selling arms to Saudi Arabia which are known to have been used against the Yemeni people.
The rainbow flag, more commonly known as the gay pride flag, was flying in Belfast on Friday on the day that Leo Varadkar visited the city as part of his first trip to Northern Ireland.

But the rainbow flag is also a symbol of peace and it was interesting to note the conciliatory tone in Varadkar's keynote speech at Queen's University given his earlier comments on Brexit.

In taking the trip, Varadkar also put behind him a week in which he denied accusations by the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) that he was engaging in "megaphone" politics over Brexit as a diplomatic row between Dublin and Belfast intensified.

Relations between the DUP and the Taoiseach had already soured after Varadkar rebuked the British government stating that Brexit was a British policy and not an Irish one and that Ireland would not be designing any kind of border.

But it seems that the Taoiseach took the spirit of pride with him on the visit and his speech was peppered with the common goals shared by the Republic and the Democratic Unionist Party although he did highlight many of the enormous challenges around Brexit.

He cited the importance of the need to maintain the Common Travel Area, the benefits of a lasting peace in Ireland, North and South, the need to restore the Northern Ireland Executive, at the earliest possible opportunity, as well as the benefits of cross-border co-operation through travel, trade and healthcare.

While the DUP has said it is in favour of Northern Ireland leaving the EU, it added that Brexit does not mean actually leaving Europe.

It is also pro the Common Travel Area between the UK and the Republic and a free trade and customs agreement with the EU.

He even floated some new proposals including an EU-UK similar to arrangements with Europe and Turkey,

Having said that, the Brexit road is paved with many complications.

And the recent decision by the DUP to enter into Government with the Conservative party in the UK which, so far, seems to be taking a hard Brexit stance is just one example.

This, by implication, points to a hard border which seems to contrast with the DUPs stance that it will lobby the Conservatives for a soft one.

But we are in the dark as to what the DUP's plan is to ensure a softer Brexit or what an Irish border would look like or work.

We also don't know how they propose to influence their newly found and unusual Conservative bedfellows.

And it is also interesting that they didn't seem it appropriate to give Dublin the heads up that they were planning to enter into Government with the Conservatives.

I put these questions to the DUP this week.

When I asked about the diplomatic value that may have been gained by even making a quiet call to the Irish Government about the partnership with the Tories, I was met with an indignant: "Why would we consult the Irish government? We're separate to whatever happens down in Dublin."

Of course there was no obligation to consult Dublin ahead of a decision but a nod would have shown that the lines of communication were open.

Efforts to develop the border or Brexit policy issues further were unsuccessful. What is the DUP's agricultural policy, for example?

Given the potential economic damage to both the Republic and the North post-Brexit surely these are issues that need to be hammered out ahead of key dates in the Autumn.

However, while there was little information forthcoming on post-Brexit policy, the press officer did hit the nail on the head with the use of the word separate - in the sense that when Brexit is factored in this is surely a fallacy.

We are stuck together in this new Brexit world whether people like it or not and we live in a globalised world, that is the reality.

That's why communication and conciliation is necessary at such a crucial time and a focus on the commonalities is key and what needs to be addressed is how we can build on them.

It was a softly, softly diplomatic approach that led to Ireland developing a strong relationship with EU Brexit Negotiator Michel Barnier.

Unfortunately, so far though, we have yet to see a similar approach from our Northern neighbours on either side of the divide.

DUP MP Jeffrey Donaldson was right about one thing this week when he said that going back to the politics of the 1970s and 1980s in Anglo Irish relations isn't going to help anyone.

But there needs to be a realisation that there's a much bigger picture at play here and we are running out of time.

Autumn is just around the corner and in October Varadkar will sit around the European Council table with the 26 other European leaders to decide whether enough progress has been made on the three key issues of citizens' rights, the financial settlement and Ireland relations.

In fact, both Sinn Finn and DUP seem to share a common stubbornness so far when it comes to opening up lines of communication around Brexit and also seem unable to see the value of diplomacy, engagement and simple conversation.

Let's hope Varadkar's meetings with DUP leader Arlene Foster and Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams set the right tone.

The clock is ticking and as fans of the award winning drama series Game of Thrones would appreciate, after Autumn comes the long, dark Winter.

"Winter is coming" is the motto of one of the great houses in the series, which is renowned for its political intrigue, and the meaning behind this phrase is one of warning.

Our friends in the DUP and Sinn Fein need to wake up and the focus now needs to shift to focusing on common goals and grounds as well as outcomes.

And as we've heard in the past few weeks, if the DUP feels like the North has lost its voice then it needs to find it fast and start talking to Dublin - the UK will not be part of the EU post Brexit.

In addition, unlike in the overall UK referendum result, the people of Northern Ireland did not vote in favour of Brexit.

It's time for that message to hit home with our DUP neighbours.
The Irish food safety authority has moved to allay fears as details of a food safety scandal concerning contaminated eggs continues in a host of European countries.

Traces of insecticide fipronil were found in eggs in Belgium and the Netherlands last month, which has led to the temporary shut-down of some poultry farms and to supermarkets halting the sale of Dutch eggs.

Investigators suspect the chemical may have gotten into eggs through contaminated detergent against mites that is used to clean barns.

Yesterday, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has said is aware that traces of Fipronil have been found in eggs in other EU countries, however there is no indication of distribution of the implicated products to the Republic of Ireland.

Fipronil is an insecticide used to combat insects such as fleas, lice, ticks, cockroaches and mites. It is not permitted for use on food-producing animals (livestock).

The FSAI is continuing to follow this issue.

Today it emerged, Belgian authorities have admitted they began investigating pesticide contamination in eggs in early June - several weeks before the public was made aware of a food safety scare affecting several European countries.

Supermarkets have pulled millions of eggs from shelves after pesticide Fipronil was found in Dutch and Belgian poultry farms.

Kathy Brison, of the Belgian food safety agency, said on Sunday that a Belgian farm alerted authorities to a possible contamination in June, and they began investigating and alerted Belgian prosecutors.

German authorities are frustrated by the apparent delay in informing European neighbours.

German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt plans to speak to his Belgian counterpart about the issue on Monday.

Ms Brison said Belgian authorities thought it was an isolated incident and did not realise the scale of the problem until late July.

Last week, discount supermarket chain Aldi is withdrawing all eggs from sale at its more than 4,000 stores in Germany as a precaution, as the scare over the possible contamination of eggs with insecticide spreads.
I have always maintained that living a mere 40km from O'Connell Street has been a massive benefit.

I'm convinced that I would never have been able to get the start I did in media were it not for my ability to jump in a jeep and be in a studio or editorial meeting in Dublin city centre within 40 minutes.

The proximity to the capital always ensured rapid access to key national infrastructure, be it motorways, trains, buses, airports, natural gas networks, etc. In fact many of them go straight through the farm.

So when I learned that high-speed fibre-optic cable was being laid along the road outside my front gate, I just assumed that it would only be a matter of time before I'd get my slice of the terabyte highway.

That was nearly a decade ago. In the meantime we've been making do with the same dongles that rural households all over Ireland depend on.

They're a stop-gap measure, with signal coming and going depending on the time of day, day of the week, or time of the year.

And while they have a relatively cheap monthly rate for a fixed amount of data, once you go over that limit you are screwed for every single megabyte.

I tried to side-step this by signing up for more dongles, which then creates its own pantomime of having to change dongles every week and various post-its and calendar notes to flag which one is next on the rota.

Every so often, halfway through the latest episode of House of Cards, there's a panic because we've forgotten a change-over.

It's like being in the car miles from home when you realise that you forgot to turn off the immersion.

Moves by the likes of Netflix to higher-definition streaming drove the gigabyte usage bananas, but at least it still plays out, unlike RTE Player, which makes you feel like you are lost in the Amazon as you wait for the screen to move for another 1.5 seconds.

It's hard to fathom, but the alternative of using a plain old landline is even worse, with download speeds akin to somewhere in the Arctic.

So when I saw the Eir van parked outside the farm gate a few weeks ago, my heart skipped a beat. I made a bee-line to find out more from the hard-hatted technician who was just about to hoist himself up another telephone pole.

"Yep, we're doing every house in the area now," he said. Delighted, I asked when he'd be getting around to wiring up the cul-de-sac that we live on. He studied the map on his iPad. "Em, I don't see that road on this. The engineer mustn't have gone down there."

I groaned. In fairness to the fella he gave me the number for the engineer. I phoned and texted, but without as much as the courtesy of a text back.

Desperate not to let this chance to finally get on the internet highway pass by, I contacted another local councillor, who assured me that a parliamentary question would be tabled on the particular case of the four houses along my cul-de-sac.

Three weeks later I got a letter that informed me that yes, I would be receiving broadband access, except it was impossible to be precise about when exactly it would happen.

Meanwhile the Eir vans have gradually disappeared, and with them any hope that we are going to be linked into the much trumpeted 'national fibre roll-out' any time soon.

This is about much more than just being able to watch our favourite programmes on Netflix. I happened to spend a bit of time in Kiltimagh in Mayo recently where I met young couples who have been able to return to the west from good jobs in the IFSC in Dublin.

They could make the move because of one thing: the availability of high-speed broadband in the town. The result has been the reinvigoration of the town in terms of people, property, and local business.

In the same way that we have all come to expect water, electricity and working roads as a given no matter what region we choose to live in, access to broadband is an essential for communities to be able to hang on to the economic bandwagon that is getting into top gear in our big towns and cities.

It's not good enough to tell us that it's coming and to wait in line. Broadband access could be the making or breaking of rural communities, so we need it now, not in five or 10 years' time.
While 69 one-way fares from Ireland to the US have understandably dominated the headlines in recent months, there's a bigger picture behind the much-publicised launch of Norwegian's routes from Dublin, Cork, Belfast and Shannon to the US.

The impact of more fuel-efficient planes and the aggressive marketing of smaller, secondary airports in North America has sparked a boom in the transatlantic market.

Low-cost carriers like Norwegian will see a 42pc rise in one-way seats this year; Air Berlin, 57pc; and Wow Air, which flies from Ireland to the US via Iceland is surging by 142pc. Even Aer Lingus's parent, IAG, has gotten in on the act, launching its own low-cost competitor, Level, which flies from Barcelona to both North and South America.

And smaller, lesser-served airports on both sides of the pond want a slice of the action enjoyed up to now by the big hubs like Dublin, Heathrow, Schiphol and Charles de Gaulle. Now Ireland West Airport - still probably better known as Knock - is aiming for a regular connection to the US. It's no stranger to transatlantic links, and once boasted its own non-stop routes. "We previously had services to New York and Boston in 2007 with Flyglobespan," said Donal Healy, the airport's head of marketing.

"It worked in the sense that 20,000 passengers went from the region using their service and nobody had ever heard of them before."

In the meantime, "we've had a number of charters", he says, and believes there is demand for a service, even if seasonal: "120,000 went from our catchment region last year to the States despite having no access from the region".

The airport, with a longer runway than even Cork, recently signed an agreement to become a sister airport of Stewart International, the New York state airport that's recently begun operating services to and from Irish airports.

"We meet with the carriers regularly and we've had a good relationship with Stewart in the past couple of years. The ultimate aim is to develop access but we'll share information and they'll promote the West of Ireland and we'll promote New York."

And there is a strong corporate presence already in the West, which could benefit from handier access. "Coca Cola has a base in Tuam and Balllina; Allergen, who are one of the biggest manufacturers of Botox in the world, are situated just down the road from us in Westport; then you've got 30pc of our business coming from Galway ... so we've got a fair amount of good strong multinationals."

Airport managing director Joe Gilmore signed the recent agreement in the US. While conceding that a direct link is still some way off, he adds: "There's a selection of airports on the east coast who are very eager to develop access into Ireland and mainland Europe. In the case of Stewart, it's owned by the Port Authority of New York", the controller of JFK, Newark and La Guardia airports, among others. "They purchased it back in 2009 and it appears they've made a deliberate strategic approach to make it the overflow or low-cost gateway for New York and upstate New York," he believes.

And routes which might have seemed uneconomical even a decade ago are now in play. He cites factors such as the growing popularity of Ireland for the American market, plus the advent of cost and fuel-efficient medium-sized jets like the Boeing 737 Max, but said any expansion by the likes of Norwegian would be "contingent on existing routes and new planes performing well for them".

Joe Gilmore adds: "We met Syracuse airport three months ago in Routes [an international aviation event]. They're basically doing what Stewart is doing and have discussed a similar kind of relationship with them."

Upstate Syracuse airport has a catchment area of 7 million people "within a two-hour drive", roughly a million of them of Irish heritage, Hancock International Airport executive director Christina Callahan told the Sunday Independent, adding that "10-12pc of our business is from Canada - Ottawa is just two hours' drive away; Montreal a little more". The airport has already held talks with government officials here, as well as airlines. "We're past the preliminary stage," Callahan says, and has had meetings with interested parties.

She says the airport, with new infrastructure and security lanes spending, has an "average wait time of 10-12 minutes", comparing that to the backlogs of the bigger airports. The airport's DC lobbyist, former Congressman James T Walsh, is no stranger to here, chairing the historic Congressional delegation to Ireland, along with President Bill Clinton, to work on the peace process.

The Walsh Visa programme for Irish citizens to the States was named after him. "I still see members of Congress on the Hill - those memories are still fresh," he says, and it's a handy in when promoting upstate New York.

When asked if outbound passengers see Ireland as a gateway to Europe, he says there is huge interest in Ireland as a standalone destination, while Callahan believes upstate New York is an untapped destination for Europeans.

And while there has been vocal political and labour opposition to open skies between the EU and US, Walsh sees an appetite in Washington for more air links, echoing Joe Gilmore's view that smaller airports are there to complement, not compete with, the major players.
'Liam McLoughlin, who heads the bank's retail division in Ireland, recently told a press conference that the bank had bought seven books in the last three years.' Photo: Bloomberg

Bank of Ireland has agreed to buy a portfolio of mortgages from so-called vulture fund Lone Star, the Sunday Independent has learned.

Mortgage holders have received letters in recent weeks saying an agreement had been reached between the bank and the Lone Star entity Shoreline.

It's understood many of the loans in the portfolio are so-called "re-performing loans" which had been in difficulty but are now performing again after engagement between borrowers and the loan owners.

"While we don't comment in relation to individual transactions, over the last few years we've acquired several books across both mortgages and SMEs, and we continue to be in the market for good quality performing assets, where opportunities emerge," a Bank of Ireland spokesman said.

Liam McLoughlin, who heads the bank's retail division in Ireland, recently told a press conference that the bank had bought seven books in the last three years.

With housing supply tight, buying mortgages from investment funds represents a way for banks to grow their loan books. McLoughlin said the bank was interested in buying a 2bn book of performing loans from Danske Bank, which Danske is looking to sell.
The new series is being adapted from a book written by George RR Martin, creator of hit show Games of Thrones, above

The Irish television and film industry is set for a major boost after Limerick's Troy Studios was selected for a major new American TV series.

The series is understood to be an adaptation of a book written by George RR Martin, the creator of Game of Thrones. An official announcement on the deal is expected within weeks.

The project is being led by US network Universal Cable Productions, a subsidiary of the production giant NBC-Universal. It is believed the new series will provide around 500 jobs in the production area, with ancillary jobs in the region likely to follow once filming gets under way.

The show will be an adaptation of Martin's 1980 novella Nightflyers, a sci-fi drama set in space where nine people embark on an ill-fated journey to save the Earth from destruction. Shooting is expected to begin before the end of this year, with the studio thought to have begun casting for some roles.

It is believed that Martin will not work directly on the project due to an exclusivity agreement he signed with HBO for his work on Game of Thrones. However, Doug Liman will add some star power to the lineup; the producer/director previously worked on the Jason Bourne movies, Mr & Mrs Smith, as well as the Tom Cruise blockbuster Edge of Tomorrow.

The studio is located at the former Dell factory in the Castletroy area of the city. The 340,000-square foot facility is now Ireland's largest production studio. The empty site was once a symbol of Limerick's decline following the decision of the computer giant to relocate its operation to Poland back in 2009. The new initiative represents a brand new chapter for the city, particularly in the area of creative arts.

"This is a major boost for the industry in Ireland and the mid-west in particular. It will be huge for local hotels and pubs who will obviously benefit from the influx of cast and crew from the UK and the US," a source said.
'Duty on goods traded between Ireland and Canada will be reduced.' Taoiseach Leao Varadkar with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Dublin. Picture: Gerry Mooney

Following his visit to Ireland and meeting with the Taoiseach last month, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau travelled to the G20 Summit in Hamburg, where he agreed with European counterparts to set September 21 as the provisional start date for CETA - the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between Canada and the EU.

Some details of the agreement are still being ironed out but many of the benefits will come into effect before the end of next month.

Duty on goods traded between Ireland and Canada will be reduced. In many cases they will be eliminated altogether.

To start availing of preferential treatment, Irish companies exporting goods valued greater than 6,000 to Canada should now register with Revenue's Registered Exporters System (REX). This can be done by completing an EU Exporters to Canada application form, available at Revenue.ie.

The form should be submitted to Revenue's Origin and Valuation Unit for the September 21 start date, (or, with a transition period in place, by January 1, 2018, at the very latest). Businesses importing from Canada do not have to register in REX to qualify for CETA preferences.

Exports by Enterprise Ireland clients exceeded 282m in 2016, positioning Canada as our largest market for products and services outside the EU, China and the US - and our tenth most important globally. Over 6,000 people are employed in Canada by Enterprise Ireland client companies, such as Kingspan, Leading Edge, Bimeda, Keywords Studios and Kerry Group. In total, over 400 Enterprise Ireland client companies sell into Canada, and more than 50 have a local presence. However, many more could be winning business here.

The deal will open new opportunities and make it easier to trade with Canada. As well as eliminating 99.6pc of all industrial tariffs, CETA opens the Canadian services market and enables Irish firms to bid for more Canadian public contracts. It will also make it easier for Irish professionals to work in Canada and encourage more investment between the two countries. Moreover, the mutual recognition of product standards and certifications will eliminate the requirement for 'double testing'.

Among the sectors of opportunity identified by our team in Canada are financial services and software; telecoms and Internet of Things (IoT); construction; consumer retail; digital media; education and e-learning; agritech; engineering; life sciences; and digital health.

In terms of public procurement, for the first time, Canadian provinces, territories and municipalities will open their markets to a third country, going well beyond what Canada has offered in the World Trade Organisation's multilateral Government Procurement Agreement under NAFTA (the North America Free Trade Agreement).

This is significant given that Canada's provincial procurement market is double the size of its federal market, with crucial services such as education and healthcare being administrated at this level. Canada will also create a single electronic procurement website that combines information on all tenders, corresponding to existing intra-EU arrangements.

There are other good reasons for businesses to consider Canada. It is the tenth largest economy in the world and ranked 22nd out of 190 countries for ease of doing business by the World Bank. Canada emerged from the international downturn with low unemployment, no mortgage crisis and no major financial institution failures. GDP growth rates for 2017 and 2018 are expected to average around 2pc.

Canada's overwhelmingly positive attitudes towards Ireland are another draw. Relations between the two countries are bound by family ties, cultural affinities and shared democratic traditions. Almost 3.9 million Canadians - 13pc of the population - claim some Irish ancestry. This helps in opening doors and establishing rapport, as does the world class products and services offered by Irish firms, increasingly sought out by customers in Canada.

Neil Cooney is Enterprise Ireland's country manager for Canada.
The Sunday Times has today published an apology following the appearance of a column which has been branded anti-Semitic and misogynistic in the Ireland edition of the newspaper last week.

In the piece, author Kevin Myers referred to the Jewish faith of high-earning BBC presenters Claudia Winkleman and Vanessa Feltz, stating Jews are "not generally known for their insistence on selling their talent for the lowest-possible price," which both women said they found deeply offensive.

More than 50 complaints have been made to the Office of the Press Ombudsman over the piece, which Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and others have branded "anti-Semitic and misogynistic".

In the apology with the title 'Overstepping the mark' the paper said that the column "included unacceptable comments that caused offence to many, in particular to the Jewish community".

Expand Close Journalist and author Kevin Myers was sacked by the Sunday Times after the publication of his column. Photo: Tony Gavin / Facebook

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Whatsapp Journalist and author Kevin Myers was sacked by the Sunday Times after the publication of his column. Photo: Tony Gavin

The four paragraph apology from the Sunday Times added that the article was removed and the two female BBC presenters named in the piece were apologised to.

"Newspapers publish controversial articles that often cause upset. It is important to generate forthright debate about issues affecting our lives.

"It is also important, however, not to publish comments that overstep the mark. Where this column did so, we are deeply sorry."

The paper also includes a number of readers comments in relation to the column - and its publishing - in 'Letters to the Editor', one titled 'Editorial failure of anti-Semitism'.

Marriage Equality Chairwoman Grainne Healy labelled the apology as "horrendous" in an interview on RTE's Marian Finucane Show.

"[The apology] doesn't even mention one of the key elements [of the column]...That man has a history of stating dreadful things about, in particular, women."

"The man has lost his job, he paid his price... but personally I stopped reading Kevin Myers ten years ago."

An internal review was initiated in the 'Sunday Times' this week into how the column came to be published.

It is not known when senior officials from News UK, which publishes both the Irish and UK editions of 'The Sunday Times', will release the findings of their internal inquiry into how the column was published.

Meanwhile, it will be a number of weeks before the Press Ombudsman issues a decision on complaints made about Kevin Myers, who was dismissed by the Sunday Times.

The Ombudsman, Peter Feeney, said the newspaper's editor must be given two weeks to respond to complaints before the matter can be even considered by his office.

In an interview on Tuesday on RTE Radio, Mr Myers said he was not an anti-Semite and had intended the reference as a compliment "for how Jewish people behave, to maximise your potential because nobody else will do it for you".
Kate Ellis is the artistic director and cellist of the Irish contemporary music group Crash Ensemble. To mark the 20th anniversary of the group, Crash Ensemble is currently touring the country with a new music project entitled CrashLands. For more information, visit www.crashlands.ie.

What's the most important lesson about money which your career as a musician has taught you?

Being a freelance musician is at times a pretty precarious job. It's a sort of baptism of fire when you leave college and realise that you are running your own business and suddenly you are responsible for all that that entails. I'm still learning how it all works!

What's the most expensive country you ever visited?

Denmark and Norway are pretty high up the list. The most expensive city I have visited would definitely have to be New York.

What's your favourite Irish coin?

I liked the Irish punt. It was large and chunky and smelled good!

Are you better off than your parents?

Both my parents worked extremely hard for a lot longer than I have, so I would have to say no, I'm not better off than them.

Apart from property, what's the most expensive thing you have ever bought?

I don't own any property, so my cello would be the most expensive thing I have ever bought.

What was your worst job?

I've liked all jobs I have had. Aside from playing the cello, I've worked in an ice-cream hut, looked after children, waited on many, many customers at tables in bars and restaurants across Dublin, ran a classical salon, taught the cello, and programmed festivals.

What was your biggest financial mistake?

Luckily enough I don't think I have one. I don't like to gamble and have been very lucky with any decisions I've made.

What was your best financial killing?

The 9.99 I spend a month on Spotify is definitely a win-win situation.

What's the most expensive piece of musical equipment you've ever bought?

My cello.

Android or iPhone?

I use an iPhone and am on my fourth or fifth phone. I like the beauty of it, but would love to have more storage. Most of the storage on my phone is taken up with photos and videos. I like to take a lot of photos.

Have you ever made an insurance claim?

I'm lucky enough never to have made an insurance claim.

Have you ever switched utility provider?

About a year ago, I switched internet providers and saved about 6 a month. However, a month or so ago, the rates were raised and are now the same as the previous provider.

ITunes or Spotify?

I prefer Spotify. iTunes confuses me. I find it much easier to search for music using Spotify and I like the suggestions it throws at me.

What was the last thing you bought online?

A wolf eliminator for my cello and some sheet music for an upcoming project.

Would you buy Irish property now?

I'm not in a position to buy property at the moment. I would love to buy some land and build, but that's a long-term goal.

Cash or card?

I use card more than cash as I find it's easier to keep track.

Do you ever haggle?

I haggled once in a market in China. I was haggling over the price of tea and had to get someone to take over as I was terrible at it!
"Breast is best!" and "Breastfeeding is a community affair!" read signs held by women outside City Hall on Friday. Lawmakers, advocates and mothers alike stood together to launch the "Breastfeeding Subway Caravan"a ride on the A train to Bedford-Stuyvesantand promote the rights of mothers to breastfeed.

This week, to mark Global Breastfeeding Week, New York City launched public breastfeeding units"lactation pods" with a bench, changing table and electrical outlet (for pumping)across all five boroughs. "Breastfeeding provides wholesome nutrition for babies, enhances the mother-child bond, and fosters proven health benefits for both parent and infant," said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Dr. Herminia Palacio.

"Children who are breastfed have lower risk for SIDS and type 2 diabetes, and their mothers have decreased risk of breast and ovarian cancer and type 2 diabetes. These mobile lactation suites are just another example of our commitment to equipping moms across New York City with the tools they need to breastfeed their children."

The City Hall event, organized by State Senator Liz Krueger and NYC Breastfeeding Leadership Council, honored State Senator Kemp Hannon and Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages for their work to ensure Medicaid coverage for donor breast milk.

Organizers also noted, "New York State Civil Rights Law  79-e, one of the first laws of its kind in the nation, protects women's right to breastfeed anywhere they have the legal right to be. Unfortunately, there are still some who are unaware of this protection or who choose not to abide by it." The Breastfeeding Leadership Council seeks to draw attention to the fact that too many women are still being questioned, stigmatized, and harassed for breastfeeding in public."

The group headed from lower Manhattan to Restoration Plaza in Bed-Stuy to attend a fair sponsored by the Brooklyn Alliance for Breastfeeding Empowerment (BABE). Mothers breastfed their children on the train; one told the Daily News, "Sometimes its a little bit awkward when you get the stares. But I know its the best for my son when he was younger. So I just did it."

"When we gather like this, we amplify the importance of supporting breastfeeding mothers at home, in public, in hospitals, and in the workplace whether they breastfeed for three days, three months, or three years," mother and breastfeeding advocate Kiki Valentine told us. "This creates healthier communities here in New York City while encouraging other states, like Idaho which has zero laws in place to protect nursing mothers, to step up and normalize what is the most natural function of the female human breast."
Dr Ciara Clancy has been dancing since she was three.

And since even that early age, her whole life has been in or about movement - from helping others to become agile again to a constant moving towards a goal, a burning desire to always aspire to more. Her physique is that of a dancer: though slight, it belies a strength and determination that has found her at the head of one of Ireland's biggest technological and entrepreneurial success stories in recent years. Named Ireland's Best Young Entrepreneur earlier this year, the 27-year-old has most recently been hailed as a Future Leader by the Women's Executive Network (WXN). But it was a passion for transforming the lives of others, not the desire to be in big business, that led her here.

Volunteering with a physiotherapist as a teenager had given her a passion for the practice, but it was particularly to the treatment of Parkinson's that she was drawn. "I don't know what it was, but from early on I loved volunteering and getting involved in the community - that's what brought me a lot of joy," she says. "What I liked about the physical therapy field in particular was that it was non-intrusive - it wasn't a drug, or a pill; it wasn't surgery. It was something you could do with your hands or with instruction that would have a real impact on people's lives. I just thought that was so powerful so I wanted to go down that road."

She won a scholarship to Trinity at age 17 and, as soon she as she was qualified as a chartered physiotherapist, began specialising in treating neurological conditions. Immediately, however, she felt that the treatment she was giving was not enough. "I just felt that I was falling short - that this wasn't what I pictured, that there was so much that could be done," she says. "I was seeing the impact of clinically proven treatments in hospitals that weren't available at home."

Expand Close Talent: Ciara Clancy is awarded Best Young Entrepreneur at a ceremony at the Google Offices in March of this year. Photo: Mark Stedman / Facebook

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Whatsapp Talent: Ciara Clancy is awarded Best Young Entrepreneur at a ceremony at the Google Offices in March of this year. Photo: Mark Stedman

One moment became a turning point. "I was working in a hospital and my next patient, a person with Parkinson's, was 20 minutes late. I went out to find him stuck frozen at the main entrance of the hospital." The patient was coming in for metronome therapy, a process which replaces the brain signal that cues movement when it has become impaired by the disease. The treatment, delivered by an 'auditory cue system' - a sound that is played to the patient - has to be tailored daily, and so was only available in hospitals. "My patient needed this treatment at home, not just in hospital," Clancy says. "I wanted to see if we could pair metronome therapy with technology to give him the tools to take control and overcome symptoms on a daily basis."

What begun was a two-year journey to bring her vision to fruition. She partnered with a college friend and colleague, Dr Wui-Mei Chew - a medical doctor and researcher with a master's in intermolecular medicine - and began upskilling at breakneck speed. "What we were doing was quite complex so I went into research," Clancy says. "To do tailored individualised treatment, there's a lot of algorithms and analytics and processes that go into that, so I needed to build the skills to be able to implement that." The aim was to develop a programme that provided individually tailored metronome therapy - delivering the auditory cue or tailored beat to counteract the physical symptoms of Parkinson's daily - via a smartphone app.

Though basing their work on over 50 years of research, creating something that responded to individual needs was a massive ask. It required working with patients day in, day out, to test and retest the technology. Then, just as the project seemed to be struggling, fate intervened.

One of their earliest testers, 48-year-old John McPhee, who had been diagnosed with Parkinson's two years before and was already was having issues with movement, decided to walk from the bottom of the UK to the top, using the technology Clancy had designed. His journey - which drew lots of media attention as well as being documented by blog - aimed to raise funds for Parkinson's nursing. "To be honest, I wasn't sure if it would be possible," Clancy recalls. "All I knew was that I wanted to support him."

She decided to join him for the last part of his journey, through his native Scotland. "Unfortunately, when I arrived he'd had a fall that morning and asked me to assess his wrist. As I did he whispered, 'If it's broken, we're telling no one. I'm finishing this walk.' At this stage he'd already travelled most of the length of the UK and his commitment still hadn't wavered. He had the end in sight and he wasn't about to let anything hold him back. It taught me the importance of keeping the bigger picture in mind, creating and visualising, as John called it, your 'future history'. His belief is that what you visualise, you can achieve, because your mind won't accept an alternative. He pushed me to explore what we were working and walking towards.

"It was just this tipping point," she continues, "where I realised, 'I've really got to turn this into a business now - it can't be just this project.' There was no point just treating 10 people who knew about my technology, because that would have been just the same as if I'd stayed in the hospital. So a successful business that would be scalable, impactful, as well as a social enterprise, was needed to make sure that this would have the impact that I wanted. That was when it started to take shape and really take off."

And so Beats Medical was born. She was just 24 - a time when most other people her age are just graduating from college, still living at home, and wondering the hell they are going to do for the rest of their lives. But Clancy, it seems, has never lived on average terms.

Her ambition, she says, is fuelled by the need that is out there, the constant motivator that there is still so much more to be done. "You make sacrifices when you really want something. It is full of ups and downs and there are huge risks you take around financial security, but what got me through everything was the effect the treatment had. It's a huge motivator -even back then - to get it off the ground. You had patients who'd come and test with you and had faith in you; it may not have worked that time but they'd be like, 'We believe in you - it will work next time!'"

Born and raised in Skerries, Co Dublin, she is circumspect about her upbringing, except to say that her aunt and uncle were key influences in her life. "Growing up, I just wanted to help people. I was very much into the caring profession from a young age. I was a bit academic and quite sporty as well; into dance, and movement. Dance really pushes the limits in what you can achieve with your body - pushing the limits in my body was quite big for me."

She taught dance to people in the local community, and particularly to people with Parkinson's. "Dancing is a powerful activity in Parkinson's," she explains. "Something about the dancing helps sufferers to move." Everything kept leading back to working with people with the condition, which is why Beats Medical makes sense. "It's only looking back that it seems serendipitous that what we ended up working with was metronome therapy but it did always fascinate me why dancing was so effective."

There weren't any roots in healthcare or entrepreneurship in her family, but being a force for good was important. "I was quite independent from a young age," she says. "My aunt was very involved in the local community and she had a huge influence on me growing up. She helps everyone, and I had always really admired that."

That social connectivity was combined with a tenacity and drive that appeared intrinsic from the offset. She says her partner, whom she has been with since she was 16, often remarks on that singular determination. "He has seen me through all the phases and everything; he's always said, 'You set yourself on something and you just put everything into it.'"

It's no surprise, then, that just five years since their testing began, Beats Medical is fast becoming the type of success story reserved for entrepreneurial folklore or Hollywood movies. With offices in Sandyford, London's Harley Street and Lisbon, they treat people in over 44 countries, and now employ eight people. The company is heading for profits of 1m by the end of this year. As well as providing tailored metronome therapy, the app provides speech and language, and occupational therapy exercises that patients can do in the comfort of their own homes.

Clancy now spends much of her time travelling as the technology gets rolled out, with clinical trials under way in Washington University - the top research facility for physical therapy in the US - and new functions are being developed and added all the time.

The success of Beats Medical has put Clancy on a fast track that could also be an isolating one. She has retained close friendships from college, and tries to make lunch dates with girlfriends on the weekends she is around (she still manages to dance once a month too but finds running fits more into her hectic schedule now). But all of it does come at a cost. "Everyone at this age has different priorities but all my friends know what we are trying to achieve, which is help people. They know why it takes up so much of my time and why I am not free on a Saturday night. They get what the ultimate goal is."

"The ultimate goal," she clarifies, "was to help some people with Parkinson's and when I got there, it was a case of: 'Is there something more?' Throughout my training and practice, I saw so many other conditions, particularly paediatric ones, which are so under-served. The overall goal is that we help people with neurological conditions live independent lives and that's where we are going towards - anything that leads down that road is what we are chasing after."

That's not to say that there haven't been dark times, though. "The tough points were nearly running out of money, which was a scary time, because we had people using the technology. It wasn't about the business not succeeding; it was about letting down those people on the technology - we just didn't have a choice to do that. But you learn a lot from that as well. Finding the right people around us was a really tough job too: having people that are aligned to your vision is so, so important. The right people are critical to your business just as much as the wrong people can have a negative effect."

She now has a board that provides her with the expertise she needs, including telecom entrepreneur Sean Melly and Dr Emma Stokes, president of the World Confederation of Physical Therapy (WCPT). On a personal level, Clancy also has mentors, including Cork-born Margaret Burgraff, VP of Intel. "It's very hard to get 20 years' experience overnight. As they call it in the tech world, it's the 'hack' of that - that you can bring people around you and augment the skills that you don't have. At this stage of my career, and not having a business degree, there's quite a few skills that I don't have.

"Starting a business," she continues, "early on, you do make mistakes and, to be honest, the earlier you make them, the better because they do set you up for the future. The decisions only get more important and bigger."

It still comes down to her remarkable surety and singular drive, though. "Sometimes you've just got to back yourself. You do need people along the way to support and advise you, but you do need to back yourself." And knowing what not to do has been key. "One of the big factors that I have learnt is the power of walking away. Of the many decisions I've made, some of the best ones have been where I've walked away. But without a doubt, they've also been the hardest ones. I've never regretted my decisions and we've done things I've never dreamed of, but making those decisions back then, you do get that sinking feeling of whether you've done the right thing."

Her ability to make the right decisions has gained Clancy recognition as a businesswoman. Last year, she was a finalist in the prestigious EY Entrepreneur of the Year competition. And in March of this year, she was awarded Ireland's Best Young Entrepreneur accolade, which was presented by then Jobs Minister Mary Mitchell O'Connor and included an investment of 45,000 through local enterprise offices.

Despite the accolades, she sees herself as an accidental entrepreneur and never imagined herself as a female leader. But recent events have changed her mind about how important it is to own that. Just a few weeks after being named Ireland's Best Young Entrepreneur, she met a 14-year-old girl who'd seen Clancy receiving the award and told her parents she wanted to be a "girl boss" too and set up a company that would help people.

"As a kid, I just wanted to help people - entrepreneurship was never suggested. But if you were setting up lemonade stands, you were destined to be making your millions from a young age - that was presented to you. But to know that she wants to help people and that's a career option for her, I'm looking forward to her surpassing me one day. I'm really excited to see what comes out of that."

Yet even with the company's already incredible success, Clancy is still subject to her own doubts. "There's definitely an element of imposter syndrome when you don't have a business degree. But it's about identifying your weaknesses and being able to augment them. I may not have a business degree, but our chairman is one of the leads in the MBA board in Trinity; he has all that acumen. Likewise, if it's leadership or driving healthcare change, I've individuals on the board to tap into that stuff. I don't think it would be fair for anyone to say they have it all figured out. I don't think there is a blueprint for anyone on how to run their business. Sometimes staying completely open-eyed, making no assumptions, can be a strength. It's a journey of discovery and not having all the skills can be a strength too."

As for the future, the goals are precise, and potentially historic, as Clancy considers how the technology could be used to treat not only Parkinson's but also conditions such as MS and cerebral palsy, as well as the effects of stroke. "We are laser-focused on neurological conditions - we won't be going beyond those. They currently cost healthcare systems in excess of 800 billion to manage. But forget about the cost: if we can empower these individuals to lead more independent lives, we will change their lives forever; we will reduce healthcare costs that are already unsustainable, and are due to drastically increase over the next 10 to 20 years.

"I want my children or my grandchildren to know that they will have these options. There is so much more to do, you can't but want to go and take it further in a way that's sustainable and impactful. It's always about where we can go next."

Photography: Frank McGrath

Location: The Beacon Hotel, Sandyford, Dublin 18. For reservations, call (01) 291 5000 or visit thebeacon.com
People with diabetes, who are at risk of diabetic retinopathy and others at risk of macular degeneration, usually visit their optometrist every month for a test to detect a change in the thickness of their retinas. (stock image)

Irish-founded and backed biometric technology business Compact Imaging plans to use its advanced medical imaging technology to reduce sight loss from macular degeneration and diabetes.

The firm was co-founded in 2003 by Dublin-born UCD graduate and physicist Dr Josh Hogan and is backed by a number of Irish investors, including US-based Irish serial entrepreneur and tech investor John Ryan, as well as the Galway University Foundation and the University of Limerick Foundation, which have small stakes.

To date, the firm has raised around 8m from a group of 24 angel investors plus the two universities. Among its advisors are Prof Martin Leahy at NUI Galway - where groundbreaking research and scientists have been instrumental to its success - and James L Taylor, a former ceo of Carl Zeiss Meditec, a medtech business.

It is talking with potential partners about commercialising the technology, which will likely result in it being incorporated in devices that look similar to virtual reality goggles, ceo Don Bogue said.

People with diabetes, who are at risk of diabetic retinopathy and others at risk of macular degeneration, usually visit their optometrist every month for a test to detect a change in the thickness of their retinas.

However, Compact Imaging's technology would see them use low-cost goggles at home every day.

These devices will record a result and upload it over the internet for the specialist to review. This will save time for both the patient and the specialist as neither will need to attend appointments unless there has been a change, the company claims, resulting in cost and efficiency savings for healthcare systems.

It will also enable any problems to be detected earlier, at which point medical intervention may be able to save people's vision, Bogue added.

The number of people with age-related macular degeneration is forecast to reach 196million by 2020, rising to 288m in 2040, according to research published in The Lancet medical journal.

The numbers at risk of diabetic retinopathy are even greater, with 145m people, out of 415m diabetics having some form of it in 2015. This is projected to rise to 215m out of 642m by 2040, according to figures from the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness.

The plans have emerged after the company recently became a partner with Stanford University R&D offshoot SRI International in a 10m ($12.5m) contract awarded by IARPA in the US, the advanced R&D wing of its intelligence agencies.

The partnership involves the firm building on its cost and size advantages in multiple reference optical coherence tomography (OCT), considered the world's fastest growing medical imaging technology.

It will apply this to next generation biometric security - fingerprint scanning - for identity authentication. The technology will be incorporated in small, low-cost devices and works by being able to detect deeper fingerprints, known as sub-dermal ones, by looking at the tiny blood vessels that make up the fingerprint, where changes in heart rate, sweating and blood flow can be seen.

According to the US Department of Homeland Security, in 2015 the US Customs and Border Protection Agency processed nearly 400 million people entering the US, of whom almost 40 million required a secondary inspection because of suspicious behaviour or adverse information in the primary screening process when their fingerprints were scanned.

Prof Leahy said: "The security of personal data is a pressing global concern as we are using fingerprints for everything from phone unlocking to security checks.

"Technology developed at NUI Galway is supporting businesses and governments to verify identities more rigorously to make our personal data more secure."

Bogue emphasised the advantages the company has found in working with Prof Leahy at NUI Galway and the availability of PhD researchers to work on its technology, in contrast with Silicon Valley, where it is headquartered.

He said: "For the last two years I've served on the Industry Advisory Board at the Insight Centre for Data Analytics, a Science Foundation Centre of Excellence that brings together the data analytics research capabilities of DCU, NUIG, UCD and UCC.

"Serving on this board has provided a great opportunity for us, as a small and still emerging company, to get into the room with world-class data analytics scientists and researchers, as well as strong commercial players, such as Cisco, IBM, Intel and others.

"In the fields of both biometric security and medical monitoring, these connections ultimately will prove invaluable."
'FieldAware said it considered just over 5m had been paid to it for those shares.' (stock image)

Irish software business FieldAware raised almost 3m from investors, including Bill McCabe's Oyster Capital and former Enterprise Ireland executive Walter Hobbs.

Details of the transaction are revealed in documents recently filed at the Companies Registration Office (CRO). They show the company also issued additional shares to Hobbs, Oyster and others on foot of the conversion of a loan note.

FieldAware said it considered just over 5m had been paid to it for those shares. The transactions took place in December 2016.

The company did not respond to a request for comment on the transaction from the Sunday Independent.

FieldAware's most recent accounts, covering the year to the end of 2015, show it had racked up accumulated losses of more than 16m, up from 3.5m the previous year.

The accounts statement says: "The directors have considered the budgeted cash flows for the company and, taking into account further equity funding of US$8m received in December 2016, are satisfied that the company will be in a position to discharge its liabilities as they fall due for the next 12 months. Accordingly, the financial statements are prepared on the going concern basis."

The company makes software that enables firms to communicate more effectively with so-called field workers like postmen or builders.

Dublin venture capital house Atlantic Bridge has a stake in the business.

So too does Chinese sovereign wealth fund the China Investment Corporation (CIC) whose holding comes via its interest in the China Ireland Technology Growth Capital fund it established in 2014 with the National Pensions Reserve Fund. The assets of the fund are now part of the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund.

US venture capital firm Openview Partners has also invested money in the business. FieldAware announced in June that it had appointed Steve Wellen as its new chief executive.
The post-Celtic Tiger crash was a bonanza for the German discounters Aldi and Lidl. Cash-strapped Irish consumers, many of whom had previously shunned the discounters, quickly embraced them. The discounters' combined share of the 10bn-plus Irish grocery market almost doubled to 23pc between 2008 and 2015.

But then something happened. Instead of powering ahead to 30pc the discounters' growth virtually stalled, with their combined share for the 12 weeks to July 16 barely inching ahead to just 23.5pc, according to figures compiled by market research company Kantar Worldpanel.

So why has the discounters' exponential growth slowed? Lidl has now grown to a 12.1pc market share with 152 stores while Aldi has an 11.4pc share and 129 stores. They are no longer the new kids on the block but major players.

Part of the reason for the slowing growth in the discounters' market share has been the response of the incumbent players. With the Germans rapidly eating their lunch Tesco, SuperValu and Dunnes were forced to raise their game.

Irish consumers had traditionally been extremely brand-loyal - not too surprising when one recalls that one retailer's particularly grim 1990s-era "yellow pack" private label range quickly became a synonym for cheap and nasty. The arrival of the discounters with their excellent private label ranges quickly demonstrated that cheap didn't have to be nasty.

The incumbent retailers were forced to follow suit. Private label now accounts for 55pc of total grocery spending, according to Kantar, up from 47pc since 2012. The Irish love affair with brands is drawing to a close as shoppers opt for cheaper, but equally high quality, private label products instead.

Whole categories such as biscuits, tinned fish, sugar, jam, confectionery and cleaning products, that were once the virtually exclusive preserve of branded products have now been largely overrun by private label. For many of today's consumers it is the retailer rather than the producer that is the "brand".

That is at most only part of the explanation. Aldi and Lidl first entered the Irish market in 1999. With no existing stores and their post-2008 growth turbo-charged by newly value-conscious consumers, they were able to grow their sales rapidly through new store openings.

But with almost 280 stores between them how many more new stores can the discounters open? There are now very few, even medium-sized, towns without at least an Aldi or a Lidl store with many, Kenmare in Kerry or Macroom in Cork for example, having both.

Are the discounters reaching saturation point? Lidl, which recently announced plans to grow the number of its Irish stores to at least 200, certainly doesn't seem to think so.

Even so their experience in the UK, where the discounters' combined 12.1pc market share is less than half of what they enjoy in Ireland, is instructive. In September 2016 Ronny Gottschlich suddenly quit as head of Lidl's UK operation.

While no explanation was given for his departure, Gottschlich left at the same as UK retail analysts were calculating that same-store sales at both Aldi and Lidl were growing at just 1pc annually.

What this means is that virtually all of the UK market share growth at Aldi (up from 6.4pc to 7pc over the past 12 months) and Lidl (4.5pc to 5.1pc) has come from new store openings rather than same store sales. How have Aldi and Lidl's Irish same store sales been performing over the past two years?

"As Ireland's fastest growing retailer we have seen some of our strongest growth coming in the past few years in a period where our store numbers have not been growing as rapidly. For example, in 2007 we opened 14 new stores compared to five that will open by the end of 2017. Despite the grocery market currently experiencing deflation our market share has gone from under 8pc to over 12pc in the last three years alone", says John Paul Scally, managing director of Lidl's Irish operations.

Kantar rejigged its methodology, increasing its sample size from 3,000 to 5,000 households, in April 2016. This revealed that it had been underestimating the discounters' market share which, as a result, it increased from 16.9pc to 21.1pc. Even allowing for this once-off and artificial "increase" in its market share, Scally says that business is still growing at Lidl's existing stores.

"We are seeing steady rises in our customer numbers with more and more people coming through our doors which is contributing to our strong sales growth. We are investing significantly in upgrading stores and in 2017 have knocked and rebuilt four stores."

The Irish grocery market is now split virtually evenly four ways. In addition to the discounters with a combined 22.9pc, SuperValu is the market leader, just, with a 22.1pc share, followed by Tesco with 21.9pc and Dunnes 21.5pc. When one allows for the inevitable sampling errors, the Big Three are in a dead heat.

Between them the Big Three and the discounters now have a combined market share in excess of 88pc leaving everyone else, symbol groups, independents, corner shops etc, to compete for the remaining scraps.

While both SuperValu and Dunnes have seen their market share slip in recent years, probably aided and abetted by the afore-mentioned rejigging of Kantar's methodology, the erosion of Tesco's market share has been far more significant. Its market share is down from 28pc in 2011 to less than 22pc today. Even when distortions caused by the changes in Kantar's methodology are filtered out it would appear that Tesco's market share is down by almost fifth in just six years.

The rise of the discounters has hit all of the traditional supermarkets hard but it would seem Tesco has suffered much more than either SuperValu or Dunnes. What can it do to halt the slide in its market share?

"At Tesco Ireland, we're focused on investing in value, quality and service and our customers are responding very positively to this. We also recently opened our 149th Tesco store at the Airside Retail Park in Swords," says a Tesco spokeswoman.

"We're number one in volume and our average selling price is down which is good news for our customers, as result we're seeing more shoppers visit our stores and we're pleased with the improvement in our market share. We're focused on continuing to serve Ireland's shoppers a little better every day."

Kantar estimates that total value of grocery sales rose by 2pc or 45m to 2.35bn in the 12 weeks to July 16. However, it reckons that annual rate of deflation (falling prices) in the sector is now running at 0.5pc. This means that the volume of grocery sales increased by about 4.5pc.

"Despite a decline in the average price per pack, the market has continued to grow. In response to lower prices, shoppers have been putting more items into their baskets, which has kept market performance on an upward trajectory", says Cora Campbell, consumer insight director at Kantar Worldpanel.

The challenges facing the traditional retailers are illustrated by the 2016 results of Musgrave Group, which owns the SuperValu franchise and is the only one of the major Irish retail groups to publish its full financial results. It recorded unchanged sales of 3.7bn last year. However, a combination of lower cost of sales (squeezing its suppliers harder) and distribution costs meant that it was able to push its operating (pre-interest) profits over 70pc to 79m.

While the founding Musgrave family, who still own almost four-fifths of the company, will welcome the improved profits after a few torrid years they still represented an operating margin of just 2.1pc. Such improvements are likely to be largely once-off - a company can only squeeze its suppliers and distribution chain so hard.

Musgrave estimates that the total Republic of Ireland sales of its SuperValu franchisees were 2.67bn last year. The SuperValu sales figures would on the face of it lead one to conclude that the Irish grocery market is somewhat larger than the 10bn-11bn indicated by the Kantar figures, perhaps as much as 12bn.

The difference between the two figures is almost certainly caused by differences in the definition of what constitutes "groceries". Are such items as the electrical goods, DIY tools and hardware one frequently finds in the aisles of the local supermarket or discount store groceries? Much of what the smaller symbol groups, including Musgrave's Centra, sell is much closer to fast food than conventional grocery retailing.

While the Musgrave annual report has nothing to say about the volume as opposed to the value of its sales, the company is unlikely to have been immune from the deflationary forces affecting its competitors. The reduction in its cost of sales, ie the cost of goods bought in from suppliers, certainly points in that direction.

Now that Lidl has thrown down the gauntlet with its plans to open up to 50 new stores, the competitive pressure on the traditional supermarkets will intensify even further. While the discounters will reach saturation point eventually, Lidl's latest move demonstrates that we are not there yet.
Alan 'Cookie' McNamara (50), of the Caballeros biker club, was found guilty of murdering Andrew O'Donoghue (51) (inset)

A party for a murdered Limerick biker was cut short after an earlier lightning strike in the area plunged their clubhouse into darkness.

Alan "Cookie" McNamara of the Caballeros shot dead Andrew "Odd" O'Donoghue in a revenge attack after he was humiliated by O'Donoghue's Road Tramps gang in 2015.

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Last week McNamara was found guilty of murder and he will be jailed for life in October.

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On the eve of the verdict members of O'Donoghue's gang gathered at the Road Tramps' clubhouse in Mountfune, Limerick for a party.

A source said they were anticipating a guilty verdict and close associates of Odd were celebrating.

However the party came to an abrupt end when the power went out.

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Initially those in the surrounding community believed that the party itself had been the source of the electrical fault but Independent.ie has learned that this wasn't the case.

A spokesman for ESB networks said the fault occurred in the Mountfune area of Co Limerick "as a result of previous lightning damage to the electricity network in the area".

"Crews were immediately mobilised, and having isolated the fault, had to switch out the line on safety grounds at approximately 10:30 pm. This outage impacted on 40 customers in the area."

An ESB Networks crew restored power to the area the following morning and apologised for the outage.

Meanwhile Independent.ie has learned that the murder of Mr O'Donoghue had a major impact on the biker scene in Europe.

This week it was revealed that violent Texan biker gang the Bandidos - which has chapters worldwide - was backing McNamara while he was up on the murder charge and even donned T-shirts in support of him.

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At the time of the murder on June 20, 2015 McNamara's Caballeros club was a prospect club for the Bandidos. A source said they were granted full membership as a result of McNamara's "brave" actions.

"The Caballeros were a European club and they were attempting to join the Bandidos. There is no doubt but that Cookie's killing of Odd pushed them over the threshold and the Caballeros were welcomed into the wider Bandidos family."

The Bandidos subsequently initiated a new chapter in Limerick in October 2016 and a source said McNamara is now a lifetime member of this club.

It posted a photo of McNamara online at the time with some words attached.

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"A tribute to Bandido Cookie who really showed what the the patch and colours mean to him, when he took matters in his own hands," it said.

"A real fighting Irish all the way. Expect no mercy."

Photos posted online show T-shirts that were being worn by Bandidos members at the party, which called for him to be freed after he killed Mr O'Donoghue. One had the message: "Free Bandido Cookie."

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The T-shirts were on show at the initiation ceremony in East Limerick for the the first chapter of the Irish Bandidos.

The European president of the association attended the event and handed out patches to the new members.

Armed gardai kept a close eye on the event, while two Europol agents also travelled to Limerick to monitor the movement of Bandidos representing chapters in continental Europe.

The Bandido Motorcycle Club is a gang that started in Texas 50 years ago. It now has a worldwide membership of more than 5,000 - and a signature armed Mexican bandit logo with the motto, "We are the people your parents warned you about". The notorious gang, also known as the Bandido Nation, is modelled on Mexican bandits who lived by their own rules.

Only last week, two Bandidos members were shot in Australia, while US police in Santa Fe, New Mexico, are looking to question members over a shooting incident.
Frank Fitzgibbon, editor of the Sunday Times Ireland (right). The controversial column (top left) was written by Kevin Myers (bottom left)

'What. The. Actual. F**k.' So went one of a flurry of early morning tweets in a firestorm of outrage on social media last Sunday.

The outcry related to an ill-judged edition column in The Sunday Times Ireland edition by journalist Kevin Myers. In Dublin, the senior editorial executives of the newspaper apparently didn't realise what all the fuss was about.

Myers would later state that one of his editors was "surprised" by the "online uproar" over the column.

It was not until the controversy reached the higher echelons of London society that the columnist's fate was sealed.

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Lionel Barber, the editor of the influential Financial Times, described the piece as "undiluted anti-Semitism and misogyny".

The former Europe minister Denis MacShane said controversial views publicised in the piece were "truly shameful".

And Danny Cohen, the former director of BBC television, called on The Sunday Times to prevent Myers from writing for any News UK paper ever again.

Myers, the Irish edition's 'star' columnist, was now toxic. By mid-afternoon there was panic on both sides of the Irish Sea and not just in London among Rupert Murdoch's senior execs of News UK.

Within a matter of hours it led to the controversial summary dismissal of one of Ireland's most provocative journalists and a subsequent scramble by the newspaper to limit the damage.

What had started as a trickle on social media became a torrent, a dam-burst of disgust as word spread about what Kevin Myers had said about Jews and women in what turned out to be his last Sunday Times column.

Myers, of course, has been involved in countless controversies in the past, but one way or another, survived them all. However, it soon became clear, this time things would be different.

Powerful forces in the UK became embroiled in the affair. Soon strongly worded charges of anti-Semitism against the columnist were swirling around social media on both sides of the Irish Sea.

In particular the segment of the column, which suggested BBC presenters Vanessa Feltz, and Claudia Winkleman, were well paid because they were Jewish, sparked online fury in the UK.

Under the headline 'Sorry ladies, equal pay has to be earned', Myers wrote: "Good for them. Jews are not generally noted for their insistence on selling their talent for the lowest possible price, which is the most useful measure there is of inveterate, lost-with-all-hands stupidity."

He sparked further anger when in the same column he suggested men are often better remunerated than women, because they often work harder, get sick less frequently, and do not get pregnant.

Denunciation of Myers was soon joined by incredulity that Irish editor Frank Fitzgibbon or his deputy John Burns had allowed it to be published. Competitor media refer to the pairing of Fitzgibbon and Burns as the Two Geezers, the first to condemn perceived shortcomings in others. Had they not read it? And if they had, were they blind to the anti-Semitic trope enunciated by Myers?

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"The anti-Semitism in this article is f**king disgusting. Kevin Myers needs to be fired immediately.

"Fingers crossed Kevin Myers gets fired again," raged the tweets.

By now the pressure on senior Sunday Times executives in London was acute. With the BBC and other media outlets giving the story prominence, reaction was inevitable.

And when retribution came it was swift and brutal. A terse statement was issued on behalf of the paper's overall editor, Martin Ivens, in London. Referring to Myers directly he said: "He will not write again for The Sunday Times Ireland. A printed apology will be appearing in next week's paper."

Ivens also said the Myers column was "unacceptable and should not have been published".

"It has been taken down, and we sincerely apologise for both the remarks, and the error of judgement that led to publication."

Strangely Myers, who was attending a history conference in Skibbereen, Co Cork was not immediately informed of his dismissal.

"I heard after everybody else had heard," he said later.

He eventually received a text message telling him to phone a UK number. "I rang London as requested - and I was told my services were being dispensed with."

"This is where we part company. You won't be writing for us again," he was told.

Meanwhile, there is now growing evidence of the huge pressure for his dismissal, which gathered pace early on Sunday.

The influential "Campaign Against Antisemitism" in the UK reacted almost immediately to the contents of the column, and directly contacted News UK, the parent company which publishes The Sunday Times, as part of Rupert Murdoch's worldwide News Corp behemoth.

The organisation insisted Myers should not be allowed write for the newspaper again, and that an appropriate apology should be published.

The tsunami crossed the Irish Sea to hit The Sunday Times Ireland edition, and its editor, Frank Fitzgibbon, was also obliged to issue a condemnatory statement.

"On behalf of The Sunday Times I apologise unreservedly for the offence caused by comments in a column written by Kevin Myers.

"It contained views that have caused considerable distress. As the editor of the Ireland edition I take full responsibility for this error of judgement.

"This newspaper abhors anti-Semitism and did not intend to cause offence to Jewish people."

Meanwhile, an emotional Myers later apologised profusely for any upset he had caused.

He also accepted he deserved to be dismissed by the paper.

"I am the author of my own misfortune. I am the master of my soul. I must answer for what I have done," he said on the Sean O'Rourke radio programme.

But he also suggested the way he was sacked was unnecessarily harsh. "The manner in which I was disposed of was wrong. I think it could have been done more gently.

"I could have been treated with more dignity. Anyone should have a second chance for making an error of judgement'" he pleaded.

He conceded he has some "serious professional flaws". "One of my weaknesses is for facile terminology," he said.

"The throwaway line is so often my pitfall - my downfall."

However, despite accepting responsibility for what he had written, he also said he does not plan to personally apologise to the two women referred to in the column.

"Whereas I do understand their indignation, they have said things about me, that are far sterner than I think I merited,' he said.

"I think that Vanessa Feltz called me a racist. Calling me a racist? The Jewish community in Ireland has said I am not anti-Semitic. I made a mistake - but I'm not an anti-Semite."

He said "great damage'' had been done to him, adding: "I'm going to suffer for the rest of my life.

"A stigma has been placed on the name Kevin Myers which I don't deserve."

Ms Feltz questioned how such a "blatantly racist" article was allowed to be published in the first place.

Mr Myers said that "five or six" people could have seen the piece before it went to print.

The question remains unanswered as to who those five or six may be, and whether any of them raised a red flag, and if they had, whether their concerns were ignored.

It also raises questions about the judgement of the senior Irish editorial executives who allowed such an insulting double assault against both the Jewish community and women to make it to print.

The Sunday Times has a rigorous editing process involving both its London headquarters and its senior editorial and production staff in Dublin and Mr Myers's column and its content would have been seen by many eyes.

The Sunday Times Ireland edition evolved under the late journalist Alan Ruddock, from a team of two or three in the 1990s to the operation it is today.

Ruddock's time as editor of the Irish edition was the paper's golden period which the title has failed to replicate with its current alpha male swagger. Ruddock attended every Friday morning news conference in London, at which section editors outlined for the editor the stories they planned to run for Sunday. Over time, the requirement for the Ireland editor to be in London for the Friday conference lapsed.

Yet it is clear that London remains the centre of power, and Dublin is a satellite in the News UK operation.

News lists for the Irish edition are still run by London editors at the Friday news conference, which is headed by UK editor, Martin Ivens. While there is a general interest in what Irish columnists are writing about, reading, parsing and editing the actual content of those columns is obviously the job of the editor of the Irish edition.

When columnists file copy to The Sunday Times, it usually first hits the desk of the editor designated to look after the opinion pages.

The copy is dispatched to the London office, where it will pass through the hands of several "benches" of sub-editors, who will read and re-read it. When they are done, the page is printed and proofed in Dublin for errors and for legal assessment, by the editor, section editors and lawyers.

With all the support of the London office and his own team, observers would say that Frank Fitzgibbon should have the time to assiduously read the proof pages of the Irish edition before it goes to print.

However, as Mr Myers was penning his column, the senior editorial executives of The Sunday Times Ireland edition were also dealing with the time-consuming fall-out of a serious error which had appeared in the paper the previous Sunday.

As Mr Myers's column appeared on Page 15, six pages further back on Page 21 of the main section, the newspaper also printed an apology and correction to the son of the Garda Commissioner, Ciaran McGowan, journalist Paul Williams and the publisher of this newspaper, Independent News & Media, which related to The Sunday Times Ireland edition coverage of the Disclosures Tribunal.

It could not be established last week whether senior executives in Dublin had taken their eye off the ball to agree and finalise this apology.

The Sunday Times Ireland edition failed to respond to a number of queries on the matter. Unusually it also refused to clarify if the paper's Irish editor Frank Fitzgibbon, or associate editor John Burns, read the column before publication.

The newspaper also declined to say if any editorial or legal changes were made to the copy submitted by the columnist.

The paper has remained tight-lipped as to whether company owner Rupert Murdoch was consulted on the decision to summarily dismiss the veteran journalist.

Both the Taoiseach and the Tanaiste condemned the article. Leo Varadkar described it as "misogynistic" and "anti-Semitic". "The Sunday Times has taken the appropriate action," he said. Frances Fitzgerald said there is "an onus on everyone, including the media obviously, to make sure articles like that do not appear."

The Sunday Times is conducting a review into how such views were allowed appear in the paper, the details of which, may or may not be published in full or in part and whether this will be enough to draw a line under the controversy.

Certainly Frank Fitzgibbon and John Burns will hope so. The pair are always at hand to criticise their competitors and Saturday nights when the paper is published is their busiest on social media. Fitzgibbon himself was tweeting heartily the night he was steering his ship close to rocks with the Myers article on board.

For Kevin Myers, though, now aged 70, the fallout from this latest controversy in which he find himself embroiled, has been dramatic.

He said he has lost his livelihood. "I haven't slept in two nights. Personally I am in a very bad way. It has done me terminal damage.

"I am not sure if there is any redemption for me now - which will give a lot of people satisfaction." He will have his defined benefit Irish Times and Irish Independent pensions to console him and a possible legal action for unfair dismissal.

As for the two smirking geezers, Fitzgibbon and Burns, they're not sneering now.

Frank Fitzgibbon

Frank Fitzgibbon often clowns around on social media, cracking jokes here, promoting his newspaper there, and taking the odd swipe at its critics. Hes a voluble guy, known for his frequent barbs against other media, including papers published by INM (owners of this newspaper), the Irish Times and RTE.

The fact that he hasnt posted a single tweet since the Sunday Times Ireland edition hit the stands last weekend speaks volumes about the gravity of the controversy engulfing its Dublin offices. Newspapers make mistakes, as do editors. As Fitzgibbon once posted about one of this newspapers mistakes: Thats gotta hurt!

In fact, as the incendiary Kevin Myerss article was still ticking away last Saturday, Fitzgibbon sent out 16 separate tweets on various issues in the hours before the paper went to press.

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Fitzgibbon started his career as a business journalist. He worked for RTE and various publications before co-founding the Sunday Business Post in 1989. He left the newspaper in 1991. Six years later, two of his co-founders, Damien Kiberd and Aileen OToole, were each rewarded with a 1m windfall after Trinity International Holdings bought the Post.

Fitzgibbon spent the 1990s working on various media publications. He was appointed business editor at The Sunday Times Ireland edition in 2002 and editor in 2005.

He has tried to market his paper through social media. He also went out to defend his role in several controversial episodes, particularly during the Lisbon Treaty in 2008 when the newspaper was accused of an anti-Lisbon Treaty bias.

However for all his online japes, he has found it hard to emerge from the long shadow of the stewardship of Alan Ruddock. Many were perplexed he allowed a pro-Brexit editorial to run  without a single change from the UK edition.

In his absence from the online world last week, it was noted how few outside colleagues came to his defence. At one stage, some of Fitzgibbons acquaintances thought he would rise to be Sunday Independent editor. That did not come to pass. There is no suggestion that his antipathy to INM is any way related to his long tenure in the one job.

John Burns

John Burns is the longest serving staff member in The Sunday Timess Dublin office.

He joined the newspaper in 1993, and worked under the late Alan Ruddock, who was the first editor of The Sunday Times Ireland edition.

Burns has been a correspondent, news editor and is now associate editor.

He is second-in-command to Frank Fitzgibbon. His remit had broadened too, covering opinion, arts, culture as well as news. The media is his most frequent target. He writes a bimonthly column in the Irish edition of The Sunday Times culture section on media matters, offering often critical commentary about journalism, media organisations and regulators. The Myers controversy would have been right up his street  had the error not occurred in his own newspaper under his watch.

Although a low-profile figure, Burns found fame of sorts on Twitter for his waspish Saturday night tweets promoting the following mornings stories in his newspaper.

In the process, he often took pot shots at rivals, dispensing barbed put-downs and revelling in their mistakes.

His Twitter profile once said that disparaging remarks about other newspapers were his and not those of his employers. Thats, like, funny. It will be interesting to follow the relationship between both editor and his loyal deputy over the next few months.
The vast majority of people believe Ireland does not have the capacity to deal with a jihadi terror attack, a Sunday Independent/Kantar Millward Brown opinion poll has revealed.

Almost seven out of 10 (68pc) people polled said they did not have faith in the Irish authorities to prevent a terror attack similar to those waged by Isil terror cells in other major European cities.

A mere 15pc of those polled believe the State would be able to stop jihadi terrorists from murdering innocent civilians in Ireland. Women, people living in Munster and those aged 35-54, are most concerned about the State's capabilities to deal with a terror attack.

However, the majority of people do not believe Ireland will be targeted by terror groups such as Isil. Almost half (47pc) of those polled said they were not worried about Ireland being attacked by terrorists, while just over a third (35pc) said they were concerned about an attack.

The poll was taken four weeks after the horrific London Bridge terror attack which saw radicalised Islamic terrorists murder eight and injure 48 innocent civilians enjoying a night out in the English capital.

Less than two weeks earlier, a suicide bomber with links to Isil detonated an explosive device at an Ariana Grande concert murdering 22 people, many whom were teenage girls.

The callous attack at a pop concert also resulted in 250 injuries. Since the rise of extremist Islamic terrorism, the Government has stated the prospect of an attack in Ireland is possible, but not likely. Gardai have been monitoring around 30 people who have travelled to war zones in the Middle East and have since returned to Ireland.

One of the terrorists involved in the London Bridge attack lived in Dublin for a brief period and two people were arrested in Ireland as part of the investigation into the horrific murder spree. Khalid Kelly, a radicalised Irish Muslim, died in a failed suicide bomb attack in Iraq.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar established a special Cabinet sub-committee to address national security issues in the wake of the London terror attacks. The committee is based on Britain Prime Minister Theresa May's Cobra committee which is convened to address serious security issues such as terror attacks.

Mr Varadkar's committee is attended by Tanaiste Frances Fitzgerald, Justice Minister Charles Flanagan and Junior Defence Minister Paul Kehoe, along with Garda Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan and senior Defence Forces' personnel.

The Taoiseach said it will meet as necessary in the coming months.
A new national database aimed at recording and making use of Ireland's vacant housing stock has gone live, as new government figures released on the bank holiday weekend reveal the homeless crisis has worsened.

VacantHomes.ie plans to draw information direct from local communities on empty properties in their areas, and their owners, with a view to converting them into social housing.

The project, the initiative of Mayo County Council, comes as latest figures reveal 118 more children became homeless in June, bringing the total number of children in emergency accommodation to 2,895. The number of homeless families increased by 53 to 1,365.

Sinn Fein accused the Government of trying to bury bad news, while Fianna Fail said it exposed failings in the Government's housing strategy.

The new online database is part of the Government's vacant housing strategy, to be published next month. Tom Gilligan, director of services with Mayo County Council who developed the website, said the figures on the country's vacant housing stock were not definitive. Census data puts the figure at 183,000 in 2016, while a more recent survey put the figure at 96,000. "We were very much working off old data. We are unsure of what is the real number of vacant properties," he said.

Local community groups, such as residents associations and Tidy Towns committees are being encouraged to feed into the database.

Visitors to the website are asked to complete a form providing details of the property, its physical condition and any information about who owns it. None of this will be published for security reasons. Local councils will use the information to trace the owner with a view to getting the property back in use. The Government is offering grants of up to 40,000 to convert properties to social housing.

"Our research shows that a lot of our knowledge about vacant homes can be sourced locally, whether the owner has emigrated, whether the owner is in a nursing home, local people will have the best information on that," said Mr Gilligan. The project was piloted in Belmullet, in north Mayo, with the help of the local Tidy Towns Committee, which identified 16 vacant properties in its town. "As a result, we have already contacted owners of the vacant properties with a view to getting them into the "repair and lease" scheme," he said.
Gardai are investigating the fatal stabbing in Co Clare

Gardai have arrested three men in connection with a fatal stabbing in Co Clare overnight.

A 25-year-old man was attacked in a laneway in the Marion Estate in Kilkee at approximately 1.15am.

The man received serious stab wounds and was removed to Limerick University Hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

A 22-year-old man was arrested a short time later in connection with the incident.

He is currently detained at Kilrush Garda Station under the provisions of Section 4 Criminal Justice Act  1984.

Gardai arrested a second man - also aged in his early 20s - and he is currently detained at Kilrush Garda station.

Shortly after 4pm gardai confirmed that they had arrested a third man, aged in his 20s, in the West Clare area.

He is detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act at Ennis Garda Station.

Independent.ie understands that both the victim and the suspect were living locally in Kilkee.

The town is a popular destination for tourists from Munster, especially nearby Limerick City.

Gardai have recovered a knife which they believe was used in the stabbing.

A source said a number of people were present at the time of the attack.

Detectives hope to speak to all those who were present at the time of the attack.

The victim was from a well known local family.

He previously survived a crash in the earlier part of the last decade that killed his older sister.

He was given just a 20pc chance after undergoing heart surgery in Dublin but he survived.

A senior source said this attack was not connected to any gangland feud and was most likely as a result of a local dispute.

"These men would be known to each other. They are not considered serious criminals.

"This would appear to be a fight that may have just got out of hand."

Clare councillor Cathal Crowe (FF) said: "Kilkee is a bustling tourist town that's renowned for being safe, friendly and welcoming to all.

"This awful incident has left the people of the locality reeling with shock and deep sadness. I personally want to express my deepest sympathies to the family of this young man."

Gardai have appealed to witnesses who may have been in the area at the time of the incident or have information to contact them at Kilrush Garda Station 065-9080550, The Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.
The heartbroken son of an Irishman who died after taking a common painkiller has said he is angry that his father's death could have been avoided.

William 'Billy' Smith, from Mullingar in Co Westmeath, was on holiday in Torrevieja in Spain in February 2016 when he was prescribed the painkiller Nolotil by a GP for shoulder pain.

Two months later Billy (66) returned to get a renewal for his normal medications and told his doctor that he wasn't able to shake cold-like symptoms.

It was then discovered that Nolotil - also known as Metamizole - had caused a toxic poisoning in his bone marrow and his white blood cell count was very low, so he was having trouble fighting infection.

He developed sepsis and necrotising fascitis, following surgery he fell into a coma and developed multiple organ failure, sadly he died on April 17 2016.

His son Derek (43) has spoken candidly to Independent.ie about how hard life has been since his father's death.

Derek, who lives in Melbourne, Australia, said: "I always knew losing my father would be hard but it had a far bigger impact on me than I could have ever imagined.

"Life goes on and I have kids and a job but it's hard.

Expand Close Billy was a very active 66-year-old. He was a founding member of lakeside wheelers cycling club. / Facebook

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"I think at first I was in such shock but as time passes it's sinking in that he didn't get to grow old or die naturally, it feels like he was killed, his death was preventable."

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Derek said that after his father's death he learned that Nolotil can be particularly problematic for people of Britain and Irish descent.

It's not available here or in places such as the UK, the US and most of Europe, but it's widely prescribed in Spain and Derek is backing a petition to have it banned there.

He said: "I've heard of many instances of people getting sick after taking Nolotil.

"As a family we would rather than it wasn't out there.

"We understand that every medicine has possible side affects but this seems to be disproportionate.

"When my father got sick his doctor said that it's common knowledge not to prescribe this to Irish or English people."

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Derek is warning holidaymakers to be wary of the dangers of Nolotil.

He said: "There are a lot of people travelling to Spain at this time of year and I want to warn and educate them about Nolotil.

"It is prescribed commonly for issues such as headaches and tooth pain and I just want people to be aware of what they are taking."

A spokesperson for the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) told Independent.ie that Nolotil (Metamizole) has never been authorised for use in Ireland.

"In addition to Spain, metamizole has been authorised and marketed under various trade names in some other EU member states including Italy, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Luxembourg, Croatia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

"Metamizole is authorised in the above countries for the treatment of moderate or severe acute pain and high fever not responding to general therapeutic measures.

"It is known to be associated with a risk of blood disorders, including agranulocytosis (low white cell count)."

Independent.ie has contacted the makers of Nolotil for a comment.

For more information or to view the petition please visit here.
The final lot in the property portfolio built up by former gangland boss John Gilligan on the Kildare-Meath border will go on the market after the bank holiday weekend.

Gilligan's dreams of becoming a country squire were shattered after his ill-gotten gains from years of drug trafficking were seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB).

In June, the Supreme Court rejected the thug's final attempt to hold onto the remaining houses in his portfolio, including a bungalow beside the Jessbrook equestrian centre at Mucklon, Enfield.

Seized

The equestrian centre, built by Gilligan, had already been seized and sold off by the bureau.

Last night, Fiachra McGrath, of Lucan auctioneers REA McDonald, said it had received instructions from the CAB to put the bungalow on the market in the coming week.

The detached property is on 5.6 acres and has a conservative guide price of 120,000.

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It has seven bedrooms, four bathrooms and oil-fired central heating and, according to Mr McGrath, it offers "extensive views of rural landscape".

The property is expected to attract a lot of interest for viewing from potential buyers and sightseers, as the sale marks the end of a 20-year battle by Gilligan in the courts to prevent the bureau from seizing the assets.

The bungalow is currently the property of Finance and Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe, and the proceeds of the sale will be deposited in State coffers.

Another house seized from Gilligan, at Corduff, Blanchardstown, is expected to be sold to Dublin County Council, while a third house in Lucan, also under the control of the CAB, is currently being let to tenants.

Gilligan's wife, Geraldine, and daughter, Tracey, had lived at the Jessbrook bungalow, while his son, Darren, lived in the Blanchardstown house.

After the initial Supreme Court rejection in February, Gilligan asked for a two-year stay on the confiscation order, claiming he had no income and would be left homeless.

The 65-year-old said he was engaging with local authorities in an attempt to secure accommodation.

Murder

However, the court only granted him a three-month stay, which means he had to vacate the properties by early June.

Gilligan, who served 17 years for drug trafficking, has been hiding out at the Jessbrook house, as well as addresses in the UK, following two attempts to murder him since he was released from jail in 2013.

He served his jail sentence at Portlaoise prison and is believed to have been the leader of the gang responsible for the murder of Sunday Independent investigative journalist Veronica Guerin in 1996.
A young man who was stabbed to death in a laneway this morning previously survived a horror road crash that killed his sister and her friend.

The victim, named locally as Karl Haugh (25), was attacked in the Marion Estate in Kilkee, Co Clare at approximately 1.15am.

The father-of-one was knifed several times before being removed to Limerick University Hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

Three men have been arrested in connection with the fatal attack and they are being questioned at various stations in Co Clare this evening.

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Mr Haugh, who was known as 'Gobbo', was from a well-known local family.

The young man, who is from the town, previously survived a crash in 2003 that killed his older sister Stacey.

Mr Haugh was just 11 when the car he was travelling in with Stacey (16) and Lorna Mahoney (13) and being driven by then 15-year-old David Naughton crashed at Moyarta Carrigaholt.

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The girls died at the scene while Karl subsequently underwent heart surgery in Dublin with a 20pc chance of living and had survived.

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This morning friends took to Facebook to pay tribute to Mr with one woman saying "Kilkee will never be the same without you".

She said: "I can't believe we woke up to the news you were gone Gobo. We were just with your mother. She's in bits. She doesn't know what to do with herself.

"Kilkee will never be the same without you. You changed your whole life for the better with college and a six-month baby girl. RIP Gobo, you're loved and going to be missed by so many."

Another friend posted that she hoped Mr Haugh would "sleep tight".

"Sleep tight Gobo. Say hi to Stacey for us, I know she's up there waiting for you," she said.

The town is a popular destination for tourists from Munster, especially nearby Limerick City.

Gardai have recovered a knife which they believe was used in the stabbing.

A source said a number of people were present at the time of the attack.

Detectives hope to speak to all those who were present at the time of the attack.

A senior source said this attack was not connected to any gangland feud and was most likely as a result of a local dispute.

"These men would be known to each other. They are not considered serious criminals.

"This would appear to be a fight that may have just got out of hand."

Clare councillor Cathal Crowe (FF) said: "Kilkee is a bustling tourist town that's renowned for being safe, friendly and welcoming to all.

"This awful incident has left the people of the locality reeling with shock and deep sadness. I personally want to express my deepest sympathies to the family of this young man."

Gardai have appealed to witnesses who may have been in the area at the time of the incident or have information to contact them at Kilrush Garda Station 065-9080550, The Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.
The National Women's Council of Ireland (NWCI) has launched a stinging attack on the Sunday Times over its apology for the controversial Kevin Myers article.

In a statement, released this evening, the council described the apology as "completely unacceptable" and said it "made no reference to the misogynistic and sexist views expressed in the article".

Earlier today the newspaper published an apology following the appearance of a column which has been branded anti-Semitic and misogynistic.

In the apology with the title 'Overstepping the mark' the paper said that the article "included unacceptable comments that caused offence to many, in particular to the Jewish community".

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The four paragraph apology from the Sunday Times added that the article 'Sorry ladies, equal pay has to be earned' was removed and the two female BBC presenters named in the piece Vanessa and Claudia Winkleman were apologised to.

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"Newspapers publish controversial articles that often cause upset. It is important to generate forthright debate about issues affecting our lives.

"It is also important, however, not to publish comments that overstep the mark. Where this column did so, we are deeply sorry."

However the NWCI has rejected the apology in a statement this evening.

Orla OConnor, Director of the NWCI, said: The article clearly displayed discriminatory views on both gender and religious grounds, yet the apology today made no reference to the misogynistic and sexist views expressed in the article.

The apology presented the Sunday Times with the opportunity to redress the views expressed, and the offence caused to women. This opportunity was clearly not taken. By its omission, in our view the apology gives licence to further similar sexist views to be expressed in its newspaper in the future.

Ms O'Connoer concluded: It is ironic that the genesis of this article came from a series of articles on the persistent inequalities that women experience with regard to economic equality and leadership. NWCI will now submit a formal complaint to the Sunday Times editor, and to the Press Ombudsman.
The comments appeared in the latest edition of the Garda Review magazine

Rank and file gardai have raised concerns that there are no members of the African or Caribbean community in the force and claimed recruitment of people from the black or Asian community is "conspicuous by its absence".

In an editorial in the latest edition of the Garda Review questions are raised about the number of minorities in the force.

The publication, which is the official magazine of the Garda Representative Association (GRA), says that despite patterns of immigration and diversity in modern Ireland this has not been reflected in the selection and recruitment processes for An Garda Siochana.

"So far no one in authority has provided an answer as to why there is not a substantial influx of colour.

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"Ideally we envisage greater recruitment from non-Irish nationals who have made Ireland their home alongside members of the LGBT community and Traveller groups."

The Garda Review claims that this will have policing as well as wider societal benefits.

The magazine, which is distributed to over 10,000 members of the GRA, goes on to criticise current recruitment in the force.

"Recruitment to An Garda Siochana especially from the Black or Asian Minority Ethnic [BAME] community is conspicuous by its absence - albeit there are few exceptions from other minority ethnic groups. There is currently no member with African or Caribbean origin; this needs to be addressed if An Garda Siochana is to reflect the constituent community of modern Ireland."

Concerns around the number of Arabic speaking gardai were raised in the aftermath of the London and Manchester terror attacks.

Garda Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan would only say a number of members had proficiency in different languages, when asked in June.

"We also have access to translators and interpreters, who are available to us on a 24/7 basis, that we can call upon," she said.

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When asked the number of gardai who were proficient in Arabic specifically, a Garda spokesperson also declined to discuss the matter, citing "security and operational reasons".
Micheal Martin may be turning into an Irish version of US politician Bernie Sanders, with his campaigning on social justice, and his focus on younger members of society

Could Micheal Martin be Ireland's answer to Bernie Sanders? The Fianna Fail leader is almost 20 years younger than the 77-year-old senator who captured the imagination of younger voters during last year's roller-coaster ride of a US presidential election.

Martin also doesn't have a cool campaign slogan like Sanders' "feel the bern" hashtag, which lit up social media during the presidential race.

But his views and political stance are beginning to mirror those of the social justice-campaigning American politician.

They both extol the virtues of affordable housing, reduced prescription costs and now the Fianna Fail chief wants to take on globalisation.

In an era of increasingly divisive political debates, Martin also knows winning over young voters is more important than ever before.

Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams tries to appeal to the youth with odd tweets about rubber ducks, while Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is using novelty socks and his knowledge of romantic comedies to appeal to younger voters.

Now, Martin wants a piece of that electoral pie but, as is his nature, he doesn't want to do it through gimmicks or public relations strategies.

"I will be myself and I will be my own character," he told the Sunday Independent. "I think Bernie Sanders is interesting. I was interested when he came to Ireland," he added.

"He generated a fair degree of interest among young people."

He said Sanders's rise to prominence during the Democratic Party primary contest last year was because he "tapped into this disillusionment among young people about globalisation".

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Martin also believes the current generation of young people are the most disadvantaged of any other generation in recent history. It's the first time in many generations that younger people - those in their 20s and 30s - will be less well off than their parents.

This is down to the soaring cost of living - housing, motor insurance and third level education - and the decline in job security and fair pay in most industries.

"We benefited from globalisation but, on the other hand, it has its downside, and its downside has manifested itself in much more job insecurity, lower income starting out now right across the board in most sectors," he said. "We can't keep going the way we are going because it is not sustainable in my view and I genuinely believe it represents a danger to democracy and stable politics.

"That's why, in my view, you had the election you had in the United States, that's why you had Brexit."

He wants to take on "global corporations" and tell them if you "don't invest in your human resources, you are going nowhere".

But what's he going to do about it?

"I think globally it's beginning to happen with the G20 but not to the degree we would want. Here domestically, we can help with the tax agenda. Basically, we can help by reducing tax and giving a greater margin to workers.

"We can help by aggressively tackling something like the car insurance. We need to look at the costs that young people have to take on board. I think it means a political focus on young people that hasn't been there in recent years."

He would like to see tax cuts focused on young middle income earners - reduce the 2.5pc Universal Social Charge (USC) to 2pc or the 5pc to 4.5pc. This is shift from the previous Fianna Fail policy of focusing on both lower and middle income earner.

But he's not only focused on young voters. He also wants to increase the threshold for charging business owners capital gains tax from 1m to 15m. He believes this is necessary because businesses relying on the British market are considering moving to the UK due to Brexit.

He would also like to see more State supports for self-employed people whose businesses don't work out.

"The big cry after the crash from the self-employed was what happens when something goes wrong for someone who is self-employed and what safety net is there for them and that hasn't been put to bed," he added.

Other budget demands will see Fianna Fail insisting that mortgage interest relief for struggling homeowners is maintained and the threshold for the drugs payment scheme is reduced by around 10.

Budget discussions between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael will begin earnest when the Dail resumes in September. In the long term, Martin wants to establish a State building agency that would build both social and affordable housing for younger people and families. He believes there is an idealogical opposition in Fine Gael to building social housing.

"We want to give people some sense of a future because, at the moment, most young people are saying they won't own a house for 10 or 15 years, if ever, because the rent is soaking up any available income they have," he said

He said he was "very disappointed" in his constituency colleague Simon Coveney for ditching the Department of Housing for the Department of Foreign Affairs after just one year in the job.

"I genuinely thought he'd be in housing for at least three years and it doesn't help people's confidence, it saps our confidence, when the first chance you get, you're out of there," he said.

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"Maybe he's done all his PR on housing and delivery wasn't happening and he was only getting out before things got worse," he added.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar also has too much of a "heavy focus on the public relations", according to Martin.

"It is known in the Department of Health the Taoiseach was very focused on the good announcements. He is different personality to others and we are all different in individual ways but I think there needs to be more substance and there needs to be more delivery," he said.

He also has some sharp words for Labour Party leader Brendan Howlin who has been critical of Fianna Fail's stance on water charges. "We had water charges up to 1997 from 1983, then Brendan Howlin got rid of them. Then Brendan becomes a great advocate 10 years later. It's hard to take the lecturing from Brendan and other people," he said.

He is more measured and nuanced than usual on his views of Sinn Fein.

Martin is still insisting he would not go into government with Sinn Fein.

However, he is less forceful on the prospect of entering into a confidence and supply arrangement with Gerry Adams. He said he does not "envisage" such a scenario which, due to policy difference, would be "very difficult" but he certainly does not rule out the prospect.

"I think we need to have a healthy respect for the electorate and a healthy respect for the dynamics of politics and things change and that's my overall position now," he said. "Predictions that people make about elections don't materialise and there is a huge danger in trying to create a narrative around post-election scenarios in advance of the election that might be completely at odds with what happens."

Martin is also concerned about the rise of social media, which brings "progress" and "perils".

He would like to see mainstream media fight back and believes there is a responsibility on the State to support the local radio and print newspapers. He wants to create a State-sponsored fund for the newspaper industry so as to ensure quality journalism continues.

The fund would be kept at "arm's length" from the government to ensure it could not be used to exert pressure on newspapers.
Weeks after Governor Cuomo and his appointed MTA chairman called on the city to contribute additional money to the MTA, the New York Times reports that Mayor de Blasio will propose a tax on the wealthy in order to fund subway fixes and subsidize MetroCards for low-income riders.

The tax proposal, expected to be announced Monday, would bring in approximately $800 million annually through a .5 percent increase in income tax on individuals who make over $500,000 and married couples who make more than $1 million. The bulk of that money will go toward subway and bus repairs, with around $250 million dedicated to the Fair Fares program, which provides half-priced MetroCards to New Yorkers living in poverty.

"Rather than sending the bill to working families and subway and bus riders already feeling the pressure of rising fares and bad service, we are asking the wealthiest in our city to chip in a little extra to help move our transit system into the 21st century," the mayor said in a statement on Sunday.

Passing the proposal will require approval from Governor Cuomo and state lawmakers, and could be an especially tough sell in the Republican-controlled state senate. But the effort is already in motion, according to State Senator Michael Gianaris, whose "millionaire tax" plan was the inspiration for the mayor's proposal. "This is a welcome change for leaders to begin to identify the need for dedicated revenue for the suffering system," Gianaris, who represents Queens, told Gothamist. "It's the solution that makes the most sense for a system in crisis."

Both Gianaris' senate bill and legislation expected to be introduced in the state assembly would include provisions about how the MTA can spend the additional revenue. "Because there's been questions over diversion of resources," Gianaris noted, language in the bills will specify that the money only go toward subway and bus upgrades. Additionally, the proposal will note that the additional funds do not impact the $1 billion promised by Cuomo to the MTA next year.

Some city councilmembers and transit advocates also praised city hall's new support for Fair Fares, which came as a surprise to many after the mayor's repeated refusals to fund the program in this year's fiscal budget. Councilmember Ydanis Rodriguez, who championed the plan during budget negotiations, commended the announcement, and noted that the mayor's change of heart was a testament to grassroots organizing on the part of activists like the Riders Alliance and the Community Service Society.

Likewise, Cuomo-appointed MTA Chairman Joe Lhota also praised de Blasio's u-turn on city funding, noting that, "After saying the MTA doesn't need money, we're glad the Mayor reversed himself." But Lhota also repeated his calls for the city to immediately fund half of the MTA's $800 million rescue plan. "Emergency train repairs can't wait on what the state legislature may or may not do next year," the chairman said in a statement.

The obvious solution, according to Gianaris, is for Cuomo to call a special legislative session, as he did earlier this summer, so that lawmakers can vote on the tax proposal immediately. "There is no crisis that is affecting more New Yorkers than the MTA crisis, and there's no question that this justifies a return to Albany to act," the state senator said.

The governor's office did not respond to questions about Cuomo's support for the tax proposal and whether he's considering convening a special session.




Taoiseach Leo Varadkar plans to dramatically double Ireland's overseas diplomatic presence as part of his bid to limit the economic damage posed by Britain's decision to leave the EU.

Mr Varadkar's Brexit idea would see new embassies opened in countries where Ireland has never had a presence and existing missions given new resources to fight for overseas investment.

It is understood he hopes to open new embassies in New Zealand and Mumbai, India.

The current cost of running Ireland's embassies is 95m, according to the most recently released figures.

Mr Varadkar wrote to Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney last week, asking him to "double our global footprint by 2025".

In the letter, which has been seen by the Sunday Independent, the Taoiseach said: "We need to ensure that we have the strongest possible presence abroad in order to maintain, grow and diversify our share of international trade, employment and investment.

"It is clear that there is a new self-confidence in Ireland, as an island at the centre of the world. That national self-confidence requires that we always be ambitious, visible and active in promoting the interests of our nation on the international stage," he added.

Mr Varadkar said Ireland was a small, open economy which put it more at risk than other countries to changes in the regional and global environment.

He asked Mr Coveney to "develop a clear" plan for doubling Ireland's diplomatic presence by 2025. This includes identifying costs and resources needed for the significant increase in the country's overseas missions.

Mr Coveney has been asked to develop a "clear timeline" from 2018 to 2025, including six monthly milestones.

The Taoiseach will also be writing to Tanaiste and Jobs Minister Frances Fitzgerald, Agriculture Minister Michael Creed and Transport Minister Shane Ross, asking them to contribute to his plan to increase Ireland's global footprint.

"This forms part of the response to Brexit but is also a key element of the Taoiseach's vision for Ireland as a country at the centre of the world and a country which maximises its impact globally," a senior government source said.

The most expensive Irish embassy is in London which costs the State more than 6m a year, according to figures for 2015. The embassy in Paris costs 3m, Washington 2.2m, and Tokyo 1.8m.

The annual cost of rent for the Brussels mission came to 1m.

Last year, it emerged the Department of Foreign Affairs was paying 46,000-a-month for a residence of the Irish Ambassador to Japan.
Berlin envoy: Charles Bewley went out of his way to thwart visas for Jews coming to Ireland

Jews hoping to flee Germany to Ireland in the 1930s faced an almost insurmountable obstacle. Charles Bewley, Ireland's envoy to Berlin from 1933 to 1939, was an unashamed supporter of Nazi rule, and did not conceal his anti-Semitic views. He made strenuous efforts to stop Jews getting into Ireland.

Bewley was from a Quaker family in Dublin linked to the famous cafes. He converted to Catholicism while he was being educated at Oxford, and as a young lawyer became a Sinn Fein sympathiser.

Early on in his career, as an Irish trade representative in Berlin, his anti-Jewish feelings became obvious when he got into a row with Dublin Jew Robert Briscoe. Bewley insulted Briscoe over his Jewish faith with a string of insults, and this was reported to his superiors.

Soon after the Nazis took power, Bewley was appointed as the Irish envoy to Berlin. Presenting his credentials to President Hindenburg, he spoke gushingly of the "national rebirth" of Germany.

After Kristallnacht in 1938, when Jews were murdered by the Nazis in large number, he was asked to compile a report on anti-Semitism for his superiors in Dublin.

He claimed in this report that he was not aware of any cruelty on the part of the German government.

Bewley said Jews did not assimilate, even though they might be centuries living in a country. He said that in every state where "they exist in any quantity, the Jews are regarded as an alien body".

He claimed that "when the interests of the country of their birth come into conflict with their own personal or racial interests, (they) invariably sacrifice the interests of their birth to Jewish interests".

According to Professor Bryan Fanning, an authority on immigration in the Department of Social Policy in UCD, Bewley appears to have gone out of his way to thwart visas being issued to Jews, even when they had already been approved by the authorities in Dublin.

In July 1938, George Klarr (Clare), a Viennese Jewish banker, travelled to Berlin to collect visas to Ireland for his family. He had been told they were awaiting him at the Irish Legation. The visas had been approved in return for investment by Klarr of 1,000 in a ribbon factory. He was one of a tiny number of Jews who were allowed in because it was felt that they could contribute to the economy.

The family travelled to Berlin, where they had to wait several weeks before obtaining their visa. The Irish Legation consisted of Bewley and his secretary Frau Kamberg, a German woman who also served as administrator.

Bewley did not follow the instruction from Dublin to release the visas. The Klarrs believed that they only received them because of the persistence of Frau Kamberg.

By 1939, the Irish government had grown increasingly impatient with Bewley and he was recalled from Berlin as war broke out, but he refused to take a job in Dublin and left the diplomatic service.

Bewley stayed on in Germany during the war, working as a Nazi propagandist. In 1945, he moved to Italy, and he later wrote a biography of the Nazi leader Hermann Goring.
A new generation of cruiser has hit Ireland's longest river. Thomas Breathnach takes Horizon 3 into the waters and wild...

Engine switched to off, I lie across the bow of our cruiser.

My golden retriever's wagging tail is a fanning relief from the summer swelter. Water gently laps to a ripple, cattle swish through the riverbank bullrushes, and a kingfisher bolts a flash of blue across the reeds like a Celtic macaw.

Where else would you get such unabridged peace but on Ireland's finest waterway? I'm on the Shannon, in blissful tranquillity, aboard the river's newest holiday vessel.

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My journey began a few days earlier in Portumna, headquarters to boat hire company Emerald Star. I was skippering its fleet's newest vessel, Horizon 3 - a Miami Boat Show-class cruiser that would turn the heads of every fisherman and lock-keeper from there to Carrick-on-Shannon. Crafted like a futuristic barge, the spacious, 45ft vessel sleeps up to seven passengers, so I brought along a few friends for the voyage and, as cabin cruising is one of Ireland's pet-friendliest getaways, my dog, Vipp (left), too.

Far from the days of aged, damp river boats with rickety bread-toasters, Horizon 3 is very much a next-gen cruiser. Along with three cabins (all ensuite), the lower deck contains a showroom kitchen-dining salon with flatscreen TV, mp3 station and waterproof speakers. Upstairs, plus points included a spacious fun deck with sunbathing area, wet bar, BBQ hotplate and deck shower. The design brief reads a little more 'Barbados' than 'Banagher' - but with a scorching forecast on the cards, we do it justice.

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Cruising on the Shannon requires no previous boating stripes, something that often comes as a surprise to novices and landlubbers. All Emerald Star passengers are given an instructed dry run aboard their vessel before they leave, allowing them to master controls, navigation and mooring (often the most daunting task) before setting off. Another highlight of Horizon 3 is the addition of a bow thruster - a rookie-proof feature which allows us to steer into marina berths as easily as smart-parking at Tesco.

There's a dreamy timelessness to cruising the Shannon, and it doesn't take long for the river to spellbind. Journeying north from Portumna, the fertile flood meadows of the Shannon Callows pop with flora and fauna. Blooms of whitethorns blot the river banks; swans and cygnets glide through the irises and rushes; pairs of moorhens wade as if on a weekend date night. They're the kind of bucolic scenes you'd imagine in the works of Kenneth Grahame or Seamus Heaney. We're cruising through poetry - in slow motion.

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Our first night's moorings come at Shannonbridge, straddling the border between Offaly and Roscommon. Like many minnow settlements along the river, passing tourist trade has given Shannonbridge some surprising culinary chops; having expertly navigated to make last orders, we disembark to visit the panoramic restaurant at Luker's Bar (facebook.com/LukersBarShannonbridge), tucking into a perfect summery menu of steaks, salads and Eton mess while watching a fireball Shannon sunset.

The meal itself was only surpassed by a chaser downstairs at the original grocer's bar, which dates back to the 1750s. Perhaps Ireland's most photogenic pub (and it's got competition), proprietor John Joe Ryan guides us through the memorabilia stacked around an old-world bar infused with sweet, turfy smoke from a Victorian fireplace.

Aside from its waterway appeal, the River Shannon also forms the natural border for Ireland's Ancient East (irelandsancienteast.com), making an ideal portal for meandering history buffs. The next morning, after a leisurely Full Irish on board, we soak up the dramatic draiocht of arriving at Clonmacnoise (above, heritageireland.ie, 8) by water: the round tower of Temple Finghin acts as a kind of medieval beacon as we journey through the wetlands. The OPW allows dogs on the sacred site too, which means Vipp can ramble along with us through the magnificently preserved early Christian ruins.

Continuing north, we're more immersed in the Shannon's relaxing slipstream with every passing mile. From Athlone to Lough Ree, Longford to Leitrim, this adventure is less about epic crescendos and more about peaceful pace and the enamouring characters we encounter en route. For us, that means the friendly Roosky lock-keeper who offers us Cadbury's Roses for wearing our life jackets; for Vipp, it's Cindy - a yellow labrador he buddies up with in the beautiful village of Dromod.

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Surprisingly, perhaps, just 50pc of Emerald Star's cruisers are Irish. Over the course of our weekend, we meet a convoy of beer-swilling Austrian fishermen, an English family aboard a vessel named Cirrhosis of the River, and a party of American couples whose stern reveals a flapping Confederate flag. All are drawn to one of Europe's wildest rivers.

Should more of us join them? In 2014, a report for the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation found cruise holidays "underperforming", with a 50pc drop in demand over the previous decade. Lying back on the high-tech bow of our Horizon 3, soaking up a timeless calm, I reckon the River Shannon remains our great uncharted wonder.

3 Inland Cruise Tips

1. Stay safe on lakes

Grab those binoculars! Cruising the Shannon can mean navigating some of Ireland's largest lakes (including Lough Ree and Lough Derg). Navigation markings aren't as obvious as on the river so keep your eye out as lakes can be surprisingly shallow, and groundings are common.

2. Book smart

If budget allows, book two berths larger than your party  this saves you having to convert the shared living spaces come bedtime.

3. Bring a foodie guide

Hungry? Georgina Campbell and Waterways Ireland publish the free guide A Taste of the Waterways (info@reland-guide.com). See also waterwaysireland.org.

3 Wonderful Waterway Eats

1. The Derg Inn, Terryglass

This postcard gastropub on the banks of Lough Derg is worth a downriver detour to Tipperary alone. Kitchen highlights include their on-point cod and chips and steamed mussels with lashings of garlic and vin blanc. Mains from 14; thederginn.ie.

2. Wineport Lodge, Glasson

Like a cabin mansion on the Great Lakes, Wineport Lodge brings an air of wilderness luxury to the Shannon. Try their daily specials like duck confit or Toulouse sausage (19) for dinner and if you dine here, you can moor overnight for free, too. wineport.ie.

3. Coxs Steakhouse, Dromod

With seared sirloins, buttery fillets (and veggie options) at their best, this postcard Leitrim locale sates the most ravenous of wanderers. Take the scenic nature trail from the marina to the pub to work up your appetite! Mains from 15; coxs-steakhouse.com.

How to do it

Emerald Stars rates for a six-berth Lake Star cruiser start from 241 for three nights. Rates on the new seven-berth Horizon 3 start from 1,422 for seven nights. Planning on cruising one way? Emerald Star can transfer your car from Portumna to Carrick-on-Shannon for a fee of 160.

See emeraldstar.ie for more.
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Colm McCarthy Opinion Free money is not the way to head off a crisis

Managing the macro economy involves three perspectives. These are the short-term  the next six months or a year; the medium-term  the next four or five years; and the long-term  the issues that demand to be addressed decades in advance. From the perspective of Irish governments in recent times, only the short-term merits attention, with the medium-term left to the civil service and the long-term to sporadic commissions and academic worrywarts.
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Eoghan Harris Opinion Misery media fails to give due credit to the Taoiseach

Taoiseach Micheal Martin must drive his advisers mad. Unlike Leo Varadkar or Donald Trump, he never bigs up success stories such as the effect of Level 3 Plus on Covid or his visionary Shared Island project. Last Friday, Tony Holohan and RTE cheerleaders seemed to imply Level 5 was responsible for the improved Covid situation. Not so.
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Gene Kerrigan Opinion Fr Sean Sheehy is the voice of Irelands dead and unmourned past

At first, it seemed a bit mad. A bishop and a priest squaring up for a bout of ecclesiastical fisticuffs. A turbulent priest in Listowel, Co Kerry, took to the altar and spouted out of him about gays, contraception, abortion and transgender matters. He left us in no doubt that he alone has the courage to denounce this sinful carry-on.
The "phoney war" was the period after September 1939 when all sides had declared war on one another, but the actual fighting, bar the odd skirmish, still hadn't begun. Instead armies spent the months eyeing one another warily, preparing for battle.

Irish politics is in a similarly unreal state of heightened vigilance right now. It definitely feels as if there's an election in the offing, but no date has been set for a showdown, and there won't be one for some time. Nonetheless the parties are quietly amassing the troops, drawing up plans, poring over strategies, sneaking out a few ideas here and there to see how they go down.

In this political phoney war, parties to the impending conflict are even pretending that war hasn't been declared at all, and that the ramshackle confidence and supply motion which holds the current Government together can survive long term. Right now, they're prepared to look the Irish people straight in the eye and outright lie that their minds are still fixed on Monday, April 12, 2021, the latest date on which the election for the next Dail must be held.

That's nearly four years away. Nobody seriously believes that the next four years will pass without an election, and it could be that the only thing stopping parties from admitting as much is that they're not sure how the Irish people will react to being marched to the polls again.

The country is used to governments, even unpopular ones, surviving to term. Who will they blame if this one doesn't do the same?

That's proving hard to read, because people are so used to a long gap between elections that, outside of more politically engaged circles, they may not yet have twigged to the changing mood from Leinster House, particularly with the summer recess under way and the war having gone underground. If this Government had been running for four years, voters' antennae would be better tuned to pick up the signals, but normal people don't want to think about elections in summer. Ideally, they'd prefer not to have to look at another politician before the autumn.

The discussion in Fianna Fail over whether to enter coalition with Sinn Fein is the surest sign of this tactical manoeuvring. Micheal Martin is in a difficult position, because personally he has a pronounced antipathy towards SF, and a well-founded distrust of them as a potentially corrosive political force; besides which, FF has most to lose electorally should the whiff of sulphur that always clung to SF starts to lift. It's FF votes that SF lusts after.

At the same time, there are loud voices in Micheal Martin's party urging the leader to take an historic step by extending an olive branch to their fellow republicans.

Some of them are doing so because, ideologically, they think that what SF and FF have in common (a shared commitment to a united Ireland) is more important than what divides them (a disagreement over the best, and least bloody, way to achieve it). Others because they believe that FF could have the numbers to return to government this way, even if FG was the largest party, and that they could use the time profitably to teach SF some table manners.

A word of warning there: that's what elements in the SDLP thought, too. They got a rude awakening. You might have sympathy for the wolf when it's hungry and eating your neighbour's sheep, but less so when you bring it into your own home and it starts eating your children.

Geographically, the party is divided, east and west, on whether to take a punt on coalition with SF. Lines are equally fractured over whether formal coalition with FG should be contemplated. (Another idea that Martin has raised, though it had the principal effect of spooking his own deputies). These are the vague designs which FF is floating right now, hoping for a steer from the electorate, and spreading its bets by seeking to have the same questions about coalition put to FG. This at least seems to have led to a consensus that Gerry Adams would first have to stand aside as leader for a deal to be done.

If FG was to soften on the possibility of entering government with SF, then FF wouldn't have to take the flak alone if the prospect proved unpopular with voters.

Martin's suggestion that he might contemplate having Sinn Fein's support from the sidelines in a similar confidence and supply arrangement to the one that Fianna Fail currently provides to Fine Gael was a way of teasing out those possibilities.

What's interesting is that SF's Mary Lou McDonald flatly rejected the idea, and insisted her party wants to be in government, saying: "You either take the plunge and go into government, or you don't."

If this was her attempt to stamp her own authority on the party, Adams's insistence on Friday that he will lead SF into the next election was not only a swift reminder of who's boss, but also that the leadership must be expecting an early election if establishing that pecking order is so important. Either way, what's significant is the increased softening in SF's former position that it would only enter into coalition as the largest party.

This was always an optimistic strategy at best. More realistic voices were bound to emerge as an election drew nearer. It's far easier to make a pitch for first preferences and transfers if there's a chance of implementing your policies in government. Otherwise, you're just fishing for protest votes.

The obstacles to agreeing a programme for government may still be too great to overcome; but that the language is changing is the clearest indication that all sides are expecting to have those conversations for real in the near future, rather than just batting them back and forth for fun at summer schools.

The current cold front that's developed between the Irish Government and unionists in the North could even be seen as another part of the same phoney war.

In being so apparently bullish about Brexit and the border, thereby provoking the ire of Northern Ireland's First Minister Arlene Foster, the Taoiseach may not be so much itching for a scrap with Northern Protestants as sabre-rattling for the home front. Knowing he will be facing FF and SF at the polls, both of whom have longer traditions of robust nationalism than Fine Gael (far too robust, in Sinn Fein's case), Varadkar is playing the strongman, showing that he won't back down in the face of the hardline Brexiteers, whether in Belfast or Britain.

The stakes for the new Taoiseach couldn't be higher. He got the top job in Irish politics without winning an election first. Democratically, that's all above board, but he will be stung with the charge of a lack of electoral legitimacy. On the other hand, if he rushes into an election, and loses, he'll be forced to step down from the position which he has single-mindedly worked for.

That's why the current row over what should be in his first Budget has become so intense. FF doesn't want the coalition government to use a populist, giveaway Budget as a springboard into an election; and FG has to beware being called out for trying to buy votes, a charge to which Leo Varadkar could be vulnerable in light of his opponents' caricature of him as a Taoiseach purely for the middle classes.

The "phoney war" ended in May 1940, when German troops marched into Belgium and Holland. It could be that Ireland's political phoney war will end in May of next year, too.

They have the autumn and winter to amass troops, stockpile ammunition and pore over strategy. Battle is surely imminent.
I have a solution to the problem of libel for newspaper publishers and others in similar positions of responsibility in the media - establish the Wheel of Defamation.

It would work like this. If someone sues for libel and the publishers' lawyers reckon the plaintiff has a 50pc or better chance of success, they should be invited to spin the wheel which will offer the possibility of cash amounts ranging from 5,000 to 100,000.

It's a simple plan and a bit radical, so I don't expect anyone to take it up anytime soon - but if nothing else, it should serve for now to demonstrate the extent to which the laws covering defamation amount to nothing more than a gamble for the media, a lottery in which they can never win. The most they can ever hope to achieve is to break even.

I hold no brief for those who perpetrate serious libels and refuse to admit their culpability, hoping against reckless hope that the lottery that is the High Court will somehow get them off the hook. And we need defamation laws to allow every individual the right to defend their good name without having to resort to pistol or sword.

But as the law stands today, the odds are heavily stacked against the media and consequently against freedom of speech and, ultimately, against the essence of democracy.

Some recent high-profile cases serve to make the point - such as the 1.25m award to Monica Leech, or the 900,000 to Martin McDonagh. The judgment of the European Court of Human Rights - that the Leech award was so excessive it was in breach of the right to freedom of speech - was welcome. So, too, was the indication from the outcome of the McDonagh appeal that the Supreme Court was taking the ECHR judgment to heart and directing awards like these substantially downwards.

But as a perennial part of the media business, the risk of being successfully sued for libel in this country and having really large amounts of money awarded to aggrieved plaintiffs, is still having a chilling effect on all those who would seek to publish the facts and speak truth to power.

You might have thought the provision in the 2009 Defamation Act - which allowed judges in libel trials to advise juries on the awards they should make to successful litigants - would have gone a long way to solving the problem.

But it hasn't, partly because it is totally subjective - unlike in the case of physical injury, there is no table of examples a judge can consult, so mostly they still effectively leave it up to juries.

In England and Wales, juries do not figure in libel trials, most likely for this very reason? Over the years it has not been difficult to get out of jury service, so there has been a tendency to see juries sometimes filled with people who have nothing better to do. But even without that element, the jury system is totally unsuited to deciding on a suitable recompense for a libel.

There is no frame of reference except maybe their own feeling about how much they would like to win themselves or perhaps whether or not they have some antipathy toward an individual media outlet.

Of course, juries are a vital part of our jurisprudence. Those accused of robbery or rape or murder, for example, are entitled to be tried by a jury of their peers.

But even in cases of robbery or rape or murder, where the jury must decide on innocence or guilt, they are not asked to also apply the penalty. That is either laid down as mandatory or left to the discretion of the judge. Only in cases of defamation is it inexplicably different.

The amount of the award is not the only chilling factor affecting freedom of speech. It is not unknown for the legal costs associated with a case to exceed the amount of damages awarded.

I have known cases where plaintiffs were interested in settling for what might be seen as a reasonable amount - but were dissuaded by their lawyers telling them to hold out for more money.

Holding out meant more days in court and consequently higher fees for the barristers. It is not unheard of for a plaintiff to have two senior counsel and a junior as well as a firm of solicitors.

One legendary libel lawyer, famed for this approach, was never known to take a case to court that he did not declare to be the most grievous he had ever experienced in all his years at the bar.

Everyone knows that mistakes happen. Using the wrong picture is a typical publishing mistake. But it is easily put right. Unlike where a publisher is defending an action and standing over a story or standing by a particularly trenchant columnist, a mistake is usually rectified immediately with a correction, invariably more prominent than the offending publication. But if the matter goes to court, that counts for little.

It would seem not just fair, but sensible, to have some sort of pre-trial forum, where the issue of whether or not an admitted libel was serious enough to merit a full court hearing, could be decided. That could stop the totally ludicrous situation where every technical mistake is treated in a courtroom setting in exactly the same manner as the most grievous defamation.

And it would also be of help to plaintiffs who are sometimes tempted to go to court, possibly against their own instincts, because they have a lawyer willing to act on a "no foal, no fee" basis.

(This conveniently ignores the possibility that if the plaintiff loses they could be liable for substantial costs from the defending publisher.)

In many cases, plaintiffs with a grievance could get satisfaction by taking their complaint to the Press Council. Most media outlets subscribe to the council's code of conduct, and when found to be in breach, they are compelled to publish a usually lengthy and often forthright judgment prominently.

Far too often, grievances that are totally suited to the forum that is the Press Council, end up in court. But then the Press Council does not make financial awards.

Worse still is the fact that a complainant can take a case to the Press Council and lose - but then decide to take the legal route anyway, without their loss before the council having any formal standing in court.

For years our legislators resisted all efforts to have the laws of defamation reformed. Many of them felt that they were protecting themselves against the media. They dressed it up in a defence of their right to have a private life as distinct from their public role. But too often those who held out most vehemently against reform were not defending a private life but a secret life. Hopefully, the politicians of today are different.

When reforms were introduced in 2009, some aspects were helpful - such as the reduction (from six years to one year) of the time within which an action must be initiated. But even in their improved state, our defamation laws are still a serious inhibitor on free speech and a very real threat to the continued viability of some of our biggest outlets.

Being sued for libel is the last thing any journalist wants - but it is sometimes an occupational hazard and one that is hard to defend yourself against.

Truth is a comfort but it is no defence in court unless you can prove it. There are many journalists who go through their entire careers without being sued, but they are also unlikely to have ever broken the really big important stories or gotten to the heart of essential truths in courageous and insightful commentary.

Those who have and who do are the kind of journalists society needs. And if they are to continue to provide the type of service that is a vital buttress to our democracy, they need to be protected by the law, not cowed into silence by it.

Otherwise it's back to the Wheel of Defamation.
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Meghan Markle, the actress who is dating Prince Harry, turns 36 today.

Get to know the US star better by taking a look at some facts about her.

:: Markle is the daughter of Emmy Award-winning lighting director Thomas W Markle who worked on the US sitcom Married With Children, and therapist and yoga instructor Doria Radlan.

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:: The actress is best known for her role in legal drama series Suits, in which she plays paralegal Rachel Zane, but she has also been seen in films Get Him To The Greek, Remember Me, and Horrible Bosses, as well as a number of TV programmes.

:: Markle is committed to humanitarian work  she is a global ambassador for World Vision Canada and has been an advocate for the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, also known as UN Women.

:: She created a lifestyle website, The Tig, which she ran for three years before closing it down.

:: Early in her career, Markles jobs included a short stint on Deal Or No Deal where she stood behind one of the cash prize boxes.

:: Markles past relationships have included a two-year marriage to Trevor Engelson who she was with for nine years altogether, and a short relationship with celebrity chef Cory Vitiello.

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:: She was the most googled actress of 2016 thanks to her connection with Prince Harry.
Prince Harry arrives at the 'Dunkirk' World Premiere at Odeon Leicester Square on July 13, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Tristan Fewings/Getty Images)

Prince Harry has flown his girlfriend Meghan Markle to Africa to celebrate her birthday amid more speculation he could get down on one knee.

The Prince has planned a safari at the romantic destination, which is popular with honeymooners.

The pair arrived on Saturday on the actress's 36th birthday.

It will heighten rumours that the Prince will follow in his brother's footseps and also use the location to propose.

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It was during a trip in 2010 that Prince William asked Kate Middleton to marry him as they stayed in a log cabin in Kenya's Lewa Wildlife area.

The 32-year-old was seen giving a thumbs up to other passengers as he put his arm around his partner as they walked across the airport tarmac.

The Suits star was seen holding birthday gifts in her arms as she disembarked from the plane.

She has recently finished filming the last episode of the latest Suits series and arrived in London from her home in Toronto where she was reunited with the Prince following his return from Sicily.

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The Prince last visited Africa in June to help conservationists with an elephant relocation project to continue his work to help endangered elephants and black rhinos.

It is not the first time the prince has used the location to impress women, having previously taken his former girlfriend Chelsy Davy on a number of holidays to the destination prior to them splitting up.

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If you're of the opinion that wedding food trucks are 'notions', it looks like you're in the minority as the latest addition to the ever-growing wedding industry proves that couples are still harbouring a massive thirst for 'something different' on their big day.

And indeed the couple who formed part of the team behind The Prosecco Van - the latest mobile beverage unit on the Irish food circuit - should know what couples in the midst of wedding planning are looking for: they are getting married themselves next year.

"That's where the idea came from," said Laura who, along with fiance Mark and fellow entrepreneurs Trevor and Joanna, is are hoping to add some extra sparkle to Irish weddings in the form of mobile bubbles.

"When Mark and I were away for a weekend in London we had seen a prosecco van. I had said to Mark that he would love that for our wedding, so when we looked into it in Ireland we realised that there was nothing really fitting the bill and seen a gap in the market."

Officially launched this month, the team have already been inundated with requests from couples keen to add that elusive special something to their big day. In fact the demand has been so phenomenal, the team say, that the amount of requests they received has managed to crash the company's email server.

"It's been absolutely incredible the positive response we have got. It's all happened very quickly," said Laura.

And while it's very much the guests who are really benefiting from this latest idea, the team say they're just as excited about being part of the wedding day and seeing everyone's reaction to the van.

"The excitement and fun that we have meeting new people has made the launch fantastic," said Laura.

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"We never imagined it would reach out to so many people. "

The team documented the summer build of The Prosecco Van through their social media channels, with Mark and Trevor creating the unit from scratch.

The boys took on the fabricating, painting and creating the bar themselves, with some help from friends and 'great contacts'.

The van has since been doing the rounds on the wedding and festival circuit around the country, bringing their bubbles - a 'crisp and fruity' Bidoli Frizzante from the Le Contesse winery in Veneto, Italy - to thirsty customers.

"To see the sheer delight on faces when they see the van not to mention tasting the bubbly makes it all the better," says Laura.
Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Bride Suzanne Jackson and bridesmaids before entering the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor leave in the Rolls Royce Car. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Bride Suzanne Jackson arrives at the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Bride Suzanne Jackson and bridesmaids before entering the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; General view of Rolls Royce Car. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

This is the first glimpse of Irish blogger Suzanne Jackson's second wedding dress.

Suzanne, who runs fashion and beauty blog So Sue Me, tied the knot with her long-term love Dylan O'Connor in Skerries on Saturday.

The bride stunned in a full-skirted gown, custom-designed by Hayley Paige, with a plunging sweetheart neckline and lace sleeves, before changing into a second dress for the wedding reception.

While the second gown has been kept strictly under wraps on social media as of yet, celebrity hairdresser Ceira Lambert shared a sneak preview (below) of her outfit change.

Expand Close Image: Ceira Lambert/ Instagram / Facebook

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The picture shows a plunging neckline with lace and embellished detail - although that's all it gives away.

Luckily for the wedding party, the rain held off as Suzanne arrived at the church shortly after 1pm in a Rolls Royce just a few minutes late. The luxury transport featured a customised license plate, reading 'Suzanne & Dylan'.

Prior to her arrival, a crowd gathered at the church to catch a glimpse of Suzanne's highly-anticipated wedding dress.

Her five bridesmaids wore pale pink, full-length dresses with a lace bodice, while her three flower girls wore white dresses.

Expand Close Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn / Facebook

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Whatsapp Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Suzanne (32) entered the church under a floral arch, with her husband-to-be waiting patiently at the altar.

The groom wore a dark grey-toned three-piece sit with a grey waistcoat and white tie.

Video of the Day

The happy couple posed for cameras and the waiting crowd as they exited the church shortly before 4pm.

The newlyweds travelled to Powerscourt Estate, Co Wicklow for their five-star reception.

Expand Close Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn / Facebook

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Dylan, who works alongside Suzanne in running her blog and beauty empire, popped the question in the Maldives in December 2015.

Suzanne entered the blogging scene in 2010 and has established herself as one of Ireland's most prominent influencers and businesswomen, with a best-selling lash line, nail varnish range and contour palette on the market.
Bride Suzanne Jackson and bridesmaids before entering the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor leave in the Rolls Royce Car. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Bride Suzanne Jackson and bridesmaids before entering the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; General view of Rolls Royce Car. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Bride Suzanne Jackson and bridesmaids before entering the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Bride Suzanne Jackson arrives at the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Bride Suzanne Jackson arrives at the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

5 Aug 2017; Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Top Irish blogger Suzanne Jackson has tied the knot.

The Skerries native wed her long-term love Dylan O'Connor in her local church surrounded by family and friends on Saturday.

The bride stunned in a full-skirted gown, custom-designed by Hayley Paige, with a plunging sweetheart neckline and lace sleeves, wearing her hair in loose Hollywood waves.

Her five bridesmaids wore pale pink, full-length dresses with a lace bodice, while her three flower girls wore white dresses.

Expand Close Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn / Facebook

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Whatsapp Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

Luckily for the wedding party, the rain held off as she arrived at the church in a Rolls Royce just a few minutes late. The luxury transport featured a customised license plate, reading 'Suzanne & Dylan'.

Prior to her arrival, a crowd gathered at the church to catch a glimpse of Suzanne's highly-anticipated wedding dress.

Suzanne (32) entered the church under a floral arch, with her husband-to-be waiting patiently at the altar.

The groom wore a dark grey-toned three-piece sit with a grey waistcoat and white tie.

Expand Close Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn / Facebook

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Whatsapp Newlyweds Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

The happy couple posed for cameras and the waiting crowd as they exited the church shortly before 4pm.

The newlyweds will travel to Powerscourt Estate, Co Wicklow for their five-star reception.

Video of the Day

Dylan, who works alongside Suzanne in running her blog and beauty empire, popped the question in the Maldives in December 2015.

Suzanne entered the blogging scene in 2010 and has established herself as one of Ireland's most prominent influencers and businesswomen, with a best-selling lash line, nail varnish range and contour palette on the market.

Expand Close Bride Suzanne Jackson and bridesmaids before entering the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn / Facebook

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Whatsapp Bride Suzanne Jackson and bridesmaids before entering the church. Wedding of Suzanne Jackson and Dylan O'Connor. St. Patrick's Church, Skerries, Co. Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn
The UN Security Council votes on a new sanctions resolution that would increase economic pressure on North Korea (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has urged North Korea to abide by UN resolutions and stop provoking "the international community's goodwill" with missile launches and nuclear tests.

Mr Wang spoke to reporters in Manila after meeting North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on the sidelines of a regional meeting, hours after the UN Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions to punish Pyongyang for its escalating nuclear and missile programmes.

Mr Wang said the two had an intensive conversation during which China urged North Korea to maintain calm.

He said he told Mr Ri "do not violate the UN decision or provoke the international community's goodwill by conducting missile launches or nuclear tests".

Mr Wang also urged the US and South Korea "to stop increasing tensions" and said that all sides should return to negotiations.

In an earlier statement on Sunday, Mr Wang appealed to other governments to resume the six-nation talks that involve the North, the United States, Russia, Japan and South Korea, as well as Beijing.

"The aim is to bring the peninsula nuclear issue back to the negotiating table and seek a solution through negotiations until the denuclearisation of the peninsula and the stability of the peninsula are achieved," Mr Wang said.

North Korea pulled out of the talks in 2009 to protest against international condemnation of a long-range rocket launch. Last month, it test-launched two intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the US mainland.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has said Washington wants eventually to talk to North Korea, but thinks discussions would not be productive if Pyongyang comes with the intention of maintaining its nuclear weapons.

Mr Wang's statement repeated Beijing's proposal for a "double suspension," or a halt to North Korean nuclear development and to joint US-South Korean military exercises. It said that was the most reasonable way to ease tensions and create conditions for new talks.

AP
The inside of a property where a British model was held following her kidnapping in Milan and detained for six days as her captor tried to auction her off online, Italian police have said Credit: /PA Wire

Property where a British model was held following her kidnapping in Milan and detained for six days as her captor tried to auction her off online, Italian police have said Credit: /PA Wire

A British model was kidnapped in Milan and detained for six days as her captor tried to auction her off online, Italian police have said.

The 20-year-old woman was attacked on July 11 by two men as she attended an arranged photo shoot.

She is believed to have been drugged and transported in a bag to Borgial, an isolated village near Turin, before being released on July 17.

A Polish man, who lives in Britain, was arrested on July 18 on suspicion of kidnap and extortion, state police said.

Officials have released a mugshot of the suspect, named as 30-year-old Lukasz Pawel Herba.

It is alleged two men tried to sell the woman online for more than $300,000 and demanded the model's agent pay to secure her safe release.

The woman was kept handcuffed to furniture but was freed after six days and taken to the British consulate in Milan, despite the ransom not being paid.

It has been reported that the captor demanded 50,000 upon the woman's release and threatened to kill her if she told police about the incident.

Milan police officer Lorenzo Bucossi told reporters the group the suspect was allegedly working for offered "mercenary services" on the dark web.

According to a translation on Sky News, Mr Bucossi said: "Certainly the author of this very serious crime is a dangerous person - don't forget he was also ready to carry out a 'final solution', as he called it.

"He was a killer and was working for an organisation on the deep web that is offering mercenary services such as bombing attacks, kidnapping and the selling of girls on the dark web."

Italian police said they are working with officials in Britain and Poland as they continue to investigate.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: "We have been providing consular support to a British woman in Italy and are in touch with local authorities."

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said an address in Sampson Close in Oldbury was raided on July 18 in connection with the investigation.
Mothers and their babiesas well as their partners and other childrengathered in Times Square for the Third Annual Big Latch On event to promote awareness and support for breastfeeding.

All the mothers nursed their babies for a minute at 10 a.m. on Saturday. "In that moment, we will unite as one with thousands of mothers across the World to Normalize Breastfeeding," Breastfeeding World, the event's organizer, said.

It's World Breastfeeding Week, and the Big Latch On was one of many ways New Yorkers were getting involved, from the city launching its mobile units where mothers can breastfeed or pump breastmilk in privacy or the subway breastfeeding caravan. The Big Latch On also included a walk from Times Square to Bryant Park, where a community event with music and activities for families as well as breastfeeding advocates and vendors.

Maranda Summers, who attended last year's Big Latch On, said, "I experienced the love and empowerment at the NYC Latch On last year. It was so amazing to see so many women come together in solidarity, for such a worthy cause. Every woman should have that freedom, comfort, and support in their breastfeeding journey that existed that day. The Latch On ultimately re-energized my passion and determination to keep going, knowing that I had a whole community supporting me."

Breastfeeding is 100% legal in public places in New York State. The NYCLU states, "To breastfeed your baby in any public or private place where you have a right to be. This includes stores, day care centers, doctors offices, restaurants, parks, movie theaters and many other places. No one can tell you to leave any of these places because you are breastfeeding, and no one can tell you to breastfeed in a bathroom, a basement or a private room."
Chloe Ayling (right) claims she was held by Lukasz Pawel Herba (left top) at a rural house

A glamour model who was drugged and kidnapped by a gang who then threatened to auction her on the dark net has spoken of her trauma.

Chloe Ayling (20) has identified herself as the model at the centre of the major international investigation.

She returned to Britain and today she told how she feared for her life every minute for the week that she was kept captive in a remote Italian farmhouse.

Speaking to The Telegraph Ms Ayling said she was sent to the Milan for a photo shoot on July 10 and was brutally kidnapped the following day by a man posing as a photographer.

Expand Close Chloe Ayling. Picture: Instagram / Facebook

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Speaking on the doorstep of her family home in Coulsden, south London, she said: "I've been through a terrifying experience. I feared for my life, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour.

"I am incredibly grateful to the Italian and UK authorities for all they have done to secure my safe release.

"I have just arrived home after four weeks and haven't had time to gather my thoughts. I am not at liberty to say anything further until I have been debriefed by the UK police."

Ms Ayling was held for a week in th the tiny hamlet of Borgial near the French border.

Expand Close Photo released by police of the place where a man identified as identified as Lukasz Pawel Herba, a Polish citizen with British residency, held a young British model, who thought she was coming to Milan for a photo shoot, but instead was drugged, hustled away in a suitcase and handcuffed in a house in northern Italy before being released, Milan police said Saturday, Aug. 5, 2017. (Italian Police Photo via AP) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Photo released by police of the place where a man identified as identified as Lukasz Pawel Herba, a Polish citizen with British residency, held a young British model, who thought she was coming to Milan for a photo shoot, but instead was drugged, hustled away in a suitcase and handcuffed in a house in northern Italy before being released, Milan police said Saturday, Aug. 5, 2017. (Italian Police Photo via AP)

Her kidnapper claimed to be part of an online organisation called Black Death and threatened to sell her on the deep web if her agent failed to pay a ransom of $300,000.

Lukasz Pawel Herba (30) a Polish national who lives in the UK, was arrested by police and confessed to the kidnapping which investigators described as an elaborate plot that involved months of planning.

Expand Close Lukasz Pawel Herba, the suspected kidnapper of a British model, is seen in this August 5, 2017 handout picture provided by the Italian Police in Milan. Polizia Di Stato/Handout via REUTERS / Facebook

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Whatsapp Lukasz Pawel Herba, the suspected kidnapper of a British model, is seen in this August 5, 2017 handout picture provided by the Italian Police in Milan. Polizia Di Stato/Handout via REUTERS

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The man is being held in Milans Opera maximum security prison.

In a statement to Italian police Ms Ayling gave a terrifying account of what happened to her when she showed up for the photo shoot in a studio near Milans central station on July 11.

A person wearing black gloves came from behind and put one hand on my neck and one on my mouth to stop me from screaming, she said.

A second person wearing a black balaclava gave me an injection in my right forearm. I think I lost consciousness. When I woke up I was wearing a pink bodysuit and the socks I am wearing now.

I realised I was in the boot of a car with my wrists and ankles handcuffed, adhesive tape on my mouth. I was inside a bag and was only able to breathe through a small hole.

Accompanied by her Milan lawyer, Francesco Pesce, on Saturday the traumatised woman took Italian police to the fake studio and the house 120 miles from Milan where she had been handcuffed for a week to assist them in their investigation.

Expand Close A screenshot of an internet page on a laptop belonging to Lukasz Pawel Herba, the suspected kidnapper of a British model, shows a balaclava purchase. Handout picture provided by the Italian Police in Milan. Polizia Di Stato/Handout via REUTERS / Facebook

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Whatsapp A screenshot of an internet page on a laptop belonging to Lukasz Pawel Herba, the suspected kidnapper of a British model, shows a balaclava purchase. Handout picture provided by the Italian Police in Milan. Polizia Di Stato/Handout via REUTERS

Mr Pesce said his client had shown extraordinary courage when she revisited the house where she had been kept hostage.. She shed a tear, she was so brave, he said. She is such a young girl to have been subjected to such an ordeal, she must have suffered so much.

It must have been terrifying to be alone in this house being locked up by strangers in the middle of nowhere. She was told she was going to be sold. It was scary.
Rise of the Generals: US president Donald Trump and new chief of staff General John Kelly. Photo: Reuters

When president Donald Trump was presented with a ceremonial sabre by the US Coast Guard Academy in May, his homeland security secretary John Kelly was at his side. "Use that on the press, sir," Mr Kelly whispered dryly in the president's ear.

It was an example of the uncompromising approach Mr Kelly, a retired four-star Marine Corps general, has brought to the White House during his first week in the role of chief of staff.

With his no-nonsense, Bostonian manner, Mr Kelly, 67, has made a blitzkrieg of a start in a job widely dubbed "mission impossible".

According to White House officials, he listens in on calls between the president and his Cabinet secretaries, shuts down ineffectual advisers in mid-flow, has clamped down on the number of people in meetings, and keeps the doors of the Oval Office closed to prevent access to non-essential staff.

An unprecedented number of people had assumed so-called "walk-in privileges" to the president's office, but these have been revoked.

Crucially, Mr Kelly has also secured the agreement of Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner that they will report directly to him, not the president. Some White House advisers have joked about now needing "permission slips" to see the president.

But in an administration that has come to resemble the back-stabbing court of the Borgias, Mr Kelly's arrival is being heralded as a victory for what some senior Republicans call the "axis of adults".

The core of that axis is a triumvirate of former military generals - Mr Kelly, HR McMaster, the national security adviser, and defence secretary Jim Mattis. Secretary of state Rex Tillerson and attorney general Jeff Sessions, both vastly experienced, are also in the group.

At no point since the presidency of Dwight Eisenhower, more than half a century ago, have generals held such power in the White House.

"John is part of the axis of adults that are in there now and there will be more consistency in terms of orders," said former US Army general Mark Hertling, who served with John Kelly in Iraq.

"I've seen him bring rigour to a staff process in the military.

"I watched him do it with his Marines. He's very precise in what he wants and doesn't suffer fools.

"There will be discipline in getting information to his boss. What his boss does with it he can't control."

Mr Kelly himself has indicated he will concentrate on "managing the staff" rather than attempting to "manage the president".

Within hours of being sworn in on Monday, he invited Anthony Scaramucci, Mr Trump's ambitious communications director, to his corner office in the West Wing and politely, but firmly, told him to resign.

Then he assured Mr Sessions, who has been belittled by Mr Trump, that his job was safe. The president has since stopped publicly criticising Mr Sessions.

Next, Mr Kelly provided cover as Mr McMaster sacked Ezra Cohen-Watnick, senior director for intelligence to the national security council.

While Mr Cohen-Watnick was not a household name, he was a key piece on the White House chess board, an ally of Steve Bannon, the controversial chief strategist.

He was the latest in a host of Bannonites to be purged by Mr McMaster, who is now himself under sustained fire in pro-Bannon media outlets, which suggested the general was "increasingly volatile" and about to be sacked.

The poisonous all-out war between Mr Bannon and Mr McMaster stems from their divergent views on foreign policy, including whether to send more troops to Afghanistan, and will be one of the key internal White House divisions Mr Kelly has to manage.

One former White House official said: "There is an extraordinary amount of back-stabbing going on. But Kelly will protect McMaster." In handling the president, Mr Kelly already appears to have secured a major, if perhaps temporary, victory.

One of the most noticeable and impactful changes in his first week was the tone of Mr Trump's tweets, which were consistently concentrated on the positive performance of the economy rather than personal feuds. Former chiefs of staff have not been shy about weighing in with advice for Mr Kelly.

Leon Panetta, chief of staff to Bill Clinton, said that White House was also beset by initial chaos.

"There has to be trust between the chief of staff and the president," he told the New York Times.

"One chief and he must control all staff, a clear chain of command. Look the president in the eye and tell him the truth. Tell him when he is wrong."

Mr Panetta added: "Buy a big bottle of Scotch."

General Hertling said: "John's not a Scotch drinker, but knowing him, he's probably bought a bottle of Irish whiskey.

"In the toughest of jobs, you'll need that in your bottom right hand drawer to be sure."

The changes to the White House came as America was last week digesting the implications of the decision by Robert Mueller, the special counsel, to appoint a grand jury to assist his investigation.

The convening of a grand jury, a standard prosecution tool in criminal investigations, suggests that Mr Mueller and his investigative team will likely hear from witnesses and demand documents in the next few weeks and months.

It was also reported last week that two Republicans on the House intelligence committee travelled to London earlier this summer to speak to Christopher Steele - the British former intelligence officer behind the dossier detailing some of Mr Trump's alleged activities in a hotel in Russia.

The unnamed House intelligence committee aides visited at least two London addresses associated with Mr Steele, who worked for intelligence firm Fusion GPS, including the office for Mr Steele's lawyer.

The Americans, following instructions from Washington, did not meet the former spy. But their attempts to track down Mr Steele - without informing their Democrat colleagues, the Senate or Mr Mueller -have infuriated Washington investigators who were hoping to get to the bottom of the story.

"What is clear is that the president and his allies are desperately trying to smear Fusion GPS because it investigated Donald Trump's ties to Russia," said Tracy Schmaler, a representative of Fusion GPS, in a statement.

Last Thursday night, at a Make America Great Again rally in West Virginia, Mr Trump said: "What in the world is wrong with us as people? Have we not heard enough about the Russians? The Russia story is a fabrication. Most people know there were no Russians in our campaign. There never were."

Telegraph

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President Donald Trump has praised new sanctions the UN Security Council approved for North Korea, saying they will have a "very big financial impact".

The Security Council unanimously approved the sanctions on North Korea, including banning coal and other exports worth over $1bn US dollars.

The US-drafted measure, negotiated with North Korea's neighbour and ally China, is aimed at increasing economic pressure on Pyongyang to return to negotiations on its nuclear and missile programmes.

Mr Trump wrote on Twitter: "The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!"

His national security adviser, HR McMaster, had said earlier that it is "impossible to overstate the danger" posed by North Korea.

In an interview with MSNBC's Hugh Hewitt that aired on Saturday, Mr McMaster said Mr Trump has been "deeply briefed" on the strategy on North Korea.

The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2017

Tensions have mounted with Pyongyang's two recent successful tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Mr McMaster reiterated the Trump administration's position that all options, including a targeted military strike, are on the table.

Still, he acknowledged this "would be a very costly war, in terms of -in terms of the suffering of mainly the South Korean people".

He continued: "So what we have to do is - is everything we can to - to pressure this regime, to pressure Kim Jong Un and those around him such that they conclude it is in their interest to denuclearise."

The comments came as US secretary of state Rex Tillerson was in the Philippines for a regional summit expected to focus heavily on concerns with North Korea.

Mr Tillerson has no plans to sit down with North Korean foreign minister Ri Yong Ho at the event.

His reluctance to sit down with his North Korean counterpart is despite his growing push for Pyongyang to return to the negotiating table with the US.

Mr Tillerson said this week that such talks would have to be predicated on the North giving up its nuclear weapons aspirations and that those conditions have not yet been met by North Korea's government.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said he has urged his North Korean counterpart to abide by UN resolutions and stop provoking "the international community's good will" with missile launches and nuclear tests.

Mr Wang spoke to reporters in Manila after meeting with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on the sidelines of a regional meeting after the UN Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions.

Mr Wang said the two had an intensive conversation during which China urged North Korea to maintain calm. He says he told Mr Ri "do not violate the UN decision or provoke the international community's good will by conducting missile launches or nuclear tests".

Mr Wang also urged the US and South Korea "to stop increasing tensions" and said that all sides should return to negotiations.
Mohamed Omar, left, the executive director of the Dar Al Farooq Center Islamic Centre leads afternoon prayers outside the police tape surrounding the centre

A US state governor has c ondemned the bombing of a suburban mosque as "so wretched".

Mark Dayton, governor of Minnesota, was speaking after the attack on the premises in suburban Minneapolis.

Mr Dayton and Lieutenant Governor Tina Smith visited the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Centre in Bloomington on Sunday morning, a day after an explosive device shattered windows and damaged an office at the mosque.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports Mr Dayton and Ms Smith joined public officials and mosque leaders for a meeting inside the building.

No one was hurt in the Saturday morning blast.

The FBI is seeking suspects and trying to determine whether the incident was a hate crime.

AP
Masked anti-government demonstrators during a protest against the installation of a constitutional assembly in Caracas (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

National Guard officers line up outside the chief prosecutor's headquarters in Caraca (AP)

Venezuelan general prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz, third left, is surrounded by loyal employees as she was barred from entering her office by security forces (AP)

A newly-installed constitutional assembly has ousted Venezuela's chief prosecutor in a sign that President Nicolas Maduro's government intends to move swiftly against critics amid a fast-moving political crisis.

A total of 545 pro-government delegates voted unanimously to remove Luisa Ortega from her post as the nation's top law enforcement official and replace her with a staunch government supporter.

They said they were acting in response to a ruling by the government-stacked supreme court, which banned Ms Ortega from leaving the country and freezing her bank accounts while it weighs criminal charges against her for alleged irregularities.

Ms Ortega, a long-time loyalist who broke with the socialist government in April, refused to recognise the decision and vowed to continue defending the rights of Venezuelans from Mr Maduro's "coup" against the constitution "with my last breath".

She said: "This is just a tiny example of what's coming for everyone that dares to oppose this totalitarian form of government.

"If they're doing this to the chief prosecutor, imagine the helpless state all Venezuelans live in."

Earlier, Ms Ortega was pushed and barred from entering her office by dozens of national guardsmen in riot gear who took control of the entrance to the building.

She alleged that authorities were desperate to get their hands on dossiers containing information on dirty dealings by high-level officials, including sensitive details about millions of dollars in bribes paid by Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht.

Assembly delegates later swore in as her replacement Ombudsman Tarek William Saab, who was recently sanctioned by the Trump administration for failing to protect protesters from abuses in his role as the nation's top human rights official.

Members of the all-powerful constitutional assembly had pledged in their first meeting to move quickly against Mr Maduro's opponents.

Former foreign minister Delcy Rodriguez said on Friday after she was chosen to lead the assembly: "Don't think we're going to wait weeks, months or years.

"Tomorrow we start to act. The violent fascists, those who wage economic war on the people, those who wage psychological war: justice is coming for you."

The constitutional assembly was seated despite strong criticism from the United States, other countries and the Venezuelan opposition, which fear the it will be a tool for imposing dictatorship. Supporters say it will pacify a country rocked by violent protests.

Its installation is virtually certain to intensify a political crisis that has brought four months of protests in which at least 120 people have died and hundreds more have been jailed.

Mr Maduro also wants the assembly to strip opposition MPs of their constitutional immunity from prosecution, saying their constant conspiring to oust him should not be protected.

While members of congress say they will only be removed by force, the opposition is struggling to regain its footing in the face of the government's strong-arm tactics and the re-emergence of old, internal divisions.

Several opposition activists have been jailed in recent days, others are rumoured to be seeking exile and one leader has broken ranks from the opposition alliance to say his party will field candidates in regional elections despite widespread distrust of the electoral system.

In a sign of its demoralised state, only a few hundred demonstrators showed up for a Friday protest against the constitutional assembly, one of the smallest turnouts in months.

Also on Saturday, the South American trade bloc Mercosur moved to suspend Venezuela for failing to follow democratic norms.

Venezuela was previously suspended in December for failing to uphold commitments it made when it joined the group in 2012.

The new decision will make it harder for the country to return to good standing since the new suspension can be lifted only when the bloc is satisfied that Venezuela has restored democratic order.

Argentine foreign minister Jorge Faurie said: "Today in Venezuela there is no democracy.

"Essentially what Mercosur is saying is: Without democracy, no, you cannot be a part of Mercosur."

Mr Maduro responded by calling the move part of a dirty campaign led by the Trump administration to discredit Venezuela and get its hands on its vast oil reserves.

AP
Kannapolis has gone through a lot of change in the three decades since Kevin Lambirth was born in the bustling mill town.

And though the Kannapolis native has seen his fair share of change, as well, Lambirths life seems to have come full circle. As a project manager in UNC-Charlottes bioinformatics lab on the N.C. Research Campus, Lambirth walks and drives many of the same streets he did in his youth.

I do have the nostalgia of the mill and driving past the mill, he said. The mills were huge. I mean they were big, and they were actually split across four plants. The one that was here in this exact location, which was plant one, was the biggest plant.

Lambirth said he drove past the buildingwhich sat where NCRC is todayevery day on his way to high school.

It was enormous, he said. Just driving past and youd look straight up, and youd see the top of it, and it was just this huge, giant brick square. I remember some of the doors on the side of it would be open, and you could kind of see in, see all the pipes and all the industrial-looking things in there.

Lambirth actually comes from a family of millworkers himself. His grandfather worked at Cannon Mills for 20-some years, from 1956 to 1990. His grandmother worked at a textile company that used raw products from the mill to make baby and other clothing products.

Both his parents worked in the mills over summer break when they were in high school and college.

But Lambirth said he knew that wasnt in his future.

I was not going to work in the mill, he said. It was abundantly clear that the mill was not going to be here when I graduated, and freshman year it was demolished, so I knew I was not going to be working at the mill. And I had no desire to do that, either.

A different path

Lambirths love for science actually began right here in Kannapolis at A.L. Brown High School. While the campus didnt have quite as advanced of a program as it does today, Lambirth was still able to soak up every bit of biology, chemistry and physical sciences as he could.

I always loved the science classes, he said. I knew I really enjoyed it; I didnt know if I wanted to make a career out of it. I was going to be a software engineer. Thats what I wanted to do. I wanted to make video games. But I loved sciences, and I always excelled in those classes, and I was always the most interested in those. Everything else just bored me to death.

Lambirth graduated from A.L. Brown in 2006 and went on to Pfeiffer University, where he had a scholarship to do research. His mentor had a collaborative effort with SoyMeds, a UNC-Charlotte spinout company, so he worked with them looking at the potential of soy beans to act as edible vaccines.

When he graduated, Lambirth took the logical next step of working for SoyMeds as a lab technician before starting graduate school in biological sciences at UNC-Charlotte in August 2011.

In his second year, he was accepted into the Kannapolis Scholars program with the N.C. State University group at NCRC looking at soy bean gene expression pattern.

That involves a lot of bioinformatics, and so my project was very heavily centered on bioinformatics and big data, he said. That kind of got my feet wet.

When he finished his PhD in 2015, Lambirth said the timing was perfect. The UNC-Charlotte Bioinformatics Services Division needed a postdoctoral researcher, andgiven his experience with both wet labs and big dataLambirth was a good match.

I guess were kind of a rare breed, he said. Youre either one or the other. So Im a Heinz 57 that you usually dont come across. I fit the bill, and I was there at the right time and the right place. It just kind of happened.

The Urban Environmental Genomics Project

At the Bioinformatics Services Division, Lambirth works as the coordinator and project manager for the Urban Environmental Genomics Project, which looks at water and soil samples in and around two wastewater treatment plants in Charlotte to test for antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

We look for the bacteria thats there, he said. We look for the antibiotics that are there and genes that may be resistant to those particular antibiotics. Then we find out how much is there and look at different patterns to see what persists through different stages of the plant, what seems to rise out of nowhere.

The next stage in the project will be to look at sediment and bio solids, which tend to be used as fertilizer in agricultural fields for the high nitrogen content.

A great reuse ideaits really good for crops and things like that, Lambirth said. But if those antibiotic-resistant genes are present, do they fall out in the sludge as well? And is that transposited into agricultural fields? Were going to be eating that. So thats the next step.

Good to be home

Even though Lambirth just recently moved up the road to Salisbury, he said hes happy to be back in his hometown.Kannapolis is always my home, he said. The majority of people I went to school with could not wait to get out of this town. They wanted to go elsewhere. It wasnt hipster enough; it wasnt bustling enough; it wasnt cultured enough; theres not enough to do, and they just wanted to get out. Funny enough, it seems like Im running into more and more of my classmates at local places. This has always been my home, always been here, grew up here and lived here.

He said hes excited to see things moving forward in terms of developmentthough he had hoped it would move along a bit faster.

Things are moving slower than I think everyone had anticipated, because who expected 2008 to happen, he said. So its a little discouraging to see it happening as slow as it is, but the stuff that is happening hereit is nice to see a revitalization, Kannapolis the way I used to see it.

To the future

Lambirth said hes still kind of taking things one day at a time. His position in the bioinformatics lab isnt a permanent one, so his future certainly isnt set in stone. But things in his life have sort of taken a course of their own, falling into place when the time was right, and so he said he wasnt in the habit of making firm future declarations.

It seems like everything up to this point has just kind of worked out, and its hard for me to say a definitive long-term goal, he said. But if I was here doing what Im doing with this group of people as a permanent position, Id be perfectly happy with that. So long-term goals, keep doing what Im doing, get better at what Im doing and hopefully be around to see this campus prosper a little more.
For families struggling with the unthinkable, this one day of the year makes patients feel like superstars, children feel like heroes, the ordinary feel like the stuff of daydreams.

And it takes a community to make it possible.

The Sandbox, an area nonprofit that helps families with children with life-altering illnesses cope with and navigate care, will put on its sixth annual promcomplete with limo rides, a red carpet and free hair and makeupat the end of September. But first, the group will hold a series of kickoff parties and fundraising events, one of which will be at Cabarrus Brewing Company in Concord on Monday, Aug. 7.

Its ridiculous, Mara Campolungo, founder and executive director of The Sandbox, said. Its over the top. Its designed to just be ridiculous so these kids feel normal and they feel like rock stars and they get all kinds of attention. All year long, were planning for the prom, and by doing that we have kickoff parties.

The Sandbox is a Charlotte-based nonprofit that serves families in North and South Carolina, many of whom live in Cabarrus County. The managed care program helps children with cancer or other life altering, rare or terminal illnesses.

What makes us so unique is that the program helps families, and we meet them where theyre at to provide them services, Campolungo said. Its emotional. Its social. Its psychosocial. We take care of the entire family.

For example, one of the families in The Sandbox has two children with a diagnosis and their house burnt down. A crew of 50 volunteers went over to clean up, put the house back together and get the family back on their feet. Another girl with a terminal illness moved with her family to a new house. The Sandbox coordinated with a church group to build them a ramp up to the first floor.

Thats the day-to-day that nobody ever really wants to hear about, Campolungo said. Its not glamorous. The glamourous piece of what we do is our annual Evening of Believing prom.

Prom will be held Sept. 29 and is definitely a glam event, Campolungo said. The Sandbox will put out a 280-foot red carpet for the children to walk out on, surrounded by their paparazzi. The Aveda Institute will come to the Embassy Suites in Concord, which is hosting the event for the second year running, to do hair and makeup before limos and a police escort take all the prom-goers on a ride around the Charlotte Motor Speedway and back.

With new ties to Cabarrus County that developed last year when The Sandbox had to move the location of the prom last minute due to riots in Charlotte, Campolungo said they decided to also hold one of the kickoff events in town. After talking with local business partners, the group settled on Cabarrus Brewing.

Given Steve [Steinbachers] not only his facility but his demeanor for charities and his giving spirit, we got connected, Campolungo said. And hes been nothing shy of fabulous.

The event will run Monday, Aug. 7, from 5 to 8:30 p.m. Families and sponsors with The Sandbox will be in attendance, and Campolungo said she also hopes the community will come to see what the nonprofit is all about.

Were looking for a great night of food and fun and fellowship, she said. Itll be really awesome.

The group will have food as well as a raffle and a live auction for a weekend with a Tesla.

Steinbacher with Cabarrus Brewing said once he learned about The Sandbox and heard what they wanted to do, he was all on board.

Our mission is to always support local and very worthy nonprofit organizations in our community, he said. So this is a no-brainer. We jump up and down for events like this. I am a firm believer that this whole brewery craze is much more than just the beer itself. Its tying communities together, the destination, the interaction with the community and the worthy causes that support the community and needs in the community.
A day heavy in green Indian equity markets saw a day, heavy in green, today. Nifty 50 ended, up by 321.5 points. Sensex ended, up by 1181.34 points. Top Gainers today were HDFC, HDFC Bank, Infosys. Top Losers ... November 11, 2022 | 11-11-2022 3:43 pm

In early trade, Rupee rises 71 paise to 80.69 / $ Early on Friday, the rupee strengthened 71 paise to 80.69 against the dollar as investors' attitudes were bolstered by easing US CPI data and a decline in the dollar index. Forex traders claime... November 11, 2022 | 11-11-2022 2:24 pm

Sensex zooms over 1,100 pts; Nifty above 18,300; IT index top contributor Domestic benchmark indices in the fast lane today led by IT and Metal stocks outperforming. Both the Sensex and Nifty benchmarks were nearly 2% higher amid positive global cues. On the se... November 11, 2022 | 11-11-2022 2:00 pm

NIBE receives order of Rs11.88 crore from Goa Shipyard; Stock slips 1% Nibe Limited stocks in focus as the company announced the receipt of purchase orders. As per the regulatory filing, it has received two purchase orders dated November 08, 2022 from G... November 11, 2022 | 11-11-2022 12:53 pm

Ashoka Buildcon receives provisional certificate for NHAI road project; Stock up 2% Ashoka Buildcon Limited has informed the declaration of October 26, 2021 as the Commercial Operation Date (CoD) for its Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM) Project of National Highways Authority of ... November 11, 2022 | 11-11-2022 12:26 pm
Common people are always against violence and that's what one can observe anywhere in the world. People cutting across all the faiths gathered in the US called for combating racism, intolerance and violence during the fifth anniversary of the tragic Oak Creek massacre that killed six innocent Sikhs five years ago.

According to a PTI reports, Paul Ryan, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, said, "Over the last five years, the people of Oak Creek have proved they're stronger than hate and division."

Reuters

Ryan represents the Congressional district in Wisconsin where a white supremacist went on a shooting rampage at a Sikh Gurdwara on August 5, 2012.

"Five years ago, Oak Creek was rocked by a heinous attack on the Sikh Temple, and today we look back on that act of violence with solemn remembrance of those who were lost," he said in a statement.

"The Sikh community is in our thoughts on this fifth anniversary of the Oak Creek attack," said Senator Ron Johnson.

AP

Five years ago, America was struck by a "cowardly and tragic act of violence" that took the lives of six innocent worshippers in a Sikh gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, said House Democratic Chairman Joe Crowley.

Eminent Indian-American from Indiana Gurinder Singh Khalsa said, the Oak Creek tragedy was a wakeup call for the Sikh community.

AFP

Wade Michael Page, a known white supremacist, shot and murdered six people and injured four others at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. This was one of the worst shooting incidents in the recent American history.

Those who were killed in this shooting spree were Paramjit Kaur, Satwant Singh Kaleka, Prakash Singh, Sita Singh, Ranjit Singh, and Suveg Singh.
representational image

A 29-year-old woman from Chandigarh filed FIR, yesterday, against Haryana BJP president Subhash Barala's son Vikas Barala, for allegedly harassing and stalking her on the streets of the city late at night. Read more

Here are more top news of the day:





1) To Keep "Genuine" Gau-Rakshaks Safe, Govt To Issue Aadhaar-Linked IDs For Uttarakhand Cow Vigilantes

AFP/Representational Image

To keep "genuine" cow protection activists safe and also check violence by "self-proclaimed vigilantes", the Uttarakhand Gau Seva Aayog, a government body for overseeing cow protection measures, has decided to provide unique IDs to activists in the state. Read more

2) After Uttar Pradesh, Now Bihar Govt Declares War On Illegal Slaughterhouses

BCCL/Representational Image

After Uttar Pradesh, Bihar has now decided to clamp down on all illegal slaughterhouses in the state. The state's animal and fisheries resources minister Pashupati Kumar Paras made this announcement on Saturday, which will mean closure of virtually all the 140-odd abattoirs in Bihar. Read more

3) Nepali Couple Registers First Ever Transgender Marriage In The Country

AFP

In what could give a ray of hope for many transgenders in Nepal, a couple from Nepal have registered their marriage. This is first such case in Nepal and Nepalese laws dont legalise same or transgender unions. Read more





4) 75-Year-Old Former Delhi University Professor Cleared Of Sexual Harassment Charges After 16 Years

Representational image

A 75-year-old former Delhi University professor has been absolved of a sexual harassment charge 16 years after it was filed against him by two researchers. The professor, who was then 60 years old when the case was filed against him, was suspended by the Delhi University in March 2002, just two years before his retirement was due. Read more

5) Gau Rakshaks Try To Stop Truck 'Carrying Cows', Trashed Badly By A Mob In Maharashtra

Indian Express

A mob of around 50 people allegedly attacked and beaten 'gau rakshaks' near Shrigonda police station in Ahmednagar distrct of Maharashtra on Saturday evening. The incident took place after gau rakshaks with the help of police intercepted a tempo reportedly illegally transporting cows to a slaughterhouse. Read more
How often do we get to see a court apologising to people who fight their cases for decades? Well, not quite often. However, Madras High Court has done this to a woman who had been seeking compensation for her dead son since 1993.

"Sorry, we have kept you waiting this long to secure your right," The Madras HC told the petitioner.

Justice N Seshasayee, rejecting an appeal filed by a public sector insurance company against the award of Rs 3.4 lakh by a motor accident claims tribunal (MACT), said on Friday:

AFP

"This accident had taken place in May 1993. It is little over 24 years now and this mother is not compensated yet. She still awaits her remedy. And, whatever remedy that has been provided to her by the tribunal may have been possibly delayed further due to the pendency of this appeal...The insurance company which objects to a passing of the award on a point of maintainability of the claim before this court is yet to part with its money. It reflects an attempt to write off the life of a citizen and the support he could have given to his parent as valueless," said Justice Seshasayee.

It all began when Bakkiam's lorry driver-son Lokeshwaran was killed on May 18, 1993, when his lorry had a head-on collision with a bus belonging to the state transport corporation. He died on the spot. For some reason, instead of moving a motor accident claims tribunal for compensation under Motor Vehicles Act, Bakkiam sought to get compensation under the Workmen's Compensation (WC) Act, 1923. As WC Act is invoked mostly in cases of industrial accidents, her claim was rejected summarily.

Later, instead of filing an appeal, she filed a fresh application in the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal for Rs 5 lakh as compensation. The National Insurance Company Limited, the insurer of the lorry, opposed the application saying since she had elected to make a claim under the WC Act, a second claim before MACT was not maintainable.

The tribunal rejected objections, and awarded Rs 3.47 lakh as compensation. It said the sum should be paid by Lokeshwaran's employer and the state transport corporation in equal proportion. Aggrieved by the award, the insurer moved the present appeal.

Justice Seshasayee, dismissing it, said that while forums discussed legal semantics on burden of proof, the fact remained that no compensation had been paid to the aggrieved mother. He also pointed out that the first claim made by Bakkiam was rejected solely on the basis of suspected identity of the victim who died in the accident. He then directed authorities to deposit the compensation sum within four weeks.
Group of women working with the Shrimad Rajchandra Aatma Tatva Research Centre, an umbrella organisation with several projects running under it, solely for the welfare of society is working towards providing employment to underprivileged women near Mumbai.

sanisa

Shramik Naari Sangh, also known as Sa-Ni-Sa is an organization working meticulously to help bring the talent of contemporary and less-privileged women to build an inclusive society.

They engage enterprising women in programs that utilize their skills and train them to scale newer heights, foster a sense of entrepreneurship and above all, create opportunities to attain financial independence.

In the same quest, the group has adopted 30 villages near Mumbai and hired women from there to give them work and free education to their children.

In totality, they have 5 brands - Chaakri, Chaakri tiffin service, Divinite chocolates, Puro body & soul and Udaan.

Every morning, women in Khapoli, a village located some 90 km away from Mumbai get ready to go to work where they produce a plethora of chocolates. These Adivasi women work together to make chocolates that are consumed by people across the country.

The brand is being managed by Prachi Shah and Sneh Bhansali, with Prachi returning as a patisserie graduate from Le Cordon Bleu, Sydney. These two bright young girls have set an example for their generation by launching their luxury chocolate brand in association with Sa-Ni- Sa.

The chocolates have now become a huge hit among several elite clubs in Mumbai, hotels, and organizations. Doing so, these organizations are playing an effective role in their CSR activities.

All the money raised through the sales goes into benefiting the village these women come from, especially the schools. The quality of education and knowledge is at par with its counterpart in the city - they have Microsoft powered classes, well-educated teachers, and other rudiments to keep everyone motivated.

ijhss

As of now, they have over 900 students who are studying with them.

This is not the first time that the group is making headlines because of their good work. Previously we ran a story on them where they took the onus on themselves and fed as many people as they could, at a meagre amount of Rs 10.

RRC

The organization is one of the many few in the country which is selflessly working towards the upliftment of the society, which is why it is important for all of us to recognize their good work.

If you wish to make a donation or just want to buy this delicious chocolate, you can reach them at divinite@sanisa.co.in or give a call on 9820896800.
Parvez Irani could be any old man sitting on the counter of a restaurant collecting cash. Hes so much trained in his trade that the best of corporate employees could be put to shame with his no-nonsense demeanour and a poker face determined to get work done well. He can be quite intimidating at first, but its his eyes that say a different story. Literally, a different story, because his eyes have a sharp hint of grey in them, a trait of the Yazidi community from the West Asia.

Parvez Irani, the owner of Yazdani Bakery

In another part of the world, Parvezs community is suffering genocide at the hands of ISIS. None of that seems to remotely affect him, as the now 76-Year-Old Parvez has been born and brought up in Mumbai and calls himself a true patriot (Because he knows the true meaning of the 24 spokes on the Indian flag  he thinks it has not much to do with King Ashoka, but that youre supposed to do one good deed per hour). He knows more about the Indian flag than anyone of my generation will ever know. He impatiently rings the bell on his counter of the Yazdani Bakery to call on the men who are waiting for the tables of the restaurant and bakery.

The old style posters still stand at the entrance

Someone once told me that Parsi and Irani bakeries are different, and asked Parvez the same to clear my doubt. Parvez immediately rubbished it and said, The only difference between us is that the Parsis came 1200 years ago and we came about a hundred. But were the same people and every ritual and practice we follow is exactly the same, he shares with us.

buns are the decor in this old structure

Travelling through the time

Entering Yazdani bakery is like stepping into a time warp. Youre immediately transported into what would look like the 1950s, exactly when the bakery was established. The narrow lane near the Horniman Circle, Fort was really busy on the Tuesday afternoon we visited.

The lane itself mirrors the good ol Bombay, but swanky Mercs and posh BMWs passing through the lane are major old-world-charm killers. The bakery, on the other hand, has a wall full of posters and advertisements from the yesteryears, with grandfather clocks hung on two walls. Even the menus displayed outside and inside are written with a chalk on a wooden blackboard.

wall with advertisements and posters from the 50s

Parvez tells us that when Babri Masjid was demolished, leading to riots in 1992 in Mumbai, Parvez recalls that Yazdani was the only open bakery in that area, providing food to those stranded and homeless.

No police or politician made any attempt to come and shut us down. And this support from the people still stands with us, he tells us proudly.

This is evident when we look around the place that is so sturdy and teeming with regulars and the frequent knells of Bun-Maska-Chai booming through the room.

the classic bun maska and tea at Yazdani

The baking style is obviously old  done manually with little to no help of machines. As the bakers stand in the farthermost section of the bakery spraying flour across the gigantic table and kneading kilos of dough with the finesse that would give quite a competition to their French counterparts. And they seem to be in the flow  happy, content, and in almost movements so synchronized they could be called choreographed.

Something old, Something new

The first Starbucks cafe in Mumbai had opened in Horniman circles fancy Elphinstone building in 2012, and lives up to the hype of its name  a comfortable, classy cafe with a perpetual coffee aroma for the company. Its air conditioned, unlike Yazdani bakery which is barely fifty meters away from the international franchise outlet.

stark contrast between the two cafes near horniman circle

And yet, Yazdani has a large and loyal fan following. May be its the feeling of having time travelled into a classic Irani restaurant in Mumbai, or simply the dollops of maska in the bun-maska they offer, Yazdani is full of character  just like your favourite old book lying rugged on your shelf.

Parvezs father had set up Yazdani Bakery & Restaurant in 1950, which Parvez joined in 1959. People used to be so large hearted back then. My father used to give away food to the poor just like that, Parvez gestures giving away with his skinny, wrinkled hands.

Sometimes, people would not have enough money and even then my father would let it go. The Nehru government had hiked the rates of maida and there was not much of a scope for profit. But still, my father said that the difference of one naya paisa should go into the stomach of the customer and not our pockets. Since then it became a norm to give the leftovers to the poor. This, was until we could afford a new fridge, Parvez laughs and points at one standing at the corner of the restaurant.

Parvez Irani posing with a friend outside his bakery

Parvezs family has been into baking for a long time. He tells us that his ancestors were bakers in Iran and were bakers after they came to India. His grandfather had opened a bakery somewhere in Mumbai, where his grandmother used to make bread while his grandfather sold it. Yazdani was later set up in 1950 after his father decided to let go of a partnership business and set up his own.

British architecture under the blue sky

The structure of this bakery with its sky blue exterior and red painted roof stands alone among the elegantly carved British architecture on one side and neat commercial buildings on the other. And its surprisingly bigger on the inside  huge table to knead dough and large ovens to bake, and still, so much of room left that one could get their dance rehearsals done while the bread baked in the ovens. Yazdani bakery still uses an old style bread cutter, which is quite fascinating but efficient nonetheless. Stacks of hot dog buns are perhaps the only embellishment in the otherwise faded blue interiors and high vaulted ceiling above.

the bread cutter used here is rare and won't be seen elsewhere

It looks like the Irani bakeries of Mumbai are living on borrowed time from three different generations. They serve the same dishes they did back then, and have people loving it, but are slowly being swamped by a different generation who loves polished wooden floors and a crowd that loves imitating an accent.

The speciality of the bakery  bread pudding usually gets only hours after it is made. So we sort of made ends meet with an egg puff, bun maska and chai. Theres a lot more they offer  the apple pie, carrot cake, fiery ginger biscuits and muffins  all of which almost get over by the end of the day.

the insides of this bakery are huge and spacious

Parvezs son Tirandaz may be slightly less perky than his father, but still, has an interesting perspective regarding the death of the Irani cafe culture in the city. The new cafes that are taking over the city are very fancy and have more facilities, but I wish that old places like these are retained and managed well. Our coming generations are so much in awe of the westernised world that they will voluntarily not take over the family business or manage the bakery. I would still wish that this bakery went on forever, he tells us.

Tirandaz Irani, the next generation who will take the bakery ahead

Is the change good?

Places like the Yazdani bakery are rare. When nobody provided livelihoods to people, the bakeries and restaurants did. Less than a dozen people work in Yazdani, and have been for almost all their lives.

Irani bakeries and cafes may look ordinary from the outside and may seem mundane to those who are ignorant to the beauty of the antiquated, but always have something fun to tell. Right from the exteriors to the people who visit it, Yazdani takes you on a trip to a less polished, raw and ragged Mumbai  the one that told tales of its initiation, survival and how it still stands undeterred and moves on but still retains its glamour.
An increasing danger of our connected, digital world is the rise of hackers, and their potential to inflict serious damage with real-world consequences.

REUTERS

Nothing is precious for us than our data, and protecting that data at all costs is going to be paramount going forward. Good thing IBM has already perfected a full-proof system to foil the attempts of 21st century hackers!

IBM just released its latest Z series mainframe last month, the z14. What's a mainframe I hear you ask? Well, it's a very powerful computer which is used to handle huge volumes of data transactions -- for e.g. in a bank scenario, or for a flight booking website, or an ecommerce platform, among other things.

This is what the new IBM Z14 mainframe looks like

IBM's mainframes are widely used in the tech industry for delivery of critical services, but what the company has done for the first time ever with the newly released z14 mainframe is to allow data encryption at every level of the system, and then storing everything inside encrypted containers. Multiple levels of encryption to hoodwink even the most diligent hackers out there.

And on top of that, if the system detects an attack like malware or other intrusion, the z14 mainframe has been designed to shut itself down automatically, as per an IBM statement on Techcrunch. Even if hackers could somehow get through all of these defenses, which is highly unlikely, the multiple levels of encryption would still render the data useless.

What's India's claim to fame in this achievement?

According to a report published in The Hindu, IBM's India engineering team had a crucial role in the successful development of the z14 mainframe's "pervasive encryption" technology.

The report quoted Gururaj S Rao, IBM Fellow & VP of System Integration, IBM zSystems as suggesting that a key z14 mainframe component designed by the India team was the encryption unit, which gives the z14 mainframe its unparalleled level of security. More than 100 engineers from IBM's India business unit contributed towards the development of the z14 mainframe.

Hopefully, the adoption and deployment of z14's pervasive encryption technology will cause a major dent in the exploits of hackers in the coming months and years. And we'll know that India had an important role in the scheme of things!
The Police have arrested an 18-year-old man, identified as Agugu Adau, for allegedly killing his mother for refusing to give him a disappearing charm he claimed was his inheritance from his late herbalist father.

A family source told the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) that Agugu committed the crime at his Kisaghyip village farm in Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau.

The source said that Agugu, after killing his mother, removed the sum of N20,000 from her blood-sucked clothes and used it to buy a mobile phone, a shirt and a pair of slippers.

Mr Tyopev Terna, spokesman of the Plateau Police Command, confirmed that the suspect was being held, but declined further comments.

Investigation is ongoing. The details are not ready. Please understand with us and be patient, he told NAN on phone.

But Agugu, who spoke with our correspondent, said that he killed the woman because she refused to give him a charm that was his inheritance from his father.

When I was 14 years old, my late father, who was a native doctor, showed me a charm that enabled him to disappear and reappear at will. He promised to handover the charm to me when I turn 18.

On his dying bed four years ago, he gave my mother the charm and asked her to give me when I turn 18. But I am now 18 and she has refused to give it to me.

On this fateful day at the farm, I asked her about it, but she threatened to throw the charm into the river, if I disturbed her too much.

Her response infuriated me and I suddenly felt that she was of no value as a mother. I immediately slaughtered her with the knife I was using to harvest potatoes.

After slaughtering her, I dumped her body in the bush, he said.

Mr David Adau, senior brother to the suspect, has, however, dismissed the suspects claim that he killed the mother because of a charm.

Prior to the incident, the family had faced several problems with Agugu. He was fond of stealing and causing trouble.

I believe he killed our mother because of the N20,000 I gave her a day before the incident. I work at the mines in Barkin-Ladi, and usually give my earnings to our mother to keep for me.

I handed over the money to my mother in his presence; in fact, when I gave her the money, she expressed fear that Agugu could attack her to get the money. He has proved her right, David said.

David said that on his return from work a day after the incident, he asked after the mother but Agugu said he did not know of her whereabouts.

He said he did not know where my mother was. Later in the day, I saw him with a new mobile phone, a new shirt and slippers, and I became curious.

I asked him (suspect) where he got them from, but he could not give me satisfactory answers.

Other family members joined me and we kept pestering him over our mother, but he insisted he knew nothing.

Three days later, I invited the Police to question my brother. That worked immediately as he confessed to killing her, he said.

David said that the suspect later led family members and the police to the farm where they saw the already decomposing corpse of the woman.

Source:( NAN )
Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Al-makura on Saturday presented a staff of office to the new Emir of Keffi, Dr. Shehu Chindo Yamusa 111.

The new monarch succeeds his father, Alhaji Muhammadu Chindo Yamusa 11, who died on December 4, 2015. He was aged 70 years and had been on the throne for 77 years.

A large crowd turned out to witness the ceremony that attracted governors, ministers, politicians, traditional rulers, among many other guests.

There was tight security in and around the venue of the event, with dignitaries struggling through the excited crowd on their way to pay their respects to the new ruler.

Some residents of Keffi, who spoke on the new man, described him as an asset that would help the city.

Mr Ali Garba, one of the residents of the city, said that the new Emir was a promoter of peace and a bridge builder.

He is a man of integrity, transparency, accountability; that is why everyone is here to witness his coronation, he said.

Garba said that the new traditional rulers late father was fair to everyone and treated everyone with love.

The father did a lot; we expect his successor to continue from where he stopped, he said.

Mr James Godwin, another resident, commended Almakura for appointing the new ruler to succeed his father.

We have known him to be God fearing. We are happy that he is now the new Emir, Godwin said.

He said that he would always pray for the Emirs success, and urged others to equally pray for Gods guidance and protection to the Emir.

Mrs. Mary Ebere, another resident, expressed optimism that the new Emir would take Keffi to greater heights, considering the support he was enjoying from the people of the area.

She urged the people to rally round the new Emir, considering the importance of traditional institutions in the socio-economic development of the country.
The Nigerian Army has sent an appeal to religious, traditional and community leaders, and well-meaning Nigerians in the North-East, to dissuade their people from donating their daughters to Boko Haram for indoctrination and suicide bombing missions.

The army spokesman, Brig.-Gen. Sani Usman explained in a statement on Saturday that the appeal became necessary following revelations by some intercepted female suicide bombers during interrogations.

It was discovered that most of these hapless minors were donated to the terrorists sect by their heartless and misguided parents and guardians, as part of their contribution to the perpetuation of the Boko Haram terrorists dastardly acts against the Nigerian society and humanity.

The acts of these parents and guardians are not only barbaric, but condemnable and unacceptable.

Nigerians have a responsibility and obligation to collectively mould our children and wards and define a better future for them rather than condemning them to death by the criminal Boko Haram terrorists and their sympathisers through suicide bombings, Usman said.

He urged the people to be more vigilant, security conscious and report any suspicious persons or those whose daughters or female wards are missing or have not been seen recently.

You can report by calling 193 on any network.

The public is also reminded that the Nigerian Armys offer and reward of the sum of Five Hundred Thousand Naira (N500,000.00) to anybody that provide information about suicide bombing, is still valid, he added.

Source: ( PM News )
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State has announced that there are fifteen vacant positions in the executive committee and they are expected to be filled at the partys ongoing state congress.

The Chairman of the Screening Committee for the congress, Alhaji Nadu Yahaya, disclosed this while addressing delegates shortly before the accreditation of delegates to the congress.

The vacant positions are: State chairman, Deputy Chairman, Secretary, Vice Chairman (Central), Assistant and Organization Secretary.

Others are: Assistant Welfare Secretary, Legal Adviser, Organising Secretary, Assistant Auditor, Zonal Public Relations Officer (Central), Zonal Secretary (North), Deputy Youth leader, and Zonal Woman Leader, among two others.

He said that the party had given all party members in the state the opportunity to vie for the vacant positions.

According to him, 15 persons, including the Acting Chairman, the Deputy Chairman, and the Secretary of the party in the state, have indicated their interest to contest the positions.

Every member of APC has been given the opportunity to contest for the positions and 15 of these contestants indicated their interest hence the decision to screen them.

The 15 persons have been screened and cleared by the committee to contest for the various vacant posts, he said.

Also speaking, Alhaji Ali Makoda, the Chairman of the Election Committee and Commissioner of Environment, said the positions became vacant following the appointment of some of the previous office holders to other offices.

According to him, other positions became vacant due to death while others were relieved of their positions for committing various offences against the party.

Earlier in his remarks, Prince Nwanko Orinze, the Chairman of the APC Election Committee from the Headquarters, said the election would be conducted in accordance with the guidelines as laid down by the party.

He, therefore, called on party members to exhibit high sense of honesty and responsibility to ensure successful conduct of the exercise.

The election is to fill 15 vacant positions created as a result of some developments in the state. So we hope delegates will be as Civil as possible, he said.

As at the time of filing this report, the elections to fill the various vacant positions had begun at the Sani Abacha Indoor sport Hall.

Source:( PM News )
The Nigerian military on Friday in the Simari area of Maiduguri, the police and a vigilance group confirmed confirmed the killing of three suicide bombers.

According yo reports,the incident occurred at Simari on the outskirts of Maiduguri about 10p.m. when a male and two female suicide bombers tried to infiltrate the town.

The attack came 16 hours after dogs foiled an attempt by two suicide bombers to hit a hospital in Moloi area of Maiduguri.

A witness, Amin Audu, said that the insurgents took advantage of the night to gain access into Maiduguri but were intercepted by the military who frustrated their effort.

He said that soldiers shot the male suicide bomber, following which the explosive strapped on his body exploded.

The powerful blast also made the explosives strapped on the ladies to detonate and killed them instantly, he said.

According to him, two members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) also sustained various degrees of injuries from the blast.

Malam Abdullahi Danbatta, the spokesman for the CJTF, confirmed that two members of the group were wounded in the incident.

The police also confirmed that the incident.

Mr Victor Isuzu, the Police Public Relations Officer in Borno, made the confirmation in a statement in Maiduguri on Saturday.

The suicide bombers were chased by security personnel; in the ensuing stampede and in an attempt to escape arrest, the suicide bombers hurriedly detonated the IEDs strapped on their bodies killing themselves.

However, two members of the security personnel sustained injuries and were rushed to University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.

Police and IED personnel visited the scene to secure and render the area safe, Isuzu said.

Maiduguri and other liberated areas have witnessed an upsurge in suicide bomb attacks in the last two months from which many lives and property have been lost.

The insurgents recently attacked a team of workers prospecting oil in the Lake Chad Basin.

The insurgents also attacked Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in Maiduguri and Dikwa local government areas of Borno.

Also, 14 women including police personnel, were recently abducted by the insurgents in the state.

Source:( PM News )
There was a major cross carpeting over the weekend as a chieftain of All Progressive Congress, APC, in Kano State defected to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Ibrahim El-Amin, popularly known as Ibrahim Little, an ally of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, announced his decision in Kano on Saturday.

Mr. Little was the Kano chairman of the defunct All Peoples Party, APP, in 2003. He won the partys governorship ticket that year but was manoeuvred by forces loyal to the then presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, who argued that he did not step down as party chairman before the primaries.

While speaking to journalists on Saturday, the politician alleged that the APC has betrayed the trust Nigerians and claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari has lost his government to a clique around him

Today, APC has proven to be a worst party with the government doing worst economically, socially and otherwise, while millions of Nigerians continue to go to bed without eating anything as daily meals, he said.

Mr. Little said although he holds President Muhammadu Buhari in high esteem and sees him as someone who believes in a better Nigeria, the presidents aides have hijacked his government.

Sickness has beaten down Buhari, he is no longer in control of the government and those who are in control are not professional enough in their field of endeavours, that is why they could not make any difference.

Look at the so-called chairman of the economic team of the government, he is not professional but a lawyer; the Minister of Finance an accountant; while the CBN Governor is not an economist but a banker.

With all these, how do you drive a sound economy? he said.

Mr. Little who supported Mr. Buhari in the 2015 presidential elections noted that he has no regret doing so.

He said Mr. Buhari deserved to be president, but unfortunately he has been down with health problems while others have taken over the government.

The politician also said he decamped to the PDP because he believed the North-west had not benefitted so much from the Buhari administration unlike the South-west.

Source: ( Premium Times )
Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, has said a no objection letter from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) for the State Governments Embedded Power Programme.

Ambode, who led some members of the State Executive Council, lawmakers and other critical stakeholders to a meeting at the NERCs headquarters in Abuja, said the embedded power project was designed as his administrations flagship programme for direct intervention in the power value chain towards achieving a 24-hour power for Lagos.

He said the proposed power programme would generate up to 3,000MW of power through accelerated deployment of various power plants in strategic locations across the State by private sector power providers within three to six years.

He noted that Nigerians aspiration to create a secured and prosperous nation that is globally competitive will be difficult to achieve without stable power supply.

Ambode posited that while efforts are ongoing to resolve the power crisis, it had become increasingly clear that the problems in the energy sector could no longer be left to the Federal Government alone to solve.

Embedded power was designed as our flagship programme for direct intervention in the power value chain towards achieving a 24-hour power for Lagos. Lagos State has always demonstrated its capacity and willingness to play a leading role in resolving the power sector challenges in the state, subject to the limit of the federal authority allowed regulations.

Having succeeded in powering government facilities, the next level of intervention for our government is to collaborate with other stakeholders in the power sector to design and implement a roadmap for uninterrupted power supply to homes and businesses in Lagos State.

The draft of the Lagos State Embedded Power Bill was finalised in May 2017 and submitted to the National Electricity Regulatory Commission for clearance before same can be forwarded to the State House of Assembly.

The stakeholders meeting holding today is a continuation of the ongoing engagement between NERC and the Lagos State Government on the Lagos State Embedded Power Programme.

We are convinced that the offer by our government to deploy the states balance sheet in support of power generation, transmission, distribution, gas supply, metering, collection and enforcement in Lagos State will significantly relieve the national grid and free more energy for distribution to other parts of Nigeria.

The proposed power programme will generate up to 3,000MW of power through accelerated deployment of various power plants in strategic locations across the state by private sector power providers within three to six years.

He said the State Government would issue guarantees in support of the Power Purchase Agreements that will be signed between the distribution companies and the private sector embedded power providers to enhance bankability of the projects.

He added that the power generated under the programme will be distributed through the networks of Eko and Ikeja Distribution Companies while the state would support the distribution companies in upgrading their distribution infrastructure for embedded power areas in line with NERC guidelines.

The State Government will support the distribution companies in installation of smart prepaid meters in the areas where embedded power is deployed. We will institute a cost-reflective tariff regime that is fair to all stakeholders, sustainable and capable of attracting private capital to the sector on a continuous basis.

Other areas of collaboration include support for revenue collection, legislation and establishment of an agency for enforcement of power theft laws in Lagos.

Our prayer today is to seek the commissions no objection letter for the Lagos State Embedded Power Programme, based on cost reflective tariff regime that is fair to all parties and capable of unlocking private sector investments into the power sector on a sustainable basis, the Governor said.

Responding, the NERCs Commissioner in charge of Legal License and Compliance, Dafe Akpeneye, who stood in for the Commissions Vice Chairman, promised that the NERC would work with the Lagos State Government to ensure the success of the programme.

Within the ambit of the law and existing regulations, you have our unflinching support in this project.

So in response to what you said in your prayers to us, Your Excellency, I reaffirm the support of NERC towards this project. Our commitment is to create a viable electricity industry that works for Nigeria and Nigerians.

As the laws and regulations permit us, we will work with you on this project to ensure that it does see the light of the day, Akpaneye promised.

Akpeneye however called the Governors attention to some safety issues that concern the state.

He spoke about the right of way, standards and designs, electricity theft as well as customers enumeration.

He noted that a situation where the Commissions record indicates that there are only 1.2million registered electricity customers in Lagos State is not tidy enough when almost all the houses in the state are connected to national grid.

Representatives of both Eko and Ikeja Distribution Companies at the meeting declared their support for the project, saying that it would be detrimental to the progress of Nigeria if they opposed it.

Source: ( PM News )
Seventy lecturers of the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) have resigned since Boko Haram began terrorising the North-East.

Chairman, UNIMAID chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Dr. Dani Mamman, said this in an interview with the Punch newspaper.

Mamman said, About 70 lecturers left, about five died and three are held hostage by Boko Haram. The admission figure of students have been dropping since insurgency started in 2012. We dont know what will happen to the admission of students this year

The exit of some lecturers has affected research and learning because some are specialists in their fields. Usually, such exodus affects accreditation of some programmes and courses.

We requested the government to increase security personnel, security gadgets and construction of the 23.7 km perimeter fence. In the interim, the state governor has started building a 10.3 km perimeter fence.

Source: ( PM News )
The Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra ( MASSOB ) has told Indigenous People of Biafra,(IPOB ) that the governorship election slated for November 18 in Anambra State will hold.

The National Director of Information of MASSOB, Sunday Okereafor, who spoke in a telephone interview with SUNDAY PUNCH on Saturday, said it was wrong for anybody to say election would not hold in the state.

Okereafor explained that MASSOB would storm Awka, the Anambra State capital, on September 13, 2017 to celebrate the 18th anniversary of the movement, adding that the group was planning to establish a Biafra radio station in Germany.

He said, Eighteen years of MASSOB existence would be celebrated on September 13, 2017. We will celebrate it in a big way and MASSOB is saying election must hold in Anambra. It must surely hold.

We have come a long way and we are the founders of the struggle. All the pro-Biafra groups came out of MASSOB. We are telling Anambra people to go ahead in November and be part of the election.

He pointed out that the radio station would not be used for hate speech and blackmail of other ethnic groups, adding that real information would be disseminated to the people.

Saying MASSOB welcomed only genuine fighters, Okereafor explained that insisting that there would be no election in Anambra could put the lives of the people in danger.

IPOB is wrong to have said election will not hold. How can they say election will not hold? They want to create problems in Nigeria. They want our people to be killed again?

We are saying no violence and they are inciting violence. The people of Anambra should go ahead and elect their leaders on the day of the election, he added.

Source: ( PM News )
William (Bill) Covey and Sheila (Parker) Covey were married July 1, 1967, in Willow Creek. A luncheon, hosted by their son, Justin, was held July 16, at the Little Red School House. Many friends and relatives from throughout Montana and Port Angeles, Washington, were there to join in on the celebration
According to a statement issued by the Presidents Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina ,the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, Friday, paid a personal visit to President Muhammadu Buhari at Abuja House, London.

Archbishop Welby said he was delighted to see the rapid recovery President Buhari has made from his health challenges, noting that it was a testimony to the healing powers of God, and answer to prayers of millions of people round the world.

The cleric pledged to continue praying for both President Buhari and Nigeria.

In his response, the Nigerian President thanked Archbishop Welby, whom he noted had always stood by him at critical times, and wished him Gods continued grace in his spiritual duty of leading the Anglican Communion worldwide.

It will be recalled that when former British Prime Minister, David Cameron described Nigeria as a fantastically corrupt country ahead of an anti-corruption summit in London in 2016, Archbishop Welby had retorted: But this particular President (Buhari) is actually not corrupt.

The Archbishop later personally received the Nigerian President at Lambeth Palace, London, and had also paid a goodwill visit to President Buhari in March this year, during his medical vacation.

President Buhari has met with the Archbishop twice between 2016 and 2017. Archbishop Welby is said to be a long time friend of the President.

Source: ( PM News )
The Kwara State chapter of the Alliance for Democracy on Saturday described the claim by the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, that he had stopped collecting pension from the state government as a political gimmick.

The Chairman of the party, Biliaminu Aliyu, and Secretary, Micheal Ologunde, stated this in a statement made available to journalists in Ilorin, the state capital.

The party alleged that Saraki made the statement to win the sympathy of the electorate so that the All Progressives Congress could win in all the 16 local government areas of the state during the November 4 council polls.

It added, We will not believe him until he tells Kwarans the total amount he collected as pension and other material benefits since 2011 and return the money to Kwara State treasury with immediate effect.

Apart from that, Saraki should apologise to Kwarans and Nigerians for collecting pension from the state and other allowances from the Federal Government.

We want the Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, to use Sarakis pension, after being returned by the ex-governor, to buy bulldozers and tractors for peasant farmers in each of the 16 councils.

The AD also said it would not take part in the forthcoming local government poll, describing it as a waste of time and money.

Meanwhile, the Secretary to the Kwara State Government, Isiaka Gold, confirmed that Saraki has stopped receiving pension from the state.

Responding through the Senior Special Assistant to the Kwara State Government on Media and Communication, Dr. Muyideen Akorede, the SSG said Saraki wrote the state government on August 20, 2015 that his pension should be stopped.

He added that the government had complied with the request.

Akorede said, The Secretary to the Kwara State Government, Isiaka Gold has confirmed that the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, wrote to the state requesting that his pension should be stopped via a letter dated August 20, 2015 and the state government has since complied.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
We all have different idea of requirement of whom we wan to marry.

For this lady, @TheSophiaBello, it seems her dream man is a pilot. She took to micro-blogging website to widen her search horizon.

She tweeted; Please, Im looking for a pilot to marry. Help me RT for awareness .

See screenshot below.
PETERBOROUGH, ON (August 6, 2017)- A new month of action kicked-off on Saturday, August 5 with the first event of the 2017 Hot August Nights Racing Series and the Touring Chase for the Colours Pole Qualifier to determine the front row starters for the Autumn Colours Classic, featuring the OSCAAR Super Late Models, Modifieds and Midgets; along with the home track Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun and Jiffy Lube Mini Stock divisions at Peterborough Speedway.

Feature race action got underway with a 20 lapper for the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun crew, with Keith Parkes and Chris Tubman on the front row. Tubman grabbed an early lead, with Parkes close behind. Sean Kennedy moved into the third spot with eight laps complete, as the field worked around Canadas Toughest 1/3-Mile Paved Oval. The leaders caught the tail-end of the pack with 14 laps complete and Ryan Oosterholt used the opportunity to put his dog into the fight. A lap 17 yellow flag slowed the pace and created a late race showdown. As the checkered flag waved, Sean Kennedy added another win to his 2017 total, with Parkes, Oosterholt, Jeremy Kelly and Tubman following the #9 car across the line.

Gil Brooks and James Townsend brought the Jiffy Lube Mini Stock field to the Great Canadian RV green flag. Townsend, last years track champion, jumped-out to an early lead and took control of the event, catching the back of the field with just six laps on the board. The rest of the top five would close ranks as the leader worked through traffic, but Townsend would never relinquish the lead and celebrated his birthday with a trip to the winners circle. Noel Snow and Kevin Strutt followed the leader across the line. Other than a yellow flag for debris before a single lapped had been scored, the 20-lap main event ran caution-free.

Gary Elliott and Mark Gordon paced the OSCAAR Modifieds to the line for a 30-lap feature that would determine the front row for the 25th Annual Autumn Colours Classic. Elliott took an early lead, but Luke Gignac was looking for his time at the front. After trying to slip past on the bottom, the #99 machine headed for the outside line and ran alongside the leader for a few laps, before a lap 13 caution flag. Gignac took the lead on the restart and had built-up a 10-car length advantage. As Gignac was crossing the line for his second main event win of the year, the second and third place running cars came together, giving those spots to John Harper and Chris Milwain. Cory Horner and Dale Reinhart rounded-out the top five.

The first OSCAAR Midget feature went to Jordan Hanna, over Daniel Hawn, Rob Summers, Adrian Kemps and Cassidy March. Hawn took round two, with Hanna, James Stanley, March and Summers completing the top five. Hanna earned the Autumn Colours Classic pole position with Hawn clinching the outside front row position.

OSCAAR Super Late Model teams ran a pair of 35 lappers. Charlie Gallant taking the opening round, over Tyler Hawn, Kelly Balson, Adrian Foster and Dario Caprichio. Balson led from start to finish in the second round, with Hawn, Caprichio, Passer and Glenn Watson finishing the fast five. Tyler Hawn will start the Autumn Colours Classic OSCAAR feature from the pole position, with Balson on the outside of the front row.

Feature event results are all unofficial, pending post-race inspection.

Heat race wins went to Jake Kelly, Jeremy Kelly with a pair and Sean Kennedy in the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun, with Chris Milwain, Gary Elliott, Luke Gignac and Cory Horner taking the same honours in OSCAAR Modified qualifying. Jiffy Lube Mini Stock heats went to Noel Snow, James Townsend with a pair and Gil Brooks.

Bullring bullet points: Prior to the nights action getting underway, a moment of silence was observed to honour the memory of long-time fan and former track head starter Ron Rocket Johnstone, who passed away earlier in the weekBowmanvilles Carl Barrett won the nights 50/50 draw of $475, in support of the Millbrook LegionIt was a bit of a rough night for Gary Elliott. An incident on the backstretch near the halfway point of the OSCAAR Modified feature relegated him to a finishing spot outside the top 5. The Canadian Ironman is on a run to record his 800th consecutive start this season. If everything goes according to plan, the landmark event will occur during the Autumn Colours ClassicFan favourite Dan Price had a night hed rather forget. An issue with a front-end component forced him to miss most of the pre-race practice session. As the pack came back to speed following the lap 13 caution that had knocked Elliott from the lead, Prices #09 machine made hard contact with the front stretch wall.

Peterborough Speedways 50th Anniversary Season continues Saturday, August 12th with the return of the Lucas Oil Sportsman Cup Series. The show will also include the home track Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun, Jiffy Lube Mini Stock, Organics & Glass Late Model divisions; with the Ontario Pro Challenge Series. Pit gates open at 2:00, with general admission grandstands unlocked at 5:00. The first green flag waves at 6:00.

Full schedule details and the latest news can always be found by logging onto www.peterboroughspeedway.com, liking the Peterborough Speedway Facebook page or following the track on Twitter. Fans can also download the free app on their Smartphone.

Prepared by: Jim Clarke, Clarke Motorsports Communications/First Draft Media

clarkemotorsports@hotmail.com, www.facebook.com/clarkemotorsports

613.968.6410
There are calls for the Government to outline a plan to bring Ibrahim Halawa home.

Today marks the Dubliner's 31st trial date in Egypt.

Earlier this week, lawyers for the 21-year-old had their first chance to present a defence, but the judge will only reach a verdict after he has heard the cases of almost 500 co-defendants.

Ibrahim Halawa has been in jail since being arrested, as a teenager, at a demonstration in Cairo almost four years ago.

Sinn Fein has said the Government's refusal to intervene serves to legitimise a "farcical" trial process, and called for a plan to bring him back to Ireland.

Sinn Fein's MEP Lynn Boylan said: "We need to hear from the Taoiseach what the strategy is for bringing Ibrahim is. All we're hearing is we're going to wait until the trial is over, but we havent seen what the strategy is.

"Have they sought in writing an assurance from President (Abdel Fattah el-) Sisi that he will keep that promise to release Ibrahim?"
The potent home brew, or hooch, is made by inmates using basic ingredients including water, sugar, fruit, and bread. The mix is hidden in cells until it ferments.

Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act show that a total of 873 litres of homebrew was seized last year, bringing the total seized in the last four years to almost 6,500 pints of this ad-hoc alcohol.

Last year, the largest quantity of the illegal homebrew was seized at Castlerea Prison in Co Roscommon, where the equivalent of 226 pints was confiscated by prison officers.

A total of 200 pints was seized from inmates at Midlands Prison in Portlaoise, where detainees include twisted murderer Graham Dwyer and convicted serial killer Mark Nash.

Prisoners at Cork Prison were forced to surrender more than 160 such pints during 2016, while a further 116 pints were seized by the authorities at Portlaoise Prison.

Portlaoise is the States only maximum-security facility, where inmates currently serving long-term sentences include three of the Dundon brothers Wayne, John, and Dessie.

No home-brewed alcohol was found at the Dochas Centre in Dublin last year, where female offenders are detained. Similarly, there were no such seizures at St Patricks Institution, which accommodates young offenders.

Hooch, or prison wine, can be made from a variety of makeshift ingredients including apples, oranges, potatoes, and bread, which provides the yeast required for the fermentation process.

A sock can be used to separate the pulp from the liquid, and the finished product can be extremely potent, depending on the amount of sugar used and the length of time it is left to ferment.

Prison brewing is a dangerous process that has been known to cause outbreaks of botulism  a disease caused by bacteria produced during the fermentation process. Its symptoms can include muscle weakness, paralysis, and blindness.

In the UK, some prisons have banned inmates from buying large quantities of fruit  especially apples and pears  to prevent their use in the brewing process and clamp down on the production of hooch.

The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has said that extensive efforts are made to reduce the flow of contraband in Irish jails, and this has resulted in a reduction of illicit items seized in recent years.

A range of enhanced measures including the establishment of a dedi- cated group of staff was introduced in May 2008 with the aim of reducing the supply of contraband into our prisons, said the IPS.

This included the introduction of security screening areas in all closed prisons, the introduction of a canine unit, increased searching of cells and their occupants, and the installation of nets over exercise yards.
Though he died 75 years ago, airman William "Bill" Gruber continues to watch over his little brother from a framed portrait in the younger man's Helena home.

Frank Gruber was a boy when his older brother went overseas during World War II. His lone personal recollection of his brother is a visit to their Townsend-area home during a leave.

"He came home from boot camp and that's all I really remember of him," Frank Gruber said, looking at a scrapbook of old letters home and photos. "I can't remember much. I just remember seeing him."

Frank Gruber's basis of knowledge of his brother comes from stories shared by his family over the years.

Bill Gruber's photo is perched atop his brother's desk, alongside a photo of their parents. The placement is fitting, as Bill Gruber was finally laid to rest next to his parents just outside of Boulder on Saturday.

"This is a pretty big thing," Frank Gruber said. "It's going to come to a close here."

***

Bill Grubers life

William Gruber was born Jan. 25, 1920 to Edward and Dora Gruber of Toston. The third eldest of nine children, Bill Gruber and his family lived on a ranch along the Missouri River and later in Clancy.

He was known as a natural mechanic, and as an adult he joined the Civilian Conservation Corps. At the age of 20, Bill Grubers interest in aviation led him to enlist in the Army Air Corps with a desire to become a mechanic.

Bill Gruber was stationed in the Philippines and among the ranks defending the Bataan Peninsula from Japanese invaders. With supplies running low, 10,000 American soldiers and 60,000 Philippine soldiers were forced to surrender. Now in the hands of their captors, the ensuing 100-mile march to prisoner of war camps became known as the Bataan Death March. Half the Americans would not survive the march or internment, with many starving or succumbing to tropical diseases.

Bill Gruber survived the march but would later die in a POW camp on Sept. 27, 1942, finally worn down by months of mistreatment but still defiant of his captors.

Bill Gruber's family knew the 22-year-old was missing in action in the Philippines but did not learn of his death until 1943. He was buried in a mass grave. A few years later the remains were exhumed and relocated to a Manila cemetery.

His family learned where the grave was located and even visited the site years later. But, the exact placement of the airman's remains were unknown. Military officials said extensive commingling of remains and limited technology made identification impossible.

Last year, after Bill Gruber's nephew, Ken Gruber, began asking the military for assistance in bringing the airman home, there was a break in the case.

In May 2016, remains from two graves were being tested for identification. On Feb. 22, Army Air Forces Pvt. William Gruber's remains were matched to the DNA collected from his four surviving brothers. It was the news his family waited 75 years to hear.

"He's coming home," Frank Gruber said the day before his brother's remains arrived in Montana on Thursday.

Since learning of the match, Frank Gruber, 83, has lost two of his brothers. They died knowing that Bill Gruber was returning to Montana.

"They had some closure before they moved on," he said.

***

Returning home

On Thursday the airplane carrying Bill Gruber touched down at Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport  the casket cloaked in an American flag and handled by military personnel. Family members covered their hearts to greet their long-lost uncle and brother and stood over him in prayer. The somber occasion brought a flood of emotions for some as they loaded the hearse, comforted by a knowledge that Bill was home in Montana and the realization of that 75-year journey.

Saturday morning marked the final chapter for the Gruber family and friends.

A man of Catholic faith, mourners filled the Cathedral of St. Helena in celebration of the life of Bill Gruber. Hymns were sung, scriptures were read and prayers were recited to properly lay to rest the man and the solider who died in squalor thousands of miles from home.

Monsignor Kevin ONeill spoke with rhythmic cadence, interweaving Biblical teachings with Bill Grubers life and death, and what those who mourned his loss could learn.

How many times he was hospitalized after the surrender, how long the march, how desperate the conditions and how principled he remained, even refusing to assist the occupational forces because he believed with integrity in the principles that led him to give his life to this circumstance and its possibilities, ONeill said. Born into a good hardworking family, being by nature a kid at heart and an optimist, he was faced with all the darkness and yet we know his principles remained strong, his fidelity to his fraternity to those that served, his love of family always and his faith that compelled him.

Bill Grubers faith must have been a source of comfort and strength as he faced the Bataan Death March and POW camp.

What a remarkable life, ONeill said. Theres nothing I can do in the remainder of my life, theres nothing I have done in my life to this moment that can even come close to what he and his companions in service suffered, endured, lived through and lived for: God and honor and family and nation.

It is a remarkable icon, his life and his death and his passing to fullness of life, an icon to you and to me, for our nation and even for the world. Its not exaggeration. Its not hyperbole. Its God honest fact of what he did, and how he suffered and what he has become in the Lord.

In a powerful moment, military officers presented Bill Grubers family with his medals, including the Bronze Star and Purple Heart signifying his valor in war and ultimate sacrifice.

From the Cathedral, Bill Gruber, his family and friends made the final leg of their long journey.

They set out in a stretching processional, heading south and cresting Boulder Hill and into the valley. At St. John the Evangelist Catholic Cemetery Bill Gruber received his rite of committal and burial with full military honors.

Unfortunately, I, and my cousins did not have the pleasure of knowing Bill, Ken Gruber said in prepared remarks. He died before any of us were born. Nevertheless, from our familys fond stories about him, he lives in our hearts. And we are forever grateful for his service to his country and the thousands of others that surrendered at Bataan.
Details are beginning to emerge about a Friday shooting that left three dead and two injured in the town of Lodge Grass on the Crow Reservation.

"The investigation, though ongoing, has already determined that the incident was related to methamphetamine and gang-related activity," Crow Tribal Chairman Alvin "A.J." Not Afraid Jr. said in a media briefing Saturday night in front of the scene of the shooting. The incident serves as a reminder of the "devastating effect" drugs have on communities, he said.

"The coming days and weeks will prove the strength of the Crow community to find healing and hope," Not Afraid said. "We, today, we're feeling pain and loss."

The shooting took place at a home in Lodge Grass at around 4 p.m. An FBI press release, sent out on Saturday, stated that no arrests have been made and that the investigation into the shooting is ongoing.

Not Afraid, who said he is from Lodge Grass, offered his condolences to the family and friends of all those involved and said that his own family had been affected.

"This area has produced a lot of well-educated people, a lot of good work ethic people and then, just the home-style life here," he said. "Right now it just hits home so hard."

Officials have not confirmed where the incident took place, but crime scene tape could be seen Saturday morning in Lodge Grass surrounding a house and yard on the northwest corner of the intersection of Helen Street and Second Avenue. Boards had been bolted into place over doors and windows of the house by the time Not Afraid's press briefing began.

Sandra Yi Barker, a public affairs specialist with the FBI, said in an email Saturday afternoon that she could not currently release any more information about the shooting, including details about victims and the suspect or suspects.

As a result of the shooting, Not Afraid Jr. issued an emergency curfew for the Crow Reservation beginning Friday night and extending until further notice.

Until it is lifted, the curfew is effective from from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. The chairman said he expected the curfew to remain in place for three to four more days.

The curfew does not apply to travel along I-90 through the reservation, Not Afraid said.

Not Afraid's announcement stated that the emergency curfew was being instituted at the request of law enforcement. Saturday night he specified that BIA had asked for the curfew in order to inhibit meth-related activity and try to provide a sense of safety for residents of Lodge Grass.

Vehicles traveling on roadways within the "exterior boundaries," of the Crow Reservation during curfew hours are subject to being stopped and all occupants being ordered to present valid identification upon law enforcement request, according to the announcement.

Not Afraid said he was unaware of any previous instances of emergency curfews being instituted on the Crow Reservation.

One of the shooting victims was in critical condition Saturday, Not Afraid said. After the shooting, victims were taken to the hospital in Crow Agency for treatment, he said. Autopsies for two victims were scheduled for Saturday, according to Big Horn County Coroner Terry Bullis.

In his media address, Not Afraid Jr. noted the lack of adequate law enforcement and emergency health services on the reservation, citing the fact that half of local BIA law enforcement positions are currently vacant.

"They're stretched thin from this community all the way to Pryor, which is approximately an hour and a half from here," Not Afraid said. "That also includes the medical services."

He said budgetary changes had been made to enable the recent hiring of three new tribal law enforcement officers, to begin working this week. "This does not solve the problem in its entirety. We shall continue to amend our budget for emergency medical services and rehabilitation services," Not Afraid said. "We're going to do everything in our power to not only serve justice, but to be more proactive than reactive."

Additionally, Not Afraid said a lack of working opportunities has contributed to problems in communities like Lodge Grass. He said he planned to "help entrepreneurship to get the communities reactivated again."

The FBI, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Montana Highway Patrol and Big Horn County Sheriff's Office are all involved in the investigation. Not Afraid thanked those agencies and affiliated medical services for their response to Friday's shooting.
Lancet Study:

These findings firmly counter those of a Cochrane review of direct-acting antiviral treatment trials that could neither confirm nor reject if direct-acting antivirals had an effect on long-term HCV-related morbidity and mortality. They also provide the best evidence to date to support guidance documents that recommend direct-acting antiviral treatment for all patients with chronic HCV infection.





Latest Update Feb 12, 2019A systematic review published by the Cochrane Collaboration suggested achieving SVR (cure) for patients using hepatitis C direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) doesn't correlate with any long term benefits. View each rebuttal and all ongoing media coverage.
DECATUR  Christine Cobren was one of the first to arrive for Saturday night's performance by Bret Michaels at Decatur Celebration.

I will wait hours to see him, said Cobren, 45, of Decatur.

Cobren and her daughter, Cassie, 11, staked out their place at the edge of the fence eight hours before Michaels was scheduled to perform on the Show Stage. Throughout the day, other fans began setting up the chairs, but none had the center, front spot. Cobren sat in the free area directly behind the VIP section.

Any opportunity Cobren has to meet the rock star, she takes it. He often sells backstage passes for his fans. Cobren usually takes advantage of the offer, but missed the Celebration's special sale due to knee surgery. She was able to purchase a backstage pass from the musician himself shortly before Saturday's concert. After the show, Cobren and her daughter met Michaels with other paying fans. The cost of the special meeting was $200.

I meet-and-greet every time I see him, because the money goes to his diabetes foundation (Life Rocks Foundation), Cobren said. My mom and my brother both have diabetes.

Saturday's Celebration provided all fans with ideal weather with high temperatures reaching the upper 70s. The crowds for the Heinkel's Hot Dog Eating Contest, vendors and other venues were typical for the outdoor festival, despite the added security fence.

Executive Producer Lori Sturgill is happy with the crowds she has seen so far.

I think things are going great, she said. We were looking at the crowds last (Friday) night. People were having a good time.

Sturgill was unaware of any security issues.

If it's something that I'm not aware of, then it probably isn't something big, she said.

Today's weather forecast, that includes an 80 percent chance of rain, has Sturgill worried. Today's highlights include hip-hop artist Nelly on the Show Stage, Christian artists 7eventh Time Down and Celebration favorite Here Come the Mummies. The Miss Illinois Festival Pageant will be held inside the Decatur Civic Center.

We try to shield ourselves as much as we can from the weather, but you never know what is going to happen, she said. We are hoping it gets it all out of its system overnight.

Organizers know people come out when the weather is beautiful. However, even two hours of rain can affect sales. Every single hour counts, Sturgill said.

So far, Sturgill believes there have been no obvious problems at the festival.

She said the fences went up smoothly. Her long-time volunteers helped with the installation, making an easy process.

Some attending have voiced their opinions of the surrounding fence and wristbands.

Security volunteer Tonya Jagger had to turn people without a wristband away or direct them to another line. Otherwise, most of the grievances she has experienced haven't been about the new surrounding fence.

The only complaint I've heard are the people who want to bring in outside food and beverages, she said. Sorry, you can't bring anything in.

Linda Johnson, 71, heard through the grapevine senior citizens would be able to get into the Celebration for free. Her information was incorrect. Johnson arrived at the security gates expecting to simply walk in.

We went through several people explaining our predicament and they were just dumbfounded, Johnson said. They didn't know anything about it.

Johnson walked from a nearby parking lot, then had to find a opening that would let them in. She eventually purchased a wristband for $8.

But once I got in here, I enjoyed myself, she said.
A recent local high school graduate used Celebration as a fundraising event to support his college fund. Michael Fawley, a graduate of Maroa-Forsyth High School, will attend the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the fall.

Were just raising money mostly spending money for college because everything else is going to tuition  which is insane, said Fawley, who plans to study chemical engineering.

His younger siblings and other family members were out signaling to cars in orange and blue, the university's colors. Fawley is following in the University of Illinois tradition of his parents, who are both alumni.

Its close, so Ill get free groceries, he said.

His girlfriend Alexa Hoffman helped at the event too, and she will attend the University of Illinois in the fall as well to study biology.
Dr. Christopher P. Culler has joined Ford, Simpson, Lively & Rice Pediatrics, a Cornerstone Health Care practice and an affiliate of Wake Forest Baptist Health. He will be on the provider team of Drs. Mary Betsy Armentrout, Carrie Erickson, Gwyn Kooy, David Rice, Margaret Silkstone, William Stewart, III, and Amy Yoder. Culler is board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics. He earned his medical degree from the University of Virginia and completed his residency in Pediatrics at Brenner Childrens Hospital where he also served as chief resident and clinical instructor.

Michael Williams is now serving in the newly created Financial Center Manager I position at Allegacy Federal Credit Unions Mocksville office. He has been with Allegacy for 14 years, starting his career in the mail room. Williams has served in various capacities in several of Allegacys financial centers and continues to achieve his work-related goals within the organization. He is an active volunteer in the Davie County community including volunteering with the Shamrock Run and the Storehouse for Jesus.

Nikki Bennett has joined Allegacy Federal Credit Union as Fraud Risk Manager. She has 16 years of experience in the financial industry and is responsible for designing, analyzing, and implementing fraud prevention plans.

Michelle Koster has joined Allegacy Federal Credit Union as a Senior Commercial Banking Officer. She will work out of the Westbrook headquarters. Koster has almost 20 years of experience in the financial industry, primarily in the Triad area. She earned a Bachelor of Applied Science from Penn State University and a Masters of Business Administration from Wake Forest University Babcock Graduate School of Management.

Scot May has joined Allegacy Federal Credit Union as Manager of Organization Development, Human Resources Business Partner. His responsibilities include organizational performance through talent management, organizational design and structure, brand enhancement and change management. May also leads Allegacys AllHealth wellness initiatives. He earned a Master of Education from North Carolina State University and a Masters degree in Human Resources from Western Carolina University.

Carey Furr has been promoted to Financial Center Manager III at Allegacy Federal Credit Unions Clemmons financial center. She has been with Allegacy since 2007, and has successfully led three different financial centers, most recently the Davidson location. Furr earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University, is a graduate of Allegacys inaugural Leadership Development Program and has more than 16 years of experience in the financial services industry.

Tracy Myers has been named Vice President, Business and Community Development at Allegacy Federal Credit Union. She joined Allegacy in 2012 and under her leadership, select employee groups, membership and community involvement have grown significantly. Furr has been recognized by CU Magazine as a Credit Union Rockstar. She received the Winston Under 40 Leadership Award, graduated from Leadership Greensboro and earned CUNAs business development professional certification.

The cardiology step-down unit at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center has received the Silver Beacon Award from the American Association of Critical Care Nurses. The unit at Wake Forest Baptist was the only step-down unit in the state to receive this award. The award is granted to units that set the standard for excellence in patient care by using evidence-based information, positive patient outcomes, credibility and patient and employee satisfaction. This award also signifies a supportive work environment with collaboration between nurses, leaders and physicians.

The Delivering Equal Access to Care Clinic at the Wake Forest School of Medicine has received accreditation from the North Carolina Association of Free and Charitable Clinics. The DEAC Clinic is a student-run and physician-staffed free clinic for people who cannot afford health insurance and do not qualify for government assistance. The DEAC Clinic is the first student-run clinic to receive accreditation from the NCAFCC.

Fred Bromberg, M.D., the associate chief medical officer, compliance, care and resource management and assistant professor of internal medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, has been elected to the board of directors of the American Board of Medical Quality.

Molly L. Fuller, M.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor of ophthalmology at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, has been inducted as a member of the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Membership is restricted to ophthalmologists who have been board certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology and who have passed rigorous tests in the specialized field.

Erin Saner, a fourth-year student at Wake Forest School of Medicine, has been awarded the 2017 Anarcha, Betsy, and Lucy Memorial Scholarship Award by the National Medical Fellowships. The award is given in memory of Anarcha, Betsy and Lucy, three slaves who, as the subjects of experimentation, helped shape advances in current clinical and surgical knowledge. The scholarship is given annually to one African-American female medical student who is a known descendant of American slaves. Saner was selected for this award because of her leadership efforts in planning and organizing the 2016 inaugural Boomer, N.C. Share the Health Fair.

Gov. Roy Cooper appointed the following area residents to serve on the Statewide Independent Living Council: Mark Steele of Winston-Salem was appointed as a director of a center for independent living. He is the director of The Adaptables. Barry Washington of Clemmons and Caroline Bradstock of Greensboro as individuals with a disability.
During the summer months many of us are on the highway more, going on vacation and visiting our relatives and friends. This increases the chances you may be cited for a traffic violation, or that you are involved in an accident, however minor. There are some common-sense rules you should follow when these events occur.

Many of us do not realize that even a minor traffic infraction can result in a substantial increase in our insurance premiums (generally at least 25 percent a year, for three years). This is true even if you are not in an accident and your drivers license is not in jeopardy.

Much of the uncertainty comes when you get a ticket in another state or in a part of North Carolina far from your home. Because of the inconvenience, you often take the line of least resistance and simply pay the ticket.

Most states have reciprocity agreements with other states, so many out-of-state traffic infractions, although not all of them, may be reported on your North Carolina record. You need to know if your out-of-state traffic infraction will be reported to the state, which likely will cause your insurance rates to go up.

If you get a ticket here or in another state, contact your insurance agent to get some direction about what you should do. You may also want to discuss your particular charge with a lawyer who handles traffic matters. The N.C. Lawyer Referral program, (800) 662-7660, provides you access to a qualified lawyer in your geographical area of North Carolina. You will receive a 30-minute conference with a lawyer for no more than $50, and that lawyer can tell you how you should proceed. The lawyer can also help you find a lawyer where you got the ticket who can possibly help to get your charge reduced, if necessary and the facts allow, to an acceptable infraction, and avoid your having to go to court personally.

If you are in an accident, be sure that the accident is investigated by the appropriate law-enforcement agency. Most states require that an officer be contacted if there is even minor property damage ($500 to $1,000) or any personal injury. Virtually any damage to a vehicle these days is going to cost at least $500 to $1,000 to repair.

The investigating officer provides an essential neutral party to sort out the facts. People are likely to be more candid when they are talking to an officer of the law. If there is no independent fact-finder, full statements at the scene have a greater chance of changing (generally innocently, but changing all the same), as the implications of possibly increasing insurance bills seep in. This will help you settle your claim for property damage or minor injuries more quickly and fairly, often without a lawyer. So avoid the temptation simply to exchange insurance information without calling the appropriate authorities and continue to your destination.

The N.C. Bar Association publishes a very good pamphlet on what you should do when you are in an accident. State laws vary, of course, but the fundamental concepts set forth in the pamphlet will apply in most situations, wherever the accident occurs. These pamphlets may be obtained for free at public libraries around the state. You may also get them without charge on line at www.ncbar.org. These pamphlets are updated regularly, and this pamphlet was updated in the last several months. Put a copy of it in the glove compartment of your vehicle and review it if you are in an accident.

Remember: An informed choice is a smart choice.
Downtown Winston-Salem was alive with bittersweet excitement Saturday as the much-anticipated National Black Theatre Festival drew to a close.

The crowds and the parties were bigger than ever as Saturday night wore on, capping a weeklong festival with an economic impact of more than $8 million, according to Visit Winston-Salem.

Nearly 45,000 people from around the world flooded to downtown Winston-Salem for the biennial event, giving a boost to many local businesses.

The festival attracts in excess of 40,000 people throughout the weeklong event, renting about 3,500 hotel rooms, said Richard Geiger, president of Visit Winston-Salem. Overall the economic impact of around $8 million is pretty consistent with 2015, but we dont have the final numbers in yet.

Restaurants in the area noted a big uptick in business.

Weve been opening full all week, said Tameka Griffin, a server at Sweet Potatoes on Trade Street. Its been really steady.

On Friday night alone, Hutch & Harris on Fourth Street had more than $10,000 in sales, making for a busy night for the popular restaurant and pub, employees said, attributing the numbers to the festival crowd.

Weve been slammed all week, said waiter Chris Tollison. Weve had a lot of people from out of state, particularly from Michigan.

Downtown restaurants and businesses werent the only ones to reap the economic impact from the festival.

Whitney Denning, a representative of festival vendor Zuresh, which sells vegan bath and body products, said business had been booming all week.

The Charlotte-based company was one of nearly 100 vendors stationed inside the newly renovated Benton Convention Center, the epicenter for the festival.

We are loving it here, Denning said. Its not only brought in a lot of great business, but its been enjoyable. A lot of great people happy to be here.

The festival itself was deemed a big success by attendees, volunteers and organizers.

At least 30 to 40 percent of the performances were sold out, said Brian McLaughlin, the festivals media relations director. Many of the venues had to have seats added to accommodate the volume of people.

I think that speaks to the success of the festival, he said. We saw a huge surge in online sales this year. Its been great.

Winston-Salem resident Erika Simon has volunteered for the festival at least six times since the 15th biennial festival was founded in 1989.

Adorned in purple and black from head to toe, she greeted people outside the vendors market.

I just love being out here talking to be the people and being an ambassador for our visitors from out of town, said Simon, one of more than 1,000 volunteers. Its amazing to see the city come to life.

ShaRon Williams, who lives in Djibouti in eastern Africa, attended the festival for the first time.

Its fun meeting friends. We all converge here, Williams said as she waited to meet up with a friend from Florida. I love the plays.

Mother and daughter duo Angie and Laila Mkwella echoed the sentiment, praising the festival, which includes plays, celebrity receptions, a vendors market and more.

We love coming to the market, mother Angie Mkwella said.

And the performances, added her daughter, Laila.

McLaughlin said while he is sad to see the festival end, they have already begun planning for the next one.

Were very excited with this years success, he said. Were already looking forward to 2019.
The Decatur Celebration Heinkels Hot Dog Eating Contest has a new champion. The reigning winner, Teddy De la Cruz from Wood Dale, Illinois, got fourth place Saturday. And Brandon Clark from Cahokia, Illinois, set a Celebration and personal record for eating 27 hot dogs.

Clark said he wants the 27 hot dogs to stretch his stomach to help with his training.

If you throw up, you lose training, when I do challenges and contests that helps me, he said. I dont care how fast I am, my stomach will not fit more than 27 or 28 (hot dogs) in there.

Both Clark and De la Cruz said they travel around doing various food eating contests. Clarks favorite is pizza, but De la Cruzs specialty is ice cream. He and a few friends shared seven pounds of ice cream at the beginning of July.

De la Cruz came on stage carrying grocery bags of juice and other drinks. He said it makes eating so many hot dogs  which he ate plain  less miserable. He thought he had a chance for third place but ended up in fourth.

You have to train, he said. And I havent been as serious about contests.

Decatur participants were Matthew Laws, Joe Melton and Jathan Portis. The other participant was Sean Nichols of Niagara, Wisconsin.

Frank Wach from Chicago got third place and Steve Lancette from Lafayette, Indiana, got second place.
After the Trump administration wildfire that was week before last, many Americans might have missed a huge story in The Washington Post this past Tuesday, headlined Trump dictated sons misleading statement on meeting with Russian lawyer.

This story was amazing, even for Trump.

The story outlines how the president and his advisors, on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Germany last month, discussed how to respond to the new revelations that Donald Trump Jr. had met with a Russian lawyer during the 2016 campaign.

According the Post, The strategy, the advisers agreed, should be for Donald Trump Jr. to release a statement to get ahead of the story. They wanted to be truthful, so their account couldnt be repudiated later if the full details emerged. But within hours, at the presidents direction, the plan changed.

The Post reports that the president, while returning to Washington aboard Air Force One, dictated the statement that his son would initially issue.

If this story is accurate, the president not only dictated what would be said, but more im-portant, apparently what would be concealed, that Donald Trump Jr. attended the meeting to receive damaging information about Hillary Clinton from a Russian source.

After Trump Jr.s initial statement, per the presidents suggestion, the story changed multiple times. As public pressure increased, Trump Jr. eventually acknowledged that he had accepted a meeting after receiving an email that the Russian government was willing share harmful information about Clinton. This is not exactly getting ahead of the story.

In this context, the president, during an ongoing criminal investigation, simultaneously assumed the role of decision maker and key political advisor to shape the narrative. The Post story could raise questions for Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller. The presidents action opens another avenue for Mueller to travel.

Some may wish to dismiss the story because of unnamed sources, calling it fake news, and seeing it as a liberal conspiracy theory unleashed because of blind hatred of the president.

If this story is accurate, these unnamed sources are worried and wish to cover their own backsides. The presidents personal intervention in his sons response, which had not been previously reported, once again changes the narrative. Those who have may leaked the story to the press realize the presidents decision could potentially place them in legal jeopardy.

Moreover, based on the presidents treatment of others in the administration, can they be certain that any displays of loyalty would be reciprocated? Or do they see that the presidents commitment to loyalty runs one way  toward his massive ego? Perhaps they feel like Michael J. Fox in The American President, when he said: Its always the guy in my job that ends up doing 18 months in Danbury minimum security prison.

Whatever this story may be, it is reflective of the presidents Achilles Heel, his inability to get out of his own way.

He, along with his surrogates, maintains the Russian investigation is a political ruse. What about the myriad drips that continue to emanate from the faucet turned by his hand?

Why conceal that the purpose of the meeting with Donald Trump Jr. and the Russians was to obtain political information on Hillary Clinton?

Why publicly harangue Attorney General Jeff Sessions for recusing himself from the Russian investigation?

Why fire FBI Director James Comey because of the Russia thing?

The most favorable light that can be offered in the presidents defense is that he doesnt understand the difference between being a candidate running for the office and, now, being charged with the responsibility of governing.

Its true that the president has no friends on the Democratic side of the aisle, but he is losing political capital with Republicans. His treatment of Sessions, his attempts to bully Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski and his declining poll numbers make his wagon one to which Republicans in Congress are becoming increasingly less likely to hitch their political fortunes.

Maybe there is nothing to the whole Russia thing. If there is no there there, the president would be well advised to let the matter play out. That may prove to be new Chief of Staff John Kellys most difficult task, to protect the president from himself. This, however, is easier said than done.

Kelly inherits a job where pesky fundamental questions linger. Why would someone attempt to mislead while the special prosecutor is conducting an ongoing investigation? How might a special prosecutor view such deception?

If the president is not concealing something in regard to Russia, hes creating the perception that he is.
WASHINGTON  Behind every great column is a great editor  a truism never more so than when Alan Shearer put highlighter (not red pen) to copy.

Shearer, who ran the Washington Posts syndication operation the past 26 years, managed to ignore the wailing, weeping and lamentations of his devoted cadre of columnists and cartoonists and retired recently.

To the dustbin of history goes not Alan, as his well-spelled words, his hyphenated adjectives and hyperbole-resistant attention to perfecting prose will persist through thousands upon thousands of published columns bearing someone elses name.

It is time you knew his.

Shearer was editor to a stable of 20 writers, many of whom are destination columnists, including George Will, Charles Krauthammer, Fareed Zakaria, Eugene Robinson, Ruth Marcus and Dana Milbank among others, as well as this humble correspondent. At a farewell party, writers took turns praising Alan, who stood stoically to the rear betraying nothing and tolerating what he termed an excess of hyperbole.

Thats Alan: deadpan, reserved, modest, generous, tough, tolerant and thoughtful. It would never occur to him to take credit or even allow mention of his role in a writers success, though he deserves a great deal of it. That so many have received Pulitzer Prizes under his watch is no coincidence.

Based on the testimonials, I think its safe to say that we dont only admire Alan; we love him. Some even said so. He isnt only a great editor but also a great leader with an eye for quality. He will leave behind another great editor, whom we also love, Richard Aldacushion, as well as editorial production manager Sophie Yarborough and operations manager Karen Greene, who keeps the ship afloat.

We were also hand-picked by Alan. (I pause here to wonder whether hand-picked is hyphenated, knowing that Alans team will put it right. His epitaph, he once told me, would read: The un-hyphenated life isnt worth living.)

Part of our affection for Alan stems from his dedication to our craft  for making us the best we can be  but also for his generosity in being invisible. The hand of a good editor should never be seen. When you, gentle reader, peruse the op-ed page and read a Kathleen Parker column, you will not know that someone else may have suggested a better word, or found that a fact was either lacking or incorrect (and corrected), or reminded me for the 100th time that there is no comma preceding but when the introductory clause begins not only, or that I keep writing Medicare when I mean Medicaid, dadgummit.

But, never is a comma changed without the writers approval. This, too, is a credit to Alan, whose respect for and deference to writers was never in question. Edits at The Writers Group syndicate are always offered as suggestions for the writers final say. Most times, too, Alan would write a note of appreciation before the bloodletting began with a nice job or good stuff here. On those rare occasions when he jotted Brilliant or Fantastic, my feet didnt touch the ground until the next day.

You see, theres nothing quite like knowing youve written something not bad at all. It is a joy that should have been shared by at least two people, beginning with Alan, if only one of us got the public credit. Such is the ultimate gift of the editor to the writer, for which we finally thanked him.

George Will began his comments by spelling a word  m-i-n-u-s-c-u-l-e.

There, he said, Ive finally mastered it.

Apparently, even the longest-writing columnist among us is imperfect. I cant account for how happy this makes me. Marcus said she was surprised to learn that Alan all along had been editing so many other writers as well as her. Like the rest of us, she thought she was the only one. This is because Alan made each writer feel that he or she is the most important, the most gifted, the most adored. How dear of you not to tell us otherwise.

In addition to being the finest editor any of us ever worked with, Alan is a thoroughly decent human being and a consummate gentleman. He is also kind. When I suffered a concussion and had to stop writing for a while, he held my place and my hand, reminding me of how rare he is in a media world that has become heartless and self-important.

So, for now, farewell, fine sir  and thank you for bringing me to the party.
At a Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] briefing [press release, video] on Friday Attorney General Jeff Sessions [official profile] condemned the staggering number of leaks of sensitive government information and threatened to investigate and prosecute anyone who carries out such leaks in the future. Specifically, Sessions stated [press release] that the DOJ will not hesitate to bring lawful and appropriate criminal charges against those who abuse the nations trust. In making this statement, Sessions made a reference to reports in the media about conversations the President had with foreign leaders on Thursday without disclosing the subject matter or the nature of said conversations. Stating that the culture of leaking must stop, Sessions announced a series of measures being taken in conjunction with the National Insider Threat Task Force [official website] to prevent further leaks. Among these measures were 1) new directions to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and the new FBI Director Christopher Wray [press release] to oversee all classified leak investigations and actively monitor the progress of each and every case; 2) prioritization of cases involving unauthorized disclosures; 3) increasing the resources devoted to leak cases; 4) creation of a counterintelligence unit to manage said cases; and 5) directing the DOJ to review policies that impact leak investigations. Sessions concluded: We respect the important role that the press plays and will give them respect, but it is not unlimited. They cannot place lives at risk with impunity. We must balance their role with protecting our national security and the lives of those who serve in our intelligence community, the armed forces, and all law abiding Americans.

Government information leaks have become an impending problem in the past several years and nations have struggled to curtail such leaks. In June, a panel consisting of three judges from the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit [official website] affirmed [JURIST report] all but one conviction of former CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling, who was convicted [JURIST report] in 2015 for disclosing classified information to a journalist. The information was about national defense strategy in Iran. That decision is the latest in a long line of prosecutions for the prevention of national security leaks in the US. In August 2015 a former military contractor was sentenced [JURIST report] for stealing classified files. Earlier the same year, General David Petraeus was sentenced [CNN report] to serve two years on probation and pay a $100,000 fine for leaking classified information to his biographer and lover Paula Broadwell. In August 2013 Army Pfc. Chelsea Manning was sentenced [JURIST report] to 35 years in prison for her disclosure of classified information to the anti-secrecy organization Wikileaks, and she has since been released. In June 2013 Edward Snowden, a former government employee and contractor, was charged [JURIST report] with disclosing to newspaper reporters information about US intelligence activities that he obtained during the course of his work, raising significant First Amendment concerns [JURIST op-ed] over the Espionage Act.
Photo Credit: akyra Thonglor

Boutique luxury Akaryn Hotel Group is encouraging visitors in the rainy season to enjoy artistic and architecturally inspired escapes with their Discover Thailand offering. Through this unique offer, visitors to the beautiful country can experience multiple destinations, properties and works of art throughout Thailand.

Travelers should fly into the main hub of Bangkok and stay at the akyra Thonglor. Venture on an excursion to Nakhon Pthom, an area less than an hour outside Bangkok, which offers exposure to a unique living sculpture. Wat Samphran is a 17 story cylindrical temple draped in a massive, twisting dragon. Its shimmering scales climb the tower of the wat, making it the perfect backdrop for selfies and a testament to the immense, architectural creativity displayed throughout SouthEast Asia.

For a more traditional art experience, visitors can then visit the Rose of the North, also known as Chiang Mai. Situated in an urban environment full of emerging artists, the akyra Manor Hotel in Chiang Mai has collaborated with a local watercolorist, Kritika Buabusya. Her pop-up exhibition "Floral Choreography" is inspired by the mythological Greek concept of Arcadia, and depicts scenes of the Thai countryside. The Exhibit is on now through September 2017.
KEARNEY  Authorities have identified the man whose body was found inside a tent along Kearneys hike-bike trail last week.

After an autopsy performed on Tuesday, authorities have identified the man as Andrew F. Rodriguez, 43, of Kearney, a Buffalo County Sheriffs Office press release says.

Authorities believe the death to be by natural causes because there are no signs of foul play. Next of kin have been notified.

Rodriguezs body was discovered July 27.

At about 8 p.m. that day, law enforcement was called to 873 W. Third Ave. in south Kearney because of a report of a dead body adjacent to the trail. Officers arrived at the scene and found a campsite with a dead man inside the tent, the sheriffs office said previously.

The wooded area where the body was found is between Second Avenue and Yanney Heritage Park.

The sheriffs office was assisted in the investigation by members of the Kearney Police Department and Buffalo County Attorneys Office.
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A lone protester holds up a sign as the Wisconsin Assembly Committee on Jobs and Economy meets Aug. 3 about the incentive deal for Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology Group.
PLEASANT PRAIRIE  Back home from last weeks trip to Washington, D.C., where she met with House Speaker Paul Ryan and Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Addison Morton, 6, talked about participating in the 2017 JDRF Childrens Congress.

She and Carson Pond, 17, of Kenosha, were among five youths with Type 1 diabetes selected to represent Wisconsin in the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation event, which has convened every other year since its 1999 inception.

Addison, the youngest of the Wisconsin delegates, flew there with her parents, Brian and Erin Morton, to join fellow diabetic youths in lobbying Congress and the White House to renew federal funding for Type 1 diabetes research under the Special Diabetes Program.

The program funding is up for renewal every two years, and Brian Morton said supporters, through the Childrens Congress, are asking representatives and senators to increase the renewal period to three years.

It was good, Addison said Thursday, her smile revealing a wide gap in her grin awaiting her adult teeth.

I went to the White House and to Capitol Hill to see Mr. Speaker Paul Ryan. I got to meet him, she said, beaming brightly.

Although they didnt get to meet President Donald Trump or any White House staff, Addison and her mother were there long enough to get their photo taken inside with others from the Childrens Congress.

Meeting and mixing with more than 150 boys and girls ages 4-17 who participated in the 10th Childrens Congress since 1999 was something special, not just for Addison but for Erin too.

We saw a lot of kids like her, Erin said. All the kids had cards with their names, their pictures, their ages and where they were from. The kids were trading cards. Addison loved it. Seeing all the other kids in the same position as Addison was uplifting for her.

One of the delegates Addison met was Corrine Gerhart, also 6, of Des Moines, Iowa. The two have since become pen pals. Sanne van Beem, 17, an international delegate from the Netherlands, gave Addison a red-painted, charm-sized, miniature wooden shoe.

The families understand

At one meeting, Erin said, all the kids introduced themselves, gave their ages and their ages at diagnosis.

As a mom, her favorite part was interacting with the other parents in a setting where nobody was uncomfortable with alarms sounding on insulin pumps, children getting insulin injections or being pricked to test their blood glucose levels.

Instead, activities went on without the discomfort and awkwardness that often happens when Addison and her family are at a restaurant or out in public and her diabetes-related needs have to be managed.

It was being with people who get it, that its a lifestyle, a 24-hour, seven days a week disease that never stops, Erin said. We were talking about what we go through, what our kids go through. We were all in it together.

She believes Ryan, Baldwin and others they met with in the U.S. Congress were sincerely interested in seeing that childrens needs dont get ignored.

I think the kids have so much power that their speaking out made a difference, Erin said. They were face-to-face with the representatives and the senators, showing them what all the kids go through. Even Addison talked about her highs and lows. I was proud of her standing up and telling them what its like on an everyday basis.

Only one parent per child was selected to attend the last day of the event, which was when those meetings took place. Erin had been selected to accompany Addison.

By then, Brian was back home.

Need to renew funding

As a parent whose daughter has Type I diabetes and whose youngest son, Tate, has four of the five markers indicating high risk for the disease, Brian  like Erin is all too aware of the high stakes involved.

If the $150 million for the Special Diabetes Program isnt renewed, clinical research trials, including one for prevention in which Tate is enrolled, will come to a halt.

The best thing that could come out of the Childrens Congress would be renewal of the funding, he said.

There are just so many things that are so close. It would be a shame for it to go away. Every day, I read about something closer and closer, said Brian, a pharmacist with United Hospital System.

What we went there for, Erin said, nodding, was to get the SDP passed, get it funded and keep moving forward. There are kids right now in trials for an artificial pancreas. If it doesnt get funded, that just stops, and all the data gets lost.

She looked across their kitchen table, where Addison stood on a chair grinning and clutching Aurora, the teddy bear she and other participants were given at the Childrens Congress.

Talking with Paul Ryan

Addison recalled her conversations with Ryan in Washington. He took her onto a balcony of the Capitol Building and pointed out sights below in the nations capital.

I let him see my pump and my Dexcom, Addison said, pointing to the insulin pump implanted on her thigh and the continuous glucose monitoring device implanted on her arm.

I told him about my highs and lows, that I feel thirsty and tired when Im high. And when Im low, I feel hungry and dizzy. When Im I high, I have so much energy. When Im low, no energy, she said.

With that, Addison, got down from the chair to play with her brothers, Tucker and Tate, in the backyard. Erin watched, smiling warmly as Addison led the way, running and doing cartwheels.

She recalled the last thing Addison told Ryan as their meeting in Washington ended: She told him, Speaker Ryan, please, remember me.

To learn more about the JDRFs 2017 Childrens Congress and to watch Addison Mortons application video, go to www.cc.jdrf.org.
A Kenosha teenager attacked the mother of his child with a hammer and a piece of wood on July 28, according to court records, causing significant injuries.

A warrant is now out for the arrest of Daizon A. Banks, 17. Charges have been filed against him alleging first-degree recklessly endangering safety, substantial battery and intentionally contacting a victim after a court order for the Friday incident. He was on probation at the time for an earlier domestic abuse case involving the same woman and had been ordered not to have contact with her.

According to the criminal complaint, police were sent to a home south of downtown about 8 a.m. on Friday, for a medical call. The person who answered the door gave no information, but officers could see smeared blood droplets on the living room floor and then entered the home to search for injured people.

Inside the home, they saw a blood trail that led through several rooms and blood smeared on a door frame. According to the complaint, more blood droplets and a steel claw hammer were found on top of the freezer.

They followed the blood trail into the basement, where they found the battered woman, her face smeared with blood. She had a substantial cut on her forehead and was having difficulty maintaining her balance, according to the complaint.

The 18-year-old woman told police she fell.

Hospital staff closed the circular cut on her forehead with eight stitches and noticed other circular marks on her back and face, the complaint states. She also had scratches on her arms and legs, and her fingers were bleeding.

She told police that, despite the no-contact order, she decided to spend time with Banks, hoping they could work it out. She said Banks became upset when she wanted to rest instead of talk, the complaint states, and said he started punching her.

Another fight started later, in which she said he grabbed a hammer and hit her all over, and that he struck her in the forehead with a 2x4.

After that, she said, she felt dizzy and began to fall. She said Banks then attempted to help her by wiping blood off her face and giving her his shirt to wear instead of hers, which was covered in blood.

Someone else in the home told police that Banks brought the woman into the basement after the attack, the complaint states, and that he told the woman that she shouldnt have looked through my phone. Another person in the house provided a similar statement.
It would have been easy to overlook the 4-inch column announcing that the GOP (July 27) passed a $788 billion spending bill in the house that included a $1.6 billion down payment for the presidents border wall.

Lets see  the proposed wall carries serious environmental concerns, legal land concerns, and very important concerns about trade with Mexico. Border communities oppose this wall. Most Americans oppose funding for the wall. (Kenosha News, April 7)

On March 19, Steve Pearce, the only Republican U.S. Representative in New Mexico, said of the wall at a town hall meeting in Las Cruces (a border town), My position is its going to buy peace of mind but wont enhance security.

I am asking myself if Trumps fixation on building this wall is more about keeping his campaign promise that energized his base than it is about security. On May 1, the Kenosha News printed a Chicago Tribune op-ed stating that Democrats are united against paying for the wall and Republicans dont think its feasible or affordable.

Its time that we let our senators know that we oppose this border wall funding and consider other ways to secure our southern border. Dont forget that Mexico will not pay for the wall!

Kay Wikel

Salem
A worker looks out through the logo at the entrance of the Foxconn complex in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen in May 2010.
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There was an interesting piece published in the Style section of the New York Times this weekend; I was tipped to it by Bryan Vartabedian. If youre a health care geek, that section may not be on your must read list (I know it isnt; will explain below), so let me bring you up to speed. On July 29th, Katie Rosman published a piece entitled, A Doctor Gives Gwyneth Paltrows Goop a Pelvic Exam in the NYT Style section.

While one hopes that the articles placement in the Style section will be helpful in reaching goops audience with some good science, I wonder whether it didnt underestimate Dr. Gunters ability to effect meaningful change. For example, when comparing Dr. Gunters audience to Ms. Paltrows, Rosman says, Comparatively, Dr. Gunters blog is small potatoes. It is hard to navigate and antiquated in design, and failing to meet comScores threshold of about 50,000 unique visitors a month, its web traffic is too meager to be measured.

Yet perhaps Ms. Paltrow and the goop medical team are right to be concerned. While its true that the average citizen is more likely to be aware of Ms. Paltrow than Dr. Gunter, I dont think that has much to do with the UX or monthly page view statistics for either web site. Nor does a slick UX and a large audience speak to the strength of the health science expounded on either property. All that goes without saying. Whats interesting, though, is that Dr. Gunter is far more influential than she may seem at first blush. The audience that matters  people and organizations who know something about health care, and who tend to influence the opinion of the general public on health care, know this already. My friend and godfather of the ePatient movement, Dave de Bronkart, had this to say about Ms. Rosmans article:

If you read Jens writing about Goop, its all about the science, and the lack of brains behind the Goop parade; one of the scientists who defends Goop declares that she trained at and was certified an institute that she herself created  not unlike the way Rand Paul was board certified by a board he himself created. Meanwhile, today WIRED happened to name Jen to its list of Ten Best Scientists to follow. Ten best SCIENTISTS  not just doctors.

Mr. de Bronkart is not alone. The over 750,000 people and organizations indexed in the MDigitalLife Online Health Ecosystem database have a lot of respect for Dr. Gunter and her opinions. As a point of comparison, I looked at the number of links from the health ecosystem to Ms. Gunters blog compared to those of the NYT Style section. Over the last three years, since July of 2014, theyve linked to Dr. Gunters humble blog more than twice as much as they have to the NYT Style section (2,793 times to 1,258). And theyve mentioned her 25 times as much (52,535 times to 2,325).

You may argue that its not really fair to compare the Style section of a newspaper (even when its arguably the worlds leading media property) to a real, flesh-and-blood doctor, and youd have a point. Lets try a different statistic: U.S. physicians have mentioned Dr. Gunter twice as often as they have @katierosman, @NYTStyles, @NYTHealth, @goop [email protected] COMBINED during that same 3-year period. To put that in perspective, this fearsome 5 have nearly 5 million aggregate twitter followers, yet the people who may matter MOST in terms of health policy (and certainly the SCIENCE behind it) have cared more about what Dr. Gunter has to say over the past three years than all of them combined.

If you still doubt Dr. Gunters relevance and influence  or perhaps youre dismissive of what happens on a social media platform like Twitter  let me remind you that Dr. Gunter successfully took on of one of the largest newspapers in the world  the Toronto Star  in 2015. You can read the details in the linked piece, but I can summarize it quickly here:

News outlet runs a piece featuring completely discredited science

Doctor publishes post on small potatoes blog, refuting said piece point-by-point

News outlet changes headline; adds disclaimer; pulls piece; and apologizes  in that order

This is yet another great example of a physician  a scientist  who has invested her time and talent in creating a platform for scientifically oriented knowledge sharing, and in building an incredibly strong network online among the health care ecosystem. When it comes to health and good science, you ignore online physicians like Dr. Gunter at your peril.

Greg Matthews is head, healthcare analytics innovation at W2O Group and creator, MDigitalLife. This article was originally posted in the MDigitalLife blog. He can be reached on Twitter @chimoose.

Image credit: The Toronto Star
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I told you so. I also told the POTUS in my open letter, but he did not read it.

Who could honestly believe the nation would support dumping coverage for 22 million people? As David Leonhard wrote recently op-ed in the New York Times: They [Republicans and President Trump] had only one big weakness, in fact: They werent dealing in reality. When faced with reality, it is interesting what a few good Senators with a conscience will refuse to do.

Success is never attained by taking shortcuts. We do not need reform of health care; we need to reboot the entire system. Special interests do not belong in the picture. They are incompatible with developing innovative solutions that place profits on the back burner. Congress is making this too difficult. They need to roll up their sleeves, go back to the drawing board, and start again.

My suggestions:

Step 1: Every member of Congress should participate in a mock hospital admission as a patient, starting with presentation to the ER, being poked and prodded, having surgery if necessary, and staying overnight to recuperate. After your experience, you should be provided a bill on your way out the door and pay the balance by cash or check.

Step 2: Go see your own primary care physician for two reasons. The first is to have an annual exam and to connect with your constituents in the waiting room, solicit their comments, thoughts, or suggestions, and converse with office staff to understand their perspective. The second reason is to elicit feedback directly from your primary care physician. Listen for groundbreaking solutions to the perplexing boondoggle of caring for greater numbers at a lower cost.

Extra credit: Follow a primary care physician in a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) for three days. Listen, engage, clarify, empathize, and most importantly absorb how monumental this undertaking of reforming health care will be.

Step 3: Return to Washington D.C. inspired and reboot, resolving to do it right this time.

The nation has been having entirely the wrong conversation; that dialogue must change. The biggest obstacle faced by lawmakers is maintaining access while reducing cost. Providing coverage without coupling it to budgetary constraints is sheer lunacy. However, reducing government involvement in coverage without ensuring the needy can afford health care will never garner widespread support. Affordability has become an impossible dream and is currently our largest stumbling block.

The U.S. spent $10,345 per person annually in 2016. The average OECD country spends $3,997 per person annually in comparison. During the 1980s Spain created a network of community health clinics within a 15-minute radius of every citizen, a system which was funded by the taxpayers. In 1975, the average life expectancy from birth was equivalent in both nations, at 69 years of age. Today, life expectancy in Spain is 83 years compared to 78.8 in the United States. We are spending twice as much as Spain, and our life expectancy is significantly lower.

An appropriate policy goal would be to focus on developing a sustainable solution, implemented only after great deliberation. Scaffolding already exists, in community clinics and Public Health departments; these facilities are cost-effective, yet grossly underfunded, underutilized, and unappreciated. Every single man, woman, and child needs primary care services, a fact which in incompatible to the insurance model. We must sever the connection between insurance and primary care. Providing basic care universally is something we must accept as reality. As I have written before, investing in primary care as a solution is a no-brainer; increasing by one PCP/10,000 persons decreases mortality by 5.3 percent.

Basic care will bring us all out from the shadows and into the light. Provide immunizations, screenings, and annual exams to everyone in this country. Those working in the community clinics will be employed by the government and salaried. These clinics could have evening or weekend walk-in hours and handle urgent matters. The electronic medical records system should be universal and patient-centric. People will no longer live in fear of our government eliminating access for chronic conditions or emergencies. Struggling families will not be one catastrophic illness away from losing their hopes and dreams.

As we continue filling in the grid, specialty care should be added at the public health facilities or community clinics. A specialist would cover a greater number of patients when overseeing or consulting on difficult cases with the primary care physicians. These specialists would be employed by the government and salaried as well. If an individual becomes severely ill or injured and requires very specialized treatment, hospitalization, or surgical management, either they have Medicaid, Medicare, or their catastrophic insurance plan kicks in to cover these needs.

No discussion would be complete without including third party payers, who distance patients and physicians from being cognizant of cost. For what we do in our offices, services could be far cheaper. For example, a self-employed, middle-aged patient with a $25,000 deductible sustained a 4cm laceration to the head and went to buy glue to repair it himself. On this particular holiday weekend, the stores were already closed. He inquired as to the cash price for repair after texting a picture.

I had no answer, but primary care physicians love repairing lacerations, and I am no exception to the rule. He came to my office; I cleaned the wound and sutured it. He handed me his credit card, similar to the cashier at a grocery or hardware store. Supplies cost roughly $50; the laceration repair took 15 minutes. I figured $150 seemed reasonable. He paid $200 and was thrilled.

While the lack of transparency hindered my research, I compared the cost to repair a 4 cm laceration in the emergency room. The estimated charges were: $1,000 emergency room facility charge, physician cost $500, and the procedure bill was $200. My hard working patient would have coughed up $1,700 at a minimum (some estimate as high as $1,000 per stitch) and waited well over 15 minutes for the privilege.

Allow the free market forces to remain a part of the infrastructure. A great deal of the population fears a universal basic system because they are afraid of losing choice. Direct primary care practices would flourish in a system with a basic care safety net for those in need. Those who can afford choice would have options to patronize the private market, which absolutely should not be eliminated.

Reviewing the events this week reminds me Rome was not built in a day. Repairing the tangled web of health care will take unconventional thinking and the tincture of time. Costs have spiraled out of control past the point of affordability. The nation will only support reform once Congress overhauls our broken system prior to embarking on repealing anything. Finally, everyone is profiting except the two most critical components: the physicians and their patients. Repair, reboot, and rebuild from the ground up and when you do, start by putting patients ahead of profits.

Niran S. Al-Agba is a pediatrician who blogs at MommyDoc. This article originally appeared in the Health Care Blog.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
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Antibiotics save lives, but antibiotics can have negative effects. When patients have bacterial infections, we want to treat them to prevent complications of the bacterial infection, but not treat them for an excessive duration. So we have a Goldilocks problem  we want antibiotic duration to be just right  neither too short or too long.

Some clinical conditions have adequate research to define the Goldilocks duration. Community acquired pneumonia only requires five days of antibiotics, if the patient is clinically stable at three days. We know that five days is sufficient, so if we give antibiotics for 7 or 10 days, the patient gets exposed to unnecessary antibiotics.

Unfortunately, this example is rather unusual. We have learned antibiotic duration without the teaching (and guidelines) having an evidence base.

So a new movement suggests that we should tell patients to stop the antibiotics when they feel better. The antibiotic course has had its day.

The concept of an antibiotic course ignores the fact that patients may respond differently to the same antibiotic, depending on diverse patient and disease factors. Currently, we largely ignore this fact and instead make indication specific recommendations for antibiotic duration that are based on poor evidence. This situation is changing in hospital practice, where biomarkers of treatment response such as procalcitonin can guide when to stop antibiotic treatment. Outside hospital, where repeated testing may not be feasible, patients might be best advised to stop treatment when they feel better, in direct contradiction of WHO advice. Of note, a recent clinical trial found that using fever resolution to guide stopping antibiotics in community acquired pneumonia halved the average duration of antibiotic treatment without affecting clinical success. Further similar studies are needed.

So this interesting idea got published in the British Medical Journal. But does subjectivity get us to the Goldilocks duration? So this article argues against the BMJ opinion piece: Why you really should take your full course of antibiotics.

So, knowing what you now know, do you think stopping a course of antibiotics when you feel better as opposed to completing the course is a good idea? It may be the case that your infection is completely clear by day two of your five-day course, but its equally possible that a small population remains that can grow back and reinfect you. More research and clinical trials (as also noted in the BMJ article) are required in order to fully understand and adjust the lengths of antibiotic courses, but, in my opinion as a microbiologist, the risks of taking an insufficient course significantly outweigh the benefits.

As you might imagine, I do not think this opinion gets us to the Goldilocks duration.

In 2000, Zwart and colleagues published a study of placebo versus three days penicillin versus seven days penicillin for severe adult pharyngitis (defined as a Centor score of 3 or 4). Their results are instructive:

Patients who took penicillin for seven days showed a permanent resolution of sore throat 1.9 and 1.7 days sooner than those who took penicillin for three days or placebo respectively. During the first three days of treatment, patients in the three-day penicillin group showed a similar resolution of symptoms to those in the seven-day penicillin group. However, 40 percent (77 of 194) of the three-day penicillin group had a temporary resolution of symptoms, which recurred later that week, against 5 percent (10 of 190) of the seven-day penicillin group. This finding accounts for the difference between the two penicillin groups in the Kaplan-Meier curves during the first three days. Using the definition of permanent resolution of symptoms, patients in the three-day group did not recover more rapidly than those in the placebo group. Analgesic use until day 4 was similar in all three groups. From day 1 until day 7, however, the proportion of patients taking analgesics declined from 61 percent to 5 percent in the seven-day penicillin group, whereas in the two other treatment groups the reduction from day 4 until day 7 was considerably smaller.

So to reach the Goldilocks duration recommendations, we need more research. We will have more side effects if we encourage patients to take unnecessary long antibiotic courses, but we will have patients relapse if we do not give antibiotics for an adequate duration. Perhaps in the sore throat example, five days might be satisfactory, but we do not have the data, so it remains seven days for now.

Both sides have salient points in this debate, but we cannot judge the debate until we get better duration studies. We must encourage the infectious disease community to expand their work on this question so that we can give antibiotics for the proper duration. Currently, we are really just guessing for most infections.

Robert Centor is an internal medicine physician who blogs at DBs Medical Rants.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
* Sunday's offer lowest in tenders this year

* Bangladesh's annual wheat imports top 5 mln tonnes

(Adds details)

DHAKA, Aug 6 (Reuters) - A Bangladesh tender to import 50,000 tonnes of wheat drew its lowest offer from Russia's Aston on Sunday at $251 a tonne, officials at the state grains buyer said.

Only one other trader, Agrocorp International, competed for the tender from the Directorate General of Food, quoting $251.45 a tonne, including CIF liner out, meaning the price includes shipping, insurance and discharge costs.

Sunday's offers were lower than those received in the three previous wheat tenders this year. Participation in the tenders remained low despite the relatively thin level of buying interest in international grain markets. Apart from government purchases, private traders import about 5 million tonnes of wheat annually to meet growing demand, while the country's output has stagnated at about 1 million tonnes.

Another tender from the state grains buyer for a similar quantity of milling wheat will close on Aug. 17 as part of efforts to shore up reserves.

Bangladesh, the world's fourth-biggest rice producer, has also become a major importer of rice as well as wheat this year after flash floods in April hit domestic output. As a result, the country is facing dwindling rice stocks and high local prices. (Reporting by Ruma Paul; Editing by Gareth Jones)
Lanterns float on Madison's Tenney Park lagoon during the Lanterns for Peace annual event on Aug. 6, 2013, remembering the victims of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. This year's family friendly event will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 7, at the Tenny Park shelter.
The United States is preparing for a "preventive war" with North Korea among many options to deal with its missile and nuclear threats, President Trump's top security adviser has said.

In an interview aired Saturday on MSNBC, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said the president has been clear he will not tolerate North Korea's threats to attack the U.S. with nuclear weapons.

A preventive war is initiated to prevent an enemy from carrying out an attack.

"What you're asking is are we preparing plans for a preventive war, right?" McMaster said. "If they have nuclear weapons that can threaten the United States. It's intolerable from the president's perspective. So of course, we have to provide all options to do that. And that includes a military option."

North Korea carried out two tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles last month, claiming the entire U.S. mainland is within its striking range.
The South Korean government on Sunday welcomed the United Nations' adoption of a new sanctions resolution against North Korea, calling on the country to halt all provocations.

In a statement released shortly after the adoption of a new resolution, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, "The government welcomes the unanimous adoption of Resolution 2371 by the U.N. Security Council in response to North Korea's ballistic missile provocations on July 4 and 28."

"Through the resolution, the UNSC strongly condemned North Korean ballistic missiles and imposed more strengthened sanctions, proclaiming once again the international community's determination that it will never condone North Korea's nuclear and missile development," according to the statement.

The government urges North Korea to take the international warning seriously and immediately stop its reckless provocations, it said, also calling on the North "to come out to the path of dialogue for denuclearization and peace."

Seoul will faithfully implement the latest resolution in close coordination with the international community, as well as the existing sanctions resolutions on North Korea, according to the statement. It also stressed that the government "will continue its efforts to achieve the fundamental denuclearization of North Korea and build permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula."

The international organization moved to penalize the North after it successfully test-fired two intercontinental-range ballistic missiles last month that may have the capability to hit the U.S. mainland.

The UNSC sanctions aim to slash North Korea's annual export revenue of $3 billion by a third and include a ban on all exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood.












Fuel embargo excluded; Kim Jong-un not on target list

By Yi Whan-woo

The new U.N. Security Council (UNSC) sanctions imposed on North Korea will be successful in plugging loopholes of the previous resolutions, analysts said Sunday.

However, some experts raised doubts over their effectiveness, citing China's failure to impose a fuel embargo on Pyongyang and the absence of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on the new sanctions list.

They said the Resolution 2371, passed Saturday, still may fall short of preventing Pyongyang from mastering intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) technology because it will take time before the toughest-to-date resolution has a financial impact on the recalcitrant state.

"The new resolution is expected to deal a blow to North Korea," said Park Won-gon, an international relations professor at Handong Global University. "The UNSC did a good job this time in filling the loopholes of the past sanctions exploited by Pyongyang."

Resolution 2371 imposes a complete ban on exports of coal, while the previous sanctions allowed the North to sell limited amounts for livelihood purposes.

The new sweeping measures also ban North Korea's other primary exports, including iron, lead and seafood products.

Citing a statement from the office of U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley, Yang Uk, a senior research fellow at the Korea Defense and Security Forum, said, "I agree with the idea that sanctions will slash the cash-strapped regime's annual export revenue of $3 billion by more than a third."

"The UNSC has effectively pressed North Korea with the message that it should return to the negotiation table." Yang added.












By Kim Jae-kyoung

SINGAPORE  North Korea is likely to suffer deepening diplomatic isolation as the United States, its allies and ASEAN members discuss ways to curb exchanges with North Korea at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Manila, today.

Members also plan to discuss whether to exclude the isolated country from the ARF, an ASEAN-led forum that groups the U.S., the two Koreas and 24 other countries.

The move is aimed at responding to the North's continuing provocations, including test-firings of two intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), which Pyongyang claimed are capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.

The ARF meeting comes a day after the United Nations Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions on North Korea that include banning exports worth over $1billion.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-hwa are attending the annual forum and will seek to build diplomatic pressure on the North. The forum was set up in 1993 to promote regional security dialogue and cooperation.

North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho will also attend but there will be no bilateral talks between the North and the U.S. or the South, according to sources.

Southeast Asian foreign ministers issued a statement Saturday expressing grave concern over escalating tension on the Korean Peninsula triggered by North Korea's missile tests.

"These developments seriously threaten peace, security and stability in the region and the world," the ministers said.

"In this regard, we strongly urge the DPRK to immediately comply fully with its obligations under all relevant U.N. Security Council resolutions," they said, supporting the "complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner."

The foreign ministers' move came as the U.S. increased pressure on ASEAN to act to isolate the rogue nation.

ASEAN refers to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, consisting of 10 members  Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam.

At a meeting with reporters in Washington, D.C., Wednesday, acting U.S. Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Susan Thornton said Pyongyang's provocations have violated the ARF's mission of promoting security and stability in the region.












By Lee Kyung-min

Diabetic patients should regularly visit an ophthalmologist for an eye exam at least once a year, to monitor possible development of complications, experts said Sunday.

One such complication is diabetic retinopathy, in which damage occurs to a part of the back of the eye called the retina, the blood vessels of the light-sensitive tissue.

Doctors say undergoing a regular eye examination is crucial for early diagnosis of the disease as it has no symptoms or only mild vision problems at first. However, it can result in vision loss eventually.

"Most patients come to us after they have blurred vision, which is too late. The symptoms begin to appear after the disease has progressed to about 60 or 70 percent," said Sung Min-chul, an ophthalmologist at Sungmo Eye Center in southern Seoul. "The exam can help diagnose other diabetes-related eye complications such as cataracts."

According to 2015 data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, of 2.39 million diabetic patients in Korea, about 15 percent had diabetic retinopathy.

While only 1 or 2 percent of those aged between 20 and 39 suffered from the complication, almost 9 percent of those in 40s had it. The number sharply increased to 24 percent for those in their 50s.

According to separate data, it took on average at least eight years for diabetic patients to undergo an eye exam.

"The data show how patients are unaware of the grave consequences of developing diabetic eye diseases. Patients should see an ophthalmologist regularly as most such diseases are treatable," he added.

Those diagnosed with macular edema, also commonly found among diabetic retinopathy patients, should undergo an eye exam every four months, he added.

Macular edema refers to the build-up of fluid in the macula, an area in the center of the retina responsible for sharp, clear and straight-ahead vision.

The build-up causes the macula to thicken and swell, which ends up distorting vision.

"Given that compromised vision and vision loss causes major discomfort to the patients and their lives are bound to be affected by the diseases, I recommend that they pay more attention when they can."

Meanwhile, diabetic patients are required to pay close attention to their blood sugar level in summer as it is greatly affected by the scorching heat.

The blood glucose levels rises if a person becomes dehydrated after sweating profusely due to the heat or strenuous physical activity.

This can lead to frequent urination, which in turn leads to further dehydration and even higher blood sugar levels, an event which doctors call a "vicious cycle."
Courtesy of Koo Bon-chang



Korean gov't urged to recognize victim children, Filipina women

By Kim Se-jeong





Koo Bon-chang

Koo Bon-chang, 55, moved to the Philippines 10 years ago for his children's English education. There he has run a small business.

Koo is now an activist for Korean-Filipino children  known as Kopinos  abandoned by their Korean fathers.

It began with one of his friends who was trying to find her son's Korean father. "The father left her a fake address. When she showed me the paper with the address, I knew immediately it was fake," he recalled.

He founded "We Love Kopino (WLK)," an NGO, in 2015. Early last year, his Facebook postings of photos featuring the fathers triggered a nationwide discussion on the issue.

Earlier this year, together with his friends and associates, he started a new project, the Dream Come True. The members of this association work to provide the mothers in the Philippines with financial help so they can start new businesses. The association is currently raising funds in Korea.

"This will alleviate the financial burdens of the struggling mothers of Kopinos," Koo said during a recent interview at his office in Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province.

Yet, this will not solve the problem for good.

Koo said two points are critical in dealing with the Kopino issue. First, the Korean government should recognize the children and act to take care of them.

"Think about the comfort women. A big problem is that the Japanese government doesn't want to recognize these women," he said. "It's the same thing with Kopinos. The Korean government doesn't want to recognize them. Staying quiet about it, though, is not the solution."

The second point is about prevention.

"A system is necessary to make the fathers of the children pay adequate child support. This will be the only way to force them to be responsible."

What is happening to the Kopinos?

The Kopino issue was first raised in Korea in the early 2000s by NGOs. There is no accurate figure on their numbers. Koo said he estimates there are about 30,000 Kopino children across the Philippines. The WLK has come into contact with almost 3,000 Kopino mothers so far.

A big portion of the fathers were young students who went to the Philippines to learn English. The common narrative is this: A young man and young woman meet and fall in love. When the young woman gets pregnant, he gets scared and runs away.

Also, many fathers of Kopino children were long-term business travelers.

Koo said very few men, less than 10 percent, were tourists who get a prostitute pregnant.

The WLK helps the mothers track down the fathers in Korea and gets them to pay support for their children. Several NGOs in the Philippines and Korea work on behalf of the Kopinos.

The most difficult part is finding the fathers. This prompted Koo to go online with the pictures. Forty-five Kopinos found their fathers through the online postings.

When the mother finds the father, she files for child support through a Korean court. A DNA test is performed to confirm the man is the biological father. Koo's organization helps the women through the full process of the legal battle.

There were a couple of court rulings recently, but "the fathers usually want to settle outside of court," Koo said.

Putting the fathers' photos online had consequences for him.

In addition to threatening phone messages, "I was beaten by gangs in Korea and in the Philippines. The beatings were paid for by the fathers," he said, as he showed his tooth implants.

One father filed for defamation with the prosecution  eventually, nothing happened to him.

Mothers in poverty

Kopino mothers come from diverse backgrounds, ranging from having stable jobs with university degrees to cleaning tables to get by. As soon as they become single mothers, though, they are trapped in deeper poverty.

Koo explains it this way: "In the Philippines, those who get a job at a Seven Eleven convenience store often have university degrees. Their wages are low compared to wages in Korea. It's impossible for these women to stand on their own."

The mothers struggle to support their children. Koo said mothers easily fall into prostitution, and children, also, fall victim to prostitution and drug s. The child support money becomes crucial. The way child support is arranged is that the father pays a lump sum to cover his child's entire childhood. The amount ranges from 5 million won to 70 million won, Koo said.

The problem is that very few mothers do enough to win the child support. Often, the mothers don't have accurate information about the men's whereabouts in Korea. That's why he is starting this new project.



Abandoned by government

Kopinos are abandoned by the Korean government too.

"Some say the Korean government is not responsible for the mistakes individual citizens make," Koo said. But, he thinks the government should reach out to these children because they've got no one to help them. He considers the Japanese government as an example. "For Japan, the government takes Japinos in and that's the right thing to do."

The Philippine government has been silent until last year when the top prosecutor from the Philipines asked the Korean government's cooperation in dealing with Kopino issue.
Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, right, shakes hands with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson during their meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum in Manila, the Philippines, Sunday. They assessed that the new sanctions by the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) adopted against North Korea, Saturday, would be effective. / Yonhap



China renews protest against THAAD battery in S. Korea



By Yi Whan-woo

The top diplomats of South Korea and the United States agreed to start early negotiations on revising a bilateral missile guidelines agreement to better cope with North Korea's missile threats, an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Sunday.

The agreement comes after Washington accepted Seoul's call in late July to rewrite the guidelines to extend the maximum allowable payload of a ballistic missile with an 800 kilometers range from 500 kilograms to 1 ton.

"There was a consensus about launching negotiations in a prompt manner while speeding up working-level discussions to hold Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group talks regularly," the official told reporters after the meeting between Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Manila, the Philippines.

The official, who asked not to be named, accompanied Kang in the bilateral talks.

Current missile guidelines ban South Korea from developing ballistic missiles with a range of over 800 kilometers and a payload exceeding 500 kilograms. The Moon Jae-in administration has sought to double the payload weight limit following North Korea's test-launches of two intercontinental ballistic missiles in July.

Tillerson called on "enforcing" the new U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolution imposed as punishment for Pyongyang's ICBM tests, according to the official.

Kang and Tillerson assessed UNSC Resolution 2371, which was approved Saturday, as highly effective.

They also discussed other issues concerning security on the Korean Peninsula, such as Pyongyang's refusal to respond to Seoul's offer to resume military talks, July 21, and Red Cross talks, Aug. 1.

The ARF, an annual security forum, involves all six members of the dormant talks on Pyongyang's denuclearization _ the two Koreas, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia.

Kang met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi later Sunday and discussed the dispute over the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in South Korea.

Wang said he finds it regretful that the Moon government recently decided to have four additional THAAD launchers set up in addition to two launchers already deployed.

"President Moon has been courteous toward the Chinese side and this is a good start for bilateral relations," Wang said "But THAAD-related issues are something that we must point out regardless of the circumstances."












By Rachel Lee



The Embassy of Ecuador will introduce artist Miguel Betancourt at the exhibition "Ecuador Through my Dreams" at the Superior Gallery in Seoul from Aug.1-31.



The event is part of the country's 208th National Day celebration, according to the embassy.



It will feature 34 paintings that were part of the exhibition "Strokes and Transparencies" held in Beijing in March.



"Ecuador Through my Dreams is divided into five groups of paintings: trees, architecture, landscape, characters and assemblies," the embassy's third secretary Ana Diaz said.



"These artworks have been painted on different kinds of artisanal paper, among them rice paper."



The artist described the exhibition as combining new and old pieces with the purpose of exposing his career and technique's evolution.



Betancourt, born in Quito in 1958, studied painting at the Milwaukee Art Center in the United States. When he returned to Quito to finish his studies in pedagogy and liberal arts at the Catholic Pontifical University, he rediscovered his native Ecuador _ the presence of pre-Hispanic civilizations, the wealth of colonial architecture and the grandeur of the baroque churches of Quito. He saw anew the color of the Andes and the beauty of the Ecuadorian countryside.



Betancourt has received recognition, including the Pollock-Krasner Award in 1993, conferred by the Pollock-Krasner Foundation in New York.



Two of his paintings are part of the United Nations' art collections in Vienna and Geneva (UNIDO and UNAIDS). His artwork also can be found in private collections like: the Inter-American Development Bank (Tokyo), the Diners Club (Ecuador), Istituto Italo-Latino Americano (Rome), the Art Museum of the Americas, OEA (Washington, D.C.), the OPEC Fund for International Development (Vienna) and the Slade School of Fine Art (London).



The opening ceremony will take place on Aug. 10 as a tribute to the First Call for Independence on Aug. 10, 1809, in Quito.



"This historic event gave Ecuador the nickname of Luz de America' (Light of America) because this revolt inspired the eventual collapse of the Spanish crown in Latin America," the third secretary said.








By Rachel Lee

The high-level 2017 Korea-Latin America Future Cooperation forum was held in Seoul under the theme "Korea-Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) Cooperation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution Era" on July 28-30.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Korea International Trade Association organized the event. Executives, scholars, experts and senior officials from the two regions discussed ways to promote regional trade and cooperation in preparation for the Fourth Industrial Revolution era.

Costa Rica's Vice Minister of Economy, Industry and Commerce Carlos Mora Gomez also attended the event and presented on the strengths and challenges of his country, the Embassy of Costa Rica said. During the presentation, the minister highlighted Costa Rica's potential to attract foreign investment and promote commerce and establish itself as a strategic logistics hub.
By Rachel Lee

The Embassy of Oman hosted a photo exhibition to mark the 47th anniversary of Renaissance Day at the embassy in Seoul on July 25.

The exhibition featured 47 photos of the modern Renaissance and the heritage and tourist attractions of Oman.

Omani Ambassador Mohammed Alharthy said the event gave the public a chance to see the "external and internal architecture of the embassy and view glimpses of Oman" through various pictures and display items.

The embassy's museum showcases heritage items, pictures and manuscripts and paintings of Arabic calligraphy.

Tourist brochures and plastic fans with various pictures from Oman were distributed to visitors.
The property at 609 Morningside Ave. isnt any more damaged than the average foreclosure home her company buys, but Jennifer Derr of Remade Properties said she still expects the gut and remodel to take months.

Derrs company bought the property in May for $160,000, according to city documents. It was one of the last properties in Madison owned by Ray Peterson, who was ordered by a judge to relinquish his control of dozens of rental properties that had been deemed public nuisances.

Remade Properties buys, renovates and sells old properties, said Derr, who co-owns the business with her husband and brother-in-law.

Were going to turn (the building) into a single-family home and restore it to what it should have been, she said.

After the city of Madison won a 2015 lawsuit and a judge deemed the Morningside Avenue property and 44 others public nuisances, Peterson, 92, sold all of his rental properties.

The City Attorneys Office said Peterson has now sold all 48 properties he had owned in the city for a total of about $6.3 million, although the proceeds are subject to costs that the companies managing his properties have incurred in the interim.

Assistant City Attorney Jennifer Zilavy has worked diligently on this matter for over two years, City Attorney Michael May said. Bringing a matter of this complexity to a conclusion in that time frame took a lot of effort.

The city filed the public nuisance complaint against Peterson in October 2015, claiming that his properties had racked up more than 1,400 building code violations over the previous five years and more than $650,000 in accumulated judgments from building code prosecutions between May 2011 and June 2015.

Its because he didnt fix those properties that he had to pay so many fines, May said. It makes people wonder why he didnt use that money to pay for repairs, but that was his choice.

In June 2016, Dane County Circuit Judge Julie Genovese ordered Peterson to no longer manage or maintain any of his properties that were declared to be public nuisances. Genovese appointed Anchor Property Management as a receiver to bring the buildings up to code, and Peterson decided to sell the properties.

The first properties were sold in December 2015, and the final properties sold last month.

Peterson said Saturday an appeal is still pending and he hopes to get back some of the properties which he said were sold significantly below their value.

We lost over $2 million that we know of, Peterson said.

Peterson has maintained that he was unfairly targeted by city officials.

May said that having the properties sold will positively affect the neighborhoods and that the properties are more likely to be maintained by the new owners.

You had a landlord here who didnt want to take care of his properties, May said. It was only through this extra effort that we were able to get these results.
/ Yonhap



By Chyung Eun-ju, Park Si-soo



Three foreign workers were injured in a textile factory fire in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, according to firefighters Sunday.

The three -- two from Thailand and one from India -- had non-life-threatening burns, according to police and fire authorities.

The blaze was reported about 12:30 a.m. Fifty firefighters and 26 fire engines were dispatched. The fire was extinguished after an hour, leaving 230 million won ($204,000) damage.

An overheated dust collector is said to be the cause, but police have launched an investigation to verify this.
By Chyung Eun-ju, Park Si-soo



Two Vietnamese sailors jumped into the sea from a fishing vessel off Busan in what is considered an attempt to enter South Korea illegally, police said Sunday.

Police are searching for the sailors. Some investigators believe they have reached the Busan coast and holed up, while others say the escape failed.

The sailors' absence was reported at 5:20 a.m. Sunday. They were among 42 foreign sailors -- 11 Vietnamese, 18 Filipinos and 13 Indonesians -- on the 1,402-ton deep-sea fishing vessel that was passing close to a small island off Busan.

Many foreign sailors have vanished from their on-land dormitories or worksites to overstay their visas, but jumping from a moving ship is rare.
By Rachel Lee



Tension on the Korean Peninsula is expected to escalate this month following the United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) adoption of new sanctions on North Korea, Sunday.



There is speculation that Pyongyang is likely to conduct a sixth nuclear test or test-fire a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) in protest against the U.S.drafted resolution, which could cause a major conflict with Washington, which has taken a hard-line policy against Pyongyang.



The U.S. "is taking and will continue to take prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies" from the threat posed by the North, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley said after the vote.



Some observers say the situation on the Korean Peninsula is particularly urgent this month, with South Korea's annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG) joint exercise with the U.S. planned for later this month, and the North's possible additional military provocations on a national holiday it celebrates in September.



Pyongyang has accused Washington and Seoul of escalating tensions by conducting military drills, reacting with anger and missile provocations to such joint exercises, which it says are a rehearsal for an invasion of the North.



It is speculated that the Kim Jong-un regime may conduct more nuclear or ballistic missile tests to mark the 69th anniversary of the country's founding, Sept. 9.



However, there is the prospect that despite North Korea strongly opposing the new resolution, it could tip the scales, and make it seek a tactical way to take a soft line on relations with the South some time after the UFG exercise.



The new UNSC sanctions show that the international community, led by the U.S., has taken tougher, faster actions to deal with the North's accelerating nuclear development capabilities believed to have reached a critical point, observers say.



The UNSC adopted the resolution in a shorter period of time _ 33 days after the North conducted its ICBM test on July 4 _ than after the North's fourth nuclear test in January when it took 57 days to adopt a resolution and after its fifth nuclear test in September last year when it took 82 days.



The new sanctions are aimed at countering the threat posed by Pyongyang following two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests in July. It bans North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It has added nine individuals and four entities to a U.N. blacklist, including the North's primary foreign exchange bank.



Pyongyang has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006 over its ballistic missile and nuclear programs.








By Choi Ha-young





Ahn Cheol-soo Rep. Chun Jung-bae Rep. Chung Dong-young

The People's Party leadership race is being thrown into turmoil after two candidates  Reps. Chun Jung-bae and Chung Dong-young  openly criticized former party leader and presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo, Sunday.

Ahn unexpectedly announced his bid for the party chairmanship, Thursday, drawing harsh criticism from the other contenders and some party members.

The three candidates held separate press conferences to make their own cases.

Chun urged Ahn to withdraw from the leadership race, reiterating the former presidential candidate's responsibility for the defeat in the May presidential election.

"Ahn has the largest responsibility of any of the party members for the election defeat," the six-term lawmaker said. "His bid for the party chairmanship shows how he is shameless and ignores party members."

Chun, who represents a district in Gwangju, called on the party to respect the voters in the Jeolla provinces, the traditional stronghold of liberals, in which most of its lawmakers are based.

"Voters in the Jeolla provinces threw their full support for the People's Party in the general election last year, which made us the third largest party in the National Assembly," he said.

The message criticizes Ahn who has touted "radical centrism" for the party's future path, implying possible cooperation and an alliance with the minor conservative Bareun Party. For those from the Jeolla region, Ahn's call is a warning of a possible ouster of liberal members from the party, which may lead to its breakup.

Later in the afternoon, Rep. Chung also blasted Ahn, the co-founder of the party. "For the last year-and- a half, one person's shade has dominated the party. The People's Party is not a private group owned by a certain person. This was the fundamental reason for the fabrication scandal," Chung said.

In recent days, the minor liberal party has suffered from less than a 5 percent support rate, hit by the scandal in which some party members were arrested and indicted for fabricating voice recordings in a smear campaign against the then-leading presidential candidate Moon Jae-in. Ahn's associates were at the center of the scandal.

Chung, who is against Ahn's focus on centrism, urged the party take a decisive step toward a fundamental reform of the nation. "The People's Party should hit the vested interests of the family-run conglomerates, academics, media and the prosecution," he told reporters. The four-term lawmaker is also a bigwig elected from Jeonju, North Jeolla Province.

In response to the attacks, Ahn unfolded his renovation plan to rescue the scandal-hit party at a press conference on the same day. "The People's Party should be a small but strong opposition party. The ongoing leadership race is an opportunity to choose a chairman who can revamp the party under crisis," the entrepreneur-turned-politician said, rolling up his sleeves to reveal his determination.

He reiterated "pragmatism" to combat the ideological clash between the two major parties  the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and the conservative Liberty Korea Party. "The People's Party is widely recognized with our key slogan: conservative in national security, progressive in economics and reformist in politics," Ahn said.

He criticized his two rivals saying he does not intend to kindle an internal feud in the People's Party. After Ahn declared his bid Thursday in which he emphasized "radical centrism," he drew enormous criticism from party members based in the Jeolla provinces. Right after the announcement, two rival candidates backed by the region along with 12 lawmakers called for him to drop his bid.

Some senior politicians who follow ex-President Kim Dae-jung's legacy are joining hands to nullify Ahn's party membership.

Regionalism has been a source of conflict in the second-largest liberal party. The party is composed of liberals based in the Jeolla provinces; some politicians who broke away from the conservative bloc; and political rookies.
President should rethink policy to expand public sector jobs



Hundreds of students preparing to become elementary school teachers protested last week against the education authority's drastic cut in teaching staff recruitment in Seoul for next year.



The protest came after the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced that it would hire just 105 elementary school teachers for 2018, which is 88 percent less than the 846 teachers it hired for 2017. Nationally, 3,321 teachers will be recruited, 40.2 percent less than the 5,549 for this year. In less populous cities such as Gwangju, only five new teachers will be hired next year.



The plan to reduce teaching staff reflects the decrease in elementary school students due to the nation's falling birthrate. In addition, there are fewer teachers choosing to retire due to the bad economy, which makes it even more difficult for education offices to hire new teachers. There are already 3,817 graduates nationally who have passed the examination for teaching certificates but are still waiting to be hired.



The students are complaining that the government has failed to adjust its hiring policy of teachers to reflect the above factors. Seoul National University of Education and other universities have reduced their enrollment of education majors to prepare for the reduction in the student population. But the education ministry has not taken corresponding measures by reducing the number of teaching jobs gradually over the past few years.



This case should be a reminder to President Moon Jae-in that his policy to expand public sector jobs could result in serious consequences.



As a key policy to tackle unemployment, the President has said that he will aim to create 81,000 jobs in the public sector and hire 16,000 more teachers during his time in office. In schools alone, there is already a serious oversupply of teachers that has led to all kinds of problems and backlash from education majors.



If the government keeps pushing to hire excessively in other public corporations and agencies, it could lead to a similar problems, not to mention a waste of tax money on recruiting and retaining unnecessary positions. The government should be extremely careful about expanding the number of public sector jobs as such a move will continue to burden future governments and taxpayers.



Also, the government needs to consider that a simple cut in teaching staff recruitment is not the fundamental solution. The root cause lies in the fact that more young couples are avoiding having children. Even with one of the lowest birthrates in the world, the government lacks a sense of urgency and commitment in dealing with problems arising from the low rate. Instead the President has mentioned half-baked measures such as the "two teachers per class" program as a way to guarantee jobs for elementary education majors. Such a program will hamper the quality and consistency of teaching, which will only spur deep distrust from parents and students in public education.




Customers pack LINE Friends' flagship merchandise store in Times Square, New York, which opened on Tuesday. / Courtesy of LINE



By Lee Min-hyung

LINE, the Tokyo-based mobile messenger service operator, is accelerating its expansion into North America, tightening marketing activities by taking its mega-hit character brand there.

The top messenger app in major Southeast Asian countries has secured more than 500 million registered users. The chatting platform is particularly enjoying its leading status in Japan, Thailand and Indonesia.

LINE is also famous for a group of its in-app characters  including a bear and bunny. With their growing popularity, the company spun off the character brand  LINE Friends  into a separate entity in 2015, opening more than 80 character merchandise stores in 11 countries.

But the messenger has so far failed to expand its presence in the United States due to fierce rivalry from its North American counterpart WhatsApp from Facebook.

As part of its efforts to raise its global profile, LINE had a dual listing in New York and Tokyo in July of the previous year. The move came at a critical time when LINE needed to tackle its years-long tepid growth by finding new growth areas besides the existing revenue sources in Asia.

Marking the one-year anniversary of its initial public offering (IPO), the company opened its LINE Friends store at the world's busiest commercial district of Times Square in New York on Tuesday. This marked the first time an Asian character brand has opened a store there, LINE said.

By continuously enhancing its brand identity with the character sub-brand, the company hopes to attract more North American users. After securing a sizable number of users there, the company aims to launch a series of other mobile services in such areas as shopping, advertising and payment.

"The LINE Friends flagship store there has drawn more than 300,000 visitors since its pre-opening on July 21," a LINE official said. "The opening of the New York store is expected to speed up our expansion onto the global stage, helping us extend our winning streak beyond major Asian markets."

LINE has also established a large light-emitting-diode (LED) digital sign outside the 430-square-meter store, which the firm believes will help form a strong brand identity for Americans.

"The opening of the flagship store is our first step to boost our global expansion especially into the American market," the company official said. "This is noteworthy, as the LINE Friends characters originated from digital media, not from movies or TV."

LINE generated 14.6 billion yen ($131.79 million) in second-quarter operating profit, up 82.6 percent from a year ago. But the earnings failed to meet expectations when excluding a one-time profit from the SNOW video messaging app. In May, their parent company, Naver, realigned business structures for its subsidiaries by incorporating SNOW into LINE.
International consensus should be reached to minimize AI divide'

By Lee Min-hyung

Not everyone is optimistic over the future of artificial intelligence (AI), as the technology is still of minimal use because of a lack of datasets.

Experts are also poles apart on whether the data-driven tech area will pose more of a threat to people, rather than making their lives more convenient in many different ways.

Some AI optimists say it will do more good in areas such as medical science and traffic safety.

Others counter the claim, arguing that ill-used or hacked datasets can bring an astronomical impact that could instantly offset all the upsides of AI.

The latest in a series of AI conflicts came last week when two tech magnates  Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg  waged a war of words over the upcoming AI era.

Musk is wary of AI development and calls for people to come up with proactive regulatory measures, as it can one day overtake its human creators.

But the Facebook founder opposed the idea, calling AI naysayers "irresponsible," as it is already making the world a better and safer place by helping humans in medical diagnosis and treatment.

This has raised a heated debate online, as no expert can reach a conclusion over the hot potato, as AI is still in its infancy.

But a more cautious and careful step should be taken when it comes to AI research and its commercialization, so that fewer people fall victim to potential side effects that can arise over the course of its development, according to experts here, Sunday.

"Any technologies  once developed by people  are irreversible and always moves forward," said Lee Soon-seok, a senior researcher and executive director at the communication strategy department at the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI).

"This means AI is an unavoidable trend, and therefore, each country should reach a consensus over ways to minimize the AI divide," he said. "This is crucial, as people's personal lives will be more vulnerable to continuous threats over online hacking in the hyper-connected era."

But the researcher at the nation's leading telecom research organization underlined the importance of focusing more on the upsides of AI.

"While robots or AI focus on physical and one-dimensional activities, people can spare more time on more delicate and non-material workloads that computerized systems cannot duplicate," he said.

The researcher said many people are concerned about the upcoming artificial general intelligence (AGI) era, an advanced level of existing AI bots, which can perform most of intellectual activities that people do, regardless of restricted fields.

"But it will take enormous amount of time for the AI to learn all human knowledge structures, and much more time will be required for the computerized system to be able to have an ability to develop them by itself."

Jung Han-min, a professor at the University of Science and Technology (UST), also concurred that it is almost impossible for any governments to put a brake on the current AI-driven tech development despite lingering concerns over its negative impacts on people's lives.

"The primary goal of the ongoing corporate-level AI research is on minimizing labor forces and maximizing production efficiency," he said, citing examples of smart factories of Siemens and Adidas.

Siemens' manufacturing facility in Amberg, Germany, has particularly drawn the spotlight as a successful example of the AI-driven smart factory. The Amberg plant uses the firm's automated machines to manufacture customized products without a human workforce.

"Companies seek to maximize profits, for which AI is serving as a key building block now," he said. For this reason, even if a government implements any regulatory measures against commercial AI players, it would invite a strong backlash from them, he said. At the moment, there is no specific middle ground for both sides to reach a consensus over the future of AI, according to him.

"We need to take a more balanced and careful step toward the AI development," he said. "For those who are at the risk of losing their jobs, AI is something that poses a threat, but companies  such as Google, Amazon and local AI players Naver and Kakao  view the technology as a major growth area that can diversify their revenue streams," he said. "For this reason, no one can say for sure whether AI will become a destroyer of people," according to the expert.
A college student volunteer of SK Group plays with a child suffering from a facial deformity at a hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Friday. / Courtesy of SK Group



By Lee Min-hyung

SK Group has offered free surgery for Vietnamese children with facial deformities as part of its efforts to become a socially responsible company fulfilling cross-border corporate citizenship.

Under the slogan "Smile for Children," Korea's third-largest conglomerate has conducted its corporate social responsibility program in Vietnam for 22 years, paying for the surgery for more than 3,800 children.

The 22nd campaign came last week when a group of company officials and a Korean medical team  led by Seoul National University professor Baek Rong-min  visited a hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, providing surgical care for 152 children with facial deformities.

This is SK's group-wide commitment to give back to global communities by expanding its CSR activities into more countries.

SK Group executives and employees also participated in the CSR program, teaming with SK Sunny, a group of college student volunteers working with the children during their post-surgery care.

Besides the costs of the surgery, the company has donated surgical equipment and medicine. Officials from the company's construction arm, SK Engineering & Construction, have sent handmade fans and eco-friendly bags to the children. The college student volunteers focused on helping the children stabilize their emotions before and after their surgery.

"We will continue to perform more cross-border CSR campaigns and serve as a bridge to enhance ties between Korea and Vietnam," a company official said.

The company began the program in 1996, expanding the number of beneficiaries of the surgery each year. These CSR activities drew attention in 2009 when SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won visited Vietnam to share his words of encouragement with the Vietnamese children and express his gratitude to the corporate volunteer team.

The SK chief is widely known for stressing the importance of CSR, calling for more companies to dedicate themselves to the protection of the environment and community improvement programs.

Under his leadership, SK Group has also highlighted the need to generate social values beyond conventional CSR activities.

For instance, the company pledged to expand its partnership with small companies here, focusing on resolving social issues and creating more value for society. In April, SK provided 4.8 billion won ($4.2 million) to 93 social firms here. The company estimates the money generated more than 20 billion won in social value.

Chey is best known here as a strong supporter of social enterprises. In a recent meeting with President Moon Jae-in, he pledged to support 200 enterprises that could have positive social effects in creating jobs.
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Welcome to Illinois, the cookie crumb state!

If were lucky, were the spillover state!

Illinois, where we survive on economic scraps!

Shrewder states, send us your leftovers!

Ugh. Were trying out unsatisfying slogans now that Foxconn, the Taiwanese tech giant, has picked southeast Wisconsin as home for a $10 billion investment. Foxconns new LCD panel plant eventually may employ 13,000 people. President Donald Trump says the companys U.S. investment could hit $30 billion.

Foxconn considered Illinois and elsewhere before settling on a site just up the road and across the state line.

The alleged saving grace for dysfunctional and anti-employer Illinois is that this state will get ancillary benefits from its proximity to Wisconsin: Some Foxconn jobs may go to Illinois commuters, while some Illinois businesses should pick up work as suppliers and contractors. ...There would absolutely be great spillover opportunities, Kevin Considine, president and CEO of Lake County Partners, a nonprofit economic development organization, told the Tribune. A plant like that will have lots of multiplier effects. It will bring supply chain companies with it, so other companies will set up near it and around it, similar to what happens in automotive.

True enough. Yet not nearly good enough for struggling Illinois, which has squandered its reputation as a great place to do business and hire workers. Chicago is vibrant, but the statewide economy is severely hobbled in its ability to attract new investment. Among the reasons: Illinois calamitous fiscal condition, anti-business regulations and rapacious tax policies.

The beauty contest Foxconn ran to pick a location isnt a death knell for Illinois. We dont know all the factors that went into the companys decision. Wisconsin is offering a treasure trove of financial incentives worth $3 billion that Illinois may not have been able or willing to provide. Weve always felt state and local governments are too quick to give up tax revenue and other benefits to woo jobs, though there are circumstances that justify providing perks  especially infrastructure.

The point of focusing on Foxconn is to warn that as other Midwest states move their economies forward, Illinois falls further behind, hobbled by bad fundamentals: Illinois government admits to $130 billion in unfunded pension obligations (Moodys Investors Service says the true total is nearly double that); a bond rating just above junk status; and a stalemate between Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and the Democrat-controlled legislature over Rauners proposals to make the state more employer-friendly.

And legislators just raised the individual income tax rate by 32 percent over Rauners veto. ..., which says a lot about the Democrats priorities. If youre running a business, do you run to Illinois so you can pay reparations for these decades of mismanagement? Or do you run away?

The worst of it is that Illinois should be booming. This state, an agriculture and manufacturing center, has a crossroads location and is home to a great metropolis, excellent universities and a highly trained workforce. Yet Illinois is an economic laggard. From 2006-2016, as the nation generated a 1.3 percent average annual growth rate, Illinois growth was an even shabbier 0.4 percent, according to James Broughel of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. The growth rate in Wisconsin was 0.7 percent and in Indiana 0.9 percent. Even those small differences translate into jobs....

Why the miserable Illinois performance? Heres one reason Broughel and his colleagues cite: Illinois saddles businesses and individuals with an onerous level of regulations  in some cases twice as demanding as those of similar states. The researchers used software to analyze legal text and identify words and phrases such as shall, may not and prohibited, which signify obligations and requirements. Broughel tells us Illinois has about 260,000 regulatory restrictions in its code, compared to a preliminary count of 160,000 for Wisconsin.

Thats 100,000 reasons for Foxconn and every other employer to conclude that Wisconsin has a friendlier business climate than Illinois.

Is that why Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou selected Wisconsin over Illinois? Or was it the pension debt here? The lousy credit ratings impact on government costs (and taxes)? ... The Springfield opposition that thwarts this governors efforts to improve the business climate? The gridlocked major fixes to Illinois workers compensation system? We dont know.
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...

4 weeks ago
A brush fire near Lake Isabella in Kern County on Saturday destroyed five homes and forced the mandatory evacuation of hundreds of residents in the hillside community.

The Calgary fire erupted about 1:30 p.m. near Dollar Street and Old State Road in Wofford Heights, which is on the northwest side of the lake, authorities said.

Dozens of Kern County and U.S. Forest firefighters are battling the blaze, which is continuing to threaten homes. An evacuation center has been set up at the Kern River Valley Senior Citizens Center.

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There is 45% contained, authorities said.

Saturday evening about a dozen area residents parked their vehicles off Wofford Boulevard and Evans Road to watch plumes of smoke, awaiting news from officials as water-dropping helicopters hovered above. Some witnesses lived along Evans Road near the fire.

Ron Ellickson said his family first noticed the smoke while driving back from a vacation in San Diego. He said he bought his home 13 years ago in Pala Ranches in northwest Wofford Heights before retiring there a couple years ago.

Im questioning my move up here, he said.

Jackie Weser, 23, said she was at a friends house when she began receiving text messages about the fire. She and her friend ran to Wesers house about a mile away, hosed down the structure and unsuccessfully tried to persuade her mother to leave. The home has been in the family for three generations.

She aint leaving now, Weser said. Shes stubborn.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

But fire officials are looking for a person of interest who was described as a woman driving a vehicle without tires.

meg.bernhard@latimes.com

cindy.carcamo@latimes.com

Bernhard reported from Wofford Heights and Carcamo from Los Angeles.

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This article was orginally posted at 6:30 p.m.
Authorities are investigating the fatal shooting of two people at a Compton motel Saturday, officials said.

Los Angeles County sheriffs deputies responded to a call of shots fired at the Travel Plaza Inn in the 1100 block of South Long Beach Boulevard, said Sgt. James Rewald of the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department.

Two gunshot victims, who have not been identified, were found at the scene.

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No arrests have been made.

Based on information from witnesses, authorities are searching for more than one suspect in the shootings, Rewald said.

cindy.carcamo@latimes.com

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There was celebration in the air. Anxiety, too.

About 60 people who came to San Diego from Somalia  refugees, immigrants, naturalized citizens  gathered in a conference room in City Heights for their weekly meeting. Its an opportunity to work out problems, strengthen community bonds, share food. This time, Friday morning, they applauded those among them who had just completed a six-month program to learn how to read and write English.

And they worried.

Two days earlier, President Trump had endorsed a radical shift in the nations immigration policy. The bill would eventually cut in half the number of legal immigrants allowed into the country every year, currently more than 1 million, and it would take a decades-old system that favors family ties and turn it into one that is merit-based, giving preference to those with college degrees, job skills and the ability to speak English.

This legislation will not only restore our competitive edge in the 21st century, but it will restore the sacred bonds of trust between America and its citizens, Trump said at the White House. This legislation demonstrates our compassion for struggling American families who deserve an immigration system that puts their needs first and that puts America first.

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Almost immediately, critics on both sides of the political aisle found fault with the plan and gave it little chance of passage. They disputed the claims that low-skilled immigrants are taking jobs from Americans and driving down wages, and they said the new restrictions would hurt the economy by shrinking the number of foreign-born workers at a time when the native population is decreasing.

To the Somalis gathered in City Heights, the new proposal felt mostly like more of the same. Trump made immigration reform a centerpiece of his presidential campaign, and since taking office in January hes moved to build a wall on the Mexican border, increase deportations, stem the influx of refugees and curtail visitors from certain Muslim-majority countries.

What hes telling us is were not welcome here, said Said Osman Abiyow, 34, president of the Somali Bantu Assn. of America, an aid organization he founded after arriving in 2003. This is not what America stands for around the world, where it has a great reputation as a place of freedom and peace.

Like many others in the room, Abiyow has relatives in Somalia he would like one day to bring to the United States. Now a U.S. citizen, hes hoping his sister can join him. But he said shes been caught up in the ban the administration put in place for newcomers from six predominantly Muslim countries (Somalia, Sudan, Libya, Iran, Syria and Yemen). He doesnt know when she might be allowed to come.

If the proposed changes go through, maybe never.

There were 44.7 million immigrants living in the United States in 2015 (the most recent year for which numbers are available), which was 13.4% of the U.S. population, according to the Pew Research Center. An estimated 11 million of those are believed to be here illegally. In San Diego County, Health and Human Services Agency figures show about 21.5% of the population is immigrants.

Under current policy, American citizens and permanent residents can sponsor spouses, minor children and parents for an unlimited number of green cards, and siblings and adult children for a limited number of visas. Thats how most lawful immigrants arrive here. In fiscal year 2015, for example, about 65% of the green cards went to relatives.

The new bill, sponsored by Republican Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and David Perdue of Georgia, would still allow the spouses and minor children of U.S. citizens and permanent residents to come in, but it would end the preferences for siblings and adult children.

That left San Diego newcomer Rukiya Bare concerned during Fridays weekly meeting of the Somalis.

She came here with her husband and four children 10 months ago. But their 25-year-old daughter, Natesho, had to stay behind. Now shes trying to join the family and is currently in Saudi Arabia, Bare said. When her three-month visa there expires, shell have to leave the country or risk jail.

I worry about her all the time, Bare said through an interpreter. At night, during the day  it hurts my heart, the stress of not having her with us.

Several of the Somalis said they came to the U.S. because of the immigration-policy emphasis on family unity. The Somalis are a tightknit group (there were 3,534 in the county in 2015) and family connections can be crucial to helping them survive in new surroundings, Abiyow said.

Sado Moh, 29, misses her mother. Moh arrived in San Diego four months ago after spending 10 years in a refugee camp and is hoping her mother, father and four siblings will be able to come, too. That was already uncertain because of the other immigration initiatives pursued by the Trump administration, she said, and the latest proposal seems to her the most threatening yet. It would cap the number of refugees admitted annually at 50,000, about half of what it has been.

I ran away from civil war and came here to build a new life, Moh said through an interpreter. But without my family, what I feel mostly is lonely. I want them to come here and have the same chance for a new life. Then I will be happy.

Lawful immigrants are more likely to be of working age (18 to 64) than native-born U.S. citizens, according to Pew  76% compared with 60%.

The occupation with the largest percentage of immigrant workers, about 20%, is farming, fishing and forestry. Many of those workers are drawn to San Diego County, which has more than 5,700 small family farms (most of them less than 10 acres). Nationwide, the county is first in avocado and nursery-crop production; third in honey production; fifth in lemons; and ninth in strawberries.

About 11,000 people are employed as farmworkers in the county, and most are immigrants  a mixture of people who are here both legally and illegally.

Under the new immigration legislation, preference for green cards would be determined by a point system for attributes like education, English-language ability, high-paying job offers, entrepreneurial initiative and achievements (such as a Nobel Prize). Although that would seem to suggest limited opportunities for farmworkers, supporters of the bill said it will help bring up wages, perhaps making the jobs more attractive to native-born workers.

Wilkens writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.

john.wilkens@sduniontribune.com
Organizers and supporters of a 72-hour Baltimore cease-fire initiative marched and prayed Saturday, even as they acknowledged that their fervent pleas for peace could not halt the relentless pace of shootings and killings in the city.

On the second day of a community initiative aimed at stopping  or at least slowing  gun violence, Baltimoreans held vigils, cookouts and other events. Some stood on corners with signs reading Baltimore Ceasefire or Free hugs.

But even as cease-fire events continued late Saturday afternoon, police reported two shootings, one of them fatal. A 24-year-old man was shot in the Pigtown neighborhood around 5 p.m. Saturday and pronounced dead at the Maryland Shock Trauma Center.

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Earlier, cease-fire participants had said the goal was to help unify the city.

This is to let the people in the community know that theres hope, said Tyrone Boyette, who was part of a somber walk in which participants stopped at each of the sites in a West Baltimore neighborhood where 11 men were killed in recent months.

We know its not going to stop the murders, but its a start, Boyette said. If we can get more people involved and we can start having stuff for younger people to do, thats how were going to stop the people from killing each other.

Boyette was joined by about 150 people in the neighborhood surrounding Frederick Douglass High School and Mondawmin Mall, where police and some residents had squared off in 2015 after the death of Freddie Gray. Gray died of injuries suffered while in police custody. Organizers of this weekends events picked the area in part because it became part of the citys public profile during the riots.

At the site of each killing, the Rev. Scott Slater  who works with the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland  announced the name of the victim, the date of his death and his age.

Eternal rest grant to him, O Lord, Slater would say in prayer at each stop, replacing the him with the names of recent victims, who were as young as 18.

And let perpetual light shine upon him, the marchers would answer back.

The sites were so close together that the group often walked just a block or so to get from one to the next.

Baltimore communities have long held events to memorialize and call attention to shooting victims. At the beginning of each year, an organization called Mothers of Murdered Sons and Daughters United holds a public meeting and reads aloud the names of every person killed in the city in the previous year.

The cease-fire initiative came from Erricka Bridgeford, 44, and other community leaders who created a blunt message: Nobody kill anybody. By the end of July, violence had already resulted in a record 204 homicides in the city.

The Baltimore Ceasefire was not declared by any one organization, organizers wrote on their website. This ceasefire is the product of Baltimore residents not only being exhausted by homicides, but believing that Baltimore can have a murder-free weekend if everyone takes responsibility.

A number of groups were represented Saturday. They included Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland and Marylanders to Prevent Gun Violence. Some elected officials also participated.

Its solemn, said Shelly Hettleman, a state lawmaker from Baltimore County, who joined the marchers on the clear, unseasonably cool morning. I mean, its shocking when youre standing in the area where you know someone lost their life.

You look around, and there are some boarded-up houses. But then in another house, there are men and women sitting on the stoop and you realize this is their neighborhood and their community. And its really important for them to know that outside of their immediate community, that people are focused and care a lot about what happens here.

Police were searching Saturday for witnesses after the fatal shooting. Officials said the victim in the nonfatal shooting in the Park Heights neighborhood was a 22-year-old man who showed up at a hospital with a wound to the arm.

More cease-fire activities were scheduled for Sunday, including church events and a peace walk and vigil.

Its sad that sometimes you get used to doing causes like this, Boyette said. But the more people that participate, the less people that are out there committing a crime.

Barker writes for the Baltimore Sun.

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Bombing of a Minnesota mosque leaves Muslims concerned

No, this isnt the first time the majority of students admitted by Harvard University arent white
Terror tore through a suburban Minneapolis community on Saturday after the bombing of a mosque, amplifying growing concerns among some Muslims who have felt targeted nationwide in recent months.

Law enforcement officials said the explosion occurred around 5 a.m. at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, Minn., a suburb of Minneapolis. Fire and smoke engulfed much of the red-brick structure, but there were no injuries.

The FBI is leading the ongoing investigation, along with local law enforcement. Authorities say they believe an improvised explosive device  also known as an IED  was to blame for the blast at the mosque, which primarily serves the areas large Somali community.

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Mohamed Omar, who has been executive director of the mosque for two years, said Saturday that he was relieved no one was hurt.

Its sad and just an inhumane act, Omar said in a telephone interview. There is too much anger out here.

He said a handful of people were inside the mosque for morning prayers and that many in the Muslim community remained shaken.

We must work to find who did this, he said.

The explosion in Minnesota, which authorities had not yet labeled a hate crime, occurred at a time when studies have shown an uptick in violence against Muslims, and as vitriolic rallies targeting Islam have popped up across the country. Muslims make up about 1% of the population in the United States  or about 3.35 million people  and are one of the fastest-growing religious minorities, according to the Pew Research Center.

Last month, Pew released a survey that showed 48% of Muslims said they had faced some form of discrimination in the last year, such as name-calling or threats. The survey, which questioned about 1,000 U.S. Muslims from January through May, also found that 74% viewed President Trump as unfriendly.

During the presidential campaign Trump called for a complete ban on Muslims entering the United States after a terrorist attack in San Bernardino, Calif., carried out by a married couple who were inspired by Islamic State terrorists. More recently, Trump issued an executive order banning travel from six majority- Muslim countries, an effort that has led to legal wrangling and is headed to the Supreme Court. (The Trump administration has said the ban is needed to keep Americans safe.)

The survey from Pew found overwhelmingly negative views among American Muslims toward Islamic extremism, with more than 4 in 5 describing it as a threat to the world.

While many Muslims voiced concerns in the Pew survey, nearly 84% categorized Americans in general as friendly. Moreover, more than 6 in 10 U.S. Muslims polled said they believed Islam was still not viewed by others as part of the countrys mainstream. Even so, an overwhelming majority said they were proud to be both Americans and Muslims, and a large majority saw no clash between Islam and democracy,

Its sad and just an inhumane act. There is too much anger out here.  Mohamed Omar, executive director of the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, Minn.

On Saturday, as police continued to investigate the bombing at the Minnesota mosque, Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, called on Trump to condemn the attack. The White House did not release a statement and did not respond to a request for comment.

Silence on the part of public officials at the national level only serves to empower Islamophobes, Hooper said in a statement. His group has put up a $10,000 reward for information on a suspect associated with the Minnesota attack.

In the spring, CAIR released a report that documented a 57% increase in anti-Muslim incidents last year compared with 2015. To produce the report CAIR investigated thousands of calls and emails made to dozens of its offices around the U.S. and reviewed data from national and local media reports. The process included interviews with witnesses and police. So far this year, mosques in Florida, Texas and Washington state have been set on fire in incidents that stoked fear among Muslims.

Recently protesters have taken to the streets to speak publicly on their concerns about Islam.

In June, a wave of so-called anti-Sharia law activists demonstrated nationwide, but were met by counter-protesters who assailed their rhetoric as insensitive and demeaning. Sharia law is a philosophical code derived from Islamic scripture and meant to guide observant Muslims. In addition to civil and criminal law, it prescribes a wide range of faith practices, such as abstaining from alcohol and praying five times a day.

We have to protect America, our citizens and our way of life, Lila Mercer, 49, told The Times in June.

Sharia law does not belong in America, added Mercer, an assistant manager for a big-rig dealership who protested in Atlanta.

At the mosque in Minnesota on Saturday, many were just seeking answers to what had occurred.

Yasir Abdalrahman, a worshiper at the mosque, told the Associated Press the explosion was unimaginable.

We came to this country for the same reason everyone else came here: freedom to worship, Abdalrahman said. And that freedom is under threat. Every other American should be insulted by this.

For Omar, who spent much of the day speaking to law enforcement officers and trying to console members of his mosque, hate is not something he fears.

This is challenging, he said, but we will be OK. We will.

kurtis.lee@latimes.com

Twitter: @kurtisalee

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Tough new sanctions approved by U.N. could cost North Korea $1 billion

UPDATES:

5:45 p.m.: This article was updated throughout with additional details and reporting from Times staff.

This article was originally published at 1:35 p.m.
The U.N. Security Council on Saturday unanimously approved a sanctions resolution that the United States said was the strictest imposed on any country in a generation, banning North Korea from exporting many of its most lucrative products, ranging from coal to iron ore to seafood and even some of its artwork.

The tough new sanctions would slice $1 billion from North Koreas total annual exports of $3 billion, the State Department said.

This resolution is the single largest economic sanctions package ever leveled against the North Korean regime, said United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley. This is the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation.

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The U.S.-drafted resolution has been in the works since July 4, when North Korea tested an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching Alaska. That was followed up by another test July 28, which helped the United States persuade China and Russia, North Koreas traditional allies, to overcome their opposition to the resolution.

President Trump, whose administration has been struggling on how to respond to North Koreas recent actions, signaled his approval on Twitter. The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!

The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2017

Trump has been at odds with China and Russia on a variety of issues, but on Saturday night the White House released a statement saying that the president appreciates Chinas and Russias cooperation in securing passage of this resolution. He will continue working with allies and partners to increase diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea to end its threatening and destabilizing behavior.

If enforced, the biggest financial hit of the resolution will be the ban on coal, which alone brings in more than $400 million in revenue for Kim Jong Uns government. The ban on the export of seafood, prized in Asia because of the relatively clean North Korean waters, will trim an additional $300 million from the countrys exports, according to the State Department.

The resolution also sets a cap on the number of North Korean guest workers abroad, a figure estimated to be at least 50,000  with their salaries almost entirely paid to the government. And the resolution freezes the assets of the Mansudae Art Studio, which has been building Soviet-style statues and monuments for dictatorial governments around the world, mostly in Africa.

Another key measure is that the resolution slapped an asset freeze on the Foreign Trade Bank, North Koreas primary bank for foreign currency exchange  something that the United States has long demanded.

The resolution will also allow the U.N. to ban specific vessels that are breaking sanctions from entering ports all over the world.

This is the eighth time since 2006 that the U.N. Security Council has adopted a resolution in response to North Koreas nuclear and missile tests. Frustrated North Korea analysts were dubious that this latest measure would halt Pyongyangs juggernaut toward the development of a workable nuclear warhead.

Objections by China and Russia led the resolution drafters to remove a clause that would have barred imports of fuel oil to North Korea. And more important, the resolution didnt impose sanctions on the Chinese companies and individuals who have helped North Korea evade sanctions.

The bottom line is that its the same old thing. It is not going to get implemented, said a U.N. official who asked not to be quoted by name given the sensitivity of the issue.

While the restrictions seem tough on the surface, they rely on the Chinese and Russians to enforce them, said Anthony Ruggiero, an analyst for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He said the resolution might actually be counterproductive in that it will allow China and Russia to claim they are cooperating in efforts to rein in North Korea.

The U.S. government had been moving towards sanctioning Chinese companies and individuals, but they have backed away from that, said Ruggiero. I fear people in the Trump administration will now say, Well, we cant do anything more because we have to give the Chinese the chance to implement the new resolution.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Tuesday before leaving for a trip to Asia that the United States isnt trying to overthrow Kim, but hopes sanctions will serve as peaceful pressure to bring his government to negotiations.

Were trying to convey to the North Koreans we are not your enemy, we are not your threat, he added. But you are presenting an unacceptable threat to us, and we have to respond.

Kim, one of the youngest world leaders, took over with the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, in 2011, and has since accelerated the pace of missile and nuclear tests. In its official statements, North Korea has said it needs nuclear weapons to prevent Kim from being overthrown by the West in the manner of Iraqs Saddam Hussein and Libyas Moammar Kadafi.

The resolution Saturday said that the United Nations regrets North Koreas massive diversion of its scarce resources toward its development of nuclear weapons and a number of expensive ballistic missile programs while over half of the people in the country suffer from major insecurities in food and medical care.

By Sunday afternoon in Pyongyang, the North Korean government had not responded publicly on the U.N.s action.

But a week earlier, the government offered a damning comment after Trump signed a bill that imposed economic sanctions on North Korea, Iran and Russia. The official Korean Central News Agency quoted an unnamed official with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who said, The act of the U.S., which is so fond of rigging up sanctions law and brandishing the sanctions club against other sovereign states, is no better than a hooligan which cannot be allowed by international law as well.

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UPDATES:

9:15 p.m.: This article was updated with a statement from the White House.

8:45 p.m.: This article was updated to note comments by the North Korean government about economic sanctions imposed on the country in the past.

5:55 p.m.: This article was updated with a different response from President Trump.

5:50 p.m.: This article was updated throughout with additional background information and quotes from President Trump, Anthony Ruggiero and Rex Tillerson.

This article was originally published at 1:35 p.m.
Hes been in office for more than six months, but it often seems hes still campaigning.

Thats because President Trump , who in recent weeks has used speeches before the Boy Scouts of America and police officers to deliver overtly political remarks at nonpolitical events, continues to be consumed by the same issues.

On social media, during interviews, while speaking before Cabinet members, Trump homes in  obsessively  on a handful of topics and people.

Will that change? Well, at least for now, it seems unlikely.

Here are seven topics and his remarks in recent months.

President Obama

President Obama and then-President-elect Donald Trump shake hands following a meeting in the Oval Office in November. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press) (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP)

Even before Trump entered the presidential race , he regularly castigated Obamas leadership and floated falsehoods about Obamas background. In 2011, Trump was a vocal spokesman for the fringe conservative "birther" movement, raising questions in television interviews and on social media about whether the nation's first black president was born in Kenya. Many viewed Trump's rhetoric as racially charged.

Now, in office, Trump has jabbed the former president for, among other things, healthcare and trade. Hes also alleged Obama wiretapped his Trump Tower phones last year.

In his words:

Loyalty

Former FBI Director James Comey is sworn in during a hearing before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence in June. (Alex Brandon / Associated Press) (Alex Brandon / AP)

Its what Trump commanded as a businessman and a reality television star, and has now transferred to his administration. When he views people as disloyal, its simple: Theyre fired.

In May, Trump fired FBI Director James B. Comey because, he said, Comey was not doing a good job. But weeks later, Comey offered written testimony to a Senate panel, which noted that Trump had asked him for loyalty  something Comey, as head of the law enforcement agency, said he could not give the president.

I need loyalty, I expect loyalty, Trump told Comey, according to written testimony penned by the former FBI director. Trump has denied he asked Comey for loyalty.

In his words:

As scout law says, a scout is trustworthy, loyal, Trump said in a speech before the Boy Scouts of America last month. We could use some more loyalty, I will tell you that.

Election win

Donald Trump delivers his acceptance speech at the New York Hilton Midtown on election night in November. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images) (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

Indeed, as many political observers have said, Trumps victory over Hillary Clinton was remarkable. He appealed widely to working-class white voters with a populist message focused on trade, jobs and immigration. States such as Wisconsin and Ohio  which Obama won in 2008 and 2012  flipped for Trump. (Even though Trump won the electoral college, he lost the popular vote to Clinton by about 3 million votes.)

In recent months, while talking to lawmakers and during interviews, hes brought up his electoral college victory.

In his words:

We won and won.  They said, there is no way to victory; there is no way to 270, Trump said before the Boy Scouts. But then Wisconsin came in. ...Michigan came in.

Russia

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and President Trump talk on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit meeting in July in Hamburg, Germany. (Klimentyev Mikhail / Tass/ TNS) (Klimentyev Mikhail/Tass / TNS)

Trump has denied his campaign colluded with Russians during the 2016 election. In May, the Department of Justice appointed Robert S. Mueller to head an independent investigation into Trumps campaign and Russia. Even with the investigation underway, Trump regularly talks about Russia, sometimes unprompted by questions.

In his words:

Fake news

President Trump boasts about his election victory and attacks journalists at a news conference in February. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press) (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP)

If Trump does not like a story, hell usually label it fake news. Trumps Cabinet members and allies outside the White House have regularly called critical stories fake news, taking a page from the presidents playbook.

For Trump, questions surrounding his campaigns possible collusion with Russians during last years election are fake news. Some of his favorite targets when assailing so-called fake news media have been the New York Times, the Washington Post and CNN. Check Trumps Twitter feed every couple of days, and youll likely see the phrase.

In his words:

Hillary Clinton

Hillary Clinton, who lost the presidential race last fall, has consistently been the focus of President Trumps attention. (Mary Altaffer / Associated Press) (Mary Altaffer / Associated Press)

Throughout the campaign Trump and Clinton traded vitriolic barbs that, at times, became extremely personal. But for Trump, the emails Clinton deleted from a personal server while secretary of State has been his main focus. He would talk about them at great length, eliciting booming shouts of lock her up from supporters at his rallies. After the election, Trump said he did not want his administration to investigate Clinton. However, in recent weeks, Trump has changed his rhetoric as questions about his campaigns potential ties with Russia continue to cloud his administration.

In his words:

Crowd size

President-elect Donald Trump arrives during the 58th presidential inauguration at the U.S. Capitol. (Carolyn Kaster / Associated Press) (Carolyn Kaster / AP)

On the campaign trail, Trump often boasted about the size of his crowds. Hed also assail the fake news media for not panning cameras to show the full size of the crowds. Days after Trumps inauguration, his then-press secretary, Sean Spicer, said it was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration  period. (PolitiFact gave the comment a pants on fire, and labeled it as false.)

Although Trump has been in the Oval Office about six months, hes already preparing for the 2020 election. Hes held several rallies  funded by his campaign  in recent months, most of the time reminiscing about his 2016 election win. In those speeches, similar to the campaign, hes also castigated the media for not showing his crowds.

In his words:

I'm waving to people back there so small I can't even see them. Man, this is a lot of people. Turn those cameras back there, please. That is so incredible, he said while speaking to the Boy Scouts at their annual jamboree, which often draws thousands. By the way, what do you think the chances are that this incredible massive crowd, record setting, is going to be shown on television tonight? One percent or zero?

kurtis.lee@latimes.com

Twitter: @kurtisalee

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Heres an international crisis you can, unusually, put on your calendar ahead of time: In October, President Trump wants to declare Iran in violation of the 2015 agreement to limit its nuclear program  a decision that would allow the United States to reimpose tough economic sanctions on anyone trading with Tehran.

Its a bad idea. The nuclear deal isnt perfect  it doesnt end Irans nuclear research, only limits it for a period of years  but its much better than nothing. Before the agreement, Tehran was believed to be less than a year from making nuclear weapons that would have threatened Israel and Saudi Arabia. Thanks to the accord, that doomsday problem has at least been postponed.

That hasnt stopped Trump from calling the pact the worst deal ever and ordering aides to supply him with evidence that will allow him to declare it invalid. The most likely moment for his decision will come in October, the next time he is required to notify Congress whether Iran is in compliance.

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If it was up to me, I would have had them noncompliant 180 days ago, Trump told the Wall Street Journal last month. Next time, he added, I do not expect that they will be compliant.

[Trump] ordered his staff to begin work on a new study  one that will supply him with the excuses he needs.

The president didnt offer any substantive reason to declare Iran out of compliance with the deal  because there isnt one. His own aides told him last month that, while Iran has tested the edges of the agreement, none of its actions was a material breach, the legal standard that would allow sanctions to snap back.

When Trump was warned that he couldnt simply walk away from the deal, he had a bit of a meltdown, an official told the New York Times. He chewed out the secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, who apparently brought him the bad news. And he ordered his staff to begin work on a new study  one that will supply him with the excuses he needs.

Thats an Alice-in-Wonderland approach to foreign policy: Verdict first, evidence later. And its not likely to work.

No matter what the president thinks, the facts will get in the way. U.S. officials say Iran has been carefully upholding its main obligations under the nuclear agreement: reducing its uranium stocks and limiting its enrichment program.

And none of the other six countries that negotiated the deal agree with Trump that the accord should be abrogated.

The deal  is working, and we believe it represents the best option for the international community, British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson wrote last month (and his government is friendlier to Trump than most).

As a result, if Trump declares in October that Iran is in breach, most of the world  including Britain, Germany and France  will blame him for the consequences, not Tehran.

That will create a major obstacle for the next step in Trumps course, which is to reimpose U.S. economic sanctions on foreign businesses that deal with Iran. (The nuclear deal didnt affect the embargo between the U.S. and Iran, which remains in effect.)

If the United States is viewed as responsible for breaking the deal, other countries may refuse to go along with Trumps unilateral sanctions, making them largely toothless.

Nobody else wants the deal to fail, said Elizabeth Rosenberg of the Center for New American Security, who worked on sanctions in the Obama administration. If the U.S. is the only one that walks away, who is going to enforce new sanctions? You could easily see European leaders deciding to defend their own companies instead.

Last month, the French energy giant Total signed a contract for a $5-billion natural gas project in Iran. If Trump tries to impose sanctions on deals like that, the result wont be merely a confrontation with Iran; it will be a clash with the EU.

There is an alternative Trump could try. Its called diplomacy.

He could press for stricter enforcement of the nuclear agreement, beginning with the restrictions Iran has placed on international inspectors access to military bases.

He could seek stronger international sanctions on Iran for its ballistic missile tests, which arent covered by the nuclear deal.

And he could begin negotiations toward a new agreement to maintain the curbs on Irans nuclear program after 2026, when the current limits begin to expire.

But the president hasnt pursued those options, even though theyve been offered to him by his own aides. Instead, he appears hellbent on fulfilling a bad campaign promise he should now have the wisdom to abandon. (Thats a prayer more than a hope.)

Tearing up the deal wont bring down Irans regime  most of Tehrans ruling clerics welcome the enmity of the United States  but it will set up a collision between the Trump administration and most of the world, including China, Russia and U.S. allies in Europe.

The most likely losers would be the Western alliance, already battered by Trumps disdain, and whatever remains of the United States tattered claim to international leadership.

And the most likely winner, oddly enough, would be Vladimir Putins Russia, the beneficiary of yet another wedge between United States and its NATO allies  this one driven by Trump alone, without Moscows help.

doyle.mcmanus@latimes.com

Twitter: @DoyleMcManus

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook
To the editor: Harold Meyersons recent op-ed urging Sen. Dianne Feinstein not to run again because she would win is puzzling at best. (Please dont run again, Opinion, July 31)

Why would Californians not want the most senior and effective U.S. senator to run  especially in the middle of what may become one of the most contentious presidential investigations in history?

Meyerson says the senator is too old, but I dont hear him calling for Sen. Chuck Grassley or Sen. John McCain to step down. Some would call that sexist.

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Anyone who bothers to watch the Senate hearings will observe a woman with complete command of the issues at hand who asks tough but necessary questions. She is prepared, thoughtful and thorough.

Ive had the pleasure of meeting the senator a number of times and find her to be intelligent, thoughtful and engaging but with a spine that must be made of titanium steel.

Bob Waggoner, Pomona

..

To the editor: I agree 100% with Meyerson, but why is he so negative?

I say: Dear Dianne, Thank you for your outstanding service to California and the nation in the U.S. Senate since 1992 as one of our steady, articulate standard-bearers. Thank you for your longstanding productivity, wisdom, dignity. I love you, and now I hope you will foster the opportunity for another fabulous Democrat to serve who brings greater potential for action with follow-through toward 2030 and beyond. Please help us to launch her or him now with a smooth transition.

Sandy Greenstein, Pasadena

..

To the editor: Meyerson does not attack Feinsteins competence; how can he? She is one of the most effective senators. He doesnt attack her influence; how can he? She is one of the most influential and respected senators. He doesnt attack her legislative prowess; how can he? She is a canny expert on legislation (to say nothing of her ability to probe for the truth in her committees). He doesnt attack her intellect or knowledge; how can he? She is one of the most intelligent and knowledgeable of the all the senators. No, he attacks her because of her age.

It is only because President Trump makes the outrageous the norm that we dont call Meyersons piece outrageous. On second thought, I will.

Lynn Schenk, San Diego

The writer is a former member of Congress

..

To the editor: Meyerson is correct in pointing out that Dianne Feinstein is out of touch with the Democratic Party on many issues.

The party has changed; Feinstein has not. Her voice is more important than party loyalty.

I too found myself disagreeing with many of the ideas of the 21st century Democratic party. My solution was to reregister as an Independent.

Feinstein is a moderate voice in a political party that has been moved too far from the values that made the Democratic Party the dominant voice in America.

Don Evans, Canoga Park

..

To the editor: Thanks to The Times and Meyerson for his thought-provoking piece acknowledging the elephant in the room: our stubborn senior senator.

As a concerned lifelong Democrat, I had hoped she would follow the graceful example set by Barbara Boxer, who retired last year.

Unarguably, she has served with distinction, but now, sadly, shes become one of the fossilized entrenched incumbents clogging up our system.

Let me bring up the reality of the painful memory of poor senile Strom Thurmond, slumped in a wheelchair, being rolled into the Senate.

Feinstein should take the long view for the greater good of the Democratic Party, not just statewide, but nationally.

Mark Diniakos, Thousand Oaks

..

To the editor: In addition to the reasons cited by Meyerson, I would add that the politics game has changed. The Republicans are ruthless, fight dirty and their agenda is wrong for the country.

But Feinstein and some other Democrats persist in playing by Marquess of Queensberry rules, expecting a referee who isnt paying attention to call foul. Its time to pass the torch.

Dan Jacobs, San Diego

..

To the editor: Feinstein has been the most courageous senator in reining in excesses in our national intelligence establishment. She is one of the most powerful voices in digging into the Russian efforts to sabotage our 2016 national election.

She has helped get federal funds to expand our public transportation system, especially here in Los Angeles. And she has used her considerable political clout to protect our environment, having preserved large swaths of Californias eastern Mojave desert, cleaning our air and water and preserving our regions water supply.

When we need something done in Washington, Feinstein is our go-to representative. She is a workhorse, not a show horse. In an era where bipartisanship has largely disappeared in Washington, she is respected on both sides of the political aisle.

Thats why I have urged her to run again.

Zev Yaroslavsky, Los Angeles

The writer is a former Los Angeles County supervisor

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook
To the editor: I predict that Trump will soon announce the establishment of the Trump Language Academy, schools around the world to help potential immigrants improve their English, located in Trump hotels. Tuition will include lodging at the hotels. (Trump backs tough border limits, Business, Aug. 3)

Textbooks (including The Art of the Deal), educational technology and English tests will be provided by the Trump Language Academy.

Tiffany Trump will serve as academic director.

All prospective immigrants must pass the official Trump English Language Examination. The examination will not cover spelling.

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Stephen Krashen, Los Angeles

..

To the editor: I had to memorize Emma Lazarus The New Colossus as a schoolchild and learned about the role our country played in welcoming immigrants from places not as fortunate or free as America.

I cant help but wonder if we will be changing these words on the Statue of Liberty from the original to something that reflects our new policy recommendation on immigration.

Instead of the verse I learned, might I suggest: Give me your rich, your white, your English speakers, yearning to earn more. The wealthy nobility of other lands. Send these, the one percent, from a distant shore. I lift my lamp so only those with gold may use our door.

Or, we could just move Lady Liberty to Canada.

Michele Britton Bass, Santa Barbara

..

To the editor: Wouldnt it be interesting to know if Donald Trumps grandfather, Friedrich, spoke English when he emigrated to the United States from Germany?

Leslie Sievers, Irvine

..

To the editor: One wonders how many of the immigrant ancestors of current Americans would qualify under Trumps proposed new criteria.

Mine probably wouldnt, and I know my husbands parents, who came from the Netherlands, would never have been admitted. His father was a baker and his mother an orthopedic nurse, and neither spoke a word of English when they arrived in 1929. They worked hard, and today their descendants include four successful business owners, who have employed hundreds of people, three college graduates and one Air Force member.

I guess these are the kind of people he thinks we dont need. Would Trumps immigrant ancestors qualify?

Judy Reinsma, Santa Clarita

..

To the editor: I began my high school teaching career in the 1970s when the Vietnamese boat people started to arrive. Many enrolled in the district where I worked.

I doubt many would have earned enough points to enter our country under the presidents new immigration plan. After all, they were poor, uneducated and didnt speak English, yet they ended up being outstanding students. Most went on to college and into well-respected professions. Our country is richer because of them.

The president is playing one group against another  immigrants versus lower-skilled Americans  and that is unfortunate.

Marlin Sobbota, Arcadia

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook
May you die in pain: California GOP congressman gets an earful at town hall

Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) kicks off his Monday morning town hall in Chico. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times)

May you die in pain.

That was the nastiest moment of Republican Rep. Doug LaMalfas early morning town hall in the Northern California town of Chico on Monday.

The wish was uttered by an older man who criticized LaMalfa for voting for the House GOP plan to replace the Affordable Care Act. He was also holding a pink sign that read Lackey for the Rich!

ALSO: LaMalfa says the Russia investigation is a bunch of crap

The open hostility and intransigence inside the Chico Elks Lodge came as the political divide in the country has grown more inflamed, with Trumps election unleashing a wave of both liberal activism and conservative empowerment.

As a result, Washingtons deeply partisan fights over issues such as health care, immigration and environmental protections have followed members of Congress home, turning once sedate town halls into in-your-face venting sessions that in left-leaning California have Republican House members on the defensive.

LaMalfa stood his ground on stage as person after person ripped into him for his votes and positions on healthcare and climate change, as well as for his unyielding support for President Trump.

A few speakers asked LaMalfa to resign, including one dressed up as the Wicked Witch of the West Coast.

Heather Calun dressed up as the Wicked Witch of the West Coast in protest. She wants LaMalfa to resign over his vote to repeal Obamacare. pic.twitter.com/rBZXAnjd2l  Phil Willon (@philwillon) August 7, 2017

Most comments and questions during the hour-long town hall were fairly cordial, although they were laced with plenty of boos and catcalls.

Norma Wilcox, a retired nurse who lives in Chico, also questioned LaMalfas healthcare vote. Wilcox told LaMalfa the House plan would take away healthcare for millions of Americans while providing tax breaks to the rich.

I am open to new ideas, LaMalfa told her, describing the House GOP bill as a placeholder that everyone expected to be improved during negotiations with the Senate. (The Senates healthcare efforts now appear dead.)

But the Richvale congressman, who represents Californias massive 1st Congressional District in the northeast corner of the state, said he will support only a new healthcare program that provides affordable coverage to middle-class Americans.

LaMalfa said Obamacare is quickly become unaffordable and unsustainable, with premium costs rising and the number of insurance companies offering coverage declining.

People across the board are being hurt by this, LaMalfa said.

When shouts and boos rained down on him, he chastised the crowd saying, I have the mic folks. Yep, boo away.

Ann Sisney of Chico told LaMalfa that her son, William, died of an opioid overdose two years ago. She held up a picture of the 19-year-old, asked the congressman to take it, and told him more people will die if GOP leadership in Congress gets its way on healthcare.

These are life-and-death decisions that you are making, Sisney told him.

LaMalfa assured her that Congress was working to find funds to address the nationwide opioid epidemic.

The Republican congressman also raised the ire of the crowd when he was asked about climate change and the degraded air quality in this stretch of Northern California.

I dont buy the idea that man-made activity is responsible, LaMalfa said bluntly.

The crowd of several hundred did include some LaMalfa supporters, though most stayed silent.

Ron Jones, 67, of Paradise said hes been to a few of LaMalfas town halls and all have been dominated by his critics.

Most of the time people want to ... complain, said Jones, a self-described conservative, after the event ended. The people who support him are quietly in the background.

LaMalfa does indeed have a lot of support in the district that also overwhelmingly voted for Trump over Hillary Clinton in last years presidential election. LaMalfa won his last election by almost 15%, and though he has attracted a few Democratic challengers, the district is not considered a battleground for 2018.

Unlike many California Republican members of Congress, LaMalfa hasnt shied away from holding town halls, though its rarely a pleasant experience for him. He held one in Nevada City in March and another in April in Oroville. No other California Republicans are scheduled to hold town halls during their August recess.

Near the end of Mondays town hall, a woman criticized LaMalfa for inviting only Christian pastors to provide invocations at his town halls and other events, and urged him to include religious leaders of all faiths.

If you want to have your own town hall, you can invite whoever you like, LaMalfa told her.
The stereotype of lobbying is that its the exclusive domain of corporations and organized labor, groups spending huge sums of money to quietly but firmly flex their political muscles in Sacramento.

But the data dont bear that out. Its Californias local governments  cities, counties and scores of other agencies  that spend the most of any sector to influence the outcome of events at the state Capitol.

Its government lobbying government, and its paid for with taxpayer dollars.

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Quarterly lobbying reports filed last week show that local and regional governments and their elected officials collectively continue to outpace all other branches of Californias influence industry. Through the first six months of 2017, these government entities together spent more than $24.3 million on lobbying in Sacramento.

Thats an average of about $135,000 for every calendar day, though much more in practice when you consider that lawmakers are generally in session just 16 days a month.

Almost 400 local government groups have lobbyists, and they run the gamut from large cities to rural counties. School districts have lobbyists, too, as do some tribal governments. No level of local government appears to be too small: Santa Monicas rent control board paid $12,246 to have someone watching the Legislature this spring, while Sonoma Countys parks district has paid $13,500 this year to do the same.

In some cases, the lobbying seems to loop back and over the same constituents. Los Angeles County has spent $745,577 on lobbying this year  separate from the $114,300 spent by its district attorneys office and the $247,084 thats been spent since January by the countys Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Political Road Map: There are more than 15 lobbyists for each lawmaker in Sacramento 

And lest you think lobbying is mostly paid for by local governments a long ways from the statehouse, take note that the city of Sacramento has spent $375,294 on lobbyists in the first half of 2017. Not only is its city hall less than a half-mile away; its mayor is the former leader of the state Senate.

Then theres the money that cities, counties and special districts spend on statewide associations that have their own cadre of professional lobbyists. San Diego County paid $512,956 for lobbying in the first six months of the year, as well as dues that helped fuel the $393,411 for lobbying spent by the California State Assn. of Counties.

Other groups may make headlines more often for their efforts to influence the outcome of legislation and state agency regulations, but they spend far less than Californias municipal and regional governments. Labor unions spent about $6.8 million on lobbying through June 30, while oil and gas companies spent about $16.7 million. Only healthcare lobbying, which totaled $23 million in the first half of 2017, came close to what was spent by local governments.

So what drives local officials to do so much lobbying of state government? Sometimes its to make sure theyre getting a piece of the larger tax revenue pie. A number of local government lobbying disclosure forms included efforts to secure funds in the new state budget and the $52-billion transportation plan signed into law this past spring. In other cases, locals feel they have to play defense, keeping state lawmakers from imposing too many onerous new rules.

The latest lobbying reports are not an anomaly. Since 2013, local and regional governments have spent more than $208 million to stake out the hallways and committee hearing rooms of Sacramento. Its a reminder that when lawmakers return in two weeks for their final month of work for 2017, there will be plenty of chances for them to be cajoled about the wants and needs of officials back home.

john.myers@latimes.com

Follow @johnmyers on Twitter, sign up for our daily Essential Politics newsletter and listen to the weekly California Politics Podcast

ALSO:

Political Road Map: Theres a reason local governments in California can skip some election mandates

Oil companies outspent environmentalists during Californias climate change negotiations

Updates on California politics and government
Trump promotes sons Justice with Judge Jeanine interview President Trump promoted via Twitter an interview with his son Eric Trump just before it aired Saturday night on Fox News Justice with Judge Jeanine. Eric Trump on @JudgeJeanine on @FoxNews now!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 21, 2018 Eric Trump called into the show to defend his father from criticism prompted by the first government shutdown in more than four years, as well as a series of Womens March events that saw protesters in dozens of cities take to the streets to oppose the presidents policies. .@EricTrump joined me over the phone from Mar-a-Lago ! pic.twitter.com/Hro3TzUW52  Jeanine Pirro (@JudgeJeanine) January 21, 2018 Speaking to host Jeannine Piro  who is reportedly an old friend of the presidents  Eric Trump offered effusive praise for his father, ticking off glowing statistics to illustrate the strength of the U.S. economy and gains against Islamic State fighters overseas. My fathers working like no ones ever worked before to bring back this country and to fulfill his promise to make America great again, said the executive vice president of the Trump Organization. He also repeated a sentiment recently expressed on Twitter by his father: That Democratic lawmakers forced a government shutdown on the anniversary of the presidents inauguration in a bid to distract from his achievements. You look at this whole government shutdown, and the only reason they want to shut down government is to distract and to stop his momentum, Eric Trump said. I mean, my father has had incredible momentum. Hes gotten more done in one year than arguably any president in history. Facebook

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Trump tweets: a perfect day for all Women to March President Trump hailed the nationwide Womens March gatherings Saturday. On Twitter, the president called it a perfect day for all Women to March, seeming to imply that those taking part were celebrating his administrations accomplishments: Beautiful weather all over our great country, a perfect day for all Women to March. Get out there now to celebrate the historic milestones and unprecedented economic success and wealth creation that has taken place over the last 12 months. Lowest female unemployment in 18 years!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018 Participants in the marches across the United States were actually seeking to deliver a powerful rebuke to Trumps policies and mount a crucial mobilization for this years midterm elections. But Trump continued to tout his administrations unprecedented success in tweets sent later in the day: Unprecedented success for our Country, in so many ways, since the Election. Record Stock Market, Strong on Military, Crime, Borders, & ISIS, Judicial Strength & Numbers, Lowest Unemployment for Women & ALL, Massive Tax Cuts, end of Individual Mandate - and so much more. Big 2018!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018 The Trump Administration has terminated more UNNECESSARY Regulation, in just twelve months, than any other Administration has terminated during their full term in office, no matter what the length. The good news is, THERE IS MUCH MORE TO COME!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 21, 2018 In addition to the roll call of major American cities where womens marches took place  including New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Dallas, Philadelphia, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta  protesters also raised their voices in suburbs and small towns, reflecting the aim of coalescing a broad-based movement on the anniversary of Trumps inauguration to oppose the presidents stance on immigration, healthcare, racial divides and an array of other issues. Read More This post contains reporting from Times staff writer Laura King. Facebook

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Trump calls shutdown a present from Democrats By Associated Press President Trump is blaming Democrats for the government shutdown  tweeting that they wanted to give him a nice present to mark the one-year anniversary of his inauguration: This is the One Year Anniversary of my Presidency and the Democrats wanted to give me a nice present. #DemocratShutdown  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018 That comes after Senate Democrats late Friday killed a GOP-written House-passed measure that would have kept agencies functioning for four weeks. Democrats were seeking a stopgap bill of just a few days in hopes that would build pressure on Republicans, and they were opposing a three-week alternative offered by GOP leaders. Democrats have insisted they would back legislation reopening the government once theres a bipartisan agreement to preserve protections against deporting about 700,000 immigrants  known as Dreamers  who arrived in the United States illegally as children. Trump on Saturday accused Democrats of holding our Military hostage over their desire to have unchecked illegal immigration: Democrats are holding our Military hostage over their desire to have unchecked illegal immigration. Cant let that happen!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018 Democrats are laying fault for the shutdown on Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress and the White House and have struggled with building internal consensus. In a series of tweets hours after the shutdown began, the president tried to make the case for Americans to elect more Republicans to Congress in November in order to power through this mess: Democrats are far more concerned with Illegal Immigrants than they are with our great Military or Safety at our dangerous Southern Border. They could have easily made a deal but decided to play Shutdown politics instead. #WeNeedMoreRepublicansIn18 in order to power through mess!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018 He noted that there are 51 Republicans in the 100-member Senate, and it often takes 60 votes to advance legislation: For those asking, the Republicans only have 51 votes in the Senate, and they need 60. That is why we need to win more Republicans in 2018 Election! We can then be even tougher on Crime (and Border), and even better to our Military & Veterans!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018 #AMERICA FIRST!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018 The stopgap spending measure won 50 votes in the Senate, including five from Democrats. Although the House and Senate were in session Saturday, it was unclear whether lawmakers would take any votes of consequence. Trump had been set to leave Friday afternoon for a fundraiser at his estate in Palm Beach, Fla., where he intended to mark the inauguration anniversary. But he remained in Washington and ended up scrapping his plans to attend the Saturday fundraiser. Read More Facebook

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Trump tweet casts doubt on likelihood of averting shutdown President Trump appeared to cast doubt on the likelihood of reaching a deal to avert a government shutdown Friday night in a tweet. Trump also sought to blame Democrats for what would be the first shutdown since 2013. His message came just hours before the midnight deadline by which lawmakers must pass a measure to fund government agencies, or some operations will cease. Not looking good for our great Military or Safety & Security on the very dangerous Southern Border. Dems want a Shutdown in order to help diminish the great success of the Tax Cuts, and what they are doing for our booming economy.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018 Despite last-minute negotiations Friday between Trump and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, Congress remained deadlocked over a spending bill and the federal government was headed toward a shutdown at midnight. Senate Democrats  joined by some GOP deficit hawks and immigration allies  were set to filibuster a stopgap funding bill approved by the House on Thursday. A Senate vote was planned for 10 p.m. Eastern, and even White House officials predicted it would fail. Read More This post contains reporting from Times staff writer Lisa Mascaro. Facebook

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Trump signs surveillance law after confusing tweets By Associated Press President Trump on Friday signed a bill into law to renew a foreign intelligence surveillance program, announcing his action in the latest in a series of confusing tweets about the spy program: Just signed 702 Bill to reauthorize foreign intelligence collection. This is NOT the same FISA law that was so wrongly abused during the election. I will always do the right thing for our country and put the safety of the American people first!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 19, 2018 Trumps tweet on Jan. 11 created chaos in the House just before it voted to reauthorize what is known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. He linked the intelligence program to a dossier that alleges his presidential campaign had ties to Russia. That caused people to wonder if he didnt support the program that allows U.S. spy agencies to collect intelligence on foreign targets abroad. Trump and other Republicans have alleged that Obama administration officials improperly shared the identities of Trump presidential transition team members mentioned in intelligence reports. Democrats say there is no evidence that happened. Shortly before the House vote, and after conferring with House Speaker Paul Ryan, Trump did an apparent about-face. This vote is about foreign surveillance of foreign bad guys on foreign land, he tweeted. We need it! Get smart! In his tweet announcing that he had just signed the bill, Trump wrote: This is NOT the same FISA law that was so wrongly abused during the election. I will always do the right thing for our country and put the safety of the American people first! There are no obvious links between the dossier Trump spoke of, which includes salacious but unsubstantiated allegations against him, and the reauthorization of the spying program, or between the program and Trumps oft-repeated claims that the Obama administration conducted surveillance on Trump Tower during the presidential campaign. Facebook

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In tweet, Trump suggests that Pennsylvania trip is a political one The White House press office was once again forced to walk back a tweet from President Trump on Thursday morning after he described a trip to Pennsylvania later in the day as a political one  a statement that would force the Republican Party, not taxpayers, to pay for the journey. The White House had said Trump was going to an industrial equipment company outside of Pittsburgh to highlight the good economy and new tax cuts, making it an official, policy-oriented event. It was widely assumed that the trip had a political cast  the area is holding a special election to fill a congressional seat vacated by a Republican who resigned. Trump, by his tweet, seemed to confirm that politics was the whole purpose: Will be going to Pennsylvania today in order to give my total support to RICK SACCONE, running for Congress in a Special Election (March 13). Rick is a great guy. We need more Republicans to continue our already successful agenda!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 18, 2018 Trump later shared via Twitter a pair of video clips of his speech at H&K Equipment, in which he touted the tax cuts he signed into law just before Christmas and tried to turn the conversation back to his accomplishments after weeks dominated by distractions, including questions about his mental health and comments about immigration that some considered racist: Departing Pittsburgh now, where it was my great honor to stand with our incredible workers, and to show the world that AMERICA is back - and we are coming back bigger and better and stronger than ever before! pic.twitter.com/kWPgylqFzj  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 18, 2018 AMERICA will once again be a NATION that thinks big, dreams bigger, and always reaches for the stars. YOU are the ones who will shape Americas destiny. YOU are the ones who will restore our prosperity. And YOU are the ones who are MAKING AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! #MAGA pic.twitter.com/f2abNK47II  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 18, 2018 The Republican National Committee, rather than the White House, is supposed to pay for political travel so that taxpayers are not financing party activities; for trips that combine policy and politics, parties have split the cost under past presidents. Neither the RNC nor the White House responded to emails sent Thursday asking who would pay. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders released a statement later Thursday suggesting that taxpayers would foot the bill. She insisted that Trump would be conducting government business while in Pennsylvania. Read More This post contains reporting from the Associated Press and Times staff writer Noah Bierman. Facebook

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Trump tweets praise of Bob Dole after awarding him Congressional Gold Medal By Associated Press Former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole knew the art of the deal before President Trump published the 1987 book of the same name. The two shared a stage under the Capitol dome Wednesday as Dole, 94, accepted Congress highest civilian honor, the Congressional Gold Medal, for his World War II service and decades of work in the House and Senate. Trump later praised Dole in a tweet, attaching to his message a video composed of clips from the ceremony: Today, we witnessed an incredible moment in history  the presentation of Congress highest civilian honor to our friend, and true AMERICAN HERO, Bob Dole. #CongressionalGoldMedal pic.twitter.com/qNQqDLRmCk  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 17, 2018 At the ceremony, the president saluted Dole as a patriot and gave tribute to Doles struggle as a veteran who worked his way back from a grievous shoulder wound he suffered in Italy. He knows about grit, said Trump. But it was Doles penchant for working across the aisle that earned him his latest award, according to the legislation. Bob Dole was known for his ability to work across the aisle and embrace practical bipartisanship, reads the legislation Trump signed in September. Some of the awards 300 recipients include George Washington and Mother Teresa, according to the Congressional Research Service. Read More Facebook

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Trump touts report that seeks to link terrorism cases with immigration By Joseph Tanfani The Trump administration on Tuesday released a report attempting to link terrorism with migration, arguing that it was evidence of the need to dramatically reshape the nations immigration system. New report from DOJ & DHS shows that nearly 3 in 4 individuals convicted of terrorism-related charges are foreign-born. We have submitted to Congress a list of resources and reforms....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2018 ....we need to keep America safe, including moving away from a random chain migration and lottery system, to one that is merit-based. https://t.co/7PtoSFK1n2  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2018 The report, ordered by President Trump in an executive order last year, said that 75% of the 549 people convicted of terrorism charges since 9/11 were born outside the U.S. Administration officials called that a sign that the U.S. needs to scrap its policy of family preferences for visas, which they call chain migration, and a diversity visa lottery program. But the report did not specify how many  if any  of the convicted terrorists entered the country through those means. It also did not detail how many of the convictions were related to attacks or plans in the U.S. versus overseas and how many involved people who went to fight overseas for the Islamic State or another terrorist group. Those details were not available, officials said. The report, due last year, is being released in a highly charged moment in the immigration debate, as Trump and some Republicans in Congress seek tough new border and immigration measures in return for a deal protecting the 690,000 people in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Trump also fired off a pair of tweets on the topic earlier Tuesday: We must have Security at our VERY DANGEROUS SOUTHERN BORDER, and we must have a great WALL to help protect us, and to help stop the massive inflow of drugs pouring into our country!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2018 The Democrats want to shut down the Government over Amnesty for all and Border Security. The biggest loser will be our rapidly rebuilding Military, at a time we need it more than ever. We need a merit based system of immigration, and we need it now! No more dangerous Lottery.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2018 The focus of our immigration system should be assimilation, a senior administration official said on Tuesday, speaking on condition that his name not be used. He said the nation should give priority to potential immigrants who speak English, who have an education and those who are committed to supporting our values  not family members of people already here. The official said the timing of the report was coincidental. Read More Facebook

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Trump tweets welcome to president of Kazakhstan By Associated Press President Trump said Tuesday that he and the president of Kazakhstan are united in a shared determination to prevent North Korea from threatening the world with nuclear devastation. Trump and President Nursultan Nazarbayev discussed North Korea along with other issues during meetings at the White House. Today, it was my honor to welcome President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan to the @WhiteHouse! pic.twitter.com/TerYFZViax  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2018 Trump said Kazakhstan, once part of the Soviet Union, is a valued partner in our efforts to rid the Korean peninsula of nuclear weapons. Together we are determined to prevent the North Korean regime from threatening the world with nuclear devastation, he said, as both presidents addressed journalists between meetings. Nazarbayev noted that his country once had one of the worlds largest nuclear arsenals but voluntarily gave it up after the Soviet Union collapsed. He said his country is in talks with Iran, which was the focus of a global deal that lifted some economic sanctions in exchange for Irans curbing its nuclear program. Trump has sharply criticized the Iran nuclear deal and threatened last week to pull out soon unless other countries fix what he says are terrible flaws. Read More Facebook

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Trump falsely claims his approval rating among black Americans has doubled By Alex Wigglesworth President Trump lashed out at the news media Tuesday morning in a tweet denouncing the special counsel investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible collusion among members of his campaign team. Do you notice the Fake News Mainstream Media never likes covering the great and record setting economic news, but rather talks about anything negative or that can be turned into the negative. The Russian Collusion Hoax is dead, except as it pertains to the Dems. Public gets it!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2018 It wasnt immediately clear exactly what prompted the presidents tweet, but it appeared as though he was watching Fox & Friends. A short time later, Trump tweeted a headline from a report that aired during that mornings episode: 90% of Trump 2017 news coverage was negative -and much of it contrived!@foxandfriends  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2018 The segment focused on the latest survey results from conservative watchdog Media Research Center, which purportedly analyzed the evening news broadcasts on ABC, CBS and NBC from Jan. 20 to Dec. 31 and found that 90% of the statements made about Trump were negative. Study: 90% of Trump media coverage in 2017 was negative pic.twitter.com/vbrwup4Drg  FOX & friends (@foxandfriends) January 16, 2018 But believe it or not, through all this negative coverage, they did a survey of 600,000 people about how black America views this president, co-host Brian Kilmeade said. His numbers have actually doubled in approval. Trump highlighted the statement in another tweet: Unemployment for Black Americans is the lowest ever recorded. Trump approval ratings with Black Americans has doubled. Thank you, and it will get even (much) better! @FoxNews  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2018 But its not true. The claim appears to have originated from a misreading of data from the online polling firm SurveyMonkey, according to factcheck.org. The firm polled 600,000 Americans in 2017 and found that Trumps approval rating among blacks actually dropped from 23% early in his presidency to about 17%, as of the week ending Jan. 3. Some conservative outlets, including Breitbart, produced an average from those and other SurveyMonkey figures and compared them to the scores Trump received from black voters in the 2016 exit polls. That methodology is not sound. And since the statistics measure different things, the comparison is misleading. Facebook

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Trump goes after senator who surfaced his immigration remark By Associated Press President Trump turned his Twitter torment Monday on the Democrat in the room where immigration talks with lawmakers took a famously coarse turn, saying Sen. Richard J. Durbin misrepresented what he had said about African nations and Haiti and, in the process, undermined the trust needed to make a deal. Senator Dicky Durbin totally misrepresented what was said at the DACA meeting, Trump tweeted, using a nickname to needle the Illinois senator. Deals cant get made when there is no trust! Durbin blew DACA and is hurting our Military. Senator Dicky Durbin totally misrepresented what was said at the DACA meeting. Deals cant get made when there is no trust! Durbin blew DACA and is hurting our Military.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 15, 2018 Trump was referring to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which protects young people who came to the United States illegally as children. Members of Congress from both parties are trying to strike a deal that Trump would support to extend that protection. Trump also cast doubt on the likelihood of reaching an agreement in tweets sent earlier Monday: Statement by me last night in Florida: Honestly, I dont think the Democrats want to make a deal. They talk about DACA, but they dont want to help..We are ready, willing and able to make a deal but they dont want to. They dont want security at the border, they dont want.....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 15, 2018 ...to stop drugs, they want to take money away from our military which we cannot do. My standard is very simple, AMERICA FIRST & MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 15, 2018 On a day of remembrance for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Trump spent time at his golf course with no public events, bypassing the acts of service that his predecessors staged in honor of the civil rights leader. Instead, Trump dedicated his weekly address to Kings memory, saying Kings dream and Americas are the same: A world where people are judged by who they are, not how they look or where they come from. That message was a distinct counterpoint to words attributed to Trump by Durbin and others at a meeting last week, when the question of where immigrants come from seemed at the forefront of Trumps concerns. Some participants and others familiar with the conversation said Trump challenged immigration from shithole countries of Africa and disparaged Haiti as well. Without explicitly denying using that word, Trump lashed out at the Democratic senator, who said Trump uttered it on several occasions. Read More Facebook

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Trump thanks pundit for laudatory Fox & Friends spot By Alex Wigglesworth President Trump thanked Fox News personality Stuart Varney after Varney praised Trump during an appearance on Fox & Friends. In a pair of tweets early Sunday, Trump quoted from Varneys commentary, in which he argued that Trump deserves more credit for the booming economy. The pundit, who also hosts a show on Fox Business Network, cited moves by some corporations to raise workers minimum wage or pay out one-time bonuses in response to the GOP tax cuts. President Trump is not getting the credit he deserves for the economy. Tax Cut bonuses to more than 2,000,000 workers. Most explosive Stock Market rally that weve seen in modern times. 18,000 to 26,000 from Election, and grounded in profitability and growth. All Trump, not 0...  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 14, 2018 ...big unnecessary regulation cuts made it all possible (among many other things). President Trump reversed the policies of President Obama, and reversed our economic decline. Thank you Stuart Varney. @foxandfriends  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 14, 2018 Varney was reacting to a quote from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), who on Thursday called the bonuses handed down to workers pathetic in comparison to the gains corporations are expected to see from the tax cuts. In terms of the bonus that corporate America received versus the crumbs that they are giving to workers to kind of put the schmooze on is so pathetic, Pelosi told reporters. Its pathetic. Varney shot back Sunday that the bonuses, along with explosive stock market growth, are enriching all Americans. This is a huge shot in the arm, its the result of this tax cut deal and I think President Trump should get the credit for it, he said. .@Varneyco Sets the economic record straight after Nancy Pelosi calls U.S. mass bonuses crumbs pic.twitter.com/BvjIHGm3HE  FOX & friends (@foxandfriends) January 14, 2018 The sweeping tax plan passed last month lowers the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% and cuts personal income taxes. Analysts say the benefits will largely flow to corporations and the wealthy, as theyre more likely to be in positions to share in corporate profits. For instance, Wells Fargo & Co., which responded to news of the tax overhaul by announcing it will raise workers pay to at least $15 an hour, also reported that it expects to pay an effective tax rate of 19% this year, down from about 31% in previous years. That should amount to tax savings of more than $3 billion annually. On average, middle-class Americans are expected to see a very small tax cut in the near term and a tax increase after 2025, when all of the tax cuts for individuals expire. The tax cuts for corporations, however, are permanent.  This post contains reporting from Times staff writer James Rufus Koren. Facebook

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Trump touts MLK proclamation in tweet, but ceremony is overshadowed by reports of racist remarks By Associated Press President Trump signed a proclamation Friday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, noting the contributions of a great American hero. Today, it was my great honor to proclaim January 15, 2018, as Martin Luther King Jr., Federal Holiday. I encourage all Americans to observe this day with appropriate civic, community, and service activities in honor of Dr. King's life and legacy. pic.twitter.com/samlJsz1Nt  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2018 Overshadowing the event was mounting backlash from Trumps comments during a private meeting with lawmakers the day before. A short time after the meeting, which was called to discuss a possible immigration deal, reports emerged that Trump had asked participants why the United States should accept immigrants from shithole countries in Africa, Central America and the Caribbean. Illinois Sen. Richard Durbin, the Senates second-ranking Democrat, appeared to confirm those reports on Friday. Trump did not respond Friday to several questions about the incident, including whether he actually used vulgar language to describe African nations, or if he is racist. The president said at the White House that love was central to the slain civil rights leader. Trump said the nation celebrates King for standing up for the self-evident truth Americans hold so dear, that no matter what the color of our skin or place of our birth, we are all created equal by God.  This post contains reporting from Times staff writer Noah Bierman. Facebook

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Trump criticizes Democrats in tweet calling for stricter immigration rules President Trump hit out at Democrats on Thursday night in a tweet calling for stricter immigration rules. Trump wrote that members of the party seem intent on having people and drugs pour into our country from the border with Mexico: The Democrats seem intent on having people and drugs pour into our country from the Southern Border, risking thousands of lives in the process. It is my duty to protect the lives and safety of all Americans. We must build a Great Wall, think Merit and end Lottery & Chain. USA!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2018 It wasnt immediately clear exactly what prompted the tweet. Earlier Thursday, Trump rejected a bipartisan compromise to resolve the standoff over so-called Dreamers, young immigrants who were brought to the United States illegally as children but have temporary permits to work, attend school or serve in the military. The president drew widespread condemnation after reports emerged that he had asked participants in an Oval Office meeting about the proposal why the United States should accept immigrants from shithole countries in Africa, Central America and the Caribbean. Read More Facebook

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Trump touts bill aimed at improving border screening for fentanyl By Associated Press President Trump signed legislation Wednesday aimed at giving Customs and Border Protection agents additional screening devices and other tools to stop the flow of illicit drugs. Speaking at a surprise bill-signing ceremony while flanked by members of Congress from both parties in the Oval Office, Trump described the bill as a significant step forward in the fight against powerful opioids such as fentanyl, which he called our new big scourge. He echoed that language Thursday in a tweet: Yesterday, I signed the #INTERDICTAct (H.R. 2142) with bipartisan members of Congress to help end the flow of drugs into our country. Together, we are committed to doing everything we can to combat the deadly scourge of drug addiction and overdose in the United States! pic.twitter.com/ELZvFol5Lo  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2018 The legislation will pay for new portable and fixed chemical screening devices to detect and intercept fentanyl at ports of entry and in the mail, along with other laboratory equipment and personnel, including scientists. Trump has made fighting the opioid epidemic a centerpiece of his administration, though critics say he hasnt dedicated nearly enough money or resources to make a difference. Trump suggested during his remarks on Wednesday that hed like to take a more aggressive approach to the drug crisis  but the countrys not ready for what he has in mind. So were going to sign this. And its a step. And it feels like a very giant step, but unfortunately, its not going to be a giant step, because no matter what you do, this is something that keeps pouring in, he said. And were going to find the answer. There is an answer. I think I actually know the answer, but Im not sure the countrys ready for it yet, he added. Does anybody know what I mean? I think so. Facebook

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Trump applauds news that Toyota-Mazda plant is slated for Alabama By Associated Press Japanese automakers Toyota and Mazda on Wednesday announced plans to build a mammoth, $1.6-billion joint-venture plant in Alabama that will eventually employ about 4,000 people. President Trump lauded the news in a tweet: Cutting taxes and simplifying regulations makes America the place to invest! Great news as Toyota and Mazda announce they are bringing 4,000 JOBS and investing $1.6 BILLION in Alabama, helping to further grow our economy! pic.twitter.com/Kcg8IVH6iA  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 10, 2018 Good news: Toyota and Mazda announce giant new Huntsville, Alabama, plant which will produce over 300,000 cars and SUVs a year and employ 4000 people. Companies are coming back to the U.S. in a very big way. Congratulations Alabama!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2018 Several states had competed for the project, which will be able to turn out 300,000 vehicles per year and produce the Toyota Corolla compact car for North America and a new small SUV from Mazda. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and company executives held a news conference to announce that the facility is coming to the Huntsville area not far from the Tennessee line. Production is expected to begin by 2021. The decision to pick Alabama is another example of foreign-based automakers building U.S. factories in the South. To entice manufacturers, Southern states have used a combination of lucrative incentive packages, low-cost labor and a pro-business labor environment, because the United Auto Workers union is stronger in Northern states. Read More Facebook

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Trump highlights call for border wall in tweets on visit with Norways prime minister By Associated Press President Trump praised Norways prime minister in a tweet on Wednesday after Erna Solberg became the first foreign leader to visit with the president in 2018. Today, it was my great honor to welcome Prime Minister Erna Solberg of Norway to the @WhiteHouse - a great friend and ally of the United States! Joint press conference: https://t.co/qWR1BhfQZI pic.twitter.com/PJvwznjRCO  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 10, 2018 Trump also shared via Twitter a video clip of a joint news conference he held with Solberg on Wednesday afternoon. In the clip, Trump responds to a question from a reporter by saying there can be no bipartisan immigration deal absent funding for his long-promised wall along the U.S. border with Mexico. Republican and Democratic lawmakers have been seeking a solution for hundreds of thousands of so-called Dreamers, young people who were brought to the United States as children and are living here illegally. The United States needs the security of the Wall on the Southern Border, which must be part of any DACA approval. The safety and security of our country is #1! pic.twitter.com/4CFzQXb5aS  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 10, 2018 We need the wall for security, we need the wall for safety, we need the wall for stopping the drugs from pouring in, Trump said Wednesday.  Any solution has to include the wall because without the wall, it all doesnt work. On Tuesday, Trump drew widespread attention when he said during a meeting with a bipartisan group of lawmakers that he would be agreeable to signing a stand-alone bill to protect the Dreamers, before moving on to a more comprehensive immigration bill. That contradicted the Republican consensus that Dreamers fate needed to be part of a broader immigration bill that would include some version of Trumps promised border wall and other immigration reforms. Trump backed away from a stand-alone Dreamer bill in subsequent tweets and public comments. Read More This post contains reporting from Los Angeles Times staff writer Noah Bierman. Facebook

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Trump praises Cabinet in tweet touting meeting By Associated Press President Trump promoted a meeting of his Cabinet on Wednesday, sharing via Twitter a link to a video of the session posted on the White House YouTube account. In his tweet, Trump thanked his Cabinet for working tirelessly on behalf of our country and wrote that the last year has been one of monumental achievement. I want to thank my @Cabinet for working tirelessly on behalf of our country. 2017 was a year of monumental achievement and we look forward to the year ahead. Together, we are delivering results and MAKING AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! https://t.co/ptXa1hAPwW pic.twitter.com/yv6RALkQf3  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 10, 2018 The former reality television star continued to dispense accolades at the meeting Wednesday, greeting reporters in the Cabinet Room by saying: Welcome back to the studio. Then he proceeded to relive a Cabinet Room session from the prior day, when he had allowed reporters and TV cameras to stick around for much of his meeting with a bipartisan group of legislators on the thorny issue of immigration. It was a tremendous meeting. Actually, it was reported as incredibly good. And my performance  you know, some of them called it a performance  I consider it work, Trump said. Trump went on to say he had received letters from news anchors calling it one of the greatest meetings theyve ever witnessed. He added that the media will ultimately support Trump in the end, because theyre going to say, if Trump doesnt win in three years, theyre all out of business. Asked for examples of letters received from news anchors, the White House said it had received private communications. It also offered a series of positive on-air comments and tweets from journalists about the unusual access to the meeting. During his remarks, Trump swung from praising his own meeting coverage to telling journalists that they were dependent on his presidency for ratings to threatening a strong look at libel laws. Still, Trump thanked the journalists in front of him, joking: Youve gotten very familiar with this room. I appreciate your nice comments yesterday. Facebook

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Trump blasts DACA ruling in tweet calling courts broken and unfair By Lisa Mascaro President Trump denounced the federal courts Wednesday as broken and unfair after a district judge in San Francisco issued a nationwide injunction keeping protections in place for so-called Dreamers. Trump tweeted: It just shows everyone how broken and unfair our Court System is when the opposing side in a case (such as DACA) always runs to the 9th Circuit and almost always wins before being reversed by higher courts.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 10, 2018 On Tuesday night, U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco temporarily blocked the Trump administrations decision to phase out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, which has protected from deportation some 700,000 people who came to the country illegally as children. Alsup granted a request by the state of California, the University of California and other plaintiffs to stop Trump from ending DACA on March 5. The administrations decision to end DACA, which was announced in September, was based on a flawed legal analysis, Alsup wrote in his decision. Dreamers would be irreparably harmed if their DACA protections, which allow them to live and work legally in the U.S., were stripped away before the courts had a chance to fully consider their claims, he ruled. The action is the mirror image of a ruling in 2015 by a federal judge in Texas who ruled in favor of that state when it sought to block President Obama from expanding DACA to include the parents of Dreamers. Trump administration officials praised that judicial ruling. By contrast, they sharply criticized Alsups decision. Read More Facebook

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Trump thanks lawmakers for productive immigration meeting, says deal must include border wall President Trump thanked a bipartisan group of lawmakers for participating in a meeting on immigration legislation on Tuesday. Much of the discussion involved so-called Dreamers, an estimated 700,000 young people who were brought to the country illegally as children and are now facing deportation. In a tweet, Trump wrote that there was strong agreement to negotiate a bill to protect Dreamers, as well as put into place some of the reforms favored by Republicans. Thanks to all of the Republican and Democratic lawmakers for todays very productive meeting on immigration reform. There was strong agreement to negotiate a bill that deals with border security, chain migration, lottery and DACA. https://t.co/SdqAQ3aL3z pic.twitter.com/8DYHZHspAy  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 9, 2018 The most notable exchange of the meeting came when Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the San Francisco Democrat, asked Trump whether he would be agreeable to signing a stand-alone bill to protect the Dreamers, before moving on to a more comprehensive immigration bill. Yeah, I would like to do it, Trump responded. The statement drew widespread attention because it contradicted the Republican consensus that Dreamers fate needed to be part of a broader immigration bill that would include some version of Trumps promised border wall and other immigration reforms. Trump later backed away from a stand-alone Dreamer bill, tweeting that a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico must be part of any deal: As I made very clear today, our country needs the security of the Wall on the Southern Border, which must be part of any DACA approval.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 10, 2018 Pressure has been mounting for Congress to broker an immigration deal by Jan. 19 as part of a must-pass budget package to fund the government. This post contains reporting from Times staff writer Noah Bierman. Facebook

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Trump thanks officers and veterans in tweets President Trump doled out a slew of accolades Tuesday via Twitter. He thanked the nations law enforcement officers, including in his message a hashtag denoting a day of appreciation organized by a national support group for law enforcement families. On behalf of the American people, THANK YOU to our incredible law enforcement officers. As President of the United States - I will fight for you, and I will never, ever let you down. Now, more than ever, we must support the men and women in blue! #LawEnforcementAppreciationDay pic.twitter.com/Qb4uxB4JRm  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 9, 2018 Trump later expressed gratitude for federal immigration agents, in particular: .@ICEgov HSI agents and ERO officers, on behalf of an entire Nation, THANK YOU for what you are doing 24/7/365 to keep fellow Americans SAFE. Everyone is so grateful!#LawEnforcementAppreciationDay

President @realDonaldTrump https://t.co/HXCpTlruVo  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 10, 2018 The president thanked veterans as he cited his administrations efforts to curb the number of veteran suicides by improving mental health treatment for the high-risk group: Today, it was my great honor to sign a new Executive Order to ensure Veterans have the resources they need as they transition back to civilian life. We must ensure that our HEROES are given the care and support they so richly deserve! https://t.co/0MdP9DDIAS pic.twitter.com/LP2a8KCBAp  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 9, 2018 Trumps tweet included photos of the president signing an executive order Tuesday directing the secretaries of Defense, Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs to develop a plan to provide seamless access to mental health and suicide prevention resources for 12 months for members leaving the armed forces. Also on Tuesday, Trump touted a law he signed the day before designating the birthplace of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. a national historic park: It was my great honor to sign H.R. 267, the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park Act, which redesignates the Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic Site in the State of Georgia as the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park. https://t.co/Qe0b6HBFTY pic.twitter.com/QTgaqTawPT  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 9, 2018 And he thanked House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) for sharing a video compilation comprised of clips of politicians and commentators praising the GOPs tax cut bill: Thank you @GOPLeader Kevin McCarthy! Couldnt agree w/you more. TOGETHER, we are #MAGA https://t.co/QaxtqpyXTR  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 10, 2018  This post contains reporting from the Associated Press and Times staff writer Alex Wigglesworth. Facebook

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Trump hails tax bill in tweets recapping speech to farmers By Associated Press Connecting with rural Americans, President Trump on Monday hailed his tax overhaul as a victory for family farmers. Farm country is Gods country, Trump told the annual convention of the American Farm Bureau Federation. Trump became the first president in a quarter-century to address the federations convention. His Southern swing also included a stop in Atlanta for the national college football championship game. Cant wait to be back in the amazing state of Tennessee to address the 99th American @FarmBureau Federations Annual Convention in Nashville! #AFBF18



On my way now - join me LIVE at 4:00pmE: https://t.co/QaljAqekdD. pic.twitter.com/Wm7Io0hYT8  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2018 Joined by Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) and a group of Tennessee lawmakers, Trump said most of the benefits of the tax legislation are going to working families, small businesses, and who  the family farmer. The package Trump signed into law last month provides generous tax cuts for corporations and the wealthiest Americans, and more modest reductions for middle- and low-income individuals and families. In every decision we make, we are honoring Americas PROUD FARMING LEGACY. Years of crushing taxes, crippling regs, & corrupt politics left our communities hurting, our economy stagnant, & millions of hardworking Americans COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN. But they are not forgotten ANYMORE! pic.twitter.com/MdYS7xnukQ  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2018 The president vastly inflated the value of the package in his speech, citing a total of $5.5 trillion in tax cuts, with most of those benefits going to working families, small businesses and who? The family farmer. The estimated value of the tax cuts is actually $1.5 trillion for families and businesses because of cuts in deductions and the use of other steps to generate offsetting tax revenue. We have been working every day to DELIVER for Americas Farmers just as they work every day to deliver FOR US. #AFBF18 pic.twitter.com/QDH7fvFkZ7  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2018 From Nashville, Trump traveled to Atlanta to watch Alabamas Crimson Tide and Georgias Bulldogs face off Monday night in the College Football Playoff National Championship. We are fighting for our farmers, for our country, and for our GREAT AMERICAN FLAG. We want our flag respected - and we want our NATIONAL ANTHEM respected also! pic.twitter.com/16eOLXg6Fi  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2018 Before departing for the game, Trump referenced his ongoing defense of the American flag and the national anthem, saying there was enough space for people to express their views. We love our flag and we love our anthem, and we want to keep it that way, he said. Facebook

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Trump tweet hails drop in unemployment rate for African Americans By Associated Press President Trump touted a drop in the unemployment rate for African Americans on Monday in a tweet. African American unemployment is the lowest ever recorded in our country. The Hispanic unemployment rate dropped a full point in the last year and is close to the lowest in recorded history. Dems did nothing for you but get your vote! #NeverForget @foxandfriends  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2018 The rate fell to 6.8% in December, the lowest level since the government began tracking such data in 1972. The reasons range from a greater number of black Americans with college degrees to a growing need for employers in a tight job market to widen the pool of people they hire from. Trump also hailed the development via Twitter on Saturday. His latest tweet on the topic came about an hour after it was discussed during an episode of Fox & Friends, according to Mediaite. Facebook

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Trump talks up the economy and dresses down the media in Sunday tweets With President Trump cheering from the sidelines, the White House on Sunday pressed its defense of the presidents fitness to govern, as fired former aide Stephen K. Bannon reversed course and apologized for his role in a new books explosive portrait of Trump. The presidents critics, meanwhile, said Trumps stream of taunts and insults in response to the book  Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, released last week  served only to underscore the authors unsettling portrayal of Trumps year-old presidency, depicting a leader whose own aides consider him childish, ignorant and dangerously erratic. Trump provided more ammunition Sunday morning, as he continued to attack the book via Twitter while preparing to depart Camp David for the White House: Leaving Camp David for the White House. Great meetings with the Cabinet and Military on many very important subjects including Border Security & the desperately needed Wall, the ever increasing Drug and Opioid Problem, Infrastructure, Military, Budget, Trade and DACA.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018 Ive had to put up with the Fake News from the first day I announced that I would be running for President. Now I have to put up with a Fake Book, written by a totally discredited author. Ronald Reagan had the same problem and handled it well. So will I!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018 The most vehement defense of Trump on Sunday came from senior advisor Stephen Miller, a onetime Bannon acolyte who distanced himself from his former mentor. In a combative appearance Sunday on CNNs State of the Union, Miller called the book grotesque and writer Michael Wolff the garbage author of a garbage book. Trump is known to closely monitor aides televised performances in putting forth his case, and he gleefully weighed in within moments of Millers televised clash with host Jake Tapper. CNN has long been a particular target of Trumps ire. Jake Tapper of Fake News CNN just got destroyed in his interview with Stephen Miller of the Trump Administration. Watch the hatred and unfairness of this CNN flunky!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018 Trumps reaction, however, seemed to bolster Tappers on-air depiction of Miller as using his appearance on the show to play to the president rather than addressing questions put to him. I get it  theres one viewer that you care about, the host said exasperatedly after Miller turned the discussion repeatedly to negative news coverage of the president while deflecting specific queries. Later on Twitter, Trump took up two themes that have been prevalent on his social media feeds recently. The president again went after the news media, tweeting that the recipients of his self-proclaimed most dishonest & corrupt media awards of the year, which he promised earlier in the week to announce on Monday, would actually be revealed the following Wednesday: The Fake News Awards, those going to the most corrupt & biased of the Mainstream Media, will be presented to the losers on Wednesday, January 17th, rather than this coming Monday. The interest in, and importance of, these awards is far greater than anyone could have anticipated!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018 Trump later lauded a New York Post opinion piece that compared him favorably with his predecessor, President Obama, as well as Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. In quoting the op-ed, Trump initally misspelled consequential as consensual, but he deleted those tweets and re-sent the messages. His is turning out to be an enormously consequential presidency. So much so that, despite my own frustration over his missteps, there has never been a day when I wished Hillary Clinton were president. Not one. Indeed, as Trumps accomplishments accumulate, the mere thought of...  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2018 ...Clinton in the WH, doubling down on Barack Obamas failed policies, washes away any doubts that America made the right choice. This was truly a change election  and the changes Trump is bringing are far-reaching & necessary. Thank you Michael Goodwin! https://t.co/4fHNcx2Ydg  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2018 Trump also continued talking up the economy, which has been enjoying a period of strong gains. The Stock Market has been creating tremendous benefits for our country in the form of not only Record Setting Stock Prices, but present and future Jobs, Jobs, Jobs. Seven TRILLION dollars of value created since our big election win!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018 In addition to Miller, other senior administration officials made the rounds of Sunday news talk shows to decry the claims made in Wolffs book. CIA Director Mike Pompeo said Wolffs characterization of Trump as averse to digesting classified briefing material was ludicrous, and the ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, insisted that that those around Trump love their country and respect their president. Read More This post contains reporting from Times staff writer Laura King. Facebook

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Responding to book that mocks his intelligence, Trump tweets hes like, really smart By Tracy Wilkinson President Trump declared himself a very stable genius on Twitter on Saturday and later in a televised news conference called the author of a book that questioned his mental fitness a fraud. His comments came on a bone-cold day at Camp David during a weekend retreat with top administration officials and Republican congressional leaders strategizing on the years legislative agenda, including matters such as infrastructure, immigration, welfare reform and national security. Now that Russian collusion, after one year of intense study, has proven to be a total hoax on the American public, the Democrats and their lapdogs, the Fake News Mainstream Media, are taking out the old Ronald Reagan playbook and screaming mental stability and intelligence.....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 6, 2018 ....Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart. Crooked Hillary Clinton also played these cards very hard and, as everyone knows, went down in flames. I went from VERY successful businessman, to top T.V. Star.....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 6, 2018 ....to President of the United States (on my first try). I think that would qualify as not smart, but genius....and a very stable genius at that!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 6, 2018 Still, Trumps explosive rebuttal to author Michael Wolffs claims not only opened the day, but it also ensured the presidents capability to fill the highest office in the land was a topic that would not go away. In his early-morning tweets, Trump said two of his greatest assets have been mental stability, and being, like, really smart. He noted that his former Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, played these cards [about competence] very hard and, as everyone knows, went down in flames. I went from VERY successful businessman, to top T.V. Star to President of the United States (on my first try). Read More Facebook

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In morning tweets, Trump touts job numbers and takes digs at news media By Associated Press President Trump used Twitter on Saturday morning to tout a drop in the unemployment rate for African Americans. He also used the tweets as an opportunity to take digs at media outlets whose past coverage he has found to be critical. The African American unemployment rate fell to 6.8%, the lowest rate in 45 years. I am so happy about this News! And, in the Washington Post (of all places), headline states, Trumps first year jobs numbers were very, very good.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 6, 2018 The unemployment rate for African Americans fell to 6.8% in December, the lowest level since the government began tracking such data in 1972. The reasons range from a greater number of black Americans with college degrees to a growing need for employers in a tight job market to widen the pool of people they hire from. Still, the rate for black workers remains well above those for whites and some other groups, something experts attribute in large part to decades of discrimination and disadvantages. Robust job creation has lowered unemployment for all Americans. U.S. employers added nearly 2.1 million jobs in 2017  the seventh straight year that hiring has topped 2 million. In his tweet, Trump praised a report that noted the numbers, touting the fact that it appeared in the Washington Post (of all places). Minutes later, Trump renewed his attack on an ABC News reporter who was suspended last month after filing an erroneous report on Michael Flynn, Trumps former national security advisor. Brian Ross, the reporter who made a fraudulent live newscast about me that drove the Stock Market down 350 points (billions of dollars), was suspended for a month but is now back at ABC NEWS in a lower capacity. He is no longer allowed to report on Trump. Should have been fired!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 6, 2018 The reporter, Brian Ross, was reportedly reassigned within ABC News upon returning from his unpaid suspension. But on Saturday, Trump wrote that he should have been fired. Trumps tweets came hours before he was set to host congressional Republicans and administration officials at Camp David. The meeting scheduled to begin at midmorning Saturday was expected to touch on the budget, infrastructure, immigration, welfare reform and the shape of the midterm election this fall. Facebook

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Trump commends Sen. Rand Paul after he proposes eliminating all U.S. aid to Pakistan President Trump commended Sen. Rand Paul after the Kentucky Republican announced plans to introduce legislation that would eliminate all U.S. aid to Pakistan. Trump tweeted Friday night: Good idea Rand! https://t.co/55sqUDiC0s  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 6, 2018 On Thursday, the Trump administration announced it was suspending security assistance to Islamabad until the country moves aggressively against local militants who have attacked U.S. troops in neighboring Afghanistan. Trump has repeatedly expressed frustration at the apparent inability of Pakistani authorities to rein in militants who cross out of the countrys rugged tribal areas to attack U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Read More This post contains reporting from Times staff writer Tracy Wilkinson. Facebook

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Trump continues to lash out at Sloppy Steve Bannon in tweets on tell-all book By Associated Press President Trump is praising a major Republican donor family for distancing themselves from his former advisor Steve Bannon. Trump tweeted Friday: The Mercer Family recently dumped the leaker known as Sloppy Steve Bannon. Smart!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 5, 2018 Trump has continued to lash out at Bannon over an explosive new book that quoted his former aide as questioning Trumps competence and describing a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower among Donald Trump Jr., Trump campaign aides and a Russian lawyer as treasonous and unpatriotic. On Thursday, billionaire GOP donor Rebekah Mercer issued a statement distancing her family from Bannon. Mercer is a co-owner of Breitbart, the populist website Bannon helps run. I support President Trump and the platform upon which he was elected, Mercer said. My family and I have not communicated with Steve Bannon in many months and have provided no financial support to his political agenda, nor do we support his recent actions and statements. The book, Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, quickly shot atop Amazons best-seller list, and the publisher moved up its release date by four days, to Friday. Trump took up the topic again on Twitter on Friday night, denouncing both Bannon and the books author, Michael Wolff, in starkly personal terms: Michael Wolff is a total loser who made up stories in order to sell this really boring and untruthful book. He used Sloppy Steve Bannon, who cried when he got fired and begged for his job. Now Sloppy Steve has been dumped like a dog by almost everyone. Too bad! https://t.co/mEeUhk5ZV9  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 6, 2018 Trumps message linked to a meme depicting a parody book cover titled, Liar and Phony, that featured a photo of Wolff and disparaging quotes about the author. In a tweet sent earlier Friday morning, Trump suggested the book was intended to serve as a distraction from the FBIs investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, which Trump wrote is proving to be a total hoax. Well, now that collusion with Russia is proving to be a total hoax and the only collusion is with Hillary Clinton and the FBI/Russia, the Fake News Media (Mainstream) and this phony new book are hitting out at every new front imaginable. They should try winning an election. Sad!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 5, 2018 That came amid reports that Trump directed his White House counsel to tell Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions to not recuse himself from the Justice Departments Russia investigation. Trumps effort to keep Sessions, a vocal and loyal supporter of his election bid, in charge of an investigation into his campaign offers special counsel Robert Mueller yet another avenue to explore as his prosecutors work to untangle potential evidence of obstruction. Read More Facebook

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Trump praises the economy ahead of meetings at Camp David By Associated Press President Trump is praising the strength of the U.S. economy ahead of meetings at Camp David with congressional Republicans. Trump tweeted early Friday: Dow goes from 18,589 on November 9, 2016, to 25,075 today, for a new all-time Record. Jumped 1000 points in last 5 weeks, Record fastest 1000 point move in history. This is all about the Make America Great Again agenda! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs. Six trillion dollars in value created!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 5, 2018 The president also told reporters on the South Lawn that the tax cuts are really kicking in after Congress passed a package of tax cuts at the end of 2017. And the president praised the December jobs report, which found U.S. employers added 148,000 jobs in December and the unemployment rate stayed at 4.1%, the lowest level since 2000. The modest but steady pace of hiring is a reassuring sign for investors who have been buoyed by the just-passed Republican tax plan and have been sending stock market indexes roaring to uncharted heights. The president is meeting with Republican congressional leaders and members of his Cabinet on Friday and Saturday to discuss the 2018 agenda. Read More Facebook

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Trump tweets as Dow crashes through 25,000 By Associated Press President Trump dispatched a congratulatory tweet as the Dow Jones industrial average rose above the 25,000-point mark Thursday, just five weeks after its first close above 24,000. Dow just crashes through 25,000. Congrats! Big cuts in unnecessary regulations continuing.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 After the Dow closed above 25,000, Trump shared a graphic depicting the stock indexs record-setting rise. MAKING AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! pic.twitter.com/iONbr1DkVk  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 5, 2018 Later in the day, the president was back on Twitter, complaining that news outlets had barely covered the stock market milestone. He suggested that the strength of the economy would be the biggest story on earth, had it unfolded during the presidency of his predecessor. The Fake News Media barely mentions the fact that the Stock Market just hit another New Record and that business in the U.S. is booming...but the people know! Can you imagine if O was president and had these numbers - would be biggest story on earth! Dow now over 25,000.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 5, 2018 The Dow broke past 1,000-point barriers in 2017 on its way to a 25% gain for the year, as an eight-year rally since the Great Recession continued to confound skeptics. Strong global economic growth and good prospects for higher company earnings have analysts predicting more gains, although the market may not stay as calm as it has been recently. The Dow has made a rapid trip since it reached 24,000 points Nov. 30, partly on enthusiasm over passage of the Republican-backed tax package, which could boost company profits this year with across-the-board cuts to corporate taxes. Read More Facebook

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Trump reacts to Fire and Fury book in tweet lashing out at author and Sloppy Steve President Trump lashed out at the author of a soon-to-be-released book about the chaotic first year of his presidency Thursday night. In a tweet, Trump called Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, a phony book and claimed that hed never spoken to its author, Michael Wolff. Look at this guys past and watch what happens to him and Sloppy Steve! Trump wrote. He appeared to be referring to former White House chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon, whose stunning criticisms of Trump and his circle figure prominently in the title. I authorized Zero access to White House (actually turned him down many times) for author of phony book! I never spoke to him for book. Full of lies, misrepresentations and sources that dont exist. Look at this guys past and watch what happens to him and Sloppy Steve!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 5, 2018 Trumps tweet came hours after he had his lawyer demand that Henry Holt & Co. and Wolff stop publication the book. Instead, the publisher expedited the books release to Friday, four days before it was slated to hit bookstore shelves, in response to unprecedented demand. Published excerpts on Wednesday and Thursday whetted that appetite and roiled Washington. Bannons comments, including that it was treasonous and unpatriotic for Trumps son Donald Trump Jr., son-in-law Jared Kushner and campaign manager Paul Manafort to have met in 2016 with Russians said to have dirt on Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, prompted Trump on Wednesday to rebuke his former advisor, saying Bannon had lost his mind. Read More This post contains reporting from Times staff writers Brian Bennett and Alex Wigglesworth. Facebook

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Trump thanks senators who attended meeting on immigration President Trump tweeted thanks to Republican senators who attended a meeting about possible immigration legislation on Thursday. In his message, Trump also listed his top priorities when it comes to any type of overhaul of the nations immigration system. Thank you to the great Republican Senators who showed up to our mtg on immigration reform. We must BUILD THE WALL, stop illegal immigration, end chain migration & cancel the visa lottery. The current system is unsafe & unfair to the great people of our country - time for change!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 Trumps tweet echoed his remarks at the beginning of Thursdays meeting, when he insisted again that constructing a border wall and overhauling two legal immigration programs must be part of any deal with Democrats to protect the so-called Dreamers from deportation. Two-year deportation protections and work permits given under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program begin to expire March 6 under an executive order. Trump announced in September that he was ending the Obama-era program, but told Congress to draft a law to continue protections for people brought to the country illegally as children  a group that has widespread public support. Read More This post contains reporting from Times staff writer Brian Bennett. Facebook

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Trump resumes Twitter war against kneeling NFL players President Trump has resumed his Twitter war against NFL players who kneel during the national anthem to protest social injustice and racial inequality. In a tweet early Thursday, Trump replied to a supporter who shared a meme that appears to depict family members lying on the grave of a fallen soldier with the caption: This is why we stand. Show this picture to the NFL players who still kneel! Trump wrote. So beautiful....Show this picture to the NFL players who still kneel! https://t.co/tJLM1tvbvb  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 The president has denounced players who kneel during the anthem in previous tweets. Hes also called for the firing of players who do so. His latest message came amid news that the NFL finished the regular season with TV ratings that fell nearly 10% below the previous season. Analysts attribute the drop to controversies facing the league, as well as changing viewing habits and a possible saturation point in the number of games available. Read More This post contains reporting from Times staff writers Stephen Battaglio and Alex Wigglesworth. Facebook

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Trump credits himself with facilitating talks between North and South Korea By Associated Press President Trump says his tough stance on nuclear weapons on the Korean peninsula is helping push North Korea and South Korea to talk. Trump tweeted early Thursday: With all of the failed experts weighing in, does anybody really believe that talks and dialogue would be going on between North and South Korea right now if I wasnt firm, strong and willing to commit our total might against the North. Fools, but talks are a good thing!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 That assertion is in conflict with some of the presidents own statements. Last year, he ridiculed Secretary of State Rex Tillerson for talking about negotiations with the North. This week, Trump seemed open to the possibility of an inter-Korean dialogue after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made a rare overture toward South Korea in a New Years Day address. But Trumps ambassador to the United Nations insisted that talks wont be meaningful unless the North is getting rid of its nuclear weapons. The overture about talks came after Trump and Kim traded more bellicose claims about their nuclear weapons. In his New Years Day address, Kim repeated fiery nuclear threats against the United States. Kim said he has a nuclear button on his office desk and warned that the whole territory of the U.S. is within the range of our nuclear strike. Trump mocked that assertion Tuesday evening in a tweet. Facebook

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After disbanding his vote fraud panel, Trump still says voting system is rigged By Brian Bennett One day after disbanding his troubled voter fraud commission without any findings of fraud, President Trump continued to call the U.S. voting system rigged and said states should require that Americans have voter-identification cards. In two tweets on Thursday morning, Trump blamed the commissions failure on the lack of cooperation from mostly Democrat States that refused to hand over voter rolls because they know that many people are voting illegally. However, voting supervisors in Republican-led states refused as well, objecting on privacy and other grounds. Many mostly Democrat States refused to hand over data from the 2016 Election to the Commission On Voter Fraud. They fought hard that the Commission not see their records or methods because they know that many people are voting illegally. System is rigged, must go to Voter I.D.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 As Americans, you need identification, sometimes in a very strong and accurate form, for almost everything you do.....except when it comes to the most important thing, VOTING for the people that run your country. Push hard for Voter Identification!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 Despite Trumps assertions, analysts have not found evidence of widespread voter fraud. Trump created the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity in May after alleging, without proof, that millions of illegal votes were cast for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election. Trump was elected after winning a majority in the electoral college, but the nationwide count showed Clinton received nearly 3 million more votes. The commission sought personal data on voters across the country and faced mounting lawsuits in recent months over privacy concerns. Read More Facebook

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Trump touts another good day for stocks, credits tax cut By Associated Press President Trump touted another good day for the stock market Wednesday in a tweet. Stock Market had another good day but, now that the Tax Cut Bill has passed, we have tremendous upward potential. Dow just short of 25,000, a number that few thought would be possible this soon into my administration. Also, unemployment went down to 4.1%. Only getting better!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 Big gains for technology and healthcare stocks helped U.S. indexes set records again Wednesday. Some analysts attributed the surge to investor enthusiasm for Trumps $1.5-trillion tax cut. All told, Wall Street analysts estimate the tax package should boost earnings for companies in the Standard & Poors 500 index by roughly 8% this year. Thats much more generous than the average tax cut of 1.6% that middle-class families will receive, according to the Tax Policy Center. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 The public has been less enthusiastic about the tax law. A Monmouth University poll last month found that nearly half of Americans disapproved of it, with only 26% in support. Still, as Trump also noted on Twitter, some workers have seen a benefit: So far, dozens of companies have announced bonuses and higher minimum wages as a result of the tax cut. AT&T, Comcast, Bank of America, and American Airlines have all pledged to pay $1,000 bonuses to their employees. Some 40 U.S. companies have responded to President Trumps tax cut and reform victory in Congress last year by handing out bonuses up to $2,000, increases in 401k matches and spending on charity, a much higher number than previously known. https://t.co/bmWrwWzxMR  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 Investors also appear less concerned than many politicians about how the additional profits will be used. The Trump administration says it expects companies will plow much of the extra profit back into their businesses, purchasing more software, machinery, and other equipment. Those investments will make workers more productive and provide a key boost to the economys long-run growth. They should also boost wages and salaries for employees. Opponents of the tax law respond that companies are more likely to pass the windfall on to shareholders in the form of higher dividend payments and share buybacks, which raise the price of those shares still in investors hands. Previous cuts in corporate tax rates, in the United States and overseas, havent always led to higher wages. For Wall Street, its all good, at least in the short run. Most analysts take the view that either way, companies and the economy will benefit. Facebook

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Trump reacts to death of Mormon Church president By Associated Press President Trump mourned the death of Mormon Church leader Thomas S. Monson on Wednesday evening. Trump tweeted a link to a statement in which he said that Monson demonstrated wisdom, inspired leadership, and great compassion and delivered a message of optimism, forgiveness, and faith. Melania and I are deeply saddened by the death of Thomas S. Monson, a beloved President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...https://t.co/ETD3fWtfU3  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 4, 2018 A church bishop at the age of 22, Monson became the youngest church apostle ever in 1963 at the age of 36. He served as a counselor for three church presidents before assuming the role of the top leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in February 2008. After a life of church service, Monson died Tuesday at his home in Salt Lake City, according to church spokesman Eric Hawkins. He was 90. Read More Facebook

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Trump tweets that Iranian protesters will see great U.S. support at the appropriate time By Associated Press President Trump continued to express support for Irans anti-government protesters on Wednesday. In a tweet, Trump commended the protesters and pledged that the United States will support them at the appropriate time. Such respect for the people of Iran as they try to take back their corrupt government. You will see great support from the United States at the appropriate time!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2018 Trumps tweet Wednesday morning came as Iranian Ambassador Gholamali Khoshroo sent a letter to United Nations officials complaining that Washington was intervening in a grotesque way in Irans internal affairs. The President and Vice-President of the United States, in their numerous absurd tweets, incited Iranians to engage in disruptive acts, the ambassador wrote to the U.N. Security Council president and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The U.S. didnt immediately respond to the letter, which maintains that Washington has crossed every limit in flouting rules and principles of international law governing the civilized conduct of international relations. At least 21 people have been killed and hundreds arrested in Iran during a week of anti-government protests and unrest over economic woes and official corruption. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people took part in counter-demonstrations Wednesday backing the clerically overseen government, which has said enemies of Iran are fomenting the protests. Trump has unleashed a series of tweets in recent days backing the protesters, saying Iran is failing at every level and declaring that it is time for change in the Islamic Republic. Facebook

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Trump congratulates Sen. Orrin Hatch upon news of his retirement By Associated Press President Trump congratulated Sen. Orrin Hatch for an absolutely incredible career upon news of Hatchs impending retirement. In a tweet Tuesday afternoon, Trump called Hatch a tremendous supporter and wrote that he will be greatly missed in the Senate. Congratulations to Senator Orrin Hatch on an absolutely incredible career. He has been a tremendous supporter, and I will never forget the (beyond kind) statements he has made about me as President. He is my friend and he will be greatly missed in the U.S. Senate! pic.twitter.com/0VjzLEeHTl  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 Hatchs decision to retire from the Senate after four decades lets the Utah Republican walk away at the height of his power after helping to push through an overhaul of the tax code and persuading Trump to downsize two national monuments. Retirement also preserves the 83-year-olds legacy by allowing him to avoid a bruising reelection battle that would have broken his promise not to seek an eighth term. Read More Facebook

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Trump tweet exaggerates progress in improving veterans care By Associated Press President Trump played up tremendous progress in improving care for veterans in his first year on Tuesday in a tweet. His message linked to an Instagram video describing eight accomplishments that show Trump is fighting for our veterans. But it overstates the impact of these steps. We will not rest until all of Americas GREAT VETERANS can receive the care they so richly deserve. Tremendous progress has been made in a short period of time. Keep up the great work @SecShulkin @DeptVetAffairs! https://t.co/ir25vW15hx pic.twitter.com/OtuzIgxMn6  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 Of the eight achievements cited, two are ceremonial proclamations recognizing National Veterans and Military Families Month and National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. Two are pieces of legislation that extended the troubled Veterans Choice program on a temporary basis. This became necessary because the Trump administration repeatedly miscalculated the amount of taxpayer dollars available to pay for care from private doctors outside the Veterans Affairs system when veterans had to endure long waits for treatment at VA medical centers. The departments poor budget planning caught lawmakers off guard. A fifth claim involves telehealth, a step letting doctors practice medicine across state lines using digital technology. Announced in August, it has yet to take full effect because a proposed VA regulation hasnt been completed. The VA wants authority to practice across state lines to come from legislation, not a regulation. On Wednesday, the Senate approved a telehealth measure that now goes to the House. A sixth claim refers to legislation that streamlines the appeals process for disability compensation claims within the VA. This step has had limited effect so far because it applies to new disability claims, not the 470,000 pending claims. The last two initiatives make it easier for the VA to discipline employees. The department has pointed to more than 1,300 employees who have been fired under Trumps watch. Because their infractions are not detailed in public documents, the effect on veterans care is not fully known. Facebook

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Trump unleashes his first tweetstorm of 2018 By Noah Bierman President Trump clearly didnt resolve to change his Twitter habits this year. With nine disparate tweets over three hours on Tuesday morning, the first working day of 2018, Trump continued to exploit social media to be the most aggressive commentator in chief in American history. For any other president, his posts would have made for a monumental day of (mis-)statements. Yet for Trump, the series  attacks on political foes and media, provocations of foreign leaders and self-praise for events he had nothing to do with  was all but unremarkable. His Twitter barrage  sent between 7:09 a.m. and 10:16 a.m.  reflected a familiar gamut after nearly a year in office: Attacks on political foes: Nearly 14 months after his election, Trump called for the jailing of Huma Abedin, Crooked Hillary Clintons top aid (his misspelling, another occasional feature of Trump tweets). Crooked Hillary Clintons top aid, Huma Abedin, has been accused of disregarding basic security protocols. She put Classified Passwords into the hands of foreign agents. Remember sailors pictures on submarine? Jail! Deep State Justice Dept must finally act? Also on Comey & others  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 In the same tweet, he disparaged the Deep State Justice Dept, headed of course by his appointees, calling on it to act against James B. Comey, the FBI director he fired for investigating the Russia thing. Diplomatic provocations: Trump again called North Korean leader Kim Jong Un Rocket man, ridiculed the volatile nuclear-armed foe for recent military defections and openly speculated about potential talks between North and South Korea. Sanctions and other pressures are beginning to have a big impact on North Korea. Soldiers are dangerously fleeing to South Korea. Rocket man now wants to talk to South Korea for first time. Perhaps that is good news, perhaps not - we will see!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 Perhaps that is good news, perhaps not  we will see! Trump wrote. Later Tuesday, Trump tweeted: North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times. Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2018 Also later Tuesday, Trump tweeted an attack on Pakistan, his second in as many days, and added a new one against Palestinians: It's not only Pakistan that we pay billions of dollars to for nothing, but also many other countries, and others. As an example, we pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect. They dont even want to negotiate a long overdue...  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 ...peace treaty with Israel. We have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table, but Israel, for that, would have had to pay more. But with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 Undermining media: Trump offered Congratulations! to A.G. Sulzberger, who took over as publisher of the New York Times this week. The Failing New York Times has a new publisher, A.G. Sulzberger. Congratulations! Here is a last chance for the Times to fulfill the vision of its Founder, Adolph Ochs, to give the news impartially, without fear or FAVOR, regardless of party, sect, or interests involved. Get...  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 ....impartial journalists of a much higher standard, lose all of your phony and non-existent sources, and treat the President of the United States FAIRLY, so that the next time I (and the people) win, you wont have to write an apology to your readers for a job poorly done! GL  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 But the two-part post was really yet another slam against a perceived media foe: Trump said the paper had a last chance to fulfill its journalistic mission, and accused it of relying on phony sources and substandard reporters  just days after he granted another exclusive interview to the paper. As a bonus, the tweet contained a recycled falsehood, that the paper apologized after the election for reporting on him unfairly. It didnt. Trump later said on Twitter that he would soon announce the most dishonest & corrupt media awards of the year. Stay tuned! I will be announcing THE MOST DISHONEST & CORRUPT MEDIA AWARDS OF THE YEAR on Monday at 5:00 oclock. Subjects will cover Dishonesty & Bad Reporting in various categories from the Fake News Media. Stay tuned!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2018 The president also tweeted a quote from Fox Business Networks Lou Dobbs Tonight, which aired a segment praising Trumps first-year accomplishments. Dobbs reportedly joined Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Sunday for a gala to celebrate New Years Eve. President Trump has something now he didnt have a year ago, that is a set of accomplishments that nobody can deny. The accomplishments are there, look at his record, he has had a very significant first year. @LouDobbs Show,David Asman & Ed Rollins  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2018 Taking credit: Trump congratulated himself for policing the border with Mexico, an area where his policies and anti-immigration rhetoric are believed to have had some effect on reducing illegal crossings. Thank you to Brandon Judd of the National Border Patrol Council for your kind words on how well we are doing at the Border. We will be bringing in more & more of your great folks and will build the desperately needed WALL! @foxandfriends  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 He took credit for employee bonuses by companies after he signed Republican tax cuts into law last month. Companies are giving big bonuses to their workers because of the Tax Cut Bill. Really great!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 But the jaw-dropper was Trump congratulating himself for planes not crashing. Since taking office I have been very strict on Commercial Aviation. Good news - it was just reported that there were Zero deaths in 2017, the best and safest year on record!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 It was the safest year on record worldwide, but the American streak without commercial jet passenger deaths goes back to 2009. Trump, who has promoted deregulation as one of his top accomplishments, has not signed off on any new airline safety regulations. The White House pointed to new security screening of passengers, to electronic devices to prevent terrorist attacks and to Trumps support for privatizing air traffic control  a proposal that has gotten nowhere in Congress. Falsehoods: Trump said President Obama, in brokering the 2015 nuclear arms limitation deal with Iran, foolishly gave money to the brutal and corrupt Iranian regime. He didnt. The people of Iran are finally acting against the brutal and corrupt Iranian regime. All of the money that President Obama so foolishly gave them went into terrorism and into their pockets. The people have little food, big inflation and no human rights. The U.S. is watching!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 The nuclear deal, which included major U.S. allies as signators, released Irans own funds that had long been frozen. Trumps art of the deal: When Trump sees a big deal looming, he often blasts the other side  to gain leverage, as hes written. This week he resumes a showdown with Democratic lawmakers over funding the government and immigration protections for so-called Dreamers, who were brought to the country illegally as children. Democrats are doing nothing for DACA - just interested in politics. DACA activists and Hispanics will go hard against Dems, will start falling in love with Republicans and their President! We are about RESULTS.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018 Trump, who in September ordered a gradual end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, sought to shift blame for the resulting controversy, saying Democrats are doing nothing for DACA and are just interested in politics. Trump has insisted that any help for Dreamers be paired with funding for a border wall and a crackdown on legal immigration. Democrats, and some Republicans, are opposed. Read More Facebook

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In tweet, Trump suggests U.S. will withdraw financial assistance to Pakistan By Shashank Bengali Pakistan lashed out Monday after President Trump accused its leaders of lies & deceit and suggested the United States would withdraw financial assistance to the nuclear-armed nation it once saw as a key ally against terrorism. It was the presidents latest broadside against Pakistan after a speech in August in which he demanded its leaders crack down on the safe havens enjoyed by Taliban militants fighting U.S.-backed forces in neighboring Afghanistan. The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools. They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 1, 2018 U.S. Ambassador David Hale was summoned to the Foreign Ministry to discuss the presidents statement, U.S. Embassy spokesman Richard Snelsire said. Pakistan lodged a strongly worded protest and asked for clarification about Trumps comments, according to two foreign office officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. Pakistans prime minister, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, called a Cabinet meeting for Tuesday and a meeting of the National Security Committee on Wednesday to discuss Trumps New Years Day tweet. Read More Facebook

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Trump continues to tweet in support of Iranian protesters By Laura King President Trump expressed renewed support Sunday for protesters in Iran, declaring that people are finally getting wise as to how their money and wealth is being stolen and squandered on terrorism. In a tweet from his Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, the president said the nationwide economic protests that began on Thursday  and have taken on wider political overtones as they have grown in size  were a signal that Iranians will not take it any longer. Big protests in Iran. The people are finally getting wise as to how their money and wealth is being stolen and squandered on terrorism. Looks like they will not take it any longer. The USA is watching very closely for human rights violations!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 31, 2017 Trump has tweeted about the protests for three days straight as Iranians took to the streets despite a heavy police presence, tear gas and scores of arrests. The defiance gained urgency after two people were reported shot to death in the city of Dorud, about 200 miles southwest of Tehran. As the conflict escalated, Iranian authorities on Sunday slapped a temporary ban on Instagram and the messaging app Telegram, which were widely used to fan protest fervor. Iran, the Number One State of Sponsored Terror with numerous violations of Human Rights occurring on an hourly basis, has now closed down the Internet so that peaceful demonstrators cannot communicate. Not good!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 31, 2017 Irans leaders already are casting Trumps increasingly effusive expressions of support for the demonstrators as opportunistic meddling and are painting the demonstrators as foreign pawns, adopting a strategy that some analysts say could jeopardize the legitimacy of the nascent antigovernment protests. Read More Facebook

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Trump tweets condolences after Colorado deputies are shot in ambush, one fatally By Associated Press A man fired more than 100 rounds at sheriffs deputies in Colorado early Sunday, killing one and injuring four others, before being fatally shot himself in what authorities called an ambush. Two civilians were also injured. President Trump expressed sorrow, writing on Twitter: My deepest condolences to the victims of the terrible shooting in Douglas County @DCSheriff, and their families. We love our police and law enforcement - God Bless them all! #LESM  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 31, 2017 Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock said deputies came under fire almost
The train had pulled out of Londons Victoria Station 20 minutes before, and Mitch, our cheery cockney waiter, was pouring a second glass of Champagne for my wife and me when a dignified gent in a tailcoat entered the dining car.

He was, he announced, Smith, the butler to the 6th Lord Deville, who was poisoned while hosting a private dinner party and died face first in his plate of semolina.

Murder, just as on the Orient Express? How very fitting.

And very timely, too, with Kenneth Branaghs film version of Agatha Christies 1934 novel due for release in the fall.

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We were, in fact, on its sister train, the splendidly refurbished Belmond British Pullman that carries passengers from London to Folkestone, on the English Channel. (The Venice Simplon-Orient Express continues on to Paris; Venice, Italy; Prague, Czech Republic; and Istanbul, Turkey.)

The trains 11 vintage carriages, dating from 1925 to the 1950s, recall the golden age of travel.

The Art Deco interiors feature restored wood paneling inlaid with marquetry, brass luggage racks and furnishings appropriate for the period, all evoking opulence and indulgence.

The Belmond British Pullman offers excursions and weekend trips to Bath, Canterbury and other destinations in Britain, accompanied by flowing Champagne and gourmet cuisine.

We were on one of the shorter trips, a five-hour round-trip journey through the Kent countryside that came with a five-course lunch and a murder mystery to solve.

Passengers were encouraged to wear vintage clothing in the spirit of the trip, and many did so.

We had barely sampled our appetizer of smoked haddock, spinach and ricotta tart when the second of seven witnesses/suspects arrived to divulge more information about the late Lord Deville and the other dinner party guests.

All the while the estimable Mitch kept our glasses filled, muttering, A few more of these and you wont care who dunnit.

He had been a waiter on the train for 27 years and had a fund of stories to tell. Passengers have included Nikita Khrushchev, French President Charles de Gaulle, South African President Nelson Mandela and rocker Keith Richards, whom Mitch proclaimed a nice guy.

He particularly liked the tale of the newly hired chef who hadnt been told it was a murder mystery trip and, terrified, locked himself in the galley when a woman ran through the dining car waving a knife.

As we passed through the lush English countryside, dining on carrot, turmeric and yellow split pea soup, Welsh lamb rump with minted new potatoes and seasonal green vegetables, a selection of British cheeses and an apple, rhubarb and ginger crumble with rhubarb compote and whipped cream, more suspects appeared at intervals, each one seeming more guilty than the one before.

As we approached greater London on the return trip, we filled in the forms we had been given with our notes on who we thought was the murderer and why.

Then, just before we pulled into Victoria, Mrs. Tamara Crispin-Pettipace, who described herself as a former lover of His Lordship, announced the identity of the murderer and presented those who got it right with a bottle of Champagne.

We didnt get it right, having plumped for Mrs. Crispin-Pettipace herself. In fact, the murderer was.

If you go

THE BEST WAY TO LONDON

From LAX, American, British, Air New Zealand, Virgin Atlantic, United and Norwegian offer nonstop service to London; KLM, American, United, Air Canada and Delta offer connecting service (change of planes. Restricted round-trip fares from $799, including taxes and fees.

Murder mystery lunches aboard the Belmond British Pullman, (800) 524-2420, are about $444 per person and include Champagne reception and five-course lunch. Dates this year are Aug. 18, Sept. 15, Oct. 13 and Nov. 4.

travel@latimes.com

@latimestravel
A young French man who recently was discharged from a psychiatric hospital is under investigation for glorifying terrorism after he brandished a knife and tried to breach security at the Eiffel Tower, authorities said Sunday.

No one was hurt in the incident late Saturday, though the tower was briefly evacuated, according to a statement Sunday from the company that manages the monument. The tower reopened as usual Sunday morning.

A judicial official said the man tried to force his way into the secure zone, held out a knife and said Allahu akbar, meaning God is great in Arabic. He was quickly surrounded by security forces and surrendered, the official said. A Paris police official said no shots were fired. Both officials werent authorized to be publicly named.

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While the man is accused of glorifying terrorism, the incident is being investigated as a common crime and not by anti-terrorism investigators, the judicial official said, because of his history of psychiatric problems and because authorities have no reason to believe he was part of a network or planning an attack.

The suspect was born in Mauritania in 1998 but has French citizenship, the official said. His name wasnt released.

Monuments in the French capital are occasionally evacuated for security reasons, as the country remains on alert after deadly attacks since 2015.

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Two Chinese tourists discovered the hard way that giving the outlawed Hitlergruss  or Nazi salute  in front of the Reichstag building in Berlin is no laughing matter in Germany.

The two men, ages 49 and 36, were quickly detained after police spotted them taking pictures of each other in front of the countrys most popular tourist spot Saturday while giving the stiff-armed Heil Hitler greeting that is illegal in Germany and punishable by up to three years in jail.

The tourists, who were released after posting a total of $1,200 in bail set by a local judge, were the latest in a long line of foreigners to run afoul of the strict laws outlawing not only the Hitler salute but all Nazi symbols.

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The Nazi Party is banned in Germany. Its symbols, such as the Hitler salute and swastika, and imagery can only be used for teaching, in films or historical research, or in documentaries or films satirizing the Nazis.

Two British tourists were detained last year for the same offense as the Chinese tourists near the Reichstag, and a 30-year-old Canadian tourist from Quebec had to post $170 bail for performing the salute for a picture of himself taken by a German woman at the same locale in 2011. Scores of police and countless security cameras monitor the Reichstag building around the clock.

We definitely treat this and all similar such cases as a serious violation of the law, said Patricia Braemer, a spokeswoman for the Berlin police. The law banning the use of symbols that violate the constitution applies not only to Germans but to everyone in Germany. Anyone coming here ought to know and respect the countrys customs.

Although Germans learn extensively about the horrors of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, the Third Reich and the Holocaust in school and through the media, some Germans also get into trouble for flashing the Hitler salute in public  thinking at first it is just for a laugh or as a lighthearted provocation.

Two high school students from the northern city of Rostock were charged with displaying Nazi symbols for giving the Hitler salute on a class trip to a history museum in Berlin this year.

They took pictures of each other giving the salute while standing in front of posters showing Hitler and his propaganda minister, Joseph Goebbels. When their teachers discovered the pictures, they made the students delete them from their phones. But the school principal later turned the students over to police.

There are surely a lot more people around who give the Hitler salute than the police see, Braemer said. But the penal code is valid for everyone, and when we see it, we respond accordingly.

Some German police officers have also been caught trying to make inappropriate Nazi jokes. One Berlin police officer assigned to guard the British Embassy there was suspended in 2004 after he gave a fellow officer the salute at the start of his shift and shouted, Heil Hitler.

In 2007, a Berlin man who taught his dog named Adolf to give the Hitlergruss on command  the German shepherd raised its right paw  was sentenced by a local court to five months in jail.

Kirschbaum is a special correspondent.
Venezuelan authorities said armed forces successfully put down an early morning attack Sunday by a group opposed to President Nicolas Maduro that tried to take over Ft. Paramacay in Valencia.

Two were killed and seven arrested in the clash, authorities said.

There were no signs that the revolt, which government officials described as a terrorist attack, had spread to other bases across the country. Several army units were deployed in Caracas, the capital, and in other cities as a security measure.

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Some of those involved in the uprising were apparently able to take control of an arsenal at the fort before fleeing the scene, according to local media.

Security forces were searching for an undisclosed number of people who fled the fort. Details of the conflict could not be independently determined.

The conflict comes a day after Maduros government convened a controversial assembly to rewrite the nations constitution. Critics claim Maduro acted illegally because the body did not receive public authorization and say that it is designed to marginalize the opposition-controlled National Assembly.

Venezuela has been shaken by four months of protests over food scarcities, violence and Maduros autocratic governing style. The death toll from clashes between protesters and authorities since late March stands at 131, and thousands have been injured or arrested.

The clash Sunday involved a group of some 20 people dressed in military uniforms led by an officer who identified himself as Capt. Juan Caguaripano. The group members issued a video over social media to announce they were in legitimate rebellion.

United now more than ever with the brave people of Venezuela, we repudiate the murderous tyranny of Nicolas Maduro, Caguaripano said. This is not a coup detat. This is a civic and military action to reestablish constitutional order.

Maduro said on his weekly television broadcast that the group entered the base about 4 a.m. He said the uprising was led by a deserter.

Remigio Ceballos, strategic operational commander of the nations armed forces, said in a social media message that seven terrorists had been arrested after the attack.

Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez wrote on Twitter that the attackers were repulsed due to the spirit and constitutional conscience of the armed forces.

Constitutional Assembly Vice President Diosdado Cabello said on Twitter that there was absolute normalcy at other government installations.

Opposition leader Henrique Capriles said at a news conference that the attack demonstrated the frustration Venezuelans feel with the new constitutional assembly and other autocratic measures taken by the Maduro government to neutralize the opposition.

What is coming with the new constitution is only more hunger and more isolation for Venezuela, said Capriles, governor of Miranda state.

In April, Capriles was disqualified by the government from running for future office for alleged mismanagement of state finances, a charge he denied. Capriles claimed it was a maneuver to eliminate him from next years presidential election.

Also, opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez was returned to house arrest after having been seized from his residence last week and taken to a military prison. He had spent more than three years in prison following a conviction for incitement to violence, a charge he denied, before being granted house arrest July 8.

Special correspondents Mogollon and Kraul reported from Caracas and Bogota, Colombia, respectively.

UPDATES:

4:25 p.m.: This article was updated with information on comments from President Maduro.

This article was originally published at 2:00 p.m.
A male driver was killed and two others were injured after a car crashed into a parked truck in a Bethlehem driveway, police said.

The crash occurred around 7 p.m. near the intersection of Gresham and Snyder streets, between Stefko Boulevard and Easton Avenue. Police Chief Mark DiLuzio said the male driver was pronounced dead at the scene by the Northampton County Coroner's Office. A woman and a female teen who were passengers in the car were taken to St. Luke's University Hospital in Fountain Hill with undisclosed injuries.

The pair remained hospitalized Sunday morning, according to the chief.

Details remain unclear what led the driver to lose control of the vehicle. City police continue to investigate.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A male driver pronounced dead after crashing into a parked truck in Bethlehem has been identified.

Northampton County Coroner Zachary Lysek identified the driver as 43-year-old David Centorame, no address provided. Police Chief Mark DiLuzio said Centorame around 7 p.m. Saturday crashed his car into a truck parked in a residential driveway near the intersection of Gresham and Snyder streets, between Stefko Boulevard and Easton Avenue.

Centorame died from multiple blunt force injuries and the manner was ruled accidental, Lysek said. City police continue to investigate what led to Centorame possibly losing control of the car, DiLuzio said.

Two passengers also were injured -- a woman and a female teenager -- and taken to St. Luke's University Hospital in Fountain Hill with undisclosed injuries. The pair remained hospitalized Sunday morning.

The crash remains under investigation by the Bethlehem Police Department.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
The 40th annual Lebanese Heritage Days festival is in full swing in Easton.

The festival runs from 4 p.m. to midnight Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday at Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Catholic Church.

The event at South Fourth and Ferry streets was created in 1978 to recognize the significant Lebanese-American community in Easton and celebrate the community's rich culture.

Festivalgoers can expect traditional Lebanese cuisine like hummus, tabbouli, shish kabob and chicken with garlic sauce, along with music from Eddie Ossama, Chadi Younes and Tony Mikhael.

You'll also find family friendly games, souvenir shopping, children's ethnic dance troupes and a raffle with a grand prize of $10,000.

Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook.
The Salisbury Township Police Department needs your help to find a missing 20-year-old autistic man.

Deny Arias is missing and needs his medication, according to township police.

He is known to hit himself, according to a post on the township police Facebook page.

He was last seen walking on or near South Pike Avenue in Salisbury Township.

Police put out the request for help at 6:15 p.m. Saturday.

Anyone with information about Arias should call the township police department at 610-797-1447 or Lehigh County emergency radio at 610-437-5252.
One of the most important economic and social challenges facing the county is to extend broadband to all rural areas.

After my most recent meeting with the Minister it is clear that the rollout of the National Broadband Plan is a legal and logistical minefield and has yet again been pushed out, with no date in sight for commencement.

10,427 workers in Laois are commuting from the county every day for work.

No doubt this figure has risen since the data was produced.

These are people spending many hours every week on train, bus or sitting in the middle of growing traffic jams, making any work/life balance impossible.

Rollout of broadband throughout the County will bring many benefits.

It creates job opportunities in rural Laois and improves the quality of life for commuting workers, meaning more home and family time.

It saves workers weekly commuting costs and reduces our greenhouse gas emissions with less transport use.

All this results in more money in the local economy, and more involvement in the local community.

Average broadband speeds in Laois are less than half that of Dublin.

There are 21,143 households and premises serviced commercially in mainly urban areas of the county.

A further 5,063 in Laois will be connected under a commercial scheme by Eir but there are 12,721 rural premises and households still left where the government need to intervene with subsidies.

These are now in limbo regarding connectivity.

Additional rollout of the 5,063 is welcome but the initiative from government through Eir could be seen as cherry-picking of easier to reach households generally in clustered groups or villages.

What of the remaining 12,721 homes?

Many people across Laois are now without basic mobile and broadband connection and where available, it is simply too slow.

The Eir project will leave out large parts of the Sliabh Blooms, Sliabh Margy, the villages of Ballaghmore and Vicarstown and large tracts of the countryside.

Broadband alone will not create jobs, but accelerating the rollout is central to job creation policy.

Without the basic services that exist in Dublin how can we offer an alternative to Dublin?

Can work from home options be realistic or businesses established if they cannot properly connect to the outside world?

Successive governments failed to deal with our unsatisfactory communications network.

From mobile phone licence sales under the then Fine Gael Minister, Micheal Lowry, to the disastrous sale of Eircom by Fianna Fails Mary ORourke, up to the present ever slow rollout of broadband, there have been many failed chapters to this story.

Government parties must realise that the economy needs to develop outside of Dublin.

The Government committed to have the contract for the National Broadband Scheme awarded for early 2017.

Disappointingly, yet another delay has been announced recently and neither the Minister nor his officials can give even an indicative date for the contract to be signed.

In reality this means that it will be many years before work even begins to connecting 540,000 rural people.

Unlike Ireland, many of Europes telecom companies are partly state owned.

Ideally the infrastructure should be in State hands as with the electricity network.

But what is required is rural Ireland getting a broadband connection that is a basic service in other parts of the country.

Sinn Fein want Broadband access fast tracked so that people can get the service that they need and deserve.

Brian Stanley TD. Spokesperson on Communications, Climate Change & Natural Resources
The seventh annual Hollywood Fair in west Co. Wicklow is back for another year.

Take a step back into pre 1950s time for this wonderful weekend of reminiscing on the olden days.

The event takes place this year from Thursday 17th to Sun 20th August.

Experience the vintage vehicles, straw-filled streets and all-round olden day feels.

The Hollywood Fair promises again to be hugely entertaining for everyone with a huge number of attractions.

The pre-1950s rural heritage theme of the Fair has proven a huge hit with everyone and we are asking everyone to embrace the spirit of the occasion by dressing up in pre-1950s attire  it makes the Hollywood Fair all the more exciting and you get to enjoy the spectacle of seeing everyone else dressed up in clothes from a by-gone era!

Whether its nostalgia for the past or something else, both the farming community and townspeople alike have been flocking to Hollywood in the last 6 years to be part of our celebration.

For 2017 the Fair commences on Thursday evening 17 th August with a Ceili/Set-Dancing session in the GAA Centre. Childrens fun and games takes place in the GAA field on Friday evening from 5pm to 6.30pm.

Later on in the evening there will be traditional music and singing in the Ceilidh House in the village.

On Saturday Bishop Eamonn Walsh will concelebrate an old-style Latin Mass in St. Kevins Church at 6pm with local clergy. Dressed in pre-1950s attire the large attendance usually make their way by pony and trap, vintage vehicles, bikes and shanks mare. After Mass we have planned another slow-bicycle race which is followed by a dramatic re-enactment in an adjacent field.

There will be music on our stage in the village from 8.30pm.

A huge crowd is expected on the Sunday, with numerous exhibitions of traditional crafts such as threshing, blacksmithing, stonecutting, wood-turning and butter making, there will be a world record attempt for the largest gathering of people wearing flat-caps (open to men, women and children).

Last year there was close to 100 stalls selling their wares and a similiar number is expected this year.

The Fair will be officially opened at 2pm by the Minister for Health Simon Harris, ably assisted by Mrs. Rita ORourke and Mr. Pat Corrigan.

Handicrafts being displayed and demonstrated include spinning, knitting and sewing. Among the items on display at the Fair are vintage cars and farm machinery.

You could also find love at the Fair as the renowned Lisdoonvarna Match-Maker Willie Daly will attend again this year.

Another major attraction is the Sheep Show: competition for the various categories attracts intense local interest. This year the Committee are delighted to welcome to the Fair Mr.

Joe Healy, National IFA President, who has kindly agreed to act as judge for the Sheep Show.

Mr. Healy is looking forward to meeting all the local farming families at the event.

Entrance fee is just three euro with children under-12 free.
Vince has high prominence in the media this morning for his Mail on Sunday column about the Brexit age divide. Talking about Brexit martyrs who are prepared to risk economic hardship to take back control, he writes:

(A) concern is that the self-declared martyrs may be planning to sacrifice other people rather than themselves. It is striking that the martyrs appear predominantly elderly (indeed the YouGov poll confirmed that fact). This is unsurprising since 64 per cent of over-65s voted Brexit in the referendum and 71 per cent of under-25s voted Remain.

In the campaign, I was struck by the heavily Remain sentiment in colleges and schools and the heavily Brexit mood of church-hall meetings packed with retired people.

The martyrdom of the old comes cheap, since few have jobs to lose. And even if the country were to become poorer, their living standards are largely protected by the triple lock on the state pension and many can rely on occupational, final salary, pensions which are closed to younger people. When I joined the Coalition Cabinet in 2010, we took pride in the triple lock to banish the scourge of pensioner poverty. But one of its unintended consequences has been a growing rift between generations.

Pensioners have suffered relatively little from the aftermath of the financial crisis  unless they were slow to shift savings from banks to shares or property. The burden of austerity has been carried by the working population. Young people suffer the additional disadvantage of prohibitive housing costs, growing job insecurity and limited career progression. The old have comprehensively shafted the young. And the old have had the last word about Brexit, imposing a world view coloured by nostalgia for an imperial past on a younger generation much more comfortable with modern Europe.
SINCE 1971, Bruff Credit Union has been at the centre of the community, working tirelessly for the benefit of their members.

Through the hardwork and dedication of its management, staff, directors and volunteers the Credit Union has come through the recession in a very strong and secure position.

The Credit Union offers a different approach to financial services, ensuring each member is treated the same and each member is treated fairly. They always have a member of staff to deal with a query, never a machine. They offer longer, more convenient opening hours to suit members working hours, opening late on Thursdays and Fridays. They do not charge administration or transaction fees. With Bruff Credit Union you are not a customer you are a member.

Bruff Credit Union offers a number of services to members including savings, loans at competitive rates, school saving stamps, receipt of social welfare payments and insurance services. It will soon be introducing payroll deduction. They also offer Same Day Loan Approval up to 2,000. During 2017 their loan book has grown steadily with members taking loans primarily for cars and home improvements, but also for education, business, holidays and weddings.

Manager Gerard Hehir states: The steady growth of our loan book throughout 2017 shows a secure and robust Credit Union with strong member confidence. Our members know they can come to us for loans small or large. Our membership has also shown aggressive growth with new members from across our Common Bond. We are delighted to see our services now being utilised by more of the business members of our community.

Bruff Credit Union serves the communities of Bruff, Knockainey, Fedamore, Lough Gur, Dromin, Athlacca, Grange, Meanus, Crean, Rathmore and Uregare. If you, your partner or spouse work or live in these areas, you are eligible to join Bruff Credit Union.

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DAMAGE to flower boxes started a chain of events that resulted in two men being found guilty of affray in one of the longest cases in years at Kilmallock Court.

Brendan Hennessy, aged 34, of Ballinanama, Kilfinane was found guilty of affray and assault causing harm but had an assault charge dismissed. Michael Heffernan, aged 33, of Main Street, Kilfinane was found guilty of affray but had an assault causing harm charge dismissed. The injured party - David Stanton, aged 23, of High Street, Kilfinane had a count of assault thrown out.

It took up to seven hours over two days in June to hear all the evidence from incidents in Kilfinane on October 25, 2015. Judge Marian OLeary adjourned sentencing to the most recent sitting of Kilmallock Court to consider her verdict.

All sides gave evidence. There was quite a number of contradictions and inconsistencies by all parties, said the judge.

Mr Stanton said he was grabbed by the throat in Tread na Ri, Kilfinane by Hennessy after they had exchanged words. Hennessy said Stanton was kicking plants out of a flower box late at night and Hennessy told him, What did the flowers ever do to you? Go away, go away fast. Stanton denied damaging flowers.

Hennessy and Heffernan said they were never in Tread na Ri on the night and the judge concurred.

Later that night, Heffernan said he was assaulted with an iron bar by Mr Stanton. He dispossessed Mr Stanton of the weapon and left it at the side of the road.

Judge OLeary said it was highly suspicious that he threw the iron bar away for fear of being hit again. A reasonable person would have kept the weapon and reported it to gardai. He did neither, said Judge OLeary.

Thirty minutes later as Hennessy was walking Heffernan home they say they were pushed in the door of Mr Stantons house by a number of men. Mr Stanton said they burst in.

Mr Stanton said he was punched by Hennessy, resulting in a cut lip, three stitches, chipped tooth which cost 1,900 for a cap that is not guaranteed to stay. Hennessy admitted striking him but in self defence after Mr Stanton grabbed a knife.

Mr Hennessy did cause serious injuries. There was contradictory evidence - Mr Stanton said there was no knife, Mr Hennessy said the knife was in the sink, Mr Heffernan said it was on the sideboard. Mr Hennessy said he was acting in self defence which is quite difficult to comprehend as people were trying to break it up, said the judge. She found Hennessy guilty of assault causing harm to Mr Stanton but dismissed the same charge against Heffernan.

Judge OLeary found Hennessy and Heffernan guilty of affray.

It beggars belief they would walk past Mr Stantons house. They said they knew there was going to be a confrontation. Their intentions are questionable.

After the attack with an iron bar, being pushed into a house, assaulted and threatened with a knife, Mr Hennessy and Mr Heffernan didnt report it to gardai immediately. It is a very unlikely response, said Judge OLeary.

During the case in June, Bruff Superintendent William Duane put it to Hennessy he wanted to confront these blow-ins for causing damage to the flower boxes. He denied this.

After sentencing, Supt Duane said: Affray is very serious. It is a village in the countryside - they cant take the law into their own hands.

The judge said she would strike all matters out against Hennessy and Heffernan if 1,900 compensation was paid to Mr Stanton for medical expenses from Hennessys punch. And if they paid 750 each to the court poor box on the affray charges and Hennessy paid a further 500 on the assault causing harm charge.

The case was adjourned to September.
GAS NETWORKS Ireland has begun laying the pipeline which, when complete, will run from Barrigone, Askeaton to Listowel town.

And residents are being warned to expect traffic disruptions at some points along the N69 until December, as workers install the gas pipe.

The full route has an approximate length of 41km, starting at Craggs AGI and running along the N69 towards Foynes, before leaving the N69 and travelling through the towns of Shanagolden, Ballyhahill and Moyvane, and then rejoining the N69 again as far as Listowel town.

The work also includes the installation of 11km of gas main within Listowel town and the installation of gas mains within Moyvane and Ballyhahill.

The works involve the excavation of a trench, installation and testing of the gas main and road reinstatement, and will be carried out Mondays to Fridays, 7am to 7pm.

Access to driveways and entrances will be maintained. However, minor disruption may occur while excavating across your driveway or entrance. The crew will communicate with you and facilitate you when you need to drive in or out, the contractor wrote to residents ahead of the work.

Shanagolden and Glin residents are being warned to expect delays until this December, with some other spots experiencing delays until this October.

One resident in the local area told the Limerick Leader that she was facing delays due to the N69 being torn up.

Another resident said that Ballyhahill and Glin are blocked off, which is causing some frustration.

A spokesperson for Gas Networks Ireland confirmed earlier this year that there would be an offtake leg at the closest point to Glin along the new pipeline.

This leg will be used to connect Glin to the network should it become commercially viable in the future.

Initially, Gas Network Irelands plan to build a feeder gas pipeline connecting Foynes to Listowel did not include connections to any west Limerick towns and villages along the route.

The only exception at the time was Foynes, where the company was continuing to liaise with potential customers.

The key factor in the companys decision to link Listowel to the national gas grid was the coming on board of Kerry Ingredients and its plan to invest in a combined heat and power plant.
INVESTIGATIONS are underway after a young man died following a stabbing incident in Killkee overnight.

Gardai at Kilrush are investigating the incident which occurred at Marion Estate in the coastal town at approximately 1.15am this Sunday.

A 25-year-old male, who is understood to be from the area, received serious stab wounds and was removed to University Hospital Limerick where he was later pronounced dead.

According to gardai, a 22-year-old man, also understood to be local, was arrested a short time later in connection with this investigation.

He is currently detained at Kilrush garda station under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

The scene is currently preserved for a technical examination and members of the Garda Technical Bureau are expected to attend the scene later.

Gardai are appealing to any witnesses who may have been in the area at the time of the incident or who have information to contact them at (065) 9080550.
A YOUNG FATHER who was killed in a fatal stabbing in Kilkee this Sunday morning has been named locally as 25-year-old Karl Haugh.

Karl Haugh, from Marian Estate, Kilkee, County Clare, was pronounced dead at University Hospital Limerick after suffering from a number of stab wounds, shortly after 1am.

It is understood that the tragic incident occurred in a pedestrian laneway at his home estate, and that a number of people were at the scene.

As of 6pm, three young men  all in their early 20s  have been arrested and are currently being detained at Kilrush garda station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984.

A third man, in his 20s, has been arrested in connection with the fatal stabbing of a young man in Kilkee.  Fintan Walsh (@FintanYTWalsh) August 6, 2017

Karl Haugh, nicknamed Gobbo, was a father of one and recently celebrated his 25th birthday in July.

The young mans death has proven to be a shock to the community, with a number of people paying tribute to the man, whose family is well-known in the coastal town.

One friend posted on Facebook: Cant belive we woke up to the news you werw gone Gobbo.

Kilkee will never be the same without you. You changed your whole life for the better with college and a six-month baby girl...RIP Gobbo youre loved and gonna be missed by so many.

Another shared on social media: Sleep tight Gobbo. Say hi to Stacey for us, I know she's up there waiting for you. Karl Haugh, legend to many in Kilkee.

Kilkee stabbing: 'I heard really loud screaming and shouting' https://t.co/UoMhHl8x3J  David Hurley (@DHurleyLL) August 6, 2017

In 2003, Karl survived a road traffic collision, in which his 16-year-old sister Stacey and her friend Lorna Mahoney died at the scene. Karl underwent heart surgery in Dublin, when he had a 20% of living, according to reports at the time.

The deceaseds relatives operate the well-known Garveys Shop and Stop store on Church Road, Kilkee.

It is understood that Karl was studying at Central College Limerick, after attending St Josephs Community College in Kilkee.

One shocked friend told the Limerick Leader: He was a nice lad, he was big into his gym and fitness and was in absolutely great shape. I am absolutely shocked.

According to one holidaymaker from Limerick, the small Marian Estate was awoken at around 1.05am when a number of people could hear screaming and shouting.

All I heard was dogs going nuts in the estate next to my mobile, then I heard really loud screaming and shouting and banging noises.

It was actually very scary to listen to, as we were very close to where it happened. I actually thought the banging noise was gunshots but then it went quiet but very scary, she said.

Meanwhile, St Senans GAA has postponed a senior league game as a mark of respect to the family of the deceased.

Due to the tragic events that unfolded in Kilkee last night, and as a mark of respect to the family involved, our Senior league game vs Killimer today has been postponed and will be re-arranged for next weekend. Ar dheis de go reibh a anam, it said on Facebook on Sunday morning.

The scene is currently preserved for a technical examination and members of the Garda Technical Bureau are expected to attend the scene later.

Gardai are appealing to any witnesses who may have been in the area at the time of the incident or who have information to contact them at (065) 9080550.
A SMALL housing estate in Kilkee was awoken to loud screaming and shouting, following the fatal stabbing of a young man in the coastal town, in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The incident took place at Marian Estate, shortly after 1am, and three men have been arrested in connection with the incident.

A 25-year-old male, who is understood to be from the area, was pronounced dead at University Hospital Limerick after sustaining serious stab wounds.

It is understood that the man was stabbed a number of times following an altercation in a pedestrian laneway in the council estate. A knife, believed to be used in the incident, has been recovered by gardai.

The three arrested men, both aged in their early 20s, are both currently detained at Kilrush garda station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984.

One holidaymaker residing in the area said that she was frightened by the loud noises at around 1.05am.

All I heard was dogs going nuts in the estate next to my mobile, then I heard realy loud screaming and shouting and banging noises.

It was actually very scary to listen to, as we were very close to where it happened. I actually thought the banging noise was gunshots but then it went quiet but very scary.

Gardai at Kilrush are currently at the scene at Marian Estate  a small housing complex of no more than 50 homes, and just 500m from the popular beach.

Meanwhile, St Senans GAA has postponed a senior league game as a mark of respect to the family of the deceased.

Due to the tragic events that unfolded in Kilkee last night, and as a mark of respect to the family involved, our Senior league game vs Killimer today has been postponed and will be re-arranged for next weekend. Ar dheis de go reibh a anam, it said on Facebook on Sunday morning.

The scene is currently preserved for a technical examination and members of the Garda Technical Bureau are expected to attend the scene later.

Gardai are appealing to any witnesses who may have been in the area at the time of the incident or who have information to contact them at (065) 9080550.
Apr 29, 2021, 11 PM

Another highlight of the June Gartner auction, which found a new home for a bit more than $10,000, was this 1968 cover from the Peoples Republic of China to West Germany, sent at the height of the Cultural Revolution, franked with a mix of Chinese stamps

Just 40 (four panes of 10) of Germanys unissued 2001 Audrey Hepburn semipostal stamp are known to have escaped destruction. This example, featuring the actresss name in the selvage, realized $176,000 during the June 20-23 Christoph Gaertner sale in Stut

This French cover from around 1870 is franked with five examples of the extremely scarce type A of the 5-centime stamp provisionally issued in Bordeaux. Featuring the signature of French expert Roumet, the cover sold for $78,500 during the June Gaertner s

Christoph Gaertner offered this philatelic cover franked with the entire stamp output from the African province of Kionga  four stamps. Sent from Kionga to Lisbon, Portugal, in 1916, the scarce cover sold for $13,150 in the June 20-23 auction.

As usual, early German postal history was well represented in Gaertners sale. This splendid cover, addressed to Prince Albert, Queen Victorias husband, was knocked down to a new owner for $34,400.

Auction Roundup  By Matthew Healey

Look at them, Madame, he said in his heavy French accent. Have you ever in your entire life seen anything so beautiful?

Im sorry, she replied. I dont know anything about stamps.

This exchange between a fictional Parisian stamp dealer and Audrey Hepburns character in the 1963 movie Charade seems deeply ironic in retrospect: Hepburn herself would later come to grace one of the worlds most beautiful and valuable stamps.

One of those glamorous rarities hit the red carpet in June, looking for a new home.

The stamp featuring Hepburn was to have been part of a 2001 German semipostal set featuring international film stars (Scott B890-B894).

Hepburn (1929-1993), the Oscar-winning star of Roman Holiday, Breakfast at Tiffanys, My Fair Lady, and many other films, came to exemplify 20th-century chic with her distinctive style and carefree innocence.

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Later in life, she devoted herself to working with UNICEF to protect children in some of the worlds poorest communities.

Reams of 110-pfennig+50pf stamps, showing Hepburn smiling under a broad-brimmed hat and seductively gripping a long cigarette holder in her mouth, were prepared by Deutsche Post.

But at the last minute, the German postal authorities realized they needed the permission of Hepburns son, Sean Ferrer, to use the image they had selected for the stamp.

Ferrer declined, citing alterations to the photograph  supposedly it had originally showed his mother with a pair of sunglasses in her mouth  and the entire print run was destroyed, except for four panes of 10.

One pane had apparently gotten out to the public, because four or five examples are known postally used. Two other panes were retained by the German post office, while the pane sent to Ferrer remained in his possession.

Amid worldwide media attention, Ferrers sheet was auctioned in 2010 for about $600,000, with proceeds benefitting the Audrey Hepburn Childrens Fund.

That sheet has since been broken up, and a bottom-right corner margin single from it, with Hepburns name in the selvage, was offered in Christoph Gaertners sale of worldwide stamps and postal history June 20-23 at their headquarters near Stuttgart, Germany.

The only single on the market with the actress name in the margin, it was described as postfrisch  post office fresh  and faultless.

Eager bidding in the packed auction room resulted in a final price, including the 22 percent buyers premium that Gaertner adds to all lots, of slightly more than 150,000, or $176,000.

As Hepburns character, Reggie Lampert, said when the Parisian dealer informed her of her rare stamps value: May I sit down?

As usual, early German postal history was well represented in Gaertners sale, including many items from the various states that united to form modern Germany around 1870.

One intriguing 1853 cover from Munich, franked with five Bavarian 9-kreuzer yellow-green stamps and one 3kr (Scott 6 and 2, respectively), was addressed to Prinz Albert von England, etc. etc. etc.

Albert, Queen Victorias husband, was born in Saxony, and retained his German noble title, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, even as he became prince consort.

Besides the royal addressee, the covers high franking of 48kr for its trip via France and the presence of a plate flaw on one of the 9kr stamps made it even more desirable. It was knocked down for $34,400.

It is not often that an entire country fits neatly on a single cover, but a registered letter from the southern African province of Kionga offered an example of just that in the Gaertner sale.

This small territory sandwiched between Tanganyika and Mozambique belonged to Germany from 1894 until the middle of World War I, when Portugal took it over. Four provisional postage stamps were created by overprinting 100-reis King Carlos regular stamps from the nearby colony of Lourenco Marques with name Kionga and new denominations: -centavo, 1c, 2c, and 5c (Scott 1-4).

That would be the entire stamp output of this country. Shortly afterward, it was annexed to Mozambique.

The foursome, on a philatelic cover to Lisbon, were all postmarked with purple June 10, 1916, datestamps.

An Aug. 5 receiving datestamp is on the reverse. Red censor tape down the left side attests to the wartime necessity of controlling all mail, even to nominally neutral countries.

A scarce example of mail from this tiny and short-lived territory, the cover sold for $13,150.

A 1968 cover from the Peoples Republic of China to West Germany, sent at the height of the Cultural Revolution, bore a mix of Chinese stamps featuring Chairman Mao Zedong and his sayings (Scott 956, 991, 996a, 997-999).

Postmarked in Canton (Guangdong), the cover is a scarce example of philatelic mail to the West during this period, and many of the stamps it bears are highly sought after.

For example, just the strip of five stamps showing Maos statements about the Cultural Revolution (996) is valued at $2,250 off cover in the Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue. The cover in the Gaertner sale, which opened around $2,350, was run up to a little more than $10,000.

A French cover from around 1870 was franked with five examples of the extremely scarce type A of the 5-centime stamp provisionally issued in Bordeaux (Scott 41c) during the Franco-Prussian war.

Also known as report 1 in French philatelic parlance, type A is distinguished by the subtlest of differences. Among the most readily discernible, the pupil of Ceress eye barely misses the lower eyelid in type A, whereas in type B the two are joined.

The 5c type A is considered the scarcest stamp of the Bordeaux issue, which was hastily prepared by lithography during the turmoil of war.

It is rarely seen on cover even as a single stamp, much less as a quintet. The cover sold by Gaertner, signed by the French expert Roumet, brought $78,500.
Dear neighbors,

This past week was very productive at the Capitol, passing several important pieces of legislation, including annexation reform, mail-in ballot fraud, additional funding for TRS-Care, and school finance reform.

On Aug. 2, the Land & Resource Management Committee, which I serve on, heard HB 6, the annexation reform bill. Texas is just one of five states that still involuntarily annexes land without approval from the residents. This bill will give people the power to voice their position to cities that seek to swallow them up through annexation.

The House Committee on Elections heard public testimony on election integrity. Voter ID laws in Texas are strict when you vote in person. However, that is not the case for mail-in ballots due to the lack of identification requirements. Voters eligible for mail-in ballots include senior citizens, disabled Texans, voters out of the county during an election period, and Texans serving overseas in the military.

Mail-in ballot fraud is usually committed against those 65 years or older and those that reside in nursing homes. We need to stop these bad actors that prey on our most vulnerable citizens, which is why I co-authored HB 184. This bill will crack down on mail-in ballot fraud by increasing penalties and create the offense of election fraud.

Another bill I have co-authored is HB 20, which will transfer approximately $213 million from the Economic Stabilization Fund to the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS). This will help decrease the costs of premiums and deductibles for our retired teachers. Although there is still much more work to be done on this issue, HB 20 provides relief that is necessary right now.

To finish off the work week, the House voted on three school finance reform bills. The bills included providing more money to school districts, funding innovative programs for students with autism, and reforming the school finance system in Texas.

The Legislature has been working to improve public education for our students and teachers. HB 21 passed the House floor on Aug. 4. This will address public school finance, which is the first step to address true property tax reform.

With a little more than a week until the end of the special session, it is hard to say what will get passed and what will not. I will keep you posted.

As always, if there are any issues you would like to discuss, please don't hesitate to contact me. You can reach me by email at district18.bailes@house.texas.gov or by calling 936-628-6687.
PARIS -- In May, Emmanuel Macron's victory over his opponent, the far-right populist Marine Le Pen, was seen as a win for the European Union or, as Macron put it, a "Europe that protects."

But three months later, many across the continent have begun wondering whether Macron really is the drum major for European unity he says he is or whether he will become another French president out to defend national interests above all else. Nowhere is this truer than in Italy, France's southern neighbor, where leaders have begun to feel slighted by the new president's bid to launch himself and his country as major players on the world stage.

"Precisely because the French election developed the way it did - with the 'European leader' on one side vs. the extreme nationalist right wing on the other - there was a fundamental misunderstanding of who Macron was and what he represented," said Nathalie Tocci, director of the Rome-based Institute for International Affairs and a special adviser to EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini.

"Because it was such an extreme presidential election, we kind of forgot at the end of the day that it was also a national election," Tocci said.

Recently, Macron and his administration have pursued multiple initiatives that have rankled his Italian counterparts, who have said they were deliberately excluded from discussions that directly concern their interests.

These perceived slights have ranged from the specific to the general, from infighting over a Lyon-Turin railway to more substantive issues such as Europe's migration crisis and Middle East foreign policy. In Rome, there is now the perception that Macron may be less of a team player than he was initially considered.

This sense first emerged in the aftermath of Macron's recent Libya summit, during which the new president invited the country's two rival leaders - the U.N.-backed prime minister, Fayez al-Sarraj, and the military strongman Khalifa Haftar - to a chateau outside Paris to discuss a cease-fire agreement.

Conspicuously absent was an Italian delegation, despite the reality that, as Tocci put it, Italy is the "European member state that has the most granular understanding of the situation on the ground."

At stake in particular was the issue of migration. Italy now receives the bulk of Europe's incoming migrants, with many arriving across the Mediterranean directly from Libya. So far in 2017, Italy has received about 95,000 along this route, prompting the Italian government to petition the European Union for assistance in handling the new asylum seekers.

"There is the very strong impression in Rome of having been left alone with the migrant question," said Thomas Gomart, director of the French Institute for International Relations, in an interview.

Last month, France - along with Germany - reluctantly promised to help in relocating migrants more quickly, although critics say details of that plan remain vague and that little action has been taken since. In any case, after his meeting with the two Libyan leaders, Macron - without Italian input - announced plans to open "hot spots" in Libya later this summer, which would theoretically curb the flow into Europe.

For Gomart, however, any French action on migrants cannot be separated from the reality that France, when compared with Germany and Italy, has not taken anywhere near the same proportions of asylum seekers.

"This for me is the biggest cause of the tensions that have materialized - and it's a barometer of European solidarity," he said.

Then came a French move that, for many in Italy, was even more surprising.

Before an Italian firm, Fincantieri, could close on the purchase of France's largest shipyard, known as STX, Macron - who had campaigned on promises of easing government regulations and even of attracting foreign investment - temporarily nationalized the facility and prevented the sale, in an effort to protect French jobs.

To assuage the immediate Italian accusations of economic protectionism that followed, Macron called Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, whose office later told reporters that the conversation was "friendly." He then dispatched Bruno Le Maire, France's economy minister, to Rome on Tuesday to meet with his Italian counterpart.

French officials were quick to dismiss any notion of soured relations with Italy.

"We will continue to exchange with our Italian partner at all levels on Libya," said a French diplomatic official.

But the consensus in Italy was different. As Italian economy minister Pier Carlo Padoan told reporters after the Tuesday meeting: "During our conversation with minister Le Maire, we've first of all ascertained that between Italy and France there are still unresolved differences."

Foreign policy analysts see Macron's actions on Italy as evidence that his image as a dogged advocate of European integration could soon change.

Said Pierre Vimont, a former French ambassador to the United States and the E.U.: "At the end of the day, if you look at the way Europeans are watching Macron, one cannot help but notice that for many of our European counterparts, there is the impression that this president is very French and merely promoting French interests."

---

Stefano Petrelli contributed to this article.
"If we get out of here alive," Richard Dudman said to two other journalists as they were being marched into the Cambodian jungle at gunpoint, "we're going to have one hell of a good story."

It was May 7, 1970, days after President Richard M. Nixon announced that U.S. forces would enter Cambodia as an outgrowth of the war in neighboring Vietnam. Dudman, on assignment for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, left the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon for the Cambodian border, less than 40 miles away.

He was accompanied by Elizabeth Pond of the Christian Science Monitor and Michael Morrow of Dispatch News Service International.

Dudman, who died Aug. 3 in Blue Hill, Maine, at age 99, was the Washington bureau chief of the Post-Dispatch and had made several previous trips to Vietnam.

After the three reporters crossed into the Parrot's Beak region of Cambodia, they reached a bridge that had been destroyed. As they attempted to turn around, armed Viet Cong-aligned guerrillas emerged from the forest and ordered the reporters out of their Jeep. They were forced to surrender their press credentials and were put into the back of a truck.

"The soldier with the automatic rifle kept it pointed at my chest," Dudman later wrote. "When I motioned politely to him to point it to one side, he waved it angrily at me and put the gun to my head. He kept it there all the while the truck bounced along jungle roads."

Bald and bespectacled and rarely seen in Washington without a bow tie, Dudman was then a 52-year-old father of two girls. He may not have had the image of the intrepid international reporter, but he had already covered wars and revolutions from Cuba to Burma to the Middle East for the Post-Dispatch, which then had a national reputation for ambitious journalism. He knew how to remain calm under pressure.

"In 1954, when he was covering a Guatemala revolution," his wife, Helen, told The Washington Post in 1970, "his editor told him, 'A dead correspondent is no use to us - and an injured one is worse.' He's used that as his guide."

He and the two other journalists were accused by their captors of being CIA agents and were taunted as prisoners of war. Dudman and Morrow, then 24, were tied by a rope to motorbike and forced to run behind it through a gantlet of angry villagers. They linked hands to keep each other upright.

"Blindfolded, stumbling, fearful of breaking an ankle, we ran as fast as we could to keep up with the bike," Dudman late wrote in an account for the Post-Dispatch. "Fists and hands hit and shoved us from both sides."

The motorbike stopped after half a mile. Dudman and Morrow, still blindfolded, were taken to a darkened building.

"I heard a muttered conversation," Dudman wrote, "then a sharp crack and a moan. I felt Mike slump to the floor. I thought he had been shot.

"Someone struck me on the back of the head with a club and I dropped to the floor."

Pond fended off an attempted rape.

As the reporters feared for their lives, a higher-ranking guerrilla officer came to their rescue. The officer, known to the reporters as Anh Ba, assured them that they would be safe. They were shuttled from one place to another in the Cambodian countryside, eating rice, wild oranges and, on at least one occasion, roast dog.

They were sometimes at risk from U.S. bombing missions and helicopter attacks. One time, the Americans were in a house camouflaged by tree boughs while a U.S. helicopter hovered overhead.

During the six weeks of their captivity, a kind of rapport developed between the journalists and their captors.

"Before we were released," Dudman wrote, "they were describing us as 'not prisoners of war but travelers who lost their way.' "

In Washington, Dudman's wife, a onetime Washington Post editor, enlisted help from high-ranking political and diplomatic figures.

Late on the night of June 15, 1970, the three reporters were released on a highway in Cambodia. They hitched a ride with a South Vietnamese military convoy and turned up in Saigon the next day, thinner but otherwise in good condition.

His wife was awakened by a 4 a.m. phone call, with an operator saying, "This is Richard Dudman, calling from Saigon."

Dudman published a well-received book about his experiences, "Forty Days With the Enemy," in 1971.

After several years in Washington, Dudman returned to Cambodia in December 1978 as one of three Western writers granted an audience with Pol Pot, the leader of the Khmer Rouge, a totalitarian Communist regime that ravaged Cambodia and murdered a quarter of the population.

The night after the meeting with Pol Pot, a gunman entered the guesthouse where Dudman, Washington Post correspondent Elizabeth Becker and British scholar Malcolm Caldwell were staying.

Becker confronted the intruder, then escaped into her room.

"Over my head on the stairwell," she wrote in The Post, "I heard rubber sandals running up to the second floor."

The gunman shot at Dudman in a hallway.

"I rushed into my room and slammed the door," Dudman wrote in the Post-Dispatch in 2015. "It was good luck that I dodged to one side, because two bullets ripped through the door."

As Dudman crouched behind his bed, more shots were fired. He and Becker later learned that Caldwell had been killed and had to identify his body. The Cambodian gunman had also been shot dead by unknown assailants.

Becker, the author of a book about Cambodia, "When the War Was Over," described Dudman in an email as a "rock solid colleague during those two weeks when we were kept under constant armed guard and especially during our final night when we were attacked by Khmer Rouge assassins."

Richard Beebe Dudman was born May 3, 1918, in Centerville, Iowa, and moved as a child to Portland, Oregon. His father was a gynecologist.

Dudman majored in journalism and economics at Stanford University and graduated in 1940. He then served in the merchant marine before becoming a Navy officer during World War II.

After working at the Denver Post, Dudman joined the Post-Dispatch in 1949. He came to the paper's Washington bureau in 1954.

He covered the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963, then two days later witnessed the killing of suspected assassin Lee Harvey Oswald by Jack Ruby.

In 1971, Dudman obtained copies of the secret Pentagon Papers, detailing the background of the Vietnam War, and published portions in the Post-Dispatch. The New York Times and Washington Post had previously run excerpts, only to be temporarily blocked by a court order. Ultimately, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the newspapers' favor in a landmark decision supporting freedom of the press.

Dudman's final day in the Post-Dispatch Washington bureau came on March 30, 1981. Instead of attending a retirement party, he rushed out of the office to cover the attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan and the arrest of assailant John Hinckley Jr.

Dudman then moved to Ellsworth, Maine, where his wife owned a group of radio stations. He contributed to the Post-Dispatch and other papers and wrote editorials for the Bangor Daily News until 2012.

His death, from congestive heart failure, was confirmed by a daughter, Iris Dudman, formerly known as Janet, of Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.

Other survivors include his wife of 69 years, Helen Sloane Dudman of Blue Hill; another daughter, Martha Tod Dudman of Northeast Harbor, Maine; and four grandchildren.

Among other honors, Dudman received a George Polk journalism award for career achievement. In the 1990s, he returned to Southeast Asia to meet Anh Ba, the Viet Cong officer who saved his life in 1970.

After his visit to Cambodia in 1978, when he met Pol Pot, Dudman noted that the capital city of Phnom Penh seemed deserted, with "the eerie quiet of a dead place - a Hiroshima without the destruction, a Pompeii without the ashes."

Departing from the reporting of Becker and others, he wrote that, under the Khmer Rouge, the Cambodian people were "clearly not being worked to death and starved to death."

The "killing fields" of Cambodia, he concluded in a 1990 New York Times essay, "certainly do not prove genocide."

In 2015, two senior Khmer Rouge officials were put on trial in Phnom Penh for crimes against humanity. Testifying from Maine, the 97-year-old Dudman revised his earlier views and admitted he had failed to grasp the full horror of the Khmer Rouge.

"From everything that I have read since then," he said, "I think there was genocide under the Pol Pot regime."

The members of the Khmer Rouge were found guilty.
An unidentified woman died Saturday night after she was struck by a truck while walking across Bandera Road on the Northwest Side.

San Antonio Police Department Sgt. Alyssa Campos said witnesses saw the woman at about 10 p.m., dodging traffic in the 9400 block of Bandera Road near Braun Road. It appeared she was trying to cross the road outside the crosswalk, while traffic was oncoming.
Rescue crews are searching for a father who went missing Sunday afternoon after he gave his life jacket to his daughter when they fell off a personal watercraft in Canyon Lake.

Michael Talley, 45 and his daughter made a sharp turn in the lake and fell off at about 1:45 p.m., according to the Comal County Sheriff's Office.
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Three Boy Scouts were involved in a fatal boating accident Saturday afternoon at an East Texas lake, according to a news release.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department reports the incident occurred before 2 p.m. at Lake O' The Pines near Avinger, about 150 miles east of Dallas.

All three, members of Boy Scout Troop 620 from Hallsville, were in a boat when it collided with an overhead transmission power line, according to TPWD.

RELATED: Father missing in Canyon Lake after saving daughter

An 18-year-old, 16-year-old and 11-year-old were all wearing personal flotation devices when the accident happened, the release said.

When game wardens came upon the scene they found the 18-year-old still on the boat and the 16-year-old in the water.

Both had sustained severe bodily injuries and were deceased, investigators reported.

The 11-year-old was found unresponsive in a nearby boat and was receiving CPR by good Samaritans.

He was transported to LSU Medical Center in Shreveport, La.

According to the release, investigators believe all three were electrocuted when their boat hit the power line.

TPWD continues to investigate. The victim's identities have not been released.

Aluna@express-news.net

Twitter: alexluna801
President Donald Trump and his administration are trying another divisive and shortsighted tactic. This time it is a vaguely worded call for Justice Department lawyers to contribute to the cause of litigation related to intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions.

Its important to remember the historical antecedents to the present day. First, affirmative action was enacted by the executive orders of three presidents: John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon. The last is often omitted, but this policy has been supported by both conservative and liberal administrations.

Second, the data on the impact of affirmative action show that white women are the population that has primarily benefited, but the popular representation of affirmative action is often a black or Latino person. Recently, opponents of affirmative action claim that Asian-Americans are harmed by race-conscious admissions policies. However, more than 160 Asian-American groups wrote amicus briefs for Supreme Court in the Fisher vs. University of Texas case, warning that affirmative action would not be used as a wedge between communities of color.

Third, even in 2017, economic mobility still is impacted by ones racial background. A recent study showed that black and Latino two-parent families had half the wealth of white single parents. As much as we would like to pronounce racism dead, economic outcomes and the disparities in the quality of schools in black and Latino communities lead to very disparate outcomes for Americans based on racial background alone. That is not to say there has not been progress. But if one looks at the outcomes, it is clear that many blacks and Latinos are not yet fully accessing the American dream.

An often-ignored aspect of economic and educational success is the value of intergenerational wealth. Think of all the advantages that come from having college-educated parents or grandparents, owning property or an inheritance that may have started a business generations ago. African-Americans were prohibited by law and custom to these methods of transferring wealth from one generation to another  some vivid examples are the destruction of self-sustaining black communities in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Rosewood, Florida, at the hands of white mobs less than 100 years ago. Rothsteins The Color of Law details how law and policy continues inequity to the present day.

There are also other considerations in college admissions that play pivotal roles. Family connections and donations, for instance, are ways that wealthy families tip the scales of admissions in their favor. And while some may argue that race-conscious policies take away spots from well-qualified white and Asian-American students, research has shown that this assumption is flawed: If the most selective schools went to a race-blind admissions policy, it would only increase white students chances of acceptance.

This was a question already settled by the Supreme Court in 2016. The court decided in favor of the University of Texas at Austin in the Fisher II case, noting that a narrowly tailored race-conscious admissions was lawful and in accordance with a 38-year precedent. We also know a little about the impact of eliminating race-conscious admissions policies. A number of states  Michigan, California, Florida and Washington  have banned affirmative action. The resulting outcomes already suggest that eliminating race-conscious admissions have impacted the number of black and Latino students in the most selective schools. In California, black and Latino enrollments dropped at UCLA and UC Berkeley after such bans were approved by voters. While Florida has maintained enrollments among Latinos, universities there and elsewhere have seen the enrollment gap. The gap has increased for black students at flagship state universities.

The prevailing complaint is that the privileged are actually victims, but nothing could be further from the truth. While every social policy has challenges and shortcomings, impeding progress by stoking resentment and claiming reverse discrimination only further divides our society, especially when we have so much to do addressing our historical and cultural challenges when it comes to the American dilemma of race.

Richard J. Reddick is an associate professor of educational administration in the College of Education at the University of Texas at Austin.
Inspector General, Kashmir, said that militants involved in the Amarnath terror attack have been identified and will be neutralised soon.

By India Today Web Desk: The Jammu and Kashmir Police today confirmed that the July 10 Amarnath terror attack was carried out by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). "Lashkar was involved and accused have been identified," said Inspector General (IG), Kashmir Range, Munir Khan.

Addressing a press conference in Anantnag today, IG, Kashmir, said that three overground workers of Lashkar-e-Taiba have been arrested. In police parlance, overground workers are militants without weapons, or local facilitators.

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"Accused people who provided them (LeT militants) logistics to carry out their plans in the state and work as their guides have been identified," said IG, Kashmir. Those arrested by the police are Bilal Ahmad Reshi, Aijaz Ahmad Wagay and Zahoor Ahmad Shah.

"Happy to tell you that three accused persons have been arrested and they have completely revealed everything," said IG Munir Khan.

He said that the arrested accused have been produced before the court and have remanded in police custody.

The officer said that three Pakistan-based militants and a local Lashkar militant carried out the Amarnath terror attack that killed eight civilians.These include LeT commander in Kashmir Abu Ismail, Abu Mavia and Yawar Bashir.

A WELL-PLANNED ATTACK

IG, Kashmir said that the terror attack was initially planned for July 9 but there was no movement of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) or pilgrim vehicle in isolation that day.

"There was a yatri vehicle that day (which was crossing the stretch) so they attacked it. Had there been a CRPF vehicle, they would have attacked it. They (terrorists) had planned it," said IG, Kashmir, Munir Khan.

Calling the attack on Amarnath pilgrims a "terrorist act", the officer said that militants had code names for a yatri vehicle--Shaukat--and for a CRPF vehicle--Bilal.

IG, Kashmir said that two Lashkar-e-Taiba militants have been eliminated a few days ago and their involvement in the Amarnath terror attack is being investigated.

The officer said that police are close to nabbing the militants involved in the Amarnath terror attack. "Hopefully, we will be neutralising militants soon... It can be today, tomorrow," said IG, Kashmir, Munir Khan.

ALSO READ:

Amarnath terror attack: Jammu and Kashmir Police claims to have cracked case, busted module behind the July 10 act

Abu Ismail, Amarnath Yatra attack mastermind, to replace Abu Dujana as Lashkar's Kashmir commander

Amarnath Yatra terror attack: Army chief tells jawans to keep up pressure on terrorists

ALSO WATCH: Amarnath terror attack: Jammu and Kashmir Police cracks case, arrests LeT overground workers

--- ENDS ---
The San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association should sit down and negotiate a new contract with the city.

Its been three years since the contract expired, and the union has done nothing to move the issue toward resolution. The fire union has refused to negotiate  except under an appellate court order for both sides to mediate. Those talks went nowhere.

It shouldnt be remotely this hard. The San Antonio Police Officers Association reached an agreement with the city about a year ago. But instead of following the police unions lead, the fire union waited on the sidelines hoping for a more favorable set of elected officials and a better deal.

It didnt happen. Mayor Ron Nirenberg has been clear about the need to control public safety costs.

The latest excuse to not negotiate is ongoing litigation over the constitutionality of the 10-year evergreen clause in the fire unions contract. Both sides are awaiting a ruling from the 4th Court of Appeals, which is imminent. Whatever the outcome, it will almost certainly be appealed to the Texas Supreme Court. But constitutional or not, 10 years is far too long. So is the eight years the city and police union recently negotiated.

In the past, Chris Steele, the president of the fire union, has said he wants the evergreen lawsuit to be dropped before negotiations can start. We fail to see why they cant occur on parallel tracks. After all, talks may ultimately yield a better result for firefighters than an adverse Texas Supreme Court ruling.

Besides, fires refusal to sit down and talk only affirms the citys argument that a 10-year evergreen clause is too long. The point of an evergreen clause is to maintain a contract throughout lingering negotiations, not to delay negotiations for years.

This brings us to this notion of equity. If public safety costs crowd out roads and parks, thats a problem. But equity also means parity between police and fire for compensation and health care. They respond to many of the same calls. They take great risks for our community. The work is different, but the community value is equal. Their contracts have to be similar.

The makes the police contract the template for fire. Its not a perfect template. Former Mayor Ivy Taylor gave away far too much  but it does save millions in health care costs and provides ample raises. Like it or not, firefighters will have to contribute to their health care costs, too.

Everyone agrees firefighters deserve the best contract possible. The split is about whats possible. Thats why parties negotiate. Its time for the fire union to start working toward an agreement.
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The Mall (Albert Reynolds Peace Park) has retained the Green Flag Award which is an international parks award managed by An Taisce in Ireland.

This is the second year the award has been rolled out nationally.

Parks are judged on a number of criteria including a management plan, health and safety, environmental sustainability, community use of the park, conservation, cleanliness, ground maintenance, horticulture and general presentation.

The Flags were presented in Malahide Castle.

The award was achieved thanks to Longford Town Suburbs Ltd who manage the Mall in partnership with Longford County Council.

The Mall was judged alongside the top parks in the country.

Longford County Council expressed thanks to the Department of Social Protection, the Community Employment Supervisor and all the Community employment participants whose hard work is vital to the gaining of this award.

The Mall is a very well used county amenity and a wide range of events and activities are held there throughout the year, including Parkrun senior and more recently a junior Parkrun as well as walking groups, scouts camps and Playday to name but a few!

The playground in the park has just been refurbished and a new footbridge is planned at the edge of the Park.
Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Abu Ismail is said to be the mastermind behind the attack on Amarnath Yatra pilgrims.

Kashmir Police has arrested overground workers who were involved in the Amarnath terror attack. Photo: PTI.

By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu: Nearly a month after the Amarnath terror attack, police have reportedly cracked the case and busted the entire module behind the dastardly attack.

According to sources, the Jammu and Kashmir Police has arrested overground workers--militants without weapons, in police language.

Call details have reportedly nailed these overground workers, said sources. According to sources, police have got vital information on terror funding for the attack. Terrorists used code words, local conduits and their houses to stay in Jammu and Kashmir, said sources.

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Three Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists behind the Amarnath terror attack on July 10 are still at large.

LeT commander Abu Ismail, a Pakistani national, is believed to be the mastermind of the Amarnath terror attack which killed eight pilgrims, including six women.

Abu Ismail recently took over the reins as the chief of the Kashmir division of Lashkar-e-Taiba after LeT commander Abu Dujana was killed by security forces in a seven-hour gunfight in Pulwama district.

HOW THE ATTACK TOOK PLACE

On July 10, terrorists had first fired at two police posts before fleeing and then opening fire at the bus that was carrying a group of pilgrims returning from the Amarnath Yatra.

The bus was not officially registered with the Amarnath Shrine Board and was without police escort.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti while condemning the attack had said that Kashmiris' heads hang in shame.

The Amarnath terror attack is being described as the worst since 2000 when 30 Amarnath pilgrims were killed after terrorists attacked a base camp in Pahalgam.

The July 10 attack on Amarnath Yatra pilgrims took place despite specific intelligence input on June 25 that terrorists may target pilgrims.

ALSO READ:

When 30 Amarnath pilgrims were killed in terror attack 17 years ago

Amarnath Yatra terror attack: Army chief tells jawans to keep up pressure on terrorists

Abu Ismail, Amarnath Yatra attack mastermind, to replace Abu Dujana as Lashkar's Kashmir commander

ALSO WATCH | Amarnath terror attack: Jammu and Kashmir Police cracks case, arrests LeT overground workers

--- ENDS ---
Soon after winning over his Chinese opponent at Battleground Asia, Indias star boxer Vijender Singh on last day urged for peace amid the Indo-China border stand-off. Vijenders stature grew a few notches as he outslugged his Chinese opponent Zulpikar Maimaitiali in a close bout to annex the WBO Asia Pacific Super Middleweight title.

It was double delight for the fans as Vijender also snatched the WBO Oriental Super Middleweight title from the Chinese.

I want to give back this belt to Zulpikar. I hope for peace in the border and the message is about peace. That is most important, Vijender, an Olympic bronze medallist, said after his bout.
Pathanamthitta: The Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on last day said that Kerala is the best state in India to have a proper law and order. While inaugurating the closing ceremony of State Police Association meet at Adoor he added that some communal parties are trying to propagate false news related to law and order in the state.

He stated that the communal parties due to their intolerance is unleashing political violence in the state and also try to threaten LDF government. Pinarayi during his speech also remarked that the government would take necessary actions against women assaults.
The victim, a Class 10 student, suffered head injuries and died while undergoing treatment.

15-year-old Chinna was beaten to death by his school juniors. Photo: India Today.

By Ashish Pandey: Three teenagers, who are Class 8 students, were arrested by Visakhapatnam police for allegedly killing their senior.

The victim, a Class 10 student, died at a hospital in Madhura Nagar while undergoing treatment.

Three teenagers were arrested on Saturday after they allegedly thrashed 15-year-old Chinna, their school senior.

Nearly a week ago, Chinna had an altercation with a Class 8 junior over a trivial issue. A teacher intervened and both the students were counselled in the presence of their parents.

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The junior, however, planned a revenge on his school senior. On Saturday, he along his brother and a friend stopped Chinna near the school and started beating him up.

Chinna suffered head injuries and died while undergoing treatment at a hospital on Sunday.

Police have registered a case and sent all the three accused students to a juvenile home.

ALSO READ:

Chennai shocker: Man kills girlfriend with hammer wrapped as birthday gift, hangs self with her shawl

Delhi shocker: Rape victim forced to carry body of her child in Metro to Gurgaon

For 20 years, she was locked in a dark room. Found with no clothes, urine stench

ALSO WATCH: Allahabad shocker: School principal beats students for complaining about heat

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: Jammu, Aug 6 (PTI) A joint team of the Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police has seized a huge cache of arms and ammunition, including two AK assault rifles and explosives during an operation in Rajouri.

During the Operation Clean-up, the security personnel searched the hills and natural caves in the Rajouri-Reasi belt with the help of sniffer dogs.

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A joint team of the Rashriya Rifles and police has seized a cache of arms, including one AK-47 rifle, one AK 56 rifle, a Chinese pistol, two RPG rounds, five hand grenades, two magazines and 639 rounds of ammunition in the Kalakote area of the district yesterday, a senior Army officer said. PTI AB GVS

--- ENDS ---
Writing a business plan is hard work, so I get lots of pushback from prospective new venture founders that its just a waste of their valuable time in this rapidly changing environment. They all claim to have the plan in their head, and writing it down will only slow down their success. In my experience to the contrary, first-time entrepreneurs without a written plan almost always fail.

On the other hand, if you just sold your last business for $800 million, no investor or advisor is going to ask you for a detailed plan on your next one. A good executive summary, backed up by a few PowerPoint slides should be more than adequate. Yet its interesting to note that most serial entrepreneurs dont hesitate to create or ask for detailed business plans on every new venture.

Marty Zwilling

Full Story: http://blog.startupprofessionals.com/2017/08/6-situations-where-business-plan-does.html
All eyes are on Defence minister Arun Jaitley's visit to Kerala today during a time of immense ideological dissent and political killings gripping the Left-ruled state.

By India Today Web Desk: In the thick of tension pervasive in the Left-ruled state of Kerala over lynching of RSS workers, Defence minister Arun Jaitley has reached the capital city of Thiruvanathapuram to quell the unrest.

On top agenda, Arun Jaitley met the family of RSS worker Rajesh who was hacked to death on July 29 allegedly by a mob with links to CPI(M) or CPM.

Met family members of slain #RSS Karyakarta Shri #RajeshEdavakode in Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 6, 2017 pic.twitter.com/oDgDDmPWAX- Arun Jaitley (@arunjaitley) August 6, 2017

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Addressing a meet after meeting Rajesh's kin, Jaitley condemned the dastardly attack and said that even an 'enemy of a country doesn't do this'.

He further added that his sacrifice will inspire every party worker and urged all cadres to help the family in this tough time.

Jaitley will also meet another RSS leader- Jayaprakash who was brutally injured in a CPM attack, some eight months back.

The visit by BJP's top minister comes the same day as the all-party meet called by the Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan and a day after CPI(M) and BJP-RSS leaders met in Kannur to discuss the political killings.

After the meet, both parties said that within the next 10 days they will instruct their party cadres to not indulge in any violent activity.

Meanwhile, families of CPM workers who were killed or injured in similar violent clashes with RSS cadres are staging a sit-in protest in front of the Raj Bhavan.

CPI(M) cadres protest Defence minister Arun Jaitley's visit to Kerala in front of Raj Bhavan.

Jaitley's day plan includes an interactive session with the aggrieved families of RSS or BJP workers, who were attacked by CPM cadres.

However, BJP minister's selective concern for the victims of political killing has not gone down well with a CPI(M) worker's wife.

AK Remya, President of Eranholi Pachayath has written an open letter to the visiting minister, urging him to pay her family a visit, for they too are victims of this political ploy.

Remya's husband Sreejan Babu (43) is battling the injuries sustained in the murderous attack on him allegedly by RSS cadres. Attacked on July 3, Babu was left to die in his pool of blood but rushed to the hospital on time. Babu has undergone seven surgeries till now and is slated for two more.

Arun Jaitley's visit comes in tow of RSS Joint General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale appeal for a judicial inquiry in to the murders of party cadres.

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On Friday, Hosabable in addition to condemning the fatal attacks, also urged the state government to take responsibility for its lopsided administration.

Kerala's political ground has always been fraught with ideological dissent, but over the past few years it has only fuelled violent attacks on both party cadres.

The recent turmoil that the state finds itself erupted after 34-year-old RSS worker Rajesh was mercilessly stabbed to death in broad daylight.

Also read: Kerala government shielding goondas, says RSS leader Dattatreya Hosabale

Also read: Kannur's ghastly politics of vendetta: RSS, CPI (M) trade charges

Also read: BJP calls for bandh after RSS worker hacked to death in Thiruvananthapuram; 8 held

ALSO WATCH | Arun Jaitley condemns killing of RSS worker Rajesh in Kerala, says his sacrifice will inspire each worker

--- ENDS ---
The resignation of Arvind Panagariya, the Indian-American economist handpicked by Narendra Modi to lead the NITI Aayog, was badly timed. The government seemed to be in the thick of staging an economic turnaround when the soft-spoken Panagariya said he was quitting to get back to the academia.

Yet the departure of Panagariya, who took leave from Columbia University to join the government in January 2015, is not altogether surprising. The NITI Aayog, which replaced the Planning Commission, seen by many as a relic of the Nehruvian era, quickly earned for itself the reputation of being a mouthpiece of the government rather than acting as a guiding light in policymaking. A source in the PMO said Panagariya was a conspicuous absentee at cabinet meetings though he held a cabinet rank. A telling detail, some might say.

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Panagariya's name had also come up as a possible successor to Raghuram Rajan at the Reserve Bank of India, but that too did not materialise. Unlike his media-savvy colleague, Amitabh Kant, who is the NITI Aayog CEO, Panagariya preferred to stay away from the limelight. He is said to have written to Modi on the hardships the demonetisation exercise inflicted on the public, and wanted no scrutiny of those who'd deposited up to Rs 2.5 lakh. He was also reportedly unhappy with the pace of reforms in the first two years of the Modi government.

--- ENDS ---
A close Shabir Shah aide was today arrested on the orders of the Enforcement Directorate in connection with its probe into alleged terror funding.

By India Today Web Desk: Aslam Wani, a close aide of separatist leader Shabir Shah, was today arrested in Srinagar. Wani was arrested in connection with an Enforcement Directorate money laundering probe against Shah.

Wani, who was arrested from Jammu and Kashmir, will be brought to Delhi later today. Today's development comes close on the heels of Shabir Shah's arrest on July 25.

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Both Shah and Wani have face criminal cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Wani (35), a suspected hawala dealer, was previously arrested by the Delhi Police in 2015. Wani had then claimed that he had passed on Rs 2.25 crore to Shabir Shah.

Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency is running a parallel investigation into separatists raising, collecting and transferring funds through hawala and other channels for carrying out illegal activities - including acts of terror - in Kashmir.

ALSO READ | NIA maintained top-level secrecy before arresting Kashmiri separatist leaders. The inside story

--- ENDS ---
The ribs are connected to the breastbone by tough, protective tissue called cartilage. When this cartilage becomes inflamed, the condition is known as costochondritis or chest wall pain. While this condition is usually temporary, it can be alarming, as the pain can become so significant it mimics a heart attack. Doctors may also refer to costochondritis as costosternal syndrome or costosternal chondrodynia. The condition will usually resolve on its own with home treatments. Fast facts on costochondritis In many cases, doctors do not know what causes costochondritis.

Pain in the chest and breastbone area is the chief symptom of costochondritis.

The pain may be so severe that the person feels they are having a heart attack.

Treatment includes anti-inflammatory medications.

What causes costochondritis? Share on Pinterest Usually costochondritis will resolve itself with home treatment, and is a temporary condition. Though causes are often unknown, in some instances, the condition can be the result of one or more of the following: history of an illness that causes a lot of coughing

heavy lifting or strenuous exercise, involving the upper extremities and chest wall

carrying heavy bags, such as a heavy backpack on one side or the other

having large breasts

history of chest injuries or chest infections

undergoing surgery that affects the chest wall, such as cardiac bypass Doctors call costochondritis that has no known causes idiopathic costochondritis.

Symptoms of costochondritis Chest discomfort and pain may be stabbing, burning, or aching in nature. The ribs most affected are the second to fifth ones. The condition most commonly affects those older than age 40, according to an article in the journal American Family Physician. An estimated 13-36 percent of those who seek emergency medical attention for chest pain are experiencing costochondritis. The following activities usually worsened the pain associated with costochondritis: significant amount of coughing

strenuous exercise

physical activity using the upper arms, such as lifting boxes The pain associated with costochondritis usually occurs on the left side of the body but can affect both sides. Tietze syndrome There is a variation of costochondritis called Tietze syndrome. This condition causes pain associated with costochondritis, as well as swelling of the rib cartilage. The swelling of Tietze syndrome affects at least one of the upper four ribs, usually the second or third ribs. While the pain associated with costochondritis may subside with time, some people with Tietze syndrome will still experience the swelling. Although doctors have not defined how prevalent this condition is, they do consider it to be a rare disorder. Other than pain and discomfort, it does not cause any long-term harmful effects.

How is costochondritis treated? Share on Pinterest The symptoms of costochondritis can be worsened by certain activities, such as lifting heavy objects, or strenuous coughing. Doctors usually treat costochondritis conservatively. Resting and avoiding strenuous exercise that affects the chest wall can help. So can over-the-counter pain relievers, such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen. Children under age 18 should not take aspirin due to the increased risk for Reyes syndrome. In rare instances, a doctor may recommend injections of lidocaine or corticosteroids to reduce pain and inflammation. Other treatments that may help to relieve chest pain include: Applying moist heat by way of warm compresses.

Taking cough suppressants to ease coughing and reduce pressure to the cartilage.

Physical therapy to ease tension in the chest wall. If these treatments do not reduce a persons incidence of costochondritis, they should seek a follow-up with their doctor.

When to see a doctor If a person is having chest pain, they should not try to determine for themselves if it is a heart-related issue or costochondritis. Instead, they should seek immediate medical attention. If a younger person who is not at risk of heart attack experiences these symptoms, they should seek emergency attention if their chest pain is sharp and does not improve with rest. If someone has gone to a doctor for their symptoms and has been diagnosed with costochondritis, there are still some instances when a person should seek immediate medical attention again. These include: feeling faint, dizzy, or lightheaded

feeling as if the heart is beating irregularly or too fast

pain that worsens over time or cannot be relieved by pain medicine

having a shortness of breath

a fever that is higher than 100.4 F in an adult

coughing up dark-colored sputum or blood If the chest pain is radiating to the arms, neck, shoulder, jaw, or back, a person should seek immediate medical attention.

How do doctors diagnose costochondritis? Share on Pinterest Some conditions may seem similar to costochondritis, including an injured shoulder or neck, or arthritis of the surrounding joints. Doctors often diagnose costochondritis by ruling out other potential causes of the chest pain and discomfort connected with the condition. For example, if a person is older than 35, a doctor may first want to rule out coronary artery disease (CAD), as a potential cause. Individuals who are at risk of CAD, such as those with a family history, those who are obese, or those with a history of smoking, should usually have an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) and chest X-ray to check for CAD. Other medical conditions that may closely resemble costochondritis include: arthritis of the shoulder or nearby joints

chest wall infections or cancer

fibromyalgia, a condition that causes nerve pain

slipping rib syndrome, when there is too much mobility in the cartilage supporting the ribs

injuries to the shoulder or neck that causes pain to refer or travel to the chest wall A physical examination to detect tenderness of the cartilage to the touch may also be performed. If a person is having a heart attack or has another type of heart condition, the cartilage in the chest is not usually sensitive to the touch. A doctor will also listen to the heart and lungs, as well as examine the skin for any signs of infection. An X-ray or other imaging studies will not show signs of costochondritis. Doctors can usually diagnose a child, adolescent, or young adult by asking questions about their medical history and by conducting a physical exam. The doctor will often check for tenderness in the chest cartilage, as part of this.
Mutations of the amyloid precursor protein gene are known to be involved in the development of Alzheimers disease. Now, new research points to a correlation between this gene and intellectual abilities in children, raising questions about the proteins role in cognition.

Share on Pinterest APP gene variation, which is linked to Alzheimers disease, has also been found to correlate to fluid intelligence in children.

According to data provided by the Alzheimers Association, approximately 5.5 million people are living with Alzheimers disease in the United States. Treatment of the disease is estimated to cost the healthcare system around $259 billion each year. Alzheimers accounts for an estimated 70 percent of worldwide dementia cases, suggest the World Health Organization (WHO).

The National Institute on Aging acknowledge several causes for Alzheimers disease, including some genetic factors. One feature of Alzheimers is a mutation of the gene that encodes amyloid precursor protein (APP), which produces amyloid beta peptides. Amyloid beta forms clusters that build up senile plaques in the brain. Further characteristics and the importance of senile plaques to cognitive functioning are still being researched, however.

A new study  led by Dr. Tetyana Zayats and other researchers from the K.G. Jebsen Centre for Neuropsychiatric Disorders in the Department of Biomedicine at the University of Bergen in Norway  has examined further links between APP and the development of cognitive functions in children.

Our understanding of biological processes underlying synaptic functioning could be expanded by examining human genetics throughout the lifespan as genetic influences may be the driving force behind the stability of our cognitive functioning, says Dr. Zayats.

The findings were published in the Journal of Alzheimers Disease.
'Game of Thrones' is known for its magnum opus grandeur. It's a well-known fact that this is HBO's one of the most expensive productions and one can obviously see the results on-screen.

From jaw-dropping VFXs to bloody war scenes, the makers have left no stone unturned in making this historic drama. Recent reports stated that a single episode of the show has a budget of more than $10 million.

In fact, they have a huge team that works for various departments. Around 80-100 people work together to get those exquisite costumes right. Yes, that's how huge their costume department is.

(c) HBO

So when we read about this fact, it totally surprised us. Apparently, some of the products and material that is used in the show is sourced from cheap market places.

Would you believe if we tell you one of the most expensive shows ever made actually uses IKEA rugs as capes? Well, believe it or not, the costume designer Michele Clapton herself revealed so, These capes are actually IKEA rugs, she said to the audience at the Getty museum in Los Angeles last year while discussing the costumes for the Night's Watch, a military order who works to guard the Wall. Their work is to defend the realms of men from what lies beyond the Wall.

That's pretty surprising indeed. If she wouldn't have said so, we would have never guessed that this could be the case.

Once these rugs were brought, they were cut as per their designs, dyed and shaved. It went through some process before it was given to the characters to wear it. Rug or not, it definitely looked like a fine piece of medieval clothes.

(c) HBO

I want the audience to almost smell the costumes. Here they were waxed and frosted so they belonged to the landscape, Clapton said. (Check out her comment around the 27:35 mark in the video).

The budget is the same every year regardless of what we're filmingit's okay, but it's never enough. Sometimes if you're restricted it makes you more clever about what you're doing. You can look at things, you can reuse things. Or you can go to IKEA Clapton said in the talk.

Now we just wonder how many other costumes were made so wisely. Are there other such items being used as well? We would definitely like to know!
It is highly unlikely that US President Donald Trump has any idea what Rakshabandhan is, and even if he did, he wouldn't care, because it's Trump we're talking about. But, women and girls of a remote, Muslim-dominated village, which is apparently symbolically' named by an NGO after Donald Trump, are sending 1001 raakhis for him. I wonder how all of these raakhis would fit on his tiny hands and wrists.

 Twitter

People of Marora village, which is in the backward Mewat region, are extending this gesture as, according to them, it represents the wish of the people that ties are further strengthened between India and the US, says the NGO which has adopted the village. The village, with a population of 1,800 people, lies under Punhana Tehshil, some 60 km from Gurgaon.

Recently, this village gained a lot of popularity when Sulabh International Social Service Organisation (SISSO) chief Bindeshwar Pathak had announced to name it Trump's village'. But it turned out that changing the name was illegal', so the organisation was forced to remove boards mentioning the new name.

 Twitter

The NGO has been conducting many welfare programs for women and girls in the village, Monica Jain, vice president of the NGO, said. These students have made 1001 rakhis with photos of Donald Trump and 501 rakhis for Narendra Modi. Women and girls of the village consider them their elder brothers, she said.

The raakhis are already on their way, so that they would reach Trump on August 7, the date of the festival. Along with that, the villagers have also sent invitations to both the leaders to visit the village.

 Twitter

I have made 150 rakhis within three days for Trump bhaiyaa. I also written in a letter to be sent to the White House that the girls of your village want you to visit it with PM Modi, said 15-year-old Rekha Rani, a resident of the village.

Well, we'll just have to wait and see how Donald Trump reacts to all the raakhis. I hope he sends lots of gifts for all his new sisters.
Infrastructure will be developed for increasing export and import activities by Sutarakandi port in Karimganj district of Assam State in India.

By Sahidul Hasan Khokon: The Bangladesh government has undertaken a new project to improve the infrastructure of three land ports in order to raise trade with India. The three ports are - Shaola of Sylhet district, Bhomra in Satkhira district, and Ramgarh in Khagrachari. The security system of Benapole land port under the project will also be modernized.

Minister of Planning Ministry of Bangladesh AHM Mustafa Kamal said that increasing immigration and customs facilities will be enhanced through the development of necessary infrastructure under Bangladesh Regional Connectivity Project-1 to increase trade and commerce with India.

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Kamal said, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) has already approved a project of Taka 693 crore. Bangladesh Land Port Authority will implement a project by June 2021. According to the development project, in 2015, the Sheola custom station was declared a land port in Bianibazar upazila of Sylhet district.

Infrastructure will be developed for increasing export and import activities by Sutarakandi port in Karimganj district of Assam State in India.

Besides, the activities of Bhomra port started in 2013. Open yards, warehouses, and other infrastructure have been developed for this. After the commissioning of the Padma Bridge, the flow of cargo will increase further. For this, the infrastructure will be further extended to the port. Due to the distance being reduced with Kolkata, this port will increase communication and traffic movement.

On the other hand, the importance of Ramgarh land port will be increased in the Ramgarh upazila of Khagrachari district, pertaining to trade with India's Tripura state.

Benapole land port is more important to Bangladesh as the government is implementing Benapole and Burimari Land Port Development SASEC Road Connectivity Project. However, Benapole's security system is not included in this project. It will be included in a new project. To strengthen Benapole port security, modern security measures will be taken and boundary walls will be built here.

In the direction of regional trade, Bangladesh has 23 land ports with India's 4,095 kilometers, and Myanmar's 256 kilometer long border.

Also Read:

Bangladeshi terrorist linked to Ansarullah Bangla Team arrested by UP ATS in Muzaffarnagar

Bangladesh: 20 including mastermind arrested for attack on Hindu temples, homes

17 temples, dozens of Hindu houses vandalized in BangladeshBangladesh: Shiva Lingam stone stolen from a temple in Chuadanga, 1 arrested

Bangladesh: Fresh violence breaks out, dozens arrested for attacks on minority Hindus

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Kamal Haasan, who is currently hosting Bigg Boss Tamil, is upset with the makers of the show.

By India Today Web Desk: Indian film star Kamal Haasan, who is currently hosting the latest season of Bigg Boss Tamil, is upset with the makers of the show.

The controversial reality show, which recently made headlines when popular contestant Oviya allegedly attempted suicide, and quit the show citing medical reasons, is making news again. This time for portraying people with disabilities in an insensitive manner, according to reports.

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In a recently aired episode, the participants were asked to dress and behave like "mentally challenged" people, according to a report in The Indian Express.

Host Kamal Haasan recently said in a statement that he will quit the show if the makers repeat a task like that again in the future.

"The task that made fun of mentally challenged people was not in a good taste. And I'm actually angry about it. We all have social responsibilities. I request them (Bigg Boss team) not to repeat such activities on the show hereafter. If it happens again, this show is not important to me," The Hindustan Times quoted the actor as saying.

Also read: Bigg Boss Tamil: Popular contestant Oviya quits the show?

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BJP also asked, why is KCR being an advocate for Engineering, Procurement, and Construction contractors, and said it's not the job of a chief minister to take up lobbying for lowering their taxes or increasing their profit margins.

By Ashish Pandey: The Bhartiya Janta Party rejected Telangana Chief Minister, K Chandrasekhar Rao's claims on GST levies and its impact on the State government. They also criticised CM KCR's decision of approaching Supreme Court over GST on work contracts.

The BJP pointed out that as a member of the GST council, KCR lead Telangana government supported GST Bill and its tax brackets in several Council meetings. The Telangana government has passed and ratified the GST Bill, both at the State legislature and at both Houses of Parliament as well.

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It beats everyone's imagination, as to how he (KCR) can blame the Central government for GST tax rates, when all decisions on GST are collectively taken with voting rights to every State in the country, said BJP spokesperson Krishnasagar Rao.

On the decision of Telangana government moving to Supreme Court against the GST decision, the BJP Spokesperson asked, "How can CM KCR sue himself and his own government? His government is a party to all the decisions GST council has taken. His State representative is a signatory to all the resolutions at the GST council, inclusive of the tax rates fixation".

BJP also asked, why is KCR being an advocate for EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) contractors, and said it's not the job of a chief minister to take up lobbying for lowering their taxes or increasing their profit margins.

Answering on the allegation that the State exchequer will suffer with GST implementation in reference to the ongoing projects, BJP said, "GST Council has already lowered GST rates from 18 percent to 12 percent and addressed this issue which several States raised in the first GST council meeting after GST was enacted".

On Saturday Chief Minister of Telangana K Chandrashekhar Rao announced his decision of waging a legal battle against the Central government alleging unilateral decisions on the GST.

The CM has also decided to write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reduce 12 percent GST on the ongoing projects. Rao held a high-level meeting at Pragati Bhavan Hyderabad on Sunday and discussed impact of GST on the departments that will be hit by the 12 percent GST.

Denying the allegation of BJP that the Telangana government never raised any objection during GST council meetings, CM said "The state government has been asking the Centre not levy 12 percent GST on the public utility projects. Since the Telangana argued the case strongly, the Council decided to reduce the GST from 18 percent to 12 percent but we are not satisfied with the decision''.

KCR felt that by levying GST on all on-going projects, not only Telangana State, but also other states will be subjected to injustice.

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Rao has demanded that GST should be lifted for drinking water schemes, laying of roads and irrigation. The GST Council has decided to reduce the tax from 18 percent to 12 percent for these schemes. However, the Centre has decided to levy 12 percent GST on the ongoing projects.

"I hope the Centre will respond positively to the issue. Or else we have no option but to wage a legal battle. Let us write a detailed letter with data to the PM, and based on his response we will finalise the next plan of action," Rao added firmly.

Also Read:

Telangana decides to wage a legal battle against Centre for taking unilateral decisions on GST

Telangana man commits suicide, shoots video after being harassed by goons over debt

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PM Modi and Japanese PM Shinzo Abe will together lay the foundation stone of the 508-km corridor between Ahmedabad and Mumbai during the Japanese premier's visit to India in September.

By Rakesh Ranjan: Expect the country's first bullet train project to roll down the tracks at a rapid pace. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shinzo Abe will together lay the foundation stone of the 508-km corridor between Ahmedabad and Mumbai during the Japanese premier's visit to India in September.

Sources said the groundbreaking ceremony will be performed in Ahmedabad keeping in view the Gujarat assembly polls slated for November-December this year. They said the bullet train project will be showcased as the biggest achievement of Modi who will start the project from his home state.

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REDUCED TRAVEL TIME

Also, the BJP will be going to polls with the PM as the party's face in the state. It takes about seven hours to travel on rail between the two cities and the bullet train aims to reduce it to about two hours.

To ensure the dream project does not get delayed, Indian Railways is all set to hire a consultant who will look into land acquisition and other financial issues. It will be the responsibility of the consultant to see that full compensation is paid to every land owner and also ensure jobs to their family members, said a senior railway board official dealing with the bullet train project.

The initial detailed project report (DPR) prepared by the Japanese authorities, which is providing technical assistance to Indian Railways, suggested constructing a major portion of the corridor on surface. But the DPR was modified to take the elevated route primarily to avoid delays.

As officials put it, the change would do away with legal and environmental hurdles regarding land acquisition. PM Modi too has been pushing his ministers to speed up the big ticket projects that have often encountered legal barriers in several states.

850 HECTARES LAND REQUIRED

According to a railway ministry official, approximately 850 hectares of land would be required for the bullet train project. Since the project was earlier planned on surface, it would have required more land.

This, however, would escalate the project cost, sources said. "The consultant would prepare a comprehensive report on the quantity of land to be acquired and its socioeconomic impact. The consultant will maintain a record of the trade and industries that will be affected due to land acquisition. Accordingly, the compensation along with job to the affected families will be ensured," a top railway official said.

For an elevated corridor, compensation amount to land owners will be little. Also, it will ensure speedy execution of the project. Already more than 440 rail projects are stuck over land acquisition. This, according to a CAG report of 2015, has resulted in cost overrun of 1.07 lakh crore.

Railways also faced major hurdles in acquiring land for its ambitious dedicated freight corridors that will significantly decongest the railway network and increase the speed of passenger trains. Officials said while the Indian Railways will acquire the financial assistance and bullet train technology from Japan, it will ensure maximum job opportunities to Indian companies in construction of the project.

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Out of the 508 km length, 450 km of work will be awarded to Indian companies while only 52 km will be given to Japanese companies. Further, work on seven km of under-sea rail track will be open for foreign players as Indian does not have the technology for constructing under-sea rail tunnel so far.

India's bullet train, at the speed of 320 km per hour, will match the speed of the leading high-speed train systems across the world. The project will cost approximately`1 lakh crore and the funding of the project is being done by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Railway officials said the actual work on project would begin by 2018 and the work will be completed by 2023.

ALSO READ:

PM Modi to lay foundation stone of bullet train project in September

Six years after deadly rail crash, China to speed up bullet trains in September

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WATCH: People didn't like UP's metro rail, they must be waiting for Modi's bullet train: Akhilesh Yadav

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The channel and the reporter in question have alleged that it was the CBFC chief who grabbed her by the arm and intimidated her in his office on Friday.

By Mail Today Bureau: Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) chief Pahlaj Nihalani has filed a police complaint against a television journalist in Mumbai, alleging harassment, intimidation and breach of privacy.

"She has been continuously harassing me in my office building premise, exceeding all levels of courteous behaviour, and bullying the security guards and office staff into letting her enter my office. She is intruding into my privacy by showing my footage," Nihalani accused in the complaint filed at Girgaum police station, about the 23-year-old TV journalist.

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POLICE COMPLAINT FILED

"Whenever she sees me, she enters into the lift with me and switches on her camera and continuously pesters me to speak while I choose to remain silent. She portrays me in a derogatory and humiliating manner on television and is blotting my image," Nihalani's complaint further stated. But the channel and the reporter in question have alleged that it was the CBFC chief who grabbed her by the arm and intimidated her in his office on Friday.

The channel's editor defended the reporter, saying: "A reporter asking questions doesn't amount to harassing. If Mr Nihalani thinks by filing a complaint against the reporter he can intimidate her or the channel, he is mistaken. Using such tactics is laughable. We will be putting out the whole video shortly. It was Mr Pahlaj Nihalani who went on the offensive. He intimidated the 23-year-old reporter and not the other way round. He grabbed her by the arm, waved his fingers at her and misbehaved," D'Souza told The Quint.

NOT NEW TO CONTROVERSIES

Nihalani's relationship with the media as well as the film industry has been rocky all through his tenure because of his tendency to impose cuts in films for reasons most perceive are flimsy. A few days ago, he was in the headlines for imposing 48 cuts on the upcoming Nawazuddin Siddiqui-starrer Babumoshai Bandookbaaz despite giving the film an 'A' certificate.

A male and a female member of CBFC had also allegedly harassed the film's producer Kiran Shroff, rebuking her for producing such a cuss-loaded film despite being a woman, and shaming her for her outfit.

ALSO READ:

How Pahlaj Nihalani is dragging India to a regressive ditch

Keep your fingers crossed. Pahlaj Nihalani might step down as CBFC chief!

WATCH: I am a Modi-Bhakt, says censor board chief Pahlaj Nihalani

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Camp Pendleton, Calif. -- Lance Cpl. Cody J. Haley, assigned to the 1st Marine Division, was gravely injured in an accident Aug. 4 at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.

Haley, from Hardin, Iowa, was 20 years old.

Emergency medical personnel pronounced the Marine deceased at the site of the accident. Officials are investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident at this time.

Haley deployed with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit in March of 2016. His awards include the National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.

"We are heartbroken at the tragic loss of a member of the Marine Corps family, and we will do all we can to comfort the family, friends and colleagues of the deceased," Marine Corps officials said in a press release.

Related content:
The search-and-rescue effort for three Marines lost when an MV-22 Osprey crashed off the coast of Queensland, Australia, earlier Saturday has turned into a recovery mission, officials with III Marine Expeditionary Force said.

The search was called off at 3 a.m. local time, 11 hours after the Osprey went down following a launch from the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard, officials said in the release. The aircraft was conducting regularly scheduled operations at the time.

Aboard the Osprey were 26 Marines attached to the deployed 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit. While 23 of the Marines were recovered following the crash, three remain missing. The aircraft belonged to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 265 out of Futenma, Japan. The squadron took over as the aviation combat element for the 31st MEU in April.

Related content:

The commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Robert Neller, took to Twitter earlier today to express his concern for the missing troops.

"Please keep the families of those involved in the Osprey mishap near Australia in your thoughts and prayers," he wrote.

President Donald Trump, currently on a working vacation in New Jersey, was briefed on reports of the mishap this morning by his new chief of staff, retired Marine Gen. John F. Kelly, according to a White House official.

As operations shift to recovery efforts, the next-of-kin for the three missing troops have been notified, officials said. The Marines have not yet been publicly identified; military policy observes a 24-hour window between the completion of next-of-kin notification and public identification of fallen troops.

During the 11-hour search window, small boats and aircraft from the Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group conducted "continuous sustained search efforts," according to the release.

The Marines will coordinate and receive assistance from the Australian Defense Force as they begin recovery efforts, including further searches and assessment and survey of the area as sea state permits, officials said.

The circumstances of the tragic mishap remain under investigation.

This disaster comes less than a month after a Marine Corps KC-130T aircraft crashed during a transport mission in early July, killing all 16 troops aboard in what was the deadliest Marine aviation mishap in more than a decade.

-- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck.
Haryana police dropped charges under two IPC Sections against Vikas Barala in the Chandigarh stalking case before granting him bail.

Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala's son Vikas Barala was arrested and released on bail the same day in a case of stalking. (Screengrab: India Today TV)

By Manjeet Sehgal: In what could raise a question mark on the Manohar Lal Khattar government of Haryana, police have dropped three serious charges against Vikas Barala in the Chandigarh stalking case.

Vikas Barala is the son of Haryana BJP president Subhash Barala. Vikas and a friend of his were booked for stalking a woman, who is the daughter of a senior IAS officer in the state.

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The three charges were originally slapped against Vikas and his friend. But, later those charges were dropped. After having registered the FIR under IPC Section 354 D (stalking) and Section 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act, the police added three more Sections, namely, 341, 365 and 511.

THE DROPPED IPC SECTIONS

IPC Section 341 deals with wrongful restraint while Section 365 is related to "kidnapping or abducting with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine person." Section 511 of the IPC relates to "punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or other imprisonment."

After dropping these charges, Vikas and his co-accused were granted bail by the police without producing them in court. Under attack for dropping the charges, police said that they were seeking legal opinion on IPC Sections 365 and 511.

WHY DOES IT MATTER?

To understand the legal implications of the development, India Today spoke to renowned Chandigarh lawyer Ranjan Lakhanpal, who said, "Under these Sections, the police did not have power to grant bail and release the accused. The charges were serious and the Sections added were non-bailable."

"Police have bypassed the judiciary. It seems attempts are being made to weaken the case as the accused are from influential families," Lakhanpal said.

Meanwhile, commenting on the Chandigarh stalking case, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said that action would be taken against Barala's son. Though, he asserted that Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala has nothing to do with the matter.

"This matter is not related with Subhash Barala but with an individual. So action would be taken against his son," Khattar said.

ALSO READ |

CM Khattar on Chandigarh stalking: Can't punish Haryana BJP chief for his son's crime

Arrested for stalking a woman, Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala's son Vikas gets bail

ALSO WATCH | India Today Exclusive: Chandigarh harassment victim speaks

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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...
PITTSFIELD TOWNSHIP, MI - Pittsfield Township is throwing a birthday party for its farmers market, celebrating five years of bringing fresh produce and homemade products to the community outside Ann Arbor.

The event runs from 3 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 10, at 6201 W. Michigan Ave. Activities include a scavenger hunt, live music by Spencer Michaud, children's craft activities and cooking demonstrations by Chef Kristi Zebrowski of Grace Savory and Sweet.

Finchy Cakes is providing treats for the birthday bash, which coincides with National Farmers Market Week Aug. 6-12.

In honor of the occasion, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn, is presenting township officials with a congressional records statement.

Pittsfield Township Supervisor Mandy Grewal said in a statement the idea to establish the farmers market was a test of the commitment to use public space as gathering places for the community.

"With the overwhelming support of local farmers and community members, we have been able to accomplish that goal and provide for both local food access and vibrant public gathering spaces," Grewal said.

The farmers market is open from 3 to 7 p.m. every Thursday, from June to September, at the corner of Platt and Michigan Ave.

Vendors over the years have provided the community with meat and eggs, artisan breads and cheeses, baked goods, health and beauty products along with fresh produce from local farms. Market offerings include gluten-free, vegan and halal food options.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- Third Coast Development has bought Grand Rapids West Side bar Kuzzin's Lounge and Drake's Pub in Wyoming.

The Grand Rapids area restaurants were previously owned by Michael Farah and his son Brian Farah, who were sentenced to federal prison earlier this year for destroying business records that showed the company hadn't paid taxes on all its sales. The tax scheme was discovered during an IRS audit.

Third Coast acquired both the businesses and their properties. Kuzzin's Lounge is located at 741 Leonard Street NW in Grand Rapids, and Drake's Pub, at 3766 Division Avenue, in Wyoming.

The acquisition will expand the developer's restaurant portfolio. In 2014, it opened the Garage Bar & Grill in the North Monroe business district with restaurateur Kevin Farhat.

"The success we've had at Garage Bar will help us enhance Kuzzin's and Drake's offerings while retaining the neighborhood character of both locations," said Third Coast partner Max Benedict.

Third Coast is bringing in Farhat to provide his expertise, but new managing partner Tony Knight will be the "face" of the new businesses, Benedict said.

A longtime friend of the Farahs, Knight brought the deal to Third Coast.

"They are really excited for us to take over," Benedict said of the Farahs. "Tony and Mike Sr. have worked for months on the transition."

Knight, a former US Marine, has spent almost two decades in multi-unit management, facilities, technology, hospitality and security.

Immediate plans for the locations include sprucing up and painting the builidings.

"They already have a great staff in place," said Benedict. "They are excited about the future."

Third Coast would have bought Farah's, at 710 Michigan St NE, but the bar wasn't part of the deal. The Farah family plans to hold onto the business, which Brian Farah will run after he finishes his 13-month sentence.
WYOMING, MI -- Police are seeking the person who shot a 21-year-old Grand Rapids man.

According to a release from the Wyoming Department of Public Safety, at 6:40 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 5, police responded reports of shots fired in a parking lot in the 1100 block of Chicago Drive SW. Both the victim and the suspect fled before police arrived.

A 21-year-old Grand Rapids man was later transported by a family member to a local hospital with a non-life threatening injury. Police said the victim was "less than cooperative" when asked about the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Witnesses told police an older-model gray Toyota vehicle may have been involved in the incident. Police said witnesses believe the vehicle was occupied by three or four subjects, who could not be identified.

The vehicle left the scene headed west on Chicago Drive.

The Wyoming Department of Public Safety will continue with their investigation into the incident. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Wyoming Department of Public Safety at 616.530.7300 or Silent Observer at (616) 774-2345.
GEORGETOWN TOWNSHIP, MI -- A Jenison man was injured when he crashed into a parked car, which caused him to be pinned in the car after it flipped.

According to a release from the Ottawa County Sheriff's Office, the crash occurred at 12:07 a.m. Sunday morning. The driver, a 38-year-old man whose name was not released by police, was driving north on Cherry Avenue in Georgetown Township when he collided with a parked vehicle.

The impact flipped his car on its roof and pinned him inside, police said. Meanwhile, the parked car was launched into another unoccupied vehicle that was parked.

Emergency responders transported the man to a local hospital, where he is listed in good condition, police said.
GRASS LAKE, MI - Nico Akemann was 13 and his father, dying of hunger, might have lived another two weeks.

"My brother too," Akemann said.

The family of seven was living in The Hague, Netherlands, under Nazi occupation during World War II, and nearly 4 million people were starving in western Holland.

U.S. Air Force 2nd Lt. Ralph Brown, a navigator in B-17 bombers, was among those who saved them.

Saturday, Akemann, 85, of South Lyon met Brown, 97, of Spring Arbor at the Michigan Military Heritage Museum, 153 N. Union St., in Grass Lake. They shook hands.

"I just wanted to thank him for what he and his people did," Akemann said.

It had been a difficult winter. Retaliatory Germans blocked food deliveries and destroyed dikes, preventing farming. People resorted to frying tulip bulbs and boiling hair, reports indicate. They were dying when Americans and their allies, in cooperation with the losing Nazis, dropped thousands of tons of food from aircraft in the spring of 1945, bringing salvation to the citizens below.

Akemann first received a chocolate bar. There were also square cans of dried beef and combat rations - so much food the severely malnourished Dutch were warned about overeating.

More than 70 years have passed, but the thought of it brings tears to Akemann's eyes.

"Hunger is pain," he said. "People who say: 'I am hungry, I need lunch.' They are not hungry..."

Photos and memorabilia honoring U.S. Air Force 2nd Lt. Ralph Brown line a case at the Michigan Military Heritage Museum in Grass Lake. He was a navigator in the B-17 bomber during World War II. Brown, now 97, lives in Spring Arbor.

Brown recalls flying low, at 200 or 300 feet, unarmed, in a narrow corridor during what was coined "Operation Chowhound," a successful mission despite great risk. He remembers the people gazing up at them. They had written messages of admiration and appreciation in flowers.

A Jackson native, he had joined the Air Force to become a pilot but started training and "decided I ought to do something else," he said.

Brown learned navigation and was sent to Ipswich, England. As part of the 493rd bomb group, he flew missions against the submarine pens at Kiel, in northern Germany, and industrial targets at Nuremberg, according to the museum.

His service is commemorated in a small exhibit, which also honors his father, U.S. Army Pfc. Laurel Brown, who served in France during World War I and lived to be 101.

Ralph Brown was sitting Saturday beneath a tent set up alongside the military museum. He was among six World War II veterans saluted with folded flags at the opening of the museum's World War I trench exhibit, made possible through a Jackson Home Depot grant.

Sitting nearby was Eugene Setlock, 91, of Grass Lake. He served with the Navy in the Pacific Ocean aboard the U.S.S. Kitkun Bay, a carrier once hit by a "suicide plane" and twice falsely reported to be sunk. "What are you doing here," crews were told when the ship sought repairs.

After the war, Brown worked as a building, constructing homes, kitchens and additions. He has a daughter and a son, who served in the Air Force in the 1960s, during the Vietnam War.

Sitting quietly in a yellow cardigan, Brown said little on Saturday. His daughter, Laurie Parks, was not sure he had fully processed the day's events.

His wife died in 2012 and he now lives in an assisted living facility in Spring Arbor.

Akemann, who served in the Royal Netherlands Air Force, came to the United States in the 1950s. It was the American's assistance during the war and during a later flood that convinced him he must go.

Nico Akemann, 85, of South Lyon speaks to Ralph Brown, 97, of Spring Arbor. Brown, as a navigator on a B-17 bomber during World War II, took part in a mission to bring food to starving Dutch citizens while the Nazis occupied the Netherlands and Akemann was 13, living in The Hague.

He and his late wife moved to Wisconsin and, after some struggle, he earned a job as a design engineer for American Motors Corp., acquired by Chrysler in 1987.

He transferred to Detroit in 1974 and has remained in Michigan.

Scott Gerych, a museum trustee, said Akemann visited the museum. He was struck by the Brown exhibit and told Brown was still alive.

The two first talked on the phone.

"I am not much of a religious person, but it was out of our hands. It just came together," Gerych said of the introduction and meeting.

The Dutch have always been grateful, said Parks, once approached by a woman in Amsterdam simply because she was wearing an American flag pin on her rain jacket.

When the woman learned of Ralph Brown's role in the mission the woman said saved her life, both she and Parks were in tears.

Akemann said his family remained in the Netherlands, where his father was a railroad station master. His mother, one of 17 children born to a "good Catholic family," was a homemaker, a "tiger" who died at age 99.

She did not know at first what to do with the powdered eggs and milk delivered by the Allies. "But she figured it out."

"She kept the family together," he said. "It was really her job to keep us alive."
The accused Vikas Barala, and his friend not only violated the Motor Vehicles Act, but also teased a woman and even tried to kidnap her.

By Manjeet Sehgal: A Chandigarh court on March 26, 2016 had sentenced 33 men and had awarded a month's jail term. These men were guilty of drunken driving and were booked under Section 185 of Motor Vehicles Act.

Interestingly, the son of Haryana BJP Chief Subhash Barala and his friend who were also drunk and were driving were released by the Chandigarh police from the police station itself.

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DID THE POLICE DROP NON-BAILABLE SECTIONS TO SAVE THE ACCUSED?

The accused Vikas Barala, and his friend not only violated the Motor Vehicles Act, but also teased a woman and even tried to kidnap her. The police kept on changing the IPC sections when it came to know that the accused was the son of a top BJP leader. There are allegations that the police tried to dilute the case under pressure from the Haryana and Central Government.

Interestingly, the police after receiving a phone call from the victim, detained Barala and his friend. Their medical examination also revealed that they were drunk and the allegations against them were genuine. The police booked the duo under section 354D of IPC, which is non-bailable, and under section 185 of Motor Vehicles Act. It also added 341, 365 and 511, but later dropped all the Sections, and just slapped Section 354 D, 341 of IPC and section 185 of Motor Vehicles Act.

It paved the way for accused and his friend's bail by claiming that the victim's statement did not confirm kidnapping. Whereas, the victim's statement clearly says the accused tried to kidnap her by opening the car door two times and blocking the road three times.

VICTIM AND HER FAMILY HOPES, TRUTH WILL PREVAIL

The victim and her father on Sunday however, refused to comment on the police action and hoped the police and law will deliver justice.

"I told you that the job of monitoring the appropriate sections of IPC is the job of police and law. I have told the truth in my statement. I don't know what they have written and which section they have applied. What they did and what not, is the job of the police," the victim said.

Visibly upset, victim's father also refused to comment on the accusations against the police and said, "The law will take its course".

Meanwhile, a well known Supreme Court and Punjab and Haryana High Court advocate Ranjan Lakhanpal on Sunday, accused the police of diluting the case under pressure from politicians and demanded a CBI probe.

"The frequency at which the police changed the relevant Sections, clearly says that it wanted to pave the way for the release of the accused and his friend as they belong to influential families. The police has no power to release them. They should have been produced in the court. The case is being diluted to save the accused. The case should be probed by he CBI," Ranjan Lakhanpal said.

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A video, also available with India Today, showing the policemen offering cold coffee to the accused in police lock-up also proves that the police worked under pressure and gave a VVIP treatment to the accused.

STALKING CASE TAKES A POLITICAL COLOUR, OPPOSITION DEMANDS BARALA'S RESIGNATION

The stalking case has come as a major embarrassment for the ruling BJP which has launched girl child upliftment schemes like Beti Bachao - Beti Padhao. The opposition has slammed BJP government's double standards on women upliftment saying it was not saving the girl child, but 'scaring' them off.

Meanwhile, the opposition INLD and Congress has criticised the BJP for not taking any action against Subhash Barala, MLA Tohana and President BJP.

"The BJP which talks about morality is silent on the immoral character of its President's son who has been found guilty of stalking and teasing a girl. This is not the first time when Subhash Barala's family members tried to molest a lady.

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Earlier too his nephew was also caught indulging in a similar crime. This is very shameful and Subhash Barala should immediately step down and should tender an unconditional apology," Praveen Attrey, Spokesperson Indian National Lok Dal said.

Haryana Mahila Congress also staged a protest in Panchkula on Sunday, and demanded Barala's resignation. The party has also demanded apology from Subhash Barala and sought his resignation on moral grounds.

RAHUL GANDHI CONDEMS 'STALKING' BY BJP LEADER'S SON

Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Sunday condemned a stalking incident allegedly involving Haryana BJP President Subhash Barala's son in Chandigarh and demanded punishment for the guilty.

"Condemn the attempt to kidnap and outrage the modesty of a young lady in Chandigarh. BJP government must punish the guilty; not collude with culprits and mindset they represent," he said in a tweet.

Also Read:

Was almost kidnapped on Chandigarh road: Girl stalked by Vikas Barala reveals midnight ordeal

CM Manohar Lal Khattar on Chandigarh stalking: Can't punish Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala for his son's crime

ALSO WATCH | India Today Exclusive: Chandigarh harassment victim speaks

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--- ENDS ---
A Global Times article quoting two Chinese experts warned that the PLA could soon undertake a small-scale military operation to evict Indian soldiers from the Doklam standoff site.

By India Today Web Desk: The hawkish Chinese daily Global Times again raised the rhetoric over the Doklam standoff this weekend, quoting two 'experts' to say that the People's Liberation Army could soon launch a "small-scale military operation" to "expel" Indian soldiers from the face-off site.

"The series of remarks from the Chinese side within a 24-hour period sends a signal to India that there is no way China will tolerate the Indian troops' incursion into Chinese territory for too long. If India refuses to withdraw, China may conduct a small-scale military operation within two weeks," the English-language daily quoted Hu Zhiyong as saying.

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Hu's comments about the "remarks from the Chinese side" referred to a series of statements released by Beijing on the Doklam standoff, which has now neared the two-month mark. China last week also released an exhaustive 15-page document in which it sought to project India as the aggressor and, once again, demanded an ""immediate and unconditional withdrawal" of Indian troops from the Doklam plateau.

Since mid-June, soldiers from the Indian Army and the Chinese People's Liberation Army have been facing off, reportedly just 100-150 meters away from each other, on the Doklam plateau, an area disputed between Beijing and Thimpu. The faceoff began after Indian troops, reportedly at the request of their Bhutanese counterparts, intervened to stop the PLA from constructing a metal road in the region.

China has since then accused India of trespassing into its sovereign territory and has angrily demanded that Indian Army troops stand down. New Delhi, which has refused to back off, has largely been quiet, indicating that behind-the-scenes diplomatic manoeuvre are being made to defuse the high-stakes standoff.

'MILITARY CONFLICT'

Beijing has angrily responded to the Dolkam standoff but has kept the war rhetoric to a minimum. Chinese state media, however, has not been as subtle with some publications, especially the Global Times, engaging in unusual sabre rattling.

In its latest piece, Global Times quotes two experts to suggest that the Doklam standoff could escalate to a military conflict between the two nuclear-armed Asian giants.

While Hu Zhiyong, a research fellow at the Institute of International Relations of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, said that the PLA might launch an operation in a matter of weeks, another expert, Zhao Gancheng, said that the patience of China and its people is "wearing thin". Zhao is identified as the director of the Center for Asia-Pacific Studies at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies.

Hu, on the other hand, also goes on to squarely blame India for the current crisis. "India, which has stirred up the incident, should bear all the consequences. And no matter how the standoff ends, Sino-Indian ties have been severely damaged and strategic distrust will linger," Hu is quoted as saying. "India has adopted an immature policy toward China in recent years. Its development is not at the same level as China's. It only wants to seek disputes in an area which originally has no disputes to gain bargaining chips."

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ALSO READ | Doklam border standoff: Will there be an India-China war?

ALSO READ | Chinese media thinks PLA can annihilate Indian Army. Can they? A fact check

ALSO WATCH | Doklam standoff: Will conflict with India be disastrous for China?

--- ENDS ---
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The market gained for a fifth consecutive week, with the Nifty rising half a percent and holding the psychological 10,000-mark. It began the week on a positive note on hopes of a rate cut, but saw profit booking (post RBI policy as rate cut had already been priced in) followed by recovery on Friday. The Nifty has rallied 5.7 percent over the past five weeks.

The 10,000 level on the Nifty would be key to watch out for in the coming week as well and this seems to be a key support level in the near term. The index consistently staying above that level despite small hiccups could be an indication that it may be pricing in better September quarter earnings following stable first quarter numbers, which were expected to be weak.

Experts feel if that level gets broken decisively then a small correction could be possible as the market is currently trading at fair valuations with a 23 percent rally in 2017.

"We are in the middle of structural bull run, growth is here to stay but we can see some short term hiccup, which no one can predict," Vikas Khemani, President & CEO, Edelweiss Securities told CNBC-TV18, adding that liquidity will continue to support the market on downside.

According to him, deep correction can be possible only because of some global factors or a domestic issue, but that seems unlikely. Every fall should be bought, he advised.

The market is likely to start the week on a positive note post strong US jobs data and softening of the government's stand against FIIs & FPIs. The government relaxed eligibility conditions under Section 9A for foreign funds, which makes it easier for fund managers to raise investments in India, reports CNBC-TV18.

The market will look for the remaining set of quarterly earnings in the coming week and further movement is expected to be largely stock specific depending upon results or any important news flow.

Here are 10 factors that will be closely watched in the coming week:-

Earnings

The balance corporate earnings will be announced in the coming week and the important one to watch out for would be SBI, Bank of Baroda, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Aurobindo Pharma, Eicher Motors, Sun Pharma, Hindalco, Cipla and BPCL.

SBI

Key things to watch out for in the earnings of the country's largest bank would be asset quality performance.

Reliance Securities expects fresh slippages to moderate further along with higher upgrades and recovery. Sharp decline in bond yield would positively impact the performance in Q1FY18 and balance sheet growth is expected to remain weak, it said.

Motilal Oswal expects loan growth to be muted as consolidation with subsidiaries is expected to result in an overall muted quarter. Commentary on RBI resolution with respect to large accounts is a key monitorable, it feels. Outlook and update on non-core stake sales and associate banks' merger will also be key issue to watch out for.

Tata Steel

Key issues to watch out would be imports from China and global iron ore prices.

Motilal Oswal expects Tata Steel's standalone EBITDA (India) to increase 30 percent YoY to Rs 2,880 crore on higher volumes. Sales volumes are up 28 percent YoY to 2.7mt (reported) on ramp-up at Kalinganagar. Consolidated EBITDA is estimated to increase 17 percent YoY to Rs 3,800 crore, it said.

Kotak said it expects India EBITDA per tonne to decline sequentially to Rs 11,100 (up 7 percent YoY, down 18 percent Qoq) due to combination of lower steel prices, higher coking coal costs and lower ferro alloy income. The research house expects Europe EBITDA per tonne to decline to USD 66 (USD 103/tonne EBITDA in Q4FY17) as higher cost coking coal inventories will hit profits.

Tata Motors

Impact of forex hedge loss; current demand trends for JLR and outlook, particularly in China and the US; update on new launches; and update on Chery JV operations and CV business outlook would be key things to watch out for.

"We expect JLR's (including JV) volume to grow around 4.5 percent YoY (and 13 percent QoQ), led by Jaguar F-Pace and China JV. Net realisation should increase by around 4 percent YoY (flat QoQ), led by ramp-up of F-Pace and increase in share of China. EBITDA margin would increase 30bp YoY (and 170bp QoQ) to 12.8 percent, led by better mix but restricted by GBP 250 million estimated forex hedge loss," Motilal Oswal said.

Kotak expects standalone revenues (India) to decline by 8 percent YoY due to 12 percent YoY decline in volumes. It also expects the company to make EBITDA loss in standalone operations.

Monsoon

The Indian Meteorological Department said actual cumulative area weighted rainfall for the country as a whole till August 2 equalled normal rainfall and monsoon activity would pick up in next three to four days.

In first two months of monsoon season (June-September), all India rainfall was 2 percent higher than the long period average (Year 1951-2000).

Macro Data

Industrial output data for June is scheduled to be released on Friday after market hours.

In May, India's industrial output growth dropped to 1.7 percent from 8 percent a year ago and 3.1 percent in April, mainly owing to subdued mining and manufacturing output.

Listings

Security & Intelligence Services India (SIS) and Cochin Shipyard are likely to list on bourses in the coming week. Public issues were oversubscribed 7 times and 76 times, respectively.

Technical Outlook

The Nifty, which closed at 10,066.40 on Friday, is expected to find the near term resistance at 10,137.85 (the record high hit recently) followed by 10,200 while the immediate support level could be 10,000 followed by 9,950 in the coming week.

"Nifty is suggesting that the market is facing strong resistance around 10,200 levels for this month and this warrants profit booking of long positions at the highs. The formation of convincing reversal patterns at the highs could open up the quantum of downward corrections for this and coming months," Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC securities said.

Corporate Action

Dwarikesh Sugar Industries share price will trade ex-split from August 10 as face value will be reduced to Re 1 from Rs 10.

ADCC Infocad and Gala Print City will start trading ex-bonus on August 10. ADCC will issue one bonus share for every 10 shares held and Gala will issue one bonus share for every 20 shares held.

Following stocks will trade ex-dividend in the coming week:-

Stocks in Focus

On coming Monday, Jaiprakash Associates, Sun Pharma Advanced, Syndicate Bank, Relaxo Footwear, Chennai Petroleum, Alphageo, GSFC, RPG Life Sciences, Indian Hotels, Fortis Healthcare, Repco Home Finance, Apollo Tyres and GNFC will react to their June quarter earnings that were announced on Friday after market hours and Saturday.

Cadila Healthcare will react positively to the final approval from the USFDA for Memantine hydrochloride extended-release capsules (that used for the treatment of moderate to severe dementia of Alzheimer's type)

IOC will be in focus as it will acquire upto 50 percent stake in Adani Group's Mundra LNG project for Rs 750 crore and its board gave approval for Gujarat refinery expansion by 4.3 mmtpa.

ONGC will also be in focus as it bought 80 percent stake of GSPC & took over operatorship rights in Block KG-OSN-2001/3.

Mahindra & Mahindra may start on a positive note as its subsidiary Mahindra Logistics filed draft red herring prospectus with SEBI for an initial public offer.

Global Cues

US jobs data was very stron last Friday as 2.09 lakh jobs were created in July against an estimate of 1.83 lakh. Unemployment rate was at 4.3 percent in July.

"Globally the focus will be on non-farm payrolls data to gauge the chances of further rate hikes by US Federal Reserve," Teena Virmani, Vice President - PCG Research, Kotak Securities said.

China's CPI data for July is expected to be released on Wednesday, followed by Japan's core machinery orders for June on Thursday and US CPI data for July on Friday.

"Geopolitics equation is changing rapidly. President Trump had to reluctantly sign the bill approved by the US Congress to impose sanctions on Russia which will deteriorate the relationship between two powerful countries. The head of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, is fearlessly defying calls of restraints potentially increasing the chances of conflicts which will not augur well for the equity markets, Jimmet Modi said.
Markets regulator Sebi has barred stock broker Unique Consulting & Trading and its directors from the capital market for a period of 10 years for allegedly collecting money from investors through various fraudulent schemes and promising them high returns.

The regulator has also cancelled the registration of the stock broker for unauthorised collection of funds.

According to Sebi, Unique Consulting had "misused" its status as a stock broker and solicited and collected funds and deposits from investors through misrepresentation and allurement of periodical returns.

"Unique Consulting acted in fraudulent and deceitful manner in violation of... the PFUTP (Prohibition of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices) Regulations," it said in an order dated August 2.

The watchdog observed that funds amounting to more than Rs 53 lakh were collected by the stock broker from 21 entities under different schemes.

The stock broker had also issued deposit certificates acknowledging the amount collected from its clients or investors.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) noted that the stock broker had floated various schemes such as short term, PMS/Monthly and PMS/3 months, among others.

The use of the terms like short term, PMS/Monthly and PMS/3 months, among others, in the deposit certificates issued by Unique Consulting, and the advertisements and pamphlets issued by the stock broker offered services including wealth management, as the schemes offered are in the nature of portfolio management services, Sebi said.

However, according to the regulator, Unique Consulting "misled" the investors to believe that it was authorised to do the activities as a portfolio manager by misusing the Sebi registration as a stock broker.

Unique Consulting & Trading and its directors -- P Shanmuga Ganesan, K Mathan Kumar, U Indira and Janet Jenetha -- are prohibited from mobilising or pooling any fresh funds from its clients, other general investors or members of public, Sebi said.

Further, the regulator directed the stock broker and its directors to refund the money collected from clients and other investors in the various schemes along with income, profits or returns promised to them under such schemes.

Unique Consulting & Trading and its directors are directed not to access the securities market directly or indirectly, and are further restrained and prohibited from buying, selling or otherwise dealing in the securities market, directly or indirectly in for a period of 10 years, Sebi said.

In a separate order passed on August 2, the regulator noted that by raising funds beyond authority and adopting fraudulent means, the stock broker had not adhered to the standards of the integrity expected from an intermediary in the securities market.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday urged the Centre to allocate funds 'liberally' to strengthen the subordinate judiciary in the state in order to provide speedy justice to the litigants.

"We (BJP and JDU) have come together. It must also reflect (in the allocation of funds). Bihar is a big state with 38 districts and 101 sub-divisions and you (Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad) are saying Rs 50-60-70 crore will be given to it to strengthen the subordinate judiciary. It will not serve the purpose," he said at a function here.

Stating that Bihar's budget, which was around Rs 25,000 crore to Rs 26,000 crore in 2005-06, had now increased to over Rs 1.40 lakh crore, Kumar said, "If you (Centre) want to give to the state, allocate funds liberally. I am talking about the funds for strengthening the subordinate judiciary."

He added that his government had already sanctioned Rs 169 crore for the expansion project of the Patna High Court.

The chief minister was addressing a function to launch the 'Tele Law: Mainstreaming Legal Aid Through Common Service Centre' scheme.

As per the scheme, which was launched in the state today, a common villager can have access to legal aid services with the help of the para-legal volunteers at the Common Service Centre (CSC), which would be equipped with computers and Internet facility.

Prasad, who spoke before Nitish, expressed happiness that the scheme was being launched after the BJP and the JDU joined hands in the state.

"Bihar has been given Rs 50 crore in 2016-17 for strengthening the subordinate judiciary. I will increase it to Rs 60-70 crore the next time, provided a utilisation certificate is furnished by the authority concerned," he said.

This was the first big function in the state capital after the formation of the JD(U)-BJP-led NDA government in Bihar, where an Union minister and the chief minister shared the dais.
Two persons, including the son of Haryana's BJP chief, were arrested and released on bail soon after for allegedly stalking a girl, Haryana police said.

The girl had accused Vikas Barala, son of Haryana BJPChief Subhash Barala, and his friend Ashish Kumar of stalkingher last night after which they were arrested, the police

said.

"We arrested both Vikas and Ashish and later they werebailed out," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Chandigarh,

Satish Kumar said.

He said the complainant had been asked to record herstatement before Illaka (area) magistrate here, adding that

she is the daughter of an IAS officer.

The DSP said more sections could be added after the

statement of the girl is recorded.

Both were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPCand 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person

or by a person under the influence of drugs), the police said.

The case was registered at Sector 26 police station.The police said both the accused have been called forquestioning and investigation is under way.
The government is hopeful that the strategic Chabahar Port will be operational by 2018, Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said.

The Road, Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Gadkari arrived in Tehran on saturday to represent India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier congratulated Rouhani on his re-election as the President of Iran and affirmed India's commitment to strengthen the special relations between the countries.

"India and Iran have been historically sharing special ties ... We are keen on developing Chabahar Port and are hopeful of starting operations in 12 to 18 months," Gadkari told PTI.

Gakdari is keen on expediting development of the Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province on the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation's southern coast that can be easily accessed from India's west coast, bypassing Pakistan.

The visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work at the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at Chabahar Port.

"Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine," the minister has said.

The minister has said that he was also hopeful of certain approvals from the Iranian government for expediting work and added that once Chabahar becomes operational the trade and business between both the nations would see a boost.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including through a USD 150 million credit from Exim Bank.

It also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of USD 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of USD 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of equipment will be transferred to Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of USD 150 million in accordance with the MoU.

As per the pact, operations of two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract.

Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest USD 500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.
The plan to make Connaught Place a vehicle free zone was announced in January 2017. The plans were set to be implemented in February on a three month trial.

By India Today Web Desk: Remember the government's plans to make the heart-of-Delhi, Connaught place a vehicle-free zone?

Six months later, the plans to make the inner and middle circle of our very own CP a vehicle-free zone are only on paper. The New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) is yet to find a way to implement the plans announced in January this year.

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The lanes of Saddi Dilli's heart were to go vehicle free for three months on a pilot basis. But, the plan is yet to be implemented with the civic bodies still finding ways for proper implementation of the plan.

"We have been in discussion with the traffic police on finding ways to implement the plan. Arranging for e-rickshaws for last mile connectivity and facilitating adequate parking remain the key challenge. We are working on it," a senior NDMC official said.

Connaught place being a major shopping and hangout hub for Delhiites draws a lot of traffic everyday. The traffic is unusually higher on weekends thus leading to traffic jams. The traders' association of the Connaught Place were opposing the plan to make CP a vehicle free zone and even threatened to go on strike if the plan is executed.

"We are in the process of developing a consensus with traders and believe that the footfall will not suffer because of the plan," the civic body official said.

The inner circle of Connaught Place also holds a parking space. There are options for alternative parking spaces except for outer circle in CP. The Shivaji Stadium, Palika and Baba Kharak Singh Marg parking has a capacity of 3,172. The authorities are planning to use these places as alternative parking spaces and can be used to promote "park and ride" facilities for which e-rickshaws will be used.

The NDMC had last year mooted the proposal to make both Connaught Place and Khan Market vehicle-free zones. While the Centre had announced to make Connaught Place clutter-free, no decision has been taken regarding Khan Market yet.

(With inputs from PTI)

--- ENDS ---
People pray for atomic bomb victims in front of the cenotaph for the victims of the 1945 atomic bombing, at Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima, western Japan, August 6, 2017, on the 72nd anniversary of the atomic bombing of the city. Mandatory credit Kyodo/via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. JAPAN OUT. - RTS1AK1W

Moneycontrol News

Japan's Hiroshima city on Sunday marked the 72nd anniversary of deadly atomic bombing that killed thousands at its annual memorial ceremony with the city's Mayor Kazumi Matsui calling on the government to help make a treaty banning the usage of nuclear weapons.

This years ceremony at Peace Memorial Park near ground zero in Hiroshima follows the adoption by 122 UN members of the worlds first treaty to comprehensively ban nuclear weapons.

The treatys preamble uses the term hibakusha in its mention of the unacceptable suffering experienced by the survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki which had killed an estimated 214,000 people by the end of 1945.

But Japan, together with the worlds nuclear weapon states and other countries under the US umbrella have recently refused to participate in the UN treaty.

In the citys annual peace declaration, Matsui pointed out that it is time to strive to advance further towards a nuclear-weapon free world.

For us to truly realise a world without nuclear weapons, the participation of both nuclear weapon states and non-nuclear weapon states is necessary, he said.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, however, defended the decision to stay out by saying that a realistic approach is needed to reach the goal of having a world without nuclear weapons.

The 72nd anniversary event was attended by Britain, France, US, Russia, India, Israel and Pakistan, who are known to posses nuclear weapons.
Send items for Worship News to religion@thereporteronline.com. Address questions to Nancy March, editor, at nmarch@thereporteronline.com. Deadline is noon Thursday to appear in the Saturday Worship News and Notes. Presentation of Our Lord Ukrainian Catholic Church has one more Sidewalk Ukrainian...
Rabbis installation at Keneseth Israel will get a boost of student creativity
August 06, 2017

New Sanctions Against Russia - A Failure Of U.S. Strategy

Recently the U.S. congress legislated sanctions against the Russian Federation over alleged, but completely unproven, interference in the U.S. presidential elections. The vote was nearly unanimous.

President Trump signed these sanctions into law. This was a huge and stupid mistake. He should have vetoed them, even as a veto would likely be overturned. With his signing of the law Trump gave up the ability to stay on somewhat neutral grounds towards Russia. This for no gain to him at all.

Sanctions by Congress are quasi eternal. The 1974 Jackson-Vanik amendment restricted trade with the then "Communist block". It was supposed to press for Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union to Israel. But even after the Soviet Union broke down in the early 1990s, after the "communist block" had disappeared and long after any limits on emigrations had been lifted, the law and its economic sanctions stayed in place. It was only lifted in 2012 and only to be immediately replaced by the ludicrous Magnitsky act which immediately established a new set of sanctions against the Russian Federation and its interests.

The new additional sanctions, like the Jackson-Vanik amendment and the Magnitsky act, were shaped by domestic U.S. policy issues. There is nothing Russia could have done to avoid them and there is nothing it can do to have them lifted.

The new U.S. sanctions are not only directed against Russia but against any company and nation that cooperates with Russia over energy. This a little disguised attempt to press European countries into buying expensive U.S. liquefied natural gas instead of cheap Russian gas delivered by pipelines. The immediate target is the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Russia and Germany which passes through the Baltic Sea to avoid potential conflict points in east Europe. The sanctions are a threat to an independent German energy policy. (Additional partners in the pipeline are Austria, France and the Netherlands.) Consequently 35% of Germans name the U.S. as a "major threat to the country". Russia is seen as such by only 33%. This view is consistent with the global perception.

These sanctions will shape U.S.-Russian relation for the next 30 plus years. On August 2 the Russian Prime Minister Medvedev pointed to the weakness of President Trump as the main reason for these sanctions:

The US President's signing of the package of new sanctions against Russia will have a few consequences. First, it ends hopes for improving our relations with the new US administration. Second, it is a declaration of a full-fledged economic war on Russia. Third, the Trump administration has shown its total weakness by handing over executive power to Congress in the most humiliating way. This changes the power balance in US political circles. What does it mean for them? The US establishment fully outwitted Trump; the President is not happy about the new sanctions, yet he could not but sign the bill. The issue of new sanctions came about, primarily, as another way to knock Trump down a peg. New steps are to come, and they will ultimately aim to remove him from power. A non-systemic player has to be removed. Meanwhile, the interests of the US business community are all but ignored, with politics chosen over a pragmatic approach. Anti-Russian hysteria has become a key part of both US foreign policy (which has occurred many times) and domestic policy (which is a novelty).

...

Remember that Medvedev as Russian leader was, for a long time, the "hope" of the U.S. establishment. He was perceived as more amenable than the Russian President Putin. Medvedev may well become president again. But no U.S. media except the New York Post took notice of his statement. That in itself is astonishing and frightening. Can no one in the U.S. see where this will lead to? Medvedev predicts:

The sanctions regime has been codified and will remain in effect for decades unless a miracle happens. [...] [R]elations between Russia and the United States are going to be extremely tense regardless of Congress makeup and regardless of who is president. Lengthy arguments in international bodies and courts are ahead, as well as rising international tensions and refusal to settle major international issues.

Economically and politically Russia can and will cope with these sanctions, says Medvedev. But can the U.S.?

The supreme global role of the U.S. depends on preventing a Euro-Asian alliance between, mainly, Russia and China. In his latest "grand chessboard" piece Toward a Global Realignment the U.S. strategist Zbigniew Brzezinski - ruthless, amoral and capable - asserts:

[I]t behooves the United States to fashion a policy in which at least one of the two potentially threatening states becomes a partner in the quest for regional and then wider global stability, and thus in containing the least predictable but potentially the most likely rival to overreach. Currently, the more likely to overreach is Russia, but in the longer run it could be China.

The U.S. foreign policy establishment has declared war on Russia. The confrontational position towards China, which was en vogue under Obama, has noticeably changed. The Hillary Clinton/Barack Obama "pivot to Asia" was cancelled. The anti-Chinese Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement has been called off. Military provocations of China in the South Chinese Sea have been reduced and replaced by continuous provocations against Russia in eastern Europe. These steps follow the strategy Brzezinski laid out.

Russia has historically proven to be resourceful in its policies. It is extremely resistant to pressure. With the U.S. in a less hostile position against China, the behemoth will relentlessly press its own advantage. Russia will soon be one of China's main sources of fossil energy and other commodities. There is no major reason for China and Russia to disagree with each other. Under these circumstances the hoped for Russian-Chinese split will not happen. Core European countries will resist pressures that endanger their economies.

The Brzezinski strategy is clouded by a personal hate against Russia. (He is descendant of minor noble Galician-Polish family.) It is flawed as it enables China to establish its primacy. Even under Brzezinski's framework a Russian-European-U.S. alliance against Chinese pursuit of hegemony would have been the more logical way to go.

Hillary Clinton's strategy to blame Russia for her lack of likability and her failure in the election now results in a major failure of U.S. grand strategy. An organized White House policy could have prevented that but there is no such thing (yet) under Trump.

I fail to see how the current strategy, now enshrined by congressional sanctions, could ever end up in an overall advantage for the United States.

Posted by b on August 6, 2017 at 14:25 UTC | Permalink

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PILOT MOUNTAIN  The manager of a restaurant in Pilot Mountain was arrested the week following a year-long investigation, according to law enforcement.

Cecil Anthony Tony Durham, 57, was the manager of Pub 109 on West Main Street, said Sgt. D.J. Edmonds with Pilot Mountain police. A joint investigation with Alcohol Law Enforcement led to his arrest.

Durham, of Starry Ridge Road in Pinnacle, is charged with possession of a firearm by a felon, continuing a criminal enterprise and possessing and selling non-taxed alcohol, according to an officer at the Surry County Jail. He was released from jail on Thursday after posting bail.

Edmonds said an investigation into Pub 109 began with ALE sending an undercover agent to the business. The agent conducted buys from the business, mostly involving drugs and also saw illegal alcohol being sold, he said.

Marijuana was confiscated from the business as well, Edmonds said, and additional charges could be pending, possibly against other customers who were at the pub.
By PTI: Ahmednagar, Aug 6 (PTI) A mob allegedly attacked 12 members of a cow protection group in Shrigonda city near here after police intercepted a tempo illegally carrying cows to a slaughterhouse, the police said today.

Police intercepted the vehicle on Daund-Ahmednagar road and arrested its owners Wahid Sheikh and Raju Fannubhai Sheikh last afternoon.

A police official said one Shivshankar Rajendra Swami of Pune, and a team of 11 cow vigilantes had come to the police station where the case was registered against the tempo owners and others under the Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act.

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While the case was registered in presence of the Sheikhs, Swami and others told the police that they should act tough against those illegally transporting cows.

Shrigonda police station inspector Bajirao Pawar said Swami and others claimed they belonged to Akhil Bhartiya Krushi Gau Seva Sangh.

After the activists stepped out of the police station in the evening, they were attacked by a mob of around 50 people, some of them armed with butcher knives and rods.

Police have registered an FIR against 36 people in connection with the attack under various sections of the IPC, including attempt to murder, and under Arms Act, Pawar said, adding the injured gau rakshaks left for Pune after the incident.

Nobody has been arrested so far in connection with the attack. PTI CORR NSK NSD

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Mount Pleasant, SC (29464)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low 56F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low 56F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph.
WTGS to host speaker from Chevron

Members of the West Texas Geological Society will meet 11:30 a.m. Aug. 8 in the upstairs ballroom at Midland Country Club.

Shane Prochnow with Chevron will present Spatial Continuity and Surveillance Recommendations in the Permian Basin Tight Rock Wolfcamp: Autocorrection and Variogram Analysis for Determining Extent of Reservoir Homogeneity.

Cost is $25 in advance, $35 at the door. Reservations may be made by calling 683-1573 or email at wtgs@wtgs.org. Online registration is also available at www.wtgs.org and clicking on the Events tab.

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OFS Energy Fund sells Conquest Completion Services

HOUSTON  OFS Energy Fund has closed the sale of Conquest Completion Services LLC, a Fund III portfolio company.

Alex Dempsey, chief executive officer, Nathan Moore, chief operating officer, and other key members of the Conquest management team will remain with the company.

OFS invested in Conquest in July 2014, providing growth capital to Conquests legacy business that allowed the company to expand into the large diameter coiled tubing market with the initial purchase of two 2 3/8-inch and two 2 5/8-inch coil tubing units. During 2016, Conquest took delivery of two additional 2 5/8-inch coil tubing units. In the first quarter, because of the companys continued strong growth and high demand for its services, Conquest placed an order for an additional three 2 5/8-inch coil tubing units with expected deliveries in the second half of 2017.

Houston-based OFS Energy Fund is a private equity firm that specializes in acquiring and recapitalizing lower middle-market energy service companies.

Conquest Completion Services, LLC provides coil tubing services and completion fluids to its customers in West Texas, South Texas and New Mexico. Conquest was founded in 2014 and is based in Bossier City, Louisiana, with additional locations in Midland and Pleasanton.

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Vanguard Natural Resources emerges from Chapter 11

Vanguard Natural Resources said last week it has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy after six months of legal proceedings.

The Houston natural gas producer cut $820 million in debt and acquired an $850 million revolving credit facility, a type of loan from which companies can borrow, pay back, and borrow again. The company has $936 million in outstanding debt and $17 million in cash on hand.

Vanguard has some 1.4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent in proved reserves. Natural gas accounted for about two-thirds of that amount. Oil was 18 percent and natural gas liquids were 16 percent.

-- By Collin Eaton, Houston Chronicle

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Penn Virginia buys Eagle Ford land for $205 million

Penn Virginia Corp. is buying Devon Energy Corp. assets in the Eagle Ford shale for $205 million from

The Houston oil producers purchase of assets in Lavaca County included 19,600 net acres adjacent to its operations in the region, which means it can drill longer horizontal sections and cut its break-even costs in some areas to $30 a barrel.

Those properties produce some 3,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day, and will boost Penns output by almost a third. Penn expects the deal to close late September. It will pay for it, in part, with $150 million in debt.

Oklahoma City-based Devon Energy said its recent string of asset sales bring its proceeds up to $340 million. It plans to sell $1 billion in oil and gas properties over the next year.

-- By Collin Eaton, Houston Chronicle

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Energy Transfer sells $1.6 billion stake in Rover Pipeline

Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners said its selling a $1.6 billion stake in its controversial Rover Pipeline.

Energy Transfer plans to sell a nearly one-third stake in the project to private equity giant Blackstone Energy Partners.

The project, which has been mired in delays from both leaks and environmental regulatory concerns, would carry shale natural gas from West Virginia through Ohio and Michigan and into Canada.

Energy Transfer, which developed the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline, also sold ownership positions in that project to help fund the construction.

Once the Rover Pipeline is finished  the completion is being delayed into next year  it will run about 700 miles and transport 3.25 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day from the Marcellus and Utica shale production areas.

-- By Jordan Blum, Houston Chronicle
The woman has been identified as Asha Shahani. According to police, Asha's husband Kedar died in 2013 after which she went into depression.

By Saurabh Vaktania: In what could be termed as a very tragic and heart breaking incident, decomposed body of a 63-year-old woman was found in her house in posh Lokhandwala area, Andheri west.

The woman has been identified as Asha Shahani. According to police, Asha's husband Kedar died in 2013 after which she went into depression. Asha's son Ruturaj, 43 is an IT engineer in USA. Asha used to stay alone at home.

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Her son had last spoken to her in 2016 after which there was no contact. The cops, as of now, has ruled out murder angle as no valuable iwas stolen from the house and the door was closed from inside. The cops are, however, waiting for the post mortem report.

A police officer investigating the case said, "In 2016 April, Asha spoke to her son in USA. Asha told her son that she is thinking of going to old-age home as she is finding it very difficult to stay alone. She revealed all are problems to son. The son thought that his mother might have gone to old-age home. He never again spoke to her mother. Today afternoon, he came to his house in Lokhandwala. The door was locked from inside."

The son with help of other broke opened the door and found completely decomposed body of her mother in the bedroom.

Senior Police Inspector Subhash Khanvilkar of Oshiwara police station said, "We have registered ADR in the matter. Prima facie it looks like natural death. She was also in depression. However, we have sent body to hospital for post mortem. We will take down statement of son and neighbours in the matter. We are investigating the case in all angles, therefore we awaiting post mortem report as body sent for postmortem to hospital."

Another police officer said, "It is very tragic and saddening incident. The woman used to stay completely alone and was in depression. The flat in which is stayed is of several bedrooms and huge flat and therefore staying alone in depression is difficult. It is big negligence and careless attitude from her family relatives and son."

ALSO READ:

Body of youth who fell into valley in Amboli recovered

Vijayawada: Body of a young government doctor recovered from canal

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Many businesses around the state have voiced their opposition to Senate Bill 3, known as the bathroom bill, which if passed would require people to use the restroom associated with the sex listed on their birth certificate.

Of concern for many opposed is that the law restricts transgender people from using the bathroom that matches their identified gender, which in turn would cause discomfort and raise safety concerns.

In a revised letter sent to Gov. Greg Abbott on Aug. 2, several large Houston-based employers, including several oil companies, through the Greater Houston Partnership asked that the governor not support the bill, saying it would harm employee recruitment efforts.

We support diversity and inclusion, and we believe that any such bill risks harming Texas reputation and impacting the states economic growth and ability to create new jobs, the letter said. Innovative companies are driven by their people, and winning the talent recruitment battle is key. Any bill that harms our ability to attract top talent to Houston will inhibit our growth and continued success  and ultimately the success of our great state.

Oil companies whose leaders were among the signatories included BHP Billiton Petroleum, BP America, Chevron North America, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Halliburton and Shell Oil Co.

As letters of opposition pour in from companies in Texas major cities, the Reporter-Telegram reached out via email to oil companies in Midland to get their perspectives.

Pioneer Natural Resources is among the largest employers in Midland County and the largest taxpayer. Based in Irving, it has a sizable Permian Basin headquarters. President and CEO Tim Dove told the Reporter-Telegram that Pioneer does not support the bill.

We believe a diverse and inclusive workforce is the strongest workforce, and we dont support this bill because its inconsistent with our company values and not good for the state of Texas. We consider ourselves a family at Pioneer, and we respect our colleagues, no matter their differences, he said.

Shell Exploration and Production Co. offered similar sentiments. From Scott Sheffler, external relations manager for the Permian region:

With operations across the State of Texas, Shell is a very proud employer in a state we love. We believe in economic development based on a set of business principles that includes respect for people. It is with that value in mind that Shell has joined with other businesses to oppose the bathroom bill being considered in the legislature. We urge our elected officials to carefully consider the repercussions of passing a bill like this, and what it would say about a state otherwise celebrated for its hospitality and inclusive spirit.

The Shell General Business Principles and Code of Conduct are at the heart of how we manage our business. The bathroom bill simply does not square with our values and principles.

Not all business leaders the Reporter-Telegram reached out to disliked the legislation. Tim Dunn is the CEO of CrownQuest and the chairman of conservative policy groups Empower Texans and Texans for Fiscal Responsibility. While companies associated with the Greater Houston Partnership cited employee recruitment concerns, Dunn said the bills passage might help recruitment.

I would expect the Womens Privacy Act to help Texas business employee recruitment, if it has any effect. This state law ensures businesses retain power to create a safe and protected working environment for female employees and should provide nothing but benefit for businesses, he said.

The bill is also referred to as the Texas Privacy Act by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has championed the legislation. In a video he released Thursday on his YouTube Channel, Patrick said the bill doesnt discriminate against anyone.

Twenty-one out of 31 senators voted for the Texas Privacy Act because parents dont want their children showering together in high school, they dont want their children in school sharing locker rooms and restrooms, and adult women dont want men following them into the ladies room, nor do they want their little girls or their granddaughters being followed into a bathroom by a man. Its really that simple, he said. Its common sense, its common decency and its public safety.

SB 3 is now under consideration in the House of Representatives. The special legislative session is scheduled to adjourn Aug. 16.








Growing an economy and encouraging prosperity is difficult work, and the last thing Texas needs is to shoot itself in the foot over a bathroom bill. The state has a lot of things going for it  a large and growing workforce, abundant natural resources (particularly oil and natural gas), a central location, a competitive cost of living, and excellent incentive programs. We also have good things going on in a number of industries ranging from technology to biosciences. Were improving infrastructure, adding top-tier research facilities and medical schools, and emerging as a center for desirable industrial growth and corporate locations and expansions.

However, things are not all peaches and cream. Texas is also investing far too little in education at all levels, which will not serve us well in the future. Although a low-tax environment is certainly desirable, fiscal resources must be sufficient to maintain the basic ingredients for growth.

In other words, the state economy is not invulnerable and optimal growth is not guaranteed. Texas faces intense competition from all sides. Given this situation, enacting a bathroom bill that would cost tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in business activity and tax receipts over time makes no economic sense.

One immediate effect, which will only get worse over time, is that Texas will lose massively in travel and tourism. Millions of people visit the state every year and spend billions of dollars. Hundreds of thousands of Texas work directly in the industry, and when you include the multiplier effects, I estimate that the total benefits of travel and tourism are more than $128.9 billion in gross product each year and 1.4 million permanent jobs in Texas. Any economic activity generates tax revenue through various channels (retail sales and property taxes, among others), and I estimate that travel and tourism and the associated multiplier effects generate $7 billion to the State and $3.3 billion to local government entities (including cities, counties, and school districts) each year.

For some tourism-intensive places, such as San Antonio, this source of business activity is particularly important. Other cities regularly host major conventions which bring in substantial numbers of visitors and dollars. A bathroom bill jeopardizes this major industry, and communities across the state have already begun to see the fallout from even the discussion of a potential bill.

A recent estimate places the amount already lost at more than $66 million from specific events. Moreover, sponsors of over $1.1 billion in direct travel and tourism events have already indicated that they plan to cancel if the bill passes. That estimate is obtained from events which were otherwise headed to Texas, and, if a bill passes, the total losses will be much higher as event planners and groups avoid the state. Another factor is that some states (such as California) are not allowing state non-essential travel to areas with restrictive laws, which event planners will certainly take into consideration in selecting a location.

Earlier this spring, we estimated the potential effects of a bathroom bill in Texas based on results in areas which had passed restrictive social policy such as bathroom bills (adjusted for the size of the tourism and travel market in Texas) and surveys of travelers and event planners. We found that reductions in travel and tourism activity would likely initially result in a gross product loss of almost $3.3 billion per year and the loss of over 35,600 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs (based on 2016 levels of activity), with annual losses of $176.4 million in State revenue and $84.3 million in local fiscal resources. With the law in effect for a period of time, these losses could be expected to rise to $5.5 billion in annual gross product and almost 59,600 jobs. The yearly losses in State revenue are estimated to be $295.2 million, with a $141.1 million yearly decrease in local fiscal resources. (The study is available for viewing or download at www.perrymangroup.com.)

The negative economic effects of a bathroom bill would go far beyond travel and tourism. Business leaders have come out in opposition to the bill, including CEOs of major employers in the state. A recent letter to the Governor expressing concern about the bill reads like a whos who of Dallas-based firms (American Airlines, Atmos Energy Corporation, AT&T, The Beck Group, BNSF Railway, Celanese, Crow Holdings, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, and EJ Smith Enterprises). These companies run the spectrum from real estate to energy to communications. The CEOs are concerned that the bill would seriously hurt the states ability to attract new businesses, investment, and jobs and that it could harm their ability to compete for the brightest and best talent. I couldnt have said it better myself. Another group opposed to the bill are policemen, who are concerned that it would lead to a diversion of scarce resources (among other things).

Regardless of their stated purpose, controversial laws such as bathroom bills can have substantial negative economic effects. Travel and tourism losses would be billions per year, with an associated loss in revenue to the State and local governments. Companies may avoid expanding or locating here, particularly in industries with a large number of knowledge workers (such as technology-intensive advanced industries). There would likely be other costs such as additional law enforcement and litigation costs. Although there are certainly very real and important considerations beyond the economy, these effects cannot be ignored.

The Texas economy has long been a growth leader, and even with a major industry (energy) recently in a lull, has performed remarkably well. As we look ahead, however, there are sizable hurdles to be overcome in the form of workforce preparedness, water and infrastructure, and demographic changes. Passing a law that demonstrably and significantly harms important segments of the state business complex while providing no meaningful benefits is flushing future fortune.

Dr. M. Ray Perryman is President and Chief Executive Officer of The Perryman Group (www.perrymangroup.com). He also serves as Institute Distinguished Professor of Economic Theory and Method at the International Institute for Advanced Studies.






OK, there is a way for the Texas Legislature to lower your property taxes after all.

The House Ways and Means Committee  the Capitols wellspring of tax bills  voted unanimously Thursday to let voters decide whether to eliminate the property taxes that raise about $24 billion per year for public schools.

All that would be left is to figure out a way to pay for public education without the money. Burning down the schoolhouse, as it were, would force the state to build a new one.

Heres the thing: The state doesnt set property tax rates or appraise properties. Thats left to local government. But state officials do affect property taxes in an indirect but meaningful way by raising or lowering what the state spends on public education.

The greater the states share, the smaller the local share. The smaller the local share, the lower the local property tax bills. Until last week, pending property tax legislation touted by your elected public servants in Austin would limit future increases in property tax increases by cities and counties but wouldnt cut them. Your tax bill would still grow, perhaps  but not certainly  at a slower rate of speed.

Killing the school property tax altogether, whatever else you might say about the idea forwarded by state Rep. Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, would cut your bill by eliminating the single biggest item. More to the point, it illustrates one of the few ways lawmakers have to actually ease Texans property tax woes.

Before you uncork the good stuff to celebrate, remember that most Texans still want public education in the state. Getting rid of the property tax would force lawmakers to replace it with something else  presumably, by some kind of tax levied by the state itself. Every local dollar would be replaced by a state dollar.

Legislation from state Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, would require the state to cover at least 50 percent of the cost of public education  up from the 38 percent it pays now.

Another remedy, proposed by state Rep. Andrew Murr, R-Junction, would raise state sales taxes enough to cover the difference  to 12 percent from 6.25 percent. With local add-ons, that would make the sales tax 14 percent in most parts of the state.

Texans would have a whole different tax to whine about and a really good reason to shop more on the internet and in New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana.

The only other piece of legislation that would put downward pressure on local school property taxes  a $1.9 billion school finance bill offered by state Rep. Dan Huberty, R-Houston  looks like a nonstarter in the Senate, where Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has said the measures method of finance resembles a Ponzi scheme.

To be fair, Patrick was still stinging from the Houses comparison of the Senates transportation spending to the way things were done at Enron.

Without spending more money on schools and lowering the need for local school taxes, the list of state remedies for the most-hated tax is short.

Voting to kill the school property tax might sound good in the primary elections, too, when incumbent legislators are pressed by taxpayers seeing red over high bills.

Darbys brinksmanship probably wont get far. Its in the form of a constitutional amendment, requiring 100 votes in the House and 21 in the Senate and then approval from Texas voters. And it would force a very conservative Legislature to conjure up a tax bill big enough to raise some $2 billion every month, which is what local property taxes raise now.

Gulp.

At least its honest property tax relief. You might be paying till it hurts out of some other pocket, but the biggest part of your property tax bill would go away.

The House, led by Speaker Joe Straus, has been trying to open the school finance debate all year. During the regular session, the Senate responded with a smaller proposed increase in state spending, attached to a school voucher bill the House wont abide.

Maybe Darbys cataclysm will stimulate the conversation.
SAN ANGELO  U.S. Rep. Mike Conaway currently has one of the strangest workloads in Washington: chairing the committee tasked with writing a massive farm bill while also leading the chambers investigation into election-meddling by Russia.

But while surrounded by cowboys and farmers earlier this week during an industry listening tour, the Midland Republican said that those may not be the last high-profile assignments he leads in Congress, if he has any say.

Conaway is already currently leading the House Intelligence Committees most high-profile work. Supposing the GOP holds onto power in the U.S. House in the coming years, would he want to serve as the chairman of that powerful committee someday?

Sure, he told the Tribune.

This past spring, the House Intelligence Committee roiled with drama, thanks to erratic leadership from committee Chairman Devin Nunes of California. That committees investigation into Russian interference was widely viewed as dysfunctional and ineffectual.

Nunes eventually recused himself while retaining his spot as chairman, and Conaway took over the investigation. House Democrats and Republicans alike now gush daily about Conaways handling of the investigation. Most of the investigations work since has been behind closed doors, like last week when Jared Kushner, President Trumps son-in-law and senior adviser, answered committee questions.

But in the open hearings he leads, he takes a quiet role and there the partisan temperature in the room has been markedly reduced.

In San Angelo last week, Conaway explained how he balances that tricky role while also chairing the Agriculture committee, an assignment that is crucially important to his rural West Texas district. And in the coming months, he will shepherd the farm bill, which ties together food assistance to the poor and subsidies to farmers.

Ive got as good as  or better than  any team thats ever been put in place, he said of the House Agriculture Committee staff. I sound like Donald Trump, but its true because everyone of my guys, my peeps, theyre the best. Theyve got great depth.

Conaway also complimented his colleagues on the committee, particularly subcommittee chairs.

Ive got three former chairmen on the committee, he said of colleagues who have previously passed farm bills and can help support the process.

House Republicans have term limits on their committee chairmanships. Both Conaway and Nunes are set to wrap up their tenures chairing their respective committees in 2021, potentially positioning Conaway to easily move into the Intelligence leadership role, should his colleagues back that notion.
Dilip Kumar is stable and his condition is improving. However, it might take a while to discharge him.

By India Today Web Desk: Ever since Dilip Kumar was hospitalised last week for dehydration, fans have been praying for his speedy recovery. His kidney function was also affected, but it looks like things are improving.

One of the Dilip Kumar's attending doctors told India Today that he is stable, and that his health is steadily improving. The actor's creatinine level has also been coming down. There were some reports that the 94-year-old has been put on ventilator and requires dialysis, but his doctor said that as of now, he is neither on ventilator nor on dialysis, and is passing urine normally.

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Dilip Kumar is still in the ICU, so that he can be better monitored. There is no word on when he will get discharged, but the doctor said that it will take some time.

Yusuf uncle right now in Leelavati. Please do not believe people who are seeking publicity via a vis wrong information. pic.twitter.com/ocVY2mfwFk- Shaheen (@ShhaheenAhmeed) August 4, 2017

Dilip Kumar, who made his debut with Jwar Bhata in 1944, has acted in over 50 films in his career spanning more than five decades. The actor has given us iconic films like Devdas, Mughal-e-Azam and Naya Daur.

Last seen on the big screen in Qila in 1998, the actor was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1994 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2015. The epithet 'Tragedy King' was given to the actor because of his poignant and emotional films.

(Reported by Shivangi Thakur)

ALSO READ: Hope Dilip Kumar recovers soon, says Saira Banu

ALSO READ: Dilip Kumar in ICU, kidneys not functioning properly ALSO WATCH: Mimicking Dilip Kumar was difficult, says Shah Rukh Khan

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Amazon listed the toilet roll with top 10 most annoying Trump tweets printed on it while describing them as 'tweets that we deemed were most suitable for flushing'.

By India Today Web Desk: For all those times, you've wondered what, rather why the US President Donald Trump is tweeting- Amazon has come to save the day, it's selling toilet paper with Trump's tweets printed on it .

Yes.

Now you can take a good dump and dust your frustration to the ground or in to the flush with Trump's notorious, sexist, misogynistic and what-not tweets wiping it off.

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The multinational e-commerce company listed the toilet roll with top 10 most annoying tweets printed on it while describing them as 'tweets that we deemed were most suitable for flushing'.

The whole product description reads, 'Double ply toilet tissue printed throughout with a collection of ten of Donald Trump's tweets that we deemed were most suitable for flushing.'

Amazon reviewers and Twitterati were quick to jump the gun and pull some fast ones on the product.

trump's tweets are now available on a roll of toilet paper, the only place they belong?????? He should stock up, for his prison stay ?????? pic.twitter.com/FEuNeUPPUH- MichelleDenise (@deniseMdeniseM) August 6, 2017

Now u can buy Trump toilet paper that's emblazoned with his tweets. Perfect paper to wipe ur ass with & shit all over in my opinion ??- AJ (@ajsmith2369) August 5, 2017

Sold by Toilet Tweets(@ToiletTweeet), the company last tweeted that their order was a sellout and the next shipment to Amazon should come in few days.

We sold out this morning, but a new shipment was already on its way to Amazon and should be available in a few days.https://t.co/5nDZPQtO5h pic.twitter.com/9h7wT68Ugp- Toilet Tweets (@ToiletTweeet) August 4, 2017

A single roll will cost you Rs 636.16 ($9.99) excluding shipping costs. You can find the listed product here: https://www.amazon.com/Donald-Trump-Classic-Tweets-Toilet/dp/B07258JCS8

Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is yet to comment on the 'controversial' article.

At the time of publishing the product was unavailable on Amazon.com

Also read: Putin bares it again: Russian president goes shirtless during fishing trip

Also read: Exclusive: Positive about India's entry into NSG: Vladimir Putin to India Today

Also read: Are these the ones insulting you? Putin asks Trump pointing at journalists

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Giants pitcher Jeff Samardzija had to wear it, from a rookie. Three days after left-hander Ty Blach homered to straightaway center, Samardzija thought he had one, too, in the third inning Sunday at AT&T Park. He stylishly mike-dropped his bat and went into his trot, only to see the ball bounce off the wall.

As Samardzija sheepishly stopped at second base, pitcher Madison Bumgarner howled in the dugout. Blach flexed his left arm Popeye-style and pointed at his biceps.

I felt I needed to make sure he knew who had the real power, Blach said. It was all in fun, because I know in batting practice, those guys hit the ball way farther than I can.

Moments like that make winning fun, and this was a fun weekend for the Giants, who followed their big comeback win against the Diamondbacks on Saturday night with a solid 6-3 victory Sunday.

The Giants had a lot of reasons to laugh, such as Buster Posey stealing two bases for the first time in his career and Gorkys Hernandez saving himself from an embarrassing rundown by climbing over second baseman Daniel Descalsos back to retreat safely to second base.

ALSO Pablo Sandoval makes emotional return to Giants

They also had a lot to cheer. Samardzija won his third straight start. Jarrett Parker Week continued with his first homer of the year, a Bondsian blast to right-center with a man aboard, and a throw home to nail a runner. Hunter Pence and Nick Hundley each had two-run hits. Albert Suarez got a seven-out save, the first of his career, and the Giants won a series against a team holding a playoff position.

Weve been through a lot, manager Bruce Bochy said. We had to put (Brandon) Belt on the concussion DL. Were banged up. Weve brought up some young guys, and weve gone out there and played great baseball.

The Giants seemed energized during the two wins, with Pablo Sandoval on Saturday night and without him Sunday. Bochy sat him against a left-handed starter, Patrick Corbin. Miguel Gomez, who has earned the Little Pablo sobriquet, got a start and singled ahead of Parkers 422-foot homer in the second inning.

I think were in a pretty interesting spot right now, Samardzija said. Its obviously not where we want to be, but we have a unique opportunity to get better and give some young guys a chance to see what they can do for the future. On top of that, as a veteran, its a time to try maybe a couple of new things. Its not the worst time in the world to (get) some extra ammo in your arsenal for next year.

Bochy said what Samardzija needs most is more pushups if he wants home runs.

Im going to hear about that one for a while, Samardzija said. When does the ball fly better here? Day or night? They got me. Its OK.

Briefly: Third baseman Conor Gillaspie cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Sacramento.  The Cubs open a three-game series at AT&T on Monday night against Matt Moore, who held them to two runs in eight innings in Game 4 of the 2016 Division Series.

Henry Schulman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.

Leading off

Sandoval donation: Pablo Sandoval plans to donate the Giants portion of his 2017 salary, about $170,000, to the Giants Community Fund.

 Henry Schulman

On deck

Monday

vs. Cubs

7:15 p.m. Channel: 11 ESPN

Arrieta (10-8)

vs. Moore (3-11)

Tuesday

vs. Cubs

7:15 p.m. NBCSBA

Quintana (6-9)

vs. Blach (7-7)

Wednesday

vs. Cubs

12:45 p.m. NBCSBA

Hendricks (4-4) vs. Bumgarner (1-5)
Albany, N.Y.

This is the time of year when it seems as though half of New York has migrated to the Maine coast, so I hope many of you won't object to reading about the infamous governor there.

That would be Paul LePage, who was Trump before Trump was Trump.

I left Maine for Albany 10 years ago, which means I missed the election of the man often called the craziest governor in America. I also missed all the subsequent, well, craziness. The loopy comments. The angry tirades. The crudeness said out loud.

But I've always felt that LePage, who was mayor of Waterville when I worked for the newspaper there, is a more complicated figure than the media caricature suggests. The depictions and jokes on late-night TV miss essential things about the man and why he means so much to many Mainers, especially those of French ancestry.

LePage's childhood was like something out of Dickens. He was the eldest of 17 children, the kids packed five or six to a bed in a tiny house that lacked hot water and indoor toilets. LePage left home and his violent father when he was just 11 and lived on the streets for awhile before somehow finding his way to college and a career in business.

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Poverty wasn't his only hurdle. LePage is Franco-American in a region with a history of bigotry toward the men and women who immigrated down from Quebec, mostly to work in the mills.

It is largely forgotten, but in the 1920s, Maine had more Klansmen than Mississippi. Motivated by its hatred of Catholics, the group terrorized Francophone neighborhoods and swayed state government to stifle the despised language.

More Information Contact columnist Chris Churchill at 518-454-5442 or email cchurchill@timesunion.com See More Collapse

"There was a real effort to hold the French down and keep them down for a really long time," said Mitch Clyde Thomas, head of the Franco Center in Lewiston, Maine.

The Klan's influence didn't last, but less intense forms of bigotry did. The French continued to be mocked, even over the public airwaves, as ignorant and emotional. Calling someone French was a synonym for stupid and remained a popular schoolyard taunt.

Somehow, a state where a third of the population is of French descent never managed to elect a Franco-American governor. Until LePage came along.

He was unapologetically Franco, and he still won  imagine that. He spoke French, his first language, on the campaign trail. He has spoken it in the State House and during his frequent visits to Quebec.

"He's a proud Franco-American," Thomas said, "and people in the community do like that."

Unfortunately, LePage has said a lot of other stuff. In plain English.

There's no room for it all here, but Google "crazy LePage" and you'll find more than enough to while away an hour.

Like when he said President Obama "hates white people." Or when he talked about bringing back the guillotine. Or when he said a state Democrat gives "it to the people without providing Vaseline."

I can't tell you what a change it all is. When I worked in Maine, the state's politics were boring, full of earnest men and women who rarely said anything controversial. Nobody would have predicted the arrival of an angry outsider so willing to rock the lobster boat.

Sound a bit familiar?

Yes, LePage is often called Donald Trump's precursor, and the two certainly have a few things in common, including political views and the tendency to speak before they think. They seem to prove an old saying: As Maine goes, so goes the nation.

Both men tapped into working-class frustration and inspire intense loyalty, but there's a noteworthy difference: LePage can authentically speak to those of us who grew up poor, because nobody had it harder than he did.

Trump was a rich kid. How can he really know what it means to be struggling and frightened about the future?

Maybe that's not important. But I suspect LePage, who was re-elected to a second term three years ago, survived the ceaseless controversy because his supporters, especially many Franco-Americans, felt a connection to him that went beyond the political.

When LePage is called embarrassing and ignorant by those living below the so-called "Volvo line," which separates gritty Maine from the places tourists visit, the Franco-American community might hear echoes of all that ugly bigotry and love him even more.

And when John Oliver, Samantha Bee or some other smug television host turns LePage into a hapless buffoon and a national punch line, many working-class Mainers might understand that they're also the butt of the joke.

None of this is meant as a defense of the intemperate things LePage has said or even the way he has governed. But if we're going to mock someone, the least we can do is understand who we're mocking.

cchurchill@timesunion.com  518-454-5442  @chris_churchill
Q: What is an agricultural district?

A: Under the New York state Agricultural Law created in 1971, the districts are made up of what is considered viable agricultural land.

Q: How does property become part of an agricultural district?

A: Landowners interested in being in a district, who have at least 250 acres, can apply to their local county legislative body for consideration during a 30-day annual window. Applications to have property removed from an agricultural district are reviewed every eight years.

Q: What are the benefits of being in an ag district?

A: Landowners get partial property tax relief, protections against overly restrictive local laws and private nuisance lawsuits, and state Department of Agriculture and Markets review of any proposed government acquisitions or construction projects inside the district.

Q: Can land inside an agricultural district be developed?

A: Yes. But development has to correspond with local zoning regulations that may not allow commercial or high-density development in those areas. Also, access to water and sewer lines might not be available, as the state reviews any government-funded requests to extend water or sewer lines in agricultural districts.

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Q: How many districts are there?

A: Last year, New York had 210 agricultural districts, made up of 8.8 million acres and 25,600 farms. There are 32 agricultural districts in the eight-county greater Capital Region; Columbia County has the most at 10, and Warren County has none.

Source: New York state Department of Agriculture and Markets
US National Security Adviser HR McMaster said in an interview that his president wants Pakistan to change its policy of supporting selective terror groups.

By India Today Web Desk: United States President Donald Trump wants Pakistan to change its policy of selectively supporting certain militant groups, his national security advisor, General HR McMaster, said in an interview this weekend.

McMaster called Pakistan's policy "paradoxical" noting that Pakistan has taken "great losses" in the fight against terrorism, yet at the same time has been selective in fighting against terror groups. "They [Pakistan] have fought very hard against these groups, but they've done so really only selectively," McMaster said.

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McMaster, who was speaking to the conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on MSNBC, "change in behavior" from those involved in the Afghanistan region, particularly Pakistan.

"The president has also made clear that he, that we need to see a change in in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," McMaster, was quoted by MSNBC as saying.

"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to... that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups," he said, in response to a question on Afghanistan and terrorism in the region," the NSA added.

McMaster added that Trump was clear that the US would no longer "tolerate" any support for the Taliban or relatedgroups. "Of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have foughtvery hard against these groups, but they've done so really only selectively."

McMaster's comments, which echo something that India and Afghanistan have long accused Pakistan of, come against the backdrop of Washington increasing pressure on Islamabad to end support for terrorist elements.

Pakistan has time and again denied the suggestion that it is 'selective' in its fight against terrorism, but several US officials have previously accused Islamabad of helping terrorists.

McMaster's interview, however, marked the first time that such an allegation was attributed directly to President Trump.

(With inputs from agencies)

ALSO READ | US keeping Pakistan on safe haven of terrorists list is extension of Modi-Trump's joint statement

ALSO READ | US says Pakistan's 'support for anti-India militants' to blame for deteriorating New Delhi-Islamabad ties

ALSO WATCH | Prime Minister Modi, President Trump address joint conference, speak about terrorism

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Albany

Two years after members of the Joint Commission on Public Ethics complained of interference by officials in Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration, telephone records obtained by the Times Union show that Cuomo's top attorney has repeatedly called the state's ethics watchdog agency  including several calls that took place just after Cuomo's office received a sweeping federal subpoena.

So what were Cuomo's government counsel and officials from JCOPE, including its executive director, Seth Agata, talking about? Cuomo's attorney, Alphonso David, declined to specify.

David said in an interview that Cuomo administration officials place calls to JCOPE "all the time," but insisted the communication was never to direct the agency's actions or seek information about active investigations, since such conversations are "not allowed." Instead, he said, the purpose was often to seek ethics guidance, including what events administration employees could attend or whether their activities outside work were permissible.

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"I know people have conspiracy theories, but Seth (Agata) is an extremely ethical guy if you know him at all and I like to think of myself as an ethical guy as well," David said.

A JCOPE spokesman also characterized contacts between the agency and the executive branch as routine inquiries. But questions have been raised about the relationship between the Cuomo administration and JCOPE since the agency was established in 2011, especially since all three leaders of the agency previously worked for Cuomo, despite calls from JCOPE commissioners in 2015 for a leader from outside state government.

Records provided to the Times Union in response to a Freedom of Information Law request indicate that after Agata took over as JCOPE's executive director in April 2016, David called JCOPE at least seven times  and Agata's direct line at least once  through the end of last September.

While the number of calls from David to JCOPE is not overwhelming, the timing of several calls made 16 months ago raises questions about the frequency of contact between the governor's office and the state's independent ethics panel, especially at a time when former aides and supporters of Cuomo were in the crosshairs of a U.S. Justice Department investigation. The telephone logs do not reveal details about the conversations between David and Agata, and neither the governor's office nor JCOPE would provide information on what was discussed, citing confidentiality rules.

JCOPE spokesman Walter McClure said it was "routine for JCOPE staff and the executive director to speak with executive and legislative officials, ethics officers and counsels and others from state agencies, and lobbyists and their clients as part of the commission's mandate to provide ethics guidance."

"By law, all such advice is confidential, and the law also prohibits commission staff from discussing anything related to a potential or actual investigative matter with anyone outside the commission," McClure added.

In July 2015, four JCOPE commissioners wrote a letter to the Times Union complaining of "incessant interference" by the executive branch and calling for the next executive director to be hired from outside state government.

Instead, a majority of the 14 commissioners in March 2016 selected Agata, who like his two predecessors had worked extensively under Cuomo in posts that included interim chief counsel. David replaced him in that role the following month.

Eight months ago, Agata said in a radio interview that he had "never had a conversation with the executive branch on any substantive matters before JCOPE."

The Times Union filed a request for David's phone records on Sept. 29, 2016. After an appeal, the Cuomo administration provided the records in July. Some of the calls made by David are blacked out; the governor's office said disclosing them would be "an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy."

In the days after receiving a federal subpoena on April 29, 2016, David's phone records also show frequent calls to other attorneys. They include Elkan Abramowitz  a lawyer who would represent the Cuomo administration in the probe by then-U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara  and Bart Schwartz, an outside investigator who was retained by the Cuomo administration to launch an independent inquiry into the potential bid-rigging of upstate development deals.

The phone records between May and September 2016 indicate David made more than 20 calls to either Schwartz or Anthony Collura, chief legal officer at Schwartz's firm, Guidepost Solutions.

The governor's decision to appoint a private firm to investigate matters related to an unfolding federal criminal investigation  one that led to the indictment of a former top aide, Joe Percoco  raised questions at the time.

David was the point person for the Cuomo administration's dealings with Guidepost, which was quietly granted subpoena power by the Cuomo administration under the Moreland Act.

In April 2016, the Department of Justice subpoenaed JCOPE for Percoco's financial disclosure records, The New York Times reported.

On May 2, 2016  the first workday after a federal subpoena was served on the Cuomo administration  David called JCOPE twice. That was also the day JCOPE released financial disclosure forms filed by Percoco, the former top aide to Cuomo who was among eight people indicted on corruption charges in the federal grand jury investigation.

The next day, the records indicate David called Agata directly. David declined to say what the conversations concerned.

In September, Percoco was arrested on a federal criminal complaint that described how in July 2014 Percoco sought an opinion from an unnamed "Assistant Counsel" in the Cuomo administration about his ability to work in the private sector while on leave from state government.

Agata  who held that position in the Cuomo administration at the time  has declined to say whether he was the unnamed person.

Richard Azzopardi, the governor's spokesman, said the executive branch seeks information from JCOPE routinely about matters such as completing financial disclosure filings, conflicts of interest, pre-government employment, ethics training and how to comply with JCOPE's opinions.

The records also show two calls from David to JCOPE on July 6, 2016  at 9:43 a.m. and 3:52 p.m. Another was made the next day.

It's unclear why the calls were made.

On July 6, JCOPE attorneys argued during a hearing at state Supreme Court in Albany about whether a nonprofit organization pushing New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio's policy agenda had to comply with a JCOPE subpoena. JCOPE was investigating the nonprofit, but a de Blasio attorney had dismissed JCOPE's efforts as a calculated attack on de Blasio, with whom Cuomo has feuded regularly.

In this instance, Azzopardi unequivocally denied there were discussions between David and JCOPE officials about the de Blasio case.

David also called JCOPE twice on Aug. 11, 2016.

Two days earlier at a monthly meeting, JCOPE released emergency regulations to comply with a new nonprofit lobbying disclosure law that was pushed through by the Cuomo administration on the final night of the 2016 legislative session. The law has sparked a lawsuit by the government reform group Citizens Union, which argues it was meant to stifle criticism of the Cuomo administration.

David Grandeau, who is the state's former top lobbying official, said Agata later told him about a political deal that got the legislation passed in which the Senate Republicans gave their support in exchange for measures made JCOPE investigations more secretive. According to Grandeau, Agata related that he learned about the political deal from a previous conversation with David, who had orchestrated the horse-trading.

Grandeau, now a private lobbying compliance lawyer and a frequent JCOPE critic, said his conversation with Agata took place at an Albany deli next to JCOPE's offices not long after the nonprofit disclosure law passed in June 2016.

As a result of a change in the law, JCOPE no longer holds public hearings when it finds a "substantial basis" to bring allegations against someone, and the hearings are instead held in private.

On Aug. 10, 2016  a day before David made two calls to JCOPE  Grandeau wrote about details of his conversation with Agata on his law firm's blog. At the time, he cited a "very high source" inside JCOPE as the person who provided the information.

Grandeau and Agata subsequently had a falling out, and Grandeau has identified him as the source.

When asked about Grandeau's description of the conversation between Agata and David, JCOPE's spokesman said that any "questions about any negotiations regarding legislation should be directed to the Legislature or Executive Chamber."

Spokesmen for the Senate Republicans and Cuomo declined to comment on the negotiations.

Azzopardi did say in a statement that as "fun as it may be to fuel these conspiracy theories from a disgruntled lobbyist," it would be a much bigger issue if David had failed to consult JCOPE on ethics issues that arose.

In response, Grandeau noted that he has never been a registered lobbyist.

"The simplest thing they could do is tell us what these conversations are about, and then there would be no conspiracy theory," Grandeau said.

cbragg@timesunion.com  518-454-5303 
The Coldspring-Oakhurst Consolidated Independent School District Board of Trustees has called for a $19.8 bond election to be placed on the November ballot. The decision was based on assessments obtained through facilities inspections, Career & Technology Education (CTE) and curriculum experts, and district-wide surveys.

"Preliminary work has been done, facilities tours have been given and more will be scheduled," said Superintendent Dr. Leland Moore. "A list of key communicators has been identified and letters will be going out on this committee shortly. The groundwork has been laid and the process will be ongoing."
It took a jury just over two hours to return guilty verdicts in the criminal cases against the former director of the Deep East Texas Councils of Government, Walter Diggles, 65, and his wife, Rosie, 63, both of Jasper, and their daughter, Anita Diggles, 41, of Houston.

The trio was convicted of 28 counts including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, theft from programs receiving federal funds and engaging in monetary transactions from unlawful activity.

The nine-day trial before U.S. District Judge Ron Clark ended Thursday, Aug. 3, at the Ward R. Burke Federal Courthouse in Lufkin.

According to information presented in court, the defendants devised a scheme to obtain and make personal use of federal block grant funds that Congress appropriated following hurricanes Rita, Katrina, Ike and Dolly. These funds were made available to the State of Texas, which in turn contracted with several councils of governments within the state to assist in administering and distributing the funds.

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Walter Diggles was the executive director of the Deep East Texas Council of Governments during this time and used his position to approve inflated requests for reimbursement of federal block grant funds while Rosie Diggles and Anita Diggles prepared many of the requests. Additionally, Walter Diggles engaged in activities and approved requests for block grant funds that were fraudulent in nature and all the defendants spent the excess funds on personal expenses. The Diggles were indicted by a federal grand jury on Dec. 2, 2015.

"Our Constitution provides for trial by jury for those who contest criminal charges," said Acting U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston. "The jury in this case heard, viewed and studied the evidence that was presented over nine days of trial, from both the defense and the government. At the ringing of the bell, the verdict was guilty for all and on all counts. Justice for all of the DETCOG's 12 counties and for the taxpayers has been done."

Under federal statutes, the Diggles each face up to 30 years in federal prison. The maximum statutory sentence prescribed by Congress is provided here for information purposes, as the sentencing will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a pre-sentence investigation by the U.S. Probation Office.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Texas State Auditor's Office. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tom Gibson and James Noble.
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An American Airlines flight lurched violently over the Atlantic Ocean on Saturday, sending drinks and people flying - and putting 10 in the hospital after landing in Philadelphia.

Alex Ehmke and his family had spent nearly 10 hours in the air - flying home from a vacation in Europe, he told The Washington Post. Flight attendants were handing out a last round of drinks before landing, and the U.S. shore had just come into view.

"It had been completely uneventful," Ehmke said. "It looked like a nice day."

He and his wife got their coffees. Five minutes or so passed.

What happened next is a bit of blur to Ehmke, but he recalled an announcement urging passengers to fasten their seat belts, though the safety light was already on.

Another passenger, Ian Smith, told ABC affiliate WPVI that flight attendants were told to return to their seats, too.

"They didn't even have time," he said.

It began with a few seconds of shaking - not severe, the sort of turbulence any frequent flier gets used to.

"I was fine," Ehmke recalled. "This is all within normal bounds."

But the shaking got worse. Ehmke saw drinks spilling and sensed a faint panic in the aisles. Still, he wasn't worried.

Then, suddenly, what he calls "the lurch."

He would later tell NBC News that everything in his field of vision shot up four feet in the air, and he would tell WPVI that "it felt like the whole plane was in free fall."

Other passengers would later report screaming and babies crying. Ehmke didn't recall that but can relive the surreal experience of beverages suddenly being severed from gravity.

"The liquid catches your eye," he told The Post. "I saw all the drinks fly up at once."

This seemed amusing at first, when the plane settled down and Ehmke and his family had a chance to collect their thoughts.

"I was wearing half of my coffee; my brother was wearing the other half," he said. "My wife ended up with a pastry in her cup that was not hers."

His wife, a reporter for ProPublica, documented the aftermath on Twitter: beverages sprayed across the ceiling of an Airbus A333, coffee trapped in the housing of the cabin lights.

But in the row behind him, Ehmke said, a man had flown up from his seat, hit the ceiling and landed on his father - hard.

The man was one of three passengers who would be hospitalized after the plane landed.

According to American, the other seven injured were crew members.

All the flight attendants disappeared from the main cabin after the jolt, Ehmke said. He and the other passengers took stock of their soaked clothes and the trash-strewn plane and tried to laugh off the fright.

After a few minutes, one of the crew members reappeared, Ehmke recalled, and told the passengers, "I'm the only flight attendant that is able to help everyone right now."

The others, he gathered, needed help themselves.

Ehmke would later see the attendant who had served him throughout the flight with a sling on her arm and two passengers with ice packs on their heads.

The plane didn't divert to another airport. In the half-hour or so before it reached Philadelphia, Ehmke said, the pilot apologized for what the Federal Aviation Administration and American Airlines later described as "severe turbulence," cause unknown.

"He said another plane had flown through previously and reported only moderate turbulence," Ehmke recalled of the pilot's speech. "So they didn't try to go around it or predict it was as bad as it was."

When another crew member took the microphone to explain how people would get off the plane, Ehmke said, "it was the most shaken I've ever heard flight staff sound. She clearly didn't know what was next."

What was next was a safe landing at Philadelphia International Airport, where paramedics were standing by.

American Airlines didn't provide details about the 10 people hospitalized but said all had been released by Sunday morning.

"We want to thank our team members for taking care of our customers," the airline said in a statement.

American called Ehmke's wife to check up on her after she tweeted about the incident. She and her husband praised the flight crew's response to what - for a split second, at least - had felt like a plane falling out of the sky.

"I was worried people would take it out on the pilot or staff," Ehmke said. "I'm not, by any means, technically informed about aviation, but from my perspective these things happen."
A video taken during a traffic stop in California is drawing debate over the officer's decision to keep his gun pointed at the passenger for more than nine minutes.

The stop took place last Wednesday morning along U.S. Route 101, south of San Jose, after an officer noticed a car pass him going 85 mph, according to the Campbell Police Department.

After stopping the car for speeding, the officer requested the driver's license and additional paperwork. The driver and passenger spent several minutes looking for the paperwork before the officer walked back to his motorcycle to write a citation, police said.

It was at that point their stories diverged. According to police, the passenger began reaching "under his seat."

"It is not clear why the passenger chose to reach under the seat since the officer was not requesting any other paperwork," Campbell police said in a statement. "Unfortunately, the passenger's unexpected movement towards the bottom of the seat, caused the officer to perceive a threat and draw his handgun."

However, a man sitting in the vehicle's passenger seat - the target of the officer's gun - maintained throughout the incident that he had simply been reaching for some papers on the floor to try to find the vehicle's license and registration, as requested.

A video that apparently was recorded by a woman in the car begins as the male passenger is expressing incredulity that the officer has pulled a gun.

"Wow," the passenger says in the video, laughing. "We're looking for the f-ing paperwork, bro. Oh my God."

"I understand that," the officer replies. "Don't move, all right?"

The passenger sounds indignant as his hands remain on his lap. "Why are you still pointing that gun at me, bro?" he asks the officer. "Why are you still pointing the gun at me, though? Record this sh-t. Why are you still pointing the gun at me, bro? My hands are right here."

"I understand," the officer says.

"No, you don't understand," the passenger protests, as the officer tells him to relax. "No, I'm not going to relax. Get the f-king gun off me."

A woman in the car asks the officer: "Is that really necessary? His hands are both out."

The officer says that it is necessary as he waits for backup to arrive, eliciting another round of protests from the vehicle's passengers. For several more minutes, they remain at an impasse, with the passenger muttering periodic complaints as music plays in the background. The entire time, the officer's gun is trained on the man.

Toward the end, the officer relays something through the radio and the passenger begins protesting again. At one point in the video, the officer mentions that there had been a screwdriver on the floor of the car.

"Why are you trying to make this bigger than it is, bro?" the passenger says. "We complied with everything you asked for."

The video lasts a little more than nine minutes total, and the officer's gun is pointed at the male passenger the entire time. Police said in a statement the officer had to wait longer than usual for backup to arrive "and provide assistance in safely resolving the situation."

"We understand that it is never a comfortable position to have a gun pointed at you, regardless of whether it is a police officer," police said. "Unfortunately, the length of time that the officer's gun was drawn lasted much longer than normal based on his location."

Police said the traffic stop was resolved amicably.

"In the end, the officer had a conversation with the passenger of the vehicle explaining his actions and why the gun was pointed at him," police said. "The passenger indicated he understood why it happened and actually apologized to the officer. Both the driver and the passenger were issued citations and were allowed to leave."

However, the video was uploaded to Facebook last Saturday with a caption that suggested there may not have been as much understanding as police thought. (Note: The video contains profanity.)

"CAMPBELL COP IS A B--!!!!!!!!!!" wrote a Facebook user named "Feo Mas" who identified himself as the passenger in the video. "(He) pulled out a gun cuz I reached for paperwork he asked for."

A week later, the video had amassed nearly 2 million views on Facebook, as well as tens of thousands more on YouTube. Online, a debate raged: Several people defended the police officer and said they felt the passenger should have remained quiet, while others were outraged at how long the officer had trained his gun on the passenger despite the man's hands being visible at all times.

Police departments are under increased scrutiny for violent, often fatal interactions with suspects. So far this year, 594 people have been shot and killed by police, according to The Washington Post's Fatal Force database. Last year, police shot and killed 963 people.

The Facebook user who posted the video did not respond to an interview request sent by Facebook Sunday.

The Campbell Police Department said in a statement it was aware of the video circulating online, as well as the thousands of comments surrounding it. Police also cited an officer-involved shooting that had taken place in nearby Los Banos, California, as an example of the "unfortunate reality" that people sometimes attack police.

"As an agency, we can understand the response to the Facebook video, and that is why we have and will continue engaging our community," police said. "The comments on the Facebook video bring up a lot of different viewpoints about how the officer could have responded differently or used different tactics. Our officers receive a tremendous amount of training on a consistent basis and that training is what dictates our response. This is intended to protect our officers as well as those they come in contact with."

Police said they had reviewed footage from the officer's body cam, which included the beginning and end of the incident not shown in the Facebook video. The department did not release any footage from the officer's camera and did not immediately respond to an email Sunday.

"We are thankful that this incident resolved itself with no one getting injured and hope that this additional information provides clarification," police said.

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The Washington Post's Cleve R. Wootson Jr. contributed to this report.
JERUSALEM - Israel plans to shut down Al Jazeera's Jerusalem office, stop transmitting its broadcasts and strip the Qatar-based channel's journalists of their credentials, the country's communications minister said Sunday.

Ayoub Kara accused the channel of "incitement" as he announced the plans for shuttering the station's operations.

"Freedom of expression is not freedom to incite," he said, according to a ministry statement. "Democracy has limits."

Al Jazeera said it was unclear when the Israeli government would act on Kara's request and the channel has said it will fight any attempt to close its office in the courts. A legal amendment will need to be made to adopt the measures, the ministry statement said, with the law updated to reflect the "current geopolitical reality."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted his support for the move, having publicly vowed to close down the channel's Jerusalem bureau last month. He has been attempting to rebuild his following among right-wing voters after agreeing to remove metal detectors at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem last month, which was seen by some Israelis as a capitulation to Palestinian worshippers after a two-week-long stand off. He also accused the channel of incitement; however, his office declined to give specific examples of content it deemed to have stoked tensions.

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The announcement also came just days after Netanyahu's former chief of staff agreed to testify against him in relation to allegations of fraud and breach of trust, throwing his continued tenure into jeopardy.

Al Jazeera did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday, but has accused Israel of siding with four Arab states, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, that are imposing an economic blockade on Qatar and have severed diplomatic relations with the country. They accuse Qatar of backing terrorism and have demanded the shutdown of Qatari-funded Al Jazeera.

Saudi Arabia and Jordan have closed Al Jazeera offices in recent months, while the channel's signal has been blocked in the United Arab Emirates.

"The collusion by Netanyahu with his Arab autocratic neighbors leaves little doubt that free independent media and truth are ready to be sacrificed as collateral damage in the power politics of the region," Al Jazeera's Jerusalem bureau chief, Walid Omary, wrote in an opinion piece in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. "Since its inception, Al Jazeera has provided Israel with a rare conduit for airing its viewpoints to Arab and Muslim audiences and participating in dialogue with them."

While it has never been banned from Israel, the channel has faced similar criticism in the past. During the 2014 conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, then foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman also called for the channel to be closed.

"Changing the law in order to shut down a media organization for political reasons is a slippery slope," the executive secretary of Israel's Foreign Press Association, Glenys Sugarman, told the news agency Reuters.
The United Nations Security Council voted Saturday for the third time in two years to block countries from buying North Korean coal, the country's primary export, in a move intended to choke off funding from Kim Jong Un's weapons programs.

The new ban plugs a loophole that allowed North Korea to sell coal to China under the guise of "humanitarian" trade, even though much of North Korea's coal trade has been devoted to weapons development, not humanitarian purposes, according to recent U.S. court filings.

The humanitarian loophole was large enough that after the first such U.N. ban in March 2016, Chinese companies actually imported more North Korean coal.

Documents from a recently unsealed U.S. court filing, combined with another federal case, suggest that much of the money China has paid to North Korea for coal over the years went toward the country's weapons and military efforts.

The coal trade cited in the court documents, which has accounted for as much as a third of North Korean exports, helps explain how North Korea continued to develop its weapons programs despite being impoverished and under trade sanctions. The connections to the military also undermine Chinese claims that their imports were benefiting North Korean civilians.

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"We considered that to be a very narrow (humanitarian) exception, but it soon became clear that not all others shared our view," a State Department spokesperson said before the vote.

In the most recent court filing, unsealed last month, U.S. government attorneys were granted a seizure warrant against the largest Chinese importer of North Korean coal and four related front companies after presenting evidence that the Chinese company's transactions with North Korea were "ultimately benefiting sanctioned North Korean end users, including North Korea military and North Korea weapons programs."

The documents cite a defector, deemed "reliable," who said that the vast majority of the revenue from the country's coal exports go toward the military, nuclear missiles and weapons programs.

Those disclosures followed a court case filed in September in which federal attorneys cited a spreadsheet showing a major Chinese coal importer making purchases from various North Korean government agencies.

The Chinese importer was also purchasing from a North Korean company controlled by a secretive government branch believed to be conducting illicit activities and slush funds for political leaders.

"What these cases expose is that calling (China's) coal business with North Korea 'humanitarian' is a cynical lie," said Joshua Stanton, who runs the site One Free Korea and advises House and Senate staff on North Korea sanctions law. "There is no such thing as truly private industry in North Korea."

Asked last week about the coal imports, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy said in a statement that "China has been comprehensively and accurately implementing the UN Security Council resolutions."

Exactly how to rein in North Korea's attempts to build a nuclear missile capable of hitting the United States has been a matter of debate for years, but recent missile launches by the reclusive country, including one last month, have intensified the discussion.

After that missile launch, President Donald Trump tweeted that he is"very disappointed in China. Our foolish past leaders have allowed them to make hundreds of billions of dollars a year in trade, yet they do NOTHING for us with North Korea, just talk."

What's undisputed is the importance of coal exports to the North Korean economy. From 2010 to 2015, coal shipments accounted for about a third of North Korea's total export revenue, according to figures cited by the Congressional Research Service. The coal exports, which generated more than $1 billion in annual revenue, were mainly purchased by Chinese companies.

While China says its recent coal purchases comply with U.N. rules and benefit North Korean civilians, U.S. officials have reported that at least some of the coal trade is directly profiting the North Korean military.

The Treasury Department last year, for example, said that a "significant share" of the money for North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile program was coming from mining operations that often use "workers in slave-like conditions." Those natural resources, including coal, were sold abroad.

Some North Korean exporters, the Treasury Department said at the time, "may" be working on behalf of North Korean government or military agencies.

The more recent court filings by U.S. officials assert conclusive evidence of the connections between the North Korean exports and the military, citing business records, and give a better sense of the extent of the magnitude of the trade's contribution to the military.

"Kim Jong Un puts over 95 percent of North Korea's foreign currency earnings generated from coal exports toward the advancement of ... North Korea's military and North Korea's nuclear missiles and weapons programs," according to the defector, who is quoted in an affidavit filed by assistant U.S. attorneys for the District of Columbia.

The account of the defector, who is not named, was used to support the forfeiture of bank funds from the single largest importer of North Korean coal, a Chinese company known as Dandong Zhicheng Metallic Material.

The Chinese company imported more than $234 million of North Korean coal in 2016, according to Panjiva, a global trade data analytics company. That's about a fifth of North Korea's annual coal exports.

An 80-page affidavit filed by the government - but not released to the public - describes "numerous" transactions between Dandong Zhicheng Metallic Material, its front companies, and "entities known to conduct business with or on behalf of North Korea." Portions of the government's affidavit became public with the release of a decision by U.S. District Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell.

Another federal forfeiture case against a Chinese company, filed in September, similarly supports the claim that China's coal imports have helped finance the North Korean government.

In that case, against Dandong Hongxiang Industrial Development, the U.S. government claims to have had access to business records reflecting coal trade between North Korea and China.

One spreadsheet at the Chinese company was labeled "anthracite data." It summarized four months of anthracite coal shipping transactions in 2013 and names several North Korean government agencies and their front companies, according to the government's filing. Among the entries on the "anthracite data" spreadsheet are North Korea's National Defense Commission, the military portion of the government, and the Reconnaissance General Bureau, North Korea's primary intelligence organization.

In addition, according to the filing, an unnamed Chinese company purchased 439,000 tons of anthracite coal from various North Korean government agencies, including some that had been under trade sanctions. Among the coal purchases made by the unnamed Chinese company was one from a front company for "Office 39 of the Korean Worker's Party," a secretive group that the U.S. government has said supports the North Korean leadership.

These court filings "show that the Chinese - their banks or their government or their companies - are either complicit in sanctions evasion or refusing to ask the right questions," said Anthony Ruggiero, a former official with the Treasury and State Department, now a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. "Given their relationship with North Korea and the history, the Chinese should have known that the North Korean government only allows profits to go to one of three purposes - the weapons program, the military or luxury goods for the elite."

The U.N. Security Council specifically targeted North Korea's coal industry for sanctions after North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in early 2016.

In March of that year, it required countries to cease importing North Korean coal. At the urging of the Chinese, however, it allowed coal purchases if they were for "livelihood purposes."

"Trade related to the people's livelihood in North Korea, especially if it embodies humanitarian principles, should not be affected by sanctions," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said last month.

The U.N. sanctions were hailed for having demonstrated "the consensus, commitment and resolution of the international community to curtail North Korean nuclear program," said Yun Sun, a Senior Associate with the East Asia Program at the Stimson Center, the nonpartisan research group.

But the measure didn't harm exports at all, at least at first, because the "humanitarian" exception turned out to be very broad.

In the nine months after the U.N. measure - from April to December of 2016 - China imported 17 million metric tons of coal from North Korea. That's more than the imports in the corresponding months for each of the previous two years, according to the Congressional Research Service.

For that reason, the United States pushed for stricter limits, and in November, the U.N. added a cap on North Korean coal imports, with the quota set at less than half the volume of coal trade from previous year.

In mid-February, China announced that it was approaching its annual quota of North Korean coal and suspended the imports.

The volume of China's imports of North Korean coal was still well below the quota level, however, according to U.N. statistics, and it could resume coal imports. And even if it were to reach the coal quota this year, China could import more North Korean coal next year.

"The suspension is for 2017 only, so I do foresee that the Chinese will import North Korean coal again in 2018," Sun said.
By PTI: New Delhi, Aug 6 (PTI) Farm equipment maker Escorts Ltd is gearing up to expand its agri solutions business offering a full range of mechanisation services to farmers on a single platform, says Managing Director Nikhil Nanda. The company has been running pilot projects under Escorts Crops Solutions in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha and is now looking to scale up the business "significantly" in the next five to six years, for which it is open to partnerships. Besides, Escorts is preparing to raise its tractor production capacity to 1.5 lakh units annually in the next 20 months, from the current 82,000 a year. "The rural markets havent seen so much of innovations or disruptions to the extent that should have happened... but they are now poised for the next phase of growth," Nanda told PTI, explaining the reasons behind Escorts move towards setting up a full-scale service platform. He said the next decade would be an era of opportunity of a complete changeover in rural areas which would bring about a lot of prosperity and gains for farmers. "The next stage is going to be about getting into that service platform, which we have in a very humble way started, giving the solution in one platform," Nanda said. He said the companys approach is focused on crop instead of equipment and has chosen rice for its solutions offering initially. Escorts will provide mechanisation solutions with whatever equipment is required across various stages of cultivation, from ploughing to harvesting, with "input of soft knowledge best for the condition for the soil type to give the farmers the best result", Nanda added. In order to offer "a complete solution on services on its platform", he said, the company is open to partnerships. "We are converging the equipment side of the story, but the platform that we have created will allow partners to come on board with whatever knowledge they can give. As a company, we would like to work with partners," Nanda said.

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Asked about the nature of partnerships, he said it was too early to talk about partners. "As the journey goes, we will have different partners to bring in exact inputs that are required for an exponential growth... Whether we do it through contracts or joint ventures is a matter of details," Nanda said. Escorts has been piloting the project for the last four years, he said, adding that it had tied up with the Andhra Pradesh government taking up a few centres. "We have also done some work in Odisha. As we build, we will grow within the state and other states," he said. On the core business of tractor manufacturing, Nanda said Escorts is preparing to increase it annual production capacity to 1.5 lakh units within the next 20 months. The company will have additional land of around 22-25 acres available within its existing premises in the next few months after it divested one of its businesses, Escorts Auto Products. "By the next ten months, we are prepared for a capacity of 1,00,000 units and we will be prepared for an additional 50,000 units without investing into any new land, within the infrastructure and premises of what Escorts already has," Nanda added. The companys current annual production capacity is 82,000 units. Nanda, however, did not comment on the investments that will be required for boosting the production capacity. PTI RKL ARD SBT

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An explosion shook a Minneapolis-area mosque during morning prayers Saturday, and an FBI official said it was caused by an "improvised explosive device."

No one was injured in the blast at Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, Minn., which took place as a small number of worshipers gathered shortly after 5 a.m. Mohamed Omar, the center's executive director, said in an interview that he was inside the mosque preparing for morning prayers when he felt a "huge explosion" that quickly caused smoke and flames. Omar said another person present later told him he had heard the sound of a window breaking and then a pickup truck fleeing outside.

"The sprinkler system went off and immediately water came down," Omar said. "We didn't know what was happening but it was scary."

Jaylani Hussein, the executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said 15 to 20 worshipers are typically present for morning prayers. The explosion took place inside the imam's office, which was next to a prayer area in the mosque, Hussein said. Another "overflow" prayer area behind the imam's office was also empty, he added.

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"If it was Ramadan or one of the busier times, all of the space would be used," Hussein said in an interview.

Rick Potts, the FBI's special agent in charge of the investigation, told reporters Saturday afternoon that the blast was caused by an "improvised explosive device" but offered no further details about its composition or possible suspects. Neither the FBI nor the Bloomington Police Department, which initially responded to the explosion, speculated on a motive for the incident.

"At this point, our focus is to determine who and why," Potts said at a news conference. "Is it a hate crime? Is it an act of terror? ... Again, that's what the investigation is going to determine."

The attack was quickly condemned by religious leaders and politicians. Hussein said a "standing opposition group" has regularly protested against the mosque  and sometimes its mere existence  since it opened in 2011.

"Hate is not OK," Asad Zaman, executive director of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, told reporters, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

If the attack was motivated by anti-Muslim bias, it would represent "another in a long list of hate incidents targeting Islamic institutions nationwide in recent months," CAIR-MN civil rights director Amir Malik said. CAIR said in a report last month that anti-Muslim hate crimes in the United States nearly doubled in the first half of this year over the same period in 2016, with at least 35 anti-mosque acts reported during the first three months of this year.
Two years after Congress scrapped federal formulas for fixing troubled schools, states for the most part are producing only the vaguest of plans to address persistent educational failure.

So far, 16 states and the District of Columbia have submitted proposals for holding schools accountable under the 2015 law known as the Every Student Succeeds Act. With few exceptions, the blueprints offer none of the detailed prescriptions for intervention, such as mass teacher firings or charter-school conversions, that were once standard elements of school reform.

Many in the education world, from state superintendents to teachers unions, applaud this hands-off trend. Each struggling school faces unique circumstances, in their view, and deserves a tailored solution shaped by community input - not a top-down directive from faraway bureaucrats.

But others fear a lack of clear road maps from states is a sign that meaningful change remains unlikely in schools that most need it.

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"We don't know what to do about chronically low-performing schools. Nothing has worked consistently and at scale," said Michael Petrilli, president of the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute. "I suspect we'll see most states and districts just go through the motions."

On Aug. 1, Delaware became the first state to win federal approval for its plan, even though - according to independent experts - its school turnaround proposals are hazy and unlikely to make a significant difference. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos endorsed the plan, saying she hoped it would "give the students, families and educators in the state a strong foundation for a great education."

DeVos and President Donald Trump are pushing for far more local control of education, a shift from the stance of their recent predecessors in both parties.

Congress thought it had answers for the problem of low-performing schools when it passed No Child Left Behind in 2001. The bipartisan law, meant to fight what President George W. Bush called "the soft bigotry of low expectations," laid out consequences for schools that failed to meet escalating performance targets.

After a school missed targets for two years, students were allowed to transfer out. After three years, schools had to offer free tutoring. After four and five years, there was a menu of options, from replacing the curriculum to firing staff, reopening as a charter school or turning over management to state authorities.

The schools subject to sanctions were not only those with low overall performance, but also those with generally high achievement but poor outcomes among minorities, such as blacks, Latinos, students with disabilities or those from low-income families.

A decade after the law passed, nearly everyone agreed it was broken. Half of the 100,000 public schools were missing performance targets, overwhelming the capacity of states and districts to help those with the most profound need for change. In many places, schools widely acknowledged to be failing were allowed to continue plodding along.

Declaring that the nation had an obligation to do better, President Barack Obama devoted billions of dollars to a push to turn around the bottom 5 percent of schools. To get the money, schools had to agree to one of the Obama administration's favored four strategies - closing, reopening as a charter, firing staff or transforming school culture.

Despite some bright spots and success stories, a federal analysis released this year showed that, on average, test scores, graduation rates and college enrollment were no different in schools that received the money than in those that did not.

Those failures helped spur a bipartisan push for a new era of state and local control over education.

Under the 2015 law, states must continue administering standardized tests in grades three through eight and once in high school, and they must continue reporting how groups of students fare on those tests. But they have far more latitude to decide just about everything else about how they judge the success of schools and what they do about those that fail - including not just those with low overall performance, but also those where minority groups are lagging far behind.

"This is a real opportunity for states to get out of a one-size-fits-all intervention strategy," said Chris Minnich, executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers. "It's still too early in the process to know if we're going to be successful."

Civil rights advocates have raised concerns not only about the support states plan to provide poorly performing schools, but also how they identify those schools in the first place. Liz King, an education policy expert with the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said she worries that states are designing rating systems that will overlook the failures of schools where average student performance is high, but certain groups - such as students with disabilities or English language learners - trail far behind.

Of the 17 accountability plans submitted to the U.S. Department of Education, an independent review found only two - from Tennessee and New Mexico - adequately addressed how to help low-performing schools. The review was conducted by Bellwether Education Partners, a Washington consulting group, and the Collaborative for Student Success, an advocacy group that has championed high standards and strong accountability.

Tennessee, building on its efforts to turn around troubled schools over the past several years, has laid out a set of options that vary depending on how long and how much the school has struggled.

The worst-off schools will be taken over by the state and managed by a charter school operator, while less-needy schools could become a part of a district's "innovation zone," which allows schools to extend classroom time, pay teachers more and give principals more autonomy in an effort to improve achievement.

But many other states say little more than they plan to conduct a needs assessment in troubled schools and then craft an improvement plan. It's unclear what such improvement plans might entail, or what will happen if they don't work.

"That doesn't inspire confidence," said Dale Chu, an education expert who participated in the independent review. The failure, he said, "could continue in perpetuity."

Delaware wants to assess each school and write tailored improvement plans for each. But it's not clear what will be in those plans. Susan Bunting, Delaware's education chief, said officials are sensitive to the fact that schools in inner-city Wilmington face different challenges than those in impoverished rural hamlets.

"We know that our schools all have unique needs," Bunting said.

A group of four outside experts who reviewed plans for the Education Department wrote that Delaware's plans for struggling schools "do not appear as if they would likely be sufficient to dramatically improve student performance."

Three of those experts concluded that Delaware's proposal for intervening in weak schools did not meet legal requirements. DeVos - who has promised deference to states - disagreed.

She will consider the other 16 plans in coming weeks. The District's plan calls for soliciting proposals for change in cases of chronic school failure, and parents would be asked to help choose the plan that best fits the school's needs.

The remaining 34 states - including Maryland and Virginia - are expected to turn in plans next month.

John King Jr., who was Obama's second education secretary and now heads the advocacy group Education Trust, said the question of what to do with troubled schools deserves more attention from states and the Trump administration.

King said he hopes states will draw on promising strategies for school improvement, such as looking for ways to boost socioeconomic diversity. And he hopes they will learn from places that have managed to succeed in the hard work of school turnaround. King cited Lawrence, Mass., where schools have made tremendous gains since they were placed in state receivership six years ago.

"I certainly worry that there may be folks who are using the rhetoric of local control as an excuse for inaction in schools that are struggling or schools that have groups of students that are struggling," he said. "The law rightly requires action in those schools ... and it will still be the responsibility of the Education Department to ensure that states follow the law."
BSP leader Haji Yaqub Qureshi's son, Bhura has been booked for threatening people with a gun.

By Press Trust of India: Former Uttar Pradesh minister, and BSP leader Haji Yaqub Qureshi's son has been booked for allegedly threatening traders by wielding a gun at a market here, the police said today.

The traders lodged a complaint at the Sohrab Gate Police Outpost last evening against the minister's son Bhura, Circle Officer Dinesh Chand Shukla said.

They claimed that the incident occurred after Bhura's car got stuck in traffic at the market place, he said.

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The complainants alleged that bouncers accompanying the accused assaulted a shopkeeper, and then Bhura threatened them by wielding a pistol, the circle officer said.

He said, a case has been registered in the matter. The former minister, however, termed it as a minor incident, saying, "The matter is a local issue and it is being resolved."

Also Read:

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CM Khattar on Chandigarh stalking: Can't punish Haryana BJP chief for his son's crime

Arrested for stalking a woman, Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala's son Vikas gets bail

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: Panaji, Aug 6 (PTI) The Congress in Goa has come out in support of an RTI activist, against whom the state government has ordered an inquiry.

The Opposition party slammed the BJP-led government for ordering an inquiry into the assets of the activist, Kashinath Shetye, and said he should have been instead rewarded for exposing "misdeeds" of the ruling coalition.

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On Friday, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar told the Assembly an ACB inquiry would be conducted against Shetye within eight days.

He said the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) will inquire if the activist, who is also a government servant, had amassed assets which are disproportionate of his known sources of income.

"I dont agree the state government should initiate an inquiry against the whistleblower. In fact, he should be rewarded for exposing misdeeds of the government," Congress leader Girish Chodankar said at a press conference yesterday.

He said Shetye, a junior engineer in the electricity department, has been playing a "positive" role and should not be harassed for exposing "illegalities".

The RTI activist has filed several cases related to environment and other issues against government departments before the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court and the National Green Tribunal in Pune.

Parrikar told the House Shetye had filed 195 cases against the government in the last five years.

The chief minister said a separate probe will be instituted to find out how Shetye obtained a gun licence. PTI RPS GK RSY

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As mysteries go, the shrinking airline seat is a fairly easy one to solve.

Its not a matter of whether you will have cramped knees, bump elbows or go numb in your seat. Its just a question of when you will feel the effects of being treated like sardines.

Judge Patricia Millett, a member of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, tapped into all of our collective anger about modern discomfort with her recent opinion. It orders the Federal Aviation Administration to study what she dubbed the Case of the Incredible Shrinking Airline Seat.

The order wasnt really much of a win for beleaguered passengers, who already struggle to find affordable direct flights, pay fees for their luggage and often sit through tedious delays and long layovers. But it sure felt good to read outrage.

Millett ripped the FAA for presenting vacuous and vaporous evidence that argued how limited legroom was not a problem for evacuations.

As a matter of basic physics, at some point seat and passenger dimensions would become so squeezed as to impede the ability of passengers to extricate themselves from their seats and get over to an aisle, she wrote.

As FlyersRights.org, the passenger advocacy group that asked the court for relief, has argued, airline seats are designed for people who are no taller than 5-foot-10 and in good shape. FlyersRights.org had asked the FAA to stop airlines from shrinking seats further and expressed concerns about small seats causing blood clots. The court ruled against FlyersRights.org on these but sided with the group on evacuations.

Will this lead to more comfy seats? Even with judicial outrage, it would take a wing and a prayer.
Re: Crosswalk raises concerns but might start as pilot project, Metro, July 29:

Boy, these people get elected as council members and then want to change the world.

It was ex-Councilman Philip Cortez who was responsible for changing Durango to Cesar Chavez Boulevard. Now Councilman Robert Trevino wants to paint a rainbow on the sidewalk on Main Avenue. It was bad enough that the inept Supreme Court judges voted for same-sex marriage for all 50 states. Now this guy wants rainbows all over town.

Also, he wants to move the Confederate statue in Travis Park. The Confederacy was part of history. Texas once belonged to the Confederacy. You cant change that. You can wave rainbow flags all over town, but no Confederate flags. How sad.

Rick Martinez

Learn from statue

Here we go again. Councilman Robert Trevino thinks that by removing the Confederate monument it will create educational opportunities for all of us. Note to Councilmen Trevino and William Cruz Shaw: Slavery and oppression happened. You cannot change history by removing monuments; instead learn from it.

If you dont want history repeating itself, you must stop removing statues, monuments and flags just because certain groups dont like them. I venture to guess that most people who walk around Travis Park dont give it a second thought.

Sabine Maytum, Universal City

Lincoln is spinning

President Donald Trump refers to news unfavorable to him as fake news.

We all know what fake news is. When checking out at the grocery store, you see the tabloid headlines: Mom gives birth to 100-lb. baby or Georgia farmer kidnapped by Martians (why is the farmer from Georgia?).

In America, we can call Trump a pejorative and be protected by the First Amendment; in Russia, whose leader is admired by Trump for keeping his country in line, if you call Vladimir Putin a pejorative, you might get a decent burial  if they can find your body.

Trump now claims to be more presidential than any president except Abraham Lincoln. Now theres fake news!

Greg Castillo

Decent? You sure?

Re: The lessons learned thus far in Sessions vs. Trump, Charles Krauthammer, Other Views, July 29:

I generally agree with Krauthammer, but in his commentary, he was out in left field when he criticized President Donald Trump for tweets taunting Attorney General Jeff Sessions. I agree the tweets are an inappropriate way to deal with his recusal from the Russian investigation, but to hold up President Gerald Ford as a decent and honorable counterexample is equally inappropriate.

The cyberbullying does not afford Sessions an avenue for response without appearing to sink to grade school tactics. However, to hold up former President Ford as one who would deal with the situation in a more decent and honorable way ignores the history of Fords departing cheap shot at President George W. Bush. One may recall that Ford left an interview to be published after his death that was highly critical of Bushs intervention in Iraq. Ford exploited our custom of not speaking ill of the deceased, so Bush had no avenue for response.

Not so decent and honorable, but somewhat cowardly!

Richard Johnson

Ever Trump

Donald Trump has voiced anger at Congress with tweets about its failure. His new position is that he wants to just let Obamacare implode, which will negatively affect millions of people.

Trump the president is the same as Trump. His typical solution when a problem arises with one of his businesses is to declare bankruptcy, or not pay the small businesses with which he has contracted, or to threaten lawsuits, no matter how this negatively impacts the employees of his or other businesses. He has declared bankruptcy so many times that most U.S. banks will not deal with him; thats why he has gone to foreign banks.

As the old saying goes, A leopard does not change his spots.

Joel D. Rosen

U.S. stature eroding

In just six months in office, President Donald Trump has seriously diminished our standing in the world. Our commander in chief does not seem interested in continuing diplomatic relations with our allies, only with the autocratic leaders he admires. His approach to North Korea is aggressive, warmongering and scary.

I wonder how long it will take to regain our world leader status and who can lift us up again. How long must we wait?

Barbara Moschner

Thoughtful columns

I noticed on several occasions that commentaries by Robert Brischetto appear in the Opinion section. They are thought-provoking and seem to be very well thought out in their presentation and content.

Frank Pantuso

Promoting Pearl

Re: Rebuilt Bottling Department at Pearl opening with food hall, front page, July 24:

This is the second lengthy article in as many weeks promoting that area. In the first article, the writer said The Pearl was the new place where the affluent lived and shopped.

My question is, why is The Pearl being promoted on the front page? Notwithstanding that both articles should have been appeared in the Business section, they are nothing short of free positive advertising.

Don Ripley, Floresville

King Greg?

Would love to see a cartoon paralleling King George III, from whom the Colonies declared independence, and King Greg, who wants to take away the rights of Texas cities.

Francille Radmann
Government will give every interested household free farming inputs to consolidate the countrys expanding agro-production, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has said.

A catalogue of interventions will also be instituted in mining, manufacturing, infrastructure and other economic sectors to create multiple job opportunities.

Further, authorities will implement all key economic programmes speedily under an action-oriented matrix that ensures results in the shortest possible time.

At the Zanu-PF Extraordinary Congress in Harare on Friday, President Mnangagwa said Government would prioritise work and delivery over rhetoric.

We will also open Zimbabwe up to investment by building an open, free and transparent economy, which benefits Zimbabweans and is welcoming to outsiders.

These initiatives, across all sectors, demonstrate that we have begun a new journey towards real growth and investment to empower our people. This thrust will undoubtedly translate to more jobs and more jobs and a better living standard for all.

On my part, I assure you that these are not pipedreams. Government will move with haste to ensure that all agreed programmes

become a reality in the shortest possible period. Both the party and its Government will no longer be about talk, but about work and delivery. That I assure you.

President Mnangagwa said farming inputs would be availed under an expanded Presidential Well-Wishers Agricultural Inputs Support Scheme.

The scheme previously did well to support around one million households and will now cover anyone who is interested.

. . . Government will through the newly reconstituted Ministry of Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement ensure that appropriate policy instruments are put in place to support all categories of farmers; be it A1, A2, resettled or communal farmers; with focus on productivity and maximum utilisation of all agriculture land.

. . . With the anticipated improvement of productivity in cropping, we have put in place measures to increase our harvesting capacity, through the importation of combine harvesters, driers and other agricultural equipment.

The President said Governments broad economic plan involved galvanising all sectors in primary production to value addition towards industrialisation and swift economic growth.

I am confident that the vast interventions in the agricultural sector will improve our fortunes not only as a country, but, principally, at household level. In the quest to unlock the maximum benefits from our primary products and translate these to dollars in both the national purse and peoples pockets, we are intensifying our efforts in value-addition, beneficiation and industrialisation.

Communities and the membership of the party should fully exploit these opportunities as active participants. As a result of various financial facilities from multilateral and bilateral organisations, we are expecting that our industries will be retooled, the National Railways of Zimbabwe revitalised and Harare-Beitbridge Highway dualised.

In the same vein, we will accelerate implementation of the Special Economic Zones which will attract new foreign investments. The inroads made to date in the mining sector, coupled with untapped potential as well as emerging partnerships, point to the fact that economic recovery is imminent.

President Mnangagwa said all these measures would be underpinned by free market principles.

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Sahel Capital Partners & Advisory Limited (SCPAL) is a leading management consulting firm focused on the agricultural and nutrition sectors in Africa. We partner with government agencies, private sector companies and leading international development organisation to conduct research, analyse policies, develop strategies and implement programs that promote sustainable food security and improved nutrition. We have worked on a variety of projects across West Africa, including in Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria, and Senegal.Location: Kano with regular travel to Lagos and across Nigeria will be required.Reporting to: Project ManagerThe Nigerian Dairy Development Program (NDDP) is geared towards improving the livelihoods of smallholder dairy farmers in Nigeria by improving the productivity of their cattle and integrating them into the formal dairy value chain in Nigeria.The Project also includes a nutrition component and gender component which are geared towards improving nutrition outcomes and promoting women empowerment in smallholder farming communitiesThis project is implemented by Sahel Capital Partners & Advisory Ltd. and a consortium of other partners. The project seeks to boost the yields and incomes of smallholder farmers, increase nutrition outcomes and empower women involved in agriculture in AfricaUnder the supervision of the Project Manager, the Project Coordinators will ensure high quality implementation of the Dairy Development Program in Kano State. The project coordinator will be responsible for the day-to-day running of all aspects of program.He/she will lead the planning, coordination of, management and reporting of project activities at the state level, engaging with beneficiaries and partnering processors on the one hand and reporting to Program Management Office (PMO) on the other hand with the objective of achieving project goals.Program Implementation:Coordinate project activities in Kano state, ensuring adherence to technical standards, best practices and donor guidelines.Lead the engagement with the implementing partners, service providers and other key stakeholders including federal, state and local governments and other entities involved in the programs activities in Kano state to deliver on the targets for the programIn coordination with the PMO, the Project Coordinators will facilitate the development of project strategies, plan technical capacity building interventions, activities and policies related to increasing the production and productivity of smallholder dairy farmers.The Project Coordinators in collaboration with the D&LS will work with the processors to train local resource persons, leader farmers and community livestock workers to provide capacity building training on herd management, dairy nutrition, silage, fodder and feed management, health management etc. with a focus on improving milk production, yields and quality as well as ensuring adequate women representation in capacity building initiatives undertaken as part of the project.Support the process of developing a dairy management curriculum among other teaching materials in English and other languages to support the process of delivering training and capacity building support to farmers, extension officers and other stakeholders involved in the project.The Program Coordinators with the support of PMO will lead the implementation of other project activities, including the gender and nutrition components of the program in Kano.Maintain good relations with project beneficiaries, partner organisations, and other stakeholders.Documentation, Monitoring, Evaluation and ReportingAbide by donor requirements/regulations as well as Sahels procedures and policies for compliance, including financial, procurement etc.Support the program manager in the grant award and management process to implementing partners and contractors involved in the project. Ensure effective utilisation of project funds by grantees.Support the Program Manager in planning, reviewing and tracking progress on project, implementation as well as on the utilisation of project resources, effective financial management and reporting.Assist the Program Manager in preparing quarterly and annual progress reportsReport on follow up, training, support provided to groups, monitoring and evaluation activities, livestock and farm productivity at the community level.Document success stories and case studies.Maintain up to date documentation related to project approval, monitoring and implementation.Building daily progress reports into quarterly, annual and final reports and respond to the queries related to project particularly technical aspects of the project.Ensure that all project documentation is well organised and easy to access on the portal.Candidates should have:A University Degree in Agriculture or related field with 3 years relevant experience at field level of community development with a strong understanding of social developmentStrong networks with key stakeholders in the agriculture landscape in both the public, private and development sector. Experience in collaborating and managing relationships with federal and state governments, donors, private sector and other key stakeholdersExcellent oral and written communication skills, training and facilitation skillsProficiency in Microsoft Office suite, including Word, Excel and OutlookExcellent personal organisational skills and ability to work independently with minimal supervisionHigh level of interpersonal skills with the ability to work across cultures and religions, with strong communication and listening abilities, good problem solving approach and conflict resolution at individual and community levelStrong program management skills and high level of analytical skills in planning and project implementationAbility to be flexible, respond professionally, and establish priorities in often fluid, changing, and challenging situations with little clear guidance is necessary.Ability to work calmly, tactfully, and effectively under pressure and to demonstrate extreme flexibility in managing more than one activity.Sound knowledge of local environmentWillingness and enthusiasm for working with rural and vulnerable communities living in remote areas of the country.Proficiency in the English language (required) and Hausa (preferred)Overview:The Business Analyst position is for junior practitioners with a passion for agriculture, interested in getting being exposed to a variety of projects in the sector. Business Analysts have the opportunity to work with clients across the public, private and social sector and across multiple value chains to make a tangible impact to the agriculture and nutrition sector in Africa.In this role, you will be required to fulfill the following primary responsibilities:Conduct market, industry and company research related to proposals and projects for Sahel Capitals clients.Perform quantitative and qualitative analysis with data gathered during the course of the project.Prepare PowerPoint and Word reports summarizing research and analyses and developing recommendations for the client.Create complete bibliography and contacts list of all sources of research information.Support Sahel Capital with work required to deliver a high quality final report to its client(s).Work independently, but as part of a broader team of Sahel Capital consultants.Support senior management on other Sahel Capital initiatives as requestedWe are looking for candidates with a passion for agriculture that are driven, and self-starters. Below are key qualifications we are looking for:Bachelors or Masters in Agriculture, Business, Economics or related disciplineHigh-quality analytical and problem-solving skillsExceptional interpersonal and communication skills (both written and verbal)Willingness to travel (required)Fluent proficiency in French and English (speaking, writing, reading and listening) LanguageApplicants should submit their CV's to: recruiting@sahelcp.com with the job title as the subject of the mail.Note: Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.7 August, 2017
Independent TD Mattie McGrath has called the Minister of State for Older People, Jim Daly, and the Attorney General, Seamus Woulfe, to immediately clarify what exactly are the legal impediments that may obstruct proposed reforms of the Fair Deal Nursing Home Support Scheme.

Deputy McGrath was speaking after reports confirmed that the Attorney General has raised concerns around the legality of some of the reform measures:

In May of this year, I and my colleagues in the Rural Independent Group successfully tabled a Dail Motion on the need to remove the blatant discrimination in the Fair Deal Scheme as it is currently applied.

We achieved a successful vote on the motion despite opposition from the government and a rather pathetic policy of abstention from the Fianna Fail party.

Our Motion explicitly called on the government to honour the commitment in the Programme for Government to remove discrimination against small businesses and family farms. We also called for the introduction of a reduced charge on the farm/business assets that removes the uncertainty for farm families and the self-employed and which protects the future viability of the farm/business asset for future generations.

The majority of the Dail voted in support of those measures and that vote must be respected and honoured by the government and indeed the Attorney General.

The Attorney General has a constitutional obligation to represent the public in the assertion or protection of their public rights, one of which is clearly the need to remove discriminatory measures that take no account of the unique nature of the family farm and its role in Irish society.

I would hope that whatever obstacles to reform that are being considered can be overcome in as swift a manner as possible.

Rural communities and rural families have suffered long enough under the existing Fair Deal arrangement; an arrangement that cannot be allowed to continue and for which a legal solution must immediately be found, concluded Deputy McGrath.
The council, headed by Union finance minister Arun Jaitley and comprising finance ministers of all states, also finalised the e-way Bill that mandates pre-registration of all goods worth over 50,000 before they are transported for sale.

By Mail Today Bureau: The GST council on Saturday reduced the tax rate on job work on all textile-related items to five per cent from 18 per cent to ensure that the labour-intensive sector is not adversely impacted under the new tax regime.

The GST council also reduced tax rate on some tractor parts from 28 per cent to 18 per cent after the high rate came in for criticism since it had the potential of increasing the cost burden on the sensitive farm sector. The council, headed by Union finance minister Arun Jaitley and comprising finance ministers of all states, also finalised the e-way Bill that mandates pre-registration of all goods worth over 50,000 before they are transported for sale.

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Briefing reporters after the meeting, Jaitley said the date of application of the e-way Bill would be notified shortly. It will not be applicable for exempted goods. Work contracts under GST will be taxed at 12 per cent with input tax credit.

Te finance minister appealed to businesses to pass on the benefit of the reduced tax under GST to consumers, failing which the anti-profiteering mechanism will be triggered. The government is reported to have received complaints from states that the reduction in taxes under the GST regime was not being passed on by several business entities. The Council will meet next on September 9 in Hyderabad, Jaitley added.

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--- ENDS ---
The final curtain has closed on "Hamilton: An American Musical," but don't fret because the hit broadway show will be coming back to San Francisco in 2019.

The blockbuster musical wrapped up its final Bay Area performance Saturday at the Orpheum Theatre, ending a roughly five-month long run of shows in the city by the bay. Producers for the show announced Tuesday that the actors will be returning to San Francisco in early 2019.

Devoted fans, including those who have already seen the show on multiple occassions, waited in line for hours Saturday to get their hands on tickets to see the final performance in the city by the bay.

"I'm really trying to get tickets," Emily Quinn of San Francisco said earlier Saturday. "I've been standing in line for the 2 o'clock show and I didn't get those."

For those not patient enough to wait until "Hamilton" returns to San Francisco, the musical cast is headed south to perform at Los Angeles' Pantage Theatre.

"Hamilton" is the story of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant who became George Washington's aide during the Revolutionary War and served as the nation's first treasury secretary.

Bay City News contributed to this report.
A New Hampshire man is being held on bail after police in Newport said he fired several rounds from a pistol in an alleged dispute with neighbors on Saturday night.

Raymond "Powell" Renehan, 26, of Claremont, was taken into custody at about 10 p.m. and charged with reckless conduct with a deadly weapon.

Police said Renehan, who had been visiting family at 14 South Main St., had fired the semi-auto pistol after getting into a verbal altercation.

Witnesses said Renehan fired the rounds into a nearby embankment and into the air before retreating back into the house.

No injuries were reported.

Renehans girlfriend, Jessica Marsh, 29, also of Claremont, was taken into custody on unrelated outstanding warrants for willful concealment.

Renehan is being held at the Sullivan County House of Corrections pending his arraignment Monday at the 5th Circuit Court in Newport.

The incident remains under investigation and additional charges are expected.
Massachusetts police are still searching for the man who is suspected of attempting to murder his mother and sister during a home invasion in Melrose on Friday night.

Melrose Police Chief Michael Lyle said Saurday that John C. Ferreira, 54, is wanted for assault with intent to murder in the wake of the attack on Vinton Street.

Police said Ferreira allegedly used a hammer or mallet in the attacks and that he was apparently in the house when the women came home. He also tied one of the women to a chair with wire ties and duct tape. One victim's face was injured badly and both had marks on their arms and legs.

One victim apparently escaped from the home and flagged down police while walking along the road. Police had been called when a neighbor spotted the woman outside, bleeding.

Both women were transported to an area hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

The motive of the attack is still unclear.

Lyle said Ferreira may have fled from the home in one of the victim's cars  a red Toyota Corolla with Massachusetts license plate 546XL1. He also may have a rottweiler with him.

Ferreira is described as 5'7" and 200 pounds. He has a graying mustache and partially shaved brown hair.

Police are urging Ferreira to turn himself in.

"Mr. Ferreira, the best thing you can do is turn yourself in. We'll get you," said Lyle.

Anyone with information on Ferreira's whereabouts is asked to contact the Melrose Police Department at 781-665-1212 or by calling 911.
Three people have been killed and at least 29 more have been wounded in violence across the city this weekend, according to police.

The first fatality occurred Saturday night when a 39-year-old man was shot to death in the 300 block of West 57th Street. He was driving a vehicle on 57th Street when an unknown assailant fired shots at him, striking him in the torso. He was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital.

Damien Santoyo, a 14-year-old boy, was shot to death on his porch in a drive-by shooting Sunday morning. Santoyo was on the porch with two other juveniles when a car drove by, and after the occupants shouted gang slogans, they opened fire, striking the boy in the head.

Chicago's third fatality occurred Sunday morning during a domestic violence incident in the 6900 block of West 65th Street. A 30-year-old woman, who police say had been battered by a 33-year-old man, pulled out a gun and shot him three times, killing him.

She is currently in custody and charges are pending, according to police.

Friday:

A 21-year-old man was shot in the arm and was taken in good condition to Stroger Hospital. The victim was walking past a group of men in the 900 block of N. Central Park Ave. at approximately 4:20 p.m. when one of the men reached in his pocket and took money. The victim tried to run, but one of the men fired a shot that struck him in the arm, he told police.

Two men got into an altercation at a business in the 2700 block of West 63 rd Street, and a 26-year-old man involved in the fight was shot in the side. The incident occurred at approximately 4:39 p.m. on Friday afternoon, and the man is in stable condition at Christ Hospital, according to police. The other man involved in the altercation is in custody.

Street, and a 26-year-old man involved in the fight was shot in the side. The incident occurred at approximately 4:39 p.m. on Friday afternoon, and the man is in stable condition at Christ Hospital, according to police. The other man involved in the altercation is in custody. A man standing in front of a residence in the 1100 block of N. Lockwood was shot in the lower back. The shooting, which occurred at approximately 7:55 p.m., left the man in stable condition at Stroger Hospital, police said.

Two people were shot in the 2900 block of West 40 th Street at 8:24 p.m. Friday evening. A 20-year-old man suffered a graze wound to his chest and a 25-year-old woman suffered a graze wound to her neck. Both people refused treatment at the scene.

Street at 8:24 p.m. Friday evening. A 20-year-old man suffered a graze wound to his chest and a 25-year-old woman suffered a graze wound to her neck. Both people refused treatment at the scene. A 36-year-old man was shot on the 7500 block of South Union at approximately 10:15 p.m. The man was sitting in a parked vehicle when he was struck by shots from an unknown assailant. He was taken to Christ Hospital in serious condition.

A man standing on a sidewalk in the 1600 block of South Drake was shot in the right leg at approximately 11:20 p.m. Friday night. The 37-year-old man was taken to Mt. Sinai Hospital in stable condition after he heard gunshots and felt pain in his leg.

Saturday:

A 20-year-old man walked into Community First Hospital with a gunshot wound in his right thigh. The shooting, which occurred in the 5200 block of West Addison, happened at 1 a.m. The man was listed in good condition.

A man sitting in a vehicle in the 4400 block of North Whipple was shot and seriously wounded at approximately 1:22 a.m. The victim, a 29-year-old man, was shot in the chest and back when a vehicle pulled up and one of the occupants opened fire. The victim is a documented gang member, according to police. He was taken to the hospital in serious condition.

At approximately 5:44 a.m. in the 5100 block of South Hoyne, a 31-year-old man was shot in the neck. The man was a passenger in a car when shots were fired into the vehicle. He was transferred to Stroger Hospital in critical condition.

A 51-year-old man was taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition after he was shot in the head at approximately 11:04 a.m. The man was involved in a verbal argument near a vehicle in the 3300 block of West Washington, police said, when an unknown person in a group of people fired shots at him.

Three people were shot after a verbal altercation in the 2500 block of South Spaulding at approximately 10:15 p.m. A 39-year-old gang-affiliated man was shot in both legs, a 14-year-old boy was shot in the leg, and a 15-year-old boy was also shot in the leg. All three victims were taken to Mt. Sinai in stable condition.

A 39-year-old man was shot to death in the 300 block of West 57 th Street at approximately 10:40 p.m. The man was driving a car when an unknown offender fired shots at the vehicle. He was shot multiple times in the torso, and he was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital.

Street at approximately 10:40 p.m. The man was driving a car when an unknown offender fired shots at the vehicle. He was shot multiple times in the torso, and he was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital. In the 3300 block of East 91st Street, a 34-year-old man was shot in the back at 11:50 p.m. The man was standing on the street when shots were fired. He was taken to Trinity Hospital in critical condition.

Sunday:

Two men were taken to area hospitals after being shot at approximately 12:20 a.m. in the 5200 block of West Belden. A 23-year-old man was shot in the head and was taken to Illinois Masonic in critical condition, while a 26-year-old man was taken to Community First Hospital, where he was treated and released. The men were shot by an unknown offender in a dark colored Ford Explorer.

A 14-year-old boy was shot to death in a drive-by shooting in the 1700 block of South Newberry. He was on a porch with two other juveniles when occupants in a passing vehicle fired shots at the group, striking him in the head.

A 24-year-old man standing on a sidewalk in the 1300 block of North Rockwell was shot in the leg and foot at 3:20 a.m. Sunday morning. A white vehicle pulled up, and an armed offender emerged from the car and fired shots at the man. He was taken to Stroger in good condition.

Two people were shot in the 200 block of North Homan at 4:10 a.m. A 37-year-old man was shot in the arm and stomach while sitting in a vehicle, and he was taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition. A 35-year-old woman was also shot in the leg, and she was taken to St. Marys in stable condition.

A 26-year-old man walked into Illinois Masonic hospital with a gunshot wound to his leg. He was shot at 4:41 a.m. in the 1200 block of West Leland. He is listed in stable condition.

At 4:56 a.m. in the 800 block of West 19 th Street, a 19-year-old man was shot in the stomach. He was taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition.

Street, a 19-year-old man was shot in the stomach. He was taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition. A 19-year-old was shot in the abdomen on the 800 block of West 19 th Street. at approximately 5:00 a.m. He was standing on a sidewalk when a passenger in a passing red vehicle fired shots at him. He was taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition.

Street. at approximately 5:00 a.m. He was standing on a sidewalk when a passenger in a passing red vehicle fired shots at him. He was taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition. A 30-year-old woman shot a 33-year-old man to death following a domestic altercation in the 6900 block of West 65th Street. According to police, she was battered by the man, then pulled out a gun and shot him three times. She is in custody with charges pending.

Two people were shot in the 1000 block of North Clark Street. on Sunday evening at approximately 7:56 p.m. A 33-year-old man was shot in the side and leg, and was taken to Northwestern Hospital in critical condition. A 26-year-old man was also shot in the leg, and was taken to Northwestern in stable condition.





A 19-year-old man was shot in the foot while standing on a sidewalk just before 11 p.m. in the 6700 block of South East End, police said. He was transported to Jackson Park Hospital in good condition, according to authorities.





A traffic stop turned into a miles-long police chase just before 11:30 p.m. when authorities say a driver opened fire on officers before fleeing the scene and crashing 7 miles away. The driver was taken into custody and transported to Illinois Masonic Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries. An officer was also transported to an area hospital, where he was treated and released.





Minutes before midnight, a 20-year-old man was shot on a front porch in the 12200 block of South Emerald. Police said the man took himself to Metro South Hospital with a gunshot wound to the right leg and was listed in stable condition. He told officers he was sitting on a porch when a man walked up and fired shots.

Monday:
Authorities are seeking information on two people who may be connected to a fatal shooting that took place at a restaurant in northwest Indiana early Saturday.

Around 12:07 a.m., officers responded to a call in the 5400 block of West 25th Avenue in Gary, according to police.

They arrived to a restaurant that was open for business at the time to find a male victim with a gunshot wound, officials said.

He had no signs of life, according to Gary police, and was pronounced dead on the scene by the Lake County Coroner's Office.

Further details on the victim, including his age and identity, were not immediately available.

Police are investigating the death as a homicide and released surveillance photos of two people who may be involved in the shooting.

The male and female were last seen traveling west on I-80/94 in a black SUV, according to police.

Anyone with information on the shooting, or the two people sought in connection with the incident, is asked to contact Det. Kristopher Adams at (219) 755-3855 or the crime tip line at (866) CRIME-GP.

No one is in custody as authorities continue to investigate.
An Indiana woman drowned in Lake Michigan near Gary on Saturday morning, Department of Natural Resources officials announced.

The woman, 24-year-old Kaitlynn Boswinkle, was swimming with two friends at Marquette Beach on Saturday morning. After the three swimmers briefly got out of the water, Boswinkle got back in and swam to a buoy approximately 200 feet from shore, police said.

After a short time, the two friends on the beach lost sight of Boswinkle, and went in after her. They returned to shore after three-to-five foot waves and a strong current kept them from reaching the buoy, and they called police, according to a press release.

Emergency workers from the Gary Police and Fire Departments ultimately located Boswinkle, and they pulled her from the water around 9:30 a.m.

Police announced that the incident is still under investigation by Indiana Conservation officers.
Politicians and leaders have issued statements remembering Texas' 43rd Governor, Mark White, who died on Saturday at the age of 77.

Current Republican Governor Greg Abbott ordered flags to half-staff in honor of White. He said White "cared deeply about Texas, and he devoted his life to making our state even better, particularly when it came to educating our children. My personal relationship and friendship with Governor White dates to when I was a young lawyer in Houston and we shared an elevator bank.

Marks impact on Texas will not soon be forgotten, and his legacy will live on through all that he achieved as Governor. Cecilia and I extend our deepest condolences to Linda Gale White and family during this difficult time, and I ask that all Texans join us in praying for the White family as they mourn the passing of a devoted husband, father and public servant."

Current Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said White "leaves a legacy of service and commitment to the state of Texas. He gave up time away from his family and his career to make the Lone Star State a better place. I met Mark White in the early 1990s at his office and knew him to be a Texas gentleman. We pray for his family during this time of loss."

President George W. Bush also issued a statement saying "Laura and I are saddened by the passing of Mark White, the 43rd Governor of Texas. Mark served the Lone Star State with enthusiasm and dedication. He cared deeply about all the citizens of our state and placed a special focus on Texas children and their education. We send our heartfelt sympathies to Linda Gale and their family as they mourn this good man."

Secretary of Energy, and former Texas Governor Rick Perry issued a statement as well saying "Texas lost a dedicated public servant today with the passing of Gov. Mark White. Anita and I extend our deepest sympathies to his family."

Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa issued the following statement:

Governor Mark White was a Texas Democrat. He was driven to ensure every child reached their God-given potential and he built the foundation of an economy that could survive any storm.

"Mark White had the political courage to invest in our children and teachers. He did right by Texans and our great state.

"Texas Democrats mourn the loss of our dear friend and leader, Governor Mark White."
Search-and-rescue efforts have been suspended for three U.S. Marines missing after the tilt-rotor aircraft they were in crashed into the sea off of Australia Saturday, the U.S. military said.

"The transition comes after teams led continuous sustained search efforts supported by aircraft and ships," the Marine Corps Base Camp Butler in Okinawa said in a statement.

Twenty-three of the 26 personnel aboard the Osprey heli-plane have been rescued, NBC News reported.

The aircraft was conducting regularly scheduled operations when it crashed into the sea. Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne said Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had been briefed on the situation and had spoken with U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis.
The 5-year-old boy from San Diego who was found in chains, beaten and starved by his aunt and uncle in Mexico may soon be reunited with his father.

The father, Pascual Castro, was deported for the tenth time on Tuesday. He departed Tijuana for Mexico City on Friday morning to retrieve his son.

The boy, Anthony, has a Mexican and U.S. dual citizenship and has been the center of an international custody battle since he was discovered by Mexican authorities in late June.

Castro said he had left his son with his sister and brother-in-law in Mexico and was sending over $500 a month while he was working in the U.S.

Anthony's mother, Dawn Sanderson, lost custody of him when he was 11-months old.

Castro was notified in June that his son was found in chains and abused at his familys house outside Mexico City, but said he was unable to return to Mexico to care for him because of his undocumented status in the U.S.

On Tuesday, Castro was intercepted by Border Patrol in San Diego County during a fugitive operation and deported. Now he is back in Mexico, attempting contact with his son.

"I hope to see him very soon," said Castro in Spanish to Telemundo 20. "I feel pure happiness right now. The important thing is the child."

The National System for Integral Family Development (DIF) said Pascual will have to prove he can care for Anthony.

"I feel satisfied I can do that," said Pascual. "I already fought it and on two previous occasions, I already showed that I can do that."

Castros son would require comprehensive care if Castro manages to gain custody, DIF said in a press conference.

Sanderson, who lives in Escondido, said she is also seeking custody.

"Im going to do what I have to do without stopping until the day I have him with me," Sanderson told NBC News in Spanish.

Castros sister and brother-in-law face charges of child abuse, according to Mexican authorities.
DEALS ARE IN THE AIR, and though they're dominated by pencils and erasers and book bags and laptops and all of the important accessories that come to the forefront at back-to-school time, there are other savings to be had beyond those items those required for the classroom. For example, perhaps you and your family are looking for a place to celebrate the new school year coming up, and to talk about goals, plans, and what's ahead for fall. Doing a family dinner at home is a delight, and part of many a Southern California household's annual August education-minded observances, but heading out for a special meal is also a festive thing to do when summer begins its downslope and pencils go on sale. If you're in a celebratory mood, whether it involves the school year ahead, summer's general conviviality, or for no particular reason at all, and you love saving money (hi, that's all of us), consider that...

DINE LBC... is on now. True, so many Restaurant Weeks 'round this region happen in January, which is California Restaurant Month, but the Long Beach happening is an early-August suppable staple. "Dozens of Restaurants" are on board for the run, which concludes on Sunday, Aug. 13, so gather your crew and head for Saint & Second in Belmont Shore, E.J. Malloy's in Bixby Knolls, or The Reef on the Water. And wherever you want to dine, be it El Dorado Park, Signal Hill, or another area or neighborhood? You'll find appetizing picks. The savings are also appetizing: The price for a multi-course prix fixe meal starts at $15, depending upon the spot, with $65 as the top price you'll spend (there are a number of price points between the two, do note). Savings? Back-to-school celebrations? Just general summer-happiness, love-to-not-spend-too-much merriment? Dine LBC lands right at the moment many of us are looking for a memorable meal out, without the memorable bill.


The Congress MLAs from Gujarat who were in a hideaway in Bengaluru will be returning to cast their votes in Rajya Sabha election today.

Gujarat Congress MLAas showing their unity at a press conference at a resort on the outskirts of Bengaluru on Sunday. (Pic: PTI)

By India Today Web Desk: Ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections in the state, the Gujarat Congress legislators who were sent to Bengaluru on July 29, will be home on Monday.

The MLAs were staying in the resort owned by Karnataka energy minister DK Shivakumar, whose properties were raided for four days and over Rs 10 crore was recovered.

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The Congress had sent its 44 legislators here on July 29 to fend off what it alleged were "poaching" attempts by the BJP. The Opposition party had resorted to this step after six MLAs quit from the party within days of each other, three of whom joined the BJP. Thus reducing the Congress tally to 51 in the 182 seat Gujarat Assembly.

There was a rebellion within the party after former leader of opposition in the state Assembly Shankersinh Vaghela resigned from his post, on being told that he would not be party's chief ministerial candidate.

Congress had also alleged that the raids on Shivakumar's properties were organised by the BJP for hosting the MLAs.

Speaking about the raids and MLAs departure, Shivakumar today told news agency ANI,"Definitely they have to go and have their voting done. All of them are happy, numbers are good."

This Rajya Sabha election might prove to be the toughest challenge faced by Ahmed Patel, political secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

Patel has been a Rajya Sabha member since 1993 and he is trying for his fifth re-election in the Upper House this year. Losing in his home state could hamper Congress' chances in the Assembly elections scheduled for December.

Contesting against him is BJP president Amit Shah who is contesting for a Rajya Sabha seat for the first time, Union minister and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Smriti Irani and former Congress MLA Balwantsinh Rajput, who had joined the saffron party a week ago.

The MLAs will be staying at a resort near Ahmedabad reported news agency ANI.

Also read

Why Rajya Sabha election in Gujarat isn't just a personal battle between Ahmed Patel and Amit Shah

Who is Shankersinh Vaghela? A look at his illustrious political journey

Also WATCH: Congress cries foul after IT raids at Karnataka minister's properties

--- ENDS ---
Ten people were injured after an American Airlines flight from Athens, Greece, experienced "severe turbulence" prior to landing at Philadelphia International Airport Saturday.

Adam K. Theil

Three passengers and seven crew members on American Airlines flight 759 from Athens to Philadelphia were taken to the hospital upon landing, American Airlines said in a statement. The fasten seatbelt sign was on at the time of the turbulence, according to the airline.

A passenger described the incident to NBC News as a sudden "lurch" downward as opposed to a prolonged freefall.

"I was looking forward and I just saw everything just move upwards about four feet. So I saw drinks, you know, flying up against walls and up on the ceiling," Alex Ehmke told NBC News. "The gentleman directly behind us and diagonally behind us hit the ceiling himself."

After the sudden drop, he said, "then we were cruising again."

Jessica Huseman, a reporter, tweeted from aboard the plane about her experience.



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Ervin Fang, another passenger on the flight, told NBC10 the turbulence hit about 35 to 40 minutes before the plane was scheduled to land in Philadelphia. Fang said he felt a "big bump, like a big jump" that sent drinks splattering on the ceiling and floor of the plane.

"Wine bottles, soda cans, other debris and trash were scattered across the floor," Fang said.

Fang said the turbulence lasted about five to ten minutes but felt much longer.

"I travel often but I never experienced turbulence like this," he said. "It felt like if it continued any longer the plane would crack...it would crash."



Fang, who is a physician from Los Angeles, said he assisted a flight attendant who suffered a shoulder injury. He also said he saw a few passengers with ice bags on top of their heads.

Worst turbulence ever! Athens to Phil. Even the pilot didn't see it coming. Drinks on the ceiling. @AmericanAir #thoughtthiswasit pic.twitter.com/ndZ8ptgbWz  Ervin Fang (@efnov6) August 6, 2017

The crew reported the turbulence while flying over the North Atlantic Ocean, according to the FAA. The flight landed safely at 3:10 p.m. The plane remained on the tarmac for about 40 minutes after landing so that EMS could respond, according to Fang.



"We are taking care of our passengers and our crew members at this time and want to thank our team members for keeping our passengers safe," an American Airlines spokesperson wrote.



Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Adam Theil shared photos of the fire department's response to the airport.

Adam K. Theil

There was no word on the severity of injuries suffered, but American Airlines reported those going to the hospital were transported "for evaluation."

In 2016, there were a total of 44 injuries reported during turbulence. Thirty-three of the injuries were to passengers and 11 were to crew members, according to the FAA.

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Authorities say a missing 6-year-old special needs boy has been found dead in a retention pond behind his home.

Polk County Sheriff officials say in a news release that Adam Roach of Lakeland was found in a pond directly behind his home at 10:40 p.m. Friday by the Polk County Sheriff's Office dive team and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Authorities say Roach was reported missing by his mother at 4 p.m. Friday after he'd walked away from the Carlton Arms apartments in south Lakeland. Sheriff officials say Roach was a nonverbal special needs child who also was partially deaf.

An investigation is planned and an autopsy is expected.

No further information was immediately available.
Brooklyn is hosting an event later this month that might just treat your sweet tooth cravings.

The third dessert festival, "Dessert Goals," is returning to Williamsburg Aug. 19 and 20.

Tasty treats of all varieties will be offered from more than a dozen vendors around New York City. Some include Underwest Donuts, Lickety Splits Banana Pops, Milk & Cookies Bakery and Rebeccas Cake Pops.

Free candy from Dylan's Candy Bar, free cold brew and iced tea from Bodum + Intelligentsia Coffee is also included.

Anyone interested in attending the Dobbin Street event can click here for tickets. The event is expected to reach capacity.
A 26-year-old man who was refused entry to a bar slashed an officer's cheek with scissors, Nassau County police say.

Robert Savage, of Massapequa, was charged with aggregated assault of an officer, possessing a weapon, resisting arrest and assault.

Police responded Saturday to McCann's Bar and Grill on Merrick Road, where Savage was denied entry and allegedly damaged a windshield wiper on a party bus parked nearby.

When an officer confronted him, Savage revealed a pair of scissors, slashed the officer's cheek and tried to stab him in the neck, police said.

He's also accused of biting a sergeant and throwing her to the ground, police said. Her neck, back and shoulder were injured.

The officer subdued Savage with a stun gun, police said.

Savage was brought to a hospital for treatment of an unrelated illness and will be arraigned when medically practical, police said.

The officers were treated at a hospital and released.
California State University's 23 campuses are eliminating math and English placement exams for incoming freshman and ending mandatory remedial courses that some students complained delayed their coursework.

The changes are part of a broader plan aimed at increasing graduation rates at the nation's largest public university system.

Chancellor Timothy P. White announced the changes in an executive order issued late Wednesday to all campus presidents, saying that CSU's long-standing exams used to assess student readiness will be retired starting in fall 2018.

Instead, schools will look at students' SAT and ACT scores along with high school grades and Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate scores to determine course placement, which administrators say are a better measure of a student's abilities.

Nearly 40 percent of incoming freshman, or some 25,000 students, are typically placed in remedial courses that often don't count toward their degree, Executive Vice Chancellor Loren Blanchard said in a separate memo.

The new policy "aims to address inequities in college readiness head-on in order to close gaps in degree attainment and afford all students the opportunity to succeed," Blanchard said.

Only 20 percent of CSU students graduate within four years. The university system wants to double its four-year graduation rate by 2025.

Students who took the remedial courses spent time and money on non-credit classes, which meant it took them longer to get a degree. Some students couldn't afford the extended time in school or were so frustrated by the process they dropped out, officials say.

The process "really sunk the ships of a lot of college aspirations," said James T. Minor, CSU's senior strategist for academic success.

Under the new system, all CSU students will be able to take college level courses immediately.

"The message we want to send now is, `Congratulations, you've been admitted, we're going to do everything we can for you to be successful at CSU," Minor said.

Campuses will offer extra support for students who need it, Minor said. Students can also enter an "early start" program to earn college credit over the summer, White's memo said. That program will be beefed up starting in summer 2019.

White and other officials said the executive order was issued after extensive consultation with CSU's academic Senate and faculty and its Board of Trustees.
When Sallie B. lectures to her weekend class about marijuana, she likes to make her spiel as accessible as possible. The chef starts by explaining the effects of cannabis-infused butter, and then she demonstrates how to cook with it.

"You want to make sure you're making it correctly so that you don't get sick," Sallie begins the lecture, hoisting up a jar of green-tinted butter for the class to see. "And its important that you know your dosage..."

Roughly 25 students soon start cooking in the Cannabis Creatives warehouse in Oakland, tossing heaping pats of canna-butter into sizzling saucepans.

Meanwhile, Sallie, the proprietor of edibles company Slims Baked Goodies, bounces from table to table to answer a litany of questions. Heavy smoke floats in the air throughout the two-hour course, but most isnt coming from the cooking stations; there are, at any given time, multiple joints, bongs and vape pens circulating around the room.

So goes the structure of every Puff, Pass, and Pastry class, which is run by Colorado-based company Cannabis Tours. By the end, participants will have made a hodgepodge of cannabis-infused treats, including frittatas, sweet cakes and french toast.

The Sunday cooking class is just one of many pot-centered workshops that have cropped up in the Bay Area following Californias legalization of the once-taboo plant in November. There are yoga, painting and pottery classes, even glass blowing classes, and they all aim to do something similar: combine the novelty of legally consuming cannabis in public spaces with traditional pay-to-play activities.

Heidi Keyes, the co-founder of Cannabis Tours, runs sister workshops in Oregon, Las Vegas and Colorado and advocated for pot's legalization in California. A longtime pot consumer, she said she entered the industry because she wanted to normalize cannabis use and stop it from being relegated to doctors offices and back-alley deals.

Gillian Edevane

"We want to encourage people to just relax in a way that they havent been able to before, especially before it was legal here and other places," Keyes said. "It's about providing a safe space for cannabis consumption, meeting new people, passing joints. Just being able to smoke weed if you want to.

Sallie, who began incorporating cannabis into her recipes after a cancer diagnosis, attached herself to the course in an attempt to educate others about the plant.

The biggest misconception about edibles is that people think, if I eat an edible, Im going to be asleep for days, she said. I think people dont understand cannabis as much as they consume it, so this class gives me an opportunity to teach them about the different strains, and how to get a good effect."

Gillian Edevane

The business venture has been undeniably profitable for Keyes, Sallie and other so-called cannapreneurs, a portmanteau referring to the business owners who have capitalized on pots legalization. Tickets to the cooking class cost $69 each, and the painting and pottery classes arent much cheaper. All told, the profits help contribute to a booming California industry valued at over $7 billion.

Keyes attributes the success of the courses to a previously-untapped niche market. In short, she believes that a group of people  mostly longtime pot enthusiasts  had been waiting for these types of communal spaces, and are now ready to open up their wallets for the experience.

"There hasnt really been anything like this before, she said. I think people have really been looking for opportunities to consume legally and make friends at the same time. A lot of people who come to our classes aren't big drinkers, but they still want to go out and do something social. Thats where our classes come into play.

Nadia Ibanez, 32, said she falls into both categories. But the San Francisco woman chose to attend the cooking class in lieu of the alternatives because it advertised a learning opportunity.

Ive never cooked with cannabis, never made edibles, said Ibanez, who has been smoking pot for about a year. So I wanted to come and see what skills I could take to my own kitchen.

Gillian Edevane

Despite support from attendees, people within the medical community have taken issue with the rise in cannabis-themed courses.

The specter of novices making edibles at home is what worries Dr. Rachna Patel, who owns a medical practice in Walnut Creek and studies marijuana use. Shes seen the horror stories of people overdosing on edibles, and theyre not the comical situations that YouTube videos would lead one to believe.

"Edibles are tricky," Patel said. "A part of me is very much in favor of patients making their own products because they know exactly what goes into them. But the downside of it is, it's going to be difficult to figure out how much is too much.

Patel notes that the side effects can include extreme paranoia and impaired body movement. If someone wants to learn about edibles, they should see a doctor, not attend a cooking class, she quipped.

That warning doesn't discourage Keyes, who believes legalization signaled a cultural shift in the way cannabis is perceived by non-users. Making the plant palatable  or merely acceptable  will help make it safer, she opined.

"People are beginning to realize that there is no typical stoner; there's no typical cannabis consumer," Keyes said. "A lot of people have had to hide their cannabis use their entire lives...so what were seeing now is people coming forward and being more open about it.

And I think, going forward, were going to be seeing more of that, she continued. Its just not something people feel they have to hide anymore.
Former President Barack Obama got a special treat for his birthday this year - his very own holiday.

Governor Bruce Rauner signed into law Friday a measure to designate Aug. 4 as "Barack Obama Day" across Illinois.

The newest state holiday will be celebrated each year on the 44th president's birthday, beginning in 2018.

The holiday will be "observed throughout the State as a day set apart to honor the 44th President of the United States of America who began his career serving the People of Illinois in both the Illinois State Senate and the United States Senate, and dedicated his life to protecting the rights of Americans and building bridges across communities," Senate Bill 55 reads. [[409507185, C]]

While several lawmakers abstained from voting on the measure, it passed both houses earlier this year without a single vote against.

SB 55 was introduced by Sen. Emil Jones III, the son of former Senate President Emil Jones, Jr., who played a major role in launching then-state Senator Obama to the U.S. Senate in 2004 and considers himself to be the former presidents political "godfather."

"Barack Obama Day" joins other commemorative holidays like Adlai Stevenson Day, Ronald Reagan Day and Jane Addams Day, for which workplaces do not close. [[427533613, C]]

Democrats' efforts to make Obamas birthday a legal state holiday  during which schools and state offices would close, while banks and businesses could, but would not be required to close  stalled after some lawmakers voiced concern that other Illinois presidents, like Reagan, do not have similar holidays.

Republicans, including Rauner, also noted the economic cost of closing state buildings on the holiday, and the impact of workers having the day off.

"It's incredibly proud for Illinois that the president came from Illinois. I think it's awesome, and I think we should celebrate it," Rauner told reporters in February. "I don't think it should be a formal holiday with paid, forced time off, but I think it should be a day of acknowledgment and celebration."

Legislators also voted in July to rename part of a Chicago-area highway after their former colleague, designating the stretch of Interstate 55 from the Tri-State Tollway south to mile marker 202 near Pontiac as the "Barack Obama Presidential Expressway."
President Donald Trump is trying to turn the Russia investigation into a rallying cry.

Far from avoiding talk of the accelerating probe into his campaign's ties to Moscow, Trump is instead using it to stoke the outrage felt by his most loyal supporters.

The investigation, he argues, is an outgrowth of the bias and resentment media elites and Democrats hold against his white, working-class base. He casts the investigation as a nefarious attempt to undo the results of the election and seize power from the voters who have been marginalized.

"They can't beat us at the voting booths so they are trying to cheat you out of the future and the future that you want," Trump said during a Thursday night rally in Huntington, West Virginia. "They are trying to cheat you out of the leadership you want with a fake story that is demeaning to all of us and most importantly, demeaning to our country and demeaning to our Constitution."

The message falls in line with Trump's long-standing appeal to the voters he has called the "forgotten men and women of our country" who lack a voice in government. Trump portrays himself as the voice of the aggrieved who understands their troubles.

But this heavy reliance on his loyal base, which comprise far short of an electoral majority, carries risks. Long term, it's unclear how his message will appeal to mainstream Republicans, some of whom are conducting investigations into his Russia ties in Congress and are unlikely to see special counsel Robert Mueller, the by-the-book former FBI director and decorated Vietnam War veteran, as the face of a witch hunt.

The message also obscures the issue his base cares most deeply about: the economy.

For now, Trump appears to be on solid ground on that front. He has presided over a strong economy during his first six months in office. He repeatedly noted this week that the stock market had risen to new heights. He pointed Friday to the latest job report, which showed more than 200,000 new jobs in July and an unemployment rate of 4.3 percent, matching a 16-year low.

But a slip in the nation's economic fortunes before the 2020 election, especially in states key to Trump's victory like Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, could make it harder for Trump to hold onto his base.

In some respects, Trump is taking a page from his favorite scapegoats: Bill and Hillary Clinton. During the late 1990s, Bill Clinton assailed House Republicans and independent counsel Ken Starr as fierce partisans for pushing investigations into his affair with a White House intern and his role in an Arkansas land deal. Hillary Clinton famously called it a "vast right-wing conspiracy."

Two decades later, when Republicans pursued a lengthy investigation into her handling of the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, she said it was a partisan attempt to hurt her 2016 campaign.

This time, Trump has taken the partisan argument to a new degree, parlaying it with his longstanding indictment of the Washington "swamp" of insiders whom he says hurt many Americans.

"He's not just doing the partisan playbook, but he's making it about the system in some ways going after him and going after what the voters wanted," said presidential historian Julian Zelizer, a professor at Princeton University.

Zelizer said the reliance on base politics carries risks for Trump, who has already sustained cracks in his support, embodied by strained relations with Republican leadership, Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake's book criticizing Trump's leadership, and three GOP senators' unwillingness to go along on repealing the Affordable Care Act.

"That could be a dangerous path. Just the base can't protect him," Zelizer said.

Most Americans don't seem to share Trump's views on the investigation. Nearly 60 percent of Americans say they don't think Trump is taking the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election seriously enough and roughly the same percentage think he's tried to derail the probe, according to a Quinnipiac poll published this week.

Still, in West Virginia, the president called the Russia story "a total fabrication" and an excuse promulgated by Democrats for their 2016 defeat.
Patel said the decision about supporting any party in the Rajya Sabha polls would be taken in consultation with NCP leader Sharad Pawar.

By Press Trust of India: Senior NCP leader Praful Patel today said his party has not decided yet about extending support to any party in the August 8 Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat.

The Sharad Pawar-led party, which had a pre-poll alliance with the Congress for the 2012 Assembly polls in the state, currently has two MLAs- Kandhal Jadeja and Jayant Patel.

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These two MLAs had said they voted for the joint opposition's presidential candidate Meira Kumar. Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel, the high-profile political secretary to Sonia Gandhi, is seeking a fifth Rajya Sabha term from Gujarat.The election has become interesting since the exit of Congress strongman Shankersinh Vaghela and resignation of six MLAs of the party in the last few days, bringing down its tally in the 182-member House from 57 to 51. Three of these MLAs later joined the BJP, which has fielded one of them in the RS polls.

Patel, the NCP in-charge for Gujarat, said people are now "searching" for the two MLAs of his party given the current scenario where each vote is crucial.

"Though the NCP was part of the previous Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, there is no such alliance at present. Though we are a small party with only two MLAs, we have suddenly become important and people are now searching for these two legislators," he told reporters in Anand.

Patel said the decision about supporting any party in the Rajya Sabha polls would be taken in consultation with Pawar.

"Our two MLAs, along with other leaders of the party from Gujarat, would discuss this issue with Sharad Pawarji who would then take a call on supporting a particular party," the former Union minister said.

When asked about Congress shifting its 44 MLAs to Bengaluru to "protect" them from the BJP ahead of Rajya Sabha polls, Patel said the party itself was responsible for the current scenario.

"Usually, Rajya Sabha MPs used to get elected unopposed.

It is just because of the Congress that a contest is taking place this time. 14 of their MLAs have either left the party or have made up their mind not to vote for the Congress candidate," he said.

In the August 8 polls, the BJP has fielded its president Amit Shah and Union minister Smriti Irani on two seats, and Congress defector Balwantsinh Rajput on the third against Ahmed Patel.

Patel requires 45 votes to win the election.

Though the Congress has claimed it has the support of 44 MLAs, remaining seven of the party's 51 legislators, who are not in Bengaluru, have not put their cards on table yet.

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The BJP, with 121 MLAs in the House, can easily get Shah and Irani elected. However, the party falls 14 short of the 45 votes required for Rajput's victory.

ALSO READ:

Why Rajya Sabha election in Gujarat isn't just a personal battle between Ahmed Patel and Amit Shah Ahead of Gujarat Rajya Sabha election, Congress MLAs depart from Bengaluru refuge

WATCH:

Gujarat: Setback for Congress as 3 MLAs join BJP

--- ENDS ---
A man set a carpeted floor mat on fire and pushed a baby girl in a stroller toward it after an argument with his girlfriend, according to Arlington County Police.

Demetrius Antonio Taylors argument with his girlfriend Saturday morning escalated into an assault, during which he started the fire in an eighth floor apartment at a building in the 5500 block of Columbia Pike, police said.

The woman was able to safely get out of the apartment with her baby before the fire spread, police said. They were evaluated by a medic at the scene.

Fire and smoke filled the apartment, police said. Officers were dispatched to the apartment building about 11:15 a.m. The Arlington County Fire Department was at the scene when officers arrived. A photo taken by the fire department shows flames shooting out of the windows.

Taylor, 27, left the area before officers arrived, police said, but at about 4:30 p.m., police learned he returned to the area. Officers took Taylor into custody in the area of Columbia Pike and South Frederick Street without incident, police said, but he became combative in an interview room at the police department, kicking through a wall, spitting at officers and physically threatening them.

Several dozen apartments need to be restored, and as many as 60 residents were displaced. They are being offered rooms, the apartment manager said. Most are expected to return to their apartments by Wednesday.

Taylor was charged with arson, child endangerment, destruction of property, two counts of assault on law enforcement, and assault and battery. He is being held without bond.

Taylor's mental health came up at his initial court appearance Monday, which had to be delayed from morning until afternoon because of a mental health episode in the jail.

The incident is under investigation.
Two fatal shootings on Saturday put an end to a weekend cease-fire in Baltimore, NBC News reported.

Police said a 24-year-old man and a 37-year-old man were shot and killed in separate incidents. Activists called for a 72-hour cease-fire  a call the city's police department and mayor embraced.

Police spokesman T.J. Smith said that the killings should not take away from the goals of organizers.

"The work doesnt stop," he said.
Soldiers battled for three hours Sunday morning against a small band of anti-government fighters who snuck onto a Venezuelan army base, apparently intent on fomenting an uprising, President Nicolas Maduro said.

Troops killed two of the intruders, wounded another and captured seven, but 10 others got away, the embattled leader announced in his weekly broadcast on state television.

"We know where they are headed and all of our military and police force is deployed," Maduro said. He said he would ask for "the maximum penalty for those who participated in this terrorist attack."

The incident happened during the early morning hours at the Paramacay base in the central city of Valencia. Residents who live nearby said they heard repeated bursts of gunfire starting around 4:30 a.m.

A video showing more than a dozen men dressed in military fatigues, some carrying rifles, began circulating widely on social media around that time. In the recording, a man who identified himself as Capt. Juan Caguaripano said the men were members of the militarywho oppose Maduro's socialist government and called on military units to declare themselves in open rebellion.

"This is not a coup d'etat," the man said. "This is a civic and military action to re-establish the constitutional order."

Twenty men entered the base, catching soldiers on night watch by surprise, Maduro said. The intruders managed to reach the base's weapons depot before an alarm sounded, alerting troops to the incursion. He said 10 of the invaders then escaped, some carrying off arms, while those left behind exchanged gunfire with soldiers until about 8 a.m. before all were either killed or captured.

"Today we had to defeat terrorism with bullets," Maduro said.

Residents who live nearby and saw the dissident group's video online gathered around the military base chanting "Freedom!" Other protests also emerged spontaneously around Valencia into the afternoon.

Troops dispersed the protesters with tear gas and a man was fatally shot at a demonstration less than a mile from the base, said Haydee Franco, coordinating secretary of the opposition Progressive Advance party. More than 120 people have been reported killed in unrest that began in early April.

Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez characterized the attackers as a "paramilitary" expedition, saying the intruders were civilians dressed in uniforms. He did not identify any of the participants, but said they included a lieutenant who had abandoned his post. He said the man who recorded the video was a former officer dismissed three years ago after being charged with rebellion and betraying the homeland.

In 2014, Caguaripano released a 12-minute video denouncing Maduro during a previous wave of anti-government unrest. He later reportedly sought exile after a military tribunal ordered his arrest, appearing in an interview on CNN en Espanol to draw attention to what he said was discontent within military ranks.

He returned to Venezuela to lead Sunday's uprising, said Giomar Flores, a mutinous naval officer now in Bogota, Colombia, who said he is a spokesman for the group.

Padrino Lopez alleged the attackers were recruited by "right-wing extremists" working with unspecified foreign governments. Maduro said the attack was "paid for by Miami and Colombia"  cities with large numbers of Venezuelans who oppose his government. Neither provided specific details on how they had come to that conclusion.

"Today's terrorist attack is no more than a propaganda show," Padrino Lopez said.

Venezuela's latest bout of political unrest erupted in protest to a Supreme Court decision in late March ordering the opposition-controlled National Assembly dissolved. Although the order was quickly annulled, near-daily demonstrations snowballed into a general protest calling for a new presidential election.

Opposition leaders have urged the military, which historically has served as an arbiter of Venezuela's political disputes, to break with Maduro over what his foes consider violations of the constitution.

But the president is believed to still have the military's support. He and his predecessor, the late President Hugo Chavez, worked diligently to assure their allegiance.

Like Sunday's uprising, most manifestations of dissent among troops have been small and isolated thus far.

"It's still very hard to know to what extent there are significant divisions within the military," Michael Shifter, president of the Washington-based Inter-American Dialogue, said recently.

The attack capped an already tense weekend during which a new constitutional assembly that will rule with nearly unlimited powers voted to remove chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz.

Ortega Diaz, a longtime government loyalist who has become one of Maduro's most outspoken critics, reiterated her refusal to recognize that decision at a public appearance alongside opposition leaders Sunday.

"I am still Venezuela's chief prosecutor," she said to applause.

The assembly ordered her replaced by Ombudsman Tarek William Saab, who was recently sanctioned by Washington for failing to protect protesters from abuses in his role as the nation's top human rights official.

In his Sunday address, Maduro defended the constitutional assembly's right to remove Ortega Diaz, comparing it to U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to fire acting Attorney General Sally Yates after she publicly questioned his immigration order shortly after taking office in January.

He also announced that a new "truth commission" was being installed Sunday, setting up its offices in a historic building in Caracas that also houses the Ministry of Foreign Relations. The commission will have the right to require those it summons to testify and those who lie can be charged with perjury, the president said.

Maduro said the assembly is considering creating a law against "hate, intolerance and fascism" that would immediately punish those responsible for the current upheaval.

Maduro frequently refers to opposition leaders and protesters as "fascists."

The president singled out Julio Borges, the leader of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, warning him, "Justice is coming for you and the terrorists you've helped advance."
Leaked transcripts of presidential calls aren't just embarrassing to Donald Trump. They could undermine faith in Washington's ability to protect confidential conversations and intelligence, and have a chilling effect on American diplomacy.

In the latest and perhaps most egregious sign of a U.S. administration that can't keep a lid on its private deliberations, The Washington Post this week published a written record of phone conversations between Trump and the leaders of Mexico and Australia. The talks took place soon after Trump's January inauguration.

Such leaks have enraged Trump. On Friday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions pledged to rein in government leaks that he blamed for jeopardizing American security, after being called weak on leaks by Trump. And White House adviser Kellyanne Conway raised the possibility of lie detector tests for the small number of people in the West Wing and elsewhere with access to transcripts of Trump's phone calls.

Experts and former U.S. officials also warn the leaks could add to mistrust among international partners grappling with Trump's unconventional approach to foreign policy, which includes at least one high-profile case of the U.S. president sharing the sensitive intelligence from a foreign ally. The cumulative effect may be to hurt Washington's leadership in world affairs.

"The risk is that our foreign counterparts no longer believe we are capable of keeping conversations, or even their intelligence, private," said Jon Finer, who was Secretary of State John Kerry's chief of staff during President Barack Obama's second term. "This is not just embarrassing to the president. It is bad for the country, since cooperation on issues like terrorism is essential to our security."

The transcripts broadly confirm what was reported at the time about Trump's tough conversations with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. But they offered new detail and laid bare the U.S. president's preoccupation about how he is viewed at home, even when speaking to the leader of a foreign government.

Trump urged Pena Nieto to stop saying his country won't pay for the wall along the southern U.S. border, which Trump promised would happen during his maverick campaign for the presidency. The two leaders agreed to stop talking about the subject in public.

With Turnbull, Trump objected strongly to a refugee deal he inherited for the U.S. to accept asylum seekers who had been trying to reach Australia. Trump complained the deal made him look bad and reported having had a more pleasant conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The comment was particularly stark given the depth of U.S.-Australian cooperation on diplomacy, defense and intelligence matters, compared with severe distrust between Washington and Moscow.

Mark Fitzpatrick at the International Institute for Strategic Studies noted that WikiLeaks' mass publication of U.S. cables "already blew away the presumption that diplomatic conversations would be held in confidence. But this latest episode makes the problem worse."

The leaked calls were "not catastrophic," said Kathleen Hicks at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank. But if repeated, she said, such leaks could erode foreign leaders' trust in the U.S.

"If you need to talk about something highly sensitive, have an in-person conversation with minimal amount of folks in the room," said Anthony Clark Arend, professor of government and foreign service at Georgetown University.

"Do not have a phone conversation with the president," he said.

The public appearance of such transcripts is extremely rare, though not unprecedented. A transcript of an April call between Trump and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, in which the U.S. leader praised the Asian nation's deadly war on drugs, leaked a month later. Yet that was a Philippine document.

The U.S. leak could add to anxiety among U.S. allies already concerned about Trump's ambivalence about NATO and unusual embrace of authoritarian leaders in Russia and China. There also have been several intelligence leaks during his presidency.

In May, British Prime Minister Theresa May protested to Trump after U.S. officials leaked information about a deadly bombing in Manchester. Photos showing crime scene evidence appeared in U.S. media; the bombing suspect's name was revealed while British officials were still withholding it. Trump said May was "very angry" over the leaks.

Around that time, the president himself came under fire for reportedly disclosing classified material gathered by close ally Israel. Trump shared the information with Russian officials in an Oval Office meeting.

Georgetown's Arend said foreign governments are likely to compartmentalize how they share information with the U.S. They'll likely maintain confidence in U.S. intelligence and military chiefs, and top American diplomats, he said, but will be more reticent with the White House.

"There really is a fear that anything you would say to the president would get spun around or disclosed in a way one would not have expected," Arend said.

Associated Press writer Bradley Klapper contributed to this report.
Workers at a Nissan assembly plant in Mississippi have voted against forming a union, adding to decades of futility by United Auto Workers organizers at foreign-owned auto plants in the American South.

Representatives of Nissan Motor Co. and the UAW said late Friday voters at the plant cast ballots against the UAW. Nissan spokeswoman Parul Baraj said the final total was 2,244 to 1,307 against the union.

"They have rejected the UAW and chosen to self-represent, continuing the direct relationship they enjoy with the company," Bajaj said in a statement "Our expectation is that the UAW will respect and abide by their decision and cease their efforts to divide our Nissan family."

The UAW has never fully organized an international automaker in the traditionally anti-union South, although it did persuade some maintenance workers to join at a Volkswagen AG plant in Tennessee. The UAW's lack of influence among southern auto workers has reduced its bargaining power when Detroit automakers lose market share and close plants. After pouring resources into the organizing drive at Nissan, this loss could leave UAW leaders with tough decisions.

"The result of the election was a setback for these workers, the UAW and working Americans everywhere, but in no way should it be considered a defeat," UAW President Dennis Williams said in a statement.

The union filed seven new charges with the National Labor Relations Board just before polls closed Friday alleging that Nissan had broken federal labor laws during the campaign. If the labor board rules in favor of the charges, the board could order a fresh election. Among the claims: Nissan provided a faulty contact list to the union, it caused a contract worker to be filed because of his union support, and a manager told workers July 28 that they would lose benefits it they voted for a union.

UAW Secretary-Treasurer Gary Casteel had telegraphed the move Monday, when he alleged illegal activity by the company and said that if the union lost, it would be a "direct result of the unlawful behavior."

Nissan spokeswoman Parul Bajaj said the company lived up to its obligations in providing the list. She generally denied the other charges.

"The UAW is again launching baseless and unsubstantiated allegations against Nissan Canton in a desperate, last-minute attempt to undermine the integrity of the secret ballot voting process," Bajaj said in a statement.

The labor board has already issued a complaint against Nissan alleging other labor law violations that predate the election, but a judge has yet to rule on those. A decision on the new charges could be months or years away.

The union also could try to encourage a backlash against Nissan outside the United States, where it has tried to build pressure on the company through unions at other plants and supporters in the French government, which owns nearly 20 percent of the Renault Group, Nissan's business partner. Nissan has sought to finesse its position against unions in the U.S. while defending its work with organized labor in the rest of the world. Carlos Ghosn, chairman of the Renault-Nissan Alliance, told French lawmakers last year that the alliance "has no tradition of not cooperating with unions."

Nissan denies breaking any laws. Rodney Francis, the plant's human resources director, said the company has a right to make its case to workers that unionization would hurt management flexibility and make the plant less competitive economically. Republican Gov. Phil Bryant and anti-union workers blamed the UAW for layoffs and plant closings by Detroit's major automakers.

"With the UAW, all you've got to do is look at their history," said Tony Hobson, a Nissan forklift driver and outspoken union opponent.

For years, union organizers reached out to the majority African-American workforce at the Canton Vehicle Assembly Plant, arguing that workers' rights are civil rights. They pointed to reduced retirement and health benefits for longtime workers, and lower pay scales for 1,500 Nissan workers who began as contract laborers in recent years. The remaining contract laborers, as well as managers, engineers, clerical workers and employees of suppliers at the 6,400-worker complex, weren't eligible to vote.

A 2015 study by the Center for Automotive Research found that Nissan paid an average of $44 an hour in pay and benefits, toward the low end of all automakers. Nissan has given pay raises since then.

Workers at Nissan's plant in Smyrna, Tennessee, voted against UAW representation in 1989 and 2001, but this was the first election at the Mississippi plant. The UAW also lost a 2014 vote among all workers at Volkswagen in 2014 before winning a second vote among 160 maintenance workers. Efforts to organize other foreign-owned plants in Alabama and Kentucky have never come to votes.

Both sides shifted into a frenetic and highly visibly campaign mode after pro-UAW workers filed petitions seeking a vote in early July.

Kristen Dziczek of the Center for Automotive Research said that although the UAW was the underdog, odds were unlikely to improve soon, as President Donald Trump's appointees take over the National Labor Relations Board. A corruption scandal involving union employees allegedly taking bribes from a former Fiat Chrysler executive also threatened to spread.

The UAW's failed campaign could leave scars. Pro-UAW worker Earnestine Meeks said a co-worker flashed a gun at her, demanding she leave his property during a home visit by union backers recently. Francis said he hadn't thought about what comes after, saying he was "laser-focused" on the union vote.
The Bangor Police Department in Maine says an infant injured by a family dog has died.

The statement issued Sunday announced the death of the infant injured in a Bangor home on July 29. The dog involved was reportedly a Shepard mix.

Police Sgt. Brent Beaulieu said the baby succumbed to the injuries at Eastern Maine Medical Center. The child's identity and other details have not been released.

The Criminal Investigation Division of the Bangor Police Department is overseeing the case.
A 12-year-old girl was seriously injured when she was hit by an SUV driven by a drunk driver in South Boston on Saturday afternoon, according to Massachusetts State Police.

The child was hit just before 4:30 p.m. in the area of 395 Old Colony Ave. and taken to Tufts Medical Center with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

Attleboro resident Richard Higgins, 78, was placed under arrest for operating under the influence of alcohol after he allegedly hit the victim with his 2001 Ford Explorer.

Neighbors said that Higgins was pinballing - hitting parked cars on the side of the road - shortly before striking the victim.

Higgins already has two OUIs and initially fled the scene in his car until police apprehended him by the Koskiuzco rotary, authorities said.

Witnesses, who said the girl lives in a nearby apartment complex with her mother, tell NBC Boston the 12-year-old was walking in the crosswalk when she was hit, and that the impact caused her to fly over three cars before landing on the sidewalk.

State police are investigating the incident.
One of the three Marines believed to have died in an MV-22 Osprey crash off the coast of Australia was a Maine native.

Family members tell the Portland Press Herald that 1st Lt. Benjamin Robert Cross grew up in Bethel, Maine, and attended the Virginia Military Institute before joining the Marines.

A Marine statement indicates the Osprey launched from the USS Bonhomme Richard and was conducting regularly scheduled operations when it crashed Saturday. Twenty-three of 26 personnel aboard the aircraft were rescued.

U.S. military officials called off the search and rescue operation on Sunday.

In Maine, Ryan Cross said his 26-year-old brother loved to fly and "was proud of being a Marine and of the aircraft he flew." Cross' parents are Robert and Valerie Cross.
Jacob Marsden, the 23-year-old New Hampshire man who had been missing since late July, was found dead in Salisbury, Massachusetts on Saturday.

In a Facebook post by the Kensington, N.H. Police Station - Marsden's hometown, police said there was no evidence of foul play in his death.

Marsden was last seen on July 24 around 11:20 a.m. at a Home Depot in Seabrook, N.H. where he was caught on a surveillance camera. His cell phone was apparently shut off soon afterwards.

His car, a white Jeep Cherokee, was later found in Seabrook near Route 286 by the Massachusetts state line

Marsden's family had been offering a $5,000 reward for information on his location. They have asked for privacy now that his body has been found.
Commenting on Chandigarh stalking incident, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has said that action cannot be taken against BJP state president Subhash Barala.

By India Today Web Desk: After Haryana BJP state president Subhash Barala's son Vikas was arrested and released on bail the same day for stalking a woman, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar appeared to defend his party colleague.

With Opposition demanding action against Barala after a woman accused his son of stalking, Manohar Lal Khattar said that it was not appropriate to punish the BJP leader Barala for his son's crime.

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Khattar said, "I came to know about this incident. Chandigarh Police has filed the complaint and I believe they will take appropriate action. This matter is not related with Subhash Barala but with an individual. So action would be taken against his son."

THE INCIDENT

Subhash Barala's son Vikas was arrested on charges of stalking and harassing a woman in Chandigarh yesterday. After hours of confusion about the nature of charges to be slapped against Vikas, he was booked for bailable offence of stalking a woman. Vikas Barala was granted bail the same day.

Chandigarh Police registered against Vikas and his friend under Section 354 D (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 185 (Motor Vehicle Act) of the CrPC on the basis of complaint filed by the girl.

The woman is the daughter of a senior IAS officer. She alleged that Vikas and the other youth chased her on their bike in an inebriated state in Chandigarh's Sector 26.

After the incident came to light following complaint by the woman, the Congress demanded that appropriate action should be taken in the case. Congress leader Ashok Tanwar said, "This is an unfortunate incident. Now, the law and order should take its own course. The government and the police must act."

(With inputs from ANI)

ALSO READ |Vikas Barala, Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala's son, gets bail after being charged for stalking girl

ALSO WATCH | India Today Exclusive: Chandigarh harassment victim speaks

--- ENDS ---
More than 6,200 cyclists will ride in this weekend's Pan-Mass Challenge, a two-day, 192-mile ride across Massachusetts to raise money for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

The goal this year is to raise $48 million for cancer research and patient care. If that amount is raised, it would bring the PMC's 38-year contribution to Dana-Farber to more than $595 million.

The ride kicks off Saturday in Sturbridge, continues east through Massachusetts and ends at the finish line in Providence, Rhode Island on Sunday.

Go ahead ... make fun of the outfit #PanMass2017 pic.twitter.com/5apghYyjU1  Brian Shactman (@bshactman) August 5, 2017

Riders commit to raise between $500 and $7,800. Funds raised by the PMC account for more than 52 percent of the annual revenue of the Jimmy Fund, Dana-Farber's fundraising arm.

Many of the riders and volunteers are cancer survivors or current patients.
James H Money designed town hall

A BLUE plaque to honour Newbury architect James H Money has been unveiled at Newbury Town Hall.

Mr Money, who died in 1918 aged 83, was responsible for the design of the town hall, which was built between 1876 and 1881 and extended in 1909.

He also designed 30 other buildings in Newbury and 70 throughout West Berkshire, including Hungerford Town Hall, and is considered to be Newburys answer to Sir Christopher Wren, having been so prolific during his working life.

His most familiar landmarks in Newbury include the Almshouses, Oddfellows Hall, Phoenix Brewery and the Falkland Memorial.

James Henry Money was born in Donnington and, on leaving school, trained in London as an architect and completed designs for buildings across England.

On his return to Newbury, he joined his fathers practice, which he took over in the 1850s, and set up office at 34 Northbrook Street.

His designs were numerous, in many different styles and these included cottages, pubs (including The Bell at Boxford), breweries, shops, schools, chapels (including Thatcham Cemetery) and extensions to many local country houses.

Shaw Church was Moneys parish church and he designed the ornate wooden gateway, which stands today and is where he and his wife, Martha are buried.

The plaque was unveiled on Tuesday by Newbury mayor David Fenn.

Among the guests were Moneys great grandsons Christopher Blissard-Barnes and Anthony Wells, as well as Peter Snape, great grandson of his brother Walter Money, the well-known Newbury historian, who has his own blue plaque in the town.
Sunitha Natti By

Express News Service

MUMBAI: The first month of the GST rollout appears to have been smoother than imagined. Several companies sales volumes and profits took a hit, and analysts warn of more carnage spilling into the second quarter. Typically, when sales fall, brokerages and investors dump the stocks, causing mayhem. But, this time around, markets arent tossing the scrips, as experts say long-term benefits will far outweigh the GSTs transitory impact.

Quarterly results of some of the consumer goods companies such as Marico, V-Guard, Godrej, Hindustan Unilever all had one common concern: de-stocking by traders in the run-up to GST implementation. While some firms were prompt in revising sticker prices factoring in new tax rates, others are yet to do so.

Analysts warn volumes and sales may remain weak for a few months, as GST disrupted supplies, prompting outlets to cut inventories.

Consumer goods companies like toothpaste maker Colgate-Palmolive, Godrej Consumer Products, Marico and Emami Ltd, saw sales and profits fall behind Street estimates as dealers cut inventories. For some of these companies, it was a double whammy, as they were just coming out the note-ban effect.

For instance, Marico saw its profits plunge 12 per cent in the June quarter at Rs 236 crore as against Rs 268 crore a year ago.

The FMCG major also saw an almost 4 per cent fall in its consolidated revenue, which it attributed to the de-stocking effect and steep inventory correction. Despite a significant increase in input costs, the company held back price rise in fast-moving product categories like Parachute Rigids. In the near-term, input costs are likely to increase further and Marico will have to revise prices in the months to come.

Owing to de-stocking, Parachutes volumes fell 9 per cent during the June quarter solely because of trade inventory correction. Likewise, its Saffola refined edible oils franchise too saw volumes dipping by 9 per cent, while hair oils saw 8 per cent fall. During the quarter, Marico did launch new packaging in some product categories, but it failed to stem the slide.

While the operating performance for the quarter was below par, we continued with our renewed thrust on innovation, which is evident from a slew of new launchesWe believe that GST will help organized players in the long-run, said Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO, Marico in a statement.

Then theres Godrej Consumers that turned in a disappointing set of numbers, posting its slowest pace of revenue growth in 13 quarters, partially clouded by GST transition. While sales in April and May were strong, June sales growth dipped due to channel destocking in the run-up to the implementation of the transformative GST, said Nisaba Godrej, Executive Chairperson, Godrej Consumers.

But the maker of soaps and hair oils expects the situation to normalise in the second quarter. We look forward to stronger growth in the second half of the year, Nisaba explained.

The tax, overall, saw inventory correction and volume sales simply grind to a halt in June for most companies. But firms arent really fretting. Instead, they hope the current quarter will likely see a positive impact and help organised players in the long-run.

For VIP, which jacked up prices by 6 per cent (as the tax slab rose from 18 per cent pre-GST to 28 per cent now), June quarter revenue rose 9 per cent over last year, but sales in June were subdued. The company strongly believes GST is a short-term dampener.

Likewise, tyre maker Ceat saw its consolidated net profit fall a whopping 98.6 per cent to Rs 1.28 crore due to destocking, but Ceat says it is transitory. We expect it (GST) to bring positive impact for the tyre industry in the long-run, said Anand Goenka, MD, Ceat.

Among the worst hit is the auto sector, which was already reeling under stress with muted sales owing to changes in BS-III emission norms. Passenger vehicle sales, particularly, were adversely impacted during the June quarter in anticipation of a price reduction due to GST. Auto maker M&M saw its profits plunge 20 per cent during the June quarter and its sales during the quarter were the lowest in the past 13 quarters.

MUMBAI: The first month of the GST rollout appears to have been smoother than imagined. Several companies sales volumes and profits took a hit, and analysts warn of more carnage spilling into the second quarter. Typically, when sales fall, brokerages and investors dump the stocks, causing mayhem. But, this time around, markets arent tossing the scrips, as experts say long-term benefits will far outweigh the GSTs transitory impact. Quarterly results of some of the consumer goods companies such as Marico, V-Guard, Godrej, Hindustan Unilever all had one common concern: de-stocking by traders in the run-up to GST implementation. While some firms were prompt in revising sticker prices factoring in new tax rates, others are yet to do so. Analysts warn volumes and sales may remain weak for a few months, as GST disrupted supplies, prompting outlets to cut inventories. Consumer goods companies like toothpaste maker Colgate-Palmolive, Godrej Consumer Products, Marico and Emami Ltd, saw sales and profits fall behind Street estimates as dealers cut inventories. For some of these companies, it was a double whammy, as they were just coming out the note-ban effect. For instance, Marico saw its profits plunge 12 per cent in the June quarter at Rs 236 crore as against Rs 268 crore a year ago. The FMCG major also saw an almost 4 per cent fall in its consolidated revenue, which it attributed to the de-stocking effect and steep inventory correction. Despite a significant increase in input costs, the company held back price rise in fast-moving product categories like Parachute Rigids. In the near-term, input costs are likely to increase further and Marico will have to revise prices in the months to come. Owing to de-stocking, Parachutes volumes fell 9 per cent during the June quarter solely because of trade inventory correction. Likewise, its Saffola refined edible oils franchise too saw volumes dipping by 9 per cent, while hair oils saw 8 per cent fall. During the quarter, Marico did launch new packaging in some product categories, but it failed to stem the slide. While the operating performance for the quarter was below par, we continued with our renewed thrust on innovation, which is evident from a slew of new launchesWe believe that GST will help organized players in the long-run, said Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO, Marico in a statement. Then theres Godrej Consumers that turned in a disappointing set of numbers, posting its slowest pace of revenue growth in 13 quarters, partially clouded by GST transition. While sales in April and May were strong, June sales growth dipped due to channel destocking in the run-up to the implementation of the transformative GST, said Nisaba Godrej, Executive Chairperson, Godrej Consumers. But the maker of soaps and hair oils expects the situation to normalise in the second quarter. We look forward to stronger growth in the second half of the year, Nisaba explained. The tax, overall, saw inventory correction and volume sales simply grind to a halt in June for most companies. But firms arent really fretting. Instead, they hope the current quarter will likely see a positive impact and help organised players in the long-run. For VIP, which jacked up prices by 6 per cent (as the tax slab rose from 18 per cent pre-GST to 28 per cent now), June quarter revenue rose 9 per cent over last year, but sales in June were subdued. The company strongly believes GST is a short-term dampener. Likewise, tyre maker Ceat saw its consolidated net profit fall a whopping 98.6 per cent to Rs 1.28 crore due to destocking, but Ceat says it is transitory. We expect it (GST) to bring positive impact for the tyre industry in the long-run, said Anand Goenka, MD, Ceat. Among the worst hit is the auto sector, which was already reeling under stress with muted sales owing to changes in BS-III emission norms. Passenger vehicle sales, particularly, were adversely impacted during the June quarter in anticipation of a price reduction due to GST. Auto maker M&M saw its profits plunge 20 per cent during the June quarter and its sales during the quarter were the lowest in the past 13 quarters.
By Express News Service

VIJAYAWADA: Just a day before Rakhi, stalls in the city were seen surrounded with people. Majority of the rakhis were seen coming from Kolkata, Ahmedabad and other cities. However, there is no sign of import from China. Sales persons said that raw materials like chamkis, stones, etc., might have been imported from China but they were produced in the country.Rakhi or Rakshabandhan, a festival of bonding between brothers and sisters, is celebrated on a grand scale across the State every year. The main element of this festival is the rakhi, which is tied to the wrist of brothers. Rakhi business is one of the highly profitable businesses. Each rakhi ranges from `10 to `10,000 depending on the work, material and craft.



As all the festival materials like kites for Pongal, lamps for Diwali, etc., are imported in large quantities from China, for Rakhi, only the raw material is imported. Usually, Rakhis come with colourful designs and beautiful art work. The art works are done in cities like Jaipur, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, etc., with the raw material imported from China.Krishna Das, a wholesale dealer of rakhis in Vijayawada city said, I am in the profession of selling rakhis, diyas and kites for almost 11 years and I usually buy them in bulk from Kolkata and Ahmedabad. Earlier we used to buy rakhi boxes from Gujarat and rakhis from Kolkata and arrange them in Vijayawada. Now we are getting everything arranged in those places. Here we dont find people who can make rakhis. So we buy them in other cities.



People come here and buy designer rakhis, prints, jewellery models, bracelet rakhis, etc. But no one asks whether it is made in China or in India. I dont think we have China rakhis as I have heard that many people, mostly women spend their time in making rakhis by working from home. Every year, I earn `3,000-4,000 a day by selling rakhis, said B Rishabh, a rakhi stall owner.

VIJAYAWADA: Just a day before Rakhi, stalls in the city were seen surrounded with people. Majority of the rakhis were seen coming from Kolkata, Ahmedabad and other cities. However, there is no sign of import from China. Sales persons said that raw materials like chamkis, stones, etc., might have been imported from China but they were produced in the country.Rakhi or Rakshabandhan, a festival of bonding between brothers and sisters, is celebrated on a grand scale across the State every year. The main element of this festival is the rakhi, which is tied to the wrist of brothers. Rakhi business is one of the highly profitable businesses. Each rakhi ranges from `10 to `10,000 depending on the work, material and craft. As all the festival materials like kites for Pongal, lamps for Diwali, etc., are imported in large quantities from China, for Rakhi, only the raw material is imported. Usually, Rakhis come with colourful designs and beautiful art work. The art works are done in cities like Jaipur, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, etc., with the raw material imported from China.Krishna Das, a wholesale dealer of rakhis in Vijayawada city said, I am in the profession of selling rakhis, diyas and kites for almost 11 years and I usually buy them in bulk from Kolkata and Ahmedabad. Earlier we used to buy rakhi boxes from Gujarat and rakhis from Kolkata and arrange them in Vijayawada. Now we are getting everything arranged in those places. Here we dont find people who can make rakhis. So we buy them in other cities. People come here and buy designer rakhis, prints, jewellery models, bracelet rakhis, etc. But no one asks whether it is made in China or in India. I dont think we have China rakhis as I have heard that many people, mostly women spend their time in making rakhis by working from home. Every year, I earn `3,000-4,000 a day by selling rakhis, said B Rishabh, a rakhi stall owner.
By ANI

WASHINGTON: Beware! People who live lonely and social isolated are more prone to die early than obese people, warns a study.

Researchers conducted two meta-analyses, the first involved 3,00,000 participants and found that greater social connection is associated with a 50 percent reduced risk of early death.

The second study, involving more than 3.4 million individuals primarily from North America but also from Europe, Asia and Australia found that social isolation, loneliness or living alone had a significant and equal effect on the risk of premature death.

Study author Julianne Holt-Lunstad from Brigham Young University said being connected to others socially is widely considered a fundamental human need  crucial to both well-being and survival.

Extreme examples show infants in custodial care who lack human contact fail to thrive and often die, and indeed, social isolation or solitary confinement has been used as a form of punishment.

Holt-Lunstad added that an increasing portion of the U.S. population now experiences isolation regularly.

Approximately 42.6 million adults over age 45 in the United States are estimated to be suffering from chronic loneliness.

In addition, the most recent U.S. Census data shows more than a quarter of the population lives alone, more than half of the population is unmarried and since the previous census, marriage rates and the number of children per household have declined.

These trends suggest that Americans are becoming less socially connected and experiencing more loneliness, said the researchers.

"There is robust evidence that social isolation and loneliness significantly increase the risk for premature mortality, and the magnitude of the risk exceeds that of many leading health indicators," said Holt-Lunstad.

The researchers recommended a greater priority be placed on research and resources to tackle this public health threat from the societal to the individual level. Greater emphasis could be placed on social skills training for children in schools and doctors should be encouraged to include social connectedness in medical screening.

The research presented at the 125th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association.

WASHINGTON: Beware! People who live lonely and social isolated are more prone to die early than obese people, warns a study. Researchers conducted two meta-analyses, the first involved 3,00,000 participants and found that greater social connection is associated with a 50 percent reduced risk of early death. The second study, involving more than 3.4 million individuals primarily from North America but also from Europe, Asia and Australia found that social isolation, loneliness or living alone had a significant and equal effect on the risk of premature death. Study author Julianne Holt-Lunstad from Brigham Young University said being connected to others socially is widely considered a fundamental human need  crucial to both well-being and survival. Extreme examples show infants in custodial care who lack human contact fail to thrive and often die, and indeed, social isolation or solitary confinement has been used as a form of punishment. Holt-Lunstad added that an increasing portion of the U.S. population now experiences isolation regularly. Approximately 42.6 million adults over age 45 in the United States are estimated to be suffering from chronic loneliness. In addition, the most recent U.S. Census data shows more than a quarter of the population lives alone, more than half of the population is unmarried and since the previous census, marriage rates and the number of children per household have declined. These trends suggest that Americans are becoming less socially connected and experiencing more loneliness, said the researchers. "There is robust evidence that social isolation and loneliness significantly increase the risk for premature mortality, and the magnitude of the risk exceeds that of many leading health indicators," said Holt-Lunstad. The researchers recommended a greater priority be placed on research and resources to tackle this public health threat from the societal to the individual level. Greater emphasis could be placed on social skills training for children in schools and doctors should be encouraged to include social connectedness in medical screening. The research presented at the 125th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association.
Namita Bajpai By

Express News Service

LUCKNOW: In a major early morning swoop down on Sunday, UP ATS officers, joined by a team of commandos, raided a number of places in western UP districts and arrested a Bangladeshi terror suspect Abdullah-Al-Mamon from Kutesara village of Charthawal police station area of Muzaffarnagar district.

According to a statement issued by UP ATS, Abdullah, originally a resident of Momin Shahi district of Bangladesh belonged to the Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), a terror outfit of Bangladesh. During grilling he was believed to have revealed to the ATS sleuths that his main task was to allegedly settle the members of ABT in India by providing them with fake Aadhaar IDs and other documents.

Abdullah, son of Raheesuddin Ahmad, was nabbed from a local mosque where he was believed to be working as a Mualvi for the last one and a half months. Prior to this, he was based in Ambeta Shekha mosque in Deoband area in Saharanpur district. The UP ATS statement also said that Abdullah, who was staying in different districts of western UP since 2011, used to travel to Saharanpur and Deoband frequently.

On the basis of the tip-off given by Abdullah, the ATS team rounded up four more suspects  three from Deoband police station area of Sarahanrpur district and one from Charthawal, Muzaffarnagar. The suspect, other than Abdullah, held in Muzaffarnagar is Faizan Farhan of West Bengal. Of the other three, two are believed to be from Jammu and Kashmir and the fourth is from Bihar.

Sharing details of the raids and recoveries, ADG (law and order) Anand Kumar also revealed the ambit of operation of the suspects. The ADG said, Apart from Ansarullah Bangla Team, they were also looking after the operations of Hijbul-Jamait-e-lsami (Huji), Jaish-e-Mohammad. They were radicalising the youngsters with ISIS literature, he added. ADG Kumar also revealed that besides the explosives, fake seals, documents, huge jihadi literature in Bangla was also seized by the ATS sleuths during the swoop down.

The raiding teams also recovered some fake stamps of village heads, district election officer and other administrative authorities to prepare fake IDs for other terror suspects and ensure their settlement in India. Moreover, the cops also seized explosives and material used for making bomb from Abdullahs hideout.

Besides, raids were also carried out in Shamli district and the ATS sleuths held two madrasa students from Jalalabad township. They were also suspected to have terror links. All those nabbed on Sunday raids were taken to an undisclosed place for interrogation.

Aseem Arun, IG, UP ATS said, currently, police of three districts  Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and Shamli  were conducting massive search operations under DIG, Saharanpur range, to nab more sleeping modules active in the region and who had been in Abdullahs contact.

As per the information provided by TRAC (Terrorism, Research & Analysis Consortium), ABT, a banned outfit, is an al Qaida-inspired militant group active in Bangladesh. Its main motive is to radicalization Bangladeshi youth, ensure their active participation in local jihad and take areas in Bangladesh in their control. According to website of TRAC, the group uses cyberspace extensively to promote jihadi ideology and training manuals to guide terror attacks. The sleeping cells basically operate from mosques

LUCKNOW: In a major early morning swoop down on Sunday, UP ATS officers, joined by a team of commandos, raided a number of places in western UP districts and arrested a Bangladeshi terror suspect Abdullah-Al-Mamon from Kutesara village of Charthawal police station area of Muzaffarnagar district. According to a statement issued by UP ATS, Abdullah, originally a resident of Momin Shahi district of Bangladesh belonged to the Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), a terror outfit of Bangladesh. During grilling he was believed to have revealed to the ATS sleuths that his main task was to allegedly settle the members of ABT in India by providing them with fake Aadhaar IDs and other documents. Abdullah, son of Raheesuddin Ahmad, was nabbed from a local mosque where he was believed to be working as a Mualvi for the last one and a half months. Prior to this, he was based in Ambeta Shekha mosque in Deoband area in Saharanpur district. The UP ATS statement also said that Abdullah, who was staying in different districts of western UP since 2011, used to travel to Saharanpur and Deoband frequently. On the basis of the tip-off given by Abdullah, the ATS team rounded up four more suspects  three from Deoband police station area of Sarahanrpur district and one from Charthawal, Muzaffarnagar. The suspect, other than Abdullah, held in Muzaffarnagar is Faizan Farhan of West Bengal. Of the other three, two are believed to be from Jammu and Kashmir and the fourth is from Bihar. Sharing details of the raids and recoveries, ADG (law and order) Anand Kumar also revealed the ambit of operation of the suspects. The ADG said, Apart from Ansarullah Bangla Team, they were also looking after the operations of Hijbul-Jamait-e-lsami (Huji), Jaish-e-Mohammad. They were radicalising the youngsters with ISIS literature, he added. ADG Kumar also revealed that besides the explosives, fake seals, documents, huge jihadi literature in Bangla was also seized by the ATS sleuths during the swoop down. The raiding teams also recovered some fake stamps of village heads, district election officer and other administrative authorities to prepare fake IDs for other terror suspects and ensure their settlement in India. Moreover, the cops also seized explosives and material used for making bomb from Abdullahs hideout. Besides, raids were also carried out in Shamli district and the ATS sleuths held two madrasa students from Jalalabad township. They were also suspected to have terror links. All those nabbed on Sunday raids were taken to an undisclosed place for interrogation. Aseem Arun, IG, UP ATS said, currently, police of three districts  Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and Shamli  were conducting massive search operations under DIG, Saharanpur range, to nab more sleeping modules active in the region and who had been in Abdullahs contact. As per the information provided by TRAC (Terrorism, Research & Analysis Consortium), ABT, a banned outfit, is an al Qaida-inspired militant group active in Bangladesh. Its main motive is to radicalization Bangladeshi youth, ensure their active participation in local jihad and take areas in Bangladesh in their control. According to website of TRAC, the group uses cyberspace extensively to promote jihadi ideology and training manuals to guide terror attacks. The sleeping cells basically operate from mosques
By Prabhash K Dutta: August 6, 1945 was one of the two bloodiest days in human's history. Hiroshima and Nagasaki separated by about 300 km and three days were nuked by the United States in its attempt to end World War II.

On August 6, at 8.16 am local time - 4.46 am in India - America dropped the world's first atom bomb over Hiroshima. Literally, the word Hiroshima means 'the broad island'. Hiroshima is situated on the largest island of Japan - Honshu.

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Hiroshima was an important urban centre in Japan when the B-29 bomber named the Enola Gay of the US unleashed the Little Boy on it. Little Boy was the nickname of the atom bomb that fell over the city of Hiroshima.

As per records, approximately 80,000 people were killed directly by the explosion of the atom bomb. Another 35,000 were injured and maimed for life. By the end of 1945, another estimated 60,000 people lost their lives under the impact of harmful radiations emanating from Little Boy.

By the end of 1945, Little Boy had killed more than 1,40,000 people in Hiroshima, which turned into heaps of mangled concrete and metal.

UNLEASHING OF LITTLE BOY

By August 1945, the World War II had started to show signs of fatigue. The countries engaged in war were facing acute crisis in their homelands. Japan, too, was under pressure but it was relentless.

Meanwhile, following the death of Adolf Hitler and defeat of Nazi Germany, Potsdam conference - also called the Berlin Conference - was held. At the end of it, Potsdam Declaration dictated by the US, the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom, asked Japan to surrender unconditionally.

Japan refused to bow down. It continued conventional bombings on the targets of the allied forces. The United States President Harry Truman enraged with Japan's response gave orders for atom bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Hiroshima was the headquarters of the Second General Army and Chugoku Regional Army of Japan during the During World War II. Hiroshima also had large depots of military supplies. It was a key centre for shipping.

Tokyo had already been bombed and large part of the city had turned into debris. Hiroshima was the major supply centre for the Japanese army. For Truman and his American advisors Hiroshima was the right target to bring Japan on its knees.

Peace Memorial Park and Atomic Bomb Dome (left) were built in Hiroshima to pay respects to those killed by Little Boy atom bomb in 1945. (Photo: Reuters)

HOW IT HAPPENED?

Truman justified nuking Hiroshima saying that there would have been much more loss of lives if American forces entered Japan. His logic was that he saved many more lives in Japan by giving nod for dropping Little Boy over Hiroshima.

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So, other fighter aircrafts of the allied forces were busy bombing various Japanese cities, Little Boy was mounted on B-29 being flown by Lieutenant Colonel Paul Tibbets. The bomber left for Hiroshima from the Mariana Islands near Philippines and administered by the US around 2.45 am and 5.30 hours later, Little Boy was dropped over Hiroshima.

Little Boy had inscriptions engraved on its outer shell. One inscription read, "Greetings to the Emperor from the men of the Indianapolis." The Indianapolis was the ship that transported the bomb from mainland America to the Marianas.

Little Boy exploded about 1,900 feet or 5,790 metres over a local hospital. The atom bomb released energy equivalent to the explosion of 12,500 tons of TNT (tri-nitro toluene). Of the 90,000 buildings that Hiroshima had before being nuked, only about 25,000 remained. The rest formed debris.

Over 70 per cent of its geographical areas came under the direct impact of the bomb. Today, Hiroshima is again a bustling city. Interestingly, Hiroshima has named the oleander as its official flower. Oleander was the first to bloom again a year after the Little Boy destroyed the parent city.

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ALSO READ |

Students hold rally on Hiroshima Day

Hiroshima survivors want disarmament, not apology from Obama

--- ENDS ---
Pradip R Sagar By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: After discontinuing free rations for army officers, the central government has now banned military farms, which were part and parcel of cantonment life for over a century.

Cabinet Committees decision on the closure of 39 military farms within in a period of three months came after repeated complaints of corruption in the system.

The government believes that the military farmswhich rear around 23,600 livestock with an annual production of over 335 lakh kg of milk, vegetables, fodder and fertilisers under an annual budget of over Rs 400 croreare no longer needed due to widespread availability of milk, vegetables, and other products in the open civilian market.

With rapid grown of urbanisation, cantonments are no longer isolated and everything is available in the open market. So military farms became irrelevant, said an officer.

Conceived by the British in 1889, the farms are spread over 20,126 acres in Ahmednagar, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Secunderabad, Mhow, Jhansi, Dimapur, Guwahati, Jorhat, Panagarh, Kolkata, Ambala, Jalandhar, Agra, Pathankot, Allahabad, Lucknow, Meerut, Kanpur, Ranikhet, Jammu, Srinagar, Kargil and Udhampur, among others.

The decision will see nearly 2,000 Army personnel transferred to other wings.

NEW DELHI: After discontinuing free rations for army officers, the central government has now banned military farms, which were part and parcel of cantonment life for over a century. Cabinet Committees decision on the closure of 39 military farms within in a period of three months came after repeated complaints of corruption in the system. The government believes that the military farmswhich rear around 23,600 livestock with an annual production of over 335 lakh kg of milk, vegetables, fodder and fertilisers under an annual budget of over Rs 400 croreare no longer needed due to widespread availability of milk, vegetables, and other products in the open civilian market. With rapid grown of urbanisation, cantonments are no longer isolated and everything is available in the open market. So military farms became irrelevant, said an officer. Conceived by the British in 1889, the farms are spread over 20,126 acres in Ahmednagar, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Secunderabad, Mhow, Jhansi, Dimapur, Guwahati, Jorhat, Panagarh, Kolkata, Ambala, Jalandhar, Agra, Pathankot, Allahabad, Lucknow, Meerut, Kanpur, Ranikhet, Jammu, Srinagar, Kargil and Udhampur, among others. The decision will see nearly 2,000 Army personnel transferred to other wings.
Ejaz Kaiser By

Express News Service

RAIPUR: The Chhattisgarh government on Sunday suspended yet another deputy jail superintendent for his allegedly objectionable social media post interpreted as in support of the outlawed CPI (Maoist).

Three months after deputy superintendent of Raipur Central Jail Varsha Dongre was suspended for indiscipline, Dinesh Dhruv, deputy jailer at Baloda bazar district, faced the same move.

He uploaded a Facebook post which was viewed as in support of left-wing extremists.

Deputy inspector general of police (Jail) K K Gupta said that Dinesh Dhruvs suspension is on the same grounds and justification the same as was taken against Varsha Dongre.

We will file a chargesheet against Dhruv. His message on Facebook appears in support of Maoists. He violated the service code of conduct and the prescribed guidelines on use of social media for the government staff to desist from making such undesirable remarks without any basis, K K Gupta told the New Indian Express.

Dinesh Dhruv claimed that he wrote the content citing all tribals are not Maoists, actually in support of the tribals. However, the post, which Dhruv later deleted, was construed by the jail authorities as objectionable and apparently in favour of Maoists.

Dinesh Dhruv called it unjustified action and said that he has not done anything that warranted the suspension.

Varsha Dongre had in one of her social media posts alleged that security forces resort to torture and atrocities on young tribal girls at police stations in Maoist-affected Bastar.

Following Dinesh Dhruvs suspension, Varsha Dongre criticised the move and said, Yet another innocent assistant jail superintendent suspended for raising a voice against tribal atrocities and injustice.

Varsha Dongre was suspended on May 6 and transferred from Raipur to Ambikapur central jail in north Chhattisgarh.

RAIPUR: The Chhattisgarh government on Sunday suspended yet another deputy jail superintendent for his allegedly objectionable social media post interpreted as in support of the outlawed CPI (Maoist). Three months after deputy superintendent of Raipur Central Jail Varsha Dongre was suspended for indiscipline, Dinesh Dhruv, deputy jailer at Baloda bazar district, faced the same move. He uploaded a Facebook post which was viewed as in support of left-wing extremists. Deputy inspector general of police (Jail) K K Gupta said that Dinesh Dhruvs suspension is on the same grounds and justification the same as was taken against Varsha Dongre. We will file a chargesheet against Dhruv. His message on Facebook appears in support of Maoists. He violated the service code of conduct and the prescribed guidelines on use of social media for the government staff to desist from making such undesirable remarks without any basis, K K Gupta told the New Indian Express. Dinesh Dhruv claimed that he wrote the content citing all tribals are not Maoists, actually in support of the tribals. However, the post, which Dhruv later deleted, was construed by the jail authorities as objectionable and apparently in favour of Maoists. Dinesh Dhruv called it unjustified action and said that he has not done anything that warranted the suspension. Varsha Dongre had in one of her social media posts alleged that security forces resort to torture and atrocities on young tribal girls at police stations in Maoist-affected Bastar. Following Dinesh Dhruvs suspension, Varsha Dongre criticised the move and said, Yet another innocent assistant jail superintendent suspended for raising a voice against tribal atrocities and injustice. Varsha Dongre was suspended on May 6 and transferred from Raipur to Ambikapur central jail in north Chhattisgarh.
By PTI

CHANDIGARH: An IAS officer, whose daughter was allegedly stalked by the son of a senior Haryana BJP leader, today took to social media and urged people to fight crime against women while also sharing the ordeal his family had gone through.

The victim also expressed her anguish in a post saying she was lucky not to be the daughter of a commoner or else who knows what her fate could be.

"If we do not persist in trying to bring the guilty to justice, more and more daughters will suffer this hurt," said victim's father, in a Facebook post.

The son of Haryana's ruling BJP chief Subhash Barala was yesterday arrested along with his friend for allegedly stalking the woman here.

Both the accused, Vikas Barala (23) and Ashish Kumar (27), were released later on bail as they were booked under bailable sections of the IPC and the Motor Vehicles Act, amid political outcry.

The incident had come to light when the woman, around 28 years of age, called up the police on Friday night and complained that two youth were chasing her.

The father of the victim in his Facebook post thanked the Chandigarh police for being helpful and efficient in handling the matter.

While stating how his family had gone through a "horrendous experience", he said that it will take a long time for his daughter "to go back to a normal life."

Giving reasons for the Facebook post, the father said, "Our clear intention is to bring the culprits to book."

The woman in her complaint had alleged that two youth in an SUV followed her when she was driving from the Sector 8 market in Chandigarh towards Panchkula on the intervening night of August 4 and 5.

"There were two guys inside the SUV, and they seemed to really be enjoying harassing a lone girl in the middle of the night, judging by how often their car swerved, just enough to scare me that it might hit me," the woman wrote on her Facebook post.

"I'm lucky, it seems, to not be the daughter of a common man, because what chance would they have against such VIPs?

I'm also lucky, because I'm not lying raped and murdered in a ditch somewhere. If this can happen in Chandigarh, it can happen anywhere," she said.

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had said that the law will take its own course in the case while Haryana BJP president Subhash Barala had said he respects the law and the "truth" will come out through the court.

Meanwhile, the opposition Congress today held protests at various places against the incident.

State Congress chief Ashok Tanwar led one such protest in Faridabad.

"The arrogance of power in the BJP, the party which talks about saving and educating girl child, has reached to such a level that son of a state BJP chief dared to commit such crime," he said.

Senior Congress leader and MLA from Haryana, Randeep Singh Surjewala also strongly condemned the incident.

"Shocking & preposterous assault! Salute the brave girl and her parents. Your grit & determination makes us proud," Surjewala tweeted today.

Opposition party INLD and the leader of opposition Abhay Chautala demanded resignation of Barala on the issue.

Police yesterday said after receiving complaint, the PCR staff located the vehicle of the youth and apprehended them.

"They even tried to stop the (woman's) vehicle twice or thrice. They also banged the woman's vehicle with hands,"

Chandigarh police DSP Satish Kumar had said yesterday quoting from the complaint of the woman.

Both Vikas, who is a student of LLB, and his friend Ashish were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), the police said.

After the woman recorded her statement before the area magistrate here under section 164 of the CrPC, the police added another Section 341 (Punishment for wrongful restraint) in the FIR, according to officials.

CHANDIGARH: An IAS officer, whose daughter was allegedly stalked by the son of a senior Haryana BJP leader, today took to social media and urged people to fight crime against women while also sharing the ordeal his family had gone through. The victim also expressed her anguish in a post saying she was lucky not to be the daughter of a commoner or else who knows what her fate could be. "If we do not persist in trying to bring the guilty to justice, more and more daughters will suffer this hurt," said victim's father, in a Facebook post. The son of Haryana's ruling BJP chief Subhash Barala was yesterday arrested along with his friend for allegedly stalking the woman here. Both the accused, Vikas Barala (23) and Ashish Kumar (27), were released later on bail as they were booked under bailable sections of the IPC and the Motor Vehicles Act, amid political outcry. The incident had come to light when the woman, around 28 years of age, called up the police on Friday night and complained that two youth were chasing her. The father of the victim in his Facebook post thanked the Chandigarh police for being helpful and efficient in handling the matter. While stating how his family had gone through a "horrendous experience", he said that it will take a long time for his daughter "to go back to a normal life." Giving reasons for the Facebook post, the father said, "Our clear intention is to bring the culprits to book." The woman in her complaint had alleged that two youth in an SUV followed her when she was driving from the Sector 8 market in Chandigarh towards Panchkula on the intervening night of August 4 and 5. "There were two guys inside the SUV, and they seemed to really be enjoying harassing a lone girl in the middle of the night, judging by how often their car swerved, just enough to scare me that it might hit me," the woman wrote on her Facebook post. "I'm lucky, it seems, to not be the daughter of a common man, because what chance would they have against such VIPs? I'm also lucky, because I'm not lying raped and murdered in a ditch somewhere. If this can happen in Chandigarh, it can happen anywhere," she said. Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had said that the law will take its own course in the case while Haryana BJP president Subhash Barala had said he respects the law and the "truth" will come out through the court. Meanwhile, the opposition Congress today held protests at various places against the incident. State Congress chief Ashok Tanwar led one such protest in Faridabad. "The arrogance of power in the BJP, the party which talks about saving and educating girl child, has reached to such a level that son of a state BJP chief dared to commit such crime," he said. Senior Congress leader and MLA from Haryana, Randeep Singh Surjewala also strongly condemned the incident. "Shocking & preposterous assault! Salute the brave girl and her parents. Your grit & determination makes us proud," Surjewala tweeted today. Opposition party INLD and the leader of opposition Abhay Chautala demanded resignation of Barala on the issue. Police yesterday said after receiving complaint, the PCR staff located the vehicle of the youth and apprehended them. "They even tried to stop the (woman's) vehicle twice or thrice. They also banged the woman's vehicle with hands," Chandigarh police DSP Satish Kumar had said yesterday quoting from the complaint of the woman. Both Vikas, who is a student of LLB, and his friend Ashish were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), the police said. After the woman recorded her statement before the area magistrate here under section 164 of the CrPC, the police added another Section 341 (Punishment for wrongful restraint) in the FIR, according to officials.
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir police on Sunday said it has cracked the July 10 militant attack on Amarnath yatris in which eight yatris were killed and over a dozen injured. It blamed Lashkar-e-Toiba for the attack and said four militants including three Pakistanis led by Abu Ismail were involved in the attack and three locals, who provided logistic support to militants in carrying out the attack on yatris have been arrested.

The investigation into July 10 Amarnath yatri attack has revealed that LeT was behind the attack. A group of four militants including three Pakistanis and a Kashmiri led by LeT commander Abu Ismail carried out the attack. The three locals provided logistic support to the militants in carrying out the attack and they have been arrested, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir, Muneer Khan, told reporters at police headquarters in south Kashmirs Anantnag district today.

Eight yatris were killed and over a dozen injured in militant attack on yatra vehicle at Botengoo on July 10.

IGP said during investigation it was revealed Abu Ismail alias Haroon, Maaviya and Furqan, all Pakistani militants and a local militant Yawar Bashir alias Ayan carried out the attack on yatri vehicle on July 10. The yatri vehicle had a breakdown near Bijbehara and was there for quite some time. When it reached near Botengoo, it was attacked by the militants.

He said the militants had initially planned to carry out the attack on July 9. However, on that day there was no movement of CRPF or yatri vehicle in isolation in the Botengoo area.

The IGP said the militants were provided logistic and other support by three locals Bilal Ahmad Reshi (Shopkeeper), Aijaz Ahmad Wagay (Medical Representative) and Zahoor Ahmad Sheikh (Adhoc SRTC Driver).

The trio transported the militants through vehicles, provided shelter to them, and actively carried out reconnaissance of places for attack, he said.

He said the trio was arrested and during questioning they revealed everything about the modus operandi of the attack. It would not be right to call the arrested persons as Over Ground Workers (OGWs) since they were rather Militants Without Weapons (MWP).

The three accused were produced before court and are currently under police remand, the IGP said adding they had set code word 'Shaukat' for yatri vehicle and 'Bilal' for CRPF vehicle.

He said during the investigation tangible material evidence has been collected for establishing the complicity of the arrested persons in the crime.

It was purely a planned militant act, he asserted.

One the arrest person Bilal's elder brother Adil, who was an alleged Lashker-e-Taiba militant, was killed by security forces earlier this year.

After the militant attack on yatris, police had formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Deputy Inspector General (DIG) south Kashmir, S P Pani to probe the attack on the Amarnath pilgrims.

Pani, who had a stint in NIA, and his team managed to crack the case in less than a month.

IGP also released pictures of Abu Ismail and Yawar.

We are quite near to the militants involved in the attack. Hopefully we will be neutralisting them soon. It can be today or tomorrow, he said.

According to IGP , Yawar had joined LeT on February 1 this year.

Before that he was a student of religious seminary Darul-Uloom Bilaliya, Srinagar. He looted weapon from police personnel on February 4 at Hazratbal, Srinagar and joined militant ranks, he said.

Khan said police is investigating whether two LeT militants killed recently in an encounter with security forces in south Kashmir were also involved in the yatri attack.

SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir police on Sunday said it has cracked the July 10 militant attack on Amarnath yatris in which eight yatris were killed and over a dozen injured. It blamed Lashkar-e-Toiba for the attack and said four militants including three Pakistanis led by Abu Ismail were involved in the attack and three locals, who provided logistic support to militants in carrying out the attack on yatris have been arrested. The investigation into July 10 Amarnath yatri attack has revealed that LeT was behind the attack. A group of four militants including three Pakistanis and a Kashmiri led by LeT commander Abu Ismail carried out the attack. The three locals provided logistic support to the militants in carrying out the attack and they have been arrested, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir, Muneer Khan, told reporters at police headquarters in south Kashmirs Anantnag district today. Eight yatris were killed and over a dozen injured in militant attack on yatra vehicle at Botengoo on July 10. IGP said during investigation it was revealed Abu Ismail alias Haroon, Maaviya and Furqan, all Pakistani militants and a local militant Yawar Bashir alias Ayan carried out the attack on yatri vehicle on July 10. The yatri vehicle had a breakdown near Bijbehara and was there for quite some time. When it reached near Botengoo, it was attacked by the militants. He said the militants had initially planned to carry out the attack on July 9. However, on that day there was no movement of CRPF or yatri vehicle in isolation in the Botengoo area. The IGP said the militants were provided logistic and other support by three locals Bilal Ahmad Reshi (Shopkeeper), Aijaz Ahmad Wagay (Medical Representative) and Zahoor Ahmad Sheikh (Adhoc SRTC Driver). The trio transported the militants through vehicles, provided shelter to them, and actively carried out reconnaissance of places for attack, he said. He said the trio was arrested and during questioning they revealed everything about the modus operandi of the attack. It would not be right to call the arrested persons as Over Ground Workers (OGWs) since they were rather Militants Without Weapons (MWP). The three accused were produced before court and are currently under police remand, the IGP said adding they had set code word 'Shaukat' for yatri vehicle and 'Bilal' for CRPF vehicle. He said during the investigation tangible material evidence has been collected for establishing the complicity of the arrested persons in the crime. It was purely a planned militant act, he asserted. One the arrest person Bilal's elder brother Adil, who was an alleged Lashker-e-Taiba militant, was killed by security forces earlier this year. After the militant attack on yatris, police had formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Deputy Inspector General (DIG) south Kashmir, S P Pani to probe the attack on the Amarnath pilgrims. Pani, who had a stint in NIA, and his team managed to crack the case in less than a month. IGP also released pictures of Abu Ismail and Yawar. We are quite near to the militants involved in the attack. Hopefully we will be neutralisting them soon. It can be today or tomorrow, he said. According to IGP , Yawar had joined LeT on February 1 this year. Before that he was a student of religious seminary Darul-Uloom Bilaliya, Srinagar. He looted weapon from police personnel on February 4 at Hazratbal, Srinagar and joined militant ranks, he said. Khan said police is investigating whether two LeT militants killed recently in an encounter with security forces in south Kashmir were also involved in the yatri attack.
Anuraag Singh By

Express News Service

BHOPAL: A 28-year-old leader of an inter-state dacoit gang operating in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh was gunned down in an encounter by police in the jungles of Satna district on Sunday evening.



The police were in hot pursuit of Patel and his gang, who have unleashed terror in the past few weeks in the jungles of Satna district in MP and Chitrakoot district in UP.



Patel, with a Rs 1 lakh award on his head, was gunned down in the Pukharwar jungles by a special operation team headed by Satna police superintendent Rajesh Hingankar. The over hour-long encounter, however, didnt result in any injury or casualties for police.



A 315 bore rifle and a strap containing live cartridges has been seized from near Lalit Patels body. With Patels elimination, the last big dacoit operating in Satna district has been finished, said Rajesh Hingankar.



Hingankar and his team were in search of Patel and his gang members since June 30, after the gang burnt alive three youth from Satna in the Chitrakoot jungles. The victims were suspected to be police informers and from rival Gopa Yadavs gang.



A week ago, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan during his visit to Satna had raised the elimination of the gang. A native of Satna, Lalit Patel alias Satyanarayan alias Joker Patel was cousin to another major inter-state dacoit, Ambika Patel, alias Thokia. Thokia was gunned down by an Uttar Pradesh special task force (STF) team led by ASP Anant Deo in Chitrakoot jungles in 2008.



After Thokias elimination, Lalit Patel, joined the inter-state dacoit gang headed by Swadesh Patel, who carried Rs 6.5 lakh bounty on head. In July 2015, however, Balkhadiya was gunned down by cops in an encounter, after which Lalit Patel regrouped the members and formed his own gang.



Lalit Patel was accused in ten cases in MP, besides a few cases in UP also, said SP Satna. Patels elimination comes a few days after the arrest of two more inter-state dacoits, Gopa Yadav and Khardushan Yadav by the UP STF. While the SP claims that with Patels elimination on Sunday evening the last active major inter-state dacoit has been finished in MP, sources in UP police and STF say Babli Kol with a Rs 7 lakh bounty, is still active in jungles along the two state borders.



BHOPAL: A 28-year-old leader of an inter-state dacoit gang operating in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh was gunned down in an encounter by police in the jungles of Satna district on Sunday evening. The police were in hot pursuit of Patel and his gang, who have unleashed terror in the past few weeks in the jungles of Satna district in MP and Chitrakoot district in UP. Patel, with a Rs 1 lakh award on his head, was gunned down in the Pukharwar jungles by a special operation team headed by Satna police superintendent Rajesh Hingankar. The over hour-long encounter, however, didnt result in any injury or casualties for police. A 315 bore rifle and a strap containing live cartridges has been seized from near Lalit Patels body. With Patels elimination, the last big dacoit operating in Satna district has been finished, said Rajesh Hingankar. Hingankar and his team were in search of Patel and his gang members since June 30, after the gang burnt alive three youth from Satna in the Chitrakoot jungles. The victims were suspected to be police informers and from rival Gopa Yadavs gang. A week ago, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan during his visit to Satna had raised the elimination of the gang. A native of Satna, Lalit Patel alias Satyanarayan alias Joker Patel was cousin to another major inter-state dacoit, Ambika Patel, alias Thokia. Thokia was gunned down by an Uttar Pradesh special task force (STF) team led by ASP Anant Deo in Chitrakoot jungles in 2008. After Thokias elimination, Lalit Patel, joined the inter-state dacoit gang headed by Swadesh Patel, who carried Rs 6.5 lakh bounty on head. In July 2015, however, Balkhadiya was gunned down by cops in an encounter, after which Lalit Patel regrouped the members and formed his own gang. Lalit Patel was accused in ten cases in MP, besides a few cases in UP also, said SP Satna. Patels elimination comes a few days after the arrest of two more inter-state dacoits, Gopa Yadav and Khardushan Yadav by the UP STF. While the SP claims that with Patels elimination on Sunday evening the last active major inter-state dacoit has been finished in MP, sources in UP police and STF say Babli Kol with a Rs 7 lakh bounty, is still active in jungles along the two state borders.
Ravi Shankar By

Panic has seized North India. Unknown forces are at work, chopping off the braids of women in Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan. The hapless police, sweating to unearth spooky threats to the population is hot on the trail of an evil spirit with a hirsute itch, without any results so far. Though Rahul Gandhi has been giving the Congress party a haircut across states, there is no evidence that the Barber Demon is a political conspiracy.

Scissorhands has had many worthy predecessors who have spread panic and left without a trace. The Monkey Man generated headlines and mass frenzy around a decade agoa four-foot tall monster who scratched sleeping persons and leaped away into the dark. Its persona was part Jules Verne and part Amar Chitra Katha; it wore a helmet, brandished metal claws and had glowing red eyes. It inexplicably also sported three buttons on its chest like a mad tailor. Eyewitness accounts variedothers saw a gigantic Hanuman-like figure with parkour expertise.

Before the Monkey Man was the Muhnochwa of Kanpur, whose modus operandi was the same. There are periodic reports of mysterious handprints appearing on the walls of houses, where people died from supposed occult interference. In some parts of Bengaluru, April Fools Day is dedicated deadpan... excuse the pun, my bad... to a witch who brought death by knocking on doorsit could be warded off by writing a message on the door asking it to come the next day. Meghalaya was plagued for a while by a giant ape called Mande Burung. There are the good guys too; the milk-drinking Ganesha sent devotees into a state of bliss for feeding statues milk.

Urban legends are universal. There are crocodiles in New Yorks sewers. A beehive hairdo can kill. Saying Bloody Mary 1,000 times will raise a murderous ghost. The end of the world has been predicted so often that all men would have become ghosts by now.

Superstition is the step-sister of mass hysteria. As the dark folklore of mankind, it raises an undercurrent of fear in whose tides float nightmares reminding man of his mortality. No one is invulnerablenot the mightiest warrior, king or vassal. It dates back centuries, masquerading as a divine warning possessing the power to punish folk for sins seen and unseen. It can become a contagious scourge disrupting society; cruelty is often its dismal byproduct. Witch burnings killed thousands of innocent men and women in medieval Europe, Britain and America. A widow in ancient India was expected to jump into her husbands pyre. In Egypt and China of yore, servants and wives were buried alive with dead emperors to keep them company in the afterlife. The greatest fear of life is death.

In every person, however urbane, is a fear of Eddie on Elm Street. Carl Jung would have called it the collective subconscious effect, but mass hysteria cannot be underestimated as a moral energy.

There is too much unexplained in the world for all mysteries to be dismissed as mere shibboleths. The miracles of saints or stigmata on statues are not necessarily parlour tricks. Sai Baba is reported to have cured the fatally sick. Quantum physics speaks about parallel universesyou could be dead in one and playing cards in another. So go figure.

Panic has seized North India. Unknown forces are at work, chopping off the braids of women in Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan. The hapless police, sweating to unearth spooky threats to the population is hot on the trail of an evil spirit with a hirsute itch, without any results so far. Though Rahul Gandhi has been giving the Congress party a haircut across states, there is no evidence that the Barber Demon is a political conspiracy. Scissorhands has had many worthy predecessors who have spread panic and left without a trace. The Monkey Man generated headlines and mass frenzy around a decade agoa four-foot tall monster who scratched sleeping persons and leaped away into the dark. Its persona was part Jules Verne and part Amar Chitra Katha; it wore a helmet, brandished metal claws and had glowing red eyes. It inexplicably also sported three buttons on its chest like a mad tailor. Eyewitness accounts variedothers saw a gigantic Hanuman-like figure with parkour expertise. Before the Monkey Man was the Muhnochwa of Kanpur, whose modus operandi was the same. There are periodic reports of mysterious handprints appearing on the walls of houses, where people died from supposed occult interference. In some parts of Bengaluru, April Fools Day is dedicated deadpan... excuse the pun, my bad... to a witch who brought death by knocking on doorsit could be warded off by writing a message on the door asking it to come the next day. Meghalaya was plagued for a while by a giant ape called Mande Burung. There are the good guys too; the milk-drinking Ganesha sent devotees into a state of bliss for feeding statues milk. Urban legends are universal. There are crocodiles in New Yorks sewers. A beehive hairdo can kill. Saying Bloody Mary 1,000 times will raise a murderous ghost. The end of the world has been predicted so often that all men would have become ghosts by now. Superstition is the step-sister of mass hysteria. As the dark folklore of mankind, it raises an undercurrent of fear in whose tides float nightmares reminding man of his mortality. No one is invulnerablenot the mightiest warrior, king or vassal. It dates back centuries, masquerading as a divine warning possessing the power to punish folk for sins seen and unseen. It can become a contagious scourge disrupting society; cruelty is often its dismal byproduct. Witch burnings killed thousands of innocent men and women in medieval Europe, Britain and America. A widow in ancient India was expected to jump into her husbands pyre. In Egypt and China of yore, servants and wives were buried alive with dead emperors to keep them company in the afterlife. The greatest fear of life is death. In every person, however urbane, is a fear of Eddie on Elm Street. Carl Jung would have called it the collective subconscious effect, but mass hysteria cannot be underestimated as a moral energy. There is too much unexplained in the world for all mysteries to be dismissed as mere shibboleths. The miracles of saints or stigmata on statues are not necessarily parlour tricks. Sai Baba is reported to have cured the fatally sick. Quantum physics speaks about parallel universesyou could be dead in one and playing cards in another. So go figure.
Behind all great men is a woman, they say. What they dont say, or at least not out loud, is behind many successful women is an unhappy, even resentful, husband. Not all, of course, but many.

The angst is understandable. Males grow up believing that they must protect, procreate and provide. The 3Ps are almost inbuilt in their DNA, courtesy biology, evolution and the environment. Barring the bad guys in real and reel life, very few men today are called upon to protect any more.

Procreation is a once- or twice-in-a-lifetime activity, and, there too, its a joint venture. That leaves providing as the only thing that men have to do on a regular basis, to demonstrate their masculinity. Fortunately, the options on how to hunt down a career and bring home the bacon are limitless. Unfortunately, those options now exist for women too, especially the ones willing to rejig the rules at home and forge their own stellar careers.

Imagine what this means to the husbands whove grown up believing that theyre going to be Numero Uno at home, like their fathers and grandfather before them. Drop them in the new scenario, and boom. Their world cant but be shattered.

Even if a celebrity wife takes pains to be sensitive to her husbands feelings and tries and empowers him as much as possible, life is thorny for him. Margaret Thatchers husband Denis is said to have found the early years of his wifes political career so destabilising that he contemplated divorcing her. According to writer Nayantara Sahgal, Feroze Gandhi was always welcome at Teen Murti where Indira Gandhi lived but he chose to treat himself as an outsider and behaved with scant courtesy when he came to a meal or to spend time with his sons. Of Indias three women chief ministers, two are divorced and one, perhaps wisely, has never married.

Not that all husbands feel the need to be more powerful or rich than their wives. If not deliriously happy (and how many wives are that either?), some seem to be content working quietly around their spouses success. Consider the cameraman whos been married to Julia Roberts since 2002 and has three children with her. Or Madhuri Dixits doctor-husband. How many of us even know the two mens names? Yet, both, Im told, are happy, managing work and family.

Which brings us to the man who needs to be lauded for successfully playing the longest-running part of supportive spouse. Prince Philip, who retired last week from official duties at age 96, has been acting as Elizabeth IIs consort since she became monarch in 1952. As many of us learnt from watching TV series Crown, his has been a life of renunciation. He had to renounce his Greek and Danish titles to marry the then-princess. He had to give up his naval career and his family name. He even had to quit smoking, overnight, because his wife wanted him to.

In his 70-year marriage, he has never had to provide for anyone. Instead, hes done wifely things like interior design. Hes taught his children to swim, sail and ride. Hes followed his wife around the world. And yet, no one sees him as anything but a man. Maybe one whos famous for his gaffes. But whats a little political incorrectness when your whole life has been dedicated to watching out for your family? Id say thats a man who never has to worry about his manliness.

Behind all great men is a woman, they say. What they dont say, or at least not out loud, is behind many successful women is an unhappy, even resentful, husband. Not all, of course, but many. The angst is understandable. Males grow up believing that they must protect, procreate and provide. The 3Ps are almost inbuilt in their DNA, courtesy biology, evolution and the environment. Barring the bad guys in real and reel life, very few men today are called upon to protect any more. Procreation is a once- or twice-in-a-lifetime activity, and, there too, its a joint venture. That leaves providing as the only thing that men have to do on a regular basis, to demonstrate their masculinity. Fortunately, the options on how to hunt down a career and bring home the bacon are limitless. Unfortunately, those options now exist for women too, especially the ones willing to rejig the rules at home and forge their own stellar careers. Imagine what this means to the husbands whove grown up believing that theyre going to be Numero Uno at home, like their fathers and grandfather before them. Drop them in the new scenario, and boom. Their world cant but be shattered. Even if a celebrity wife takes pains to be sensitive to her husbands feelings and tries and empowers him as much as possible, life is thorny for him. Margaret Thatchers husband Denis is said to have found the early years of his wifes political career so destabilising that he contemplated divorcing her. According to writer Nayantara Sahgal, Feroze Gandhi was always welcome at Teen Murti where Indira Gandhi lived but he chose to treat himself as an outsider and behaved with scant courtesy when he came to a meal or to spend time with his sons. Of Indias three women chief ministers, two are divorced and one, perhaps wisely, has never married. Not that all husbands feel the need to be more powerful or rich than their wives. If not deliriously happy (and how many wives are that either?), some seem to be content working quietly around their spouses success. Consider the cameraman whos been married to Julia Roberts since 2002 and has three children with her. Or Madhuri Dixits doctor-husband. How many of us even know the two mens names? Yet, both, Im told, are happy, managing work and family. Which brings us to the man who needs to be lauded for successfully playing the longest-running part of supportive spouse. Prince Philip, who retired last week from official duties at age 96, has been acting as Elizabeth IIs consort since she became monarch in 1952. As many of us learnt from watching TV series Crown, his has been a life of renunciation. He had to renounce his Greek and Danish titles to marry the then-princess. He had to give up his naval career and his family name. He even had to quit smoking, overnight, because his wife wanted him to. In his 70-year marriage, he has never had to provide for anyone. Instead, hes done wifely things like interior design. Hes taught his children to swim, sail and ride. Hes followed his wife around the world. And yet, no one sees him as anything but a man. Maybe one whos famous for his gaffes. But whats a little political incorrectness when your whole life has been dedicated to watching out for your family? Id say thats a man who never has to worry about his manliness.
T J S George By

D K Shivakumar is Karnatakas most formidable politician. He is also the most feared. There are many in Karnataka, including senior Congress leaders, who see him as a liability in public life. Currently, the states Energy Minister, he is recognised by all as a muscleman, fixer, campaign manager, crowd-mobiliser, money bag and general go-getter who makes impossible things possible. He is actively into businesses unbecoming a political leaderreal estate, construction, jewellery, mining, malls, education, transport.

It is said that Rahul Gandhi had named him as one of two Congress leaders who should be kept out of government. Indeed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah formed his cabinet without the two men. Within a few months, however, both men were handling key portfolios in the government. That was the power of internal manipulators in the Congress.

Shivakumar is so confident of his might that he flaunts his assets openly. His residence in Bangalore is made up of two outsized mansions, their pillars and parapets and windows and balconies glittering either in the sun or in the special decorative lights around. An ordinary citizen building such a residence would immediately attract Income Tax sleuths. In Shivakumars case, there was also the tidbit that his declared income had gone up from `75.5 crore in 2008 to `251 crore in just five years. The BJP government in Delhi had a good opportunity to net him in straightforward cases and thereby win the appreciation of citizens who were tired of a politician gone so wrong so openly for so long.

But they botched it. The timing made it clear that the raid on Shivakumars premises was a case of the party in power using the agencies of the government to serve the partys political ends. By doing it so bluntly, the BJP helped Shivakumar achieve what would have been otherwise impossiblean element of public sympathy.

The politics of it all is so clear. The Gujarat Rajya Sabha election on August 8 has become a prestige issue for the BJP. The Congresss sole candidate is Ahmad Patel, Sonia Gandhis faithful follower and a Congress brand. In its all-out bid to get Patel defeated, the BJP already poached Congress MLAs in Gujarat. (The going rate is said to be `15 crore per MLA). One of them was fielded in opposition to Patel.

A worried Congress sent its remaining MLAs for safe-keeping in Karnataka.

As it happened, Shivakumar was put in charge of taking care of the MLAs from Gujarat, presumably because a toughie strong man was needed to protect the MLAs from entrapment tactics by the BJP. The BJP, in its current mood of dont-care about the niceties of democracy, then went for the jugular.

There is no doubt that the raidsfive hours of questioning in the first round itselfand the seizure of cash, gold and documents rattled Shivakumar who never experienced, and never expected, anything of the sort in his life. It must have rattled several other Congress leaders in the state also because their cupboards too are full of skeletons. There are skeletons in plenty in the cupboards of BJP leaders, too, but they will have nothing to worry. For this is a case where the ruling party is determined to do things its way. Conventions and legalities are for the birds.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitleys protestations of innocence sounded like jokes. The raid on Shivakumar had nothing to do with the Gujarat election, he said. The resort was raided only to check out Shivakumar, he said. Four of the Gujarat MLAs at the resort contradicted that claim and said they too were questioned. They sought the Supreme Courts intervention to ensure their safety now that CRPF men were at the resort.

Will the MLAs be intimidated and threatened into voting the BJP way in Gujarat? They are certainly scared. With the invincible D K Shivakumar threatenedand feeling itwill some Congressmen in Karnataka play safe by joining the BJP as Karnataka goes to the polls in a few months? Winning Karnataka is a bigger prestige issue for the BJP than defeating Ahmad Pateland 15 crore for a head is chickenfeed.

The BJP of course sticks to its line that its only aim is to end corruption. It does want to end corruption in Karnataka, West Bengal and Kerala. Corruption in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh is of course not corruption, it is nation-building. Please note the new normal in India: BJP or nothing.

D K Shivakumar is Karnatakas most formidable politician. He is also the most feared. There are many in Karnataka, including senior Congress leaders, who see him as a liability in public life. Currently, the states Energy Minister, he is recognised by all as a muscleman, fixer, campaign manager, crowd-mobiliser, money bag and general go-getter who makes impossible things possible. He is actively into businesses unbecoming a political leaderreal estate, construction, jewellery, mining, malls, education, transport. It is said that Rahul Gandhi had named him as one of two Congress leaders who should be kept out of government. Indeed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah formed his cabinet without the two men. Within a few months, however, both men were handling key portfolios in the government. That was the power of internal manipulators in the Congress. Shivakumar is so confident of his might that he flaunts his assets openly. His residence in Bangalore is made up of two outsized mansions, their pillars and parapets and windows and balconies glittering either in the sun or in the special decorative lights around. An ordinary citizen building such a residence would immediately attract Income Tax sleuths. In Shivakumars case, there was also the tidbit that his declared income had gone up from `75.5 crore in 2008 to `251 crore in just five years. The BJP government in Delhi had a good opportunity to net him in straightforward cases and thereby win the appreciation of citizens who were tired of a politician gone so wrong so openly for so long. But they botched it. The timing made it clear that the raid on Shivakumars premises was a case of the party in power using the agencies of the government to serve the partys political ends. By doing it so bluntly, the BJP helped Shivakumar achieve what would have been otherwise impossiblean element of public sympathy. The politics of it all is so clear. The Gujarat Rajya Sabha election on August 8 has become a prestige issue for the BJP. The Congresss sole candidate is Ahmad Patel, Sonia Gandhis faithful follower and a Congress brand. In its all-out bid to get Patel defeated, the BJP already poached Congress MLAs in Gujarat. (The going rate is said to be `15 crore per MLA). One of them was fielded in opposition to Patel. A worried Congress sent its remaining MLAs for safe-keeping in Karnataka. As it happened, Shivakumar was put in charge of taking care of the MLAs from Gujarat, presumably because a toughie strong man was needed to protect the MLAs from entrapment tactics by the BJP. The BJP, in its current mood of dont-care about the niceties of democracy, then went for the jugular. There is no doubt that the raidsfive hours of questioning in the first round itselfand the seizure of cash, gold and documents rattled Shivakumar who never experienced, and never expected, anything of the sort in his life. It must have rattled several other Congress leaders in the state also because their cupboards too are full of skeletons. There are skeletons in plenty in the cupboards of BJP leaders, too, but they will have nothing to worry. For this is a case where the ruling party is determined to do things its way. Conventions and legalities are for the birds. Finance Minister Arun Jaitleys protestations of innocence sounded like jokes. The raid on Shivakumar had nothing to do with the Gujarat election, he said. The resort was raided only to check out Shivakumar, he said. Four of the Gujarat MLAs at the resort contradicted that claim and said they too were questioned. They sought the Supreme Courts intervention to ensure their safety now that CRPF men were at the resort. Will the MLAs be intimidated and threatened into voting the BJP way in Gujarat? They are certainly scared. With the invincible D K Shivakumar threatenedand feeling itwill some Congressmen in Karnataka play safe by joining the BJP as Karnataka goes to the polls in a few months? Winning Karnataka is a bigger prestige issue for the BJP than defeating Ahmad Pateland 15 crore for a head is chickenfeed. The BJP of course sticks to its line that its only aim is to end corruption. It does want to end corruption in Karnataka, West Bengal and Kerala. Corruption in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh is of course not corruption, it is nation-building. Please note the new normal in India: BJP or nothing.
By Express News Service

TIRUPATI: Five persons were killed and nine injured when a speeding container truck collided with a minibus at Yetalavanka of Punganur mandal in Chittoor district. The dead have been identified as Sayeed Naushad (42), bus driver, and Spaniards Josefa Moran Molinillo (65), Francisco Pedrosa Gijon (31), Vincente Perez Moreno (50) and Maria Nives Lopez Navarro (62) who were on their way to Puducherry from Anantapur. Around 10 am the speeding truck en route to Madanapalle rammed into the minibus ferrying a group of Spanish tourists.



The force of the impact was such that half of the van was mangled and victims crushed. The highway patrol arrived and shifted the injured to Punganur Government Hospital. Six of the injured were then shifted to Baptist Hospital in Bengaluru. The Spanish group were doing voluntary service at Rural Development Trust (RDT) in Bathalapalli of Anantapur district since August 1 and had left to Puducherry for a South Indian tour.On being alertedt, RDT chairman M Thippeswamy and co-founder and executive director Anne Ferrer rushed to the spot.



The bodies of the Spaniards were handed over to RDT after post mortem. It is very unfortunate. Every year, around 2,000 people from Spain visit RDT, but never has such an accident occurred. We are doing everything to contact their kin and send bodies home, Thippeswamy said.

CM N Chandrababu Naidu condoled the deaths and directed officials concerned to coordinate with the Spanish Embassy and render all help.

six die as jeep rams bus at Adivaram

Kozhikode: Six persons, including three children, died in an accident involving a private bus, a jeep and a car on the Kozhikode-Mysore national highway at Adivaram near Thamarassery on Saturday. All the deceased were passengers of the jeep. Five of them, including the children, belonged to a single family. Nearly 10 persons were travelling in the jeep at the time of the incident. Of the 12 injured, three were children and their condition is said to be critical. While eight of the critically injured have been admitted to the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital, the other four have been admitted to the Thamarassery Taluk Hospital. The toll is expected to rise as the condition of the critically injured is worseThe mangled remains of the minibus, in which a group of Spanish tourists were travelling, at Yetalavanka of Punganur mandal in Chittoor district on Saturday | afp

TIRUPATI: Five persons were killed and nine injured when a speeding container truck collided with a minibus at Yetalavanka of Punganur mandal in Chittoor district. The dead have been identified as Sayeed Naushad (42), bus driver, and Spaniards Josefa Moran Molinillo (65), Francisco Pedrosa Gijon (31), Vincente Perez Moreno (50) and Maria Nives Lopez Navarro (62) who were on their way to Puducherry from Anantapur. Around 10 am the speeding truck en route to Madanapalle rammed into the minibus ferrying a group of Spanish tourists. The force of the impact was such that half of the van was mangled and victims crushed. The highway patrol arrived and shifted the injured to Punganur Government Hospital. Six of the injured were then shifted to Baptist Hospital in Bengaluru. The Spanish group were doing voluntary service at Rural Development Trust (RDT) in Bathalapalli of Anantapur district since August 1 and had left to Puducherry for a South Indian tour.On being alertedt, RDT chairman M Thippeswamy and co-founder and executive director Anne Ferrer rushed to the spot. The bodies of the Spaniards were handed over to RDT after post mortem. It is very unfortunate. Every year, around 2,000 people from Spain visit RDT, but never has such an accident occurred. We are doing everything to contact their kin and send bodies home, Thippeswamy said. CM N Chandrababu Naidu condoled the deaths and directed officials concerned to coordinate with the Spanish Embassy and render all help. six die as jeep rams bus at Adivaram Kozhikode: Six persons, including three children, died in an accident involving a private bus, a jeep and a car on the Kozhikode-Mysore national highway at Adivaram near Thamarassery on Saturday. All the deceased were passengers of the jeep. Five of them, including the children, belonged to a single family. Nearly 10 persons were travelling in the jeep at the time of the incident. Of the 12 injured, three were children and their condition is said to be critical. While eight of the critically injured have been admitted to the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital, the other four have been admitted to the Thamarassery Taluk Hospital. The toll is expected to rise as the condition of the critically injured is worseThe mangled remains of the minibus, in which a group of Spanish tourists were travelling, at Yetalavanka of Punganur mandal in Chittoor district on Saturday | afp
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: The 44 Gujarat Congress MLAs who have been holed up in a resort on the outskirts of the city, met Governor Vajubhai Vala on Saturday morning. They were accompanied by Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee president Bharatsinh Solanki.

The MLAs were joined unexpectedly by embattled Karnataka Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, who had been sequestered in his house for the past three days by Income Tax officials who concluded their search on Saturday morning. After the I-T officials left his residence, Shivakumar visited a temple and met a seer in Vijayanagar area. He then headed to Raj Bhavan to join the Gujarat legislators and was received with much cheer from the group. Shivakumar, who sported a nonchalant look, refused to speak to the media about the raids.

Speaking to the media, Gujarat MLA and party spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil said the governor received them warmly and had assured them there was nothing to worry about. We have been subjected to so much threat and pressure. But we will not succumb to it. The BJP wants to spread an atmosphere of fear. A politician and businessman takes care of us and he is subjected to three days of raids and questioning, which is unheard of.

The message BJP is sending is that if you give even a glass of water to these MLAs, then we are coming after you. If the case is indeed old, as they are claiming, then why could they not have waited for another three days? he questioned.

Gohil further said the raids were not as simple as being claimed. If they were only interested in questioning him (Shivakumar), then why did they come to the resort and search? They could have asked him to step out and he could have been taken to his residence. If he did not come out of the resort, then they had a reason to come in. But the manner in which they entered the resort and searched the rooms tells us they are trying to scare us, but they will not succeed. Imagine what they would have done to us if we had stayed in Gujarat, he said.

The group, led by Shivakumar, later left for Vidhana Soudha after visiting the Mahatma Gandhi statue and were taken on a leisurely tour of the seat of power.

BENGALURU: The 44 Gujarat Congress MLAs who have been holed up in a resort on the outskirts of the city, met Governor Vajubhai Vala on Saturday morning. They were accompanied by Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee president Bharatsinh Solanki. The MLAs were joined unexpectedly by embattled Karnataka Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, who had been sequestered in his house for the past three days by Income Tax officials who concluded their search on Saturday morning. After the I-T officials left his residence, Shivakumar visited a temple and met a seer in Vijayanagar area. He then headed to Raj Bhavan to join the Gujarat legislators and was received with much cheer from the group. Shivakumar, who sported a nonchalant look, refused to speak to the media about the raids. Speaking to the media, Gujarat MLA and party spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil said the governor received them warmly and had assured them there was nothing to worry about. We have been subjected to so much threat and pressure. But we will not succumb to it. The BJP wants to spread an atmosphere of fear. A politician and businessman takes care of us and he is subjected to three days of raids and questioning, which is unheard of. The message BJP is sending is that if you give even a glass of water to these MLAs, then we are coming after you. If the case is indeed old, as they are claiming, then why could they not have waited for another three days? he questioned. Gohil further said the raids were not as simple as being claimed. If they were only interested in questioning him (Shivakumar), then why did they come to the resort and search? They could have asked him to step out and he could have been taken to his residence. If he did not come out of the resort, then they had a reason to come in. But the manner in which they entered the resort and searched the rooms tells us they are trying to scare us, but they will not succeed. Imagine what they would have done to us if we had stayed in Gujarat, he said. The group, led by Shivakumar, later left for Vidhana Soudha after visiting the Mahatma Gandhi statue and were taken on a leisurely tour of the seat of power.
The Congress has been highly critical of the move, and has called it a pressure tactic on the BJP's part ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls.

By Akshaya Nath: The Income Tax (I-T) department this week conducted searches for more than 68 hours in almost 70 properties belonging to Karnataka Power Minister DK Shivakumar, his relatives, and his associates.

I-T officials began the search at Eagleton, a luxury resort located 30-odd kilometres from Bengaluru where 42 Congress MLAs from Gujarat have been staying. Shivaakumar is the man responsible for looking after the lawmakers.

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The Congress has been highly critical of the move, and has called it a pressure tactic on the BJP's part ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls.

The party has alleged that revenge was the motive behind the raids.

"It is all political vendetta; the raid in the resort was very wrong. I am not aware of any seizure in the raids," Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramiah said.

CCTV VISUALS CONTRADICT I-T RELEASE

In an initial release, I-T officials claimed the search was an "evidence-gathering exercise," which was being carried out "in compliance with all statutory requirements."

"The search is the continuation of an investigation which has been in progress for a considerable period of time. The Minister's (DK Shivakumar) room alone is being searched. The search team has no concern with the MLAs and there has been no contact with MLAs and the search team," it said.

However, multiple CCTV visuals from the resort show the I-T officials trying to interact with the legislators.

'LIKE TRYING TO FIND A TERRORIST'

"What happened yesterday was shocking. It was like they were trying to find a terrorist here," said Javed Pirzada, one of the MLAs staying in the resort.

A teary-eyed Paresh Dhanani said, "The CRPF and I-T Officials who came asked us: Why are you guys here? If (you were) in Gujarat you could have got Rs 15 crore. We are being vindicated by this very government, and if today we - the elected representatives - can be threatened, then the common man, the media, all of us will be affected."

"We are scared of what will happen to us," he said, crying.

"We have come here and even here we are being threatened and instilled with fear."

'PAID NEWS'

At the start of Day 3 of the raids, there were rumours that a few MLAs were trying to jump ship.

But MP DK Suresh, Shivakumar's brother, said outside the minister's residence that the legislators were "fine at the resort and no one is wanting to go out."

"This is all paid news. When all this will come to an end, all of you will know the reality," he added.

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DOCTOR'S VISIT

Within hours, it emerged that Shivakumar's family doctor - the cardiologist Rama Rao - had come to Shivakumar's residence to check on him. The minister was allegedly unwell.

Suresh soon made a second visit to his elder brother's house, and a minor commotion ensued while he tried to enter it.

"I rushed here after getting news that my brother was unwell. The raid has been going on for 48 hours and he is very stressed. I have requested the I-T (department) to complete the raid as soon as possible," he said while leaving.

'BELOW-THE-BELT ATTEMPT TO BREAK DEMOCRACY'

Congress members say this was an expected raid.

"This scenario is the perfect example of (a) below-the-belt attempt to break democracy," said Paresh Dhanani.

On Day 4 of the raids, when DK Shivakumar was free to move out of his house, all he said was this: "I will wait till the Panchanama by the IT department is released to respond. The raids were conducted in 70 odd locations and I have no information on what happened in (the) different location(s) - and without the detailed panchanama I am not reacting."

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Meanwhile, the MLAs at the resort paid Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala a visit at the Raj Bhawan, and were taken on a tour of the Vidhana Soudha (Legislative Assembly) by Shivakumar.

Media channels have been closely monitoring the lawmakers' movements at the resort. All that remains to be seen is when they will finally pack their bags to go back home.

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--- ENDS ---
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a move to bring the CPM-BJP/RSS killings in Kerala in the national spotlight, union defence minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday arrived here and visited the home of slain RSS worker S L Rajesh.

Jaitley, who reached here at 11.15 am was received at the airport by Kerala BJP leaders led by state president Kummannam Rajasekharan, Rajeev Chandrasekhar MP, O Rajagopal MLA, V Muraleedharan, MT Ramesh and PC Thomas, former union minister.

Jaitley spent time with the family of Rajesh, who was murdered recently allegedly by the CPM activists. The union minister will attend a commemoration meeting in the afternoon, before he returns to New Delhi, in the evening.

The killings by CPM and BJP/RSS workers, which were confined largely to Kannur district, recently moved to the state capital.

Top leaders of both CPM and BJP, led by Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and Kummanam respectively, held peace talks on Saturday and vowed to continue the peace efforts. It was also decided to try and bring peace to the lower rungs of both the parties.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a move to bring the CPM-BJP/RSS killings in Kerala in the national spotlight, union defence minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday arrived here and visited the home of slain RSS worker S L Rajesh. Jaitley, who reached here at 11.15 am was received at the airport by Kerala BJP leaders led by state president Kummannam Rajasekharan, Rajeev Chandrasekhar MP, O Rajagopal MLA, V Muraleedharan, MT Ramesh and PC Thomas, former union minister. Jaitley spent time with the family of Rajesh, who was murdered recently allegedly by the CPM activists. The union minister will attend a commemoration meeting in the afternoon, before he returns to New Delhi, in the evening. The killings by CPM and BJP/RSS workers, which were confined largely to Kannur district, recently moved to the state capital. Top leaders of both CPM and BJP, led by Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and Kummanam respectively, held peace talks on Saturday and vowed to continue the peace efforts. It was also decided to try and bring peace to the lower rungs of both the parties.
Express News Service

TIRUCHY/NAGAPATTINAM: Bullets have failed to stop them, but a new bill adopted by the Sri Lankan parliament could. After going through phases of conflict and relative peace, the troubled life of fishermen from Tamil Nadu has entered new waters, thanks to the Sri Lankan Fisheries and the Aquatic Resources (Amendment) Bill that was moved this day last month.

According to official figures from the State government, Lankan navy firing has resulted in 128 dead and 283 injured, besides hundreds of detentions. These have, however, become part of everyday reality for the fishermen here. But the bill adds a new dimension. It focuses exclusively on banning bottom trawling, a method so destructive that experts warn it could deplete the vast marine resources of the world in just three decades from now.

These trawlers use twin-fold fishing nets tied to metal plates at both ends which hits the floor of the sea. Then, a boat equipped with a sufficiently high-powered engine drags the net along the floor.

Making matters worse, many fishermen here use nets that are banned for being too closely knitted, which traps everything along the way indiscriminately  big, small and tiny fish; aquatic animals that are crucial for the ecosystem but have little commercial value for humans; plants, planktons, and coral reef. The method is rudimentary in design and devastating in effect.

The Lankan ban has brought about a crisis, as a good majority of fishermen in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, and indeed their brethren in all parts of the world, use bottom trawlers. What the amendment has done is to make it prohibitively expensive to use trawlers  more so for foreign vessels. In the absence of a clear legislation, retrieval of fishing vessels and equipment from Lankan custody was primarily a matter of political maneuvering.

That fluidity has changed to clear and specific penalties. The Lankan media reported that the Ministry of Fisheries there has increased the fine for foreign vessels to Sri Lankan Rs 100 million (about `40 million). The owners on the shore may be prepared to wait to get the boats and men back, but the penalty makes things unviable for them.

It thus comes as little surprise when many fishermen from coastal districts like Rameswaram and Nagapattinam tell Express they have avoided deliberately venturing into the Lankan side of the sea since then. Bottom trawling has been identified as the root cause of the strife between Indian and Lankan fishermen  fast depleting marine resource in the sea between the two countries that has served their forefathers for centuries.

Fishermen from there, mainly Tamils from the Northern Province, have been repeatedly asking those here to give up bottom trawling so that juvenile fish could grow bigger and sustain their livelihood for the years to come. However, with about 90 per cent of the boats engaged in bottom trawling, it was not an easy decision to take.

In 2014, the fishermen from the State had requested a three-year moratorium for phasing out bottom trawlers. That deadline is ending, but little has changed.

Ninety-nine per cent of fishermen are concerned only about that days catch, not about sustainability. Deep-sea fishing is the only solution, but they have not shown any interest in switching to this. Instead, they are asking the governments to bear the whole expenses, said a fisheries department official on condition of anonymity.

The reluctance of the fishermen, however, does not present the full picture. While a usual mechanised bottom trawler boat costs about Rs 50-60 lakh, a deep-sea liner could cost twice as that. It also requires specific skill sets that most fishermen here do not have.

Fishermen are neither scientists nor experts. It was the State government that introduced bottom trawling technique some decades ago and even gave us training. If we are to shift to deep-sea fishing, we need similar assistance, noted P Rajendra Nattar, a fishermen representative from Keechankuppam.

Deepening their skepticism, fishermen say the subsidy offered by the government to convert fishing vessels into deep-sea liners has not reached the few who were brave enough to attempt the switch.

One of the fishermen here has spent about Rs 80 lakh for converting his boat into a deep-sea fishing vessel, but the Rs 30 lakh subsidy that the State government promised has not reached him yet, said N Mohandoss, a fishermen representative from Akkaraipettai in Nagapattinam, when asked why they were hesitating to adopt deep-sea fishing.

In the near future, however, it may no longer be a choice. Fishermen and officials from the State Fisheries Department are on the same page on the concern that marine resources have drastically fallen in Indian waters. A fisherman now has two choices: go farther and deeper, or stop being one.

TIRUCHY/NAGAPATTINAM: Bullets have failed to stop them, but a new bill adopted by the Sri Lankan parliament could. After going through phases of conflict and relative peace, the troubled life of fishermen from Tamil Nadu has entered new waters, thanks to the Sri Lankan Fisheries and the Aquatic Resources (Amendment) Bill that was moved this day last month. According to official figures from the State government, Lankan navy firing has resulted in 128 dead and 283 injured, besides hundreds of detentions. These have, however, become part of everyday reality for the fishermen here. But the bill adds a new dimension. It focuses exclusively on banning bottom trawling, a method so destructive that experts warn it could deplete the vast marine resources of the world in just three decades from now. These trawlers use twin-fold fishing nets tied to metal plates at both ends which hits the floor of the sea. Then, a boat equipped with a sufficiently high-powered engine drags the net along the floor. Making matters worse, many fishermen here use nets that are banned for being too closely knitted, which traps everything along the way indiscriminately  big, small and tiny fish; aquatic animals that are crucial for the ecosystem but have little commercial value for humans; plants, planktons, and coral reef. The method is rudimentary in design and devastating in effect. The Lankan ban has brought about a crisis, as a good majority of fishermen in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, and indeed their brethren in all parts of the world, use bottom trawlers. What the amendment has done is to make it prohibitively expensive to use trawlers  more so for foreign vessels. In the absence of a clear legislation, retrieval of fishing vessels and equipment from Lankan custody was primarily a matter of political maneuvering. That fluidity has changed to clear and specific penalties. The Lankan media reported that the Ministry of Fisheries there has increased the fine for foreign vessels to Sri Lankan Rs 100 million (about `40 million). The owners on the shore may be prepared to wait to get the boats and men back, but the penalty makes things unviable for them. It thus comes as little surprise when many fishermen from coastal districts like Rameswaram and Nagapattinam tell Express they have avoided deliberately venturing into the Lankan side of the sea since then. Bottom trawling has been identified as the root cause of the strife between Indian and Lankan fishermen  fast depleting marine resource in the sea between the two countries that has served their forefathers for centuries. Fishermen from there, mainly Tamils from the Northern Province, have been repeatedly asking those here to give up bottom trawling so that juvenile fish could grow bigger and sustain their livelihood for the years to come. However, with about 90 per cent of the boats engaged in bottom trawling, it was not an easy decision to take. In 2014, the fishermen from the State had requested a three-year moratorium for phasing out bottom trawlers. That deadline is ending, but little has changed. Ninety-nine per cent of fishermen are concerned only about that days catch, not about sustainability. Deep-sea fishing is the only solution, but they have not shown any interest in switching to this. Instead, they are asking the governments to bear the whole expenses, said a fisheries department official on condition of anonymity. The reluctance of the fishermen, however, does not present the full picture. While a usual mechanised bottom trawler boat costs about Rs 50-60 lakh, a deep-sea liner could cost twice as that. It also requires specific skill sets that most fishermen here do not have. Fishermen are neither scientists nor experts. It was the State government that introduced bottom trawling technique some decades ago and even gave us training. If we are to shift to deep-sea fishing, we need similar assistance, noted P Rajendra Nattar, a fishermen representative from Keechankuppam. Deepening their skepticism, fishermen say the subsidy offered by the government to convert fishing vessels into deep-sea liners has not reached the few who were brave enough to attempt the switch. One of the fishermen here has spent about Rs 80 lakh for converting his boat into a deep-sea fishing vessel, but the Rs 30 lakh subsidy that the State government promised has not reached him yet, said N Mohandoss, a fishermen representative from Akkaraipettai in Nagapattinam, when asked why they were hesitating to adopt deep-sea fishing. In the near future, however, it may no longer be a choice. Fishermen and officials from the State Fisheries Department are on the same page on the concern that marine resources have drastically fallen in Indian waters. A fisherman now has two choices: go farther and deeper, or stop being one.
By Pradip R Sagar By

NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force (IAF)instead of doing a course correction after a recent Delhi High Court rap for its discriminatory study leave policyhas come out with much more rigid rules for its air warriors. In March, the high court had slammed the force, calling its study leave norms a violation of fundamental rights. As per the Air Headquarters latest order, air warriors are not allowed to pursue higher education from civil institutions.

It all started in February 2017, when an air warrior sought leave to study MTech in IIT-Dhanbad after topping the entrance exams. But IAF authoritiesciting British-era rulesdenied him permission.

They said there was no provision for sending jawans on study leave, and only officers are entitled to the privilege.

Taking strong note of it, the high court gave its verdict in favour of the airman and reprimanded the IAF authorities by saying, The discrimination between airmen and officers for grant of study leave is totally discriminatory and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India.

But ironically, IAF authorities released another order with more stringent rules for acquiring higher education for its over one lakh air warriors.

Assistant Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal O P Tiwari in its July 16 order said for seeking permission to pursue higher civil qualification, air warriors should have exceptional grade in their trades.

Analysis of qualification of the air warriors reveals that there is an increasing trend amongst the young airmen towards pursuing higher qualifications which are not directly in line with their professional trade. As a result, their efforts and focus towards primary profession get diluted, Air Vice Marshal Tiwaris order stated.

It further said, IAF has to strike a balance between individuals aspirations and of the organisational interests.

But in contrast, IAF grants leave of maximum 28 months to its officers who have completed 15 years of service for pursuing higher studies.When contacted for a response, an IAF official said the matter is sub-judice.

For entry level of airmen, 12th standard is the minimum educational qualification and these airmen are permitted to purse graduation from in-house mechanism through Project Akashdeep, said an IAF officer, explaining their position.The latest order from higher authorities is further going to deepen the divide between the officers and jawans, especially when the armed forces are facing issues of strained relations between them.

NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force (IAF)instead of doing a course correction after a recent Delhi High Court rap for its discriminatory study leave policyhas come out with much more rigid rules for its air warriors. In March, the high court had slammed the force, calling its study leave norms a violation of fundamental rights. As per the Air Headquarters latest order, air warriors are not allowed to pursue higher education from civil institutions. It all started in February 2017, when an air warrior sought leave to study MTech in IIT-Dhanbad after topping the entrance exams. But IAF authoritiesciting British-era rulesdenied him permission. They said there was no provision for sending jawans on study leave, and only officers are entitled to the privilege. Taking strong note of it, the high court gave its verdict in favour of the airman and reprimanded the IAF authorities by saying, The discrimination between airmen and officers for grant of study leave is totally discriminatory and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India. But ironically, IAF authorities released another order with more stringent rules for acquiring higher education for its over one lakh air warriors. Assistant Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal O P Tiwari in its July 16 order said for seeking permission to pursue higher civil qualification, air warriors should have exceptional grade in their trades. Analysis of qualification of the air warriors reveals that there is an increasing trend amongst the young airmen towards pursuing higher qualifications which are not directly in line with their professional trade. As a result, their efforts and focus towards primary profession get diluted, Air Vice Marshal Tiwaris order stated. It further said, IAF has to strike a balance between individuals aspirations and of the organisational interests. But in contrast, IAF grants leave of maximum 28 months to its officers who have completed 15 years of service for pursuing higher studies.When contacted for a response, an IAF official said the matter is sub-judice. For entry level of airmen, 12th standard is the minimum educational qualification and these airmen are permitted to purse graduation from in-house mechanism through Project Akashdeep, said an IAF officer, explaining their position.The latest order from higher authorities is further going to deepen the divide between the officers and jawans, especially when the armed forces are facing issues of strained relations between them.
Ejaz Kaiser By

RAIPUR: With the ouster of Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the Panama Papers leak case has returned to haunt Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh. His son Abhisheks name allegedly figured in the revealed documents.

It has given enough ammunition to the Opposition in Chhattisgarh where the Congress is out of power since 2003. During the Monsoon Session of the Assembly, the Congress trained its gun on the state government and sought action against the chief minister both on the Panama Papers leak and Agusta A-109 chopper deal.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi lost no time in demanding the resignation of the chief minister. Like Sharif, the Chhattisgarh CMs family is also an accused in the Panama Papers leak. But the chief minister has not yet resigned, the Amethi MP said.

In 2016, Swaraj Abhiyan leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan dragged Singhs son into the controversy, and sought an investigation on his reported links with two companies registered in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) after the Agusta Westland chopper deal was concluded. Bhushan, a noted lawyer, further alleged that $1.5 million were paid as kickback for the deal to Abhishek. Abhishek Singh has been cited as shareholder in Quest Height Ltd. And registered address given is the same as shown in affidavit of Raman Singh, the duo had pointed out.

Abhishek, a Lok Sabha MP from Rajnandgaon, countered the allegations. Raman had reiterated that his name has been needlessly dragged into the case and claimed that the charges were speculative and politically motivated.

Its a serious matter. The address mentioned in Panama Papers seems to be the residence of the chief minister in Kawardha and the name is mentioned as Abhishek. If its baseless, let the CM get it investigated by any top agency. But he is not willing to do it, leader of Opposition T S Singhdeo said.

Within the state BJP there is now an apparent wait and watch situation on how the partys Central leadership is going to react on both the Panama Papers leak and the Agusta chopper deal.

RAIPUR: With the ouster of Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the Panama Papers leak case has returned to haunt Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh. His son Abhisheks name allegedly figured in the revealed documents. It has given enough ammunition to the Opposition in Chhattisgarh where the Congress is out of power since 2003. During the Monsoon Session of the Assembly, the Congress trained its gun on the state government and sought action against the chief minister both on the Panama Papers leak and Agusta A-109 chopper deal. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi lost no time in demanding the resignation of the chief minister. Like Sharif, the Chhattisgarh CMs family is also an accused in the Panama Papers leak. But the chief minister has not yet resigned, the Amethi MP said. In 2016, Swaraj Abhiyan leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan dragged Singhs son into the controversy, and sought an investigation on his reported links with two companies registered in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) after the Agusta Westland chopper deal was concluded. Bhushan, a noted lawyer, further alleged that $1.5 million were paid as kickback for the deal to Abhishek. Abhishek Singh has been cited as shareholder in Quest Height Ltd. And registered address given is the same as shown in affidavit of Raman Singh, the duo had pointed out. Abhishek, a Lok Sabha MP from Rajnandgaon, countered the allegations. Raman had reiterated that his name has been needlessly dragged into the case and claimed that the charges were speculative and politically motivated. Its a serious matter. The address mentioned in Panama Papers seems to be the residence of the chief minister in Kawardha and the name is mentioned as Abhishek. If its baseless, let the CM get it investigated by any top agency. But he is not willing to do it, leader of Opposition T S Singhdeo said. Within the state BJP there is now an apparent wait and watch situation on how the partys Central leadership is going to react on both the Panama Papers leak and the Agusta chopper deal.
Namita Bajpai By

LUCKNOW: Its lonely at the BSPs top for its chief Mayawati. Beleaguered by consecutive drubbings at elections and relentless desertions of old lieutenants, her ploy to create a buzz by quitting the Rajya Sabha hardly made any impact. Then came the departure of one of the most loyal members of the party, Indrajeet Saroj, who quit levelling the same old charge against his leaderseeking money from the cadre. She has failed to carry on with the legacy of Kanshi Ram. She has wronged him, said Indrajeet Saroj after parting ways.

Now out of Parliament and with a negligible presence in Vidhan Sabha, the road ahead for the Dalit leader, who has been UP CM four times in the past, looks bleak.

Will she contest one of the two Lok Sabha bypollsGorakhpur and Phulpurlater this year to keep the party afloat and post a psychological personal triumph? Or accept RJD chief Lalu Prasads offer to contest the Rajya Sabha poll from Bihar and be an MP for the next six years? These are the questions flying around in the political circles of Uttar Pradesh.

These steps would get her temporary respite, and the most important task for her is to strengthen her depilated rank. Sarojs departure is a big blow for her. He was a prominent Pasi leader from Phulpur, and his importance could be gauged from the fact that he has been a key minister in the previous three Mayawati Cabinets. In his absence, winning Phulpur may not be easy for the BSP chief. Similarly, the defection by MLC Thakur Jaiveer Singh is bound to impact the Rajput support base of the party.

BSPs Naseemuddin Siddiquis exit had annoyed the Muslim vote bank. The caste and community dynamics, on which Mayawati has been riding to power all this long, dont seem to be on her side any more.

People are dejected with BSP. The charge of demanding money levelled by almost all the defectors on Mayawati has lowered her stature. Workers are resisting any move to run fund-raising drives, said a senior BSP leader seeking anonymity. He added that even for Jatavs, a community Mayawati comes from, she is no longer a messiah.

With zero representation in Lok Sabha and after her resignation from Rajya Sabha, the blue brigade has only five MPs in the Upper House.

At present, she has very few faces with herS C Mishra and brother Anand Kumar. Anands alleged indulgence in corruption and the threat of CBI, vigilance and ED hanging over him have left the party chief jittery.

Her brother is neck deep in corruption. Probe is on. People are not unaware of all these developments. Desertions are precipitating the situation against Mayawati, said S R Darapuri, former IPS officer and a Dalit activist.

If she decides to take on the mighty BJP as an opposition candidate supported by Congress, RJD and SP and manages to sail through in the Lok Sabha bypolls, it will resurrect her political fortune and will be a giant step in uniting the fragmented opposition under her, especially when Nitish Kumar is back in the NDA fold.

LUCKNOW: Its lonely at the BSPs top for its chief Mayawati. Beleaguered by consecutive drubbings at elections and relentless desertions of old lieutenants, her ploy to create a buzz by quitting the Rajya Sabha hardly made any impact. Then came the departure of one of the most loyal members of the party, Indrajeet Saroj, who quit levelling the same old charge against his leaderseeking money from the cadre. She has failed to carry on with the legacy of Kanshi Ram. She has wronged him, said Indrajeet Saroj after parting ways. Now out of Parliament and with a negligible presence in Vidhan Sabha, the road ahead for the Dalit leader, who has been UP CM four times in the past, looks bleak. Will she contest one of the two Lok Sabha bypollsGorakhpur and Phulpurlater this year to keep the party afloat and post a psychological personal triumph? Or accept RJD chief Lalu Prasads offer to contest the Rajya Sabha poll from Bihar and be an MP for the next six years? These are the questions flying around in the political circles of Uttar Pradesh. These steps would get her temporary respite, and the most important task for her is to strengthen her depilated rank. Sarojs departure is a big blow for her. He was a prominent Pasi leader from Phulpur, and his importance could be gauged from the fact that he has been a key minister in the previous three Mayawati Cabinets. In his absence, winning Phulpur may not be easy for the BSP chief. Similarly, the defection by MLC Thakur Jaiveer Singh is bound to impact the Rajput support base of the party. BSPs Naseemuddin Siddiquis exit had annoyed the Muslim vote bank. The caste and community dynamics, on which Mayawati has been riding to power all this long, dont seem to be on her side any more. People are dejected with BSP. The charge of demanding money levelled by almost all the defectors on Mayawati has lowered her stature. Workers are resisting any move to run fund-raising drives, said a senior BSP leader seeking anonymity. He added that even for Jatavs, a community Mayawati comes from, she is no longer a messiah. With zero representation in Lok Sabha and after her resignation from Rajya Sabha, the blue brigade has only five MPs in the Upper House. At present, she has very few faces with herS C Mishra and brother Anand Kumar. Anands alleged indulgence in corruption and the threat of CBI, vigilance and ED hanging over him have left the party chief jittery. Her brother is neck deep in corruption. Probe is on. People are not unaware of all these developments. Desertions are precipitating the situation against Mayawati, said S R Darapuri, former IPS officer and a Dalit activist. If she decides to take on the mighty BJP as an opposition candidate supported by Congress, RJD and SP and manages to sail through in the Lok Sabha bypolls, it will resurrect her political fortune and will be a giant step in uniting the fragmented opposition under her, especially when Nitish Kumar is back in the NDA fold.
R Sivakumar By

CHENNAI: A 23-year-old journalism student who was distributing pamphlets against oil extraction projects. A pro-Eelam activist who organised a candlelight vigil. A man who sold pirated CDs of a few movies. On first sight, there may seem like these people would have nothing in common but they do. They are all goondas.The ambit and the number of persons detained under the Goondas Act have increased phenomenally in recent years just like the full form of the Act itselfThe Tamil Nadu Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Drug Offenders, Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders, Forest Offenders, Sand Offenders, Slum-Grabbers and Video Pirates Act, 1982.

Recently, the Supreme Court warned against the indiscriminate use of the law against bootleggers, dacoits and goondas to push people into preventive custody.It was first enacted in 1923 in Bengal and lives on in some form or the other in several states in India. The law aims at a year-long preventive detention of habitual offenders. But the use of the Act is extended so much that now it has become a tool to put anyone in prison even without giving him an opportunity to explain his side of the story before the courts.

Preventive detention goes against the grain of a fair trial process, said Geeta Ramaseshan, a reputed Chennai-based advocate. It provides means for those who cant be convicted to be detained which is denial of liberty. Historically, the Act has been associated with detaining those who show political dissent and we could probably see more people being booked under this law for political dissent.

J Agnes Sasitha, head of the Sociology Department at Stella Maris College, echoes the sentiment. In a modern democracy, the emphasis should be on restorative justice rather than retributive justice. The Goondas Act which is a form of preventive detention infringes on human rights as well. Its use must be restricted to crises.On July 16, Valarmathi, a journalism student, was detained under the Act for taking part in Kathiramangalams oil pipeline protests. Valarmathi was then accused of being a Maoist sympathiser by the police. The previous month, Thirumurgan Gandhi, the convener of the May 17 movement, was detained under the Act after his arrest for staging a candlelight vigil to commemorate civilian victims in the last phase of the Eelam war.

According to the law, a goonda is a person who, either by himself or as a member or leader of a gang, habitually commits or attempts to commit or abets the commission of offences. A perusal of the cases against these two persons clearly points out that all their protests were against the states policies.

For example, the protests by Gandhi were on issues like demonetisation and other government policies. One of the cases against him was for waving a black flag during PM Narendra Modis visit to Chennai.

While these two cases have abused the Act, statistics show that around 3,000 people are detained under Goondas Act every year in the state. This means on an average seven to eight people are detained every day. Incidentally, Tamil Nadu was the first state to add the video pirate clause in 2004. In 2011, a Madras High Court bench ruled that even a single criminal case against a person is enough to detain him under the Goondas Act.

1923

The year the Act was first enacted in Bengal. It lives on in some form or the other in several states. It aims at a year-long preventive detention of habitual offenders.

7 to 8

People are detained everyday on an average in the state.

Rs 8,000

Is reimbursed by the government towards paperwork to detain a person. However, a police inspector spends nearly `16,000.

"In a modern democracy, the emphasis should be on restorative justice rather than retributive justice. The Goondas Act which is a form of preventive detention infringes on human rights as well. Its use must be restricted to crises" -J Agnes Sasitha, head of the Sociology Department at Stella Maris College

CHENNAI: A 23-year-old journalism student who was distributing pamphlets against oil extraction projects. A pro-Eelam activist who organised a candlelight vigil. A man who sold pirated CDs of a few movies. On first sight, there may seem like these people would have nothing in common but they do. They are all goondas.The ambit and the number of persons detained under the Goondas Act have increased phenomenally in recent years just like the full form of the Act itselfThe Tamil Nadu Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Drug Offenders, Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders, Forest Offenders, Sand Offenders, Slum-Grabbers and Video Pirates Act, 1982. Recently, the Supreme Court warned against the indiscriminate use of the law against bootleggers, dacoits and goondas to push people into preventive custody.It was first enacted in 1923 in Bengal and lives on in some form or the other in several states in India. The law aims at a year-long preventive detention of habitual offenders. But the use of the Act is extended so much that now it has become a tool to put anyone in prison even without giving him an opportunity to explain his side of the story before the courts. Preventive detention goes against the grain of a fair trial process, said Geeta Ramaseshan, a reputed Chennai-based advocate. It provides means for those who cant be convicted to be detained which is denial of liberty. Historically, the Act has been associated with detaining those who show political dissent and we could probably see more people being booked under this law for political dissent. J Agnes Sasitha, head of the Sociology Department at Stella Maris College, echoes the sentiment. In a modern democracy, the emphasis should be on restorative justice rather than retributive justice. The Goondas Act which is a form of preventive detention infringes on human rights as well. Its use must be restricted to crises.On July 16, Valarmathi, a journalism student, was detained under the Act for taking part in Kathiramangalams oil pipeline protests. Valarmathi was then accused of being a Maoist sympathiser by the police. The previous month, Thirumurgan Gandhi, the convener of the May 17 movement, was detained under the Act after his arrest for staging a candlelight vigil to commemorate civilian victims in the last phase of the Eelam war. According to the law, a goonda is a person who, either by himself or as a member or leader of a gang, habitually commits or attempts to commit or abets the commission of offences. A perusal of the cases against these two persons clearly points out that all their protests were against the states policies. For example, the protests by Gandhi were on issues like demonetisation and other government policies. One of the cases against him was for waving a black flag during PM Narendra Modis visit to Chennai. While these two cases have abused the Act, statistics show that around 3,000 people are detained under Goondas Act every year in the state. This means on an average seven to eight people are detained every day. Incidentally, Tamil Nadu was the first state to add the video pirate clause in 2004. In 2011, a Madras High Court bench ruled that even a single criminal case against a person is enough to detain him under the Goondas Act. 1923 The year the Act was first enacted in Bengal. It lives on in some form or the other in several states. It aims at a year-long preventive detention of habitual offenders. 7 to 8 People are detained everyday on an average in the state. Rs 8,000 Is reimbursed by the government towards paperwork to detain a person. However, a police inspector spends nearly `16,000. "In a modern democracy, the emphasis should be on restorative justice rather than retributive justice. The Goondas Act which is a form of preventive detention infringes on human rights as well. Its use must be restricted to crises" -J Agnes Sasitha, head of the Sociology Department at Stella Maris College
By Harpreet BAjwa By

CHANDIGARH: The 1947 Partition Archive collection of over 4,300 witness interviews, and over 30,000 digital documents and photographs will soon be made accessible. The collection will be released in collaboration with a consortium of Indian, Pakistani, British and American universities.A portion of the oral interviews will be available to everyone via live streaming from Stanford University Librarys digital repository. The remaining collection, deemed too delicate or sensitive for open accessibility, will be available to researchers and interested parties by visiting select university libraries of Ashoka University, Delhi University, and Guru Nanak Dev University in India; and Lahore University of Management Sciences and Habib University in Pakistan. A pilot adoption of the collection into the three Indian university libraries is being supported by the Tata Trust.

Our end goal is to record at least 10,000 oral history interviews from surviving witnesses. We receive requests daily from artistes, researchers, media persons, students and others, wanting access to the oral histories, said Guneeta Singh Bhalla, founder of The 1947 Partition Archive.

Stanford University librarian Michael Keller says, The videos being gathered are tremendously important and need to be preserved as part of historical record.The material, according to Keller, is of particular interest to Stanford given that research is underway at the Centre for South Asia and the WSD Handa Centre for Human Rights and International Justice.

Historian Priya Satia, overseeing the collections adoption into Stanford University library, says, For the last 70 years we have been telling the story of Partition through the lens of high-political negotiations between figures such as Jinnah, Gandhi, Nehru, Mountbatten. But we can only understand the shape that Partition actually took by looking at the stories of the people who gave it that shape.We have worked at preserving the archives, through digitisation, paper conservation and dissemination. This will be beneficial to both academics and the larger public, says Deepika Sorabjee, Head, Arts and Culture, Tata Trusts.

CHANDIGARH: The 1947 Partition Archive collection of over 4,300 witness interviews, and over 30,000 digital documents and photographs will soon be made accessible. The collection will be released in collaboration with a consortium of Indian, Pakistani, British and American universities.A portion of the oral interviews will be available to everyone via live streaming from Stanford University Librarys digital repository. The remaining collection, deemed too delicate or sensitive for open accessibility, will be available to researchers and interested parties by visiting select university libraries of Ashoka University, Delhi University, and Guru Nanak Dev University in India; and Lahore University of Management Sciences and Habib University in Pakistan. A pilot adoption of the collection into the three Indian university libraries is being supported by the Tata Trust. Our end goal is to record at least 10,000 oral history interviews from surviving witnesses. We receive requests daily from artistes, researchers, media persons, students and others, wanting access to the oral histories, said Guneeta Singh Bhalla, founder of The 1947 Partition Archive. Stanford University librarian Michael Keller says, The videos being gathered are tremendously important and need to be preserved as part of historical record.The material, according to Keller, is of particular interest to Stanford given that research is underway at the Centre for South Asia and the WSD Handa Centre for Human Rights and International Justice. Historian Priya Satia, overseeing the collections adoption into Stanford University library, says, For the last 70 years we have been telling the story of Partition through the lens of high-political negotiations between figures such as Jinnah, Gandhi, Nehru, Mountbatten. But we can only understand the shape that Partition actually took by looking at the stories of the people who gave it that shape.We have worked at preserving the archives, through digitisation, paper conservation and dissemination. This will be beneficial to both academics and the larger public, says Deepika Sorabjee, Head, Arts and Culture, Tata Trusts.
By PTI

TEHRAN: At least four soldiers were killed and eight injured when one of their colleagues opened fire on a military air base in southern Tehran today, the Iranian military said in a statement.

The incident was "probably related to psychological problems of the soldier who suddenly started firing on his comrades," the statement said.

It took place on a shooting range, and could also have been the result of a gun misfiring, the statement added.

"The injured were transported to a medical centre and an investigation has been opened," it said.

State television reported a similar incident last month when a serviceman opened fire at a barracks in Abyek, around 40 kilometres northwest of Tehran, killing three and injuring six.

The gunman in that incident, who had reportedly been denied a transfer to his home town, shot himself but survived his injuries, according to the ISNA news agency.

Military service of two years is mandatory for Iranian men when they turn 19.

TEHRAN: At least four soldiers were killed and eight injured when one of their colleagues opened fire on a military air base in southern Tehran today, the Iranian military said in a statement. The incident was "probably related to psychological problems of the soldier who suddenly started firing on his comrades," the statement said. It took place on a shooting range, and could also have been the result of a gun misfiring, the statement added. "The injured were transported to a medical centre and an investigation has been opened," it said. State television reported a similar incident last month when a serviceman opened fire at a barracks in Abyek, around 40 kilometres northwest of Tehran, killing three and injuring six. The gunman in that incident, who had reportedly been denied a transfer to his home town, shot himself but survived his injuries, according to the ISNA news agency. Military service of two years is mandatory for Iranian men when they turn 19.
By AFP

DOHA: Al-Jazeera "deplores" Israel's decision to close the broadcaster's offices in the Jewish state and will pursue the matter through legal channels, an official at the Doha-based news channel said today.

"Al-Jazeera deplores this action from a state that is called the only democratic state in the Middle East and considers what it has done is dangerous," said the official who declined to be named.

He said the broadcaster "will follow up the subject through appropriate legal and judicial procedures".

Israeli Communications Minister Ayoob Kara announced the plan to close Al-Jazeera at a Jerusalem news conference, accusing it of being a "tool" of jihadist Islamic State group, Shiite Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.

He also noted that countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt "have concluded that Al-Jazeera incites terrorism and religious extremism".

Saudi Arabia leads four Arab countries, including Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, which broke ties with Doha in June, accusing it of fostering extremism and who later demanded Al-Jazeera's closure.

"Al-Jazeera is surprised by the announcement of the Israeli minister of communications in his justification that the decision is consistent with what has been done by Arab countries... namely Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Egypt," the official told AFP in Doha.

The official defended Al-Jazeera's coverage of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, saying it is "professional and objective" and gives both sides of events.

He said Al-Jazeera would issue a formal statement in the next few hours.

DOHA: Al-Jazeera "deplores" Israel's decision to close the broadcaster's offices in the Jewish state and will pursue the matter through legal channels, an official at the Doha-based news channel said today. "Al-Jazeera deplores this action from a state that is called the only democratic state in the Middle East and considers what it has done is dangerous," said the official who declined to be named. He said the broadcaster "will follow up the subject through appropriate legal and judicial procedures". Israeli Communications Minister Ayoob Kara announced the plan to close Al-Jazeera at a Jerusalem news conference, accusing it of being a "tool" of jihadist Islamic State group, Shiite Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas. He also noted that countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt "have concluded that Al-Jazeera incites terrorism and religious extremism". Saudi Arabia leads four Arab countries, including Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, which broke ties with Doha in June, accusing it of fostering extremism and who later demanded Al-Jazeera's closure. "Al-Jazeera is surprised by the announcement of the Israeli minister of communications in his justification that the decision is consistent with what has been done by Arab countries... namely Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Egypt," the official told AFP in Doha. The official defended Al-Jazeera's coverage of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, saying it is "professional and objective" and gives both sides of events. He said Al-Jazeera would issue a formal statement in the next few hours.
By AFP

VALENCIA; Venezuela's military said Sunday it repelled a "terrorist" attack on one of its bases in the city of Valencia led by an army deserter allegedly linked to "foreign governments."

One of the attackers was killed and another was badly wounded during the assault, army chief Jesus Suarez Chourio said.

Military helicopters could be seen flying over the major northwestern city as tactical armored vehicles patrolled the streets in a climate of tension.

Powerful explosions were heard by a team of AFP journalists.

Locals said a nighttime curfew had been imposed, as flaming barricades set up in the street by anti-government protesters spewed black smoke.

Officials said several of the "terrorists" had been arrested and insisted all was normal across the country.

Still, the incident heightened fears that Venezuela's deepening political and economic crisis could explode into greater violence.

The armed forces said in a statement "a group of civilian criminals wearing military uniforms and a first lieutenant who had deserted" carried out the attack, during which a number of weapons were stolen.

The lieutenant and several of the attackers were arrested but "an intense search" was on for the others who made off with the guns, the military said.

- Maduro 'dictatorship' -

The statement said those detained had "confessed" to being hired by "extreme-right activists, in connection with foreign governments." It did not identify those governments.

Venezuela has become increasingly isolated internationally as President Nicolas Maduro has tightened his hold on power through a contested loyalist assembly that started work this week, with the backing of the military.

The opposition, which controls the legislature, has become sidelined. Its leaders are under threat of arrest after organizing protests, fiercely countered by security forces, that have left 125 people dead in the past four months.

One prominent leader, Leopoldo Lopez, was returned to house arrest after being hauled off to military prison four days ago.

The new Constituent Assembly, packed with Maduro allies including the president's wife and son, has quickly used its supreme powers to clamp down on dissent.

On Saturday, it ordered the dismissal of the attorney general, Luisa Ortega, who had broken ranks with Maduro to become one of his most vociferous critics.

On Sunday it announced -- then suspended -- the creation of a "truth commission" sought by Maduro to probe alleged crimes by the opposition.

The United States accuses Maduro of installing an "authoritarian dictatorship" that has turned Venezuela into an international pariah.

The United States, Colombia, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Peru have slammed the "illegal" sacking of Ortega.

And Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Brazil have indefinitely suspended Venezuela from the South American trading bloc Mercosur for its "rupture of the democratic order."

- Loyal military chiefs -

"Each step by the Constituent Assembly is a step towards the precipice by this government," the leader of the opposition parliament, Julio Borges, told a news conference in Caracas on Sunday.

"The only thing it has left is brute force. This is not a strong government, it's a rotten government, which is falling. The only thing it wants is to cling to power," he said, calling for more protests.

Borges said the Venezuelan military "is a mirror of a country that wants change."

The opposition has repeatedly urged the military to abandon Maduro.

But Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino, the head of the armed forces, has said the military's loyalty was unshakable.

After Sunday's attack in Valencia, Padrino tweeted that the assailants "couldn't do anything against" the army. "They try to assault it with terrorist attacks. They can't," he said.

In a video posted online just before the attack, a man presenting himself as an army captain declared a "legitimate rebellion... to reject the murderous tyranny of Nicolas Maduro."

Speaking with 15 other men dressed in camouflage standing by him, some of them armed, he demanded a transitional government and "free elections."

It was not known if he was the lieutenant referred to in the military statement.

That statement said the officer had deserted three years ago and taken refuge in Miami, in the US state of Florida.

The deputy leader of Maduro's Socialist Party, Diosdado Cabello, tweeted that there was "absolute normality in the other military units in the country."

VALENCIA; Venezuela's military said Sunday it repelled a "terrorist" attack on one of its bases in the city of Valencia led by an army deserter allegedly linked to "foreign governments." One of the attackers was killed and another was badly wounded during the assault, army chief Jesus Suarez Chourio said. Military helicopters could be seen flying over the major northwestern city as tactical armored vehicles patrolled the streets in a climate of tension. Powerful explosions were heard by a team of AFP journalists. Locals said a nighttime curfew had been imposed, as flaming barricades set up in the street by anti-government protesters spewed black smoke. Officials said several of the "terrorists" had been arrested and insisted all was normal across the country. Still, the incident heightened fears that Venezuela's deepening political and economic crisis could explode into greater violence. The armed forces said in a statement "a group of civilian criminals wearing military uniforms and a first lieutenant who had deserted" carried out the attack, during which a number of weapons were stolen. The lieutenant and several of the attackers were arrested but "an intense search" was on for the others who made off with the guns, the military said. - Maduro 'dictatorship' - The statement said those detained had "confessed" to being hired by "extreme-right activists, in connection with foreign governments." It did not identify those governments. Venezuela has become increasingly isolated internationally as President Nicolas Maduro has tightened his hold on power through a contested loyalist assembly that started work this week, with the backing of the military. The opposition, which controls the legislature, has become sidelined. Its leaders are under threat of arrest after organizing protests, fiercely countered by security forces, that have left 125 people dead in the past four months. One prominent leader, Leopoldo Lopez, was returned to house arrest after being hauled off to military prison four days ago. The new Constituent Assembly, packed with Maduro allies including the president's wife and son, has quickly used its supreme powers to clamp down on dissent. On Saturday, it ordered the dismissal of the attorney general, Luisa Ortega, who had broken ranks with Maduro to become one of his most vociferous critics. On Sunday it announced -- then suspended -- the creation of a "truth commission" sought by Maduro to probe alleged crimes by the opposition. The United States accuses Maduro of installing an "authoritarian dictatorship" that has turned Venezuela into an international pariah. The United States, Colombia, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Peru have slammed the "illegal" sacking of Ortega. And Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Brazil have indefinitely suspended Venezuela from the South American trading bloc Mercosur for its "rupture of the democratic order." - Loyal military chiefs - "Each step by the Constituent Assembly is a step towards the precipice by this government," the leader of the opposition parliament, Julio Borges, told a news conference in Caracas on Sunday. "The only thing it has left is brute force. This is not a strong government, it's a rotten government, which is falling. The only thing it wants is to cling to power," he said, calling for more protests. Borges said the Venezuelan military "is a mirror of a country that wants change." The opposition has repeatedly urged the military to abandon Maduro. But Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino, the head of the armed forces, has said the military's loyalty was unshakable. After Sunday's attack in Valencia, Padrino tweeted that the assailants "couldn't do anything against" the army. "They try to assault it with terrorist attacks. They can't," he said. In a video posted online just before the attack, a man presenting himself as an army captain declared a "legitimate rebellion... to reject the murderous tyranny of Nicolas Maduro." Speaking with 15 other men dressed in camouflage standing by him, some of them armed, he demanded a transitional government and "free elections." It was not known if he was the lieutenant referred to in the military statement. That statement said the officer had deserted three years ago and taken refuge in Miami, in the US state of Florida. The deputy leader of Maduro's Socialist Party, Diosdado Cabello, tweeted that there was "absolute normality in the other military units in the country."
By PTI: By Seema Hakhu Kachru

Houston, Aug 6 (PTI) An "improvised explosive device " caused blast at a suburban Minneapolis mosque when worshippers were gathering for morning prayers, according to the FBI.

No one has been arrested yet. Congregants and neighbours expressed relief that there were no injuries, but also reacted with shock and dismay.

According to authorities, no one was hurt in the explosion at the Bloomington Islamic Center, but heavily damaged an imams officeand sent smoke wafting through the large building.

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Windows in the office were shattered, either by the blast or by an object thrown through them.

When police arrived, they found smoke and fire damage to the building, said Bloomington Police Chief Jeff Potts.

Agents from the FBI and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives soon joined the investigation.

At a news conference Special Agent in Charge Richard Thornton said an "improvised explosive device" caused the blast, but that investigators still must determine "who and why."

Mohamed Omar, the centres executive director, who was in the building when the explosion erupted, said one worshipper saw a pickup truck speed out of the parking lot after the blast.

At a news conference that included clergy from several faiths, Asad Zaman, director of the local Muslim American Society, described the attack as a firebombing.

"Something blew up, we dont know what, but there was a lot of smoke, and the fire suppression system kicked in and stopped the fire," he said.

Neighbours reported waking up to a loud bang or pop, some even feeling the concussion reverberate through windows.

Minnesota law enforcement reported 14 anti-Muslim bias incidents last year, according to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, a record high even as other categories have been on the decline.

Governr Mark Dayton decried the incident and vowed to stay in close tough with law enforcement about the investigation.

"Every place of worship, for all Minnesotans of every faith and culture, must be sacred and safe," he said. PTI SHK AJR

--- ENDS ---
By AFP

WARRI: Twelve worshippers were shot dead at a church in southeast Nigeria on Sunday, with authorities suggesting the bloodshed was due to a local feud.

At around 6:00 am (0500 GMT) at least one gunman opened fire at St. Philip's church in Ozubulu, near the city of Onitsha, unleashing terror on the congregation.

Chukwuma Emeka said he had just stepped out of the church to stretch his legs "when I heard gunshots and screaming and people running inside."

"When the chaos subsided I went inside, I saw my fellow church members dead in a pool of their own blood and many others were screaming in pain."

Attacks on churches are rare in southern Nigeria, where there is a predominantly Christian population.

The country's mainly-Muslim north has been gripped by a violent campaign by Boko Haram jihadists, who specialise in targeting religious centres.

There were varying accounts of what happened in Ozubulu. Witnesses said five gunmen in masks stormed the church, but police said the killing was the work of a lone shooter.

"So far, 12 persons have been confirmed dead and deposited in the mortuary here," a worker at Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital told AFP.

Several worshippers with gunshot wounds were also receiving treatment at the hospital, the source said. Witnesses said they feared that up to 20 people may have died.

- 'Feud' -

Garba Umar, Anambra State police Commissioner, said the attacker was a gunman who "went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding" worshippers.

He said the violence was the result of a failed murder attempt, tied to a feud within the local community.

"The information at the disposal of the police is that the gunman had been hired to kill a particular family person believed to be among the worshippers," he said.

Local rights activist Emeka Umeagbalasi said his information about the motive largely concurred with that of the police version.

The gunmen had gone to kill the son of a local chief but failed to find him at his home, Umeagbalasi said.

The attackers then went to the church to hunt for him, but could not find the intended target and became angry, he said.

They opened "fire on parishioners and shot indiscriminately," he said, adding that the father of the intended target was shot and wounded.

Speaker of Nigeria's House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara called the attack "barbaric... the height of wickedness."

He extended his condolences to families of the victims, assuring them that the government would do everything within its power to track down those responsible.

Hundreds of churches and mosques in Nigeria's north have been attacked since 2009 when Boko Haram began a violent campaign to impose strict Islamic law.

The rebellion has killed at least 20,000 people and forced some 2.6 million others to flee their homes, sparking a dire humanitarian crisis in the northeast.



WARRI: Twelve worshippers were shot dead at a church in southeast Nigeria on Sunday, with authorities suggesting the bloodshed was due to a local feud. At around 6:00 am (0500 GMT) at least one gunman opened fire at St. Philip's church in Ozubulu, near the city of Onitsha, unleashing terror on the congregation. Chukwuma Emeka said he had just stepped out of the church to stretch his legs "when I heard gunshots and screaming and people running inside." "When the chaos subsided I went inside, I saw my fellow church members dead in a pool of their own blood and many others were screaming in pain." Attacks on churches are rare in southern Nigeria, where there is a predominantly Christian population. The country's mainly-Muslim north has been gripped by a violent campaign by Boko Haram jihadists, who specialise in targeting religious centres. There were varying accounts of what happened in Ozubulu. Witnesses said five gunmen in masks stormed the church, but police said the killing was the work of a lone shooter. "So far, 12 persons have been confirmed dead and deposited in the mortuary here," a worker at Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital told AFP. Several worshippers with gunshot wounds were also receiving treatment at the hospital, the source said. Witnesses said they feared that up to 20 people may have died. - 'Feud' - Garba Umar, Anambra State police Commissioner, said the attacker was a gunman who "went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding" worshippers. He said the violence was the result of a failed murder attempt, tied to a feud within the local community. "The information at the disposal of the police is that the gunman had been hired to kill a particular family person believed to be among the worshippers," he said. Local rights activist Emeka Umeagbalasi said his information about the motive largely concurred with that of the police version. The gunmen had gone to kill the son of a local chief but failed to find him at his home, Umeagbalasi said. The attackers then went to the church to hunt for him, but could not find the intended target and became angry, he said. They opened "fire on parishioners and shot indiscriminately," he said, adding that the father of the intended target was shot and wounded. Speaker of Nigeria's House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara called the attack "barbaric... the height of wickedness." He extended his condolences to families of the victims, assuring them that the government would do everything within its power to track down those responsible. Hundreds of churches and mosques in Nigeria's north have been attacked since 2009 when Boko Haram began a violent campaign to impose strict Islamic law. The rebellion has killed at least 20,000 people and forced some 2.6 million others to flee their homes, sparking a dire humanitarian crisis in the northeast.
By AFP

KABUL: Afghan president Ashraf Ghani condemned Sunday the reported massacre of dozens of civilians in a remote area of the war-torn country where the Taliban claimed a victory against military forces.

"Criminal terrorists have once again killed civilians, women and children in Sayad district of Sar-e Pul province, adding to their crimes.

"This barbaric act of them is deemed a direct violation of human rights and a war crime," Ghani said in a statement.

The comments came after the governor of Sar-e Pul said that "as many as 30 to 40 innocent people... were brutally shot and killed" in the province's predominately Shiite village of Mirzawalang after insurgents captured it on Saturday.

Mohammad Zaher Wahdat, the provincial governor, added that several mosques were set ablaze while an unknown number of villagers had also been taken hostage following a 48-hour battle between insurgents and Afghan security forces.

He said 12 insurgents and seven Afghan troops had been killed in the fighting.

The village is situated in an extremely remote part of the country, where both the Taliban and Islamic State group fighters have a presence, and AFP was unable to confirm the reports with independent sources.

The Taliban said in a statement that it had captured Mirzawalang village but rejected reports of civilians casualties, calling it "hollow propaganda by the enemy".

The incident comes after the Afghan government claimed last month that Taliban fighters had killed 35 people in an attack on a hospital in central Ghor province.

Officials later backtracked though, underscoring the difficulty of verifying information from poor, mountainous areas of Afghanistan made inaccessible by fighting and with patchy communications.

The Taliban is at the peak of its summer fighting season and has carried out a number of deadly attacks in recent days, including the killing of two US soldiers in a suicide bomb attack in Kandahar on Wednesday.



KABUL: Afghan president Ashraf Ghani condemned Sunday the reported massacre of dozens of civilians in a remote area of the war-torn country where the Taliban claimed a victory against military forces. "Criminal terrorists have once again killed civilians, women and children in Sayad district of Sar-e Pul province, adding to their crimes. "This barbaric act of them is deemed a direct violation of human rights and a war crime," Ghani said in a statement. The comments came after the governor of Sar-e Pul said that "as many as 30 to 40 innocent people... were brutally shot and killed" in the province's predominately Shiite village of Mirzawalang after insurgents captured it on Saturday. Mohammad Zaher Wahdat, the provincial governor, added that several mosques were set ablaze while an unknown number of villagers had also been taken hostage following a 48-hour battle between insurgents and Afghan security forces. He said 12 insurgents and seven Afghan troops had been killed in the fighting. The village is situated in an extremely remote part of the country, where both the Taliban and Islamic State group fighters have a presence, and AFP was unable to confirm the reports with independent sources. The Taliban said in a statement that it had captured Mirzawalang village but rejected reports of civilians casualties, calling it "hollow propaganda by the enemy". The incident comes after the Afghan government claimed last month that Taliban fighters had killed 35 people in an attack on a hospital in central Ghor province. Officials later backtracked though, underscoring the difficulty of verifying information from poor, mountainous areas of Afghanistan made inaccessible by fighting and with patchy communications. The Taliban is at the peak of its summer fighting season and has carried out a number of deadly attacks in recent days, including the killing of two US soldiers in a suicide bomb attack in Kandahar on Wednesday.
By AFP

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia has pledged $33.7 million to help the World Health Organization eradicate cholera in war-wracked Yemen, where the disease has killed nearly 2,000 people, the WHO said on Sunday.

Gregory Hartl, a spokesman for the organisation, confirmed that Saudi Arabia, which leads an Arab coalition battling rebels in Yemen, had signed an agreement committing the funds to help the WHO battle the spread of cholera.

The oil-rich Gulf kingdom, in a statement on Thursday, said the money committed to WHO was part of an overall effort to combat the cholera outbreak in Yemen.

Riyadh said it also pledged $33 million to the UN's children agency, UNICEF, for a project to improve water and sanitation facilities which are "drivers of the epidemic".

The Saudi aid was initially announced in June by Crown Prime Mohammed bin Salman.

Last week the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, also pledged $10 million to help the WHO stem the spread of cholera in Yemen.

The United Arab Emirates is a key member of the Saudi-led coalition that entered Yemen's conflict in 2015 on the side of the government against Iran-backed Shiite Huthi rebels.

Since then, the war in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula nation has killed more than 8,000 people, according to WHO figures.

The cholera outbreak has already claimed the lives of at least 1,915 people since April this year, with 436,000 suspected cases across the country.

A report by three UN agencies last week said the vicious combination of war, cholera and hunger has left 80 percent of Yemeni children in desperate need of aid.

It also warned that the number of cholera cases was expected to reach 600,000 by the end of the year.

The report was issued after executive directors of WHO, UNICEF and the World Food Programme visited Yemen to assess the situation.

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia has pledged $33.7 million to help the World Health Organization eradicate cholera in war-wracked Yemen, where the disease has killed nearly 2,000 people, the WHO said on Sunday. Gregory Hartl, a spokesman for the organisation, confirmed that Saudi Arabia, which leads an Arab coalition battling rebels in Yemen, had signed an agreement committing the funds to help the WHO battle the spread of cholera. The oil-rich Gulf kingdom, in a statement on Thursday, said the money committed to WHO was part of an overall effort to combat the cholera outbreak in Yemen. Riyadh said it also pledged $33 million to the UN's children agency, UNICEF, for a project to improve water and sanitation facilities which are "drivers of the epidemic". The Saudi aid was initially announced in June by Crown Prime Mohammed bin Salman. Last week the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, also pledged $10 million to help the WHO stem the spread of cholera in Yemen. The United Arab Emirates is a key member of the Saudi-led coalition that entered Yemen's conflict in 2015 on the side of the government against Iran-backed Shiite Huthi rebels. Since then, the war in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula nation has killed more than 8,000 people, according to WHO figures. The cholera outbreak has already claimed the lives of at least 1,915 people since April this year, with 436,000 suspected cases across the country. A report by three UN agencies last week said the vicious combination of war, cholera and hunger has left 80 percent of Yemeni children in desperate need of aid. It also warned that the number of cholera cases was expected to reach 600,000 by the end of the year. The report was issued after executive directors of WHO, UNICEF and the World Food Programme visited Yemen to assess the situation.
Newport Art Museum wraps up fall with variety of programs

Though it hasnt always felt like fall these past few weeks, the museum is in high gear hosting fall events and planning for winter.
By PTI: By Sajjad Hussain

Islamabad, Aug 6 (PTI) Internet services were disrupted across Pakistan for about 38 hours due to a fault in the India-Middle East-Western Europe submarine cable, affecting flight services and other activities.

The Internet services were restored across the country today after the disruption caused by the fault in the undersea internet cable, a Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) spokesman said.

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The disruption prevented airport officials confirming flight schedules and ticket bookings, as a result of which at least eight domestic and international flights at Islamabads Benazir Bhutto International Airport were cancelled earlier today, airport officials said.

Internet services were restored after the 38-hour-long disruption caused by a fault in the India-Middle East-Western Europe (I-ME-WE) submarine cable, the PTCL spokesman said.

A fault in the submarine cable caused consumers and businesses across Pakistan to experience major internet disruptions, with many customers complaining of slow browsing speeds.

PTCL Chief Business Development Officer Sikander Naqi told Dawn that the disruption was caused by cuts in a PTCL cable, but the company had succeeded in restoring internet services across the country.

"A cable was cut in Saudi Arabia near Jeddah yesterday morning," he said. "Experts initially thought the cut was under the sea but after a bit of research, they figured out that the cable that was cut is on land. It has now been repaired and services are back to normal."

"There are four PTCL cables, whereas private companies have two. Six cables are good enough for Pakistan. Unfortunately due to two cuts at the same time, service across the country was disrupted," he said. PTI SH AMS PMS AMS

--- ENDS ---
Champaign, IL (61820)

Today

Snow showers this evening. Clearing skies later. Low 23F. Winds NW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 30%..

Tonight

Snow showers this evening. Clearing skies later. Low 23F. Winds NW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 30%.
Mumbai: The ongoing quarterly results season, along with macro-economic industrial production and exim data points are expected to steer the key equity indices during the upcoming week, market observers opined.



According to analysts, global cues, combined with direction of foreign funds' flow and the rupee's movement against the US dollar will also affect investor sentiments.



"With the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) monetary policy out of the way, markets next week will continue to be influenced by global stocks hitting new highs, especially in the US, domestic earnings (actual versus consensus) and local inflows," Devendra Nevgi, Chief Executive of Zyfin Advisors, told IANS.



"The wide consensus is that markets will get support in the event of any correction, which so far has been eluding the markets. The fear is that there is no fear.



"FPIs (Foreign Portfolio Investors) have been net sellers in current month. Profit-booking would keep the market's rise capped. The INR appreciation could also negatively impact earnings of some sectors," he said.



Further, market participants are expected to track quarterly earning results of sector-based majors like Tata Steel, Adani Power, Bharat Forge, Tata Chemicals, BHEL, Gail, Motherson Sumi Systems, Tata Motors and Power Finance.



"Due to the ongoing earnings season, stock-specific action would remain high, but most of the index participants are showing diminishing strength," Dhruv Desai, Director and Chief Operating Officer of Tradebulls, told IANS.



"Despite the fact that Nifty has held on to the 10,000 points-mark, bank's stocks have given-up their recent gains. Bank Nifty is under pressure post the RBI rate-cut."



Apart from quarterly results, macro-economic data points like the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) and the country's trade deficit or exim data will be keenly watched by investors.



"The July PMI was disappointing, IIP has been very volatile and growth of eight core industries is at a low level while India's GDP growth is off the track. We continue to have a cautious view in the near-term given premium valuation and strong price performance in the last 6-9 months," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.



On technical levels, the NSE Nifty's underlying trend remains bullish with an immediate resistance level seen at 10,138 points.



"Technically, the underlying trend remains up and the coming week could see Nifty's attempt to reach new life highs," Deepak Jasani, Head, Retail Research, HDFC Securities, told IANS.



"Immediate resistances are at 10,138 points, while crucial supports to watch for any weakness are at 9,988 points."



Last week, key equity indices extended gains for the fifth consecutive week and scaled new record highs on the back of healthy quarterly earnings, as well as auto results, coupled with positive global cues. Nevertheless, gains were capped due to profit bookings.



Consequently, the 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE closed at 32,325.41 points -- up more than 15 points or 0.05 per cent from its previous week's close.



In contrast, the NSE Nifty rose by 99.25 points or 1 per cent to close the week's trade at 10,066.40 points.
By India Today Web Desk: It has been two years since Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux tied the knot. The usually private Justin took to his Instagram account on Saturday to share a selfie with his wife to mark the occasion.

The picture, which got 59,000 likes in 7 hours, features Justin looking off into the distance as Jennifer gives him a peck on the cheek. Compliments and wishes poured in from fans, who went gaga over Jen's rare appearance on Justin's Instagram account.

??...??? A post shared by @justintheroux on Aug 5, 2017 at 4:23pm PDT

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Jennifer and Justin wed in a hush-hush ceremony at their Bel Air mansion in 2015 after being engaged for three years. In fact, it is said that even their guests did not know that they were attending a wedding, as Jennifer told them she was throwing a party to celebrate Justin's birthday.

Sparks flew between the two when they worked together in Wanderlust (2010). In the next two years, Justin was certain that Jennifer was the love of his life, and he proposed to her on his 41st birthday, on August 10, 2012.

ALSO READ: Jennifer Aniston cried for Angelina Jolie

ALSO READ: Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux are obsessed with this workout

ALSO WATCH: Is Jennifer Aniston pregnant?

--- ENDS ---
New Delhi/ Berne: Switzerland found India's data security and confidentiality laws "adequate" for entering into an automatic exchange of information pact, which will open a continuous access to details about alleged black money hoarders in once-all-secret Swiss banks.



In a detailed notification and fact sheet published in its official gazette for introduction of "automatic exchange of information relating to financial accounts with India", the Swiss government has also cited decisions by other financial centres like Liechtenstein and Bahamas to enter into similar pacts.



Besides, Switzerland also took note of the US tax authority, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), recognising India among the countries that provide an "adequate degree" of data protection for mutual exchange of tax information. The fact sheet and the notification, published in German, also talks about Switzerland looking to explore greater access to Indian market, including the reinsurance sector and other financial services.



The Swiss Federal Council, the top governing body of the European nation, in June ratified automatic exchange of financial account information with India and 40 other jurisdictions to facilitate immediate sharing of details about suspected black money even as it sought strict adherence to confidentiality and data security.



Taking the decision forward, the Swiss government has now notified the decision and the notification authorises the Council to notify India about the exact date when such automatic exchange must take place.



The implementation is currently planned for 2018 and the first set of data should be exchanged in 2019. The decision is not subject to any referendum -- which means there should be no further procedural delay in its implementation.



The issue of black money has been a matter of big debate in India, and Switzerland has been long perceived as one of the safest havens for the illicit wealth allegedly stashed abroad by Indians.



The notification follows hectic parleys between India and Switzerland for introduction of the AEOI (Automatic Exchange of Information) on tax matters under the guidance of G20, OECD and other global organisations.



In the fact sheet about India, which forms part of the notification about all 41 jurisdictions selected for AEOI by Switzerland, the Swiss government noted India showed its commitment for implementing the international pact with effect from 2016 itself and "adaptations of the internal laws necessary for the implementation were made in good time".



Listing various changes to the tax laws and introduction of new laws for fighting black money stashed abroad as well as within the country, the Swiss government said, "The legal, administrative and technical framework for confidentiality and data security in India was deemed satisfactory by the Global Forum's panel of experts."



The Swiss Federal Department of Finance assessed this evaluation and found them to be "adequate", the notification said.



It further said that India negotiated with the US a model intergovernmental agreement on FATCA for reciprocal exchange of information, which has entered into force after the IRS assessed the level of confidentiality and data security in India and found it "appropriate".



"All agreements concerning the exchange of tax information concluded by India contain a confidentiality clause which corresponds to that of the model OECD agreement," it noted, while adding that the country's Income Tax Act contain other confidentiality provisions as well.



The notification also referred to the personal data protection measures provided in other laws of the country, incoming the Informational Technology Act and the Right to Information Act.



The Swiss government will prepare a situation report before the first exchange of data for which confidentiality and data protection requirements are to be strictly followed.



On access to Indian market, the Swiss government said the Indian market is not one of the strategic markets targeted by Switzerland-based financial services providers for their cross-border activities, as "bureaucratic and prudential obstacles were generally more difficult to overcome".



Nonetheless, they are interested in taking advantage of improved governance conditions and greater legal certainty in the financial services sector, particularly in the reinsurance sector.



Switzerland said the two countries have committed to improve the framework conditions for cross-border business activities to give a boost to international investment and financial services segments.
New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party MLA 'Commando' Surender Singh was on Saturday taken into judicial custody for his repeated non-appearance in a case related to defacement of public property in 2014.



Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ashu Garg ordered Commando's custody when he appeared before the court. He had not done on the last few occasions despite the court's directions.



The case relates to defacement of public property in Naraina area in south west Delhi, allegedly by putting up posters and hoardings.
New Delhi: An application has been moved in the Supreme Court seeking early hearing of the politically- sensitive Rs 64 crore Bofors pay-off case after a fresh media report suggesting a financial quid pro quo for the Rs 1,437 crore Howitzer gun deal in 1986.



The plea by BJP leader and advocate Ajay Agrawal has also alleged apparent collusiveness by CBI with the accused persons in the Bofors scam, saying the agency did not challenge the Delhi High Court's May 31, 2005, judgment quashing all charges against the Europe-based Hinduja brothers.



He has challenged the judgement in the apex court which had on October 18, 2005, admitted his petition that was filed after the CBI failed to approach the top court with the appeal within the 90-day deadline after the High Court verdict.



In the application, the lawyer-turned-politician said he had filed the appeal in public interest because the CBI did not come forward and it was reported that the Law Ministry then had not given permission to the agency, despite the fact that the High Court order was illegal.



To substantiate the allegation of collusiveness between the CBI and the accused persons, Agrawal in his application has narrated the sequence of events that led to the defreezing of the London bank account of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, alleged middleman in the deal, in 2006, for which the then Additional Solicitor General B Dutta had visited England.



He said such a step was undertaken despite the fact that the then UPA government and the CBI were aware that his appeal has been admitted by the apex court.



Agrawal, who had contested the Rai Bareli Lok Sabha elections in 2014 against Congress President Sonia Gandhi, also claimed that the CBI did not bother to inform the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, which was seized of the Quattrocchi matter, to inform about its move to defreeze the accounts.



He said that on August 3, he had written a letter to the CBI seeking re-investigation of the entire Bofors scam and the trail of alleged bribe money deposited in Quattrocchi's London bank account and the subsequent developments after the defreezing of the account on January 16, 2006.



Fresh developments assume significance in the wake of a demand in Parliament by ruling BJP MPs for reopening of the probe into the Bofors kickback scandal after the media reports quoting Swedish chief investigator Sten Lindstrom's suggested payment of alleged bribery at the top level.



After the developments in Parliament, Agrawal also wrote a letter to the Enforcement Directorate seeking an investigation into the trail of the kickback money under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.



In the July 28 letter to the ED, he claimed that the alleged crimes were committed continuously till 2006 when two London accounts held by Quattrochi, who has been accused as one of the middlemen in the deal, were de-freezed.



The BJP leader said the CBI should file an affidavit about the facts and course of an investigation into the case, as during the brief hearing on December 1, 2016, the agency had told the apex court that the authorities had not permitted it to file an appeal against the May 31, 2005, verdict.



He said he would try to convince the apex court through his petition that the "High Court had quashed the charges against the accused persons on technical grounds and the order was totally perverse which is liable to be set aside."



Justice R S Sodhi, since retired, of the Delhi High Court had on May 31, 2005, quashed all charges against the Hinduja brothers -- Srichand, Gopichand and Prakashchand -- and the Bofors company and castigated the CBI for its handling of the case saying it had cost the exchequer about Rs 250 crore.



Before the 2005 verdict, another judge of the Delhi High Court, Justice J D Kapoor (since retired) on February 4, 2004, had exonerated late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in the case and directed framing of charge of forgery under Section 465 of the IPC against the Bofors company.



The matter was last listed on February 28 this year when it was adjourned.



The apex court had on October 18, 2005, allowed Agrawal to file an appeal against the high court verdict in the absence of any appeal by CBI.



December 1, 2016, hearing had taken place after a gap of almost six years since August 12, 2010.



The Rs 1,437 crore deal between India and the Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors for the supply of 400 155mm Howitzer guns for Indian Army was entered on March 24, 1986.



The Swedish Radio on April 16, 1987, had claimed that the company had paid bribes to top Indian politicians and defence personnel.



The CBI on January 22, 1990, had registered the FIR for the alleged offence of criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery under the IPC and other sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act against Martin Ardbo, the then President of AB Bofors, alleged middleman Win Chadda and Hinduja brothers.



It had alleged that certain public servants and private persons in India and abroad had entered into a criminal conspiracy between 1982 and 1987 in pursuance of which the offences of bribery, corruption, cheating, and forgery were committed to the extent of Rs 64 crore in the contracts for the supply of Bofors guns.



The first charge sheet in the case was filed on October 22, 1999, against Chadda, Quattrocchi, then Defence Secretary S K Bhatnagar, Ardbo, and the Bofors company. A supplementary charge sheet against Hinduja brothers was filed on October 9, 2000.



A special CBI court in Delhi On March 4, 2011, had discharged Quattrocchi from the case saying the country cannot afford to spend hard-earned money on his extradition which has already cost Rs 250 crore.



Quattrocchi, who had fled from here on July 29-30, 1993, has never appeared before any court in India to face prosecution. He passed away on July 13, 2013. The other accused persons who have died are Bhatnagar, Chadda and Ardbo.


Chandigarh: Day after his 29-year-old daughter narrated a horrific tale of her being stalked and harassed in the heart of 'one of the safer cities', Chandigarh-based IAS officer told CNN-News18 that it is his duty as a father to take a stand.



The senior IAS officer said that, given his position with the Haryana government, it would be extremely sad if he fails to rectify the system. He added that he still believes in the judiciary's ability to deliver justice.



Late on Friday night, the woman was chased and harassed by Vikas Barala, son of Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala and his friend in a car for over seven kilometres. The accused even tried to stop her car several times and enter it.



"A lot of people have been telling me that the police would try to dilute the case that has been registered by my daughter. However, I would say that as a citizen of this country, I expect the system to deliver. I strongly believe that the system works and that is why my daughter is safe and alive. At this point, I have no reason to presume that it won't deliver," he said.



Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar's advisor Jawahar Yadav told CNN-News 18, "Barala has made it clear that he will stand by the judicial process."



The IAS officer added, "The boys must be punished. I obviously do not want their families to suffer. I do not know why they did it, under the influence of liquor or whatever. But if these boys believe that they can get away with anything because they come from influential families, then that has to change."



Chandigarh being the capital of two states, boasts of a massive police force, thus making it one of the most secure places in India. On Friday night, the 29-year-old disc jockey was on her way home towards Panchkula, when Barala's white SUV started following her. The vehicle picked speed and started blocking her way. The men then came out and tried to open the girls car, but thankfully it was locked.



She sped away and called the police, who guided her through the traffic and managed to get the aid of patrolling officers.



"I have a support system behind me and so can take a stand. Any father whose child is abused or threatened would like to take a stand. However, due to their circumstances many cannot afford to do the same. I don't expect a class IV employee to take a stand. However, since I have the ability to do so, I will take a stand on behalf of my daughter and against those who believe they can get away with abuse," added the Haryana IAS officer.
New York: A 28-year-old Indian doctor has been arrested for allegedly groping a minor girl who was sitting next to him on a New Jersey-bound United Airlines flight, according to media reports.



The 16-year-old girl, who was travelling alone on July 23, was asleep on the flight, when a stranger's hand on her thigh awakened her, the Washington Post reported.



The man, identified as Vijakumar Krishnappa, sitting next to her quickly removed his hand, according to a federal court complaint, and the teenager went back to sleep. Then, she woke up again and this time, the man was groping her, the complaint says.



She reported the incident to the airline crew and was allowed to move seats.



Once the flight from Seattle landed at Newark Liberty International Airport, the girl, from Washington state, called her parents. While she did, the accused left the airport, said Johnny McCray, an attorney for the girl's family.



The girl's family has filed a complaint against United Airlines for neglecting to detain Krishnappa after the alleged assault, the report said.



The FBI was called to handle the investigation. It used the flight manifest to track down Krishnappa, a doctor from India. The girl identified him from a photo array, ABC reported.



Krishnappa was charged in the federal court in Newark, a day after the incident, according to court records filed by the FBI charging him with criminal sexual contact. Court records show he was arrested and charged with knowingly engaging in sexual contact with a minor female, the report said.



He has been released on bond, placed on electronic monitoring, and ordered to not have any contact with minors while the criminal case is pending, according to court records.



The doctor's court-appointed attorney, John Yauch, told the Post that his client "adamantly denies the charges and deserves to be considered an innocent man."



Krishnappa is studying medicine in the United States through a months-long fellowship that allows for doctors from foreign countries to learn from experts in the US, the daily said.



A spokesman from the Federal Aviation Administration told the daily that the airlines typically notify law enforcement about incidents before landing.



"The safety and security of our customers is our top priority. We take these allegations seriously and continue to work closely with the proper authorities as part of their review," a spokesperson for United Airlines said in a statement.
Thiruvananthapuram: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley launched into a tirade against the Pinarayi Vijayan-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) government in Kerala on Sunday, saying violence in the state increases every time they come to power.



Jaitley, who was in Kerala to meet the family of an RSS worker, Rajesh, who was last week hacked to death allegedly by a gang of people.



His left hand was chopped off and there were several other injuries all over his body. The BJP had alleged that CPI(M) was behind the murder, a charge denied by the ruling party.



Jaitley came out all guns blazing against the ruling front and went on to say that "the wounds inflicted on Rajesh would have embarrassed even the terrorists".



"Rajesh had 89 wounds on his body. We will not forget this heinous act. I am here to express my solidarity on behalf of our party. The workers of Kerala are not alone, the whole nation is with you," he added.



The Union Minister wondered what would have happened, "had the political violence currently taking place in Kerala", occurred in "a BJP or an NDA-ruled state".



Jaitley lambasted the activists for maintaining reticence on the violence in Kerala, saying, "Awards would've been returned, parliament wouldn't have been allowed to function, and campaigns would've been carried out within and outside the country."



Political will and determination of the state government, Jaitley said, needed to discipline its own cadres rather than "letting them loose on political opponents".















Jaitley also insinuated that perhaps the Kerala Police was hand in glove with the administration and said that "environment of violence won't end until police behaved fairly."



"It is the responsibility of the state to ensure that perpetrators of these crimes are brought to book," he said.



On the other hand, the CPI-M organised a sit-in protest in front of the Raj Bhavan, the official residence of the Governor P. Sathasivam, asking Jaitley to also visit the families of its cadres allegedly killed by BJP and RSS workers.



Anavoor Nagappan, the Thiruvananthapuram District Secretary of the CPI-M, told the media that those on protest included 21 family members of their activists killed in the state from 1980.



"Jaitley should not just restrict his visit to just the RSS worker's home. All these people who are sitting here have lost their near and dear ones to BJP and RSS workers," he said.


Amethi: After a prolonged administrative and legal process, the Amethi district administration has asked the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust to immediately vacate the 1.0360-hectare land at Rokha village in Jais, where it was imparting vocational training to the members of self-help groups, said officials.



They added that the said land was initially registered in the name of a vocational training centre but subsequently, it was allegedly captured by the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust.



The question regarding the ownership of the land was first raised by Union minister Smriti Irani, after she unsuccessfully contested the 2014 Lok Sabha polls from Amethi against Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi.



Four of the five Assembly segments of the Amethi parliamentary seat come under the jurisdiction of the district administration.



Irani's protest, however, fell on deaf ears during the rule of the previous Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh.



After Yogi Adityanath of the BJP became the chief minister of the state earlier this year, the district administration took note of Irani's letter and sprung into action.



Subsequently, Amethi District Magistrate Yogesh Kumar asked Tiloi Sub-Divisional Magistrate Ashok Kumar Shukla to consider the matter with a "special attention".



The first notice to the trust was issued by District Development Officer (DDO) O P Pandey on March 27, which was followed by notices from Chief Development Officer Om Prakash on April 10 and Shukla on April 28.



The notices asked the trust to produce the documents pertaining to the ownership or use of the land.



Shukla told PTI that the trust did respond to them, but the response was "neither clear nor sufficient".



Meanwhile, one Kiran Singh, claiming to be representing the self-help groups, the members of which were being trained by the trust, approached the Allahabad High Court, which asked the district administration to throw light on the status of the land and the activities of the self-help groups.



Subsequently, the SDM again asked the trust to furnish the documents pertaining to the use of the land. As the trust failed to do so, the SDM last week directed the Tiloi tehsildar to initiate the process to vacate the land.



Meanwhile, the Congress blamed Irani for the development. "The current scenario is nothing but a result of the ill intentions of Irani, who lost the parliamentary poll against our popular leader Rahul Gandhi," district Congress chief Yogendra Mishra told PTI.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court Collegium, led by the Chief Justice of India, has decided to reject the Centre's plea to review their stand on having the last word in judicial appointments.



Sources told CNN-News18 that all five senior-most judges in the Collegium have unanimously resolved to dismiss the government's last-ditch attempt to get a substantive say in appointment of judges in the Supreme Court and high courts.



"It has been decided that the Collegium won't let go of its authority to reserve the final word... it is non-negotiable and pertains directly to the independence of judiciary," said a source, privy to the minutes of the Collegium meeting.



In a meeting held recently, judges were of the view that the Collegium has in March sent its "final" version of the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) to the government and this draft required no further changes.



A decision was taken to convey to the government, through the Secretary General of the Court, that the Collegium has felt no need to reconsider and revise its stand on the latest draft of the MoP, which was sent in March this year.



Justices J Chelameswar and Ranjan Gogoi were also in agreement with this view.



A judgment in July by these two judges was lapped-up by the government as an opportunity to seek a review of the third and the "final" draft of the MoP, which guides all future appointments of judges after being notified.



Last month, as the top court released its order on sentencing former Calcutta High Court judge CS Karnan to six months in jail under contempt charge, Justices Chelameswar and Gogoi authored a separate concurring verdict, specifically calling for a more objective system of judicial appointments in India.



Their verdict emphasised that judges in the Supreme Court and high courts should be appointed on the basis of efficiency and integrity, and by employing appropriate standards.



All appointments are currently made on the basis of recommendations made by the Collegium, which reserves the last word on appointment even though the government may have some objections.



This was sought to be changed by the government through the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC), in which the Union Law Minister and two 'eminent' persons were supposed to be equal participants in the process of selection of judges. But the Supreme Court declared the NJAC to be "unconstitutional", and said that a new MoP with some suitable changes to bring more transparency in the existing system would be enough.



Incidentally, Justice Chelameswar was the lone dissenting judge on this five-judge bench who had favoured a completely new mechanism of judicial appointments.



The process of finalising the new MoP began after the December 2016 judgment and as many as three drafts were exchanged between the Collegium and the government in their bid to reach common ground.



In the "final" draft sent by the Collegium in March, the judges dismissed all relevant stipulations by the government through which the executive was hopeful of getting a say in judicial appointments.



Most importantly, the Collegium discarded the view that the government could have the final word on appointment of a judge when such an appointment could put in peril the national security.



Even though the Collegium agreed to retain the national security clause in the MoP, it kept to itself the right to reiterate a name for appointment despite the governments objection after which the appointment must go through.



A note, sent along with the draft MoP to the Union Law Ministry, further conveyed it unequivocally that no room for further negotiation was left as far as contentious clauses were concerned and that it was now for the government to take a call.



Wary of being perceived as an adversary of the highest judiciary, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) then asked the Law Ministry to hold its hands.



PK Mishra, Additional Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was entrusted with the responsibility of coming up with an acceptable formula for the government and the judiciary but things failed to move ever since. According to sources, it was subsequently decided to wait till the term of current CJI JS Khehar to get over on August 27, following which the composition of the Collegium would change.



When the judgment by Justices Chelameswar and Gogoi came, the Law Ministry saw this as opportunity to reassert their views on contentious clauses in the MoP.
Chandigarh: Two persons, including the son of Haryana's BJP chief, were arrested and released on bail soon after for allegedly stalking a girl in Chandigarh, police said on Saturday.



The girl had accused Vikas Barala, son of Haryana BJP Chief Subhash Barala, and his friend Ashish Kumar of stalking her last night after which they were arrested, the police said.



"We arrested both Vikas and Ashish and later they were bailed out," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Chandigarh, Satish Kumar said.



He said the complainant had been asked to record her statement before Illaka (area) magistrate in Chandigarh, adding that she is the daughter of an IAS officer.



The DSP said more sections could be added after the statement of the girl is recorded.



Both were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), the police said. The case was registered at Sector 26 police station.



The police said both the accused have been called for questioning and investigation is underway.
Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad arrested from Muzaffarnagar on Sunday an alleged Bangladeshi terrorist associated with Islamic extremist group Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT).



Abdullah was arrested from Kutesara locality in Charthawal area of Muzaffarnagar district by an ATS team, IG, ATS, Asim Arun said he was living in the area for the past one month and earlier was residing in Deoband area of Saharanpur since 2011 and had also got his Aadhaar card and passport prepared on fake identity, the officer said.



Abdullah is associated with Ansarullah Bangla Team and was involved in preparing fake identity proofs of terrorists especially of Bangladesh and help them get safe hideouts in India.



Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) is an al Qaeda inspired Islamic extremist group in Bangladesh.



ATS teams of Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and local police of Shamli are conducting searches after his arrest.



(With inputs from PTI)
Kerala's ancient city Kannur derives its name from Kannan - the Malayalam name for Lord Krishna. Kannur has recently been the centre of political killings.

Kannur has seen violence between supporters of RSS-BJP and the CPM: Picture for representation. (Photo: Reuters file)

By Prabhash K Dutta: The RSS-BJP and the ruling CPM are in bitter violent political battle in Kerala. Both sides accuse the other of killing their supporters and workers.

Defence Minister Arun Jaitley described the latest murder of RSS activist Rajesh as "barbaric" saying that kind of wounds inflicted on his body would "embarrass even terrorists".

The RSS-BJP has claimed that 21 workers of the saffron brigade have been killed since the Left Front government came back to power last year. The CPM, on the other hand, alleged that the RSS-BJP workers killed 13 of its members in the last one year.

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Though violence is being reported from across Kerala, Kannur has been epicentre of political violence. Reports about the killings of political workers have become too frequent from Kannur but the trend is over five-decade old. An India Today report showed how the political murders are happening since the days of MS Golwalkar, who began RSS work in Kerala soon after Independence.

THE CITY OF KANNUR

The official website of Kannur district of Kerala says that the city derived its name from Lord Krishna, who was the master philosopher during the Mahabharata days and is credited to have enunciated the doctrine of Karma (right action) to Prince Arjun in the middle of battlefield. Kannur of today seems to have turned into a similar battlefield where political opponents are being annihilated.

Kannur is a compound Malayalam word formed by joining Kannan (Lord Krishna) and Ur (place) making the city the place of Lord Krishna. The word Kannur is also said to be related to an ancient Kerala village Kanathur. The city also has an ancient temple devoted to Lord Krishna.

KANNUR TILL INDEPENDENCE

Since the days of the Chera empire, Kannur has a rich history of centuries. In the 18th and the 19th century, Kannur gave a long and bloody resistance to British colonialists who were on expansion spree in the country.

Kannur played significant role during the freedom movement. During his non-cooperation movement of 1920-21, Mahatma Gandhi toured Kannur, which soon became a centre of peasant uprising against landlords. This very phenomenon prepared the ground for spread of communist ideology in Kerala.

The communists established firm hold on Kannur during 1930s. In the next decade, particularly after the Independence, the RSS turned towards Kannur. And, with this began the streak of political violence and killings.

GENESIS OF RSS-CPM CLASH

MS Golwalkar held two rallies in Kerala - in 1948 and 1952. Both the rallies came under attack by the CPM supporters. After the second rally held at Alappuzha, there were a series of attacks on RSS leaders resulting in multiple deaths in Thrissur, Kottayam, Ernakulam and Palakkad districts. Kannur was also tense.

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By 1971, when Kannur witnessed first communal riots, it had already seen targeted killings of political activists from either camps. The support base for the RSS lay in Karnataka-based Hindu businessmen while the local Kannur businessmen, mostly Muslims, backed the CPM.

RECENT RECORDS

Though both the RSS-BJP and the CPM claim that the other side has been more aggressive and violent, the data show that number of party workers killed on either side has been roughly the same.

Between 2000 and 2016-17, 85 CPM workers were reported killed while 65 RSS-BJP workers were murdered. Congress and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) lost 11 workers each due to political violence over the same period.

Over the same period, violence and murders have become more frequent in Kannur. While 31 RSS-BJP workers were killed between 2000 and 2016, 30 CPM workers were killed, according to an RTI reply by the Kerala police. In total, 69 political murders took place in Kannur between 2000 and 2016.

Except 2003, every year since the turn of the century has seen political killings in Kannur with a maximum 12 political murders reported in 2008.

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CPM BASTION: EPICENTRE OF POLITICAL VIOLENCE

Kannur is considered as the stronghold of the CPM. Kerala Chief Minister Vijayan has won his election from Dharmadom seat in the district.

Kannur has a population of 25 lakh and a literacy rate of 85 per cent. But higher-than-national average literacy has not prevented it from becoming politically most violent district of Kerala.

The crime graph of Kannur has gone further north since the last Assembly election. But, that is true even for the overall crime record of the state. Crime data in Kerala has almost trebled since 2008. According to police records, 2,52,408 criminal cases were reported in 2008 while in 2016, 7,07,541 cases were registered.

ALSO READ | Arun Jaitley condemns RSS man's murder in Kerala, says even enemy of India not this barbaric

Kerala: How cult of political violence became new normal in God's own country

Kerala government shielding goondas: RSS leader Dattatreya Hosabale to India Today

Kannur's ghastly politics of vendetta: RSS, CPI (M) trade charges

ALSO WATCH | Arun Jaitley calls murder of RSS worker Rajesh a 'barbaric' act

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Thiruvananthapuram: At a time when western treatment methods were not popular here, a ruler of the erstwhile princely state of Travancore got a human skeleton carved out of ivory to study anatomy and osteology over a century ago.



As social customs barred him from "touching" corpses and bones, Uthram Thirunal Marthanda Varma, the then King, who had a great affinity for English medicines and treatment system, got the replica of human skeleton made from ivory in 1853.



Created by a craftsman from Travancore, the skeleton, having astonishing similarity with original human skeleton and impeccable perfection in its measures, is now kept on display at the Natural History Museum on the zoo campus here.



Museum authorities say that a research is underway to ascertain the identity of the skilled craftsman who carved the ivory skeleton with "so much precision and still remains an unsung hero in the annals of history".



The museum's records showed that the model was "executed in 1853 by local workmen under commands of His Highness Uthram Thirunal Marthanda Varma Maharaja for scientific study".



The younger brother of visionary King Swathy Thirunal, Uthram Thirunal, who had ruled Travancore during AD 1846-60, had a great fancy for the European style, fashion, dress, occupation, furniture, amusements, medicines and treatment system since infancy.



According to historian Malayinkeezhu Gopalakrishnan, the ivory skeleton can be viewed as a monument of the evolution and spread of the English treatment system and medicines in the tiny princely state.



It can also be viewed as a fine example of Travancore's exemplary legacy in ivory craftsmanship which had even amused the British, he said.



"Uthram Thirunal is considered as the person who had popularised the English treatment system in Travancore... He had devoted great time in studying the medical science and imported medicines and latest medical devices from England and other parts," Gopalakrishnan told PTI.



"However, the prevailing social customs had created hurdles for him to pursue his interest to study human anatomy and osteology... To overcome the obstacle and continue his study, he had got made this ivory skeleton," he said.



It is believed that the skeleton was sculpted based on an actual skeleton, brought from Madras, he said.



Natural History Museum Superintendent S Abu said the ivory skeleton has always kindled a special interest among doctors and medical experts who visit the museum.



"The ivory skeleton was made in such a meticulous way... experts see it as an excellent mix of science and craftsmanship... We are now on a mission to figure out the unidentified craftsman who created this," he told PTI.



It is expected to be highly helpful for the posterity in studying the history and legacy of Travancore, the official said.



Besides the ivory skeleton, the historical records also showed several other examples of Uthram Thirunal's interest and knowledge in the Western treatment system and its practice.



Travancore Diwan Peishcar, P Shungoonny Menon recorded that Uthram Thirunal had even run a private dispensary, where he treated people, carried out minor surgical operations, vaccinated his palace attendants with his own hands and distributed English medicines when he was the 'elaya raja' (prince).



He also set up a laboratory which had various apparatus and chemicals purchased from other parts of the globe, the records said.



In his book "A History of Travancore," Menon noted that his friendship with the then residency surgeon, Dr Brown, had helped 'elaya raja' study medical science.



"His Highness was inclined towards studying the doctor's profession and seeing the intelligence and aptitude of the prince, that gentleman (Dr Brown) most willingly undertook to teach the science of medicine to this knowledge-seeking scion of royalty; and in the course of this study, the cognate branches of chemistry and anatomy was also taught," he said.



Even after Dr Brown left for England after some time, the prince indulged in self-study by procuring and reading the works of eminent authors.



Records showed that he procured medicines from Durbar physician's dispensary and used for treating his own attendants and their families.



He also placed orders for medicines from the Madras and Bombay presidencies and brought it from even England, it said.



"Every new medicine, discovered and advertised in the newspapers, was procured and in the course of a few years, a large room, which had been converted into a private dispensary being found insufficient, a separate building was constructed on an enlarged scale to provide the necessary accommodation," Menon said.



The arrangements at the dispensary won the admiration of even Europeans.



With the prince spending a large amount of time at his dispensary, people, especially belonging to the Hindu community, preferred this institution to government charity hospital.



It is interesting to note that though upper class Namboothiri Brahmins would not even touch English medicines under the idea that most of the liquid substance contained spirits, they began to take them freely from the prince's dispensary.



Brahmins, who visited Travancore as part of various religious ceremonies, spread the news of the prince's medical knowledge and the virtues and effectiveness of European medicines in Malabar (north Kerala) and other neighbouring princely states.



The royal's dispensary was the only resort of outside state Brahmins for medical aid while coming for Murajapam, an auspicious ritual conducted in Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple here every six years.



Records also showed that Utram Thirnal successfully treated his brother and the then king Swathy Thirunal, when he suffered from diarrhoea.



A three-month-long treatment under him also cured the chronic dyspepsia of a 'Gouda Brahmin Sastri', who came here for Murajapam from Benaras, it said.



The prince's laboratory had glass retorts, boilers, evaporating dishes, crucibles of different kinds, and many other things necessary for conducting chemical experiments.



There was also a powerful electric machine, a galvanic battery, an air pump, an ice-making machine besides several kinds of optical instrument, such as stereoscopes of various sorts, telescopes of sizes and opera glasses, it added.
Just like in the movies, in real life too, friends are the ones who put you in trouble and then save you too. They embarrass, frustrate and irritate, criticise, but the one thing you can always be sure of is that they will have your back whenever you are in need. And while friends may come and go, there are some friendship bonds that last forever. This phrase rings in absolutely true when we look at it in reference to the Hindi film industry.While a lot of stars have claimed undying love and friendship for each other, we have sure seen the bond and trust falling apart with a snap of a finger. And although the Hindi film industry has seen a number friendships over the last several decades, most have lasted only till a film's shoot is in process or till the time it is 'required'. But, there have been some 'special' friendships in the industry which have gotten better and stronger over the years.Here, we take a look at some friendships that have stood the test of time and are still going strong.Credit: @ Karan Johar Their's is a friendship that the entire Hindi film industry knows and talks about. The duo, who have worked in six feature films, have a bond that lasts forever.Karan is known to have admitted in his book 'An Unsuitable Boy' that although there was a 'simmering silence' between the two, the Bollywood Badshah has been his go-to person ever since the two got back together after a brief fallout when the former made a film without SRK.On the other hand, SRK launched Karan's autobiography recently and even appeared on the latter's talk show.The two sure seem to have an undying love for each other. Their friendship has always stood the test of time and the two have on most occasions emerged victorious, with a friendship stronger and greater than before.Credit: @ Amrita Arora We certainly know about the cool girl gang of Bollywood - the Kapoor and Arora sisters. While all four - Karisma, Kareena, Malaika and Amrita - share a deep friendship bond, it is Kareena and Amrita who have been spotted on several occasions spending quality time just with each other. Be it salons, gym sessions, yoga classes, Kareena and Amrita are inseparable.Credit: @ Ranbir Kapoor Fan Club It is a well-known fact that actor Ranbir Kapoor and director Ayan Mukherji have been buddies ever since they worked together in Wake Up Sid and Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani. In fact, in a recent interview to a comedy group Ranbir admitted that he likes being surrounded by only a few people, has few friends, wherein he named Ayan Mukherji as one of his closes aides and friends.Sonam Kapoor and Jacqueline Fernandez pose for photographers upon arrival at the opening of restaurant 'Arth' designed by Gauri Khan. (Image: Yogen Shah)'Actresses can't be friends'. Well, this phrase is rendered untrue when it comes to B-town beauties Sonam Kapoor and Jacqueline Fernandez.Although the two haven't worked together, the divas met during the premiere of SOnam's film Mausam in 2011. But it was only in 2013 that the two became friends when Jacqueline was shooting with Sonams father Anil Kapoor in Race 2. And ever since there has been no looking back.For more than five years now, the two girls have a friendship that seems to be getting stronger by the day. From partying together, supporting each other's initiatives (Jacqueline was snapped wearing an outfit from Sonam-Rhea's apparel line Rheson) to bonding over dinner, the two stars have have been two peas and a pod.Credit: @ KK The terrific trio have been the best of friends for years. First it was Lolo and then Bebo who became really good friends with Manish. Both have been often spotted partying with the distinguished designer, walking the ramp for him and sporting outfits from the ace designer's atelier. While Manish is one of Bollywood's most loved designers, he has admitted not just once but several times that Kareena surely is his muse. The trio share a bond which make them appear as part of one family.
Since August 1, World Breastfeeding Week which turns 25 this year is being celebrated in over 170 countries and will go on till August 7.

Lets look into the history of the World Breastfeeding Week. The first attempt to promote and support breastfeeding at the global level was done by a group of policymakers at a WHO/UNICEF meet on August 1, 1990 by enacting and adopting a declaration called the Innocenti Declaration. The world breastfeeding week is celebrated all over the world to commemorate this Innocenti Declaration.

The aim of the World Breastfeeding Week is to bring about a positive change by inviting advocates, activists, decision-makers and other key figures in enacting and promoting pro-breastfeeding policies.

Breastfeeding is recommended by zillions and since ages in all cultures because of the benefits it provides to both the baby and the mother. It benefits the child in the following ways 

* The colostrum i.e. the milk that the breasts make in the initial days helps to develop the babys digestive system and aid its functioning. It is also seen that breast fed babies have lesser constipation and digestion related problems in comparison to babies that are bottle-fed.

* The anti-bodies in the breast milk help in building the childs immunity and thus the child runs a lower risk of getting infections, diarrhea, asthma, obesity, allergies, etc.

* It also helps in the initial development of the babys brain. However, the cognitive skills and its later effect remain debated.

* The babies who are breast-fed also have low chances of becoming a victim of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), a condition whereby the infant exhibits no signs of suffering but is found dead after being put to bed.

Additionally, breast feeding benefits the mother as well 

* It helps in forming a unique emotional bond between the mother and child and also prevents the incidence of post delivery depression.

* Its available at your disposal and is even cheaper in comparison to bottle fed milk.

* Breast milk also releases a hormone called oxytocin which helps in contracting the uterus and return to its previous state faster. Additionally it also helps in reducing excessive bleeding after delivery.

* Its helps in losing weight, faster

* It also reduces the risk of developing breast cancer along with uterine and ovarian cancer.

Despite the many benefits of breast feeding, the breastfeeding culture is slowly diminishing and is being taken over by bottle-feeding culture. The condition is worse in the UK, which is the country with the lowest rates of breastfeeding practice in Europe and even in UK. To change this and bring about a cultural change and promote the practice of breastfeeding, Breastival is being organized at Northern Island on August 5, wherein 200 mothers will be breastfeeding together and set a new record.
Relationships are a cakewalk, said no sage ever. Indeed relationships require a lot of work but life would be quite empty as well without them. A relationship between women, especially, have always been broadcast as a tricky terrain to navigate. For long, mainstream media has portrayed women in the form of a damsel to be saved or a rebel to be tamed, but rarely as a unit to be reckoned with. Over time, the tides have been turning, and a new wave of quality content is coming to the fore. Content creators are increasingly taking a conscious step towards leaving the classic stereotypes behind and moulding female characters that are women of substance. She may be frenemies with her kind but she never puts them down, for she believes in one for all, and all for one. The days when female peers treated each other with distrust and menace are long gone. The modern day woman would rather work as a team than engage in an endless cycle of competition.Their collective goal is to advance womens rights and represent a united front. Here are some shows from Netflix that beautifully capture the sense of solidarity between women while exploring the complicated rapport between them.: It has been exactly four years since Orange Is The New Black (OITNB) burst onto our television screens. Over the course of time, the inmates of Litchfield Penitentiary have made it perfectly clear that they arent just another bunch of warring females. In fact, the ladies of OITNB have time and again exhibited that they nothing less than a strong, united set. Alex loves Piper but Pipers hooked up with Nicky, Suzanne like to get it on with Maureen, Poussey loves Soso, and Marias bad blood with Piper is another story. Between all the love, hate, and complicated alliances, these women have one true goal - bringing in prison reforms. OITNB is a show that has never shied away from showing exploring the complexities and power of female relationships on screen.: Ruth is an out of work actor, desperately trying to break the glass ceiling of the male dominated acting industry (and she doesnt mind stalking them directors to the washrooms either). Her BFF Debbie had her share of the limelight, and now somewhat happily lives as a homemaker. A Certain turn of events leads to these friends turning into foes and facing off against each other in the ring. At the outset, GLOW might come across as a show about wrestling but it is much more than that. GLOW seamlessly showcases the undying spirit of women in the direst of the situation. Irrespective of their difference they come together to make a success out of the show. Point in case - Ruth & Debbie who cant be friends anymore but understand the importance of setting aside the differences and working towards being the best.: For twenty years Grace and Frankie have been (grudgingly) present in the periphery each others life, courtesy their partners at law husbands. Just when they think the drudgery of bearing each other might come to an end, the hubbies announce their love for each other. Circumstances have pushed them together, and Grace especially is ready to do anything to get away from Frankie. With time, heartbreak, and multiple mishaps, these two somehow learn to live with each. While Frankie helps Grace become a better person, Grace is the anchor for the dreamy kite that Frankie is.: Dont be fooled by this ex-superhero, current private eye. She may have hung up her superhero boots long ago but thats not going to stop her from continuing her fight against crime. This Marvel show is one that shows women and how they interact with each other and the world at large. They understand the need to protect themselves and support each other through tough times. Jessica may be emotionally damaged but she is tough as nails. Same goes for Trish, Jessicas quirky adoptive sister, who is never hesitant to lend an arm of support. Look closely, and you will see how beautifully Jessica Jones flips the gender roles with ease i.e. Lukes the love, Malcolms the damsel, and Jessicas the saviour.: During the 80s, DJ, Stephanie, and Michelle were the ultimate #squadgoals. Cut to the present, and the bond still stands strong. The relationship between sisters are more often than not a tricky one. They steal clothes, they exchange things, and above all they are always present to hold you when you stumble. Stephanie doesnt feel a moments hesitation to up and moves from London to help DJ raise her kids. Add to the mix Growing up the girls had each others back, and despite the ups and downs, it has always been sisters before misters. And this time around DJs bf Kimmy too joins the gang to complete the trio.
London: Prince Harry has flown his rumoured girlfriend and actress Meghan Markle to Africa to celebrate her birthday amid speculation that he is planning to propose her.



They looked casual as they strolled across the runway to get into the jet, reports dailymail.co.uk.



According to a source to The Sun, Harry was planning the holiday for a long time.



"Who knows what will happen when they're watching a sensational African sunset together? Maybe he'll get down on one knee. Harry's done a lot of conservation work in Africa with endangered elephants and black rhinos and he'll show them to the woman he wants to marry," added the source.



After wrapping filming for Suits, which is aired in India on Comedy Central, Markle flew to London, where the pair then went to Africa.
New Delhi: Even though its nominee suffered a massive defeat in the vice-presidential poll, the opposition on Saturday said Gopalkrishna Gandhi had bagged more votes than Meira Kumar had garnered in the presidential election.



Congress general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad pointed out that opposition candidate Kumar had got 225 votes in the July 17 presidential election, whereas her counterpart in the vice-presidential poll, Gandhi, bagged 244 votes.



"The number of votes has gone up by 19. It is a good thing that the votes have increased instead of decreasing," he said.



Azad also claimed that the ruling NDA had "approached all the opposition parties", seeking support for its candidate M Venkaiah Naidu.



"Despite all the efforts of the government, our number (of votes) has increased over the last around 20 days, after the presidential election," he said, while thanking the opposition parties and their MPs for supporting Gandhi.



CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury too expressed satisfaction over the number of votes bagged by the opposition candidate going up since the presidential election.



He also dubbed the vice-presidential election as a political fight between two trends.



"We got more votes compared to the presidential election.Those who want to strengthen the Constitution, had come together to field Gopalkrishna Gandhi. We are grateful to him (Gandhi) for agreeing to be the candidate of a united opposition," said Yechury.



Both Azad and Yechury said the opposition parties would look into the voting pattern of their respective MPs.



CPI national secretary D Raja congratulated Naidu on being elected as the next vice-president of the country.



"We hope he will uphold the Constitution and constitutional morality and be accommodative to all the parties as the Rajya Sabha chairman," he said.



Naidu bagged 516 of the total of 771 votes cast in the vice-presidential poll, while Gandhi could only manage 244. Of the 771 votes polled, 11 were found to be invalid.



Although, there are 785 MPs in both the Houses of Parliament, 14 members could not exercise their franchise.
Ongoing bilateral 'peace talks' in different districts of Kerala between the CPI(M) and the RSS-BJP combine to contain ferocious hostilities between the cadre of the two outfits and avowal of state leaders of both sides that there is need to lower the temperature is indication that the two are equally culpable. But question mark looms over their commitment to put an end to violent clashes.



Despite agreement on holding peace meetings, the BJP-RSS has chosen to further the victimhood narrative for political advantage.



Union minister Arun Jaitley's visit to Kerala on Sunday and the press conference in New Delhi on Friday addressed by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh joint general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale, seen as the next Sarkaryavah, or executive head of the outfit, has to be framed with this objective as the backdrop.



The visit suggests that despite talks, conducted following the missive from the Centre, the political objective is to raise tempo in the stand-off between the two sides.



The CPI(M) too is unwilling to give any quarter to its ideological adversary and is countering the challenge by intervening at three levels: the Politburo's strident statement issued on Friday, the state government's initiatives and the party's reach out to lower rungs of the party. This has set the stage for a protracted political battle amid little hope that the current level of hostilities will be curtailed.



Signals emanating from the top-brass of the RSS-BJP combine suggests that after having upped the ante, it is not keen to immediately step down on its broadsides against the CPI(M) as this would be politically counter-productive.



Though state elections were held just a year ago, the Sangh Parivar appears keen to wage a protracted battle at all levels as part of the strategy to make further gains in 2019.



It needs to be recalled that in 2014, the BJP's veteran leader, O Rajagopal stood a close second to Shashi Tharoor losing by only 15,000 votes.



In the last assembly polls, in 2016, Rajagopal won the Nemom assembly seat, a Thiruvanthapuram suburb, by a margin of 9000 votes, marking it maiden entry in the Kerala Vidhan Sabha. BJP candidates came second in seven other constituencies showing that the party had shed its also-ran label.



Kerala is among those states where the BJP support stems from the presence and network of the RSS.



For decades, despite its dedicated shakha base, the RSS failed to significantly ensure its support for the BJP as cadre opted for UDF candidates in hope of defeating LDF nominees. But as the verdict in 2016  and previously in 2014  demonstrated, Hindu consolidation in favour of the BJP and its allies, has enabled a stronger performance than before at the cost of the UDF.



The BJP does not wish the performance in 2016 to be a flash in the pan but aims to step on the accelerator to emerge initially as a significant third force and eventually as the principal rival to the LDF, a possibility that will remain remote till BJP is able to make Kerala Congress-mukt too.



Violent clashes, particularly in Kannur district, between BJP-RSS combine and CPI(M)has a history dating back to several decades. Despite claims by both sides of being the victim, data provided to local media by police demonstrates that neither side's claim to be uninvolved in furthering violence is valid.



Immediate reciprocity of attacks by the two camps has also been observed for long. But both sides selectively present data but with the Sangh Parivar now has the advantage of numerous avenues and leaders making claims and ensuring publicising these. In contrast, the CPI(M) publicity pathways are limited.



Being the ruling regime ensures greater media coverage and the BJP is paying back in the same coin. For long the CPI(M) met with greater success in playing victim as reports on attacks on RSS workers found few takers in media.



Political parties remember democracy mainly when not in power and in Kerala, the BJP is attempting to emerge as the principal opposition. Publicising Sangh's version of attacks on its cadre through press conferences and public and media utterances by leaders, it is believed, will assist the BJP's in this objective.



The strategy to claim victimhood status has to be seen in the context of this campaign used by political adversaries of the Sangh Parivar since the Modi government assumed office.



This strategy was resorted, correctly so, to in the backdrop of growing social violence against minorities and people opposed to the BJP. RSS-backed groups active in social media and its important leaders by personal utterances, have stepped up attack against people who protested BJP policies and government failure to stem targeted violence by mobs.



For instance, a campaign has been mounted on various fora asking where are the "#NotInMyName people" after RSS worker, Rajesh Edavakode's murder allegedly by CPI(M) activists in Thiruvanathapuram! Delegitimising campaigns of the adversary is a deliberate ploy to further its own rhetoric.



Although the RSS began its serious effort to secure a foothold in Kerala only in the wake of the anti-Emergency agitation, its leadership was guided by 'Brahmincal decorum'. This is not the true for the organisation now as it matches the ruthlessness of the BJP under the Modi-Shah duo. The RSS is also no longer apologetic about its engagement with politics and makes little effort to underscore its 'cultural character' as it did previously. The BJP and RSS feed off each other more than ever before and we are witnessing the emergence of the most articulate and intent HUF ever.



With its ambition in Kerala unambiguous, the RSS-BJP combine is only expected to step up the campaign that its activists are victims of violence unleashed by CPI(M) cadre. This campaign will continue to be run at several levels as at present. While the Union government will mount pressure on the state government, leaders in individual capacity and as organisational representatives are likely to publicly campaign on this and not just in Kerala.



This will enable the BJP to reach out to new audiences in Kerala and elsewhere and also identify and cultivate a new leadership that can enable the party to prepare for future hustings.



(The author is a Delhi-based writer and journalist. He authored Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times and Sikhs: The Untold Agony of 1984. His Twitter handle is @NilanjanUdwin. Views are personal)
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao and Chief Minister K Palaniswami on Saturday greeted M Venkaiah Naidu on his election as the vice-president.



"I am privileged to extend my heartiest congratulations and best wishes on being elected as Vice-President of India," Governor Rao said in a Raj Bhavan release.



"Hailing from an agricultural family, by sheer dint of hard work, perseverance, diligence, and virtue of experience as a parliamentarian you have reached this high position," he said.



"Your sagacity and articulation skills will bring you many more honours in your new assignment. I wish you all success in your distinguished service to the nation," he said.



Chief Minister Palaniswami in his greetings extended heartiest congratulations for Naidu's resounding victory in the election.



"I wish to convey my heartiest congratulations to you on your resounding victory in the election to the post of Vice- President," Palaniswami said.



"I wish to convey to you my own felicitations and also those of the people of Tamil Nadu for a historic tenure as Vice-President," he said.



AIADMK Deputy General Secretary TTV Dhinakaran and leaders of various political parties including DMK, PMK, and DMDK also greeted Naidu.



Dhinakaran in his official twitter account said, "On behalf of party general secretary (V K Sasikala), I extend my wishes to Shri Venkaiah Naiduji on being elected as the Vice- President."



DMK Working President M K Stalin expressed his greetings to Naidu on behalf of party president M Karunanidhi and his party.



"On behalf of DMK & @kalaignar89, I extend my warm greetings to Hon'ble Venkaiah Naidu on his election as the Vice-President of India today," Stalin wrote in his official micro-blogging site.



"With vast experience in parliamentary procedures, I am quite confident that he will protect the plurality of our great nation," Stalin said.



Former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, DMDK chief Vijayakanth, PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss were among those who extended their greetings to Naidu.
Yangon: Aung San Suu Kyi's first major infrastructure project could hardly be more visible  hundreds of new yellow buses now plying the streets of Yangon in what her ruling party hopes will be a potent symbol of how it is transforming peoples' lives.



But two deals to import 2,000 buses from China estimated at more than $100 million have caused an unusual rift within her National League for Democracy (NLD), with regional lawmakers questioning its cost and accusing Yangon's chief minister Phyo Min Thein, a Suu Kyi protege, of cronyism and a lack of accountability.



"Phyo Min Thein's government lacks transparency," said Kyaw Zay Ya, a Yangon NLD lawmaker. "The image of the government will be damaged if he doesn't change."



The deal, struck with Chinese companies and a businessman with ties to the junta that ruled Myanmar for decades, has also soured relations with the West, according to diplomats.



While there is no evidence that any laws were broken in the awarding of the contracts, Roland Kobia, the EU ambassador to Myanmar, complained in a private letter to Commerce Minister Than Myint of a lack of transparency in public procurements.



"Currently, the domestic economy remains dominated by a small number of domestic and regional actors whose long-standing practices prevent fair competition," Kobia wrote in the June dated letter, seen by Reuters. The letter did not specifically refer to the bus deal.



Although the Chinese buses were about half the price of international rivals, engineers who inspected them for Myanmar predict that they will wear out and need to be replaced far sooner than the international standard.



Phyo Min Thein declined several interview requests from Reuters.



He and other ministers have previously defended the deal, saying the government-to-government agreement with China offered a discount price and express delivery.



EU ambassador Kobia said in a statement in response to Reuters' questions that "many European actors stand ready to work in Myanmar, but more needs to be done to give them a fair chance to compete for contracts".



He was referring to the broader issue of transparency in public procurements, the EU said.



Myanmar's commerce ministry spokesman Khin Maung Lwin declined to comment.



When Suu Kyi swept to power in an electoral landslide in 2015, analysts predicted Western companies, whose government's had cheered on the transition to democracy in the Southeast Asian nation that began in 2011, would flock to the country.



But the Yangon bus deal underscores that Suu Kyi's backers in the West have grown disillusioned as Myanmar increasingly prefers to do business with China.



IN A HURRY



Phyo Min Thein, a charismatic 48-year-old who spent about 15 years behind bars for opposing the junta, likes to tell people he has no more time to waste.



His bid to overhaul Yangon's antiquated transit system offers Suu Kyi's party one of its first opportunities to tangibly improve the lives of more than 2 million commuters in a city that overwhelmingly voted for the NLD at the last election.



Yangon officials last year rejected a proposal to improve the transit network from the World Bank's investment arm, the International Finance Corporation, due to differences over the details of the plan, which required detailed traffic monitoring and an open tender process.



Initial talks with potential French and Dutch suppliers also came to nothing, because they could not deliver the number of buses with the speed the chief minister was demanding, diplomats and lobbyists involved said.



Instead Yangon Bus Public Company (YBPC), a public-private joint venture majority-owned by the city government, bought 1,000 buses from two Chinese suppliers picked by Beijing's ambassador to Myanmar, Hong Liang.



Another 1,000 buses were bought from a third Chinese company in a private deal by businessman Kyaw Ne Win, a grandson of former junta leader Ne Win.



There was no public tender or debate in the regional legislature before the deals were agreed.



"Yes, people can say that there's no transparency," said YBPC chairman Maung Aung. "But calling a tender is not necessarily better. The deal was struck to maintain good relations between the two countries."



CHINA THE DEALMAKER



Under Suu Kyi  whose status as darling of the West has been tarnished over allegations of atrocities by security forces against the Rohingya Muslim minority  China and Myanmar have sought to repair ties strained when a previous semi-civilian government blocked a China-backed dam project in 2011.



On a trip to China in September, Suu Kyi and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed how Myanmar could take advantage of China's "Belt and Road" infrastructure investment programme, according to a senior official in Myanmar's President's office.



Suu Kyi said there were some concerns in Myanmar about the quality of Chinese products, prompting Xi to propose the Chinese embassy could help find the best suppliers, said a senior official from a Chinese company involved in the deal.



The cost of the vehicles was set at $56,000 each and deal was signed on April 11. Two months later the chosen firms, state-run Anhui Ankai Automobil Co Ltd and Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Co, had each delivered 500 yellow buses.



Privately-owned Zhengzhou Yutong is led by Yuxiang Tang, a member of China's National People's Congress.



The criteria under which the two firms were selected is not known, although Maung Aung said provincial Chinese governments where the two firms are based had given guarantees of quality.



Both Ankai and Yutong did not respond to requests for comments.



Such arrangements were "very rare", said the manager at one of the selected Chinese makers, because "in other countries, there usually is a tender process and we need to follow related regulations".



The Chinese embassy in Yangon did not respond to requests for comment.



VALUE FOR MONEY?



While an improvement on the 40-year-old non-air-conditioned vehicles in which long-suffering Yangon commuters have sweltered for years, Soe Aung, an engineer who inspected the Chinese buses for Myanmar before purchase, acknowledged they were of lower quality than European or Japanese alternatives, which he estimated would have cost around twice as much.



"This project is only for five years," said Soe Aung, adding that the vehicles would be worn out with daily use over that timeframe.



Officials say after that they will be replaced with electric vehicles, but some critics regard that as unrealistic in a country with an acute shortage of power that is not expected to be solved for at least a decade.



Western experts in public transport procurement say the average lifespan of buses would typically be more than twice that.



"It seems inefficient to me to be introducing a new technology, while planning a replacement technology in such a short time period," said Robert Marshall, global director of planning and landscape at consulting firm B+H Architects.



UNANSWERED QUESTIONS



When regional MPs approved 70 billion kyat ($51.5 million)for the project in December, they could only vote for "money for transportation".



After the contract was signed in April, some lawmakers complained that questions on financing, the business plan and how the buses were chosen were dodged or went unanswered.



Myint Thaung, Yangon region's minister of planning and finance, declined to provide more details to Reuters on how the deal was financed.



The involvement of Kyaw Ne Win, whose grandfather led Myanmar's ruling junta until 1988, has particularly incensed some NLD lawmakers.



Opponents say it smacks of the cronyism under the junta, when lucrative contracts were routinely doled out to a small group of well-connected businessmen.



The junta leader scion bought the buses from Beiqi Foton Motor Co Ltd  another Chinese state-owned company, but declined to discuss the details of the deal.



Beiqi Foton did not respond to a request to comment.



The deal, which will make Kyaw Ne Win the city's largest bus operator, was "simple and straightforward", he said, adding he wanted to "provide good service for the people of Yangon".
A 30-year-old man has been arrested in the alleged kidnapping of a young British model who thought she was coming to Milan for a photo shoot, but instead was drugged, hustled away in a suitcase and handcuffed in a house in northern Italy before being released, Milan police said Saturday.Police released a mugshot of the suspect whom they identified as Lukasz Pawel Herba, a Polish citizen with British residency. He was jailed for investigation of suspected kidnapping for extortion purposes, police said.Police official Lorenzo Bucossi told reporters the 20-year-old woman had come to Milan for what she thought was a photo shoot and was abducted on July 11.A statement from Milan police headquarters detailed the woman's ordeal."Attacked, drugged, handcuffed and closed inside a suitcase, that's how a 20-year-old English model was kidnapped on July 11 in Milan to be sold to the best offer on pornography sites," on the internet, the statement said.A person taking part in a reenactment by Italian police shows how a kidnapped British model was kept in a bag, in this handout picture provided by the Italian Police in MilanThe suspect was arrested on July 18, the day after he allegedly released the woman and dropped her off at the British consulate in Milan, police said.The woman had arrived in Milan on July 10 and was supposed to do the photography session the next day, the statement said. A photographer had booked the session through the model's agent, but as soon as she stepped inside the Milan apartment for the appointment, she was attacked by two men, according to the police account."The kidnappers loaded the suitcase with the girl (inside) into a car trunk" and drove to a rural home in a hamlet outside Turin, the statement said. In the house, "the model was kept handcuffed to a wooden dresser in a bedroom" until she was released on July 17, the police said.Police suspect the Polish man advertised the "sale" of the woman online, while at the same time demanding ransom from the woman's agent of $300,000 (about 260,000 euros).Authorities said as far as they know, no ransom was paid. An investigation is being conducted in Poland and Britain as well as in Italy. Investigators are trying to determine if the suspect had accomplices and was mainly after ransom, or was trying to defraud someone who might have been willing to pay money online for the woman, police said.They didn't identify the model's agent.Milan daily Corriere della Sera said the kidnapper let his victim go because he discovered she had a child and considered her unsuitable for the sex trade. But the police official, Lorenzo Bucossi, told reporters it was unclear why the woman was released.
Coming from Karnataka through Kannur and Kasargod, the RSS, in the 1940's tried to make inroads into CPI strong holds in Kerala.

By Mail Today Bureau: Northern Kerala popularly known as Malabar continues to be the most politically active and volatile region in the entire state. While both CPI (M) and RSS (Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh)-BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) trade allegations against each other, it's difficult to say who is guiltier.

Statistics show that political attacks began with the presence of RSS in the state. Coming from Karnataka through Kannur and Kasargod, in the 1940's they tried to make inroads into CPI strong holds in the state. Rattled by the unprecedented contender, left parties stood their ground and defended strongly. Though Kannur is said to be hotspot of political violence, the epicenter was elsewhere.

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In 1948, an RSS gathering in Thiruvananthapuram (Then part of Travancore) addressed by Sarsanghchalak M S Golwarkar came under attack from Communist activists. This is believed to the first incident of political violence between the Communist and RSS -BJP. In the fight for supremacy, both the parties have given befitting reply to each other ever since.

It took another 20 years for the RSS-BJP to make a significant impact in the Malabar region. The Central Beedi and Cigar worker's Act of 1968 by the Communist government proved to be a hurdle for the private manufacturing units owing to the immense worker welfare measures. Citing difficulties to run the business profitably, many private manufacturers left the state.

Thousands of workers, mostly Communist activists who went jobless extended their support to BJP which helped them emerge as an alternate force in the region. This is led to a series of tit for tat murders on both ends. Though we have no conclusive data on the total number of political killings, post independence, Kerala has lost over 500 lives, majority of them belonging to workers of RSS-BJP and the Communist party. According to data provided by former state police Chief Alexander Jacob, in last 10 years Kerala has witnessed 107 political deaths.

ALSO READ:

Kerala: RSS leader, accused of murdering CPM activist, hacked to death in Kannur

Kerala government shielding goondas: RSS leader Dattatreya Hosabale to India Today

WATCH: RSS worker hacked to death in Kerala: BJP calls for bandh, blames CPI-M for attack

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Kinshasa: More than 50 people have been killed in clashes between ethnic groups in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, three local aid workers said on Sunday, the largest death toll in fighting between the two groups for months.



Violence has raged across much of Congo this year, killing hundreds and displacing millions amid a political crisis caused by President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step down when his constitutional mandate expired in December.



On Friday, a group of Twa pygmies attacked the Luba, a Bantu ethnic group, near Kalemi, in Tanganyika province, the aid workers said.



The pygmies, who live in Central Africa's Great Lakes region, have fought the Luba for decades over what activists say are inequalities between Bantu villagers and the Twa hunter gatherers, are exclued from access to land and basic services.



"According to information gathered, there were about 50 deaths in the attack on the group," Ilunga Musafiri, president of the local NGO Inter-church Council said.



A local activist said most of the casualties were Lubas.



U.N. officials are concerned that violence is spreading out of control in Congo with Kabila's complicity. Critics have said he may use the insecurity as an excuse to delay elections.



A U.N. report last week found 251 killings took place in three months this year in the diamond-rich central Kasai region in violence that has involved child soldiers and witchcraft.



The number of people displaced in Congo has more than doubled to 3.7 million since August 2016, the U.N. said in May.
Tehran: An Iranian soldier opened fire on his colleagues, killing three and wounding 12 of them at a military air base in south Tehran, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported on Sunday.



The report said one of the victims was an officer and the two others were regular soldiers. It added that the assailant was killed in a shootout with other soldiers.



The report offered no motive for the attack. State media did not immediately report the shooting, which Mehr said took place in Kahrizak, on the southern outskirts of Tehran.



All injured soldiers were taken to an Air Force hospital in southeast of the city, the report said.



The reported shooting is the latest to strike Iran.



In July, a soldier opened fire on his comrades, killing three and wounding six at a military base in the town of Abyek, some 62 miles (100 kilometers) west of Tehran. The assailant reportedly shot himself in the incident, but survived and was taken to a nearby hospital.



In September, a soldier killed himself after shooting to death three of his comrades in the south of the country.



Military service of up to 24 months is mandatory for men age 19 and above in Iran.
Yangon: A government-appointed commission on Sunday cleared Myanmar security forces of systematic rape, murder and arson against Rohingya Muslims, dismissing UN allegations of widespread abuses during a recent crackdown.



The commission examined the deadly violence which began in northwestern Rakhine State in October last year after attacks by Rohingya militants on police posts near the Bangladesh border.



The government is refusing to allow a UN fact-finding team to conduct its own probe into whether the security response amounted to "ethnic cleansing" of the stateless Rohingya minority.



Giving their conclusions on Sunday, a state-backed commission said it found no evidence that Myanmar security forces carried out a systematic campaign of rape, murder or arson.



Instead any "excessive actions" were likely committed by low-rank "individual members of the security forces". "Some incidents (of abuse) appeared to be fabricated others had little evidence," according to a press release by the commission. It also took aim at a detailed report by the UN's Human Rights Office released in February this year. That report said it was "very likely" that crimes against humanity had been committed during the crackdown.



Based on interviews with 204 witnesses who fled to Bangladesh, the UN alleged Myanmar security forces gang-raped Rohingya women, butchered children and tortured men.



But "no such cases were uncovered" by the government commission, which said the UN findings lacked balance and failed to recognise the gravity of the attacks by Rohingya militants.



Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is a nobel peace prize winner, is blocking a visit by a UN team. She says the government commission is an adequate response to the violence, which left scores dead and displaced tens of thousands of Rohingya to Bangladesh.



The Rohingya are reviled in Myanmar and widely seen as illegal immigrants. Stateless, poor and subject to tight controls on movement, education and work, roughly one million of the Muslim group are hemmed into the impoverished border zone which remains locked down and under curfew.



The commission conceded that foreign media and NGOs should have been granted access to the zone during the conflict to dispel "misconceptions."



It also called for rights training for low-level security officers, urged local officials to tackle corruption and called for swift and fair trials of suspected militants.

Rakhine State remains violent and on edge.



The government says foreign-backed Rohingya militants are still active in the conflict area, accusing them of killing perceived state collaborators and running "terror" training camps.



Last week seven Buddhists were found dead in the conflict area. Rohingya villages also continue to be raided. On Friday up to 50 "warning shots" were fired at a Rohingya village during a raid.



Unverifiable images on social media showed several people wounded by bullets allegedly fired in the episode.
Tokyo: Hiroshima's appeal of "never again" on the anniversary Sunday of the world's first atomic bomb attack has gained urgency as North Korea moves ever closer to acquiring nuclear weapons, showing its growing prowess with increasingly frequent missile launches.



When the US dropped the bomb on August 6, 1945, Toshiki Fujimori's mother was carrying him, then just a year old, piggyback to the hospital. The impact of the explosion threw them both to the ground, nearly killing him.



"Obviously tensions are growing as North Korea has been pushing ahead with nuclear tests and development," said Fujimori. "Nuclear weapons just are unacceptable for mankind."



Many Japanese and others in the region seem resigned to North Korea's apparent newfound capacity to launch missiles capable of reaching much of the continental United States. But the threat lends a deeper sense of alarm in Hiroshima, where 140,000 died in that first A-bomb attack, which was followed on Aug. 9, 1945, by another that killed more than 70,000 people in Nagasaki.



"This hell is not a thing of the past," Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui said in his peace declaration at Sunday's ceremony. "As long as nuclear weapons exist and policymakers threaten their use, their horror could leap into our present at any moment. You could find yourself suffering their cruelty."



Today, a single bomb can cause even greater damage than the bombs dropped 72 years ago, he said. "Humankind must never commit such an act," he said, urging nuclear states, as well as Japan, to join the nuclear weapons ban treaty adopted by the United Nations in July.



Fujimori said that each Aug. 6, his late mother, who also survived, insisted on retelling the story of the attack to children in their neighbourhood, saying she had to keep reminding them to help prevent the same mistake from happening again. Decades later, 73-year-old Fujimori himself is a leader of Hidankyo, a major organization of atomic bomb survivors.



"We must eradicate nuclear weapons from the earth to make the world a safe place to live," he said in an interview. "There is still a lot to do and we must keep working on it."



He said the adoption of the U.N. nuclear weapons ban, which was boycotted by all nuclear-armed nations, shows that most of the world supports that cause.



Two recent test-firings of Hwasong-14 inter-continental ballistic missiles suggest that major U.S. cities such as Los Angeles and Chicago are within range of North Korean weapons. Such missiles could be armed with nuclear, biological or chemical warheads, although many experts say North Korea hasn't fully mastered miniaturizing nuclear warheads and might not have the technology to ensure a warhead would survive re-entry into the atmosphere from space or even hit an intended target.



Such developments draw mixed feelings from Kim Ji Nho, a pro-Pyongyang ethnic Korean who was born in Hiroshima. Kim, 71, is a "hibakusha," or atomic-bomb survivor, who was exposed to radiation when his mother, pregnant with him, went to the ruins of the city to search for a daughter who went missing in the blast. He grew up in a community of ethnic Koreans in the city and has a relative who had since moved to North Korea.



He is critical of the U.S., and says only dialogue, not military actions or threats, can resolve tensions with the erratic leadership in Pyongyang.



But regarding nuclear weapons, "We 'hibakusha' and our groups share a clear goal, which is to abolish nuclear weapons from the world," Kim said. "Nuclear weapons should never be used."



Like his father, many Koreans were brought to Hiroshima, a wartime military hub, as forced laborers during Japan's colonization of the Korean Peninsula in the first half of the 20th century. They and their descendants have endured outright discrimination by Japanese. So have A-bomb survivors: Kim's father had told him to keep mum about his radiation exposure, because being "hibakusha" could only mean more trouble.



The two survivors said Japan's refusal to join the U.N. nuclear treaty, apparently because it's protected under the U.S. nuclear umbrella, was heartbreaking.



Hopes that the U.S. and Japan might support the nuclear weapons ban rose during former President Barack Obama's 2016 visit to Hiroshima. But such expectation has dimmed as North Korea's threat has escalated.



"What if that young leader (Kim Jong-un) pushes a nuclear weapons launch button? I think neighbouring Japan has a risk of being hit," said Tamio Ishida, 59, whose father was a survivor. "I think tensions have risen and many people in Hiroshima share a sense of urgency."



Ayaka Kajihara, 18, a college student, says she imagined her late grandmother, also a "hibakusha," suffered greatly, though she was reluctant to discuss her past. Even so, she feels it was very important to learn what happened to the grandmother and her hometown 72 years ago.



More than 300,000 of the "hibakusha" have died since the attack, including 5,530 in the past year. The average age of the survivors is more than 81 years. Many suffer from long lasting effects of radiation.



"I hope more people from the rest of Japan and overseas will visit Hiroshima and just see and feel the reality of what the atomic bomb has done, and start from there," she said. "Because that's how I started thinking about peace  by meeting 'hibakusha,' including my grandmother and hearing their stories."
Swathes of southern Europe sweltered Saturday in a heatwave that has claimed several lives, cost billions in crop damage and is, scientists warned, a foretaste of worse to follow in coming decades.



At least five deaths in Italy and Romania have been attributed to the extreme conditions since the heatwave set in around the start of August.



Unusually high, sometimes unprecedented temperatures, are being recorded across an area spanning much of Spain and Portugal, southern France, Italy, the Balkans and Hungary.



The mercury has regularly risen above 40 degree Celsius (104 degree Fahrenheit) across the affected areas, exacerbating the impact of an extended drought and the lingering impact of a July heatwave which sparked wildfires that claimed 60 lives in Portugal.



Hospital admissions have spiked 15-20 percent in Italy, where at least three people have died.



Italians longing for the beach have dubbed the hot spell "Lucifero", or Lucifer, after the biblical archangel said to have been condemned forever to the flames of hell.



The latest victim was a woman whose car was swept away overnight by an avalanche of water and mud as humid conditions near the Alpine ski resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo broke into torrential rain.



That tragedy follows the deaths on Thursday of two pensioners caught up in wildfires in the central region of Abruzzo and near Matera in the south of the country.



Fountain splashing



In Romania, two deaths were linked to the weather, including a farmworker who collapsed after working in fields in the northeast of the country, while Spanish TV station TVE reported that a 51-year-old man died as a result of the heat on the Mediterranean island of Majorca.



In Italy, humidity and other factors are making it feel much hotter with the so-called "perceived" temperature in Campania, the region around Naples, estimated at a broiling 55 Celsius (131 Farenheit) on Friday.



Hospital admissions are running 15-20 percent above seasonal norms and food producers are forecast to suffer billions of euros in losses as a result of reduced crop yields.



Italian wine and olive production is tipped to fall 15 and 30 percent respectively this year.



In Rome, tourists have been risking recently introduced fines for splashing in the Eternal City's fountains to cool off.



But there has yet to be any sign of visitors to southern Europe's summer hotspots being deterred by the rising temperatures.



Tourists were queuing once more Saturday outside Florence's Uffizi museum, which was forced to close Friday after its air conditioning broke down because of a lack of water from the dried up River Arno.



Health authorities in France have warned citizens to be particularly aware of the risks faced by the sick and the elderly.



The country is still haunted by memories of a 2003 heatwave which resulted in an estimated 15,000 avoidable deaths among pensioners, some of whom had been left on their own by holiday-making relatives.



150,000 weather deaths?



Scientists meanwhile warned that deaths due to extreme weather in Europe could increase 50-fold from an estimated 3,000 per year recently to 152,000 by the end of this century - if global warming is not reined in.



Southern Europe will suffer most and heatwaves would account for 99 percent of the deaths, according to research conducted for the European Commission and published in The Lancet Planetary Health.



The conclusions were questioned by Korean peers of the researchers who suggested humans would become less vulnerable to extreme weather with experience of it.



Meteo France forecaster Frederic Nathan said he was sure recent heatwaves reflected global warning.



"We have always had them but their length and intensity has notched up since the 1950s and 60s and they are increasingly coming earlier or later," he said.



"If you look at records for France, the vast majority of new records being set are for high temperatures. Record cold is becoming increasingly rare."



Scientists warned last week that large parts of South Asia, home to a fifth of the world's population, could become unbearably hot by the end of this century.
Geneva: A member of the U N Commission of Inquiry on Syria said on Sunday she was quitting because a lack of political backing from the U.N. Security Council had made the job impossible, Swiss national news agency SDA reported.



Carla del Ponte, 70, who prosecuted war crimes in Rwanda and former Yugoslavia, told a panel discussion on the sidelines of the Locarno Film Festival that she had already prepared her letter of resignation.



"I am quitting this commission, which is not backed by any political will," she said, adding that her role was just an "alibi".



"I have no power as long as the Security Council does nothing," she said. "We are powerless, there is no justice for Syria."



Del Ponte, a former Swiss attorney general, joined the three-member Syria inquiry in September 2012, chronicling incidents such as chemical weapons attacks, a genocide against Iraq's Yazidi population, siege tactics, and the bombing of aid convoys.



She could not immediately be reached for comment and the United Nations did not immediately confirm her plans to quit.



Her departure will leave only two commissioners, Brazilain human rights expert Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, and Karen Koning AbuZayd from the United States.



The commission was set up in August 2011 and has regularly reported on human rights violations, but its pleas to observe international law have largely fallen on deaf ears.



Although the United Nations is setting up a new body to prepare prosecutions, there is no sign of any court being established to try war crimes committed in the six-and-a-half year-old war, nor of any intention by the U.N. Security Council to refer the situation to the International Criminal Court in the Hague



Del Ponte's determination to be independent made her outspoken and occasionally controversial. She shocked Western governments in May 2013 by declaring that the United Nations had "strong suspicions" of Syrian rebels using sarin gas.



Two years later, she said justice would catch up with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, even if he remained in power under a negotiated peace settlement.



Earlier this year, when the commission reported on Syrian government aircraft deliberately bombing and strafing a humanitarian convoy, del Ponte hinted at her frustration with the inability to bring the perpetrators to justice.



"What we have seen here in Syria, I never saw that in Rwanda, or in former Yugoslavia, in the Balkans. It is really a big tragedy," she added. "Unfortunately we have no tribunal."
By PTI: Hyderabad, Aug 6 (PTI) Slamming Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao over his charge that the Centre was taking unilateral decisions on GST, the BJP today said he could not blame the Modi government as all the decisions related to the new tax system were taken collectively.

"As a member of the GST Council, his (Chandrasekhar Rao) government has supported the GST Bill and its tax brackets at several GST Council meetings. His party and the government has passed and ratified the GST Bill both at the state legislature and also supported it in both the houses of Parliament," BJPs Telangana unit spokesperson Krishna Saagar Rao said in a statement.

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The BJP leader questioned how the CM could now blame the central government for the GST tax rates, when all decisions on GST are collectively taken with voting rights of every state.

Objecting to Centres decision to reduce the tax rate on public works from 18 per cent to 12 per cent, the chief minister yesterday threatened that the state government would move the court against the Centre. The state has sought reduction of tax on ongoing projects to five per cent.

"CM KCRs empty threat that he will go to court only highlights his governments lack of fundamental knowledge on the issue, with which he is trying to attack the central government. His government cannot sue the Centre on this issue," Krishna Saagar maintained.

"How can the CM sue himself and his own government? His government is a party to all the decisions the GST Council has taken and his state representative is a signatory to all resolutions at the GST council inclusive of the Tax rates fixation," the BJP leader said.

"The BJP also wonders why KCR is being an advocate for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractors. Business enterprises know how to protect their interests in the wake of new indirect tax regime. Its not the job of a chief minister to take up lobbying for lowering their taxes or increasing their profit margins," he said.

"BJP doesnt believe that theres any loss to the state exchequer with GST implementation in reference to the ongoing projects. All the numbers being projected as loss to the state are purely fictitious calculations," he claimed.

"BJP believes that the clamor over this issue by CM KCR and the TRS government is pointless and it also raises suspicion on their special interests," he added. PTI VVK NP

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Diaspora Zimbabweans are expected to inject over a billion dollars in a number of strategic projects in the country, Acting President Emmerson Mnangagwa has said.



In an interview during his tour of Arda Antelope Estate in Maphisa, Matabeleland South, last Friday, Acting President Mnangagwa said the diasporans had taken a keen interest in Government programmes to rebuild the economy.



Five to six weeks ago, we had an investment conference in South Africa and as a result of that, three programmes are coming out, he said.



Acting President Mnangagwa said a group of young businesspeople based in South Africa had approached Government to fund some of the projects.



The projects include a National Railways of Zimbabwe recapitalisation programme, purchase of agricultural equipment and construction of fuel pipelines from Harare to South Africa, Botswana and Zambia.



A business consortium comprising South Africas Transnet and the Diaspora Infrastructure Development Group recently bid to partner the NRZ in a $400 million re-capitalisation programme.



The DIDG-Transnet consortium is reported to have raised close to $1,2 billion for the recapitalisation of the NRZ.



They have participated in the National Railways of Zimbabwe bid. They bid $500 million to rehabilitate our railways, Cde Mnangagwa said.



This is a group of young Zimbabweans based in South Africa. The other group is bringing in agricultural equipment  combine harvesters, tractors and planters, he said.



The Acting President said a group of Zimbabweans based in South Africa had put together funds for the projects.





These are young Zimbabweans based in South Africa who control huge funds, investment funds. They control them at the top and they have put their funds together and are funding the programme, he said.





He said a third group was made up of white Zimbabweans based outside the country who also approached Government with project proposals.

He said he met the group with Macro-Economic Planning and Investment Promotion Minister Obert Mpofu.





The group controls about 32 companies in South Africa.

They said they have enough funds to do a pipeline from Beira to Mutare and if we dont want it that is okay! They have enough money to build a pipeline from Mutare to Harare, if we dont want it its okay, the Acting President said.





But they know we dont have a pipeline from Harare to Gweru to Limpopo. They have the funds for that. Another pipeline is from Harare to Botswana. We dont have that pipeline and they have the money.





Another pipeline is from Harare to Lusaka, we dont have it but they have the money.

He said white businesspeople argued that the past was a bygone era and they were ready to invest in Zimbabwe.





And they say, yes, lets forget about the past when you chased us from the farms. They have the funds and this is what they are offering to do. We are looking at the Ministry of Energy to say what do you say to this offer.





Government has been working on improving ease of doing business in the country. Recently it also set up a Special Economic Zones board chaired by forner RBZ governor Gideon Gono to further spur foreign direct investment. herald
First lady Grace Mugabe on July 30 raised the stakes in Zanu PFs ugly fight between factions to succeed her 93-year-old husband when she took aim at a faction linked to Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa.





A few days earlier the first lady had publicly told President Robert Mugabe to anoint a successor in a direct challenge to Mnangagwas alleged presidential ambitions.





At the July 30 rally in Chinhoyi, Grace also leapt into the defence of Higher and Tertiary Education minister Jonathan Moyo and his Local Government counterpart Saviour Kasukuwere, who have been described as kingpins of a Zanu PF faction known as G40.





G40 is linked to Grace and reportedly wants Mugabe to anoint Defence minister Sydney Sekeremayi as Mugabes successor. Standard reporter Xolisani Ncube (XN) yesterday spoke to Youth and Indigenisation minister Patrick Zhuwao (PZ) to get an understanding of the new dynamics in the battle to succeed Mugabe.





Zhuwao, a nephew of the president, gave some insights into what might be in store for Mnangagwas faction. Below are excerpts from the interview.





XN: Please explain to us the developments in Zanu PF over the last few days where first lady openly told President Mugabe to anoint a successor now and the humiliation of Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa. What is brewing in the ruling party?





PZ: I think this has come about as a result of a rather unfortunate whisper campaign that has been waged by Team Lacoste where they go about lying that the president has indicated that he wants to leave his throne to Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa, which is not true.





That is false and it has become very difficult for any ordinary person to ask the president if the information being peddled regarding his successor is true.





This is made worse when the narrative being peddled that the president will pave way for VP Mnangagwa is accompanied by a story that the person who has a longest relationship with the president is VP Mnangagwa.





This makes people think it is true. For long people have been lying that I was with the president and he said so and so is taking over.





So it had become necessary that we protect the president and the president is protected from these command liars in a manner that we say, look president, yes, we recognise what you said, the issue of succession must come from the people, but the people have a lot of faith in you, they have a lot of confidence in you, they welcome and really value your leadership, so they expect you as a leader to not abrogate that leadership responsibility of leading them and saying this is what I see as the best for Zimbabwe.





We are saying since the president has been able to guide us all along and has given us direction, he can also say to us here is the person whom I think can take Zimbabwe forward, he knows all of us inside and outside.





XN: But is that democracy? Zimbabwe is not a monarch where leaders are selected through succession.





PZ: No, no, no, no ways my brother, if you want to take over, say it out and we, the Zanu PF supporters shall vet you and put you there.





If you think you have the capacity and the support, not riding on someone, the grassroots support, declare your interest.





No one has been denied that opportunity, we are only saying stop abusing the name of the president lying that you are the preferred candidate.





The unfortunate part is that a narrative that has been pushed by Team Lacoste is that, the president wants VP Mnangagwa when its a total fabrication.





Let us stop lying using the president that he wants so and so, no! Let the president articulate himself. If there is someone who thinks that they are able, well, let them come out.





XN: With all these issues, where are we heading to now?





PZ: We are heading to a situation where we are now eliminating command lies. We are heading for a situation where we must now focus on ensuring that we preserve that legacy of the liberation struggle.





XN: There is this feeling among Zimbabweans that the president and the first lady are trying to create a Mugabe dynasty. What is your view as an insider?





PZ: Let me be very clear about this, the president is trying to protect Zimbabweans first than himself. He is protecting the legacy of the independence and the interest of the revolution.





XN: By creating a Mugabe dynasty?

PZ: President Mugabe has been selfless. I am a member of his family, I know him well, that he puts the people of Zimbabwe first before his own family.





XN: Well, one would say he has a nephew in his cabinet, his wife in Zanu PF top leadership. Can that be described as protecting national interests?





PZ: Yes, we are so many of us in government my brother, but I am in government not because of my relationship with the president, but loyalty and capacity.





I have the capacity and that is why I am a target in the Blue Ocean document.





The first lady is there not because she wanted to be there, but she was requested by Zanu PF structures to do so.





This was after they looked at her capacity and ability, so dont tell me about the dynasty. Those who are saying so know nothing, the likes of Victor Matemadanda.





XN: What is your reaction to criticism that those pushing Mugabe to name a successor are afraid of elections?





PZ: [laughs] its a very stupid notion to say the least. Who is afraid of elections, power grabbers using lies or us who are saying let the president name his preferred successor so that the people could choose? Can you be clear on your question?





XN: Critics say the first lady does not have grassroots support and the only reason she is influential is because she is the presidents wife.





PZ: Have you been to any of her rallies? That is dreaming my brother. They must attend any of her rallies and see how popular she is with the people.





XN: Some have said she is using borrowed powers.





PZ: You must remember the first lady was in Mazowe and people went there requesting that she joins the party leadership and now you claim she has no support.





Who are those who went to ask her to join the party? Those who are saying they have the grassroot support outside the president must go and start their own parties and we see what happens from there. [Joice] Mujuru tried it, [Didymus] Mutasa tried it and it all failed. Dont claim the support in a newspaper, claim it on the ground.





XN: Can the first lady pull those crowds without Mugabes help?





PZ: One of the things which you have to remember is that this is the first lady, and there are two people in this country that are referred to as their excellencies.





His Excellency the president and the first lady. So this whole thing that she is riding on borrowed power is nonsense, she is inseparable from the president.





She is his wife. And probably, she is the second most informed citizen after the president in this whole country.





This is somebody brought into politics by the people, they had realised that things had gotten to a situation that was beyond comprehension.





She came and dealt with Mujuru and now she is dealing with Team Lacoste, the command liars, simple!





XN: What should we expect to see happening in Zanu PF in the coming weeks?





PZ: We are going back to 2004. When Joice Mujuru was elected as VP, the president asked, do you want her to end here or go up?





The president then said we shall see in the future, she did not realise that she was on probation and ought to have behaved as such. So is the situation today.





Some people did not see or realise that they were on probation and started to behave otherwise. For the record, Zanu PF is united and very strong.





The challenge that appears to be affecting Zanu PF is that of those who want to grab the presidents power.





These people do not want to succeed the president; they want to grab his power using lies and state institutions.





XN: Some are saying the centre no longer holds in Zanu PF. We have seen generals threatening ministers, what is really happening?





PZ: The centre is holding and holding firm. Its only a few misguided individuals who have mischievous ambitions who are trying to do silly things.





The concept of one centre of power means that we must have all state institutions and agencies listening to one commander who is the president. Not otherwise.





XN: But we saw General Constantino Chiwenga attacking Higher and Tertiary Education minister Jonathan Moyo, an appointee of the president?





PZ: Dont confuse individuals with institutions. we respect the military, and we must all respect the military and its uniform but not people who abuse the uniform to do illegal things.





I think you saw what happened in the case you are referring to. Moyo responded adequately to the people who were trying to abuse the uniform which we respect, and they were silenced thereof.





The problem with people who want to abuse the uniform is that when we hit them back, they should not say we are hitting at the uniform, no, we will be hitting back at that person who is saying things that are not in tandem with the uniform he is wearing but doing so using the same.





I think you know that an appropriate response was given and silence is now the order.





If people want to say political things, they must take off their uniforms and we shall deal with them appropriately than to abuse our revered uniforms.





XN: 2018 is around the corner, do you think Zanu PF will win the elections?




In an informal economy, the likes of which you see in most of Africa, Asia and Latin America, informal selling on the streets is a viable business option, and it only reduces to the extent that the economy becomes formal.
The countrys opposition yesterday ended months of speculation and bickering when it finally launched the much-awaited grand coalition which would be led by former labour union leader and MDC president, Morgan Tsvangirai.



Conspicuous by their absence at yesterdays historic event were former vice president Joice Mujuru, Zapu leader Dumiso Dabengwa and former Energy minister and MDC deputy treasurer, Elton Mangoma who now leads the Renewal Democrats of Zimbabwe.



A cross-section of Zimbabweans  including analysts, civic society and pressure groups  had consistently said a united opposition fronting one presidential candidate could bring to an end President Robert Mugabe and his warring Zanu PFs rule in next years much-anticipated national elections.



Yesterday, the opposition leaders chose the historic Zimbabwe Grounds, the venue of Mugabe and returning nationalists welcome rally in 1980, to lay their foundation for a tilt at power which has been concentrated in the 93-year-old veteran leader since independence.



Alliance leaders who signed the pact include former Finance minister Tendai Biti of Peoples Democratic Party, Welshman Ncube (MDC), Jacob Ngarivhume (Transform Zimbabwe) and Zimbabwe People Firsts Agrippa Mutambara, a retired army chief.



They all took turns to endorse Tsvangirai as their candidate to take on Mugabe in the much-anticipated plebiscite.



In his keynote address, Tsvangirai said he personally brokered the alliance with his two estranged former secretaries-general, Ncube and Biti.



Ncube broke ranks with Tsvangirai in 2005 following an acrimonious disagreement over the partys participation in that years senatorial elections while Biti left the MDC in 2014, a few months after the party suffered a thorough hiding during the previous years elections.



I called the two of them to a meeting and asked them what kind of legacy they wanted to leave behind and everyone was in agreement that we did not need to leave a legacy of failing to remove Zanu PF from power.



The three of us had serious introspection and said to ourselves how do we get the democratic breakthrough we have been fighting for over the past two decades?



We listened to the demands of the people that we must unite; therefore this demonstration of unity is about Zimbabwe and not about us. The convergence for the need for unity cannot be doubted, Tsvangirai told the cheering crowd.



We have graduated from this needless and unhealthy competition. We are not yet there but I want to assure you that we will get there and with the demonstration of unity, we are giving the people hope that change is coming, he added.





Yesterdays launch of the electoral alliance and subsequent endorsement of Tsvangirai as its leader, brought to an end months of haggling and gamesmanship by both the former prime minister in the stability-inducing unity government and his enstranged colleagues in the-then united MDC.

It, however, still raises questions about wether a deal with Mujuru, who now leads the fledgling National Peoples Party (NPP) would come through.



Despite signing a memorandum of agreement in May, which lifted the mood of thousands of ordinary Zimbabweans looking for an alternative to Mugabe and Zanu PF  Mujuru and Tsvangirai publicly disagreed on the pacts leadership  fuelling suspicion that the much-hyped alliance would not take off.



Analysts had repeatedly said a coalition involving Tsvangirai and Mujuru would present a formidable challenge to Mugabe and his quarrelling colleagues next year considering that the widow of the late decorated liberation icon  Solomon Rex possessed strong liberation war credentials and intimate know-how of Zanu PFs election mischief.



Mujurus absence left many wondering whether she would oppose the coalition and go it alone or join hands with Dabengwa and Mangoma.



Tsvangirai expressed hope that Mujuru and others would soon be joining the big tent despite the fact that the MDC Alliance is already portioning constituencies among themselves.



Let us embolden this huge coalition for change, underpinned by the knowledge that we cannot do this alone in our exclusive social spaces. Let us reunite and join the MDC Alliance in voting for one presidential candidate, one parliamentary candidate and one ward representative under the banner of the MDC Alliance.



August is that great month when we celebrate Heroes Day in Zimbabwe. It is befitting that we have chosen the month of August to showcase this one huge heroic act of togetherness through this massive crowd of many political colours that is gathered here in the Zimbabwe Grounds, said Tsvangirai.



It could only happen at no other venue but the Zimbabwe Grounds, that citadel of the national spirit. On the eve of every new dispensation in the history of this country, this venue has always proved to be an unshackled bastion and ceremonial home of people power.



Today, we send a message to the world that together we are stronger.

Indeed, together we can. And together, we will go far, he added.



Speaking at the same event, Ncube earned himself wild acclamations from the expansive crowd when he apologised for the 2005 split and gave assurances that his party was now determined to work with others.



By signing this agreement, we are reconciling ourselves to the agenda for change as at 1999 (the year when MDC was formed). We made mistakes along the way and so today, we say we are sorry for those mistakes.



We are ready to correct them. Our biggest goal is to remove Zanu PF from power and then bring in our own governance systems, Ncube said.



By this unity, we are giving the people of Zimbabwe another chance to remove Mugabe and reset our struggle, weighed in Biti.



Tsvangirais leadership was also endorsed by affiliate pressure groups and civic organisations including Zimbabwe National Students Union, the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe and Tajamuka/Sesijikile declaring that should Mugabe rig the elections they were ready to defend their vote.



The event was also backed by organisations such as Concerned Citizens Support Network of Zimbabwe, Pastor Evan Mawarires #this Flag, SheVote, Combined Harare Residents Trust, among others. daily news
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By PTI: (Eds: Updating with new tweet)

New Delhi, Aug 6 (PTI) Noted economist Rajiv Kumar today said he is looking forward to serve the country as the new Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog.

"Look forward to serve the nation with my role @nitiaayog @pmoindia," Kumar tweeted.

He was named the new Vice chairman of the government think-tank yesterday, five days after the incumbent Arvind Panagariya announced that he would quit to return to academia.

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In another tweet, Kumar said, "With Indias simultaneous triple transition-social, political and economic-well on course, our country will be global exemplar@Niti Aayog,"

Kumar, who holds a DPhil in economics from Oxford and a PhD from Lucknow University, is a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research (CPR).

Earlier, he was Secretary General of industry chamber Ficci and had also served as Director and Chief Executive of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER).

He was a member of the National Security Advisory Board between 2006 and 2008.

He has also served as chief economist of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and has held senior positions in the the Asian Development Bank, the Ministry of Industries and the Ministry of Finance.

Kumar is also on the boards of several international and national institutions, including the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Riyadh, the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and Asia in Jakarta, the State Bank of India, and the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.

The appointment for the post of Niti Aayog Vice Chairman was necessitated as the incumbent Panagariya on August 1 had announced that he will leave the government think-tank on August 31 and return to Columbia University.

Panagariya, an Indian-American, had joined the Niti Aayog in January 2015.

Industry chamber Ficci today praised the government for appointing Rajiv Kumar as the new Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog and said that the prompt decision will help the government think-tank maintain continuity in its policy advocacy work.

"Ficci welcomes the appointment of Rajiv Kumar as the new Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog," the chamber said in a statement.

The institution, Ficci said, has increasingly gained in importance given the focus the current government has placed on the subject of cooperative federalism.

"Ficci compliments the government for announcing the new Vice Chairman without any delay following the decision of Arvind Panagariya to join back academics. This decision of the government will help Niti maintain continuity in its policy advocacy work," the statement said. PTI BKS SID ABM JM

--- ENDS ---
The UN Security Council unanimously approved new sanctions against North Korea on Saturday in response to recent ballistic missile tests, CNN reports. According to Reuters, the new sanctions ban North Korean exports of coal, iron, lead, seafood, and more. It also bans countries from bringing in more North Korean laborers and prohibits any new joint ventures with North Korea or new investments in current joint ventures. The new sanctions could cut North Korea's $3 billion in annual export revenue by a third. "We said that the time for talking was over and that it was time for action. Today you're going to see the action. It's going to hit hard, but it's going to make a strong point," says US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley, who decried "this ICBM and this nuclear irresponsibility." (Read more North Korea sanctions stories.)
The FBI and ATF are investigating after a "destructive device" blew out windows and damaged an imam's office early Saturday at a mosque outside Minneapolis, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. According to Fox 9, a device was thrown into the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington shortly after 5amabout five minutes into the early morning prayerand exploded, setting fire to an office. Asad Zaman, director of the local Muslim American Society, says there were about a dozen people inside the mosque at the time. No one was injured, NBC News reports. Mohamed Omar, executive director of the Islamic center, says witnesses saw a pickup truck drive away after the device was thrown.

Omar says the mosque has gotten threatening emails and phone calls recently. "Hate is not OK," Zaman says."Targeting people because of their race, ethnicity, or religion is absolutely un-American." The Muslim American Society and Council on American-Islamic Relations are each offering $10,000 rewards for information leading to an arrest. A Bloomington city counselor calls the incident an "attack on our community." And a local church pastor adds: "An attack on any of a place of worship is an attack on all places of worship." Police have not yet called the attack a hate crime. (Read more mosque stories.)
US military officials have called off a search and rescue operation for three US Marines who were missing after their Osprey aircraft crashed into the sea off the east coast of Australia while trying to land. The US Marine base Camp Butler in Japan says in a statement that the rescue operation was suspended on Sunday morning. The military has launched a recovery effort instead and the missing Marines' next of kin had been notified, reports the AP. The MV-22 Osprey had launched from the USS Bonhomme Richard and was conducting regularly scheduled operations on Saturday when it crashed into the water. Twenty-three of 26 personnel aboard the aircraft were rescued.

The ship's small boats and aircraft immediately responded in the search and rescue efforts, according to the statement. The Osprey is a tilt-rotor aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter, but flies like an airplane. They have been involved in a series of high-profile crashes in recent years. The aircraft was in Australia for a joint military training exercise held by the US and Australia last month. (Read more Osprey stories.)
Venezuelan ruling party chief Diosdado Cabello says Sunday that there was a "terrorist" attack at a military base controlled by troops loyal to the government and several people were arrested. Cabello reported via Twitter that troops acted quickly to control the situation in the early morning at the Paramacay base in the central city of Valenica, reports the AP. The announcement came after a small group of men dressed in military fatigues, some armed with assault rifles, released a video declaring themselves in rebellion in Carabobo state, where Valencia is located. In the video a man identifying himself as Capt. Juan Caguaripano said that any unit refusing to go along with its call for rebellion would be declared a military target.

On Saturday prominent opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez was returned home to serve his sentence under house arrest, days after being hauled back to prison in the middle of the night. The activist's wife Lilian Tintori said on Twitter that she and her husband remained committed to achieving "peace and freedom for Venezuela." The assembly voted unanimously on Saturday to remove Venezuela's chief prosecutor, a longtime government loyalist who broke with President Nicolas Maduro in April. Cries of "traitor" and "justice" erupted during the vote to oust Luisa Ortega from her post. Ortega refused to recognize the decision and vowed to continue defending the rights of Venezuelans from Maduro's "coup" against the constitution "with my last breath." (Read more Venezuela stories.)
Far from their prestigious campuses, a Northwestern University professor and a University of Oxford finance officer were jailed in the San Francisco area on Saturday after eight days as fugitives in the death of a young hairdresser in Chicago who was repeatedly stabbed until the knife broke, police said. The Northwestern microbiologist, Wyndham Lathem, 42, was being held without bail in Alameda County and faced a Monday court appearance in Pleasanton. Lathem was under intensive observation Saturday in jail, Alameda County Sheriff's Sgt. Ray Kelly said. The other suspect, Andrew Warren, a treasury assistant at one of Oxford's residential colleges in England, was being held in San Francisco. Both men surrendered peacefully on Friday in the Bay Area. They had been fugitives since the body of 26-year-old Trenton James Cornell-Duranleau was found in Lathem's Chicago apartment July 27.

Investigators haven't elaborated on how Cornell-Duranleau or Lathem knew Warren, reports the AP, or if Warren knew them before he arrived in the United States. Supervisory Deputy US Marshal Frank Conroy said Lathem stated that he would not answer questions on the advice of a lawyer. Investigators talked with Lathem's friends during the week, including people from his graduate and undergraduate days, along with his colleagues. "They knew the seriousness of the charges, the seriousness of the case and how important it was that he be brought into custody, not have to live a life on the run," Conroy said. "He knew that." Police said a video Lathem sent friends and relatives raised concern that he might kill himself. "We are also thankful both men are safely in custody and this did not end in further tragedy," a police statement said. (Read more murder stories.)
By PTI: (Eds: Updating with new tweet)

New Delhi, Aug 6 (PTI) Noted economist Rajiv Kumar today said he is looking forward to serve the country as the new Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog.

"Look forward to serve the nation with my role @nitiaayog @pmoindia," Kumar tweeted.

He was named the new Vice chairman of the government think-tank yesterday, five days after the incumbent Arvind Panagariya announced that he would quit to return to academia.

advertisement

In another tweet, Kumar said, "With Indias simultaneous triple transition-social, political and economic-well on course, our country will be global exemplar@Niti Aayog."

"Structural reforms by Govt are generating inflection point for India to achieve growth trajectory @NITIAayog will further contribute to this," he added.

Kumar, who holds a DPhil in economics from Oxford and a PhD from Lucknow University, is a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research (CPR).

Earlier, he was Secretary General of industry chamber Ficci and had also served as Director and Chief Executive of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER).

He was a member of the National Security Advisory Board between 2006 and 2008.

He has also served as chief economist of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and has held senior positions in the the Asian Development Bank, the Ministry of Industries and the Ministry of Finance.

Kumar is also on the boards of several international and national institutions, including the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center in Riyadh, the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and Asia in Jakarta, the State Bank of India, and the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.

The appointment for the post of Niti Aayog Vice Chairman was necessitated as the incumbent Panagariya on August 1 had announced that he will leave the government think-tank on August 31 and return to Columbia University.

Panagariya, an Indian-American, had joined the Niti Aayog in January 2015.

Industry chamber Ficci today praised the government for appointing Rajiv Kumar as the new Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog and said that the prompt decision will help the government think-tank maintain continuity in its policy advocacy work.

"Ficci welcomes the appointment of Rajiv Kumar as the new Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog," the chamber said in a statement.

The institution, Ficci said, has increasingly gained in importance given the focus the current government has placed on the subject of cooperative federalism.

"Ficci compliments the government for announcing the new Vice Chairman without any delay following the decision of Arvind Panagariya to join back academics. This decision of the government will help Niti maintain continuity in its policy advocacy work," the statement said. PTI BKS SID ABM JM SMN

--- ENDS ---

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China appeared to give a boost to US efforts to curtail North Korea's nuclear program on Sunday, one day after the United Nations voted to impose new sanctions on the country. After meeting North Korea's top diplomat, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged North Korea to make the "smart decision" and stop testing nuclear weapons and launching missiles, the Washington Post reports. Do not violate the UN's decision or provoke international societys goodwill by conducting missile launching or nuclear tests, Wang said. China's warning came a little more than a week after North Korea tested a ballistic missile that experts say could hit major cities in the United States.

On Saturday, the UN Security Council unanimously approved new sanctions on North Korea, banning the country's largest exports, coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, and seafood, the Los Angeles Times reports. The resolution also freezes the assets of a North Korean art studio that makes Communist-style statues and monuments for dictatorships around the world. All told the sanctions would cut North Korean annual exports by a third, from $3 billion to $2 billion. In response to the UN vote, North Korea's state-run newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, condemned the United States on Sunday, CNN reports. "The US mainland will sink into an unimaginable sea of fire on the day when it dares to touch our country by stupidly causing mischief and brandishing its nuclear and sanctions clubs," the article warned. (Read more North Korea stories.)
Mike Pence is at the center of a juicy DC rumorand hes not having it. Per the AP, Pence released a statement Sunday disavowing a New York Times story that reports hes among Republicans gearing up for a shot at the White House in 2020 should Trump decide not to run for reelection. Pences statement said the article "is disgraceful and offensive to me, my family, and our entire team. It called the allegations categorically false, laughable and absurd, and described them as an attempt by the media to divide the Trump administration. The Times piece looks at members of the GOP who are possibly laying the groundwork for shadow campaigns, citing political maneuvers and fundraising by senators Cotton and Sasse as well as Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

But the article considers Pence at length, calling him the "pacesetter," with mentions of his fundraising committee recently racking up $1 million at a Washington fundraiser, and his robust political event schedule. It says unnamed advisers to the vice president have indicated to donors that Pence is interested in a presidential bid, but only if Trump doesn't seek another term. Kellyanne Conway doubled down on Pences statement during media rounds, saying, "It is absolutely true the vice president is getting ready for 2020for reelection as vice president on ABCs This Week. A New York Times spokeswoman told the AP in an email statement that the paper is "confident in the accuracy of our reporting and will let the story speak for itself." (Read more Mike Pence stories.)
United Nations : The United Nations Security Council on Saturday unanimously adopted a US-drafted resolution that aims to slash by a third North Korea's $3 billion annual export revenue over Pyongyang's two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests in July.

The resolution would ban Pyongyang's exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It would also prohibit countries from increasing the current numbers of North Korea's labourers working abroad, ban new joint ventures with Pyongyang and any new investment in current joint ventures.

Resolution 2371 (2017), adopted unanimously by the Security Council on Saturday, strengthens UN sanctions on the Pyongyang in response to its two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests conducted on July 3 and July 28, respectively.

As such, this resolution "sends a clear message" to Pyongyang that the Security Council is united in condemning its violations and demanding the country give up its prohibited nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.

Resolution 2371 (2017) includes the strongest sanctions ever imposed in response to a ballistic missile test. These measures target Pyongyang's principal exports, imposing a total ban on all exports of coal (North Korea's largest source of external revenue), iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood.

Banning these exports will prevent Pyongyang from earning over $1 billion per year of hard currency that would be redirected to its illicit programs, according to the resolution.

North Korea earns approximately $3 billion per year from its exports. Additional sanctions target North Korea's arms smuggling, joint ventures with foreign companies, banks, and other sources of revenue.

A resolution needs nine votes in favour, and no vetoes by the US, China, Russia, France or Britain, to be adopted.

The measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006.
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The 22-year-old shot to fame after he abducted three people from Satna in June and set them ablaze in UP.

By Rahul Noronha: The Madhya Pradesh police on Sunday evening killed dacoit Lalit Patel in an encounter in the forests of Pukharwar on the MP-Uttar Pradesh border. Patel carried a reward of Rs 50,000 on his head in MP.

Patel, 22, had shot to fame after he abducted three people from Satna in June and set them ablaze in UP.

MP police had intensified their search for Patel since then.

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Superintendent of Police (SP) Satna Rajesh Hingankar said that they received information that Lalit Patel had been seen in the forests of Pukharwar on Sunday afternoon.

Police teams from Maihar and Chitrakoot (MP) reached the spot and began combing operations. An exchange of fire took place and after some time during search operations, the body of Lalit Patel was found.

RIVAL GANG

Patel had abducted three people, suspecting them of being informers of Gopa Yadav - who heads a rival dacoit gang.

The trio were tied to a tree in the forests of Bharat Koop, shot dead and their bodies burnt by Lalit Patel.

Subsequently, four members of the Lalit Patel gang had surrendered to the MP police.

On Sunday, police claimed that three other members of the gang were present with Lalit Patel when the encounter took place. They managed to escape due to fading light, police said.

Forensic teams reached the forests by evening. A post-mortem of the slain dacoit will be conducted on Monday.

ALSO READ

FROM THE MAGAZINE | Bundelkhand bandit country again after dacoit gangs return with fresh recruits

Madhya Pradesh: Freshly procured onions worth Rs 20 crore goes missing

--- ENDS ---
New Delhi:

Keen on rolling out infrastructure projects in Iran and Afghanistan, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that once Chabahar Port in Iran becomes operational, there will be no looking back as it will be a gateway to golden opportunities.



As a special envoy of India, deputed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Road Transport and Shipping Minister Gadkari is in Tehran and represented India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani for the second term.



Talks are on for building railways and roads through Chabahar till Afghanistan and then we have access to Russia. Once Chabahar is operationalised, which we are hopeful to be in 12 to 18 months time, it will prove to be a gateway to golden opportunities to boost trade and business, Gadkari told PTI.



Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nations southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from Indias western coast, bypassing Pakistan.We are hopeful of ratification of Trilateral Transit and Transport Agreement by Iran and once approvals are given, the work will start, Gadkari said.



The trilateral pact was inked during Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Tehran in May 2016.

Shri @nitin_gadkari meeting with First Vice President of Iran Mr Eshaq Jahangiri. pic.twitter.com/2iR338cYvo  MORTHINDIA (@MORTHIndia) August 6, 2017

The pact envisages establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor between India, Iran and Afghanistan using Chabahar Port as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran besides multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.

Suggested read | Iran's Rouhani sworn in for second term as tensions simmer over nuclear deal

The Cabinet and the President had ratified the pact in November and December, 2016 respectively.



A government official said Afghanistan has also ratified it but Iran is yet to complete the internal processes of the ratification.



Gadkari said operationalisation of the Port will not accelerate the infrastructure projects but will be a win-win situation for the nations as it would give tremendous boost to trade and offer vast opportunities to investors.



Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but we will be closer to Afghanistan and then Russia....We can export goods till Russia. This will be a direct route, he said.



India has already built the Zaranj-Delaram Road in Afghanistan where the cargo reaching Zehedan can connect to.



The rail route is aimed at connecting the existing rail network of Iran at Zahedan, and subsequently to Mashad in north area, thereby providing access to Turkmenistan as well as northern Afghanistan through its connection to the Bafq-Mashad route, an official said.



This project will significantly enhance the opportunity for trade and business among the nations.

Suggested read: Chabahar port in Iran expected to open in one month: Afghanistan Consul General



Chabahar-Zahedan Railway line project is located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province in eastern Iran.



Gadkaris visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work on the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at the port.



Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine, the minister had said.



For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including a USD 150 million credit from Exim Bank.It also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.



As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of USD 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of USD 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.



Ownership of the equipment will be transferred to the Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of USD 150 million in accordance with the MoU.



As per the pact, operations of the two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract.



Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest USD 500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.

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By PTI: Srinagar, Aug 4 (PTI) Pitching for reconciliation between India and Pakistan, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today favoured dialogue between the two countries to take the CBMs to the next higher level, including opening of more routes across the Line of Control (LoC).

Mehbooba said this while interacting with a delegation from the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir which called on her here today.

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She said dialogue and reconciliation between India and Pakistan would bring an end to violence, acrimony and miseries of the people in the state.

Mehbooba said it was "my mission" to connect people and regions with more routes and other positive activities.

The Chief Minister said she has been demanding opening of all historic routes across the LoC which can get the state on the threshold of prosperity and economic affluence besides sending across the message of peace, coexistence and amity between India and Pakistan.

Mehbooba said it was unfortunate that violence and acrimony has taken over the discourse between the two countries due to which activity on the positive ideas has slowed down.

She, however, exuded optimism that the negativity would "ultimately" fade away and such positive initiatives would take centre stage.

The present phase of these CBMs needs to be taken to the next higher level where the points of convergence between the people of the two countries become much more pronounced and the lines dividing them become irrelevant forever, Mehbooba said.

The chief minister stressed on frequent cultural exchanges between the youth, institutions, groups and communities on the two sides of the LoC.

Cultural exchanges have proved instrumental in bringing the people and the societies closer and I would like the new generation to take a lead in this regard, she said.

If we open up educational institutes for students of the both sides where they can benefit from the facilities and advancements made so far, it will help a great deal, Mehbooba said.

The chief minister said in areas like tourism, disaster management, agriculture and climate change expertise and difficulties can be exchanged to achieve better results.

Mehbooba informed the visiting delegation that Shardha Peeth, on the other side of the LoC, is not only a sacred place for the Kashmiri Pandits but represents the collective ethos and pluralistic society of the state.

She favoured visits to the place by members of the Kashmiri Pandit community, thereby opening a new chapter of pilgrimage tourism among the people across the LoC.

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The delegation shared with the chief minister its observations about the opening of routes across the LoC and the consequent facilitation it has brought to travellers, particularly members of divided families living on the two sides of the divide.

Members of the delegation informed Mehbooba that the opening of travel and trade routes between the two parts of the state has provided more contacts at the peoples level which has led to their emotional integration paving the way for lowering down of acrimony, violence and ill will between them.

The re-opening of these historic routes in the state has been able to restore back, to some extent, the social fabric across the state, the delegation told the chief minister while seeking more progress on these positive interventions. PTI SSB MIJ AQS AKK AQS

--- ENDS ---
New Delhi:

The North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) ambitious plan to make Cannaught Place " vehicle-free" is still on the paper. Six months after the central government nod to "vehicle-free" CP, NDMC is yet finding a way to implement the plan.

"We have been in discussion with the traffic police on findings ways to implement the plan. Arranging for e-rickshaws for last mile connectivity and facilitating adequate parking remain the key challenge. We are working on it", a senior NDMC official said.

The project was expected to decongest the city's iconic commercial center. As per the plan, people driving to the CP will park at designated places-Shivaji Stadium, Baba Kharak marg, and Palika Bazar- and then take a shuttle service to reach the inner and middle circles. The pilot project was approved by Union Urban development minister Venkaiah Naidu.

Also read: Delhi HC seeks Centre stand over PIL accuses JNU professor of plagiarism

Total parking capacity at Shivaji Stadium, Baba Kharak Singh Marg and Pallika is 3,172. But on average, only 1,058 vehicles are parked in these locations, the official said. The unutilised space could be used for promoting "park and ride" concept.

"We are in the process of developing a consensus with traders and believe that the footfall will not suffer because of the plan", the civic body official said.

The trial project to be followed by pedestrianization of Khan market was part of the Prime Minister's flagship project, the Smart City Mission, which completed two years on June 25.

The inner and middle circle of CP were to be made car free for three months and visitors were to be provided with the 'park and ride facility' however, the plan is yet to take off with the civic body exploring ways for executing the idea.

The traders in CP denounced the government initiative and threatened to go on strike if the plan was executed as their business might get affected by this move.

Also read: Delhi government approves three bills to be re-introduced in Assembly
New Delhi:

Born on September 27, 1907 Bhagat Singh was one of the most influential revolutionaries during the freedom struggle of India. Singh, who played an important part in the Indian National movement, was a part of several revolutionary organisations. At a very young age he started following Non-Cooperation Movement, which was initiated by Mahatma Gandhi. The incidents which shaped his patriotic outlook were the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919) and killing of unarmed Akali protesters at the Nankana Sahib (1921). Despite his familys inclination towards Gandhians ideology of non-violence, he was more towards fighting for the rights and later joined the Young Revolutionary Movement. He inspired hundreds of Indians especially teens to join the freedom struggle.

ALSO READ | 70 Years of Independence: Timeline of Indian Freedom Struggle

Although Singh was a well-known figure among Indians and the British people, his presence was observed in 1926 when he got arrested in a bombing case in Lahore. He was later released on a bond of Rs 60,000 after 5 months. In December 1928, he along with Shivaram Rajguru fatally shot James Scott, whom they felt was responsible for death of nationalist leader Lala Lajpat Rai. Few months after that incident, Singh again came into limelight in April 1929, when he along with Batukeshwar Dutt exploded two improvised bombs inside the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi. Several such acts were carried by him, which made a role model of thousands of Indians. He died a martyr at a very young age of 23 years on March 23, 1931. Following his execution, he got the title of Shaheed from his followers and supporters.

Bhagat Singhs charismatic personality also inspired the Bollywood industry and several movies were made on his life. The first one came in the year 1965. Manoj Kumar-starer Shaheed beautiful presented Singhs life and his struggle to get independence for the country. Apart from Shaheed, several other movies were made on his life including The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002), 23rd March 1931: Shaheed (2002), Shaheed-E-Azam (2002) and Rang De Basanti (2006).

ALSO READ | 70 years of Independence: India's stories of triumph

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New Delhi:

As India is going into its 71st year of independence on 15 August, lets not we forget the sacrifices made by revolutionaries who brought about this glorious day to our motherland and one such brave heart was Shivaram Rajguru.



Rajguru was born on 24 August 1908, in a Deshastha Brahmin family at Khed in Maharashtra. At a very early age, Rajguru was deeply affected by the atrocities committed by British administration on people of India and this led him to join revolutionaries for Indias cause of freedom.



The revolutionary came to Varanasi where he learned Sanskrit and other Hindu religious scriptures and became associated with Hindustan Socialist Republican Army (HSRA).



Rajguru was an admirer of the great Maratha King Shivaji and believed in his guerrilla tactics of warfare. The great revolutionary was a good shooter and was gunman of HSRA too. Besides this, he was known under the pseudonym of Raghunath.



Rajguru, along with Bhagat Singh and Sukhdev was hanged on March 23, 1931 for conspiring to kill British police officer John P Saunders, though the initial plot was to kill superintendent of police James Scott to avenge the death of leader Lala Lajpat Rai caused by lathi charge during protest against Simon Commission.



So on December 18, 1928, Rajguru, along with Sukhdev and Bhagat Singh shot Deputy Superintendent of Police, J.P. Saunders in Ferozepur.



After this incident, Rajguru went into hiding in Nagpur. However while travelling to Pune, he was finally arrested.

The trial against the trio of Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru was nothing short of a mockery on part of the British judicial system.



On May 1, 1930, Lord Irwin gave the directive for a special tribunal consisting of Justice J Coldstream, Justice Agha Hyder and Justice GC Hilton to carry out the legal proceedings in Saunders murder case.



The tribunal was given the power to proceed without the presence of the accused denying normal legal rights.



Sadly on October 7, 1930, the trio of Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru was sentenced to be hanged till death.



The hanging took place a day before on March 23, 1931, in Lahore central jail. The bodies of the great martyrs were cremated on the banks of the River Sutlej.



The love for India and for the cause of its freedom made them martyrs at very young age. Like his comrades, Rajguru was just 23 when he was hanged.

ALSO READ| 70 years of Independence: Five challenges that still confront India



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Ahmedabad:

Ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls, BJP chief Amit Shah on Saturday held a meeting with the party leaders in Gujarat, including Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, at his residence in Ahmedabad.

State BJP president Jitubhai Vaghani, partys state in-charge Bhupendra Yadav and Minister of State for Home Pradeepsinh Jadeja and other leaders met Shah in the morning for the Rajya Sabha elections of August 8, party sources said.

According to the state party unit, Shah, who arrived in Ahmedabad late last night, would stay there until the completion of the Rajya Sabha polls, in which, he is one of the four contestants from the state.

The BJP has maintained that Shah is in the city to celebrate Raksha Bandhan and has no official engagements.

However, party sources said the party chief discussed various issues regarding the polls with the leaders in todays meeting.

They added that it is expected that similar rounds of meetings would continue till Saturday.

Also Read: Rahul Gandhi car attack: Goa Congress womens wing to send bangles to PM Modi, Amit Shah

For the three Rajya seats falling vacant in Gujarat, the BJP has fielded Shah, Union minister and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Smriti Irani and former Congress MLA Balwantsinh Rajput, who had joined the saffron party a week ago.

Of the total 11 Rajya Sabha members from Gujarat, the term of threeSmriti Irani and Dilipbhai Pandya (both BJP), and Congress Ahmed Patelis ending on August 18.

Patel has been re-nominated as the partys candidate for the August 8 Rajya Sabha election.

The polls have become crucial for both the parties as new equations are emerging every day after the dramatic exit of Gujarat Congress strongman Shankersinh Vaghela from the party followed by the resignation of six of the partys MLAs.

With this, the Congress tally has reduced to 51 in the 182-seat Gujarat Assembly.

While the Congress claimed to have the support of 44 Congress MLAs, who were shifted to Bengaluru a week ago, seven others, who are still here, have not opened their cards yet.

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New Delhi:

The Ministry of Railways is working hard to roll down the bullet train on the tracks very soon between Ahmedabad and Mumbai. It is said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone in the month of September. The occasion will also be marked by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who will be visiting the nation.

According to India Today, the lay foundation ceremony will be held in Ahmedabad as the Assembly polls are slated later this year, and it will be displayed as a major achievement of the Modi government, sources said.

Gujarat is PMs home state and BJP does not want to leave any stone unturned to retain its fort.

Also Read: Indian Railways Ministry in talks with top six global companies for launch of high-speed trains

The Indian Railways is going to hire a consultant who will assess the matter related to finance and land acquisition.

Also Read | Watch: PM Modi enjoys Shinkansen bullet ride in Japan with Shinzo Abe

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Mumbai:

When 55-year-old Pallavi Abhyankar, who was in the bus that was attacked by terrorists in Kashmir on Monday night, heard the gunshots, her first impression was that crackers were being burst.

Terrorists last night killed seven Amarnath pilgrims, including six women, and injured 19 others as they targeted a bus in Kashmir's Anantnag district.

"I first thought they were crackers. It was only a few moments later that I realised the horror as I saw my fellow passengers hit by the terrorists' bullets," Abhyankar told PTI.

The homemaker, who also runs music classes, said the bus driver's presence of mind saved many a lives.

"Had it not been for the driver, the toll would have been more," she said.

"The terrorists fired from the front and the right side of the bus. As a result, the maximum persons who died or were injured were those sitting on the right side," she said. Abhyankar, who escaped the bullets, is on her way to her native place Dahanu in Palghar district.

"We left Katra at 3 pm. Our plan was to go to Vaishno Devi. There was a problem with the vehicle. We stopped near Pampore at 5 pm and left from there at around 6.50 pm. The firing happened between 8.20 pm and 8.30 pm," Abhyankar said.

"After the terror attack on our bus, the Army personnel and took us to a safe location. The injured, who included our tour arranger, were taken to hospital," she said.

"We left Srinagar at 10.15 am today by a special plane of the Indian Air Force and landed in Surat at around 1.30 pm. We are on our way to Dahanu now," she said.

The bus had over 50 pilgrims from Gujarat and Maharashtra, including 11 from Dahanu. Most of them were sleeping when their vehicle was attacked, she said.

Mohanlal Sonkar, husband of Usha Sonkar who was killed in the terror attack, said his wife had called him yesterday. "She sounded very happy as this was her first trip to Amarnath," he said.

"I wasn't aware that the call would turn out to be the last one from her," the 58 year-old fruit-seller from Dahanu said.

Santosh Thakur, son of Bhagyabani Thakur, 48, said he came to know last night that his mother, who was in the bus, was injured in the attack.

"This morning, my mother called and informed me that she was fine. She sustained a bullet injury on her hand," said Santosh, who is a relative of Nirmala Thakur (50) who was killed in the attack.

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New Delhi:

Supreme Court of India has received an application for early hearing of the Bofors case by Ajay Agrawal. Bofors scandal is a very politically sensitive issue and a new media report has suggested a financial quid pro quo for the Howitzer field guns deal in the year 1986.

Ajay Agrawal, a BJP leader and advocate, has filed the plea alleging that there is an apparent conniving by CBI with the people accused in the Bofors scandal. The plea said that CBI did not challenge the Delhi High Court judgement on May 31, 2005 overlooking all the charges against Hinduja brothers.

He has challenged the judgement in the apex court which had on October 18, 2005 admitted his petition that was filed after the CBI failed to approach the top court with the appeal within the 90-day deadline after the High Court verdict.



In the application, the lawyer-turned-politician said he had filed the appeal in public interest because the CBI did not come forward and it was reported that the Law Ministry then had not given permission to the agency, despite the fact that the High Court order was illegal.



To substantiate the allegation of collusiveness between the CBI and the accused persons, Agrawal in his application has narrated the sequence of events that led to the defreezing of the London bank account of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, alleged middleman in the deal, in 2006, for which the then Additional Solicitor General B Dutta had visited England.



He said such a step was undertaken despite the fact that the then UPA government and the CBI were aware that his appeal has been admitted by the apex court.



Agrawal, who had contested the Rai Bareli Lok Sabha elections in 2014 against Congress President Sonia Gandhi, also claimed that the CBI did not bother to inform the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, which was seized of the Quattrocchi matter, to inform about its move to defreeze the accounts.



He said that on August 3, he had written a letter to the CBI seeking re-investigation of the entire Bofors scam and the trail of alleged bribe money deposited in Quattrocchi's London bank account and the subsequent developments after the defreezing of the account on January 16, 2006.



Fresh developments assume significance in the wake of a demand in Parliament by ruling BJP MPs for reopening of the probe into the Bofors kickback scandal after the media reports quoting Swedish chief investigator Sten Lindstrom's suggested payment of alleged bribery at the top level.



After the developments in Parliament, Agrawal also wrote a letter to the Enforcement Directorate seeking investigation into the trail of the kickback money under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.



In the July 28 letter to the ED, he claimed that the alleged crimes were committed continuously till 2006 when two London accounts held by Quattrochi, who has been accused as one of the middlemen in the deal, were de-freezed.



The BJP leader said the CBI should file an affidavit about the facts and course of investigation into the case, as during the brief hearing on December 1, 2016, the agency had told the apex court that the authorities had not permitted it to file an appeal against the May 31, 2005 verdict.



He said he would try to convince the apex court through his petition that the "High Court had quashed the charges against the accused persons on technical grounds and the order was totally perverse which is liable to be set aside."



Justice R S Sodhi, since retired, of the Delhi High Court had on May 31, 2005 quashed all charges against the Hinduja brothers -- Srichand, Gopichand and Prakashchand -- and the Bofors company and castigated the CBI for its handling of the case saying it had cost the exchequer about Rs 250 crore.



Before the 2005 verdict, another judge of the Delhi High Court, Justice J D Kapoor (since retired) on February 4, 2004, had exonerated late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in the case and directed framing of charge of forgery under Section 465 of the IPC against the Bofors company.



The matter was last listed on February 28 this year when it was adjourned.



The apex court had on October 18, 2005 allowed Agrawal to file an appeal against the high court verdict in the absence of any appeal by CBI.



The December 1, 2016 hearing had taken place after a gap of almost six years since August 12, 2010.



The Rs 1,437 crore deal between India and the Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors for the supply of 400 155mm Howitzer guns for Indian Army was entered on March 24, 1986.



The Swedish Radio on April 16, 1987 had claimed that the company had paid bribes to top Indian politicians and defence personnel.



The CBI on January 22, 1990 had registered the FIR for the alleged offence of criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery under the IPC and other sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act against Martin Ardbo, the then President of AB Bofors, alleged middleman Win Chadda and Hinduja brothers.



It had alleged that certain public servants and private persons in India and abroad had entered into a criminal conspiracy between 1982 and 1987 in pursuance of which the offences of bribery, corruption, cheating and forgery were committed to the extent of Rs 64 crore in the contracts for the supply of Bofors guns.



The first charge sheet in the case was filed on October 22, 1999 against Chadda, Quattrocchi, then Defence Secretary S K Bhatnagar, Ardbo and the Bofors company. A supplementary charge sheet against Hinduja brothers was filed on October 9, 2000.



A special CBI court in Delhi On March 4, 2011, had discharged Quattrocchi from the case saying the country cannot afford to spend hard-earned money on his extradition which has already cost Rs 250 crore.



Quattrocchi, who had fled from here on July 29-30, 1993, has never appeared before any court in India to face prosecution. He passed away on July 13, 2013. The other accused persons who have died are Bhatnagar, Chadda and Ardbo.







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Bengaluru:

Gujarat Congress legislators, camping at a private resort near Bengaluru, will be flown back to their home state on Monday morning, said Congress spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil.

aAll the 44 legislators will be flown back to Gujarat early morning. The flight carrying all of them is scheduled to land in Gujarat around 5 am,a he said.

Gohil refuted reports that the legislators would be flown to Delhi to meet the Congress president.

The Gujarat Congress had sent 44 of its MLAs in Bengaluru on July 29 to fend off apoachinga attempts by the BJP, ahead of the August 8 Rajya Sabha polls, in which Ahmed Patel, the political secretary to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, is contesting.

aWe have the numbers. The BJP donat have the numbers. We will see to it that Patel wins the poll,a Gohil said.

Earlier, Gohil had alleged that it was the BJP which was spreading acanardsa that the Congress MLAs would first be flown to the national capital to meet Gandhi.

He also alleged that the saffron party was spreading afalse reportsa that the MLAs would use the aNOTAa option in the polls to defeat Patel.

The Congress has objected to the aNOTAa option in the Rajya Sabha polls, which is being seen as a prestige battle for the party in Gujarat.

Gohil asserted that all the Congress MLAs were auniteda and that they would vote for Patel in the August 8 election.

Six of the 57 Congress MLAs in Gujarat have quit the party recently, with three of them joining the BJP on July 28.

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New Delhi:

The Delhi High Court has sought the response of the governmment and the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on a PIL accusing one of its assistant professors of plagiarism.

A bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar issued notice to the assistant professor, who teaches Turkish language at the varsity, and sought his stand regarding the charges against him in the plea, which has also sought quashing of his appointment.

The matter has been listed for hearing on September 21.During arguments, the bench asked the varsity how the assistant professor was appointed when he had scored only 33 out of 100 in the viva-voce (oral exam) conducted by the Jamia Millia Islamia University where he had pursued a Diploma in Turkish Language.He scored only 33 out of 100 in the viva and he is a professor. How, the court asked.

JNU said that he had scored over 70 marks out of 100 in his written exams. However, the petitioners, a Turkish language student of Jamia and a law student, contended that he had failed the course as he had scored only 33 out of 100 in the oral exam conducted by Jamia.

The petitioners have also alleged that the assistant professor had plagiarised a literature work in Turkish language and published the same in 2012 with a title as A new approach to Turkish language learning.

They have claimed that the entire material of the book has been copied verbatim from an online Turkish language class without giving a single reference to the online source.

The petition has alleged that while working with JNU and drawing a salary from there, he had pursued a Masters degree in Turkish language from Ataturk University in Turkey.

Also Read: Bengaluru author slams Chetan Bhagat for plagiarism

When the bench questioned JNU about this, it said that he was working as a guest faculty and only getting an honorarium.Apart from seeking quashing of his appointment, the petition also seeks setting up of a high-level fact-finding committee for fixing the responsibilities of the intellectual plagiarism committed by him.

It has also sought a direction to the University Grants Commission to constitute a high-powered committee as a permanent mechanism to effectively prevent the serious issue of the plagiarism in academic circle and universities.

Also Read | The Kapil Sharma Show: Did Kiku Sharda steal Abijit Gangulys jokes? Bumper accused of plagiarism

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New Delhi:

A woman principal of a government senior secondary school in Punjabs Patiala has been suspended after a 17-year-old boy of the same school levelled alleged sexual harassment charges against her.

The Punjab education department has suspended the principal of government senior secondary school, Mardanpur, Adarsh Bhalla, 52. A suspension order was released by Krishan Kumar, secretary education.

Krishan Kumar, secretary education, has ordered suspension of Adarsh Bhalla, 52, principal of the government senior secondary school, Mardanpur.

The Punjab education board has directed the principal to report at the headquarters.

Officials of education department said that actions were taken against the principal against Bhalla on basis of inquiry conducted by education department circle officer Nishi Jalota.

Jalota said the statements of the victim, his parents, school staffs and other students have been taken.

The matter came to light after class-12 boys name was struck out from the school. The victim on learning his name being struck off from the school records he detailed his ordeal to his parents.

On learning the incident the boys parent and villagers gheraoed the school campus and raised protest.

The boy alleged that the principal on regular occasions to take him at her residence and make sexual advances. He had also told the media that the accused used to make him sit beside her in the office during school-hours.

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If the richest people in the world give away a part of their wealth, the planet could be saved from climate change. Here's how.

How many billionaires would it take to save the planet? If a handful of the world's richest people gave away their wealth, would that make a real impact on climate change? The question looks quite far-fetched, especially in a global context where the United States, under the Trump regime, is not quite excited about the whole debate around climate change. But as an intellectual exercise, the Robin Hood index from Bloomberg is worth some bother.

The index calculated what slice of each top billionaire's fortune would be needed to buy all the carbon credits required to offset all domestic greenhouse gas emissions in their home country over a year. Carbon credits are permits that allow a country or organisation to produce a certain amount of carbon emissions and can be traded if the full allowance is not used.

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Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, India's largest company in the private sector, could use a part of his wealth to buy all the carbon credits required to offset all domestic greenhouse gas emissions in the country over a year. He would still have money to spare. Ambani has a net worth of $34.9 billion, according to Forbes. He needs to part with 72 per cent of his wealth to cover all the carbon credits in India.

Bill Gates needs to spend just 43.8 per cent of his wealth to do a similar exercise in the United States. In fact, in most countries, except China and Brazil, their top businessman can share a part of his wealth to buy off carbon credits in that country. In Brazil, investor Jorge Paulo Lemann's $29 billion comes close to settling Brazil's cleaning bill while in China, Alibaba Group's Jack Ma would need to double his $37 billion to offset the damage caused by the world's biggest polluter.

Carbon taxes don't actually eliminate pollutants, however, by using carbon trading, countries set an outer limit on emissions and can either give rights to pollute or auction off some permits within the limit. Companies can then buy these credits, allowing them to pollute, or sell them, making a profit if they clean up.

The United States had pulled out of the Paris climate change agreement, which provides guidelines on pollution levels, posing new challenges for a global drive to control greenhouse emissions. Can businessmen turn Robin Hoods and come to the earth's rescue? Interesting thought, but altogether in the realm of fantasy.

--- ENDS ---
Thiruvananthapuram:

The recent attacks on RSS-BJP activists in the southern state of Kerala allegedly by the members of the CPM has created a lot of tension between the two outfits.



Now, this political slugfest seems to be headed for an even hotter episode, going to a higher level as the BJP has rushed senior party leader and finance minister Arun Jaitley on a short notice visit to the state capital Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.



Attacks and accusations notwithstanding, Jaitleys visit is being widely viewed as the Centre's move to test the political waters of Kerala especially when the issue of violent clashes involving CPM and RSS-BJP workers is still hot. Also, the finance ministers presence in Kerala might boost the morale of the party's ranks.



"BJP wants to show that it means business. CPM should not think that the death of BJP-RSS workers would have no impact. May be for the first time, CPM would be forced to pay the price for all the political violence it had indulged in the past. Even as it would cooperate with the call for peace, BJP central leadership would have no qualms in using political killings to disgrace CPM at the national level," said sources close to BJP's state leaders.



BJP has upped its ante against chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who is also a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).



BJPs Kerala leadership has not been in the good books of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah. It has been constantly asking the Centre to mediate and take some decisive steps against the Pinarayi Vijayan government.



In fact, state party leaders had recently launched a scathing attack on Governor P Sathasivam too after he handed over a memorandum, submitted by the BJP leaders in connection with the political violence, to Vijayan.



Arun Jaitley is scheduled to reach Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday morning after which he will visit the house of RSS leader Rajesh, who was allegedly killed by CPM members last month. He would visit the house of another RSS leader who suffered serious injuries in another alleged attack by the CPM.



He is also likely to address the family members of RSS-BJP workers who were allegedly attacked by CPM members.



On Friday, CPM's politburo made an attempt to convey the message that the attacks were not one sided as claimed by the BJP. More than a dozen CPM workers had lost their lives and hundreds of them were injured in the BJP-RSS attack in the recent past, the party had said.

Also read: RSS worker's killing: 7 arrested, Kerala Governor Sathasivam summons CM, DGP

RSS worker murder: Rajnath dials Kerala CM, says political violence unacceptable

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New Delhi:

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday said that state BJP President Subhash Barala cannot be punished for his son Vikas Baralas crime. His statement came after the Oppositions continuous demand of taking actions against Subhash for sons deeds.

While speaking to the media, Khattar said, "I came to know about this incident. Chandigarh Police has filed the complaint and I believe they will take appropriate action. This matter is not related with Subhash Barala but with an individual. So action would be taken against his son."

BJP state presidents son Vikas was detained by Chandigarh police on charges of stalking a girl on Saturday. However, Vikas was granted bail on the same day.

ALSO READ | Haryana: BJP state president Barala's son arrested for stalking a girl in Chandigarh

The police have registered a case against Vikas and the other youth involved in the incident under Section 354 D (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 185 (Motor Vehicle Act) of the CrPC after the girls complaint.

The victim had alleged that Vikas and the other accused chased her in an inebriated state in Sector 26. Soon after the incident came into limelight, the Congress demanded the state government and police to take appropriate action.

Congress leader Ashok Tanwar while speaking to ANI said, "This is an unfortunate incident. Now, the law and order should take its own course. The government and the police must act.

ALSO READ: Congress lashes out at Centre, Haryana govt for non-performance

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New Delhi:

The girl, who was stalked by Haryana BJP state president Subhash Barala's son Vikas on Saturday, thanked the Chandigarh Police for their quick action. However, she also pointed out that if she was a common mans daughter then the case wouldnt be taken with utmost importance.

While speaking to media, the victim said, "I was coming back to my home when they started stalking me. They tried to threaten me by trying to stop my car. Suddenly, they came in front of my car and blocked the way. I reversed my car immediately and called the police. Police heard whole the matter and assured me of providing the help. Soon the police came and arrested the accused. I am very thankful to Chandigarh Police who came to my rescue on time."

ALSO READ | Haryana stalking case: CM ML Khattar says party president Subhash Barala cant be punished for sons act

"I'm lucky, it seems, to not be the daughter of a common man, because what chance would they have against such VIPs? I'm also lucky, because I'm not lying raped and murdered in a ditch somewhere," she wrote it on her Facebook post.

Meanwhile, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday said that state BJP President Subhash Barala cannot be punished for his son Vikas Baralas crime. His statement came after the Oppositions continuous demand of taking action against Subhash for sons deeds.

While speaking to the media, Khattar said, "I came to know about this incident. Chandigarh Police has filed the complaint and I believe they will take appropriate action. This matter is not related with Subhash Barala but with an individual. So action would be taken against his son."

BJP state presidents son Vikas was detained by Chandigarh police on charges of stalking a girl on Saturday. However, Vikas was granted bail on the same day.

ALSO RED | Haryana: BJP state president Barala's son arrested for stalking a girl in Chandigarh

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New Delhi:

India and China have been locked in a prolonged standoff in the area in the Sikkim sector since June 16 after Chinese troops began constructing a road near the Bhutan trijunction. Bhutan has protested to China, saying the area belonged to it and accused Beijing of violating agreements that aim to maintain the status quo until the boundary dispute is resolved.

India says the Chinese action to construct the road was unilateral and changes the status quo. It fears the road would allow China to cut off India's access to its north-eastern states.

India-born UK economist and politician Meghnad Desai predicted this week that the military standoff between India and China on the Doklam plateau near the Sikkim border, could soon come to a full-scale war.

Desai, a member of the British House of Lords and a renowned commentator on south Asian affairs, linked the Doklam standoff to events in the South China Sea and predicted that the war would be fought in multiple theatres.

He further said that the United States, would support India in the war. Desai's comments came in an interview that he gave to news agency IANS's Saket Sharma.

"Even today, nobody is contemplating that the whole Doklam thing could break anytime. We could be in a full-scale war with China within a month. At that stage it will not be controllable. It may come as a surprise, but that is when the defence co-operation of India (with various countries) will bear fruit," Desai says in the interview.

Saying that he cannot exactly predict when and where a full-scale military conflict may break out, Desai pictured a war that would be fought on multiple fronts - from the mountains of the Himalayas to the waters of South China Sea.

THE AMERICA ANGLE

Desai, notably, said that the current standoff in Doklam should not be viewed as a Indo-Sino face off only. He went on to say that how the Doklam standoff would ultimately get resolved depends not just on negotiations between New Delhi and Beijing but on "what happens in the South China Sea".

"All things that follow now will have a lot to do with what happens in the South China Sea. The US has sent out enough signals. If there is war, it will be a US-China war, with India on the US side, in the South China Sea and in the Himalayas. This trio (India, China and the US) is a very combustible mixture right now," Desai told IANS.

Desai was also asked separately and directly whether the United States would stand with India in case a war does break out between the two nuclear-armed Asian countries.

"Absolutely," the Padma Bhushan recipient said. "Ultimately, you have to understand that India cannot stand up to China without American help and support. America cannot stand up to China without Indian help. That is the symmetry in this relationship."

Dont take China lightly.

Expounding his assertion that India and China would soon go to war, Desai cautioned New Delhi against being complacent with judging Beijing's military capabilities, warning that the People's Liberation Army (PLA) is not the Pakistani Army.

"I think, from past experience, we always assume that we are well prepared but you will be fighting one of the finest armies in the world. It is a very powerful army and I think they also have (much) training in mountain warfare," Desai said."So, according to me, it will be a very tough fight for India. Don't be mistaken that this will be easy. It is not Pakistan. The Pakistani Army is the same set of people. They come from the same army traditions and they have the same thinking but the Chinese are very different."

Noting that China has been unusually "nationalistic, militaristic and aggressive" over the Doklam standoff, the noted economist went on to add, "I am sure we are not told everything that is going on. But my worry is even though India will not openly become militaristic but have we got the preparedness for it? We may have things in place. I just wish and hope that we are prepared for a very tough war which may last for a long time."

DOKLAM STANDOFF

For nearly 50 days now, soldiers from the Indian Army and the Chinese People's Liberation Army have been positioned on the Doklam plateau, reportedly just 150 feet away from each other.Beijing has responded belligerently to the issue, accusing India of entering Chinese territory (the area where the standoff is taking place is in fact disputed between China and Bhutan) and demanding a non-conditional withdrawal of Indian troops.

Chinese media, particularly the hawkish Global Times, have been even more hostile, sometimes bringing up India's 1962 loss to China and at other times, saying that the PLA can 'annihilate' the Indian Army.New Delhi, on the other hand, has largely been silent except to issue firm, carefully worded statements on the matter. Moreover, there is still no indication of how and when the standoff might end.

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New Delhi:

Attacking the CPI(M)-led LDF government in Kerala for the increasing attacks against BJP-RSS workers, Union minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday alleged that incidents of violence always increased in the state, whenever the LDF came to power.

He also charged that the political opponents of the ruling dispensation were being killed in a most brutal and barbaric manner in the state and added that it was the state governments responsibility to ensure that those indulging in violence were brought to book.

Here the highlights from the press conference by Arun Jaitley at 4:15 PM in Kerala:



#Awards would've been returned,parl wouldn't have been allowed to function&campaigns would've been carried out within&outside country:Jaitley



#Let's assume if the kind of political violence in Kerala had taken place in BJP or NDA ruled state, what would've happened?: FM Jaitley

#Political will & determination by state Govt needed to discipline its own cadres rather than let them loose on political opponents: Jaitley



#I pray that this environment doesn't continue for long, hope state Govt takes action against recurrence of any such incident:Jaitley



#Police is expected to be fair, if these two things don't happen then environment of violence won't end: Union Minister Arun Jaitley



#It is the responsibility of the state to ensure that perpetrators of these crimes are brought to book: Union Minister Arun Jaitley

#The kinds of wounds inflicted on Rajesh would have embarrassed even terrorists: Arun Jaitley on attacks on RSS members in Kerala



#Sad that every time LDF is in power, incidents of violence increase. You have political opponents being killed: Arun Jaitley in Kerala

Earlier in on Friday, Jaitley met the relatives of deceased RSS karyakarta Rajesh Edavakode in Thiruvananthapuram. Rajesh was murdered in Kozhikode. While addressing a gathering, Jaitley said this kind of violence will neither suppress ideology in Kerala nor it will be able to scare their workers.

He said it will only strengthen their determination to work harder against those who are perpetuating these kinds of operations in the state.

The senior party leader condemned such violence and said: "even enemies would not be as brutal as those were involved in the murder."

He said Rajesh was an ideal karyakarta and he was the lobe bread earner of his family.

This kind of violence will neither suppress ideology in Kerala nor it will be able to scare our workers: Arun Jaitley in Thiruvananthapuram pic.twitter.com/8Xm1QThBkQ  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

Several clashes took place between BJP-RSS activists and CPM activists in last month.

It will only increase their determination to work harder against those who are perpetuating this operation: A Jaitley in Thiruvananthapuram  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

Also Read: Dattatreya Hosable demands stern action in killings of RSS activists in Kerala

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New Delhi:

Reliance Jio has invited applications from suitable candidates for over 1,900 posts in its sales and distribution team. According to Reliances Jio Infocomm website, there are vacancies available in various parts of the country including places like Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Rajstahan, Odisha and Karanatka. The company has full plans to expand its reach all over the country by strengthening its team.

The company has called for candidates with 10 plus 2/ITI/Certification in device care for the post of a senior digital repair specialist. The applicant must have zero to four years of experience to apply for the post. The website has listed skills like good communication skills, customer focus, problem solving for this positon.

Reliance Jio is also looking for candidates with five to seven years of experience for the position of sales lead. Preference will be given to candidates with a MBA degree.

The company will also recruit more than 120 people in its customer service team. The positions available under customer service and sales team include digital sales specialists, assistant managers, digital repair specialists, home connect techies and relationship managers.

Mukesh Ambani led Reliance industries had launched JioPhone 4G VoLTE feature phone last month. The company has referred the phone as India Ka Smartphone and aims to have 50 crore customers.

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New Delhi:

Senior Gujarat Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Shaktisinh Gohil on Sunday dismissed media reports, saying that it was false information all 44 MLAs are going to meet party president Sonia Gandhi in the national capital. He said all party MLAs will return to Gujarat.

Sources said that the Congress legislators will leave from Bengaluru on Monday. The first batch of 10 MLAs will leave by early morning 4 am and rest will leave by 12 noon. They will be heading to Anand Nijanand Resort, sources added.

On Friday, Gujarat Congress legislators had ventured out for the first time from a private resort on the city outskirts where they have been camping for about a week and had met the Karnataka Governor, besides visiting the state secretariat.

The Congress had sent its 44 legislators here on July 29 to fend off what it alleged were "poaching" attempts by the BJP ahead of the?August eight Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat in which Ahmed Patel, political secretary to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, was contesting.

Also Read: Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah terms I-T raids politically motivated; Happy MLAs to return Gujarat soon

The MLAs were driven from the luxurious resort to Raj Bhavan in a state transport bus, where they had met Governor Vajubhai Vala.

Also Read | Karnataka I-T raids: Congress MLAs staying in Bengaluru resort claim they were asked to return to Gujarat

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New Delhi:

Aslam Wani, a close aide of separatist leader Shabir Shah was arrested from Srinagar on Sunday by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the terror funding case. He will be brought back to Delhi, according to ANI.

A senior official in the central probe agency said Wani was arrested from Jammu and Kashmirs summer capital Srinagar by the ED with the help of the state police. The official said Wani (36) is being flown in from Srinagar and will be produced by evening before a special judge in Delhi for his further custody.

The ED had recently got a non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against him from a Delhi court. The agency had issued multiple summonses for his appearance in the case but he never appeared. The warrant has been executed and Wani will now be confronted with Shah and others in order to take the probe forward, he said.

Earlier, the NIA custody of four Kashmiri separatists, including the son-in-law of Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, was on Friday extended by 10 more days by a Delhi court in the terror funding case.

ALSO READ | Terror funding case: NIA custody of Geelani's son-in-law, 3 others extended

Special Judge O P Saini, however, sent three other separatist leaders to judicial custody for a month after the National Investigation Agency did not seek their custody.

Geelanis son-in-law Altaf Ahmed Shah and other six accused Ayaz Akbar, Peer Saifullah, Shahid-ul-Islam, Mehrajuddin Kalwal, Nayeem Khan and Farooq Ahmed Dar were arrested on July 24 in the case of alleged funding of terror and subversive activities in the Kashmir Valley.

The agency had earlier sought their custody, saying they had to be taken to various places for the purpose of investigation.

Shah, the son-in-law of hardline separatist leader Geelani, was in the custody of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, who had put him under preventive detention immediately after the festival of Eid last month.

Geelanis close aides Tehreek-e-Hurriyat spokesman Ayaz Akbar and Peer Saifullah were arrested by the NIA from the Valley. Shahid-ul-Islam is the spokesman of the moderate Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq.

ALSO READ | Terror funding case: Separatist leader Shabir Shah in contact with terrorists in Pakistan, says ED

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New Delhi:

The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) on Sunday arrested a suspected Bangladeshi terrorist, Abdullah, from Kutesara of Muzaffarnagar district in Uttar Pradesh. Abdullah is associated with group Ansarullah Bangla Team.

The UP ATS informed that he was living since 2011 in the country and had a fake passport and Aadhaar Card. The police said that he was living in Kutesra since one month.

In the preliminary investigation, Abdullah told the police that he was living in Deoband with another Bangladeshi man Faizaan where he was arranging fake identity cards for other terrorists so they can live in India with valid proofs.

UP ATS arrests a Bangladeshi terrorist from Muzaffarnagar, associated with group Ansarullah Bangla Team; was arranging fake IDs for others.  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) August 6, 2017

The UP ATS is looking for Faizaan in the matter. Meanwhile, the UP ATS arrested two suspected terrorists from Shamli. Acting on Abdullah's information, the police raided Jalalabad area from where the suspected terrorists were nabbed.

UP ADG (Law & Order) said the police officials found incriminating documents, articles and stamps for making fake Identity cards. He said Abdullah was using fake identity card for himself too.

Photo of Bangladeshi terrorist arrested by UP ATS from Muzaffarnagar; he is associated with a group Ansarullah Bangla Team. pic.twitter.com/EETYh7v5mn  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) August 6, 2017

Also Read: Suspected LeT terrorist Saleem Khan arrested by UP ATS at Mumbai airport

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New Delhi:

A woman was killed after a truck ran over her at Bandas Kaalukuan area in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday. After the incident, several agitated locals vandalised a local police station. They also set the vehicle involved in the incident on fire.

Such incidents have been taking place in Uttar Pradesh since long. Earlier, 24 people were killed and several others injured when a bus caught fire after colliding with a truck on NH 24 in Bareilly in June.

ALSO READ: Motor Accident Claims Tribunal awards Rs 35.30 lakh to kin of 57-year-old man crushed by DTC bus

UP CM Yogi Adityanath had expressed his heart-felt condolences on the killing of several people in the bus accident. He also announced ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each to the kin of deceased, Rs 50,000 to severely injured and Rs 25,000 to those having minor injuries. He had also ordered state Finance Minister Rajesh Agarwal to immediately visit Bareilly and take stock of the situation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also condoled the loss of lives in the bus accident and sanctioned Rs 2 lakh each to the kin of those killed and Rs 50,000 for each of those injured in the collision. The bus accident in UPs Bareilly is heart-rending. I condole the loss of lives. I pray that those injured recover at the earliest, Modi said.

ALSO READ | 5 Lakh road accidents kill 1.5 lakh Indians every year: Government

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While PMO's deadline to start the first OPD of NCI was December 2017, the project is delayed and only skeleton buildings have come up.

By Priyanka Sharma: A project, which is a ray of hope for thousands of cancer patients in India at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at Jhajjar, needs a big push. Construction work on ground of the central government's ambitious health project shows that it will take at least two years to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi's deadline, even if it right away begins at the fastest pace.

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While PMO's deadline to start the first OPD of NCI was December 2017, the project is delayed and only skeleton buildings have just stood up. Mail Today visited NCI only to find construction work of one of the biggest health project worth `2035 crore, going on at a turtle's pace.

A worker at the construction site told Mail Today, "Forget about OPD in December 2017. It is delayed by a year. We lack manpower. We are only done with few half-constructed buildings. There are still no equipment, beds, diagnostic tools," he said.

"Work started in December 2015 and its first OPD should start by December 2017. A full-fledged cancer institute should be functioning by September 2018. The project is expected to be completed with next three years. The delay is visible," said a senior doctor.

"We are not done with power supply sub-station and water connection. Constructing an electricity sub station takes at least 10 months. We are awaiting a meeting with the Haryana government," said sources in AIIMS.

The institute is being built on a 32-acre land in Badsha village of Haryana. It is being constructed on the lines of the National Cancer Institute of USA. For this government of India made a MoU with the USA NCI during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's October-2014 visit to USA. The institute will have 710 beds out of which 200 beds will be dedicated for Translational Research in India specific cancers.

When Mail Today contacted AIIMS director Dr Randeep Guleria, he said: "We are having weekly meetings on the progress of the NCI project. Even if it is being delayed, we want to launch OPD in a holistic manner. Purchase of equipments, recruitments of faculty, technicians and staff is yet to be done. But we are hoping to be able to meet the deadline."

There are hundreds of patients who fight to get treatments done at Dr B R Ambedkar Institute Rotary Cancer Hospital. A senior AIIMS doctor, on the condition of anonymity, said AIIMS' cancer department witnesses about 1,500 patients a day, while only around 300 get treated and the rest go back.

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ALSO READ:

Delhi: Leading private hospitals pledge solidarity with Maharashtra doctors' agitation

Mumbai: Resident doctors on mass leave after patient's relatives attack Sion Hospital physician

--- ENDS ---
New Delhi:

Jammu and Kashmir Police on Sunday said three people, alleged conspirators in the July 10 attack on Amarnath pilgrims, have been arrested by its Special Investigation Team (SIT).



The men provided logistical help to four Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) militants who carried out the attack that left eight people dead, IGP Munir Khan told the media in Anatnag.



The men, who had allegedly helped the four terrorists by providing them with vehicles and shelter, were arrested recently and taken into remand for further questioning, the police said.



The police said the four LeT militants, led by Abu Ismail, a Pakistani national, had attempted an attack on Amarnath pilgrims on July 9, but were frustrated by heavy security arrangements.



Another militant in the group of four had been identified as Yawar, a local recruiter for the LeT, the police said. Efforts are on to identify the other two, believed to be Pakistanis.



The police also released pictures of Abu Ismail and Yawar.



The the three co-conspiratorsBilal Ahmed Reshi, Aizaj Wagey and Zahoor Ahmedhad carried out reconnaissance exercises and chosen Botengo near Khanbal as the spot where the attack could be carried out, the police added.



The trio had also provided shelter to the four militants in Khudwani and Sriguffwara of South Kashmir, Khan said.



Bilals elder brother Adil, an alleged Lashker-e-Taiba terrorist, was killed by security forces earlier this year.



The Jammu and Kashmir Police had constituted an SIT led by Deputy Inspector General (South Kashmir) Swayam Prakash Pani to probe the attack on the pilgrims.



Eight people were killed when the militants fired at a bus carrying the pilgrims, returning from their Amarnath yatra.

Suggested read | Amarnath Yatra attack: PDP MLA's driver spills beans on terrorists' plot in interrogation

Here the highlights of the press conference:

#There were two targets, unfortunately, it was the Yatri vehicle that day.

#Our aim was to neutralise these militants and know how this attack happened



#Investigation is complete and we know who is involved. Now remains the other part to get after these militants and neutralise them in coming days.



#The three guys arrested provided the logistic support, vehicle and motorcycle, to Reiki the area



#Accused arrested and produced in the court



#Code for CRPF vehicle was Bilal; Code for Yatri vehicle was Showkat



#Ismail, Mavya, Furqan and Yawar ( local) carried the attack

#The attack was initially planned for July 9th, but that day there was no movement of CRPF or yatri vehicle in isolation: IGP Kashmir

#Happy to tell you that 3 accused persons have been arrested & they have completely revealed everything: IGP Kashmir



#2 Lashkar militants were eliminated a few days ago, their involvement in this particular case is still being investigated: IGP Kashmir



#Ismail, a Pak militant of Lashkar along with 2 other Pak militants and a local Kashmiri Lashkar militant carried out attack: IGP Kashmir



#Lashkar was involved, and accused were identified: IGP Kashmir Munir Khan on Amarnath attack

Suggested read: Amarnath Yatra: Several measures taken to beef up security following terror attack, says Hansraj Ahir

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Washington:

Being lonely and socially isolated is potentially very dangerous as studies suggest. So, if you are lonely then it is a time that you take some remedial measures.



According to a research presented at the 125th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, people who live a lonely life, and/or are socially isolated are much more likely to die early, even than obese people.



The researchers conducted two meta-analyses which involved 3,00,000 participants and found that greater social connection is associated with a 50 percent reduced risk of early death.



Another study which covered more than 3.4 million individuals from North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia found that social isolation, loneliness, or living alone played a major part in the premature death.



Julianne Holt-Lunstad, from Brigham Young University, who conducted the study, said being connected to others socially is widely considered a fundamental human need which is essential to both well-being and survival.



Holt-Lunstad added that an increasing portion of the U.S. population is now experiencing isolation on a frequent basis.



As per the findings, approximately 42.6 million adults over age 45 in the United States are estimated to be suffering from chronic loneliness.



In addition, the most recent U.S. Census data shows more than a quarter of the population lives alone, more than half of the population is unmarried and since the previous census, marriage rates and the number of children per household have declined.



These trends suggest that Americans are becoming less socially connected and experiencing more loneliness, said the researchers.



"There is robust evidence that social isolation and loneliness significantly increase the risk of premature mortality, and the magnitude of the risk exceeds that of many leading health indicators," said Holt-Lunstad.



Extreme examples, such as infants in custodial care who lack human contact fail to thrive and often die. Historically, social isolation or solitary confinement has been used as a form of punishment which is prevalent up till now.



The researchers have recommended that greater priority be placed on research and resources to tackle this public health threat from the societal to the individual level.



Greater emphasis could be placed on social skills training for children in schools and doctors should be encouraged to include social connectedness in medical screening.

Also read: Social media use increases feelings of loneliness: Study



Half a million people over age of 60 suffer from extreme loneliness in UK
New Delhi:

Expecting mothers must take note of this. Flame retardant chemicals which are generally used in our furniture and household products have the potential to cause harm to childs intelligence, causing loss of IQ points, as per a new study.

Researchers of University of California conducted a study which was published in Environmental Health Perspectives and found out that there is an effect of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) on the childs intelligence.

The study was conducted on about 3,000 mother-child pairs from around the world. The study revealed some shocking facts as for every ten fold rise in the mothers PBDE level, there was a drop of 3.7 IQ points in the child.

Though a 3.7 point decrease in the IQ of the child, wont sound as if it is huge but when we consider it on a global level, it only means there are more number of children who are in need of early interventions.

There are so many people who face exposure to high levels of PBDEs. However, it has been noted that the more a pregnant woman is exposed to PBDE, the lower her childs IQ will be.

Researchers have indicated that there is some sort of connection between PDBE exposures and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). They have said that more studies are required to characterize the relationship in a better way.

Although there are bans, but still most of the people are exposed to various PBDE flame retardants. It is the children who face the highest amount of risk.
Washington:

Asserting that President Donald Trump will no longer "tolerate" any support to militants, US National Security Adviser Gen H R McMaster on Sunday asked Pakistan to change its "paradoxical" policy of supporting selective terror groups.



US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad denies.



"The president has also made clear that he, that we need to see a change in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," the National Security Advisor, McMaster, was quoted by MSNBC as saying.



"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups," he said, in response to a question on Afghanistan and terrorism in the region.



He said that Trump is making clear that the US will no longer "tolerate" any support for the Taliban or related groups.



"Of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but theyve done so really only selectively," he said.



Pakistans two neighbours -- both India and Afghanistan have accused it of being selective in its war against terrorism.



McMaster said that Trump has lifted restrictions on US armed forces in Afghanistan.



He also defended Trump's strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country.



"The president has said that he does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat".



"He has lifted those restrictions, and you are beginning to see the payoff of that as well," the top US national security advisor said.

Also read: Terror attack: Pakistan Army launches countrywide crackdown on militants

Afghanistan blast: Taliban Suicide bomber kills NATO soldier, 6 personnel injured

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United Nations:

The UN Security Council will vote on Sunday on a US-drafted resolution toughening sanctions on North Korea, diplomats have said, a proposed ban on certain exports that could deprive Pyongyang of $1 billion in annual revenue.

After a month of negotiations, the United States reached a deal with China, North Koreas main trading partner and ally, on the measures aimed at ratcheting up pressure on Pyongyang to halt its missile and nuclear tests. The Security Council was scheduled to vote at 3 pm on Sunday on the new raft of sanctions, diplomats confirmed.

The draft resolution calls for a ban on all exports of coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, as well as fish and seafood by the cash-starved state, according to the text seen by AFP.

If implemented by all countries, the ban would strip Pyongyang of roughly a third of its export earnings estimated at $3 billion per year, according to a diplomat familiar with the negotiations.

The diplomat, who briefed reporters on the content of the draft, said he had high confidence that China and Russia would support the proposed sanctions. Backed by its European allies, Japan and South Korea, the United States has been leading the push at the United Nations for tougher sanctions in response to North Koreas launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile on July 4.

ALSO READ | North Korea missile launch: Kim Jong-Un attends concert celebrating success

A second test on July 28 further raised alarm about Pyongyangs drive to develop a missile capable of hitting the US mainland. The draft text would also prevent North Korea from increasing the number of workers it sends abroad, prohibit all new joint ventures and ban new investment in the current joint companies.

North Korea is blamed for a massive diversion of its scarce resources toward the development of nuclear weapons and a number of expensive ballistic missile programs, the draft resolution said.

The new raft of measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006, but these have failed to compel Pyongyang to change its behavior. Two resolutions adopted last year however have introduced economic sanctions with more bite.

The United States has put heavy pressure on China, which accounts for 90 per cent of trade with North Korea, to enforce the sanctions. The proposed resolution would add North Koreas Foreign Trade Bank, the primary foreign exchange bank, to a UN sanctions blacklist, which provides for an assets freeze.

It would also tighten trade restrictions on technology to prevent North Korea from acquiring items that could be used for its military programs. Under the proposed measure, North Korean vessels caught violating UN resolutions would be banned from entering ports in all countries.

The draft resolution however does not provide for cuts to oil deliveries to North Koreaa move that would have dealt a serious blow to the economy.

ALSO READ: Kim Jong-Un vows to demonstrate North Koreas mettle to US

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By PTI: New Delhi, Aug 6 (PTI) The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has allowed registration of four diesel ambulances of the premier medical institute AIIMS, which conform to BS-IV emission norms, for transportation of patients.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar granted the relief to the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) after it assured it that it would dismantle the vehicles which were more than 10 years old.

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The green panel, however, made it clear that these ambulances will be used only for carrying patients and not for any other purpose.

The application of the AIIMS would be allowed subject to the scrapping of 10-year old ambulances and condemned, it said.

"It is stated by the officer that these ambulances are BS-IV compliant. Proof thereof should be furnished before the registering authority and upon furnishing these conditions, these vehicles may be registered and permitted to ply in accordance with law," the bench said.

AIIMS had approached the green panel seeking registration of its new vehicles as the tribunal had last year banned registration of new diesel vehicles as well as their re- registration after 10 years.

Later, the Supreme Court had also banned registration of diesel-run SUVs and cars having engine capacity beyond 2000cc in Delhi and National Capital Region.

Due to this, the transport department was not registering the newly-procured vehicles, which conform to BS-IV norms and not re-registering the old ones, the Board said.

In a jolt to diesel car owners in the national capital, the tribunal had directed the Delhi government to cancel the registration of all diesel-powered vehicles over 10 years old from plying in the city.

Later, the tribunal had clarified that de-registration of old diesel vehicles in the national capital would be carried out in a phased manner. PTI PKS ARC DV

--- ENDS ---
Australian media say a US military Osprey transport plane has crashed into the sea off Australia, leaving 3 US service members missing.

The US Marine Corps says the MV-22 Osprey from its Futenma Air Station in Okinawa hit the water off the east coast of Australia on Saturday afternoon.

The Marine Corps says that 23 of 26 personnel on board the aircraft have been rescued, and rescue operations are underway for the missing 3.

The incident reportedly occurred after the Osprey took off from the USS Bonhomme Richard amphibious assault ship for a regular training exercise.

Marine officials say that they are investigating the details and causes of the incident.

Australian media have quoted military officials as saying that the Osprey was attempting to land on a US Navy aircraft carrier when it crashed.

The media report some of the rescued are seriously injured.

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msn.com - Nov 08

Japan has a shrinking pool of young workers to fund retirement and healthcare. The only answer appears to be raising pension and health deductions from paychecks, but that is likely to be deeply unpopular.
The government may review how money allocated for developing Okinawa is spent, after some of this year's money was used to pay for an event by the all-girl idol group AKB48.

To boost tourism, 28 million yen was allocated to holding the pop group's annual popularity vote in Okinawa in June.

The Okinawa prefectural government submitted a plan to use the money for the event, which was expected to draw 8,000 tourists to the southern island prefecture in the off-season. The Cabinet Office approved the amount to cover such costs as setting up the venue.

The funding came from the fiscal 2017 national government grant totaling 135.8 billion yen which the prefecture can use for any purpose. That money is part of the 315 billion yen provided this year for economic development of Okinawa.
Japan is fretting about running out of hotel rooms as foreign tourist numbers surge and as the capital prepares to host the 2020 Olympics.

But do entire countries really light up the "sorry, no vacancy" sign?

A recent survey by a Tokyo-based real estate service company says Japan has nothing to worry about. It shows that by 2020 or so eight major cities will experience a combined increase of about 60,000 hotel rooms, 26% more than the current level.

This should be plenty to prevent any Olympic shortfall.

In fact, all the new rooms could make for a supply glut.

According to the survey, Tokyo is expected to get another 25,000 hotel rooms by 2020 or shortly thereafter, a 25.6% increase. The number of hotel rooms in Osaka is expected to grow by 18,000 by then, up 34.9%.

Kyoto is forecast to add 8,000 rooms, up 36.1%, according to the survey.

Hotel rooms in the ancient capital, a major tourist draw, are currently in short supply.
A Kuroshio limited express train led by a car with a panda face debuted Saturday in Osaka to lure tourists to Adventure World, the giant wildlife theme park in Wakayama Prefecture where the popular animals are on show.

The train's interior is decked out in a panda theme that's visible on its seats, doors and other areas, while the exteriors of some of the cars are covered with big images of the crowd-pleasing animals.

The special train, which will officially enter service on Sunday, is scheduled to run until around November 2019.

Adventure World is in the town of Shirahama and has five giant pandas in its animal collection, which includes sea life as well.
Days after Shabir Shah's arrest, his close aide Aslam Wani has been arrested in a 2005 money laundering case.

By India Today Web Desk: Days after the National Investigation Agency arrested the founder and president of the Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party (JKDFP), Shabir Shah, a Delhi Court today sent alleged hawala dealer and his close aide Mohammad Aslam Wani to ED custody till August 14. He has been arrested in a 12-year-old money laundering case against Shah.

Wani was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate today morning and was produced before special judge in the evening.

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A sessions court in Delhi had issued an open-ended non-bailable warrant against him for not appearing before the Enforcement Directorate despite multiple summons.

Wani will now be questioned alongside Shah, who was arrested from Srinagar on July 25 to take the probe forward, a senior ED official said.

THE CASE

Shah and Wani have been arrested in a case that dates back to August 2005, when Wani was arrested by the Delhi Police allegedly with Rs 63 lakh and a large cache of ammunition. Wani had told the police that Rs 50 lakh was for Shabir Shah, Rs 10 lakh for Jaish-e-Mohammad area commander in Srinagar Abu Baqar was supposed to get Rs 10 lakh and the rest was his commission.

In 2010, a Delhi court had cleared Wani of terror funding charges but had convicted him under the Arms Act.

Wani was arrested allegedly with Rs 63 lakh, received through hawala channels from the Middle East, and a large cache of ammunition, on August 26, 2005.

The ED had registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Shah and Wani.

(With inputs from agencies)

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India Today impact: Kashmir separatist leader Shabir Shah arrested; NIA, ED to question

Also Watch: After India Today expose, Shabir Shah says Bitta Karate not part of Hurriyat

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A deal that would break barriers on media ownership could be a trend-setter, experts say, with the federal government yet to weigh in on how far it will allow consolidation to go.

In May, Sinclair Broadcast Group, which has a presence in more U.S. television markets than any other company, announced a $3.9 billion deal to buy Tribune Media, itself one of the largest owners of TV stations  including two in Connecticut. The combined company would then own more than 300 local TV stations and find itself far above the current federal ownership limit.

But a change in leadership at the Federal Communications Commission likely has Sinclair leadership thinking the deal has a chance, according to an analyst with Fitch Ratings.

Theyre realizing that the FCC is taking a more deregulatory stance, said Patrice Cucinello, director of U.S. Corporates for Fitch. With a Republican Congress and Senate, Sinclair came with the first deal to test those waters to make a larger transaction happen.

Sinclair has made a name through its conservative leanings, with the company requiring its stations in their local news coverage to run certain segments produced by the company that advance a right-leaning viewpoint.

A Republican-controlled White House and Congress could help the deals chances, Cucinello said.

The feeling is the prospects are better under this administration than they have been in a number of years, she said.

The UHF discount

The issue of ownership limits rests in large part on a distinction in TV stations that hasnt been relevant for years. In the days when people largely received TV signals over the airwaves, the FCC recognized the distinction between VHF channels, typically channels 2 to 13 on the dial, and UHF, which were the higher-numbered channels and broadcast with a weaker signal.

The FCC in 1985 accounted for the fact that UHF channels were weaker. In setting limits on how much territory a single company could cover, the agency created what was called the UHF discount, meaning those channels counted for less.

The current FCC limit states that no single company can own stations covering more than 39 percent of the country.

Under the Obama administration, the UHF discount was eliminated, with regulators reasoning that digital TV signals eliminated any distinction between the strength of the channels. Under those rules, the combined Sinclair-Tribune company would far exceed the 39 percent limit.

But under President Donald Trump, the FCC has reinstated the discount, and the U.S. Court of Appeals recently denied a stay that would have reversed the reinstatement. With the discount in place, the larger Sinclair would be much closer to the allowed limit, and likely need to sell off only a handful of stations to meet regulations.

The UHF distinction is key to the deal, analysts say.

Local changes

Tribune owns two stations in Connecticut  Fox 61 in Hartford and WCCT in Waterbury. The company in 2014 spun off its publishing company, which owns the Hartford Courant, into a new company called Tronc.

A change in ownership for the two stations wouldnt necessarily attract attention from the average customer, at least at first, said John Gerlach, a professor at Sacred Heart Universitys business school.

If the acquisition were to go through, and if Sinclair did what it would be expected to do, which is have some programming that has to be carried by all its channels that is very conservative, people would start to notice, Gerlach said.

But then it would be too late.

Gerlach said it was uncommon for politics to figure into a deal of this nature.

Normally in a business transaction, politics doesnt play a major role, he said, describing the deal as otherwise straightforward, even accounting for the station limits.

Whats happening is were seeing a horizontal merger with Sinclair expanding its reach nationwide, he said.

Technology upgrades

In announcing the deal in May, Sinclair emphasized the geographic reach Tribune would add to the company. The Tribune stations are highly complementary to Sinclairs existing footprint and will create a leading nationwide media platform that includes our countrys largest markets, Chris Ripley, president and CEO of Sinclair, said in a statement.

But the changing nature of television, and how it affects the companys finances, is also a major factor, analysts say. Even as people increasingly watch TV and movies through streaming services, local content has mostly stayed put.

From a consumer perspective, local content is usually received through traditional means, Cucinello said. That gives a company like Sinclair better prospects going forward.

With the FCC to issue a decision on the Sinclair-Tribune deal later this year, the trend toward deregulation under the Trump administration seems clear.

The potential for more easing of local or national rules is broadly expected, Cucinello said.

hbailey@hearstmediact.com
KENT  Downtown Kent is like something out of Gilmore Girls. Antique shops and galleries reside in old houses with wraparound porches. The local market is filled with shelves of locally made ice cream and honeys in glass jars. Shops are cluttered with flyers advertising things like the local production of The Music Man and an apartment for rent downtown. Its fitting, considering the show was actually based on Washington Depot, which is less than a half hour away.

But as I sat in J.P. Gifford Market on North Main Street eating a breakfast sandwich, I noticed something unusual about Kent. Wandering down the sidewalks of North Main Street were hikers touting bulky, rectangular backpacks. With bandanas tied around their heads, they looked like a scene out of Cheryl Strayeds Wild, walking the streets as though it were another dusty mountain trail.
By PTI: By Shirish B Pradhan

Kathmandu, Aug 6 (PTI) The daughter of Nepals former prime minister Prachanda today won the mayoral election of Bharatpur city.

Renu Dahal, who secured 43,127 votes, defeated her nearest rival - CPN-UMLs Devi Prasad Gyawali - by 203 votes.

Gyawali got 42,924 votes and gave a tough fight to the daughter of CPN-Maoist Centres chief.

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Re-polling was conducted in Ward number 19 as per the courts verdict as counting of votes of Bharatpur Metropolis, under the second phase of local-level election, was put off after some people vandalised the ballot box.

Nepali Congress Parvati Shah won the post of Deputy Mayor, beating her rival Divya Sharma Acharya of CPN-UML.

The ruling parties, Nepali Congress and CPN-Maoist Centre, had electoral alliance against CPN-UML in Bharatpur.

Election was held earlier in the metropolis on May 14 in the first round of civic polls. However, some cadres had damaged the ballot papers on May 28 when vote counting was underway.

Prachanda in May resigned after a brief stint of nine months, honouring a power sharing understanding with the ruling coalition partner Nepali Congress to hand over the countrys leadership to the largest party in Parliament.

His resignation cleared way for his former political rival and Nepali Congress president Sher Bahadur Deuba, who took over as the prime minister.

The local-level polls are being held in Nepal for the first time in almost two decades. PTI SBP CPS

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NORWALK  State municipalities are increasingly struggling amid the continuing budget impasse, according to a recent survey by the states largest, nonpartisan organization of municipal leaders.

The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities recently found that nearly half of the 61 towns and cities surveyed have imposed some type or level of spending freeze during the first quarter of the fiscal year. About half have also started to curtail municipal costs, ranging from education costs to town services.

These survey results present a snapshot of the stresses on local government as they attempt to start their fiscal year, with little or no direction from the state regarding the level of state aid they will receive, never mind the level of state aid they need, said Joe DeLong, executive director of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, which published the results July 24.

Yet, Wilton First Selectman Lynne Vanderslice said her town is not experiencing the mentioned difficulties in the report  since Wilton receives less state aid relative to other towns and was also conservative in the development of the fiscal year 2018 budget.

Her main concern is Gov. Dannel P. Malloys proposal to have municipalities partially fund the required contribution for the state teachers pension plan, which would add a $4 million unbudgeted cost to the fiscal year 2018 budget, she said.

Even if the push down doesn't happen this year, during every future budget cycle the governor and the legislature will be dealing with increased pension costs and again be tempted to push more and more of the cost to Wilton and the other municipalities, she said. This is not a problem that is going away.

More Information Survey says Of the 61 communities surveyed: 29 have imposed some type or level of spending freeze during the first quarter of the fiscal year. 28 have already started to curtail some municipal services. In the absence of a state budget and final state aid allotments, 59 towns reported: An average percentage increase in approved and proposed local government budgets of 1.52 percent, with a range from 0.6 to 6.0 percent. An average percentage increase in approved and proposed local government mill rates of 2.86 percent, with a range from 0.8 to 9.39 percent. Of the 52 communities who responded to a question concerning board of education budget increases: 37 increased their budget, nine saw no increase and seven cut their budgets below FY 2016-17 levels. The average percentage increase in education budgets was 1.37 percent. See More Collapse

In the meantime, the Board of Selectmen is preparing for what might occur, she said, and is working with the police, fire commissions and department heads to develop a back-up budget plan for FY 2018.

It will need to be more than just cutting around the edges, Vanderslice said. It will require rethinking what we now consider necessary.

Though towns like Wilton have adjusted their expectations, other towns like Norwalk are going to suffer a great deal if the state doesnt resolve the budget impasse and remains under the executive order, said state Rep. Gail Lavielle, R-Wilton.

Given the current climate of the state Legislature, Lavielle doesnt expect a budget to be passed before September.

Malloy, himself, said he wouldnt be surprised if the budget impasse doesnt get resolved until the fall.

What is absolutely, glaringly obvious is that the majority party has not put a full budget out there and Republicans have had eight versions of a budget. Our first budget was in the third week of April, Lavielle said. So as long as they dont have a full budget out there, how can you negotiate  whether youre us or youre the governor?

Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, said Democrats have been working hard since the start of the fiscal year to come to a consensus between both chambers and the governor. Duff also noted his support for Malloys mini budget that would have temporarily preserved some state services that received cuts, if the proposal had passed before July 1.

There is work being done in Hartford every day to reach a consensus among our caucuses and our leadership and the governors offices to get this done as fast as possible, he said.

I just want to make it very clear that the House Republicans budget is one that has illegal aspect, especially when it comes to state employees. Its not based on reality from a financial standpoint and that budget really has, outside their own caucus, no support, he added. Its a sham and it raises taxes.

Duff also commended the final Senate approval of the state employees union concession package labor agreement, which he said would save taxpayers $24 billion over the next 20 years.

These savings are another important step toward reaching a final balanced budget that protects taxpayers, vital services and the important economic gains made here in Connecticut, he said.

Lavielle disagreed, saying the decision reveals where the priority of the legislative majority truly lies.

This union contract is going to lead to the way that the focus of the Legislature is on just one group of people while not paying attention to the other at all. But, in fact, the others are going to be paying for this group of people. They pay for those peoples benefits, she said.

The people that are really getting hit now are those who are recipients of or who work in social services for the really needy, she added.

Lavielle referred to recipients and employees of places like STAR, Inc., a Norwalk-based provider of day and residential services for children and adults with developmental disabilities.

The organization faced its first of six furlough days on July 26, mandated by the Connecticut Department of Developmental Services, and is working around funding cuts that range up to 18 percent for residential services.

The cuts are pretty deep, Lavielle said. And the worst part about them, I think, is not knowing how long theyll go on and not knowing what the final budget will ultimately include.

This growing uncertainty is concerning to Alison Jacobson of Wilton and other caregivers of family members with an intellectual or development disability. Jacobson worries that her 19-year-old son, Spencer, will graduate in two years without state funding.

He will receive services until hes 21. But looking at some of the budgets being proposed, many of the versions do not support graduates for two years. So, at 21, Spencer will not receive services for two years, said Jacobson, a board member of STAR and a national family safety and wellness expert.

And as the sole breadwinner of her family  with two other daughters and a husband with multiple sclerosis  she fears for her future and the future of other caregivers.

At the rate that the state is going, Ill never be able to stop working, she said. But Im actually one of the fortunate ones  Spencer can cook for himself and take care of himself. There are people who are so profoundly disabled that they need to be cared for 24/7.

With everything thats going on with the budget, its absolutely disgusting how this state has let down the most vulnerable people in the society, she said.

skim@hearstmediact.com; 203-842-2568; @stephaniehnkim
John Dunham, who has used rocks and pumps to fight off the rising waters of Lake Ontario, in Greece, N.Y.

In this picture taken in June, John Dunham, of Greece, N.Y. has used rocks and pumps to fight off the rising waters of Lake Ontario.

(Rachel Jerome Ferraro/The New York Times)

As Lake Ontario's water level continues to fall, the U.S.-Canadian panel that manages the lake will continue with record out-flows at the Moses-Sanders dam in Massena for at least a few more days "provided conditions remain safe to do so."

At its Aug. 1 meeting, the International Lake Ontario - St. Lawrence River Board, which is affiliated with the International Joint Commission, noted the water level has dropped rapidly compared to average rates through the months of June and July.

"The Board has been releasing the unprecedented outflow of 10,400 m3/s (367,300 cfs) since 14 June and, despite wet conditions, Lake Ontario levels have fallen 30 cm (12 in.) since peaking in late May," said IJC spokeswoman Sarah Lochan in a press release. " Lake Ontario levels remain above the IJC's high level threshold and the Board will continue releasing high outflows with the intent to provide all possible relief to Lake Ontario shoreline riparian interests, while balancing the impacts on other affected stakeholders on the St. Lawrence River."

The board noted "total inflows to Lake Ontario have remained high for this time of year, as have Ottawa River flows into the St. Lawrence River.

"Lake levels of Lake St. Louis (near Montreal) set a new record high for the month of July and remain close to record levels for this time of year," the release said.

However to maintain safe conditions in the St. Lawrence Seaway, the outflow is expected to be reduced to 9,910 m3/s (349,970 cfs) on or before Aug. 8. This new outflow will be a record high for that time of year to provide all possible relief from high water levels in Lake Ontario while balancing the impacts downstream.

'Furthermore, as water levels on Lake Ontario decline and the outflow remains at 10,400 m3/s, velocities in the upper St. Lawrence river will increase resulting in hazardous conditions for shippers and recreational boaters," the board said.

"In the interest of providing all possible relief to riparian owners, while balancing the safety risks associated with increased current velocities, outflows from Lake Ontario will need to be gradually reduced in the near future," the board noted.

Meanwhile, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced Thursday that he has authorized the Commissioner of New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to extend the 5 mile per hour boating speed limit on Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River through Saturday, Sept.2.

Vessels operating within 600 feet of shore must observe the 5 mile per hour speed limit to reduce impacts to shoreline residences and infrastructure caused by wave action and to promote safe boating.
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NEW HAVEN >> Claudia Candido and her family, not knowing anyone and struggling with a new language, first arrived here in 2006 from Venezuela with an appointment for emergency medical treatment for her very sick child.

Her 5-year-old son had rhabdomyosarcoma, an aggressive cancer of the soft tissue, a condition that had not been correctly diagnosed in her home country and was now stage four, having spread to his lymph nodes.

Lacking a support network and fearful he would not survive, she said it was a terrible feeling made worse by a sense of isolation staying in a hotel room.

Candido said a social worker at Yale New Haven Childrens Hospital suggested she contact the Ronald McDonald House, which was then located on George Street.

When we arrived at that house, it was so familiar and warm. All the people came out to welcome us, Candido said last week.

She and her family are now staying at the new Ronald McDonald House at 860 Howard Ave., directly across from the Childrens Hospital, as her son is back for a procedure.

I cant imagine how I could have handled it that year, which was so terrible, without the Ronald McDonald House. This is my family when I come here, Candido said.

Maurizio Candido, now 16 and cancer-free for a decade, has been here since July undergoing surgery to lengthen one leg and fix a problem with his tibia, the side effects of his initial radiation and chemotherapy.

The Candidos, which includes her husband, Gilberto Candido; another son, Gianfranco Candido, 14; and her mother, Maria Balduini, have come back every year since Maurizios initial diagnosis for checkups. Joining them since 2000 for the trips to New Haven is the baby of the family, Isabella Candido, age 7

Claudia Candido said her husband would stay for a month at a time when he could that first year, flying back and forth to Venezuela for his work as a civil engineer. The rest of the extended family were here for that initial 12 months of treatment.

Cathy Zorgo-Bignolas, chapter administrator at the house, said the average stay for families is between three and six months, but several have remained there for more than a year.

Another family currently at the facility, has been in residence over a year and a half, with transplant operations usually requiring the longest stays, particularly for those coming from medically underserved countries.

The new $11.35 million, 27,000-square-foot Ronald McDonald House, which has 18 rooms for the guests and two additional respite rooms for parents of children at the hospital who just need to take a break, has now been open for a few weeks.

Ten other rooms at the facility used for conference space, offices and storage will be converted to bedrooms when the organization gets the funds as part of phase two.

Phase three is a 12-bedroom addition that will be possible when they take down the adjacent building owned by Yale New Haven Health,, but that is not scheduled until 2020 at the earliest.

There was a sense of urgency that they needed more than the 12 bedrooms at the George Street site, as inpatient and outpatient visits to Yale New Haven Childrens Hospital are expected to triple in the next decade.

The new facility, designed by Svigal + Partners, features a huge kitchen where the families can cook their own meals, with refrigerator and freezer space for all of them. There is a playroom for the siblings of hospitalized children and a spacious dining and living room area, filled with color and light, as well as smaller common areas on the upper floors.

It is run by a small staff and many volunteers pulling three-hour shifts, with some groups arriving on a regular basis to cook a meal for the guests or help with the children staying there.

Mostly, they are there to listen and extend their friendship to the families, many of whom travel here from outside the country.

Stocky Clark, the executive director of Ronald McDonald House Charities of Connecticut and Western Massachusetts, said the capital campaign to support the new house had a goal of $2.7 million, but was able to raise $5.3 million.

The house, which is one of an estimated 350 around the world, gets about 20 percent of its operating expenses from its relationship with the local McDonald restaurants.

He said, in addition, much of the donations for the new house came from the 28 owner-operators of the McDonald franchises in the region, who gave $2 million as a group, while there were individual pledges as well.

Yale New Haven Hospital donated the land for the new building and is buying the 501 George St. property. It is also subsidizing the facility with a lease space arrangement of $3.5 million over 10 years to help the organization pay back the $5 million construction loan it took out.

For the new house, all of the office and staff furniture was donated, as were the mattresses.

It is all kind of remarkable, he said. Produce, milk and bread for the guests are all donated on a regular basis and they are about to start a Pantry Pal Program to keep it full for the increased number of guests.

He said many past occupants give back to the house, including one family who furnished one of the laundry rooms available on each floor.

The mother told Clark that when her special-needs daughter was born, they had one change of clothes for the 13 weeks she was in the hospital. When a nurse found out about it, she took their clothes home every night to wash them.

She was crying when she was talking about it 30 years later, Clark said. I get that from any number of families.

He said he doesnt care about the size of the donation, but only that they think of the house and its needs.

That is the community of caring that brings us all into the field of human services and sustains our own involvement and our own sense we are contributing to our fellow man, Clark said. He said it is the kind of thing that sustains the staff.

There is a culture and a soul to this house. There is a feeling, a sense of belonging that permeates the place. Families feel welcome and they feel that this is their house, Clark said.

The director, who splits his time between here and the Ronald McDonald House in Springfield, Mass., said he is often asked if it isnt depressing to work here, given the stress the parents feel dealing with their childrens serious medical conditions.

I say no. Every day when I come to one of the houses, I am moved by the grace, the dignity and the courage by what I see in these families. ... They begin every day with a positive attitude and so it a privilege for us to fill that well of hopefullness and optimism about the future, he said.

Clark said it is difficult to be a parent of a sick child.

We try to take everything away that we can. Let them worry them about what they eat tonight. Nothing about money. We ask for a donation and we get a little bit, but by and large, we dont get a donation. We have very low-income families, he said.

Many of the volunteers have been coming for a long time, including Richard Elder, who is in his 16th year.

Those who have been making regular stops here since its inception in Connecticut three decades ago, are David and Meryl Silver; Ann Orum, Claire DiMartino and Steve Merz, who was vice president and executive director of behavioral health at Yale New Haven Hospital.

Claudia Candido said she cant say enough about Yale New Haven Childrens Hospital and the doctors who continue to treat Maurizio.

She called Dr. Kenneth Roberts, director of the pediatric radio theraphy program, who first treated him,my guardian angel.

Candido said she has made many friends here over the last 11 years and visits with them when she comes back annually.

I am impressed by the generosity of the American people. They are always concerned and worried about us, Candido said.

She thanked those who donate time. It is very important. They need the help to maintain this wonderful place, she said.
I love those dear hearts and gentle people, who live in my hometown, because those dear hearts and gentle people will never ever let you down. My family gathered around the piano and often sang this song as my mom played. It has never been truer than this summer, when I counted on local folks to help tell the Clintons Ditch story and to also support our mission journey to Zimbabwe. As I am writing this, we have just returned from life-changing experiences in Africa.

Our second mission journey to this economically devastated country began on July 14. We drove to Liverpool United Methodist Church, from which our volunteer drivers drove us to Jamaica, New York. Early Saturday morning, we boarded an Emirates flight for Dubai, and 12 hours later we arrived in the very, very warm and humid city, well-fed and reasonably rested. From there, we took a second Emirates flight to Harare, the capital city of Zimbabwe. We were met by a government nurse with a forehead thermometer testing everyone who was exiting the plane  no sick folks allowed in this small piece of Africa! After passing through Zimbabwe customs, we loaded all 10 of us and our 20 suitcases into a van that took us to our guest house. Driving through the city, we saw evidence of the depressed economy. With 60 percent unemployment, families struggle. Many live in makeshift homes around the city marketplace, where they try to sell fruits and vegetables. Many gather at worksite pickup corners, hoping to get a day's wages. Many male heads of households have migrated to nearby South Africa, where the job supply is better, and some do not return. Although the number of AIDS-related deaths has decreased, the number of dependent orphans has not  related and nearby families who had struggled to care for these children have increasingly found it impossible and have turned to public and private crowded orphanages funded by churches.

Our mission team of folks ages 24 to 80 from Binghamton, Albany, Watertown, Malone and Conquest helped all we could with painting, repair, tutoring and special attention to little folks who gave and received lots of hugs! You will hear more about our adventures in upcoming columns, or you can call us and we will gladly present a program for your group.

How many times have you visited the Old Erie Canal Heritage Park, Cayuga Countys newest museum? We have been honored to have dozens of folks bringing family and friends for repeat visits. It is our greatest advertisement: happy, satisfied customers who want to spend more time at this historic place. Many cant believe that, yes, these are the exact Erie Canal stones moved and fit together in 1820-1827. Jokingly, some have referred to the structures as our "pyramids" because of the size and grouping of the stones, and the genius and complexity of the canal. I am grateful for the volunteers who continue to give hours of their time to help interpret this valuable piece of history. The visitor center and Erie House tavern will be open until the end of October.

I am grateful every day for the opportunities we have to celebrate and be of service. In all the Clintons Ditch hoopla, I had not mentioned the glorious memories shared at the Port Byron Alumni Banquet and the continuing recognition of the education and fellowship so proudly remembered. With this column is a photo of the class of 1967 as it celebrated its 50th year since graduation. The alumni picnic is fast approaching  it takes place at noon Wednesday, Aug. 9, at Schasel Park in Port Byron. Bring a dish to pass, your own beverage and table service. We have had classes from the '50s to the '80s. Join us for some fun!
President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice President Hamid Ansari on Sunday greeted the people on Raksha Bandhan, saying the festival celebrates the sacred bond of commitment between brothers and sisters.

By Indo-Asian News Service: President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice President Hamid Ansari on Sunday greeted the people on Raksha Bandhan, saying the festival celebrates the sacred bond of commitment between brothers and sisters.

"On the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan, I offer my warm greetings and good wishes to all fellow citizens," the President said in his message here.

"May Raksha Bandhan - symbolising the virtues of love, affection and mutual trust - bring happiness and prosperity to all people of our country. I hope the day is an occasion for all of us to renew the spirit of fraternity among the citizens of India," Kovind said.

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Raksha Bandhan or Rakhi will be celebrated in parts of the Indian subcontinent on August 7, when Hindu women of all ages tie sacred threads on the wrists of their brothers who vow to protect them.

Ansari said: "Raksha Bandhan reaffirms the strong bond of love and affection between brothers and sisters and upholds the high place traditionally accorded to women in our society."

"On this occasion, let us rededicate ourselves to upholding the dignity and respect of women in our country."

ALSO READ:

Did you know Shah Rukh Khan waits for a call from Mamata Banerjee every Raksha Bandhan?

Meet Narendra Modi's Pakistani sister who has been tying him Rakhi for 36 years

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While women activists blame poor police patrolling and low conviction rate for the high crime rate, the police have maintained that in most rape cases, the accused is known to the victim.

By Chayyanika Nigam: Here's a grim reminder on the day of Raksha Bandhan, a religious festival when men vow to protect the life and honour of their sisters. There is little let up in crimes against women in the national Capital. Delhi Police statistics reveal that till July 15 this year, the city reported six cases of rape and ten of sexual assault on an average daily.

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While the Capital data continue to present a sorry picture of women safety, one can take heart from the fact that these figures have shown marginal improvement from the corresponding period last year. The city registered 1,138 rape cases in 2017 as against 1,204 in 2016 (till July 15).

Besides rape and assault, nearly 11 matters of abduction and eight of cruelty by husband and in-laws were reported daily. The figures show that kidnappings have risen from 1,913 last year to 2,066 in 2017, up nearly five per cent.

"Instead of lauding itself for bringing down the crime against women, that too just a wee bit, Delhi Police will do well to compare the statistics vis-a-vis other metropolitan cities," said Aarti, an activist who helps city police in providing counselling to woman victims of various crimes. "Women continue to feel unsafe, and in distress, whether at home or outside."

While women activists blame poor police patrolling and low conviction rate for the high crime rate, the police have maintained that in most rape cases, the accused is known to the victim.

"There is little doubt that well-lit areas and police patrolling discourage outlaws from indulging in criminal activities. However, studies have proved that in rape cases, the victim is mostly someone familiar to the victim," said a senior officer, associated with Delhi Police crime against women cell, who did not wish to be named.

The officer said: "As compared to the last year, the incidents have come down. But this cannot allow us to be complacent. In future, we have to better our policing to bring down the crime rate further. We have to keep up the vigil and sensitise the force in handling cases of crime against women, so that more women come forward to report crimes against them."

Delhi Police have about 1,000 PCR patrolling vans to man 13 districts in the Capital. These vans are connected to the command room with a wireless integrated public address system. On an average, the Delhi police helpline receives over 25,000 calls daily. The data in possession with Mail Today reveal that till July 15, a total of 7,155 cases were reported by female victims for crimes ranging from molestation, kidnapping, cruelty, rape and murder. Over 70 women died in dowry harassment-related cases in Delhi this year.

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Delhi Police have come up with a facility where the commuters can access Delhi Police's mobile safety application for women 'Himmat' while travelling in any of cab aggregator like Uber. This was initiated after a number of rape cases involved cab drivers. However, safety concerns remain.

On Saturday evening itself, a girl was kidnapped by three men in Rohini area of northwest Delhi, who tried to rape her in a moving car. The girl raised an alarm and two men travelling in a car heard her screams. The duo followed the offenders and blocked their vehicle.

A crowd of about 150 people gathered on the scene and burned down the Accent car used in the crime and bashed up two of the accused while the third managed to flee. The crowd also shouted slogans against the police and lashed out at their late arrival and incompetency.

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--- ENDS ---

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BEST workers in Mumbai went on strike today, vowing not to return to work until the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) fulfills their demands, which include a ban on the hiring of private buses.

By Mustafa Shaikh: All Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) workers begun an indefinite strike today, inconveniencing thousands of residents who depend on public transport in India's financial capital.

BEST general manager Surendrakumar Bagde had earlier declared that the workers won't be going on strike. Union members, however, did not relent and are continuing with the strike saying that salary hike isn't the only complaint that they have.

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Nearly 36,000 BEST workers would stay off duty starting today, potentially inconveniencing as many as 30 lakh daily commuters in Maximum City.

The strike was announced after talks with Mumbai mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar failed. The workers will continue to be on strike until the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) fulfilled workers' demands - including a ban on the hiring of private buses.

BEST workers have also been irked by late payments and by their organisation's dwindling finances.

But now, they've been promised that they'll be paid their salaries by the 10th of every month.

The BEST Sanyukta Kamgar Kriti Samiti (BSKKS), a joint action committee formed by all major labour unions (including BEST Kamagar Sena) has been on a chain hunger strike outside Wadala BEST depot since August 1.

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--- ENDS ---




Anambra sate governor, Chief Willie Obiano has condoled with victims of the church shooting at Ozubulu on Sunday morning , which claimed several lives.The Ozubulu community in Ekwusigo local government area of Anambra State were Sunday morning thrown into mourning as a gunman walked into St Philips Catholic Church and started shooting sporadically, killing several people.Governor Obiano stormed the scene to ascertain the level of damage and sympathize with the people.Speaking at the Church premises, the governor revealed that preliminary security investigations show that the shooting was caused by a feud between two brothers from the community living outside NigeriaThis is sacrilegious, totally unacceptable in Anambra State, Obiano said.The deeply saddened governor asked the people to go about their businesses without fear or panic, noting that this isolated case of security breech must be followed to the root and all perpetrators must be brought to book.We cant allow this happen in Anambra, we must get everyone involved to face the music the governor declaredGov Obiano also visited Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi where the injured are being treated.He thanked the over 50 doctors who were on ground looking after the injured, while assuring their families that all medical bills will be taken care of by the State Government.
Leaders of the coalition of Northern youth groups met with representatives of Igbos in the 19 Northern states over the quit notice issued to Igbos in the region. We gathered that threats of eviction by Northern youths has sends shiver to Igbos living and doing their normal businesses in northern Nigeria as they have send delegates to plead to Northern youths to allow them stay and do their normal businesses in the northern part of Nigeria. It will be recalled that Arewa Youths Coalition gave quit order to Igbo to vacate all northern states before October 1st.
Nnamdi Kanu

Igbo leaders and traders in Lagos have expressed disgust at the reported plan by the leader of the separatist group, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu to storm Lagos soon in continuation of his visits to states of Nigeria, warning him to desist from making such an adventure, because he wont be welcome in the city.

Most of the Igbo leaders and traders in Lagos who spoke to Sunday Telegraph in separate interviews, warned Mazi Kanu and his followers that by what they profess, taking their Biafra outside the East amounts to warmongering.

They further charged them to desisting from heating up the polity by crisscrossing Nigeria in contravention of his bail conditions.

Chief Chiemeka Ibeh of Alaba Amalgamated Traders Association, warned the IPOB leader to stay away from Lagos, urging him to leave Igbos in Lagos alone because his visit to the commercial nerve centre of the country it will create the impression that Igbos in Lagos are supporting Kanu and IPOB activities.

He should keep his Biafra in the East where our unemployed youths are following him all over the place, not knowing what they are dabbling into. Most of these youth do not understand what Biafra is about and what it has cost Igbo people.





Since his actions led to the quit notice by the Arewa youths, I expected Kanu to have paid upfront all transport companies on the northern route to be conveying Igbo people who might be interested in coming back to the East, but he has not paid a kobo to anybody. Is he bothered about the economic wellbeing of the people whom his actions could dislocate?

Also speaking to Sunday Telegraph, High Chief Egbogu Udemba, electronics dealer and a member of the executives of the Alaba International Market Electronic Dealers Association said Biafra is bigger than Kanu and cannot be a project for a young man like him and the youths he controls.

We appreciate the fact that the agitation is the product of years of neglect and marginalisation of the zone by successive administrations in Nigeria, as you can see that agitations are coming up from different zones of the country now. These issues are things that should be well articulated as Ohanaeze has done and an informed demand made.





The tension Kanu is creating will not do us any good; it might further drag us back. As you can see our Niger-Delta brothers are concentrating on economic agitations and government is answering them. Nobody is looking in our direction because we are assumed to be asking for Biafra, which unfortunately nobody will give us, Udemba said.

He further asked, The two modular oil refineries the Acting President promised the oil producing states, where is Abias and Imos own or are they not key oil producing states in Nigeria?

According to him, what the country needs now is restructuring and the issue is bigger than IPOB, MASSOB and Arewa Youths. Igbo leaders, Igbo intelligentsia, traders associations and our professionals should come together and pursue the cause with one voice.

Udemba said: Ohanaeze has taken the lead by making the demand for restructuring so that we can have a true federal system of government. I think Kanu should rather mobilise the youths who are listening to him to support the demand, than going from state to state and threatening the forthcoming governorship election in Anambra. He should use the followership he commands to drum support for true federalism.

This development came as a prominent auto spare-parts dealer at the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex and a leader in the Auto Spare Parts & Machinery Dealers Association (ASPAMDA), Chief Alex Ejiofor has warned Nnamdi Kanu to desist from distracting struggling Igbo people from concentrating on finding their daily bread.

He wondered if Kanu had not asked his father what happened to Igbos during and after the civil war. If his father did not tell him my father told me that we were reduced to the biblical hewers of wood and drawers of water in Nigeria at the end of the war in 1970.





It is true that we are still suffering from the effects of that war till today, but Igbos in all parts of Nigeria have made a lot of progress and cannot afford to return to that stage where an Igbo who left over a million British Pounds in his account and ran home for safety at the outbreak of the war, was given 20 Pounds in 1970 after the no victor, no vanquished declaration.

According to him, Igbos investments outside the core Igbo states are in trillions of naira. What is Kanu thinking about that? And if I may ask, what is the volume of Kanus investment either in the South-East or in other parts of the country? Does he not know that he is putting those investments at risk and endangering the source of livelihood of other people? He should perish the thought of coming to Lagos, and if I may advise, he should change strategy or join forces with Ohanaeze.





He has done well by bringing the marginalisation of the South-East to the front burner again, but should sustain the discussion without causing his people harm, he said.

The youths who are either apprentice traders or labourers at the Alaba International Market and Trade Fair, however, expressed excitement over of the IPOB leader, stating that they are waiting for him.

I read it on Facebook on Saturday, we are waiting for him. We will close the market to receive him; he is the leader of our time. He will take Biafra to the Promised Land; we are happy that he is visiting. We heard that he has visited Port Harcourt, Ebonyi, Owerri and other places.





We are also expecting him here. All hail Biafra! Chigbo Ebuka who said that he works with an electrical parts dealers at Alaba International Market, said.

Kamsiyochukwu Udoaku, an apprentice to a machine parts dealer in ASPANDA said without the knowledge of his boss, he has bought his Biafran flag, cap and vest to be used on that day when Kanu would visit Lagos.

Asked why he is going without his ogas knowledge, he said, He is an old man, he is afraid. He further asked, but what has Kanu done wrong? Did he commit any crime? Is he a member of Boko Haram or Fulani herdsmen? Did he carry any arm? All he is asking for is our own country where nobody will treat us as second class citizens. If the only reason why they want to kill him is for asking for our freedom, we will follow him, he said.

It would be recalled that following the success of their rally at Owerri, Imo State capital, last week, the IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu took to Facebook to reveal his intention to visit Lagos soon, probably to gather all IPOB members and then align with them on the way to achieve Biafra soon.

The post shared on its twitter handle penultimate Saturday, Radio Biafra revealed that IPOB and its leadership shall shut down Lagos, expect Nnamdi Kanu soon.
A Catholic priest in Nigeria stunned radio listeners when he announced on a live programme that he was quitting the Catholic Church Patrick Edet, who served under the Catholic Diocese of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, has been a popular voice on radio in the state through his weekly live programme called Grace and Inspiration.On Wednesday, on Planet 101.1FM, Uyo, instead of airing his usual inspirational message which has over the years endeared him to thousands within and outside the state, Mr. Edet dropped the shocking news.On 31 of July, I resigned from my services, my duties and obligations as a Catholic priest, he said.I ceased to be a Catholic priest in my thinking, in my spirit, in my soul, (and) in my body.Yesterday, the 1st of August, was my first day outside the laws, the regulations, (and) the authority of the Catholic church.In my mind, every law that bound me bound me because I submitted myself to the Catholic Church as an institution.Having submitted my resignation letter to my authorities in the Catholic Church, in my spirit, soul and body, I am free from every law that guided me. I submit myself to one authority  God, he said.Mr. Edet was a Catholic priest for more than 11 years.Akwa Ibom, a predominantly Christian state, has a high Catholic population.It is very rare in Nigeria to have a priest quit the Catholic Church.He said he prayed and fasted for seven months before he took the decision to leave the Catholic Church.The Catholic Church in the state could not be reached immediately for their comment on the matter.Apart from being a radio preacher, Mr. Edet runs a crowd-pulling fellowship in Uyo, outside the control of the Catholic Church, using his Grace Family Global Outreach.Those who have attended the fellowship meetings before said things are done the Pentecostal style  like prophesying and speaking in tongue  which often brought the priest into conflict with the Catholic doctrine and leadership.Mr. Edet, throughout the about 40 minutes broadcast on Wednesday, explained his experience with God, his personal philosophy of life, and his conflict with the Catholic Church.He said he had gone through a lot of opposition, antagonism and blackmail for the years he has been running the fellowship.All I hear every time is that I am not truly a Catholic priest.It has been in conflict in my heart because why I actually accepted not to marry and have children was not just to be a Catholic priest, but to do the things that I do  be nutty on radio and shout and laugh and inspire somebody. And cry when I need to cry and console somebody who cries and to live my life out in my faith openly and in the process make mistake.Peace has been taken away from me for years. I live in fear and in doubt. Sometimes I doubt myself  am I really right, am I in the right place, he said.Mr. Edet praised the Catholic Church as being so organised and the best institution that has ever been built by man, but however said that the space given to him in the Catholic Church as a minister was so small.A box is already made for you and you cannot go outside that box, he explained.You cannot know God beyond that box. You cannot express God beyond that box. And any attempt for you to go beyond that box brings you label.The God that I have discovered in life is a God that cannot be fully known. That God is a God that cannot be fully predicted and cannot be fully captured in human expression otherwise he will cease to be a mystery. That is a God I have come to accept as my God.I have come to realise that serving that God you need freedom. When that freedom is limited you cannot fully serve that God.Each time I tried to cross the line, the thing I meet crushes me on the inside and makes me feel guilty. But I cannot stop doing it. Theres a pull inside of me telling me there is more, and life was meant to be more and that more is found in freedom in God.The priest said he was aware that his action would bring along some unpleasant consequences, like rejection, for instance, and that he was ready to face them.He said God would judge him, not by the words or actions of the Catholic Pope, but by his own life on the earth, and therefore he accepted responsibility for his action.The reason I am doing this is that I want to be right with God first. I want to go to heaven when I die.For those who are broken, I have these words for you  I have been broken for years.The cleric prayed for those who will condemn him for leaving the Catholic Church, adding that I dont even need to say I forgive you; you are right in your thinking, but just that you dont know everything  you dont know what has been in my life, you dont know my motive, you dont know why I leave, you dont know who called me, how I was called and the covenant I have had with God, you dont know where I am going to.It is not the Church that called me, it is God who called me that is above the Church, and my interest is to be right with Him first and have peace with Him first.Mr. Edet, who said he would continue to build his fellowship, promised never to ask or encourage people to leave the Catholic Church.
Elders say IPOB leader walking on banana peels

Were not losing support Group spokesman

In the last few weeks, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mr. Nnamdi Kanu, who is currently on bail, granted to him by the Federal High Court, Abuja, has increasingly engaged in activities that seem to be alienating the bulk of the Igbo elite who fought for his release from incarceration at Kuje Prisons, in the federal capital territory.

Kanu has stridently lampooned the forthcoming Anambra State governorship election scheduled to hold on November 18 and has even made and repeated his audacious declaration that the poll would not hold. Against the background of the 2019 General Election, he also made a sweeping statement that elections would not hold in any part of the Igbo speaking areas of Nigeria, which in his estimation represent Biafra Land, unless a date is announced by the Nigerian State for holding a referendum on Biafra Independence.

As if these statements were not disconcerting enough, members of IPOB were alleged to have disrupted a programme at a Catholic church, in Ekwulobia, Anambra State, where Governor Willy Obiano was in attendance. Equally troubling was the allegation that a governorship candidate was attacked during a burial ceremony at Ihiala.

As these and other troubling incidents unfold, Anambra State has been tense as the crusade by IPOB foot soldiers against the governorship election continues. One particular Anambra indigene who was nettled by the IPOB stance against the election is His Majesty, the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Achebe. Also angered by IPOBs anti-election activities is the the state Chairman of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Damian Okeke-Ogene, some religious leaders and other members of the political class in the state.

All of these people have severally warned IPOB and Kanu to back pedal of what they view as a foolhardy effort that would rather imperil the state if response to their activities, the federal government declared a state of emergency and swept away the democratically elected government, resulting in the appointment of an administrator, who could be a non-indigene.

Feelers indicate that Kanu is fast losing the support of members of the Igbo elite, who stuck out their necks to advocate for his release from Kuje prison, and even put their integrity on the line by standing as his surety. Some among the elite paid the N300 bail bond imposed by the court. This influential group are now obviously being alienated as they recoil from the embarrassment, which Kanus utterances against the Anambra gubernatorial election represents.

The anti-election campaign is now burning up the internet as heated debates are being held on various social media platforms. After news of the alleged disruption of the Catholic church event by IPOB broke on online newsblogs, the group promptly dissociated itself from the allegation but accused the Anambra State government and it paid agents of masterminding the incident by sponsoring some boys to cause crisis in order to label the group as a violent group. This, the Media and Publicity Secretary of IPOB, Mr. Emma Powerful said, was intended to instigate the security forces of the Federal government to clampdown on its members.

Not long after, a news story went viral on social media that Kanu visit Lagos for a mammoth rally would literally shut down the metropolis in the same manner that it happened in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, when he visited the place. Again, IPOB denied the report as fake news, stating it had no such plans in the immediate future.

Baring his mind on the tenuous issue of Kanus carryings on since he has been out of Kuja Prisons on bail, a candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Ikenna Unachuwku, who contested for the Anambra State House of Assembly election in 2015, to represent Idemili North constituency, cautioned Kanu to rethink his bid to stop forthcoming governorship election, warning that the effort would ruin him.

His words: Election in Nigeria is a constitutional issue and people have the power to exercise their franchise, we are still in Nigeria for now, we are not yet in Biafra and we have to look at what the Constitution says. If there is no election in any part of the country a state of emergency would be declared, eventually the military takes over and it will take the federal government six months to conduct fresh election. So, it is a very sensitive issue. Whoever that said that election will not hold but wants referendum should first of all let the election be held and then the referendum will come. You must be part of a system for you to workout your objective in that particular system.

My advise is that Kanu and his members should recognise that candidates do not conduct elections. IPOB members should channel their energy to the Independent National Electoral Commission, Abuja, to tell INEC that election will not hold in Anambra. It is not when you see an innocent gubernatorial candidate, you tell him there will be no election. It is his right to vie and our right to vote. On that day I may decide to go or not to go to cast my vote, some of us dont have voters card, you cannot force anybody not to vote.

The pictures of those that attacked the church wore T-shirts with Biafra flag and IPOB logo. It is only the members that can identify the real members or fake ones since they are denying it. They said they are organized, they should have their register to know who is who in their group but they cant deny the cameras, and no masquerade will come with IPOB uniform. My advice is that they should not attack governorship candidates, if we come out that day and we didnt see INEC officials then we will go home, so they should go and tell INEC not to come and conduct election in the state.

A lecturer at the Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Dr. Patrick Manafa in his remarks condemned IPOB for saying that election will not be held in the state, describing it as the highpoint of lawlessness and trying to step beyond his boundaries in the struggle.

He expressed displeasure that Kanu has surrounded himself with people that lack intellectual capacity to advise him properly, on how get to get what he is aspiring for, adding that he is fighting a personal war. He said Kanu was trying to replace late Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu even without consulting the elders of Igbo land as well as wanting to make himself the supreme leader of Ndigbo, which he said is not practicable.

Kanu should know that well meaning Igbo people including the Ohanaeze Ndigbo led by Chief Nnia Nwodo, who he has been insulting, made efforts to free him from prison. When he came out of prison, I was glad he was going round visiting those people but suddenly he turned against them and even started insulting traditional rulers including the revered Obi of Onitsha, it is pitiable. That is not the way to go, he should sit down and talk with intelligent people that will advise him. He should not be carried away by the crowd he controls, Manafa said.

Speaking further, he said: He should be very, very careful, I dont even know the reason he doesnt want election to hold in Anambra state; he is not from Anambra, there is a seating governor in Abia state his home state, he has not told him to resign. He does not know that this election is different from sit-at-home order he is now using to claim to be very popular. There is no popular political party that does not have a candidate and their followers will come out that day to vote.

So, let him stop all this violent approach. He said the group is nonviolent but from all indications and from what we are seeing, he is a very violent person. How can you go to church to disrupt church service? I dont believe in their denial over the attack on the church because they keep saying that there would be no election in the state. Who else would go and disrupt that programme? If they believe that they have people to disrupt political campaigns in the state, they should get ready because more political rallies and campaigns would be held in the state before the election. Kanu knows that people are now starting to hate him, his popularity is draining day by day; let him be very careful in his activities. He should go and seek advise from his elders, Manafa advised.

But when he was contacted on the phone, to react to the claims that the group was losing support among the elite and the generality of the people, IPOB spokesman, Emma Powerful, stated that Kanu and the group were not losing any support as alleged.

His words: We dont know what you mean by losing support because with the notable exception of very few political jobbers, our constituency which is the people, remains intact and supportive of our stance to boycott the elections.

We are not expecting those in the pay of the Hausa Fulani masters or the few charlatans, whose only means of livelihood depends on events associated with electoral cycles to be supportive of the call to boycott the elections. At IPOB we have no time for fair weather friends. We derive our strength from our consistent approach to Biafras restoration, not by pandering to every fanciful idea designed to perpetuate the misery of our people under the guise of some ill-thought out pseudo-intellectualism that lacks an appreciation of the dire mess we Biafrans, not just Igbo, are in as a people.

The group expressed concern over the use of its name and that of its leader to cause crisis and attacks in the recent time. We are naturally concerned but we believe that our people and the wider civilised world can discern what is correct and what isnt. Publishers and bloggers are in the business of attracting readership and traffic to their sites so the use of the name of our leader to serve those ends can be understood if not condoned by us.

In the age of round the clock media coverage, especially given the overbearing influence of new media, it should not come to anyone as a surprise that a lot of fake stories and outright fabrications are out there concerning our leader. As unwelcome as some of the malicious publications are, we respect the sanctity of free speech and would resist any censorship of thought or speech.

On the danger that Igbo leaders may not rally round Kanu again in case anything happens to him, Powerful said: We welcome their consistency in this regard because they can see that our leader means well for our people and will continue to make personal sacrifices in order to set all of us free from the yoke that Nigeria has come to represent. It would be preferable if their support were to be unconditional because our enemies often take advantage of their indecisiveness to drive a wedge between us thereby making it easier to divide and conquer us as a people. They need to be consistent and principled, not worried about being politically correct all the time to please the North.

He further stated that no sensible selfless leader, Igbo or otherwise, can come out to condemn the boycott of the elections if they have the interest of our people at heart as some of them claim.

On the way forward, he said that the group continue to pursue passive resistance and civil disobedience in line with the principles of non-violent agitation towards self-determination.

He added: We shall intensify our diplomatic offensive, invest more in the education sector, especially in the area of public enlightenment, history of Biafra and science; deepen the bond between genuine freedom fighters from across the South East and South South, form alliances with new friends within and outside Nigeria while consolidating the ones we have already made. We shall continue to build consensus across divides to ensure that we bring the miserable existence of this British nightmare we know as Nigeria, to an end.
He is from India, she from Pakistan, bound by the sacred thread of rakhi.

By India Today Web Desk: Sisters across the country are gearing for Raksha Bandhan while their brothers are busy shopping for gifts and sweets.

Well so is this sister.

Qamar Mohsin Shaikh came to India from Pakistan after marriage and has been living here ever since. Speaking to news agency ANI, she recollects how she did not have any relatives around except for her in-laws.

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Soon after she came to India, Qamar met a man who would go on to become her 'brother' with whom she has been celebrating Raksha Bandhan every year for the last 36 years.

"I met him during one of my visits to Delhi with my husband who is a painter. His nature is very nice. He would often meet me, hit me on my back with love and ask 'Kaisi ho behan'. I have been tying him rakhi for past 36 years," she narrates.

Qamar's brother who was an RSS worker when she first tied him rakhi is now the Prime Minister of India-Narendra Modi.

"It was the auspicious day of 'Raksha Bandhan' and when I approached him with a rakhi and he gladly accepted it," Qamar remembers. She also said that Modi has invited her to Delhi this year as well.

Not to mention that this will not be the only sacred thread on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's hand tomorrow.

A special programme was organised at the five-century-old Gopinath temple in Vrindavan, where widows will visit the prime minister's residence in Delhi.

Madan Jha, media in-charge of Sulabh International, a non-governmental organisation, taking care of 1,000 widows in Vrindavan, said, "Tomorrow, on the occasion of Rakshabandhan, 5 widows from Vrindavan will visit the prime minister's residence in Delhi and tie rakhi to him."

Around 1,500 hand-made rakhis would be given to the prime minister.

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Anambra sate governor, Chief Willie Obiano has condoled with victims of the church shooting at Ozubulu on Sunday morning, which claimed sev...



Anambra sate governor, Chief Willie Obiano has condoled with victims of the church shooting at Ozubulu on Sunday morning, which claimed several lives.

The Ozubulu community in Ekwusigo local government area of Anambra State were Sunday morning thrown into mourning as a gunman walked into St Philips Catholic Church and started shooting sporadically, killing several people.





Governor Obiano stormed the scene to ascertain the level of damage and sympathize with the people.

Speaking at the Church premises, the governor revealed that preliminary security investigations show that the shooting was caused by a feud between two brothers from the community living outside Nigeria.

This is sacrilegious, totally unacceptable in Anambra State, Obiano said.



The deeply saddened governor asked the people to go about their businesses without fear or panic, noting that this isolated case of security breech must be followed to the root and all perpetrators must be brought to book.

We cant allow this happen in Anambra, we must get everyone involved to face the music the governor declared

Gov Obiano also visited Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi where the injured are being treated.




The attack at St. Philips Church in Ozubulu, Anambra State was instigated by disagreements between two drug barons.

The attack at St. Philips Church in Ozubulu, Anambra State was instigated by disagreements between two drug barons.It was gathered that gunmen around 7am, stormed the church and opened sporadic shots at worshippers.While initial reports stated that between 20 to 50 persons were killed, the Police Commissioner in charge of the state, Garba Umar said eight worshippers were confirmed dead, 18 others hospitalised and three yet-to-be identified persons fatally wounded.It was gathered that two natives of the town who are drug barons and resident in South Africa had disagreements in that country and brought it home.Thugs loyal to one of the men, it was learnt, stormed the church and killed the father of the other alongside other worshippers.Condemning the incident, the Commissioner said efforts were on to arrest the drug lords and other culprits.He said: It is a sacrilege to storm a church and attack worshippers. Thr attack was carried out by assassins. Eight worshippers were confirmed dead and 18 hospitalised. Three unknown persons were fatally wounded. We are yet to ascertain who they are.The shootings was as a result of a fight between two individuals from the village. They are resident in South Africa and they brought their fight home.It is true that they killed the father of one of the two men fighting. Both men. We have not made any arrests but ate making efforts to get them all.
The Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai has declared that terror sect, Boko Haram, will forever remain technically defe...

The Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai has declared that terror sect, Boko Haram, will forever remain technically defeated.He told reporters in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital that sustained onslaughts on the terrorists have rendered them technically defeated and they will never be as strong as they were previously.The COAS had met with Governor Ibrahim Gaidam after a visit to the 159 Battalion of the army in Geidam, north of Damaturu.He also visited soldiers at Kanamma at the Nigeria/Niger border asking them to work towards ending the fight by clearing the remnant of the Boko Haram terrorists.He charged them to be law abiding and respect rules of engagement as the military hierarchy will not take their welfare issues lightly.The Army Chief assured them that the military under his leadership will continue to rotate the soldiers in the theatre of operation instead of allowing others to over stay in the war front.The COAS recently directed the theatre commander to work towards delivering the Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau within 40 days, an ultimatum the military hierarchy said is still in force.The highest military hierarchy has since then returned to the theatre of war in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states to ensure that the renewed terrorist attack on soft targets are eradicated completely.According to Prof. Osinbajo, militants, terrorists, hackers and economic saboteurs are re-inventing themselves with technology, thereby changing the very nature of warfare in the 21st century.He warned the military to be mindful of the fact that the nature of warfare waged by these groups challenges conventional military strategies, and therefore must be innovative in how they confront current security challenges.He further added that it is only by preparing and adapting to the changing nature of the security landscape that countries can win the war against terrorism, economic sabotage, and cyber crimes.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) released the timetable for the 2019 elections in March this year. The next presidentia...

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) released the timetable for the 2019 elections in March this year. The next presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on February 16, 2019.

With only a year and a half to go before the election, the body language of many prominent politicians, especially in the two major political parties, is that the battle for the coveted presidential seat has already begun. We take a look at 12 powerful politicians to watch ahead of the 2019 presidential race.





Muhammadu Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has not declared his interest in seeking a second term but the possibility that he will do so cannot be ruled out as his loyalists and political associates have continued to fly that kite with oracular enthusiasm. The Progressive Governors Forum Chairman, Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State, in February this year reportedly asked his fellows in the South-East not to talk about an Igbo presidency until after Buharis tenure, saying the president has a tenure to work for four or eight years according to the zoning arrangement of the ruling APC.





Buhari defeated former President Goodluck Jonathan during the 2015 elections that was widely adjudged to be free and fair; thus becoming the first Nigerian politician to defeat a sitting president through the ballot box. While he is about to complete his first two years in office as an elected civilian president of Nigeria there is the big question as to whether or not he would seek re-election. Although he is yet to declare his intention, the constitution of Nigeria allows a sitting president to seek re-election after his first term of four years. Having emerged as president on the mantra of change, Buharis major political strength lies in his incorruptible credentials that have made him very popular among Nigerians, especially in the North.

The fight against insurgency in the North-East as well as his anti-corruption crusade is seen as his major achievements in his first term. Serious health challenges since January this year however cast a big question mark on Buharis political future. He has been out of the country seeking medical attention for most of this year, which has raised doubts that he will seek another term in 2019. Even if he does not seek a second term however, the popular incumbent president could be a decisive factor in determining who flies the APC flag in 2019.





Yemi Osinbajo

Professor Yemi Osinbajo was a relatively lightweight Vice President around President Muhammadu Buharis overwhelming political personality but his political stock greatly increased this year when he became the Acting President. An intellectually hefty Law professor and Senior Advocate of Nigeria and a very eloquent pastor, Osinbajo has impressed Nigerians during his acting tenure at the top. He does not however have a political base of his own, being a product of Asiwaju Bola Tinubus political machine to which he has remained a loyal follower. If Buhari does not seek a second term in 2019, Osinbajo will loom large in APC calculations even though regional calculations within the party could affect his chances. He must also contend with the ambitions of Tinubu, who wanted to be Buharis running mate in 2015; he only yielded to the religious factor and nominated Osinbajo instead. If however Buhari is unable to complete his first term, Osinbajo will become substantive president and it will thereafter become difficult to stop him within APC.





Atiku Abubakar

A former Vice President for eight years, Atiku Abubakar is a political heavyweight in Nigeria with considerable political machinery especially in Northern Nigeria. Atiku, who never hides his presidential ambition, had contested the 2007 presidential election on the platform of the defunct Action Congress (AC) after realizing that he could not get the PDP ticket because of his frosty relationship with then President Obasanjo. Atiku also contested for the PDP presidential ticket against President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011. He again vied for APCs ticket in 2014 against President Buhari, finishing third at the Lagos convention.





Could 2019 be his year? The action, body language and utterances of the Waziri of Adamawa are enough to show seriousness. In the past year Atiku suddenly became a vocal voice for restructuring. This is seen as a strategy to woo the South-South and South-East, regions where Buhari is not popular. In the North, Atikus strategy is to insist on a power shift to the North East. He has been saying since 1999 that the North West has marginalised the North East in top political offices. Those strategies are backed by very deep pockets and one of the greatest determinations in Nigerian politics. Atiku celebrated his 70th birthday recently and his renewed determination probably stems from a calculation that 2019, when he will be 72, is his last chance.





Atikus political reputation over the years has been harmed by his frequent change of political parties in pursuit of his presidential ambition. In the run up to 2019, it is possible that he may again return to PDP. He is already laying grounds for that because last week he attacked APC as a party without internal democracy.





Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu





Former two-term governor of Lagos State, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu is one of the biggest power brokers in Nigerian politics, the effective political leader of the South West states. President Muhammadu Buhari admitted this much in his acceptance speech after being declared winner of the 2015 election. Tinubu however believes that Buharis administration has not accorded to him recognition and influence commensurate to his contribution in 2015. He was also frustrated by the leadership that emerged in both Senate and House of Representatives against his wishes, and he is also at war against party national chairman John Oyegun.





Tinubu said early this year that if Buhari does not run in 2019, he will consider running himself. Tinubu is the South West politician best placed to replicate Chief Moshood Abiolas 1993 feat. He has firm control over his base and the Jagaban Borgu also has deep reach into the North. His ambitions could however be complicated by the further rise of his protege, Osinbajo. This is especially true if Osinbajo becomes substantive president before 2019.





Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso

Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso was governor of Kano State from 1999-2003 and after losing his re-election bid in 2003, he bounced back as governor in 2011-2015. In-between he was Obasanjos Defence Minister in 2003-07 and he is now a senator. During his governorship tenure Kwankwaso gained a reputation nationally as a wunderkind who rapidly churned out inventive social and infrastructural projects and created twenty different higher institutions in Kano State. He also finished second to Buhari in APCs 2014 presidential primaries.





Since 2015 however, in-fighting within the Kano State APC has greatly dented Kwankwasos political standing. His own former deputys administration created a question mark around Kwankwasos achievements and claimed that he left behind a huge debt and many uncompleted projects. Even though the former governor is relatively low key in the Senate, his Kwankwasiyya political movement is still very strong in Kano and has spread its tentacles to other states. Some observers say that Kwankwasos number one priority in 2019 is to deny Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje a second term, a political project that he might place over and above his presidential ambition.





Bukola Saraki

A former two-term governor of Kwara State, former chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum and current Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki aims to succeed where his father, the late Senator Abubakar Olusola Saraki stopped just short. Saraki has defied political gravity so far and would certainly fancy his chances of becoming President, especially if the incumbent does not run.





Saraki briefly entered PDPs presidential primaries in 2010 but bowed out when the Adamu Ciroma panel adopted Atiku Abubakar as the sole Northern candidate to run against Goodluck Jonathan. Sarakis defection to APC in 2014 was a major contributor to the partys eventual success. He snatched the Senate Presidency against the wishes of Buhari, Tinubu and APC leaders in 2015 and has kept the Senate remarkably united behind himself with deft political moves since last year.





He has a loyal base in Kwara State too, where Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed recognizes him as leader of the ruling APC in Kwara State. Although he is wealthy, well known nationally and has a firm control of his state, his presidential ambition is unpopular among diehard Buhari supporters in the North, who see him as the effective opposition leader to the Buhari presidency. APC loyalists also accuse Saraki of anti-party activity, since PDP senators helped him to clinch the Senate Presidency and still stand solidly behind him.





Sule Lamido

Former two-term governor of Jigawa State Alhaji Sule Lamido has already commenced campaigning for the PDP ticket ahead of 2019. In April last year he reportedly told newsmen in his village, Bamaina in Birnin Kudu Local Government Area of the State, If my party finds me worthy of the partys presidential ticket to serve Nigeria, I will thank God and oblige. Two weeks after he was released on bail from prison over allegation of incitement preferred against him by the Jigawa State Government in May this year Lamido unveiled his 2019 presidential bid during a dinner for the 36 state chairmen of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held in Abuja.





Lamido is one of the most experienced politicians in Nigeria today, having been a prominent PRP member of the House of Representatives in the Second Republic and was a leading member of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the Third Republic. Lamido was also Obasanjos Foreign Affairs Minister in 1999-2003. As governor of Jigawa, he earned kudos for executing many worthwhile infrastructural projects including roads, airport and a state university. Throughout his political career however, Lamidos reputation is that of a political hothead who is known for controversies and ruffling political feathers. It might yet prove to be the quality PDP needs in 2019.





Nasir El Rufai

Former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and current Governor of Kaduna State Malam Nasir El Rufai is widely known to nurse ambitions to succeed Buhari as president. The stint of this accidental public servant in national politics and governance since 1999 has been a mixture of courage, inventiveness, epic controversy and not a little dare devilry.

As Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) in 1999-2003 he pursued privatisation of public enterprises with great courage but also a lot of controversy. As Obasanjos FCT Minister in 2003-07 el-Rufai innovatively sanitised Abuja but was accused of insensitivity in demolishing slums and illegal buildings.





He was one of the pioneers in APCs formation in 2013 and he struck a very close relationship with his former adversary Buhari, who encouraged and supported him to become the governor of Kaduna State. As governor, el-Rufai is credited with dynamism but also with epic controversy such as demolishing of houses that encroached school quarters, sale of government quarters, a poorly executed school feeding program, unending quarrels with political opponents and initially poor handling of trouble in southern Kaduna State.





His opponents alleged that el-Rufai was angling to become vice president if Buhari fails to complete his term. Early this year a memo that the Kaduna governor wrote to Buhari providing solutions to many national problems was leaked, allegedly by persons close to Buhari who wanted to portray el-Rufai as overambitious. Nasiru el-Rufais potentially biggest obstacle is zoning within APC, which could zone his North West region out of 2019 presidential calculations even though it is the countrys most populous region and also its most solidly pro-APC zone. Everything considered, this man with a small body frame but giant intellect and ambitions is a man to watch in 2019.





Kashim Shettima

Two months ago Borno States Governor Kashim Shettima suddenly came under a sustained social media attack from invisible quarters. Political pundits later traced the attacks to Atiku Abubakars hyper-active media office, which they said identified him as a likely obstacle in Atikus way. The non-controversial Shettima has not indicated his ambition to run for the Presidency in 2019 though Danlami Kubo, Deputy Speaker of Borno State Assembly, reportedly said earlier this year that Governor Kashim Shettima should be considered as Nigerias future ruler.





According to pundits, Atikus team calculated that if Buhari does not run in 2019, APCs 24 state governors would seize the initiative and insist that one of them should be the next party leader. Within their ranks, they are likely to maintain the ticket in the North, where most APC supporters are. Within the North, they could well decide to zone the ticket to the North East since the populous North West zone has produced many leaders since 1999 including President Yaradua, former Vice President Namadi Sambo and Buhari. APC has four serving governors in the North East of which two are first termers.

Of the second term governors, Shettima has a much higher profile as a former top banker and university lecturer who tackled his states devastating Boko Haram problem with courage and dynamism, including efforts to rebuild shattered communities so that IDPs can return home. He is also the chairman of the Northern States Governors Forum [NSGF] and has recently been engaged in efforts to get Arewa Youth groups to cancel their Igbo quit notice. It is for these reasons that this undeclared candidate is one of the top men to watch in 2019.





Rochas Okorocha

Governor Okorocha is not new at taking shots at the nations Presidency. In 1999, Okorocha competed in the primaries to be PDP candidate for governor of Imo State but lost to Achike Udenwa. He then moved to All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) but was unsuccessful in his quest for the partys ticket for the presidency in 2003 and thereafter returned to PDP.





Okorocha formed the Action Alliance (AA) in 2005, planning to become its presidential candidate for the 2007 elections. He finished second to Alhaji Umaru Yaradua in PDPs 2007 presidential primaries. After that Okorocha decamped to All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), on which platform he won election as governor of Imo State in 2011. He then carried his APGA faction into APC in 2013.





Rochas Okorocha is chairman of APC governors forum and does not hide his presidential ambitions. As APCs most prominent Igbo politician, his calculation is that he should get the ticket when APC zones the presidency to Igboland in 2019 or 2023.





Ahmed Makarfi

Senator Ahmed Makarfi was governor of Kaduna State from 1999 to 2007. Within the eight years he was in office, he was able to mitigate religious and ethnic violence in the state and has through that feat projected himself as an objective and fair-minded leader.

His outstanding performance in the states infrastructural development with his sharp focus on rural roads, rural water and rural electrification shot him into national limelight. Makarfi was a senator in 2007-15 where he chaired the committee on Appropriation. Even though he lost the bid to return a third time in 2015, his profile rose further when PDP governors and party members appointed him Chairman of the party at a convention which held in Port-Harcourt last year. Since then he had been battling for the position with former governor of Borno State Ali Modu Sheriff, until recently when the Supreme Court ruled in his favour.





Makarfi is expected to relinquish the PDP chairmanship which has been zoned to the Southwest but he is already a likely candidate for its presidential ticket, which was zoned to the North, especially given the trust key members of the party, especially serving governors, have in him.





Aminu Waziri Tambuwal

Governor of Sokoto State Aminu Waziri Tambuwal is often mentioned as an important APC contender for president if Buhari does not run in 2019. Tambuwal developed a wide national reputation after he clinched the post of Speaker of the House of Representatives in 2011 against the wishes of the ruling PDP and President Goodluck Jonathan but with the full backing of ACN leader Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. In four years he also kept the House remarkably united and became a prominent voice on the national scene admired for his intellect and level-headedness.





Tambuwal fell out with Jonathan and his wife, Patience over many issues and in late 2014 he defected to APC. He did not contest the partys presidential primaries but instead picked its governorship ticket and became governor of Sokoto State. He is however said to have lost Tinubus support because he supported Yakubu Dogara to succeed him as Speaker against Tinubus candidate, current House Leader Femi Gbajiamila. Still, Tambuwal is a visible option to succeed Buhari in 2019.









Culled: Dailytrust
Government of Cross River State owed the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Bank several millions of Dollars collected as l...

Government of Cross River State owed the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Bank several millions of Dollars collected as loan to construct Tinapa Premier Business and Leisure Resort.

Governor Donald Duke led administration had initially budgeted USD350 million for the project but as at its commissioning on April 2, 2007, the sum had increased to about USD450 million with some reports pegging the actual cost at USD470 million, our source said.





This is nearly NGN150 billion today but was about NGN56 billion as at 2007 a source further disclosed.





The huge debts left behind and the inability of Tinapa to kick off 3 years after completion saw the loans under Governor Liyel Imokes administration accruing neck-breaking interest with the Asset Management Company of Nigerian (AMCON) attempting to buy over NGN30 billion of the debt the state owed Union Bank. But a chunk of that money was gotten from the ECOWAS bank.





It was gathered that a bus load of the bank staff from its Abidjan, Ivory Coast headquarters arrived the state recently and threatened the Ayade administration to either pay back the loan or the bank will take over the facility. However, a source hinted that Governor Ben Ayade was worried as he was not aware of the debt until when the ECOWAS bank team arrived the State.





When contacted on phone, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Ayade could not confirm or deny that the State Government owed the Bank. He referred our correspondent to the commissioner for Information, Mrs Rosemary Archibong who had refused to pick her calls.





Sadly, the Cross River State Government has been in high external debts accumulated since 2005. The state along 2 others were said to have crossed their borrowing thresholds and were barred from obtaining any commercial loan facility due to poor credit rating.





Our source said this, and the deductions at source from the DMO, of the states statutory allocation which has seen it receive a paltry NGN8.9 billion between January to June 2017 (NGN9.3 billion was deducted), has seen the state nearly grind to a halt.





But Governor Ayade in different fora has said that despite these challenges, he is bent on industrializing the state as it is the only way out of the financial conundrum the state is currently in.





I know no sleep trying to ensure that salaries are paid because if we dont pay that, there will be social tension which is why it is a priority in my administration, Ayade told the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission chairman earlier this year.





He argued that the magic he was performing to pay salaries, pensions and gratuities may not be replicated by another and posited that the state will use its intellectual wealth to get out of the financial mess it is currently in.
At least four soldiers were killed and eight injured when one of their colleagues opened fire on a military air base in southern Tehran on ...

At least four soldiers were killed and eight injured when one of their colleagues opened fire on a military air base in southern Tehran on Sunday, the Iranian military said in a statement.

The incident was probably related to psychological problems of the soldier who suddenly started firing on his comrades, the statement said.

It took place on a shooting range, and could also have been the result of a gun misfiring, the statement added.

The injured were transported to a medical centre and an investigation has been opened, it said.

State television reported a similar incident last month when a serviceman opened fire at a barracks in Abyek, around 40 kilometres northwest of Tehran, killing three and injuring six.

The gunman in that incident, who had reportedly been denied a transfer to his home town, shot himself but survived his injuries, according to the ISNA news agency.

Military service of two years is mandatory for Iranian men when they turn 19.
Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State on Saturday raised the alarm that herdsmen from neighbouring countries had concluded plans to unleash...

Fulani herdsmen

Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State on Saturday raised the alarm that herdsmen from neighbouring countries had concluded plans to unleash terror on Benue Valley.Ortom, who raised the alarm at NSKT Church in Taraku, Gwer Local Government Area, during the burial of Mama Atese Rebecca, called on the Christian Association of Nigeria in the state to keep interceding.The governor, while hosting the country representative of the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees, Edward Kallon, a few weeks ago, had noted that over 1,878 Benue residents were killed while 200 persons were still missing as a result of herdsmen attacks in the last three years.He added that 750 persons were critically injured and over 99,427 households had been affected in the attacks with property worth billions of naira destroyed.An anti-grazing law was enacted recently by the state government, following herdsmen attacks on Benue farmers, which were said to have peaked during the dry season.Ortom said he had received security reports that herdsmen across the West African sub-region were planning to invade the state because of our stand on ranching.He added, The anti-grazing law our government came up with was to protect both farmers and herdsmen. I have been saying that this government is ready for any superior alternative, but to me, the global practice is ranching of cattle.Let me appeal to our religious leaders, CAN, to organise prayers and fasting for peace to reign in the state.
Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, speaks with Punch Newspaper about President Muhammadu Buharis health, his role as an opposition l...

Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, speaks withabout President Muhammadu Buharis health, his role as an opposition leader, relationship with Obasanjo and other issuesWhat is important is what we have made of time spent. We have demonstrated leadership by example. We have made ourselves accessible, accountable and respected by our people. If not for God and my achievements, my enemies would have gone the whole hog to attack my person. Because my people believe in me, I came back into this office based on my previous performance  during my first term as Ekiti State governor. My people have given me the trust and cooperation to serve them. Thus, Im happy that we have made credible achievements and impact in their lives.One of them is the trust that I have enjoyed, even in the face of being a prominent opposition figure. The people have shown me love beyond my imagination. One of the things I want to be remembered for or that we have done differently is stooping to conquer. Let me tell you, even if you have 50 years in office, you cannot finish it all. You keep working and giving your best to the people. It is only God that can acknowledge your performance. We will never finish serving and there will always be a desire in an economy. Where you are managing poverty and trying to meet the expectations of the people, you have to continue trying.Anybody can have money but it is not as important as the openness and the access enjoyed by the people. We mingle freely and allow people to have free access to us. That has given us more support than we can imagine. I sincerely appreciate the cooperation of the people.Im a mortal. Im not infallible. Sometimes, we get angry and, sometimes, we do things the way people dont understand. But we retrace our steps in line with the will of the people. There is no perfect man, so I cant claim that (to be perfect). I have only decided to be humble. Today, anybody coming after me has a lot to do to be trusted by the people because the stakes are very high  the people know what they want. It is no longer about the roads we have tarred; schools and markets we have built or other infrastructural development we have brought (about); it is about our personal relationship with the people.Like I always say to people, life is not about your personal attainment of goals and aspiration; it is about being counted for the people. If you dont stand up for something, so many things will stand up against you. Some people say it is because I enjoy immunity. What about others that enjoy immunity? A lot of leaders today are afraid of speaking the truth. But I know there is no gain without pain. We stood in the gap for the people. I am the longest-serving governor. I served under former President Olusegun Obasanjo with the likes of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and former President Umaru YarAdua  then, former President Goodluck Jonathan was a deputy governor. I later served under Jonathan when he was the president and now under President Muhammadu Buhari. I have traversed many administrations and worked alongside some of the gladiators in Nigerian politics today.Im an experienced man. At different times, I have made contributions to the development of Nigeria. As an opposition figure, Im truly expected to give the government of the day a run for their money. I must make them give value for the votes given to them. The opposition is an integral part of democracy; without that, you have autocracy. Someone has to be the voice of the people in this trying period because we cannot all see things the same way. The government must be put on its toes at all times and be made accountable to the people.Im a man that enjoys Gods grace. The Bible says before I was born I was in my mothers belly, God knew what I would be. Im the man God wants me to be because God gave me a woman after his heart knowing my limitations, my excesses and my pains. Beyond politics, we are different people before God. Things some will do and get away (with), some will do and never get away. I have gone through so many challenges, but today, Im still standing. Many thought that by the time Buhari got to power, Fayose would be dead. That is not a democracy. We are not afraid of battles; we are not afraid of saying the truth. Moses, Joseph, our Lord Jesus Christ and Prophet Muhammad (SAW) stood in the gap to stand up for the truth. For me, there is no personal issue between me and the President. But I want to establish that I was a young man when he became the (military) head of state. I watched him closely with his deputy, Gen. Tunde Idiagbon.So, I was a young man who saw tomorrow and never shied away from narrating the story. I said repeatedly that President Buhari did not have the capacity to rule Nigeria and I did not hide it. Concerning all that I have said so far, I have no regret. I always say the abundance of a man does not consist of things he possesses. Life is not in the realm of what you have achieved and what you have not achieved. Generations come and go. Everything I have said will come to pass. Our president is very old to rule. We wish him good recovery but not to return as president if he does not have the health to back it up. If I said the President was not well at the time, it has manifested. We will continue to pray for him. Anybody can get sick but one must be honourable enough to say when he doesnt have the capacity to continue (to serve the people).Former Governor Bola Tinubu was the only opposition governor at a time in the South-West. Today, by the cooperation of other stakeholders in the All Progressives Congress, they conquered Nigeria. Im going to lead the opposition to conquer Nigeria like Tinubu did. The fact that you are in the minority does not make you lesser than those in the majority, in terms of wisdom, understanding, Gods backing and hope for the future.Our working together for the good of South-West has nothing to do with politics. Everyone needs to contribute to the growth of this country, so is this region. It doesnt matter the party I belong (to). They are only saying we should stay together in terms of security, agriculture and have peer review. Hunger does not know political party. People want good roads, water, services, etc. There is no way party politics will make me not to cooperate with my colleagues in the South-West.We thank God that the President is able to come up and talk that he is hale and hearty. My statement put pressure on the Federal Government  because since the President left no one heard anything about his health status. If you listened to the Ebonyi State Governor (Dave Umahi), he said it was a miracle that the President recovered. If something is a miracle, it means that what I said about the Presidents health was the truth. With due respect, everything I have said is the truth and remains the truth. The fact that one is placed on life support does not mean that the person cannot recover. But the question should be: does one have the health to continue with rigorous work of office?Im indifferent. Nigerians wanted me to be there. But I believe in the judgment of my colleagues. If Nigerians wanted me to be there but they (Buharis handlers) didnt give me the access, what can I do? I have to move on and join them to wish the President well. What is important is Nigeria. When Senator (John) McCain was sick in the United States, he came out boldly to say he had a brain tumour. The health of the President is a public issue. It is the handlers that are causing the confusion. Like I said, I dont want the President dead, but we want to know the true state of health of our president. For me, Ill love to go there (the UK) to see (him). But if they say they are not giving me a passage, it is all well and good, as long as the President is hale and hearty. If he is not fit, let him resign.The President denied drawing the list, saying it was the governors forum. Im not desperate to go there. If they feel it is important I represent  if not, Im still an opposition figure. Many people are not comfortable with me and I dont blame them. They may feel I would want to come and tell Nigerians what actually transpired there. But I cannot lie; I cant say what is not true; I cant make up things. I cant celebrate lies. That does not mean that my colleagues that went there are lying. What we are praying for is that the President should get well.None whatsoever.I will wish him well  and that, if he is not fit to continue (to rule the country) he should resign. What else would I say? Everything I have said, I will stand by it. The offices of the president and governors require a lot of energy. Whatever interest we represent, we cannot deny that. Our adversaries  our opponents  know that we are saying the truth. But because they are the beneficiaries of what is going on, they will defend it. But Im not afraid of speaking the truth. Truth heals and endures.I never predicted my presidency. I have a right to contest and I said I will contest and I will win. When I predicted that I would come back as governor of Ekiti State, many people doubted (my prediction). But because man has no capacity to see tomorrow, they can write you off. Those who wrote me off then see me in the position of authority today. When I was down the valley, they thought I would never rise. But the Lord said in Psalm 23: I will set a table before you in the presence of your enemies. In this country, Im going to the (Presidential) Villa. Im saying that, by the special grace of God, those who doubted me today will visit me in Aso Rock as the president or the vice president  as the case may be.We are holding a non-elective convention on August 12 to work and extend the tenure of the (Ahmed) Makarfi National Caretaker Committee to give us a structure that will take us to the next level.We have the prevalence of certain crimes because they are being aided by the powers that be, either in the security agencies or otherwise. The moment the system is functional, a lot of crimes will disappear. Everybody knows the consequences of their actions and knows the system will not shield them. We should stop aiding evil in this land.Im in support of strengthening the states. Im in support of devolution of powers from the centre to the region or the states. As it is currently constituted, the centre is becoming dictatorial. They want to tell you what to do in your state, but we are all federating units and should be respected in line with the constitution.Im not aware of that fact. But let me say this, you are presumed innocent until proven otherwise. That is what the law says. Saying Nnamdi Kalu is this or that is prejudicial and unfair. I dont believe in the disintegration of this country, but I believe in the right of Nigerians being respected. Agitation is normal. This country belongs to all of us. They should pay attention to the dwindling economy, poverty ravaging the land and hunger.Sheriff has no followers! That is the truth. Sheriff is a hijacker; he is an impostor. Every system must have discipline. If today, Sheriff and his co-travellers had succeeded, they would have expelled people like me and the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike. There must be discipline in the system. If there is no discipline in a system, one is wasting his time. These are characters that are used to scuttling truth and justice in our land. That was why I regretted supporting him initially. We should sanction them. I dont believe in politics of lies (no winner, no vanquished)  that is a political statement. Going forward, the party must sanction some people.There is a lot of make-believe. Let the people in Ekiti come forward and tell us they are members of Sheriffs group. They have taken to their heels and we are going to discipline them. A few of them that are enemies of the party, we will expel them. The moment they dont show remorse, we will expel them.Sheriff should be expelled. Sheriff, by his action  if you see the peace that pervaded this country after the (Supreme Court) judgment, you would see that there is peace without Sheriff. If it had gone the other way round, many people would have left the PDP. Nobody has left the party after Sheriff lost the judgment.You once reportedly worked against the interest of Senator Ahmed Makarfi when he aspired to be president. Today, you fought to ensure he is the chairman of PDPs National Caretaker Committee. What changed?I never worked against Makarfi. I only said Obasanjo set up a committee and asked us to choose the presidential candidate. I was with a former Rivers State Governor, Peter Odili; others were with Makarfi. But Obasanjo told me that Makarfi would never be president of Nigeria and that I should not work for him. That is all. At the end of the day, Obasanjo moved against Odili. He knew his intention and ambition before he gave us that order.Im not attacking him. Im only saying things I know about him because Im a living witness of Obasanjos life. I worked with him and know that Obasanjo is a sadist, an opportunist  a man who would rather put a weakling in position (of power). How would he ask YarAdua that he knew was sick to be president? I wonder why some media (organisations) celebrate Obasanjo. Obasanjo has no character. Obasanjo was the first president that trampled on our constitution in all ways using brute force. That is why Obasanjo does not have a (foot-) hold, in terms of human beings, in party politics in the South-West. Obasanjo is only left with the clout of being a former president. When you say human support, Obasanjo does not enjoy such in the South-West.At the time I was the governor, I was a young man. I was avoiding Obasanjo because he was from the same zone as me. One thing I have known is that Obasanjo will run away if you can stand up against him. Obasanjo is a weak man; the moment you can stand up against him, he will chicken out. Look at Orji Uzor Kalu and late governor of Niger State. At that time, I couldnt stand up (against Obasanjo). I have now found out that, sometimes, it is good to confront monsters. We are guided by the constitution and respect for the rule of law. Obasanjo messed up by disobeying the rule of law and removing governors at will.Elders are only meaningful when they are using their grey hair to lead the people well. Please, let us call a spade a spade. I dont want to talk about people who are not elders by standards expected of them and (who are) not living by examples according to the true grace of their age. You only respect grey hair when the man is upright. Obasanjo is not a man to be respected; he is an opportunist.Former Governor Segun Oni is an Ekiti son and is entitled to aspire. Because I came back as governor, some people want to try their luck. Former Governor Kayode Fayemi is there; Senator Babafemi Ojudu is there too. Let them get the party ticket first.There is clamour by the Southern senatorial district to have a shot at the governorship. What is the position of your party on this?No position. We will not zone. The best candidate will emerge.This Paris Club refund cannot pay one months salary. It is money between state and local governments. The states salary is N2.6bn, while local government is N2.4bn, which is N5bn, and I got N4.7bn. Capital projects are there. The Federal Government has politicised it. My own is that I will declare what I get to my workers and we will discuss it together. No matter what, the Paris Club refund cannot solve the entire problem, but it will augment it.
Former Minister of Aviation Senator Stella Oduah has claimed that there was no basis upon which she could be probed in connection with th...

Former Minister of Aviation Senator Stella Oduah has claimed that there was no basis upon which she could be probed in connection with the N225 million bullet-proof BMW cars she purchased as a minister.The senator said she was unaware of any probe by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on any matter concerning her.She was reacting to media report that she had been invited by the EFCC for questioning over the cars.Ms Oduah told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja at the weekend that that there was no basis upon which she could be probed, saying that the vehicle did not belong to her.To start with, I do not know where any letter on the probe is because nobody has invited me. And as far as I know, there is nothing and there cannot be anything on invitation for purchase of a BMW.I did not buy a BMW; I have never bought a BMW. The BMW is a property of the government, and it is still in governments care.The car is with the agency that bought it.The agency is still using it, and so, why will the car which belongs to government and in the care of government and being used by government, be an issue for me?I have since left the ministry, she said.She said the reports were the handiworks of persons, who were not comfortable with the tremendous achievements she made in the aviation sector and wanted to tarnish her image.The former minister said when she was appointed, Nigerian airports were in poor states and could be compared to motor parks.She added that no effort by anyone, including her predecessors in the ministry, could be compared with what she did to reposition the aviation industry for the period she was the minister.Oduah, now a lawmaker, challenged anyone to do a comparative analysis of the sector before she became minister, while she was minister and after she left as minister.I think some people are not just comfortable that what we did in aviation is unimaginable.What we did in aviation was so far-reaching that it had never been done before; it was unprecedented.To get into the lounge where people sit was impossible; most motor parks were better than what we had at the airport, whether in Lagos, Abuja or Sokoto.We took them on and efficiently, and in a very timely manner, changed every one of them and made Nigeria airspace safe, she said.She said safety of Nigerian passengers was made a priority while she held sway, adding that landing gears, flight gadgets and every single thing was functioning to make Nigerias airspace recognised by International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).I challenge anybody to just do a spreadsheet; how aviation was before, how I made aviation and how aviation is today.
Former Kano State governor, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, was absent at the states All Progressives Congress (APC) congress, which held o...

Former Kano State governor, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, was absent at the states All Progressives Congress (APC) congress, which held on Saturday.

However, the two other lawmakers from the state, Senator Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya (Kano South) and Senator Barau Jibril (Kano North), attended the congress which was held at the Sani Abacha Indoor Stadium.





Alhaji Abdullahi Abbas, who had been running the affairs of the party in interim capacity, emerged as the substantive chairman.





Before the elections began, a representative of the national leadership of the party, Prince Nwoko Orinze, said they were in the state to ensure that the election was conducted appropriately.





The congress was organised to fill the vacant seats, he said.





However, the Umar Haruna Doguwa-led faction of the APC in the state, rejected the congress, describing it as a kangaroo exercise.





What the Abdullahi Abbas-led faction of the party did today (yesterday) was nothing but a kangaroo congress because the partys national leadership did not give the go-ahead to anybody to conduct congress in the state.





I am the one recognised as chairman of the APC in Kano by the national leadership and if the party decides to hold a congress in Kano, it will write to me and there was no directive to that effect. And, I can tell you that no state in the federation held congress today. A date will be fixed for the congress and a letter will be sent to all state chairmen to hold it, he told Daily Trust.
By PTI: (EDs: Adding BJPs reaction)

New Delhi, Aug 6 (PTI) Three sanitation workers died allegedly due to asphyxiation today while cleaning a drain in southeast Delhis Lajpat Nagar, with the BJP demanding a probe into the matter.

Police said the workers were cleaning a sewer line near the Kabir Ram temple when the incident took place. They went inside the sewer and inhaled toxic fumes and were later found unconscious there. The incident was reported around 1 PM.

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They were rushed to the AIIMS Trauma Centre where the doctors declared them "brought dead", they said.

BJPs Delhi unit chief Manoj Tiwari slammed the Delhi government over the deaths and asked Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal for a probe into the incident.

"I request the LG for a probe into the matter and compensation for the families of the victims," he said.

"This is not the first incident of death of safai karamcharis (sanitation worker) during sewer cleaning and the attitude of Delhi Jal Board officials as well as the Arvind Kejriwal government continues to be callous," Tiwari said.

Two of the victims were identified as Joginder (32) and Annu (28), while the identity of the third was yet to ascertained, police said. PTI AG VIT ASV

--- ENDS ---
A former military governor of Kaduna State, Col. Abubakar Dangiwa Umar yesterday gave a new perspective on the recent face-off between t...

A former military governor of Kaduna State, Col. Abubakar Dangiwa Umar yesterday gave a new perspective on the recent face-off between the Senate and Customs Comptroller General Hamid Ali.He said it was all about the Customs seizure of a huge consignment of rice imported by a company owned by an influential member of the Senate, but which the company declared as yeast in a bid to avoid paying the appropriate import duty on the rice.Umar said the same senator is the brain behind a company involved in the controversial $34million Calabar port dredging contract.The outspoken former governor, in a statement in Kaduna, said the conduct of the Senate on these and similar matters seem to suggest that Senators might be on a mission to crash the federal governments war against corruption using the power of oversight as cover.He, therefore, wants Senate President Bukola Saraki to rein in Senators who are stepping out of line especially those in the Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariffs.He cited the Committees handling of matters concerning the Nigeria Ports Authority and the Customs which, in his view, leaves room for suspicion.Umar asked Nigerians to actively support the Comptroller-General of Customs, Hamid Ali, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, Hajiya Hadiza Bala Usman, and a former BPP DG, Emeka Nzeh.Incidents such as these are the reason the Nigerian public feels let down by our Parliament. They are the reason why a whole lot of Nigerians take a dim view of members of the National Assembly, Umar said.Some even believe the conduct of our legislators is a major factor holding Nigeria down; why it is a laughing stock among the nations of the world.It is the duty of all Nigerians to demand correct conduct from all public officials, including from members of the National Assembly; especially the Senate.Senator Bukola Saraki, the Senate President, must enforce discipline among his colleagues. No member of a committee, much less a chairman, should remain in his duty post once credible information about possible crime is received on the person.We need not remind our political leaders, most of all our legislators, that punishment always follow excess.He asked Nigerians to take interest in the activities of the Senate Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariffs, especially its relationship with the Nigeria Ports Authority.His words: There are good reasons why Nigerians should take more than a passing interest in the controversy generated by the actions of members of the Senate Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariffs and that of the Nigeria Ports Authority.If the reports in the media are true, the matter goes beyond the victimization of one organ of government by another.On the recent humiliation of Col. Hamid Ali (rtd) by the Senate he said it all started with the October/November, 2016, importation of 1,200 metric tons of rice in thirty, 40-foot containers by a rice trading company owned by an influential senator.According to Umar, the company in its attempt to evade paying the correct custom duties declared the rice consignment as yeast.The goods were later intercepted and seized on the orders of the Comptroller-General of Customs. Unfortunately, this seemingly patriotic action by a public officer was seen as an affront to one senior member of the National Assembly.A Senator, the leader of the Senate Committee on Customs, Excise & Tariff, wrote the CGC demanding that the consignment be released forthwith, on the dubious claim that he had investigated the matter and had found the importer blameless. His findings? That it was the clearing Agent not the importer that called the goods yeast instead of rice!The CGC brushed aside this incredible story; as any right thinking person would do. But to the shock of all Nigerians, all hell broke loose. The Senate Committee then summoned him to appear before them in uniform- seeing that as a retired army colonel, the CGC had refrained from wearing the Customs uniform.He was also directed to answer a long list of queries by this same angry panel. In the end, he was dragged before the Senate at plenary, put through a cruel inquisition, publicly humiliated and dismissed as not fit to hold public office.Fast-forward to last week.This time, a dubious scheme was uncovered in which a subsidiary company of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), went into a joint venture with a private company to manage the Calabar Port.Both the NPA subsidiary, called Calabar Channel Management (CCM) and the private company, Niger Global Engineering & Technical Co. Ltd, were incorporated together in 2014, just for this deal. The purported JV partner was then awarded a contract to dredge the Calabar Channel; a contract the Bureau of Public Procurement was to condemn as violating all due processes.This did not discourage them from demanding and getting a whopping $12.5million upfront payment from the NPA or asking for a purported balance of $22million.In the meantime, a rash of petitions and reports had inundated the NPA against this contract, with many alleging it to be a bogus scam to siphon public funds.The Bureau of Public Procurement was the first to cry out, saying both the award of the dredging contract and the initial payment of over N4billion to Messrs Niger Global Engineering & Technical Co. Ltd, were done in violation of the law. Even worse, all efforts of the new management of the NPA under Ms. Hadiza Bala Usman, to find evidence of the dredging work purported to have been done in the Calabar Channel at the time the company claimed to have done so, was unsuccessful.That is not all. There was also the report by a consultant that advised against a joint venture partnership for the purpose of managing the Calabar port. Their reason was simply that maritime activities in the Calabar port was too low, that a joint venture scheme as obtained in Lagos and Bony was unsustainable.Faced with these negative outcomes, the NPA management under Ms. Bala Usman decided that national interest would be better served if the JV scheme as well as the so-called dredging project are terminated.On their part, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, have moved in, with a mission to recover public funds collected for job not done.Now, the name of the person driving this scheme is quite instructive going by the very loud and sustained counter attacks being mounted against the public officers; officers that insist that right things are done.Umar said the person is an influential Senator who owns the rice company that brought in the confiscated consignment, and also Niger Global & Engineering Co. Technical Ltd.Umar added: Nigerians must not leave the likes of Hamid Ali, Ibrahim Magu, Hadiza Bala Usman,(former BPP DG) Emeka Nzeh et al at the mercy of these strange lawmakers; politicians that have demonstrated time and again that they are in politics to serve themselves and themselves alone.The experience of Hadiza Bala Usman, the new M.D of the NPA, is particularly sad. The more she tries to fight, to reduce graft and perfidy, the more determined they seem to mobilise against her, to neutralise her and see her back.They want her out because, they now claim, she is too young to manage a complex organisation such as NPA  even though she is past 40 years of age. Unashamed, they question the wisdom of appointing a woman to such a post  her training and experience counting for nothing; apparently.
The Nigerian Army on Saturday begged religious, traditional and community rulers in the North-East to dissuade parents from donating the...

The Nigerian Army on Saturday begged religious, traditional and community rulers in the North-East to dissuade parents from donating their children to Boko Haram.The Director, Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Sani Usman, who said this in a statement, noted that this appeal was consequent upon some revelations made by some arrested suicide bombers.He said, The Nigerian Army wishes to appeal to religious, traditional and community leaders, as well as all well-meaning Nigerians, especially in the North-East of our country, to help dissuade people from donating their daughters or wards to Boko Haram terrorists for indoctrination and suicide bombing missions.This appeal became expedient in view of recent revelations by some intercepted female suicide bombers during interrogations. It was discovered that most of these hapless minors were donated to the terrorist sect by their heartless and misguided parents and guardians, as part of their contribution to the perpetuation of the Boko Haram terrorists dastardly acts against the Nigerian society and humanity.The acts of these parents and guardians are not only barbaric, but condemnable and unacceptable. Nigerians have a responsibility and obligation to collectively mould our children and wards.Consequently, members of the public are kindly requested to be more vigilant, security conscious and report any suspicious persons or those whose daughters or female wards are missing or have not been seen recently. The public is also kindly reminded that the Nigerian Armys offer and reward of N500,000 to anybody that brings information about suicide bombing is still available.Meanwhile, Boko Haram terrorists have so far used more than 145 girls in suicide bombing missions between January and July 2017.The figure, sourced from the military anti-insurgency operation, Operation Lafiya Dole, the National Emergency Management Agency and the Borno State Police Command could be higher as some suicide missions might not have been reported to the agencies.It was gathered that while Boko Haram terrorists also made use of male bombers to attack mosques and military locations, there were more females deployed in the months reviewed.The other locations where the terrorists deployed the girls strapped with locally made Improvised Explosive Devices were, internally displaced persons camps and villages.It was learnt that the most affected areas where the radicalised girls struck in the seven months included Muna Garage, Mammanti village, Jiddari Polo, Ummarari and Dalori, all in Borno State.A breakdown of the statistics showed that in January, at least 15 girls died, while 10 casualties were recorded in February.Also, there were estimated 15 deaths of the female bombers for March, April and May.June and July, however, witnessed an upsurge and claimed about 30 girls each.Some highlights in January indicated that, on January 16, two female bombers were killed in Baran Kaura village, Borno, while two other girls were killed in Kalari area, while trying to gain entry into a mosque.Also in February, two female bombers died behind the Mega Filling Station, along Maiduguri-Damboa Road, while on February 17 and 24, four female bombers were killed in Muna Dalti and Banki areas, respectively.The Defence Headquarters admitted that the Boko Haram terrorists sent out the girls on suicide missions with babies and IEDs strapped to their bodies.Some of the incidents in March were two female bombers killed on March 13, while attempting to enter Maiduguri through Ummarari area, while four female bombers died after detonating in Usmanti area along Muna Garage, two days after.In April, two female bombers died in a mosque in the Jiddari Polo area, while on April 26, NEMA confirmed the death of four female bombers, who attacked Muna Garage and Muna Usmanti areas of Borno.On May 3, three teenage female bombers were killed, while trying to attack a military base known as Gontanamo in the Muna Garage area. The corpses were evacuated by NEMA workers.Four female bombers died on June 19 in the Dalori IDPs camp and Dalori Kofa village, after killing 16 people.It was also observed that in July, there was a further upsurge in the spate of female suicide bomb attacks, also attested to by the police and the army authorities.The Borno State Police Command on July 12 confirmed the death of four female suicide bombers who detonated at a funeral, killing 12 Civilian Joint Task Force members and injuring 23 other persons.Also, the Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, and 7 Division spokesman, Lt.-Col. Kingsley Samuel, confirmed that eight female bombers were killed in another incident in just one week.He said, Two female bombers trying to infiltrate military locations in Mammanti Village, Borno on July 16 were neutralised.Also, three bombers were killed by troops on July 22, while trying to attack Kawuri in the Konduga Local Government Area of Borno State.The bombers were unleashed by the remnants of the desperate Boko Haram insurgents to cause mayhem to the civilian populace, he said.There were, however, a few occasions when the girl bombers were rescued before detonating their IEDs.The Borno State Police Command had on February 7 arrested an 18-year-old female bomber, behind Mega Filling Station in Molai, Maiduguri area, among other cases.
The UN Security Council on Saturday unanimously backed a US-drafted resolution that significantly strengthened sanctions on North Korea, ...

The UN Security Council on Saturday unanimously backed a US-drafted resolution that significantly strengthened sanctions on North Korea, imposing a ban on exports aimed at depriving Pyongyang of $1 billion in annual revenue.The sweeping measures were the first of that scope to be imposed on North Korea since US President Donald Trump took office and highlighted Chinas willingness to punish its Pyongyang ally.The resolution imposed a full ban on exports of coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore as well as fish and seafood by the cash-starved state  stripping North Korea of a third of its export earnings estimated at $3 billion per year.US Ambassador Nikki Haley said the stiffer measures brought the penalty imposed on North Korea for its ballistic missile tests to a whole new level and that the council had put leader Kim Jong-Un on notice.This is the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation, Haley told the council after the vote.These sanctions will cut deep and in doing so, will give the North Korean leadership a taste of the deprivation they have chosen to inflict on the North Korean people.The resolution also prevents North Korea from increasing the number of workers it sends abroad whose earnings are another source of revenue for Kims regime.It prohibits all new joint ventures with North Korea, bans new investment in the current joint companies and adds nine North Korean officials and four entities including North Koreas main foreign exchange bank to the UN sanctions blacklist.If fully implemented, the measures would tighten the economic vise around Pyongyang as it seeks to develop its missile and nuclear programs.The United States entered into negotiations with China a month ago on the new resolution after North Korea launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile on July 4 which was followed by a second test on July 28.But the measure does not provide for cuts to oil deliveries to North Korea as initially proposed by the United States  a move that would have dealt a serious blow to the economy.The new raft of measures are the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006. Sanctions not an end The United States has put heavy pressure on China, which accounts for 90 percent of trade with North Korea, to enforce the sanctions and the fate of these measures largely hinges on Beijings cooperation.China and Russia had resisted the US push, arguing that dialogue with North Korea was the way to persuade Pyongyang to halt its military programs.Chinese Ambassador Liu Jieyi said the resolution does not intend to cause a negative impact to North Koreas people and stressed that it called for a return to talks on denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.The fact that the council adopted this resolution unanimously demonstrates that the international community is united in its position regarding the nuclear issue of the peninsula, said Liu.Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzia stressed that sanctions cannot be an end in themselves but rather a tool for engaging this country in constructive talks.Backed by its European allies, Japan and South Korea, the United States has maintained that tougher sanctions would put pressure on North Korea to come to the table.As negotiations at the United Nations entered the final stretch earlier this week, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson declared that Washington was not seeking regime change in North Korea and was willing to talk to Pyongyang. Next step Speaking to reporters after the council vote, Haley said whats next is completely up to North Korea.The United States has been loud about it, now the international community has been loud and North Korea now has to respond, she said.Trumps national security advisor, H.R. McMaster, said the United States would not tolerate the threat posed by North Koreas missile and nuclear tests.McMaster, in an interview with MSNBC, said Trump had told Chinas President Xi Jinping it was no longer enough for North Korea to freeze its programs since it had already crossed threshold capability and the goal was now denuclearization.South Koreas foreign minister, meanwhile, held out a diplomatic olive branch Saturday, saying she was open to holding discussions with her North Korean counterpart at a security forum in the Philippines.If there is an opportunity that naturally occurs, we should talk, Kang Kyung-Wha said as she landed in Manila on Saturday, according to South Koreas Yonhap news agency.AFP
The details of a tripartite meeting by former Heads of State, all retired Generals- Olusegun Obasanjo, Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Ab...

The details of a tripartite meeting by former Heads of State, all retired Generals- Olusegun Obasanjo, Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar at the IBB home in Minna, on May 2nd, have been revealed.

After the meeting only a group photograph taken by the retired generals emerged.





But according to Sun, the subject of who succeeds Buhari in 2019 dominated the discussion.

At the meeting, said to have been initiated by Obasanjo, the newspaper reports that it was agreed that the next president must be under 70, must be a pan-Nigeria personality from any part of the country.

The Generals also agreed that ethnicity and religion must also not be a barrier.

They were said to have considered some top politicians who have indicated interest, even though quietly, in the race and they zeroed in on a few they could be identified on the spot, who also met their set criteria.

Those considered in the meeting include a former governor of Kano and now a serving Senator, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso (60); current governor of Sokoto state, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal (51); former Cross River governor, Donald Duke (55) and the immediate past governor of Edo state, Adams Oshiomhole (65), all of who are of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, stock.

Spokesperson to former Head State, IBB, Afegbua, who is also a former Edo State Commissioner for Information, offered to do a detailed response, which he promptly sent.

He told the newspaper, First of all, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as a politician with an ambition has the right to reach out to anyone who he thinks can add value to his aspiration.

It is true that he, Atiku has reached out to General IBB and also General Aliyu Gusau, the same way other presidential aspirants have been reaching out too. What is not true is to state that he has been endorsed by the duo.

On the other hand, Chief Obasanjo has a right to own his opinion on any aspirant, but in the life of any aspirant, no man can play God. General IBBs doors are open to any aspirant who feels he, IBB can add value to his aspiration.

General IBB has left partisan politics six years ago when he clocked 70. As an elder statesman, he remains committed to the ideals of the founding fathers of Nigeria and its unity.

He will continue to welcome Nigerians of all shades to his Minna home in furthering the narrative of one indivisible Nigeria.

When it is time for election, in line with his inalienable right to vote, he will identify with anyone whom he thinks can represent the country and preside over her affairs beyond 2019. For now, it is not a time for endorsement. It is a time for sober reflections.
By PTI: Hyderabad, Aug 6 (PTI) Five persons, including a BTech student, were today arrested here for allegedly trying to exchange demonetised currency notes with a face value of Rs 99 lakh, which were seized from them, police said.

V Sai Kumar Reddy, along with four others came to Sanjeevaiah Park here last evening along with the old notes in denominations of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 to exchange them with new currency, a release from Hyderabad Police said.

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Police apprehended the accused on the spot, the release added.

Further investigation into the case is on. PTI VVK NP

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TRENTON -- Gov. Chris Christie on Sunday defended President Donald Trump amid reports that a special investigator has convened a federal grand jury to probe possible ties between Trump's campaign and Russian efforts to undermine the 2016 election.

Appearing on CNN's "State of the Union," Christie called the impaneling of a grand jury "a normal step taken by a careful prosecutor who's doing a thorough investigation."

The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Special Counsel Robert Mueller, a former director of the FBI, had convened the grand jury earlier this summer. Grand jury proceedings are usually kept secret, and the newspaper called the move "a sign that his inquiry is growing in intensity and entering a new phase."

But Christie, a former federal prosecutor, said Mueller simply convened the grand jury "so he could issue subpoenas and then review the evidence."

"That's a typical thing to be done in any investigation," he said. "I did literally thousands of these as U.S. Attorney in seven years in New Jersey, and so I thought the coverage about how monumental this was is just a fundamental misunderstanding of the way this process works.

The Russia probe has cast a shadow on the first six months of Trump's administration and the president has vehemently denied any involvement with the Russian government, calling it a "fake story" and decrying the investigation as a "witch hunt."

"I just hope the final determination is a truly honest one," the president said at a rally in Huntington, West Virginia last week, "which is what the millions of people who gave us our big win in November deserve and what all Americans who want a better future want and deserve."

During his CNN appearance, Christie stopped short of joining his ally Trump in slamming former FBI Director James Comey and Mueller, who was hired after Trump fired Comey to lead the Russia inquiry.

"I trust that he'll be very careful to try not to go on a fishing expedition," Christie said of Mueller.

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.

S.P. Sullivan may be reached at ssullivan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
GREEN -- One person was killed Sunday morning when an amateur-built aircraft crashed at the end of a Trinca Airport runway, authorities said.

The pilot was pronounced dead at the scene of the 10:25 a.m. crash and no other passengers were on board, state police said.

Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen described the plane as a NW-Freedom, amateur-built aircraft.

The FAA is investigating the crash, and said the release of the pilot's name would be handled by local authorities. The pilot's name had not been released as of Sunday evening.

It was the second plane crash in New Jersey in a 12-hour span.

On Saturday night, a small plane crashed in Franklin Township, Hunterdon County, sending three people to area hospitals.

Trinca Airport is owned by Green Township and access to the entrance was blocked off by police following the crash.

Rob Jennings may be reached at rjennings@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @RobJenningsNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook
By PTI: banking info

New Delhi/Berne, Aug 6 (PTI) Switzerland found Indias data security and confidentiality laws "adequate" for entering into an automatic exchange of information pact, which will open a continuous access to details about alleged black money hoarders in once-all-secret Swiss banks.

In a detailed notification and fact sheet published in its official gazette for introduction of "automatic exchange of information relating to financial accounts with India", the Swiss government has also cited decisions by other financial centres like Liechtenstein and Bahamas to enter into similar pacts.

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Besides, Switzerland also took note of the US tax authority, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), recognising India among the countries that provide an "adequate degree" of data protection for mutual exchange of tax information.

The fact sheet and the notification, published in German, also talks about Switzerland looking to explore greater access to Indian market, including the reinsurance sector and other financial services.

The Swiss Federal Council, the top governing body of the European nation, in June ratified automatic exchange of financial account information with India and 40 other jurisdictions to facilitate immediate sharing of details about suspected black money even as it sought strict adherence to confidentiality and data security.

Taking the decision forward, the Swiss government has now notified the decision and the notification authorises the Council to notify India about the exact date when such automatic exchange must take place.

The implementation is currently planned for 2018 and the first set of data should be exchanged in 2019. The decision is not subject to any referendum -- which means there should be no further procedural delay in its implementation.

The issue of black money has been a matter of big debate in India, and Switzerland has been long perceived as one of the safest havens for the illicit wealth allegedly stashed abroad by Indians.

The notification follows hectic parleys between India and Switzerland for introduction of the AEOI (Automatic Exchange of Information) on tax matters under the guidance of G20, OECD and other global organisations.

In the fact sheet about India, which forms part of the notification about all 41 jurisdictions selected for AEOI by Switzerland, the Swiss government noted India showed its commitment for implementing the international pact with effect from 2016 itself and "adaptations of the internal laws necessary for the implementation were made in good time".

Listing various changes to the tax laws and introduction of new laws for fighting black money stashed abroad as well as within the country, the Swiss government said, "The legal, administrative and technical framework for confidentiality and data security in India was deemed satisfactory by the Global Forums panel of experts."

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The Swiss Federal Department of Finance assessed this evaluation and found them to be "adequate", the notification said.

It further said that India negotiated with the US a model intergovernmental agreement on FATCA for reciprocal exchange of information, which has entered into force after the IRS assessed the level of confidentiality and data security in India and found it "appropriate".

"All agreements concerning the exchange of tax information concluded by India contain a confidentiality clause which corresponds to that of the model OECD agreement," it noted, while adding that the countrys Income Tax Act contain other confidentiality provisions as well.

The notification also referred to the personal data protection measures provided in other laws of the country, incoming the Informational Technology Act and the Right to Information Act.

The Swiss government will prepare a situation report before the first exchange of data for which confidentiality and data protection requirements are to be strictly followed.

On access to Indian market, the Swiss government said the Indian market is not one of the strategic markets targeted by Switzerland-based financial services providers for their cross-border activities, as "bureaucratic and prudential obstacles were generally more difficult to overcome".

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Nonetheless, they are interested in taking advantage of improved governance conditions and greater legal certainty in the financial services sector, particularly in the reinsurance sector.

Switzerland said the two countries have committed to improve the framework conditions for cross-border business activities to give a boost to international investment and financial services segments. PTI BJ JM

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FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP)  Survivors of Hurricane Ian face a long emotional road to recover from one of the most damaging storms to hit the U.S. mainland. For those who lost everything to disaster, the anguish can be crushing to return home to find so much gone. Grief can run the gamut from frequent tears to utter despair. The Lee County medical examiner says two men in their 70s even took their own lives a day apart after viewing their losses. Experts say suicides climb after disasters and more funding for mental health should be provided as climate change makes storms and fires more frequent and devastating.
The study looks at two smaller-scale projects that are in some ways predecessors to the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion, the $2 billion plan to slow land loss erasing Louisiana's coast. Construction on that project could begin as early as next year, while a similar one on the opposite side of the river known as the Mid-Breton Diversion could follow.
Mary Francis, AKA Mary Jack the Bear, was among four people arrested in a drug raid on Tulane Avenue in 1919.
Today

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 42F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph.

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 42F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph.

Tomorrow

A mainly sunny sky. High 58F. Winds NNE at 10 to 15 mph.
Today

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 42F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph.

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 42F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph.

Tomorrow

Mainly sunny. High 58F. Winds NNE at 10 to 15 mph.
Tinder is not just a huge hit with singletons, but it has also become popular among prostitutes hunting for clients.

By Mail Today Bureau: Are you looking for a hot date online? Beware. Your one swipe on dating apps may cost you dear. Cashing in on the popularity of dating applications, call girls and escort agencies have made latest entry.

So if you get an acceptance from a pretty girl on such apps chances are high that she might demand money for a date. After using dating apps for a month, Mail Today has found that some of the popular applications have lent a digital platform to the underground business of prostitution. It has also discovered that several young city women are hooked on these apps to make a quick buck.

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The case in point is Tinder for being the most popular dating app. It is not just a huge hit with singletons, but it has also become popular among prostitutes hunting for clients. Mail Today was unable to reach Tinder for reaction. According to the app developers, users or profiles promoting prostitution violate the conditions of use and the company has a system designed to remove such profiles from its system.

Users who find a profile that violates the terms of use are encouraged to report the matter. Most of the dating apps, including Tinder, first analyse the Facebook profiles of users to find a potential match in the proximity and then offer candidates a chance to meet. Most of the dating apps throw up match from nearby area or people you have crossed recently. Right swipe on the smartphone screen means you approve the match and left is for rejection. If both parties approve of one another, they are then able to chat or go for a date.

BOOTY CALL

One of the escort girls on Tinder who asked for Rs 10,000 for a date told Mail Today that Tinder maintains secrecy of individuals and their personal details. "Dating apps are safer than social networking sites. On dating apps, we know users are looking for hook up and it's easier to pick men willing to pay for sex. Here we have choice to choose men active in nearby area," said a Tinder user who has a profile name Neha Banerjee.

Her profile had four pictures and the user was recently active near south Delhi. Mail Today found that profile of escorts also carries their WhatsApp number to take the conversation forward through chat. One of the Tinder users sent the entire rate list that reads Rs 1,000 for sex chats and calls, Rs 2,000 for video chat and Rs 10,000 for a night.

A user, claiming to be a 22-year-old Delhi University student, revealed that she made handsome money through the app in the last seven months. Amrita (not the real name) said, "Men are looking for partners on dating sites and most of them don't mind paying for good company in bed. All the men I have met on Tinder solely want to meet for sex, they don't want to date."

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BIG MONEY

She demanded Rs 5,000 for an hour-long sex and Rs 15,000 for a night. "Dating apps have given us choice to choose men. I do this for quick money. Getting over a dozen matches is too easy. It is better than working with any escort agency," she said.

Earlier, digital trend of prostitution was cumbersome and considered to be a social taboo. Girls were reluctant to post their pictures as those were adult sites but having a profile on dating apps save them from revealing personal details. So far no state police have made an effort to curb thriving prostitution on the digital platform. A senior police officer in crime branch of Delhi Police told Mail Today that it is difficult to track prostitution on the virtual world and these dating apps have server abroad making it even tougher. The officer said fraud and cheating cases on the social media are now common but they have not received any complaint of prostitution on dating apps.

ALSO READ:

Exclusive: Tinder confirms exploring "potential partnership opportunities" with Manchester United

And they MET! After texting for 3 years, this Tinder couple FINALLY meets IRL

--- ENDS ---

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Wall Street is betting that Amazon.coms push into groceries will be very bad news for the packaged-food industry.

Its up to the likes of Mondelez International Inc. to prove that notion wrong.

The snack giant, which makes everything from Oreos and Tang to Trident gum, has been selling more products over the internet and retooling its supply chain for a digital world, said Jeff Jarrett, Mondelezs e-commerce chief. The idea is to show it can shift business online without getting crushed by Amazon, which is famous for squeezing suppliers margins.

But it may be facing an uphill fight. After Amazon agreed to buy Whole Foods Market Inc. in June for $13.7 billion, food producers saw their shares tumble. And few analysts are predicting a rally anytime soon.

Amazon is expected to transform grocery shopping into an industry where brands have less sway over consumers and prices are lower. Thats put pressure on Mondelez and others to build their own direct relationships with customers, helping preserve their influence.

Youll continue to see big brands focus on the online channel like never before, Jarrett said in an interview.

Amazon hasnt said much publicly about its plans for Whole Foods, but the company is expected to bring prices down at the notoriously expensive chain. And most analysts agree that Jeff Bezoss business will play tough with suppliers.

While Amazons grocery ambitions were well-established before the Whole Foods deal was announced, only about 2 percent of the food business has moved online. The prospect of the Seattle-based company taking over an upscale grocer was seen as the latest piece of bad news for the group of companies known as Big Food.

The day the Whole Foods acquisition was announced, 10 of the largest food companies in the U.S., including Kraft Heinz Co., General Mills Inc., Mondelez and Campbell Soup Co., lost almost $8 billion in market value combined.

Food producers were already getting squeezed by Wal-Mart Stores, where groceries account for more than half of revenue. Amazons push into the business will put food at the center of a massive retail battle between the two companies, hurting vendors in the process, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Michael Halen.

Theres no doubt theyre going to pressure the packaged-foods guys on prices, he said.

Companies across the industry are preparing for the change. Campbell recently hired an Amazon veteran to run a newly created e-commerce unit. And at General Mills, which sells Cheerios and Betty Crocker, Chief Executive Officer Jeff Harmening is girding for battle.

Weve been doing this for 150 years, Harmening, a company veteran who took over at CEO in June, said in an interview. Will there be competition? Of course, Its just online now.

But adapting wont be easy. After decades of catering grocery stores, the companies are trying to figure how to produce, package and ship their food in a way that works for Amazon and Walmart.com.

Mondelez wants to generate at least $1 billion in online revenue by 2020. Thats a tiny fraction of its roughly $26 billion in sales, but a fast-growing piece. The Deerfield, Illinois-based company is now about a third of the way toward that goal after a 35 percent jump last year, Jarrett said.

Key to its early efforts was a holiday e-commerce test. The company sold limited-edition boxes of Oreos directly to consumers for $19.99 in the weeks before Christmas last year  a move that required Mondelez to upgrade its supply chain.But its not avoiding Amazon. The company has increasingly relied on the site since 2015, when it first set the 2020 revenue goal. In all, about 90 percent of Mondelezs assortment is available online.

Its all about making food online much more economical than it ever was before, Jarrett said. Its a great example of innovation forcing us to adapt.

The largest food and beverage companies have lost roughly $20 billion in retail sales since 2011, according to Robert Moskow, an analyst at Credit Suisse Group AG. General Mills and Kellogg are each looking at a fourth straight year of revenue declines. Campbell is in a three-year slump, and Kraft Heinz hasnt posted a single quarter of revenue growth since the company was created in a 2015 merger.

Where have all those lost sales gone? Upstart brands, restaurants and meal-kit services have taken some market share. But often consumers are just paying lower prices, making it harder for the big food companies to maintain growth.

Supermarket brands also continue to make inroads. Eventually, Amazon is expected to push hard into its own private-label fare, which is often more profitable to sell.

Theres a shift in trust to the retailer brands, said Mikey Vu, a grocery expert at Bain & Co. That has to scare the heck out of the national brands.

At General Mills, Harmening argues that well-known brands tend to thrive online. Thats because consumers generally shop for things they already know.

To analysts and observers, the cheery rhetoric sounds a lot like what bookstores and apparel companies said in years past  before Amazon wreaked havoc on their business. Thats the view of Neil Ackerman, a former Amazon and Mondelez supply-chain executive who now works for Johnson & Johnson.

For now, Big Food faces a Catch-22: They have to sell their products on Amazon, but that could lead to problems down the road, he said.

If Amazon controls the entire supply chain, its a huge threat -- thats what this is about, Ackerman said. It happened with books and apparel and sporting goods, and youre watching it happen again.

 Bloombergs Matt Turner contributed to this report.
If theres one thing I can say about Riva Steak & Seafood, the steakhouse inside Ameristar Casino in Council Bluffs, its that it wasnt at all what I expected.

Tucked inside a little curtained room with frosted, iridescent glass privacy windows and a soft, smooth jazz soundtrack, the space has just a handful of tables and a succinct, meat-focused menu. If youre expecting, like I was, another Harrahs 360 Steakhouse or Jack Binions Steak House at Horseshoe, this isnt it, in either atmosphere or menu.

My biggest complaint, though, is that the cooking at Riva is inconsistent, even with its pared-down list of dishes and relatively tiny dining space.

To wit, a pair of scallops came out wonderfully cooked, but 20 minutes later, a pork chop came out dry and tough. And later, a filet came out perfectly medium-rare, but a side of spaetzle with another dish was almost unrecognizable.

Im not sure how some things can be so good and others can be so marginal in the course of the same meal. For the prices you pay at Riva  steaks start at $32  it should be much better.

Getting to Riva means going to the host stand outside Club 38, the casinos VIP bar. The host will take diners through that bar and through the rainbow-glass doors to the petite, quiet dining room, decorated in understated tones of rust and tan.

Andreas Hartmann, the executive chef on-site for all of the casinos other restaurants, said Riva took over space from a much larger steakhouse. It opened last May.

We wanted to have an upscale steak and seafood-themed restaurant, but not make it too complicated, he said. We want to have common foods that people recognize on the menu, but execute them uncommonly well.

There are moments of casino-style flash. The wine list comes printed on both sides of a Magnum-sized bottle. The drink list is rolled up like a message in a small clear vessel in the center of the table. The oversized menus come folded in thirds and taped with a big gold sticker bearing the restaurants name.

That flash translated to a few of the dishes, too. Take the lava rock beef tenderloin, which Ill admit I ordered just because I wondered what the heck it was.

It turns out it takes a cue from Korean barbecue. The beef arrived already sizzling atop a big piece of black stone, and I flipped it just once and cooked it only for a few seconds more after it arrived. I wish the kitchen had seasoned it before it came to the table; a little spoon of salt on the rock was too little too late.

I liked the dipping sauces it came with, though, especially an herby chimichurri, though a dining partner with a cilantro aversion wasnt thrilled with it.

Hartmann said he didnt think the dishes were flashy; rather, their tableside elements are meant to engage the guest.

The salmon entree, though, does come with fanfare. The dish arrives at the table on a slate slab covered with a curved glass cloche filled with smoke that the server lifts with a flourish. If you guessed that it was smoky-tasting, youd be right.

The salmon was fine, though a bit overcooked for my liking. The sides, a creamy horseradish cooked cabbage and a tomato compote on top tasted, to me, more like autumn, and would have paired more pleasantly with pork rather than fish.

I think people like to see that, Hartmann said of the smoky dish. To smoke the salmon this way, it gives the illusion that its completely smoked in the dining room. It brings the flavors from the kitchen right into the dining room.

The big bread tray  our waitress the first night said its made of reclaimed boxcar wood  is a highlight. During both visits it came with a twist of salt-topped French bread, soft butter, coarse pepper and salt.

Hartmann said all the breads are made in-house, and the selection rotates.

The first night, it had wheat buns; the second, slices of a dense dark and light rye swirled together. I wanted to eat more than I did.

Probably the two best dishes we tried were appetizers.

A hearty, seasonal caprese salad came with sliced red and yellow tomatoes, thick pieces of mozzarella, lots of fresh basil and a balsamic drizzle. Thin pickled onions finished the dish.

And a scallop, tender and perfectly executed, came atop Parmesan-heavy, creamy risotto, asparagus spears and a bit of acidic marinara. If I were to recommend two dishes, itd be those two.

Hartmann said the restaurant sells quite a bit of seafood and works with a local company as well as suppliers out of Chicago and Hawaii. The menu, which is printed in-house, changes according to whats delivered.

The side dishes  earthy roasted mushrooms, creamy cooked spinach, panko-topped macaroni and cheese and a giant loaded baked potato  were good, well-executed steakhouse classics.

The 16-ounce ribeye and the 6-ounce filet we tried were nicely cooked, though each could have used more salt. We made up for it with the chunky salt that came with the bread board. Id have liked to try the house-roasted, herb-crusted prime rib, but both evenings we visited, it was sold out.

Hartmann said its not the most popular dish on the menu, but it can sometimes sell out.

Other proteins suffered more. A big, beautiful-looking bone-in grilled pork chop was dry enough that cutting into it took some muscle. The same thing happened with beef short ribs, undercooked and tough.

On another evening, in fact, we saw a diner with the short ribs mimic our complaint: too tough to cut. (That diner asked for and succeeded in having the dish removed from his bill.)

The spaetzle that accompanied this dish was dry and almost crunchy instead of tender.

Hartmann said that Rivas menu is simple and that seasoning and preparation are meant to be kept classic, too.

We dont want to overpower them, he said. We want to showcase the product.

Hartmann suggests that guests season their proteins with small pinch pots of salt and ground pepper on the tables. Sometimes the salts are flavored, he said.

I hoped Riva might have been a hidden gem  a fine dining spot in the most unexpected of places. But aside from a few winning dishes, I didnt find many winners.
Council Bluffs Assistant Fire Chief Chris Sorensen said he was blown away when he saw the statue of a firefighter being created by Omaha sculptor John Lajba for the Public Safety Plaza in Council Bluffs. Fire Chief Justin James echoed Sorensens remarks.

His detail is incredible, but thats really not a surprise, Sorensen said of Lajbas work. Hes come to the fire department numerous times. He borrowed equipment from us to study the detail. He asked us how things worked. He asked how we move when were working a fire.

His desire to have things correct is incredible, Sorensen added after he, James and City Attorney Dick Wade saw the clay version of the firefighter at Lajbas Omaha studio last Tuesday morning. I knew it would be good, but it was beyond my expectations.

Lajbas depiction of a firefighter carrying a young girl from a burning building  figures that are not based on any real individuals  is the fourth and final statue that will be included in the Public Safety Plaza being funded by Ron and Suzanne Mahoney.

The comments I heard from the chief and the assistant chief when they saw the work made me feel honored, Lajba said. They were playing out scenarios from their own experiences  what the firefighter might be going through, what the child being carried might be feeling  which are the kinds of things I was trying to depict in the statue.

Because of all the equipment the firefighter is wearing, most of the statues expression comes through the firefighters eyes, he said. They told me they tell children to look at the eyes of the firefighter  to look beyond all of the equipment  to see that the firefighter is a human. As an artist, it made me feel honored to have focused my effort on an element they see as important.

With the approval of the citys Public Art Commission, the Parks Board, the mayors office and the City Council, the Public Safety Plaza will be located on the south side of West Broadway, between Main and Pearl Streets.

In addition to the firefighter, the plaza will feature statues of a police officer with a K-9, a deputy sheriff and an Iowa State Patrol trooper. The plaza will also recognize the crucial role played by those working in the 911 Communications Center in getting help to those who need it and passing critical information on to those responding to the emergency.

A few months after the tragic death of Omaha Police officer and Council Bluffs resident Kerrie Orozco in May of 2015, two longtime Council Bluffs residents, Lloyd Marsh and Ron Mahoney, had a casual conversation about the need for our community  all communities  to show their appreciation for the men and women who provide police and fire protection. The need was underscored earlier this year when Pottawattamie County Deputy Sheriff Mark Burbridge was shot and killed while returning a prisoner from court to the Pottawattamie County Jail.

That breakfast conversation two years ago was the origin of an idea that will come to life when Council Bluffs dedicates what is believed to be a one-of-a-kind plaza honoring those who serve in the public safety arena.

There are so many in public safety who go unrecognized, Mahoney said. Its really unfortunate  particularly lately  that the acts of a few have given a black eye to those in public safety, especially our law enforcement officers. Most people dont understand or appreciate how much they and their families sacrifice to be there for us.

From the outset, my goal has been for this to become a destination  a place where people will come to recognize those who are living, not just those who are gone, Marsh said.

So far this year in the United States, 72 law enforcement officers and 61 firefighters have died in the line of duty.

As has been said so often, the men and women in public safety  our firefighters and our law enforcement officers  willingly run toward the very things that most of us would run away from, Mahoney said. We dont express our appreciation for what they do often enough and, when we do, its so often when someone has been injured or killed doing their job.

What these people do is important to all of us, and we should let them know, every chance we get, that we appreciate it.
Despite the rain, residents from Council Bluffs and beyond came out to enjoy the fourth annual Community Wellness Bash Saturday at Bayliss Park.

The family-friendly event featured about 60 vendors, bounce houses, raffle prizes and food, offering attendees a chance to learn about a variety of health and social services in the area.

We just want to showcase the opportunities in Council Bluffs, said Kimberly Kolakowski, the event chair for this years bash. Show everything we have available, pull the community resources together.

The Wellness Bash started in 2014 and has grown from there, said Kolakowski, who was among the key volunteers that brought the event to fruition. Everything is free, with no vendors allowed to sell anything.

Organizations on hand were Childrens Square, Safe Kids Worldwide, VODEC, Boys Town, the League of Human Dignity, All Care Health Center and the Council Bluffs Fire Department, among many. Nebraska Methodist College had its mobile diabetes center on hand. Across the street at First Congregational Church, volunteers served hamburgers and hot dogs while also handing out free clothing. The nearby Masonic Lodge hosted organizations doing blood pressure checks and other health screenings, along with dental checks.

Its been a lot of fun, and were meeting a lot of intriguing people, said 12-year-old Vicky Rief at the Masonic Lodge.

Rief and her mother, Laura, stopped by to have some fun and for Mom to say thank you.

We thought wed come down and check this out. Some of these family programs helped when my kids were young, Laura Rief said. I was able to thank them all for that.

Linda Edmonds of Council Bluffs stopped by to check things out and get her blood pressure numbers from All Care at the lodge.

I wanted to see the interesting things they have here, Edmonds said, noting she attended last years event. Its pretty cool.

Salana Lamkims with All Care said the Wellness Bash was a chance to help people check a component of their health while also letting people know about the services offered at the community health center, which helps many patients that dont have insurance or have financial hardships.

Were trying to get more people in there, Lamkims said of their location at 902 S. Sixth St.

Over at the United Healthcare booth at Bayliss, attendees rode bicycles to power blenders, creating smoothies. Kaia Uhrlaub, 12, and Kinsley Ferguson, 11, both of Underwood, were all smiles as they rode. Uhrlaub was there with her parents, Mike and Shawna, who own Flex Physical Therapy.

The rain came down at a steady clip for a while during the Wellness Bash and likely affected turnout, but umbrellas and a positive attitude kept many attendees moving from booth to booth or to First Congregational for a bite to eat. Kolakowski said about 700 people attended the event, down from last years total of around 1,200.

Taking in the sights and sounds at Bayliss, the event organizer had a smile that matched the children having fun with their families and friends.

This is awesome, Kolakowski said. It demonstrates how awesome this community is.
Workers are wrapping up construction of the new residential treatment complex on the north end of the Childrens Square U.S.A. campus at North Sixth Street and Avenue E.

Childrens Square has a license to occupy the building effective Aug. 18, said Carol Wood, president and CEO. A dedication will probably be held in late September or early October.

The project was handled by The Schemmer Associates architecture firm and Lund-Ross Constructors, Wood said.

Its been a wonderful team, she said. Its been on budget or under budget.

Consultants from Project Advocates helped keep it on time and on budget, she said.

The weather has aided construction in some ways, not so much in others, said Ben Gifford, construction supervisor for Lund-Ross.

The winter was mild but odd, he said. The temperatures were good, but we dealt with rain. It was the muddiest site Ive ever worked on.

Clients and board members got to tour the facility during the last board meeting, Wood said. Parents were set to get their turn this weekend, and alumni will have an opportunity to tour it during the annual alumni event next weekend.

When the kids came in, they were just in awe, she said. Theyre so excited. Its not a prison-looking place or a hospital-looking place.

The 23,880-square-foot complex includes three cottages  two for boys and one for girls  and a shared multipurpose area  all in a single structure. An existing cottage for girls, Cottonwood, will remain in service.

The project was financed through the $9 million Childrens Square Better Spaces, Brighter Futures Capital Campaign. Co-chairs for the drive were Dr. Alan Fisher and Dick Miller, along with their wives, Cordie Fisher and the late Deanna Miller. Honorary co-chairs for the fund drive were Mayor Matt Walsh and his wife, Barbara; the late Bill Ramsey and his wife, Pat; and Maria Fernandez.

The residentwial treatment complex will replace three existing dormitories that are outdated and no longer meet the safety, supervision and security needs to care for children with significant emotional and behavioral challenges. The new facility will have the necessary bedroom and bathroom configurations, programming space and a storm shelter.

What we really needed was more single bedrooms and better safety and security, Wood said.

Each cottage has its own kitchen, 14 beds and rooms for programming, she said. The residences have new furniture and appliances. Aside from three double rooms, all of the bedrooms are single.

Altogether, the cottages have a total of 54 beds, although Childrens Square is currently only licensed for 42 residents, Wood said. That gives staff the flexibility to group residents according to age, condition, interests or other factors. And, if the state approved a higher limit, the facility could serve additional youth.

Features were chosen with safety and security in mind. The building is always locked from the outside but not from the inside. The units feature induction stoves, which only heat up when a certain kind of cookware is placed over the heating elements, Wood said. Light fixtures are all built-in  there are no lamps that could be knocked over or thrown. Tables are heavy, and curtain rods and hooks are break-away. Window blinds have no strings. And the walls are reinforced to resist damage.

The common area has a TV area, a living room with no TV, a conference room, a comfort room with no door, a locking storage area, a kitchenette, and a staff station, Wood said.

Right now, staff sit in the hallway at night, she said.

Also in the common area is a FEMA-rated storm shelter, Wood said.

Weve never had a storm shelter, she said. Theyre under mattresses in the hallways when a storm comes now.

The shelter has tables and chairs, so it can be used as a classroom or conference room. The room could also be used to show movies  or tables and chairs could be moved to one side so it could be used for fitness classes. The shelter also has restrooms, in case residents need to be in it for an extended period of time.

The project has been rewarding because the building is for the youth, said Lund-Rosss Gifford.

I didnt realize the impact it would have until they got to see the results last week, he said.

Said Wood, Its an amazing building, and it wouldnt have been possible without the community stepping up to give so generously.

After residents move into the new complex, two of the former cottages will be converted into temporary schoolhouses so the academic center on campus can be renovated. Lund-Ross is also doing that project. The academic center houses the special education program for grades 1 through 12.

The current academic center is housed in a 5,380-square-foot, two-story building originally built in 1913 as a dormitory. It has since been divided into six classrooms but lacks space for a library, computer lab or lunchroom. It is not handicap accessible and has just one bathroom stall on each floor.

In addition to young people in the residential treatment program, the academic center serves students in the Council Bluffs community and surrounding school districts who qualify for the facilitys level of special education instruction.
OMAHA  The company that bought ConAgra Foods troubled private-label business 18 months ago is still struggling to operate it profitably.

Illinois-based TreeHouse Foods, with offices in Omaha, on Thursday announced a plan to restructure its company by 2020. In phase one, its closing packaged-food factories in Minnesota and Indiana and cutting back production at a plant in Alabama. A total of 375 jobs will be cut in those places.

TreeHouse also said it would more fully integrate the former ConAgra business and cut costs. A spokesman said TreeHouse still employs about 280 people in Omaha. It said it would provide more details on restructuring in February 2018.

Executives said the factory cuts would help TreeHouse compete and improve profits.

Despite the toll they exact, these measures are required if we are to remain competitive in a rapidly changing marketplace for packaged foods, Chief Executive Officer Sam Reed said.

In buying the ConAgra private-label business for $2.7 billion last year, TreeHouse became the countrys largest maker of such food. Private labels are products  like crackers and cereal  that TreeHouse makes, but which are sold under grocery retailers own brand names. It aimed to win back sales and accounts that had been lost since ConAgra Foods acquired the business in 2013  then called Ralcorp  for 2 times the price that TreeHouse paid.

Despite its early optimism, TreeHouse had trouble with the business from the first few months. Last fall, it switched up executives, closed its fourth plant since buying the ConAgra business and reorganized its sales team.

Thursdays announcement of more closures and cuts comes amid falling sales and a net loss.

TreeHouse said Thursday its net sales for the second quarter fell 1.2 percent to $1.5 billion, because of the sale of a soup business. It reported a loss of $34.2 million, or 60 cents per share, compared to net income of $19 million, or 33 cents per share, in the second quarter a year ago.

Recovery has been slower than we originally anticipated, Reed said.

He said TreeHouse is making progress integrating the former ConAgra business with its own, and has paid down debt. But Reed pointed to commodity cost increases, mentioned slow growth across the retail food industry and said the company hasnt been operating efficiently enough given lower-than-anticipated sales volumes.

Reed said he still believes that TreeHouse is the company best-positioned to help supermarkets grow through private-label goods.

TreeHouse stock dropped sharply in Thursday trading: Shares fell nearly 12 percent to close at $74.16 each on the New York Stock Exchange. The stock is down more than 28 percent in the past year.
HELENA, Mont.  The drought plaguing eastern Montana and much of North and South Dakota came on quickly and is intensifying, leading ranchers to sell their cattle and farmers to harvest early whatever crops have grown so far this summer.

Just three months ago, no areas of moderate drought were recorded in the Northern Plains region by the U.S. Drought Monitor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. But Julys soaring temperatures and lack of rain quickly parched the soil and dried up waterways, creating what climatologists call a flash drought.

Now, 62 percent of North Dakota, more than half of South Dakota and 40 percent of Montana are in severe, extreme or exceptional drought, according to the drought monitors weekly report released Thursday. There are also pockets of drought in the Southern Plain states of Nebraska, Iowa, Oklahoma and Texas.

In Montana, 12 percent of the states land is experiencing exceptional drought, meaning widespread crop and pasture losses and water-shortage emergencies, mainly in the northeastern part of the state.

We would expect to see conditions that bad once or twice in 100 years, said Deborah Bathke, a climatologist at the University of Nebraska-Lincolns National Drought Mitigation Center and a co-author of the drought monitor.

The effect has been devastating on farmers and ranchers. Farmers are harvesting beans, peas and lentils two or three weeks earlier than normal, with a yield of about half of what they see in a normal year, said Lola Raska of the Montana Grain Growers Association.

Wheat crop yields are even worse, coming in at about a third of normal, she said.

A lot of wheat prices are still very low, Raska said. That, in addition to low yields, is going to have a ripple effect throughout the entire economy.

Jay Bodner of the Montana Stockgrowers Association said the extreme drought means ranchers are running out of pasture and water. They are reducing their herds by selling older cows and weaning and shipping young calves early.

It could take years for ranchers to build their herds back up, meaning extended economic losses, Bodner said.

These high temperatures in July deteriorated things really quickly, he said. We typically dont see those severe conditions.

The region saw more than 20 days in July with temperatures that exceeded 90 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. Rainfall for the month ranged from trace amounts in eastern Montanas Miles City to 1.68 inches (4.27 centimeters) in Bismarck, North Dakota.

Half of Montanas 1.5 million head of cattle are in drought areas, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. U.S. government officials have opened more federal land to grazing and water is being trucked in, but those are temporary fixes, Bodner said.

The drought also made the land more vulnerable to wildfires. Montanas largest fire devastated more than 420 square miles of farm and ranchland in eastern Montana, compounding the problems for growers in the region.

The outlook is grim with the National Weather Services Climate Prediction Center predicting the drought will last into the fall, with higher-than-normal temperatures and low precipitation expected.

That could force farmers to delay fall planting and ranchers to make more cattle reductions.

If these conditions persist well into the fall, it will have ramifications of some more magnitude, Bodner said.
Editors Note: The Dodge Connection is an ongoing series of articles tracing the history of Gen. Grenville M. Dodge, one of Council Bluffs most famous residents, as well as the varied connections of Dodge and the Dodge family members to the residents and businesses in the Council Bluffs-Omaha community.

Sylvanus, father of G.M. & N.P. Dodge, began to sell the farm life to his wife and daughter in earnest.

His methods seem to range from scolding at their frivolity and riotous living in the little settlement of Omaha and Council Bluffs to descriptions of the joys of the simple life. He was also apparently not above throwing in a few dismal appeals to his wife  hints that he was not well or not able to properly care for himself etc.

January 7, 1858

Dear Wife: You seem to think my room must be dark and gloomy, with but one window in it. It would have been convenient to have had another window in it, and it was my intention to have one but time and expense would not now permit it  but no darkness has gloom and loneliness for me  I had rather live retired and even in darkness than in the daylight of Hoops, Hops, and the continual round of Activities, hollow-hearted show in the moonshine of hypocrisy that is daily and nightly enjoyed in Omaha and at Bluffs! My cabin is nicely painted up and very comfortable though last night was terribly cold night, and the water and what little milk I had froze. I have put up some lining against my bed, and back of lounge, but have not half enough to line the whole room. After I got the bark off the logs and got painted up Mrs. Richardson kindly volunteered to come and scrub up the floor, Table, Closet, etc., and assist me in putting things in order. Mrs. Fifield has also looked in upon me and gave me a good sized piece of Beef. I often receive compliments on my improvements here, the neighbors and others think I have the best Log Cabin and much the finest stable they have seen in the Territory, with plenty of hay and several Cribs of Corn it looks as though someone lived here. They say it looks as though some Eastern Farmer was here  on my stable I am particularly complimented, and everyone, except yourself, consider this a beautiful site for a residence. There is a rural beauty that is quite captivating.

I think Jule might come out and stay awhile, and settle down her New Years and Christmas flirtations. There is plenty of room here for her to swing her hoofs without obstructions, if she will come and bring some pork with her she may have plenty of eggs to eat with it or to make pancakes of. ~ Sylvanus

January 15, 1858

Dear Wife: I think Jule could start a small school here. I have already spoken to Starrs and McNeal and they would send two children, each. With no other schooling at all around here, Jule could do well. And she would do better out here, if she is ever to be of any account. While she is in the gaiety of Omaha, she will never do anything, that is sure. If I can have Jule I can get along  make butter, cook, take care of 24 head of cattle, ten pigs, three horses and three oxen. You say you have not eaten meat for a long time. We have not eaten any fresh meat since I was in here. Eat potatoes and salt pork and yellow bread three times a day, occasionally have some milk, but have not tasted of a pudding or anything of the kind. We boil greens sometimes. We have drunk no coffee for a month nor but little tea. Have neither rice nor beans. We very nearly follow the Scripture injunction, giving ourselves but little thought what we shall eat or what we shall drink. ~Sylvanus

January 30, 1858

Dear Nate: I have such a cough upon me, proceeding from my left lung, that I must try to do something or it will soon carry me over the Bay. O dear, the nights are tedious. I drink some of the Slippery Elm bark, but I dont see as it relieves me. I want you to go to Dr. Honnis and tell him and see if he cannot give me something to relieve me. Mrs. Richardson killed a Prairie Chicken from her window yesterday. If my gun had been in order this morning, I could have done the same. But I have no worm on the rod to draw a charge or clean it. ~ Sylvanus

March 2, 1858

Dear Nate: Nothing but ill luck seems to attend us, we opened a hole of Potatoes yesterday and out of 70 bushells buried, we have not got out more than 8. I discovered the top was settled in  and then knew they must be rotten, and so we found them. We have got our corn nearly husked  and I found it heating in the middle, considerable of it was unripe when it was put in cribs, and all such is more or less mouldy and unfit for anything except pigs or cattle. Such ill luck is discouraging to me almost beyond description  after toiling and sweating, and fretting, to get things done, then to have them turn to dust or what is no better, leaves but little for a man to hope for at my age  and this in addition to other embarrassing circumstances , places me beyond hope. Yesterday I bought two calves some ten weeks old for $3.25 or $1.67 a piece, one is a bull the other a heifer, of good size. ~Sylvanus

March 18, 1858

Dear Nate: The Pawnee Indians have been driven out by the rise of water  the Elkhorn was never higher  and they are all camped on this side of the river. As they come along, I get one of them to help me now and then. The heifer had been out all night to calve and I could not find them. The Pawnee, however, came along and told me where she was. The heifer was so weak she could not get up alone. While helping her and the calf back, it poured rain and I was drenched. All the unattached men are catching gold fever, leaving without a word. Almost every farm has lost hands, Dye, as I wrote, left me last week and I have been alone since. The Indians have cut a sash out of Grens house and stole our bed cord, letting the bed sag to the floor. You see the disadvantage of trying to keep a nice cabin in this region. ~Sylvanus

For another year, Sylvanus stayed at the Elkhorn farm, always urging his family to join him. He frequently went into town to add personal persuasion but nothing could get them to return. By late summer of 1859, after four years of developing the ranch, Sylvanus at 58 years old is thinking of joining his old settler friend, McNeal, in a trading trip deep in Indian Country. By this time, the Dodge claims to the Elkhorn farm land were solidly held and he found a farmer whom he trusted as a tenant.

June 2, 1859

Dear Nate: What do you think of my going with him? If I could make $300 or $400* what a lift it would give us. And if I ever earn any more money it must be soon as I am growing old and will soon be past all labour. Those who trade with the Indians make money and McNeal is among the best. He is going into the Shian (Cheyenne) Country to trade with them and the Sioux. He gets news daily from Emigrants and others. They buy buffalo robes off them for a song. He has bought some 30 of those flintlock guns for 17c apiece, has lots of flour and other articles to carry out. All he wants me to do is a saddle horse and $20 to go in equal shares. Have nothing to do but assist him in selling the goods. Of course, if I go, I will withdraw my name from the Legislature. But it can still be used at a Convention to be called at some future time at this place. But the Legislature would pay a little money if I won. I have said I must run as an Independent Democrat because I am not a Buchanan Democrat. But they tell me that the matters for legislation will be chiefly local. ~Sylvanus

June 15, 1859

Dear Nate: The bearer of this note has just returned from above Fort Kearney, from a place called Kearney City, where goods are selling at very high prices and big profits for the trader. He can give you information you might like to know. McNeal and myself are ready to go to any point most favorable to dispose of flour and other goods. We will decide in a day or so. In consequence of having our wagon filled to the top of the hoops, preventing us entirely from sleeping in it, we have bought a tent from a returning Prophet for $4. As I had not enough money to pay for it, I borrowed same from Kountze and gave him a check on you. We are off soon and will get word back to you as I can. ~Sylvanus

* For over a year Sylvanus roamed the West, from Nebraska to Wyoming, the Dakotas and Montana. He made well over $300 to $400 ($8,090 to $10,787 today) that would give the family a lift and returned to Omaha and his wife and daughter, Jule. Soon they moved back across the river to Council Bluffs and settled down. His roots had survived the transplanting from the East and were firmly established in the new West. He lived vigorously until a few weeks after his 70th birthday.
Two IPS officers in Chhattisgarh were removed from the service by the government for alleged non-performance, a home ministry official said.

By PTI: Two IPS officers in Chhattisgarh were removed from the service by the government for alleged non-performance, a home ministry official said.

A M Juri, who belonged to the 2000-batch of the Indian Police Service, and K C Agrawal, who joined the IPS in 2002, were removed following a recommendation of the Chhattisgarh government as they were found to be "dead wood", the official said.

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The order removing them was issued by the home ministry yesterday, after an approval of the Appointments Committee of Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The performance of both the DIG-rank officers were reviewed after completion of their 15 years of service in the IPS and both of them were found unfit to continue in the service, the official said.

Juri, who joined the state police service in 1983, was promoted to the IPS in 2000, while Agrawal joined the state police service in 1985 and was promoted to IPS in 2002.

They were removed as per the All India Services Rules- 1958 "in the public interest" after extensive review of the service performance of the two officers, who have completed 15 years of qualifying service.

"Performance review of IPS officers was conducted to weed out dead wood," the officer said.

Performance review of an all-India service officer is conducted twice- first after the completion of 15 years of qualifying service, and then after 25 years.

According to the service rules, the Central Government may, in consultation with the state government concerned, require a member of the service to retire in public interest, after giving at least three-month notice in writing or as many months pay and allowances in lieu of such notice.

Another home ministry official said there were complaints of alleged misconduct by the two officers.

In January, Mayank Sheel Chohan, a 1998-batch Union Territory cadre officer, and Raj Kumar Dewangan, a-1992 batch Chhattisgarh cadre officer, were removed from the service on similar grounds.

ALSO READ:

Centre sacks 2 IPS officers for non-performance

133 officers given premature retirement: Govt

--- ENDS ---
The Environmental Protection Agency apparently listened after 15 states sued over a proposed delay of rules intended to reduce emissions of smog-causing air pollutants.

One day after 15 states sued him, EPA chief Scott Pruitt backtracked on the delay of the President Barack Obama-era rules, a delay he had justified by saying his agency was being more responsive than past administrations to states needs.

The Associated Press noted that Pruitt made no mention Wednesday of the legal challenges to his earlier stand.

The AP reported that at issue is an Oct. 1 deadline for states to begin meeting standards for ground-level ozone. Pruitt announced in June that he would hold off compliance by one year so the EPA had more time to study the plan and avoid interfering with local decisions or impeding economic growth.

In addition to the suit by a group of states including Iowa, Pruitt was sued last month by a dozen public health and environmental groups, including the American Lung Association, Physicians for Social Responsibility and the Sierra Club.

The EPA was required to file a response in that case by Thursday.

Ground-level ozone is created when common pollutants emitted by cars, power plants, oil refineries, chemical plants and other sources react in the atmosphere to sunlight.

The resulting smog can cause serious breathing problems among sensitive groups of people, contributing to thousands of premature deaths each year.

New Yorks attorney general, Eric Schneiderman, said the states intend to keep up the pressure to make sure the rules on the matter are adequate and enforced.

The EPAs reversal  following our lawsuits  is an important win for the health and safety of those 6.7 million New Yorkers, and the over 115 million Americans directly impacted by smog pouring into their communities, the AP quoted Schneiderman as saying.

New York was joined in the case by Iowa, along with California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington, and the District of Columbia.

Pruitt got the issue wrong from the outset, as he often is on environmental matters, a troubling fact for the head of the EPA.

Pruitt previously was Oklahomas attorney general and has long opposed stricter environmental rules. At the EPA, he repeatedly has acted to block or delay regulations opposed by the chemical and fossil-fuel industries.

But were happy to see the EPA reconsider and move forward with an ozone program aimed at improving air quality.

With a subpar chief in charge of the agency, its good to know that pressure from rational outside actors can have an impact.
By PTI: By Youssra El-Sharkawy

Cairo, Aug 6 (PTI) Two terrorists have been killed during raids carried out by the army in Egypts restive North Sinai governorate, officials said today.

Army spokesperson Tamer el-Refae said that the Takfiri terrorists were "very dangerous" and wanted by the authorities.

A main tunnel on the Sinai border line was discovered and destroyed, he said.

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Egypts North Sinai has witnessed many terror attacks since January 2011 uprising that toppled ex-president Hosni Mubarak.

The attacks, targeting police and military, increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 by military following massive protests against his rule.

Hundreds of police and army personnel have been killed since then.

The military has launched security operations in the North Sinai area where some terrorists are based.

The security forces have arrested suspects and demolished houses that belong to terrorists, including those facilitating tunnels leading to the Gaza Strip. PTI YES CPS

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School hasnt started, but one classroom at St. Patricks High School was full of people eager to learn on Saturday.

About 15 people attended a class offered by the Fontenelle Forests Raptor Recovery Program so that they could receive training to become a volunteer transporter. Some have been transporters for years, others were new to the program. Some traveled from as far as Alliance and Syracuse to attend.

Denise Lewis, Raptor Recovery volunteer coordinator, said the group had two meetings a year to reconnect with current volunteers and train new ones. In her 19 years with Raptor Recovery, Lewis has trained hundreds of people to transport eagles, falcons, hawks and other large birds of prey to the Recovery Center. There are currently 84 transporters across Nebraska.

During the class, volunteers learned skills such as how to identify different types of birds, how they should be handled and how to collect information that will help with the birds recovery and release.

Lewis said the training is important because the program sees about 600 bird of prey in need of assistance every year and having an untrained individual try to rescue a bird could result in injury to the animal or the person.

Lewis explained that an eagle, for example, is 60 percent muscle and their talons can cut through clothing, skin and tissue. If an eagle needs to be rescued, its vital that the rescuer knows what they are doing.

The class watched several demonstrations, including one where Raptor Recovery founder Betsy Finch and director Janet Stander wrapped up the wing of a kestrel. The class then practiced dressing wounds and re-setting bones on raptor carcasses.

This is a good hands-on training, Lewis said.

Volunteers were also given a supply of bandages, ointment and other necessities for their transporter work.

For more information about the Raptor Recovery program or becoming a volunteer, visit fontenelleforest.org or contact Lewis at dlewis@fontenelleforest.org or at 402-651-7727.

Anyone who finds a raptor that needs assistance should call the toll-free hotline at 1-866-888-7261 and visit www.fontenelleforest.org/found-raptor.
The slowdown in Nebraskas economy and the resulting state budget pinch require serious belt-tightening by state institutions. Its encouraging to see that the University of Nebraska is going about that difficult task in a responsible way.

NU faces a $49 million budget gap resulting from state funding cuts and increased costs for expenses such as salaries and insurance.

NU President Hank Bounds provided details this week on the universitys budget strategy. The basic components: $30 million in efficiencies and cuts and $19 million from increases in tuition and enrollment.

Resident undergraduates will see a 5.4 percent increase in tuition costs for the new school year and a 3.2 increase the following year.

The university will eliminate at least 100 positions through attrition or layoffs. NU will seek efficiencies across its campuses by consolidating functions for facilities, energy, procurement and human resources.

To develop its budget strategy, NU created 10 specialized committees with broad representation across NU campuses.

This collaborative approach is important in promoting buy-in and enabling effective adoption of new procedures such as the consolidations. NU generates 11,000 graduates each year and is an important pillar in the states development of a skilled workforce. It plays a key role in strengthening agriculture and other components of Nebraskas economy.

Just as NU has an obligation to handle its finances responsibly, state leaders should be mindful of providing adequate funding for the state university system for the long term. NU is a pivotal player in Nebraskas future.

 The Omaha World-Herald
Aug. 6, 1962

The Women's Committee of the Cayuga County "Gordon for Congress" committee will honor Senator Janet Hill Gordon at a reception from 2 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, August 14 at the Women's Union, 25 South Street.

The announcement was made today by the committee and was included in a listing of the pre-primary schedule of Senator Gordon in Cayuga County.

Senator Gordon will arrive in Auburn this Friday for a handshaking tour of the super markets. The Senator said, "I want to meet lots of people. I want and need their thinking."

She will remain in Auburn over night and will meet with her Auburn city chairman, Mrs. Richard D. Clapp, and the Auburn segment of her county organization at 10 a.m.

At 10:30 p.m. Sunday, August 12, Mrs. Gordon will join those people attending the St. Francis bazaar at St. Francis Church, Clark St.

Monday, August 13, the senator will visit the northern townships of the county, and will return to hold a press conference at noon at Auburn Inn. After the press conference, Mrs. Gordon will open her Auburn Headquarters at 147 Genesee St. and at 4 p.m. she will join the people attending the Big 6 Picnic at Owasco Lake Park.

On Tuesday, prior to the afternoon reception at Women's Union, Mrs. Gordon will be making local plant visitations, as well as attending home coffee hours now being arranged for her.

According to the committee, the reception is open to the public, and will present Mrs. Gordon an opportunity to meet with those interested in meeting her, and to discuss her views and her qualifications to succeed U.S. Rep. John Taber in his congressional post.

Mrs. Gordon will address the Auburn Rotary at a noon meeting Aug. 21.

Senator Gordon is the candidate who was endorsed by the delegates to a convention held in Cortland, attended by two members of each county in the 35th Congressional District, and since then has received the endorsement of five of the eight counties in this district. Cayuga County has made no endorsement for the congressional post.

Senator Gordon is a graduate of Syracuse University and Brooklyn Law School, magna cum laude. She is a member of the New York State and the Chenango County Bar Association, a member of the New York State Division of the American Cancer Society and a member of both the American Legion and Veteran of Foreign War auxiliaries. She is a member of the board of directors of the Chenango County Bank and Trust Co., and was the first woman in the state to serve as her county's attorney. She is chairman of one joint legislative committee and member of eight others.

She is a mother and homemaker. She was a New York State assemblyman for 12 years, and New York State Senator since 1958.
The European Union has floated a figure of 60 billion euros and wants significant progress on settling Britain's liabilities before talks can start on complex issues such as future trading arrangements.

Britain is prepared to pay up to 40 billion euros ($47 billion) as part of a deal to leave the European Union.

By Reuters: Britain is prepared to pay up to 40 billion euros ($47 billion) as part of a deal to leave the European Union, the Sunday Telegraph newspaper reported, citing three unnamed sources familiar with Britain's negotiating strategy.

The European Union has floated a figure of 60 billion euros and wants significant progress on settling Britain's liabilities before talks can start on complex issues such as future trading arrangements.

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The government department responsible for Brexit talks declined to comment on the Sunday Telegraph article. So far, Britain has given no official indication of how much it would be willing to pay.

The newspaper said British officials were likely to offer to pay 10 billion euros a year for three years after leaving the EU in March 2019, then finalise the total alongside detailed trade talks.

Payments would only be made as part of a deal that included a trade agreement, the newspaper added.

"We know (the EU's) position is 60 billion euros, but the actual bottom line is 50 billion euros. Ours is closer to 30 billion euros but the actual landing zone is 40 billion euros, even if the public and politicians are not all there yet," the newspaper quoted one "senior Whitehall source" as saying.

Whitehall is the London district where British civil servants and ministers are based.

A second Whitehall source said Britain's bottom line was "30 billion euros to 40 billion euros" and a third source said Prime Minister Theresa May was willing to pay "north of 30 billion euros", the Sunday Telegraph reported.

David Davis, the British minister in charge of Brexit talks, said on July 20 that Britain would honour its obligations to the EU but declined to confirm that Brexit would require net payments.

British foreign secretary Boris Johnson, a leading Brexit advocate, said last month the EU could "go whistle" if it made "extortionate" demands for payment.

Last week the Bank of England said Brexit uncertainty was weighing on the economy. Finance minister Philip Hammond wants to avoid unsettling businesses further.

If Britain cannot conclude an exit deal, trade relations would be governed by World Trade Organization rules, which would allow both parties to impose tariffs and customs checks and leave many other issues unsettled.

The EU has also wants agreement by October on rights of EU citizens already in Britain, and on border controls between the Irish Republic and the British province of Northern Ireland, before trade and other issues are discussed.

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ALSO READ |

Britain and European Union launch Brexit talks in Brussels

European Union court's headscarf ban ruling sparks faith group backlash

Brexit: In Brussels, UK PM Theresa May offers EU expats a 'fair' deal

ALSO WATCH | UK PM Theresa May encounters first parliamentary defeat over Brexit talks

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The First Job Series is provided by the Youth Employment Council of the Northwest Indiana Workforce Board. The Youth Employment Council continues to urge employers to take a chance on a young person by providing them with a first-time work experience.

Dr. Michael P. Livovich is an educational consultant in Northwest Indiana.

Q: What was your first job?

Livovich: I flipped burgers and poured frosty mugs of root beer at the Portage A & W drive in. The year was 1967 and I made a whopping 90 cents an hour. I worked two days after school and the weekends.

Q: What did you do with your earnings?

Livovich: My goal was to buy my first car so I put most of it in the bank.

Q: What did you like about the job?

Livovich: I was proud to have been hired. I also liked cooking.

Q: What did you not like about the work?

Livovich: Cooking on a hot, summer day was grueling; plus, I was constantly getting grease burns. The first thing I did when I got home was to take a shower. I also had a boss who was constantly yelling at me.

Q: What did you learn from this first job?

Livovich: This job taught me that I did not like working in a hot kitchen in the summer, and that I felt more comfortable working in a place where I could provide customer service.

Q: What advice do you have for a young about to begin their first job?

Livovich: Dress and groom appropriately; arrive at least five minutes early and be ready to work; arrive earlier if you have questions about what is expected of you; do your job better each and every day; take no breaks unless they are prescribed; if you smoke, do not sneak away to smoke unless it is on your break; stop smoking, its expensive and not good for you;

never talk back to your employer. If your boss speaks to you, maintain eye contact; ask questions if you are unclear about what has been said. If you work in a fast food restaurant, never take food from your employer if a meal is not provided. Always pay for what you eat and ask for a receipt; never quit your job without giving proper notice. And before you leave, shake the hand of your boss and thank them for the opportunity to have worked for them.

Q: What advice do you have for employers that hire youth?

Livovich: A mistake some employers commit is expecting kids to know what to do and how they should behave in the workplace. Many simply do not know workplace expectations, so we have to teach them. All kids today are not taught at home the importance of a strong work ethic. In order to grow great employees, we have to do the teaching. If a bond of trust and respect is developed, the employee will always pay it forward. Maybe they will come back to you as a young adult and ask for more advice and help. This brings great honor to the employer.
GARY  The 15-year-old shot Tuesday night by an officer as he fled police has died, according to authorities.

Kemonte Cobbs, 15, of Gary, was pronounced dead at 3:49 p.m. Wednesday at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn.

Mark Back, spokesman for the Lake County Sheriff's Office, confirmed Cobbs was one of five suspected in the armed robbery Tuesday at The Cellular Connection, an authorized Verizon retailer at Ridge Road and Calumet Avenue in Munster.

Police caught up with the suspects' vehicle in the area of 19th Place and Hanley Street in Gary, but all but one of the suspects fled. A preliminary investigation shows Cobbs allegedly pointed a firearm at police during the incident, Back said.

One weapon was found with the Cobbs, police said. At least one other handgun was recovered from inside the vehicle, he added. Munster police are processing the vehicle for evidence, according to police.

As other suspects ran, the driver, Vondell Henry Jr., 20, of Gary, followed an officers orders to lie on the ground, records show. Henry is among two adults charged in the case so far. A third person, a juvenile, was also charged.

Henry and Deshalone Damien Davis, 20, of Gary, have each been charged with robbery under the federal Hobbs Act and with brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, court records show.

A 17-year-old, whose name is being withheld because of his juvenile status, has also been charged in the case, FBI Special Agent Bob Ramsey said.

The FBI has taken over the case, which had previously been under the Munster Police Departments jurisdiction, he said. Investigators are looking into whether these men are connected to a string of other, violent cellphone store robberies in the Region, he added.

A fifth suspect remained at large as of Friday.

The Lake County Sheriff's Department is investigating the shooting at the request of the Gary Police Department, sheriff's department spokesman Mark Back said. Police are still investigating whether any shots were fired at police, he said.

Results from the police-involved shooting will be forwarded to the Lake County Prosecutor's Office upon completion, per protocol, Back said. The prosecutor's office will determine what further action may be taken, he said.
CROWN POINT  A 4-year-old boy accidentally shot himself with a gun he found at a babysitter's house Saturday afternoon, authorities said.

Eric Cole, of Wheatfield, died from a gunshot wound Saturday afternoon in the 7700 block of East 120th Avenue in Crown Point, according to the Lake County Coroner's office.

Mark Back, with the Lake County Sheriff's Department, said police responded to the home at about 10:50 a.m.

He said the boy found a firearm, which was located in a case under a bed in an upstairs bedroom.

The boy was able to open the case, grab the firearm and fire a single shot, fatally striking himself, Back said.

It "appears to be an accident," Back said.

The coroner's release lists his manner of death as pending.

Cole was pronounced dead at 12:06 p.m. at Franciscan Health in Crown Point.

The Lake County Sheriff's Department and the department's Crime Investigations Unit are investigating.

Investigators do not expect charges to be filed, Back said. Additional details will be released as they become available, Back said.
HAMMOND  Region native and former U.S. ambassador Carolyn Curiel on Saturday blasted President Donald Trump's plans for a merit-based immigration system for those wishing to enter the U.S. and gain citizenship.

Curiel, the executive director at the Purdue Institute for Civic Communication and former senior speech writer to President Bill Clinton, said the legislation would give advantages to highly skilled workers with high-paying job offers. It also factors in age, English language skills and education level.

"It doesn't count family unification as a valid reason for letting someone into the United Sates legally," Curiel said.

Her comments came near the start of the Immigration Education Conference 2017  an inaugural event hosted at Morton High School by the School City of Hammond's teachers unions, along with several sponsors, including North Township Trustee Frank Mrvan's office and the American Federation of Teachers.

The event aimed to educate teachers, attorneys, students and families about immigration policies.

"This day is the work of many people who are committed to help," Curiel said. "This network of help starts with parents. They do the hard work to make a home, feed families, take care of them and care of students' studies. (This network) extends to teachers, schools, lawyers, local and national leaders and advocates all who want every child to succeed," Curiel said.

One of the many teachers in attendance, Scott Middle School teacher Arielle Bahena, said her father migrated in the 1970s to the United States from Mexico for a better life and a good-paying job.

He was able to obtain citizenship with relatively few hurdles, she said, after marrying the woman who would one day become Bahena's mother.

Gaining citizenship in today's tense, political climate is a much different story  with toughening federal deportation and refugee policies under the new administration.

"I want to help our students feel comfortable and safe at school. I want families to know they do have rights," Bahena said.

Patrick O'Rourke, social activist and president of the Hammond Teachers' Federation, said Saturday's conference is only the beginning of a much larger movement in Northwest Indiana.

"We are going to be engaged in this social justice issue from this point on, on a very active basis," O'Rourke said.

Saturday's workshops included sessions about ICE raids, threats of deportation, cultural sensitivity and building support systems, attorney-client issues and welcoming city ordinances being passed in Lake County.

One offered resources for non-English speaking parents with children in the school system.

Mayra Rodriguez-Alvarez, an employee in Mrvan's office, said her husband was diagnosed this past fall with kidney failure but no one would put him on a waiting list because of his undocumented status.

The two struggled for some time, but Rodriguez-Alvazrez fought back, researching their options, and ultimately, her husband obtained a green card in April and a transplant in June.

"The more people that know (how immigration law works), and the more we start this conversation ... we'll get more support and hopefully finally change this," she said. "No human being is illegal."

Welcoming City ordinances

Immigration attorney Alfredo Estrada led a workshop educating attorneys about the complexities of immigrant law and clients' rights when faced with deportation.

Estrada has spent the past few months urging city councils across Northwest Indiana to approve Welcoming City Ordinances. It not only signals to undocumented individuals that a city is welcoming, but puts that policy in writing, he said.

Estrada, who helped craft the ordinances to work with Indiana law, said it prohibits cities from offering benefits based on legal status, coercing or threatening a person based on citizenship status, and taking part in federal programs that register people based on their race, religion or national origin.

Cities are also acknowledging in the ordinance they won't use scarce city resources on immigration enforcement  which is a federal responsibility, he said.

Gary and East Chicago have passed ordinances, and Lake Station's council has passed it on first read for further review. As more cities come on board and he builds momentum, he'll take the ordinance to other cities for consideration.

"South Lake County has a growing, large Latino population that's hidden," Estrada said. "Before we go there, we want to build momentum. It's an uncomfortable conversation, but one we have to have."
VALPARAISO  Blessed with beautiful weather, Valparaiso Firefighters Local 1124 held their annual picnic Saturday at Foundation Meadows Park.

In addition to playing in the park and enjoying free hot dogs and burgers, the public was invited to donate school supplies for local children.

This is our way to say thanks to the community for supporting us and to donate school items, explained firefighter Nick Kiega, who chaired the picnic.

Local 1124 President Nick Nondorf, whose late father Dave was a former Valparaiso fire chief, noted, The public does a lot for us, and this is one way we can give back.

Nondorf cited the communitys support of firefighter boot drives, which raise funds for the Hoosier Burn Center and Muscular Dystrophy Association, as examples.

This was the first time the firefighters, working with the Valparaiso Parks Department, invited the Valpo Schools Foundation to collect donations of school supplies.

Mark Hardwick, vice president of the foundation board, explained the foundation raises funds that are returned to schools through grants and college scholarships for Valparaiso High School seniors.

The collection of school supplies. Hardwick said, certainly helps the needy children in the school district to have supplies, especially if they cant afford them.

Donated supplies from the public and fire department, Hardwick noted, would be sorted and then distributed to local elementary and middle schools in time for the start of the school year Aug. 14.

Children and adults delivered donations to the foundation tent. Among the donors was Sig Berg, father of Valparaiso Firefighter Eric Berg. Sig Berg, whose grandson Myles will enter Valparaiso schools next year said, Kids need help nowadays.

Donning a firefighter backer T-shirt, Berg added, We support everything our son Eric does.

While some folks enjoyed the food, playground equipment, and trails, others made use of the water curtain. That included Brady Eaton, 5. After running through the sprinkler several times, the Valparaiso boy returned to his father, Tad Eaton, who supplied a drying towel.

Tad Eaton, who with his son donated school supplies, described the picnic as amazing, awesome.

However, the father pointed out, the real value of the picnic was helping with school supplies.

I try to teach my son, there are kids who dont have things, Eaton said. I want him to learn these things now, so he can carry them on as an adult.

Another donor was Loretta Frank, a custodian at Benjamin Franklin Middle School.

So many kids dont have money to get out and buy things  too many kids, Frank said. Im glad to be able to help out as much as I can.
LOS ANGELES  Fox News said Saturday that it has suspended Eric Bolling, co-host of its late-afternoon news program "The Specialists," while it investigates allegations he sent a lewd photo to co-workers.

Word of the suspension came one day after a HuffPost report relying on anonymous sources stated Bolling had sent a lewd photo to at least three female colleagues at Fox News and Fox Business.

"Eric Bolling has been suspended pending the results of an investigation, which is currently underway," Fox News said in a brief statement.

An attorney for Bolling, Michael J. Bowe, denied the allegations.

"The anonymous, uncorroborated claims are untrue and terribly unfair," Bowe wrote in an email Saturday. "We intend to fully cooperate with the investigation so that it can be concluded and Eric can return to work as quickly as possible."

Bolling is the best-known personality on "The Fox News Specialists," a program that airs weekdays at 5 p.m. EDT. The show replaced the network's series "The Five" in April. He also hosts the weekend show "Cashin' In."

He joined Fox News in 2008 after working as a commodities trader, according to his bio on the network's website.

A vocal supporter of President Donald Trump, Bolling wrote a March op-ed accusing House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, and establishment Republicans of betraying the president with their version of a plan to overhaul the nation's health system.

The suspension is the latest in a string of sexual harassment complaints against personalities who appear on Fox News and Fox Business Network. In July, Fox Business host Charles Payne was suspended after the Los Angeles Times reported based on anonymous sources that he harassed a female political analyst.

Payne remains suspended while an investigation into the allegations continues.

Other allegations were leveled against Fox News' former star, Bill O'Reilly, who was fired in April after several women reported being harassed by the host.

The network's founding leader, Roger Ailes, resigned in July 2016 because of harassment allegations. He died in May after a fall at his home.

Bolling's suspension came on the heels of a defamation lawsuit filed last Tuesday against Fox by a private investigator. The lawsuit accuses the network of making up quotes and pushing a false story that benefits Trump, even inviting the chief executive into the editorial process.

Both Fox and the Trump administration denied the lawsuit's claims. Fox called it "completely erroneous" to suggest it drove the story to distract from the Russia investigation. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the president had no knowledge of the false story before it was posted.
Uttar Pradesh policemen today arrested a Bangladeshi national suspected to be a member of the Ansarullah Bangla Team, a militant outfit.

By India Today Web Desk: The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad today placed under arrest a man suspected of being a Bangladeshi terrorist. The man, identified as Abdullah, was arrested from Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar district.

Officials released his photo, with Uttar Pradesh IG (ATS) Asim Arun saying in a press release that Abdullah had been staying in Muzaffarnagar's Kutesra area

further reporting that he is believed to be associated with the Ansarullah Bangla Team organisation and is suspected of arranging fake identification documents for others. Prior to being in Muzaffarnagar, Abdullah was in Saharanpur, where he had been staying since 2011.

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The UP ATS said that Abdullah was in India illegally and that cops recovered an Aadhaar card and a passport from him. Preliminary interrogation has revealed that Abdullah used to help militants, primarily from Banlgadesh, get safe haven in India by getting fake identification documents made for them.

Three other people have been called in for questioning in connection wit the matter.

The Ansarullah Bangla Team is a Bangladeshi militant outfit that is believed to be behind, among other crimes, the series of attacks and murders targeting atheist bloggers in Bangladesh.

ALSO READ | Amarnath terror attack: Jammu and Kashmir Police claim to have cracked case

ALSO READ | Terrorist who played key role in Dhaka's Gulshan Cafe attack last year caught from Kolkata

ALSO WATCH | UP ATS arrests Bangladeshi terrorist associated with Ansarullah Bangla Team

--- ENDS ---
Crossing the line separating Indiana and Illinois sometimes means dealing with different laws and customs. Readers are asked to share ideas for this weekly feature. This week: Slot machines.

Five years ago, Illinois authorized bars, restaurants, truck stops, fraternal and veterans halls to install up to five slot machines each to make money for themselves and for the state.

The video gaming terminals, as they're officially known, have proven to be very popular with 26,873 machines operating in 6,124 establishments as of July 1, according to the Illinois Gaming Board.

That's more than twice the number of slot machines available in Illinois' 10 casinos. The casinos offer a total of 10,007 machines.

Indiana, on the other hand, does not permit slot machines to be played outside of its 11 riverboat casinos and two land-based casinos located at suburban Indianapolis horse-racing tracks.

According to the Indiana Gaming Commission, the Hoosier casinos have 19,067 slot machines available to their patrons.

That includes 2,491 slots at Hammond's Horseshoe casino, 1,727 at East Chicago's Ameristar, 1,716 at Gary's Majestic Star and 1,692 at Michigan City's Blue Chip.
We are with you. We stand with you on behalf of freedom.

Vice President Mike Pence spoke those words on July 30 in Estonia, the first stop on trip that includes Georgia and Montenegro. Given political turmoil and uncertainty in Washington, as well as Russias military assertiveness, the visit of Karen and Mike Pence to Eastern Europe is extremely important as well as timely.

The Baltic states of Latvia and Lithuania as well as Estonia were forcibly occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940. Exile groups from the Baltics become influential in the United States and elsewhere. All three nations became NATO members in March 2004.

Montenegro became NATOs newest member in early June 2017. The tiny Balkan state had been campaigning for alliance membership for more than a decade.

The rapid weakening and then collapse of the Soviet Union and communist regimes in Eastern Europe ended the Cold War but also the relative stability of that era. President Vladimir Putin emphasizes nationalism and has made military moves to expand Russias territorial control.

In 2014, Russia invaded Ukraine and annexed the territory of Crimea. The overt invasion of Ukraine by Russias army generated the most serious crisis in Europe since the Balkan wars of the 1990s.

In 2008, Russian troops invaded a portion of Georgia, following an attack by Georgian troops on South Ossetia. This territory as well as Abkhazia had declared independence from Georgia. Russia encouraged and supported these breakaway efforts, though the international community has clearly rejected them.

The end of the Cold War was a great victory for the policy of restraint and deterrence, termed containment, supported by every United States president from Harry Truman when the Cold War commenced to George H.W. Bush when the conflict ended.

NATO endures, for good reasons. Bureaucracies naturally seek self-perpetuation, but strategic realities provide persuasive justification. General war in Europe was avoided for a century between the final defeat of Napoleon and the outbreak of World War I. A Concert of European nations, brokered by Great Britain, helped keep the general peace.

NATO today arguably represents an approximate counterpart to the uncertain but generally effective concert. The alliance has operated well beyond the nations of the North Atlantic region, including not only on the margins of Europe but in distant territory, including notably Afghanistan.

Todays alliance leaders in Europe are articulate and effective, including in particular German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Chancellor Merkel is spearheading expansion of Germanys roles in international humanitarian relief. She has also provided arms to Kurds fighting Islamic extremists in Iraq.

Since 2002, NATO has renewed practical efforts to develop rapid reaction military capabilities. The credibility of the alliance is essential.

The Pences highly visible visit is a diplomatic complement to such efforts.
A Cornell-bound student from the Bronx is dead, having drowned in Ithaca, police said.

Ithaca police said a diving team pulled the body of Winston Perez-Ventura from the waters of the Ithaca Falls Gorge around 7:20 p.m. Saturday night.

State police helped search for him after reports that someone had entered the gorge for a swim but had not been spotted since.

NY1 has learned that Perez-Ventura did not know how to swim, and police say they do not suspect foul play.

Cornell officials said Perez-Ventura was in Ithaca for a pre-freshman summer program.

Perez-Ventura's reaction to being accepted to the Ivy League school went viral last year after he posted it on Facebook.

He had been accepted into the school's bachelor of architecture program.

A Cornell official sent his condolences to Perez-Ventura's friends and family in a statement.

Friends of the family have created a GoFundMe page where people can donate funds for the funeral expenses.
With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) already consolidating its vote share in crucial states, it is likely that nobody can challenge Narendra Modi in 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The BJP is likely to retain power in 2019. Photo: PTI.

By Kritika Banerjee: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate for vice-presidential election M Venkaiah Naidu polled 516 votes and raced to an easy win against Opposition candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi.

Of the total votes polled in the vice-presidential election, Gopalkrishna Gandhi secured 244 with reports suggesting that several MPs from the Opposition camp cross-voted in favour of Venkaiah Naidu.

As the Vice-President of India, Venkaiah Naidu will be the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, where the BJP recently overtook the Congress as the largest political party with 58 MPs.

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Sonia Gandhi-led Congress currently has 57 members in the Upper House. However, with the Rajya Sabha elections for the nine seats from Gujarat (3 seats) and West Bengal (6 seats) scheduled to take place on August 8, the BJP's tally in the House is set to go up.

With Nitish-led Janata Dal (United) back with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the BJP has got a big boost in the Rajya Sabha.

BJP HITS A PURPLE PATCH

In the Lok Sabha, the BJP alone has 282 members out of the total House strength of 543.

Of the 29 states, the BJP itself or in alliance with another political party under the NDA has chief ministers or deputy chief ministers in 18 states, Bihar being the latest entrant in the list.

Politically, things have never looked better for the BJP, be it in Parliament or in Legislative Assemblies.

Just a look at the numbers and the recent instances of leaders from the Opposition camp joining the BJP shows which way the wind is blowing.

Many political analysts are of the view that 2019 Lok Sabha elections are going to be the most boring elections in recent times with the BJP consolidating its vote share in crucial states.

GAINS IN BIHAR, UTTAR PRADESH

The BJP, which swept to power in 2014, on the Narendra Modi wave and an anti-corruption sentiment across the country, recorded a vote share of 31 per cent. The Congress, which was reduced to 44 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha election, saw its vote share going down to 19.3 per cent.

Since 2014, the BJP has made inroads into states like Assam and Manipur while also forming the government in the heart of Hindi heartland Uttar Pradesh.

Winning the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election has been a shot in the arm for the BJP, considering the state sends 80 members to Lok Sabha. The BJP won 71 of the 80 seats in 2014 with NDA partner Apna Dal also securing two seats.

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With a BJP government in place, the party has better chances of reaching out to more people ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Till a few days ago, the BJP's big worry was Bihar where its one-time ally Janata Dal (United) was running the government in alliance with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress.

After losing the Assembly election in 2015 to the Grand Alliance, the BJP seemed to be on the back foot in the state which sends 40 members to the Lok Sabha.

In the last few weeks, Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) walked out of the Grand Alliance and joined hands with the BJP to form the government, which is likely to last its term till 2020--well after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

With a government in alliance in Bihar, the BJP's prospects in the state in 2019 look brighter.

OPPOSITION IN DISARRAY

The BJP's win in successive Assembly elections, particularly in Goa and Manipur where it formed the governments despite the Congress having more numbers, exposes the Opposition.

In Goa, several Congress MLAs had reportedly pointed fingers at the party leadership for failing to act on time .

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The instances of cross-voting during vice-presidential and presidential elections in favour of the BJP candidate dents claims of Opposition unity.

In a state like Gujarat, where the Patels seem to be growing disenchanted with the BJP and where the Congress could have tapped on to this sentiment, the latter is grappling with infighting ahead of the Assembly election due this year.

After Shankarsinh Vaghela's exit from the Congress, three Congress MLAs resigned from the party to join the BJP. One of them, Balwantsinh Rajput, will be contesting the Rajya Sabha election as a BJP candidate.

In terms of numbers, Gujarat accounts for 26 seats in the Lok Sabha.

With Nitish Kumar back in the NDA fold, the Opposition lost a leader who was seen as a potential challenger to Narendra Modi in 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

While addressing a conference post tie-up with the BJP in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said that no one can challenge Narendra Modi in 2019.

Going by the turn of events so far, Nitish Kumar's words could well be true and the 2019 Lok Sabha elections could be a boring affair where everyone knows who the winner is.

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ALSO READ:

Cross-voting gave Venkaiah Naidu massive edge over Gopalkrishna Gandhi in vice-presidential election

India Today Conclave 2017: Indecision cost Goa, BJP election-winning machine, concedes Congress

Uttar Pradesh: How Modi-powered BJP bettered its strike rate as poll progressed

ALSO WATCH: Kissa kursi ka: Nitish Kumar 'bewafa' hai!

--- ENDS ---
Early checkup and intervention were all that stood firmly between Dr Sheila Ndyanabangi, 61, and death, when endometrial (uterus) cancer knocked at her door.

Like many uterus cancer victims, Ndyanabangi, also the national tobacco control focal person in the health ministry, did not have any symptoms such as virginal bleeding, lower abdominal pain or unusual discharge.

It all started last year in October, when I woke up one morning and felt as if something heavy pushed inside my stomach. It is something a person can ignore and think it is due to too much gas in the stomach due to food, Ndyanabangi said.

She, however, had a strong conviction, which she believes was from the Holy Spirit, to see a doctor and do a general examination.

Dr Sheila Ndyanabangi shares her experience as a cancer survivor

Dr Ndyanabangi was speaking at Protea hotel on July 5 during the launch of East Africa Gynaecologic-Oncology fellowship training, where two doctors from Mulago national referral hospital were awarded scholarships to manage the rising burden of womens cancers in Uganda.

They told me everything looked normal including the uterus. But the doctor recommended me to do a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan which shows more details of cancerous cells in any part of the body, she said.

After the MRI scan that cost her Shs 700,000, it showed that the layer covering the body of the uterus had a thick lining [considering] my age.

The doctors told me this layer in the uterus is supposed to be thin for people in their menopause like me, compared to people still having their monthly periods, Ndyanabangi said.

The doctors at Nsambya hospital told her there was a problem in her uterus and if the layer continued to grow thicker, it could develop into cancer. They advised her to do the dilatation and curettage (D&C) surgery, during which the cervix was opened and a special instrument was used to scrape the uterine thick lining, which was tested and was found to have cancer.

If they had not removed this thick lining, I would be dead within a short time because it had aggressive cancer. We also decided to remove the uterus to know how far this cancer had spread. But after removing it, they found it had not reached other organs of the body; they were normal, Ndyanabangi said.

However, before starting treatment, doctors suggested she does another test called Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scan, which is not available in Uganda, but can easily be done in India or South Africa.

We did it in India at $500 (Shs 1.6m), although most costs went on air transport and my attendant, Ndyanabangi said. I did the PET scan, which [detects] the earliest signs of cancer. During this scan, they injected a radioactive substance into my blood; if the cells have cancer, they show a red light on the scan to know the new areas in the body where the cancer has reached.

But thank God, the PET scan did not show anything. I was normal and returned home. Although people told me to go for chemotherapy, I refused and decided not to get so scared of cancer when the PET scan showed nothing, she said.

The doctors advised Ndyanabangi to undergo radiation therapy since they had removed her uterus; in case something had remained behind, the treatment would destroy it. After that, she was to do checkups every three months and carry out blood tests.

Another cancer survivor, Prof Florence Mirembe, the renowned former head of the department gynaecology at Mulago hospital, said she had pancreatic cancer but also survived it due to catching it early and seeking treatment.



Uterus Cancer symptoms

The most common symptoms of uterus cancers include abnormal discharge, pain when urinating, abnormal vaginal bleeding especially after menopause, pain during sexual intercourse, pain in the lower abdomen, pelvic pain and unexplained weight loss.

Dr Anthony Mbonye, Director of Health Services congratulates Dr Mariam Nabwire as one of the two doctors awarded scholarships for EA gynaecologic Oncology fellowship training

Ndyanabangi has started attending different gatherings in churches, conferences, funeralsanywhere to advise people to at least do one general checkup annually for non-communicable diseases such as cancer and diabetes that are killing many Ugandans.

I advise government to invest in a PET scan, which shows the first signs of cancer in the body since it is so expensive abroad, she said.

Cancers that torment women include cervical, ovarian, endometrial, virginal and pelvic cancer. Dr Mariam Nabwire and Dr Jerome Katumba, both obstetricians and gynaecologists, won the scholarships.

Nabwire said cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths of women in Uganda, yet it can be prevented.

However, the most dangerous part is that most people in Uganda dont know they have cervical or uterus cancer, because they dont do checkups, she said.

Others dont want to expose this cancer, because they fear people to look into their private parts. They come for treatment when the cancer is in advanced stages, yet in early stages, it is curable.

Dr Katumba said cervical cancer is so dangerous in women and about 87 per cent of gynaecological cancer is of the cervix. He said the burden is still high due to poor funding and very few women can access centres for cancer screening.

The training, which will take place at Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI), ends in 2019. It is funded by African Development Bank at $34m (Shs 122bn) and will also include building of some infrastructure.

Jackson Orem, director of Uganda Cancer Institute

Dr Jackson Orem, the director of Uganda Cancer Institute, said cancers are on the increase in Uganda, with 300 out of 100,000 people suffering from the deadly disease.

For every 100 people diagnosed with cancer every year, 80 die. So, our death rate for cancer is 80 per cent, which is bad and we want to reduce it to at least 40 per cent, he said.

The director of Health Services at the health ministry, Dr Anthony Mbonye, said government is improving the capacity of the cancer institute to deal with the rising cancer cases.

The Cobalt 60 machine for radiotherapy is already [in freight] and we hope to restore the services at Uganda Cancer Institute within the next two months, he said.

zurah@observer.ug
To many Ugandan youths, making it in life is when one is fully employed and gets married. But journalist Rose Amutuhaire has a different view.

She is actually quitting her job this month for further studies in the Netherlands. She told Christopher Tusiime about her interests in academia and fighting for the rights of women.

Growing up, Amutuhaire witnessed a lot of injustices being inflicted on girls. Many in her village never stepped in school, besides being forced into early marriages. But all these were just a tip of an iceberg: her eyes would see much more in the subsequent years.

Rose Amutuhaire

She tried to do anything within her means to ensure changes in the lives of the vulnerable girls.

My first job was working as a girl child development officer for two years at Vice Uganda. Here, I tried to advocate for rights of girls in schools, do some empowerment and tell them that they are equally capable and can do what boys do, says Amutuhaire, adding that such work gives her satisfaction.

Vice Uganda is a non-government organization that fights for the rights of vulnerable children. But later, things even got worse. Amutuhaire would later witness incidents where bosses demand for sex from female job seekers.

Although she couldnt give us details, she says she is a victim of sexual harassment at work. This was not only hurting, but also posed a great challenge to her since her childhood dream had always been seeing that girls and women are not mistreated, or forced to do things against their will.

I have worked in many places, but what I see is so disheartening. Some female workers are forced to give in to their bosses so as to secure or maintain jobs, she says. What hurts more is that once you do that, you will have lost value and respect. You will forever keep mentally devastated.

FAMILY, EDUCATION

Amutuhaire was born in 1988 to Claudio Bagyendagye and Constance Korukiiko in Kikondera village, Bubweju district. She completed her P7 from Kampala primary school, attended Kampala secondary school from S1 to S3, and was transferred to Butare secondary school for her S4.

After completing A-level at Sacred Heart secondary school, Amutihaire pursued a diploma in Information Technology at Makerere University, and graduated in 2011.

But then, I felt I was going to lose the battle by failing to help girls facing numerous challenges. Thus, I decided to at least be their mouthpiece by pursuing a diploma in Mass Communication from United Media Consultants and Trainers (UMCAT) in 2011, she says.

The former reporter of Ssuubi FM later went back to Makerere University and attained a bachelors degree in Social Sciences in 2015. Subsequently, Amutuhaire decided to use her diploma in journalism to address some of the issues affecting women in society by choosing to be a parliamentary reporter.

At times, I face off with these female parliamentarians and ask them what they are doing about harassment and segregation of women and girls in society, she says.

I ensure I play their sound bytes during the 11am English news at Mama FM, with hope that I am helping some stranded girl or woman out there.

SCHOLARSHIP

It was a few months ago that an opportunity knocked at her academic door. I applied for a scholarship from the Netherlands Fellowship Program (NFP), and I am so delighted that Im now among the 37 Africans who will, on August 31, go to Erasmus University in Netherlands for a masters degree, Amutuhaire says.

She adds that while applying, she focused on the very course that is in line with her aspirations.

I will be pursuing a masters degree in Human Rights, Gender and Conflict. In brief, it is called Social Justice Perspectives, she says.

After this, I am sure I will be more capable of fighting for womens rights and empowering them because I will have acquired more knowledge and skills. She intimates that it was actually the second time she was applying for the scholarship after the first attempt proved unsuccessful.

They [NFP officials] have since been monitoring me, seeing what my aspirations are, and no doubt this time round I was considered. Its something that will change my whole life for the better, Amutuhaire envisages.

FOCUSING ON ACADEMICS

Amutuhaire is among the few Ugandans thinking of a future centered around impacting on other peoples lives.

I actually dont even plan to have businesses as you may think. I just want to get a PhD in human rights studies and become a lecturer. Lecturing against female sexual harassment in a university will leave me so peaceful, says Amutuhaire, who enjoys reading the Bible and going to church during her free time.

She also looks to becoming a motivational speaker who would traverse the country preaching rights of women and ensuring their fair representation in the media.

Currently, many journalists dont even consider female sources while gathering news. That is very sad. One wonders how these mothers of ours, our daughters, our sisters and children will ever have their issues known if the media never considers hearing from them, she wonders, with a sorrowful facial expression.

Up on return from the Netherlands, Amutuhaire vows to rejoin the Uganda Media Womens Association to ensure women get a better share in media. Well, the Bible says that any mature woman should not keep alone.

Nonetheless, Amutuhaire has given it some more time, and is not searching. Its two years from now that I will get married. For now, I am still on a mission and I have to complete it. I need to see a society where women and girls are living happily, Amutuhaire says.

tusiime.chris20@gmail.com
President Yoweri Museveni together with his Tanzanian counterpart, John Pombe Magufuli, have today, Saturday laid a foundation stone to kickstart the construction of Uganda's crude oil pipeline.

The $3.55 billion (about Shs 12.6 trillion) 1,445km crude oil pipeline believed to be the world's longest, will run from Hoima in Uganda to Tanga in Tanzania.

At the commissioning event in Tanga, Tanzania, Museveni said that the pipeline is not a two-country infrastructure but an East African project meant to benefit all member states.

"This is a great event for the two countries and for East Africa. This pipeline is not just for the crude oil of Uganda; it can become an East African Pipeline. There are already hydro-carbon resources detected in Eastern Congo, the Semliki valley; there are confirmed hydro-carbon resources in the Turkana area of Kenya; there are also possibilities of hydro-carbons in Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi", Museveni said.

Museveni and Magufuli laid a foundation stone to kickstart the construction of the pipeline

Construction of the pipeline was initially expected to be completed by 2020 and was increasingly looking unlikely but Tanzanian President Magufuli said even if it means working day and night, construction must be completed within the specified period with no delays.

The 24-inch diameter pipeline will move 216,000 barrels of oil per day at a cost of about Shs 44,000 per barrel.

According to Museveni, Uganda has 6.5 billion barrels of oil so far in 40% of the potential area.

"Consequently, there will be both the refining of oil in Uganda in order to produce petrol, diesel, aviation fuel and other petro-chemical products such as plastics. There is also associated gas which we shall use to produce some electricity and, maybe, get some nitrogen to add to our phosphates and potassium to produce the NPK composite fertilizers to support our agriculture", he added.

In January, Uganda and Tanzania awarded the Front-End Engineering Design contract for the pipeline to American Gulf Interstate Engineering.

Tanzania had offered a fiscal incentives package that led Uganda to choose it over Kenya as the favoured host for the pipeline.

However Ugandan government officials at never disclosed the said incentives at the time. Kenya had bid to host the same pipeline, which would have allowed it to earn transit fees and also transport its own crude in the Lokichar basin in the northwest.

Museveni today revealed the incentives that Tanzania offered. They include; no transit fee, no VAT, no corporate income tax, depreciation tax holiday for 20 years, free corridor (land) where the pipeline infrastructure is going to be built. According to Museveni, the Tanzanian government also promised to take up some shares in the pipeline.

With all these concessions, Museveni says, it enabled Uganda "to end up with a tariff fee of $12.2 per barrel, thus enabling the pipeline to remain profitable. The current price of oil in the world of about $50 per barrel notwithstanding."

kamogajonathan50@gmail.com
RIP: Christopher Msando

The Uganda police has disputed media reports that it had arrested three suspects in connection with the murder of of Kenyan electoral commission official Christopher Chege Msando.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), ICT manager and his 21-year-old female friend identified as Maryanne Wairimu were found dead on Monday in the outskirts of Nairobi. Kenyan police confirmed that Msando was tortured and murdered.

On Friday, media reports indicated that the Uganda Police Flying Squad had arrested suspected Msando killers as they tried to cross into South Sudan via the Ugandan border. The car they were travelling in, a Toyota Fortuner with registration plates UAX 311E was intercepted.

Aswa Region Police spokesperson Jimmy Patrick Okema confirmed the arrests of Mathew Butai (Kenyan), Joseph Okango and Moses Goloba (Ugandans). Okema said that the trio was arrested in connection with the murder of the IEBC electoral official and his female counterpart.

Interpol will give all the details however, this is the little information I have. The arrest is related to Msandos death, said Okema.

However Asan Kasingye, the Uganda police spokesperson says Butai, Okango and Okema were arrested in for a different murder case. He confirmed that they were arrested in connection with the murder of an engineer and his son and not Msando.

It's not true, they are held with suspected murder of Mzee Morris Mwangi Matharia who was shot three times in Nyeri. He was in company of his son, an engineer with SS Metha construction limited in Nyeri, confirmed Kasingye to The Observer in a brief text.

Commenting on whether they would be extradited, the police spokesperson said; Procedure can take about a month, hopefully they will be deported. Its easier than extradition.

abumay1988@gmail.com
By PTI: New Delhi, Aug 6 (PTI) The government today said weavers will be able to avail a wide range of government services like Aadhaar and PAN card from WSCs which is poised to become a one-stop-shop for them apart from rendering technical help.

"Textiles Minister Smriti Zubin Irani has announced that weavers will henceforth be able to avail a wide array of Government services from Weavers Service Centres (WSCs)," the Ministry of Textiles said in a statement.

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The weavers, the minister said, will also be able to pay their electricity bills and go for online courses at the WSCs.

"The Minister informed that the Ministry of Textiles will enter into an MoU tomorrow with Common Service Centres, which will enable WSCs to provide the aforementioned services, beginning from this year itself," it added.

There are 28 WSCs under the Office of Development Commissioner (Handlooms), Textiles Ministry, functioning in different parts of India, the statement added.

Weavers visit these WSCs frequently, in order to avail technical assistance in relation to their profession, it said.

The statement also contained a tweet of Irani which said that "On the eve of 3rd #NationalHandloomDay, inaugurated a camp for Weavers MUDRA & Hathkargha Samvardhan Sahayata Schemes at Bijoynagar in Assam."

Recalling Prime Minister Narendra Modis words that the development of the North Eastern Region is imperative for the development of India, the minister informed the weavers that the main event of third National Handloom Day will be held in Guwahati, as per the statement.

The minister said that around 25 crore citizens have got their bank accounts opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna in the last three years.

"Noting that seven banks are participating in the camp for distribution of loans today, Irani asked the women weavers how often banks come to them to provide banking services," the satement said.

Irani expressed her satisfaction that more than 250 women applied for MUDRA loans in just an hour after the camp started functioning.

She said that handloom weavers in Sambalpur, Odisha, were able to improve their earnings by more than 60 per cent within three months of availing MUDRA loan.

The textiles minister distributed MUDRA loan sanction letters to 50 weavers on the occasion, and appealed to all weavers to apply for the loan and improve their income. PTI SID JM

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Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers in part because it doesnt respond all that well to even the best available treatment.

Currently the go-to therapy is a drug called gemcitabine, which has been given alone and in combination with other treatments for decades. But researchers for some time have recognized that tumor cells eventually become resistant to the drug, which causes it to lose its effectiveness.

Now a team of researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center has identified a previously unknown but widely prevalent mechanism by which tumor cells develop resistance.

The study detailing their findings, published in the current issue of the journal Cancer Cell, also demonstrates that other drugs  specifically digoxin and leflunomide  decrease resistance when used with gemcitabine in cells and animal models. The researchers next plan to offer the combinations to patients in clinical trials.

The idea really is that we want to make tumors respond to therapies, said Pankaj Singh, a professor in the Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases. These combinations  are definitely not the cure but hopefully a step in the right direction.

More than 53,000 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the United States each year. According to some estimates, Singh said, pancreatic cancer now is the third-leading cause of cancer-related deaths and is expected to become the second-leading cause by 2030.

Twenty-nine percent of patients who dont have surgery survive to one year. Only seven percent of patients survive to five years.

Current therapies include compounds called mimetics, drugs that imitate natural compounds that cancer cells use to grow.

Gemcitabine mimics cytosine, one of the four building blocks of DNA. Cells need the building blocks to make new copies of DNA as they divide and grow. Tumor cells grow at uncontrollable rates, so giving them mimics of the building blocks instead of the real thing should stall growth.

However, the researchers identified a mechanism that allows cancer cells to increase production of the real cytosine. Once they do, tumor cells can continue replicating without having to take up the drug version. The study also demonstrates that the drugs the researchers have tested in combination decrease resistance.

Singh said pancreatic cancer cells have other means of developing resistance, but the mechanism his group described is one of the most common.

The study was accompanied by a commentary from Dr. Chi Van Dang, an eminent cancer biologist at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in New York.

While questions remain, Dang wrote, the study nicely contributes to our understanding of the complexity of the biology of pancreatic cancer and opens new avenues for investigation.

Singh said the UNMC researchers should be able to start clinical trials to test the drug combinations theyve identified by the end of the year. Three UNMC oncologists  Drs. Jean Grem, Lyudmyla Berim and Kelsey Klute  will be enrolling patients in the trials. Grem and Berim both were involved in the study.

Surendra Shukla, a co-first author and a research instructor in Dr. Singhs lab, said he hopes to at least double patient survival with the combinations. Researchers will continue to monitor tumors for other mechanisms of resistance.

The researchers also hope to identify biomarkers that could be used to screen patients in order to predict whether theyll respond to the drugs. If testing indicates that they wont respond, doctors can try other treatments or trials.
Its hard to stray too far from the ever-popular options of pizza and chicken nuggets when whipping up lunch for kids.

Those items are still on the menus in local school cafeterias, but officials say its important to provide healthful  and tasty  options for students at all grade levels.

We want to provide the most nutritious meal we can that kids will eat. We definitely dont want to provide items that just go into the garbage can, said Tammy Yarmon, nutrition services director for Omaha Public Schools.

Many local districts, including Omaha, Papillion La Vista and Westside, have placed an emphasis on fresh fruits and vegetables. Schools offer whole fruits and veggies along with regular meals.

OPS has taken it a step further. In some schools the fresh fare is offered as a midday snack, Yarmon said. In another monthly program, students can try featured items they may not encounter regularly. Yarmon said this years featured foods include plums, mushrooms, beets, turnips, Brussels sprouts and pears.

OPS students are encouraged to take as many servings of vegetables as they like at lunch. Other healthful options include hummus and chips, salads and boxed sandwiches.

Several districts center dishes on fresh items rather than processed products. Schools cook raw chicken and make meatballs in-house, as well as taco meat, lasagna, Alfredo sauce, gravy, soup and chili.

Administrators say precooked staples such as chicken nuggets, chicken patties and hamburgers will stay on the menu because theyre what kids are used to, but new items are introduced as often as possible.

We still have to be very conscious of the fact that for some students, this may be their only meal. We want to put something out there thats palatable for everybody, said Erin Vik, director for nutrition services at Westside Community Schools. We cant always hit a home run, but we at least want a double or triple every day.

Chicken and waffles have become a hit in Westsides elementary schools, Vik said. Middle-schoolers are drawn to the burrito bar, and the high school, which operates like a food court, has seen the smoothie station rise in popularity.

One key to feeding students is to let them have a choice in what goes on their trays.

The emphasis is on letting the students choose their own meals, from the entree to the fresh fruits and vegetables. When students can choose the items they want to eat, theyre more likely to eat more of their meal and enjoy what theyre eating, said Sue Sucha, director of food service for Papillion La Vista Community Schools.

Options in the district increase as the students get older.

Administrators said it isnt always easy introducing healthful options for students. It proved challenging when rules championed by then-first lady Michelle Obama were implemented as part of her healthful eating initiative.

Under the Trump administration, some of those guidelines will be rolled back. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said the department will delay an upcoming requirement to lower the amount of sodium in meals.

The department, under the first ladys initiative, had suggested that all grains on the lunch line be 50 percent whole grain. Schools can ignore that guideline.

Local districts still aim to keep sodium levels low, but they plan to ease up on whole-grains. OPS plans to bring back regular cinnamon rolls instead of those made with whole grain, Yarmon said. Also, the district is axing whole-grain pasta, which drew complaints from students. The main gripe was its dark coloring, Yarmon said.

Thats a product that just wasnt palatable for our kids, Yarmon said.
WASHINGTON  Crystal Early's son took to breastfeeding right away. At 10 weeks, James was already more than 13 pounds and "hungry all the time," Early said recently. But in just two weeks, she would be back at work and would need to pump breast milk.

"I'm nervous about the time it takes out of the day, and making sure I can take that time to really do what I need to do and also not miss important pieces of my job each day," Early said. "I never want someone to think that I'm taking a quote-unquote break, or that I'm missing out on work."

Early is one of the lucky ones: Her company, a Tampa, Florida, staffing firm where she's worked for six years, has a new pumping room with a door that locks, and has even decorated the space with photos of the babies whose mothers are pumping. Even so, she worries  about leaving her son when he's "still so little," about what she might miss while she's pumping and about how she'll pump when traveling for work.

"That is one of the number one sources of stress: how they are going to manage" the breast milk supply, said Aimee Danielson, director of the Women's Mental Health Program at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital. "One of the biggest factors in whether it's something tedious versus truly stressful is the ability of the workplace to have institutional support for pumping."

Earlier this year, The Washington Post's On Parenting section ran an article explaining what is required of companies that have workers who need to pump. In response, we received nearly 200 stories from federal employees, emergency workers, teachers and others at companies large and small. Some gushed about pristine pumping rooms, but many others had less pleasant tales.

In a country where there is no paid parental leave and where most leaves consist of just 12 weeks or less, women are returning to jobs when their bodies (and hearts) might be wanting them to do otherwise: They suffer from painful breasts, leaking milk, the stress of trying to balance a job with new family demands, plus a stigma that a mother can't excel at work.

We heard from new moms who pump as they sit on dirty floors in storage rooms and watch as roaches scurry in dark corners. We heard from teachers who pump during a short free period in their classrooms that don't lock, one with a video camera recording. And then there was this nightmare: "The CEO of the company used to announce when I was going to pump by singing a little song for everyone to hear: 'Pump, pump, pump it up!' " wrote a woman who worked in a Silicon Valley tech start-up. She also recalled a time when she wasn't permitted to leave a meeting and her milk began to leak through her shirt. (She quit and recently began her own consulting company.)

The workplace is full of obstacles for mothers, and pumping is a big one. Here, women share their stories.

So what does it take to pump breast milk? A room with a lock. And, of course, there's the pump, which typically costs about $300, although many pumps are now covered by insurance under the Affordable Care Act. New mothers also need sanitized bottles, storage bags, tubing and other accessories. Some very proactive employers provide a hospital-grade pump, and nursing moms bring their own equipment to hook up to it.

Women should have a space to set the equipment while pumping, a sink to clean the equipment, a refrigerator to keep the milk cold and a microwave, so the equipment can be sanitized after every pumping session, which usually lasts 15 to 20 minutes. (Add time for walking to the pumping space, storing the milk and cleaning the equipment.)

An employer, no matter its size, "has an obligation under the law to provide the space necessary to allow her to express milk in private and to have the time to do that," said Bob Simandl, a lawyer with von Briesen & Roper who focuses on employment and labor law. The area needs to have a locked door and no windows, or a covering over the windows. "The employer and employee need to have a very open discussion as to timing of breaks, whether they will coincide with paid breaks, expectations for where and when, and what is most convenient for employer and employee," Simandl said.

Sara McClusky of suburban Reston, Virginia, is a product analyst at a digital consulting company. The first person at her small firm to have a baby, she found there was no designated maternity leave or pumping space.

But McClusky, who has a 1-year-old daughter, was more fortunate than some. "I basically was told to come up with a wish list, and we'd walk through it and make a plan," she said. "I was fortunate that my boss at the time had been a working mother and had done the pumping thing. Before that, no one would have understood what I would be talking about."

McClusky's pumping area is "in a small printer room, which also has a fridge. It's not too bad; sometimes I have to slide people's printouts under the door." But, she said, her company is so small that she was "really . . . paranoid" to ask for it.

After her daughter was born, McClusky took four weeks of paid leave provided by the company, two weeks of paid vacation time and then six weeks of unpaid leave.

She knew that she wanted her daughter to have breast milk for the full year recommended by pediatricians.

She put her pumping times on a shared calendar so people knew to try to avoid scheduling meetings with her during those two to three 15-minute breaks. That didn't always work, so she would call into meetings as she pumped. "I was pumping once while on an internal call, and someone asked if there was a large toad in the room with me," she said. "I work with a lot of younger developers, mostly men. So I said it was 'mommy time' and I just left it there."

Being the only new mother in a small office has been difficult. "It's been a bit lonely. I had very small, but very lonely, victories," she said. She would have liked to celebrate when she downgraded to pumping just twice a day, or even gloat when she pumped a whopping 20 ounces at work in one day. "It's kind of like, 'Who's going to commiserate with me?' You just don't realize how much time is going into thinking about it."

The worst stories come from women with clueless (and in some cases crude) co-workers or bosses. Some reported male co-workers trying to peek, or banging on the door when they knew a woman was pumping. Others had co-workers tell them that they wished they could have a "break" like pumping mothers do. (Not only is pumping physically demanding, but many of the women we spoke to continued to work while pumping.) And some co-workers and bosses expressed frustration with schedule disruptions. But pumping can't wait: A woman needs to pump at regular intervals to avoid leaking, pain and potentially serious infections.

What happens when a company fails to create a culture that supports pumping employees? "Well, bad news spreads fast," said Julia Beck, founder of the It's Working Project, which helps companies bring parents back into the workforce. "A person who feels their needs were dismissed, they're not going to be quiet about it. . . . It will affect not just retention but recruitment."

The best stories are about organizations that understand the transition for women returning to work after having a baby.

Cynthia Calvert, president of Workforce 21C, helps companies manage their workforce and advance women. "If you support a new mother in the workplace, you gain loyalty, not just from her, but all her colleagues," she tells managers. And for women who feel guilty about asking for required accommodations? "What you're doing is making it possible to remain employed," she said. "Know your worth; this isn't special treatment. This is a setup required so you can continue to be employed. And it's just for a short period of time."

At Ayrika White-Mfoudi's workplace, pumping was the norm. White-Mfoudi has three boys, 7 and 3 years old and 20 months. When she returned to work as a veterinarian at a busy practice in suburban Catonsville, Maryland, within eight to 12 weeks of giving birth to each of her babies, she was one of several women who were pumping breast milk. So when they needed to pump, she and her colleagues took turns using the office of a vet who was in house only once a week, putting a covering over the window. "It was fine. I know we had it better than most," she said.

The all-women vet squad's male boss was understanding, so the women felt like they could actually take their breaks to pump. "He has daughters and a wife and is very supportive of family," White-Mfoudi said. "We got very lucky."

Of course, even with a decent space and a break to pump, it wasn't easy. "No one understands. It's just you're attached to a machine for 15 minutes. There's no love, you're isolated, no one is talking to you," she said. "It's hard enough just to do it, then to hear these stories from women who aren't supported is just terrible. . . . It's just not understood."

For many women who don't work in an office, pumping may feel nearly impossible. This includes teachers, retail and fast-food workers, women in the military, and women who must travel often for work. (Trying to get through the Transportation Security Administration with dozens of ounces of breast milk adds another layer of difficulty; one mom suggested using frozen peas as ice packs.)

Twins Victoria Clark and Ryan Evans are police officers in the Washington area. Clark has a 2-year-old daughter and 6-month-old son, and Evans has a daughter, 8; a son, 6; and a twin boy and girl, now a year old.

Clark stayed home with her newborn daughter for eight weeks, then headed back to the police station, which had a space dedicated to lactation with a comfortable chair, a small table, an outlet, a microwave and a refrigerator.

Being in the station, rather than on patrol, gave her a degree of freedom. "I just told my supervisor that I needed to take a break, and I pumped twice a day," she said. "No one bothered me; it was great."

But soon enough, she was itching to get back "on the streets," she said. The first day she went out on patrol, she asked the dispatcher for a break. "In the middle of pumping, she said, 'We need you to go out!' " Clark had to radio back for all to hear: "I have no clothes on!" That was the last time she pumped at work.

Evans recalled a supervisor telling her that she had to email him each time she went to pump and again when she came back. To her, it felt like a "violation." When people took a smoke break or ate lunch, they didn't have to email their supervisor, she thought. "I pumped at the same time every day. It was kind of like, 'Why do I have to do this?' " And after a few months, she stopped pumping because of stress.

If she had to give advice to other women considering pumping, Evans said, she would encourage them but also tell them to speak up. "Don't be quiet. Look up what your rights are. Look it up for yourself. You have every right," she said. "You can take care of your child the way you want to."

With the "patchwork of laws" that provide protections (including the Affordable Care Act, Title VII and the Fair Labor Standards Act), "even the most well-meaning HR departments may not be on the cutting edge of this," said Tom Spiggle, owner of the Spiggle Law firm in suburban Arlington, Virginia, and author of "You're Pregnant? You're Fired!"

"If you are paid an hourly wage, chances are you're entitled to" pumping breaks and a clean, private room to pump in, he said. It pays to know what's required and then ask for it. Employers and employees can educate themselves by reading the requirements on the Labor Department website.

Lauren Zelin has a 4-year-old boy, a 2-year-old girl and a 3-month-old boy. She is the media relations manager for a nongovernmental organization in Washington.

"I know there are a lot of horror stories out there, but there are exceptions," she wrote to us. "My co-workers and I are extremely lucky to have a great lactation room because we strongly advocated for it when our office was remodeled."

Zelin said she compiled an email list of the moms in the office who had previously pumped at work, asking: "What do we need? What should we do? Would you go with us to HR and tell them what we need?"

Zelin and her co-workers requested eight bays, knowing they wouldn't get all of them (they got four). They also asked for a refrigerator just for breast milk, shelving to hold the pump, and a sink to wash pump parts.

Today, there's a schedule, and all four bays are usually in use. The organization has 370 employees in its D.C. office and is "steadily growing," she said. "As we grow, the number of moms grows."

"Some people think you're just sitting around, but moms want to work and get home," Zelin said. There's a desk in each bay where they can plug in laptops. "We pick up our work, drop it down and keep working," she said.

Such a welcoming setup can be a retention and recruitment tool, Zelin said. "Some of that was included in how we pitched it: 'This is a thing we need. Breastfeeding is good for babies' health, so it also cuts down on long-term health-care costs.' But we especially talked about how it makes a difference in the workforce. We can work and be moms and be supported in both."
Warren Buffett urges people to invest in low-cost mutual funds that mirror a diverse collection of U.S. stocks, if they dont have the time, talent or inclination to become investment experts.

Now comes Tom Wheelwright, co-author of a new book on investing, who puts it less diplomatically:

If youre going to be financially ignorant, then diversify, he said. But if you choose to get financially educated, like Warren, if youre willing to make the effort, it makes no sense to diversify.

Wheelwright, a CPA from Tempe, Arizona, and finance author Robert Kiyosaki co-wrote Why the Rich Are Getting Richer: What Is Financial Education ... Really? (Plata Publishing, $17.95, 292 pages).

The book cites some Buffett quotes, including, Diversification is protection against ignorance. It makes little sense if you know what you are doing.

In an interview, Wheelwright said Buffett and the company he heads, Berkshire Hathaway Inc., are not diversified but rather concentrated in relatively few investments and wholly owned companies.

What he does is what all wealthy people do, Wheelwright said. Hes very focused. He doesnt spread himself too thin.

The book has a chart from the last recession that shows Berkshires stock price followed a similar downward path as the rest of the stock market.

If Warren Buffett can lose money, the book says, dont you think you should consider investing in your financial education before you turn your money over to the experts?

TEXAS LEGAL LOSS

Berkshire cant use a language loophole to comply with a Texas law against owning both car dealerships and a motor vehicle manufacturer, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said last week.

Berkshire faces fines and dealer license revocations for allegedly violating the states dealer-manufacturer restriction. It owns Forest River, an Indiana recreational vehicle manufacturer, and a network of car and truck dealers through its Berkshire Hathaway Automotive division. The rule against affiliated ownership is intended to protect independent dealers from unfair competition by manufacturer-owned dealerships.

Texas Department of Motor Vehicles asked Paxton whether the rule still would apply if a company wholly owns a motor vehicle manufacturer but relinquishes control of the manufacturer.

Yes, Paxton replied in a legal opinion.

Because the common understanding of affiliated with includes both ownership and control, the opinion said, in part, a court is likely to conclude that a company that relinquishes control of a manufacturer but maintains full ownership of that manufacturer remains affiliated with the manufacturer.

The Texas Legislature considered a proposal earlier this year to alter the law, but it didnt pass. Berkshire hasnt said publicly what it may do next.

SMALL BUSINESS FAN

Buffett may run a big business, but hes inspired by small-business owners, he said in Baltimore last week.

We havent lost our magic touch as Americans, Buffett said during a press conference, according to WBAL-TV. Ive always been optimistic about the future of America, but never more so by meeting these superstars.

He referred to entrepreneurs taking part in Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program in Baltimore. Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg joined him in meeting the participants.

In 2009 Goldman pledged $500 million to help small businesses succeed in 11 cities with high-poverty areas, supplying training, loans and mentors.

Berkshire is a major shareholder in Goldman, and Buffett has visited several of the cities to encourage the new business owners.

BERKSHIRE SUCCESSORS

Morningstars Greggory Warren, one of three financial analysts who ask questions of Buffett and Berkshire Vice Chairman Charlie Munger during Berkshires annual shareholders meetings, said Berkshire is making management succession progress.

Berkshire investment lieutenants Todd Combs and Ted Weschler are getting far more involved in the operating subsidiaries, as opposed to just focusing on stocks in the insurers equity portfolio, Warren wrote in an analysis.

When the time comes for successors, he said, it will be tough to replace the decades of capital-allocation knowledge and contacts built up by Buffett and Munger.

But in addition to the experience being gained by Combs and Weschler, Warren said, the two front-runners to be Berkshires next CEO, insurance chief Ajit Jain and energy CEO Greg Abel, have bountiful amounts of capital allocation experience.

The Omaha World-Herald is owned by Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
By PTI: Dhaka, Aug 6 (PTI) A 48-year-old wheelchair-bound man has been arrested at an airport in Bangladesh while trying to smuggle 25 kg gold into the country, custom officials said, calling it the biggest haul of the year.

Jamil Akter, a native of Nilphamari, flew to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport here from Singapore yesterday. He had kept 250 gold bars worth 12.5 crore taka in a vest kept between his legs, Dhaka Tribune reported.

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"Acting on a tip-off, our team confronted the man when he was crossing the green channel on a wheelchair, pretending to be unwell," Dhaka Customs House Preventive Team Assistant Commissioner Ahsanul Kabir was quoted by the report.

"He denied having any gold initially, but admitted to it later, during interrogation. We found 250 gold bars in a vest kept between his legs. The man has a chips shop in Singapore. He went in and out of the country 13 times in the last six months," the customs official added.

Customs officials were preparing to hand over him to police after filing a criminal case.

Another team found 6 kg gold abandoned in a flight of US-Bangla Airlines. PTI UZM ZH UZM

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You could hear the drill team before you saw it.

The pounding drums and tinkling xylophones signaled to the crowd that the Salem Stepping Saints were on their way. People danced under umbrellas and waved as friends marched past.

Thirty years later and shes still doing it! someone yelled from the crowd.

The Saints marched on North 30th between Lake and Sprague Streets on Saturday, taking part in a parade marking the 21st biennial Native Omaha Days, a weeklong homecoming event to celebrate all things north Omaha. Even with the mornings rain, spectators crowded sidewalks along the parade route, huddling under umbrellas and wrapping themselves with blankets and hoodies.

Politicians such as Mayor Jean Stothert and Councilman Ben Gray waved and greeted constituents, and business owners stood atop a float re-creation of the Fair Deal Cafe. Other drill teams followed, dancing to their own beats.

But this year felt a little more special for the Saints. Its the groups 50th anniversary, marking five decades of marching at parades, festivals and sporting events across the country since 1967.

On Saturday, alumni home for Native Omaha Days joined current members. Some rode a trolley, where co-founder Phyllis Hicks watched the crowd and her team. Others marched along with younger members, pulling old steps and drum rhythms from memory.

Keith Mills walked along with fellow drummers, keeping the beat with a cowbell. Mills, 63, joined the Saints when he was about 13 years old. Saturdays rainy weather didnt bother him.

We had some of our best performances in the rain, he said. It would stir up a different energy in us.

Growing up, hed watched his uncle and mother perform in another drill team, and was intrigued by his uncles drums.

It was like an addiction for me, he said. I would actually cry if my mom didnt let me go to practice.

Mickayla Zellner, 36, started as a flag girl when she was 10 years old and marched for the first time in a Native Omaha Days parade.

Just seeing all the members of our drill team was amazing. We took up almost a full block, Zellner said. I felt like I was doing something really good, like I was a star.

Hicks didnt expect the group to last 50 years when it began. In August 1966, the Rev. J.C. Wade Sr., the pastor of Salem Baptist Church, wanted to hold a parade to celebrate the churchs Youth Month.

The girls of the church formed a marching group, while the boys handled the drumming. The children had so much fun, they begged Wade to make drill team permanent. He asked Hicks to oversee the group. Hicks is the ringleader, Mills said. A strong woman who kept kids in line, shes passed on lessons of discipline, organization and unity.

Fifty years later, Hicks is still the matriarch of the group. She guided the Saints through performances at Disney World and two Worlds Fairs, in New Orleans and Vancouver. She estimates that about 2,000 children have cycled through over the years.

Her son has since moved to Las Vegas, but Hicks still has alumni and current members who lovingly call her Mama Phyllis or Aunt Phyl. Some past members have their own children in the group.

Id like to think because their experience was such a good one, they wanted their kids to do the same thing, Hicks said. I spent a great deal of my time with the drill team. It was probably my biggest priority, other than my family.

Hicks has taken a more hands-off approach for the past five years. Illness keeps her from being more involved. But directors Synceree Jeanpierre and Jeffrey Riggs carry on teaching new marchers.

Im not surprised its lasted so long, Mills said. When you have a group with strong leaders like that, with the desire and passion to keep something going, itll last.
COUNCIL BLUFFS  Despite the rain, residents of Council Bluffs and beyond came out to enjoy the fourth annual Community Wellness Bash on Saturday at Bayliss Park.

The family-friendly event featured about 60 vendors, bounce houses, raffle prizes and food, offering attendees a chance to learn about a variety of health and social services in the area.

We just want to showcase the opportunities in Council Bluffs, said Kimberly Kolakowski, the event chair for this years bash. Show everything we have available, pull the community resources together.

The Wellness Bash has grown since its start in 2014, said Kolakowski, who was among the key volunteers who brought the event to fruition. Everything is free, with no vendors allowed to sell anything.

Organizations on hand Saturday were Childrens Square, Safe Kids Worldwide, VODEC, Boys Town, the League of Human Dignity, All Care Health Center and the Council Bluffs Fire Department, among others. Nebraska Methodist Colleges mobile diabetes center was on hand. Across the street, at First Congregational Church, volunteers served hamburgers and hot dogs while also handing out free clothing. The nearby Masonic Lodge hosted organizations doing blood pressure checks and other health screenings, along with dental checks.

Linda Edmonds of Council Bluffs stopped by to check things out and get her blood pressure numbers from All Care at the lodge.

I wanted to see the interesting things they have here, Edmonds said, noting she attended last years event. Its pretty cool.

Salana Lamkims with All Care said the Wellness Bash was a chance to help people check a component of their health while also letting them know about the services offered at the community health center, which helps many patients who dont have insurance or have financial hardships.

Over at the UnitedHealthcare booth at Bayliss, visitors rode stationary bicycles that powered food blenders, creating smoothies. Kaia Uhrlaub, 12, and Kinsley Ferguson, 11, both of Underwood, Iowa, were all smiles as they rode.

The rain came down at a steady clip for a time during the Wellness Bash and likely affected turnout, but umbrellas and a positive attitude kept many moving from booth to booth or to First Congregational for a bite to eat. Kolakowski said about 700 people attended the event, down from last years total of around 1,200.
Ten years ago, a group of north Omaha activists met in a cafe amid the hollowed-out North 24th Street business district and set out on a seemingly herculean task: to transform one of the nations most economically and socially distressed black communities.

The grass-roots plan that emerged called for the people of north Omaha to rise up and rebuild the village.

Top photos Clockwise from upper left: a housing development on 24th Street; Lenzel Hayes-Brown in his machining class at Metro Community College; Felisa Dillon, left, with Maranda Adams at a farmers market; and Michael Maroney, CEO of the Omaha Economic Development Corp., at Fair Deal cafe. Credit: Ryan Soderlin, Matt Dixon and Chris Machian/The World-Herald

A decade later, the 24th and Lake Streets neighborhood that hosted the 2007 gathering now boasts the new Fair Deal Village MarketPlace, a redevelopment that includes a restaurant, a grocery store and eight small startup businesses.

And amid north Omahas still-prevalent vacant lots and worn-out storefronts, other pockets of renewal have emerged. They include a major housing development going up with the support of Warren Buffett; significant expansion of Metropolitan Community Colleges campus, a critical north-side job-training ground; and a Walmart store, the nations largest retailer buying into north Omahas economic future. But perhaps even more impressive than such bricks-and-mortar progress have been some of the less-visible recent developments on Omahas north side:

 Declining black poverty.

 Dramatically reduced joblessness.

 Sharply rising education levels.

 Big reductions in gun violence.

We know there are still significant gaps, said Willie Barney of the Empowerment Network, the organization formally launched in that 2007 gathering on 24th Street. But what we can now see is we can move the dial.

In 2007 Omaha woke up to a new economic reality: The metro area that was home to one of the worlds richest men and to more Fortune 500 companies for its size than any other was also home to one of the nations most economically challenged black communities.

A World-Herald special report revealed that among the nations 100 largest metro areas, Omaha ranked among the highest in black poverty, with a higher rate than New Orleans, Detroit, Chicago or New York. And only four metros in the nation had a bigger disparity between black and white poverty rates.

But today there are growing signs that the metros 70,000-strong black population and northeast Omaha  the black communitys cultural center  may be turning a corner.

In the past five years the Omaha metros black poverty rate has ticked down slightly, from 32 percent to 29.8 percent, even as black poverty nationwide has trended up in the wake of the Great Recession. The citys ranking in black poverty in that time has dropped from 14th-highest to 32nd, with New Orleans, Detroit, Des Moines and Cleveland all among the metro areas now posting higher rates of black poverty than Omaha.

Were approaching the middle of the pack when it comes to black poverty, said University of Nebraska at Omaha demographer David Drozd, who compiled and helped analyze the census data.

Unemployment has taken a dramatic turn for the better. Among the 100 metros in the country with the largest black populations, Omaha in the past five years has gone from ranking among the 20 worst in black unemployment to having the sixth-best rate, at just under 11 percent. No large metro area in the country has seen more impressive improvement.

The percentage of black adults with four-year college degrees has leaped sharply, from 16.5 percent to 21.5 percent in five years. Only one large metro in the country has seen bigger growth. High school graduation rates are trending up, too.

Shootings in northeast Omaha have dropped to half the levels seen a decade ago, and are down even more dramatically during the summer months, when violence typically heats up the most.

Theres more. New entrepreneurial businesses are springing up, the number of Omaha black-owned small businesses almost doubling since 2007. Slightly more black families are earning middle and high incomes. There also has been a small uptick in the percentage of black families with two parents  important, Drozd said, when one considers the poverty rate in Omaha for black children growing up with a single mom is 4 times that of black children with two parents.

DeAndre Gaines knows the challenges and potential pitfalls that come with growing up in poverty. In high school he had no thoughts of college, which seemed beyond reach. His older brother went to prison at age 16. Hes attended the funerals of friends who became entangled in gangs and were shot dead.

Ive experienced a lot, he said. A lot of people on the outside looking in dont know what its like growing up in those situations.

But today he sees a future for himself thats beyond povertys grip. He was assisted through Avenue Scholars, a school mentoring and scholarship program for at-risk youths that saw potential in me I did not see in myself.

Now hes a North High graduate, has a job in customer service at an Omaha auto dealership and is working toward a business management degree.

To be sure, despite the recent improvements, the black-white economic disparities in Omaha remain strong. The metros black poverty rate remains 3 times the white rate, and the city still has the 13th-highest such disparity nationally.

Barney and other north Omaha activists dont paper over the many problems that remain. Poverty, unemployment and violence are still too high. Too many kids still fall through the cracks. Black home ownership has taken a big hit since the recession. Getting major employers to set up in north Omaha continues to be a challenge.

People are still having trouble getting medical care, purchasing vehicles, providing for themselves  all the things that attend poverty, said State Sen. Ernie Chambers, whose representation of north Omaha in the Nebraska Legislature dates to the early 1970s. We still have a large number left behind.

Chambers said that although he hasnt noticed any major changes in the economic plight of his constituents, the census figures could give hope that the problems may not be as intractable as they seemed.

Ben Gray, the councilman who represents the heart of north Omaha, said the trends give him hope that north Omaha is now on the move. This is a long, arduous process, man, Gray said. But we firmly believe, based on the numbers, that things are moving in the right direction.

The recent statistics were also welcomed by others who have taken a stake in revitalizing north Omaha.

These are really important numbers, said David Brown, president of the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce, which in 2007 initiated a north Omaha redevelopment plan. Now we need to see those trends continue.

I think were on the right track, said Ken Bird of Avenue Scholars, which was launched by Omaha philanthropists a year after The World-Heralds series. When you have people positively engaged in school and in the workforce, we are going to have less crime and a better community. I think were seeing that.

Omaha had long known that its black community was not faring well, particularly in comparison with its white population.

But in its series of 2007 stories, The World-Herald looked at conditions within the citys black community in a new way: Comparing black to black. Working with demographers from UNOs Center for Public Affairs Research and using data from a new U.S. Census Bureau annual survey, the paper compared economic conditions within Omahas black community with those in the rest of the nations 100 largest metro areas.

The study found that Omaha actually had a higher black poverty rate than New Orleans, the city whose widespread and concentrated black poverty had recently been exposed by Hurricane Katrina.

Black unemployment in Omaha also ranked among the nations highest even as the city boasted one of the nations lowest overall unemployment rates. Few cities could match Omaha for the economic disparity between its white and black populations.

The city had a small black middle class because many educated blacks were leaving for Southern cities with larger black populations. Omaha and Nebraska also fared poorly on other measures of social distress, including ranking in the top quarter for black households headed by a single parent.

The findings were both jaw-dropping and sobering.

It was profound, recalled Thomas Warren, who at the time was the citys police chief and now heads the citys Urban League affiliate.

But the series also helped usher in a new commitment for change.

The black poverty problem was widely seen as one for all of Omaha. Studies have consistently traced a link between the economic well-being of children and their outcomes in life, with kids growing up in poverty often falling into a familiar spiral of school failure, kids having kids, crime and unemployment. Such problems cost us all in the form of social welfare programs, crime and lost economic growth.

It got everyones attention, Bird said of the series. It was the call to action we needed.

Much of the push for change in north Omaha since has come from within.

The grass-roots Empowerment Network had been organized seven months earlier by Barney and others and coincidentally formally launched the same month as The World-Herald series. Within a year, the group initiated a new summer jobs program intended to take north Omaha youths off the streets, let them experience the value of a job and help them see new possibilities.

The organization would eventually also dive into north Omaha redevelopment, partner with Omaha police to tamp down violence, and work with the Omaha Public Schools and other groups on a cradle to career education initiative. A host of service providers, nonprofits, charities, government agencies and others got involved, with several philanthropic educational initiatives pouring tens of millions of dollars into scholarships and programs for youths.

The United Way of the Midlands also changed the way it allocates funds, with a new focus on tackling poverty by preparing all children for success in school and the workforce.

The task was daunting. It was accepted at the time that it probably would take decades to reverse economic conditions that were deep-seated and trending in the wrong direction.

The things were talking about are generational, said Kali Baker of the Omaha Community Foundation, which helps connect Omaha donors with worthy charitable causes. We want quick fixes. But it takes time.

Thats also what makes the latest economic numbers so encouraging.

While some of the improvements are more modest than others, its plain to see how the numbers are trending. Whats more difficult is putting a finger on why.

There seems little doubt Omahas strong economy has played a significant role in the rising economic tide. One study found that Omaha rode out the recession better than any large metro area in the country. With Omaha job growth outpacing its population growth, the chambers Brown said, the city has needed to lean more heavily on its existing workforce.

But the economy doesnt appear to tell the whole story. The reduction in black poverty has come even as white poverty in the metro has climbed. Talk to people who have dealt with the challenges in north Omaha and you can find anecdotal evidence that the initiatives of the past decade are having a direct impact on the ground.

The Empowerment Network started its Step-Up Omaha summer jobs program for youths in 2008, intending to replicate federal youth employment programs that no longer were funded. Step-Up was seen at first as a violence-prevention program. The first 15 youths recruited into it were active shooters on the street, said coordinator Jami Anders-Kemp.

Pull quote When you have people positively engaged in school and in the workforce, we are going to have less crime and a better community. I think were seeing that.

But over time, the program has evolved and grown. It focuses on showing low-income youths ages 14 to 21 what it means to hold a job, giving them an income, exposing them to a variety of career fields, and teaching entrepreneurship. Dozens of Omaha employers and organizations provide paid summer work opportunities, which range from groundskeeping and construction to office work at businesses, nonprofits and government agencies.

Some of these kids had not seen work modeled in their lives and did not know what it looks like, Anders-Kemp said. They didnt realize they could own their own business or could work fixing computers.

American National Bank became one of the first businesses to commit to providing employment through Step-Up. Bank executive Wende Kotouc had met Barney through an interfaith organization and been impressed by his passion.

He called me and said Wende, its a big challenge to get businesses on board, we have no template for it, and I just really need you to do this,  she recalled. I said OK, were in. It was the right thing to do.

Since that first year, Kotouc has become one of the programs biggest advocates. Its not a huge commitment to give a kid a chance for a two-month internship, she said, but its an important one.

The Step-Up program has shown the power to effect change one person at a time.

Shai Holbert worked at American National through the program the summer before her senior year of high school, performing tasks such as scanning and sorting documents. What was supposed to be just summer work ultimately turned into a full-time job, as she became a teller and then moved up into other administrative roles.

It gave me the opportunity to see a real work environment, she said. It made the first step for me.

Serving 150 youths the first year, Step-Up stepped up considerably in 2012 when the city began kicking into the program a portion of its federal block grant funding . This summer, more than 500 youths are enrolled.

Mayor Jean Stothert has committed to further growing the program next year, pledging to double the citys funding from the current $500,000 to $1 million. With hundreds on waiting lists in recent years, Barney would like to see the program ultimately reach 2,000 teens and young adults.

Over the past decade, other education and youth initiatives geared toward poor and at-risk kids in Omaha are almost too many to enumerate. They range from the new early childhood programs started by Susie Buffetts Sherwood Foundation, to mentoring and after-school programs like the NorthStar Foundations Outward Bound program, to college scholarships offered by the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation and the Aksarben Foundation.

Jamar Dorsey, who works with high school students through Avenue Scholars, said there are now far more opportunities for kids in north Omaha than he saw growing up there during the 1990s.

Its a lot of little things going right, he said. The city, the schools and the nonprofits are doing a good job of chipping away at the barriers that caused kids to perpetuate the cycle of poverty.

Other factors cited in the recent progress include OPS school improvement programs, improved re-entry programs for offenders coming out of prison, and the citys decision to spin its federally funded job-training programs into Heartland Workforce Solutions, a new nonprofit that can also accept private donations.

There could be more good news to come. Barney, Brown and others hinted at an upcoming announcement that will bring a notable number of jobs to north Omaha.

But they also emphasized that the most important thing is ensuring that north Omaha residents have access to all jobs in Omaha, wherever they are, and can obtain the skills necessary to secure them.

North Omaha native Lenzel Hayes-Brown feels hes on track to do just that. Avenue Scholars helped him through high school and now has the 20-year-old close to completing his two-year degree in welding  a high-demand, good-paying occupation. He feels hes set to become another north Omaha success story.

Growing up in north Omaha, I saw the challenges, he said. I can really see the light at the end of the tunnel.
GRAND ISLAND, Neb.  Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson urged new law enforcement officers to not jeopardize their careers in a moment of high adrenaline and to remain committed to the truth.

Peterson spoke to the graduates of the 196th basic session of the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center on Friday.

As part of his job, Peterson sometimes has to look at videos of officers whose behavior is in question. In watching those videos, what strikes him is the power of adrenaline. He can hear it in their voices and see it in their behavior, he said.

They are usually good people whose wisdom was compromised by the strength of adrenaline, Peterson said.

I know the ramifications of that, he said. Those officers have to go home and tell their spouses they no longer have a job.

He encouraged officers not to throw away their careers in a moment.

Peterson also urged the officers to adhere to the truth and retain their integrity, even when its difficult.

Throughout the four months of training, the 47 students went through a number of scenarios.

And now everythings real life, said Kylan Lonowski of Arcadia, who is joining the Valley County Sheriffs Office.

Its a long 16 weeks. Its a hard 16 weeks. But its beneficial in all areas, said Blake Huelsnitz, whos going to work for the Hall County Sheriffs Office.

The future officers learned about courtroom and legal issues and developed driving and firearms skills. They also learned how to deal with victims and suspects and when to ask the right questions, Huelsnitz said.

Its a little intense, Lonowski said of the training. Theres times that I just didnt know what was going to happen. But I learned a lot, and Im grateful for the instructors taking the time to teach us and to show us ways of bettering our profession.

Im feeling really great, Huelsnitz said after graduation. Ive worked really hard to get to where Im at. Ive wanted to be in law enforcement ever since I was a little kid.
Nebraskans involved in workforce development are voicing optimism about outreach efforts to the states young people. Consider these observations from two people heavily involved in the issue.

 Weve seen some tremendous conversations and really solid plans as a result of this, Rich Katt, state director of career education with the Nebraska Department of Education, told The World-Herald, referring to collaborations between a growing number of Nebraska public schools and the business community.

 Business and education are partnering well in Nebraska, said Tony T.R. Raimondo Sr., chairman of Columbus-based Behlen Manufacturing Co. and a longtime leader in Nebraska workforce development. Its really happening.

These cooperative, career-focused endeavors by Nebraska schools are part of an effort called reVISION, through which the state Department of Education works with school systems to analyze course offerings and academic advising, adjusting them to better prepare students for careers and higher education.

The reVISION process helps school districts do a deep dive into the data about local labor market information and economic priorities for the region, Katt said.

A key component is holding community engagement sessions in which educators and local residents create a shared vision about what knowledge and skills students need to leave with, Katt said.

Among the standouts, he said, is Kearney High School, which has built close connections to the community and helped students understand their options in a range of fields. Theyre doing exceptional work, he said.

Jay Dostal, principal at Kearney High School, said about 180 adults have served on advisory teams for the initiative, by which the school transformed its curriculum, academic counseling and community connections to help students understand career opportunities and build on their interests and aptitudes.

The comprehensive approach helps students learn about options in a range of career categories, including business; agriculture and natural resources; health sciences; and technical sciences.

Our community is really rallying around it, Dostal said. The communitys strong passage of a bond issue in 2013 to build a new Kearney High set the stage to look at the educational environment in a different way and set things up for the new approach, he said.

The Kearney school system held seven community engagement sessions, which proved vital in laying the groundwork for the effort, the principal said.

Katt notes that by the conclusion of the upcoming school year, nearly 100 Nebraska school districts will have completed a reVISION process, involving about 70 percent of the states public school students.

The outcomes have been very significant, Katt said. Weve seen complete program changes, especially lots of emphasis on skilled trades, agrisciences, bioscience and information technology. There has been particular interest in health sciences, he said.

In addition to reVISION, Nebraska is pursuing a variety of workforce development efforts, including software coding schools, visits to manufacturing plants and competitive state grants to Nebraska companies that work with school districts to provide students with hands-on experience in advanced manufacturing or information technology.

Raimondo, a leader with the Nebraska Advanced Manufacturing Coalition, points to successes with the Career Dream Team Ambassador program, in which young Nebraska adults starting out in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math) do outreach to Nebraska students.

STEM outreach to girls will take a major step forward in September when Metropolitan Community College hosts Nebraskas inaugural Step Forward event.

The event will honor 60 women in STEM fields in Nebraska and western Iowa, underscoring the career opportunities. Its fitting that the Step Forward event will coincide with the dedication of Metros ambitious new Center for Advanced and Emerging Technology, offering cutting-edge skills training.

Nebraska and Iowa face a shortage of skilled workers, but these are the kinds of proactive efforts needed to move ahead. Everyone involved in these efforts deserves a salute for building a stronger future.
Amidst cross voting, Venkaiah Naidu breaks 30 year record to become VP of India

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Venkaiah Naidu beat Goplakrishna Gandhi in the Vice Presidential elections on Saturday by 272 votes. Naidu got 516 votes as opposed to the 244 bagged by Gopalkrishna Gandhi, who is the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi.

Naidu incidentally broke a 30 year old record by securing such a high number of votes. While the BJP was expecting 502 votes for Naidu, it appears that he secured a higher number after 20 lawmakers cross voted.

In the absence of a whip, it would not be possible to know who had cross voted. However it is suspected that the recent alignment with the JD(U) may have resulted in Naidu's swell in numbers.

Following his impressive victory, Naidu a man famous for his one-liners said, " I never imagined I would be here. Agriculture has no proper voice in Indian polity. As Rajya Sabha chairman, I will sincerely try to steer the functioning of the House to enable it to effectively further the larger interests of the nation."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Naidu will serve the nation as a diligent and dedicated Vice President, committed to the goal of nation-building. Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Gopalkrishna Gandhi, too, congratulated Naidu.

Of the 786 votes in the electoral college, 771 or 98.21% votes were cast, the highest ever for VP polls. Fifteen MPs did not cast their votes and 11 others' were declared invalid.

Among the 15 MPs who didn't vote, 3 belonged to the NDA while 11 were seen as Opposition supporters. An Independent MP, two IUML MPs, four Trinamool Congress and two Congress members and an NCP MP were among those who didn't vote.

BJP's Vijay Goel and Sanwarlal Jat were in hospital while Chedi Paswan was not allowed to vote due to an ongoing litigation. PMK's Anbumani Ramdoss skipped voting.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 7:14 [IST]
LDF's violence would put terrorists to shame, says Jaitley over Kerala killings

India

oi-Anusha

Union Finance minister Arun Jaitley who met the family of slain RSS worker Rajesh slammed the CPM over political killings in Kerala. The senior BJP leader said that the state deserved peace and not the LDF. The Union Minister took part in a memorial service organised for Rajesh. Jaitley's visit is aimed at putting the spotlight on political killings in Kerala that have moved from Kannur to Thiruvananthapuram.

Kerala: Union Minister Arun Jaitley visits family of slain RSS worker Rajesh Edavakode in Thiruvananthapuram. pic.twitter.com/7arSv34Qd6  ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2017

"CPM is fuelling culture of violence in Kerala. Every time the LDF is in power, incidents of violence increases, political opponents are killed in a brutal manner," said Jaitley whiel addressing the press on Sunday. He added that the violence that the LDF indulges in would even shame terrorists.

"Rajesh belonged to a poor family and now his family has no means of a livelihood. He was stabbed mercilessly and there were 70-80 wounds inflicted on his body, even enemies would not be as brutal as those from the rival party who are involved in the murder.In the past few months party officers are being attacked, our workers are being attacked and their houses are being set ablaze," Arun Jaitley said in the condolence meeting.

Meanwhile, members of the CPM staged protests outside the Kerala Raj Bhavan against attacks on its members. Protesters demanded that the minister meet victims of RSS' violence too. CPM intended to counter the BJP's claim that only Sangh Parivar workers were being targeted. The CPM members also claimed that Jaitley's visit was an attempt by the BJP to distract attention from allegations of corruption against its leaders in the state.

Jaitley's visit comes in the backdrop of the RSS demanding either a judicial or central agency probe into their workers being targetted by the CPM. Claiming that the killings are state-sponsored violence, the RSS and the BJP have accused the Pinarayi Vijayan led LDF government of doing precious little to stop the violence.

Arun Jaitley's visit is aimed at putting the CPM in Kerala in a spot of bother. However, the violence in the state is retaliatory. Many CPM activists have also been murdered by those suspected to have been affiliated to the Sangh Parivar.

Under pressure, Cheif Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had called for an all-party meeting last week. It has now been decided to hold peace meetings ins sensitive districts in a bid to discourage cadres from indulging in violence. Jaitley's visit is a symbolic move by the BJP to show the RSS as well as the CPM that incidents from Kerala are being watched and not tolerated.

OneIndia News
Blacklisting Mahmood blocked by China: The man who raised funds under garb of religion in India

Bangladeshi terrorist arrested by Uttar Pradesh ATS

India

oi-Madhuri

The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) officials on Sunday arrested a Bangladeshi terrorist Abdullah from Muzaffarnagar who is associated with group Ansarullah Bangla Team.

The sleuths also seized some fake IDs who he was arranging for others. According to the police officials, the man has been accused of giving shelter to terrorists.

Abdullah was residing in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar district for the last one month. Prior to this, he was living in Saharanpur from where he acquired fake ID and passports.

What is Ansarullah Bangla Team?

The Ansarullah Bangla Team, also called Ansar Bangla is an Islamic extremist organization in Bangladesh, implicated in crimes including some brutal attacks and murders of atheist bloggers from 2013 to 2015 and a bank heist in April 2015. The gang was outlawed days after the bank robbery by the Ministry of Home Affairs on 25 May 2015. The group has been claimed by police to be linked to Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami party in Bangladesh.

OneIndia News
BJP wants KFD, PFI branded as 'terrorist organisations', seeks NIA office in Mangaluru

India

oi-Anusha

By Anusha Ravi

Ahead of Amit Shah's visit to Karnataka, the state BJP unit held a day-long executive meet. While the focus was the Vistarak program, the state BJP claimed that terror activities had increased in Karnataka's coastal districts.

Taking a jibe at the Congress government for releasing activists of the Popular Front of India from jail last year, the BJP demanded both, the PFI and the Karnataka Forum for Dignity (KFD) to be declared 'terrorist organisations'.

"Terrorist activities have increased in Bhatkal, Udupi, Kasargod and Mangaluru. There is a need to keep it in check and we are demanding that the NIA set up an office in the coastal region of Karnataka. We also demand that the PFI and KFD are branded as terrorist organisations and banned like the SIMI," said BJP MP Shobha Karandlaje.

Cornered by the Congress on issues of separate religious status for Lingayats, Kannada flag controversy and anti-Hindi imposition, the BJP tried to fall back on the communal violence agenda.

"Two people were murdered despite sec 144 being imposed in Mangaluru. RSS and BJP workers are being targeted. What has become of the law and order situation in the state?," asked Karandlaje.

Leaders of the state BJP met in Bengaluru on Sunday to discuss the political situation in the state and prepare for national president Amit Shah's three-day visit beginning August 12. While the state unit has been on the backfoot on various issues, the tables are expected to turn after Amit Shah's visit.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 17:10 [IST]
Congress MLAs to leave Bengaluru resort on Monday, to shift to another in Gujarat

India

oi-Anusha

By Anusha Ravi

Congress MLAs from Gujarat who have been lodged at a resort in the outskirts of Bengaluru will return to their state on Monday. The MLAs are expected to be shifted into Neejanand Resort in Gujarat till the Rajya Sabha elections conclude.

The first batch of Congress MLAs is scheduled to leave from Bengaluru at around 4 AM. 10 MLAs are expected to board the flight at around 4 AM on Monday while the rest will travel to Ahmedabad at noon. Once they reach Ahmedabad, the MLAs will be taken to Neejanand Resort on Anand-Borsad Road in Gujarat.

D K Shivakumar and D K Suresh along with some state Congress leaders will escort the Gujarat MLAs to the Bengaluru international airport on Monday morning. The MLAs had met Karnataka governor Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala on Saturday to express their anguish over the raids at D K Shivakumar's residence.

MLAs from Gujarat, 44 in number, were flown down to Bengaluru in three batches by the party senior leadership on last Saturday. After spending more than a week in a Bengaluru resort, the legislators are homebound. The Congress was forced to shift its MLAs out from Gujarat following a spate of resignations in the backdrop of Rajya Sabha elections. Ahmed Patel's election to the Rajya Sabha is of utmost importance to the Congress that has lost its 'largest party' tag to the BJP by one seat recently.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 13:35 [IST]
Congress slams PM Modi, says NaMo is No Agriculture Mal-governance Only

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

Coming down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over recent IT raids on Karnataka minister D K Shivakumar, the Congress on Sunday accused BJP of indulging in vendetta politics.

The Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that the current politics in India reeks of intolerance and that this was not in line with the democracy of the country.

"CBI is conducting raids at houses of members of Opposition. Why was it sleeping during Vyapam investigation?" he questioned.

Singhvi further said that the NAMO policy of the BJP government stands for No agriculture mal-governance only.

Earlier this week, IT sleuths carried out searched in more than 60 places over a period of three days in connection with raids on D K Shivakumar. Searches were conducted in properties belonging to Shivakumar's friends, aides as well as family. Some of the places that were raided also belonged to Congress party leaders.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 16:15 [IST]
My life is 1%, dear death: The spooky diary of the accused in J&K DGPs killing

Dairy industry has immense potential in W Bengal, says Amul

India

oi-PTI

Kolkata August 6: The dairy industry has immense potential in West Bengal. The state produces five million tonne of raw milk against a demand of 10-12 million tonne and Amul has already firmed up a Rs. 200 crore new processing plant in the state.

"In West Bengal dairy is growing at just two to three per cent against national average of five per cent, despite the fact that the state has everything from raw material to demand," RS Sodhi, Managing Director of GCMMF, owner of Amul brand told news agency PTI.

What is required is organising dairy farmers and procurement of milk processes and Amul is keen in hand holding the state government in offering knowhow and technical support to increase yeild, he said.

The state produces five million tonne of raw milk against a demand of 10-12 million tonne.

Amul has already firmed up to set up a centralised milk processing plant on a 17-acre plot at Sankrail food park in Howrah from West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation. "We will have the plant ready in the next one year, " Mr Sodhi said.

The proposed plant will manufacture UHD milk, yoghurt and ghee, besides normal milk.

Amul in a tie-up has set up a 200 TPD cattle feed plant meant for farmers in Amul's fold and also for selling in the market.

The Indian Dairy Association Chairman will be organising an international dairy conference in Bengal in 2019 to bring the state in focus.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 10:38 [IST]
Dilip Kumar is doing well & improving: Lilavati Hospital

India

oi-Madhuri

Four days after veteran actor Dilip Kumar was admitted in Mumbai's Lilavati Hospital, the hospital issued a statement assuring that he is well. In the statement, the hospital said,''Dilip Kumar is doing well & improving, all vital parameters are stable.''

Kumar was admitted to the hospital in suburban Bandra on Wednesday morning after he suffered from dehydration and urinary tract infection. There have been reports that the 94-year-old actor is suffering from a renal ailment.

The actor is under the care of a team of senior doctors, including Dr Jalil Parkar and Dr Gokhale, at the hospital.

Earlier, Kumar's wife Saira Banu had said, "We (all) should pray he recovers soon. He should be well Inshallah! God willing. The doctors are treating him."

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 11:30 [IST]
From 'Ji' to 'avare': How Karnataka Congress has adapted to anti-Hindi sentiment

India

oi-Anusha

Sensing the pulse of the people against Hindi imposition, the Congress in Karnataka seems to have quickly adapted. Instead of 'ji' as a suffix to names, Congress leaders are shifting to Kannada equivalent, 'avare', in a consciousness move to appeal to Kannadigas.

Chief Minister of Karnataka, Siddaramaiah, first tweeted quoting D V Sadananda Gowda's tweet on lakes in Bengaluru. He chose to use the suffix 'avare' to Sadananda Gowda's name instead of 'ji' which was in general practice.

Thanks for the letter @DVSBJP . This is a huge misconception. No lake is going to be de-notified. We are in fact reviving & filling them https://t.co/Cb3M5U0DDQ  CM of Karnataka (@CMofKarnataka) August 3, 2017

Then came the turn of AICC spokesperson and Karnataka Congress acting president Dinesh Gundu Rao. While invoking Rahul Gandhi in a tweet, Dinesh Gundu Rao too chose to use the suffix 'avare'.

#ModiShah are plotting & planning..how 2 finish @INCIndia & opposition parties. Rahulavaru is offering strength & solace to the suffering. https://t.co/H9IrBcvwIV  Dinesh Gundu Rao (@dineshgrao) August 4, 2017

The move seems to be well thought of given the anger around Hindi imposition in Karnataka. The key currently is effective implementation. The Congress has ensured that the BJP in the state remains on the backfoot around the Hindi imposition debate. While keeping the BJP at bay was its first victory, the Congress in the state is looking to champion the cause of Kannada.

By replacing a popular Hindi suffix with Kannada, the Congress is steadily building a pro-Kannada image in the state and using the same to fuel public anger against the BJP. The attempt is a perception building exercise, a game that the BJP has mastered.

The conscious effort comes keeping the upcoming elections in mind. For the Congress that already enjoys a favourable perception among the state voters, a subtle Kannada tilt is sure to bring in more admirers.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 10:49 [IST]
Richard Ratcliffe, her British husband, an accountant who lives in north London, has appealed to the Foreign Office to raise her case during a visit to Tehran this week. He hopes that the Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt will hold talks with senior Iranian politicians about his 38-year-old wife, a charity worker. Burt is meeting Zaghari-Ratcliffes family, and is due to attend the official swearing-in ceremony for the re-elected president, Hassan Rouhani, on Saturday.

Zaghari-Ratcliff has decorated her cell with pictures from her infant daughter, who is now three. The child had her passport confiscated, and is living with her grandparents in Iran. She is allowed to see her mother twice a week.

Ratcliff, 42, talked about his wifes situation, Its one of the quirks of the law and UK policy about dual nationality. Nazanin lives in Britain, she is British, her jobs here, her home is here. She is being held in part, or mainly, because she is British. The way in which you cant do anything about it because she is Iranian seems so counter-intuitive.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested at Tehran airport as she tried to leave the country at the end of her visit. She was accused of trying to topple the Iranian regime. Iran hides behind dual nationality, said Ratcliffe. The reason they dont allow the British ambassador access to her is because, Oh, she is Iranian, which is a fiction, because the reason they took her is because she is British.

Ratcliffe has applied for an Iranian visa and is hoping to visit his daughter, Gabriella, as well as his wife.

I have promised Nazanin I wont do anything with Gabriella without her agreement, because of course the only thing Nazanin lives for at the moment is visits from her daughter. That is the worst thing at the moment, missing these months with her daughter.

In Evin prison, Zaghari-Ratcliffe is suffering from mental health problems, as well as physical issues with her shoulder, neck, eyesight and teeth.

Of his recent meeting with Burt, Ratcliffe said, He was kind. It feels like he cares. I do have a dispute with the Foreign Office that they are not pushing hard enough, and I have made that clear all along, but I do not doubt that he cares. Labour MPs have criticised the lack of progress. However, Ratcliffe said he remains hopeful that his wife will be released, but said Foreign Office involvement would be critical. The Foreign Office are never optimistic, said Ratcliffe. They are just guarded.

About his upcoming trip, Burt said, We hope to build further on improving UK / Iran relations during President Rouhanis second term. The presidents personal commitment to the nuclear deal is welcome and it is vital both our countries work closely together to ensure the deal continues to be successfully implemented. We are also keen to maintain dialogue on Irans regional policies, human rights and particularly our dual national detainees. Progress in all of these areas is important to the UK.
Gadkari describes Chabahar Port as 'gateway to golden opportunities'

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Aug 6: Stressing on the importance of Chabahar Port in Iran, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that it would serve as a gateway to golden opportunities.

Keen on rolling out infrastructure projects in Iran and Afghanistan, Gadkari said that once Chabahar Port becomes operational, there will be no looking back.

As a special envoy of India, deputed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Road Transport and Shipping Minister Gadkari is in Tehran and represented India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani for the second term.

"Talks are on for building railways and roads through Chabahar till Afghanistan and then we have access to Russia. Once Chabahar is operationalised, which we are hopeful to be in 12 to 18 months time, it will prove to be a gateway to golden opportunities to boost trade and business," Gadkari told PTI.

Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation's southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from India's western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

"We are hopeful of ratification of Trilateral Transit and Transport Agreement by Iran and once approvals are given, the work will start," Gadkari said.

The trilateral pact was inked during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tehran in May 2016. The pact envisages establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor between India, Iran and Afghanistan using Chabahar Port as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran besides multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.

The Cabinet and the President had ratified the pact in November and December, 2016 respectively. A government official said Afghanistan has also ratified it but Iran is yet to complete the internal processes of the ratification.

Gadkari said operationalisation of the Port will not accelerate the infrastructure projects but will be a "win-win situation" for the nations as it would give tremendous boost to trade and offer vast opportunities to investors.

"Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but we will be closer to Afghanistan and then Russia....We can export goods till Russia. This will be a direct route," he said.

India has already built the Zaranj-Delaram Road in Afghanistan where the cargo reaching Zehedan can connect to. "The rail route is aimed at connecting the existing rail network of Iran at Zahedan, and subsequently to Mashad in north area, thereby providing access to Turkmenistan as well as northern Afghanistan through its connection to the Bafq- Mashad route," an official said.

This project will significantly enhance the opportunity for trade and business among the nations. Chabahar-Zahedan Railway line project is located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province in eastern Iran.

Gadkari's visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work on the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at the port.

"Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine," the minister had said.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including a USD 150 million credit from Exim Bank. It also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of USD 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of USD 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of the equipment will be transferred to the Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of USD 150 million in accordance with the MoU.

As per the pact, operations of the two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract. Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest USD 500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.

PTI

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 16:03 [IST]
GST: Dialysis, cancer devices to cost more, says health ministry

India

oi-PTI

The healthcare services such as dialysis, pacemaker implantation, support devices in orthopaedics and cancer treatment due to levying of the GST, the Union Health Ministry has said.

The GST cell of the Ministry has said this on its website in answer to one of the frequently asked questions on the Goods and Services Tax and its impact on the health sector.

However, in reply to another question, the ministry has said that life-saving drugs, healthcare services, and medical devices would continue to be tax-free under the GST.

"Dialysis (5 to 12 per cent), pacemaker (5.5 to 12-18 per cent), support devices in orthopaedics (5 to 12 per cent), and all support devices for cancers except blood cancer (5 to 7-12 per cent) are the services that will face increased taxation due to GST," the ministry said in reply to the question as to what are the services likely to cost more due to the GST.

According to a government official, diagnostic kits, except for those used in the detection of Hepatitis and radiology machines, will come under the high-end ambit of 28 per cent tax and thus diagnosis will get costlier.

As far as medical tourism is concerned, with the rollout of the GST, the cost of insurance, pharmaceuticals and international travel is expected to come down which would result in better prospects for medical tourism in the country.

The Ministry of Health has also appointed a nodal officer for the GST and is working to disseminate information to all stakeholders and address their concern.

PTI

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 12:37 [IST]
IT department issues summons to Karnataka minister D K Shivakumar

India

oi-Anusha

Following raids, the Income Tax department has issued summons to Karnataka minister D K Shivakumar. The senior Congress leader has been asked to appear in person before officials of the IT department.

IT sleuths carried out searched in more than 60 places over a period of three days in connection with raids on D K Shivakumar. Searches were conducted in properties belonging to Shivakumar's friends, aides as well as family. Some of the places that were raided also belonged to Congress party leaders.

D K Shivakumar, on the otherhand, claimed that he was yet to receive any documents with respect to seizure from the raids. The minister maintained that the Income Tax department had not given any details of seizure so far.

On the day summons was issued to the minister, a high-level meeting was held at his residence. In a bid to respond to the raids politically, Congress State chief Parameshwara, legislator Muniratna, Bengaluru Mayor Padmavati and close aide of Laxmi Hebbalkar were at D K Shivakumar's residence on Sunday. Laxmi Hebbalkar, whose properties were also raided, was present in Sunday's meeting at D K Shivakumar's residence. She said that summons being issued was regular process and that there was no need for Shivakumar or the party to worry about the same.

OneIndia News
J&K: Security forces gun down two LeT terrorists is Anantnag

Pak arrests 4 top leaders of banned JuD, LeT on charges of terror funding

LeT guide trained by Pak Army arrested along LoC in J-K's Rajouri

LeT behind Amarnath attack; Three accused arrested, says IGP Kashmir

India

oi-Madhuri

Nearly after a month, police have cracked the case and busted the entire module behind the Amarnath terror attack which killed eight pilgrims.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir Muneer Khan on Sunday said that Lashkar was involved behind Amarnath attack. The accused were identified as Ismail, Mavya, Furqan and Yawar ( local) who carried the attack.

While addressing media, Khan said,''Ismail, a Pak militant of Lashkar along with two other Pak militants and a local Kashmiri Lashkar militant carried out attack.''

''Accused people who provided them logistics to carry out their plans in the state and work as their guides have been identified,'' IGP Kashmir added.

He further said that two Lashkar militants were eliminated few days ago. But their involvement in this particular case is still being investigated.

Khan also said,''Happy to tell you that 3 accused persons have been arrested & they have completely revealed everything. The attack was initially planned for July 9th, but that day there was no movement of CRPF or yatri vehicle in isolation.''

Accused persons who were arrested wil be produced before the court. They are currently under police remand.

Code words used by the terrorist:

The terrorist had code word 'Shaukat' for yatri vehicle and 'Bilal' for CRPF vehicle.

Amarnath terror attack:

At least 7 pilgrims, including 5 women, were killed in south Kashmir's Anantnag on the 11th day of the Amarnath Yatra on Monday after terrorists fired on a bus in which they were travelling.

LeT commander Abu Ismail, a Pakistani national, is believed to be the mastermind of the Amarnath terror attack which killed eight pilgrims, including six women.

OneIndia News
NGT asks oil companies to submit details of the 10-year-old diesel trucks

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, August 6: The National Green Tribunal has asked three public sector oil companies to submit complete information regarding 10-year-old diesel trucks they use to transport fuel.

A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar also directed the senior-most officers from each company to be present before it on 8 August. "The counsel appearing for the petroleum companies, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum, shall ensure that senior-most officers from each company to be present before the next date of hearing.

"They will provide complete detail with regard to vehicles, scrapping certificate should be placed before the tribunal. This would apply not only to the company, but to the contractors working with these companies," the bench said.

The green panel also directed the counsel appearing for the ministry of petroleum and natural gas to take instructions as to when CNG would be made available in cities near the national capital. The direction came during the hearing a batch of petitions filed by various contractors seeking registration of new BS-IV compliant diesel vehicles purchased for transport of petrol from company depots to identified petrol pumps in the National Capital Region. The contractors had moved NGT after it had last year passed an order banning the registration of new diesel vehicles as well as their re-registration after 10 years.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 10:21 [IST]
No jeans or printed clothes: Himachal brings dress code for govt staff

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

The Himachal Pradesh government has prescribed a dress code for government employees specifically during court appearances and also while attending office.

The move comes just days after the high court rebuked a woman junior engineer who went to the court in a check shirt and denims. The government has warned employees of strict disciplinary action if the orders are defied.

The orders were issued by Chief Secretary VC Pharka on Sunday in pursuance of the High Court directives to the state government where displeasure had been expressed about the manner in which employees were coming to the court wearing casual clothes.

The government has been compelled to issue the order addressed to all secretaries, heads of departments, divisional commissioners and deputy commissioners following court directives after a female Junior Engineer of the Irrigation and Public Health Department appeared in court wearing jeans and a multi-coloured shirt.

On Friday A division bench of the court comprising justices Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Ajay Mohan Goel said, "Every litigant appearing before the court is expected to be dressed in a modest manner so as to maintain decorum. After all being appropriately dressed only induces a seriousness of purpose and a sense of decorum which is highly conducive for the dispensation of justice."

In April, this year the Jharkhand high court too had disapproved of the 'colourful printed sari' worn to court by the state chief secretary.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 14:39 [IST]
Not tax evasion, D K Shivakumar stares at more serious charges under Benami act

India

oi-Anusha

Raids on Karnataka energy minister D K Shivakumar may land him in cases under the new Benami Transactions act, sources from the Income Tax department said. The raids that took place over three days were not the result of a mere income tax evasion case.

Ahead of the 2018 assembly elections in Karnataka, D K Shivakumar is likely to be charged under the Benami act. Raids at more than 64 locations in Karnataka and New Delhi have led the officials to believe that the case is more than mere tax evasion. D K Shivakumar, with declared assets of more than Rs 251 crore, is the second richest minister in the country. He along with his brother D K Suresh is the money and muscle men of the Congress not just in Karnataka.

Rs 300 crore undisclosed income under scanner after IT raids on D K Shivakumar

The highest number of documents are said to have been recovered during the raids from D K Shivakumar's father-in-law's residence in Mysuru. A friend and businessmen in Hassan was also raided in connection with the case against Shivakumar. Incidentally, all those people raided find mention in D K Shivakumar's election affidavit of 2013. Names or companies of those raided by the IT department have been mentioned as people who either owe money or from whom D K Shivakumar has borrowed money in his election affidavit's 'monetary transactions' section.

The raids come at a time when Karnataka is gearing up for elections. The timing is peculiarly similar to IT raids against Tamil Nadu minister Vijaya Bhaskar. He too was raided days ahead of the much hyped R K Nagar bypolls, the seat that fell vacant after J Jayalalithaa's demise.

Given the huge amount of illegal assets uncovered during the raids, IT officials believe that D K Shivakumar may be the first big fish to be booked under the new Benami Transactions act. Ahead of the elections, that will come as a huge blow to the Congress in Karnataka that has so far been enjoying a favourable impression in the state.

OneIndia News
Rs 300 crore undisclosed income under scanner after IT raids on D K Shivakumar

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Nearly Rs 300 crore worth undisclosed income is under the scanner following the raids on Karnataka's Energy minister, D K Shivakumar. The Income Tax department conducted raids at multiple locations including the residence of the minister between Wednesday and Friday.

An NDTV report while quoting sources said that the department is reported to have found over Rs 300 crore undisclosed income of Shivakumar and his associates. They added that Rs 100 crore income is linked to Shivakumar and his family. Sources said that cash and jewellery seized after the raids is reported to be worth around Rs 15 crore. They said that the undisclosed income is likely to go up since a lot of incriminating documents have been found.

Searches were conducted at around 70 locations which included Bengaluru, Delhi, Chennai and Mysuru. Shivakumar who was restricted to his home at Sadashivanagar, Bengaluru for three days met the media on Saturday and said that he never broke the law.

Shivakumar also known as DKS was the hospitality in charge of the Gujarat MLAs who were brought down to a resort near Bengaluru ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections to be held on August 8. On Saturday the MLAs left the resort for Gujarat.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 6:58 [IST]
Rs 99 lakh worth demonetised currency seized, five held

India

pti-PTI

Hyderabad, Aug 6: Five persons, including an engineering student, were on Sunday arrested in Hyderabad for allegedly trying to exchange demonetised currency notes with a face value of Rs 99 lakh, which were seized from them, police said.

V Sai Kumar Reddy, along with four others came to Sanjeevaiah Park here last evening along with the old notes in denominations of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 to exchange them with new currency, a release from Hyderabad Police said.

Police apprehended the accused on the spot, the release added. Further investigation into the case is on.

On July 28, the Delhi Police arrested one person after they recovered Rs 40,000 worth fake currency notes of Rs 2,000, said reports.

On June 15, a man was arrested in Delhi for allegedly printing counterfeit Rs 2,000 notes as fake currency worth face value of Rs 1.78 lakh was seized from him. A raid was carried out by the Delhi Police's Crime Branch on at the accused's house in Shastri Nagar area and 89 fake notes were seized.

In June, the Kerala police seized fake currency and printing machines from the house of a Yuva Morcha leader in Sree Narayanapuram near Kodungallur in Kerala. Police had then said they have seized fake currencies worth over Rs 1.31 lakh.

PTI
Second deadline ends but Mumbai University yet to announce 55 per cent results

India

oi-Anusha

The Mumbai University missed its second deadline on declaring results of all examinations. With 55 per cent results pending, the Mumbai University failed to declare results on Saturday much to the anger of students.

Students protested as close to 2.32 lakh answer sheets are yet to be evaluated and 79,845 are yet to be moderated. The university was given an extension on deadline from the original July 31 till August 5 by Governor Vidyasagar Rao but the institution failed yet again. As on Saturday, the university has managed to declare results for 265 of the 477 examinations.

24 hours after the deadline, the institution has not set any fresh deadline to declare results making the situation uncertain for the students. The delay in result has already caused much embarrassment to the university that shifted to the online mode this academic year. The delay has impacted students adversely from applying for other courses.

Commerce faculty have been giving a tough time to the university with the highest number of yet-to-be evaluated papers. While more than 2 lakh papers in commerce department are yet to be evaluated, not a single result has been announced from the Law department.

Students had been protesting continuously outside the Mumbai University even as Aditya Thackeray of the Shiv Sena made a representation to the governor. Despite two deadlines by the governor, the University has not been able to announce results.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 11:57 [IST]
However, missiles are no assurance of internal security for these regimes. Internal suppression of dissent, both in North Korea and Iran, relies threats of execution and imprisonment to control their citizens.

Amnesty International has released an updated report on Irans human rights condition. Philip Luther, Amnesty Internationals Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said, It is a bitter irony that as the Iranian authorities boast about their increased engagement with the UN and the EU, particularly in the aftermath of the nuclear deal, human rights defenders who have made contact with these same institutions are being treated as criminals. Rather than propagating the dangerous myth that human rights defenders pose a threat to national security, the Iranian authorities should focus on addressing the legitimate concerns they raise. These are people who have risked everything to build a more humane and just society  it is appalling that they are so viciously punished for their bravery.

The EU previously announced plans to relaunch a bilateral human rights dialogue with Iran in 2016, and Amnesty is calling on them to speak out in the strongest terms against the persecution of human rights defenders in the country. The international community, and in particular the EU, must not stay silent over the outrageous treatment of human rights defenders in Iran, Philip Luther stated, Instead of appeasing Iranian officials, the EU should forcefully call for the immediate and unconditional release of all those jailed for their peaceful human rights activism and for an end to the misuse of the justice system to silence activists.

Meanwhile, new sanctions were issued against Iran and Korea by President Trump to curb Irans destabilizing effect in the region.

On August 2, in a letter to the UN Security Council, written on behalf of the United States, France, Germany, and Britain, U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley said the launch of a missile carrying a satellite into space represents a threatening and provocative step by Iran. Her letter called on the Council to discuss appropriate responses against Tehran for its provocative action. In Ambassador Haleys letter to the UN, the four nations called on Iran to immediately cease all activities related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using such ballistic missile technology. They said Irans long-standing program to develop ballistic missiles continues to be inconsistent with the UN resolution and has a destabilizing effect in the region, according to Bloomberg.

The National Iranian American Council has condemned the sanctions and warned that a war could follow these moves. Still, the sanctions had the overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress. In a statement by Jamal Abdi, executive director for NIAC Action, the lobbying arm of the NIAC, he said, The alarm bells should be ringing but instead of restraining Trumps reckless inclinations on Iran, Congress appears to be actively encouraging him.
Don Mukhtar Ansaris son and UP MLA, Abbas Ansari arrested by ED

Manish Sisodiya claims his PA 'arrested' by ED after conducting raids

\"Why Jacqueline not arrested yet?\" Delhi court asks ED, reserves bail order for tomorrow

Shabir Shah's close aide sent to ED remand till Aug 14

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

A Delhi Court on Sunday sent Aslam Wani, a close aide of separatist leader Shabir Shah, to Enforcement Directorate remand till August 14.

The ED had earlier in the day arrested Aslam Wani in connection with terror funding case.

The development came close on the heels of Shabir Shah's arrest on July 26.

Early on Friday, a Delhi court has issued an open-ended Non-Bailable Warrant against Aslam Wani, against whom the Enforcement Directorate had registered a case of alleged money laundering in 2007.

An open-ended NBW does not carry a time limit for execution, unlike NBW.

The ED's case in 2007 came after Delhi Police's Special Cell arrested Wani in 2005 and recovered a pistol and Rs 62.9 lakh.

Wani had allegedly "confessed" to having worked as a courier for Kashmiri separatist leader Shabir Shah, who is currently in ED's custody.

In 2010, a Delhi court had cleared Wani of terror funding charges but had convicted him under the Arms Act. The ED had registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Shah and Wani.

Shah was arrested by the agency from Srinagar on July 26.

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 17:44 [IST]
Strict action against traders collecting GST for exempted goods: TN Govt

India

pti-PTI

Chennai, Aug 6: Tamil Nadu Government on Sunday warned of strong action against traders and retail outlets collecting Goods and Services Tax on goods which do not come under the ambit of GST.

"There are some products which do not come under the purview of GST. If we come to know that a trader is collecting taxes for those products which are not covered under GST, we will take strong action against them", Finance Minister D Jayakumar told reporters at the airport.

Goods and Service Tax, launched on July 1, had been described by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a "Good and Simple Tax" that would end corruption and check black money. Some products, including milk, unbranded wheat, fresh fruits and vegetables do not come under the GST.

To a query about the 'appointment' of office bearers by AIADMK Deputy General Secretary T T V Dhinakaran, he alleged it was aimed at bringing down the AIADMK Government.

"As I had stated already, the issue of whether the appointment of General Secretary is valid or not is pending before the Election Commission. Therefore the appointments (of office bearers) announced by Deputy General Secretary (T T V Dhinakaran) is not valid", he said.

"Some persons, whether it is A or B, you all know who is A and B... their objective is to bring down this government. They are taking all steps for that", he alleged.

On August 4, Dhinakaran, seeking to reassert his authority in the ruling AIADMK, had named several of his loyalists as office-bearers of the party. However, yesterday, some legislators including A K Bose, who was named joint secretary of agriculture wing, declined to take up the post in view of his health condition.

Two other MLAs K Palani (Sriperumbudur) and Sathya Panneerselvam (Panruti) who were named joint secretaries of party forum 'Amma Peravai' and women's wing, respectively, also declined to accept the posts.

PTI
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

Terror funding case: ED arrests Aslam Wani, close aide of separatist Shabir Shah

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

The Enforcement Directorate on Sunday arrested Aslam Wani, close aide of separatist Shabir Shah in connection with terror funding case.

Wani, (36) who was arrested from Jammu and Kashmir, will be brought to Delhi later today. The development comes close on the heels of Shabir Shah's arrest on July 26.

Early on Friday, a Delhi court has issued an open-ended Non-Bailable Warrant against Aslam Wani, against whom the Enforcement Directorate had registered a case of alleged money laundering in 2007. An open-ended NBW does not carry a time limit for execution, unlike NBW.

The ED's case in 2007 had come after Delhi Police's Special Cell had arrested Wani, who comes from Kashmir, in 2005 and recovered a pistol and Rs 62.9 lakh from him. Wani had allegedly "confessed" to having worked as a courier for Kashmiri separatist leader Shabir Shah, who is currently in ED's custody. Wani had allegedly stated that he had collected money from operators in Delhi and was supposed to deliver Rs 52.96 lakh to Shah.

In 2010, a Delhi court had cleared Wani of terror funding charges but had convicted him under the Arms Act. The ED had registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Shah and Wani.

Shah, now in ED custody, was arrested by the agency from Srinagar on July 26.

OneIndia News
Tuesday is now No Meeting Day in Haryana and officers to be with people on Friday

30 per cent down: How Haryana aced the decrease in stubble burning

Haryana panchayat polls: Public holiday in several districts on Nov 9 and 12

Yechury questions Modi, Shah's silence over stalking by BJP leader's son

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, Aug 6: CPI(M) on Sunday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah's silence over the alleged stalking of a girl by Haryana's BJP chief's son.

CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury raised the question after Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala's son Vikas was arrested on Saturday for allegedly stalking a girl, and was later released on bail.

Taking to Twitter, the Marxist leader also alleged that "someone" was helping the accused.

"Clearly someone is helping the accused here. Why are the PM and BJP president so silent about stalking of women?" he sought to know on the micro-blogging site.

Vikas and his friend Ashish Kumar were arrested and released on bail later for allegedly stalking the girl in Chandigarh.

The girl had accused Vikas and his friend of stalking her Friday night after which they were arrested, police said.

Both were booked under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), they said.

PTI
12 killed after gunmen attack Church during Sunday Mass at Nigeria

International

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

At least 12 people were killed and several injured after gunmen stormed into a church in Nigeria's Anambra region and opened fire.

The attack took place during an early morning service at St. Philip's Catholic Church in Ozubulu, Anambra State.

It is not yet clear as to how many gunmen carried out this heinous act.

Reports say that close to 100 people were in the church when the attack took place.

The attack took place early in the morning at around 6 am local time when worshippers had gathered for a Sunday mass. The gunmen were reportedly dressed in black and their faces were covered.

No group has claimed the responsibility for the attack so far.

In the past, terrorist group Boko Haram has carried out deadly attacks at several places across Nigeria.

OneIndia News
Germany: Nazi salute lands Chinese tourists in trouble

International

pti-PTI

Berlin, Aug 6: Two Chinese tourists, making the straight-armed Hitler salute for photos in front of the Reichstag parliament building, were arrested in Berlin.

The holidaymakers were spotted by officers on a routine patrol yesterday snapping smartphone pictures of each other posing with the banned gesture outside the historic landmark in the heart of the German capital.

"A probe on suspicion of using the symbols of anti- constitutional organisations was opened against the two Chinese men, aged 36 and 49," the spokeswoman told AFP.

The pair were questioned at a local police station and released after paying 500 euros (USD 589) bail each. Using the symbols of anti-constitutional organisations, a charge frequently leveled against members of far-right groups, can carry a sentence of up to three years in a jail sentence or a fine.

The spokeswoman said the men could leave the country during the investigation and that if a fine is handed down, the bail money they had already paid would likely cover it.

The Reichstag housed the assemblies of the German Empire, the inter-war Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany until it was destroyed by a suspicious fire in 1933. In the wake of the blaze, Adolf Hitler consolidated his power over Germany, eventually unleashing World War II, which claimed an estimated 20 million lives in Europe, and the Holocaust, in which millions of victims including six million Jews were systematically slaughtered.

Refurbished after Germany's 1990 reunification by British architect Norman Foster, who added an iconic glass dome to symbolise open democracy, it has since 1999 housed the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag.

PTI
Trump will no longer tolerate any support to militants: NSA

International

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Washington, Aug 6: US National Security Adviser Gen H R McMaster asked Pakistan to change its "paradoxical" policy of supporting selective terror groups. He also asserted that President Donald Trump will no longer "tolerate" any support to militants.

US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad denies. "The president has also made clear that he, that we need to see a change in in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," the National Security Advisor, McMaster, was quoted by MSNBC as saying.

"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups," he said, in response to a question on Afghanistan and terrorism in the region. He said that Trump is making clear that the US will no longer "tolerate" any support for the Taliban or related groups.

"Of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but theyve done so really only selectively," he said. Pakistans two neighbours -- both India and Afghanistan  have accused it of being selective in its war against terrorism. McMaster said that Trump has lifted restrictions on US armed forces in Afghanistan. He also defended Trump's strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country.

"The president has said that, "He does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat". "He has lifted those restrictions, and you are beginning to see the payoff of that as well," the top US national security advisor said.

PTI
Search for US marines off Queensland called off

International

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Sydney, August 6: A sea search off Australia's east coast for three missing US Marines was called off early Sunday.

Twenty-three personnel were quickly rescued following the incident involving a MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor, the primary assault support aircraft for the Marines, on Saturday. But three marines remain missing despite a search operation supported by aircraft and ships.

"Operations have now shifted to recovery efforts. The next-of-kin for the three missing Marines have been notified," US Marines based in Japan said in a statement. "As the sea state permits, recovery efforts will be conducted to further search, assess and survey the area, in coordination and with assistance from the Australian Defence Force."

The Marines said tthat he recovery and salvage operations could take several months to complete, while the cause of the incident was currently being investigated.

The MV-22, which is half-helicopter half-turboprop, has two engines positioned on fixed wing tips that allow it to land and take off vertically. It also has the ability to travel much faster than a helicopter.

It was in the region as part of the Australian-US joint military exercise Talisman Sabre, which has just concluded in Queensland state.

There have been a series of deadly incidents, mostly in the United States, involving the aircraft. In April 2000, 19 Marines were killed in an MV-22 crash in the US.

Locals on the Japanese island of Okinawa have protested against the deployment of the MV-22 to a US airbase in the middle of a crowded city.

In December, a "controlled landing" of the controversial hybrid aircraft just off the coast during a training flight sparked local anger. The aircraft was in pieces after the incident and no-one was killed.

Local campaigners say they cannot tolerate accidents, as well as noise and crimes committed by US service members.

PTI

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Story first published: Sunday, August 6, 2017, 11:30 [IST]
Sikkim standoff cannot be resolved through Interlocutors, says China

International

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

The ongoing diplomatic communication between China and India on the stand-off has nothing to do with the current military face-off in Doklam Plateau, China has said.

Beijing refuses to acknowledge the meeting between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi as the one between the Special Representatives of the two nations for boundary negotiations.

National security adviser Ajit Doval, on a visit to Beijing, met Chinese state councillor Yang Jiechi as the two nations faced off at the trijunction between India, China and Bhutan.

Both Doval and Yang are Special Representatives of the two countries in the boundary talks.

Beijing conveyed to New Delhi that the current stand-off in Doklam Plateau was out of the purview of the Special Representatives appointed by China and India to negotiate a settlement of the disputed boundary. It argued that since the boundary between the two neighbours at Sikkim Sector had already been delimited by the 1890 convention between UK and China, the bilateral mechanism led by the Special Representatives had no scope to discuss the current face-off, reports Deccan Herald.

New Delhi, however, did not buy the argument and pointed it out that while the status of Sikkim as an integral part of India had been settled, India-China boundary in Sikkim Sector still remained unsettled and a matter of negotiation between the Special Representatives of the two nations, sources told the DH.

The nature of Sikkim standoff is completely different and Doval had met Yang as State Councillor of China and not as the Special Representative for boundary negotiations with India, a Chinese diplomat said.

The Special Representatives of India and China in 2003 started negotiations to resolve the long-pending boundary dispute between the two nations. China and India have been engaged in talks on a framework for boundary settlement since 2005.

Earlier, had agreed that the 20th round would take place in New Delhi this year.

Beijing has consistently said that it will not compromise on its soereignty and has urged India to unilaterally withdraw its troops.
UNSC's counter-terror meet in India to focus on use of internet, new payment mechanism by terrorists

UNSC meet in India to begin its deliberations in Mumbai is a message in itself: MEA

UNSC unanimously adopts new North Korea sanctions

International

pti-PTI

United Nations, Aug 5: The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a US-drafted resolution that significantly strengthened sanctions on North Korea, with a ban on exports aimed at depriving Pyongyang of USD 1 billion in annual revenue.

The sweeping measures were the first of that scope to be imposed on North Korea since US President Donald Trump took office and highlighted China's willingness to punish its Pyongyang ally. The resolution bans all exports of coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, as well as fish and seafood by the cash-starved state -- stripping North Korea of a third of its export earnings estimated at USD 3 billion per year.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley told the council that the stiffer measures brought the penalty imposed on North Korea "to a whole new level" and put leader Kim Jong Un "on notice." If fully implemented by China and Russia, North Korea's main economic partners, the measures would tighten the vise around Pyongyang as it seeks to develop its military programs.

The resolution also prevents North Korea from increasing the number of workers it sends abroad whose earnings are another source of revenue for Kim's regime. It prohibits all new joint ventures with North Korea, bans new investment in the current joint companies and adds nine North Korean officials and four entities including North Korea's main foreign exchange bank to the UN sanctions blacklist.

The United States entered into negotiations with China a month ago on the new resolution after North Korea launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile on July 4 which was followed by a second test on July 28. But the measure does not provide for cuts to oil deliveries to North Korea as initially proposed by the United States -- a move that would have dealt a serious blow to the economy.

The new raft of measures are the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006, but these have failed to compel Pyongyang to change its behavior.

The United States has put heavy pressure on China, which accounts for 90 percent of trade with North Korea, to enforce the sanctions and the fate of these measures largely hinges on Beijing's cooperation. China and Russia had resisted the US push for sanctions, arguing that dialogue with North Korea was the way to persuade Pyongyang to halt its military programs.

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Bollywood NOW 08 Aug 2022

On this friendship day, we have brought a list of Bollywood movies and you should watch them with your buddies.
Tamworth Herald 03 May 2022

Mark White, 44, tragically died from colon cancer, the same disease which claimed the life of his father Paul
A Cayuga County legislator accused of making threats to social services staff has restrictions in place for interactions with child protective services employees and which floors of the Cayuga County Office Building he may visit, according to a February email from county Legislature Chairman Keith Batman.

Frank Reginelli, legislator representing District 11, "is not to go to the 2nd, 3rd or 4th floor without notifying security," according to the email sent to Community Services Director Ray Bizzari. The Citizen was provided the email July 28 following a Freedom of Information Law request. Batman added in the email that "he is to avoid, to the extent possible, all contact with the staff involved in previous incidents."

Last week, Batman downplayed the restrictions, saying they are voluntary and don't impact Reginelli's ability to do his job.

The new revelations followed the release last month of a Cayuga County Sheriff's Office report from December 2016 that said a child protective services supervisor had said in 2014 that Reginelli followed her into the parking lot of the county office building and through the city of Auburn. Terri Hoffmann, a labor relations specialist with the Civil Service Employees Association, told The Citizen on July 28 that Reginelli had also ridden the elevator with the employee prior to following her in his car, and told her she should be shot. Hoffman said a family member of Reginelli's was involved in a social services case, and then he made threats to employees again in 2016.

In December 2016, Bizzari said Reginelli told him his staff "all should be shot," according to the sheriff's office report. Bizzari filed a police report, and an investigation concluded that Reginelli committed no crimes.

Reginelli has continued to deny the allegations, calling them "erroneous and salacious." Reginelli declined to speak with The Citizen on Thursday for this story.

In a December email to Batman, former County Administrator Suzanne Sinclair, County Undersheriff Jim Stowell and Human Resources Administrator Mike Russell, Bizzari said he did not believe Reginelli would cease harassing his staff. He called for Reginelli to be accompanied by security at all times, or to resign.

"Staff has been, and continues to be, very concerned and worried for a number of reason(s)," he wrote on Dec. 22. "It's troubling to us all that someone in that position, with all the powers over personnel, budget and policy threatens and intimidates the staff whose sole job is to protect the most vulnerable children."

In an interview with The Citizen on Wednesday, Batman said there are no real restrictions on Reginelli, and the investigation has fully exonerated him. Batman called the floor limitations in the county office building a "gentleman's agreement," saying that it was completely voluntary with "no legal or procedural force," but something Reginelli had been abiding by.

"Frank Reginelli is a 77-year-old small man, who has no guns," Batman said. "According to a police report he has no weapons. He has no proclivity towards violence, and so to be physically afraid of him, I don't know what to say. The investigation exonerated him. He took steps to make people at ease. As far as I know, it's resolved."

Batman did not think the voluntary restrictions limited Reginelli's ability to serve his constituents, saying that it's not a legislator's place to go directly to staff. He said legislators should be working through the county administrator, and there's almost never an instance where a legislator needed to sit down with a department head or staff member.

"I see absolutely no reason he should resign," Batman said. "We heard no complaints about his service."

Bizzari said in a phone interview Thursday that he was not privy to the conversations around the voluntary agreement, and it was not his decision.

"I might have handled it differently if it was up to me," he said.

Hoffmann told The Citizen Thursday that she was unaware of the voluntary agreement, but she was glad to hear one was in place. She wished it had been done sooner, however, when a workplace violence incident report was filed in 2014.

The county denied The Citizen's Freedom of Information Law request for the workplace violence reports, stating that "there was no determination that the allegations rose to the level of a workplace violence incident," thus releasing the documents would be an "unwarranted invasion of personal privacy" under Public Officer's Law.

Hoffman questioned the county's contention that there was no wrongdoing.

"How could they be unfounded when they have a voluntary agreement that Reginelli won't visit floors two to four without notifying security," Hoffmann said.

Batman said the county takes complaints seriously, but in this instance, came up with no findings. He could not speak to 2014 allegations, but he said "there was no finding to lead to any action" for the 2016 allegations. He was not aware that former Legislature Chairman Michael Chapman had met with Reginelli in 2014 regarding the alleged incidents, but Cayuga County Attorney Fred Westphal said that nothing came of that conversation. Batman added that he had held a couple of meetings with social services employees to address any remaining concerns around Reginelli and the investigation.

"That group, and this is not hyperbole as I sometimes want to speak, one person said, 'What are you talking about?'" Batman said. "The majority of the people had no idea there was an issue. It is not a widespread problem, that was clear in the meeting. We talked it through."

Considering that employees may not want to talk in front of others, Batman added that he had made office hours available to meet one-on-one. Four employees came, but to talk about other issues, he said.

Hoffman said she was not invited to any meetings, and she did not know if the employees involved knew about them.

County Legislator Aileen McNabb-Coleman, who is the chair of the Ways and Means Committee and the Majority Leader, said she had thought the issue between staff and Reginelli was resolved. She said she wouldn't defend a legislator who had done something wrong, but in this case, there had been an investigation.

"I don't know what more we can do," she said. "They (child protective services staff) have serious jobs and serious issues, and we need them to keep working and doing the best they can. But when there's provided to be no wrongdoing, then what do you do? I hope we'll hear from them if they want something different."

Through it all, Batman said some good came out of the investigations. The county has brought together a public safety committee.

"It came about as a result of this stuff, but it gets at the idea of responding to the perceptions of people that work here and the public," Batman said.

One of those things includes the identification passes visitors of the county office building need to get. Bizzari was glad for that, too.

"I'm always concerned about workers' safety in the building and in the field," he said. "They're out in the field a lot alone, and recently, they had that identification (where) you come in the building and you have to show ID and stuff like that. I think they're really happy about that. It's a good way to track, the system also tracks people who have shown inappropriate behaviors, made threats and stuff like that so security knows who they are. Anything we can do to make the workers feel better protected is good for everyone."
On Thursday, TLC headlines a show at Pinewood Bowl titled, I Love the 90s: The Party Continues Tour, and the bill is filled with a collection of R&B and hip-hop acts that had Case Logic car visor-worthy albums.

Before Tionne T-Boz Watkins and Rozonda Chilli Thomas close out the night with a set featuring TLCs four chart-topping hits (Creep, No Scrubs, Unpretty and an all-time show closer in Waterfalls) All-4-One, Biz Markie and C + C Music Factory featuring Freedom Williams each get turns at the mic. And thats all after the opening-opening-opening-opening act (SNAP!) knocks out Rhythm Is A Dancer. (Naughty by Nature is no longer on the bill.)

Though the tour has a nostalgic appeal to it, TLC put out a new album this summer, a self-titled release recorded without founding member Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, who died following a car crash in Honduras in 2002. The two surviving members have said this record, which was crowdfunded on Kickstarter by fans and contemporaries alike, will be their last.

"We feel like a lot of those songs can jump into the catalog of the songs we're so blessed to have already," Thomas, aka Chilli, said during a phone interview in advance of the Lincoln set. "And I want to give a shout out to Snoop Doggy Dogg for being on (the single) 'Way Back' because we love Uncle Snoop. He is amazing."

They're also fans of Bette Midler, one of many artists, including Katy Perry, The New Kids on the Block and Justin Timberlake, who contributed to the cause of getting "TLC" recorded.

"That was more of a shocker to me than anybody," Thomas said. "She's legendary. I had no idea she even knew about TLC or liked us. That was an honor. And that was an honor for everyone to contribute the way they did. When it comes to your peers, you never really know who's a fan. So it feels good when people let you know that kind of stuff."

TLC's sets have recently peppered in a few selections from the final record with their decade-defining jams of the '90s. Before TLC comes to Lincoln, Thomas took some time to look way, way back to their first major tour, which was a formative experience for at least one current Journal Star writer.

Lincoln Journal Star: This tour, there's an element of reminiscence to the show and there's some to the song you all released, "Way Back," and so I wanted to take a moment to reminisce about TLC myself right now. You all were my first concert, my very first concert, and I saw you in Savannah, Georgia, opening on the MC Hammer "2 Legit 2 Quit" tour.

Chilli: That's funny, because that was our first as well. Our first major tour, ever.

LJS: What do you remember from it?

Chilli: Honestly, and I love touring but I have to say, those are probably some of my fondest memories. You know, we were new to this business, especially the touring world. I love how Hammer, MC Hammer, took us under his wing. He let us ride on the bus sometimes if we wanted to. He just really gave us a lot of great advice. And I studied him, like I watched his show every single, solitary night, right? Because you have this man -- he has all these kajillion dancers. You remember that? I know you do.

LJS: Oh I remember that. It took like an hour to set up his stage after you and Boyz II Men went on.

Chilli: (Laughs.) It was like a community on stage with him! It was crazy. But he out-danced everybody. I was like, "wow." He was so amazing that you couldn't take your eyes off of him. Yeah, you saw the dancers and they were great. But he was like -- I don't know -- he danced better. I said, "You know what, that is going to be me." When we came out that time we didn't have any dancers -- it was just us and some props.

LJS: I remember exactly how you came out onstage. Y'all crashed into each other in Power Wheels. You had Power Wheels and you drove onstage and wiped out into each other, and then started going.

Chilli: Yup. Your memory's good.

LJS: So that was a big first for me. I wanted to ask you about a couple of firsts. Tell me about the first time you heard the acoustic guitar intro for No Scrubs. When was it presented to you or recorded in front of you and you heard it, because I imagine just feeling like, yup (when you heard it).

Chilli: I see what you mean. So I was in the studio. It was at Dallas (Austins) studio. It was me, Dallas and the producer who produced the song, She'kspere (Kevin Briggs), at the time.

He was playing just tracks. We heard a bunch of stuff and when I heard that, it honestly wasn't until the first verse came in, I love how -- (she starts singing No Scrubs on the phone) Scrub is a guy that thinks he's fly 

You start up, you go down in the verse, I was like, "Oh, this!" I said hold up. I said this is it! And then when I heard the hook, it was a done deal. I was like, Oh, this is a smash. I'm recording this tomorrow. It was a no-brainer.

LJS: I might be wrong about this but I think TLC was the major label group that Andre 3000 did a feature or a verse on. He did one on the "What About Your Friends" extended cut of yours and did it again on "Sumthin Wicked This Way Comes." (On 1994s CrazySexyCool.)

Chilli: Honestly, I only remember him on Sumthin Wicked. He wasn't Andre 3000 then.

LJS: That's what I wondered. He was still Andre Benjamin.

Chilli: He was still that guy. He hadn't evolved into Andre 3000 yet. That's why we were probably able to get him. (Laughs.) We were all label mates. We were all on LaFace Records. It wasn't hard to make those connections and get those collaborations going at that time.

The reason why it works for him is he was growing and he was evolving into his true self. That's why it works. It's truly authentic. And when people are trying to do something on purpose just to be different -- you know what I mean? -- it usually doesn't work. They can't pull it off. It's not them. Honestly, Andre is hands-down my favorite rapper, male rapper. I'm sorry, but he's my favorite. I love what he talks about. Just his tone is crazy to me. I love it.

LJS: Here's a tough first that I was curious about too. What was it like for you and Tionne (T-Boz) playing your first show without Lisa ("Left Eye" Lopes)?

Chilli: The first time we did that was, it was years ago. It was at Zootopia (a New York radio station festival). At that time, during our performances, we had a screen showing her and videos showing her when it was her time to rap. And so we never looked at the screens. And that's how we were able to get through it. We just never looked up. We just looked out at the audience. So that's how we survived that one.

LJS: You still use video screens, correct?

Chilli: Nope, no, uh-uh. That was like 15 years ago. It's been that long, 15 years. We've changed it up quite a bit. We still don't cut out her raps and usually the fans in the audience are singing along with it and we're doing our routine and stuff like that. We love it. At this point, thank God for time. It really does help you to heal a bit. Now for us, it's more like a celebration of her and making sure her legacy lives on through us.
The Ilorin Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arrested a 53 year old man, Muhammed Abdulraheem for parading himself as a lawyer and obtaining money under false pretence while pretending to work with the EFCC.

Abdulraheem was accused of using dubious means to defraud his client, Mallam Yusuf Bello of N300,000.

Bello, in his petition to the EFCC, alleged that Abdulraheem recovered the sum of N300,000 from his debtor and claimed that the money was in the custody of the EFCC.

When confronted with the complainant in the matter, the lawyer, however, opened up and confessed that the money was never brought to the EFCC neither did the Commission knew anything about it.

The Story also took a new dimension on Monday, when the suspect, in a dramatic way destroyed his statement where he admitted that he was called to the Nigeria Bar and had been practicing the legal profession for more than two decades.

This happened when the Commission discovered that the suspected, a fake lawyer, never finished from the Nigerian Law School as he failed the prescribed examinations twice.

The commission said the suspect would soon be charged to court.
The last time Matt Nesmith performed in Lincoln was three years ago, so, as you can imagine, hes excited about returning to the stage in his hometown.

Nesmith, 45, is part of the cast for Smokey Joes Cafe, a musical revue featuring songs made popular by the songwriting team of Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller.

TADA Productions, Inc., opens the show Thursday, with performances continuing through Aug. 27 at TADA Theatre in the Haymarket.

The last time Nesmith, a Lincoln native who now teaches at the University of South Dakota, performed in the Capital City was in Roger Beans jukebox musical Life Could Be a Dream, staged by TADA (The Arts Deserve Attention).

Since then weve been looking for a show that works in my schedule and TADAs schedule, Nesmith said.

And looking for a show with crowd-pleasing appeal.

Lieber and Stollers catalog is immense, filled with such rock n roll gems as Kansas City, Searchin', On Broadway, I'm A Woman, Stand By Me, Yakety Yak, Charlie Brown, Jailhouse Rock, Hound Dog and more.

I think a lot of folks know those songs, but dont know where the came from, Nesmith said. A lot of younger people will know theses songs from hearing them in movies and commercials.

Directed by Robert D. Rook, Smokey Joes cast also includes Nick Akins, Logan Langholdt, Connor Meuret, Angelia Onuoha, Cris Rook, Lisa Taylor, Greg Ward and Kevin Witcher. Bill Maltas leads the three-piece band.

Akins is Nesmiths student at USD, where Nesmith begins his eighth year. Nesmith is an associate professor and coordinator of the schools musical theater program. It's where he earned two masters degrees after getting his bachelor's at South Dakota State.

Nesmith, who graduated from Lincoln Southeast High School in 1989 and left Lincoln at age 21, has performed and/or directed in theaters across the country, including Seacoast Repertory Theatre, Little Theatre of the Rockies, Black Hills Playhouse, Central Michigan University Summer Theatre, Prairie Repertory Theatre and The Washington Pavilion.

He is married -- his wife teaches online courses at South Dakota State University -- and has three kids, ages 4, 7 and 10. His brother-in-law is Joe Skare, a morning show co-host on Lincoln radio station B107.3. Nesmith stays with Skares family while rehearsing Smokey Joes Cafe.

Everything in Lincoln has changed so much, Nesmith said. I still like visiting the old haunts and checking out the old neighborhood. Having to do a show here is a nice excuse to come back home."
Silicone Elastomers Market Global Trends 2015 to 2023, Future Growth & Industry Drivers

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As per a new report by Global Market Insights Inc., Silicone Elastomers Market size will reach 1,537 kilo tons by 2023. The key factors to drive the growth are rapid urbanization and industrialization, rising population and increased disposable income. Increasing R&D for product development is likely to open new growth avenues in the market. The report covers a comprehensive analysis of the market with a focus on key factors that influence the market including drivers, impediments, challenges and opportunities. Furthermore, it lists the key developments, expansions, new product launch, R&D, agreements & collaboration of the prominent global companies.Global Market Insights has a new study based report titled " Silicone Elastomers Market Size By Product (High Temperature Vulcanized, Room Temperature Vulcanized, Liquid Silicone Rubber), By Application (Electrical & Electronics, Automotive & Transportation, Industrial Machinery, Consumer Goods, Construction, Others), Industry Analysis Report, Regional Outlook (U.S., Germany, UK, France, Italy, China, India, Japan, South Korea, Brazil), Application Potential, Price Trends, Competitive Market Share & Forecast, 2015  2023".Request for sample pages of this report@The report offers all-inclusive analysis of:1 Market structure2 Factors restraining market growth3 Market growth drivers4 Opportunities and challenges5 Market estimations and forecast for projected periodSilicone elastomer market demand, regarding volume and value, portrays the present and future forecasts by the parallel economic and industry outlook. This analysis covers various feature properties including transparent, lightweight, high resistance and thermal stability which make it a preferred option in a wide range of applications like automotive, electrical & electronics and health care. Construction and infrastructure applications will continue its dominance, with probable growth of 5.3% over the estimated time frame. Electrical and electronic applications volume share is anticipated to witness significant growth and surpass 13.5% shortly. The automotive silicone segment is poised to foresee growth over 24% at a growing CAGR of 5.2% in the next few years.The Silicone Elastomers Market Report Consists of,1. Methodology and Scope2. Executive Summary3. Silicone Elastomers Market Industry Insights3.1 Industry segmentation3.2. Industry size, forecast and growth expectations, 2016 - 20243.3. Industry ecosystem analysis3.4. Raw material insights3.5. Technology insightsBrowse Silicone Elastomers Market report summary@3.6. Regulatory framework3.7. Industry dynamics3.8. Key growth opportunities3.9. Porter's analysis3.10. Company market share, 20153.11. PESTEL analysis3.14. Regional price trends4. Silicone Elastomers Market Product InsightsHTV (High Temperature Vulcanize) accounts for the maximum silicon elastomer market share of nearly 60%. This product type is anticipated to remain dominant in the forecast period owing to its application in automotive industry, industrial machinery and at high temperature prone areas.LSR (Liquid Silicone Rubber) is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 7.2% in terms of value in the forecast period. LSR is expected to increase its silicone elastomers market share amongst the product type in several years owing to its applications in various end-user industries like consumer goods, automotive, packaging, furniture and toys. RTV (Room Temperature Vulcanize) is the segment that reports the lowest contribution in the silicone elastomers market by product type and is expected to have a revenue of USD 780 Million in 2015. This product is generally used for low temperature applications like making moulds, lens and over-moulding.5. Silicone Elastomers Market Application InsightsSilicone elastomers market applications include construction, consumer goods, industrial machineries, automotive, electrical & electronics etc. Electrical & electronics industry is anticipated to expand at the highest CAGR of nearly 5.6% in the forecast period. Increasing consumer awareness and advanced versions of electronics devices is expected to boost its demand in near future. The booming construction industry also accounts for a major application sector of silicone elastomers market products as they are used in sealants and structural glazing applications. Construction industry is anticipated to have a silicone elastomers market share of more than 40%.6. Silicone Elastomers Market Regional InsightsAsia Pacific is the leading region in terms of silicone elastomers market consumption due to the presence of flourishing industries like automotive, electrical & electronics, industrial machinery, and consumer goods. Asia Pacific is gaining attention of many foreign investors to establish industries in this region owing to its business-friendly government policies. Asia Pacific accounts for more than 50% of the global silicone elastomers market share and is expected to remain dominant in the forecast period.Europe silicone elastomers market is expanding at a rapid pace in the market due to its footprint in automobile market. Moreover, Europe has witnessed a healthy growth in the industrial machinery sector and thus has a market share of more than 20%.Inquire About to purchase this research report@7. Competitor ProfilesThe major manufacturers in the silicone elastomers market are Shin-Etsu Chemical Co.; Ltd, Reiss Manufacturing, Momentive Performance Materials Inc., KCC Corporation, Dow Corning Corporation, Wacker Chemie AG. There are even some companies which have the facility of manufacturing silicone raw materials required for manufacturing of elastomers, such companies are fully integrated in the value chain of silicone elastomers.About Global Market Insights, Inc.:Global Market Insights, Inc., headquartered in Delaware, U.S., is a global market research and consulting service provider; offering syndicated and custom research reports along with growth consulting services. Our business intelligence and industry research reports offer clients with penetrative insights and actionable market data specially designed and presented to aid strategic decision making. These exhaustive reports are designed via a proprietary research methodology and are available for key industries such as chemicals, advanced materials, technology, renewable energy and biotechnology.Contact us:Arun HegdeCorporate Sales, USAGlobal Market Insights, Inc.Phone:1-302-846-7766Toll Free: 1-888-689-0688Email: sales@gminsights.comWeb:
Global Water Turbine Market Analysis and Forecast Report 2017-2021

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In this report, the global Water Turbine 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 is segmented into several key Regions, with production, consumption, revenue (million USD), market share and growth rate of Water Turbine in these regions, from 2012 to 2022 (forecast), coveringNorth AmericaEuropeChinaJapanSoutheast AsiaIndiaGlobal Water Turbine market competition by top manufacturers, with production, price, revenue (value) and market share for each manufacturer; the top players includingAndritzAlstom(GE)VoithToshibaHarbin ElectricDongfang ElectricPower MachinesHitachi MitsubishOn the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split intoReaction Turbines:Impulse TurbineOn the basis on the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, consumption (sales), market share and growth rate of Water Turbine for each application, includingPower GenerationWater PumpGet The Sample Copy Of This Report :Table of ContentsGlobal Water Turbine Market Research Report 20171 Water Turbine Market Overview1.1 Product Overview and Scope of Water Turbine1.2 Water Turbine Segment by Type (Product Category)1.2.1 Global Water Turbine Production and CAGR (%) Comparison by Type (Product Category) (2012-2022)1.2.2 Global Water Turbine Production Market Share by Type (Product Category) in 20161.2.3 Reaction Turbines:1.2.4 Impulse Turbine1.3 Global Water Turbine Segment by Application1.3.1 Water Turbine Consumption (Sales) Comparison by Application (2012-2022)1.3.2 Power Generation1.3.3 Water Pump1.4 Global Water Turbine Market by Region (2012-2022)1.4.1 Global Water Turbine Market Size (Value) and CAGR (%) Comparison by Region (2012-2022)1.4.2 North America Status and Prospect (2012-2022)1.4.3 Europe Status and Prospect (2012-2022)1.4.4 China Status and Prospect (2012-2022)1.4.5 Japan Status and Prospect (2012-2022)1.4.6 Southeast Asia Status and Prospect (2012-2022)1.4.7 India Status and Prospect (2012-2022)1.5 Global Market Size (Value) of Water Turbine (2012-2022)1.5.1 Global Water Turbine Revenue Status and Outlook (2012-2022)1.5.2 Global Water Turbine Capacity, Production Status and Outlook (2012-2022)2 Global Water Turbine Market Competition by Manufacturers2.1 Global Water Turbine Capacity, Production and Share by Manufacturers (2012-2017)2.1.1 Global Water Turbine Capacity and Share by Manufacturers (2012-2017)2.1.2 Global Water Turbine Production and Share by Manufacturers (2012-2017)2.2 Global Water Turbine Revenue and Share by Manufacturers (2012-2017)2.3 Global Water Turbine Average Price by Manufacturers (2012-2017)2.4 Manufacturers Water Turbine Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area and Product Type2.5 Water Turbine Market Competitive Situation and Trends2.5.1 Water Turbine Market Concentration Rate2.5.2 Water Turbine Market Share of Top 3 and Top 5 Manufacturers2.5.3 Mergers & Acquisitions, ExpansionSend An Enquiry :3 Global Water Turbine Capacity, Production, Revenue (Value) by Region (2012-2017)3.1 Global Water Turbine Capacity and Market Share by Region (2012-2017)3.2 Global Water Turbine Production and Market Share by Region (2012-2017)3.3 Global Water Turbine Revenue (Value) and Market Share by Region (2012-2017)3.4 Global Water Turbine Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)3.5 North America Water Turbine Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)3.6 Europe Water Turbine Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)3.7 China Water Turbine Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)3.8 Japan Water Turbine Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)3.9 Southeast Asia Water Turbine Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)3.10 India Water Turbine Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)4 Global Water Turbine Supply (Production), Consumption, Export, Import by Region (2012-2017)4.1 Global Water Turbine Consumption by Region (2012-2017)4.2 North America Water Turbine Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2012-2017)4.3 Europe Water Turbine Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2012-2017)4.4 China Water Turbine Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2012-2017)4.5 Japan Water Turbine Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2012-2017)4.6 Southeast Asia Water Turbine Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2012-2017)4.7 India Water Turbine Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2012-2017)5 Global Water Turbine Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend by Type5.1 Global Water Turbine Production and Market Share by Type (2012-2017)5.2 Global Water Turbine Revenue and Market Share by Type (2012-2017)5.3 Global Water Turbine Price by Type (2012-2017)5.4 Global Water Turbine Production Growth by Type (2012-2017)6 Global Water Turbine Market Analysis by Application6.1 Global Water Turbine Consumption and Market Share by Application (2012-2017)6.2 Global Water Turbine Consumption Growth Rate by Application (2012-2017)6.3 Market Drivers and Opportunities6.3.1 Potential Applications6.3.2 Emerging Markets/CountriesMRRbiz supports your business intelligence needs with over 700,000 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
Weve hit that August lull when networks and streaming services wont introduce much new programming until the TV season begins next month, so Ill catch you up on some TV news.

The biggest headline this week came from ABC, which announced The Middle will end at the conclusion of season nine.

We sat down with the cast at the end of last year (to tell them), executive producer Eileen Heisler told EW.com. It was important to have a year to say goodbye. We want to be able to tell all the stories.

Sad news.

While Modern Family, which also began on ABC in 2009, became an Emmy darling, winning best comedy five straight years, The Middle has been just as good, if not better, especially in the latter years.

The Heck family (Patricia Heaton, Neil Flynn, Charlie McDermott, Eden Sher and Atticus Shaffer), created by former "Roseanne" and "Murphy Brown" writers Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline, connected on many levels because they seemed, well, realistic, with bills to pay, jobs to work and homework to do.

The success of The Middle and Modern Family led to influx of comedies about families, especially at ABC, which in recent years has launched Last Man Standing, black-ish, Fresh Off the Boat, The Goldbergs, The Real ONeals, Speechless and American Housewife.

The nice thing is The Middle will live on in syndication.

* Audra McDonald, who will perform April 26 in Lincoln as part of the Lied Center for Performing Arts 2017-18 season, is joining CBS All Access The Good Wife as a series regular for season two. She was introduced in the first season as attorney Liz Lawrence. CBS All Access is a streaming service with a subscription fee.

* Dynasty is returning, so why not Miami Vice? According to the Hollywood Reporter, actor Vin Diesel is developing a reboot of the popular 1980s cop drama at NBC. If the network picks it up, it could be on the air as early as the 2018-19 season.

* Milana Vayntrub, who first gained famed as an AT&T pitch person and then as Kevins playwright/actress girlfriend on NBCs hit This Is Us, has landed a series. She will play Squirrel Girl on Freeforms Marvels New Warriors. The new comedy follows six young people who work and live together and possess abilities on the opposite end of the spectrum of The Avengers. Its scheduled to debut in 2018.

* CBS will deal with Erinn Hayes exit from Kevin Can Wait by killing off her character. Hayes played Kevin James' wife on the comedy, but was fired in favor of Leah Remini, who worked opposite of James for nine seasons on King of Queens and had a guest star role in the first season of Wait. Season two will begin with a time jump, with Hayes character having passed away.

* Scripted shows getting renewals include Good Witch (Hallmark Channel, fourth season), Mary Kills People (Lifetime, second) and Harlots (Hulu, second). Lifetime also renewed UnREAL for fourth season before airing the third, which will begin early 2018.
BRICS Nations ICT Spends in Telecommunications Sector - Future Perspective to 2019

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BRICS Nation's ICT Spends in Telecommunications Sector - Future Perspective to 2019; report is a comprehensive outlook built using Kables extensive market research covering spends across ICT markets in BRICS Nation. The statistics within the report provides a top-level overview and detailed insights into the operating environment of the Technology and Telecommunications sector in BRICS Nation (Brazil, China, India, Russia, South Africa).Kable has considered buying behavior / ICT spends across hardware, software, services, communications and staff. It acts as an essential tool for companies active across the ICT market and for new players considering entering the market; ensuring right business decision making.*This is an on-demand report and will be delivered within 2 working days (excluding weekends) of the purchase.Request to get the sample copy of this report :Key Findings"BRICS Nation's ICT Spends in Telecommunications Sector - Future Perspective to 2019" provides the readers with potential spends value on ICT within Telecommunications sector of BRICS Nation (Brazil, China, India, Russia, South Africa) during the period 2016 through to 2019In particular, it provides information of potential spends by individual countries for the following categories at segment level:BPO ServicesCloud ServicesEnterprise Communications ServicesIT HardwareIT ServicesSoftwareSynopsisBRICS Nation's ICT Spends in Telecommunications Sector - Future Perspective to 2019; is an exhaustive research report outlaying future perspectives of ICT project spends in BRICS Nation (Brazil, China, India, Russia, South Africa). The report provides year on year opportunity spends value within the Telecommunications sector; split across BPO Services, Cloud Services, Enterprise Communications Services, IT Hardware, IT Services, and Software categories and further at segment levels for the period 2016 to 2019.Send an enquiry :ReasonsToBuyUnderstand the opportunities for ICT market in BRICS Nation (Brazil, China, India, Russia, South Africa) Telecommunications sector and how it is set to change in future.Make effective business decisions by recognizing the opportunities within each of the core areas of ICT sectorRealign your sales initiatives by understanding the current strategic objectives of the BRICS Nation (Brazil, China, India, Russia, South Africa) ICT Sector.Enhance your market segmentation with detailed breakdown of opportunities within selected technology categories.MRRbiz supports your business intelligence needs with over 700,000 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
Global ICT Spends in Financial Markets Sector - Future Perspective to 2019

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Global ICT Spends in Financial Markets Sector - Future Perspective to 2019; is an exhaustive research report outlaying future perspectives of ICT project spends globally. The report provides year on year spends value within the Energy markets across 30+ countries; split across BPO Services, Cloud Services, Enterprise Communications Services, IT Hardware, IT Services, and Software categories and further at segment levels for the period 2016 to 2019.Key FindingsGlobal ICT Spends in Financial Markets Sector - Future Perspective to 2019; report is a comprehensive outlook built using Kables extensive market research covering the spends across ICT market. The statistics within the report provides a top-level overview and detailed insights into the operating environment of the Technology and Energy sector at individual country level.Kable has considered buying behavior / ICT spends across hardware, software, services, communications and staff. It acts as an essential tool for companies active across the ICT market and for new players considering entering the market; ensuring right business decision making.Get The Sample Copy of This Report :Countries covered within the report include: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States*This is an on-demand report and will be delivered within 2 working days (excluding weekends) of the purchase.Synopsis"Global ICT Spends in Financial Markets Sector - Future Perspective to 2019" provides the readers with potential spends value on ICT within Global Financial Markets sector during the period 2016 through to 2019In particular, it provides information of potential spends by individual countries for the following categories at segment level:BPO ServicesCloud ServicesEnterprise Communications ServicesIT HardwareIT ServicesSoftwareSend An Enquiry :ReasonsToBuyUnderstand the opportunities for ICT market in the Financial Markets sector and how it is set to change in future.Make effective business decisions by recognizing the opportunities within each of the core areas of ICT sectorRealign your sales initiatives by understanding the current strategic objectives of the Global ICT Sector.Enhance your market segmentation with detailed breakdown of opportunities within selected technology categories.MRRbiz supports your business intelligence needs with over 700,000 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
Europes ICT Spends in Insurance Sector - Future Perspective to 2019

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Europe's ICT Spends in Insurance Sector - Future Perspective to 2019; is an exhaustive research report outlaying future perspectives of ICT project spends in Europe (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom). The report provides year on year opportunity spends value within the Insurance sector; split across BPO Services, Cloud Services, Enterprise Communications Services, IT Hardware, IT Services, and Software categories and further at segment levels for the period 2016 to 2019.Key FindingsEurope's ICT Spends in Insurance Sector - Future Perspective to 2019; report is a comprehensive outlook built using Kables extensive market research covering spends across ICT markets in Europe. The statistics within the report provides a top-level overview and detailed insights into the operating environment of the Technology and Insurance sector in Europe (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom).Kable has considered buying behavior / ICT spends across hardware, software, services, communications and staff. It acts as an essential tool for companies active across the ICT market and for new players considering entering the market; ensuring right business decision making.Get The Sample Copy of This Report :*This is an on-demand report and will be delivered within 2 working days (excluding weekends) of the purchase.Synopsis"Europe's ICT Spends in Insurance Sector - Future Perspective to 2019" provides the readers with potential spends value on ICT within Insurance sector of Europe (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom) during the period 2016 through to 2019In particular, it provides information of potential spends by individual countries for the following categories at segment level:BPO ServicesCloud ServicesEnterprise Communications ServicesIT HardwareIT ServicesSoftwareSend An Enquiry :ReasonsToBuyUnderstand the opportunities for ICT market in Europe (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom) Insurance sector and how it is set to change in future.Make effective business decisions by recognizing the opportunities within each of the core areas of ICT sectorRealign your sales initiatives by understanding the current strategic objectives of the Europe (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom) ICT Sector.Enhance your market segmentation with detailed breakdown of opportunities within selected technology categories.MRRbiz supports your business intelligence needs with over 700,000 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
NEW YORK (AP)  Less than an hour after a U.S. jury convicted Martin Shkreli of securities fraud, the so-called "Pharma Bro" was back at his New York City apartment doing what comes naturally: trash talking in a live-stream on YouTube.

The brash former pharmaceutical CEO, who's still out on bail, joked he won't be going to a hard-core prison  "No shanks"  and predicted his acquittal on some charges Friday will help him recover tens of millions of dollars he claims he's owed from a drug company he started.

"It doesn't seem like life will change much for Martin Shkreli," he said while drinking a beer and playing with his cat. "I'm one of the richest New Yorkers there is, and after today's outcome, it's going to stay that way."

Shkreli's trolling of his own trial has amused some onlookers. But legal experts say it could have serious consequences when it comes time for sentencing.

"No real good can come from going on YouTube after a guilty verdict," said Robert Mintz, a former federal prosecutor now in private practice. "This is exactly the kind of behavior that got him in trouble in the first place."

U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto likely will factor in any lack of remorse and contrition at sentencing in federal court in Brooklyn, said Matthew Schwartz, a defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor who once worked for a Securities and Exchange Commission task force.

"Going into the trial, he had an audience of 12. Now he's got an audience of one," Schwartz said, referring to the jury and judge. "He's putting himself at great risk for a higher sentence."

The 34-year-old defendant faces up to 20 years in prison for his conviction on the most serious counts, though the term could be much lower under sentencing guidelines. Shkreli's lawyer, Ben Brafman, said he would argue for no jail time. No sentencing date was set.

Shkreli was arrested in 2015 on charges he looted a drug company he founded, Retrophin, of $11 million in stock and cash to pay back investors in two failed hedge funds he ran. Investors took the witness stand to accuse him of keeping them in the dark as his scheme unfolded, while the defense argued there wasn't any harm done because all of them got rich off of Retrophin stock.

Before his arrest, Shkreli was best known for buying the rights to a life-saving drug at another company in 2014 and promptly raising the price from $13.50 to $750 per pill. He also had a reputation for attacking critics on social media and was barred from Twitter for posts about a female journalist.

Even during his trial, when most criminal defendants would lay low, Shkreli stayed online commenting about his own case.

After the verdict, Brafman once again raised hopes he could rein in his client.

"There is an image issue that Martin and I are going to be discussing in the next several days. Martin is a brilliant young man, but sometimes people skills don't translate well," he said.

Not much later, Shkreli was on YouTube, answering questions about the case and cracking jokes. During his lengthy livestream, he invited one reporter up to his apartment to ask her questions on camera.

"Ben probably wants me to act and look like your average CEO, but I'm a very individualistic person and I don't sort of conform to what folks want me to do and not want me to do, and that's what being an individual is all about," he said. ""As long as it doesn't interfere with the legal case, it's my life to live."

Without more conformity, Shkreli's lawyer will have his work cut out for him trying convince the court that he should be cut some slack as "someone who is not entirely normal," said Schwartz, the former prosecutor. "Whether the judge will buy it or not is another question."

The judge's last words to the defendant as she left the bench offered no clues.

"I wish you well, Mr. Shkreli," she said. "See you soon."

-- The Associated Press
The George W. Bush and William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museums are 322 miles apart between Dallas, Texas, and Little Rock, Arkansas. But they are much closer in content than in distance or style.

The 42nd and 43rd presidents centers tend to highlight the accomplishments of their namesakes much more than the controversies that embroiled their combined 16 years in office.

I had the opportunity in the past few months to visit both places and came away impressed with the exhibits and displays in both buildings. Having worked in Washington, D.C. during the tail end of the Clinton administration and for the full eight years of the Bush administration, how their time in office is presented to the public was of particular interest to me.

As a lobbyist for the nations largest teachers union, the National Education Association (NEA), I once was called to the White House during the Clinton administration to explain why my union was supporting legislation opposed by the president. We ended up winning him over. A framed copy of the bill, and one of the pens used at the ceremony to sign it into law, now hang in my library. Another copy of that law, I am sure, rests among the 80 million documents said to be generated by the Clinton White House.

Bush has said his signature domestic legislation was the No Child Left Behind Act, which significantly enhanced the federal role in elementary and secondary education in this country. My employer did not support that bill. Bushs Secretary of Education Rod Paige once called the NEA, a terrorist organization, for opposing the legislation. I have a button that reads, My Teacher is a Terrorist. I didnt see that on display at the Bush library.

The former presidents are now the best of friends, according to news reports. That wasnt always the case. Clinton defeated the younger Bushs father, George H.W. Bush, for the presidency in 1992, a campaign well-documented in the Clinton library.

The Bush library includes two larger-than-life statues of both Bushes. When Clinton recently visited there for a conference, he playfully peeked out between them for the cameras.

The elder Bush and Clinton became close when traveling outside the country to help in relief efforts for damages stemming from a tsunami in the Indian Ocean. Clinton and the younger Bush apparently bonded when traveling to Haiti after a devastating earthquake there and helped raise millions of dollars in aid. Bipartisan friendship like that is hard to come by these days.

Located on the campus of Southern Methodist University, the Bush library, which opened in 2013, and made of limestone and brick, has a much more traditional design than the steel, aluminum and glass-clad Clinton version. The supervising architect, Robert A.M. Stern, has described the Bush library as Academic Georgian, in design. He has said, the building does not overwhelm. It is dignified. But it does not hit you over the head with its monumentality. I would agree that its not overwhelming, somewhat reflecting the eight years of the Bush presidency.

Clintons, opened in 2004 by the Arkansas River, has variously been described as a bridge to the 21st century, or a very large double-wide trailer. Given the successes and controversies of the 42nd president, perhaps both aptly reflect his time in office.

Both libraries handily utilize modern technology to tell the stories Bush and Clinton want told about their respective eight years as the chief executive of this country. Upon entering the Bush library, one can view overhead a large montage of video images depicting American landscapes and people at work and play. The theme of the library gallery, per Bushs instruction, reflects four guiding principles that he says formed the basis for major decisions he made in office: opportunity, freedom, responsibility and compassion.

He did, after all, describe his political philosophy as compassionate conservatism. Or was that Karl Rove? In any case the interactive displays include reminders of the Supreme Court decision in 2000 which gave him the presidency over Al Gore; the Sept. 11 attacks, and the Bush response; the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act; the prescription drug benefit added to Medicare; and, interestingly enough, the failed Hurricane Katrina response, and, the financial crisis, which worsened under his watch.

First Lady Laura Bush, an SMU grad, has an area of her own, and, of course, theres a replica of the Bush Oval Office; somewhat more subdued in color than Clintons.

Each library has space for temporary exhibits. Bush has become an avid painter in his retirement, and a gallery at the library has been set aside for his oil paintings of military veterans wounded during his term in office. Named Portraits of Courage, the exhibit opened in March and will run through early October of this year. I really had a hard time with this presentation, and hurried through. I couldnt help reflecting on the faces of these men and women whose lives had been changed dramatically in pursuit of a hopeless war that seems to have no end.

The special exhibit at the Clinton library when we were there was, Xtreme BUGS. No, not the kind that might be found in the current White House, but giant-size insects, like grasshoppers, Monarch butterflies and honey bees. That exhibit closed July 23.

At the center of the Clinton library exhibit hall are eight large panels depicting world events from 1993 through 2000, Clintons time in office. Along the walls are alcoves highlighting Clinton administration achievements, including his upticking the economy, as well as boxes holding only 3 percent of all the Clinton documents and correspondence.

A replica of the Clinton cabinet room allows visitors to sit in chairs marked for specific cabinet members, and the presidents, whose chair back is just a little higher than the others. Clintons presidential limo and a table setting for a State Dinner are also on display.

I was struck by the many black and white, candid photos of Bill and Hillary during the presidential campaigns, including one of them playing ping-pong, and one of them looking extremely tired at the end of a long day. Theres also one of campaign aides James Carville and Paul Begala high-fiving after a Clinton debate with 1992 Democratic presidential rival, Jerry Brown, as George Stephanopoulos looks on. Yes, that same Jerry Brown, now governor of California (again).

While there is an exhibit displaying the House vote impeaching Clinton, I could find no trace of Monica Lewinsky.

Near the Clinton library is a restored railroad bridge, now a pedestrian walkway, across the Arkansas River. Dubbed the Clinton Presidential Park Bridge, it offers a panoramic view of Little Rock and the surrounding natural sites. Also on the grounds is a restored 1899 railroad terminal that now houses the Little Rock offices of the Clinton Foundation and the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service. Clinton is said to show up once a month to teach a class.

There is a special section in the library devoted to the Little Rock Nine, the brave African-American kids who desegregated Little Rock Central High School in 1957. A Congressional Gold Medal that Clinton presented to one of them at the White House in 1999 is on display there. While in Little Rock, dont miss the National Park Service visitors center near the high school for a great film and moving exhibits about the desegregation controversy and the history of civil rights protests in this country.

The administrations of presidents 42 and 43 left indelible marks on this country  good and bad. These libraries, museums and presidential centers present valuable reminders of the challenges we face in keeping our democracy intact in troubled times.
MEDORA, N.D.  For mountain bikers, North Dakota's Maah Daah Hey Trail is such a treasure that people come from all over to experience it.

I drove with friends more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) to ride 100-plus miles (160 km) of the single-track trail, which is no wider than a bike. And we weren't the only non-Dakotans traveling long distances to do it. We met folks from Philadelphia, Minneapolis, Denver, Montana and Wyoming.

The MDH is located where the Great Plains meet the Badlands. To use North Dakota's state slogan, it's legendary. It connects the northern and southern units of Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the western part of the state.

With elevation changes of over 10,000 feet (3,000 meters), only the fiercest of athletes complete the trail in one day, usually for the annual MDH 100 race (this year, Aug. 5). We opted for a multi-day, self-supported trip. That's the essence of bikepacking  or backpacking by bike.

Within the first hour of leaving the northern trailhead, we knew we'd be tested by the rugged landscape. The unrelenting climbs, sheer cliffs along the exposed layers of the Badlands, switchback descents and grassy plateaus with panoramic views were going to be our repeating scenery for three days.

After a two-hour opening night ride due to a late start, it took us three full days of 10 to 12 hours on the bikes to complete the trail. A fourth day would have made it a more relaxing experience with various side trips to the China Wall, Ice Caves and Roosevelt's Elkhorn Ranch.

Bikepackers carry the same gear as backpackers with the addition of tools and spare bicycle parts. Ideally, the gear (including a multi-tool, chain breaker, spare tubes, tire levers, patch kit, chain lube and pump) should be distributed equally around the bike because riding single-track trails demands your attention and balance.

When the narrow track zigzags, the bike needs to follow as riders become one with the trail. The ideal bike would be a hardtail (with or without suspension) mountain bike with 27.5 or 29-inch wheels and bags for the frame, fork, handlebar and seat post.

But we're proof you don't need top-of-the-line gear to complete the trail. Two of our three riders used panniers, meaning saddlebags on racks over rear tires, though they did face more mechanical issues on 15-year-old bikes than the gearhead of the group. Plus the width of the bikes with panniers tended to disrupt the tall western wheatgrass and dense brush along the trail, leading to stops for tick checks and broken bike parts.

Resting points were key to a successful trip, especially between the hottest times of day, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. The cooler, north-facing slopes and pockets of wooded draws were natural pit stops  usually in a grove of leafy cottonwood trees.

The drier, south-facing buttes lent themselves to purple coneflowers, prairie roses, bright yellow blooming prickly pear cactus and the easily-recognizable yucca plant with its tall stalks. The wildflowers provided a contrast to the browns and greens dominating the landscape.

One note of caution for this season: The area is experiencing a drought. A wildfire recently closed part of the MDH trail along with two campgrounds, but at the end of July, all sections were open.

We each carried a total of 4 to 6 liters of water in daypacks, frame cages and luggage bags. Each campsite (CCC, Bennett, Magpie, Elkhorn, Wannagan, Buffalo Gap, Sully Creek), located at least 18 miles (29 km) apart, had hand-pumped drinking water.

There are also water-cache sites that can be stocked before the trip by driving on dirt roads. The campsites can be accessed on those roads, making it possible for exhausted riders to catch a ride back to town or for sag wagons  support vehicles  to greet pampered riders at the end of the day with a cold beverage.

Finding the campsites was a breeze with wooden fence posts placed on the trail within sight of each one.

Roosevelt first came to the area to hunt buffalo but later returned to work as a rancher while working through grief for his late mother and wife, who died the same day in 1884. "The farther one gets into the wilderness," he said, "the greater is the attraction of its lonely freedom."
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McDonalds, the birthplace of American taste-bud appeasement in only three minutes or less, says it is losing some of its popularity and clout with mouths and pocketbooks.

McStartling!

We need to keep improving at what we do, its CEO was quoted in the paper the other day. We need to get even better in todays highly competitive, fast-changing fast-food market.

Allow me to say this only once, especially to my waistline:

McDonalds still has the best fries; its breakfast offerings are tasty; and the McDonalds fish sandwich is still one of the most unheralded things on the planet, next to fake bacon in the microwave and the cold side of the pillow on a warm August night.

But a need for McDonalds to improve, even if it doesnt truly need to improve?

I fully understand.

Check out my face in that Bill Flick mugshot that accompanies this column.

Can you see how much more clean-looking, luxuriant and enriched my face is now?

Yes, thank you.

Its because of some facial stuff I bought at Walgreens that  right there on the tube  says is richer, more enhanced and deep-cleansing for (my) face than ever before!

As I type this, I also am wearing a cotton shirt that no doubt looks much better because of fabric softener that is softer, more wrinkle-free! and I am remarkably pleased.

My shaving cream?

According to the container, thicker, richer, more lathered 

My soap?

More deodorizing 

My deodorant?

Longer-lasting 

My mouthwash?

More concentrated and effective as a fighter against gingivitis 

My toothpaste?

An even bigger cavity-fighter 

My shampoo?

Better for (my) hair 

I obviously am blessed, huh? In this era does everything needs to be new and improved, even if the old and the-way-they-were was just fine?

Just for fun, Ive been taking notes.

My facial tissue is now softer.

My toilet paper even fluffier.

My bathroom cleaner more industrial-strength.

My paper towels more absorbent.

My microwave oven easier than ever to operate.

My refrigerator more energy-efficient.

My saltine crackers even crispier!

My cookies more doubly chipped.

My peanut butter more fortified with protein.

My bread more enriched.

My muffins more grain-filled, including oats with nutrients!

My kitchen cleanser faster-acting.

My dishwashing liquid harder-working against stains.

My raisin bran now with more raisins.

My turnovers more fruit-filled.

My sandwich spread creamier, with no cholesterol.

My cooking oil now completely polyunsaturated.

My cola sugar-free.

My fruits organic and pesticide-free.

My dish-washing liquid now more spot-free!

My milk ultra-fortified.

My vegetables all-organic.

My cereal more nutritional.

My detergent now more intensified.

My bleach even brighter.

My car tires longer-lasting.

My car wax tougher-finish.

My furnace more energy-saving.

My hot water heater more economical.

My pants ultra permanent-press.

My grocery store more cost-cutting.

My batteries further energized ... that just keep on going.

My kitchen flooring more durable.

My living room carpet further stain-resistant.

My goodness  perhaps never has an adjective been so proud and the word "more" so wonderfully utilized.

Column postscript:

Several years ago now was when I first brought up in this newspaper our growing fascination for products that are "new" and "ever-improved," even if we liked it before. If I don't say so myself, it was a really good column. But this one  not to be overly boastful, more egotistical, even sillier than all of the above  I think this all-new version is improved, even crisper, more intensified, with fewer verbs and more faster-acting adjectives and hard-hitting adverbs to extra-fortify what is already your finest Sunday newspaper ever.

Yes, you deserve a break today!

Oh wait  that phrase is old and has already been used, huh?
Beef jerky: My favorite food is beef jerky because it is spicy, and I like spicy. Also you can get them at gas stations and grocery stores. Also my dad does not like beef jerky so I get all of the beef jerky.

Colton Carpenter

Grade 1, Benjamin

Indian and American: I enjoy eating a variety of foods. I like some American food. I like some Indian food. In Indian foods, I like bhatura (Indian bread) and chola (chickpeas curry), and in American food I like doughnuts and pasta. Fruits and vegetables are delicious snacks.

Ishaan Jha

Grade 2, Benjamin

Chocolate chip cookies: My favorite food is cookies because they have chocolate chips, and chocolate chips are good.

Layne Wills

Grade 2, Cedar Ridge

Sweet rhyme: Goody goody gumdrops piled to the sky. Sugar, sugar, sugar. Mom keeps asking "Why?" Do not get me wrong: Fruit is delish, but candy, candy candy, that I cannot miss.

Lacy Hefer

Grade 3, Cedar Ridge

Dote on Dippin' Dots: I love Dippin' Dots because they are ice cream, and I love ice cream. They are little, tiny balls of ice cream. My favorite flavor is cotton candy because it was the first kind I ever tasted.

Cassie Ellis

Grade 2, Epiphany

Food for the senses: My favorite food is pizza. It feels greasy. It smells good. It tastes yummy. It looks delicious. Pizza is the best!

Asher Brown

Grade 1, Grove

Plenty of pineapple: My favorite category of food is fruits. I like pineapples and cantaloupe, but I like pineapple better. When I eat too much pineapple my stomach starts to hurt. I love pineapple.

Elly McClelland

Grade 3, Grove

Don't spare the ribs: Usually on Friday I have my favorite food, which is ribs! I love ribs because they are delicious. That's why I love them. I want to have them every day of my life, but I cannot because nobody can have everything they want.

Jasmine Nuborazek

Grade 2, Jefferson Park

Juicy apples: Apples are my favorite food. My mom buys me red apples because they are juicy. I like apples because they are healthy. Apples are the best.

Sadie Scheirer

Grade 1, Lowpoint-Washburn

Tasty pastry: Pop-Tarts, for me, are the best type of food. They range from the original cherry to the new A&W. My favorite is cherry. I like them cold but you can heat them up.

Noah Brooks

Grade 3, Lowpoint-Washburn

Warm broccoli: My favorite food is warm broccoli. It's soft on my teeth. It's chewy also, and it feels good on my gums.

Kendal Skelton-Doty

Grade 2, New Holland-Middletown

Pizza and dip: My favorite food is pizza with red dip because it is yummy.

Grace Goins

Grade 1, Northpoint

Yummy pizza: My favorite food is pizza. My favorite kind of pizza is cheese. My favorite restaurants that serve pizza are Papa John's and Pizza Hut. There are different kinds of pizza. Pizza is good and yummy.

John Simmons

Grade 2, Northpoint

Kinds of cupcakes: Cupcakes are yummy. There are many different kinds of them. You can get them with frosting or without frosting.

Eva Jensen

Grade 3, Northpoint

Make you own: I love salad. I love how you can make it your own. They're even healthy.

Kaitlyn Olson

Grade 5, Northpoint

Delicious chicken: My favorite food is delicious chicken with BBQ. Sometimes if the chicken is really good I'll get two. I like my chicken fried and crispy and crunchy. My mom cooks the best chicken ever.

Kahlijah Grandberry

Grade 2, Oakdale

Broccoli's best: Broccoli is my favorite food. I like to have it mixed with other vegetables. Even at lunch in school I do not turn down broccoli. I also like broccoli the most because it's healthy.

Arian Sadu

Grade 1, Prairieland

Crunchy chips: I love chips. My favorite kind of chips are cheddar cheese Pringles. I eat them every day in my lunch.

Mason Sweeney

Grade 2, Prairieland

Time for tacos: I love tacos because they are packed with flavor and juiciness. I also like them because they are easy to make, and you can put anything you want on them. I really like sauce on my tacos to give it some spice.

Lily Steinhoff

Grade 3, Prairieland

Grilling steaks: I love steak! I prefer my rib-eye steak to be cooked medium rare. At home we cook our steaks on the grill outside, and I like to help. My brother thinks I'm crazy because I dip my steak in ketchup.

Mason Dunn

Grade 4, Prairieland

Out-of-this-world custard: Even an alien on a planet with the best food in the galaxy could not say no to a cup of Oreo custard. Custard has a thick, creamy texture, and a much smoother consistency than ice cream.

Andrew Heuer

Grade 5, Prairieland

Heavenly bacon: My favorite food is bacon because it's juicy, crunchy and crispy brown. When I put it in my mouth, to me, it tastes like heaven. I love bacon; you will, too.

Hailey Chapman

Grade 3, St. Mary's

Gone fishing: Fish is my favorite kind of food because sometimes I like to go fishing with my dad and the rest of the family. We always catch at least one fish.

Darieus Perry

Grade 2, Stevenson

America's food: I love pizza. It tastes great! I like pepperoni, and so does America. It's their favorite topping. A person eats 23 pounds of pizza a year. Three billion pizzas are sold in the USA each year. That's a lot of pizza.

Nikolina Garrett

Grade 2, Benjamin

Corn on the cob: My favorite food is corn on the cob. It's an oval shape. The corn part is yellow. It smells yummy and salty. It tastes juicy and good. You should try it.

Alexis Shaffer

Grade 2, Jefferson Park

Crispy and spectacular: My favorite food is bacon because it's crispy and spectacular! It has a great taste, and I'm always in the mood for it! I love bacon!

Adie Bushue

Grade 5, Northpoint

Grab a slice: When I smell the cheese and pepperoni, I know my favorite food is ready! Pizza! I grab the greasy, hot, cheesy pizza happily! I chomp the pizza quickly. It is soft and warm. As I eat it I hear sizzle, squish, and when I get to the crust I hear crunch.

Caleb Ford

Grade 3, Prairieland

Spicy crab sushi: My favorite food is sushi. Spicy crab is amazing! I ask my dad for sushi whenever I can have it! Mmm ... sorry, thinking of it now ... All I can say is you have to try spicy crab. You will love it!

Stella Pabst

Grade 4, Prairieland

Chocolate cookies: My favorite food is cookies. I love them. I like chocolate. I like them from the store. My favorite topping is chocolate chips.

Wesley Pranger

Grade 1, Benjamin

Talking turkey: My favorite food is turkey. Turkey is amazing. It is juicy. I love turkey. I eat it at Thanksgiving. You should try it sometime.

Kiana Edgecomb

Grade 2, Jefferson Park

Go for grapes: My favorite food is grapes. Grapes can be red, green or purple. I like to eat all the colors. My favorite color of grapes is the dark purple ones. I love that they are big, juicy and sweet.

Carter Reiners

Grade 2, Benjamin

Puffy crusts: I love to eat pizza. I like to eat pizza with only cheese on it. I like pizza with puffy crust on it. The crust is my favorite.

Claire Niebur

Grade 2, Epiphany

Super salads: I love salad because it has healthy stuff. Salad is healthy for you because it has vegetables in it. I like ranch dressing on my salad. Salad is a good food.

Kylee Meyer

Grade 1, Lowpoint-Washburn

A big pizza pie: My favorite food is pizza, and the best pizza is an enormous, oversized, inflated, puffy, vast, gigantic, overflowing, cheese deliciousness.

Burke Blakney

Grade 3, St. Mary's

Oreo fan: My favorite food is cookies because when I eat it, it tastes very sweet. It's so sweet that my cheeks almost turn pink. My favorite cookie is an Oreo because it has chocolate, and I love chocolate.

Jenifer Bedolla
1877: Since the grasshopper plague had ended, the demand for land was nearing its former peak.

A cheese factory was opened at Hebron. "It is expected to be one of the major industrial concerns in the state," a press account said.

1887: Buildings in Republican City, in south central Nebraska, were severely damaged by a windstorm.

1897: With wheat selling for $1.25 per bushel in New York, Nebraska farmers were enjoying the first touch of prosperity in years.

1907: After coming to terms with the City Council, the Lincoln Traction Co. was permitted to build a loop to the State Fairgrounds.

1917: The National Guard unit at Seward, claiming to be the first fully organized in the state, asked the governor that it be sent to Europe to further the U.S. effort in World War I.

1927: The Capitol Commission contracted for $83,000 worth of alterations and furnishings for the governor's suite in the new Capitol.

1937: About 1,000 Antelope and Boone county farmers met at Raeville to ask "direct aid" for their battle against drought.

1947: Western Nebraska sugar beet farmers, insecticide producers and University of Nebraska entomologists joined in an attack on webworms, which had posed a serious threat to the beet crop.

1957: State Engineer L.N. Ress said federal funds could be obtained for the extension of Capitol Parkway by making K and L streets one-way streets (the step was taken later).

About $50,000 worth of trees had been destroyed in Antelope Park in connection with construction of Capitol Parkway, Park Superintendent James Ager reported.

1967: Lincoln Detective Paul Whitehead, 30, was fatally wounded in a midnight gun battle when he and his partner stopped a car containing three escaped convicts from Indiana. One convict was hospitalized with wounds; the others were captured after an intensive manhunt of the area. All three were charged with first-degree murder.

Four construction workers -- two Lincoln men and two from Beatrice -- drowned when a boat capsized on Riverside Lake near Omaha. A fifth man, Ron Hoffman of Lincoln, survived and pulled one of the victims to shore but was unable to revive him.

1977: A replica of Charles Lindbergh's "Spirit of St. Louis" was slated to touch down in Lincoln, where the famed pilot learned to fly. The aircraft was touring the United States.

A special legislative committee continued its closed-door investigation into alleged abuses within the State Patrol's criminal and drug divisions.

1987: Former Sen. Paul Laxalt, R-Nev., said in a Lincoln speech that his presidential campaign was financially viable.

President Regan and more than 350 people were to be treated to a homestyle Western barbecue at Ted Long's ranch northwest of North Platte. The president was to speak later that week at the Wild West Arena.

1997: The train at the Folsom's Children's Zoo derailed when the engine hit a board on the tracks. Officials believe the board was placed on the tracks as a prank. No passengers were hurt.

Fans at Sherman Field sat in the 1,500-seat wooden grandstand for the last time. New bleachers, made from aluminum, were installed the following season.

2007: Lincoln City Council approved plans for Talent Plus to purchase a 1.3-acre triangle of parkland near 67th Street and Pioneers Boulevard. Talent Plus will build a second building on its campus and will use the land to build a parking lot for that building.

In other business the council approved salary increases ranging from 2.75 percent to 3.75 percent for the citys 2,000 full-time employees.
PEORIA  Lawyers for 11,000 mentally ill Illinois prison inmates have asked a federal judge to unseal a court-appointed monitor's report that outlines concerns over the progress made to comply with an agreement reached last year to improve mental health treatment.

A report filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District in Peoria contains a monitor's opinion of how the Department of Corrections has handled its responsibility to expand mental health services. Judge Michael Mihm agreed to seal the report for 120 days to allow lawyers for both sides to discuss possible resolutions for the deficiencies.

In a court filing last week, Harold Hirshman, one of the lawyers for inmates, asks that the document be made public.

"Our clients have asked for the report. The public also has a right to know how the monitor assesses progress in the delivery of mental health care to those incarcerated," Hirshman argued.

The state does not support releasing the report that is due to be unsealed Oct. 5, according to the inmates' lawyer.

Hirshman acknowledged the state has taken major steps toward its obligation to overhaul the mental health system. The upcoming opening of the state's first-ever hospital-level care for inmates at the Elgin Mental Health Center and a residential treatment unit in Joliet were cited by Hirshman as examples of the state's efforts.

"There have been some great things done. On the other hand, from our observation, there are day-to-day nuts and bolts aspects of the system that aren't working right," he said.

A broad range of services from medication management and counseling to residential treatment must be provided to about 25 percent of the 43,000 inmates living in Illinois prisons. Of significant concern are the sickest who are confined in segregation, said Hirshman.

"The mentally ill in segregation are not getting the treatment they are entitled to," he said.

A spokesperson for IDOC was not available to respond to the request.

The substantial changes in the state's care of mentally ill prisoners represent a system that is being created from the ground up and not a redesign of an existing system, Dr. Melvin Hinton, chief of mental health and addiction services for IDOC, said recently.

The hiring of more than 300 clinical staff along with 400 additional security officers is part of the state's $90 million investment in behavioral health care.

The settlement agreement reached last year resolved a nine-year lawsuit filed by Dixon Correctional Center inmate Ashoor Rasho, 42, who was sent to prison in 1996 for eight years in a Cook County burglary case. The sentence was extended by 25 years for battery against correctional officers, and he is set to be paroled in September 2018.
Before 11-month-old Charlie Gard died in Britain last week from complications of a rare disease, his short life triggered debate about when it's appropriate to stop treating patients and allow them to die.

His parents, Connie Yates and Chris Gard, mounted an epic struggle, trying every conceivable effort to save their son. In the end, however, their baby slipped away before they were ready to say goodbye  they never got to bring their son home for their last hours as a family.

Predictably, there has been outrage and backlash about this family's sad tale.

People read short headlines and feel compelled to pass instant judgment about what Yates and Gard "should have" done. Some think the parents should have accepted the reality of their son's disease, called mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome, and let him pass "humanely" and quickly. Others believe they should have gone public earlier when there was a better shot at experimental treatments.

There is no right answer.

Seventeen years ago, my daughter was diagnosed, in utero, with a rare disease that would virtually guarantee her death soon after birth. Best case scenarios involved severely debilitating medical conditions and disabilities that would have made a normal childhood impossible.

But when the doctors gave my husband and me the bad news  and offered us the opportunity to terminate the pregnancy right then  the specter of a profoundly sick and disabled child that would live for any amount of time was, to us at that point, a gamble worth taking.

It was a less than logical choice. She was my second, high-risk pregnancy. I had a toddler at home and was putting my health in peril by not terminating. The hospital costs were soaring and there was no guarantee our baby would even live long enough for any surgical or medical interventions to try to prolong life.

Really, looking back on it, the easier, less complicated and medically cheaper thing to do would have been to end the pregnancy. I would have saved myself and our family a fair amount of physical, mental and emotional suffering.

But there was no convincing my husband and me that we shouldn't do everything humanly possible to ensure a live birth and pray for the miracle of even a very sick baby.

It's been so many years since our daughter was born and immediately died. But even with the cool-headed benefit of hindsight, I'm sure we made the "right" decision for us. (And thank goodness it wasn't judged in real-time by partisan onlookers around the globe!)

But even having suffered through the tragedy of a lost baby, my husband and I aren't in a position to answer the question of when it's appropriate to treat gravely ill infants and when nature should be allowed to take its course. This is because there is no singular answer to that question. Circumstances change as time goes by, and technology enables previously unimaginable medical and surgical "miracles."

No one  not parents who've been through similar traumas, not policymakers who have a pet crusade for or against limits to heroic measures for saving lives, and certainly not politicians looking to exploit a family's unspeakable tragedy  should be weighing in on what Connie Yates and Chris Gard "should have" done.

The conservative British columnist Melanie Phillips described the drama surrounding the Gard case as "a cruel and ignorant campaign." On her blog, Phillips wrote: "The parents in their great distress cannot be blamed [if their baby experienced pain or trauma from having his life extended through desperate measures]. The people who should consider what harm they may have done here are all those who, through giving the parents such false hopes, so cruelly embedded them in their denial of reality."

She's not wrong.

But it is worth noting that though this false hope fueled political grandstanding and ideological bullying  and, perversely, generated ad revenue for media companies  it was also probably the only thing helping Charlie Gard's parents endure such a heart-rending time.

If there's any takeaway here, it's that Charlie Gard's life and death are not a case study or parable about the bureaucracy of national medical systems. And his experience doesn't belong to the world, not even to those who mourned for him.

No one but his parents have a right to take any kind of life lesson from it. After all, they're the only ones who have to live with the consequences of a heartbreaking situation that offered no easy solutions.
Talk about inspiring anger, hatred and violence. In July, President Trump sent a tweet showing a video of himself body-slamming a person whose face was covered by a CNN logo. A week later Donald Trump Jr. posted another video depicting a fighter pilot shooting and exploding a plane marked with CNN's logo. Now the DOJ is signaling it may interfere with CNN business deals.

At the G20, Trump joked about reporters with Putin, who has jailed and even killed, Russian journalists. In Poland, Trump made fake news comments at a press conference with the Polish president, who's restricted his country's media.

During Montana's recent special election, the Republican candidate, when asked about healthcare, assaulted the reporter, knocking him down and breaking his glasses. He won the election and now sits in the House, convicted of battery. Congress tried restricting press access while the White House limited briefings and refused to televise many of them.

In six months Trump held one solo press conference, preferring interviews with outlets like Fox News, where coverage is pro-Trump. Maine's GOP governor recently said society would be better off without print press and he gives them phony stories.

If media reports are negative, they should be refuted with facts, not lies. Leaders who mislead and deceive are un-American. Nebraska's Republican Sen. Sasse said Trump is "weaponizing mistrust" of the media to limit freedom of the press and silence dissent. A recent letter to the editor complaining about facts being toxic rhetoric employed a similar strategy.

Linda L. Doenitz, Bloomington
The past decades have seen considerable cultural shifts that have transformed the way society functions, and tremendously affected the practice of our Catholic faith. During the Convocation of Catholic Leaders in Orlando in early July, Dr. Hoffsman Ospino of Boston College identified four of these shifts, giving abundant weight to the words of Pope Francis that our times are not merely an era of change, but a change of era.

Family life has been significantly reconfigured in terms of roles and practices. The opening lines of Pope John Paul IIs exhortation on the family written in 1981 already recognized these changes. The family in the modern world has been beset by the many profound and rapid changes that have affected society and culture. [Some families] have become uncertain and bewildered over their role or even doubtful and almost unaware of the ultimate meaning and truth of conjugal and family life (Familiaris Consortio, 1). Shifts in the most basic unit of society, the family, have caused seismic alterations in modern society.

The experience of communal life has been greatly eroded and been replaced by a more individualistic instinct. The focus on the individual makes advocating for others unnecessary and the worshipping in community no longer important. Even though God has chosen to call us together as a people and not as isolated individuals (Evangelii Gaudium, 113), only about one-third of Catholics attend Mass on Sunday. Communal worship is in decline.

Divisions brought about by culture wars have made respectful dialogue almost impossible. Pope Francis constantly calls us to dialogue where we encounter the other person, even if we do not agree with his or her ideas. Respect and dialogue seem to have vanished, just look at any comment board online. The idea of disagreeing yet still respecting the other person seems to have disappeared. Unfortunately this is true not only in politics, but also in families and the Church.

Secularization in general presents yet another cultural shift in the modern world. In 1991, only three percent of those living in the United States identified as having no religious affiliation. This year, that number is up to 25%. Hoffsman Ospino points that the trend is clear: organized religion is losing its centrality and the young are leaving in droves. He rightfully asks, where is the outrage?

Hoffsman Ospino brings hope and direction in the midst of these cultural shifts by quoting Pope Francis, mere administration can no longer be enough. Throughout the world, let us be permanently in a state of mission (EG, 25). He argues that we live in a critical time of history where something is passing away and something new is emerging. There is no need to return to an idealized past, but rather to prepare for something new since Jesus makes all things new. Pope Francis has rightly described our times as not merely an era of change, but a change of era. This requires bold missionary disciples to present the Gospel to a world that finds it irrelevant. There is much work ahead of us, yet Cardinal Donald Wuerl encourages us to share the Gospel with boldness, compassion and joy because we have great confidence in the message we share.

Picture is mine, all rights reserved. The Oculus, New York City, 2017
The Senior Minister, Mr Yaw Osafo Maafo, has asked rallied Ghanaian pharmaceutical companies to take advantage of the ECOWAS sub-regions huge market to expand.



He indicated that enormous opportunities existed in the sub-regional market, which they needed to fully exploit to substantially increase their product lines.



Addressing an annual conference of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana (PSGH) in Kumasi, he asked that the Society collaborated with the government to devise ways to capture the market.



He added that this should be made an urgent priority and be seen as a must-do crusade.



Harnessing opportunities in pharmacy for national economic development is the theme chosen for the six-day meeting.

Mr Osafo Maafo pointed out that the pharmaceutical industry held tremendous potential for the nations economy and underlined the governments unswerving determination to provide the needed support for its optimal performance.

He said it was for this reason that it had introduced a number of stimulus packages for the sector.



Among these is the exception of custom duties on all raw materials imported for local manufacturing of drugs.

The government was also in talks with key stakeholders to exempt value added tax (VAT) on manufactured pharmaceutical products.



Additionally, it had been discussing with ECOWAS member states to harmonize free movement of pharmaceutical products in the sub-region.



The Senior Minister encouraged the companies to focus on building the capacity to penetrate the international market.



Mr. Kwaku Agyeman Manu, the Health Minister, said the government would go the extra mile to assist them to supply greater percentage of the nations medicine needs to reduce the import bill.



He hinted of more incentives to aid their growth, expansion and competitiveness on the international market.

He said the government was eager to establish Ghana as pharmaceutical manufacturing hub in West Africa.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
The Dutch Government is sponsoring Ghana Alliance for Clean Cookstoves and Fuels (GHACCO) to undertake a four-year (2016-2020) evidenced based advocacy programme at Ejisu-Juaben in the Ashanti Region.



The Clean Cooking and Fuels project is entitled: Voice for Change (V4C) Partnership Programme.



The V4C is being implemented by The Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV) in collaboration with GHACCO which represents stakeholder platform catalysing the revolution and adoption of Clean Cooking Technologies and Fuels in Ghana.



The overall purpose of the project is to promote access to clean and affordable cooking stoves and fuel solutions for households and institutions in Ghana.



It is implemented in a way to ensure that clean cooking becomes a major impetus that focuses on improvement in climate change, environment and health through reduction on Household Air Pollution (HAP), which contributes to green-house gas emissions.



This was disclosed to the Ghana News Agency by Mr Raymond Kusorgbor, the National Co-ordinator of GHACCO after a two-day deliberations to help mitigate issues of unclean cooking and traditional open fire held at Ejisu-Juaben Municipal Assembly.



It was attended by stakeholders and actors comprising chiefs, queen mothers and assemblymen as well as district planning and co-ordinating unit core management and development planning sub-committee members.



Mr Kusorgbor said the use of traditional cookstoves posed a number of health ricks including eye, throat, and respiratory diseases.



He said the improved cookstoves and LPG could create livelihoods for women and the youth, as well as promote economic development of the district while the promotion of product could open districts to donor support and partnerships in the areas of clean cooking, climate change, environmental protection and health, among others.



He said the reliance on traditional cookstoves encouraged deforestation and climate change and also detrimental to women and children in terms of health, time spent on wood collection, school attendance, among others.



Mr Kusorgbor gave the assurance that GHACCO was ready to assist Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies to accelerate the awareness campaign in respect of the need to adopt and the benefits of improved clean cooking technologies and fuels like cook bags, biogels, stoves and LPG, pellets and briquettes.



He appealed to the assemblies to mainstream clean cooking into their medium term development plan since there were no district level programmes related to clean cooking activities.



He called on the assemblies to support clean cooking businesses by exempting improve cookstoves and LPG from the district level taxes or market tolls.



He said they must also develop awareness programmes to mitigate the effects of inefficient or traditional cooking methods; support clean cooking businesses by lobbying local financial institutions to lend to clean cooking businesses as well as establish a district level framework for the promotion of the product.



He appealed to the government to reduce import duties on components parts used in the manufacturing of improved cookstoves to increase production and affordability; reduce import duties on imported cookstoves to increase availability, variety and competition as well as the removal of VAT on cookstoves to improve affordability in the country.



Mr Paa Kwesi Simons, the Head of Planning at the Ejisu-Juaben Municipal Assembly, expressed gratitude to SNV and GHACCO for the project with its enormous health, economic and environmental benefits.



He assured them of the readiness of the Assembly to support the clean cooking project for its reflection in the medium term development plan.



Nana Boafoaa II, the Queen Mother of Juaben, Mr Ansah Sasraku, the Presiding Member of the Assembly and Madam Lydia Nantwi, the Convener of Gender also highlighted on the benefits of clean cooking to women.



They expressed their commitment to support the project by helping to discuss the product at general assembly meeting for a resolution to be passed for its integration in their medium term development plan.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Type sexual health into a search engine, and it is likely that you will be bombarded with pages of articles covering anything and everything, from sexual norms and advice on relationships, birth control, and pregnancy, to information about STDs and how to avoid them.



What is less often discussed, however, is the abundant physical and psychological health benefits of sex. We have put together a list of the top health benefits of sex, as backed up by science.



Sex has numerous physical and psychological health benefits.



In exploring just how sex affects the mind and body, the list of potential benefits appears to be endless.



Aside from reproduction, pleasure, and intimacy, sex seems to have a positive impact on many life areas, including work, physical and cognitive performance, marriage, and happiness into our senior years.



Sex may also have a positive effect on certain organs and conditions, as well as a preventive effect on some diseases.



For example, a recent study published in the Journal of Management found that maintaining a healthy sex life at home might boost job satisfaction and engagement at work.



Sex may also play a fundamental role in preserving a happy marriage, according to research published in Psychological Science. Partners are suggested to experience a sexual afterglow that lasts for up to 48 hours following sexual intercourse. This afterglow is associated with higher levels of long-term relationship satisfaction.



Sex is also considered a significant form of exercise. Sex burns around 85 calories, or 3.6 calories per minute, according to a study published in PLOS One.



These few examples are a drop in the ocean of the numerous health benefits of sexual activity and masturbation that are presented in studies from around the globe. Medical News Today provides the low-down on the top evidence-based health benefits of sex.



1) Improves immunity



Participating in sex one to two times per week appears to be the optimum frequency to boost the immune system, according to research published in Psychological Reports.



Scientists can test how tough our immune systems are by measuring levels of an antibody called immunoglobulin A (IgA) in saliva and mucosal linings.



Study authors Carl Charnetski, from Wilkes University in Pennsylvania, and his colleague Frank Brennan found that people who had sex once or twice per week had a 30 percent increase in IgA. However, the same results were not seen in individuals who had sex more or less frequently.



Clifford Lowell, an immunologist at the University of California-San Francisco, says that people who are sexually active are exposed to more infectious agents than individuals who are not sexually active. The immune system responds to these infectious agents by producing more IgA, which may protect against colds and flu.



For those of you, who have sex more or less frequently than the optimal amount, fear not. According to another study by Charnetski, petting a dog can also significantly raise IgA.



2) Good for the heart



Physical activities that exercise the heart are good for your health, and this includes sex. Being sexually aroused increases heart rate, with the number of beats per minute peaking during orgasm.



Men, in particular, have been shown to benefit from the effect of sex on the heart. A study published in the American Journal of Cardiology, involving men in their 50s, suggested that men who have sex at least twice per week have a 45 percent reduced risk of heart disease, compared with men who have sex less frequently.



The American Heart Association says that heart disease should not affect your sex life. Heart attacks or chest pain caused by heart disease rarely happen during sex and, for the most part, it is safe to have sex if your heart disease has stabilized.



The hearts response to sex is comparable with mild to moderate effort encountered in daily activities, according to research published in the European Heart Journal. If you can take part in activities that have a similar impact on the heart  such as walking up two flights of stairs  without chest pain, then you can usually assume that it is safe to have sex.



More research is currently needed to draw connections between specific cardiovascular conditions and sex, particularly for women and older adults.



3) Lowers blood pressure



Research conducted by Michigan State University and published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior found that sex in later years might reduce the risk of high blood pressure  at least for women.



Women in the study aged between 57 and 85 years who found sex pleasurable or satisfying were less likely to have hypertension. However, male study participants who had sex once per week or more were twice as likely to experience heart problems than men who were sexually inactive.



In another study published in Behavioral Medicine, researchers found that the act of hugging can help a person to maintain a healthy blood pressure.



According to the American Heart Association, high blood pressure increases the risk of heart attack and stroke and can also affect your sex life. High blood pressure has an impact on blood flow throughout the body and can prevent enough blood flowing to the pelvis.



In men, high blood pressure can lead to erectile dysfunction and in women, high blood pressure can lower libido and reduce interest in sex. It is considered safe to have sex if you have high blood pressure. However, if you are concerned or are having problems in the bedroom, seek advice from your doctor.



4) Relieves pain



A headache may often be used as a reason to avoid sex. However, before you reach for the painkillers, neurologists have found that sexual activity can relieve head pain associated with amigraine or cluster headache in some people.



The research was conducted by the University of Munster in Germany and published in Cephalalgia.



In individuals with a migraine, 60 percent of people reported an improvement in pain after sexual activity, while 37 percent of people with a cluster headache reported an improvement.



The University of Munster researchers explain that sex triggering the release of endorphins is the mechanism behind the pain relief. Endorphins are the bodys natural painkillers and are released through the central nervous system, which can reduce or eliminate pain the experienced with a headache.



In other research published in Pain, women were found to experience reduced pain sensitivity and had an increased pain tolerance threshold when experiencing pleasure through vaginal self-stimulation.



5) Reduces the risk of prostate cancer



Men who frequently ejaculate could be protected against prostate cancer, the most commoncancer among men in the United States.



Research led by Michael Leitzmann, from the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, MD, and published in JAMA, discovered that men who ejaculated 21 times per month or more were a third less likely to develop prostate cancer than men who ejaculated between four and seven times per month.



Leitzmann and team have a number of theories as to why increased ejaculation may help to prevent prostate cancer.



The first theory is that frequent ejaculation may allow the prostate gland to clear out carcinogens, and materials that may orchestrate the development of carcinogens. Another theory suggests that regular drainage of prostate fluid stops crystalloid micro calcifications  which are associated with prostate cancer  from developing in the prostate duct.



Men who have more than 12 ejaculations per month may also benefit, although the researchers note that at this point, the research would not warrant recommending men to change their sexual behavior.



6) Improves sleep



Do you have trouble getting to sleep at night? Sexual activity could be just what the doctor ordered.



Insufficient sleep is a public health problem, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Around 50 to 70 million adults in the U.S. have a sleep disorder.



Sex could be the answer to help you achieve the recommended 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night.



During sex and orgasm, a cocktail of chemicals are released in the brain, which includes oxytocin, dopamine, and a rush of endorphins. Oxytocin, also known as the cuddle hormone, facilitates closeness and bonding, and it surges during sex and orgasm in both men and women.



After orgasm, it is thought that the effect of oxytocin, combined with the release of the hormone prolactin (which is linked to the feeling of satiety and relaxation), makes you feel sleepy.



In women, a rise in estrogen levels during sex has been shown to enhance their REM cycle, according to a study published in the Journal of Womens Health.



In men, the prefrontal cortex  the area of the brain associated with alertness, consciousness, and mental activity  switches off after orgasm. According to a study published in Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, this process is connected with the release of oxytocin and serotonin, both of which have sleep-inducing effects.



7) Relieves stress



Stress can cause all kinds of health problems, from headaches, problems sleeping, muscle tension, and upset stomach, to more severe conditions, including a weakened immune system and chronicdepression.



Evidence published in Psychosomatic Medicine demonstrated that physical or emotional intimacy in couples is associated with reduced stress levels.



A study published in Biological Psychology found that people who engaged in penetrative sex experienced lower stress-related blood pressure when public speaking than individuals who had masturbated or had non-coital sex.



Participants in the study who abstained from sex had the highest blood pressure levels triggered by stress. Stuart Brody, a psychologist at the University of Paisley in the United Kingdom, hypothesized that the calming effect might be caused by the release of the pair-bonding hormone, oxytocin.



8) Boosts brain power



Research published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior suggests that frequent sex may improve womens memory. Results from a computerized word-memory task found that women who had penetrative sex had better memory recognition of abstract words.



The researchers note that at this stage, it is unclear whether sex improves memory or if better memory leads to more sex. However, they say that sex may improve memory by stimulating the creation of new neurons in the hippocampus  the region of the brain that is involved in learning and memory.



Another study, by the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands and published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, found that thinking about love or sex has different effects on our brains.



Thinking about love activates long-term perspective and global processing, which promotes creative thinking and interferes with analytical thinking. However, in contrast, thinking about sex triggers short-term perspective and local processing, which then promotes analytical thinking and interferes with creativity.



9) Increases lifespan



Do you want to live longer? Sexual activity could hold the key to a longer life. A study published in The BMJ concluded that sexual activity might have a protective effect on mens health.



The researchers tracked the mortality of almost 1,000 men aged between 45 and 59 over the course of 10 years. They found that risk of death was 50 percent lower in men who frequently had orgasms than men who did not regularly ejaculate.



Other research also concluded with similar results. A 25-year study published in The Gerontologist determined that in men, frequent intercourse was a significant predictor of longevity, whereas in women, those who reported past enjoyment of sex lived longer.



10) Boosts self-esteem



In addition to all the physical benefits, having frequent satisfying sex may improve emotional wellness.



Research published in Social Psychology and Personality Science found that among college students, those who enjoyed casual sex reported higher well-being and self-esteem levels, compared with students who did not have casual sex.



On the other side of the coin, according to a study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, women with higher self-esteem reported having more satisfying sex, including having more orgasms.



These are just some of the many benefits that sex can have for your health. While sex can be a pleasurable and exciting activity, it is important to remember that practicing safe sex can reduce the risks of contracting STDs, as well as helping to avoid unplanned pregnancies.

Source: Medicalnewstoday.com









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The biases of the Speaker have been exposed following his recent comments according to the managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr.



The Minority in Parliament has accused the Speaker Prof Mike Ocquaye of being bias. Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu said on Thursday, July 27 that "you know the essence of parliamentary questions is significant and integral to the exercise of oversight. Your refusal to allow me even as Minority Leader to proceed can only be an effort to cripple us".



Some Members of the Minority walked out of the chamber following what they described as a bias posture of the Speaker towards the Majority.



Delivering a lecture in commemoration of August 4, 1947, Friday, the Speaker blamed the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for various problems in the Convention Peoples Party (CPP).



According to him, if CPP is determined to survive, their focus shouldnt be on the New Patriotic Party (NPP) because they (the NPP) are not out to destroy them but rather should concentrate on the NDC because they created confusion within the CPP party which made it broken and fragmented into six political parties.



The CPP has been penetrated by the newly created NDC.....and that they have created confusion within the party which was then broken and fragmented into six political parties. And I wrote if the CPP wants to survive, they should not look our way because we are not out to destroy them. They must proceed to extricate themselves from the bowels of the NDC, then they will survive because as at now they are swallowed and as a truism, they know or should know who swallowed them



Contributing to a panel discussion on Radio Golds Alhaji and Alhaji, Saturday, Kwesi Pratt said: I feel sad that the speaker of parliament has gone this far at a time that he is speaker. I feel so worried and sad. The biases of the speaker are now so open because he is flaunting themMike Ocquaye and others are so one-sided its unbelievable

Source: Rebecca Addo Tetteh/Peacefmonline.com









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WILBER  The applause dies down and Leah Mach, wearing a traditional Czech vest and skirt, runs up to the outdoor bandstand, saluting the crowd Saturday.

A sign above the bandstand greets the crowd as well: the Czech phrase Vitame Vas  "We Welcome You."

Mach runs her fingers along the buttons of an accordion  an instrument she just learned to play last year  and begins a rousing polka.

"I've always loved the way an accordion sounds," the 13-year-old said before she played in front of festival-goers at the 56th annual Wilber Czech Festival.

Music is a way Mach can express and appreciate her Czech heritage, especially at the annual celebration where she participates in the talent show every year.

"I've been coming since I can remember," she said. "I love seeing all the people in Wilber and knowing that you share a unique heritage with them."

Lovers of all things Czech filled Wilber's main street, devouring the usual fare  steaming sausages covered in sauerkraut, freshly-baked kolaches, funnel cakes, and towers of melting ice cream.

Chad Congrove of Papillion, a regular Czech Days visitor, brought his three children to enjoy Saturday's parade and tractor pull.

"It's about learning about their Czech heritage and enjoying the experience ... eating the food, seeing all the people," Congrove said.

Many wore the traditional kroje costume  women in embroidered white skirts and black vests, men in black knickers and vests, their heads adorned with feathered black caps.

Wilber Mayor Roger Chrans strolled along in front of a line of vendors selling Czech arts and crafts, clothing, plants and more.

"It doesn't matter what you're looking to do here," Chrans said. "If you come here with nothing in your pocket, you can still spend the whole day having fun."

Nearly 30,000 people will come to the festival, Chrans said, with 900 volunteers helping it go off without a hitch.

Saturday's festivities were headlined by an afternoon parade down main street, celebrating Czech pioneers in honor of Nebraska's 150th birthday.

The day was filled with other celebrations: dance performances, heritage demonstrations, and the accordion jamboree, where scores of musicians played waltzes and polkas.

Trumpet player Mike Kassik and the Milligan Czech Brass Band performed in the parade. The 15-member band has become a staple of the Czech Festival, hosting a concert and performing in both the Saturday and Sunday parades since the 1960s.

"We love the friendships with the people here," said Kassik, who's played in the band since 1968. "They always recognize us and that's the reason we do it, to keep the traditional music alive."

Sporadic rain forced some events, such as the accordion jamboree, to move indoors.

As the afternoon progressed, the rain moved off but clouds stuck around.

Czech Days continue Sunday with a motorcycle show, music, dancing, a parade and more, finished with the Miss Czech-Slovak U.S. Pageant at 7 p.m.

"This festival really means a lot for our community," Chrans said. "And you see the impact it has every year. It keeps our town healthy."
The pandemic brought a technological revolution to schools. Is that a good thing?

Regardless of the path, by necessity, most educators agree the pandemic electrified the use of technology in the classroom.
[Adds subcontractor comment, see 'Update' below] SugarHouse Casino cut the ribbon in May 2016 on an expansion that more than doubled the size of the only state-licensed gambling complex in Philadelphia.

More than a year later, many of its builders are still trying to get paid for the work they said they did.

The Delaware Avenue center, by Penn Treaty Park between the river and I-95, added a string of restaurants, a seven-story parking garage, an Event Center for concerts, weddings and corporate gatherings, the Poker Night in America room, scores of new poker and table game seats, hundreds of new slot machines, and 500 full-time positions, taking the total workforce to 1,700, in a city hungry for job growth..

Last week Skanska USA Building Inc., the New Jersey-based American arm of the global Skanska construction and general contracting group, sued SugarHouse owner Sugarhouse HSP Gaming LP, based in Chicago, in Common Pleas Court, seeking $14 million for work performed at SugarHouse by Skanska and subcontractors.

Skanska says SugarHouse agreed to pay $123 million for the work, following changes agreed to by both sides early in the project. But according to Skanska, later changes ordered by SugarHouse  for the kitchens used by Geno's Steaks and Saxbys Coffee, for new waterproofing and changes to ceilings, the big chandelier and the armored car bay and more  added $8 million in costs that SugarHouse hasn't paid. The casino also deducted more than $1 million in claimed "liquidated damages" from its payments, according to Skanska.

The contractor says it has been paid only $118 million, and has gone to court for the balance. "We can't comment on pending litigation," SugarHouse spokesman Jack Horner told me.

It's not just Skanska. "There are subcontractors with balances that are awaiting payment," Mason Avrigian Jr., partner at Post & Schell PC in Philadelphia, who is representing Skanska, told me.

A check of Common Pleas Court filings shows that, since last fall, at least a dozen subcontractors who worked on the SugarHouse expansion have also filed mechanics' liens seeking payments totaling more than $10 million, at least some of which they are also trying to collect from Skanska. I have talked to other builders who say they are also owed money and are considering their options.

"It is the obligation of the general contractor to pay the subcontractors," said SugarHouse's Horner. "Unfortunately, the general contractor has not done so, and the subcontractors have filed liens to protect their interests. It is important to SugarHouse that the subcontractors who built our expansion are compensated fairly and that our general contractor meets its obligations to them."

[Update 8/7: Two subcontractors, neither of whom has filed liens, contacted me after reading the casino's statement. Each asked that I not quote them by name: "It has become common practice in commercial construction for subcontractors to have to 'sign away their rights'" on big construction jobs, giving up leverage that would have made it less difficult to try to collect directly from project owners, one told me. ""Most every general contractor has a clause in their Subcontract Agreement that states, 'Payment to subcontractors is conditioned upon their having received payment from the owner.' This what we call a 'pay if paid' clause."

[The first subcontractor said many feel they have no choice but to wait  borrowing, paying interest and losing profits to keep workers paid  until the owners and general contractors are ready: "If the subcontractors don't sign agreements with this type of language, they lose the work" to others who will sign. "Many subcontractors simply cannot afford to walk away from potential work."

["We wish it were illegal," said another subcontractor. Instead "it is standard in our industry." The casino "has been opened for over a year, while we have not received any payments for over 14 months," the second subcontractor added. This subcontractor suggested casino reps should sit down with Skanska and the unpaid subcontractors and "come to a settlement," enabling builders to avoid the "enormous legal fees required to defend our interest."]

The dispute takes place amid signs that gambling industry growth may have flattened in the region  even as Pennsylvania state officials in Harrisburg have been pushing to expand gambling, so they can raise more gambling taxes to help fill a $2 billion state budget gap. In a report last week, S&P Global Ratings analyst Timothy Little warned that existing casinos in Pennsylvania and neighboring states have brought in all the likely gamblers they can expect to attract, and that increasing casino capacity "will only exacerbate the narrowing competitive advantage of new properties being developed in the region."

How often are contractors in court seeking payment after a big job gets done? "Unfortunately, a lot of these larger projects do go to disputes because of issues," Avrigian said. He added that contractors would rather spare the cost of litigation.

Mechanics' liens, filed when subcontractors don't get paid, represent a claim on the property where they worked, and typically have to be paid before a property can be sold or used as collateral, which may not be much leverage when an owner has no near-term plans to sell or expand. In Philadelphia, court records show that some subcontractors have a dozen or more mechanics' liens against clients they say didn't fully pay them.

The opening of one of the biggest public construction jobs in the region in recent years, the $400 million State Correction InstitutePhoenix in Skippack, Montgomery County, has been delayed two years amid disputes between the state's representatives and two national contractors hired to oversee the work; some subcontractors on that job have sued the general contractors, and some have privately complained that they have had to borrow money to meet payroll while waiting for money that's due them.

It shouldn't take legal action to get paid every time, says Shawn R. Farrell, a partner at Cohen Seglias Pallas Greenhall & Furman in Philadelphia, which represents several SugarHouse subcontractors. Farrell represents Emms Electric, a family-owned union electrical contractor in Boyertown, which says it is owed $214,000 for work on SugarHouse. "This is not normal," Farrell told me. "I don't see a resolution anytime soon."

Other mechanics' liens filed for payment over work at SugarHouse include:
Ten people were hospitalized Saturday after landing in Philadelphia on an American Airlines flight from Athens, Greece, that had encountered heavy turbulence.

The three passengers and seven crew members were taken to a hospital for evaluation after Flight 759 landed at Philadelphia International Airport, American Airlines said in a release.

The turbulence was encountered shortly before the plane's 3:12 p.m. arrival at the airport, according to the airline.

American Airlines spokeswoman Sunny Rodriguez had no immediate details Saturday evening about injuries sustained by passengers or crew members, or whether those injured remained hospitalized.

Jessica Huseman, a reporter with the news website ProPublica who was on the flight, said in a tweet that a flight attendant had dislocated his shoulder during the incident.

"No warning at all. Plane lurched thru the air. Honestly, terrifying," she wrote in a separate tweet. "Some passengers are injured as well."

Huseman also posted photos of the airplane cabin's ceiling splashed with coffee that had just been distributed to passengers when the turbulence occurred.

"We all used our fleece blankets to mop the ceiling of the plane down after drinks went flying," Huseman wrote.
Over 500 protesters from across the country converged outside the state Capitol and onto downtown streets Sunday afternoon in response to TransCanada's proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

The protest comes on the eve of week-long proceedings in front of the Nebraska Public Service Commission where local landowners, TransCanada representatives, Native American tribal leaders and others will present testimony on whether or not the pipeline serves the public interest.

The proceedings mark the last major hurdle TransCanada must get over for approval of the pipeline, which would carry nearly 830,000 barrels of oil per day from Canada through Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska for export.

K Street on the north side of the Capitol was blocked off as hundreds of sign-bearing protesters gathered.

After speakers rallied the crowd, Native protesters astride horses led a march north down 16th Street.

Police cordoned off the rest of the march that swung down N Street and headed back to the Capitol down 13th Street, passing the Cornhusker Marriott Hotel, where the public service commission hearings will kick off Monday morning.

Jane Kleeb, an organizer of the protest and head of advocacy group Bold Nebraska, said the proposed pipeline has been stopped in the past and will be stopped again.

"There is absolutely no reason that the public service commission would grant a permit to a foreign corporation ... shipping foreign tar sands to the foreign export market all for their bottom line, when that has nothing to do with Nebraska's public interest," Kleeb said.

Native American protester Lydia West, flew in from San Diego, California on Saturday to attend the "Give Keystone XL the Boot" protest.

She said she wants to stand up with other Native tribes whose land the pipeline would bisect.

"Nebraskans have shown time and time again that they don't want this," said West, the daughter of a Omaha tribesman.

The proposed pipeline, which would complete the 1,719-mile route from Alberta to Nebraska, has spurred concern over potential oil spills that could pollute water and soil in the Sandhills and near the Ogallala aquifer.

It seemed as if the proposed pipeline had no future after President Barack Obama rejected TransCanadas application in November 2015.

But hope for TransCanada was renewed when President Donald Trump revived the project days after his January inauguration.

Nebraska farmer Art Tanderup, who owns land along the pipeline route, called the project a totally unfair business takeover in which only TransCanada stands to profit.

He also criticized the public service commission hearings for not allowing certain issues to be talked about, including safety, which state law prohibits from discussion.

There are so many reasons that this pipeline is wrong, Tanderup said. Yet we have to spend a week trying to get supposedly common-sense people to understand why its so wrong.

Jacqueline Rodkewich of Minnesota bussed to Lincoln with others pipeline protesters. Busses also brought in activists from places like Denver, Wichita, Kansas, and the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in Eagle Butte, South Dakota.

Rodkewich made the trip to stand with tribes like the Ponca and Omaha, whose land the pipeline would cross.

This issue is nationwide, Rodkewich said. And I would go to lift up whatever voice needs to be heard. I will go and stand with those people.

Protesters at Sunday's March carried signs blasting TransCanada and the oil industry.

Some carried pieces of a cardboard pipeline with painted slogans that equated Keystone XL to corporate greed and pollution.

On the other end of the issue, pipeline supporters prepared for the week-long battle ahead their own way, hosting a barbecue with TransCanada officials at the Laborers Training Center in Omaha.

Fred Brown with Common Sense Energy Solutions, a pro-pipeline organization, criticized Sunday's protest for inciting fear and opposition against American energy.

"The facts are that pipelines, like Keystone, will create thousands of jobs, raise millions of dollars in revenues for local communities, and bring in millions in labor wages," Brown said in a statement.

The Public Service Commission hearing will take place every day this week from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Seating is limited.

Retired Lancaster County Judge Karen Flowers will preside over the hearing alongside five of the commissions elected members, who will decide the pipelines fate.

A decision from the commission is expected by November.

The proceedings will also be streamed live online at netnebraska.org. For highlights, follow Journal Star reporter Zach Pluhacek on Twitter @zachami.
The New York man who gave his unlicensed teenage daughter the keys to his SUV last summer - a decision that led to the deaths of three 15-year-old Bucks County boys when she crashed the vehicle in the Poconos - was sentenced Thursday to more than six years in prison. Read more

A 52-year-old North Philadelphia woman was killed early Sunday morning in a hit-and-run accident in the 1300 block of Race Street, Philadelphia police said.

The woman, Ann P. Broderick of the 2600 block of Coral Street, was a pedestrian. She was struck around 3:20 a.m. by a white Jeep Wrangler Rubicon that was heading east.

Police were searching Sunday for the vehicle, which continued east after the collision. It had a hard white top, black wheel wells, large tires, and a spare tire attached at the rear. It may have damage to the right front.

Broderick was pronounced dead at Hahnemann University Hospital at 3:49 a.m.
President Trump is headed to his August vacation with no major legislative successes. Read more

WASHINGTON  President Trump made his name as a New York builder.

In politics, he has mostly been a wrecking ball.

A self-described "counterpuncher," Trump won the White House with a campaign defined by attacking what he was against  "Crooked" Hillary Clinton, bad trade deals, illegal immigration, the media. But as he crosses a critical marker early in his presidency, Trump has so far failed to advance, or even articulate, much of what he's for.

Trump and Congress left town for a summer recess last week with no major legislative accomplishments  even though the time between Inauguration Day and the August break often represents a critical window for legacy-defining laws. What's more, Trump's combativeness had frayed ties to fellow Republicans, with GOP lawmakers growing irritated that the president had turned his slashing style on them.

"He loves the battle," said Julian Zelizer, a political historian at Princeton University, but "he doesn't know how to translate those skills into how to sell an idea."

Instead, Trump's presidency has mirrored his campaign rallies: furious, caustic, thrilling to his supporters, and animated by opposition. He has pushed a wall and a travel ban to block immigrants, urged the destruction of Obamacare, and fed the Trans-Pacific Partnership and Paris climate accord into the presidential shredder. Of the dozens of bills he has signed, many of the most consequential have been aimed at tearing down regulations imposed by his predecessor, Barack Obama. He has relentlessly attacked the mainstream media and any critics. To his base, it all represents progress.

Trump also put conservative Neil Gorsuch on the Supreme Court, an achievement that could influence law for a generation.

But he has failed to push through the kind of signature bill that would proactively put his imprint on policy.

"He has not built any Trump Towers, if you think about it that way," Zelizer said. "The biggest thing he has done is taken down some of the towers Obama built."

Trump's marquee legislative effort  his push to repeal and replace Obama's health law, the Affordable Care Act  failed.

He vigorously attacked Obamacare but showed little interest in crafting or promoting an alternative that could unify the GOP and win over voters. Trump instead spent much of the run-up to a crucial Senate vote assailing one his closest allies, Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

"We lost health care in part because we lost the messaging debate, and that's partly our responsibility, but the president has to be involved in that too. He's got the biggest megaphone," said Rep. Tom Cole (R., Okla.). "We need him talking about it all the time, because it builds support and it reassures members and pushes them in the right direction."

Said Sen. Chris Coons (D., Del.), "I can't think of an example I can cite for you where the president constructively built a strategy, built a coalition, and executed on it that was genuinely bipartisan or went beyond merely carrying out some initiative that was already underway." Even credit for Gorsuch, Coons argued, belongs with the Senate GOP, not Trump.

Before his first summer recess, Obama passed an economic stimulus, appointed a liberal Supreme Court justice, Sonia Sotomayor, and got the ball rolling on his namesake health law. George W. Bush got both chambers of Congress to pass major tax cuts and initial versions of his "No Child Left Behind" education plan.

The biggest legislation Trump has signed was a bipartisan bill imposing sanctions on Russia, Iran, and North Korea  which he opposed and attacked.

"Congress could not even negotiate a healthcare bill after seven years of talking," he said in a statement explaining that he would nonetheless sign it for the sake of unity. "I can make far better deals with foreign countries than Congress."

On Twitter the next day, the counterpunching president blamed Congress for poor relations with Russia.

There were signs last week that in constantly finding new enemies to skewer, Trump was taking a toll on his own political prospects. Republicans chafed at his treatment of Sessions, once one of their own, and hit back over his comments on Russia.

"I was shocked by that," Sen. Pat Toomey (R., Pa.) told the Associated Press. "Because relations with Russia are in a bad place, and it's entirely because of Vladimir Putin."

Coons said the attacks on Sessions "genuinely affected the way in which many of my colleagues view the president."

On the way out the door, two Republican senators  South Carolina's Lindsey Graham and North Carolina's Thom Tillis  prodded Trump's most sensitive nerve, introducing bipartisan bills to limit the president's power to remove the special counsel leading the investigation into Russian meddling in last year's election.

Trump still has time to rack up accomplishments  though midterm elections loom. Republicans are hoping to pass a sweeping tax overhaul this fall, and there are signs that the White House and Capitol Hill are working more closely together on that push.

It could be the biggest tax rewrite since Ronald Reagan did it  after months of campaigning for the idea and selling it, Zelizer said.

Trump, fueled by Twitter and drawn to the fight of the moment, has so far shown little inclination to do the same.
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A man died after being hit by a train on the mainline to Plymouth this morning, police have confirmed

British Transport Police were called to the line at Clapperbrook crossing, near Exeter, after a man was struck by a train.

Officers from Devon and Cornwall Police also attended the incident after they were called at 8.37am.

Paramedics were also called however the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police are not treating the incident as suspicious and a file has been prepared for the coroner.

All lines between Exeter St Davids and Newton Abbot were blocked for over an hour and National Rail said that there could be delays for passengers travelling this afternoon between these stations for up to 60 minutes.
KING FERRY  Those who made the trek over to the Wheat Harvest Festival in King Ferry Saturday were greeted by sights at various points of the day such as tractors, horses, Irish dancing and children frolicking on a bounce house.

The annual event  which has been operating for over 20 years  was abuzz with activity, with different games, vendors, foods, and, of course, wheat harvesting demonstrations. During the pie-eating contest, some kids started plowing through their treats in between the announcer's words of "One!" during his countdown and "Go!"

Earlier, during a contest in which children scrambled to find straws through piles of hay in exchange for prizes as a safer version of the classic "needle-in-a-haystack" trope, one of the first children to find a straw raised both fists in the air victoriously, exclaiming "Yes! I found a straw!"

Dana Armstrong, who comes to the event every year with his wife and children, believes the festival is the community's way of coming together and collectively saying that it is still here. The way Armstrong sees it, the festival with scenes like children excitedly rushing toward their parents to present the prizes they just won  is an perfect representation of America.

Dana's relative Shannon Armstrong  president of the board of trustees for the Genoa Historical Association, which hosts the festival  believes the focus on family is one of the reasons why the event stands out for people among the various things one could do in the area during the summer.

For example, Shannon cited the members of the separate fire departments for King Ferry and Genoa barbecuing foods for the crowds, as many of those people brought along their respective families for the event.

The family theme could be felt during the festival in different ways. As another example, at one point husband-and-wife couple Joe and Karen Lonsky performed '70s hits as The Newlyweds, while nearby, Joe's nephew Josh Lonsky was trying to stop his son Gage from accidentally running into people with a small drivable red car. A little later on, Josh's daughter Scarlett Lonsky could be seen putting a goat back in an area where barnyard animals were put for the festival.

Josh, while speaking with Dana Armstrong, said that for many people the festival is like a "family reunion."
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House Intelligence Committee ranking member Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) said that Donald Trump Jrs emails were just the beginning, and Special Counsel Robert Mueller impaneled the grand jury because the investigation is heating up, not winding down.

Video:

Schiff said:

If you look at the context we know from James Comeys testimony before our committee that he opened a counterintelligence last July. So that means one year later rather than turning that investigation off, rather than concluding weve looked at this for a year theres nothing to see here as the President would claim, instead its moving into a new phase with the impaneling of a grand jury, so the special counsel can subpoena witnesses and documents  that wouldnt be taking place if there was no evidence, no evidentiary basis to move forward.

And of course, we can just see in whats come out in the last month why that investigation is probably closer to the beginning than the end with these emails about that Don Jr. meeting, three of the top Trump campaign people meeting with representatives of the Russian government effectively who are promising dirt as part of the Russian effort to help your father, to help Donald Trump, as well as clear intent by the campaign  Don Jr. saying that he would love that kind of help. And now you add on the layer of the President, if these allegations are true, helping to fabricate a false statement about what that meeting was about. I think it is a significant development  not particularly unexpected  and youre right, you cant read that this means that indictments are going to follow. But nonetheless, it does mean that the investigation is not only not being turned off but moving into a new phase.

The louder that the White House complains that the Russia scandal is nothing, the deeper the investigation into Trump gets. Trump has taken to complaining about Adam Schiff because Schiff is going on television and keeping the American people updated with as much as he can publicly say about the investigation. Schiff isnt promoting himself or grandstanding. He is a public servant who is trying to explain the process and keep people informed.

To put it another way, Rep. Schiff is the complete opposite of Donald Trump,

While Donald Trump tries to pretend that his vacation isnt really a vacation, the Russia investigation is slowly closing in on Trump and his family.
Nearly two-thirds of South Carolina's utility customers have paid billions for a project that will likely never be completed, here's why and what is being done about it.
Jack Evans is a reporting intern at the Post and Courier. He attends Indiana University and has written for the Indiana Daily Student, the Daily Hampshire Gazette and the Knoxville Mercury, among other publications.
Dismissed State Patrol Superintendent Brad Rice started his job in early 2015 with huge questions about his actions and attitudes involving female troopers, religion and leadership.

His 27 months of managing the state's law enforcement agency ended with his firing in June. Gov. Pete Ricketts should have seen it coming, Rice's opponents say.

"It shouldn't have come as a surprise to anybody, least of all the governor," said Omaha Sen. Burke Harr. "This lays squarely in his lap. And he needs to take full accountability for it."

A report made public on Thursday said Rice interfered with internal affairs investigations at least four times and violated the agency's workplace harassment and equal opportunity policies, and was too friendly with the State Patrol union.

When Ricketts appointed Rice he said his prior service in a variety of ranks within the patrol would guide his leadership as superintendent.

I know his integrity will direct his decisions as he works with patrol members across the state to protect public safety, he said.

But almost immediately, red flags were raised about Rice's role in a female trooper's successful gender discrimination lawsuit; a comment made in 2000 about women not belonging in law enforcement; and complaints that he proselytized, led prayers at troop meetings and held some of those meetings at a Norfolk church when he was a troop commander.

Ricketts' spokesman Taylor Gage dismissed the reports at the time, saying old grievances and complaints were just speculation. He also noted the Legislature opened its sessions each morning with a prayer.

In fact, Rice's religious faith may have given him an edge among candidates, opponents to his nomination have said.

When he released a review of the patrol last week, Ricketts was asked how he viewed Rice's appointment now, and whether he failed to heed warning signs. The governor would only say Rice failed to perform and live up to his expectations of how he was to lead the patrol.

When a reporter asked if there should have been more attention paid during Rice's tenure to concerns raised by troopers, the union and issues covered by the media, Ricketts said when information was brought to his staff, they acted on it.

But union President Sgt. Brian Petersen said when he reached out to the governor's office on issues, the chief of staff would go to Rice, who would debunk any accusations and he would take Rice's word.

During the Legislature's confirmation debate in May 2015 several senators raised concerns about Rice's appointment and his character.

But senators voted 32-7, with nine senators present but not voting, to confirm him. Those voting against the confirmation were Sens. Kate Bolz and Patty Pansing Brooks, both of Lincoln; Ernie Chambers, Tanya Cook and Bob Krist, all of Omaha; Sue Crawford of Bellevue and Ken Haar of Malcolm.

Sen. Paul Schumacher of Columbus, who voted in favor of confirming Rice, said during debate on Rice's confirmation that he was told by one of the state's first female troopers, whose opinion he respected, that Rice was OK.

He recognized, he said, "we all say things, do things we might regret, but in the end, if we're good people, we're OK."

Sen. Mike Gloor of Grand Island, who also voted for his appointment, said at the time there was no reason to think Rice wouldn't learn from the criticisms and "hopefully be sensitized to an extent."

Schumacher said Friday that obviously Rice didn't turn out to be as good a guy as his supporters thought he was.

"Hindsight's always 20-20," he said.

Harr, who spoke against Rice at the confirmation debate but did not vote in favor or against him, said last week the signs were everywhere that Rice was not a good appointment.

"It seemed like it was a good ol' boy network from day one. It was never about professionalism. It was never about best practices."

Now he has more questions. Ricketts has declined to answer some questions because he said information was turned over to the FBI for a criminal investigation.

The FBI doesn't publicly confirm investigations. For that reason, no one can be sure one is being carried out, Harr said. State Chief Human Resources Officer Jason Jackson said the investigation is "ongoing."

Harr believes Ricketts could answer more questions than he has been willing to answer.

"What would he say that would hinder that investigation?" he said.

Harr also wants to know if there are any pending court cases that should be dismissed because of corruption by the patrol.

"If I'm a defense attorney, how do I know what happened and what didn't happen? And who can I impeach in a trial as being truthful or not?" he said. "He's got to tell all of it ... or it's going to be a pox for years to come."

People need to know who the officers are that are untrustworthy, he said.

Chambers said all kinds of red flags were thrown up when the governor nominated Rice, but Ricketts is the type that won't face reality until it crashes in on him.

It's disturbing to Chambers that no criminal investigation is underway on some of the cases, especially those involving excessive force or death, he said, such as the March 2016 use of lethal force by a trooper in the form of a rifle-butt to the head of a passively resisting intoxicated man in Sioux County.

Sen. Mike Groene of North Platte voted in favor of Rice twice, once on moving his nomination from the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee to the full Legislature and then for confirmation.

He liked him because he was from a rural area, he said, and more rural people should be in positions of power. He also liked the answers to his questions during his confirmation hearing.

"I'm very disappointed in his behavior," he said Friday.

Rice was a good state patrolman, but he was a better comrade than he was a leader, Groene said.

"He didn't learn to separate management from being one of the guys."

Ricketts wouldn't talk last week about the search for a new superintendent, for which he appointed a committee July 7 to advise him and vet the candidates.

The committee is Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer, who will chair it; Weysan Dun, a retired FBI executive; former U.S. Attorney Deborah Gilg; and Gerry Piccolo, Hall County public defender.

Both Groene and Harr said the replacement should be someone outside the patrol.

Chambers said he believes Schmaderer doesn't have to look any further than his bathroom mirror for the best person in Nebraska to head the patrol.

"He's a chief that I respect more than any that I've been aware of during my long life on this earth," he said. "He is professional. ... I think he would be excellent."
Derryck Barentine had just turned 20 and was working as a welder apprentice through a contractor at Detyens Shipyards, a ship repair yard in North Charleston. In the sprawling industrial complex, deaths due to falls, crushing and electrocution have left coworkers like him  men and women scarred by the tragedies they witnessed and the friends they lost. Read moreShipyard deaths take toll on workers left to grapple with trauma, friends lost
SC Attorney General Alan Wilson is challenging the CDC's recommendations on COVID vaccinations for kids. They have no force of law, so this is no different than the left trying to enforce its woke orthodoxy. Read moreEditorial: Alan Wilson should stick to the law, stop trying to silence opinions he dislikes
LAS VEGAS  Control of the U.S. Senate may come down to Nevada, where a slow ballot count entered its final act Saturday in the nail-biter contest between Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Republican challenger Adam Laxalt. Read moreSenate control may come down to Nevada as count nears end
Haircuts, color and products can add up quickly at the salon, and while you might not want to cut corners when it comes to your hair, it's possible to cut costs while keeping your cut fantastic. We reached out to salon experts across the country to learn the behind-the-scene secrets to savings at the salon.

1. Ask about referral discounts. Many salons will offer a $15 referral discount, said Jamie DiGrazia, stylist, colorist, hair care brand ambassador and owner of Logan Parlor in Chicago. "Salons and stylists love giving discounts for referrals," DiGrazia said. "It really helps the salon gain new and loyal business when the salon is referred by friends."

2. Go to a gender-neutral salon. If you're a woman with short hair, you can save money by going to a salon that charges by the length of your hair rather than by gender, said DiGrazia, whose salon's pricing structure goes by the time and length of the cut instead of by gender. "It's now become a very popular way to charge," DiGrazia said. "It is fair and equal to the guest and to the service provider."

3. Ask about being a hair model. Often, stylists are looking for models to enter into a hair show or competition, or to add diversity to their portfolio, said Greg Auer, stylist at PureBeauty Salon & Spa at Macy's in Chicago. Many salons also require hair models for on-site training. "This is a great way to get a new look on a dime  or even for free," Auer said.

4. Speak up. Your relationship with your regular hairdresser is important, said April Masini, a relationship and etiquette expert and author of four relationship advice books. "Usually, people don't realize this importance until things go wrong, but if you're looking to save money, and you have a regular relationship with your hairdresser, simply talking to them about your budget concerns is step one," Masini said. The hair dresser might suggest more time between appointments, leaving out special treatments you didn't realize you were paying for or simply avoiding the cost of blow dry services, especially in the summer when you might not need or want it. "Many people don't talk frankly to their hairdresser, and this creates miscommunication and second-guessing," Masini said. "If you start skipping appointments because you're trying to save money  but you're not cluing your hairdresser in, they may think you're not happy with them, or you're finding someone else to go to." If you speak with them, but don't want to lose their services, they might try to help. If you don't tell them, they won't have that opportunity.

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5. Seek out a new stylist. Go to a high-end salon and choose a new stylist who is in the beginning of his or her career. "Typically, a newer stylist will come with a lower price tag, but while they may lack experience on the floor, they are usually in the middle of a high-level training program," said Tony Gordon, stylist with Gordon Salon, which has four locations in Illinois. At his salon, new stylists cost $39, as opposed to master stylists, who can charge upward of $60.

6. Look for discounts. Even higher-end salons, such as the Mario Tricoci chain, will offer discounts, said Tammy Baltrus, a top stylist there. Baltrus said her salon accepts Spa Finder gift cards, which can be purchased at Costco, saving clients $20 for every $100 they spend. "Some salons are on the AAA list to receive 10 percent off products and services," Baltrus said. She also recommends asking every salon if they would accept other salons' coupons, as well as offering your email and phone number to your technician so she or he can keep you informed about current promotions.
Where's your boarding pass? Forget it. Delta Air Lines is letting some passengers board planes with just their fingerprints.

Delta announced recently that travelers who are members of its SkyMiles loyalty program and enrolled in Clear, a third-party biometric screening program, can choose to use their fingerprints as proof of identity at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Later this summer, Delta plans to let members also use their fingerprints to check bags at that airport.

The fingerprint pilot program at the Washington airport will test how Delta's and Clear's systems work together, Delta said. The program is optional for Delta customers.

Gil West, Delta's chief operating officer, said customer and employee feedback on the program has been positive.

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"Biometric verification has a higher level of accuracy than paper boarding passes and gives agents more time to assist customers with seat changes and other skilled tasks instead of having to scan individual tickets," West said in a statement, "and customers have less to keep track of as they travel through the airport."

He said that once testing is complete, fingerprint scanning could roll out to Delta terminals nationwide "in a matter of months."

Delta is only the latest airline to announce a biometrics project.

Last month, JetBlue Airways announced that it would begin using facial recognition technology on flights from Logan International Airport in Boston to Beatrix International Airport in Aruba.

In 2014, Alaska Airlines began using fingerprint scans to verify customers at six of its airport lounges, including one at Los Angeles International Airport. In 2015, the airline launched a pilot program in Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport to use fingerprints instead of boarding passes and government-issued identification to identify passengers as they drop off their bags, pass through the security checkpoint and board planes.

Paul Viollis, chief executive of security company Viollis Group International, said one reason that airlines are adopting biometric technology is that it's almost impossible to duplicate, say, a retina scan.

"Biometric  is not going to lie," Viollis said. "But you may have false reads that could back people up in line, and not all biometric manufacturers are equal. If you spend the money and do it right, you will have improved security and reduced wait times."

Still, the introduction of fingerprint scans isn't without risk. Computers that store personal information about Delta's customers, including fingerprints, could be hacked. And unlike a stolen password that can be changed, a fingerprint is indelible.

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"With a password, you can just change it and move on with your life. You can't do that with fingerprints," said Nasir Memon, a professor of computer science at New York University's Tandon School of Engineering.

Memon said fingerprints can be easily obtained and copied simply by lifting them off objects that people have touched, which is why it's crucial that Delta staff man the scanners at airport gates to ensure that a passenger isn't posing as someone else.

Memon said it's too soon to know how much damage a mass hack of fingerprints would cause; the technology hasn't been adopted widely enough. There is precedent, however. In 2014, a hacker cloned the thumbprint of German defense minister Ursula von der Leyen using a close-up photo.

Clear, the technology company partnering with Delta to administer the fingerprinting system, said it has strict security measures to thwart hacks but declined to describe them in detail.

"The integrity of our customers' data is the integrity of our company," David Cohen, the company's chief administrative officer, said in an emailed statement. "Protecting our members' privacy is our most important priority. For that reason, we do not discuss the security measures we have put in place. Clear also never rents or sells member data."
One of my theories about the hollow and politically-correct liberalism of the tech oligarchs in Silicon Valley is that it is simply the new face of assuaging their own liberal guilt at piling up such huge fortunes so rapidly. I heard a report last year about Googles CEO Eric Schmidt being challenged about his support for Hillary Clinton, and his reply was that Silicon Valley opposes government control of either the bedroom or the boardroom. Seriously? Hes going to go with that?

The high tech industry runs on brains, and keenly feel their lack of diversity that finds it overwhelmingly male, and disproportionately Asian in its workforce. So naturally most of the Silicon Valley giants make a big splash of their commitment to diversity, and take steps like Lyft did recently in adding Valerie Jarrett to its board of directors.

Right now a memo from a Google engineer complaining about the political correctness of Googles diversity culture has gone viral. Gizmodo has a complete copy of the ten-page memo. Here are some highlights:

Googles political bias has equated the freedom from offense with psychological safety, but shaming into silence is the antithesis of psychological safety.

This silencing has created an ideological echo chamber where some ideas are too sacred to be honestly discussed.

The lack of discussion fosters the most extreme and authoritarian elements of this ideology.

Extreme: all disparities in representation are due to oppression

Authoritarian: we should discriminate to correct for this oppression

Differences in distributions of traits between men and women may in part explain why we dont have 50% representation of women in tech and leadership. Discrimination to reach equal representation is unfair, divisive, and bad for business.

This is just a warmup. From here the author really steps in it:

Only facts and reason can shed light on these biases, but when it comes to diversity and inclusion, Googles left bias has created a politically correct monoculture that maintains its hold by shaming dissenters into silence. This silence removes any checks against encroaching extremist and authoritarian policies. . . At Google, were regularly told that implicit (unconscious) and explicit biases are holding women back in tech and leadership. Of course, men and women experience bias, tech, and the workplace differently and we should be cognizant of this, but its far from the whole story. On average, men and women biologically differ in many ways. These differences arent just socially constructed because:

Theyre universal across human cultures

They often have clear biological causes and links to prenatal testosterone

Biological males that were castrated at birth and raised as females often still identify and act like males

The underlying traits are highly heritable

Theyre exactly what we would predict from an evolutionary psychology perspective

Note, Im not saying that all men differ from women in the following ways or that these differences are just. Im simply stating that the distribution of preferences and abilities of men and women differ in part due to biological causes and that these differences may explain why we dont see equal representation of women in tech and leadership. Many of these differences are small and theres significant overlap between men and women, so you cant say anything about an individual given these population level distributions.

I guess this fellow never heard about what happened to Larry Summers when he voiced something like this at Harvard.

Prediction: The identity of this engineer will be discovered, and hell be an ex-Google engineer by the end of the same day.

Read the whole thing if you have time.
National Security Adviser Gen. H.R. McMaster came in or criticism after he fired three staff members, all of whom are strongly pro-Israel and forceful opponents of the Iran nuclear deal. I gave voice to some of that criticism here.

McMasters supporters are pushing back. Among them, at least for the time being, is President Trump.

Hugh Hewitt characterizes McMasters critics as a tiny slice of the alt right and a legion of Russian bots who have been saying a number of screwball things about him. This response, typical of much of the pro-McMaster push back, is name-calling, not argument.

As I suggested in my initial post, a good starting point in discussing McMaster is to ask how many Obama holdovers (a term McMaster has tried to ban) he has fired. Having sacked three Trump loyalists, he obviously is not averse to firing staff members. If, as I understand to be the case, he has sacked few or none of the Obama holdovers, this would suggest that he is comfortable with Obama-era foreign and national security policy.

One need not be a member of the alt right to believe that Obama-era foreign and national security policy were seriously misguided.

Lets turn now to the two specific policy areas I discussed in my initial post: Iran and Israel. There is, of course, no plausible argument that McMaster is pro-Iran. However, in my post I quoted reports that he opposes scrapping the nuclear deal and that he has refused to publish the side deals Obama signed with the Iranians and then hid from the public. I have seen no refutation of the latter claim.

As for withdrawing from the deal, McMaster mostly danced around this question during his interview by Hugh Hewitt. McMasters line was that Iran has violated the spirit of the agreement and that, to the extent it has crossed the line on the agreements letter, the U.S. has gone to the IAEA and gotten the mullahs to take remedial measures. This was pretty much the same line McMaster presented last month when he explained why the U.S. would certify Irans compliance with the deal (and in the process also certify that the deal is in the vital security interests of the United States).

I have no personal knowledge of whether Iran is complying with the letter of the deal. However, Im inclined to believe Senators Cotton, Cruz, Perdue, and Rubio on the subject. In a letter to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, they listed four publicly reported examples of Irans violation of the agreement. They also argued compellingly that the deal is not in Americas vital national security interest.

Thus, it seems to me that McMaster, though certainly not pro-Iran or delusional about it the way Obama was, has taken too soft a line on the mullahs regime. Reasonable people can disagree about whether we should withdraw from the agreement. However, one need not be a member of the alt right to prefer a national security adviser who takes a tougher line on Iran than McMaster or to be concerned when staffers who do so get sacked.

Now lets consider Israel. In my initial post, I quoted, but did not endorse, Caroline Glicks view that McMaster is deeply hostile to Israel. Based on what Ive since heard from people I trust, I strongly doubt that this is the case. I doubt, moreover, that President Trump would describe McMaster as very pro-Israel if, in reality, he is deeply hostile to the Jewish state.

But the fact remains that, as Glick said, McMaster appointed Kris Bauman as his Israel adviser. Bauman, in his 2009 Ph.D. dissertation, blamed Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu for inciting Palestinian violence. He placed Israeli settlers and Palestinian suicide terrorists on equal moral footing in discussing the lack of peace between the two sides. He blamed Israel for Hamas radicalism, writing that Israel refused to engage with Hamas and instead turned Gaza into an open-air prison. He also placed a fair amount of blame on the Bush administration.

Notwithstanding that Hamas stands by a charter that calls for the killing of Jews worldwide and the annihilation of Israel, Bauman claimed that this terrorist outfit has signaled that it is prepared to operate with moderation. He urged Israel and the Middle East Quartet to find a way to positively respond to the bloodthirsty terrorists of Hamas.

Either McMaster made a grossly negligent hire when he appointed Bauman or he is not as pro-Israel as his supporters make him out to be. Either way, one need not be a member of the alt right to prefer a national security adviser who selects as his Israel adviser someone with a far less naive view of Hamas than Bauman, or to be concerned when those with far less naive views get sacked.

Todays Washington Post describes McMaster as loved by the Washington foreign policy establishment. Its not difficult to see why.

Whats perplexing is how President Trump ended up with the darling of that establishment as his national security adviser.
Normally it wouldnt make news when a president touts the work of a cabinet member. As the old song goes, thats the way I always heard it should be.

But in the Trump administration, dog bites man can easily become man bites dog. Thus, its news that President Trump is praising Attorney General Sessions for cracking down on illegal leaks of classified information.

Writing on (where else) Twitter, Trump declared: After many years of LEAKS going on in Washington, it is great to see the A.G. taking action! For National Security, the tougher the better!

There were rumblings that Sessions expected crack down on leaks was just a means of getting back into Trumps good graces. Im hearing less of that now that transcripts of the presidents conferences with the leader of Mexico and the leader of Australia have been leaked. This was too much even for many Trump-hating Democrats. Indeed, Virginia Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat, has called for a congressional investigation.

Does this mean that Sessions is out of the dog house? As a practical matter, he probably was released even before he announced the crack down on leaking. Reportedly, John Kelly, the new White House chief of staff, had already assured Sessions that his job is safe.

Even Trump could see that removing Trump would place the Justice Department in the hands of Rod Rosenstein for the foreseeable future. Unlike Sessions, Rosenstein is not a Trump ally. And it was Rosenstein, not Sessions, who appointed James Comeys pal Robert Mueller as special counsel.

Jeff Sessions is working tirelessly to implement the policy agenda Donald Trump campaigned on. The same cannot be said for some members of Trumps team. Dismissing Sessions would have been a colossal mistake.

Trump may yet make that mistake, but not, it appears, for a good while.
Vivian Nwobi and Kehinde Yusuf on Saturday emerged winners of the maiden edition of The Fashola Photographic Foundation Exhibition which held at City Hall in Lagos.

The foundation, which is expected to transform into a training institute soon, was evolved to help young photographers and film makers to grow their careers in photography.

Ms. Nwobi emerged as overall winner out of 13 finalists. Ms. Yusuf came second and the two winners are to enjoy an all-expense paid trip to the New York Film Academy.

While receiving her award, Ms. Nwobi, a lawyer, said it is interesting how you see things when you are a photographer.

Ms. Yusuf, who said her emergence as first runner-up came as a big surprise and an opportunity to explore her dreams in photography, said photography is about my environment and everything I see.

Francis Adeoti, a development specialist and Eyitoyosi Onadipe, who were among the finalists, said that photography was an interesting and lucrative skill, as well as a business other youths should venture into.

Yetunde Ayeni-Babaeko, a freelance photographer, who trained the finalists, expressed satisfaction at the opportunity the foundation offered to groom youths in photography.

Mrs. Ayeni-Babaeko said that the finalists, who were chosen out of 1,000 contestants, all demonstrated skills in line with global standards.

In a keynote address, the guest lecturer, Tam Fiofori, who described himself as a lover of photography, said that photography had been around for over 100 years and had continued to serve humanity by preserving visuals and creating jobs.

He said that photography was a noble profession, which was important in the preservation of history, culture and the image of a nation.

Photography is very important in preserving the cultural values of a nation, he said.

Mr. Fiofori said it was an art, a form of business and an employment generation venture, which practitioners should hold in high esteem and get requisite training for, to meet up with global trends, adding that the first photographers were scientists and highly-educated people.

Photography is not about making money alone but about promoting the positive aspects of our cultural heritage.

I urge you to use photography to tell the visual stories of Nigeria, he said.

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, in his remarks, said that the foundation was being inaugurated as a memorial for his late father, Ibrahim Fashola, who was passionate about pictures and groomed him into the art.

He said that the entire Fashola family reached a decision that photography was the best way to honour the memory of their late father.

The minister said that his dad left a legacy of photography that he, his siblings and their children have carried on with a passion and a zeal.

My father represented the fourth generation, I am the fifth and my children the sixth. All of us are lovers of photography.

So far, the line of photography remains unbroken in our family, he said.

Mr. Fashola said that he placed a high value on photography and urged practitioners to distinguish themselves, both in its practice and in their conduct.

The minister also called on members of the public and other professional photographers to send their contributions which would always be welcome, to the foundation.

The Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu 1, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that photography spoke volumes that words could never capture.

Mr. Akiolu lauded the inauguration of the foundation, which he noted, would help to preserve Nigerias history and cultural heritage.

Photograph will help us in remembering the past, I support it, he said.

Pa Ibrahim Fashola was born in Lagos in 1933. He was a former Advert Manager of the Daily Times Newspaper and a pioneer General Manager of Times Leisure Services. He was a lover of pictures, and a politician, who passed on at the age of 79 in August 2013.

The programme is designed to be an annual event of the foundation.

Highlights of the event included an exhibition and the sale of some of the works of the finalists.

(NAN)

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My name is William Olorunfemi Adeduro. Welcome to my greatest day of joy so far. Thank you for coming to celebrate God for lavishing His love on me for eighty eventful years. By the grace of God, I am 4,171 weeks and 4 days old today. I have lived with a frail body for forty-one years but I have never suffered for a day.

Despite being seriously sick since I was 39 years old, I have slept and woken up for 29, 201 days. My book of chronicles is coloured with chapters of how God healed me from the conspiracy of afflictions. My frail but freed body, is an aged tapestry with variegated marks hewed with the rampaging fingers of malaria, fever, cataract, hypertension, diabetes, prostate cancer, heart issues and associated discomforts.

Yet in all these I am more than a conqueror through my Lord Jesus Christ. A glorious joy overwhelmed me when my saviour found me and saved me after 60 seasons of dryness. I am glad to be a disciple of Jesus Christ by whom I have done greater works. I have struggled across many rivers of uncertainties and limitations. Still my unlimited redeemer ensured that I have never been limited in life. With a limited education that formally ended at Standard 6, I rose through the ranks in the Federal Civil Service. Having no godfather, the everlasting hand of God the father and the hand of diligence, propelled me to retire at level 13 in 1997. I was an Assistant Chief Superintendent of Press over graduates who possessed masters degrees from world class universities. Just yesterday I turned eighty with a joyful heart. Today I shall sing even if my vocal cord sounds odd. Let me tell you my story when things went awry. Indulge me to write about life just before things went right. I was born on August 4, 1937 to the family of late Samuel Olugbemisoye Adeduro, the late high chief Adaja of Ondo Kingdom. My father was a successful farmer and produce merchant. My mother was Madam Oladimeji Adeduro, nee Akinkugbe.

I started my educational career between 1945 and 1955 in Ondo kingdom, Ondo State. I attended All Saints School, Ogbonkowo, Ondo and Ansarudeen Primary School. In those days, a pupil was promoted from Primary 1a to 1b to 1c, unlike today when pupils proceed from Primary 1 to Primary 2 in that order. So, we spent eight years in primary school. I left school with a Standard Six certificate.

Out of his love for me and his hope of a business succession plan, my father desired that I worked with him on the farm. However, my inquisitive and restless mind yearned for the bustling city of Lagos. So, in less than two years I found my way out of my fathers Owena farmland and village in Ondo State. I boldly came to Lagos in search of a greener pasture in March 1959.

On my arrival in Lagos I attended a private school called the Odunfa Commercial Institute. There I studied shorthand, typewriting and accounting respectively. I also studied photography at Ola Photo Studios in Ebute Metta. The commercial education I had then qualified me to secure my first paid job as a clerical typist with Guinea Insurance. After sometime, I got another job as a daily paid worker as a graphic arts attendant with the Graphics Section in the Federal Ministry of Information. After some time, God granted me favour to be converted to a standard scale on a permanent job as a civil servant.

Through the mercy of God, I was able to work with supervisors who appreciated my diligence and promptness in reporting for work. I was always willing to go the extra mile to satisfy my supervisors. God used this disposition to secure extra favour for me. In my determination to make a difference despite my limited formal education, I devoted myself to God and the study of many books on literature, philosophy and religion. This paid off, as I became intellectually strong enough to compete with colleagues who had university education, during promotion tests and came out tops.

Although my income was meagre, raising a family was a joy for me. My wife stoutly stood by me and for me to make me a successful husband and father. I am grateful to God for giving me a great woman who is caring, courageous, passionate, diligent, and determined to raise a godly family. My better half, Julianah Ibilola Adeduro (nee Adenodi) from Ondo kingdom is a rare gem and a virtuous woman who every family needs to blossom. Without this woman blessed with boundless energy and the gift of an incredible memory (my wife can still recall the telephone numbers of more than two hundred people without consulting a diary or contact book) I am sure I would not have gone this far in life. Thanks to the long suffering of my wife, we were tenants for twenty-five years in a room apartment (the face-me-I-face-you type) at 86 Eleshin Street, Obalende, Lagos, yet we were able to successfully raise five children to become tertiary graduates, who are now home owners in Nigeria and the USA today. To the glory of God, my wife and I own two houses in Nigeria.

My wife is very spiritual without being fetish, even before we became born again Christians some decades ago. Both of us successfully completed the School of Disciples programme about twenty years ago in The Redeemed Christian Church of God. Through my experience, I can boldly say that any man who marries a wrong wife cannot live long and have good success.

My experience of living in Obalende since 1964 makes me realise that we should not compromise the unity of Nigeria. All those who are clamouring for a break up and war do not have an understanding of the ravaging effects of disunity and civil war in a nation. Living and working next door to Dodan Barracks made me a living witness to the 1967 civil war and all the coup detats in Nigeria. I am still terrified till date each time I remember what happened on the day General Muritala Muhammed was assassinated near my office on Ikoyi Road, Lagos.

On the morning of that fateful Friday, February 13, 1976, my colleagues and I were settling down in my office at the Graphic Arts section of the Federal Ministry of Information on Ikoyi Road when we heard gun shots. Initially, we thought it was the regular shots we often heard since were directly located behind Dodan Barracks. In fact, we used to pass through Dodan Barracks from Obalende to Ikoyi in those days. One of my junior colleagues soon ran inside to inform us that some armed bandits had killed a man in a big Mercedes Benz at the junction of the road that takes one to Ikoyi Club. Since there was no fear of armed robbers or kidnappers, as it is rampant today, we all trooped out of the office towards the direction of the scene. In our innocence, we wanted to go and offer help.

But another series of gunshots suddenly ensued as we trooped towards the location. Suddenly, we saw many fiercely looking armed men in army uniform threatening to shoot us. It was then that we realised that a coup detat had occurred again. There was pandemonium as all my colleagues and I took to our heels.

That day I ran home with only a shoe on my left leg. I did not know when and where the shoe on my right leg fell off.

Coup detats and wars are destructive to human lives and values. It is better to dialogue and resolve our challenges as a nation than going to war. A united Nigeria is better for the future of our children. Personally, I believe that the journey of Nigeria to greatness, strategically charted by our leaders in the First Republic was truncated by the long years of military rule. Unfortunately, what we have today in our democratic dispensation are people who rule without the fear of God and an eye for the future.

I cannot truly tell what I have done to live this long, if not for the mercies of God that have preserved me through the different storms of life. However, I believe that every human being who hopes to see the future should be fastidious in doing certain basic things. These include having a strong relationship with the almighty God. Without God, you are empty and an empty vessel has no value. When you dont have value to God, He wont bother much about keeping you in a competitive world.

Second, you must be careful to be moderate in everything you do. You must also live a life that is devoid of giving offence to God and man, by pursuing peace in all situations. Third, working hard and smart, on the basis of knowledge is desirable for anyone who seeks to have good success.

In addition to these three things, one must learn to be patient and delay gratification. One of the reasons why most people have integrity problems is because they are in a hurry to achieve certain things. For me, being slow and steady with a determined pursuit of purpose will ultimately win the race. This is why I was a tenant in a room apartment for 25 years, despite the fact that I could, at some point, afford to rent a flat or what my peers called a more decent accommodation.

But I needed to be sure that I could train all my biological children to become tertiary education graduates. I remember that my first born once requested, when he was in secondary school, that I should rent a flat because he saw that one of his classmates had a personal room in the flat that his parents had rented in the Akoka area of Lagos. I promptly told him that we would not move out of the rented one room apartment until I was able to see him through university education. That was the end of the pressure. To the glory of God, we stopped living in a rented apartment after my first son graduated from the university.

Looking back, I am grateful to God that all my five children are successful graduates now, with the eldest possessing a PhD degree. My first two children are pastors in the Redeemed Christian Church of God. My eldest child, Pastor (Dr.) Wale Adeduro, has grown to become an Assistant Pastor in Charge of a Province in Ikoyi, Lagos, while his brother, Pastor Bolaji Adeduro, is a pastor in California, USA.

The fifth thing an individual should do is to be fully responsible for members of ones immediate family. We should ensure that we have bonds of love and unity with our spouses and children. This will happen if we endeavour to love all our children equally. Personally, I love my children in the same way and I have never given any of them preferential treatment over the others. This largely explains why there is a high degree of unity among my five children. Parents should avoid treating their children differently. The older child is not supposed to be treated better than any other child. It is an error to give preferential treatment to any child.

At the end of the day, it is only ones family that he would have when the chips are down. An individual with a loving family will ultimately triumph in life.

We have to take care of our health by watching what we eat and drink. Regardless of the taste it leaves in our mouth, the classic unprocessed Nigerian meals remain the most nutritious and healthy food. I recommend that Nigerians who want to live well and long should go back to the meals our parents ate before Nigerias independence in 1960.

The final responsibility we have is to pray and trust in God for a long life. If I had died at the age of fifty, I would not have become a landlord in Lagos. If I had died at the age of sixty, I would not have become an American citizen.

As I take stock of my life today, I feel fulfilled and indebted to God for His loving kindnesses towards me. As I grew up in life, I realised that ones name bears a lot of stories about ones destiny. My parents named me Olorunfemi. This name simply translates to God loves me. Having woken up this morning, a day after I turned eighty years old, I am truly convinced that God Loves Me. I pray that God shall also show love to my children and their spouses, my grandchildren to my fourth generation. Including all my well-wishers and helpers.

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President Macky Salls ruling coalition in Senegal has won a large parliamentary majority, according to official provisional results, following an election last Sunday that opposition leaders say was tainted by fraud.

Mr. Salls ruling coalition took 125 seats in the 165-seat National Assembly after winning nearly 50 percent of the vote, according to the results announced on national television late on Friday.

The coalition of 91-year-old former president Abdoulaye Wade, whom Mr. Sall defeated in a 2012 presidential election that cemented Senegals reputation as one of West Africas most stable democracies, won 19 seats.

A coalition led by jailed Dakar mayor, Khalifa Sall, won seven seats.

Last Sundays vote was marred by delays in issuing biometric identity cards that prevented hundreds of voters from casting their ballots, part of what opposition leaders said was an intensifying clampdown on political opposition.

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At least eight people were killed at least one armed man on Sunday stormed the St. Philips Catholic Church, Ozubulu in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State, the police have said.

Witnesses initially said the attack was carried out by gunmen, but the police have now clarified it may have been carried out by a lone gunman.

A witness told the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday that the gunmen went into the church during the 5:45 a.m. mass and identified a particular man and shot him.

He said they later went on rampage and shot at the remaining over 100 worshippers.

Several people were killed in the church while other critically injured worshippers died on the way to the Nnamdi Azikiwe Teaching Hospital, Nnewi.

Speaking on the attack, the Commissioner of Police in the state, Garba Umar, said the remains of the dead had been deposited at theNnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital Nnewi.

Mr. Umar also said that the injured were taken to the hospital.

He said that preliminary investigations by the police revealed that the attack was carried out by a native of the area.

From our findings, it is very clear that the person who carried the attack must be an indigene of the area.

We gathered that worshippers for 6 oclock Sunday mass at St. Philip Ozobulu were in the service when a gunman dressed in black attire covering his face with a cap entered the church and moved straight to a particular direction and opened fire.

The man after shooting at his targeted victims still went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding other worshippers, he said.

The commissioner said information available to police showed that the attacker was speaking undiluted Igbo Language at the time he was firing at worshippers.

Mr. Umar said though no arrest had been made but that the police already learnt that the attack followed a quarrel between two natives of Ozubulu residing overseas.

Describing the act as sacrilegious, he said it was wrong for the perpetrators of the act to extend their quarrel into the church.

He added: such conduct shows the people behind the act do not fear God.

He said the police had launched a manhunt on those behind the act and gave an assurance that everybody behind the act would be brought to justice.

Mr. Umar described any insinuation that the attack was carried out by Boko Haram elements as false and urged the people to go about their normal businesses.

He said the police were on top of the situation.

(NAN)

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Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra has vowed not to rest until the perpetrators of Sundays killings at St. Philips Catholic Church, Ozubulu, near Nnewi, which claimed at least eight lives and injured 18 persons are brought to justice.

Mr. Obiano made the vow when he visited the scene of the killings in company of the Commissioner of Police in the state, Garba Umar.

The governor expressed grief over the death of the worshippers, describing the attack as barbaric, sacrilegious and totally unacceptable, while also debunking speculations of possible invasion.

According to him, intelligence report linked the shooting to an existing feud existing between some members of Umuezekwe Ofufe Amakwa community of Ozubulu living abroad.

It is an isolated case and I urge worshippers in the Church and residents of the area to go about their normal activities.

Mr. Obiano assured the community that his administration was on top of the situation and later visited the injured persons receiving treatment at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, NAUTH, Nnewi.

He promised that the state government would pay the hospital bills of the victims.

He also said that 50 doctors had been mobilised to the hospital to assist in providing the best medical care to the injured persons.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the governor also visited Our Lady of Assumption Catholic Cathedral, Nnewi, where he addressed a congregation of worshippers.

He intimated the worshippers on the true picture of the incident, saying there was nothing to worry about.

Earlier, the Parish Priest of St. Philips Catholic Church, Jude Onwuaso, said that the attack took place at about 6.30 a.m. during a Holy Mass celebration.

According to the priest, an unidentified man came into the Church, shot at a man, Akunwafor Ikegwuonwu, before shooting sporadically at other worshippers.

A witness, who simply identified herself as a choir member, said that the church was dark as there was no light.

She said that the generating set suddenly developed fault; so, the mass proceeded with the congregation using candles.

According to her, the gunman, after the shooting, immediately jumped into a waiting car with a driver.

The Police Commissioner had earlier confirmed eight people dead and 18 others injured in the attack.

The attack has left the community in state of shock and mourning.

Some residents and people of Anambra have since condemned the killing.

The residents, in separate interviews with NAN in Awka, described the attack as heinous, unjustifiable and totally unwarranted.

Osita Chidoka, a former Minister of Aviation, said he was saddened by the incident.

Mr. Chidoka decried the desecration of the temple of God, adding that nobody attacked anyone in the church even during war times.

This is tragic; the church is a place of refuge to anyone who runs into it, and this wicked, barbaric and mindless bloodletting, shows that something has gone wrong on our psyche.

My heart goes to the bereaved at this moment of pain. I pray that God grants the soul of the departed eternal rest as I urge the security agents to fish out the perpetrators and make them face the law, he said.

On his part, Oseloka Obaze, a former Secretary to Anambra Government, said such callous attacks dehumanised the society.

Our heart goes to the family and parishioners of St. Philips Catholic Church, Ozubulu, where unidentified gunmen reportedly killed several church members and wounded several others early today.

Such violent incidents dehumanise our society.

In his reaction, Victor Oye, the National Chairman, All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, said that no amount of provocation could justify the killing of innocent people who had gone to worship in a Church.

Mr. Oye, who described the attack as wicked, urged the security agencies to unravel those responsible for the dastardly act.

As a political leader, I totally condemn the Ozubulu Church shooting as dastardly, unjustifiable and callous.

Nobody has the right to kill innocent citizens. The Police and other relevant security agencies should ensure that the perpetrators of this crime are caught and made to face justice, he said.

Jude Emecheta, who hails from Ozubulu, told NAN that a dark cloud has befallen my peaceful town.

Mr. Emecheta, who is the Managing Director of Anambra Signage and Advertisement Agency, ANSAA, said that the losses from the attack were too much for the people to bear.

He wondered why brothers could visit such attack on their people and urged those involved to sheathe their swords.

(NAN)

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The death toll in an attack on worshippers in a Catholic Church has increased to 11, the police have said.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Garba Umar, who provided the update said that the command would leave no turn unturned to bring the attackers to justice.

Mr. Umar, who spoke at a news conference in Awka on Sunday, gave the updated figures of casualties as 11 dead and 18 injured.

He also confirmed that the attack was mainly linked to a feud between some Igbos living abroad.

He ruled out the possibility of a terror attack, and spoke about an isolated feud between individuals in the community.

He said that the command had invited some suspects who would be useful to the investigation.

The police chief advised residents to go about their lawful businesses, assuring them that churches and public places were safe.

At about 6.30 a.m. today, Aug. 6, I got a distress call that gunmen had invaded and shot at worshippers at St. Philips Catholic Church, Umuezekwe, Ofufe, Amakwa Village in Ozubulu, Ekwusigo Located Government Area.

As a result, I, the Commissioner of Police, led my operatives immediately to the scene to rescue worshippers.

The command, under my watch, will leave no stone unturned in locating and prosecuting those behind the massacre of innocent worshippers.

The intelligence report and preliminary investigation showed that the incident was as a result of a feud between two individuals from the same community living outside Nigeria.

One of the individuals built the church where the shooting occurred; it is definitely not a terrorist attack in the mould of Boko Haram or Fulani herdsmen attack.

The command will brief the public after investigation is concluded; I commiserate with all those who lost their loved ones in this unfortunate incident.

I also encourage `ndi Anambra to be vigilant and to promptly report suspicious movements or strange observation of persons and actions in their localities to the security agencies, Mr. Umar said.

In its reaction, the Catholic Diocese of Nnewi, Anambra, described Sundays attack as regrettable.

The church, in a statement signed by Hygi Aghaulor, Director of Communications of the Diocese, and available to journalists, said that the Parish Priest, Jude Onwuaso escaped unhurt.

He described the act as a sign of loss of what is sacred and consoled the families of victims of the attack.

It is regrettable that our people are more and more losing a sense of what is sacred.

What on earth would make people open fire on innocent unarmed worshippers including children and women on a Sunday morning?

We condemn this ungodly act in its totality; we pray Almighty God to console the families affected and assure them that our hearts are with them as we pray for the quick recovery of the wounded.

For the entire parishioners, we call on them not to be discouraged in their usual practice of faith.

It is when the forces of darkness attempt to overshadow goodness that the light of God shines even brighter than ever just as it happened on Easter Sunday.

Evil may make attempts but God and goodness will always triumph; we call on the good people to continue to pray for the deceased worshippers and their families, Mr. Aghaulor stated.

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The photograph of ageing and possibly sick Arthur Nzeribe, sitting languidly, with medics around him has gone viral in the social media.

It was not clear who broke into Mr. Nzeribes private home in Orlu, Imo State, to take the photograph of the former arms dealer, maverick politician and a man believed to have been used by the Ibrahim Babangida military regime to scupper the 1993 presidential election.

The photograph is now being shared on many WhatsApp platforms, with commentaries short on sympathy, but replete with lessons on the vanity of life and the enfeebling capacity of old age.

Mr. Nzeribe, 78, had vanished from the limelight since he was defeated in the 2006 primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party to elect a senatorial candidate for his Orlu Imo State constituency.

Obviously struck down by illness and enfeebled by it, he has not been a factor in the Nigerian politics for close to a decade. His voice had been in silent mode since then.

The man who once ran for office as president and was elected a senator in the short-lived Babangida military-Civilian rule experiment and in 1999 and 2003, re-emerged in the last 24 hours in dispiriting, shocking circumstances.

One comment largely shared along with the photograph says: Above is Author Nzeribe living like an invalid at his country home in Orlu, IMO State. At the height of his life, he lived in Nicon Hilton Hotel Abuja Presidential Suite for over 20years. So also Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos. He rode on Rolls Royce cars in London and Lagos. Had Mansions in major cities of the world. Had private jets. Was one time an enfante terrible of Nigerias Politics. He helped to lead IBB to June 12 imbroglio and Late Abachas attempted transmutation to Civilian President in 1998.

Today, he lives a pathetic life at the mercy of aides and Nurses. Life is moving on in Nigeria and the world without him. Money, cars, houses, private jets, and jet life are all Vanities upon Vanity. May God Almighty continue to bless us with Good and sound health, peace of mind and contentment today and forever, Amen.

But another commentator chipped in:

Francis Arthur Nzeribes body physique today is the natural consequence of ageing, which all of us, if God blesses us with old age, will have to pass through. It has nothing to do with his infamous role as ABN leader. This is also a lesson to all, that in our journey through life, we should remember that there is God almighty and that one day, we will give account of our stewardship. .

Another Nigerian wrote: Let those who have ears to hear, eyes to see learn from Arthur Nzeribes case. Vanities upon vanity all will end one day. Who inherited all of Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia properties?

But it appears the commentaries may have gotten things wrong on the state of health of the old politician. According to a statement by Collins Ughaala, who identified himself as Mr. Nzeribes chief press secretary, Mr. Nzeribe is hale and hearty and not struck by stroke as being suggested in some quarters.

The attention of Chief Senator Francis Arthur Nzeribe has been drawn to the hateful speeches going on against him in the media, especially the social media, including the unfounded runour that he has a stroke.

Chief Nzeribe should have ignored this hateful rumour, but to set the record straight, this brief response is offered to the effect that the rumour is false as I dont have a stroke.

At 79 years old, I am hale and hearty and not suffering from a stroke. I am not in my community, Oguta, in Imo State. I am resting in my house in Abuja. And I thank God for keeping me healthy and allowing me see old age.

Life and death are in Gods hands, and God willing I will remain hale and hearty and not suffer a stroke until such a time when God calls me home. And no amount of hateful speech can change or alter Gods plans for me or anyone else.

I am not suffering from stroke and I cannot wish anyone to suffer stroke. But to those manufacturing and spreading this hateful speech against me, I wish them the best.

God has deemed it fit for me to see old age in good health, and there is nothing more to ask from God.

Mr. Nzeribe was born on November 2, 1938, in Oguta Imo State.

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Eighteen illegal immigrants arrested by officers of Nigeria Immigration Service, Ogun Command, at Akonu village, Bode Olude area, will soon be repatriated to their countries of origin.

The Public Relations Officer of the command, Olaniyi Mobolaji, made the announcement on Sunday in Abeokuta in a statement issued to newsmen.

He said that 10 of the 18 illegal immigrants were indigenes of Benin Republic while eight were Togolese.

He added that the illegal immigrants, who are being profiled, are residing and working illegally in Nigeria.

The spokesperson said the command received intelligence report on their activities based on the directive of the state comptroller, Ajibola Bayeroju.

He promised that the command would leave no stone unturned to flush out illegal immigrants residing in the state.

(NAN)

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President Muhammadu Buhari has condemned the Ozubulu Church attack in Anambra State by a yet to be identified gunman, describing the incident as an appalling crime against humanity and unspeakable sacrilege.

The police have confirmed that the death toll in the attack has risen to 11 with over a dozen injured.

Expressing his grief in a strongly worded statement issued by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, President Buhari said that there was no justification whatsoever to target Church worshippers and kill them in cold blood.

He said this kind of atrocity plumbs the depth of depravity and extreme cruelty of the kind that words cannot adequately express.

According to the President, there is no religion that does not lay constant emphasis on the sanctity of life, and that all Nigerians must rise up and speak with one voice against these remorseless evil men.

While expressing his sympathy with the families of the victims, the Church leadership and the government of Anambra State, Mr. Buhari reassured all Nigerians of his administrations firm and uncompromising commitment to protect their lives and property at all times.

Also speaking on the attack, the All Progressives Congress, APC, commiserated with the Catholic Church in Nigeria as well as the government and people of Anambra State.

The attack later confirmed to have been carried out by a lone gun man at St. Phillips Catholic Church in Ozubulu, Ekwusigo Local Government Area of the state, led to the death of at least eight worshipers and left others injured.

In a statement by its spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, the APC condemned the barbarism displayed by the callous attackers who gunned down defenceless people while they worshiped.

The party called on security agencies to ensure that the perpetrators are promptly apprehended and brought to justice.

It also urged security agents in Anambra and other parts of the country to provide adequate security in places of worship to forestall a repeat of the incident.

We pray that the souls of the deceased rest in peace, the party said.

In its reaction, the he Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, said it was shocked to receive the news of the attack.

This invasion is indeed barbaric, sacrilegious and a serious indication that our society is fast degenerating into a state of anomie with total moral collapse and utter disregard for the sanctity of human life, the party said.

We sympathise with the Governor of Anambra State, chief Willie Obiano and the entire people of the State; and in particular, worshipers of St. Philips Catholic Church and families of the Victims. We wish those injured quick recovery; and may the Souls of the departed rest in the Lord, Amen.

The party said the killings was a wake-up call for the government to do more in the area of protection of lives and property.

In his reaction, the Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, condoled his Anambra counterpart, Willie Obiano, over Sundays church attack at St Philips Catholic Church Ozubulu, Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State.

The Governor in a statement on Sunday in Asaba by his Chief Press Secretary, Charles Aniagwu, condemned in strong terms the unprovoked attack leading to the death of several worshippers.

The Governor expressed sadness on the desecration of the temple of God which served as a place of worship, adding that the Church is a place of refuge and devoid of attacks even in war situations.

Our hearts are with the bereaved families at this moment of anguish. I pray that God grant the soul of the departed eternal rest as I urge the police and other security agents to fish out the perpetrators and bring them to book.

To the Church, I urge you to be cheerful, prayerful and courageous in these trying times. Do not despair for everything that happens under the earth is for a reason. For God knows the end from the beginning, he said.

In its reaction, the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, called on security operatives to check the proliferation of arms across the country.

What are these silly gunmen here and there turning our nation to be? Whatever may be the reason or reasons for this dastardly act cannot justify this criminal jungle justice. Without doubt, the act is a madness the all of us must condemn in strong terms, Samson Ayokunle, the CAN President was quoted as saying in a statement.

If the places of worship are no longer safe again, what has become the security of lives and property, the statement, signed by the head of media and publicity to the CAN president, Bayo Oladeji, queried.

Others who have expressed their condolences include ex-governor Orji Kalu of Anambra and Catholic Bishop of Nnewi Diocese, Hilary Okeke.

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A Nigerian, Daniel Ojo, who has spent less than 14 months in the United States, has been arrested by the FBI in Durham, North Carolina and charged with fraud and identity theft offences.

The offences stemmed from Mr. Ojos phishing scheme, using an AOL and GMail email accounts that targeted school districts in Connecticut and Minnesota in an effort to get employees personal information and file bogus tax returns.

His arrest was announced Friday by Deirdre Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Patricia Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Joel Garland, Special Agent in Charge of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation in New England

Following his arrest at his Durham residence, Mr. Ojo appeared before a U.S. magistrate judge in Greensboro, N.C., and was ordered detained pending his transfer to the District of Connecticut.

Prosecutors said a school district employee in Glastonbury, Connecticut, received an email in February that appeared to be sent by another employee, who asked for tax information for 1,600 school district workers. The worker who received the email then forwarded the information, which was used in the scheme to file 122 bogus tax returns seeking nearly $600,000 in refunds, authorities said.

Officials said the Internal Revenue Service processed about six of the fake returns and electronically deposited nearly $37,000 in refunds to various bank accounts.

Investigators linked the email sent to the employee to Mr. Ojo, prosecutors said.

Officials also believe Mr. Ojo was involved in similar email schemes targeting school districts in Groton, Connecticut, and Bloomington, Minnesota.

In March, a Groton school employee emailed tax information of 1,300 employees in response to an email that appeared to be from the superintendent of schools. Authorities said the information was used to file about 66 fraudulent tax returns seeking about $364,000 in refunds. Officials said the fake returns werent processed because they had been flagged as being part of an identity theft scheme after school employees discovered the problem.

Prosecutors also said they linked the email account used by Mr. Ojo to a similar scam that obtained tax information for about 2,800 school employees in Bloomington earlier this year.

Eric Placke, a federal public defender in North Carolina who represented Mr. Ojo only for his initial court appearance, declined to comment Friday. Its not clear who Mr. Ojos attorney will be in Connecticut.

Authorities said Mr. Ojo entered the U.S. in May 2016 on a visitors visa and failed to leave on his scheduled departure date in June 2016.

Mr. Daly urged the public to double-check links and email addresses before clicking on and responding to them, to avoid becoming an identity theft victim.

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A former Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, says she is unaware of any probe by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on any matter allegedly concerning her.

She was reacting to media report that she had been invited by the anti-graft agency for questioning over a N225 million bullet-proof BMW allegedly purchased her when she was a minister.

The car was said to have been bought by one of the agencies under the aviation ministry.

But Ms. Oduah told the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Sunday that there was no basis upon which she could be probed, saying that the vehicle did not belong to her.

To start with, I do not know where any letter on the probe is because nobody has invited me, and as far as I know, there is nothing and there cannot be anything on invitation for purchase of a BMW.

I did not buy a BMW; I have never bought a BMW. The BMW is a property of the government, and it is still in government care.

The car is with the agency that bought it.

The agency is still using it, and so, why will the car which belongs to government and in the care of government and being used by government, be an issue for me?

I have since left the ministry, she said.

She said that the reports were the handiworks of persons, who were not comfortable with the tremendous achievements she made in the aviation sector and wanted to tarnish her image.

The former minister said that when she was appointed, Nigerian airports were in poor states and could be compared to motor parks.

She said that no effort by anyone, including her predecessors in the ministry, could be compared with she did to reposition the aviation industry for the period she was the minister.

Oduah, now a lawmaker, challenged anyone to do a comparative analysis of the sector before she became minister, while she was minister and after she left as minister.

I think some people are not just comfortable that what we did in aviation is unimaginable.

What we did in aviation was so far-reaching that it had never been done before; it was unprecedented.

To get into the lounge where people sit was impossible; most motor parks were better than what we had at the airport, whether in Lagos, Abuja or Sokoto.

We took them on and efficiently, and in a very timely manner, changed every one of them and made Nigeria airspace safe, she said.

She said safety of Nigerian passengers was made a priority while she held sway, adding that landing gears, flight gadgets, and every single thing was functioning to make Nigerias airspace recognised by International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

I challenge anybody to just do a spreadsheet; how aviation was before, how I made aviation and how aviation is today.

(NAN)

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The Nigerian Army said on Sunday that it had concluded plans to train mobile strike team among personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, and the police fighting Boko Haram in the North-east.

The Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, said this in Maiduguri at the graduation of the armys Mobile Strike Team at the Nigerian Army Special Forces School, Buni Yadi, in Yobe.

Mr. Dan-Ali said that the ministry was starting a programme for the police and personnel of the NSCDC to relieve the military special strike task force.

The pilot training will be in Bama, where the NSCDC and the Police will take some of the key areas of the operation.

My visit was designed to appraise the training of the counter-insurgency school. I have spent a lot of time to go round and listen to their problem, with a view to addressing some of the challenges.

You must be aware that in recent times, there have been spates of frequent ambush attacks and suicide bombings by Boko Haram insurgents.

These recent of attacks by pockets of Boko Haram insurgents only show that they have been weakened and degraded.

We are here to with the Chief of Army Staff to adopt new adopt new strategies by training and re-training our troops on how to respond to quick attacks and dismantle ambushes.

The anti-ambush, shooting range and patrol drift are some of the new strategies adopted to respond to quick attacks by the insurgents, the minister said.

(NAN)

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An interview by Uba Sani, the political adviser to Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna, generated controversy on Saturday.

Mr. Sani was accused of justifying the attack on senators and journalists at the Nigeria Union of Journalists secretariat in Kaduna.

The attack occurred last Sunday as two senators, Shehu Sani and Suleiman Hunkuyi, addressed journalists.

Both senators, especially Mr. Sani, are political opponents of the governor, thus leading to allegations Mr. El-Rufai sponsored the thugs who carried out the attack.

The governor, however, promptly condemned the attack, and promised investigations.

However, the governors political adviser, Uba Sani, was accused of justifying the attack in an interview granted in Hausa and partly played on a local Nagarta radio in Kaduna.

Mr. El-Rufais spokesperson, Samuel Aruwan, denied the statement credited to the governors aide.

Reports quoting Malam Uba Sani justifying the unfortunate incident at the secretariat of Nigeria Union of Journalists is not only FALSE but MISCHIEVOUS, Mr. Aruwan said in a message sent to PREMIUM TIMES.

Its part of the grand design to blackmail and crush to the ground anything related to the Governor and Government of Kaduna State.

PREMIUM TIMES has now obtained the audio of the interview by Uba Sani and has transcribed it into English.

In the interview, the political adviser denied that the state government was responsible for the attack, and said interim findings by the state indicated the thugs may have been aggrieved supporters of some of the politicians.

Read the transcript of the brief interview below:

Q: They are accusing the state government of masterminding the attack on them especially you who is the governors adviser on politics, how would you respond about that.

Uba Sani: What they have been saying has no bases and it is just a lie.

Just like you know politics is not madness. If you are voted to represent the people, it became mandatory for you to always visit them. One should come and look after them, provide for them and fulfil all the promises he has made to them. Because you might have promised them something.

What we find out after investigation was that, when the Executive Governor heard about it which he was not happy with, he ordered a thorough investigation. He does not want any trouble happening in the state and as you also know he was the first person to condemn the action of the youth.

Result of the investigation ordered by the governor even though it is still ongoing is that some of the elected people that where there, note, not all of them, few among them never returned from Abuja to look after this youth that have worked for them after using them that time.

They told the youth that if they were elected, some of them spoke over the radio making these promises which we heard, that as soon as they get to Abuja they will be sending them money on monthly basis.

And now, these youth have waited for over two years without receiving anything and since then they have been targeting them.

What we then think happened was the youth attacked them to demand for the monies promised them and fight started; and this is what the preliminary result of the investigation shows. And that they also said as a senator I will be getting about N20 million every month. And this same person who you promised to give money every month understands that you pocket N20 million while he is not getting anything and as you earlier told him that the money you are getting is supposed to be given to him, that could be the reason they now attacked them.

From my own point of view, they are the same people who organised these boys, promised to give them money; and two years later they did not receive anything from them, this is what the preliminary result of the investigation shows.

However. it is just part of the result that we are getting. The investigation is still ongoing.

EDITORS NOTE: The headline and body of this story has been edited to reflect the actual statements made by Uba Sani.

Listen to the Audio here: Saurari abin da Uba Sani ya ce kan harin da aka kai NUJ

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Growing up near Vancouver and the Canada-U.S. border, my friends and I often hopped over to the U.S. in search of a bargain.

During one such trip, some pals were caught with dozens of cheap American chocolate bars hidden in the car's glove compartment. Instead of paying the duty, they chose to consume all of the chocolate on the spot. Believing that they were sticking it to those customs officials, they really just made themselves violently ill.

That episode was not unlike a scenario currently playing out in the U.S. -- just substitute members of Congress for my buddies and Russian President Vladimir Putin for the customs officials they think they're sticking it to.

Last week, the Senate sent the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act to President Donald Trump's desk. With a veto-proof majority behind the measure, Trump signed it into law Thursday.

Someone needs to explain why the Washington establishment wants to upchuck all over America's best interests with this piece of legislation.

The bill is meant to hold Russia responsible for the anti-Russian psychosis currently afflicting much of the establishment. It does so by explicitly targeting any person who "sells, leases, or provides to the Russian Federation, for the construction of Russian energy export pipelines, goods, services, technology, information, or support."

Where is Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the former ExxonMobil CEO, on this? You'd think that Tillerson would have a lot to say, given that earlier this month, the U.S. Treasury Department fined Exxon $2 million for violating sanctions through a joint partnership with Russian oil company Rosneft under Tillerson's leadership.

You'd expect Tillerson to say, "Hey, guys, I'm secretary of state, and even I've been nailed by this."

Instead, Tillerson turtled, saying: "The near unanimous votes for the sanctions legislation in Congress represent the strong will of the American people to see Russia take steps to improve relations with the United States."

Yeah, sure. That's exactly what the establishment had in mind when it included Russia in a punitive sanctions bill with Iran and North Korea -- two other countries with whom the establishment wants warm relations, right?

The act would also punish anyone who "engages in a significant transaction with a person that is part of, or operates for or on behalf of, the defense or intelligence sectors of the Government of the Russian Federation." How are American defense and aerospace companies supposed to do business with their Russian partners and suppliers when the industry is intricately linked to the defense and security establishment?

Take Boeing's Russian partner, VSMPO-AVISMA, which makes the titanium forgings for Boeing's commercial jets.

Boeing's largest aerospace design center outside of the U.S is located in Moscow. The company also has a technical research center in Moscow and has benefited from the innovative work of more than 600 Russian scientists and information technology specialists, according to a Boeing document.

U.S. sanctions harm not only American companies but also European companies that have any sort of U.S. presence and are engaged in joint ventures with Russia.

Germany's economy minister, Brigitte Zypries, has urged European retaliation, calling the sanctions illegal and telling a German newspaper group, "The Americans can't punish German companies because they have business interests in another country."

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker also expressed unhappiness with the proposed sanctions.

"If our concerns are not taken into account sufficiently, we stand ready to act appropriately within a matter of days," Juncker said. "'America First' cannot mean that Europe's interests come last."

Juncker, you ingrate! The congressional swamp creatures even made a nice title for you: "Countering Russian Influence in Europe and Eurasia Act of 2017"!

Europe might want to respond with the "Thanks, But We'll Pass Act of 2017."

Russia reacted by ordering the reduction of U.S. diplomatic and support personnel in Russia by 755. This move came a little more than six months after then-President Barack Obama expelled more than 30 Russian diplomats and ordered the closure of two diplomatic compounds.

If Trump signs the sanctions bill, the U.S. can expect further retaliation, which will cost American and Western businesses jobs and opportunities.

This is where Tillerson must grow a backbone and support Trump in throwing this bill back in the establishment's face. Force Congress to override the president's veto and explain to citizens why they think their Russian fantasies are more important than the economic health of the Western world.

When the military-industrial complex is actually complaining about a bill meant to economically disadvantage the other guy, it's a pretty good sign that it's half-baked.
An investigation into alleged prescription benefit fraud in three Absecon Island towns could include doctors, pharmaceutical representatives and compounded drugs, Atlantic County Prosecutor Damon G. Tyner said this week.

The Prosecutors Office announced last week that Atlantic County grand jury subpoenas were issued July 28 to the same three towns under federal investigation  Atlantic City, Margate and Ventnor  looking into city employee health insurance information.

The FBI has declined to comment about their investigation.

While Tyner could not specify all the details of the parallel investigations, he said the process of drug-compounding fraud could be part of it and the search of Dr. James Kauffmans office in June was partially related.

Kauffman, 68, of Linwood, remains jailed and charged with weapons offenses following a standoff with police June 13 at his Egg Harbor Township practice.

Tyner stressed there are state offenses that are separate and distinct from federal offenses, with different implications and consequences.

Our investigation is not limited to just public employees, Tyner said.

Drug compounding is a process in which a pharmacist or doctor alters or mixes ingredients into a custom drug to fit the needs of a patient, according to the federal Food & Drug Administration.

City officials fend off rumors in federal prescription fraud investigation MARGATE  The flow of new information on a federal prescription-drug investigation among cit

The process of mixing drugs is legal, and compounded medications can be beneficial to patients unable to take another drug because of allergies or other issues. But problems arise when the drugs, intended for one person and costing thousands of dollars, are mass-produced, said Charles Ross, a New York-based attorney who has represented clients in medical compounding cases.

Ross said the profit for compounding pharmacies can reach tens of thousands of dollars for a single tube of compounding cream.

Pharmacies that get into mass production see that they can make a ton of money, Ross said. What a truly compounded cream can fetch in terms of insurance reimbursements is truly stunning.

In recent years, the U.S. Attorneys Office targeted cases of fraud in which compounding pharmacies have paid middlemen to steer doctors to prescribe an expensive form of compounded drugs.

Just last month, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a $1.3 billion health care fraud investigation that resulted in 412 people charged nationwide. Some of those cases involved compounded medications.

The alleged schemes resulted in government-funded health care programs Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE seeing huge leaps in spending for prescriptions.

In some cases, patients, recruiters or beneficiaries were paid kickbacks for giving information to providers so bills could be submitted for services or medications that werent needed or never provided. In some cases, insurers were billed for unnecessary drugs and compounded medications.

For Keith Hartman, owner of Curexa, a compounding pharmacy in Egg Harbor Township, the fact that compounding practices have become the subject of criminal investigations is disheartening.

View Margate and Ventnor subpoenas in federal prescription drug probe A federal investigation into public employees health benefits extends beyond Margate and in

When done effectively and properly, compounding helps patients in need, he said.

Some of the services we provide are unique and are doing significant health improvements for people, said Hartman. But theres going to be bad eggs in every industry.

Hartman mentioned the company is accredited by the PCAB  the Pharmacy Compounding Accreditation Board  which has strict standards for how drugs can be created and solicited.

When it gets to the point of sales representatives mass-producing or selling products people dont need, thats when the fraud is clear, he said.

Its not a game that we would entertain or get involved with, Hartman said. Its clear lapse of judgment.

Even before Tyners investigation was announced, mayors in several South Jersey towns were aware of the potential impact prescription costs can have on their budgets.

Federal subpoena requests info on Margate employees' health benefits MARGATE  City officials are prepared to suspend without pay any city employees indicted as 

Egg Harbor Township Mayor James Sonny McCullough said township officials have been keeping a close eye on compounding prescription prices over the past couple of months, even though his towns records have not been sought.

Its something that we are watching, said McCullough. We want to watch anything that will drive the principal up.

In Margate, prescription costs jumped from $539,114 in 2010 to $3.4 million in 2015. The practice of compounding was discussed in a July 20 commission meeting that followed revelations of an investigation.

Margate Business Administrator Rich Deaney said prescription-drug fraud is not unique to Downbeach.

Nationwide, there reportedly has been a 3,000 percent increase in the dispensing of compound drugs in the past several years, he said.

Large leaps in prescription costs not caused by a similar increase in the number of prescriptions filled is something that could set off red flags for law enforcement, who would view profit-making as a fraud on the system, said Ross, who believes prosecutors and insurance providers are catching up to the practice.

There have been a lot of prosecutions and a lot of convictions and people sent to jail, forfeiture of moneys, so Im not sure theres a lack of oversight these days, Ross said.

Tyner urged the public to refrain from spreading rumors because it interferes with the investigation.

I would just urge the community to allow us, rather than speculate, to allow us to conduct our investigation, Tyner said. Ultimately, time will tell as to who is implicated and what they were implicated for.
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP  ShopRite reopened Monday morning after a fire prompted an evacuation of the supermarket Sunday afternoon, a representative from the courtesy counter said.

Smoke and flames rose from ShopRites roof as about 30 firefighters battled the fire.

No injuries were reported, authorities said.

At 1:57 p.m., fire departments from Egg Harbor Township and Northfield responded to the alarm at the English Creek Shopping Center at English Creek Avenue and the Black Horse Pike.

Customers said they could smell smoke and were told to leave the store immediately, abandoning carts filled with groceries.

I started smelling something burning, something electrical, said DeeDee Baptiste, of Mays Landing, who was in the checkout line moments before the store was evacuated. It was scary. We all just had to leave.

Fire trucks at the rear of the building doused the flames, while Egg Harbor Township police monitored the entrance, turning away people unaware of the situation.

Cardiff Volunteer Fire Company Chief Steven Sear said the blaze was under control about 3:30 p.m., but firefighters remained on the scene until 5 p.m.

The fire was contained to the roof, and there is water damage to a storage area, Sear said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, Sear said. The store remained closed Sunday night.
Donation experts say summer has brought a dire need for blood to meet demand at hospitals and other health care facilities.

The American Red Cross announced in early July that it was facing a shortage in an emergency call for eligible people to donate blood or platelets. Officials say that shortage extends to the South Jersey area, where providers must work with a limited supply.

We consider a critical blood emergency to be when hospitals fall below a five-day supply of blood, said Alana Mauger, Red Cross spokeswoman. Were seeing that on a national scale. Its not just a problem here, but a problem across the country.

Shortages in the summer are typical, public health experts said. A decrease in donations happens for multiple reasons, including busy summer schedules, travel and a discontinuation of normal blood drive venues.

Mauger said drives at high schools and colleges pull in a significant proportion of blood donations during the school year, but those taper off when summer arrives.

Still, schools such as Cedar Creek High School in Egg Harbor City host drives in the hotter months. The school held a blood drive Friday that drew more than 30 donors, organizers said.

During previous shortages, health providers have said hospitals need to be prepared with sufficient blood in stock for when populations swell in the summertime, especially in coastal towns. Health experts said they not only have to continue treating full-time residents in the area, but visitors who may suffer injuries that require blood transfusions.

There would need to be about 1,000 blood donations a day to meet the demand in the Red Cross Penn-Jersey region, Mauger said.

Although people may not think about donating blood during their busy summer activities, Mauger said they should keep in mind those who depend on blood donations daily, such as burn victims, blood-infection patients and people with cancer, sickle-cell anemia, hemophilia and kidney disease.

Blood is used in traumas, but there are a lot of people who need this to get better at an ongoing rate, she said. Blood cant be manufactured. Youre the only source.

Red Cross organizers said they have seen about a 30 percent increase in blood-donation appointments since the emergency call went out in early July, but there is still a critical shortage and more is needed.

People may be eligible to receive a $5 Target gift card by email if they donate before Sept. 1. Locally, the Red Cross partnered with Dunkin Donuts so that donors can receive coupons for a free coffee and doughnut.

For a full list of upcoming blood drives and donation center openings, visit redcrossblood.org
In our Sunday and Monday editions last week, the Journal Star profiled six new political activists.

They included a 79-year-old professor who says its odd that he now has to defend science, a disabled Air Force veteran who organizes rallies to support President Donald Trump and the health care worker behind the Make Lincoln Kind Again Facebook page.

Over the last several years, more residents of Lincoln and the state as a whole have begun to expand how they present their political beliefs. The west steps of the Capitol, where the citys namesake has stood for more than a century immortalized in bronze, have become the rallying point for more events involving more Nebraskans of all political stripes.

As of June, Lincoln officials have received 21 permit requests for marches and rallies  up from 18 year ago and a 250 percent increase from the six requests in all of 2007. And that steadily climbing figure only accounts for those that have approached the city in advance, not those that popped up spontaneously in response to the news of the day.

Obviously, Lincoln isnt alone in experiencing this rise in activism and public expression of political speech. But its continued growth is a positive development regardless of partisan affiliation.

John Hibbing, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln political science professor, noted that former presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama plus Trump were all polarizing figures, sparking a wave of activism that doesnt yet seem have to crested.

The actions and choices all three have made in the Oval Office created controversy at the outset. The continued ramifications of these  such as Trumps travel ban, Obamas eponymous health care law and Bushs war in Iraq  have been the inspiration for countless demonstrations.

As UNL student Natasha Naseem, the Lincoln-raised daughter of Pakistani immigrants and advocate for Muslims in the United States, told the Journal Star: You become the unlikely activist because these are unlikely times.

Though the ultimate mode of expression remains the ballot box, Americans must not share their beliefs only when the next election nears.

As we often say of the First Amendment in this space: Cherish and exercise your rights, which are far from guaranteed in too many countries. While free speech, peaceable assembly and petition are American staples, global citizens have been injured, imprisoned or killed trying to exercise those very same inalienable rights.

Residents of Lincoln and Nebraskans of all viewpoints are joining voices to ensure theyre heard. That chorus has reached a crescendo that shows no signs of stopping  and the growing number of displays is proof of a more involved electorate across the political spectrum.
"It's an honor for us the bring this trophy back to our restaurant Saltie Girl, Boston, MA and the entire state of Massachusetts. There were a lot of talented chefs and I couldn't have done it without my team including Chef David Daniels and the original 'saltie girl' herself Kathy Sidell our owner," said Chef Kyle McClelland, Executive Chef of Saltie Girl.



During the competition, each chef prepared dishes that highlighted the use of domestic seafood while interacting with a live audience, celebrity hosts and the "chef ref." Each dish presented to a panel of nationally known judges, was scored based on presentation, creativity, composition, craftsmanship and flavor. In its 14th year, the 2017 Great American Seafood Cook-Off continues to promote the quality and variety of domestic seafood.

Saltie Girl in Boston, MA will add the 2017 Great American Seafood Cook-Off to their growing collection of accolades and Best of Boston awards.

About MET Group

MET Group, founded by Kathy Sidell in 2004, is comprised of MET Bar & Grill in Dedham and Natick, MET Back Bay, Met on Main on Nantucket, MET Bethesda and Saltie Girl in Boston's Back Bay.

The MET Bar & Grills, featuring the famous MET Burger Bar, has locations at the Natick Mall and Legacy Place in Dedham. These fun restaurants serve American fare with a touch of sophistication. For more information, visit www.metbarandgrill.com.

MET Back Bay occupies an historic brick townhouse on the corner of Newbury and Dartmouth Street and offers the best of Boston cooking, with a complete and varied dining experience. If you're in the mood for a quick, casual bite at the bar or a long, festive and elegant dinner for family and friends or an intimate midnight snack in a romantic corner, you'll find the perfect spot at MET Back Bay. For more information, visit www.metbackbay.com.

Met on Main is an Island Cafe located in the heart of Nantucket serving up American fare with an Island flare. For more information, visit www.metonmain.com

Met Bethesda a Metropolitan Kitchen and bar which offers inspired American fare cooked over an open wood fired grill. Inspired by Sidell's extensive travel, upbringing and lifelong passion with food, cooking and hospitality, the concept is earthy yet sophisticated. For more information visit: www.metbethesdamd.com.

Sidell's latest endeavor, Saltie Girl, is an intimate 28 seat seafood bar nestled next to MET Back Bay. Saltie Girl focuses on globally sustainable iterations of fresh fish & seafood be it fried, sauteed, raw, house-potted, smoked or tinned. For more information visit: www.saltiegirl.com.

Kathy Sidell debuted her first book, "WHEN I MET FOOD, Living the American Restaurant Dream," in 2012 and has been featured on the Food Network, The CBS Morning Show and numerous other broadcast segments. For more information on Kathy Sidell visit www.kathysidell.com.

Chef Kyle McClelland:

A New England native, McClelland was born in Dover, New Hampshire and raised in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, which is where he developed his love of seafood and passion for all things culinary. McClelland attended the French Culinary Institute in New York City where he earned his Grand Diploma. In 2016, Chef McClelland teamed-up with restauranteur Kathy Sidell to open Saltie Girl. His impressive accomplishments in his 19-year culinary career are a result of his unyielding passion, precise technique and innovative palate. He has appeared on the Food Network's "Chopped" and cooked at the James Beard house. When he is not in the kitchen, McClelland enjoys listening to live music, trying new restaurants, and spending time with his friends and family.

High Res Image for use: https://spaces.hightail.com/receive/KT5qWfh9Lm

SOURCE Saltie Girl

Related Links

https://www.saltiegirl.com


If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this





Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here
Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 3 : Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will visit the house of an RSS worker murdered by alleged CPI-M activists here when he visits Kerala on Sunday, a BJP leader said on Thursday.

Jaitley will meet the family of 34-year-old E. Rajesh, who was hacked to death on Saturday night by Communist Party of India-Marxist workers, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader told IANS.

"He will also visit the homes of BJP councillors whose homes came under attack from CPI-M cadres," said the BJP leader who did not wish to be identified.

Police have arrested 10 people involved in the murder of Rajesh, an RSS 'Karyavahak'.
Washington, Aug 5 : The US Department of Justice has stepped up crackdown on leaks as the White House grows angrier over unauthorized disclosures.

The department has more than tripled the number of active leak probes since January, compared to the number pending at the end of the last administration, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said at a press conference on Friday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Sessions' remarks followed a series of breaking reports about US President Donald Trump's administration and his presidential campaign last year on a basis of unnamed sources, which have embarrassed the White House.

There had been a "dramatic growth" in recent months of unauthorized disclosures to the media and "even foreign adversaries," Sessions said. "No one is entitled to surreptitiously fight to advance battles in the media by revealing sensitive government information."

The top prosecutor argued that no government can be effective "when its leaders cannot discuss sensitive matters in confidence or talk freely in confidence with foreign leaders," a day after transcript of rancorous phone calls between Trump and leaders of Australia and Mexico were published by the Washington Post.

While revealing the department has already charged four people with unlawfully disclosing classified material or with concealing contacts with federal officers, Sessions warned would-be leakers against any attempts to make disclosures.

He also gave a warning to the press, adding that the department is review polices affecting media subpoenas.

"We respect the important role that the press plays and will give them respect, but it is not unlimited." Sessions said. "They cannot place lives at risk with impunity."

Last week, Trump denounced Sessions as "very weak" on leaks from intelligence agencies.

"I want the attorney general to be much tougher on the leaks from intelligence agencies, which are leaking like rarely have they ever leaked before at a very important level," Trump said.

Pressure has been piling up on Sessions after an apparent, repeated frustration by Trump over his job to stop leaks, raising possibility of the firing of the attorney general by the president.

But newly-appointed White House Chief of Staff John Kelly reportedly told Sessions that his job was safe despite a chaotic shake-ups in the Trump administration.
Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson is no doubt a fine attorney, but he would make a poor general.

As a veteran, I once took similar oath to one he cited in his crusade to fight Deferred Action Childhood Arrivals ("AG defines reasoning to scrap DACA," Aug. 2). These are not dangerous children; they hope to remain in our country, where they have lived most of their lives.

To defend the Constitution, you must stand in front of it and keep it from harm. Not stand behind it and use it as political cover from fact that you using taxpayers' resources to attack children. Poor tactics, sir.

Robert Way, Lincoln
Washington, Aug 5 : Investigators working for special counsel Robert Muller have asked the White House for documents on former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn as they examine whether he was secretly paid by the Turkish government to lobby against a critic of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Investigators asked the White House for documents related to Flynn's lobbying and questioned witnesses about whether he was paid by the Turkish government, the New York Times reported.

The document request was not a formal subpoena. The document request is the first known instance of the special counsel asking the White House to hand over records.

It also shows that the special counsel probe has expanded into an examination of Flynn's financial deals, beyond disclosures about his conversations and business arrangements with Russian officials, the Times reported.

Flynn's former lobbying firm, the Flynn Intel Group, was paid $530,000 to represent Ekim Alptekin, a Turkish businessman, during the final months of the US presidential campaign, according to foreign agent registration paperwork filed with the Justice Department.

But the contract ended in mid-Novermber 2016, around the time that Flynn was announced as President Donald Trump's first National Security Adviser. Flynn was forced to resign in February after it was reported that he misled Vice President Mike Pence about the nature of his phone calls with the Russian Ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak.

While Mueller steps up his investigation into allegations of Russian interference in 2016 US presidential election, Trump again angrily denied that his campaign team colluded with the Kremlin. At a campaign rally in West Virginia on Friday, he dismissed the allegations and investigation as "fake news".

Flynn declined to comment on the New York Times report, while Trump's special counsel Ty Cobb stressed that the White House was cooperating with the probe.

"The White House will not be discussing any specific communications with the Special Counsel out of respect for the Special Counsel and his process. Beyond that, as I have stressed repeatedly, we continue to fully cooperate with the Special Counsel," Cobb told the Hill magazine.
Lucknow, Aug 5 : The Command Hospital of the Army's Central Command has celebrated Raksha Bandhan.

To mark this occasion, an event was organised on Friday at the Command Hospital in collaboration with Delhi Public School, Shaheed Path.

Teachers and students from the school visited the acute medical ward of the hospital where they tied rakhis to soldiers of the Indian Armed Forces and their relatives who are admitted in the hospital.

Students prayed for the well being of patients and offered them sweets. Many patients got overwhelmed by emotions and could not control their tears.

Patients and their relatives took a pledge to protect the children from bad elements of the society.

The Commandant, Major General Vibha Dutta, at the end of the event thanked the teachers and blessed the children for their gesture.
Hiroshima, Aug 5 : Members of Japan's Korean community held a ceremony on Saturday in memory of Korean victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

About 330 people, including relatives of Korean victims of the bombing, as well as Korean students joined the event held at a Korean cenotaph in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, Efe news quoted an epa journalist as reporting.

During the 30-minute event, the participants prayed, read out mourning passages and offered flowers at the cenotaph.

The ceremony precedes Sunday's main commemoration which marks the August 6, 1945, nuclear attack on Hiroshima. The initial blast killed almost 90,000 people, including several thousand Koreans, and destroyed most of the city.

The US dropped a second nuclear bomb on the southern Japanese city of Nagasaki on August 9, killing at least 40,000 people.

The bombings came days before Japan's surrender on August 15, which brought an end to the Second World War.
Unioted Nations, Aug 6 : The United Nations Security Council on Saturday unanimously adopted a US-drafted resolution that aims to slash by a third North Korea's $3 billion annual export revenue over Pyongyang's two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests in July.

The resolution would ban Pyongyang's exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It would also prohibit countries from increasing the current numbers of North Korea's labourers working abroad, ban new joint ventures with Pyongyang and any new investment in current joint ventures.

Resolution 2371 (2017), adopted unanimously by the Security Council on Saturday, strengthens UN sanctions on the Pyongyang in response to its two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests conducted on July 3 and July 28, respectively.

As such, this resolution "sends a clear message" to Pyongyang that the Security Council is united in condemning its violations and demanding the country give up its prohibited nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.

Resolution 2371 (2017) includes the strongest sanctions ever imposed in response to a ballistic missile test. These measures target Pyongyang's principal exports, imposing a total ban on all exports of coal (North Korea's largest source of external revenue), iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood.

Banning these exports will prevent Pyongyang from earning over $1 billion per year of hard currency that would be redirected to its illicit programs, according to the resolution.

North Korea earns approximately $3 billion per year from its exports. Additional sanctions target North Korea's arms smuggling, joint ventures with foreign companies, banks, and other sources of revenue.

A resolution needs nine votes in favour, and no vetoes by the US, China, Russia, France or Britain, to be adopted.

The measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006.
Tehran, Aug 6 : Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday the US is not a trustable country to work with over international issues.

Speaking in his swear-in ceremony in the Iranian parliament, Rouhani criticized the US for threatening the implementation of the nuclear deal, Xinhua reported.

He said that the Islamic republic would remain committed to the international nuclear deal and would not violate the nuclear deal signed between Iran and the six major powers two years ago.

"However, Iran would not be silent in the face of US threats to the implementation of the deal," he said, adding that "Tehran would reciprocate every threatening move by Washington in this regard."

The Iranian President warned that "those who are thinking of tearing the accord into pieces, in actuality, would harm their political life."

The world would not thrust the United States anymore, he said.

Rouhani was alluding to the U.S. President Donald Trump's comments on Iran's nuclear deal during his presidential campaign, as Trump repeatedly criticized the accord, calling it "the worst deal ever negotiated."

On Thursday, Iran denounced the recent endorsement of new sanctions against Tehran by the US President, saying that it violates nuclear deal.

Recent unilateral sanctions against Iran by the United States are mainly in response to Tehran's growing missile program, the White House says Iran's ballistic missile tests are in violation of the resolutions of the UN Security Council.

Tehran has emphasized that its ballistic missile advancement is for deterrent purposes and the country will never negotiate over it.

Tehran also said that the new U.S. sanctions against Iran aimed at threatening the international community against cooperating with Iran, which will ultimately limit Iran's gain from the fruits of the deal.

Iran and six world powers, namely Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States, reached an agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue in July 2015, which put Tehran on the path of sanctions relief but with more strict limits on its nuclear program.
Washington, Aug 6 : More than six months into Donald Trump's young presidency, optimism among his core supporters and American voters at large is starting to fade, a new poll has revealed.

After Trump's surprise victory in November, six in 10 American voters said they were mostly optimistic about his presidency. But that number slipped to 52 per cent in March and 43 per cent currently, CNN quoted the Quinnipiac University poll as saying on Saturday.

A majority of registered voters (53 per cent) now say they are mostly pessimistic about the next few years of Trump's time in office.

Optimism for the Trump presidency among Republican voters dropped from a virtually unanimous 96 per cent in January and March down to 84 per cent now, with one in six Republicans now saying they are mainly pessimistic about his tenure, the poll showed.

In another poll conducted by Gallup, whites without a college degree have also shown a slight but steady decline, CNN reported.

Trump started at 62 per cent approval with this key group when he took office in January, but has since slipped from 56 per cent in May to 54 per cent in June and to 53 per cent in July.

Still, Republicans have mostly stayed on board in Gallup's approval ratings over the last six months, which means Trump's low approvals are actually largely driven by Democrats and independents.
New Delhi, Aug 6 : With the sudden demonetisation decision exposing its chinks, the country's currency printing system is undergoing a complete overhaul, officials say.

The system's capabilities were put to the severest test during last year's demonetisation, with millions of people standing in queues for long to get their quota of currency because the supply of new notes was slow in coming. The government is now focussing on the expansion, indigenisation and upgradation of currency presses and paper mills, a top official told IANS.

Burdened by the outdated technology of the printing presses and limited paper mill capabilities, the currency note printing system lagged way behind the demand long after the demonetisation process, announced last November, had concluded.

As a spillover, the government is now working towards strengthening the country's currency printing system, the official, who did not want to be identified, said.

While new note printing lines will be added at the Nashik and Dewas printing presses by 2018-end, the paper mills will also get two additional lines to help India head towards self-sufficiency and indigenisation.

"We are going to have new lines. We are planning upgradation of both Nashik and Dewas printing presses. It's a two-year process; so it will happen by the end of 2018," a top government official told IANS, not wishing to be identified.

"It is under process right now. To update the printing machinery, the process is on for global tendering for upgradation of facilities. The process of printing notes will be through more efficient technology in the new lines. It will be able to take 1,000-2,000 extra sheets at a time. The machine capacity currently is 8,000 sheets per hour," he said.

India has four currency note printing pressess -- two RBI presses in Mysuru (Karnataka) and Salboni (West Bengal) and two Security Printing and Minting Corp of India Ltd (SMPCIL) presses in Nashik (Maharashtra) and Dewas (Madhya Pradesh). SPMCIL is a government-owned company formed in 2006 that fulfils a sovereign function of printing notes, minting coins and printing non-judicial stamp paper.

The capacity of the Nashik and Dewas presses is 600 million pieces a month. The present capacity of the presses in Mysuru and Salboni is 16 billion note pieces per year on a two-shift basis.

During demonetisation, while the paper of the Rs 2,000 note was made indigenously, the paper manufactured for Rs 500 in India could not cater to the huge demand and vacuum created due to the sudden note ban.

On November 8, there were 17,165 million pieces of Rs 500 notes and 6,858 million pieces of Rs 1,000 notes in circulation. They amounted to a total of Rs 15.44 lakh crore in value or 86 per cent of the total currency in circulation.

"In our mill, we had the first indigenously made paper for the new Rs 500 note. Production of Rs 500 notes at Nashik and Dewas presses used in-house ink as well. But there is a shortfall," the official noted.

The ink used for Rs 500 notes is imported as well as made in Dewas.

The paper mill at Hoshangabad is owned by SPMCIL while the one at Mysuru is a joint venture between SPMCIL and Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Private Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

"The Cylinder mould vat mode Watermarked Bank Note (CWBN) paper for the Rs 500 note, developed in Hoshangabad, was also imported. Hoshangabad has two units of 6,000 metric tonnes per annum capacity. So it has a total capacity of 12,000 metric tonnes per annum. Mysuru paper mill also has 12,000 metric tonnes annual capacity," another top official told IANS.

"Two more lines of a total capacity of 12,000 metric tonnes are being added at Hoshangabad paper mill. Work is on. Tenders are being invited to set up paper mills here under the Make in India programme. So the production capacity at Hoshangabad will double," he said.

For the new lines of paper mill, however, there is a gestation period of 4-5 years, including the tendering process which will take a year.

"The process is on. The dependability on import of paper will greatly reduce thereon," the official said.

(Meghna Mittal can be reached at meghna.m@ians.in)
London, Aug 6 : Parents must intervene to stop their children overusing social media and consuming time online "like junk food", according to a top official.

In an interview on Saturday, Children's Commissioner for England Anne Longfield slammed the ways social media giants use to draw children into spending more time.

She said parents should be proactive in stopping their children from bingeing on the internet in the summer holidays.

"It's something that every parent will talk about especially during school holidays; that children are in danger of seeing social media like sweeties, and their online time like junk food," the BBC quoted Longfield as saying in the interview.

"None of us as parents would want our children to eat junk food all the time.

"For those same reasons we shouldn't want our children to do the same with their online time."

Last year, industry watchdog Ofcom said the internet overtook television as the most popular media pastime for children in the UK.

Children aged five to 15 are spending 15 hours a week on the internet, reports the BBC.

A study earlier this year of screen time and mental wellbeing among teenagers suggested that moderate use of devices may be beneficial.

The research, which appeared in the journal Psychological Science, was based self-reported data from 120,000 15-year-olds in England.
Washington, Aug 6 : US President Donald Trump wants Pakistan to change its policy of supporting militants who have safe haven in the country and are causing great losses, the media reported on Sunday.

US National Security Adviser General H.R. McMaster on Saturday defended Trump's strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military, and said the President wanted Pakistan to change "paradoxical" policy of supporting militants in the neighbouring country, Dawn online reported.

US officials often accuse Pakistan of helping militants, a charge Islamabad vehemently denies, but this marks the first time that the allegation has been attributed to Trump.

"The President has also made clear that we need to see a change in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others," McMaster said.

Banned outfits such as the Taliban and Haqqani Network operate and move freely in parts of Pakistan close to the border of Afghanistan. Kabul has repeatedly blamed Islamabad for violence in the country.

"This is Pakistan in particular that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups. This is of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but they've done so really only selectively," he said.

According to McMaster, the US President "does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat".

The US media reported earlier this week that in a July 19 meeting at the White House, Trump berated his generals for not winning the war in Afghanistan and allowing the violence to continue for more than 16 years.

Trump also "repeatedly suggested" to his senior military advisers that they should replace General John Nicholson, the commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, with a new General who could win the war.

But McMaster disagrees with Trump's suggestion. For Nicholson, the General said: "Of course. I've known him for many years. I can't imagine a more capable commander on any mission."

Trump has authorised the Pentagon to take the lead on military decisions in Afghanistan, although he formed a separate team of experts for a new Afghan policy.
Srinagar, Aug 6 : Security forces in Kashmir, particularly in its volatile south, are allegedly prying into cellphones of residents during roadside searches, raising privacy issues in a state where militants use social media to propagate their agenda and garner mass support.

Even as officials denied it was routine policing practice, dozens of incidents have been reported in recent weeks in which security forces have checked photos, videos and WhatsApp messages of civilians on their smartphones.

And if anything "incriminating" related to militancy is found in the gallery of smartphones, a beating might follow, as happened with Mohammad Nadeem of Kulgam, who was on his way to Srinagar on his motorbike on July 2 when he was stopped by security forces near Awantipora.

Nadeem said the security personnel went through the photo and video gallery of his phone and checked his WhatsApp messages.

"Suddenly, one of the security personnel noticed a photograph of a militant-funeral. Infuriated, he asked me to stand by the roadside and take off my shirt," Nadeem, 30, told IANS.

He said he had participated in the Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Bashir Lashkari's funeral a day before where he had clicked few photographs that showed the slain militant's body and a few Pakistani flags in the backdrop.

"They hit me with sticks and gun-butts, and kicked me," Nadeem alleged.

Deputy Inspector General South Kashmir Range, S.P. Pani denied knowing of any such incident even as he told IANS that if such things happened, complainants should contact the police who will take the cognizance of the matter.

"I cannot tell you if this is a general police practice because I have not come across any such cases myself... But if you know somebody has undergone such an incident, they can come to the police and report it. Without knowing whose phone was checked and where, I cannot say anything about it," Pani said.

Jammu and Kashmir Police in March this year claimed to have traced connections of some 10,000 Facebook profiles to Pakistan and said militant groups control some 300 groups on WhatsApp. This increased police online surveillance amid fears that Kashmir youth are getting radicalised through widespread online militant propaganda.

Musadiq Amin, 22, who studies in Degree College Pulwama, is another victim of police snooping. Amin said a group of policemen stopped him and snatched his phone when he was returning to home in Pulwama.

"For 10 minutes, policemen checked my phone. But I was sure they would find nothing incriminating. When I saw two of them charging, wielding their bamboo sticks, I got jittery," Amin said.

"They checked my WhatsApp and asked me about a group I was added in. It had Burhan's image as a display picture," Amin said.

The college student said he tried to tell them that it was merely a news group created by an acquaintance in which people from various villages would share news and updates about their areas occasionally. But he could not convince them.

He alleged that his right shin was wounded as a result of the beating he received from the policemen, who also smashed his phone.

As counter-insurgency operations intensified after Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani's killing in July last year, militant funerals have seen growing participation of locals who often capture videos and photos to circulate on social media.

But can police peep into a private cellphone?

Supreme Court advocate and renowned cyber law expert Pavan Duggal says "no" because this practice amounts to breach of privacy of a citizen.

Duggal argued the fundamental right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution includes right to dignified human life, and no dignified human life can be lived without having the privacy of mobile phones and private messages stored therein.

"This particular privacy cannot be deprived unless (and) until there is a special law which has authorised the checking of mobile phones and private messages. In the absence of such a law, the practice of checking the phones and private messages would amount to breaching the privacy of citizens," Duggal told IANS.

According to Duggal, the provisions of the Information Technology Act, 2000, are completely silent about physical checking of mobile phones, photo/video galleries and WhatsApp of civilians.

"The only direction where the law prescribes the provisions is giving powers to the government for direct interception, monitoring, decryption and blocking. These have to be done at the network level," Duggal noted.

Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir's Coalition of Civil Societies (JKCCS) Khurram Parvez argued that in Kashmir any debate on privacy of citizens was out of context.

"We know that the government, through its multiple agencies, is already monitoring phone calls and Internet; (checking phones) only deepens the crisis, because now even individual officers at the grassroots have access to private details of people, which will further increase the vulnerability of the citizens," Parvez told IANS.

(Qadri Inzamam can be reached at inzamam.a@ians.in)
CALEDONIA  While other high school students may be flying a video game fighter jet, Johnny and Holly Vassh are behind the controls of a real excavator or bulldozer.

Before theyre out of high school, before theyve turned 18, the 17-year-old Vassh twins are running a fourth-generation business, VTech Services.

VTech, based at 7712 Dunkelow Road, does excavating, demolition, pond digging, and, in winter, paints equipment and antique vehicles and does snow removal.

The company founded in 1952 was last run by Holly and Johnnys father, John Vassh Sr., but he has taken a backseat. Vassh, 57, consults for the twins and will occasionally demonstrate something, but thats all.

The Vassh twins, both Case High School seniors, are not entering the burly world of earth-moving because they lack for other options: Holly is a straight-A student, Johnny earns As and Bs, and theyre both ahead on education credits. That means they will graduate early, after the fall semester, and will be able to step right into the family business full time.

We make really good money doing this, Johnny said. And were good at it; weve been doing it for six or seven years.

To look at the twins, construction-related work is not ones first expectation for them. Johnny stands 5 feet 10 inches and weighs 125 pounds  fully clothed. Holly is close to 5 feet 6 inches and weighs 104. During a recent conversation, their father referred to them as his skinny-armed kids, drawing a chuckle from them.

Theres no division of labor between the Vassh twins. We both do everything pretty much equally, Johnny said. That means running the equipment and the hand labor involved at the end of a job to make things look good.

They figure elevations, John Sr. said.  Their math is much better than mine.

For example, on an InSinkErator job in Kenosha to expand a parking lot and build a two-story earthen berm, Not only did they figure all the elevations for that stormwater system, he bragged, but they found problems with what the engineers figured. The engineers were off by 14 inches.

Early start

The Vassh family business requires the operation of heavy and light construction and excavating equipment, which the teenagers have been doing for years. The Vassh vehicle lineup they operate include: a triaxle dump truck; a semi-trailer dump truck; a Case bulldozer; a Case wheel loader; a small skid-steer; an excavator; a trencher; a vehicle that lays cable in the ground and a bucket truck.

They can legally operate the dump trucks on a work site now, but will take the commercial driver license test to get their CDLs as soon as they turn 18. At that point, John Sr. said, the business will be officially transferred to them.

John Sr. introduced the children to the business, which is owned by their mother, Lynn, early in their lives. We started at about 10 years old, Holly said.

Back when he (John Sr.) could work, we would sit on the machines with him and stuff, and he would show us how to use them, Johnny said.

He was referring to the fact that their father has been in two horrific accidents, one off the job in 1983 and one on the job in 1986, when a 1,500-pound boulder rolled off a truck onto his legs during the construction of Roma Lodge. He has endured 15 surgeries from the car crash and still walks with a cane for a large chunk of every day.

Safety always

This summer the Vassh twins have been doing subcontracting work for Sam Azarian Wrecking Co., including the demolition of a porn shop at Rawson Avenue and South 27th Street. Theyve also been working at the former Westgate movie theater complex at Washington and Perry avenues and are working with Azarian to tear down the building, John Sr. said.

Their business is very dangerous, in my opinion, John Sr. said. Demolishing buildings, holding pipes over peoples head in ditches and that sort of thing.

Any time youre in a trench, I feel, those are the most-dangerous jobs. I lost five friends in seven years.

When we do erosion control by the lake, thats pretty scary, Holly said, because were working with small paths with big machines, and you could easily tip over and fall into the water. And die.

So, considering all hes seen and endured on the job, how does John Sr. feel about turning a potentially dangerous business over to his children?

When I teach them enough, theyll be fine, he replied. They have to be ready.  Right now, today, theyre not ready. I just couldnt do that right now.

With their obvious youth, there are often comments about that on the job site.

Oh, all the time, Holly said.  We mostly just hear people talking to our dad about how young we are. And how theyre surprised that were doing this. And a lot of people actually like that were doing it.
Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 6 : Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday visited the family of an RSS activist who was murdered by suspected CPI-M workers in Kerala.

Jaitley drove from the airport to the home of E. Rajesh, 34, who was hacked to death a week ago. He met Rajesh's wife, two children and other family members.

On a day's visit to Kerala, Jaitley was received at the airport by leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the state.

Also on Sunday, the CPI-M organised a sit-in protest in front of the Raj Bhavan, the official residence of the Governor P. Sathasivam, asking Jaitley to also visit the families of its cadres who have been allegedly killed by BJP and RSS workers.

Anavoor Nagappan, the Thiruvananthapuram District Secretary of the CPI-M, told the media that those on protest included 21 family members of their activists killed in the state from 1980.

"Jaitley should not just restrict his visit to just the RSS worker's home. All these people who are sitting here have lost their near and dear ones to BJP and RSS workers," he said.

Those who joined the protest included state CPI-M Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and LDF Convenor Vaikom Viswam.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has called a meeting of leaders of political parties in Kerala to discuss ways to maintain peace.
Colombo, Aug 6 : Batsmen Dimuth Karunaratne (136 batting) and Angelo Mathews (28 batting) kept up the Sri Lankan fight against India, posting 302/4 in the second innings by lunch on Day-4 in the second Test here on Sunday.

After losing Malinda Pushpakumara (16) and skipper Dinesh Chandimal (2) during the morning session, Karunaratne and Mathews were unbeaten with a 61-run stand between them when the umpires called for lunch.

For India, spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja scalped one wicket each in the morning session.

Pushpakumara was batting comfortably, hitting three boundaries over the course of a patient 58-ball iniings.

But all the hard word work was undone in a moment of madness when the right-hander decided to reverse his stance to a delivery from Ashwin. His attempted shot missed the ball completely which went on to dusturb the stumps.

Chandimal had a lucky escape off the second ball he faced when he edged an Ashwin delivery to the slips. But Ajinkya Rahane was not able to react quickly enough at first slip and the batsmen went for a couple of runs.

But Rahane did not make any mistake in the next over, diving to his right to pull off a low catch at first slip after Jadeja managed to induce an outside edge from Chandimal.

Karunaratne and Mathews then batted patiently to frustrate the visitors till lunch.

Brief Scores:

Sri Lanka: 183 and 302/4 (Karunaratne 136 batting, Ashwin 1/106) vs India 622/9 declared.
United Nations, Aug 6 : The Security Council has imposed the toughest ever sanctions on North Korea, squeezing the flow of the defiant nation's economic lifeblood to punish it for its nuclear and missile tests.

US Permanent Representative Nikki Haley, who piloted Resolution 2371 on Saturday, called it "the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation".

This is "the single largest economic sanctions package ever levelled against the North Korean regime" and it will result in "the loss of one-third of its exports and hard currency", she added.

The sanctions voted on Saturday seek to block North Korea's exports of coal, iron, iron ore, seafood and lead and prohibit countries from hiring any more of that country's citizens.

It also banned starting new joint ventures with North Korea or expanding existing ones.

Actions against North Korea gained renewed urgency after North Korea tested on July 28 a ballistic missile that experts say could reach major US cities.

North Korea's patron, China, with its veto power in the Security Council, holds to key to any action against Pyongyang.

The sanctions were a triumph for the US that came after Haley worked strenuously to get a reluctant Beijing to agree to further tightening the restrictions on Pyongyang.

Haley acknowledged that China had made "important contributions" for getting the sanctions voted and personally thanked its delegation.

In response, China's ambassador, Liu Jieyi, said the resolution showed that the world was "united in its position regarding the nuclear position on the Korean peninsula".

The measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006.

At a press conference earlier in the week, Liu had assigned Washington blame for the Korean missile crisis and opposed more sanctions against Pyongyang.

Washington had refused to hold talks with Pyongyang and took action and used language that escalated the tension in the region, he said.

While Beijing relented and agreed to some additional sanctions, Liu noted on Saturday that they did not impact such non-military items like food and humanitarian aid and this was affirmed in the sanctions resolution.

China's emphasis on dialogue to deal with the situation was also echoed in the resolution, which called for resuming the Six-Party Talks involving the two Koreas, China, the US, Russia and Japan.

Both Russia and China pitched to the Security Council their joint July 4 proposal for a two-track approach to the North Korean crisis. It called for Pyongyang suspending nuclear and missile tests, while Washington stops major joint military exercises in the region.

Russia's Permanent Representative Vassily Alekseevich Nebenzia said there could be no progress as long as North Korea perceived a direct threat to its security from military exercises by the US and its regional allies and the deployment of the anti-ballistic missile system, Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD).

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in)
Dhaka, Aug 6 : A Bangladeshi construction worker has died from diphtheria in Singapore, a first such case in 25 years, the Health Ministry announced.

The 21-year-old worker was likely to have been infected in Singapore as he had not travelled out of the country recently, the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

The last local case of infection was reported in 1992 while the last imported case was in 1996, Channel News Asia quoted the statement as saying.

The Bangladeshi worker had developed symptoms such as fever and swelling of the neck on July 30.

He sought medical treatment at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital on August 1 and was immediately isolated and hospitalised, the statement said. He died three days later.

So far, 48 people have been identified for further assessment, the ministry added.

Diphtheria is a bacterial infection that can be transmitted from one person to another through close contact, through air droplets from coughing or sneezing. It can cause infection of the airway, breathing difficulties and may lead to death in five to 10 per cent of cases.
Riyadh, Aug 6 : One terrorist was killed and two were detained by Saudi security forces in a raid in Qatif region, the media reported on Sunday.

The terrorists fired upon the police to resist their arrest and one of them was killed in the gunfight, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Saudi police carry various raids and security operations in the region to stop attacks against policemen and civilians by Shia youths who demand more rights in the Sunni conservative state.
New Delhi, Aug 6 : Morocco, a North African nation almost touching Europe, has emerged as an "island of stability" in a volatile region due to its tight control over religion, that includes training ulemas and imams "so that they do not go about preaching wrong things", the country's Ambassador here has said.

Ambassador Mohamed Maliki said it was not enough to leave religious affairs to mosques and preachers and that is why the Moroccan government in the Muslim country, whose basic unity was forged from its diverse influences, has established institutes for "ulemas (preachers) and imams", who now include women as well.

"We think Islam has not been understood the way it should be. It has been used by radicalised people for political reasons," the Ambassador told IANS in an interview.

He said Morocco has emerged as an island of stability in North Africa and was fighting terrorism with a "three pillar" strategy.

"The first one is socio-economic development, because we want to remove the sources and also the causes of the radicalisation. We have understood that most of these people, if not all, are recruited from very poor backgrounds. The socio-economic issue is quite important to alleviate the poverty of people and then also give them a way of decent living," he said.

"The second pillar is the reform of the religious field. Because we in Morocco feel that religious field should be under the authority of the government," said the Ambassador.

"Then the third pillar, of course, is that of intelligence and security. Sharing of intelligence both regionally and internationally. Unless there is serious cooperation and then a strong will from all countries to cooperate, we won't be able to remove the sources of this (terrorism)," he said.

The envoy said Morocco, with its strategic geographical location, could be India's bridge to French-speaking West Africa that has enormous untapped investment potential.

Maliki hailed India as "a great nation" that enjoys a "high profile in Asia" and "has its way of dealing with things".

He said the two countries have come closer to translate their 60 years of diplomatic ties into a "strategic partnership" that would include, in addition to traditional sectors, new areas not covered until now by bilateral cooperation, such as security.

"My objective and idea are to encourage more investment, to explore sectors that have not been explored earlier, like energy. We can also think of maritime issues, blue economy. Why not also in fishing, agriculture, e-governance, education and air links between the two countries," Maliki said.

India could capitalise on the business opportunities in Morocco that lies at the crossroads of continents and only 15 km from Europe.

Ties between the two countries have been growing at a slow pace even as there has been a steady upswing in relations after Morocco King Mohammed VI visited India in 2015 to participate in the India-Africa Forum Summit in New Delhi.

"Morocco has access to more than 1.2 billion consumers free of customs duties," Maliki said, explaining that his country has freight rate agreements with West African nations that give "us access".

Maliki said India and Morocco can partner in sectors like agriculture, renewable energy "in which we are leading in the world now" in terms of capacity.

(Sarwar Kashani can be contacted at sarwar.k@ians.in)
Kolkata, Aug 6 : Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has revealed that he waits every year during Rakhi for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's wishes.

"Every year I wait for an important wish. Didi's Rakhi wishes on Raksha Bandhan day. I am looking forward to that call this year too," Shah Rukh said during a promotional of his latest flick "Jab Harry Met Sejal".

The 51-year-old superstar was accompanied by Anushka Sharma and director Imtiaz Ali.

"I did not have a chance to talk to her since I arrived in Kolkata. I will call her by tomorrow morning."

Shah Rukh suffered an injury before heading to Kolkata and tweeted about it. He said, "Be there in 10 mins. Apologies to keep u waiting had to get a bit of dressing done after a lil hurt. So had to c a doc."

"I am fine now," Shah Rukh later told media.

"It was a love hit as I say it. Some fans during a promotional wanted to shower love and accidentally I got hit on the back and since it was raining it became bad and I had to dress it," Shah Rukh added.
Dhar (Madhya Pradesh), Aug 6 : The health of social activist Medha Patkar and 11 others, who are on an indefinite hunger strike, deteriorated as their fast entered its 11th day on Sunday.

The "Narmada Bachao Andolan" founder began fasting in Dhar's Chikhalda village on July 27, demanding proper rehabilitation and resettlement of those affected by the Sardar Sarovar Project.

Her organisation claims that thousands of houses would face submergence once the gates of the Sardar Sarovar Dam in neighbouring Gujarat were closed.

The state government had sent a delegation to meet with the agitators on Saturday but the talks, which lasted around five hours, were unsuccessful as Patkar demanded that the gates be opened and they expressed their inability in this regard.

Patkar has been gaining support from various political parties and literary organisations, while Janata Dal-United leader Sharad Yadav and former legislator Dr Sunilam are among the many who have urged her to break the fast.

The protest has put tremendous pressure over Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan who is yet to speak to Patkar directly, despite her demanding so.
New Delhi, Aug 6 : A 19-year-old youth was found hanging at his house here after neighbours complained of stench emanating from the building, police said on Sunday.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Milind Mahadeo Dumbere told IANS that the body was found in west Delhi's Jahangirpuri area on Saturday evening and said it prima facie looked like a case of suicide.

There was no one else at the house and the body had been sent for autopsy.
Abuja, Aug 6 : At least eight persons were killed and 18 were injured in an attack on a church in southeastern Nigeria on Sunday, the police said.

The attackers opened fire on the hundreds of worshippers gathered at St. Philip Catholic Church in Ozubulu area of the southeast Anambra state, Xinhua news agency reported.

An eyewitness said that scores of worshipers were killed when gunmen entered the church during the 5.45 a.m. mass, identified a particular man and shot him.

He said the gunmen later went on rampage and opened fire at the remaining worshipers numbering over 100, noting that scores of people were killed on the spot.

State police chief Garba Umar said that so far no arrests have been made and preliminary investigations by the police revealed that the attack was carried out by natives of the area.

The motive behind the shooting remains unclear. The police have launched a manhunt on those behind the attack.

Umar described any insinuation that the attack was carried out by Boko Haram elements as false and urged the people to go about their businesses as usual.
RACINE  Two more candidates have joined the field for the upcoming special mayoral election, bringing the total number of announced candidates to seven.

The two newly filed candidates are Fabi Maldonado and Austin Rodriguez.

Maldonado is the chair of Racines Green Party, while Rodriguez runs The Buddy Shop, an electronics repair shop at 3720 Durand Ave. Maldonado and Rodriguez are joining those who have already announced: former Racine Unified School Board President Melvin Hargrove; state Rep. Cory Mason, D-Racine; former Unified School Board member Wally Rendon; Alderman Sandy Weidner and local media producer Justin Wheeler.

Candidates have until Aug. 22 to submit required paperwork to get their names on the ballot.

The last time there was a special election for Racine mayor  in 2009, after Mayor Gary Beckers resignation  11 candidates made it onto the ballot for the primary.

Maldonado: Event

center opponent

Maldonado has been a vocal opponent of the citys proposed event center plan. He has spoken during multiple public comment portions of City Council meetings to express his opposition to, among other things, raising the citys debt to what he believes is a dangerous level to fund the project.

The city keeps saying its going to bring all of these full-time jobs but the reality is, if you go to any arena, its usually part-time people who work there, Maldonado said. Theres no developers behind the project. Its all going to fall on the taxpayers.

As the leader of the local Green Party, Maldonado unsurprisingly believes Racine should move toward going green. That includes environmental issues, but also local Green Party priorities such as taking on the for-profit prison system and decriminalizing marijuana.

We need to implement whatever we can at the city level to use sustainable energy in the City of Racine, he said.

Maldonado added that he supports protection for undocumented workers.

Our goal is to build the strongest community Racine has ever seen, he said.

Rodriguez wants

to reach millennials

Rodriguezs experience in the tech industry has led him to set priorities for Racine.

I want to bring social media development, cyber security and technology jobs to the city, Rodriguez said. Id work with bigger companies and reach out to them and see if they would move their business into our community.

He added that he wants to provide tax write-off incentives to American companies to choose Racine for their operations.

Rodriguez was set to run in the 2009 special mayoral election, but didnt make it onto the ballot because he collected signatures from residents of Racine County who lived outside the city limits. He said hes learned and accomplished a lot since then.

I went back to school and took courses in macroeconomics and aviation at Gateway, Rodriguez said. I was able to establish my own business and bring it to corporation status.

Rodriguez, 29, also believes inspiring millennials could be a key function of his campaign.

I want to push for millennials to start working again, he said. The morale of our community is drastically diminished.
New Delhi, Aug 6 : A highly decomposed body of an unidentified woman in her late 20s was found in a jute sack here on Sunday morning, the city police said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Romil Baaniya said the police found the body in south Delhi's Sangam Vihar area after being informed around 11.35 a.m. on Sunday.

"A highly decomposed body of a lady was found in a jute bag. Face and all parts of the body were severely decomposed," he said.

Baaniya said the doctors have primarily said that the body was about 20 to 25 days old and the woman was estimated to be between 25 to 30 years of age.

The officer said that the body was found in the jute bag on a vacant plot next to a school.

"CCTV footages of the area for the last one month are being scrutinized for finding some clues. Missing persons' profiles are being scrutinized for identification of the body," Baaniya said.
Mumbai, Aug 6 : Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan on Sunday revealed that he and his wife Kiran Rao are down with swine flu.

The "Dangal" actor, along with his wife, were scheduled to attend the Satyamev Jayate Water Cup, organised by their NGO Paani Foundation, in Pune on Sunday but could only address the attendees via Skype.

"It's a happy day but we are very sad... because after working so hard for a year, when the time came for us to celebrate with you, we got this illness. And the disease we are suffering from is one which spreads rapidly. It's called H1N1 or swine flu in common usage," the 52-year-old Aamir, who looked haggard, said in a video message Aamir said, though Kiran smiled and tried to appear cheerful.

"The problem with swine flu is if I go anywhere, I will give it to other people so we have been forced to stay at home for a week. And that is why we can't be there with you and we're very sad about it."

Aamir asked Shah Rukh Khan to fill in for him who agreed, Smriti Kiran, who was at the event with Anupama Chopra as Kiran Rao's friend and collaborator on MAMI, posted on social media.

"Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao both have swine flu, so couldn't make it for the finale. Both plug into the event via Skype and say that today is Friendship Day, so they requested Shah Rukh Khan to represent them at the Paani Foundation Cup finale," she said.

Anupama Chopra also tweeted: "Big props to SRK for being here! Aamir Khan said today (Aug. 6) is Friendship Day so he reached out to a friend and asked him to take his place.!"

Among the guests at the event were Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Nita Ambani, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Ashutosh Gowariker, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Ram Madhvani and Nagraj Man Jule.

Maharashtra is among the worst-hit states by swine flu, which has claimed the lives of over 300 people since January, including almost 150 during the current monsoon.

Among the affected regions are Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik where many patients are also currently under treatment in various hospitals.
IMT Globaltel LLC, an innovation leader in correctional communications technology and call solutions that connect and preserve the bonds between inmates and their families, today announced the release of JPlay, a Free Prison Book Service.

Steve Williams, CEO of IMT Globaltel, wants the public to know that were being pennywise and pound foolish in our prison systems. We know for a fact that prisoners who maintain close relationships with family and friends return at half the rate of those who dont. Every prisoner costs taxpayers about $40,000 a year. Taxpayers lose thousands as inmates lose the bonds and motivations they need to succeed beyond the prison walls says Williams

IMT Globaltel already offers inmate families a lower cost system to lower the cost of jail calls. But," says Williams, "we know from conversations with customers that they often struggle to find things in common to talk about. Reading together offers one solution. Most correctional facilities now sell inmates an expensive electronic device that contains several thousand approved books. We found a way to provide that same collection of books to every inmates family for free. We believe this new service can help inmates grow as human beings, adopt new philosophies, maintain mental health and most important, maintain close bonds with families thru the power of shared experiences.

In addition to its JPlay.red Book Service, IMT offers its JailMail service, a simple prison compliant service for sending mail to inmates and JailAid.com as a service to assist friends and families find their inmates in the system and connect them with local churches and groups that can help them navigate the obstacles in making contact and visiting inmates.

To learn more about IMT Globaltel LLC or its services, visit http://www.GlobalTel.com or one of its services, http://www.JPlay.red, http://www.uspspostcards.com or http://www.JailAid.com today.

About IMT

IMT GlobalTel is an innovation leader in correctional communications technology and call solutions that connect and preserve the bonds between inmates and their families. IMT services offer financial savings to inmate families. Simple to use services ensure customers young and old can maintain affordable contact with their loved ones. IMT services aid in rehabilitation and the reduction of recidivism rates for inmates. As a trusted industry leader, IMT provides services to correctional facilities in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the largest city/county facilities across the USA. To learn more about IMT, please visit GlobalTel.com.

Press Contact: Steve Williams 561-999-9116 Support(at)Globaltel(dot)com

SOURCE IMT GlobalTel LLC

Related Links

http://www.GlobalTel.com

http://www.JPlay.red

http://www.JailAid.com

http://www.uspspostcards.com
Journey: A Memoir recounts the incredible journey (Donna) Danielewski and her parents endured to bring them to the Land of the Free.

America had been founded on the principles of welcoming immigrants into the country from all hardships, including war. World War II was no exception when thousands of people were displaced and forced to find a new home in the United States. These immigrants were often in terrible situations where they were fleeing for their lives to avoid the war.

One family displaced from the War was Donna Danielewski and her parents. In 1944, they were forced to move to occupied Poland after the German line changed and lived through the horror of the Warsaw uprising. After World War II, her family fled into Allied-held zones and made their way to the United States. Journey: A Memoir recounts the incredible journey Danielewski and her parents endured to bring them to the Land of the Free. It is a vivid reminder how important the United States is to those innocents who need refuge from wars, famines, and other tragedies.

Journey: A Memoir is available on the Infinity Publishing website, Buy Books on the Web. ISBN: 9781495809408. It is 102 pages in standard book trim 5.5" by 8.5" and is available for $9.95.

About Infinity Publishing

Journey: A Memoir is available through Infinity Publishing. It can be purchased at http://www.buybooksontheweb.com and through other online retailers. Infinity Publishing is a leader in the self-publishing industry and has more than 7,000 published authors. The company has been changing the way authors think about self-publishing since 1997. Contact them at:

Buy Books on the Web

1094 New Dehaven St

Suite 100

West Conshohocken, PA 19428

Email: info(at)buybooksontheweb(dot)com

Telephone: 610-941-9999

Toll free: 877-BUY-BOOK (877-289-2665)
Rigaku nano3DX X-ray microscope

X-ray analytical instrument manufacturer Rigaku Corporation is pleased to announce its attendance at the Microscopy & Microanalysis 2017 Meeting (M&M 2017), being held August 6-10, 2017 at America's Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Microscopy & Microanalysis Meeting is the worlds largest scientific gathering of microscopy and microanalysis professionals, academics, technicians, students and exhibitors. A wide range of microscopy and microanalysis techniques and their application to the biological and physical sciences will be presented. X-ray microscopy (XRM) and computed tomography (CT) equipment from Rigaku enable nondestructive analysis of large samples at high resolution. Rigaku, a global leader in X-ray analytical technology, is representing its current XRM and CT solutions at booth 218.

X-ray microscopy is suited to a range of materials, from low-density substances such as biological samples to high-density materials such as ceramics and steels. The Rigaku nano3DX X-ray microscope images an entire sample from multiple angles. In doing so, it can reconstruct a 3D image at 0.27 m resolution. The computer model allows the user to view sections at any point on any plane, providing valuable insights into the structure of the sample.

Another advantage of the nano3DX is its ultra-wide field of view. The nano3DX is able to measure volumes up to 25 times larger in a single scan compared to other systems at similar resolutions in comparable time frames.

Applications for the nano3DX are many and varied, from materials science to electronics and semiconductors to mining and minerals exploration to life sciences and pharmaceuticals.

Also of note is the Rigaku CT Lab GX industrial 3D X-ray micro computed tomography (CT) imager, an ultra-high-speed, high-resolution 3D CT suited for measurements of pharmaceuticals, medical devices, bones, ores, electronic devices, batteries, aluminum castings, and printed circuit boards.

Computed tomography reveals, at high-speed, the high-resolution, three-dimensional structure of an object by means of computer-processed combinations of numerous X-ray images taken from different angles. The CT Lab GX series offers the latest 3D CT technology enabling measurement of industrial products in a short period of time.

A principal feature of the CT Lab GX is its capacity for ultra-high-speed measurement. In 3D mode, a CT scan can be achieved in 8 seconds and image reconstruction in 15 seconds. High-definition 3D observation is possible with a minimum resolution of 4.5m and maximum number of pixels of 80008000 - the largest available compared to other products in the same class.

Two versions are available: the low-powered CT Lab GX90, suited for measurement of subjects such as resins, and the high-powered CT Lab GX130, suited for subjects less penetrable by X-ray beams such as metals.

About Rigaku

Since its inception in Japan in 1951, Rigaku has been at the forefront of analytical and industrial instrumentation technology. Rigaku and its subsidiaries form a global group focused on general-purpose analytical instrumentation and the life sciences. With hundreds of major innovations to their credit, Rigaku companies are world leaders in X-ray spectrometry, diffraction, and optics, as well as small molecule and protein crystallography and semiconductor metrology. Today, Rigaku employs over 1,400 people in the manufacturing and support of its analytical equipment, which is used in more than 70 countries around the world supporting research, development, and quality assurance activities. Throughout the world, Rigaku continuously promotes partnerships, dialog, and innovation within the global scientific and industrial communities.

For further information, contact:

Michael Nelson

Rigaku Global Marketing Group

tel: +1. 512-225-1796

michael.nelson(at)rigaku(dot)com
Dr. Schiller (left) and Dr. Benyamini (right) We are excited to welcome such a talented medical professional as Dr. Benyamini, commented Dr. Schiller. He brings an opportunity to grow this program and provide this unique, life-changing procedure as we move forward for years to come."

Dr. P. J. Benyamini, a talented young surgeon with a reputation for excellence performing intestinal surgery, has joined the surgical team of the renowned Dr. Don J. Schiller, MD, FACS, a surgical pioneer in BCIR (Barnett Continent Intestinal Reservoir) surgery. This alternative to the conventional Brooke ileostomy gives patients control and freedom: freedom from wearing an external pouch or appliance, and control over when they evacuate. It is performed by very few surgeons world-wide. The addition of Dr. Benyamini to Dr. Schillers team gives intestinal surgery patients more opportunity to benefit from this life-changing option immediately and for the long-term. The Continent Ostomy Center and Olympia Medical Center are proud to welcome Dr. Benyamini and are pleased to be one of the few facilities able to provide this procedure.

We are excited to welcome such a talented medical professional as Dr. Benyamini, commented Dr. Schiller. He brings an opportunity to grow this program and provide this unique, life-changing procedure as we move forward for years to come. This provides a tremendous benefit to our patients.

Dr. Benyamini, a Los Angeles area native, received his BS degree with Honors from the University of California, Irvine before attending St. Georges University School of Medicine. Graduating in 2010, he completed his Surgery Residency training at UC Irvine and at the University of Hawaii, and has been in practice in Los Angeles since then. Dr. Benyamini has participated in multiple presentations and publications of journal articles. He has been involved with Surgical Quality programs and has trained to become a national leader in patient safety and quality. From 2000-2006, Dr. Benyamini was a Youth Advisor for young people with Ulcerative Colitis.

About the BCIR: The BCIR is a substantial modification of the Kock Pouch Continent Ileostomy. This alternative to the conventional Brooke ileostomy gives patients control, freedom and an improved quality of life. They are free from wearing an external pouch or appliance to collect waste following removal of the large intestine (colon) and rectum to cure conditions including Ulcerative Colitis, Familial Polyposis syndromes and resulting cancer, as well as other conditions. The BCIR internal pouch with its intestinal valve and collar are all fashioned from the patients own small intestine, and connects to the skin of the lower abdomen with a small stoma. The contents are emptied by painlessly inserting a tube (catheter) through the stoma and into the pouch, evacuating waste into the toilet. No waste or gas comes out of the stoma until the catheter is inserted and the process takes only a few minutes. The stoma is covered by a small patch resulting in no clothing restrictions and expanded freedom of movement and activity.

About Dr. Don J. Schiller: Dr. Schiller has been performing continent ileostomy surgery since 1989. He is a renowned expert in the Barnett type of Kock Pouch (the BCIR) procedure. Dr. Schiller has also performed many revisions of malfunctioning Kock pouches, and has helped patients with a failed ileoanal J Pouch, converting them to the BCIR to avoid a conventional ileostomy.

About Olympia Medical Center: A 204 bed acute care hospital serving the Los Angeles mid-Wilshire and metropolitan geographic population. Since 1948, the Hospital has grown with the surrounding communities and provides the most current patient-friendly technology and patient services. OMC is recognized for outstanding delivery of care in geriatric medicine, spine, orthopedic, ophthalmology, minimally invasive surgical techniques and emergency care. OMC holds the distinction of being a center of excellence for the BCIR Procedure. Outpatient diagnostic and medical services include wound management, ECT, psychiatric IOP services and physical and speech rehabilitation. Our California Digestive Diseases Institute has been recognized with multiple accolades of service. Our guiding principal is Treating People Well and through our skilled, highly respected, caring and dedicated physicians, compassionate nurses and clinicians our hospital continues to be recognized for its achievements in providing outstanding family-centered and compassionate care.
Sensys America Stop On Red Week Aug 6-12 Stop On Red week brings awareness of peoples driving habits to the forefront, something Sensys America does every day through red light camera photo enforcement...shown to change people's driving habits...

Sensys America celebrates National Stop on Red Week beginning August 6th to 12th by encouraging all drivers to pay special attention to slowing down at intersections and stopping at red lights.

During Stop on Red Awareness Week, Sensys America is hoping for a Zero Fatality week. Sensys America is looking forward to one week out of the year when there are zero fatalities from red light running. Sensys America CEO Carlos Lofstedt says, We hope every week is a Zero Fatality week but especially during Stop On Red week!

Stop On Red week brings awareness of peoples driving habits to the forefront, something Sensys America does every day through red light camera photo enforcement, which has been shown to change peoples driving habits in the locations where they are installed.

Accidents from red light running are the most preventable accident, while T-bone crashes from red light running can cause the most injury and deaths. Those hurt or killed are not usually the red light runner but passengers of either both cars, the other driver, pedestrians and cyclists.

Red light running is an extremely selfish act because the driver isnt usually hurt. Its passengers and drivers of other cars, as well as pedestrians and cyclists, who suffer from this self-centered behavior. The long-lasting ripple effect is incalculable because, of course, the families and friends suffer as well, said Carlos Lofstedt. "We hope this week drivers will pay attention as they approach red light intersections and Stop on Red!"

What drivers can do:



Stop On Red.

Where right turn on red is allowed, make a full stop before turning right.

Look both ways before entering an intersection, even on a green light.

Signal Every turn.

Yield to other drivers and to bicyclists and pedestrians.

Being rushed and distracted by other things are some of the causes for red light running. This Stop On Red week, we ask drivers to remember, when theyre behind a car, theyre operating a piece of machinery that needs their full attention.

STOP ON RED EVENT: Meet Sensys America at the City of Orlandos Stop on Red Event August 11th from 9am to 11am at the location of the new Orlando Police Department facility at the intersection of Orange Blossom Trail and West South Street. Also participating will be the City of Orlando Transportation Department, Orlando Stops, Orlando Police Department, Orange County Sheriffs Office, Florida Department of Transportation, National Coalition for Safer Roads, Bike Walk Central Florida and the Florida Highway Patrol.

About Sensys America

Sensys America provides the most tested and widely used photo enforcement systems in the world with advanced technology for traffic safety and a commitment to reducing fatalities to zero. Sensys America, is a privately held company headquartered in Orlando, Florida with a US client base that includes customers in Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Rhode Island and our nations Capital, Washington D.C. Sensys team of photo enforcement experts provides decades of combined experience developing, installing and operating photo red light and speed programs in the United States and throughout the World.

For more information about Sensys America visit http://www.sensysamerica.net

###

Contact:

Matina Vourvopoulos

Cell: 401-999-7909
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SOUTH HERO, Vt.  Abandoned rail lines have been converted into recreation paths all over the United States. But the Island Line Trail in Vermont is unusual: It includes a causeway that runs across the open waters of Lake Champlain, from the Vermont mainland to the island community of South Hero. And that causeway includes a gap to allow boats through.

So how do bikers and others get across the 200-foot gap, known as the cut? An in-season ferry takes them from one side to the other.

It's been more than a half-century since trains used the narrow causeway built on marble and granite blocks around the turn of the 20th century. A rotating bridge once connected the causeway's two sections, with the bridge opening up for the boats that now sail through the gap, but the bridge is long gone. The trip by ferry takes just a few minutes.

The unique trail across the lake is open for walking, running and fishing, but it's mostly used by bicyclists, giving them a chance to practically pedal across the water amid the sailboats and motorboats. From one side of the cut, it's more than 3 miles south to the mainland town of Colchester. From the other side it's just a few hundred yards to South Hero.

New York's Adirondack Mountains are to the west while Vermont's Green Mountains stand to the east. On sunny summer days pleasure boats will dot the water on both sides of the causeway.

"It's absolutely gorgeous," said Julie Lussier, who rode the causeway while visiting the Burlington area for a recent weekend getaway from Montreal. "It's bucolic and I think that the landscape is absolutely amazing. I will recommend the trail, for sure, to my colleagues here and in Montreal."

The only downside to their afternoon on the trail was their choice of bikes. Lussier and Eric Gauthier were riding road bikes with narrow tires meant for pavement while off-road bikes would have been better for the gravel path, they said.

Despite their choice of bikes, the trail made for part of a wonderful weekend of riding and sampling beer from some of Vermont's many microbreweries. "We love the microbreweries," Gauthier said.

The trail can be narrow in places and the sides steep down to the water, requiring passing bicyclists to show courtesy to one another. Anglers carry their tackle onto the rocks to cast their lines into what would otherwise be the middle of the lake.

The causeway is part of the almost-14-mile Island Line Trail, which starts at Burlington's Oak Ledge Park and runs north along the Lake Champlain waterfront at the edge of Burlington's vibrant downtown. A portion of the bike path in Burlington is under renovation this summer, detouring riders onto the city's North Avenue for about 2 miles.

The entire trail is owned by the city of Burlington, the town of Colchester and, north of the cut, the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife. The non-profit group Local Motion manages the trail and owns and manages the bike ferry, coordinating to make sure people who use the trail "don't even notice it has three different ownerships," said Local Motion interim executive director Jason Van Driest. "If you're out there riding you just want a nice experience."

Riders don't have to begin their journey in downtown Burlington. There are lots of places to park and begin a ride, on both sides of the causeway.

For those headed north, from South Hero and Grand Isle, or farther on to North Hero, there are lots of quiet country roads that offer peaceful riding that can be part of a loop back to the ferry.

For the ambitious cyclist, the Island Line Trail map suggests what it calls a "triple ferry loop" that includes the causeway ferry. Northbound riders could then continue north to where the vehicle-carrying Lake Champlain Transportation Inc. ferry crosses Lake Champlain between Grand Isle and Cumberland Head, New York.

From there, cyclists head south along U.S. Route 9 to Port Kent, New York, where they can catch another ferry back the Burlington waterfront. The total trip is about 40 miles with spectacular views of the lake from both sides.

If You Go...

ISLAND LINE BIKE FERRY: http://www.localmotion.org/island_line_bike_ferry . Round-trip tickets: adults, $8; ages 7-17, $5. Children under age 6 are free. Season passes available. Until Labor Day, the bike ferry operates daily 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Between Labor Day and Columbus Day, it operates Friday, Saturday, Sunday and holidays.

TIPS: There are numerous places to park on both sides of the causeway. Local Motion rents bikes in downtown Burlington and free maps are readily available along the trail. For riders interested in the "triple ferry loop," two of the ferry legs are on the separate Lake Champlain Ferries, which carry vehicles and passengers, http://ferries.com/ .
MOUNT PLEASANT  A 23-year-old Racine man was reported to be in critical condition late Saturday night after he was pulled unconscious from Quarry Lake that afternoon after possibly getting entangled in fishing line.

The man was originally transported by South Shore Fire Department paramedics to Ascension All Saints Hospital and then was flown to Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa, the Racine County Sheriffs Office reported.

The call came into the county 911 dispatch center at about 4:36 p.m. The man was pulled to shore by bystanders at the park and they began CPR on the victim. A Racine police officer also assisted.

Sheriffs officials said that the good Samaritan who rescued the man sustained a cut to his arm from a fishing lure that was attached to line that the victim may have been caught on. The Samaritan was transported to the hospital to have the lure removed.

Michael Hackman was grilling with his family when he heard people screaming.

We thought they were playing, Hackman said, but added he quickly realized someone was asking for help so he ran over there. We pulled him out and started doing CPR.

Hackman said he doesnt know how long the man was underwater.

He wasnt breathing at all, he said, adding that first responders arrived quickly. The paramedic said he was breathing a little when they left.

Gregory Hackman helped pull the man out of the water and said he and others reacted within a minute from hearing the cries for help.

When you think about it, it seems like a long time but in reality, from the time we heard it, I would guess 30 seconds went by, Gregory Hackman said. I pray he survives.

The South Shore and Racine fire departments responded to the scene, as did the Sheriffs Office and Racine police.

Sheriffs officials said the mans family was notified of the incident, but they did not release his name Saturday night.
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Zhang Zetian was listed in Chinese New Fortune magazine's top 500 rich list this May, making her the youngest female billionaire in the country. The accolade has been repeated in by Chinese and Hong Kong media like the South China Morning Post newspaper and Jing Daily online magazine.

China is home to many young female billionaires, many of whom are self-made.

Thanks to Zhang's well-groomed Instagram page, we're about learn a little more about her life. Take a look at the slides below to learn more about the young billionaire.

This is 24-year-old Zhang Zetian, who also goes by Nancy.

Zhang first rose to fame in 2009 when a photo of her holding a cup of tea went viral.

Zhang, then in her mid-teens, was given the Chinese nickname Naicha meimei or milk tea little sister.

In 2014, she starred in a promotional video for that summer's Youth Olympics in Nanjing.

She was admitted into Chinas prestigious Tsinghua University in 2011, and spent one year on exchange at New Yorks Barnard College.

It was there that she met her future husband Liu Qiangdong, who is 19 years her senior.

She captioned the above photo "Got photographed by the paparazzi again."

The couple publicly denied their relationship for a long time, saying they were "just classmates," according to New Fortune magazine.

Liu, who also goes by Richard, is the 16th richest person in China.

Liu had the 16th-highest net worth in China last year, according to Forbes' China Rich List. The publication also ranked him the 174th richest billionaire in the world.

He's the founder and CEO of Chinese e-commerce company JD.com  one of Alibabas major competitors.

JD.com had over 236 million active customer accounts in FY 2016, the company's financial statements noted. Alibaba recorded 423 active accounts the year before.

The couple married in August 2015.

News of the nuptials got out thanks this photo of the couple in a Beijing courthouse.

They welcomed their first child  a girl  in March 2016. A few months later, the couple invested in an Australian baby formula company.

Zhang and Liu bought a 17.3% stake in Bubs Australia, The Australian reported.

This wasn't their only personal investment. Zhang and her husband's personal portfolio consist of six companies, including Uber China.

Zhang can be partially credited for JD.com's success, as she helps promote the site's fashion and luxury goods businesses.

The fashion aficionado met industry legend Iris Apfel this April.

Zhang met up with the 95-year-old fashion icon again in New York earlier this week.

She's also mingled with other influential people  such as Bill Gates, Canadian Governor General David Johnston and David Beckham.

Zhang's travels have taken her to Paris, Bordeaux, Cannes, California, Geneva, Milan, Venice and Cambridge  this summer alone.
The option now is a legal challenge to the fees. If that happens then it is for the court to decide what should be done," he told Accra-based Joy News.

He urged university authorities to hold on with the new fees and seek parliamentary approval when MPs reconvene from break.

Don't pay

The University Students Association of Ghana has also weighed in on the matter, urging students not to pay the new fees until parliament approves the amount to be charged.

At a news conference in Accra, the leadership of the association accused management of the various tertiary institutions of charging exorbitant fees.

Currently, some of the institutions are charging more than GHC 2000, a situation which has ruffled feathers amongst students in public universities across the country.

READ MORE: UG students petition Speaker of Parliament against high tuition fees

Students all over the country have commenced campaigns complaining about the surge in prices of fees.

Already, the sector Minister of Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh has requested all institutions to submit their fees for approval.

Emmanuel Kwarteng Frimpong said he doesnt comprehend the reason for the immediate rise the fees and pleaded with heads of the institutions to reduce them.
But it is returning with a bang this year, 2017, following massive support from the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Creative Art and the Ghana 60 Years On Planning Committee.

At the launch of Miss Ghana 2017 held at Kempinski Hotel  Gold Coast City in Accra, Deputy Chief of Staff, Samuel Abu Jinapor, said the government was committed to supporting the pageant.

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the country, and coincidentally the 60th anniversary of the Miss Ghana beauty. Therefore the 60th-anniversary planning committee is in very close collaboration with the organizers of the Miss Ghana beauty pageant, he said.

"There has been a lot of support from people from all walks of life but it is prudent for me to reiterate that we expect all Ghanaians, foreign partners, corporate society, to support the organisation of the pageant, he added.

The Minister of Culture, Tourism and Creative Art, Mrs Catherine Afeku, said Miss Ghana has brought pride to our nation since its inception especially in 2012, 2014 and 2016 when under the patronage of Exclusive Events Ghana three beautiful and ambitious Ghanaian ladies refocused the international spotlight on Ghana.

She also added that, the competition is a life-enhancing opportunity which can jolt one to greater heights and entreated young ladies interested in the pageant to have that strong desire to devote time and resources to contribute their quota to mankind.

The ten (10) regions of our nation uniquely symbolizes our rich heritage, culture and tradition. That is one of the reasons why my office, the Ministry of Tourism (Arts and culture) supports the Miss Ghana brand and the regional tour. It is a rare opportunity to showcase this heritage as represented by the regional queens, she said of the regional events this year.

On her part, the Chief Executive Officer of Exclusive Events Company Limited Inna Marian Patty said the pageant will be going on a ten regional tour to scout for the contestants for this years pageantry.

On her part, Ms Inna Patty, CEO of Exclusive Events stated that, Miss Ghana was initiated to promote our culture, traditions and proud heritage and over the years, it has produced Ghanaian women with exemplary leadership capabilities.
The businessman was initially deported from Ghana but the court called the action of the Immigration Service illegal since no court had determined the allegation leveled against Mr Sivaram.

The Court said there was no valid reason for continues detention of the Indian businessman.

The court, presided over by Justice Kweku T. Ackaah-Boafo, instructed the Service to regularize the stay of Ashok in Ghana if it fails to charge him.

The judge further charged state authorities to protect the rights of the businessman.

Habeas Corpus

Lawyer for Mr Sivaram, Gary Nimako, filed an ex-parte motion seeking an order of Habeas Corpus directed at the respondents.

It is hereby ordered that the respondents shall produce the applicant, who has been detained at the Kotoka International Airport under the direction of the 1 respondent (Ambrose Dery) by 12:00 noon Friday, August 4, 2017 to justify the detention.

It is further ordered that the 3 Respondent (Commander in charge of GIS) shall not remove the applicant from the jurisdiction if ordered by either the 1st or second Respondent (Mr. Takyi) before he is placed before the court.

Hearing

The respondents, represented by lawyer Peter G. Nantuo, said Mr Sivaram was not on detention but came into the country without visa.

Immigration officers rightly or wrongly caused his arrest, he said, adding that the applicant may have arrived in the country improperly.

According to him, the applicant was examined to see if he had the requisite requirement to enter into the country.

Applicants lawyer

Lawyer Nimako bemoaned the treatment of his client who he says has worked in Ghana for 17 years.

According to him, the applicant has employed about 160 Ghanaians in his businesses.

He further told the court that Mr Sivaram is not known to the police as he is law abiding.

Ghana not banana republic

Not satisfied with Mr Nantuos explanation, the judge said Ghana is not a banana republic; this is a country with laws

He continued: If you are going to charge him, charge him; whats the basis for detaining him? Why is he in custody?

He is not the first and wont be the last to arrive in the country without a visa. You have the right to do your work but that has to be anchored within the law.
READ MORE: How Mac Manu was prevented from entering Kenya

But he did not formally disembark from the plane and he was deported back to Ghana.

Commenting on the development and its impact on the diplomatic relation between Nairobi and Accra, Dr Danso told Accra-based Citi FM that deportation is an accepted norm in diplomacy.

Dr Danso, who is also the Dean of the Armed Forces Defence Command and Staff College said he could not comment on whether the Kenya authorities did the right in Mac Manu's deportation.

They [Kenya] invite who they want and disallow who they dont want. Its a bonafide right It is an accepted norm in diplomacy," he said.
Mac Manu, who was prevented from entering the East African nation just three days to the countrys general elections, was billed to share his electoral experience with Kenyas opposition coalition, the National Super Alliance (NASA).

James Orengo, a senior official in the National Super Alliance (NASA) opposition coalition, told Journalists in Nairobi that Mac Manu was prevented from entering Kenya along with another Ghanaians.

He said: Last night, there were two Ghanaians who were coming to help and share their experiences, not as employees but to share experiences with us on how elections were conducted in Ghana.

And as you know, the system of elections to the extent that it depends on electronics is similar to that of Ghana.

And they were removed from their plane, or planes. They did not formally disembark from the plane.

They were taken away by the police and pushed into another plane sending them all to Ghana."

Aside the two Ghanaians who prevented from entering Kenya, two foreigners who were assisting NASA were also deported.

Orengo named the two as John Aristotle Phillips, an American, and Andreas Katsouris, a Canadian.

Phillips is chief executive officer of Aristotle Inc, a Washington-based data mining firm and political consultancy, while Katsouris is a senior vice president in the company.

Aristotle spokeswoman Brandi Travis confirmed the deportation.

"We have for years worked on pro-democracy campaigns. They were helping NASA's candidate," Raila Odinga, Travis said.
In a speech at this year's Asafotufiam Festival in Ada, Mr Rawlings suggested that a radical approach is the only way to get the capital clean.

He said, "You are lucky the position given to me is just a ceremonial one. If I was acting in the actual capacity, I would jail about three to five people a week till Accra becomes clean again.

It is disheartening and very unpleasant. Those who collect rubbish come to dump them at the roadside. Lets be a little more patriotic by arresting these persons and teach them a lesson.

In a moving speech, Mr Rawlings, who often talks passionately about the environment, said diseases are prevalent in the country because of citizens attitude toward sanitation.

READ MORE: AMA provides avenue to report cases of pile of refuse in the city
Speaking to Joy News, Mr Boadu said Mac Manu was leading an election observer team, denying that he was there to effect a regime change.

READ MORE: How Mac Manu was prevented from entering Kenya

He said: "I had a wind of what happened at the Airport. It is unfortunate that a country like Kenya that has been evolving will engage in something like this.

They were the first country to have experienced the use of law court to settle election dispute.'

Mac Manu is a member of the Democratic Union of Africa which is a sub body of the bigger body of the International Democratic Union.

It is rather unfortunate that the Kenya authorities will behave like that.

I dont know what the motive was. Whatever it was, it was wrong."

Mac Manu was prevented from entering the East African nation on Friday ahead of the country's general elections.

James Orengo, a senior official in the National Super Alliance (NASA) opposition coalition, told Journalists in Nairobi that Mac Manu was prevented from entering Kenya along with another Ghanaian.

He said: Last night, there were two Ghanaians who were coming to help and share their experiences, not as employees but to share experiences with us on how elections were conducted in Ghana.

And as you know, the system of elections to the extent that it depends on electronics is similar to that of Ghana.

And they were removed from their plane, or planes. They did not formally disembark from the plane.
He was appointed to the position in an acting capacity in January when President Nana Akufo-Addo assumed office in 2017.

He was later confirmed as the substantive IGP after the formation of the Council of State.

As the experienced forensic expert gets set to bow out of active service, there are reports that his contract may not be extended as was the case for his three immediate predecessors.

Under former presidents John Evans Atta Mills and John Mahama, extending the contracts of retiring IGPs was the norm.

Paul Tawiah Quaye, Mohammed Ahmed Alhassan and John Kudalor all had two years contract extension.

The Herald newspaper, quoting multiple sources in the Flagstaff House and the Police Service, said President Nana Akufo-Addo has decided not to extend Asante-Apeatus stay in office with a contract offer.

The pro-opposition newspaper said the Director-General of the Criminal Investigations Department, COP Bright Oduro, is trying to catch the eye of the Flagstaff House through raids on the homes of former government officials.
READ MORE: Two NDC groups clash over Mahama at press conference

In a strongly worded statement, the group said the utterances, actions and inactions" of the former president led to the partys historic defeat in 2016.

It said: The very utterances, actions, and inactions of Former President John Dramani Mahama led us into this conundrum and he remains an electoral liability in 2020 and the near future.

Therefore, our victory ahead of 2020 is not guaranteed with him despite the false-starts of the Nana Addo-Bawumia Government.

BBN, which claims to be a composition of ordinary NDC members across the country, joins a list of new anti-Mahama bodies in the NDC.

READ MORE: NDC suspends three constituency executives

The NDC Action Movement, is another group in the NDC that is against the second coming for former president Mahama.
According to new data compiled by international lingerie brand Bluebella, there is a new highest-earning supermodel in Britain  earning an epic 8-million-a-year salary, or 22,000 a day.

Bluebella calculated the estimations based on the models' catwalk day rates and commercial deals.

So from David Gandy and Naomi Campbell, to some fresh-faced newcomers, scroll down to find out who were the highest-billing models in Britain last year.

The ranking is in ascending order, based on the estimated amount of cash they brought in with contracts over the last year.

10. Lottie Moss  1 million. Kate Moss' younger sister is the newest model to make the list. The 19-year-old 'it girl' is signed to Storm, the agency that discovered Kate. She earned her cash modelling for big names such as Calvin Klein.

9. Erin O'Connor  1.5 million. 39-year-old O'Connor is a veteran British model, she has worked for Giorgio Armani, Julien Macdonald and Jean-Paul Gaultier. Karl Lagerfeld described her as 'one of the best models in the world.'

8. Jourdan Dunn  1.75 million. 26-year-old single mother Dunn was scouted aged 15 while shopping in Primark in London. She has been in campaigns for the likes of Selfridges, River Island, Banana Republic, and Benetton.

7. Edie Campbell  2 million. Lesser known Campbell, 26, is a firm favourite with Vogue, she has also modelled for Chanel, Burberry and Hermes.

6. Georgia May Jagger  2.5 million. Mick Jagger's youngest daughter, 25-year-old Georgia May is famous for her smile, which makes her one of the most distinctive models in the world. She has high-paying deals with Rimmel, among other brands.

5. Naomi Campbell  3 million. 47-year-old Campbell is still a big name in the industry after being at the top for three decades. She is still in demand with labels like Gap, who signed her in February 2017.

4. David Gandy  4 million. 37-year-old Gandy is the only man to make the top 10. He makes his millions thanks to a string of lucrative deals which involve being the face of Marks & Spencer men's underwear and loungewear, as well as Dolce & Gabbana's new Light Blue fragrance.

3. Kate Moss  5 million. Kate, the queen of the catwalk, lost her place as Britain's highest paid supermodel this year. The 43-year-old's earnings have dipped after she dumped her long-term model agency Storm to go it alone.

2. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley  6.5 million. The 30-year-old new mum came in as the UK's second highest paid model. She has 7.6 million followers on Instagram and has earned lucrative contracts for Rosie for Autograph make-up and underwear ranges with Marks & Spencer.
Yet one more book on John F. Kennedy has appeared, this time focusing on the 1960 presidential campaign. The Road to Camelot by veteran reporters Curtis Wilkie and Thomas Oliphant is worth attention. The volume reflects traditional journalism, with readable prose, serious research and analysis relevant today.

That alone is refreshing, as we are bombarded by contemporary nonstop media, which sometimes mingle fiction and fact. Traditional news reporters treated confirmed facts as their holy grail. The analogy is not strained. Crafting a fine, reliable column  or book  generated respect as well as knowledge among Americans. Too often today, corporate media sacrifice professionalism for profits, serious analysis for sensationalism.

Yet politics at some level has always involved manipulation of the existing media, the creation of an image which might or might not comport with reality. The 1960 Kennedy presidential campaign gave maximum attention to creating a not-always accurate image of the candidate. JFK was competing for the nomination with far more established  and respected  party leaders.

Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson was enormously powerful in Washington, feared as well as admired for long-term dominance in the legislative branch. Senator Hubert Humphrey likewise had a well-deserved reputation for policy effectiveness in civil rights, foreign aid and other fields. As for Kennedy, he was widely regarded as not very effective, in part because directly seeking the presidency was a constant priority.

The Road to Camelot is serious work, but also reinforces a distinctively positive, selective picture of Kennedy. The title gives this away. The Kennedy administration was given this label posthumously, by widowed Jacqueline Kennedy in an early interview with highly sympathetic journalist Theodore H. White.

Kennedys presidential ascent was orchestrated significantly by his father Joseph P. Kennedy, enormously successful in business, a disastrous failure as ambassador to Great Britain, controversial throughout. JFK went the hard public route of presidential primaries. The campaign emphasized that dimension, and so does this book.

Meanwhile, behind the scenes, Joe Kennedy relentlessly courted and won over traditional politicians including big-city bosses, who were still powerful  though their days were numbered. The book tends to glide over this rough dimension, at times dismissing his efforts.

Joe Kennedy recognized clearly the enormous influence of modern media. Early on, he made a fortune in the movie industry. Were going to sell Jack like soap flakes, he declared regarding his sons political career. John C. Dowd was an impressive advertising entrepreneur, a successful Irishman in a largely Anglo-dominated business (one accurate theme in TVs simplistic Mad Men). Dowd was subsumed by Joe Kennedy.

During the intense fall U.S. presidential contest, Kennedy and Vice President Richard M. Nixon made history, and changed history, by debating face to face on nationwide TV  and also radio. The first faceoff between the two presidential nominees, in September in a Chicago CBS studio, eventually redefined American presidential politics in terms of how party nominees compete.

A little-known precedent to these debates was a radio debate in 1952 between powerful Senator Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts and his widely dismissed challenger, young Congressman Kennedy. Nationwide, Republicans led by Dwight Eisenhower swept to landslide victory. One of the few Democratic wins was Kennedys upset defeat of Lodge.

John Kennedy was a pivotal, transitional figure in American politics. Old-fashioned machine politics was vital to securing the nomination, but so were primary victories. The Kennedy organization fully understood the medias power. Oliphant and Wilkie describe, and also represent, the phenomenon.
Cable, who was appointed leader of the Lib Dems last month, writes that Britain's older generation "completely shafted the young" when 64% of them voted for Britain to leave the European Union in June last year. In comparison, 71% of under-25s voted Remain.

"The old have comprehensively shafted the young," the MP for Twickenham says.

"And the old have had the last word about Brexit, imposing a world view coloured by nostalgia for an imperial past on a younger generation much more comfortable with modern Europe."

In his article, Cable highlights the generational divide the referendum made clear, and how he was "struck by the heavily Remain sentiment in colleges and schools, and the heavily Brexit mood of church-hall meetings packed with retired people."

While young people will now be faced with being unable to buy property, growing job insecurity, and limited career progression, older people have relatively less to lose, he claims.

He also expresses concern about the "violence" of some language that has been used to discuss Brexit.

"We haven't yet heard about 'Brexit jihadis' but there is an undercurrent of violence in the language which is troubling," he writes. "We have already had the most fervent of Brexiteers, such as Nigel Farage, warning of civil unrest if the 'will of the people' is frustrated."

Last month, Cable told Business Insider that Britain may opt to stay in the EU despite the result of the referendum.

"We are faced with a stark choice between crashing out of the EU with a no deal or a very bad deal, or on the other hand going back to membership," he told BI. "That's why my party argues that we should have a further vote on this. That didn't resonate with voters at this year's election. We all know that. It was premature and people thought we were harking back to the last one. But in two years time when it's very clear what the economic impacts are I think the public will welcome that kind of option."
What it did not expect, however, was an earnest letter from nine-year-old Jack Davis: a fourth-grader who wrote the space agency asking if he could apply.

The new job opening, which Business Insider first publicized in a story on Tuesday, pays up to $187,000 and is for NASA's one and only full-time planetary protection officer  a role established in 1967.

The role is not only responsible for protecting alien worlds like Europa (an icy, ocean-hiding, and potentially habitable moon of Jupiter) from germs on human-launched spacecraft, but also defending the Earth from contamination by alien microbes.

But enamored by the possibilities, Davis  a self-described "Guardian of the Galaxy"  summoned the courage to write and address a letter to NASA on Thursday.

The full text of Davis' letter, which NASA posted in a press release on Friday, reads:

"Dear NASA,

My name is Jack Davis and I would like to apply for the planetary protection officer job. I may be nine but I think I would be fit for the job. One of the reasons is my sister says I am an alien. Also, I have seen almost all the space movies and alien movies I can see. I have also seen the show Marvel Agents of Shield and hope to see the movie Men in Black. I am great at vidieo [sic] games. I am young, so I can learn to think like an alien.

Sincerely,Jack DavisGuardian of the GalaxyFourth Grade"

The space agency could have easily dismissed the letter with a chuckle, but planetary science director Jim Green decided to type, sign, and mail a note back to Davis.

Here's a screenshot of Green's letter:

The full text reads:

"Dear Jack,

I hear you are a 'Guardian of the Galaxy' and that you're interested in being a NASA Plantary Protection Officer. That's great!

Our Plantary Protection Officer position is really cool and is very important work. It's about protecting Earth from tiny microbes when we bring back samples from the Moon, asteroids and Mars. It's also about protecting other planets and moons from our germs as we responsibly explore the Solar System.

We are always looking for bright future scientists and engineers to help us, so I hope you will study hard and do well in school. We hope to see you here at NASA one of these days!

Sincerely,Dr. James L. GreenDirector, Planetary Science Division"

The space agency didn't stop there, however.

Jonathan Rall  NASA's planetary research director  also rang up Davis "to congratulate him on his interest in the position," NASA said in the release.

"Although the Planetary Protection Officer position may not be in real-life what the title conjures up, it does play an important role in promoting the responsible exploration of our solar system by preventing microbial contamination of other planets and our own," NASA added.

NASA is accepting applications at USAJobs.gov from July 13 through August 14.
The prosecutor, ASP Mireti Wilson, told the court that the accused committed the offence on Nov. 28, 2016 at about 3:50.a.m within Osogbo metropolis in Osun.

Wilson said the accused was arrested while conveying the 22 goat in a bus with registration number KJA 178 XE, and was unable to give satisfactory explanation of the ownership of the animals.

He said the offence contravened sections 517 and 430(1) of the criminal code cap 34 vol.11 laws of Osun, 2003.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge and his counsel, Mr Ato Atobatele, prayed the court to grant him bail in the most liberal terms.

The Magistrate, Mrs Olubukola Awodele, granted the accused bail in the sum of N50,000 with two sureties in like sum.

Awodele said the sureties must reside within the court jurisdiction, show evidence of tax payment, attach affidavit of means and provide two passport size photographs.
The accused, who resides at Unguwa Uku Quarters Kano, is facing one-count charge of defilement.

The prosecutor, Insp. Pogu Lale, told the court that one Musa Abubakar of the same address reported the case at Unguwa Uku Police Division Kano, on July 15.

He said that on the said date at about 4 pm, the accused deceived and lured the complainants 10-year-old son into his room and had canal knowledge of the boy without his consent.

The prosecutor said that the offence contravened section 284 of the penal code.

The accused however pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Dr. Ekaete Umoh, its Medical Officer, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Minna that the victims were boys and girls aged between 12 and 15.

The officer said, however, that families of victims had often hindered the prosecution of offenders.

Families of victims have often stood on the path of prosecution officials. In some cases, they refuse to appear. When they choose to appear, they withhold information that is crucial to nailing the perpetrators, she said.

According to Umoh, many parents or guardians of victims usually prefer to settle out of court, instead of allowing justice to take its full course.

She said that the cases involved the rape of young girls and forceful anal sex on young boys.

In one of the most recent cases, a man in his mid 40s, who is married to two wives with seven children, had anal sexual intercourse with four boys, paying N100 to each of them after every encounter.

He has confessed to penetrating three of the children three times, while one suffered four penetrations.

So far, both the suspect and the victims have been screened for sexually transmitted disease, she said.

Umoh said that the matter was being investigated, adding that the suspect would be arraigned as soon as investigation is completed.
He, however, pleaded innocence of the charge preferred against him.

The Prosecutor, Insp. Chinalu Uwadione, told the court that the accused on Dec. 1, 2016 till July 30, had falsely represented himself as the traditional ruler of Maiyegun community in Eti-Osa, Lagos.

He told the court that the accused impersonated as a traditional ruler and has brought thugs to harass and intimidate the members of the Maiyegun community who did not recognise and bow to his authority.

The offences, according to the prosecutor, contravene Section 168(d) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

The Chief Magistrate, Mrs Oluyemisi Adelaja, granted Maiyegun bail in the sum of N100,000 with one responsible surety in like sum.
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Musa, who resides at Saje Village in Bichi Local Government Area of the state, is being tried on a one count charge of rape.

The Chief Magistrate, Muhammad Jibril, ordered the remand of the defendant in prison custody and adjourned the case to August 10 for mention.

Earlier, the prosecutor, Insp. Pogu Lale, had told the court that one Bashir Ado of the same address reported the case at Bichi police Division on July 27.

The defendant deceived and lured her into his shop situated at Saje Village and forcefully had unlawful sexual intercourse with her, he said.
Today, Sunday, August 6, 2017,

The police have also confirmed that 18 people were injured in the massacre.

According to the Commissioner of Police, Mr Garba Umar, the person responsible for the bloody act is most likely an indigene of the state.

From our findings, it is very clear that the person who carried the attack must be an indigene of the area," said Umar.

Additionally, he said, We gathered that worshippers for 6 oclock Sunday mass at St. Philip Ozobulu were in the service when a gunman dressed in black attire covering his face with a cap entered the church and moved straight to a particular direction and opened fire.

The man after shooting at his targeted victims still went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding other worshippers."

The commissioner also revealed that the gunman spoke in undiluted Igbo. No arrest has been made yet.

While millions of Nigerians are wondering what could have led to this act of murder in the House of God, a Twitter user @isinmiri claims to know the reason behind it.

According to @isinmiri, the story involves a man named Bishop who was dealing with drugs in South Africa with the rest of his gang.

Bishop would leave the gang and take away the gang member's money. This move annoyed the gangsters and they took revenge by killing those loyal to Bishop in Nigeria.

Bishop who had absconded with the money came back to Nigeria and used some of it to build the St. Philips Catholic Church allegedly.

Word got back to the gang and decided to strike against Bishop during the Thanksgiving service which was meant to hold today.

Isinmiri claims Bishop knew about the hit and decided not to show up. His father and other members of his extended family however attended. Bishop's father was among those who were killed today reportedly.

There is no substantial evidence to prove this story from the Twitter user.
On Thursday, August 3, 2017, a magistrate court in Lagos arraigned 42 suspected homosexuals who were recently arrested at a hotel located at Owode Onirin.

The court confirmed that the group were on July 29, 2017, caught in the act of homosexuality, punishable under the Lagos State criminal law.

The presiding judge, Chief Magistrate Adewale Ojo granted the accused bail in the sum of N500,000 following their not-guilty plea.

It seems my dear country has a knack for producing baffling and downright sad stories. Nigeria is a shock-jock country just like shock jocks on American radio. Shock jocks are on-air-personalities who express deliberately controversial opinions to offend or provoke people. Nigeria is a shock jock nation.

It is sort of puzzling that our dear Nigerian Police Force has weighed the scales and determined that is more important to arrest alleged homosexuals instead of cracking bigger issues.

The last time we all checked, the cult gang known as Baddo is still doing its thing. The respectable detectives in the NPF are more concerned with who sleeps with who than men of the underworld who are committing mass murders in Ikorodu.

All of a sudden, our police officers have become super detectives who deem it fit to arrest alleged gays and ignore hardened criminals. What a sense of priority.

You don't have to support homosexuality to get what I am driving at. If our police officers think it is more important to catch men who like men and not bother about murderers and rapist, then we are in big trouble. The police should not be concerned with people's sexual preferences and orientations. But this is Nigeria.

Let's leave our friends who collect N50 at every check point and focus on the judiciary. Our legal system that has shown it lacks the moral conviction to trial alleged corrupt politicians has all of a sudden sprang up to deliver justice on men who haven't killed or stolen.

The Nigeria legal system is notoriously slow and indecisive when it comes to political cases dealing with corruption. Remarkably it is fast and swift when it comes to an issue such as this.

We don't have our priorities set straight in this country. Alleged gay men who haven't disturbed anyone, who haven't threatened to secede, who haven't killed families or put bombs on children are now our main focus. You don't have to accept homosexuality to understand we are not well in this country. Yes homosexuality is illegal but so also is corruption.

It's easier for gay people to see the four walls of a court room than a corrupt politician. We have no sense of direction.

People's sexual orientation shouldn't be of public interest anyway. Who you choose to love and how you choose to love is between you and your maker and not the state.
This was made known by the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig. Gen. Sani Usman, in a statement released on Saturday, August 5, 2017.

The Army spokesman also said the appeal to religious, traditional and community leaders was consequent upon some revelations made by some arrested suicide bombers.

He said, The Nigerian Army wishes to appeal to religious, traditional and community leaders, as well as all well-meaning Nigerians, especially in the North-East of our country, to help dissuade people from donating their daughters or wards to Boko Haram terrorists for indoctrination and suicide bombing missions.

ALSO READ: Army appeals for information on terrorists' hideout

This appeal became expedient in view of recent revelations by some intercepted female suicide bombers during interrogations. It was discovered that most of these hapless minors were donated to the terrorist sect by their heartless and misguided parents and guardians, as part of their contribution to the perpetuation of the Boko Haram terrorists dastardly acts against the Nigerian society and humanity.

The acts of these parents and guardians are not only barbaric, but condemnable and unacceptable. Nigerians have a responsibility and obligation to collectively mould our children and wards.
In a report by Punch, the dreaded sect have deployed the girls strapped with locally made Improvised Explosive Devices to internally displaced persons camps as well as Muna Garage, Mammanti village, Jiddari Polo, Ummarari and Dalori, all in Borno State.

The report also indicated that the figure was sourced from the military anti-insurgency operation, Operation Lafiya Dole, the National Emergency Management Agency and the Borno State Police Command.

The report further broke down the statistics of the suicide attack as at least 15 in a month between January 2017 and July 2017.

January 2017:

At least 15 girls died; On January 16, two female bombers were killed in Baran Kaura village, Borno, while two other girls were killed in Kalari area, while trying to gain entry into a mosque.

February 2017:

10 casualties were recorded; two female bombers died behind the Mega Filling Station, along Maiduguri-Damboa Road, while on February 17 and 24, four female bombers were killed in Muna Dalti and Banki areas, respectively.

March 2017:

An estimated 15 deaths of the female bombers were recorded; two female bombers killed on March 13, while attempting to enter Maiduguri through Ummarari area, while four female bombers died after detonating in Usmanti area along Muna Garage, two days after.

April 2017:

Two female bombers died in a mosque in the Jiddari Polo area, while on April 26, NEMA confirmed the death of four female bombers, who attacked Muna Garage and Muna Usmanti areas of Borno.

May 2017:

On May 3, three teenage female bombers were killed, while trying to attack a military base known as Gontanamo in the Muna Garage area. The corpses were evacuated by NEMA workers.

June 2017:

30 girls were killed; Four female bombers died on June 19 in the Dalori IDPs camp and Dalori Kofa village, after killing 16 people.

July 2017:

30 girls were killed; There was a further upsurge in the spate of female suicide bomb attacks, also attested to by the police and the army authorities.

The Borno State Police Command on July 12 confirmed the death of four female suicide bombers who detonated at a funeral, killing 12 Civilian Joint Task Force members and injuring 23 other persons.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the state Police Commissioner, Mr Garba Umar, had confirmed that eight worshippers died and 18 others were injured in the early morning attack.

The chairman of the council, Igwe Chukwuemeka Ilouno, told NAN in Enugu on Sunday that he read the news online.

Ilouno, who said he was speaking on behalf of the other traditional rulers, said he and his colleagues were shocked and saddened when they heard the news.

It is shocking and barbaric that people that went to church in the early hours of today met such a calamity.

What we use to hear and read happening in distance land is now happening in our quiet and peaceful Anambra State.

It is regrettable that such news of evil and spill of blood should emanate from Anambra State.

Our people are not known for spilling of blood as we value human lives, he said.

He commiserated with Gov. Willie Obiano, the Catholic Church, Ozubulu community as well as the families of the deceased and injured.

ALSO READ: Police confirm death of 8 church worshippers, 18 injured

Earlier, the Parish Priest of St. Philips Catholic Church, Rev. Fr. Jude Onwuaso, said the attack took place at about 6.30 a.m. during Mass.

According to the priest, an unidentified man came into the Church, shot at a man, Chief Akunwafor Ikegwuonwu, before shooting sporadically at other worshippers.

An eyewitness, who identified herself as a choir member, said the church was dark as there was no light.
In a report by Punch, the new militant group noted that it would begin fresh attacks because the government is yet to make true its promises while Edwin Clark and Pan Niger Delta Forum are failing the region.

Our grievance with government is that after the consolatory statement of the government by Professor Osinbajo, nothing is on ground to show sincerity by government, the Crusaders spokesman said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the PANDEF group had issued a November 1, 2017 ultimatum, after Clark said if its demands arent met it will pull out of peace talks with government.

The boys are impatient and they have been disturbing me with a series of telephone calls and messages, with some of them even giving notices to disown us, Clark had said.

However, the ultimatum was withdrawn after the group met with government representatives led by Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday, August 3, 2017.

Clark said: No more ultimatum. We agreed on many things. We are satisfied. We have agreed to work together

The presidency said in a statement that long-standing grievances were being addressed, including the opening of the maritime university by next year and approval of two modular refineries for each of the states in the region.

ALSO READ: Militants threaten to resume pipeline bombings

The annual budget for ex-rebels was doubled while funds have also been approved for the clean-up of devastated Ogoniland.

Gail Anderson, lead Nigeria analyst at energy consulting firm Wood Mackenzie, simply said the militants are only concerned with cash inflow and as long as the tap is opened, there will be relative peace.

He said: Government announced in March there will be $10 billion of investment in the Niger Delta, but of course money is tight and it will be a while before people notice any investment, so there is bound to be pressure,.

As long as money keeps flowing then the militants will stay quiet. If the money stops flowing then things could flare up again.

Despite the renewed talks between the FG and Edwin Clark led PANDEF, some militants are already calling for an immediate end to the negotiations and a return to violence
The Commissioner of Police, Mr Garba Umar, revealed that the remains of the dead worshippers had been deposited at Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital Nnewi, while the injured victims were taken to the hospital.

Garba also said that preliminary investigations by the police revealed that the attack was carried out by a native of the area.

From our findings, it is very clear that the person who carried the attack must be an indigene of the area.

We gathered that worshippers for 6 oclock Sunday mass at St. Philip Ozobulu were in the service when a gunman dressed in black attire covering his face with a cap entered the church and moved straight to a particular direction and opened fire.

The man after shooting at his targeted victims still went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding other worshippers, he said.

ALSO READ: Gunman kill Catholic church members during morning mass

The commissioner said information available to police showed that the attacker was speaking undiluted Igbo Language at the time he was firing at worshippers.

Umar said though no arrest had been made but that the police already learnt that the attack followed a quarrel between two natives of Ozubulu residing overseas.
The news of the development is coming just as the Commissioner of Police, Garba Umar informed that the death toll in the attack on worshippers has increased to 11 and 18 injured.

Umar, who spoke at a news conference in Awka on Sunday, August 6, 2017, ruled out the possibility of a terror attack saying that the command had invited some suspects who would be useful for the investigation.

In his words: At about 6.30 a.m. today, Aug. 6, I got a distress call that gunmen had invaded and shot at worshippers at St. Philips Catholic Church, Umuezekwe, Ofufe, Amakwa Village in Ozubulu, Ekwusigo Located Government Area.

As a result, I, the Commissioner of Police, led my operatives immediately to the scene to rescue worshippers.

The command, under my watch, will leave no stone unturned in locating and prosecuting those behind the massacre of innocent worshippers.

ALSO READ: Police confirm death of 8 church worshippers, 18 injured

The intelligence report and preliminary investigation showed that the incident was as a result of a feud between two individuals from the same community living outside Nigeria.

One of the individuals built the church where the shooting occurred; it is definitely not a terrorist attack in the mould of Boko Haram or Fulani herdsmen attack.

The command will brief the public after investigation is concluded; I commiserate with all those who lost their loved ones in this unfortunate incident.
The 2550 hectares of land secured for the farming activities , Pulse gathered, have been oversubscribed to by young farmers in the state.

The State Commissioner for Agriculture, Bamidele Adegoke, who disclosed this in Ilorin, expressed delight that more youth are showing interest in agriculture. He added that people need to consider agriculture as a business venture.

Adegoke also clarified that the State government is not acquiring land from communities for the estate farm development, but collaborating with communities that are willing to provide land for farming activities.

He listed the communities where the government had secured land for the estate farms to include Oke-oyi, Ejidongari, Esie, Agbamu, Reke, Malete, Alateko, Ekan, Ballah, Isin, Share, Shonga, Bode-Saadu and Owode-Ofaro.

The Commissioner said over 1000 farmers are targeted to be empowered and settled on the estate farms, adding that women and unemployed youths would be given priority.

According to him, the Estate Farm initiative is unique because it ensures ease of administration, monitoring and allows the government to ensure adequate security for the farmers and their farm produce.

ALSO READ: Presidential Committee says FGs production of 1m tonnes of fertiliser is achievable

He added that the farmers enjoy subsidies on land clearing and land preparation, which eventually brings down the cost of production.

In a related development, the Special Adviser to the governor on Agriculture and Rural Water Support Services, Mr. Anu Ibiwoye disclosed that the N1b loan facility approved yesterday by the State House of Assembly, will be disbursed to peasant farmers across the 16 local governments of the State.

He explained that the loan facility is to be obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) under its Anchor Borrowers programme, stressing that the State government is standing as guarantor for the farmers to enable them access the fund.
The emergence of the new leadership came after the Kano APC delegates conducted a consensus Congress into 15 vacant positions of the party at the Indoor Hall of the Sani Abacha Stadium on Saturday.

News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the new party executives were sworn in by the Attorney-General of the state shortly after the results were announced.

Prince Nwafor Orzu, the Chairman of the Kano Congress while announcing the results said, Abdullahi Abbas scored 2,813 to emerge the chairman after some 2,800 delegates cast their votes in accordance with the APC Congress Guidelines.

NAN also reports that the event was witnessed by Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje, as well as some party leaders including Sen Kabiru Gaya and Sen Barau Jibril-Maliya from Kano North and Kano South senatorial districts respectively.

Ganduje, who, signed the swearing note alongside the newly elected chairman shortly after the leaders were sworn in noted that the election was meant for 15 vacant positions that needed to be filled.

He said: This is not a general party congress but an election to replace key positions that were vacant for sometimes now and we give glory to God for giving us the opportunity to conduct it peacefully without any problem.

I assured you (party members) that APC will continue to remain united in Kano because we are committed to blocking any leakage that may likely create a problem for us.

ALSO READ: 15 vacant positions up for grabs at APC Congress in Kano

The chairman of the screening committee, Mr Nadu Yahaya explained that the committee screened 15 candidates into the vacant positions unopposed.

Based on the mandate given to us by our great party, the APC, we have screened a total number of 15 candidates who were elected to ensure the success of our party in Kano.
It took place on a shooting range, and could also have been the result of a gun misfiring, the statement added.

"The injured were transported to a medical centre and an investigation has been opened," it said.

State television reported a similar incident last month when a serviceman opened fire at a barracks in Abyek, around 40 kilometres northwest of Tehran, killing three and injuring six.

The gunman in that incident, who had reportedly been denied a transfer to his home town, shot himself but survived his injuries, according to the ISNA news agency.
It briefly tailed the Aquarius, operated by French group SOS Mediterranee, one of several NGO boats conducting search and rescue operations in an area notorious for deadly migrant boat sinkings.

Having left Cyprus on August 1, the 40-metre (130-foot) vessel was thought to be in need of supplies: but the fishermen in the southeastern Tunisian port of Zarzi had other ideas.

"If they come here we'll close the refuelling channel," Chamseddine Bourassine, the head of the local fishermen's organisation, told AFP.

"It is the least we can do given what is happening out in the Mediterranean," he added.

"Muslims and Africans are dying."

An official at the port, who asked to remain anonymous, said: "What? Us let in racists here? Never!"

10,000 dead

The C-Star headed straight from Cyprus to Libyan waters after being discouraged from attempting to dock en route in Greece and Sicily, with authorities concerned about the prospect of protests.

The self-styled "Defend Europe" mission has had a chequered history to date.

Their boat was held up for a week in the Suez Canal by Egyptian authorities looking for weapons.

Then, after it landed in the Cypriot port of Famagusta last month, several of its crew jumped ship and asked for asylum in Europe -- exactly the kind of thing the mission was set up to prevent.

The C-Star crew say their main goal is to expose collaboration between NGO rescue ships and the traffickers who launch boats packed with migrants from Libya.

Humanitarian groups say Generation Identity is engaged in a potentially dangerous publicity stunt.

Since the start of 2014, some 600,000 people from Africa, the Middle East and South Asia have been rescued from traffickers' boats and taken to Italy.

Over 10,000 have died en route and serial sinkings have resulted in privately funded or charity-run boats joining a multinational search and rescue operation coordinated by Italy's coastguard.

NGO boats have rescued around one third of the nearly 100,000 people picked up this year, but their relations with Italy have become strained as pressure to stem the flow of migrants has mounted.

Squalid camps

Critics say the NGOs make it too easy for the traffickers to guarantee would-be migrants safe passage to Europe, allegedly fuelling the lucrative trade.

Italian authorities last week impounded one NGO boat, the Iuventa, which is operated by German association Jugend Rettet.

They accused its crew of being in direct contact with traffickers to organise pick-ups of boatloads of migrants from locations very close to the Libyan coast.

On Sunday, the Aquarius and Doctors without Borders (MSF) took part in a rescue operation in which around 100 people were plucked from a distressed dinghy.

The number of such rescues in international waters has fallen sharply over the last five weeks to under half the level of the same period last year.

Italian officials are cautiously optimistic that this reflects a breakthrough in their efforts to strengthen the Libyan coastguard's capacity to combat traffickers.

The Libyan navy told AFP that between Thursday and Saturday the coastguard, which has received training and new equipment from Rome, had intercepted five trafficker boats carrying a total of 878 people.

jpegMpeg4-1280x720Rights organisations have voiced concern over the focus on sending boats back to Libya.

They say the migrants on board face detention in squalid camps and the risk of torture, sexual violence and forced labour.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP)  The Illinois State Fair is giving visitors something to wash down all that funnel cake: craft beer.

Craft brewers from all over the state will take part in the competition Aug. 11-13 at the state fair in Springfield. At least 18 craft beer makers are expected to compete.

They'll showcase one of their signature beers in an effort to be selected to brew the Official Bicentennial Craft Brew as Illinois is marking its 200th anniversary of statehood next year. A vote of state fair attendees who sample the beers and panel of craft beer experts will determine the winner.

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner's office announced the competition in partnership with the Illinois Craft Brewer's Guild, Associated Beer Distributors of Illinois and Illinois Department of Agriculture.
PEORIA, Ill. (AP)  A team of history enthusiasts in central Illinois is hunting for a Civil War memorial that went missing more than half a century ago.

Peoria's Civil War monument was taken down during a construction project, but it was never returned, the Journal Star reported .

Local historian Norman Kelly, a group member who has written about the disappearance, said he believes the monument "wasn't lost, it was thrown away."

The group in search of the Peoria's Civil War monument also includes former Peoria City Councilman Bruce Brown and retired Caterpillar Inc. employee and amateur historian Bob Hoffer.

The group recently found a few pieces that could be from the monument during a recent day's search near the playground at Detweiller Marina. But the whereabouts of a substantial portion of the monument are still unknown.

Kelly and Brown hope that the ornamental eagle that capped the monument can be found.

"It's not that somebody purloined a piece of a Civil War monument for something else," Brown said. "It's that they don't know what they are."

The monument was dedicated in front of an audience of more than 30,000 just 18 months after the peace at Appomattox.

Another search is planned for the fall.

The group has made their efforts public in the hopes of finding more people who may know where some the monument's pieces are.

"I'm confident that, for example, if the eagle that topped it off is on any kind of display in the area, we'll find it in a couple months from people looking," Brown said.
DOLTON, Ill. (AP)  One teenager has been killed and two others injured after the stolen car they were in crashed into a commuter bus in Dolton, south of Chicago.

WLS-TV reports Saturday that before the crash police had been chasing the car following an attempted traffic stop Friday night.

It was not immediately clear if police where pursuing the car at the moment the driver lost control and slammed into the bus.

The car had been reported stolen earlier in Indiana.

A 15-year-old passenger was pronounced dead at a hospital. Two other passengers -- ages 15 and 18 -- are being treated at hospitals. The 15-year-old driver was arrested.

The 59-year-old bus driver was treated at a hospital and released.
MILAN  Hundreds of people lined the banks of the main lake by the Rock Island Conservation Club, 2421 Big Island Road, on Saturday to cast their lines in hope of catching a prize-winning fish during the Boys and Girls Club of the Mississippi Valley's second annual Get Hooked Fishing Derby.

Catching fish wasn't the problem for experienced fishers Jon Radloff, of Milan, and his daughter, Chloe Radloff, 11  it was catching one that was tagged for a prize.

"(Chloe's) caught a big catfish and a couple little catfish," Mr. Radloff said.

She helped her dad rattle off the other types of fish they had caught at the event, which included bluegill, carp and bass. Chloe said she just enjoys catching fish, but was still hoping to win a prize.

That sentiment was shared across the lake, with many people hoping to win the grand prize  a new Honda CRV donated by Zimmerman Honda.

According to Jenny Garlach, executive director of the Boys and Girls Club of the Mississippi Valley, the lake was stocked with fish bearing tags representing various prizes. One catfish was tagged for the car, and over 350 were tagged for other prizes, ranging from toys to fishing gear to gift cards. The lake was also stocked with untagged catfish.

We have fish from last year, too," Ms. Garlach said. "So last year we put in 1,000 pounds of catfish. This year we put in 1,000 pounds of catfish. And theyre all still eligible (for prizes).

The prizes were extra incentive for Tracy Schroebeder, of Colona, and her grandchildren, who always make catching fish a competition. They each put in a dollar, and then compete to win the money for catching the first fish, biggest fish and most fish.

"I'm going to get the biggest one," said one of her grandsons, Johnathan Schroebeder, 14, of Hampton.

"You think so," Ms. Schroebeder corrected, to which Johnathan replied, "I know so."

Rob Johnson, of Carbon Cliff, also fishes regularly with his children, Jazmin Meyers, 9, and Evin Johnson, 5. Mr. Johnson said they usually fish in the Hennepin Canal or Green River, and it was nice to fish somewhere else.

"My favorite part of fishing is playing in sand and then catching a big fish," Jazmin said.

Bobbie Paxton, of Milan, enjoyed taking her grandchildren, Heath Coger, 11, Dakota Rosenberg, 8, and Vincil Frazer, 8, somewhere new to fish.

"The kids fish all the time," she said. "They catch turtles and anything else in the lake at KOA (Campgrounds in Rock Island)."

Dakota showed off the minnow he won during the minnow race set up at the event.

"I won it like nine times," he said.

For Sienn Carter, of Davenport, the fishing derby was a chance to do something different and spend the day with her son, Isaiyes Olea, 10.

"We're just hoping to get lucky, I guess," Ms. Carter said. "It's cool that they have a lot of events and things to do for kids."

The event was capped at 600 people, and all spots were filled, according to Ms. Garlach. She said the crowd ranged in age from toddlers to the elderly.

"We also have about 30 Boys and Girls Club kids out here today with volunteer mentors," Ms. Garlach said.

The Rock Island Conservation Club helped sponsor the event and provided fishing equipment and bait for the Boys and Girls Club children to use.

Along with fishing, the event included minnow races, a casting contest and raffle prizes.

All funds raised from the Get Hooked Fishing Derby will go to the Boys and Girls Club, according to Ms. Garlach. Some money will go specifically to the Davenport teen center the club will open at J.B. Young, 1702 N. Main St., on Aug. 24.
GENESEO  Hammond-Henry Hospital in Geneseo now offers a hospitalist program designed to help assure a coordinated continuity of care for patients.

The program will use proven, emergency medicine and primary care physicians already known in the community to see inpatients on a continued basis throughout the day.

"The new program assures the ER is staffed during the day by at least one physician while another is available for rounds as needed," said Dr. Kevin Jeffries, medical director for the Hammond-Henry ER and the hospitalist program.

Using ER doctors is convenient and efficient because many patients who have to be admitted start out in the ER," he said. "The program also provides 24-hour accessibility by a doctor who is in the hospital and can promptly address patient concerns.

Dr. Jeffries said hospitalists make it easier to recruit new physicians who may not choose to provide inpatient hospital care and free up more time for other providers to see patients in their offices.

A Hammond-Henry news-release states hospitalists are becoming the trend to assure continuity of care and cover patient rounds. Since the doctors' office hours are within the hospital, they can check on patients, order and monitor tests and assure patients needs are met.

An on-site hospitalist also helps coordinate all aspects of a patients stay by meeting with family members, answering questions and communicating with any medical staff involved in the care. After a patient leaves the hospital, the hospitalist also coordinates care with primary care physicians.

"Rounds are an important part of patient care because they can involve nurses and other medical staff to check on the patient, discuss how treatment is going and address any of the patients concerns," said Laura Domino, vice president of patient care services at Hammond-Henry.

"At Hammond-Henry, there will be one physician dedicated to the ER while another will serve as the hospitalist during the day," she said. "In the evening, the ER physician will also serve as the hospitalist on duty. All will be familiar faces to our patients. Having this hospitalist program is one more way we can assure our patients have a positive experience.

We realize there is still a need for more primary care provides within our community, she said. The hospitalist program will help us to continue provide excellent care for our patients, even as we recruit and retain primary care providers who can serve more patients in our surrounding communities.

Doctors involved in the hospitalist program have a combined 113 years of experience. The ER physicians/hospitalists include Dr. Jeffries, Dr. Loren Soria, Dr. Rick Cernovich, Dr. Crystal Snider and Dr. Remigijus Satkauskas. Dr. Drew VanKerrebroeck will serve only as a hospitalist. ER physicians are Dr. Timothy Voirin, Dr. Julios Ramos and Dr. Julie Brown.
It is tempting to bask in the daily dose of palace intrigue these days at the Trump White House, but the running narratives of who reports to whom are not ultimately important. What matters is the path forward for the presidents agenda, and whether it is helped or hindered by the ever-changing cast of characters.

Change itself is not usually helpful. The ideal is to see a team selected, then watch it harmoniously coalesce on a smooth, sure path toward its goals.

Thats not this presidency. But in fairness, thats not any presidency. Every administration has its sharp-elbowed infighting; this one simply has a special talent for putting it in a display window.

Amid turnover of this dizzying pace, the first question is: Are we upgrading at every position?

Sean Spicer to Sarah Huckabee Sanders as press secretary? Yes. Reince Priebus to John Kelly as Chief of Staff? Yes. Anthony Scaramucci to his successor as communications director? Without even knowing that successor yet? Yes.

Scaramuccis arrival and exit both warrant examination. His arrival showed Donald Trumps desire to work with people who resemble him. His departure shows Trumps unwillingness to work with people who embarrass him.

This is where the Trump haters step up to suggest theres irony in someone as brash as Trump possibly being embarrassed by the language of anyone in his sphere. But no Trump tweet or other public comment comes close to the reckless, inexplicable idiocy of Scaramuccis vulgar rant to a New Yorker reporter. The president likes fighters, but will not tolerate underlings who mortify critics and supporters alike for no reason.

So does the arrival of a retired Marine general as chief of staff bring instant discipline? It brought Scaramuccis instant departure and delivered an instant message. From here on out, its anybodys guess. Kelly will almost surely enforce a certain decorum among the ranks, but do not expect him to constrain the instincts of his boss.

Nor should he. The Trump tweets are the engine that inspires and delights his base, even as enemies float withering tales of Russia collusion.

But even the most loyal portions of that base are eager to see some actual results. The Obamacare repeal failure has not been his fault, and there is no doubt that the half-year of Trump has ushered in an America that feels very different in terms of borders, the economy, energy and various social issues, just for starters. Those changes have been welcomed by the vast majority of voters who sought exactly this type of change.

But as John Kelly plugs in to whip the troops into shape toward goals like tax reduction and regulatory reform, history observes that chiefs of staff are rarely famous and rarely long-serving; Barack Obama had four in his first term. The best evidence that Kelly is doing his job will be how seldom he appears in the headlines.

That will be a challenge in a carnivorous media environment that will obsess at the slightest whiff of a West Wing soap opera. The best thing Kelly can do is enforce message discipline around the Oval Office while the man inside figures out what his daily or hourly passions are.

At no point will this come to resemble a White House akin to what any of Trumps 2016 rivals might have rolled out. At no point will it resemble any White House, ever.

John Kelly is a welcome asset who can be of great value, but the direction of the Trump administration will not be dictated by anyone but the president himself.
Abductors of 5-year-old boy arrested

Police arrested the kidnappers of a five-year-old boy, Bibek Chaudhary, who was rescued by police four days after his abduction on July 27.
Like the word Coke for any carbonated beverage in some parts of the deep south, Glocks are nearly so ubiquitous they've replaced the word for pistol in some places. Hell, who hasn't seen this too-close-to-the-truth-to-be-funny image?



While this may be a minor annoyance for the purveyors of gun shops and tacticalish forums, it is an effective demonstration of the sheer proliferation and popularity of Glock.

Glock has been steadily rolling out new models; the compact 42's and 43s, the Gen 4 pistols, and recently we even saw some images of their MHS submission. But the most afresh release isn't a pistol at all, but training courses.

Sure, the Glock Armorer's Course has been around foreverbut now there's more to see, and they're all consolidated under the Glock Professional banner. Current courses available are two levels of armorer courses, an instructor workshop, a Glock-18 course, and the Glock Operator Course.

Last week I found myself down in Smyrna, Georgia to attend the Glock Operator Course and also zip some rounds through a factory Glock 18C. Life is rough. There are some prerequisites, but nothing that consists of unobtanium. Per their webpage:

To take this course you must be one of the following: Active or Reserve Law Enforcement. Active or Reserve Military. Licensed Armed Security Officers. Current GSSF Members. Current NRA Firearms Instructor. Documentation of these certifications is required upon request.

Early August in Georgia isn't known for comfortable weather, so it was a pleasant surprise to find myself in a well-ventilated and air-conditioned 25 yard indoor range facility.



The instructor cadre was all clearly experienced and well versed in their craft. Even if you're a seasoned shooter, there's little doubt that they'll challenge you and hold your attention. What became very clear from the beginning was that the instructors didn't advocate the way, but a waygive an instructed method a good shake, and then toss it if you don't like it. They were also receptive to student questions and even suggestions. Far different than a typical domineering range master course.



Instead of just rolling through a rote AAR, here are some takeaways:

Practice at Distance

Any angular deviation of your muzzle, be it from poor technique or otherwise, increases exponentially with range. We started with shots on the bull at 25 yards, likely only because it was the longest range available. Does your trigger control suck? It will show. Is your recoil management not up to snuff? That will pop-up too. Blasting away at the 3 yard line hides a helluva lot of errors.

Focus on One Task at a Time

When shooting, especially at the beginner levels, there are a million tiny considerations. Instead of handling them all at once, focus on one task at a time. Is your grip weak? Focus on your grip during a set of drills. Having trouble tracking that front sight? It becomes your world for another set.



Go Fast Where You Can, Not Where You Can't

When you need to take a precise hit, you need that extra split second to ensure sight alignment before that pull. But there's no reason why your draw from the holster should be slower just because your fine target acquisition is going to take slightly more time. Give your gun the most direct route from the holster to on-target.

Practice Under Pressure

Use a shot clock. Shoot in front of your [judgmental] peers. Hold yourself to a high standard in accuracy, speed, and economy of motion. If the wheels come off because you're worried about embarrassing yourself, what's going to happen if you're in a life-or-death scenario?



At the end of the Glock Operator Course, we were put through a 22-round standards drill. Even though nearly all of the timed drill took place at a mere seven yards, it's a humbling course of fire. You're under the clock performing different skills. And miss one shot, you're screwed. There are four different levels that are attainable, with four being the highest. While I wish I could say I shot a solid level four, I only made it to three. This is just fine, as now I have a new goal to work towards.



For more information or to find a class near you, head on over to GlockTraining.com

And as a bonus, let's check out some Glock 18C action:




At least 44 Congress Gujarat MLAs, who were staying at Bengalurus Eagleton Resort to ensure they dont succumb to police and political pressure to join the Bharatiya Janata Party, will return back to Gujarat on Monday.

In the backdrop of Gujarat Congress MLAs quitting and joining the BJP, as many as 44 of the grand old party MLAs left for Bengaluru.

Congress MLA Shailesh Parmar earlier said, To ensure that BJP is not successful in its mission, 44 of us Congress MLAs are leaving from Gujarat for Bengaluru. To hide their failure, the saffron party is trying to make sure our MLAs resign by offering money and through police pressure.

Earlier, Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi had accused the BJP in the state of horse-trading ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections scheduled for August 8.

The developments came after at least six Congress MLAs in Gujarat resigned from the party to join the BJP.
Amid macabre political killings in Kerala, Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday accused the states ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist of unleashing its cadres for eliminating rivals and creating en environment of violence.

Jaitley, who was in Thiruvananthapuram to provide a healing touch to the family of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh worker Rajesh, allegedly killed by CPI-M cadres on July 29, mounted a scathing attack on the Left Democratic Front government, saying incidents of violence increased every time it came to power.

Every time the LDF is in power, incidents of violence increase. The kind of wounds that were inflicted on Rajesh would even have embarrassed terrorists, he told reporters.

Earlier, addressing a condolence meeting for Rajesh, Jaitley said the ruling party cadres were being eliminating its political opponents and creating an environment of violence. The CPI-M, he said, needed to introspect.

Jaitley, who visited the family of Rajesh in the morning, accused the police of bias, insisting it was a silent spectator when RSS and BJP workers were attacked and killed.

The BJP-RSS and CPI-M cadres are locked in a bloody battle of attrition in the state which has claimed several lives on both sides. There has been a spurt in such incidents in the recent past as the BJP seeks to expand its base in the state.

The CPI-M, meanwhile, countered Jaitleys claims by organising a Satyagraha in front of Raj Bhavan where relatives of 21 of its cadres done to death allegedly by the RSS were present. They demanded that the union minister also visit their homes.

The CPI-M accused the RSS-BJP combine of spreading false propaganda about political violence in the state.

CPI-Ms state Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan alleged that incidents of political violence had increased only after the visit of BJP President Amit Shah in early June.

The BJP was implementing Amit Shahs plan in the state by engaging in violence, Balakrishnan alleged.

Jaitley, whose visit to the state is being widely seen as an attempt by the BJP to bring under national focus the issue of alleged increasing attacks on party cadres by the CPI-M, also questioned the complete silence of those who otherwise speak against similar incidents in other parts of the country on the continuing saga of violence in Kerala.

He asserted BJP and RSS workers would not be cowed down by such violence which will only strengthen their resolve to work harder.

Those who perpetuate violence, must remember that our organisation, our political party and other sympathetic organisations have survived through generations despite these kinds of assaults which have befallen us. This kind of violence will neither suppress the ideology in the state of Kerala, nor scare our workers and cadres, he said at the event to condole Rajeshs death.

I have come here to express solidarity of our central leadership with karyakartas (workers) in this hour of crisis. The central party fully supports you whichever way it is necessary. I will once again appeal to you that those who have been murdered we must not forget them. We must continue to be inspired by their sacrifices, he said.

He said in his death Rajesh would continue to inspire all RSS and BJP workers, and asked the Sangh volunteers to take care of his family.

The minister earlier met and consoled the aged parents, widow and young children of Rajesh and spent some time listening to their problems.

He also met the family of another RSS worker Jayaprakash, who was seriously injured in an alleged attack by CPI-M cadres.

BJP sources said Jaitley was likely to submit a report on his visit to the partys central leadership. Some in the RSS have been demanding imposition of Presidents rule in Kerala over breakdown of law and order.

Image: Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley visiting the family members of slain RSS worker Rajesh Edavakode who was brutally killed last week allegedly by a group of CPI-M supporters, in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday. Photograph: PTI Photo
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's car was pelted with stones on Friday during his visit to this flood-affected town in Gujarat but he escaped unhurt, police said.

IMAGE: Window panes of a car are seen broken after alleged stone pelting at Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi's convoy during his visit to flood affected Dhanera village of Banaskantha district in Gujarat. Photographs: @INCIndia/Twitter

He had to cut short his address to a gathering at Lal Chowk area of Dhanera in Banaskantha district as black flags were waved at him by some of those who turned up for the meeting.

The glass pane at the rear of the car, in which Rahul was seated on his way to the helipad in Dhanera from Lal Chowk, was shattered in the attack, a police official said.

However, Rahul did not suffer any injury and moved on to his next venue, Runi village in Thara taluka, where he asserted his party is not going to be cowed down by stone pelting.

"Won't step back because of black flags, Narendra Modi slogans or stones," he said at a gathering in Runi.

"We have detained the man who threw the stone on the vehicle of Rahul Gandhi," Banaskantha Superintendent of Police Neeraj Badgujar said.

"Right from helipad, police had offered him bullet proof vehicle. After getting down from helicopter, he took bullet-proof vehicle. Later, he got down from that vehicle and took a car of a Congress party worker," the official said.

"Police, convoy marshal and SPG urged him repeatedly to take bullet-proof car for sake of security, but he instead took the vehicle provided by the party," he further said.

"Police had provided all the security, but he (Rahul Gandhi) was repeatedly stopping the car, even at some sensitive places. He even met unknown people on the way," Badgujar said, indicating that he broke all security protocol.

"We will register an FIR and investigate the case," he said, adding, none was injured in the attack.

The incident sparked immediate protest from the Congress with the party spokesman spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi in New Delhi saying BJP "goons" carried out the "dastardly" attack.

IMAGE: The Congress leader escaped unhurt.

Earlier, Rahul was heckled by protesters and shown black flags as soon he started his speech at Lal Chowk and he left in a huff.

Some of the people who gathered at the spot also raised slogans hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Yesterday, I was in Assam, today I am visiting Rajasthan and Gujarat," he said and minutes later the protest began.

"I wanted to be among you when your villages are flooded, when people have died in your homes. I wanted to meet you and embrace you. I want to tell you I and the Congress party are with you," he said.

"We do not have (a Congress) government at the Centre or in the state. But I and my party workers are standing with you in this hour of need," he said.

The 47-year-old Congress MP abruptly ended his speech and left the stage at Dhanera.

Later, addressing a gathering at Runi village of Thara taluka of same district Rahul said that they will not be deterred by such attacks.

"You are welcome here, so are those who were shouting slogans for Modiji. During my earlier speech (at Dhanera) four people came, showed black flags. Later, some threw stone. Recently, when I reached here another four more people came and showed black flags, so I thought, let's see how strong they are," he told villagers.

"I came out of the vehicle and went towards them. They were 8-10 people, they ran away. The truth is that they are cowards," he said.

"Why are they cowards, I will tell you. Those who know and understand truth need not fear. You have been taught this by Mahatma Gandhi," he said.

State Congress chief Bharatsinh Solanki accused the BJP "goons" of carrying out the attack.

"Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel says that Rahulji should have travelled in bullet-proof car. Which means that if such a tall leader is not safe in Gujarat, then it is for us to understand what will happen to common people," he said.

IMAGE: A Congress worker shows a stone that was allegedly thrown at Gandhi's convoy.

Patel condemned the attack but said Rahul refused to go in a bullet-proof car.

"Congress leader Rahul Gandhi came to Gujarat via Rajasthan to meet flood-affected people. Several people in Dhanera registered their protest by showing black flags.

"The reason behind their protest is that people in Dhanera are upset that their MLA Joitabhai Patel is not here among them (he is in Bengaluru) along with other Congress MLAs," he said.

"Some threw stone at his car because of which the glass broke. Gujarat government had offered him bullet-proof car. But he did not use the bullet-proof car and instead used a party worker's private car to travel in the region," Patel added.

Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said that he is pained at the development.

"I have no words to express my anguish. It appears that administration and government has completely failed. This proves how bad is the law and order situation. Strong action should be taken against officers who are responsible to provide security, they should be suspended," said Patel.

The Congress MLA from the area Joitabhai Patel is in Bengaluru as part of the 44 party legislators who have been flown to the southern city apparently to avoid being "poached" by the BJP ahead of the August 8 Rajya Sabha polls.

The politics in poll-bound Gujarat has been on the boil for quite some time with a section in the Congress led by rebel leader Shankarsinh Vaghela breaking ranks with the party and resignation of half a dozen party MLAs.

The situation heated up after the process for election for three Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat got underway.

The Congress has fielded Ahmed Patel as its candidate, while the BJP has nominated its president Amit Shah and Union minister Smriti Irani. The ruling party has also put up a Congress rebel as a third candidate.

Singhvi said several cars in the convoy were damaged, their windowpanes smashed and an SPG man suffered minor injury.

"All this because, the Congress vice president went to a flood-affected area," he said.
The United Nations Security Council unanimously backed a United States-drafted resolution to strengthen sanctions on North Korean exports in response to Pyongyang's intercontinental ballistic missile tests.

The 15-member body on Saturday strongly condemned North Koreas ballistic missile launches on July 3 and 28 which the country has stated were of "intercontinental" range.

The US-drafted resolution includes the strongest sanctions ever imposed in response to a North Korean ballistic missile test and targets its main exports, slashing their annual revenue by USD 1 billion.

"The Security Council increased the penalty of North Korea's ballistic missile activity to a whole new level. North Koreas irresponsible and careless acts have just proved to be quite costly to the regime.

"This resolution is the single largest economic sanctions package ever leveled against the North Korean regime. The price the North Korean leadership will pay for its continued nuclear and missile development will be the loss of one-third of its exports and hard currency. This is the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation," US Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Nikki Haley said.

"The United States is taking and will continue to take prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies. Our annual joint military exercises, for instance, are transparent, and defense-oriented. They have been carried out regularly and openly for nearly 40 years. They will continue.

"Our goal remains a stable Korean peninsula, at peace, without nuclear weapons. We want only security and prosperity for all nations including North Korea. Until then, this resolution and prior ones will be implemented to the fullest to maximize pressure on North Korea to change its ways," she said.

The Council reaffirmed previous Council decisions that North Korea not conduct further launches using ballistic missile technology, nuclear tests, or any other provocation.

The UNSC moved to significantly strengthen the sanctions on North Korea, imposing a full ban on the export of coal, iron and iron ore from the country. Previously these items could be exported for livelihood purposes, for a limited amount.

The Council also prohibited countries from increasing the total number of work authorisations for North Korean nationals. It banned new joint ventures or cooperative entities with North Korean entities or individuals as well as additional investments in existing joint ventures.

Member states are requested to report to the UNSC, within 90 days of the adoption of this resolution, on concrete measures they have taken to effectively implement this resolution.

The Council also designated several additional individuals for a travel ban and assets freeze, as well as designating entities for an assets freeze.

On the political front, the Council calls for resumption of the Six-Party Talks and reiterated its support for the commitments set forth in the Joint Statement of September 2005 issued by China, North Korea, Japan, south Korea, Russia and the United States.

The commitments included that the goal of the Six-Party Talks is the verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner, and that the United States and the North Korean respect each other's sovereignty and exist together peacefully.
Contractor okays Dhalkebar project October deadline

Central Power Grid International Economic and Trade Corporation, the Chinese contractor that is working on 220 kV Substation Project at Dhalkebar has agreed to meet the completion deadline of October 2017.
Four policemen injured in Rajbiraj explosion

Four police personnel terveling on a police van were injured when a pressure cooker bomb went off at Surunga Municipality-6 in Rajbiraj on Sunday night.
Body cameras for the Mooresville Police Department have arrived. Find out when they will be used.
China and ASEAN said they both agreed Sunday to a framework for talks on a code of conduct in the disputed South China Sea, but the Southeast Asian side indirectly criticized Beijings territorial expansion there in an unusual statement.



The foreign ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations said they warmly welcomed improving cooperation with China and were encouraged by the conclusion and adoption of the framework of a code of conduct in the South China Sea, in a joint communique. They issued it late on Sunday evening (local time) after meeting with Beijings top diplomat in Manila during the day.



China and ASEAN will start negotiations later this year on a code of conduct governing actions in the disputed sea region after both sides agreed to a framework, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters following the meeting, which was held behind closed doors.



In their communique the ASEAN ministers confirmed that the regional bloc was ready to begin substantive negotiations on a code of conduct.

But in an oblique reference to Chinas efforts to expand in the potentially mineral-rich sea region  such as through building artificial islands, air strips and other installations  they also noted concerns expressed by some Ministers on the land reclamations and activities in the area, which have eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine peace, security and stability in the region.



We emphasized the importance of non-militarization and self-restraint in the conduct of all activities by claimants and all other states, according to the short section on the South China Sea included in a 46-page communique.



China and Taiwan, as well as four members of ASEAN  the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei  all have territorial claims in the sea, and overlapping claims have been a source of tensions. The sea is strategically important because it is home to a third of the worlds shipping lanes.



Positive momentum



Wang Yi said the climate in 2017 between states that have claims to the sea region had improved and was more conducive to peace.



The atmosphere of this year is different from the past, Wang said. China and ASEAN countries have been working together for the past year and we fully recognize that.



Thanks to our concerted efforts, the current situation in the South China Sea is showing positive momentum, he said, adding that China and ASEAN recognized a current trend towards relaxation of tensions in the sea region.



When the situation in the South China Sea becomes generally stable and if there no major disruption from outside parties, both parties can then start their consultations in time for the ASEAN Leaders Summit in November, the Chinese foreign minister said.



China and ASEAN have the ability and wisdom to work together to maintain regional peace and stability, he said. And we will work out regional rules that we mutually agreed upon so as to open up a bright future for our future relations.



Before the ASEAN countries came out with their statement on the South China Sea, the 10 ministers were divided over the issue, according to reports.



The ministers had been debating for at least two days on how to respond to China collectively, with Vietnam said to be strongly resisting an agreement on the framework for a code of conduct as pushed by Beijing.



Theres still no consensus, a diplomat said earlier during the weekend, according to Agence France-Presse.

Vietnam is adamant, and China is effectively using Cambodia to champion its interests. But the Philippines is trying very hard to broker compromise language.



In past months, the Philippines had pushed for a code on the South China Sea to be legally binding, according to diplomatic sources.



Sino-Filipino relations over sea



The ASEAN-China meeting was part of a flurry of one-to-one meetings held Sunday between foreign ministers from the Southeast Asian bloc and top diplomats from other countries including Japan, the United States, India and Russia.



The meetings in Manila, hosted by the Philippines, this years holder of the ASEAN chair, took place on the eve of the ASEAN Regional Forum, an annual security meeting bringing together 27 countries.



Wang did not elaborate on to whom he referred as the outside parties, but his announcement came shortly after the U.S. Navy carried out freedom of navigation exercises near disputed islands, as it sought to counter-balance perceived Chinese bullying in the disputed area.



The current ASEAN chairman, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, has made it a priority to repair bilateral ties with China, which has rejected an international courts ruling in 2016 that invalidated its claim to the entire sea region.



Duterte made a state visit to China last year, and also threatened to sever security cooperation with Beijings traditional rival, the United States.



In 2013, Dutertes predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, took Beijing to the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague after Chinese vessels were spotted in Scarborough Shoal, which had for years been a traditional fishing area for Filipinos.



The area consists of rocks and shoals and is only about 200 km (125 miles) from the main Philippine island of Luzon.



The court last year threw out Chinas historical claims to the region. The court said that, in effect, no country had sovereign rights over the rocky outcrop, therefore entitling all countries with overlapping claims to use its resources.



The ruling angered China, putting the region on edge amid fears that it could force Beijing to retaliate militarily. Beijing since then has carried on with its expansionist moves in the sea region, and intelligence officials said it may be deploying weapons on the islands it occupies.



Following the court decision last year, Duterte himself said that he told Chinese leader Xi Jinping that he planned drilling explorations in the area. But he claimed that Xi threatened him with war if he went ahead with implementing those plans.

Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
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Gender-aware policies needed

Any gender equality policy is an economic policy, said a former finance secretary at an informal discussion with a group of policy analysts and advocates.
Roscoe D. Cooper III, a member of the Henrico County School Board, was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated early Saturday.

According to Sgt. Stephan Vick with Virginia State Police, Cooper, 43, was stopped just before 1 a.m. on westbound Interstate 64 just west of the Gaskins Road exit.

He was then arrested and transported to Henrico County Jail, where he posted bail at 4:30 a.m.

State police declined to release Coopers blood alcohol content.

Cooper, who represents the Fairfield District, was elected to the board in 2015 after winning a recount by 42 votes. He currently serves as vice chairman of the board.

Board members are aware of Mr. Coopers personal situation, said Beverly Cocke, School Board chairwoman, in a statement. Well be better able to respond once more details are available. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Cooper family at this time.

Cooper did not immediately respond to attempts to reach him.

A Richmond native, Cooper has been pastor at Rising Mount Zion Baptist Church in Henrico since 2003. He holds a bachelors degree in religion and philosophy and a masters degree in divinity from Virginia Union University, along with a doctorate in divinity from Richmond Virginia Seminary.
DANVILLE  Since 2009, Danville native Octavius Pinkard has been living the jet-setting life in Brussels as an international election monitor and traveling to such places as Lebanon, Istanbul, Belarus and Kyrgyzstan.

Pinkard will return to Danville for one semester to share his experiences and teach an international relations class this fall at Danville Community College.

Im excited in ways that I could not possibly express, Pinkard said in a statement released from the college. Nothing compares to being home, especially if you love your hometown as much as I do. And institutions like DCC are an integral part of our community.

DCC is offering the course for the first time in 20 years, said Paul Fox, dean of arts, sciences and business. Fox said he has been trying to recruit Pinkard for years, but this was the first time his travel schedule lined up with the opportunity.

He has a lot of experience in international relations and in combat zones like Syria, Fox said.

The class will explore topics such as global economic issues, conflict and migration, according to DCC. Pinkard is an international election monitor for the U.S. State Department where he works to make sure elections are held successfully and fairly.

In a lot of ways, having external observers come in to monitor the election, it gives voters a certain level of confidence, Pinkard said last year.

In addition to his election monitoring work, Pinkards masters and doctorate research have taken him across the globe.

Its important to understand the really complex dynamics at play within these countries, Pinkard said. That will help you develop an understanding of why people immigrate and why conflict perpetuates itself.

Fox said news events in the Middle East and North Korea had made international relations an increasingly relevant course of study.

He brings a wealth of experience to the position, Fox said.

Pinkard said in a news release he will also use his connections made around the world to bring in guest speakers such as members of foreign ministries and journalists stationed abroad.

After growing up in Danvilles White Rock community, Pinkard earned his bachelors degree in government from Christopher Newport University and both masters and doctorate degrees in international studies from Old Dominion University.

In addition to his grandfather Bennie, Pinkard said DCC professor and childhood mentor Fred Lloyd inspired him to pursue a passion for teaching.

The class will be offered to students from 6:30 to 9:15 p.m. Monday evenings. The DCC fall semester begins Aug. 21.
ROANOKE  Eastern box turtles carry both the armor that protects them from most predators and the potential for eternal wandering in search of home.

Turtles found in the wild and relocated carelessly to unfamiliar habitat often search in vain for their original domain.

That is one of many facts about eastern box turtles stored in the memories of Chris and Sarah Muse, which is why they mark precisely each location of a turtle discovery.

More than 43 years ago, at the urging of Betty Carr Muse, Chris mother, the Muse family began meticulously photographing and marking eastern box turtles found on the familys 100 acres in Roanoke County and then returning them to the wild.

On Tuesday, while weed-eating a walking path, Chris Muse, 50, found Turtle No. 200. He and Sarah, 49, celebrated the find as significant because it confirms that the property remains a hospitable environment for eastern box turtles and because documenting the discovery sustains a fun and fascinating family ritual.

Traditions are important, he said. They are few and far between these days.

Chris Muse described Turtle No. 200 as outgoing. The brightly colored reptile, a male, did not retreat into his shell when introduced to a visitor. After photographing the turtle and using a triangular file to cut a tiny notch in its shell, Chris and Sarah Muse piled on an ATV and drove Turtle No. 200 back to the spot where Chris found him. The photographs, along with the notches  which are made at unique spots on each turtle  help identify turtles when theyre found again.

A few days prior, while weed-eating a field, Chris encountered two turtles previously documented: No. 111 and No. 199. The last time No. 111 was discovered was 25 years ago.

Bill Hopkins, a professor in the Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation at Virginia Tech, said a box turtles earliest years in the wild can be treacherous.

However, if a box turtle reaches adulthood, it can live for more than 50 years, he said in an email.

Box turtles feel a deep connection to the habitat where they are born and often try to make it back when they are displaced, said box turtle expert Ken Dodd, a professor in the Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Florida.

I have referred to box turtles as homebodies. Some displaced box turtles will settle into a new habitat, but many try to return to their home range, he said in an email. Distance seems to be important, that is, the closer they are released to their home range, the more likely they are to try and return.

And this quest exposes them to numerous hazards, including roads and railroads, and physical barriers such as rivers, buildings and fences, he said.

It also exposes them to predators, including people, in a situation where they do not know the location of good hiding sites, Dodd added. Box turtles often return to favored overwintering and nesting sites from one year to the next. The more they wander, the more likely they are to be killed.

Hopkins said box turtles shells do not always protect them from predators.

Around here, bears, coyotes and raccoons all have the capability of killing an adult, but the box turtles ability to completely enclose themselves in their shell is often a pretty good defense against the latter two, he said.

Although box turtles seem plentiful on the Muses wooded property off Twelve OClock Knob Road, the reptiles numbers are in decline elsewhere.

Box turtles are vulnerable across portions of their range, Hopkins said. Broadly speaking, turtles are one of the most threatened groups of vertebrates on the planet ... threatened by loss of habitat, road mortality, illegal collection for the pet trade, pollution and emerging diseases.

Both Hopkins and Dodd expressed enthusiasm for the Muses work to track the turtles on their property.

One question Hopkins raised was whether the Muses needed a permit for the documentation underway. The answer turned out to be yes, which was news to the couple.

Technically, they do need a scientific collection permit to conduct this type of activity, said John Kleopfer, a herpetologist for the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. But I am pleased to hear about their enthusiasm for box turtle conservation and would be more than happy to assist them in getting in compliance.

Chris Muse said the couple will pursue obtaining the permit.

Hopkins saw a photograph of the small notch that the Muses incised in the shell of Turtle No. 200 and said it should not cause the animal pain.

Meanwhile, Sarah Muse said finding a previously undiscovered turtle is exciting.

But whats really fun about this is when you find them again, she said.

Betty Carr Muse, the widow of former Roanoke businessman and civic leader Leonard Muse, hatched the idea of documenting eastern box turtles on the familys land after reading an article about the practice, Chris Muse said.

Chris and Sarah said their son, Vedant, 14, enjoys finding and documenting the turtles on the property where they have lived full-time since 2008.

Chris Muse said the tradition feels enriching during an era of fleeting experiences and instant gratification.
Planned Parenthood PAC to spend $3M to help Northam

RICHMOND  A Planned Parenthood political action committee is planning to spend $3 million in support of Democratic nominee Ralph Northam in this years closely watched race for governor of Virginia.

Planned Parenthood Advocates for Virginia CEO Jennifer Allen said Thursday that the group is backing Northam because hell work to protect every womans right to make the best choices for herself and her family.

The political action committee aligned with the abortion-rights group plans to knock on more than 300,000 doors and send mail to more than 400,000 people.

Northam is facing Republican Ed Gillespie in a contest viewed as an early referendum on President Donald Trump.

Outside groups are expected to spend heavily on the contest. Americans for Prosperity, a conservative group backed by billionaires Charles and David Koch, has spent more than $125,000 in mailers attacking Northam.

Governor wants more youth involved in communities

RICHMOND  Gov. Terry McAuliffe is trying to get more young people involved in their communities.

McAuliffe recently announced the formation of the Governors Millennial Civic Engagement Task Force.

The governor issued an executive directive last week directing the task force to come up with ways to make it easier for young people, and college students in particular, to get more involved.

The task force also will study whether courses in civic engagement should be part of college freshmen orientation.

The group is set to issue a report to the governor by December.

State marks railroad going to Cape Henry Lighthouse

VIRGINIA BEACH  Virginia has dedicated a historical marker celebrating a railroad that once ran to Cape Henry.

The ceremony was Saturday next to the Cape Henry Lighthouse in Virginia Beach.

The original lighthouse was the first to be built by the United States government and sits at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay.

The first railroad was built in 1880 to construct a new lighthouse. Then an electric rail line served a resort village. The line eventually merged with the Norfolk and Southern Railroad.

New tracks were laid by the U.S. Army in 1914 after it established Fort Story. Trains continued to carry artillery, ammunition and passengers on the rail line through World War II.

NCIS increases reward for info on bomb threats

NORFOLK  The Navy is offering a $2,500 reward for information leading to an arrest in a series of bomb threats that have disrupted operations this week in Virginia.

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is increasing the offered reward from $500 to $2,500.

On Thursday, a bomb threat was written on a bathroom wall at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth.

On Wednesday, a bomb threat was called in to Naval Station Norfolk, followed by five more threats targeting Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Virginia Beach.

The bomb threats were determined not to be credible.

Operations also were interrupted in Norfolk on Monday, when a sailor reported seeing a trespassing scuba diver. The sighting proved unfounded.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
With a buzzing sound like a swarm of bees, a flying device resembling a miniature helicopter lifted off from the ground at Luck Stone Corp.s Boscobel quarry one day this spring.

Piloted by Eric Warinner, an engineering technician at Luck Stone, the device  small enough to be held in a mans arms  hovered above the companys crushed stone operation, then zoomed like a hummingbird around a massive pile of crushed stone and the rail cars at the Goochland County quarry.

The purpose was to get the devices cameras to spots where it can be difficult for a person to go, such as the top of a towering conveyor machine that moves crushed stone near the quarry.

We can put our eyes on anything we need to put our eyes on, Warinner said.

Most people would call the device a drone. It is a popular term, said John Blackmore, a surveying and mapping supervisor for Luck Stone.

But its not the word he prefers to use.

Instead, Warinner and Blackmore, who manage the companys drone program, prefer the more technical term  unmanned aerial vehicle, or UAV  when discussing the flying tools they deploy to gather all sorts of data from Luck Stones quarrying operations.

The Goochland-based company then analyzes that information for planning and to bring greater efficiency to its business.

The company, a major producer of stone, sand and gravel products for construction and other industries, has been using UAVs for about three years to do a variety of jobs at its quarries and distribution centers in Virginia and North Carolina.

To us, this is a tool and a way we are doing our job better, Blackmore said. It has really changed our business to have this technology.

For Warinner and Blackmore, an even better way to refer to the technology is UAS, for unmanned aerial system, because the aerial vehicles themselves are only part of the technology. It also includes the tools for programming the aerial devices and organizing, analyzing and sharing the data they collect. It is a system of aircraft, and software with very complex math computations, that makes this very useful for us, Blackmore said.

Luck Stones use of UAVs is one example of how drones, often thought of primarily as military tools or novelties for hobbyists, can be used in a commercial setting to improve business outcomes.

Dominion Energy, Virginias largest utility, is another example. The company has been using drones since 2013, mainly for transmission line inspections in hard-to-reach places such as water crossings.

We typically do a lot of these inspections with helicopters, said Steve Eisenrauch, the companys manager for transmission lines and forestry, who leads its UAV program. We have been able to offset some of that with drones. When we do that, there is a much smaller environmental footprint to be able to use a drone instead of a helicopter. There is an added level of safety.

Since 2015, the company has used UAVs to inspect nearly 5,000 transmission line structures, he said. To conduct its drone program, Dominion has partnered with Hazon Solutions, a Virginia Beach-based provider of small UAV inspection service operations.

At least for now, there remain some limitations to the commercial operation of drones imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration. Those include restrictions on flying the devices beyond the operators line of sight and restrictions on nighttime use.

David Culler, Hazon Solutions co-founder and CEO, said he believes that as the technology develops and safety concerns are addressed, those and other restrictions will be eased and UAVs can be put to use in a wider range of industries.

The FAA does not provide state-level information on how many commercial operations are using drones, a spokeswoman for the agency said.

In April, Luck Stone took another step to develop its use of aerial systems. It announced a partnership with Airware, a California-based company that develops software for businesses to digitize and analyze aerial data collected from UAVs.

Luck Stone is now using UAVs to create detailed, 3-D maps of its quarrying operations and to keep track of its product stockpiles.

The UAVs capture hundreds of images from different vantage points around a quarry, then computer software stitches the images together to create a 3-D map. Airwares technology enables the company to analyze the data and share it among managers.

They have a lot of analytic capabilities in their software, Blackmore said of Airware, and the company has customized it specifically for Luck Stones quarrying operations.

Aerial mapping of quarry operations previously was far more labor-intensive.

Before, we were actually flying an airplane  a manned aircraft  over our locations, Warinner said.

The aircraft would take numerous pictures that the company could use to calculate inventories of crushed stone, or to monitor quarries.

Now, we are just arriving on scene, putting a UAV in the air, and taking care of it there, he said.

Warinner and Blackmore regularly travel to Luck Stones 22 quarries and distribution operations and fly the UAVs.

Besides 3-D mapping, the devices can be used to inspect equipment, as well as to check whether there is any undesirable foreign matter in the stone material that is loaded onto rail cars at the companys sites.

We want to make sure that before we put our product in the rail cars, that there is not tree limbs or dirt, or some other contaminant, Blackmore said. A birds-eye view is useful for that.

The company has invested in several UAVs, including a small, fixed-wing device that flies like an airplane, rather than a helicopter. All the devices are FAA registered and have tail numbers, as the federal government requires for commercial use. Warinner and Blackmore are also licensed UAV pilots.

When flying the UAVs, they follow a list of safety protocols. For instance, if we are flying for mapping purposes, then 400 feet is our max, Blackmore said.

Warinner is an Army veteran who was working at Luck Stones Boscobel quarry when he first took up drone-flying as a hobby, then realized its potential use in the companys operations. Blackmore has training in engineering, geography, surveying and GIS mapping.

The biggest driver for UAVs for [Luck Stone] is that an operation like ours is changing so fast, it is really beneficial to have frequently updated imagery, Blackmore said. We can get imagery through the state of Virginia or Google maps and other places, but it might be a few years old, and that is not good enough.

We can go out now and fly a UAV and get the imagery on the same day, and it is as near as you can get to real time, he said.
While most of the drama surrounding NESNs Boston Red Sox broadcast team has involved David Prices feud with analyst Dennis Eckersley over his critical remarks, another concern has been the absence of studio analyst Steve Lyons in recent weeks.

According to the Boston Globes Nick Cafardo, Lyons, 57, has been off the air because of a domestic battery charge connected to an incident at his home in Hermosa Beach, California. The incident in question took place in January.

From Cafardos report:

Lyons was arrested and charged with domestic battery assault and would likely go to trial in September if attempts to have the charges dismissed are not successful. A redacted police report provided by the Hermosa Beach police does not include the name of Lyonss girlfriend or the particulars of the assault. The arresting officer wrote in the report that the girlfriend suffered injuries to her face.

Lyonss attorney, Richard A. Hutton, told Cafardo that he expects his client to be completely 100 percent vindicated of the domestic battery charges. According to Hutton, Lyonss girlfriend told authorities within 36 hours of the incident that he had never struck her or touched her in an offensive way.

The attorney reiterated that he expects Lyons to be vindicated before trial or during a jury trial, if the case goes that far. In the meantime, Hutton is filing pretrial motions to have the case dismissed.

According to Hutton, the police report was based on accounts from a friend of Lyonss girlfriend who was on hand during the Jan. 14 incident. The report states that some verbal sparring took place, which progressed into something physical. But Hutton says the friend never actually witnessed any instance of physical violence. Lyons, according to Hutton, never laid a hand on her and he and his girlfriend have remained together since the incident.

Lyons has worked as a pre- and post-game studio analyst, occasionally filling in for game broadcasts, on NESNs Red Sox telecasts since 2014. If the charges against him are not dismissed, Lyonss attorney said a trial would take place in September.

[Boston Globe]
Global Policy Forum for Nepal expresses solidarity with Dr KC

Global Policy Forum for Nepal has expressed its solidarity with Dr Govinda KC and urged the government to address the demands of Dr KC without delay.
Turner 60th Anniversary Ned and Betty Turner, of Christiansburg, Va., celebrated their sixtieth wedding anniversary on August 3, 2017. They gathered with their children and grandchildren over the weekend. Happy anniversary!
Virginia Tech topped a ranking list for their students love their colleges categories in Princeton Review rankings for the second year in a row.

Last year, the school earned the top spot in that category as well as the best quality of life category. Tech placed fifth in the quality of life category this year.

Tech students who were surveyed described Blacksburg as the perfect college town. The Princeton Review noted youll see more maroon and orange in a single day here than most people will see in a lifetime, according to a news release from the university.

Tech also captured the No. 6 spot for best campus food, No. 11 for best alumni network, No. 15 for town-gown relations are great and No. 19 for happiest students.

The publications rankings are organized into 62 categories and are based on surveys from 137,000 students assessments of their colleges and universities.

Princeton Review has published a book with the results called The Best 382 Colleges guidebook that is available for purchase.
A 9-year-old boy from Durham, North Carolina, drowned in Smith Mountain Lake Saturday. Divers recovered the body just before 8 p.m. near channel marker R22.

Sgt. Karl Martin with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries said the boy was playing with other children on a floating trampoline, approximately 50 feet from a dock. When the children left the trampoline and returned to the dock, Martin said the boy was missing.

A 911 call was made from the residence at approximately 5:40 p.m., according to Martin. When the boy was unable to be located, divers from Scruggs Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad Dive team were called in. Divers located the body in 20 feet of water.

Martin said the boy was not wearing a lifejacket.

Its another tragic event, Martins said.

This is the second drowning at Smith Mountain Lake this year. Michael Wood, 58, from Nelson County drowned at the lake on July 22.
Virginia State Police on Sunday identified a Tennessee man struck and killed Friday on the side of Interstate 81 in Rockbridge County.

Donald J. Davis, 65, of Newport, Tenn., died in what police are investigating as a hit and run collision. A state police news release said that Davis probably was struck shortly before 1:45 a.m. A trooper who stopped to assist what looked like a broken-down 1993 Subaru found Davis dead on the ground behind the vehicle.

The Subaru was off the right side of the interstate, a short distance south of Virginia 606, the news release said.

Police think Davis was hit by a Freightliner tractor trailer that went off the road.

Virginia State Police are asking anyone with information about the crash to call (800) 542-5959 or cellular #77.
Positive Step: Government forms special cell to tackle financial crime

The government has formed a special cell to monitor the progress made by various bodies in combating financial crime, such as money laundering and terror financing, in a bid to prevent the country from falling back into the watch-list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an international body that creates standards to fight global financial crime.
Hundreds lend support to Dr KC

Hundreds of Dr Govinda KCs supporters participated in a mass rally in the Capital on Saturday, urging the government to immediately address the demands of senior orthopaedic surgeon.
May 25, 1947 July 29, 2017 Philip "Phil" J. Keating, Jr., 70, passed away on Saturday, July 29, 2017 at his home in Newport, Va. He was born on May 25, 1947 in Newark, N.J. to Col. Philip and Bettie Keating, Sr. Phil grew up in many areas of the world, traveling where the Air Force led his father. He graduated from McLean High School in McLean, Va. and later attended Frederick College in Portsmouth, Va. Phil was in the air force and served in the Vietnam War. Phil married Judy Massey in 1975 in Suffolk, Va. They were happily married for 42 years. He worked at Virginia Tech for 36 years as a turfgrass research technician in the Department of Plant Pathology, Physiology & Weed Science. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, boating, hiking, spending time with family and enjoying his farm in Clover Hollow. Phil was preceded in death by his parents, Philip and Bettie Keating. Phil is survived by his spouse, Judy of Newport; his daughter, Julie (Dedra) Prester of Christiansburg; his daughter, Chelsea Keating of Newport; his sister, Susan Frihse of Lake Lanier, Ga.; and his loving brother and sister in-law, nieces and nephew. A private memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations be made to the Newport Rescue Squad 418 Blue Grass Trail Newport Va 24128 (540) 544-7695 http://www.newportrescue.com. Condolences may be left on Phil's online guestbook at http://philip-phil-j-keating-jr.forevermissed.com/
SHRADER Samuel Ray March 22, 1940 August 4, 2017 Samuel "Sam" Ray Shrader, 77, of Pearisburg, Va., went to be with the Lord on Friday, August 4, 2017 at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital. Sam was born on March 22, 1940 in Narrows, Va., and was a son of the late Roby Marvin and Willie Mae Kitts Shrader. Besides his parents, he was preceded in death by one brother, Harry Gene Shrader. Sam was a 1958 graduate of Narrows High School and attended Emory and Henry and Concord Colleges. Sam began working as a teenager delivering newspapers, he worked at Riffe's Funeral Home in the summers, and began full time employment at the B & B stores, then was employed by Kroger's in Pearisburg and then at Radford Arsenal. He then began his 34 year banking career by working at First Virginia, First National Exchange, Dominion, First Union and then retired at First Virginia Bank in Pearisburg. Sam added a personal touch during his banking career by calling each of his customers on their birthday. Sam served his country by being in the United States Army Reserve. Sam was an active member of the community by being in a wide variety of extra-curricular activities in the past including: President of Narrows Jaycees, member of Giles Country Club Board of Directors, Chairman of Board for First United Methodist Church, member of Board of Trustees, First United Methodist Church, board member Pearisburg Lion's Club, Treasurer for Pearisburg Merchant's Association and Treasurer for Olde Towne Pearisburg Registry Association. He is survived by his wife, Carole Williams Shrader of Pearisburg; one daughter, Kimberly Lynn Shrader Eaton and her husband A.C. "Tony" Eaton; two grandchildren, Alex C. Eaton and Caroline P. Eaton; and one brother-in-law, Freddie W. Williams. Funeral services will be conducted Monday, August 7, 2017 at 2 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Pearisburg with the Rev. Dr. Brian Burch officiating with burial following in the Birchlawn Burial Park in Pearisburg. The family will receive friends at the First United Methodist Church Sunday evening from 5 to 7 p.m. The family would like to give special thanks to Dr. Joshua D. Adams, MD and the staff at Carilion Roanoke Vascular Surgery. Online condolences can be sent to the family at givensfuneralhome.com.
By Donald Nuechterlein

Sixteen years ago a new president, George W. Bush, focused his attention on domestic issues, especially tax reduction, not on foreign policy. Bill Clinton warned him that al-Qaeda planned more terrorist attacks in Afghanistan and the Middle East. Then, on September 11, New Yorks Trade Towers were collapsing and the Pentagon was severely damaged by an al-Qaeda hijacked jet.

Now another new president, Donald Trump, focuses on health care and tax reform. But unlike in 2001, his administration is preparing for war.

Three potential flash points are now visible: North Korea, whose missile threats alarmed Japan, South Korea, and U.S.; Russia, whose military incursions into eastern Ukraine and the Baltic region caused NATO to respond; and Iran, which intends to extend its influence across the Middle East by undermining Arab regimes and installing governments friendly to Tehran.

A military clash in Northeast Asia seems less imminent today than two months ago, following Pyongyangs missile threats against U.S. bases in Japan. Deployment of major U.S. naval and air power to the region and pressure on China to rein in its belligerent Korean ally have cooled tensions.

Similarly, armed conflict with Russia seems less likely than it did earlier, for two reasons: the U.S. and NATO deployed troops to Poland and three Baltic States to warn Moscow that the tactics it used in Crimea and eastern Ukraine would be met with force. Russian planes continue to harass NATO forces in the Baltic Sea, but Moscow recently took steps to avoid accidental clashes.

Iran is a different challenge. And unless Tehran changes course, it may trigger armed confrontation with American forces in Iraq and the Persian Gulf.

Tehrans Revolutionary Guard, para-military units that support Shiite forces in Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, and Iraq, work to undermine pro-American governments in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Arab Gulf States, and potentially Jordan and Egypt. Revolutionary Guard forces are not under the authority of Irans elected government in Tehran, but instead report to the countrys top clerical leader, Ayatollah Khomenei.

America maintains two important overseas air and naval bases in the strategically vital Persian Gulf: a large Navy installation at Bahrain, and a major Air Force base in Qatar. Iranian speedboats regularly challenge U.S. warships in the Gulf, and one of them may precipitate a clash that results in armed conflict.

Neighboring Iraq, however, is the most dangerous flash point for conflict between Washington and Tehran. This emerges as ISIS is driven from major cities, including the newly liberated Mosul. Iraqs Shiite militias, bolstered by Iranian Special Forces, plan to fill the political vacuum left in liberated areas and push Iraq into Tehrans embrace. Baghdads moderate prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, will be powerless against this outcome unless Saudi Arabia and other Arab states fully support U.S. actions to support his government and Iraqs new army.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told a congressional committee recently that Irans leadership plans to extend its hegemony in the Persian Gulf at the expense of Saudi Arabia. Our policy toward Iran, he said, is to push back on this hegemony and work toward supporting those elements inside Iran that would lead to a peaceful transition of that government. Some suggested this was a call for regime change in Tehran.

Secretary of Defense James Mattis, a retired Marine general with wide experience in Iraq, called Iran the most destabilizing influence in the Middle East. Most defense experts agree it was a mistake for the U.S. to withdraw its troops from Iraq in 2012. Washington reversed course in 2016 and now has 5,000 advisers, trainers, and intelligence specialists in Iraq. They assist Iraqs military in their drive to oust ISIS from remaining strongholds, after Mosul was liberated. Mattis thinks more troops may be needed to stabilize Iraqs security and reduce the chances that Tehran will prevail in its quest to gain control.

Is the Trump administration preparing for military action against Iran? If diplomacy does not soon deter Tehran, armed conflict should not be ruled out.

Nuechterlein is a political scientist and author who lives near Charlottesville.
A good businessperson will tell you making a deal is just as much about the sales experience as it is about the product. Its not just about the car you are buying, but you think about the reputation of the car brand and the dealership, as well as how much you trust your salesperson. Congressional Democrats unveiled a Better Deal with a few fine points to sell, but my party hasnt quite figured out how to improve the voter experience.

The Better Deal calls for better jobs and better wages leading to a better future. The details ranged from tax incentives for employers to provide on-the-job training, to reduced prices for prescription drugs. Through various channels before the unveiling in Berryville, my fellow Democrats declared they were working from a collective vision to correct an economy that is failing to work for most people.

This message is welcome. The message is focused on economic issues. However, how will citizens hear this announcement? Will they believe it? Will it sound credible and possible?

Issues are important, but of more importance is how we stand for those issues. If we have not built sustainable relationships with the voters, our campaign slogans echo like worn-out mottos. People will buy the Democratic message when they trust and respect those who have offered this better deal. That trust is built through a quality experience.

In politics, the experience of the sale begs questions such as: Is the party or candidate transparent? Are they being inclusive? What mechanisms are put in place to ensure people are listened to and have the opportunity to impact decisions?

For the Better Deal to offer a Better Experience, Congressional Democrats should incorporate a few process ideas such as:

Refuse Donations

In addition to fighting for lower prescription drugs prices, Democrats could swear off donations from Big Pharma to send a clear message to the American people where our allegiance is.

Help People

Rather than just contact voters at election time, we should invest a humble amount of the multi-billion dollar campaign budget into helping people with problems they may have with government entities. We should listen to and solve problems through case-managed social work; lets call this The Democratic Promise. Making a deal is one thing, but keeping a promise shows people you care.

Empower Locals

Businesses know to invest in the best salespeople on the front line as that is where trust is built. Democrats should empower locals in each community as they can help build that trust. Large marketing campaigns and an anti-Trump message can only do so much.

Voters are looking for a party that is sincere about fighting for them. They want candidates who respect them. They dont want to be a number or a statistic. They want to trust their representatives. They want to trust the party.

Theres no doubt our country needs a new economic agenda, but an agenda without a solid and sustainable relationship with citizens risks becoming just another motto, sounding too much like the last motto we heard. To improve the experience, process comes first; then solutions.
MC, NC mark victory in Bharatpur with mass rally (With photos)

The CPN (Maoist Centre) and Nepali Congress (NC) on Sunday organised a joint victory rally in Bharatpur Metropolitan City following the election of their respective candidates to the post of mayor and deputy mayor in the metro city.
The demographic number-crunchers at the University of Virginias Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service recently released some eye-popping projections of what Virginia will look like in the year 2045.

By then, Virginia will be the 10th largest state in the nation. In Northern Virginia, Loudoun County will have more than doubled in population, Prince William County nearly so. In the coalfields, the population of Buchanan County will have fallen by 40 percent from where it was in the most recent census.

There are many ways to try to understand how the states population is swelling in the urban crescent while declining in much of rural Virginia.

Heres one way: The demographers traced the center of the states population. In 1940, it was in Cumberland County, a rural county midway between Richmond and Lynchburg and not that from the states geographical center. By 1970, it had gravitated east to Richmond. After that, it started moving north. Now its somewhere in Caroline County, not far from Kings Dominion. By 2045, it will be almost in Fredericksburg.

Heres another way: Instead of looking forward, lets look backward  to 1980, a year most of us can remember, yet one that, in hindsight, shows a very different Virginia from the one we have now.

In 1980, we had a governor from Southwest Virginia  John Dalton of Radford. In fact, we had three statewide officeholders from west of the Blue Ridge. Attorney General Marshall Coleman was from Augusta County. U.S. Sen. Harry Byrd Jr. was from Winchester, then part of the Shenandoah Valley. Today, Winchester is still geographically part of the Shenandoah Valley but is more and more an exurb of Northern Virginia.

In 1980, Winchester and surrounding Frederick County had a combined population of 54,367. Today, their population has more than doubled to 111,529. By 2045, their populations are projected to increase to 140,136, nearly triple what they were in 1980.

In 1980, Virginia was just a year away from doing something it hadnt done since 1917: Elect a governor from Northern Virginia. Of course, the Northern Virginia that Westmoreland Davis hailed from bore no resemblance to the Northern Virginia that Charles Robb came from.

Robbs election the following year heralded a geographic shift. Then, a statewide candidate from Northern Virginia was a rarity who had to explain his Virginia credentials. Now, Northern Virginia produces most of our politicians  four of the six statewide candidates this year come from or near Northern Virginia.

Some of those Northern Virginia politicians also have scant connection to the state. Our current governor, Terry McAuliffe, was national chairman of the Democratic Party before he turned his attention to the state. One candidate who wants to be our next governor, Ed Gillespie, was national chairman of the Republican Party before he, too, got involved in state politics. Both, of course, are non-natives who just happen to live in Northern Virginia.

The Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate next year might be Carly Fiorina, who not long ago was running for the Senate from California. We cant say there will never again be a statewide candidate from west of the Blue Ridge, but its hard to see how that happens.

In 1980, the states political money was concentrated in Richmond, and both parties courted Main Street Richmond  the old-line banks and financiers who frequented the Commonwealth Club. Now, Northern Virginia is the main source of everything  candidates, money and votes.

Consider the two localities that are now considered the states premier bellwethers. Once, Loudoun and Prince William had been farm country, some of the most productive in the state. By 1980, the dairy farms had given way to small suburbs. Loudoun was home to 57,427 people, which meant that it was still smaller than Montgomery County, then 63,516. Today, Loudoun is more than twice the size of Montgomery  385,327 to 98,509. By 2045, Loudon will be more than six times bigger than Montgomery  755,869 to 121,097.

Put another way, Loudoun then will be 13 times bigger than it was in 1980. Prince William County will be five times bigger. In 2045, the states three most populous localities will be Fairfax County (nearly 1.4 million), Loudoun (755,869), Prince William (729,137).

We already see how these population shifts are changing the states politics: Once, it was almost unheard of to see a credible candidate for governor who hadnt previously served in the General Assembly. Now, thats almost a rarity. Earlier this summer, the chairman of the Prince William Board of Supervisors came close to winning the Republican nomination for governor. Once, a leap from county supervisor to governor would have been unthinkable. Now, well, why not? Corey Stewarts county government represented more people than now live in a state legislative district.

Its fashionable to say that the states changing demographics represent a danger for Republicans, and thats true  up to a point. The Republican base is overwhelmingly white and depends on a lot of rural votes. The Virginia now forming will be a lot less white, and a lot less rural. Today, non-Hispanic whites account for 58 percent of the states population. By the 2040s, only 47 percent will be non-Hispanic whites. Virginia will officially be a minority-majority state.

In 1980, Democrats held only one statewide office. Today, they hold all of them. Demographics go a long way toward explaining that. How can Republicans hope to compete in the new Virginia? Keep in mind that things change. In 1980, the Northern Virginia suburbs tended to vote Republican and rural Southwest Virginia often voted Democratic. Now those trends are exactly reversed.

In the late 19th century, Republicans were the pro-immigration party. Today, they are in the grip of xenophobic elements. If American conservatives became more like Canadian conservatives  who have embraced immigration as a national policy, instead of rejecting it  demographics would not be an obstacle to their success. Demography, they say, is destiny, but there is nothing that pre-ordains a more diverse Virginia as a more Democratic and less Republican one.

This, though, is absolutely certain: As little as Southwest Virginia counts in the state today, it will count for even less in 2045.

Coming Monday: A surprising projection about Roanokes population.
National denies merit students admission, again

The Birgunj-based National Medical College has denied admission to post-graduate students from the second list of merit published by the Tribhuvan University Institute of Medicine, demanding extra payment.
Rescue teams at the Mir Mine identified new targets for their operations

06 august 2017 News

The rescue teams working at the Mir Mine developed by ALROSA outlined new routes for their operations aimed to find eight miners still remaining underground. The group, which operates inside the mine, is planned to be strengthened by 35 mine rescuers and by miners equipped with additional equipment. The company continues to clear underground excavations on Levels 210 and 310. Several teams of mine rescuers and three loading-and-transporting machines removing rock mass from the mine are engaged on the scene.

On August 6, seven mine rescuers and rock climbers from Aikhal were brought to Mirny, where they will inspect the exits of the mines ventilation shafts and galleries. This will give more exact information on the presence, location and condition of people locked underground. In total, they are going to explore about 50 hectares of the quarry surface during this Sunday.

In parallel, the mine is being constantly monitored for water inflows in its vertical shaft. Pumps installed on the level of -235 meters underground are pumping out quarry water. At the same time, there are 3 to 4 teams simultaneously present at the mine, each containing 5 to 7 mining specialists. In addition, they are assisted by the companys employees who know the mine well. The workers of the mine are moving along together with rescuers, at the same time setting up ventilation systems, taking air samples for the presence of gases and other dangerous and harmful substances.

There are three miners being treated at the Mirny District Hospital. They are Dolat Abdazov, Andrey Unarov raised to the surface this last Friday and Alisher Mirzayev rescued on Saturday. The condition of Abdazov and Unarov does not arouse concern among their doctors  the miners have bruises and fractures of limbs. Thanks to the coordinated actions of the hospital personnel, Alisher Mirzayev is coming back to normal, his condition has stabilized and his life is out of danger.

The miner said that he had actually been saved thanks to the telephone intercom down in the mine. The mine controllers used the system to call the miners who remained underground after flooding. Alisher said that after the water inrush all the internal communication devices were washed away, and it was impossible to understand which of them was functional. The call, which came to a functioning phone, helped him to get out to a non-faulty lifting cage.

All the rescued people say there was no panic among the personnel in the mine during the first minutes of the accident. The workers organized themselves into groups and walked towards the cage shaft.

The road was illuminated by individual lanterns: they became the only light source in the dark mine. The miners of ALROSA use LED lights connected to the Emergency Alert and Selective Calling System (a one-way channel for transmitting information from the controller's console to the receivers in the miners' lanterns). Thanks to this system the control room spotted the location of workers at the time of the accident, which made prompt evacuation of miners possible.








(Agencia CMA Latam) - The persistently lower-than-expected tax revenue in Brazil may lead the government to change this year's fiscal target as soon as next week, said the Planning Minister, Dyogo Oliveira.

"We are experiencing continued revenue frustration," he said during an event in Sao Paulo. "We will evaluate next week, and we will let you know," he said while commenting on a possible change in the fiscal target.

Brazil aims to achieve a R$ 139 billion primary deficit this year, but analysts and investors believe that the country will struggle to meet that objective.

At the end of July, the Brazilian government announced a twofold increase in fuel taxes in an attempt to raise revenues. The decision came only a week after the Brazilian Federal Court of Audit (TCU) said that the federal government could miss the 2017 fiscal target.

According to the court report, a large part of this year's expected revenue refers to public asset sales scheduled to the end of this year that could face delays.

Investors were wary of the Brazilian fiscal target since the start of the year. A survey by the Finance Ministry conducted at the beginning of July showed that economic experts believed that Brazil's primary deficit in 2017 would reach R$ 145.268 billion - above the R$ 139 billion deficit target.

During the event in Sao Paulo, Oliveira also said that the government is still assessing the need to raise taxes further as a way to meet the fiscal target.

by Agencia CMA Latam

For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com

Economic News

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(Agencia CMA Latam) - The president of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, installed the National Constituent Assembly elected last week in spite of criticism from the international community and protests from the opposition.

The beginning of the Assembly's works, which was originally scheduled for Thursday, was postponed by Maduro's decision after a controversy over an alleged electoral "fraud" identified by the Prosecutor's Office and by the company responsible for counting Sunday's votes.

According to the Venezuelan News Agency, the 545 elected members of the assembly will begin to "define the new political, economic, social and cultural bases that will contribute to deepening the republican model of social justice developed in the country since 1999."

Former Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez was elected President of the Constituent Assembly.

The Constituent Assembly was Maduro's answer to growing popular dissatisfaction with his government. Support for the president is diminishing amid a deep economic recession in the country, making room for opposition parties, which won the legislative election in 2015 and since then have the majority of the seats in the Venezuelan Congress.

Critics of Maduro say that he is attempting to increase his powers by changing the current Constitution, which is in place since his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, took office.

According to the government, more than eight million Venezuelans participated in Sunday's National Constituent Assembly (ANC) vote, or 41% of the Venezuelans able to vote. The company who provided the vote counting system, however, said that the government inflated the total turnout by at least one million people.

More than ten countries of the region, among them Argentina, Colombia, and Peru, said that would not recognize the electoral results. The United States and the European Union called the vote "illegal."

Even the Holy See reiterated its concern about the deepening of the crisis in Venezuela and asked the Latin American country's government to suspend the start of the National Constituent Assembly works.

"Rather than favoring reconciliation and peace, [the Constituent] fosters a climate of tension and confrontation," the Vatican's Secretary of State said in a statement.

by Agencia CMA Latam

For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com

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What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
(Agencia CMA Latam) - The president of France, Emmanuel Macron, offered to mediate the Venezuelan crisis while condemning the political violence in the country and the arrest of the opposition leaders Leopoldo Lopez and Antonio Ledezma.

"Our European partners share these concerns. Together, we call that the human rights, the rule of law and people's fundamental freedoms to be respected. We hope that institutions in Venezuela return to its normal functioning as soon as possible," the French Presidency said in a statement.

"France, along with its European partners, supports the efforts of the countries of the region and will continue to support any arbitration that will allow the resumption of a credible, sincere and serious dialogue between the government and the opposition and to end the spiral of violence. Our ambassador, on the spot, stays in touch with all parties," the statement said.

The French offer comes shortly before the installation of the National Constituent Assembly elected last Sunday amid and an opposition boycott.

by Agencia CMA Latam

For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com

Economic News

What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
(Agencia CMA Latam) - Colombia's Automobile Manufacturing Society (Sofasa) and General Motors celebrated the updating of the Economic Complementary Agreement between Colombia and the Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay), once it will allow increasing the country's exports to those at zero tariffs.

According to the agreement, Colombia will be able to export to Argentina up to 12,000 units of cargo and passenger vehicles and up to 30,000 units of light vehicles. To Brazil, Colombia will be able to export up to 50,000 units.

"For Colombia, the agreement with Mercosur and specifically the automotive agreement with Brazil and Argentina brings opportunities for new exports and creates opportunities to strengthen relations with both countries," said Daniel Bayona, General Motors vice-president for, government relations and communications.

The updating of the Economic Complementary Agreement between Colombia and the Mercosur was signed by the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, Maria Claudia Lacouture. In addition to the automotive sector, the agreement benefits textiles, clothing, agrochemicals and plastics industries.

by Agencia CMA Latam

For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com

Economic News

What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
People living near Babai, Karnali banks fear for life

People living in settlements near the Karnali and Babai riverbanks in Bardiya are worried about possible floods as the rain is relentless.
Irregularities in Sajha Prakashan: Probe committee lacks adequate authority

Members of a probe panel formed by the government to investigate into alleged irregularities in Sajha Prakashan by its chairman and general manager are finding themselves at their wits end, as they say they lack adequate authority and that they are not authorised to conduct raids and search.
The Enforcement Directorate on Sunday arrested Muhammad Aslam Wani, an aide to senior separatist leader Shabir Shah, on charges of funding terrorist activities in the Kashmir Valley.

He is being flown to Delhi, an informed source said.

Shah himself was arrested last month in Srinagar and shifted to New Delhi in connection with a terror funding hawala racket being probed by the Enforcement Directorate.

The Enforcement Directorate and the National Investigation Agency have arrested many Kashmiri separatist leaders in the past one month.

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The Congress candidate for the Panaji by-election, Girish Chodankar, on Sunday launched his election campaign with a beached offshore casino vessel in the background and attacked his opponent, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar.

Chodankar, who filed his nomination for the Panaji seat where he will face the former Defence Minister, said Parrikar had betrayed the countrys defence interests despite border tensions to return to form a government in Goa.

Our national leaders have ordered us to expose Parrikar who as Defence Minister kept coming to Goa for Goan food even as soldiers were being killed, Chodankar told reporters after launching his campaign.

He said Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Vice President Rahul Gandhi had encouraged him to take the fight to the Parrikar camp in Goa and expose the duplicity of nationalism which was being peddled by the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership.

There are five offshore casinos operational in the state. After promising to do away with the offshore casino industry, Parrikar told the monsoon session of the assembly that the offshore casinos would be moved onshore within three years.

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Rainbow of KCs Satyagraha

Dr KC seeks to tear through the conundrum of self-serving political elites in government
Dear Editor,

I write to respond to your letter writers who have asked me to leave Samoa. Let me say I followed my husband to Samoa.

I would have preferred to stay in Canada but he wanted to come home and my love for him brings me to Samoa.

Believe me I cried and begged him to stay in Canada.

I could not live without my husband so I accepted my life in Samoa part time.

As long as we are together and as long as there is free speech in Samoa I will be in and out of Samoa, saying what I want, how I want.

You and your boss may find it classless and vulgar of me to describe the 79 percent drop out rate for students in the Samoan education system as an education system that is leaving the future of Samoa in serious trouble.

Sorry for the toilet reference, but its the truth and really an accurate way to describe such pathetic educational outcomes.

Also why would you be offended that someone rightfully points out that the cleanliness in Samoa could be better, if it is also the truth?

Cleanliness isnt really a hard goal to achieve. Dont forget I look at things differently than you. You may be used to the garbage all over the streets and in town and hardly notice it anymore, but someone looking at it as a newcomer can be turned off by the general dirtiness.

Take the general dirtiness and combine that with recent stories of typhoid and cholera after the cyclone, plus the lack of accountability of the government and ask yourself, why would anyone feel confident about drinking the water?

Not everyone wants to risk their health and life by walking around in submissive denial.

You say you are not an H.R.P.P and Tuilaepa supporter but I think otherwise. Im sure your boss is too, so perhaps its my pointing out how the P.M. comes up with his majority that is really what you find vulgar, crass and classless about me.

Oh well I guess we wont be going out for lunch together any time soon.

Im ok with that and Im sure you and your boss are too.

So Vai Autu, as long as Samoa keeps its borders open to foreigners like me, and Samoa sends its citizens out looking for remittances, and some of these citizens marry foreigners from these democratic, secular countries that have excellent education systems, and as long as free speech exists, you may not like what some us say or how some of us say it, but you always have the option to not read it.

I stand by my comments about the poor having no representation in government, your land being at risk to foreign ownership, the dismal educational outcomes that your church run education system is producing, the general dirtiness, the undemocratic system of government that is currently operating, because thats how I see it.

The teuila, the frangipani, Lalomanu beach, and the dogs are beautiful though.

The bugs, not so much or some of the people who like to call me names because Im not as quiet as they would like me to be, but usually not to my face, or those that poison my dogs or cold bloodedly run them over with their car, or those who steal from my home when they have been hired to work there, and the small group who attempted to rob us when we left the bank, I try to make the best of it. I just happen to believe that the root cause of what I perceive as meanness of spirit in some of the people is due to poverty the government chooses to ignore and church/religious/Christian hypocrisy that is exploiting the people for their own gains.

All in all though Samoa is nice to look at, some people are kind and love dogs like I do, and Im getting used to it all.

Tell your boss as much as she would like me to go back to Canada, and as much as Canada and I both miss each other when Im in Samoa I think shes stuck with me and my unwillingness to shut my mouth.

Looks like we all have to work on tolerance and acceptance.

Anyway having said all this I will try to be more grateful for the rich abundant land that Samoa provides me to grow food with my husband and use less offensive terms to describe the education system and other things I find challenging about Samoa in my comments.

Wendy Wonder

Canadian in Samoa
Samoa Breweries Limited rewarded hard work among their staff members during an awards ceremony at their Vaitele headquarters.

The top prizes contested were the Employee of the Month for each department and the Team of the Month awards.

Seven departments, namely Production, Quality, Safety and Environmental Department, Brewing, Engineering, S.O.P. , Sales and Marketing and Finance/HR/IT all vied for the Team of the Month Award.

Manager of Training and Development, Muliagatele Lynette Petelo, told the Sunday Samoan that recognizing the contribution of their employees help to solidify relationships, foster employee engagement and loyalty within the company.

Thats the whole idea of todays event, whether an employee works at brewing or other departments here, it is important to recognise them for their hard work, Muliagatele said.

The company believes that if employees and their work are valued then they are motivated to maintain and improve what they do.

The fact is, if we recognise our employees, tell them what we expect from them and recognise them for a job well done in programme like this, theres no doubt that they will provide great performance.

The event is to become a monthly occurance.

Samoa Breweries Limited  Employees of the Month and Team of the month.

1. Production  Lila Fesolai

2. Quality, Safety and Environmental Department  Julien Michael

3. Brewing  Falefia Taliaoa

4. Engineering  Siona Toalepai

5. S & OP  Anetoma Lamona

6. Sales and Marketing  Usugafono Arona

7. Finance/HR/IT  Amelia Petelo

Team of the Month: Quality, Safety & Environment Department.
The 10th annual conference of the Pacific Water and Wastewater Association (P.W.W.A.) is set to kick off tomorrow at the Sheraton Samoa Aggie Greys Hotel in Apia.

The meeting starts with a programme for young water professionals from around the Pacific.

The 10th Annual Pacific Water Conference and Expo as well as the 3rd Pacific Water Ministerial Forum is officially set to open on Tuesday with a traditional ava ceremony.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Apia-based P.W.W.A, Pitolau Lusia Sefo Leau, confirms that a little over 300 participants are registered to attend for all the events - considerably more than previous years.

Participants include foreign ministers attending the Pacific Water Ministerial Forum, delegations from water and wastewater member utilities from around the Pacific, P.W.W.As development partner representatives, young water professionals from around the Pacific region, a decent line-up of technical speakers, experts, professionals, companies, contractors, and providers and suppliers in the water and wastewater sectors from around the world.

The Chair of the Conference Organising Committee and the Managing Director of the Samoa Water Authority (S.W.A.), Seugamaalii Jammie Saena, is confident S.W.A. and co-host organisations will deliver on the expectations for an efficient, effective and valuable conference. S.W.A, Water and Sanitation Sector of M.N.R.E. and the Samoa Independent Water Schemes Association will look to showcase Samoas natural hospitality, and a growing reputation as an excellent conference/event host.

The theme of this years annual conference is Water supply in a Changing Environment. This directly recognizes the increasing threats of climate variability, climate change and natural disasters and its impacts on safe and sustainable water and adequate sanitation for Pacific nations.

Speakers lined up for the different sessions will impart experiences, research, scientific findings, solutions, innovations and best practices to various water and wastewater challenges under this broad theme.

Showcasing products, innovations, and solutions in the water and wastewater sectors are the various companies, suppliers, contractors, and experts that supply to the Pacific countries, or work with the various countries in the Pacific and elsewhere.

Bringing together the different players in these sectors aims to build goodwill, understanding of the specific risks and challenges in the Pacific region, while also fostering collaborative efforts in building the capacities of the Pacific community, public utilities and organisations to better serve the water and sanitation needs of the people of the Pacific.

Debuting in this years annual conference is a special programme for Young Water Professionals from the P.W.W.A. member utilities.

The programme sponsored by the Department of Foreign Affairs of Australia through the Australian Water Partnership brings together about 30 young professionals to be a part of the Conference.

The programme aims to mentor, inspire and build the future leaders capacity in the water and wastewater sector by bringing them together to share with their peers and to learn from current leaders and various experts in the sector.

A prominent event during the week is the 3rd Pacific Water Ministers Forum to be held on Tuesday straight after the opening.

Chairing this years Water Ministerial Forum is Samoas Minister of Works, Transport and Infrastructure, Papaliitele Niko Lee Hang.

Ministers aim to discuss and affirm the strategic direction and focus of the annual Pacific Water Ministers Forum as part of the regional infrastructure to better deliver on the 2030 S.D.Gs.

They will share their respective countries progress with achieving the S.D.G. targets and explore areas where collaboration and partnerships might best contribute to the Pacifics progress towards achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal 6 drinking water and sanitation targets.

The week-long conference events will culminate with a gala event hosted by P.W.W.A. where the Pacific awards will be given based on performance of all utilities against various benchmarked criteria.

There will also be recognition awards for individuals in the water and wastewater sector who have made a significant contribution to the sector in the Pacific.

The full programme of the Conference is available on the P.W.W.A. website at www.pwwa.ws. P.W.W.A. promises to keep the public informed of proceedings through regular updates on the P.W.W.A. website and through the media.
Healthy, local and they grow quite fast.

Thats why Tom and Tafi Rudnick are investing heavily in their hydroponic farm at Vailima which they believe will go a long way to eliminate the need to import lettuce.

The Rudnicks utilizes the method of growing plants without soil using mineral nutrient solutions in a water solvent.

The plants are grown with only their roots exposed to the mineral solution of water, Mr. Rudnick told Sunday Samoan.

Mr. Rudnicks overarching goal is for Samoa to be able to supply its own lettuces and other vegetables, without the need to import them.

We want to produce what is good for the health of the people, which means no spraying of the lettuce with any chemicals, he said.

We need to stop importing, the government should invest in the farms in Samoa and stop depending on imported goods. We can do it ourselves.

There are people in Samoa who can do it.... we can do it ourselves, we dont need to depend on imports from off island when it comes to our vegetables.

Mr. Rudnick said apart from the challenge of getting it up and running, the process is quite simple.

We have a water pump which is mixed with powered nutrients, he said.

The pump pushes the water up to the pipes that feed in to the tallies (pipes) where the seed is growing.

The water exits from the tallies and goes back into the water tank.

We use little water and its clean recycled water unlike the farms on the soil, where they need so much water in order for the plant to grow in the soil.

Not hydroponic farming, he said.

So far, the Rudnicks have 5,000 plants. They are not stopping any time soon.

We dont have to pick weeds, we dont have to spray, we dont have to bend down, there is no digging and most of all we only use a little amount of water.

But the benefits dont end there. It takes five weeks for a lettuce to grow in a hydroponic farm whereas on soil it takes up to three months

Furthermore, Mr. Rudneck said the materials, equipment, nutrient powders used in his farm are imported in from New Zealand.

Hydroponic farming was initiated by an American Scientist in 1968 who experimented with vegetables growing in space. He said that unlike travelers on earth who have access to restaurants, in space travelers options are limited.

And this was when National Aeronautic and Space Administration wants to increase the length of missions, scientists have found a way to grow their own food in their space shuttles, he said.

Mr. Rudnick started working on hydroponic farm in a Lelata plantation in Savaii, in 1997.

We were the first hydroponic farm to grow in the South Pacific and because everyone believed that hydroponic does not grow in Tropical countries, I had proved them wrong.

It took me a good six month to get this going. It took a long time to determine the technicalities of growing a hydroponic farm.

Fiji is the leading country with the biggest hydroponic farm with Samoa the second, because not many people invest in this type of farming yet its very easy.

The hydroponic in Vailima outside Mr Rudnicks residence started in October 2016.

This is only a baby and its going to be much bigger.

Even with that, the Rudnicks have close to 20 businesses they supply. They plan to expand and supply a whole lot more.
A couple from Samoa has been officially invited by the President of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, Dr. Jurgen Buhler, for The Feast of Tabernacles.

Pastor Cruise and his wife Marissa Westerlund have accepted the invitation and as they are about to embark on their historical journey to Israel, they are also extending the invitation to Samoa.

I want to bring very warm greetings to the Islands of Samoa and I want to invite you to join us at this years Feast of Tabernacles celebration right here in Jerusalem, reads the invitation from Dr. Jurgen Buhler.

This year is a very special Feast as we are celebrating 50 years of a united Jerusalem, and I want to call on the entire Island to link up with Cruise and Rissa, our leaders in Samoa, to join them to come to The Feast of Tabernacles this year.

It will be a historical Feast and I look very much forward to welcome you from the Islands of The Pacific.

Dr. Jurgen is an ordained minister and trained physicist who serves as Executive Director of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem.

After graduating from Ulm University with a degree in physics, Jurgen moved to Israel in 1994.

Following a five-year research project at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, he obtained his doctorate in chemistry.

Jurgen joined the staff of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem in 1999 and served from 2001 to 2011 as National Director for ICEJGermany.

He has been a member of the ICEJs Board of Trustees for eight years and served as the ministrys International Director for five years.

In October 2011, the board of the International Christian Embassy asked Jurgen to serve as Executive Director.

He is a licensed minister with the German Pentecostal Federation (BFP), and his unique scriptural insights into issues relating to Israel, the Church and the nations have placed him in great demand as a speaker all over the world.

Pastor Cruise Westerlund said they are humbled by the invite.

And he urges everyone to partner and donate to their Israel campaign so they can honour the invite.

You can do that from overseas through our Facebook page Samoan Pilgrims for Israel, 2017 he said. We have established a GoFundMe page where donors from all over the world can donate to, donate button is on our Facebook page.

We also have a local donation booth in Lotopa, next to Samoa Commercial Bank building in front.

Its open from Monday  Friday, 12pm  6pm any interest donors to assist them with their Israel campaign.

We have arranged for a Messianic Jew (A direct descendant of Abraham) to declare a special blessing in Jerusalems Prayer House and make mention of all the names of every person that has contributed by various means to this trip.

We will record it through media and will update all of Samoa through our page and we need to give honor to where honor is due. It will indeed be a captivating moment for sure as we believe it to be. God will bless whoever that blesses Israel.

All our Samoan pilgrims will be representing our country Samoa through ICEJ during The Feast Of Tabernacles in Israel, Jerusalem.
A mother has called for national prayers over the growing number of crimes in Samoa today.

Mele Apo of Saoluafata is concerned that unless the country comes together to find a solution, this will only get worse. It means the future of Samoa is under threat.

The 60-year-old spoke to the Village Voice about this because of her love for her country.

Lets take a look at this day and age, she said.

Who knew that we would someday have victims that are 2, 3, 8 years old, 12 years old. To me thats not old at all, they are still young.

Not only that; but the number of teenage pregnancies has increased.

I have six children of my own and I cant imagine having them going through the problems that some kids are experiencing right now; its too painful.

The mother noted that she is disturbed because some people are committing crimes as if its a game.

All these problems began at home and most of us dont even know when and although we consider ourselves to be perfect parents, sometimes the devil has a way of destroying your family without you realizing it.

So at the end of the day, its not the parents at fault, things happen because just like we have a God, we also have evil surrounding us.

Children, the youth can disobey their parents no matter how we teach them so thats why we cant always blame the parents when problems like these occur.

At the moment, Mele collects sea urchins, shellfish to provide food for her family everyday.

I do what I can for my family; it doesnt have to be the same for everyone else. I believe that you can support them without whatever you have.

And I can only advice for us to be strong and have faith, theres no perfect way of parenting, we all raise our kids in the best way that we can.

We just need to pray to God for help and hoping that our children will turn out okay in the future.
The Samoa Life Assurances Corporation, (SLAC) has gone from strength to strength since it was establishedin 1977.

As one of the longest governments Public Enterprise, SLACs 40th anniversary earlier this month reaffirms that the Corporations financial velocity speaks volumes.

For the past 10 consecutive years, SLAC has recorded an average profit margin of $1.1 million tala, said General Manager Leiataua Alden Godinet.

In the last ten year period, our profit margin crossed the $2 million tala neighborhood twice during fiscal year 2014-2015 and again in the last fiscal year.

And I am confident we will achieve another $2 million plus in profits for the current fiscal year.

Mindful that life insurance is not compulsory, Leiataua, a veteran of 25 years with SLAC attributes the success of the corporation to a combination of achievements by the staff.

In premium income, the General Manager is singing praises for SLACs Sales and Marketing Division.

To say that selling life insurances is competitive is an understatement.

And our Sales Agents of 11 complemented by our staff of 53 have performed exceptionally well under these circumstances to sell insurance policies as reflected in high premium income sales, praised Leiataua, a St Josephs College and Marist Brothers alumni.

SLAC and its policy holders are also reaping the fruits of hard labor through her investment facility. In June, 2017, we received a dividend of close to $200,000 from our investment with the Unit Trust of Samoa, (UTOS), said Leiataua.

Our other sustainable investment portfolio includes the Computer Services Limited, National Pacific Insurance, Digicel Samoa Limited and the Samoa Submarine Cable Company."

This is not to mention of rental fees collected from tenants housed in our Central Office.

As of March 31st 2017, SLAC has close to 10,000 policy holders or to be exact 9,989 insurance policies covered by Samoa Life and the number continues to soar.

The Corporations Total Assets value as of March 31st 2017 was in the neighborhood of $44 million tala.

In line with the 2017-2020 Samoa Development Strategy Plan, SLAC Corporate Plans ultimate mission is to contain expenditures and improve its revenue making capacity.

In a nutshell, the Insurance Corporation has come a long way and it has improved the lives of its policy holders through its benefits.

Among the notable benefits available is identical to the Samoa National Development Funds annual dividend.

Our annual bonus rates, explains the General Manager, will see our policy holders receiving a bonus of $17.50 per $1,000 sum assured plus $55.00 per $1,000 existing bonus or bonus on bonus.

Leiataua holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the Queensland, Australia based University of Griffith.

He also holds a Master of Business from the University of Southern Queensland.

Leiataua is now in his second term as General Manager having dedicated the last 25 years as a loyal SLAC employee.
LAS VEGAS (AP)  Marcus Hutchins, a young British researcher credited with derailing a global cyberattack in May, was arrested for allegedly creating and distributing malicious software designed to collect bank-account passwords, U.S. authorities said Thursday.

News of Hutchins' detention came as a shock to the cybersecurity community. Many had rallied behind the researcher whose quick thinking helped control the spread of the WannaCry ransomware attack that crippled thousands of computers.

Hutchins was detained in Las Vegas on his way back to Britain from an annual gathering of hackers and information security gurus. A grand jury indictment charged Hutchins with creating and distributing malware known as the Kronos banking Trojan.

Such malware infects web browsers, then captures usernames and passwords when an unsuspecting user visits a bank or other trusted location, enabling cybertheft.

The indictment, filed in a Wisconsin federal court last month, alleges that Hutchins and another defendant a whose name was redacted a conspired between July 2014 and July 2015 to advertise the availability of the Kronos malware on internet forums, sell the malware and profit from it. The indictment also accuses Hutchins of creating the malware.

Authorities said the malware was first made available in early 2014, and "marketed and distributed through AlphaBay, a hidden service on the Tor network." The U.S. Department of Justice announced in July that the AlphaBay "darknet" marketplace was shut down after an international law enforcement effort.

Hutchins' arraignment was postponed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas by a magistrate judge who gave him until Friday afternoon to determine if he wants to hire his own lawyer.

Hutchins was in Las Vegas for Def Con, an annual cybersecurity conference that ended Sunday. On Wednesday, Hutchins madecomments on Twitter that suggested he was at an airport getting ready to board a plane for a flight home. He never left Nevada.

Jake Williams, a respected cybersecurity researcher, said he found it difficult to believe Hutchins is guilty. The two men have worked on various projects, including training material for higher education for which the Briton declined payment.

"He's a stand-up guy," Williams said in a text chat. "I can't reconcile the charges with what I know about him."

A Justice Department spokesman confirmed the 22-year-old Hutchins was arrested Wednesday in Las Vegas. Officer Rodrigo Pena, a police spokesman in Henderson, near Las Vegas, said Hutchins spent the night in federal custody in the city lockup.

Andrew Mabbitt, a British digital security specialist who had been staying in Las Vegas with Hutchins, said he and his friends grew worried when they got "radio silence" from Hutchins for hours. The worries deepened when Hutchins' mother called to tell him the young researcher hadn't made his flight home.

Mabbitt said he eventually found Hutchins' name on a detention center website. News of his indictment Thursday left colleagues scrambling to understand what happened.

"We don't know the evidence the FBI has against him, however we do have some circumstantial evidence that he was involved in that community at the time," said computer security expert Rob Graham.

The big question is the identity of the co-defendant in the case, whose name is redacted in the indictment. Why was it blacked out? "Maybe the other guy testified against him," said Graham.

The co-defendant allegedly advertised the malware online. Hutchins is accused of creating and transmitting the program.

Williams, the president of Rendition Infosec, speculated that the co-defendant might have been caught up in the takedown of AlphaBay and framed Hutchins in exchange for a plea deal.

The problem with software creation is that often a program includes code written by multiple programmers. Prosecutors might need to prove that Hutchins wrote code with specific targets.

Williams pointed to a July 13, 2014 tweet by Hutchins, whose moniker is @MalwareTechBlog, asking if anyone had a sample of Kronos to share.

"I've written code that other people have injected malware into," said Graham. "We know that large parts of Kronos were written by other people."

One legal scholar who specializes in studying computer crime said it's unusual, and problematic, for prosecutors to go after someone simply for writing or selling malware a as opposed to using it to further a crime.

"This is the first case I know of where the government is prosecuting someone for creating or selling malware but not actually using it," said Orin Kerr, a law professor at George Washington University. Kerr said it will be difficult to prove criminal intent.

"It's a constant issue in criminal law a the helping of people who are committing a crime," Kerr said. "When is that itself a crime?"
It was mid 2016, when an horrific story flashed around the world about a prisoner who had escaped multiple times from Tafaigata Prison in Samoa. His victims were a young couple visiting from Tasmania, Australia.

As well as committing robbery, assault and then raping the young woman, he also taunted them and threatened to kill them.

A subsequent television programme followed, featuring an interview between a persistent 60 Minutes journalist, Liam Bartlett and our own Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi.

The programme, like the story it was based upon, did not make pleasant viewing whether you lived in Samoa or anywhere else in the world.

And for Australians viewing the programme, it would have been even more difficult to accept the situation, given they had donated about $15 million over seven years to a Samoan-Australian Police Programme.

And while there were claims by our Government of the Prime Minister being unkindly portrayed and his dialogue being unfairly edited, the facts remained Tafaigata Prison did not have a fence and this career criminal had escaped on more than one occasion.

At that time, July 2016, the Prime Minister invited Mr Bartlett to return to Samoa this year in June (2017) to see the brand new prison which would hopefully boast a fence.

But now here we are in August, only to be told that the new Tanumalala Prison is not only not finished; but it has not even been started.

The aim is to have the groundbreaking ceremony in two weeks time, we were told by Assistant Commissioner of Prison and Correction Services, Ulugia Niuia Aumua.

The delay in starting the project he said, was because the Government was waiting for help from overseas, which presumably means getting other countries or organisations to provide funding.

When there was nothing forthcoming, Government then borrowed from the Unit Trust of Samoa (U.T.O.S.) the 10 million tala needed so the project could begin.

Again, despite an obvious need, Samoas 2017 budget was also unable to cover any of the costs which begs the question, what are our priorities?

How about a Safer Samoa for our citizens and visitors being put on the wish list when millions are handed out at budget time?

In the meantime, we await the news of the name of the successful tender and look forward to seeing the project actually becoming a reality preferably with a secure fence included in the costs.

And while we agree with Ulugia that it will be a happy moment when they finally relocate to Tanumalala very soon it was slightly disturbing to hear that his reason was, to avoid the issues of prisoners escaping.

We are all hopeful that he does not mean that after all this time, and after everything that has occurred, Tafaigata, in the meantime, is still not secure enough for us to assured that people who are sent to prison will stay there until after they finish their time.

Please may we be wrong on this.
Ever worried about speaking to a lawyer for legal advice because of the cost?

Well, worry no more because for the first time in Samoa, a law firm is offering free legal advice for the public every Saturday.

Senior lawyer, Unasa Iuni Sapolu is offering free legal advice to members of the public on any matter that is of concern to you.

In an interview with the Samoa Observer, Unasa said the idea is to help the people of Samoa because as a lawyer herself, she knows how it feels when people try to get legal advice from lawyers.

We actually started this last week but today, we seriously got into it. The way it works is that the people have to call in from Monday to Friday for appointments, she said.

Then we start filing out forms so that when they come in on Saturday, the basic information is ready.

On Saturday, we start at 8am and go through until 11am so its three hours.

I must also say that we will not be taking any late calls. What I mean by that is if they ring on Friday night and they want to come in on Saturday or if they call on Saturday morning and expect to be seen on that day? No. Thats not how it works but they have to call during the week.

I also take messenger messages so they can also get through by messenger.

The objective is to make sure that the public is informed that there is a free service here in Samoa. Its for people who feel stressed with anything that hits them about the law; especially people who have been charged by police officers or traffic officers or who have been terminated by their employers, she said.

When people are in those kinds of situations, its very hard but I want them to know that there is a place that can help them out with free, legal advice.

I thought Id start it out but already there have been lawyers who are interested in joining in but I told them to wait a while until we get busy then they will be informed. But at the moment, Ill just start it out and then well see from here.

I think this is the first of its kind here in Samoa and the idea is not new. I worked as a Citizens Advice Bureau lawyer in New Zealand for more than 20 years.

So now that I spend a lot of time in Samoa, I thought that I might as well continue with it. On Saturdays I go to the plantation but I thought Id do something here in the morning when my mind is fresh and full of ideas.

And also I thought that my experience can be used here in Samoa. I have been doing some free work during the week but to have a proper time set is something that we Samoan people need so that is why we have done this.

So how exactly does it work?

People will have to call in and we will fill out the form for them with their names, village and their issue that they need legal advice about, said Unasa.

Basically the service will provide the people with free, legal advice on any issue. I also hope to have a list of lawyers they can contact after we have already seen them.

We will serve anyone rich or poor. We will get to everyone and we can also help sign any documents that need a lawyers signature and its for free. The only documents that we dont sign for free are documents from overseas.

So we will give legal advice on any issues and we will also help with lawyers if their issue is crucial.

The service we offer is 10 minutes per person but if the matter is crucial, then we will give the clients 15 minutes.

Today we served about three people and I mean its just the beginning and I guess the people dont really know about the service and hopefully when it comes out in the paper, they will be able to come for help.

One thing I also want to clarify is that some people when they see its for free they might think the work that we do is also cheap. No. I dont do cheap stuff. I mean I am a senior lawyer and have been in the field for as long as I can remember so we will give the public the best advice that we know suits their problem.

The reason why its free is to help the people of Samoa because nowadays, speaking to a lawyer is very expensive and so thats why we are here to tell the people that we can help.

Just call us and we will see you on Saturdays.

The number is 31111 or mobile 773-8947 but with the mobile I can only take text messages I also have a facebook page I can answer anyone on message as well just add me on facebook Iuni Sapolu and I will be able to help you with our service.

Remember we give legal advice on any matter.
Rs 500,000 aid to Khimti flood victims

Home Minister Janardan Sharma has said the government will help the flood victims of Khimti, Ramechhap to rebuild their homes.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Electric Power Corporation (E.P.C,) Tologata Galumalemana Tuimalealiifano, is urging families who are not connected to the the government's E.P.C. sevicves, to contact his office.

He made this annoncement at the media conference last week, during the official opening of the Pacific Power Associations 26 Annual Conference.

However, in pointing out that what he was talking about would cater only to low income families, he advised: This programme is called Lifeline Tariff. Its only for low income families.

He also said that throughout the Pacific, Samoa is the only country whose electricity services have almost covered the entire country.

Only a small number of families dont have the E.P.C. service, he said.

He did not elaborate.

All he said was that: These families live on their plantations and we have already made public announcements about this programme.

Families who have not got electricity in their residences need to come into the office and we will help find a way to get them electricity.

Tologata pointed out that if for any reason it is too expensive to install utilities poles to get electricity lines to those families, the E.P.C. would find a way to make it happen.

He also said: We can put up solar panels in those places to get electricty to those families."

Incidentally, the Pacific Power Association 26 Annual Conferences theme is "Affordable electricity for all

Prime Minister Tuilaepa, who officially opened the conference, said that in light of the theme, "Samoa is committed to ensuring that all families have access to sustainable and affordable electricity services, as it's been highlighted in the Strategy for the Development of Samoa 2017-2020."

He went to to say: This is also evident in the E.P.C.s vision of using clean energy sources for sustainable and affordable electricity supply for the country.

"This is the second time Samoa has hosted the P.P.A.," Prime Minister Tuilaepa pointed out.

The first time was in 1986 when there was very little electricity development in place, with only 12 megawatts of maximum electric demand daily.

Explained Tuilapea: Compared to the present situation of fast development, the volume has shifted to a maximum of 25 megawatts of electricity being used today."

He also said: I believe every country in our region is committed to ensuring that their people have access, to not only affordable electricity, but also to sustainable electricity supply.

Electricity supply and demand in the region are amongst the highest in the world.

It is therefore important to explore all possible renewable resources available on our islands, to completely remove our dependency on fossil fuel."

He also pointed out: However, renewable and green energy are not necessarily cheap.

Which was when he proudly pointed out that Samoa is leading the Pacific in the development and installation of solar energy, with a total installation capacity of 14 megawatts without storage."
The Assistant Commissioner of Prison and Correction Services, Ulugia Niuia Aumua, has revealed that the construction of the Tanumalala Prison, will most likely be completed by July next year.

This is despite the fact that the Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, had announced in July 2016, it would be completed in June this year.

Ulugia said the delay in getting the project underway, was because they had been waiting for financial help from overseas.

That did not materialise, so that accorring to Ulugia, the Government of Samoa has stepped up to fund the project .

In December 2016, Samoa Prisons Minister, Tialavea Fea Leniu Tionisio Hunt announced that the loan papers had been signed with the Unit Trust of Samoa, (U.T.O.S.).

The loan of $10 million will be paid by funds from the prisons budget, he had said at the time.

Meanwhile, Ulugia said that the aim is to have the groundbreaking ceremony in two weeks time.

We have already approached our Project Manager and so we are now waiting for our Tenders Board to find out who the lucky contractor is who will be building the prison.

The project he said will have two main stages: the main prison buildings and the administration blocks,

We are looking at eight months for it to be completed so that will be July 2018 before the prison is opened.

The total cost of the project is approximately 10 million, he said.

He also expressed his excitement about the impending move to Tanumalala not the least because of publicity around poor security in the past.

We are happy that the work is in process and hopefully we can relocate to Tanumalala very soon to avoid the issues of prisoners escaping.

Ulugia also pointed to increased prison staff with present numbers around 90.

At the moment we also have 15 new staff recruits and they are undertaking training.

We cant wait to relocate to the new place, he concluded.
Its a common refrain: If you want to save money for retirement or a down payment for a house, stop buying pricey coffee. Or theres the more recent admonition: Lay off the avocado toast.

Fat chance on that. For most people, the link between long-term financial health and a few bucks spent here or there just isnt strong enough  even though every little bit socked away can help.

So instead of urging customers not to buy stuff, Irvine startup Acorns has a different suggestion: Save a little bit every time you spend.

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The company, through its app, rounds off customers credit or debit card purchases to the nearest dollar and invests the difference into stocks and bonds.

The notion is to make saving and investing not only simple but virtually invisible.

Were not trying to preach austerity to the client, because thats a bummer, said Manning Field, Acorns chief commercial officer. Some people will say, Dont have the cup of coffee. Well tell you to have the cup of coffee and invest along the way.

That pitch has been appealing, with the number of accounts growing from 1.1 million at the end of last year to 1.8 million this month. Most accounts are small, though  about $230 on average as of last year, the last time the company released such a figure.

Now Acorns has released an update of its app with features aimed at boosting how much customers save. And its looking ahead to offering more than just its saving and investing tool amid stiffening competition in the emerging business of automated money management.

Big robo advisers, which position themselves as online alternatives to traditional brokerage and wealth management firms, have amassed billions in client assets  much more than the $257 million that Acorns managed at the end of last year  though they have fewer and wealthier customers. New York-based Betterment, for instance, manages more than $9 billion but has just 330,000 accounts.

There are also a growing number of apps aimed, like Acorns, at small savers and investors. Investment app Stash has a similar offering, but without the save-the-change feature; Digit and Qapital both offer automated savings, but put customers cash into a savings account.

Noah Kerner, who has been Acorns chief executive since last spring, said hes not concerned about competing apps  I dont believe people want to app hop. But Kerner does acknowledge that he wants the company to offer a broader range of financial services.

If you can tackle someones core financial challenges with the simplest product and the most automated solution, I think that ultimately wins the day, he said.

For now, though, Acorns remains focused on finding ways to encourage customers to put away a bit more cash.

To that end, the company in April added Shlomo Benartzi, a prominent UCLA behavioral economist, to its board of directors. Benartzis research has focused on finding ways to increase savings and on how to influence online behavior. Acorns updated app incorporates some of his insights.

Benartzi said if customers dont save enough, they might abandon the app and stop saving altogether.

You want to make sure people dont get frustrated because the amounts dont add up as fast as they wanted, he said. If you save up for a year and dont even have enough for a new iPhone, its easy to get discouraged.

Acorns was founded in 2012 by Jeffrey Cruttenden and his father, Walter, a longtime Orange County businessman who founded an investment bank now known as Roth Capital Partners.

The firm  whose name makes the obvious allusion to how a small stashed-away acorn can grow into a giant tree  launched its app two years later.

Acorns investment accounts themselves are quite basic, giving customers a limited menu of options. Customers can choose one of five portfolios, ranging from conservative  mostly government and corporate bonds  to aggressive  all stocks, no bonds. The money is parked in a handful of index funds managed by big-name firms including Vanguard and BlackRock.

Most customers link a bank account and a debit or credit card to their Acorns account. The firm monitors spending and, once the spare change from purchases adds up to $5 or more, it takes that amount from the bank account and invests it. (There are transaction costs, which is why the firm doesnt take out a few cents after every purchase.)

The company charges a flat fee of $1 a month for accounts of less than $5,000 and an annual 0.25 percent fee for accounts larger than that.

Acorns isnt profitable, but it has attracted some big-name investors, including Silicon Valley payments giant PayPal and Point72 Asset Management, a firm led by billionaire hedge fund manager Steven A. Cohen.

Though Acorns was built to encourage passive saving and investing, it turns out that Acorns customers look at the app every other day, on average.

Benartzi said that the companys customer base and the frequency with which users open the app provides an opportunity to determine what motivates people to save.

You can run a lot of tests, and we do, he said. The ability to learn is unbelievable.

For instance, along with investing spare change from purchases, Acorns encourages customers to make a recurring investment of as little as $5 a month. Benartzi said a recent test asked customers to make recurring investments of either $5 a day, $35 a week or $150 a month.

Any of the options, of course, would result in the same total savings, but customers reacted quite differently. Benartzi said $5 a day was by far the most popular, chosen about four times as often as $150 a month.

Benartzi said he wants to see what other tricks  including personalized suggestions  can help customers build a meaningful nest egg.

When youre saving the change, youre talking about maybe a few hundred bucks a year, he said. Youre not going to accumulate wealth by doing just that. I do not think there will one single trick  you need different mechanisms for different people.

One of those mechanisms in the updated app is a tool that enables users to more easily see the benefits of an additional daily, weekly or monthly investment.

A new screen labeled potential includes a chart showing how an account would grow, assuming steady investments and an annual return that ranges up to 6 percent. Users also can see how their balance might differ in 10 or 20 or 40 years if they boost a recurring investment.

This feature, Benartzi said, is designed to show, in very simple terms, the big difference that can come from a relatively small change.

It helps you link action to outcome, he said. If I do $5 a day instead of $3, how does that change the end result? Its difficult for people to imagine how that small amount accumulates in the long run. Its not easy math.

And its working. Acorns has been testing the new version of the app for about a month with about 5 percent of users. In that time, 17 percent of users who went to the new potential screen either added a recurring investment for the first time or increased their existing one.

Another new feature, the round-up multiplier, lets customers put aside more cash after making purchases. Instead of investing 25 cents after a $3.75 purchase, users can multiply that spare change by two, three or 10.

In early testing, 30 percent of Acorns users have turned on the multiplier feature, most of them doubling the spare change.

Benartzi said he wants Acorns to experiment with other ways to encourage more spending-linked investment, such as rounding up purchases to the nearest $5 increment or investing a percentage of each purchase.

If youre buying coffee for $3.10 and save 90 cents, you might not want to save more than that. But what if you buy something for $98? he said. Wouldnt you want to save more when you buy that big item? Over time, well learn what works best.

One thing that was dropped in the update was a home screen graphic that looked like a stock chart, showing the change in an account balance over the last month due to investments, withdrawals and market gains or losses.

For a company focused on passive investing and the benefits of thinking long term, showing a 30-day fever chart sent the wrong message.

Anything that gets our customers focused on the short term and hyper tuned in to market fluctuations is not good, CEO Kerner said.

As Acorns continues to tweak its investment tools, Kerner said the company may next focus on responsible spending.

That means Acorns might eventually offer some kind of checking account, a move that could make the company an integrated spending, saving and investing service that would rival many basic bank functions.

Helping people spend responsibly is a huge part of living a better financial life, Kerner said. We will be solving that problem.

Koren writes for California News Group, publisher of Union-Tribune and Los Angeles Times.
There comes a time for most San Diego couples when they get sick of renting and, for the Whites, it came around the 40th birthday mark.

Shawna White, 40, spent countless hours researching a place she and her husband Nathan, 39, could afford that wouldnt break the bank. In addition to getting away from the regions explosive rent hikes, they saw a home as an investment.

Eventually, the Navy couple landed in Otay Ranch on the eastern fringes of the county near the border with Mexico. They bought a new 1,504-square-foot townhouse for $378,000, around $200,000 less than what something similar would have cost them closer to downtown.

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We were able to buy something new instead of an older home with issues, she said. This was a good buy.

More and more new homeowners are being drawn to Otay Ranch, the largest residential development in San Diego County history at 25,000 acres. After being hit hard in the housing crisis, it has reemerged as a viable option for homeownership in a county where historic low inventory has driven prices to new peaks.

The median home price for a newly built home or condo in the county was $787,000 in June, at least $250,000 more than what a new place in the ranch goes for. Real estate tracker CoreLogic said the median for a resale single-family home was $595,000 in June, meaning you could get a new house in Otay Ranch for less than an old one in some cases.

View a map of the development 

There are reasons why some potential buyers might not like Otay Ranch  proximity to the border and three jails, commute time and higher taxes in some cases. But, the numbers show it isnt stopping buyers.

Its the next to last place where they can build moderate priced housing, said Alan Nevin, industry analyst at Xpera Group. The big action for single-family (homes), townhouses and apartments is Otay Ranch.

As of the first six months of this year, single-family homes in the ZIP codes that encompass the ranch were selling in roughly 30 days and condos/townhouses in 23 days, said the Greater San Diego Association of Realtors.

It is not as cheap as Riverside County  still a huge draw for San Diego workers  but the commute from Otay Ranch to downtown is about 25 to 35 minutes depending on traffic. A drive to downtown from Riversides housing hub of Temecula averages about an hour to an hour and a half.

Today, part of the development crackles with activity as parents pick up students from school and new homebuyers move in. A few blocks away, construction is under way on homes that will soon fill up the quiet, open spaces of this massive development. Despite several home designs, a Spanish style dominates most streets creating a uniform look, making it easy to get lost a block away from a house you are visiting.

Mountains surround the ranch and strong breezes are commonplace. Many roads in Otay Ranch have yet to make their way onto digital mapping applications or GPS units, and cellphone reception can be spotty in parts.

Several new villages of the Otay Ranch development in Chula Vista have recently opened. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune)

There have been about 10,000 homes built at Otay Ranch with 17,000 to 18,000 more to come. With an area 12 miles wide from east to west and 8.5 miles north to south, Otay Ranch is nearly the size of San Francisco. It is three miles from the border in some spots.

The ZIP code that includes much of Otay Ranch was one of the hardest hit spots during the housing crash. Homes there hit a median price of $651,500 in October 2005 but dropped to $300,000 by September 2011, CoreLogic said.

In June, the median home price was $505,000, still considerably far from the previous peak in 2005 (which is about $800,000 in todays dollars), but also a reflection of builders shift to more condos than single-family homes.

Higher taxes in Otay Ranch compared to other places in the county are typical. Most of Otay Ranch falls under a Mello-Roos tax district, where a special tax is levied in addition to property tax to pay for infrastructure. It means a house costing $600,000 in Otay Ranch could run about $1,000 more a year in taxes than a home not in a Mello-Roos district. (The exact Mella-Roos fee could be higher depending on where a person buys in Otay Ranch.)

Otay Ranch is popular enough with new buyers that developers say homes are selling before construction is completed. Many of the builders have established priority waiting lists that give eager buyers the first crack at new homes.

Developer Baldwin & Sons said around 70 percent of its buyers are Asian, primarily of Filipino decent. Military buyers also make a major demographic of new Otay Ranch buyers.

Otay Ranch over time

San Diego County planners began work on the 25,000-acre Otay Ranch in 1984, reviewing options for a mix of residential, commercial and industrial development. The area had been used mostly as ranchland for cattle since the 19th century.

The early plan for the ranch hasnt changed much since the 1980s, despite a recent reduction in retail.

Irvine-based Baldwin Co. bought the property from United Enterprise for $150 million in 1988. It was the largest private land transfer since the days of Mexican land grants and is still the largest single residential development in San Diego County history. A political fight over control between the county and Chula Vista ended up with most of the territory becoming part of the city.

Baldwin eventually sold off parts of the development and is joined by Carlsbad-based HomeFed Corporation and Dallas-based Stratford Land in ownership of the region.

Dana Kuhn, real estate lecturer at San Diego State University, said East Chula Vista had naysayers earlier in its development that questioned if anyone would buy houses out there. He said that once developments were built, the buyers came.

In a supply constrained market, people have to go where the supply is, he said. Theyll go as far as they need to get that thing they feel they need, in this case it is usually trading square footage over convenience.

East Chula Vista was hit hard by the housing crash, and took a long time to recover. Both ZIP codes that cover Otay Ranch were the worst off in the entire county. By May 2012, the 91915 ZIP code had the most defaults (15.4 per 1,000 homes) and the 91913 ZIP code was second worst (11.6 per 1,000 homes).

Nowadays, Otay Ranch is successful because it offers a mix of homes at different prices that appeal to the first-time buyers, said Nick Lee, vice president of developer Baldwin.

We want to segment all of our product, he said. Thats why we havent built all 4,000-square-foot houses. They sell for the most, but you wouldnt be able to sell them all. Weve put product at every price point and every square footage range.

In Baldwins Monte Villa development, a 2,594 to 2,833-square-foot home with four to five beds, a two-car garage and three to four bathrooms ranges from $542,000 to $565,000. For context, a 1,199-square-foot condo in Golden Hill with two bedrooms and two bathrooms at the newly opened Guild on 30th is on the market for $614,900.

Future developments

There are 10 projects selling in Otay Ranch, with others anticipated to fill out the availability of homes at different price ranges in the coming years.

In the first three months of this year, about 200 new homes sold in Otay Ranch, said Marketpointe Realty Advisors. It might not sound like a lot, but it actually made up roughly 35 percent of all new home sales in San Diego County in that time, according to CoreLogic sales reports.

Several new villages of the Otay Ranch development in Chula Vista have recently opened. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune)

Stratfords 210-acre Millenia project is one of the more ambitious in the ranch with 3,000 homes (apartments, condos and single-family houses), roughly 3.5 million square feet of office space, retail, hospitality, civic and mixed-use projects, six parks, a library and a school.

At 80 city blocks, the Millenia project marks a more urban style in the development as opposed to the suburban villages making up much of the ranch. It will be completed in 10 to 15 years.

As we bring more projects on, I see our market share growing, said Guy Asaro, the developer and manager of Millennia. Thats because it is an affordable community in which to live compared with other new home communities across the county.

Additionally, he said Otay Ranch stands out because the infrastructure is new, including schools, shopping centers and roads.

All the new developments are expected to increase traffic delays. Planners had originally considered a trolley line but have decided to go with buses instead. The rapid transit buses will follow a 26-mile route between Otay Mesa port of entry and downtown San Diego.

Buses will travel on dedicated lanes with limited stops. Kelly Broughton, Chula Vistas development services director, said the bus system will connect to the Millenia site and Otay Ranch Town Center by 2019.

It should be a quick ride to the border and a quick ride into downtown, he said.

* * *

New homes for sale in Otay Ranch

Anacapa  Townhouses, $540,900 to $545,900, 2,221 to 2,249 square feet

Aviare  Townhouses, $326,900 to $453,900, 1,098 to 1,928 square feet

Lovina  Townhouses, $410,9000 to $487,900, 1,561 to 2,476 square feet

Monte Villa  Single-family homes, $528,900 to $584,000, 2,594 to 3,016 square feet

Parc Place  Townhouses, $340,900 to $401,000, 1,116 to 1,587 square feet

Signature  Single-family homes, $700,900 to $750,900, 3,344 to 3,605 square feet

Tosara  Townhouses, $394,000 to $451,000, 1,635 to 2,366 square feet

Element  Townhouses, $570,970 to $604,520, 2,157 to 2,248 square feet

Z  Townhouses, $361,000 to $384,000, 1,288 to 1,420 square feet

Escaya  Single-family homes, $565,800 to $747,000, 2,289 to 3,707 square feet

ALSO

Millenias first urban park, for-sale homes

Crews making progress on rapid transit project in South County

The vanishing San Diego single-family home

Business

phillip.molnar@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1891 Twitter: @phillipmolnar

ALSO

Millenias first urban park, for-sale homes

Crews making progress on rapid transit project in South County

The vanishing San Diego single-family home
Remember that department-store card you signed up for to get an instant discount? Or the medical bill you didnt pay on time?

What seem like minor moves could drive down your credit score, which factors in big time when youre trying to finance your future home. Lenders look at how much you make, what you own and how much youre able to put down  but your credit score also is a major factor.

Its four basic factors: income, assets, credit and the property itself, said Chad Baker, a loan officer at Prime Lending, which has offices in the UTC area and Mission Valley.

If anything is wrong with the four, then you will have problems, he added. If you need a higher down payment, then you can offset it with a gift from a friend or family member. But if youve exhausted everything (to fix your credit,) theres nothing you can do. So, its extremely important.

The good news: Certain credit-score issues can be fixed on your own at no cost as long as you understand a few financial basics  from paying bills on time to requesting your free credit reports. Those simple pointers could help you not only qualify for a mortgage but also save you up to thousands of dollars in the long run.

They can also make or break your chances in todays tougher lending environment, which generally requires a bigger down payment and more proof of income than during the last housing boom.

A recent study shows the average credit score for someone who successfully closed any kind of mortgage in April was 745 (with 20 percent down). The findings, based on 20 percent of loan originations in the country, are from Ellie Mae, which provides services to the mortgage industry.

The U.S. average is 692, and Californias is 691, according to FICO, which rates consumers credit histories on a scale of 300 to 850. So, if you dont have the 745 score cited in the Ellie Mae study, does that mean your chances of getting a mortgage are nil? No, mortgage insiders say. U-T San Diego busts that credit myth and others in this how-to guide:

Myth: Lenders are looking for one magic number.

Fact: The score range you should shoot for depends on what kind of mortgage you want. For a conventional loan, which makes up almost 60 percent of total purchase loans in San Diego County, an ideal score is 680 or more, said Baker, of Prime Lending. For a loan backed by the Federal Housing Administration, or FHA, lenders say a safe bet is 640 and up, but some may consider scores as low as 600, Baker said. FHA loans make up more than 23 percent of purchase loans in the county, DataQuick numbers show, and usually are a go-to for first-time buyers since the down payment requirement tends to be lower.

For the best pricing, lenders are looking for a 740 or more, said Kurt Branstetter, loan officer and mortgage manager at W.J. Bradley Mortgage in San Diego. Branstetter is referring to the tiered pricing system from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which own more than 60 percent of mortgages in the state.

Other mortgage tips  Pay attention to medical collections. They often give would-be borrowers some of the most financial heartburn, said Kurt Branstetter, of W.J. Bradley Mortgage. If the medical delinquency in your record is accurate, be quick to pay it in full. Sometimes collection agencies are willing to work with you.  Watch the balances on your credit cards. If youve used more than 30 percent of your available limit, that may be reported as a negative in your credit report, said Chad Baker, of Prime Lending. If its more than 30 percent, pay down your balances.  Check your credit report at least once a year.  Pay your bills on time.  Start the mortgage-buying process early, so you have time to fix any issues.  Consider visiting with home counselors who are certified by HUD, the countrys housing agency, said Appaswamy Vino Pajanor, president and executive director of Housing Opportunities Collaborative. You also can enroll in a first-time homebuyers course that can take you through the ins and outs of credit. Help is free. To learn more, call (619) 283-2200 or (800) HOC-0503.

Whats the difference in dollars? If you have a 740 credit score or higher and put 20 percent down for a $400,000 loan, then you could expect to pay $1,000 in fees. It goes up to $2,000 if you fall into the 739-720 tier, Branstetter said. You dont have to pay that, Branstetter said, referring to the fees. You can take a higher (mortgage) rate. But either way, a lower credit score in those cases would mean more money out of your pocket.

Myth: Theres nothing I can do to change my credit score.

Fact: You have more control than you think. Changes all start with knowing whats in your credit report. Everyone is entitled to one free credit report a year from any of the credit bureaus: Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. While these free reports dont typically disclose a credit score for free, they do give a thorough account of your credit history, from that department-store card you got on a whim to the dentist checkup you forgot to pay for.

The good and bad, its expressed in numbers, thats all, said Southern California credit expert Nabil Captan during a seminar at this weeks San Diego Association of Realtors Expo.

If you notice anything astray in those reports, you can report it to those credit agencies. They are required to correct or zap any inaccurate or unverifiable data in your accounts, under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Consumers also can have a mortgage professional run a credit-score check.

Myth: Even if I do find an error in my credit report, it will take forever to correct.

Fact: You can get a rapid rescore done with the help of the lender. Branstetter, of W.J. Bradley Mortgage in San Diego, says a current client was shocked to see her score fall to about 720 from her usual 780 range.

A closer look at her credit report showed a late payment on a department-store credit card bill that apparently had been sent to another address as a result of a typo.

The consumer was able to talk to the credit lender and get the correction in writing to share with all three credit agencies. These types of corrections take about a week to several months to correct, depending on the issue and credit company. To get the issue resolved more quickly, borrowers can do a rapid rescore, which typically costs a fee thats sometimes absorbed by the mortgage lender. Rescores usually take two to three days to process. Be sure to ask who will cover the cost of the rapid rescores.

Myth: Ive never been late on any payment, so its a waste of time to check my score.

Fact: Errors in credit reports happen all the time, everything from incorrect birthdays to paid balances shown as delinquent. The advice is, check everything.

Myth: The definitive source to get my free credit report is freecreditreport.com.

Fact: Its actually annualcreditreport.com. Once you go to the site, choose the state youre in from the drop-down menu and click request report. Then youll fill out a brief questionnaire that wants identifiers from your name to Social Security number.

Once you get access to your free credit reports, the agencies will ask if you want to buy your credit scores. You can, but be wary: The credit scores provided by TransUnion, Experian and Equifax may not always used by lenders.

For instance, Experians website cautions: Calculated on the PLUS Score model, your Experian Credit Score indicates your relative credit risk level for educational purposes and is not the score used by lenders.

W.J. Bradley Mortgage in San Diego and most mortgage lenders run scores from all three bureaus and take the middle number. However, if youre in doubt about the lenders methodology, be sure to ask.

Have story tips, a hot property listing or a question? Email me: lily.leung@utsandiego.com | Tweet me: @LilyShumLeung | Subscribe to this blog.
CITY COUNCILS

ESCONDIDO

The Escondido City Council canceled its Wednesday meeting.

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OCEANSIDE

The Oceanside City Council met in special session Tuesday and approved, 3-1, an ordinance creating a by-district election process and an election calendar for the newly created council districts.

POWAY

The Poway City Council met Tuesday for a public hearing on criteria for drawing voting districts as part of its transition to by-district elections. The council approved a resolution setting forth legal criteria for drawing the districts. Another special council meeting for a hearing on districts will be at 7 p.m. Aug. 8. The council then went into closed session to discuss litigation and labor negotiations.

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SAN DIEGUITO

The San Dieguito Union High School District board met in special session Wednesday and approved the creation of a Special Education Task Force composed of parents, teachers, administrators and others to recommend ways to improve facilities for students with disabilities. The board also awarded contracts related to the construction of a second classroom building at Pacific Trails Middle School.

laura.groch@sduniontribune.com
After Edie Littlefield Sundby beat a death sentence  diagnosed with stage four gallbladder cancer, doctors gave her three months to live  she decided to walk the 800-mile trail that links the California Missions. It took her 55 days.

The 65-year-old San Diegan called her trek a walk of thanksgiving, and she didnt want it to stop. So when her cancer returned, and she beat it back again, she traveled another 800 miles along the original Mission trail from Loreto, Mexico to the San Diego border.

Her new book, The Mission Walker, chronicles her bout with cancer (79 chemotherapy sessions, four major surgeries) and her fierce determination to live.

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Born in Oklahoma, Sundby moved to San Diego with her husband in 1987, a year before their twins were born. She has worked in sales and marketing for IBM and other technology companies.

Q: Why did you want to write the book?

A: What happened is, I did a story that ran in the Wall Street Journal in September of 2015, about my first Mission walk. It got some attention from a guy in L.A. who thought it would be a good book. I told him to talk to me when I got back from Mexico. He got a book contract, and that was signed about 14 months ago.

They wanted a 70,000-word manuscript in three months and luckily I was between cancer appointments at Stanford so I locked myself in a Palm Springs casita, without a car. I had Amazon Fresh deliver food. I sat there and wrote every day and at the end of three months I had a manuscript.

Why did I do that? I have no idea. Id much rather walk to the moon than write a book. I enjoyed the writing part, but everything else (media, marketing)  the world is just too noisy today.

Q: What do you hope people get out of reading it?

A: I think that for all of us, life happens. Were all hit with curve balls. Its either going to knock you out and kill you, or its going to knock you down. And if it knocks you down, if you can get up and punch back and live another day, then do it.

With me, they were talking palliative care. Die in comfort. I wasnt willing to do that. Im not afraid of death, but I love to live. I really love life.

Q: What did you learn about yourself while you were walking?

A: I learned different things when I went from San Diego to Sonoma, especially about my body and its ability to heal itself.

Just keep walking. Keep moving. I found that my lungs were so compromised I thought I was going to pass out. On many days I was in acute physical pain. But I just kept moving. The more I walked, the longer I walked, that pain went away. It improved to the point that it was almost normal by the time I got to Sonoma.

I found that blisters will heal while youre walking. I found that toenails will turn black and fall off but thats OK, too. Sometimes you get a crick in your neck or your shoulders or your back and youre almost so cramped you cant move but if you just try a little bit you will work through that. Were meant to walk, were meant to move, but weve kind of forgotten how to do that.

I also learned how to pour out the emotional overflowings that had built up over the five-and-a-half years of fighting cancer so hard. God told Job, pour out the overflowing. And of course he was talking about anger, and we all have some of that, but I had so many overflowings. I was able to pour them out, and I think that helped my physical body heal. And it cleansed me spiritually.

My transformation occurred about 600 miles in when I no longer felt like I was walking on the ground. I was really transcendent. It was such a beautiful feeling that when I got to Sonoma, I did not want to stop. I wasnt ready to stop. That great awakening light that Thoreau wrote about, that light that ignited when he walked  it was for me nirvana, heaven.

Q: Did you learn something different about yourself on the Mexico part of the journey?

A: That was wild, crazy, brutal. It was reaching back to my childhood, to the cotton farm, where I dreamed of being a cowboy. When I was in grade school, I read every Zane Grey book I could get a hold of with a flashlight under my covers. And Louis LAmour. I loved cowboys.

I went down there because of this yearning deep inside me. The cancer came back in my left lung. That great awakening I mentioned earlier, it goes out and you have to re-ignite it. I realized in February 2015 when it came back that if I wanted to do this, if I really wanted to do it, I had to do it now.

Q: You dedicate the book to your mother, who died in 1989. In what ways did she influence who you are?

A: Those who love us never leave us. And my mother is as alive in my heart today as when she was walking on this Earth. Her influence grows with time. I dont think I could have written this book earlier. All of the life experiences and all of the great gifts that my mother gave me, I think I developed an enormous amount of respect for life, and I developed a deep love for just about everybody. Its life seen through a lens of love.

I think most of us have too-high expectations about ourselves and our relationships. One thing that cancer teaches is, Hey! Hey! Just let go. And that doesnt mean give up. Just the opposite. Live your life. You dont have time for all that other stuff.

Q: Did the deep reservoir of determination that you show in the book come from your parents?

A: Theres no doubt about that. Growing up on a cotton farm in Oklahoma as the second youngest of 12 kids, there was no such thing as helicopter parents. They were too tired from work. Our parents generation, they had a different attitude about child rearing: You plant their feet on the ground, you point them in the right direction, and thats it. Where the heart is, the feet will follow, and they tried to put in my heart the right things. My feet didnt always follow, but over time, yes. Yes.

I had so many opportunities for experiences. My brother and I sold newspapers on the street corner when I was about five years old. My mother sent me up to North Dakota by myself on a bus when I was nine years old, more than 1,000 miles. You want your girl to grow up to be fearless? That starts in the cradle.

My mother knew that because she was a fearless woman herself. And she was fearless because she had such strong faith in God. She was the eldest of the 15 kids, raised in a dirt-floor shack. Her father was a tenant farmer. During the Depression, she graduated from college in Oklahoma. She made her own clothes out of flour sacks.

Feel sorry for her? Are you kidding? My mother thought she was the richest girl in the world. She would sing all the time.

Q: What role did your own faith play in all this?

A: It sustains me. My faith gives me joy. It makes me happy. The walk from San Diego to Sonoma was a walk of thanksgiving and gratitude. It was a walk of joy about being alive. I was so lucky. I was so blessed.

Q: What would you tell someone who is thinking about following in your footsteps?

A: I just think it would be fantastic. Go for it. But dont wait.

The Mission Walker, by Edie Littlefield Sundby, Thomas Nelson, 272 pages

john.wilkens@sduniontribune.com; (619) 293-2236
It is ironic, or maybe not, that I have devoted my life to literacy. Like many children, I had a rough start with learning to read. Wholly intimidated by my first book in school, I made too many mistakes, and, at the age of 6, I keenly felt what my teacher was thinking  that I was a bad reader, not smart and not even a good little person.

Eventually, though, I began to see the connections between the letters and the sounds they made, and I started putting them together to make words happen, which was an exciting discovery! I built upon what I had learned and, thereafter, needed very little help.

Check out: The San Diego Festival of Books 

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Jose Cruz, President/CEO, San Diego Council on Literacy. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / U-T)

Like most children, I was in love with the Dr. Seuss books. My brother once brought us a copy of Green Eggs and Ham. At home, we never had books of our own, so if any found their way into the house, we were entranced.

I made it through and became an enthusiastic reader  unlike too many of my classmates. And too many others who came after me. They didnt make it either. The sad incidence of illiteracy was Americas best-kept secret. But eventually, and happily, help finally came for those who had been left behind.

At the San Diego Council on Literacy, with our partners, we are grateful for the opportunity to enhance the lives of so many adults and children through literacy services.

In 1985, I began working for Project READ at the National City Public Library. I remember a number of stories from those days and since then. Each story of illiteracy continues to be a powerful reminder of what it means when people cant read and how learning to read profoundly affects their lives. Here are two examples:

 Willie was an excellent plumber. His dream in life was to get his plumbers license, but he could read only at a third-grade level. He talked to his tutor, Walter, a retired attorney. Willie cried as he told how his brothers and sisters had successful careers; he said he had been neglected and left behind. Walter researched and learned that it would take three to four years for Willie to learn to read well enough to get his plumbers license. Was Willie ready for this journey? Willie said, Yes. Two years later, Willie was a licensed plumber. His dream had come true  and he could read.

 One day, a mother asked us to help her 8-year-old son, Andre. He did not know how to read. He was miserable at school. At the time, we didnt have tutors for children, but we managed to convince one gentleman to take this assignment. Our practice was to follow up with tutors to evaluate their progress. But we could not find Andres tutor. We contacted the boys mother and asked her what had happened. She said, The tutor moved away, but before he did, he changed Andres life. Andre can read now, and hes getting As in all his classes. Hes a much different, a much happier child!

There are thousands of stories like these, and this, too, might explain my many years in literacy.

As an advocate for 32 years, I have worked with diverse partners to address this challenge of illiteracy that affects all of us, and more directly, 20 percent of the adult population in our county. Over 500,000 adults here read at the lowest level  between zero and fourth grade  of literacy. While most of these adults speak fluent English, their ability to function and succeed is limited by their low-level reading skills. They struggle, sadly therefore, in their roles as heads of households, community members and workers.

Their children are also affected. When parents dont read, or dont read to their children, or dont have books at home, their children often show up at their first day of school lacking experience with letters, words, stories and books, and having little experience in conversations and games and songs that support vocabulary growth and critical thinking.

Children who come to school not ready to learn are also prone to absenteeism. And the odds of these children ever catching up with their peers are 3-to-1 against them. The statistics show that failure comes early, and that it is lasting and detrimental.

Low-income children are affected the most. Sixty percent have no books at home! While we may struggle to address family stability issues, our community can improve even the most dysfunctional of homes by giving books to children. This simple intervention, while not a cure-all, has proven over and over to be life-changing. In the past two years, we have organized the strategic giveaway of thousands of books to hundreds of low-income children who attend schools that show high percentages of low achievement. Providing books increases the likelihood that these children will emerge as readers.

And more: Today, over 175,000 residents of all ages annually receive no-cost services from the 29 affiliated programs of the San Diego Council on Literacy. We are making a difference and making more dreams come true.

Through its support of the San Diego Festival of Books, The San Diego Union-Tribune brings the community together around our shared love for literature and the importance of literacy. Theres never enough to say about how reading turns letters and words into wings, helping us to fly through history and space, guiding us as we navigate through this complex world. We would do well to join together to ensure that fewer of us are left on the colorless ground looking longingly and upward at how literacy, if mastered, could change our lives.



Whats the last great book you read?

I am one of the fortunate readers who can say, I have favorite books. One of the last great books I read was The Source by James Michener. Through his words, I traveled, live, through time and to days long gone. This is the kind of experience I wish all new readers could share!

Whats a book you would never part with?

For me, it continues to be David Copperfield by Charles Dickens. I bought it for 75 cents in 1971. I had a dollar in my pocket  enough for a bus ride to Paperbook Land at Fourth & Broadway, downtown, next to the old peanut shop that was run by so many sweet seniors. Both shops are gone now. I read David Copperfield in 11 days. When I was done, Id made a friend, somewhat fictitious, somewhat not, yet, even today, 46 years later, one I think about with affection.



Jose L. Cruz is CEO of the San Diego Council on Literacy.

Twitter: @laura_wingard

lwingard@sduniontribune.com
Books are community. The act of picking up a book and reading is an experience shared by humans for thousands of years, connecting every reader on the planet, past or present. A lofty sentence, I know, but were talking about a global community that transcends time and space! Though our landscape is becoming more and more digital and the way we consume media is ever changing, theres a deeply entrenched history of books that wont go away so easily. Its in our very bones.

Yes, Ill spend a weekend binge watching the TV-show-du-jour, but I also have bookcases filled to the brim and never leave the house without something to read (sometimes its even an e-book).

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Kimberly Carroll is the buyer at The Library Store, inside the Central San Diego Public Library, in East Village. (Howard Lipin / U-T)

Bookstores (and of course libraries!) are the front lines of book culture, providing safe havens for knowledge and the expansion of self through literature. When you pick up a book, you see the world through someone elses eyes. Perhaps the author is just like you, or maybe its someone completely different. Whether the work is fiction or nonfiction, is set in the past, the present, or a future alien plane, you are experiencing life in a way someone other than yourself wants you to.

This connection between author and reader is profoundly personal and can be transformative. The potential for enhanced cultural understanding is limitless and one of the greatest things about reading.

The relationship between reader and bookseller holds its own magic, too. When a customer reads something I put in their hands, I am forever a part of their lives. If they loved it (or hated it), I am directly responsible for that experience  forever. If they did love it? Theyll come back for more, or better yet, share their joy with a friend. And our community of two will grow and flourish.

In the wise words of Thomas Jefferson, I cannot live without books. But he was wrong in the second part of that oft-quoted line: But fewer will suffice where amusement, and not use, is the only future object. Literature for amusements sake hasnt dwindled the number of books, but multiplied it a zillion times over (certainly in my own life and crowded small apartment). Why cant something entertain us and be of use?

I see the future of books as limitless. Whether we read for pleasure, escape, learning, or for momentarily participating in a world outside our own  books are a constant thread binding us together. Reading amuses and transports and yet connects us to all who have come before and all who will come after. And thats a beautiful thing you cant get sending a tweet.



Whats the last great book you read?

Great books sometimes come from surprising places. The last book I had to step away from and re-evaluate my life because of was Nicola Yoons The Sun Is Also a Star. Im not a huge YA reader, but I devoured this book. It was both so perfectly, tragically adolescent and yet socially poignant and thought provoking. I mean, I was reading R.L. Stines Fear Street at that age. Teens have really got it good these days.

Whats a book you would never part with?

The one book I would never part with is from my childhood (I know, how cliche): my battered copy of Shel Silversteins Uncle Shelbys ABZ Book, which my dad bought meat a too-young-age. He always encouraged me to read, and probably did little more than see the author of my beloved poetry book and gave it the green light. But if youre familiar with Uncle Shelbys work  it is definitely not for kids. But boy, did I think it was the funniest coloring book Id ever seen. My version is decorated on every page with the crayon art of 8-year-old me.



Kimberly Carroll is the book and gift buyer at The Library Shop, in the San Diego Central Library. All proceeds from the nonprofit literary-themed boutique benefit the San Diego Public Library System.



San Diego Central Library

330 Park Blvd. (619) 236-5800

Hours: 9:30 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and noon-6 p.m. Sunday.
In the long history of the Edgar Awards, which started in 1946 and are often considered the top honor in mystery writing, only four authors have won the prize for best novel more than once.

T. Jefferson Parker is among them. He won for Silent Joe in 2002 and California Girl in 2005.

The Fallbrook writer, who also has an Edgar for best short story, has garnered the acclaim despite often avoiding the conventions of his genre. His heroes arent tough-talking cynics. Some might even be called nice. Hes dabbled in the kind of magical realism  angels and devils  more commonly found in literary fiction.

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T. Jefferson Parker (Howard Lipin / San Diego Union-Tribune)

And hes never written a novel featuring a private investigator as the protagonist. Until now.

The Room of White Fire, due out Aug. 22, is his 23rd book. Its about the recently widowed Roland Ford, a former Marine and former sheriffs deputy who is hired to find an Air Force veteran whos escaped from a high-end private mental institution. Much of the book is set in San Diego County.

Parker will be one of the featured speakers at the San Diego Festival of Books on Aug. 26 at Liberty Station.

Q: Youre starting a new series with this book. What sent you in that direction?

A: Ive always wanted to write about a P.I. Ive kind of flirted with private investigators, but I wanted to write a formal P.I. story, and the publisher saw this one and wanted to know if I would be willing to make a series out of it. I said yes.

Q: What do you most enjoy about writing mysteries and crime novels?

A: I kind of cut my teeth on that stuff after being an English major for four years in college (at UC Irvine). I think at heart what I most like about this form is that it gives a writer the opportunity to address whats going on in his or her world right now.

Q: Tell me about Roland Ford, the P.I. What characteristics did you want him to have?

A: You always ask yourself that question when you set out to write a book with a new protagonist. Whats important in a contemporary hero? In this book, as in most P.I. books, youre trying to create not only a hero, but someone whos believable. This isnt about Superman. Its about a credible guy.

In my mind, I wanted someone who was experienced for his age. Hes 38 in the book. He has cobbled together a college education, he has spent time in the military serving his country, he has spent a few years in law enforcement, and when the book opens, hes a few years into his career as a private investigator. I wanted to give him a fat portfolio.

I wanted to make him physically capable and mentally durable. Hes sharp, but hes not sarcastic. He doesnt suffer fools easily, and theres something easy-going but to-the-point about him. I like people like that so I recruited all those tendencies.

Q: You said you like to do these kinds of books as a way to address whats going on in the world. What in particular did you want to write about?

A: The overriding topic of the book is the very dark part of recent American history where the country abandoned its more-decent treatment of prisoners of war in favor of what people like to call enhanced interrogation techniques. But lets just be honest and call it torture.

When our country made that pivot in the early 2000s after the invasion of Iraq, I think that became a time of change in this country. Those years of the black sites, the torture prisons, are loosely what this book deals with. I thought that was a valuable topic for me to write about and for people to read about.

Q: The torture stuff is based in part on a real case, right?

A: Theyve been much in the news lately. Two American psychologists were hired by the CIA shortly after 9/11 to design and implement a program that could be used in our secret black site prisons throughout the world. Terrorism suspects would be subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques.

Taking those two guys, I extrapolated what it might have been like to be them. I tried to put myself into the mind of a real victim of that kind of program and that kind of thinking, and that is the young, idealistic Air Force airman who is recruited into the black sites by these guys and basically employed as a torturer.

I think if theres anywhere that I as a fiction writer can find and imagine the cost of torture on America, it would be through this young man, Clay Hickman, who goes missing in the first chapter of The Room of White Fire.

Q: Tell me about the concept of moral injury, which you also explore in the book.

A: Its kind of a subset of PTSD. The difference is that moral injury, in the hands of the doctors and psychologists who write about it, relates to something that a person does, as opposed to something that is done to a person.

For instance, if you are in a Humvee and you run over an IED and it blows up, you dont feel morally compromised. But if you are in that Humvee and you try your very best to pull your captain out of that flaming vehicle, and you cant get to him and he dies, that then becomes a moral torment to you. Its something you werent able to accomplish. You are a frustrated actor rather than a victim.

What the book is about in the biggest sense is the fight for Clay Hickmans soul. Its in balance, not to mention his mind and his body. But that moral injury that he suffers because he is a player on our very darkest stage in that part of the war  that is what is tormenting him. Thats what is at stake for him.

Q: I kept feeling as I was reading the book that you were making a commentary on the fight for the soul of the country, too.

A: I do want the book to be about that. I probably even say it in there. I get kind of blatant sometimes. But certainly in the stories of Timothy Tritt and Briggs Spencer, the fictional enhanced-interrogation guys in the book, its clear their souls are on trial, too. So yeah, soul of the nation as personified in these men.

Q: Let me shift gears and ask: Do you remember the first book you fell in love with?

A: Yeah. I was a sophomore in high school and I was utterly flattened by Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. It just sent me on such a spin because it was so different than what I had been reading before. It was so subversive and so different than what the educators and the parents and the pastors and everybody were trying to tell me as a 14-year-old. It rang true in so many ways that I had never experienced. That book really opened up my mind in a lot of ways.

I remember walking the halls at Tustin High after reading that book and kind of thinking to myself that it would really be terrific to be a writer some day and do to readers what Joseph Heller had done to me. Entertain me so much and take me into a whole other level of experience. It was something.



Whats the last great book you read?

I finally read All the Light We Cannot See. My wife was reading it for her book club, and I inherited it. That knocked me back it was so good.

What book will you never part with?

Ive got a lot of them that I just love too much. I re-read One Hundred Years of Solitude every three or four years. I re-read Tom McGuanes Ninety-two in the Shade every four or five years. I re-read The Old Man and the Sea. There are a lot of books that have informed me and grown on me and helped me. I couldnt even name them all.



john.wilkens@sduniontribune.com; (619) 293-2236
South Asian Women's Conference kicks off

The South Asian Women's Conference-2017 began in the Capital on Sunday. The All Nepal Women's Association has organised the conference with an objective of increasing women's participation in local governments of South Asian Countries.
While physical books may not continue to be the dominant form of media, it will be ever more important to encourage the habit of reading. We know that keeping up this soul-nurturing activity will be more of a challenge as time goes on. For those of my generation who read anywhere and everywhere as a child, even under the covers with a flashlight, if need be, there is no risk of losing the habit, because it is as natural and necessary as our morning tea.

We read to be entertained, to educate ourselves, to escape. Often, we read to find our own story  the thrill of finding characters we can relate to, learn from and live vicariously through. We read to answer unresolved questions and solve mysteries

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Anne Mery, owner of the South Park West Grove Collective bookstore, chats with Barbara Kristoff (left) and Karen Gaar, who brought their dog Xena with them. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / U-T photos)

But we well know that for many, books often lose in the competition against the shinier media that abound. I have been encouraged to see young people reach for a book to read or a journal to write in and a genuine enthusiasm when they discover our real bookstore tucked away in South Park for the first time.

Maybe this nostalgia is ephemeral and will pass, or maybe, new habits may form and books will make their way back in to one of the most enriching aspects of our lives.

Bookstores have never been just a store. They are, like their cousin the cafe, a place of ideas. You go to a cafe to share ideas with a friend.

The bookstore experience is more solitary. It is the place of communion of ones own. The few bookstores that have survived provide us with a nourishment and inspiration that is unavailable in any other form. The Internet can never provide this. Even Amazon is acknowledging this now with the recent openings of brick and mortar stores.



Whats the last great book you read?

Always the last one I just finished. If it held my interest to read it to the end  then it was a great book.

Of course, I have my favorites. I recently enjoyed reading Born A Crime  Stories From a South African Childhood, by Trevor Noah.

Whats the one book you would never part with?

Candide, by Voltaire



Anne Mery is the owner of West Grove Collective in South Park.



West Grove Collective

3010 Juniper St., Suite B, South Park. (619) 795-3780

Hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. daily. Closed Monday.
KPBS today announced the 2017 One Book, One San Diego book selection, The Sandcastle Girls by Chris Bohjalian, the critically acclaimed novelist whose books frequently make the New York Times best-seller list.

I am deeply honored by the selection, Bohjalian said. San Diego is a wonderful reading community. Ive made appearances there off and on over the years, and Ive always been dazzled by the bookstores and the libraries and the readers.

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One Book, One San Diego is a community-wide reading program in its 11th season and includes more than 20 community partners. Started in 2006 by KPBS, along with the San Diego Public Library, the program encourages everyone in the region to read and discuss the same book.

Bohjalian will speak here on Sept. 12 and 13, the first of many One Book events held by KPBS and community partners that will run through December. KPBS will give away 100 copies of Bohjalians book at the inaugural San Diego Festival of Books, organized by The San Diego Union-Tribune in partnership with KPBS, at Liberty Station on Aug. 26. In addition, KPBS will announce the One Book for Kids, One Book for Teens and One Book Sin Fronteras selections at the festival.

Bohjalians novel, a multi-generational tale that spans nearly 100 years, is initially set in Syria during World War I and focuses on the Armenian Genocide.

These days it is very important for me to tell people that I am the grandson of two Middle Eastern immigrants, Bohjalian said. We are a nation of refugees and immigrants. The novel is set in Aleppo  yes, that Aleppo that has broken all of our hearts the last five years  and the city as it appears in the novel exists now only in romance and memory.

The all-volunteer One Book Advisory Committee, comprised of literary experts, discussed the merits of 206 titles submitted by the public before choosing The Sandcastle Girls.

Its important to the committee that we choose a book of high literary quality thats prime for discussions by all types of readers, said One Book, One San Diego Program Manager Clare Pister. This book is just right. Its beautifully written and makes an important, rarely told piece of history accessible to a modern audience.

Marc Chery, supervisor of humanities section at San Diegos Central Library, said there are plenty of benefits to community reading.

Youre taking part in a shared and privileged conversation with the author and with each other as readers, he said.

KPBS General Manager Tom Karlo said that One Book is one of his favorite KPBS community engagement events.

To have the opportunity to partner with The San Diego Union-Tribune, as they bring a book festival to San Diego, will help our effort to encourage more reading. Were very excited about this opportunity and were looking forward to a partnership that will last many years.

Linda Ball is a KPBS staff member.



Chris Bohjalian: Whats the last great book you read?

That is a loaded question because so many of my friends are writers and I never want to hurt their feelings. So I am going to rephrase the question and share with you the last great book I read by a writer I have never met. In fact, I will offer you two books. I absolutely loved Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff. And I was mesmerized by every word of A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles.

Whats the one book you would never part with?

My first edition of The Forty Days of Musa Dagh by Franz Werfe. It was a gift from my lovely bride.



Finalists for this years One Book main category

The Coyotes Bicycle by Kimball Taylor

Barbarian Days by William Finnegan

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

When the Moon is Low by Nadia Hashimi

Dreamland: The True Tale of Americas Opiate Epidemic by Sam Quinones

The Mothers by Britt Benett

News of the World by Paulette Jiles

The Queen of Katwe by Tim Crothers

Previous One Books

2016: Waiting for Snow in Havana by Carlos Eire

2015: The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

2014: Monstress by Lysley Tenorio

2013: Calebs Crossing by Geraldine Brooks

2012: Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea, Molokai by Alan Brennert, Sky of Red Poppies by Zohreh Ghahremani

2011: The Gangster We Are All Looking For by le thi diem thuy

2010: Outcasts United by Warren St. John

2009: The Zookeepers Wife by Diane Ackerman

2008: Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson

2007: Enriques Journey by Sonia Nazario

Previous One Book for Kids

2015: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore by William Joyce, Its a Little Book by Lane Smith

2014: Cora Cooks Pancit by Dorina Lazo Gilmore

2013: Jingle Dancer by Cynthia Leitich Smith

2012: Armando and the Blue Tarp School by Edith Hope Fine and Judith Pinkerton Josephson, The Secret Message by Mina Javaherbin

Previous One Book for Teens

2015: The Dumbest Idea Ever! by Jimmy Gownley

2014: American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
The U.S. presidential race was still raging last year when San Diego Rep and its artistic director, Sam Woodhouse, chose a show that seemed ideal for the times: Evita.

After all, Woodhouse points out, the quest of a powerful woman to make change in the country she loves is at the core of this piece, and the parallels between Eva Peron and Hillary Clinton  two popular but polarizing figures who were first ladies  seemed too rich to pass up.

And then  as you might have heard  Clinton did not win. (A fact that arguably added to her kinship with Peron, who backed out of running for the vice presidency of Argentina in 1951 and thus never won a national election.)

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The way the 2016 election played out obviously puts Evita in a different context than might have been, says Woodhouse, who is directing the Reps first-ever production of the 1979 Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical.

But, he adds, it doesnt necessarily detract from the relevancy of a show about an ambitious woman with progressive ideas who finds herself fighting both the entrenched power structure and peoples preconceptions (and prejudices) about her.

Certainly many of the things that were said about Hillary were said about Eva Peron, says Woodhouse of the late Argentine icon, who remains a revered figure in her home country but was accused by some of shady dealings.

Evita itself does not offer the most charitable portrayal of the onetime actress, who rose to power after marrying the politician and president-to-be Juan Peron in 1945.

The shows very first number, Oh, What a Circus, has the character Che  who serves as a kind of one-man, proleterian Greek chorus  singing: She didnt say much, but she said it loud.

In fact, Eva Peron  known adoringly as Evita in Argentina  was a champion of the working class and social reform in ways that went far beyond mere pose or populist rhetoric.

Woodhouse cites a long list of social reforms that the Perons rolled out between 1946 and Evas death from cancer in 1952: social security, a minimum wage, universal free education and health care, paid vacation for workers, maternity leave.

Eva was the leader of the first feminist political party in South America, he continues. Womens right to vote passed during their reign. You know how horrified segments of the American population get when the concept of universal health care is mentioned? (Well), it was instituted in Argentina in the 40s.

Thats a short list, (but) its an amazing list of social and political transformation. Regardless of what the military or the aristocrats said, that happened.

Now, thats not all that happened. But I just find that quite astonishing.

Power to the people

Of course, Evita is a musical, not a political symposium. But its heroines bond with the Argentine masses is at the heart of the piece, which is essentially a love story between a woman and her country.

Thats borne out most memorably in the musicals most famous song, Dont Cry for Me Argentina, which has Evita appealing directly to the descamisados (or the destitute) for courage and hope.

In the Rep production, the people to whom she addresses her appeal will largely be played by student actors from the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts, as part of XChange Xperience, a partnership between the theater and school that was launched in 2010.

As in the other partnership productions weve done, the lead roles are all played by professionals, while the student ensemble is featured extensively in the chorus, which in this piece means often playing the people of Argentina, Woodhouse says.

Theyre very present in the production, and bring a huge amount of celebratory energy to the piece.

Taking on the role of Evita is Marisa Matthews, a wide-ranging young pro seen most recently as Anna in Frozen: Live at the Hyperion at Disneys California Adventure theme park.

Matthews says the role of Evita is hard to compare to any other character she has played, simply because there arent a lot of powerful female parts in musical theater.

You have to know what you are fighting for in order to give (Evita) the justice she deserves. And I think because of that, because of the power behind the words and the music, there is no other part like it.

If that singularity brings added pressure, Matthews says, its mostly in the sense of making sure Im taking care of myself vocally and physically. Because this role demands more than the average singing track.

And because its expressing such large issues and such large desires, you have to be mindful that youre not exploding your voice when youre trying to explode a point. Because its as if, at times, Im screaming to get the people on my side.

It has to be that full, to do the role justice. You have to be that engaged.

When it comes to her big moment with Dont Cry for Me, Matthews adds, the most wonderful part of singing this iconic song is that Im speaking to the entire audience as friends. It feels like a wonderful reciprocation of energy. I feel lifted and incredibly encouraged to make my message clear.

(Its) a beautiful moment of a woman asking for the love of the masses, and to trust her.

For Jeffrey Ricca, whos playing Che, the inherent tensions between characters and narratives in Evita are what gives it spark.

For me, this show has always intrigued my curiosity, because Im a big history buff, says Ricca, whose credits include the South Pacific and Fiddler on the Roof tours.

You have one set of events, and then you have one interpretation of that event  two conflicting narratives about this womans life. Essentially, were battling for the audiences support.

Im the narrator, but Im also the antagonist, so Im never objective.

Ricca adds that this is definitely going to add a layer to Evita for me. This will be my second time performing this (piece) and this role.

Its a whole different process doing this show again, and you really have to do your homework. Were all playing a crucial part in telling the story.

(Ricca and Matthews are joined in the principal cast by Jason Maddy as Juan Peron, Victor E. Chan as Magaldi, and Mikaela Celeste as the Mistress.)

Besides extolling the giant contribution of choreographer and longtime Rep collaborator Javier Velasco to the production, Woodhouse points to the mesmerizing power of the music by composer Lloyd Webber and lyricist Rice, who also teamed on Jesus Christ Superstar and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

Each act is just under an hour long, but each feels like one long breath, he says of the show, which is almost completely sung-through. Its an extraordinary weaving of musical motifs, and shifting of musical energy, that feels like you just listened to a symphony.

And then you take a break  and you get to come back and it happens again.

Evita

When: In previews. Opens Aug. 9. 8 p.m. Thursdays-Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays; plus 7 p.m. Aug. 16 and 23. (No matinee Aug. .) Through Aug. 27.

Where: San Diego Reps Lyceum Space, 79 Horton Plaza, downtown.

Tickets: $44 to $72 (discounts available)

Phone: (619) 544-1000

Online: sdrep.org.

Three Evitas

Some prominent portrayals of the role:

Patti LuPone (Broadway, 1979): Although the British actress Elaine Paige actually originated the stage role on Londons West End (and it was first sung by Julie Covington on the 1976 concept album), LuPone made Evita her own on Broadway, winning a Tony Award as lead actress. (The show also was named best musical.) She played opposite Mandy Patinkin as Che.

Madonna (movie, 1996): The idea for a Hollywood adaptation of the musical languished for years before Madonna lobbied to take on the part of Evita. She did extensive vocal training for the role, but her performance (alongside Antonio Banderas as Che) earned mixed reviews.

Elena Roger (Broadway, 2012): The most recent revival of Evita was a case where the actor playing Che  Ricky Martin  was a lot more famous than the shows lead, Broadway newcomer Roger. As it turned out, neither received a Tony nomination  but their cast mate Michael Cerveris did, for his turn as Juan Peron.

jim.hebert@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @jimhebert
As co-founder and executive director of the Friendship Circle of San Diego, Elisheva Green is focused on providing programs for individuals and families with special needs, and creating a more inclusive community. She helped start the San Diego chapter of the international non-profit in 2006, which offers services and one-on-one relationships with trained volunteers to people with developmental disabilities.

The Jewish Community Center had an excellent inclusion preschool program in their preschool, but there werent any suitable programs for families or one-to-one programs for older children. Our goal was to provide our families with opportunities to celebrate our heritage the same as any other family, she says of how the chapter began. Our vision is for participants with developmental disabilities to become productive members of society, and benefit from support of peers by replacing social isolation with acceptance and friendship. The Friendship Circle is open to any family with a member with special needs.

Green, 70, and her husband have seven children and 26 grandchildren, and she takes considerable enjoyment in teaching volunteers and people in the larger San Diego community about the benefits of inclusion. She took some time to talk about the organization, her experience with special needs in her own family, and how shed utterly fail any trivia that had anything to do with television.

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Q: How did your personal experiences with your father and your oldest son influence your work with the Friendship Circle?

A: My father had polio as a young boy and he needed crutches and a brace to walk. Because I grew up with that, it wasnt until I was a teen that I realized that others felt there was something wrong with my father, and others pitied him. From my perspective as a child, he was the best dad. He told thrilling stories and could hold his breath under water longer than anyone I knew. What else does a great father need to do? As I grew older, I realized that my father, who became a successful attorney with his mothers support and encouragement, had accomplished something amazing in those days, with no special education and no Americans with Disabilities Act.

My oldest son, Dan, has developmental disabilities. Growing up as the oldest child in a large, busy family, there were always playmates in our home. As his siblings grew up, went away to school, got married and started families, mostly out of town, all of a sudden Dan was alone with no friends. Two of his sisters were in school in Los Angeles and were volunteering with the Friendship Circle and told me that San Diego needed one, too.

Q: Why is inclusion important? What does it do for people with special needs?

A: Today, 27 years after the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed, the law has done much to remove physical barriers, but not attitudinal barriers. A majority of working-age Americans with disabilities are outside of the workforce, although the majority of them want to work. This leads to poverty and costs taxpayers lots of money in disability benefits. Thousands of individuals with special needs live in San Diego County. They and their families are often cut off from employment and social and recreational activities.

Q: How does your organization train people to be inclusive of those with special needs?

A: We conduct orientation workshops for students where we simulate various disabilities. For example, we will have the students wear socks on their hands and then give them an everyday fine motor task to accomplish (i.e. tie shoelaces, button a sweater). We then discuss with the students how they felt and how they could modify the activities so a child with limited fine motor control could successfully participate.

We have professional volunteers lead advanced workshops in various relevant fields. In one session, a speech and language therapist teaches our students how to communicate with children with limited or no speech.

What I love about Poway 

Poway is beautiful. Whether Im walking in residential areas or the Blue Sky Ecological Reserve, being outdoors in Poway is always relaxing and refreshing. It has many compassionate residents who generously give of their time and resources to help the Friendship Circle families.

Q: What kinds of services and programs does the Friendship Circle provide?

A: We have a Friends at Home program similar to Big Brothers Big Sisters, but specific to children with special needs; family events and weekend outings; adult programs; monthly youth and teen programs; a performing arts club; karate program; gymnastics class; a week-long camp; support groups for parents and for siblings; outreach to organizations to help them address issues specific to people with special needs; inclusion workshops for youth; and a teen leadership board.

Q: Why do you consider friendship a fundamental necessity of childhood? What does it provide?

A: Friendship is one of the joys of life. It helps people with disabilities develop appropriate social skills and interpersonal communication; it strengthens the social support system for those with special needs and their families; it fosters acceptance and inclusion in our community. One of our parents has said that the meaningful and important aspects of any experience in life  are all about the people in your life. Without people to share life with nothing is meaningful. Everything is empty. Friendship is a gift. Some people are blessed without even thinking about it. Others have to work at it diligently. And others yet, who are the most vulnerable, are often the most alone. Friendship Circle provides those who need friends the most, the gift of friendship and meaning and confidence.

Q: Can you share some examples of people or families whove been helped by, or experienced success from, your program?

A: Im proudest of our children with challenges who have overcome their disabilities to become successes. We had one student with Tourettes and OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) who became an ambassador for us, speaking about the need for inclusion and mentoring other teens  both those with special needs and those labeled typical. He won a national award for his advocacy on behalf of inclusion. Another teen with severe learning disabilities created our popular Friendship Dojo (a karate program) and will be entering a prestigious university in the fall with a substantial scholarship.

Q: Whats been challenging about your work in the organization?

A: That the needs of our community are so great and we want to be able to do more.

Q: Whats been rewarding about it?

A: The most rewarding thing is when a child gives me a hug and tells me that today was the best day of her life. I love working with generous caring people, both our staff and our volunteers. Teens are frequently spoken about so negatively by our society. The ones who volunteer with us are inspiring with their dedication, creativity and hard work.

Q: What has it taught you about yourself?

A: To try to focus on what I can accomplish and not what I cant. Im still learning that one.

Q: What is the best advice youve ever received?

A: Good leaders create followers but great leaders create leaders  from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks in remarks about the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

Q: What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you?

A: I would fail any quiz about television because I havent owned one for 30 years.

Q: Please describe your ideal San Diego weekend.

A: I love being outdoors. San Diego is the ideal place for that year-round. Hiking, swimming, and exploring, especially with my family, is the best. When Im lazy, curling up with a book in my backyard is a favorite.

Email: lisa.deaderick@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @lisadeaderick
Beset by allegations of poor management and even deceit, can the regions premier long-range transportation planners succeed in galvanizing the publics trust so it will give billions more in taxpayer dollars for new mass-transit and highway projects?

As voters from Los Angeles to Santa Clara to Seattle passed tax increases in November to pay for new transportation projects, San Diegans rejected such a ballot proposal. The region now faces difficult questions about how to pay for everything from highways to trolley tracks to bike lanes.

Complicating the issue, revelations have emerged that top officials at the San Diego Association of Governments overstated by billions how much the levy would have pulled in.

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Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, D-San Diego, is pushing a bill that would fundamentally restructure the planning agencys balance of power and appoint an outside auditor.

Its far from clear whether this or any other efforts can rebuild trust in the embattled public agency, which is commonly known as SANDAG.

All regions that raise public money for transportation grapple with divergent interests, but many are able to hammer out compromises, said Brian Taylor, director of UCLAs Institute of Transportation Studies.

Every single region faces that exact same issue, he said. Thats why you end up increasingly with these Christmas tree measures, where theres a little prize under there for everybody.

Such a spirit of cooperation has largely bypassed San Diego County of late.

In recent years, the region has seen a growing tension between those in urban centers who want to focus almost exclusively on new mass-transit projects and those in suburban communities who want to focus on highways and auto-centric planning.

Many local elected officials have had a hard time walking this political tightrope, avoiding compromise in favor of aligning with core constituents.

Im a short-term pessimist when it comes to funding local transportation needs, said Carl Luna, a political science professor at San Diego Mesa College and the director for the Institute for Civil Civic Engagement at the University of San Diego.All the paralysis you see at the national level, were no better than that at the local level.

Measure A  which would have brought in billions for trolley, bus and carpool lanes  was championed by then-San Diego City Councilman Todd Gloria, who now serves in the state Assembly, and county Supervisor Ron Roberts, who also serves as chair of SANDAGs board of directors.

Democrats in Sacramento also urged local officials and advocacy groups to support the half-cent levy, which eventually failed to get the needed two-thirds public vote.

The plan was blasted by a wide range of interest groups, from the local Republican Party to environmental advocates to organized labor.

It will be a cold day in hell before the Republican Party of San Diego County supports a SANDAG tax increase, GOP chairman Tony Krvaric said in response to the mounting scandal.

Facing an array of pressures, many prominent local elected officials declined to back the levy, from San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, a Republican, to his one-time political rival and progressive City Councilman David Alvarez.

Now opponents of Measure A feel vindicated.

At a SANDAG board meeting Friday in downtown San Diego, independent investigators confirmed that the agency dramatically overhyped how much money the region would have generated from the proposed half-cent sales tax. Its report had been made public Tuesday.

SANDAG and its top executive, Gary Gallegos, eventually said they made a mistake when promising the tax would bring in an estimated $18 billion over 40 years. He chalked up the situation to an accounting error that threw off the calculations by as much as $4 billion.

However, Gallegos didnt volunteer this information. It took several months of investigative reporting by the nonprofit news group Voice of San Diego and the subsequent independent investigation, order by SANDAGs 21-member board of elected officials from around the county.

The final results from the commissioned inquiry, conducted by Los Angeles-based law firm Hueston Hennigan, found that Gallegos and his former chief economist, Marney Cox, didnt intentionally oversell the tax proposal. Rather, the investigation concluded that the agencys bungled revenue projections were the result of an understaffed forecasting department.

Gallegos has declined interviews since the reports release. But Cox recently spoke to The San Diego Union-Tribune.

The agencys former chief economist said the mistake could be traced back to the forecasting team that provided him the raw data.

Its was sloppy, very sloppy, Cox said Wednesday after the investigation became public. Someone has to bear the burden here. A lot of people have been tainted by this error that was preventable.

However, when SANDAG staff members raised concerns that something could be amiss, they ran into what the report depicted as a culture of hubris among the agencys top brass, specifically Cox and Gallegos.

I think that is partially due to the very strong personality of Marney Cox and his longstanding credibility in the organization, and a reluctance of people at the highest level to entertain and encourage debate by others in the organization, John Hueston, an attorney with the law firm Hueston Hennigan, said at the SANDAG board meeting on Friday. Had they done so, I think there were opportunities to out this issue earlier.

The investigation also found that Gallegos oversaw the destruction and hiding of some internal emails and documents amid media inquiries ahead of the public vote on Measure A.

The board voted unanimously on Friday to re-evaluate the employment contract for Gallegos. At a December meeting, before the revenue scandal fully emerged, the SANDAG board approved a $10,000 annual raise and a 4 percent bonus for Gallegos  bringing his annual compensation to $310,000 a year.

Sentiments at the meeting ranged from vigorous defense of Gallegos to calls for his firing.

The board also wants to determine how the faulty revenue projections may complicate efforts to complete projects promised under Trasnet, the regions half-cent sales tax that for decades has underwritten everything from highway to trolley projects. The agencys leaders are struggling to fill a $17 billion funding need through 2048.

Meanwhile, Assembly Bill 805 by Gonzalez Fletcher would make substantial changes to SANDAG. Some of the legislations provisions are getting support from the board, while others are strongly opposed.

The noncontroversial parts of the bill include a plan to create an outside auditor and give the Metropolitan Transit System and the North Coast Transit District the ability to put their own sales-tax measures on the ballot.

Whats divisive, especially among smaller cities in the county, is a provision that would give more power to the countys two biggest cities  San Diego and Chula Vista.

Currently, all major motions on the SANDAG board require a straight tally vote by each city plus a weighted vote based on each citys population. Gonzalez Fletchers bill would slightly alter the weighted vote in favor of the larger urban centers, but more significantly, it would allow the weighted vote to supersede the tally vote as long as the majority includes four separate jurisdictions.

For example: Under this equation, San Diego, Chula Vista, Imperial Beach and Solana Beach could pass a motion over the objections of all other board members.

Gonzalez Fletcher said the overhaul is more democratic because it empowers the majority. Many on the board have criticized the idea, arguing that the current system appropriately requires more consensus.

While its unclear whether Gov. Jerry Brown would sign AB 805, it looks like the measure has a good shot in the Legislature. The legislation is awaiting action by several Senate committees after having passed through the Assembly.

I voted for AB 805 as a member of the Transportation and Housing Committee because I believe its necessary to reform SANDAG and restore the publics trust, said state Sen. Toni Atkins, D-San Diego. Change is never easy, and we wont know for certain if this is the right mix of reforms until they are implemented. But its clear that something needs to be done.

A large part of the urgency comes from people who would like to see dramatically more investments in public transportation. Gonzalez hopes her bill would help local transit agencies better convince voters to pay for everything from new bus routes to extensions of the light-rail system.

Much of the current gridlock has resulted from a growing movement of environmental activists who refuse to support almost any new funding for roads and highways. They have been adamant that the urgency of climate change requires a near complete halt to funding anything but mass transit and bike lanes.

Those in support of road expansion have argued that electric cars will make such concerns largely irrelevant. Green groups have remained unconvinced, countering that such a reality is too far in the future.

The resulting stalemate may have no end in sight, even if Gonzalez Fletchers bill passes.

Measures decades ago, most of which failed, would fund a single project or a single mode in a certain part of the county, said Taylor at UCLA. The problem is that people say, Well, thats not going to go anywhere near me, why should I vote for it?

What (elected officials have) found is theres geographic interests as well as modal interests, and if you try to find projects that satisfy a broad enough cross-section, you can cobble together a two-thirds majority, he added.

Twitter: @jemersmith

Phone: (619) 293-2234

Email: joshua.smith@sduniontribune.com
The San Diego City Council next month may officially go on the record in opposition of President Donald Trumps extended border wall.

And that may mess with Mayor Kevin Faulconers comfort zone.

The resolution council members will consider goes further than mere opposition: it says the city shouldnt do business with any companies involved with designing, building, or financing Trumps marquee policy project.

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It seems a good bet the resolution proposed by Council woman Georgette Gomez will stop at the mayors office.

Since Trump started talking about the wall first as a candidate then president, Faulconer has been cautious in reacting. He has largely avoided tackling the issue head-on, and instead has repeatedly extolled the importance and virtue of the San Diego-Tijuana economic, social and cultural ties  and generally urging against anything that could diminish them.

Even the resolutions simple, symbolic statement against the wall likely would be treated with trepidation in the executive suite at City Hall. But the notion of banning companies from doing business with the city jacks up the degree of difficulty in getting the Republican mayors backing. (Faulconer can veto resolutions, though the council can override with votes of at least six of the nine members.)

The council budget committee on Wednesday was split 2-2 along party lines over the resolution. Democrats hold a 5-4 majority on the full council, so the odds of passage are decent. An override, not so much.

Faulconer has received national attention for being a counterpoint, though not outspoken opponent, of key Trump policies. They differ dramatically on climate change, for example. On the issue at hand, Faulconer talks about how San Diego is building bridges across the border, and not just in attitude.

The relatively new Cross Border Xpress bridge to Rodriguez International Airport stands in stark contrast to where Trump is headed.

Faulconer may well be against Trumps plans but direct confrontation isnt his style and, for him, probably not a good idea politically if he still has hopes of someday being the GOP standard bearer in California.

The notion of not allowing the city to do business with anybody involved with the wall may be whats really problematic for Faulconer  who has control over city contracting. Hes pro-business, of course, and might not view companies that participate in the Trump project as immoral, as some of the Democrats do.

But theres political risk if he vetoes the resolution. Surely he would be branded as a supporter of the Trump wall by Democrats in a statewide race.

Then theres the legal argument. In Sacramento legislation is pending to do on the state level what some council members want to do at the city. But some legal experts say banning such businesses from state contracts could be unconstitutional, though theres dispute over that. In any event, legal challenges would be likely.

Now, a resolution doesnt have the force of a municipal ordinance, but the debate would be out there.

Following the council committee action, Faulconer spokesman Craig Gustafson put out a statement very much like ones weve heard before:

San Diegos border works because we have barriers to discourage illegal activity but also bridges to encourage the legal exchange of people, goods and ideas. We have strong economic and cultural binational ties that have the Mayors unwavering support.

Gustafson said the mayor would withhold taking a position on the resolution until he sees the language.

Gomezs communications director, Roberto C. Torres, noted after the vote that there could be changes before the full council takes up the measure.

Is the wall bad for business?

The array of supporters for the anti-wall resolution was familiar: Immigrant advocacy groups, religious organizations, worker-rights groups.

Another organization isnt often teamed up with such a coalition, but carried much the same message: the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.

The fact is, we already have enough barriers, barriers and inefficiencies at our border that cost our nations billions of dollars in lost economic activity, said Paola Avila, the chambers vice president for international business affairs, told the City Council budget committee.

While San Diego business leaders arent the most vociferous opponents of Trumps plans for an extended wall, they tend to espouse a stronger dislike of it than Faulconer  at least the chamber, anyway.

What really galls them is just a fraction of the money that would go to the border wall ($25 billion to $100 billion) could speed up crossing the border for goods and individuals so much we wouldnt recognize it.

Earlier this year, when Trump took action to advance the wall and his administration was talking about taxing goods coming across the border, chamber President and CEO Jerry Sanders saw it all as a threat, or at least misplaced priorities.

Weve made great progress in recent years improving trade and commerce with Mexico and Id be opposed to anything that would harm binational trade and the creation of local jobs, the former San Diego mayor said. Id rather see the federal government spend money on our nations aging highways, bridges and other infrastructure.

Sometimes the debate rages on locally as if a fence hasnt been here for decades. Many in the business communities on both sides of the border tend to view it as a logistical problem, an obstacle to get around.

We already have a wall, Avila said in January, and we can build a bridge over a wall.

Tweet of the Week

Goes to Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (@LorenaSGonzalez)

If you live in SD, know me & you act like it is anything but normal that Id add pro-worker language to legislation...stop smoking crack.
The Coast Guard rescued an injured man who fell overboard from his motorized dinghy in San Diego Bay Saturday, officials said.

The dinghy kept going, out of control, until San Diego Harbor Police officers got it stopped, Coast Guard officials said in a statement.

The boater suffered a severe arm injury and was taken to a hospital.

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Pleasure boaters aboard a 20-foot sailboat radioed a report of an unmanned motorized dinghy running in the bay about 1:45 p.m. The Coast Guard base in San Diego sent a crew on a 45-foot boat, and they found the injured man in the water, officials said.

The crew took him to a landing at the foot of Fifth Avenue, where an ambulance was waiting.

Officials said those on the sailboat tried to stop the dinghy, but Harbor Police officers got it under control

Harbor Police were investigating the cause of the incident.
Norma Velasquez has watched video of her 22-year-old son die on a National City street over and over.

Shes been transfixed as officers, with a SWAT standoff unfolding around them, drag his body away. And then as paramedics check for a pulse and perform CPR  to no avail.

You want it to be a movie, Velasquez said. It hurts to the bottom of your heart, to your core. I gave birth to him. And to see him dead like that, its the worst.

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The footage, captured by freelance videographers, shows the chaotic aftermath of the June 24 shooting that left her son, Jacob Velasquez, and another man, Nickolas Durrett, 23, dead.

The families involved are desperate for answers, but several hurdles have slowed the investigation, police said.

Ultimately, we want answers for all four of the families, National City police Sgt. Chris Cameon said. Thats what this is all about. We wish (the investigation) could be going differently.

Officers sent to investigate the shooting at an apartment on East Eighth Street found Velasquez dying in the street, and another man, Alejandro Robles, 24, suffering from a shotgun wound to the shoulder.

For eight hours, police tried to convince a third man, 22-year-old Michael Sandoval, to come outside. He eventually stumbled out of the home about 5:30 p.m. Officers found Durretts body inside the apartment.

The hourslong stalemate complicated matters, Cameon said.

It would have been nice to walk into the crime scene as soon as it happened, but the standoff, and the delay that caused, made a difficult crime scene that much more difficult, Cameon said.

Investigators still managed to cart off hundreds of pieces of evidence, but sifting through it all has been time-consuming work. Cameon said detectives are working to analyze the most important pieces first.

And while they are flush with evidence, theyre short on witnesses. Robles, the man found wounded in the street, was interviewed by detectives after the incident. The day after the shooting, he was arrested on suspicion of killing Durrett, but was released days later when charges werent filed.

Cameon said parts of Robles story still need to be substantiated by evidence. A spokesman for the San Diego County District Attorneys Office said the investigation is ongoing.

Investigators were hopeful Sandoval, who emerged from the apartment with a serious head wound, would be able to tell detectives what happened once he recovered. But hes in no condition to talk, Cameon said.

The sergeant said the department has tried to stay in regular contact with the family as the investigation continues.

Some family members said the departments efforts havent been enough.

Norma Velasquez, Jacob Velasquezs mother, said she is still upset she wasnt notified of her sons death sooner.

After hearing of the shooting, she spent hours behind police tape, anxiously awaiting word about whether her son was dead. Later that night, some of her children found the chilling video of the shootings aftermath on YouTube.

She knew then Jacob was dead, but it wasnt until midnight that an investigator with the Medical Examiners Office called with the news.

I want them to understand that I dont want (anything) like this to happen to another family. I want them to be notified  and not see it through YouTube, she said.

Paula Gant, Durretts mother, said it was the video that ultimately led her to learn of her sons death as well.

The night of the shooting, Durrett didnt return home and he wasnt answering calls to his cellphone. Worried about him, Gant called police to see if he had been arrested and checked for him at hospitals.

The following morning, Durretts wife saw the YouTube video and noticed that her car, which Durrett had used, was parked outside the apartment where the shooting occurred.

At that point, Gant already knew two people were dead. After a few fruitless calls to the Police Department, she reached the Medical Examiners Office. An investigator there confirmed her sons death.

My heart dropped to my feet, she said in tears. I didnt know what to think, but it was a relief to know it was my son. I guess its better to know than to not know.

Last week, on the one-month anniversary of the shooting, the families of Velasquez and Durrett gathered near the corner of East Eighth and J streets, where dozens of candles and flower bouquets serve as a reminder of the lives taken.

Were still mourning and we still have no answers, Norma Velasquez said. We want answers. At least that would give us peace of mind  because they didnt die in an accident. They died at the hands of someone else.

Gant added: I dont think Ill get closure until we find out what happened and who killed my son.

Breaking News

Email: david.hernandez@sduniontribune.com

Phone: (619) 293-1876

Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez
Swine flu claims one more life

A 74-year-old man from Palpa has died of swine flu. Dr Uma Shankar Prasad Chaudhary, chief of the District Health Office, said Man Bahadur Chidi of Kaseni in Mathagadhi-3 died on Saturday while undergoing treatment at a hospital in Kathmandu.
A Camp Pendleton Marine from Iowa died in an accident on the base Friday, Marine officials said Saturday.

The Marine was identified as Lance Cpl. Cody J. Haley, 20, of Hardin, Iowa, assigned to 1st Marine Division.

Harley was gravely injured, then died at the site of the accident, officials said in a statement.

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A Marine spokesman said he could not release the time the accident occurred on Friday or the nature of the accident. There was no explanation about why the information was released a day after the incident occurred.

Haley deployed with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit in March of 2016, officials said. His awards include the National Defense Service medal, Global War on Terrorism Service medal, and the Sea Service Deployment ribbon.

The Marine statement said, We are heartbroken at the tragic loss of a member of the Marine Corps family, and we will do all we can to comfort the family, friends and colleagues of the deceased.
The faces were familiar at the meetings that San Diego County Supervisor Ron Roberts held with San Diego Kind Corp., the company that has since become a pillar in the countys new $25 million affordable housing development program.

One was former San Diego Mayor Maureen OConnor, Roberts longtime friend and one-time City Council colleague, who in February introduced the long-serving Republican supervisor to the small nonprofit senior housing provider founded four decades ago by her twin sister, Mavourneen OConnor.

Both the twins attended all four of Kind Corp.s get-togethers with Roberts in the weeks before he announced that the company  which hasnt developed a low-income dwelling since 1989  would be tasked with devising a cheaper means to help the county build its way out of a worsening low-income housing crunch.

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Mavourneen OConnor stepped down from Kind Corp.s board in 2011, according to publicly filed paperwork. Maureen OConnor does not show up as an officer on the companys documents.

Yet it was the OConnors who got Kind Corp.s foot in the door, arranging meetings with Roberts, Kind Corp. staff and architects. According to a Kind board member, Mavourneen OConnor served as a consultant at the meetings and Maureen OConnor volunteered her time.

Roberts spokesman Tim McClain credited the former mayors longstanding friendship with the supervisor for enabling his first meeting with the nonprofit.

The company, today headed by gerontologist and former San Diego State University professor Percil Stanford, told The San Diego Union-Tribune in June for an earlier story that it could construct new subsidized housing units for as little as $100,000, or less than one-third of the current average cost to build such homes in the county.

That same month, Roberts announced Kind Corp. would get a chance to prove those claims with 50 low-income housing units for seniors to be built on part of a 4.6-acre county-owned parcel on Levant Street in Linda Vista.

No other prospective contractors were considered for the pilot development, which the county has touted as a potential blueprint for cheaper subsidized housing throughout the region.

Dr. Stanford has got a pretty impressive resume, Roberts said in a July interview with the U-T, referring to Kind Corp.s president. I think some good things are going to come out of it.  I want them to be a star at the end of this.

Others were more skeptical, noting the companys lack of experience relative to other low-income housing developers, and the lack of any competitive bid process.

There seems to have been a lack of transparency, said Carl Luna, a political science professor and the director for the Institute for Civil Civic Engagement at the University of San Diego. It smacks of an insiders sort of deal.

Roberts said Kind Corp. has pledged $2 million of its own money toward the Linda Vista development.

Those funds have a story of their own, one that includes decades of complaints about how the company treated elderly tenants at one of its buildings.

Not impressed

The cash Kind Corp. plans to invest in its new county project comes from the 2014 sale of San Diego Square, a 156-unit downtown housing complex purchased by city housing officials amid tenant complaints about bug infestations, mistreatment by building management and concerns over Kind Corp.s compliance with the terms of its lease and permit.

Complaints filed with the city as far back as 1993 claim Kind Corp. didnt allow residents to use the buildings 28-space parking lot. The city issued the business a citation saying the parking was required to be made available under the companys permit to operate the building. The company disagreed, but a review by the City Attorneys Office upheld the requirement.

In 2011, amid renewed complaints from residents, then-City Attorney Jan Goldsmith agreed to take another look at the parking situation.

This was important to their residents and I was not impressed with the way they let it linger, Goldsmith told the Union-Tribune.

Kind Corp. also ousted the operators of San Diego Squares day center. That left elderly tenants without the services mandated in the companys lease, according to letters sent by the city to Kind Corp. The company sought relief from the contract provision, given its plans to sell the building.

Lynne Walker, who moved into the complex in 2002, said the company also locked tenants out of a multipurpose room that had been used for holiday gatherings and social activities.

There was no community [meeting] place at all, Walker said. Mavourneen didnt have the residents in mind.  I cant see her opening another place.

Past problems

Kind Corp. no longer owns or operates a low-income housing development, and has no affordable housing developers on its board.

Financial disclosures filed with the IRS show the company spent a combined $3.7 million more than it made between 2001 and 2015.

Kind Corp.s current board includes Stanford, architect Paul Chelminiak and attorneys Christopher Morris and Chanell Kachi. Stanford did not respond to requests for comment. A LinkedIn page lists him as former director of San Diego State Universitys Center on Aging and a current Washington D.C.-area management consulting professional. It also lists his role as Kind Corp.s president.

Mavourneen OConnor, the companys founder and ex-president, did not respond to messages left for her by telephone and at her home. Financial reports show she served in various paid positions on Kind Corp.s board from 2001 to 2013. Downtown Senior Center, one of two closely related nonprofits that loaned money to the senior housing charity, reported in 2015 she was paid $487,500 for her role as that companys president emeritus.

OConnor has collected nearly $4.5 million in salary and other compensation from Downtown Senior Center, Kind Corp. and Fifth Avenue Corporation, another affiliated nonprofit, according to financial filings submitted since 2001. Those payments peaked in 2011.

OConnors twin sister, mayor from 1986 to 1992, admitted in federal court in 2013 to feeding her gambling addiction by siphoning $2 million dollars from the R.P. Foundation, a La Jolla-based charity started by her late husband, Jack-In-The-Box founder Robert O. Peterson.

The former mayor struck a deal with federal prosecutors resulting in her case being dismissed. She agreed to obtain gambling addiction treatment and pay restitution to other charities, since the R.P. Foundation is defunct.

In court papers, her attorney argued a grief-stricken OConnor had sought an outlet in gambling after Petersons death in 1994, followed by the deaths of other close friends and family members. She did not respond to a request for comment for this story.

Mavourneen OConnor served alongside her sister on the R.P. Foundations board and was never implicated in the case. Separately, Mavourneen reported nearly $14 million in gambling income on separate tax returns filed in 2002 and 2004, according to exhibits filed in her 2006 divorce from ex-husband Thomas Kravis. Declarations made by Kravis point to bank statements as evidence of her gambling trips to several casinos in Las Vegas, Palm Springs and Atlantic City.

Morris, the attorney and Kind Corp. board member who also sits on Downtown Senior Centers board, said the senior center felt Mavourneen OConnor was well worth the $2.8 million it reported paying her since 2001.

He described Kind Corp. as a 40-year-old nonprofit with a track record of providing low income senior housing.

He said Maureen OConnor has been involved with low-income senior housing since the 1970s and served on the California Housing Authority. He said Mavourneen OConnor has been an advocate on low-income senior housing since 1973.

Morris said the nonprofit has been looking for a new venture since it sold its downtown senior complex five years ago, and confirmed it was willing to put up the proceeds of that sale to fund the right project.

If you peel back the onion, theres no nefarious stuff going on, he added. (The boards) heart is in the right place.
If Trump enacts his English-speaking immigrant policy, who will work at Mar-a-Lago?

What about those German scientists we needed after World War Two? Wernher von Braun? Did they speak English? Trumps people are from Germany. Did they speak English before they arrived?

The cosmopolitan in me thinks this is an idea that wont serve us in the long term.

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William Franklin

Midtown

Republicans silence shows their true values

Heres a scenario. Lets say President Obama bragged about sexually assaulting women, and then insulted and mocked a disabled person.

He then called John McCain a loser for getting captured. Then he bought a house for $45 million and then sold it to a Russian oligarch for $95 million. (Quite a profit).

He then had secret meetings with the Russians with no Americans present. He then denied Russian election hacking against the view of his own CIA, FBI and virtually all members of Congress.

If Barack Obama did these things, the Republicans would be incensed and outraged. Even though these actions go against their core beliefs, they say very little about Donald Trump doing all these things and more. Instead, many bow down and praise Trump. What hypocrites.

Tom Wilmot

La Mesa

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The Rio Olympic torch has been through some tough times.

On its ceremonial journey to the city of Rio de Janeiro where the Summer Games are being held this year, the symbolic Olympic torch has survived protests, people trying to extinguish its flame, a few stumbles and even a car crash. Mind you, torch relay protests and attempts to snuff out the flame are not uncommon. Yet the torch problems are just one aspect of a long list of problems plaguing the 2016 Rio Olympics, so what is supposed to be a spirited and time-honored tradition may well be remembered for the problems it survived.

1. Torch takes a few tumbles

Retired Brazilian swimmer Joao Reinaldo Costa Lima Neto took a tumble in a street pothole while carrying the torch. Later, local businesswoman Luiza Helena Trajano face-planted as she ran with the torch. The torch survived both missteps.

Rio Olympic torch takes a tumble

2. Jaguar nearly botches Olympic ceremony

A soldier shot an Amazon jaguar after it escaped its handlers during an Olympic ceremony. The incident sparked an outcry among animal rights groups and the ceremony organizers apologized for the incident. In a statement they said, "We made a mistake in permitting the Olympic torch, a symbol of peace and unity, to be exhibited alongside a chained wild animal. This image goes against our beliefs and our values. We guarantee that there will be no more such incidents at Rio 2016," the committee added.

Jaguar shot during Olympic torch photo op

3. Torch survives bucket of water

A man armed with a bucket of water tried to snuff out the Olympic torch as it made its way through the city of Maracaju. In the video, the man is seen standing on the side of the road where the torch procession is passing. He grabs the bucket of water and swings it, aiming for the flame. He missed and was later arrested.

Someone threw water at the Olympic torch

4. Man tries to steal torch

In another incident, security tackled a man to the ground after trying to steal the torch. As the Olympic torch relay passed through a town called Guarulhos, an unidentified man lunged into a security buffer in a failed attempt to take the torch.

Man tries to steal Olympic torch

5. Torch survives fire extinguisher

Among the many efforts to shut out the flame, another man tried to put out the Olympic torch flame with a fire extinguisher. As the torch relay was moving through the town of Joinville, the man ran close to the security buffer to let out a big cloud of fire-extinguishing fumes. The flame survived.

Torch survives fire extinguisher

6. Torch interrupted by crash

A motorcyclist crashed into the security perimeter flanking the torch runner. Someone on Twitter captured the moment with the caption: "When someone takes a cloak, you help, laugh or get a selfie? The Green guy laughed and took a selfie."

Motorcycle crash interrupts Olympic torch

7. Torch meets protest

In late July, the torch succumbed to its toughest obstacle: a swarm of protesters. This time, the torch flame was put out and, as seen in this video, the relay participants were escorted away in a bus. Police forces eventually dispersed protesters using tear gas and rubber bullets, according to reports.

Olympic torch meets protesters

The 2016 Rio Olympics run from August 5 to 21. NBC is broadcasting the ceremonies and games as they happen in Rio de Janeiro, which is four hours ahead of the Pacific Time zone.

Will you be watching? Let us know what you think of these Olympics and the problems surrounding it so far.
Three members of Ramona Boys Scout Troop 647 recently received their Eagle Scout awards for achieving the highest rank in the Boy Scouting program

In a community ceremony at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Evan Reichner, Ethan Frandsen, and Jonathan Finch received their Eagle Scout Award. In addition to working through the levels of Boy Scouting, completing service requirements, serving their troop as a leader, and earning an array of merit badges, each planned and executed a service project.

Finchs Eagle project was to design and build five shooting benches for use in the BB/pellet gun range at the LDS church camp at Wildwood Ranch at 14488 Mussey Grade Road. He enlisted the aid of members of his Troop 647 to build the benches, which were ready for summer camps.

The church camp sponsored Finchs project with donations from Ransom Lumber and Lowes Home Improvement.

Frandsens project was to build a raised concrete pad with a retaining wall, cover, and sink for the Classic Rotors Museum at Ramona Airport. The new area at the helicopter museum provides a space and shade for visitors and children on field trips to picnic while watching aircraft take off and land nearby.

The project was a bit more technical than the Scout anticipated, but he received help from friends in and out of Troop 647. He also received donations of time, work, and materials from Superior Concrete.

All in all it was a great opportunity to work concrete, lead a service project, and help out a local nonprofit continue their amazing work, the Scout noted.

For his Eagle Scout project, Reichner made six wooden trash can covers for Wildwood Ranch. The covers help to beautify the ranch and limit pest problems. He received donations from Home Depot to complete the project, and help from many Troop 647 members and others.

This project was a great lesson in planning, organizing, and leadership, he said.

A Ramona High School graduate who lettered in four sports, Reichner is scheduled to leave this week on a two-year mission to Tampa, Fla.
UML boycotts swearing-in ceremony in Bharatpur

The elected representatives of CPN-UML in Bharatpur Metropolitan City have boycotted the swearing-in ceremony on Sunday.
CHIBA, Japan - It's hard to miss the little pink-walled house in a residential neighborhood of Yotsukaido, Chiba Prefecture, and its interior is pretty memorable, too - it contains the Hello Kitty collection accumulated over more than 30 years by former policeman Masao Gunji.

Last year, Gunji was recognized by Guinness World Records for a collection of 5,169 items. Children and Kitty fans often visit his home to play with the iconic Sanrio Co. character, who Gunji introduces as "a member of our family."

Gunji calls the one-story structure "Kitty house" and built it as an extension to his main house four years ago. The approximately 25-square-meter enclosure is filled with a plethora of Kitty goods, including stuffed animals, stationary, shoes, mats, watches and lunch boxes. Kitty is likewise featured on the room's wallpaper.

"They're all cute," the 68-year-old said with a smile as if admiring his grandchildren.

After graduating high school, Gunji joined the Metropolitan Police Department. He was mainly stationed at police boxes where he worked to ensure community safety.

Gunji first encountered Kitty 30 years ago during a visit to Nikko in Tochigi Prefecture. He bought a strap-like Kitty ornament at a shop as he found it cute.

He was particularly charmed by the character's eyes. "I felt relief from work gazing at her eyes," he recalled.

Over the years, Gunji continued purchasing merchandise. His father, also a policeman, often scolded him, saying, "You're a disgrace, wasting time with a mascot like Kitty."

Both men and women, however, can be attracted by cuteness. Gunji would respond, "Kitty soothes me and motivates me to work hard."

His passion for Kitty goods really took off after he retired. He continued splurging at specialty shops and department stores as he sought to expand his collection.

On the advice of an acquaintance, Gunji challenged the Guinness World Record in November last year. To ensure a smooth screening process, he carefully selected items for evaluation from his roughly 10,000-piece collection. Ultimately, 5,169 items were recognized as collectable items, overturning the previous mark of 4,519 to set a world record.

Fans and neighborhood children often visit the Kitty house. Some cuddle with the stuffed animals while others play with toys. Gunji says he's heartened by the smiles of those who come to interact with Kitty.

His wife Yoshiko, 76, said he was already collecting merchandise when they first met.

"At first I wondered if he was okay but gradually I learned that he's a kind, good-hearted person," she said. "Collecting Kitty is his purpose in life. Since he's gotten this far, I want him to keep at it."

Gunji says he has spent roughly 20 million on merchandise and 10 million on the house for the character.

"If I find something new, I'll buy it," he said.
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.

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Press Release

August 5, 2017 De Lima seeks changes in recall elections To stop elective public officials from perpetuating themselves to power after completing the allowable three consecutive terms of office, Senator Leila M. de Lima has filed a measure seeking to update the grounds for a recall election. De Lima, who chairs the Senate Electoral Reforms and People's Participation Committee, has filed Senate Bill (SB) No. 1526 amending the provision on the power of recall contained in Republic Act No. 7160 or the 1991 Local Government Code (LGC). "The Local Government Code provisions on the power of recall provided another way for local officials to immediately return to power after reaching the term limits provided in the Constitution," she pointed out. "This is by way of a recall election, where the local executive who already reached a three-term limit can immediately run for the same office in a recall election, without barely a term having lapsed between his last term and the recall election where he is running as a candidate," she said. Under LGC, registered voters are given the power to recall a local elective official due to loss of confidence, but no recall proceedings can take place within a year from the date of the local officials' assumption to office or one year immediately preceding a regular local election. The collection of signatures from supporters of a local official is the start of the recall process, and the petitioners can formally file the recall petition before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) upon reaching a sufficient number of signatures. "A recall election can thus be considered as a circumvention of the term limits mandated by the Constitution, especially if the official who already reached a three-term limit run for election and get his old post back," De Lima said. Note that under Article X Section 8 of the Constitution, the term of office of elected local officials, except barangay officials, which shall be determined by law, shall be three years and that no person shall serve for more than three consecutive terms. De Lima also proposes an amendment for LGC's Section 75, to the effect that in the event of a recall election, line item appropriation for the conduct and supervision of recall election under Comelec's budget program category may be used to answer for all expenses incidental to recall elections. De Lima, who is currently detained on trumped-up charges based on perjured testimonies of convicted criminals and fabricated evidence, was considered as one of the most prominent election lawyers in the country before she entered public service. While in detention, she continues to perform her Senate duties by filing bills and resolutions. To date, she has filed 43 bills and 52 resolutions, with one bill already enacted as Republic Act No. 10923, three bills already passed on third reading, and with 12 resolutions already adopted. She has also delivered three privilege speeches before the Senate plenary hall on controversial issues, especially to denounce the unabated spate of extrajudicial killings on the war on drugs, and the proliferation of fake news.
Press Release

August 6, 2017 De Lima seeks visit of UN Rapporteur on IDPs Senator Leila M. de Lima has urged the Duterte administration to send a formal invitation to United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Cecilia Jimenez-Damary to look into the growing number of citizens displaced by the crisis in Marawi. De Lima, a known human rights defender, filed Senate Resolution (SR) No. 455 urging the Department of Foreign Affairs to invite Jimenez-Damary to examine the worsening plight of displaced people in the province, which could continue and even worsen due to the extension of martial law in the entire Mindanao until Dec. 31this year. "In light of the extension of the effectivity of Martial Law in Mindanao and the worrisome conditions already reported to be prevailing in the affected areas, it is imperative for the Executive Department to invite Jimenez-Damary, to enable her to verify these troubling complaints, assess the actual living conditions of the IDPs within and outside evacuation camps, and to propose recommendations on how to improve such conditions going forward," she said. Based on the figures released by the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Zamboanga, since the proclamation of martial law on May 23, and as of June 2017, there are a total of 351,168 displaced individuals in Marawi, with 17,389 of them staying in evacuation centers. Aside from the difficult living conditions, the affected families and communities are reportedly facing unjust treatments from local authorities, with the military officials allegedly refusing the passage of relief goods in the province, conducting indiscriminate airstrikes, disrespecting the Islamic faith and harassing women by telling inappropriate rape jokes. De Lima, former chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights, pointed out how Ranao rescue team member Samira Gutoc-Tomawis revealed the difficult living condition of IDPs in Marawi during the special joint session of Congress for the extension of Martial Law in Mindanao on July 22. "Among the disturbing conditions mentioned by Ms. Gutoc-Tomawis is the situation of mothers and their children in Marawi, such as the cases of three women sharing one bed in a charity ward, dead babies being buried every five days, men rescued by authorities are being asked to remove their clothes then walk while blindfolded, and of two pregnant women who were taken by the PNP for questioning for a whole day because they were found holding dextrose intravenous drips," she said. The Senator from Bicol noted that the government, as the "legal protector of Filipinos who are unable to protect themselves," has the duty to pursue an impartial investigation through an independent commission of inquiry to be conducted by the UN Special Rapporteur. "The government, under the doctrine of 'parens patriae,' should always prioritize and address the situation of the displaced citizens in Mindanao -- particularly, the surfacing humanitarian issues emerging from the intensified armed conflict between the military and of terrorist elements," she said. De Lima said that the visit of Jimenez-Damary would not only provide insights on the relevant issues, but also aid in finding remedial legislative measures that could help address the growing humanitarian crisis in Mindanao. One of the important functions of the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights for IDPs is to conduct country visits, which provide an opportunity to assess and check whether the needs of the IDPs are being met with urgency. A staunch critic of injustices happening in the country since Duterte assumed presidency, De Lima filed Senate Resolution No. 153 last year urging the government to send a formal invitation to UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions Agnes Callamard to look into the phenomenon of extrajudicial killings in the country. Although Callamard had visited the country in May this year to participate in an academic conference on drug-related issues, she has not been allowed by the government to conduct a fact-finding mission about the spate of extrajudicial killings in the administration's all-out war on drugs.
Press Release

August 6, 2017 Legarda: Free Tertiary Education, Our Commitment to the People Senator Loren Legarda today said that providing free tertiary education in public colleges and universities is the government's commitment to the people now that the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act has been enacted. Legarda, co-author and co-sponsor of the law, said that it is logical that after implementing the K-12 curriculum comes the provision for free tuition in all state universities and colleges (SUCs), as well as in local universities and colleges (LUCs) and state-run technical-vocational institutions. "Even before the K-12 curriculum was implemented, many were against it because it was seen as an additional expense especially for low-income families who would also want to bring their children to college. But with the passage of the Free Higher Education Law, we are addressing the concerns of poor families, we are giving our youth the chance to obtain a college degree, and we are assured that our students are at par with the rest of the world because of the K-12," she explained. Legarda, who chairs the Senate Committee on Finance, acknowledged that funding the law is a challenge, but is not impossible. "If we are able to provide funds for universal healthcare, free irrigation, and higher budget for infrastructure, there is no reason not to provide for free college education. After all, the Constitution states that education should be the highest budgetary priority. It is not enough that it is at the top of the budget list, we must also ensure that funds are sufficient," she said. "While the administration's economic managers had reservations with the measure, now that it is a law, we need to fund it. The Department of Budget and Management's (DBM) role is crucial in crafting the law's implementing rules and regulations (IRR) to ensure that it is funded every year," she stressed. Legarda explained that as the Senate starts scrutinizing the proposed P3.767-trillion budget for 2018, they will look into agencies that have a history of underspending and will also check the urgency of implementing proposed programs to be funded. Data from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) shows that based on figures from January to June 2017, total national government expenditures in 2017 is likely to fall short by P153 billion, which means underspending is still apparent. "We will also review how the 8.3 billion pesos additional allocation to jumpstart the free tuition in SUCs was implemented this year. This would help in crafting the IRR," Legarda said. The free tuition in SUCs is being implemented in the current school year due to the intervention of Legarda, who, as chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, pushed for the additional P8.3 Billion allocation under the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) budget. "As in any new law, implementation is always a challenge, but now is the time to work together to ensure that we keep our commitment to the people. There is no greater investment than education, to build a sustainable and progressive nation," Legarda said. The Senator also said that while the law only covers tuition fee, indigent students may still avail of grants and aid for miscellaneous fees under various programs. College students belonging to family-beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) are covered by the Expanded Students' Grants in Aid Program for Poverty Alleviation (ESGP-PA), while those who are not part of the 4Ps can avail of financial assistance for educational purposes under the Student Financial Assistance Programs (StuFAPs) both under the CHED and SUCs.
Koko says attack on judge an insult to PNP

Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III on Sunday condemned the fatal Saturday morning attack on a judge in Butuan City.

Judge Godofredo Abul Jr. of the Butuan City Regional Trial Court Branch 4 was shot dead inside his house in Butuan City at around 10am, and his wife was injured in the same attack.

"This brazen attack on a judge in his own home is an insult to our policemen. The killers are showing their complete disregard for the rule of law and showing their contempt for the ability of the PNP to catch them", said Pimentel.

The Senate President, who pushed for the NBI Modernization Law and an advocate of a stronger judicial system, said that the PNP should rise to the challenge of the killers and solve the case immediately.

Pimentel said, "The PNP has been challenged. The best possible way to respond is to arrest the killers."

The Senate leader, a former bar topnotcher, is the author of 15 laws that created 50 new branches of regional, municipal, and metropolitan trial courts, helping to ease the backlog that has caused numerous delays in cases.
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It turns out that new BART Police Chief Carlos Rojas departure from his last job  top cop in Santa Ana  was far from amicable.

Rojas joined the BART force in May and filed a legal claim against Santa Ana a month later, saying he had been forced to resign as police chief because he blew the whistle on city employees who may have been breaking the law.

The claim, typically a precursor to a lawsuit, says Rojas notified his City Hall bosses of suspicions of illegal activity involving certain employees, and that his bosses could have investigated. Instead, they pushed him out.

The claim blames everyone from the mayor and acting city manager to a pair of City Council members and the head of the local police union.

However, just what kind of illegal activity the chief might have known about isnt spelled out in his claim, and neither Rojas nor his attorney is talking.

What we do know is that Rojas resigned after five years on the job, bringing an ignominious end to his 27-year-career in the department. At the time, he was facing a barrage of criticism over both his leadership and a wave of shootings in the city, and the police union was threatening him with a no-confidence vote.

If he was doing such a great job, why did he leave? said police union President Gerry Serrano. He wasnt terminated.

Serrano says he has no idea what Rojas allegations of illegal activity involve, but called his claim against the city an embarrassment  to the ex-chief. What a shame and a theft to this community that he now wants more money, he said.

The claim cites a loss by Rojas of significantly in excess of $10,000, and says he was forced to obtain employment at an unfamiliar department where he will earn less salary, expend considerably more in living expenses and will live apart from his family.

That would be BART.

Rojas was making $244,656 a year as Santa Anas chief. BART officials tell us that as of July 1, Rojas was making $255,065.

Rojas attorney, Lawrence Lennemann, said he and his client are not in a position at this time to make any comment. But he did point us to an opinion piece on the Voice of OC website by Claudia Perez, who heads a local advocacy group.

Perez wrote that the police union spent $400,000 to back candidates in recent City Council elections who would do its bidding  including firing Rojas.

She added that Rojas ran into trouble with the union because he fired certain police officers who had violated the law while at work. Rojas legal claim is the first step toward exposing the corruption within the city, Perez wrote.

As for BARTs reaction to all this: The general manager in consultation with the Board of Directors felt Carlos Rojas was the best candidate, and there is nothing about his relationship with his previous employer that changes that, said spokesman Jim Allison.

Lovin it: The city has made a bid to buy one of San Franciscos most intractable trouble spots  the McDonalds restaurant at the corner of Haight and Stanyan streets  with the idea of replacing it with affordable housing.

What a great opportunity, said Board of Supervisors President London Breed, who has answered her share of complaints from neighbors about small-time drug-selling, loitering and other problems around the fast-food outlet across from Golden Gate Park.

McDonalds spokesman Ron Rogers said the burger giant has a received a letter of interest from the city and that the proposal is currently under review.

The sites problems were underscored Thursday when a man was shot and wounded inside the McDonalds after an altercation. The restaurant was closed for two hours while police scoured the area looking for the suspect, without success.

Nicole Boliaux/The Chronicle

Officials from San Franciscos Real Estate Division were unavailable to discuss specifics of the citys offer for the property, but the news was confirmed by both Breed and Mayor Ed Lees office.

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We are waiting to hear a response to our proposal, Deirdre Hussey, the mayors spokeswoman, said Friday.

Lee and the supervisors have been pressing to build more housing in the city, and that includes the Haight. Breed, however, cautioned that nothing was set in stone, and whether its affordable housing or anything else built, there will be a community process.

The city has tried before to buy the McDonalds site. Were told the previous owner hoped to develop the site himself, but that plan ran up against resistance from neighbors.

In May 2015, City Attorney Dennis Herrera threatened to sue McDonalds Corp., citing 1,100 calls to police over a three-year span for drug sales, fights, assaults and auto burglaries in the parking lot.

He eventually reached a deal requiring McDonalds and its franchise holder to provide increased security and lighting and to pay the city $40,000.

Another franchisee, Peter Ou, took over in January. Tony Green, manager of neighboring Amoeba Music, said the crime situation has improved lately, but still, people do find a way to hang out.

Breed says Ou and McDonalds have tried to make the area safer and more comfortable for people, but havent been successful  opening the door for the city to take another stab at buying the property.

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
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Special Counsel Robert Muellers convening of a grand jury to investigate possible Trump campaign collusion with Russia could actually turn out to be good news for the president.

Good because it signals that theres an end in sight to the question of who did what in 2016. The first six months of the Trump administration have been plagued by a ceaseless stream of leaks  Michael Flynn met with the Russians! Jeff Sessions met with the Russians! Donald Trump Jr. met with the Russians to get the dirt on Hillary Clinton, and he brought Jared Kushner and Paul Manafort with him!

Now, those leaks will stop. Mueller is a no-nonsense, nonpolitical prosecutor, and he doesnt leak. With a grand jury impaneled, he has the investigation in a highly controlled environment where the public cant go and the transcripts are sealed.

So for now, at least, President Trump gets a reprieve from the daily drip, drip, drip of revelations.

And at the end, if the grand jury concludes that whatever took place didnt rise to the level of criminal conduct, Trump wins a get-out-of-jail-free card for the rest of his presidency. Hell boast that anything less than an indictment of anyone connected to his campaign amounts to full exoneration, and the people who voted for him will believe him.

News that the Justice Department under Attorney General Jeff Beauregard Sessions intends to root out discrimination against white people in universities marks a new low. But who can say it wont get worse?

Coming soon: The Justice Department reviews whether the ban on separate but equal public facilities unfairly discriminates against racists.

Steve Kawa, who served as chief of staff for three San Francisco mayors, had a retirement dinner at the Big Four Restaurant atop Nob Hill the other night.

The event was billed as The Big Three Dinner at the Big Four, with the big three being Mayor Ed Lee, former Mayor Gavin Newsom and me.

Kawa was one of my best appointments, but most of the night was spent cracking wise about my many other picks.

How did you come up with Alicia Becerril for supervisor?

You can thank my friend John Burton for that one, I said.

Why did you appoint Kimiko Burton as public defender?

Burton.

In fact, it was Burton who pushed me to appoint Newsom first to the Parking and Traffic Commission, then to the Board of Supervisors to replace Kevin Shelley in 1997, after Shelley was elected to the state Assembly.

I even appointed Lee to his first post as a city department head, putting him in charge of the Department of Public Works.

Lee wasnt too crazy about taking the job, as it meant having to move to the city from Oakland. But his wife, Anita, couldnt get over here fast enough.

Im still not sure if Ed has forgiven me.

I was invited to a pop-up experience called the Color Factory on Sutter Street just off Union Square the other day, and what a trip it was.

Jordan Ferney, who used to work at the Willie Brown Institute, artist Leah Rosenberg and designer Erin Jang have taken over the two-story building and turned every room into a different color experience.

The Yellow Room has a pit filled with 200,000 yellow balls. Another room has thousands of colorful hanging ribbons to get lost in. Theres a room filled from floor to ceiling with balloons of every hue. The Bright Light Room has cylinders in the wall that change color when you pull them out.

It is incredible, but be prepared to shell out some green. Tickets are $34 and have to be bought online for a specific date and time.

Word must be getting around. I was told the first three months are sold out.

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Movie time: Atomic Blonde. Charlize Theron stars as the new James Bond  or in this case, June Bond  in this super spy thriller.

Its set in the dying days of the Cold War. Theron plays a British agent sent on a mission into Berlin to retrieve a top-secret dossier. Plenty of action and effects. I heard Theron did most of the stunts herself.

Detroit. A disturbingly honest movie about the Detroit riots of 1967. Its a horror film for black America, and one that Black Lives Matter could show at its rallies.

Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsoms campaign team is crowing over his having raised as much money as all his Democratic rivals combined for next years governors race.

Congratulations, Gavin. But the fact is that big money has never been a major factor in the governors race. Just ask Meg Whitman, who spent $190 million on her ill-fated run against Jerry Brown in 2010, or Al Checchi, who blew $40 million of his fortune in 1998 only to lose to Gray Davis in the Democratic primary.

On the other hand, Newsom is clearly the best-looking candidate. And dont kid yourself  that means something to voters.

Just the other night, I was in the St. Regis bar when a woman came up and asked, That good-looking Gavin Whatshisname, is he married?

Yes, and with four children.

She paused.

And you are you married?

That depends.

On what?

Your next question.

Want to sound off? Email: wbrown@sfchronicle.com
Last weeks snail mail brought a winter 2018 catalog from the publisher W.W. Norton, which included notice of science writer Emma Byrnes forthcoming Swearing Is Good for You.

The book, according to the catalog, reflects the latest research. The author reveals how swearing has been around since the earliest humans began to communicate, and has been shown to reduce physical pain, to lower anxiety, to prevent physical violence, to help trauma victims recover language and to promote human cooperation. ... Swearing Is Good for You presents a lighthearted but convincing case for the foulmouthed.

Go in peace, Anthony Scaramucci, youll probably outlive us all.

Meanwhile, Vicky Ward explains in the Huffington Post why Scaramucci was so upset that the guest list for a dinner at the White House had been leaked. And wouldnt you know? Theres a local angle. Scaramuccis wife, Deidre Ball, had filed for divorce in early July, and one of the dinner guests was Fox News Kimberly Guilfoyle, former first lady of San Francisco and former lingerie model. There had been rumors that the Mooch and Guilfoyle were a pair.

Guilfoyle confirmed to Ward, through a Fox News spokesman, that she and the Mooch are friends. But Scaramucci strongly denies having a sexual relationship with Guilfoyle, wrote Ward. Roger Stone, also a friend of Guilfoyles, explained that Scaramucci and Guilfoyle are very close friends but nothing more. He added, He is way too short for Kimberly.

Peter Yau, who 37 years ago had been sent to Tommasos by a Chinatown employment agency, has retired from his job as a busboy.

Yau did such a good job, said Agostino Crotti, that a few years after his hiring, I asked him if he wanted to be a waiter. He said, You hired me as a busboy, I want to stay a busboy.

His stint at that job ended after his shift on July 30. Supervisor Aaron Peskin was there with a proclamation, as was Dennis Herrera. Mid-evening, they called for customers attention, and made a presentation of the civic tribute. Everybody applauded, says Crotti.

Crotti notes that Yau put three kids through college on his salary for the only job he had for 37 years. He showed up every day on time. He was very responsible, loved the people. Were really going to miss him.

Yau himself was reticent about talking for this item, but that doesnt mean he didnt enjoy at least some of his time on the job. One night, says the boss, he was dragging his feet. He was carrying dozens of dirty dishes as he passed Crotti, and I told him, You are slowing down a tad. He said, I am a bus, not a jet. This exchange, Crotti emphasizes, was all in good fun. Yau leaves with no demerits on his permanent record.

On Monday, Aug. 7, Sister Roma hosts the Castro Theatres premiere showing of Stilettos Over Shanghai, a documentary about a group of Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence  from San Francisco, Germany and France  who went to Shanghai Pride Week in 2014. While in Shanghai, the sisters participated in seminars and other educational activities connected with Pride, as well as traveling around in drag, a rare sight in China.

Mondays whole event, which includes appearances by Mark Leno and Tom Ammiano, is Stilettos for Shanghai for Chechnya, because some of the proceeds of this event will go the Rainbow Railroad, a Canadian-based organization trying to help gays fleeing persecution, and the Organization for Refuge, Asylum and Migration. Chechnya is one of the parts of the world thats a focus for the railroad.

At the recent Comic-Con International in San Diego, pioneering feminist comic creator Trina Robbins received an Eisner Award  the Oscars of the comics world, reports Last Gasp Press founder Ron Turner  for her Wimmins Comix anthology.

The late Dori Seda, a creator of comics as well as a bookkeeper at Last Gasp, was inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame. Her first comic book, Lonely Nights, was subtitled Stories to read when the couple next door is f too loud.

When I first started publishing, says Turner, the first question to a printer was, Do you have any objection to printing the word f?

Readers will note that this column ends where it began.

Leah Garchik is open for business in San Francisco, (415) 777-8426. Email: lgarchik@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @leahgarchik

Public Eavesdropping

My 40th high school reunion is at 5 p.m. If I lift weights for the next 15 or 20 minutes, I may get my physique back.

Man to man, overheard at 4 p.m. in a locker room at Bay Club Redwood Shores by Andre Goforth
If being a good listener is a hallmark of true friendship, then Taylor Sheridan must be one hell of a friend. The successful actor-turned-screenwriter credits the gripping, often harrowing, stories hes heard from his close friends in two very different worlds  recession-gutted West Texas, and Wyomings American Indian reservations  with inspiring his last two original screenplays.

Sheridans 2016 heist film, Hell or High Water, for which he received an Oscar nomination for best original screenplay, was based on witnessing and hearing a lot of stories from friends who suffered from the subprime mortgage crisis, said Sheridan. I knew guys who were draining the stock tanks on their ranch and selling the water to frackers. It was painful, and those stories stay with you, Sheridan said by phone from Park City, Utah, where he was prepping to shoot his first television series, the frontier drama Yellowstone, starring Kevin Costner.

In the new brooding thriller, Wind River, which he also directed, Sheridan returns to the familiar themes hes explored in all of his original work to date: the ways stoic men struggle through failure and loss, and the ruthlessness of the history of the West, where the landscape is an antagonist itself, he said.

Wind River is based on the stories Sheridans friends on Wyomings Wind River Indian Reservation have been telling him for years about assault, abuse, substance abuse, exploitation, unsolved murders. I just kept hearing them, said Sheridan, 47.

There are worlds that exist right beside the world we all know that are still suffering from the manner in which the region was settled, and to me that was something that really warranted exploration, he said. From Jackson Hole to the rez is only a two-hour drive, one of the poorest counties in the nation about 100 miles from one of the richest.

The Wind River Reservation, established in 1876, has a crime rate five to seven times the national average. Residents  members of the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes  have a life expectancy of 49, and unemployment hovers around 80 percent, according to government records.

Wind River stars Jeremy Renner as wildlife tracker Cory Lambert, who teams up with a rookie FBI agent (Elizabeth Olsen) to investigate the murder of a young woman whose body he finds in the snowy woods. Lambert himself is grieving the loss of his teenage daughter and the breakup of his marriage after her death.

He is a broken man, suffering with no outlet, said Sheridan. Renners character grew out of Sheridans lifelong fascination with Clint Eastwood Westerns, in particular the iconic Man With No Name (Eastwoods character in Sergio Leones spaghetti Westerns). What happens when that guy doesnt win and cant save the girl? How does he face it?

Taylor explained Corys inner turmoil to me by saying, I wrote this picture because I wanted to see what would happen with a piece of steel banging against a piece of granite. Somethings gotta give, Renner said by phone from his Hollywood home. It was a wonderful analogy for me to cling to.

The 46-year-old Modesto natives performance in Wind River has already been lauded in early reviews. Jeremys able to wear emotions like clothes, and in his body before hes said a thing, he is literally the personification of grief, said Sheridan. I dont know how he does it.

This (script) was troubling to me at first, Renner said, especially since hes now a father with a 4-year-old daughter. A young womans rape, a fathers grief: These are very difficult tragedies to deal with in this. I wouldnt have done the picture if it didnt leave you with some kind of hope and catharsis by the end.

The first question I ask every director, which I asked Kathryn Bigelow (before Hurt Locker) and everybody else, is, How do you want your audience to feel when they walk out of that theater? Their answer really tells me what their motive is, where their head is really at.

That hopeful quality at the end (of Wind River) was very important to Taylor  and it was to me too. I wouldnt have done it otherwise.

Wind River is the third in what Sheridan considers a thematic trilogy of the modern American frontier. While writing Sicario, his breakout hit about drug-cartel border violence, he got the idea that it could be part of something larger, exploring the consequences of settling the West and how much the region has changed in the last 100 years  and how much it hasnt.

Sheridan started hanging out on reservations in his late 20s, while living in Los Angeles as a working actor. The square-jawed Texan had recurring roles on Sons of Anarchy and CSI.

He decided to get behind the camera for the first time for Wind River out of a deep respect for telling his Indian friends stories the right way. I credit them with changing the way I think about my place in the world, about culture and race, Sheridan said. When the film was done, I wanted to be able to look my friends in the eye.

Jessica Zack is a freelance writer who frequently covers art and film for The San Francisco Chronicle. Twitter: @jwzack

Wind River (R) opens on Friday, Aug. 11, at Bay Area theaters.
Legalizing marijuana, California voters were told last year, would create a safe, legal and comprehensive system allowing adults to consume the drug while keeping it out of the hands of children. Marijuana would be sold in highly regulated stores, the Proposition 64 campaign promised, and California would gain new tax revenue by bringing the cannabis marketplace out into the open.

Voters overwhelmingly bought the message, with 57 percent approving Prop. 64. But as state regulators prepare to begin offering licenses to marijuana businesses Jan. 1, it turns out that a huge portion of the states weed is likely to remain on the black market.

Thats because California grows a lot more pot than its residents consume, and Prop. 64 only makes marijuana legal within the states borders. It also didnt give an automatic seal of approval to every cannabis grower. Those who want to sell legally must be licensed by the state and comply with detailed rules that require testing plants, labeling packages and tracking marijuana as it moves from farm to bong.

Exactly how much cannabis circulates in California is unknown because most marijuana production and sales have been illegal for so long. But economists hired by the state government estimate that California farms produce about 13.5 million pounds of cannabis each year, while state residents annually consume about 2.5 million pounds.

That leaves 11 million pounds of pot that probably flows out of California illegally, according to the economic report commissioned by the state Department of Food and Agriculture, which regulates cannabis farmers.

Even the 2.5 million pounds of marijuana consumed within California wont all be purchased through state-sanctioned shops when they open; the economists predict about half of it will probably be sold illegally.

Those sales opportunities will still be there, said Hezekiah Allen, executive director of the California Growers Association, which represents more than 1,000 marijuana businesses in the state.

Allen surveyed his members recently and found that 85 percent hope to get a license to sell marijuana legally under Prop. 64. But many fear they wont be able to because some local governments will limit or ban pot businesses or because prices could drop too low in the regulated market.

And if they cant sell weed legally, 40 percent of the respondents to Allens survey said they would continue operating the way they always have: on the black market.

Some longtime cannabis growers will probably go out of business, Allen said. But, at the end of the day, a lot of businesses in general may stay outside of the regulated market.

That means that despite the passage of Prop. 64, California law enforcement will still have plenty of work going after illicit cannabis operations.

Youre going to see robust enforcement efforts to prevent California from becoming the staging area for drug trafficking nationwide, said John Lovell, a lobbyist for the California Narcotics Officers Association, which opposed the ballot measure.

A spokesman for the Prop. 64 campaign said the measure wasnt intended to abolish all criminalization of marijuana, but instead to allow opportunities for operators who want to be responsible and compliant.

No one ever promised to completely eliminate the black market  thats like promising security cameras will completely eliminate shoplifting  but it will be significantly reduced, spokesman Jason Kinney said by email.

He added that the states estimates of marijuana supply and demand are unreliable because the legal marketplace created by Prop. 64 wont begin to roll out until next year. And he pointed out that some of the tax dollars generated by legal marijuana sales will go toward cracking down on illicit operations.

State officials said they are encouraging marijuana businesses to follow the rules and become part of the regulated system, while also planning how to go after those that remain on the black market.

We are developing a formal complaint system that will allow anyone to report illegal grows or other concerns, and then we will forward those potential issues to the appropriate (law enforcement) agencies, said Rebecca Foree, a spokeswoman for the states cannabis cultivation licensing office within the Department of Food and Agriculture.

Lori Ajax, chief of the states Bureau of Cannabis Control, said her agency is trying to entice marijuana businesses to go legit by crafting rules that arent too difficult for them to live by.

Its making sure those people who want to be in the regulated market, that we have made a path for them, were not making our regulations so difficult and hard to comply with that youre discouraging people, Ajax said.

First, weve got to get those folks in there and ... then see what comes after that with enforcement.

Laurel Rosenhall writes for CALmatters.org, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

More online

For The Chronicle's enhanced cannabis coverage: www.greenstate.com
The city has made a bid to buy one of San Franciscos most intractable trouble spots  the McDonalds restaurant at the corner of Haight and Stanyan streets  with the idea of replacing it with affordable housing.

What a great opportunity, said Board of Supervisors President London Breed, who has answered her share of complaints from neighbors about small-time drug-selling, loitering and other problems around the fast-foot outlet across from Golden Gate Park.

McDonalds spokesman Ron Rogers said the burger giant has a received a letter of interest from the city and that the proposal is currently under review.

The sites problems were underscored Thursday when a man was shot and wounded inside the McDonalds following an altercation. The restaurant was closed for two hours while police scoured the area looking for the suspect, without success.

Officials from San Franciscos real estate division were unavailable to discuss specifics of the citys offer for the property, but the news was confirmed by both Breed and Mayor Ed Lees office.

We are waiting to hear a response to our proposal, Deirdre Hussey, the mayors spokeswoman, said Friday.

Lee and the supervisors have been pressing to build more housing in the city, and that includes the Haight. Breed, however, cautioned that nothing was set in stone, and whether its affordable housing or anything else built, there will be a community process.

The city has tried before to buy the McDonalds site. Were told the previous owner hoped to develop the site himself, but that plan ran up against resistance from neighbors.

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In May 2015, City Attorney Dennis Herrera threatened to sue McDonalds Corp., citing 1,100 calls to police over a three-year span for drug sales, fights, assaults and auto burglaries in the parking lot.

He eventually reached a deal requiring McDonalds and its franchise holder to provide increased security and lighting and and pay the city $40,000.

Another franchisee, Peter Ou, took over in January. Tony Green, manager of neighboring Amoeba Music, said the crime situation has improved lately, but that still, people do find a way to hang out.

Breed says Ou and McDonalds have tried to make the area safer and more comfortable for people, but havent been successful  opening the door for the city to take another stab at buying the property.

S an 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
A total eclipse of the sun will turn day into night across a narrow swath of the U.S. this month when the full moon moves to block the suns face and create a coast-to-coast phenomenon that hasnt occurred in nearly 130 years.

Millions of people in 12 states will be watching on Monday, Aug. 21, as the eclipse crosses 1,800 miles from the Oregon coast to South Carolina, creating a band of darkness on the ground roughly 70 miles wide. Only the suns corona will be visible as a fiery halo of blazing gas.

The path of the total eclipse will start near the coastal Oregon town of Lincoln Beach at 10:16 a.m. PDT. Then it will move across the state and on to Idaho, on to Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina and Georgia before heading out to sea near Charleston, S.C., at 2:48 p.m. EDT. Its path will also cross over tiny uninhabited patches of Montana and Iowa, but only for a few seconds.

In the Bay Area, watchers will see a brilliant partial eclipse. The moon will take its first bite of the suns edge at 9:01 a.m. PDT. By 10:15 a.m., 76 percent of the sun will be blocked, dimming daylight as if it were somewhat cloudy. The eclipse here will end at 11:37 a.m.

Libraries, colleges and science institutions like the California Academy of Sciences, the Exploratorium and UC Berkeleys Lawrence Hall of Science are offering public programs and apps that explain the eclipse. During totality, many will air the celestial event online in real time from the telescopes of astronomers across the country.

Its the first eclipse of the Internet age, said Andrew Fraknoi, former chairman of astronomy at Foothill College in Los Altos. He estimates that more than 450 million people from Canada to Mexico will watch at least part of the event.

But Fraknoi has an important warning for anyone who plans to watch any part of it. The suns visible and invisible rays can cause serious damage to the sensitive tissues of the eyes, he said. Looking directly at even part of an eclipse can be extremely dangerous, and a glimpse of its light before totality can blind you. Protection is essential.

The best way to watch the eclipse is to use full eye protection like specially approved eclipse glasses or No. 13-rated or better welders glass, Fraknoi said.

Those who dont have access to the right kind of protective glasses can make or buy pinhole projectors. An ordinary kitchen colander can also do the trick. Held overhead with its bowl turned up, a colanders holes can turn the sunlight into a spangle of eclipse images on the ground.

Even a leafy tree can become a solar image projector, Fraknoi said.

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Total eclipses of the sun are by no means rare  at least one occurs somewhere on Earth every 18 months or so, but the U.S. wont see another total eclipse until April 8, 2024, when it will be visible along a path from Texas to Maine.

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

This months cross-country eclipse will be a phenomenon not seen since 1889. Where the eclipse is total, daylight will turn to midnight as the moon briefly covers the suns face. The summer air will turn chilly, birds will chirp uneasily in the unexpected darkness, and the stars will emerge.

Totality times for many eclipses can vary widely and some have lasted seven minutes or more, but astronomers calculate that this eclipse will at most last two minutes, 40.6 seconds before the moon moves on.

David Perlman is The San Francisco Chronicles science editor. Email: dperlman@sfchronicle.com
Espionage has been a part of United States history since before there was a legitimate United States  when then-Gen. George Washington created the first organization for secretly gathering military intelligence. Then we made the first spymaster the first president.

So the capital that bears his name today has carried on the grand tradition pretty much since it became the seat of power, through civil wars, world wars, cold wars, computer wars and everything in between.

Fortunately, while the realm of spies historically has been a shadowy underworld rarely witnessed by the public, there are enough historical sites worth visiting around the District  including a few with great drinks and cuisine  as well as a captivating museum dedicated to the topic and the mysterious people and practices involved.

Heres one way to spend a day following in clandestine footsteps.

 Spud Hilton, shilton@sfchronicle.com

Exploring the town

MORNING

Grab breakfast  maybe even the vaguely appropriate eggs Benedict  at the Mayflower Hotel, where supposedly FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ate lunch daily for 20 years (the restaurant is now called Edgar). Because of its proximity to the White House, the Mayflower has plenty of brushes with presidential history  Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman both lived there. The more relevant history: The CIA in the 1960s often tested and practiced the brush pass in a lobby, a method of exchanging documents without being seen.

Check out a bike from one of the 440 Capital Bikeshare stations ($2 for trips under 30 minutes) for getting around town. (There are maps at some stations showing the 20-minute ride out to the site of a mailbox that CIA officer Aldrich Ames used to communicated with Soviet contacts  except the current mailbox is a replacement.) Sites in the area include the Wok and Roll Restaurant, once Mary Surratts boarding house where John Wilkes Booth plotted with his confederates to assassinate Abraham Lincoln and two others. Fords Theatre is a couple of blocks away.

Spud Hilton/The Chronicle

MIDDAY

Also drop by the Pullman House, a Beaux Arts mansion built by the family of Pullman railcar fame, but that for decades was the Embassy of Russia or the Soviet Union (until 1994). A massive radio antenna on the roof for years allowed officials there to listen in on scores of secret transmissions.

Grab lunch at the Occidental, a popular dining spot for politicians, celebrities, deal-makers and, apparently, spies. Photos of the restaurants more famous diners cover the walls  supposedly you can tell a lot about Washington from how the photos are rearranged. Legend has it that a deal that averted the Cuban Missile Crisis was struck at a table at the Occidental. Check out the Whos Who of photos (but dont bother other diners to do it).

Spud Hilton/The Chronicle

AFTERNOON

Save the entire afternoon for the International Spy Museum, a sprawling collection of artifacts, displays and history about espionage, as well as exercises for would-be spies looking to hone their skills (memorize a cover story and be tested on it).

The museum is organized by historical era, as well as by technology and popular culture; dont miss displays of assassination tools, secret listening devices, the most notorious spies and an entire section on James Bond. (Theres even a small display recognizing famed chef Julia Child, who worked for the Office of Strategic Services during World War II.) Save a little time for the museums gift shop, an enormous collection of trinkets, books and gadgets for would-be spies.

Spud Hilton/The Chronicle

EVENING

Head out to Georgetown for drinks and dinner at Mr. Smiths of Georgetown, formerly Chadwicks, a popular pub near the Potomac River where in 1985, Aldrich Ames, handed about 7 pounds of secret documents to Soviet diplomat Sergey Chuvakhin, including a list of Soviet citizens gathering information for the CIA. At least 10 of them were executed. Fortunately, you dont need Ames traitor-padded bank account to afford the classic American dishes and pub grub.

Finish the night a few blocks up Wisconsin Avenue at Martins Tavern, a corner lounge known to be a favorite spot of Nathan Gregory Silvermaster, a U.S. government economist who was said to have operated a ring of communist spies and was a member of the Soviet secret police. The casual hangout no longer features the Spytini cocktail it created to acknowledge the history (made with Stolichnaya, of course), but there are plenty of other cold drinks to loosen lips.

More information

Martins Tavern: 1264 Wisconsin Ave., NW; (202) 333-7370; www.martinstavern.com.

International Spy Museum: 800 F St., NW; (202) 393-7798; www.spymuseum.org.

Occidental Grill and Seafood: 1475 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, (202) 783-1475; www.occidentaldc.com.

Mr. Smiths of Georgetown: 3205 K St., NW, (202) 333-3104; www.mrsmiths.com.

Capital Bikeshare: www.capitalbikeshare.com.

The Pullman House: 1125 16th St., NW.

The Mayflower Hotel: 1127 Connecticut Ave., NW; (202) 347-3000.

Book: Spy Sites of Washington, D.C., by Robert Wallace and H. Keith Melton (2017, Georgetown University Press).
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Firefighters were expected to continue patrols through Sunday in the East Bay hills where a blaze this week devoured 20 acres of rough terrain  a precaution to ensure nothing flared up, officials said Saturday.

Although there was no longer anything actively burning, the fire that erupted Wednesday was still classified as 90 percent contained by the weekend, and officials were hoping for full containment by Monday, said Deputy Chief Melinda Drayton of the Oakland Fire Department.

A thermal-imaging drone from the Alameda County sheriffs office deployed Friday helped crews find one warm spot in a quarry, Drayton said.

This was steep, rocky terrain with multiple hot spots, she said. Luckily, the temperature was on our side and we didnt have any significant flare ups.

The section of Grizzly Peak Boulevard that had been closed for much of the week was fully reopened by Saturday.

Investigators with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection finished a review late Friday, and turned over their cause-and-origin report to the UC Berkeley Police Department.

The fire had spread to land overseen by multiple jurisdictions in the hills, including Oakland and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, but the college agency is heading the investigation because the blaze began on UC Berkeley property.

Drayton and Cal Fire spokesman Scott McLean referred questions about cause and origin to UC Berkeley police, who did not return requests for comment.

On Thursday, campus police said they were investigating whether arson was involved, and a public crime log maintained by UC Berkeley police said officers had arrested a 24-year-old man Wednesday for allegedly starting a wildland fire, and turned him over to Oakland police.

But Officer Marco Marquez, an Oakland police spokesman, said the man from the UC Berkeley case was being held on suspicion of brandishing a firearm and assault with a deadly weapon  stemming from a crash and confrontation among motorists in the hills  not arson.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: KVeklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov
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A man wielding a large knife and creating a disturbance inside his Santa Rosa home was shot and killed by police early Saturday, officials said.

Two other residents called 911 around 6 a.m. to report that the man was acting crazy and had a knife, Sgt. Josh Ludtke, a Santa Rosa police spokesman, said in a statement.

When officers arrived at the residence on West Steele Lane near Coffey Lane, they found the man hiding under a bed with a knife in hand and ordered him to drop it. Officers deployed electronic control devices as well as chemical agents several times, but the man kept the knife in hand, Ludtke said.

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Other officers, meanwhile, evacuated the rest of the house.

As the man got out from beneath the bed, he allegedly brandished the knife while advancing at officers. At least one officer fired multiple shots, striking the man, Ludtke said.

Paramedics and officers gave him medical attention at the home, but he was pronounced dead there.

Police blocked off the 2400 block of West Steele Lane through the morning as they processed the scene.

Police did not release the identity of the man nor his relationship with the other residents.

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Investigators with the Sonoma County Sheriffs Office will conduct an independent review of the fatal shooting and will be assisted by the Petaluma and Rohnert Park police departments, as well as the Sonoma County district attorneys office, Ludtke said.

The incident was captured by the officers body cameras, but Santa Rosa police said they would not release the footage because of the active investigation.

The involved officers will be put on routine administrative leave, Ludtke said.

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Last year, about a mile away at Coffey Park, Santa Rosa police shot and wounded a 15-year-old high school student who had apparently attempted suicide-by-cop. The department said the teenage boy made an anonymous 911 call, telling police there was a man with a gun at the park. He then pointed a fake handgun at an officer who arrived at the park.

The teen survived with a gunshot wound to his foot.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov
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Kendrick Lamar is a masterful rapper.

His lyrics are katana-blade sharp at a time when popular rappers are known more for the visuals that accompany their raps than their actual raps.

Sure, its antithetical to hip-hops ethos, but we do live in a world where societal norms are being stripped away by mumbling, bumbling egomaniacs who dont care about their words making sense and are unconcerned about backing up what they say.

In other words, their words mean nothing.

Hip-hop, like the world, is in trouble.

Even if hes not the worlds savior, Lamar is hip-hops spiritual leader. He says what he feels and means what he says.

And there are people praying for him.

Lamars limber, dexterous flow needs only a beat to connect. Its because he draws the visuals  stories, scenes, people, places  with his pen, creating vivid sequences that fans can see.

But on Friday night, Aug. 4, at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Lamar had something unexpected: avisual presentation that matched the breezy but perforating accuracy of his writing.

Of course Lamar, one of the few top rappers who cant be described as ostentatious, blended with the pulsing, rotating lights.

Touring in support of Damn, the album he released in April, Lamar continued to exercise his kung fu persona by opening the concert in a yellow tracksuit with black piping reminiscent of Bruce Lees jumpsuit in Game of Death. Its a look that inspired Uma Thurmans jumper on the cover of Kill Bill: Vol. 1, an homage to martial arts.

Lamars budding relationship with martial arts is buttressed by his Kung Fu Kenny persona, and there were suites of movement on the stage that mimed fighting. It correlates with the battle waging inside Lamar: With each stroke of his pen, Lamar edits his own famous story while also erasing any sense of anonymity.

Lamars stage was designed to play with light and space, like a James Turrell installation. But whereas Turrell has used fluorescent colors to bend his pieces, Lamars use of light was austere. The blood red, icy black and white-hot white allowed Lamar to maneuver in the shadows as the stage panels shifted, not unlike the various configurations of a Microsoft Surface device.

Lamar was perpetually backlit, his face obscured by strobes like a person in a dark room photographed with a lamp behind them. He was able to hide in plain sight, creeping against alternating backdrops.

Still, his presence is inescapable.

Oh, the music. Forgive me. You have to understand that the concert was an experience.

Lamar kicked off the set with DNA. before sliding into Element. Its hard to rap along with Lamar, because hes so technical and proficient, but we tried.

Its hit after hit after hit, each with a depth of meaning. Has being political and spiritual ever sounded so damn good? Dont judge me, but maybe this is what God feel like, as Lamar rapped on God.

Masterfully, Lamar and his band, which was never seen, moved seamlessly between old cuts  Swimming Pools, Money Trees, King Kunta and Alright  and newer gems such as Love, Loyalty and Lust.

Yes, Lamar is adept at making fans get into their feelings. Its in the corners of the mind where he hovers, seeping into the untitled stories of our lives.

Levitate, levitate, levitate, levitate.

Otis R. Taylor Jr. is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: otaylor@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @otisrtaylorjr
NASA scientist Dr. C. Alex Young has spent more than 20 years studying the sun. Here's his take on the Great American eclipse happening August 21, 2017

Q: What is a total solar eclipse anyway?

A: Most people are familiar with the idea that the moon orbits around the earth, and that takes roughly 27 days. Once a month, the moon is between the Earth and the sun, but the moon's orbit is at a tilt, so sometimes it's slightly above the sun and sometimes it's slightly below the sun. But on a regular basis, the moon is completely in line with the earth and the sun, so it blocks it outeither partially or completely. About every 18 months or so, the sun's bright disk is blocked out completely by the moon, and somewhere in the world experiences what we call a total solar eclipse.

Q: Why is the eclipse on August 21st such a big deal for the US?

A: It starts in Oregon and travels across the United States to South Carolina, covering 14 states. The last time a total solar eclipse went coast to coast was 1918, just shy of 100 years ago, but it was 1778 the last time the path of totality was only within the United States. That was the first "Great American Eclipse." This summer, we have number two: a 60- to 70-mile wide path will experience a total solar eclipse, but everyone in North America, Central America, and part of South America will get to experience at least a partial eclipse. And that even includes Hawaii, which will get to see a tiny bit.

Q: What should folks expect if they've never seen a total solar eclipse before?

A: You know what's crazy? I've been studying the sun for over 20 years, and in particular the corona, which is the one part we can see during a total solar eclipse, but I've never actually seen one. So, this is a pretty huge opportunity for me. The one thing I've heard from people who have seen many, many total eclipses is that they never cease to be amazed by them. Total eclipses are not just scientifically great; they're very much a human experience. You don't understand the awe and the spiritual, mystical, and emotional aspects until you see one. It's built up an awful high set of expectations, but everyone has reassured me that I won't be disappointed.

Q: Where will you be watching from?

A: I'm going to be in Carbondale, Illinois which my team at NASA picked for its university and infrastructure, like stadiums. The other reason we chose Carbondale is because there's a total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, going over a good portion of the United States [from Texas to Maine] that crosses Carbondale, so we're calling Carbondale the crossroads of the eclipse.

Q: And if you weren't going to Carbondale?

A: I'd probably go to some place like Madras, Oregon or Idaho Falls, Idaho. Or even potentially Homestead, Nebraska. NASA is either observing broadcasts or supporting those sites.

Q: What if there are clouds?

A: The change in the environment is so extreme and so quick that even if the visual aspect is minimized by clouds, you'll still feel it. You'll see the reaction of animals, possibly even plants, as well as the temperature and the wind. An eclipse brings a microclimate with it, and the interesting thing here, because it's over so much land, is that it might impact weather in ways most people aren't used to.

Q: What are you most looking forward to?

A: I'm really looking forward to seeing prominences on the edge of the sun: these red features where the cooler solar atmosphere is extended out into the corona. I'm also excited to see the magnetic field, which is traced out by the corona. I've been studying this part of the sun for a long time [seeing what] telescopes [pick up] from space and looking at it with computer models. So to actually see that with my own eyes is unbelievably exciting.

Eclipse Facts & Stats
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said Sunday that the expanding investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election is continuing apace, even as President Trump dismissed the probe as a total fabrication.

Rosenstein said special counsel Robert Mueller can investigate any crimes that he might discover within the scope of his probe, but would not discuss which individuals are the subject of their inquiry. The interview comes days after Trump said he believes it would be inappropriate for Mueller to dig into Trump family finances.

The special counsel is subject to the rules and regulations of the Department of Justice, and we dont engage in fishing expeditions, Rosteinstein said of the probe in an interview on Fox News Sunday.

Rosenstein declined to comment on reports that Mueller is using a grand jury in a court in Washington to aid in his investigation, but he said that such a step is routine. Its just a tool that we use like any other tool in the course of our investigations, he said.

Trump and his inner circle have repeatedly dismissed the investigation amid frequent reporting that Mueller and his team are digging into broader details on the financial dealings of members of Trumps campaign team. Senior White House counselor Kellyanne Conway called the probe a fabrication in an interview on ABCs This Week. Trump called it the totally made up Russia story in a campaign-style speech he delivered Friday in West Virginia.

The attacks have raised concerns among Democrats and some Republicans that Trump may be looking for ways to undermine the investigation. Those fears led Sens. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Chris Coons, D-Del., to propose legislation that would give a judge the ability to review any decision by the president to fire Muller.

Tillis said Sunday that he does not agree that the investigation is a witch hunt and said the bill is intended to bolster the independence of the Department of Justice. Well let the facts lead us to whether or not it was a hoax or a distraction, Tillis said on This Week.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, called Muellers impaneling of a D.C. grand jury a significant development, noting that it has been more than a year since former FBI Director James Comey launched a counterintelligence investigation into Russias meddling in the 2016 election.

That means one year later, rather than turning that investigation off, rather than concluding Weve looked at this for a year, theres really nothing to see here, as the president would claim, instead ... its moving into a new phase, Schiff said during an appearance on CNNs State of the Union.

Kelsey Snell and John Wagner are Washington Post writers.
NEW YORK  Less than an hour after a U.S. jury convicted Martin Shkreli of securities fraud, the man known as Pharma Bro was back at his New York City apartment doing what comes naturally: trash talking in a live stream on YouTube.

The brash former pharmaceutical CEO, whos still out on bail, joked he wont be going to a hard-core prison  No shanks  and predicted his acquittal on some charges Friday will help him recover tens of millions of dollars he says hes owed from a drug company he started.

It doesnt seem like life will change much for Martin Shkreli, he said while drinking a beer and playing with his cat. Im one of the richest New Yorkers there is, and after todays outcome, its going to stay that way.

Shkrelis trolling of his own trial has amused some onlookers. But legal experts say it could have serious consequences when it comes time for sentencing.

No real good can come from going on YouTube after a guilty verdict, said Robert Mintz, a former federal prosecutor now in private practice. This is exactly the kind of behavior that got him in trouble in the first place.

U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto probably will factor in any lack of remorse and contrition at sentencing in federal court in Brooklyn, said Matthew Schwartz, a defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor who once worked for a Securities and Exchange Commission task force.

Going into the trial, he had an audience of 12. Now hes got an audience of one, Schwartz said, referring to the jury and judge. Hes putting himself at great risk for a higher sentence.

The 34-year-old defendant faces up to 20 years in prison for his conviction on the most serious counts, though the term could be much lower under sentencing guidelines. Shkrelis lawyer, Ben Brafman, said he would argue for no jail time. No sentencing date was set.

Shkreli was arrested in 2015 on charges he looted a drug company he founded, Retrophin, of $11 million in stock and cash to pay back investors in two failed hedge funds he ran. Investors took the witness stand to accuse him of keeping them in the dark as his scheme unfolded, while the defense argued there wasnt any harm done because all of them got rich off of Retrophin stock.

Before his arrest, Shkreli was best known for buying the rights to a lifesaving drug at another company in 2014 and promptly raising the price from $13.50 to $750 per pill. He also had a reputation for attacking critics on social media and was barred from Twitter for posts about a female journalist.

Even during his trial, when most criminal defendants would lie low, Shkreli stayed online commenting about his own case.

After the verdict, Brafman once again raised hopes he could rein in his client.

There is an image issue that Martin and I are going to be discussing in the next several days. Martin is a brilliant young man, but sometimes people skills dont translate well, he said.

Not much later, Shkreli was on YouTube, answering questions about the case and cracking jokes. During his lengthy live stream, he invited one reporter up to his apartment to ask her questions on camera.

Ben probably wants me to act and look like your average CEO, but Im a very individualistic person and I dont sort of conform to what folks want me to do and not want me to do, he said.

Shkrelis lawyer will have his work cut out for him trying convince the court that he should be cut some slack as someone who is not entirely normal, said Schwartz, the former prosecutor. Whether the judge will buy it or not is another question.

Tom Hays is an Associated Press writer.
Chris Carlson/AP

ANAHEIM - Promising young reliever Bobby Wahl was shut down with shoulder trouble again this week, according to As manager Bob Melvin.

Wahl,. 25, had been on a rehab assignment and worked in five games, but his last appearance was on July 31 because he is still experiencing discomfort. Melvin said that team orthopedist Dr. William Workman was scheduled to examine him.
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Tuba City resident Dr. Edward Chu recently returned from a six-month stint with Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) in Bangui, the capital of Central African Republic. Here is his report on his trip:

Thanks to my colleagues at Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation, I was able to take a temporary leave from my position in the ER and as the medical director of the Tuba City and Inscription House EMS service units to undertake my first assignment with MSF in CAR  a country that has been entangled in a brutal civil war since 2013.

As the medical activities manager in the Bangui General Hospital, my main responsibility was to supervise and train my Central African colleagues, although I occasionally took care of very sick patients in the ER during mass-casualties  treating victims of motor vehicle accidents, stabbings and gunshot wounds. In 2016 the team undertook 3,700 surgical interventions.

We are an adult surgical hospital, serving patients over the age of 15, the vast majority being patients with fractures needing urgent surgery. The other surgical cases we saw were either penetrating trauma or infections like appendicitis or hernias. Many patients came very late to the hospital either because of ongoing fighting or long distances, so we saw a lot of infections.

I remember a young boy who fell out of a tree, his knee cut open exposing 6 inches of bone. He spent a month lying in bed at home before family were finally able to bring him to an MSF project in the countryside, in Bria (where much of the fighting is occurring), who then flew him to our hospital. Unfortunately, we had to amputate his leg. Had he arrived sooner we might have been able to save his leg or amputated less.

During my time in Bangui the country was experiencing a period of relative calm, but shortly after I returned home at the beginning of May, CAR slid back into a full-scale humanitarian emergency. Renewed and intense fighting in several locations across the country has provoked even more displacement.

At the beginning of the year, more than 20 percent of the population were already displaced (thats more than 800,000 people, half of whom have fled the country); since I left Bangui, an additional 88,000 people have been displaced, 20,000 of whom have crossed the border into Democratic Republic of Congo.

Bangui General Hospital is the referral trauma surgical hospital for all MSF projects in the country; we receive patients from other hospitals in the capital, but also from surrounding areas including Bria, where much of the fighting is happening.

We also have a clinic that provides care for victims of sexual violence  women, men, and children  and I along with the other international doctor and local midwives conducted their examinations. Its one thing to hear about horrible stories of mass killings and gang rapes in the news, but to meet women who often have been forced to witness family members killed before being kidnapped and gang raped for weeks is chilling when youre sitting in an examination room in the capital.

Its a vivid reminder that youre living in a country that is still very much at war; where the worst types of violence are being perpetrated on the innocent. The experience made it clear to me why it is so important that MSF provides this type of specialized emergency medical and psychosocial care wherever we can.

I see my involvement with MSF as an extension of my work here in Arizona and elsewhere: using my medical skills to treat those with limited access to health care. Ive been working on the Navajo reservation since 2013; our patients have to travel long distances for medical care and many are victims of violence and sexual assault. I also volunteer with an FEMA/OFDA search and rescue taskforce, and have previously volunteered in Uganda, Lebanon, and  when I was living in Flagstaff  with the Coconino County Search and Rescue team.

Ive always planned on doing international work, and MSF has a well-deserved reputation for being one of the best organizations in humanitarian emergencies. Its history of bringing health care to those most in need is what motivated me to work with MSF and I hope to go to the field again one day.
Spewing out mouthfuls of salt water Sunday morning, Kris Singh stumbled out of San Francisco Bay onto the shores of Fort Baker, below the fog-shrouded orange towers of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Less than an hour earlier, Singh, 53, and 11 other hardcore swimmers had jumped into the chilly waters for a 1.5-mile swim under the span to challenge themselves and to honor Navy SEALs lost in combat and their families.

It was fantastic, said Singh, a Lansing, Mich., resident, still catching his breath as he stood barefoot in his wetsuit on the seaweed-covered shore. Going under the bridge was incredible. I drank a lot of salt water. Im just grateful to be able to do this and bring awareness to our fallen and those who need help.

Sundays swimmers took part in the inaugural Golden Gate Frogman Swim  an expansion of the popular Tampa Bay Frogman Swim in Florida, which started in 2010 and now reaches its 175-participant capacity within minutes of signups opening.

The swimmers were taken by boat to the Marin Headlands just west of the north tower of the bridge. From there, they swam alongside kayakers from the South End Rowing Club and headed east under the bridge and into Horseshoe Bay.

Chugging alongside in a Vietnam-era Navy Patrol Boat was John Sorensen and his three-man crew. They helped caravan the swimmers to the isolated starting point at Kirby Cove and followed along, blasting the Rolling Stones, much as a nearly identical boat does in Francis Ford Coppolas film Apocalypse Now.

Doing these events  thats what its all about, said Sorensen, who is also fire chief in St. Helena.

In the water, the swimmers bright-colored caps bobbed up and down as they hurled themselves through the dark, choppy water thats home to whales, sharks and other marine life.

Fortunately for Sundays group, no sharks spoiled the party.

This is a great reason to be in the water with great people and to think about things that are most important, said Ted Muhlner, 43, a former SEAL from Menlo Park.

Like the other swimmers, many of whom came from around the country for the event, he took a moment to float on his back and look up at the mighty bridge, while remembering his fellow SEALs lost in combat.

Sunday was a particularly somber day for the SEAL community. It was the sixth anniversary of the day a Chinook CH-47 helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan, killing 17 SEALs and 21 other military members onboard  the single worst loss of U.S. forces in the war.

Swim organizer Rory OConnor, a 50-year-old former SEAL, hopes pledges to participants in the Bay Area event will bring in $50,000 for the Navy SEAL Foundation  a nonprofit that provides support to SEALs and their families.

Were fortunate to be out here, he said. The San Francisco community has been great in supporting this.

Before the swim, participants held a moment of silence after OConnor read the names of the SEALs who were lost on Aug. 6, 2011. The swimmers, their families and other supporters then joined in singing the national anthem as they stood around an American flag.

San Francisco resident Sarah Hughes did the swim for her Navy SEAL brother and was greeted at Horeseshoe Bay by a group of friends holding flowers and signs congratulating her.

It was fun  choppy in the middle but good, she said. But Im glad its over. It was painful, but a good pain.

Greeting her and the others as they stumbled out of the bay were Gold Star parents Donna and Corky Axelson, who placed medals around the swimmers necks.

Whenever they have an event like this, we never turn them down, said Donna Axelson, who now lives in Genoa, Nev., but raised her two sons in Cupertino before retiring. Its wonderful to see people support our military, who are invaluable.

The Axelsons son Matthew, a SEAL who posthumously received the Navy Cross, died when his team was ambushed during Operation Red Wings in Afghanistan in 2005. The event was retold in the 2013 film Lone Survivor starring Mark Wahlberg.

Its emotionally helpful for us and what a great place to be here, under the Golden Gate Bridge, she said.

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky
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In a Sunday interview with NBC's Meet the Press, Jerry Brown stated that he does not believe that abortion should be the "litmus test" for a Democratic Party struggling to find a new national identity.

When asked by host Chuck Todd whether "there should be a litmus test on abortion," Brown responded: "It wasn't very long ago that a number of Catholic Democrats were opposed to abortion. So the fact that somebody believes today what most people believed 50 years ago, should not be the basis for their exclusion."

He continues: "I'm sorry but running in San Francisco is not like running in Tulare County or Modoc California, much less Mobile, Alabama... America is not one place. Alabama is not San Francisco or California."

Brown's comments come after a week of infighting in the Democratic Party over funding pro-life candidates.

Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, told The Hill last week that the Democratic Party will not take a candidate's stance on abortion into account when determining funding for 2018 races.

BROWN VS TRUMP: How Trump is fueling Jerry Brown's climate change push in Calif.

This announcement drew fire from a number of progressives.

Cecile Richards, head of Planned Parenthood tweeted: "Women deserve access to safe, legal abortion no matter if their state is red or blue - it's a constitutional right that can't be traded away."

Former Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean tweeted that he would be "withholding support from the DCCC" following Lujan's announcement.

When asked if there should be any type of "litmus test" or "common basis" for the Democratic Party, Brown stated: "The litmus test should be intelligence, caring about, as Harry Truman or Roosevelt used to call it, the common man."

PRESIDENT BROWN: President Jerry Brown? 'Don't rule it out'

He continues: "The economy has often been that common basis, or security in the world could be apart of that common basis. But you can't let these hot-button issues that work great in particular congressional districts one way or the other to be the guiding light for a national party that covers a very wide spectrum of belief."

Brown also defended House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who has been the subject of heavy criticism following losses by Democratic candidates in recent special elections.

"If some candidate doesn't win, don't blame it on somebody else, like Nancy Pelosi," Brown said. "If you added up pluses and minuses, I think Nancy Pelosi is a major pillar of the Democratic Party, and the answer is not to try to replace her with somebody, but to make sure the candidates represent and can empathize and be a part of the district they're running in."
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Galloping four abreast toward me on their creamy white steeds, they could be the Cartwrights of Bonanza, riding across the Ponderosa. Except that its not the West, its the South.

Of France.

Im visiting the Arnauds, a French family of manadieres (ranchers) who raise black bulls and ride les cheveux blanc Camarguais, the legendary semi-wild breed of horses native to the Camargue. This vast, marshy UNESCO protected national regional reserve  the largest river delta in Europe  drains into the Mediterranean Sea west of Marseille and south of Arles.

Here in the heart of Frances cowboy country where the violent winds of the mistral often blow, the bulls and the manadieres roam. Among other animals.

Sipping Sable de Camargue, a sparkling local wine, on the shady porch of the rambling ranch house, patriarch Gilbert Arnaud points toward a candy-colored mirage shimmering in the distance.

Les flamants roses, he says: hundreds of wobbly-kneed pink flamingos. Over 20,000 breeding pairs nest each year in the Camargues 400 square miles of wetlands.

The family ranch and the wetlands are a wild side of France I had not expected during my voyage down the Rhone on a riverboat, between Lyon and the Mediterranean. In a part of the world known more for lavender, wine and refined cuisine (and writers who spend a year here), were finding cowboys, canals, Roman ruins and, apparently, flamingos.

The leisurely pace of riding on the river matches the laid-back culture and landscape  and has been ideal for having time to absorb the regions surprises.

The five-day journey into the heart of Frances wild southeast begins as I board the Camargue, a recently refurbished two deck, 148-passenger vessel operated by CroisiEurope. Frances second longest river  and the countrys only one that empties into the Mediterranean  the 504-mile-long Rhone has been an important inland waterway since Greek and Roman times. It used to regularly flood its banks, wreaking widespread death and destruction.

Mark Sissons/Special to The Chronicle

Today, a series of dams and locks  some as deep at 75 feet  make for smooth sailing as it flows through the western edge of Provence, Frances gastronomic and wine producing heartland. With its sun-baked Mediterranean climate, the Rhone Valley south of Lyon is ideal for grape-growing, and wine tastings are hugely popular at its more than 1,800 private wineries.

Europes thousands of miles of rivers and canals have long been the continents commercial and intellectual lifeblood, carrying a steady flow of commerce, culture and ideas. From my vantage point on the Camargues sundeck as we cruise south toward the Mediterranean, little appears to have changed; we pass medieval castles, ancient cliffside villages, and fields of sunflowers, wheat and lavender.

Then an enormous nuclear power station or windmill farm will appear, reminding me of what century it is.

There are more advantages than just the leisurely pace: no constantly changing hotel rooms, climbing on and off of hot buses, or getting lost navigating highways or byways. Just smooth sailing down one of the continents most vital arteries, where history is always just a dock away. And sometimes sailing by night, which frees up my days and evenings to venture ashore and explore some of the regions pieces des resistance.

Gilbert Arnaud can trace his familys roots in the Camargue back to the 16th century. He once competed in professional rodeos all over Europe as a bull rider, but now he rears wild Camargue black bulls. The best and brightest he selects to compete in the traditional French sport of course camarguaise, a kind of bloodless bullfight considered much more humane than the Spanish-style corrida.

Distinguished by their lyre-shaped horns, champion Camargue bulls can bring their owners enormous prestige and plenty of prize money. According to Arnaud, theyre also exceptionally intelligent.

Dont even bother waving a red cape at a course camarguaise bull, says Arnaud, who has faced down many a mad Camargue bull in the ring. Hes too smart for that. Hes going to go right around it and get you.

I ask Arnaud what happens to the ones that fall short of achieving glory for their owners in the course camarguaise ring.

Some end up on the menus of Camarguais restaurants, he says  as le steak de taureau or daube de taureau mode gardienne, a popular Provencale beef stew named after les gardiens, the French cowboys who wrangle them.

The Camargue horse is an ancient breed indigenous to these wetlands. Most, I learn, roam free in the Camargues marshes and salt flats, and on its endless stretches of deserted beach. During cattle drives, les gardiens press them into herding service. With their small, sturdy frames and calm, docile dispositions, theyre considered ideal mounts for the work.

Camargue horses are more pony than horse, says Arnaud.

Mark Sissons/Special to The Chronicle

And beloved ponies they are, given the prominent placement of a Camargue horse statue overlooking the main roundabout in Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, a popular Mediterranean seaside beach resort a few miles south of the Arnauds spread.

Once a Roman fishing village, the Camargues capital is also a popular pilgrimage site for Slovak and Hungarian Gypsies who gather here by the thousands each May to venerate Black Sara. According to legend, she was a servant washed ashore here in Biblical times along with saints Mary Magdalene, Marie-Jacobe and Marie-Salome  the three Maries from which the town derives its name.

Strolling along Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mers seaside promenade in the midday heat, I pass pastel ice cream stalls, shuttered cafes, a deserted amusement park and children playing in the sand while their parents sunbathe on the stony beach.

Its hard to believe that this languid holiday town is the Cheyenne of the Mediterranean. Then I pass the towns prominent bullfighting ring  guarded by a life-size black statue of a raging Camargue bull glaring at the cobalt sea.

In Arles, a town of 50,000 just upstream from where the Rhone forks into two branches forming the Camargue, its said that if you start digging in your basement, youre likely to uncover an ancient foundation. An important Roman outpost, Arles contains a remarkably well-preserved 20,000-seat Roman amphitheater that still hosts plays, concerts and bullfights.

Mark Sissons/Special to The Chronicle

This famously sunny town also inspired some of Vincent van Goghs masterpieces, which he painted while briefly residing here in 1888 and 1889. Standing in the exact spots where the Dutch master created some of his most famous works  including the Bedroom in Arles paintings, Starry Night Over the Rhone and The Night Cafe  is a popular bucket-list item among art history lovers.

So should be docking in Avignon, headquarters of Western Christianity during the 14th century. Built to house the popes who fled here from an increasingly corrupt Rome, the immense Palais des Papes is an architectural work of art and the citys main draw.

The largest Gothic building constructed during the Middle Ages, it is a magnificent stone labyrinth of chambers, cloisters, chapels, great halls and cavernous bedrooms where several renegade popes (called antipopes) who refused to recognize Romes authority  outlaws in Europes version of the Wild West  prayed, slept, ate, schemed and died.

Farther on up the Rhone, nature takes center stage on another excursion. We drive through Ardeche Gorges, a densely vegetated stretch of canyons cut by the Ardeche River where the limestone cliffs on each side can reach nearly 1,000 feet. We marvel at the enormous natural archway  the Pont de lArc  hanging 200 feet above the valley floor.

Mark Sissons/Special to The Chronicle

We explore Vercors Regional Natural Park, a massif of densely forested mountains on a plateau east of the Rhone Valley, where the rugged vertical landscape is dotted with caves  once the haven of French Resistance fighters until Nazis brutally crushed the uprising. Between the gentle sound track of nature and the astonishing geologic wonders, however, the scene today is so removed from the bustling streets of Paris, the bistros of Lyon or the docks of Marseilles, it could be mistaken for another country.

Back aboard the Camargue after touring some of Frances most rugged countryside, we depart for the voyage home, and after a final dinner of classic French dishes, I retire alone to the roof deck. The boat passes a tableau of orchards, fields, mountains and terracotta-roofed villages  and the same rippled lights in the water that added to Van Goghs unorthodox, untamed style. Just another starry night over the Rhone.

Mark Sissons is a freelance writer based in Vancouver. Email: travel@sfchronicle.com

If you go

CroisiEurope: The five-day Magic of the Provencal Rhone and the Camargue river cruise departs from Lyon, with stops in Arles, Avignon and Viviers. Sailings continue until early November. From $1,448 per person, all-inclusive, not including airfare. www.croisieuroperivercruises.com
SYDNEY  U.S. military officials called off a search and rescue operation Sunday for three U.S. Marines who were missing after their Osprey aircraft crashed into the sea off the east coast of Australia while trying to land.

The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps suspended the rescue operation and launched a recovery effort instead, the Marine base Camp Butler in Japan said in a statement, essentially confirming the military does not expect to find the missing Marines alive.
1 Iran pact: President Hassan Rouhani said Saturday that his administration and country will show a unified response to any breach of the 2015 landmark nuclear deal with world powers. The remarks came during the swearing in ceremony in Tehran for his second term as president. U.S. President Trump signed a bill Wednesday that imposes penalties on those involved in Irans ballistic missile program and anyone who does business with them. It would also apply terrorism sanctions to Irans prestigious Revolutionary Guard and enforce an arms embargo. Iran has vowed to respond if the bill becomes law.

2 Gay rights: Irelands prime minister said Saturday that it is only a matter of time before same-sex marriage is legalized in Northern Ireland  the only part of the United Kingdom where it is still banned. Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, Irelands first openly gay leader, made the comments at a gay pride event in Belfast. The issue has been one of the sticking points preventing the restoration of the Catholic-Protestant power-sharing government in Northern Ireland.

3 Rio violence: More than 3,500 Brazilian soldiers are occupying a series of slum communities in northern Rio de Janeiro as part of efforts to combat a spike in violence. The troops moved into the Complexo do Lins communities and neighboring Camarista Meier early Saturday. Defense Minister Raul Jungmann said the troops would remain as long as necessary. Recently, 8,500 soldiers were deployed in Rio to fight organized crime gangs, which control many of the citys slums.

4 Kashmir clash: A gunbattle between Indian troops and Kashmiri rebels Saturday killed three insurgents in the disputed Himalayan region and triggered a new round of anti-India protests and clashes. The fighting began after government forces raided homes on a tip that rebels were hiding in the northwestern Sopore area, said police Inspector-General Muneer Ahmed Khan. He said that as the soldiers began searching homes, they came under gunfire from militants. In the ensuing battle, three rebels were killed and a police official injured, he said. Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan each administer part of Kashmir, but both claim the Himalayan territory in its entirety. Rebel groups demand that Kashmir be united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.

5 Syria fighting: Turkey has increased its military presence along its southern border against threats from Kurdish militants in war-torn northern Syria. The official Anadolu news agency reported Saturday that Turkey dispatched artillery to Kilis province to reinforce units there. Turkey has been vehemently opposed to the presence of the Peoples Protection Units, or YPG, in northern Syria. The country considers the YPG, a key U.S. ally in fighting the Islamic State group in Syria, a terror group and an extension of Kurdish militants operating inside Turkey.

6 Myanmar slayings: Security forces in Myanmar fired warning shots to disperse Muslim villagers while they arrested four suspected insurgents in a western region where government troops have been accused of human rights violations against the Rohingya minority, officials said Saturday. About 600 villagers surrounded troops in Rathedaung township in Rakhine state Friday while they were searching for six men suspected of financing a terrorist group, said police officer Zaw Win Aung. He said the villagers carried slingshots, sticks and machetes as they approached the troops, who responded by firing 40 to 50 warning shots. They managed to arrest four suspects, he said. On Thursday, the government said six Buddhists were killed and two other villagers were missing in Kaigyi village in Maungdaw township, also in Rakhine state. The military began operations in the northern part of Rakhine in October, when suspected Rohingya militants killed nine police officers along the border with Bangladesh.

7 Panda cub: Chinese giant panda experts and French zookeepers are working to ensure a panda cubs survival after its twin died during the first birth of the rare animal in France. Images released Saturday by the Beauval Zoo south of Paris show mother Huan Huan enveloping the cub and zoo handlers feeding it in an incubator with a small bottle. The pink, hairless male weighing five ounces is tiny compared with its 190-pound mother. She bore twins Friday, but the firstborn was too weak to survive. Huan Huan and partner Yuan Zi are on a 10-year loan from China. Panda births are closely watched because they remain rare  there are only about 1,800 pandas in the wild in China and about 400 in captivity worldwide.

Chronicle News Services
MANILA  A U.S. push to further isolate North Korea appeared to be reaping some dividends Sunday as China, Pyongyangs major benefactor, urged its outcast neighbor to make a smart decision and stop conducting missile launches and nuclear tests.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, after meeting with North Koreas top diplomat during an Association of Southeast Asian Nations gathering in the Philippine capital, said the situation on the Korean Peninsula is critical. He also said, however, that it could be a turning point for negotiations over North Koreas nuclear proliferation, which led the U.N. Security Council on Saturday to impose more sanctions on North Korea and its exports.

Do not violate the U.N.s decision or provoke international societys goodwill by conducting missile launching or nuclear tests, Wang said after talks with Ri Yong Ho, North Koreas foreign minister. Wang quickly added, Of course, we would like to urge other parties like the U.S. and South Korea to stop increasing tensions.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson arrived in Manila on Saturday in what State Department officials have said will be a concerted effort to enlist other countries in the campaign to get North Korea to abandon its missile and nuclear tests. Concern has mounted that North Korea is developing its technology quicker than expected, after tests last month of missiles that experts said are capable of striking the U.S. mainland, perhaps as far inland as Chicago.

Certainly we want to resolve this issue through negotiations, and this pressure campaign, the sanctions, its all about trying to convince the North Koreans that the fast way forward is to come back to the table and talk, said Susan Thornton, assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific affairs.

But Tillerson also has pointedly stated that the United States does not seek regime change or a rapid reunification of the two Koreas, which have been in a state of suspended hostility since an armistice was declared in 1953. On Sunday, he declared the latest U.N. sanctions a good outcome.

The diplomatic road ahead is rocky. U.S. officials rejected Beijings call for the North to halt its nuclear program in exchange for the United States and South Korea suspending joint military exercises, which Pyongyang considers a prelude to an invasion and regime change.

U.S. officials have been adamant there will be no direct meetings with North Koreans in Manila, even among lower-level officials.

Carol Morello is a Washington Post writer.
KABUL  Taliban insurgents mounted coordinated attacks from three different directions on Sayad district in northern Sari Pul province Saturday, killing at least seven security forces, said a provincial official.

Zabi Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said insurgents seized control of the strategic Mirzawalang area in Sayad district on Saturday after two days of intense gun battles with the Afghan forces.

We requested reinforcement for the central government, unfortunately couldnt get any support, that is why the forces lost control of Mirzawalang, said Amani.

Qari Yusouf Ahamdi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attacks in an email sent to media.

Amani said 10 Taliban fighters, including two group leaders, were also killed in the battles and four Afghan security officers were wounded.

The Taliban have stepped up their attacks on the countrys northern provinces recently. The group seized control several months ago of another district in the same province, where they organized and initiated their latest attack, according to local officials.

There have been unconfirmed reports of more than a dozen civilians, as well as local police, being killed after the insurgents took control of the area, added Amani.

Elsewhere, the provincial director of the counter-narcotics unit in western Ghor province was killed by two gunmen, said the spokesman for the provincial police chief in Ghor province, Iqbal Nezami.

Two men on a motorbike shot and killed counter-narcotics chief Noorudin Shairfi in the provinces capital Faroz Koh, said Nezami. No one has been arrested, but the police have launched an investigation, he added.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
Erik De Castro/Associated Press

Russias top diplomat said Sunday his country is ready for more engagement with the United States on North Korea, Syria, Ukraine and other pressing matters, even as Moscow braces for new sanctions from the Trump administration.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson for the first time since the U.S. imposed the additional penalties, said Russia and the U.S. had agreed to resume a suspended high-level diplomatic channel and Washington would send its Ukraine envoy to Moscow for negotiations.
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CARACAS, Venezuela  As Venezuelas political crisis spins further out of control, many are looking to the military to see if its once-unflinching loyalty to the socialist revolution might be fraying.

On Sunday morning, Venezuelans awoke to news that a small group of armed men tried to take over a major military base in the central city of Valencia after a long-mutinous national guard captain appeared in a video calling for rebellion.

The government said the terrorist attack led mostly by civilians dressed in fatigues and deserted officers, not active troops, was quickly put down and seven people were arrested. It wasnt clear how much support existed for the Operation David, but dozens of civilians startled by the sound of gunfire poured into the streets singing Venezuelas national anthem to back the rebels.

Many people wonder whether the tension-filled incident could foreshadow a bigger uprising to come from a military with a long history of rebellion and whose troops  like many Venezuelans  are increasingly caught up in the nations economic and political crisis.

Analysts say such a scenario is unlikely for now. While signs of disgruntlement are growing as security forces come under a barrage of rocks during almost-daily antigovernment demonstrations, soldiers also fear persecution under the opposition. In addition, they face risks that any plans for a secret uprising would be found out.

They feel trapped, said former army Gen. Hebert Garcia Plaza, a former minister for President Nicolas Maduro. Since seeking exile in Washington in 2015 following accusations of corruption by Maduro, he has emerged as a sought-after filter of information for journalists, the opposition and, increasingly he says, distraught soldiers.

Theres lots of unease, but they cant provoke a political change without a clear horizon of what comes after Maduro, Garcia Plaza said.

Venezuelas military accumulated unmatched power and privilege in the past two decades of socialist rule, and Maduro has been increasingly relying on the armed forces as his own grip on power weakens. Last week, with the support of top generals, he plowed forward with a plan to seat an all-powerful assembly mandated with rewriting the constitution. Political opponents consider it an illegitimate power grab that will strip Venezuela of its last vestiges of democracy.

Jorge Rueda and Joshua Goodman are Associated Press writers.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.-- Members of the FDNY and U.S. Coast Guard responded Sunday morning to a boat in distress near Prince's Bay.

The incident was reported at about 9:39 a.m., according to a FDNY spokesman.

No injuries were reported, as of about 11:20 a.m., the spokesman said.

Members of FDNY had helped pump water from the vessel, while members of the Coast Guard were towing the boat to a marina in Great Kills.
WASHINGTON -- Dozens of convicts serving time in U.S. prisons for terrorism-related offenses are due to be released in the next several years, raising the question whether that's something Americans should fear.



There's no easy answer.



Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the United States has worked aggressively to foil attacks and has imprisoned hundreds of people who joined or helped militant groups. Experts say less attention has been paid to what happens once those prisoners complete their sentences.



Among the incarcerated, according to the Bureau of Prisons, are 380 linked to international terrorism and 83 tied to domestic terrorism. A Congressional Research Service report said 50 "homegrown violent jihadists" were to be released between last January and the end of 2026.



And more are entering prison.



Former FBI Director James Comey, who was fired by President Donald Trump in May, had told Congress that the bureau had more than 900 active investigations related to Islamic State and other extremist activity in all 50 states.



Most of those convicted of terrorism-related crimes are held at the high-security U.S. penitentiary in Florence, Colorado, and federal prisons in Terre Haute, Indiana, and Marion, Illinois. Some are in for life, but the average sentence is 13 years. That means most will walk out of prison with years of freedom ahead.



"There were people I was with in prison who you'd be happy to have as a neighbor because they were normal, reasonable people," said Ismail Royer. He was released last December after serving more than 13 years on firearms charges connected to his work helping others get to a militant training camp in Kashmir, the disputed Himalayan territory claimed by India and Pakistan.



"The guys that I'm really, really concerned about are the loose cannons," Royer said.



Royer grew up in a Catholic family in suburban St. Louis. By the time he was 21, he had converted to Islam and was fighting alongside fellow Muslims in Bosnia. At 31, he was serving a 20-year sentence.



Today, he lives in the Washington, D.C., area, works for the Center for Islam and Religious Freedom and wants to help nonextremist Muslim-Americans find their footing in American society.



Behind bars, Royer got to know inmates arrested for only loose ties to terrorism. But he also met Richard Reid, the al-Qaida "shoe bomber," and John Walker Lindh, an American captured in Afghanistan while fighting with the Taliban.



Some were ensnared in sting operations, Royer said, or were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Others were up to no good; Royer said he was happy the FBI arrested them.



"At any time, the loose cannon might go to the convenience store and cut off somebody's head. You just don't know. These guys are very problematic," Royer said while eating grilled cheese at a hotel not far from the White House. "I don't want them as my neighbor. You can't sit there and talk to them and tell them that their views are mistaken."



Eric Rosand, who directs a program at the Global Center on Cooperative Security that's aimed at combating violent extremism, said not enough is known about the mindset of the prisoners being released. Experts say there's been no comprehensive research to determine recidivism rates for these individuals.



Karen Greenberg, director of the Center on National Security at Fordham University's School of Law, doesn't think the public should panic. Those released will face months to years of supervision. Phone calls and online communications are monitored. Travel can be restricted. Weekly meetings with counselors can be required.



"We're not talking about 9/11 perpetrators," Greenberg said.



While the State Department has spent more than $10 million since 2012 to help other countries deal with an increase in suspected terrorists, Rosand lamented that no similar effort is taking place here.



"People have to go back to some community once they are released," said Rosand, a former senior counterterrorism official at the State Department. "Are we preparing communities for their release? Where are they going to go? Is the community that they came from going to accept them back?"



Patrick James, a researcher at National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism at the University of Maryland said the U.S. lags behind European and Middle Eastern countries in finding ways to address paths to radicalization or ease the return of released individuals.



"There's no net to catch them. There is no way to make sure they don't re-engage in extremism," James said.



At least 128 individuals have been charged in the United States with crimes related specifically to the Islamic State group since March 2014, when the first arrests were made, according to George Washington University's Program on Extremism.



Justice Department officials declined comment.



But the department's internal watchdog is auditing the Bureau of Prisons' procedures, policies and practices for monitoring inmates with known or suspected terrorist ties, and efforts to prevent further radicalization among inmates.



The issue also is being addressed in pockets of the country.



Last year, U.S. District Judge Michael Davis in Minneapolis announced a new program to assess the risks posed by terrorism defendants and devise plans to help them re-evaluate their extremist ideals so they don't engage in similar activities again.



Minnesota has the largest Somali population in the U.S. and has been a target for extremist recruiters. About a dozen Minnesota residents have traveled to Syria to join militant groups in recent years. At least 22 men from Minnesota's Somali community have join al-Shabab in Somalia in the past decade.



Davis' program enlists the help of Daniel Koehler, who runs an institute devoted to "de-radicalization" in Germany. Koehler will conduct risk assessments on terror offenders to give Davis more information as he determines sentences. Koehler will then train U.S. probation and pretrial officers, who will be responsible for supervising defendants.



"I am not aware that any other court has tried something like that," Koehler said.



Royer, who served time in Terre Haute and elsewhere, offered some examples of those in line for release and their place on the terrorism spectrum.



One inmate, he said, was a former computer programmer from Yemen who was arrested for stealing proprietary software and trying to market it as his own. The inmate claimed he told U.S. officials he would give them the names of al-Qaida followers if they let him go.



"He lied to them. He didn't know anyone from al-Qaida. He just told them some names and very quickly they found out that he was full of crap," Royer said. "He went to prison for lying to the FBI and they put him in the terrorism unit."



A second inmate was picked up selling night vision equipment to a U.S. law enforcement official posing as a member of Lebanon's Hezbollah. Royer said the inmate was trying to make a buck. He was charged with attempting to provide material support to a terrorist group and ended up in the terrorism unit at Terre Haute.



"The only concern with him is that he's a hustler," Royer said. "That's not to say that it's not a crime."





By Deb Riechmann, Associated Press
Volunteer EMTs with Volunteer Heart Ambulance recently underwent training from the NYPD on how to load a patient into a helicopter. (Photo Courtesy of Volly Heart)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.-- Emergency Medical Technicians who volunteer their time on Staten Island were offered a lesson this week in helicopter rescue.

Members of the Volunteer Heart Ambulance were gathered Saturday at Staten Island University Hospital, Ocean Breeze, for training on aviation-based rescues, said "Volly Heart" Vice President David Goodman.

"A majority out of new members are fresh out of EMT school, so they've never dealt with aviation," he said.

The greenhorns learned how to put stretchers and scoop stretchers into a helicopter, in a way that ensures the patient is secure.

Over the past year, the NYPD's Air Sea Rescue Unit has been called at least twice to assist in the rescue of individuals stuck at sea.

In September, police rescued three people -- two of whom were found clinging to rocks on Hoffman Island -- after something went wrong with their pleasure boat.

Volunteer Heart Ambulance consists of three ambulances, stationed at one location, with a coverage area that stretches from the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge to the Goethals Bridge, according to the group's website.

And while the EMTs volunteer their time to help the community, they can't do it without the proper equipment.

Since 2013, organizers have sought donations to replace all three ambulances, of which the newest is 11-years-old. The oldest is 17 years old.The most recent repairs, since March, have reportedly cost the non-profit $25,000.

"They take a lot of wear, and it's costing us a lot of money," said Goodman. "We're trying to get new ones so we can sell these."

The group established a GoFundMe page in 2013, in hopes of raising $400,000 by this year. So far, said Goodman, the group has raised about $1,000.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A Great Kills couple with a 4-month-old at home was arrested on Wednesday for possession of 145 glassines of alleged heroin.

Lindsay Holbert, 26, and Masud Khan, 25, were arrested in a home on the 70th block of East Figurea Avenue after police, who obtained a search warrant, uncovered the 145 glassines of alleged heroin inside the house, said police.

According to court papers, Holbert and Kahn were found by police to be in possession of the alleged controlled substance while an infant was lying on top of a bed inside a bedroom "in close proximity to where the heroin was recovered," said court papers.

The heroin was found in both the bathroom and on the living room table of the home, according to police.

Holbert and Kahn have been charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, endangering the welfare of a child, and criminally using drug paraphernalia in the second degree, according to court papers.

Also recovered by police was drug paraphernalia, including digital scales found inside a kitchen drawer, court papers said.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A 35-year-old man was arrested for allegedly stealing tools from a commercial vehicle in Stapleton on Wednesday.

Ananta Ikker was charged with burglary in the third degree, petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree, according to court documents.

Ikker allegedly entered a vehicle at 3:15 p.m. operated by Gregg Mechanical Corporation that was parked on Beach Street through rear driver's side door, which was unlocked, according to police.

A source with knowledge of the investigation said Ikker stole a drill and other tools.

Police recovered a PCP cigarette from his front left pants pocket, said police.

There was another perpetrator involved in the incident who has not been apprehended by police, according to court documents.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- After firing its contractor, the New York Wheel is interviewing replacement builders to finish constructing the 630-foot tourist attraction on the St. George waterfront, the Advance has learned.

"The developer is in active discussions with highly qualified replacement contractors, but cannot comment further at this time, as sensitive negotiations are ongoing," said Randy Mastro, an attorney for The NY Wheel.

However, he couldn't yet give a timeline for completion of the project that has been indefinitely delayed following the termination of Mammoet-Starneth LLC, the Wheel's designer and builder.

The NY Wheel fired the company last month for failing "to meet multiple design and construction deadlines," said Cristyne Nicholas, a NY Wheel spokeswoman.

THE LAWSUIT

In a lawsuit initiated in May, the NY Wheel alleges it has suffered more than $16 million in damages resulting from Mammoet's delays, and $20 million in lost profits and other damages due to the designer's breach of contract.

Nicholas also recently told the Advance that more money is likely needed to complete the project. To date, $400 million of the NY Wheel's $580 million funding pot has been used up.

Theo Kroese, a Holland-based company spokesman for Mammoet-Starneth, refused comment about the lawsuit.

With a dispute about final payment still at hand between Mammoet and the NY Wheel, a pretrial hearing was scheduled for Aug. 15 at 11 a.m.

DELAYS

Work on the Wheel was originally expected to be complete in 2016.

Initially planned to open at various times in 2017, the Wheel's roll out was re-scheduled for April 2018 before NY Wheel fired Mammoet-Starneth.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The summer camp teacher/site director barred from working in public schools after he allegedly hit a boy with a medical condition, has worked in the education field for more than 10 years, and was a pioneering AIDS activist on Staten Island.

Robert Busan, 64, was arrested Friday and charged with acting in a manner injurious to a child less than 17-years-old, said police.

The city Department of Education (DOE) subsequently barred Busan from working in city schools, according to the New York Daily News.

Busan allegedly hit and placed his hands over the nose and mouth of a 10-year-old boy with a medical condition at PS 861 in Graniteville at about 2:15 p.m. on Friday, according to police.

Police would not elaborate on the medical condition the boy has, but published reports say the child has epilepsy.

The boy was not injured, according to police.

BUSAN'S HISTORY ON STATEN ISLAND

According to a New York Center for Interpersonal Development (NYCID) blog post from 2008, Robert Busan was a founder of Project B.U.I.L.D, the non-profit organization formed in 1992 that helped Staten Islanders with HIV/AIDS and their families.

The blog reads: "At the time Staten Island had no safe, confidential and comfortable place for people with HIV/AIDS to gather and so we created a drop-in center to provide recreation, education, advocacy and a congregate meal to all those who chose to come looking for a place where they would feel free of the stigma and discrimination that comes with having HIV disease."

According to Busan's personal Facebook page, he started working at the (NYCID) in 2007 as a site director and teacher.

In an Advance article in June, Busan was named an honoree at the NYCID's first walk-a-thon as an individual who displayed "exceptional generosity towards NYCID and the Staten Island community."

In an Advance article from 2011, Busan joined Councilwoman Debi Rose (D-North Shore) who announced the addition of an extra S46 bus that would arrive empty at PS 861 to pick up students.

The addition was made after student Aniya Williams was struck and killed by a tractor trailer on the last day of school while she was trying to catch a bus.

His job history posted on Facebook also says he was the former director at Camelot Counseling of Staten Island Inc., and a former director at YMCA Counseling Service.

The Advance reached out to Busan, who has not responded at this time.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. --The city Department of Education (DOE) has barred a summer camp teacher and site director from working in public schools after he allegedly hit a 10-year-old boy with medical conditions, according to published reports.

Robert Busan, 64, who was arrested Friday and charged with acting in a manner injurious to a child less than 17-years-old, has been barred from working in public schools, the NY Daily News reports.

Busan allegedly hit and placed his hands over the nose and mouth of a 10-year-old boy with medical conditions at PS 861 in Graniteville at about 2:15 p.m. on Friday, according to police.

According to his Facebook page, Busan is a site director and teacher at the NY Center of Interpersonal Development.

While police wouldn't elaborate on the medical condition from which the boy suffers, published reports say the child has epilepsy.

Busan was allegedly trying to stop the child from crying, police sources told the Daily News.

The boy was not injured, according to police.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A RentHop data analysis of New York City neighborhoods revealed that Great Kills is the second most affordable place to live in the Big Apple when you look at median salary compared to rent price ratios.

Most communities across NYC are seeing rising rent rates, which far surpass 35 percent of the neighborhood's median income.

"Of the 139 neighborhoods that we had data for, just nine of them had median asking rents that could be afforded with 35 percent of the neighborhood's median income. That's just 6.5 percent of neighborhoods," said RentHop.

The Upper East Side, Carnegie Hill topped RentHop's list of affordable neighborhoods with just 27.5 percent of the neighborhood's $155,213 income needed to rent a two-bedroom apartment for $3,555.

And Great Kills came in a close second.

The community's median income of $88,868 "could comfortably afford the median rent of $2,050," said RentHop. "Just 27.7 percent of the median income would be spent on rent here."

New Dorp was the only other Staten Island community included in the nine areas deemed affordable by RentHop.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Unless you've been living under a rock, you've already heard: Mom & Pop are getting squeezed out. Rents are jacking up. Flashy rich "relations" are swooping in to take over their hard-earned, humble spaces.

As #SaveNYC founder and Vanishing New York blogger Jeremiah Moss put it a while back: "This is how you kill a city."

Sure, this is nothing new. But it seemed to reach fever pitch when Taylor Swift released that ear-worm tourism anthem: By spring 2014, Dongan Hills endured the loss of several iconic shops, leaving Hylan Boulevard plastered with signs reading "SPACE FOR RENT." The next year we lost the Princes Bay Pharmacy, which closed after 80 years of business.

And we just lost the beloved Schaffer's Tavern (1933-2017), reportedly to a major bank franchise.

As Moss laments: "Swift urges them in, singing, "It's been waiting for you,' as if the city had nothing better to do but anticipate the arrival of newcomers. Bloomberg filled the whole town with tourists until we were bursting at the seams. Global oligarchs come to stash their dirty money in empty penthouses atop sky-high splinters, giving us nothing in return but long, dark shadows.

Meanwhile, New Yorkers hurry from job to job, hustling to make enough to cover the rent. Median rent for vacant apartments is nearly 60 percent of median income, by one measure. If you make $100,000, a solidly middle-class sum in most places, you might qualify for low-income housing, but you'll have to enter through a metaphorical poor door.

In between all this hustling, God forbid we should need our shoes repaired or shirts cleaned. Small businesses are being decimated. Every month, we lose another thousand mom-and-pops."



That's why we're lucky on Staten Island. We still have some of these endangered independently owned small businesses surviving and thriving among us.

Nominate your favorite, most-beloved "Mom & Pop Shops" in the comments section of SILive -- and on all of the Staten Island Advance/SILive social media channels.

We're talking neighborhood florists, small tailors, wine shops, hardware stores -- and especialy that dude who fixes your fave pair of shoes -- or that "chick" who hooked you up with your first, favorite skateboard. Of course, everything in between is up for consideration. But we need your expertise to make sure these too often unsung heroes of commerce get their due.

We'll tally your passionate pitches (be as detailed as possible, please!) into a batch of finalists for next week's "Best of Staten Island Awards" poll.

HOW THE BEST OF STATEN ISLAND AWARDS WORK: By now you probably know the drill: It's up to you to nominate and elect the borough's best of everything that makes life entertaining, delicious, sometimes challenging, but always culturally enriching.

Nomination phase: After the call for nominees is posted on SILive.com, you share your nominations for one week. Nomination phase for "Best Mom & Pops" runs from Monday, July 31, through (midnight) Monday, Aug. 7.

Voting phase: After finalists are announced, the poll phase runs Tuesday to Tuesday, Aug. 8-15 Help us get out the word out: Share the poll! Blast social media with calls to vote. Make sure your finalists get their share of the love.

Go old school with flyers and distribute them at your fave business. Stump door to door for your candidates. Whatever it takes -- within legal and moral reason, of course -- to get S.I. some much-deserved recognition is fine with us.

Winner announcement: We feature your top picks for two weeks starting Tuesday, Aug. 22, on SILive.com, with feature stories, photo galleries and video profiles. The next 2017 Best of S.I. Awards category launches Monday, Sept. 4, on SILive.com.

In the coming weeks: After each nominate-vote-win category cycle, we follow up with a series of additional voting categories celebrating many aspects of life on S.I.

So, dine out. Catch some live music and theater. Get a tattoo. Belly up to a dive bar, cocktail lounge or dance club. Whatever. Just determine the borough's best.

Then nominate your picks as their respective categories are announced, one by one, on SILive.com. Nominees with the most votes in each category become the finalists for the individual (i.e. Best Pub Grub, Best Sushi, Best Mom & Pop Shop, etc.) polls.

QUESTIONS? Post them in the comments section here or hit me up at bailey@siadvance.com. I'll answer them ASAP.
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The figure means about 21 per cent of people in detention in the ACT are Indigenous, despite making up less than 2 per cent of Canberra's population. Justice and Community Services data reveals the average number of Indigenous detainees at the jail has increased steadily over recent years. The number of Indigenous prisoners among the daily average sentenced detainee population grew from 40.2 in 2013-14 to 61.8 in 2015-16. Over the same period, the number of Indigenous prisoners in the daily average unsentenced detainee population climbed from 18.45 to 30.1. ACT Attorney-General Gordon Ramsay said the government was committed to reducing the incarceration rate of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander's and to ensure the territory's criminal justice system took into account barriers to justice faced by indigenous people.

"I support exploring the options for providing sentencing courts with information about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds so that sentencing courts are in a better position to make judgments that are fair and culturally appropriate," he said. "I look forward to receiving recommendations for law reform that come out of Legal Aid ACT's work on this topic." Mr Ramsay said the work on the reports began with the government's Response to the Standing Committee on Justice and Community Safety's Inquiry into Sentencing. "At that time the government agreed to legislate to require sentencing courts to consider the Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander status of offenders," he said. "Specialised sentencing reports are intended to assist in addressing the potential for inequality faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the sentencing process, particularly where there is a risk of incarceration."

Australian National University college of law senior lecturer and barrister Anthony Hopkins said the reports should not be misconstrued as being designed to give a discount for being Aboriginal, but rather to enable sentencing courts to pay particular attention to the experience of Indigenous Australians. "The premise is that we know that too many Indigenous Australians experience lives of disadvantage, systemic discrimination and intergenerational trauma leading to their offending, but we don't have that story told in court," Dr Hopkins said. "If it was, it would inform questions of culpability and inform options for rehabilitation, reform and healing. "Intergenerational trauma exists in a very real way." Dr Hopkins - who has written a number of papers on the issue, including his doctoral thesis - said there was currently a silence in the justice system about that inter-generational disadvantage.

"The antidote to this silence is paying attention. They are not expert reports, they should be seen as truth reports," he said. "Primarily they're about understanding the offender's experience, both in their own words, but also going out to family and community and trying to get that full picture. It is then for the sentencing judge to determine how this is to be taken into account in accordance with sentencing principle. "It's not that you need a report to say Aboriginal people suffered disadvantage, it's what's happened in this person's life and how it is connected back to the group experience." But the barrister said the reports alone were not an answer to high rates of incarceration for Indigenous people. He said there needed to be a whole of criminal justice approach to tackle the issue.
The Australian National University and ANU Union have patched up their differences and come to an agreement outside the courtroom - but both parties are keeping quiet on what exactly the deal means.

A joint statement from the pair said the agreement meant the ANU Union would move out of the existing Union Building, ensuring the building could be demolished and the Union Court redevelopment continue as planned.

Dozens of ANU students seized an opportunity to spray paint messages on the university's Union Court before being closed off for demolition. Credit:Sitthixay Ditthavong

The union last month took the ANU to the ACT Supreme Court after failing to come to an agreement on its new location.

"The ANU Union and the university are pleased to announce that they have come to an agreement to help move towards the relaunch [of] the ANU Union with an exciting new operation program from 2018," this week's joint statement said.
At least a quarter of Canberra nail salons have been investigated in the past two years and several hit with health and safety sanctions linked to vermin infestations, unsafe chemical practices, poor infection control and cleanliness.

Advocacy groups have also questioned the working conditions of Canberra nail salon employees, with one migrant women's network describing long hours, underpayment and an expectation that employees perform household jobs for bosses such as cooking and taking children to school.

Elleebana School of Beauty Therapy nail therapist Anna Liakos Credit:Rohan Thomson

An appetite for fast and cheap beauty treatments has seen a 13-fold increase in the number of nail salons in Canberra in almost as many years. Just three were registered with ACT Health in 2005; by last month, there were 39.

ACT government departments issued about 10 improvement notices to at least nine Gungahlin and Belconnen salons following 18 investigations, six of which were triggered after a customer raised concerns about staff exposure to fumes.
The government wants to peg support for retirees to the age pension but the super industry is pushing for more. Credit:Louise Kennerley

Last night's rain is set to hang around today, with cloudy skies and showers forecast to start the week, with the chance of a thunderstorm and possibly hail. However, it's set to clear in the late afternoon or evening . Today's minimum temperature of 4 degrees is set to rise to a top of 9 degrees.

The Health Department has imposed sanctions on Adria Village aged care home in Canberra's south due to "serious concerns" about residents' health, safety and wellbeing.

In a separate development, alleged physical and sexual abuse within the ACT's aged care sector has been detailed in federal Aged Care Complaints Commissioner reports.

Government inspectors were told a resident was afraid to leave their room after another resident allegedly grabbed their groin, one report said.

Steven Trask reports.

Nail salon probe
A territory-govenment run crematorium was proposed as a way to pay for the continuing upkeep of Canberra cemeteries without hiking burial fees.

However Treasury did not support the proposal and more than a decade on, the project remains on hold.

A public-run crematorium was suggested as a way to fund cemetery maintenance going forward. Credit:John Woudstra

Cabinet documents released under the 10-year rule show in August 2005 the ACT Public Cemeteries Board came to government ministers flagging a deficit in the perpetual care trust that covers the short and long term maintenance of the Gungahlin, Woden and Hall cemeteries.

The trust, created in 2003, did not absorb the maintenance cost of existing burial sites and an actuarial review revealed there was an unfunded liability of about $6.9 million, that would blow out to $18.3 million in future.
Fresh allegations of aged care abuse in the ACT can be revealed as separate concerns about another Canberra nursing home also emerge.

The Canberra Times has obtained reports authored by the federal Aged Care Complaints Commissioner, describing recent allegations within the ACT's aged care sector, including claims of physical and sexual abuse.

In July The Canberra Times exposed "major failings" in the treatment of care home resident Peter Tunnecliffe.

In one report, government inspectors were told that a resident was fearful to leave their room after another resident allegedly grabbed their groin.

"This started as a random mention, and continued for some time with [the resident] repeatedly taking family members aside to reassert something had happened," the report read.
The ACT government has been urged to swiftly find alternatives to the planned Woden Cemetery expansion, after City Services Minister Meegan Fitzharris revealed it was being reconsidered because of light rail.

Ms Fitzharris told a budget estimates committee the government was having "another think" about expanding the cemetery, which will run out of space next year, and flagged a Gungahlin expansion as a possible alternative.

Woden Valley Community Council president Fiona Carrick was worried about Woden Cemetery's plan to expand into public parks. Credit:Karleen Minney

Days before the minister's appearance before the committee, Woden Valley Community Council president Fiona Carrick said Woden needed to keep its green space with light rail and higher density buildings coming to the region.

"Over the last couple of years, and particularly over the last six to seven months, the government has made a number of significant commitments to upgrades and improvements to the Woden town centre, most notably stage two of light rail, and an expansion of the Canberra Hospital," Ms Fitzharris said.
The world's biggest online retailer has chosen Dandenong South for its first Australian distribution centre, pleasing governments with promises of hundreds of jobs.

But unions remain concerned about the $US474 billion ($595 billion) retailer's labour record, and rival retailer Gerry Harvey has questioned whether the US giant will pay its fair share of tax.

Gerry Harvey, of Harvey Norman, is bracing for the arrival of Amazon. Credit:Rob Homer

Multinationals have come under fire for shifting revenue overseas to avoid Australia's 30 per cent corporate tax rate, loading their Australian with high-interest intra-company loans, and structuring themselves such that they do not have to file publicly available accounts.

Amazon has also attracted the ire of rival retailers for focusing on market-share gains rather than profits.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull faces a new round of pressure for a royal commission into the banks after last week's explosive claims the Commonwealth Bank broke anti-money laundering laws, allegations Labor says are "extremely serious and deeply concerning".

The step-up in Labor's rhetoric came as powerful cross-bench senator Nick Xenophon said a bank royal commission was "all but inevitable" in the next parliamentary term at the latest, and pushed for tougher penalties for reckless bankers.

CBA chief executive Ian Narev says the Austrac action against the bank shows a regulator being strong. Credit:Bloomberg

Amid the mounting political pressure and a sell-off in CBA shares before its results this week, chief executive Ian Narev on Sunday broke his public silence, seeking to downplay the push for a royal commission.

He told the The Australian Financial Review the bank had "made mistakes" but the allegations from Austrac showed a "strong regulator" doing its job.
One of the supreme acts of corporate sacrifice went unnoticed last month, when Qantas chairman, Leigh Clifford, handed in his resignation as a board member of Equestrian Australia.

Barely a year after joining the board, Clifford found that "his existing commitments, in particular as chair of Qantas," had prevented him from devoting the time required to his new gig.

Qantas chairman Leigh Clifford and Alan Joyce. Credit:Quinn Rooney

But let's face it. It had been a big year with the Rio Olympics, and then the world class post-Olympics slanging match with John Coates, head of the Qantas-sponsored AOC.

Given Qantas is Clifford's only ASX-listed board role, CBD thought it sent out a wonderful message to other corporate titans who collect board seats like a kid collecting show bags at the Easter Show.
Workplace experts pointed to a phenomenon known to researchers as "the glass cliff," in which women are more often called into corporate leadership roles in times of crisis, and are therefore subject to more criticism if companies don't perform well. A 2013 review of CEO transitions in Fortune 500 companies over a 15-year period found that white women, as well as women and men of colour, were more likely than white men to get promoted to CEO when firms were performing poorly.

"As much as I would love to see more women chief executives, too often women get the cleanup jobs, and I'd prefer to not always see women get the cleanup jobs," said Elizabeth Ames, senior vice president at the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology. She pointed to Marissa Mayer, who received outsized positive attention when she left her job as a Google executive to run Yahoo, and outsized negative attention when she failed to turn that company around. (It's unclear whether Mayer was asked to run Uber, despite her recent, oddly-timed praise of Kalanick's leadership).

Ellen Pao, who became CEO of the online discussion site Reddit during a time of tumult, was pushed out by angry Reddit users in 2015. Sheri McCoy is stepping down as CEO of Avon Products in response to activist investors. The CEO of food giant Mondolez, Irene Rosenfeld, is also resigning.

There is at least one example where such appointments turn out well. In 2008, Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg was brought on to be the "adult in the room" alongside then-24-year-old Mark Zuckerberg, Emerson said. Today Sandberg is widely considered to be one of the world's most successful executives.

"There are serious challenges for women who step into these roles. Because there are so few of them, the spotlight is much brighter, and if they don't succeed, they aren't judged in the same way a male CEO who didn't succeed would be," said Ames. She noted that there are many male CEOs whose failures were far less publicised and less damaging to them.
NSW businesses would have to display minimum wage rates and faced being named and shamed if they underpaid workers under NSW Labor Party policy.

The NSW ALP will on Monday announce a policy to place businesses that breach fair work laws on a public "name and shame" register and disqualify them from getting any NSW government contracts.

Labor would also have disputes over apprenticeships and vocational training regulated by state law heard in the Industrial Relations Commission.

The announcement is part of the Labor Party's industrial relations platform to eliminate the exploitation of vulnerable workers. As announced at the NSW party conference last week, the policy plan will include jail terms of up to 14 years for unscrupulous employers engaged in wage theft from employees.
When Ben Pfisterer started his career, his initial expertise was in project management: an area where success depended in large part of his ability to focus intensely for a finite period. Then, he moved on to strategy consulting, where the diversity of jobs and the fast pace both appealed. Still, something was missing.

"I got sick of not being around to see the results of the strategy or the implementation: you do the strategy and move on," he says.

Ben Pfisterer, Australian country manager of Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey's payments business, Square, has spent the past year building up a local team.

He switched tack and ended up as part of Jetstar's management team in the company's early days.

"Although I was part of the management team, I was a bit more of a passenger in terms of learning from some strong leaders," he says.
Robert Hardy, the actor, who has died aged 91, could claim a fine record of television performances spanning more than 40 years, ranging from several portrayals of Winston Churchill to that of the peppery vet Siegfried Farnon in the popular 1980s series All Creatures Great and Small.

Hardy's acting was many-faceted, energetic, and  like the English climate  subject to sunshine, small storms and changeable moods. It was said that, in his wide range of character roles, he was to British television between 1960 and 1980 what Alec Guinness was to British cinema in the 1940s.

Robert Hardy, star of All Creatures Great and Small and the Harry Potter films. Credit:AP

He could be darkly overcast and this attribute, together with a certain physical likeness, suited him for the Churchill role which, in various television, stage and film productions, he filled no fewer than seven times. Of these, perhaps the most memorable was his portrayal of the great man in Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years (1981).

Though he showed early talent at the Old Vic in the 1950s, playing roles ranging from Laertes in Hamlet to Ariel in The Tempest, he failed to progress to the National Theatre owing, he said, to a disagreement with Peter Hall.
Dimitris Langadinos Concord West, The Trump/Turnbull transcript is a gift for English teachers: "Use this phone conversation to flesh out a character analysis of both men. You may quote examples of disjointed speech, hubris and petulance to support your analysis of Trump. Give examples of Turnbull's words that could be described as sycophantic, wheedling and desperate."



Joan Brown Orange It is clear that the arrangement was always seen as a swap of human beings not wanted by the US for human beings not wanted by the Australian government  a scenario previously denied by Peter Dutton and Julie Bishop. Yet, on the phone, Turnbull explicitly pleads with Trump that "We will take anyone you want us to take", if America honours its side of the bargain. Second, the Australian government was prepared to treat the deal as a sham, if necessary. Turnbull makes it clear that Trump does not have to accept any of the Manus/Nauru refugees if he doesn't want to. The agreement requires that the US only has to go through the motions of "extreme vetting". Once again, the Australian people get the mushroom treatment when it comes to our government's refugee policy. But it took a leak from the highest levels of the White House administration to reveal the truth.

Rob Phillips North Epping. Having just read a transcript of Malcolm Turnbull's phone call to Donald Trump I am moved to write to you. All the journalistic comment on this matter has been biased and in no way reflective of the conversation. My comment is  "Well done, Malcolm Turnbull! You deserve 10 out of 10 for that call". Leonie Day Ashfield Unis crying poor The cuts to government funding of some universities have not gone far enough ("Unis face $1.1b in funding cuts", August 6). These are no longer academies but have become educational corporations. They are giant vacuum cleaners sucking up every public or private dollar they can find. They want to maintain a lifestyle to which they have become accustomed. The changes that have been announced are merely re-arranging the deck chairs on an educational Titanic.

These reforms do not address duplication in courses, hopeless degrees with names like ice-cream flavours, huge bureaucratic waste or unnecessary Australia-wide competition for students. More is spent on advertising and marketing than resources for my students. They will not restore value to those learners getting a Clayton's education. Our universities are fast becoming sheltered workshops for the intellectually mediocre or ambitiously astute. They no longer represent the cream of Australian intelligentsia, that quirky source of ideas, a home for unrivalled brilliance or a revolutionary force for social change, That they continue to function at all is due to the goodwill and efforts of some very dedicated academics. Look, it does not cost a lot of money to run some courses and one should be wary of the cries from universities that the educational world is coming to an end. A plague on all their houses.



James Athanasou Maroubra Exposing the dark arts of spin at work in politics At last somebody with authority has exposed the seedy role of lobbyists in our political system. Wendy Squires' excellent mea culpa for her time doing the devil's work as a political spin doctor has painted a revealing picture of the dark art that is corrupting our democratic processes ("Mock Spicer and the Mooch but our spin doctors are just as bad", August 5-6). But what of her proposition that Malcolm Turnbull has been a proxy lobbyist for the Coalition's extreme right? It made sense when Squires listed the policies where Turnbull has used his silky eloquence to promote political concepts that belong more to the Coalition hardliners than what voters consider his own pre-PM views to be. Unfortunately for Malcolm, it will all be for nought when the Coalition bovver boys use his mismanagement of the marriage equality plebiscite as an excuse for a leadership spill. It's all been carefully manipulated by that Unholy Trinity of Abbott, Dutton and Ciobo. We need to strap ourselves in for a rough ride. The worst is yet to come, and the next election can't arrive soon enough.

Bert Candy Glenvale, Qld Wendy Squires has demonstrated that not only does hell exist but we create our individual hells. This goes beyond not doing what we should and doing what we should not. We then create our own spin as we rationalise ourselves to ourselves. We deny that we are saying and doing what we don't believe. We are no better than Malcolm Turnbull when we sell our souls to get some "precarious gig". Then we end up where he is, defending the indefensible for 30 pieces of something.



Mark Porter New Lambton Postal plebiscite for plebeian politicians How can Peter Hartcher seriously say a postal plebiscite on same-sex marriage is a "pragmatic option"? ("Going postal over same-sex marriage", August 5-6). It's an even more crackpot idea than the original plebiscite proposal. As yet, we don't now how its supporters in Cabinet plan to run it, but presumably it will involve every voter in the country being sent a ballot, which he/she will be expected to fill in and return. How many people do you think will actually bother to do this? Those with strong opinions on either side of the issue, presumably, but for the rest the great Australian apathy, or forgetfulness, or hostility to government bureaucracy will prevail. Result: a derisory number returned, in no way reflecting the true view of the nation. The French may well elect their President on 38 per cent of the vote, but Australians are used to the results of their elections, referenda and plebiscites being based on full suffrage. Hartcher may be right in his analysis of why a postal plebiscite would be the best option politically for Malcolm Turnbull to hang onto his job, but as a serious method to actually deal with the issue, it's laughable. Richard Mason Newtown

Peter Hartcher is wrong. Conservatives don't want to preserve the status quo at all costs. We want a plebiscite so that the Australian people can decide the same-sex marriage question. Riley Brown Bondi Beach How is it that little Malta with reins historically held so tight by the Vatican and its dictates has declared itself supportive of same-sex marriage while Australia has bowed to prejudice and refused to do the same? It's a fine example to others of how tradition can be overcome and new awareness can drive the future of nations. Larrikin behaviour, with which Australia so proudly associates itself, is also portrayed as a companion to fierce independence and self-determination. Perhaps Australia needs to either reclaim this image or decide that it is no longer definitive of this nation's identity. Andy Busuttil Hazelbrook ABC history repeats

Credit:John Pearson The rumoured move of ABC's 7.30 would only be repeating previous failures ("Shake up could see 7.30 shift to 9.30", August 5-6). In 1979, I returned to Canberra as ACT executive producer of a new national program, Nationwide at 9.30, replacing This Day Tonight at 7.30. The official rationale: the later time would be more suitable for ABC viewers' lifestyles. It didn't work and a few years on, the separate 7pm news and 7.30 Report were re-introduced. What is most disturbing about the proposed changes is that they appear mainly about ratings. This is not the ABC's prime objective.Yet, we are already seeing evidence of an ABC move towards "populism" with the introduction of more and more lightweight programs. I do not believe will there be any long-term rise in audiences for these "new" entertainment programs either. The ABC's reputation will suffer by dumbing-down to chase ratings. Eric Hunter Cook, ACT What will the brains trust at ABC substitute 7:30 with? Another cooking show or some other cheap Pommie castle renovation show. I've suffered enough of My Kitchen Rules and Masterchef to last a lifetime. The ABC needs to raise the standard, not water it down. Given the political malaise we are enduring, now  more than ever, is when we need quality news and current affairs programming. Greg Horan Breakfast Point

Tech blind to gender Border Force greatly exaggerates the power of its technologies ("Security specialists welcome crackdown", August 6). Airport body scanners can't distinguish between breast tissue and liquid explosives. As a tall woman with short hair I am routinely asked to go through body scanners twice or physically patted down. The scanners are only accurate when staff correctly identify people as male or female. Any one who doesn't fit gender stereotypes is automatically subjected to extra screening. This has nothing to do with actual threats. It is unsurprising that they would miss serious threats whilst they were spending time double checking every short-haired woman, strip-searching every trans person and confiscating everyone's water bottle. Samantha Chung Newtown On the buses As it moves to privatise the buses in our region, the NSW Liberals point to the privatised ferry service as an example of how business can do a better job at providing transport services ("Toni lives near buses, light rail, but barely uses them", August 3). Well I'm writing this from a taxi after it was just announced that due to overcrowding, two sequential ferries would not be stopping at my wharf. This is a frequent occurrence over weekends, and I'm sure the only reason there aren't more complaints are that we've all developed a sense of hopelessness when envisioning efficient transport in this city.

Christopher Hunt Drummoyne

High rollers head west After spending a fantastic day with interstate visitors at the Powerhouse Museum earlier this year and today showing them around Barangaroo and the Sculpture exhibition, we all came to the same conclusion that it makes more sense to leave the wonderful Powerhouse where it is and move Mr Packers Gin Palace to the vacant car park in Parramatta

Alan Rosendale Dulwich Hill If a person makes a mistake, they are human. If they make a few mistakes they are foolish. What is a bank if they make a reported 53,506 mistakes? ("Eleven jailed over CBA laundering", August 5-6).

Dennis Fitzgerald Box Hill, Vic Brilliant weekenders Two entire pages of brilliance on Saturday 5th August (all female commentators, News Review). We are Women hear us Roar. I am woman and want more. Helen Lewin Tumbi Umbi Judging an art prize

Interest to note that Ravenswood High School can afford a $35,000 art prize ("Girls' school establishes richest women's art prize", August 5-6). How much did they receive in public funding for schools? My local public high school can not afford decent art supplies for students. Christine May South Durras Hardy's classic role Sorry Phillip Cooney (Letters, 5 August), but this generational memory thing is all so relative. For me Robert Hardy will always be one of Mogul oil company's elite Trouble-shooters from the BBC's superb series of that name in the early 1960s. They don't make shows like that anymore. Peter Clark Killarney Heights
More evidence has emerged of changes to water licences giving a handful of irrigators in north-western NSW the ability to extract huge volumes of river water even during dry periods.

Documents obtained under freedom of information and analysis of public records by the Environmental Defenders Office NSW, seen by Fairfax Media, show licences for Barwon-Darling river water extraction were sub-divided apparently in breach of the NSW Water Management Act 2000, while others reveal excess water take.



As part of the sub-division, the licence holder was permitted to install 11 pumps with diameters of 600-660 millimetres  as much as eight times the previous size of the nine 80-150 mm pumps used  capable of extracting significantly more water.

The act does not allow additional water to be taken after subdivisions. The sub-division proceeded in February 2015, and the property was sold several months later to Webster Ltd, an ASX-listed firm.

"These licences are an integral part of water management in the Barwon-Darling, and the basin as a whole," said James Trezise, acting campaign manager of the Australian Conservation Foundation, which commissioned the EDO.
Crawling west in Sydney along motorways and tunnels crammed with bellowing trucks, through suburbs where the most modest houses carry price tags of more than $1 million, it wasn't difficult to predict frustration lay behind front doors.

We expected something similar in suburban Melbourne, the nation's second-largest but fastest-growing city, with fast-rising house prices and clogged roads, too.

But it was worse than frustration, our research found: Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten have reason to fear the depth of discontent that has taken root in both suburban Sydney and Melbourne.

The young and the middle-aged, former Liberal voters and former Labor supporters, residents of both big cities, revealed that despite their differences, they were united at core: they believed government was failing them.
To satisfy her dependence on prescription opioids, Christine Drinnan visited 10 doctors in the last few months of her life, six in the 10 days immediately preceding her death from painkillers taken by millions of Australians every year.

In and out of rehabilitation over the years, Ms Drinnan had been admitted to hospital 15 times for overdoses caused by her addiction to these drugs, including three times in the months before her death.

Despite her growing opioid tolerance  the need to take higher and higher dosages of drugs to achieve the same opioid effect  doctors kept prescribing more, and in stronger doses.

Most were ignorant of her full history, including problems with alcohol, depression and memory. These doctors failed to call other medical professionals who she had seen, or ask sufficient questions about claims that she had lost scripts or had a painful, sore neck, found the coroner's report.
Mr Sahade then sought and was granted council approval for the dog grooming facility, and refused to pay a $1500 fine for the initial unapproved installation.

The council found an unauthorised dog washing set-up, including a basin and a fence, had been installed at a Crystal Car Wash site in Coogee in March 2015, and ordered its removal.

Mr Sahade, a Point Piper millionaire who has been in and out of Sydney courts for years over neighbourhood disputes on Australia's wealthiest street, has most recently been in a lather about a fine from Randwick Council.

The matter went to court and his company Lenjade was convicted and fined $12,000, with $8000 legal costs.

Mr Sahade appealed the decision and last week the Land and Environment Court acquitted Lenjade, ruling there was not enough evidence to prove Mr Sahade directly authorised the development.

During the hearings, Mr Sahade likened managing franchisees to fatherhood.

"I tell my son, 'You have to be home by 10 o'clock' but he comes home at 11 o'clock and he uses his discretion and he's sensible then it's not a punishable sin. It's no different to the franchisee having a go at putting a dog wash in to enhance his business," Mr Sahade said.

"Even though it's prohibited within the lease it's not something that's worth punishing him [for] because he's doing what's best for his business and what's best for his business ultimately profits the whole Crystal Carwash chain."
While authorities have drawn straws over who should uproot Martin Place's homeless encampment its residents have slept uneasily, fearing an eviction and an uncertain future.

"What the powers-that-be have done is put fear into one of the most marginalised groups in Australian society," Camp organiser Lanz Priestley said late on Saturday.

"There is a fear in the camp that something is going to happen, whether it's the police, state or local governments," he said.

Police Commissioner Mick Fuller and NSW Social Housing Minister Pru Goward urged Sydney City Lord Mayor Clover Moore to resolve the issue at crisis talks on Friday.
Police have released the final man being held for questioning over an alleged terrorist conspiracy to bring down passenger planes flying from Sydney to the Middle East.

Khaled Merhi, 39, was released from police custody on Sunday afternoon, after being charged with possessing a prohibited weapon.

He was driven away from Surry Hills police station about 4.30pm, just hours before a special order to hold him for seven days for questioning expired.

Mr Merhi will face court later this month.
A man who was shot by police during a confrontation in Grafton in northern NSW on Sunday afternoon has died in hospital, police say.

The man, who is yet to be identified, allegedly confronted police wielding a knife after they responded to reports of a disturbance at a unit on Turf Street just before 3.45pm.

An officer first Tasered the man, before police shot him, police said.

Officers treated the man at the scene until paramedics arrived.
A Newcastle masseur has been caught taking naked photos of his female clients and sharing them among a secret group of male strippers known as "the big fellas".

In public Josh Hewitt, a Mayfield-based masseur, topless waiter and male stripper, boasted that whether he was "stroking your hair or massaging your body" his "pampering" massages would "make you feel just as you should feel, special".

Josh Hewitt has been caught taking naked photos of his female clients and sharing them among a secret group of male strippers.

But in reality Mr Hewitt, who is not registered under the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency or the Association of Massage Therapists, took photos of his clients as they lie undressed and face down on his massage table and shared them with other male strippers in a private Instagram group called "the big fella's" (sic).

Mr Hewitt, who has deleted his Newcastle Relaxation Massage Therapy and Newcastle Male Stripper Facebook pages in recent days, has ignored repeated requests for comment.
Labor member for Lytton Joan Pease she had never experienced any form of discrimination or felt inequality until she became a member of Parliament. "I'll be in a committee ... and I can ask a question of someone and they don't look at me to reply, they'll look at the male chair sitting beside me," she said. Ms Pease said everyone was entitled to be treated with respect and it was important for people to call out poor behaviour. Tasmanian Labor deputy leader Michelle O'Byrne said when she was elected in the federal Parliament in 1998, some of her first headlines were "She's in Parliament and she's in love" and "How our MP met her man". "My local radio station had an entire morning talkback show on whether or not I could do my job when I was pregnant," she said.

Labor member for Bulimba Di Farmer said it was "wrong on so many levels" for New Zealand Labour leader Jacinda Ardern to be asked about her plans on motherhood on day one. Ms Farmer said women in politics often received comments about their appearance, weight or how they dressed, whereas that did not happen to the men. Ms Farmer conceded: "Yes politics is a tough game". "But if you want to do it, you've kind of got to get over that, and it is the most rewarding job that you could possibly have," she said. Women make up 33 per cent of politicians in Australian parliaments, an improvement on the 20 per cent figure of the late 1990s.

But Australia is slipping down the ranks in terms of gender in politics. In 1999, Australia was ranked 15th in the world by the Inter-Parliamentary Union for the gender representatives of our lower or single houses of Parliament. Australia now stands at 50th. So how do we get more women in politics? Liberal National Party MP Ros Bates said the rules were the same for men and women in the LNP and people needed to understand the rules, rather than show up too late for the pre-selection or without doing the ground work.

"You've got to have the support of the branch members around you and to put it crudely you have to have the numbers to win a pre-selection," she said. "You just have to know how to play the game." LNP member for Broadwater Verity Barton said she was lucky to have supportive family and friends, and she said the women in the opposition got together often to support each other. "So that we can talk about things, whether it's personal things or whatever it is, so there's a support base," she said. Ms Fentiman said affirmative action had created cultural change in Queensland Labor, where the party actively sought out talented women candidates.

"I think honestly, it's only been used two or three times since it's been used since it was introduced," she said. "So just the rule change has actually led to a huge cultural shift." Ms Farmer said women should know their strengths and not be afraid to talk about them. "We hear too many stories of women thinking 'oh maybe I'm not quite good enough'," she said. "If you want to be a politician, put your hand up, say I'm really good at this, I'm going to be the best person for this job and go for it."
Friends and family have named a Kansas man as one of three American marines missing, presumed dead, after an aircraft crash off the coast of Queensland.

Tributes were being shared on Monday as Australian navy divers were deployed to the crash site at military training area Shoalwater Bay, near Rockhampton.

Nathan Ordway's sister, Taylor, asked other supporters of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit to pray for her brother and the two other missing marines.

Corporal Joel Eicher, who trained with Mr Ordway, shared a photo of himself and another marine with the missing man.
After a lifetime of guilt and secret longings, David Morrison came out as gay at age 76.

He and his wife, Margaret, had raised a family together. "I loved my wife. I'd have laid down my life for her. But it was not a soul relationship, you know?" he says, adding, "But what marriage is perfect"?

When Margaret died in 2006, he felt able to explore that suppressed part of himself. He joined Vintage Men, an older gay men's social group.

Now aged 87, he is the oldest regular of the LGBTI Elders Dance Club, at Fitzroy Town Hall. He says now: "I do feel quite happy in myself."
The mayor of a council with large tracts of green-wedge parkland in Melbourne's north-east says his shire and its residents will fight any environmentally destructive route for a highway proposed by the Andrews government through suburbs like Eltham and Warrandyte.

On Monday, Premier Daniel Andrews will release route options for the government's next multi-billion-dollar road project  the North East Link, a six-lane motorway to link the Metropolitan Ring Road in Greensborough to either the Eastern Freeway or EastLink.

Former VicRoads planning engineer and Eltham Community Action Group member John Graves in Diamond Creek on Sunday. Credit:Luis Ascui

The road has been discussed for decades, but with no land set aside for it, its likely environmental impacts have seen successive governments put it in the too-hard basket.

Potential routes identified under a new study for the road have price tags ranging from $8 billion to $16 billion  almost triple the cost of any road ever proposed for Melbourne before.
Marmion Avenue between Butler and Yanchep will be widened to four lanes, as the State Government announced it would spend $23 million on the upgrade.

Transport Minister Rita Saffioti announced the current single lane 11km carriageway would be upgraded on Sunday.

The planned upgrade will widen Marmion Avenue from Butler to Yanchep. Credit:Google Maps

"We recognise the area is one of the fastest growing regions in Perth, and that is why we are committed to getting the access right with both road and rail," she said.

"We've seen the significant congestion in this area. The City of Wanneroo and member for Butler John Quigley have raised this issue over many years as there's been further development and further housing all the way through to Yanchep, and now it's a great pleasure to be able to make that commitment of $23 million."
Bangkok: Vietnam wants the 10-member Association of South-East Asian Nations to stand stronger against China's aggressive expansionism in the South China Sea.

Weeks after China threatened to attack Vietnam over oil and gas drilling in the flash point waters, Vietnam insisted that ASEAN foreign ministers meeting in Manila refer to China's build-up and arming of islands in a customary joint communique.

Chinese fishing boats sail in the lagoon of Meiji reef in the South China Sea, an islet also claimed by Vietnam. Credit:AP

But the ministers delayed releasing one after their annual meeting on Saturday failed to reach a consensus, reflecting the concerns of some countries worried about upsetting Beijing given its growing military and economic influence across the region.

The failure of the ASEAN states to take a joint position comes at a time of uncertainty over how the Trump administration plans to check China's militarisation of the strategic waterways.
Kabul: Insurgents attacked a village in the northern Afghan province of Sar-e Pul, killing as many as 50 people, including women and children, officials said on Sunday.

Zabihullah Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said the fighters, who included foreign militants, attacked a security outpost in the Mirza Olang area of Sayaad district overnight, torching 30 houses.

An Afghan policeman stands guard near to the site of a suicide bomber struck at a NATO convoy in Kandahar southern of Kabul, Afghanistan on August 2. Credit:AP

He said fighting was still going on but as many as 50 people, including children, women and elderly men, most of them members of the largely Shi'ite Hazara community, may have been killed, according to local village elders.

"They were killed in a brutal, inhumane way," he said. Seven members of the Afghan security forces were also killed as well as a number of insurgents.
Manila: A US push to further isolate North Korea appeared to be reaping some dividends on Sunday as China, Pyongyang's major benefactor, urged its outcast neighbour to make a "smart decision" and stop conducting missile launches and nuclear tests.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, after meeting with North Korea's top diplomat during an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathering here in the Philippine capital, described the situation on the Korean Peninsula is critical.

He said the current situation could mark a turning point for negotiations over North Korea's nuclear proliferation, which led the UN Security Council to impose more sanctions on North Korea and its exports on Saturday.

"Do not violate the UN's decision or provoke international society's goodwill by conducting missile launching or nuclear tests," Wang said after talks with Ri Yong Ho, North Korea's foreign minister.
Jakarta: Within days of Indonesian President Joko Widodo ordering police to shoot drug dealers who resist arrest, the government last week announced a radical shake-up of the nation's narcotics-riddled prisons.

Amid revelations that prisoners continue to operate drug syndicates behind bars, the Ministry of Law and Human Rights has come up with an ambitious plan to consolidate drug felons in four jails across the nation.

Official figures show there 54,000 drug dealers and 32,000 users behind bars in Indoensia - about 38 per cent of the total prison population. Credit:Reuters

According to Corrections data the level of drug activity behind bars in Indonesia is extraordinary: of the nation's 225,000 prisoners there are 54,000 dealers and 32,000 users.

The head of the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) Budi Waseso - who advocates imprisoning drug offenders on a remote island guarded by crocodiles - goes so far as to say 50 per cent of drug circulation is controlled from prisons.
James Krauseneck maintained his innocence at the sentencing Monday and was supported by his daughter, Sarah, who was 3 at the time and saw her deceased mother, Cathleen Cathy Krausneck, 29, a Macomb County native.
Everything you need to know about No. 20 Notre Dame's game vs. Navy Saturday in Baltimore
P olice shut down a huge illegal late-night rave after nearly 500 people gathered in a warehouse in Kent.

Witnesses described seeing hundreds of people "running through the streets of Swanley" as police were called to the scene.

Twelve party-goers aged between 17 and 41 were arrested after reports of the disturbance, which happened overnight on Saturday.

Nearly 500 people entered the industrial unit, on Mark Way, where the unlicensed music event was being held without the owners permission.

Witnesses reported seeing people running through the streets. / @AiryMoss/Twitter

Police arrested the 12 revellers on suspicion of offences including drug possession, criminal damage and theft after storming the building at around 12.18am.

DS Ann Lisseman from Kent Police said: "In this case, it was a new building, and sadly for the owners a large amount of damage was caused during the event.

"We urge people to only attend lawful and licensed music events and ask parents to ensure they know where their children are and make them aware of the potential dangers and consequences of attending unlicensed events."

Kent Police liaised with British Transport Police to ensure the safe departure of attendees and the site was cleared by 7am.
A south London model who was kidnapped in Italy and held captive for six days while her abductor auctioned her for 230,000 has reportedly returned to the UK.

Glamour model Chloe Ayling, 20, was snatched on July 11 by two men at an arranged photo shoot in Milan.

It is thought she was drugged and transported in a bag to an isolated village near Turin before being released on July 17, Italian police said.

Ms Ayling has now flown back to the UK and returned to her home in Coulsdon, south London, according to reports.

'Kidnap ordeal' model recalls terrifying experience

Speaking on her doorstep, she told how she had feared for her life throughout the "terrifying experience".

A Polish man, who lives in Britain, was arrested on July 18 on suspicion of kidnap and extortion, state police said.

Model Chloe Ayling was allegedly kidnapped in Italy by a sex slave gang / Instagram

Officials have released a mugshot of the suspect, named as 30-year-old Lukasz Pawel Herba.

It is alleged two men tried to sell Ms Ayling online for more than 300,000 dollars (230,000) and demanded the model's agent pay to secure her safe release.

Milan: The inside of the house in Italy where police say the kidnapped British model was held. / Reuters

She was kept handcuffed to furniture but was freed after six days and taken to the British consulate in Milan, despite the ransom not being paid.

It has been reported the captor demanded 50,000 upon her release and threatened to kill her if she told police about the incident.

Milan police officer Lorenzo Bucossi told reporters the group the suspect was allegedly working for offered "mercenary services" on the dark web.

Polish man Pawel Lukasz Herba, who was arrested in Milan on suspicion of orchestrating the abduction of a British model. / AFP/Getty Images

According to a translation on Sky News, Mr Bucossi said: "Certainly the author of this very serious crime is a dangerous person, don't forget he was also ready to carry out a 'final solution', as he called it.

"He was a killer and was working for an organisation on the deep web that is offering mercenary services such as bombing attacks, kidnapping and the selling of girls on the dark web."

Italian police said they are working with officials in Britain and Poland as they continue to investigate.

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said an address in Sampson Close in Oldbury was raided on July 18 in connection with the investigation.

The case has thrown the so-called dark web into the spotlight after it claimed the model was offered for sale on a clandestine network online.

The term refers to part of the internet that is only accessible using software which allows users to remain anonymous and untraceable.

Much of the dark web is an online black market where users can buy goods using digital currencies such as Bitcoin and trade in illegal items.

The National Crime Agency has said the use of the dark web "as an international market place for firearms, drugs and indecent images of children" is continuing to rise.

Additional reporting by Press Association.
A n anti-Brexit campaign group is planning a London march as part of a wave of mass protests next month for a wider event dubbed the Autumn of Discontent.

Campaign group the Peoples March for Europe has organised a pro-EU rally in central London for September, which thousands of people have already pledged to attend.

Activists will march from Hyde Park Corner to Parliament Square on September 9 in protest against last years Brexit vote.

Backed by Star Trek actor Sir Patrick Stewart and former Labour spin-doctor Alastair Campbell, the group said the march will coincide with other events in Europe including political party conferences and stalls to be set up in busy town centres.

Backing: Sir Patrick Stewart (Harold Cunningham/Getty Images) / Getty Images

The group said the Autumn of Discontent is set to bring the issue of Brexit and remaining in the EU to the forefront of political debate.

Remain supporter Sir Patrick attacked Leave campaigners for misleading the public over Brexit. He said: The Leave campaign was filled with disinformation and one huge falsehood  the 350 million that was going to find its way into the NHS.

That 350 million never existed. The people of the UK were misled. Monthly reports are published on the economic impact of leaving the union  and they are all negative.

Caroline Wills-Wright, Peoples March for Europe spokeswoman, said: Our nation needs to unite, rethink Brexit and decide whether it is really in the national interests to remain in the EU, an option which is still very much on the negotiation table.

It is up to the people to reclaim the future and our safest and best future lies in Europe and the EU.
A n exodus of staff caused by Brexit could cripple the NHS, the head of the Royal College of Nursing has warned.

In a stark intervention, Janet Davies said some EU workers were already leaving, with hospitals unable to cope if significant numbers followed.

The chief executive of the nurses' union said the Government needed to give a clearer message to NHS staff and potential future recruits from the remaining 27 member states.

Prime Minister Theresa May has promised no EU citizen currently in the UK will be forced out after Brexit, but significant differences still remain between Brussels and the UK over their proposals for citizens' rights after Britain leaves the EU.

Ms Davies told the Sunday Times: "I understand there are lots of negotiations but if it is their aim to enable nurses to stay then they need to say that's what they are aiming to do.

"They need to give a clear message to those who are already here but also to those who want to come in after we leave.

"People will then be able to make a decision and if they decide that they don't want to stay then that is a big cliff-edge and my big fear is the NHS would go under.

"In some hospitals one in five members of staff are trained elsewhere in Europe and they just couldn't cope if suddenly everyone decided to leave."

"The risk is that people will start to leave and we are now starting to see that happen," she said. "We simply can't afford to lose any more nurses; we don't have enough as it is."

Figures from the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) in July showed that the number of EU workers (who make up 5% of the register) leaving the professions had increased from 1,173 in 2012/2013 to 3,081 in 2016/2017.

"The risk is that people will start to leave and we are now starting to see that happen," Ms Davies said. "We simply can't afford to lose any more nurses; we don't have enough as it is."

The fall in the value of sterling had also affected the NHS's ability to recruit and retain EU staff, she said, and also pointed to the Brexit vote's impact on morale.

"Some of them really feel it especially when they have been asked by some patients 'why are you still here?"'

Ms Davies wants European Economic Area NHS workers to be granted permanent residence without the need for "expensive and lengthy administrative burdens on employers and individuals".

She also called for sufficient notice of any "cut-off date" and the move to a post-Brexit immigration system as well as assurances that hospitals would continue to be able to recruit from overseas during a transitional period after the UK's withdrawal from the EU in March 2019.

"There are clear messages the government can give out but they are absent at the moment," she said. "One is that you can stay in the country and the other is that we are going to pay you properly."

The RCN is holding a summer of protests and is threatening a ballot on industrial action later this year if the cap on public sector pay rises is not lifted.

In an ultimatum to Chancellor Philip Hammond, Ms Davies called for the cap to be lifted in the Budget this autumn.

A Department of Health spokesman said: "Nurses are the bedrock of the NHS, and we understand the need to give certainty to valued staff from the EU. That is why we have made clear that the future of EU nationals working in our health and care system should be a priority in Brexit negotiations.

"We have invested in the frontline and since May 2010 there are almost 32,400 more professionally qualified clinical staff on our wards - including over 12,500 more nurses."
A secretive Isis unit responsible for the Bataclan massacre has reportedly been training British fighters for terror attacks on UK soil.

A jihadi captured by Kurdish forces in Syria said would-be suicide bombers were subjected to gruelling training programmes at a secret camp before being sent to Europe to carry out attacks.

In the space of two and a half years, around 50 Isis members from countries including Britain graduated from the camp, the Isis fighter told The Sunday Times.

He told the newspaper that the training programme under the group, allegedly named the al-Kharsa brigade, included bomb construction, physical endurance tests and ideological instruction.

Applicants must above all be willing to travel to Europe to kill - and possibly die - in the name of Isis, the fighter said in an interview in front of his captors.

The programme, carried out at a secret camp in the Isis caliphate, was still ongoing in February this year, he said.

Paris tributes from around the world 1 /32 Paris tributes from around the world People observe a minute of silence in tribute to victims of Friday's attacks in Paris in front of French embassy, near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin Reuters French Minister for Higher Education and Research Thierry Mandon, French Education Minister Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, French President Francois Hollande and French Prime Minister Manuel Valls observe a minute of silence at the Sorbonne University in Paris AFP/Getty Images People observe a minute of silence in front of the Le Carillon cafe in Paris, to pay tribute to victims of the attacks claimed by Islamic State AFP/Getty Images Passengers at St Pancras International Station in London during a minute's silence across Europe to mark the victims of Friday's attacks in the French capital PA Barack Obama and David Cameron observe a minute of silence at the G20 Summit in Antalya, Turkey EPA Candles and flowers form a peace symbol at the Place de la Republique in Paris Jeremy Selwyn People gathered to remember the victims at Notre Dame in Paris on Sunday AP A couple pay their respects outside the Bataclan in Paris on Sunday Jeremy Selwyn Flowers left outside the French Embassy in London Nigel Howard Floral tributes at the Place de la Republique in Paris Jeremy Selwyn The Archbishop of Paris, Andre Vingt-Trois, says mass at the Notre Dame Cathedral on Sunday Reuters Formula 1 drivers observe a minute of silence before the Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo on Sunday Reuters La Moneda presidential palace in Chile illuminated in the colours of the French flag AFP/Getty Images Ben McLemore of US basketball team the Sacramento Kings shows his support for Paris Getty Images American football player Cliff Avril of the Seattle Seahawks walks on to the field with a French flag in honour of the victims ahead of a game on Sunday Getty Images The London Eye lit up in blue, white and red on Saturday AFP/Getty Images A woman with her lips painted in the French national colors in front of the French embassy in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Sunday EPA Pakistani activists shout slogans during a protest against IS militants near the French consulate in Karachi, Pakistan, on Sunday EPA The arch of London's Wembley Stadium has also been illuminated in blue, white and red lights AFP/Getty Images Egyptian, French, Lebanese and Russian flags are projected on to the the Great Pyramid of Giza. IS has claimed responsibility for Friday night's attacks in Paris, Thursdays's twin powerful suicide bombings that tore through a crowded Shiite neighborhood of Beirut, and bringing down a Russian jetliner over Egypt's Sinai region earlier this month AP A woman takes a picture as the obelisk at Plaza Francia in Caracas, Venezuela, is lit up in the French colours Reuters A moment of silence is observed before Sunday's American football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Denver Broncos in Denver, Colorado Getty Images Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Kei Nishikori of Japan observe a minute's silence before their tennis match at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena Pupils at Harris Academy, Battersea observe a minute silence in remembrance of those that died in the terrorist attacks in Paris Glenn Copus

He claimed attacks were organised by an external operations wing of the terror group, known as the Amniyat, which was run by its head strategist Abu Muhammad al-Adnani until he died in 2016.

The external operations unit is said to have included of a programme that trained European fighters in Syria and sent them to attack their home nations.

A planning centre that remotely instructed potential suicide attackers in sleeper cells in Europe was also part of the unit.

"The attacks that happened in Paris and Brussels, the attackers were trained by them and left from Syria to Europe," told the newspaper.

"Sometimes there are foreigners who come to Syria and have training for specific missions. Then they do the attacks alone.

"Others are sleeper cells in Europe who want to join Daesh [Isis] here, but can't. They stay in their countries and contact [Isis]. Then they talk, and when they are ready they do the bombings."
T wo Chinese tourists who were arrested for making Hitler salutes in Germany could face up to three years in prison.

The two men were spotted making the Nazi gesture outside the German parliament in Berlin on Saturday.

The pair  aged 36 and 49  were photographing each other with their mobile phones next to the historic Reichstag building.

They face charges for using symbols of illegal organisations.

Germany has strict rules on hate speech and symbols referring to the Nazis.

The men have been released on bail of 500 (450) each.

A police spokeswoman told AFP news agency that the men could leave the country during the investigation.
D onald Trumps right-hand man Mike Pence has denied a news report suggesting he is preparing a presidential bid in 2020.

Vice President Mike Pence hit back at the story, published in the New York Times on Sunday, which claimed he is planning to try and run for president in 2020 if Mr Trump does not stand.

In a statement released by the White House, Mr Pence called the story disgraceful and offensive to me, my family, and our entire team.

He added the allegations in the article are categorically false and he and his team will "focus all our efforts to advance the president's agenda and see him re-elected in 2020."

The New York Times report details efforts of several Republicans looking ahead to 2020, calling it a "shadow campaign."

It notes the vice president's political schedule and active fundraising, though it also says unnamed advisers have said Mr Pence would only run if President Trump doesn't.

President Trump has not suggested he won't seek a second term. But his first six months in office have been rocky, marked by staff infighting, legislative struggles and a series of investigations.

Speaking to ABC, White House advisor Kellyanne Conway dismissed the report and said Mr Pence is preparing to run for re-election as vice president in three years.

New York Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha said in an emailed statement: "We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting and will let the story speak for itself."

Additional reporting by Associated Press.
F ox News has suspended one of its hosts over allegations he sent lewd photographs to three female colleagues.

Eric Bolling was suspended from the US television network after allegedly sending inappropriate messages several years ago.

His lawyer branded the claims "untrue and terribly unfair.

The case is the third high-profile claim of harassment at the network. Fox News parted ways with star host Bill O'Reilly in April following allegations of sexual harassment, and former Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes was forced to resign last year after being accused of sexual misconduct by a number of women, including former anchor Gretchen Carlson. Both men denied wrongdoing.

The Huffington Post website reported that Mr Bolling sent photos of male genitalia by text. At least two recipients worked at Fox Business and one at Fox News, the website reported.

"Eric Bolling has been suspended pending the results of an investigation, which is currently underway, Fox said in a statement.

Mr Bolling's lawyer, Michael Bowe, said in an email to Reuters that "the anonymous, uncorroborated claims are untrue and terribly unfair. We intend to fully cooperate with the investigation so that it can be concluded and Eric can return to work as quickly as possible."

Previously, Bowe said in a statement to the Huffington Post that Mr Bolling did not recall sending any inappropriate messages and would "vigorously pursue his legal remedies" to combat any false or defamatory accusations.

Fox News, with a conservative bent associated with Republican Party politics, has led most ratings for U.S. cable news for years but has been unsettled by reports that it has been a hostile workplace for women.

Mr Ailes was credited with building Fox News into a politically influential channel. Fox News parted ways with O'Reilly, the face of the channel, after advertisers began to flee his show.

Rupert Murdoch, executive chairman of Twenty-First Century Fox, wrote at the time that the company was committed to "fostering a work environment built on the values of trust and respect."
A husbands message about loving his curvy wife he posted online has sparked a social media backlash.

Robbie Tripp, who describes himself as a husband to a curvy goddess, posted an image of he and his wife on Instagram, along with the controversial message.

In the post, which rapidly attracted widespread criticism, the American entrepreneur says that as he had become a feminist he learned curvy women could be sexy.

Alongside the image of the couple embracing on a beach, Mr Tripp wrote: I love this woman and her curvy body. As a teenager, I was often teased by my friends for my attraction to girls on the thicker side.

He added: "As I became a man and started to educate myself on issues such as feminism and how the media marginalizes women by portraying a very narrow and very specific standard of beauty (thin, tall, lean), I realised how many men have bought into that lie."

"For me, there is nothing sexier than this woman here: thick thighs, big booty, cute little side roll etc."

Since he shared the image a row erupted on social media, with one Twitter user branding Mr Tripp a strong contender for least fave type of male feminist is man who thinks liking a curvy woman is revolutionary.

Julia Pugachevsky, sex and relationships editor of Cosmopolitan magazine, added: Finding non-size-zero women attractive does not make a man a good person. It just makes him not an idiot.

People should date who they want! But mentioning a person's 'otherness' (be it weight, race, gender) makes it seem like you want a medal.

Other social media users hit out at Mr Tripp for suggesting his wife is not a normal size, and for objectifying womens bodies.

One outraged Twitter user wrote: Um she isn't what I'd call big... My legs look like hers and I wear a size 10. I'd like to dub that as average and normal.

And in a post that has been shared more than 16,000 times, YouTube blogger Kat Blaque wrote bluntly: I would dump a guy so quickly for patting himself on the back for having the audacity to date me.

But amid the fury, others jumped to defend Mr Tripp, with one commenter saying: I love this so much. I'm tired of people getting offended by everything and anything.

This is a beautiful post and we need more men like you in the world.

Another supporter wrote: That's so awesome. If you change one man or woman's way of looking at others or themselves you have done an amazing thing.
A n Oxford University employee alleged to have murdered a hair stylist has reportedly been placed on suicide watch after handing himself in to police.

Somerville College senior treasury assistant Andrew Warren, 56, and US Professor Wyndham Lathem, 42, gave themselves up on Friday after spending more than a week on the run.

They triggered a nationwide manhunt after allegedly stabbing Trenton Cornell-Duranleau, 26, multiple times in Lathem's apartment in Chicago on July 27.

Warren is expected to be charged with first degree murder after handing himself in to police in California.

Turned in: Wyndham Lathem

The Sunday Times newspaper quoted a source close to the investigation as saying: We are certainly concerned about their mental state.

Chicago Police said officers were relieved to hear of the peaceful surrenders after fears grew when Lathem had sent a worrying video to family and friends apologising for his role in the murder.

Stabbed to death: Trenton Cornell-Duranleau

Force spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said: "Once we got word that Dr Lathem had sent that video to friends and family we began getting concerned that perhaps he would harm himself or this could end up more tragically for both of them, so we are relieved that both of them are safe."

A broken blade was recovered and officers have CCTV footage tying the men to the 10th floor apartment, he said.

Warren, who says on Facebook he lives in Swindon, and Lathem, a microbiology professor at Northwestern University, now face extradition hearings to determine whether they can be sent to Chicago for questioning.
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More than 4,400 University of Nebraska-Lincoln students have been named to the Deans List for the spring semester of the 2016-17 academic year.

The following students from the Panhandle were honored:

Alliance: Alexandra Stich, freshman, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, animal science; Anthony Hare, sophomore, College of Business, accounting; Bailey OConnor, junior, College of Business, economics; Kevin Allen, senior, College of Engineering, computer engineering.

Broadwater: Jaslyn Livingston, senior, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, applied science.

Chappell: Nash Leef, freshman, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, environmental studies\agronomy.

Sidney: Anna Wistrom, senior, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, environmental restoration science; Caitlyn Deal, sophomore, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, veterinary science; Rose Nelson, junior, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, microbiology; LaNaya Gutierrez, senior, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, hospitality, restaurant and tourism management; Megan Neal, sophomore, College of Arts and Sciences, biological sciences; Hayden Lienemann, sophomore, College of Business, accounting; Calder Rosdail, junior, College of Business, accounting; Abigail Nguyen, sophomore, College of Business, marketing; Nicholas Castner, senior, College of Business, marketing; Ryan Birner, sophomore, College of Education and Human Sciences, pre-social science; Jordan Kennedy, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, elementary education; Morgan Wolff, junior, College of Education and Human Sciences, elementary education and special education (K-6); Spencer Ellwanger, freshman, College of Engineering, civil engineering.; Logan Uhlir, freshman, College of Engineering, computer engineering; Mia Hernandez, sophomore, College of Journalism and Mass Communications, advertising and public relations.

Scottsbluff: Tiffany Adamson, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, psychology; Andrew Cook, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, biochemistry; Tyler McCarthy, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, classics and religious studies; Daniel Schaub, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, political science; Lawrence SeminarioRomero, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, mathematics.; Jedediah Weis, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, biological sciences; Derrick Goss, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, secondary English grades 7-12; Alyssa Hoxworth, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, elementary education; Lucas Parsley, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, social science; Forrest Selvey, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, elementary education and special education (K-6); Anna Torres, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, elementary education; Matthew DeHaven, senior, College of Engineering, computer engineering.

Gering: Johnathon Boyd, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, history; Shelby Cripps, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, anthropology; Emily Hauck, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, environmental studies; Kali Rimington, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, psychology; Megan Copsey, sophomore, College of Business, management; Jasie Beam, junior, College of Business, management (entrepreneurship & innovation); Kyle Upp, junior, College of Business, finance; Karlie Johnson, sophomore, College of Education and Human Sciences, pre-elementary education; Katherine Stauffer, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, elementary educationand early childhood education; Kayla Todd, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, elementary education; Jared Powers, junior, College of Engineering, mechanical engineering; Austin Robinson, junior, College of Engineering, construction management.

Chadron: Lane Chasek, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, English; Shoilee Rahman, sophomore, College of Business, business administration; Jayden Garrett, sophomore, College of Education and Human Sciences, nutrition and health sciences (nutrition, exercise and health science option).

Kimball: Laura Flores, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, ethnic studies.

Mitchell: Aubree Ford, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, biochemistry; Valeria Rodriguez, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, Spanish; Rachel Beeney, freshman, College of Education and Human Sciences, pre-speech-language pathology; Kalesha Hessler, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, elementary education; Olivia Michael, sophomore, College of Education and Human Sciences, pre-elementary education.

Chadron: Brittany Kouba, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, global studies.

Gurley: Tessa Lukesh, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, English.

Bridgeport: Jeff Post, senior, College of Arts and Sciences, chemistry; Kristen Fellhoelter, junior, College of Business, marketing.

Minatare: Elisabeth Wright, junior, College of Arts and Sciences, anthropology; JaLee Pilkington, senior, College of Journalism and Mass Communications, advertising and public relations.

Gering: McKenna Copsey, sophomore, College of Education and Human Sciences, hospitality, restaurant and tourism management.

Rushville: Cirsten Hinn, senior, College of Education and Human Sciences, speech-language pathologist.

Potter: Rebekah Hutchinson, sophomore, College of Education and Human Sciences, speech-language pathologist; Luke Johnson, senior, College of Engineering, agricultural engineering; Kenna Smith, senior, Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts, theatre.

Gordon: Denie Jacobson, junior, College of Education and Human Sciences, textiles, merchandising and fashion design (merchandising).

Hyannis: Isabel Safarik, junior, College of Education and Human Sciences, mathematics.

Gordon: Nicholas Sasse, senior, College of Engineering, construction management.

Qualification for the Deans List varies among the eight undergraduate colleges. All qualifying grade-point averages are based on a four-point scale and a minimum of 12 or more graded semester hours. Students can be on the Deans List for more than one college.
ALLIANCE  Jessie Harrmann, director of legal and regulatory affairs for Nebraska Cattlemen, gave attendees at the last stop of NCs Summer Road Trip a brief of Federal happenings.

At the front of concerns which Nebraska Cattlemen is watching closely is a U.S. Department of Transportation mandate requiring all motor carriers and drivers who currently keep paper records of duty status (RODS) to also install and use an ELD no later than December 18, 2017.

An ELD synchronizes with a vehicle engine to automatically record driving time. Under existing hours of service (HOS) regulations, truck drivers are only allowed to work 70 hours a week, with a maximum driving time of 11 consecutive hours in a 14-hour on duty window. Once the driver hits their maximum duty hour allotment, they must stop and rest for 10 consecutive hours before returning to duty. This poses significant difficulties for livestock haulers, since many deliveries in Nebraska come from locations well outside an 11-hour radius.

This thing has the significant chance of affecting the way we move cattle throughout the entire United States, Harrmann said.

Harrmann said that ELDs originated in larger carriers in the trucking industry who haul furniture or other goods, rather than live animals.

It makes sense for them, because it significantly reduces their liability, Harrmann said. Plus, their employees are salaried, so it would make sense for them.

However, most stock haulers are paid on the number of runs they can make, and its not realistic to pull over for 10 hours with a trailer full of cattle.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued guidance to allow haulers to exempt time loading livestock within a 150-air mile radius from the origin of the livestock load. While this extends the window slightly, its not enough for a centrally located top cattle-feeding state like Nebraska.

The trucking companies dont have the labor for it, and if they have to deal with this, theyre just going to raise trucking rates, Harrmann said. Thats going to impact the prices everyone is getting for feeder cattle.

Harrmann said that the fight against this rule has been difficult in D.C., where most people dont understand that hauling livestock is different from hauling any other commodity. She also said the agency has no clear guidance on how the rule will be implemented.

We house appropriations committee put some language in one of their appropriation bills that gives us a delay by one year for livestock and insect haulers, Harrmann said. The bee haulers apparently move similar to our industry, and the bait guys  like live minnows  are on board, so weve got some strange bedfellows on fighting this.

However, the ELD delay doesnt change the real culprit: the hours of service restriction.

We want to add 150-air mile radius to the back end of the haul, Harrmann said. Thats going to give haulers about 344 road miles to drive on top of the 11 hours.

It helps, but its not perfect. Our haulers say theyd love an 18-hour window, but well take 15.

Harrmann said that since the agency is pushing back, congress might be their only hope to find a resolution.

Weve got a lot of folks on board, but thats what were looking at.
PHOENIX  Got one of those plastic covers on your license plate to thwart photo radar?

Get out your screwdriver. As of Wednesday they're going to be illegal.

It's one of several hundred new laws that kick in that same day, the fruits of this year's 122-day legislative session. Others range from expanding who can teach in Arizona classrooms and when police need warrants to track cell phones to exactly how much of someone's foot a podiatrist can amputate.

For the record, it's a toe -- but not the whole foot.

There also are some odd new statutes, including one that specifically allows counties to put up signs that say, "Enter or proceed with caution. Use at your own risk. This surface is not maintained by the county."

Many of the changes, however, will not take effect yet.

For example, one exempts profits made by those who buy and sell U.S. gold and silver coins from

the state's capital gains tax. But the change does not kick in until the coming calendar year.

Ditto on new requirements for obtaining a hairstyling license.

Legislation to bar the state's newest drivers from using cell phones does not take effect until next July 1.

And a bill to set up procedures for people to argue about what they are charged by out-of-network hospitals does not become law until Jan. 1, 2019.

The measure on license plates culminates years of efforts by Sen. Steve Farley, D-Tucson.

But Farley did not present SB 1073 as a method of helping police catch more speeding motorists with photo radar, a technology that has proven unpopular with many lawmakers. Instead, he sold it as a law-and-order measure, saying that bad guys will get away because police officers and witnesses to crimes won't be able to read the license plate of a vehicle.

The new laws, in general, fall into several areas.

Law and order

Legislators voted to curb the ability of police and prosecutors to seize property, requiring they prove by "clear and convincing evidence'' that they items they want to confiscate were involved in criminal activity.

That's not as stringent as required to gain a criminal conviction where a judge or jury must find someone is guilty "beyond a reasonable doubt.''

But it is more than now where all a prosecutor needs prove by a "preponderance of evidence'' there's a link between the property and a crime. That is basically a balancing test, meaning all a judge need find is that the evidence show it's more likely than not there is a link.

The change is important because police and prosecutors can seize property without ever charging the owner with a crime, much less getting a conviction.

Other new laws include:

- Requiring police to get warrants when tracking the location of cell phones.

- Expanding the definition of "terrorism'' to include acts intended to coerce civilians and "further the goals, desires, aims, public pronouncements, manifestos or political objectives of any terrorist organization.''

-- Allowing for enhanced sentence if the defendant acted because the victim was a peace officer, whether or not that officer was on duty.

- Requiring the Department of Corrections to provide notice to area residents when locating a correctional facility nearby.

- Allowing community notification of registered sex offenders to be done electronically

Guns

It wouldn't be a legislative session if lawmakers did not enact some measure under the banner of protecting Second Amendment rights.

The measure with the broadest implications doesn't even mention firearms. Instead, it bars state and local governments from mandating that anyone who sells any property from requiring a background check on the buyer.

The effect, though, would be to preclude Arizona or local governments from closing what's been called the "gun-show loophole'' in federal law which says background checks are not requires for sales by inedividuals, including at gun shows, no matter how many weapons they sell.

Rep. Randall Friese, D-Tucson, derided contention the measure is not about guns.

"No one is talking about background checks for refrigerator sales or microwave sales or dining room furniture sales,'' he said during floor debate. "Let's just be serious.''

Other bills include:

- Prohibiting prohibits local governments from telling employees or independent contractors they cannot have a weapon that is on their own property or in their own vehicle.

- Saying the use of "smart'' guns which can fire only if held by authorized person can't be mandated.

- Carving out an an exception from laws which require $600,000 in reserves for insurers who offer prepaid legal services: It is now $50,000 -- but only for those who specialize in lawful use of firearms.

Education

Lawmakers adopted several measures that could have sweeping impact.

One of the biggest would expand eligibility for who can get a voucher of public funds to attend private or parochial schools.

Started in 2011, what are formally known as "education scholarship accounts'' were designed for students with special needs. But proponents have incrementally expanded it to where it now also includes foster children, reservation residents and children attending schools rated D and F.

The new law removes all those conditions. But backers had to agree on a cap of enrollment of 30,000 by 2023.

Whether it becomes law, however, is another question.

Foes have until close of business Tuesday to submit at least 75,321 valid signatures on referendum petitions. If successful, the law remains on "hold'' until November 2018 when voters get the last word on whether to ratify or veto the change.

Other education bills include:

- Easing requirements for people from other states to be able to teach in Arizona and allowing local school districts to decide who to certify as teachers through a "classroom-based preparation program.''

- Imposing new requirements on school districts to make new high school textbooks available for public review for at least 60 days.

- Allowing children at public schools and children's camp to use sunscreen with a note or prescription from a doctor.

- Requiring schools to report on suspensions and expulsions involving illegal substances.

Health and welfare

Arizona now will have what may be the most comprehensive requirements in the country on what doctors have to do if a baby is born alive during an abortion.

Until now the law has said if there is a live birth it is the duty of doctors in attendance to see that "all available means and medical skills are used to preserve and maintain the life of such fetus or embryo.'' But doctors who testified during hearings on SB 1367 told lawmakers they read that law to require no special efforts if there is no reasonable chance the child will survive. They said it is preferable to provide comfort for the baby and, if the mother wants, give it to the mother to hold.

The new law provides the first-ever definition in Arizona of "delivered alive.'' That covers any fetus or embryo, no matter how premature, who shows breathing, a heartbeat, umbilical cord pulsation or "definite movement of voluntary muscles.''

At that point, medical professionals must do everything possible to keep the baby alive. A separate provision says any clinic that does abortions on women beyond the 20th week of pregnancy must have someone available with neonatal skills to care for the child if born alive.

Separately, lawmakers agreed to restore the two-year lifetime limit on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families that state had previously cut in half. But they added some new restrictions that will prevent everyone from being eligible for that second year.

Lawmakers also approved:

-- Expanding existing laws designed to protect health care providers and institutions against discrimination for refusing to facilitate in someone ending his or her own life.

- Repealing a requirement for fingerprints for welfare and food stamp recipients after it was determined the cost to administer it exceeded any fraud that was prevented.

- Requiring the Department of Economic Security to post information online about those who have not made child support payments in at least 12 months.

- Permitting judges to create exemptions from laws which suspend the driver's license of those who are in arrears on child support, a move designed to ensure they keep their jobs and can start making payments.

Elections

Lawmakers moved on two fronts to impose new hurdles on the ability of individuals to propose and enact their own laws through initiatives.

Until now judges have said that initiatives can be on the ballot if they are in "substantial compliance'' with election laws. HB 2244 says there has to be "strict compliance,'' disqualifying petition drives for what could be minor violations.

A judge is set to decide Monday whether the change is unconstitutional.

But that is unlikely to be the last word, with the question of the legality of the measure ultimately decided by the state Supreme Court.

Another new restriction eliminates the ability of groups hoping to put measures on the ballot to pay circulators based on the number of signatures they gather.

But this measure is subject to a referendum campaign, with opponents hoping to get enough signatures by the end of the day Tuesday to give voters the last word.

Other ways election laws are being changed:

- Stipulating that envelopes used for early ballots have to be designed so no one can see through them.

- Making it illegal to vote in more than one state in elections featuring federal offices that are held on the same day.

- Allowing voters to opt to get the legally required publicity pamphlet about issues on the election ballot by email rather than snail mail.

- Imposing new requirement for meetings and voting by homeowners' associations.

Odds and ends

- Exempting those who break into a locked vehicle to rescue a child or pet in imminent danger from civil liability.

- Allowing up to 35 electronic billboards in areas of Mohave County.

- Putting new limits on who can file lawsuits over issues of disability access.

- Baring people from calling themselves "art therapists'' unless they are registered with the Art Therapy Credentials Board.

- Repealing limits on how much landlords can pay in "finder fees'' to those who locate prospective tenants.

- Permiting residents of San Tan Valley to pursue incorporation efforts despite opposition from nearby communities.

- Enacting new regulations on intrastate movers, including prohibition against refusing to deliver goods if the customers pays the price agreed upon before the move.

- Imposing new limits on the ability of counties to regulate home-based businesses regarding things like traffic, parking and delivery.

- Increasing the number of licenses to sell beer and wine.
MITCHELL  For the Liakos family of rural Bayard, the fair season brings a bit of stability to an otherwise tumultuous summer.

George and Anne Liakos and their three children Riley, Ryan, and Mackenzie, were displaced by an EF-2 tornado on June 12 that totaled their home, show barn, and much of their machinery and equipment sheds.

Right now, just getting life back to normal would be big, George said. Its been a hard 51 days. Its five oclock in the morning to 10 oclock at night almost every day.

Theyre currently living in a rental house south of Bayard, about 9 miles from the farm. While the roof is over their head, its been tough bouncing back and forth to feed cows and take care of the farm.

Its a house, Anne Liakos said. But its not really home home.

Picking up the pieces has been a slow process, but theyre still dedicated to making it to the fair.

Its been a tough couple of days, and were used to doing better than this, George said. We didnt have any barns for animals either. The show barn was totaled out.

The kids were working in a calving barn in the interim, which was hot and full of flies. However, George hopes to have the show barn rebuilt by September, and their house on the farm rebuilt sometime in the spring.

That will hopefully give us a little more stability, George said.

The children have all been showing around the country for about 8 years, with Mackenzie starting at age 5, entering into jackpot shows since before she was even old enough. Over the first few days of the Scotts Bluff County Fair, the Liakos children showed swine and sheep. They normally showed cattle, but didnt have the time to get them ready this year.

The kids do well, George Liakos said. But its just not like a normal summer at all.

Despite the setbacks, the Liakos children grabbed a slew of purple ribbons, with Mackenzie taking gold in intermediate sheep showmanship.

In four weeks, they will head to the Nebraska State Fair in Grand Island, then on to Aksarben, Kansas City, Louisville, and theyll finish out in Denver.

Its what we do as a family, George said. Were gonna go and show and make the best of it.

At the end of Wednesdays sheep showmanship, the Liakos family and hired-hand Paul Garcia were busy getting everything packed up and taken back to the farm, where chores needed to be done, before making a trip back to the fairgrounds for the rubber check races that evening.

I dont think Ive ever missed a rubber check race, George said. I dont want this to be the first year.
In 1916, Tom Butchers grandfather purchased a farm just north of Morrill. Today, that farm is still in the family run by Tom, his son, Terry and his grandson, Tyler.

Tom, Terry, Tyler as well as Toms wife, Twyla, and Terrys wife, Stacey, and his daughter, Cassidy, were recognized for their large milestone during the 2017 Scotts Bluff County Junior Livestock sale on Saturday, Aug. 5, at the Scotts Bluff County Fairgrounds in Mitchell. They received a Nebraska Pioneer Farm Award sign to place on their farm and a plaque for their 100 years of continuous family ownership.

Its been a lot of ups and downs, good years and bad years, Tom Butcher said.

Tom Butcher gave an example of just how long ago his grandfather purchased that farm by stating that Woodrow Wilson was the president at that time. His grandfather plowed some of the farm up from sod. He also commented on the difference of farming from then to now.

This was before irrigation, they had to set tubes and dig dirt ditches, Tom Butcher said. Now, we have a center pivot.

Terry Butcher said as he was growing up, he would help out his dad.

I have a lot of memories on that farm, like learning to drive tractors, Terry Butcher said. It (the milestone) is pretty neat.

Terry Butcher has fully taken over the farm for about seven years now. Tom Butcher is not out of the picture, however, as he still makes time to help out.

I farmed with my dad, my dad farmed with me, now Terry is taking over with his boy, Butcher said.

Tom Butcher said its nice to know the farm will stay in the family.

(The milestone and recognition) is real humbling, Tom Butcher said. Its a real honor.

Their farm is a 120-acre plot that grows sugar beets, corn and beans.

Tyler and Cassidy Butcher were participants in the livestock sale on Saturday. Cassidy Butcher sold her 280-pound Reserve Champion 4-H swine for $6.75 per pound, or $1,890 to Simplot Grower Solutions and Verizon Wireless. Tyler Butcher sold his 281-pound Champion 4-H Gilt swine to Sam Adams for $8 per pound, or $2,248.
FFA and 4-H members participated in the 2017 Scotts Bluff County Junior Livestock Sale on Saturday, Aug. 5, at the Scotts Bluff County Fairgrounds in Mitchell. Two-hundred nine youth sellers auctioned off their animals to local buyers.

Prior to the sale, there was a Parade of Champions for those involved in competitions such as photography, clothing construction, foods and more. In the Clothing Construction category, Katelyn Walker was the champion for the junior division and Katelan Rogers was the champion for the senior division.

In the Style Revue category, Katelan Rogers was the champion for the senior division and Sheridan Lathrop was the champion for the junior division. In the foods division, the champion in the junior division was Gabriella Anderson and the champion in the senior division was Jacqueline Bowles.

The Cake Decorating Champion was Gabriella Anderson and the Family Consumer Science Champion was Jessica Splichal. Kyle Kizzire was the grand champion for photography. In Personal Development, Landon Murphy was the champion with his Lego project. In Science and Technology, James Heldt was the champion with his project on Saturn and in the Plant Science category, Splichal was the champion for her project with cucumbers.

Splichal also sold three quail during the sale and received a Reserve Champion award for Best of Breed for her chickens.

It was fun, Splichal said of the sale. I worked with them by holding them and making sure they stay in the basket so they didnt fly out into the crowd.

Splichals quail were purchased by Kelley Bean.

Throughout the morning there was a breakfast for the buyers, which was donated by First National Bank and Fisher Roofing and Restoration.

To start out the livestock sale, Steves Trucking bought Sydnee Strains 139 pound County Grand Champion Sheep at $17 per pound, or $2,363. Next, a group of buyers, Sheridan Livestock Auction, Otte Foods, Sterling Livestock, Security First Bank, Tom Kemp LIvestock and Eagle Chevrolet purchased Carson Wilmots 1,379 pound County Grand Champion Steer at $6 per pound, or $8,274.

Parker Yosts 284 pound County Grand Champion Swine sold to Platte Valley Bank for $4 per pound, or $1,136. Welch Inc. purchased Jayden Allens 78 pound County Grand Champion Meat Goat for $17 per pound, or $1,326.

Demi Santero sold her 97 pound County Grand Champion Market Dairy Goat for $8 per pound, or $776 to Western States Bank. Lessert Insurance bought Patricia Woolseys County Grand CHampion Market Rabbit for a total of $550.

Deines Irrigation purchased Jonah Splichals County Grand Champion Turkey for a total of $800.

Kate Pieper sold her 144 pound County Reserve Champion Sheep to Wolf Auto for $15 per pound, or $2,160. Trans West purchased Carson Wilmots 1,218 pound County Reserve Champion Steer for $3.25 per pound, or $3,958.50. Wilmot announced that she would be donating half of her earnings from the steer to the FFA Alumni.

Murdochs purchased Jayden Allens 271 pound County Reserve Champion Swine for $3.50 per pound, or $948.50. Aspen Jagers sold her 100 pound County Reserve Champion Meat Goat to Business Farmer for $10 per pound, or $1,000.

Animal House International purchased Stephanie Woolseys three County Reserve Champion Market Rabbits for a total of $450. Tucker Hodsden sold his County Reserve Champion Poultry to Western States Bank for a total of $500.

One seller, Ryan Liakos, showed Market Lamb in the sale and his lamb was purchased by Westco. The Liakos family lost a lot in a recent tornado, including their lamb barn. Ryan Liakos said they moved the lambs into the calving barn, although it isnt meant for sheep.

He worked with his sheep about an hour in the morning and an hour at night to prepare for fair.

It [Westcos purchase] means a lot because of all that happened this year and all of the work I put in, Liakos said.

Sponsors for the sale included Mike Nuss and Don Helberg, Platte Valley Bank and Platte Valley LIvestock. Snack sponsors included Great Western Bank, Mitchell Valley Animal Hospital, Pinnacle Bank, Jeff and Cindy Scheinhost. The lunch sponsor was Great Western Bank and other sponsors include Haug Trucking and Dr. Sarah Heath of Pioneer Animal Clinic.
SCOTTSBLUFF  When Davis Morales and Tyson Lambertson met, there was an instant connection. Nine years later, the friends are working together in Scottsbluff.

In 2008, Lambertson visited Managua, Nicaragua, on another project, but also got to see what it was like to be trained at a Global Leadership Summit. He happened to pass Morales, who helped organize the event there in the hallway. The two struck up a conversation that has never stopped.

There was a divine connection there, Morales said. We just kept in touch.

The Willow Creek Association hosts GLS, which aims to create better leaders. The 23rd Summit, to be held on Aug. 10-11, will be simulcast live by satellite in 600 sites in North America. Leaders from all areas of business  nonprofit, government, education and faith-based sectors.

GLS teaches a broad base of leadership mixing church and corporate identities. Lambertson said although GLS welcomes everyone who would like to be a better leader, he sees many ways to integrate the leadership skills at the summit with Christ-centered leadership because they are often the same thing.

Morales subsequently visited Chicago and Willow Creek twice. Each time he visited, he learned something new. He knew he was going to become more involved with GLS.

After moving to Long Island, New York, with his family, he learned none of the churches in his area were doing GLS. Morales eventually learned about an open position for a worship pastor at the Rock Church in Scottsbluff. He and his wife have enjoyed the area so much, they are planning on settling here permanently.

In Nicaragua, Morales was an attorney. Many of the principles he learned at GLS, he put into practice in his professional life. His employees improved the way they did their work and he improved the way he dealt with them and his business overall. Morales also found the principles in GLS could be applied to his family.

You can use it in the way you lead your family and you have a clear vision on how to help your kids develop their skills, Morales said. It makes you a better son, husband, father and you can guide your children to be better people.

Lambertson said that although GLS is Christ-centered, the summit is about learning from all facets of life to become better leaders. Not all the speakers at the event are from a Christian background, but they drive home the influence of being a good leader.

Some speakers that dont have a Christian background are academics and scholars, Morales said.

Morales has found many of those speakers teach about principles that can be found in the Bible.

One of the principles is to treat other people well so you can get the best out of them because you want to be treated the same way, Morales said.

According to previous GLS attendees, 81 percent cite concrete ways their supervisor has become a better leader because of the summit and 83 percent believe improved teamwork has increased productivity, teamwork and job satisfaction.

One previous speaker Lambertson learned a lot from was Henry Cloud. He taught about cultivating the leadership of self-discipline and self-reflection.

He discusses reflecting on your day for 10 minutes and thinks, What did I do today that I could have done better? Lambertson said.

Morales said hes just part of a team trying to make things better. He and Lambertson are part of a team of local church members who have helped organize this years summit.

This years speakers include Bill Hybels, found of GLS and senior paster at Willow Creek Community Church; Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer, Facebook; Marcys Lemonis, star of CNBCs The Profit; Gary Haugen, founder, CEO of International Justice Mission; Andy Stanley, leadership author and pastor; and Marcus Buckingham, author of Now, Discover Your Strengths.

The event has already registered 240. Spaces are still available. You can register at http://www.willowcreek.com.
My colleague Sen. Steve Erdman recently criticized my Legislative Resolution 3 (2017), which, when adopted, establishes a legislative task force to: a) consider potential designs for a new Nebraska flag; and b) report its recommendations for a new design, if at all. I understand if Sen. Erdman dislikes this conversation of aesthetics and my approach. We all know how contentious the redesign of Nebraska symbols can be. Remember our license plates? But in his column, Sen. Erdman got two facts wrong.

First, Sen. Erdman asserts that I have the authority or convinced state officials to fly a Nebraska flag upside down to illustrate the flag needs to be redesigned. I did no such thing. The fact it happened at all is a matter of coincidence, and the Omaha World-Herald correctly reported on Feb. 2, 2017. that the true culprit was human error (Raising flag at Nebraska Capitol is no easy task). Further, flying an American flag or for that matter any flag upside-down is generally considered a sign of dire distress. The reason I propose this change is because of my great respect for the state flag and how it represents us. I would never be so brazenly irresponsible to fly the flag upside down, especially for political purposes. To suggest otherwise is offensive.

Second, Sen. Erdman said his primary reason to oppose a redesign of the Nebraska flag is the associated $250,000 cost to the taxpayers. This would be a valid concern, if only it were true. Yes, a similar flag redesign proposal in 2002 (Legislative Bill 954) had an associated cost near Sen. Erdmans figure, but my legislative resolution had no associated cost. The reason: my legislative resolution does not require the Nebraska flag be redesigned or replaced. It only creates a task force to have a conversation about design. Additionally, if the proposed task force ever recommends a change to the Nebraska flag, I have a solution to the cost concerns. When the State retires a flag due to age and condition, a process it does already on a regular basis, simply replace it with the new design. This was a simple, gradual, cost-effective solution that I publicly stated on multiple occasions to both my legislative colleagues and the media (Omaha World-Herald, Nebraskas state flag could get a makeover, Jan. 9, 2017).

In todays society, elected officials and the media with its fake news are as unpopular as ever. The Legislature and the media play an important role informing Nebraskans, and therefore, I hold both institutions to a high standard. It is important when Sen. Erdman attempts to persuade, it is based on correct facts. It is also equally important for a newspaper to fact check a column that appears in its paper.

I consider it an honor to serve in the Nebraska State Unicameral, and I have enjoyed my time working with Sen. Erdman. I find him to be a strong advocate and ally in the fight for property tax relief. However, both Sen. Erdman and this paper have a duty and responsibility when informing its readers to ensure the content is factually correct.
All summer long the Nebraska Public Service Commission (PSC) has been listening to concerned parties about whether TransCanadas Keystone XL is in the public interest of Nebraska. Opponents of the KXL far outnumbered the proponents, and for good reason. This particular pipeline has nothing to do with Nebraska, other than we are in TransCanadas way in their effort to move toxic Diluted Bitumen (DilBit), that they prefer to call crude, to the gulf coast where it will be refined and exported. TransCanada will tell you there is no difference between crude and DilBit. Federal studies show otherwise, with the most striking difference being DilBit sinks, crude floats. Who in their right mind would put a pipeline of sinking toxins carrying 35 million gallons a day directly over and in some cases directly through the Ogallala Aquifer?

But that is of no concern to the PSC as they are forbidden to consider the dangers of the pipeline and its contents. Sound crazy? Yes, but that is the law. They cannot consider the fact this poison-filled pipe will cross 250 intermittent streams and rivers and 340 roads. They cannot consider it will be within 500 feet of 270 water wells and 325 irrigation pivots. And they cannot consider the fact that this pipe, buried four feet in the ground, will cross many areas where the groundwater is only four to ten feet below the surface.

The PSC cannot consider the fact that by TransCanadas own admission this pipe will carry a lot of benzene, a known carcinogen, and described by TransCanada in its own application: This product may contain benzene. Benzene has been classified by the international agency for research on cancer as a group 1 product indicating sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity. Studies exist which report a link to crude oil and reproductive effects including fetal tumors and menstrual disorders. This product contains small quantities of xylene. High exposure to xylene has fetotoxic effects in animal studies. This product contains small quantities of polycylic aromatic hydrocarbons. Prolonged contact with these compounds has been associated with the induction of skin and lung tumours. No additional remarks. The PSC must determine if this pipe is in the interest of Nebraskans and clearly it is not.

They can consider how many jobs and how much in taxes the pipe will generate. The Nebraska DEQ study said after the pipe is operational is would create about fifteen new jobs. Thats it, fifteen! Sure there will be temporary construction jobs, but they will be gone in a flash. Yes, the pipe will generate some property taxes for counties along the route, but not for long as Nebraska law allows for full depreciation of the pipe after fifteen years, so at that time, most of the property taxes cease.

Now heres what the PSC needs to consider first and foremost, and where it gets mighty personal  Is it right to allow a foreign corporation to use Nebraskas eminent domain laws to take control of private landowners property for private gain? These eminent domain laws are in place to benefit Nebraskans. For example a new road, a road which we will all use, or maybe a school, which will serve our communities, or maybe a natural gas pipeline that will carry fuel that we will use to heat our homes. But TransCanadas pipeline, which would generate millions of dollars in profits for TransCanadas stockholders by carrying a toxic blend of tar-sand and diluents to Port Arthur, Texas to be refined and exported.

Approval of this foreign pipeline would establish a dangerous precedent. Say the next pipeline from Canada to the gulf would be owned by a company from China or Russia or from another country that is not so friendly with the U.S. Maybe it wouldnt be a pipeline at all, but just some foreign corporation who wants to expand their operation and wants to take private land using our eminent domain laws? Folks, this isnt right. Private property rights in Nebraska are strong and in no circumstance should a foreign corporation be allowed to take some control of private property for private gain, when clearly there is little to no benefit for the people of our great state.

Now, you may disagree and that is fine, but I would suspect TransCanada is not taking you to court to seize some control of your land. Then again, maybe you are a landowner on the KXL route who thinks it is OK to sell off some of your property rights to a foreign corporation. That is fine too, but for those landowners who are opposed, we should respect their property rights as well, and do whatever is necessary to protect all landowners rights.

Thanks to the millions of dollars spent to lobby our representatives, or the extensive and sometimes misleading marketing campaign by TransCanada, Gov. Pete Ricketts believes it is OK for foreign corporations to use eminent domain to take control of private land. So do Rep. Adrian Smith and Sen. Deb Fischer. They have in essence stuck For Sale to the Highest Bidder signs in our state, disregarding the true meaning of public good when it comes to exercising eminent domain laws.

But the people havent succumbed to TransCanadas exaggerations. Nor have they fallen in lockstep with the politicians. They have courageously stood tall and said this is not an issue of right versus left, but rather an issue of right versus wrong. I hope the hundreds of Nebraskans who testified will be heard by the PSC. I hope the PSC will understand this decision is much larger than a single pipeline. I hope they will consider the precedent they will set if they approve this injustice and allow foreign corporations to take control of private property for private gain.

Maybe you see it differently. Maybe you agree. Either way, I always want to hear from you: greg.awtry@starherald.com.
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.
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Trade and energy  two key talking points under President Donald Trump  are often siloed into separate policy conversations, but now find themselves on a possible collision course as U.S. officials weigh a tariff on imported solar panels.

A rare type of trade complaint issued by Suniva, a Georgia solar panel manufacturer that recently filed for bankruptcy, seeks a substantial tariff on the cheaper, foreign-made panels that dominate global supply.

While the company argues that the measure is needed for domestic producers to compete, many fear that the request, if granted, threatens to upend one of the countrys fastest growing industries by shutting off access to low-cost arrays.

Though the pending case is still more than a month away from a resolution, the uncertainty surrounding the mere prospect of the tariff has put projects on hold and driven solar panel prices up  a crunch companies across the nation and in St. Louis are experiencing firsthand.

One area business to feel the pressure is McCarthy Building Companies. The St. Louis-based construction firm does wide-ranging work that includes renovation of the Gateway Arch grounds, but it has carved a niche in recent years designing and building large-scale solar projects for private, third-party developers across the United States.

In the last two months, weve seen a 20 percent increase in the price of the panels, said Scott Canada, McCarthys senior vice president of renewable energy. Everyones trying to lock in the price now before they see a potential tariff price impact.

That rush on panels comes amid desperate pushes to advance or secure projects that builders cant satisfy. A solar project McCarthy was building in West Texas, for instance, has been halted.

We have owners asking, If you get the modules, well go build the projects right now, Canada said. We have to tell them we cant get the panels.

Other projects around the country have reportedly stalled or face possible delays. Canada says the alarm and urgency of developers is understandable, especially for large-scale projects highly sensitive to cost.

If you have uncertainty of 5 percent on a $100 million project or larger, those numbers become very large, very quickly, said Canada, noting that solar panels can often account for about 40 percent of costs for utility-scale projects. Its the uncertainty thats as bad as the potential tariff itself, at least in the near term.

That outlook is shared by the Solar Energy Industries Association, a national trade organization for the solar sector that opposes the tariff.

Not knowing what prices will be in the coming months makes it harder to plan with any degree of comfort, said Abigail Ross Hopper, the CEO and president of SEIA. Businesses across the board prefer certainty.

Launched in 2010, McCarthys renewable energy unit has grown to a staff of about 100 workers nationwide and now accounts for roughly 10 percent of the companys revenue, Canada said.

The solar coaster

But McCarthy is not the only area company to feel disruption from the Suniva case already. Rooftop solar installers such as StraightUp Solar, a firm headquartered in St. Louis, are also having to adjust.

Mike Hornitschek, the companys director of strategic development, says the case marks just another trip around the solar coaster  a playful reference to the volatility that can characterize the industry. He says that panel prices leapt by 20 to 25 percent in just the last two weeks and suppliers have raised costs for third- and fourth-quarter deliveries.

We really believe theyre going to keep going up, Hornitschek said. We have reduced our expectations in the amount of commercial work because of this.

The company has spent time determining which of its projects are affected, he said, and is working on contingency planning. Hes hopeful, though, that the company will be able to shore up any loss of commercial installations with work on the residential side, where he notes that demand is steadier since homeowners are more inclined to get panels for ideological reasons as well as for economic ones.

Despite the tariffs aim to protect domestic solar manufacturers, critics argue that any gains would be offset by steeper job losses to solar installers.

Potentially tens of thousands of jobs on the installation side could get sacrificed for what would probably amount to a couple hundred jobs of the manufacturing side, Hornitschek said.

Estimates from SEIA state that, if implemented, the tariff would cause the loss of about 200 solar jobs in Missouri, or 17 percent of the state total. Nationally, the organization projects that the tariff could cause the loss of 80,000 solar jobs. Projections from GTM Research, meanwhile, estimate that there would be a 50 percent drop in new solar deployment over the next five years, if the full tariff sought by Suniva goes through.

Jobs or lower prices?

The solar spat is just the latest example of global trade that has been hard on U.S. factories but delivered huge cost savings for consumers.

Competitors have long complained that Chinese companies use government subsidies and illegal dumping to capture market share. The United States in 2012 slapped duties averaging around 40 percent on firms from China, and in 2014 imposed average duties of about 20 percent on producers from Taiwan, according to GTM Research.

Those levies are still in effect. But Suniva, which filed for bankruptcy protection in April, is looking for more. Less than two weeks after its Chapter 11 filing, it lodged its complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission .

In its petition, Suniva said previous tariffs werent working because China and Taiwan were just shifting production to other low-wage countries to avoid the duties.

It asked the government to establish a minimum price of 78 cents a watt on panels produced anywhere outside the U.S. to keep companies from circumventing the penalties. Thats more than double the average of 35 cents a watt that prevailed before the recent price run-up.

Ironically, Suniva since 2015 has been majority owned by a Chinese firm. In May, SolarWorld Americas Inc., the U.S. division of Germanys SolarWorld AG, joined Suniva as a co-petitioner on the case.

On Sept. 22, the International Trade Commission is set to rule on whether Suniva has been harmed by solar imports. If so, the commission will make a recommendation to the Trump administration in November about any appropriate action or tariff. Its not known how the president would respond.

The tariff case has sparked diverse resistance spanning advocates of both renewable energy and conservative champions of free market principles. Regardless of the cases outcome, industry officials insist that any tariff would not deal a lasting blow to solars momentum.

Its hard to see a lasting long-term impact, said Canada, who added that theres pretty significant fear some tariff would be enacted. It essentially hurts projects and employment and other things around solar in the near term, but it doesnt stop solar in the long haul.

Hornitschek agreed.

This doesnt kill the solar industry, it simply slows the growth, he said. If youre going to make it in the solar industry and survive, you have to be able to deal with permanently riding the solar coaster because solar is here to disrupt the paradigm.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Michael Sandknop was smiling.

In picture after picture, standing in front of various monuments in our nations capital, posing with congressional staffers, the constant was a grin-to-grin smile that cant be faked. It only comes from a deep place of happiness.

The photos were posted on Facebook July 27 and 28 as Sandknop was in the nations capital for a whistleblower appreciation luncheon sponsored by the National Whistleblower Center. For Sandknop, it was an opportunity to celebrate some success  to be honored for his courage and persistence  and shake the hands of the investigators and other federal employees who took him seriously and worked to bring justice in his case.

For the professional videographer from Arnold, an Army veteran and former contract employee of the Missouri National Guard, its been a long, lonely battle. He was fired from his job in 2014, a week after he filed a complaint with the Guards inspector general about bad management practices.

I met him in late 2015. There were no smiles that day. Sandknop was a broken man.

Such is the difficult hill most whistleblowers must climb.

All alone, they find the gumption to report wrongdoing in business or government dealings. They are ostracized, left out in the cold. They lose friends and family. They often find the power of big business or the government used against them. And yet, their courage is so helpful to a nation that rarely stops to so much as give them a thank you.

A recent study by a University of Iowa professor seeks to document how important whistleblowers actually are. James Wilde, an assistant professor of accounting, used public records to document that companies positively changed their behavior in financial reporting for up to two years after having been caught in some sort of shenanigans or law breaking by internal whistleblowers.

Following the allegations, whistleblower firms are significantly more likely to experience a decrease in the incidence of accounting irregularities and a decrease in tax aggressiveness, compared with control firms, the study concluded.

It should be no surprise, then, that elected officials in both parties in Washington are seeking to strengthen whistleblower protections. Just a couple of days after Sandknop and other important federal whistleblowers were feted for their courageous disclosures, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a bill that strengthens and reauthorizes the Office of Special Counsel, which investigates federal employees claims of whistleblower retaliation. The bill was sponsored by Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat, as well as Sen. Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican.

Grassley and McCaskill were key in applying the pressure that got Sandknops case reopened last year. This summer, in a rare finding, the inspector general of the Department of Defense ruled that Sandknop and a colleague, Colby Powell, had been illegally fired by the Guard.

McCaskill and Grassley are still awaiting answers from the Missouri Guard as to how they will respond to the inspector generals finding.

But while the federal government is strengthening whistleblower protections, Missouri is going in the opposite direction.

The same new law signed by Gov. Eric Greitens that has led to the NAACP issuing a travel advisory for the state because of the rollback of employment discrimination protections also weakens protection for state whistleblowers. Its why state Auditor Nicole Galloway urged the governor to veto the bill in a letter that went unheeded.

The so-called Whistleblower Protection Act specifically excludes employees of state and local government and public higher education institutions from protection against retaliation for reporting unlawful activity, Galloway noted. I fear SB 43 makes it much less likely whistleblowers will come forward to report public misconduct or corruption.

That means the next time a Michael Sandknop comes along to report misconduct or fraud or waste in Missouri government, the battle might be even more difficult than the one still being waged by a guy who just wanted to tell stories about Missouri soldiers who had come back from war.

Hes smiling now, having been recognized in the halls of American power for taking that very power to task.
UNIVERSITY CITY  Sunday was emotional for Anita Feigenbaum, but in a good way.

She felt happy, and more than anything, she felt relieved.

After almost six months of fundraising, physical labor and helping with the ongoing investigation with police, the executive director of the Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery in University City is ready for a fresh start.

She and a few dozen others honored the time, energy and money of those who helped clean up the cemetery after vandals toppled over 154 tombstones there in February. They did so through a rededication ceremony on the cemetery grounds Sunday morning in between bouts of rain.

What happened in February was an event that, for a few days at least, captured the countrys attention. Vice President Mike Pence came to town and walked the cemetery grounds alongside Gov. Eric Greitens, assessing the damage.

That was all while law enforcement agencies searched surveillance video and any other tips that came in to decipher whether the act boiled down to vandalism, or if it was steeped in anti-Semitism.

Despite not knowing the motive, it was still a violation, Andrew Rehfeld, chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of St. Louis, told the crowd Sunday.

I dont think you can explain the reaction without referencing what is going on today, he said. And I believe it was due to a context of growing attacks that we were seeing first and foremost against the Jewish community.

He pointed to what he called the rise of anti-Semitism as something that should be deeply concerning to everyone. But he didnt stop with the Jewish faith.

The rise of anti-Muslim rhetoric at the same time, the wave of anti-immigrant and anti-other and racist acts and dialogue presented a moment for us to come together and name it, condemn it and do something together, Rehfeld said.

He and other organizers in St. Louis gave particular recognition to Tarek El-Messidi. El-Messidi, a Muslim social justice advocate from Philadelphia, has been a presence in St. Louis since shortly after the cemetery made national headlines. He and another volunteer raised $160,000 for restoration efforts at the cemetery within a few weeks of the vandalism.

At the core, every human being has the right to rest in peace, El-Messidi said.

What happened to Chesed Shel Emeth in University City could have happened at a Muslim cemetery anywhere, he pointed out. That underscores the larger shared vision for unity that El-Messidi and Rehfeld discussed Sunday.

In addition to the money raised by the Muslim group, the Jewish Federation raised almost $250,000, according to Feigenbaum. She said its difficult to figure out how much money actually came in to restore the stones that were broken because it came through so many outside organizations.

Walking around the grounds, its easy to spot a few new headstones, replacing ones that were broken in February.

The money from the Jewish Federation is going toward security upgrades not just at Chesed Shel Emeth, but all of the Jewish cemeteries around the St. Louis region. She declined to discuss specifics, but said there were consultations about cameras, among other security provisions.

Groups from across the region came to pay their respects and thank the volunteers who helped back in February and since.

Our help had no barriers, no hate. Simply care, compassion and hope, Rabbi Roxanne Shapiro, vice president of the St. Louis Rabbinical Association, told the crowd. While God could not guard this sacred place from harm, God did send so many to repair, reclaim and rededicate. In this, a horrific act committed was toppled by acts of love and kindness. Hate did not win. Goodness prevailed.
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Since 2006, the nations largest police departments have fired at least 1,881 officers for misconduct that betrayed the publics trust, from cheating on overtime to unjustified shootings. But the Washington Post has found that departments have been forced to reinstate more than 450 officers after appeals required by union contracts.

Most of the officers regained their jobs when police chiefs were overruled by arbitrators, typically lawyers hired to review the process. In many cases, the underlying misconduct was undisputed, but arbitrators often concluded that the firings were unjustified because departments had been too harsh, missed deadlines, lacked sufficient evidence or failed to interview witnesses.

A San Antonio police officer caught on a dash cam challenging a handcuffed man to fight him for the chance to be released was reinstated in February. In the nations capital, an officer convicted of sexually abusing a young woman in his patrol car was ordered returned to the force in 2015. And in Boston, an officer was returned to work in 2012 despite being accused of lying, drunkenness and driving a suspected gunman from the scene of a nightclub killing.

The chiefs say the appeals process leaves little margin for error. Yet police agencies sometimes hurt their own attempts to shed troubled officers by making procedural mistakes. The result is that police chiefs have booted hundreds of officers they have deemed unfit, only to be compelled to take them back and send them back to the streets with guns and badges.

Its demoralizing, but not just to the chief, said Charles H. Ramsey, former police commissioner in Philadelphia and ex-chief in Washington, D.C. Philadelphia and Washington together have had to rehire 80 fired officers since 2006, three of them twice.

Its demoralizing to the rank and file who really dont want to have those kinds of people in their ranks, Ramsey said. Our credibility is shot whenever these things happen.

A critical moment

The Washington Posts findings illustrate the obstacles local police agencies face in holding their own accountable at a critical moment for policing: President Donald Trumps administration has indicated that the federal government will curtail the strategy of federal intervention in departments confronted with allegations of systemic officer misconduct, even as controversial police shootings continue to undermine public confidence.

Nationwide, the reinstatement of fired officers has not been studied or tracked. No national database logs terminations. Some firings receive publicity, but many go unreported. Some states shield police personnel records  including firings  from public disclosure.

To investigate how often fired officers were returned to their jobs, the Washington Post filed open records requests with the nations 55 largest municipal and county police forces. Thirty-seven departments complied with the request, disclosing that they had fired a combined 1,881 officers since 2006. Of those officers, 451 successfully appealed and won their jobs back.

The officers names and details were available in about half of the reinstatement cases: 151 of the officers had been fired for conduct unbecoming, and 88 had been terminated for dishonesty, according to a review of police documents, appeals records, court files and news reports.

At least 33 of the officers had been charged with crimes. Of these, 17 had been convicted, most of misdemeanors.

Eight officers were fired and rehired by their departments more than once.

To overturn a police chiefs decision, except in cases of fact errors, is a disservice to the good order of the department, said San Antonio Police Chief William McManus, who in February was ordered to reinstate Officer Matthew Belver for a second time. It also undermines a chiefs authority and ignores the chiefs understanding of what serves the best interest of the community and the department.

In Washington, arbitrators have ordered the city to rehire 39 officers since 2006, more than half of them because arbitrators concluded that the department missed deadlines to complete its internal investigations. One officer, convicted of assault after he was caught on video attacking a shoe store employee, was fired in 2015 and reinstated in 2016 after an arbitrator concluded that police had missed the deadline by seven days, arbitration records show.

D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said he disagreed with the arbitrators conclusions on when the clock started in those cases. The public has to suffer because somebody violated an administrative rule, Newsham said, adding that two-thirds of the officers reinstated because of missed investigative deadlines are no longer on the district force.

Police unions argue that the right to appeal terminations through arbitration protects officers from being second-guessed for split-second decisions. Unions contend that police chiefs are prone to overreach, especially when there is public or political pressure to fire officers. Local and national union officials said some of the 451 reinstated officers should never have been fired in the first place.

Theyre held to a higher standard, said James Pasco, executive director of the national Fraternal Order of Police. Their work is constantly scrutinized to a far higher degree. You very seldom see any phone-cam indictments of trash collectors or utility workers.

Public outcry

Police departments have been criticized in recent years as not holding officers accountable in fatal shootings, or in cases of brutality and corruption. To address the outcry from the public, the Department of Justice has used its authority to investigate police departments for civil rights violations and to force reforms. Under President Barack Obama, Justice launched dozens of these investigations. The tactic was used, for example, in the aftermath of the 2014 fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson.

The Trump administration, however, has indicated that local officials should take the lead in policing their own departments. I think theres concern that good police officers and good departments can be sued by the Department of Justice when you just have individuals within a department who have done wrong, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said during his Senate confirmation hearing this year.

Justice Department officials recently told the Washington Post that the department will be more judicious in launching civil rights investigations.

The Attorney General has explicitly said that police officers who abuse their sacred trust are made to answer for their misconduct and that the Department of Justice will hold accountable any law enforcement officer who violates the civil rights of our citizens by using excessive force. Any assertion to the contrary is flat out wrong and incredibly irresponsible, said Ian D. Prior, a Department of Justice spokesman, in a written statement.

What the Attorney General does not believe, however, is that the unconstitutional actions of one police officer should result in onerous and ineffective agreements between the Department of Justice and local police departments that prevent law enforcement from reducing violent crime and protecting the public, Prior said in the statement.

But in a speech to law enforcement officers in late July, Trump made comments that were widely interpreted as condoning police violence against thugs taken into custody. He told officers: (P)lease dont be too nice.

When you guys put somebody in the car and youre protecting their head.  I said, you can take the hand away, OK? Trump said.

The White House later said the president had been joking.

The frustrating part

The 37 departments that complied with the The Washington Posts request for records employ nearly 91,000 officers. The nearly 1,900 firings and the 451 rehirings show both how rare it is for departments to fire officers and how difficult it is to keep many of those from returning.

Its the frustrating part of my job, said Boston Police Commissioner William B. Evans, who has been compelled to rehire four officers. Most of the people we terminate (it) is clearly for good reason.

In case after case, arbitrators have required police chiefs to take back officers the chiefs no longer want in their ranks.

In Washington, police were told to rehire an officer who allegedly forged prosecutors signatures on court documents. In Texas, police had to reinstate an officer who was investigated for shooting up the car of his ex-girlfriends new boyfriend. In Philadelphia, police were compelled to reinstate an officer despite viral video of him striking a woman in the face. In Florida, police were ordered to reinstate an officer fired for fatally shooting an unarmed man.

He is being paid to protect and serve us as citizens. But he takes my childs life, Sheila McNeil, the mother of the man who was killed by the officer in Florida, said at a public meeting in 2015. I dont understand how he can still be out here on the street. What fairness is that?

The 37 departments that reported rehiring officers have one commonality: a police union contract that guarantees an appeal of disciplinary measures.

Police unionization began around the turn of the 20th century and spread rapidly in the 1960s and 70s as states passed laws allowing collective bargaining by public workers. Today, most public employees, including officers, have some form of collective-bargaining rights.

On most police forces, officers accused of wrongdoing are subject to internal affairs investigations to determine whether they violated department policies. If the officers are found to have breached policies, police chiefs, superintendents or police boards can discipline them.

Multiyear contracts negotiated by unions ensure that any discipline may be appealed  typically through arbitration, a process that brings in outside parties, often lawyers who specialize in labor law.

That is how police Sgt. John Blumenthal returned to work in Oklahoma City.

On July 7, 2007, a man was lying handcuffed on the ground when Blumenthal ran up and kicked him in the head, according to several other officers. Blumenthals fellow officers reported the incident to internal affairs, and months later Blumenthal was fired and convicted of misdemeanor assault and battery.

Two years later, an arbitrator ordered the department to return Blumenthal to work. The reasons are unclear, because the records of the proceedings are not public. Today, Blumenthal, who did not respond to requests for comment, is a motorcycle officer.

The message is huge, said Oklahoma City Police Chief Bill Citty, who said he loses about 80 percent of arbitration cases. Officers know all they have to do is grieve it, arbitrate it and get their jobs back.

One of the primary determinations an arbitrator makes is whether a department adhered to the rules when disciplining an officer.

Were all of the correct investigative steps followed? said Arnold Zack, a former president of the National Academy of Arbitrators who teaches labor law at Harvard University. And was there a violation of any policy, and if so, what should the discipline be?

Zack said that police chiefs often bemoan arbitration but that many cases fall apart because of failure to properly investigate allegations. In one Florida case, a sheriffs deputy who was fired after being accused by prosecutors of trafficking in pain pills was reinstated because the arbitrator found that the department did not adequately investigate the allegations before firing him.

Many of the arbitrators who handled the cases examined by the Washington Post declined to be interviewed about decisions.

Excessive punishment

In Chicago, union officials say the appeals process saved the job of an officer who was unfairly fired for failing to pay his parking tickets.

In October 2015, Bill Caro, at the time an officer with 28 years of service in the Chicago Police Department, was terminated after he failed to pay nine parking tickets totaling $1,471. The department had warned him to pay the unpaid fines and had given him a deadline that he missed.

Caro eventually paid the tickets, but the department fired him anyway, records show.

He appealed, and in August 2016, a local judge who served as arbitrator in the case deemed the punishment excessive and ordered that Caro be returned to the force. His firing was reduced to a five-year suspension without pay, meaning he will not report to work until 2020. Caro could not be reached for comment.

For 239 officers in the Washington Posts study whose firings were made public, the majority had their terminations reduced to suspensions; at least 43 received no discipline at all. Most of the reinstated officers were awarded back pay for the time they were off the force, which can stretch to several years.

The arbitrator is bound by the contract language just as much as the department, Zack said. Does that mean some bad guys will get away with some things? Yes.

In 2012, the Boston Police Department was forced to rehire Baltazar Tate DaRosa two years after stripping him of his police powers for what the department said was his role in a murder.

One year after he joined the department, DaRosa was asked to help investigate the 2003 killing of his cousin, who had been ambushed by a masked gunman as he sat in a car with his girlfriend. DaRosa, then 25, and his cousin had relatives in Cape Verde, a group of islands off the coast of West Africa. Frustrated at their inability to generate leads in the tightknit Cape Verdean community, detectives asked DaRosa to help.

(The detective) sent me around asking family members and Cape Verdeans, but being a police officer, no one really told me anything about the case, DaRosa later told investigators, according to internal affairs records and arbitration documents.

On a cold night in January 2005, DaRosa was off-duty at the Copa Grande Oasis, a nightclub outside Boston, records show.

DaRosa was supposed to have been working but had called in sick from his overnight police shift. He and Carlos DePina  the brother of DaRosas murdered cousin  were at the club together. Also at the club that night was a man named Jose Lopes, a known gang member who eventually would be identified as a suspect in the killing of DaRosas cousin.

The officer, his cousin DePina and two friends drank and danced until the club lights came on about 1:45 a.m., signaling closing time. DaRosa headed out to his car and popped in a CD as he waited for DePina to return.

But when DePina arrived at the car, he turned and walked back toward a group of people in the parking lot, according to DaRosas account.

About five minutes later, his cousin ran back to the car out of breath, saying he had heard gunshots, DaRosa said.

Lets get out of here, DePina said, according to DaRosa.

DaRosa, with DePina as a passenger, drove away, passing a police cruiser with flashing lights speeding toward the club.

Back in the parking lot, Lopes was dying from numerous gunshot wounds to the chest and back.

Several witnesses told police they saw people run to DaRosas car, records show. Another witness told police of seeing DaRosa driving from the scene with the shooting suspect in the car.

The department placed DaRosa on paid administrative leave and opened an internal investigation. But DaRosa refused to cooperate, invoking his constitutional right against self-incrimination, records show.

In July 2005, five months after the killing, DaRosa was arrested, charged with being an accessory to murder and placed on unpaid administrative leave by the department. His cousin, who is still at large, was charged with murder.

In September 2006, a jury acquitted DaRosa.

Once his trial was complete, DaRosa agreed to cooperate with internal affairs investigators, telling them he thought his cousin was mistaking some other sound when he said he heard shots. He also expressed regret for not stopping to help police. I assumed that if something did happen that the cruisers were there for it, he said.

Detectives later learned that DaRosa and his cousin DePina had been arrested at the club during a Cape Verdean-themed night three months before the shooting. Police said that DaRosas cousin had been drunk and causing a disturbance and that DaRosa had bloodshot eyes and reeked of alcohol. At the station, police eventually let the men go.

The internal investigation of DaRosas possible role the night of the shooting was completed in 2007, and in December 2010, the department fired DaRosa, saying both events at the nightclub had violated department policies  abuse of alcohol, neglect of duty, and a lack of truthfulness, records show.

DaRosa appealed the firing. His union attorney argued that there was no prove DaRosa used his influence to interfere with his cousins arrest months before the shooting or that DaRosa knew Lopes was at the club the night of the shooting or that he had suspected his cousin was the shooter.

In July 2012, after a three-day, closed-door hearing at City Hall, arbitrator Richard G. Boulanger, a Boston-area lawyer, sided with the union. He concluded that DaRosa was not poised as a get-away driver or that he had knowledge that Carlos was involved in Joses shooting.

Nearly two years after his firing, and seven years after the shooting, DaRosa was reinstated and awarded $50,111 in lost pay and overtime, records show.

DaRosa, a union attorney, and former Boston police commissioner Kathleen OToole, who led the department at the time of the shooting, did not respond to requests for comment.

I feel very happy for Baltazar, Bryan Decker, a lawyer who handled the case for the police union on DaRosas behalf, told a local reporter at the time. Hes an upstanding member of the community, and I think that he is just excited to get back to work helping the people of Boston.

Today, DePina is a fugitive, believed to have fled the country. His cousin DaRosa is a bike patrol officer.

Checking on an ex

Early New Years Day, 2007, Fort Worth police Officer Jesus Jesse Banda Jr. sat in his car outside an all-night party where his ex-girlfriend was with another man. Banda called a dispatcher and ran a check of the license plate of the mans truck to determine his address. Days later, the truck was found blasted with rounds from a shotgun.

Banda, who had seven years service at the time, told investigators he knew nothing about the damage, according to internal affairs and arbitration documents. In the end, police could not tie Banda to the shooting, but the department concluded that he had lied about why he had called in the license plate.

Then-Police Chief Ralph Mendoza put the officer on restricted duty, ultimately suspending him indefinitely  the same as firing him  in June 2007 for being untruthful and violating the departments ethical standards. Banda was told not to represent himself as a police officer while internal affairs investigated.

During that time, Banda was a passenger in a limousine pulled over by a Fort Worth officer. The officer said he saw the vehicle and, as he watched, the driver passed a beer to passengers in the back. The officer said that when he asked Banda to get out of the vehicle, Banda handed the officer his police credentials.

The department opened a second internal affairs investigation.

An arbitrator ruled in August 2008 on Bandas firing over the check of the license plate. He said Banda had used department resources to run the license tags for personal reasons  but also said that firing him was too harsh. The arbitrator ordered him reinstated, and awarded nearly a year of back pay, records show.

Banda was back on the force only a month when he was fired a second time, this time by new Police Chief Patricia Kneblick for misrepresenting himself as an officer during the traffic stop.

Again, Banda appealed.

This time, Bandas union attorney argued that there was no proof that Banda had showed his work ID during the traffic stop and that the departments investigation had been shoddy and incomplete. Bill Detwiler, who was the hearing examiner, agreed.

Detectives had followed up with just three of eight potential witnesses and had done little or nothing to source such information including tracing the license plate of the limo and interviewing the driver, Detwiler said in his ruling. And, Detwiler noted, the detective investigating possible criminal charges lacked formal training and experience.

Seven months after Bandas second firing, in April 2009, Detwiler reinstated the officer with partial back pay.

Banda, through the police department, declined to comment.

The hearing examiner took issue with the same problems that we took issue with, Terry Daffron Hickey, Bandas attorney, told a local TV station at the time. I think when youre in a situation where youre investigating a police officer and its a serious accusation and their job is on the line, theres a duty out there to do a thorough, fair and complete investigation.

In 2015, Banda, 45, was promoted to detective, records show. Current Fort Worth Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald declined to comment.

In the District, the Metropolitan Police Department fired officer Michael Blaise Sugg-Edwards after he was convicted of misdemeanor sex abuse over an incident with a teenager in his police car.

Eight years later, the department is still fighting to keep the 35-year-old off the force after the agency in 2015 was ordered to rehire him.

Sugg-Edwards, who was born and raised in the district, joined the department in 2005. He was nominated to be rookie officer of the year and to receive an achievement medal for stopping an armed rape.

On Nov. 16, 2007, Sugg-Edwards was on patrol when he saw a 19-year-old woman dressed in full white walking alone near Love, a now-closed warehouse nightclub off New York Avenue in Northeast, court records show.

The woman was there to celebrate her 19th birthday with friends but had to go back to a friends car because she needed her identification to enter the club.

Sugg-Edwards pulled up in his marked patrol car. He allegedly told the woman that a club supervisor had sent him to escort her safely to her friends car and invited her to get into the patrol car, according to court records.

She said that once she was in his vehicle, he drove to a gas station and parked between two tractor trailers. Sugg-Edwards asked her, What are you trying to do to get into the club? she told police, adding that he began touching her thigh, genitals and breasts.

She said she pushed him away, got out of the car and reported the sexual assault to two off-duty officers at the nightclub. She was seen on video from outside the club getting out of the squad car, and officers reported that she was crying when she approached them.

Sugg-Edwards was the only uniformed officer in the area who fit the description that she gave to police. A police official called Sugg-Edwards and asked whether he had picked up a female near the Club Love? according to an affidavit for his arrest. Yes, I did, he said.

Sugg-Edwards said he drove her to a gas station to use the bathroom but denied assaulting her, according to court records.

The official reminded the defendant that he had been warned in the past about talking to female patrons near the night club, the affidavit said.

The department put Sugg-Edwards on unpaid leave, and records show that he began working at a toy store in Maryland.

In June 2008, Sugg-Edwards was convicted at a bench trial of misdemeanor sexual abuse. He was sentenced to a 100-day suspended sentence, one year supervised probation and $1,000 in court fees.

Then-D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier recommended to the trial board  a group of three officers  that Sugg-Edwards be fired.

The trial board, however, concluded that firing Sugg-Edwards was too harsh a penalty and recommended a reprimand. Fellow officers testified that Sugg-Edwards had an otherwise clean record, a reputation as a nice guy and that the sexual assault was totally out of Officer Sugg-Edwards character, records show.

On Sept. 14, 2009, the departments human resources director decided to fire Sugg-Edwards anyway, saying that the trial board ignored evidence proving the grievant was guilty of the misconduct.

The police union filed an appeal arguing that the D.C. code and municipal regulations barred the department from imposing discipline harsher than what the trial board recommends.

That appeal was not decided until January 2015, more than five years later. Attorneys for the union and the police department blamed the delay on a backlog of arbitration cases.

Arbitrator Sean J. Rogers ruled that although there was enough evidence to prove Sugg-Edwardss misconduct, the unions contention was correct. Rogers ordered Sugg-Edwards reinstated with back pay and benefits.

City officials tried again to keep him off the force: They appealed the arbitrators ruling to the Public Employee Relations Board, which resolves disputes between the District and labor organizations. The department argued that it had the authority to fire the officer, even if the trial board disagreed.

The review board upheld the arbitrators original ruling in April 2015.

The police department then appealed the review boards decision in court. The case is pending.

For now, Sugg-Edwards remains off the force, and the city has yet to pay him as ordered by the arbitrator. His annual salary was $58,759 when he left the department eight years ago.

Sugg-Edwards did not respond to calls and emails from The Washington Post seeking comment.

Police union attorney Marc L. Wilhite said that Sugg-Edwards wants to go back to policing and that the department needs to follow the law and reinstate him.

Police officials, citing union rules and local privacy laws, declined to discuss the case. Police Chief Peter Newsham said that in general he is frustrated that the department has been compelled to reinstate officers with histories of misconduct. Since 2006, the department has had to rehire at least 39 officers, records show.

Police officers go into peoples homes ... and they have the authority to take peoples freedom, Newsham told The Post. And youre going to return somebody into that role, somebody who has that responsibility and authority, whos been involved in extreme misconduct? I dont think anybody is comfortable with that.

Fight or be jailed

On Dec. 3, 2015, an official with the criminal division of the Bexar County District Attorneys Office in Texas was concerned about dashboard-camera video of an arrest by a San Antonio police officer.

Can you take a look at this video? the official asked in an email to the city attorneys office. The officer has the suspect handcuffed, in custody and challenges him to fight while unhandcuffing him.

Soon, the police departments internal affairs unit launched an investigation into the officer involved: Matthew Belver, then 43 and with nine years service in the department. Belver also worked part-time as a security guard at a local church. The video was eventually made public under pressure from the local media.

The video depicted the August 2015 arrest of then-48-year-old Eloy Leal, who told internal affairs investigators that he had gone outside to investigate after someone had been injured during a shooting in his neighborhood. Leal said that he saw bullet casings on the street near the scene and that he pointed them out to Belver, according to internal affairs and arbitration documents.

Then, Leal said, he criticized Belver for missing the casings and announced that he was walking home to get a camera to document the evidence. As Leal began walking away, Belver arrested him, records show.

The next 17 minutes were captured on the camera mounted on Belvers dashboard. Belver was recorded telling Leal, who was handcuffed in the back seat of the squad car, that he could go free if he was willing to fight.

If you beat my ass, dont  kill me, Leal pleaded as Belver uncuffed him.

Naw, as soon as they come off, Im going to beat your ass, Belver responded.

The officer ordered Leal to get out of the squad car and run or fight, but Leal refused.

Belver recuffed Leal, who asked what he was being charged with.

Ill think of something, Belver responded. Leal was charged with interfering with the duties of a public official, a charge that prosecutors later dropped. Leal could not be reached for comment.

The incident was not the first time that Belver had been accused of misconduct. The department had fired Belver in 2010 after two other allegations.

In the first incident, Belver was accused of unlawfully entering a home and roughing up two men who were accused of threatening neighbors with a gun.

In the second, two weeks later, Belver arrested Carlos Flores, a San Antonio mechanic, on suspicion of drunken driving. Then, according to a complaint from Flores, Belver challenged him to a fight.

Belver told me that if I could kick his ass, he would let me go, Flores said in his complaint. By the time Flores reached the police detention center, he had a bruised eye, injuries to his back and neck, and a large bruise across his face, an internal affairs investigation would later determine. Flores, who could not be reached for comment, was fined for driving while intoxicated, and a separate charge of assault on a public servant was dropped.

But Belver and his union attorneys won the officers job back after his 2010 firing, negotiating a last chance agreement that allowed Belver to return to work as long as he had no further misconduct and agreed that he would not patrol alone.

After the 2015 video surfaced of Belver challenging Leal to a fight, San Antonios police chief, McManus, fired Belver again on Feb. 12, 2016.

Once again, Belver appealed his firing.

During the two-day hearing last September, Belvers attorney argued that because the last-chance agreement was limited to two years, it had expired eight months before the Leal encounter. The attorney also noted that the union contract prohibited the department from considering discipline for matters older than 180 days, which would exclude the prior two allegations of assault made against Belver.

Arbitrator Lynne M. Gomez, a labor lawyer, agreed with the union and said that the union contract and wording of the last-chance agreement meant the department had to treat the Leal incident as a first offense. In the revised circumstances, a firing was too harsh, she ruled.

While the Chief testified that he thinks the Grievant is a disaster waiting to happen ... just cause generally requires that discipline be applied progressively to achieve a corrective goal, Gomez said in her ruling.

Gomez in February issued Belver a 45-day suspension and ordered that he be returned to work with back pay, which city officials said will be $66,662.

Reached by email, Belver declined to be interviewed, referring questions to the head of the police union, who he said would be familiar with both this incident and the arbitration process that followed.

Mike Helle of the San Antonio Police Officers Association said in an interview with the Washington Post that Belver was in the wrong because he had placed himself, his fellow officers and the public at risk. But Helle, the president of the officers association, said not every infraction merits termination.

Arbitration creates an environment in which the final say-so of whether the termination is justifiable or not is in the hands of a third party, Helle said. It creates a bit of fairness. It takes the emotion out of the argument.

McManus declined to be interviewed about the Belver case or the other 29 officers whom the San Antonio Police Department has been compelled to rehire since 2006.

Im sure many police chiefs across the country share the same frustrations that I do when an arbitrator overturns a termination, he said in a statement.

Show me your hands

On Feb. 10, 2011, in Miami, police detective Reynaldo Goyos was working with a dozen undercover officers taking part in a sting at a local strip club known to be frequented by gang members.

Shortly after 11 p.m., one of the undercover officers spotted what she described as two intoxicated men being ejected from the club. Travis McNeil and his cousin Kareem Williams stumbled across the parking lot and climbed into a Kia Sorrento. As they drove off, a half-dozen officers, including Goyos, followed them, worried that the men would come back and cause a disturbance, according to an arbitrators account.

We get three or four blocks from the club, and all of a sudden police was surrounding us, Williams told the Washington Post.

Goyos drew his gun and got out of the passenger seat of an unmarked car. Show me your hands! he yelled.

I looked at the driver, Goyos would later tell police internal affairs investigators. He was staring right at me. He looked like he wasnt paying attention, like hes very incoherent. (He) was disobeying my  commands.

Goyos told internal affairs that as he approached the drivers side door he could see that both men had their hands in their laps. But then McNeil, in the drivers seat, reached toward his waistband and then toward the floorboard of the vehicle, according to the officer.

Standing about 2 feet from the Kias open drivers side window, Goyos fired his weapon three times  striking McNeil and Williams. McNeil was dead at the scene.

On the drivers side floorboard, investigators found two cellphones. There were no weapons in the vehicle.

None of the five other officers surrounding the car, who also had drawn their weapons, had fired. They would all later tell internal affairs investigators that Goyos was the only officer with a clear view into the car. The shooting quickly drew local scrutiny.

The department completed its internal investigation in November 2012. The next month, the citys Firearms Review Board  made up of three assistant chiefs, a police major and a police attorney  concluded that the shooting was not justified. The board said that neither Goyos nor anyone else had been in imminent danger and questioned Goyos version of events.

Police officials concluded that the location of McNeils fatal wound was inconsistent with Goyos assertion that he saw a black object in McNeils hand.

In January 2013, then-Miami Police Chief Manuel Orosa fired Goyos, who had been with the department since 2005, arguing that he should have sought cover instead of approaching the vehicle.

Goyos appealed, prompting a four-day arbitration hearing in late 2013. Goyos and his union attorney argued that Goyos did not violate the departments use-of-force policy.

There was no misconduct on the part of officer Goyos, said Eugene Gibbons, Goyos attorney, who has defended many police officers accused of wrongdoing. He was simply doing his job to the best of his ability that evening.

In a text message to the Washington Post, Goyos declined to be interviewed and added, It was all political.

In August 2014, arbitrator Martin Soll, a labor lawyer, sided with Goyos legal team, writing that the physical evidence supported Goyos account.

Just or proper cause did not exist to discharge or otherwise discipline City of Miami Detective Reynaldo Goyos, Soll wrote.

Soll ordered that Goyos be reinstated and awarded him $74,400 in back pay.

Its been frustrating, but there is no other option, said current Miami Police Chief Rodolfo Llanes. I have no other choice but to have a conversation with the person thats being brought back and tell them that I expect nothing but excellent work from now on.

In 2015, the city settled a federal civil rights suit with McNeils family, agreeing to pay them nearly $1 million.

The nine-year effort to fire D.C. police officer Daxzaneous Banks began in March 2008 when a court employee asked why the undercover officer had signed in as having attended a criminal trial that had been rescheduled. Banks had been paid for being available to testify, although the trial had not occurred.

Internal affairs began to investigate and found that on at least 10 occasions, he had allegedly forged the signatures of several prosecutors on his time sheets, records show.

You affixed these signatures knowing them to be improper and fraudulent, according to an account of the case filed in court by the D.C. attorney generals office.

Banks conduct forced prosecutors to abandon charges against a suspected cocaine dealer because the officer was the sole witness to the alleged drug transaction, according to the records. The accusations of forgery, prosecutors told internal affairs, raised serious veracity issues about his potential testimony in criminal cases, according to their account.

Police investigators concluded that Banks had violated four policies: being involved in the commission of an act that would constitute a crime; conduct unbecoming an officer; inefficiency; and fraud.

On Sept. 9, 2008, then-Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier recommended to the trial board, a three-member panel that oversees officer discipline, that Banks be fired. After a two-day hearing in March 2009, the board found Banks guilty of violating three of the four policies, and in June 2009, he was fired.

Shortly thereafter, the union appealed Bankss firing, arguing that the department had missed its deadline to discipline the officer.

Marc L. Wilhite, the union attorney who represents Banks, said the officer denies forging the signatures. Banks expressed repeatedly he believed he had a case scheduled that day, according to the Districts summary of the case.

In the appeal, the union argued that the citybegan its investigation in April 2008 and was required by law to discipline Banks within 90 business days of starting the investigation. Wilhite said Laniers September 2008 recommendation to fire Banks was made at the end of 96 days  six days past the 90-day deadline set by district code.

The department argued that its investigation did not truly begin until May 2008 and that it had met the 90-day deadline.

Because of a backlog of union arbitration cases, Bankss appeal languished until 2016, according to Wilhite. He said Banks, meanwhile, worked as a lifeguard and at other jobs.

Finally, in September of last year, arbitrator Homer C. La Rue sided with Banks.

It is clear that the department failed to meet its obligation to bring charges against Ofc. Banks within 90 days of the incident, wrote La Rue, a local labor attorney.

La Rue ordered that Banks  after seven years off the force  be reinstated with full back pay and lost benefits, and that his personnel record be expunged of the termination. At the time of his firing, Banks was earning $68,023 annually.

The District appealed the decision to the Public Employee Relations Board, which reviews disputes between the District and unions, but the reinstatement was upheld.

In January, the D.C. attorney generals office appealed the case in D.C. Superior Court, arguing that any harm caused to Banks by missing the deadline is outweighed by the police departments interest. The appeal is pending. To date, the Metropolitan Police Department has not returned Banks to active status.

Wilhite said that Banks, the son of a District police officer, wants his job back and has been under pressure from his family to return to policing.

Banks is one of 26 officers nationwide ordered reinstated since 2006 because arbitrators ruled that police officials had missed deadlines as outlined in local laws or union contracts. Of those, 23 were from The District. Six of those officers were ordered reinstated in the past two years, records show.

The deadline issue has troubled the department for decades, and has been documented in stories in The Washington Post and in the Washington City Paper.

Many departments have time limits under union contracts or local laws to complete internal investigations to prevent cases from dragging on. The Districts deadlines are among the shortest: A survey last year of 81 major police departments found that at least 21 departments imposed deadlines, ranging from 30 days to three years, according to Campaign Zero, a police accountability group.

For many years, the District code imposed a 45-day deadline for a city employee accused of wrongdoing to be investigated and discipline recommended, said Mark Viehmeyer, an attorney for the police department and acting director of its labor relations branch.

The City Council repealed the rule in 1998, calling the deadline arbitrary. In 2004, the City Council took the issue up again because the police and fire unions were complaining that officials were taking too long to pursue disciplinary cases, Viehmeyer said. The council then imposed a 90-day deadline for the police and fire departments, he said.

Separately, he said, the police union contract since the early 1980s has imposed a second deadline: Police officials have 55 days to fire an officer once they decide to do so.

District officials said in interviews that they are meeting the deadlines and that cases are overturned because arbitrators misinterpret when the clock begins.

D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said the department in the past two years has taken steps to eliminate the ambiguity about when the internal affairs investigation begins so that authorities can meet arbitrators interpretation of the 90-day deadline.

That was our main point of contention with the arbitrators, Newsham said. They were continually changing when the 90-day clock started ticking.

Viehmeyer said that in many of the cases in which the department was ordered to rehire officers, the underlying misconduct was never in dispute.

There are a lot of cases where the arbitrators analysis I think is sort of belied by some of the facts in the case, he said.

Wilhite, who has represented many of the officers who were reinstated, said the rules are clear.

There are lots of other angles that MPD has been using to try and avoid the reality, which is once the 90 days has been violated, that case must be dismissed, Wilhite said.

Doctor shopping

Broward Sheriffs Sgt. John Goodbread was in his doctors office in Florida for a routine physical sometime in 2003 or 2004 when he felt pain in his lower back.

He had me do one of these exercises as part of the physical, bend over type of thing, touch your toes, see what your range of motion, Goodbread would later tell police. As I was bending over, I stopped because the lower back just seized up.

The doctor issued Goodbread a prescription for hydrocodone. It was the first of multiple pain-medication prescriptions from several doctors that would ultimately result in criminal charges against Goodbread.

In March 2011, a detective in Palm Beach County got a tip suggesting that Goodbread and his wife may be involved in doctor shopping  in which someone seeks the same or similar prescriptions from multiple doctors, according to a case summary in the arbitrators ruling.

Criminal investigators began looking into the allegations that Goodbread and his wife had obtained prescriptions for the pain medications from four doctors offices.

On April 8, 2011, Goodbread and his wife were arrested and charged in state court with trafficking Oxycodone and withholding information from a practitioner, both felonies. The Broward County sheriffs office suspended Goodbread without pay.

I was completely caught off guard, Goodbread, a former narcotics officer who has consistently maintained his innocence, said in an interview with the Washington Post. Somebody else had used my name to get those scripts. I had nothing to do with anything.

In April 2012, his then-wife, Heather Goodbread, pleaded guilty to withholding information from a practitioner and was put on probation under an agreement that withheld an adjudication of guilt. She would testify during her husbands arbitration hearing that she was the one who had called in prescriptions in her husbands name and that he had not been aware of her scheme. Neither she nor her attorney could be reached for comment.

In January 2013, Goodbread pleaded no contest to one count of withholding information from a practitioner under an agreement that deferred criminal prosecution. He was ordered into a pretrial intervention program, which he completed in a few months, and the case was dismissed.

The Broward sheriffs office fired him anyway.

The union appealed. It argued that the department had not conducted a full investigation but instead had relied on evidence from the criminal probe. The union said Goodbreads firing had been based on hearsay.

His wife had admitted to misrepresenting herself to get the medication, said Michael Braverman, the attorney who represented Goodbread. But the department didnt give (Goodbread) even the most minimal amount of due process.

In a Dec. 20, 2013, ruling, arbitrator Robert Hoffman sided with the union. He concluded that there had not been an adequate internal investigation by police and that Goodbread had been denied due process.

Hoffman acknowledged that Goodbreads participation in a diversion program could be considered conduct unbecoming an officer, but the arbitrator questioned whether it merited his firing.

Hoffman ordered that Goodbread be reinstated in his job and receive back pay.

In a video posted on Facebook, Goodbread thanked the police union for helping him get his job back.

Broward sheriffs Col. Jack Dale, who oversees officer discipline, said the department had handled the case poorly, because firing Goodbread while criminal charges were pending had impeded its ability to investigate fully.

If a criminal case is ongoing, your best move is to wait until the criminal case is done before you terminate them, Dale said.

Goodbread said that without arbitration, he would still be out of a job for something he did not do. Have I seen it where the arbitration process may not work perfectly? Sure, Goodbread conceded. But its there to protect the rank and file.  Basically, its our union looking out for us to make sure that we dont (get) wrongly terminated.

In Philadelphia, Aida Guzman cradled a bottle of beer in one hand and clutched a can of Silly String in the other as she bounced along with the music playing after the citys annual Puerto Rican Day Parade on Sept. 30, 2012.

A few feet away, Lt. Jonathan Josey of the Philadelphia Police Departments highway patrol unit was one of more than a dozen officers dealing with a vehicle doing doughnut turns nearby.

In the next few seconds, what transpired between Josey and Guzman would become a criminal matter. One thing is undisputed: Joseys hand connected with Guzmans face.

A bystander captured the encounter on video. Guzman was walking from the street toward the sidewalk, and then Josey approached. The officer swung with an open hand  striking Guzman in the face and knocking her to the ground. Guzman, bleeding from the mouth, was arrested and cited for disorderly conduct.

Josey would later tell investigators that he felt himself get hit with liquid and Silly String, prompting him to turn around, see Guzman and approach her.

The video of Joseys smacking Guzman quickly went viral, and then-Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey acted quickly. He reviewed the video and the use-of-force report filled out by Josey, in which the officer said he had been trying to knock the beer out of Guzmans hand and accidentally hit her in the face, according to a summary of the case later compiled by the city.

Four days later, on Oct. 4, Ramsey suspended Josey, concluding that he had falsified his use-of-force report by claiming he had personally seen Guzman throw beer on him and several other officers. On Nov. 1, 2012, Ramsey fired Josey for conduct unbecoming an officer and for use of excessive force.

Prosecutors charged Josey with simple assault, a second-degree misdemeanor.

The charges and Joseys firing outraged the police union and fellow officers, who packed the courtroom during the 2013 trial, according to news reports at the time. The union argued in the local news media that department leadership and prosecutors were bending to political pressure.

Other officers present that day told the judge that they heard Josey instruct Guzman to drop her beer. Josey testified at trial that he was trying to swat the beer bottle from Guzmans hand and that at that very moment Guzman slipped on a can on the ground, according to local coverage of the trial. As she stumbled, the officer said, the swat intended for her beer bottle instead struck her face.

The video looks disturbing but, obviously, its not what it appears to be, Josey said in court. I was kind of shocked when I saw her go to the ground. I didnt expect to come into contact with her face.

Judge Patrick F. Dugan ultimately concluded that Josey was not guilty.

It was a complete joke, Guzman attorney Enrique Latoison said in an interview with The Washington Post. A mockery of a trial.

Josey then appealed his firing. Arbitrator David J. Reilly held a two-day hearing in June 2013 and concluded that Josey should not have been fired.

His decision letter is not subject to public records laws, but The Washington Post obtained a 2014 report on arbitration from the citys Police Advisory Commission that summarized Reillys rationale.

According to the report, Reilly wrote that after viewing the video frame by frame, he believed Joseys account and concluded that his use of force was reasonable. Reilly also decided that although Josey incorrectly claimed he had seen Guzman throw beer on him, that was insufficient grounds to fire him.

Reilly ordered that Josey be rehired and that all references to his firing be removed from his personnel file.

Guzman, a mother of three, sued over the incident. In May 2013, the city paid her a $75,000 settlement. Latoison said he remains outraged at Joseys acquittal and reinstatement.

If you accidentally hit somebody, if you accidentally step on your puppy or accidentally swat your child, everybody, universally has the same reaction, Oh, Im sorry!  Latoison said. His immediate reaction was to rough her up, put her in handcuffs, throw her in a police van and charge her with disorderly conduct.

Josey and the union that represents Philadelphia officers did not respond to multiple requests for comment. When Josey was reinstated, his criminal defense attorney told local reporters that Jon didnt do anything wrong that day other than do his job.

Ive said before and Ill say again, Fortunato Perri, the attorney, added in a recent interview with The Post. The people of Philadelphia are very fortunate to have someone like Jon Josey working for the Philadelphia PD.

This article was produced in partnership with the Investigative Reporting Workshop at American University. Students Teaganne Finn, Josephine Peterson, Matt Hanan, Taylor Hartz, Jordan Houston and Shaun Courtney contributed reporting to this article. Dalton Bennett and Alice Crites also contributed to this report.
Reports of presidential commissions tend to have the lifespan of a mayfly. They get attention for one day and then are quietly filed away. The nation must insist that that doesnt happen to the work of President Donald Trumps Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis.

The commission, created by Trumps executive order in March, issued its draft report last week. It called on Trump to declare a national emergency to force Congress to fund a multipronged, treatment-based attack on the problem and to awaken every American to this simple fact: If this scourge has not found you or your family yet, without bold action by everyone, it soon will.

During his campaign last year, Trump spoke of the need to spend the money to fight the opioid crisis, but he often blamed the problem on illegal immigrants flooding across a border. Building a border wall would fix it.

Its true that heroin supplied by Mexican drug cartels is part of the opioid epidemic, but a larger part is home-grown abuse of prescription painkillers.

The presidents commission, headed by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, submitted a dense 10-page report of the sort the president doesnt like to read. In it, the commission lays out the size of the problem  142 drug overdose deaths per day, two-thirds of them opioid overdoses  and recommends best practices for dealing with it.

Thats where things get tricky. Nearly all of the commissions recommendations would require major federal spending. To date, Congress has appropriated $1 billion for a two-year opioid treatment effort, but experts say tens of billions more are needed. Congress recently dealt poorly with the problem during the debate over repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act. Most of those proposals would have eliminated insurance coverage, including coverage for drug treatment.

The commission recommends spending billions on the gold standard of medication-assisted treatment. These programs substitute opiates like methadone and buprenorphine for heroin and painkillers. The substitute drugs dont produce a euphoric high but block cravings, making withdrawal easier. The commission said only 10 percent of opioid addicts in the U.S. have access to such treatment.

Another expensive option the commission recommends: Removing the ban on using Medicaid funds for inpatient treatment of mental diseases, including addiction. The commission further says the federal government should do a better job of enforcing the law that requires private insurers to cover mental health and addiction treatment.

Its been estimated the prescription opioid crisis alone costs the nation $78 billion a year. Addressing it would cost less and save lives. The commission, which included a bipartisan group of governors, took Trumps executive order seriously. The question now is whether Trump will, or swat it like a mayfly.
Entertainment Tonight co-host Kevin Frazier has traveled the world for his job. But before he began working on air, he manned the camera behind the scenes. I worked as a cameraman, Frazier said from Los Angeles, where he resides with his family. (One day I) got to do a story about a peewee football team that was going to the big championship game. I went out and set everything up and shot that football practice and did my little stand-up. At the time, he was 27 years old and making $13,000 annually. But Frazier, 58, said he wouldnt trade his humble start for anything, because his early years gave him the foundation to work in every aspect of broadcast journalism.
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Here are the latest cases from Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.

FENTON

Liam Reeves, aged 20, of Alma Street, Stoke, pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm with intent. He will be sentenced at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court after reports are prepared on him. He was remanded in custody.

BLURTON

Thirty-five-year-old Terence Thorley, of Allendale Walk, Blurton, pleaded guilty to two charges of producing cannabis on May 25. He will be sentenced at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court after a report is prepared on him by a probation officer. His bail was extended.

Read more: Expectant dad stashed 30,000 of heroin in kitchen cupboard

AUDLEY

Martin Knapper, aged 41, of Nantwich Road, Audley, denied six charges of fraud. His trial will be held at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on a date to be fixed administratively. His bail was extended.

STOKE-ON-TRENT

Shaun Aspinall, aged 35, formerly of Smithyfield Road, Norton, pleaded guilty to attempted burglary on February 5. The Crown Prosecution Service offered no evidence against 24-year-old Jade Cobden, of Canary Road, Bentilee, and she was discharged. Aspinall, who faces other matters, was remanded in custody.

Read more: Do you know conman who is pocketing 60 from pubs for non-existent beer reviews?

SNEYD GREEN

Dean Kirby, aged 29, of Telford Walk, Manchester, pleaded guilty to burgling Mayer's Convenience Store in Birches Head Road, Sneyd Green, with intent to steal on December 20. He will be sentenced at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court after a report is prepared on him by a probation officer.Taxi driver jailed for knocking out 14-year-old boy's teeth after egg thrown at his cab

BIGNALL END

Stan Boardman, aged 38, of Victoria Avenue, Bignall End, pleaded guilty to communicating false information with intent on June 4. Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard he told Staffordshire Police there was a bomb in Ironmarket, Newcastle. He will be sentenced after reports are prepared on him by probation and a psychiatrist and his bail was extended.

Read more: Two men jailed after victim tied up and doused with petrol in his home

CHESTERTON

Sex offender Wayne Shelton pleaded guilty to two charges of failing to comply with notification requirements of the sex offenders' register and three offences of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order. The 21-year-old, of Victoria Street, Chesterton, will be sentenced at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court after a report is prepared on him by probation. He was bailed.

LONGTON

Sheraz Hussain, aged 21, of Upper Normacot Road, Longton, denied two charges of possessing a class A drug with intent to supply and one offence of possessing a class B drug with intent to supply. His trial will be held at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on a date to be fixed. His bail was extended.

Read more: Man acted 'like Spiderman' as he threw tiles at cops during siege
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Anyone with information about any of these should call Staffordshire Police on 101 and quote the relevant incident number.

Stoke

Police have urged residents to be vigilant after sheds were broken into.

Cops received reports of incidents in Stoke along Campbell Road and Spode Street allotments.

A spokesman for Staffordshire Police said: "Please ensure that all sheds and out buildings are secure."

Longton

Police have stepped up patrols in a city park following a rise in anti-social behaviour at the attraction.

And officers covering Longton's Queens Park have urged parents to make sure they know where their children are going to as they tackle issues in the neighbourhood.

A spokesman for Staffordshire Police said 'robust action' will be taken against individuals caught causing problems.x

He said: "We are having increasing reports of anti-social behaviour taking place at Queens Park. As a result we have increased our patrols in the area and will take robust action against anyone found committing any offences in the area. We are urging parents to know the whereabouts of there children and who they are with if they are attending the location."

Anyone with concerns is asked to contact the county force on 101.

Cheadle

Residents are urged to be vigilant after a vehicle was seen 'acting suspiciously' in a neighbourhood.

Police have received reports of a silver people carrier being around the Oakamoor Road area of Cheadle on Thursday afternoon.

A spokesman for Staffordshire Police said: "Please remain vigilant and make sure valuables or farm equipment is locked and secured away."

Anyone with concerns or information on the vehicle should call the force on 101.
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Pianist Frank Leigh has become just as much a well-regarded figure at the city's main museum as some of the treasures it houses after entertaining visitors on a weekly basis for the last three years.

And at the weekend staff at Hanley's Potteries Museum and Art Gallery showed their appreciation to the 85-year-old by presenting him with a special cake.

The gift also helped marked the impressive 80 anniversary of talented Frank playing the piano.

While the pensioner has impressed scores of music lovers across the area for a number of decades its at the museum where he's now become a permanent fixture.

Having first started playing there for events in 1983, for the past three years Frank, of Hanley, has been performing every Saturday for the last three years at the venue's cafe where he takes requests from adults and children.

Frank, who plays free of charge, said: I've been playing the piano for exactly 80 years this week. I find it very relaxing, that's the main thing.

I get as much enjoyment playing it as the people do who send requests.

The requests vary from 'Les Miserables' to 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star' so they cover the whole spectrum.

Last year I was only doing every other Saturday and the manager said that they had so many requests for me to come in every week so I don't mind. I'm here every Saturday."

Frank, who was a musician in the army from 1952 until 1954, and played for troops in Japan and Korea, said that it was 'lovely' to be recognised by the museum staff.

He said: I didn't know people realised that I've been playing for 80 years. I find it unbelievable that they have done this for me.

I love the museum, it's a lovely setting for me to play my music, I prefer this kind of set up with people of all ages and where people can come up and have a chat."

Cafe supervisor Jane Colclough said it's unique to have someone like Frank come in and play piano.

The 50-year-old from Bucknall said: It's lovely to have Frank come in and play. The customers love it, it's like our little Ritz cafe.

He plays whatever you want him to play and he plays Disney songs for the kids. He does it free of charge, he likes talking to the customers, he loves to help out anybody and he loves the museum.

I love when he plays castle on a cloud from Les Miserables."

Cafe customer Megan Wagg was also impressed with Frank.

The 72-year-old, of Packmoor said: I've been coming here for about nine years and I think he's very good.

He's very good with children, if they go up with a request he will play it. I think it's very good for him as well.

I think it makes the cafe environment friendlier and more relaxing. You're lucky if you live 80 years let alone play the piano for that long!"
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A man is fighting for his life after suffering serious burns in a blaze at a nightclub in the early hours of the morning.

Police and firefighters were called to Desire, on Trinity Street, Hanley at around 4am on Saturday to reports of a fire in the new venue.

The man was taken to Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital  with police describing his condition as critical.

The bar remained taped off for most of the day.

A Staffordshire Police spokesman said there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the fire.

He said: "There were reports of a fire around 3:55am on the August 5.

"There was a small fire at the venue and a man was unfortunately inside and suffered serious burns as a result of the incident.

"The man was taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham as they have a specialist burns unit. His condition is critical.

"We investigated the scene alongside the Fire Service, but identified very early on that there was no criminal element to the incident."

Friday night was set to be the club's opening night but on Wednesday the club announced it would not be opening on schedule.

In a statement on social media, the club, which is on the site of the former Beach nightclub, said: "We would like to apologise that our original opening of Friday 4 will not be commencing until further notice.

"Don't worry any booths can still be booked at the time of the new launch date. We thank you and appreciate your patience."
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A motorist has died after his car crashed into a wall on a country road.

Police were called to the A523 at Calton Moor Crossroads, between Waterhouses and Calton Moor in the Staffordshire Moorlands, just after 6am.

The driver of the grey Skoda Octavia was the only occupant of the car and was pronounced dead at the scene.

The road was closed for the entire morning while the Collision Investigation Unit examined the scene before reopening at 12.50pm.

A Staffordshire Police spokesman said: "The driver was the only person in the vehicle and he was found dead at the scene.

"We are currently in the process of contacting next of kin and specialist officers will be providing them support at this difficult time."

Anyone who saw the collision is asked to call police on 101 quoting incident number 194 of August 6.
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Stoke City hope to avoid any last-minute hitches and wrap up the signing of Cameroon forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting.

Choupo-Moting is one of Europe's most-wanted free agents after leaving Schalke at the end of his contract this summer and has reportedly been on the radar of AC Milan.

But Stoke City have lined up the quick and strong 28-year-old to fill the void left by Marko Arnautovic's 25m departure to West Ham.

Talks have been held and the Potters hope to push through a three-year deal on Monday  but Mark Hughes was refusing to take anything for granted after seeing his side beat RB Leipzig 2-1 in his final pre-season friendly.

"He's a player we've got an interest in and it's one of those we're hopeful of getting over the line," said the manager.

"You can never say it's done until it is. I've had experiences where clubs have just jumped in at the last moment when you've done all the work and they're able to convince players. We'll just hang fire until it's actually official."

Stoke have also been trying to bring in Mario Lemina, a 16m-rated Gabon midfielder who is leaving Juventus. Claims in Italy, however, suggest they may be beaten to the punch by Premier League rivals Southampton, even if Mauricio Pellegrino has denied knowledge of any deal.

"There's possibly something in that (Stoke interest)," said Hughes, before laughing: "I refer you to my last answer."

Stoke wrapped up their busy summer schedule with an impressive performance and result against a side which is preparing for their Champions League debut this season.

Hughes gave a hint as to his plans for the curtain raiser at Everton next weekend by going again with a 3-4-2-1 formation and using Mame Diouf as right wing-back ahead of Glen Johnson.

Diouf, who scored Stoke's first, did well in his new role  even if he still needs his arm twisting that it is a position for him.

Hughes said: "Mame is such an honest player. He gives everything he's got. At times when we've played him down the middle we've found it difficult to get him quality balls and at times it's bouncing around and he feels a little bit frustrated because he feels he's got more to give.

"But in a wing-back position he's able to expend all his energy in a defensive and attacking sense. He's got a lot of energy. It's a role that I think at times he needs convincing about regarding his effectiveness and actually playing the role.

"But I think he's understanding now that it can actually be enjoyable with the abilities he has."

Stoke are waiting on an injury update about Bojan, who limped off in the second half.

Hughes said: "He just felt his calf a little bit. It might just be a kick that's stiffened up. We hope so, hopefully he's not pulled anything. We've been very good with injuries in pre-season so it would be a shame if we lost anyone now."

Left-back Josh Tymon has been passed fit after bruising his left foot in last week's friendly defeat at St Pauli.
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A woman was been duped by a bogus worker who took cash for carrying out works on her home  before driving off without completing the project.

The incident took place at around 3.20pm on Thursday when the male suspect approached the resident's home on Northwood Lane in Clayton to carry out repairs to the chimney and roof.

Although he was paid Staffordshire Police say the suspect drove off without completing the expected works.

At the time a small white van was seen parked outside the property and police are appealing for information to track the vehicle's owner.

A spokesman for Staffordshire Police said: "We would remind residents to never allow any unsolicited visitors into their homes."

Anyone with information should call the force on 101 and quote incident 461 of August 3.
A mosque in the US state of Minnesota was bombed early on Saturday, while worshippers gathered inside for morning prayers.

No one was injured in the attack at the Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, but police say the imam's office had been damaged.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched an investigation into the attack, which took place at around 5am local time (09:00 GMT).

Richard Thorton, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Minneapolis Division, said that the investigation will determine whether the incident was a hate crime and who may have been behind it.

Thorton added that the explosion was caused by an "improvised explosive device", and that investigators had recovered components of the device to figure out how it was put together.

'Unimaginable' attack

Worshippers managed to extinguish the blaze before firefighters arrived, according to a statement from the Muslim American Society of Minnesota.

The group's director, Asad Zaman, told reporters that "a witness saw something being thrown at the imam's office window from a van or truck before the blast".

Mohamed Omar, the mosque's executive director, added that the vehicle immediately sped away.

The predominantly Somali mosque, like many other mosques around the country, has received threatening calls and emails, Omar told local media.

"It was 5am. The whole neighbourhood was calm. People were supposed to be sleeping, that how peaceful this should be," he said.

"I was shocked to learn this happened".

Yasir Abdalrahman, a worshipper at the mosque, said the explosion was "unimaginable".

"We came to this country for the same reason everyone else came here: freedom to worship," Abdalrahman said.

"And that freedom is under threat. Every other American should be insulted by this."

Anti-Muslim crimes

The Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center serves as a religious space and community organising platform for Muslim activists and leaders in the area, according to the Muslim American Society of Minnesota.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) urged Islamic centres and mosques across the country to step up security.

The local chapter's civil rights director, Amir Malik, said that "if a bias motive is proven, this attack would represent another in a long list of hate incidents targeting Islamic institutions nationwide in recent months".

CAIR and the mosque are offering a $10,000-reward each for information that leads to an arrest or conviction.

The attack comes amid a dramatic rise in the number of anti-Islam bias incidents in the US, according to CAIR.

The group found that there were 2,213 such incidents last year, a 57 percent increase from 2015.

A recent report also said hate crimes spiked in 2016, which was the worst year on record for anti-Muslim incidents since the group began its documentation system in 2013.

The Southern Poverty Law Center also found that the number of anti-Muslim hate groups in the US has nearly tripled since Donald Trump launched his presidential campaign in 2015.

It reported that the number of organisations opposing Muslims "leaped" from 34 in 2015 to 101 last year.

In June, partial enforcement of Trump's Muslim ban came into force.

New visa applicants from Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Iran and Yemen and all refugees must prove a relationship to a "close" relative already in the United States in order to be eligible for a US visa.
All it took was the nudge from a wet nose and young Isaac Grays life was turned around.

From the big things like hospital visits to the small things like bath time, Liam the lab has changed a familys life, and its thanks to the help of the Assistance Dogs Trust.

Isaac has cerebral palsy, a condition that affects movement and posture, and Liam the Labrador has helped open Isaacs world in only two months.

Mum Shelley Merrie says Liam is also helping Isaac become more mobile. Instead of being wheelchair-bound, Isaac can use a walker and hopefully soon walk beside Liam.

Hes still in a wheelchair but we didnt think hed be this physically advanced. He also uses a walker, however they were also wanting Liam  who is actually a really big, strong dog  to be taught to hold Isaacs weight to be able to transfer out of a wheelchair, sit-to-stand, and possibly, we hope in the months down the track, the two of them being able to walk side-by-side with Isaac holding a little handle.

And the dog means some of the anxieties Isaac faces melt away in the face of a big brown nose and kind, watchful eyes.

Isaac is a really happy, social little boy but everyday living brings about a lot of anxiety for him. He has a lot of hospital visits, so hospitals are the scariest place in the world with the treatments that he has had to endure. I can honestly tell you that since the day Liam came around, those anxieties have drastically reduced.

Liam has not only brought assistance and stress relief into little Isaacs life, hes also brought with him a new vigor for life.

Isaac went through a gastro virus, he had two hospital episodes within a week, and he became very sick and quite depressed, says Shelley.

He must have thought: I dont want to do this anymore. Isaac was a child beaten down and feeling hopeless.

We hadnt had a lot of smiles from him; if you knew Isaac, smiling is his thing. But I can say from the day Liam arrived  he has gone from strength to strength, happy.

Liam has brought him so much joy and so much love and has just been able to get stronger and stronger and he is back at school and enjoying life. Exactly what the mother had needed to see in her boy.

And the lab means Isaac feels the social pressure leveraged a little.

Having a dog also brings him out into the community. Instead of seeing a kid in a wheelchair they say: Wow look at the dog with that child  it becomes about a dog and a little boy, says Shelley.

Assistance Dogs New Zealand Trust is holding its annual appeal week from August 10-12 and is looking for collectors. For more information visit www.adnztrust/org.nz/appeal
The old fishing lodge in rural Georgia has seen better days, and grandmotherly proprietor Betty Meeks, despite giving up her life to maintain and manage the inn, still clings to dreams of overseas travel in exotic locales. So when a "foreigner" arrives one dark and stormy night, she's beside herself with excitement and does everything she can to make his short stay pleasant.

That's the premise of "The Foreigner," Larry Shue's 1984 Off-Broadway comedy currently at the Hangar Theatre; and the old-fashioned staging of this production directed by Topher Payne announces as loudly as a stage whisper, These are caricatures, not real people, so don't take any of this too seriously. The set, costumes, and dialogue impart a deliberately dated, almost sitcom-ish feel, and the first third of Act I is given over to essential expository delivered by the performers. While some may see this as directorial weakness, what's really going on is the magician's trick of distraction: making you look in one direction while the action critical to success happens elsewhere.

This is a show with a message, and it opts for simplicity, silliness, and seeming inanity to fool you into thinking otherwise.

Topher doesn't attempt to make his actors hide the exposition with an overly-natural delivery, and that's fine. We need to know, for example, that shy, dull Charlie, a proofreader for a science fiction magazine, has been brought to the inn by his friend Froggy to distract him from his current woes. That Charlie's extreme social anxieties makes even basic conversation difficult. That Froggy comes up with a crazy scheme to present Charlie as a foreigner with little ability to communicate so that Betty and the other guests will leave him alone.

As a military man on assignment in the area, Froggy hands Charlie off after introducing him to Betty and promising to return in three days. The next day, Charlie meets the other guests: Catherine Simms, a spoiled Southern heiress engaged to be married; her spacey brother Ellard who may or may not be dimwitted; and Catherine's fiance the Rev. David Marshall Lee whose constant good works take him away for days at a time much to Catherine's dismay. Owen Musser, a redneck local official, stops by at the inn and at first seems like comic relief, but his visits grow darker as the play progresses.

Born in the deep South, Shue introduces the locals as naive Southerners who know little of the outside world. They're stereotypes that border on annoying. However, they soon move from two-dimensional paper-doll cutouts to more rounded and interesting figures. While Act I starts out slow and ponderous, Act II kicks into high gear, offering up the show's biggest laughs and most engaging moments.

As Charlie, Linden Tailor seems stiff and awkward at first, but that's distraction at work; by the end of the opening night performance he charmed, danced, pantomimed, and gibberish-talked his way into the audience's hearts, earning a robust standing ovation. Recent Ithaca College BFA Acting grads Lily Waldon and Cam Weinrich play sister and brother Catherine and Ellard with spirit and style; Waldron takes risks early on, making Lily almost unlikeable and then opening up to her vulnerability and sweetness, and Weinrich combines wide-eyed vagueness with a deeper contemplation of the world's overlooked details. Susannah Berryman, an Ithaca College instructor and local theater veteran, plays Betty with a bemused, doting air, mothering her guests as if they were her children. As the beneficent Reverend, Justin Walker tips his character's hand somewhat early, coming off too oily too soon, though his religious fervor masking an uglier intent is spot on. And finally Austin Jones, a recent get for Ithaca College as Assistant Professor of Acting, dropped jaws with his onstage performance, ultimately killing it with his final bow. (To say much more would give away the surprise.)

Steve TenEyck's set is homey and rustic, with small yet terrific details (like a lamp topped by a too-small shade) depicting a down-at-the-heels inn; his lighting designs -- a bracing thunderstorm, a luminous sunrise mellowing into midday, and the ominous glare of torchlight at midnight -- are gorgeous. Dixon Reynolds' costume designs add humor to the characters and avoid the obvious cliches.

For the most part, "The Foreigner" is a sunny, upbeat show with solid laugh-out-loud moments, engaging audiences with humor as it explores racial bias, discrimination, white supremacy and faith. Underneath the cute it probes and pokes, and not simply to tickle the funny bone.

The Details

What: "The Foreigner"

Where: The Hangar Theatre, 801 Taughannock Blvd., Ithaca, NY

When seen: Opening night August 4

Length of performance: 2 hour 30 minutes including a 15-minute intermission

Family guide: Suitable for ages 14 and up

Runs through: August 12

Ticket information and reservations: 607-273-2787 and www.HangarTheatre.org
Blog_boat01.JPG

On Saturday night, a 31-foot, 1972 Chris Craft was stopped from going over the dam in the Seneca River in Baldwinsville. A safety cord stopped the boat, and the operator was rescued unharmed. On Sunday, crews worked for hours to unhook the boat and safely tow it back to the navigable side of the river.

(Photo provided by Suzanne Ellis)

A boat became stuck on Saturday night on the Seneca River in Baldwinsville, and this morning remained a short distance from where the water pours over a dam, according to local firefighters and witnesses.

The person aboard the boat was rescued Saturday night, according to the Baldwinsville Volunteer Fire Company.

This morning the boat, a 31-foot, 1972 Chris Craft, remained in the shallow water. As of midday, TowBoat USA was towing it to Coopers Marina, according to Sgt. Jon Seeber, a spokesman for the Onondaga County Sheriff's Office.

Scary stuff!!! Posted by Suzanne Marie Ellis on Sunday, August 6, 2017

The call came in at 10:15 p.m. Saturday for help, according to 911 records.

The boat's operator is from out-of-town and is unfamiliar with the terrain, according to Baldwinsville police Officer Robert Thibault.

The operator was blinded by a vehicle on the shore and steered the boat around the north side of the island, Thibault said. Boats should stay on the south side, he said.

The boat was stopped from going over the dam by a safety line. Additionally, firefighters from Baldwinsville and Phoenix have secured the boat with other ties, Thibault.

In the end, workers cut the safety line to free the boat, Seeber said.

No charges have been filed and none are expected, Thibault said. The investigation is ongoing. No injuries were reported.

Officials from the New York Canal Corporation and the New York Power Authority were also at the scene this morning.

Firefighters were able to rescue the one person on the boat by using a personal water craft, according to the company's Facebook page.
Mooch, we hardly knew ye.

That would be Anthony Scaramucci, whose tenure as White House communications director was as brief as it was turbulent. Washington was still marveling over Scaramucci's profane take-down of Chief of Staff Reince Priebus (who quit) and presidential adviser Steve Bannon (who didn't) when new Chief of Staff John Kelly fired him.

Editorial cartoonists depicted the White House as a messy kitchen, battle, a circus, a blender and the Titanic.

Other topics in the cartoons: President Donald Trump's speech condoning police "roughing up" suspects; a proposed cut to immigration; democracy under fire in Venezuela; and the stock market rally.

Joining the lineup this week is Tim Campbell of the Washington Post Writers Group.

Cartoons also were drawn by Chan Lowe, Dan Wasserman, Dana Summers, Jack Ohman, Drew Sheneman, Scott Stantis and David Horsey of Tribune Content Agency; Mike Lester, Darrin Bell and Jeff Danziger of the Washington Post Writers Group; and Tom Toles of Andrews McMeel Syndication.
0927 bridge4.JPG

Ithaca Falls, not far from Cornell University.

(Syracuse.com | File photo)

ITHACA, N.Y. -- A body was pulled from a gorge in the Finger Lakes Saturday evening after a man was reported missing.

The Ithaca Police Department identified the man as Winston Perez-Ventura. No further information on him was being released, according to the department.

Officials were called to an area of Ithaca Falls near Falls Creek Drive in Ithaca around 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

A caller said Perez-Ventura had gone into the nearby water to swim but hadn't resurfaced, police said.

Members of the local police and fire departments, along with state police and the Cornell University Police Department began to search the Ithaca Falls. A helicopter and dive team were also dispatched, according to Ithaca police.

Perez-Ventura's body was recovered around 7:20 p.m., nearly five hours later, said Jamie Williamson, a spokesperson for the Ithaca Police Department.

No foul play was suspected.

"The Ithaca gorges are so, so beautiful but they can be very dangerous if folks don't obey the posted signs," Acting Chief of Police Pete Tyler said in a news release. "I encourage everyone to please, please follow the posted signs on the gorge trails, especially those that prohibit trespassing and swimming."
OPPO F3 Red should provide another attractive color option for consumers who see their smartphones as a representation of their style and personality

A symbol of power, good fortune, courage, and prestige, Red has historically been a very popular choice of color for people who want to infuse positive vibes in their lives

fashion-forward consumers

I would like to give credit to Mr. Tony Phung of Vietnam for all OPPO F3 Red photos in this post.

Update: OPPO F3 Red has just been officially launched in the Philippines via a media and consumer event held at SM Aura in Bonifacio Global City on August 12, 2017. The handset is now available at all OPPO Stores nationwide for Php 15,990, which is just the same as the price of the Gold, Rose Gold, Black, and Sarah Geronimo Editions or Versions.

TechPinas Smartphone Technical Specs Table (TSTST)

Hot on the heels of the success of the Gold and Black variants of the same midrange handset model, theAs shown in these images, OPPO F3 Red will have an all Black face, which perfectly complements Metallic Red finish of the aluminum back plate. I believe this look is largely similar to that of the OPPO R9s Red version.As for the phone's specs and features, well, it should be exactly the same as that of the Gold and Black editions.OPPO F3 Red will have a 5.5-inch Full HD IPS display, 13 MegaPixel rear camera with f/2.2 aperture, LED flash, phase detection autofocus and 1.12 m pixel size, a non-removable 3,200 mAh battery pack, 4G LTE connectivity support, and Dual SIM Dual Standby capability.Under the hood, this handset runs its Color OS 3.0 flavored Android 6.0 Marshmallow OS with a 64-Bit Octa Core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 and Mali-T860MP2 GPU based Mediatek MT6750T processor, has 4GB of RAM, and comes with 64GB of storage that you can quickly beef up using the dedicated microSD card slot, which means that there's no need to compromise Dual SIM capability.The top selling point of the OPPO F3 is its Dual Front-Facing Camera that's comprised of a 16 MegaPixel f/2.0 optic with standard field of view for regular selfies plus a wide-angle 8 MegaPixel f/2.4 lens for group photos or groufies. This unique set-up benefits from OPPO's own Beautification Mode, which instantly improves selfie shots by evening out the user's skintone and highlighting his or her good facial features, delivering self-portraits that are instantly ready for sharing on social media.OPPO Philippines has started posting teaser photos of the OPPO F3 Red Edition on its official Facebook page, which tells us that the handset should be officially launched within the next few days. As yet, though, the company hasn't disclosed the exact release date nor pricing information for this version. We are inclined to believe, however, that OPPO F3 Red will still have the same Php 15,990 price tag of the other versions. Here's to hoping that's the case -- but we'll let you know if OPPO Philippines ends up pricing it a bit higher.Slate Form Factor (Full Touchscreen)Upper Midrange153.3 x 75.2 x 7.3 mm153 gramsRedAndroid 6.0 Marshmallow with Color OS 3.05.5 inches (~72.3% screen-to-body ratio), 1080 x 1920 pixels (~401 ppi pixel density), IPS LCD, capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors, 2.5D Curved Corning Gorilla Glass 564-Bit Octa Core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53, Mali-T860MP2 GPU, Mediatek MT6750T chipset4GB RAM64GB ROM, expandable via dedicated microSD card slot supporting up to 256GBBack: 13 MegaPixels, f/2.2 aperture, phase detection autofocus (PDAF), LED flash, 1/3" sensor size, 1.12 m pixel sizeFront: Dual Camera Module = 16 MegaPixels (1/3.1" sensor size, f/2.0) + 8 MegaPixels, f/2.4Rear: Full HD 30 frames per second, Front: Full HD 1080p 30 frames per secondMP3, WAV, eAAC+, FLAC, MP4, H.264microUSB 2.0, 3.5 mm audio jackWi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot, Bluetooth v4.1 with A2DP, EDR, 3G HSPA+; 4G LTE Cat4A-GPSNoAccelerometer, Digital Compass, Proximity, Gyroscope, Fingerprint Scanner2G bands GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 - SIM 1 and SIM 2,3G HSDPA 850 / 900 / 21004G LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 38(2600), 39(1900), 40(2300), 41(2500)Dual nanoSIMNon-removable 3,200 mAh Li-Ion battery12 Hours of Uptime with Regular UseDual Selfie and Groufie Camera Set-up, Color OS features, Premium Build, Red ColorPhilippines - August 2017Philippines - August 2017Official Price in the Philippines -
On November 11, the EU announced the renewal, until November 14, 2023, of the sanctions against officials linked to the Administration of Nicolas Maduro. | Read More
If there has been a Flagstaff school year that started with a bigger turnover at the top, we cant recall it.

The challenge will be not only mastering a steep learning curve by the newcomers but also finding common ground for effective educational programming with limited resources.

The Flagstaff Unified School District has a new superintendent in Mike Penca, and three out of five board members werent in place at this time last year.

In fact, Penca comes in from a small district in Iowa with only two votes for his hiring among current board members. Of the three others, one was a no vote, another recused herself and a third is a recent appointee. We urge all of the board to coalesce behind his leadership, regardless of past differences.

Then there is former longtime board member Paul Kulpinski, who withdrew from his reelection campaign to accept the top job at LAUNCH Flagstaff, an umbrella partnership that looks to share resources, share accountability, share success and have a collective impact on improving educational outcomes. It has major financial support from Arizona Community Foundation of Flagstaff, United Way of Northern Arizona, and The Wharton Foundation.

Those are all nonprofits. On the business side, the Northern Arizona Leadership Alliance (formerly Flagstaff Forty) has its own schools task force. The Alliance is comprised of businesses focused on improving education, the regional economy and the environment, and NALA has worked on Flagstaff STEM City and 4FRI projects, among others.

GETTING INTO GEAR

With the 2017-18 school year set to begin this week for most students at FUSD and the charters, the groups above will be getting their agendas into gear. Most of August will be taken up with one-on-one parent-teacher nights at the schools that discuss AzMerit test scores and individualized education plans. Then, at the policy level, Kulpinski and LAUNCH have set a Flagstaff Town Hall for mid-September on public school funding that might lead to local resolutions ahead of the next legislative session.

Parents, however, are taxpayers, too, and they will need convincing that recent and future public school reforms are worth the investment  and why parental choice that sends children and their tax dollars to private schools shouldnt be an option, too.

As we have said in the past, money wont necessarily cure what ails public education, but there is so little of it in Arizona that its impossible to test the proposition fairly. Teachers received raises averaging between 1 and 2 percent last year after Prop. 123 and they are due another 1 to 2 percent in raises and bonuses this year, depending on the district and school. But turnover among first- and second-year teachers is expected to continue high as Arizona salaries remain among the lowest in the nation.

MORE FAMILY ENGAGEMENT

The instability in the teacher corps comes as research reinforces the importance of highly skilled, experienced teachers in boosting academic achievement across all ability levels. And with money for classroom aides in short supply while class sizes grow, classroom management skills are also at a premium.

Teachers are also being asked to partner with parents and students from poor households to drive more family academic engagement, a key to higher mastery and achievement. Ideally, these would be counselors and aides who would meet after school and work to teach parents tutoring, motivation and organizational skills. Parents who had bad school experiences of their own might need extra help  whatever it takes to get parents to get their children to turn off the video console and get homework done. But knowing Arizona, that extra aide money isnt likely to be forthcoming, so teachers will be asked to do even more unless dedicated volunteers step up.

EDTECH TO THE RESCUE?

Then there is the growth in so-called edtech, the computer-based personalized learning programs that give students instant feedback when trying to figure out a math problem or parse an English essay. It turns over more control of learning to students at their own pace vs. a classroom-wide daily lesson plan. But the interactive software has been shown in early studies to be particularly effective for students at the bottom of the class if they are overseen by teachers who are highly motivated to make the program work. One advantage of machine-based learning is that the software can track an individual students progress and deficits in a wide range of subjects, giving teachers a more precise roadmap to each students success.

How does more family engagement and computerized learning fit in with recent strides in STEM, experiential learning and magnet school groupings  to name just three areas in Flagstaff that have grown in recent years? We dont see them as in conflict and they are organizationally neutral  all students and teachers can benefit, whether in big public districts or small charters. Also, they are applicable to a broader range of students than just the slower learners  AzMerit results still show more than half of FUSD students failing both the math and language skills tests.

Those test scores, like it or not, are what teachers and school officials will have to live with for the foreseeable future. They will play a big role in how voters see the need for more public school funding, including what many advocates feel should be a new or increased schools tax dedicated to teacher salaries. If the majority of AzMerit scores remain below the passing mark, taxpayers may lack the patience before the effects of more funding for salaries and technology take hold. Thats what backers of private school vouchers  including most Republican lawmakers -- are hoping for and why educators and public schools advocates in Flagstaff cant be dependent on resources solely from the state capital.

BECOMING SELF-SUFFICIENT

So as we have said in the past, Flagstaff leaders, even those who opposed last years Prop. 123, need to take what they have learned locally on STEM, magnet schools and experiential learning and expand on it by leveraging local tax credits, corporate investment and volunteer expertise. The leadership turnover at FUSD will present a new challenge, and it might take LAUNCH awhile to find its footing among its varied partners. But throw in family engagement and personalized digital learning, and local voters at least cant complain that Flagstaff-area public schools arent at the front of the class in pushing the academic envelope.

As students go back to class this week, thats an ambitious lesson plan, especially in a state like Arizona. Its time for everyone to buckle down and get to their homework.
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East Baton Rouge Parish Superintendent Warren Drake has filled key vacancies in his senior cabinet as well as replaced the outgoing McKinley High School Principal Herman Brister Jr. by promoting mostly from within the public school district.

Drake tapped Ben Necaise, the executive director for high schools, to take over the newly created position of associate superintendent, putting him on the same level as existing Associate Superintendent Adam Smith.

Since Drake hired him almost two years ago, Necaise oversaw middle and later high schools. In his new job, he will continue to oversee those areas while Smith will focus on elementary schools. Before he joined the East Baton Rouge school system, Necaise was a consultant in the Louisiana Department of Education and also spent five years as principal of West Feliciana Middle School in St. Francisville.

Drake recently reorganized his top leadership in the wake of the surprise May resignation of Deputy Superintendent Michelle Clayton. Drake opted to eliminate the deputy superintendent job in favor of having two associate superintendents.

That chart also includes a new assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction position. Drake said Quintina Timoll has agreed to take the new job and plans to start Aug. 14. Timoll holds the same position in St. John the Baptist Parish public schools. St. John is a B-rated school district, while East Baton Rouge Parish has a C letter grade. East Baton Rouge Parishs enrollment, though, is almost seven times larger than St. Johns.

She lives in Baton Rouge and her kids are in our system, Drake said.

One of Timolls duties will be overseeing technology integration. Last year, Executive Director for School Leadership Sharmayne Rutledge led that area, while still working with schools. Drake said from now on technology will be her sole duty.

Thats an area where we have to get better, Drake said.

Rutledge has been overseeing the training of teachers in the use of Chromebooks. The school system bought more than 13,000 of them a year ago for grades five through eighth and recently purchased another 6,000 Chromebooks, Drake said.

Meanwhile, at McKinley High, a large public high school in Baton Rouge that enrolled nearly 1,400 students last year, Drake promoted Assistant Principal James Kador to replace Brister. Prior to coming to McKinley High, Kador was an assistant principal at Baker High School. Drake said he likes that Kador is ex-military.

Its obvious that he has the vision, he has the desire and the passion, Drake said.

Drake also made changes to the rest of the leadership at McKinley High, promoting a dean of students to assistant principal and moving an assistant principal at another school, Brookstown Middle, to help the large high school.

New principals named to 18 schools in Baton Rouge Almost a quarter of the schools in the East Baton Rouge Parish school system have new princi

Brister took over as principal at McKinley High in 2014 after longtime principal Armond Brown shifted to another job due to health problems. Brister was named the new director of Southern University Lab School on July 21 in a vote of the universitys board of directors.

As director, Brister will oversee a brick-and-mortar school of about 400 students on the Southern campus,, and a virtual school that reaches nearly 400 students across Louisiana.

Brister's salary will be $120,000, which is $30,000 more than his predecessor, Averil Sanders, made when he was hired in May 2016.

+9 After weeks in three places, Twin Oaks students return home Two months after the start of the 2016-17 school year was interrupted by flooding, dispersin

In another recent leadership change, Assistant Principal Cesar Rico was promoted to principal of Twin Oaks Elementary School. Twin Oaks flooded in August 2016 and was repaired in less than two months, the first flooded Baton Rouge public school to reopen. During that time, Twin Oaks students were sent to three different locations.
The spat between Ed Quatrevaux, the New Orleans inspector general who retired last week from an office mired in controversy, and his interim r
East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff Sid Gautreaux set an example to keep in mind as Baton Rouge leaders search for a new police chief. It's an idea that voters in Jefferson Parish and New Orleans should also consider as they make some key decisions at the polls in coming months.

In May, with little fanfare, Gautreaux's office signed a 287(g) memorandum with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. It permits deputies, after a month of training and periodic refresher courses, to investigate federal immigration matters under Immigration and Customs Enforcement supervision as prisoners are booked into jail.

Initiated in 1996, the program didnt really take off until 2006, then waned amid allegations of racial profiling. The Obama administration made some changes in response, then scaled it back in 2012, eliminating a policy that allowed sweeps by local law enforcement agencies to uncover people here illegally.

President Donald Trump earlier this year pledged to reinvigorate the program. Although he didn't restore the power of local law enforcement agencies to conduct sweeps for those here illegally, the wording of an executive order hints that could be on the way.

Many street-level law enforcement officers seem to like the new president's approach. As a result of a more enthusiastic DHS, participation by law enforcement agencies in 287(g) jail enforcement has doubled since the beginning of the year. East Baton Rouge became the first jurisdiction in Louisiana to sign on.

Before the Obama administration's curtailment, research showed the program worked to reduce immigrants here illegally, although possibly by shifting at least some of them from one jurisdiction to another. Despite overwrought claims of profiling, little evidence of that existed, especially where jurisdictions engaged in robust community outreach.

While law enforcement agencies must take on greater costs for this collaborative program than with the more passive Criminal Alien Program and Secure Communities, local officials can choose how many resources to commit and pull back if it's deemed too costly. However, even if local agencies must pay for participating personnel, evidence suggests the 287(g) model produces greater efficiency in detaining criminal illegals and potentially reduces costs by discouraging their presence, leading to fewer incarcerations and a lower crime rate.

Baton Rouge crime-fighting needs a boost with the citys murder rate spiking higher and the loss of Baton Rouge Area Violence Elimination program funds. Making sure that the replacement for retiring Baton Rouge Police Chief Carl Dabadie is open to enforcing immigration laws can only help. Identifying those here illegally who have committed non-immigration crimes would make it easier to deport them and free up more jail space.

Likewise, in next years election to replace retiring Sheriff Newell Normand, voters in Jefferson Parish should evaluate candidates on their willingness to implement a 287(g) program. Normand appeared jaundiced against it, according to his testimony to a legislative committee last year on a bill penalizing local governments that did not cooperate with federal authorities in identifying immigrants here illegally who were in custody.

However, Normands hand-picked successor, former state Rep. Joe Lopinto, voted for the bill both in committee and on the floor. At that sessions end, Lopinto resigned his seat and took employment with the Sheriffs Office.

Additionally, in New Orleans, voters should scrutinize the views of potential successors to outgoing Mayor Mitch Landrieu on this issue. Landrieu bombastically criticized local detainment powers earlier this year, saying the NOPD will not be coerced into joining Trumps deportation army via the 287(g) program. With New Orleans among large cities ranking fourth in the murder rate in America and 32nd highest in the world for 2016, the citys next mayor would do well to repudiate Landrieus attitude.

Gautreaux made the right call to commence 287(g) participation. Hopefully, city officials and voters elsewhere will do the same.
I've got a theory as to why Republican critics of Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards haven't gotten as much traction as they'd hoped in convincing Louisiana voters that he's not the right guy to lead a state that generally prefers candidates from the GOP.

It's that Louisianans aren't through being angry at Bobby Jindal, the once high-flying young Republican who left Louisiana's finances in a desperate state as he embarked on a nonstarter of a campaign for president.

Past administration looms over current state treasurers race As candidates for state treasurer campaign, the main topic of conversation is one not in the

If Edwards sometimes seems to be everywhere, Jindal is rarely seen on the public stage these days. He doesn't make high-profile appearances and only occasionally speaks out on national issues, mostly pet causes like education. And he doesn't get involved in other candidates' elections, which may be because they don't want to be associated with him. Compare that to David Vitter, who lost his bid for governor and left the U.S. Senate, but still managed to play a hand in electing several members of Congress last fall.

Edwards has seen his share of failures during his first year and half in office, of course. He hasn't been able to get many of his economic proposals through a partisan House controlled by ideologically inclined Republicans, and his campaign promises to raise the minimum wage and change laws to make it easier for women to seek pay equity have also stalled in the lower chamber.

But he championed popular causes such as Medicaid expansion and prison reform, and he has handled a series of catastrophes deftly enough to win many folks over. In the most recent Southern Media and Opinion Research Poll, his approval rating stood at 54 percent, which is pretty good considering the state's general leanings. At the end of his tenure, Jindal's approval had dropped to 20 percent, according to a University of New Orleans survey.

In fact, it's possible to see Edwards' 2015 election itself as a referendum on the state's outgoing chief executive, with Jindal's old nemesis Vitter, a fellow Ivy League conservative striver with a well-earned reputation for cynicism, as an ironic stand-in. Instead, voters decisively opted for the sincere-seeming centrist out of West Point with no further ambitions beyond state lines, political party notwithstanding.

And it's definitely possible to spot Jindal's shadow over the subsequent budget battles, mostly because his harsh austerity drive and over-reliance on short-term budgetary gimmicks created a mess that lawmakers and Edwards are still trying to clean up. Never mind that many current legislators  not to mention the current governor  were in the Legislature and could have done more at the time.

Now, it seems, Jindal's record is emerging as a factor in this fall's special election for treasurer. As The Advocate's Mark Ballard explained recently, that's because two of the leading candidates, state Sen. Neil Riser and former state Rep. John Schroder, were heavily involved in budget matters on the legislative side during Jindal's tenure. A third, Angele Davis, was Jindal's top budget adviser during the initial part of his first term. Like Jindal, all three are Republicans.

All are trying hard to dodge suggestions that they were complicit by claiming to have been independent voices under Jindal. Davis talks about having introduced sound budgeting principles during Jindal's early days, before tax cuts he supported, the downturn in the oil industry and his larger ambitions sent him down a more political, less responsible path. Both Riser and Schroder focus on their own efforts to curb waste and insist they pushed back on some of Jindal's moves.

None of this has much to do with a treasurer's actually responsibilities, which run to the technical and managerial, but that's almost beside the point.

As long as people are still mad over Jindal's behavior, he'll continue to be a factor in Louisiana politics. And the smartest place for politicians still on the scene to stand is as far away as possible.
Even when floodwater began to seep under the back door and Sandra Winfrey broke out the mop and towels, she didnt really think her house was 
Even when floodwater began to seep under the back door and Sandra Winfrey broke out the mop and towels, she didnt really think her house was at risk.

News reports warned of flooding that Saturday as water crept up her street, then to her house, overflowing a backyard ditch, but a flood in Monticello was unthinkable. Her neighborhood isn't in a flood zone, she recalled.

Winfrey, 51, a respiratory therapist and married mother of two college-age children, made a roast for rice and gravy that day, washed her hair and prepared to ride out the rain on the couch catching up on TV.

Can't see the video below? Click here.

I was like, Ive been here for 28 years; theres no way waters going to come in the house,  Winfrey said recently.

Eventually it became apparent that, flood zone or not, the Winfreys house on West Wendover Drive was taking on water, rising eventually to 5 feet. Although she and her family escaped, they returned to a wrecked house and to three waterlogged vehicles they hadn't been able to move in time.

Pull Quote I was like, Ive been here for 28 years; theres no way waters going to come in the house. 

West Wendover is just one block in the 919-home Monticello neighborhood at the southeast corner of Greenwell Springs Road and North Sherwood Forest Drive, one collection of stories of shock, struggle and recovery from the August 2016 flood that affected an estimated 92,000 households statewide.

A year after the flood, the Winfreys and many of the residents of West Wendover are back. But the street doesn't look as it once did, and many people described a profound loss in their sense of security about the neighborhood. No longer could they believe their small piece of Baton Rouge would be spared this kind of natural disaster.

Federal Emergency Management Agency trailers remain in the front yards of four homes. A few new neighbors bought houses from people too discouraged to return, and a for sale sign sits in front of another. Some gutted houses look otherwise untouched and unoccupied. But more residents have returned than not and are closing in on or have completed their home restorations.

One block's road home: An interactive Baton Rouge flood-recovery story West Wendover Drive is just one block in the city of Baton Rouge out of the estimated 92,000

All but a few have had to do so without help from flood insurance, cobbling together their own resources, the equity of do-it-yourself efforts, aid from FEMA and, in some cases, U.S. Small Business Administration loans, residents said. Some are waiting on additional grants from the state's Restore Louisiana program, but most, because of their generally solid financial circumstances before the flood, are at the lowest rungs of priority.

Despite 4 feet to nearly 6 feet of water and FEMAs initial determination that five homes at the end of the block were substantially damaged and in need of demolition or elevation, the city-parish has found otherwise. No home on West Wendover has been elevated or demolished, and all seem on the path to reuse as they were.

Still, after the shock of seeing so much water on their street and in their homes last August, many residents described contradictory impulses on their return. They had a strong desire to get back home, but many expressed wariness about the possibility that their street will flood again one day.

Kathy Huffstutter, 60, said she isn't so sure she could return after another flood. She had to be rescued last summer with her tabby cat and her French bulldog by two men in a boat.

After spending a week with her boss, she lived with the family of one of her children in Walker and returned home in mid-May. By mid-June, she was almost done, waiting on some kitchen cabinets and other details.

Oh, its going to happen again. I have no doubt its going to happen again. Im hoping it doesnt happen again in my lifetime, and I have honestly told people that if it happens again, Im not sure I would go through what I had to go through to get back, said Huffstutter, who has lived in Monticello since 1987 and got 4 feet of water in August.

'It rained like hell in Monticello'

Built in several phases between the mid-1970s and mid-1980s, Monticello is a solidly middle-class neighborhood in East Baton Rouge Parishs midsection. Nearly 91 percent of subdivision households owned their homes in 2015, 32 percentage points higher than the parishwide figure, census estimates say.

Marge Mackey, a longtime real estate agent and broker in Baton Rouge who has sold and resold homes in Monticello, said the neighborhood started out when plants on the Mississippi River were booming in the 70s and looking for workers.

Development was moving toward the Amite River, but builders were still looking for what was seen then as higher ground. While Sherwood Forest and Broadmoor were a bit pricier and marketed to the engineers and managers for Baton Rouges industrial base, Park Forest and Monticello were aimed at blue-collar workers and provided an easier, northern route to plants on the river than neighborhoods south of Florida Boulevard.

The city had to grow to the east. It just filled up all the high land," she said. "They knew where the flood plain was back then. We were well aware of it."

The U.S. Geological Survey has determined the August flood brought waters that approached a 500-year flood, or one that has a 0.2 percent chance of happening in any year. Thats a flood with an estimated water height that will flood areas deemed low risk, where FEMA does not require flood insurance.

Though just south of where Hurricane Creek meets the Comite River and its large floodway, Monticello sits on relatively higher ground. Even today, flood insurance rate maps show a large majority of the neighborhood is above the 100-year flood plain, where insurance is required for those with mortgages, and even above the 500-year flood plain.

State Climatologist Barry Keim said Monticello was caught under one of the most intense bands of rain inside the August storm, dropping at least 24 inches of rain over two days. The area stretched across a swath of East Baton Rouge and Livingston parishes from just east of the Metro Airport in Brownfields to Watson. Monticello had the fourth-highest rainfall total from the August storm.

I mean, it rained like hell in Monticello. Thats the bottom line, Keim said.

All that rain created what Keim called a "glut" of water that local waterways couldn't handle.

Bob Jacobsen, a consulting engineer for the Amite River Basin Commission, has estimated water levels in the Monticello area reached 3 to 5 feet above the estimated height of a 100-year flood.

In the year since the flood, plenty of debate has emerged about the merits of the National Flood Insurance Program, how it communicates risk to the public and how it spurs market recognition of that risk. A 100-year flood has a 1-in-4 chance of happening over the life of a 30-year home mortgage, the USGS says. A 500-year event, which the USGS found represents the upper limit of flooding last August,

still has a 6 percent chance of happening over the same 30-year period.

For Judith Webb, who owned two homes in the Monticello neighborhood, debates about inside or outside the flood plain  and whether or not a property had flood insurance  remain abstract. Her home on West Wendover, which was outside the high-risk area, didn't have insurance. A nearby house on Mendenhal Drive, where her two adult grandchildren had been living, did have flood insurance because it was required after a revision of FEMA maps in the late 2000s.

But Webb, a 61-year-old Rite Aid manager, hasn't been able to get back into either house. The insurance for the Mendenhal home hasnt done her much good yet. Her mortgage company is holding her $80,000 check over a paperwork dispute involving her contractor, she said.

On her uninsured West Wendover house, Webb got $33,000 from FEMA and some time off and assistance from Rite Aid. Her son also gutted her home for her with help from some of his co-workers at Turner Industries.

But Webb has run out of money to finish a house that has new wallboard, paint, flooring, molding and other improvements made but that still needs a completed kitchen, cabinets and other finishes. She said she applied for Restore Louisiana grant funds and is waiting to hear what she might qualify to receive.

After about a month of staying with her father in north Baton Rouge, Webb moved in September to a FEMA mobile home on West Wendover with her grandchildren and has seen her neighborhood slowly come back. She has watched as her street changed from a ghost town to one where many of her neighbors have returned.

She said she and her grandchildren are getting along fairly well in the tight quarters.

Its like home. I appreciate it, she said, adding wryly that she and her grandchildren have bedrooms on opposite ends of the trailer home. And I shut my door, she said with a laugh.

Of all the West Wendover residents who agreed to interviews over the past two months, none had insurance if they lived in the low-risk flood area. At the end of the block, four properties are at least partially in the high-risk area. The owners of three of those homes said they did have insurance. The fourth declined an interview.

Statewide, nearly two-thirds of the almost 58,000 homeowners classified as having the heaviest damage in the March and August floods  "major" and "severe"  were without flood insurance, state officials said.

In East Baton Rouge Parish, just 1 in 8 homeowners had flood insurance about the time of the August flood and an even smaller portion likely had it in low-risk flood areas like much of Monticello, state insurance data and FEMA reports say.

Ups and downs

Several residents said they've had difficulties with contractors who have taken money and not done promised work, a problem across the Baton Rouge area over the past year.

Weve just been ripped off, said Gene Smith in June.

At the time, Smith said he hadnt heard from his contractor in two months, right after the contractor took $5,000  the amount he needs to finish installing kitchen cabinets and appliances. A month later, his kitchen still wasnt finished, and last he heard, his contractor was in Europe. Smith has since mostly finished his home.

Down the block, Thelma Carter said her husband was looking forward to retiring from his job as a salesman for Utz. Hell have to work a little longer now. The $4,000 they said their contractor took off with is only a portion of the total cost of their repairs, but it does twist the knife.

Before the contractor, the first repairs were done through the states Shelter at Home initiative to help people get back quickly into partially finished homes, and months later, Carter still had the spartan sink they installed.

One persistent demoralizing factor for families during recovery was the quality of food stored in Shelter at Home mini-fridges and cooked in microwaves and on hot plates.

But things are getting better.

In early June, Jackie and Keylonda Wheeler finished their kitchen and reveled in their first real home-cooked meal in their real home since the flood. It had taken a toll on them. Keylonda Wheeler recalled filling out the application for disaster food stamps, which has a line to fill out an address. But the Wheelers werent staying at their house at the moment. "So youre homeless?" an attendant asked.

I have a house; its just messed up! Keylonda Wheeler recalled thinking as she teared up.

While several residents on West Wendover shared in tough experiences with contractors and federal programs, others credited FEMA with helping them return home. Ethel Germany lived in a FEMA mobile home for seven months and used the agency's aid to rebuild her house.

I had a very positive experience with FEMA, Germany said.

Like so much of Baton Rouge, they also saw goodwill from everyday people: the unofficial battalion of volunteers in the Cajun Navy who rescued them; friends and family who opened their doors and helped them rebuild; the churches and nonprofits that donated everything from furniture to diapers.

Its one of those things you cant even begin to do yourself, Jackie Wheeler said.

Lisa Lee, who lives with her two college-aged children, and her mother both live in the Monticello neighborhood. Both flooded.

oh my god "I'm terrified, to be truthful about it. Every time it rains, Im like, and dont even let them say a flash flood watch, Im like, Oh, my God.   Sandra Winfrey

Lee's family came to Baton Rouge from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Lee, who got 8 feet of water in her New Orleans home in Gentilly, had flood insurance for years in Baton Rouge. Her agent and neighbors always wondered why shed ever want it, and she canceled it only months before the flood struck.

"That's why I'm like, 'No, it can't be happening again,'  said Lee, a bank manager.  'It cannot.' 

Lee, 51, had to rebuild with a $20,000 FEMA grant and personal funds. Despite the hardship, Lee has received goodwill from her family and returned it to others. After the flood, they all went to stay with her brother, who also has a house nearby.

He just opened his home to us, Lee remembered.

Lee also has been working with her church, New Gideon Baptist, to deliver aid to flood victims.

We are a Christian people, and weve helped a lot, she said.

But some on West Wendover also had to incur significant debt. Smith, whose family was able to leave a FEMA mobile home in July after more than seven months, said he got $20,000 from FEMA but also had to take out a 30-year, $90,000 SBA loan to renovate his now mostly finished home.

Smith, 56, also is seeking Restore Louisiana money but figures he won't be able to retire any time soon with all that debt and said he doubts he would take the same path if he had to do it again.

Worries linger

The emotional effects of last August have yet to fully fade. Lee and many of her neighbors said they worry they could see another flood on West Wendover.

Earlier this summer, sandbags stacked in front of doors for Tropical Storm Cindy remained in place after the storm passed. When Cindy blew through, Sandra Winfrey, who said she never thought she could flood, wasn't thinking about cooking a roast or watching TV this time. She set an alarm to go off every two hours so she could monitor conditions.

"I'm terrified, to be truthful about it," she said, laughing at her new state of mind. Every time it rains, Im like, and dont even let them say a flash flood watch, Im like, Oh, my God. 

Although Baton Rouge real estate agent Lynda Butler said long-term uncertainty remains, in general, for the future of Monticello, she said price data for renovated houses appear to show values have held up so far at about $90 to $110 per square foot, about the same for houses that didn't flood.

Butler said it may be another year, after the traditional fall slowdown in sales, before a clear picture emerges for Monticello and other heavily flooded neighborhoods. She said many flooded properties have yet to hit the market in either renovated or gutted status, but the 1983 flood showed damaged homes renovated correctly that also were not repeat flooders remained attractive.

If you do it and do it right, it will sell, Butler said.

Kori and Adam Alexander are among those who have taken a chance on Monticello. In June, they bought a flooded and renovated house on West Wendover.

Can't see the video below? Click here.

During a visit in late June, the Alexanders house had many of the hallmarks of a couple still in the early years of marriage and settling into their first home.

Stenciled on the living room wall was a collage of words meant to describe their coming life together: Among them, family, romance, faith and devotion. Elsewhere, branches stenciled on another wall marked a growing family tree. Outside, by the front door, brightly colored mulch not yet faded by time surrounded small shrubs still with tags from the nursery attached to them.

The Alexanders, who have an 11-month-old, had been leasing an apartment down Sherwood Forest Boulevard from Monticello when the flood hit and soon after considered buying a gutted house.

We felt like that if any time was the time to get a house, now would be the time, when people are starting to remodel houses, when people are selling them for cheaper, we probably can get them at a better rate. It just made more sense, said Kori Alexander, a 27-year-old stay-at-home mom.

But on a visit to West Wendover in April with a real estate agent, as contractors and residents were busy redoing other homes on the street, Kori Alexander said she saw the potential in the then-gutted house in the middle of the block: a good floor plan and a yard.

Real estate agent Jeremy Henderson, who has bought a few gutted homes in Monticello and flipped them, rebuilt the Alexanders home. He remains bullish on the neighborhood where he has family.

I feel like the homeowners are coming back. They are coming back, he said.

Kori Alexander, who said she hopes to live on West Wendover at least 10 years, said she thinks there are still solid chances her street could flood again. Heavy rains worry her, she said. Her husband, Adam Alexander, a 24-year-old deckhand on the Mississippi River, said he sees a much smaller risk and views the August flood as a freak event.

Still, the Alexanders have hedged their bets. They werent required to get flood insurance for their home loan, but Adam Alexander said he pushed for it. The agent, who didnt know Baton Rouge had flooded, tried to talk him out of buying flood insurance because their new house is not in a high-risk flood zone.

He was like, Man, you dont need this,  Adam Alexander said. And, in the back of my mind, Im thinking, like, No, the whole city flooded.
N.O. officials say pumps worked as designed; warn of more rain on way to saturated city

New Orleans officials say pumps worked as designed; warn of more rain on way to saturated city
Energy giant Origin will roll out new technology allowing customers to track which appliances in their homes are using power as part of a deepening trend that sees retailers working more closely with consumers.

In partnership with American firm Bidgely, Origin will shortly begin trialling the new solution with 5000 customers in Victoria so they can see where they are using power and adjust their consumption.

In a highly competitive market the move is one that allows Origin to differentiate its offering from other retailers and also encourages consumers to moderate their usage at peak times.

"We see a future for energy that is both smarter and cleaner," Origin chief executive Frank Calabria told Fairfax Media, in an interview where he renewed calls for action on a clean energy target from Canberra..
The appreciating dollar and new taxes have not deterred overseas investors buying up luxury homes in Melbourne and Sydney, according to the latest Knight Frank Prime Global Cities Index.

The report, for the second quarter of calendar 2017, tracks prime residential prices across 41 global cities and has placed Sydney as No. 6 and Melbourne tenth. Prime property corresponds to the top 5 per cent of the housing market in each city.

While the housing affordability issue in Australia precludes more than half the population from owning a home, the wealthy are in the market, happy to pay up to snare that prime asset.

According to the report, Chinese cities led our Prime Global Cities Index for three consecutive quarters but their dominance looks to be coming to an end as their rate of growth slows following the latest round of cooling measures.
What interests me most (being the self-absorbed Gen Y that I am) is how Gen Y and Gen Z are different.

People are starting to take notice of Gen Z  partly because they are starting to spend money. Gen Zs will make up nearly 40 per cent of consumers by 2020. A quick google search of Gen Z brings up heaps of stuff telling us that Gen Z is different and that we must all alter our business models to make the most of them.

A quick recap for those who don't know about the gens: Gen Z (the newbies) were born from 1995. Gen Y, aka Millennials, were born from the late '70s to the early '90s. Gen X were 1965-1976, and Baby Boomers were mid 1940s-mid 1960s.

Well, my mind's blown. Firstly, because there's a new generation  Generation Z  some of whom are already 20 years old (!) and secondly, judging by the research about them, they are completely different from me and my fellow Gen Ys.

We know the stereotypes ascribed to Gen Y. We are entitled, unjustifiably confident, and lazy, but we are also unwaveringly idealistic. We want to change the world, and believe we can.

Yesterday I read an article by a generational expert. When asked to describe Gen Z in one word, he said "realistic". Realistic. As in the opposite of idealistic.

One illustration of the magnitude of this difference is jobs. My main criteria for finding a job were passion and contributing to society. My friends accept the "common wisdom" that it isn't smart to stay in a job for more than two-three, and if you don't love it, you should leave it. This is Gen Y typical.

Fascinatingly, Gen Z aren't about the passion when looking for a job  they want stability and money. In one Australian survey, more than 70 per cent of Gen Zs said they would choose a secure job without a high level of passion over a job with lots of passion that lacks security. In an American survey, more than 60 per cent said they'd stay in a company for more than 10 years!

This is crazily different from Gen Y. But how? Most of the analysis on Gen Z explains their characteristics as being borne out of the unique time they've existed in. They've lived in a time of terrorism  they don't remember 9/11 and don't know what it was like before (in contrast, some say that 9/11 was the single most significant event in Gen Ys' lifetimes.) Gen Z saw their loved ones losing jobs and money in the GFC. They've seen older siblings unable to find jobs when they graduate, and unable to afford houses.
In the past we've heard of state police concerns that individuals involved in serious and organised crime were regularly travelling under assumed identities. This made it difficult for police to adequately investigate the movement of persons of interest.

At the moment Australia's domestic air passengers aren't required to show photo identification in order to check in and board an aircraft.

At the moment Australia's domestic air passengers aren't required to show photo identification to check in and board an aircraft. Credit:AAP

Mr Turnbull last week said the government had to be "constantly upgrading and improving our security services". Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has backed photo ID checks, as has the Australian Airline Pilots Association.

There's been serious discussion among senior government figures that travellers could be forced to show photo identification before boarding domestic flights.

It's not clear if any proposed identity checks should be undertaken by a government official, or perhaps if you don't have photo identification travellers might be required to sign a statutory declaration confirming their identity.

To date we haven't seen any real cost benefit analysis that would support such a measure. It's hard to see how such a measure would deter a terrorist, although it may assist in tracking one after any security incident; arguably this could be done using video camera footage from airports. It's a requirement that obviously isn't likely to worry a suicide bomber.

For the police, having passengers present photo identification may assist in tracking criminals across state borders rather than contribute directly to enhancing aviation safety. If it's warranted for planes, what about interstate buses and rail as well? For these benefits to be realised, connectivity between airline check in staff and police and security databases will need to be achieved.

But photo identification won't really help identify people who want to hide their true identity. Such a measure may in fact only encourage a greater trade in bogus identification documents and so expand the capabilities of organised criminals or wannabe jihadis.

The measure will be of only limited benefit for law enforcement and almost no benefit for aviation safety and security. It will, however, introduce additional delays at airports and so add to the inconvenience of travellers.
The biggest threat to the wellbeing of Australians is that falling real incomes will trigger a crisis of confidence and thus undermine the economic growth needed to create jobs and opportunity. That is the distillation of The Age's three-day analysis of the state of the nation.

The majority of Australians have not had a real increase in wages in years, and the typical Australian family is earning less now than it did in 2009. Many households are getting by week to week. So our collective unease is understandable. Politicians and policymakers are struggling for solutions. The Reserve Bank of Australia has cut its forecast of economic growth. Its chief, Dr Philip Lowe, says "the crisis is really in real wage growth". Treasurer Scott Morrison says the nation's toughest challenge is "to ensure what Australians are earning every week is increasing".

Illustration: Jim Pavlidis.

Consumers cannot spend what they do not have, and with household spending being the biggest component of economic growth, it is in everyone's interest that the slump in incomes is arrested. The insecurity has crimped workers' confidence to negotiate even slim pay increases.

There is, though, capacity to stimulate the economy through the wage growth Mr Morrison, Dr Lowe and so many policy experts argue is crucial. Productivity and profits have outpaced wages. The share of national income going to wages is the lowest it has been for half a century, while the profit share has been rising. So far this year, profits are up almost 40 per cent, wages by less than 1 per cent.
So Malcolm Turnbull has told Donald Trump that not even a Nobel Prize winner can enter Australia by boat. Well what prize-winning genius decided that coming by boat was to be criminalised, regardless of the human value of the refugee. Few would argue that people must be deterred from embarking on unsafe vessels with the real potential for loss of life. Investing in border security is therefore an appropriate course of action. However, ignoring building an effective relationship with Indonesia to actually stop people smugglers on land is a complete failure of policy. Moreover, Australia has wasted billions in incarcerating people offshore that could have been better spent teaching arrivals English, helping settle them into our community and longer term then enjoying the benefits that arrivals from many lands have contributed to the common wealth of Australia. Mike Reece, Balwyn North Credibility is blown out of the water

So politics trumps human rights and international law. The Trump-Turnbull phone conversation blows away the credibility of the "saving lives at sea" argument of the government, and leaves the Opposition exposed as no better. Their silence is deafening. Saving political face is the prime, and last, reason for the government to inflict such suffering on people on Manus Island and Nauru. This latest revelation comes as no surprise to the thousands of decent people in church and other community groups in rural Australia who are campaigning for the closure of these camps. Indeed, it is energising our activities. Just as we help neighbours hit by bushfires and floods, regardless of their colour or religion, we are raising money, hosting new arrivals, donating food and clothing, and offering a welcome. We want these camps, run by our government, with our taxes, and in our name, closed once and for all. Marie Sellstrom, national president, Rural Australians for Refugees, Merrijig FORUM

Callous disregard The Age is to be congratulated for its editorial (5/8) stance on the leaked transcript of the phone call between Donald Trump and Malcolm Turnbull. The conversation between these two men not only reveals such callousness towards the lives of individuals who continue to live in desperate circumstances on Nauru and Manus Island, it is the complete obscenity it highlights about truth and political opportunism. A great sadness is that the majority of Australians are not outraged by the conduct of these two men. "You are worse than I am." It is hard not to agree. Judith Morrison, Mt Waverley It's just a process Malcolm Turnbull is quoted as saying to Donald Trump, regarding the resettling of Manus refugees: "The obligation is only to go through the process." Appalling but predictable. That's his entire political ethic.

John Laurie, Newport Deception at work It is now virtually certain that the refugees detained on Manus and Nauru will not go to a new life in the US. They, and the Australian public, have been cruelly deceived by the Coalition government. The transcript between Malcolm Turnbull and Donald Trump reveals duplicity and heartlessness on the part of each politician. No thought is given to justice for the refugees who fled persecution and sought our help. Both our major political parties, and the public, should be ashamed. Gael Barrett, North Balwyn

Kudos to PM I read the transcript. The schoolyard bully is forced to relent. Trump's total ignorance and petulance on the issue of the resettlement of the "boat people" had me gobsmacked. In contrast, Turnbull's response seemed respectful and dignified and his exasperation obvious. Karin Ziemnicki, Tawonga South Defining moment Trumpbullian: adj. 1. acting in a manner in which political expediency is placed above honesty and morality; 2. the use of human lives without regard to their wellbeing as an example to others or to demonstrate political power.

Liz Telford, Clifton Hill The weak link It puzzles me that anybody could describe Malcolm Turnbull as a tough negotiator. In his own words the deal "does not require you to take any. "It requires, in return, for us to do a number of things for the United States ... we will take anyone that you want us to take." Couldn't sound much weaker.

Ron Slamowicz, Caulfield North Home to roost Australia's loyalty to US foreign affairs policy requires Australia to join in America's numerous wars  Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria. It was only a matter of time before the victims of US war policy targeted its backers. Travellers must now pay the price where we are put in a state of fear when flying, seeing more and more spent on security and suffering more and more inconvenience, all because of Australia's blind support of the US war machine. Michael Mansell, Launceston The risk is real

Timing is everything. Recently columnist Ross Gittins claimed that the risk of terrorist acts in Australia was tiny and that the fear of terrorism was being played up for political advantage ("The great terror scam", The Age, 36/7). Just a few days later, we encounter an alleged terrorist plot. Risk is a combination of probability and impact. There is both a real risk of terrorist acts in Australia; our government is not making it up. The action successive governments have taken to address the risk of terrorism is both justified and proportional. Michael Angwin, Surrey Hills No fracking here

With Australia's greenhouse gas emissions climbing (The Age, 5/8), how can we be contemplating shale oil and gas fracking, for example in the Northern Territory, Western Australia and South Australia? The scale of these drilling operations are potentially huge and could increase Australia's greenhouse gas emissions by billions of tonnes, making it impossible for our country to ever meet any international commitments. Tim Forcey, Sandringham Full farce ahead There is a risk that, as Peter Hartcher suggests ("Turnbull must go postal", The Age, 5/8) the non-binding postal plebiscite could be a farce with the participation rate below 50 per cent  Australians might enjoy sticking it up their politicians. There might even be a campaign to boycott the vote.

Bronwen Murdoch, South Melbourne The sum of us Ange Mackie writes (Letters, 5/8) "Why should you have the right to vote? The plebiscite ... puts my happiness in the hands of people who have no business in my life". There is absolutely nothing now to stop same-sex couples having a private commitment ceremony. Why isn't that enough? Because what's wanted is recognition of that commitment by the whole of society. And when you ask the whole of society to recognise it, that's when it becomes their business. Caroline Miley, Heidelberg Look to Portland

Instead of the government spending billions of dollars to facilitate the strangling of Melbourne, they should spend it to develop Portland. This was proposed years ago but with perhaps the exception of Alcoa, nothing has happened. Portland has already been identified as the place for growth. It has everything required, including a deepwater port that can be expanded and developed. Any number of government agencies and offices could be transferred and economic encouragement given to business and industry to settle there. Where there are jobs the people will follow. Surely this makes more sense socially and economically to develop Portland  not to fill Melbourne to bursting point and complete the destruction of what is claimed to be "The most liveable city". Ian Braybrook, Castlemaine

Answer me this Australia is a wealthy country. I have 10 questions for the Prime Minister, the Parliament and our leaders: 1) Why can't we have a decent system to reduce greenhouse gases and address climate change? 2) Why can't we ensure big corporates pay a fair amount of tax? 3) Why can't we share the benefits of economic growth more evenly?

4) Why can't we treat refugees humanely? 5) Why can't we let same-sex couples get married? 6) Why can't we ensure fairer outcomes for our Indigenous people? 7) Why can't we improve our education performance? 8) Why can't we house the homeless?

9) Why can't we make housing more affordable? 10) Why can't we have stronger approaches to anti-corruption? Mark Kelly, Torquay Cuts as easy as ABC So ABC's 7:30 and Lateline are on borrowed time. Excellent decision by Michelle Guthrie. This will leave more room for mediocre British shows and the endless repeats we are subjected to on the once great ABC. It becomes less Australian and less important all the time. Of course, the blame for this and more cuts to Radio National needs to be attributed to this federal government which has done all it can to gut the ABC despite the former PM guaranteeing no cuts. Four Corners next?

Peter Whiteley, Point Leo Abandoned Archbishop Denis Hart is among some senior christian clergy who have said euthanasia and assisted suicide represented the "abandonment of those who are in greatest need of our care and support". The church he represents abandoned too many young people who were abused by clergy. "Thou shalt not kill" may be a commandment but what is abuse and abandonment that leads to suicide? Expediency? Hypocrisy? Unfortunate? Adrian Tabor, Point Lonsdale

Call in the ABS Those of us who are neither gay nor religiously devout can appreciate marriage equality opponents' desire to have their voices heard. But years of private polling indicates most people support it. Calls for Malcolm Turnbull to "follow the mandate" ring hollow in light of past political practice (captain's pick, anyone?) The PM does, however, have a non-partisan instrument to quantify the extent of Australians' wishes without going through an expensive, divisive, non-binding plebiscite. It's called the Australian Bureau of Statistics. C'mon, Prime Minister, commission the survey, publish the results and get on with a parliamentary vote. Or risk political oblivion, if not for the Coalition, probably for yourself. Leon Burgher, Stony Creek

AND ANOTHER THING Bad investment Malcolm Turnbull's $1 million investment in the Liberal Party must now be viewed as unprofitable. Scott Ramsay, Strathdale

Trump The White House revolving door has been removed for repairs, the bearings have worn through. Marcel Colman, Albert Park Donald all those leaks are shocking, with the truth getting out. John Groom, Bentleigh

Just pretend, Donald. Just go through the motions. Ian Cunliffe, Moonee Ponds "You are worse than I am." Coming from Donald Trump, has Malcolm Turnbull ever received a worse indictment? David Seal, Balwyn North "I look like a dope." At last Trump gets it.

David Johnston, Healesville Other matters I find it disgusting that Australia is trading in refugees. Ronald Hall, Middle Park The Queen's interests are not ours ('The republic will happen one day', The Age, 5/8) just as our interests are not the Queen's.

Tony Lenten, Glen Waverley Thank you, Colin Howard (Letters, 1/8) for asking: Why indeed do we need any head of state? Rita Thorpe, Coburg Amanda Williams (Letters, 5/8) gets download speeds up to 3MB a second. Luxury! We dream of 3MB a second. Richard Aspland, Rosanna
What is it  Platinum International Heath Care Fund invests in the shares of health care companies from around the world, ranging from those doing research, to health insurance, through to those providing health care services to consumers, such as hospitals. Returns  From inception in November 2003 to June 30, 2017, the fund produced an annual average compound return of 9.47 per cent. Pros  Platinum Asset Management is a Sydney-based fund manager, considered among the best global share fund managers in the world. Cons  Platinum is a "contrarian" investor, meaning it does not follow the herd. From time-to-time, returns can lag those of sharemarkets. Indian economic reforms

The development of India is tempting some investors. Credit:iStock What is it  the Fidelity India Fund invests in a diversified selection of 50 to 70 Indian-listed companies and draws on the research capabilities of Fidelity's analysts based in India. Fidelity is one of the world's biggest fund managers. The portfolio holds companies that are producing higher returns on capital, good cash flows and have low debt and quality management. Returns  From inception in October 2005 to June 30, 2017, 9.8 per cent. Pros  India's population is growing more quickly that China's and many commentators believe the size of India's economy will eventually outstrip that of China.

Cons  India is a messy and boisterous democracy with a huge disparity in wealth. India in the process of rolling-out a single indirect tax across the country and there could be some economic turmoil, at least in the short term. Chinese consumer spending China's burgeoning consumer class offers opportunities. Credit:AP What is it  Premium China Fund invests mostly in companies listed in Hong Kong, mainland China and Taiwan. It can also invest in companies listed on other stock exchanges that have significant connections to the Greater China region. Returns  From inception in November 2005 to June 30, 2017, 10.55 per cent

Pros  McKinsey & Company estimated in 2013 that by 2022, more than 75 per cent of China's urban consumers will be earning $US9000 to $US34,000 a year. Some estimates say the middle class will number more than 600 million by 2022. And they will be spending more on leisure, including travel, and consumer goods like flat-screen TVs and more on niche over mass brands. Cons  China can be a risky place to invest  though the rewards are there. There are some obscure ownership structures and corruption scandals as well a general lack of transparency in the legal process. Investing with a conscience Former US vice-president Al Gore encourages investing with an eye to the environment. Credit:Ben Rushton What is it  Generation Wholesale Global Shares Fund was founded by Al Gore and others in 2004. It's available to Australian investors through Colonial First State.

It develops a series of industry road maps that focus on industry-specific long-term trends. Companies are whittled down to a portfolio of up to 60 listed companies on sharemarkets around the world that have sustainable business models and high-quality managements. Returns  From inception in October 2007 to June 30, 2017, 10.14 per cent. Pros  The investment approach is based on the conviction that sustainability factors, including economic, environmental, social and governance criteria, will drive a company's returns over the long term. Cons - Management costs of 2.22 per cent a year, with a performance fee on top, are a drawback. And its sustainability bent means the fund does not screen-out certain "bad" sectors, which might not suit some investors. Agribusiness and water rights

Irrigation rights can be valuable. Credit:Michelle Mossop What is it  Blue Sky Alternatives Access Fund is an ASX-listed investment company (code: BAF) that invests in a diverse range of alternative assets, including private equity, venture capital, water rights, agribusiness finance and real property. Returns  From inception in June 2014 to June 30, 2017, 9.33 per cent. Pros  Broadly diversified for those investors who want exposure to several themes. As it's listed on the Australian sharemarket, shares in the fund can be bought and sold just like any other listed company. Cons  The fund holds unlisted assets, which are valued periodically. And a significant component is in real estate, including property development that tends to be higher risk.

Caution needed Tim Murphy, director of manager research at Morningstar, says while there are opportunities with themed investments they can also go wrong. The classic example is the tech funds that were launched just before the start of the "tech wreck" in 2000. Tim Murphy from Morningstar, warns there are risks. Credit:Nic Walker Most were launched with $1 unit prices and are now trading at less than $1.

"Sometimes the funds can be launched fairly late in the theme. I think that's the biggest potential drawback of some of these funds," Murphy says. Investors may be better off with a fund that can invest broadly in global shares, he says. Murphy says anyone thinking of investing in a themed fund should be prepared to invest for a minimum of 10 years. David Smythe, co-founder of investment researcher Zenith Investment Partners, says some investors can "go for the theme", but not every manager has the skills to "execute" the theme successfully. Diversification is key

"These funds need to form part of a broader and well-balanced portfolio that matches the investor's risk profile," Smythe says. They could have more of a supporting role, with the main role played by a fund with a broader share exposure, he says. Investors should be aware that there are many exchange traded funds (ETFs) that invest with a theme, Smythe says. ETFs are listed on the Australian sharemarket with units in them bought and sold just like the shares of listed companies. They have very low investment management fees, but they are "index" or "passive" managers, meaning they track or mirror the returns of a market, index or prices, like those of gold or oil.

The active managers listed above buy and sell investments in order to outperform the market in which they invest. There are ETFs that track all sorts of themes. For example, some track Chinese shares and sharemarket sub-sectors such as healthcare and cyber security. Then are also ETFs that invest with screens. Exposure sought John Baillie, 56, from Melbourne, has a background in finance and is now a professional company director.

He has two grown-up children and together with his wife has a self-managed superannuation fund. Like many SMSFs, John is overweight in Australian shares. He looked at the Future Fund, the sovereign wealth fund established by the Australian Government to meet unfunded public service superannuation liabilities. One of the reasons for the fund's good returns was that it includes alternative investments. "I wanted exposure to real estate and to private equity," he says.
You can usually choose your fund. There are two main types of funds  industry funds that return profits to members and retail funds run by financial institutions such as banks for a profit. Industry funds have historically out-performed retail funds on average, but there are good and bad in both categories. You don't have to work in an industry to join the applicable industry fund  there's nothing to stop a waiter joining Local Government Super, for example. I wrote recently about a child actor who found all his super was eaten away by fees and insurance premiums. Judging by the response, this is a very common problem, not just for kids but anyone who earns a low or sporadic income. If this is you, look for a low-fee fund. When the balance is low, minimising fixed fees is more important than the investment returns. SuperRatings has a list of the top 10 funds with the lowest fees. Second, choose the right investment option. When you're young, you should probably be in a growth fund. It's higher risk but over the long term should deliver higher returns. If you've got decades to go before you retire, you can usually afford the risk. Third, consolidate your accounts. Otherwise you could be paying multiple sets of fees and insurance premiums. There's a good guide to how to do this on ASIC's MoneySmart website. Fourth, review your insurance needs. By default you have life insurance, which pays out on death and also total and permanent disablement (TPD), and sometimes income protection insurance. You can opt out but think carefully before you do. If you have dependants (usually children) or liabilities (such as a mortgage), then life insurance is important. In some cases you'll want to increase your cover.

Fifth, consider making a small personal contribution. That's if you're not madly saving for a house or trying to pay off a mortgage. Behavioural economists know that people adjust to their take-home salary  so if you can force yourself to save before you even get the money, you probably won't even notice it. Your 20s and 30s are a great time to contribute to super, because of the magic of compound interest. Time is your greatest asset when investing, and superannuation is the most tax-effective way to invest. You can contribute through salary sacrifice if it's offered by your employer. But there's also a new law that means you can do it yourself and claim a tax deduction at the end of the year. You can set up a direct debit so the money drips into your super account frequently, or even use tools such as the Acorns app to sweep digital "spare change" into your super account. By contrast, many employers only deposit super every three months ... if at all (unpaid super entitlements are a big problem in Australia). The downside is that you don't get the tax deduction until the end of the year  but if you like getting a tax refund, then you might consider that a benefit. Sixth, make sure your binding death benefit nomination is up to date  that is, letting your fund know who should get your money if you die. Seventh ... nope, that's job done, actually. Forget about it for a while. Make a date to spend an hour or two reviewing it in a year's time, or maybe two. Don't get sucked into fiddling around with your investment options constantly. You pay transaction costs every time you buy and sell and you're probably not as good at it as you think. If you could time the market, you'd have made a motza from share trading and be retired already. If you want to try, do it with your "play money" not your super.

This also means you shouldn't worry about whether your fund has a great app or mobile experience. There are new disruptors that make this a selling point, but it's more important that the investment returns are good and fees are low. Don't buy into the fearmongering about how much you need in retirement. Some very smart people think the super industry's definition of a "comfortable" retirement is inflated. The super industry, naturally, disagrees. I reckon there's plenty of fat in it, but take a look for yourself. The average young person will have a lifetime of compulsory super of at least 9.5 per cent of your salary and this is slated to rise to 12 per cent. If you're aged under 54 now, you can't get to your super until you're at least 60 and you can bet they'll put the age up before you get there. Loading If you think you might need money to buy a home or any other important purpose before you're allowed access to your super, then keep your money outside the system  or use the new first home super saving scheme. You can invest outside of super and earn similar returns  it's not as tax effective, but that's the price of freedom.
A severe storm warning has been issued for south-east Queensland on Sunday evening.

The Bureau of Meteorology said about 4.30pm the wet weather was moving east Lake Somerset and were were expected to deliver damaging winds and large hailstones to the Moreton Bay region.

While the Moreton bay region braced for hail, Brisbane was expected to receive light rain and possible lightning on Sunday evening. Credit:Twitter: @Edmund_BartonMP

Caboolture, Mount Mee, Wamuran, Bribie Island and Beerburrum were forecast to be hit by 5.30pm, before the system was expected to continue moving east offshore.
An aged-care provider that paid $17 million for a development site in Brisbane's south-west has been accused of trying to create an eyesore that would destroy the suburb.

According to property records, TriCare purchased the former Sullivan Nicolaides site at Seven Oaks Street, Taringa, in 2015.

Council city planning chairman Julian Simmonds said the zoning of the Newmarket Brickworks site was changed during the development of the Ashgrove-District Neighbourhood Plan. Credit:Glenn Hunt

It submitted a development application to the Brisbane City Council to build a residential care facility and retirement facility on the 11,830-square-metre site on June 29, 2017.

Three towers have been proposed. One would be 16 storeys and provide 98 independent living units, the second 14 storeys with 53 assisted-living units and the third would provide 255 aged-care beds in a nine-storey tower.
Within six months of starting the business, Turner employed her first full-time staff member. "I started doing consulting, but being young and junior I didn't have much to sell, so it was really about building the intellectual property and know-how," Turner says. Winning an airforce tender A turning point came when Turner was offered the opportunity to work with the Australian air force to design a risk management strategy. "I designed the strategy and said what it would take to implement it," Turner says. "They decided to go out to a full tender and put an ad in the paper. I pulled together the best team I could with pilots, psychologists and a professor from university who was one of my lecturers," Turner says. "We won the tender."

That tender turned into an ongoing source of work for Aerosafe, thanks to Turner's negotiating nous. If you want to work at the top end of town you need to build a solid business, which is comparable not in size but in professionalism. "One of my best business decisions was it was a multi-year, multimillion-dollar contract and to pull down the price I negotiated a retention of intellectual property rights," Turner says. "Under the defence policy of building Australian businesses and know-how, I was able to retain all that work and accelerate our growth." While many small businesses struggle to win government contracts, Turner attributes her success to her approach. "If you want to work at the top end of town you need to build a solid business, which is comparable not in size but in professionalism," she says. "Everything has to be documented and accounted for. You have to be prepared to put in the hard work."

Turner says the secret to growing Aerosafe over two decades has been her responsiveness to change. "You have to be prepared to be adaptable and let product lines and service lines that aren't needed by the market go, in order to be cutting edge," Turner says. "It's hard to cut it away to start afresh with things, but you need to if you want to be a thought leader and at the top of your game." International impact Aerosafe has clients around the world, including the US Department of Defence, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Textron, Qantas, Air New Zealand, China Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Sydney Airport Corporation. Turner says she decided in 2004 that Aerosafe was going to be the premier provider of airline risk management globally.

"It meant getting on a plane, it meant living overseas," she says. Turner is now back in Australia and based in Canberra, but says last year she made 45 international trips, which involves a significant family commitment, leaving behind her partner and seven-year-old step-son. "Saturday morning every week without fail at 6.30am we have our weekly management meeting with the United States," Turner says. "They are the small but big sacrifices, it's the commitment you make to maintain a global business." Looking forward Aerosafe's global success has enabled it to reach turnover of more than $10 million a year, but Turner has further growth plans.

"Our funding has really come out of retained earnings and we have had a number of research and developments grants," she says. "We are now seeking investment funds to really grow and scale." Turner is looking to raise $7 million to accelerate the development of Aerosafe's technology program and invest in patents and a global sales team. Aerosafe will look for private equity investment or strategic partnerships. "My preference is to access Australian funds, but it depends how accessible they are," she says. Creating something out of nothing

Aviation expert Keith Tonkin runs one of Aerosafe's competitors in aviation risk management, Aviation Projects, but says he's impressed by Turner's business. "She created something literally out of nothing and for her to do that is quite admirable," he says. Tonkin says there is growing opportunity in aviation risk management. "We are increasingly becoming involved in more and more complex situations," he says. "There has been a concerted effort over the last 12 years to put into place more robust aircraft safety management and risk management." But rising professional indemnity insurance costs and cost-cutting by clients pose a challenge for the sector.
Free postcard business Avant Card has been rescued by a Melbourne businessman.

Media company founder Sam Dell'Aglio has swooped in and purchased Avant Card collateral, client lists and distribution rights in three states, announcing plans to resurrect the free postcard business under a new name.

Pat Mackle has found a buyer for Avant Card. Credit:Justin McManus

Last month, Avant Card founder Pat Mackle announced the impending closure of the business which provides free postcards in cafes, bars, cinemas, theatres, libraries, universities and galleries around Australia.

But Dell'Aglio has confirmed he will bring Avant Card into his stable of out-of-home media options, known as Mr Moto. He has operated in the out-of-home space for 32 years.
A suburban beachfront in one of Victoria's most marginal electorates will get a $50 million revamp under plans to build a controversial "sky rail" bridge.

A new promenade will be built in Carrum, where the Andrews government has committed to removing three level crossings.

Artist's impression of Carrum's elevated rail, with views to the proposed promenade. Credit:Level Crossing Removal Authority

However, five properties will have to be acquired to make way for the promenade that will run between Nepean Highway and the beach.

Labor MP Sonya Kilkenny holds Carrum on a margin of just 0.7 per cent.
Women with breech babies may be forced into having caesareans because of a shortage of doctors experienced in bottom-first births at Victoria's public hospitals.

This comes amid controversy over the closure of the state's only specialist breech clinic, at the Royal Women's Hospital, with fears about the risks of breech births reportedly behind a decision not to advertise for a replacement clinician.

Renee Wijesinghe with four-month-old Charlie, who was a breech baby. Credit:Daniel Pockett

Women who recently visited the hospital with a baby in a breech position said they were told the hospital no longer did planned vaginal breech births.

Another said she was booked in for a caesarean "without any mention of the option of a vaginal birth".
Melbourne Express: Monday, August 7, 2017

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Despite WA locals failing to take home a share in last week's Oz Lotto draw, three lucky punters have more than made up for the state's slight dip in luck  each picking up nearly $720,000 on Saturday night.

There were six division one winning tickets sold across the nation for Saturday Lotto's draw, and it appears half were sold in WA.

374 division three winners took home nearly two grand each.

Any Lotto player who picked up their tickets at the Lucky Charm in Atwell, the Lucky Charm in East Victoria Park or the Kwinana Hub Lottery Centre and Newsagency has been urged to double-check their numbers in case they're sitting on a cool $719,408.05 prize.

The winning numbers for punters to check were 21, 7, 20, 1, 11, 32, with supplementary numbers 26 and 22.
A minor earthquake has rocked the Halls Creek region, with a 4.9 tremor recorded in the Tanami Desert on Sunday afternoon.

The earthquake was recorded at 12.21pm by Geoscience Australia, and was believed to have centred around 105km south-east of Halls Creek.

Where the earthquake started. Credit:Earthquake Track

Residents as far as Kununurra reported experiencing the "shaking", and Geoscience Australia said residents up to 187km away could have felt the tremble.
A Perth woman has been left shaken after her one-year-old cat was seriously injured in an alleged cat-baiting trap in Wellard on Wednesday.

Georgia Bourdon said she let her black-and-white kitten Demon out into her backyard on Wednesday, and when he returned "his leg was hanging on by a thread".

Demon after his surgery. Credit:Georgia Bourdon

"He mostly stays at home or in the backyard because the fence is really high. The house next door is being constructed, so they temporarily removed the fence between us and created a makeshift fence, which he managed to find a gap," she said.

Ms Bourdon had left for the afternoon, and when she returned she found Demon collapsed on the doorstep.
A woman has died after the car she was travelling in veered onto the wrong side of the road and flipped around 10 kilometres north-east of Broome on Friday.

The crash is believed to have occurred at around 8.40pm in Djugun, when a blue 2011 Nissan Tida hatch drifted onto the wrong side of Broome Road.

The car was travelling around 10km north-east of Broome. Credit:planbooktravel.com.au

The vehicle rolled several times.

A 38-year-old woman died at the scene, whilst the 43-year-old male driver suffered life threatening injuries in the crash.
Washington: The United Nations Security Council has voted unanimously to impose the new sanctions on North Korea, banning exports that supply up to a third of the country's annual $US3 billion ($3.7 billion) earnings.

The US-sponsored resolution is the most punitive against the rogue state in 11 years and comes in response to North Korea's launch of two intercontinental ballistic missiles last month, activities prohibited under existing UN resolutions.

The sanctions ban North Korea's largest export, coal, along with exports of iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, and seafood. Together, those exports amount to more than $US1 billion a year in income for Pyongyang.

The measure's unanimous approval was a diplomatic victory for the Trump administration and partly reflected growing impatience with North Korea by China. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly called on China to exert more pressure on its neighbour over its nuclear belligerence.
Washington: US Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said Sunday that the expanding investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election is continuing apace, even as President Donald Trump dismissed the probe as "a total fabrication."

Mr Rosenstein said special counsel Robert Mueller can investigate any crimes that he might discover within the scope of his probe, but would not discuss which individuals are the subject of their inquiry. The interview comes days after Mr Trump said he believes it would be inappropriate for Mr Mueller to dig into Trump family finances.

"The special counsel is subject to the rules and regulations of the Department of Justice, and we don't engage in fishing expeditions," Mr Rosteinstein said when asked about the probe in an interview on Fox News Sunday.

Mr Rosenstein declined to comment on reports that Mr Mueller is using a grand jury in a court in Washington to aid in his investigation, but he said that such a step is a routine part of "many investigations."
Washington: Rod J Rosenstein, the deputy-attorney general, said on Sunday that the Justice Department was not pursuing reporters as part of its growing number of leak investigations, just two days after he and other department officials had appeared to signal a harsher line toward journalists.

"We don't prosecute journalists for doing their jobs," Rosenstein said on Fox News Sunday. "That's not our goal here."

He had declined to answer such a question on Friday, telling reporters who asked whether the department would prosecute reporters that he would not "comment on any hypotheticals".

Rosenstein's appearance on Fox came two days after administration officials heralded a new and stiffer posture on government leaks, with Attorney-General Jeff Sessions telling reporters that leak investigations had tripled under the Trump administration.
if the people of Biafra want Republic of Biafra, it will be a reality during my administration. ----Donald Trump Donald Trump I wi...
Bryan teacher Tonya R. Johnson will revamp her Sam Rayburn Intermediate School classroom with $500 in winnings from a Brazos Valley Schools Credit Union decorating contest.

As part of the organization's first classroom decorating contest, teachers submitted essays detailing how that would redo their space with $500. Johnson said she would infuse bright colors into the classroom.

She was among 56 teachers to participate and was chosen by a panel of five judges.
A proposed Senate bill that would put in place a merit-based system to determine who is admitted to the United States and granted legal residency has drawn mixed reaction both locally and statewide.

The Trump administration on Wednesday threw its support behind the bill, which would cut legal immigration in the U.S. in half within a decade. The new system would favor those who speak English well, have attained higher levels of education and received competitive job offers, and who have records of achievement and business initiative.

Texas A&M University Associate Professor Armando Alonzo has a succinct description for his thoughts on the proposal, calling it "short-sighted."

"There's always going to be a demand for the unskilled and semi-skilled workers," said Alonzo, an associate professor in the history department, of the "hundreds of thousands of immigrants" who have impacted U.S. agricultural, ranching, farming and mining industries.

Alonzo, whose research focuses on the history of Tejanos and borderlands of Mexico and the U.S., said Mexican immigration been based on family migration for most of American history, but in the past 20 years researchers have seen more single young men and women cross the border because of economic opportunities. Then those who came over alone send for their families to come over to the U.S.

"Because the law permits family unification, they take advantage of it, as everybody else does," Alonzo said, adding that immigrants lower the cost of housing in the communities in which they reside, creating "a benefit to the general public."

The new bill, titled the RAISE Act and penned by Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Sen. David Perdue of Georgia, appears unlikely to pass as it is currently written.

"I don't think it's ready for a vote," Texas GOP Sen. John Cornyn said during a media call Thursday, according to The Dallas Morning News. "It was useful to engage people, to get them to start thinking about should our immigration system be based purely on family relationships or on the skills, talents and contribution immigrants can make to our country."

U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith of San Antonio told NPR in an interview that he would sponsor partner legislation in the House. During the interview, Smith cited less job competition between immigrants and blue-collar Americans.

"It will help protect American workers, and it will help, frankly, increase economic growth," he said in the interview. Smith's stance is that immigrants drive wages down, which is why Americans will not take low-skill jobs.

"Americans may not want to work for those wages, but if the low-skilled, uneducated immigrants are reduced in number, it is likely that those wages will go up, and that will attract more American workers at a higher pay," Smith said.

Smith also said in the NPR interview that a bill expected to come out of the House judiciary committee next month would expand the guest worker program.

However, local Hispanic community leaders said the policy, if it were to pass, would adversely affect the area economy.

"I think it would hurt the local economy big time," said Carolyn Benavides, program director and morning air personality at Radio Alegria, referring to the local grocery, hotel and construction businesses.

"You look who's out there in this hot heat laboring, and it's nothing but Hispanics. ... You go into any restaurant, go look who's in the kitchen," she said. "If [new legislation] affects them and makes it harder for them to work, who's going to replace them?"

"We see who are the busboys, we see who is roofing the houses," said Joseph Rodriguez, an attorney in Bryan who said he doubts Americans will want such low-wage, low-skilled labor.

"Americans are not competing for those jobs," he said. "That's not a very ultra-competitive arena."

Rodriguez said the jobs Americans are competing for are the high-wage, high-skilled ones that would be even more competitive should immigrants be accepted on a high-skill and -educated merit basis.

Glen Brewer, president and CEO of the Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce, said his office does not have enough staff to track pending legislation before it is passed, but the chamber is generally in favor of comprehensive immigration reform that implements rational guest worker policies, boosts economic growth and protects the country's borders. He said they're not "for or against a wall," but instead are "hugely in favor of rational guest-working policies."

"That, to me, solves everything," he said.

But Brewer said that "if we don't have manual labor around here, then we can't get things done."

"You can't pay unskilled labor [at] skilled labor prices and expect to have an affordable product," he said.

Walter Kamphoefner, a history professor at Texas A&M University, said that immigrants are learning English as quickly, or more quickly, than they have before, and that the percentage of immigrants coming to the U.S. who speak English is higher now that it was in 1890.

"English is not an endangered species," Kamphoefner said.

Benavides rejected the idea that cutting the number of immigrants who are given green cards because of family connections would lead to a complete shutdown of immigrants coming to the U.S. in search of low-wage jobs.

"As long as people are starving and hungry in other countries, they're going to come," Benavides said. "They have to provide for their families and have to survive."

U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, a Texas A&M graduate who represents a large border district, said in a CNN interview earlier this week that any legislation on immigration would have to be bipartisan.

"We have benefited from the brain drain of every other country, and I want to continue that we've benefited from that for the past couple of decades, and I want to benefit from the hard-working drain, too," he said in the CNN interview. "If you're going to be a productive member of our society, let's get you here as quickly as possible, but let's do it legally."
A preliminary hearing on an air permit application needed for a local manufacturing company to expand its plant will be later this month.

On Aug. 16, the State Office of Administrative Hearings will conduct the preliminary hearing related to the permit application for Saint-Gobain Ceramics & Plastics Inc. to expand its Independence Avenue ceramic catalyst manufacturing plant. The hearing will be at 10 a.m. in the commissioners courtroom of the Brazos County Administration Building.

In March, the executive director of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality issued a preliminary decision that Saint-Gobain's permit application meets legal requirements. The permit amendment request is based on proposed plans for expanding the facility's process capabilities through the completion of two projects -- the construction of a sixth kiln and a complete rebuild of another. The expansion will increase emissions of certain pollutants over the site's current permitted limits.

If approved, the TCEQ says the plant expansion will raise total emissions to up to 646 tons annually -- an increase of 111 tons. The facility will emit contaminants including organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, hazardous air pollutants and particulate matter.

The TCEQ director ruled that "it is not expected that existing health conditions will worsen, or that there will be adverse health effects in the general public, sensitive subgroups or on the public welfare and the environment as a result of exposure to the expected levels" of air pollutants emitted, his response states. The Bryan school district, though, requested a reconsideration of the decision on the grounds that the increased emissions may have potential adverse health impacts at nine campuses within a 5-mile radius of the plant, specifically at nearby Jane Long Middle School.

According to a May 30 interim order, the commission granted the school district's request for a hearing on the matter on May 24.

The Aug. 16 preliminary hearing will name the parties, establish a schedule for the remainder of the proceeding, allow an opportunity for settlement discussions and address other matters. The hearing notice states that the evidentiary hearing phase of the proceeding will be similar to a civil trial in state district court. The hearing will address the disputed issue of fact identified in the TCEQ order on May 30:

 Whether the draft permit is protective of the health of students at staff at schools near the plant;

 Whether the use of an alternative air quality model to determine the ruling was appropriate;

 And whether the meteorological data used in the model was representative of the Bryan area.

According to the notice, to request to be a party in the hearing, a person must attend and show they would be affected by the granting of the air permit application in a way "not common to the general public." Anyone may attend the hearing and request to be a party.

The permit application, executive director's preliminary decision, and draft permit are available for viewing at the Clara B. Mounce Public Library, 201 East 26th St.
After 22 years of putting on the uniform and servicing the citizens of College Station, Officer Rhonda Seaton-McNeill has turned in her badge and gun and retired.

On Friday, city staff and friends of the veteran officer gathered at the city council chambers to celebrate the legacy Seaton-McNeill has left behind, highlighting the positive impact she has left in Aggieland and beyond.

Seaton-McNeill grew up in the Dallas area, but fell in love with College Station when she attended Texas A&M in the early 1980s. She spent several years working as an auditor for Brazos County after graduating, and it was during this time that she began considering becoming a police officer.

"Back when I worked with the auditor's office, I would do the books for the narcotics officers' grants, and worked alongside the narcotics officers a lot," she said. "... Lt. Dan Jones and [Asst. Chief] Chuck Fleeger worked in narcotics at the time, and kept encouraging me to take the test."

Seaton-McNeill was 35 years old at this time, and worried that she wouldn't make it alongside young recruits. But she had developed an interest in police activities over the years, and always harbored a strong sense of admiration for those who served as officers. When she was 18, before coming to Texas A&M, she was in a car accident in Dallas and remembers a police officer helping and comforting her.

"I didn't realize back then, but the way he treated me planted a seed; his ability to make good out of a bad situation," Seaton-McNeill said.

In 1995, the former auditor joined the College Station Police Department. She started out as a patrol officer, and years later went on to mentor others and recruit new officers as a field training officer and member of the Recruiting and Training Division. For three years, she worked in conjunction with local media as the department's public information officer. Additionally, for 10 years she served as part of the hostage negotiation team while performing her other roles on the force. Her last four years with the police department, Seaton-McNeill watched over students at College Station High School as the school's resource officer.

"I felt like I had 1,900 children," the now former-officer said. "That was the best job ever."

CSPD Chief Scott McCollum noted that the students at the high school loved Seaton-McNeill, and she did a good job not just dealing with problems after they occurred, but helping kids set off on the right path so bad things didn't happen in the first place.

In addition to her outstanding work at the high school, McCollum said Seaton-McNeill excelled at promoting what is known as Critical Incident Stress Management [CISM], a form of psychological care police officers administer to one another after experiencing a traumatic or stressful occurrence, such as a shooting or a graphic car crash. The chief explained that officers often wouldn't address CISM or talk about emotionally dealing with intense scenarios until recent years.

"She is very instrumental in making us who we are today," McCollum said. "She was very invested in CISM and definitely was a trailblazer who made it mainstream here and in the area."

While Seaton-McNeill said her favorite aspect of being a police officer was working with high school students, she can recall working during major events such as the Aggie Bonfire tragedy of 1999. She remembers providing security for President George W. Bush's second inauguration, and was honored to be a part of the critical incident stress management team in Lubbock during the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003. She also carries the memory of losing one of her close friends, Constable Brian Bachmann, who was shot and killed in the line of duty in 2012.

Seaton-McNeill has earned many honors, including unit citations and the Community Impact Award. She wants to stay involved with the community during her retirement, working with the Chamber of Commerce; something she did often with the police department. She will also be a substitute teacher for College Station ISD in the fall, creating not too large of a gap between her last day with students in uniform this May.

"It's been awesome," she said. "There is nothing that I would have done differently. It's a great police department with great people and good opportunities, and I'm really blessed to be a part of this community."
While educators across the state delve into their students' STAAR scores, a first glance at preliminary scores shows College Station students consistently outscored the state average, while Bryan students consistently underscored their peers across Texas.

For every subject tested this year -- with the exception of fifth-grade science -- the Bryan school district had a lower pass rate than the state's percentage. The gap was as low as 13 percent points for eighth-grade science, but the district reached the state average in fifth-grade science.

The exception to the districtwide numbers was Bryan Collegiate High School, which had a higher pass rate than both the state and every College Station high school in every STAAR category with the exception of U.S. history, where both College Station High School and Bryan Collegiate had a 99 percent pass rate.

College Station had higher passing rates than the state in every subject, particularly the subjects that students statewide struggled with the most: reading and writing. College Station had passing rates that were 14 percentage points above the state in both high school-level English exams.

Despite the relatively high passing rates, College Station trustees were cautious about the results after hearing a report presented by Molley Perry, the district's executive director of special services.

Perry's report showed that minority students, particularly black students, had lower passing rates than their peers of the same race across the state in nearly every test.

College Station Superintendent Clark Ealy attributed this difference to the effects of poverty, adding that 78 percent of black students in College Station are considered economically disadvantaged.

"Students who do come from poverty have less chances to practice than their more advantaged peers," Ealy said. "Overcoming the lack of practice in certain key subject areas is something we've been working at."

According to the Texas Education Agency, 71 percent of black students across the state were considered economically disadvantaged in the 2016-17 school year.

A similar trend is reflected in Bryan school district's scores, though Bryan school district officials have declined requests for interviews, stating that the district is still analyzing the preliminary results and, as a policy, would discuss the results when final STAAR scores are announced.

Officials at both districts have expressed issues with the STAAR test in general. When Christie Whitbeck took over as Bryan school district's superintendent, she said the test can be cumbersome to the learning process.

"I do believe in accountability," Whitbeck said. "I don't think we should shy away from being accountable, I just think we shouldn't test kids to the point that they don't have time to just be engaged in learning, because they are worried about the next test, and that's what's happened."

Carol Barrett, College Station school district trustee, said she is more interested in gauging how students did according to the district's internal means for tracking student progress.

"We all know how I feel about standardized testing. I don't think it tests what needs to be tested, and I stand by that unless somebody proves me different," Barrett said.

Perry said the whole picture is somewhere in between. While illuminating, STAAR results don't give an accurate picture of what's happening in a school district by themselves, Perry said.

"STAAR scores are kind of like when you go to the doctor, and they check your blood pressure," Perry said. "It can tell you whether there is a concern, but it can't really identify whether that was something where you went up the stairs too quickly on the way in or you have some sort of health issue -- and if you do have a health issue, what is it?

For school-by-school scores, click here.
When we go to our local grocery store, we find aisle after aisle of fresh fruit and vegetables, meats, baked items, canned goods and a plethora of other items. Most of it is good for us, although other items should be enjoyed on a limited basis. But the choice is ours.

With so many foods to choose from, it is hard to believe we have a food insecurity problem in this country. A national study in 2015 showed that 42.2 million people -- including 6.4 million children -- live in food-insecure homes. That means they don't know when and where their next meal will come from. Another 10.9 million adults and 541,000 children live in households with low food security.

These statistics are alarming, but hunger is not just a problem elsewhere in America. It exists right here in the Brazos Valley, among our friends and neighbors. The hungry could be low income workers, many holding done more than one minimum-wage job with few benefits, if any. They could be a single mother struggling to make ends meet and keep her children fed and clothed and well. Perhaps they are elderly residents, many living alone with no support system. We know them, we see them, our children go to school with them.

Here is county-by-county look at hunger in the Brazos Valley:

 Brazos County -- The overall food insecurity rate is 22.2 percent, but for children, that climbs to 26 percent -- one in four. Almost 11,000 children are food insecure. Yes, many of them receive breakfast and lunch at little or no charge in our schools, and that is absolutely wonderful, but too often that is the only food they may get all day. It is a long time from lunch until tomorrow's breakfast.

 Burleson County -- The food insecurity rate is 17 percent, but for children, that rate climbs to 26.9 percent.

 Grimes County -- The overall food insecurity rate is 18.2 percent, climbing to 26.4 percent for children.

 Madison County -- Overall, the food insecurity rate in Madison County is 20.6 percent and 31.4 percent for children.

 Robertson County -- The overall food insecurity rate is 20.2 percent, with 27.8 percent for children.

 Washington County -- Food insecurity overall is 18.8 percent, climbing to 26.2 percent for children.

These numbers are staggering, but they are more than figures on the page. They are hungry people, people living in our neighborhoods, on our street, perhaps, even, next door.

What are we to do? How can we help?

We are blessed in this area to have the Brazos Valley Food Bank, which distributes millions of dollars worth of donated and purchased food to more than 50,000 individuals in the five-county area profiled above. For more than 30 years now, the food bank has partnered with area agencies to distribute the food to people who are hungry. Sixty percent of those agencies are run entirely by volunteers and 70 percent are faith-based. Those agencies have to meet the strictest accountability.

Originally, the food bank distributed mostly canned goods donated through generous members of the community. Before long, it added surplus commodities from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and began purchasing needed food items that were not donated in sufficient quantity. Leveraging the money it receives, the Brazos Valley Food Bank can purchase five dollars worth of food for every dollar donated.

In recent years, the food bank has added fresh vegetables and meats to its menu and plans to increase the amount distributed to 50 percent of the total by next year.

As the Brazos Valley Food Bank has grown, it has needed to move to ever-larger facilities, every time thinking the new location would be adequate for years to come. Alas, as the food bank grows, so does the need for its services. It seems for every pound delivered, at least another pound is needed to keep up with the need.

As great as the staff at the Brazos Valley Food Bank is, they cannot do it alone. They depend on the generosity of this area to continue their powerful efforts. In December, thousands of pounds of food are donated at the annual KBTX Food for Families food drive. What a fantastic effort that is.

During the summer, when temperatures are hot and fresh produce plentiful, we rarely think of hunger, but it goes on and on. On Wednesday, we have a chance to help the Brazos Valley Food Bank continue its mission of feeding hungry people.

It is time once again for the annual Feast of Caring, a simple meal of beans and rice, a bit of sausage and salad. It is typical of the meal many of our neighbors have to eat every day. The meal will be served at the Brazos Center from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday.

The meal is free, but diners are encouraged to donate at least what they would spend eating lunch at one of the many fine eateries in College Station and Bryan. We hope you will be much more generous than that, though. Every dollar donated helps fight hunger right here at home.

Bring your co-workers, friends and family to this wonderful event. You'll see people you don't often see elsewhere and have a chance to visit over this simple meal.

We thank the volunteers and staff of the Brazos Valley Food Bank for their hard work day in and day out, seeking one day to end hunger in the Brazos Valley.

And we thank our readers for their support of this important mission.
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STAMFORD  Two months ago, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centers Dr. David Hyman revealed to an audience at McCormick Place in Chicago the promising results of clinical trials for a Stamford biotech firms leading drug. Those in attendance were not the only ones impressed by the data.

The price of Loxo Oncologys stock would spike after Hyman announced at the American Society of Clinical Oncologys annual meeting that Loxos Larotrectinib oral treatment significantly shrank tumors in 76 percent of patients with a range of cancers. With that validation, Loxos leaders decided they should capitalize by issuing more of their companys shares.

Loxo and fellow Stamford biotech firm Cara Therapeutics have benefited from increasing investor confidence in their work. This year, the two enterprises have cumulatively attracted hundreds of millions of dollars to support their costly operations. Their records show biopharmaceutical businesses enduring ability to tap into large amounts of capital  if they have the scientific results to prove their progress.

When we came out of the meeting at ASCO, there were investors who said Youve passed a level of risk that were now comfortable with, Loxo CEO Joshua Bilenker said in a recent interview at the firms offices at 281 Tresser Blvd. When we have that kind of interest from high-quality shareholders, thats always a good time to think about a fundraising event in a biotechnology company.

Attracting investment

As companies without products yet on the market, Cara and Loxo rely on outside capital to finance the tens of millions of dollars their businesses are spending annually on research and development. Typical of biotechs at their growth stage, both are operating in the red: Loxo ended 2016 with an approximately $72 million loss; Cara finished the year with a roughly $57 million deficit.

But the latest stock offerings for the firms  which both went public in 2014  more than made up for last years losses.

Loxo netted nearly $261 million from its June public offering. It plans to use the proceeds for early commercialization activities related to Larotrectinib; R&D initiatives for other drugs and additional uses that could include acquisitions or investments. It announced last Monday the $40 million acquisition of a program that focuses on inhibiting a molecular target in B-cell leukemias and lymphomas.

In January, Loxo closed on another offering that raised about $138 million.

Caras last offering, which closed in April, brought in about $92 million to support further testing of its signature CR845 drug. The therapy treats chronic and acute pain and the itch condition pruritus. By issuing new shares, Cara aimed to take advantage of an uptick in its stock prices following a batch of encouraging test results for CR845.

We want to return value to shareholders, so were always working to increase the overall value of the company, Cara CEO Derek Chalmers said in an interview at the firms offices at 107 Elm St. The most important time when we look to share prices is when we look to raise money in the market.

The two companies are raising capital amid a shift from a 2015 bull run for biotech stocks.

The market is willing to back the folks who look like theyre winners or are going to be winners, said Clarke Futch, managing partner and co-founder of Stamford-based health care investment firm HealthCare Royalty Partners. But theres very little capital available for companies not showing substantial progress.

Reflecting market confidence, Cara and Loxo have forged major gains in their share prices in the past year. On Aug. 4, 2016, Caras shares closed at $5.94; exactly a year later, their worth had nearly tripled to $16.34. During the same span, Loxos shares also grew nearly threefold: from $27.53 to $72.92.

While shares can spike, they can also plunge. Caras stock shed 40 percent of its value between June 29 and 30 in the wake of a mixed set of results for CR845. Its value soon stabilized.

Both firms said they prefer institutional investors whose commitment helps to steady the share prices.

They tend to be focused and conditioned and educated about the opportunities and risk of biotechnology; they understand the enterprise, Bilenker said. They hopefully are with you as you move through these different gates of development.

Onward with R&D

Executives at Cara and Loxo said they focus mostly on the science underlying their drugs in development, not on share prices.

Loxo hopes to secure U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for Larotrectinib as early as mid-2018. Larotrectinib and Loxos other drugs in development focus on treating cancers linked to genetic abnormalities.

We pay a lot more attention to getting the science right every day and getting patients enrolled onto our studies who have an opportunity, we hope, to benefit, Bilenker said. We pay a lot of attention to how to get information out into science journals and medical meetings, so that the world can monitor our progress. To us, thats far more important than what our stock does on any given day.

Cara aims to file its first new drug application with the FDA within the next two years for an intravenous form of CR845 to treat acute post-surgical pain or pruritus.

In a boost to its regulatory prospects, the company announced in late June that it had received breakthrough therapy designation for the IV form of CR845 for uremic pruritus in patients with chronic kidney disease undergoing hemodialysis.

It brings us regulatory advantages in terms of our interactions with the FDA, Chalmers said. We can speak to them more frequently, we can elicit their input more frequently into our program, and it allows us to hopefully have a faster review of the NDA (new drug application) once we actually submit it.

Coincidentally located within a block of each other in downtown Stamford, both companies envision a long-term presence in the city. Cara relocated last year from Shelton, as it sought a more central location. Loxo has been based in the city throughout its four-year existence.

Its worked out nicely because Stamford is close to New York City, where a lot of our large shareholders are and where Memorial Sloan Kettering is, said Bilenker, a Stamford resident. There is a biopharma community here It has turned out that were reasonably situated to build a strong team here in Stamford.

pschott@scni.com; 203-964-2236; Twitter: @paulschott
Danish Sisterhood, Western Star Lodge No. 113, met Aug. 1 for lunch and a meeting at Golden Towers. Five members were present, along with three guests who want to join the group, Barb Sorensen, Carol Owen and Leila Johnson.

President Sylvia McTavish brought the meeting to order. Delegates were appointed for the Brotherhood/Sisterhood District Convention scheduled for Sept. 29 and 30 at the Harmony Building located at 224 W. Third St. Diana Honore was chosen as the delegate, with Carolyn Andersen as the alternate. Applications for this event must be turned in by Sept. 1.

Articles were read from the Danish Sisterhood news. The group also celebrated McTavishs birthday.

With new people joining the fellowship of Danish Sisterhood, each member told the story about their families and Danish background.

The next meeting is set for noon Sept. 5 at the Golden Tower Community Room, with Honore serving as hostess.

Those interested in joining Danish Sisterhood, can call Edie Grim at (308) 226-2578.
Principal in G.I. being recognized for civic, charitable responsibility

The Association of Fundraising Professionals Nebraska Chapter has selected Principal of Grand Island to receive the Outstanding Corporation Award for its exceptional generosity and outstanding demonstration of both civic and charitable responsibility.

This is one of five awards being presented for commitment to philanthropy. Honorees will be recognized Nov. 9 at the National Philanthropy Day luncheon at the Hilton Omaha Downtown.

Principal helps people and companies around the world to build, protect and advance their financial well-being with its retirement, insurance and asset management expertise. Founded in 1879 and headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, Principal is recognized as a member of the Fortune 500, one of the worlds 100 most ethical companies, and as one of Forbes Americas Best Employers.

Principal encourages its employees to be involved in the community and provides the time and freedom to do so. In 2016 alone, Principal employees gave 1,371 hours of volunteer time to 67 Grand Island/Hall County non-profit organizations, said nominator Kevin Hendrix, executive director of the Stuhr Museum Foundation. If there is a project, event or organization that makes an impactful difference on the community, its likely that Principal is there to help. Since 2011, Principal has made contributions totaling $1,152,241 to nonprofits in Grand Island or Hall County.

First National Bank creates Kearney-Grand Island Community Board

First National Bank has established a Kearney-Grand Island Community Board.

John Hoggatt, Kearney-Grand Island market president, said the board is made up of community leaders from both Kearney and Grand Island and is designed to be an essential link between the bank and the local communities it serves.

First National Bank is excited to bring together some of Central Nebraskas community leaders for the Bank Community Board in order to better serve our communities, Hoggatt said. We are dedicated to growing Central Nebraska, and recruiting leaders from both communities to serve on the Board is important to achieving that goal.

Members of the First National Bank Kearney-Grand Island Community Board include:

Greg Baxter, owner/operator of T&E Cattle Co.; Bart Beattie, owner/operator of Beattie Family Farms; Terry Gallaway, CPA, a corporate shareholder in Maltzahn, Galloway & Luth; Tom Henning, CEO of Cash-Wa Distributing; Norris Marshall, founder, CEO and owner of Marshall Engines; Larry Speicher, CEO of Kearney Regional Medical Center; David Staab, president of Staab Management Co., and Gloria Thesenvitz, founder/president of Nova-Tech Inc.

First National Bank is a subsidiary of First National of Nebraska, the largest privately owned banking company in the United States. First National and its affiliates have more than $21 billion in assets and 5,000 employee associates. Primary banking offices are located in Nebraska, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota and Texas.
PHILLIPS  A nationally recognized pest control company, Truly Nolen Pest Control, opened a location in Phillips last month.

The business franchise, located at 444 West St., is owned by Randy Watson. It is the first Truly Nolen Pest location in the Tri-Cities area.

Watson is a lifelong Phillips resident who graduated from Aurora High School in 1980. Prior to his first franchise experience, he and his brother owned and operated Winchesters Restaurant in Phillips for several years.

Watson has franchising experience dating back to 2005 as he previously owned a Scotts Lawn Service and serviced the Tri-Cities area. He ran the franchise for 11 years before it was purchased by TruGreen. He had earlier spent five years as a market sales specialist helping small businesses and large industrial customers dispose of regulated and non-regulated waste streams.

After selling my business, I researched several franchise opportunities looking for an organization that had the same business values and commitment to their customers as I do, Watson said. Truly Nolen is who I found and I am extremely excited about serving my communitys pest control needs.

Last month, the Grand Island Chamber of Commerce hosted an official Truly Nolen ribbon cutting event at Railside Plaza in downtown Grand Island. During the ceremony, there was a 27-foot Truly Nolen Mouse Limo on display.

The mouse limo is a truly unique vehicle, no pun intended, Watson said.

Watson, who has been married for 31 years, is also a rural fire board member.

Greg Bohne, Truly Nolen vice president for domestic franchising, said Watson went through training recently at the companys Leadership Center in Tucson, Ariz., and the company is pleased to have him as part of the family.

Randy is very passionate about everything he does, both in and out of our industry, said Bohne. His previous lawn care experience and franchising success should help him have endless possibilities in the Tri-Cities area.

Truly Nolen offers its customers both residential and commercial pest control.

We take care of problems like general pests, insects, spiders and all the creepy crawlies that invade houses and businesses, Watson said. We also take care of rats and mice, both on the commercial and residential perspective. We also do bird exclusions and around this area bats are kind of the main issues.

He said he has done a lot of calls on bedbugs and termites, both for inspections and real estate closings. He will do treatments as well. The business also deals with wasp and hornet nest removals.

Watson said he hopes to have a Grand Island office open by the end of the year or the beginning of next year.

He said he was familiar with pest control when he operated his Scotts Lawn Service franchise.

It was something I had a comfort level with the chemistry and the products that are used, Watson said.

What drew him to open the first Truly Nolen franchise in Nebraska is how he liked the fact the company is a family-owned business and how they operate their business.

The products that they use are very environmentally friendly, he said. They use products that are very good in controlling insects but also very safe around humans and pets. That was something that was very important to me. That is being a good steward of the environment.

Also, he said, developing positive customer relationships is important to Truly Nolen.

It is getting to know their customers, their needs and just knowing them on a one-on-one, first-name basis, Watson said. We want to know our customers as well as our customers want to know us.

Founded in 1938, Tucson-based Truly Nolen of America is the largest family-owned pest control company in the United States. It has more than 80 branch offices in Arizona, California, Florida, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas and Utah.

The company also has independently owned and operated franchises in an ever-growing number of territories, including Georgia, North Carolina, Georgia, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Canada, Puerto Rico and more than 60 other countries.

Since 1938, Truly Nolen has been an industry expert and continued innovator.

Watson, a lifelong resident of the Phillips area who worked in the area of lawn pest control prior to opening his Truly Nolen franchise, has a unique knowledge of the types of pests that dominate the concerns of residential homeowners and commercial businesses in his service area that covers an eight-county area.

He said that knowledge and experience give him a greater understanding of the area and its needs when it comes to pest control. That has been a hallmark of the companys success as companys team members live in the area where their customers live.

When pest activity increases, generally more than one homeowner will report the same or a similar pest issue, Watson said. As a Truly Nolen franchise owner who is familiar with the area, he said he is trained not only to identify those pest issues, but also to be proactive about them.

The company believes in adding value to the lives they touch and being involved in each of its local communities, he said.

Truly Nolen of America partners with and supports many nonprofit organizations in the various local communities it serves across the country, Watson said. It encourages its employees and franchise owners to participate in local events.

The companys name came from its founder, whose birth name was Truly David Nolen (he passed away in April 2017 at the age of 89). He was a third-generation Truly and he passed it on to one of his eight children. Other names in the family are Really, Sincere Leigh and True Spyder Luke, along with more conventional names, including Scott, Bonnie, Michelle and Scarlett. His father, Truly Wheatfield Nolen, founded the original pest control business in 1938 in Miami Beach, Fla.

In 1955, following his fathers footsteps, Truly David opened his first pest control company in Tucson and eventually merged with his fathers company that began in 1938. During the next 11 years, he expanded the business into California, Texas and New Mexico.

During his years out West, in 1961, the trademark yellow Mousecar was born.

He ran the Tucson-based company full-time from his office in Naples, Fla., until his death earlier this year. His son Scott, based in Tucson, has been president/CEO of the company since the early 1990s.

Truly Nolen Pest Control of Phillips/Grand Island can be reached at (402) 886-2022. To learn more about Truly Nolen, visit its website at www.trulynolen.com.
Early in July, Chad Nabity, regional planning director for the City of Grand Island, shared some statistics about the population of Grand Island in an article written by Elizabeth Rembert for The Independent.

Nabity said Hall County and Grand Island have historically been made up of a diverse population, dating back to the German, Polish and Czechoslovakian settlers. Hispanic immigration trends began in the 1920s with the sugar beet factory and continues today. The bottom line is that Grand Island and Hall County continue to grow, as we have for decades.

Growth brings many challenges and opportunities. And, when approached with a common purpose and vision, growth creates vibrant and healthy communities. That is precisely why Grow Grand Island, Inc. exists and collaborates with key organizations, businesses, and community leaders to fulfill its mission, which is to cultivate bold ideas that create business and quality of life opportunities in our region through planning, partnering and doing.

There are currently 30 initiatives that make up the Grow Grand Island Program of Work. Workforce and quality of life are key driving factors within these initiatives. It is important that we have a workforce with the skills our businesses need.

It is important that we have younger workers to replace the voids left by those retiring. It is important that we have a community with a welcoming culture, as well as a vibe that attracts people to our area and makes visitors feel at home.

This is a small sampling of initiatives in the Grow Grand Island Program of Work:

Business Retention and Expansion (BRE) Outreach Program

Local Sourcing  Business to Business PO Challenge

Entrepreneurship Program

Corridor and Gateway Improvement

Career Pathways and Internships

Parent Assistance and Resources

Arts and Humanities

Early Childhood Education

Vulnerable Populations

Housing and Transportation

I encourage you to play a role in growing Grand Island as a vibrant and healthy community. There are countless ways to get involved. You can give your time and money to organizations that serve our most vulnerable. You can serve on a community board or committee  there are numerous Grow Grand Island committees underway. You can simply be a good parent and neighbor.

Grand Island will likely continue to grow one way or another, as it has for decades. But, it is HOW we grow that is the most important and impactful. Happier, healthier citizens make for a happier, healthier community.

Tonja Brown chairs the implementation committee for Grow Grand Island. To learn more about Grow Grand Island, or to become involved, visit growgrandisland.com.
Members of the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) SWAT team and deputies from multiple sheriffs offices and police departments worked together to arrest two men after a pursuit Saturday that involved a suspect firing several rounds at Polk County Sheriffs deputies.

The pursuit began Saturday evening, when a Polk County Sheriffs deputy attempted to stop a vehicle whose plates did not match the vehicle. The vehicle fled and during the pursuit, the passenger of the car fired several round at the deputies, striking one patrol car.

The vehicle went into a ditch near 129th and B Roads in Polk County and two people fled on foot. Shortly thereafter, the driver of the vehicle, Douglas Burke, 38, of Clarks, surrendered to authorities.

The vehicle was determined to be stolen and the passenger, Derek Hobbs, 25, of Omaha, had an active felony warrant from Omaha for terroristic threats, theft by unlawful taking of property valued between $1,500-$5,000, and use of a firearm to commit a felony.

Nebraska State Patrol SWAT, along with deputies from the Polk, Merrick, Butler and Hamilton County Sheriffs Offices and officers from multiple local police departments, searched the area and located Hobbs in a cornfield early Sunday morning. Hobbs was in possession of a loaded weapon.

Both men were taken to the Diagnostic and Evaluation Center in Lincoln. Nebraska State Patrol is continuing to assist the Polk County Sheriffs Office with the investigation. There is the potential for additional charges to be filed, which will be determined pending further investigation.
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Linkedin Jessicha Valentina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sun, August 6, 2017 09:43 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba3ccb 1 Food #traditional-food,IndependenceDay,Independence-Day,#IndependenceDay,tumpeng,#food,food,tradition,#tradition,traditional-food Free

For the residents of Java, Bali and Madura islands, tumpeng (a cone-shaped serving of yellow rice accompanied by assorted side dishes) is synonymous with joyful celebrations. As the 72nd Indonesian Independence Day draws near, those wanting to host celebration parties may want to include tumpeng on the menu.

However, before ordering tumpeng from the nearest catering company, let us learn some more about the philosophy behind the traditional dish.

It represent the relationship between humans and God

Murdjati Gardjito, a researcher at food and nutrition center at Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Yogyakarta, told kompas.com that tumpengs shape symbolizes the relationship between humans and God. She explained that there was only a single grain on top of the tumpeng, which represented God. Meanwhile, the bottom part of the dish, which consists of larger portions and various dishes, illustrated the character of human kind and the complexity of life.

Eat from the bottom

Despite the current popular ritual of cutting the top of the tumpeng and giving it to the honored guest in the room, Murdjati said that one should start eating tumpeng from the bottom. Since tumpeng represents the relationship between humans and God, slicing the top of tumpeng means cutting the relationship with the Almighty.

She explained that tumpeng should be eaten together with all the guests surrounding the dish.

Read also: Getting to know 'bir pletok,' Betawi's staple drink

Tumpeng was influenced by Hindu tradition

Though the dish originated on Java Island, tumpeng was influenced by Hindu tradition.

Dr. Ari Prasetiyo, Javanese language lecturer at the University of Indonesia (UI) said the concept of tumpeng derived from the old Javanese manuscript "Tantu Pangelaran," which regarded the peak of Mount Semeru in East Java, known as Mahameru, as the place of gods. Hence, tumpeng represents the shape of a mountain.

Tumpeng is an acronym

The etymology of tumpeng is uncertain. However, Ari said the word is an acronym from the Javanese sentence Yen metu kudu mempeng, which roughly means, Make sure to give all you can when you come out.

The meaning of tumpeng side dishes

Traditionally, tumpeng is served with seven assorted dishes, presenting different elements of foods, such as vegetables, sea and land animals. These dishes also offer various flavors, including sweet, sour and bitter, illustrating the different situations of life. (kes)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sun, August 6, 2017 11:03 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba437c 4 Science & Tech LIPI,research,#research,Science,#science Free

The Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) is set to open up positions for new researchers through a rigorous selection process.

Applicants are required to have received at least a doctorate degree, as well as experience working in various parts of the world.

The program aims to offset the number of researchers who go abroad, especially through the Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) scholarship program.

Through this move, we hope to entice the brightest Indonesians into becoming researchers, said LIPI deputy head Bambang Subiyanti on Wednesday as quoted by Antara news agency.

He mentioned that civil servant researchers made up only four percent of the total number of people who were part of the human resource and science department of Indonesia, which is currently dominated by lecturers from various universities.

Read also: Youth science camp seeks to counter shortage of researchers in Indonesia

Bambang also explained that Indonesian researchers required adequate infrastructure, as the current equipment was outdated and was often 5-10 years behind the technology used by neighboring countries.

In order to attract the attention of outstanding domestic researchers, LIPI will reportedly spend 60 percent of its budget on purchasing new equipment. (tha/kes)
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Linkedin Ganug Nugroho Adi (The Jakarta Post) Surakarta, Central Java  Sun, August 6, 2017 12:38 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba4811 1 Art & Culture keris,Museum,#museum,Keris-Museum,surakarta Free

The Keris Museum in Surakarta, Central Java, will be inaugurated by President Joko Jokowi Widodo on Aug. 25. The Surakarta administration is continuing to work on perfecting the arrangements of each collection in the museum, involving curators and museum observers in the process.

There will be roughly 360 ancient keris (ceremonial Javanese dagger) on display at the museum, all of which were donated by a number of collectors as well as the community of keris enthusiasts. However, the Keris Museum has the capacity to hold and display 4000 different keris. Moreover, other than keris, on display will also be other tosan aji (traditional weapons made of metal), including tombak (spears) and badik (traditional knives from South Sulawesi).

Of the hundreds of keris on display, some are keris lurus, keris luk (curved on the right and left side) seven, keris luk 11 and keris luk 13. These keris have a variety of different pamor (motifs), such as beras wutah (accidental pamor formed from forging, in the shape of a connecting navel) and sekar pakis (in the shape of fern flowers).

The majority of the keris on display come from Java. However, a small number of items originating from areas outside Java, including rencong (traditional Acehnese dagger) from Aceh, mandau (dagger) from Kalimantan and different types of keris from Madura, Bali as well as Sulawesi, will also be on exhibit.

Read also: Indonesian batik heritage on display in Surakarta batik museum

The entrance of the Keris Museum of Surakarta. (JP/Ganug Nugroho Adi)

A total of 300 of the ancient keris come from the Majapahit (1293-1500), Demak (1475-1554), Pajang (1568-1587), Kartasura (1680-1742) and Surakarta (1745-1946) periods, and as such they hold significant historical value. At this time, the oldest keris in the collection originates from the Majapahit Kingdom era in the 15th century.

There are many things that must be taken into account in regards to the selection of these keris. We cant just display them arbitrarily, said Bambang Tuko Wibowo, one of the curators of the Keris Museum.

Bambang added that within the process of curating these different pieces for the collection, it was very important to know the characteristics of the keris. Good curation depends on understanding the quality, type, age, production, materials and many other important details about the artifact.

Museums are attractions that are educational at the same time. Visitors not only see the keris, but they also receive detailed information about each item they see on display, he said.

The Keris Museum has been under construction since 2013, with Rp 25 billion (US$1.88 million) from the state budget (APBN) as well as Rp 1.5 billion from the city budget. In addition to the showroom, the five-storey building located in the Sriwedari complex is also equipped with an audio-visual room, a diorama of the keris-making process, as well as a storyline. Construction of the building was completed in late 2016.

Nevertheless, the inauguration has been postponed three times because of a number of improvements and renovations that have had to be made. Finally, the administration confirmed the inauguration of the building would be done by Jokowi this coming August.

Read also: Explore a different side of Indonesia in these museums

A diorama of the keris making process. (JP/Ganug Nugroho Adi)

The inauguration is scheduled to coincide with the implementation of the National Jaboree [Jamnas] of the Mental Revolution Movement in Surakarta on Aug. 25-27. Jamnas is followed by all regional heads throughout Indonesia, said Surakarta Cultural Agency head Sis Ismiyati.

Meanwhile, Solo Museum technical management unit (UPT) head, Bambang MBS, explained that visitors would be charged an entrance fee of Rp 6,000 per person. However, the fee would only be applicable one month after the initial opening of the museum.

After the inauguration [entry to the museum] will be free for roughly a month, afterwards we will begin to charge an entrance fee. We have also prepared six tour guides, Bambang explains.

At the same time, Surakarta Mayor FX Hadi Rudy Rudyanto revealed that the municipal administration of Surakarta was still trying to convince the central government to donate the keris that had been returned by the Dutch government to Indonesian, to the Keris Museum.

When they have been returned, we will file an official letter to the central government. The administration would like to look after the keris collection as part of the Keris Museum, said Rudy. (tha/kes)
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Linkedin Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Manila  Sun, August 6, 2017 18:22 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba9fcf 2 World #ASEAN-China,#SouthChinaSeaDispute,#CoC Free

Foreign ministers of the ten ASEAN member countries and China have adopted a framework for a Code of Conduct (CoC) in the South China Sea.

Several sources from the Indonesian Foreign Ministry have confirmed the adoption of the framework, which the Philippines has previously likened to an outline for the CoC.

"Indonesia welcomes the adoption of the CoC framework by the foreign ministers of ASEAN [member countries] and China," Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said on Sunday afternoon, as quoted by the ministry spokesperson.

The minister went on to express her hope that China would continue to play the constructive role it had so far played to conclude the CoC negotiations.

Read also: Southeast Asian nations feud over China sea claims

She also said the onus was on all countries to maintain regional peace and stability and respect international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was present at the ASEAN-China meeting in Manila on Sunday to adopt the CoC framework.

While some have dismissed the framework as another attempt to move the goalposts in the definitive South China Sea COC negotiations, the framework represents a breakthrough for ASEAN centrality, which has been on display since a meeting in Bali earlier this year decided on the creation of a "zero draft".

The framework, a sparse document that acts as a kind of table of contents to the CoC document, was adopted after 15 years of disagreement on the use of a draft CoC that would satisfy all parties involved.

China has made sweeping claims over the South China Sea, a vital waterway through which US$5 trillion in sea-borne trade passes each year.

Four ASEAN member states  Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines, have claims in the waters that compete with Chinas.
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Linkedin Ganug Nugroho Adi (The Jakarta Post) Boyolali, Central Java  Sun, August 6, 2017 13:56 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba5cd7 1 National monkeys,wildlife,Boyolali,Central-Java,shooter,agriculture Free

Hundreds of shooters had been deployed, but it was not enough to quell the enemy.

Residents of Karanggede and Kemusu villages in Boyolali, Central Java, have asked people of Dayak ethnicity for help to combat wild macaques that have been a headache for the villagers in the past few months.

Monkeys have repeatedly raided farms and houses, wreaking havoc on crops, looting houses and injuring people.

Read also: Hungry monkeys pick crops clean in Wonogiri

Karanggede village head Sukimin said the Dayak people, who originated from Kalimantan, were believed to have special skills to deal with hungry primates. He said the idea was recommended by other villages that had experienced raids by monkeys.

We leave the method to [the Dayak people]. We are now coordinating with the Boyolali regency administration to summon the Dayak," Sukimin said on Saturday.

Sharpshooters from the Army and the police, the Indonesian Target Shooting and Hunting Association (Perbakin) and the Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA), who were deployed to the area on Thursday, have failed to prevent the monkeys from entering the villages.

A monkey watches locals in Cikakak village, Wangon district, Banyumas regency, Central Java. (Kompas/Gregorius Magnus Finesso)

"It is very difficult to anticipate their arrival. Bands of monkeys can suddenly come and steal crops. These monkeys have become more brazen," Sukimin said.

Residents have also used monkeys from Taru Jurug Zoo in Surakarta to lure the animals.

"The plan was to shoot the wild monkeys once they came to see the monkeys from the zoo. In the past three days, some of them did come but were very quick to flee once they saw humans," he added.

Read also: Deaths of Sumatran tiger cubs probed

Slamet Sukeri from the Central Java BKSDA said the monkeys would continue their raids until the dry season ended.

According to him, during the dry season, water and food sources in their natural habitat were scarce because of deforestation near the villages.

"For a long-term solution, the natural habitat must be restored, for example, by planting fruit trees," Slamet said. (bbs)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sun, August 6, 2017 13:22 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba4dea 1 City lynching,vigilantism,mob-violence,Bekasi,Bekasi-regency Free

The Bekasi Police have started investigating the murder of a man who was burned alive by a mob for reportedly stealing an amplifier from a mushola (small mosque) in Hurip Jaya, Babelan, Bekasi regency.

Bekasi Police chief Sr. Comr. Asep Adi Saputra said the police had found evidence indicating the perpetrators but he did not want to disclose their identities yet.

For sure, we are suspicious of some people, Asep said on Saturday as quoted by kompas.com, adding that the police had collected statements from witnesses, among them the victims wife.

We have questioned the victims wife and people who witnessed the incident, he said.

Asep said regardless of whether the victim, identified only as MA, stole the amplifier, police would prosecute the players because their actions were against the law.

The people who burned MA alive could be criminalized. Vigilantism is not justified, Asep said.

Asep said people should not take the law into their own hands. Everyone has a right to help catch a person who has committed a crime, but then they should report the matter to the police, he said. (dra/wit)
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Linkedin News Desk (AFP) Manila  Sun, August 6, 2017 14:37 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba6be6 2 World #ASEAN,#ASEAN-China,#SouthChinaSeaDispute Free

Southeast Asian nations were battling Sunday to find a compromise on how to deal with Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea, with Cambodia lobbying hard for Beijing, diplomats said.

Foreign ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) failed to release a joint statement as scheduled on Saturday evening, and tense follow-up negotiations the next morning could still not end the stand-off, two diplomats involved in the talks told AFP.

China claims nearly all of the South China Sea, including waters approaching the coasts of ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.

The tense talks came after Vietnam, which also claims parts of the strategically vital sea, insisted that tough language be inserted into the statement expressing concern over Chinese land reclamation in the contested waters.

Cambodia, one of China's strongest allies within ASEAN, had firmly resisted, according to the diplomats involved in the talks in the Philippine capital, as well as an excerpt of proposed Cambodian resolution obtained by AFP on Sunday.

"Vietnam is adamant and China is effectively using Cambodia to champion its interests," one of the diplomats said.

"But the Philippines is trying very hard to broker compromise language."

China has in recent years expanded its presence in the sea by building artificial islands, which are capable of holding military bases.

Tensions over the sea have long vexed ASEAN, which operates on a consensus basis but has had to balance the interests of rival claimants and those more aligned to China.

While senior officials pressed on with negotiations on the sea dispute Sunday, ASEAN foreign ministers went into a round of separate meetings with their counterparts from China, the United States and other Asia-Pacific nations.

ASEAN and China were due to approve a framework for a code of conduct in Manila on Sunday on how to deal with sea dispute.

Analysts have cautioned not to place too much significance on the agreement on a framework.

They say it comes 15 years after negotiations on the issue first began, and China has used that time to cement its claims with the artificial islands, while an actual code likely remained many years away.

Diplomats said they were still hoping the joint ASEAN statement meant to be released on Saturday would be agreed on before all the other meetings hosted by the bloc ended on Tuesday.
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Linkedin (Pesona Indonesia) Jakarta  Sun, August 6, 2017 12:26 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba47c7 2 News Tourism-Ministry-Pesona-Indonesia,tourism-ministry-wonderful-Indonesia,Gorontalo,social-media,tourism-promotion Free

Gorontalo tourism department recently conducted a two-day technical mentoring event entitled "Tourism Marketing Through Social Media" at Grand Q Hotel Gorontalo.

The provincial administration invited two speakers from the tourism ministry to speak at the meeting, tourism marketing strategy department acting assistant Hariyanto and Himawan from Indonesia.travel.

Its very clever of the administration to hold this event. Social media promotion is the most effective and cheapest way to increase tourism promotion in Gorontalo, said Hariyanto.

Especially [for] the millennial generation, its very important to promote tourism in the digital media because it will go viral and known all over the world, Hariyanto added.

The meeting also fits the ministrys three main priorities which are homestay, air connectivity and digital. Read also: Swimming with the whale sharks of Gorontalo There were 50 tourism practitioners consisting of bloggers, tourism ambassadors, vloggers and tourism students who attended the event.

Rendy Wijaya, a lecturer at the faculty of literature and cultural studies from Gorontalo State University (UNG), was invited to speak on the first day of the event. Rendy said that according to a survey from Indonesian Internet Service Providers Association (APJII), in 2016 there were 132.7 million people who used the internet.

For workers and entrepreneurs the numbers reached 82.2 million (62 percent), housewives were 22 million (16.6 percent), university students were 10.3 million (7.8 percent), students were 8.3 million (6.3 percent) and others were 796,000 (0.6 percent), Rendy explained.

Moreover, the number of Indonesian internet users who used smartphone amounted to 63.1 million (47.6 percent), both smartphone and laptop were 67.2 million (50.7 percent) and computer were 2.2 million (1.7 percent). (asw)
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Linkedin (Pesona Indonesia) Jakarta  Sun, August 6, 2017 15:26 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba7609 2 News Tourism-Ministry-Pesona-Indonesia,tourism-ministry-wonderful-Indonesia,Riau-Islands Free

The number of international tourists visiting Riau Islands in May had a 449 percent increase from the same period last year.

Riau Islands Central Statistics Agency (BPS) head Panusunan Siregar said that in the first semester of 2017, there were 977,210 international tourists coming to the province, a 0.17 percent decrease from the same period last year that had 1,689 international tourists.

However, the number in June 2017 reached 175,309 which is amounted to 5.7 percent increase from last month.

In June, there was an increase of 23,485 international tourists. This is probably due to the mid-year holiday, said Panusunan.

The economy of the other three countries continues to grow, especially the two countries that have the highest population numbers in the world. India for example, the amount of upper-class citizens have reached 200 million people and of course, they want to travel overseas. Its the same thing with China, Pitana said.

There was an increase of Indian tourists from May to June this year, the number reached 1,934 people, Panusunan added.

Tourism ministry's deputy minister for Overseas Promotion, I Gde Pitana said that Riau Islands is dominated by tourists from Singapore, Malaysia, China and India.

Singapore is close [to Riau Islands] and they can travel by sea. There were around 492,293 Singaporeans who traveled to Riau Islands, the number is equal to 50.39 percent of the overall visits in the past six months, said Pitana.

The ministry's deputy assistant for Asia-Pacific tourism promotion, Vinsensius Jemadu added that according to a research, these upper-class tourists travel to Asian countries that boost natural attractions and affordable shopping experience. Asian countries are at the top of their list and then followed by Europe.

Tourism minister Arief Yahya said that Riau Islands is one of the ministrys main focuses, because the place is in the top three list of the most-visited destination by international tourists with the percentage of 20 percent, coming after Bali with 40 percent and Jakarta with 30 percent.

Second, Riau Islands has been set as the gate for marine tourism in Indonesia due to its geographical location that is close to Singapore where most yachts and ships are coming from, said Arief.

The third point is Riau Islands is included in the cross-border program and the ministry is planning to hold plenty of international events in the province. (asw)
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Linkedin (Pesona Indonesia) Jakarta  Sun, August 6, 2017 14:17 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba5e51 2 News Tourism-Ministry-Pesona-Indonesia,tourism-ministry-wonderful-Indonesia,North-Sumatra,Airport Free

The construction development consisting of a runway extension and new terminal at Silangit Airport in North Sumatra is scheduled to be finalized by September 15 this year.

The development aims to elevate the airport status into an international airport.

Ive seen the development of Silangit Airport.

Itcan be confirmed that the runway extension and new international terminal will be finished by September 15, 2017. The runway that was previously 2,200 meters and 30 meters in width will be 2,650 meters and 45 meters in width. This will allow large planes such as [Boeing] 737-800 or Airbus 320 to land. Later on, flights from Singapore will arrive there, explained state-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura II president director Muhammad Awaluddin.

With the new airport, Muhammad said that the target for tourist arrivals has been set to 500,00 people until 2019.

Passengers who use Silangit Airport reached 124,000 people in the first semester of 2017, a 300 percent growth from the same period last year that had 31,000 people. The number indicates that there are around 20,000 passengers per month. We predict that by the end of this year there will be 250,000  300,000 passengers, Muhammad added.

The airport will try to lure visitors from three international airports: Singapore Changi Airport, Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Read also: Exciting features at Changi's new high-tech Terminal 4

The initial design was for domestic [flights] but the tourism ministry asks for the development to support Lake Toba as well. The difference is only in customs duty, quarantine and immigration facilities, Muhamamad said.

Currently, there are two airlines, Garuda Indonesia and Sriwijaya, that travel to Silangit Airport. Lion Air is expected to follow suit in the near future.

Tourism ministry has already sent a letter to the ministry of law and human rights about the human resources preparation for immigration handling at the Silangit Airpot.

The ministry has spent 20 trillion rupiahs for the development of Lake Toba as a tourist destination with 10 trillion budgeted for infrastructure. The other 10 trillion is for resort development.

The infrastructure is currently being developed such as toll road and road access to Silangit Airport. The money needed for this is around 350 billion rupiahs which include the construction of inner and outer ringroads outside Lake Toba, said tourism minister Arief Yahya. (asw)
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Linkedin (Pesona Indonesia) Jakarta  Sun, August 6, 2017 13:33 1924 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97aba4e2a 2 News Tourism-Ministry-Pesona-Indonesia,tourism-ministry-wonderful-Indonesia,MICE,yogyakarta-tourism Free

Yogyakarta has been kept busy with two MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) events recently. The first MICE event was 11th International Congress of Tropical Pediatrics held on August 5 at Alana Hotel which was joined by 539 delegates, with half of the participants coming from countries such as Australia, China, Switzerland, Thailand, Pakistan, Netherlands, Malaysia, Germany, Kenya and Turkey.

Another MICE event is Asian Youth Day that runs from August 2 to 6 at Jogja Expo Centre building. The event attracts around 3,000 people from 22 countries.

Read also: Ten beaches to visit in Yogyakarta

Yogyakarta appeals as the perfect destination for MICE tourism due to its facilities and heritage sites such as Prambanan Temple and Borobudur Temple in Magelang.

Thousands of guests from both events visit plenty of wonderful tourist spots including places that were visited by the former United States President Barack Obama during his recent trip to Indonesia, as well as exploring culinary and shopping scenes in Yogyakarta.

Im very impressed with Yogyakarta. After the congress Ill visit Borobudur and Prambanan temples, said Rajesh Mehta, Regional Adviser WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia. (asw)
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Several public meetings this week in Watertown

Here's a look at who's meeting this week and what they'll be discussing.
This summer we took out a couple of pews in the back of church, long wooden benches that are designed for fifty minute sitting sessions. Unfortunately worship usually lasts an hour. We replaced the pews with coloring tables. They were an immediate hit. No signs were needed as to why the tables were there. Their presence just said, Welcome, to a certain segment of the communion of saints.

One week later we heard Jesus story of this crazy farmer who threw seeds everywhere. A nine-year-old came to the communion table and with pride handed me her very accurate time lapse drawing of the life cycle of a seed that she wanted me to share with the congregation to make us all better people. I did.

The next week I was talking to a grown up about grown up things after church when I felt this tug my sleeve. The little one tugging was excited to show me something with such excitement that she forgot to wipe the ample supply of pumpkin bar off her hand so it then adorned my sleeve at the elbow.

She too needed to show what she had drawn during worship. We had heard Jesus story of the wheat and the weeds. I thought I was helpful when I said to consider that the kingdom of heaven like it is Gods holy ecosystem where weeds are necessary, like mosquitoes are necessary but in the end God knows what God is doing. Seemingly opposite things can co-exist in Gods church  sort of like Viking fans and Packer fans worshipping together.

Well she took all this in and produced a work of art that included a puppy, playing with a kitty, who was playing with a mouse who was playing with the puppya beloved community of play. She was probably five years old but a very good theologian. The stain would come out in the wash the next day but I am still thinking about that drawing.

That same morning I came face-to-face with a three-year-old artist and his interpreter (mom). I saw a series of colorful slashings on his eight and a half by eleven canvas. I was told the larger blue scribbles are the wheat. The contrasting green slashes are the weeds. Both sets of plants seemed to be thriving. Yup, I thought, the wheat was good seed, unimpeded by weeds. God will use the wheat to make blue bread and the green weeds God can bundle up to build the fire to bake the bread.

When I asked about the bonus picture on the back of the paper of a rhinoceros and its horn and a wheel. The interpreter just shrugged her shoulders.

I like the piece on my door where a five year old wrote: You are Gods light from the bottom of her paper up, so that the word light was like a crescendo on top of the pile of letters. It does make sense if you think about it.

Then there is the toddler who makes her own kind of music every time the congregation sings a hymn. She grabs a songbook like everyone else but she only knows one song so far in her short life. So with conviction and gusto she belts out Twinkle Twinkle Little Star every single time! Last Sunday for our last song the whole congregation, a couple hundred strong, sang in one voice, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, because her daddy is serving in the military in Saudi Arabia and he wanted to let his daughter know its okay to sing her own song.

Because when churches use the word we, we always mean one more.
Last month, with the Saudi and Emirati-led efforts to isolate Qatar, and the militant Islamic State (IS) groups attacks in Tehran, new fronts opened in the Greater Middle East war, making Pakistans regional balancing act even more difficult. It wasnt supposed to be this hard.

When Nawaz Sharif became prime minister for the third time in 2013, there was an expectation that Pakistans relationship with the Saudis would return to normal.

Riyadh, it is said, kept President Asif Ali Zardari at a distance. But Mian Sahib was different. He had a deep history with the Saudis. Not just business interests. It also could be said that he owed his life to them. Riyadh gave him refuge in 2000, after he was deposed and put on trial by military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf. Alas, reality has complicated expectations of a return to a smooth relationship with the Gulf Arab states.

By 2013, the Middle East had become the setting for multiple vortices of violence. The Arab Spring that began in 2011 devolved into an Arab Winter in the backdrop of an Iran- Saudi cold war. In July 2013, General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi overthrew President Mohamed Morsi, ending Egypts brief experiment with (an albeit flawed) democratic rule.

The Syrian uprising, which began with peaceful protests, emerged as the new frontline in the global jihad, which included rebel groups backed by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, and the United States as well as Irans Quds Force.

The IS also emerged in Syria. Yemen began to fall apart again, and the Houthi rebels, with ties to Iran, took over Sanaa in 2014 and remain a threat along the Saudi border.

During this period, the Saudis have tried to coax Pakistan to join multiple blocs: first against the Syrian regime, then against Houthi rebels in Yemen, and more recently a broader Islamic anti-terror coalition. Now, Pakistan may be pressed to join the Saudi-UAE axis against Qatar.

Via intermediaries, Doha has been issued a 13-point set of demands by Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, including the shutdown of the Al Jazeera news network. The 10-day ultimatum has passed, indicating that Qatar has more staying power than most observers had assumed, and this intra-GCC crisis will linger on. Pakistans relations with the Persian Gulf are more complicated than ever before.While Pakistan and the Sharif family have strong ties to Saudi Arabia, they also have a blossoming relationship with Qatar, as well as Dohas close partner Turkey.

Pakistan is truly caught between a rock and a hard place. When Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud died in 2015, he was succeeded by his brother Salman. But with an outsized role behind the scenes is Salmans son, the Defence Minister and deputy crown prince Mohammed bin Salman al-Saud.

MBS, as he is known in the West, has ushered in a hawkish Saudi foreign policy aimed at taking on Iran, whom the Saudis see as an aspiring regional hegemon. Soon after Salmans rise to power, Riyadh launched a war in Yemen to push back the Houthi rebels and reinstate the government of Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, who had resigned in 2015. Saudi-Pakistan relations took a hit after the Sharif government refused to participate in the Yemen war after Riyadh had presumptuously announced Pakistans joining the supposed Yemen war.

Not only did the Pakistani parliament unanimously vote in favour of a resolution against involvement in Yemen, but the Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif was feted by leading Pakistani politicians when he arrived before the passing of the parliamentary resolution  a display of Tehrans soft power in Pakistan.

Islamabads decision to allow former Chief of Army Staff Gen. Raheel Sharif to serve as commander of the Riyadhled, 41-country Islamic Military Alliance to Fight Terrorism (IMAFT) has provided an opportunity to rebuild ties with Saudi Arabia damaged in the aftermath of Pakistans wise decision to not take part in what has become a disastrous Yemen war.

But it has also been controversial domestically and complicated relations with Iran, which sees IMAFT as an anti-Iran coalition  a concern that has been validated to some degree by the criticism directed at Tehran in the speeches at the Arab-Islamic-American Summit held in Riyadh last month.

Both Iran and a large spectrum of Pakistanis are also concerned by funding for extremist groups in Pakistan, including anti-Shia outfits, emanating from Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia. In the past, groups like Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan have branded themselves as bulwarks against Iranian expansionism in part to curry favour with Gulf Arab patrons.

Already, some Pakistani clerics have made their way to Riyadh, where they speak out against Houthi rebels  an indication that the old playbook is back in the hands of some regional actors. Pakistan has good reason not to want to antagonize Iran.

The two countries share a border separating their respective, restive Balochistan regions. Iran has in the past allegedly supported Shia militant groups inside Pakistan, such as Sipahi-Muhammad Pakistan, and is believed to continue to maintain ties to some of these outfits.

Given the connection of sectarian groups such as Lashkar-iJhangvi to the anti-state jihad waged by the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, it was also important for Islamabad to insulate itself from the broader regional sectarian war, and stay out of the Syria and Yemen mess. Indeed, Islamabad initially offered diplomatic support for Syrian rebels in 2013, which was followed by a mysterious Saudi grant of 1.5 billion dollars to Pakistan in 2014.

But it has since backtracked and expressed support for the present Syrian government, coming closer to Tehrans position. There are also energy considerations for Islamabad  Iran is a potential supplier of natural gas, of which Pakistan has a massive supply shortfall. But it remains to be seen how much Pakistan has gained from its relationship with Iran.

The arrest of Kulbhushan Yadhav suggests that the Iranians had allowed the Indians to use its territory to engage in funny business in Pakistan. The Iranians too have legitimate concerns about the use of Pakistani territory by the successor groups to Jundullah, a militant Sunni Iranian Baloch outfit.

While it appears that Iranian Kurds were behind the IS attacks in Tehran, it is conceivable that the terror group could also try to use militants in Balochistan to attack Iran. Iran has also emerged as Afghanistans largest trading partner, eclipsing Pakistan. According to the Afghan government, Afghan exports to Iran in 2016 totaled around 20 million dollars, compared to 1.8 billion dollars in imports from Iran.

In contrast, in 2015, Afghanistans exports to Pakistan were valued at 226 million dollars, compared to 1.35 billion dollars in imports from Pakistan. With the prolonged closures of the Chaman and Torkham border crossings in the recent past, Afghan trade with the outside world is being increasingly routed through Iran. To reduce dependence on Pakistan, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has sought to use the Iranian ports of Bandar Abbas and Chabahar, as opposed to the Pakistani port of Karachi, which is the closest port to most Afghan cities. Iran has reportedly stepped up its recruitment of Afghans, and to a lesser extent, Pakistani Muslims to fight in Syria.

Iran has also increased its support for the Afghan Taliban reportedly, according to the Wall Street Journal, to counter the spread of IS in Afghanistan, offering the group financial assistance and weapons. Iran allegedly now even hosts training camps for the Taliban. While Tehran is a potential partner for Islamabad in a diplomatic resolution to the Afghan war  its growing economic and military clout also indicates that it could once again become a competitor.

When Parliament voted in favour of a resolution advocating neutrality in the Yemen war, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) State Minister of Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash furiously tweeted that Pakistan will pay a price for its ambiguous stand. The UAE, some observers believe, has since tilted in Indias favour  a move symbolised by the participation earlier this year of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as the chief guest at the Indias Republic Day celebration.

The two countries have also enhanced intelligence sharing in recent years  an important development as the UAE takes a hawkish approach toward Islamist groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood, hence the hard line against Qatar. Abu Dhabi and Riyadh would like to cut Doha down to size.

They disdain Qatari support for the Muslim Brotherhood, its ambitious foreign policy, strategic use of the Al Jazeera news channel, and unwillingness to take a backseat to them. As a result, theyve brought Bahrain, Egypt, and several other countries on board as part of an anti-Qatar coalition, downgrading ties and blockading the country. While Pakistan has balked from joining the anti- Qatar alliance, it is clear that intra-Gulf Arab conflict continues to pose problems for Pakistan. Punitive action toward Pakistan by Saudi Arabia and the UAE would be devastating.

Like Saudi Arabia, the UAE is a major source of remittances for Pakistan. A combined 63 percent of remittance inflows into Pakistan came from the Gulf Arab states in FY 2015-16. Pakistan is far more invested in the stability of Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as compared to Iran or Qatar. A significant deterioration in relations between Pakistan and either or both of the two Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) heavyweights will have a significant impact on the stability of Pakistans economy, which is already stressed due to declining exports and a rise in public debt.

Until recently, Qatar has largely been an afterthought in Pakistans diplomacy and relations toward the Gulf. The country sticks out of the Arabian Peninsula like a thumb, but it has effectively been giving the middle finger to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, pursuing an independent strategy in Libya and Syria, as well as the broader Arab world. Qatar has sponsored Muslim Brotherhood activists and intellectuals, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE have bankrolled the El-Sisi dictatorship in Egypt with billions of dollars in aid.

To curb Dohas strategic defiance, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh have launched a blockade of the tiny peninsula. Other countries, such as Egypt and Jordan, have joined in the boycott of Qatar. It is unclear whether there is pressure on Pakistan to follow suit, but greater proximity between Doha and Islamabad is likely to earn the ire of Abu Dhabi and Riyadh. While Kuwait and Saudi Arabia are Pakistans primary sources of oil, the DohaIslamabad relationship is budding in large part due to Qatars dominance of the LNG market.

Qatar is the worlds largest natural gas exporter, while Pakistan has a large natural gas deficit and domestic reserves are declining. A long-term LNG deal signed with Doha in 2015 is an important part of meeting that deficit and fuelling not just industrial gas demand, but also fuelling the LNG-based electric power plants that have or will come on line this year. The Sharif family also has a personal connection to the Qatari royal family.

Longtime Sharif stalwart of dubious repute Saif-ur-Rehman is based in Doha. He secured a deal for a 49 percent stake in the Port Qasim Power Project for alMirqab Capital, which is owned by Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabor Al Thani, the former prime minister of Qatar. Sheikh Hamad, or HBJ as he is known by many, is also the author of the Qatari letter, which purports that the proceeds for the purchase of the London flats were obtained through investments in the Al Thani familys real estate business. There may also be an emerging strategic element to Pakistan-Qatar ties  one that also involves Turkey.

The Qataris and Turks share sympathy for the Muslim Brotherhood and a similar outlook toward the region. Turkey has established a base in Qatar and its parliament recently approved sending several hundred more troops to the Gulf country. In recent years, both Qatar and Turkey have both strengthened ties with Pakistan.

The Qataris have also expressed interest in setting up joint defence production facilities with Pakistan and Turkey. And in the PML-Ns latest tenure, relations between Pakistan and Turkey have grown at the diplomatic, economic, and military levels. The cooperation has ranged from waste management contracts for Turkish companies in Lahore and Rawalpindi to procurement of defence hardware such as naval corvettes. Both Qatar and Turkey have purchased the Super Mushshak trainer aircraft from Pakistan.

The momentum, at the very least, suggests that a triangular Pakistan-Qatar-Turkey partnership is in the offing. Some may argue that Pakistan should simply stay out of the mess in the Persian Gulf and let the region sort itself out. But isolationism is no option for Pakistan. The region is a major source of energy and remittances for Pakistan, and home to holy sites and places of religious learning for both Sunni and Shia Muslims. A better approach would be to avoid hard alliances and calibrate more nuanced bilateral relationships in the region.

(The writer is a non-resident fellow at the Middle East Institute, a fellow at the Center for Global Policy, and president of Vizier Consulting, LLC, a political risk advisory company.)

(Dawn/ANN)
The government has decided to set up a tribunal to resolve issues relating to the sharing of the Mahanadi river water between Odisha and Chhattisgarh, a senior water resources ministry official said.

Odisha has been demanding formation of a tribunal for a long time. It has argued that Chhattisgarh has been constructing dams and weirs (small dams) upstream, affecting the flow of the Mahanadi river considered as the "lifeline" on its territory.

"It has been decided to set up a tribunal to resolve issues relating to Mahanadi between the two states under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956," the official said requesting anonymity as he is not authorised to speak to the media.

He said a draft cabinet note in this connection has been prepared.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had taken up the issue of construction of barrages upstream by Chhattisgarh at a trilateral meeting convened by Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti on September 17, 2016.

He had complained the construction would affect drinking water supply and irrigation facilities in his state.

The meeting, also attended by Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, however, had failed to achieve any solution.

Odisha, again, approached the Centre on November 19 last year, demanding a tribunal be formed to adjudicate the matter.
OLYMPIA, Wash. (TNS) They were pieces of art depicting simple scenes.

A young Native American man riding a calf. A portrait of a chief. Cultural artifacts. A buffalo.

Yet when the Washington state Department of Labor and Industries briefly displayed the four paintings in 2015, the agency stumbled into a larger battle over the legacy of the man who created them: Leonard Peltier.

A jury in 1977 convicted Peltier, an American Indian Movement activist, for the murder of two FBI special agents a few years earlier on South Dakotas Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. He remains in prison.

Depending on who you ask, Peltier is either a convicted cop-killer or a scapegoat who signifies government oppression against Native Americans.

Fast-forward to the 2015 art display at the labor department headquarters, part of a celebration of Native American Heritage Month.

Peltiers art drew some complaints, including letters to Gov. Jay Inslee and labor department Director Joel Sacks by two former FBI agents. Department officials then pulled down Peltiers artwork two weeks early.

In response, Peltier and his son Chauncey this spring filed a lawsuit in federal court against L & I officials, Inslee and the two agents, saying removal of the art infringed on Peltiers First Amendment rights, among other claims.

In a ruling last week, U.S. District Judge Ronald Leighton dismissed the part of the Peltiers lawsuit aimed at silencing the two agents who complained.

The Peltiers claims against the governor and labor department officials were put on hold pending the outcome of the motion to dismiss by the agents.

Now, the lawsuit and the long-running fight over Peltiers convictions for the murders continue.

From Mr. Peltiers point of view, and his supporters, he is innocent and what he was doing was being active and supporting Indian rights and trying to advance tribal sovereignty, said Frank Pommersheim, a law professor at University of South Dakota and a tribal appellate judge. In the law enforcement community, hes regarded as a coldblooded killer.

In 1975, FBI Special Agents Jack Coler and Ron Williams were shot to death on the Pine Ridge reservation. Edward Woods and Larry Langberg  the retired agents dismissed from the lawsuit  have dogged Peltier since his conviction 40 years ago, using any opportunity to remind the public that the Native American activist was convicted of killing the agents.

Woods operates a website and blog, the No Parole for Peltier Association, which keeps a running clock of the time elapsed since the agents died.

When Peltiers paintings went on display at the labor department, Woods wrote Inslee demanding their removal.

In the meantime, Langberg, president of the Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI, wrote a similar letter to Sacks.

Sacks and the agencys public-information officer, Timothy Church, are defendants in the Peltiers lawsuit.

Woods, Langberg and others have moved to block every effort by Peltier to seek parole or clemency, which was denied by President Barack Obama.

Peltier is held at the low-security Federal Correctional Institution in Coleman, Fla.

Woods, in his letter to Inslee, asked, Is it morally acceptable, or even legal, for your office and Washington state to promote and endorse a coldblooded murderer?

According to a brief filed by Larry Hildes, the Peltiers lawyer, the allegations in those letters were defamatory, since the circumstances of his clients conviction in 1977 remains highly questionable.

Three others were acquitted of charges in the deaths of Williams and Coler. In a conviction that has been questioned by some, including Amnesty International, Peltier was sentenced to two consecutive life terms.

His case has been the subject of great dispute and controversy, Hildes wrote in the lawsuit, filed in March. He is also an extremely accomplished artist.

Chauncey Peltier, also a plaintiff, is a caretaker of his fathers art in Oregon. In an interview, Chauncey, who helps run a website, Peltier Justice for All, repeated claims that his father is innocent.

He accused Woods and Langberg of harassing his family and said that because of the controversy, he has been shooed away a lot of times from displaying his fathers art.

No matter who you are or what you did, you have the right to show your art, Chauncey Peltier said.

In his ruling, Leighton found that the agents prevailed under federal civil rules and the states so-called anti-SLAPP law. That law is intended to prevent what are called strategic lawsuits against public participation, intended to censor or quiet critics in public discussions.

The judge found the agents immune from the lawsuit for exercising their right to contact Inslee and Sacks about the art.

The judge pointed out that Wood and Langberg each communicated his displeasure with the labor departments display of Peltiers artwork, as it seemed to condone his murderous past, which was protected speech.

The anti-SLAPP law provides for penalties of up to $10,000 and requires an offender to pay the other partys defense costs.

Leighton ordered the Peltiers to pay the agents expenses and fees but declined to impose the statutory penalty, pointing out that there was no evidence that Peltier had acted with malice in filing the lawsuit.

Moreover, the judge said in a footnote, the agents dont deserve it.

It is ironic that Woods and Langberg seek a statutory award protecting their free speech against Peltier, who is also attempting to exercise his right to free expression, Leighton wrote.

The display of artwork, and the free-flowing discourse and the debate around it, enriches our culture and elevates our society, the judge wrote.

In a statement, Woods wrote that, As a matter of equity and fairness I agreed with the Courts discretion that the fine portion was not warranted.
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday visited the family of an RSS activist who was murdered by suspected CPI-M workers in Kerala.

Jaitley drove from the airport to the home of E Rajesh, 34, who was hacked to death a week ago. He met Rajesh's wife, two children and other family members.

On a day's visit to Kerala, Jaitley was received at the airport by leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the state.

Also on Sunday, the CPI-M organised a sit-in protest in front of the Raj Bhavan, the official residence of the Governor P. Sathasivam, asking Jaitley to also visit the families of its cadres who have been allegedly killed by BJP and RSS workers.

Anavoor Nagappan, the Thiruvananthapuram District Secretary of the CPI-M, told the media that those on protest included 21 family members of their activists killed in the state from 1980.

"Jaitley should not just restrict his visit to just the RSS worker's home. All these people who are sitting here have lost their near and dear ones to BJP and RSS workers," he said.

Those who joined the protest included state CPI-M Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and LDF Convenor Vaikom Viswam.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has called a meeting of leaders of political parties in Kerala to discuss ways to maintain peace.
Clearly unhappy with what it dubs media trials, the Delhi High Court has set up a six-member panel to frame guidelines on the coverage of court proceedings. On the face of it, there is no cause for quarrel with the order delivered by the Acting Chief Justice who said it is a participatory endeavour by which certain principles can be evolved which ought to guide media organisatons in their coverage. The order proceeded to favour guidelines over other remedies, such as contempt of court action, which becomes available only after the media has already erred, and often irreversible damage to the case done. It would reek of immature arrogance for the media not to look within and perceive a degree of validity to the judicial observation ~ basic norms of crime reporting have been ignored in recent times, particularly by the overly-sensational and excessively competitive electronic media that now takes the police version as Gospel truth. At times, as is so evident in the reporting of terrorist activity in Jammu and Kashmir, it also amplifies a decidedly political line.

Having accepted those in-house infirmities, it is also necessary to question the composition of the panel which will be headed by the highly respected Ms Ruma Pal, who had graced the Bench of the apex court. All its members have a judicial or bureaucratic orientation, there is no representative of the media, not even of the Press Council of India, a body created through an Act of Parliament and whose jurisdiction this subject falls squarely in. This is not another quota demand, but it does point to a tendency of the judiciary to look elsewhere to explain away its own inadequacies. Much of the trouble follows the observations of the court being projected as directives or verdicts, and this is often the result of Judges making bold comments during hearings ~ but backing-off when presenting the final orders.

It is an open secret that the presence of a host of reporters in court encourages some Judges to seek headlines: they may not admit it but reality cannot be wished away. Facilities for the media in courtrooms are minimal, copies of orders are not immediately available, reporters have to rely on briefings by counsel ~ often slanted. This situation needs rectification.

What causes concern in the High Court order is its stating that media trials had led to the formation of populist views, which in turn have threatened to prejudice the process of justice delivery by influencing the judgment of the stakeholder (police officers, judges)i nvolved by putting the onus of fulfilling public expectations on them, and it went on to add media reports on court proceedings have actually exhibited a disproportionate influence on public opinion. Maybe that has relevance in terms of public opinion, yet the judiciary at large stands self-indicted if it allows itself to be influenced by media accounts ~ it cannot duck its onerous duty.
Cutting across party lines, various people in the US have called for combating racism, intolerance and violence during the fifth anniversary of the tragic Oak Creek massacre that killed six innocent Sikhs five years ago.

Paul Ryan, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, said: "Over the last five years, the people of Oak Creek have proved they're stronger than hate and division."

Ryan represents the Congressional district in Wisconsin where a white supremacist went on a shooting rampage at a Sikh Gurdwara on August 5, 2012.

"Five years ago, Oak Creek was rocked by a heinous attack on the Sikh Temple, and today we look back on that act of violence with solemn remembrance of those who were lost," he said in a statement.

"The Sikh community is in our thoughts on this fifth anniversary of the Oak Creek attack," said Senator Ron Johnson.

"Today, we join together as one community on the fifth anniversary of the horrific attack on the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin," said Senator Tammy Baldwin.

"I'm also incredibly proud of our Sikh community. Their grace and hopeful message of peace moved an entire nation," she added.

"Five years after the senseless shooting in Oak Creek, we continue to remember the innocent victims who were killed in this horrible attack," said Grace Meng, Democratic lawmaker from New York.

"For many generations, the Sikh-American community has made important contributions to our nation and it is unacceptable that they continue to be targets of violence and bigotry. We must combat racism, intolerance, and violence wherever it exists," she said.

Five years ago, America was struck by a "cowardly and tragic act of violence" that took the lives of six innocent worshippers in a Sikh gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, said House Democratic Chairman Joe Crowley.

"As we grieve for the victims, their loved ones, and the greater Sikh American community, we are reminded that much work remains to be done. Whether it is a gurdwara in Oak Creek, a church in Charleston, or a mosque in Quebec City, an attack on one faith is an attack on all," he said in a statement.

"On this somber anniversary, we must reaffirm our commitment to fighting intolerance anywhere and everywhere," Crowley said.

"A neo-Nazi killed six people at a Sikh temple five years ago. Remember Oak Creek and resist hate in all its forms," said Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapala.

Eminent Indian-American from Indiana Gurinder Singh Khalsa said, the Oak Creek tragedy was a wakeup call for the Sikh community.

"The community needs to engage, educate and empower.

Sikhs need to do more on the awareness front," said Khalsa, founder and head of the Sikhs Political Action Committee.

At a time when divisive rhetoric has taken over our country, Sikhs have to remain vigilant while still staying in steadfast to their ur beliefs and principles," said Baldev Singh from the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Wade Michael Page, a known white supremacist, shot and murdered six people and injured four others at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. This was one of the worst shooting incidents in the recent American history.

Those who were killed in this shooting spree were Paramjit Kaur, Satwant Singh Kaleka, Prakash Singh, Sita Singh, Ranjit Singh, and Suveg Singh.
The government is hopeful that the strategic Chabahar Port will be operational by 2018, Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said.

The Road, Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Gadkari is in Tehran to represent India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier congratulated Rouhani on his re-election as the President of Iran and affirmed India's commitment to strengthen the special relations between the countries.

"India and Iran have been historically sharing special ties  We are keen on developing Chabahar Port and are hopeful of starting operations in 12 to 18 months," Gadkari told PTI.

Gakdari is keen on expediting development of the Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province on the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation's southern coast that can be easily accessed from India's west coast, bypassing Pakistan.

The visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work at the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at Chabahar Port.

"Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine," the minister has said.

The minister has said that he was also hopeful of certain approvals from the Iranian government for expediting work and added that once Chabahar becomes operational the trade and business between both the nations would see a boost.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including through a USD 150 million credit from Exim Bank.

It also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of USD 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of USD 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of equipment will be transferred to Iranian side on completion of 10 years or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of USD 150 million in accordance with the MoU.

As per the pact, operations of two berths are to commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract.

Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port, for which India will invest USD 500 million, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor has also been signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.
The UN chief today urged the US to re-engage with the 2015 Paris climate agreement even after America submitted its formal communication indicating its intention to withdraw from the historic pact as soon as possible.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has received a notification from the US expressing the country's intention to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change, his spokesman said.

The notification received yesterday was communicated by US Permanent Representative to the UN Nikki Haley.

"The Secretary-General received, in his capacity as Depositary of the Paris Agreement, a communication from the Permanent Representative of the US expressing the intention of the US to exercise its right to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, as soon as it is eligible to do so under the Agreement, unless it identifies suitable terms for reengagement," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

The Paris climate deal aims to prevent the Earth from heating up by 2C since the start of the industrial age.

The spokesperson added that the secretary-general "welcomes any effort to reengage in the Paris Agreement by the United States".

The notification came two months after President Donald Trump announced his intention to leave the accord.

Under article 28 of the Paris Agreement, a party may withdraw at any time after three years from the date on which the agreement has entered into force for that party, and such withdrawal takes effect upon expiry of one year from the date of receipt by the depositary of the notification of withdrawal.

The US accepted the Paris Agreement on September 3, 2016 and the agreement entered into force for the US on November 4, 2016. This means that the US must stay in the pact until at least 2019.

The note referred to the June statement by the secretary-general in which he had said that the decision by the United States to withdraw from the Paris Agreement is a "major disappointment" for global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote global security.

"It is crucial that the United States remains a leader on climate and sustainable development. Climate change is impacting now," Dujarric said, adding that the UN Chief looks forward to engaging with the American government and all other actors in the United States and around the world to build the sustainable future for our children and future generations.
Weve remodeled and updated most of the original farmhouse built by my great-grandparents, but one original piece that remains is the brick chimney.

Many years ago the chimney was used by a wood-fired cook stove in the kitchen and by a wood furnace in the basement. Ancient creosote oozes out the chimney in the basement when we have heavy rain, which has been a common occurrence this summer.

We still have the cook stove, but its long been disconnected from the chimney. Today theres a fuel-oil furnace that exhausts through the chimney but its seldom used because we heat with an outdoor wood stove.

Inside the house I chiseled off the plaster to expose the brick. While it looks nice, the top of the chimney needs to be repaired because the mortar has crumbled away. Weve talked about upgrading to a gas furnace as our backup heating source. That would allow us to vent the furnace out the side of the house and we could cap the old chimney.

But doing that would disrupt the home of a unique bird that helps keep mosquitoes at bay  the chimney swift. The swifts have roosted and nested in our chimney for as long as I can remember. We can hear their high-pitched chattering  particularly at night  when they come down the chimney to roost.

According to the Wisconsin Chimney Swift Working Group  visit www.wiswifts.org for more information  the birds nested in the old-growth forests prior to European settlement. When the forests disappeared, the birds discovered brick chimneys. The birds like the enclosed areas with rough vertical surfaces they can cling to, like a hollow tree. Swifts do not perch on branches but use sharp nails on their feet to cling to vertical surfaces.

Their populations have been in decline; Canada in 2009 listed the bird as a threatened species. That prompted the formation of the Wisconsin working group in 2012 to help identify and protect important swift-roost sites and to encourage the public to keep chimneys uncapped.

This is the time of year that swifts can be spotted at dusk pouring into chimneys  sometimes hundreds of them. Swifts have slender bodies with narrow, curved wings and tapered tails. With their rapid flight and nearly constant wing beats combined with the high-pitched chattering, theyre sometimes mistaken for bats.

The swift working group is asking for the publics help to identify roosting sites. More than 60 volunteers have helped identify 70-some sites so far, including the chimney at Cherokee Middle School in Madison where more than 2,800 swifts were counted in 2012.

Chimney swifts are an important species in Wisconsin because they help keep flying-insect populations in check, said Kim Grveles, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources avian ecologist and a member of the Wisconsin Chimney Swift Working Group. We need citizens help in counting the birds near them and in reporting that information to us so we can better understand and take steps to hopefully reverse the decline of chimney swifts.

Look for tall brick chimneys and pick a night from now through September  before the birds migrate to South America for the winter  and observe about 30 minutes before sunset. Estimate the number of swifts that enter the chimney. Enter the data on ebird.org or email sschwab49@gmail.com to reach Sandy Schwab.

Id still like to upgrade the furnace, but perhaps the old chimney should stay.
ORESTE P. DARCONTE is a former publisher of The Sun Chronicle. Reach him at darconte@thesunchronicle.com.
Organisation: Kenya Airways

(KQ)

Duty Station: Entebbe,

Uganda

About Kenya Airways:

Kenya Airways, a member of the Sky Team Alliance, is a leading African

airline flying to 54 destinations worldwide, 44 of which are in Africa and

carries over four million passengers annually. The airline was recently voted

the Leading Airline in Africa by passengers in the World Travel Awards. It has

also been voted the Leading Airline in Africa  Business Class four years in a

row.

Kenya Airways has a fleet of 36 aircraft that are some of the youngest

in Africa; this includes its flagship B787 Dreamliner aircraft. The onboard service

is renowned and the lie-flat business class seat on the wide-body aircraft is

consistently voted among the worlds top 10. Most recently it has scooped top

awards at the Africa Investor (Ai) Tourism Investor Awards and was declared the

Business Airline of the Year in Africa.

Job Summary: The Sales and

Ticketing Agent will provide excellent service to customer in terms of

ticketing reservations and KQ product to generate sales and ensure customers

satisfaction.



Responsibilities: Key Duties andResponsibilities:

The incumbent will carry out reservations

and ticketing for all Kenya Airways (KQ) clients to generate sales.

Fare quotes to all KQ clients to provide

the best applicable fares and generate sales

The jobholder will recruit and handle

existing and prospective frequent fliers to win and retain loyalty.

Tasked with printing and reconciling of

sales returns to account for daily sales.

Actively promote all KQ products to create

awareness and generate sales

The jobholder will promote direct

telephone sales so as to reduce distribution costs and generate sales









Qualifications, Skills and

Experience:

The

incumbent for the Kenya Airways Sales and Ticketing Agent should hold an O level Division III

or C+ IATA/UFTAA diploma/basic airline fares and ticketing

Good team player

Customer focused

Excellent communication skills

Pleasant personality/approachable

Self confident and well-groomed

Excellent knowledge of KQ products

Leadership/Management Skills Programs

Skills:

Tight focus on core activity

Quality of Work

Minimalist organization

Responsible decision-making by the

individual

Team working

Professional expertise

Leaders not followers in what we do

Single status organization

Technical knowledge and skills

Ethically Honest

Standards Well Defined and Controlled

Acceptance to make mistakes and learn from

them

Ethics. Fair, But Firm

Bias for action

Show commitment to success

Good strong and frequent communication

skills

Active new business thrust

How to Apply:

All applicants who wish to join the Kenya Airways as the Sales and

Ticketing Agent are encouraged to apply online by clicking on the link below.

st August 2017 Deadline: 31August 2017
Patnaik's close aides say that to understand him, one has to understand his empathy

By Pratul Sharma/Photos Sanjay Ahlawat
PDP leader Abdul Nasser Madani, accused in the 2008 Bengaluru serial blasts case, reached Kochi on Sunday afternoon to a rousing welcome by party workers and supporters. A team of Karnataka police, including an assistant commissioner and a circle inspector, is accompanying Madani who will travel to his home town of Anwarseeri in Kollam by road from Cochin International Airport.

The PDP leader had sought permission to attend his son's wedding on August 9 and visit his ailing mother.

Speaking to reporters outside the airport, Madani (51) thanked everybody who helped him get his bail condition relaxed. He revealed that he was not in jail in Bengaluru but had got conditional bail three years ago.

I am not in the Parappana Agrahara jail. Even a few of those who support me think that I am still in jail. I had got bail with condition that I should not move out of Bengaluru city, Madani said.

While granting permission to Madani to visit Kerala, the Supreme Court had on July 31 asked him to bear the expenses incurred on his escort provided by the Karnataka police.

PDP leader's visit ran into trouble after Karnataka police sought Rs 14.79 lakh towards security expenses during his trip.

However, after the apex court intervention, they revised the expenses to Rs 1.18 lakh.

The Kerala government had informed Karnataka that it was ready to provide security to Madani during his visit to the state.
The Uttar Pradesh Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Sunday arrested a Bangladeshi national from Kutesara village of Muzaffarnagar district for allegedly carrying out terror activities.

The suspect, identified as Abdullah, was allegedly arranging fake IDs and giving shelter to other terrorists.

Abdullah was associated with Bangladesh terror group 'Ansarullah Bangla team'.

He was residing in Muzaffarnagar from the past one month and earlier used to live in Saharanpur.

In the preliminary inquiry, it was found that Abdullah was arranging fake IDs and passports for the Bangladeshi terrorists so that they can safely live in India to carry out their terror activities.

The team also summoned three more people for detailed inquiry.

The UP ATS along with Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and Shamli police carrying out an arrest and investigation drive in three districts on the order of Saharanpur Deputy inspector general of police.
If you like bumpy, dusty, winding roads, you'll love the new border-to-border trail in the works across northern Minnesota.

The adventure touring trail could be open late next summer, linking little used back roads and forest trails to take motorists on an off-the-beaten-path trek across the state.

However, some local officials are less than enthusiastic, worried about increased road repair costs and law enforcement needs created by more traffic.

The trail will start at Grand Portage at the tip of the Arrowhead region and end at the North Dakota border somewhere in far northwest Minnesota. Along the way, it will pass through deep forests, past lakes and rivers and across prairie and farmland. A canopy of trees overhead shade the road as Ron Potter turns onto a narrow cut through the forest northwest of Bemidji. This road was built for logging, perhaps decades ago and it's bumpy with occasional muddy spots.

"Definitely looks like it's minimum maintenance. They maintain it when they need to for timber harvest reasons," said Potter, as his four-wheel-drive Jeep jounced over ruts and squished through muddy spots.

Potter is a retired Department of Natural Resources trails employee who's now a consultant for the National Off Highway Vehicle Conservation Council. The DNR contracted with the off-highway vehicle council and the Minnesota Four Wheel Drive Association to manage the project.

In 2015, the Legislature authorized using registration feeds and gas tax from off road vehicles for trail development.

Potter was "ground truthing" one recent day, which entails driving roads that look like a potential trail segment on a map.

He turns onto a trail that's just two wheel tracks with tall grass between, a road that hasn't seen tires in some time. But that's just what Potter is looking for.

"This would be ideal. It would be nice if we could have the entire adventure trail something like this," said Potter.

But a couple of miles down the trail there's a T in the road. Potter studies a map to decide which way to turn. In the end, he decides to turn around and head back the way he came.

"It's not going to get us where we want to. The one dead ends over here on a lake and the other one looks like it headed into a large wetland," Potter said. "Planning from the office with a map is one thing. But getting out on the ground and seeing what's going to work is totally different."

Potter is one of three people driving back roads this summer to map a draft route for the trail. On a good day, he said, he can map 30 to 40 miles of trail. He expects the winding route to total between 400 and 500 miles when completed.

As they work to link this maze of backroads across the state, the trail designers are looking to also connect interesting sites and campgrounds that aren't as busy as state parks.

"We're focusing more on county parks, city parks," Potter said. "There's some forest campgrounds that are underutilized."

The traffic the trail will bring to remote areas will provide a boost to the northern Minnesota tourism economy, Potter said. But some county and township officials worry it will cost them money.

Long Lost Lake township in Clearwater County is one of a few townships in the area on record opposing the trail.

Town board chairman Greg Scherzer questions the economic impact theory. He said there just aren't many places to spend money in remote areas.

"That economic stuff, it's meaningless to us. As far as I'm concerned, it's an empty promise," he said.

Township officials are more concerned about what increased traffic on a designated trail will do to already stretched road maintenance budgets.

"We already have a hard enough time with four-wheelers. Four wheelers tear our roads up," said Scherzer. "There's no doubt there would be extra maintenance and we don't have extra money to clean up extra stuff."

Other local officials raised concerns about the cost of monitoring traffic and enforcing laws on the trail, but said they're withholding judgment until they know more about the project. Several said they felt out of the loop on the project.

More information will be provided to local officials soon, according to DNR Off Highway Vehicle program consultant Mary Straka.

She said the trail route needs to be better defined before local officials weigh in. "We'll be moving into a phase where we will be in closer communication with the counties and we'll be working with the county staff to better inform their boards," Straka said.

The goal is to align the trail in areas where local officials are supportive, said Straka.

Potter said off-road vehicle clubs across the state will be enlisted to help care for the trail, and he hopes some grant-in-aid funds will be available to help local governments as well.

The DNR envisions the trail as a slow speed route for highway licensed cars and trucks, not a test course for high powered trucks with big tires ripping up the ground.

"This is more for, you know, a family that wants to spend the weekend or a week out touring the backroads of northern Minnesota, doing some camping, seeing the sights," said Potter.

A phase two plan to build several challenge loops off the trail to attract serious off road aficionados won't happen for several years, Potter said.

The draft trail route will be finalized later this fall. Then local officials will have a chance to offer input before the route is finalized early next summer.
The last days of the Newfie Pride

There were many nights he didnt sleep. The numbers and scenarios turned over and over in his mind, making rest impossible. Id get up two, three oclock in the morning, night after night, come out to the kitchen table and work the numbers every ...
Black gold: An exploratory well-head

One of France's richest families has taken a significant stake in UK Oil & Gas  the company that stunned markets after claiming it had found vast oil and gas reserves in South East England.

SCDM Energy, which is controlled by the billionaire Bouygues brothers, snapped up 5.03 per cent of UK Oil and Gas (UKOG), which is looking for oil in the Weald area near Gatwick airport.

Brothers Martin and Olivier are the sons of Francis Bouygues, founder of the Bouygues group which is one France's largest corporations  with interests in telecoms, construction and real estate.

It was two years ago that UKOG said it had found billions of barrels of oil under Surrey and West Sussex and its find was dubbed 'the Gatwick Gusher'.

But soon afterwards UKOG had to stress it was not clear whether there is any recoverable oil at all, leading some analysts to pour cold water on UKOG's prospects.

Australian entrepreneur David Lenigas also stepped down as chairman amid widespread criticism of the company though he still owns 2 per cent of the firm.

The move by the Bouygues brothers prompted Lenigas to speak out.

He said: 'It's a disgrace that nobody gives a hoot the French have bought a stake in one of the most important strategic projects of the last decade. The French have managed to sneak through the back door and I don't think they will stop there.

'What would happen if Rosneft, Gazprom or even the Iranian national oil company bought a stake in UKOG?'

After Lenigas said in 2015 there may be 'multiple billion barrels' of oil at the Horse Hill site in Surrey, in which UKOG owns a 30 per cent stake, its shares shot up almost 200 per cent to 3p.

UKOG raised 6.5 million in May to develop its sites in the Weald, including at Broadford Bridge in West Sussex.

On Friday, UKOG shares closed at 7.87p, giving the company a market capitalisation of 277 million and SCDM a stake worth 14 million.

Asked why UKOG's shares had risen, Lenigas said: 'People have finally clocked on that the Weald basin is real.'

But Malcolm Graham-Wood, an oil analyst at Hydrocarbon Capital, said: 'The market will only find out about its real value after the current phase of testing and that may take a long time.

'So, there's a chance there's something decent here. It could be worth well more than the current share price but nothing is certain.'
Revelation 3: 15  17: I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, will I vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing - and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.



Each time I read the above text in the book of Revelations, a letter to the Laodicean people, I feel the crying and afraid. It talks about these people who claimed they were rich and needed nothing, yet in reality they were miserably poor, blind and naked! If this is what the future says about us then we are headed for tough times indeed!



I recently had a meeting with one young Swazi businessman, aged 31.

This man is an expatriate doing business in a foreign country but he is still a strong Swazi patriot. This swazi entrepreneur has outgrown Swaziland. He realised that Swaziland was too small for him and has ventured in business outside the country.



He did not do this by relocating his company, changing citizenship or moving his family to the foreign country, but he is running a business outside Swaziland and yet based in the kingdom and actually pays all his taxes locally.

He makes the money outside Swaziland and pays all his dues to the Swaziland Revenue Authority (SRA).



Now you understand why I regard him patriotic. He is an admirable young businessman. He runs a travel agency responsible for sending tourists to a foreign country to experience natural heritages. He also operates an online gambling business in the same foreign country. He spends over 80 per cent of his time in the foreign country running his Swazi company.



When I asked him: Why dont you exploit the cultural heritage and beauty of our kingdom? His answer was simple: I would love to, but it appears Swaziland is arrogantly blind to the potential it has and is missing.

He is held in high esteem in the foreign country he is running his business in but the same cant be said of the treatment he gets in Swaziland. Was it King Jesus who said a prophet has no honour in his own land?

That foreign countrys tourism authority regards him as a key stakeholder in the tourism industry, but in Swaziland it is said no one cares about him.



This is not intentional but its because they dont realise he is an asset. Could this be the Laodician behaviour as predicted by John in the Holy Book? My next question to him was: Why do you take all your expertise in Information Technology (IT) and use it to set up and run the lucrative online gambling in a foreign country instead of helping Swaziland to set up and benefit from this?



This young man looked at me and said: That is why I am talking to you and asking you to help me open the correct door where they will smell the coffee about this worldwide and fast growing money making industry.

He went on to tell me that he is ready to take the online gambling business to greater heights in Swaziland and use his worldwide knowledge of how this business works and the benefits Swaziland would get from all the global consumers of this industry.



Did you know that as we speak, Swaziland has no legislation for issuing online gambling permits or licences? In fact, the real position is that, currently the country is not able to issue any new gambling and gaming licences due to the absence of the appropriate legislation. So for the time being, we are letting this opportunity pass by.






MBABANE  A scheduled debate by members of parliament (MPs) on the violation of the Parliamentary Privileges Act by the Prime Minister (PM) is set to be an acid test for the legislators ability to discipline the head of government.



Prime Minister Sibusiso Barnabas Dlamini is accused of having contravened this Act by issuing a media statement that was published by newspapers and broadcast in the national radio and television stations blasting Matsanjeni North MP Phila Buthelezi regarding submissions the latter had made in the august House.



The Act bars the questioning outside parliament, matters that have been raised within the House.

Section 3 of the Parliamentary Privileges Act of 1967, under freedom of speech and debate, reads: There shall be freedom of speech and debate or proceedings in Parliament and such freedom shall not be liable to be impeached or questioned in any court or place outside Parliament.



In section 4, the Act gives both Senate and the House of Assembly the authority to deal with anyone who violates this provision.

Section 4 states: For the purpose of this Act the Senate and the House of Assembly sitting jointly or separately shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, possess such powers and jurisdiction as may be necessary for enquiring into, judging and pronouncing upon the commission of any act, matter or thing herein declared to be a contravention of this Act.



Furthermore, in Section 5, the Act gives both Senate and the House of Assembly the rights and privileges to assume the status of a court of law when dealing with anyone deemed to have violated the Act.

The section provides: The Senate and the House of Assembly, sitting jointly or separately as a court, shall subject to the provisions of this Act have all such rights and privileges of a court of law as may be necessary for the purpose of summarily enquiring into and punishing any act, matter or thing herein declared to be contravention of this Act.



As to whether the legislators will be bold enough to take action against the PM when the likes of Manzini North MP Jan Sithole and Mbabane West MP Johane Shongwe move a motion to this effect when the head of government makes himself available before the august House, shall be seen.

The motion, which was expected to be moved without notice this past week, reads: To move that this Hon. House debate with His Excellency the Right Honourable PM and the Executive the violation of the Parliamentary Privileges, inefficiencies and lack of service delivery and prioritisation of the people focused issues.



The motion could not be debated because the PM could not avail himself in the House on Thursday after he flew out of the country destined for Iran to represent His Majesty the King in the inauguration of President Hassan Rouhani.

The premier, accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Mgwagwa Gamedze, joined more than 100 other heads of state and government, including Zimbabwes Robert Mugabe, for the event that was held yesterday.
Members of the Communist Party of Swaziland (CPS) marching against holding of the general elections in 2013.

MBABANE  The Communist Party of Swaziland (CPS), together with its partners, intends convening counter civic education sessions in all of the kingdoms constituencies as a means to sabotage the build-up to the 2018 National General Elections.



Currently, the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) headed by Chief Gija is convening civic and voter education sessions throughout the countrys constituencies in readiness for next years elections.

Through the CPS International Organising Secretary Njabulo Dlamini, the Times SUNDAY has learnt that the party will be launching its own civic education exercise soon.



Dlamini said they would teach all Swazis that will attend the sessions who will in turn be in a position to choose which of the two different education sessions best described the current situation in the country in keeping with their needs for democracy. Basically, what we are saying is that we will be going through all the constituencies, much like the EBC is doing for the Tinkhundla elections, and we will teach the citizens on what and how an election should be conducted, he said.



He said it was up to the people, after hearing their presentation, to choose which system worked best for them. As the CPS, we will counter any form of preparation for these elections as a political party and the education on democracy sessions we will embark on is a perfect start, Dlamini said.

He emphasised: We are sabotaging everything that involves the Tinkhundla system of governance.



He revealed that their counter civic education strategy was the starting point of the organisations defiance campaign, which they were going to ensure infiltrated the whole country. Whatever this government organises, we will also counter organise and we will do this until we gain tangible results in our quest for multiparty democracy, Dlamini said.

During the education sessions to be carried out countrywide, the party revealed that it would be informing the nation what the concept of free and fair democratic elections entailed.



CPS Secretary general Thokozani Kunene, echoing Dlaminis words, said the party wanted people not to vote at all after being enlightened and to boycott the 2018 elections. We want to show people that the Tinkhundla elections are not in any way meant to enhance their livelihood but to keep those they elect nicely fed for the next five years, without assisting the poor in any way, Kunene said.
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By Larry Penner

There is more to Gov. Andrew Cuomos recent $5.6 billion Long Island Rail Road transformation announcement (LIRR Improvements Will Increace Capacity, by Mark Hallum, July 28).

Most of the projects he referenced have already been under way since the Metropolitan Transportation Authoritys original $29 billion Five-Year Capital Plan (2015-2019) was approved in May 2016. There is little new besides $1.95 billion for Main Line Third Track.

What Cuomo overlooked is important to riders and taxpayers who have to pick up the tab. No comment about the status of the $5.8 billion he still owes toward fully funding the $32 billion MTA Five-Year Capital Plan. Add an additional $1 billion he pledged in response to recent NYC Transit subway and LIRR Penn Station problems.

Construction costs for the Gateway Tunnel is $29 billion. Cuomo committed contributing 25 percent of the total cost, but has yet to identify the source of his $7.25 billion.

The MTA $29 billion Five-Year Capital Plan was increased by a $3 billion amendment to $32 billion. This amendment added $1.6 billion in MTA long-term debt. If costs grow, who will pay for the shortfall? MTA LIRR failed to follow federal NEPA environmental guidelines forfeiting any opportunity for Federal Transit Administration funding. The original cost of this project grew from $600 million ten years ago to $1 billion two years ago, then $1.5 billion last year. Today, its at $2 billion. Tommorow, who knows?

Completion of double tracking for the Ronkokoma branch will cost $387 million. Double tracking from Farmingdale to Ronkonkoma was part of the original scope of work for electrification of the Ronkonkoma branch. It was completed in December 1987. To save the project, in jeopardy due to insufficient funding, double tracking was dropped in favor of single track electrification and passing sidings. The project will not be completed 16 months early, as Cuomo boasts, but rather 31 years late! There will be no increase in rush-hour service.

Without finishing Main Line Third Track by 2021, along with East Side Access by 2023, there is no Penn Station capacity for additional Ronkonkoma rush-hour service. Penn Station has been operating at 100 percent capacity for decades. Amtrak, New Jersey Transit and Metro North also have long-term plans to increase Penn Station service.

Missing from the $300 million Penn Station West End Concourse opening in June was a seating area and rest rooms (Was someone afraid of the homeless invading this new facility?). There are only three new ticket vending machines, which do not accept cash.

Next is $1.6 billion for the Penn Farley Complex, including the Moynihan Train Station. Partial financing comes from a $500 million federal loan, which is to be paid back by revenues generated from private sector investments with shortfalls covered by the MTA. This project adds no new tracks or platforms and primarily benefits Amtrak, not LIRR riders.

Mid Suffolk Yard for $125 million is good news, but why no funding for a new Port Jefferson yard branch east of Huntington?

No reference to the cost of additional rolling stock, expansion of storage capacity at other yards and funding source to support increasing the LIRR overall fleet by several hundred new cars. This is needed to support promises of an 81 percent increase in ridership capacity during the evening rush hour and 67 percent increase in the morning rush hour.

Planned Jamaica Station signal, track and infrastructure improvements  for $375 million  has issues. Riders will miss the old, simple switch/walking across the platform between tracks 1 and 2, or 2 and 3, to the desired Penn Station or Atlantic Terminal bound train. Now, they will have to walk over to new tracks 9 and 10 with travel time for Atlantic Terminal-bound riders increasing. Thousands of riders who once had a one-seat ride will lose this benefit with everyone having to change at Jamaica.

There is no allocation of $150 million to reopen the old Penn Station Hilton Corridor also known as Gimbels Passageway. This once provided a direct underground route to Herald Square, including connections to the Broadway N, R, Q & W and 6th Avenue B, D, F & M subway lines, along with the PATH system.

Cuomo was silent about delays in spending $432 million available under a Federal Transit Administration Super Storm Sandy grant for repairs to Penn Station East River Tunnels. Amtrak has said they will not be able to begin work until 2020! MTA, on behalf of the LIRR, which was awarded the federal funding, has not committed to spending these dollars on this critical tunnel work.

When it comes to paying for all his promises, Cuomo reminds me of Wimpy, who famously said Ill gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today. Stand by for higher fares and taxes in coming years to cover the costs.

Larry Penner

Great Neck
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By Gina Martinez

The new Americans with Disabilities Act ramp at PS 201 is ready for use just in time for elections.

City Councilman Rory Lancman (D-Hillcrest) and state Assemblyman Michael Simanowitz (D-Flushing) joined PS 201 Principal Rebecca Lozada last Friday in announcing the PS 201 polling site will return for Pomonok residents in Election Districts 62/25, 40/27, and 85/27. Construction on the new ADA ramp ended this spring.

Lancman provided $375,000 in capital funds to support the creation of the new ramp, while Simanowitz provided $250,000 in funding.

According to Lancman, PS 201 has not been used as a polling site since 2013 because the school did not have an ADA ramp on its premises. The new ramp will enable the school to be a polling site for the community in the 2017-2018 election year and enable individuals with disabilities to easily access the school.

The return of the PS 201 polling site will make it easier for Pomonok residents to cast their ballots and participate in our democracy, Lancman said. The new ADA ramp will ensure that PS 201 is accessible to everyone, including those with disabilities. I am proud to partner with Assemblyman Simanowitz, the Board of Elections, and the PS 201 administration to improve access to the polls in our neighborhood.

Simanowitz said the new ADA ramp will benefit the entire community.

This addition ensures a safe and accessible polling place for Pomonok residents to vote and participate in neighborhood events, he said. I am proud to partner with Council member Lancman and demonstrate that the city and state can successfully work together to achieve tangible results for our constituents. 

Lozada said that there is no greater flaw in a school than the inability to provide families with accessibility to events in the building.

Our entire school community now has the ability to freely participate in all the exciting events that happen at our STEAM magnet school, she said.

Monica Corbett, president of the Pomonok Residents Association, thanked the elected officials for the new ramp.

As a person with mobility issues, who used to have PS 201 as my voting site, the new ramp is a blessing, she said.
Any time you talk about curbing binge drinking in La Crosse, youll hear opponents claim that you cant cure stupid.

Maybe theres no cure. But we know what happens when drunk meets river. It makes all of us look stupid.

Thats why theres another push to stop all-you-can-drink specials.

Our city pulled together to make a lot of tough, unpopular decisions after we finally grew tired of being known nationwide as the capital of river drownings. Weve spawned novels and conspiracy theories and plenty of black eyes.

In 2006, after the eighth drowning in nine years, The Associated Press wrote a story carried nationwide that talked about a La Crosse bar that featured an all-you-can-drink special for $5. Shots are a dollar. A sign in the bars window proclaims: Youre not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on. 

Since then, the La Crosse Common Council  pushed by a community task force created by then-Mayor John Medinger  has passed all sorts of legislation designed to curb dangerous, drunken behavior, in case youre wondering whether theres any hope of curing stupid.

The city has passed sober-server legislation on the premise that an intoxicated server cant make sober decisions about whether the customer on the other side of the bar is too drunk for another drink.

It passed a public-intoxication ordinance that allows police to actually do something if a person is lying  as former Police Chief Ed Kondracki described it  like a turtle on its back, drunk on the barroom floor.

We passed an ordinance limiting sales of beer kegs to two  and requiring that the buyer provide a name and address so police could track down whether problems occurred.

We passed an ordinance providing stiff penalties for the people who host keggers for underage drinkers.

We did more than regulate.

The leaders of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Viterbo University and Western Technical College took an active role in educating students about the perils of binge drinking. They held alcohol-free lock-ins at Oktoberfest. They stopped visitors from staying in dorms during Oktoberfest weekend.

They spend lots of time during student orientation talking about alcohol and drug abuse.

Best of all, their students volunteered to start something that continues today  Operation: River Watch. Those volunteers patrol the riverfront and turn away students and others who stumble downhill from the bar district toward the water.

So, no, all the legislation and all the efforts havent stopped binge drinking and unsafe behavior.

But, our community doesnt talk much about all the steps taken in recent years because we havent had to face so many river deaths lately. Maybe its just luck or coincidence.

You can be certain weve not seen the last of it.

Still, this is a topic thats personal.

You have a different perspective when  during a televised town-hall meeting youre moderating  the mother of the latest victim screams at you that La Crosse didnt do anything to save her son.

You have a different perspective when the governors wife lectures you and others from La Crosse about how she hoped her sons wouldnt attend a university in a town where too many students had drowned.

When you arrange counseling for a young reporter who covered the drowning of a man barely a year younger than her, you gain a different perspective.

Now, the city is debating whether to prohibit all-you-can-drink specials, and were hearing the predictable arguments about excessive government regulation.

Funny, we still have plenty of bars here, despite the smoking ban enacted a few years ago.

One person who attended a recent hearing on the all-you-can-drink specials said that if the council really wanted to regulate something that would improve his quality of life, it would ban his wife from second-pair-for-half-price shoe sales.

Somehow, I missed the story about the drowning victim who had jumped into the Mississippi in a state of euphoria, clutching a shoebox filled with a new pair of Chuck Taylor high-tops.

Yes, we need to be careful with regulation. We dont want to kill wine tastings and beer tastings.

We dont want to kill Oktoberfest. In recent years, fest leaders have done a marvelous job of taking meaningful steps to make the community celebration shorter and safer.

As someone who loves a good glass or two, its weird being called a temperance-loving teetotaler. Its strange seeing your name on a bar marquee suggesting that its time for you to go into the river, too. Full disclosure: Our son laughed.

Well, if having the discussion about a safer community leads to that, so be it.

We live in a wonderful city with a thriving downtown. Urban growth is more fun to write about than river deaths.

As Dean Vernon Wormer, president of Faber College, told one of the Deltas in the frat-house movie Animal House, Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son.

There might be no cure for stupid. But slamming a lot of alcohol in a hurry can make anyone stupid  if they survive.

If curbing all-you-can-drink wristbands can prevent a toe tag, I would hope we would consider it.
Ballston

Thomas Lowe wants to sell a portion of his family's old farm so he can replenish the retirement and college savings he spent caring for his elderly mother. But Lowe's plans have drawn him into a legal and political battle between farmland preservationists and the Ballston Town Board in a showdown that is drawing the attention of agricultural advocates across the state.

The project also underscores the growing tensions in many upstate communities where farm fields and undeveloped land are being gobbled up by builders who often lend their political or financial backing to the municipal officials responsible for steering projects toward approval.

In Ballston, the controversy centers on a water line extension town officials approved for Lowe's Goode Street property that would serve 12 large homes  and be constructed in an agricultural district. The town said the plans conform with their rural-residential zoning rules and can move forward.

But the state Department of Agriculture and Markets, which oversees more than 200 agricultural districts across the state, is suing in state Supreme Court to block the new water line. The state says Ballston officials pledged years ago to not hook up any new Goode Street residents to water as a way to slow development and protect farmland.

Many of those against the water line extension, including farmers and residents, have accused one of the Town Board's members, Kelly Stewart, of unethical behavior because she has voted for the new water line to Goode Street, where her developer husband is building homes. James Walsh, a former town attorney with deep Republican political connections, is representing the town in the litigation. He is chairman of the Ballston GOP Committee that's endorsed many of the Town Board members and other elected officials. Stewart and Walsh both dismissed any suggestions they have done anything improper, saying they have no conflicts of interest and their actions are not influenced by money or politics.

The broader concern about the court case for those in the farming world is how the outcome could affect protections for agricultural districts across the state. Such districts require state approval of government-funded water and sewer lines, and bar municipalities from approving laws that could hurt farming practices.

"Saratoga is a prime example of development pressure," said Steve Ammerman, a spokesman for the New York Farm Bureau, noting that the county has experienced upstate's largest population growth  3 percent  since 2010 along with Tompkins County in the Finger Lakes region. "It will only add to the encroachment and development pressures that farms already face," he added.

The battle over the Goode Street water line began more than 13 years ago, when Ballston expanded Town Hall on Charlton Road and needed a public water supply. At the time, residents voted against allowing residences to connect to the water line extension. But town officials still wanted to allow residential hookups, which prompted a lawsuit by Jerold Knight, then the owner of Knight Orchards where the water line originally ended. A 2004 agreement that ended the case allowed pre-existing homes to connect to the line but limited any future extensions to agricultural uses. But it's now in dispute if that agreement was binding or can be tweaked.

More Information Fastest-growing Saratoga County towns Increases in population from 2010 to 2015. Does not include Saratoga Springs or the county's villages. Halfmoon 1,312 Ballston 427 Wilton 388 Clifton Park 341 Moreau 330 Milton 298 Providence 212 Edinburg 188 Malta 154 Stillwater 105 Source: U.S. Census Bureau See More Collapse

In 2011, Thomas Benuscak, a local developer, bought Lowe's childhood home on Goode Street, demolished it and built a custom home. Lowe said Benuscak then wanted to buy more property from him. Benuscak submitted his plan to the Ballston Planning Board for 12 homes supplied by private wells. But now he says the project needs public water. An engineering report submitted last fall to the town by Environmental Design Partnership, a Clifton Park firm, stated: "Though individual wells are feasible, historically their water quality has been less than desirable in this area."

Walsh, then the town's attorney, advised officials that they could approve an extension because the 2-acre lots would satisfy Ballston's zoning, and the state only reviews water line extensions if they're paid for by a state or local government entity. Benuscak has proposed paying $200,000 for the water line extension, according to records filed in the case. He could not be reached for comment for this story.

The project is in Saratoga County's Agricultural District No. 2, which includes more than half of Ballston and stretches into Charlton, Galway, Milton and other nearby towns.

Last year, the state Department of Agriculture warned the town to stop its forward movement with the water line based on the 2004 resolution by the Town Board that said Ballston would limit further extensions off Goode Street to pre-existing structures and agricultural uses only. Local officials were not dissuaded and the state filed its lawsuit in February.

In recent years, Ballston officials have taken steps to limit development, but primarily with non-residential construction. A company called Dolomite filed a lawsuit after the town in 2013 changed its industrial zoning as the company proposed an asphalt-mixing plant at Curtis Industrial Park. Dolomite, which alleged the town was pushing it out illegally through spot zoning, prevailed in the court case.

Current Knight Orchards owner Jeremy Knight, Jerold Knight's son, said the encroaching development impacts farmers in ways people can't see. For instance, in recent years some of the farm's fruit trees have become swamped as the water table has shifted  something Knight believes happened after homes were built just to the south of his farm. Knight, who is the farm's fourth-generation operator, is on the board of directors at the Saratoga County Farm Bureau and is part of a group of residents who formed a group, Ballston United, to counter development pressures.

"If this goes through," Knight said about the water line extension, "it will have far-reaching impacts across the state."

Chuck Curtiss, who along with Town Board member John Antoski is against the water line extension, said Ballston is at odds with the prominently displayed caption on its website  "Welcome to the Town of Ballston, A Farms First Community." Curtiss is a farmer and chairman of the Saratoga County Fair.

The division on the board is not about political affiliations: Curtiss and Antoski are Republicans, as are all other elected officials in Ballston.

"It frustrates me because there are those on the board who are adamant about 'Build it wherever we can build it,'" Curtiss said. "I have heard the argument from the board of 'Why do we need this land and why do we need these farmers?' It's the most ludicrous statement I have ever heard."

Curtiss also echoes concerns others have about alleged conflict of interests involving Walsh and Stewart, whose husband builds $400,000-plus homes off Goode Street on Carriage Run.

Stewart said she and the other town officials who support the water line  Supervisor Tim Szczepaniak and Town Board member William Goslin  are trying to improve the community by providing quality water to residents. She said the limitations placed years ago on the water line extension was simply a Town Board resolution and not a law, so it can be changed by another resolution.

Stewart is an attorney who works for the state's Legislative Bill Drafting Commission. She said her support of the water line has nothing to do with her husband's business, Stewart Construction Inc. The Stewart family previously built the Vienna Court subdivision off Goode Street, where residents were allowed to pay for hook up to the 2004 water line extension. But Kelly Stewart said she and her husband, who live on Vienna Court, decided to keep their well instead.

"They don't benefit me in any way," Stewart said about any new water extensions. "(My husband) has no plans to develop any other property."

In recent years the town allowed the Stewart Construction subdivision on Carriage Run to hook up to the Goode Street water line, an action Kelly Stewart said was legal and did not happen while she was on the board. But the state Department of Agriculture is investigating the Carriage Run deal. "The Department may take action should it find that the town violated Agricultural District Law by allowing connections to municipal water from restricted water lines for non-agricultural use," the agency's spokeswoman, Lisa Koumjian, said in a written response.

Walsh  who has also been paid $12,450 by the Saratoga County Republican Committee over the last few years for professional services  continues to represent the town in its court case with the state, despite resigning from the town attorney post last spring. He won an early round recently when a Schenectady County judge denied the state's request for an injunction. The ruling, however, didn't derail the state's litigation, which is moving ahead as both sides discuss a possible settlement. Walsh was named chairman of the Ballston GOP Committee before he resigned as town attorney in April, but said there is nothing unethical about his dual roles.

"The Bar Association of the state of New York has said it's not a problem, the comptroller of New York has said it's not a problem, the attorney general of the state of New York says it's not a problem," Walsh said.

While Walsh confirmed that the Goode Street developer, Benuscak, is also on the town's GOP committee, Benuscak appears to have given very few political contributions to town or county Republicans. But an individual who has provided a notable amount is James Walsh's wife, former Ballston Town Board member and now Assemblywoman Mary Beth Walsh. Her campaign account transferred $45,800 to the Saratoga County GOP last summer while she was actively campaigning for the 112th Assembly seat  more than a third of all monies the county party raised in 2016. The assemblywoman said in a statement the money was part of the county GOP's joint effort with her committee to campaign for the 112th seat primary.

Lowe, who owns the Goode Street property with his brother, Charles, said Benuscak's attorney found the town has allowed 69 hookups to the water line extension since the 2004 resolution was passed and that all were made without controversy. He said some residents don't want this particular development, and are using the issue of losing town farmland as a scare tactic. Lowe said he will sell 35 acres to the developer, but keep 65 acres to lease for farming  which is over the threshold the state requires of keeping at least 50 percent of an agricultural district designated farmland.

Lowe said there aren't enough farmers out there who would purchase his property.

"What we're trying to do is recoup the cost of paying for home care for my mom for six years," said Lowe, whose mother died in 2010. "I don't know why people are making it so difficult for us."

lstanforth@timesunion.  518-454-5697
Washington

Dozens of convicts serving time in U.S. prisons for terrorism-related offenses are due to be released in the next several years, raising the question whether that's something Americans should fear.

There's no easy answer.

Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the United States has worked aggressively to foil attacks and has imprisoned hundreds of people who joined or helped militant groups. Experts say less attention has been paid to what happens once those prisoners complete their sentences.

Among the incarcerated, according to the Bureau of Prisons, are 380 linked to international terrorism and 83 tied to domestic terrorism. A Congressional Research Service report said 50 "homegrown violent jihadists" were to be released between last January and the end of 2026.

And more are entering prison.

Former FBI Director James Comey, who was fired by President Donald Trump in May, had told Congress that the bureau had more than 900 active investigations related to Islamic State and other extremist activity in all 50 states.

Most of those convicted of terrorism-related crimes are held at the high-security U.S. penitentiary in Florence, Colo., and federal prisons in Terre Haute, Ind., and Marion, Ill. Some are in for life, but the average sentence is 13 years. That means most will walk out of prison with years of freedom ahead.

"There were people I was with in prison who you'd be happy to have as a neighbor because they were normal, reasonable people," said Ismail Royer. He was released last December after serving more than 13 years on firearms charges connected to his work helping others get to a militant training camp in Kashmir, the disputed Himalayan territory claimed by India and Pakistan.

"The guys that I'm really, really concerned about are the loose cannons," Royer said.

Royer grew up in a Catholic family in suburban St. Louis. By the time he was 21, he had converted to Islam and was fighting alongside fellow Muslims in Bosnia. At 31, he was serving a 20-year sentence.

Today, he lives in the Washington, D.C., area, works for the Center for Islam and Religious Freedom and wants to help nonextremist Muslim-Americans find their footing in American society.

Behind bars, Royer got to know inmates arrested for only loose ties to terrorism. But he also met Richard Reid, the al-Qaida "shoe bomber," and John Walker Lindh, an American captured in Afghanistan while fighting with the Taliban.

Some were ensnared in sting operations, Royer said, or were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Others were up to no good; Royer said he was happy the FBI arrested them.

"At any time, the loose cannon might go to the convenience store and cut off somebody's head. You just don't know. These guys are very problematic," Royer said while eating grilled cheese at a hotel not far from the White House. "I don't want them as my neighbor. You can't sit there and talk to them and tell them that their views are mistaken."

Eric Rosand, who directs a program at the Global Center on Cooperative Security that's aimed at combating violent extremism, said not enough is known about the mindset of the prisoners being released. Experts say there's been no comprehensive research to determine recidivism rates for these individuals.

Karen Greenberg, director of the Center on National Security at Fordham University's School of Law, doesn't think the public should panic. Those released will face months to years of supervision. Phone calls and online communications are monitored. Travel can be restricted. Weekly meetings with counselors can be required.

"We're not talking about 9/11 perpetrators," Greenberg said.

While the State Department has spent more than $10 million since 2012 to help other countries deal with an increase in suspected terrorists, Rosand lamented that no similar effort is taking place here.

"People have to go back to some community once they are released," said Rosand, a former senior counterterrorism official at the State Department. "Are we preparing communities for their release? Where are they going to go? Is the community that they came from going to accept them back?"

Patrick James, a researcher at National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism at the University of Maryland said the U.S. lags behind European and Middle Eastern countries in finding ways to address paths to radicalization or ease the return of released individuals.

"There's no net to catch them. There is no way to make sure they don't re-engage in extremism," James said.

At least 128 individuals have been charged in the United States with crimes related specifically to the Islamic State group since March 2014, when the first arrests were made, according to George Washington University's Program on Extremism.

Justice Department officials declined comment.

But the department's internal watchdog is auditing the Bureau of Prisons' procedures, policies and practices for monitoring inmates with known or suspected terrorist ties, and efforts to prevent further radicalization among inmates.

The issue also is being addressed in pockets of the country.

Last year, U.S. District Judge Michael Davis in Minneapolis announced a new program to assess the risks posed by terrorism defendants and devise plans to help them re-evaluate their extremist ideals so they don't engage in similar activities again.

Davis' program enlists the help of Daniel Koehler, who runs an institute devoted to "de-radicalization" in Germany. Koehler will conduct risk assessments on terror offenders to give Davis more information as he determines sentences. Koehler will then train U.S. probation and pretrial officers, who will be responsible for supervising defendants.

"I am not aware that any other court has tried something like that," Koehler said.
Washington

President Donald Trump is trying to turn the Russia investigation into a rallying cry.

Far from avoiding talk of the accelerating probe into his campaign's ties to Moscow, Trump is instead using it to stoke the outrage felt by his most loyal supporters.

The investigation, he argues, is an outgrowth of the bias and resentment media elites and Democrats hold against his white, working-class base. He casts the investigation as a nefarious attempt to undo the results of the election and seize power from the voters who have been marginalized.

"They can't beat us at the voting booths so they are trying to cheat you out of the future and the future that you want," Trump said during a Thursday night rally in Huntington, W. Va. "They are trying to cheat you out of the leadership you want with a fake story that is demeaning to all of us and most importantly, demeaning to our country and demeaning to our Constitution."

The message falls in line with Trump's long-standing appeal to the voters he has called the "forgotten men and women of our country" who lack a voice in government. Trump portrays himself as the voice of the aggrieved who understands their troubles.

But this heavy reliance on his loyal base, who comprise far short of an electoral majority, carries risks. Long term, it's unclear how his message will appeal to mainstream Republicans, some of whom are conducting investigations into his Russia ties in Congress and are unlikely to see special counsel Robert Mueller, the by-the-book former FBI director and decorated Vietnam War veteran, as the face of a witch hunt.

The message also obscures the issue his base cares most deeply about: the economy.

For now, Trump appears to be on solid ground on that front. He has presided over a strong economy during his first six months in office. He repeatedly noted this week that the stock market had risen to new heights. He pointed Friday to the latest job report, which showed more than 200,000 new jobs in July and an unemployment rate of 4.3 percent, matching a 16-year low.

But a slip in the nation's economic fortunes before the 2020 election, especially in states key to Trump's victory like Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, could make it harder for Trump to hold onto his base.

In some respects, Trump is taking a page from his favorite scapegoats: Bill and Hillary Clinton. During the late 1990s, Bill Clinton assailed House Republicans and independent counsel Ken Starr as fierce partisans for pushing investigations into his affair with a White House intern and his role in an Arkansas land deal. Hillary Clinton famously called it a "vast right-wing conspiracy."

This time, Trump has taken the partisan argument to a new degree, parlaying it with his longstanding indictment of the Washington "swamp" of insiders he says hurt many Americans.

"He's not just doing the partisan playbook, but he's making it about the system in some ways going after him and going after what the voters wanted," said presidential historian Julian Zelizer, a professor at Princeton University.

Zelizer said the reliance on base politics carries risks for Trump, who has already sustained cracks in his support, embodied by strained relations with Republican leadership, Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake's book criticizing Trump's leadership, and three GOP senators' unwillingness to go along on repealing the Affordable Care Act.

Most Americans don't seem to share Trump's views on the investigation. Nearly 60 percent of Americans say they don't think Trump is taking the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election seriously enough and roughly the same percentage think he's tried to derail the probe, according to a Quinnipiac poll published this week.
Caracas

Loyalists of President Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela's newly created super congress moved to consolidate government power Saturday, stripping the independent chief prosecutor of her job and cordoning off her headquarters in a move signaling a swiftly widening crackdown on political dissent.

The new body, elected last Sunday in a vote decried internationally as a power grab, was installed Friday, with its leaders vowing to back Maduro's calls to move against political opponents. Those threats translated into fast action, with hundreds of troops surrounding chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz's office at dawn. Ortega Di-az was the most prominent senior administration official in Venezuela who is a vocal critic of the Maduro government.

The move appeared to signal a dangerous new phase in Venezuela's break with democracy, reinforcing fears about Maduro using the new National Constituent Assembly (ANC), to rubber-stamp a fresh campaign against opponents. In addition to firing Ortega Diaz, the assembly ordered her not to leave the country and replaced her with a Maduro loyalist.

"Ortega Diaz didn't give the impression of being objective in her duties," the assembly's second vice president, Isaias Rodriguez, said. " This decision is not news. Everyone knew it was coming long before the ANC was installed."

In a communique issued by the Public Ministry, Ortega Diaz denounced the decision to remove her from the position of attorney general of the republic as a violation of the constitution.

"I will continue fighting for Venezuelans, for their liberties and rights, until my last breath," she said.

Ortega Diaz broke with Maduro in March and has strongly criticized the government's actions against pro-democracy demonstrators. More than 100 have died and thousands have been detained in four months of street protests.

Ortega Diaz said that she was not inside her headquarters in central Caracas when troops surrounded the building but that members of her staff were trapped inside.
The city of La Crosse has been very fortunate to be served by an excellent city clerk, Teri Lehrke, for 24 years.

The responsibilities and complexities of that job have grown greatly during that time, and the clerks job now requires a great deal of technical knowledge about assuring openness and transparency when it comes to the citys public meetings and public records, issuing municipal licenses and administering city elections, among other duties.

From our perspective, openness and transparency are crucial to democracy. So are fair elections.

In addition, Common Council President Martin Gaul says the clerk really serves as a watchdog for the council and the mayor when it comes to legal responsibilities.

The role asks a lot of the clerk, but state law requires very little of a candidate for the office: The person must be an eligible voter and La Crosse resident at the time of the election.

The city council is expected to vote Thursday on whether to convert the job from being elected to one that is appointed, and we think an appointed position is the right approach.

Yes, were generally in favor of voter control  especially when it involves policymaking roles.

But we wouldnt ask voters to elect a police chief, a fire chief, a city attorney or parks or planning director. Those jobs require a wealth of expertise and experience.

So, why would we ask voters to elect a clerk  a role that also requires a high level of professionalism and technical skill?

Lehrke said she believes its the right approach given the changes in the role that she has experienced during her tenure.

In this day and age, I think its better for the municipality, she said. They can make sure they are getting someone with the training, expertise and the knowledge of the job. I think years ago it was OK to have an elected (city clerk). Nowadays its just a lot more technical than it used to be.

Its important to note that many cities in Wisconsin have already switched the position from elected to appointed because of the expertise required to uphold the law and assure transparency for taxpayers and voters.

In order to enact the change, the La Crosse council must change an ordinance and a charter ordinance, which would require two-thirds approval.

We believe its the right thing for the city.
Tipperary Heartland is the new name of a group of tourism promotion bodies in the mid-Tipperary area.

The aim of the body is to promote mid-Tipperary as a meaningful tourism destination with a surprising number of visitor attractions, offering a great variety of experiences for the tourist and local alike.

Tipperary Heartland represents the visitor attractions of Cabragh Wetlands, Cormackstown Heritage Centre, Farney Castle, Holycross Abbey, Lar na Pairce, Semple Stadium, The Source, Templemore Town Park, Upperchurch Upper Limits and Upperchurch Walking Trails.

A cursory look at these places will reveal the great variety of experiences available to the tourist, who visits mid-Tipperary.

These experiences range over nature, heritage, sport, religion, outdoor pursuits, etc.

The different visitor interests promote their own activities but also combine to advertise the area and reveal to the visitor that mid-Tipperary is a place worth visiting.

While promoting the area to the visitor, Tipperary Heartland would also like the people of the area to realise that they have a wonderful range of visitor attractions on their doorstep and that there is no great need to travel far to enjoy them.

In order to promote their aims and intentions, Tipperary Heartland, are running a duck race and bar-b-que in Jim o the Mills on Saturday August 26th. This is a family event and will begin about 7 pm with an entrance fee of 10.

The Irish Times recently named Jim o the Mills as the best pub in Ireland and anyone who attends on the night will get a feast of music, as well as the fun of a duck race, food and the experience of visiting a very special place.

Tipperary Heartland are extremely grateful to Jim Ryan for putting his premises at its disposal for this fund-raising event.
Fianna Fail TD for Tipperary, Jackie Cahill has said that the decision of the NTMA to reduce again the prize pool available for Prize Bond owners and the number of chances of becoming a millionaire per year is short-sighted and disappointing.

The National Treasury Management Agency has made the short-sighted decision to reduce the prize pool from 0.85 per cent of the money put into Prize Funds to 0.5 per cent. This follows on from a reduction from 1.25 per cent in 2016. It would be interesting to know whether the commercial banks lobbied the Government in favour of this move.

What this means for Prize Bond a holder in Tipperary is very clear. He or she will have fewer opportunities to win big money prizes in the draws, said Deputy Cahill

Previously, there were six opportunities per year to win 1m. Last year, it was reduced to four and with this planned prize fund drop, it will drop again to just two, he pointed out.

The Prize Bond was established to encourage small individual savers to invest in the State's funds. Each Prize Bond is placed into a draw every month and has a chance of winning a tax free cash prize.

Despite their investments not accruing interest, many small investors chose Prize Bonds specifically in the hope of winning a large cash prize, said Deputy Cahill

He said he had no doubt the reductions in the number of opportunities to win such prizes would reduce the attractiveness of Prize Bonds to small investors.

Tipperary investors make a deliberate choice to purchase Prize Bonds. They know they wont earn interest but they expect that they will have multiple opportunities to win cash prizes. These rule changes removes those opportunities, and will, I fear, see people selling their bonds and moving their assets somewhere else, said Deputy Cahill.

He said that many who have Prize Bonds were elderly or had inherited them from a loved one. Many others had put their money into Prize Bonds in order to save and to assist the State in raising vital funds.

Removing the attractiveness of the product is short sighted decision by the NTMA, and one which should be reviewed, he said.
Joan C Dougan

The death has occurred of Joan C Dougan, Old Spa Road, Clonmel, Tipperary. Passed away suddenly and peacefully at South Tipperary General Hospital. Predeceased by her brothers Fr. Edmund Maurice and Peter. Sadly missed by her nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews and her wide circle of friends.

Reposing at her residence today (Sunday) from 5.30pm to 8.30pm. Removal on Monday to SS Peter & Paul's Church arriving at 12.45pm for requiem mass at 1pm. Burial afterwards in Gambonsfield Cemetery, Kilsheelan.



Noel Dennehy

The death has occurred of Noel Dennehy, Aylesbury, Tallaght, Dublin / Clonmel, Tipperary, and late of Scoil Colm CBS Crumlin - August 4, 2017, (peacefully), surrounded by his loving family, at the Beacon Hospital, Noel, beloved husband of Margaret and dear father of Mary and Teresa; Sadly missed by his loving wife, daughters, sons-in-law Tom and Rob, grandchildren Sadhbh and Liam, brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, relatives, friends and former colleagues.

Reposing on Tuesday from 4pm to 7pm at the Ramon Massey & Son Funeral Home, 3 Main Street, Tallaght Village, (opposite The Priory). Removal on Wednesday to the Church of St Martin De Porres, Aylesbury, arriving for 10am Mass. Funeral immediately afterwards to Bohernabreena Cemetery. Family flowers only please. Donations, if desired, to Our Lady's Childrens Hospital, Crumlin. Enquiries to Ramon Massey & Son Funeral Directors Tallaght Village / Walkinstown Road Ph: 01 4555121.



Donal Ryan

The death has occurred of Donal Ryan, Innisfallen Avenue, Thurles, Tipperary, formerly Capital Cinema and Mullawnbrack, Thurles. Suddenly, surrounded by his family. Deeply regretted by his loving wife Joan, daughters Joanna and Louise, grandson Daniel, brothers Oliver and Patsy, Joanna's partner Declan, sisters in law, brothers in law, nieces, nephews, relatives, neighbours and many good friends.

Reposing in Hugh Ryans' Funeral Home, Slievenamon Road, Thurles on Wednesday, August 9, from 5pm to 7.30pm. Arriving at the Cathedral of the Assumption, Thurles at 8pm. Requiem Mass on Thursday, August 10, at 11am. Burial afterwards in St Patrick's Cemetery, Thurles.
Rex Early, longtime Republican leader in Indiana, has died

Rex Early was chairman of the Indiana Republican Party and led former president Donald Trump's campaign in Indiana in 2016.
LA CROSSE  Ronald Plueger, 78, of La Crosse passed away Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017, at his home.

He was born Nov. 27, 1938, to Roy and Elva Plueger in La Mars, Iowa. Ron was united in marriage to Jean Knudsen June 20, 1959, at Grace Lutheran Church in Lake Benton, Minn.

Ron started working at his first meat packing plant at age 16 and by the time he was 18 he had gained experience with different aspects of the processing/slaughtering operations enough to know that it was the right business for him. His knowledge continued to grow as he joined packing plants in Luverne, Minn., at Mid Packing, where he worked as a relief man. He also assisted his father with a hog-cattle operation.

At age 20, he was hired by Blue Ribbon Beef in Mason City, Iowa, where he worked as a foreman for a 600 head per day processing plant. He later advanced to superintendent.

Rons work and experience was extensive. He soon became an expert in the field of cattle. 1969-1975, Ron was co-owner and general manager of Tama Meat Packing Plant, in Tama, Iowa. He built a full service facility processing 6,000-8,000 cattle per week. It was later purchased by a New York company who hired Ron to be the VP and GM. The Tama plant was a flagship facility for Kame Miller producing product for National and International markets. He did this for many years working and being co-owner of other facilities throughout the Midwest.

1980-1995 Ron purchased Pine Valley Meats in Norwalk. He closed the plant and rebuilt and redesigned operations. It reopened in 1982, processing up to 600 head per day. At the same time he also owned and operated Pine Valley Meats II in South St. Paul, Minn. By 1993 Pine Valley Meats I and II ranked as the 18th largest beef packer in the U.S. He sold the operation in 1995.

Once Ron retired he and Jean lived in the Coulee Region for the last 30 years. He and Jean enjoyed traveling to Las Vegas with friends and family. Rons life was full, whether at work or enjoying time with his family, Ron had fun. He will be deeply missed by those who knew and loved him.

He is survived by his sons, Craig (Basia) Plueger and Brian Plueger all of La Crosse; grandchildren, Dustin (Molly) Powell of Tomah, Bobbi (Dan) Nading of Sparta, Lacee (fiance,Cody Eitniear) Navrestad of Sparta, Chelsy (Eric) Greil of Appleton, Wis., Collin (Ally Von Haden) Plueger of Sparta, and Tyler Plueger of Sparta; great-grandchildren, Evan, Eli, Parker, Hudson and Sawyer, and Harper and Blake Plueger; brothers, Robert (Barb) Plueger and Jimmy (Deb) Plueger; sister, Shirley (Keith) Renkly; sister-in-law, Deanna Knudsen; many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Jean in 2014; daughters, Julie Plueger and Rhonda Powell; and a brother-in-law, LeRoy Knudsen.

Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 8, at the Torkelson Funeral Home in Tomah. Pastor Bob Streeter will officiate. Burial will follow in the Oak Grove Cemetery. Family and friends are invited for visitation from 11a.m. until the time of service Tuesday at the funeral home. Online condolences are available at www.torkelsonfuneralhome.com. The Torkelson Funeral Home of Tomah is assisting the family.
A child has died after he shot himself early Sunday morning, according to Kansas City Police. Police said they were called to a home in the 9600 block of Lydia Ave. for a report of a child who shot himself. When police arrived, they found a boy, under the age of 5 years old, who had been shot.
Two Kansas City, Missouri police officers are on administrative leave following a fatal officer-involved shooting Sunday. That incident happened around 12:31 p.m. near 34th and Prospect. Officers were dispatched to the scene after someone called and reported a disturbance between a man and a woman.
CHECK THIS REALITY CHECK RAGING AGAINST BROKEN STREETCAR PROMISES IN THE RIVER MARKET!!!

"There are 30,000 people living in the proposed streetcar district and only 3,642 were able to get through all the obstacles to voting. Guess if more people had fax machines and readily available access to a notary the turnout would have been higher!





"The damage is already done in River Market from the starter line. This area is a park & ride lot and Main Street is no longer easily available for auto traffic. Residents are paying high property and sales taxes to support the only free trolley ride in the US. We were promised that the streetcar would attract businesses and jobs to the area and the result was zero. Trolley supporters claim it has brought thousands of tax subsidized apartment units to the area. These apartment dwellers require City services and are not paying for them.





"The streetcar line is a novelty for tourists rather than a transit system that can benefit the taxpayers. Instead of wasting more taxpayer dollars on obsolete fixed rail technology, KCMO should be investing new technologies including demand response platforms such as Uber! Many major US cities plan to roll out mobile on demand services in the next 5 years and KCMO keeps pushing old technology."

The announcement of adespite the lack of new federal funds and competing voter initiatives . . . But, as always, our blog community is concerned with the word of street level locals who offer a glimpse at the reality of the situation beyond consultant and political hype.To wit . . .Here's the word . . .You decide . . .
Is the double trouble Kansas City flash flooding this week proof of global climate change, a repeated "act of God 100-Year-Event" or just more evidence that the Kansas City metro neglects infrastructure in favor of a greedy corporate development agenda???

Earlier this week, Kansas City officials described a South Kansas City food as a "100-year event" implying that the downpour was so rare that the "act of God" defied even the best planning. And then, pretty much the same thing happened last night but all over the metro.A quick rundown of the drama . . .South Kansas City was under water earlier in the week and then flooded again last night by a few inches less. Thankfully, nobody was hurt or trapped given that most of the biz had already been flooded out.Here's an iconic image from Brookside showing their sewers flooding the street.Remember,and this town has barely scratched the surface of that work while politicos cater to developer patrons.And speaking of toilet overflow . . .Check a quick shot ofat high tide last night . . . Not exactly white water rapids considering all the floaters circling around in this canal carrying millions of gallons full of untreated County Club sewage at any given point. On the bright side, the collection of upper-class KCMO poop means at least there's kale somewhere in that stream.Lots of rescues last night as theAnd so, this brings us to a question offor this soggy Sunday morning and this epic shot. . .You decide . . .
The tomb of Sofia Afentaki with sculpture by Yannoulis Chalepas. Photo by FocalPoint, via Wikimedia Commons

Sculptor Yannoulis Chalepas was born on August 14, 1851 to a family of marble cutters in Pyrgos on the island of Tinos. A bright student, he studied at the School of Arts in Athens under Neoclassical sculptor Leonidas Drossis and then, on scholarship from the Panhellenic Holy Foundation of the Evangelistria of Tinos, at the Munich Academy, under another Neoclassical sculptor, Max Ritter von Widnmann.

Chalepas work even early on showed a rare maturity. The impressive monumental works from his first creative period which survive intact, Affection (1875), Satyr Playing with Eros (1877), and the legendary Sleeping Female Figure (1877), demonstrate an extraordinary maturity for an artist only in his 20s.

The exhibition catalogue Yannoulis Chalepas by Marina Lambraki-Plaka, Professor of History of Art and Director of the National Gallery  Alexandros Soutzos Museum was published in 2007. The book includes photos of the artists work included in the retrospective exhibition at the National Glyptotheque also in 2007 and wonderful insights into the work.

The exhibition curators, Alexandra Goulaki-Voutyra- Professor, School of Fine Arts, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, and Artemis Zervou, Curator, National Gallery of Greece edited the volume.

Read more here.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report

Source: thenationalherald.com
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is chairing a meeting on Friday with government ministers to prepare for the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron in September and two international conferences.

According to information, the PM is discussing with Energy Minister George Stathakis, Ecnomy Minister Dimitri Papadimitriou, Alternate Foreign Minister George Katrougalos and Deputy Economy Minister Stergios Pitsiorlas details of the three events.

Macron is scheduled to visit Athens on September 7-8. On September 14, Corfu island will host the first High Level Cooperation Council between Greece and Italy where Tsipras will meet with his Italian counterpart Paolo Gentiloni. On November 9-10, Athens will host the 2nd EU-Arab World Summit, organized by private entities, where ministers, business leaders and fund managers are scheduled to speak.

Read more here.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons Copyright: Matti License: CC-BY-SA

Source: ANA-MPA
An uncertain future for Amtrak is the opposite of wonderful, wonderful, wonderful to Margo Holzman.

The Poynette resident used glowing terms to describe her long use of the Empire Builder Line as she waited for the westbound train at Amtraks Portage station. The train  only 8 minutes late that evening  would take her daughter and grandchild back to Minnesota. They had attended a funeral that day.

Susan and Mike Emmerich of Robinson, Illinois, waited for the eastbound train for Effingham, Illinois. Their train arrived five hours late, and they didnt mind that much. They had been visiting their daughter in Portage.

Two Amish sisters, Mary and Naomi Miller, were also on their way home to Cisne, Illinois. They had been visiting family in Dalton. They said they use Empire Builder four times a year.

What Amtraks Empire Builder Line provided last year for the 7,800 people who used its Portage station might get overlooked when compared with rail service in big cities  like Milwaukees 600,000 and Chicagos 3.2 million total users. But Portage wouldnt be overlooked by Holzman.

We need it, she said. Every time Ive used it, it was very important to me.

President Donald Trumps proposed 2018 budget would reduce Amtraks funding from $1.5 billion to $760 million, part of a larger package of cuts that trims $2.4 billion from federal transportation in all. That would end all of Amtraks long-distance routes  15 of them  including the Empire Builder, which stretches 2,200 miles from Chicago to Seattle with Wisconsin stops in Milwaukee, Columbus, Portage, Wisconsin Dells, Tomah and La Crosse.

As Congress decides Empire Builders fate, local leaders say the lines impact in small communities isnt told  completely  in the numbers. Empire Builder, which links Chicago and Milwaukee to St. Paul, brings people to and from vacations, families and business dealings  but the line also brings residents of big cities to the smaller places they might otherwise never find reasons to visit.

So what would it mean if Empire Builder were gone?

Where it stands

Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D- Madison, said in an emailed statement she is a strong supporter of reinvesting in passenger rail and is working across party lines to protect routes like the Empire Builder. Baldwin supported the 2017 federal budget that increased funding for Amtrak  from $1.4 billion to $1.5 billion  she noted.

Long-distance routes like the Empire Builder achieved a little victory late last week when GOP appropriators in the House rejected the White House proposal, National Association of Railroad Passengers President Jim Mathews said. The lawmakers released a draft that actually would boost spending for rail by $360 million over current levels, targeting repair work along Amtraks northeast corridor.

Rail investments were part of the House Appropriations Committees $17.8 billion proposal that would be $1.5 billion more than the White House transportation plan but $646 million less than current levels, cutting federal transit dollars.

The White House proposal, which cuts $2.4 billion from federal transportation in all, still needs to be sorted out by Congress in the coming months, so long-distance routes like the Empire Builder have many steps yet to clear, Mathews said. His organization, NARP, is a nonpartisan, nonprofit group that fights for all forms of transportation, primarily passenger train services.

The proposed cuts from the White House wouldnt kill Amtraks Hiawatha trains that link Chicago and Milwaukee, so Wisconsin is not among the 23 states that would lose Amtrak service entirely under the propsal, said Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari.

While the budget is discussed behind closed doors, moving from committee to committee, the potential severing of the lines westward links has been a topic largely exclusive to the small communities it serves.

History is at stake, some of these communities leaders say. Amtraks Empire Builder Line has existed for 46 years, and the link between the Midwest and the Pacific Northwest goes all the way back to Great Northern Railways operation of the line from 1929 to 1970.

On the map

Its an identity, Steve Sobiek, the city of Portages director of business development and planning, said of Empire Builder last week. Portages service started in 1971, when Amtrak rerouted Empire Builder.

Sobiek in January had beamed about Amtraks future while addressing business leaders from the Portage Area Chamber of Commerce. The Portage Amtrak station had seen a 27 percent increase in ridership from 2015 to 2016, he told them, far exceeding the states average increase of 1 percent ridership. That was the biggest increase on the line in Wisconsin.

Possible expansion of Empire Builder makes it hard for Sobiek to separate the idea of the line ending from the idea of it doubling. Discussions as of late last year had begun in Wisconsin and Minnesota for adding another train in each direction, an expansion that Sobiek said last week would substantially increase train travel, locally and beyond.

By removing the limitations of only one train going in each direction per day, the appeal of the Empire Builder to rural residents would change dramatically, City Manager Shawn Murphy and the Chambers Executive Director Marianne Hanson said.

(Expansion) would have an impact on ridership in Portage by reducing waiting time and making more of those business trips more feasible, said Murphy, who along with Sobiek, Mayor Rick Dodd and the Chamber, meets annually with Amtrak representatives. This population is more sparsely populated, spread out  but thats why we think it is so successful, because it serves a clear need for these people.

Already, Hanson said, Portage is a destination for people who havent visited here because we have an Amtrak.

So if Amtrak has helped put small cities like Portage on the map, as Hanson suggested, subtracting it from the Amtrak maps is neither appetizing nor easy to picture for many people.

Down the line

Customers of Julies Java House in Columbus are well aware of Trumps transportation budget proposal. The owner, Julie Hornbacher, has made sure of it.

Hornbacher, whose business has been located next to the Amtrak stop for 14 years, is encouraging people to contact their legislators in an effort to save Empire Builder. Her customers know the phone numbers and addresses of local lawmakers  she has postings on the walls  and that means they know how to share what they feel.

Cutting it would affect all of the small communities, all the way out to Seattle, said Hornbacher, who when interviewed for this story last week was in the middle of her usual 80-hour workweek. Hornbacher works 60 hours a week at the coffee house and another 20 as a part-time contractor for Amtrak, she estimated. She became the caretaker host in Columbus shortly after it lost its ticket agent in May of last year. Columbus had a full-service station until, she said, the number of people who purchase tickets online grew to the point where Amtrak decided to send its Columbus agent to Milwaukee.

I open the station every day, I make sure its clean and I lock up at night, Hornbacher said. She also trots over to the station during the boarding and alighting periods to answer users questions and help with their luggage. A lot of the people she helps each day are first-time Amtrak users.

People come here and walk and shop and eat, Hornbacher said. Empire Builders disappearance from places like Columbus would be catastrophic, she believes. Many Amtrak users in Columbus are Amish or elderly, she said, thinking of the population that would so totally feel the loss of rail service.

Her business itself, she added, would need to revamp how we do things  but it was difficult for Hornbacher to imagine the specifics of such a change.

Wed have to do something, because Amtrak is so much a part of us.

Americas rural population

Other Wisconsin communities that would lose their Amtrak stations include La Crosse and Tomah. Going up the Mississippi River to St. Paul and across the Great Plains  North Dakota and Montana  hundreds of thousands of Empire Builders users would lose service, people in rural areas who have fewer options for traveling to big cities.

In a statement emailed to the Daily Register last week, Amtraks Magliari said the budget cut would significantly impact the more than 30 million people who depend on Amtrak across the nation.

Amtrak currently services 46 states  all the Lower 48 except South Dakota and Wyoming  and more than 500 communities, but the proposal would cut service in 23 states and shift major costs onto our remaining Northeast Corridor and state-support trains, imperiling them, Magliari said.

Losing 15 long-distance routes would end Amtraks rail services for 4.6 million passengers  15 percent of its total ridership and 22 percent of its ticket revenue. Amtrak serves 40 percent of Americas rural population with these routes  so theyd be lost too, Magliari said.

Funding sources

Though Amtrak is subsidized, almost 90 percent of its funding is non-federal, Magliari said. Non-federal dollars include state funding in some areas, and the money we bring in our own selling tickets.

Empire Builder generated $51.7 million in passenger revenue last year, and its ridership of 454,000 was up 3.7 percent. Both revenue and ridership were at record levels  for the Empire Builder line and Amtraks entire operation  Magliari said.

Trumps proposed transportation budget cuts came just a couple of years after the FAST Act authorized five years of increased funding for Amtrak, Magliari noted, with Congress recognizing, at that point, Amtrak services as a national transportation priority.

Additionally, Magliari wrote, there is broad consensus that significant capital investment in the aging infrastructure along the Northeast Corridor is essential to meet the long term needs of the Northeast region as well as the rest of the nation.

Empire Builder is Amtraks busiest long-distance route. But it does not make a profit like the Northeast Corridor. Amtrak is estimated to cover only two-thirds of Empire Builders total costs of operation.

Varied outlooks

Portages station, which ranks 375th in ridership out of 534 Amtrak stations based on boarding and alighting numbers, has the fewest users among Wisconsins eight stops. That doesnt mean it has been overlooked by Amtrak, Sobiek said. The companys representatives always are looking for ways to boost ridership, and recently it put up a kiosk at the Portage terminal to help direct users to the downtown area.

Clearly, the area and city residents would have one less transportation option that is energy-efficient to travel to the West Coast and to the East Coast, including the Twin Cities and Milwaukee and Chicago, Sobiek said. People coming to Portage visit our restaurants, bars and retail stores and gas stations.

In Wisconsin Dells, which ranks higher than Portage in ridership  293rd in the U.S.  Empire Builder seems less significant when compared with Portage and Columbus. Bianca Johnson, assistant director of marketing and communications of the Wisconsin Dells Visitor and Convention Bureau, noted that her city is primarily a driving destination, a popular destination for people from all over the U.S., so the lines economic impact in Wisconsin Dells is minimal.

One hundred and fifty years ago, the rail lines were very important (for the Dells), she said. Johnson assumes that not many rural Wisconsin users could realistically use the line for work, even if they wanted to. Ive heard its not very reliable and often runs as much as two hours late.

That doesnt mean Johnsons hoping the Empire Builder option is ended. I think its fair to say the more options the better, for any tourist destination, she said.

Columbus City Administrator Patrick Vander Sanden  born and raised in the city that ranks 295th in ridership  said Empire Builder is key to showing off the historic value of the community. That includes its magnificent city hall and Farmers and Merchants Union Bank designed by Louis Sullivan, not to mention its antique mall and nice mix of restaurants downtown.

In Washington, D.C., Mathews and the others at NARP work their way through the bureaucracy that envelops rail service funding.

But the challenges rail services face are part of a larger pattern, where cuts, in general, overwhelmingly target poorer communities  and is part of an appropriations bills process that hasnt followed order for at least 10 years.

Thats not a train thing, Mathews said. Thats Washington.
The flames are burning bushes and low vegetation in the region of Pitsinades, in the central-western part of the island

The next few hours will be critical for the outcome of the large wildfire that has ravaged parts of Kythera since Friday, the general secretary of the Civil Protection Service (CPS) Yiannis Kapakis told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency on Sunday.

"We are cautiously optimistic. The next two hours are crucial. If the wind does not change direction we will be able to bring the fire in Kythera under control," he noted.

Authorities have mobilized firefighting units from all over the country and almost all the aerial means available to put out the fire which has now spread over six kilometers. On Saturday, the CPS declared a state of emergency on the island after a request by the local mayor.

The flames are burning bushes and low vegetation in the region of Pitsinades, in the central-western part of the island and two villages were evacuated for precautionary reasons.

"It is a very difficult fire. The ground is inaccessible, with hedges and shrubs, and it's difficult for the units on foot to access the area," he disclosed.

Speaking to ANA, Agriculture Minister Vangelis Apostolou stressed the country's entire firefighting forces are involved in the efforts to stop the flames and echoed Kapakis' "cautious optimism" on the outcome. He is scheduled to chair today a meeting of all competent bodies responding to the fire.

Read more here.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons Copyright: Ingo Mehling License: CC-BY-SA

Source: ANA-MPA
The Organization will be staging its second UGA party of the year in Chicago on Labor Day weekend

Started by a young Greek-American, Deano Kastis, United Greek Americans (UGA) has emerged into a very popular organization for youth of Hellenic descent in the United States.

The Organization will be staging its second UGA party of the year in Chicago on Labor Day weekend, bringing together young Greek-Americans from all over the country for an incredible three days of food, fun, music, and dancing!

Besides the good times and unforgettable memories people can look forward to at this years Chicago UGA party, greekreporter.com spoke to founder Deano Kastis about another reason people should consider attending  the possibility of forming life-changing connections. As one Greek-American who has attended UGA, Lexi Surunis, said, I found that the atmosphere at UGA is amazingeveryone is there for similar reasons..we love being Greek, love having fun, and we love celebrating where we come from!

In fact, this atmosphere is part of the reason Deano thought about creating United Greek-Americans in the first place. So many of our parents and our grandparents, I hear the stories of how they met at different Greek events here in the states; those kinds of get-togethers have decreased significantly and are attended only by older crowds, so its become tougher for people to meet other Greek-Americans in that way.

Read more here.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons Copyright: Rennett Stowe License: CC-BY-SA

Source: greekreporter.com
What do you dream of when thinking of your summer holidays? Popular beaches, with beach bars and cocktails? Or secluded paradise spots where the only thing you can hear is the sound of the light breeze and wave? If the last option is the case, then this article published recetnly in greekcitytimes.com is for you since it presents six secret and intriguing beaches in Greece, away from the crowds and ideal for a refreshing day:

Afales Beach, Ithaca

Ithaca, the destination of Odysseus and the symbolic end of his adventures, is one of the greatest islands of the Ionian Sea, with so many reasons to visit it! Afales beach is one of the most charming ones and totally secluded. You can reach it by heading down a steep path, which will lead you to the rocky paradise spot. I guarantee that you will totally relax, forget anything that is worrying you and enjoy peaceful moments.

Platia Ammos, Kefalonia

Platia Ammos is one more dazzling beach that lies in Ithacas neighbouring island, Kefalonia. Located near the Monastery of Kipoureon in Paliki peninsula, the coast is pure and totally isolated. Until the earthquake of 2014 you could access the beach by a staircase of approximately 300 stairs. Now, the path is damaged and its only accessible by boat. This place is considered to be a hidden treasure of the Greek island, with truly imposing wild scenery.

Seychelles, Ikaria

Ikaria is an island known for its wild beauty, but most importantly, known for its populations longevity. One of the most magnificent beaches is Seychelles, with bright white and grey pebbles, blue- turquoise water, surrounded by cove scenery. Seychelles is located approximately 25 kilometers from Agios Kirikos, near the village Manganitis. You can access the beach by walking down a path of a medium difficulty that starts on the main road. Visit Ikaria, which is also known as the island of long life, and trust me- your summer vacation will be a totally different experience than the usual!

Voutoumi beach, Antipaxos

The island of Antipaxos is a small one near the well known Paxoi. The truth is that during the last years Antipaxos is becoming popular and due to its small size and easy access from Paxoi, it is often crowded. Nevertheless, Voutoumi beach tends to differentiate. Its a quiet and hidden part, which you can access by a pathway. Once you do that, get ready to enjoy the incredible scenery of white sand and crystal clear blue water.

Kalami, Kythira

Kythira is a Greek island lying opposite the south-east part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its a dreamy destination, with gorges, waterfalls and lovely beaches creating an idyllic scenery. If you are patient, adventurous and you also want to explore the underwater world, then I must suggest visiting Kalami beach. Its located near Mylopotamos village, ideal for those who want to enjoy their day away from mass crowds. The access to Kalami is a difficult task, as you have to hike and climb steep cliffs, the scenery, though, will reward you.

Chalikiada, Agistri

Chalikiada beach is the ideal choice for the ones who chosse Athens for their vacation. Agistri is a tiny island located in close distance from Greeces capital city, approximately one hour from Piraeus port. Chalikiada beach is surrounded by rocky cliffs and it can be reached by a steep pathway. Since its secluded, dont expect any tourist facilities, but be sure that your day at the beach will be special!

Now, these are only six of the secret paradise beaches in Greece. There are many more, but firstly, lets keep a few hidden, as they are, and secondly, lets all respect them and keep them clean!

Read more here.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons Copyright: Costas78 License: CC-BY-SA

Source: greekcitytimes.com
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The merger of Solidarity General Takaful and Al Ahlia Insurance Company of Bahrain has been approved by the shareholders of the two companies.

The merger will be effected in December 2017, said a statement.

The combined entity, which is set to be named Solidarity Bahrain B.S.C., will have a paid up capital of BD11.2 million and anticipated to have a 15 per cent market share with 10 branch locations serving customers throughout the country, making it the largest Takaful insurance company in Bahrain.

Under the terms of the merger agreement, Solidarity General Takaful shareholders will be entitled to receive 2.5 shares of Al Ahlia stock for each share of Solidarity General Takaful, on the basis of the independent valuations as required by the Central Bank of Bahrain.

In order to facilitate the merger, Al Ahlia shareholders approved the conversion of the insurance license from conventional to Islamic insurance license (Takaful). The shareholders have also approved the increase of the authorised share capital of Al Ahlia to BD12 million.

AbdulEllah Al Qassimi, vice chairman to the board of directors of Al Ahlia, said: We celebrate two new milestones, the approval of the conversion of Al Ahlia license to a Takaful license and the approval of the merger with Solidarity General Takaful.

He added: Combined under one merged entity Solidarity Bahrain, we will draw on our decades of experience to push the boundaries of customer service innovations and remain focused on delivering outstanding returns to our stakeholders.

Ashraf Bseisu, chief executive of Solidarity Group Holding, the parent company of both Solidarity General Takaful and Al Ahlia, said: We acquired a majority share in Al Ahlia in 2016 and we have been very pleased with the commonality of the cultures, operating models and the customer service focus of our two subsidiaries.

We believe that consolidation has become a necessity in order to create larger and stronger financial institutions capable of offering a unique customer experience.

Solidarity Bahrain, the new merged entity will result ultimately in being the largest Takaful company and one of the leading top tier insurance players in Bahrain, he added.

Following completion of the merger, Solidarity Bahrain will be headed by Jawad Mohamed.
GCI, a Malaysian solution provider with niche focus in health IT, has signed an agreement to implement its solutions across all public healthcare facilities in Jordan.



The six-year country wide implementation will see GCIs solutions implemented in more than 540 facilities, said a statement.



This will be part of the countrys ongoing Hakeem National e-health Program implementation initiative, it added.



Hakeem, under the patronage of HM King Abdullah II, is Jordans National E-Health Initiative. The programme aims to facilitate efficient and improved patient care by providing real-time and up-to-date electronic medical information throughout the public health system.



As part of the Hakeem Project, GCI will be providing core modular solutions focusing on patient management, billing, patient accounting and supply chain management.



This will be GCIs third key foray in the region having done similar countrywide work in Qatar and Dubai over the last five years. GCI also has regional presence in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Abu Dhabi, Iraq and Kuwait.



Zakri Bin Jaafar, the Malaysian Ambassador in Jordan, said: It is a proud occasion for Malaysia as this foray by GCI marks another involvement of yet another Malaysian company in the promising economy of Jordan.



Dr Rami Farraj, chairman of the board of EHS, said: We are proud to partner with the Malaysian company GCI, which has a wealth of experience in implementing these systems in many countries.



We, at EHS, are looking forward to complete the implementation of these systems in a number of medical facilities before the end of this year, he said.



Kana K Thamby, CEO of GCI, said: We are proud to be associated with this mammoth nationwide initiative that is expected to bring immense value to an informed health delivery system and enhanced patient care environment.



On his part, Feras Kamal, CEO of EHS Jordan, the state organization entrusted with the implementation of Hakeem project, stressed that EHS seeks to fully implement the e-health system through these specialized solutions that will enhance the patient experience in hospitals and clinics in Jordan, initially focusing on the public sector.



Hakeem programme, which has been implemented over the past years, includes a number of medical information like: a comprehensive medical and surgical history, physical examinations, procedural and surgical reports, current medications, allergies as well as in-patient and out-patient clinic visit notes. The new systems will be added to help improve work efficiency, in addition to save time, effort and money, Kamal added.  TradeArabia News Service
BFG International, a Bahrain-based global leader in composites technology, has partnered with the Economic Development Board and labour fund Tamkeen to roll out a groundbreaking Industry 4.0 project at its facility in Mina Salman.



The project involves automating BFG Internationals factories and integrating all its business areas through core software supplied by partner firm QiO Technologies. This will offer the manufacturer complete transparency along its entire supply chain from customers through to suppliers, and optimise its production process.



Industry 4.0 is the growing trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies. It uses cyber-physical systems, the Internet of Things, cloud computing and cognitive computing to create smart factories which can respond to changes in real time and become more efficient.



The agreement was signed by Tamkeen chief executive Dr Ebrahim Mohammed Janahi, and BFG International Group president, Dr Samer Al Jishi.



Tamkeen will support BFG International throughout the four-year project with a BD624,204 ($1.64 million) grant for ICT and Business Consulting. The hiring and training of Bahraini staff and personnel will also be supported with a grant of BD612,000.



Tamkeen is always working to support institutions and Bahraini individuals through all stages of their development, with the ultimate objective of making the private sector the main driver for economic growth in the Kingdom, said Dr Janahi.



Specialist manufacturers like BFG International have an important role to play in enabling the growth and diversification of the regions economy, as well as directly creating jobs, he added.



Dr Al Jishi said: BFG Internationals ambitious Industry 4.0 project is the first of its kind in the region. It will not only give BFG International a competitive edge over other industry players, it will also put Bahrain firmly on the international map as a business destination at the cutting edge of technology.



We are training local talents to become proficient in the use of the software and to develop indigenous versions for the local market. The expertise we acquire through this project will positively influence dozens of sectors and industries across the region, enabling them to harness the power of the automation and smart things revolution.



The project is being piloted in Bahrain before being rolled out at BFG Internationals facilities across the world. BFG International holds 40 years of experience in supplying sophisticated composites solutions to industries ranging from rail transportation to architecture, infrastructure, and wind energy.  TradeArabia News Service
Shell Oman has launched its annual summer internship programme this year hosting 24 Omani students from various local and international colleges and universities, in line with its efforts to being a model for successful local talent development.



The internship programme is part of Shell Omans annual corporate social responsibility strategy, said a statement from the company.



It aims to develop the future leadership potential of Omani youth through practical platforms and live projects that help build on their theoretical knowledge, it said.



The interns are placed in different classes of business structures within the company across the sectors of retail, lubricants, marine, bitumen, aviation and commercial fuel.



Shell Oman Marketing Company SAOG is a publicly listed company on the Muscat Securities Market. And for over half a century, Shell Oman has been committed to meet the sultanates growing energy demands, and contribute to its prosperity in an economically, environmentally and socially responsible manner by operating safely and sharing benefits with the local community.



Essam Al Busaidi, human resources and administration manager, said: The Omani interns get the opportunity to grow their competencies, skills and enterprise knowledge through a proven business model that is backed by access to global knowhow and pioneering products and services.



Besides the tremendous learning experience, these interns benefit from continuous and extensive knowledge-transfer as well as safety culture, communications, trainings and technology support from their peers in Shell Oman to help them in their pursuit of employment opportunities upon the completion of their studies, Al Busaidi added.  TradeArabia News Service
Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), the Bahrain-based international aluminium smelter, has promoted Masood Toorani to the post of manager for Carbon 1 & 2 division.



Toorani joined Alba as a trainee senior operator in Paste Plant 2 as part of Line 4 expansion. In 2012, he was promoted to senior superintendent in carbon operations, followed by his recent promotion, said a statement from the company.



He holds a Bachelor Degree with honours in mechanical engineering from Huddersfield University, UK, and he is currently pursuing his MBA from De Paul University, Chicago, US, it said.



Albas chief executive officer Tim Murray said: We believe in promoting from within the company through continuous training and development of our workforce.



Toorani proved to be an example of resilience for taking new challenges and turning them into opportunities, and I am confident that he will capitalize on his experience to improve the efficiency of our carbon plants, he added.  TradeArabia News Service
The electronic devices ban has been lifted for Royal Jordanians flights from Ammans Queen Alia International Airport to the UK.



From August 4, Royal Jordanian passengers were allowed to carry these electronic devices in the cabin.



The UK governments decision to lift the ban required carriers to apply additional security measures for UK-bound flights.



On March 26 this year, passengers flying directly from Jordan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Tunis and Lebanon to the UK were banned from carrying above mentioned devices in the aircraft cabin.



RJ extends its appreciation to its guests for their understanding at the time of the electronic ban. It also calls upon its passengers to cooperate with RJ and the airport authorities to easily implement the additional security measures, in order to guarantee flight punctuality.



The airline runs daily flights between Amman and London on its Boeing 787 with 270 seats. - TradeArabia News Service
With brigade-level annual training, exercises and extended-combat training taking place at Fort McCoy, the installations operations tempo is staying at a high level, said training coordination branch chief Craig Meeusen with the directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization and Security.

The second half of July is busy, and August will be even busier, Meeusen said. Theres the Patriot North 2017 Exercise in July, the (Wisconsin) National Guards 32nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team annual training from July to August, and the Combat Support Training Exercise and other exercises in August.

From mid to late July, the installations Young Air Assault Strip and other training areas have supported the Patriot North 2017 Exercise.

The exercise, operated mainly from Volk Field near Camp Douglas has more than 900 civilians, volunteers and National Guard soldiers and airmen from more than 20 states supporting the training. About 200-plus service members held their part of the Patriot North training at Fort McCoy, said Lt. Col. Mickey Kirschenbaum, public affairs officer for the exercise.

The 32nd IBCT training includes about 2,400 service members using training and ranges all around Fort McCoy, Meeusen said.

The 32nd completes training events here all the time, Meussen said. Soldiers from all around the state come to Fort McCoy to conduct all sorts of training. In late August, elements of the 32nd will be here again to participate in their Warfighter exercise, which is simulations-based training that will include use of many of our simulation training platforms.

The 86th Training Divisions CSTX takes place from Aug. 5-25. Included in that same time frame are the Global Medic, Human Resources-Warrior, Trans-Warrior, Atlantic Serpent, Ultimate Caduceus, Diamond Saber and Command Post Exercise-Functional (Medical) exercises.

There is so much going on in August, Meeusen said. Our average weekly training population should be between 10,000 and 14,000 during each week of the month. Though its a busy time, the Fort McCoy team is poised and ready like usual and will do a great job supporting everything.

Meeusen said the Fort McCoy team has also been busy preparing for training into the next fiscal year.

Weve had Navy personnel here working with us for planned training in November with Regional Training Site-Medical, and weve also have had site visits with a Marine unit that is planning training here this coming winter, Meeusen said.

DPTMS director Brad Stewart said training at Fort McCoy is only limited by your imagination.

Meeusen said more and more units are seeing the viability of training at the installation.

We saw success with the first Operation Cold Steel exercise with the Army Reserve earlier this year, and they are coming back next year, he said. Theres also our growing capabilities with winter training that we are seeing, so Fort McCoy is becoming that destination for year-round training. And even though we are very busy this summer, well continue to be busy throughout the year.
Tribune News Service

Mohali, August 5

The health authorities today issued challans to eight households in Dashmesh Nagar of Nayagaon after finding dengue larvae from there.

The health authorities carried out a drive in Dashmesh Nagar, Nayagaon, after three dengue cases were reported from here yesterday.

During the drive, three health teams found dengue larvae from several households, following which preventive measures were taken there.

We conducted fogging and put oil in water bodies. Residents are being examined thoroughly here, said the health officials.

Most of the dengue larvae were spotted in water coolers of the houses, said the officials.
M. K. Bhadrakumar

M. K. Bhadrakumar

IF you dont fund the State Department fully, then I need to buy more ammunition ultimately. So I think its a cost-benefit ratio. These are words by James Mattis, US Secretary of Defence. It is a powerful statement about the no-mans land where diplomacy and military power intersect in a country's foreign policy. The point is, it is never easy to judge the measured activism with which military power is used in support of foreign policy. The preference for hard power may have seductive appeal  and diplomacy may look an elusive idea  but, historically, it is not without containing some irony. Bismarcks blood and iron didnt turn out to be the solution to the German question. It led instead to the ruin of Germany.

Suffice to say, the so-called Doklam standoff with China conveys a stark and disturbing message. The government had a choice to resort to diplomacy or use military force. It chose the latter. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, China had notified the Indian side in advance out of goodwill on May 18 and June 8 respectively and the Indian side didn't make any response." Instead, when the Chinese began building the road on June 16, within forty-eight hours Indian troops intervened to stop the work. From all appearances, India didn't blunder into the standoff. It was a political decision to project military power across the international border.

The Indian troops simply crossed the Sikkim-China boundary to get across to the Bhutan-China border. Delhi claims that it is safeguarding Bhutan's interests. Bhutan has not endorsed the Indian intervention publicly, but that causes no embarrassment to Delhi. The Indian commentators laud the government for showing exemplary restraint in the face of strident Chinese statements. But in reality the government owes no explanation to anyone for its action. The nearest analogy would be the surgical strikes against Pakistan  an unapologetic display of "muscular diplomacy.

Prime Minister Modis remarks on June 26 in Washington during his visit to the US regarding the surgical strikes put things in perspective. He said no country in the world questioned India's action. Thereupon, he went on to say that India, while following international laws and norms, is also capable of taking the toughest of steps for our sovereignty, security, peace, our people, and progress. Whenever the need arises we have done it and the world will never be able to stop us. When he said this, Modi had known  although we hadn't at that point in time  that the Indian forces had crossed the international border into Doklam, and there was a standoff, which was already into the second week.

Therefore, it is futile to measure the standoff with coffee spoons on a daily basis in terms of a mutual Doklam thaw. Perhaps, the most significant remark that External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj made in her speech in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday was that the Doklam standoff is not a stand-alone issue. The minister was quoted as saying, We are not negotiating only on Doklam, we are talking about bilateral relations in entirety. And a solution will also emerge from it. Clearly, our pundits have let their imagination run berserk by analysing the Doklam standoff in terms of India calling the Chinese bluff; India standing up to Chinas bullying; or India giving China a bloody nose. Such puerile thesis misses the point that this is a profoundly serious standoff, which India got into with great deliberation, stemming from a hugely consequential political decision. The Chinese statements have duly assessed that India did not blunder into this standoff, but acted with a purpose.

What objective(s) would the government have had? Conceivably, there are four dimensions. One, Delhi would have hoped to send a message to Beijing on the lines Modi spoke in Washington - and, that he spoke from American soil carried its own resonance. Two, India hoped to bring forward from the backburner the issue of the trijunction where the borders of Sikkim, Bhutan and China meet. There are differences in interpretation, which have security implications. Three, succinctly put, India regarded itself to be a stakeholder in the China-Bhutan border negotiations and assertively sought a say in the two countries discourse. Four, importantly, India hoped that the Doklam standoff would lead to an enhanced strategic communication regarding each sides core interests and vital concerns.

However, the border issue also devolves upon the fact that there has been no consultation since the Special Representatives in December 2012 agreed on the so-called Common Understanding to the effect that There is mutual agreement on the basis of the alignment of the India-China boundary in the Sikkim sector as provided by the convention between China and Great Britain relating to Tibet and Sikkim signed in 1890. India hopes to negotiate from a position of strategic advantage insofar as its military presence in Sikkim is discernibly superior to China's on its side of the border  and Indias muscular diplomacy over Doklam testified to it. Basically, India keeps an ambivalent stance with regard to the 1890 treaty  neither disavowing it nor acknowledging the delimitation of the India-China border in the Sikkim sector as established in the treaty, which China keeps emphasising as sacrosanct.

How far Indias muscular diplomacy impressed the Chinese will only be known in the fullness of time. A partial Indian drawdown may have taken place, but China sticks to its unequivocal stance that there is no room for negotiation so long as Indian troops remained in Doklam. The chances of China retreating from this red line appear remote. There are facile assumptions being voiced that India can leverage Chinas interest in the Indian market. But then, Chinas exposure in the Indian market is miniscule in comparison with its profound interdependency vis-a-vis the United States  and yet Beijing asserts its core interests in the South China Sea. An $11.2 trillion economy with $3685 billion foreign trade (2016 figures) does not critically depend on the Indian market where China's cumulative FDI flow is a paltry $1.63 billion and trade turnover stands at $71.48 billion.

A Xinhua commentary on Friday (the day after Sushma Swaraj spoke in Parliament) all but ruled out any face-saving formula. It hinted at Beijings grit to blunt Indias muscular diplomacy, lest it became precedent-setting in future. Equally, Beijing intends to pursue its future relations with Bhutan as a truly sovereign, independent state and seems confident that Thimpu shares this interest. All in all, September could be the month to watch  unless there is a complete Indian withdrawal by then. Meanwhile, storm clouds are gathering.

 The writer is a former ambassador
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 6

Three sanitation workers died after inhaling toxic gases while cleaning a gutter in Lajpat Nagar, said a police officer.

A PCR call was registered at 1 pm today that three persons are dead in a sewage drain in the Lajpat Nagar area. On reaching the spot, it was noticed by the police that some workers were checking a sewer line opposite MCD office near Kabir Ram temple and when they entered the sewer line, they were exposed to obnoxious gases and felt suffocated, said DCP Romila Baniya, South East District.

Soon they were taken to AIIMS Trauma centre where they were declared brought dead.

The deceased have been identified as Joginder (32), Annu (28), both residents of Khichidipur, the third person is still unidentified. His age is said to be 25 years. Legal action under 304 IPC is being taken, said the DCP.

Meanwhile, BJP president Manoj Tiwari has urged the Lt Governor Anil Baijal to order a high-level probe into the death of Safai Karamcharis reported to have been privately hired by a Junior Engineer of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB).

It is being said that the DJB officials did not ensure compliance of safety measures before starting the cleaning work, said Tiwari.

The DJB should immediately clarify whether the said Safai Karamcharis were its regular employees or casually hired. And it is not the first incident of death of such workers during the cleaning of sewers. The attitude of the Jal Board officials continues to be callous, added the BJP president.

Further, the BJP president has urged the LT Governor that the families of all three young Safai Karamcharis be paid compensation even if they were casually hired.

On its part, the government has ordered an inquiry into the incident while Water Minister Rajendra Gautam said the three deceased were neither DJB staff nor authorised to carry out the sewer cleaning job.

"I am very sad to know that 3 workers have died during cleaning of sewer at Lajpat Nagar I have set up an inquiry," tweeted the Water Minister.
Washington, August 6

Cutting across party lines, various people in the US have called for combating racism, intolerance and violence during the fifth anniversary of the tragic Oak Creek massacre that killed six innocent Sikhs five years ago.

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Paul Ryan, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, said: Over the last five years, the people of Oak Creek have proved theyre stronger than hate and division. Ryan represents the Congressional district in Wisconsin where a white supremacist went on a shooting rampage at a Sikh gurdwara on August 5, 2012.

Five years ago, Oak Creek was rocked by a heinous attack on the Sikh temple, and today we look back on that act of violence with solemn remembrance of those who were lost, he said in a statement.

The Sikh community is in our thoughts on this fifth anniversary of the Oak Creek attack, said Senator Ron Johnson.

Today, we join together as one community on the fifth anniversary of the horrific attack on the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, said Senator Tammy Baldwin.

Im also incredibly proud of our Sikh community. Their grace and hopeful message of peace moved an entire nation, she added.

Five years after the senseless shooting in Oak Creek, we continue to remember the innocent victims who were killed in this horrible attack, said Grace Meng, Democratic lawmaker from New York.

For many generations, the Sikh-American community has made important contributions to our nation and it is unacceptable that they continue to be targets of violence and bigotry. We must combat racism, intolerance, and violence wherever it exists, she said.

Five years ago, America was struck by a cowardly and tragic act of violence that took the lives of six innocent worshippers in a Sikh gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, said House Democratic Chairman Joe Crowley.

As we grieve for the victims, their loved ones, and the greater Sikh American community, we are reminded that much work remains to be done. Whether it is a gurdwara in Oak Creek, a church in Charleston, or a mosque in Quebec City, an attack on one faith is an attack on all, he said in a statement.

On this somber anniversary, we must reaffirm our commitment to fighting intolerance anywhere and everywhere, Crowley said.

A neo-Nazi killed six people at a Sikh temple five years ago. Remember Oak Creek and resist hate in all its forms, said Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapala.

Eminent Indian-American from Indiana Gurinder Singh Khalsa said the Oak Creek tragedy was a wake-up call for the Sikh community.

The community needs to engage, educate and empower.

Sikhs need to do more on the awareness front, said Khalsa, founder and head of the Sikhs Political Action Committee.

At a time when divisive rhetoric has taken over our country, Sikhs have to remain vigilant while still staying in steadfast to their beliefs and principles, said Baldev Singh from the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Wade Michael Page, a known white supremacist, shot and murdered six people and injured four others at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. This was one of the worst shooting incidents in the recent American history.

Those who were killed in this shooting spree were Paramjit Kaur, Satwant Singh Kaleka, Prakash Singh, Sita Singh, Ranjit Singh, and Suveg Singh. PTI
Milwaukee, August 4

In the five years since a white supremacist fatally shot six worshippers at a Milwaukee-area Sikh temple, those affected by the tragedy have remained united by a mission to combat hatred.

A former skinhead and the son of a man killed in the massacre hold school assemblies to preach the message of peace.

Another man whose mother was killed lobbied the federal government to start tracking hate crimes against Sikhs. And a police officer who was shot 15 times when he confronted the gunman on August 5, 2012, has remained close with the Sikh community and brought up the tragedy during a Republican presidential town hall last year. AP
AS expected, M Venkaiah Naidu prevailed over Gopalkrishna Gandhi in the vice-presidential election last Saturday. For the BJP-led NDA, the vice-presidential contest had become one more occasion to demonstrate its political dominance over the constitutional architecture; for the Congress-led Opposition, the election was an opportunity to reaffirm a set of democratic values and ideas. Naidus victory was a foregone conclusion, and he had, for good measure, a few extra cross-votes in his kitty. Seen in a larger context, Naidus accession to the vice-presidential gaddi demonstrates Indian democracys inclusive promise. His humble background was no obstacle to achievement of distinction, first within his party and now on a much bigger stage. He is the most prominent leader the BJP has promoted from the South over the years and his presence in the vice-presidential chair will be reassuring, at least symbolically, to fellow-Indians living below the Vindhyas.

As Vice-President, Venkaiah Naidu will preside over the Rajya Sabha as its chairman. It is gratifying that after his victory he committed himself to uphold the dignity of the House. He takes over as Chairman at a time when there is a systematic attempt by the ruling party (of which he was a key member till the other day) to saw off the Upper Houses role and importance. The Upper House exists as a part of a deliberate and well-considered constitutional mechanism of checks and balances  balancing popular will against sober and responsible reflection, and, the Centre against the States. It will be now up to Venkaiah Naidu to try to roll back the onslaught on the Rajya Sabha.

The Vice-President-designate has been a seasoned political activist, keeping afloat his partys flag in a part of the country that was otherwise unenthusiastic about the saffron appeal and propaganda. His party has recognised and rewarded him for this perseverance. All his life Mr Naidu has lived under the shadow of another, taller leader; now he will be called upon to be his own man. A change of roles is not easy to come by; but, then, he will be taking an oath to bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India.
Tribune News Service

Hisar (Haryana), August 6

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday assured that the son of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president Subhash Barala, who has been accused of allegedly stalking a woman, will be punished once found guilty.

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I have complete faith in the Chandigarh Police. Justice will prevail. The accused will be punished once found guilty. This is my official stand on this matter. This case has nothing to do with Subhash Barala. Such act is highly condemnable if proved correct, the Chief Minister told the media here.

This was the second statement by the Chief Minister, as earlier he had reiterated that it was not right to punish BJP leader Subhash Barala for his son's crime.

"I came to know about this incident. Chandigarh Police have filed the complaint and I believe they will take appropriate action. This matter is not related with Subhash Barala but with an individual. So action would be taken against his son," Khattar told media.

Haryana BJP chiefs son arrested for stalking IAS officer's daughter

Oppn leaders demand Baralas resignation

The woman, whose father worked with the Haryana government, claimed Vikas Barnala and his friend followed her while she was driving in Chandigarhs Sector 26. Both were believed to be drunk.

Haryana Congress Chief Ashok Tanwar said when asked to comment: This is an unfortunate incident. Now, the law and order should take its own course. The government and the police must act". With ANI inputs
Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, August 6



Raj Kumar Saini, BJP MP from Kurukshetra, on Sunday said state party president Subhash Barala should quit on moral grounds in the wake of his sons arrest in an alleged stalking case in Chandigarh.



Saini told The Tribune that the incident has brought a bad name to the party whose entire leadership in the Centre and states are working for women empowerment.



Involvement of Vikas Barala in a crime of drunk driving and stalking of a woman is a serious offence. If a leader cannot sensitise even his own family members on women safety, he should stay away from the public life, he said.



Saini said the incident mocked Beti Padhao Beti Bachao, a flagship drive of the BJP government.



He said Barala should not wait for the party high command to take any decision in the case. Involvement of family members in such a crime is a matter of concern for all, he said.
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 6

Senior Congress leader Manish Tewari today accused the Chandigarh Police of diluting the criminal case registered against state BJP president Subhash Baralas son Vikas Barala, who was arrested for stalking and attempting to kidnap a girl on Friday night, by succumbing to political pressure.

Addressing mediapersons here today, Tewari alleged that the police facilitated Vikass bail and did not apply non-bailable Sections 365 and 511 of the IPC in the FIR, though the victim had clearly stated that attempt was made to kidnap her.

What message does the Chandigarh Police want to give to young girls of the city who have to go out for work that if a man making predatory overtures to them happens to be related to a senior BJP leader? he asked.

Describing the police action as reprehensible, Tewari said the police, perhaps, wanted to tell people that it had different sets of laws to apply on common people and those connected politically.

He said the initial response of the police needed to be complemented, but it did not show the same vigour once it was known that the accused was Baralas son.

Hitting out at Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar for trying to defend Barala by saying that he could not be punished for the mistake of his son, Tewari said that BJP leaders used to speak in different tone at the time of Jessica Lal case.

Castigating Chandigarh MP Kirron Kher for not speaking out on this issue, Tewari said she as well as her husband Anupam Kher was in a habit of commenting on the slightest of things, but she did not care to say a word on it.

Calling upon the civil society to stand together to take this case to its logical conclusion, Tewari said his partys state unit had already announced an agitation on the issue, and if justice continued to elude like this, the Congress would launch agitation in Chandigarh too.
Chandigarh, August 6

The state BJP today denied allegations of political interference in the case relating to stalking of a girl in which partys state unit president Subhash Baralas son, Vikas Barala, was arrested by the Chandigarh Police on Friday night.

Rajiv Jain, head of the media wing of the state BJP, today alleged that the opposition parties were spreading baseless rumours regarding political pressure on the police.

The girl recorded her statement in the presence of her IAS father. The police registered the FIR in accordance with the allegations levelled in the FIR and released Vikas Barala on bail when the allegations amounted to bailable offences. When Vikas and his friend were again summoned to DSP Satish Kumars office, both of them went there. On the basis of the girls statement under Section 164, Cr PC , the police added Section 341 of the IPC too. Now, where is the question of political influence , said Jain.TNS
Deepender Deswal

Tribune News Service

Hisar, August 6

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today said he was ready to face elections ahead of the schedule if the Central government or the Election Commission so decides.

Khattar, while interacting with mediapersons here, said, There have been discussions on the issue in the media circles. The Central government or the Election Commission can take an official decision in this regard. If they decide to go for Assembly polls along with the Lok Sabha elections five months early, we are ready for it, he added.

The Chief Minister claimed that the power situation in the state had improved following corrective measures. Line losses have come down to 25 per cent and are likely to reduce by another 5 per cent in the next two years. At present, all urban areas and 500 villages are getting round the clock power supply, he said.

Asked about the prospects of an airport coming up in Hisar, Khattar said in view of heavy air traffic at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, there was need to set up small airports within 250 km of it. We have been making efforts in this regard. I have an important meeting with the Aviation Department on this issue tomorrow, he added.

About the ongoing agitation by residents of Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) colonies against enhancement charges, Khattar said the previous governments faulty policies had caused much damage to the authority. HUDA is in a bad shape. We have been trying to device a strategy to set things right, as a rotten system takes time to regain shape, he said. The government had filed appeals in higher courts against the enhancement charges being set by courts.
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 6

The daughter of an IAS officer who was allegedly stalked by two youths, one of them the son of Haryana BJP chief and Tohana MLA Subhash Barala, visited the police station with her father this evening where she was asked to narrate the incident in minute detail.

Police officials said they were examining the complainants statement to decide whether to charge the youths with other offences under various sections.

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Vikas Barala (23), an LLB student, and his friend Ashish Kumar (22), who were on Saturday arrested on the charges of stalking and wrongful restraint, were bailed out later in the day. They allegedly tried to block the complainants car and chased her up to the Housing Board lights. Sources said they would be called for questioning soon.

The complainants father, an Additional Chief Secretary-ranked officer in the Haryana Government, said in a post on the social media: If we do not persist in trying to bring the guilty to justice, more and more daughters will suffer this hurt.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar told the media in Hisar that the case had nothing to do with state BJP chief. The matter has been brought to my notice. The accused will be punished, if found guilty. This is my official stand.

Meanwhile, the Opposition Congress today held protests at various places against the incident. State party president Ashok Tanwar led one such protest in Faridabad.

The arrogance of power in the BJP, the party which talks about saving and educating the girl child, has reached such a level that the son of the state BJP chief dared to commit such a crime, he said.

In Delhi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi tweeted: "Condemn attempt to kidnap and outrage modesty of young lady in Chandigarh. BJP govt mst punish the guilty, not collude W/culprits and mindset they represent (sic). CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury Tweeted: Clearly someone is helping the accused here. Why are the PM and BJP president so silent about stalking of women?
Kuldeep Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, August 6

Terming a hike of 50 paise per kg in support price for apple this season as a cruel joke on farmers, the score of farmer bodies demanded that the government, if really wanted to help the farmers, should hike the support price to minimal Rs 12 per kg under the market intervention scheme (MIS).

Not only this, the farmers warned the government not to sell the fruit procured under MIS from the farmers in the markets as it led to crash in the fruit markets that, in turn, cut down on their profit margins and helped only commission agents and traders.

They also demanded a good network of procurement centres in the apple belt, adding that the fruit should not be procured in 40 kg kattas since the procurement was done per kg not on the basis of katta or bag.

Dr Kuldip Tanwar, president, Himachal Kisan Sabha, and its secretary Rakesh Singha said the support price had added insult to injury of the farmers as the state Cabinet okayed a hike of 50 paise yesterday. If the criterion of cost of production per kg was calculated and farmers had to earn some profit, then the minimum cost should be Rs 12 per kg, they asserted.

The support price issue has sparked a debate on social media with the farmers pointing out that the purpose of MIS is to protect farmers interest and prevent markets from crashing during the peak apple season. The criterion for revision of rates should have been calculated on the basis of increase in the cost of production, commented a farmer.

Also, the MIS procurement agencies such as the HPMC do not pay the farmers in cash after their fruit is procured. Instead the agencies give the agro-based inputs, which are not of good quality.
New Delhi, July 25

As many as 53 pilgrims have been killed in 36 terror attacks on the annual Amarnath yatra in the last 27 years, the Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday.

From 1990 till date, 36 terrorist attacks have been reported on Amarnath yatris in which 53 were killed and 167 were injured, Minister of State for Home Hansraj Ahir said in reply to a written question.

Ahir said all possible arrangements are being made by the Jammu and Kashmir Government with the help of the Centre to strengthen the pilgrimages security.

In the latest terror attack that took place on July 10, seven pilgrims were killed in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir. One injured pilgrim succumbed to her injuries later.

Replying to another question, he said the duration and schedule of the pilgrimage is based on the decision taken by the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board every year.

The duration of the yatra is decided by the extent of snowfall in the preceding winter and the date on which Raksha Bandhan falls, when it is traditionally concluded, he said.

Therefore, the minister said, the duration of the pilgrimage varies from year to year. In 2017, the pilgrimage commenced on June 29 and will culminate on Raksha Bandhan which falls on August 7.

As such, the 2017 yatra is of 40 days. In 2016, it commenced on July 2 and concluded on August 18, and therefore, it was of 48 days, he said.  PTI
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, July 10

Five of those killed in the Monday night terror attack on the Amarnath pilgrims in Kashmir's Anantnag district were from Gujarat and two were from Maharashtra.

The deceased from Gujarat were identified as Hasuben Ratila Patal, Surakha Ben and Lakshimiben S Patal from Valsad, Ratan Zeena Bhai Patal of Daman and Prajapati Champaben of Navsari.

#WATCH Visuals from Anantnag attack site: 2 Amarnath yatra pilgrims killed, many injured after terrorists attacked their bus in Batingu(J&K) pic.twitter.com/DZORy6DWvE  ANI (@ANI_news) July 10, 2017

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Those from Maharashtra were Nirmala Ben Thakor, a resident of Palghar, and Usha Mohanla Sonkar of Danu.

The police said 19 pilgrims were injured in the attack and their condition is stable.

The bus bearing the registration number GJ09Z 9976 was attacked around 8.20 pm near Khanabal when it was on its way to from Srinagar to Jammu.

A security official said the victims had performed the yatra two days ago and had subsequently moved to Srinagar.

On Monday, they were going from Srinagar to Jammu when they became the target of the terrorist attack.

Police said the bus was not a part of the yatra convoy, which is being provided elaborate security.

The police and top government sources said the bus driver had violated rules for the pilgrimage, which state that no yatra vehicle should be on the highway after 7 pm as the security cover is withdrawn after that.
Majid Jahangir & Suhail A Shah

Srinagar/Anantnag, July 10

At least seven Amarnath pilgrims, six of them women, were killed and 32 injured in a suspected militant attack in south Kashmirs Anantnag district on Monday evening. While the police claim the pilgrims died when militants attacked security personnel, sources said the yatra bus was attacked near Batengoo along the Srinagar-Jammu highway, 40 km from Srinagar.

The Jammu and Kashmir police chief, Shesh Paul Vaid, said the yatris were killed in crossfire as the militants attacked a security vehicle.

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The militants initially attacked a bullet-proof bunker at Botengoo. The attack was repulsed and there were no injuries. Thereafter, the terrorists fired on a police naka, 700 metres from the site of the first attack. The police returned the fire.

A bus carrying yatris was hit by bullets. Eighteen persons were injured. Seven of them died later, Vaid told The Tribune. All pilgrims were from Gujarat.

The pilgrims were on their way to Jammu from Baltal in Ganderbal district after paying obeisance at the cave shrine. The bus (GJ-0929976) was not part of the yatra convoy. Nor was it registered with the Amarnath Shrine Board. It came under heavy fire near Batengoo village.

There was indiscriminate firing on the bus carrying the yatris, a police officer in Anantnag said. The injured were rushed to Srinagar for treatment, even as the police and CRPF reached the site and launched a massive combing operation to nab the attackers.

There has been unprecedented security for the Amarnath Yatra this year with intelligence inputs suggesting a possible militant attack. An additional 30,000 troops have been deployed on both routes of the yatra. The attack took place hours after the police claimed to have busted a LeT module and arrested two militants.

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has expressed shock and anguish over the killing of yatris. She said every right-thinking Kashmiri must rise against "this macabre menace before it devoured everybody around.

Quotes

Wont be cowed

Pained beyond words on the dastardly attack on peaceful Amarnath yatris in J&K... India will never get bogged down by such cowardly attacks & the evil designs of hate.  Narendra Modi, PM

Most reprehensible

Terrorist attack on #AmarnathYatra is the most reprehensible act. My condolences to the bereaved families... This incident should add to our determination to eliminate terrorism.  Arun Jaitley, Defence Minister

It is a gruesome attack not only on guests, but on Kashmir and Kashmiriyat and all of us shall have to rise against this scourge of violence.  Mehbooba Mufti, J-K CM

The attack cannot be condemned strongly enough.  Omar Abdullah, NC leader

This incident goes against the very grain of Kashmiri ethos.  Joint Resistance Leadership
Ishfaq Tantry

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, August 6

The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has ruled that preventive detention cannot be resorted to by the authorities when sufficient remedies are available under the law of the land to deal with any act of omission or commission under such laws by a person.

The court said preventive detention laws like the Public Safety Act (PSA), one of the most frequently invoked detention laws by the authorities in Jammu and Kashmir, could not be a quick alternative to the normal legal process.

These observations were recorded in a judgement by a single-Judge Bench of Justice Tashi Rabstan while deciding a habeas corpus petition of a detenue from Srinagar, Qaiser Ahmad Bhat, who had been booked under Public Safety Act (PSA) by the authorities.

While quashing the PSA detention of Bhat, the High Court, in its detailed judgement passed on Saturday, said classifying the detenue as disgruntled element by the authorities concerned could not be sufficient to invoke the statutory powers of preventive detention.

No doubt, the offences alleged to have been committed by the detenue are such as to attract punishment under the prevailing laws, but this has to be done under the said prevalent laws and taking recourse to preventive detention laws will not be warranted, the High Court said in its judgement.

Stating that preventive detention of a person by a state after branding him a goonda merely because the normal legal process was ineffective in curbing the evil he spread and time-consuming, the High Court held it illegal and said detention of a person is a serious matter affecting the liberty of the citizen.

Preventive detention cannot be resorted to when sufficient remedies are available under the general laws of the land for any omission or commission under such laws, the High Court said, adding, It may not be out of place to mention here that preventive detention is not a quick alternative to normal legal process.

The High Court further observed in its judgement that the Senior Superintendent of Police, Srinagar, vide his communication dated October 5, 2016, had produced material record, such as dossier and other connecting material, in respect of the detenue while recommending his detention under the PSA, but the same material had not been subsequently furnished to him as required under the law.

This would have enabled the detenue to make an effective and meaningful representation against his detention under the PSA. The failure to supply such material or documents amounts to violation of Article 22(5) of the Constitution of India, the High Court said in its judgement, quashing the PSA detention order.
Suhail A Shah

Anantnag, August 6

Reiterating that the July 10 attack on Amarnath pilgrims was the handiwork of the Lashkar-e-Toiba, the police today said the attack was carried out by four militants, three of whom were Pakistani nationals.

The militants have been identified as Abu Ismail, alias Haroon, Maaviya and Furqan, all Pakistani nationals, and Yawar Bashir, a Lashkar militant from Kulgam district, said Muneer Khan, Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kashmir, at a press conference today.

Ismail had replaced the now slain Lashkar commander Abu Dujana some time back as divisional commander of the outfit, he said.

The police had also arrested three civilians on the charge of providing logistic support to the militants, including transport, shelter and active reconnaissance of places for attack.

The arrested civilians, whom the IGP insisted should be called militants without guns, were identified as Bilal Ahmad Reshi, Aijaz Ahmad Wagay and Zahoor Ahmad Sheikh.

Giving out details of the investigation, the IGP said the attack was a pure act of terror and a CRPF vehicle might have come under attack instead of the vehicle carrying pilgrims.

The persons arrested provided information regarding movement of yatris as well as CRPF vehicle. They had code names for solitary yatra and CRPF vehicles, which they passed on to the militants, said the IGP.

He insisted that the attack was planned to be carried out on July 9, but no yatri vehicle or CRPF vehicle was moving in isolation that day. So they carried out the attack on July 10, hitting the fateful bus moving in isolation, he added.

Eight yatris were killed and 30 injured after the militants fired indiscriminately at their vehicle in the Battengoo area of Anantnag district on the evening of July 10.

The IGP said the investigation was over and the case had been cracked. The next step is to neutralise the militants involved in the attack. That will be done soon, he maintained.

A special investigation team headed by the Deputy Inspector General, south Kashmir range, had been set up to carry out the investigation into the attack.
New Delhi, August 6

The ED on Sunday arrested Mohammad Aslam Wani, an alleged hawala dealer, in connection with its about a decade-old money laundering case against Kashmiri separatist Shabir Shah.

Wani was produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Dass, who allowed the probe agency to interrogate him in custody till August 14.

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A senior official in the central probe agency said Wani was arrested from Jammu and Kashmirs summer capital Srinagar by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) with the help of the state police.

The official said Wani (36) is being flown in from Srinagar and will be produced by evening before a special judge in Delhi for his further custody.

The ED had recently got a non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against him from a Delhi court. The agency had issued multiple summonses for his appearance in the case but he never appeared.

The warrant has been executed and Wani will now be confronted with Shah and others in order to take the probe forward, he said.

Shah, now in ED custody, was similarly arrested by the agency from Srinagar on July 26.

The ED action against the two is in pursuance of an August 2005 case, wherein the Delhi Polices Special Cell had arrested Wani, dealer, who had claimed that he passed on Rs 2.25 crore to Shah.

In 2010, a Delhi court had cleared Wani of terror funding charges but had convicted him under the Arms Act.

The ED had registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Shah and Wani.

Wani was arrested allegedly with Rs 63 lakh, received through hawala channels from the Middle East, and a large cache of ammunition, on August 26, 2005.

During questioning, he had told the police that Rs 50 lakh was to be delivered to Shah and Rs 10 lakh to Jaish-e-Mohammad area commander in Srinagar, Abu Baqar, and that the rest was his commission.

Wani, who hails from Srinagar, had also claimed that he delivered around Rs 2.25 crore to Shah and his kin in multiple instalments over the past year.

The ED, sources said, wants to probe the proceeds of crime of alleged terror financing in this case. PTI
New Delhi, August 6

A Delhi court today sent alleged hawala dealer Mohammad Aslam Wani, arrested in connection with a decade-old money laundering case involving Kashmiri separatist Shabir Shah, to Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody till August 14.

Wani, who was arrested by the ED this morning, was produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Dass, who allowed the probe agency to interrogate him in custody.

A sessions court here issued an open-ended non-bailable warrant (NBW) against Wani yesterday after the ED told the court he had not joined the probe. An open-ended NBW, unlike the NBW, does not carry a time limit for its execution.

The EDs special public prosecutor NK Matta today told the court that Wani was required to be confronted with Shah, also in the agencys custody, in connection with the case.

The counsel sought 14-day custody, saying new information had surfaced during Shahs interrogation. According to an official, Wani, 36, was arrested from Srinagar by the ED with the help of the state police.

The agency had issued multiple summons for his appearance in the case, but he did not appear before it. Shah was arrested by the agency from Srinagar on July 26.

The ED action against the two was in pursuance of a case dating back to August 2005, in which the Delhi Polices special cell had arrested Wani, who claimed having passed on Rs 2.25 crore to Shah.

In 2010, a Delhi court had cleared Wani of terror funding charges, but convicted him under the Arms Act. The ED had registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act against Shah and Wani.

Wani was arrested on August 26, 2005, allegedly with Rs 63 lakh, received through hawala channels from West Asia, and a large cache of ammunition.

During questioning, he had told the police that an amount of Rs 50 lakh was to be delivered to Shah and Rs 10 lakh to Abu Baqar, Jaish-e-Mohammad area commander in Srinagar, while the rest was his commission.  PTI

The case
Jammu, August 6

Three people have been arrested in connection with the militant attack that killed eight pilgrims on their way to the Hindu shrine of Amarnath last month, Jammu & Kashmir police said on Sunday.

In an address to the press on Sunday, Kashmir Inspector General of Police Munir Khan blamed the attack on the Lashkar-e-Toiba and said that three Pakistani militants and a local Kashmiri militant were involved in the attack.

I am happy to tell you that three suspects have been arrested. They have revealed everything, Khan said.

READ

He claimed that the suspects had originally planned the attack on July 9, but couldnt execute it because they found no vehicles  whether belonging to the CRPF or the yatris  travelling alone.

Those who provided them logistics to carry out their plans in the state and work as their guides have been identified. Two Lashkar militants were eliminated some days back. Their involvement in this particular case is still under investigation.

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The suspects were produced in court and are currently in police custody.

Eight people were killed and several wounded when some militants began firing at a bus that was taking Hindu pilgrims to the Amarnath shrine on July 10. Agencies
Jasmine Singh

The recent incident involving Haryanas BJP chiefs son stalking an IAS officers daughter in Chandigarh has again raised the question of women safety in the city. Chandigarh enjoys the tag of a smart city, but an incident like this makes one wonder how smart is this place, rather how secure?

Anuradha Singh, an assistant librarian, has no complaints when it comes to women enjoying public space and life in Chandigarh with a sense of security. I have to rethink about it now. With all the security that we have, regular naakas in the city something like this could happen, she wonders.

Chandigarh is a city where students come to study, where people move from smaller towns in search of better job opportunities, and, safety is always the first concern. In fact, weve always pointed towards other cities, especially Delhi on how unsafe it is for girl and women in comparison to Chandigarh. Manpreet Aujla and her friend Riti Joshi are students of interior designing from sector-34, these two girls stay at a PG accommodation and often step out in the night around 10 or 11 in the night to have ice cream from Aroma-22. Who said Chandigarh is safe, just because one doesnt get to hear many incidents of stalking or molestation, we feel it is safe, but for once, try stepping out alone with a female friend, Manpreet looks at Riti who seconds her friends opinion. The two ride a two-wheeler and there have been so many instances when they have been stalked. Once, I decided to file a formal complaint with the police, but then we thought its best to not go out alone, the two dont sound happy with the decision theyve taken but, theyve no choice.

Even though Chandigarh has appreciable police surveillance, even though the city has a night life which is doesnt evoke the word rowdiness, an incident like this enough to make everyone alert. Does that point towards the fact that there is something majorly wrong with society? Something has to be really wrong with how we see girls and women in society, shares Dr Anju Kathurai, a sociologist, trying to find reasoning for it.

A girl or a woman, travelling, standing, eating out or even watching a film alone is somewhat not acceptable to society, and, here, I mean men. They immediately relate this to the morality of a female, generalising that all women or girls who can eat out alone, drive do not have a strong moral character, which is disgusting. Well, we can only call our city smart if a girl can return home in the night without being stalked, if she can walk in the street in a mini skirt without being cat-called, if she doesnt have to request her male friends to accompany her for a late night eating out or movie!
Lucknow, August 6

A suspected Bangladeshi terrorist, associated with Islamic extremist group Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), was today arrested from Muzaffarnagar by the Uttar Pradesh Polices anti terrorist squad (ATS), an official said.

Abdullah was arrested from the Kutesara locality in the Charthawal area of Muzaffarnagar district, IG, ATS, Asim Arun said. He had been living in the area for the past one month. Before that, Abdullah had been residing in the Deoband area of Saharanpur district since 2011, Arun said.

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Abdullah had managed to get an Aadhaar card and passport prepared on the basis of fake identity, the officer said. He was associated with the ABT and involved in preparing fake identity proofs of terrorists, especially from Bangladesh, and help them find safe hideouts in India, Arun said.

The police said ABT is an Al-Qaida-inspired extremist group based in Bangladesh.

ATS teams from Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and the district police team from Shamli conducted searches after Abdullahs arrest, the police said. During interrogation, Abdullah told ATS sleuths that he used to prepare fake identity proofs with the help of one Faizan of Deoband.

ATS officals claimed jehadi literature in Bangla, documents about bomb making, a coloured printer and a number of fake IDs were seized from there.  PTI
Lucknow, August 6

A suspected Bangladeshi terrorist, associated with Islamic extremist group Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), was on Sunday arrested from Muzaffarnagar by the Uttar Pradesh Polices Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), an official said.

Abdullah was arrested from the Kutesara locality in Charthawal area of Muzaffarnagar district, IG, ATS, Asim Arun said.

He was living in the area for the past one month, Arun said adding that before that, since 2011, Abdullah had been residing in the Deoband area of Saharanpur district.

Abdullah had managed to get an Aadhaar card and passport prepared on the basis of fake identity, the officer said.

He was associated with the ABT and involved in preparing fake identity proofs of terrorists, especially from Bangladesh, and help them find safe hideouts in India, Arun said.

According to the police, ABT is an Al-Qaeda inspired Islamic extremist group based in Bangladesh.

ATS teams from Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and the district police team from Shamli conducted searches after Abdullahs arrest, the police said.

During interrogation, Abdullah told ATS sleuths that he used to prepare fake identity proofs with the help of one Faizan, resident of Deoband, IG Arun said.

Based on this information, Faizans house in Deoband was searched but he was not found there, the ATS official said.

He however claimed that jehadi literature in Bangla, literature regarding making of bombs, a colour printer and a number of fake ids were recovered from there.

It has come to the fore that Faizan was also associated with the ABT, Arun added. PTI
Washington, August 6

Cutting across party lines, various people in the US have called for combating racism, intolerance and violence during the fifth anniversary of the tragic Oak Creek massacre that killed six innocent Sikhs five years ago.

Paul Ryan, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, said: Over the last five years, the people of Oak Creek have proved theyre stronger than hate and division. Ryan represents the Congressional district in Wisconsin where a white supremacist went on a shooting rampage at a Sikh Gurdwara on August 5, 2012.

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Five years ago, Oak Creek was rocked by a heinous attack on the Sikh Temple, and today we look back on that act of violence with solemn remembrance of those who were lost, he said in a statement. The Sikh community is in our thoughts on this fifth anniversary of the Oak Creek attack, said Senator Ron Johnson.

Eminent Indian-American from Indiana Gurinder Singh Khalsa said the Oak Creek tragedy was a wakeup call for the Sikh community. The community needs to engage, educate and empower. Sikhs need to do more on the awareness front, said Khalsa, founder and head of the Sikhs Political Action Committee.

At a time when divisive rhetoric has taken over our country, Sikhs have to remain vigilant while still staying in steadfast to their beliefs and principles, said Baldev Singh from the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund.  PTI
Sandeep Rana

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 5

Two youths, one of them the son of Haryana BJP president Subhash Barala, were today arrested by the Chandigarh Police for allegedly stalking the daughter of an IAS officer well past Friday midnight. Though released on bail, the two were detained for questioning.

They have been booked under Sections 354-D (stalking) and 341 (wrongful restraint) of the IPC and Section 185 (driving by a drunken person or by one under the influence of drugs) of the Motor Vehicles Act.

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As per the police, Vikas Barala (23), an LLB student, came to meet his friend Ashish Kumar (22), a law graduate. While on a car ride, the two drank beer and started chasing a young girl, who happened to be an IAS officers daughter.

Read: BJP MP Saini demands Baralas resignation after his son held for stalking

Chandigarh Police diluted case against Baralas son: Tewari

Why PM, Shah silent on stalking by son of BJP leader? Yechury

The 29-year-old complainant said she was heading home in Panchkula after car repairs. On her way, a white Tata Safari (HR-23-G-1008) began to chase her and its driver tried to block her way near a school in Sector 26. She sped away, but the Safari again blocked her way.

Terrified, she phoned the PCR (police control room) for help even as the Safari driver repeatedly swerved the car, not allowing her to halt at any light point. She finally stopped her car at the housing board lights where several vehicles were lined up.

One of the youths came out of the car and tried to open the rear door of her car.

He banged on the window. Luckily, the central lock was on. I reversed the car and fled, she said. The ordeal lasted 25 minutes, from 12.20 am to 12.45 am. It was clear that they tried to abduct me, she alleged.

After a while, she received a call from the police, telling her that they had arrested the culprits. She was asked to come to the police station to file a complaint. Based on the girls statement, Sections 164 of the CrPc and Section 341 of the IPC have also been added. Legal opinion will be taken if more Sections are to be included, said Satish Kumar, DSP (East).

From Chandigarh Tribune



Girl says women must train in self-defence

The young victim, who braved the late night harassment and alleged abduction attempt by two drunken youths in an SUV, has set an example for other girls to come forward and report such incidents to the police. Calling it the scariest day of her life, she advocates defence training to girls and carrying personal-defence equipment. She shares her experience in a chat with Chandigarh Tribune:

It must have been a horrific experience?

I was extremely scared last night. Nothing could have been worse than this. This was the scariest day of my life so far?

How swift was the Chandigarh Police?

I am very thankful to the police. Had the police not acted swiftly, I may not have been fine today. After the incident, the women cell offered me support. They also helped me mentally.

Do you think Chandigarh is a safe place for women?

This is probably the safest city in India. I never felt unsafe in the city before this incident. Isolated incidents were there but this was an outrageous act.

Do you think incidents of eve-teasing go unreported?

Girls should not be afraid and should take a stand. If such people are not taught a lesson, then the situation will never improve. We talk of women's safety, so we also have to walk the tightrope.

What was the reaction of the public at the spot?

At the Housing Board chowk, I had to stop my car due to the red signal while the youths in the SUV were following me. One of the youths even tried to open my door, but fortunately it was locked. Out of fear, I constantly honked my horn, so as to seek people's attention. But, no one acted. May be they were afraid that the youths could be carrying a weapon. I cannot blame them. But we expect the public to at least call at 100 at such point.

What should girls do for their safety?

I am glad I am safe as the police acted swiftly, but quick assistance may not always be there. So, self-defence training is a must for women. I am trained, so I did not panic and could sense initially they were chasing me. Then I noted down the number of their car and called up the police. Also, I think girls should carry pepper spray, sticks or scissors in their cars for safety. I had scissors in my purse, but not pepper spray. I will keep one from now on.

Stalked by Haryana BJP chief's son, Chandigarh girl shares her terrible experience on Facebook.

WAS ALMOST KIDNAPPED ON A CHANDIGARH ROAD LAST NIGHT

That being said, Id like to take a moment to commend and thank Chandigarh Police for unparalleled efficiency and attention to a distress call from me. They almost restore my faith in the system.

I was driving home from the Sector-8 market at about 12:15am, and crossed the road into Sec-7, near a petrol pump. I was also on the phone with a friend at the time, and realised about a minute later that a car was following me.

It was a White SUV, and as I noticed it, it pulled up and started driving alongside my car. I was now in Sec 7, heading towards the lights next to St. Johns school in Sector 26.

There were 2 guys inside the SUV, and they seemed to really be enjoying harassing a lone girl in the middle of the night, judging by how often their car swerved, just enough to scare me that it might hit me.

By now I was totally alert and mildly panicky, so I decided to turn right from the St.Johns school traffic lights towards Madhya Marg (a more crowded, seemingly safer road).

I tried to turn right from the lights but the SUV blocked my way, forcing me to go straight into Sec 26. At the next turn, I tried to turn again, but this time they went a step further.

Right at the turn, they blocked the road in front of my car, and the guy in the passenger seat got out of the car and started walking towards me. I reversed as fast as I could and went straight and took the next right turn before they could catch up again. I used this time to also call the cops at 100, and explain to them the situation and my exact location and where I was headed. The cop who answered my call, intuitively sensed the urgency in my voice, and promised me that help would be along very soon.

I hung up and had now reached the main road, and hadnt seen the SUV for about 15 seconds, so I hoped, that theyd seen me calling the cops and disappeared. I was wrong.

I was now on a straight road for about 5-6 km (Madhya Marg), and that entire time, the SUV stayed alongside my car, trying to bully me into stopping every 10-15 seconds LITERALLY.

I was in a full-blown panic attack by now because they would keep trying to corner me, and Id somehow manoeuvre my way out and keep moving.

Half in tears, half bewildered, because I didnt know if Id make it home tonight.

These guys INCESSANTLY bullied me all the way to the Solitaire hotel, and at the traffic lights, blocked my car for the final time.

This time they meant business, because they left me absolutely no space to move or escape, and the passenger JUMPED out of the car and moved towards mine.

I dont know how, but I reversed my car and moved to the right where there was space, all this while constantly honking. At this point, the guy had reached my car, banged loudly on my window, AND TRIED TO OPEN THE DOOR HANDLE!

Just as he did this, I saw a PCR pull up at the lights. A couple of cops ran out towards the SUV, nabbing it just in time.

If this is what women deal with in one of the safer cities in the country, where are we going?

LADIES! Please be proactive about your own safety. STAY SAFE, LADIES!

The father of the victim, an IAS officer, said the issue was being highlighted as a politician and a bureaucrat are involved but it should be taken as a case of eveteasing.

The media is giving some other angle to the case. It is a simple case of two adults chasing a girl and harassing her. While she was being chased, it was not known whose son they are or whose daughter she is, he told Chandigarh Tribune.

On only non-bailable sections being added to the FIR, he said: I cannot question the system on the very first day of the incident because this is the system which has got my daughter safe. The police are the best persons to decide what sections are to be added. The girl alleged the youths tried to abduct her.

He also wrote on his FB account: We are thankful that she survived this ordeal. The goons had a very clear intention of abducting her, and she escaped because of her courage and presence of mind. But it was a very close call, and her trauma is unimaginable. I suppose it will take her a long time to get back to a normal life.

As a father of two daughters, I feel compelled to take this matter to its logical conclusion.

Our clear intention is to bring the culprits to book. We do not intend to harm the families or relatives. However, we know it's not going to be an easy struggle. The possibility of harassment, threats and even physical harm is undeniable, even though unlikely. Influential families can sometimes take desperate measures to discredit or disable the complainants. Sane friends may advise us against our action. We may be foolhardy, he added.
New Delhi, August 6

There was a time when romance steamed as a boy asked his girl out for coffee, and brewed when her family invited him over for a cup of tea at their home.

But the script has changed. The humble chai has undergone a sophisticated makeover, moving out of kitchens and dhabas to specialised tea salons and cafes that don't just mean cold coffee and cappuccino.

Coffee may not be everybody's cup of tea, entrepreneurs have realised.

Outlets such as Chaayos, Chai Point, Chai Story and Chai Thela are giving stiff competition to coffee biggies like Starbucks and Cafe Coffee Day.

And though the jury is still out on whether elders have moved on from their home brewed 'kadak adrak' chai, the new chai stops are doing all that they can to woo the young.

"There was this impression that chai is something you get only at home. You had good places for coffee, but for chai there was either a thela or the substandard chai available in five-star hotels. We wanted to create a premium place for our customers...with chai just the way they like it," Raghav Verma, co-founder of Chaayos, told PTI.

When Chaayos started in 2012, there were some 100 tea places against the 2,000-2,500 cafes serving coffee in India.

But growth has been swift. In the last five years, Chaayos already has 40 outlets in Delhi, Chandigarh and Mumbai.

Kaushal Dugar, the founder of Teabox, an online direct-to-consumer tea brand, suggests Indians are on their way to being part of the ultimate tea experience -- which is not just a concoction of water, sugar and milk.

"Tea places will be taking away people away from coffee.

But then sooner or later people will also migrate to pure tea such as Chamomile, Darjeeling or Assam," Dugar told PTI.

Elite hotel brands are also reading the tea leaves, realising that Indians are already learning to choose between Assam and Darjeeling, first flush and second flush.

The Courtyard by Marriott is one of those catching on to the tea trend. It has set up a new counter -- Masala Chai Specialist  at the Mumbai International Airport.

"Cafes and restaurants across India are enhancing the variety of their chai offerings. After this counter was set up, many of our regular visitors have switched from coffee to tea," said chef and counter in-charge Rajendra Dhuri.

"On a normal day, I end up making 20 litres of tea for customers," said Dhuri.

Wagh Bakri, the over 100-year-old tea making company, has also gone the lounge way.

"We opened these lounges for our brand promotion. We wanted to make people aware of our packaged tea. But we are doing pretty good with profits, too," said Neeraj, manager Wagh Bakri tea lounge, Connaught Place.

The company has over 10 tea lounges, while Teabox sells over 250 flavours of tea and Chaayos offers its patrons 1,200 personalised tea options.

"People can vary the tea leaves choose more milk or less milk and so on," Verma said.

So are Indians okay doing chai pe kharcha?

"People are spending Rs 100-150 for the same experience in a coffee place. Here, we promise to serve your favourite tea at a lower price. So how is it expensive," asked Verma.

The cheapest chai at Chaayos costs around Rs 50, while a normal espresso in a coffee bar costs Rs 90-140.

With over 42 per cent repeat customers in Chaayos cafes, Verma said his brand is not in competition with coffee houses.

"The scope for chai is way higher than coffee's. Data suggest that for every coffee, 30 cups of chai are consumed in India," he said.

However, Keventers, an iconic milkshake brand since 1925, has a different take on the issue.

"Consumer behaviour shows that a customer would rather spend on a cup of coffee or a milkshake (more premium options) than on a cup of tea, especially when they are outdoors," Sohrab Sitaram, Director and CEO, Keventers, told PTI.

Cold coffee milkshake is one of the hot-selling items in Keventer's, and as of now they don't plan to extend their hot beverages segment.

That would disappoint Chandigarh resident Neha Jindal, who is now a frequent at tea bars.

"I have always been an ardent coffee lover. But with these new swanky chai places, I really don't mind ditching coffee. Also after many visits, I have started liking tea, which just wasn't the case earlier," she said.

With India one of the largest tea consuming and producing countries in the world, this was perhaps a transformation just waiting in the wings.

American giant Starbucks recently introduced its tea brand Teavana in 88 stores in India, indicating that the tea business is growing.

Probably it is time others too wake up and smell...not the coffee, obviously!  PTI
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 6

Aiming to add thrust to the bilateral trade and relations, India and Iran today reaffirmed commitment to complete and operationalise at the earliest, the Chabahar port, which also provides alternate access to landlocked Afghanistan, regional and global markets.

Minister of Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari held discussions with Iran Minister of Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi in Tehran. Both sides reviewed and assessed the progress made in implementing decisions taken during Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Iran last year, including Chabahar.

Both sides reiterated their commitment to complete and operationalise the port at the earliest that would contribute to bilateral and regional trade and economic development and also provide alternate access to landlocked Afghanistan to regional and global markets, A Ministry of External Affairs statement said.

Gadkari reached Tehran on Saturday on a two-day trip to Tehran to attend the inauguration of second tenure of President Hassan Rouhani. He handed over PM Modis felicitations to President Rouhani and a letter inviting him to New Delhi. He interacted with the Iranian President and called on Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri.

Ahead of his arrival in Tehran, Gadkari said India was keen to develop the port and hoped to start the operations by 2018. He said the construction work had already started and New Delhi allocated Rs 6 billion for the port.
New Delhi, August 6

For the first time, genetically modified human embryos have been developed in the US and Kashmir-born doctor Sanjeev Kaul has played a lead role in this breakthrough.

Though this is not a full-fledged start of a revolution of having designer babies, the first steps, however, have been laid. China attempted this earlier. A team of scientists has altered human embryos using a new technique called CRISPR CAS9 that edits genes. This now opens up an ethical Pandoras Box if germline repairs and enhancements may become a thing in vogue. As of now, the human embryos were not implanted in humans. But this now opens up exciting prospects of the world having designer babies soon.

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The research published in British journal Nature shows the first genetically modified human embryos made in America. A team of South Korean, Chinese and American scientists has identified how they could edit out a faulty gene that causes heart attacks in later life due to the thickening of heart walls.

One of the team members is Dr Kaul, who was born in Kashmir, studied in New Delhi and later immigrated to America. Although the rare heart mutation affects men and women of all ages, it is a common cause of sudden cardiac arrest in young people, and it could be eliminated in one generation in a particular family, said co-author Kaul, a professor of medicine in the OHSU School of Medicine in the US.  PTI

Designer babies
Thiruvananthapuram, August 6



Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday met family members of slain RSS functionary Rajesh, a victim of political violence in Kerala, at his house in Sreekaryam near here.

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During the visit, Jaitley spoke to the functionarys 3-year old son and his elderly parents.

Jaitley's visit is widely seen as an attempt by the BJP to bring to national focus the issue of alleged increasing attacks on party cadres by the CPI-M.

State BJP leaders, including president Kummanam Rajasekharan, accompanied the Union Finance minister.

They explained to Jaitley the concern expressed by family members, including the widow of 34-year old Rajesh, who was hacked to death on July 29 by a gang led by an alleged historysheeter here.

The BJP has alleged that CPI-M activists were behind the gruesome murder, a charge denied by the ruling party.

BJP members recently raised the issue of political violence in the state in Parliament alleging: "Kerala has become a killing field".

Earlier, Jaitley arrived here by a special aircraft for an on-the-spot account of the political situation.

He was also likely to submit a report to the central government, party sources said.

His visit comes in the backdrop of RSS leadership even favouring imposition of President's Rule in the state on the ground that law and order situation had collapsed under the LDF government led by Pinarayi Vijayan.

Jaitley is also slated to visit some of the BJP workers whose houses were attacked allegedly by CPI-M here in recent days.

State Governor P Sathasivam had on July 30 summoned Chief Minister Vijayan and state police chief Loknath Behra to ascertain the action taken in the backdrop of the murder of Rajesh and other violent incidents. They had apprised him of the arrests made in the murder case.

The CPI-M alleged that RSS-BJP was spreading a false propaganda on political violence.

To counter the BJP, the CPI-M on Sunday organised a dharna of relatives of 21 party workers allegedly killed by RSS-BJP activists in the district and also demanded Jaitley visit them also.

CPI-M state Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan alleged that political violence had increased in the state after the visit of BJP President Amit Shah in early June.

The BJP was implementing "Amit Shah's plan" in the state by allegedly attacking party strongholds, Balakrishnan charged.

Incidentally, the chief minister has convened an all-party meeting this evening.

The state had been witnessing a cycle of violence involving BJP-RSS and CPI-M workers with the capital district rocked by incidents of attacks on houses of rival partymen. PTI
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 6

Interviews of over 4,300 Partition witnesses are set for public release in collaboration with a consortium of research universities. Part of The 1947 Partition Archives collection, the stories have been collected from across the world over the last seven years.

A portion of the complete oral history interviews will be released beginning August 10 and become available via live streaming from Stanford University Librarys Digital repository, accessible to anyone with an internet collection. The remaining collection, deemed too delicate or sensitive for open accessibility, will be available to researchers and interested parties by visiting select university libraries in the collaboration, including Ashoka University, University of Delhi and Guru Nanak Dev University in India, along with Lahore University of Management Sciences and Habib University in Pakistan. Talks are under way with universities in the UK and Bangladesh.

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Guneeta Singh Bhalla, who began the project of collecting stories of Partition, says the content in the collection could challenge our current understanding of South Asian history and identity.

Stanford University Librarys Digital Repository and discovery environment includes a strong video preservation program that will ensure access to the interviews in perpetuity. The videos being gathered by The 1947 Partition Archive are tremendously important to capture and preserve as part of the historical record, and to make readily available for deeper discovery and research, said Michael Keller, Stanfords university librarian. The material, according to Keller, are of particular interest to Stanford given research efforts underway on campus at the Center for South Asia and the Handa Center for Human Rights and International Justice.

A pilot adoption of the collection into three Indian university libraries, including Guru Nanak Dev University in Amritsar, Ashoka University in Sonepat and University of Delhi, is being supported by Tata Trusts. The Arts & Culture portfolio at the Tata Trusts has worked with preserving archives, through digitization, paper conservation and dissemination. The 1947 Partition Archives of oral histories is of particular interest, in this 70th year of Indias Independence, as time erases direct testimonies, so vital in first hand authenticity, notes Deepika Sorabjee, Head, Arts & Culture, Tata Trusts.

Noted historian Priya Satia at Stanford University says the collection opens a window not only on Partition itself but onto historical anthropology of culture, pre-Partition culture, and about post-Partition politics, and identity. The research it will allow on Partition itself is momentousfinally we have an opportunity to get away from high-political narrative of why and how it happened. Finally, we can get a sense of what happened on the ground, how it affected people and how those effects changed over time, she says.

How big archive is
New Delhi, August 6

Nine high courts have opposed a proposal to have an all-India service for lower judiciary, eight have sought changes in the proposed framework and only two have supported the idea, a law ministry document says.

The document, sent to all members of the parliamentary consultative committee on law and justice, also states that most of the 24 high courts want control over the subordinate judiciary.

The Narendra Modi government has given a fresh push to the long-pending proposal to set up the new service to have a separate cadre for lower judiciary in the country. The idea was first mooted in the 1960s.

According to the document, the high courts of Andhra Pradesh, Bombay, Delhi Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Patna and, Punjab and Haryana have not favoured the idea of All-India Judicial Service (AIJS).

It said only the high courts of Sikkim and Tripura have concurred with the proposal approved by the committee of secretaries for formation of an all-India service for lower judiciary.

The Allahabad, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Manipur, Meghalaya, Orissa and Uttarakhand high courts have suggested changes in age at induction level, qualifications, training and quota of vacancies to be filled through the proposed service.

Most of the high courts want the administrative control over the subordinate judiciary to remain with the respective high courts, it said.

The high courts of Jharkhand and Rajasthan have indicated that the matter regarding creation of the AIJS is pending consideration, while no response has been received from the high courts of Calcutta, Jammu and Kashmir and Gauhati, the document pointed out.

Seeking to overcome the divergence of views, the government had recently suggested to the Supreme Court various options, including a NEET-like examination, to recruit judges to the lower judiciary.

There were vacancies of 4,452 judges in subordinate courts in the country as per the figures released on December 31, 2015. While the sanctioned strength is 20,502, the actual number of judges and judicial officers in subordinate courts is 16,050.

Adoption of the model followed by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) for conducting the National- Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses could also be explored, the government had told the apex court.

The ministry had suggested various models to the apex court so that vacancies in the subordinate courts are filled up fast.

Besides the NEET model, the law ministry had also proposed that a centralised examination could be held by a recruitment body for selection of candidates and it can work under the supervision of the Supreme Court.

It also proposed that the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) can also be asked to hold an exam to recruit judicial officers. The UPSC, it said, can modify its procedures and practices in consultation with the high courts to hold the specialised test.

The Secretary (Justice) has also suggested that some of the features followed by the Institute of Banking and Personnel Selection could also be followed to recruit judges to lower courts.

At present, various high courts and state service commissions hold exams to recruit judicial officers. PTI
Shubhadeep Choudhury

SUKHENDU Sarkar, leader of a Naxalite faction, was overcome by emotion when he learnt Naxalite leader Khokon Majumdar was born a Muslim. The venue was Maulali Yuva Kendra, Kolkata, and the occasion a meeting in memory of Majumdar who passed away at Siliguri on May 29. The gathering comprised those from the middle class and ordinary folks from the working class.

The cow vigilante issue naturally came up in the speeches time and again. Reading in a booklet, provided to all participants, that Majumdar was born in a Muslim family, an excited Sarkar remarked: This is India. Despite being a part of the Naxalite movement, I did not know that Majumdar was a Muslim. Many people think he was a relative of the legendary Naxalite leader Charu Majumdar because of the common surname.

Majumdar, who was 87 at the time of his death, was named Abdul Hamid by his parents who died when he was still a child. When Pakistan was carved out in 1947, Majumdar, arrested in connection with a political agitation, was lodged in a prison in Berhampore. On his release, Majumdar found that his birthplace Barisal had become foreign.

A founder member of the CPI(ML), who was active during the Naxalbari uprising in the sixties, Majumdar was among the small group of Naxalite leaders (which included Kanu Sanyal) who visited Beijing, sneaking into Tibet from Nepal, and met Chairman Mao Tse Tung. Hamid changed his name to Khokan Majumdar to gel better with the masses, and the name stuck with him for ever.

Sister Nivedita

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee may visit England in November to take part in a ceremony to accord heritage status to the ancestral home of Sister Nivedita, English Heritage having finally accepted the demand of Indians settled in UK in this regard. Swami Vivekananda had stayed in this house in 1899. A blue plaque with the outer structure of the house etched on it will announce its heritage status and history. The function was to take place on October 28, the birthday of Sister Nivedita. But the CM had other engagements on that day.

Gyan Singh Sohanpal

Chachaji is much better now, Dharamjit Kaur told this reporter over the phone from Kharagpur. She is married to a nephew of Gyan Singh Sohanpal and hence calls him chachaji. In fact Sohanpal is addressed as chacha by one and all in Kharagpur. A record 10-time Congress MLA from the Kharagpur Sadar constituency (he was defeated by BJP state president Dilip Ghosh in the last elections), Sohanpal has not been keeping well and is undergoing treatment at the PG Hospital in Kolkata. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has instructed the hospital authorities that the 93-year-oldsardarji must be treated with utmost care. He is better now and is expected to be discharged soon, says Dharamjit, who speaks fluent Bengali.
Ahmedabad, August 6

Ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls, BJP chief Amit Shah on Sunday held a meeting with the party leaders in Gujarat, including Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, at his residence here.

State BJP president Jitubhai Vaghani, partys state in-charge Bhupendra Yadav and Minister of State for Home Pradeepsinh Jadeja and other leaders met Shah in the morning for the Rajya Sabha elections of August 8, party sources said.

According to the state party unit, Shah, who arrived here late last night, would stay here till the completion of the Rajya Sabha polls, in which, he is one of the four contestants from the state.

The BJP has maintained that Shah is in the city to celebrate Raksha Bandhan and has no official engagements.

However, party sources said the party chief discussed various issues regarding the polls with the leaders in todays meeting.

They added that it is expected that similar rounds of meetings would continue tomorrow.

For the three Rajya Sabha seats falling vacant in Gujarat, the BJP has fielded Shah, Union Minister and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Smriti Irani and former Congress MLA Balwantsinh Rajput, who had joined the saffron party a week ago.

Of the total 11 Rajya Sabha members from Gujarat, the term of threeSmriti Irani and Dilipbhai Pandya (both BJP), and Congress Ahmed Patelis ending on August 18.

Patel has been re-nominated as the partys candidate for the August 8 Rajya Sabha election.

The polls have became crucial for both the parties as new equations are emerging every day after the dramatic exit of Gujarat Congress strongman Shankersinh Vaghela from the party followed by the resignation of six of the partys MLAs.

With this, the Congress tally has reduced to 51 in the 182-seat Gujarat Assembly.

While the Congress claimed to have the support of 44 Congress MLAs, who were shifted to Bengaluru a week ago, seven others, who are still here, have not opened their cards yet.  PTI
New Delhi, August 6

The Supreme Court has cleared the decks for selection and appointment of over 3,500 sub-inspectors and platoon commanders in Uttar Pradesh Police, which has been stalled for over six years.

The apex court stayed the directions passed by both Benches of the High Court at Allahabad and Lucknow from time to time and restrained them from entertaining any petition with regard to selection and appointment process of police officials which started in 2011 when the BSP government was in power.

The erstwhile Samajwadi Party governments attempt to take it forward also did not yield results due to multiple litigations.

The incumbent BJP government told the apex court that there was a dire need of police personnel as no appointment for the Sub-Inspector posts has been made for six years.

A Bench of Justices Kurian Joseph and R Banumathi, while hearing a batch of appeals, directed the state government to resume the training process within two weeks, which will be continued and completed till the last among the 3,533 candidates undergoes the training.

In the above circumstances, we are of the view that it will be appropriate if the State is permitted and directed to complete the process of appointment of the candidates who had already commenced the training. In case, any one of them has completed the training, it will be open to the State to appoint him/her straightaway, the bench said.

The apex court clarified that successful completion of the training will be followed by their appointment and posted the matter for further hearing on August 22.

The recruitment process for 4,010 vacancies had started on May 19, 2011, but after the final selection list was published, some candidates challenged the entire process which eventually led to the stalling of selection and appointment of police officials in the state.

The Uttar Pradesh government told the apex court that was in dire need of police personnel as no appointment in the post of Sub-Inspectors has been made by way of direct recruitment during the past six years.

The Bench was informed that a total of 3,533 candidates had been sent for training in November, 2015 and they have almost completed it.

The state government told the court that as far as 291 candidates for the post of Platoon Commanders are concerned, 132 were sent for training and 75 of them have already completed it.

The apex court also directed the state government to take the remaining tests (group discussions, physical fitness and medical examination) of all the 237 candidates, who had challenged the selection process by way of 37 petitions, provided they have cleared the written examination.

It directed the state government to file a status-cum- compliance report within two weeks and apprise it about the 810 candidates whose results were withheld as the selection list was allegedly tampered with by using whitener.

On May 19, 2011, an advertisement was issued by the state government for selection of 4010 candidates (sub-inspectors and platoon commanders).

The qualifier preliminary examination for selection was held on December 11, 2011. Results of preliminary examination was announced on January 1, 2013 and based on the results, the main examination was conducted on September 14, 2014.

The results of the main examination was announced on October 23, 2014 and all the successful candidates were invited for the next stage of Group Discussion, which was held from December 11, 2014, to January 10, 2015.

The final select list of 3,784 candidates was published on March 16, 2015. Based on the final selection list, 3,533 candidates were sent for training which completed in November, 2016. PTI
Bengaluru, August 6

Tolerance has to become an essential national virtue to promote harmony transcending sectional diversities, Vice-President M Hamid Ansari on Sunday said.

Tolerance is a pragmatic formula for the functioning of society without conflict between different religions and political ideologies, among others, he said speaking at the 25th annual convocation of the National Law School of India University here.

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Yet, he said, tolerance alone is not a strong enough foundation for building an inclusive and pluralistic society and it must be coupled with "understanding and acceptance".

In this regard, he recalled Swami Vivekananda's words, "We must, not only tolerate other religions, but positively embrace them, as truth is the basis of all religions."

The Vice-President said the challenge today is to reiterate and rejuvenate secularism's basic principles, including freedom of religion and tolerance.

The challenge also is to emphasise that equality has to be substantive, that freedom of religion be re-infused with its collectivist dimensions, he added.

"Also toleration should be reflective of the realities of Indian society and lead to acceptance," he said.

Further, Ansari said the "version of nationalism" that places cultural commitments at its core promotes intolerance and arrogant patriotism.

"The version of nationalism that places cultural commitments at its core is usually perceived as the most conservative and illiberal form of nationalism. It promotes intolerance and arrogant patriotism," he said.

Ansari also said the manifestation of the alternate viewpoint of "purifying exclusivism" threatens to rule out any dissent, however innocent.

"More recently an alternate viewpoint of 'purifying exclusivism' has tended to intrude into and take over the political and cultural landscape," he said.

"One manifestation of it is an increasingly fragile national ego that threatens to rule out any dissent, however innocent," he added.

Hyper-nationalism and closing of mind is also a manifestation of insecurity about one's place in the world, the vice-president said.

He also said while ensuring external and domestic security is an essential duty of the state, there seems to be a trend towards sanctification of military might overlooking former US President George Washington's caution about overgrown military establishments which, under any form of government, are inauspicious to liberty.

"Citizenship does imply national obligations. It necessitates adherence to and affection for the nation in all its rich diversity. This is what nationalism means, and should mean, in a global community of nations," he said.

Ansari said democracy has to be judged not just by the institutions that formally exist, but by the extent to which different voices from diverse sections of the people can actually be heard.

"Its 'raison d'etre' is recognition of the other," he remarked.

The vice-president said programmes or principles evolved by political parties based on religion amount to recognising religion as a part of the political governance which the Constitution expressly prohibits.

"It violates the basic features of the Constitution," he said.

Positive secularism negates such a policy and any action in furtherance thereof would be violative of the basic features of the Constitution, Ansari added.

Despite its clarity, various attempts, judicial and political, have been made to dilute its import and to read new meaning into it, Ansari said.

Credible critics have opined that the December 11, 1995 judgment of the Supreme Court bench is highly derogatory of the principle of secular democracy and that a larger bench should reconsider it and undo the great harm caused, he pointed out.

"This remains to be done; instead, a regression of consciousness (has) set in and the slide is now sought to be accelerated and is threatening to wipe out even the gains of the national movement summed up in 'sarvadharma sambhav'," he said.  PTI
Manas Dasgupta

THOSE in Gujarat who have seen PM Narendra Modi and his erstwhile RSS colleague Shankarsinh Vaghela from close quarters say the two have much in common, particularly when it comes to dealing with political rivals.

Modi, on becoming PM, ensured the end of the road for those who had opposed his nomination for the post, including party veterans LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi, by inventing a retirement age. despite the two having saved his political career by stopping the then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee from sacking him as CM following the 2002 anti-Muslim riots.

Not many outside Gujarat know that in the Modi era almost an entire generation of BJP leaders have been wiped out from the political scenario in the state. Some of them, such as former Union Minister Kashiram Rana, have since expired. Others like former CM Suresh Mehta, Dr AK Patel and Surendra Patel are in political wilderness.

Almost the entire BJP leadership in the state now comprises those who have seen only Modi as the power centre. The last of the old guards who had survived the onslaught, former CM Anandiben Patel, has been sidelined under the retirement formula. Many would argue it is to Modis credit that he has allowed the younger lot to grow, unlike the Congress where veterans have refused to yield space to younger leaders.

It is unlikely that Modi would accept old-timer Vaghela growing in stature in the state BJP, if he joins the BJP. It is hard to tell if Vaghela nurtures any false hopes of being given an important post in his erstwhile party, particularly with Modi at the helm. Congress sources believe his move to quit the party was because of two reasons to ensure a steady political future in the BJP for his son Mahendrasinh Vaghela, a Congress MLA from Gandhinagar, and more importantly to deliver a lethal blow to the prestige of his long-time rival Ahmed Patel, Sonia Gandhis political secretary.

Since his joining the Congress in the late nineties, Vaghela has held many important offices, including that of Union Minister and the state party chief. But at every stage, he had to combat strong opposition from Patel, who has had a grip on the state Congress for more than three decades now. Through his loyalists, Patel ensured that Vaghela was cut to size.

To bring Vaghela to his knees, Modi had unleashed the CBI and the ED against him last year, unearthing corrupt deals when he was the Uunion Textile Minister in the first UPA government. The CBI file against him was reportedly closed at the behest of BJP national president Amit Shah on the condition that Vaghela would ditch the Congress at a convenient time. An Intelligence survey before the Congress was rocked, had reportedly given only 90 to 95 seats to the BJP, causing worry to the party managers aiming for a record 150 seats in the 182-member House to further strengthen Modis hands.

Vaghela. hence, timed his exit from the Congress to join hands with the BJP on the eve of the Rajya Sabha elections to frustrate Patels attempt to retain his seat in the Upper House for the fifth time. The exodus of MLAs loyal to Vaghela unnerved the Patel camp, forcing it to take Vaghelas Khajuraho route of 1995 and pack the remaining flock to Congress-ruled Bengaluru under the plea of personal safety. It was also, perhaps, the first time that the party issued a whip to its members for the RS elections only to browbeat its MLAs.

The Congress central leadership clearly under-estimated Vaghelas ability to inflict damage to the party. Otherwise, it would have tried to buy peace, at least till the Rajya Sabha elections were over. It outrightly rejected his demand for being named CM candidate and refused him a free hand in selecting candidates for the coming Assembly elections. It was only to demonstrate his influence that Vaghela engineered cross-voting by 11 of his supporters in the presidential elections. But the Congress leadership refused to take the hint, and three days later he announced his resignation.

Tale of deceit, double-cross

Security agencies made a huge haul of narcotics and unearth an unholy nexus between peddlers of Iran and Pakistan with some sailors in India, seizing a foreign ship off the Gujarat coast last week. The eight Indian crew members arrested all belonged to Uttar Pradesh.

It turned out to be a story of deceit and double-cross. Ship captain Supreet Tiwari tried to fool ship owner Syed Al Morani, an Iranian doing business in Dubai, who wanted the consignment, kept in a secret chamber in the fuel tank, to be delivered in Egypt.

The ship, that set sail from Iran, had anchored for two days at the Gwadar port in Pakistan. Two ISI agents travelling in the ship had disembarked after the drugs consignment was loaded on it.

Mumbai-based peddler Vishal Yadav learnt about the consignment and through a friend contacted Tiwari when the ship was on high seas. He lured Tiwari into diverting the ship to India for Rs 50 crore as against Rs 5 crore promised by Al Morani for taking the consignment to Egypt. It was decided to take the ship to Mumbai, but it was taken to Bhavnagar. Tiwari and other crew members hatched a plan to break open the secret chamber at Bhavnagar. Apparently, Al Morani tipped intelligence agencies when he realized he was being double-crossed.
Amarjit Thind

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 6

Crop loss for any reason is a setback farmers of Punjab  most of whom are small  can hardly sustain. Yet, there are no takers in the state for the crop insurance scheme offered by the Central Government. The state has some very valid reasons for that, all simple economics. At a larger level, it is the one size fits all approach of successive governments that may be to blame.

As the arrangements stand today, what a farmer in Punjab gets is compensation for the damage. But this mostly remains meaningless, as often the relief is Rs 5,000, or even smaller amounts, paid by the state government for losses of up to Rs 40,000-50,000 per acre.

The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) was touted as a radical solution for its beneficiaries by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Ground realities, however, reveal that it has turned out to be another money-spinner dished out by insurance companies, facilitated by the government. Farmers of Punjab say they had no say in the formulation of the policy so crucial to them.

THE PUNJAB EXPERIENCE

Thus far, Punjab, Sikkim, Manipur and Nagaland have not implemented the PMFBY, while it is operational or will be soon in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Odisha, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Assam.

Old-timers like Bishan Singh and Bachan Singh of Khaira Dona village in Kapurthala district recall that farmers have been the losers in all farm insurance schemes implemented by the Centre since the Individual Approach Basis Scheme was launched in 1972. They have memories of the great flood of 1962 and the pittance received as compensation. A few rupees, some blankets, but no insurance. Officially, nearly 20 per cent of the cropped area was damaged in floods that year as compared to 13 per cent and 10 per cent in 2009 (15 dead) and 1988 (200 dead), respectively.

In well-irrigated Punjab, those were the heady days of the Green Revolution (paddy was recording an increase of 5.30 per cent per annum), whereas most of the insurance schemes were tailor-made for rain-fed agriculture of many other states.

The Comprehensive Crop Insurance Scheme (CCIS- 1985) focused largely on drought, whereas the states farmers wanted only insurance for hailstorm but with higher indemnity. Successive governments  both the SAD and the Congress  over the decades only paid lip service on this count. Policies were framed, scrapped and re-framed, but turned out to be just old wine in fancy new bottles each time, says BS Rajewal of the BKU.

WHY PMFBY DOESNT WORK

In its present avatar, the major flaw in the farm insurance scheme is that it comes into play only if there is 40 per cent crop damage in a village, which is counted as a single unit for availing any relief, says Rajewal.

First, farmers want that instead of being village-specific, the scheme should be farm plot-specific, with crop indemnity (compensation) levels above 95 per cent.

Secondly, farmers demand that the 10-year benchmark for assessing normal yield levels while deciding on the insurance premium should be scrapped, and the latest yield should be taken into account.

The premium should also be standardised to 1 per cent for all crops, as crop losses in Punjab are very low as compared to the rest of the country.

Thirdly, the crop lying in market yards should also be covered. At present, only the harvested crop in the fields lies within the ambit of the scheme. Largely mechanised harvesting operations and relatively easy access to markets in Punjab ensure that the crop reaches mandis within hours. Hence, it needs protection from the vagaries of weather in the mandi, where it may await procurement for days.

In view of stiff opposition by the peasantry and farmer unions, the scheme has been given a quiet burial by the state government.

In a meeting on this issue with senior officials of the Union Agriculture Ministry and the insurance companies a couple of years ago, Rajewal says he asked if the rationale of the entire village being a single unit was applied to vehicles or life insurance. Would the company only settle claims if 40 people died or 40 vehicles were involved in a pile-up? Needless to say, that was the end of it, he added.

Haryana implemented the scheme and its farmers have alleged that the insurance companies collected over Rs 750 crore in premium, but only disbursed Rs 112 crore as compensation. The matter was even raised in Parliament, Rajewal claims.

KEEP ARHTIYA OUT

Buta Singh Burj Gill, president of the BKU (Dakaunda), too minces no words in denouncing the scheme in its present form as anti-farmer and pro-corporate. We desperately need insurance but not at these costs and terms, he added.

There are no takers for even premiums heavily subsidised by the Centre and the states (in equal proportion). Farmers pay 2 per cent of the premium for kharif crops, 1.5 per cent for rabi and 5 per cent for horticulture crops. On an average, a farmer has to pay Rs 800 per acre for rabi and kharif crops and Rs 1,250 per acre for cotton as premium. They are not able to bear that cost.

The need is to scrap the arhtiya system. The money/profits collected by this system under the present procurement arrangement can be used to pay the PMFBY premium, saving both farmers and the government this recurring fiscal burden once and for all, Gill suggests.

The Mandi Board is equipped to buy the produce from the farmers, and everyone would be more than willing to clean the crop, weigh it and transport it to the nearest state godown. This would not only provide employment to the landless labourers, but also mean an additional income for the farmers on freight charges, he pointed out. As it is, farmers transport the produce to the mandis.

When the government knows that the farmers are fiscally distressed and committing suicides, why burden them with another life-long liability, asks Gill.

UNRESPONSIVE STATE GOVTS

Punjabs reluctance to implement the PMFBY also drew the attention of Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh, who told the Rajya Sabha recently that the state should seriously consider implementing the scheme as it had neither sent a draft for drought relief nor done crop insurance in the past five years.

I have seen the record of the state; Punjabs farmers do not go in for crop insurance. But during drought, even a request for relief was not made to us, he added.

Under the PMFBY, there would be no upper limit on the subsidy provided by the Centre or the state. Even if the balance premium (after farmers contribution) is 90 per cent, it will be borne by the government, according to an official.

In previous schemes, the premium had been capped, which resulted in low claims being paid to farmers. This was done to limit the government outgo on the premium subsidy. This has been removed. Farmers will get the claim against the full sum insured without any deductions, the official says.

Another benefit of the PMFBY is that losses incurred from the sowing stage to the post-harvest season would all be covered. Earlier, only post-harvest losses could be offset. Farmers who havent availed bank loans would also be eligible for insurance cover.

Solution in guaranteed income; production, market risk both coverED

While farmer unions have been agitating for implementing the MS Swaminathan Commission recommendations and bureaucrats are clueless on what to do, a report by Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana, in 2014 suggested that a study of all insurance schemes since 1974 till date had revealed that opting for the Farm Income Insurance Scheme (FIIS-2003-04) would be the best bet for Punjab.

As this is the sole scheme covering both production and market risk, it could also be used for giving a boost to the flagging diversification drive of the state, the PAU study observed.

It envisages targeting two critical components that decides a farmers income  yield and price  through a single policy instrument by ensuring a minimum guaranteed income determined by using the average yield for the previous seven years and the MSP. If the actual income falls short of the guaranteed sum, the farmer would be eligible for compensation to the extent of indemnity from the Agricultural Insurance Company (AIC) of India.
THOUGH Oxford and Cambridge have served as models to most of the later Universities started in England and India, yet we see that the war ideals and consequent change in outlook require marked reforms in the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. To people in India these reforms are important in a special degree because they tend to do away with the rigidity of life and the cost of education, introducing general simplicity. A correspondent discusses the future of Oxford and points out that owing to compulsory service, the flow of matriculates to Oxford is almost entirely confined at present to Indians and a few colonials and foreigners.
IN an article contributed to New India of the 1st instant on the subject of the Congress Presidentship Sir Subramanian Iyer makes two or three serious statements. The first is that having regard to the interdict by the Government of the grand meeting that was to be held in the Town Hall at Calcutta we should consider ourselves very fortunate "if" the next session of the Indian National Congress is "destined" to be held. Sir Iyer asks: "If it is proclaimed, as it is, that the Madras interments were not fit subjects for discussion the capital of a sister presidency, who can pretend to say that similar reason will not hold good in the view of the Government regarding questions and subjects that may be debated and resolved upon during the Congress session, among which the injustice of the imprisonment of the three patriots must certainly be a very important one?" Many things may happen between now and December to favourably influence the course of events.
Kabul, August 6

Afghan intelligence officials said on Sunday they seized a truck in Kabul carrying more than 16 tonnes of explosives hidden in boxes marked as poultry feed, months after a truck bomb killed about 150 people.

The truck, with Pakistani license plates, was seized in District 9 of the capital, the National Directorate of Security said in a statement, adding that five people were arrested.

It was loaded with explosives to make bombs, suicide vests and conduct terrorist activities in Kabul, the statement said, adding that 16,500 kg of explosives was seized.

On May 31 a massive truck bomb ripped through the Afghan capitals diplomatic quarter during the morning rush hour, killing about 150 and wounding around 400 people, mostly civilians.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack that was caused by over 1,500 kg of explosives hidden in a sewage truck, according to Western officials.

Taliban militants rarely claim responsibility for attacks that kill large numbers of civilians.

The militants have intensified their attacks since they launched their spring offensive in late April, with civilians bearing the brunt of the conflict.

According to UN figures, more than 26,500 civilians have died and nearly 49,000 have been injured as a result of armed conflict in Afghanistan since January 2009.  AFP
United Nations, August 6

The Security Council has imposed the toughest-ever sanctions on North Korea, squeezing the flow of the defiant nations economic lifeblood to punish it for its nuclear and missile tests.

US Permanent Representative Nikki Haley, who piloted Resolution 2371 on Saturday, called it the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation.

This is the single largest economic sanctions package ever levelled against the North Korean regime and it will result in the loss of one-third of its exports and hard currency, she added.

The sanctions voted on Saturday seek to block North Koreas exports of coal, iron, iron ore, seafood and lead and prohibit countries from hiring any more of that countrys citizens.

It also banned starting new joint ventures with North Korea or expanding existing ones. Actions against North Korea gained renewed urgency after North Korea tested on July 28 a ballistic missile that experts say could reach major US cities.

North Koreas patron China, with its veto power in the Security Council, holds key to any action against Pyongyang. The sanctions were a triumph for the US that came after Haley worked strenuously to get a reluctant Beijing to agree to further tightening the restrictions on Pyongyang.

US President Donald Trump hailed the vote in a tweet on Saturday evening: The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!

Haley acknowledged that China had made important contributions for getting the sanctions voted and personally thanked its delegation.

Chinas ambassador Liu Jieyi said the resolution showed that the world was united in its position regarding the nuclear position on the Korean peninsula.

The measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006.

Earlier, Liu had blamed Washington for the Korean missile crisis and opposed more sanctions against Pyongyang. He had said Washington had refused to hold talks with Pyongyang and taken action and used language that escalated the tension in the region.

While Beijing relented and agreed to some additional sanctions, Liu noted on Saturday that they did not impact such non-military items such as food and humanitarian aid and this was affirmed in the sanctions resolution.

Chinas emphasis on dialogue to deal with the situation was also echoed in the resolution, which called for resuming the Six-Party Talks involving the two Koreas, China, the US, Russia and Japan.

Both Russia and China pitched to the Security Council their joint July 4 proposal for a two-track approach to the North Korean crisis. It called for Pyongyang suspending nuclear and missile tests, while Washington stops major joint military exercises in the region.

Russias Permanent Representative Vassily Alekseevich Nebenzia said there could be no progress as long as North Korea perceived a direct threat to its security from military exercises by the US and its regional allies and the deployment of the anti-ballistic missile system, Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD).  IANS
United Nations, August 5

The United Nations Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions on North Korea on Saturday that could slash by a third the Asian states $3 billion annual export revenue over Pyongyangs July 2 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

The US-drafted resolution bans North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It also prohibits countries from increasing the current numbers of North Korean laborers working abroad, bans new joint ventures with North Korea and any new investment in current joint ventures.

READ



China urges North Korea dialogue, says sanctions not sole solution

We should not fool ourselves into thinking we have solved the problem. Not even close. The North Korean threat has not left us, it is rapidly growing more dangerous, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told the council.

Further action is required. The United States is taking and will continue to take prudent defencive measures to protect ourselves and our allies, she said, adding that Washington would continue annual joint military exercises with South Korea.

North Korea has accused the United States and South Korea of escalating tensions by conducting military drills.

China and Russia slammed US deployment of the THAAD anti-missile defense system in South Korea. Chinas UN Ambassador Liu Jieyi called for a halt to the deployment and for any equipment in place to be dismantled.

Liu also urged North Korea to cease taking actions that might further escalate tensions.

US President Donald Trump hailed the vote in a Twitter message on Saturday evening.

The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact! Trump wrote.

US pressure on China

Russias UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said he hoped recent remarks by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson were sincere  that the US is not seeking to dismantle the existing situation or to forcibly unite the peninsula or to militarily intervene in the country.

While the Security Council has been divided on how to deal with other international crises like Syria, the 15-member body has remained relatively united on North Korea. Still, negotiating new measures typically takes months, not weeks.

North Korea has been under UN sanctions since 2006 over its ballistic missile and nuclear programs. The new measures came in response to five nuclear weapons tests and four long-range missile launches.

The United States negotiated with China for a month on the resolution, then expanded negotiations to the full council on Friday.

Washington, frustrated that China has not done more to rein in North Korea, has threatened to exert trade pressure on Beijing and impose sanctions on Chinese firms doing business with Pyongyang.

We had tough negotiations this week, Haley told reporters.

I think that the Chinese realized that the United States was going to push, but they responded and we appreciate how they cooperated with us during these negotiations. Liu, asked about US negotiating pressure, said China has been consistent on trying to achieve denuclearization, peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and to re-launch negotiations to achieve this end.

He told reporters China was opposed to any unilateral sanctions outside the agreed framework set by the UN Security Council resolutions.

Russia/US cooperation

It had been unclear whether strained US-Russia relations would hamper negotiations on North Korean sanctions. On Wednesday, Washington imposed unilateral sanctions on Moscow to punish Russia over accusations of interference in the 2016 US presidential election and annexation of Ukraines Crimea.

We are not hostages to our relations when we have to work together on issues which are far more important, Nebenzia told Reuters.

The new UN resolution adds nine individuals and four entities to the UN blacklist, including North Koreas primary foreign exchange bank, subjecting them to a global asset freeze and travel ban.

I would think China and Russia signed on the sanctions hoping that they would force North Korea back to the negotiating table, said Thomas Byrne, president of the New York-based Korea Society. However, North Korea will try to evade the new sanctions.

The new resolution completely bans North Korean exports of coal. In November the Security Council capped the countrys coal exports at $400 million annually. China, its largest buyer, halted imports in February.

A UN diplomat said North Korea had been expected to earn an estimated $251 million from iron and iron ore in 2017, $113 million from lead and lead ore and $295 million from seafood.

The diplomat said it was difficult to estimate how much North Korea was earning from sending workers abroad.

A United Nations human rights investigator said in 2015 that North Korea has forced more than 50,000 people to work abroad, mainly in Russia and China, earning between $1.2 billion and $2.3 billion a year for the countrys government.

Joseph DeThomas, a former State Department official who worked as an adviser on Iran sanctions and previous rounds of North Korea sanctions, said freezing foreign labor will be difficult to enforce.

Overall I doubt that $1 billion number. I doubt it will hit that hard in terms of economic damage, he said. You cannot expect North Korea to buckle for anything less than the sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990.

These sanctions, he said, remain a very long way from there. Reuters
London, August 6

Non-EU visitors including Indians arriving in the UK will soon no longer have to fill the "outdated" landing cards as part of the ongoing digital transformation of border controls, the Home Office has said.

Landing cards are filled out by an estimated 16 million international visitors from outside the European Union (EU), including Indians, annually.

Under proposals published on Sunday, the UK Home Office said the paper-based system, which costs the UK public around 3.6 million pounds (USD 4.6 million) each year, will be replaced as part of the UK Border Force's ongoing digital transformation of border controls.

"We are modernising border technology to ensure Border Force staff stop dealing with outdated paperwork and can continue to focus on security and protecting the public," said Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis.

"In addition, this change will improve the experience for arriving passengers so they get an even better welcome when they land in the UK," he said.

The withdrawal of landing cards, filled out by non-EU passengers since 1971, will not result in the loss of any data that is used for security checks, the Home Office said.

All passengers arriving from outside the EU will continue to be checked against the variety of police, security and immigration watch lists which are used to verify the identity and confirm the status of every passenger arriving at the British airports.

The Home Office has launched a four-week consultation with carriers/airlines, ports and those that use statistics gathered from landing card data before it comes into force later this year.

According to the department, the changes are expected to free up staff and enable Border Force to better deploy their resources.

At the same time, the changes will improve the experience for travellers as passengers will no longer need to fill out the paper cards while on board the flight or in queues at airports and ports.

The airports and ports, on the other hand, will no longer have to purchase and distribute them.

It is expected that queue lengths will be shortened and passenger flows improved at British airports, a move welcomed by Heathrow airport, the largest UK hub.

Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye said in a statement: "We warmly welcome this proposed change, which would give visitors to Britain an improved experience, whilst maintaining a secure border into the UK".

"In post-Brexit Britain, it will be even more important to show we are open for business and make sure that we give investors, tourists and students a great welcome to our country. We look forward to continuing to work closely with the new Immigration Minister and Border Force over the coming years to keep improving the passenger experience at the UK's border," Holland-Kaye said.

The proposals have been characterised as part of the Home Office's ongoing transformation at the border, which includes enhancing Border Force's ability both to facilitate legitimate travel and ensure the security of the border.

"This programme of work has already seen the introduction of 232 e-gates at 21 ports and since June has seen more than a million passengers use them each week. This has enabled Border Force officers to work on other security and intelligence matters," the Home Office said.

The changes are in addition to the ongoing Digital Services at the Border (DSAB) programme, which is modernising technology at the border to improve intelligence gathering on goods and passengers and increase security.

The UK Border Force has also increased the use of Advance Passenger Information, with systems in place to receive data on 100 per cent of scheduled flights for all international journeys to and from the UK. PTI
Washington, August 6

Asserting that President Donald Trump will no longer tolerate any support to militants, US National Security Adviser Gen H R McMaster on Sunday asked Pakistan to change its paradoxical policy of supporting selective terror groups.

US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad denies.

The President has also made clear that he, that we need to see a change in in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others, the National Security Advisor, McMaster, was quoted by MSNBC as saying.

This is Pakistan in particular that we want to that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups, he said, in response to a question on Afghanistan and terrorism in the region.

He said that Trump is making clear that the US will no longer tolerate any support for the Taliban or related groups.

Of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but theyve done so really only selectively, he said.

Pakistans two neighboursboth India and Afghanistan  have accused it of being selective in its war against terrorism.

McMaster said that Trump has lifted restrictions on US armed forces in Afghanistan.

He also defended Trumps strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country.

The president has said that, He does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat.

He has lifted those restrictions, and you are beginning to see the payoff of that as well, the top US national security advisor said. PTI
Candidates and elections: The former chief drug enforcement officer said last week he will be a candidate for the state Senate in 2018.

Pete Weaver, who retired last year as director of the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drug Control, will run as a Republican in House District 24, where GOP incumbent Anthony Sikes is term-limited.

Fifth District Congressman Steve Russell confirmed he will seek re-election in 2018.

Meetings and events: Heart of the Party, the Tulsa County Democratic Party womens organization, meets at 6 p.m. Monday at Baxters Interurban, 717 S. Houston Ave.

The seven candidates for the Senate District 37 Republican special election will speak at the Republican Womens Club of Tulsa County at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 7902 S. Lewis Ave.

Also speaking will be retired U.S. Air National Guard Gen. Rita Aragon.

Gov. Mary Fallin is holding a clothing drive to benefit Suited for Success from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday in the governors large conference on the second floor of the Capitol. Suited for Success provides business attire for low-income women seeking employment.

The Tulsa Democratic Partys luncheon club meets at 11:30 a.m. Friday at Baxters Interurban, 717 S. Houston Ave.

Gubernatorial candidate Connie Johnson will speak to the North Tulsa County Democrats Dinner Club at 6 p.m. Aug. 14, at Sweet Lisas Cafe, 1717 N. Peoria Ave.
OKLAHOMA CITY  In a crowded courtroom on Tuesday, the Oklahoma Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on a series of legal challenges to measures the Legislature passed last session to fund state government.

The outcome, one way or another, could be monumental.

According to several of the plaintiffs, if some of measures are allowed to stand, a 1992 state question that put restrictions on tax increases will be gutted.

State Question 640 requires tax increases to receive three-fourths support in both chambers of the Legislature or go to a vote of the people. State law says revenue-raising measures cant be enacted in the last five days of session and they must start in the House.

If the court deems one or more of the measures invalid, lawmakers could be called into a special session to attempt to fix a gaping budget hole.

In June, tobacco companies and others filed suit against Senate Bill 845, which puts a $1.50 fee on a pack of cigarettes effective Aug. 24. The action came after failed attempts to pass it as a tax increase.

The measure originated in the Senate, did not receive three-fourths support and was passed in the last five days of the session.

It is expected to generate $257 million to help close a budget hole of $878 million. Lawmakers put $215 million of that revenue into the fiscal year 2018 budget, which began July 1.

Also in June, auto dealers filed suit challenging House Bill 2433. The measure removes the sales-tax exemption on vehicles, thus imposing a 1.25 percent sales tax on top of the existing 3.25 percent excise tax.

The law is expected to generate slightly more than $123 million for the fiscal year 2018 budget. It did not receive a super majority and secured final approval on May 26, the last day of the session.

Also in June, Republican gubernatorial candidate Gary Richardson, a Tulsa attorney, filed a legal challenge against three bills, including the new sales tax on cars.

He also challenged House Bill 1449, which puts a $100 fee on electric-drive motor vehicle registration and a $30 fee on hybrid-drive motor vehicle registrations. The law is expected to generate slightly more than $1 million.

Richardson alleges the measure was passed in the last five days of session and did not secure a super majority required for a tax increase.

He is also challenging House Bill 2348, which uncouples Oklahomas annual tax deduction from the federal deduction level. It is expected to raise $4.4 million. He alleges it is a tax increase that did not receive a super majority.

This is going to be a really critical decision, and there are a lot of Oklahomans eyes on what the potential outcome of this decision could mean for our state and state funding, said Rep. Meloyde Blancett, D-Tulsa. Do we want to fund basic government services with one-time, what I think are unconstitutional fees, or do we want to address this in a responsible, strategic way?

She said people are angry and believe lawmakers are not doing their jobs.

Were all kind of on pins and needles waiting to see if were going to be in special session, Blancett said.

David Blatt, executive director of the Oklahoma Policy Institute, says lawmakers could be left scrambling to find other ways to fund the government.

Obviously, there are several bills being challenged, and they have widely different fiscal impacts, Blatt said. I think that if the court strikes down either the tobacco measure or the measure adding a sales tax to motor vehicles, it would create a large enough budget shortfall the Legislature should immediately come back into special session to find more revenue.

Jason Sutton, a spokesman for House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, said a majority of lawmakers, as evidenced by their votes, believe the measures adhere to the law.

Due to widespread interest, the Oklahoma Supreme Courts website, oscn.net, will provide a streaming link for watching the oral arguments.
A 50-year-old man was killed Saturday in a single-vehicle crash in LeFlore County, according to an Oklahoma Highway Patrol report.

Rodney Tackett, of Bokoshe, Oklahoma, was driving a 2001 Ford Taurus about noon on a stretch of Oklahoma 9 about three miles north of Bokoshe when he failed to negotiate a curve, the report states.

His vehicle departed the roadway and struck a culvert and then a communication cabinet. Tackett was pronounced dead at the scene.

Troopers are still investigating the cause of the wreck, in addition to the condition of the driver at the time of the incident, the report states.

Tackett was not wearing a seat belt.
Organizers for the Great River Raft Race are looking for Tulsans to help revive the races Sand Sculpture Challenge.

The Sand Sculpture Challenge ended more than two decades ago. After the raft race was revived, the organizers decided it was time to bring back the companion event, in which teams craft art with sand and water, during the race on the Arkansas River.

Shagah Zakerion, marketing director for the Great River Raft Race, said bringing the challenge back was an act of nostalgia.

It was a no-brainer that the competition make a comeback, Zakerion said. Its another example of bringing life to the Arkansas River, bring Tulsans down to the river to really have some fun and be creative with the way we can use this natural resource.

Organizers are looking for more entrants to the challenge. As of Friday, only a handful of teams had signed up, Zakerion said. Interested parties can register a team, consisting of two to six people, at tulsaraftrace.com. The entry fee is $250.

Teams will be given a 15-foot-by-15-foot area to sculpt their vision. Teams are challenged to use sand and water only. The teams are welcome to bring preferred sculpting tools. Registration closes Aug. 15.

Andy Kinslow, founder of KKT Architects, said his team in the 80s sourced additional building materials  rocks and sticks  from the river area.

It was a very interesting process, Kinslow said. You had to keep it very wet when you were working with it. We actually practiced on sand to figure out how to make it stick together.

They developed a water mixture, using sticks as rebar, to hold their sculpture together as it dried, he said.

Kinslows team sculpted a hand erasing a Victorian house. It was their social comment on the need for historic preservation.

He said Tulsa, in the 80s, was losing many of its Art Deco buildings.

After their sculpture was complete, Kinslows team allowed the elements to tear it down.

John Gowdy, a world-champion sand sculptor from the East Coast, will produce a Tulsa-themed exhibition piece and judge the competition. Gowdy, according to the challenges website, will walk participants through a how to clinic before the contest starts.

The 2017 revival of the Sand Sculpture Challenge, previously featured on Good Morning America in 1991, will be held at West Festival Park.

The raft race on Labor Day, Sept. 4, is expected to draw more than 1,000 people to the Arkansas River to float the eight miles from Sand Springs to Tulsa.
Sunday, August 6, 2017

When an attorney is suspended from practice, he or she is generally obligated to so notify current clients, opposing counsel and the courts in each case in which an appearance has been entered.

Most places require an affidavit demonstrating compliance.

Some places take that obligation seriously; others do not.

California does.

Attorneys there are regularly prosecuted - and are subject to tough sanctions - for the failure to comply with the notification and affidavit obligations.

An unpublished opinion of the California State Bar Court Review Department concludes that an attorney failed to comply with the notification requirements ordered as part of a two year suspension.

we affirm the hearing judges finding that Eldridge willfully violated rule 9.20, but also find her culpable for moral turpitude by gross negligence for filing a false compliance affidavit. We affirm the judges finding in aggravation for Eldridges prior discipline and assign it significant weight because the prior misconduct was serious and similar to the misconduct here. We also affirm the judges mitigation findings for good character, emotional difficulties, and remorse, but do not allow mitigation for lack of harm.

The Review Department further concluded that progressive discipline requires a three-year suspension.

In this matter, the attorney had failed to properly notify four clients of her suspension

Eldridge argues that she had only imperfect compliance because she had either substituted out or withdrawn from each case on May 26, 2010, the day before the effective date of her suspension. However, as the hearing judge found, Eldridges assertion that withdrawing as of May 26, 2010, immunized her from rule 9.20s requirements is not supported by case law. To the contrary, case law is well settled that strict compliance with rule 9.20 is required because the rule performs the critical prophylactic function of ensuring that all concerned parties including clients, co-counsel, opposing counsel or adverse parties, and any tribunal in which litigation is pendinglearn about an attorneys discipline. (Lydon v. State Bar (1988) 45 Cal.3d 1181, 1187, citing Durbin v. State Bar (1979) 23 Cal.3d 461, 467-468 [referring to former rule 9.55, previous version of rule 9.20].) The operative date for identification of clients being represented in pending matters and others to be notified under rule 9.20 is the filing date of the Supreme Court order for compliance, not the later effective date. (Athearn v. State Bar (1982) 32 Cal.3d 38, 45 [rule 9.55 clearly contemplates advance notice to existing clients notice to clients at effective date of Supreme Court order does not comply].) Therefore, Eldridge had to provide written notice, as required by rule 9.20, for cases that were pending as of the April 27, 2010, filing date of the Supreme Courts order, and her failure to do so establishes her culpability.

And the lapse involved the dread moral turpitude

We find that Eldridges misrepresentations were made with gross negligence amounting to moral turpitude because she recklessly failed to carefully and accurately fill out the rule 9.20 declaration. The Supreme Court has held that gross negligence can constitute moral turpitude both when the behavior impacts an attorneys duties to a client and when it affects non-clients.

The Review Department accepted the findings below on mitigation but nonetheless increased the sanction proposed by the hearing department by a year, noting that the misconduct involved a false affidavit.

In the District of Columbia, the only significant consequence of not filing the required affidavit is that the time for serving the suspension does not start for reinstatement purposes until a compliant affidavit is filed.

until the  14(f) affidavit is filed, the period of suspension does not begin to run (although the suspension itself is, of course, effective from the time it is imposed)

(Mike Frisch)

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/legal_profession/2017/08/an-unpublished-opinion-of-the-california-state-bar-court-review-department-concludes-that-an-attorney-failed-to-comply-with-t.html
On 26 July 2017, a Conference on Islamic University Education was held. Speaking at this conference, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has confirmed that the foundational stones for an Islamic University will be laid in Istanbul.

He has proposed appointing as dean, the star preacher of the Muslim Brotherhood, Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, someone whom Saudi Arabia and Egypt have just placed on their list of terrorist leaders.

So just who is Yusuf al-Qaradawi? Some key facts:

 Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser stripped him of his nationality in 1967.

 During the civil war in Algeria, the French Minister of Internal Affairs, Charles Pasqua, considered him to be one of the chief terrorist leaders. Yusuf was then forbidden from staying in France and his books were banned.

 In 2004 Prince Charles appointed him administrator of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies.

 When preparations for the Arab Spring were underway and he was still benefitting from the support of the UK, he became the spiritual adviser of Qatars TV channel, al-Jazeera.

 He appealed for the assassination of first Muammar Gaddafi and then Bashar el-Assad.

 In 2015, he declared that Recep Tayyip Erdogan should succeed Abou Bakr al-Baghdadi as Islams next caliph.

The Islamic University of Istanbul is a project that aims to set up an alternative to the University of al-Azhar in Cairo, the metaphysical naval of the Islamic world. The latter institution has actually lost all dignity (sic) since students can meet women that attend it (sic).
Michael Kelly. Photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images

Michael Kelly, a man intimately familiar with playing a willing enforcer of a historically unsavory presidential agenda, is campaigning for the chance to shift into political satire. The House of Cards actor took to Twitter on Saturday to affirm his long-standing desire to play White House policy adviser Stephen Miller, always one of the more (heinously) memorable characters in the Trump administration, on the upcoming season of Saturday Night Live. We say long-standing because this isnt even the first time hes expressed such an interest: Way back in February, when his physical resemblance to Miller was first pointed out to him on Twitter, Kelly wrote to SNL, If you happen to need someone Im around. Now, with Miller reportedly being considered for communications director, Kelly has eagerly reiterated his availability, writing, Oh please oh please I might finally get my shot. Of course, if Miller does indeed succeed Anthony Scaramucci and Sean Spicer, his portrayer will have some pretty big shoes to fill: Melissa McCarthys Spicey impersonation was overwhelmingly beloved, and while SNL didnt have the chance to spoof Scaramucci, the Mooch emerged as a tragicomic sketch character perfectly well on his own, during his (very) brief White House tenure. But should he get the call, Kelly wont be short on juicy material.
A local church congregation is trying to set an example for others by becoming the first in Waco to use solar panels to save money and protect the environment, Lake Shore Baptist Church officials said Friday.

Lake Shore Baptist Churchs congregation spent the past two weeks installing 140 separate panels on top of the 20th-century building, and making other energy-efficient upgrades throughout the building to bring it into the 21st century, said David Mosley, chairman of the churchs building and grounds committee.

The group committed about $180,000 to the entire project, also replacing all fluorescent lighting with LED lights and installing high-efficiency heating and cooling units to the most-used areas of the church, he said. Those areas include the front office, the daycare center and a multipurpose meeting room.

A part of our church doing the right thing these days is to be green, Mosley stated in a press release. Of course, we have to exercise wise stewardship in our efforts throughout the wider community and in reducing our carbon footprint. This project combines all of these.

The group spent about a year and half studying the outcomes of the project before going through with it. The installation was done by the Austin-based company Freedom Solar Power, which has done about 30 major solar-panel projects throughout the state, Mosley said. He called about 10 leaders out of those 30 projects to get a better understanding of whether the installation would be worth it, he said.

The church expects to save about $6,000 a year on energy bills, because the changes will cover about 90 percent of the churchs needs for the next 25 to 35 years, Mosley said.

This will make the building last longer and what is saved will go toward Lake Shore Baptist Churchs mission, the Rev. Kyndall Rae Rothaus said.

Were really a service-oriented church, so there are lots of different things that money could potentially go to, which is exciting to think about, Rothaus said. It gives us the chance to dream a little.

The energy project was inspired by church elders Skip and Sandy Londos and Alan Northcutt, the leader of the Waco Friends of Peace, an organization committed to climate-change activism, Mosley said. The Londos family worked closely with the group to propose the idea and start the discussion, Sandy Londos said.

The Londoses installed several solar panels on their home nine or 10 years ago, and the highest electric bill theyve had since was about $155 at the peak of Texas heat in August, she said. Theyve been with the church for more than 40 years.

Im thrilled with the church going green, I really am, Sandy Londos said. Its an investment in the long term. You know, Ill probably be gone and Kyndall may be gone, but hopefully itll help the building and will help with posterity.

The energy upgrades will start paying for themselves by year 16, Mosley said. But it helps that the church is expected to recoup some costs almost immediately with an energy rebate of about $28,000 from ONCOR Energy, and the resale of their previous light fixtures and two older air-conditioning units for about $2,500, Mosley stated in a release.

The church also got about $30,000 from a family who wanted to help the church kickstart the project and another $36,000 from private pledges before the project went up for an official vote by church leaders in March, Mosley stated.

Scientists have been telling us we should be better stewards of our world for quite some time, Rothaus stated in the release. By taking these steps, we hope to show it is possible to go green on a large scale  without the building collapsing.
Days after a Waco Police Department SWAT officer was struck and pinned under an SUV during the execution of a search warrant, community support continues to pour in for the injured officer.

Officer William Graeber, an eight-year police veteran, was run over by a GMC Yukon driven by Kerry Demars Bradley, 37, of Waco, as officers tried to serve a search warrant on Bradley, his residence and cars Tuesday. During the attempt, Bradley intentionally ran Graeber over before officers shot and killed Bradley near North 23rd Street and Olive Avenue.

After the incident, officers pulled together and established a fundraising account at Extraco Bank for donations to Graeber and his family. The Waco Police Association stated that monetary donations can be made at any Extraco Bank location, or mailed donations can be sent to the Waco Police Department, attn: Commander Scott Holt, 3115 Pine Ave., Waco, TX 76708.

Graeber suffered extensive injuries and was taken to Baylor Scott & White Hillcrest Medical Center, where he was listed in critical but stable condition, Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton said at the time. Graebers condition remained unchanged Thursday.

Graebers wife told police Wednesday that her husband sustained three broken ribs, a broken pelvis, a broken collarbone, a collapsed lung, a concussion, and burns to his arm from the incident. She added Thursday that no additional surgeries are anticipated and doctors hope to start rehabilitation therapy as early as next week if his condition continues to improve.

Community members continued to offer support for Graeber and his family as W. Promotions, a downtown screen printing company, designed and donated a banner in honor of the injured officer.

We have worked with the police department for a long time, but even if we hadnt, the fact of what these guys do every day and what officers face and sacrifice, this was something that we wanted to contribute to honor him, W. Promotions co-owner Trent Weaver said.

Swanton said in an email Thursday afternoon that the Graeber family was touched by the gesture.

Will and Mrs. Graeber are completely astounded with the amount of support and love they have been receiving from everyone, Swanton wrote. They both are very humble people and have difficulty taking in all the support they are receiving. The banner we have in our lobby for our community to sign and the donation account set up was emotional for them to grasp.

Citizens are encouraged to sign the banner outside the lobby of the police department at 3115 Pine Ave.

Swanton said residents who would like to offer resources for the family by sending flowers, food or other resources are asked to contact Waco police Officer Mike Bucher at 230-3184.
Last week: Oglesby resident John C. Barnes, a native of Blackwell and son of a Methodist preacher, joined the U.S. Navy during World War II as a radio operator. Stationed aboard the USS Ozark, a landing ship vehicle that carried troops and amphibious Ducks (DUKWs), Barnes took turns with other radio operators ferrying Marines to the Iwo Jima shores.

Oglesby resident and former Navy radioman John C. Barnes was just 18 years old in February 1945 when his ship, the USS Ozark, participated in the landings on Iwo Jima as part of the 3rd Amphibious Force. Now 91, he hasnt forgotten his harrowing experience there  or the one that followed in Okinawa.

Published sources note there were more than a half-dozen Japanese battalions firing on the troops in Iwo Jima that by nightfall accounted for more than 550 dead Marines and over 1,800 wounded. Despite having to ferry Marines to the shores of Iwo Jima, Barnes came through unharmed. But the danger wasnt over just yet. There still was the Okinawa invasion yet to come.

History shows the Okinawa invasion was among the most brutal and bloody of the Pacific War. The Navy suffered its greatest casualties for a single engagement; more than 12,000 Americans were killed and more than 150,000 Japanese (many civilians) died during the battle.

Its frightening. It seemed like it happened so fast, but youre too busy and dont have time to feel it, he said.

On Easter Sunday, April 1, 1945, the invasion began. Once again, as he did in Iwo Jima, Barnes ferried U.S. soldiers to the shore. It wasnt something he would soon forget.

They had to throw everything they had against us. Thats when they started the kamikaze, he said. The whole plane becomes a bomb. That was frightening. We had one hit close to our ship. That ship just rolled and was tossed up in the air.

After Okinawa, the Ozark sailed to Guam to prepare for the invasion of Japan, but with the dropping of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Barnes and crew got a ringside seat to history when Japan formally surrendered on the deck of the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on Sept. 2, 1945. While he wasnt on the ship where the ceremony took place, he was close enough to witness it via binoculars.

Ironically, even though war was technically over, the enemy fired a torpedo at the Ozark just as she was entering Tokyo Bay. Fortunately, no one was hurt.

From Japan, the Ozark picked up POWs and brought them home. They werent in very good shape, Barnes said. But they were as happy as could be.

The Ozark and Barnes returned to the Pacific to pick up a load of American troops. A lot of them went to Pearl Harbor. The ship then sailed through the Panama Canal on her way home. Barnes was honorably discharged in May 1946.

Before he was discharged, Barnes was already working for West Texas Utilities. He attended McMurry University for two years, then transferred to Southern Methodist University. He earned a bachelors degree in accounting.

While attending college, he met Betty Bates and they were married shortly thereafter just as he started his 39-career with Texaco in Houston. She passed away in 1988 after 39 years of marriage and two children.

Today, Barnes has four grandchildren and two great-grandkids. He keeps busy as a member of the Lions Club and his church in Oglesby. He also still works on his farm.

Happy to have served

Its now been some 73 years since Barnes served with the Navy during World War II. Although he wouldnt want to have to do it again, he was glad to have served. Im proud that I got to serve. I have no regrets, he said.

And Barnes was grateful that he had a support system back home that helped him get through some of his tougher moments during the war. Its a message he wants those waiting at home to remember.

Letters of encouragement

Letters from home played such an important role; hearing my name called in port or at ports around the world reassured me that I was loved and not forgotten, that the service I was performing was important and that everyone was praying for my safe return, Barnes said.

The horrors of war and the day-to-day unknown has the ability to wear one down both emotionally and spiritually, but receiving letters is the best medicine for fear and loneliness  to simply know loved ones care deeply and are awaiting your return.
Harold D. Humbert

Nov. 11, 1937 - Aug. 3, 2017

Harold D. Humbert, 79, passed away August 3, 2017 in Temple, Texas.

Funeral services will be held 2:00 p.m., Thursday, August 10, at Connally Compton Funeral Directors. Burial will follow in Robinson Cemetery. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service.

Harold was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, on November 11, 1937, to Chester E. and Viola Grace (Smith) Humbert. He retired from the City of Waco Water Department. Harold loved riding his motorcycle and watching religious programs.

He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Mattie Humbert; and several siblings.

Survivors include his children, Dan Humbert (Tammy), Tim Humbert, Kenny Humbert, Jerry Humbert (Cyndy), Dennis Humbert, Bill Wise, Nancy Bennett (Robert), and Kathleen Bennett; several grandchildren and two siblings.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health at www.johnritterfoundation.org.
Armando "Ditto" Sanchez, 57, formerly of Waco; son of Rebecca and Felipe Sanchez, Jr., passed away July 17, 2017 in California. Mass of Christian burial will be 10:00 a.m., Monday, August 7, at St. Louis Catholic Church with the Rev. John Guzaldo officiating. Burial with military honors will follow at Oakwood Cemetery.
Ronald Jay Webb

March 30, 1958 - July 26, 2017

Ronald Jay Webb passed away on July, 26, 2017. A memorial service will be at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, August 12, at Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home. A private interment at Oakwood Cemetery, Waco, Texas, will be held at a later date.

Ron was born in China Lake, California, on March 30, 1958, the son of Phil Abernethy and Helen Dean Webb. He grew up in Waco, attended Vanguard High School, and then Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas. For several years he worked as a flight captain for Southwest Airlines.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Phil & Helen Webb.

He is survived by his daughter, Stephanie Webb; and brother, Phil A. Webb, Jr.

The family invites you to leave a message or memory on our "Tribute Wall" at www.WHBfamily.com.
The countdown is now underway before Texas stringent sanctuary city law  arguably the toughest in the nation  goes into effect Sept. 1. And the tide rebelling against it is only growing. Just last week various religious groups entered the melee, filing court briefs to block implementation of a law they say will harm their faith communities.

And a report in the Houston Chronicle suggests that, yes, there is a real cost to the laws racial profiling: Each year hundreds of U.S. citizens end up being wrongfully deported. Anyone want to guess to what ethnicity most of them belong?

Senate Bill 4, passed during the Texas Legislatures regular session and signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott on May 7, is wrong on multiple levels, as the above examples suggest. This is an example of crass political opportunism, which makes very poor public policy. What the bill mandates is that local law enforcement do federal immigration enforcements job for them  and that local officers can now inquire as to the immigration status of anyone they encounter. And police administrators can be punished if they try to deter their rank and file from doing so.

Its also an unfunded mandate. Our local law enforcement has more than enough to do without having to take on illegal immigrants too. The feds arent going to pay for this extra work. Rather, we Texas taxpayers will. And so we will have our officers efforts diluted from their regular duties through this extra work, making us less safe, not more.

There is another more serious reduction in public safety attributable to the effects of this law: Fear of being deported will prompt vulnerable populations to quit reporting crimes in their communities. Lack of crimes reported means criminal activities will explode. Weve seen this before. Its real. More than a decade ago, Waco Police Chief Alberto Melis valiantly conducted outreach to reassure immigrants legal and otherwise that the local police were not coming after them but were only interested in battling local crime. Now, who can say?

Heres a basic morality problem as well as a legal problem: Unless an officer actually knows the person, how can he tell an illegal immigrant from a legal immigrant, in turn from an American citizen of Hispanic heritage? He cannot. The May 16 column by former Trib columnist Sandra Sanchez, now of the McAllen Monitor, raised understandable fears about her daughter being stopped in an instance of pure racial profiling.

There are simply a lot more U.S. citizens of Hispanic heritage than there are Mexican immigrants of either type, making the odds of a justifiable status inquiry poor. Because it must be based on physical appearance, this is inherently discrimination in the form of racial profiling. And thats not only morally wrong, its already illegal. Each and every such inquiry as to immigration status during a chance encounter is therefore already a crime.

Theres an even larger problem relating to the survival of our democracy: The only way folks of Hispanic heritage have to answer the immigration status question is to show papers proving their origins. But U.S. citizens are not required to carry citizenship papers, so this situation is incredibly ripe for abuse whether by malicious intent or careless neglect. All it takes is one officer uninterested in tracking down the truth about a person with no papers to get a U.S. citizen deported unjustly. And, as noted above, this sort of thing has already happened. Its very wrong. Its about to get worse.

Some will call for all U.S. citizens to carry citizenship papers or some other kind of federal ID. That path leads to government databases identifying who everybody is and where they live. And that should be enough to leave some Americans  especially those with a dubious view of government, no matter whos in charge  more than a little nervous.

Information is power. Up to now, we Americans have strongly resisted putting such power into the hands of our government, and for good reason. That was part of how the Nazis took over in Germany. In this case, it could start with folks of Mexican appearance. Pretty soon it could spread to other skin colors. Finally, we all could lose our liberty to a dictatorship because great power corrupts greatly.

Will history repeat itself here in the land of the free?
The motto for this special legislative session is by now obvious: Dont Mess With Texas Government.

After years spent fighting the federal governments regulations and rulings by repeatedly piercing the notion of one-size-fits-all, legislators are ignoring the diversity of their own vast and varied state. Theyre suddenly interested in consolidating power at the state level  and forcing localities to be run according to strict state dictates. Suddenly, government closest to the people is no longer the best government.

Gov. Greg Abbott seems most interested in making sure the state is the nexus of power. While GOP governors nationwide champion the 10th Amendment right of states to self-govern, he has settled on the notion he and the Legislature were meant to keep power midway between the federal government and local governing entities such as cities, counties and school districts. Legislation this session includes, for instance, bills preempting tree and cellphone ordinances.

A state exercising central power does have merits. There are a couple of bills limiting local governments I support. I do think annexation by a city should be left to the local voters and shouldnt be permitted of local governments unilaterally. It should be a collective decision by all people potentially affected by it.

And I do think speeding up the local permitting processes is a good idea. Many projects requiring permits benefit the broader public when expediency is added into the mix. Local governments should have reasonable permit requirements and work diligently, promptly.

I also agree with restrictions on tax money going to private entities such as Planned Parenthood, whatever its mission. The job of government is not to keep non-profit entities or even businesses open, its merely to provide an environment that allows one to better control its fate. That shouldnt necessarily include public funding.

I do believe that the central legislation for this session  the bathroom bill  is ridiculous. Despite some Republicans claim that it protects Texans by restricting bathroom use by transgender people, they should be more honest. Its powered by deeply held religious beliefs and nothing more  unless you count all the accompanying political pandering and posturing.

If safety was the issue, Im sure some statistics could back up any argument for this bill. Instead, were guided not by the Constitution but by religious fervor that counts on oppressing people should others deem them repulsive. Its no wonder the business community is expressing concern about potential fallout.

Meanwhile, all of us better come to grips with the new reality in Texas. State government has decided to take more seriously the idea that cities and counties are no more than mere political subdivisions of the state  and that many decisions once upon a time left to city council members and county commissioners and the communities in which they live and work will in the future be decided by state legislators and the governor, often operating under very different motives. A few years ago the overriding villain for most Texans was federal overreach and the Obama administration. Are cities and counties convenient stand-ins for the latter now that Republicans run the federal government?
When President Donald Trump is feeling put-upon, he retreats to his happy place: standing before a crowd of enthusiastic supporters who will cheer wildly for him and allow him to feel as though its still just the 2016 campaign.

So Thursday night he went to West Virginia so he could feel the love and be able to dismiss a widening and deepening investigation into his campaign and administration as nothing more than a witch hunt. But if its a witch hunt, there are an awful lot of people around the president who just happen to be wearing pointy hats.

Lets go over everything that weve learned just in the last few days about where the Russia investigation is going:

Special counsel Robert Mueller began using a grand jury in federal court in Washington several weeks ago as part of his investigation of possible coordination between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign, which allows him to subpoena testimony and documents. While this is not a surprise (thats how special counsels work), if nothing else it shows that the initial phase of the investigation produced enough evidence to keep going.

The grand jury has issued subpoenas in connection with a June 2016 meeting that included President Trumps son, his son-in-law and a Russian lawyer, two sources told Reuters on Thursday, signaling an investigation is gathering pace into suspected Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election.

The grand jury has also subpoenaed documents related to former national security adviser Michael Flynns business dealings and Flynn filed an amended federal financial disclosure report late Thursday providing new details about his contracts with the Trump presidential transition, a company connected to an Iranian American businessman, and the parent company of a data science firm that worked for the Trump campaign. Funny how people like Flynn and Jared Kushner keep remembering things they forgot to include on their disclosure forms.

According to CNN, FBI investigators turned up intercepted communications appearing to show efforts by Russian operatives to coordinate with Trump associates on damaging Hillary Clintons election prospects, officials said. CNN has learned those communications included references to campaign chairman Paul Manafort.

Vox reports: Shortly after the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller in May, acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe told several of the highest-ranking managers of the bureau they should consider themselves possible witnesses in any investigation into whether President Donald Trump engaged in obstruction of justice, according to two senior federal law enforcement officials. As one senior law enforcement official described it to Vox, This has never been the word of Trump against what [James Comey] has had to say. This is more like the Federal Bureau of Investigation versus Donald Trump.

Two bipartisan pairs of senators unveiled legislation Thursday to prevent President Trump from firing special counsel Mueller without cause  or at least a reason good enough to convince a panel of federal judges. Although it may be hard to imagine Trump signing such a bill, its a clear signal that even some in his own party want him to understand that firing Mueller would probably set off a constitutional crisis.

What we have here are three separate tracks of investigation, any one of which could produce evidence of acts that are politically scandalous at a minimum but could even be criminal. The first is the original justification for the probe: the possibility of collusion between the Russian government and the Trump campaign. What we know for certain so far is that Russia engaged in an effort to help Trump get elected and that those closest to Trump were at the very least interested in obtaining Russias help (the now-infamous meeting Donald Trump Jr., Kushner and Manafort took with a group of shady Russians because they believed they would be provided with dirt on Hillary Clinton).

The second track is the question of whether the president himself obstructed justice in his efforts to shut down the Russia probe. What we know so far may or may not constitute obstruction, but its certainly damning. The president admitted on national television that he fired Comey in order to stop the investigation into Russia. He also tried to enlist the director of National Intelligence and the head of the National Security Agency to discredit the probe. We dont know what else he may have done or whose help he got.

The third track, which will likely wind up being the most complicated one, is whether there is any other wrongdoing  particularly financial  that is uncovered in the course of investigating the first two tracks. If the special counsel finds evidence suggesting that some crimes have been committed, even if they dont relate directly to the original purpose of the investigation, he has a legal obligation to pursue them and find out whether theres anything there.

No one who has even a passing familiarity with Trumps business dealings and history believes that once you turn over that rock there wont be lots of slimy creatures squirming about. Some of that may have to do with Russia, since the countrys oligarchs and mobsters seem to have been unusually eager to buy Trump properties and invest in Trump projects over the years. But there may also be questionable or criminal dealings that have nothing to do with Russia  and if Mueller comes across them, we can assume hell pursue them.

At that West Virginia rally last week, Trump told his supporters, The Russia story is a total fabrication. Its just an excuse for the greatest loss in the history of American politics. He then said, What the prosecutors should be looking at are Hillary Clintons 33,000 deleted emails, at which the crowd erupted in a positively orgasmic cheer that then turned into chants of Lock her up!

It was as if they were transported back a year, when they could feel the adrenaline rush of pure hatred flowing through them and everything was simple. But after it was all over, the president flew back to Washington, where nothing is simple and the noose is tightening around him.
A postal vote on same-sex marriage would likely be invalid without legislation and struck down in the High Court, according to legal advice obtained by marriage equality advocates.

In the first detailed legal opinion to be presented on a same-sex marriage postal vote, lawyers argued the Turnbull government could not circumvent Parliament to enact a postal plebiscite.

More than 54,000 new voters have enrolled in the past two weeks. The roll closes Thursday.

The advice, prepared by Ron Merkel QC and Christopher Tran, and seen by Fairfax Media, suggested the High Court would likely rule a postal vote invalid unless authorised by a specific law.

Same-sex marriage campaigners have seized the advice and committed to a legal challenge if Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull goes ahead with the idea, which has been gaining traction among Coalition MPs.
Australia is eighth out of the top 30 opioid producing countries in the world., 2012-2014. Credit:Lancet, July 29, 2017 A former adviser to the White House, Professor Humphreys said the two countries with true prescription opioid epidemics were the United States and Canada. "I wrote the article in the hopes that Australia and nations like it would avoid my country's mistakes and take action before the epidemic takes hold," he said. He urged countries to immediately assess and strengthen all available safeguards against the globalisation of the prescription opioid addiction and overdose epidemic. Legally produced pharmaceutical opioids were the origin of the American epidemic and still fuel the problem, he wrote, often by addicting people who later transition to heroin. He added that heroin and gangs dealing with fentanyl  a prescription opioid commonly prescribed for cancer pain and which is 50 to 100 times more concentrated than morphine  had added to the death toll by strategically establishing markets in areas with high prescription opioid use.

The idea that there are good patients with pain, and then some other group of patients is not understanding the complexity of the problem with opioids. Dr Suzanne Nielsen In 2014, figures released by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme found that just fewer than 3 million people had been prescribed at least one opioid analgesic in the previous 12 months, and warned of increasing rates of oxycodone usage. Australia had a relatively high opioid use per capita, but was nowhere near the same stratosphere as the US, said Suzanne Nielsen, a pharmacist and National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre's senior research fellow specialising in prescription drug problems. Increasingly users of illegal opioids and those who got drugs legally were overlapping. To view them as two separate groups was unhelpful and stigmatising, said Dr Nielsen. People with chronic pain did develop opioid use disorders, and some loss of control occurred. And about 40 per cent of those with substance abuse disorders have had chronic pain, she said. "The idea that there are good patients with pain, and then some other group of patients is not understanding the complexity of the problem with opioids," Dr Nielsen said.

Like most people in rehabilitation at Sydney's Odyssey House, John was a poly-drug user. When he was on methadone, adding prescription opioids gave him the closest thing to the high he got from heroin. He would buy pills and prescriptions written for others who had gone to the doctor for pain-relieving medication. Experts say the chronic use of heroin, oxycodone, and other morphine-derived drugs are underlying causes of opioid dependence (the need to keep taking drugs to avoid a withdrawal syndrome) and addiction (intense drug craving and compulsive use). John also found it easy to get a doctor to prescribe painkillers if he mentioned his "back pain" and went doctor shopping until he found someone sympathetic. Last year John overdosed twice when he shot up heroin that he believed had been laced with fentanyl. Although he said he lost everything, including his three children, friends and the jobs that he held down despite his addiction, he didn't lose his life.

He was luckier than musician Prince who died from a fentanyl overdose in 2016, and many others who accidentally overdosed on prescription opioids alone or mixed with other drugs.



New research released this month found accidental overdoses from prescription opioids far exceeded those from heroin. Researchers at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre found 68 per cent of the 668 overdose deaths in 2013 were related to pharmaceutical opioids, a contrast from the heroin epidemic of the 1990s when the majority of opioid deaths were caused by illicit drugs. The figures do not include as many as 200 other deaths where opioids contributed to a person's death. NDARC also found opioid-related hospitalisations among Australians aged 30 to 59 years old had steadily increased over the past five years. And many deaths were caused by multiple drug toxicity, which increases the risk of a fatal overdose. Brain abnormalities resulting from the chronic use of heroin, oxycodone, and other morphine-derived drugs were underlying causes of opioid dependenceand addiction, said experts at the US National Institutes of Health. Like John's use of prescription opioids, if heroin was made harder to get, people would turn to opioids, said Dr Wodak. "When Grandpa Bill gets some oxycodone for his back pain because he has cancer of prostrate ...and needs money to buy for a Christmas gift... he will sell the odd tablet," he said.

"If someone else in the family needs money, they may steal grandpa's pills to sell." Dr Wodak said the adverse effects of the painkillers were significant and underestimated. As for John, he is terrified of heroin. Now about to graduate from Odyssey House's program, he described himself as a careful addict; someone who took care to test small amounts first. But his last two overdoses were nothing like anything he had had in the past. Now he is clean and determined to survive for his mother's sake and to reconnect with his children. "My poor old mum is 86 ... I don't want her to die while I am in rehab or in prison," he said.

His mother had outlived two husbands, including a bad alcoholic, and John's 22-year-old brother, who died from suicide many years ago. "She will say 'I am not going to visit you', and two days later she will be there," John said. "Always dropped off packets of socks and underwear; she's been the only person who has stuck with me. "She's never deserted me." Recommendations Much of American policy was designed to stop the flow of illicit drugs, which Dr Wodak said was close to useless in countries such as the United States and Australia, which have large borders.

To address the growing problem, Dr Wodak made six recommendations, including increasing the availability of medical cannabis in Australia. A study published in the Journal of the American Medicine Association (JAMA) found states with medical marijuana laws had a 24.8 percent lower average annual opioid overdose death rate compared to states without such laws. In 2010, that translated to about 1,729 fewer deaths than expected. Dr Wodak also recommended: Loading
A man who sparked a massive search after he went missing in a remote area of WA's Pilbara on Thursday has been found.

Anthony Collis, 32, was travelling to Darwin with a 39-year-old woman along the Canning Stock Route in a white Mitsubishi Triton.

Anthony Collis was missing in a remote part of the Pilbara. Credit:WA Police

The pair became separated late on Thursday afternoon, and the alarm was raised late on Thursday evening after the woman walked into the Georgia Bore Camp disoriented and dehydrated.

Police launched a large scale search for Mr Collis, and eventually located his vehicle 1km north of Well 22.
A 60-year-old Texas woman shot and killed an intruder during a home invasion, authorities said.

Harris County deputies said two men entered the house through an open garage door and tried to rob the woman, who was at home alone. Both suspects were reportedly armed with pistols.

The woman grabbed her gun and fired multiple shots at the duo, deputies said.

One of the men died from his injuries. The other suspect jumped a fence and ran away.

The homeowner told investigators she did not know the men.

Investigators are trying to determine if this was a crime of opportunity, or if the two men targeted her home specifically.

Some neighbors were upset about the shooting, while others, like Catherine Hanks, applauded her for fighting back.

In the state of Texas, if you're gonna get on somebody's property, you're gonna get shot," Hanks said. "That's just the way we are, that's Texas."

Police have not yet tracked down that second suspect.

It's unclear if he sustained any injuries when the homeowner fired her gun at him.
By West Kentucky Star Staff Aug. 06, 2017 | 02:10 PM | PADUCAH, KY

Over 700 people attended this year's New Student Friday Fun Day on the WKCTC campus on Friday, according to college officials.

"This event is an excellent time for our new students to be on campus in a fun atmosphere while also meeting our faculty and staff who want to help them be successful in their first semester and throughout their time at WKCTC," said Trent Johnson, WKCTC director of admissions."

Students not only had fun with games, music and free food, they were also able to learn about technology on campus, financial aid, the Community Scholarship Program, transfer and academic planning, student organizations and more. Students were able to buy their books for the fall semester in the WKCTC bookstore and get their parking pass and student ID.

Many parents and friends came to offer support throughout the day, having fun and learning about WKCTC as well.

"We appreciate our students' parents coming to Friday Fun Day so they have the opportunity to see the campus and our commitment to their kids' success at WKCTC first-hand," said Johnson.

Registration for fall classes at WKCTC is currently underway. Call 1-(855) GO-WKCTC or visit westkentucky.kctcs.edu for class offerings. Fall classes begin August 14.
By West Kentucky Star Staff Aug. 06, 2017 | 01:40 PM | FRANKFORT, KY

Kentucky Chamber Manager of Public Affairs Travis Burton on Friday presented Rep. Steven Rudy, of Paducah, with the Chamber MVP Award.

Rep. Rudy was among a select group of legislators recognized for conspicuous actions supporting Kentuckys business community during the 2017 Kentucky General Assembly.

During his time in the legislature, Rep. Rudy has always been a strong friend to the Chamber and the business community and this was never more evident than in the historic 2017 legislative session, said Kentucky Chamber President and CEO Dave Adkisson. Rep. Rudy was a strong advocate and carried Senate Bill 11 in the House of Representatives, which lifted the moratorium on nuclear power plant construction in Kentucky, a long-time priority of the Chamber. Because of Rep. Rudys efforts, Senate Bill 11 passed on bipartisan measures and Kentucky utilities will now be able to consider all options when planning to meet future electric needs.

We appreciated his leadership as thi bill finally saw passage during the 2017 legislative session. As a small token of our appreciation, we are presenting him with a Chamber MVP award to recognize his support of pro-business policies in such a historic session.

In addition to monitoring the progress of bills that directly relate to the strength of the Commonwealths business community, the Chamber tracks how each legislator votes on these bills. The Chambers MVP award recipients displayed more than just a business-friendly voting record, but also went out of their way, and at times across party lines, to support or oppose an issue critical to the business climate in Kentucky.
By The Associated Press Aug. 06, 2017 | 12:46 PM | FANCY FARM, KY

Two prominent Kentucky Democrats' appearance at Fancy Farm has increased speculation about the 2019 governor's race.

Attorney General Andy Beshear and House Minority Leader Rocky Adkins were prominent speakers at the annual Fancy Farm picnic. The picnic is a fundraiser for the St. Jerome's Catholic Church but is known for its "political speaking" event that has politicians from both parties give speeches before a rowdy crowd.

Adkins said he is seriously considering a run for governor in 2019. Beshear said he has not decided. But his speeches throughout the weekend drew direct comparisons between himself and Gov. Matt Bevin. Beshear also released his tax returns and challenged Bevin to follow suit.

Republican Party of Kentucky spokesman Tres Watson said the Bevin has nothing to fear from any potential Democratic challenger.
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By Paul Schaumburg, Graves County Schools Aug. 05, 2017 | 11:41 PM | GRAVES COUNTY, KY

In a world where the very jobs today's students will work haven't been invented, how can schools prepare them for their adult lives and careers? That question centered discussion for "Envisioning Day," as the Graves County School District and technology giant Dell EMC posed it to stakeholders recently.

"Everything here is focused through the perspective of a young person and how their life will be different," said Tom Osmun of Dell EMC. "They live with technology. So, it's about how a student's life is different in a school system, now that they have such large volumes of information available to them."

Osmun's colleague, Matt Dascoli, added, "Ultimately, the fact that all of these (approximately 40) folks have gathered during the summer to talk about what classroom experiences could be and how those experiences actually can impact students' lives is exciting!"

"We try to help districts see that any change implemented should affect the student's relationship with the school, so that the student's life is changed," Osmun explained. "So, we focus on student-centered learning."

"It's important is to hear the voices of the people here," Dascoli said. "There might already be pockets of reinvention of school happening. We want to bring that to the surface. If it's not happening, how can we, as a school community, allow that change to reinvent what school can look like?"

Graves County Middle School will pioneer one aspect of 21st century learning during the 2017-18 school year, when the school assigns each student a Chromebook. Making individual technology available to each student at both home and school in a unified way should change the learning landscape significantly.

"Young people today require different experiences to learn now and they will require different experiences for the work they'll do tomorrow. I think that's why we're here today," said Osmun. "One of the things we're seeing from recent graduates is that they are extremely hard-working. They work all the time really. It just looks different than it did for my parents' generation, because the younger generation is constantly-connected to digital technology."

Farmington Elementary School sixth-grade teacher Becky Stratton participated in Envisioning Day. "The teacher is the No. 1 influence in the classroom," she explained. "It's the teacher's job to be trained and educated, to keep up with the changing technology and ahead of the students, who are learning at a rapid pace. I want to use technology as a tool in my classroom for students to learn in different ways. That's where the person comes in... making learning personal for the student, based on their interests, their likes, and taking those standards I'm given by the state and teaching them in a more hands-on, personal way. It's very doable!"

FNB Bank marketing director Brooke Wiles also participated. "My role is how can we in the business community help students feel like they're not trapped inside a classroom all day?" she asked. "Can we have them job shadow? Can we get them out of the classroom, learning through hands-on experience? Or at the sponsorship level, can we in the business community sponsor Chromebooks? So, our role is to see what their goals are and how we can help in practical ways."

Graves High senior Corey Shoemaker and Sedalia sixth-grader Bennent Routen participated in Envisioning Day. Both say they've used technology at least five years. So, working with it comes naturally.

"I think this will be a great idea for learning in today's world," Shoemaker said of the day's discussion. One particular new idea he likes is "comfortable furniture." GCMS has waded into new ideas in that regard. For example, one teacher's classroom includes living room furniture and a picnic table, rather than the traditional rows of school desks. "It's a different world today," Shoemaker explained, "so, it makes sense to approach it differently."

"I'm kind of on both sides," Routen interjected. "It would be great to have that technology to use. On the other hand, it could be selfish, like kids are sometimes with a fidget spinner that distracts other students." He said he thinks students need to control themselves.

Wiles noted that customizing learning to the individual through technology, in many ways, is an extension of what already happens in the marketplace, with technology applications customized to the individual, such as music through Pandora or TV through Net Flix.

"For this kind of digital learning to work, it requires training, funding, and community buy-in," she said. "It won't happen overnight."
By West Kentucky Star Staff Aug. 06, 2017 | 01:27 PM | HICKORY, KY

The Kentucky State Police will be celebrating its 70th anniversary in 2018. In anticipation of this milestone, the agency is seeking the support from Kentucky citizens for a special project to recognize its long service to the Commonwealth.

KSP will participate in a friendly competition alongside other state law enforcement agencies throughout the U.S in the American Association of State Troopers (AAST) 2018 Best Looking Cruiser Contest. The winning photo will be featured on the cover and premier January position of the associations 2018 wall calendar. KSPs photo features one of its newest Dodge Charger cruisers in a horse farm setting complete with two retired equine champions.

To accomplish this, KSP needs the help of all citizens. The competition is tough. The 2016 winner collected 18,174 votes.

Voting began on Friday, August 4 on the AAST Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pg/StateTroopers/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1628706990536120 and ends on Friday, August 14 at 4:00 p.m. CST, so timing is critical. Only like votes will be counted.

Show your support for Kentuckys Thin Gray Line by visiting the AAST Facebook page and voting today and dont forget to pass the word along to family, friends and other contacts through email and social media.








November 12, 2022 Angus's Corner

From our correspondent and

skilled taster Angus MacRaild in Scotland Bruichladdich, Ledaig and Laphroaig A bit of a mixed bag today, but these three names are usually pretty dependable in my book Bruichladdich 8 yo 2013/2022 'Islay Barley' (50%, OB, 75% American oak, 25% ex-wine casks)

Colour: straw. Nose: hay, barley, freshly baked breads, buttered oatcakes and lighter green fruit notes such as cut apple and gooseberry. Also a slightly coastal edge and some feelings of pollens and beers. I don't detect much in the way of wine influence thankfully. With water: sandalwood, beach pebbles, oatcakes plain cereals and soda bread. Mouth: nicely balanced between honeys, wood saps, hoppy IPA, pollens, grass and some herbal teas. Also lots of fresh breads along with some citrus rinds and light peppery notes too. I like it plenty, but I recall previous batches being a bit more 'immediate'. With water: lemons, limes, more beers, grist and green tea with lemon. Finish: medium and perhaps a tad oaky here and there, but still with some of these nice green and citrus fruits coming through. Comments: I'm not sure what the wine casks brought to the proceedings here, but I definitely prefer the earlier fully bourbon matured examples. Not that this isn't very fine and easy to sip young Laddie!

SGP: 561 - 84 points. Bruichladdich 10 yo 2011/2021 'Biodynamic' (50%, OB, 1st fill barrels, 5000 bottles)

Distilled using biodynamically grown barley harvested in 2010 from Yatesbury House Farm in England. So, not 'terroir' but something equally fascinating Colour: bright straw. Nose: wonderfully fresh and rather exuberantly on barley extracts, fresh cereals, cooling wort, lemon barley water and this impression of lemon washing powder but not in a soapy way - if you get my drift. It's also nicely starchy with linens and that lovely 'laundry drying by a seashore' vibe. Modern and rather impeccable. With water: more citrons, waxy lemon rinds, new leather, sandalwood and gorse flower. Still superbly fresh and vibrant. Mouth: surprisingly tense and chiselled. On chalks, linens, putty, white flowers and mirabelle eau de vie. A rather 'crunchy' impression of freshly kilned barley, the natural sweetness of malt extract and that familiar impression of many various beers and freshly baked breads. With water: malty, bready, naturally sweet and now perhaps a little more peppery with new world hops, nettles and fennel seed. Finish: good length, on sea salt crisp, dried rosemary, lanolin and lemon oil. Getting more coastal now I feel. Comments: I couldn't tell you what the biodynamic component is bringing to this, but I am left with the same impression I often get when trying these young, modern, fully ex-bourbon matured Bruichladdichs. That this is top class, impeccably made modern Scottish single malt whisky that has been made with care and skill using top quality ingredients. I tend to prefer the Islay barleys and especially the Bere barley editions, but this one is extremely fine and of similar style and pedigree. A style that's really about freshness I think.

SGP: 551 - 88 points. Bruichladdich 29 yo 1991 (41.2%, Club Qing 'Scary Tales', cask #3037, hogshead, 216 bottles)

Colour: straw. Nose: lovely and extremely classical! All on ripe melons, honey, guava, kiwi and wee hints of gooseberry and lime. One of those noses that makes you see 'green' in your mind's eye. Some subtle notes of herbal tea and white peppery underneath. Overall, a very gentle but charmingly expressive nose. Mouth: again we are firmly in classical Laddie territory, lots of overripe green and garden fruits, some mashed banana, green apple, a little tart gooseberry and some lemon rinds in green tea. Soft, elegant and still rather close to the raw ingredients with wee hints of sweet cereals and malt extract. Finish: medium, a little sappy, some muesli, persistent green fruitiness and a little runny honey and flower pollen. Comments: the epitome of Bruichladdich's elegance, fruitiness and charm. Just a little more oomph here and there would have propelled it higher. But it's still one of those perilously easy and pleasurable malts to sip away at.

SPG: 641 - 88 points. Ledaig 10 yo 2010/2020 (53.7%, Valinch & Mallet 'The Spirit Of Art', cask #700414, bourbon & sherry, 648 bottles)

Seemingly some kind of sherry finish. Colour: ruby/mahogany. Nose: a sharp and salty fusion of sherry and peat that prickles with some tart red berry fruits but is also highly dominated by soy sauce, Maggi and nori. Extremely salty and heavily on the saltiest of Dutch liquorice, natural tar resins and drying beach kelp. Also add to the mix some hessian and dried smoked chillis. A beast! With water: more tar, wood resins, smoked paprika, cured meats with smoked chilli and more of this wonderfully sharp and zingy red fruitiness. Mouth: same feeling of quite brilliant saltiness that immediately brings to mind lashings of soy sauce, anchovy paste, smoked mussels and oysters in their brine and then earthier things such as liquid tar, camphor and creel rope. Only thing is the mouth feels textural a little lighter than expected but in a very pleasant way, it's nicely syrupy and easy on the gums, which may be to the softer ABV? With water: brilliantly tarry and salty with some sweeter undercurrents now and also a thick and encroaching peatiness. Finish: long, densely peaty, tarry, full of smoked dark fruits, bitter chocolate, smoked sea salt and umami seasonings. In the aftertaste I find some more grizzly smoky impressions that feel a little more like the modern Ledaig distillate coming through. Comments: what sorcery is this? More specifically, what sort of sherry cask was this finished in, and for how long? I'm also guessing it was probably not flushed before re-racking, although now I sound like a playground gossip. An extremely good young Ledaig that marries together the two forces of sherry and peat with aplomb and in a way that recalls some of the great sherried Ledaigs on the early 1970s. I find it extremely impressive and very fun! Bottle ageing should probably deliver a couple of extra points in around 20-30 years I'd hazard

SGP: 576 - 89 points. Ledaig 15 yo 2006/2022 (54.7%, The Whisky Exchange 'Whisky Show 2022', cask #13, sherry butt)

Colour: amber. Nose: there's a few of these teenage sherried Ledaigs around at the moment and, I have to say, I generally find them excellent. This one is no exception at first: lots of BBQ coals and smouldering wood embers. Then roof pitch, antiseptic, aniseed and smoked cocoa powder. A sherry and peat combo that dances with class and precision! With water: softer peat smoke, that goes more towards kiln air tinged with farmyard things, sheep wool oils and a gentle mineral aspect. Mouth: big, hearty and tarry with lots of very chiselled, salty and dry peat smoke. Dried kelp, tarred rope, burnt toast, paprika, aniseed distillate and herbal toothpaste. Also some top notch black olives in brine along with anchovy paste and salty liquorice. Globally a very salty style I'd say, that makes you think of some excellent bone-dry Amontillado. With water: brine, tar, pickling juices, roast coffee beans and lashings of German rauchbier. Finish: long, very tarry, on aniseed and salted liquorice again with that sharper peat flavour again in the aftertaste. Some smoked teas as well. Comments: for those that enjoy them big, powerful and without frills or nonsense. I like it a lot, perhaps just a notch more complexity would have nudged it higher for me.

SGP: 467 - 87 points. Ledaig 20 yo 1997/2017 (59.9%, Kingsbury 'Or Sileis', cask #800109, hogshead, 243 bottles)

Colour: pale amber. Nose: a softer style of sherry, one that's much earthier and 'darker' with a meatiness and funkiness that is almost dirty, but not sulphuric. Many game meats, but I'm particularly thinking of top class Iberico ham, salted almonds, bacon jam and smoked walnuts with drops of Maggi and tar liqueur. I'm enjoying this more and more as it goes along. With water: many dried herbs, more meats with impressions of bouillon, various gravies and Bovril. Also smoked teas and English mustard powder. Mouth: superbly concentrated and oily, with that familiar wave of tar, smoked olive oil, pickling juices, camphor and many tiny wee notes of ointments, iodine and TCP coming through loud and clear. Also some wood saps, salt-baked root vegetables and herbal mouthwash. With water: very much on herbal cough syrups, antiseptics, iodine, TCP and a feeling of concentrated meat stocks and smoked dark teas. Excellent concentration and power while also nicely complex. Finish: long, earthy, nicely drying, salty, tarry and peppery with squid ink, pickled tarragon and iodine in the aftertaste. Comments: I would say it strikes a perfect balance between all the various chunky and muscular components. You just have to like your sherry rather earthy, drying and 'chunky' . I think it works very well in this instance, probably due to the solid age.

SGP: 477 - 90 points. Ledaig 25 yo 1997/2022 (52.6%, Club Qing for Thea Tung, cask #800056, hogshead)

Colour: bright straw. Nose: fatty, greasy and fermentary smokiness! Pure Ledaig gunge that invokes greasy toolboxes, smouldering sheep wool and various medicinal ointments, pickling juices and quite a lot of farmy stuff like silage and damp bailed hay. A rather sooty and flabby smokiness emerges as well over time. With water: smoked teas, smoked oatmeal, camphor, tiger balm, iodine, smelling salts and putty - quite the box of tricks! Mouth: sharper and more chiselled than on the nose, with kelp, smoked sea salt, iodine and engine oils. Although, globally this is still a very 'dirty' in the good sense whisky. Extremely greasy, fat, oily and farmy with a kind of heavily peated waxiness. Like eating the contents of the Tobermory low wines and feints receiver with a dessert spoon (I imagine). Probably quite a divisive style but I really like it how fun it is. With water: still persistently fatty and greasy, but now incorporating preserved and fermenting lemons, bandages soaked in seawater, mineral oils, smoked yoghurt, olive oil cut with pickling brine and anchovies. Finish: long, tarry with a big, greasy peaty vibe, smoked olive oil and more tar and greasy phenolics. Comments: a crazy whisky, that actually makes you think of a strange love child of Ardmore and Lagavulin that you'd keep in the attic and only let out at Halloween. Seriously though, this is no doubt a divisive whisky and very hard to score. But I really like it, so

SGP: 477 - 88-ish points. Back to Islay Laphroaig Cairdeas 'Warehouse 1' (52.2%, OB, 2022)

Fully matured in bourbon barrels inside Laphroaig's Warehouse 1. Remember, you aren't a proper Islay distillery these days unless you have a world famous warehouse Colour: pale straw. Nose: very fresh and coastal and zippy at first nosing. This rather typical modern Laphroaig ashiness, but there's also some brighter tones of citrus, coal smoke and embrocations. Perhaps a little ink too, and in time some more hallmark notes of iodine and TCP. Bish bash bosh, very good. With water: pure olive brine with lemon juice and mercurochrome now. Mouth: rather limey up front, lime and lemon curds, acidic grapefruit juice, green peppercorns in brine and anchovy paste. Very salty and vividly coastal. Laphroaig seem good at this kind of uncomplicated, gutsy and highly evocative profile for their larger batch festival releases. At least, when they aren't tinkering with ridiculous amounts of silly oak doping. With water: a notch more complexity now with a more intricate smokiness, some salted liquorice and smoked teas. A little herbal too. Finish: quite long, ashy, smoky, briny and showing iodine, TCP and bandages once again. Comments: simple, probably quite young and certainly humble. But at the same time this is excellent core distillate that still possesses quite a definite distillery character. The kind of juice you could easily guzzle on a summer evening on Islay, while simultaneously applying it to your bare skin in an attempt to fend off the midgies. Only thing I'd say is that, even if the youngest component is 5yo, why not simply add an age statement to a bottling like this?

SGP: 357 - 86 points. Laphroaig 18 yo 1990/2008 (56%, The Whisky Agency, hogshead, 240 bottles)

Reasonably high expectations here Colour: straw. Nose: many elegant things. Coal smoke, bandages, squid ink, umami paste, pink grapefruit and various subtle ointments and touches of gentian. With time this sense of roots and medicines becomes more dominant, also more bandages, gauze and waxy citrus rinds. With water: smoked olive oils, preserved lemons in brine, pickled mussels and grapefruit again. Lovely but maybe just ever so slightly simple. Mouth: nice sense of controlled power upon arrival. Lots of seawater and salty liquorice but shored up by a soft and thick smokiness, tangy peat, white pepper and touches of fish sauce and anchovy butter. Some dried seaweed and nori as well. With water: a lovely fatness comes out now, oilier and thicker in texture with a deeper and drier peat smoke flavour. Kelp, tarry rope and iodine all coming through. Finish: long, ashy, briny, full of smoked olive oil, pickling juices and lemon oils. Comments: emblematic of this era and extremely good. Maybe just lacking a little complexity, which would have propelled it past the 90 mark.

SGP: 367 - 89 points. November 11, 2022 The Time Warp Sessions,

today raw Speyburn A session sponsored by Fiddler's Highland Restaurant, The Green Mainstreet, Drumnadrochit, Inverness IV63 6TU, United Kingdom. That'll be a beer, Jon.

Speyburn 12 yo 2009/2021 (51.8%, Alambic Classique, bourbon barrel, cask #21013, 142 bottles) Colour: white wine. Nose: as raw and natural as malt whisky can be, that is to say totally on 'barley eau-de-vie', lager, kirschwasser, bison vodka, artisan cider and granny smith. No makeup whatsoever. With water: some chalk and fresh plaster, raw wool, cider apples Mouth (neat): distilled lager. Believe me, I've done that quite some years ago. Porridge, gooseberries, apples, cider, kirshwasser, and only distant echoes of vanilla. With water: barley, apples, stewed rhubarb, sweet bread. Millimetrically seminal, shall we shamelessly add. Finish: medium, malty, a notch grassier but always very eau-de-vie-ish. A little lemon in the aftertaste. Comments: not earthshattering, should we add 'of course', but extremely likable. Pure malt.

SGP:451 - 83 points.

Speyburn-Glenlivet 15 yo 1975/1991 (63.1%, Cadenhead, Authentic Collection) Reassuringly 'matured in an oak cask', as always. Always better said. We've stumbled upon quite a lot of perfect rocket fuel within this series, let's see And by the way, it's to be noted that there was also a stunning 'black dumpy' bearing exactly the same data, but not sure it was the same batch. One of the best Speyburns ever bottled. Colour: white wine. Nose: there are many similarities, around apples and eau-de-vie, but there are also extra-layers of waxes, metal polish and limoncello, plus some old chartreuse. With water: incredible, taking water gracefully. Fresh paint, more limoncello, chalk, some camphor, old cough syrup, Benedictine Were some monks running Speyburn Distillery in 1975? Mouth (neat): burns a bit but you do feel that this is going to be perfect, with an incredible oily texture that doesn't only come from the high ethanol. Some sublime old-school herbal liqueurs kept in stoneware, plus chalk and, indeed, homemade limoncello. Every tried grapefruitcello? Or pompelmocello? (not sure that's the real name). With water: amen. More chalky pompelmocello (just checked Google, that's an actual name!) Finish: very long, with even more herbs and citrus, waxes, honeys, eucalyptus Comments: it could well be that it was the same liquid as that that was in that stunning black dumpy 1975/1991 at 63.1%. Terrific Speyburn by Cadenhead. Excuse me, Speyburn-Glenlivet.

SGP:571 - 92 points. (Many thanks, Tomek!) Check the index of all Speyburn we've tasted so far November 10, 2022 Highland Shhh, quite a few So, secret Orkneys and consorts, of which there are hectolitres around. Shall we find a Scapa? In our wildest dreams, we would stumble upon a Stromness





Whitlaw 9 yo 2013/2022 (59.2%, Signatory Vintage for La Maison du Whisky, Plume, first fill sherry, 671 bottles) The name of this lovely series being plume, which means feather in French, we cannot not wonder whether this will be featherlight or not. Doubt it. Colour: dark red amber. Nose: some extremely chocolaty sherriness. Imagine we would be nosing a family pack of Mars bars. Indeed, caramel, chocolate, and that kind of mousse, plus black nougat, peanut brittle and halva. With water: red apples and a little pepper and carbon dust. Some heavy sour wine, old cellar, dunnage Mouth (neat): it is a liquid Mars bar. Werther's Originals and black turon are playing around as well. With water: excellent, with once again, more earthiness and pepper. Finish: long, more savoury. Gravy, chocolate sauce Leathery aftertaste. Comments: I'm not sure I would have said 'HP', as the sherry was really heavy, but it is a very fine dram. Impressive changes when you add water.

SGP:462 - 85 points. Orkney 11 yo 2011/2022 (50%, Thompson Bros., 406 bottles)

Colour: white wine. Nose: lovely, as expected, full of grist and chalk, wool and mud, apple peel and juice, seawater and crabs, and certainly some peat smoke, way in the back. With water: more apple peel and more seaweed, I would say. More raw wool too, right after sheep shearing on Orkney or Islay. Mouth (neat): more coastal, more mezcaly, peatier than your average HP, with green olives, smoke, oysters and capers. Disconcertingly excellent. With water: a pretty peaty batch. More salt, smoke, oysters and chalk than usual. Finish: same. Wonderful freshness and tightness. Comments: ah, there, I'm seeing that this baby was finished in an ex-Caol Ila cask, so it's in-cask blending. Nothing against that kind of short-circuit, as long as the end result is as good as this. I think Douglas Laing were having a 'Double-Barrel' that was a bit like this.

SGP:454 - 87 points. Orkney islands 14 yo 2008/2022 (60.8%, Fadandel.dk, refill bourbon hogshead, cask #12, 321 bottles)

Colour: pale white wine. Nose: you couldn't do this with most Scottish malts, bottling some virtually unaged quasi-newmake and come up with something pretty lovely, albeit raw and rustic. Having said that, there isn't much happening but that may be the high ABV. Mind you, almost 61%. With water: not too sure Chalk and porridge and mud and grist for sure, but beyond that White cherries? Mouth (neat): sweet barley, some earth, some smoke, some lemon, some cider apples, some chilli. With water: we've finally unleashed the HPness, with tangerine skins, zests, citrusy honey, chalk Finish: long, classic ueber-young HP. It takes it because it is HP. Comments: a good example of a make that may have needed reduction, down to 50 or even 46%, if I may. Forgot to say, I like it rather a lot. Colour: pale white wine. Nose: you couldn't do this with most Scottish malts, bottling some virtually unaged quasi-newmake and come up with something pretty lovely, albeit raw and rustic. Having said that, there isn't much happening but that may be the high ABV. Mind you, almost 61%. With water: not too sure Chalk and porridge and mud and grist for sure, but beyond that White cherries? Mouth (neat): sweet barley, some earth, some smoke, some lemon, some cider apples, some chilli. With water: we've finally unleashed the HPness, with tangerine skins, zests, citrusy honey, chalk Finish: long, classic ueber-young HP. It takes it because it is HP. Comments: a good example of a make that may have needed reduction, down to 50 or even 46%, if I may. Forgot to say, I like it rather a lot.

SGP:462 - 83 points.

Orkney 15 yo 2007/2022 (59.7%, North Star Spirits, oloroso hogshead, 328 bottles) I don't know why I cannot get Northern Lights by the band Renaissance out of my head whenever I try some whisky by North Star Spirits. Check it out, Annie Haslam has got one of the greatest voices in rock and roll. De nada. Colour: gold. Nose: it's a moderate, gentler sherry monster, rather on softer walnuts, walnut cake, pecan pie, mocha and espresso, black nougat All that elegantly, almost diminuendo. With water: mud and grist, ground malt, earth, even game, mushrooms (horns of plenty) and Italian black cigars (Toscano ans such). Mouth (neat): a fighter on the palate, but that's the strength. Raw kirsch, bitter walnuts and leather Well at least it's truly oloroso-y. With water: yeah, there, mud, earth, chewing your cigars, drinking walnut cordial, sipping extreme moka Finish: as long as a day without bread, with a lot of black malt, black Belgian beer (I remember a Rochefort) Comments: huge. Love it but it is a little unromantic (wha-a-at?) And I agree Renaissance could get a little schmaltzy.

SGP:362 - 89 points. Secret Orkney 2007/2022 (50.8%, Michiel Wigman, They Inspired)

Sukhinder Sing on the label here, while another one bearing a much lousier so-called whisky personality whom I know only too well, a Glentauchers, came out at the very same time. Go for Sukhinder! Colour: light gold. Nose: back to the purer, more crystalline ones, at times you could almost believe they've used fresh cane juice. Sea breeze, beach sand, kelp It is a pretty maritime HP. With water: plastics and varnishes, Woolite, baker's yeast, porridge, in short, an all-natural HP. Mouth (neat): class, lemons, zests, menthol, gentian, barley, samphires With water: better yet, a tad rounder, more candied, with zests, angelica, dried pears Finish: medium to long, with more smoke, straight peat, smoked kippers Did we move to Islay? Comments: awesome, if a little swirling and fluttering here and there. Something may have happened prior to bottling.

SGP:452 - 88 points. Orkney Islands 15 yo 2007/2022 (52.3%, Maltbarn for 15th anniversary of EPower, Japan, bourbon cask, 143 bottles)

There's a constant, albeit thin stream of great bottlings stemming from Maltbarn. Quality over quantity, I would suppose (well, that's what I've noticed). Colour: white wine. Nose: pure, crystalline, coastal, peely, paraffiny HP. The ones we like best, unless we're talking old glories. With water: holy Molly! A Chinese laundry and a lot of plaster. Mouth (neat): salt, lime juice, cider apples, seawater, olive brine, wax and, err, well, mezcal (insert Carlos Santana's rendition of A Whiter Shade Of Pale here  another earworm). With water: perfect, as long as you wouldn't add too much water. Best friend, worst enemy, remember. Gets saltier. Finish: long, salty, chiselled, calling for a plate of oysters. Comments: a bladey, unsexy, austere HP, the ones we like best. But remember, personal taste etcetera. There's a constant, albeit thin stream of great bottlings stemming from Maltbarn. Quality over quantity, I would suppose (well, that's what I've noticed). Colour: white wine. Nose: pure, crystalline, coastal, peely, paraffiny HP. The ones we like best, unless we're talking old glories. With water: holy Molly! A Chinese laundry and a lot of plaster. Mouth (neat): salt, lime juice, cider apples, seawater, olive brine, wax and, err, well, mezcal (insert Carlos Santana's rendition of A Whiter Shade Of Pale here  another earworm). With water: perfect, as long as you wouldn't add too much water. Best friend, worst enemy, remember. Gets saltier. Finish: long, salty, chiselled, calling for a plate of oysters. Comments: a bladey, unsexy, austere HP, the ones we like best. But remember, personal taste etcetera.

SGP:362 - 90 points.

Orkney Single Malt 13 yo 2007/2020 (51.3%, Whisky-Fassle, hogshead) Only ducks and no duds, that could be Whisky-Fassle's motto. Our favourite ducks in the business. Colour: white wine. Nose: immediate. That honey, those herbs, this citrus. This will be quick. With water: wool, grist, chalk, granny smith, white peaches, heather. Mouth (neat): nothing to argue about. Lemons, chalk, green apples, paraffin With water: some salt, lemon, green apples, a little smoke, oysters In truth this is one of the saltiest HPs we've tried this week. And we've tried many. Finish: rather long, clean, salty Comments: but whether duck or goose, what a distillate! Also one of the best.

SGP:452 - 89 points.

A Secret Orkney 16 yo 2006/2022 (48.2%, Wu Dram Clan, bourbon hogshead, 150 bottles) Colour: white wine. Nose: one of the most fermentary ones, all on leaven, fresh bread, baker's yeast, new sweater, ink, drawing gum, linseed oil and new Tesla. I agree I need to apologise, new Porsche would be better, but there's much less plastic in Porsches. With water: closes down. No waterz please. Mouth (neat): tight, citrus-led, pretty hoppy, pungent. With water: No waterz please. Finish: rather long, citrusy, salty and herbal. Comments: this one was hard to control. Another case of the whisky being the boss, I mean, f***!. Tough baby that's playing it close to the vest.

SGP:362 - 87 points. They're all excellent, the spirit speaks out, only whacky red wine casks or other winey oddities for lazy distillers marketers could put an end to this rather perfect stroll.

Orkney 16 yo 2006/2022 (57.1%, Thompson Bros. for Milroy's of Soho, refill hogshead, 280 bottles) Wallace and Jack's Milroy's of Soho was, and still is the seminal place for whisky in London. I mean, whenever we used to fly to London, and instead of the British Museum or Harrod's, we would have first taken a black cab to Milroy's (and, let's be honest, to the nearby Vintage House). Colour: white wine. Nose: more austere, paraffiny, grassy, leafy HP. Certainly not the easiest this far. With water: yeast, dough, grist, porridge. Elementary HP. Mouth (neat): no, sweeter, fruitier, very waxy, still a little brutal but that's the strength. With water: success, we've unleashed plums. Finish: rather long, grassy, with a saltier aftertaste. Comments: one of those austere HPs. We love them at WF Towerz, but we agree they're not consensual at all. They're very tough babies, be warned.

SGP:362 - 87 points. Orkney 16 yo 2006/2022 (57.1%, Orkney Sponge, refill hogshead, 342 bottles)

The Whisky Sponge on Orkney. Colour: light gold. Nose: panettone, dough, crushed banana, grist, fresh white bread, strawberry yoghurt. Strawberries are playing a rather interlope game with malt whisky, just wander around Port Ellen Maltings and you'll notice. With water: white toasts. It wouldn't really expand; water may be superfluous here. Mouth (neat): powerful, citrusy, pleasantly bitter, hoppy, peppery. With water: back to great HPness, with citrons, grist, chalk, doughs, and salty elements. Peppered langoustines, perhaps? (although that would lead to murder and desolation). Finish: long, salty, doughy; this one too is an HP that's got its eyes on the Isle of Islay. Comments: the huge saltiness is impressive. Quite possibly one of the saltiest Highland Parks we've tried this far.

SGP:462 - 88 points. Further down the vintages

Secret Orkney Distillery 17 yo 2004/2022 (49.4%, Whisky Nerds, butt, cask #13, 248 bottles) Isn't all this becoming silly? I mean, a secret Orkney Distillery? Something by Putin? Loukachenko? Kim Jong-un? King Charles III? Colour: gold. Nose: another pretty austere one, grassy, on fern, parsley, agave juice, grapefruit skin With water: there, raw wool, chalk and porridge. And waxed paper, and cold candles. Mouth (neat): grassy and waxy, salty, peppery, really big. With water: dry, slightly cardboardy, gristy, faintly muddy. Finish: medium, dry, slightly cardboardy, with strawberries in the aftertaste (again!) Comments: all right, all fine, close to our nature.

SGP:462 - 87 points. A last one please, down to the roaring nineties An Orkney 21 yo 1999/2021 (53%, The Whisky Agency for Whisky Picnic Bar Taiwan, bourbon hogshead, cask #7033, 242 bottles)

A Lorraine Cross on a whisky label, why wouldn't we applaud? Colour: light gold. Nose: there's this perfect moment when ripe bananas would chime in, together with a high-pitched lemonness. As we're rather into musical analogies, let's say stuff by the band Pavlov's Dog. Under 60? Check that. Whaff. With water: not quite worth it, water doesn't add anything to this already great combination. Mouth (neat): so very good, stunningly leafy, teaish, spicy, herbal But indeed it needs water now. With water: yeah good, very elegant, with small herbs, even smaller berries and fruits, resins, waxes Finish: long, piney, grassier, austere, intellectual (wie bitte?) Comments: yeah, it's an intellectual Highland Park, somewhere between Wittgenstein and Nietzsche (wie bitte?) A Lorraine Cross on a whisky label, why wouldn't we applaud? Colour: light gold. Nose: there's this perfect moment when ripe bananas would chime in, together with a high-pitched lemonness. As we're rather into musical analogies, let's say stuff by the band Pavlov's Dog. Under 60? Check that. Whaff. With water: not quite worth it, water doesn't add anything to this already great combination. Mouth (neat): so very good, stunningly leafy, teaish, spicy, herbal But indeed it needs water now. With water: yeah good, very elegant, with small herbs, even smaller berries and fruits, resins, waxes Finish: long, piney, grassier, austere, intellectual (wie bitte?) Comments: yeah, it's an intellectual Highland Park, somewhere between Wittgenstein and Nietzsche (wie bitte?)

SGP:462 - 88 points. Wait, couldn't we have a very last one, since we're here? Orkney 22 yo 1999/2022 (47%, Thompson Bros. for Bar Shamrock and Heather Honey, Japan, refill hogshead, 188 bottles)

I truly admire these young folks, the Thompsons, the Sponge, Jonny and others, as only ten years ago, nobody up there in Scotchland used to even remotely care about anything related to Scotch whisky. To our amazement, everything was only about vulgar, multinational-wide, nasty, inelegant, dirty, stinky, no-morals business. But things they are changing Colour: white wine. Nose: candle smoke, sunflower oil, baguette (that's proper bread, no?) plus grapefruits and just fresh-mown lawn. Kelp on the beach and damp plaster. Mouth: a tad difficult, salty, very fermentary, peppery, lemony, grassy, tough And perfect. You just have to like them extremely grassy, peppery, rooty, tough, Jansenist, almost masochistic and barely explainable. No surprise that some friends in glorious Japan would have selected this very tough baby. Finish: yeah, as I said. Comments: who said whiskies had to be easy and even (sometimes) woreish? I truly admire these young folks, the Thompsons, the Sponge, Jonny and others, as only ten years ago, nobody up there in Scotchland used to even remotely care about anything related to Scotch whisky. To our amazement, everything was only about vulgar, multinational-wide, nasty, inelegant, dirty, stinky, no-morals business. But things they are changing Colour: white wine. Nose: candle smoke, sunflower oil, baguette (that's proper bread, no?) plus grapefruits and just fresh-mown lawn. Kelp on the beach and damp plaster. Mouth: a tad difficult, salty, very fermentary, peppery, lemony, grassy, tough And perfect. You just have to like them extremely grassy, peppery, rooty, tough, Jansenist, almost masochistic and barely explainable. No surprise that some friends in glorious Japan would have selected this very tough baby. Finish: yeah, as I said. Comments: who said whiskies had to be easy and even (sometimes) woreish?

SGP:262 - 88 points. Pretty much grouped fire this trime again - no surprise. As we used to say, CU.



Oh by the way, just noticed that that one was my 18,000th whisky review. Not that that's very important, is it. -S. November 9, 2022 Quite a few disclosed Highland Park We wrote 'disclosed' because there are many more 'Secret Orkneys' or 'Whitlaws' or 'St Magnus Delights' or else around these days. But we'll try some of those later (picture Sigrid Storrada, wikipedia)





Highland Park 'Cask Strength Batch 3' (64.1%, OB, 2022) This brand-new baby that was bottled at rocket fuel strength, just like its predecessor will you say, is ex-first Fill sherry American and European oak. Colour: gold. Nose: it is a meaty, grassy, slightly metallic sherry, which makes it really rustic and robust on the nose. Now at 64% vol., anything will be robust. With water: only few changes, it remains grassy, slightly fermentary, with some ale, walnuts, some raw chocolate, ham It is less honeyed than last year's C/S. Mouth (neat): sweet and pungent at the same time, with some leather, hay, walnut skins, pureed chestnuts, cured ham, peppery oak Robust and rustic indeed! Water is absolutely obligatory in this context. With water: there, the fruits are coming out, first bitter oranges, then bitterer apples, plus some triple-sec and always these walnuts, as well as bitterer vegetables, around our good friends the artichokes and eggplants, not to mention Baldrick's turnips. Finish: long, still leathery and a little bittersweet. Some welcome raisins in the aftertaste. Comments: I like my HPs more al natural, but this one's good for sure, if a little rustic and robust indeed. For the hipflask with a skull, bones and an Harley logo.

SGP:452 - 83 points.

Highland Park 13 yo 2008/2021 'Sigrid Storrada' (66.5%, OB, for Poland, first fill European oak sherry butt, cask #2530, 652 bottles) Brought back from the very excellent Whisky Live Festival Warsaw, a single cask for lovely Poland. As for the strength, no comments, I may just call my lawyer before we proceed By the way and according to wikipedia, Sigrid Storrada, a.k.a. Swietos?awa (968-1014) was a Polish-born queen of Sweden and Denmark. Colour: dark red amber. Nose: hectolitres of walnut wine and stain in your glass, plus similar amounts of coffee, as well as some damp black garden peat. That's pretty all this far, because I wouldn't try 'too hard'. But with water: long story short, it is a double espresso with a few drops of armagnac. Say the Gascon way (50% coffee, 50% armagnac). Mouth (neat): black Corinth currants, prunes, tamarind jam, ganache, pipe tobacco, more walnut wine, Fernet Branca Those sorts of things. With water: back to civilisation, with honey, raisins, chestnut puree, touches of chilli, marmalade and armagnac indeed. Very good, but you really need a pipette. Finish: long, drier, rather on unsweetened coffee, pipe tobacco, clove and bitter chocolate (Wedel's, naturally). Some saltiness in the aftertaste. Comments: we had a blast in Warsaw a few days ago. This is just a tiny, yet excellent example, a dark HP that never stopped improving in the glass and that took water without flinching. Cheers Piotr and Jarek, and na zdrowie!

SGP:562 - 89 points.

Highland Park 30 yo (45.2%, OB, 2667 bottles, Spring 2019) We've never tried this batch, however we've tried many earlier 30s, all bottled at 48.1%. Always stunning stuff in my book, but let's see how this one will survive the sherry monster from Poland... Colour: gold, so a rather lighter colour given the age. Nose: subtle and delicate, rather on branches, leaves, herbs and vegetal oils, as well as mosses, fern, fresh mushrooms, pinecones and nuts. Fresh-crushed hazelnuts, almond milk, some hay, perhaps one tiny cigarillo, then old manzanilla, seawater, and perhaps one tiny drop of raspberry liqueur in the end. Good fun, that. Mouth: some resemblances and some differences. There's this subtle leafiness that would include resins and tobacco, but also more fruits, around apricots and quinces, coated with the trademark heather honey. That part is rather reminiscent of Highland Park of old. Tends to become earthier after a short while, and then we're back on manzanilla, walnuts, tobacco and pine resin. Finish: raisins chiming in, old rancio, and stronger honey such as chestnut. Comments: you do feel the oak and yet it never gets oaky. Excellent old-style Highland Park that you could have with food, such as foie gras. Or perhaps Parmesan cheese? But beware, it goes down fast and as some friends would say, 'it would tend to evaporate faster than others'.

SGP:452 - 90 points. After the 30, there's the 40

Highland Park 40 yo (43.2%, OB, Spring 2019) The last official HP 40 I've tried had been bottled around 2008 (WF 91 despite a generous amount of oak). Let me salute Sir Martin of Highland Park, a great man of whisky and the best ambassador any whisky brand could ever dream of. Colour: deep gold. Nose: oh! There are echoes of the 1960s, of 'the' John Goodwin, of the St Magnus labels, of the black dumpies round black labels Do you see what I mean? That would translate into this very specific, some would say idiosyncratic, kind of honeyed meaty fruitiness that you wouldn't find in any other makes. Old Sauternes, preserved peaches with a little mint, old mead, earthy charcuterie, softer tobacco, chartreuse and verbena liqueur, with also a little caraway (but caraway may stem from the wood, we shall see) Mouth: when tasting them, always remember that very old spirits are very old (bravo, S.!) Some moist fruitcake (Alsatian beerawecka), some very delicate teaishness that's bordering on, well, old oak, old sweet wines, marsalas, malagas Several honeys, not just heather or clover, old cognac (but again, remember old malts and old brandies do tend to converge), dried fruits and jams, figs, sultanas It is just dazzling and would just never falter, at any moment. Finish: perhaps not the longest ever, but it's aligning dried fruits and old sweet wines as if on parade. Comments: no surprise here, it is perfect Highland Park. Some would say that we're having the one-million times cheaper official 10 yo at WF 90, which is true, but they're discontinuing that 10 yo. Good things never last.

SGP:551 - 92 points. Shall we add some indies, and do that retro-vertically?...

Highland Park 20 yo 1997/2018 (55.8%, Hunter Laing, The First Editions, refill hogshead, cask #HL 14625, 286 bottles) We shall expect something tenser. A 18 yo 1997 (HL 12099) had been splendid (WF 90). Colour: gold. Nose: exactly. Sunflower oil, stearin, wool, engine oil, oyster shells, chalk, suet, grist You see. With water: more chalk, grist and wool, less of the rest. More porridge too, this is some perfect breakfast drink (rather than champagne or sekt, as they do in eastern Europe). Mouth (neat): apple juice, lemon juice, lime juice, rhubarb juice, tangerines, grapefruits, two raisins, one dollop of heather honey. With water: what a distillate. Water makes it fatter and brings out more honey and beeswax as a consequence. Finish: long, both tight/vertical and rather fat, which is pretty much oxymoronic, I agree. Comments: one of these whiskies you could score without even opening the bottle. Make + vintage + bottler + wood, that's almost all you need; but I hereby solemnly swear that we'll never do that, cross my heart.

SGP:552 - 90 points.

Highland Park 10 yo 2011/2022 (64.2%, The Whisky Blues, hogshead, cask #15, 261 bottles) Awesome label here; the pedigree doesn't sound too bad either, but isn't this just another lethal strength? Let me call my lawyer back Colour: pale white wine. Nose: it's a killer, it's extremely close to the distillate, while we all know that the distillate is perfect. Wax and grist and seawater and lemon and stuff. We shan't go on, we need our nose. With water: mezcal, chalk, seawater, oysters, varnish, grist, porridge. Enough said (even if lemons are missing). Mouth (neat): extraordinary rocket fuel. Elon M. should have bought Highland Park instead of Twitter. With water: top five distillate, no doubt, while there's a funny Cynelishness in here. Granny smith, paraffin, lemons (there) and bitterer leaves in the background. This is where it's missing the 90-mark. Finish: long, a notch spirity, but otherwise perfect. Barley sugar. Comments: could be that this one should have gone to 12 or 15, it is still a wee tad wobbly. But, yeah, brilliant distillate, maybe to be cellared for 30 additional years?

SGP:551 - 88 points. Maybe a last one Highland Park 5 yo 2015/2021 (59.7, Joecy and Or Sileis, oloroso octave, cask #565B)

Colour: white wine, so no first fill oloroso for sure. Nose: some younger yet HP, so probably more immature, at a pretty high strength. Wool, porridge, chalk, flour, bakers' yeast, fresh baguette and leaven bread. With water: mud, chalk, porridge, wool, iodine, beach sand, rainwater, carbolineum. Mouth (neat): classy distillate, fruitier here, with cherry drops, Kriek, oranges, marshmallows, varnish Much youth for sure. With water: same. Finish: rather long, kirschy, eau-de-vie-ish. Comments: great distillate, bottled when a little too young if you ask me. But better wait than dump into very active wood (STR or else) when the spirit is this classy (but that's not my business, naturally) Colour: white wine, so no first fill oloroso for sure. Nose: some younger yet HP, so probably more immature, at a pretty high strength. Wool, porridge, chalk, flour, bakers' yeast, fresh baguette and leaven bread. With water: mud, chalk, porridge, wool, iodine, beach sand, rainwater, carbolineum. Mouth (neat): classy distillate, fruitier here, with cherry drops, Kriek, oranges, marshmallows, varnish Much youth for sure. With water: same. Finish: rather long, kirschy, eau-de-vie-ish. Comments: great distillate, bottled when a little too young if you ask me. But better wait than dump into very active wood (STR or else) when the spirit is this classy (but that's not my business, naturally)

SGP:551 - 83 points. Next time, secret ones! Check the index of all Highland Park we've tasted so far November 8, 2022 Little duos, today Deanston once more Deanston is one of those names that we love to try pretty often, probably more so than bigger names that don't always have much to say. Because remember, we try whisky, we don't try labels (yeah yeah) Deanston 21 yo 2000/2022 'Organic Whisky' (50.9%, OB, 2784 bottles)

Organic malt whisky matured in organic bourbon casks and finished in organic fino sherry casks. Probably not something very easy to do, especially with ex-solera sherry  unless that would have been 'anada' (single vintage) sherry instead. Colour: deep gold. Nose: there's really a lot of fino, as if the finishing casks had been 'extremely wet'. But naturally, that could not be. Basically, that translates into chalk and walnuts, bone-dry, almost acidic white wine, apple peel, a little curry, a little mustard, and a little fudge. The fino's having the lead guitar, on the other hand we just loooove good fino. With water: a curious sulphur-like touch at first, then old Jerez vinegar, musty old cellar, curry indeed, miso, malt extracts and a lot of chalk. Mouth (neat): huge fino indeed, plus pepper, heavy marmalade, chutneys, dried pears, and walnut wines and liqueurs. You could have said 'this is nocino', amigo. With water: back to maltiness, liquorice, amontillado rather than fino, chocolaty walnuts, chalk Finish: very long, very bitter-sour, with walnuts running the show, for good. Comments: feels a little unnatural here and there, but Nature is sometimes overrated (what???) What's sure is that it is very Jerezian and probably not for everyone. I'm on the right side. By the way, I remember a 2013 'The Union Exclusive' that was also organic and ex-fino, and very good too (WF 85).

SGP:372 - 87 points. Back to nature. Deanston 13 yo 2008/2022 (57.7%, Whisky Age for Whisky Picnic Bar and O'my Bar, bourbon barrel, cask #185, 179 bottles)

Colour: white wine. Nose: it is almost hilarious, in a good way of course, to try such a pure, immaculate malt after a much more, say made-up counterpart. It's almost as if Iggy Pop's brother were a clergyman, well, I mean, you get the idea. So, pure apples, pears, barley, beer, bread and vanilla, plus cut celeriac and gentian. With water: more beer, paraffin, bread, nut oils Mouth (neat): pure pear cider, plums, biscuits, assorted fruit drops, sweet beer, vanilla, drops of barley syrup, toffee apple, boiled sweets With water: more bitter leaves, Campari, ginger, turmeric Rather bizarrely, water made it bigger. Finish: rather long, sweeter and fruitier when neat, leafy and bitterish when reduced. Mezcaly aftertaste (when reduced). Comments: Distillers would have asked for more selling points (read woods, wines etc.) They would have been wrong, it is an excellent malt.. Colour: white wine. Nose: it is almost hilarious, in a good way of course, to try such a pure, immaculate malt after a much more, say made-up counterpart. It's almost as if Iggy Pop's brother were a clergyman, well, I mean, you get the idea. So, pure apples, pears, barley, beer, bread and vanilla, plus cut celeriac and gentian. With water: more beer, paraffin, bread, nut oils Mouth (neat): pure pear cider, plums, biscuits, assorted fruit drops, sweet beer, vanilla, drops of barley syrup, toffee apple, boiled sweets With water: more bitter leaves, Campari, ginger, turmeric Rather bizarrely, water made it bigger. Finish: rather long, sweeter and fruitier when neat, leafy and bitterish when reduced. Mezcaly aftertaste (when reduced). Comments: Distillers would have asked for more selling points (read woods, wines etc.) They would have been wrong, it is an excellent malt..

SGP:551 - 86 points. Check the index of all Deanston we've tasted so far November 7, 2022 In search of the perfect Aberfeldy There Serge, that is a proper headline!

Aberfeldy 15 yo 'Napa Valley' (43%, OB, batch #2922/B, +/-2022) It's hard not to laugh, to me at least. Apparently, someone's decided that it would be a good idea to finish a 15 yo Aberfeldy, probably just fine, in some 'Cabernet Sauvignon wine casks from the Napa Valley'. And French oak, I suppose. I mean, beyond the tastes, imagine the carbon footprint. Do they then export this to San Francisco? To Sausalito's bourgeoisie, you say? Colour: apricot. Nose: naturally, they are not stupid (of course they aren't), you do not feel the red wine upfront, you rather get fruitcakes, dried apricots, then heather honey and, indeed, some strawberry jam and marshmallows. At this point, we're still fine (even if I'd love some regular Aberfeldy instead) Mouth: starts okay, then falls apart, killed by red berries and oak spices. Blackcurrants, never such a good idea in whisky, if you ask this very humble little taster. Clafoutis, Mon Cheri, green pepper, leaves, cherry stems Pass. Finish: medium, leafy, bitterish, some chocolate in the aftertaste kind of saves it, though. Those Mon Cheri again. Comments: it's not that it's utterly bad, it's that it's not needed. But then again and again, only one man's opinion.

SGP:651 - 79 points. Aberfeldy 18 yo 'Tuscan Red Wine' (43%, OB, batch #2922/A, +/-2022)

Phew, they're on a stroll! Tuscan, that would mean either Sangiovese (great), or Bordeaux blend a.k.a. Super-Tuscan (bad, well just watch the movie Mondovino again). Now on the label, there is a drawing of a little cask that says 'Bolgheri', which suggests a Bx Blend ala Sassicaia indeed. Bad news, I never managed to finish a bottle of Sassicaia Or of Ornellaia for that matter Colour: apricot. Nose: this time again, it starts gently, on cakes, brioches, crema catalana But fruity teas and red berries are approaching. Some earthiness too, which I find nice. All in all, a nice nose, not too winey. Not winey at all, actually. But careful Mouth: let's remain honest, this is okayish at first, even if the whole's unbalanced and too spicy. Everything goes pear-shaped after that, disjointed, bitter, and un-Scotch. Finish: medium, unpleasant, bitter, sour. Comments: makes illusion for a few seconds, then falls apart. Why do so many brands torture and torment their own makes like this these days? Phew, they're on a stroll! Tuscan, that would mean either Sangiovese (great), or Bordeaux blend a.k.a. Super-Tuscan (bad, well just watch the movie Mondovino again). Now on the label, there is a drawing of a little cask that says 'Bolgheri', which suggests a Bx Blend ala Sassicaia indeed. Bad news, I never managed to finish a bottle of Sassicaia Or of Ornellaia for that matter Colour: apricot. Nose: this time again, it starts gently, on cakes, brioches, crema catalana But fruity teas and red berries are approaching. Some earthiness too, which I find nice. All in all, a nice nose, not too winey. Not winey at all, actually. But careful Mouth: let's remain honest, this is okayish at first, even if the whole's unbalanced and too spicy. Everything goes pear-shaped after that, disjointed, bitter, and un-Scotch. Finish: medium, unpleasant, bitter, sour. Comments: makes illusion for a few seconds, then falls apart. Why do so many brands torture and torment their own makes like this these days?

SGP:451 - 72 points. The good news is that you can always count on the indies

Aberfeldy 7 yo 2014/2021 (57.7%, Cut Your Wolf Loose, refill hogshead, 266 bottles) Some fun, at last! Aren't we also tired of faux Victorian designs? Colour: white wine. Nose: there, some barley, some bread, some cakes, some shortbread, some butterscotch, cappuccino, mocha, latte Everything! With water: same, almost. Mouth (neat): it instantly kills the two red-wined OBs, but that was to be expected. Then we have panettone (panettone, back on WF!) and cornflakes, mead, honey cake, makrouts, Turkish delights, pistachio nougat, candied bergamots With water: very good, malty, fresh, a tad bitter here and there, perhaps. Some ale and some liquorice wood. Finish: long, otherwise not particularly noticeable, but it does call for the next dram (of the same whisky). Comments: malt whisky as in malt whisky, and Aberfeldy as in Aberfeldy, not as in lousy self-appointed Super-Tuscans. Oh forgot to say, and I'm quoting some PR here, 'each bottle is labelled with custom artwork by London-based graffiti artist Tom Blackford. The labels depict a 'rambunctious' seagull dressed in 'informal attire'. Well, as long as it's fun

SGP:551 - 86 points. November 6, 2022 Quite a few more rums At random, as always, and starting with a wee aperitif, as often

Batavia Arrack 'By The Dutch' (46%, OB, Indonesia, finished in Cognac, +/-2022) Nicknamed 'The World's First Luxury Spirit' (by the owners, while we had thought that was Dalmore), this Indonesian rum distilled from molasses in pot stills is stemming from the island of Java. This baby's said to be 8 yo, while 'Batavia' is Jakarta's ancient name. Some say they use some ex-red rice yeast but I'm really not sure. Colour: white wine. Nose: somewhere between a Cuban and a cachaca, I would say, with an herbaceous lightness that's certainly not unpleasant, plus some liquorice wood and bits of sawn pinewood. I find this pleasant. Mouth: same grassiness, notes of cane juice indeed, the whole being very dry, then evolving towards something like moutai? Not too sure. It is not your 'average' rum for sure. Finish: medium, with a salty touch and, indeed, echoes of sake. No, really. Comments: it is not a very bold rum, but I would guess some single casks selected by good bottlers would be interesting to try. Who would take up the challenge?

SGP:351 - 77 points. French Antilles 2021/2022 'Grand Arome' (57%, S.B.S.)

White rum, ex-molasses, what's called 'rhum industriel' and not agricole. Grand Arome means high-esters, in this case around 500g/HLPA. This should stem from Le Galion in Martinique. Colour: white. Nose: these very typical whiffs of fresh glue (UHU) and gherkiny varnishes, moving towards high pineapples and even strawberries. Acetone would tend to dominate after a few seconds, but bizarrely, we enjoy acetone in our spirits. With water: some dirtiness, around old fruits rotting in earth, plus some juniper. Much, much nicer than that sounds. Mouth (neat): really between acetone/glue and very aromatic fruits, indeed pineapples, peaches, plus some brine and the obligatory green olives. Touches of aquavit (you would have thought this would rather belong to the Batavia arrack). With water: anchovies coming out, more olives, some fermented fruits (plums) and a drop of miso. Finish: rather long, with fermented tropical fruits at the forefront and those salty glues and varnishes in the back. Comments: everybody's thinking agricole whenever we're talking Martinique, but these 'industriels' can be rather superb too, especially when 'grand arome' indeed. White rum, ex-molasses, what's called 'rhum industriel' and not agricole. Grand Arome means high-esters, in this case around 500g/HLPA. This should stem from Le Galion in Martinique. Colour: white. Nose: these very typical whiffs of fresh glue (UHU) and gherkiny varnishes, moving towards high pineapples and even strawberries. Acetone would tend to dominate after a few seconds, but bizarrely, we enjoy acetone in our spirits. With water: some dirtiness, around old fruits rotting in earth, plus some juniper. Much, much nicer than that sounds. Mouth (neat): really between acetone/glue and very aromatic fruits, indeed pineapples, peaches, plus some brine and the obligatory green olives. Touches of aquavit (you would have thought this would rather belong to the Batavia arrack). With water: anchovies coming out, more olives, some fermented fruits (plums) and a drop of miso. Finish: rather long, with fermented tropical fruits at the forefront and those salty glues and varnishes in the back. Comments: everybody's thinking agricole whenever we're talking Martinique, but these 'industriels' can be rather superb too, especially when 'grand arome' indeed.

SGP:552 - 86 points. Australian Rum 10 yo 2012/2022 (66.9%, Swell de Spirits, ex-bourbon, 368 bottles)

This baby, most probably a secret Beenleigh, has been first spending 6 years in Oz, then 4 years in the UK. We've already had some superb Beenleigh, let's hope this is Beenleigh indeed. Colour: gold. Nose: this feeling of 'a bourbon of rum', with some vanilla, coconut, cakes, and really a lot of ethanol. No chances taken at WF Towers, my friend. With water: coconut and vanilla running the whole show, plus baked bananas. Quite some fudge too. Mouth (neat): just half a drop Well, the expected and obvious pears, butterscotch, pineapple liqueur With water: good, with touches of genever perhaps, aniseed too, caraway, then rather floral tones, viognier and pinot gris, pomegranates Finish: medium, with a little green tea, more viognier, a drop of pineapple juice, rosewater The aftertaste is the nicest part, with a lovely liquoricy earthiness and even a touch of mint. Comments: not a top Jamaican, but the evolution is fascinating, it would never stop gaining depth and, well, earth. But is it really Beenleigh? Shh, that's a secret. This baby, most probably a secret Beenleigh, has been first spending 6 years in Oz, then 4 years in the UK. We've already had some superb Beenleigh, let's hope this is Beenleigh indeed. Colour: gold. Nose: this feeling of 'a bourbon of rum', with some vanilla, coconut, cakes, and really a lot of ethanol. No chances taken at WF Towers, my friend. With water: coconut and vanilla running the whole show, plus baked bananas. Quite some fudge too. Mouth (neat): just half a drop Well, the expected and obvious pears, butterscotch, pineapple liqueur With water: good, with touches of genever perhaps, aniseed too, caraway, then rather floral tones, viognier and pinot gris, pomegranates Finish: medium, with a little green tea, more viognier, a drop of pineapple juice, rosewater The aftertaste is the nicest part, with a lovely liquoricy earthiness and even a touch of mint. Comments: not a top Jamaican, but the evolution is fascinating, it would never stop gaining depth and, well, earth. But is it really Beenleigh? Shh, that's a secret.

SGP:641 - 85 points. T.D.L. 13 yo 2008 (61.15%, Thompson Bros., Trinidad, Error 502, cask #SR22062, 82 bottles)

Bad gateway, apparently, but there were only 82 bottles. Colour: amber. Nose: very much on fudge, toffee and butterscotch. All right. With water: black garden earth (a little compost), liquid sponge cake, a little marmalade, agave syrup, white chocolate, a little natural rubber Well there's something very appealing in this one. With water: awesome earthiness. Mouth (neat): it is unusual, but this salty earthiness mingled with praline and coconut butter is not unpleasant at all. We see no obvious errors this far. With water: like it! Some acetone in this one too, some bitterish clove, very bitter chocolate, mint essence, heavy liquorice And earth. Finish: long, saltier. Black olives. Comments: pst, between us, it's almost as if someone would have poured a few litres of heavy Caroni into this wee cask, while no one was watching. Love this one, even if it's a little deviant here and there. Shh

SGP:562 - 89 points. Penny Blue 2009 (55%, OB for Kirsch Import, Mauritius, whisky cask, cask #203, 132 bottles, 2022)

From Medine distillery, said to be the oldest 'living' distillery in Mauritius. What's a whisky cask, exactly? Colour: gold. Nose: on squash, cane honey, crushed roasted hazelnuts, oranges liqueur With water: a relatively light caneyness. Do you say caneyness? Mouth (neat): superb arrival, on pear peel and rhubarb, getting tighter by the minute, complex, with lemons, tangerines, khaki With water: would tend to backpedal, becoming lighter in style. Not sure it needs water. Finish: medium, a little sweet. Some saltiness in the aftertaste, some tequila too. Comments: it's lighter than I would have thought. Very good, but perhaps little frustrating here and there, because of that lighter body. There is also an ex-sherry, but we'll have it later.

SGP:551 - 81 points. Oh, why not this possible glory Enmore 32 yo 1988/2021 (48.1%, Rum Sponge, Guyana, 201 bottle)

I agree, we took our time. Love the half-Aztec, half-Mayan label. Colour: gold. Nose: model glue, anchovy paste (a lovely Portuguese thing), peppermint, some tar, tapenade (really a lot), caraway bread, fennel seeds, and fresh rubber. Say new scuba diving suits. It is a fascinating nose, I find it extraordinary. It's an interesting unpolitical debate that we should have one day, tropical aging vs early landed. Mouth: frankly, it is an extraordinary spirit, even if some sides have become a little extreme over the years (burnt plastics and salted tar, you see). Vegetables, artichokes, grapefruit skin, glue (again and again), seashells (razorfish?), moussaka, tapenade, aioli (garlic sauce), paraffin It's all rather incredible and, in truth, reminiscent of some very old fino sherry. Ah, there, forgot to mention walnuts. Finish: long, on similar notes, globally. Tar, salt, glue, olives, anchovies Etcetera. Comments: thirty-two years! It's magical Enmore. Probably the Versailles still, if you ask me.

I agree, we took our time. Love the half-Aztec, half-Mayan label. Colour: gold. Nose: model glue, anchovy paste (a lovely Portuguese thing), peppermint, some tar, tapenade (really a lot), caraway bread, fennel seeds, and fresh rubber. Say new scuba diving suits. It is a fascinating nose, I find it extraordinary. It's an interesting unpolitical debate that we should have one day, tropical aging vs early landed. Mouth: frankly, it is an extraordinary spirit, even if some sides have become a little extreme over the years (burnt plastics and salted tar, you see). Vegetables, artichokes, grapefruit skin, glue (again and again), seashells (razorfish?), moussaka, tapenade, aioli (garlic sauce), paraffin It's all rather incredible and, in truth, reminiscent of some very old fino sherry. Ah, there, forgot to mention walnuts. Finish: long, on similar notes, globally. Tar, salt, glue, olives, anchovies Etcetera. Comments: thirty-two years! It's magical Enmore. Probably the Versailles still, if you ask me. SGP:463 - 91 points. Such an Enmore called for more old Enmore Enmore 30 yo 1990/2021 (53.8%, Nobilis Rum, for Caksus, 213 bottles)

Remember the Versailles wooden pot still was moved from Enmore to Uitvlugt around 1994, then to Diamond Distillery when Uitvlugt was closed in its turn. But it was still at Enmore when this was distilled (marque VSG). Colour: lighter gold. Nose: it is the same rum, more or less. I would say there's even more fennel seeds, caraway, mint, glue Brilliant, just brilliant. Mouth: a tiny notch less complex than the Sponge, but also a touch fuller and more assertive (as they say when they don't know what to say). Finish: indeed, it's a little straighter, but frankly, we're splitting hairs once more. These Versailles at Enmore are part of the most fantastic rums ever made by human entities, in my opinion. Comments: I've read that the wood that was used when they built this legendary wooden pot still was greenheart, a.k.a. chlorocardium rodiei. It's said to be very durable and resistant to most insect attacks. Fantastic! Remember the Versailles wooden pot still was moved from Enmore to Uitvlugt around 1994, then to Diamond Distillery when Uitvlugt was closed in its turn. But it was still at Enmore when this was distilled (marque VSG). Colour: lighter gold. Nose: it is the same rum, more or less. I would say there's even more fennel seeds, caraway, mint, glue Brilliant, just brilliant. Mouth: a tiny notch less complex than the Sponge, but also a touch fuller and more assertive (as they say when they don't know what to say). Finish: indeed, it's a little straighter, but frankly, we're splitting hairs once more. These Versailles at Enmore are part of the most fantastic rums ever made by human entities, in my opinion. Comments: I've read that the wood that was used when they built this legendary wooden pot still was greenheart, a.k.a. chlorocardium rodiei. It's said to be very durable and resistant to most insect attacks. Fantastic!

SGP:463 - 91 points. Remember our latest motto, not a session without Hampden! Hampden 12 yo 'DOK' (63.7%, OB, LMDW, cask #11, 168 bottles)

At Hampden, DOK is the marqua maxima. DOK means from 1500 to 1700 grams esters per HLPA; It is insane. Colour: gold. Nose: dead animals, gherkins, cucumbers, Chinese glues, and probably prickly pears, which are making it much gentler, rather unexpectedly. With water: no, really, let's be honest, it is splendid spirit, probably the greatest baijiu we've ever nosed (ooh that's smart, S.) Mouth (neat): drinking a pot of glue blended with green lemons (well, the juice made thereof), seawater, assorted fermented fruits and diesel oil. With water: a tad gritty now, but we shan't care. Finish: long and salty, tarry, rubbery, Ardbeggian (with apologies to whom this may concern). Comments: king o' rum and that's just a confirmation. At Hampden, DOK is the marqua maxima. DOK means from 1500 to 1700 grams esters per HLPA; It is insane. Colour: gold. Nose: dead animals, gherkins, cucumbers, Chinese glues, and probably prickly pears, which are making it much gentler, rather unexpectedly. With water: no, really, let's be honest, it is splendid spirit, probably the greatest baijiu we've ever nosed (ooh that's smart, S.) Mouth (neat): drinking a pot of glue blended with green lemons (well, the juice made thereof), seawater, assorted fermented fruits and diesel oil. With water: a tad gritty now, but we shan't care. Finish: long and salty, tarry, rubbery, Ardbeggian (with apologies to whom this may concern). Comments: king o' rum and that's just a confirmation.

SGP:563 - 91 points. Wouldn't we do a quick Long Pond before we call this a tasting session? Long Pond 3 yo 2019/2022 'STCE' (60%, Habitation Velier, LMDW, Jamaica, 1800 bottles)

550 to 700 gr esters/HLPA, I think. Colour: white wine. Nose: it is a gentler one, floral and herbal at first, fragrant (ylang-ylang) and only then more olive-y and spicy. Big notes of juniper, cumin and fennel. A lot of freshness, this is almost Jamaican pastis. With water: some menthol and plywood, plus pencil shavings. A lot of pencil shavings. Mouth (neat): young and a tad oaky(ish) but the core is noble, rather citrusy, kind of smoky, and only marginally gluey. Growing caraway notes in the background. With water: the pencil shavings are back, but it's all under control, so not fear the cedarwood effect. Finish: rather long, with some zests, liquorice, menthol and tar. Not an unseen combination, I agree. Some cedarwood in the aftertaste. Comments: the youth feels, but it's a marvellous young rum. Yep, daiquiri-ready, if you like.

SGP:562 - 86 points. November 1, 2022 Little Duos, today Glenrothes OB Several old Glenrothes are in the pipe, let's say this is a warm-up lap

Glenrothes 18 yo (43%, OB, +/-2022) One of these newish vintage-less official Glenrothes. Loved the old 'vintages' even if some years or dates were sometimes a little hard to understand. I mean, those dates of 'approval' Colour: gold. Nose: toffee with some sunflower and even a drop of olive oil, then a large pecan pie, roasted peanuts, milk chocolate and a Mars bar. Not obligatorily a deep-fried one. A good slice of walnut cake too, from some good sherry I would presume. Mouth: very nutty, very Glenrothes OB. More toffee and roasted pecans, then coffee liqueur and dark chocolate, with touches of cracked pepper. I find it relatively dry. Finish: medium, spicier, on cinnamon and cloves. More bitter chocolate and coffee, as well as burnt nuts plus marmalade and thin mints in the aftertaste. Comments: very well composed, with a prominent amontillado-y sherry. Not saying it was amontillado, having said that.

SGP:451 - 85 points.

Glenrothes 22 yo 1995 (57.6%, OB, LMDW, Antipodes, 593 bottles, 2022) The numbers are a little mysterious here, but it's true that LMDW would tend to like to play with them, always rounding them down  when they do. Well I know what I'm trying to say. Colour: deep gold. Nose: there's this official Glenrothesness again, blending toffee with chocolate and coffee, millionaire shortbread, a little charcoal, more roasted nuts, Linzertorte, then Schwarzwald cake, with a double amount of kirschwasser. With water: same combination, only with even more toffee, then some beef jerky and Mozart Kugeln (chocolate and marzipan). Mouth (neat): huge and lovely, sheltering all Jaffa cakes already baked this year, plus indeed some kirschwasser. I know this is 'only' 57.6%, but it rather feels like it's 65%. With water: still punchy, still a little hot, but the responsiveness is awesome here, and so is all the marmalade and chocolate. Finish: pretty long, while I wouldn't dare mention Mon Cheri. Whoops, I just did. Comments: this one's ready for Christmas. Great, potent Glenrothes.

SGP:451 - 87 points.

October 2022 Serge's favourite recent bottling this month:

Tomatin 45 yo 1976/2022 'Warehouse 6 ' (46%, OB, hogsheads, casks #32+33, 350 bottles) - WF92



Serge's favourite older bottling this month:

St Magdalene 19 yo 1979/1998 (63.80%, OB, Rare Malts) - WF94



Serge's favourite bang for your buck this month:

Ardbeg 10 yo 'Ten' (46%, OB, +/-2022) - WF91



Serge's favourite malternative this month:

Vallein Tercinier 'Rue 34' (42%, OB, for LMDW, Antipodes, Grande Champagne, cask #034, 50 bottles) - WF94



Serge's Lemon Prize this month:

Abuelo XII anos 'Two Oaks' (40%, Panama, +/-2021) - WF60 October 31, 2022 A few Bruichladdich Do not expect any form of logic here.

Bruichladdich 7 yo 'Waves' (46%, OB, 2006) We've tried another 'Waves' that was not carrying any age statement and which I had rather enjoyed twelve years ago (WF 82), but this one's clearly advertised as a 7 on the label. I bought it on location back then and couldn't help wondering where this distillate was stemming from, as the former new owners restarted production in 2001 after a pretty long hiatus. In whisky, mysteries come in waves. Colour: apricot gold. Nose: they've used Madeira and that feels. Mustard, walnuts, some varnish and even some glue, plus an unusually grassy smokiness. Mouth: punchy, with once again some smoke, ashes, touches of varnish, then melons and walnuts plus some cracked pepper. Finish: rather long, a little bitter. Some fruit skins and some zests. Comments: this wee smoke is interesting. Are we sure it couldn't have been the 'new' Bruichladdich already, after all? I remember they did make it rather peaty in the very early days.

SGP:552 - 80 points. Bruichladdich 'High Noon' (48.7%, OB, Feis Ile 2015, 1881 bottles)

Funny outturn, remember the Distillery was originally built in 1881. Not too sure about the casks that have been in use here Colour: deep gold. Nose: plenty happening, with some dry and sweet Madeira, once more, whiffs of rum (why not some of those agricoles from Madeira, precisely), then rather a lot of sweeter gravy, English-style, as well as prunes and ripe damsons. Zwetschke pie, also a little lighter pipe tobacco. A little unusual, but very, very nice for sure. Mouth: a little tougher than expected, rather in the style of some Juras, with a saltiness, some leather, tobacco, bitter zests, then raisins of all kinds, especially black ones. Touches of dried porcinis, and perhaps chicory coffee. Very solid body at 48% vol. Finish: long and much spicier, predominantly on mustard and cracked pepper. Bitter artichoke cordial in the aftertaste. Comments: very peculiar, and very different on the palate, after a pretty civilised and really awesome nose. Funny outturn, remember the Distillery was originally built in 1881. Not too sure about the casks that have been in use here Colour: deep gold. Nose: plenty happening, with some dry and sweet Madeira, once more, whiffs of rum (why not some of those agricoles from Madeira, precisely), then rather a lot of sweeter gravy, English-style, as well as prunes and ripe damsons. Zwetschke pie, also a little lighter pipe tobacco. A little unusual, but very, very nice for sure. Mouth: a little tougher than expected, rather in the style of some Juras, with a saltiness, some leather, tobacco, bitter zests, then raisins of all kinds, especially black ones. Touches of dried porcinis, and perhaps chicory coffee. Very solid body at 48% vol. Finish: long and much spicier, predominantly on mustard and cracked pepper. Bitter artichoke cordial in the aftertaste. Comments: very peculiar, and very different on the palate, after a pretty civilised and really awesome nose.

SGP:462 - 85 points. Bruichladdich 15 yo 2006/2022 (58.9%, Private Cask, first fill bourbon barrel, cask #1222)

This private cask from one of Norway's finest whisky connoisseurs, Michael Alvarez, who celebrated his 60th birthday right yesterday (but yesterday was malternative day at WF). Colour: gold. Nose: typical, with fresh broken branches, sea air, grape pip oil, melon skin, some stearin, fresh cut grass, green apples Certainly a little austere, but I believe that is an asset here. Water may/should unleash the melons With water: vanilla, then popcorn, then mirabelles and quinces, then indeed, honeydew melon... Mouth (neat): a typically fruity, orchardy Bruichladdich, but once again there's rather a lot of grass and peelings. Green apples, pears, greengages With water: gone is the main grass, welcome more apples and sweet roots, apricot liqueur (apricotine) and just a drop of bison vodka. A pretty pure Bruichladdich that's not very far from the earlier makes, say distilled in the early 1990s. Finish: medium, clean, half-way between plums and vegetal oils. Comments: excellent Bruichladdich, totally al natural. Cheers Michael! This private cask from one of Norway's finest whisky connoisseurs, Michael Alvarez, who celebrated his 60th birthday right yesterday (but yesterday was malternative day at WF). Colour: gold. Nose: typical, with fresh broken branches, sea air, grape pip oil, melon skin, some stearin, fresh cut grass, green apples Certainly a little austere, but I believe that is an asset here. Water may/should unleash the melons With water: vanilla, then popcorn, then mirabelles and quinces, then indeed, honeydew melon... Mouth (neat): a typically fruity, orchardy Bruichladdich, but once again there's rather a lot of grass and peelings. Green apples, pears, greengages With water: gone is the main grass, welcome more apples and sweet roots, apricot liqueur (apricotine) and just a drop of bison vodka. A pretty pure Bruichladdich that's not very far from the earlier makes, say distilled in the early 1990s. Finish: medium, clean, half-way between plums and vegetal oils. Comments: excellent Bruichladdich, totally al natural. Cheers Michael!

SGP:551 - 87 points. Bruichladdich 17 yo 2004/2021 (56.2%, The Maltman for HNWS Taiwan, bourbon hogshead, cask #640, 201 bottles)

Colour: light gold. Nose: this doesn't happen very often, but it is the same whisky on the nose. Trying to find any differences, even very subtle ones, would mean splitting hairs, or trying to be smart. Nah, the 2006 and this 2004 are organoleptically identical this far. Mouth (neat): once again, identical whiskies. The oily texture is remarkable. With water: ditto, same whisky. Lovely grass, fruit peel, plums, beets Finish: even the finish is identical (not taking into account any unnecessary personal elucubrations that could have occurred). Comments: and they weren't even sister casks. Colour: light gold. Nose: this doesn't happen very often, but it is the same whisky on the nose. Trying to find any differences, even very subtle ones, would mean splitting hairs, or trying to be smart. Nah, the 2006 and this 2004 are organoleptically identical this far. Mouth (neat): once again, identical whiskies. The oily texture is remarkable. With water: ditto, same whisky. Lovely grass, fruit peel, plums, beets Finish: even the finish is identical (not taking into account any unnecessary personal elucubrations that could have occurred). Comments: and they weren't even sister casks.

SGP:551  87 points. (Thank you Arild, Otto!) October 30, 2022 A word of caution

Let me please remind you that my humble assessments of any spirits are done from the point of view of a malt whisky enthusiast who, what's more, is aboslutely not an expert in rum, brandy, tequila, vodka, gin or any other spirits. Thank you  and peace! A few rums as they come No preconceptions, no plans, no fears. As he used to say, preparing for the worst, expecting the best, taking what's coming. San Miguel 'Extra Anejo  Solera 1952' (43%, OB, Ecuador, +/-2022)

Right right right, this from a solera that was started in 1952. How many drops? I've only ever tried two other Ecuadorian rons, a Cimborazo (WF 68) and a Cotopaxi (WF 70). There's room for improvement (with love to Ecuador!) I've seen that this was matured in altitude Colour: deep gold. Nose: some good fun, with some fumes from an old two-stroke engine (a Kawasaki, naturally) and some metallic molasses, chestnut puree, muscovado sugar, a box of cheap chocolates, a little coffee liqueur Well, you just never know Mouth: not too bad! First, it's not cloyingly sugary, second it's got some pretty good grassiness, all that before a vast amount of rotting bananas would take over. Then a lot of sugarcane syrup. Nothing against that, but it's frankly sweet. Finish: a little short, a tad indefinite. I would suppose ice should have been added at this stage. Comments: progress! (being a little positive here, I'd love to visit Ecuador one day). Right right right, this from a solera that was started in 1952. How many drops? I've only ever tried two other Ecuadorian rons, a Cimborazo (WF 68) and a Cotopaxi (WF 70). There's room for improvement (with love to Ecuador!) I've seen that this was matured in altitude Colour: deep gold. Nose: some good fun, with some fumes from an old two-stroke engine (a Kawasaki, naturally) and some metallic molasses, chestnut puree, muscovado sugar, a box of cheap chocolates, a little coffee liqueur Well, you just never know Mouth: not too bad! First, it's not cloyingly sugary, second it's got some pretty good grassiness, all that before a vast amount of rotting bananas would take over. Then a lot of sugarcane syrup. Nothing against that, but it's frankly sweet. Finish: a little short, a tad indefinite. I would suppose ice should have been added at this stage. Comments: progress! (being a little positive here, I'd love to visit Ecuador one day).

SGP:630 - 72 points. To Trinidad Ten Cane 2008/2022 (63.4%, L'Esprit, Trinidad, cask #BB 12, 264 bottles)

From Ten Cane Distillery, a short-lived operation started by LVMH in 2005 and closed in 2015, said to have produced for Angostura. It is supposed to be 'light'. We've tried only one Ten Cane in the past but liked it a lot (WF 88). And Brittany's L'Esprit is always a sure bet. Colour: dark amber. Nose: light my hat. Lots of plastics, plywood, putty and paint, engine oil But no chances taken at WF Towers. With water: more petroly notes, varnishes, dirty oils, then black chocolate and coffee, sailing away towards thick molasses. Mouth (neat): perfect, on petrol, varnish, olives, tar and very heavy liquorice. But boy is it strong. With water: mad. Salt, soups, varnish, heavy tar, acetone, carbon, burnt sugar, glues, coal tar Finish: very long, on exactly the same flavours (in the same order). Heavy chocolate + liquorice in the aftertaste. Comments: very thick rum, you'd almost need a knife. What happened at (and to) Ten Cane, exactly? From Ten Cane Distillery, a short-lived operation started by LVMH in 2005 and closed in 2015, said to have produced for Angostura. It is supposed to be 'light'. We've tried only one Ten Cane in the past but liked it a lot (WF 88). And Brittany's L'Esprit is always a sure bet. Colour: dark amber. Nose: light my hat. Lots of plastics, plywood, putty and paint, engine oil But no chances taken at WF Towers. With water: more petroly notes, varnishes, dirty oils, then black chocolate and coffee, sailing away towards thick molasses. Mouth (neat): perfect, on petrol, varnish, olives, tar and very heavy liquorice. But boy is it strong. With water: mad. Salt, soups, varnish, heavy tar, acetone, carbon, burnt sugar, glues, coal tar Finish: very long, on exactly the same flavours (in the same order). Heavy chocolate + liquorice in the aftertaste. Comments: very thick rum, you'd almost need a knife. What happened at (and to) Ten Cane, exactly?

SGP:563 - 88 points. Bielle 13 yo 2009/2022 (47.7%, David's Rum Selection, Elegant, Marie-Galante, cask #24, 194 bottles)

I can't see what could go wrong here. Colour: deep gold. Nose: unusual, with some sandalwood, tiger balm, lemon curd, tangerine liqueur, ylang-ylang and vetiver, green oranges In truth I'm reminded of a lovely eau-de-toilette by Hermes, 'Eau d'Orange Verte' (green orange water  well you got it I'm sure). Touches of cumin and caraway too. Mouth: some piney wood, green liquorice, turmeric, beeswax, some salty elements, a soft tarriness, liquorice allsorts, peppermint, drop of bitter, drop of creme de menthe You would almost believe a high-league mixologist composed this. Finish: medium, all on fruits and soft liquorice. Bielle's class speaks. Comments: really intriguing at first, but in the end, this is a perfect, deep, almost classic Marie-Galante. It feels a little older than just 13, in my little book and, well, I love it. Bielle is class. I can't see what could go wrong here. Colour: deep gold. Nose: unusual, with some sandalwood, tiger balm, lemon curd, tangerine liqueur, ylang-ylang and vetiver, green oranges In truth I'm reminded of a lovely eau-de-toilette by Hermes, 'Eau d'Orange Verte' (green orange water  well you got it I'm sure). Touches of cumin and caraway too. Mouth: some piney wood, green liquorice, turmeric, beeswax, some salty elements, a soft tarriness, liquorice allsorts, peppermint, drop of bitter, drop of creme de menthe You would almost believe a high-league mixologist composed this. Finish: medium, all on fruits and soft liquorice. Bielle's class speaks. Comments: really intriguing at first, but in the end, this is a perfect, deep, almost classic Marie-Galante. It feels a little older than just 13, in my little book and, well, I love it. Bielle is class.

SGP:662 - 90 points.

Uitvlugt 1999/2021 (52.6%, The Colours of Rum, Wealth Solutions, cask #54, 184 bottles) I should be in Warsaw when I publish this. Colour: straw. Nose: awesome grassy and petroly start, very typical, with even asparagus, leek, wisteria, honeysuckle and above all, elderflowers. Whiffs of new shoes, leatherette With water: perfect sauna oils and myrtle, plus more asparagus, plus grapefruit skin. Unquestionably perfect combo, as far as combos go (what?) Mouth (neat): these are just superb. Lemons, brine, riesling, liquorice, green bananas, smoked fish, tar With water: the saltiness further comes out, sardines, anchovies, salted liquorice, some varnish Finish: long, saltier. One of the saltiest spirits, no one does this on Islay. Perhaps 'some' Bowmores. Comments: shortage stress starting to strike us. Do they still have many from these quasi-continental batches?

SGP:463 - 91 points.

Guyana 19 yo 2002/2022 (49.2%, Transcontinental Rum Line, The Navigator, bourbon, cask # EN02KFM33, 280 bottles) This one was aged in Europe. Distilled in that single wooden pot still, so most probably Enmore. Colour: white wine. Nose: new tyres, caraway and fennel seeds, this is well Enmore. Then new sneakers, aniseed, anchovies in brine, olives, plastic, and a small tomato leaf. Mouth: all these ones range from utterly terrific to rather terrific. This one's got a lighter fruitiness, around plum eau-de-vie, then these adorably subtle briny notes, with olives, tar, and some kind of smoked toffee. Excellent. Finish: long, saltier yet, perhaps fatter, with notes of limy putty or something. Drops of Grand-Marnier in the aftertaste. Comments: just brilliant. This is Major Tom to ground control, we remain in the stratosphere  as far as rums go.

SGP:563 - 90 points.

Hampden 12 yo 2010/2022 'HCLF' (61.3%, OB, Rare Casks Series, LMDW Antipodes, cask #80, 252 bottles) It is fascinating to read LMDW's latest catalogue. You would learn that Hampden's rums had never been aged, let alone bottled on location until 2009, and that the first aged OBs only came out in 2018. Colour: gold. Nose: heavy glues and varnishes, acetone, ammonia, in the back some banana liqueur. HCLF means between 500 and 700 gr ester/HLPA, so say upper-middle-echelon esterness. With water: olives chiming in, together with carbon dust. Mouth (neat): whatever the marque, there's no light Hampden. Certainly not this one. Varnish and high-concentration raspberry spirit, rotten bananas, liquorice With water: soft landing with liquorice and a stunning floral side. Gorse and acacia blossom, perhaps. Finish: long, saltier and brinier. In short, more on olives. Hampden owe big time to olives. Comments: they should start to use marks/marques in Scotland too. As far as this wee Hampden goes, I can only bow my head. I know, boringly predictable; having said that, we can only wonder, would the heavy-esterers be this successful if the heavy-peaters had never met, well, success as singles? After all, the stories are extremely similar.

SGP:553 - 91 points. October 29, 2022 Angus's Corner

From our correspondent and

skilled taster Angus MacRaild in Scotland Checking in on Daftmill It's been a while since we Daftmilled here on Whiskyfun. Always fun to check in with what Mr Cuthbert has been up to Daftmill 2008/2021 (56.6%, OB for Master Of Malt, cask #25, bourbon barrel)

Colour: pale gold. Nose: this has the slightly more assertive grassiness of those earlier Daftmill vintages but combined with a similarly overt fruitiness from the Summer batch. Rather a lot of tinned pineapple rings in syrup, lemon curd, fruit sherbets, wee touches of eucalyptus and spearmint. Familiar notes of crushed nettle and lime as well. Quite excellent! With water: very green and aromatic now, lots of ferns, wet moss, grass, nettles, green tea with lemon and touches of bergamot and citrus rinds. Mouth: rather sweet up front, lots of sweet fruit juices and more lemon jam, also some nibbles of ginger and cinnamon from the oak. There's some furniture oil and boot polish as well which is new to me from Daftmill. The whole evolves towards things like cough syrup and golden syrup. An active but very good cask. With water: those oaky touches are swept aside in the favour of warm grist, green pepper, lemon cough drops, wintergreen and sweet breakfast cereals. Finish: long, peppery, warming, quite herbal, trademark grass and nettles, and also more very slight mentholated and minty things in the aftertaste. Comments: water definitely adds a single fat point here in the way it opens everything up. Excellent levels of complexity and development on display here.

SGP: 651 - 89 points. Daftmill 2009/2021 (60.7%, OB for Kirsch Import, 1st fill oloroso butt, cask #024/2009, 627 bottles)

Colour: deep orangey gold. Nose: marmalade on pumpernickel toast and various roasted nuts, Brazils and walnuts spring immediately to mind, beyond that some freshly roasted coffee beans and dark chocolate. I'm also finding quite a bit of strawberry jam with just a hint of hardwood sawdust and also bouillon powder. With water: some lovely aromatic wood spices and dark spiced teas coming through. Bouillon, treacle, plums baked in Armagnac, nicely rustic in fact. Mouth: very jammy with some stewed dark fruit, more bitter chocolate and cocoa notes, fig paste and walnut oil. Veers nicely between umami and sweet with a sherry profile that is a halfway house between old school and modern. Some nicely gooey and fudgey qualities about it as well, also I can't help but get impressions of Nutella - which is very fitting for a German market bottling. With water: still nicely dark, jammy and fruity with this earthy and nutty undercurrent. Well balanced, punchy and hearty sherry. Finish: good length, back on breads, dark beers and roasted nuts with chocolate sauce. Comments: very hard not to think of early A'bunadh batches when tasting these big sherried Daftmills. Francis seems to get some excellent sherry casks it would seem - and of course makes very tidy whisky too, although overall I think I prefer the bourbon ones.

SGP: 561 - 88 points. October 27, 2022 Royal Brackla is back! I mean, on little Whiskyfun. Advertised as 'The King's Own Whisky', but he was William IV. We'll see if Charles III will follow suit. Royal Brackla 18 yo (46%, OB, palo cortado finish, +/-2022)

We've never tried this 18 but I believe it's a fairly recent expression. Yet another finishing, looks like more and more official whiskies need some extra-seasoning, or flavour adjustments. That could be a global issue, the SWA should be on the alert! Colour: gold. Nose: indeed, there are walnuts, some earth, some toasted bread, then gooseberries, not unseen in Brackla, and wildflower honey. It is not a very demonstrative malt whisky. A bittersweet feeling. Mouth: firm, nutty, with walnuts, toffee, then more of those honeys and a growing spiciness, towards cinnamon. Also bitter nuts, almonds, bitter apples Finish: medium, spicier, with more sweet and sour notes, probably from the sherry. Bitter and peppery aftertaste. Comments: the price is very high and perhaps even a little pretentious (150), but indeed it is a fine drop, in my book. But I would never finish a 18, that sends a wrong message (like, after 18 years of careful maturing, our whisky needed some seasoning). We've never tried this 18 but I believe it's a fairly recent expression. Yet another finishing, looks like more and more official whiskies need some extra-seasoning, or flavour adjustments. That could be a global issue, the SWA should be on the alert! Colour: gold. Nose: indeed, there are walnuts, some earth, some toasted bread, then gooseberries, not unseen in Brackla, and wildflower honey. It is not a very demonstrative malt whisky. A bittersweet feeling. Mouth: firm, nutty, with walnuts, toffee, then more of those honeys and a growing spiciness, towards cinnamon. Also bitter nuts, almonds, bitter apples Finish: medium, spicier, with more sweet and sour notes, probably from the sherry. Bitter and peppery aftertaste. Comments: the price is very high and perhaps even a little pretentious (150), but indeed it is a fine drop, in my book. But I would never finish a 18, that sends a wrong message (like, after 18 years of careful maturing, our whisky needed some seasoning).

SGP:451 - 83 points. As usual, the indies are the guardians of the natural ones (I was about to say 'of the distillates')

Royal Brackla 13 yo 2007/2020 (54.8%, Blackadder, 25 Years of Blackadder, hogshead, cask #309226, 240 bottles) Not sure we did not forget to wish them much good back in 2020. Cheers Robin! Colour: white wine. Nose: pure, gorgeous barleyness, with some banana skin, plus bread, chalk, grist, pancakes and wee lemons. It may well not be the most complicated malt whisky ever, but what it does it does well, so far. With water: more flints, in a Sancerre-y way. Or, there, Chablis, this could have been a sharper, cleaner Chablis from the left bank (say Cote de Lechet!) Mouth (neat): pure indeed. Citrus, baguette, more pancake, green bananas, oatcakes, lemon cake Love love love lemon cake. With water: bingo. That wee Chablis, plus a touch of spearmint, plus oranges, plus just sweet bread. Finish: long and more lemony. Comments: bull's eye, and proof that Brackla's distillate does not obligatorily need finishings. Superb young whisky.

SGP:551 - 88 points. Just to be on the safe side, let's try that again Royal Brackla 13 yo 2009/2022 (56.1%, Fadandel.dk, barrel, cask #304130, 281 bottles)

Colour: white wine. Nose: well this one's grassier, less bready, rather more on fresh roots (beets, celeriac, turnips, carrots). That's just fine as well, if you ask me, love this simple, even simplistic rooty side. With water: same, plus fresh croissants. Very doughy, very nice, with these roots Perhaps even a drop of gentian eau-de-vie? Mouth (neat): back to Chablis! Not making this up! Sweet barley and zesty chardonnay, plus lemons. With water: some grasses kicking in, not obligatorily for the better, we've lost a little precision. But this time I'm definitely splitting hairs, it is a superb fresh and rooty dram. Finish: long, malty, bready, rooty and citrusy. What more does the people want? Yeah I know, democracy Comments: why would anyone product-oriented (so, normal people) decide to dump this awesome make into some cheapish sherry or else for a few weeks? What would the message be?

SGP:561 - 87 points. Check the index of all Brackla we've tasted so far October 26, 2022 Little Duos, today bitter-sherried Oban There's an Oban within this year's Special Releases, which I find pleasing. We could call this wee session a worm tub-special. Did you ever see Oban's? Oban 2007/2021 'Distiller's Edition' (43%, OB, Montilla fino finish, batch #OD 170.FG)

I've never quite realised that in Montilla-Moriles, they do make fino out of PX grapes. A sudden flash, you know. I've always rather enjoyed Oban's 'DE'. Colour: deep gold. Nose: the fino's even more obvious than before, but we do just love fino while Oban would be the perfect make to get married to these wines. Not too sure who had this idea back then, Dr Jim? Dr Maureen? See, I'm not always complaining about finishings tobacco, mustard, walnuts, chalk, putty, roasted sesame, old magazines, petrol, marmalade Mouth: mustard up, with some salt, chutneys, touch of cardboard, capers, green walnuts, drop of seawater There's something clearly west-coast, even if that would be, partially, the west coast of Spain. Finish: rather long, much drier, on pepper and tobacco. Ashes and a little cardboard, mustard sauce in the end (sauce a la diable). Comments: as I said, I'm fond of this salty and smoky combination. This would be huge at approx. 50% vol.

SGP:362 - 87 points. Oban 10 yo 'The HIdden Paradise of Black Rock' (57.1%, OB, Special Releases 2022)

This one was finished in amontillado this time. There is some kind of purple rabbit on the label, maybe is this the return of the Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog. Not sure I'm fully getting the 'story' that's coming with this year's SRs Colour: white wine. Nose: there's this fruitier, err, fruitiness that's rather reminding us of the older OBs, the ones that used to come in 'diamond' bottles. Great stuff. Whiffs of soft varnish, sherries, cranberries, melons, the smoky coastalness being toned down here. With water: Oban's smoky mustard and walnuts coming out. Some fig jam too, from the sherry? New tweed jacket. Mouth (neat): powerful, hot, on marzipan and kirschwasser, then wine gums and marshmallows, all that on a creamy texture. With water: some grassier bitterness, walnut skin, peppers, allspice Finish: long, a little rugous and tough. Closer to the DE now, but I'm finding that DE a little superior. Comments: excellent young Oban, but with a similar combo, I thought the Distiller's Edition had rather more to tell, and that it was a little more complex. Bah, both great drops, while Oban remains rare, as far as numbers of different expressions go. This one was finished in amontillado this time. There is some kind of purple rabbit on the label, maybe is this the return of the Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog. Not sure I'm fully getting the 'story' that's coming with this year's SRs Colour: white wine. Nose: there's this fruitier, err, fruitiness that's rather reminding us of the older OBs, the ones that used to come in 'diamond' bottles. Great stuff. Whiffs of soft varnish, sherries, cranberries, melons, the smoky coastalness being toned down here. With water: Oban's smoky mustard and walnuts coming out. Some fig jam too, from the sherry? New tweed jacket. Mouth (neat): powerful, hot, on marzipan and kirschwasser, then wine gums and marshmallows, all that on a creamy texture. With water: some grassier bitterness, walnut skin, peppers, allspice Finish: long, a little rugous and tough. Closer to the DE now, but I'm finding that DE a little superior. Comments: excellent young Oban, but with a similar combo, I thought the Distiller's Edition had rather more to tell, and that it was a little more complex. Bah, both great drops, while Oban remains rare, as far as numbers of different expressions go.

SGP:362 - 85 points. Check the index of all Oban we've tasted so far October 25, 2022 Little Duos, today old Glenturret IB vs OB Glenturret is another name that we're seeing more often since the owners of crystal makers (and blowers and cutters) Lalique have taken over the Distillery that used to belong to Edrington. The new bottlings, although obviously not distilled by the new owners, have shown some improvement in my book.

Radiator cap for automobiles, Lalique, 1928 (Tajan) Glenturret 30 yo 1989/2019 (47.1%, Signatory Vintage, for Kirsch Whisky, hogshead, cask #230, 282 bottles)

I seem to remember Kirsch have won an important award just a few weeks ago. Colour: straw. Nose: totally and plainly Glenturret, starting appropriately dirty, fermentary, mustardy and sooty, while you would find at least 1m3 of fresh concrete and a large basket of artichokes in the background. Even more mustard's soon to kick in too, together with paint, flints, an old pipe, old stone pots, bandages, Vaseline gauze and just a lot of damp chalk. How very Glenturret indeed! Mouth: indeed, indeed. Sweet mustard mixed with chalk, cider apples, plain cider, white beer, clay, sourer lemons, grasses, soot and ashes, bitter green tea, bitter oranges, coffee dregs Finish: pretty long, sweeter, pretty much on some kind of chalky marmalade, also with something a little metallic, which is pretty much GT as well. Regular marmalade in the aftertaste. Comments: 100% true to the Distillery's old style, and in that respect very commendable. On the other hand, you need to like them a little dirty Now it is much better than rather many OBs from the 1990s or 2000s. I seem to remember Kirsch have won an important award just a few weeks ago. Colour: straw. Nose: totally and plainly Glenturret, starting appropriately dirty, fermentary, mustardy and sooty, while you would find at least 1m3 of fresh concrete and a large basket of artichokes in the background. Even more mustard's soon to kick in too, together with paint, flints, an old pipe, old stone pots, bandages, Vaseline gauze and just a lot of damp chalk. How very Glenturret indeed! Mouth: indeed, indeed. Sweet mustard mixed with chalk, cider apples, plain cider, white beer, clay, sourer lemons, grasses, soot and ashes, bitter green tea, bitter oranges, coffee dregs Finish: pretty long, sweeter, pretty much on some kind of chalky marmalade, also with something a little metallic, which is pretty much GT as well. Regular marmalade in the aftertaste. Comments: 100% true to the Distillery's old style, and in that respect very commendable. On the other hand, you need to like them a little dirty Now it is much better than rather many OBs from the 1990s or 2000s.

SGP:462 - 87 points.

The Glenturret by Lalique 33 yo (43.7%, OB, Trinity, Provenance, 320 decanters, 2021) A very art deco decanter that is extremely 'Lalique' indeed. I would add that the Lalique Manufacture is located here in Alsace, it is a truly fantastic place to visit. The nearby restaurant in Wingen-sur-Moder, Villa Rene Lalique, is fabulous too, while I've heard their more recent restaurant at Glenturret was pretty sublime as well (End of commercial break). Colour: deep gold. Nose: there's more smoke in this one, certainly more roasted nuts and toasted bread, more walnuts too, but the core remains similarly mustardy, metallic, medicinal and sooty, although there would be another dimension too, around umami, savoury sauces, dried vegetable mix for ready-made soups also, perhaps, touches of overripe bananas What's sure is that this is complex. Mouth: a rounder and earthier '1989', with more leather and tobacco too. Otherwise mustard, some smokiness, walnut wine, fino, chalk, ale, bitters (amer biere Picon) and bitter chocolate. Finish: once again the finish is a little rounder, I'm even finding a handful of sultanas and a few dried figs. The aftertaste is a little mustardy and leathery again, but peppery marmalade is achieving the signature, so to speak. Comments: truly excellent and still very peculiar, while the decanter, once emptied, sure is a keeper.

SGP:552 - 89 points. Check the index of all Glenturret we've tasted so far October 24, 2022 Little duos, today crazy young OB vs crazy

old IB Glen Moray really seem to be coming out of the woods these days. Today we'll have only two of them, but none exactly 'average'. Is this Whiskyfun or not?





Glen Moray 2016/2021 'Rye Cask Finish' (46.3%, OB, Curiosity Edition, 1637 bottles) This baby was finished in some Kentucky rye whisky casks, which means that that was not obligatorily 100% rye (American rye must be distilled from 51 percent rye or more). Colour: white wine. Nose: the nose feels 'sweeter' than usual, less malty, more floral, and rather spicier and breadier, with then cups and cups of maple syrup and honey taking over after ten seconds. There sure is some vanilla, also allspice and cinnamon cake, also fresh sawdust, but balance has been maintained despite the very young age. Mouth: no feeling of Scottish bourbon, rather a honeyed sweetness, some apple liqueur, some fresh oak and related spices, and perhaps a drop of Southern Comfort. Yep. Oh and cinnamon rolls. Finish: medium, still sweet, never exactly oaky or too spicy. Comments: very good modern stylistic composition (given the age). Are our friends the Scots going to turbo-charge like this all their malt whiskies in the future? Time-to-market five years, my goodness!

S
Arlene M. Dolgner

Arlene M. (Cahoon) Dolgner, 94, of Beaver Dam passed away on Friday, Aug. 4, 2017, at Continental Manor in Randolph.

Arlene was born May 17, 1923, in Reedsburg, the daughter of Benson and Mary Elizabeth (Campbell) Cahoon. She was united in marriage to her high school sweetheart, Robert Earl Dolgner, in Dalton, on Sept. 5, 1942, at her parents home.

Both Arlene and Robert came to faith in Christ Jesus as children and as they married, agreed to establish a home that acknowledges Him. Wherever Arlene and Robert lived in their 73 years together, Arlene was the family missionary to children. She sought to teach the neighborhood children about the love of God and the truths taught in the Bible.

In 1954, she became involved in the worldwide organization of Child Evangelism Fellowship. She has been involved as a training instructor, area director, and as a Good News Club teacher until 2010. Arlene also became involved in teaching and taking part in ladies Bible study classes and taught them weekly for years.

Arlene is survived by her two children, James (Patricia) Dolgner and Marilyn (Sidney) McMichael; her brother, Donald Cahoon; three grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren; as well as other relatives and friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Robert E. Dolgner.

A visitation will be held on Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2017, at the Randolph Evangelical Free Church in Randolph from 10 to 11 a.m. when her Celebration of Life service will begin. Interment will take place at Marcellon Cemetery in Pardeeville.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Child Evangelism Fellowship or to Samaritans Purse.

Koepsell-Murray Funeral Home in Beaver Dam is serving the family. Online condolences may be directed to www.koepsellfh.com.
1967

Dodge County plans to construct two new buildings in Juneau. A four-story office building is planned that will include a meeting hall, the agriculture department, Surplus Commodities office, the highway department and the welfare department. The second new building would be a 300-bed hospital with 20 of those beds set aside for the treatment of the mentally ill.

Kamaths in Beaver Dam is selling Giant 22-inch rectangular screen color TVs in wood cabinets for $498.

1977

Russ and Margaret Severson opened their Square Yard Carpet Store at 120 Meister Drive. Russ Severson for many years operated the Columbus House Furnishings Store in downtown Columbus and will continue to operate a carpet store in Prairie du Sac.

A Wisconsin Division of Emergency Government study reported that if people from a metropolitan area had to evacuate their homes due to threat of nuclear attack that 137,000 of them could be temporarily housed in Dodge and Columbia counties.

1987

Mary Gallerup, editor of the Columbus Journal Republican, became the first woman to join the Columbus Rotary Club.

Columbus Antique Mall and Museum, located in the old Stokely canning company plant, is happy to announce its fourth expansion in the last four years by opening a fifth room with an additional 6,000 square feet of space.

1997

The Columbus Pool at Firemans Park might have to be closed for next year due to problems with the filtration system, piping, and the leaking of 14,000 gallons of water daily through numerous cracks. A group fundraising for a new pool has raised $100,000 toward an estimated replacement cost of $1.3 million.




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District Nursing Course at Wrexham Glyndwr University Aims to Meet Growing Demand

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Aug 3rd, 2017

Health chiefs and University lecturers are promoting a district nursing course that will meet a surge in demand and develop community staff.

The Community Specialist Practice (District Nursing) programme at Wrexham Glyndwr University was formed in partnership with Welsh Government and educates the community staff nurses from across North Wales every year.

The vast majority of students leave the two-year qualification having been promoted from their existing community nurse role to that of District Nurse Caseload Holder (Band 6)  with the likelihood of further personal development and many returning to complete their Masters in Community Specialist Practice.

Locality Matrons Jayne Sankey and Liz Grieve are responsible for 25 teams of district nurses across North East Wales and Denbighshire, and work closely with Programme Leader Alison Williams  recipient of the Queens Nurse Award last year  and Senior Lecturer Victoria Graham to shape the curriculum.

That industry-led ethos is part of the Wrexham Glyndwr mission statement, and is helping to meet a national shortfall of District Nurses.

There is a demand for district nurses because there are more and more people with complex needs in our communities that need to receive quality nursing care in the home, said Liz.

Our workload has increased by 20% in the space of a year so there is a need for more support and qualified district nurses.

We plan closely with the University because we know in which areas we are really going to need posts and that helps form the course so it is totally relevant to the issues we face and the work they will be doing.

We look at our future service and how it matches with the academic side  this gets them ready and prepares them.

Alison echoed those points, and added: The Locality Matrons across Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) and the District Nursing programme team work very closely together shaping the course and ensuring it closely matches the requirements within clinical practice.

The cradle to grave ethos of district nursing has never changed, according to Jayne, but the form of treatment has, which is why the district nursing programme has to be at the cutting edge of developments in the service to reflect changing need to support people in their own communities and to avoid unnecessary hospital admissions.

Elements of the job have never changed, the fact the communities in North Wales are quite well-knit and everyone will know who the nurse is, for example, she said.

But then the treatment has changed a lot, and continues to change, so they really have to be at the forefront of advances and keep up with developments.

Jayne added: Thats why working with Wrexham Glyndwr University is so important to us, and seeing these nurses graduate from this course and develop in their careers.

One student who has progressed after graduating from the BSc is Vicky Roberts, from Mold, who spent 10 years at Mold Hospital before becoming a community nurse in 2014.

The 35 year-old nurse has gained recent promotion and looks forward to a bright future within the service.

We deal with a lot of complex patients with complex needs and this course gives you more of an idea how to manage them, she said.

Ive really enjoyed my time here and look forward to putting everything Ive learnt into practice.

The students have all produced a poster demonstrating an Innovation in Practice as part of the programme and this was recently celebrated at Wrexham Glyndwr University with managers and community staff in attendance to share in the students success.

For more information about the course visit the Wrexham Glyndwr University website.
Operation Pallial: Wrexham Man Suspected Of 1970s Child Sex Offences Arrested In Malta

This article is old - Published: Sunday, Aug 6th, 2017

Police in Malta have arrested a man over 40 allegations of child abuse spanning nearly 40 years.

Acting on behalf of the National Crime Agency (NCA), Maltese Police Force officers arrested Bryan Davies, aged 70, from Wrexham, at an address in Gozo  an island in the Maltese archipelago.

Officers from the NCAs Operation Pallial unit, which is the agencys investigation into non-recent abuse in childrens homes in North Wales in the 1970s and 1980s, sought his arrest as part of an on-going investigation.

The warrant lists 38 offences, including 29 contact offences which allegedly occurred between 1976 and 1978.

The other offences are related to alleged indecent images of children and causing or inciting sexual activity with a child between 2007 and 2013.

A Maltese court last week ruled Davies will be extradited to the UK , the pensioner agreed to the extradition, which should happen this week.

Reports from Malta say Mr Davies waived his right to appeal, which his defence lawyer said was not an admission of guilt.
The World Socialist Web Site is published by the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI), the world Trotskyist movement. Since the launching of the WSWS in February 1998, the site has posted thousands of articles that reference Leon Trotsky, one of the leaders of the October Revolution and the founder of the Fourth International.

WSWS International Editorial Board Chairman David North is the author of In Defense of Leon Trotsky. Other prominent members of the international editorial board of the WSWS--Nick Beams and James Cogan in Australia, Chris Marsden in Britain, Peter Schwarz and Ulrich Rippert in Germany, Keith Jones in Canada and Wije Dias in Sri Lanka--have been active in the Trotskyist movement for decades. All are well-known authorities on Trotskyist history and politics.

This year, the ICFI is marking the centenary of the Russian Revolution. It has posted throughout this year a historical chronology, This Week in the Russian Revolution, which has referenced Trotsky in every installment. The series has been extremely popular with readers. For example, according to Facebook, the May 29-June 4 video for the Chronology has been accessed more than 21,000 times, which has driven thousands of readers to the WSWS.

Between March and May, the ICFI held a series of on-line lectures on the history of the revolution, in which the role of Leon Trotsky was a major area of concentration. The lectures attracted a large audience on both Facebook and YouTube. According to the figures recorded by Facebook, the first lecture by David North, delivered on March 13, has been viewed 6,300 times. Another video posted initially in March, in which North previewed the ICFIs lecture series, has been viewed more than 120,000 times.

We cite these figuresand could reference many morenot to boast, but, rather, to establish that the speeches and writings of the ICFI, which are posted on the World Socialist Web Site, are very widely followed. To a politically knowledgeable audience, Trotskyism and the World Socialist Web Site are synonymous.

And yet, following Googles implementation of its new censorship algorithm, the World Socialist Web Site began disappearing from search results, even when users sought information on Trotsky.

In the month of July, the number of Google searches for Leon Trotsky return a grand total of... zero impressions for the WSWS, down from 5,893 in May.

In preparing this article, we searched Google for Who is Leon Trotsky. We conducted this experiment with Chrome, Googles browser, using incognito mode to ensure that results were not affected by previous searches. The search term was used without quotation marks.

All manner of right-wing essays and articles come up. The first page includes an essay posted on rbth.com (Russia Beyond the Headlines, put out by the Russian government), Leon Trotsky: 6 facts about the disgraced Russian revolutionary.

On page three, there is an entry from Edgars Mission Farm Sanctuary about Leon Trotsky the piglet, an animal rescued by the farm in Australia in April 2014, who, we are informed, has more spunk than most who are ten times his size. There is also an article in Slate, published in 2007, warning readers, Dont idealize Leon Trotsky (the revolutionary), and an entry in the right-wing Conservapedia.

Page four includes a Leon Trotsky flashcard from Quizlet, notes from TVTropes.com, and a reactionary and ignorant entry from the satirical Uncyclopedia informing its readers that Trotskys greatest legacy is his philosophy of permanent factionalism and split-hair revolutionary dialectics.

Going deeper, on page six, we find pages that collect Leon Trotsky GIFs and an essay, Fridas Red Hot Lover from an obscure site, Lisas History Room, that, according to Alexa, has global ranking of 1,078,957 (compared to the WSWS at 40,677). Also on page six is an essay on Trotsky and Orwells book Animal Farm, written by a high school student and published on Prezi.com.

By page 10, we encounter a recipe for a cocktail called the Leon Trotsky and a page on lyrics.com on songs containing the term Leon Trotsky. On page 12, there is a review of historian Joshua Rubensteins biography of Trotsky by the reactionary historian Richard Pipes, published in Tablet in 2011 under the headline, Trotsky the Jew, which complains that Rubenstein obscures the Russian revolutionarys violent extremism. There is also a document from the CIAs website, Leon Trotsky, Dupe of the NKVD.

It is not until page 13 that there is any entry from the WSWS, the reposting of Trotskys essay, Three Conceptions of the Russian Revolution. Of course, by this point, most Google searchers, overloaded with rubbish, would have stopped scanning the results.

In April, when Google announced its new policies targeting fake news, it claimed that the purpose was to provide people with access to relevant information from the most reliable sources available, and help surface more authoritative pages and demote low-quality content.

In Google-speak, authoritative means acceptable to the authorities. As our own experimental search clearly shows, Google searches for Leon Trotsky lead to many pages that are reactionary, anti-communist, anti-Semitic, slanderous and nonsensical. But the site that has far more authoritative and relevant material than any other on the Internet, the World Socialist Web Site, is the one site that cannot be found.

This can be explained only by the fact that Googles new guidelines are intended to demote and blacklist the WSWS. Let the naive believe that this is merely the outcome of an unintended technical glitch.

Join the fight against Googles censorship. Contact the ICFI to become involved. Donate to the WSWS to help us fight the suppression of free speech.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Nearly seven years after a Tallahassee mother and her three children were brutally killed, the trial of their accused murderer got underway July 31.

Brandi Peters, her 6-year-old twin daughters Tamiyah and Taniyah Peters, and her 3-year-old son JaVanate Segura were found dead at their Saddle Creek Run home on November 20, 2010.

Henry Segura, JaVante's father and Brandi's boyfriend, was arrested in September 2011 in Minnesota, charged with first-degree murder for all four deaths.

WTXL will recap each day's proceedings here:

DAY 1 - July 31, 2017

Henry Segura, dressed in a suit instead of a Leon County inmate uniform, sat with his legal team, including attorneys Nathan Prince and Greg Cummings. On the other side of the courtoom were assistant state attorneys Jon Fuchs, Eddie Evans and Sarah Dugan.

Jury selection started with a group of around 50 jurors. Judge James Hankinson said the process to narrow the field would be based on how familiar jurors are with the case and whether they have any "hardships" that would keep them from serving the duration of the trial -- which is expected to last three weeks.

In other news, James Carlos Santos, the former gang member who admitted in court the week before that he ordered all four murders. Santos sought legal counsel, and his attorney said Santos is "unsure" about testifying and is considering invoking his Fifth Amendment rights to protect against self-incrimination.

Judge Hankinson ordered a mental health evaluation to determine if Santos is competent to testify truthfully under oath.

Jury selection continued until 7:30 p.m., with prosecutors and the defense explaining the nature of the case and possible sentencing, which includes the death penalty.

DAY 2 - August 1, 2017

The first group of jurors were brought back to finish questioning, which included views on a number of topics -- gun rights, drug use, infidelity, law enforcement and the death penalty, to name a few.

The juror pool for the first group was narrowed down to seven, who were asked to return to court Wednesday.

The second pool of jurors was brought in, but questioning needed to carried over into Wednesday as well.

DAY 3 - August 2, 2017

A third day of jury selection was needed to pick the 12 jurors and 2 alternates that will serve. Six men and six women were chosen for the jury -- as well as two women as alternate jurors. All 14 selected are white, varying in age and occupation. Their names will not be published, and their faces will not be shown for the duration of trial.

Two material witnesses were arrested and detained at the Leon County jail. Artron Timmons and his mother Ciesly Timmon were charged with "contempt of court by not answering summons."

The state and defense listed more than 100 names as potential witnesses who could testify. The list includes more than 30 law enforcement employees from the Tallahassee Police Department, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the FBI and other agencies. Potential witnesses also include family members of Henry Segura and Brandi Peters -- as well as drug runner Angel Avila-Quinones and former gang member James Carlos Santos.

DAY 4 - August 3, 2017

Prosecutors and the defense presented their opening statements after three days of jury selection.

Judge Hankinson asked both sides not to mention James Carlos Santos in the opening statements. His attorney said Santos was still "on the fence" about testifying and was inclined not to.

The prosecution started by detailing the investigation into Segura's alleged involvement in the murders, claiming that he had the means, motive and opportunity to commit the crime. Cell phone records pinpointed a number Segura was believed to be using at a location near the Peters' residence when the murders happened. The state mentioned Segura was behind on child support payments, which could have been a factor in the motive.

The defense countered, claiming that police didn't look into other potential suspects -- and that there is no tangible evidence tying Segura to the murders. Lead attorney Nathan Prince said no blood was found on Segura when he was examined by police following the murders. He also mentioned that the DNA of Angel Avila-Quinones was found at the crime scene, and that bloody clothes, gloves, and bleach were discovered days later at nearby Jack McLean Park.

Testimony began with several TPD officers being questioned. Police had to break into Peters' home, because it was locked. When they got inside, they found Peters' body bleeding and laying by the front door. The area around her was covered in blood splatter.

Investigators found the children's bodies in a bathtub full of water that had been diluted with blood, giving it a reddish-brown tint. Officer Sean Wyman said he could only see two children at first, but he was asked to go back, where he saw a third child in the tub as well.

Neighbors Artron and Ciesly Timmons testified after being arrested earlier in the week for refusing to appear in court. Artron was just 14 years old when he was asked to check on Brandi Peters, who was a family friend. He said he saw blood on the door, which was locked, and ran home to tell his mother.

As part of police testimony, a 13-minute video was shown to the jury, revealing the crime scene as it was when officers arrived -- with all four bodies still at the home. Segura did not look at the video once.

A forensic specialist was questioned for about two hours, going over several pieces of evidence -- at times unsealing packets and boxes to show them to the jury. Her testimony was carried over to Friday morning.

DAY 5 - August 4, 2017

Forensic expert testimony started the day, with specialists explaining the process of gathering evidence from the crime scene and from Brandi Peters' body as part of her autopsy. DNA swabs and nail clippings were collected -- as well as four bullet projectiles from her head, ear, chest and abdomen.

Her clothes worn on that day were unsealed from bags and shown to the jury. Her blood-stained shirt, jeans, underwear and socks were handled by the defense attorneys, wearing gloves and carrying the items across the jury box to show each one.

Medical examiner Lisa Flannagan later testified that Peters may have been shot 7 or 8 times, including some at "close range," but that the gunshot wounds didn't immediately kill her.

The official cause of Brandi Peters' death was "blunt traumatic injuries to the head and face, with multiple gunshot wounds." Flannagan said there's evidence showing Peters fought off an attack and was beaten repeatedly with a heavy object that led to a skull fracture and brain hemorrhage.

Her graphic autopsy photos were shown, as well as those of her three children. Tamiyah Peters died from a gunshot wound in the back of her head. Taniyah Peters and JaVante Segura died by drowning, Flannagan said. Henry Segura did not look at any of the autopsy photos, keeping his head down as they were shown.

Other witnesses said there was evidence of a struggle inside Peters' house: the blood splatter all over the carpet, tiles and door by the foyer, a broken acrylic nail, and a fake plant that had fallen over, among other items.

Investigators also searched and collected evidence from Henry Segura's green Chevy pickup truck and white Monte Carlo. Among the items processed were several pairs of gloves, child support paperwork and a bank receipt showing a $1,450 withdrawal on November 18, 2010 -- two days before the bodies were found.

Judge Hankinson said the state will rest its case Wednesday, and the defense will start its case Thursday. Hankinson also scheduled an evidentiary hearing Wednesday to settle questions regarding the potential testimony of James Carlos Santos.

DAY 6 - August 7, 2017

The attorney for James Santos filed a letter of intent to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights when he is called to testify at trial. He is expected to appear in court Wednesday as part of an evidentiary hearing.

A TPD forensic specialist testified that she collected evidence from Jack McLean Park - a mile away from the crime scene - a week after the murders. Two blood-stained shirts were found in a trash can, and investigators also found clothing tags and gloves. None of the evidence could be confirmed by the specialist as related to the murders.

Now-retired FDLE crime lab analyst Jo Ellen Brown explained what DNA evidence was found, collected and processed from the crime scene. An unknown female's DNA was found underneath three of Brandi Peters' fingernails, and an unknown male's DNA was found on several items, including a bolt lock, door handle, phone cradle, purse and shovel.

However, none of the DNA pointed to Henry Segura. His DNA was excluded, Brown testified, from several pieces of evidence that were analyzed.

Not included as part of Brown's testimony was the controversial DNA database hit from the crime scene that matched drug runner Angel Avila-Quinones' DNA.

The defense wanted the CODIS hit allowed to show that TPD neglected other potential suspects and that FDLE prevented Brown from reporting the hit to the state attorney's office. Prosecutors, however, warned that CODIS hits aren't admissible in court. Judge Hankinson sided with the state, and the evidence was not allowed.

TPD's lead investigator in the case, Mark Lewis, was brought back to the witness stand -- as the jury watched Segura's initial interview with police. The lengthy videotaped interview was done on the same day that police found the bodies at the crime scene.

Segura showed no emotion when he was told that his 3-year-old son JaVante was dead. The prosecution pointed to that lack of reaction as suspicious in their opening statement.

In the interview, Segura admitted to being unfaithful to his wife, having an affair with Peters for several years. Calling her "spunky," "down-to-earth," and "sweet," Segura said Peters was a good mother -- but that he couldn't pay her child support, because of his financial woes. Records show he owed her more than $20,000.

Investigators hadn't considered Segura as a suspect when they interviewed him. Lewis told him TPD would do everything they could to find out who killed Segura's son.

Segura agreed to be interviewed, took off his shirt when asked by police, had pictures taken of his body, explained minor scratches on his arms, and agreed to a DNA swab.

DAY 7 - August 8, 2017

Several more witnesses were questioned by the state in an effort to explain a possible motive for Segura to kill Brandi Peters and her children. A close friend of Segura testified the two of them were looking for higher-paying work in Afghanistan, but Segura couldn't get a passport, because he owed too much child support.

A woman who admitted she was seeing Segura occasionally testified that Segura came to her in a rage a few days before the murders, asking for a gun with no explanation. She said she didn't give him the gun -- and that she'd never seen him so angry before. She also testified Segura was acting strange in the days following the murders.

A former cellmate of Segura, Kelsey Kinard, said Segura confessed to the murders while they were in prison together in Oklahoma in 2011. Kinard said Segura openly shared details about his case, including how the four were killed and writing rap songs about what he did.

Monica Peters, the sister of Brandi Peters, testified that she tried calling Brandi the night of the murders, but it went to voicemail. Monica said that was "unusual," because Brandi always had her phone by her.

Segura's follow-up interview with TPD on November 30, 2010 was played. Over the course of the lengthy interview, Segura said 23 times that he didn't leave his house on the day of the murders, though TPD had found cell phone records showing his phone at other places that day.

Segura also denied having a second phone, as investigators pushed him about being truthful.

A jailhouse call Segura made to his wife Malica while he was incarcerated in Minnesota was played. Malica cried, wondering what would happen to her as her husband was locked up.

DAY 8 - August 9, 2017

The state wrapped up its case, bringing in a cell phone expert from TPD to go over phone records from Henry Segura and Brandi Peters. Sergeant Christopher Corbitt testified that Segura used two phones, but only told police about one of them. The undisclosed phone was pinpointed being at Peters' home on Wednesday, November 17 -- as Segura had told police.

Corbitt also provided records that showed Segura dialed *67 to block his caller ID from showing up on Peters' phone whenever he called her from the undisclosed phone.

Segura also deleted certain text messages from his phone with Peters, his wife Malica and another person -- in specific reference to getting rid of a car.

The expert also testified that Peters' phone and Segura's phone were inactive at the same time on the night of the murders.

After the state rested its case, a hearing about possible evidence was held to determine what could be allowed as the defense prepared to start its case the next day.

Former gang member James Santos was in court for just a few minutes with his attorney to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights to protect himself from self-incrimination if called to testify, including his admission two weeks prior to ordering the murders.

Judge James Hankinson ruled against allowing Santos' testimony and a series of emails between Santos and Peters. Hankinson said Santos' testimony is not credible and based on hearsay, admitting the state should've been allowed to cross-examine Santos when he testified two weeks ago.

An expert on gang activity testified that the nature of the crime led him to believe it was the work of the Mexican drug cartel Los Zetas, which Santos allegedly worked with. Dr. Jesse De La Cruz said the facts that children were killed, multiple footprints were found, and the "viciousness" of the crime are all indicators of a cartel killing, and the spade found at the crime scene with no blood on it is a "calling card" of Los Zetas that is left to indicate the cartel is responsible for the crime.

DAY 9 - August 10, 2017

The defense opened its case by presenting other potential suspects. An inmate named Gregory Washington testified that his two friends DeMario Paramore and Hayward Griffin are responsible for the murders. Washington worked with TPD as a confidential information and recorded what he called a confession from Paramore via a wiretapped conversation.

Griffin denied any involvement in the murders when he took the stand, and prosecutors labeled Washington as "problematic" and a "snitch" who didn't capture an actual confession.

The defense questioned a TPD sergeant who interviewed Paramore but admitted he didn't collect DNA or follow up on alibis Paramore gave police.

Neighbors were questioned regarding the time of the murders, testing the state's theory that Peters and her children were killed some time after 6:30 p.m.

An expert was brought in to discuss how DNA found on a phone cradle at Peters' house matched the genetic profile of drug runner Angel Avila-Quinones. The state argued that Avila-Quinones hadn't returned to the United States after being deported in 2009.

The defense introduced a letter mailed to Peters from a federal detention facility two days before she was killed. The letter was authored by James Carlos Santos, and a threatening message was written on the envelope, in part reading, "Death before dishonor."

DAY 10 - August 11, 2017

The defense continued its case with another look at the crime scene, bringing in reconstructionist Michael Knox who went over several photos. After reviewing blood stains left at the scene, he determined Brandi Peters who shot in her bedroom and made her way down the hallway and past the front door. Knox said Peters was then hit with a heavy object and brought back inside the house, where the "bulk" of the violence occurred.

The object used to hit Peters, Knox said, wasn't the spade found in the foyer area. The spade, he testified, didn't have "apparent blood" on it -- and if it were used in the murders, it would have some trace of blood on it.

In a surprising move, defendant Henry Segura testified as the defense's final witness for the day. He was at the witness stand for an hour, answering questions from both the defense and prosecution.

Segura explained his whereabouts on the day of the murders, claiming he went to Peters' house around 2 p.m., but he turned around when he realized she wasn't there. He said he returned later in the evening when she was home, had sex with her, and played with the kids for a bit before heading home around 8 p.m.

He added that he lied to police about not having a second phone and his relationship with Peters in order to keep his wife Malica Segura from finding out he was cheating on her.

In explaining the scratches on his arms, Segura said he was involved in a shootout in Mississippi a few months earlier, supporting his cousin who asked him for support.

Segura admitted the Monte Carlo he had was stolen, so he didn't want police snooping around it as they investigated.

As the prosecution hammered him with questions, Segura repeatedly denied any involvement in the murders -- saying there's no way Peters would have made him angry enough to kill her and the children. Segura said he helped raised Peters' twin daughters, who he said called him "daddy." He admitted he wasn't a significant part of his son JaVante's life, and he did request a paternity test to confirm he was JaVante's father.

The judge scheduled the remainder of the trial as follows:

- Monday: Defense to rest case, followed by the state's rebuttal

- Tuesday: Jury instruction, closing arguments, followed by the start of jury deliberations (with sequestration, if needed)

- Wednesday: Additional (and final) day of jury deliberations, if needed

- Thursdsay: Start of penalty phase, if needed

- Friday: Final day of penalty phase, if needed

DAY 11 - August 14, 2017

The defense rested its case after calling a final witness to the stand. Brandi Peters' next door neighbor said her dog Zeus wouldn't stop barking in the "wee hours" of November 20, pacing back and forth from the fence that borders Peters' house.

Segura's attorneys have tried to convince the jury that the time of the murders is different from the state's theory.

The state followed with its rebuttal, bringing back several witnesses to ask them about specifics in the defense's case.

Two DNA experts testified that there were no DNA matches to Angel Avila-Quinones and DeMario Paramore -- two individuals the defense presented as alternative suspects.

TPD Investigator Mark Lewis testified he went back to Jack McLean Park over the weekend to look at what had appeared to be a stain on a bathroom sink when police initially investigated. Lewis said the stain was actually a porcelain crack -- not blood, as the defense had suggested.

Prosecutors also questioned Monica Peters, Brandi's sister, who said she talked to Brandi in the "late afternoon" of November 19 -- though she previously testified to talking to Brandi on the phone later in the evening.

The jury was instructed to prepare overnight bags for the following day, as deliberations were expected to start.

DAY 12 - August 15, 2017

After Judge James Hankinson provided the jury with instructions, closing arguments began, starting with the state.

Over the course of an hour, prosecutor Jon Fuchs urged the jury to consider Henry Segura had the means, motive and opportunity to kill Brandi Peters, her twin 6-year-old daughters Tamiyah and Taniyah Peters, and his 3-year-old son JaVante Segura.

Though Fuchs admitted none of Segura's DNA was found at the crime scene, Segura testified he was at Peters' house on November 19.

The state argued the cell phone data, Segura's deception in interviews with police, his alleged jailhouse confessions, and his issues with paying child support all played a role in his guilt.

Fuchs said the evidence -- including graphic crime scene and autopsy photos that were shown to the jury several times -- and testimonies presented over the course of the trial point to Segura as the one responsible for the murders.

The defense followed with a passionate opening. Lead attorney Nathan Prince claimed police and the prosecution weren't thorough in their investigation. Prince said the murders were "evil in action" -- and "justice is hanging in the balance."

Segura's attorneys said police didn't pursue leads with other possible suspects -- and the state has the burden of proof to go over any potential piece of evidence.

Prince reminded the jury that Segura's DNA wasn't found at the crime scene -- and that witnesses have given a different time of the murders than what the state presented.

The defense spent 80 minutes in delivering its closing argument, which brought Segura to near tears. His legal team patted and rubbed his back as he looked down.

The state followed with an hour-long rebuttal before the jury started deliberating at 1:17 PM.

Hankinson dismissed two male jurors after they were designated as alternates, but he asked them to provide contact information in case a guilty verdict was reached. The final jury has eight women and four men.

The jury deliberated for nine hours until Hankinson announced the end of the day -- just after 10 p.m. No verdict was reached, but the jurors did ask a few questions to the court.

DAY 13 - August 16, 2017

The second day of jury deliberations started with a request to review testimony from Segura's former cellmate Kelsey Kinard and TPD Sergeant Vincent Boccio. Court reporters recited the transcripts of both testimonies to the jury.

Kinard's testimony recalled the alleged confession Segura made while the two were cellmates in Oklahoma City. Kinard had testified that Segura mentioned killing four people, shooting two of them and drowning the other two. The testimony also referred to Segura asking a girlfriend about a gun, but that she wouldn't give it to him.

Kinard had also claimed Segura had written rap songs about what he did -- and Kinard mailed the sheets of rap music to Segura's wife later.

Boccio's testimony looked into an alleged confession from DeMario Paramore, who was recorded in a wiretapped talk with confidential informant Gregory Washington, an inmate who claimed Paramore and Hayward Griffin were behind the murders.

Boccio had interviewed Paramore, who provided alibis and admitted he used multiple phones. However, the defense argued that police never followed up on the alibis and didn't check all of Paramore's phone records.

The jurors went back to deliberate for several more hours, but returned in the early afternoon to report they were deadlocked. Judge James Hankinson provided additional instructions in an attempt to resolve the impasse, asking each juror to explain weaknesses in his or own position, one by one.

If the jury were to determine it was still deadlocked, then the judge would declare a mistrial.
MIDWAY, Fla. (WTXL) - The chief of the Midway Police Department resigned Friday, not long after he was reinstated.

Tom Murray wouldn't disclose additional information in a phone interview with WTXL Saturday, but he said he would consult with his attorney Monday to consider what's next for him.

A private attorney-client meeting was scheduled Friday evening that discussed "former and current City of Midway personnel."

Murray was reinstated in June after being voted out of his job by the city council in March for "insubordination."

His attorneys filed a letter of intent to sue the city, claiming the termination was a Sunshine Law violation.

In May, the city council let go of city manager Auburn Ford, who initiated Murray's termination. Murray was reinstated a month later, promising to be a resource for the community with his return.
GREENVILLE COUNTY, SC (FOX Carolina) - An Upstate mother is speaking out after she said she made a shocking discovery in a bag of frozen fish.

The woman who asked not to be identified said she could hear her daughter rumbling through a freezer in their kitchen.

"My daughter ran into my room and said 'mom, did you see the snake?" she said.

Her daughter was referring to something she found in a package of boneless, skinless frozen tilapia. It wasn't a snake, but what it is remains unknown.

She said she bought the pack of fish, which indicated it was farm-raised in China, from the Walmart off Highway 153 in the Powdersville area about a month ago. When she and her daughter recently opened the package, they found something on the frozen fish - which is inside an individual vacuum sealed package.

"I was really concerned," she said. "That's when I contacted Walmart."

A FOX Carolina reporter went to Walmart's website and found the product. Online it states the fish is best aquaculture practices certified.

A reporter sent pictures of the thing located in this family's fish to an aquaponics professor at Clemson University. He studies farmed fish and confirmed what's on the fish isn't a snake.

He says it looks similar to nematodes or a tapeworm.

"Just the thought of it," the mother said. "I was really concerned."

She says she recently went back to Walmart where a manager offered to giver her a refund for the $5 bag of fish.

"It wasn't just giving me my money back that was a concern, it was just them doing the right thing," she said.

Now, she wants all bags off shelves and off the Walmart website. Since FOX Carolina contacted Walmart the boneless, skinless, 2 pound bag of tilapia is no longer available online.

A representative from the Walmart media relations department released this statement:

"We are committed to providing our customers with safe, quality foods. We encourage customers with questions about our products to return to the store and speak with a member of management."

Copyright 2017 FOX Carolina (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.
TIFTON, Ga. (WTXL) - A person is dead after a shooting early this morning at a Waffle House in Tifton.

According to the Tifton Police Department, 30-year-old Jesse Hall, a Waffle House employee, was found in the parking lot with gunshot wounds. Officers say Hall and another female employee encountered two men in the parking lot, where Hall was shot and the other employee was physically assaulted.

Police believe the men were trying to rob the store; they were last seen running toward Timmons Drive and West 11th Street.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigations is now assisting in the investigation.
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His mother, Tova Salomon , doesnt call him Shmuel. She refers to her youngest child as the treasure. The treasure is already 31 years old. Two weeks ago, on Thursday, the treasure welcomed his own treasure into the world.

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We gave birth in the afternoon. I mean, Chen, my brave wife, gave birth. Since then, Ive been walking on air. We waited for this baby for three years, Shmuel Salomon told me last Wednesday, near the mourners tent in Elad. Since the birth, his world turned upside down, but he is clinging to life.

Shmuel, who is mourning his father, his sister and his brother , has a thread of life on his wristthe baby wristband from the hospital, which he hasnt taken off although the mother and the baby have already been discharged. Last Thursday, in an emotional circumcision ceremony held in Elad, the baby boy was given the name Ari Yosef, after his grandfather who was murdered in a terror attack

From right to left: Tova Salomon, who lost her husband and two children, her son Shmuel with his wife Chen and baby Ari Yosef, and her daughter-in-law Michal, Elad's widow (Photo: Yuval Chen)

Tova and Yossi Salomon, the proud grandparents, danced with joy upon learning their youngest child had become a father. On Friday morning, Shmuel arrived at his childhood home in Neve Tzuf, the second name of the community of Halamish, to pick up Tova and run some errands.

I was so happy when I got to my parents home, he recalls. They were very excited too. My mother came to help me prepare our house after the birth. We stopped at the Meir Medical Center to visit my wife and the baby.

From the hospital, the proud grandmother and her son travelled to the young Salomon familys home at the Hadassim Youth Village, where Chen works as an instructor.

We organized the house, and then I drove Mother back to Neve Tzuf. I got held up in the house because my mother made sandwiches for me and some to take to Chen too. In between, I took her to the Fogel family. Mother went there to pick up the arbis (chickpeas) that Tzila Fogel prepared for the Shalom Zachar (a feast hosted by the family when a child is born).

While Tova was at the Fogels homethe parents of Udi, who was murdered six years ago in Itamar with his wife and three of their childrenShmuel waited in the car. Its impossible to forget the Fogel case. I remember thinking about them, about how they have been coping since that horrible terror attack. It didnt cross my mind for a minute that I would be dealing with a similar story within several hours," he says.

"A few minutes later, my mother returned to the car with the arbis and a gift from Tzilasocks for the baby. Meanwhile, Michal, Elad and the kids arrived on the fortified bus. We only had time for a quick hello. My sister Haya was in the house too. I said goodbye to everyone in the most ordinary way. At least I managed to hug my father. Elad, Haya and my father never got to see the baby, he says with his voice breaking as he hides the tears behind sunglasses.

He has kept quiet until now, angrily avoiding journalists, failing to come to terms with the fact he lost not only his father and two of his siblings in an instant, but also peace and anonymity.

I realized I was no longer a private person. At first, it was very difficult for me, but thats the way it is. I cant believe were doing something like this, but we decided to invite the entire public to the brit (circumcision ceremony), he explains why he decided to break his silence.

After everyone came to cry with us, everyone should rejoice with us too. I want them to remember us happy. I want them to remember the Salomon family celebrating happy occasions, not being sad. I dont want them to feel sorry for us. The Salomon family is a simple family, not a family of drama. What do terror attacks have to do with us? The only drama in the Salomon family until now was the nonsense I did in high school. In high school, I also stopped observing mitzvot. Today I am a datlash (a formerly religious person).

After leaving Neve Tzuf on Friday afternoon, Shmuel drove back to the Meir Medical Center to meet his wife and their firstborn. A few minutes before 10pm, a terrorist who managed to jump over the settlement's security fence entered the Salomon familys home.

He ran straight into the kitchen, where everyone was gathered to prepare the Shalom Zachar, says 35-year-old Michal Landa-Salomon, who lost her husband Elad in the attack. I was in the kitchen myself half a minute earlier. If (the terrorist) had looked straight ahead, he would have seen me and the kids. We were sitting in the living room opposite the entrance, but he ran into the kitchen. I saw his profile. I signaled for the children to come with me, and we passed two meters behind his back. Elad saw us, but the terrorist missed us. I went upstairs, and we shut ourselves in the room where the twins were sleeping. In spite of the screams, I signaled for the children to be quiet, and I leaned against the door with all my might.

Chen and Shmuel Salomon at their firstborn's circumcision ceremony in Elad, last week. 'It only strengthened the joy over the child' (Photo: Shaul Golan)

The first person the terrorist stabbed was 46-year-old Haya , who was near the entrance. With the little strength she had left, she walked out of the house, and her screams reached the neighbors. Then the terrorists stabbed Tova, the mother . He suddenly pulled out a knife, so I bent down and he stabbed me in the back, Tova said after being discharged from the hospital. I escaped upstairs. At first, I locked myself up in a room, but then I thought they wouldnt find me and I was losing blood, so I came out.

Michal left the room for a moment with the children to get her cellphone, which was in another room, and encountered the wounded Haya for a second. In the meantime, the terrorist had stabbed 70-year-old Yossi and began struggling with Elad.

Elad is a gentle person, but we understood from the investigation and from what my mother-in-law saw that he fought like a lion. He managed to knock the terrorist down twice. He delayed the terrorist and saved us. I keep thinking the outcome could have been much worse, and thanks to Haya who went outside and screamed and thanks to Elad, the children were saved, Michal says with a smile filled with pain.

At the same time, Shmuel and Chen were at the hospital, caring for their baby together, filled with pride and joy. We were in the room with the baby, totally focused on him. We were completely disconnected from our cellphones. I had already planned to go home, but then it turned out Chen needed a blood transfusion, and I stayed with her two more hours.

In the middle of the transfusion, the phone rang and I saw my brother-in-law Drors number. Why is my brother-in-law calling on Shabbat? He told me there had been a terror attack in Neve Tzuf, and asked if I had heard anything. I hadnt heard a thing. Several minutes later, my sister Orit called. She said it had happened in our house.

In the meantime, my brother-in-law managed to get hold of Michal. It was a few minutes after the attack. She was still in the house. She told him on the phone the kids were okay, but added she had seen Elad take his three last breaths and that she thought she was a widow. She told him all of this in English, so the children who were next to her wouldnt understand. Shes a lioness, that woman. A heroine.

Meanwhile, there was a news update that there were people in critical condition. Ive never heard of a person who survived a critical injury. They say critical injuries because the person hasnt been proclaimed dead yet. Orit, my sister, called me again, crying. They killed everyone, she said, everyone.

The medical staff at the Meir Hospital sprung into action. They managed to get hold of the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem and inquire about the people wounded in the attack. A doctor informed me that Tova Salomon was alive, that she had arrived at the hospital and was in stable condition. I felt my mother had returned to me, he chokes. It took a while before a social worker arrived and officially informed me. Its surreal. I already know what happened, but Im hoping maybe its a mistake. I saw the house in the pictures, but it took me time to come to terms with the situation, if I ever did.

The image is stuck in my head

Theres one thing Shmuel is still unable to deal withthe image of the bloodbath in the kitchen. I didnt want to see the picture. I regret that moment. Its the kitchen I grew up in from the day I was born. My entire childhood was in that house. It destroyed me. Whoever released the photo knew it would destroy my life. The image is stuck in my head. I havent been able to sleep since then.

Shmuel is unable to shake the feelings of guilt over the fact he wasnt there to fight the terrorist alongside his brother Elad. How was I not there? To help him, to lend a hand, to fight, and even to die with Elad. I know Elad fought, and Im not sure it would have ended differently if I were there, but I have an unclear conscience for not being there to protect my father, my sister Haya, to protect Elad.

I had a wonderful childhood in Neve Tzuf. Its an amazing place to grow up in, but at times of terror attacks, as a child, I used to think about what would happen if someone entered (our) house. I always had this kind of scenario in my head of what I would do. Since my military service, I always carry my weapon with me. Im always ready, and at the moment of truth I wasnt there.

The Salomon family members' funeral (Photo: Tal Shahar)

One person who was there was A., the neighbors son. A narrow path separates between the Salomon home and the home of A.s family. Upon hearing Haya scream, A. and his father went outside. The father spotted the wounded Haya, entered the house and saw the terrorists back. He went back outside and informed his son. The son, an IDF soldier in an elite unit, ran home, grabbed his weapon, jumped over the fence under the kitchen window and neutralized the terrorist with one accurate shot.

During the shiva, the seven days of mourning, A. and his family visited the mourners tent and were greeted there with tears and hugs. The IDF, it was reported last week, is considering honoring A. with a Chief of Staff citation for attacking and neutralizing the terrorist.

Im grateful to A. for what he did, Shmuel says. He prevented a greater disaster. At first, when I heard the terrorist was still alive, it destroyed me. After all, hell be released in the next (prisoner exchange) deal. Then I realized A. did the right thing. He was afraid of hurting other people, so he neutralized him with one accurate bullet. When you come into such a scene, the most natural emotion is revenge. I dont know where A. found the strength to leave the t alive. I dont even know what to call that creature.

A., the neighbors son who neutralized the terrorist, with Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman. He prevented a greater disaster (Photo: Ariel Hermoni, Defense Ministry)

Shmuel stops the conversation. Chen arrives at the shiva with a green stroller carrying the new treasure. Her green eyes shine with joy too. Shmuel greets her with a smile. Six days after giving birth, Chen is already back on her feet, running between her parents home and the mourners tent. Life on one side, death on the other. They stand there together, Shmuel and Chen, holding each other, trying to contain the happiness without falling into a pit of sadness.

I dont feel like my joy from the baby has been damaged. Quite the opposite, perhaps. It has only increased the happiness from the child. I keep thinking about the baby and about Chen. I always thought if someone hurt my family, I would have no reason to keep living and would seek revenge. But Chen and the baby keep me alive. I dont know what I would do if they werent with me. Chen strengthens me and keeps sending me pictures of the baby. I sit in front of consolers and look at the pictures. I have a reason to live.

I give him strength because everyone gives me strength, Chen says. Everyone is running around me. The parents, the family, the friends. They have all offered to help. Its heartwarming. Its very important to me that the brit will be happy. Theres grief here, thats true, but theres happiness here. Theres a child here who were happy about. Weve decided to choose life.

Weve decided to choose life, but we can also say life has chosen us, Shmuel adds. The fact we received the news at the maternity ward is life choosing us. On the other hand, how can a person receive such news in such a situation? When you have such a treasure in your hands? The first thing that crossed my mind was what kind of world did we bring him into. Its simply inconceivable. But we wont be defeated. Well keep going.

The seven bad years

Ruthie, Michals eldest sister, joins the couple. Shes trying to arrange mementos to hand out at the brit, in the form of a keyring. She shows Shmuel and Chen different samples. Shmuel chooses a soft plant reflecting growth. Chen wants the memento to be colorful and joyful. She has a hard time accepting the caption when thou wast in thy blood, Live. The verse, which is said in every brit, takes on a particularly painful interpretation this time.

Ruthie knows very well how to deal with death and loss. Her son, Shai, died of cancer six years ago, before turning five. The Landa family is going through the seven bad years. They will be followed by the seven good years, she says with a smile. The smile on her face is remarkably similar to the smile of the new widow, Michal. A glowing yet realistic, cynical smile.

On Saturday, after the disaster, Michal chose to go and stay with her children at Ruthies house in the settlement of Oranit. Ruthies son is not the only one who has passed away during the seven bad years. So have the grandfather, the uncle and the mother of the family, Ziva.

Were used to cancer, so where did a terror attack come from? Thats really creative, Michal chuckles sardonically.

How do you manage to smile at everyone all the time?

I let myself cry too. But I keep reminding myself the outcome could have been much worse. Besides, how can you not smile when talking about Elad?

Michal and Elad Salomon with their children. 'We did everything together'

How did you meet?

We met in Neve Tzuf and we were separated in Neve Tzuf. It was 12 years ago. I was 22 years old. I was staying at a friends house on Shabbat, and Elad came to visit. On Saturday evening, my friend and I and Elad and a friend of his decided to take a two-day trip to the north. Four months later, we got engaged. In the first year we lived in Neve Tzuf, until the first stone was thrown, and then I was afraid and we left.

I was immediately enchanted by Elad. Elad was a very quiet guy at the time. His friends in the yeshiva in Nehalim called him quiet Elad. But as much as he was quiet, he was goodhearted. Always caring for others and showering them with goodness. Over the years, he opened up because of me.

We built a home for five children together. Elad worked as a computer software inspector and I worked in a nursing company. At home, we did everything together. Every Friday, we would go out to eat together, and then we would clean and cook together. Elad was excited and happy about each child. In many ways, he was a child himself. When our eldest son was still a baby, we went to buy Lego with so much enthusiasm. The saleswoman asked me if it was for the baby. I pointed at Elad and said to her, Its for him. He would open every new toy before anyone else. On the other hand, he was also an authoritative father who knew how to set limits. A special combination. He was particularly excited by the birth of our twins.

Elad always had a smile on his face. Even when we went through difficult things. My mother, who was my inspiration, died of cancer two months before the twins were born. I always felt I had Elads support, and that with his optimism we would get through anything together.

What have you told the children?

I told them we would go on together, that we had each other. And I told them that they had a brave father who fought with all his might to save us.

There seems to be no way to contain this inconceivable situation of celebrating a babys birth on the same week a family buries three of its loved ones after they were massacred around the Shabbat table. But the family members who survived insist on remembering the good, rather than letting death and terror defeat the Salomon heritage.

President Reuven Rivlin consoles Michal Salomon. A smile filled with pain (Photo: Mark Neiman, GPO)

What really makes the three of them unique is their dedication, says Racheli, the fourth Salomon sister. Yossi, my father, was an IDF civilian employee for many years, and after retiring he was in charge of organizing the communitys security. He was the life and soul of the Shabbat Kiddush. He would organize everything and hand out wine to everyone, although he himself couldnt drink for medical reasons. He was always happy and always danced, a well-known figure in the community. In the past few years, he dedicated his life to Torah studies. He would travel to a Torah house of study in Jerusalem three times a week. He really loved it.

He had a beautiful connection with the grandchildren, Michal adds. He would always enlist the grandchildren. Come sit next to me, come organize the synagogue with me. And Haya was dedicated too. She was a teacher in spirit.

Haya, the eldest daughter who never married and didnt get to raise children of her own, raised hundreds of students in a school in Lod, who were like daughters to her. She was Haya the teacher who everyone loved, says Michal. She wouldnt go to school with a small bag, but with a rucksack and a suitcase and a plastic bag, because she always had prizes and surprises to reward the girls with. And she would reward her nieces and nephews too, of course.

I cant understand how anyone could hurt Haya, Shmuel wonders. That woman didnt do anything bad to anyone. Such a gentle woman, who tried to do good things her entire life. After a days work, she would prepare pages and activities for the next day and talk to the girls parents for hours. Even when she shared with the parents things that werent so good about a student, it was always with love and concern.

She was very dedicated to my parents too. She was basically my mothers right-hand woman and her best friend. Every Monday, on Hayas day off, they would run errands or pay visits together. How will my mother manage without her? How will we manage without Elad, without Father?

Salomon is a family of joy, giving and love. A home which accepts anyone, Chen concludes. They accepted me, the secular bride, with a lot of love. Every Shabbat, they would invite us to the Shabbat eve meal. The most important thing is for you to come, they would tell us, even if you drive on Shabbat. We loved coming there. We were there on Shabbat two weeks before the birth. We will pass this giving and this joy on to the next generation.
"What experience and history teach is thisthat people and governments never have learned anything from history or acted on the principles deduced from it." This adage of G.W.F. Hegel succinctly describes lost opportunities for achieving peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

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There is much to learn from President Harry Truman's resolution of a problem not unlike the one facing President Donald Trump today. Polls have consistently shown that Israeli Jews would approve with large majority a two-state resolution of the Israel-Palestine conflict conditioned on a US-Israel Mutual Defense Treaty.

During President's Trump visit to Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alluded to the similarities between President Truman and his visitor. The 33rd president is best known in Israel as being the first world leader who recognized the new state 11 minutes after David Ben-Gurion's declaration of Independence on May 14, 1948. This recognition was not dissimilar to some of Trump's decisions in that it caused dismay and anger in the United States' top government echelons. The objections to Truman's decision were so vehement that even his secretary of state, George Marshall, threatened to hand in his resignation.

US President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu. Considering the fact that the US has a mutual defense treaty with a country like Montenegro, the absence of a treaty with Israel seems anomalous (Photo: Reuters)

Although ideologically much separates the two presidents, they share traits of unpredictability and iconoclasm, and interestingly both presidents faced seemingly unsolvable problems. In 1951, Truman faced a problem whose solution is applicable to the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a conflict that President Trump has undertaken to resolve.

The problem that faced Truman's administration in 1951 emanated from the people of Australia's vehement opposition to the rearmament of Japan, which the US favored in its quest to enlist allies for its war against North Korea. The distrust and insecurity of the Australians in 1951 toward the Japanesefostered by the inhuman treatment of their prisoners by the Japanese during the Second World Warwas at least comparable to the distrust registered by both Israeli Jews and Palestinians in 2017.

It was the signing of the ANZUS mutual defense treaty in 1952 between the United States, Australia and New Zealand that cleared the way for signing a peace treaty with Japan and the eventual limited arming of that country. Commemorating 50 years of the ANZUS treaty, a report of the Australian Parliament stated: "Popular support for the alliance in Australia indicates that the Treaty has also provided Australians with a sense of security, which has had domestic benefits as well as benefiting the nation's regional relationships.

Would an ANZUZ format possibly including Jordan facilitate a two-state solution of the Israel-Palestinian conflict as it did 65 years ago with respect to Australia's and New Zealand's acquiescence to the rearmament of Japan? Two public opinion polls conducted in 2012 asked Israeli Jews whether they would accept a two-state based on the Clinton Parameters and conditioned on the signing of a mutual defense treaty with the United States. When Arab League endorsement, a barrier wall and the termination of Hamas control of Gaza is tied in to the mutual defense treaty, 75 percent of Israeli Jews supported a two-state resolution of the conflict.

An in-depth analysis of the 2012 polls evaluates the preeminence of security over other considerations. This point is exemplified by the fact that more than 50 percent of those who intended to vote for right-wing parties supported a two-state solution backed by a mutual defense treaty. The five years since the 2012 poll have registered the disintegration of Syria, the ascendance of Iran and Russia and the creation of a coalition of Arab countries more positively disposed towards Israelevents that, if anything, may have increased the support by Israeli Jews for a mutual defense pact with the United States.

The United States has mutual defense agreements with 58 countries. Few of these countries maintain the level of military cooperation that exists between the US and Israel. According to Listaka, Israel is perceived as the third strongest ally of the United States preceded only by Great Britain and Canada. According to this source, "The United States of America-Israel relation is the most well-known of American Governments foreign relations. Israel is the biggest beneficiary of foreign aid from America which amounts close to a 100 billion dollars Israel is known as USAs footing in the Middle East and provides a strong strategic position in the region

The de-facto existence of a US-Israel defense agreement is capsulated in statements by President Trump ("If Israel is attacked I'd one-hundred percent come to their defense") and former Vice President Joe Biden ("If you were attacked and overwhelmed, we would fight for you.") Considering the fact the US has a mutual defense treaty with a country like Montenegro, the absence of a mutual defense treaty between Israel and the United States seems anomalous. If President Trump can emulate what President Truman achieved 65 years ago by a two-state solution that addresses the security concerns of the Israeli Jews through a mutual defense treaty, he will achieve what in his own words "was the toughest deal to make."
Jordan is considering "diplomatic options" in dealing with the Israeli embassy incident in Amman , according to Jordanian government officials. The kingdom's decision is reportedly based on Israel's commitment to handle the matter through legal channels.

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Israel has already begun to make good on this commitment, with the State Attorney's Office asking police on Friday to open an investigation into the shooting at the behest of Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit.

Photo: AFP

Jordanian government spokesman Mohammed Al Momani told Reuters on Friday that the Israeli move was a step in the right direction, but Jordan still expected a full and orderly legal inquiry, as required by international law.

In an interview with Jordanian newspaper Al Ghad, Jordanian government officials indicated that they had been updated on the police investigation and are closely following developments.

Separately, Jordanian newspaper Rai al-Youm claimed Sunday morning that Jordan has undertaken a tripartite offensive against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Protests against Israel in Amman

The plan began first with giving detailed information to President Trump about Netanyahu's handling of the embassy affair and how he tried to influence public opinion. This in turn will be followed by pressure exerted by King Abdullah's surprise trip to Ramallah on Monday.

However, the third part of the planand the most important according to the reportis Jordan's intention to relay a message to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman warning him of an "Israeli plot to spoil the cards."

Such a message comes at a sensitive time when rumors of clandestine rapprochement between Israel and Saudi Arabia abound.

Making matters more complicated, King Abdullah II is expected to meet with Jordanian legislators on Sunday after 82 members of parliament signed a memorandum calling on the government to close the Israeli embassy in Amman and recall Jordan's ambassador to Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may have to face his former chief of staff Ari Harow, who became a state witness against him, in a police interrogation room.

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Harow, who signed a state witness agreement on Friday, has provided police with significant information pertaining to suspicions Netanyahu received illicit gifts from rich donors (the so-called Case 1000) and held talks with Yedioth Ahronoth owner Arnon Mozes on receiving more favorable coverage in return for promoting legislation against Yedioth's rival newspaper Israel Hayom (the so-called Case 2000).

Channel 2 News reported over the weekend that police is expected to recommend an indictment be filed against the prime minister in Case 2000 as well as Case 1000. According to the report, Harow told police he was sent by Netanyahu to speak to Mozes in an effort to reach a deal between the two.

Ari Harow (Photo: Shaul Golan)

Case 2000 came to be when police searched Harow's apartment as part of the criminal investigation against him and seized his old cellphone and laptop, where his recordings of Netanyahu and Mozes's conversations were found.

But so far, Case 2000 has been considered the more problematic one as it was lacking sufficient evidence. Harow's testimony, however, could point to intention by Netanyahu to take concrete steps following the talks with Mozes, contradicting the prime minister's claims so far that he never had any intentions to act on the matter.

In addition to giving police and the prosecution the evidence they need to establish Case 1000 and bolster Case 2000, Harow reportedly also provided evidence in the so-called Case 3000a police investigation into suspected corruption surrounding the purchase of submarines and patrol ships for the Israeli Navy from German conglomerate ThyssenKrupp.

The majority of the details he provided have already been crossed referenced and are considered "key information" that could not only lead to an indictment against the prime minister, but also provide testimony on the modus operandi of the allegedly corrupt system that operated around him.

Ari Harow (Photo: Yaron Brener)

However, judicial officials said there is still a lot of work left to prepare Harow's testimony for trial. In addition, following the gathering of all testimonies, police will have to continue the investigative work, cross-reference evidence and possibly confront Harow with other suspectsNetanyahu chief among them.

Harow has been "marked" as a potential state witness in the investigations against Netanyahu after "ironclad evidence" had been gathered against him in another criminal case pertaining to a consulting firm he allegedly continued to own unlawfully while serving as a state employee.

The overwhelming evidence against Harow, as well as pressure put on himincluding money confiscated from his accounts, putting him at a risk of losing his houseare what led the former PMO chief of staff to agree to cooperate with law enforcement authorities in return for a mitigated punishment.

As part of the deal Harow accepted, he will be convicted of breach of trust, serve a community service sentence lasting half a yearrather than prison sentenceand pay a fine of NIS 700,000.

Netanyahu 'has no intentions of resigning'

Netanyahu spent the weekend with his family at the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem, holding consultations with his close confidants.

A close associate stressed on Saturday night the prime minister "has no intentions of resigning. He won't give anyone that pleasure. He's preparing for the battle of his life."

Other sources close to the prime minister said he was disappointed on a personal level by the fact Harow, who was so close to Netanyahu, would turn against him.

Harow and Netanyahu (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

"The prime minister knows he's not corrupt and hasn't done anything, and that is why there can be nothing here," said one close confidant.

But others, who worked closely with the prime minister in the past, were not surprised.

"Netanyahu is a man who uses people and then discards them," said one such source. "You shouldn't be surprised one of the closest people to Netanyahu becomes a state witness. What's surprising is that it's Ari Harow, the most quiet and modest and least shady man. He's the last person anyone could imagine would be collecting documents and recordings and on judgment daywith the sword of Damocles hanging over his headcome out against Netanyahu."

A quiet and discreet person

Harow started working for Netanyahu in 2002 as an advisor on foreign relations. He was also put in charge of raising donations abroad.

Later, he worked as the director of the Friends of the Likud Movement organization in the US. During that time, he introduced Netanyahu to wealthy donors, and consequently become close to the Netanyahu family.

Harow was dubbed by police as the Netanyahu couple's "finance minister." He knew about and kept records of every money transfer, particularly when Netanyahu was in the opposition and Harow was entrusted with securing financing for the couple's trips, including accommodation at expensive hotels.

In July 2007, Harow returned to Israel and was once again made Netanyahu's foreign affairs advisor. In February 2008, Harow replaced Ayelet Shaked as Netanyahu's chief of staff.

Two years later, he left due to health reasons, with many of his close associates saying his "health suffered as a result of working with Bibi and Sara."

Harow and Netanyahu (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

Harow has been described by those who worked with him as a discreet person.

"He blindly worshiped Bibi. He did everything Bibi, Sara or the kids asked of him," said one former colleague. "He didn't ask any questions, never thought why he was being asked to do personal things. But this is also what brought Netanyahu down, because on some level Bibi dismissed Harow. He didn't think Ari was someone who could harm him, which is why he allowed himself to speak more freely next to him."

Another former coworker described Harow as "a person with no political aspirations. Bibi trusted him completely. His strength was in his discreet nature, his silence. He wasn't a gossip."

Odelia Karmon, a former advisor of Netanyahu, also described Harow as a quiet person, "gentle, nice, shy. Not one of the guys... he was reliable and didn't get into power struggles."

She said Netanyahu "would send him on fundraising missions. He never complained and always delivered the goods."

Karmon added that Harow "knew at any given moment where the prime minister was and what he was doing."
The State Attorney's Office filed an indictment Sunday morning in Tel Aviv District Court against Mohammed Harouf, 29, for the murder of Michal Halimi

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However, despite earlier claims that Harouf committed the murder out of nationalistic motivations, the indictment indicated otherwise, making no mention of nationalism as a factor in the murder.

Harouf in court Sunday (Photo: Motti Kimchi)

Halimi, who was eight months pregnant at the time of her murder, was found near the city of Holon last week after having been strangled and struck in the head with a rock.

Following an investigation by police, Halimi was discovered to have left her home of her own volition and was apparently staying at the house of the young Palestinian man from Nablus, with who she was in a relationship.

The two had posted pictures on Facebook indicating their intention to become engaged.

Harouf and Halimi

Harouf's Facebook indicating his and Halimi's engagement

Relatives of Halimi claimed that she had been in contact with Harouf for a few weeks after she left, but she expressed a desire to return to her husband, which prompted Harouf to murder her.

After Halimi had been declared missing, police questioned Harouf several times. He became a suspect when inconsistencies in his statements regarding the whereabouts of Halimi began to arise.

Additional suspects detained in connection with the case confirmed to police that the two were involved in a romantic relationship and on the day of her disappearance, the two met in the Holon area where she was probably murdered.

After Halimi's body was discovered and positively identified, Harouf was detained once more by police, where he confessed to the murder and reconstructed the crime.

Halimi's body being discovered (Photo: Israel Police)

At an initial court hearing for an extension of his remand, Harouf was asked by reporters why he did it, to which he responded, "I wanted to release prisoners." He later denied that the murder was related to a romantic relationship between the two, and then proceeded to kick guards before being physically removed from the court room while shouting, "I'll kill all the Jews!"

Aharon Halimi, Michal's husband, strongly disagreed with the assessment of police, stating that the crime was most definitely nationalistic in nature and had nothing to do with a romance between the two.

"She was five months pregnant when she disappeared. Our relationship was very good and we were waiting for the child. This is entirely a nationalistic issue and not a romance," he said.

Harouf's lawyer echoed these sentiments, saying, "We will study the indictment and respond accordingly. According the indictment, there is no nationalistic motive. In our first meeting however, he claimed it was nationalistic and he has continued with that narrative. We will examine the matter."
Benjamin Netanyahu and the State of Israel, despite what some people may think, are not identical entities. The states best interest and Netanyahus best interest are two different things. Especially at this stage, in which two state witnesses could get the prime minister in trouble.

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In the coming weeks, well likely hear Netanyahus battle formula again and again, perhaps every day: There will be nothing because there is nothing. His spokespeople will have to work overtime, because in the coming weeks and months Netanyahu will be busy, very busy. He will be forced to spend his time running from the interrogation rooms to his lawyers. What to say? How to respond?

When the suspicions against Ehud Olmert began, I wrote time and again that a prime minister should be exempt from investigations on matters related to actions that were committed before the elections, and when it came to a certain type of suspicion. Israel should adopt the French model of exempting leaders from investigations, under certain conditions of course. Because in Israel, more than in France and more than in most countries of the world, there is a huge burden on the prime minister.

Unlike the suspicions against Olmert, the suspicions against Netanyahu are related to actions committed during his term (Photos: Alex Kolomoisky, Gil Yohanan)

But then came a stage in the Olmert era in which the devils dance around the prime minister made it impossible for him to function. Enough, I wrote at the time. We need a full-time prime minister. Its not that Olmert then, or Netanyahu today, are criminals until proven innocent. On the contrary. They are entitled to the presumption of innocence. The solution, therefore, is a temporary leave of absence. Netanyahu should dedicate most of his time to his own affairs, and hopefully, if there will, as he says, be nothing because there is nothing, he will be able to reassume his position with greater support than before.

Its not that Netanyahu isnt important. Hes very important, but the state is more important. The state and its citizens need a full-time prime minister. How can someone seriously think that practical decisions, or weighty decisions in general, can be made when the head is someplace else? As long as the French model isnt accepted in Israel, and its a shame it isnt, the states best interest comes before the leaders best interest.

And since every discussion on the issue immediately turns into a dialogue of the deaf between the Left and the Right, it should be mentioned that Likud members were the ones who opposed the French model at the time. They called on Olmert to resign at a stage in which the suspicions against him were a jot compared to the suspicions against Netanyahu today. Its not that every probe or every newspaper headline require a resignation or a leave of absence. It was wrong in the Olmert era and its wrong where Netanyahu is concerned. But the situation that has been created is far from an initial investigation.

And no, its not the same. Theres a considerable difference between Olmert and Netanyahu. The suspicions against Olmert were not about things he did during his term as prime minister. In Netanyahus case, the suspicions are both heavier and related to actions committed during his term as prime minister.

If senior Likud members have a drop of intellectual integrity in them, they should say to Netanyahu: Please, take a leave of absence. We hope you are cleared. Because everything we saidand everything you saidto Olmert, must be said to you too.
Knesset members from the United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party have proposed a new initiative to establish small, private power stations in Haredi cities and neighborhoods to provide residents with "kosher electricity."

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The proposed stations are not only to be funded by the general, tax-paying public, but will also be disconnected from the national grid on Shabbat.

According to UTJ and other proponents, the proposal is meant to "prevent discrimination."

Photo: GettyImages

The new plan is officially being sponsored by the Committee for Energy on Shabbat, which is comprised of ultra-Orthodox activists and headed by Chairman of the Knesset Finance Committee, MK Moshe Gafni (UTJ), and Chairman of the Science and Technology Committee, MK Uri Maklev (UTJ).

According to a source in the Knesset, due to the current investigations into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuand his desire to maintain the stability of his coalitionthe chances of the proposal being authorized are higher than normal.

MK Moshe Gafni (Photo: Motti Kimchi)

Over the years, the ultra-Orthodox have claimed that the electricity that flows in Israel on Saturdays and holidays is "not kosher."

They claim that even if the electricity is activated on Friday night, or alternatively by using a Shabbat timer, Jews are still working at the power stations during Shabbat, and there are changes to the operations of the different stations according to various economic considerations.

Similarly, natural gas flow to the stations is also a problem for the ultra-Orthodox, because it too is operated by Jews.

"In the eyes of observant consumers, this constitutes a desecration of Shabbat that denies their ability to use electricity on the Shabbat and Jewish holidays, or alternatively compels them to compromise their consciences and religious beliefs," the committee wrote in their proposal to the government.

Photo: Shutterstock

Under the proposal, in every neighborhood or community with a religious majority, a small, private power station will be built. These stations will be connected to the national power grid, but will be shut down during Shabbat or other religious occasions.

During the week, the stations will be powered by regular natural gasthrough a series of pipelines that will also need to be financed by taxpayerswhile on weekends and holidays, residents will receive "kosher" electricity from the private stations. However, during that time, the stations will be forced to use compressed natural gas, which is two to three times more expensive than standard natural gas.

The proposal includes a list of cities and communities including Elad, Bnei Brak, Beitar Illit, Beit Shemesh, Jerusalem, Modiin Illit and more.

In a conversation with Yedioth Ahronoth, UTJ officials proposed the stations be built by the private sector. However, it would appear as if many of the costs will be footed by the taxpayer.

"The costs of operation and management by the Israel Electric Corporation, as well as the cost of purchasing electricity from private producers, are generally divided among all consumers in Israel," wrote the committee. "Therefore, it is not logical the consumers in relevant areas will bear the special costs alone."
The Haifa District Court on Sunday approved a request by Interior Minister Aryeh Deri to revoke the citizenship of Alaa Ziad of Umm al-Fahm, who carried out a stabbing and vehicular attack near Gan Shmuel in October 2015.

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The court determined Ziad will be given temporary status, which will be extended at the discretion of the interior minister, subject to Israel's law of citizenship.

Ziad will be able to appeal the decision, however, a failure to win the appeal means his citizenship will be revoked in October 2017.

Alaa Ziad (Photo: Elad Gershgoren)

"Revoking Ziad's citizenship constitutes a proper and proportionate measure," wrote Judge Avraham Elyakim in his decision.

"In addition to one's rights, every citizens has obligations, one of which is a significant and important obligationallegiance to the statewhich is also expressed in the obligation not to carry out terror activities in order to harm the state's residents and its security."

Justice Elyakim went on to write that "Israeli citizens should not be allowed to harm the lives and dignity of other Israeli citizens. Whoever decides to carry out such acts of terrorism removes himself from among the citizenry. Ziad took advantage of the freedom of movement to undermine the security of the state and the peace of its residents and sought to terrorize others and take human lives."

Ziad drove his car into a bus stop on Route 65 near Gan Shmuel on October 11, 2015, seriously wounding IDF soldier Orel Azuri and another soldier. He then exited the car and stabbed Azuri and two others before being captured.

At court, the terrorist claimed he did not intend to carry out a terror attack and merely lost control of his vehicle. "I didn't do anything. They want to make me into a terrorist. I don't know what they want from me. I'm not a terrorist," he claimed.

Ziad was sentenced to 25 years in prison last June.
Elor Azaria filed a request to the Military Court of Appeals on Sunday to postpone the beginning of his prison sentence until IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot decides whether or not to commute his sentence.

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Azaria was convicted of manslaughter after shooting dead a neutralized terrorist during his IDF service in Hebron in March 2016 and was sentenced to 18 months in prison . Last week, the Military Court of Appeals decided to uphold his manslaughter conviction

He is scheduled to arrive at Prison 4 in Tzrifin to begin serving his sentence on Wednesday.

Azaria in court (Photo: AFP)

In the request, Azaria's lawyer Yoram Sheftel asked to hold a hearing on the matter before Wednesday, unless the military prosecution agrees to postpone the beginning of his sentence.

Sheftel stressed his client will not seek permission to appeal his conviction to the Supreme Court.

The military prosecution is expected to discuss Azaria's request on Sunday, but it is expected to reject the request.

On Thursday, Azaria asked IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot to substitute his sentence for community service, noting, "if I had known in advance what became apparent in hindsightthat there was no explosive device on the body of the terroristI would not have shot."

Eisenkot will only be able to discuss Azaria's request after September 7, when the verdict becomes peremptory.

For this request to be taken into serious consideration, Azaria would need to both express remorse for his actions and take responsibility for them, neither of which he has done thus far, not even in his request to the IDF chief.

Regardless, if such a request is submitted, Eisenkot is obliged to consult with the Chief Military Advocate General, Brig. Gen. Sharon Afek, for a legal opinion first and only then may he respond.
Israel offered asylum on Sunday to a Turkey-based Iranian blogger who it said faced forcible deportation to Iran, where she would be at risk given her work for an Israeli news site.

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Neda Amin, a Persian-language blogger who writes in English and other languages for an Israeli news site, left Iran in 2014 for Turkey. She has been in a court battle to prevent her repatriation and has sought other countries that might take her in as a refugee, the site said.

Neda Amin

Hostility between the two countries means that Iranians are generally not admitted to Israel.

But following appeals by Israel's journalist federations, Interior Minister Aryeh Deri said he would issue 32-year-old Amin a special visa.

"This is a journalist whose life is in real danger," Deri said in a statement. "Given the clear humanitarian circumstances, I authorized her entry without delay."
After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's former chief of staff Ari Harow became a state witness against him, some Likud officials clarified in private conversations over the weekend they would not continue to support the prime minister if he is indicted.

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"If an indictment is filed against Netanyahu, we won't allow him to stay," one Likud official said. "There will be no scenario in which he is leading the country and the Likud with an indictment hanging over his head. He could bring down the Likud as well as himself."

Another Likud official said party members have been discussing the possibility of forming an alternative government should Netanyahu resign or be forced out, similar to when Ehud Olmert resigned from the premiership even before an indictment was filed against him.

Prime Minister Netanyahu (Photo: AFP)

Most of Likud's senior minister have been keeping mum about the investigations against the prime minister.

"There's great embarrassment. The most complicated situation Netanyahu is facing is that he is left with hardly any close associates, except for (wife) Sara and (son) Yair," one party official said. "However, his status in the Likud party is strong and most of the registered voters still support him."

A source close to Netanyahu said the three Likud officials who were "enlisted" to defend the prime minister in the media are Coalition Chairman MK David Bitan, MK David Amsalem and MK Nava Boker.

Over the weekend, Bitan attacked the ministers who failed to come out in Netanyahu's defense, telling Channel 2 News, "There are ministers who only care about replacing Netanyahu. We'll settle the score with them in the primaries. The registered voters remember."

MK Avi Dichter was the one Likud official to publicly call for Netanyahu's resignation if an indictment is filed against him, saying in a radio interview last week, "A prime minister or defense minister who are indictedthe high road says they must resign their post, unless there's a particular reason not to. I hope things don't come to this."
Education Minister and Bayit Yehudi Chairman Naftali Bennett is backing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in light of the developments in his investigations and the signing of an agreement with Netanyahu's former chief of staff, Ari Harow.

"The State of Israel needs stability and we support this national government and are committed to its continued operation," Bennett wrote in a statement. "The prime minister has the presumption of innocence and I hope that the investigation will end without an indictment."

"I have full confidence in the law enforcement authorities and in the attorney general, without political pressure and unnecessary demonstrations," Bennett clarified. "A national right-wing government is necessary for Israel's security and we will continue to lead this way until elections.

"The public that sees us as the national leadership of Israel expects us to act responsibly and stately."
MK David Amsalem (Likud) sharply criticized the police's conduct Sunday in reaching and agreement that will see Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's former chief of staff and confidant Ari Harow become a state witness against him, accusing them of employing extortion-style tactics.

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"If they weren't the police, it would have been considered extortion by threats. That's how a criminal organization operates," Amsalem said in an interview with Ynet.

MK David Amsalem (L) and PM Benjamin Netanyahu

Amsalem added that from his point of view, "a state witness is illegitimate. A state witness is a delinquent who is part of the crime the others are blamed for, but he has another trait that others do not. He is also an informant who wants to turn on his friends in order to save himself. So it's not a moral thing. It's a despicable thing.

"The Israeli police have a system," he said. "They're firing dozens of bullets at the prime minister in the sense that they are actually opening several cases against him at the same time. It's inhumane. An ordinary person cannot handle such an amount of cases (against him)."

When asked whether Netanyahu would have to resign if an indictment was brought against him, Amsalem replied that "in a democratic state, the government is replaced not by the police but by ballot."

Amsalem also criticized his party colleagues, who he said "lined up and begged and argued about positions and other nonsense, about things that add to their status," when Netanyahu formed the government.

"So today I expect them to come and defend the Likud. This is not about the prime minister. I do not see this as the story of Netanyahu; I see this as the story of the national camp. The left understands that it is impossible to replace the right-wing government with Netanyahu at our side, so I think that the fight here is not personal against Netanyahu and I expect them to support him in this struggle because, as I said, I see it as a national struggle."

When asked if ministers who do not defend Netanyahu should resign, he replied: "Of course. I mean, why would you not defend him? On the face of it, it seems that it is because you think that he is in the wrong. If so, and you are a minister he appointed, then resign, go home and say what you think."

MK Yoel Hasson

MK Yoel Hasson (Zionist Union) confronted MK Amsalem on Ynet and said that "the prime minister is presenting this as if it is a battle between the right and the left. We did not appoint (Attorney General Avichai) Mandelblit and neither did the police commissioner nor the state prosecutor. We did not invent Ari Harow.

"These are things that happen because the prime minister is apparently a corrupt man, with a corrupt environment and with people who did things that are currently being exposed, and the Israeli public does not deserve leadership of this kind."

Hasson said that it would be unacceptable if Netanyahu chose not resign if he was indicted.

"The State of Israel is bigger than Netanyahu and the Likud is also bigger than Netanyahu," Hasson said. "You need at this moment to understand that there is also a state, because you speak in terms of party, and you also speak in some more controversial terms; to protect a friend, to keep him at any cost.

"What do you mean at any cost? What is a friend? This is a prime minister who has public responsibility, he has to preserve the purity of his office and the law. If we see, as we see now, that in the last few years around Netanyahu such pus has accumulated, then you as a citizen, a person who truly believes in this country, should be the first to come and say: 'I do not support such a prime minister.'"

In response, Amsalem slammed Hasson by reminding him that when Ehud Olmert was in office, Hasson worked to enact laws against investigations into an acting prime minister.
Education Minister and Bayit Yehudi Chairman Naftali Bennett came out in support of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Sunday following developments in multiple investigations against him and the signing of an agreement with his former chief of staff and confidant Ari Harow.

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"The State of Israel needs stability and we support this national government and are committed to its continued operation. The prime minister has the presumption of innocence and I hope that the investigation will end without an indictment, Bennett wrote in a statement.

The deal with Harow was signed Friday which will see him become a state witness in a string of ongoing probes against the prime minister involving alleged corruption and bribery.

Naftali Bennett and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Photo: Motti Milrod)

"I have full confidence in the law enforcement authorities and in the attorney general, without political pressure and unnecessary demonstrations," Bennett continued. "A national right-wing government is necessary for Israel's security and we will continue to lead this way until elections.

"The public that sees us as the national leadership of Israel expects us to act responsibly and in a stately manner."

Former minister Gideon Sa'ar also issued a statement about the investigations against Netanyahu.

I hope and wish for the prime minister to be freed from this siege. There is no reason for the prime minister to resign from his position, and it is anyway not right for him to do so, Saar wrote on his Facebook page.

I cannot finish without saying in the clearest possible terms: The responsibility is to avoid attacks on the law enforcement systems doing its work.

Other Likud party members and prominent lawmakers wrote a letter to Netanyahu urging him not to succumb to any pressure to step down. Dont resign even if an indictment is served against you, wrote Bayit Yehudi MK Bezalel Smotrich and Minister Uri Ariel.

The decision on the future of the State of Israel should be accepted by the citizens of Israel at the ballot box, not by journalists and by frustrated opposition members who have already given up on the chance of returning to power and winning over the masses, the letter continued.
Togolese President Faure Gnassingbe has faced pressures to cancel an Africa-Israel summit that the West African nation is due to host in October, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday.

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Various pressures have been placed on the Togolese president to cancel the conference, Netanyahu said at the weekly cabinet meeting. These pressures are the best testimony to the success of our policy, of Israels presence in Africa."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a summit with African leaders in Uganda on July 4, 2016 (Photo: Kobi Gideon/GPO)

Gnassingbe will arrive in Israel for a five-day visit on Monday and Togo will be hosting some 25-20 African states for the first Africa-Israel Summit in late October.

The meeting in the Togolese capital Lome will bring together business, economic and security figures from Africa and Israel and will focus on development, trade, technology, counter-terrorism and agriculture.

Of course I will speak with the Togolese president about ways to deepen and expand Israels presence in Africa, the prime minister said.

The October summit will be Netanyahus third visit to Africa in just over a year. Netanyahu said his Africa policy had a clear goal: to bring Israel back to Africa in a big way."

He also noted that last week Cape Verde announced that it would no longer vote against Israel at the United Nations. This is important and it attests to success, the prime minister said.

Meanwhile two Muslim majority African nations Senegal and Guinea will establish diplomatic representation with Israel for the first time this week. Talla Fall, Senegals ambassador to Egypt and Amara Camara, Guineas ambassador to France, will take up positions as non-resident ambassadors to Israel and will present their credentials to President Reuven Rivlin on Tuesday.

Article reprinted with permission from

TPS

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Insurgents attacked a village in the northern Afghan province of Sar-e Pul, killing as many as 50 people, including women and children, officials said on Sunday.

Zabihullah Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said the fighters, who included foreign militants, attacked a security outpost in the Mirza Olang area of Sayaad district overnight, torching 30 houses.

He said fighting was still going on but as many as 50 people, including children, women and elderly men, most of them members of the largely Shi'ite Hazara community, may have been killed, according to local village elders.

"They were killed in a brutal, inhumane way," he said. Seven members of the Afghan security forces were also killed as well as a number of insurgents.

Many details of the attack, including the identity of the insurgents, were not immediately clear. Amani said they were a mixed group of Taliban and Islamic State fighters but the Taliban itself denied any involvement, dismissing the claim as propaganda.
A car that arrived at the Mea Shearim neighborhood in Jerusalem at the request of a family who lives there was stoned by several residents of the neighborhood.

The police said the car's rear window had been shattered, but there were no casualties among the policemen. The site is being searched for suspects.
Investors who feel bewildered by the ever-changing regulations on bank loans and costly mortgages should consider entering the Australian property market through crowdfunding.

A new study conducted by the University of South Australia (UniSA) in partnership with DomaCom, suggests that crowdfunding could become a viable new vehicle for investors trying to make headway into the countrys increasingly challenging property market.

Braam Lowies, the studys lead researcher, noted that while the concept was relatively new in Australia, it had been successful in the United States and United Kingdom for approximately seven years.

Young investors should consider crowdfunding

A survey conducted as part of the study showed that crowdfunding attracted a mix of investor types, with older Aussies aged between 55 and 64 representing 33% of investors  the largest cohort in the study.

Surprisingly, only 4% of respondents were younger than 35, despite the crowdfunding platforms aims.

If you speak to the crowdfunding platforms involved [in the study], the goal was to get younger people involved in property investment because of all the difficulties they do have these days to invest in property, Lowies said.

The study also found that the habits of buyers involved in crowdfunding varied greatly and were dependent on age.

Younger people do actually invest higher amounts of money, where older people will rather invest smaller amounts, Lowies said. Higher amounts of their investment portfolio will be in cash and cash equivalents given the later stage of their lives.

How does it work?

Property crowdfunding investors use digital platforms to invest in the purchase price of a property, with people able to invest as little as $1,000.

The property is sold once the sale price is achieved by any given number of investors.

The seller receives income from the sale of the property shares, while buyers receive dividends and capital growth according to their level of investment.

In contrast to conventional property purchases, there are no peer-to-peer lending or debt structures associated with crowdfunding investments. Lowies believes this makes the concept more accessible to a wider pool of investors.

Opportunities to purchase properties via crowdfunding platforms in Australia are currently limited to residential and rural properties. Moreover, as property crowdfunding is a relatively new concept in Australia, the next step to further develop the strategy is to streamline regulation, according to Lowies.

At this stage the regulation around property crowdfunding is still a bit of a grey area, he said. If you buy your crowdfunding share and you want to sell it, there should be a market for you to be able to sell that, because it is a financial instrument. [Currently] there is no secondary marketplace  to trade your crowdfunding share in. That is the next step.

Related Stories:

Sub-Divisions The Next Target For Crowdfunding

International Crowdfunding Platform Launches Australian Operations
Caracas: The head of Venezuela's ruling party, Diosdado Cabello, said the "terrorist" attack at a military base in Valencia was averted with the help of troops loyal to the government.

A video emerged showing a group of armed men dressed in military fatigues on Sunday launching an attack on miltary base in Valencia and declaring it as an uprising against President Nicolas Maduro to restore democracy in Venezuela.

In a video, armed men declared themselves as rebels calling for rebellion against President Nicolas Maduro in Carabobo state, where Valencia is located.

In the video, a man identifying himself as Capt Juan Caguaripano said that any unit refusing to go along with its call for rebellion would be targeted by them.

But Venezuelan authorities said they had suppressed a military rebellion near the central city of Valencia. "There had been a "terrorist attack" at a Valencia military base controlled by troops loyal to the government and several people had been arrested," the Guardian quoted the ruling Socialist Party's deputy, Diosdado Cabello as saying.

Venezuela is wracked by tension and violence, as the unpopular Maduro government seeks to hold on to power.On Saturday chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega was removed and replaced after her office was surrounded by soldiers.

International pressure against Venezuela's election has been increasing as the United States, Mexico and Colombia said they're freezing assets and imposing other restrictions on certain current and former Venezuelan government officials.

The US Treasury Department slapped sanctions against 13 Venezuelan government officials. The sanctions come ahead of the planned July 30, 2017, election orchestrated by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of a National Constituent Assembly that will have the power to rewrite the Venezuelan constitution and dissolve all government institutions.

"As President Trump has made clear, the United States will not ignore the Maduro regime's ongoing efforts to undermine democracy, freedom and the rule of law," Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said in a statement.
Caracas: Venezuela`s chief prosecutor has been fired and ordered to stand trial less than a day after a newly elected legislative body was installed to strengthen President Nicolas Maduro`s grip on power, the Washington Post reports.

Since the opposition started protests in April, the prosecutor, Luisa Ortega Diaz, had become Maduro`s main challenger from within the ruling socialist movement leading to the latter`s loyalists moving to cordoning off her headquarters in a move signaling a swiftly widening crackdown on political dissent.

Ortega Diaz had accused Maduro of human rights abuses and violations and also of fudging the results of last weekend`s election of the new 545-member constituent assembly. In addition to firing Ortega Diaz, the Assembly ordered her to not leave the country and replaced her with a Maduro loyalist, Tarek William Saab.

"Ortega Diaz didn`t give the impression of being objective in her duties," the assembly`s second vice President, Isaias Rodriguez, said."This decision is not news. Everyone knew it was coming long before the ANC was installed."

Following this, Ortega Diaz denounced the decision to remove her from the position of attorney general of the republic as a violation of the constitution.

"We are just a tiny sample of what comes to anyone who dares to oppose the totalitarian way of governing," she said in a statement.

"I will continue fighting for Venezuelans, for their liberties and rights, until my last breath."Ortega Diaz said that she was not inside her headquarters in central Caracas when troops surrounded the building, but that the members of her staff were trapped inside.

Ortega Diaz said she was being targetted for calling out the government."The attack comes because of the attitude I have assumed in defence of human rights and democracy," she said.

"Because the government has committed serious violations, including arbitrary detentions, torture, cruel [and] inhumane treatment, the use of military justice to judge civilians and the planting of evidence."

Ortega Diaz represents a political camp in Venezuela of leftist populists who have broken with Maduro. Ortega Diaz had, in an interview with The Washington Post, denounced the creation of the new Constituent Assembly  members of which include Maduro`s wife and son  as "the birth of a dictatorship."
Moscow: President Donald Trump said that United States will continue working with allies like Russia and China to diplomatically deal with North Korea on curbing Nuclear threat.

Trump has welcomed Russia and China`s cooperation with the United States for supporting economic sanctions against reclusive regime of North Korea for conducting intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests and violating the UN resolutions.

"The president appreciates China`s and Russia`s cooperation in securing passage of this resolution," the White House said in a statement."[Donald Trump] will continue working with allies and partners to increase diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea to end its threatening and destabilizing behavior.

"With 15 votes in favor, Russia and China backed the US-drafted resolution 2371 which was passed unanimously.Ahead of the vote, Russia`s UN envoy, Vasily Nebenzya, called on Pyongyang to scrap its nuclear and missile programs and to return to a non-proliferation regime.

Moscow and Beijing had previously blocked the passage of a similar resolution, insisting that the Chinese-Russian "double freezing" initiative was the sensible solution for the region, Russia Today reported.Apart from calling for dialogue, the Russian and Chinese envoys reiterated the need to scrap America`s THAAD deployment in South Korea, and urged Seoul and Washington to halt military drills in the peninsula.

The sanctions will slash North Korea`s annual export revenue of $3 billion by more than a third, according to a statement from the office of Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations.
New Delhi: Gold exchange traded funds (ETFs) continued losing popularity as an investment class with investors pulling out over Rs 250 crore from the instrument in April-July of this fiscal, preferring equities over them.

Trading in gold ETF segment has been tepid during the last four financial years. It has witnessed outflows of Rs 775 crore in 2016-17, Rs 903 crore in 2015-16, Rs 1,475 crore 2014-15 and Rs 2,293 crore in 2013-14.

On the other hand, equity and equity-linked saving scheme (ELSS) saw an infusion of more than Rs 41,000 crore during the first four months (April-July) of the current financial year.

Stock markets have been on an upswing, touching new highs this year.

According to Vidya Bala, head of MF Research at Fundsindia.Com, gold is losing steam as an investment asset class due to gradual rate hike in the US and a possible squeezing in Europe by 2018.

"This is because, when debt as an asset delivers higher yields, gold, which has no underlying fundamentals, tends to underperform," she said.

Gold ETFs are passive investment instruments that are based on price movements and investments in physical gold.

"While demand from India has traditionally buttressed gold prices globally, sound rally in the Indian equity markets has meant that gold as an asset class has not been favoured. The global rate tightening and a strong Indian equity market may mean a sober outlook for gold," Bala added.

Further, demonetisation and lower gold price from a strengthening rupee has kept its prices low although imports of the metal shot up. Gold imports for half year ending June this year crossed the entire imports of 2016, Bala said.

According to the latest data available with Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi), a net sum of Rs 256 crore was pulled out in 14 gold-linked ETFs during April-July period of the ongoing financial year, as compared to Rs 411 crore in the same period last fiscal.

The outflow meant assets under management (AUM) of gold funds plunged to Rs 5,098 crore at July-end from Rs 5,480 crore at the end of March.

Withdrawal of Rs 66 crore was seen in April this year, Rs 71 crore in May, Rs 81 crore in June and another Rs 38 crore in July.

Gold ETFs have been continuously seeing a withdrawal. It has last seen an inflow of Rs 20 crore in October. Prior to that, an inflow of Rs 5 crore was witnessed in such instruments in May 2013.
Rajnandgaon: A police sub-inspector was on Sunday killed and a constable was injured in a gun-battle with naxals in insurgency-hit forest area of Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district.

The skirmish took place this afternoon when a specialised unit of the district force was out on an anti-maoist operation in the jungle of Gatapar police station area, Inspector General of Police (Durg Range) Dipanshu Kabra told PTI.

A team of E-30, an anti-naxal force of district police, was cordoning off the forests near Bhave village, over 150 kms from here, when it came under heavy fire from a group of ultras, leading to the encounter.

However, on finding security personnel zeroing on them, the rebels fled into core forests, he said.

"A sub-inspector of police Yugal Kishore Verma was killed in the incident while constable Krish Sahu sustained injuries," the official added.

After being informed of the incident, reinforcements were being rushed to the spot and the body of slain official was being recovered from the forest. The injured jawan was also being evacuated, he said.

A 2008 batch SI rank official, Verma was resident of Palari area in the state's Balodabazar district.

A major portion of Rajnandgaon is bordering Gondia and Gadchiroli (Maharashtra) and Balaghat (Madhya Pradesh) where maoist activities have been continuously reported.

As per the maoist documents recovered recently from Bastar region, naxals are now trying to set up their new base in this tri-junction region.
New Delhi: The Railways has earned an additional revenue of Rs 540 crore in less than a year through the flexi fare scheme and there is no plan to discontinue it, a senior ministry official said.

The scheme, launched on September 9 last year, is applicable in Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto trains, allowing 10 per cent of the seats to be sold at normal fare and thereafter increasing it by 10 per cent with every 10 per cent of berths sold with a ceiling of 50 per cent.

"We have earned money from flexi fare and there is no reason why we should discontinue it. In fact, we have gained 85,000 additional passengers in these trains since we launched the scheme, showing that even passengers are not averse to the scheme," said a senior official of the ministry.

The official told PTI that from September 2016-June 30, 2017, the Railways earned an additional revenue of Rs 540 crore.

The scheme, which officials say will be continuously reviewed, saw a revision last December after the Railways took note of vacant seats in such trains.

The Railways made changes in the flexi fare structure to attract last minute travellers and introduced a range of discounts.

The 30 per cent tatkal charges have been waived for these premium trains, a 10 per cent rebate on basic fare has been offered on vacant berths after preparation of first chart in Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto to lure last minute travellers, provision of tatkal quota has been reduced to 10 per cent from 30 per cent of the total berths available and there is also a provision for discounted fares for some trains.

"The scheme now comes with a lot of discounts for passengers and it is a success. However, there is always scope for more reviews," the official added.

The numbers show a positive trend - during September 2016-June 2017, Duronto trains earned Rs 140 crore more than the amount earned in the same period last year while Shatabdi trains earned Rs 120 crore more.

There are total 42 Rajdhani trains, 46 Shatabdi and 54 Duronto trains.

"Just to give an indication of how much the railways is expected to gain from the scheme - we have earned an additional revenue of Rs 240 crore from April-June this year, which is around Rs 80 crore additional revenue per month. This comes to around Rs 960 crore per annum. These are good signs," the official said.
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Mumbai: Following a technical glitch in flight number AI 809, passengers of Delhi-bound Air India flight on Saturday were forced to sit inside the aircraft for over three hours without the air conditioning working.

The flight, AI 809, which was scheduled to depart from the Chhtatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai at 11.15 am for New Delhi, took off at 2.34 pm, after a delay of nearly three-and-a-half hours, a source told PTI. "During this period, all the passengers remained seated in the glitch-hit plane," the source further informed the news agency.

When contacted, an Air India spokesperson said that the technical snag forced the airline to delay the departure of its Mumbai-Delhi flight today morning. We have set up an inquiry to investigate the delay in the Mumbai-Delhi-Jeddah flight, the spokesperson said.

He, however, confirmed that there were 282 passengers on board.

(With inputs from agencies)
New Delhi: Keen on boosting bilateral trade and ties, India and Iran have expressed commitment to operationalise the strategic Chabahar Port at the earliest.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, who is on a two-day visit to Tehran as a special envoy of India deputed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inauguration of the second tenure of Hassan Rouhani as the President of Iran, extended the PM?s invitation to Rouhani to visit India while handing over a letter of felicitation to him and held talks with him and other Iranian officials.

In the meetings, both sides reviewed and positively assessed the progress in implementation of the decisions taken during Prime Minister?s visit to Iran last year, including the progress in the development of Chabahar Port, Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

?Both sides reiterated their commitment to complete and operationalise the port at the earliest that would contribute to bilateral and regional trade and economic development and also provide alternate access to landlocked Afghanistan to regional and global markets,? the statement said.

Hopeful of rolling out infrastructure projects in Iran and Afghanistan, Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Gadkari has said that once Chabahar Port in Iran becomes operational, there will be no looking back as it will be a gateway to golden opportunities.

"Talks are on for building railways and roads through Chabahar till Afghanistan and then we have access to Russia. Once Chabahar is operationalised, which we are hopeful to be in 12 to 18 months time, it will prove to be a gateway to golden opportunities to boost trade and business," Gadkari told PTI.

Gadkari, during his two-day visit, apart from meeting President Rouhani, also called on Iran's First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri and Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Abbas Akhoundi and held talks on bilateral cooperation.

Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation's southern coast, lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessed from India's western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

"We are hopeful of ratification of Trilateral Transit and Transport Agreement by Iran and once approvals are given, the work will start," Gadkari said.

The trilateral pact was inked during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tehran in May 2016.

The pact envisages establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor between India, Iran and Afghanistan using Chabahar Port as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran besides multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.

The Cabinet and the President had ratified the pact in November and December, 2016 respectively.

A government official said Afghanistan has also ratified it but Iran is yet to complete the internal processes of the ratification.

Gadkari said operationalisation of the Port will not accelerate the infrastructure projects but will be a "win-win situation" for the nations as it would give tremendous boost to trade and offer vast opportunities to investors.

"Chabahar will not only boost ties between Iran and India but we will be closer to Afghanistan and then Russia....We can export goods till Russia. This will be a direct route," he said.

India has already built the Zaranj-Delaram Road in Afghanistan where the cargo reaching Zehedan can connect to.

"The rail route is aimed at connecting the existing rail network of Iran at Zahedan, and subsequently to Mashad in north area, thereby providing access to Turkmenistan as well as northern Afghanistan through its connection to the Bafq- Mashad route," an official said.

This project will significantly enhance the opportunity for trade and business among the nations.

Chabahar-Zahedan Railway line project is located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province in eastern Iran.

Gadkari's visit assumes significance as India has accelerated work on the Chabahar port and finalised some tenders for installation of key equipment at the port.

"Civil construction work has started there. We have finalised tenders worth Rs 380 crore for equipment out of Rs 600 crore and once the port becomes operational it will become a growth engine," the minister had said.

For greater trade and investment flow with Iran and neighbouring countries, the Cabinet last year cleared proposals for development of Chabahar port including a USD 150 million credit from Exim Bank.

It also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities.

As per the MoU signed between the two nations in May last year, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of USD 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of USD 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.
New Delhi: A day after Venkaiah Naidu was elected as the vice president of India, the Janata Dal (United) (JD(U)) congratulated him on his overwhelming victory and asserted that it was an achievement for the Upper House to see the latter at this post.

Talking to ANI, JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav on Sunday said,"I congratulate him on winning the Vice-Presidential polls and wish him luck for this new post. He is one of the oldest members of the Rajya Sabha and we believe that it will be an achievement for the Upper House to see Naidu at this post."

Another JD(U) leader K.C. Tyagi said also congratulated Venkaiah Naidu asserting that the result was quite expected since the very beginning. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) nominee and former union minister was elected as the 13th Vice President of India with 516 votes.

Opposition nominee Gopalkrishna Gandhi secured 244 votes.

Total 771 out of 785 MPs cast their votes today. However, it was revealed that 14 Members of Parliament (MPs) were not present during the voting process.

Voting for the Vice-Presidential Election ended with a total poll percentage of 98.21 per cent.

Naidu will be sworn-in as the new Vice-President of India on August 11.

(With inputs from ANI)
Muzaffarnagar: The Uttar Pradesh Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Sunday arrested a Bangladeshi national from Kutesara village of Muzaffarnagar district over allegedly carrying out terror activities.

As per the reports of ANI, the suspect, identified as Abdullah, was allegedly arranging fake IDs and giving shelter to other terrorists. He was associated with Bangladesh terror group 'Ansarullah Bangla team'. The Ansarullah Bangla Team is a Bangladeshi militant outfit which is said to be behind the recent attacks and murders of atheist bloggers in Bangladesh.

Abdullah was residing in Muzaffarnagar since the past one month and earlier used to live in Saharanpur in 2011. As per the preliminary inquiry, it was found that Abdullah was arranging fake Ids and passports for the Bangladeshi terrorists so that they can safely live in India to carry out their terror activities.

The UP ATS along with Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and Shamli police carrying out an arrest and investigation drive in three districts on the order of Saharanpur Deputy inspector general of police. The team also summoned three more people for further inquiry.

(With inputs from ANI)
Nowgam: Two bike-borne terrorists attacked a party of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Jammu and Kashmir Police in Jammu and Kashmir's Nowgam on Saturday night. The terrorists, however, fled from the spot after the incident. As per the report of ANI, a wireless operator of 29 BN CRPF received a bullet injury in his thigh in the attack.

Public Relation Officer (PRO) of CRPF, Rajesh Yadav said that the police fired in the air to avoid civilian causality as the area was very crowded and had heavy traffic movement.

Talking to leading daily Times Of India, a senior police official said,"The attack took place at around 8:45 pm when the CRPF personnel, who were a part of road opening deployment, were returning back to their camp."

Meanwhile, a massive search operation was conducted to nab the terrorists.

Further details are awaited.
Srinagar: The Enforcement Directorate on Sunday arrested Aslam Wani, close aide of Separatist leader Shabir Shah from Srinagar, in connection with terror funding case. Wani will be brought to Delhi today.

Earlier, the ED remand of Shabir Shah, a Democratic Freedom Party (DFP) chairman, was extended for six days.

This came after the Enforcement Directorate submitted an application before a Delhi court for further remand of Shah.

In its remand application, the ED submitted before the court that Shah is in continuous contact with anti national elements/ terrorists residing in Pakistan in garb of the Kashmir issue.

On July 26, Shah was produced in the Patiala House Court, following which he was sent to a seven-day ED custody.

On July 25, Shah was arrested from his residence, where he was under house detention for a very long time, in Jammu and Kashmir`s Srinagar.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has been tough on Separatists regarding the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir.

On July 24, the NIA arrested seven separatists over money laundering charges, for funding terror in the Kashmir Valley.

All seven separatist leaders - Altaf Shah, Ayaz Akbar, Peer Saifullah, Mehraj Kalwal, Shahid-ul-Islam, Naeem Khan and Bitta Karate - were later sent to 10-day NIA custody.

The accused have been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The NIA visited Srinagar in May to probe the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir, and questioned several Separatist leaders on the issue of raising, collecting and transferring funds via the Hawala route and other channels to fund terror activities in Kashmir.
Beijing: Notwithstanding the India-China tension over the Doklam standoff, Beijing is upbeat about the next month's BRICS summit to be held in the Chinese city of Xiamen, expecting "concrete cooperation" among the five emerging economies.

"I think this year's summit in Xiamen will produce more practical and concrete cooperation, and improve trust and confidence among BRICS," Shen Yi, director of the centre for BRICS studies at Fudan University was quoted by state-run Xinhua news agency in a commentary on the upcoming summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to attend the summit of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) being hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

There is no word yet here whether the two leaders would be meeting on the sidelines of the summit as the standoff between Indian and Chinese troops continues at the Doklam area of the Sikkim Sector, making it the longest stalemate between the two militaries in recent years.

India and China have been locked in a prolonged standoff in the area in the Sikkim sector since June 16 after Chinese troops began constructing a road near the Bhutan trijunction.

Bhutan has protested to China, saying the area belonged to it and accused Beijing of violating agreements that aim to maintain the status quo until the boundary dispute is resolved.

India says the Chinese action to construct the road was unilateral and changes the status quo. It fears the road would allow China to cut off India's access to its northeastern states.

The summit will discuss the organisation's role in global governance, a faltering economic recovery and setbacks in globalisation, the Xinhua commentary said.

"BRICS: stronger partnership for a brighter future" will bring together the leaders of all the five countries, it said.

The "gold bricks countries"- a Chinese translation of BRICS- represent emerging markets and are the voice of the world's developing countries, it said, without referring to the current round of India-China tensions over Doklam.

The Xinhua commentary also highlighted Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's assertions in the past about BRICS Plus under which China says the five-member bloc should expand cooperation with developing countries.

Last year, India which hosted a summit in Goa invited leaders of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi- Sectoral Technical and Economic) in which Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal are members.

China is yet to release its list of guests to meet on the sidelines of the BRICS summit.

China does not want to limit future cooperation to the five nations. In March, Foreign Affairs Minister Wang said that China would explore expansion modalities for "BRICS Plus" and build a wider partnership through dialogue with developing countries and international organisations, the commentary said.

"BRICS plus" will provide opportunities for other economies and inject impetus into economic globalisation, it quoted the chief economist of the Eurasian Development Bank Yaroslav Lissovolik as saying.

"The proposals of Minister of Foreign Affairs of China Wang Yi regarding the expansion of the BRICS partnership zone are not only timely in the light of China's presidency of BRICS, but they are also aimed at giving new impetus to integration processes in the complicated conditions of protectionism's spread in the world economy," Lissovolik said.

Observers say that BRICS is consensus based organisation and consent of the five required for its expansion.

Strong economic growth means BRICS are now key players in the world economy and in global governance, the Xinhua commentary said.

Together, the five countries accounted for 23 percent of the 2016 global economy, almost double their share in 2006. The five have been the source of more than half of global growth in the past ten years.

"BRICS cooperation has not only helped the countries themselves, but enhanced the right to speak on global issues for all developing countries," said Ruan Zongze, executive vice president of the China Institute of International Studies.

As the holder of the BRICS presidency this year, China is hosting the series of meetings which usually precedes the leaders' summit.

Earlier this week, trade ministers met in Shanghai and agreed to unite against protectionism and to do all they can to ensure the survival of the multilateral trade system.

In late July, a BRICS security meeting was held in Beijing, with discussions on global governance, anti- terrorism, the internet, energy, national security and development.

In June, finance ministers and central bank governors agreed to strengthen cooperation in several fiscal and financial areas, including the BRICS New Development Bank and regulatory collaboration.

With the progress of the past ten years and a more inclusive attitude, BRICS are prepared not only for the Xiamen summit, but for another golden decade to come, the commentary said.
Srinagar: Three people who help the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militants to carry out the deadly July 10 attack on Amarnath pilgrims have been arrested, the Jammu and Kashmir Police said on Sunday, as they claim to crack the case.

IGP Kashmir Munir Khan confirmed that the alleged conspirators have been arrested by the Special Investigation Team (SIT),

The accused, who had allegedly provided vehicles and shelter to the terrorists, were produced before a local court.

"Ismail, a Pakistan militant of Lashkar along with two others and a local Kashmiri carried out the attack," ANI quoted Khan as saying in a press conference in Anantnag.

The conspirators were identified as Bilal Ahmed Reshi, Aizaj Wagey and Zahoor Ahmed.

Khan further revealed the accused code words like 'Shaukat' for yatri vehicle and 'Bilal' for CRPF vehicle.

The attack was initially planned on July 9, however, due to no movement of CRPF or yatri vehicle, it could not be executed on that day.

"We are quite near to them. Hopefully will be neutralizing the militants soon. It can be today, tomorrow," Khan added.

Eight people were killed in the attack when the militants opened fire on a bus carrying Amarnath pilgrims.

Four LeT militants, led by their leader Abu Ismail, had carried out the attack. Two of the four militants suspected to be involved in the attack have been gunned down by security forces recently. the case is still being investigated.

(With agency inputs)
New Delhi: As many as 12 public sector banks including PNB, Bank of India and Indian Bank have lined up plans for raising funds from markets to shore up their capital base to meet global risk norm, Basel III.

About 6-7 lenders including Andhra Bank expect to close their capital raising plan by the end of the current fiscal, sources said.

The remaining would raise funds through follow on public offer (FPO) or Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) from the market during course of the next fiscal, they added.

Lenders including Allahabad Bank, Andhra Bank, Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Dena Bank, IDBI Bank, Indian Bank and Punjab National Bank (PNB) have already got permission from the government to raise capital from the market through QIP or FPO or preferential allotment.

Similarly, Syndicate Bank, UCO Bank, United Bank of India, Vijaya Bank also got approval from the government and some of them have already started the process.

For example, Allahabad Bank has already obtained shareholders' nod in order to raise equity capital aggregating up to Rs 2,000 crore through different modes like QIP, FPO or a rights issue.

Board of PNB has given its approval for raising equity capital to the tune of Rs 3,000 crore through FPO, QIP or rights issue.

At the same time, Dena Bank also obtained shareholders' nod to offer equity shares aggregating up to Rs 1,800 crore to QIP at such issue prices including premium with face value of Rs 10 each.

As per the Indradhanush roadmap, public sector banks need to raise Rs 1.10 lakh crore from markets, including follow-on public offer, to meet Basel III requirements, which kick in from March 2019.

This will be over and above the Rs 70,000 crore that banks will get as capital support from the government. Of this, the government has already infused Rs 50,000 crore in the past two fiscals and the remaining will be pumped in by the end of 2018-19.

In June, SBI raised Rs 15,000 crore by selling 52.2 crore shares through QIP, the largest share sale in the secondary market by a bank.

SBI said the total proceeds of the issue will be used to augment its capital adequacy ratio and for general corporate purposes.
New Delhi: Central Board of Film Certification chief Pahlaj Nihalani has reportedly filed a case against a Mumbai reporter. It is being said that, in his complaint, Nihalani has alleged harassment, intimidation and breach of privacy.

According to a NDTV report, he has accused the journalist of "continuously harassing me in my office building premise, exceeding all levels of courteous behavior and bullying the security guards and office staff into letting her enter my office."

As per the online buzz, the police complaint was filed on Friday at Gamdevi police station.

More details about the same are still awaited!
New Delhi: Our dear B- Town celebrities are always spreading smiles on the Internet, all thanks to their social media handles. Here is a roundup of some of the most interesting Instagram posts by the celebs from the previous week.

So, grab some coffee and scroll down!

#1 Deepika's throwback post

We all loved 'Luv Aaj Kal'! The movie wasn't only a hit but also had a unique take on relationships. Perhaps, the film is one of Deepika's favourite as she celebrates 8 years of the movie with the Insta post below.

Meera & Jai...you are missed... #8yearsofloveaajkal #dreamfilm #dreamteam A post shared by Deepika Padukone (@deepikapadukone) on Jul 31, 2017 at 6:18am PDT

#2 Shah Rukh's banarsi pan

Another post which garnered a lot of attention was when Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma went to Banaras to promote their film, 'Jab Harry Met Sejal'. Harry (Shah Rukh) fed banarsi pan to the adorable Sejal (Anushka) and the internet couldn't stop gushing over the post!

Harry, Sejal & Imtiaz had a great time in Varanasi... thank u all for coming & big thanks to Manoj Tiwari. #JHMSInVaranasi @anushkasharma @imtiazaliofficial @redchilliesent A post shared by Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) on Jul 31, 2017 at 7:01am PDT

#3 Hrithik's alluring photograph

Hrithik Roshan recently posted a visual treat for his fans! The actor looks incredibly dashing in the Instagram post below:

#4 Amitabh Bachchan's heartwarming post

Big B's latest Instagram post touched each and every heart out there. Sharing with the world a lesson learnt from his father, Amitabh looks extremely handsome in the post below:

When you tire at work sitting at a desk you stand and work .. got a special table made for that .. lessons learnt from my Father .. who worked thus .. never forget lessons learnt from Ma and Babuji .. A post shared by Amitabh Bachchan (@amitabhbachchan) on Aug 1, 2017 at 9:56am PDT

#5 Priyanka Chopra with niece

The world got to see a different side of the much adored Priyanka Chopra recently. She posted several pictures with her niece that were absolutely adorable! Here is one of them:

Masi and baby.. @shireen_shiva_rose A post shared by Priyanka Chopra (@priyankachopra) on Aug 3, 2017 at 12:26pm PDT

#6 Karan Johar

Filmmaker Karan Johar enthralled the Internet users with a picture that was taken almost 2 decades ago!

Here's the post:

This was nearly 2 decades ago!! @atulkasbekar how did you find this???A post shared by Karan Johar (@karanjohar) on Aug 4, 2017 at 10:07pm PDT

#7 Malaika Arora Khan's birthday post about ex- husband Arbaaz Khan

This one surely left us laughing! Malaika posted a video of Arbaaz who was slicing a watermelon on his birthday while others laughed in the background. The video was also hilariously captioned.

Watch the video here:
Mumbai: Bhumi Pednekar says she will not let go of a good role due to the fear of being typecast.

The 28-year-old actor made her debut with 2015 film "Dum Laga Ke Haisha", where she played a small-town girl who battles patriarchy.

In her upcoming projects, "Toilet: Ek Prem Katha" and "Shubh Mangal Saavdhan", Bhumi appears to be portraying similar characters.

"I have thought about getting stereotyped. But I am not going to miss out on a role because I am scared that people will only see me as a small-town girl," the actor tells PTI.

Bhumi says she has worked hard at making her characters stand apart and hopes the audiences appreciate her effort.

"It's a bigger challenge for me to make every character different. They belong to the same economic stratum and are courageous... This is the only similarity.

"I really hope people don't feel the characters are same because I've tried recreating myself in all these films by staying true to my character."



Bhumi says watching diverse cinema has influenced her choice of films.

"I think I naturally have a tendency to pick such roles. I've been brought up in an environment where we were made socially responsible at a very young age. The kind of films we were exposed to, while growing up, were more niche. The kind of taste I developed as an audience was more towards meaningful films that were entertaining. So, I naturally tend to pick up characters which have some strength," she adds.

Bhumi is glad that films today offer well-etched characters to women.

"In the last five years, there has been such a huge change in the kind of roles written for women and the kind of films coming out. Even the audience is open today to watch good films and content is the king. They are intelligent and exposed to world cinema."

Her latest, "Toilet: Ek Prem Katha", where she will be seen opposite Akshay Kumar, will release next week, followed by "Shubh Mangal Saavdhan" in September.

Bhumi features opposite her "Dum Laga Ke..." co-star Ayushmann Khurrana in "Shubh..." and she hopes the movie recreates the magic.

"I really hope it has that sort of an impact. 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha' was an endearing love story and 'Shubh...' is about this sweet couple, madly in love but they have there is situation which is going on (referring to story of the film). But it's a family entertainer."
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami on Sunday expressed grief over the death of 16 police personnel during the last eight months on various occasions and announced a relief of Rs 3 lakh to be disbursed to each bereaved family.

Palaniswami offered his deep condolences to the families of 16 police personnel who lost their lives due to various reasons including "ill-health," an official release said.

"I have issued orders to grant a sum of Rs 3 lakh each to be given as ex-gratia to the family of deceased from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund," Palaniswami, who also holds the police and Home department portfolios said in the statement.
New Delhi: Amid a raging debate on efficacy and results of speed test apps, Trai plans to 'study' the methodology and other nuances of such applications used for checking upload and download speeds of data, an official said.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) is calling major speed test apps for a presentation to "understand" their methodology.

The exercise is expected to culminate into a 'paper' that will be placed in the public domain in the coming months.

The sector regulator plans to meet 7-8 mobile internet speed testing firms, including Ookla, over the next one or two months, in this regard.

The move assumes significance as Airtel has used Ookla results in the past to assert itself as fastest network, a claim contested by Reliance Jio.

On the other hand, Mukesh Ambani owned Jio has been recording highest speed over the past few months on Trai's own speed test app called 'MySpeed' app. But broadband speed testing firm OpenSignal has raised questions on Trai's 4G test method.

Trai hopes that its initiative would not only help raise consumer awareness about the various apps and choices available to users but could also lead to improvements in MySpeed app.

"There may also be consumers who have never used these apps to check speeds. The idea is to make the public aware of all the options available, and educate the customer," a Trai official said on condition of anonymity.

Overall, Trai aims to understand the working of such apps and not to rank them or set standards for the apps.

"There are times when variations are found even when tests are conducted in quick succession. So we thought why not call them to see the working," the official said.

Trai is seeking to do an exploratory research on methods as well as factors that affect the test results, and has written to various firms that provide these apps to come and make a presentation.

"It may, however, take some time as many of the representatives are not based here," the official added.

Speed tests have been subject of much debate in the past, with telcos touting the results to woo customers and even designing high-decibel ad campaigns around it.

In March this year, Airtel and Jio clashed head-on in the battle for data speed supremacy with the newcomer objecting to Airtel's claim of being the fastest network, and the incumbent arguing back that the charges were a deliberate attempt to malign the brand and misguide customers.
Kabul: As many as 12 militants were killed in incidents in two northern Afghan provinces, the police said on Sunday.

The police repelled an attack at a security checkpoints in Raghistan district of Badakhshan province that left six militants dead and three others injured on Saturday night, Xinhua news agency quoted a police official as saying.

No troops or civilians were hurt in the gunfight, the official said.

Six other militants were killed in Faryab province when the Afghan Air Force launched an airstrike in Rahmat Abad village of Daulat Abad district, army official Nastratullah Jamshidi told Xinhua.

"The operation codenamed `Nawid-3` is ongoing in Daulat Abad, Shirin Tagab and Khawja Sabzposh districts," he said.

Fighting has escalated as the Taliban insurgency spreads from its traditional strongholds in southern and eastern Afghanistan to the once peaceful northern region.

The Taliban militants have yet to make comments.
Manila: China on Sunday scored a diplomatic coup in its campaign to weaken regional resistance against its sweeping claims to the South China Sea when Southeast Asian nations issued a diluted statement on the dispute and agreed to Beijing`s terms on talks.

After two days of tense meetings on the dispute in the Philippine capital, foreign ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) issued a joint communique that diplomats involved said was carefully worded to avoid angering China.

The release of the statement came shortly after the ministers met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and agreed on a framework for conducting negotiations on the decades-long row that included key clauses advocated by China.

"This is an important outcome of our joint effort," Wang told reporters as he celebrated the agreement.

China claims nearly all of the strategically vital sea, through which $5 trillion in annual shipping trade passes and is believed to sit atop vast oil and gas deposits.

Its sweeping claims overlap with those of ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei, as well as Taiwan.

China has dramatically expanded its presence in the contested areas in recent years by building giant artificial islands that could be used as military bases, raising concerns it will eventually establish de facto control over the waters.

In what two diplomats involved said was another victory for Beijing on Sunday, ASEAN members declined to say in their joint statement that the hoped-for code of conduct with China be "legally binding".

Vietnam, the most determined critic of China on the issue, had insisted during two days of negotiations that ASEAN insist the code be legally binding, arguing otherwise it would be meaningless.

The ASEAN ministers failed to release the joint statement as expected after meeting on Saturday because of their differences on the sea issue, with Vietnam pushing for tougher language and Cambodia lobbying hard for China.

"Vietnam is adamant, and China is effectively using Cambodia to champion its interests," one diplomat told AFP on Sunday as negotiations extended into overtime. Tensions over the sea have long vexed ASEAN, which operates on a consensus basis but has had to balance the interests of rival claimants and those more aligned to China.

Critics of China have accused it of trying to divide ASEAN with strong-armed tactics and chequebook diplomacy, enticing smaller countries in the bloc such as Cambodia and Laos to support it.

The Philippines, under previous president Benigno Aquino, had been one of the most vocal critics of China and filed a case before a UN-backed tribunal.

The tribunal last year ruled China`s sweeping claims to the sea had no legal basis.

But China, despite being a signatory to the UN`s Convention on the Law of the Sea, ignored the ruling.

The Philippines, under new President Rodrigo Duterte, decided to play down the verdict in favour of pursuing warmer ties with Beijing. This in turn led to offers of billions of dollars in investments or aid from China.

"It`s clear that China`s pressure on individual ASEAN governments has paid off," Bill Hayton, a South China Sea expert and associate fellow with the Asia Programme at Chatham House in London, told AFP.

Hayton and other analysts said the agreement on a framework for talks on Sunday came 15 years after a similar document was signed committing the parties to begin negotiations.

The 2002 document was more strongly worded against China.

China used those 15 years to cement its claims, while continuing to get ASEAN to issue ever-weaker statements of opposition, according to the analysts.

"It would appear China has never lost in terms of seeing the language of ASEAN forum statements being toned down," Ei Sun Oh, adjunct senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, told AFP.

Philippine academic and security analyst Richard Heydarian expressed stronger sentiments as he summarised Sunday`s developments: "Overall it`s a slam dunk diplomatic victory for China".
Islamabad: Former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and MNA Ayesha Gulalai reiterated claims that party chairman Imran Khan had been sending her "indecent, inappropriate messages" during an interview for Dawn News.

She further entailed about how the decision of finally slapping the charges against Imran Khan came around."As my father was a professor, he started the discussion in a decent way; but Khan refused to accept his mistake and tried to divert the discussion," she said, adding that "the messages continued to come in after the meeting. As a result, I was turned off from politics and went off screen.

"Refusing to provide further details, she said that Khan initially used to send her "inappropriate and indecent" messages, but later talked about a marriage proposal before her father intervened in the matter.

Gulalai said that she always responded in a decent manner."I also expressed my anger and at times adopted a harsh tone. What the bottom line is that me and my family suffered mental torture due to the entire episode. It was the main reason behind my decision to quit the party," she reiterated.

Gulalai said that Khan did not propose to her directly, but "talked about it in a veiled manner in his text messages," in the interview to the Dawn News."He proposed to me before his wedding with Reham Khan," she claimed, adding that "after he parted ways with Reham, in July he again tried indirectly to contact me".

"I spoke out for the sake of Pakistani women. I did not do any thing wrong," she said, defending her decision to go public with the matter.

Gulalai added, "They call themselves unbiased but have launched a [vindictive] inquiry against me in the provincial accountability commission. Till today, the PTI circles considered me a fair person who was struggling against corruption: now, all of a sudden, I am this bad person to them."

"They have launched a campaign against me, they have activated a private channel and some individuals against me while promising them party tickets or money. They have asked them to issue statements against me," she claimed.

"They do not have any proofs against me, so they are changing statements. At times, they said that it [the press conference] was done after my meeting with Amir Muqam. Then they said that the issue was based on the NA-1 party ticket and then they said that the dispute was in connection with fundraising. At least they should stick to one allegation," she said.

Talking about the proposed jirga, she said that she know the culture of jirgas very well as she herself had led a few. "A handful of people will assemble there under their own agenda.Why would I appear before any meeting of such a group of people?"

She claimed that a larger tribal jirga had recently approached her and expressed their desire to summon the members of the jirga called by the PTI leader, but she had asked the tribal leaders to be patient as she was not willing to take things so far.

Reiterating a statement she made earlier, Gulalai said that she will forgive Imran Khan "if he accepts his mistake" and apologises for sending her unsolicited text messages.

"If Imran Khan accepts that he has done it and seeks forgiveness from God, the nation and its women, I will forgive him," Gulalai said, adding that it would not matter even if he apologised in private.

Earlier, Malik Jalal Khan Wazir, a member of grand tribal jirga from North Waziristan Agency to which Gulalai belongs, asked her to produce relevant evidence about the allegations she has levelled against Khan.

Tribesmen warned that they will besiege the house of Gulalai."Gulalai neither belonged to Waziristan nor was she a tribal woman, because whatever she had done during last four days was against the norms of tribal people," the Dawn quoted Wazir, as saying."We cannot expect a tribal woman to adopt such lifestyle. The woman is unaware of the South and North Waziristan Agencies because she is not a resident of the tribal region," Wazir claimed.

The tribal elder asked Gulalai to present her Blackberry to any relevant forum to clear her position.

He said her allegations against Imran had earned her disrespect in the hearts of people.

He asserted that according to their tribal tradition,daughters are not allowed to show up before media or irrelevant people.

But, he said Shamsul Qayyum, the father of Gulalai, used her for the sake of money only.

Jalal Wazir demanded for an inquiry against Qayyum for bringing a bad name to the tribal people for his own personal interests.

"The tribal people want to know as to how much money Gulalai has taken for levelling such allegations," he demanded.

Wazir claimed that Gulalai`s statement about Imran Khan sending her inappropriate messages on her mobile had not only insulted the Pakhtuns but also disgraced a large number of women workers affiliated with PTI.
London: The dreaded Islamic State terror group is luring foreign women recruits with a false sense of "empowerment", according to a new report by a UK think tank.

The report compiled by the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies (RUSI) said the reasons that drove hundreds of women to journey from Europe to ISIS territories were "complex".

"We talked to women who hadn't been radicalised but could understand why some of these girls might have gone to Syria and Iraq so they could live as 'good Muslims'," said Emily Winterbotham, the report's co-author.

She said the use of the term "jihadi bride" to describe all female ISIS members was not truly representative.

"ISIS has been successful at selling that image to women. It's not just about the naive vulnerable jihadi bride, it's women saying: 'This is in line with my religion, my political beliefs, the fact I want to live how I want'," Winterbotham told 'The Independent'.

Possible draws were found to include "a rejection of Western feminism, online contact with recruiters who offer marriage and adventure, peer or family influence, adherence to ISIS ideology, naivety and romantic optimism, and the chance to be part of something new, exciting and illicit", she said.

The author said the concept of "empowerment" differed from what would be shared by most non-Muslim Western women, being seen through a dominantly religious lens.

"Women are saying 'this is empowering for me' but the irony is that's not going to happen once they get there," Winterbotham said.

"After speaking to men and women who knew female ISIS supporters or worked in de-radicalisation programmes, they found that some women saw the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) as a source of 'empowerment' despite its subjugation of women, violent enforcement of its interpretation of Sharia law," she said.

Winterbotham, a senior research fellow at RUSI, and co- author Elizabeth Pearson, a RUSI associate fellow and a PhD candidate in war studies at King's College London, conducted their research in the UK, Canada, France, Germany and the Netherlands.

The number of foreign women living in the so-called Islamic State is uncertain. A 2014 report estimated that 18 per cent all European ISIS members were female and the total number is now believed to be more than 550.
Moscow: Concerned over the ceasefire violations in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Sunday discussed Syrian de-escalation zones with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu on the sidelines of ASEAN forum in Manila.

"The ministers substantively discussed the situation in Syria, including within the context of implementing the memorandum on creation of de-escalation zones in the Syrian Arab Republic, strengthening the ceasefire regime in the country and promoting the establishment of the political settlement's process," the ministry said in a statement.

Russia's representatives in the Russian-Turkish commission on the Syrian truce have registered seven violations of the ceasefire regime during the past 24 hours, while Turkey informed about six cases, Russia Today quoted the Russian Defense Ministry statement.

According to the ministry, most cases of in-selective firing from small arms were registered in the areas controlled by Daesh and al-Nusra Front terrorist groups.

Negotiations on joining the ceasefire regime continued with units of armed opposition in the provinces of Aleppo, Damascus, Homs, Hama, Idlib and Quneitra, the Russian ministry said.

Meanwhile, four ceasefire agreements have been signed with representatives of Khmira, Musel-Hele, Tumin and Abu-Darda inhabited areas of the province of Hama. within 24 hours.

The memorandum on the establishment of four de-escalation zones in Syria was signed in Astana in May, with Russia, Iran and Turkey acting as the guarantors of the ceasefire regime.
Kabul: An Afghan official says that at least 30 people including women and children have been killed by Taliban fighters in northern Sari Pul province.

Zahir Wahdat, the provincial governor for Sari Pul, said today that the victims are mostly civilians and some local security forces.

The shootings took place yesterday after the Taliban seized control of the strategic Mirzawalang area in Sayad district.

Wahdat says Afghan forces retreated form the area after they couldn't gain ground or air support from the central government.

Earlier reports indicated that over a dozen people had been killed by the Taliban.

Qari Yusouf Ahamdi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attack, but not the civilian deaths.

Ten Taliban fighters were also killed, according to Zabi Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor.
The academic enterprise is supposed to be about truth. Those who are entrusted to teach are expected to convey knowledge to their students, not their opinions. And when academics write books, they should do so to deepen knowledge in their fields, never to mislead readers.Sometimes, however, academics allow their zeal to convert students or the public to their beliefs to get the better of them. They go from seeking truth to twisting it; writing books not to illuminate, but to inflame.The most infamous case of that occurred in 2000, when Emory University history professor Michael Bellesiles published a book, Arming America, that purported to show that our "gun culture" was of fairly recent origin, as shown by the "fact" that guns had actually been quite rare in early America. The book was highly acclaimed because it confirmed the anti-Second Amendment bias of many intellectuals.Lurking in its pages, however, was a huge academic fraud that would bring it down, along with Bellesiles' career. His evidence was mostly fabricated and once skeptics began looking into the book closely, the more dishonesty they found. The publisher, Knopf, eventually withdrew the book and Bellesiles resigned from Emory's faculty after a committee found that his responses to questions were evasive. (For a full account, this Yale Law Journal article by Professor James Lindgren is excellent.)Arming America comes to mind because two recent books by academics similarly twist truth in order to advance their beliefs and confirm the biases of "progressive" readers. Those books are Economism by University of Connecticut law professor James Kwak and Democracy in Chains by Duke University history professor Nancy MacLean.Both Kwak and MacLean want readers to believe that the Right-i.e., conservatives, libertarians, constitutionalists, and others who believe that government does more harm than good and should be downsized-is a movement driven by bad motives. The thrust of their books is to reassure leftist readers that conservative arguments against democratic, "progressive" policies to redistribute income, raise wages, and in other ways transform society are merely a mask for the greed and lust for power that animate people on the Right.That genre of writing-trying to win an intellectual argument by disparaging your opponents-is deplorable and belongs in the realm of everyday political writing and commentary. It does not belong in the academic world, where scholars should work on the plane of reason and evidence. And that's especially true given the overheated rhetoric that is turning America into a nation of warring tribes. In a time when overwrought people believe it's justifiable to try to kill people in the "bad" tribe, we do not need professors writing books that say, "Those people are evil and I've just proved it." Economism was published in January and has received fairly little attention, although professor Donald Boudreaux wrote an article for the Martin Center that was based on an essay Professor Kwak wrote that was drawn from his book. Boudreaux took issue with Kwak's contention that students are misled by the concepts taught in most Econ 101 classes. Kwak argues that basic supply and demand analysis is too simple for the real world; Boudreaux argues otherwise.If Economism were just an extension of his "Econ 101 is misleading" argument, Kwak's book would be just another mistaken academic work. But the core of the book is an attack on the motives of the people who employ "economism" (which is to say, using concepts from basic economics to argue against many interventionist policies), portraying them as motivated purely by greed. Suppose that someone opposes the minimum wage on the grounds that it will lead to job losses among low-skilled workers. His real concern, says Kwak, is keeping down labor costs for business, not the welfare of the people who lose employment or never find legitimate work in the first place.Now, Kwak acknowledges that some well known economists have argued against the sorts of interventionist policies he wants in order to battle inequality, but he never attempts to directly refute Mises, Hayek, Friedman, and others. Instead he tries a back-door pseudo-rebuttal by claiming that the forces of the Right, upset that the New Deal's golden age of fairness was not giving them all they wanted, misappropriated their theoretical ideas for bad ends.The striking thing about this line of argument is the author's lack of charity towards his opponents. Free market advocates who rely on "economism" are, in Kwak's account, just tools of the super-rich. That notion will play very well with leftist readers, but it's far from the truth. Is the author not aware that those same people use the same kinds of arguments against policies that help the super-rich (some of them, anyway) and harm the poor-agricultural price supports, for example? Perhaps he is, but admitting that would undercut his besmirching of Americans who peddle "economism."While Kwak says that he isn't taking sides but merely wants to see deeper, more "nuanced" policy debate, that's hard to take seriously. No Right-wing reader is going to become less sympathetic to "economism" after Kwak gets done claiming that it's just a tool of a cabal of the One Percenters. Similarly, no leftist reader is going to conclude,But Kwak's book is a model of careful, charitable scholarship compared with Nancy MacLean's Democracy in Chains , published last month by Viking. Like Economism, it purports to tell the story of the rise of a plutocratic, anti-democracy movement that latched on to some scholarly work as cover for its terrible goals. But where Kwak just lobs some low-caliber shells at Hayek, Friedman, et al., MacLean pounds away with heavy artillery at 1986 Nobel Prize winner James Buchanan. MacLean depicts Buchanan as a racist (or at least sympathetic to segregation) whose work in economics (he pioneered the field now called public choice) was grabbed by the same dark, reactionary conservative forces that pushed "economism" to advance their goal of seizing control of America.Ever since its publication, Democracy in Chains has been taking criticism from people who knew Buchanan, understand his work, and know that MacLean has smeared the man and misrepresented his thinking.The most significant take-down of the book was written by one of MacLean's colleagues at Duke, professor Michael Munger, a scholar who has spent many years studying public choice theory. He calls the book "speculative historical fiction" and writes with appropriate sarcasm,In doing so, Munger observes, MacLean tramples all over the fundamental principle of scholarly charity-that you shouldMacLean, in her eagerness to depict Buchanan as a nasty reactionary, hunts desperately for phrases she can interpret as his support for segregation and rule by the plutocracy.Had she asked anyone who knew Buchanan if her speculations held water, she'd have heard that they did not. But MacLean wasn't going to let the truth about Buchanan get in the way of a salacious story that would sell tons of books.Another scholar who has blown the whistle on this book is Phillip Magness of George Mason University. He writes here that MacLean misuses evidenceMagness also shows that MacLean's claim that John C. Calhoun was the "intellectual lodestar" of Buchanan and subsequent public choice economists is complete bunk. For one thing, Calhoun's name never appears in any of Buchanan's work (some 19 volumes).Many others have voiced their criticism of MacLean for having written a terribly misleading hit piece, including David Henderson Art Carden , and David Gordon In fact, there has been so much criticism that MacLean feels the need to ask supporters to come to her defense. As we read in this July 12 Inside Higher Ed story, MacLean is said to have written,So rather than admit she has written some indefensible things in her book, MacLean calls on loyal members of her "progressive" tribe to launch a counterattack to save her book and reputation. That's not the way academics should operate. When their work is challenged, they should squarely face each challenge, not evade it with ad hominem attacks on the motives, operation, or funding of the critics.Professor Steve Horwitz nails the truth here , writing,There is no law to prevent academics from writing misleading books that merely confirm the biases of politically passionate people. When they do so, however, they erode public confidence in our education system. That's why it falls to college leaders to tell faculty members that their scholarship is expected to advance truth, not distort it.
In regards to the Russia Election Tampering matter: Is President Trump being treated fairly by core Democrats and the Mainstream Media? Yes, the new president is guilty until proven innocent. No, President Trump's treatment is dictated by the usual Democrat double standard. Don't care; there are more important issues facing America. 103 total vote(s) What's your Opinion?



Core Democrats and the Democrat Media, all suffering tragically from TDS (Trump Derangement Syndrome), have painted themselves into an ideological and intellectual corner due to their Russia hysteria, and I'm not sure how they will extricate themselves from it. As core Democrats throw any semblance of good sense out the window of wisdom, they are hurtling undeterred to the point of intellectual-no-return, where no Right thinking patriot will ever take them seriously.These core Democrats, who for the first time in decades have considered a Russia menace , have pinned all their homes and dreams on that of one Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller, praying that he will find the smoking gun to discover the evidence to incriminate Donald Trump, his election team and administration. The FBI investigation, with the NSA's help in illegally unmasking hundreds of American citizens who they eavesdropped on, is over a year old, and still no evidence, no smoking gun. Special Prosecutor Mueller will be pressed to stick to a very tight investigation, or he will be fired and disgraced in the bargain for malfeasance of ambition. I don't know if core Democrats and their Democrat Media actually understand these dynamics, as the Mueller / Jim Comey connection, with the partisan Democrat legal staff that Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller assembled continues to unfold.If they can't find Russia collusion, and fast, this investigation will end, whether Mueller has wrapped it up or not. The American people will know when the Mueller Investigation ends, when the Mueller Witch Hunt begins, and I don't think they will stand for it. Already the Trump Communications Department and Trump himself are masterfully pushing back against the possibility of a core Democrat / "Fake News" conspiracy to forge the possibility of that grand hypocrisy. For a better explanation of this building truth, watch how Sarah Huckabee Sanders (fe) manhandles the unprincipled Democrat Media in the White House Press Room.Remember, it is the partisan, extra-unprincipled Democrat Media that propped up the Obama Administration by not investigating their multiple real scandals, while pining for the days when they could finally engage in real "investigative journalism", if only a Republican could be elected, so they would have their proper muse to do so. Without a doubt, President Donald J. Trump is that perfect muse, that original bad guy , where everything is "cut and dried", no depth of complex thought, and, in their sophistic minds, operating in a space where these one-note-saints-in-Democrats'-clothing can rush to save Liberal America ... irrespective of the means to obtain that end The real truth of this sorry matter of Fake Journalists pushing Fake News, as if it is all they have to sell, is that the Democrats, including L. Hillary Clinton , the former Obama Administration and the Democrat Media, have gone so far, so deep in destroying this new President that REAL Republicans, and other principled Americans are now clamouring to initiate the long overdue investigations of the scandal ridden Obama Administration. In fact, now the Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a principled man, has properly set up his shop, be watchful that there will be real investigations into matters left long unattended to by corrupt Attorney Generals Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch regarding the unprincipled activities of Hussein Obama, his administration.At some point, the Rule of Law will be re-instated in America, and I am not sure if the unprincipled Democrat Party, and their Democrat Media will survive it. Think about it this way: When dimwitted, corrupt Maxine Waters, who the truest Snowflakes affectionately know as Auntie Maxine , becomes one of the messengers of your tired, intellectually incurious political party, the future will never be bright, and the pale words of a dying Democrat Media will never again rise to a prominent position to ever again cast such an illuminating light upon their beloved ideological sanctum. What should happen if the Liberals / Socialists continue to control the Democrat Party, and, therefore, cannot extricate themselves from their current intellectual dead zone, will be certain political death; the death of the Democrat party , the death of a dysfunctional ideal.
House gets stuck on rules-review measure; General Assembly will return in two weeks



CJ file photo by Kari Travis

The General Assembly tried but failed Thursday to clean up its act.The House did not follow the Senate's lead, and vote on House Bill 162 , an act to clamp down on an ever-growing stack of agency regulations. Instead, the General Assembly will return Aug. 18.H.B. 162 would amend administrative laws to make it easier for the state Rules Review Commission to scrap the current review process. Too often outdated, ineffective, and forgotten regulations remain in place.The measure passed 28-10 in the Senate, but went nowhere in the House. Rep. Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, objected to putting the conference report on Thursday's calendar for action. She withdrew her objection after House Speaker Tim Moore, D-Cleveland, advised her that the House would have to return Friday to debate the bill.Moore put the House recess until 8:15 p.m., but eventually sent the bill to the Rules Committee.The General Assembly will reconvene in two weeks, rather than Sept. 6 as previously scheduled.When lawmakers return, they will deal with court-ordered legislative redistricting, revising the state's judicial and district attorney divisions, and redrawing districts for city, county, and other political subdivisions. Conference reports, and bills relating to election laws also could be considered.Support for the original version of H.B. 162 was strong. The House passed it 113-2, but the Senate amended it, and a conference committee crafted a compromise.Garth Dunklin, chairman of the Rules Review Commission, has advocated reforms that were included in the bill.He told Carolina Journal in a December interview that he supported streamlining the three ways agency regulations were handled. Too many agencies were skirting legislation requiring them to determine whether their rules were still necessary.The compromise H.B. 162 mandates agencies subject to Rules Review Commission oversight to conduct a review at least once every 10 years to determine whether a rule is necessary or unnecessary.Public comment must be taken, the Rules Review Commission would evaluate the agency recommendation, and a commission report would go to a joint legislative oversight committee for final approval.The bill eliminates an option for agencies to avoid public comment and review by simply saying a regulation is necessary, thus avoiding public comment and review about its impact on those it affects.Dunklin told CJ. ThatJon Sanders, director of regulatory studies at the John Locke Foundation, supports reforming the state's rules review process, including a sunset provision.and should be re-examined periodically to determine if they are obsolete, or not working as intended, Sanders wrote in one report.According to a study by Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University, in 2015 state regulations cost North Carolina's economy as much as $25.5 billion.
Universities cannot shield students from any idea, no matter how offensive.

Universities cannot take official stances on public policy issues.

Universities cannot block a speaker from coming to campus.

Protesters cannot use violence or rowdy behavior to disrupt an event and cannot infringe upon the rights of others.

Students who violate rules of expressive speech and conduct will receive disciplinary action from the university.

Prevents academic centers from filing complaints, motions, lawsuits, or any other legal pleading.

Blocks academic centers from serving as legal counsel - directly or indirectly.

Excludes law school clinics - approved by the American Bar Association - from the policy's jurisdiction.

This year, lawmakers passed a controversial law protecting campus speech. Now it's up to the UNC Board of Governors to move things forward.On July 31, House Bill 527 , Restore/Preserve Campus Free Speech, became state law without Gov. Roy Cooper's signature.North Carolina is one of five states to pass such legislation . Colorado, Tennessee, Utah, and Virginia have similar laws.California, Illinois, Michigan, Texas, and Wisconsin are also considering free speech legislation.H.B. 527 boosts protections for the First Amendment, directing the UNC Board of Governors to develop a systemwide speech policy. The board will form a Committee on Free Expression to enforce the policy.The law isn't popular among some Democratic lawmakers who believe it will chill speech - not protect it.Earlier this year, UNC President Margaret Spellings told Carolina Journal speech protections already were in place across the system. At the time, UNC was concerned about a part of the bill that created a cause of action for lawsuits. That provision was later removed.Free speech protections are never a bad thing, said board member Rob Bryan, a former representative in the North Carolina House.he told CJ.Bryan is a UNC Chapel Hill alumnus. He began his education as a Democrat and graduated a conservative - unusual by any standard, he said.UNC should be careful to present all views, he said.Read more on the subject here On Aug. 1, a Board of Governor's education policy committee voted to block the Center for Civil Rights from filing some lawsuits . The proposal will go before the full board in September.Board member Steve Long introduced the policy in March. It didn't go over well with CCR supporters. Dozens of students, faculty, and administrators turned out at a public hearing in May.Tuesday's discussion got heated, to say the least.CCR Executive Director Ted Shaw called Long a "moving assassin."Long, a conservative, wants to close the center because of its liberal leanings, Shaw said.That's just not true, Long told CJ.he said.The litigation ban has always been about preventing an academic center from suing the government, Long added.he said.The center is essential to UNC's mission, center staffers and supporters say.If the board passes the proposal, the university name will be tarnished among national peers, said UNC Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol Folt.Folt wrote in a letter to the board.The CCR could be turned into a legal clinic, but that would take a lot of time and money, she added.she said, outlining alternatives for the center.UNC has plenty of clinics in place - many of which teach civil rights law, Long said.Anna Nelson, chair of the education policy committee, said the board shouldn't be involved in the first place.she said.Read more on the subject here
Kathy Manos Penn

We don't need an excuse to visit the mountains, especially when the summer heat arrives in Hotlanta, but the excuse for this trip was a book signing in Highlands. We gathered up some friends and headed to Otto, North Carolina to stay in my sister-in-law's cabin.Once everyone arrived, we sat on the porch with wine and snacks as a thunderstorm raged overhead. When the rain let up, we drove to Franklin to eat at Root and Barrel. Several of us had eaten there on a girls trip last year. Though the name had changed since our first visit, the menu was the same and the food just as good.Day two, we girls went back to Franklin to browse the shops while the boys visited the local hardware store and toured the mountain roads. We never know which shop will catch our attention. This time, it was the kitchen shop where I bought my first micro planer. Next was a stop at Books Unlimited to say hi to Suzanne, the owner, since she's been kind enough to carry my book.From there, we wandered into the Art Room. As one of my friends is an artist, we usually do find at least one gallery to explore. We spent time with a local artist as she showed us a cat portrait she was painting. By then, it was time for lunch, and our new artist friend recommended Rockin Rollie Pollies.We weren't starving but wanted a little something to tide us over 'til dinner. The three of us all wanted to split the grilled pimento cheese sandwich. Overhearing our dilemma, the waitress suggested we order a sandwich and a half. Problem solved. It was a delicious choice.Dinner that night was at the cabin. I'd made Bolognese sauce and brought the ingredients for a Greek salad, and another couple had made bread and butter to bring the mountains. Yes, you read right, they made butter. Is your mouth watering yet? I tried out my new micro planer on the asiago cheese I'd brought, and we enjoyed a Mediterranean feast.Day three, we headed to Highlands for my book signing. While the gang investigated other shops, Banjo and I spent several hours at The Molly Grace, the gift shop that carries my book. Banjo's book, "Lord Banjo the Royal Pooch" comes out soon, so he worked on perfecting the royal act of rolling over for belly rubs as I signed books and shopped. I could easily have come home with bags and bags of treasures but bought only a purple shirt made by Trust Your Journey, a company founded by two women with the simple message: "Wherever life takes you--Trust your Journey." That's just one of the many unique items you can find.Meanwhile, my friends visited the hardware store-a recurring theme-the Highland Hiker, Highlands Mountain Paws, and a few other shops. One friend had been on an unsuccessful quest for stoneground grits to take back to her husband. Stephanie, the owner of The Molly Grace, called the Dusty Rhodes Superette to see whether they had them, and sure enough, they did. That was our last stop on the way out of town.We all had a grand time and agreed we needed to schedule a return visit. Lord Banjo already has plans for a book signing at The Molly Grace on the day of the Highlands Christmas Parade, so hopefully, that date will work for all of us-if we can wait that long.Look for Kathy's new bookdue out in late August and find her collection of columns,on Amazon . Contact her at
BERLIN (Reuters) - German techno band Scooter faces significant legal consequences for performing at a festival in the Crimea region of Ukraine that was annexed by Russia in 2014, the Ukrainian ambassador to Germany said an interview published Saturday. Andrij Melnyk, Ukraine's envoy to Germany, told the Funke Mediengruppe newspaper chain that the band's decision to enter the Crimea region "illegally" on Thursday was "not only a scandal, but also a crime with serious legal consequences." Melnyk said Ukrainian prosecutors had already begun legal proceedings against the band. "This isn't some minor infraction, but a serious crime that will be punished," he told the newspaper group. The band was due to appear at the ZBFest rock festival in Balaklava on Friday. Scooter front man H.P. Baxxter told German media last month the band was going to Crimea to perform music, not engage in politics. No comment was immediately available from the band. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by James Dalgleish)
Get the latest on this story: Highway 93 open despite Verdant Creek wildfire moving toward roadway

As the massive Verdant Creek wildfire continues to rage out of control in British Columbia near the Alberta border, officials have closed Highway 93 South again due to smoke.

The key route through the Rocky Mountains was closed temporarily earlier this week after visibility became dangerously reduced by smoke from the wildfire.

It was closed again at 3 p.m. MT Friday, just as many Albertans are heading to B.C. for the long weekend.

Earlier in the day, Parks Canada incident commander Jane Park warned a closure could happen for safety reasons and that the best time to use Highway 93 South during the long weekend would be between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. MT on Friday.

The highway was still affected by wildfire, smoke and the firefighting activities.

An update on the closure isn't expected until later in the weekend.

Drivers should check www.DriveBC.ca and www.alberta511.ca for temporary closures, alternate routes and the most up-to-date information, Parks Canada says.

The 11,000-hectare fire has been burning since July 15 in Kootenay National Park and Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park.

Parks Canada provides update on fire

Hot, dry and windy conditions have fuelled the fire's growth while extremely steep terrain has hampered efforts to contain it, Park said.

"It is not unusual for a wildfire to continue burning under these circumstances."

The fire is still on the West side of the Continental Divide, but with the flames within about two kilometres of Sunshine Village on the Alberta side, officials ordered the resort to close on Monday for the second time in as many weeks.

Fire crews are now using the area as a command centre. There's no firm timeline for the resort to reopen, Park said.

She says the fire hasn't moved any closer to Sunshine since the closure, and cooler temperatures on the eastern side of the divide made it possible to get crews on the ground and for helicopters to attack the fire's edge directly this week.

Story continues

"The visibility is quite good, which means we can get the crews in and out quite quickly," she said.

The fire has grown, however, on its southern edge, bringing heavy smoke at times to the Vermilion Valley and the Highway 93 corridor between Vermilion Crossing and Radium Hot Springs.

Several areas in Kootenay National Park and Banff National Park are closed, including:

- Area northwest of the Honeymoon Pass Trail including the Hawk Creek Trail and Kootenay Park Lodge

- Ball Pass area from junction of Whistling Pass

- Sunshine Village and Sunshine Village Road

- All trails in the Egypt Lake area, including Healy Pass, Citadel Pass and Sunshine Meadows

- Brewster Creek area drainage

- Backcountry campgrounds Re16, E13, E5, Su8 and BW10

- In Banff National Park, the area to Ball Pass from the junction of Whistling Valley Trail

On Saturday, the south portion of the Rockwall Trail will be closed from Floe Lake trailhead on Highway 93 South to Tumbling Pass, including Floe Lake and Numa Creek backcountry campgrounds.

A fire ban remains in effect in Banff, Yoho and Kootenay national parks because of the elevated fire danger.

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No one was injured when two airplanes clipped wings at Toronto's Pearson International Airport on Saturday night, according to the Greater Toronto Airports Authority.

Air Canada Flight AC1713 made contact with a LOT Polish Airlines plane, LOT046, at the gate of Terminal 1 at about 10:18 p.m., Natalie Moncur, spokesperson for the GTAA, said Sunday.

Peter Fitzpatrick, spokesperson for Air Canada, said in an email there were 286 passengers on board the Air Canada flight at the time of the collision.

The inbound Air Canada Rouge plane, a Boeing 767-300, had arrived from Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic and was parking when it collided with the LOT aircraft, he said.

"The matter is under investigation," he said on Sunday.

LOT says entire wing must be inspected

In an email on Sunday, LOT Polish Airlines said its Boeing 787 Dreamliner was at the gate with passengers boarding the aircraft when its winglet was hit by the winglet of the Air Canada Rouge 767 while it was trying to park in a neighbouring bay.

It said no passengers on board its aircraft were affected or injured.

The damaged winglet will have to be replaced and the entire wing will have to be inspected, it said. The flight from Toronto to Warsaw was cancelled. Passengers on the plane were accommodated in a hotel and rebooked to other flights, it said.

"We are investigating this incident with airport authorities and our colleagues from Air Canada," it said.

TSB is gathering information

Chris Krepski, spokesperson for the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, based in Gatineau, Que., said damage to the wings of both aircrafts was extensive.

The board was notified about the collision involving the two airplanes and is gathering information, but has not sent an investigator to the airport, he said. A formal TSB investigation has not yet been launched.

"Based on the information we received, it was the Air Canada aircraft that contacted the wing of the LOT Polish Airlines aircraft while taxiing to the gate. The LOT aircraft at the time was parked and preparing for departure," he said.

Story continues

"We have been notified and we are following up with both operators as well as Greater Toronto Airports Authority, but we are not deploying to the airport right now. We are going to assess what our next steps will be."

Moncur said the collision occurred on what is known as the "apron" in the gate area, where the planes park to allow passengers to board and disembark.

She said the GTAA's Fire and Emergency Services, Peel Regional Police, Mississauga Fire and Toronto Paramedic Services all responded to the collision.

"Any time an incident occurs, we, of course, follow protocol, and that includes calling the Transportation Safety Board, which is what happened last night," Moncur said.

LOT flight cancelled, passengers sent out of town

Prem Sternik, a Winnipeg resident, says his aunt, Wiesia Brzostek, was on the LOT aircraft when its wing was clipped. The plane was in the process of preboarding when it was hit.

The aircraft was evacuated after the accident, he said.

Sternik said he was very concerned and frustrated because his aunt, who came to Canada from Poland to visit his family for a month, does not speak English and uses a wheelchair. She was preparing to go from Toronto to Warsaw to return home after taking a flight from Winnipeg.

He said more than 60 passengers were bused to Walper Hotel in Kitchener, Ont., and told there was little hotel space in Toronto this weekend. According to Sternik, they were not given vouchers for the hotel or for food.

"We don't know what is going on. All information has been secondhand. We are getting bits and pieces of information right now. There should be an emergency contact. It's puzzling to me," he said in a telephone interview from Winnipeg.

"It's hard to sit on pins and needles on the long weekend."

Family trying to locate luggage

Sternik said he believes his aunt has been rebooked on a flight that is supposed to leave tonight at 10:05 p.m. ET.

"It is extremely shocking that Air Canada and LOT Airlines have not contacted our family [about] this situation up to now, as to what has happened and where our aunt is at this moment," he said. "We are extremely surprised to find all information through the help of other passengers that spoke Polish and could help my aunt."

LOT did not comment on the claims that it has not provided information or vouchers for the passengers who were displaced by the accident.
At the 2017 IPCPR Trade Show, Altadis U.S.A. unveiled a second installment to its limited edition H. Upmann Banker Ingot line, the H. Upmann Banker Ingot Rose.

The Ingot line is an offshoot of the H. Upmann Banker , a line that pays homage to brand founder Herman Upmann. Upmann was a German banker who in 1844 went to Havana Cuba and invested in a cigar factory  which became the H. Upmann brand. The first installment of the Ingot, the H.Upmann Banker Private Holding was released last year. The Ingot kept to the roots of banking as the cigars were packaged in gold brick packaging and had gold banding. The Ingot Private Holding was a one-time limited edition box-pressed Toro.

The new installment, the H. Upmann Banker Ingot Rose, brings an all-new blend consisting of an aged Cameroon wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and fillers from Nicaragua, Peru, and the Dominican Republic. The Ingot Rose is being made in one size  a 6 3/4 x 48 Churchill. It is available in 12-count boxes with a total of 5,000 boxes (60,000 cigars) produced. The Ingot Rose will feature rose-colored brick packaging and rose-colored bands.

Pricing is set at $12.00 per cigar. The cigar is slated for widespread distribution in September.

At a glance, here is a look at the H. Upmann Banker Ingot Rose:

Blend Profile

Wrapper: Cameroon

Binder: Nicaraguan

Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan, Peruvian

Country of Origin: Dominican Republic (Tabacalera Garcia)

Vitolas Available

Churchill: 6 3/4 x 48
Bali's Kerobokan prison

One of the latest drug convicts is a man from West Kalimantan who grew cannabis to ease the pains of his wife, who suffered from a rare spinal disease. Yenni Riawati eventually died, and her husband Fidelis Arie Sudewarto was sentenced Wednesday to eight months in jail for violating the Narcotics Law . The prosecutor had demanded five months in jail and a fine of Rp 800 million, but the judges at the Sanggau District Court ordered Fidelis to pay Rp 1 billion apart from imprisonment.





Like in most countries, marijuana is illegal here even for medicinal use; Australia just legalized cannabis for medication in February for chronically sick and severely ill people. Fidelis motive of reducing his wifes pain with cannabis oil was the basis of the lighter sentence demanded by prosecutors.





What is even more worrying about the Fidelis case, beyond the lack of options for those living with unbearable pain, is the attitude of law enforcers, who may increasingly march lockstep in the war on drugs under President Joko Jokowi Widodo. The chiefs of the police and the narcotics agency have expressed support for Jokowis cry to shoot drug pushers at sight if necessary, regardless, it seems, of whether they are suspects who should be first arrested and tried in court.





Despite international outcry over the execution of drug convicts, Jokowi and his trigger-happy aides have apparently become even more convinced of harsh drug policies following the controversial measures of President Rodrigo Duterte . The Philippine leader has defended himself against allegations of scores of extrajudicial killings of drug suspects. Indonesian Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian has told police officers not to hesitate to shoot drug dealers who resist arrest.





That judges gave Fidelis a harsher sentence than prosecutors had demanded is the latest sign of law enforcers enthusiastically taking up Jokowis tough policies.





The enthusiasm is unlikely to wane, despite the states own warnings of caution. Last week, the Indonesian Ombudsman confirmed allegations of wrong decisions concerning the execution of drug convicts . The Ombudsman concluded maladministration in last years execution of Nigerian Humphrey Jefferson Ejike Eleweke, as he was still seeking presidential clemency.





Jokowi often calls the state of drug abuse an emergency, winning wide support from people deeply nervous over the exposure of the young to drug addiction. This includes reports of sinister marketing methods of drug pushers in the form of colorful candy.









Indonesians generally remain unconvinced by evidence in several countries where the death penalty has not deterred crime; hence the support for both the death sentence and swift justice for alleged drug abusers.





Authorities cite porous borders and poor law enforcement as factors encouraging drug trafficking. However, killing the wrong people through legal shortcuts is both an ineffective and reckless way to address drug crime, compared to eradicating corruption in the judiciary and other efforts to prevent drug abuse.

Facing 'narcotics emergency', Indonesia ramps up war on drugs

Birds of a feather: Presidente Rodrigo Duterte (left) and President Joko Widodo

Jakarta: Within days of Indonesian President Joko Widodo ordering police to shoot drug dealers who resist arrest, the government last week announced a radical shake-up of the nation's narcotics-riddled prisons.





Amid revelations that prisoners continue to operate drug syndicates behind bars, the Ministry of Law and Human Rights has come up with an ambitious plan to consolidate drug felons in four jails across the nation.





According to Corrections data the level of drug activity behind bars in Indonesia is extraordinary: of the nation's 225,000 prisoners there are 54,000 dealers and 32,000 users.





The head of the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) Budi Waseso - who advocates imprisoning drug offenders on a remote island guarded by crocodiles - goes so far as to say 50 per cent of drug circulation is controlled from prisons.





facing a narcotics "emergency", with the BNN pointing to five million drug users, 27 per cent of whom are "active users".





The last time Jokowi invoked this war rhetoric was in 2015, when he used a national drugs emergency to justify the executions of drug felons including Australians Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan.





The latest crackdown has alarmed human rights activists who point to "sinister echoes" of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's "war on drugs", which has seen more than 7000 drug dealers and users killed.





"From practice in the field, we see that when we shoot at drug dealers they go away," the National Police Chief, General Tito Karnavian was quoted saying in The Jakarta Post, in an apparent reference to the Philippines.





General Tito vowed police would be particularly firm on foreign drug traffickers, whom Indonesians largely blame for the scourge of drugs.





Shortly after Jokowi's edict, police showered an alleged crystal methamphetamine dealer, who they said resisted arrest, with seven bullets in Pekanbaru on the island of Sumatra on July 29.





However some question whether the tough stance on drugs is more about political populism than a spiralling drug emergency.





"According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, general population prevalence rates of most illegal and illicit drugs in Indonesia largely remained stable since the early 2000s," Claudia Stoicescu, a doctoral researcher at University of Oxford's Centre for Evidence Based Intervention, writes in Al Jazeera.





"Far from constituting an outlier, Indonesia's annual rates of drug consumption are similar to rates in other South-East Asian countries such as Vietnam and Myanmar and much lower than rates in the United States and much of Europe."





The Indonesian Drug Users Network (PKNI), an NGO established to fight the stigma and discrimination faced by drug users, believes Jokowi's order to shoot drug dealers who resisted arrest was made in haste.





His comments - in a speech to a political party meeting - came after four Taiwanese men were arrested and another shot dead for allegedly distributing one tonne of crystal meth in Jakarta.





"Shooting at drug dealers is a violation of human rights," PKNI project manager Arif Iryawan told Fairfax Media.





"Besides, by shooting them to death the police cannot uncover their network properly. So I think killing them should be the last resort."





But GERAM - the People's Movement Against Drugs - said when the police shot dead drug dealers in the 90s the business was drastically reduced.





"Whenever the government wants to uphold the law human rights stand in the way," GERAM founder Sofyan Ali told Fairfax Media.





He said Jokowi was a good president, who unlike previous presidents, "knows what he does because he goes down to the field".





"Other countries like the Philippines or the US take action whenever they see a situation that threatens their people. They forget human rights because the situation is causing a real problem," Sofyan said.





"But it doesn't happen here. We fight against our own people on human rights so we may achieve nothing."





Meanwhile the plan to contain drug offenders in four prisons in West Java, North Sumatra, Central Java and Central Kalimantan was hatched after a prisoner named Aseng on Nusakambangan - Indonesia's equivalent of Alcatraz - was linked to 1.2 million ecstasy pills seized by police.





The four jails would have heightened security, including weapons and x-ray machines. Prison officers, who are often involved in jail-run drug syndicates, would be strictly vetted.





"The biggest problem right now is drug dealers [inside jails] and our officers are overwhelmed," the Security Director from Corrections, Sutrisman, told reporters.





He said the ratio of officers to prisoners was one to 62, when the recommended ratio was one to 20.





"So we must take extraordinary steps by strengthening the officers, by collaborating with BNN [the national narcotics agency] and the police."

 | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com



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Recent killings of children, attacks on law enforcement officers and a rise in crime in New Mexicos largest city have conservative state lawmakers calling for New Mexico to reinstate the death penalty.





State Rep. Monica Youngblood said Friday she will once again push for a bill that would bring back capital punishment for fatal attacks on law enforcement and in the murder of children.





The recent attack on correctional officers by two high-risk inmates and a jump in crime in Albuquerque show that something needs to be done to stop criminals who have nothing to lose who will continue to prey on residents, the Albuquerque Republican said.





I think it would be a deterrent. I mean, look whats going on in Albuquerque, Youngblood said, referring to a jump in crime in that city. This would be a narrow reinstatement focusing on those who kill law enforcement and children.





Two correctional officers were recovering Friday after they were stabbed by two high-risk inmates at a New Mexico prison, authorities said.





One officer was treated and released from a hospital while the other was undergoing treatment for non-life threatening injuries. The suspects in stabbing would have been eligible for the death penalty. Youngblood said such high-risk inmates have been emboldened without it.





New Mexico repealed the death penalty in 2009 before Republican Gov. Susana Martinez took office by replacing provisions for lethal injection with a sentence of life in prison without parole.





Martinez, who supports bringing back the death penalty, has not said if she will include it on the legislative agenda next session.





A similar measure sponsored by Youngblood failed this year.





Democrats say the death penalty is not a deterrent and should not be brought back at a time when other states are no longer using it.





Rep. Gail Chasey, an Albuquerque Democrat, said Democrats are focused on stopping crime before it happens in the first place.





By providing law enforcement with what they need address crime in our city, and addressing root causes, we would not only honor those lost in senseless tragedies but would also increase public safety, Chasey said.





Rep. Antonio Moe Maestas, an Albuquerque Democrat, said there was no evidence that the states with death penalty see fewer attacks on officer or children than those states without it.





Its not good public policy, Maestas said.





A group of Democrats and Republicans are working on a bipartisan package of criminal justice proposals, Maestas said.

 | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com



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As ISIS is defeated and the territory it once occupied is liberated, it is becoming abundantly clear that the effort to defeat this terrorist group will take much more than just removing its malign presence.

Iraqi forces prevailed because of their courage and determination to retake their country from these terrorists, enabled by Coalition training and support, writes Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS Brett McGurk. The military successes, he continues, were paralleled with an unprecedented humanitarian response. In Mosul alone, around 930,000 civilians fled the fighting, and every one of them has received humanitarian help.



Our focus with the Iraqi government and United Nations on immediate stabilization programs has allowed more than 225,000 to return to their homes, and 350,000 children to return to school. Nationwide, over 2 million Iraqi civilians are back in their homes in areas liberated from ISIS, writes Mr. McGurk.

Today, while much of the efforts in Iraq to defeat ISIS has turned toward stabilization, the main battle has moved to Syria, where U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and the Syrian Arab Coalition are making a hard push to liberate Raqqa. Already, over 40 percent of the city has been cleared of ISIS terrorists.

The accelerated military campaign to liberate Raqqa means we must redouble our efforts to identify, coordinate, and fund stabilization projects, writes Special Envoy McGurk.

The United Nations needs $140 million in additional humanitarian assistance for its Raqqa response, and we estimate over $50 million will be required for explosive hazard removal, he writes. The UN also estimates that a further $560 million will be needed for humanitarian needs in Iraq, nationwide.

Last month, the United States responded with a further $119 million for humanitarian assistance and 150 million for stabilization programs for Iraq, and $20 million for the Syria Recovery Trust Fund.

I again congratulate the Government of Iraq, Iraqi Security Forces, Kurdish Peshmerga, and the entire Global Coalition on the liberation of MosulTogether, we have come a very long way  but there is more to do, writes Mr. McGurk.

We call on all our partners to consider where their assistance will have the greatest impact, and donate generously.
Baku, Azerbaijan, August 6

By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:

Gas supply by Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR to Georgia will go beyond the planned volumes this year, Georgias Energy Minister Ilia Eloshvili said in an exclusive interview with Trend.

"I would say that the process of gasification is going constructively. The obligations taken by SOCAR to gasify 250,000 customers will be fully accomplished and even go beyond this figure by the end of the year. The gasification work covered most parts of regions outside Tbilisi," he added.

The minister pointed out that as of now, the majority of the imported gas is being provided from Azerbaijan (90 percent), which has gradually replaced Russian share since 2007 on Georgian gas market preceded by the explosion on the pipelines transporting Russian gas.

In addition, a number of SOCAR affiliated companies are successfully operating in Georgia and it is a fact that a strategic interrelationship developed between two countries in terms of politics and economy is one of the key aspects of the energy security of the country, Eloshvili believes.

"First of all, while referring to Georgia  Azerbaijan cooperation, I will recall and underscore the successful transit projects on board  BTC (Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan), South Caucasus Pipeline and WREP (Baku-Supsa) projects intended for the delivery of Caspian Sea riches westward which are the outcomes of our common efforts, mutual trust and partnership," he said. "Furthermore, I am glad that in the scope of the Southern Gas Corridor the South Caucasus Pipeline Expansion Project, building on the firm basis mentioned above and accommodating additional gas volumes, is practically coming into fruition."

These circumstances and positive developments on track form preconditions for the future cooperation between Azerbaijan and Georgia, said the minister.

"I, personally, expect this cooperation to expand and strengthen even further and believe that a strong and trustful neighbor is the strength of any country and Georgia does appreciate good and friendly links," he added.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn
Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug 6

By Khalid Kazimov  Trend:

Irans First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri has expressed the countys interest in providing India with energy.

At a meeting with visiting Minister of Transport and Shipping of India Nitin Gadkari in Tehran on Sunday, Jahangiri called for expansion of bilateral ties in various sectors voicing Irans readiness to supply energy, Ibena (Iranian banks and economy news agency) reported.

Eshaq Jahangiri further touched upon Irans plans to develop its southeastern port of Chabahar adding that obstacles against the cooperation with India in developing the port have almost been removed.

Saying that Iran has drafted a comprehensive plan for developing the port, he urged Indian firms to participate in oil and gas, petrochemical and steel projects there.

Nitin Gadkari who has arrived in Tehran to represent India at the oath taking ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani earlier said that the government is hopeful that the strategic Chabahar Port will be operational by 2018.
Tehran, Iran, Aug. 2

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

Iran is preparing its southeastern Port Chabahar for container ships to dock, IRNA news agency reported August 2.

The development of docks has made 92 percent progress and there is a 30-hectare terminal area for containers, cranes, and related equipment to be installed.

These developments will enable the port to provide facility for the loading/unloading of 120,000 tons of freight.

So far, $940 million investment has gone into developing the port, aimed at turning it into a trade hub that will connect Iran to India to the south, and provide a route on the North-South Corridor that will stretch to Europe.

Chabahar is a seaport located in southeastern Iran, on the Gulf of Oman. It serves as Iran's only oceanic port, and consists of two separate ports named Shahid Kalantari and Shahid Beheshti, each of which have five berths.

Development of the port was first proposed in 1973 by the last Shah of Iran, though development was delayed by the 1979 Iranian Revolution. The first phase of the port was opened in 1983 during the war between Iran and Iraq, as Iran began shifting seaborne trade east towards the Pakistani border in order to decrease dependency on ports in the Persian Gulf which were vulnerable to attacks by the Iraqi Air Force.

India and Iran first agreed to plans to further develop Shahid Beheshti port in 2003, but did not do so on account of sanctions against Iran. As of 2016, the port had 10 berths.

In May 2016, India and Iran signed a bilateral agreement in which India would refurbish one of the berths at Shahid Beheshti port, and reconstruct a 600 meter long container handling facility at the port.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug 6

By Khalid Kazimov  Trend:

A senior Iranian official has said that the country will continue to extend its support to Syria until the security crisis in the Arab nation is over.

Iran stands by Syria and its support for this country will still continue until the security crisis is over, IRNA quoted Secretary of Irans Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani as saying on Sunday.

He also accused the US and other western countries of taking measures aimed at helping the terrorist groups in the region.

If the supporters of terrorism stop backing the militants, the peace will be established in a short term, Shamkhani said.

He made the remarks at a meeting with the visiting Syrian Prime Minister Imad Khamis in Tehran.

Earlier in August senior Iranian and Russian diplomats hold talks on the latest developments in Syria, emphasizing the need for continued cooperation to facilitate the progress of the ongoing peace process.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug 6

By Khalid Kazimov  Trend:

At least 10 Iranian soldiers were reportedly wounded in an "insider attack" at a military base on capital Tehrans southern outskirts on Sunday, Mehr news agency reported.

The report added that the perpetrator of the attack was a soldier but the motives are not clear, yet.

According to the report, the wounded soldiers have been transported to a nearby hospital in Qom city. The report further added that the military base belongs to the armys air force.
Tehran, Iran, August 6

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

Senior clerics from Iran and Azerbaijan convened a meeting in Tehran where they discussed shared concerns, hoping to arrive at a common charter for future cooperation.

The meeting was attended by Secretary of Proximity of Religions Council Ayatollah Mohsen Araki and Sheikholeslam Shakur Pashazadeh, head of Caucasia Muslims Bureau, Trend correspondent reported August 6.

The step that is being taken today is to initiate religious and social cooperation within the field of Islamic affinity, Ayatollah Araki said.

Hoping that the venue would pave the way for the formation of a common charter among the participants, he highlighted the role that Iranian and Azeri clerics can play to fight extremist currents in the region.
At least three civilians were killed and six others injured in an attack on Sunday by PKK/PYD terrorist group in Syrias northern Aleppo province, a pro-opposition Syrian civil defense official said, Anadolu reported.

The fatalities occurred when PKK/PYD terrorists attacked the opposition-held Marea town, Alaa Nima told Anadolu Agency.

He said a pregnant woman was among the victims while three children were among those injured in the attack.

PYD has been targeting the town for a long time with a variety of weapons, Nima said, asserting that Sunday's attack targeted residential areas.

Meanwhile, Abdulfattah Hussein, a member of Syrias Local Coordination Committee (LCC), said that the Syrian opposition retaliated to the PKK/PYD attacks.

A number of opposition fighters were transferred to Turkey for treatment after critical injuries in clashes with the terrorist group in the western part of Marea, Hussein said.

PKK/PYD had captured Tal Rifaat city as a launching point of their attack against the opposition-held areas of Marea and Azaz in Aleppo province.
Britain is prepared to pay up to 40 billion euros ($47 billion) as part of a deal to leave the European Union, the Sunday Telegraph newspaper reported, citing three unnamed sources familiar with Britain's negotiating strategy, Reuters reported.

The European Union has floated a figure of 60 billion euros and wants significant progress on settling Britain's liabilities before talks can start on complex issues such as future trading arrangements.

The government department responsible for Brexit talks declined to comment on the Sunday Telegraph article. So far, Britain has given no official indication of how much it would be willing to pay.

The newspaper said British officials were likely to offer to pay 10 billion euros a year for three years after leaving the EU in March 2019, then finalise the total alongside detailed trade talks.

Payments would only be made as part of a deal that included a trade agreement, the newspaper added.

"We know (the EU's) position is 60 billion euros, but the actual bottom line is 50 billion euros. Ours is closer to 30 billion euros but the actual landing zone is 40 billion euros, even if the public and politicians are not all there yet," the newspaper quoted one "senior Whitehall source" as saying.

Whitehall is the London district where British civil servants and ministers are based.

A second Whitehall source said Britain's bottom line was "30 billion euros to 40 billion euros" and a third source said Prime Minister Theresa May was willing to pay "north of 30 billion euros", the Sunday Telegraph reported.

David Davis, the British minister in charge of Brexit talks, said on July 20 that Britain would honour its obligations to the EU but declined to confirm that Brexit would require net payments.

British foreign secretary Boris Johnson, a leading Brexit advocate, said last month the EU could "go whistle" if it made "extortionate" demands for payment.

Last week the Bank of England said Brexit uncertainty was weighing on the economy. Finance minister Philip Hammond wants to avoid unsettling businesses further.

If Britain cannot conclude an exit deal, trade relations would be governed by World Trade Organization rules, which would allow both parties to impose tariffs and customs checks and leave many other issues unsettled.

The EU has also wants agreement by October on rights of EU citizens already in Britain, and on border controls between the Irish Republic and the British province of Northern Ireland, before trade and other issues are discussed.
Venezuela's chief prosecutor was fired on Saturday and ordered to stand trial, less than 24 hours after a newly elected legislative superbody was installed with sweeping powers to strengthen President Nicolas Maduro's grip on power, Reuters reported.

The prosecutor, Luisa Ortega, had become Maduro's main challenger from within the ruling socialist movement since the opposition started a round of protests in April. The street marches have left more than 120 people dead as rock-throwing protesters were met by rubber bullets, water cannon and tear gas.

She accused him of human rights abuses and of exaggerating the turnout in last weekend's election of the new 545-member constituent assembly. The opposition, in control of the country's traditional congress, boycotted the vote. This guaranteed that all candidates for the new body would be Maduro allies.

His loyalist Supreme Court sent a letter to the assembly informing it of an indictment against Ortega, accusing her of "alleged commission of serious misconduct," without further outlining the charge.

Earlier in the day, Ortega's office was surrounded by armed National Guard officers who refused to let her enter. Ortega told reporters she was roughed up as she tried to enter her office, claiming that one officer hit her with his body shield. She left on a motor bike amid the chaos.

Also on Saturday, South American trade bloc Mercosur indefinitely suspended Venezuela, adding to international pressure on Maduro to dismantle the newly created assembly and restore democracy.

The constituent assembly replaced Ortega with Maduro's human rights ombudsman, Tarek Saab, a government ally who the opposition says has turned a blind eye to state abuses.
Russia and the United States are not "hostages" of the bilateral relations, when it is necessary to solve pressing international issues within the UN Security Council, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said Saturday, Sputnik reported.

"We are working together on issues, which represent importance for international community we are not hostages to our relations, when we have to work together on issues, which are far more important than our bilateral relations alone," Nebenzya told reporters.

When asked about the latest UNSC resolution tightening the sanctions imposed on North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs, the ambassador said that "this is a strong resolution," however, a strategy to resolve this issue and the dialogue are needed.

According to Nebenzya, North Korean nuclear and missile programs themselves, as well as military solution of these problems are "inadmissible" for Russia.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Sunday sanctions are needed against North Korea but are certainly not the final aim, which is still to resolve the issue via talks, according to a statement from China's Foreign Ministry, Reuters reported.

Wang was speaking on the sidelines of a regional security summit in Manila after the United Nations Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions on nuclear-armed North Korea.
U.S. military officials called off a search and rescue operation yesterday for three U.S. Marines who were missing after their Osprey aircraft crashed into the sea off the east coast of Australia while trying to land.

The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps suspended the rescue operation and launched a recovery effort instead, the Marine base Camp Butler in Japan said in a statement, essentially confirming the military does not expect to find the missing Marines alive.

The Marines next of kin had been notified, and Australias defense force was assisting the Americans with the recovery effort, the statement said.

The MV-22 Osprey had launched from the USS Bonhomme Richard and was conducting regularly scheduled operations on Saturday when it crashed into the water, Camp Butler said. The ships small boats and aircraft immediately responded in the search and rescue efforts, and 23 of 26 personnel aboard the aircraft were rescued.

Recovery and salvage operations can take several months to complete, but can be extended based on several environmental factors, Camp Butlers statement said. The circumstances of the mishap are currently under investigation, and there is no additional information available at this time.

The Osprey is a tilt-rotor aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter, but flies like an airplane. They have been involved in a series of high-profile crashes in recent years.

The aircraft was in Australia for a joint military training exercise held by the U.S. and Australia last month in Shoalwater Bay in Queensland state. The Talisman Sabre exercise, a biennial event between the two nations, involved more than 30,000 troops and 200 aircraft.

Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne said Saturdays incident occurred off the coast of Shoalwater Bay.

I can confirm no Australian Defence Force personnel were on board the aircraft, Payne said in a statement.

Payne said she had spoken with U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to offer Australias support in any way that can be of assistance.

A White House official said President Donald Trump had been briefed by chief of staff John Kelly on the mishap of an aircraft off the east coast of Australia.

In 2015, a U.S. Osprey crashed during a training exercise in Hawaii, killing two Marines. Last December, a U.S. military Osprey crash-landed off Japans southern island of Okinawa. Its five crew members were rescued safely. And in January, three U.S. soldiers were wounded in the hard landing of an Osprey in Yemen. Kristen Gelineau, AP
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Sunday met his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in the Philippine capital Manila during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum, Anadolu reported.

Speaking to reporters after the bilateral talks, Cavusoglu said they discussed the ongoing Syrian conflict, Astana talks, visa-free travel for Turkish citizens to Russia, and economic ties, especially the export of Turkish tomatoes.

"It was a positive meeting," he said, adding that he would later also meet the U.S. Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, on Sunday evening during the summit.

The foreign minister also said Turkey remains interested in building closer economic and diplomatic ties with ASEAN states.

"We aim to boost our relations with the region. With the latest decree, we have appointed an ambassador to Laos, now we have missions in each ASEAN state," Cavusoglu said.

The bloc was established in 1967 and includes 10 states: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Cavusoglu also hinted that Turkey was really close to getting sectoral dialogue partnership with the ASEAN group.

"We applied for sectoral dialogue partnership with ASEAN in 2015 and since then, we have been working for it. We also submitted an action plan in 2016. The decision will be announced tomorrow.

Although not a member of the bloc, Turkey formed ties with ASEAN in 1999 and attended its first summit in 2013; the country has applied for ASEAN partnership.

According to the Foreign Ministry, Turkey signed a cooperation treaty in 2010.

Turkish foreign ministers have participated as guests at ASEAN meetings; Cavusoglu also attended the meeting in August 2015.

A year earlier, Turkeys trade with ASEAN countries crossed the $8.5 billion mark, which is a four-fold increase over 10 years.
One PKK terrorist was killed in a counter-terrorism operation in Turkeys eastern province of Bingol on Sunday, Anadolu reported.

The operation was carried out in Adakli districts Ceribas area, the statement said.

In a later statement, the governors office said another PKK terrorist surrendered to the security forces in Yayladere districts Kalkanli village.

The PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization also by the U.S. and the EU -- resumed its armed campaign against Turkey in July 2015.

Since then, it has been responsible for the deaths of some 1,200 Turkish security personnel and civilians, including a number of women and children.
A busy week for earnings was punctuated by the July jobs report topping expectations, but this coming week in markets should be a bit calmer.

The economic calendar this week is quite light, with the highlights coming on Tuesday being the NFIBs latest reading on small business optimism and the latest update on job openings in the U.S. Small business confidence  along with consumer confidence  has been one of the strongest economic indicators since the election.

Job openings will also be closely watched as the April report released earlier this year showed a record number of jobs open in the U.S.

Earnings highlights in the coming week will include a number of retail names, with Michael Kors (KORS), Ralph Lauren (RL), Macys (M), Kohls (KSS), and Nordstrom (JWN).

From American Apparel to Macys, retailers of all stripes have been suffering lately and closing stores.

The media sector will also be in focus with results from Disney (DIS), 21st Century Fox (FOXA), and CBS (CBS).

Also reporting next week will be Nvidia (NVDA), Yahoo Finances company of the year in 2016 and a stock that has gained more than 55% since the beginning of the year.

Nivida shares have been on a tear over the last year and a half, rising over 400%. (Source: Yahoo Finance)

Last week, we saw the Dow rally above 22,000 for the first time, much to the delight of President Donald Trump, and eventually settle at 22,092.81.

The S&P 500 closed just shy of a record high on Friday, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq is currently about 70 points from its record hit back in late July.

Economic calendar

Monday: Consumer credit, June (+$15.5 billion expected; +$18.4 billion previously)

Tuesday: NFIB small business optimism, July (103.5 expected; 103.6 previously); Job openings and labor turnover survey, June (5.66 million jobs expected; 5.67 million jobs previously)

Wednesday: Nonfarm productivity, Q2 (+0.8% expected; 0% previously)

Thursday: Initial jobless claims (240,000 expected; 240,000 previously); Producer price index, July (+0.1% expected; +0.1% previously)

Friday: Consumer price index, July (+0.2% month-on-month expected; +0% previously); Core consumer price index, July (+1.7% year-on-year expected; +1.7% previously)

Story continues

U.S. savings rate in focus

The U.S. household savings rate is near a 10-year low.

Revisions from the Commerce Departments national income and product accounts (NIPA) series released this week showed that the U.S. savings rate fell further than previously reported late last year. As of June, the personal savings rate in the U.S. was 3.8% and in December, the now-revised savings rate fell to 3.2%, the lowest since December 2007.

This was due to a $58 billion reduction in personal incomes and a $62 billion increase in personal outlays, bringing down this rate which is the difference between the two. The following chart from Capital Economics outlines the difference following this weeks revisions.

The savings rate was revised down following a revised report from the government released this week. (Source: Capital Economics)

So while a declining personal savings rate indicates a more confident consumer class, this does raise questions about the future of consumer spending and, in turn, economic growth.

In a note to clients out Friday, JPMorgan economist Michael Feroli looked at this revised decline in savings and outlined what is, and is not, troubling about these revisions.

For starters, the savings rate bears watching if only for no other reason than the fact that it cannot fall indefinitely.

Feroli notes that, In the absence of an ever-declining saving rate, real income growth will have to remain strong for consumers to continue carrying the economy. With the labor market now near full employment, the growth in hours worked is set to slow. To maintain income growth, a pickup in either labor force participation or labor productivity is needed.

As we saw in the latest jobs report, labor force participation has stabilized some and participation is notably growing among prime-age workers, or those between the ages of 25-54. The aging of the workforce, however, has kept a lid on overall participation, and slow productivity growth has perhaps been the hallmark of the recovery.

Average hourly earnings were also up 2.5% over the prior year in July, better than expected but still somewhat disappointing given the drop in the unemployment rate weve seen over the last couple years.

And so either savings must fall to keep consumption rising in the absence of higher incomes, incomes must rise to keep consumption rising with savings stable, or consumption (and likely overall economic growth) will fall.

These revisions also indicate that the disappointing wealth effect wed seen this cycle is lagging previous cycles, not entirely broken as a modifier of consumer behavior, and yet still disappointing. The wealth effect is the increase in consumer spending we see as asset prices  read: the stock market  rises.

So whether its because 46% of Americans do not have direct exposure to the stock market or because consumers are still scarred from the last recession, weve clearly seen an overall muted enthusiasm about this economic expansion from the household sector. The latest NIPA revisions, however, show that household responses to better economic conditions is not entirely broken.

Consumption has risen more slowly relative to increases in wealth since the financial crisis. (Source: JP Morgan)



Myles Udland is a writer at Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter @MylesUdland

Read more from Myles here:
Recep Sakar | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images. Southeast Asian foreign ministers expressed grave concern on Saturday about rising tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Southeast Asian foreign ministers expressed grave concern on Saturday about rising tensions on the Korean peninsula stemming from long-range missile tests by North Korea that "seriously threaten" global peace and security.

Taking a stronger tone than it has previously on the standoff, the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) called for North Korea to comply with United Nations Security Council resolutions on its nuclear programme, and make a positive contribution to regional peace.

The statement was issued separately, rather than included in ASEAN's customary communique at the end of the foreign ministers meeting.

Following the foreign ministers meeting is Monday's annual ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), which gathers 27 foreign ministers -- including those of Russia, Japan, South Korea, the United States, China and North Korea -- to discuss Asian security issues.

"We strongly call upon (North Korea) as a participant of the ASEAN Regional Forum, to positively contribute to realise the ARF vision to maintain the Asia-Pacific as a region of lasting peace, stability, friendship and prosperity," said the ASEAN ministers meeting in Manila.

North Korea is determined to develop a nuclear-tipped missile capable of hitting the United States and officials in Washington say its latest test a week ago showed it may be able to reach most of the country.

China has urged calm and restraint from all countries involved in the standoff.

The ASEAN position is short of the tougher line on North Korea urged by the United States, which wants Southeast Asian countries to downgrade their relations with the already isolated nation.

ASEAN countries have argued that is difficult since its members do not have substantive ties with North Korea.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, who is chairing the Manila meetings, said on Friday ASEAN would not consider expelling North Korea from the ARF. He argued it is better to have dialogue and utilise a rare opportunity where parties involved in the issue are meeting together.

Story continues

"There were views that, how can we hear them out or confront them (North Korea) if they're not there?" he told reporters after a late-night discussion with his ASEAN counterparts.

Some Asian countries, including South Korea, are hoping to have bilateral talks with North Korea's foreign minister, Ri Yong Ho. He left Pyongyang on Saturday and was en route to Manila, the North's official KCNA news agency reported.

"If there is a chance, I would tell him that we must have dialogue and that the North must stop the continuous provocations," South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung Wha told reporters upon arrival in Manila.

"Moreover, I will tell him that to build a peace system, North Korea must respond to the two proposals we recently suggested."

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is due to attend the Manila meeting and will press China and other Asian countries to take tougher action against North Korea. (Full Story)

The United Nations Security Council was set to vote on Saturday on a U.S.-drafted resolution that aims to slash by a third North Korea's $3 billion annual export revenue over Pyongyang's two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests in July. (Full Story)

North Korea briefed diplomats of Indonesia, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia in Pyongyang on Tuesday about the "resounding success" of its latest ICBM test, its foreign ministry said on its website.

In the posting on Saturday, it said diplomats were told the U.S. "trumpeting" about war and its threat of sanctions only increased Pyongyang's "vigilance and courage", and justification for its tests.

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(Adds reaction from Trump in paragraphs 8,9)

By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 5 (Reuters) - The United Nations Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions on North Korea on Saturday that could slash by a third the Asian state's $3 billion annual export revenue over Pyongyang's two July intercontinental ballistic missile tests.

The U.S.-drafted resolution bans North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It also prohibits countries from increasing the current numbers of North Korean laborers working abroad, bans new joint ventures with North Korea and any new investment in current joint ventures.

"We should not fool ourselves into thinking we have solved the problem. Not even close. The North Korean threat has not left us, it is rapidly growing more dangerous," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told the council.

"Further action is required. The United States is taking and will continue to take prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies," she said, adding that Washington would continue annual joint military exercises with South Korea.

North Korea has accused the United States and South Korea of escalating tensions by conducting military drills.

China and Russia slammed U.S. deployment of the THAAD anti-missile defense system in South Korea. China's U.N. Ambassador Liu Jieyi called for a halt to the deployment and for any equipment in place to be dismantled.

Liu also urged North Korea to "cease taking actions that might further escalate tensions."

U.S. President Donald Trump hailed the vote in a Twitter message on Saturday evening.

"The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!" Trump wrote.

U.S. PRESSURE ON CHINA

Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said he hoped recent remarks by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson "were sincere - that the U.S. is not seeking to dismantle the existing situation or to forcibly unite the peninsula or to militarily intervene in the country."

Story continues

While the Security Council has been divided on how to deal with other international crises like Syria, the 15-member body has remained relatively united on North Korea. Still, negotiating new measures typically takes months, not weeks.

North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006 over its ballistic missile and nuclear programs. The new measures came in response to five nuclear weapons tests and four long-range missile launches.

The United States negotiated with China for a month on the resolution, then expanded negotiations to the full council on Friday.

Washington, frustrated that China has not done more to rein in North Korea, has threatened to exert trade pressure on Beijing and impose sanctions on Chinese firms doing business with Pyongyang.

"We had tough negotiations this week," Haley told reporters. "I think that the Chinese realized that the United States was going to push, but they responded and we appreciate how they cooperated with us during these negotiations."

Liu, asked about U.S. negotiating pressure, said China has been consistent on trying to achieve denuclearization, peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and "to re-launch negotiations to achieve this end."

He told reporters China was "opposed to any unilateral sanctions outside the agreed framework set by the U.N. Security Council resolutions."

RUSSIA/U.S. COOPERATION

It had been unclear whether strained U.S.-Russia relations would hamper negotiations on North Korean sanctions. On Wednesday, Washington imposed unilateral sanctions on Moscow to punish Russia over accusations of interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and annexation of Ukraine's Crimea.

"We are not hostages to our relations when we have to work together on issues which are far more important," Nebenzia told Reuters.

The new U.N. resolution adds nine individuals and four entities to the U.N. blacklist, including North Korea's primary foreign exchange bank, subjecting them to a global asset freeze and travel ban.

"I would think China and Russia signed on the sanctions hoping that they would force North Korea back to the negotiating table," said Thomas Byrne, president of the New York-based Korea Society. "However, North Korea will try to evade the new sanctions."

The new resolution completely bans North Korean exports of coal. In November the Security Council capped the country's coal exports at $400 million annually. China, its largest buyer, halted imports in February.

A U.N. diplomat said North Korea had been expected to earn an estimated $251 million from iron and iron ore in 2017, $113 million from lead and lead ore and $295 million from seafood. The diplomat said it was difficult to estimate how much North Korea was earning from sending workers abroad.

A United Nations human rights investigator said in 2015 that North Korea has forced more than 50,000 people to work abroad, mainly in Russia and China, earning between $1.2 billion and $2.3 billion a year for the country's government.

Joseph DeThomas, a former State Department official who worked as an adviser on Iran sanctions and previous rounds of North Korea sanctions, said freezing foreign labor will be difficult to enforce.

"Overall I doubt that $1 billion number. I doubt it will hit that hard in terms of economic damage," he said. "You cannot expect North Korea to buckle for anything less than the sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990."

These sanctions, he said, remain "a very long way" from there. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols,; addtional reporting by David Brunnstrom and Valerie Volcovici; Editing by David Gregorio)
The Taliban has shot dead at least seven Afghan police officers who were captured by the militant group during fighting in the northern province of Sari Pul, a local official said.



Zabihullah Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said on August 5 that the policemen were captured by the Taliban in the Mirzawalang area in Sayad district.



Amani also said that the Taliban seized control of the Mirzawalang area early on August 5, after two days of intense gunbattles with Afghan security forces.



The spokesman said that 10 Taliban fighters, including two group leaders, were also killed in the battles and four Afghan security officers were wounded.



"We requested reinforcements from the central government. Unfortunately, we couldn't get any support. That is why the forces lost control of Mirzawalang," said Amani.



The Taliban has stepped up attacks across the country in recent months, seizing control of three districts in Ghor, Faryab, and Paktika provinces in late July.



However, Afghan security forces repelled multiple attacks by the militants in strategic Gereshk district in southern Helmand Province on August 4, the provincial governors office said in a statement.



The militants wanted to destroy a bridge in Gereshk and create a hurdle for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline project, which would pass through the district, but their attack was repelled before reaching their target, the statement said.

With reporting by AP and tolonews.com
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus former chief of staff and onetime close confidant has agreed to testify in two ongoing corruption cases against him, Israeli police said Friday.

Police have been investigating Netanyahu for several months over the cases but have released sparse details. On Thursday night it revealed that the cases involving Netanyahu deal with bribery, fraud and breach of trust crimes.

Netanyahus office has repeatedly denied wrongdoing over the investigations, portraying the accusations as a witch hunt against him and his family by a hostile media opposed to his hard-line political views.

The police statement Friday says that Ari Harrow will serve six months of community service and pay a fine of 700,000 Shekels (about USD193,000) for his involvement in a separate corruption case, apparently a lighter-than-expected sentence in exchange for his testimony.

One investigation involving Netanyahu dubbed by police as File 1000, reportedly concerns claims he improperly accepted lavish gifts from wealthy supporters, including Australian billionaire James Packer and Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan.

The second investigation, File 2000, reportedly concerns Netanyahus alleged attempts to strike a deal with publisher Arnon Mozes of the Yediot Ahronot newspaper group to promote legislation to weaken Yediots main competitor in exchange for more favorable coverage of Netanyahu by Yediot.

The U.S.-born Harrow has been under investigation for the past 2 years for fraud and other crimes regarding the sale of his consulting company while working as chief of staff, media reports.

Police reportedly have a copy of a recording made by Harrow of a 2014 conversation between Netanyahu and the publisher.

After eight years in office, in addition to an earlier term in the 1990s, Netanyahu has garnered an image as a cigar-puffing, cognac-drinking socialite who is as comfortable rubbing shoulders with international celebrities as he is making deals in parliament.

Scandals have long dogged the couple over their lavish tastes and opponents have portrayed both as being out of touch with the struggles of average Israelis. AP
The United States has more than 4,000 colleges and universities. It is not easy to decide which schools might be best for you.

At the end of high school, many young people in the United States apply for admission to several different schools.

The College Board is a non-profit organization working to expand access to higher education in the U.S. It recommends that students apply to between five and eight schools. This gives them options if their first- or second-choice schools do not accept them.

Paul White, an assistant dean of college admissions, agrees. White works at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. He has worked in university admissions for 38 years.White says that he applied to just three colleges when he was a high school student in 1974. If he were a student applying today, however, White says he would apply to four times as many schools.

The reason? The number of students attending college in the U.S. has more than doubled since he was a college student.

The schools make it easier for students to apply, White says. And the competition for admission has gotten more intense.

"Colleges and universities havebecome much more public-oriented going afternot just the best students, but students in general, to try to attract students from different parts of the country, different parts of the world."

But White says there are major differences between applying to an undergraduate program and applying to a graduate degree program.

Most graduate degree programs are smaller than undergraduate programs. They can only accept a limited number of students. For example, more than 3,000 students applied to admissions to Johns Hopkins medical doctorate program for the 2018 school year. The program accepted only 120 of them.

How does the school choose some students over others? White says he feels that many students are concerned about just meeting the requirements to get into the school rather than getting to know the qualities of the program and school.

It is easy to see which students have not thought about whether Johns Hopkins is necessarily a good fit for them, he adds.

Every school has different goals, White notes. Some are more focused on research than others. Around 95 percent of new medical students at Johns Hopkins have some research experience. But that is not the only thing Johns Hopkins is looking for, he says.

Johns Hopkins is in Baltimore, Maryland. Its location has an effect on its medical program  and the students it accepts, White says. In 2016, the Maryland Alliance for the Poor reported that about 45 percent of Baltimores population was living in poverty.

The hospital where Johns Hopkins medical students get training works to treat health issues connected to poverty. A student interested in studying at the medical school, therefore, should show an interest in helping a poor, underserved community, White explains.

"We want people  who want to care for patients. Theres no question about that. But you have to look at  what are they doing, not just on campus, but off-campus. And if someone is interested in working with underserved communities, this a great place for them."

White says applicants should spend time researching what kind of students a school looks for. They can start by visiting the schools website, which will usually describe the programs the school is involved with. The website might also list its students with special achievements.

White also suggests finding out what kind of research the school is doing and what former students are doing after graduation.

Having experience that is connected to a schools goals is important, he adds. For example, volunteer work can show that a medical school candidate does not just care about their career; the applicant also cares about helping a community.

Even if a student does not have volunteer experience when they are applying, White says it is not too late for a student to show the admissions officers what kind of person they are. That can come during the interview process.

Interviews are a big part of the selection process at Johns Hopkins and most other medical schools. Candidates must answer questions about themselves and why they want to attend the school. For example, at Johns Hopkins, interviewers often ask candidates to talk about a time they were not in the majority.

Thoughtful answers can help interviewers better understand what kind of person a candidate is, White says. A student who may not have volunteer experience but gives thoughtful answers can show the interviewers they have an interest in gaining the understanding that such experience brings. That helps demonstrate that, with guidance, this person can become the kind of doctor the school hopes to produce, White says.

Although undergraduate and graduate programs differ in many ways, trying to find the right fit can help undergraduate applicants, too. If a student knows the kind of school they are looking for, and can thoughtfully express why they want to attend, that makes them more appealing.

"I dont care what  institution youre going to -- theyre all trying to shape a community. Theyre trying to attract people who will add to that community."

Im Pete Musto. And I'm Caty Weaver.

Pete Musto reported this for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor.

We want to hear from you. How do you learn more about the schools you are interested in? What other kinds of advice for applying to college would you like to have? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

_____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

apply  v. to ask formally for something, such as a job, admission to a school, or a loan, usually in writing

admission  n. the act or process of accepting someone as a student at a school

option(s)  n. a choice or possibility

dean  n. a person who is in charge of one of the parts of a university

undergraduate  adj. used to describe a student at a college or university who has not yet earned a degree

graduate  adj. of or relating to a course of studies taken at a college or university after earning a bachelor's degree or other first degree

doctorate  adj.

focus(ed) - v. to direct your attention or effort at something specific

campus  n. the area and buildings around a university, college, or school

achievement(s)  n. a result of hard work

interview  n. a meeting at which people talk to each other in order to ask questions and get information

guidance  n. help or advice that tells you what to do

institution  n. an established organization

attract  v. to cause someone to choose to do or be involved in something
Germany withdraws from Energy Charter Treaty

Is Jordan country that has not supplied arms to Armenia?: 'The press usually has reliable information'

European Commission approves nationalization of Russian Gazprom's German subsidiary

Pashinyan: If the state interferes with the exchange rate unnecessarily, the economy will only suffer

U.S. to work with strategic coalition of Southeast Asian countries

Armenian PM: To reform army, it is necessary to make military service more attractive

Putin and Raisi discuss topical issues of the bilateral agenda

Blinken: Ukraine must decide on timing and content of any talks with Russia

Catholicos expresses hope that Russia efforts will contribute to ensuring free, safe life of Artsakh Armenians

More than 50 of poorest developing countries are on brink of bankruptcy, says UN official

Armenia ex-ombudsman: We are facing serious national security issues (PHOTOS)

Biden has no plans to meet with Saudi crown prince at G20 summit

EU offers natural gas price cap assurances amid disagreements with member countries

Scholz is against establishment of ceasefire in Ukraine on Kremlin's terms

Turkologist: Turkey does not support agenda of achieving peace with Armenians

Sweden to not permit deployment of nuclear weapons on its territory after joining NATO

Erdogan signs decree on appointing Turkey ambassador to Israel

Information security expert: Some Armenia officials received letter that they were victims of national hackers attack

Armenia FM meets with France minister of foreign trade

Foreign Policy: US to resume nuclear arms control talks with Russia

Armenia opposition MP: Artsakh army reduction is impermissible

Biden to warn Chinas Xi that North Korea path could lead to increase in US military presence

US Treasury chief: India can buy as much Russian oil as it wants

Newspaper: Armenia authorities trying to find legal grounds for signing peace treaty

Newspaper: People of Karabakh not going to tolerate final destruction of their army

Texas woman sentenced to death for killing pregnant woman, removing fetus from victim

Van Gogh's painting sold for a record $117 million

Gentiloni: EU countries have accumulated enough gas to get through the coming winter

Several dozen activists detained at protest rally in Baku: They chant slogans 'Freedom!', 'Resign!'

Princess Haya seeks asylum in Wales

Pashinyan: Iran is concerned about the presence of other actors in our region, which are not in the territory of Armenia

Pashinyan: Presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan listened to presented proposals

Volvo reveals its flagship EX90 electric crossover

Pashinyan: Yerevan supports Russia's proposals for Armenian-Azerbaijani settlement

Pashinyan: Russia cannot withdraw from Karabakh unless it creates additional guarantees for peacekeeping mission

Pashinyan: We will do everything to Armenia-Azerbaijan sign peace treaty by end of year

Russia bans entry of Biden's family and White House press secretary

Pashinyan: We believe there should be a dialogue between Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh

Pashinyan says positions voiced by some member countries of CSTO are unacceptable

19 countries that use euro currency will slide into recession over winter

Pashinyan to Baku: If 1991 border is mutually recognized, what are your troops doing near Jermuk?

Pashinyan: If the Karabakh issue is solved, why is Azerbaijani Armed Forces shooting at Karabakh residents?

Pashinyan: Russia should say whether their version of peace settlement is still circulating?

Pashinyan: Maybe Azerbaijan doesn't want Armenia to receive revenues?

Pashinyan: Azerbaijan must withdraw its troops from Armenia

Pashinyan: My yesterday's speech served its purpose, Azerbaijani MFA no longer uses 'corridor' term

Microsoft founder Paul Allen's collection of world masterpieces sold for $1.6 billion

Public TV of Armenia hosts Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan

China shows drone killer

Armenian FM meets his French counterpart

Rishi Sunak decides to close hole in British budget through austerity

Delegation of Russian MPs visits Jermuk resort town

Lavrov and Mirzoyan discuss regional agenda

Harut Sasunyan: The best way to achieve peace is to be prepared for war

Turkish prosecutor demands court to ban Istanbul mayor from political activities

German business leaders warn against leaving China

Sasunyan: Russia and US pursue their own interests in South Caucasus

British economy shrinks in three months, foretelling prolonged recession

Iranian Ambassador to Azerbaijan summoned to Foreign Ministry

Euro rises above dollar for first time in long time

Hungarian Foreign Affairs Minister calls Council of Turkic States 'forum of peace' and praises Turkey

EU embargo on Russian oil will be a boon for OPEC

Armenia defense minister receives China ambassador, military attache

Lemkin Institute condemns Azerbaijan president's genocidal rhetoric

Dollar goes up, euro rises sharply in Armenia

U.S. warns Europe that conflict over Taiwan will cause massive global economic shock

EU calls on Armenia, Azerbaijan to moderate their rhetoric

Erdogan says Turkey has been waiting at door of EU for 52 years and will give answer when time comes

U.S. fears that European support for Ukrainian strategy will begin to weaken

Armenia, Iran emphasize need to quickly implement agreements reached (PHOTOS)

Armenia soldier wounded by Azerbaijan shooting undergoes surgery

Gas over morality: Hungary guards Azerbaijan's interests

U.S. quietly seeks concessions from Saudi Arabia after Mohammed bin Salman humiliated Biden

Italy's Ambassador to Armenia visits Gyumri

Russian Armed Forces complete redeployment of grouping from right bank of Dnieper

IRGC: Adversaries are frightened and on alert

Armenia appoints ambassador to Sri Lanka

Kremlin doesn't consider leaving Kherson 'humiliating'

Israeli president thinks the world is concerned about Netanyahu's far-right coalition partner

Chinese MFA: China is not distancing itself from Russia, as Biden believes

Ukraine will seek help from its foreign partners in financing Starlink satellite internet systems

Erdogan: Situation in South Caucasus remains fragile

Marukyan: Azerbaijans Aliyev admitted that his country started 2nd Karabakh war, despite previously insisting opposite

Azerbaijan blackmailing Armenia through Lachin corridor

Turkish-occupied northern part of Cyprus becomes observer in Organization of Turkic States

Armenia PM: In his latest speech Aliyev flagrantly violated agreement on refraining from threat or use of force

World Bank official: Armenia is one of best countries in terms of credit portfolio performance

Azerbaijan president makes repeated accusations, threats against Armenia

Iran citizens injured in Armenia road accident

China reveals new giant drone that could point to the future of air warfare

US embassy in Armenia closed today

Karabakh MOD: Defense Army did not fire at Azerbaijan positions located in occupied territories

Israel and U.S. counter threat of hypersonic missiles together

U.S. and EU plan to publish new roadmap on artificial intelligence

Armenia ombudsperson meets with Belgium colleagues

Newspaper: Armenia parliament opposition seats to no longer be empty

Newspaper: Armenia parliament committee of inquiry into 2020 war circumstances is inactive

U.S. will no longer consider Russia a country with a market economy

US intends to protect Azerbaijan from threats of Iran

Aliyev, Erdogan discuss results of tripartite meeting in Russias Sochi
The "Lopez" family moved to Milwaukee from Mexico in 2008. As undocumented immigrants, they have always known deportation was possible. But it was not until President Trump signed executive orders to expand deportations that they took tangible steps to prepare. In early June, they met with an attorney to assign a temporary guardian to care for and make decisions on behalf of their children in the event of emergency, illness or absence.

"Theres a real and legitimate fear," said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director of Voces de la Frontera.

According to a report released by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) in May, immigration arrests were up 40 percent during the first 100 days of the Trump presidency.

Maria and Juan Lopez (not their real names) have signed a Power of Attorney to protect their children, who are 10 and 7, in case they are deported.

"Our children are everything to us," said Maria Lopez. "We dont want them to go into foster care if we get deported."

The city has recently gone back and forth on how to handle police interactions with undocumented people and when police should report suspected illegal immigrants to ICE. As it stands now, the policy states police members "shall, using discretion consistent with federal law, inform federal immigration officials of the whereabouts or behaviors of any suspected illegal immigrant." At one point, the policy stated that police should contact federal immigration officials after contact with a suspected illegal immigrant who met certain criteria, including arrest for a felony, involvement with terrorist activity or suspected of participating in gang activity.

"Everyone is breathing a sigh of relief now that the City of Milwaukee is standing with immigrants," said Neumann-Ortiz about the policy changes.

Since the start of the Trump administration, undocumented people across the state have been filling out Power of Attorney forms (POA), according to Milwaukee Mexican Consulate director Ingrid Fernandez Tamez. The POA allows a family to designate a person to take responsibility for their childrens care, including getting them to and from school and taking them to doctors appointments.

The POA doesnt go into effect unless both parents are deported, or if a single parent is deported. Guardians have some restrictions on their authority: They cannot permit minors to have an abortion or join the military, or put them up for adoption.

Theodore Chadwick, an immigration attorney for Grzeca Law Group, questioned why parents feel it is necessary to sign POA documents before they are detained. "People have filled out these POAs in a fit of fear, but once a person gets picked up, their court date isnt until three to four years later," he noted. During that time, he suggested, parents can make arrangements for their children.

"Usually custody just gets transferred, officially or unofficially, to a family member," Chadwick added. However, he stated that it is possible for child protective services to become involved, which would be the worst-case scenario.

Neumann-Ortiz defended the use of POAs. "What people are doing is what parents do, being responsible for their children  being responsible in case both parents get picked up, which weve seen happen," she explained.

The consulate has been holding sessions twice a week to assist families with the POAs. The United Community Center and Marquette Volunteer Legal Clinic provide lawyers to help parents complete the forms.

"One of the duties of the consulate is to protect the well-being of Mexican nationals abroad," said Tamez. More than a quarter million Mexican nationals live in Milwaukee.

Changes to local and federal immigration policies have resulted in escalated fear and immigration arrests in Milwaukee and the country. UCC president Jose A. Olivieri said that since Trump became president, undocumented people believe that any contact with police will lead to being deported. "People have been coming up to me and asking if its safe for them to even go to the park," said Olivieri. "Theres a sense of fear right now thats pretty strong in the community."

However, he pointed out, "We havent seen as many of the things going on here as we do in other parts of the country where local police are much more involved in immigration enforcement."

At a recent Fire and Police Commission meeting, Assistant Police Chief James Harpole emphasized that the Milwaukee police department does not enforce federal immigration law.

Of the 41,000 undocumented people arrested throughout the country in the first 100 days of the Trump administration, half have not been convicted of crimes, according to ICE.

"The biggest advice I can give undocumented people is what ICE has told us  and that is to be prepared before they get picked up," Chadwick said.
Boston Scientific Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets medical devices for use in various interventional medical specialties worldwide. It operates through three segments: MedSurg, Rhythm and Neuro, and Cardiovascular. The company offers devices to diagnose and treat gastrointestinal and pulmonary conditions; devices to treat various urological and pelvic conditions; implantable cardioverter and implantable cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators; pacemakers and implantable cardiac resynchronization therapy pacemakers; and remote patient management systems. It also provides medical technologies to diagnose and treat rate and rhythm disorders of the heart comprising 3-D cardiac mapping and navigation solutions, ablation catheters, diagnostic catheters, mapping catheters, intracardiac ultrasound catheters, delivery sheaths, and other accessories; spinal cord stimulator systems for the management of chronic pain; indirect decompression systems; and deep brain stimulation systems. In addition, the company offers interventional cardiology products, including drug-eluting coronary stent systems used in the treatment of coronary artery disease; percutaneous coronary interventions products to treat atherosclerosis; intravascular catheter-directed ultrasound imaging catheters, fractional flow reserve devices, and systems for use in coronary arteries and heart chambers, as well as various peripheral vessels; and structural heart therapies. Further, it provides stents, balloon catheters, wires, and atherectomy systems to treat arterial diseases; thrombectomy and acoustic pulse thrombolysis systems, wires, and stents to treat venous diseases; and peripheral embolization devices, radioactive microspheres, ablation systems, cryotherapy ablation systems, and micro and drainage catheters to treat cancer. The company was incorporated in 1979 and is headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts.
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Cardinal Health, Inc. operates as an integrated healthcare services and products company in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It provides customized solutions for hospitals, healthcare systems, pharmacies, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories, physician offices, and patients in the home. The company operates in two segments, Pharmaceutical and Medical. The Pharmaceutical segment distributes branded and generic pharmaceutical, specialty pharmaceutical, and over-the-counter healthcare and consumer products. The segment also provides services to pharmaceutical manufacturers and healthcare providers for specialty pharmaceutical products; operates nuclear pharmacies and radiopharmaceutical manufacturing facilities; repackages generic pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter healthcare products; and offers medication therapy management and patient outcomes services to hospitals, other healthcare providers, and payers, as well as provides pharmacy management services to hospitals. The Medical segment manufactures, sources, and distributes Cardinal Health branded medical, surgical, and laboratory products and devices that include exam and surgical gloves; needles, syringe, and sharps disposals; compressions; incontinences; nutritional delivery products; wound care products; single-use surgical drapes, gowns, and apparels; fluid suction and collection systems; urology products; operating room supply products; and electrode product lines. The segment also distributes a range of national brand products, including medical, surgical, and laboratory products; provides supply chain services and solutions to hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories, and other healthcare providers; and assembles and sells sterile, and non-sterile procedure kits. The company was incorporated in 1979 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ohio.
The following companies are subsidiares of General Motors: 2140879 Ontario Inc., ACAR Leasing Ltd., ACF Investment Corp., AFS SenSub Corp., APGO Trust, Adam Opel GmbH, AmeriCredit, AmeriCredit Financial Services Inc., Annunciata Corporation, Argonaut Holdings LLC, Astyx Inc., BOCO (Proprietary) Limited, Banco GM S.A., Boco Trust, BrightDrop LLC, BrightDrop Solutions LLC, BrightDrop Vehicle Distribution LLC, CHEVYPLAN S.A. Sociedad Administradora de Planes de Autofinanciamiento Comercial, Cadillac, Cadillac Europe GmbH, Carve-Out Ownership Cooperative LLC, Chevrolet Deutschland GmbH, Chevrolet Otomotiv Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Chevrolet Sales (Thailand) Limited, Chevrolet Sales India Private Ltd., Chevrolet Sociedad Anonima de Ahorro para Fines Determinados, Controladora General Motors S. de R.L. de C.V., Cruise, Cruise LLC, Cruise Munich GmbH, DCJ1 LLC, DMAX Ltd., Dealership Liquidations Inc., Delphi Energy and Engine Management Systems UK Overseas Corporation, EDS (Electronic Data Systems), GCAR Titling Ltd., GM (UK) Pension Trustees Limited, GM Administradora de Bens Ltda., GM Asia Pacific Regional Headquarters Ltd., GM Components Holdings LLC, GM Corretora de Seguros Ltda., GM Cruise Holdings LLC, GM Defense LLC, GM Eurometals Inc., GM Finance Co. Holdings LLC, GM Financial, GM Financial Bank, GM Financial Canada Leasing Ltd., GM Financial Colombia Holdings LLC, GM Financial Colombia S.A. Compania de Financiamiento, GM Financial Consumer Discount Company, GM Financial Holdings LLC, GM Financial Insurance Company, GM Financial Mexico Holdings LLC, GM Financial de Mexico S.A. de C.V. SOFOM E.R., GM Financial del Peru S.A.C, GM Global Technology Operations LLC, GM Global Tooling Company LLC, GM Global Treasury Centre Limited, GM Holdings Australia Pty Ltd, GM Holdings U.K. No.1 Limited, GM Inversiones Santiago Limitada, GM Investment Trustees Limited, GM Korea Company, GM LAAM Holdings LLC, GM Mobility Europe GmbH, GM Personnel Services Inc., GM Philippines Inc., GM Protections LLC, GM Regional Holdings LLC, GM Retirees Pension Trustees Limited, GM Speciality Vehicles UK Limited, GM Subsystems Manufacturing LLC, GM Technical Center Korea Ltd., GM-DI Leasing LLC, GMAC Administradora de Consorcios Ltda., GMAC Prestadora de Servicios de Mao de Obra Ltda., GMCH&SP Private Equity II L.P., GMF Funding Corp., GMF Global Assignment LLC, GMF International LLC, GMF Leasing LLC, GMF Wholesale Receivables LLC, General Motors (China) Investment Company Limited, General Motors - Colmotores S.A., General Motors Advisory Services LLC, General Motors Africa and Middle East FZE, General Motors Asia LLC, General Motors Asia Pacific Holdings LLC, General Motors Asset Management Corporation, General Motors Australia Pty Ltd., General Motors Australia and New Zealand Pty Ltd., General Motors Auto LLC, General Motors Automobiles Philippines Inc., General Motors Automotive Holdings S.L., General Motors Belgique Automobile NV, General Motors Chile Industria Automotriz Limitada, General Motors China LLC, General Motors Daewoo Auto and Technology CIS LLC, General Motors Egypt S.A.E., General Motors Europe Limited, General Motors Financial Chile Limitada, General Motors Financial Chile S.A., General Motors Financial Company Inc., General Motors Financial of Canada Ltd., General Motors Global Service Operations Inc., General Motors Holden Australia NSC Pty Ltd., General Motors Holdings LLC, General Motors IT Services (Ireland) Limited, General Motors India Private Limited, General Motors International Holdings LLC, General Motors International Operations Pte. Ltd., General Motors International Services Company SAS, General Motors International Services LLC, General Motors Investment Limited, General Motors Investment Management Corporation, General Motors Investment Participacoes Ltda., General Motors Investments Pty. Ltd., General Motors Israel Ltd., General Motors Japan Limited, General Motors LLC, General Motors Limited, General Motors New Zealand Limited, General Motors New Zealand Pensions Limited, General Motors Overseas Commercial Vehicle Corporation, General Motors Overseas Corporation, General Motors Overseas Distribution LLC, General Motors Peru S.A., General Motors Research Corporation, General Motors South Africa (Pty) Limited, General Motors Taiwan Ltd., General Motors Technical Centre India Private Limited, General Motors Treasury Center LLC, General Motors Uruguay S.A., General Motors Ventures LLC, General Motors Warehousing and Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., General Motors de Argentina S.r.l., General Motors de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., General Motors del Ecuador S.A., General Motors do Brasil Ltda., General Motors of Canada Company, General Motors-Holden's Sales Pty. Limited, Global Services Detroit LLC, Grand Pointe Holdings Inc., Grand Pointe Park Condominium Association, IBC Pension Trustees Limited, Lease Ownership Cooperative LLC, Lidlington Engineering Company Ltd., Limited Liability Company "General Motors CIS", Maven Drive LLC, Millbrook Pension Management Limited, Monetization of Carve-Out LLC, Motors Holding LLC, Multi-Use Lease Entity Trust, North American New Cars LLC, Omnibus BB Transportes S. A., OnStar Connected Services Srl, OnStar Egypt Limited, OnStar Europe Ltd., OnStar Global Services Corporation, OnStar LLC, OnStar de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., P.T. G M AutoWorld Indonesia, P.T. General Motors Indonesia, PIMS Co., PT. General Motors Indonesia Manufacturing, Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center Company Ltd., Prestadora de Servicios GMF Colombia S.A.S., Rapid Motor Vehicle Company, Reliance Motor Car Company, Riverfront Holdings III Inc., Riverfront Holdings Inc., Riverfront Holdings Phase II Inc., SAIC GM (Shenyang) Norsom Motors Co. Ltd., SAIC GM Dong Yue Motors Company Limited, SAIC GM Dong Yue Powertrain Company Limited, SAIC GM Wuling Automobile Company Limited, SAIC General Motors Corporation Limited, SAIC General Motors Sales Company Limited, SAIC-GMAC Automotive Finance Company Limited, SAIC-GMF Leasing Co. Ltd., Servicios GMAC S.A. de C.V., Shanghai OnStar Telematics Co. Ltd., Sidecar Technologies, Ultium Cells LLC, Vehicle Asset Universal Leasing Trust, WRE Inc., and Zona Franca Industrial Colmotores SAS.

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BOISE  It doesnt take much to make a lions day.

In the sweltering summertime, Zoo Boises lionesses Mudiwa and Obadiah think nothings better than a block of frozen blood. And theyre also partial to a spritz of diluted perfume  Victorias Secret is a favorite.

The smellier, the better, said Liz Littman, assistant director at the zoo. Calvin Klein perfume samples are a bit hit, too.

Its all part of the zoos animal enrichment efforts  activities, toys and treats that keep the animals engaged and in touch with their wild instincts. Since April, its been easier for animal lovers across the Treasure Valley to have their hand in that enrichment, thanks to the zoos Amazon wish list. Many already have.

Thank you to Cristina and Josie for purchasing our red pandas some fun toys off of their Amazon Wish List! the zoo posted on Facebook in late July. Photos showed the zoos male panda, Winston, curiously exploring two colorful toys that Littman said were smeared in food fragrance.

I wasnt looking for accolades, but it was very sweet! It felt really good to see the end result of the wish list giving process, said Cristina Grossi, a Salt Lake City resident who travels to Zoo Boise with her daughter just for the red pandas.

Having that online list, you can feel like a part of their wellbeing from across the miles, Grossi said.

And its not just red pandas that get to enjoy the toys. On Monday, zookeeper Sherry Barlet used donated treat dispensers to feed mealworms to meerkats. The toys, which wobble on a weighted base, can be stuffed with food that then falls out of small holes as the animal bats the toys around. For the meerkats, its a way to encourage their natural foraging behavior  part of the goal of enrichment, Littman said.

In addition to stimulating the animals instincts, there are a few other standards that enrichment must meet. Each toy or activity is approved by the zoos vet and curator, Littman explained. Enrichment has to be safe  for the animals, of course, and for zoo guests, keepers and even the animals exhibits. Of course, any toys or treats have to be nontoxic, too. And they should serve a purpose for the animals  whether thats simulating hunting or foraging, provoking exploration via exciting smells or engaging other senses with new sights and sounds.

Of course, the animals arent always happy to have something new to explore. This week, zookeepers tried out a bubble machine with their coatis  South American members of the raccoon family. The mammals are big fans of smelly things, Littman said, and they use strong odors to cover their own scents just as they would in the wild.

Around Thanksgiving well give them pumpkin pie, and they smear it on themselves  their tails, everywhere, she said.

The bubbles, however, werent such a big hit Monday.

Well try this at least two more times, said lead zookeeper Melissa Williams, explaining that some animals are wary of enrichment the first time around.

Just like humans, Williams said, individual animals have their favorite toys and activities. The zoos male lion, who died in January, particularly loved peppermint.

During the summer, the porcupines like ice blocks frozen in bundt cake pans so they can stick their faces in the middle. Primates are big fans of old paper towel tubes stuffed with food  its a challenge for their dexterity. And, just like house cats, all big cats are interested in boxes, Littman said.

Its that If I fits, I sits thing, she said.

Enrichment also gives zoo staff an opportunity to be creative. Armed with a Home Depot 5-gallon bucket and a drill, one zookeeper made a foraging bucket for giraffe Jabari. The bucket is filled with leafy branches, and Jabari uses his flexible tongue (more than a foot long) to navigate the openings and strip leaves from inside.

Giraffes eat acacia leaves in the wild, and acacia trees are very thorny, said Littman. So theyre always moving their tongues trying to get that food.

For Jabari, humans are part of the enrichment, too. The 14-foot-tall giraffe has a view of Julia Davis park from his enclosure, letting him look over Greenbelt bikers and passing pedestrians.

Enrichment can really be anything that changes an animals environment, Littman said  thats why youll find plastic flamingos and boomboxes on the zoos wish list, too. At times, zookeepers have even played cartoon videos for the primates and put a disco ball in the penguin pool.

Especially with our older animals, it can really bring their inner child out, said Williams.

And after a long day of feedings, cleaning, and shoveling poop, the chance to toss around a toy isnt just fun for the animals, said Barlet, another zookeeper. It enriches the humans, too.

You can be creative, and you can watch them have fun, Barlet said. Its the best part of the day.
Serco Group plc provides public services in the United Kingdom, Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific, and the Middle East. The company offers base and operational support engineering, and management and information, as well as nuclear, space, and maritime services for the defense sector; and custodial, immigration detention, and detainee transport and monitoring services for the justice and immigration sectors. It also provides rail, ferry, and cycle operations; road traffic management; and air traffic control services to the transportation sector, as well as integrated facilities management, pathology and non-clinical support, and patient administration and contact services for the health sector. In addition, the company offers citizen services, including contact centers and case management; middle, back office, and IT; and employment and skills services. The company serves the United Kingdom and Canadian governments, devolved authorities, and other public sector customers; and federal and civilian agencies, and various state and municipal governments. Serco Group plc was founded in 1929 and is based in Hook, the United Kingdom.
Gildan Activewear Inc. manufactures and sells various apparel products in the United States, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. It provides various activewear products, including T-shirts, fleece tops and bottoms, and sports shirts under the Gildan, Gildan Performance, Gildan Hammer, Comfort Colors, American Apparel, Alstyle, and GoldToe brands. The company also offers hosiery products comprising athletic; dress; and casual, liner, therapeutic, and workwear socks, as well as sheer pantyhose, tights, and leggings under the Gildan, Under Armour, GoldToe, PowerSox, Signature Gold by Goldtoe, Peds, MediPeds, Therapy Plus, All Pro, Secret, Silks, Secret Silky, and American Apparel brands. In addition, it provides men's and boys' underwear products, and ladies panties under the Gildan and Gildan Platinum brands; and ladies' shapewear, intimates, and accessories under the Secret and Secret Silky brands. The company sells its products to wholesale distributors, screen printers, and embellishers, as well as to retailers and lifestyle brand companies. The company was formerly known as Textiles Gildan Inc. and changed its name to Gildan Activewear Inc. in March 1995. Gildan Activewear Inc. was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada.
The following companies are subsidiares of Accenture: 2nd Road, ?What If!, ?What If! China Holdings Limited, ?What If! Holdings Limited, ?What If! Limited, ACN Consulting Co Ltd, AD.Dialeto (Digital Agency acquired by Accenture), AFD.TECH, AGS Business and Technology Services Limited, AIG Shared Services Business Processing Inc, ASM Research Inc., ASM Research LLC, ATAN, Accenture (Botswana) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (China) Co. Ltd., Accenture (Shenzhen) Technology Co. Ltd., Accenture (South Africa) Pty Ltd, Accenture (UK) Limited, Accenture 2 Business Process Services S.A., Accenture 2 LLC, Accenture A/S, Accenture AB, Accenture AG, Accenture AS, Accenture Africa Pty Ltd, Accenture Agencia Interativa Ltda, Accenture Australia Holding B.V., Accenture Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture B.V., Accenture BPM Operations Support Services S.A., Accenture BPM S.C.R.L., Accenture BPS Services S.p. z o.o., Accenture Branch Holdings B.V., Accenture Bulgaria EOOD, Accenture Business Services for Utilities Inc, Accenture Business Services of British Columbia Limited Partnership, Accenture Business and Technology Services LLC, Accenture C.A., Accenture Canada Holdings Inc, Accenture Capital Designated Activity Company, Accenture Capital Inc, Accenture Central Europe B.V., Accenture Chile Asesorias y Servicios Ltda, Accenture Cloud Services GmbH, Accenture Cloud Software Solutions Limited, Accenture Cloud Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions LLC, Accenture Cloud Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd, Accenture Co. Ltd, Accenture Communications Infrastructure Solutions Ltd, Accenture Company Ltd, Accenture Consulting Pty Ltd, Accenture Consulting Services Ltd Tanzania, Accenture Consultores de Gestao S.A., Accenture Consultoria de Industria e Consumo Ltda, Accenture Consultoria de Recursos Naturais Ltda, Accenture Credit Services LLC, Accenture Customer Services Distribution SASU, Accenture Customer Services Ltd, Accenture Danismanlik Limited Sirketi, Accenture Defined Benefit Pension Plan Trustees Limited, Accenture Defined Contribution Pension Plan Trustees Limited, Accenture Delivery Poland S.p. z o.o., Accenture Dienstleistungen GmbH, Accenture Digital Holdings GmbH, Accenture East Africa Limited, Accenture Ecuador S.A., Accenture Egypt LLC, Accenture Enterprise Development (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Accenture Federal Services LLC, Accenture Finance II Limited, Accenture Finance Limited, Accenture Finance and Accounting BPO Services S.p.A., Accenture Finance and Accounting Services S.r.l., Accenture Financial Advanced Solution & Technology S.r.l., Accenture Flex LLC, Accenture GP LLC, Accenture Global Capital Designated Activity Company, Accenture Global Engagements Limited, Accenture Global Holdings Limited, Accenture Global Services Limited, Accenture Global Solutions Limited, Accenture GmbH, Accenture HR Services S.p.A., Accenture Healthcare Processing Inc, Accenture Holding Brasil Ltda, Accenture Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Accenture Holdings (Iberia) S.L., Accenture Holdings B.V., Accenture Holdings France SASU, Accenture Hungary Holdings Kft, Accenture Inc, Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions Kft, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions SA, Accenture Insurance Services B.V., Accenture Insurance Services LLC, Accenture International B.V., Accenture International LLC, Accenture International Limited, Accenture Japan Ltd, Accenture Korea B.V., Accenture LLC, Accenture LLP, Accenture Lanka (Private) Ltd, Accenture Limited, Accenture Lithuania UAB, Accenture Ltd, Accenture Ltda, Accenture Maghreb S.a.r.l., Accenture Managed Services SRL, Accenture Management GmbH, Accenture Marketing Services LLC, Accenture Marketing Services Limited, Accenture Middle East B.V., Accenture Minority I B.V., Accenture Mozambique Limitada, Accenture Mzansi Pty Ltd, Accenture NV/SA, Accenture NZ Limited, Accenture Nova Scotia Unlimited Liability Co., Accenture OOO, Accenture Operations GmbH, Accenture Operations S.p. z o.o., Accenture Operations Services Private Limited, Accenture Operations Services Sdn Bhd, Accenture Outsourcing S.r.l., Accenture Outsourcing Services S.A., Accenture Oy, Accenture Panama Inc, Accenture Participations B.V., Accenture Participations II Limited, Accenture Peru SRL, Accenture Post Trade Processing SASU, Accenture Post-Trade Processing Limited, Accenture Process (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Pte Ltd, Accenture Puerto Rico LLC, Accenture Qiyun Technology (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd, Accenture S.C., Accenture S.L., Accenture S.R.L., Accenture S.p. z o.o., Accenture S.p.A., Accenture SASU, Accenture SG Services Pte Ltd, Accenture SRL, Accenture Saudi Arabia Limited, Accenture Sdn Bhd, Accenture Service Center SRL, Accenture Services (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Services AB, Accenture Services AG, Accenture Services AS, Accenture Services GmbH, Accenture Services Morocco SA, Accenture Services Oy, Accenture Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Services S.p. z o.o., Accenture Services SRL, Accenture Services and Technology S.r.l., Accenture Services s.r.o., Accenture Single Member S.A. Organization Information Technology & Business Development, Accenture Solutions Co. 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Limited, DI Futures Corporation, Data Essential SARL, Davies Consulting, DayNine Consulting, DayNine Consulting (New Zealand) Limited, DayNine Consulting LLC, Declarative Holdings LLC, Decora Marketplace LLC, Decorado Marketplace Ltda-EPP, Defense Point Security, Deja vu Security, Design Strategy and Research de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Designaffairs LLC, Digiplug S.A.S., Digital Results Group LLC, Double Digit Limitada, Double Digit Pty SA, Droga5, Droga5 LLC, Droga5 Studios LLC, Droga5 UK Limited, Duck Creek Technologies, ESR Labs, ESR Labs AG, EdenOne Solutions Limited, Edenhouse ERP Holdings Limited, Edenhouse Solutions Limited, Enaxis Consulting, Enaxis Consulting LP, End to End Analytics LLC, End-to-End Analytics, Endorphin Medici (M) Sdn Bhd, Energuia Web S.A., Energy Management Brokers Limited, EnergyQuote JHA, Enimbos, Enimbos Global Services S.L., Enkitec, Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions LLC, Enterprise System Partners, Enterprise System Partners B.V., Enterprise System Partners Bilisim Danismanlik Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Enterprise System Partners Global Corporation, Enterprise System Partners Limited, Enthusian Pty Ltd, Entropia, Entropia (M) Sdn Bhd, Entropia Holdings Pte Ltd, Entropia Intercraft Sdn Bhd, Epylon, Ergo, Espedia S.r.l., Ethica Consulting Group, Ethica Consulting S.p.A., Evopro Group, Exactside Limited, Experity, Exton Consulting, Exton Consulting Spain Strategy&Management S.L., Exton Germany GmbH, Exton International SAS, Exton Italia S.r.l., Exton SAS, FGM LLC, Fairway Technologies Inc, Farah BidCo Limited, Farah MidCo Limited, Farah Topco Limited, Filmproduction ApS, First Annapolis Consulting Inc., First Annapolis Consulting LLC, Fjord, Focus Group Europe, Formicary, Founders Intelligence, Fruendo S.r.l., FusionX, Future State Consulting LLC, FutureMove (Beijing) Automotive Technology Co. 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Ltd., Zielpuls GmbH, avVenta, designaffairs, designaffairs Business Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., designaffairs GmbH, designaffairs group China Co. Ltd., dgroup, i4C Analytics, iDefense, solid-serVision.com GmbH, and umlaut.

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At least four soldiers were killed and eight injured when one of their colleagues opened fire on a military air base in southern Tehran on Sunday, the Iranian military said in a statement. The incident was "probably related to psychological problems of the soldier who suddenly started firing on his comrades," the statement said. It took place on a shooting range, and could also have been the result of a gun misfiring, the statement added. "The injured were transported to a medical centre and an investigation has been opened," it said. State television reported a similar incident last month when a serviceman opened fire at a barracks in Abyek, around 40 kilometres northwest of Tehran, killing three and injuring six. The gunman in that incident, who had reportedly been denied a transfer to his home town, shot himself but survived his injuries, according to the ISNA news agency. Military service of two years is mandatory for Iranian men when they turn 19.
Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi and the nation's opposition chief Afonso Dhlakama met Sunday for the first since 2015, a step toward peace after years of instability. The men spoke in the remote Gorongosa mountains, where Dhlakama retreated in October 2015 with 800 former fighters demanding a greater share of power. "The two leaders discussed and agreed on the next steps in the peace process, which they hope to be completed by the end of the year," the presidency said in a statement. They last got together in 2015, before Dhlakama fled into the mountains where he is awaiting the elections set for 2019. Dhlakama's Renamo is an armed insurgent group that led a 16-year rebellion and an opposition political party that took up arms again in 2013. Clashes between the ruling Frelimo party government and Renamo last year revived the spectre of Mozambique's civil war that ended more than 20 years ago. Renamo members, who hold seats in parliament, have called for greater decentralisation of the state and better integration of their people into the police and military. Dhlakama declared a unilateral ceasefire in 2016, which he prolonged indefinitely in May. Mozambique is still recovering from its bloody 1976-1992 civil war when one million people died during years of sporadic fighting between Frelimo and Renamo. The more recent fighting has often focused on Mozambique's main roads, with Renamo attacking government convoys and civilian vehicles, and soldiers ruthlessly targeting suspected Renamo rebels in nearby villagers. The death toll is unknown but scores of people are reported to have been killed in 2016, with both the Frelimo and Renamo parties also suffering assassinations of local politicians.
At least 11 worshippers were shot dead at a church in southeast Nigeria on Sunday, with authorities suggesting the bloodshed was due to a local feud. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari condemned the attack, describing the incident as "an appalling crime against humanity and unspeakable sacrilege," his office said. Buhari said "there was no justification whatsoever to target church worshippers and kill them in cold blood." At around 6:00 am (0500 GMT) at least one gunman opened fire at Saint Philip's church in Ozubulu, near the city of Onitsha, unleashing terror on the congregation. Chukwuma Emeka said he had just stepped out of the church to stretch his legs "when I heard gunshots and screaming and people running inside." "When the chaos subsided I went inside, I saw my fellow church members dead in a pool of their own blood and many others were screaming in pain." Attacks on churches are rare in southern Nigeria, where there is a predominantly Christian population. The country's mainly-Muslim north has been gripped by a violent campaign by Boko Haram jihadists, who specialise in targeting religious centres. There were varying accounts of what happened in Ozubulu. Witnesses said five gunmen in masks stormed the church, but police said the killing was the work of a lone shooter. "So far, 12 persons have been confirmed dead and deposited in the mortuary here," a worker at Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital told AFP. Garba Umar, Anambra State police Commissioner, later said 11 people were killed while 18 were injured as a result of the shooting. Several worshippers with gunshot wounds were also receiving treatment at the hospital, the source said. Witnesses said they feared that up to 20 people may have died. - 'Feud' - Umar said the attacker was a gunman who "went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding" worshippers. He said the violence was the result of a failed murder attempt, tied to a feud within the local community. "The information at the disposal of the police is that the gunman had been hired to kill a particular family person believed to be among the worshippers," he said. He said the governor of the state visited the scene and promised to pay the medical bills of the injured. Local rights activist Emeka Umeagbalasi said his information about the motive largely concurred with that of the police version. The gunmen had gone to kill the son of a local chief but failed to find him at his home, Umeagbalasi said. The attackers then went to the church to hunt for him, but could not find the intended target and became angry, he said. They opened "fire on parishioners and shot indiscriminately," he said, adding that the father of the intended target was shot and wounded. Speaker of Nigeria's House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara called the attack "barbaric... the height of wickedness." He extended his condolences to families of the victims, assuring them that the government would do everything within its power to track down those responsible. Hundreds of churches and mosques in Nigeria's north have been attacked since 2009 when Boko Haram began a violent campaign to impose strict Islamic law. The rebellion has killed at least 20,000 people and forced some 2.6 million others to flee their homes, sparking a dire humanitarian crisis in the northeast.
2017 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #31

Posted on 6 August 2017 by John Hartz

Story of the Week... Toon of the Week... Quote of the Week... Graphic of the Week... SkS Spotlights... Video of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Poster of the Week... Climate Feedback Reviews... SkS Week in Review... 97 Hours of Consensus...

Story of the Week...

More Hot Days Are Coming With Climate Change. Our Choices Will Decide How Many

Summer still has a month to go, but extreme heat has been a major storyline through June and July. Sweltering temperatures have grounded planes, sparked wildfires and set records from coast-to-coast.

These stories are becoming annual rites of passage as the world warms. And the number of hot days is projected to increase in the coming decades.

Climate Central has developed a new web-interactive tool that brings the reality of future heat to hometowns across the U.S. Simply enter the name of your city, town or hamlet  or any place in the Lower 48 that piques your curiosity  to see how the number of days above summer temperature thresholds will change throughout the rest of the century. The interactive also shows how reducing greenhouse gas emissions can help reduce the heat.

More Hot Days Are Coming With Climate Change. Our Choices Will Decide How Many, Research Report by Climate Central, Aug 3, 2017

Toon of the Week...

Quote of the Week...

Europe's death toll from weather disasters could rise 50-fold by the end of this century, with extreme heat alone killing more than 150,000 people a year by 2100 if nothing is done to curb the effects of climate change, scientists said on Friday.

In a study in The Lancet Planetary Health journal, the scientists said their findings showed climate change placing a rapidly increasing burden on society, with two in three people in Europe likely to be affected if greenhouse gas emissions and extreme weather events are not controlled.

The predictions, based on an assumption of no reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and no improvement in policies to reduce the impact of extreme climatic events, show European weather-related deaths rising from 3,000 a year between 1981 and 2010 to 152,000 a year between 2071 and 2100.

"Climate change is one of the biggest global threats to human health of the 21st century, and its peril to society will be increasingly connected to weather-driven hazards," said Giovanni Forzieri of the European Commission Joint Research Centre in Italy, who co-led the study.

He said that "unless global warming is curbed as a matter of urgency", some 350 million Europeans could be exposed to harmful climate extremes on an annual basis by the end of the century.

Extreme weather seen killing 152,000 Europeans a year by 2100 by Kate Kelland, Reuters, Aug 4, 2017

Graphic of the Week...

A History of Global Warming, In Just 35 Seconds

Last year, there was the temperature spiral. This year, its the temperature circle thats making the trend of global warming crystal clear.

A new video shows the rhythm of global warming for countries around the world, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. Bars representing each countrys annual average temperature anomaly pulse up and down. It's like watching a heartbeat on a monitor.

SkS Spotlights...

The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) is a leading European not-for-profit organisation addressing how the environment affects health in the European Union (EU). We demonstrate how policy changes can help protect health and enhance peoples quality of life.

With the support of more than 75 member organisations, HEAL brings independent expertise and evidence from the health community to different decision-making processes. Our broad alliance represents health professionals, not-for-profit health insurers, doctors, nurses, cancer and asthma groups, citizens, womens groups, youth groups, environmental NGOs, scientists and public health institutes Members include international and Europe-wide organisations as well as national and local groups in 25 countries both within EU member states and the wider European region, as defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO).



HEAL is independent of any political party or commercial interest. The alliance receives funding from the European Union, governments and private foundations as well as through membership contributions. We do not accept funding from sources with commercial interests.



Beginning in 2003 as the environmental wing of the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA), HEAL was created to bring the health voice to the centre of a wide spectrum of EU environmental policies, and to integrate environmental concerns in public health decisions.



Learn more about what we do.

Video of the Week...

Science Isn't Really a MethodIt's Your Brain Celebrating Danger and Uncertainty

Science Isn't Really a MethodIt's Your Brain Celebrating Danger and Uncertainty by Beau Lotto, Big Think/You Tube, Aug 5, 2017

Coming Soon on SkS...

Problems for oil (Riduna)

(Riduna) Why the 97% climate consensus is important (Dana, John Cook, Sander van der Linden, Ed Maibach, Tony Lieserowitz)

(Dana, John Cook, Sander van der Linden, Ed Maibach, Tony Lieserowitz) ClimateChats: Climate Pictures (Adam Levy)

(Adam Levy) Guest Post (John Abraham)

(John Abraham) SkS Resources - Easy to remember Short URLs (Baerbel)

(Baerbel) 2017 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #32 (John Hartz)

(John Hartz) 2017 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Waming Digest #32 (John Hartz)

Poster of the Week...

Climate Feedback Reviews...

Climate Feedback asked its network of scientists to review the 0p-ed, Climate Change Isnt the End of the World by David Henderson & John Cochrane, Wall Street Journal, July 30, 2017

Five scientists analyzed the article and estimated its overall scientific credibility to be low to 'very low'.

A majority of reviewers tagged the article as: Biased, Misleading.

Review Summary

This Wall Street Journal commentary by David Henderson and John Cochrane argues that the world would be better off adapting to climate change than eliminating the greenhouse gas emissions that cause warming. Scientists who reviewed this article found that it does so by ignoring most climate impacts apart from estimates of Gross Domestic Product change, by using only the most optimistic estimates of this economic loss, and by focusing on adaptation possibilities in high-income nations like the United States.

Climate change could have a much larger economic impact, along with impacts on the spread of human disease, food security, extreme weather, and marine ecosystems, for example.

Wall Street Journal op-ed on economic consequences of climate change found naive by scientists, Climate Feedback, Aug 2, 2017

SkS Week in Review...

97 Hours of Consensus...

Joanna Haigh's bio page

Quote derived with author's permission from:

"Carbon dioxide has probably not been this high in the atmosphere for 3 million years. We understand the greenhouse effect, so what more information do people want?"

High resolution JPEG (1024 pixels wide)
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Call 281-422-8302 or email sunnews@baytownsun.com to wish someone a happy birthday. We will print your birthday wish on Page 2 of The Sun.

Happy Birthday Wishes
TWIN FALLS  The Coalition of Idaho Charter School Families is hosting an information session from noon to 3 p.m. Aug. 18 in the Eccles Library at the College of Southern Idahos Herrett Center for Arts and Science on North College Road in Twin Falls.
The event was attended by war veterans from Scotland and Belgium, as well as delegations from Poland and Russia, and ambassadors from the Czech Republic and Slovakia

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The village of Adinkerke, situated on the Belgian coast, commemorated the end of World War II in Europe, particularly the soldiers who tried to protect them from the Nazis. Soldiers from Czechoslovakia were also among the victims.

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The event, which took place in late May 2017, was attended by war veterans from Scotland and Belgium, as well as delegations from Poland and Russia, and ambassadors from the Czech Republic and Slovakia, the public-service RTVS reported.

About 40 Czechoslovak soldiers are buried at the cemetery in Adinkerke. Of 4,000 Czechoslovak soldiers who fought near the Dunkirk port, 192 perished.

As for the survivors, there are only a few who can recall the battles.

We were crouched behind the poles, WWII veteran Anton Petrak described for RTVS. The trolley passed by and we attacked it from behind. The result was that we received awards.

Czechoslovak soldiers fought against the Nazi army along this 26-kilometre coast, known as the Dunkirk pocket, but they failed to wias the fanatic Nazi admiral Friedrich Riehl refused tocapitulate.

Though many of the soldiers returned to Czechoslovakia to help with the liberation, the others stayed in Belgium until the end of WWII.

The city of De Panne and its surroundings do not forget about them, RTVS reported.

Without Czechoslovak soldiers we would still be part of Nazi Germany, said Alain Fontaine, the leader of the memorial march, as quoted by RTVS. It is the basic thing for us to commemorate these heroes for what they did for us, that together they helped liberate Belgium.
TWIN FALLS  After a drop in arrests in Jerome and Twin Falls last year, more people are again being arrested in the two cities. But whats the increase mean?

In Twin Falls, police say theyre arresting more people who have warrants out for their arrest. And in Jerome, law enforcement is intensifying its emphasis on targeting drug offenders.

The number of offenses reported to Twin Falls police dropped 16.5 percent from 2015 to 2016, and the number of arrests also fell almost 7 percent, according to the yearly report complied by Idaho State Police. This year, though, felony arrests have increased sharply, from 295 in the first half of 2016 to 375 in the first half of this year.

Most of that increase, though, is due to a sharp increase in the number of people being arrested on warrants: from 84 people to 136. Other categories of crime show no real pattern and most have stayed relatively stable, according to statistics provided by Twin Falls Police Chief Craig Kingsbury.

Kingsbury said the warrants category can be a little deceiving, because many of the people who are arrested in the city are picked up because of warrants issued for offenses committed outside of the city. Sometimes, theyre people police run into during a traffic stop or other encounter. Other cases are where a detective secures a warrant after a felony investigation.

In Jerome, too, offenses reported fell by 19 percent and arrests by 20 percent from 2015 to 2016, but they have been on an upward trend again the first half of this year, Chief Dan Hall said.

From January through the end of June 2017, reports of property crimes in Jerome have gone up 26 percent compared to the same period in 2016, while crimes against society, mostly drug crimes, have gone up 161 percent, from 31 to 81.

The reason for that is, its almost all due to street-level drug arrests, Hall said.

Part of the increase, Hall said is because theyre out there looking for it more so than in the past.

One of our goals this year was to step up on our street-level enforcement on drug activity, he said.

There were 415 arrests in Jerome the first half of this year, compared to 356 in 2016. Crimes against persons, the category that includes offenses such as assault, murder and sex crimes, have

stayed relatively stable, dropping from 64 in the first half of last year to 62 at the end of this June.

Since he became chief at the end of 2015, Kingsbury said he has tried to make some changes to the way police work.

Were trying to impart on our troops to have more of a guardian mindset and be problem solvers and work with our community when they came across problems, he said.

Part of this years increase in arrests, he said, could be population growth. And part of it, he said, may be because he hired a number of new officers when he became chief and now theyre fully trained. New officers are partnered with another at first as they learn the job, which limits how many contacts they can have. Now that theyre patrolling on their own, that becomes a force multiplier and really gives us more bodies on the street.

State police data shows that offenses reported to and arrests by Twin Falls and Jerome sheriffs deputies stayed relatively stable from 2015 to 2016. So far this year, Twin Falls sheriffs deputies have seen sharp drops both in the numbers of crimes reported and the number of arrests, according to numbers provided by department spokeswoman Lori Stewart. Drug crimes, for example, have gone from 115 reports and 78 arrests in the first half of 2016 to 54 reports and 40 arrests the first half of 2017.

Numbers for Jerome County have been pretty steady compared to last year, Sheriff Doug McFall said.

We can safely say its been fairly consistent, he said. We havent seen a spike up or down either way.  Either were doing a good job or the criminals are finding jobs, one of the two.

McFall said the department is doing a better job at solving burglaries than in the past, which he credits mainly to investigators who were hired over the past couple of years better learning their jobs.

Theyre just doing a bang-up job, McFall said. Its just a matter of youve really got to have an interest in investigations and work hard.

You work hard at it, you end up getting results.
L3 Technologies, Inc. provides aircraft sustainment, simulation and training, night vision and image intensification equipment, and security and detection systems used on military, homeland security, and commercial platforms in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) Systems; Communications and Networked Systems (C&NS); and Electronic Systems. The company offers engineering, modernization and sustainment, space avionics and imaging payload, counter unmanned aircraft systems (CUAS) mission, cyber and electronic warfare, special mission command and control, modeling and simulation, and life cycle support services for ISR, airborne sensor, warrior sensor, space and sensor, aircraft, and intelligence and mission systems, as well as for military aviation services and advanced programs. It also provides network and communication systems, secure communications products, radio frequency components, satellite communication terminals and space, microwave and telemetry products, and secure data links in various business areas, such as broadband communication, naval power, space and power, and maritime sensor systems, as well as in advanced communications. In addition, the company offers components, products, subsystems, and systems, as well as related services to military and commercial customers in various business areas, including commercial aviation solutions, precision engagement systems, link training and simulation, and security and detection systems. It serves the United States (U.S.) Department of Defense and its prime contractors, the U.S. Government intelligence agencies, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, foreign governments, and commercial customers. The company was formerly known as L-3 Communications Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to L3 Technologies, Inc. in December 2016. L3 Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in New York, New York.
TWIN FALLS COUNTY

FELONY SENTENCINGS

Rafiel Tyronne Mendoza, 31, Rupert; possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $500 public defender, $100 DNA, $603.80 restitution, five years penitentiary, two determinate, three indeterminate, 178 days credited, sentence suspended, three years supervised probation.

Jourden Michael Gunn, 22, Twin Falls; burglary, $245.50 costs, $500 public defender, $100 DNA, five years penitentiary, two determinate, three indeterminate, 70 days credited, sentence suspended.

Bartlett Blaine Livingston, AKA Blaine Livingston Bartlett, 55, Twin Falls; possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $100 DNA, $1,185.50 restitution, seven years penitentiary, one year six months determinate, five years six months indeterminate, 224 days credited.

Diana Gabriela Iniguez, 22, Buhl; grand theft, $245.50 costs, $100 DNA, 14 penitentiary, one determinate, 13 indeterminate, 87 days credited.

Debra Diane Jones, 50, Twin Falls; possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $100 DNA, seven years penitentiary, four determinate, three indeterminate, credit for time served, 365 days retained jurisdiction, sentence to run consecutive to other 2017 case.

Debra Diane Jones, 50, Twin Falls; attempted possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $60 workman comp. program fee, seven years penitentiary, four determinate, three indeterminate, credit for time served, 365 days retained jurisdiction, sentence to run concurrent to other charge and to other 2017 case. Burglary, $245.50 costs, eight years penitentiary, four determinate, four indeterminate, credit for time served, 365 days retained jurisdiction, sentence to run concurrent to other charge and other case.

Yvonne Lynn Coates, AKA Yvonne Lynn Cheeney, AKA Yvonne Lynn Coates-Nelson, 23, Homeless, possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $1,000 fine, $500 public defender, seven years penitentiary, four determinate, three indeterminate, 65 days credited, 365 retained jurisdiction, sentence to run concurrent to 2014 case.

Nicholas Emmet Stewart, 23, Buhl; grand theft by possessing, receiving or disposing of stolen property, $245.50 costs, $500 public defender, $100 DNA, six years penitentiary, two years determinate, four indeterminate, four days credited, sentence suspended.

Kayla Nikole Cook, AKA Kylie L. Bryant, 24, Gooding; possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $500 public defender, $100 DNA, $60 workman comp. program fee, $322.50 restitution, four years penitentiary, two determinate, two indeterminate, 49 days credited, sentence suspended, three years supervised probation.

Aubrey Dawn Heinzelman, 31, Twin Falls; possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $500 public defender, $872.88 restitution, five years penitentiary, two determinate, three indeterminate, 137 days credited, sentence suspended, sentence to run consecutive to 2016, three years supervised probation, problem solving court.

Zachary Blake Burton, 31, Twin Falls; assault or battery upon certain personnel, $245.50 costs, $500 public defender, $872.88 restitution, $100 DNA, $60 workman comp. program fee, five years penitentiary, two determinate, three indeterminate, 24 days credited, sentence suspended, three years supervised probation.

Terry Duane Morasch, 46, Homeless, possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $500 public defender, four years penitentiary, two determinate, two indeterminate, 143 days credited, sentence to run consecutive to 2006 case and Ada county 2005 case.

Thomas Leonard Jones, 47, Twin Falls; possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver, $285.50 costs, $100 DNA, $60 workman comp. program fee, six years penitentiary, two determinate, four indeterminate, four days credited, sentence suspended, three years supervised probation.

Juan Carlos Garcia, 44, Filer; possession of a controlled substance, $285.50 costs, $500 public defender, $100 DNA, $60 workman comp. program fee, seven years penitentiary, three determinate, four indeterminate, 17 days credited, sentence suspended, four years supervised probation.

Daniel Matt Fairchild, 57, Buhl; forgery by fictitious bills, notes or check making, passing or publishing, $245.50 costs, $500 public defender, nine years penitentiary, five determinate, four indeterminate, two days credited, sentence suspended, three years supervised probation.

DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE SENTENCINGS

Kira Marie Laub, 34, Filer; DUI, $1,000 fine, $700 suspended, $202.50 costs, 180 days jail, 170 suspended, credit for time served, 40 hours work detail, 180 days restricted drivers license, 12 months supervised probation, attend victim impact panel and court alcohol school.

Robin Darlene Williams, 43, Twin Falls; DUI, $1,000 fine, $700 suspended, $202.50 costs, $50 public defender, 180 days jail, 167 suspended, 10 days discretionary, two days credited, guilty withheld judgment, eight hours work detail, 180 days restricted drivers license, 12 months supervised probation, attend victim impact panel and court alcohol school.

Amber Nicole Rosado, 37, Twin Falls; DUI, $1,000 fine, $700 suspended, $202.50 costs, 180 days jail, 170 suspended, two days credited, 32 hours work detail, 180 days restricted drivers license, 24 months supervised probation, attend victim impact panel.

Diane Lee Timmons, 27, Buhl; DUI, $1,000 fine, $700 suspended, $202.50 costs, $50 public defender, 180 days jail, 177 suspended, three days credited, 180 days restricted drivers license, 12 months supervised probation, attend victim impact panel.

Erika Sanchez, 27, Shoshone; DUI, $1,000 fine, $700 suspended, $202.50 costs, $50 public defender, 180 days jail, 177 suspended, one day credited, guilty withheld judgment, 16 hours work detail, 180 days restricted drivers license, 12 months supervised probation, attend victim impact panel.

Jeffrey Alan Ross, 58, Buhl; DUI excessive, $1,000 fine, $700 suspended, $202.50 costs, $75 public defender, 365 days jail with balance suspended, 10 days discretionary, 101 days credited, 365 days restricted drivers license, 24 months supervised probation, one year interlock device, attend victim impact panel and court alcohol school. Driving without privileges second offense, $500 fine, $500 suspended, $172.50 costs, 90 days jail.

Rebecca Florence Robbins, 42, Twin Falls; DUI excessive, $1,000 fine, $1,000 suspended, $202.50 costs, 180 days jail, 175 suspended, 10 days discretionary, one day credited, 365 days restricted drivers license, 24 months supervised probation, one year interlock device, attend victim impact panel and court alcohol school.

Rickie Dean Pettit, 66, Idaho Falls; DUI, $1,000 fine, $700 suspended, $202.50 costs, 180 days jail, 177 suspended, one day credited, guilty withheld judgment, 24 hours community service, 90 days restricted drivers license, 12 months supervised probation, attend victim impact panel and court alcohol school.

DIVORCE CIVIL PROCEEDINGS

Jessi Henderson v. Brian Johnson

Elizabeth Tristan v. Paul Trzynka

Sara Frazier v. Jason Frazier
Twin Falls is my home. It has been since 1974. I grew up here. I graduated high school and college here. I work here. Recently it was announced that the Twin Falls Macys store will not renew its lease next spring in 2018 and thus will close its store.

I work retail and have for over 10-plus years at Sears. I have climbed the internal ladder and am proud and honored to be part of one of Americas most integrated retailers. Sears itself has and is undergoing massive changes to the way they operate. It is no secret. I can say that Idaho from Boise to Twin Falls to Idaho Falls has three of these stores that are currently operating within black standards and are serving our members with pride everyday.

Citizens are running scared and the new generation is stuck on dot-coms and the ability to buy from their computers. Yes, everyone, we have come full circle. I believe that the internet is here to stay. The problem is that many times a person may order from a dot-com and then find they dont like their product and they want to return it to a brick and mortar store. Those days are gone. Why? Because the dot-coms are their own business. Local stores cant always return an item purchased from a third party. The customer states, Why, isnt a store a store? Whether it is online or full-line store? I gotta tell you those days are gone. If you buy online you return on line.

Next and even more concerning is local media. When the media states a business is closing, it hurts business for all of us. It brings down morale in the stores that are here to serve all of us. Why do we put the fear in our citizens every time a business announces a closure. Most often we dont give that same attention to the many businesses coming to town or even a big box retailers that is still opening stores when they may be shuttering others?

I can say that Sears has opened two appliance showrooms in the last year to adapt to the newer generations buying pulses. But again the issue is fear in the customers. We as citizens should support local business. Just because it might be a big box doesnt mean the people that are working there are not your friends and neighbors. Sears, J.C. Penny and Macys, for example, are so much a part of Americana from many past and current generations. Why does the media cheer and root for failure of America? I know some of you reading this may say that some of these stores just dont cut todays standards. But they do. Adaptation is still needed from all generations and supporting globally instead of buying locally hurts all home town business. Yes, locally many businesses operating need to step up too.

As for the media (KMVT) how about a story on how well businesses are doing in the Magic Valley? Yes, we have Chobani, Cliff Bar and many others and thank goodness. But retail is here to stay. Magic Valley loves to shop. They may wait until the weekend to do it, but they do shop. Local radio invite store managers that advertise with you the opportunity to be interviewed on your radio stations about why you should support them. That is a solution. Please dont always buy in to the good old boy talk that may take place in your local coffee shop.

As for the naysayers that will think I just wasted my time, please think long and hard as you send that debit card info over the internet. I prefer my info to stay at my local retailer and not in a third-world country that barely speaks English. Go ahead and say local retail is dead and pass it on to your friends. I, for one, think youre wrong and Im quite sure I have the backing of many generations behind me. The millennial generation may have the world in their sights, but the older generations are still kicking for many more years.
Church & Dwight Co., Inc. develops, manufactures, and markets household, personal care, and specialty products. It operates through three segments: Consumer Domestic, Consumer International, and Specialty Products Division. The company offers cat litters, carpet deodorizers, laundry detergents, and baking soda, as well as other baking soda based products under the ARM & HAMMER brand; condoms, lubricants, and vibrators under the TROJAN brand; stain removers, cleaning solutions, laundry detergents, and bleach alternatives under the OXICLEAN brand; battery-operated and manual toothbrushes under the SPINBRUSH brand; home pregnancy and ovulation test kits under the FIRST RESPONSE brand; depilatories under the NAIR brand; oral analgesics under the ORAJEL brand; laundry detergents under the XTRA brand; gummy dietary supplements under the L'IL CRITTERS and VITAFUSION brands; dry shampoos under the BATISTE brand; water flossers and replacement showerheads under the WATERPIK brand; FLAWLESS products; cold shortening and relief products under the ZICAM brand; and oral care products under the THERABREATH brand. Its specialty products include animal productivity products, such as MEGALAC rumen bypass fat, a supplement that enables cows to maintain energy levels during the period of high milk production; BIO-CHLOR and FERMENTEN, which are used to reduce health issues associated with calving, as well as provides needed protein; and CELMANAX refined functional carbohydrate, a yeast-based prebiotic. The company offers sodium bicarbonate; and cleaning and deodorizing products. It sells its consumer products through supermarkets, mass merchandisers, wholesale clubs, drugstores, convenience stores, home stores, dollar and other discount stores, pet and other specialty stores, and websites and other e-commerce channels; and specialty products to industrial customers and livestock producers through distributors. The company was founded in 1846 and is headquartered in Ewing, New Jersey.
Ford Motor Company is the second largest US auto manufacturer by market cap and market share and ranks 4th globally. The company was founded in 1903 by Henry Ford following a series of cars that led to the introduction of the Model T. The Model T revolutionized the automobile industry not only because it made vehicles affordable for the budding middle class but it changed the way manufacturing was done. The Ford factory features the worlds first moving assembly line, an introduction that not only improved the pace of production but lowered the cost of its vehicles.

Other prominent innovations made by Mr. Ford include the strict standardization of parts that allowed for easy construction and repair and the standardized workweek. Henry Fords switch to a $5 workday and 8-hour shifts allowed him to run 3 shifts per day and improve productivity while providing his employees with the power to buy their own products.

Today, Ford Motor Company makes and markets a large lineup of cars, trucks, SUVs, EVs, and Lincoln luxury vehicles globally. The companys iconic F-series of trucks is the worlds best-selling pickup truck for decades running and the new all-electric Lightning is on track to dominate the top spot in the EV market. Other iconic brands in the Ford lineup include the Thunderbird introduced in 1954, the Mustang in 1964, and the Transit work van in 1965. The Mustang, notably, was created for the Worlds Fair and expected to sell 100,000 in its first year but shocked the industry with 22,000 units sold on the first day.

The company operates through four segments including Ford Blue (ICE vehicles), Model e (EVs) Mobility, and Ford Credit. The Ford Blue and Model e segments sell Ford and Lincoln vehicles, parts, and accessories while the Mobility segment designs and builds advanced technologies including but not limited to self-driving autonomous car systems.

The Ford Credit segment primarily offers commercial and retail loans to auto dealers and car buyers. This segment not only provides financing for new purchases and dealer inventory but makes loans for new dealerships and expansions of old ones.

Ford has fully embraced the switch to EV and is planning for an all-EV future. To that end, the company pledged to spend up to $50 billion on EV infrastructure by 2026. The plans include the build-out of an entirely new campus dedicated to EV manufacture from batteries to motor platforms, manufacturing capacity, and new vehicles. In regard to total capacity, the company is targeting 2 million in total annual EV sales by that same year.
Genuine Parts Company distributes automotive replacement parts, and industrial parts and materials. It operates through Automotive Parts Group and Industrial Parts Group segments. The company distributes automotive replacement parts for hybrid and electric vehicles, trucks, SUVs, buses, motorcycles, recreational vehicles, farm vehicles, small engines, farm equipment, marine equipment, and heavy duty equipment; and accessory and supply items used by various automotive aftermarket customers, such as repair shops, service stations, fleet operators, automobile and truck dealers, leasing companies, bus and truck lines, mass merchandisers, farms, industrial concerns, and individuals. It also distributes industrial replacement parts and related supplies, such as bearings, mechanical and electrical power transmission products, industrial automation and robotics, hoses, hydraulic and pneumatic components, industrial and safety supplies, and material handling products for original equipment manufacturer, as well as maintenance, repair, and operation customers in equipment and machinery, food and beverage, forest product, primary metal, pulp and paper, mining, automotive, oil and gas, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, power generation, alternative energy, governments, transportation, ports, and other industries. In addition, the company provides various services and repairs comprising gearbox and fluid power and process pump assembly and repair, hydraulic drive shaft repair, electrical panel assembly and repair, hose and gasket manufacture and assembly, and other value-added services. It operates in the United States, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Indonesia, and Singapore. The company was incorporated in 1928 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
Yelp Inc. operates a platform that connects consumers with local businesses in the United States and internationally. The company's platform covers various local business categories, including restaurants, shopping, beauty and fitness, health, and other categories, as well as home, local, auto, professional, pets, events, real estate, and financial services. It provides free and paid advertising products to businesses, which include cost-per-click search advertising and multi-location Ad products, as well as enables businesses to deliver targeted search advertising to local audiences; and business listing page products. The company also offers other services comprising Yelp Reservations that provide online reservations for restaurants, nightlife, and other venues directly from their Yelp business pages; Yelp Waitlist, a subscription-based waitlist management solution that allows consumers to check wait times and join waitlists remotely, as well as businesses to manage seating and server rotation; Yelp Knowledge program that offers business owners local analytics and insights through access to its historical data and other proprietary content; and Yelp Fusion, which offers free and paid access to content and data for consumer-facing enterprise use through publicly available APIs. In addition, it provides content licensing, as well as allows third-party data providers to update and manage business listing information on behalf of businesses. Further, the company offers its products directly through its sales force; indirectly through partners; and online through its website, as well as non-advertising partner arrangements. It has strategic partnership with Grubhub for providing consumers with a service to place food orders for pickup and delivery. Yelp Inc. was incorporated in 2004 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.
Aggreko Plc supplies modular, mobile power, heating, cooling, and related services in North America, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe, Eurasia, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates in three segments: Rental Solutions, Power Solutions Industrial, and Power Solutions Utility. It offers power generation products, including diesel generators, G3+ generators, and gas generators, as well as heavy fuel oil and hybrid power plants; cooling systems, such as cooling towers, chillers, heat exchangers, and air handlers and conditioners; and desiccant and refrigerated dehumidifiers to prevent metal corrosion, aid processes, preserve equipment on cold stacked offshore rigs, reduce mold and mildew growth during production processes, and dry out water-damaged buildings, as well as to reduce drying times for concrete, insulation, and fireproofing. The company also provides electric heaters, indirect fired heaters, and heat exchangers; and load banks that are used to test generators and turbines, uninterrupted power systems, electrical distribution panels and systems, data center power systems, combined heat and power systems, and simulation of heat loads. In addition, it offers battery storage solutions; and power to national utility customers. The company operates 182 sales and service centers. It serves the agriculture, construction, contracting, data centers, event power, facilities management, food and beverage, government, manufacturing, mining, oil and gas, petrochemical and refining, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy, shipping, telecommunications, and utility power sectors. Aggreko Plc was founded in 1962 and is headquartered in Glasgow, the United Kingdom.
The following companies are subsidiares of Eli Lilly and: 1096401 B.C. Unlimited Liability Company, ARMO BioSciences Inc, ARMO Bioscience, Advanced Cardiovascular Systems, Alnara Pharmaceuticals, Alnara Pharmaceuticals Inc., Andean Technical Operations Center, Applied Molecular Evolution Inc., AurKa Pharma, Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Avid Radiopharmaceuticals Inc., ChemGen, CoLucid Pharmaceuticals, CoLucid Pharmaceuticals Inc., Dermira, Devices for Vascular Intervention(DVI), Disarm Therapeutics, Dista Ilac Ticaret Ltd. Sti., Dista S.A., Dista-Produtos Quimicos & Farmaceuticos LDA, ELCO Dominicana SRL, ELCO Insurance Company Limited, ELCO Management Inc., ELCO for Trade and Marketing S.A.E., ELGO Insurance Company Limited, Elanco Animal Health Ireland Limited, Elanco Switzerland Holding Sarl, Eli Lilly (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Eli Lilly (Philippines) Incorporated, Eli Lilly (S.A.) (Proprietary) Limited, Eli Lilly (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Eli Lilly (Suisse) S.A., Eli Lilly Asia Inc., Eli Lilly Asia Pacific SSC Sdn Bhd, Eli Lilly Australia Pty. Limited, Eli Lilly B-H d.o.o., Eli Lilly Benelux S.A., Eli Lilly Bienes y Servicios S de RL de CV, Eli Lilly CR s.r.o., Eli Lilly Canada Inc., Eli Lilly Cork Limited, Eli Lilly Danmark A/S, Eli Lilly Egypt for Trading, Eli Lilly European Clinical Trial Services SA, Eli Lilly Export S.A., Eli Lilly Finance S.A., Eli Lilly Ges.m.b.H., Eli Lilly Group Limited, Eli Lilly Holdings Ltd., Eli Lilly Hrvatska d.o.o., Eli Lilly Interamerica Inc., Eli Lilly Interamerica Inc. y Compania Limitada, Eli Lilly International Corporation, Eli Lilly Ireland Holdings Limited, Eli Lilly Israel Ltd., Eli Lilly Italia S.p.A., Eli Lilly Japan K.K., Eli Lilly Kinsale Limited, Eli Lilly Nederland B.V., Eli Lilly Nigeria Ltd., Eli Lilly Norge A.S., Eli Lilly Pakistan (Pvt.) Ltd., Eli Lilly Polska Sp.z.o.o. (Ltd.), Eli Lilly Regional Operations GmbH, Eli Lilly Romania SRL, Eli Lilly S.A., Eli Lilly Saudi Arabia Limited, Eli Lilly Services Inc, Eli Lilly Services India Private Limited, Eli Lilly Slovakia s.r.o., Eli Lilly Sweden AB, Eli Lilly Vostok S.A. Geneva, Eli Lilly and Company, Eli Lilly and Company (India) Pvt. Ltd., Eli Lilly and Company (Ireland) Limited, Eli Lilly and Company (N.Z.) Limited, Eli Lilly and Company (Taiwan) Inc., Eli Lilly and Company Limited, Eli Lilly de Centro America S.A., Eli Lilly do Brasil Limitada, Eli Lilly farmacevtska druzba d.o.o., Eli Lilly y Compania de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Eli Lilly y Compania de Venezuela S.A., Glycostasis Inc, Greenfield-Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Heart Rhythm Technologies Inc, Hybritech, Hypnion, ICOS Corporation, ImClone GmbH, ImClone LLC, ImClone Systems Holdings Inc., ImClone Systems LLC, Imclone Systems, Irisfarma S.A., Ivy Animal Health, Kinsale Financial Services Unlimited Company, Lilly (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd, Lilly Asia Ventures Fund I L.P., Lilly Asia Ventures Fund II L.P., Lilly Asian Ventures Fund III L.P., Lilly Cayman Holdings, Lilly China Research and Development Co. Ltd., Lilly Deutschland GmbH, Lilly France S.A.S., Lilly Global Nederland Holdings B.V., Lilly Global Services Inc., Lilly Holding GmbH, Lilly Holdings B.V., Lilly Hungaria KFT, Lilly Japan Financing G.K., Lilly Korea Ltd., Lilly Nederland Finance B.V., Lilly Nederland Finance B.V. - GCC, Lilly Nederland Holding B.V., Lilly Pharma Ltd., Lilly Portugal - Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Lilly S.A., Lilly Suzhou Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Lilly Trading Co. LTD, Lilly USA LLC, Lilly Ventures Fund I LLC, Lilly del Caribe Inc., Lilly ilac ticaret limited sirketi, Lohmann Animal Health, Loxo Oncology, Lylly Centre for Clinical Pharmacology PTE. LTD., Novartis Animal Health, OY Eli Lilly Finland AB, Origin Medsystems, PT. Eli Lilly Indonesia, Pacific Biotech, Pharmaserve-Lilly S.A.C.I., Physio-Control, SGX Pharmaceuticals, SGX Pharmaceuticals Inc, Spaly Bioquimica S.A., UAB Eli Lilly Lietuva, Valquifarma S.A., and Vital Pharma Productos Farmaceuticos.

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(This August 5th story corrects identity of the French minister in paragraph 13. Minister of State Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne attended the ceremony, not Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian) By Bozorgmehr Sharafedin LONDON (Reuters) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who was sworn-in for a second term on Saturday, has accused the United States of trying to undermine Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers, telling President Donald Trump that it will be his political suicide. Rouhani, who was decisively re-elected in May after promising to open Iran to the world, took the oath of office before parliament in Tehran in the presence of foreign dignitaries including senior European figures. "The U.S. lack of commitment to implementation of the nuclear deal ... proved it to be an unreliable partner to the world and even to its longtime allies," Rouhani said in a ceremony broadcast live on state television. The deal he championed with the United States and five other major powers in 2015 led to the lifting of most sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on its nuclear programme. Rouhani has intensified efforts to protect the deal - the biggest achievement of his first term - against Washington's return to an aggressive Iran policy. In comments aimed at Trump, Rouhani said: "Those who want to tear up the nuclear deal should know that they will be ripping up their own political life." The U.S. Senate voted in late July to impose new sanctions on Iran over its missiles programme and human rights issues. "Iran would not be the first to pull out of the nuclear deal, but it will not remain silent about the U.S. repeated violations of the accord," Rouhani said. PRAISE FOR EUROPEAN PRESENCE In a meeting with European foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini in Tehran in advance of the ceremony, Rouhani said the U.S. stance could hamper implementation of the nuclear deal. Praising the presence of senior European dignitaries at the ceremony, Rouhani said it showed Europe was determined to expand ties with Tehran. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was also quoted as saying by state media in his meeting with Mogherini: "Mr Trump is trying to destroy the nuclear accord at Iran's expense, and Europe should be conscious of this." Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, President of Iraq Fuad Masum, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe were also present at swearing-in ceremony. Among the Western officials present were France's Minister of State attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, State Secretary at the German Foreign Ministry Michael Roth, and British Minister of State Alistair Burt. Security in Tehran was increased to the highest level, the police said, two months after gunmen linked to the Islamic State group attacked parliament and the mausoleum of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, killing 17 people. Rouhani's deputy said on Wednesday that Rouhani would keep on two important ministers for his second term: Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh and Foreign Minister Zarif. The powers of the elected president are limited by those of the unelected Supreme Leader who outranks him, but the scale of Rouhani's victory can give the pragmatist president a strong mandate. However, analysts say Rouhani may struggle to make a significant impact given sharpening divisions in the dual clerical-republican power structure in Iran, and Trump's aggressive policy against Tehran. (Reporting by Bozorgmehr Sharafedin; Editing by Andrew Bolton)
DOUALA (Reuters) - A suicide bomber has killed at least seven people in a small town in northern Cameroon near the Nigeria border, a local official and a military source said on Sunday. The attack occurred on Saturday near Amchide in Cameroon's Far North region, which has become a target for Boko Haram suicide bombers, many of whom are young women forced to enter populated areas with explosives strapped to their bodies. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack and the identity of the bombers is unknown. Another suicide bomb exploded in the town of Waza in north Cameroon on Saturday, but no casualties were reported other than the bomber, the sources said. Boko Haram's bid to establish an Islamic caliphate in northern Nigeria has spilled over into neighbouring Cameroon, Chad and Niger, killing more than 20,000 people in the Lake Chad region and displacing nearly 3 million people, according to the United Nations. Despite military gains by the Nigerian army and a regional force, attacks by Boko Haram continue unabated. Last month, suicide bombers killed at least 12 people and wounded over 40 others in Waza. (Reporting By Josiane Kouagheu, writing by Edward McAllister; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
A British Columbia wildfire burning near the Alberta border shut down a highway on Friday, August 4, ahead of the holiday weekend. The Verdant Creek Fire has burned through 4,833 hectares or nearly 12,000 acres since it was discovered July 15.

A portion of Highway 93 was closed on Friday because of smoke, according to a news report. The highway, a major road through the Rockies, was closed earlier in the week because of snow, and park officials had warned the road could be closed again during the holiday weekend. An update on if the road could be re-opened was not expected until Sunday. Credit: Instagram/ty__lew via Storyful
United Rentals, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental company. It operates in two segments, General Rentals and Specialty. The General Rentals segment rents general construction and industrial equipment includes backhoes, skid-steer loaders, forklifts, earthmoving equipment, and material handling equipment; aerial work platforms, such as boom and scissor lifts; and general tools and light equipment comprising pressure washers, water pumps, and power tools for construction and industrial companies, manufacturers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners, and government entities. The specialty segment rents specialty construction products, including trench safety equipment consists of trench shields, aluminum hydraulic shoring systems, slide rails, crossing plates, construction lasers, and line testing equipment for underground work; power and heating, ventilating, and air conditioning equipment, such as portable diesel generators, electrical distribution equipment, and temperature control equipment; fluid solutions equipment for fluid containment, transfer, and treatment; and mobile storage equipment and modular office space. This segment serves construction companies involved in infrastructure projects, and municipalities and industrial companies. It also sells aerial lifts, reach forklifts, telehandlers, compressors, and generators; construction consumables, tools, small equipment, and safety supplies; and parts for equipment that is owned by its customers, as well as provides repair and maintenance services. The company sells used equipment through its sales force, brokers, website, directly to manufacturers, and at auctions. The company operates a network of 1,360 rental locations in the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. United Rentals, Inc. was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.
Autohome Inc. operates as an online destination for automobile consumers in the People's Republic of China. The company delivers interactive content and tools to automobile consumers through its three websites, autohome.com.cn, che168.com, and ttpai.cn on PCs, mobile devices, mobile applications, and mini apps. It provides media services, including automaker advertising services and regional marketing campaigns; and leads generation services comprising dealer subscription services, advertising services for individual dealers, and used automobile listing and other platform-based services. The company also offers Autohome Mall, an online transaction platform for users to review automotive-related information, purchase coupons offered by automakers for discounts, and make purchases to complete the transaction; data products; and online bidding platform for used automobiles, as well as collects commissions for facilitating transactions of auto-financing and insurance products on its platform. The company was formerly known as Sequel Limited and changed its name to Autohome Inc. in October 2011. Autohome Inc. was incorporated in 2008 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People's Republic of China.
Daimler AG, together its subsidiaries, develops and manufactures passenger cars, trucks, vans, and buses in Germany and internationally. It operates through Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans, Daimler Trucks and Buses, and Daimler Mobility segments. The Mercedes-Benz Cars segment offers premium and luxury vehicles of the Mercedes-Benz brand, including the Mercedes-AMG, Mercedes-Maybach, and Mercedes-EQ brands; small cars under the smart brand name; and ecosystem of Mercedes-Benz under the Mercedes me brand, as well as vans and related services under the Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner brands. Daimler Trucks and Buses segment offers its trucks and special vehicles under the Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner, Western Star, FUSO, and BharatBenz brands; and buses under the Mercedes-Benz, Setra, Thomas Built Buses, and FU brands, as well as bus chassis. The Daimler Mobility segment provides financing and leasing packages for end-customers and dealers; and automotive insurance brokerage, banking, investment, and fleet management services under the Athlon brand. It also sells vehicle related spare parts and accessories. Daimler AG was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany
Yext, Inc. organizes business facts to provide answers to consumer questions in North America and internationally. It operates Yext platform, a cloud-based platform that allows its customers to provide answers to consumer questions, to control the facts about their businesses and the content of their landing pages, and to manage their consumer reviews, as well as provides customers to update their information and content through its knowledge network of approximately 200 maps, apps, search engines, intelligent GPS systems, digital assistants, vertical directories, and social networks. The platform enables its customers to centralize, control and manage data fields, including store information, such as name, address, phone number and holiday hours; professional information, comprising of headshot, specialties, and education; job information, consisting of title and description; and FAQs and other information. It serves the healthcare, retail, and financial services industries. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in New York, New York.
This is a current list of the top 250 companies by market capitalization on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Learn more .

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is one of the largest, and most recognizable, stock exchanges in the world. The NYSE is in New York City, New York at 11 Wall Street. The NYSE has been in existence since the earliest days of the United States becoming a nation, in 1792 and is primarily made up of blue-chip companies with large market capitalizations. In fact, many of the stocks that make up the Dow Jones Composite Index (i.e. The Dow) are listed on the NYSE.

This article gives a brief history of the New York Stock Exchange. In addition, it covers topics such as what kind of stocks trade on the exchange, what are the listing requirements, how trading is performed, and what the daily price movement of the NYSE tells investors about investor sentiment.

What Were the Origins of the NYSE?

Today, the New York Stock Exchange is known as the center of the financial universe. However, the exchanges origin is far more humble. On May 17, 1792, 24 stockbrokers signed the Buttonwood Agreement creating a centralized exchange to help provide order to the securities market in what was still a young nation. The "Buttonwood Agreement comes from the tree of the same name under which the founders signed the agreement.

An initial benefit of the exchange was how it removed the need for auctioneers when trading commodities like wheat and tobacco and to set a commission rate. The exchange initially focused on government bonds.

However, the exchange had no formal home. Business was usually conducted informally in the local coffeehouses. In 1817, the exchange changed its name to the New York Stock & Exchange Board which later became the New York Stock Exchange. At this time, the exchange adopted a constitution that set the rules for trading. A group of stockbrokers met twice a day at 40 Wall Street to trade 30 stocks and bonds.

Over time, the exchange moved became the financial hub of the country and moved to its current location in 1865.

What Kind of Stocks Trade on the NYSE?

As of June 2022, the NYSE includes approximately 2,400 companies with a market capitalization of over $28.2 trillion. Although the NYSE trades stocks of all market capitalizations, its best known for trading the stocks of large cap companies. These have the benefit of being mature companies in mature industries. And many of these companies reward shareholders with dividends.

However, that also means that many of these companies are better suited for value investors as opposed to growth investors. In bear markets this stability can be a benefit for investors as these stocks tend to perform less bad than more volatile stocks. But in a bull market, these stocks are not likely to provide investors with the growth that they look for.

An interesting fact about how the NYSE and NASDAQ operate is that the companies with the five largest market caps on the NYSE are also listed on the NASDAQ exchange.

What Are the Listing Requirements For the NYSE?

The NYSE has strict guidelines that govern the types of companies that can list on the exchange. Here are the major requirements that all companies must meet:

The company must have at least 2,200 shareholders

The company must trade over 100,000 shares per month

The company must have a market valuation of over $100 million

The company must generate more than $75 million in annual revenue

However, there is at least one advantage of having such stringent requirements. That is the companies that meet the requirements generally find it easier to get more investors funds when they hold their initial public offering (IPO).

Once a company begins trading on the NYSE, it must continue to meet these requirements. If it doesnt it can be delisted. In addition to these requirements, the stock must continue to trade above $1. If the price of a stock drops below $1 for more than 29 consecutive trading days, the stock receives an Initial Price Violation Notice.

At that point, the company has 10 days to provide the exchange with a plan for bringing their shares above $1.

How are Trades Executed on the NYSE?

For over a century, the floor of the NYSE was the place for investors to be. This meant trades were conducted by traders who ran buy and sell orders across the trading floor looking to broker a deal for their clients. But with the birth of the NASDAQ exchange in 1971, the New York Stock Exchange began conducting electronic trading.

However, the NYSE continues to conduct trades in an auction style. Brokers purchase stocks on behalf of their clients or firms. Every order features a broker who will enter the order electronically and a specialist who serves as the market maker for that stock. The specialist posts bid and ask prices and manages the actual execution of the trades. And there are still a handful of stockbrokers who still traffic buy and sell orders physically on the floor of the exchange.

How Does the NYSE Signal Investor Sentiment?

Like its counterpart, the NASDAQ, the NYSE measures the risk appetite of investors. When the NYSE is moving higher over a length of time, it signals that a risk on environment. Conversely when the NYSE moves lower over a significant period, it signals that investors are moving to a risk off position.

Some Final Thoughts on the NYSE

Financial news networks plan their programming schedule around the opening and closing bell of the New York Stock Exchange. Its still considered a distinguished honor when individuals or groups are invited to ring the opening bell. In fact, Warren Buffett is attributed with saying that in the short term, the stock market acts like a voting machine. A fact that many U.S. presidents will attest to.

The NYSE is the oldest and most recognizable of all the stock exchanges. It also has the most stringent requirements for inclusion. And those requirements must be maintained even after a stock begins publicly trading on the exchange.

Although the NYSE still has a small in-person Trading Floor, much of the trading is done electronically to provide traders with the speed to execute trades.
RUIDOSO DOWNS  J. Oscar Dominguez and Joel Martinezs Apollitical Ok, a $15,000 Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale purchase, ran a flawless race to handle a solid field in the Grade 2, $50,000 Mr Jet Moore Handicap on Saturday afternoon at Ruidoso Downs.

It was also Pink Day at The Races to help raise funds to increase awareness of breast cancer.

Apolltical Ok, a gelding by Apollitical Jess, got a clean start from the inside post position. He was the best horse in the final half of the 400-yard Mr Jet Moore to secure the one-half length win in :19.868.

Valariano Racing Stables, LLCs Sam Crow is always dangerous and finished second by a neck over Docs First Fire.

I was really confident and he closed well, said winning rider Esgar Ramirez. Hes been training really well the last few weeks. Heading for the (440 yard) All American Gold Cup next.

The Joel Valeriano, Jr. trained Apollitical Ok had a solid spring at Remington Park, capped by a third-place run in the $50,000 Bob Moore Stakes.

In his only other 2017 start at Ruidoso Downs, Apollitical Ok was moved up to second place in the $50,000 Higheasterjet Handicap at 350 yards.

Sam Crow would have become a millionaire with a win. The second-place check raised the Valiant Hero-sired geldings earnings to $991,677.

He was disqualified from third in the Higheasterjet in his previous start.. He won the Remington Park version of the $62,000 Mr Jet Moore Handicap and was second by a head in the $100,000 Sooner State Stakes for trainer Trey Wood.

Adame Racing, LLCs Memphis D Nasty, also a $15,000 Ruidoso Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale purchase, won the $50,000 KFOX Handicap at Sunland Park for trainer Mario Sanchez. The Fdd Dynasty daughter was second in the Bob Moore Stakes at Remington Park.

Pink Day at the Races had another successful run at Ruidoso Downs and helped raise funds for women to get mammograms at the Lincoln County Medical Center.

It was an awesome Pink Day on the mountain, said organizer Jamie Zamora. There are smiles all around and I really want to thank everyone who made this yet another stellar Pink Day.
The monarch butterfly is a familiar sight flitting around roadsides, canyons, valleys, farmlands and back yards throughout North America.

They are renowned for their fantastically long migration routes, with most populations east of the Continental Divide taking several generations to head north from their wintering areas in Mexico to the United States and Canada, returning each fall in a spectacular continuous mass migration flight numbering in the millions to a single spot in the mountains of central Mexico.

Migrating monarch butterflies have long been observed in New Mexico in September and October, including at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge south of San Antonio.

In 2016, right after wintering birds flew north, monarch butterflies were sighted for the first time during their spring migration at the refuge. Not much is known about the habits of monarchs in New Mexico, so their appearance in April caused a stir.

Refuge biologists began surveying sites where the insects were frequenting, and found that some monarchs are spending the entire summer on the refuge, laying eggs on native horsetail milkweeds (also known as Western Whorled milkweed) growing on the ditch banks and in the farm fields.

Science project

This spring, Bosque del Apache staff biologist Megan Goyette started the Monarchs Along the Rio Grand citizen science project so anyone can be a part of the refuges monarch study.

Its simple: just take a photograph of a monarch butterfly or caterpillar and upload the information onto the projects website www.inaturalist.org/projects/monarchs-along-the-rio-grande-in-new-mexico. A biologist will review the photographs to confirm the sighting and then upload the information to the website for other observers and scientists to view.

Monarchs are colorful, which makes them easy to spot, whether they are in their butterfly or caterpillar stage. The butterflies sport bright orange-paned wings with black edges enclosing white dots, often folded in a V as they float on the wind. Because their proboscis (a tubular tongue) is fairly long, monarchs can sip nectar from a variety of flowers, according to Steve Cary, author of Butterfly Landscapes of New Mexico.

Monarch butterflies have been seen visiting alfalfa flowers and sunflowers down in the valley and chamisa (rubber rabbitbush) in the uplands, Goyette said. A cellphone photo of a monarch on a flower will provide important data for biologists planning restoration projects protecting plants the butterflies prefer.

Monarch caterpillars eat poisonous milkweeds, an adaptation that gives them and the adult butterflies a bitter taste that repels predators. Two other butterfly species common in New Mexico have taken advantage of their cousins adaptation by mimicking the monarchs coloration.

The viceroy butterfly looks very similar, but it is smaller and has an additional thin black band crossing its hind wing. Darker, brownish-orange wings spotted all over with white dots and a less prominent black edge mark the desert queen butterfly.

Observers can download apps for their smartphone to help identify monarchs. Goyette likes Journey North and Monarch SOS, which are compatible for both Androids and iphones.

Spotting schedule

Monarchs breed in New Mexico in late spring, Cary said. In May and early June, most of the monarchs in New Mexico are in the caterpillar stage. The caterpillars are bright yellow with prominent black stripes and eat only milkweed plants.

Scientists dont know exactly how the monarchs utilize the different milkweed species, so observations are critical. Although its harder to spot a creeping caterpillar than a flying orange butterfly, caterpillar observations are especially important for scientists seeking to understand monarch life cycles, Cary said.

Monarch butterflies can be observed in New Mexico from spring through early fall, but they are most numerous in September and October. Last September, the Bosque del Apache NWR conducted its first monarch tagging event. Goyette said tagging butterflies in the fall provides the same kind of information for scientists as banding wintering ducks  population numbers and migration patterns.

In 2016, volunteers, staff biologists and San Antonio School students caught 65 butterflies on the refuge and put a small numbered sticker on the outside of each butterflys wing. This fall, they hope to tag over 100 butterflies. Observers should take a photo or note the sticker number and location of a tagged butterfly on www.inaturalist.org or contact the refuge at 575-835-1828.

Monarchs in trouble

Monarch butterflies have been in serious decline for the past 20 years. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, numbers have declined from 700 million in the 1990s to fewer than 140 million now.

USFWS scientists say this year alone, the number of monarchs overwintering in Mexico declined by 27 percent compared to last year, probably due to one storm event in their small Mexican wintering area that wiped out millions of the butterflies.

Scientists blame the decrease on an increased frequency of severe storms triggered by climate change in their overwintering areas and habitat reduction. Monarch larvae feed only on native milkweed species, which are being eradicated, especially in farm fields where the toxic plants are considered noxious weeds.

If you go

WHAT: Third annual butterfly count at Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge. Meet at the visitor center and be prepared for a full day out in the field with a local butterfly expert.

WHEN: 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 26.

INFORMATION: Call 505-864-4021. No reservations required.
Those longing for the day their prints will come need wait no longer. The New Mexico Art League is hosting Limited Edition, an extravaganza of more than 25 print artists.

Because each artist is exhibiting more than one example of his or her work, this review will focus on a handful of outstanding pieces among many others.

Curator and New Mexico Art League director Buffy Nelson had to scramble through artist studios, workshops and classrooms to put together a stone-soup show that truly is a very tasteful cross section of printmaking in Albuquerque.

Denise Liberty began his career as an abstract expressionist painter who also worked with figurative elements. Along the way, he executed hundreds that were not abstract.

Currently, Liberty is building a collection of realistic landscape paintings with an abstract twist titled 101 Views of the Sandias some of which have been used on television for the Breaking Bad Series and have found their way into major collections.

In Limited Edition we find three beautifully rendered dry point etchings by Liberty that quietly prepare the jaw muscles for a sudden drop.

His gorgeous Runway 3-5 Clear etching of Pegasus ready for takeoff, Buffalo Girl a corral setting with a semiclad female figure, and Spiritur Mundi a nude female figure playing the role of Gaia in a shoreline landscape, rank with the best in printmaking.

All three unapologetically romantic compositions combine mythology with fine drawing skills and a subtle modicum of creative imagination. That formula produces an unbeatable narrative content.

Cat pictures can be yawn-inspiring cliches, but in the case of Jack by Dinah Swan, we find a very painterly black-and-white print that easily stands up as a nicely done piece of fine art. The strong composition and wonderful use of darks make this a must-stop-and-look image.

In Tootie Fruity by Mary Sundstrom, I can hear the megahit Tutti Frutti, written by Little Richard and Dorothy LaBostrie and first recorded in 1955. Sundstroms alternative spelling may indicate a different inspiration for her print, but I like the connection with not only a major rock n roll star but modernist Wassily Kandinsky, who was inspired by music while he painted.

Sundstroms palette could have taken cues from Kandinsky, but the quietude of Tootie Fruity and others like it lean my thinking toward the paintings of Sally Condon.

Mary Sweet is an Albuquerque stalwart who consistently produces and exhibits high-quality paintings and prints. Among several in this show, my favorite is Phantom Canyon a ghostly woodblock that celebrates the contradictory relationship between rigid stone and fluid water.

Canyons are generally formed through erosion of heretofore impermeable layers of stone that despite their apparent strength eventually succumb to the relentless nature of flowing water that wears them down grain by grain until huge rifts appear. Sweet beautifully expresses that dichotomy.

Joyfully experimental multimedia artist Fred Yost wades in with Whitmans Gaze a well-designed and well-executed woodblock that exploits the grain structure of wood while paying homage to a great American poet.

There are even more walls full of well-rendered ideas, real places, things, people and flights of the imagination. Limited Edition is a solid exhibition.

If you go Art review

WHAT: Limited Edition with prints by more than 25 artists

WHEN: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays through August. Information, call 273-5034.

WHERE: New Mexico Art League Gallery, 3409 Juan Tabo NE. Behind the Juan Tabo Public Library

HOW MUCH: Free
Albuquerque is collapsing into a criminal quagmire, descending daily to even deeper depths. More and more cars are stolen, homes and businesses are burglarized, citizens are being shot, stabbed and killed. Other criminal activity goes on unabated.

The police, prosecutors and courts are letting us fall more and more into the victim category. Our city government, the mayor and Council, have done virtually nothing to improve the situation. The DOJ, the settlement agreement, along with the monitor and excessive police oversight, are only exacerbating the issue.

You, the voters, elected the mayor to be your civilian oversight of the police; hold him accountable. All of this civilian oversight began here in the 1980s as a way for politicians to insulate themselves from the public when police misconduct issues arose. A local blogger has for some time been calling for a city department of public safety with a police commissioner who appoints the chief of police who is answerable to the mayor  totally uncalled for when matters can be handled by the Mayors Office. This is just another way to reach into your wallet. I for one am tired of the governments ever-increasing attempts to tax my hard-earned dollars with uncalled-for practices.

Having interviewed a number of officers, I have found that the Albuquerque Police Departments use-of-force policy is handcuffing the officers that want to and know how to do good policing. The policy, the work of the monitor and his team  who benefit from prolonging their contract  have placed unrealistic restrictions on the officers. The slightest violation of these questionable policies causes the officers not to want to engage the criminal element.

Example: Why chase a criminal when it is well known that when caught, the criminal will resist, which will cause a use-of-force investigation against the officer? Furthermore, the officers supervisor will have to initiate an investigation into the incident, which may take hours to conclude, taking him away from his prime functions of supervising. All of this just for wrestling a person to the ground and applying handcuffs. No wonder why a good number of these supervisors do not want their officers engaging in proactive policing. Just look at Downtown! When the officers dont do their job, you stand a better chance of being a victim, and the criminal knows it.

How do we stop the collapse? The mayoral election is just a few months off, and you need to study the candidates positions on crime and the police. This time your vote needs to go to the candidate who clearly states how he/she will bring law and order back to our city regardless of party affiliation in what is a non-partisan election. Closely examine the merits of their plan, ask if is it viable. After the past eight years, we can ill afford not to get it right. Get it wrong and companies like Lavu will leave town with other companies to follow, crime will climb even higher and Albuquerque will join the list of everything that is bad.
Juvenile Colorado pikeminnow found in the San Juan River may seem like small fry, but theyre proof a program to recover the endangered fish is working.

In the 6 million years since the Pliocene era, these living dinosaurs have barely changed. North Americas largest minnow, pikeminnow grew to almost 6 feet long and 100 pounds, ranging throughout the Colorado River and its tributaries as the top native predator fish.

Pikeminnow were once so abundant they clogged early 20th Century irrigation channels. But widespread damming decimated their numbers, so now there are just three populations of Colorado pikeminnow left.

Thankfully, the pikeminnow was rescued from its downward spiral by the nations strongest environmental law. But now that law itself is threatened.

As the Endangered Species Act faces a relentless assault in Congress, the pikeminnows history illustrates why America needs this powerful protection for imperiled species.

Pikeminnow were designated as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1967, receiving full federal Endangered Species Act protections when the law passed in 1973.

That launched decades of work among federal, state and local agencies and conservationists and scientists to prevent further losses of the fish once known as the salmon of the Southwest.

The Green and Upper Colorado rivers have natural populations, but San Juan River pikeminnow were only saved from extinction through reformed water diversions, spawning habitat restoration and a successful hatchery operation.

Now, collaboration and federal protections are paying big dividends. Colorado pikeminnow produce young after high spring river flows, so in spring 2016, officials released water from behind Navajo Dam, imitating snow melt.

That allowed pikeminnow offspring to survive through the winter. With biologists capturing juveniles this spring, scientists are seeing the most success for young pikeminnow in 20 years as those fish are no longer small, easy prey.

Such success would never have been possible without the Endangered Species Act.

Indeed, when first placed under its protection, most endangered species have such low numbers they are nearing extinction. Then, after 10 or 20 years of cooperative recovery efforts, most populations increase or stabilize.

One example is our own Gila trout. Habitat degradation and competition and hybridization with exotic fish species, especially rainbow and brown trout, caused declines in Gila trout populations and numbers. A survey conducted in 1975  two years after Gila trout received full Endangered Species Act protections  estimated the entire population at less than 7,600.

Thanks to those protections, Gila trout numbers increased to around 37,000, with the number of Gila trout populations increasing from five to 18. The recovery was so successful it was downlisted to threatened from endangered in 2006.

The same trend is found throughout the country. The Florida panther increased 483 percent. Northeastern piping plovers increased 354 percent. And Kirtlands warblers in the Great Lakes states grew an incredible 1,077 percent.

But one place the act is not working is the Lower Colorado River. There the Fish and Wildlife Service has essentially sold out the pikeminnow, doing nothing to help restore the fish. While this inaction is unfortunate, it should not detract from the enormous success for pikeminnow in the upper basin.

Despite its consistent success and widespread support from the American people, anti-endangered species factions in Congress are working to cripple the Endangered Species Act.

In just this 115th Congress, 34 legislative attacks on the act have already been introduced. The worst bills would strip protections for Great Lakes wolves, undo protections for the majority of endangered species because they occur in only one state and allow trade in African ivory  which would likely drive elephants to extinction.

This landmark environmental law has prevented more than 99 percent of species it protects from extinction. Its helped hundreds more recover. It is not time to weaken the law, but instead fully fund the act to keep more species like the Colorado pikeminnow from being lost forever.

Robin Silver lives in Flagstaff.
Under the Trump administration, federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement is arresting people at local courthouses around the United States. See, for example, arrests at a Denver courthouse, despite local leaders requests (denverite.com/new-videos-show-ice-arresting-immigrants-denver-county-court-something-local-officials-asked-not-35314).

ICE officers are going into courtrooms to identify particular individuals, waiting for them to leave the courtroom or courthouse and arresting them outside based on identifying them in the courtroom. In Albuquerque in February, ICE arrested a woman in the womens bathroom at Metro Court. In El Paso, ICE arrested a woman who went to the courthouse to seek a domestic violence restraining order.

Arresting defendants, their family members and friends, victims and witnesses who come to testify or seek domestic violence restraining orders, or persons reporting to probation officers makes our whole community less safe because some members of the community are afraid to cooperate with law enforcement and the court system. This affects U.S. citizens also because someone who has been a witness to a crime or other event is afraid to come to court to testify.

ICE has been seen at schools in Albuquerque and Las Cruces.

So our neighbors are afraid to report crimes when they are victims or witnesses, afraid to accompany family members to court, afraid to take their children to school, and afraid to seek needed medical care.

At present the only statutory protection against arrests at what have been termed sensitive locations covers very limited service providers and doesnt protect against arrests.

In 2011, ICE wrote a policy designating certain sensitive locations in which arrests are restricted, such as schools, hospitals, religious institutions, sites of a funeral, wedding, or other public religious ceremony, and sites of public demonstrations. It does not include courthouses. Further, that policy creates no enforceable right.

Now it is important that sensitive locations where ICE ought not to be effecting arrests, except in very narrow and vetted circumstances, need to be defined by statute, not just by policy statements that can be changed at the whim of the president or appointed agency staff.

Recently, along with immigration advocates and ACLU, I met with two ICE officers, the Albuquerque office head and his boss from El Paso. I asked about ICE arrests at courthouses, using the court process to identify individuals, and the disruption this causes to the judicial process when victims, witnesses, defendants, family members and others are afraid to participate in the court process. The ICE officials responded that courthouses are public places, ICE arrests there are targeted in advance for particular individuals, and such arrests will continue to occur. This same view is expressed on the ICE website.

Another question at that meeting concerned arrests at probation and parole offices, and the two ICE officials said they have close cooperation with our state probation and parole agencies and work with the N.M. Corrections Department; this also happens around the country.

Therefore those who believe it is important that everyone have access to the judicial system as a fair way to resolve disputes, please support two bills now pending in the U.S. Congress, both called the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act, which declare a variety of locations such as hospitals, schools, school buses, religious institutions, Social Security offices, domestic violence shelters, motor vehicle offices, and courthouses as sensitive locations where ICE cannot make arrests within 1,000 feet without exigent circumstances and only with prior approval.

Senate Bill S.845, and House Bill H.R.1815 are both titled Protecting Sensitive Locations Act.

U.S. Reps. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Ben Ray Lujan and Sens. Martin Heinrich and Tom Udall (all Democrats) have each co-sponsored these bills and should be thanked for their concern about the civil liberties of all New Mexicans. (Republican) Rep. Steve Pearce should also co-sponsor them. We all need to be able to utilize the judicial system to resolve disputes, so that all in our community can be safe.
SAN DIEGO  By unveiling on the same day a pair of divisive and incendiary policy initiatives, the Trump administration made clear that it opposes affirmative action for some Americans but supports it for others.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Justice Department frown on preferential treatment in college admissions because they seem to believe in the fairy tale of so-called reverse discrimination. Theyre concerned that white males are being systematically disenfranchised and kept out of Americas institutions of higher learning solely because of their skin color.

As someone who spent some time in the Ivy League and has spoken on many college campuses since then, Im pleased to report that this is not the case. In fact, white males are in ample supply on elite campuses, as they are in prestigious and well-paying white-collar jobs.

The administration is obviously a proponent of merit, and it objects to the idea of acting affirmatively to give a leg up to those who might have trouble competing head to head because the playing field is uneven.

But when the subject turns to immigration, Team Trump reverses course. It advocates taking affirmative action to give a helping hand to working-class Americans who feel they cant compete directly with low-skilled immigrants because the playing field is uneven. The convenient solution is to keep out the immigrants, even if they follow the rules and come legally.

In an attempt to show some love to the beleaguered American worker, President Trump voiced full-throated support for a medieval piece of restrictionist Senate legislation. The Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment (RAISE) Act would cut in half the number of green cards from 1 million per year to about 500,000 over the next decade, and it would create a new point system that puts a premium on skills, education and English-speaking ability  making getting into the United States almost as difficult as getting into an elite college.

The bills co-sponsors, Tom Cotton of Arkansas and David Perdue of Georgia, are Republicans but they sound like Democrats. They seem to have bought into the idea that the world owes U.S. workers a living, and that tinkering with immigration is the way to deliver.

Cotton, who has two degrees from Harvard but is no wiser for it, insists that U.S. immigration policy has two purposes: improve the lives of American workers, and promote economic growth. According to Cotton, the current system does neither.

Hes dead wrong. Todays immigrants make Americans better by forcing them to work harder and hustle more. And anyone who thinks immigrants dont fuel economic growth needs to spend just one day in farm country, where I grew up. Its simple math. Immigrants earn wages and pump money into local businesses, while making money for companies that earn profits and pay taxes. All that contributes to economic growth.

Do I really have to explain all this to a couple of senators from Arkansas and Georgia, states whose poultry industry and peach orchards couldnt survive without immigrant labor  much of it illegal?

Its odd that Trump now seems to fancy the idea of keeping out legal immigrants. In May 2017, he told The Economist magazine that he didnt want to reduce legal immigration because we want people coming in legally. In other words, the president was in favor of legal immigration before he was against it.

The RAISE Act is a ghastly idea. Its unfair, unworkable, and  worst of all  profoundly un-American. This country has its share of problems. Legal immigration isnt one of them.

E-mail: ruben@rubennavarrette.com. Copyright, The Washington Post Writers Group.
It would be impossible for a special commission  appointed by the New Mexico Supreme Court to review and recommend changes in the state guardianship system  to ignore shocking recent allegations of outright theft by guardians and conservators.

These are the same guardians and conservators who are appointed by judges to protect some of our most vulnerable residents  the elderly and disabled.

When federal investigators describe a commercial guardian company like Ayudando Guardians Inc. as permeated by crime, it would seem even the most ardent defenders of the system would have to take notice. Remember, Ayudando was appointed in hundreds of cases and represented the professional guardians at one commission hearing.

Such cases highlight obvious areas in need of reform. The courts have no forensic auditing capability, there are no meaningful financial reporting requirements, no requirement in state law for guardians and conservators to post bond and no place for families to complain.

But the commission and court also need to look at other, more subtle, problems in a system that lacks meaningful oversight even though it is susceptible to corruption.

Consider these scenarios, based on real-life examples from the Journals ongoing investigation:

1. You are struggling with how to care for a parent whose mental faculties have deteriorated. You temporarily put Mom in a care facility, then decide to bring her home. But caregivers and attorneys who make a living in this system urge you to petition for a guardianship. It will be so much less stress, they say. The professionals can handle it so much better, they say. You can go back to being son or daughter. They might even privately urge Mom to tell you thats what she wants. The pressure is subtle and they dont mention, of course, that this is their source of income.

2. You concur and petition for a guardianship. A judge declares Mom or Dad incapacitated and appoints a guardian and/or conservator. But a year or so later you arent happy with the care Moms getting and you think the charges racked up by the professionals  and taken from Moms assets  are excessive. Conservators and guardians have virtually no check on their spending other than possible after-the-fact review by the judge. You object. But they dismiss your complaints. You have nothing to say about this any more.

3. You cant even discuss these issues with Mom. It upsets her, says the guardian. In fact, so much so they can cut you off from Mom. Totally. Without judicial approval. Visits, if allowed, will be monitored for content.

4. You go back to your attorney for help. Ooops. He/she cant help you because he/she represents the guardian and/or conservator in other cases. This is, after all, an industry dominated by insiders.

5. The guardian and/or conservator fight your efforts for removal and even cut off your visitation. They, after all, are empowered by the court. And they pay their lawyers who are fighting to keep you away from Mom out of  you guessed it  Moms estate. And they dont need advance court approval for this.

6. Youve found a new lawyer and started over. But its an uphill battle. You will be portrayed as the shrill and emotional family member by industry insiders and their lawyers, who are smooth and polished before the judges they know well and who defend them publicly.

7. You dig into your own pocketbook and the guardian and/or conservator finally relent. OK. You can see Mom and maybe they will even agree to step aside and allow appointment of another firm. But part of the price to end the legal war is a side agreement in which you promise never to criticize the company or even acknowledge the existence of such an agreement.

8. Youve had running disputes with the conservator but really want the estate settled now that Moms gone. Youre asked to sign a document releasing the conservator from all liability and, likely, a promise you wont criticize. But you want a real accounting? You may have to post a significant bond  even though guardians and conservators typically in New Mexico havent been required to do that when they take over your loved ones estate and finances.

The initial reaction by some District Court judges in Albuquerque to family complaints  Judge Shannon Bacon being a notable exception  was one of denial. Nothing to see here. Move along.

But thats not possible now with law enforcement accusations of millions of dollars stolen from protected wards by court-appointed guardians such as Ayudando.

Yes, there are some obvious reforms. And as noted in todays Page 1 story by investigative reporter Colleen Heild, Bernalillo County district judges have begun taking important steps.

But to fix the structural problems that have allowed this abuse of people and their assets, the commission and the Supreme Court will need to dig a little deeper into the decay that has allowed these problems to flourish.

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

The grinning youngsters milled about their classroom, many girls in dresses, a few boys in buttoned-down shirts and ties, nearly all of the kids fidgeting with the pint-sized caps and gowns they had donned for the occasion.

It was graduation day at PB&J, and while some of the kids seemed more excited about playing with the toy drills and other gadgets than the ceremony about to take place on the schools patio, the milestone wasnt lost on parents.

Without this program, I wouldnt be able to get the parenting skills I need, a tearful mom told the crowd.

And without this program, I wouldnt have been able to get my children back from CYFD.

Such is the work that goes on at 1101 Lopez Road in southwest Albuquerque, where the teachers  at least on this day  wore superhero capes and where job No. 1 is building up both parent and child. The organization is expanding its services, thanks to extra funding it is now receiving from Bernalillo County.

PB&J Family Services and seven other organizations are sharing $3 million a year for two years to combat adverse childhood experiences, such as abuse, neglect and other trauma. The funding is coming from Bernalillo Countys behavioral health tax, which went into effect in July 2015.

From those efforts to help at-risk children to mobile crisis teams that will soon respond to individuals experiencing nonviolent behavioral health crises, the county over the last year has started its quest to fill the gaps of New Mexicos fragmented behavioral health system.

But the launch of services has been slow, with few programs up and running. And less than a third of the nearly $38 million that has been generated from the new gross receipts tax to date has been spent or even earmarked. Roughly 69 percent of voters supported the tax in a nonbinding ballot question in 2014.

Funding for such programs as PB&J was not among the selling points offered during the campaign for the tax. What was a main selling point was a crisis response center  a place police officers or others could take individuals with mental health issues who were committing petty crimes or disturbances in public places.

There was a call for action to assist the large number of mentally ill homeless people on Albuquerque streets, many of whom ended up in the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center, because there were no alternative places to take them.

County officials say such a center is still a priority but acknowledge the effort has stalled for several reasons.

I still feel some frustration. I think everybody feels the frustration that we dont have all of our services rolled out by now, said Commissioner Maggie Hart Stebbins, a staunch advocate of the behavioral health initiative. But there are reasons for that. It has been a very thoughtful process.

Clearly, there is still public frustration that there are still people who are suffering in our community who have not yet gotten the services that they need, but I do believe that we have begun to roll out services.

Help for ex-inmates

Services already launched include the community connections jail re-entry diversion program, a housing initiative for inmates with mental illness or other disorders who are coming out of jail. The first phase provided housing subsidies and intensive services to 70 men and women who were either homeless or close to being homeless.

The goal of the program is to stabilize those individuals in an effort to keep them from ending up back at the MDC.

The county kicked in $1.3 million for the program, while the city of Albuquerque contributed an additional $500,000. The second phase will expand the original program to provide at least 55 more housing vouchers along with the case management services. The price tag for Phase 2 is about $1.2 million.

The adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, mitigation programs that PB&J and others will administer went online in July.

Several other programs are slated to launch this year, including mobile crisis teams. Those teams will be comprised of a Crisis Intervention Unit deputy or officer and a masters level behavioral health clinician such as a social worker or counselor.

The teams will respond to priority-one 911 calls related to nonviolent individuals experiencing behavioral health crises. If the team is unable to de-escalate the situation, the individual will be transported to a hospital, where a physician will decide whether the individual meets the criteria for admission.

The county has earmarked $1 million for the program, with the city pitching in another $456,000.

County officials are hopeful that the mobile crisis teams can be responding to calls by September, although they acknowledge that might be an optimistic estimate.

Researching programs

Katrina Hotrum, the countys behavioral health director, said the county wants to invest in programs that work and that make a difference.

To that end, the county has contracted with the University of New Mexicos Institute for Social Research. The institute is being paid about $246,000 a year to sift through research that has already been conducted to determine whether programs the county is thinking about investing in here have been successful elsewhere.

The institute is also helping the county establish accountability measures to determine whether programs are working. The institute will do the external evaluations on those new programs and pilots to determine whether they have been effective, Hotrum said.

The county has also brought in a behavioral health consultant  Pam Hyde and Associates  to help with its internal structure and to help develop a permanent governance structure. Hyde is a former secretary of the New Mexico Human Services Department and a former administrator of the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

Her firm, which is being paid $140,000, will also help the county prioritize spending of the behavioral health funding not yet earmarked.

Seventeen million dollars goes fast, Hotrum said, referring to the revenue generated by the tax each year. So theyre going to help us prioritize.

The tax, which is one-eighth of 1 percent, or 12.5 cents on every $100 purchase, brought in $16.5 million in fiscal year 2016, $20.2 million the following year and $1.1 million so far this fiscal year, which began July 1.

Bernalillo County Commissioner Wayne Johnson, a mayoral candidate, said during a recent mayoral forum that while he opposed the tax when it came before the commission, he has been helping to create a governance structure to ensure that the money generated is spent wisely.

We have a fragmented system, and part of what were doing  is trying to create a system that addresses behavioral health, a system that addresses addiction, because these are important things in our community that must be addressed, he said.

Johnson said the work will impact crime in Albuquerque.

But, he said, its not the panacea that some would make it out to be.

Debbie OMalley, chairwoman of the Bernalillo County Commission, said the county has spent a significant amount of time looking at unmet needs in the community.

Its really important that we address those gaps in services, she said. Thats where were seeing people fall through the cracks. Were certainly doing our best to leverage funds.

Model in Tucson

One program county officials would like to roll out at some point  but havent quite figured out how to pull off  is a crisis response center similar to the one in Tucson. That center offers short-term treatment for adults and children with mental health and substance abuse emergencies.

A delegation from Albuquerque visited the facility in 2015 and found that it offered an alternative to jails and hospital emergency rooms, which are often the places where people with substance abuse problems and behavioral health disorders end up.

But the delegation also found that a solid, effective provider network needs to be in place for such a center to be effective.

Part of the challenge is that the state is supposed to promulgate regulations on crisis centers, and they have not done that yet, Hotrum said. And so, at this point, were still reliant on the emergency room system in order to provide that level of support and stabilization while we have been focusing on how then to step that individual down into service and care.

Hotrum was referring to rules relating to the licensure of crisis triage centers and rules establishing reimbursement rates for qualifying centers.

Hart Stebbins said a crisis response center is still a priority, but key pieces need to fall into place, including state regulations for Medicaid reimbursement for such a facility.

PB&J expands services

Meanwhile, at PB&J, the extra $580,000 it is receiving from behavioral health tax dollars will be used to bolster services to its existing clients and to provide services to 100 more families.

Researchers have found that childhood trauma increases the likelihood of incarceration, violent crime, psychological disorders and premature death.

Francesca Duran-Lopez, PB&Js home visiting program manager, knows those statistics firsthand.

She said she had a rough childhood, experiencing some of the same traumas as many of the clients she works with today.

Duran-Lopez was incarcerated at a juvenile facility at the age of 13. She had her first child at 16, when she was locked up, and thats when PB&J came into her life.

The organization worked with her in the facility where she was being held and helped her bond with her infant son, who was being cared for by her mother.

They never gave up on me, Duran-Lopez said, noting that PB&J built her up, taught her how to be a good parent and helped her to see that she could do something with her life and should go to school.

She earned her associate degree in early childhood development from Central New Mexico Community College and is working on her bachelor of arts degree. She is the first person in her family to graduate from college.

These things we experience at such a young age always stay with us, she said. Experiences, whether good or bad, stay with us.

Duran-Lopez said PB&J changed the course of her life, and shes thrilled that she is now able to help other families.

My healing began here, she said.

More programs county is developing

Some other programs funded by the behavioral health tax that Bernalillo County is in the process of rolling out:

 A transition planning and re-entry resource center at 401 Roma where former jail inmates with mental illness, substance abuse disorders and other issues can go after being released to tap into services. The program includes funding for workers at MDC to help inmates about to be released with their transitions. The county has earmarked $1.3 million for the program during the first year to cover operational and renovation costs for the center and about $1 million a year thereafter.

 Community engagement teams that would help individuals with mental illness and substance abuse disorders, and their families, cope with their situations. The county has earmarked $1 million for the program.

 Transitional living services for at-risk youths with a mental health diagnosis or addiction issue and who are either homeless or on the verge of becoming homeless. The county has earmarked up to $650,000 for the program.

Source: Bernalillo County
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

Community health advocates contend that University of New Mexico Hospital has changed its policy and is requiring uninsured, low-income patients to pay 50 percent in advance for non-emergency surgery.

But UNMH officials respond that no one is denied medically needed non-emergency surgery. The hospital defers the 50 percent down payment if doctors deem the surgery medically urgent under a policy that has remained unchanged for years.

We will not allow economic conditions to have a negative effect on the health of our patients, said Billy Sparks, spokesman for UNMH.

About 20 advocates in late June jammed a committee room to urge members of the UNMH Board of Trustees to rescind what they described as an abrupt policy change and allow uninsured patients to obtain needed surgeries without delay.

Trustees responded by asking administrators to review the hospitals billing process and report their recommendations at the boards meeting later this month.

Dr. Anjali Taneja, a physician at Casa de Salud, a South Valley clinic that serves immigrants and other low-income patients, said patients she refers to UNMH have reported a change in recent months.

At this point, it feels like a policy that came completely out of nowhere, Taneja told UNMH trustees.

Patients have told her that they cant obtain a medical procedure at UNMH because they cant afford to pay 50 percent of the cost in advance, she said.

Thats where it stops for them unless they have a sophisticated advocate, Taneja said after the meeting.

Advocates say the practice has had the effect of creating new barriers for uninsured patients, requiring them to follow a complex appeals process to get treatment.

The hospital shouldnt be charging indigent patients a 50 percent down up-front charge for medical care, said Sireeshe Manne, an attorney with the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty.

The disagreement centers on finance guidelines for surgical cases issued by UNMH in May that advocates say altered a 2015 policy by eliminating affordable co-payments for uninsured patients with incomes low enough to qualify for the hospitals discount program.

UNMH officials said they issued the guidelines in May because insurance companies were refusing to pay for surgeries that had not been pre-approved, resulting in last-minute cancellations of surgeries. In some cases, patients were denied coverage for surgeries, UNMH said in a written statement.

The guidelines require all patients to receive approval by a UNMH financial consultant before they are scheduled for surgery, the statement said.

We do not believe these guidelines have impacted low income self-pay patients access to care, the statement said. To the contrary, the number of procedures for this group has increased.

UNMH was unable to provide data about the number of indigent, uninsured patients who receive non-emergency surgery.

Examples of non-emergency surgery can range from cataract surgery to those that treat cancer and vascular diseases.

UNMH requires uninsured patients to pay 50 percent in advance for surgery and other procedures not deemed medically necessary and determined to be purely elective by our medical staff, the statement said.

But May 2 guidelines list a medical-urgency exception that allows UNMH to defer the 50 percent down payment if doctors consider the surgery medically urgent.

Patients need to be cleared financially, and, in appropriate cases, cleared for medical urgency before surgery is scheduled, according to the guidelines.

Manne said the guidelines require indigent patients to go through a huge bureaucratic process to get care, leading to delays and cancellations of needed surgeries.

Dr. Irene Agostini, UNMHs chief medical officer, said the medical-urgency exemption ensures that patients in medical need can get surgery without paying the 50 percent down payment. The decision to defer the down payment is made by Agostini and the treating physician, she said.

Our goal was not to put barriers up, Agostini said after the meeting. We have no intention of delaying patients surgeries for socio-economic reasons.

The hospitals 2015 payment policy remains in effect today, UNMH CEO Steve McKernan wrote in a memorandum in response to the criticism. The new guidelines issued in May are intended to provide greater patient access to surgical procedures, he wrote.

One area of concern has been scheduling surgical procedures that then have to be rescheduled due to a patients subsequent inability to make the Patient Payment Policys required 50 percent down payment, McKernan wrote. This is seen as disruptive to the operation of the operating rooms, unfair to other patients, and a less than optimal allocation of resources.
Sitting still is a struggle for many schoolchildren, but the kids in Sarah McMasters class wont have to when they start classes on Monday. The third-grade teacher won a $2,500 grant from Farmers Insurances Thank Americas Teachers program, which she will use to add to the collection of active learning furniture in her classroom.

On Wednesday, McMaster was surprised with a giant check and balloons by representatives from Farmers as she attended a professional development day at Horizon Academy West, a charter school on the West Side where she teaches. Among them was local agent Rebecca Rodriguez, who presented McMaster with her award.

McMaster, or Ms. Mac as she is called by her students, doesnt confine her students to a desk. Her classroom is filled with kinesthetic furniture, such as swings, wobble chairs and stationary bikes, which she says have had a positive impact on her students.

My attendance is here and my test scores are here, she said, raising her hand toward the ceiling. (The kids) just, they love it. You know, who wants to go to school if its boring?

McMaster said buying extra items for a classroom can be expensive, which means teachers have to be creative. To fund her projects, McMaster has a page set up on donorschoose.org, a site that facilitates donations to school teachers projects, and has applied for other grants.

With her $2,500 Farmers grant, the most she has ever won, McMaster wants to buy more kinesthetic furniture for her classroom, including scoop chairs and standing desks.

Teachers become eligible for Farmers educational grants, which come in $2,500 and $100,000 amounts, by being nominated through the Thank Americas Teachers website, after which they are invited to submit a grant proposal. Approved proposals are posted online where the public can vote to determine the winners.

Farmers has three contest periods for their $2,500 grants during 2017, with 60 teachers winning during each period. McMaster applied during the second period, for which voting took place in June. Todd Brooks, Farmers mountain territory vice president, said thousands of teachers throughout the country submitted proposals, meaning McMasters really stood out.

McMaster said the money wont cover everything she wants to buy, but its a good start.

This is just such a great opportunity for the kids, she said. Im not one of the traditional teachers that your kids should be sitting and not moving. Its just not kids today.
Near the end of a lengthy police interrogation two days after the death of her Air Force pilot husband, Amy Herrera heard prophetic words from the Albuquerque police detective who would eventually charge her with murder.

Youre going to get drug through this for awhile now, Detective Holly Anderson told her.

But even Anderson might not have guessed that awhile meant five years before Herrera, 35, would get her day in court. The case is only now tumbling toward its judicial climax in fits and starts that have included three indictments after the first two were tossed over prosecutorial blunders, six judge reassignments, five lead prosecutor turnovers, at least four defense motions seeking dismissal of the case over speedy trial violations, two visits to the Court of Appeals, one failed swing before the state Supreme Court and two calls from the defense for a mistrial even as the trial was underway.

That, even though it has almost never been in question that the finger on the trigger of the .45-caliber handgun inserted into Air Force Maj. Marc Herreras mouth in the hours after an ill-fated summer party was Amy Herreras.

Finally, we are here.

The long-awaited trial for the University of New Mexico administrative employee, charged with second-degree murder for the July 1, 2012, death of her husband, began Tuesday before state District Judge Brett Loveless in Albuquerque with the state resting its case Friday.

Testimony resumes Monday with the final defense witnesses and closing arguments before the case is finally handed over to the jury to decide whether Amy Herrera knowingly killed her 38-year-old husband or was forced to pull the trigger in fear for her life.

How quickly things had changed during their 16-month marriage. They had been the pilot and the pretty career woman, a perfect couple, some might have believed, until that moment when the secrets they kept closeted began spilling onto police reports, newspaper accounts and, now, into the jurors view.

They were fun-loving, Air Force Master Sgt. Carlos Garcia testified. Marc was reliable, trustworthy; Amy was funny.

Air Force Lt. Col. Robin Gallant said the two seemed affectionate. Both, he testified, liked to party, describing Marc as a jovial drinker, never violent, and Amy as a woman with a remarkably high tolerance for booze.

But in June 2011, Marc was accused of sexual harassment  a joke that had offended a woman officer, an incident serious enough for the Air Force to strip Marc of his earned promotion to lieutenant colonel.

Defense attorneys portrayed his fall from grace as the catalyst for his growing issues with anger and alcohol. But witnesses for the state countered that Marc had taken it all in stride, happy to be transferred to Kirtland Air Force Base where he remained a pilot.

All he wanted to do was fly, said Air Force Lt. Col. Jeffrey Schlueter, who had gone out to dinner with Marc before the ill-fated party that night. He was just a happy guy.

But Elizabeth Downs, a co-worker of Amys, testified that Amy had confided that Marc was drinking too much, that he had become abusive  so abusive that, three weeks before the shooting, she had given Amy a key to her house in case she needed a safe place.

Liz, she testified Amy told her, hes crazy.

Nevertheless, the Herreras held a party June 30, 2012, at their home on Malaguena NE for several Ecuadorian exchange students from UNM, including the student residing with them at the time. Witnesses testified that both Amy and Marc were drinking that night  he Jack Daniels and cola, she four double shots of coconut rum  as were several of the students.

As the party wound down around 3 or 4 the next morning, the students were asked to stay over, separated by gender into different rooms.

Marc became upset when he found a male student chatting with female students in an upstairs bedroom and pointed a loaded .45-caliber Kimber pistol at the male, according to testimony.

Amy, called by other students to the room, told Marc to put the gun down and go to the couples bedroom, which he did. Amy was in the walk-in closet taking off her earrings when, she said, Marc pushed her to the floor, sat on top of her and aimed the gun at her.

This is where her stories diverge  from Marc committing suicide to Marc forcing Amy to kill him, his finger on hers as the trigger was pulled, to Amys being the only finger on the trigger.

Stephanie Taylor, whose husband was in the Air Force with Marc, testified that Amy had shocked them at an Aug. 19, 2012, dinner at their home when she casually blurted out, So you guys might as well know. Its going to come out anyway. I killed him.

Witness Garcia testified that he, too, had been shocked when weeks after Marcs death Amy had called him, angry over finding receipts and other evidence that Marc had indulged in dating sites and strip clubs.

I wish I could kill him again, he said she told him.

In her interview with Detective Anderson two days after her husbands death, Amy had, of course, said nothing like that.

This is the last thing I ever wanted, she said.

And yet she could not say then for sure why he had gone from the jovial drinker to the angry drunk who wanted her dead  or worse.

If he wanted to make me suffer, this would be the ultimate, she told the detective in the video shown to the jurors. I will have to live with this the rest of my life.

At least now, soon, the rest of that life will continue with this case finally resolved, one way or another.

UpFront is a front-page news and opinion column. Comment directly to Joline at 823-3603, jkrueger@abqjournal.com or follow her on Twitter @jolinegkg. Go to www.abqjournal.com/letters/new to submit a letter to the editor.
An unusually convincing utility scam is popping up across the country, causing people to lose thousands of dollars under threat of having their power shut off.

An alert from El Paso Electric indicates that southern New Mexico customers are among those being targeted, but residents across the state should be on the lookout for this one.

The diabolical aspect to some versions of this scam is that the caller has personal information about the victim and even appears to have details from previous bills, according to Fraud.org, which is part of the National Consumers League.

Its unclear how the bogus utility employees get such information, Fraud.org said. What is clear is that theyre using it to bully people into paying.

It works this way: The callers say theyre representing the local utility, sometimes leaving an important voicemail message which, when returned, goes to an answering service that sounds legitimate, according to Fraud.org.

In the El Paso Electric case, the false number takes residents to a replica of the utilitys customer service call center, complete with messaging and menu options. When a customer chooses the prompt for payment, he or she is transferred to a scammer who demands payment and personal information, an alert from El Paso Electric said.

In some cases, the bogus representatives will say theyre just making a courtesy call to let customers know a payment did not go through or the account has an overdue balance.

The solution is always the same: send payment, in a method of the scammers choosing, to keep your power from being turned off, according to Fraud.org.

Heres what to know:

 Contact your utility directly to check your account balance and correct any billing issues. For El Paso Electric, New Mexico residents can call 575-526-5555. PNM customers can call 1-888-DIAL-PNM.

 Utility companies dont demand payment by wire transfer or prepaid cards.

 Dont give out personal information. Some imposters offer to connect their victims to federal assistance programs or payment plans to help pay any overdue bills. Theyll say they need to verify personal information, when what theyre really trying to do is steal your identity. Hang up and call your utility directly.

If youre like most people, its hard to keep up with robocall scams that plague our cell and landline phones, let alone take the time to report them.

However, the Federal Trade Commission is encouraging people to do so. The agency has started compiling lists of suspicious phone numbers on a daily basis and posting them on its website.

But the main point is to send that daily tally to phone companies, telecommunications carriers and other parties who are working on call-blocking solutions, such as blocking devices, mobile phone apps or services provided by individual carriers.

Call-blocking methods rely on so-called blacklists, which are databases of phone numbers that have been reported as the source of illegal calls.

Companies will be able to use this information to help identify which calls should be blocked or flagged, the FTC said.

In addition to the phone number, the FTC daily compilation will include the date and time a person got the unwanted call, the general subject matter (debt reduction, warranties, home security, etc.), and whether it was a robocall.

Report robocalls here: https://complaints.donotcall.gov/complaint/complaintcheck.aspx

The FTC listings can be found here: https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/open-government/data-sets/do-not-call-data.

Ellen Marks is assistant business editor at the Albuquerque Journal.
BLOOMINGTON, Minn.  The Latest on an explosion at a Minnesota mosque (all times local):

12:15 p.m.

Gov. Mark Dayton has condemned the bombing of a suburban Minneapolis mosque as so wretched and not Minnesota.

Dayton and Lt. Gov. Tina Smith visited the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington on Sunday morning, a day after an explosive device shattered windows and damaged an office at the mosque.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports Dayton and Smith joined public officials and mosque leaders for a meeting inside the building.

No one was hurt in the Saturday morning blast.

The FBI is seeking suspects and trying to determine whether the incident was a hate crime.

___

8:45 a.m.

Investigators are seeking suspects after an explosive device shattered windows and damaged an office at a suburban Minneapolis mosque.

No one was injured in the Saturday morning blast at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington.

Police say there were no injuries, but the explosion damaged the imams office.

Richard Thornton is the special agent in charge of the FBIs Minneapolis Division. He says investigators have recovered components of the device to figure how it was put together. And investigators will try to determine whether the incident was a hate crime.

The mosque primarily serves people from the areas large Somali community.
MANILA, Philippines  The Trump administration has yet to decide how to respond to Russias move to expel hundreds of American diplomats, but plans to deliver a response to Moscow by Sept. 1, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Monday.

A day after sitting down in the Philippines with Russias top diplomat, Tillerson said hed asked clarifying questions about the Kremlins retaliation announced last month following new sanctions passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump. The Trump administration has struggled to determine how the move will affect the U.S. diplomatic presence in Russia, as well as the broader implications for the troubled relationship between the nuclear-armed powers.

Despite the Russian move, which seemed to plunge the two countries even further into acrimony, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov emerged from the meeting declaring a readiness for more engagement with the U.S. on North Korea, Syria and Ukraine, among other issues. Tillerson broadly echoed that sentiment, saying the two countries had critical national security issues to discuss despite deep disagreements on some matters.

I dont think it is useful to just cut everything off on one single issue, Tillerson said following his first meeting with Lavrov since the new sanctions were imposed. These are two very large countries and we should find places that we can work together, lets try to work together. Places we have our differences, were going to have to continue to find a way to address those.

Tillerson also said that Russia has been showing some willingness to start talking about a resolution to the crisis in Ukraine, devoid of real progress for years. That assessment came as Lavrov announced that the Trump administration had committed to sending its new special envoy for Ukraine negotiations, Kurt Volker, to Moscow to discuss next steps.

Yet several obstacles hang over any attempt to pursue a more functional U.S.-Russia relationship: the new U.S. sanctions, Russias retaliatory move to expel diplomats, and the ongoing U.S. Justice Department investigation into Russias election meddling and potential Trump campaign collusion.

Fearing Trump might move inappropriately to ease sanctions on Russia, Congress last month passed new legislation that both added more sanctions and made it harder for the president to lift them. Trump and Tillerson opposed the legislation, but facing a likely veto override, Trump begrudgingly signed the bill.

Moscows response to the sanctions was to announce it would force the U.S. to cut its embassy and consulate staff in Russia by 755 people. That move stoked confusion in Washington, given that the U.S. is believed to have far fewer than 755 American employees in Russia.

Lavrov, describing his meeting with Tillerson, said Russia and the U.S. had agreed to resume a high-level diplomatic channel that Moscow had suspended after a previous U.S. move to tighten existing Russia sanctions.

We felt that our American counterparts need to keep the dialogue open, Lavrov said. Theres no alternative to that.

Trumps administration has argued theres good reason for the U.S. to seek a more productive relationship. Tillerson has cited modest signs of progress in Syria, where the U.S. and Russia recently brokered a cease-fire in the war-torn countrys southwest, as a sign theres fertile ground for cooperation.

The Syrian cease-fire reflected a return of U.S.-Russia cooperation to lower violence there. The U.S. had looked warily at a series of safe zones in Syria that Russia had negotiated along with Turkey and Iran  but not the U.S.

Lavrov cited upcoming talks involving Russia, Iran and Turkey about how to ensure the truce in the last safe zone to be established, around the north-western city of Idlib. He predicted it will be difficult to hammer out the details but that compromise can be reached if all parties  including the U.S.  use their influence in Syria to persuade armed groups there to comply.

Tillerson said Russian meddling in the election had created serious mistrust between our two countries. Although he and other Cabinet officials have maintained that position consistently, Trump has repeatedly questioned U.S. intelligence about Moscows involvement while denying any collusion with his campaign.

Word that Volker, the Ukraine envoy, plans to visit the Russian capital was the latest sign that Washington was giving fresh attention to resolving the Ukraine conflict. The U.S. cut military ties to Russia over Moscows annexation of Crimea and accuses the Kremlin of fomenting unrest in eastern Ukraine by arming, supporting and even directing pro-Russian separatists there who are fighting the Kiev government.

In recent days, the Trump administration has been considering providing lethal weaponry to Ukraine to help defend itself against Russian aggression.

___

Associated Press writers Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow and Deb Riechmann in Washington contributed to this report.

___

Reach Josh Lederman on Twitter at http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP
An anti-diversity letter authored by one of Googles software engineers went viral within the Alphabet-owned company and sparked an outrage among its employees in recent days, with the person who penned it criticizing Googles Ideological Echo Chamber, which is also the title of the document that made its way to many Googlers before being obtained by Gizmodo on Saturday. The author  who specifically states hes a white male writing about his experiences in the companys headquarters in Mountain View, California  argues that while sexism and gender discrimination undoubtedly exist in the Western society, they arent a problem at Google, implying that they also didnt exist before the tech giant introduced a number of its diversity initiatives, some of which he feels are misguided. He goes on to claim that not all representation disparities are caused by oppression and hence cannot be rectified by oppression, likely referring to a number of the companys efforts to hire more women in tech and software engineering in particular.

The author goes into many details on what he believes are various psychological and biological differences between the two genders, ultimately arguing that women should be encouraged to go into tech through different means without having Google specifically looking to hire them instead of what he thinks are more qualified men. Many of Googles employees denounced the contents of the letter, according to Motherboard, though its currently unclear how much of the companys work force shares the exact viewpoints expressed by the author of the controversial document who also argued that Google as a firm is too left-leaning and should strive to be more neutral in the future by de-moralizing diversity and confronting various biases of its own corporate culture.

On Saturday, Danielle Brown, Googles new Vice President of Diversity, sent an internal email to all of the firms employees in Mountain View in response to the polarizing letter, stating that the document promotes incorrect assumptions about gender. She argued that Google isnt looking to ostracize individuals within its work force who freely share more conservative viewpoints but noted how such stances need to be in line with the companys Code of Conduct, as well as federal anti-discrimination laws that mandate honoring the principles of equal employment. Danielle concluded that her memo isnt the end of the discussion on the matter and encouraged Googlers to keep sending feedback to her department. Google recently recorded a major win in its dispute with the United States Department of Labor over alleged gender pay discrimination, making the timing of the controversial memo even more inopportune and prone to causing an outrage among the companys employees, though Ms. Browns diplomatic response to the memo indicates that shell be looking to resolve the situation as sensibly as possible.
A new render showing whats understood to be the dual camera setup of the Moto X4 leaked online this weekend, having been shared by known industry insider Evan Blass. The image that can be seen above shows a close-up look at the supposedly primary imaging system of the upcoming Motorola Mobility-made Android mid-ranger thats been the subject of numerous rumors in recent months but has yet to be officially announced. The two sensors comprising the main camera module of the device are arranged in a horizontal manner and are located beneath a dual-LED (dual tone) flash unit, the new render shows. The camera setup itself is circular and will slightly protrude from the rear panel of the Moto X4, previous sightings of the device indicated, though this particular detail isnt perfectly obvious in the last render of the device shared by Blass.

The same insider recently revealed whats said to be the final design of the Moto X4, claiming that the handset will have a glossy metal finish and rounded corners, i.e. be similar to the majority of other mobile offerings released by the Lenovo-owned company this year. According to the same leak, the display panel of the Moto X4 will be protected by 3D glass and the handset will be IP68-certified for resistance to dust particles and water. The back side of the smartphone is unlikely to feature a heart rate monitor and theres still no indication of exactly what kind of lenses will the Moto X4 be sporting. The overall design of the phone indicates that the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is now looking to adopt dual camera setups on a variety of its products and not just flagship offerings like the recently announced Moto Z2 Force.

The Moto X4 was previously rumored to be released earlier this summer and its still unclear whether the device was delayed for some reason or if initial reports on the matter were inaccurate. Both Motorola and its parent Lenovo already confirmed that theyll be attending this years iteration of IFA Berlin thats scheduled to start on September 1, which is the next opportunity for the handset to be unveiled.
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As you'll be able to notice in the piece of footage at the bottom of the page, which was captured last month, a Racing Yellow 991.2 GT2 RS and a 992 Carrera (it could be an S) shared at least one lap of the Ring.The spotter behind the clip had set camp in the proximity of Brunnchen, so we get a pretty good taste of each rear-engined machine's handling.Before inviting you to check out the video, we'll list a few matters you should pay attention to and we'll start with the 992.Purists worried about the fact that the next-gen Neunelfer will be tamer in terms of the handling have nothing to worry about. Sure, the generation change might bring the flat-six one or two inches closer to the center of the car, but the dancing nature of the test car means the all-rear feel on this Porscha will be maintained.As for the GT2 RS, you can notice how the car appears to be considerably more planted through the same bend. We're looking at a Weissach Package car that might pack the non-Weissach wheels and we could be talking about this prototype.While many expect Zuffenhausen to complete the final tweaking ahead of the first customer deliveries for King Kong, we could also be witnessing a lap record attempt.We'll remind you that the German automotive producer has yet to announced the Nordschleife number of the 700 hp rear-wheel-drive special. So yes, those who love the Lamborghini Huracan Performante ( 6:52 ) have a few reasons to fret.
Automated phone polling by the rising GOP public-affairs firm Firehouse Strategies, along with the data analytics team at 0ptimus, finds Trump's base shrinking among likely midterm voters in the key swing states of Florida, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Ohio (2,901 interviews).

Firehouse Strategies

Partner Alex Conant tells me:

"Our data shows Trump losing support inside the Republican Party and a noticeable drop in his perceived honesty."

losing support inside the Republican Party and a noticeable drop in his perceived honesty." "Just 6 months in office, Trump is getting into dangerously low territory in key swing states. Trump's base of support has shrunk from 35.3% of voters who have a 'strongly favorable' view of him in April to only 28.6%."

Trump is getting into dangerously low territory in key swing states. Trump's base of support has shrunk from 35.3% of voters who have a 'strongly favorable' view of him in April to only 28.6%." "Notably, much of that erosion is among Republicans: Strongly favorable views among GOP voters dropped from 54.1% to 44.9%, while unfavorable views increased from 20.5% to 27.9%."

much of that erosion is among Republicans: Strongly favorable views among GOP voters dropped from 54.1% to 44.9%, while unfavorable views increased from 20.5% to 27.9%." Why it matters: "Trump cannot take continued GOP support for granted in swing states."

See the memo.
6 August 2017 10:02 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has signed an order to provide funding for the construction of a road in Balakan.

Under the presidential order, AZN3 million is allocated from the Presidential Contingency Fund for the construction of Balakan-Gazbina-Ititala highway, which connects 10 residential areas with the population of 18,000 people.

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Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
6 August 2017 13:05 (UTC+04:00)

By Azertag

A joint conference on Islamic solidarity and Iranian-Azerbaijani friendship has kicked off in Tehran.

Chairman of the Caucasus Muslims Office Sheikhulislam Allahshukur Pashazade highlighted living in peace and stability of representatives of various confessions in the country, adding various peoples of the region have historically enjoyed good-neighborliness, friendship and cooperation based on the robust tolerance traditions, mutual respect and trust. He also said year 2017 was declared a Year of Islamic Solidarity in Azerbaijan. The Chairman highlighted holding Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku.

Chairman of the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations Mubariz Gurbanli, MPs Eldar Ibrahimov, Hikmat Mammadov, Azerbaijan`s Ambassadors to Russia and Iran Polad Bulbuloglu and Bunyad Huseynov attended the event.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
6 August 2017 16:05 (UTC+04:00)

By Azertag

Crews of warships of Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran and Kazakhstan participating in the "Sea Cup - 2017" international contest carried out artillery fire at sea targets.

According to the contest rules, firing was carried out from a distance of 3.5 kilometers and the international judging panel confirmed the fact that the exercise was successfully conducted.

The referees will set the final score for the exercise on Monday, taking into account the speed of each ship for covering the certain distance during the firing.

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Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 05/08/2017 (1925 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Casa Blanca Motor Lodge and the propertys accompanying Sushi Hut restaurant are up for sale, with a posted listing price of $1.39 million.

Since it was re-listed last month, co-listing agent Tyler Plante said that the No. 1 question hes been asked is whether the well-liked Sushi Hut is closing.

It wont affect the Sushi Hut, he said, motioning his hands as if he were calming down a frenzied person, adding that while the property is being sold, the Sushi Huts restauranteurs would retain their lease.

Tim Smith/The Brandon Sun Realtors Tyler and Cam Plante with Royal LePage Martin-Liberty Realty are handling the sale of the Case Blanca Motor Lodge property.

Tyler is co-listing the property with his father Cam Plante, out of Royal LePage Martin-Liberty Realty. The duo was visibly pumped to promote the property during a visit to the site on Thursday.

In addition to the Sushi Hut, it includes 17 double rooms, six single rooms and one kitchenette, as well as a reception area and managers suite.

More than just the structures themselves, Cam said that the property alone is worthy of attention.

While 18th Street is the citys main commercial roadway, he said that Victoria Avenue has been increasingly establishing itself as a closer second, citing various area developments such as the Sunrise Credit Union space a few blocks east as a sign of things to come.

Further than it being a prime general area, with the Casa Blanca Motor Lodge located between a Tim Hortons, McDonalds restaurant and a Giant Tiger, he said, It doesnt get much better than that, on a busy street, in a high traffic area.

An investor could very well knock down the motel and build a strip mall or a commercial property in the front and a high-rise condominium in the back, Cam said.

This place isnt just about a motel, he said. This has a lot of developmental potential  Its just up to the developers imagination.

While the Casa Blanca Motor Lodge has been listed a few times within the past few years, Cam said, I think the timings right, adding that Brandon is growing, and there is some exciting commercial stuff thats happening.

Advertising the property nationally, theyve received interest from investors in Winnipeg, Saskatchewan and Alberta so far, including some early offers, Cam said.

It has been put up for sale by tender, with an offer deadline of 5 p.m. on Aug. 11.

If the new owner retains the property as a motel, Victoria Inn Hotel & Convention Centre general manager Brent Miller said that theyd enter a prime marketplace.

Speaking in generalities, he said that Brandon is at the perfect level now as it relates to its number of hotel/motel accommodations.

I would say its competitive, but when Brandon is busy, were all busy, he said, adding that hotel/motel managers work together during the busy times in order to link guests up with whatever rooms might be available in the city.

We still want all visitors in Brandon to have a good experience, he said.

When its slower, he said theres a bit more competition between hoteliers, albeit still friendly in nature.

Hotel/motel rooms easily book solid during large events, he said, adding that autumn and winter are typically their busiest seasons.

The Casa Blanca Motor Lodges British Columbia-based owner did not return a call for comment.

 tclarke@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB
FLEETCOR Technologies, Inc. provides digital payment solutions for businesses to control purchases and make payments. It offers corporate payments solutions, such as accounts payable automation; Virtual Card, which provides a single-use card number for a specific amount usable within a defined timeframe; Cross-Border that is used by its customers to pay international vendors, foreign office and personnel expenses, capital expenditures, and profit repatriation and dividends; and purchasing cards and travel and entertainment cards for its customers to analyze and manage their corporate spending. The company also provides employee expense management solutions, including fuel solutions to businesses and government entities that operate vehicle fleets, as well as to oil and leasing companies, and fuel marketers; lodging solutions to businesses that have employees who travel overnight for work purposes, as well as to airlines and cruise lines to accommodate traveling crews and stranded passengers; and electronic toll payments solutions to businesses and consumers in the form of radio frequency identification tags affixed to vehicles' windshields. In addition, it offers gift card program management and processing services in plastic and digital forms that include card design, production and packaging, delivery and fulfillment, card and account management, transaction processing, promotion development and management, website design and hosting, program analytics, and card distribution channel management. Further, it provides other products consisting of payroll cards, vehicle maintenance service solution, long-haul transportation solution, prepaid food vouchers or cards, and prepaid transportation cards and vouchers. The company serves business, merchant, consumer, and payment network customers in North America, Brazil, and Internationally. The company was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
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. Ltd., CompAir Acquisition (No. 2) Ltd., CompAir Acquisition Ltd., CompAir BroomWade Ltd., CompAir Finance Ltd., CompAir GmbH, CompAir Holdings Limited, CompAir International Trading (Shanghai) Co Ltd, CompAir Korea Ltd, CompAir South Africa (SA) (Pty) Ltd., Consolidated Distribution Holdings Ltd., DV Systems Inc., Dosatron International SAS, Emco Wheaton Gmbh, Emco Wheaton USA Inc, Enza Air Proprietary Limited, FlexEnergy Holdings LLC, Frigoblock Grosskopf Gmbh, GD Aria Holdings Limited, GD Aria Holdings Limited, GD Aria Investments Limited, GD First (UK) Ltd, GD German Holdings GmbH, GD German Holdings I Gmbh, GD German Holdings II GmbH, GD German Investments GmbH, GD Global Holdings II Inc., GD Global Holdings Inc., GD Global Holdings UK II Ltd., GD Global Ventures I B.V., GD Global Ventures II B.V., GD Global Ventures III B.V., GD Industrial Products Malaysia SDN. BHD., GD Investment KY, GD UK Finance Ltd., GPS Industries, Gardner Denver (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Austria GmbH, Gardner Denver Bad Neustadt Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Belgium NV, Gardner Denver Brasil Industria E Comercio de Maquinas Ltda., Gardner Denver CZ + SK sro, Gardner Denver Canada Corp (Canada), Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments II Limited, Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments Limited, Gardner Denver Deutschland GmbH, Gardner Denver Engineered Products India Private Limited, Gardner Denver FZE, Gardner Denver Finance II LLC, Gardner Denver Finance Inc & Co KG, Gardner Denver France SAS, Gardner Denver Group Svcs Ltd, Gardner Denver Holdings Limited, Gardner Denver Hong Kong Investments Limited, Gardner Denver Hong Kong Ltd, Gardner Denver Iberica SL, Gardner Denver Inc., Gardner Denver Industries Ltd., Gardner Denver Industries Pty Ltd., Gardner Denver International Inc., Gardner Denver International Ltd., Gardner Denver Investments Inc., Gardner Denver Italy Holdings S.r.L., Gardner Denver Japan Ltd., Gardner Denver Kirchhain Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Korea Ltd., Gardner Denver Ltd., Gardner Denver Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Nash Brasil Industria E Comercio De Bombas Ltda, Gardner Denver Nash LLC, Gardner Denver Nash Machinery Ltd., Gardner Denver Nederland BV, Gardner Denver Nederland Investments B.V., Gardner Denver Oy, Gardner Denver Polska Sp z.o.o., Gardner Denver Pte. Ltd., Gardner Denver S.r.l., Gardner Denver Schopfheim GmbH, Gardner Denver Schopfheim Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Schweiz AG, Gardner Denver Slovakia s.r.o., Gardner Denver Sweden AB, Gardner Denver Taiwan Ltd., Gardner Denver Thomas GmbH (f/k/a ILMVAC GmbH), Gardner Denver Thomas Inc., Gardner Denver Thomas Pneumatic Systems (Wuxi) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Thomas Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Garo Dott. Ing. Roberto Gabbioneta S.r.l., Ghh-Rand Schraubenkompressoren Gmbh, HASKEL EUROPE LTD., HASKEL HOLDINGS UK LIMITED, HASKEL INTERNATIONAL LLC, Hamworthy Belliss & Morcom, Haskel France SAS, Haskel Sistemas de Fluidos Espana S.R.L., Hibon Inc., Highspeed Newco LLC, Hingerose Limited, ILMVAC (UK) Ltd., ILS Innovative Labor Systeme, ILS Inovative Laborsysteme GmbH, INGERSOLL RAND ITS JAPAN LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND (CHANG ZHOU) TOOLS CO. LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND (CHINA) INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING CO. LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND CHINA LLC, INGERSOLL-RAND COMERCIO E SERVICOS DE MAQUINAS E EQUIPAMENTOS INDUSTRIAIS LTDA., INGERSOLL-RAND DE PUERTO RICO INC., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL COMPANY B.V., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL SP. Z O.O., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL U.S. INC., INGERSOLL-RAND PHILIPPINES INC., INGERSOLL-RAND SPAIN S.A., INGERSOLL-RAND U.S. HOLDCO INC., IR HPS Holdco. Inc., ITO Emniyet, Ingersoll Rand Cyprus Investments Ltd., Ingersoll Rand Finance LLC, Ingersoll Rand Global Investments LLC, Ingersoll Rand Global Ventures LLC, Ingersoll Rand Hong Kong Investments Limited, Ingersoll Rand Inc., Ingersoll Rand Investments (SG) Pte. Ltd., Ingersoll Rand Investments B.V., Ingersoll Rand Schweiz Investments Gmbh, Ingersoll Rand Technology R&D (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand (Australia) Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand (China) Investment Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (Guilin) Tools Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (Hong Kong) Holding Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (India) Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Ab, Ingersoll-Rand Air Solutions Hibon Sarl, Ingersoll-Rand Beteiligungs Und Grundstucksverwaltungs Gmbh, Ingersoll-Rand Colombia S.A.S., Ingersoll-Rand Company Limited (Uk), Ingersoll-Rand Company South Africa (Pty) Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Cz S.R.O., Ingersoll-Rand De Mexico S.A. De C.V., Ingersoll-Rand Equipements De Production S.A.S., Ingersoll-Rand Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Industrial Ireland Limited, Ingersoll-Rand International (India) Private Limited, Ingersoll-Rand International Holding Llc, Ingersoll-Rand Italia S.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Italiana Manufacturing S.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Korea Holding Llc, Ingersoll-Rand Korea Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Lux Investments II S.A R.I., Ingersoll-Rand Lux Investments S.A R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Luxembourg Industrial Company S.A R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Machinery (Shanghai) Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Malaysia Co. Sdn. Bhd., Ingersoll-Rand S.A. De C.V., Ingersoll-Rand Services And Trading Limited Liability Company, Ingersoll-Rand Services Company, Ingersoll-Rand Services Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Singapore Enterprises Pte. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand South East Asia (Pte.) Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand Superay Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Technical And Services S.A.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Technologies And Services Private Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Technology R&D (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand Tool Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Trading Gmbh, Ingersoll-Rand Vietnam Company Limited, Instrum Rand JSC, Interflex Datensysteme, Ir Canada Holdings Ulc, Ir Canada Sales & Service Ulc, Ir France Sas, Kryptonite corp, Lawrence Factor Inc., LeROI, LeRoi International Inc, MILTON ROY (HONG KONG) LIMITED, MILTON ROY (UK) LIMITED, MILTON ROY EUROPA B.V., MILTON ROY EUROPE SAS, MILTON ROY INDUSTRIAL (SHANGHAI) CO. LTD., MILTON ROY LLC, MILTON ROY US PURCHASER INC., MP Pumps Inc., Maximum AG Technologies Inc., Maximus Solutions, Mb Air Systems Limited, Nash Elmo, Officina Meccaniche Industriali Srl, Oina VV, Oina VV Aktiebolag, Plurifilter D.O.O., Pt Ingersoll-Rand Indonesia, Robuschi, Runtech Systems, Runtech Systems (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Runtech Systems Inc., Runtech Systems OY, SEEPEX, Seepex (M) SDN, Seepex Australia Pty Ltd, Seepex Beteiligungs-Gesellschaft mit Beschrankter Haftung, Seepex France S.a.r.l., Seepex GmbH, Seepex Inc., Seepex India Private Ltd., Seepex Italia SRL, Seepex Japan Co. Ltd., Seepex Nordic A/S, Seepex OOO, Seepex Pumps (Shanghia) Co. Ltd., Seepex UK Ltd., Shanghai CompAir Compressors Co Ltd, Shanghai Compressors & Blowers Ltd., Shanghai Ingersoll-Rand Compressor Limited, Shenzhen Bocom System Engineering Co., Superay, Syltone, TIWR Real Estate GmbH & Co. KG, Tamrotor Marine Comp AS Norway, Tecno Matic Europe s.r.o., Thomas Industries Inc., Trane Technologies, Tri-Continent Scientific Inc., Vacuum and Blower Systems division, Welch Vacuum Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zaxe Technologies Inc., Zeks Compressed Air Solutions Llc, Zinsser Analytic, Zinsser Analytik GmbH, Zinsser NA Inc., and crayon interface.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Eastman Chemical: BP - Aviation Turbine Oil Business, CP Films Vertriebs GmbH, Commonwealth Laminating & Coating (Hong Kong) Limited, Commonwealth Laminating & Coating Inc, Crown Operations International LLC, Dynaloy, Eastman Administracion S.A. de C.V., Eastman Chemical (Barbados) SRL, Eastman Chemical (China) Co. Ltd., Eastman Chemical (China) Co. Ltd. - Guangzhou Branch, Eastman Chemical (China) Co. Ltd. - JingAn Branch, Eastman Chemical (Gibraltar) Limited, Eastman Chemical (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Eastman Chemical (PPU) Pte. Ltd., Eastman Chemical AMI GmbH, Eastman Chemical AMI LLC, Eastman Chemical AP Holdings B.V., Eastman Chemical Adhesives (Hong Kong) Limited, Eastman Chemical Advanced Materials B.V., Eastman Chemical Argentina S.R.L., Eastman Chemical Asia Pacific Pte Ltd-Indonesia Rep Office, Eastman Chemical Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Eastman Chemical Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. - Vietnam Representative Office, Eastman Chemical Australia Pty LTD - New Zealand Branch, Eastman Chemical Australia Pty. Ltd., Eastman Chemical B.V., Eastman Chemical B.V. - Czech Republic Representative Office, Eastman Chemical B.V. - Denmark Branch, Eastman Chemical B.V. - Filiale Italiana, Eastman Chemical B.V. - France Branch, Eastman Chemical B.V. - Hungarian Commercial Representative Office, Eastman Chemical B.V. - Poland Representative Office, Eastman Chemical B.V. - South Africa Representative Office, Eastman Chemical B.V. Taiwan Branch, Eastman Chemical B.V. The Hague Zug Branch, Eastman Chemical Canada Inc., Eastman Chemical Company Investments Inc., Eastman Chemical EMEA B.V., Eastman Chemical Europe Middle East and Africa LLC, Eastman Chemical Europe S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Fibers IP GmbH, Eastman Chemical Fibers IP LLC, Eastman Chemical Finance B.V., Eastman Chemical Finance CN S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Finance EUR S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Finance GBP S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Finance SGD S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Finance USD S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Financial Corporation, Eastman Chemical GDL S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Germany Holdings GmbH & Co. KG, Eastman Chemical Germany Management GmbH & Co. KG, Eastman Chemical Germany Verwaltungs-GmbH, Eastman Chemical Global Holdings LLC, Eastman Chemical Global Holdings S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical GmbH, Eastman Chemical HK Limited, Eastman Chemical Holdings do Brasil Ltda., Eastman Chemical Hong Kong B.V., Eastman Chemical Iberica S.L., Eastman Chemical India Private Limited, Eastman Chemical Intermediates (Hong Kong) Limited, Eastman Chemical International GmbH, Eastman Chemical International Holdings B.V., Eastman Chemical International LP LLC, Eastman Chemical Japan Ltd., Eastman Chemical Korea B.V., Eastman Chemical Korea Ltd., Eastman Chemical Latin America Inc., Eastman Chemical Ltd., Eastman Chemical Ltd. - Australia Branch, Eastman Chemical Ltd. - Singapore Branch, Eastman Chemical Ltd. - Taiwan Branch, Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Finance S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings 1 LLC, Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings 1 S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings 2 S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings LLC, Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Malaysia B.V., Eastman Chemical Middelburg B.V., Eastman Chemical Netherlands Limited, Eastman Chemical Products Singapore Pte. Ltd., Eastman Chemical Regional UK, Eastman Chemical Resins Inc., Eastman Chemical S.C.S., Eastman Chemical Singapore Pte. Ltd., Eastman Chemical Switzerland GmbH, Eastman Chemical Technology BVBA, Eastman Chemical Texas City Inc., Eastman Chemical US Finance LLC, Eastman Chemical Uruapan S.A. de C.V., Eastman Chemical Workington Limited, Eastman Chemical do Brasil Ltda., Eastman Cogen Management L.L.C., Eastman Cogeneration L.P., Eastman Company UK Limited, Eastman Fibers Korea Limited, Eastman Fibers Singapore Pte. Ltd., Eastman Foundation, Eastman Global Holdings Inc., Eastman International Holdings LLC, Eastman International Management Company, Eastman Italia S.r.l., Eastman Kimya Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Eastman LAR Distribucion S. de R.L. de C.V., Eastman Mazzucchelli Hong Kong Limited, Eastman Mazzucchelli Plastics (Shenzhen) Company Limited, Eastman Servicios Corporativos S.A. de C.V., Eastman Spain L.L.C., Eastman Specialties Corporation, Eastman Specialties Holdings Corporation, Eastman Specialties OU, Eastman Specialties S.a.r.l., Eastman Specialties Wuhan Youji Chemical Co. Ltd, Eastman de Argentina SRL, Ecuataminco S.A., Flexsys America L.P., Flexsys America LLC, Flexsys Chemicals (M) Sdn Bhd, Flexsys K.K., Flexsys Rubber Chemicals Limited, Flexsys Verkauf GmbH, Flexsys Verkauf GmbH - France Branch, Flexsys Verwaltungs- und Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Genovique Specialties Corporation, HDK Industries Inc., Holston Defense Corporation, Huper Optik (GP) L.L.C., Huper Optik International Pte. Ltd., Huper Optik U.S.A. L.P., Industriepark Nienburg GmbH, Kingsport Hotel L.L.C., Knowlton Technologies LLC, Monchem International LLC, Mustang Pipeline Company, Nanjing Yangzi Eastman Chemical Ltd, Novomatrix Inc., Novomatrix International Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Qilu Eastman Specialty Chemicals Ltd, S E Investment LLC, Sakra Hyco Pte. Ltd., Sakra Island Carbon Dioxide Pte Ltd, Scandiflex do Brasil Ltda., Solchem LLC, Solchem Netherlands C.V., Solutia (Thailand) Ltd., Solutia Brasil Ltda., Solutia Canada Inc., Solutia Chemicals France S.a.r.l., Solutia Chemicals India Private Limited, Solutia Chemicals India Private Limited - Branch, Solutia Deutschland GmbH, Solutia Europe BVBA - Portugal Representative Office, Solutia Europe BVBA - Russia Representative Office, Solutia Europe SPRL/BVBA, Solutia Greater China LLC, Solutia Hong Kong Limited, Solutia Inc., Solutia International Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Solutia Italia S.r.l., Solutia Japan Limited, Solutia Performance Products (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Solutia Performance Products Solutions Ltd., Solutia Singapore Pte. Ltd., Solutia Solar GmbH, Solutia Therminol Co. Ltd. Suzhou, Solutia Tlaxcala S.A. de C.V., Solutia UK Holdings Limited, Solutia UK Investments Limited, Solutia UK Limited, Solutia Venezuela S.R.L., Southwall Europe GmbH, Southwall Insulating Glass LLC, Southwall Technologies Inc., St. Gabriel CC Company LLC, Sterling Chemicals Inc, SunTek Australia Pty. Ltd., SunTek Films Canada Inc., SunTek UK Limited, TX Energy LLC, Taminco Argentina S.A., Taminco BVBA, Taminco BVBA - France Rep Office, Taminco BVBA - Hungarian Commercial Representative Office, Taminco BVBA - Oficina de Representacion en Espana, Taminco BVBA - The Philippines, Taminco Chile S.p.A, Taminco Choline Chloride (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Taminco Corporation, Taminco Finland Oy, Taminco Germany GmbH, Taminco Global Chemical LLC, Taminco Group BVBA, Taminco Group Holdings S.a.r.l., Taminco Holding Netherlands B.V., Taminco Intermediate LLC, Taminco Italia S.r.l., Taminco Limitada, Taminco Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Taminco US LLC, Taminco Uruguay S.A., Taminco de Guatemala S.A., Taminco de Honduras S.A. de C.V., Taminco do Brasil Comercio e Industria de Aminas Ltda., Taminco do Brasil Produtos Quimicos Ltda., Te An Ling Tian (Nanjing) Fine Chemical Co. Ltd., TetraVitae Bioscience, V-Kool International Pte. Ltd., and Yixing Taminco Feed Additives Co. Ltd..

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The following companies are subsidiares of NRG Energy: 3279405 Nova Scotia Company, 3283764 Nova Scotia Company, 7549709 Canada Inc., 7644868 Canada Inc., 7711565 Canada Inc., AC Solar Holdings LLC, Ace Energy Inc., Agua Caliente Borrower 1 LLC, Agua Caliente Solar Holdings LLC, Agua Caliente Solar LLC, Allied Home Warranty GP LLC, Allied Warranty LLC, Arthur Kill Gas Turbines LLC, Arthur Kill Power LLC, Astoria Gas Turbine Power LLC, Bayou Cove Peaking Power LLC, Beheer-en Beleggingsmaatschappij Plogema B.V., Berrians I Gas Turbine Power LLC, BidURenergy Inc., Big Cajun I Peaking Power LLC, Bluewater Wind Delaware LLC, Bluewater Wind Maryland LLC, Bluewater Wind New Jersey Energy LLC, Boquillas Wind LLC, Cabrillo Power I LLC, Cabrillo Power II LLC, Camino Energy LLC, Carbon Management Solutions LLC, Carlsbad Energy Center LLC, Carlsbad Energy Holdings LLC, Chester Energy LLC, Chickahominy River Energy Corp., Cirro Energy Services Inc., Cirro Group Inc., Citizens Power Holdings One LLC, Commonwealth Atlantic Power LLC, Connecticut Jet Power LLC, Cottonwood Development LLC, Cottonwood Energy Company LP, Cottonwood Generating Partners I LLC, Cottonwood Generating Partners II LLC, Cottonwood Generating Partners III LLC, Cottonwood Technology Partners LP, Delaware Power Development LLC, Devon Power LLC, Doga Enerji Uretim Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Doga Isi Satis Hizmetleri Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Doga Isletme ve Bakim Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Dunkirk Gas Corporation, Dunkirk Power LLC, EHI Development Fund LLC, EME Eastern Holdings LLC, EVgo Services LLC, Eastern Sierra Energy Company LLC, Ecokap Power LLC, El Segundo Energy Center II LLC, El Segundo Power II LLC, El Segundo Power LLC, Elkhorn Ridge Wind II LLC, Energy Alternatives Wholesale LLC, Energy Choice Solutions LLC, Energy Curtailment Specialists, Energy Plus Holdings LLC, Energy Plus Natural Gas LLC, Energy Protection Insurance Company, Everything Energy LLC, Forward Home Security LLC, GCP Funding Company LLC, GenOn Energy, Geostellar Inc., Gladstone Power Station Joint Venture, Goal Zero, Goal Zero Europe GmbH, Goal Zero LLC, Granite II Holding LLC, Granite Power Partners II L.P., Green Mountain Energy, Green Mountain Energy Company, Green Mountain Energy Sun Club, Gregory Partners LLC, Gregory Power Partners LLC, Hanover Energy Company, Huntley IGCC LLC, Huntley Power LLC, Independence Energy Alliance LLC, Independence Energy Group LLC, Independence Energy Natural Gas LLC, Indian River Operations Inc., Indian River Power LLC, Intellastar LLC, Ivanpah Master Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project I Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project II Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project III Holdings LLC, James River Power LLC, Kaufman Cogen LP, LSP-Nelson Energy LLC, Long Beach Generation LLC, Long Beach Peakers LLC, Long Beach Power LLC, Louisiana Generating LLC, MEC Esenyurt B.V., MEC San Pascual B.V., Maplekey UK Finance Limited, Maplekey UK Limited, Meriden Gas Turbines LLC, Middletown Power LLC, Midway-Sunset Cogeneration Company, Midwest Finance Company LLC, Midwest Generation EME LLC, Midwest Generation Holdings I LLC, Midwest Generation Holdings II LLC, Midwest Generation LLC, Midwest Generation Procurement Services LLC, Midwest Peaker Holdings LLC, Mission Bingham Lake Wind LLC, Mission Del Cielo LLC, Mission Energy Construction Services LLC, Mission Energy Holdings International LLC, Mission Energy Wales LLC, Mission Funding Zeta LLC, Mission Midway-Sunset Holdings LLC, Mission Midwest Coal LLC, Mission Minnesota Wind LLC, Mission Watson Holdings LLC, Mission Wind Boquillas LLC, Mission Wind New Mexico II LLC, Mission Wind Owaissa LLC, Mission Wind Pinnacle LLC, Mission del Sol LLC, Montville IGCC LLC, Montville Power LLC, NEO Chester-Gen LLC, NEO Corporation, NRG Acquisition Holdings Inc., NRG Advisory Services LLC, NRG Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Alexandria LLC, NRG Arroyo Nogales LLC, NRG Arthur Kill Operations Inc., NRG Asia-Pacific Ltd., NRG Astoria Gas Turbine Operations Inc., NRG Astoria Power LLC, NRG Audrain Generating LLC, NRG Audrain Holding LLC, NRG Bayou Cove LLC, NRG Berrians East Development LLC, NRG Bluewater Holdings LLC, NRG Bluewater Wind Massachusetts LLC, NRG Bourbonnais Equipment LLC, NRG Bourbonnais LLC, NRG Brazoria Energy LLC, NRG Business Services LLC, NRG CTA Holdings LLC, NRG Cabrillo Power Operations Inc., NRG Cadillac Inc., NRG Cadillac Operations Inc., NRG California Peaker Operations LLC, NRG Capital II LLC, NRG Carbon 360 LLC, NRG Cedar Bayou Development Company LLC, NRG Chalk Point CT LLC, NRG CleanTech Investments LLC, NRG Coal Development Company LLC, NRG ComLease LLC, NRG Common Stock Finance I LLC, NRG Common Stock Finance II LLC, NRG Connected Home LLC, NRG Connecticut Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Connecticut Peaking Development LLC, NRG Construction LLC, NRG Cottonwood Tenant LLC, NRG Curtailment Solutions Canada Inc., NRG Curtailment Solutions Inc., NRG DG Development LLC, NRG Development Company Inc., NRG Devon Operations Inc., NRG Dispatch Services LLC, NRG Distributed Energy Resources Holdings LLC, NRG Distributed Generation PR LLC, NRG Dunkirk Operations Inc., NRG ECOKAP Holdings LLC, NRG ESA Joint Development LLC, NRG El Segundo Operations Inc., NRG Energy Center Eagles LLC, NRG Energy Center Oxnard LLC, NRG Energy Fuel LLC, NRG Energy Fuel Services LLC, NRG Energy Gas & Wind Holdings Inc., NRG Energy Holdings II Inc., NRG Energy Holdings Inc., NRG Energy Inc., NRG Energy Labor Services LLC, NRG Energy Petroleum LLC, NRG Energy Services Group LLC, NRG Energy Services International Inc., NRG Energy Services LLC, NRG Equipment Company LLC, NRG Fuel Cell CA1 LLC, NRG Fuel Resources LLC, NRG Fuel Transportation LLC, NRG GTL Holdings LLC, NRG Gas Development Company LLC, NRG Generation Holdings Inc., NRG Gladstone Operating Services Pty Ltd, NRG Granite Acquisition LLC, NRG Greenco LLC, NRG HQ DG LLC, NRG Holding Leasing Vehicle 7 LLC, NRG Home & Business Solutions LLC, NRG Home Services LLC, NRG Home Solutions LLC, NRG Home Solutions Product LLC, NRG Homer City Services LLC, NRG Huntley Operations Inc., NRG Identity Protect LLC, NRG Ilion LP LLC, NRG Ilion Limited Partnership, NRG Independence Solar LLC, NRG International LLC, NRG Kaufman LLC, NRG Latin America Inc., NRG Lease Co LLC, NRG Lease Development LLC, NRG Limestone 3 LLC, NRG Maintenance Services LLC, NRG Mesquite LLC, NRG Mextrans Inc., NRG MidAtlantic Affiliate Services Inc., NRG MidCon Development LLC, NRG Middletown Operations Inc., NRG Middletown Repowering LLC, NRG Midwest Holdings LLC, NRG Midwest II LLC, NRG Montville Operations Inc., NRG NE Development LLC, NRG Nelson Turbines LLC, NRG New Roads Holdings LLC, NRG NewGen LLC, NRG North Central Operations Inc., NRG Northeast Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Norwalk Harbor Operations Inc., NRG Ohio Pipeline Company LLC, NRG Operating Services Inc., NRG Oswego Harbor Power Operations Inc., NRG Oxbow Holdings LLC, NRG PacGen Inc., NRG Peaker Finance Company LLC, NRG Portable Power LLC, NRG Potrero Development LLC, NRG Power Marketing LLC, NRG Procurement Company LLC, NRG Project Company LLC, NRG Reliability Solutions LLC, NRG Renter's Protection LLC, NRG Repowering Holdings LLC, NRG Residential Solar Solutions LLC, NRG Residential Solar Solutions Leasing II LLC, NRG Retail LLC, NRG Retail Northeast LLC, NRG Rockford Acquisition LLC, NRG Rockford Equipment II LLC, NRG Rockford Equipment LLC, NRG Saguaro Operations Inc., NRG Security LLC, NRG Services Corporation, NRG Sherbino LLC, NRG SimplySmart Solutions LLC, NRG Solar Arrowhead LLC, NRG Solar CVSR Holdings 2 LLC, NRG Solar Dandan LLC, NRG Solar Guam LLC, NRG Solar Ivanpah LLC, NRG Solar Ring LLC, NRG Solar SC Stadium LLC, NRG Solar Sunrise LLC, NRG South Central Affiliate Services Inc., NRG South Central Generating LLC, NRG South Central Operations Inc., NRG South Texas LP, NRG Sterlington Power LLC, NRG Storage Fabrication & Delivery LLC, NRG Storage on Demand NY LLC, NRG SunCap Leasing I LLC, NRG Telogia Power LLC, NRG Texas C&I Supply LLC, NRG Texas Gregory LLC, NRG Texas Holding Inc., NRG Texas LLC, NRG Texas Power LLC, NRG Texas Retail LLC, NRG Trading Advisors LLC, NRG Transmission Holdings LLC, NRG ULC Parent Inc., NRG Victoria I Pty Ltd, NRG Warranty Services LLC, NRG West Coast LLC, NRG Western Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Wind Development Company LLC, NRG Wind Force LLC, NRG Wind LLC, NRG dGen Advisory Services LLC, NRGenerating German Holdings GmbH, NRGenerating International B.V., NRGenerating Luxembourg (No. 1) S.a.r.l., NRGenerating Luxembourg (No. 2) S.a.r.l., New Genco GP LLC, New Jersey Power Development LLC, Norwalk Power LLC, O'Brien Cogeneration Inc. II, ONSITE Energy Inc., One Block Off The Grid Inc., Oswego Harbor Power LLC, Pacific Generation Company, Petra Nova CCS I LLC, Petra Nova Holdings LLC, Petra Nova LLC, Petra Nova Parish Holdings LLC, Petra Nova Power I LLC, Pure Energies Group, Pure Energies Group ULC, Pure Energies Installation Inc., Pure Energies Solar Services Inc., Pure Group Inc., RDI Consulting LLC, RERH Holdings LLC, Reliant Charitable Foundation, Reliant Energy, Reliant Energy Northeast LLC, Reliant Energy Power Supply LLC, Reliant Energy Retail Holdings LLC, Reliant Energy Retail Services LLC, Restoration Design LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar Holdings LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar and Electric LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar and Electric of NY LLC, Saguaro Power Company a Limited Partnership, Saguaro Power LLC, San Gabriel Energy LLC, San Joaquin Energy LLC, San Juan Energy LLC, San Pascual Cogeneration Company International B.V., Sherbino I Wind Farm LLC, Solar Partners I LLC, Solar Partners II LLC, Solar Partners VIII LLC, Solar Power Partners, Solar Pure Energies ULC, Somerset Operations Inc., Somerset Power LLC, South Texas Wind LLC, Station A LLC, Sunrise Power Company LLC, Sunshine State Power (No. 2) B.V., Sunshine State Power B.V., TCV Pipeline LLC, Tacoma Energy Recovery Company, Taloga Wind II LLC, Texas Coastal Ventures LLC, Texas Genco GP LLC, Texas Genco Holdings, Texas Genco Holdings Inc., Texas Genco LP LLC, Texas Genco Services LP, US Retailers LLC, Valle Del Sol Energy LLC, Vienna Operations Inc., Vienna Power LLC, WCP (Generation) Holdings LLC, Watson Cogeneration Company, West Coast Power LLC, XOOM Alberta Holdings LLC, XOOM British Columbia Holdings LLC, XOOM Energy BC ULC, XOOM Energy California LLC, XOOM Energy Canada ULC, XOOM Energy Connecticut LLC, XOOM Energy Delaware LLC, XOOM Energy Georgia LLC, XOOM Energy Global Holdings LLC, XOOM Energy Illinois LLC, XOOM Energy Indiana LLC, XOOM Energy Kentucky LLC, XOOM Energy LLC, XOOM Energy Maine LLC, XOOM Energy Maryland LLC, XOOM Energy Massachusetts LLC, XOOM Energy Michigan LLC, XOOM Energy New Hampshire LLC, XOOM Energy New Jersey LLC, XOOM Energy New York LLC, XOOM Energy ONT ULC, XOOM Energy Ohio LLC, XOOM Energy Pennsylvania LLC, XOOM Energy Rhode Island LLC, XOOM Energy Texas LLC, XOOM Energy Virginia LLC, XOOM Energy Washington D.C. LLC, XOOM Ontario Holdings LLC, XOOM Solar LLC, and eV2g LLC.

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Trinity Industries, Inc. provides rail transportation products and services under the TrinityRail name in North America. It operates in two segments, Railcar Leasing and Management Services Group, and Rail Products Group. The Railcar Leasing and Management Services Group segment leases freight and tank railcars; originates and manages railcar leases for third-party investors; and provides fleet maintenance and management services. As of December 31, 2021, it had a fleet of 106,970 owned or leased railcars. This segment serves industrial shipper and railroad companies operating in agriculture, construction and metals, consumer products, energy, and refined products and chemicals markets. The Rail Products Group segment manufactures freight and tank railcars for transporting various liquids, gases, and dry cargo; and offers railcar maintenance and modification services. This segment serves railroads, leasing companies, and industrial shippers of products in the agriculture, construction and metals, consumer products, energy, and refined products and chemicals markets. It sells or leases products and services through its own sales personnel and independent sales representatives. Trinity Industries, Inc. was incorporated in 1933 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.
The Resource Center at Missoula Aging Services (MAS) is offering a six-week session of its popular Powerful Tools for Caregivers class series beginning Thursday, Aug. 10.

If you care for an older relative or friend, Powerful Tools for Caregivers can help you learn to reduce stress, improve self-confidence, better communicate feelings, balance your life and better take care of yourself. The sessions will be held each Thursday from 1 to 3 p.m. through Thursday, Sept. 14, at MAS, 337 Stephens Ave. Free respite care may be available. The class is for family caregivers who care for an older relative or friend; no professionals, please. Cost is $65, with sliding scale available. Pre-register at powerfultoolsforcaregivers.eventbrite.com, or call MAS for information, 406-728-7682.

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Native Grill is collecting donations for regional fire crews. Items can be dropped off between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. every day at Native Grill, 4875 N. Reserve St. Supplies will be dispersed every Saturday.

Some of the items requested are: bandannas, sunglasses, lip balm, socks (Smartwool or merino wool), protein bars, Gatorade, water, personal hygiene items, snacks and sweets, instant coffee. It's likely to be a long fire season so anything will be greatly appreciated. No cash donations please.

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The Union Gospel Mission, 506 Toole Ave., is looking for two containers to store donations for fire victims. The Mission recently became a front door to help these families out during this time. It will be gathering and accepting donations for this specific need.

Call April R. Seat, Director of Outreach, 406-542-5240, Ext. 2.

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Grizzly Peak Retirement Community, 3600 American Way, will host Smart Driver Safety Courses on Tuesday, Aug. 15, from 1 to 5 p.m. and another class Wednesday, Aug. 16, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. While this safe driving strategies class is designed for drivers age 50 and older, all are welcome. There are no written exams or driving tests. Montana mandates insurance discounts for qualified graduates. The cost is $15 for AARP members and $20 for non-members. Preregistration is advised.

To sign up, contact Lena Jordan at 406-721-2292. For more information, call Amanda Hodges, AARP instructor, at 406-644-3446.
PetroChina Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in a range of petroleum related products, services, and activities in Mainland China and internationally. It operates through Exploration and Production, Refining and Chemicals, Marketing, and Natural Gas and Pipeline segments. The Exploration and Production segment engages in the exploration, development, production, and marketing of crude oil and natural gas. The Refining and Chemicals segment refines crude oil and petroleum products; and produces and markets primary petrochemical products, derivative petrochemical products, and other chemical products. The Marketing segment is involved in marketing of refined products and trading business. The Natural Gas and Pipeline segment engages in the transmission of natural gas, crude oil, and refined products; and sale of natural gas. As of December 31, 2021, the company had a total length of 26,076 km, including 17,329 km of natural gas pipelines, 7,340 km of crude oil pipelines, and 1,407 km of refined product pipelines. The company is also involved in the exploration, development, and production of oil sands and coalbed methane; trading of crude oil and petrochemical products; storage, chemical engineering, storage facilities, service station, and transportation facilities and related businesses; and production and sales of basic and derivative chemical, and other chemical products. The company was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People's Republic of China. PetroChina Company Limited is a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation.
Senior Italian Cardinal Tettamanzi dies at 83

Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi, once seen as a possible contender to become pope, died on Saturday at the age of 83, the Milan diocese said on its website. Tettamanzi was made archbishop of the Italian port city of Genoa in 1995 and in 2002 moved to nearby Milan, one of the world's largest dioceses with some 5 million faithful and 1,000 parishes. He had become a cardinal in 1998.

"A key figure of Milan's social and religious history has disappeared," Milan's mayor Giuseppe Sala said in a note.

Pope Francis wrote to Milan's outgoing Archbishop Angelo Scola and his successor Mario Delpini to express his condolences over the departure of one of "the most loveable and beloved" prelates of the Milanese diocese.

A prolific writer, Tettamanzi helped Pope John Paul draft some of his encyclicals and was seen by some Vatican watchers as a potential candidate to replace the Polish pontiff when he died in 2005.

But he was little known outside his native Italy and fellow cardinals instead elected Josef Ratzinger as pope.

While archbishop of Genoa, Tettamanzi defended anti-globalisation protesters who besieged a Group of Eight summit there in 2001. "A single African child sick with AIDS counts more than the entire universe," he said at the time.

He stood out by deciding that pilgrims visiting Genoa for the 2000 Holy Year should stop not only at the city's great churches but also an old people's home to get a special indulgence for the jubilee millennium year.Tettamanzi was born in Renate near Milan on March 14, 1934. He began studying as a priest at the age of 11 and was ordained at 23 by the then-archbishop of Milan, Giovanni Battista Montini, who went on to become Pope Paul VI.
The attempt to find systemic police bias has come to this: the difference between an officer saying uh and saying that, thats. According to Stanford University researchers, police officers in Oakland, California, use one of those verbal tics more often with white drivers and the other more often with black drivers. If you can guess which tic conveys respect and which disrespect, you may have a career ahead of you in the exploding field of bias psychology.

In June, a team of nine Stanford psychologists, linguists, and computer scientists released a paper purporting to show that Oakland police treat black drivers less respectfully than white ones. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, elicited a huzzah from the press. The Washington Post, the New York Times, and Science, among many other outlets, gave it prominent play. Police officers are significantly less respectful and consistently ruder toward black motorists during routine traffic stops than they are toward white drivers, gloated the New York Times.

Reading the coverage, one expected reports of cops cursing at black drivers, say, or peremptorily ordering them around, or using the N-word. Instead, the most disrespectful officer utterance that the researchers presented was: Steve, can I see that drivers license again? It, its showing suspended. Is thatthats you? The second most disrespectful was: All right, my man. Do me a favor. Just keep your hands on the steering wheel real quick.

The researchers themselves undoubtedly expected more dramatic results. Undaunted by the lackluster findings, they packaged them in the conventional bias narrative anyway, opening their study by invoking the onslaught of incidents involving officers use of force with black suspects that have rocked the nation. A cofounder of the Black Lives Matter movement helpfully commented in the San Francisco Chronicle that the study goes beyond individual racism to highlight a systemic set of practices that has impacts on peoples lives.

The study is worth examining in some detail as an example of the enormous scientific machinery being brought to bear on a problem of ever-diminishing scope, whether in police departments or in American society generally. The most cutting-edge research designs, computer algorithms, and statistical tools, such as Fishers exact tests, Cronbachs alpha, and Kernel density estimates, are now deployed in the increasingly desperate hunt for crippling white racism, while a more pressing probleminner-city dysfunctiongets minimal academic attention.

Lead researcher Jennifer Eberhardt, a Stanford psychology professor, specializes in implicit bias, the idea that nearly everyone approaches allegedly disfavored groups with unconscious prejudice. The Oakland Police Department has given Eberhardt virtually unlimited access to its policing data as part of a federal consent decree governing the departments operations. Her first study of the departmenton racial profiling in police stopsmanaged to run nearly 400 pages without ever disclosing black and white crime rates in Oakland. (Hint: they are vastly disparate.)

This latest study analyzed officer body-camera footage from 981 car stops that Oakland officers made during April 2014. Blacks were 682 of the drivers in those stops, whites 299. The resulting officer-driver conversations yielded 36,738 discrete officer utterances. In the first phase of the study, college students rated 414 of those officer utterances (1.1 percent of the total) for levels of respect. The students were shown what, if anything, the driver said immediately preceding each officer statement but were not shown any more of the earlier interaction between officer and driver. They were not told the race of the driver or officer or anything else about the stop. The students rated police utterances to white drivers as somewhat more respectful than those to black drivers, though the officers were equally formal, as the researchers defined it, with drivers of both races.

In the second phase of the study, the linguisticians tried to tease out which features of the 414 officer utterances had generated the student ratings. They came up with 22 categories of speech that seemed most determinative. On the positive scale were, inter alia, officer apologies, the use of surnames, the use of um and uh (known in linguistics as filled pauses), use of the word just, and what is referred to as giving agency (saying you can, you may, or you could). The eight negative categories included asking a question, asking for agency (phrases such as do me a favor, allow me, may I, should I), disfluency (a repeated word such as that, that), informal titles (bro, my man), first names, and, most disrespectful, the phrase hands on the wheel. If some of those distinctions seem arbitrarycould I is disrespectful, you could is respectful; um is respectful, a word repetition is notthey are. More important, they are minute and innocuous. The 22 categories each received a score allegedly capturing their degree of respect or disrespect, with apologizing at the top of the respect scale and hands on the wheel at the bottom. There were no categories for swear words or even for unsoftened commands, presumably because officers never engaged in those forms of speech.

Finally, in phase three, the researchers turned their computers loose on all 36,738 officer utterances, using the 22-category rating system. They found that officers utterances toward white drivers scored somewhat higher in respect than utterances toward black drivers, even after controlling for whether the stop resulted in a search, citation, arrest, or warning. (The sample size for white arrests and searches was quite small, however: one arrest and two searches; black drivers were 15 times more likely to be arrested than whites.) Black officers scored the same as white officers in respect toward black and white drivers. White drivers were 57 percent more likely than black drivers to hear something from the top 10 percent of the respect categories, and black drivers were 61 percent more likely to hear something from the bottom 10 percent of the disrespect categories.

There is plenty to criticize in the studys methodology and assumptions. Doing so, however, risks implying that the substantive claims are significant. They are not. Nevertheless, if it were the case that we should worry about whether an officer says you can (good) or can I (bad) to black drivers, the study leaves out critical components of officer-civilian interactions. The most disrespectful phrase in the disrespect scale is hands on the wheel. Black drivers are 29 percent more likely to hear those words than white drivers. Why might an officer ask a driver to put his hands on the wheel? Perhaps because the driver was not complying with an officers initial requests or was otherwise belligerent. Yet nothing about driver behavior is included in phase threes regression analysesnot drivers words, demeanor, or actions.

Moreover, given crime rates in Oakland, a black driver is far more likely than a white driver to be on parole or probation, a fact that will show up when an officer runs his plates or his license. In 2013, blacks committed 83 percent of homicides, attempted homicides, robberies, assaults with firearms, and assaults with weapons other than firearms in Oakland, according to Oakland PD data shared with San Francisco Chronicle columnist Chip Johnson, even though blacks are only 28 percent of Oaklands population. Whites were 1 percent of robbery suspects, 1 percent of firearm assault suspects, and an even lower percent of homicide suspects, even though they are about 34 percent of the citys population. (The roadways draw on a population beyond Oakland, but Oaklands crime disparities are repeated in neighboring towns.) Being on parole or probation could contribute to an officers hands-on-the-wheel request, but drivers criminal history is not included in the studys models.

The authors claim to have controlled for the severity of any underlying offense that may have triggered the stop, but they do not show whether offense severity differed between blacks and whites. The proportion of male drivers in the black sample was higher than in the white sample, which will also skew the results toward a more crime-prone population. Males were 67 percent of all black drivers but only 59 percent of white drivers.

The studys much-cited statistic that black drivers are about 60 percent more likely to hear a phrase from the bottom 10 percent of the disrespect scale is entirely accounted for by the hands on the wheel phrase, since there are only eight items on the disrespect list. The next two items on the disrespect list are first names and informal titles. Whites were 4 percent more likely to have a first name used with them, and blacks were 65 percent more likely to have an informal title used with them, by far the greatest discrepancy on the eight-item disrespect scale. An officer who uses my man or bro with a black driver in Oakland is likely trying to establish rapport through the use of street vernacular, hardly an invidious impulse; black officers were as likely to use such informal titles as white officers. The white drivers stopped were, on average, three years older than the black drivers. Though age had a greater effect on respect and formality than race in the regression models, the study did not test the connection between age and race. Given the socioeconomic profile of the Bay Areas white population, class differences, too, could explain why officers are less likely to use man and bro with white drivers.

Whether a young black male in Oakland would feel affirmatively disrespected by my man is nowhere demonstrated. Eberhardt claimed in an e-mail exchange that black and white DMV patrons in a replication effort also rated utterances from the studys phase one as more respectful toward white drivers, from which she concluded that the use of urban vernacular by officers is not seen as more respectful by black citizens. The question is, however: Are such street terms affirmatively experienced as disrespectful?

None of these methodological objections really matters, though, because the substantive results are so innocuous. Consider again the most disrespectful utterance provided by the researchers: Steve, can I see that drivers license again? It, its showing suspended. Is thatthats you? In no possible universe with any minimal connection to common sense should that utterance be deemed disrespectful. Why does it get that rating? A first name is used, which is the second most disrespectful item on the researchers disrespect scale. Can I see is asking for agency, the fifth most disrespectful thing an officer can say. Worse, can I see is part of a question, and questions are the eighth most disrespectful term on the list. If can I see that drivers license? is now deemed racially disrespectful, its hard to see how police officers can do their jobs.

More demerits follow from It, its showing. The repeated it counts as a disfluency, fourth on the disrespect scale. The chance that a driver is even aware of such verbal tics is almost zero. The chance that he would distinguish a disfluency from a so-called filled pause (um or uh) and experience the one as disrespectful and the other as respectful is less than zero. The word suspended generates another strike because it is negative. Again, it is hard to see how officers can conduct traffic stops if such negative words are off-limits. The final sentence also racks up two demerits: Is thatthats you? is a disfluency and a question. The question may have been asked to soften the fact that the driver is operating with a suspended license.

This is madness. In their franker moments, the researchers all but admit that their study makes a mountain of a molehill. To be clear, Dan Jurafsky, a linguistics and computer science professor told Science, these were well-behaved officers. The differences are subtle, Eberhardt said to Science. The language used with blacks was not really disrespectful, she added. No kidding. But the authors cannot resist pumping up their results to fit the conventional policing narrative. We have found that police officers interactions with blacks tend to be more fraught, they write at the end. They have found no such thing. Even if the professors had actually measured drivers reactions to the 36,738 officer utterances, rather than simply running those utterances through a computer algorithm, a de minimis difference on the respect scale is not tantamount to a finding of fraughtness. Nevertheless, Eberhardt repeated the fraughtness claim in numerous interviews. The study goes on to conclude that we now have a method of quantifying these troubled interactions. But the authors also did not measure whether the interactions were troubled from the drivers perspective. Their method recalls campus-rape surveys that never ask alleged victims if they think they have been raped.

The authors titled their study Language from police body camera footage shows racial disparities in officer respect. A more accurate title would have been: Language from police body camera footage shows that officers treat all drivers courteously but are more colloquial with young black drivers.

In 2015, the last year for which full data are available, Oaklands violent-crime rate was nearly four times the national average: 1,442 violent crimes per 100,000 residents, compared with 372 violent crimes per 100,000 residents nationwide. Oaklands violent crime rate was 14 times higher than Palo Altos and twice as high as San Franciscos. If police training starts insisting that officers refer to everyone as Mr. and Ms. and scrupulously avoid street appellations, there would be no loss. But it is the disparity in criminal offending and victimization that should concern race researchers, not whether police officers are more likely to repeat words or use my man with black drivers.

Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
A vegan cafe in Melbourne, Australia is taking the wage disparity between men and women into its own hands, UK's The Daily Mail reported, by charging male patrons more than females.

The Handsom Her, located in Brunswick, addresses the gender pay gap by charging men more, and granting women priority seats, according to the publication.

Men are asked to pay 18 percent more than women, but owner Alex O'Brien told the Mail the tax is optional. Thus far, O'Brien said nobody has refused to pay.

"If men don't want to pay it, we're not going to kick them out the door. It's just an opportunity to do some good," O'Brien told the Daily Mail.

O'Brien tells the newspaper the proceeds of the 18 percent premium will go to a non-profit women service's group.

The report is just the latest spin on how some businesses are trying to tackle wage disparities. State lawmakers have introduced bills across the U.S. aimed at the shrinking pay gap, but it remains a hot topic in workplaces across the country.

Read the full report from The Daily Mail here.

Watch: Explaining the gender wage gap
Stephan Weil, already facing an unexpected election after the defection of a member of his ruling coalition to Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, is under fire for what some see as a too-cozy relationship with VW.

The government of Germany's Lower Saxony on Sunday denied a newspaper report that its premier softened speeches critical of Volkswagen in the diesel emissions scandal at the company's request.

An employee installs the rear passenger door on a test frame for a Volkswagen AG Tiguan compact sport utility vehicle inside the company's production plant in Puebla, Mexico.

The mass circulation newspaper Bild am Sonntag quoted a VW employee as saying that the company "rewrote and watered down" an October 2015 speech by Weil to the state legislature about the diesel scandal after Weil shared a draft with the company.

"This was no fact check," the paper quoted the employee as saying.

Weil called VW "a pearl of German industry" in the speech, but other passages were removed, the newspaper reported, including one in which he called for company officials to be held accountable "regardless of their place in the hierarchy."

Weil's office issued a two-page statement on Sunday denying the charges and calling the report "distorting and misleading."

It acknowledged that it had in fact asked the company to fact-check the speech given the sensitivity of "difficult" discussions with U.S. authorities about the rigging of U.S. emissions tests.

It said only very few changes suggested by VW were actually adopted, adding: "There were definitely no substantial changes between the first draft and the speech as ultimately delivered."

Weil, who is a member of VW's supervisory board, also sharply criticised VW leadership in the speech for not disclosing its emissions rigging until a year after it first began discussions with U.S. officials, his office said.

It said there had been no consultation about speeches or remarks with VW for several months, since the "situation between VW and the U.S. authorities has now been cleared up."

VW executive Oliver Schmidt pleaded guilty last week in a U.S. court in connection with the emissions scandal that has cost the German automaker as much as $25 billion.
Fledgling businesses rarely command seed or venture funding right out of the gate. But they still need cash to get started.

While entrepreneurs have more capital sources than ever before, they're also faced with a ton of misinformation.

For example, a PwC report last month raved about crowdfunding and how it's helping female founders get ahead in business. The report lumps Kickstarter-style campaigns together with peer-to-peer lending and equity fundraising online. It regards these as a single source of capital, which it calls crowdfunding.

In reality, there's a big difference between securing a loan for your business and winning over backers on a site like Kickstarter. Meanwhile, equity crowdfunding, enabled by sites like AngelList, CircleUp and SeedInvest, is generally for businesses that are further along.

On the equity sites, founders provide a business plan, including information about early sales and user traction. Investors can browse and evaluate deals. After a mutual due diligence process, start-ups issue stock to investors.

Here are the real ways that most entrepreneurs get money at the very start.

Personal savings

Founders with money of their own use personal savings to start a business. Those who come from wealth -- or have great connections -- can rely on family or friends for a little money or perhaps free rent and Wi-Fi. According to the Small Business Administration, entrepreneurs rely on personal savings more than any other source of capital to fund their businesses.

Wages

Many founders have a day job and use their income to build a product and start a company. Two famous examples: Steve Chen was working at Facebook when he first started tinkering on YouTube, and Markus Persson was at King.com while building the earliest version of Minecraft.

Credit cards

Credit card debt puts entrepreneurs at risk of damaging their personal credit and losing money to late fees. But credit cards provide easy access for many entrepreneurs before they start generating enough revenue to cover payroll or their own living expenses.

Airbnb's Brian Chesky admitted to students at Stanford University that he and co-founder Joe Gebbia racked up tens of thousands of dollars in credit card debt to keep the lights on in their early days.

Loans

Whether they come from banks or newer peer-to-peer and online platforms such as Kabbage, LendingClub, Lend.io or Upstart, small business loans and lines of credit are now available from many providers.

Crowdfunding

Platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo let people raise money for a game, film or gadget before it's actually made. Backers of a particular project know that paying up doesn't guarantee they'll get the exact reward within the time frame they're expecting. But founders and creators know their reputation is at stake if they don't deliver.
CORRICKS RIVER BEND  Alec Underwood accidentally hooked one of the biggest justifications for passing the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act as he floated by Belmont Creek last week.

A 21-inch bull trout snatched the artificial hopper hed tied to his tippet in hopes of hitting a cutthroat. The Montana Wildlife Federation conservation associate got the raft to shore, jumped in the water and quickly unhooked the fish. It torpedoed back into the cooler depths of the channel.

Without those cold waters, and without those tributary streams, the Blackfoot River would hold no bull trout. As is, the fish known as the grizzly bear of the trout world faces the same challenge as its land-based predatory kin  near extinction due to loss of living space. Anglers must release any bulls they catch, unharmed.

In hopes that one day bull trout might be legal game fish in the Blackfoot again, Underwood and a flotilla of fellow advocates want to build support for the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act. The bill offered by Sen. Jon Tester, D-Montana, would add about 80,000 acres to the Bob Marshall, Mission Mountain and Scapegoat wilderness areas.

This guys a testimony to why we protect those headwater streams, Underwood said, still shaking his head at the lunker he let go. Monture Creek, the North Fork of the Blackfoot, the Clearwater all have extremely high fishery value. Theyre spawning factories.

Those waters have also gathered an eclectic range of supporters. Loren Rose of Pyramid Mountain Lumber, Ted Brewer of The Montana Wilderness Association, Seeley Lake Elementary School Superintendent Chris Stout, Ovando businesswoman Kathy Schoendoerfer, and Blackfoot River property owner Jerry OConnell joined an equally motley crew of reporters on a float with author Norman Macleans grandson, Noah Snyder, over about 4 miles between Corricks River Bend and Whitaker Bridge fishing access sites.

That scenic reach fills nearly one-sixth of Norman Macleans A River Runs Through It, including Normans last day of fishing with his brother Paul and father John. The book, and subsequent movie starring a young Brad Pitt, helped launch Montanas fly-fishing reputation.

Beneath the cliff walls of Red Rocks beach, Maclean's grandson made his own impassioned plea for the legislation.

Its easy to feel a sense of insignificance in the giant scheme of things, Snyder said. But your significance in this human time is very real. My family has been spending summers here for 100 years. It reminds us of our small piece of time we have together. Those words and rocks and feelings and stories are all one in the land here. Its important that these places stay available.

Testers bill has its critics. Some groups, including the Montana Sierra Club and Wilderness Watch, object to the inclusion of a 2,200-acre recreation area allowing winter access for snowmobiles and an adjacent 3,800-acre chunk designated for mountain bike use. Citizens for Balanced Use attacked those same areas because of limitations on timber harvest, road-building and mining as well as being not areas of desired snowmobile use because of their low altitude and limited snowfall.

In response, last weeks group pointed to the depth of local support for the bill. Ovando rancher and Blackfoot Challenge founding member Jim Stone recalled how the groups 80-20 Rule guided early talks about the landscape in 2005.

In this valley, we really work on that 80 percent where we can all come together, Stone said. Its not just about ranching. Its about all the businesses behind us that have to make a living here. Whether youre a cattle guy or a fisherman, we can all survive when we pull together. And thats how we get legislation done  by coming together from the ground up.

Addrien Marx backed that up from a business perspective. The recently retired owner of Roveros Hardware and gas station in Seeley Lake said adding wilderness mattered even to those who couldnt reach the remote headwaters.

Our business would not survive without every spoke in the wheel, Marx said. We need timber trucks to drive up and fuel and their drivers to buy a pizza. We need the out-of-state VW bus to spill out a bunch of kids who come in and use the restroom and buy treats. We need wilderness advocates and snowmobilers to buy their last snacks before they go out there. And I think we can do that without losing our towns personality, or its core values or its landscape.

Pyramid Mountain Lumber President Loren Rose said his company was backing the bill after previous congressional efforts provided more timber jobs but couldnt pass wilderness additions.

We got more out of this relationship on the front end, Rose said. Managing those roaded areas was important. Now were trying to tie up the loose ends.

The Wilderness Society and Montana Wilderness Association helped us get (stewardship contracting) legislation passed, and most of that work has been done now, Rose said. With help from our other senator (Steve Daines) and congressman (Greg Gianforte) we can get something done here.
The government said it was concerned that smart vehicles, which allow drivers to do things such as access maps and travel information, could be targeted by hackers to access personal data, steal cars that use keyless entry systems, or take control of technology for malicious reasons.

The British government issued new guidelines on Sunday requiring manufacturers of internet-connected vehicles to put in place tougher cyber protections to ensure they are better shielded against hackers.

The new guidelines will also ensure that engineers seek to design out cyber security threats as they develop new vehicles, the government said.

"Whether we're turning vehicles into wifi-connected hotspots or equipping them with millions of lines of code to become fully automated, it is important that they are protected against cyber-attacks," Martin Callanan, a minister in the Department for Transport, said in a statement.

"Our key principles give advice on what organisations should do, from the board level down, as well as technical design and development considerations."

The new guidelines include making the systems able to withstand receiving corrupt, invalid or malicious data or commands, and allowing users to delete personally identifiable data held on a vehicle's systems.

Manufacturers must make plans for how to maintain and support security over the lifetime of the vehicle, the government said, and personal accountability for product security should be held at board level.

Alongside this, the government said it was also planning new legislation governing insurance for self-driving cars.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Sunday that the United States' special representative on Ukraine, Kurt Volker, would soon meet a senior aide to Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

Lavrov, who earlier discussed the Ukraine crisis and other hot international issues with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, did not say when Volker, a former U.S. envoy to NATO, would meet the Russian aide, Vladislav Surkov.

Lavrov said Tillerson had asked him during their discussions on the sidelines of a conference in Manila about Russia's measures taken in retaliation for a new round of U.S. economic sanctions imposed on Moscow over its role in the U.S. presidential election.

"He was primarily interested ... in details of those decisions that we grudgingly made in response to the law on anti-Russian sanctions," Lavrov said.

Follow CNBC International on Twitter and Facebook.
For Apple, which is far more dependent on hardware sales than other tech leaders, the recent performance is all the more impressive after its dismal 2016, when quarterly revenue fell for the first time in 13 years and the company's sales in China dropped through the floor. In the most recent quarter, which ended July 1, Apple actually sold 2 percent more iPhones than it did during the same period last year, defying the usual sales slump that occurs before its new phones are introduced. The business in China stabilized. The iPad, a product line that was collapsing amid the rise of big-screen smartphones, rebounded, with the number of tablets sold increasing 15 percent as Apple cut prices at the low end and added features at the high end. The company's redesigned iMacs and MacBook Pros also gained market share in the slowly declining personal computer industry. In a harbinger of the company's future, digital services  the App Store, iCloud, movie and music downloads, and the Apple Music streaming service  have become the second most important category for the company, growing 22 percent to $7.3 billion in the quarter. With 1.2 billion iPhones sold and millions of new customers joining the iPhone ecosystem each year, Apple is in a position to increase its income from services much faster than from accessories like the Watch. "Wall Street is waking up to the reality that the next great product might not be an Apple car or the TV or the Watch," said Trip Miller of Gullane Capital Partners, which loaded up on Apple shares when they were below $100. "The services business is the next great product." Mr. Miller, who also owns stock in Alphabet and Amazon, said that part of what makes these companies so powerful is their strong balance sheets, with seemingly limitless cash and borrowing capacity. That has allowed Alphabet to slowly build YouTube's advertising business and move into self-driving cars.

CNBC




it does not fail with "privilege not held" (i had that error 1342 and fixed it ...)

it even shows an icon in the taskbar (as you can see on the screenshot) - which indicates imho that the process is allowed to create "something" on the desktop....

it simply doesn't show the "full window"...



and yes, the documentation says:



Quote: If the lpDesktop member is NULL or an empty string, the new process inherits the desktop and window station of its parent process. The function adds permission for the specified user account to the inherited window station and desktop.



Quote: ..because (AFAIK) you can only interact with windows-objects that belong to your desktop-object; that is user-specific, as it is created after logon. You could create a new desktop-object and show it there.



Again - that is not what the documentation says "... process inherits ... "



Cheers

Guido



gobbo-dd wrote: which indicates imho that the process is allowed to create "something" on the desktop.... Which is what a service may do also, but it will not be showing a window unless it is marked as 'interactive'.



Found this[^] on SO, where the last answer suggests a possible solution



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell







IntPtr hWinSta = GetProcessWindowStation(); WindowStationSecurity ws = new WindowStationSecurity(hWinSta, AccessControlSections.Access); ws.AddAccessRule( new WindowStationAccessRule( " user@domain" , WindowStationRights.AllAccess, AccessControlType.Allow)); ws.AcceptChanges(); IntPtr hDesk = GetThreadDesktop(GetCurrentThreadId()); DesktopSecurity ds = new DesktopSecurity(hDesk, AccessControlSections.Access); ds.AddAccessRule( new DesktopAccessRule( " user@domain" , DesktopRights.AllAccess, AccessControlType.Allow)); ds.AcceptChanges();



Did the trick. Thank you veeery much for pointing me to this.



Cheers

Guido







If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell



I have a panel of size width=150 pixel,height=100 pixel, backcolor=green with autoscroll is true. I also have a picturebox within that panel which contains a picture of size width=500 pixel, height=200 pixel. I also have a button, on clicking that button picturebox image rotates 90 degree clockwise. and according to that scrollbar values should change. but it is not.



Here is my code



Private Sub Button1_Click(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Button1.Click



Dim h, w



PictureBox1.Image.RotateFlip(RotateFlipType.Rotate90FlipNone)



PictureBox1.SizeMode = PictureBoxSizeMode.AutoSize

h = PictureBox1.Image.Height

w = PictureBox1.Image.Width



Panel1.HorizontalScroll.Maximum = 0

Panel1.HorizontalScroll.Visible = False



Panel1.VerticalScroll.Maximum = 0

Panel1.VerticalScroll.Visible = False



Panel1.AutoScroll = False



Panel1.HorizontalScroll.Minimum = 0

Panel1.HorizontalScroll.Maximum = w - 1

Panel1.HorizontalScroll.Visible = True

Panel1.HorizontalScroll.Value = 0



Panel1.VerticalScroll.Minimum = 0

Panel1.VerticalScroll.Maximum = h - 1

Panel1.VerticalScroll.Visible = True

Panel1.VerticalScroll.Value = 0



Panel1.AutoScroll = True



PictureBox1.Left = 0

PictureBox1.Top = 0



Panel1.Invalidate()

End Sub



My problem is: On form load both the scrollbars working perfectly. But after clicking the button picturebox rotates to 90 degrees, so picturebox's images's width and height values interchanges, so the scrollbars maximum values. But its not. After clicking the button first time vscrollbar does not go down after a certain value. This thing happens on odd number of clicking the button. On even number of clicking it works perfectly.



This odd and even number problem also interchanges when the original picturebox image dimension interchanges. i.e. when picturebox image width=200, height=500, then hscrollbar creates the problem on odd number of button clicking.







The strange alternate click issue with the Panel's scrollbars tends to happen if you muck about with the scroll properties. I came to the conclusion that Microsoft never meant us to change them!



Alan.



Hello



Hope it's ok to post this here - it's a general programming query but maybe it should be in "Database"? Anyway...

I've never really understood database connection pooling...

If I want to make a lot of separate database updates I could take one of two approaches:

Do run some code to prepare SQL command Open DB connection Run SQL command Close DB connection Loop Or Open DB connection Do run some code to prepare SQL command Run SQL command Loop Close DB connection

Which is the better approach?

Thanks...







As for the loop; There's a good explanation on MSDN[^].



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell





insert into table (field1, field2,...) values (?,?,...) on duplicate key update field2 = ?, ... with associated command parameters into one.... (MySQL)

I guess I need to look into using transactions more....

thanks



A_Griffin wrote: Well, I'm not sure to combine a number of statements of the form In case of doubt, verify.



MySQL documentation[ ^ ] states: I don't work with MySQL a lot, but in SQLite there is a very noticeable slowdown if you insert each record separately.



It looks a lot like a bulk-insert. If you don't want to import it in a single go, I'd still recommend doing it at least in batches.



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell





And why, out of interest, would you never use it?



A_Griffin wrote: Yes, thanks - it says nothing there about how (or even if one can) combine multiple such statements into one. It does, even comes with an example - and a note it might be unsafe.



A_Griffin wrote: And why, out of interest, would you never use it? Because I could not longer guarantee the integrity of the database, which is rather important to me.



What is your key? Let's take a VARCHAR(10) as an example key. There's already an entry "test" in your DB, and the same key occurs in your import-set 15 times. Which of those would you reckon to be the correct one? Which one do you think will be inserted? That may lead to some inconsistencies in a replication-scenario.



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell







In your case, the choice depends on the amount of "looping" and what "run some code" involves; so there is no "one answer".

"(I) am amazed to see myself here rather than there ... now rather than then".

 Blaise Pascal



Gerry Schmitz wrote: The best solution is the one that minimizes the number of "new" connections made (which is extra overhead); In doubt, open and closing has the preference. Thanks to connection pooling the overhead is limited.



There is a Dokan-implementation in the wild available that emulates a drive using a SQL server database. Opening and closing a connection for each request did not slow the machine down even a tiny bit.



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell







Imagine opening and closing a connection to take a lot of time; after all, the framework has to establish some connection and authenticate you. You don't do expensive things in a loop, in that case you move it outside the loop.



Thanks to the connection-pool, getting a connection is not that expensive. So, I prefer to have each command in its own connection, with me actively checking the amount of records affected for each command to see if it matches my expectation.



You could write a small console-application that does a "SELECT 1" in a loop and give both scenario's a try



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell



A_Griffin wrote: but the other half of my gut (!) feels uneasy about opening and closing a hundred or so connections in such quick succession... After implementing a scenario where that actually happened, I'm not.



A Dokan-drive is something that shows up and acts like a drive in Windows Explorer (including any save-dialog), with the implementation of fetching the data left to the programmer. Clicking on a folder in Windows Explorer would launch a whole lotta operations - it would first want to know if there is such a file or folder, then a request to get its contents, then a request for each file in there, so it could display a size and icon. And the virusscanner requesting those files too, since they were being accessed.



Each operation, in VB.NET, would open and close a connection on my local machine, with a local database-server. The speed was limited by the capabilities of the Dokan-driver, not the speed of the database or opening/closing connections.



A_Griffin wrote: I don't expect a huge (or even noticeable) difference in performance with the size of databases I'm working with at the moment. ..then fill a table with 2 million records. Generate some nonsense-data in a loop and give it a try.



If your boss asks why you choose one or the other, it is better to present an experiment than to point to some idiot on the internet



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell







I also didn't limit the number of connections from a single client to multiple servers / devices.



I also didn't specify "database servers" (SQL or otherwise); or only "client and (one) server".



TCP/IP is not limited to "databases".



A "new" TCP connection (first or a reconnect) requires hand-shaking not incurred once the connection is "open".



"Databases"? ok .. You get it by default; no thinking there.

"(I) am amazed to see myself here rather than there ... now rather than then".

 Blaise Pascal



Gerry Schmitz wrote: I said "NEW"; pooling is not making "new" connections. Obvious to both of us, but not to the casual reader who just sees "New Connection()".



Gerry Schmitz wrote: I also didn't specify "database servers" (SQL or otherwise); or only "client and (one) server". Would not need to, anything behind the abstraction of the Data Provider is irrelefant.



Gerry Schmitz wrote:

TCP/IP is not limited to "databases". ..I did not imply such.



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell


Genpact Limited provides business process outsourcing and information technology (IT) services in India, rest of Asia, North and Latin America, and Europe. It operates through three segments: Banking, Capital Markets and Insurance; Consumer Goods, Retail, Life Sciences and Healthcare; and High Tech, Manufacturing and Services. The company offers CFO advisory services; and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) services, such as data management, carbon accounting, human rights assessment, sustainability diligence, and ESG reporting. It also provides finance and accounting services, which include accounts payable, such as document management, invoice processing, approval and resolution management, and travel and expense processing; invoice-to-cash services, including customer master data management, credit and contract management, fulfillment, billing, collections, and dispute management services; record to report services comprising accounting, treasury, tax, product cost accounting, and closing and reporting services; financial planning and analysis consisting of budgeting, forecasting, and business performance reporting; and enterprise risk and compliance services, including operational risks and controls. In addition, the company provides supply chain advisory services, and after-sales services; sourcing and procurement services comprising direct and indirect strategic sourcing, category management, spend analytics, procurement operation, and master data management; and sales and commercial services, including campaign, order, and dispute management, lead generation, pricing, and promotion optimization. Further, it offers IT services, which comprise end-user computing support, infrastructure management, application production support, and database management services; and transformation services that include digital solutions, consulting services, and analytics services and solutions. The company was founded in 1997 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.
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Her name was Kapkap-Ponmi, Noise of Running Feet, and hers was just one of the compelling stories surrounding women and children of the Nez Perce War.

The 12-year-old girl went with her father, Chief Joseph, on the morning of Sept. 30, 1877, to gather his bands horses for the last leg of the Nez Perce flight to Canada. Both of their worlds were forever transformed when troops under Col. Nelson Miles attacked the camp on Snake Creek near the Bears Paw Mountains.

Joseph quickly caught a horse for Kapkap-Ponmi and told her to make a run for it, then headed for camp to join the fray. His daughter met up with the first group that fled and survived a 10-day march to the refugee camp of Sitting Bulls Lakota Sioux in Saskatchewan.

My little daughter has run away upon the prairie," Joseph said five days later. "I do not know where to find her  perhaps I shall find her too among the dead.

The words were part of a condition report Joseph sent through a Nez Perce liaison to Miles and Gen. Oliver Howard. A poetic Army aide-de-camp translated it into a dramatic surrender speech.

When Joseph turned over his rifle later that day and vowed to fight no more (he probably never said forever), it marked the formal end of the war. But the transformative saga of the Nez Perce people continues 140 years later.

They gathered Saturday at the Big Hole Battlefield, as they will in October at Bear Paw, with drumming and song and a solemn pipe ceremony. They're remembering the women, children and men who suffered and died in their flight from the U.S. Army, those who survived and especially honoring all veterans.

Otis Halfmoon, a Nez Perce, is retired from the National Park Service and lives these days in New Mexico. But his 25 years with the agency included stints at the Big Hole, Bear Paw and Clearwater-White Bird Canyon battlefields.

Halfmoons great-grandfather, Five Wounds, died in the Battle of the Big Hole. A great-uncle was among seven warriors murdered by Assiniboine after the Bear Paw battle.

But the women played no less important a role, Halfmoon said.

"A lot of people overlook the role of the women, and that's really sad," Halfmoon said. "They were caught between beliefs as far as safety by staying in Idaho versus being with family and listening to and taking part in some of the decisions that were being made" on the trail.

***

Kapkap-Ponmi survived. Josephs daughter was one of at least 230 Nez Perce who made it to Sitting Bulls camp in Canada, and she was in a group of 28 who returned the next summer, making their way back to the Lapwai Agency in Idaho. There she was turned over to her aunt, placed in an agency school and married a Nez Perce named George Moses at age 13 or 14. By then known as Sarah Moses, she died, childless, of malaria in 1901.

She was one of the lucky ones. Had Kapkap-Ponmi remained at Bear Paw with her father and survived the battle and siege, she would have had to endure the humility of imprisonment and abuse at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the horrendous conditions in Indian Territory, in present-day Oklahoma, called by the Nez Perce the hot place.

Kapkap-Ponmi was one of the few from Canada who successfully made it to Lapwai from Canada and werent summarily arrested and sent to Oklahoma. More Nez Perce of all ages died of disease there than during the war of 1877.

You think the wars bad, wait until its over with, remarked Jim Magera, a seasonal park ranger and student of the Bear Paw battle for more than 50 years.

So often the non-combatants who accompanied chiefs Looking Glass, Poker Joe, White Bird, Joseph and others on the epic flight from Idaho are relegated to that broad brush of women, children and the elderly.

But they represented fully two-thirds of the 750 people who left Idaho for Montana, and played vital and sometimes heroic roles every step of the way.

After the battle on the Clearwater in Idaho on July 11-12, Gen. Howard reported that the Nez Perce warriors were aided by a great number of women, who assisted in providing spare horses and ammunition.

For more than three months and some 1,200 miles, the women took care of the day-to-day chores of setting up and taking down camp, preparing food, fetching wood and water, making clothes, giving birth, tending to the children and, in too many cases, dying with them. After the Battle of the Big Hole, most of them did all that without tepees.

Theyre the innocent ones, Halfmoon said. Theyre the ones who suffered the most. A warrior is a warrior. He knows what hes getting himself into.

Halfmoon can show you where the howitzer shell exploded at Bear Paw, in a pit known to the soldiers to be a shelter for the women and children  not the rifle pit of a warrior. Four women, one boy and a girl Kapkap-Pomnis age named Atsipeeten were in it. Atsipeeten and her grandmother, Intetah, were killed and buried in the cave-in.

Theyre still there somewhere, Halfmoon said.

Five Wounds, Halfmoons great-grandfather, left his wife and 7-year-old son back at Lapwai and joined the patriots, as Halfmoon calls them.

He knew something was very wrong with the war, he said.

Five Wounds (Pahkatos Owyeen) was one of a handful of warriors who had premonitions of a surprise attack at the Big Hole and took their fears to Looking Glass, their war chief.

What they were seeing in their side dreams was women and children being killed, water turning to blood, Halfmoon said. Five Wounds said my woman and child is not here but these others are. Theyre the ones who are going to suffer. We need to move.

***

Its probably a good thing they didnt have cameras that Thursday morning, Aug. 9. The descriptions that came out of the initial attack on a fork of the Big Hole are graphic and chilling enough.

A maternity tent was set up away from the other tepees in camp. Years later one of the warriors, Yellow Wolf, showed historian Lucullus McWhorter the spot near the creek. A baby was born there the night before the attack. Its mother was attended by Tissaikpee, an older woman.

We came back from driving the soldiers to the hill to find part of our village in ruins, Yellow Wolf said. This tepee here was standing and silent. Inside we found the two women lying in their blankets. Both had been shot. The mother had her newborn baby in her arms. Its head was smashed, as by a gun breech or boot heel. The mother had two other children, both killed, in another tepee.

A man named Wahlitits rushed from his tepee when the attack began. Multiple witnesses said he shot one soldier from behind a small log in a shallow depression before he too was shot and killed. His wife, who was pregnant, had followed him despite Wahlitits admonition to find safety. She grabbed his rifle and shot one man before she too was killed.

Maybe the most horrific scene was reported by Nez Perce and soldier alike. In a 1928 letter to McWhorter, Corp. Charles Loynes wrote that he saw an Indian woman lying dead with the baby on her breast, crying as it swung its little arm back and forth  the lifeless hand flapping at the wrist broken by a bullet.

An estimated 70 to 90 Nez Perce died that day at the Big Hole, most in the first 20 minutes of the battle. Fewer than 33 were warriors, according to historian Jerome Greene. Col. John Gibbon reported 23 soldiers and six civilian volunteers dead and 40 wounded, including Gibbon himself.

In an 1895 article for Harpers Weekly, Gibbon reflected on the scene after the military retreated to a timbered area above the Indian camp and a few hundred yards away.

Few of us will soon forget the wail of mingled grief, rage, and horror which came from the camp four or five hundred yards from us when the Indians returned to it and recognized their slaughtered warriors, women and children, he wrote. Above this wail of horror we could hear the passionate appeal of the leaders urging their followers to fight, and the war whoop in answer which boded us no good.

Indeed, accounts survive of chiefs White Bird and Looking Glass rallying their forces after the initial slaughter.

Why are we retreating? White Bird was reputed to have shouted, according to McWhorter.

Since the world was made brave men fight for their women and children. Are we going to run to the mountain and let the whites kill our women and children before our eyes? It is better we should be killed fighting. Now is our time. Fight!

***

I can talk about the savagery, Halfmoon said last week. But I can also tell stories where soldiers went down to where the Nez Perce women were hiding in the creek and they were shaking hands with them and apologizing for what was taking place. Some of the soldiers were crying as well at what was taking place. A lot of the soldiers, in reading their accounts, were cheering for the Nez Perce to get away.

Of course we received orders to give three volleys, then charge. We did so, Loynes wrote to McWhorter. That act would hit anyone old as well as young, but what any individual soldier did while in camp, he did as a brute, not because he had any orders.

Halfmoons ties to the 1877 war arent uncommon among Nez Perce families. One Nez Perce woman was pregnant throughout the flight. She gave birth to Hattie that winter while living with the Lakota in the Cypress Hills of Canada.

That 7-year-old boy Halfmoon's great-grandfather Five Wounds left behind in Lapwai? He grew up and married Hattie, and they became Halfmoons maternal grandparents.

Its all not that long ago, Halfmoon said. Sometimes it still hurts.

They like to bring up the word reconciliation (at battlefield commemorations), but I think thats the wrong word to use, he said.

Reconcile is what an accountant does to make sure debits equal credits.

The books will never be balanced, as far as Im concerned, said Halfmoon. But we can heal, and healing is important for the next generation. Its important to realize the pain but also to realize were all one people, with one sky above us. We are who we are now.
National Fuel Gas Company operates as a diversified energy company. It operates through four segments: Exploration and Production, Pipeline and Storage, Gathering, and Utility. The Exploration and Production segment explores for, develops, and produces natural gas and oil in California and in the Appalachian region of the United States. As of September 30, 2021, it had proved developed and undeveloped reserves of 21,537 thousand barrels of oil and 3,723,433 million cubic feet of natural gas. The Pipeline and Storage segment provides interstate natural gas transportation and storage services through an integrated gas pipeline system in Pennsylvania and New York; and owns and operates underground natural gas storage fields. This segment also transports natural gas for National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation, as well as for other utilities, industrial companies, and power producers in New York State; and owns and operates the Empire Pipeline. The Gathering segment builds, owns, and operates natural gas processing and pipeline gathering facilities in the Appalachian region, as well as provides gathering services to Seneca Resources Company, LLC. The Utility segment sells natural gas or provides natural gas transportation services to approximately 753,000 customers in Buffalo, Niagara Falls, and Jamestown, New York; and Erie and Sharon, Pennsylvania. The company markets gas to industrial, wholesale, commercial, public authority, and residential customers primarily in western and central New York, and northwestern Pennsylvania. As of September 30, 2021, the company also owned approximately 95,000 acres of timber property; and managed approximately 2,500 additional acres of timber cutting rights. National Fuel Gas Company was incorporated in 1902 and is headquartered in Williamsville, New York.
Tourism is a vital part of the economy in western Montana during the summer, and the wildfires that have caused closures of popular roads, lakes and river access points have local businesses taking a pretty big hit.

Weve had to turn quite a few people away and send them to other rivers, said Carolyn Persico, the longtime owner of the Rock Creek Fishermans Mercantile.

A big portion of Rock Creek Road, which runs along the blue ribbon fishing creek east of Missoula, was restricted to local-only traffic on July 20 as the Goat Creek wildfire crept to within a few hundred yards of homes. The nearby Little Hogback and Sliderock fires also belched smoke into the valley.

Persico said that she and other tourism-based businesses in the Rock Creek area depend on the busy summer months for almost all of their yearly income.

July and August usually make up about 40 percent of our business, she said. Weve had quite a few cancellations.

Fortunately, the annual Testicle Festival at the Rock Creek Lodge is being held the weekend of Aug. 5, so Persico said those guests arent canceling reservations.

They dont really care about fishing, she said.

Usually, Rock Creek remains open when other rivers are closed due to hoot owl restrictions, which are meant to protect fish from being handled during the heat of the day when theyre already stressed. Persico said she usually sees an uptick in business around that time, but this years road closure negates that advantage.

Hopefully September is a good month for us, she said. Hopefully its open at that time.

Persicos business has become the Rock Creek communitys unofficial post office since the mail trucks cant go up the road. She said the last time a wildfire caused so much disruption was in 2007, and she bounced back from that financial hit without too much trouble.

That one closed us for about a month, she said.

Approximately 12.35 million nonresident tourists visited Montana in 2016 and spent a total of $3.46 billion here. Nearly half, 46 percent, of those visitors came in the months of July, August and September.

This year, those who are traveling to western Montana will be hitting the peak of a nasty wildfire season, if they dont cancel beforehand.

Business owners arent the only ones paying a high cost for the roughly 20 wildfires burning across the state, which encompass a combined area of nearly 600 square miles.

The state government spent $21 million fighting fires in the month of July alone, which is the same amount it paid for all of 2016. This spring, which was unusually rainy, forecasters were predicting a moderate fire season. Now that its costing the state about $1.5 million a day to fight fires, Montanas $63 million firefighting reserve fund will be gone soon and the state will have to dip into the general fund.

***

Kerry Bertsch, who owns The Lodges on Seeley Lake with her husband Brian Bertsch, said her guests hadnt yet canceled because the waters of Seeley Lake were closed to make way for giant airplane scoopers that are fighting the Rice Ridge and Liberty fires in the area.

Im still crossing my fingers, waiting and seeing whats going to happen, she said. We book a week at a time, and this group here now has hung in there. Theyve just been coming for years and years and have more tolerance. But we have a group coming in this Saturday, and this closure will affect us. We supply boats for our guests, and its all about the water. If the lakes not open, it really affects us. Well see.

Bertsch said she has been extremely appreciative of the firefighting efforts and doesnt mind the water closure for that reason.

I want to say, it was so impressive the air work that was done (Wednesday), she said. Were pretty lucky to have those resources be on the fire. All day long, there were four of those big scooper planes coming in in five-minute cycles. It was unbelievable how much effort was put on this fire.

The 2007 Jocko fire was the last time that Seeley Lake was so disturbed by a wildfire, Bertsch recalled.

Summers are our busiest season here, and winter is second, she added.

West of Missoula, the Burdette and Sunrise fires are wreaking a little bit of havoc on the Tarkio and Superior areas, respectively. Ray Baier and his wife built the Montana Trout Lodge back in 2002 and have seven guests right now.

I think its day by day, hour by hour whether we are going to get evacuated, he said on Thursday afternoon. Last I heard there was a fire that had gone down even with the Tarkio exit on the west side of the river. Thats just a mile from our place, so thats getting pretty close.

Baier said he gets 100 percent of his revenue in the summer months, so any drop off in reservations would be a drastic hit.

***

The theme among business owners in western Montana is one of resiliency in the face of severe natural events.

In Lincoln, where the 5,200-acre Park Creek fire is two miles away and several other wildfires are burning in the area, tourism hasn't dropped off much. Valerie Duvall, who helps manage the Hotel Lincoln with her husband Roy Putra, the owner, said she doesn't think the town is any less busy.

In fact, Duvall said her hotel's been booked solid for many days in a row. Because fire management personnel have been eating at local restaurants and buying supplies at local stores and staying in lodges in Lincoln, business actually might be better than if the fire weren't there.

"It might even out, if anything," she explained. "What we lose in tourism we gain in fire crew. They're eating at all the restaurants here."

Duvall said she did have one big family reunion cancel because of the smoke, but she said she's had to turn others away.

"If we had 50 rooms here instead of just 14, we'd still be booked," she said.

She said the fire management officials have been great and everyone in town has a positive attitude.

"Lincoln is a tough community," she said. "There's a lot of tenacity. We'll be OK."
NewMarket Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the petroleum additives business. The company offers lubricant additives for use in various vehicle and industrial applications, including engine oils, transmission fluids, off-road powertrain and hydraulic systems, gear oils, hydraulic oils, turbine oils, and other applications where metal-to-metal moving parts are utilized; engine oil additives designed for passenger cars, motorcycles, on and off-road heavy duty commercial equipment, locomotives, and engines in ocean-going vessels; driveline additives designed for products, such as transmission fluids, axle fluids, and off-road powertrain fluids; and industrial additives designed for products for industrial applications consisting of hydraulic fluids, grease, industrial gear fluids, and industrial specialty applications, such as turbine oils. It also provides fuel additives that are used to enhance the oil refining process and the performance of gasoline, diesel, biofuels, and other fuels to industry, government, original equipment manufacturers, and individual customers. In addition, the company engages in the antiknock compounds business, as well as contracted manufacturing and services activities; and owns and manages a real property in Virginia. It operates in North America, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and India. NewMarket Corporation was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.
NGL Energy Partners LP is a vertically integrated master limited partnership operating a network of midstream pipelines and storage facilities. The company is a diversified play on mid-stream operations offering multiple services for producers and consumers alike. Founded in 1944, the company is headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The company, through a network of subsidiaries, is in business to transport, store, blend, and market crude oil, natural gas liquids, refined products, renewables, and water solutions in the United States. The company seeks to generate positive cash flow through its businesses and deliver returns to shareholders in the form of dividends, organic, and accretive growth. Organic growth is achieved by investing in new assets while accretive growth includes the acquisition of assets that complement the existing portfolio.

NGL Energy Partners operates in three segments that include Water Solutions, Crude Oil Logistics, and Natural Gas Liquids Logistics.

The Water Solutions segment transports, sells, reclaims, and recycles water for oil and natural gas production. This segment also aggregates recovered crude oil for sale, disposes of wastes, and performs cleaning services for trucks and fracking tanks along with other services.

The Crude Oil Logistics segment buys and transports crude oil and equivalents to refiners for processing and sale at pipeline heads and other trade hubs. This segment also provides storage and transportation services for third parties.

The Liquids Logistics segment supplies LNG, refined petroleum products, and biodiesel to commercial, retail, and industrial consumers in North America. This segment operates through a network of 24 terminals that are supported by third-party storage facilities, common carrier pipelines, and a fleet of leased railcars.








Tallgrass Energy Partners, LP acquires, owns, develops, and operates midstream energy assets in North America. It operates through Natural Gas Transportation; Crude Oil Transportation; and Gathering, Processing & Terminalling segments. The Natural Gas Transportation segment engages in the ownership and operation of interstate natural gas pipelines and integrated natural gas storage facilities with approximately 4,641 miles of transportation pipelines in Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. This segment provides its services to on-system customers, including third-party local distribution companies, industrial users, and other shippers. The Crude Oil Transportation segment engages in the ownership and operation of the Pony Express System, a crude oil pipeline serving the Bakken Shale, Denver-Julesburg, and Powder River Basins, as well as other nearby oil producing basins. The Gathering, Processing & Terminalling segment owns and operates natural gas gathering and processing facilities that produce natural gas liquids (NGLs) and residue gas for sale in local wholesale markets or delivers into pipelines for transportation to additional end markets; and crude oil gathering, storage, and terminalling facilities, as well as engages in the transportation of NGLs, and marketing of crude oil and NGLs. This segment also provides water business services primarily to the oil and gas exploration and production industry. The company was founded in 2013 and is based in Leawood, Kansas. Tallgrass Energy Partners, LP operates as a subsidiary of Tallgrass Energy GP, LP.
Alliant Energy Corporation operates as a utility holding company that provides regulated electricity and natural gas services. It operates through three segments: Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations, and Utility Other. The company, through its subsidiary, Interstate Power and Light Company (IPL), primarily generates and distributes electricity, and distributes and transports natural gas to retail customers in Iowa; sells electricity to wholesale customers in Minnesota, Illinois, and Iowa; and generates and distributes steam in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Alliant Energy Corporation, through its other subsidiary, Wisconsin Power and Light Company (WPL), generates and distributes electricity, and distributes and transports natural gas to retail customers in Wisconsin; and sells electricity to wholesale customers in Wisconsin. As of December 31, 2021, IPL supplied electric and natural gas service to approximately 500,000 and 225,000 retail customers respectively; and WPL supplied electric and natural gas service to approximately 485,000 and 200,000 retail customers, respectively. It serves retail customers in the farming, agriculture, industrial manufacturing, chemical, and packaging and food industries. In addition, the company owns and operates a short-line rail freight service in Iowa; a barge, rail, and truck freight terminal on the Mississippi River; and a rail-served warehouse in Iowa, as well as offers freight brokerage services. Further, it holds interests in a 347 megawatt (MW) natural gas-fired electric generating unit near Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin; and a 225 MW wind farm located in Oklahoma. The company was incorporated in 1981 and is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin.
Cabot Corporation operates as a specialty chemicals and performance materials company. It operates through three segments: Reinforcement Materials, Performance Chemicals, and Purification Solutions. The company offers reinforcing carbons used in tires as a rubber reinforcing agent and performance additive, as well as in industrial products, such as hoses, belts, extruded profiles, and molded goods; and engineered elastomer composites. It also provides specialty carbons used in inks, coatings, plastics, adhesives, toners, batteries, and displays applications; masterbatch and conductive compound products for use in automotive, industrial, packaging, infrastructure, agriculture, consumer products, and electronics industries; inkjet colorants used in the inkjet printing applications; fumed silica used in adhesives, sealants, cosmetics, batteries, inks, toners, silicone elastomers, coatings, polishing slurries, and pharmaceuticals; fumed alumina used in various products, including inkjet media, lighting, coatings, cosmetics, and polishing slurries; and aerogel, a hydrophobic, silica-based particle for use in various thermal insulation and specialty chemical applications. In addition, the company offers activated carbon products used for the purification of water, air, food and beverages, pharmaceuticals, and other liquids and gases; and activated carbon solutions for activated carbon injection in coal-fired utilities, mobile water filter units, and carbon reactivation services. The company sells its products through distributors and sales representatives in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. Cabot Corporation was founded in 1882 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
Thousands of acres of Montanas forests and grasslands are on fire, the valleys around Missoula are choked with smoke, and the states firefighting funds are rapidly dwindling.

Forecasters didnt expect this summers fires to be quite this bad, but experts have long warned that we should prepare for larger and more intense wildfires with each passing year. Meanwhile, Montana and the other Western states most directly affected by catastrophic fires have been sounding the alarm about the urgent need to change the nations approach to wildfire prevention, suppression and funding.

It appears nobody is listening.

What more could it possibly take to convince Congress that immediate action is needed? The costs in terms of lost property and taxpayer dollars is many millions of dollars, and counting. The lasting damage done to personal livelihoods and public health is incalculable. And two firefighters have been killed battling fires in Montana this season alone  a tragedy that has no measure.

Yet it took pointed pressure from all three of Montanas congressional delegates to convince the Federal Emergency Management Agency to lend its aid to the Lodgepole Complex fires in eastern Montana, an action the agency initially resisted even after Gov. Steve Bullock signed an executive order declaring a fire emergency.

Despite persistent calls for reform, the nation still lacks a reliable source of wildfire-fighting funds, instead relying on the U.S. Forest Service to spend ever-larger portions of its budget fighting fires  instead of preventing them. The results of this policy are evident all across the scorched forests and fields of Montana. Clearly, something more needs to be done.

Last month, Governor Bullock announced plans to raise Montanas voice on the national stage. He hired a new chief of staff with federal experience: Tom Lopach, a former executive director of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and U.S. Sen. Jon Testers former chief of staff. Lopach starts in his new position Monday.

And Bullock filed registration papers with the Federal Election Commission to form a new political action committee, named Big Sky Values, to fundraise for travel and appearances outside the state. He told reporters that he sought to add his perspective as a Democratic governor in a Republican-leaning state to the national conversation, and that the PAC would help him share Montanas story.

Bullock already holds a prominent national seat as vice chair of the National Governors Association, a position he was named to this summer. This means he will act as the organizations chairman after next summer.

In the meantime, Bullock is the 2017 chair of the Western Governors Association, a similarly bipartisan organization that seeks to find shared solutions to the challenges seen in Western states.

Wildfire is a challenge these states hold in common if ever there was one. If Bullock is sincere about elevating Montanas voice, and not just his own political prospects, he ought to use these influential positions to call for more effective action on the wildfires that threaten to burn up more of our public lands  and budgets  every year.

The $63 million Montana originally set aside for firefighting this biennium has been reduced by $30 million after automatic triggers tied to lower-than-expected revenue took effect. The governor and legislators agreed to patch up the budget with these funds well before the start of the wildfire season, not knowing that Montana would soon be grappling with the worst fires in the nation.

The state is currently fighting 20 large fires, and fire suppression efforts are costing about $1.5 million per day. The state spent $21 million fighting fires in July, leaving just $12 million left.

After the firefighting fund is emptied out, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation will start spending from the general fund. The department is authorized to use up to $22 million, and the fire emergency declaration authorized an additional $16 million.

FEMA will help cover 75 percent of the costs of fighting the states largest fires in the Lodgepole complex in eastern Montana, and the state is sharing costs with the U.S. Forest Service. The Forest Service, meanwhile, is now spending the majority of its budget on fire suppression. In 1995, the agency spent 16 percent of its annual appropriated budget on firefighting. In 2015, it spent more than 50 percent.

This leaves less money for the kinds of forest management that prevent wildfires in the first place.

Apart from the Forest Service, other federal agencies are being asked to provide assistance for those affected by severe drought, lost cattle and crops, farming equipment and fencing.

No state should have to beg the federal government for assistance to protect its people from the ever-growing threat of wildfires, or to help them recover from the damage caused by natural disasters. In fact, Western states with large amounts of federal land should have the assurance that the federal government will do its part to prevent such disasters in the future.

But such assurance requires a drastic shift in the way wildfire prevention and suppression is funded. Governor Bullock should be a vocal advocate for such change, and a force that unites across party lines to arrive at real solution.

We look to him for leadership on this issue. Wildfires are a matter of the utmost environmental and financial importance, at the nexus of federal, state and local public lands management. Finding a better way to manage them is critical to Montanas future  and to the nations as well.
So much for going after "bad hombres." The Trump administration, via U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is attempting to deport Audemio Orozco-Ramirez when his only "bad" action was crossing into the U.S. from Mexico 20 years ago, a civil offense. Since then he has never committed a crime, raised eight children, worked hard and paid taxes, including Social Security (which he will never be able to redeem).
By Yuko Yoneda

It started with just 12 of them. With a bold mission, this group of activists set sail to Amchitka island off Alaska to protest the detonation of an underground U.S. nuclear test. It was September 1971, and though the mission was initially unsuccessful, it was the beginning of what became Greenpeace, and just one of the many issuesthe elimination of nuclear weaponsthat the environmental organization would campaign endlessly against.

Fast forward to 2017, and what was once a hard-fought battle and one of Greenpeaces legacy issues, has now become a successful defeat. On July 7, the United Nations adopted the Nuclear Weapons Treaty with an overwhelming majorityan epochmaking agreement that prohibits not only the development, experiment, manufacture, possession and use of nuclear weapons, but also the threat to use. Nuclear and chemical weapons and anti-personnel landmines and cluster bombs were also banned. The treaty will be open for signature by states on September 20.

To our disappointment, however, Japan did not join the 122 countries or two-thirds of the United Nations member countries, that stood up to stop nuclear weapons. The peculiar absence of Japan, whose preamble explicitly recognizes unacceptable suffering of and harm caused to the victims of the use of nuclear weapons (Hibakusha) as well as those affected by the testing of nuclear weapons begs explanation.

Greenpeace activists hold up flags of the nuclear nations along with a 5 meter high mock nuclear bomb outside the United Nations Conference on Disarmament (1996). David Adair / Greenpeace / Ex-Press

The Government of Japan expressed a concern that the treaty that was negotiated only among non-nuclear weapon states could create a more decisive divide between the states with and without nuclear weapons. From a standpoint of realpolitik of the Cold War era, Japan is under an American nuclear umbrella, and as such, would violate a treaty prohibiting the threat to use if it were to be a signatory. Therefore Japan sides with the nuclear weapons states (the U.S., Russia, China, France, UK, India, Pakistan, Israel, North Korea) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization countries that rely on the U.S. nuclear umbrella.

The adoption of this historic treaty by an overwhelming majority of the UN membership, nonetheless, represents a hard-won victory for people such as the Hibakusha (Japanese word for the surviving victims of the 1945 atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki), victims of American nuclear tests and their descendants , and grassroots activists who worked tirelessly against the European nuclear deployment and uranium mining in Australia. The treaty is a long lasting legacy of their testimonies, protests and actions of the past decades, and keeps a hope alive for realization of the nuclear free world.

Protest at the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington D.C. (2016) Ian Foulk / Greenpeace

Setsuko Thurlow, a Hiroshima atomic bomb victim who now lives in Canada, told delegates of the treaty negotiations:

I want you to feel the presence of not only the future generations, who will benefit from your negotiations to ban nuclear weapons, but to feel a cloud of witnesses from Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

We have no doubt that this treaty canand willchange the world.

Peace doves released on the 60th Anniversary of the Hiroshima atomic bombing. Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert / Greenpeace

On the 72nd anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, we stand in solidarity with the survivors and those across the world who have campaigned against nuclear weaponry and call for Japan to join the treaty. The elimination of nuclear weapons has been the cause that Greenpeace campaigned so passionately and heavily for since 1971. As the only country in the world hit by a nuclear attack, Japans commitment to the treaty would not only be a long-fought win for the countrys tainted history, but also an important step towards a future world that is ultimately safe and nuclear free.

Yuko Yoneda is the Executive Director at Greenpeace Japan.
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Several residents who live by the Anselmo Mineyard in Butte says it's been a junky eyesore for years, with overgrown weeds, old trailers, debris, pipes and scrap materials piled and strewn about.

Their complaints over the years have gotten few results, they say, in part because they believe it's in an old area of town and out of sight to most people in Butte.

The headframe, associated buildings and a sprawling, adjacent area dubbed "the timber yard" are sort of tucked away on the Butte Hill, just east of Excelsior Avenue, south of Empire Street and north of Caledonia and West Woolman streets.

"The only people who see it are those of us who live here and people using the walking trail," said Don Davis, who has lived by the mine yard for years.

Butte-Silver Bow officials say they removed the county's belongings last year, and the old trailers and other materials are on areas owned by the Atlantic Richfield Co.

But the county has yet to produce plans for the area that Planning Director Jon Sesso said in late 2015 he would have within a year. They were to include developing or defining new uses for the yard once its current one had ended.

Atlantic Richfield says it has used the mine yard as a staging area for environmental reclamation projects on the Butte Hill for several years, including recent work to turn the Lexington Mine into an interpretive center open to the public.

The company says it informs people about projects in their area and tries to "accommodate concerns raised by neighbors and other interested parties to the extent practicable," but that's not always doable, given remediation obligations.

Company spokesman Brett Clanton also told The Montana Standard that work on the Lexington should be finished this month.

"When the work is complete, our contractor, Jordan Contracting, will be able to remove their temporary office trailers, equipment, materials, and any other 'scrap' materials from the Anselmo yard in early fall," he said.

Davis and residents Sharlene and John Montoya aren't holding their breath.

They say they've heard similar pledges for years and the mine yard is still a mess. Davis named several other residents who have voiced concerns but says he's become a de facto spokesman for the group "who won't let it die."

Sesso said the county's hands are tied, partly because Atlantic Richfield owns much of the area and the company's work at the Lexington has extended its use of the Anselmo as a staging area. But he, like the company, says that work is wrapping up.

Now the county's top official  Chief Executive Dave Palmer  has set a meeting Aug. 10 to discuss the long-running issues. It will include county officials, Commissioner Cindi Shaw, Davis, and an official with Atlantic Richfield and will be open to the public.

"It is pretty much vacant right now except for ARCO's (Atlantic Richfield's) construction stuff, but I agree with the neighbors that it should be kept in an orderly manner," Palmer said.

LONG TIME COMING

Several of Butte's mine yards have been cleaned up and improved in recent years, including the Bell Diamond, Mountain Con and the Belmont, whose hoist house is now an attractive senior citizens center.

Through an agreement with the county, Headframe Spirits has renovated the warehouse at the Kelley Mine yard and turned it into its home base for bottling spirits and manufacturing stills.

Then there's the Original Mine yard, now Butte's showcase venue for festivals, concerts, and other events. Improvements are made to it often, the latest a $177,550 project to cover areas with paved blocks that prevent puddles and muck when it rains.

Davis put it like this in a recent email to Shaw, who as a commissioner has been pressing for remedies on behalf of the neighbors:

"Mt. Con Yard cleaned and nice park, Lexington Mine yard being cleaned up and new parking lot, Steward mine yard trees being planted (and) new sidewalks to the south of the mine yard, and even more money once again on the Original Mine yard," Davis wrote.

He used an expletive to describe the Anselmo before penning, "No more weeds being cut in the mine yard, trailers still on the grounds, large piles of scrap in the southwest corner of the yard "

John Montoya says that all goes way back.

"I see a lot of things going on in other mine yards, but nothing going on here," he said. "It's been that way for 25 years."

Speaking up, Sharlene Montoya says, has led to small changes here and there, but the big picture is still the same.

"We have had to complain about each individual thing, and nothing overall is done," she said.

INITIAL PLEDGES MADE

Shaw helped arrange a meeting on the Anselmo in late 2015 that included neighbors, Sesso and Loren Burmeister, Atlantic Richfield's project manager for cleanup activities on the Butte Hill.

Several actions and goals were agreed upon, as Sesso noted in a follow-up email to interested parties, and the county took some immediate steps. Those included an inventory of all the yard's materials and a start to disposing or relocating them.

Other things to be done within one year included:

 Organize, reuse, or remove materials belonging to Atlantic Richfield or its contractor, Jordan Contracting

 Remove all junk, debris, and unused material "and in particular, keep the perimeter of the property on all sides free of debris"

 Produce a plan to eliminate use of the property as a storage and staging area and develop or define new land uses for the property, involving "the neighborhood and public in future discussions"

Sesso also said there would be a meeting after the first of the year  meaning January 2016  to discuss future uses of the site.

But a year passed, and though some progress might have been made, Shaw said the area was still a mess, so she pressed Sesso for updates. He responded in a December 2016 email with email updates from Eric Hassler, the county's Superfund Operations Manager, and Atlantic Richfield's Burmeister.

Hassler said crews had removed the county's materials, but he noted that much of the area is owned by Atlantic Richfield and is not zoned, "so the current activities at the site are allowed."

Burmeister said in his email to Shaw that Jordan Contracting removed all of its materials and equipment from the site over the summer of 2016 except its trailers.

But he said he had awarded Jordan the work at the Lexington, "and due to this being Uptown, I have allowed them to remain on the Anselmo area until that work is completed this spring."

He also said the majority of the area is Atlantic Richfield's, so it could not be used for alternative means "unless and until it is transferred to BSB." And that depended on a "consent decree" being reached.

The county, state, and federal environmental regulators and Atlantic Richfield have been working on a consent decree for two decades without a final agreement. It would spell out long-term responsibilities for cleaning up mine pollution on the Butte Hill.

Burmeister also included this in his email to Shaw:

"If you feel it's necessary, I am happy to meet with you again; however I would insist that it just be the few of us without members of the public."

THE LATEST

Clanton, the Atlantic Richfield spokesman, said recently that Burmeister's email was "not intended to suggest that public input should not be considered."

"In fact, there had been a previous public meeting on this issue where neighbors were given full opportunity to express their opinions," he said in a written statement.

"Atlantic Richfield personnel believed that a second public meeting was not necessary and that it would be more productive to hold a smaller meeting with public officials to find a positive path forward. Atlantic Richfield remains committed to working with the community as it completes its remediation efforts at the site."

Clanton said work at the Lexington was scheduled to be completed this month, and when that happens, Jordan Contracting will be able to remove its temporary office trailers, equipment, and other materials this fall.

But he also said the company's continued use of the Anselmo yard for reclamation and remediation actions is "both legally permissible and essential to our ability to complete EPA's selected environmental remedy for Butte Hill."

Sesso said the county had removed all of its materials last summer but is now largely "hog tied" because most of the area is Atlantic Richfield's, is not zoned, and would not become the county's without a consent decree.

The county has wanted staging activities to stop, he said, but just when Atlantic Richfield was moving toward that, the work at the Lexington began.

"The property is still owned by ARCO, and at some point you have to do business with them," Sesso said.

Even so, he said he has looked into possible future uses for the area and believes it would be ideal for residential development. It could also be a nice open space, he said.

Reaching a settlement on the entire Butte Hill has taken longer than anticipated, Sesso said, and because of that, so has getting the Anselmo into public hands.

But, he said, "We are willing to work with neighbors on a long-term plan. That day will come, hopefully sooner rather than later."

Shaw said the public meeting has been set for 1 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 10, in the first-floor conference room of the Butte-Silver Bow courthouse. It is not a public hearing, but anyone is welcome, and she encourages the public to attend.

"Cleaning up that area is long overdue, and the neighbors have had to look at this since the 1980s," she said. "There are still some possible remediation issues that need to be addressed, but I really look forward to the Anselmo becoming a really beautiful, historical area."

Meanwhile, Montoya said Friday that it appeared some initial cleanup activities are underway.
The city of Prague is a many-splendoured destination, and one that welcomes you wholeheartedly. Spend a few hours exploring its vibe and enjoying its hospitality.

A post shared by Prague | Travel community (@pragueworld) on Aug 2, 2017 at 6:00am PDT

Everyone goes to Prague Castle and rightly so; it is an iconic symbol of the Czech state and one of the countrys most significant monuments. But you can also ring the changes and make your way to Vysehrad, a fortress that looms high above the Vltava River, and is thought to date back to the 10th century. This is where the city was born, and it is a local favourite, where residents come to stroll, picnic and walk their dogs.



Stop as you stroll to pick up a cold one at one of the many drinks counters, locally called obcerstveni, and sit at the nearby picnic tables.


Dividend-paying stocks offer the best of both worlds: regular and recurring income, plus the opportunity for capital gains over time. Historical studies show that, over long periods of time, investors who buy high-yielding stocks tend to outperform those who buy the market's lowest-yielding stocks, adding to the case for investing in a diversified portfolio of dividend stocks.

Below, three Fools lay out the case for buying Nucor Corporation (NUE -0.19%), Oaktree Capital Group (OAK), and Union Pacific Corp. (UNP 2.12%) for high yields that offer the potential to grow over time.

A bargain price for a dividend stalwart

Jason Hall (Nucor Corporation): Few steelmakers are even worth considering as long-term investments, and only Nucor has a proven track record of decades-long dividend growth, having increased its base dividend every year since 1973. While the increases in recent years have been modest, Nucor is an excellent dividend stock to buy today.

Nucor's earnings for the first half of the year are the highest they've been in eight years, while the market has pushed shares down 13% from the 2017 high. Why is the market selling Nucor? In short, because of fears that imports will continue to take market share from domestic producers and drive down prices.

While there is some risk of this happening -- Nucor CEO John Ferriola said after the most recent earnings report that imports were spiking again after falling for the past year. Nucor has proven capable of navigating almost any environment profitably. Furthermore, the Trump Administration has made it clear that it will continue efforts of the Obama administration to combat the dumping of illegally subsidized foreign steel, which has harmed American steelmakers.

Lastly, Nucor is cheap, trading for less than 16 times trailing earnings and 14 times forward earnings. It has been nearly a decade since Nucor shares consistently traded so cheaply. And Nucor today is a bigger, more capable steelmaker than it was a decade ago.

As steel demand continues to remain strong and even grow, Nucor is well-positioned to profit. Add a 2.7% yield on a dividend that gets increased yearly like clockwork, and shrewd investors looking for value could do well to buy Nucor.

A high yield that adds diversity to your portfolio

Jordan Wathen (Oaktree Capital Group): It's my view that shrewd investors should look to dividend-paying companies whose prospects look better as the markets turn for the worse. Few companies exemplify this trait quite like Oaktree Capital Group (OAK), a distressed-debt investment manager that has roughly $21.5 billion of client capital on standby, waiting for an opportunity to pick up investments at depressed prices.

Oaktree is more than just a distressed debt manager. It also owns a valuable stake in DoubleLine, a premier bond-fund manager, in addition to its own open-end and closed-end funds for smaller investors. Importantly, unlike many other alternative-asset managers, Oaktree is a lean operator and produces profits from management fees alone. Incentive fees earned for good performance are merely the icing on the cake. That stability is important, particularly in markets like we have today, where opportunities to put capital to work in attractive investments are few and far between.

Shares yield about 7% based on distributions declared over the last 12 months. Investors have visibility into the company's ability to pay large dividends going forward. Oaktree has "accrued incentive fees" tallying to $5.55 per share. The company has earned these accrued fees and will receive them in cash as its funds liquidate their winning investments and pay cash fees to Oaktree for good performance, fueling its future cash payouts.

There are few high-yielding stocks whose prospects get better as stock prices drop. For this reason, I think Oaktree is an attractive stock to add to any income portfolio.

Railroads aren't going anywhere

Daniel Miller (Union Pacific Corp.): If you're a shrewd investor, you're probably looking for a stock that offers a long-term competitive advantage, along with a dividend to guarantee some level of income. Union Pacific Corp. offers both.

While there are plenty of ways for businesses to transport goods -- via ships, aircraft, or trucks -- railroads are the lowest-cost option, by far, if no waterways connect the two destinations. Thanks to that cost advantage and the fact that Union Pacific has massive scale, it has long-term advantages over many peers and alternative methods of transportation.

One factor a shrewd investor ought to love is that the company continues to cut costs and improve its operations. In fact, during its recent second quarter, the company improved its operating ratio by an impressive 340 basis points to a second-quarter record 61.8%. The lower the operating ratio the better, and its trend is very positive: In 2016, the company's operating ratio was 63.5% and its 2019 target is roughly 60% before eventually aiming for 55% over the long haul.

Investors can sleep at night owning shares of Union Pacific thanks to its track record of returning value to shareholders through share buybacks and increasing dividends. Here's a look at how its shares outstanding have decreased at the same time its dividend has trekked higher.

Union Pacific has managed to pay dividends through good times and bad for 118 consecutive years -- a track record that few can compare to. Its $0.605 dividend per share equates to a 2.3% yield and helps reduce the overall risk of owning shares.
The people of Montana would like to truly thank the Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Native Ecosystems Council for polluting our air once again and mismanaging our forests. These radical environmentalist groups  under the guise of protecting the elk, grizzly bears and lynx habitat  would rather see our forests burn and incinerate these animals than manage our forests properly.

If you think its good to burn up this habitat in these fires instead of managing the forests and employing our timber industry, maybe you need to purchase a better grade of pot!

These so-called environmental groups and the federal appointed judges in these groups' pockets protest every timber harvest of any size and tie up these timber- and forest-clearing projects. The Lincoln-area project to reduce heavy fuel loads was put on hold by Judge Dana Christensen. If you check Christensen's record, he sides with these extremists the majority of the time.

It seems the Treasure State is locked up and these well-meaning idiots would rather burn up our forests, feed the beetles and incinerate these animals than manage the forests properly. These groups think it is better for Montanans to buy Canadian lumber and employ the Canadians instead of hard-working Montanans.

-- Barry Hartman, Missoula
Google Play Made for India launched for Indian app developers News oi -Abhinaya Prabhu Catch up with the interesting details regarding the Google Play Stores Made for India initiative.

Google held its Google Play App Excellence Summit in Bengaluru today. Notably, this is the first time that the event is happening in India.

At the App Excellence Summit, Google announced the new 'Made for India' initiative. Going by the same, the Indian developers will be able to apply for a chance to showcase their applications those are specially optimized for the Indian market in a special section on the Google Play Store. As a per of the 'Made for India' initiative, Google will help discover and showcase developers who build high-quality apps that are optimized for the Indian users. The interested developers will have to apply for the same by visiting g.co/play/madeforindia.

Google Play Music is now free for four months for new subscribers

In general, Google is looking out for factors such as optimized battery consumption, minimized data consumption, innovation, optimized for internet connectivity, device compatibility for apps, localization support, app size reduction and useful offline state. It is obvious that Google is focusing a lot on the Indian market as over 70 percent of the internet users in the country use their smartphones to go online and the number is increasing at a rapid pace. Eventually, there are more Android device users in India than the U.S.

At the Google Play App Excellence Summit, Google brought around 700 Indian app and game developers in the country together to share tips and tools that will help them create best quality apps that are relevant to the Indian users.

Google's new app Triangle will help users better manage their mobile data

Also, it was announced that Google Play has several payment methods including prepaid and postpaid carrier billing for Airtel, Vodafone, and Idea Cellular. Also, there are gift cards from over 4000 retail stores and recharge codes starting from Rs. 100 via e-wallets. Eventually, the diverse and flexible payment options in the country have increased the consumer spending on apps and games 3 times compared to the previous years.

It was also announced by Purnima Kochikar, Director, Business Development, Games & Applications, Google Play that over one billion apps are installed from Google Play every month in the country, which is a staggering number. Undoubtedly, the number of apps installed in the country has grown by 150 percent year-on-year.

Best Mobiles in India
Weekly Roundup: Smartphones launched this week Features oi -Harish Kumar Check out all the smartphones that were launched last week.

The last week was an eventful one for the smartphone enthusiasts. From giants like Samsung to domestic brand Swipe, we got to see the unveiling of a number of smartphones.

While some smartphones are meant for the first-time smartphone users, some come with really impressive specs and design. For example, the Samsung SM-G9298 flip phone will make you nostalgic with its old-school clam design but at the same time it offers all the high-end specs. Another domestic company Karbonn launched a budget smartphone with decent features.

Best smartphones to buy in August 2017: Buying Guide

Since the options are many, we have here compiled a list containing all the smartphones that were launched in the previous week. Scroll down and take a look at their specs, features and pricing.

Swipe Konnect Power Buy At Price of Rs 4,999

Key Features

a 5-inch HD IPS (720 x 1280 p) display

powered by a 1.5 GHz quad-core processor

2GB of RAM

Android v6.0 (Marshmallow)

16GB of internal storage

expandable by up-to 32GB via a micro SD card

a 3000 mAh battery Coolpad Note 5 Lite C Buy At Price of Rs 7,777

Key Features

5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD IPS display

1.1 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 (MSM8909) Mobile Platform with Adreno 304 GPU

2GB RAM

16GB internal memory

expandable memory with microSD

Android 7.1 (Marshmallow) with Cool UI 8.0

Hybrid Dual SIM (micro + nano/microSD)

8MP rear camera with LED Flash, f/2.4 aperture

5MP front-facing camera, f/2.4 aperture

4G VoLTE

2500mAh battery Kult Beyond with Android 7.0 Nougat launched at Rs. 6,999 Buy At Price of Rs 6,999

Key Features

A 5.2-inch HD display with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels

runs on Android 7.0 Nougat

powered by a 1.25GHz quad-core processor

3GB RAM

32GB internal storag

expandable up to 32GB via a microSD card slot

a 3000mAh battery Karbonn Aura Note Play Buy At Price of Rs 7,590

Key Features

6-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD display

1.3GHz Quad-core processor

2GB RAM

16GB internal memory

expandable memory with up to 32GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat)

Dual SIM

8MP rear camera with LED Flash

5MP front-facing camera

4G VoLTE

3300mAh battery Samsung SM-G9298 flip phone Key Features

4.2-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Super AMOLED dual displays

Quad-Core Snapdragon 821 processor with Adreno 530 GPU

4GB RAM

64GB internal memory

expandable memory up to 256GB with microSD

Hybrid dual SIM (nano + nano/microSD)

12MP rear camera with LED Flash

5MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor, heart rate sensor

4G VoLTE

2300mAh battery with Fast Charging (wired and wireless) Infinix Hot 4 Pro Buy At Price of Rs 7,499

Key Features

5.5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels)HD display

1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6737 64-bit processor with Mali-T720 GPU

3GB RAM

16GB internal storage

expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Android 6.0 (Marshmallow)

Dual SIM

13MP rear camera with LED flash

5MP front-facing camera with LED flash

4G VoLTE

4000mAh with fast charging Infinix Note 4 Buy At Price of Rs 8,999

Key Features

5.7-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD display

1.3 GHz Octa-core MediaTek MT6753 processor with up to Mali T720 GPU

3GB RAM

32GB internal storage

expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat)

Dual SIM

13MP rear camera with LED flash

8MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor

4G VoLTE

4300mAh with fast charging Intex Turbo+ 4G-VoLTE Buy At Price of Rs 1,999

Key Features

2.4-inch (320 x 240 pixels)display

Dual-core Processor

512 MB RAM

4GB internal storage

expandable memory up to 32GB with microSD

KaiOS

2MP rear camera

VGA front Camera

Torch light

4G with VoLTE (Voice over LTE)

2000mAh battery Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro Buy At Price of Rs 22,300

Key Features

5.5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD Super AMOLED 2.5D curved glass display

1.6GHz Octa-Core Exynos 7870 processor with Mali T830 GPU

3GB LPDDR3 RAM

64GB internal memory

expandable up to 256GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat)

Dual SIM

Samsung Pay

13MP rear camera

13MP front camera

Fingerprint sensor

4G VoLTE

3600mAh battery BlackBerry KEYone Buy At Price of Rs 39,990

Key Features

4.5-inch (1620 x 1080 pixels) 3:2 display with 433 PPI, scratch-resistant glass protection

2GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 625 14nm processor with 650MHz Adreno 506 GPU

4GB RAM

64GB internal storage

expandable memory up to 2TB with microSD

4-row Physical QWERTY backlit keyboard with capacitive touch

Android 7.1 (Nougat)

Hybrid dual SIM (nano + nano / microSD)

12MP rear camera

8MP front-facing camera

4G VoLTE

3505mAh battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 Motorola Moto G5S Key Features 5.2-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD display with Corning Gorilla glass 3 protection

1.4GHz Octa-Core 64-bit Snapdragon 430 (MSM8937) Mobile Platform with Adreno 505 GPU

3GB RAM

32GB internal memory

expandable memory up to 128 GB with microSD

Android 7.1 (Nougat)

Single / Dual SIM

16MP rear camera with dual-tone LED flash

5MP front-facing camera with flash

4G VoLTE

3000mAh battery with Turbo Charging Motorola Moto G5S Plus Key Features

5.5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD display with Corning Gorilla glass 3 protection

2GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 625 Mobile Platform with Adreno 506 GPU

3GB RAM with 32GB storage / 4GB RAM with 64GB storage

expandable memory up to 128 GB with microSD

Android 7.1 (Nougat)

Single / Dual SIM

13MP (RGB) + 13MP (monochrome) dual rear cameras

8MP front-facing camera with flash, f/2.0 aperture

Water repellent nano-coating

Bottom-ported loudspeaker

Fingerprint sensor

4G VoLTE

3000mAh battery with Turbo Charging

Best Mobiles in India

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Recently, as a result of President Trumps decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accords, we, along with legislative colleagues and local government officials, sent a letter to Governor Bullock urging him to join with other states, cities and businesses to uphold the accords, despite the Presidents decision.

Specifically, we believe that the Governor should use his executive authority to establish firm, quantifiable and enforceable limits on Montanas greenhouse gas emissions, and then take steps to meet those limits.

It is true that climate change is adversely affecting Montana, and indeed, the entire planet. It is also true that acting alone, Montana can do almost nothing to arrest climate change. It is only by negotiated international agreements, such as the Paris accords, that the most destructive effects of climate change can be averted. But such agreements are difficult to maintain. Participants face the temptation to benefit from the costly efforts of others, and to avoid making such efforts themselves. Shortsightedly, the President has yielded to exactly that temptation, putting the whole agreement, and the effort to arrest climate change, in jeopardy.

Fortunately, other signatories have indicated that they will continue to honor their Paris commitments. Their willingness to do so reflects farsighted and thoughtful leadership. Similarly, American governors, mayors, and business people clearly understand that our fate depends on collective action and they are prepared to exercise the leadership the President has abandoned by aligning their communities with the spirit and intent of the Paris agreement. We believe Governor Bullock should join these leaders; by moving to cap and then reduce emissions he will make it clear that Montana is prepared to play its part in this crucial collective effort.

Developing a climate change policy for Montana will be a challenge, but a challenge we must face. At some point, and the sooner the better, climate change will require a response, and we will be far better off crafting that response here in Montana rather than having it imposed upon us. That means we need to understand the various strategies available to us for capping emissions, how they can be cost-effectively deployed, and the policies that can achieve that deployment. Those policies can create opportunities for us in developing new ways of producing and using energy. But since reducing emissions will inevitably have adverse effects on certain industries, occupations, communities and income groups, we must also be prepared to address the concerns of those most severely impacted. In the end, Montanans need to share equitably both the benefits and costs of meeting the challenge of climate change.

Participating in the international effort to arrest climate change will be a challenge, but one which forward looking political leaders must accept. The pace of climate change is accelerating and the costs of inaction are mounting. Now is the time to unite with partners from across the world and to act boldly to address this global threat.

-- Sen. Dick Barrett, D-Missoula, and Sen. Mike Phillips, D-Bozeman.
Tags : interview resume steps

Have you been dissatisfied with your current position for quite some time, but reluctant to join the world of job seekers? Does the thought of interviewing strike terror in your heart? Has it been years since youve polished up your resume? Youre not alone. Interviewing can be stressful, challenging, and downright discouraging. But with a few simple tips, you can breeze through your next interview like a pro! Here are some techniques thatll increase your competence, bolster your confidence, wow em at your next interview, andwith a little bit o luckland you your next job! Before the interview, learn all you can about the company or organization youre applying to.No matter how smart or qualified you are, no interviewer in the world is going to hire you if you start out with, So, what exactly does this company do, anyway? (Yet, youd be surprised how many times interviewers hear this question.) So tip #1 is simply to do your homework. And these days, its so easy. Do a Google search and see what comes up, read newspaper and magazine articles, and ask others who work in the same industryor better still, for the exact company youre interested in. Heck, if you live in the area, check out the building and the people who come and go in the parking lot! (But dont overdo this tip. Itll get you nowhereexcept maybe a trip to the local police stationif yo...
Bath County, VA - A Virginia woman told authorities she murdered her young daughter in February so the child would go to heaven and be safe from aliens.

Darla Elizabeth Hise, 27, of Hot Springs in Bath County, is charged with first-degree murder for shooting and killing her daughter, 6-year-old Abigail Grace Hise, on Feb. 4 at her home, The Roanoke Times reported.

Hise told a detective and employees at the psychiatric hospital she was staying at that Abigail had aliens in her body and wanted them removed from her stomach.

Hises lawyer, Tony Anderson, argued his client did not know she waived her Miranda rights because she has mental disabilities and had substance abuse issues. Anderson filed a motion requesting Hises statement to authorities be censored.

In this case, the evidence will show that (Hises) drug use and psychosis prevented her from being fully aware that she was abandoning her right against self-incrimination and to counsel and the consequences of abandoning those rights, the motion, which was filed last week, stated.

Officials said Hise was incoherent when authorities arrested her the night of the slaying. When she was transported to the hospital, she was diagnosed with possible drug-induced psychosis vs PTSD psychosis, according to the motion.

Hise tested positive for marijuana, methamphetamines and amphetamines.

Throughout her interview with Detective (Jeff) Grimm, she detailed her psychosis that she believed her daughter and son were in danger from aliens and she thought she was going to save her daughter by sending her to heaven, the motion said.

Police found a 3-year-old boy at Hises residence the night of the shooting. The boy has been placed in another familys care.

Hise has also been charged with attempted murder, two counts of use of a firearm, possession of methamphetamine, and having a firearm while in possession of drugs, according to The Roanoke Times.

Hise has been ordered to be held without bond in the Western Virginia Regional Jail. She has been scheduled to stand trial on Aug. 23.
Washington, Aug 6 (IBNS): An often cited claim that humans, who are smarter and more technologically advanced than their ancestors, originated in response to climate change is challenged in a new report by a Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology researcher at George Washington University.

Many scientists have argued that an influx, described as a pulse, of new animal species appear in the African fossil record between 2.8 and 2.5 million years ago, including our own genus Homo.

Experts believe it takes a broad-scale event like global climate change to spark the origination of so many diverse new species.

However, W. Andrew Barr, a visiting assistant professor of anthropology, published a report that says its possible the pulse of new species could have occurred by chance and might not be directly related to climate change.

It is generally accepted that when major environmental changes occur, some species will go extinct and others will originate, which can create a cluster or pulse of new species in the fossil record.

However, there is not a set definition of what is considered a pulse, so experts have disagreed about which clusters constitute meaningful events and which can be explained as random fluctuations.

Dr. Barr used computer simulation to model what the fossil record might look like over time in the absence of any climate change and found clusters of species originations that were of similar magnitude to the clusters observed in the fossil record.

This means random patterns are likely under-credited for their role in speciation fluctuation, he said.

Dr. Barrs findings mean scientists may need to rethink widely-accepted ideas about why human ancestors became smarter and more sophisticated.

The idea that our genus originated more than 2.5 million years ago as part of a turnover pulse in direct response to climate change has a deep history in paleonthropology, Dr. Barr said. My study shows that the magnitude of that pulse could be caused by random fluctuations in speciation rates. One implication is that we may need to broaden our search for why our genus arose at that time and place.

He compared the pattern to flipping a coin. If you flip a coin 100 times, you would expect to record 50 heads and 50 tails. However, if you are only looking at 10 coin flips, you could see a greater imbalance, instead recording seven heads and only three tails. This would even out over time, but in the short-run, you could see clusters of these independent coin flips, he said.

Similarly, fluctuations in turnover in Dr. Barrs model are pronounced, but are caused purely by random processes.

The idea the the origin of Homo is part of a climate-caused turnover pulse doesnt really bear out when you carefully look at the evidence and compare it against other possible explanations, Dr. Barr said.

This research challenges scientists to be careful about the stories they tell about the history of human adaption, Dr. Barr said. Traits that make humans different from our ancestors, like larger brains and greater technological sophistication, could have arisen for a variety of reasons, he said.

We can sit in the present and tell stories of the past that make sense of our modern day adaptations, he said. But these could have evolved for reasons we dont know.

The report, Signal or noise? A null model method for evaluating the significance of turnover pulses, was published July 31.

Image:wikimedia commons
Islamabad, Aug 6 (IBNS): Pakistani politician Imran Khan on Sunday attacked former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and said he was attempting to damage the " whole democratic system".

"Sharif is prepared to destroy the whole democratic system," Khan said in a statement.

Khan made the remark in context to Nawaz Sharifs plan to travel to Lahore in a cavalcade via GT road.

Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was named as the new Prime Minister of Pakistan recently.

He replaced Nawaz Sharif who resigned from the post.

The National Assembly last week elected the new Prime Minister of the nation.

My statement on how NS after disqualification is seeking to destroy the judiciary and the democratic system pic.twitter.com/zNjc8NeMZQ  Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) August 6, 2017

Nawaz Sharif last month stepped down from the post after the Supreme Court disqualified him from holding public office.

The court announced its verdict in connection with the Panama Papers case.

His stepping down brought Nawaz Sharif's third term in power to an unceremonious end.

He stepped down nearly an year before Pakistan would have participated in the scheduled general elections.
Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 6 (IBNS): Visiting the family of an RSS activist killed recently in Kerala, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday called the act as 'barbaric'.

Jaitley said the crime would have even "embarrassed a terrorist".

"The kinds of wounds inflicted on Rajesh would have even embarrassed the terrorists," Jaitley said.

Asking for immediate action, Jaitley said: "It is the responsibility of the state to ensure that perpetrators of these crimes are brought to book."

The RSS worker was hacked to death by a group of assailants. . While police say that there was personal enmity, the BJP alleged the hand of the CPI(M), the reports said.

Jaitley said 'fairness and neutrality' by state police and political will by the state government is needed.

Jaitley said: "Houses of political workers and swayamsevaks have been attacked and the police in Kerala behaved like a silent spectator."

Image: BJP Twitter handle
Guwahati, Aug 6 (IBNS) : Union Textiles Minister Smriti Zubin Irani on Sunday announced that weavers will henceforth be able to avail a wide array of government services from Weaversa Service Centres (WSCs).

While distributing MUDRA loans to women weavers at Chhaygaon, outskirts of Guwahati, the Union Minister said besides providing technical assistance, the WSCs will serve as a one-stop centre for weavers, providing various services, including banking, passport, insurance, PAN card, voter ID and AADHAAR.



The Union Minister added that weavers will also be able to pay their electricity bills and undertake online courses at WSCs.

There are 28 WSCs under the Office of Development Commissioner (Handlooms), Ministry of Textiles, functioning in various parts of the country. Weavers visit these WSCs frequently, in order to avail technical assistance in relation to their profession. The Ministry of Textiles will enter into an MoU tomorrow with Common Service Centres, which will enable WSCs to provide the aforementioned services, beginning from this year itself, Irani said.



Recalling the Prime Minister Narendra Modis words that the development of the North Eastern Region is imperative for the development of India, the Minister informed the weavers that the main event of third National Handloom Day will be held in Guwahati.



The Union Minister said that the PM Jan Dhan Yojana has eliminated middlemen and enabled transfer of public money directly to the bank account of deserving citizens.



Around 25 crore citizens have got their bank accounts opened under PMJDY in last three years, Irani said.



Noting that seven banks are participating in the camp for distribution of loans, Irani asked the woman weavers how often banks come to them to provide banking services.



The Union Minister expressed her satisfaction that more than 250 women applied for MUDRA loans in just an hour after the camp started functioning.



She informed the 600-odd woman weavers present, that loans ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 10 lakh can be availed under MUDRA Yojana with no requirement for any security whatsoever.

She said that this demonstrates the faith reposed by the Centre in the ability of its citizens to contribute to national development by becoming self-reliant.

The Union Minister highlighted that handloom weavers in Sambalpur, Odisha, were able to improve their earnings by more than 60 per cent within three months of availing MUDRA loan.

Irani distributed MUDRA loan sanction letters to 50 weavers on the occasion, and appealed to all weavers to apply for the loan and improve their incomes.



Noting that loom repair and upgradation is one reason why many weavers apply for loans, the Union Minister informed the weavers that Hathkargha Samvardhan Sahayata Scheme addresses this issue. She said that under this scheme, the Centre assists the weaver by bearing 90 per cent of the cost of new looms; on distributing the scheme certificates, the Minister appealed more weavers to join the scheme so that they do not have to bear the heavy financial burden of buying a new loom.

She said that with E-Dhaga (Dhaga app), subsidy is just a click away for the weavers.



She said that the app, which enables handloom weavers to order and track the shipping of yarn, will be a boon for handloom weavers.

This would enable them to transact business anytime, anywhere; weavers can send their indents and payments online through this app, Irani said.

The Union Minister added that on January 4, 2017 the Ministry launched Bunkar Mitra, the first ever helpline for handloom weavers. Available seven days a week, from 10 AM to 6 PM, the issues faced by weavers are addressed in a time-bound manner through the helpline. She asked every weaver present to note down the helpline number 1800-208-9988 and to use it extensively for their benefit.





Stating that education of children is the primary concern of weavers, the Union Minister informed the weavers that the Ministry of Textiles has entered into MoUs with Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) whereby children of weavers shall be able to avail school and university education, with 75 per cent of fees being borne by the Government of India.



Smriti Irani requested the weavers to participate in these schemes of the government and reap their benefits, for a better future for them and their families.



She also reminded them that while many other countries earned their freedom through the sword, India achieved independence through the weapon of non-violence, of which Charkha and 'Suta' (thread) were defining symbols.

Besides the big gathering of 600-odd woman weavers, Assam Handloom Minister Ranjit Dutta, MLA Pranab Kalita, Development Commissioner (Handlooms), Ministry of Textiles, Shantmanu were also present on the occasion.

The third National Handloom Day will be celebrated across the country on Monday, the main event being in Guwahati.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)
Srinagar, Aug 6 (IBNS): Jammu & Kashmir Policeas Kashmir chief Muneer Ahmad Khan on Sunday said the mastermind behind the militant attack on the Amarnath pilgrims in July has been identified.

He confirmed to media that Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) was involved in the attack and accused have been identified.

He said that the mastermind of the attack was Pakistani national and LeT militant Abu Ismail.

Speaking to media, IGP said I am happy to tell you that 3 accused persons have been arrested & they have completely revealed everything.

Khan confirmed that Ismail, a Pakistani militant of Lashkar along with two other Pakistani militants and a local Kashmiri Lashkar militant, carried out attack

The earlier investigation confirmed that the attack was carried out by LeT to seek revenge for the encounter of Bashir Lashkari, the commander of the LeTin the Valley.

(Reporting by Saleem Iqbal Qadri)
Guwahati, Aug 6 (IBNS) : The Assam government will set an academic tribunal to reform the present educational system in the state.

Assam education minister Himanta Biswa on Sunday said that to reform the educational system, the state government is looking to set up an academic tribunal, where the students to file their complaints if found any negligence of their academic career.



We want to change our present educational system. If any teacher found guilty during duty, then the government will take stern action against him. We are going to set up an academic tribunal such as consumer court, Himanta Biswa Sarma Said.



While distributing the promotion and appointment letters to 625 head masters and 147 assistant head masters of high schools and high madrasas during a ceremonial function held at Gauhati University, the Assam education minister said that, the state government also looking to reintroduce pass and fail formula in all government run primary schools and high schools.



Recently, the Assam education minister rebuked heads of over 100 government run educational institutions on live TV and demanded an explanation from each one of them individually for the poor performance by their respective schools in this year Class 10 examination conducted by Board of Secondary Education Assam (SEBA).

The Assam minister on Sunday again warned the heads of all government run schools for future explanation if their institutions to fail good performance.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)


Guwahati, Aug 6 (IBNS) : A deputy manager of Indusind Bank of a Guwahati branch was arrested by police after she allegedly siphoned off over Rs 2 crore from the account of a customer of the bank in connivance with her husband.



According to the reports, a investigating team of Guwahati city police led by ACP Suprative Lal Barua had arrested the bank official named Olivia Dutta Choudhury from Nainital in Uttarakhand.

Following a tip-off, the police team had arrested Olivia, who was absconding after siphoning the crore of ruppes, a top police official said.

The police official said Olivia had transferred the money from the bank customer account to a bogus account and later it routed to her husband bank account.

Earlier, police arrested her husband Samir Sinha from Gangtok, who worked as a manager in the same bank in Gangtok branch in Sikkim.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)
MUSCATINE  When a tornado tore through Muscatine last March, power was cut off to First Presbyterian Church for three or four days, spoiling about 170 pounds of donated venison the church had stored for its free Sunday meals program, known as Emmaus Cafe.

We had just gotten donated meat, recalled secretary Shirley Dillon.

But it didnt stop volunteers from serving a meal that Sunday, as they have at the church at 401 Iowa Ave. every Sunday for the past 17 years. With the help of residents and organizations, the church replenished its meat supply, and volunteers served the meal as planned.

Dwindling funds haven't stopped them either, thought the Emmaus pantry is relatively empty. A big blow came when Heinz, who used to provide canned goods to the pantry stopped doing so, Dillon said.

Through the years we have had donations from Sunday school classes, churches, from the communitysometimes its money, sometimes its food, she said. But this last year weve had the fewest donations weve ever had.

Getting volunteers also is a struggle, said volunteer coordinator Karen McDaniel.

Like any organization, its the same people that help and were aging out and it would be nice to get young people to help out, she said.

This experience is in line with cultural shifts. According to a 2015 Bureau of Labor Statistics report, less than a quarter of Americans volunteer and rates are declining. Older people are more likely to volunteer than young people, with most volunteers being 35-54 years old.

Despite these difficulties, said Pastor Pam Saturnia, the project will go on because theres a need for it. On an average Sunday, Emmaus feeds 40-80 people, many of whom are regulars.

As long as there are people who are food insecure, then we want to do our part. Its not a big part, but its something, Saturnia said.

Emmaus began as a three-month-long experiment in 2000. Around that time, a group of members formed with the desire to volunteer outside of their church. They spoke to community leaders to identify some of these needs and soon learned that Muscatine lacked free Sunday mealslocal churches, the Salvation Army and MCSA covered the other six days of the week. That spring, they served their first Sunday meal at the church. The response was overwhelming. An estimated 60-70 people showed up to that first mealmore than volunteers expected.

One of the first people who came in was a woman with her children, and as she was leaving, she told one of the volunteers I dont know what I would have done today if you werent open, and that pretty much gave us the impetus to continue, Saturnia said.

Theyve been serving meals ever since, calling their venture Emmaus Cafe, after the Gospel of Luke, Luke 24:13-35. Two disciples rode to the town of Emmaus, the chapter goes, and meet a stranger along the way. They break bread with him  a stranger who turns out to be Jesus.

We called it Emmaus Cafe because we believe that in the faces of everyone who comes is Jesus, Saturnia said.
From the Archive In 1988, A Brief Renaissance for Myanmars Journalists

Independent newspapers, published in August and September 1988, describe the pro-democracy protests. Leading activist Min Ko Naing is pictured in the photograph on top. / The Irrawaddy

On the 32nd anniversary of the pro-democracy uprising of 1988, The Irrawaddy revisits this 2013 article revealing a silver lining of the demonstrations, despite the brutal crackdown which was to follow: a brief return of press freedom to a country that had been muzzled by a literary censorship system for 26 years.

RANGOON  Hmyar Ni still remembers how his nearly 10-member editorial team crowded around a small attic in Burmas biggest city to write articles and lay out his daily newspaper, Our Cause, 25 years ago.

It was late August 1988, several days after the government brutally cracked down on pro-democracy protesters trying to topple then-dictator Gen Ne Wins regime. Outside the newspaper bureau, the streets of downtown Rangoon had ground to a halt, as the country trembled with the peoples determination to oust a dictator who had oppressed them since 1962.

The days were chaotic but had a silver lining: a brief return of press freedom to a country that had been muzzled by a literary censorship system for the past 26 years. Newshounds like Hmyar Ni and his friends ventured out to report and publish independent newspapers, taking advantage of the governments inability to restore Burma to normalcy.

Starting around mid-August 1988, newspaper boys hawked morning and evening papers featuring photographs and accounts of ongoing demonstrations against the Burmese authoritarian government. Some editions were handwritten and then photocopied or mimeographed, while others were professionally printed.

As far as Im concerned, there may have been more than three dozen dailies and weeklies like us at that time in Rangoon the 64-year old Hmyar Ni said.

It was the first return of privately owned daily news publications in modern Burmese history, long before the resurrection of todays private dailies in April with permission from the quasi-civilian government. The Southeast Asian country had lost freedom of expression after the 1962 coup, when Ne Win shut down nearly two dozen private papers and established a draconian censorship board to ban anything that would disgrace his government.

The resurrection of independent publications in 1988 was short lived, however. The newspapers published only from mid-August to Sept.18, when a new military government came to power.

We just grabbed the chance we had at the time, said 77-year-old Maung Moe Thu, editor of the Warazein news weekly, which lasted four weeks. We enjoyed freedom of expression during that short period because there was no longer censorship.

His weekly was in broadsheet format, while other editors opted for tabloids. Like many newspapers at the time, his paper sought to oppose dictatorship by covering ongoing democracy movements across the country. Sales soared as the public heartily welcomed a chance to learn more about the demonstrations.

Any move against the government became news, Hmyar Ni from Our Cause daily said with a laugh. Everyone became reporters overnight because they were always calling to give us information.

Win Tin, a veteran journalist and co-founder of the countrys main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), said the 1988 newspapers became voices of the 88 Uprising by documenting the wishes of the public. He added that some entrepreneurial editors made lucrative businesses from the brief return of press freedom, referring to newspapers that published graphic photographs and unethical stories about the demonstrations.

As a whole, you could hear peoples voices and find out how much they disliked the government in those papers, he said. It was the first time they could unleash their anger.

Mandalay, the second-biggest city in Burma, also saw a boom of independent newspapers. Hsu Nget, a Mandalay-based writer, recalls that nearly 30 privately owned papers hit newsstands in the city. Among them was the Four-Eights dailynamed after the 8/8/88 uprising, or the 88 Uprisingwhere he worked as an editor.

People had a hunger for news, he said. They really wanted to know what was happening, and where. They had to rely on Burmese services from the BBC or VOA [Voice of America], but at that time not everyone could afford to buy a radio, so they turned to our newspapers.

Among those who embraced the brief return of press freedom were journalists from the governments six daily newspapers, which usually served as propaganda tools for the state. Several days after the country took to the streets on Aug. 8, journalists at these papers restored their first loyalty to the public.

We publicly announced that we had left behind censorship and were now with the Burmese people, said Ko Ko Gyi, who was then editing The Mirror daily, one of the state-run papers. We told them to wait and see tomorrows paper.

They kept their promise, with full coverage the next day of demonstrations across the country. When Burmas democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi made her first public appearance at an open ground near Shwedagon Pagodas western stairway on Aug. 25, Ko Ko Gyi allocated a spot on his front page for the story.

The press freedom came to an abrupt end on Sept. 18. At 4 pm that day, a male announcer on the state-run Burma Broadcasting Service (BBS) proclaimed that in order to bring a timely halt to deteriorating conditions all over the country.  in the interests of the people, the defense forces have assumed all power in the state, effective from today. The broadcasters regular programs were then interrupted by strident martial music.

With news of the military coup, nearly all independent newspapers quickly shut down their operations for fear of retribution. Editors burned the draft layouts they had prepared for the next days papers and went into hiding. Photojournalists looked for secret places to stash away the negatives of photographs that had captured historic moments from the previous month.

Soldiers arrived at The Mirrors bureau in downtown Rangoon at 2 am on Sep 19.

They stormed into our office to confiscate dummies for the next days paper and seal the office, Ko Ko Gyi said. Then they kicked us out!

Shortly after the generals in olive green uniforms came to power, military intelligence officers combed through the country to arrest anyone who had been involved in publishing the newspapers. But to peoples surprise, the journalists were only detained temporarily for interrogation.

To the best of my knowledge, people werent seriously punished for publishing the newspapers, Hmyar Ni said. For my paper, only a few senior editors were taken away for questioning. They were released very soon. He himself was spared from detention.

Ko Ko Gyi was not so fortunate. He was arrested three days after the coup and taken to an interrogation center, where he spent the next 20 days. Upon his release, he was forced to retire from his job. He was 54 years old, or six years shy of official retirement.

Now 77, the veteran journalist doesnt seem remorseful about the decisions he made more than two decades ago.

Im proud of what I did, he told The Irrawaddy.

For me, it was the time when we suddenly saw a flash of light after 26 years of darkness.
From the Archive Translation of Lintners Outrage Sheds Light on 88 for Myanmar Readers

A reader holds a Burmese-language copy of Bertil Lintners Outrage: Burmas Struggle for Democracy. / The Irrawaddy

In June 2013, The Irrawaddy covered the release of a Burmese language translation of Bertil Lintners Outrage: Burmas Struggle for Democracy, marking an opportunity for young people to learn about the 1988 pro-democracy uprising beyond more informal oral accounts. This year, to mark the 29th anniversary of the movement, The Irrawaddy revisits the anticipation surrounding the publication of this text.

RANGOON  Over the last two decades, any young Burmese who wanted to learn about the historic 1988 popular uprising that nearly toppled the countrys dictatorship was hard-pressed to do so.

One way would have been to Google it, but for most of the Internet age in Burma, there was nothing easy or convenient about accessing information via the search engine giant. The snails pace of the countrys Internet connection was one hurdle to overcome, and use of proxy serversone of the only ways to access censored exile media and other content related to the 1988 democracy protestsrequired technical know-how.

For many from younger generations, oral accounts from those involved in the uprising were the most credible and accessible. The events of 1988 took on an almost ahistorical quality; the stuff of fables and favorite bedtime stories.

But now, with the release of a Burmese-language translation of Outrage: Burmas Struggle for Democracy inside the country this month, another curtain has been pulled back.

Penned by Bertil Lintner, a veteran journalist who has written six books on Burma, the tome covers the period leading up to the nationwide pro-democracy movement, widely known as the 88 Uprising, which broke out on Aug. 8, 1988, and in ensuing weeks saw the Burmese military brutally crack down on the protests, killing several thousand peaceful demonstrators.

Ive just made the most of the countrys ongoing democratic transition and the demise of literary censorship, said Lwin Oo, the Burmese publisher of the book, adding that he didnt dare publish a book like Outrage five years ago, when the oppressive military regime was in power and its draconian press scrutiny board was active.

Lwin Oo said he published the book in honor of the students and other pro-democracy activists who were involved in the uprising, many of whom sacrificed their lives or lost years to political imprisonment.

Coincidently, the book hits shelves as political activists in the country are gearing up to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the uprising in August of this year.

I really appreciate the publishers effort to make the book see the light of day in advance of the 88 Silver Jubilee, said Jimmy, a member of the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society (formerly known as the 88 Generation Students group), an activist group made up of former students who were actively involved in the uprising.

The author Lintner, for years banned from entering Burma due to his coverage of the country, told The Irrawaddy via e-mail that he was glad Burmese readers would have the chance to learn about the historic protests in their native tongue.

Its very important that the young generation gets to know what happened in their country 25 years ago, he said.

The 1988 uprising changed Burma forever, and is an important event in Burmese history that should not be forgotten, the former Far Eastern Economic Review correspondent added.

In the wake of the 88 Uprising and government crackdown that followed, thousands of students fled to border areas. Some sought shelter at the Swedish journalists home in Bangkok, giving him a chance to widely discuss the events with dissidents who would sleep in his living room, according to his new introduction to the Burmese printing of Outrage. Lintner also interviewed more than 100 Burmese refugees in Thai-Burmese border camps.

The people who told me their stories were the major drivers to write Outrage, the 60-year-old journalist recalled.

I felt I had to give them a voice, to let them tell others what they had been through. The book is based entirely on first-hand accounts of the events of 1988, he added.

In the acknowledgements of Outrage, Bertil writes that he was frequently told by Burmese people during his research for the book that he should tell it as we saw it, since the junta in Rangoon was actively working to re-write history in the wake of the uprising. Lintner said he had followed this advice as much as possible.

Ill leave it up to the readers to decide which account of the events of 1988 is the most accurate, he said.

The publisher Lwin Oo said he chose Outrage for its vivid portrayal of the uprising and the credibility of its author.

Every time I read the book, I can visualize the scenes, and I feel I am in 1988 again, he said.

Another thing is that Bertil knows Burma and its people very well. He is one of the people who made the 88 Uprising internationally well known.

The Burmese publisher said Lintner did much to help make the Burmese translation possible, granting publishing permission, providing pictures and asking for nothing in terms of royalty payments.

Because I felt it was more important that the book was published in Burmese, for Burmese people, than for me to earn some royalties from it, Lintner said.

Meanwhile, another book by the journalist, The Rise and Fall of the Communist Party of Burma, has also been translated into Burmese and is now being serialized in The Voice daily newspaper. Lintner told The Irrawaddy that it will be published as a full book later this year.

One day I would also like to see a Burmese translation of Land of Jade, which I think would help the Burmese people to get a better understanding of what is happening, and what has happened, in the countrys frontier areas, he said.
Burma Protesting Nationalist Monks Arrested in Mandalay

Authorities usher monks into a van after the raid in Mandalay on Saturday. / The Irrawaddy

YANGON Following the governments early-morning Saturday raid on an anti-government protest camp in Mandalay set up by nationalist monks and laymen, six out of eight leading monks have been detained and charged with Offence against the State or the Public Tranquilitya Penal Code article punishable by two years imprisonment.

Mandalay Regional Police Force said eight leading monks and five laypersons had been on an arrest warrant since Friday but only six monks were arrested during Saturdays raid, the rest are still at large.

The regional Police Chief Aung Soe Win told local media the police are in pursuit of the other individuals.

Several dozen nationalist monks and laymen had camped near Maha Muni Pagoda in Mandalay and the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon since Wednesday afternoon, calling for the government to step down as it has failed to protect national interests and security.

Rather than attracting support, the protestors calls earned public condemnation for inflaming nationalism and anti-Muslim sentiment derailing Daw Aung San Suu Kyi-led governments reform process in the country.

On Saturday afternoon, Mandalay Chief Minister Dr. Zaw Myint Maug said during a press conference on the raid that the government had carried out the clearance operation according to legal procedures. Eleven monks and two women were arrested in Mandalay on Saturday.

The reason behind their protest is not solid. We told them several times to disperse for what they were doing is unlawful. But our warnings fell on deaf ears, he told reporters.

He added that the protestors had committed crimes covered by several other charges, but they have been charged with 505(b) of the Penal Code as the government wanted to tackle the situation as peacefully as possible.

The chief minister said he suspected there was someone behind the protests who wanted to destabilize the country, but said it was difficult to find out who.

Around 4 p.m. on Saturday in Yangon, when seven nationalist monks and about 30 supporters announced that they shut down their camp temporarily, local residents clapped in jubilation. The protestors shouted back with obscenities.

When asked how long they would postpone the protest, the nationalists failed to answer. We protest because we want to criticize the government we love, said one of the leading monks.

Its not clear if Yangon protestors will be prosecuted with similar charges to their Mandalay counterparts.
Burma U Phyo Min Thein Under Fire Over YBS Deal with China

Yangonites sit on a new bus launched by Yangon Bus Public Co., Ltd (YBPC). / Pyay Kyaw / The Irrawaddy

YANGON  Daw Aung San Suu Kyis first major infrastructure project could hardly be more visiblehundreds of new yellow buses now plying the streets of Yangon in what her ruling party hopes will be a potent symbol of how it is transforming peoples lives.

But two deals to import 2,000 buses from China estimated at more than US$100 million have caused an unusual rift within her National League for Democracy (NLD), with regional lawmakers questioning its cost and accusing Yangons chief minister U Phyo Min Thein, a Daw Aung San Suu Kyi protege, of cronyism and a lack of accountability.

U Phyo Min Theins government lacks transparency, said U Kyaw Zay Ya, a Yangon NLD lawmaker. The image of the government will be damaged if he doesnt change.

The deal, struck with Chinese companies and a businessman with ties to the junta that ruled Myanmar for decades, has also soured relations with the West, according to diplomats.

While there is no evidence that any laws were broken in the awarding of the contracts, Roland Kobia, the EU ambassador to Myanmar, complained in a private letter to Commerce Minister U Than Myint of a lack of transparency in public procurements.

Currently, the domestic economy remains dominated by a small number of domestic and regional actors whose long-standing practices prevent fair competition, Kobia wrote in the June dated letter, seen by Reuters. The letter did not specifically refer to the bus deal.

Although the Chinese buses were about half the price of international rivals, engineers who inspected them for Myanmar predict that they will wear out and need to be replaced far sooner than the international standard.

U Phyo Min Thein declined several interview requests from Reuters. He and other ministers have previously defended the deal, saying the government-to-government agreement with China offered a discount price and express delivery.

EU ambassador Kobia said in a statement in response to Reuters questions that many European actors stand ready to work in Myanmar, but more needs to be done to give them a fair chance to compete for contracts.

He was referring to the broader issue of transparency in public procurements, the EU said.

Myanmars commerce ministry spokesman Khin Maung Lwin declined to comment.

When Daw Aung San Suu Kyi swept to power in an electoral landslide in 2015, analysts predicted Western companies, whose governments had cheered on the transition to democracy in the Southeast Asian nation that began in 2011, would flock to the country.

But the Yangon bus deal underscores that Daw Aung San Suu Kyis backers in the West have grown disillusioned as Myanmar increasingly prefers to do business with China.

In a Hurry

U Phyo Min Thein, a charismatic 48-year-old who spent about 15 years behind bars for opposing the junta, likes to tell people he has no more time to waste.

His bid to overhaul Yangons antiquated transit system offers Daw Aung San Suu Kyis party one of its first opportunities to tangibly improve the lives of more than two million commuters in a city that overwhelmingly voted for the NLD at the last election.

Yangon officials last year rejected a proposal to improve the transit network from the World Banks investment arm, the International Finance Corporation, due to differences over the details of the plan, which required detailed traffic monitoring and an open tender process.

Initial talks with potential French and Dutch suppliers also came to nothing, because they could not deliver the number of buses with the speed the chief minister was demanding, diplomats and lobbyists involved said.

Instead Yangon Bus Public Company (YBPC), a public-private joint venture majority-owned by the city government, bought 1,000 buses from two Chinese suppliers picked by Beijings ambassador to Myanmar, Hong Liang.

Another 1,000 buses were bought from a third Chinese company in a private deal by businessman Kyaw Ne Win, a grandson of former junta leader Ne Win.

There was no public tender or debate in the regional legislature before the deals were agreed.

Yes, people can say that theres no transparency, said YBPC chairman Maung Aung. But calling a tender is not necessarily better. The deal was struck to maintain good relations between the two countries.

China the Deal Maker

Under Daw Aung San Suu Kyiwhose status as darling of the West has been tarnished over allegations of atrocities by security forces against the Rohingya Muslim minorityChina and Myanmar have sought to repair ties strained when a previous semi-civilian government blocked a China-backed dam project in 2011.

On a trip to China in September, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed how Myanmar could take advantage of Chinas Belt and Road infrastructure investment programme, according to a senior official in Myanmars Presidents office.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said there were some concerns in Myanmar about the quality of Chinese products, prompting Xi to propose the Chinese embassy could help find the best suppliers, said a senior official from a Chinese company involved in the deal.

The cost of the vehicles was set at $56,000 each and deal was signed on April 11. Two months later the chosen firms, state-run Anhui Ankai Automobil Co Ltd and Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Co, had each delivered 500 yellow buses.

Privately-owned Zhengzhou Yutong is led by Yuxiang Tang, a member of Chinas National Peoples Congress.

The criteria under which the two firms were selected is not known, although Maung Aung said provincial Chinese governments where the two firms are based had given guarantees of quality.

Both Ankai and Yutong did not respond to requests for comments.

Such arrangements were very rare, said the manager at one of the selected Chinese makers, because in other countries, there usually is a tender process and we need to follow related regulations.

The Chinese embassy in Yangon did not respond to requests for comment.

Value for Money?

While an improvement on the 40-year-old unairconditioned vehicles in which long-suffering Yangon commuters have sweltered for years, Soe Aung, an engineer who inspected the Chinese buses for Myanmar before purchase, acknowledged they were of lower quality than European or Japanese alternatives, which he estimated would have cost around twice as much.

This project is only for five years, said Soe Aung, adding that the vehicles would be worn out with daily use over that timeframe.

Officials say after that they will be replaced with electric vehicles, but some critics regard that as unrealistic in a country with an acute shortage of power that is not expected to be solved for at least a decade.

Western experts in public transport procurement say the average lifespan of buses would typically be more than twice that.

It seems inefficient to me to be introducing a new technology, while planning a replacement technology in such a short time period, said Robert Marshall, global director of planning and landscape at consulting firm B+H Architects.

Unanswered Questions

When regional MPs approved 70 billion kyat ($51.5 million) for the project in December, they could only vote for money for transportation.

After the contract was signed in April, some lawmakers complained that questions on financing, the business plan and how the buses were chosen were dodged or went unanswered.

Myint Thaung, Yangon regions minister of planning and finance, declined to provide more details to Reuters on how the deal was financed.

The involvement of Kyaw Ne Win, whose grandfather led Myanmars ruling junta until 1988, has particularly incensed some NLD lawmakers.

Opponents say it smacks of the cronyism under the junta, when lucrative contracts were routinely doled out to a small group of well-connected businessmen.

The junta leader scion bought the buses from Beiqi Foton Motor Co Ltdanother Chinese state-owned company, but declined to discuss the details of the deal.

Beiqi Foton did not respond to a request to comment.

The deal, which will make Kyaw Ne Win the citys largest bus operator, was simple and straightforward, he said, adding he wanted to provide good service for the people of Yangon.
If a $27 fitness band outsells a smartwatch costing several hundred dollars and with a vastly higher profit margin, has the fitness band truly won No.1?

Strategy Analytics has put out a report stating that Xiaomi was the Worlds No.1 Wearables Vendor in Q2 2017.

This is a turnaround from Q1 2017, which saw Strategy Analytics analysing the numbers to put Apple Watch in the No.1 spot.

While the Xiaomi Mi Band 2 seems to retail for around A$50 to A$70, theres one site seemingly selling it for A$26.40.

As you can see from Xiaomis site, the Mi Band 2 does a lot of fitness things, and links with your Android or iOS device to track steps and heart rate, and alerts you to calls and texts like a Fitbit.

But its clearly no Apple Watch, nor is it even an Android Wear device.

So, while it has reportedly sold in large enough numbers to snag the Q2 2017 No.1 spot, what does it really mean?

An example lies with $100 Android phones and other low-end to mid-range models outselling iPhones on a global basis, and yet Apple leads with profits, with the best apps, with the most loyal developers who make the most.

Google gets its marketshare victory, but at what cost? Hundreds of millions of low-end devices that offer low memory, low storage and low, stuttery performance, even if they have large screens and seemingly high megapixel cameras. This is unlikely to make for happy customers.

The same goes with Apple Watch. In Australia, prices start at A$569 for a Series 2 watch in Aluminium. Price are cheaper for Series 1 models, and in US dollars, prices are cheaper still, while fitness bands are considerably cheaper, but are considerably less useful. Competitors might be outselling Apple, but at what cost to earnings, and customer satisfaction?

Nevertheless, Apple reportedly enjoys its usual great profit margin, which clearly helps the company fund future development, without which a company couldnt continue existing before being overtaken by others.

So, with global wearables shipments reaching 22 million units in the second quarter of 2017 according to Strategy Analytics, we learn that Xiaomi captured 17% marketshare and became the worlds largest wearables vendor for the first time ever, overtaking Fitbit and Apple".

The things is, Xiaomis fitness bands are not true smartwatches.

Even Fitbit has moved towards making a better smartwatch than its Blaze, but with Apple itself reportedly outselling well-known Swiss brands, and reporting a 50% year-on-year increase in Apple Watch sales, do you go for volume at what must be razor thin profits for Xiaomi, or do you go for Apples kind of volume, yet with great profits that help Apple deliver even better products for its customers year after year after year?

So, what do Strategy Analytics people have to say about Xiaomis Q2 'win'?

Steven Waltzer, industry analyst at Strategy Analytics, said, Global wearables shipments reached 21.6 million units in Q2 2017, rising 8% annually from 20.0 million in Q2 2016. Strong demand for low-cost fitness bands in China and premium smartwatches across the United States drove the uptick.

Neil Mawston, executive director at Strategy Analytics, said, Xiaomi shipped 3.7 million wearables worldwide in Q2 2017, rising 23% annually from 3.0 million units in Q2 2016. Xiaomi captured 17% global marketshare and overtook Fitbit and Apple to become the worlds largest wearables vendor.

Xiaomis Mi Band fitness trackers are wildly popular in China, due to their highly competitive pricing and rich features such as heart-rate monitors, step-counters and calendar alerts.

Fitbit shipped 3.4 million wearables for 16% marketshare worldwide in Q2 2017, almost halving from 29% a year ago. Fitbit is at risk of being trapped in a pincer movement between the low-end fitnessbands sold by Xiaomi and the fitness-led, high-end smartwatches sold by Apple, continued Mawston.

Cliff Raskind, director at Strategy Analytics, said, Apple shipped 2.8 million wearables worldwide in Q2 2017, growing 56% annually from 1.8 million in Q2 2016.

Apple has for now lost its wearables leadership to Xiaomi, due to a lack of presence in the sizeable fitnessband subcategory. However, the rumoured upcoming Watch Series 3 launch with enhanced health tracking could prove to be a popular smartwatch model and enable Apple to reclaim the top wearables spot later this year.

Indeed, one swallow does not a summer make, and one quarterly win does not guarantee Xiaomi can keep its no.1 position  so all eyes are firmly on the future, especially with the reports that Apple will place a 4G SIM card slot into its Watch Series 3 due "later this year".

Heres the Strategy Analytics chart  article concludes below:

As you would expect, Strategy Analytics has a full report on the Global Wearables Vendor Market Share by Region: Q2 2017, which as always is available to relevant parties at relevant prices.

All I can say is, when it comes to comparing smartwatch apples with fitness band oranges, watch this space for the true results to come out, and as always, just because one company beats another on sheer numbers it does not make for a guaranteed winner. As always, time will tell!
If American judicial authorities are going after British security researcher Marcus Hutchins for allegedly writing malware, then they will also have to indict people at the NSA who were responsible for creating Windows exploits that then leaked and led to massive ransomware attacks.

Those attacks have left some companies incapable of returning to full production even now, with a case in point being the pharmaceutical giant Merck.

Hutchins has pleaded not guilty to all six counts on his indictment. He has been charged with creating a banking trojan known as Kronos and also selling it, among other charges.

In Hutchins' case, the malware he is charged with creating  Kronos  barely raised a blip on the screen when it was being used.

But the NSA's sloppiness led to two massive ransomware attacks  the first of which, ironically, the same Hutchins helped to inadvertently stop.

Nobody in the US has ever said that someone in the NSA needs to be held responsible for their slip-ups. In other words, if you leave a slab of meat lying in the open and dogs attack it, then the dogs are to blame.

Another category that should come under scrutiny is businesses like Immunity, led by former NSA man Dave Aitel, which pay for vulnerabilities that are not publicly known and then protect only their own clients against them. There is no disclosure for the greater good.

But then in the US, there is one kind of justice meted out to government organisations that screw up and leave a mess that others drown in, and an entirely different kind of justice served to the average man/woman in the street.

One would expect much lauded mainstream media outlets like The New York Times and the Washington Post to come out screaming about things like this. But there has not been a peep from either of these brave defenders of democracy.

Every security researcher creates proof of concept code to understand how a particular vulnerability works and how it can endanger the average computer user. Only then can patches be devised.

Else, there is no way of testing anything. We will all have to live with thousands of vulnerabilities that remain unpatched if authorities get red under the collar every time someone creates PoC code.

Anti-virus researchers do it every day. So too do researchers at bigger security companies.

In the NSA, they do it to create exploits that can be used to target other countries. The NSA often does not inform companies that their products have vulnerabilities - else how would they exploit the same vulnerabilities when they want to?

Exploits like ETERNALBLUE leaked out of the NSA because the security agency was unable to look after its own creations.

The move against Hutchins looks very much like the US wants to make an example of someone to scare the bejesus out of all and sundry. Meanwhile, the professionals who live off the proceeds of malware and ransomware are laughing all the way to the bank.
British security researcher Marcus Hutchins, who accidentally stopped the spread of the WannaCry ransomware that was affecting Windows machines in May, has been given bail by a court in Las Vegas after he was arrested in the US last week.

Hutchins, 23, who was charged with creating and distributing the Kronos banking trojan, was asked to pay US$30,000 in bail and will not be able to leave the US until legal proceedings are over.

There was no time to raise the money on Friday so he will be released on Monday. A large number of researchers and people from the IT community have contributed to raise the bail amount.

The prosecution claimed that he had admitted to writing malware. However, Hutchins regularly does this as a means of testing code as his research is essentially into malware.

Prosecutor said @MalwareTechBlog admitted he wrote code and allegedly indicated he also sold and profited from it. His attorney disagrees. pic.twitter.com/UrM9gGiMRS  Christy Wilcox (@ChristyNews3LV) 4 August 2017

Hutchins has pleaded not guilty to all six counts on his indictment.

He will have to wear a GPS tag while he is on bail and will not be able to use the Internet or make contact with an alleged co-author of Kronos.

Doubts were raised earlier about the grounds on which he was arrested, with another security researcher Kevin Beaumont pointing out that the Kronos malware was a Russian creation.

Beaumont also pointed out that Hutchins had asked for a sample of Kronos at the time the malware was active, which he would not have needed to do if he was the creator.

More info from 2014: https://t.co/DWV6sgLK71  Kevin Beaumont (@GossiTheDog) August 3, 2017

In May, Hutchins, then an unknown researcher going by the Twitter handle MalwareTech, was hailed as a hero when he accidentally stopped the spread of WannaCry by registering a domain that was listed in the code of the malware.

He reasoned that this could be a command and control server and promptly registered the domain which appeared to be a random name, comprising letters from the top two rows of a keyboard. It cost him just US$10.69.

This was in order to create a sinkhole so he could examine the malware further.

But his action unwittingly stopped the malware from spreading as it had been programmed to check this domain, and continue spreading if it could not access the domain. Once he registered the domain, it was accessible, and when this happened the attacks gradually slowed down.
Things are about to get worse for Kaspersky Lab in the US with the US Senate set to consider banning the use of its software in all federal agencies, using a provision in the National Defence Authorisation Act.

A report in the National Journal said a number of lawmakers had refused to rule out a total prohibition on Kaspersky software in critical infrastructure.

It quoted West Virginia Democrat Senator Joe Manchin as saying he would back such a ban on anything that was critical to the US national defence, be it economic, financial or infrastructure.

In July, the US removed Kaspersky Lab from a list of approved software suppliers for two government-wide purchasing contracts. Prior to that, the FBI interviewed several Kaspersky Lab employees.

However several US state governments are continuing to use Kaspersky products.

The move against Kaspersky Lab has come in the wake of allegations that Russia interfered in the 2016 US presidential elections. Recently, the US approved more sanctions against Russia and Moscow retaliated by saying it would expel several hundred American diplomats.

The report quoted Texas Republican Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, as claiming that the growing suspicion of Kaspersky predated the crisis in Ukraine and the more recent US-Russia tension.

(Eugene) Kasperskys a Russian, McCaul said. And his affiliation with the Russian government  theyre obviously one of our biggest foreign adversaries in cyber space, so theres always been that concern.

But I think now more has come out. I cant really get into it.

Eugene has offered to testify before US Congress and also offered to provide the source code of his company's products for review.
Even as many security researchers rallied around Briton Marcus Hutchins, who was arrested in the US last week on allegations of creating the banking trojan, Kronos, the head of security firm Immunity, Dave Aitel, has cast the cat among the pigeons by claiming that Hutchins was also behind the WannaCry ransomware.

The British security researcher, whose Twitter handle is MalwareTech, is credited with accidentally stopping the spread of WannaCry in May, by registering a domain that was present in the malware's code.

But Aitel said in a post that as per the "initial feeling" that he and others had had when Hutchins got arrested, "the 'killswitch' story was clearly bulls***".

"What I think happened is that MalwareTech had something to do with WannaCry, and he knew about the killswitch, and when WannaCry started getting huge and causing massive amounts of damage (say, to the NHS of his own country) he freaked out and 'found the killswitch'," Aitel wrote.

"This is why he was so upset to be outed by the media. Being afraid to take the limelight is not a typical 'White Hat' behaviour, to say the least."

Aitel is one of the few in the security community to have cast aspersions on Hutchins. Many others have rallied around and are raising funds for the Briton who is expected to be bailed on Monday.

One researcher, Kevin Beaumont, who is acquainted with Hutchins, posted details about the case, saying that Hutchins "is an incredibly valuable asset to the UK. He isnt just a voice  his work has an been invaluable to the UK for some time. He lives and breathes cyber security, almost 24/7, protecting people".

Beaumont said when Kronos was first mentioned in the chargesheet against Hutchins, "I had to Google 'Kronos' to establish what it even was  I havent seen it in my 17 years in cyber security".

He appealed to the MP for Hutchins' area of residence to support him, asked the Foreign Office to provide consular assistance and also urged the UK Government and its National Cyber Security Centre to take responsibility "and ensure every possible means of making sure the case is responsibly handled within the US".

A fund-raiser has been set up here.
Google Home is now in Australia, replete with television advertising letting us know you can have it control your lighting. Yet, my experience shows large Australian retailers lag behind online outlets when it comes to making this a reality.

Google Home officially came to Australia just a fortnight ago, in late July. Television advertisements let you know it will mimic animals, answer questions, and even control your lighting. In case you haven't seen the ad, here it is:

Playing a kookaburra sound is an out-of-the-box Google Home feature. Turning your lights off is not. At least, not without help, hence the "compatible lights required" in the ad. Logically enough, a Wi-Fi device cannot know what lights you have, or turn power on or off, without those lights themselves being connected to your home network. This is where lighting systems like Philips Hue come in.

The Philips Hue product range provides LED lighting with 16 million colours and controllable brightness. A lower-priced dimmable white globe is also available. Philips Hue globes come in Edison screw-in, bayonet B22 and GU10 down-light options, along with a novel and extendable lightstrip, and a portable lamp.

Yet, finding these in stores is a problem. My local JB Hi-Fi has starter kits which include a Philips Hue hub and three screw-in globes, but when I asked for bayonet globes I was told curtly, We only sell the standard ones. I had not previously known bayonet to be so obscure. In fact, Wikipedia says the bayonet mount is the standard light bulb fitting in the UK and in many countries that were members of the British Empire, including Australia. Certainly, my home has bayonet light fittings. I guess that JB Hi-Fi staff member has never changed a light globe.

I visited Rovert Lighting to be met with confusion as to just what home automation is. I sent Rovert a message commenting on this; they chose not to reply.

I thought I was onto success at Officeworks. The Officeworks website lists almost the full range  the Edison screw-in starter kit could be found, along with stand-alone Edison globes, the GU10 downlights, lightstrips and the lamp, along with accessories. Yet, despite a big catalogue, stock was sparse, even non-existent except for one store in my region. Alas, on visiting, my hunt for bayonet globes still met disappointment with only the white globe available.

Fortunately, the staff were knowledgeable on the topic and assured me home automation is an area Officeworks wishes to expand, and they would most certainly be filling the shelves with globes. I returned a week later to find not only that they had no coloured bayonet globes arrived, but they had also not replenished the stock from my previous visit when I bought out their GU10 (two) and Edison stand-alone globes (one). On this trip, I purchased all four 1m lightstrip extensions so Ill see if these are restocked next time. Meanwhile, all other stores in my region had no stock either last week or this one.

The helpful Officeworks staff member said I should try Bunnings for bayonet globes, but scouring every shelf in every aisle of the electrical section of my local Bunnings revealed no Philips Hue products, or any other Google Home/Apple HomeKit controllable lighting systems. Still, I enjoyed two sausage sandwiches so it wasnt a wasted visit. Bunnings' website gives no results found for Philips Hue". The entire Bunnings home automation catalogue is an Arlec remote-controlled power outlet and Brilliant TrackIt Bluetooth tracking device.

Harvey Norman, like JB Hi-Fi, only sells the screw-in starter kit with no other accessories or globes, while Domayne, like Bunnings, doesnt stock the product at all.

It looks like online is the way to go. Amazon.com is an option. Officeworks says it allows online orders, although the lack of stock in-store may indicate lengthy wait times. Kogan and Simply Leds also indicate they have a wide range of products including the infamous, and otherwise impossible to source, coloured bayonet globe.

Philips Hue wasnt the only item on my shopping list. I also wanted to buy the Ring video doorbell. Here, only Officeworks and JB Hi-Fi carried stock, albeit v1 of the standard doorbell. You wont find the Pro model, or the v2 model. Further, Officeworks did not carry the non-doorbell security camera and solar panel, while JB Hi-Fi does.

To their credit, Officeworks and JB Hi-Fi also carried a variety of other home automation style products  mostly security cameras and some Wi-Fi power points, but I was very keen to specifically narrow my search to devices that work with both Googles device control, and Apple HomeKit. In this regard, the options available for off-the-shelf purchase are just lacking, limiting and even disappointing.

Home automation is not new; many electrical companies have been providing sophisticated kit for some time. Yet, Google Homes arrival in Australia  ahead of Amazon, and certainly ahead of Apple  is somewhat akin to what Sonys PlayStation does for virtual reality; it makes it available to the masses in an easily acquired, easily established, and easily understood format.

Its somewhat sad and disappointing that large Australian retailers arent seizing the opportunity to help excited consumers and adopters part with their money, limiting them to playing music, asking mathematical questions, and asking what noises various animals make.
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By TeleSur |  

Hassan Rouhani calls for upholding the 2015 nuclear deal despite new U.S. sanctions.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who was inaugurated for a second term on Saturday, has accused the United States of trying to undermine Tehrans nuclear deal with world powers, and called for more negotiations amid new U.S. sanctions.

Rouhani won his re-election after promising to open Iran to the world and create more jobs. The deal he championed in his first term with the United States and five other major powers in 2015 led to the lifting of most sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on its defensive nuclear program.

The U.S.s repeated violations of its commitments and the new sanctions it imposed on Iran have left a negative impact on Irans public opinion, and can hamper implementation of the nuclear deal, Rouhani was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency in advance of the ceremony.

In late July, the U.S. Senate voted to impose new sanctions on Iran, targeting the Middle Eastern countrys ballistic missile program, as well as so-called human rights issues.

Iran has said the new U.S. sanctions break the terms of the nuclear deal and has vowed a proportional reaction.

At his inauguration, Rouhani said Iran would continue to abide by the terms of the deal as long as other signatories do the same. Today is the time for the mother of all negotiations, not the mother of all bombs, he said.

Among the guests for Rouhanis inauguration on Saturday were Federica Mogherini, the European foreign policy chief who has pledged to continue building ties with Iran despite mounting pressure from the United States to keep the country isolated.

All sides have a heavy responsibility to safeguard this agreement which was achieved by a lot of effort, Rouhani said when meeting Mogherini before the ceremony.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Trump was trying to destroy the nuclear accord at Irans expense, and Europe should be conscious of this, as quoted by Tasnim.

Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, also asked Europe to take a more independent policy towards Iran, local media reported.

Other top foreign officials present at Rouhanis swearing-in ceremony include French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, State Secretary at the German Foreign Ministry Michael Roth and British Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa Alistair Burt.

Via TeleSur



Related video added by Juan Cole:

EuroNews: Iran: Rouhani lashes out at US as he is sworn in for second term
One Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) launcher stands in Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province, in this July 29 photo. / Photo by Yonhap



By Bruce W. Bennett





The United States and its allies likely face no greater theater missile threat on earth than in Northeast Asia. As the threat has been developing over the last 30 years, the United States has responsibly deployed missile defenses in Korea to protect its forces already there, its forces that would flow to Korea in wartime, and the people living in South Korea.

During the first nuclear crisis with North Korea, in 1994, the U.S. first deployed Patriot missile defense systems, which were appropriate because most North Korean missiles at the time were Scud or shorter-range missiles that the Patriot interceptors could defeat.

Since then, North Korea has deployed NoDong and Musudan medium- and intermediate-range missiles that require a missile defense able to handle higher missile re-entry speeds like the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system. Some of these North Korean missiles may well carry nuclear weapons because they could also cover targets in Japan, Russia and China.

The United States has been acquiring about one THAAD battery per year. In 2013, it deployed one battery to Guam to protect major U.S. military facilities there against the North Korean missile threat. It was not until the end of 2016 that the United States had sufficient THAAD batteries six to easily deploy a second battery outside the United States: Training and troop rotations limit peacetime overseas deployments to roughly one-third of U.S. military forces. The United States selected South Korea for its second THAAD deployment because North Korea poses missile threats greater (in character and likelihood of use) than those the United States faces anywhere else in the world.

There were many reasons for the deployment of THAAD in Seongju, the location chosen for the THAAD battery in South Korea. One leading reason: In a major Korean conflict, tens of thousands of U.S. military personnel would deploy to Korea over time largely through the Pusan port area in southeastern Korea. They would be most vulnerable to a North Korean nuclear weapon attack while in the port area and while assembling to depart from Pusan. Not protecting exposed military personnel from the North Korean ballistic missile and nuclear weapon threat would be irresponsible, the United States concluded.

By placing THAAD in Seongju, the U.S. can also attempt to protect the large South Korean urban areas of Pusan, Kwangju, Pohang, and Daegu, as well as many other cities in the southern part of South Korea. During a U.S. military deployment to protect South Korea, a North Korean nuclear weapon detonating on Pusan might kill thousands of U.S. military personnel arriving in Pusan, but it could also kill a 100,000 or so South Koreans. With this THAAD placement, the United States is trying to prevent such an outcome.

THAAD's successful intercept of an intermediate-range ballistic missile in July demonstrated U.S. ability to potentially stop the North Korean theater ballistic missiles. This should reassure U.S. military forces in Korea, but also the 10 million or so South Koreans who reside in the region covered by THAAD. The initial limited THAAD deployment of only two launchers with 16 total interceptors would have forced choices among which cities to protect. The South Korean government's decision to allow the other four THAAD interceptor launchers in Korea to be employed will soon protect more South Korean civilians and U.S. forces.

Lest there be any doubts about the importance of THAAD, consider the fact that China has reportedly deployed an S-400 missile defense system, which is similar to THAAD, on the Shandong Peninsula, between Pyongyang and Beijing. It appears that China put it in place to defend against North Korean missiles. So it is unclear why China is waging economic warfare against South Korea for defending itself with the THAAD system, or why China is unwilling to perform far more serious economic warfare against North Korea for posing an offensive missile threat to both South Korea and China.

China often complains about THAAD's over-the-horizon radar, which can detect targets at long ranges and potentially collect information inside China, but China has reportedly deployed at least two similar radars in the area surrounding the Korean Peninsula. China should recognize that if it needs such long-range radars to defend against North Korean missiles, it is only fair for the United States to put in place similar capabilities to defend South Korea.





Bruce W. Bennett is a senior defense analyst at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation.
When is the independence day of Bolivia?

Bolivia, a landlocked country in South America, celebrates its Independence Day on August 6. The day commemorates the anniversary of the establishment

of the Bolivian Republic in 1825, after 16 years of bitter struggle.

How is the Independence Day of Bolivia celebrated?

The Independence Day, also known as Dia de la Patria, is a national holiday in Bolivia.Celebrations are held throughout the country including the administrative capital, La Paz and usually continue for two days. Patriotic marches, military parades, gun salutes, street dances and carnivals, and cultural events reflecting the rich heritage of the country are some common independence celebrations in Bolivia.

What is the historic significance of Independence Day in Bolivia?

The Spanish occupation of Bolivia, previously known as Upper Peru or Charcas, began in 1525, and at the time Bolivia was governed by the viceroy of Lima. During this period Bolivian silver became the mainstay of Spanish wealth. Spanish influence, however, began to decline during the Napoleonic wars, and the nationalist sentiments began growing due to a number of events in Spanish America, but mainly because of the efforts Simon Bolivar (Simon Bolivar was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led numerous wars against Spanish colonial rule in the region then known as Spanish America). Simon Bolivars companions  Jose de San Martin and Antonio Jose de Sucre  also led many such campaigns.

In theory, Bolivia proclaimed its freedom in 1809, but it took another 16 years of war before Bolivia became a republic. Finally, on August 6, 1825, the efforts of Simon Bolivar were rewarded with the establishment of the Republic of Bolivia. The country came to be called as Bolivia after this legendary hero.

What does the flag of Bolivia represent?

The national flag of Bolivia was adopted on October 31, 1851. It consists of three horizontal stripes of equal size. The top band is red, the middle is yellow, and the bottom band is green.

The green color symbolizes the lush fertility of the land, yellow epitomizes the natural resources of the country, and red represents the courage of the Bolivian soldiers who fought for the independence and for the preservation of the country.

Who wrote the national anthem of Bolivia?

The national anthem of Bolivia, Bolivianos, el Hado Propicio, which means Bolivians, a most Favorable Destiny, was adopted in 1851. The lyrics were written by Jose Ignacio de Sanjines, and the music for the national anthem was composed by Leopoldo Benedetto Vincenti.
The Brewers announced that theyve released right-handed reliever Tom Wilhelmsen, who signed a minor league contract with the team on June 20.

This was the second stint with the Brewers for the 33-year-old Wilhelmsen, whom they selected in the seventh round of the 2002 draft. Wilmhelmsen has never cracked the majors with the Brewers, though, and struggled mightily with their Triple-A affiliate in Colorado Springs this year. Across 13 innings, Wilhelmsen recorded a 13.15 ERA with 7.62 K/9 and 4.85 BB/9.

Formerly the Mariners closer, Wilhelmsen signed a minors deal with the Diamondbacks over the winter after dividing 2016 between Seattle and Texas. Wilhelmsen made Arizonas season-opening roster, but he underwhelmed over the first few months of the campaign, leading the team to designate him for assignment in early June. While Wilhemsen showed off a 95 mph fastball and posted a 49.4 percent ground-ball rate in 26 1/3 innings with the D-backs, he combined a 4.44 ERA with unappealing strikeout and walk rates (5.81 K/9, 4.1 BB/9).
Thursday 11 May 2017: The election of Moon Jae-In as the new President of South Korea has potentially significant ramifications for the rate of decline in global seaborne thermal coal market volumes.

South Korea is Asia's fourth-largest economy and the fourth largest importer of coal globally, accounting for over 10% of world thermal coal import demand.

South Korea is the second largest export destination for Australian thermal coal. As the only remaining growth market of significant size, it has long been identified by the coal industry as a source of its on-going viability. This election has the potential to snuff out that last beacon of growth, said Tim Buckley, Director of Energy Finance Studies at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).

Moon Jae-In election pledges

Idling old coal-fired plants during April and May when fine dust levels tend to peak, and permanently close 10 aged coal-fired plants earlier than scheduled, while reassessing plans to construct nine new plants.

Elevate the issue of ultra-fine dust with a view to halving dust levels.

Increase the distribution of environmentally-friendly cars at the expense of old diesel vehicles.

Scrap plans to build new nuclear plants, including No. 5 and No. 6 Shin-Kori reactors. Close the Wolsong No. 1 nuclear plant with immediate effect.

Increase the use of renewable energy to 20% by 2030.

In its March 2017 Resources and Energy Quarterly, the Australian Office of the Chief Economist (OCE) stated: by 2022, South Koreas thermal coal imports are projected to reach 111 million tonnes, an annual average increase of 2.2% from 2016. Much like growth in imports in 2017, this average annual increase is likely to be underpinned by increased installed coal-fired power generation capacity and the South Korean Governments push for a diversified electricity generation mix, ensuring security of energy supply.

China and India collectively purchase over 40% of global seaborne coal and IEEFA contests that permanent shifts in both those markets will see thermal imports reduced towards zero. If carried out, Moon Jae-Ins pledges will further dampen demand, with a negative implication for equilibrium pricing.

This is particularly the case since they build on the introduction of a national Emissions Trading Scheme in 2015 and an increase in the coal tax by 25% to US$25-30/t, effective April 2017.

IEEFA forecasts that should President Moon Jae-In follow through with his election promises, this will halve the long-term growth rate for South Koreas thermal coal imports.

It would also undermines the viability of NSW greenfield thermal coal developments including Korean-owned mine proposals in Bylong and at Wallarah II, and calls into question the strategic merit of other capacity expansions like Whitehavens Vickery and Shenhuas much delayed Watermark mine developments, as well as the controversial and heavily subsidised Adani Carmichael proposal in Queensland.

The cumulative effect of a change of energy policy in South Korea and other key coal import markets will be felt in other export markets such as Indonesia.

Notwithstanding the recently improved traded price of thermal coal, Indonesias major coal miners remain in financial distress and as such are extremely exposed to any sustained decrease in Asian import demand, said Buckley.

Although Indonesias primary markets are China and India, any reduction in demand from the key North Asian markets will inevitably have flow-on implications across all markets in terms of pricing.

South Korea currently maintains more than 50 coal-fired power plants, producing around 40% of the countrys electricity, while nuclear provides 30%, LNG 25%, oil 3% and renewable sources to-date just 2%. Under the current power supply plan, 11 nuclear reactors were to be developed by 2029 as well as 20 proposed coal-fired power plants by 2022.

This policy shift in South Korea is a critical blow for exporters banking on renewed growth in demand for thermal coal, said Buckley. But it is entirely consistent with the technology driven energy market transformation taking place across the globe, and in Asia in particular.

IEEFA forecasts Japanese thermal electricity generation to decline 2-3% pa this coming decade, Chinas coal consumption peaked back in 2013 and Taiwans relatively new President Tsai Ing-wen has committed to a major realignment towards renewable energy and energy efficiency, including a 20% renewables by 2025 target.

Perhaps most strikingly, India has repeatedly asserted its commitment to a target of zero thermal coal imports within the next 2-3 years. The latest Rs2.62/kWh solar tariff (-40% in just 16 months) makes this an increasingly cost effective and achievable target. With other South East Asian countries Vietnam increasingly looking to realign to cheaper, domestic renewable energy opportunities, it should come as no surprise that South Korea is embracing the trend.

Tim Buckley is the Director of Energy Finance Studies, Australasia for IEEFA. He has 25 years of financial markets experience, including 17 years with Citigroup culminating in his role as Managing Director, Head of Australasian Equity Research.

ABOUT IEEFA

IEEFA conducts research and analyses on financial and economic issues related to energy and the environment. The Institutes mission is to accelerate the transition to a diverse, sustainable and profitable energy economy and to reduce dependence on coal and other non-renewable energy resources.
ABOARD the MS AQUARIUS (AFP) - A ship carrying far-right campaigners who aim to turn migrant boats back to Africa, was following an NGO rescue vessel on Saturday with an AFP reporter on board in the waters off Libya.

The activists' "Defend Europe" mission has been financed by a crowd-funding initiative organised by young anti-immigration campaigners from France, Italy and Germany.

Their 40-metre (130-foot) ship named "C-Star", hired by "Generation Identity", arrived on Saturday in an area where tens of thousands of migrants have been rescued from unseaworthy trafficker boats over recent months and years.

The boat spent 30-45 minutes tracking the Aquarius at a distance of a few hundred metres, before continuing to follow it from further back.

The Aquarius, a converted coastguard patrol boat, is operated by French aid group SOS Mediterranee and the international humanitarian organisation Doctors without Borders (MSF).

Its crew would not comment on whether they regarded the C-Star's proximity as intimidatory. Maritime charts indicated the NGO boat's speed had doubled in the time the far-right vessel was close to it.

The two boats were about 20 nautical miles off Libya in an area east of the capital Tripoli.

On its website, the Defend Europe alliance accuses NGOs of "smuggling hundred of thousands of illegal migrants to Europe, endangering the security and future of our continent" and vows to "do something against it."

French activist Clement Galant posted a video from the boat on Twitter on August 1 in which he says the C-Star will accompany any migrant boat it comes across back to the African coast.

Migrant 'taxi services'

The Defend Europe initiative has been denounced by humanitarian organisations as a potentially highly dangerous publicity stunt.

Forcing a migrant boat that had reached international waters back to Libya, where most depart from, would be illegal under international law.

NGO-chartered boats have rescued over a third of the nearly 100,000 people who have been picked up from often distressed trafficker vessels off Libya this year and taken to Italy.

But the involvement of privately-funded boats in an operation mainly conducted by Italian navy and coastguard vessels has become subject to increasing scrutiny.

Critics say the NGOs are making it too easy for the traffickers to guarantee would-be migrants safe passage to Europe, creating a "pull" factor at best and operating a taxi service at worst.

Italian authorities last week impounded one NGO boat, the Iuventa, which is operated by German association Jugend Rettet, and accused its crew of being in direct contact with traffickers to organise pick-ups of boatloads of migrants from locations very close to the Libyan coast.

The NGO is challenging the seizure of its boat, saying it wants its crew to get back to saving lives as soon as possible.

Other organisations say they are happy to comply with tighter operational rules set by the Italian authorities but insist they will not give up their missions, saying thousands more people would have drowned but for their presence.

Some 600,000 mainly African migrants have reached Italy from Libya since the start of 2014, leaving the country's asylum facilities stretched and politicians under pressure to end the influx.
London (AFP) - Olympic champion Almaz Ayana produced an extraordinary display despite barely racing this season winning the world 10,000 metres title by almost a minute on Saturday.

The 25-year-old, who smashed the world record when winning in Rio last year, finished over 46 seconds clear of her legendary compatriot Tirunesh Dibaba, the three-time Olympic gold medallist and five-time world champion who took silver after being unable to go with the scorching pace of the winner.

Kenya's Agnes Tirop took the bronze.

There was no indication early on that there would be such an outcome.

Unlike the men's race on Friday the pace was snail-like in the early laps -- Kenya's Alice Aprot not repeating her exploits of last year's Olympic final when her searing pace set up Ayana for the world record.

Ayana, who has been out of action with a succession of injuries, moved into second with 20 laps remaining as Uzbek runner Sitora Khamdova set the pace.

With 16 laps left, Khamdova beat the retreat and Ayana took up the pace with Kenyan-born Turkish athlete Yasemin Can in second and then three Kenyans with Dibaba trailing.

Ayana split the whole field as she sped clear with 14 laps to the tape, Can in no man's land between the leader and five other runners.

Ayana increased her lead at will opening up a gap of around 60 metres on Can with 12 laps to go -- Can was subsequently swallowed up by a group of four including Aprot and Dibaba.

By the eight laps to go mark she was stretching her lead even further to over 100m with the quintet behind seemingly now resigned to battling it out for the minor medals.

The only trouble she encountered was running into the back of an athlete she was lapping but even then she made light of it and nimbly side-stepped out of trouble.

The group behind was down to four as Can was dropped having paid for her earlier efforts and then reduced to three as Irene Cheptai was cut loose.

Ayana simply carried on extending her lead to almost a lap and stormed home to thunderous applause and once Dibaba had finally finished went on a lap of honour with her.
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 []
Nairobi (AFP) - Below are key dates since post-election violence in Kenya in 2007-2008 left more than 1,100 dead, the worst violence in the east African country since independence in 1963:

2007-2008: post election violence

On December 27, 2007, outgoing president Mwai Kibaki is proclaimed winner again but his challenger Raila Odinga says the vote was rigged.

Clashes in the following weeks kill more than 1,100 people and force 600,000 from their homes, in a country that had previously been renowned for its stability.

The epicentre of the violence is the Rift Valley, pitting members of the Kalenjin and Luo ethnic communities, who mainly back Odinga, against their Kikuyu neighbours, to which Kibaki belongs.

On February 28, 2008 an internationally-brokered power-sharing agreement is signed under which Kibaki keeps his job and Odinga becomes prime minister.

In March 2010 the International Criminal Court (ICC) authorises the opening of a probe for crimes against humanity over the 2007-2008 violence.

In 2012 its judges confirm accusations against four Kenyans, including Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto.

2013: Uhuru Kenyatta in power

On March 4, 2013, Kenyatta, the son of Kenya's first post-colonial leader Jomo Kenyatta, narrowly wins the first round of the presidential vote with Ruto as his running-mate.

On April 9, Kenyatta is sworn in in the presence of several African heads of state, but in the absence of western leaders. Ruto becomes vice president.

2014: First sitting president before the ICC

On October 8, Kenyatta becomes the first sitting head of state to appear before the ICC. But on December 5, the Court drops its case against him, while denouncing intimidation of witnesses.

The ICC's proceedings against Ruto, also for crimes against humanity for the 2007-2008 violence, are dropped in April 2016 due to lack of evidence.

2015: Massacre at Garissa

Kenya has been targeted by a spate of attacks since its military intervened in neighbouring Somalia in October 2011 to fight Al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab militants.

On September 21, 2013, gunmen storm Nairobi's Westgate mall killing at least 67 people.

And on April 2, 2015 commandos attack the university at Garissa in eastern Kenya. They separate out Muslims and non-Muslims, killing the latter. 148 are killed in the attack, including 142 students. Shabaab claims responsibility.

2017: Violence mounts

On July 22, 2017, a parliamentarian is arrested for inciting violence at a meeting attended by Odinga. He had already been charged in March for encouraging the invasion of land.

The region of Laikipia, which he represents, has sees periodic invasions of farms by herders seeking pasture for their livestock, against a background of drought.

On July 30, an attack takes place at the country home of deputy president Ruto, who is away. An attacker and a police officer die during a 20-hour siege. A day later a top official overseeing Kenya's electronic voting system, Chris Msando, is found dead, his body showing signs of torture.

Many observers express concerns over violence in the districts of Laikipia and Baringo, in the Rift Valley, which forces inhabitants to flee their homes.
Warri (Nigeria) (AFP) - Months have passed since the Niger Delta Avengers have launched an attack on Nigeria's oil pipelines, yet leaders in the region are warning trouble is brewing in the southern swamplands.

A charm offensive led by Nigeria's acting president Yemi Osinbajo has kept the uprising at bay, with renewed amnesty payments buying calm in the creeks, helping boost production to around 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) from a low of 1.4 million bpd in August last year.

But now those in the Niger delta say the fragile peace is under strain as the Nigerian government takes time to carry out reforms ranging from the construction of a maritime university to cleaning up oil spills.

"The boys are impatient and they have been disturbing me with a series of telephone calls and messages, with some of them even giving notices to disown us," Niger delta leader Edwin Clark, who has been negotiating with the Nigerian government, told AFP.

As frustration has grown, Niger delta leaders have threatened to quit the talks, a new militant group announced it will attack pipelines and oil thieves are siphoning off crude in sabotage that is dragging down production, albeit not as dramatically as bombings.

"Government announced in March there will be $10 billion of investment in the Niger Delta, but of course money is tight and it will be a while before people notice any investment, so there is bound to be pressure," said Gail Anderson, lead Nigeria analyst at energy consulting firm Wood Mackenzie.

"As long as money keeps flowing then the militants will stay quiet. If the money stops flowing then things could flare up again."

The pressure comes at a time Nigeria desperately needs oil revenue to keep its battered economy running.

Central bank governor Godwin Emefiele described Nigeria's recovery from its worst recession in over two decades as "fragile", warning the country "could relapse in a more protracted recession" if the right policies aren't put in place.

Minimising output disruptions in the Niger delta is key to growth in Nigeria, which relies on oil revenues for infrastructure investments to diversify the economy, Udoma said, explaining that "you have to use what you have to get what you want."

New threats

The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), a group of regional stakeholders, had issued a November 1 ultimatum, saying if its demands aren't met it will pull out of peace talks with government.

But the ultimatum was withdrawn after the group met with government representatives led by Osinbajo on Thursday.

"No more ultimatum. We agreed on many things," Clark told reporters.

"We are satisfied. We have agreed to work together..." he said.

The presidency said in a statement that long-standing grievances were being addressed, including the opening of the maritime university by next year and approval of two modular refineries for each of the states in the region.

The annual budget for ex-rebels was doubled while funds have also been approved for the clean-up of devastated Ogoniland.

Yet others are calling for an immediate end to the negotiations and a return to violence.

On Sunday, a new militant group called the Niger Delta Revolutionary Crusaders announced they would begin fresh attacks on September 31, saying that Clark and PANDEF are failing the region.

'Our grievance with government is that after the consolatory statement of the government by Professor Osinbajo, nothing is on ground to show sincerity by government," the Crusaders spokesman said in a statement

There have been a rising number of attacks on soldiers patrolling the creeks, a violent reminder of simmering tension in the oil rich but poverty-stricken south.

From April to July, five marine policemen and seven soldiers spread across the Niger delta have been killed during attacks, while at least 15 have been injured.

Stolen crude

The militants may have stopped their blockbuster bombings but analysts point to a recent increase in crude theft as a concerning development.

"They don't have the support of communities anymore, so you can't carry out the militant attacks, you can't bomb pipelines. So the only option is to steal and we're seeing a resurgence of that," said Ecobank oil analyst Dolapo Oni.

"We're just going to see more of the oil thieves trying to break into the pipelines."

Last week, Shell shut its Trans Niger pipeline because of a "leak" -- the preferred euphemism in Nigeria for theft.

But for the cash-strapped Nigerian government, this smaller kind of sabotage is the lessor of two evils, said Oni.

"We're relatively ok," he said, "there is still no threat of any major disruptions."
The President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe believes the State is essentially washing its hand off ensuring discipline and safety on roads with its controversial nationwide towing programme.

Mr. Cudjoe was speaking on The Big Issue, where he also described the 20-year duration of the programme as silly.

The issue really has always had to do with the arrangement. I think 20 years is too much. This is a short term issue. The fact that we are accepting as a State that we are abdicating our role in ensuring safety on our roads and deciding that we will rather outsource to a company they want to outsource this because the state system has collapsed in terms of maintaining law and order on our roads, Mr. Cudjoe said.

His advice to government is that it takes the whole deal back again adding that I am not sure that a 20 year deal like this makes sense.

If we are talking maybe three of five years because you believe that you will be working towards making sure that the rules will be obeyed on our roads, maybe yes, but 20 years is just too much The state is essentially suggesting to us through Parliament that we will never get anything right.

The Ministry of Transport has come out to say it has not yet taken any decision on the implementation of the programme.

More companies should go through tender process

As part of possible changes to the deal, Mr. Cudjoe suggested that the companies involved must be more than one and they must go through proper tendering processes.

The sole company contracted by the National Road Safety Commission's (NRSC) for the programme is Road Safety Management Services Limited.

The commission explained that other towing companies were assessed for possible involvement in the programme but lacked the requisite capacity.

Road Safety Management Services, on the other hand, is reported to have already acquired some 118 trucks ahead of the implementation of the programme.

Thus settling on Road Safety Management Limited was the convenient option for the NRSC, though Road Safety Management Limited is expected to as a regulator of the smaller towing companies which will also be involved in the programme.

The towing programme is to ensure that all vehicles that breakdown on highways are cleared off the roads. Drivers are required to pay a road safety levy ranging between GHc 10 and GHc 200.

Commercial vehicles and taxis will pay GHc40, mini buses will pay GHc80, while heavy duty trucks will pay between GHc80 and GHc200 annually, depending on their tonnage. Non-commercial vehicles are expected to pay GHc20.



By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana
It may be possible to stop the progression of Parkinsons disease with a drug normally used in type 2 diabetes, a clinical trial suggests.

Current drugs help manage the symptoms, but do not prevent brain cells dying.

The trial on 62 patients, published in the Lancet, hints the medicine halted the progression of the disease.

The University College London (UCL) team is excited, but it urges caution as any long-term benefit is uncertain and the drug needs more testing.

Theres absolutely no doubt the most important unmet need in Parkinsons is a drug to slow down disease progression, its unarguable, Prof Tom Foltynie, one of the researchers, told the BBC.

In Parkinsons, the brain is progressively damaged and the cells that produce the hormone dopamine are lost.

It leads to a tremor, difficulty moving and eventually memory problems.

Therapies help manage symptoms by boosting dopamine levels, but the death of the brain continues and the disease gets worse.

No drug stops that happening. First

In the trial, half of patients were given the diabetes drug exenatide and the rest were given a placebo (dummy treatment). All the patients stayed on their usual medication.

As expected, those on just their usual medication declined over 48 weeks of treatment. But those given exenatide were stable.

And three months after the experimental treatment stopped, those who had been taking exenatide were still better off.

Prof Foltynie told the BBC News website: This is the first clinical trial in actual patients with Parkinsons where there has been anything like this size of effect.

It gives us confidence exenatide is not just masking symptoms, its doing something to the underlying disease.

We have to be excited and encouraged, but also cautious as we need to replicate these findings.

Early days

They also need to trial the drug for much longer periods of time.

An effective drug would need to hold back the disease for years in order to make a significant difference to patients.

Parkinsons progresses slowly and the difference in this 60-week trial was definitely there, but was trivial in terms of the impact on day-to-day life, say the researchers.

The drug helps control blood sugar levels in diabetes by acting on a hormone sensor called GLP-1.

Those sensors are found in brain cells too. It is thought the drug makes those cells work more efficiently or helps them to survive.

It is why the drug is being tested in other neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimers.

David Dexter, the deputy director of research at Parkinsons UK, said: The findings offer hope that drugs like exenatide can slow the course of Parkinsons  something no current treatment can do.

Because Parkinsons can progress quite gradually, this study was probably too small and short to tell us whether exenatide can halt the progression of the condition, but its certainly encouraging and warrants further investigation.

Dr Brian Fiske, from the The Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinsons Research, said: The results from the exenatide studies justify continued testing, but clinicians and patients are urged not to add exenatide to their regimens until more is known about their safety and impact on Parkinsons.


A British model was drugged and kidnapped in Milan to be sold in an online auction, say Italian police.

The woman, 20, had arrived in the city to take part in a photo shoot arranged through her agent, but was abducted and held captive for six days.

Polish national Lukasz Herba, 30, who lives in the UK, has been arrested on kidnapping charges, police said.

The Foreign Office said it was providing consular support to a British woman.

The model, who has not been named, arrived in Milan on 10 July.

She arrived at an apartment the following day for the shoot, where she was attacked by two men, said police.

Police said the woman was drugged, handcuffed and loaded into a bag and put into the boot of car which was driven to an isolated house in Borgial, northwest of Turin.

Italian prosecutor Paolo Storari said: The victim was doped with ketamine  then she was locked in a bag and carried for hours in a car.

Think what could would have happened if she suffered from asthma.

The woman was kept handcuffed to a wooden chest of drawers in the bedroom for six days until she was released and taken to the British consulate in Milan, according to police.

Investigators said they discovered the kidnapper had organised several online auctions for the sale of abducted girls, which included a description and an opening price.

Police said it was unclear whether he had really abducted the victims or invented them for the auction.

The kidnapper used an encrypted account to ask the models agent for 230,000 ($300,000) to stop her from being sold in auction.

He claimed he was working on behalf of the Black Death Group, an organisation which operates in the deep web for illegal traffics, police said.

The victim told police the kidnapper said he would free her because the group had not realised she had a small child and they did not deal with mothers, prosecutors added.

Investigations into the case are being carried out by authorities in Italy, Poland and the UK.

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said an address in Sampson Close, Oldbury, had been raided on 18 July in connection with the inquiry.

It is understood that the raid was led by Derbyshire Police, assisted by West Midlands officers.

The kidnapper was captured by police as he was accompanying the model to the British Consulate in Milan, according to the Daily Telegraph.


The police administration has started the removal of barriers at entry points into the capital city, Accra.

The first checkpoint removed according to the new operational directive is the Ofankor barrier near Achimota in Accra.

An element of this strategy will be the replacement of snap checks with motorized barriers of entry into the capital city.

Citi News has gathered that police will now use randomized snap checks within the city to prevent criminals knowing which checkpoints to avoid.

At the points of entry, the police will station vehicles to monitor activities at these locations and conduct intelligence checks as and when necessary.

This, the Police believe, would achieve a dual purpose of increased security and reduce the inconvenience experienced by the public at these locations.



By: Franklin Badu Jnr/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Tripoli (AFP) - Libya's coastguard intercepted 137 migrants including five women and three children on Sunday as they attempted to reach Europe, a migration official told AFP.

Amine al-Boussefi, head of a government agency in Tripoli tackling clandestine migration, said "137 migrants were successfully rescued by the coastguard... then handed over to us".

The migrants, from several African countries, were aboard an inflatable boat intercepted Sunday morning around 40 kilometres (23 miles) north of Sayyad, a seaside village west of Tripoli, navy spokesman General Ayoub Qassem said.

The migrants were taken to a navy base in the capital where the Libyan authorities gave them food, water and medical treatment, an AFP photographer said.

They were then transferred by bus to the eastern Tripoli suburb of Tajoura and handed over to the anti-migration agency.

The AFP photographer saw dozens of migrants gathered in a courtyard there, sitting on the ground under the blazing sun as they waited to be put in detention centres.

Six years since a revolution that toppled dictator Moamer Kadhafi, Libya has become a key departure point for migrants risking their lives to cross the Mediterranean to Europe.

Hailing mainly from sub-Saharan countries, most board boats operated by people traffickers in the country's west, heading for the Italian island of Lampedusa 300 kilometres (190 miles) away.

More than 111,000 migrants have reached Europe by sea so far this year, the vast majority of them arriving in Italy, according to the latest figures from the International Organization for Migration.

Over 2,300 have died attempting the crossing.
Navrongo, (U/E), Aug. 6, GNA - The Government has been advised to desist from granting overly generous tax incentives and concessions to multinational companies operating in the country, as the practice is injurious to the economy.

A research by Tax Justice Network Africa indicates that government loses 2.3 million dollars annually in tax concessions and 1.2 billion dollars annually in tax incentives.

Mr Sumaila Abdul-Rahman, Country Director, ActionAid Ghana gave the advice during a panel discussion on the topic: 'Extractives and Domestic Resource Mobilisation.'

The panel discussion was on the occasion of the University for Development Studies/Community Water and Sanitation Agency (UDS/CWSA) First Water and Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) Conference held at the Navrongo campus of the UDS in the Upper East Region.

The three-day conference organised on the theme: 'WASH: The Successes, Challenges and the Way Forward with Academia,' brought together players from the academia, civil society, governmental agencies, the private sector and the media among others to share ideas on how to improve the WASH sector.

The conference was mainly sponsored by WaterAid Ghana, SNV Netherlands Development Organisation, Catholic Relieve Services and World Vision International.

Mr Abdul-Rahman stated that the extractive industries was one of government's main sources of revenue but expressed worry that government's over generous way of granting tax incentives to multilateral companies was robbing the country of the needed revenue for delivering key public services such as WASH.

On the huge deposits of bauxite around the Atiwa Forest and the Government's 15 billion dollars partnership deal with China, the Country Director of ActionAid Ghana cautioned the Executive to watch out on the tax concessions and incentives in order to rake in the required tax revenue.

'Government needs to be guided by the Meridian Ports experience where the project value was 1.5 billion and the tax incentive was 982 million dollars which was further negotiated by Parliament to 932 million dollars saving the country 50 million dollars as in tax,' he said.

Mr Abdul-Rahman called on the government to publicly review all tax incentives including assessing tax expenditure, ensuring that incentives were well targeted and commensurate with the benefits expected to citizens.

'Government should also ensure that all phases of new incentives require Parliamentary approval, and that any new incentive offered is grounded in legislation, which makes it available to all qualifying investors, foreign or domestic,' he added.

Mr Andrew A. Tagoe, Deputy General Secretary of the General Agriculture Workers Union of the Trades Union Congress, wanted government to grant tax incentives only to local companies instead of multinational companies.

Dr Yao Graham, Third World Network Ghana, called on the government to pick its acts together on domestic resource mobilisation and reduce over dependence on foreign aid. GNA

By Prosper K. Kuorsoh, GNA
Warri (Nigeria) (AFP) - Twelve worshippers were shot dead at a church in southeast Nigeria on Sunday, with authorities suggesting the bloodshed was due to a local feud.

At around 6:00 am (0500 GMT) at least one gunman opened fire at St. Philip's church in Ozubulu, near the city of Onitsha, unleashing terror on the congregation.

Chukwuma Emeka said he had just stepped out of the church to stretch his legs "when I heard gunshots and screaming and people running inside."

"When the chaos subsided I went inside, I saw my fellow church members dead in a pool of their own blood and many others were screaming in pain."

Attacks on churches are rare in southern Nigeria, where there is a predominantly Christian population.

The country's mainly-Muslim north has been gripped by a violent campaign by Boko Haram jihadists, who specialise in targeting religious centres.

There were varying accounts of what happened in Ozubulu. Witnesses said five gunmen in masks stormed the church, but police said the killing was the work of a lone shooter.

"So far, 12 persons have been confirmed dead and deposited in the mortuary here," a worker at Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital told AFP.

Several worshippers with gunshot wounds were also receiving treatment at the hospital, the source said. Witnesses said they feared that up to 20 people may have died.

'Feud'

Map of Nigeria locating an armed attack on a church in Ozubulu

Garba Umar, Anambra State police Commissioner, said the attacker was a gunman who "went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding" worshippers.

He said the violence was the result of a failed murder attempt, tied to a feud within the local community.

"The information at the disposal of the police is that the gunman had been hired to kill a particular family person believed to be among the worshippers," he said.

Local rights activist Emeka Umeagbalasi said his information about the motive largely concurred with that of the police version.

The gunmen had gone to kill the son of a local chief but failed to find him at his home, Umeagbalasi said.

The attackers then went to the church to hunt for him, but could not find the intended target and became angry, he said.

They opened "fire on parishioners and shot indiscriminately," he said, adding that the father of the intended target was shot and wounded.

Speaker of Nigeria's House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara called the attack "barbaric... the height of wickedness."

He extended his condolences to families of the victims, assuring them that the government would do everything within its power to track down those responsible.

Hundreds of churches and mosques in Nigeria's north have been attacked since 2009 when Boko Haram began a violent campaign to impose strict Islamic law.

The rebellion has killed at least 20,000 people and forced some 2.6 million others to flee their homes, sparking a dire humanitarian crisis in the northeast.
ABOARD the MS AQUARIUS (AFP) - Fishermen at a Tunisian port on Sunday prevented a ship carrying far-right anti-immigration activists from docking, dealing a fresh blow to a controversial mission aimed at disrupting the flow of migrant boats from north Africa to Europe.

Faced with the prospect of being blocked by the fishermen in Zarzis, the ship, the C-Star, moved up the Tunisian coast, and was expected by opponents tracking its path to try to land at either Sfax or Gabes on Monday.

Chartered by extremist group "Generation Identity", the C-Star passed through waters off Libya on Saturday.

It briefly tailed the Aquarius, operated by French group SOS Mediterranee, one of several NGO boats conducting search and rescue operations in an area notorious for deadly migrant boat sinkings.

Having left Cyprus on August 1, the 40-metre (130-foot) C-Star needs to land in Tunisia for supplies but appeared to have been caught off guard by the strength of opposition among local fishermen, as well as rights groups.

"If they come here we'll close the refuelling channel," Chamseddine Bourassine, the head of the local fishermen's organisation, told AFP.

"It is the least we can do given what is happening out in the Mediterranean," he added.

"Muslims and Africans are dying."

An official at the port, who asked to remain anonymous, said: "What? Us let in racists here? Never!"

10,000 dead

Migrants are still risking their lives attempting the perilous Mediterranean crossing from north Africa to Europe

The C-Star headed straight from Cyprus to Libyan waters after being discouraged from attempting to dock en route in Greece and Sicily, with authorities concerned about the prospect of protests.

The self-styled "Defend Europe" mission has not got off to the best of starts.

Their boat was held up for a week in the Suez Canal by Egyptian authorities looking for weapons.

Then, after it landed in the Cypriot port of Famagusta last month, several of its crew jumped ship and asked for asylum in Europe -- exactly the kind of thing the mission was set up to prevent.

The C-Star crew say their main goal is to expose collaboration between NGO rescue ships and the traffickers who launch boats from Libya packed with migrants.

Humanitarian groups say Generation Identity is engaged in a publicity stunt and that any attempt to turn migrant boats back to Libya would be potentially very dangerous and illegal under international law.

Since the start of 2014, some 600,000 people from Africa, the Middle East and South Asia have been rescued from traffickers' boats and taken to Italy.

Over 10,000 have died en route and serial sinkings have resulted in privately funded or charity-run boats joining a multinational search and rescue operation coordinated by Italy's coastguard.

NGO boats have rescued around one third of the nearly 100,000 people picked up this year, but their relations with Italy have become strained as pressure to stem the flow of migrants has mounted.

Squalid camps

Critics say the NGOs make it too easy for the traffickers to guarantee would-be migrants safe passage to Europe, allegedly fuelling the lucrative trade.

Italian authorities last week impounded one NGO boat, the Iuventa, which is operated by German association Jugend Rettet.

They accused its crew of being in direct contact with traffickers to organise pick-ups of boatloads of migrants from locations very close to the Libyan coast.

On Sunday, the Aquarius was on hand to help as an Italian coastguard patrol boat rescued around 100 people from a distressed dinghy.

The number of such rescues in international waters has fallen sharply over the last five weeks to under half the level of the same period last year.

Italian officials are cautiously optimistic that this reflects a breakthrough in their efforts to strengthen the Libyan coastguard's capacity to combat traffickers.

The Libyan navy told AFP that the coastguard, which has received training and new equipment from Rome, had intercepted six trafficker boats carrying a total of 1,015 people since Thursday.

Rights organisations have voiced concern over the focus on sending boats back to Libya, where migrants who fail to get to Europe often end up in detention in squalid camps where they risk torture, sexual violence and forced labour.

Italian officials defend the strategy as the only way to end a humanitarian crisis that is threatening to overwhelm the country's asylum system.

The crisis has also caused strains in Rome's relations with its EU neighbours, who have blocked migrants landing in Italy from travelling further north.
Maputo (AFP) - Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi and the nation's opposition chief Afonso Dhlakama met Sunday for the first since 2015, a step toward peace after years of instability.

The men spoke in the remote Gorongosa mountains, where Dhlakama retreated in October 2015 with 800 former fighters demanding a greater share of power.

"The two leaders discussed and agreed on the next steps in the peace process, which they hope to be completed by the end of the year," the presidency said in a statement.

They last got together in 2015, before Dhlakama fled into the mountains where he is awaiting the elections set for 2019.

Dhlakama's Renamo is an armed insurgent group that led a 16-year rebellion and an opposition political party that took up arms again in 2013.

Clashes between the ruling Frelimo party government and Renamo last year revived the spectre of Mozambique's civil war that ended more than 20 years ago.

Renamo members, who hold seats in parliament, have called for greater decentralisation of the state and better integration of their people into the police and military.

Dhlakama declared a unilateral ceasefire in 2016, which he prolonged indefinitely in May.

Mozambique is still recovering from its bloody 1976-1992 civil war when one million people died during years of sporadic fighting between Frelimo and Renamo.

The more recent fighting has often focused on Mozambique's main roads, with Renamo attacking government convoys and civilian vehicles, and soldiers ruthlessly targeting suspected Renamo rebels in nearby villagers.

The death toll is unknown but scores of people are reported to have been killed in 2016, with both the Frelimo and Renamo parties also suffering assassinations of local politicians.
06.08.2017 LISTEN

Tarkwa (W/R), Aug. 6, GNA - Baba Musah, a 21-year-old notorious armed robber based at Awona Nkwana in the Western Region, has been sentenced to 20 years imprisonment by the Tarkwa Circuit Court.

The convict was recently jailed by the same court for committing a similar offense.

He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit crime and robbery.

Police Chief Inspector Faustina Celestina Anaman told the court that the complainant, one Mr Ren Jianle, a foreman of Chna Sing Zhan dynamite company in Awona Nwanta, near Bogoso, lived in the same area with the convict, and his accomplices, Anthony Boafo, 15, and Budo a suspect on the run.

According to the Prosecutor, Musah and Budo visited Boafo in his Uncle's residence at Beppoh and planned to rob the complainant's company.

She said Boafo agreed to join them and they all boarded a vehicle to the company's yard.

Inspector Anaman said when Musah and his accomplices arrived at the crime scene they noticed that the main gate leading to the company's premises was locked so they jumped over the fence into the yard.

The Prosecutor said the workers who were then busily going about the day's work on seeing them took to their heels for fear of their lives, but the complainant was trapped in a room within the yard and Musah, Boafo and Budo assaulted him with clubs.

They then took away an amount of GH1,000, a pump action gun, two mobile phones and a solar scale machine all valued GH10,500.

Inspector Anaman said when the police had the information and went to the scene, they found the complainant unconscious with a fractured left leg.

She said the complainant was sent to the El-Shiva clinic at Bawdie for treatment and was later referred to the Effia Nwanta Hospital at Sekondi for further treatment.

The Prosecution said on July 12, at 2300 hours, Musah and Boafo were arrested at Atonsuagya village near Ejura in the Ashanti Region upon a tip-off.

She said when the police conducted a search in Musah's room the solar scale machine was retrieved.

Inspector Anaman said the convict also claimed that he sold the pump action gun to one Ray in Kumasi for GH50.

The Prosecutor said Boafo has also been remanded in police custody whilst efforts are being made to apprehend Budo.

GNA

By Erica Apeatua Addo, GNA
Tamale, Aug.6, GNA - The Northern Regional Farmers Association, has expressed gratitude to the government for the package to facilitate the Planting for Food and Jobs programme.

At a press conference in Tamale over the weekend, Mr Mohammed Adam Nashiru, the Chairman of the Association said through the programme farmers were likely to increase the crops yield.

He said the provision of storage facilities would also improve upon the marketing of their produce.

He said the programme would transform agriculture in the north from subsistence farming into commercial venture to attract the youth into the field.

Mr Nashiru said the government's effort to expand and increase the Agricultural Mechanisation Centre (AMSEC) throughout the country would enable small scale farmers who could not afford to buy agricultural equipment to hire them at the designated points.

He, however, called for a collective effort from all citizens to help the government in the fight against the menace of the fall army worm, which was a disaster to the agricultural production.

Mr Mohammed Zakaria, Executive Member of the Association whose farm was visited by journalists said the provision of subsidised fertilizer and seeds had helped him increase the size of his rice farm.

He appealed to the government to help provide more agricultural inputs and agricultural extension officers to help sensitise and educate farmers on improved and modernised agricultural practices to increase crop yields in the Region.

GNA

By Rashid Mbugri, GNA
'The big truck is still on ...
- Men of the Nigerian army laid a successful ambush on members of the Boko Haram terrorists

- The operation took place along a route leading to the Alagarno forest and they recovered explosive devices

- The suspected terrorists were carrying food items and motorcycles to an undisclosed rendezvous

According to a Facebook post made by army spokesman, Brigadier General Sani Kukasheka Usman, the Nigerian army scored a victory against the Boko Haram insurgents on Sunday, August 6, 2017.

Some of the troops of Operation LAFIYA DOLE deployed at Forward Operation Base Mainok, at the in the early hours of Sunday laid ambush for suspected Boko Haram terrorists along a track route leading to Alagarno forest.

The terrorists were transporting logistics items to their colleagues via motorcycle, when the ambush team neutralized the two of them.

Recovered motorcycles from Boko Haram terrorists Source: Facebook, SK Usman

They also recovered their weapons, two motorcycles, Jerry cans and grounded guinea corn, which was to serve as food for the terrorists.

READ ALSO: 2 Boko Haram bombers attack Maiduguri general hospital

Jerry cans also recovered from the terrorists Source: Facebook, SK Usman

He also said that troops of 151 Battalion, 21 Brigade Nigerian Army, on routine clearing of bushes to aid unhindered movement of troops discovered multiple Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), connected together laid on the shoulder of the road at a suspected terrorist ambush site along road Banki Junction-Bama.

Nigerian army ambushes Boko Haram logistics team, recovers explosive devices Source: Facebook, SK Usman

READ ALSO: Fayose mocks Army, says Boko Haram has never been defeated

The troops successfully disconnected the devices and recovered them.

Ground guinea corn stored in a bag was also recovered Source: Facebook, SK Usman

Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that the Nigerian army appealed to religious, traditional and community leaders, and well-meaning Nigerians in the North-East, to dissuade their people from donating their daughters to Boko Haram for indoctrination and bombing missions.

PAY ATTENTION: Watch more videos on Legit.ng TV

The army spokesman, Brig.-Gen. Sani Usman explained in a statement on Saturday, August 5, that the appeal became necessary following revelations by some intercepted female bombers during interrogations.

Watch this Legit.ng video as women lament the state of Nigeria below:

Source: Legit.ng
Reverend Fr. Patrick Edet recently decided to quit the Catholic priesthood after several years of service, he has now revealed the reasons behind his decision.

Formerly identified as Reverend Father Patrick Henry Edet while he was with the Catholic church, Reverend Edet finally opened up on why he decided to end what was supposed to be a lifetime of service to the church.

Reverend Edet who hosts a weekly Christian programmed titled "Grace and Inspiration" in Planet 1010.1FM, Akwa Ibom state, spoke at length while the programme aired on August 2, saying there was no need for him to continue with the Catholic church because peace deserted him while he was there.

He said after 11 long years, he strongly felt the need to leave, because he was feeling boxed in and it was affecting his personal relationship with God. He said leaving was the best thing, as he is now finally free.

Reverend Father Patrick Edet said he left the Catholic church because it was affecting his personal relationship with God. Photo: Facebook/Aniekeme Finbarr

READ ALSO: Catholic priest sacked after he was discovered to have 2 wives

Speaking during the live programme, he gave his reasons for resigning as thus:

On 31st of July, I resigned from my services, my duties and obligations as a Catholic priest. I ceased to be a Catholic priest in my thinking, in my spirit, in my soul, (and) in my body.

Yesterday, the 1st of August, was my first day outside the laws, the regulations, (and) the authority of the Catholic church. In my mind, every law that bound me, bound me because I submitted myself to the Catholic Church as an institution.

Having submitted my resignation letter to my authorities in the Catholic Church, in my spirit, soul and body, I am free from every law that guided me. I submit myself to one authority  God. Peace has been taken away from me for years. I live in fear and in doubt. Sometimes I doubt myself  am I really right, am I in the right place.

READ ALSO: Nigerians attack Catholic priest who fasted 3 days and was flogged for hours

Reverend Edet said being with the Catholic church made him feel like something was missing in his relationship with God. He likened it to being in a box. He said:

A box is already made for you and you cannot go outside that box. You cannot know God beyond that box. You cannot express God beyond that box, and any attempt for you to go beyond that box brings you label.

The God that I have discovered in life is a God that cannot be fully known. That God is a God that cannot be fully predicted and cannot be fully captured in human expression otherwise he will cease to be a mystery. That is a God I have come to accept as my God.

I have come to realise that serving that God you need freedom. When that freedom is limited you cannot fully serve that God. Each time I tried to cross the line, the thing I meet crushes me on the inside and makes me feel guilty. But I cannot stop doing it. Theres a pull inside of me telling me there is more, and life was meant to be more and that more is found in freedom in God."

PAY ATTENTION: Get all the latest gossips on NAIJ Gossip App

On the repercussions of leaving church, he is precise about an anticipated end for himself.

The reason I am doing this is that I want to be right with God first. I want to go to heaven when I die. It is not the Church that called me, it is God who called me that is above the Church, and my interest is to be right with Him first and have peace with Him first."

Wish him all the best!

Meanwhile, watch this video to see when people believed they saw the image of Jesus Christ on a wall in a church in Ikorodu:

Source: Legit.ng
- Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra state describes the gun attack on St Philips Catholic church in Ozubulu as a sacrilege

- The governor dismisses suggestion that the incident was a church invasion

- The Anambra state commissioner of police, Garba Umar, says the gunmen who attacked the church were dressed in black attire and spoke fluent Igbo

Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra state has said two persons from Ozubulu who are known drug barons in South Africa are the prime suspects of the attack on St Philips Catholic church in Ozubulu.

READ ALSO: Group condemns Obasanjo, Babangida, Abubakar over alleged plot to replace Buhari in 2019

The governor made the statement on Sunday, August 6, shortly after he visited the scene of the attack in Ekwusigo local government area of the state, Channels TV reports.

Obiano who described the attack as a sacrilege said the briefing he received from the police had revealed that the shooting was a reprisal attack by the drug barons who traced their victim to the church.

He dismissed reports that the incident was a church invasion.

Governor Obiano also visited Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, to sympathise with the injured victims who were being treated at the medical facility.

He expressed worry that the incident was tragic as innocent people were attacked over a drug war concerning two abroad based Ozubulu brothers.

The governor further proceeded to Our Lady of Assumption Catholic Cathedral, Nnewi, to calm parishioners over the already heightened rumour that churches were under attack.

Meanwhile, the police in Anambra on Sunday said preliminary investigations of early morning attack on St. Philip Catholic Church, Ozubulu, Ekwusigo local government area revealed that it was carried out by a native of the area.

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The commissioner of police, Mr Garba Umar, who said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Awka said the gunmen who attacked the church were dressed in a black attire and spoke fluent Igbo.

Umar said: "From our findings, it is very clear that the person who carried the attack must be an indigene of the area.

We gathered that worshippers for 6 oclock Sunday mass at St. Philip Ozobulu were in the service when a gunman dressed in black attire covering his face with a cap entered the church and moved straight to a particular direction and opened fire.

The man after shooting at his targeted victims still went on a shooting spree, killing and wounding other worshippers."

The commissioner said information available to police showed that the attacker was speaking undiluted Igbo language at the time he was firing at worshippers.

Umar described any insinuation that the attack was carried out by Boko Haram elements as false and urged the people to go about their normal businesses.

In the video below, Legit.ng TV asked some Nigerians if they consider the police as their friend

Source: Legit.ng
- A civil society organization has hailed the president of the United States of America Donald Trump for his government's approval on the sale of aircraft to Nigeria

- The group said Trump's decision is an endorsement of Nigerian military's professionalism

- The group also said the approval is a testament of his commitment to firmly deal with terrorists around the globe

A civil society organization has hailed the president of the United States of America Donald Trump for his government's approval on the sale of 12 aircraft to aid in the fight against insurgency.

The group, Centre for Social Justice, Equity and Transparency (CESJET) Trump's approval of 12 Embraer A-29 Super Tucano aircraft from Colorado-based Sierra Nevada Corp to Nigeria is an endorsement of Nigerian military's professionalism in the fight against terrorism.

CESJET's executive secretary Isaac Ikpa said the approval is also a testament of his commitment to firmly deal with terrorists around the globe.

Ikpa said Trump's decision to sign off on the aircraft opens a new hope and encourages other countries willing to join the effort in eliminating terrorism from the globe.

He also said the approval with soon be extended to other categories of military hardware that could help Nigeria's counter-terrorism fight.

READ ALSO: BREAKING: Unknown gunmen attack Anambra church, between 15-50 reported dead (video)

"In this regard, Mr President's pragmatic approach should become the reference point everywhere in the world," Ikpa said.

"On the strength of our work in Nigeria, we testify that the Nigerian military has reformed while its human rights record has tremendously improved under the current leadership, a development that was never acknowledged by Amnesty International and the international media circuit.

"You have appropriately described them as "Fraudulent Mainstream Media" (Fraudulent MSM), purveyors of fake news, owing top your experience with how they distort facts to suit their agenda," he said.

"Such agenda heavily tainted the reports that have been issued on Nigeria's experience with combating terrorism. Reports by organizations like Amnesty International and others conflict with the reality on ground because they are based on their maliciously biased judgment of the Nigerian state.

READ ALSO: Governor Obiano reveals masterminds of Anambra church killings

The group said Trump has clearly and boldly warned all terrorist group that their is no room for their activities in Nigeria and America.

"CESJET is of the view that the total elimination of Boko Haram in Nigeria would move the world closer to stemming the tide of terrorism," Ikpa added.

The current administration of President Muhammadu Buhari has demonstrated commitment to this global imperative with the implementation of transparent defence procurement and adherence to high human rights benchmarks in its over two years in office.

We therefore prescribe that relationship between Nigeria and the USA be further strengthened towards the total eradication of terrorism in the sub-region.

"Mr President is however invited to note the escalation of attempts by Boko Haram to resurge in recent weeks. It is noteworthy that the degeneration in the situation in Nigeria's northeast resumed only when the country began exploring crude oil in the Lake Chad Basin, which indicates international factors are involved in the persistence of terrorism there.

PAY ATTENTION: Read the news on Nigerias #1 new app

"It is therefore desirable that the intelligence community assist in exposing those who want to keep the world unsafe even when you have committed to the war against terrorism in Nigeria.

Legit.ng earlier reported that Trump's administration approved the sale of 12 high-tech attack planes to Nigeria.

The planes will be used by the Nigerian military in its fight against the Boko Haram terrorists operating in the North-East.

The planes also include about a dozen of A-29 Super Tucano aircraft.

You can watch this Legit.ng TV of responses from some Nigerians on whether they would like the US to Bomb insurgents in Nigeria:

Source: Legit.ng
Lambert here: Reminds me of this scene from Michael Clayton, a movie worth watching. The sound isnt perfect, but the message is clear enough:

By Carey Gillam, research director at U.S. Right to Know, a nonprofit organization that investigates the risks associated with the corporate food system. Originally published at Alternet.

Four months after the publication of a batch of internal Monsanto Co. documents stirred international controversy, a new trove of company records was released early Tuesday, providing fresh fuel for a heated global debate over whether or not the agricultural chemical giant suppressed information about the potential dangers of its Roundup herbicide and relied on U.S. regulators for help.

More than 75 documents, including intriguing text messages and discussions about payments to scientists, were posted for public viewing early Tuesday morning by attorneys who are suing Monsanto on behalf of people alleging Roundup caused them or their family members to become ill with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of blood cancer. The attorneys posted the documents, which total more than 700 pages, on the website for the law firm Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman, one of many firms representing thousands of plaintiffs who are pursuing claims against Monsanto. More than 100 of those lawsuits have been consolidated in multidistrict litigation in federal court in San Francisco, while other similar lawsuits are pending in state courts in Missouri, Delaware, Arizona and elsewhere. The documents, which were obtained through court-ordered discovery in the litigation, are also available as part of a long list of Roundup court case documents compiled by the consumer group I work for, U.S. Right to Know.

It was important to release the documents now because they not only pertain to the ongoing litigation, but also to larger issues of public health and safety, while shedding light on corporate influence over regulatory bodies, according to Baum Hedlund attorneys Brent Wisner and Pedram Esfandiary.

This is a look behind the curtain, said Wisner. These show that Monsanto has deliberately been stopping studies that look bad for them, ghostwriting literature and engaging in a whole host of corporate malfeasance. They [Monsanto] have been telling everybody that these products are safe because regulators have said they are safe, but it turns out that Monsanto has been in bed with U.S. regulators while misleading European regulators.

Esfandiary said public dissemination of the documents is important because regulatory agencies cannot properly protect public and environmental health without having accurate, comprehensive and impartial scientific data, and the documents show that has not been the case with Monsantos Roundup herbicide and the active ingredient glyphosate.

When reached for comment, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., one of the plaintiffs lawyers said, This trove marks a turning point in Monsantos corporate life. They show Monsanto executives colluding with corrupted EPA officials to manipulate and bury scientific data to kill studies when preliminary data threatened Monsantos commercial ambitions, bribing scientists and ghostwriting their publications, and purchasing peer review to conceal information about Roundups carcinogenicity, its toxicity, its rapid absorption by the human body, and its horrendous risks to public health and the environment.

We can now prove that all Monsantos claims about glyphosates safety were myths concocted by amoral propaganda and lobbying teams, Kennedy continued. Monsanto has been spinning its lethal yarn to everybody for years and suborning various perjuries from regulators and scientists who have all been lying in concert to American farmers, landscapers and consumers. Its shocking no matter how jaded you are! These new revelations are commiserate with the documents that brought down big tobacco.

Several of the documents discuss a lack of robust testing of formulated Roundup products. In one email, Monsanto scientist Donna Farmer writes you cannot say that Roundup is not a carcinogen  we have not done the necessary testing on the formulation to make that statement. The testing on the formulations are not anywhere near the level of the active ingredient.

The release of the documents Tuesday came without the blessing of Judge Vince Chhabria, who is overseeing the multidistrict litigation moving its way through the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. In March, Chhabria did agree to unseal several other discovery documentsover Monsantos objectionsand those documents prompted a wave of outrage for what they revealed: questionable research practices by Monsanto, cozy ties to a top official within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and indications that Monsanto may have engaged in ghostwriting, of research studies that appeared to be independent of the company.

The revelations within those documents prompted an investigation by the EPAs Office of Inspector General into possible Monsanto-EPA collusion, and roiled Europe where regulators now are trying to decide whether or not to reauthorize glyphosate, which is the most widely used herbicide in the world and is found in numerous products in addition to Roundup.

The lawyers said they are sending copies of the documents to European authorities, to the EPAs OIG and to the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), which has been sued by Monsanto for moving to list glyphosate as a known carcinogen

Monsanto has fought to keep most of the documents it turned over in discovery sealed, complaining to Judge Chhabria that in several court filings plaintiffs attorneys presented discovery materials out of context and tried to exploit the information to influence public opinion. Chhabria has both chided Monsanto for trying to improperly seal certain documents and warned plaintiffs attorneys against unfairly publicizing certain documents. It is unclear how Judge Chhabria will react, if at all, to the law firms release of these more than 75 documents.

Baum Hedlund attorneys said they notified Monsanto on June 30 of their intent to unveil the 75+ documents and gave Monsanto the legally required 30-day window to formally object. That period expired Monday, clearing the way for them to make the release early Tuesday, said Wisner.

Concerns about the safety of glyphosate and Roundup have been growing for years amid mounting research showing links to cancer or other diseases. But the lawsuits only began to accumulate after the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in 2015 classified glyphosate as a probable human carcinogen. The plaintiffs in the lawsuits allege that the combination of glyphosate with certain surfactants used in Monsanto-branded Roundup products is even more toxic than glyphosate alone, and Monsanto has sought to cover up that information.

Monsanto has publicly denied that there are cancer connections to glyphosate or Roundup and said 40 years of research and scrutiny by regulatory agencies around the world confirm its safety.

Monsanto has made billions of dollars a year for decades from its glyphosate-based herbicides, and they are the linchpin to billions of dollars more it makes each year from the genetically engineered glyphosate-tolerant crops it markets. The company is currently moving toward a planned merger with Bayer AG.
Eager beavers experts at recreating wildlife-rich wetlands, study reveals Guardian

Bizarro Life-Forms Inhabiting Deep-Sea Vents May Be at Risk Scientific American

Electric vehicle realities Izabella Kaminska, FT. Questioning the cost structures of the industry in general is not allowed in public forums.

The Accounting Tack That Makes PayPals Numbers Look So Good Gretchen Morgenson, NYT. File under The Bezzle. But where were the editors on this? Surely that headline should read This One Accounting Tack.?

The Hijacking of the Brillante Virtuoso Bloomberg. Because if the hijacking of the Brillante Virtuoso wasnt a case of fumbled piracy, it would be the most spectacular fraud in shipping history. Fun!

Theres No Magic in Venture-Backed Home Care Medium

Airbnb dominated by professional landlords Deutsche Welle

Beyond Bankruptcy: How Failed Stores Come Back Online WSJ

Google blocked every one of the WSWSs 45 top search terms WSWS (MT). I tried Trotsky. Nothing from Google 10 pages into the search results. Bing had a WSWS hit at #75, six pages in. WSWS was at #70 on DuckDuckGos infinite scroll. Trotsky is seven pages in at Yahoo, five pages in at the DogPile aggregator, three pages in at Yandex, and two pages in at Yippy, oddly, and on the front page at #19 at Unbubble (a neutral European search engine). Certainly, some, er, invisible hand seems to be operating at Google. Readers, try for yourselves!

For the New Far Right, YouTube Has Become the New Talk Radio NYT

Chinese chatbots apparently re-educated after political faux pas Reuters

Imperial Collapse Watch

Present and Perspectives of the Triangle Between China, Latin America and the United States COHA (MT).

American petro-topia Aeon (MT). Plastics.

Venezuela

North Korea

Brexit

New Cold War

Trump Transition

This is a Post About Drought. And Farmer Suicide. Prairie Center

A changing electrical grid may make Snake River dams expendable  and help save salmon Idaho Statesman

Wyoming Residents Reject First New Coal Mine in Decades Global Citizen (GF).

How Air-Conditioning Conquered America (Even the Pacific Northwest) NYT

Big Brother Is Watching You Watch

Health Care

Cleaning a Dirty Sponge Only Helps Its Worst Bacteria, Study Says NYT (Furzy Mouse). The thrifty among us may try to clean a sponge that starts to stink, but its probably time to let it go. Just like the health insurance companies!

Soft Money Is Back  And Both Parties Are Cashing In Politico (Re Silc).

Democrats in Disarray

9 questions about the Democratic Socialists of America you were too embarrassed to ask Vox. In the last year alone, DSAs membership has ballooned from 8,000 to 25,000 dues-paying members. DSA boasts that it is now the biggest socialist organization in America since World War II.

Democratic Socialists of America Celebrate Record Membership in Chicago. Now What? The Intercept

Why These Millennials Refuse To Miss The Democratic Socialists Of America Convention Bustle

A Turning Point on the Left? Libertarian Caucus Debuts at Democratic Socialist Conference Truthout. (Im not sure that caucuses exist until formally approved, though.)

The Connective Party Jacobin

Class Warfare

Call me naive, but heres how Paris Saint-Germains ridiculous 200m for Neymar can be a force for good Daily Mail

Jim Plunketts painful journey: My life sucks The Mercury News

Inside Patreon, the economic engine of internet culture The Verge

Why Relying on Peoples Vices Backfires Ian Welsh (MR).

Antidote du jour (via):

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
By Lambert Strether of Corrente.

Lets start with Article V of the United States Constitution:

The Congress, whenever [A] two thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on [B] the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several states, shall call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this Constitution, when [C] ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the several states, or by [D] conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratification may be proposed by the Congress; provided that no amendment which may be made prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses in the ninth section of the first article; and that no state, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate.

(This language  The first and fourth clauses in the ninth section of the first article  protects the slave trade.[1]) So amending the Constitution is not easy, and by design. Federalist Papers 39 (which, honestly, reads like a Vox explainer tap-dancing through a heavily contested policy issue, except in 18th Century prose), ALL CAPS as in the original:

The difference between a federal and national government, as it relates to the OPERATION OF THE GOVERNMENT, is supposed to consist in this, that in the former the powers operate on the political bodies composing the Confederacy, in their political capacities; in the latter, on the individual citizens composing the nation, in their individual capacities. But if the government be national with regard to the OPERATION of its powers, it changes its aspect again when we contemplate it in relation to the EXTENT of its powers. .

(The EXTENT of the governments powers being indeed the key issue, as we shall see.)

If we try the Constitution by its last relation to the authority by which amendments are to be made, we find it neither wholly NATIONAL nor wholly FEDERAL. Were it wholly national, the supreme and ultimate authority would reside in the MAJORITY of the people of the Union; and this authority would be competent at all times, like that of a majority of every national society, to alter or abolish its established government. Were it wholly federal, on the other hand, the concurrence of each State in the Union would be essential to every alteration that would be binding on all. The mode provided by the plan of the convention is not founded on either of these principles. In requiring more than a majority, and principles. In requiring more than a majority, and particularly in computing the proportion by STATES, not by CITIZENS, it departs from the NATIONAL and advances towards the FEDERAL character; in rendering the concurrence of less than the whole number of States sufficient, it loses again the FEDERAL and partakes of the NATIONAL character. The proposed Constitution, therefore, is, in strictness, neither a national nor a federal Constitution, but a composition of both. In its foundation it is federal, not national; in the sources from which the ordinary powers of the government are drawn, it is partly federal and partly national; in the operation of these powers, it is national, not federal; in the extent of them, again, it is federal, not national; and, finally, in the authoritative mode of introducing amendments, it is neither wholly federal nor wholly national.

Im glad thats sorted. Suffice to say that Amendments are hard.[2] If we return to the text of Article V, we see two modes for proposing Amendments (at [A] and [B]) and two modes for ratifying them ([C] and [D]). All amendments, so far, have taken the path from [A] through [C]: Proposed by both houses of Congress; ratified by state legislatures (except for the Twenty First Amendment, abolishing Prohibition, which was passed by state conventions). However, given the current composition and polarization of Congress, its very hard to see how path [A], proposal through Congress, can be followed by either party. There remains path [B], the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several states, followed by whichever of the two ratification modes[3]. The magic number for an Amending Convention is 34 (two-thirds of 50) and until very recently I would have thought that path to a Constitutional convention implausible, too. As indeed it has been: There have been hundreds of applications for an amending convention over the years from virtually every state [but] no amending convention has ever occurred. But then I see maps like this:

Figure 1: Blue vs. Gray

Regardless of what the characters at the FEDERAL level (Madisons caps) might want, its clear, structurally, that characters at the NATIONAL level (Madisons caps)  that is, the political establishments in every state not colored blue, above  not only might want something different, they might gain the power to impose their will. (Note that the story from which the above map comes was triggered by the defection of a Democrat governor to the Republicans.)

Heres a slightly less dire map. I hate to quote a venue like Kos, but needs must:

Figure 2: The Balance of Power for State Legislatures

And summarizing:

The above map illustrates the balance of legislative power in state legislatures nationwide. Republicans control both chambers in 32 states , including 17 with veto-proof majorities. Those 32 states cover 61 percent of the U.S. population. Democrats, meanwhile, control the legislature in just 13 states, amounting to 28 percent of the countrys population; only five of those chambers have veto-proof majorities.

(Return to Article V: the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several states. In other words, a governor cant veto the application. So state trifectas, where one party controls the legislative[4] and executive branches, arent relevent to an Amending Convention.)

32 is uncomfortably close to 34, isnt it?[5]

* * *

As a sidebar, Im guessing the typical liberal Democrat partisan would react instantly to Figure 1: ZOMG!!! Weve got to elect moar Democrats!!!!!! followed by fuel for the outrage machine, and very shortly funding for the usual Democratic strategists. Im hoping  I, personally, dont think a Constitutional Convention would be the best idea right now, for reasons Ill get to shortly  that more sober analysts, if any exist, will focus on the map in Figure 2, take a careful look at the pathways to misfortune for both the 2016 Clinton campaign and the Republican failure to repeal and replace ObamaCare, remember that all politics is local, and take action accordingly. Figure out how to hold the line at 32. For example, make sure that renegade Democrats in NY and WA defect back from the Republicans on the Amending Convention issue, whatever they do on anything else. A second example: The Maine Senate is 18/17 Republican, and the Maine House is 77/72 Democrat. It might not be that hard for Republican forces to swing the House  the Maine House is a battleground chamber  and turn Maine into a trifecta state if Susan Collins ran for Governor after establishing her moderate cred by nobbling TrumpCare.

So if theres an Amending Convention desk at the DNC, they might want to be figuring out a way to prevent more state legislatures from flipping. Like, now. One way of doing that would be to take advantage of factional infighting among Republicans, not to mention their policy failures. From West Virginias public radio station, commenting on Governor Jim Justices defection from the Democrats to the Republicans:

Years in power have also created problems for state-level Republicans. In Kansas, an overly ambitious plan to cut taxes orchestrated by Gov. Sam Brownback (whos been nominated to a State Department post in the Trump administration) starved the state of funds for its schools and other services. Kansas Republicans wound up bitterly divided over the issue and earlier this year, a moderate faction sided with Democrats to override Brownbacks veto and rescind the tax cuts. Similarly, a series of tax cuts in oil-dependent Oklahoma left the state poorly prepared for a downturn in energy prices. Republican lawmakers were forced to swallow their opposition and vote for tax hikes in order to keep the state solvent. With Democrats all but vanquished in several Republican-dominated states, intra-Republican disputes have taken center stage. In Texas, Republicans are divided between a business-friendly faction that prioritizes low taxes and less regulation and social conservatives eager to pass the most conservative legislation possible, such as a bill limiting transgender access to bathrooms. Earlier this year, Florida Gov. Rick Scott was running campaign-style ads against fellow Republicans in the legislature over a dispute about economic development funds. A combination of voters unhappy with the governing partys track record and internal party rifts that will play out in primary elections, sometimes leading to extreme or unqualified candidates, could weigh down Republican candidates up and down the ballot over the next year.

Whistling in the dark? Maybe. (If you read the whole article, youll see it focuses mostly on Republican governors, who, as we have seen, arent relevant to initiating an Amending Convention. Youll also see the idea that nationalizing the election will benefit Democrat candidates. But that strategy didnt work for Jon Ossoff, and if it didnt work for the United States House, is it really going to work for a seat in the state legislature? I doubt it.)

* * *

Returning once more to the text of Article V, and how political forces at the NATIONAL level might seek to apply it:

 the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several states, shall call a convention for proposing amendments 

The key point here is that the application for an Amending Convention need not take the form of an application for a particular amendment. The Heritage Foundation urges, I think correctly, that:

an important question is whether such a convention can be limited in scope, either to a particular proposal or within a particular subject. While most calls for amending conventions in the nineteenth century were general, the modern trend is to call (and thus count applications) for conventions limited to considering a single, specific amendment. Some scholars maintain that such attempts violate the very mechanism created by Article V: the text says that upon application of the states Congress shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, not for confirming a particular amendment already written, approved, and proposed by state legislatures (which would effectively turn the convention for proposing amendments into a ratifying convention).

In other words, the scope (EXTENT) of an Amending Convention cannot be known in advance. The Times writes:

Taking advantage of almost a decade of political victories in state legislatures across the country, conservative advocacy groups are quietly marshaling support for an event unprecedented in the nations history: a convention of the 50 states, summoned to consider amending the Constitution. The groups are an amalgam of free-market, low-tax and small-government proponents, often funded by corporations and deeply conservative supporters like the billionaire Koch brothers and Donors Trust, whose contributors are mostly anonymous. They want an amendment to require a balanced federal budget, an idea many conservatives have embraced, many economists disdain and Congress has failed to endorse for decades. But as the groups near their goal, critics and some skeptical constitutional scholars are warning that holding an amendment-writing meeting with no historical parallel and no written rules could open a Pandoras box of constitutional mischief.

It is true, as the Times writes, that the policy focus of most Amending Convention advocacy has austerity in the form of balanced budget amendment [6]. Its also true that austerity in practice has turned out to be a bad idea, as even some conservatives admit:

Because extreme Republican fiscal austerity advocates have not been able to get a balanced budget amendment through Congress, they have been pursuing the state-based avenue for several decades, with little success. Right-wing convention backers mounted a strong push in this years legislative season, but came up empty-handed in several of their target states and lost momentum when three states (Maryland, New Mexico and Nevada) voted to rescind their balanced budget amendment convention calls.

However, just because the balanced budget amendment  which is a FEDERAL concern  seems to be stalling, doesnt mean that NATIONAL actors might not have other concerns of their own; and an Amending Convention itself determines its own scope, which is not limited to any one amendment. I wouldnt say that Figures 1 and 2 show that power is lying in the street, exactly, but its certainly lying where NATIONAL actors, if co-ordinated  especially in the face of a triggering event in the form of a national catastrophe of some kind  could pick it up. Lets remember that the 2016 election was, among other things, about volatility (or, as the cliche goes, change versus more of the same). Some might regard the volatility of open[ing] a Pandoras box of constitutional mischief as just the ticket, and given the performance of FEDERAL elites over the last forty years, it would be hard to blame them.

NOTES

[1] An Act Prohibiting Importatation of Slaves was passed in 1807 and took effect in 1808. Slavery itself was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865 (with some important exceptions).

[2] Madisons prose was so funny and delicious I had to quote it; but the Heritage Foundation summarizes the issues in a less funny but more readable form:

More significantly, the double supermajority requirementstwo-thirds of both Houses of Congress and three-quarters of the statescreate extensive deliberation and stability in the amendment process and restrain factions and special interests. It helps keep the Constitution as a constitution, and not an assemblage of legislative enactments. Most importantly, it also roots the amending process in the Founders unique concept of structural federalism based on the dual sovereignty of the state and national governments.

(I have the nasty feeling that dual sovereignty is some sort of right-wing talking point or dogwhistle, but let that pass.)

[3] Im going to ignore the modes of ratification from here on in. It seems to me that the successful initiation of a Constitutional Convention would so upset the apple cart that theres no point worrying about subsequent events. The Archdruid, when his Report was still up, had a fine future history with a triggering event for a Constitutional Convention: We lost first an aircraft carrier and then a war to the Chinese. That convention culminated in the breakup of the United States.

[4] Unicameral legislatures apparently get a count of two.

[5] I deprecate the demonizing ZOMG!!! The Koch Brothers!!!!!! because I reject the liberal Democrat framing that good billionaires are Democrat donors, and bad billionaires are not.

[6] Which any MMT advocate would regard, correctly in my view, as demented.
Researchers at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (SBP) have published a study in Nature Communications shedding new light on how K-80003 (TX803), an anti-cancer agent discovered at the Institute, prevents activation of the PI3K pathway, resulting in inhibition of cancer cell growth. Because the PI3K pathway is common to many cancers, K-80003 could have broad therapeutic applications. Tarrex Biopharma, Inc. has licensed the compound and announced they will soon begin Phase 1 clinical trials at the Dana Farber Cancer Center for patients with colorectal cancer.

"K-80003 binds specifically to a truncated form of the retinoid X receptor-alpha (tRXR) protein that promotes tumors," says Xaio-kun Zhang, Ph.D., adjunct professor and senior author of the paper. "When it binds tRXR, it freezes the protein into an inactive (tetrameric) configuration that prevents it from stimulating the PI3K pathway.

"A major goal of this study was to dig deeper and find out why this compound is so effective and appears to have so few side effects," adds Zhang. "We wanted to visualize how tRXR and K-80003 physically interact--at atomic resolution--in a way that makes this such a promising cancer drug."

Working with the lab of Robert Liddington, Ph.D., professor at SBP, the research team used X-ray crystallography to find that six molecules of K-80003 bound to the tetramer interfaces.

"Our findings show that K-80003 creates a configuration that locks the tetramer into a tight ball, hiding all of its binding sites so it can't trigger the PI3K pathway," explains Liddington.

"We know tRXR protein is specifically produced by tumor cells, while normal cells only produce full-length RXR protein. Taken together, our findings explain the drug's potency and specificity for cancer cells and why the compound has such low toxicity," adds Zhang.

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Because RXR is a nuclear receptor, it has the ability to control gene expression. The mutation that creates tRXR puts the protein into overdrive, activating PI3K in the cytoplasm and accelerating tumor growth. K-80003 acts like a Denver Boot, clamping down on tRXR and eliminating these hyperactive growth signals. In addition, K-80003 often brings tRXR back to the nucleus, which may further impair its function and enhance the drug's therapeutic impact.

But that was not the end of the discovery. The team also found an LxxLL motif (a common sequence of amino acids) in the p85 protein, which acts as an intermediary between RXR and PI3K. Identifying LxxLL sheds new light on how tRXR binds to the cytoplasmic p85 protein and activates PI3K. When tRXR becomes a tetramer, p85 can no longer bind to it.

These findings also help illustrate how nuclear receptors can function outside the nucleus, and how changes in both conformation and location can dramatically alter their function. In the long-term, understanding these mechanisms could lead to a variety of new therapies. But right now, this research shows why K-80003 has so much potential.

"The tRXR protein is produced in almost all cancers," said Zhang, "so the compound could be very effective for many different types, such as breast, liver, and colon."

Source: https://www.sbpdiscovery.org/
Stealth, or aircraft signature reduction, is a potent and viable military capability in modern combat, and will remain so well into the future. It is not, however, an all or nothing capability, as some critiques have suggested. Investments in stealth technology significantly improve the ability of US aircraft to penetrate enemy air defenses and create significant costs for adversaries who attempt to defend against this technology.

In certain environments, stealth may have the ability to penetrate with little support. However, stealth is most effective when employed in concert with other aircraft, tactics, and capabilities. Adding stealth to a multicapability force package creates a lethal synergy that is difficult to defend against. By reducing the enemys ability to detect attackers, this complicates air defense efforts and reduces time for adversaries to react effectively.

After years of observing US military operations, other nations too are convinced of the advantages of stealth design, and are moving to close the capability gap. Russia and China have adopted stealth in a range of new aircraft designs that are currently in development, and are slated to enter production in the next decade.

Stealth aircraft have now been in development and service for over 40 years. As with any military capability, the potential offered by technologies to counter stealth advantages are being developed, and also being debated. As a result, several questions must now be addressed. Do the advances in computational power and radar systems seen in the digital age undermine stealth aircraft survivability? Will stealth remain viable in future decades in the face of these technologies, or will its effectiveness wane? Should the United States continue to invest in stealth systems to improve them or mitigate technology that attempts to counter them, or shift its approach?

Over the long run, the US will engage opponents who field increasing numbers of powerful digital multiband radars. Because ground-based systems are bigger and able to deploy larger arrays, their theoretical ranges and capabilities will be greater than those carried by fighters and airborne early warning aircraft.

The ground-based systems, if they can successfully detect and locate an aircraft, can alert SAM batteries and vector fighters to the threat location  perhaps without ever losing track. This will pose new challenges for US stealth aircraft, but there are several factors to keep in mind in this offense-defense struggle:

 Reduction in RCS continues to offer huge operational advantages by shrinking the ranges at which the aircraft can be detected. The laws of physics are hard to break. If newer radars can detect stealth aircraft at longer ranges, their ability to detect non-stealthy aircraft is also increased.

 Current operational stealth aircraft feature highly tuned systems that detect adversary radars and use knowledge of the aircrafts RCS to optimize routing in order to minimize the potential for detection and engagement. Stealth is a combination of reduced RCS and operational tactics that result in signature reduction.

 Multi-band or broadband stealth is growing in importance as more multi-band radars are fielded. Such radars are still in their infancy, but will grow in numbers over the coming decades. This will put an emphasis on larger, tailless designs such as the B-2, B-21, and X-47.

Reducing the ability of modern enemy air defenses to discover, track, and engage US and allied aircraft is essential. But it is important to stress that stealth is not an all or nothing military capability. Much like improved missiles and guided munitions, stealth has also advanced over the past several decades. Investments in this technology significantly improve the ability of US aircraft to penetrate enemy air defenses, and create significant costs for adversaries who attempt to mitigate US aircraft signature reduction capabilities. The costs for adversaries to attempt to offset this advantage are significant. Although highly capable, modern SAM systems such as the SA-21 are estimated to cost around $400 million per division (a division of SA-21s is comprised of 8 launchers, 112 missiles, and numerous command and control and support vehicles).

At the same time, stealth aircraft are more affordable than ever. For example, the F-15SG variant of the F-15E sold to the Republic of Singapore Air Force features a raft of improvements from the base F-15E Strike Eagle model, such as an advanced infrared search and track system, a modern targeting pod, and improved engines, among other features. These aircraft, delivered between 2009 and 2013, came out to around $85 million a copy for a buy of 24 airframes. In comparison, the last F-22s to roll off the assembly line before its termination cost between $90 million and $100 million a copy, and subsequent airframes could have cost even less. The F-35 is now on a cost reduction curve to get just below $90 million a copy, as production ramps up and customers begin to receive modern, operational aircraft. In light of these trends, its important to consider capability and costs versus requirements for modern combat aircraft. Low observable aircraft are a very compelling proposition, even at a 10 to 20 percent cost premium when compared to other non-stealthy aircraft, especially in light of higher threat combat scenarios where these aircraft could face modern defenses against Russia, China, or a military equipped with capabilities from both of these potential adversaries.
We moms have come to reluctantly accept that after their first year of college, most of our college kids have flown the coop.

Theyre like the swallows of San Juan Capistrano, except when they do fly home, they bring way more dirty laundry.

And unlike the nesting birds, college kids definitely dont plan on coming home for the whole summer.

No, they are very busy adulting now, and adulting means no extended returns to childhood bedrooms that still have high school memorabilia on display.

But sometimes, just sometimes, we get lucky. Like Mom-lottery lucky.

And it happened to me.

Instead of the usual one week summer break visit from Colorado College Girl, our oldest daughter ended up staying at home, in Napa, not one week, not two weeks, but almost the ENTIRE SUMMER.

Mom jackpot! Three cherries in a row!

This summer surprise started when Colorado College Girl (CCG) came home at the end of May for BottleRock.

God bless you BottleRock. During the festival my husband introduced our girl to someone who just happened to need graphic design help and the next thing you know college girl was starting an internship Which Will Look Great on Her Resume, as everyone says.

Thanks to my husbands HR matchmaking, instead of a one week visit, College Girl would be home for eight whole weeks!

Oh the mothering glory of it.

I woke up each morning and CCG was still at home. On the weekends CCG was still at home. She unpacked her suitcase. Onto her floor. But who cares? Go ahead and be as sloppy as you want, girl. Momma loves you and your mess.

While my husband and I were wallowing in the luxury of week after week with our daughter, her sisters had varying responses to the news of her extended stay.

Meh, said one Huffman daughter, shrugging her shoulders.

How much LONGER will she be here? asked the other Huffman daughter/car-borrowing competitor.

Meanwhile, Mom and Dad continued to bask in her presence, like a total eclipse of the sun that you drop everything to witness.

We watched Giants games together. We watched Game of Thrones together. We had family dinners with all of us at one table. We had a birthday swim party for her at Grandma and Grandpas house. We watched our favorite Disney movies.

I had to keep pinching myself. This was Mom life at its best.

The truth is, when CCG is off at school, she does her own thing.

We talk, but its not the same as living in the same house. I dont get that same physical mother/daughter fix that we moms crave.

This summer, I felt like I got to know our oldest girl again.

I realized shes changed. Shes more mature. Shes more patient.

And I like who she is.

After all, she is 23 now, and I do believe that is the age when the experts say their brains really begin to start working like a Real Grown Up.

But I know what happens next.

Next week shes going back to college. Girls gotta start her classes again. Theres more learning to do.

Were already talking about an October visit.

Ill pick out the movies.
ST. HELENA  When the sign went up at the corner of Deer Park Road and Silverado Trail this spring, the news spread quickly: Dinwiddies Peach Orchard is for sale.

The first concern, of course, was for Dr. Wendell Dinwiddie, the retired St. Helena Hospital surgeon who owned the 2.6 acres that backed up to the Napa River. News of his death on June 9 was naturally upsetting. He was a well-known and well-liked surgeon, who for 30 years had worked at the hospital. And, subsequently, there were numerous letters in the St. Helena Star remembering the doctors kindness, his generosity, and, of course, his glorious peaches.

But the doctors death also triggered concerns that a summer landmark might disappear.

With vineyards on all sides, the Dinwiddie peach orchard stood out as a beloved curiosity in a valley that had become shoulder-to-shoulder, mono-culturally farmed wine grapes.

According to June Ferguson, who has managed the orchard stand for the last 10 years, people expressed concern that the orchard would suffer the fate of becoming yet another Napa Valley vineyard.

According to a 2011 interview, Dr. Dinwiddie started planting the peach trees around 1987 after experimenting with several other crops. Dinwiddie, who said that both his grandfathers had been farmers, mused in the interview that perhaps farming was in his blood. His maternal grandfather had farmed in San Jose when it was still called the valley of hearts delight, and his paternal grandfather homesteaded in North Dakota and Saskatchewan, Canada.

The peaches may have started out as a convenient crop, but their significance grew over the years.

Dinwiddie began to see the same customers returning season after season, and that syncopated summer rhythm led him, he said, to evaluate the actual reasons he kept growing and selling peaches at the corner of Silverado and Deer Park.

Its a service to the community, he said in 2014. So many people count on it and I enjoy the customers  so many people in town I would never see otherwise, and very interesting people in the valley I would never have come across without the fruit stand.

Andy Wild said he had been coming down from Calistoga for the peaches for years, and the thought that he and his son Porter wouldnt be able to get their boxes of sun-ripened peaches would be a disruption of a family tradition. We keep coming back, trying to keep up with the peaches, he said recently.

And keeping up with the peaches isnt exactly a simple job. The peach stand isnt open every day. Customers have to keep an eye out for the sign beside the stand that announces when the next peach harvest will come in. It might be Sunday, or it might be Friday, or it might be Wednesday. But never Saturday because, according to Ferguson, the orchard workers wont work Saturdays.

And with the Dinwiddie peach trees planted so that the peaches ripen sequentially through Labor Day, loyal customers have been trained to keep an eye on the sign announcing the day of the week when peaches will be ready and the stand will be open.

In 2011, Dinwiddie said, We try to have them as ripe as possible before we sell them. That makes them better than they are in the store because in the store they have to pick them greener and they dont have the flavor. We dont rate our peaches commercially because we dont ship.

And when those peaches are gone, it will be another whole year before more will be available.

And what about the For Sale sign? By July 1, the sign had disappeared and the fruit stands Open Next Sunday sign suddenly reappeared.

June Ferguson, standing behind the counter, explained. Michael and Michelle Loughlin bought the orchard, she said. They have a house in Calistoga, and theyre hoping to keep things the way theyve always been. Evidently, Dr. Dinwiddie and Mr. Loughlin had been talking for some time.

Michael Loughlin is listed on Bloomberg as chief risk officer and senior executive vice president at Wells Fargo & Company. He was unavailable for an interview.

However, at the fruit stand, June Ferguson is continuing the tradition of selling the eight varieties of peaches with her daughter Kathleen Floodman.

In the corner of the fruit stand is a small table filled with peach jam jars in front of a smiling photograph of Dr. Dinwiddie. People stop there, too, including Beth Pryor, who is a neighbor of the Dinwiddies. She had come by to purchase a box of peaches with her son George.

As she exchanged news with Ferguson, George selected a piece of fruit and was working diligently to eat every bit of it. As the peach juice dripped down his fingers and as he wandered between the fruit stalls, one got the impression that this was exactly the kind of peach stand that Dr. Dinwiddie had always imagined.

Peaches will be sold at the fruit stand on selected days until Labor Day.
The high-level individuals leaving the Trump administration must be a record. Eleven since the end of January averaging out to almost two per month. The latest, Mr. Anthony Scaramucci, now holds a record of sorts as the shortest serving White House communications director in history. He was in office exactly ten days when the White House Chief of Staff, General John Kelly -- himself a new hire -- fired him on Monday.

Among other problems, this chaos in the White House has also prevented a coherent policy on Russia. The president wants to improve relations with Russia -- a view supported by the major European powers. That this commonality of interests could have been turned into concrete support is plain to see, and that it was not makes White House incompetence transparent. Had he been so armed, he could have gone to the American people and talked about the negative consequences of the sanctions, the economic costs to Europe, plus worsening relations and the upping of tensions with the only military power capable of destroying America. Instead, a naked president received a bill passed by veto-proof majorities in the House and Senate -- the latter in a vote of 98 - 2. Note only does the bill increase sanctions on Russia, but it impedes any effort on his part to remove them.



In six months he has been unable to muster any kind of support on Russia in Congress; he is unable to use the bully pulpit to speak directly to the American people or make any effort to sway any but the most ardent of his supporters -- such failure for a move towards peace, which most Americans correctly informed about Ukraine would welcome. Instead we get 2 a.m. infantile rants on real and perceived slights.



Putin's patience has run out. His response to the sanctions: an unprecedented expulsion of 755 U.S. diplomats. Crimea will never be given up.





Iran has decided to ignore the slights against it in the sanctions bill, and it is understandable when both Trump and Netanyahu together are spoiling for a fight. The last object of congressional ire in the bill, North Korea, has delivered a metaphorical middle finger raised from a closed fist in the form of a missile rising straight up. The experts inform us that its trajectory and height demonstrate a capacity to reach any city in the United States.



Trump's response was belligerent and telling. He assured us any war would be fought over there. In other words, 'America first' applies also to South Korean and Japanese lives. In the Korean war, the north wanted to bomb Japan because it was being used as a bomber base, but its Chinese and Russian sponsors were afraid of expanding the war. No such constraints now. As for the other U.S. staunch ally, South Korea, a third of its population lives in Seoul and its suburbs are all within heavy artillery range. The resulting carnage could cost hundreds of thousands of lives.

It's an ill wind ... as the saying goes, and it is blowing some good. The late-night talk-show comedians are having a ball. Belly-splitting skits and satire abound. Michael Moore the activist film maker has a show 'The Terms of My Surrender' that has just opened on Broadway. The tagline "Can a Broadway show bring down a President?" might appear far-fetched until you realize Moore predicted early that Trump would win and even gave the reasons why. He believes the way to bring down this absurd presidency is by laughing at him. "His thin skin is so thin," he says, "he can't take being laughed at."






As America marked the 50th anniversary of US president John F. Kennedy's assassination four years ago, a clear majority of Americans (according to polls by Gallup and AP/GfK) still believed that the whole truth of what happened in Dallas on November 22, 1963 remains unknown: That Lee Harvey Oswald did not act alone and that the killing was in fact the result of a conspiracy.

One good reason for that belief, or at least for skepticism as to the truth of the official narrative, is continued government secrecy.

To this very day, thousands of government files -- mostly produced by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency -- remain classified and hidden from public view.

The John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act, passed by Congress in 1992, requires the release of the last of those documents no later than this October unless US president Donald Trump intervenes to keep them secret on grounds of "national security." Politicoreports that "Congressional and other government officials have told us in confidence that at least two federal agencies -- likely the CIA and FBI -- are expected to appeal to Trump to block the unsealing of at least some of the documents."

The Politico report focuses on a document release in late July which is intriguing because it reveals CIA skepticism of the official narrative. No, no "smoking gun" revelations of additional assassins on the grassy knoll, nor even hints at a wider conspiracy, but rather fear that Oswald's motives, if fully explored, might badly embarrass the agency.

The Warren Commission dismissed those motives as mere "hatred for American society." But suppose Oswald acted from anger at the CIA's series of failed attempts on the life of Cuba's Fidel Castro?

The CIA has long since copped to its Castro assassination campaign. But admitting that that campaign's sole fruit was the killing of an American president even as the agency's actual target lived to a ripe old age and died a natural death would smart to this very day.

And who knows? 54 years ago such a revelation might have even prompted real public reconsideration of the young but quickly growing national security state president Dwight D. Eisenhower had warned the nation of in his farewell address only two years before.

If the final documents are released and it turns out that "Oswald's act was blowback" is the secret that's been so closely guarded these 50-odd years, it likely won't be enough to spark such a reconsideration. 9/11 has probably secured the future of America as a garrison state for at least another generation come what may.

But let's see that material anyway. What say you, CIA? If you've got nothing to hide, you've got nothing to fear, right?
The scope of the corruption is nothing less than an earthquake in Israeli public affairs. "Netanyahu's indictment is inevitable." While media and the ruling class are privy to the details, courts issue gag orders to keep the public in the dark.



(Image by Public - State of Israel) Details DMCA



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(Image by Public - State of Israel) Details DMCA



Figure. Wide-scope ex parte gag order, pertaining to corruption investigations against Netanyahu, was issued on August 03, 2017, by Judge Einat Ron, following a request by the Israel police. Media described it as "rubber stamping" for the Israel police requests.

___

Tel-Aviv, August 05 -- Central Region Judge Einat Ron granted a second ex parte request by the Israel police for a wide-scope gag order on details of ongoing corruption investigations against PM Netanyahu.

Following dramatic developments of recent days, primarily the signing of plea bargains with two Netanyahu confidants, media predict that "Netanyahu's indictment is inevitable". [i]

Beyond the bribing, deceit and breach-of-trust suspicions, the most shocking scandals pertain to allegations of massive corruption in IDF procurement programs, going on for years. IDF has maintained a high level of public trust, and corruption in security matters is perceived as treason.

The latest developments are nothing less than a constitutional crisis in a nation with no constitution. They raise concern of incompetence and failure of the current government system:
I get a lot of complaints about our letters and commentaries on our opinion pages. Too liberal, too conservative. Too favorable to development, too biased against development. Too pro-wine, too anti-wine.

Nothing, however, gets quite the same reaction as the topic of religion.

Occasionally, well get a series of religious-themed letters, such as a debate back in 2016 over the evidence for (or against) the existence of God, or the debates in 2014 and 2015 over the practice of tithing. We have one occasional writer who likes to tweak believers by cataloging contradictions in the Bible.

We also get commentaries submitted by religious leaders (Rabbi Lee Bycel, for example, was a frequent name in our pages before his recent retirement). Sometimes, when the flow of local letters and commentaries from readers slows to a trickle and I am in need of something to keep the opinion pages filled, I will pick up an essay from the venerable weekly Thursday Pulpit series from the Weekly Calistogan and St. Helena Star. We had to do this several times in July since our normally prolific cadre of letter writers seemed to be on vacation.

Anytime we have even a small handful of religious-related items on the opinion pages, I start to get letters and emails like this:

If I or anyone else is interested in hearing a religious sermon, there are many houses of worship in Napa where such sermons are available on a weekly basis. You may personally be highly religiously motivated. That, however, does not make a secular newspaper the proper venue for religious tracts.

Or this:

Napa is not an exclusively Christian city nor our nation a Christian countrywe remain deeply offended by the supposition that when we purchase the Register, we must pay for and be subjected to not just Christian-related information, but Christian messaging and heavily biased content.

One letter writer suggested back in 2015 that we ban religion entirely from the Opinion pages.

The column inches of the letters section are precious space for public comment. I look forward daily to reading the opinions and insights of citizens regarding local issues, she wrote. May I suggest that the Letters to the Editor section be secular? Perhaps religious discussions can [be] printed on the Religion page as essays or sermons.

I am not a religious person, but I find it odd that we get such a hostile reaction to matters of faith, particularly given that they appear on the opinion page. I have never had any complaints that we allow political opinions in a non-partisan newspaper. Or that we give too much space to development and land use issues in a general interest publication. But something about religious issues seems to irritate some readers, even if it is just as much a matter of opinion as any secular topic.

Heres how I look at it. You dont have to be a believer to realize that faith occupies an important place in the lives of many people. Id be willing to bet a large percentage of readers, perhaps even a majority, have attended some kind of religious service or ceremony in the last year, probably in the last month or even week.

To arbitrarily restrict religious views on the opinion page would be to ignore a vast and important part of our community. Worse, it would mark us not so much as a secular newspaper, but as an anti-religious one.

So well keep allowing religious-themed letters as long as they meet our other general standards of length and decorum, and Ill continue to use the Thursday Pulpit items occasionally, though as always, I will give higher priority to original letters and commentaries that come in through regular channels.

Dont like it? Dont see your perspective (religious or otherwise) reflected? Please write me a letter to the editor.
From Consortium News

Co-written by Randy Credico

Italian journalist Stefania Maurizi, who now reports for La Repubblica and has worked on WikiLeaks' releases of secret documents, complains that her recent interview with Julian Assange was distorted by the Guardian, the Washington Post and others to assign Assange a pro-Trump agenda.

The Guardian recently "amended" its reporting on her interview with Assange, but for the feisty, seasoned reporter it wasn't nearly enough. "I appreciate the Guardian amending the article, but at the same time the damage is done and I'm not convinced it was a solution," she said.

Maurizi is going to court in September in Great Britain to fight for the release of key documents that related directly to the process of Assange's treatment and his pursuit by various governments collaborating to shut his operations down.

"This is the first time that a reporter has tried to get access to these files," she said in a rare interview on Aug. 1, "which tells you something about the state of journalism these days."

Before joining la Repubblica, Maurizi spent 10 years working for the Italian newsmagazine l'Espresso. Maurizi also partnered with Glenn Greenwald to reveal the Edward Snowden files as they pertain to Italy. She is author most recently of Dossier WikiLeaks.

Dennis Bernstein: Tell us about your multiple struggles to get key documents that will shed light on the entire Assange affair.

Stefania Maurizi: I have spent the past two years struggling to access the documents on the Julian Assange case. I was finally forced to go to court and sue the UK government to get them to hand over the documents. This is the first time that a reporter has tried to get access to these files, which tells you something about the state of journalism these days.

Dozens of newspapers have talked with Assange over the past 10 years and yet no one has attempted to get full access to these documents about the case. Here we have a high-profile publisher who is being arbitrarily detained by two of the most respected Western democracies, Sweden and the United Kingdom, and no one is trying to get to these documents. It is incredible to me.

Randy Credico: Are any newspapers in London writing amicus briefs on your behalf?

SM: Honestly, I don't know. I can imagine there is some embarrassment about the fact that no newspaper has yet asked for these documents.

DB: What kinds of information do you expect to be in these documents? What could be the case in terms of freeing Julian Assange?

SM: First of all, I want to access the full correspondence between the UK authorities and the Swedish prosecutors. In 2015 I filed a Freedom of Information Act request and I obtained some documents from the Swedish authorities which made very clear that the UK put pressure on the Swedish authorities not to question Mr. Assange in London, which he and his lawyers had requested, but rather to extradite him to Sweden. This is why we have been in this legal quagmire for five years now with Julian stuck in arbitrary detention at the Ecuadorian embassy.

Julian Assange has never refused questioning. He has fought against extradition because he knows that extradition to Sweden would result in extradition to the United States. So the UK authorities advised the Swedish prosecutor against questioning him in London, which would have avoided this arbitrary detention.

I know for certain that there are thousands of documents pertaining to this case. I want to be able to access any documents pertaining to the exchange between the US and UK authorities and I want to access any documents about the exchange between the UK and Ecuador. I believe that there is a strong public interest in shedding light on this important and high-profile case. Can you imagine a high-profile editor in Europe under arbitrary detention? And yet no one is asking for the documents in this case!

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This morning we handed out flyers on Kellogg Boulevard in St. Paul. We encountered very few who knew why it is called that. Frank Kellogg was a hero in the sense that a whistleblower is a hero. He was a Secretary of State who had nothing but contempt for peace activism, until peace activism became too powerful, too mainstream, too irresistible. Then Kellogg changed his view, helped create the Kellogg-Briand Pact, and as Scott Shapiro notes in his wonderful forthcoming book, orchestrated a nasty and dishonest campaign to get himself a Nobel Peace Prize, rather than allowing that prize to go to Salmon Levinson, the activist who had initiated and led the movement to outlaw war.

The Pact is still on the books, still the supreme law of the land. It explicitly and clearly bans all war unless you choose to interpret it, as indeed did some of the Senators who ratified it, as silently permitting without defining "defensive war," or unless you claim that it was overturned by the creation of the United Nation Charter which legalized both "defensive war" and war authorized by the United Nations (the opposite of what most people think the U.N. Charter did), or unless you claim (and this is more common than you might think) that because war exists a law forbidding war is therefore invalidated (try telling a police officer that because you were speeding the law against speeding is overturned).

There are in fact numerous wars underway, not authorized by the U.N., and -- by definition -- with at least one party not fighting "defensively." The U.S. bombings in 8 countries in the past 8 years have all been illegal under the U.N. Charter. First-strike bombings of impoverished countries halfway around the globe are the antithesis of anybody's definition of "defensive." And the notion that the U.N. authorized attacking Afghanistan or some country other than Iraq, which most people are aware it refused to authorize, is just urban myth. The authorization on Libya was to prevent a massacre that was never threatened, not to overthrow the government. Its use for the latter resulted in the U.N.'s refusal on Syria. The notion that Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen, or the Philippines can authorize a foreign military to make war on its own people can be debated, but is nowhere articulated in the Peace Pact or in the U.N. Charter. The so-called "responsibility to protect" is merely a concept, whether or not you agree with me that it is a hypocritical and imperialist concept; it's not to be found in any law. So, if we just want to point to a law that current wars violate, why not point to one that people have heard of, namely the U.N. Charter? Why dust off a law that sits somewhere between the first-they-ignore-you and the then-they-laugh-at-you stages of progress?

First and foremost, I wrote my book When the World Outlawed War to highlight the wisdom, skill, strategy, and determination of the movement that created the Kellogg-Briand Pact. Part of that wisdom lies in the position articulated by Levinson and other outlawrists that ALL war, not just "aggressive war," needs to be banned, stigmatized, and rendered unimaginable. These outlawrists often used an analogy to dueling, pointing out that not only had aggressive dueling been banned, but the entire institution eliminated, including "defensive dueling." This is what they wanted done to war. They wanted war and preparations for war, including weapons dealing, ended, and replaced by the rule of law, conflict prevention, dispute resolution, moral, economic, and individual punishment and ostracism. The notion that they generally believed ratifying the pact would, on its own, end all war is as factual as Columbus's belief in a flat earth.

The outlawrists' movement was an uncomfortably large coalition, but one that refused to compromise on the outlawing of ALL war (which is likely how most of the key activists viewed the very clear language of the pact, but also likely how much of the public viewed it). The outlawrists' arguments were very often moral ones in a manner much less common in today's cynical and advertising-saturated world in which activists have been conditioned to appeal only to selfish interests.

Whatever you make of the wisdom of or the actual presence of defensive war thinking in the 1920s, we cannot today survive it. Defensive or just war thinking permits the military spending that kills first and foremost by diverting resources from human and environmental needs. Tiny fractions of military spending could end hunger, unclean water, various diseases, and the use of fossil fuels. A theoretical just war would have to be so just as to outweigh decades of this murderous diversion of resources as well as all the blatantly unjust wars it has been generating, as well as the ever-increasing risk of nuclear apocalypse generated by the institution of war, not to mention the damage that institution does to the natural environment, civil liberties, domestic policing, representative government, etc.

An additional reason to remember Kellogg-Briand is to understand its historical significance. Prior to the Pact, war was understood as legal and acceptable. Since the creation of the Pact, war is generally considered illegal and barbaric unless waged by the United States. That exception is part of why calculations that claim war has dramatically diminished in recent decades seem to me mistaken. Other parts of why that is include what seem to be faulty casualty counts and other slanted uses of statistics.

Regardless of whether you think that war is -- as some forms of violence pretty clearly are -- diminishing, we need to recognize a particular problem and identify creative tools for dealing with it. I'm speaking of the U.S. government's addiction to war. Since World War II, the U.S. military has killed some 20 million people, overthrown at least 36 governments, interfered in at least 82 foreign elections, attempted to assassinate over 50 foreign leaders, and dropped bombs on people in over 30 countries. This extravaganza of criminal killing is documented at DavidSwanson.org/WarList. In last year's Republican primaries a debate moderator asked a candidate if he would be willing to kill hundreds and thousands of innocent children. Last weak U.S. media voices were outraged by a White House announcement that henceforth it would fight on only one side of the war in Syria, a war that the head of U.S. "special operations" last week said was clearly illegal for the U.S. to be in.

When people want to legalize torture or lawless imprisonment or human rights for corporations they appeal to marginalia in court proceedings, overturned vetoes, and all sorts of nonsense that isn't law. Why not hold up a law that is on the side of peace? Veterans For Peace here in the Twin Cities has led the way on this project, getting support for the Pact into the Congressional Record and Frank Kellogg Day proclaimed by the City Council in 2013.

Here's another idea: why not get non-party states around the world to sign onto KBP? Or get existing parties to re-state their commitment and demand compliance?

Or why not create a global movement to replace or reform the United Nations and the International Criminal Court and the World Court with truly global, democratic bodies capable of requiring compliance with the rule of law by all the usual nations of the world plus the United States as well? We have the means of creating a global body representing local populations in proportion to population. We are not limited to a collection of nations as the means of overcoming nationalism.

Robert Jackson, Chief U.S. Prosecutor at the trials of Nazis for war and related crimes held in Nuremberg, Germany, following World War II, set a standard for the world, basing his prosecution squarely on the Kellogg-Briand Pact. "The wrongs which we seek to condemn and punish," he said, "have been so calculated, so malignant, and so devastating, that civilization cannot tolerate their being ignored, because it cannot survive their being repeated." Jackson explained that this was not victors' justice, making clear that the United States would itself submit to similar trials if it were ever forcibly compelled to do so following an unconditional surrender. "If certain acts of violation of treaties are crimes, they are crimes whether the United States does them or whether Germany does them," he said, "and we are not prepared to lay down a rule of criminal conduct against others which we would not be willing to have invoked against us."

As the Outlawrists and their allies ever since have sought to make Woodrow Wilson's war-to-end-all-war propaganda reality, we ought to try to do the same with Jackson's.

When Ken Burns begins a documentary on the American war on Vietnam by calling it a war begun in good faith we should be able to recognize a lie and an impossibility. We don't imagine rapes begun in good faith, slavery begun in good faith, child abuse begun in good faith. If someone tells you a war was begun in good faith, make a good faith effort to destroy your television.
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From AlterNet

Several government agencies are abandoning enforcement of equal rights to elevate white America.



Donald Trump - Caricature

(Image by DonkeyHotey) Details DMCA



Trump appointees with white power leanings are not just scaling back federal civil rights protections. They are elevating the defense of white Americans across the government as the nation's demographics become increasingly diverse.

This startling shift can be seen across many departments, from justice to education to environmental protection to labor. It's not just top appointees in policymaking posts who have long opposed affirmative action and worked to subvert equal rights for minorities; it's also emerging civil rights enforcement directives, proposed budgets slashing civil rights lawyers and announcements for new anti-minority agendas.

"This White House initiative represents a dangerous departure from policies and practices that help heal our nation's racial divisions; instead, it serves as a desperate appeal to the worst fears of those who consciously or subconsciously despise the increasing diversity and shifting power dynamic in America today," said Edward A. Hailes Jr., managing director and general counsel at Advancement Project's national office.

This pro-white cant was heard at the White House Wednesday, when Trump and two GOP senators, Arkansas' Tom Cotton and Georgia's David Perdue, proposed legislation to make it harder for non-English-speaking foreigners to get green cards making them legal visitors, which Cotton said hurts the working class.

"It [the current immigration system] puts great downward pressure on people who work with their hands and work with their feet," Cotton said, speaking to Trump's white base -- who often lack higher education but have solid middle-class incomes. "Now, for some people, they may think that's a symbol of America's virtue and generosity. I think it's a symbol we're not committed to working-class Americans. And we need to change that."

Trump's support for cutting legal immigration in half revives his racist campaign attacks on non-whites and national identity. It's one more sign that suggests his slogan, "Make America Great Again," actually means "Make White America Great Again." Another sign came earlier this week when his appointees at the Justice Department, the hub of civil rights enforcement for the past 50 years, announced they were looking to hire lawyers for "investigations and possible litigation related to intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions." This revives the anti-white bias issue after the Supreme Court rejected it in 2016, although a longtime white supremacist legal crusader is seeking to revive it in Texas state court.

"DOJ's active investigation of race-conscious admissions policies is expected to have a chilling effect on those institutions, public and private, committed to pursuing the educational benefits of diversity," Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said Wednesday. "AG Sessions is diverting critical resources on a wasteful campaign to recruit DOJ attorneys to dismantle the very policies that helped to level the playing field caused by years of debilitating discrimination."

But the DOJ announcement did not occur in a vacuum. At the Department of Education, acting civil rights chief Candace Johnson has said the agency will narrow the way it looks at campus-based sexual and racial discrimination cases. Johnson has opposed affirmative action for non-whites since her student days at Stanford University. The agency also wants to eliminate 40 civil rights division posts.

The Environmental Protection Agency's new leaders want to end its environmental justice initiatives, which serve communities of color. The Labor Department wants to shut its anti-discrimination office.

But the signals coming from the Department of Justice are sweeping, and span a range of areas that suggest appointees with white power leanings have taken the reins. The DOJ is also backing away from consent decrees, which it has used to push local police departments and municipalities to change policies contributing to institutional racism.

DOJ spokespeople would not comment why the department's new senior appointees want to investigate race-based discrimination at universities. But there are strong clues where that agenda may be coming from, as some of the same people who have urged the DOJ to refocus the Voting Section's priorities on policing the vote have also sued state universities over lower tuition rates for undocumented students.

In late March, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who Trump appointed as vice chair to a presidential election integrity commission, and several appointees wrote a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions urging him to purge the DOJ of liberal lawyers and return to "race-neutral voting rights enforcement."

That means stop suing red states for harsh voter ID laws that have been shown to discriminate against non-whites, and stop suing red states for illegal race-based gerrymanders. States that have lost in federal court to the DOJ include Texas, North Carolina and Alabama (Sessions' home state). Others appointed to Trump's election panel include J. Christian Adams, a former DOJ attorney who has long complained that Obama's DOJ never prosecuted blacks for oppressing white voters.

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Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have called for intensification of the fight against HIV/AIDs and tuberculosis (TB).



They said more was needed to be done to overcome stigmatization and ensure access to antiretroviral drugs by people infected with HIV/AIDs.



The CSOs made the call at a three-day advocacy training workshop held in Kumasi.



The programme was organized by the Hope for Future Generations (HFFG), an NGO and the goal was to help the organizations to engage in advocacy and monitoring of the availability of HIV and TB commodities.



Ms. Olivia Graham, the Coordinator, Technical Support Unit of the Ghana AIDS Commission, said there was the need for the public to give strong support to the infected persons to lead normal lives.



They should not be condemned as being disgraceful but deserved to be shown love and care.



She urged the opening of more antiretroviral therapy (ART) centres to enable the patients to access treatment.



Mr. David Nartey Tekpenor, Programmes Manager of HFFG, said the workshop was part of a one-year project to equip the CSOs with advocacy, monitoring and data gathering skills on HIV and TB commodities in three districts.



These are the Kumasi Metropolis, Bekwai and Obuasi Municipalities.



The project is aimed at tearing down the barrier of public stigmatization and being implemented by the HFFG in partnership with the Ghana HIV and AIDS Network (GHANET), another NGO.



The finding is coming from the United States (US) Ambassadors Small Grants Project.



Mr. Tekpenor said they would be working closely with the Ghana AIDS Commission, Ghana Health Service, Ghana-West African Programme to Combat AIDS and STIs (WAPCAS), and the Network of Association of Persons Living with HIV (NAP+Ghana), the media, traditional and religious leaders to achieve the goal.

Source: GNA









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Professor Michael Aaron Ocquaye, the Speaker of Parliament on Friday cautioned against the politicisation of national issues, and challenged the position of Dr Kwame Nkrumah as the Founder of modern Ghana.



At a public lecture delivered in Accra, Prof Oquaye, a Historian, Academic and Pastor said there was the need for the political history of the country to be told in its entirety.







The lecture, titled: "4th August; Ghana's Day of Destiny," formed part of the activities marking the 60th independence anniversary of Ghana.







The United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) was founded at as Ghanas day of destiny because the vision for the country was drafted that day.







Formed at Saltpond in the Central Region, the UGCC, was the precursor of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), and according to Prof Oquaye, Ghanas march to independence predated the March 6, 1957 declaration day.







The lecture, seeking to set the records straight explained that the progenitors of NPP, founded Ghana and not Kwame Nkrumah.







Prof Oquaye said: "Men and women inspired by love for country met in Saltpond to work for self-governance and freedom from globalisation. I have great regard for Dr Kwame Nkrumah as a great Ghanaian but the truth must be told.







"A recap of the chronology of events shows that before the arrival of Nkrumah, some gallant Ghanaians were taking steps to lead Ghana to independence. That is truism. People have regrettably asked how we can have more than one founder to such compatriots.







I humbly lend them this advice. Foundership cannot be pursued in monopoly terms.







The Speaker said Nkrumah, the first President of Ghana contributed towards independence, but was not the countrys founder.







He explained that the first President became one of Ghanas founding fathers by his association with members of the UGCC.







"I have a great regard for Nkrumah but the truth is, he is not the Founder of Ghana," the Speaker said.







The Speaker, a native of Osu in the Greater Accra Region, reminisced his younger days at Asamakese in the Eastern Region where he grew up and said he met some of the founding fathers of the UGCC.







In a Biblical allusion and proverbs in the local Akan and Ga languages, Prof Oquaye compared the story of Dr Nkrumah to that of the Apostle Paul in the Bible, who later converted to Christianity after the death of Christ, but took a central role in the work of first century Christianity.



.



He said the story of Nkrumah and the founders of the United Gold Coast Convention was similar to biblical Paul who was not present during the last Supper with Christ, as were Peter James and John but was credited to have played a major role in the spread of Christianity.







He told his audience, among whom were President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, former President John Agyekum Kufuor, Mr Ivor Greenstreet, the 2016 Presidential Candidate of the Convention People's Party (CPP) and Mr Bernard Mornah, of the People's National Convention (PNC), that he cautioned the late President John Evans Atta Mills against the institution of the Founder's, Day in September 21, in honour of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, but he went ahead to do that in 2009.







Prof Oquaye said Dr Nkrumah was not the only one deserving to be honoured, adding: "Honour must be given to the deserving men who are the founding fathers of Ghana.







He was of the view that he political fortunes of the CPP would continue to dwindle if the Party did not detach itself from the National Democratic Congress (NDC).







He blamed the NDC for making inroads into the CPP.







Describing the NDC having no tradition, Prof Oquaye said the CPP had been swallowed by the NDC, and as a truism, the CPP should know who swallowed them.







If the CPP want to survive they must proceed to extricate themselves from the bowels of NDC, then they will survive, the Speaker said.







The CPP, led by Nkrumah, was overthrown on February 24, 1966 by the National Liberation Council, and the Party was subsequently banned by the coup makers, which compelled some supporters of the tradition to form various parties.





Source: Benjamin Mensah, GNA









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When President Donald Trump is feeling put-upon, he retreats to his happy place: standing before a crowd of enthusiastic supporters who will cheer wildly for him and allow him to feel as though it's still the 2016 campaign. So last night he went to West Virginia so that he could feel the love and be able to dismiss the widening and deepening investigation as nothing more than a witch hunt. But if it's a witch hunt, there are an awful lot of people around the president who just happen to be wearing pointy hats.

Let's run down everything that we learned just on Thursday and Friday about where the Russia investigation is going:

- "Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III began using a grand jury in federal court in Washington several weeks ago as part of his investigation of possible coordination between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign," which allows him to subpoena testimony and documents. While this is not a surprise (that's how special counsels work), if nothing else it shows that the initial phase of the investigation produced enough evidence to keep going.

- The grand jury "has issued subpoenas in connection with a June 2016 meeting that included President Donald Trump's son, his son-in-law and a Russian lawyer, two sources told Reuters on Thursday, signaling an investigation is gathering pace into suspected Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election."

- The grand jury has also subpoenaed documents related to former national security adviser Michael Flynn's business dealings, and Flynn "filed an amended federal financial disclosure report late Thursday providing new details about his contracts with the Trump presidential transition, a company connected to an Iranian American businessman, and the parent company of a data science firm that worked for the Trump campaign." Funny how people like Flynn and Jared Kushner keep remembering things they forgot to include on their disclosure forms.

- According to CNN, FBI "investigators turned up intercepted communications appearing to show efforts by Russian operatives to coordinate with Trump associates on damaging Hillary Clinton's election prospects, officials said. CNN has learned those communications included references to campaign chairman Paul Manafort."

- Vox reports: "Shortly after the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller in May, acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe told several of the highest-ranking managers of the bureau they should consider themselves possible witnesses in any investigation into whether President Donald Trump engaged in obstruction of justice, according to two senior federal law enforcement officials." As one senior law enforcement official described it to Vox, "This has never been the word of Trump against what [James Comey] has had to say. This is more like the Federal Bureau of Investigation versus Donald Trump."

- "Two bipartisan pairs of senators unveiled legislation Thursday to prevent President Trump from firing special counsel Robert S. Mueller III without cause - or at least a reason good enough to convince a panel of federal judges." Although it may be hard to imagine Trump signing such a bill, it's a clear signal that even some in his own party want him to understand that firing Mueller would probably set off a constitutional crisis.

What we have here are three separate tracks of investigation, any one of which could produce evidence of acts that are politically scandalous at a minimum, but could even be criminal. The first is the original justification for the probe: the possibility of collusion between the Russian government and the Trump campaign.

What we know for certain so far is that Russia engaged in an effort to help Trump get elected and that those closest to Trump were at the very least interested in obtaining Russia's help (the now-infamous meeting Donald Trump Jr., Kushner and Manafort took with a group of shady Russians because they believed they would be provided with dirt on Hillary Clinton).

The second track is the question of whether the president himself obstructed justice in his efforts to shut down the Russia probe. What we know so far may or may not constitute obstruction, but it's certainly damning. The president admitted on national television that he fired Comey in order to stop the investigation into Russia. He also tried to enlist the Director of National Intelligence and the head of the National Security Agency to discredit the probe. We don't know what else he may have done or whose help he got.

The third track, which will likely wind up being the most complicated one, is whether there is any other wrongdoing - particularly financial - that is uncovered in the course of investigating the first two tracks. If the special counsel finds evidence suggesting that some crimes have been committed, even if they don't relate directly to the original purpose of the investigation, he has an obligation to pursue them and find out whether there's anything there.

No one who has even a passing familiarity with Trump's business dealings and history believes that once you turn over that rock there won't be lots of slimy creatures squirming about. Some of that may have to do with Russia, since the country's oligarchs and mobsters seem to have been unusually eager to buy Trump properties and invest in Trump projects over the years. But there may also be questionable or criminal dealings that have nothing to do with Russia, and if Mueller comes across them, we can assume he'll pursue them.

And it isn't just Trump himself. Others like Flynn and Manafort have some rather interesting finances, and once Mueller starts pulling on those strings, who knows where they'll lead. Manafort in particular could wind up being the key to the whole scandal, given that his firm has received millions of dollars from interests tied to Russia, and he turned up in those intelligence intercepts.

At that West Virginia rally last week, Trump told his supporters, "The Russia story is a total fabrication. It's just an excuse for the greatest loss in the history of American politics." He then said, "What the prosecutors should be looking at are Hillary Clinton's 33,000 deleted emails," at which the crowd erupted in a positively orgasmic cheer that then turned into chants of "Lock her up!" It was as if they were transported back a year, when they could feel the adrenaline rush of pure hatred flowing through them and everything was simple.

But after it was over, the president flew back to Washington, where nothing is simple and the noose is tightening around him.
Ghanaian Actor James Gardiner has stated that, the Ghanaian movie industry can only thrive if there is unity amongst players of the industry.



Speaking at the launch of Zylofon Medias Ashanti Regional branch, the actor disclosed that disunity amongst industry players is the cause of the ailing movie industry.



The Zylofon media signee also added that its time industry players do away with the division in the industry most especially the Ghallywood and Kumawood factions.



I dont know why we have allowed the division to creep into the industry most especially movie actors in Accra seeing Kumasi actors as Kumawood actors. To me, there is nothing like Kumawood or Ghallywood. We are one people and its time we unite to push the industry forward.



The actor, who joined other signees from Zylofon media at the launch, also ceased the opportunity to express his profound gratitude to the media and industry players who were present to grace the occasion.

Source: Ultimatefmonline









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Racers gathered for the early morning riders meeting.

Everyone was informed on how the fly-by timing procedure worked.

Rules and finishing times were established before heading up the Burke lift in order to get to the first five-mile transfer over to Victory.

After their five mile warm-up to Stage 1, riders lined up in a first come first serve order.

Lauren Petersen lead the charge for the Women's E.W.S. class taking all five stage wins.

Staying at the front of the pack and quickly riding up the transfer stages to try and beat the rain was a strategy used by any riders. James Barthmus pushed him self to stay in the front and ended up with at 5th place for the day in the Masters E.W.S. class.

Matthew Gilbertson, keeping it low on the step-down and currently sitting in 7th in the men's E.W.S. class after day one.

Riders certainly earned their turns after the transfer up to Stage 2.

The dry early morning conditions allowed for mid stage nose bonks.

Jumping rollers is not only fun, it can also be a time saver.

Many sections on each stage allowed for riders to choose their preferred lines.

While the trails at victory are mostly gravity-fed there were still sections where racers could try and make up their lost time in previous sections.

The racers who participated in the E.W.S. class rode all five stages which traversed over 25 miles and required them to climb a total of 4,300ft.

Conditions in the morning were dry and dusty until the rain hit while half the field was still doing stages three and four.

Fast, steep, and rocky chutes were scattered through out the mountain.

When the rain came, open and uncovered sections of track turned quickly to mud.

Awkward rock sections had multiple line choices.

Every corner was approached with added caution the second half of the day.

Marley Reed pushing through the bottom half of Stage 3 preparing for the steep mud-fest ahead.

Ella Skalwold is currently sitting in third in the women's E.W.S. class.

Riders were happy pushing through the last flow sections of Stage 4, before having to make their five-mile trek back to Burke.

A little rain makes a big difference.

Everyone pushed themselves to make up the most time in sections like this.

After a good day of racing, Odin Adolphson is currently sitting in 3rd.

The final stretch on Stage 4. Kelly Ault is now sitting in 4th in the women's E.W.S. class.

People from all around gathered in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont to race the premier trails in the area. Racers were in pursuit of a piece of the $6,000 cash purse and in search of E.W.S. qualifier points. Riders were pushed to their limits as day one was full of on and off rain showers and thunder storms making everything seem completely different from what they were like on practice day. Day one would cover 25 miles which required riders to climb 4,300ft over a total of five stages. With the rain coming down mid race for most riders it would make for some larger time splits on each stage. It seems like there is no way of escaping the rain in enduro racing.Off-camber roots and rocks pushed riders around.Everyone enjoyed a nice meal after their rugged day of racing, before getting to bed early for part two at Burke mountain where they will ride three final stages.
Ginger Cruz, a Lebanon-based consultant on Middle East issues and a former official in the Bush II and Obama administrations, visited the island for the first time in 17 years late last month. Here are excerpts of an interview with her. Parts of the questions were paraphrased for clarity:

Question: Guam officials have been writing letters to officials in Washington. Whats a better way to be heard and to get an audience?

Answer: Its a different atmosphere in Washington, and really, there are two keys to it that are pretty simple. One of them is having an understanding of the media climate because you have to get the environment prepped before you get into a meeting. If nobodys talking about you ... nobody is gonna see you.  If you dont make the splash ... theyre not gonna pay attention and youre not gonna get that bump unless youre really lucky. The other way to do it is use people who have the connections.

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Q: Have you talked to the local leadership in the Government of Guam?

A: Its my first time revisiting Guams issues (after 17 years).  But theres all sorts of ideas.  The investors we work with theyre trying to find ways to invest (possibly in Guam).

Q: Some question a larger military presence on Guam. What are your thoughts?

A: When (talking about) local politics and from what I remember 20 years ago youve got to be careful about that because you dont want to overrun the island with military but by the same token if its done strategically, the financial impact as long as Guam looks at ways to maximize financial impact to really get an injection for the infrastructure  To get the roads expanded and improved and get electricity and water redone  its a golden moment and I think if you take advantage of the refocus of the geopolitical eye on the island and on the region, (you can) turn that leverage to build more opportunities.

Q: How did you (accomplish what youve achieved)?

A: The thing about Guam thats not often experienced in the states is, people are people ... and you treat people the same way whether theyre the secretary of defense, or senator in the Guam Legislature. ... One talent you pick up in Guam is, everybody is the same.  There will be fiestas and you ask hows the family, and everybody knows each other.  That small island familiarity.  Thats one of the things that helped me when I got to the states.  Through a series of really good connections and networking  my college roommate, some other folks Ive got opportunities to network. ... And even when I was inspector general in the Bush and Obama administrations  you dont let yourself get daunted by the thought of it.  (You stay true to yourself) like youre briefing with the governor, or youre briefing the senators  or the mayor of Dededo. Theyre just people. (Success) was part luck. I always say that  you always have to work harder than everybody else. You wanna be successful in life? You gotta work harder than everybody else. Theres a meeting at 8 a.m.? Im the kind who would stay up until 11 at night doing the research, so when I show up at the meeting at 8 a.m. I know everything about the subject and I was able to tackle it.  And as opportunities come along, you have to recognize it and just grab it and really go with it.
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.




Tenants Feeling Discriminated and Retaliated by Sherman Oaks based Property Management.

By: EEEnterprises

Letter from Felman, Daggenhurts & El Dabe on behal

Contact

Alex Leon, VP of Marketing & Public Relations

World Wide Vital Marketing and Public Relations

***@gmail.com Alex Leon, VP of Marketing & Public RelationsWorld Wide Vital Marketing and Public Relations

End

-- This is something that keeps happening in Los Angeles. Property investors buy properties and then want to make huge profits.EE, AL & AV, very good tenants and paying their rent on time since 4/2013 each month to the present are living a nightmare due to the fact that they're getting threats from a law office of Felman, Daggenhurts & El Dabe on behalf of (LBPM) a property management in Southern California San Fernando Valley areas who is not an accredited member of Better Business Bureaus. LBPM Property Management has lots of negative reviews on Yelp from landlords and tenants.Since the new property owner purchased the apartment complex, he hired the worst property management in San Fernando Valley that does not fix things at the tenants units neither take care of the property. These apartment have not been remode since purchase. When tenants move in they were harrass by drug dealers sellers and consumers.The tenants have filed a complaint with the LA Housing and Community Investment Department for failure and violations of the Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO).Also tenants feel this is retaliation which is against the city of LA Housing and Community Investment Department. Also tenants been discriminated because they speak Spanish to the property management staff that may have mental issues.Tenants knows their rights and knows the landlord obligations to them. Tenants will utilized any resourches to stop this kind of retaliation and discrimination.To the future tenants and property owners if you don't want to live on a nightmare, then think before you do business with a disgrace and unprofessional organization such as LBPM.At this time, tenants law office is looking to the letters and will reply to the law office.Alex Leon, Vice President of Marketing & PRLinda England, Events & PR CoordinatorWorld Wide Vital Marketing & Public Relations Inc.TEL: (213) 867-1997FAX: (818) 787-1249worldwidevitalpr.wordpress.comworldwidevitalpr@gmail.com
Local officials say attacks that killed dozens of people in the northern Afghan province of Sari Pul were carried out by Taliban fighters who teamed up with a commander claiming allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) militant group.

Up to 50 people, including women and children, were killed after the militants seized control of the Mirzawalang area in the Sayad district on August 5 following two days of intense gunbattles with security forces, Afghan officials said.

Mirzawalang is in a remote part of the country where both Taliban and IS fighters have a presence.

"According to our credible information, 50 people have been killed," Sharif Aminyar, the district governor of Sayad, said on August 6.

Aminyar added that 18 of the people killed had been members of the Afghan local police and other local government-backed militias, while the rest were civilians.

Mohammad Noor Rahmani, head of the provincial council, said at least 25 civilians were also missing.

Aminyar said that "it was a joint Daesh and Taliban operation," using the Arabic acronym for Islamic State.

"The Taliban were led by Mullah Nader and Daesh was led by Sher Mohammed Ghazanfar," he said.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban, denied any cooperation with IS in the operation.

He said the Taliban carried out the attack on Mirzawalang village, but he denied it was involved in the civilian deaths and abductions.

"Ghazanfar is not Daesh -- he is our commander in Sari Pul, a very active commander, and he is under our command, our flag," he said. "He has allegiance with us."

In the past, the Taliban and IS have fought battles against each other. A combining of their forces, if confirmed, would present a worrying development for the U.S.-backed Afghan government.

General John W. Nicholson Jr., commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, warned of the potential dangers in April.

One of the things we are concerned about here in Afghanistan, the reason we think that the entire world needs to be focused on Afghanistan, is the potential for convergence among the various terrorist groups in this area, he told a news conference at the time.

With reporting by The New York Times, AP, dpa, Reuters, and AFP
Retired Gen. John Kelly has survived combat. The question now is whether he can survive as White House chief of staff.

The answer will be determined in part by challenges faced by every chief of staff, but most importantly by the personal relationship Kelly has with his bossthe president of the United States.

When I became White House chief of staff in 1994, President Bill Clinton was concerned about some of the same difficulties confronting this presidenttoo little discipline, competing centers of power, a weak chain of command, haphazard access to the Oval Office, leaks and a lack of focus on a unified message or priorities. The key, however, was that Clinton recognized these problems and wanted to correct them for the sake of the country and his presidency.

The elements critical to improving White House operations are pretty basic:

1. Trust. There has to be trust between the chief of staff and the president. Each must be honest with the other and be willing to back the other up on personnel and policy decisions.

2. One chief. If there are too many assistants to the president who have no clear portfolio of responsibility but who can go around the chief of staff to the president, that is a prescription for chaos. For the chief to be successful, he must control all staff, know what each person is responsible for and working on, and be fully aware of all policy discussions taking place with the president. That is not to say that staff members should not be free to present their views to the president, only that this should be done pursuant to a process that has been established by the chief of staff and approved by the president.

3. A clear chain of command. Every staff member needs supervision, and that means having clear lines of authority. I put two deputies in place, one responsible for issues and politics, the other for scheduling and personnel. They, in turn, supervised certain employees to ensure that each was doing the job assigned. It is important that staff members feel that they are part of a team serving the president and that they are kept informed about the key messages, issues and priorities of the president. If a chief does this right, it will go a long way toward controlling leaks.

4. An orderly policy-development process. It is critical that there be a system for providing the president with the essential information and options required to make decisions on key issues. The National Security Council has a long-established process of meetings for deputies and principals designed to provide recommendations on critical foreign policy crises. The same should be true on economic and domestic issues. It may be difficult to stop this president from tweeting, but at a minimum he needs to tweet based on a policy process managed by the chief of staff.

5. Telling the president the truth. There has to be one person in the White House willing to look the president in the eye and tell him the truthto tell him when he is wrong and when he is about to make a mistakeand that has to be the chief of staff. Staff members, by their nature, are hesitant to challenge the president for fear of offending him. But it is a disservice to the president and the nation not to make him aware of the political and substantive problems he may confront as a result of a particular decision. No president likes to be told he is wrong. However, to be successful, all presidents have to accept the reality that they are not always right.

Every chief of staff, past and present, has faced these challenges. But success or failure is not just dependent on the chief of staff; it also hinges on the willingness and support of the president. Clinton was willing to make the changes necessary to establish effective White House operations, and he was reelected in 1996. Whether President Donald Trump is willing to make these changes will in large measure determine not just how long Kelly survives as chief of staff, but also the ultimate success or failure of Trumps administration.
Afghan intelligence officials said on August 6 that they had seized a truck in Kabul carrying more than 16 tons of explosives hidden in boxes marked as poultry feed.

The National Directorate of Security said in a statement that the truck had Pakistani license plates, adding that five people were arrested.

"It was loaded with explosives to make bombs, suicide vests and conduct terrorist activities in Kabul," the statement said, adding that 16,500 kilograms of explosives was seized.

On May 31, a massive truck bomb ripped through the Afghan capital's diplomatic quarter during the morning rush hour, killing about 150 and wounding around 400 people, mostly civilians.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack that was caused by over 1,500 kilos of explosives hidden in a sewage truck, according to Western officials.

Taliban militants have intensified their attacks since they launched their "spring offensive" in late April, with civilians bearing the brunt of the conflict.

The United Nations estimates that more than 26,500 civilians have died and nearly 49,000 have been injured as a result of armed conflict in Afghanistan since January 2009.

Based on reporting by AFP and Tolo News


The head of Germanys Free Democratic Party (FDP) has said in an interview that Germany may need to accept the 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region as a "permanent provisional arrangement."

Christian Lindner told the Funke Mediengruppe newspaper chain on August 5 that the move might be necessary to allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to change his policies while still saving face.

"The conflict over the Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Russia must be 'encapsulated' in order to make progress in other areas," he said.

"We have to get out of the dead-end situation," he added. "To break a taboo, I fear that we must see the Crimea as a permanent provisional arrangement, at least for now."

In a video statement after the interview was published, Lindner stressed that recognizing Crimea's annexation was still unacceptable, the Kyiv Post reported.

According to the Tagesschau news website, Lindner's comments contradicted the FDPs official election platform.

"We Free Democrats are calling on the Russian government to put an immediate end to the illegal occupation of the Crimea and the war in eastern Ukraine," the platform says.

Lindners remarks were sharply criticized by Gernot Erler, Germany's Russia policy coordinator and a member of the Social Democrats (SPD).

Erler told Funke Mediengruppe that Europeans had agreed to focus on ending the violence in eastern Ukraine before tackling the issue of Crimea in a political process at a later point.

"It would be helpful if Mr. Lindner would also stick to this agreement," he said. "A common European approach is imperative, especially in light of President [Donald] Trump's withdrawal from the previous consensus approach of the West."

The European Union and the United States imposed sanctions on Russia after it annexed Crimea in March 2014 and for supporting separatist fighters in eastern Ukraine.

Trump has indicated hopes of improving relations with Russia, although his administration has said there is no question of easing sanctions against Moscow until it pulls out of Crimea.

Political polls indicate the FDP could reenter parliament in the September 24 elections after dropping below the required 5 percent in the 2013 vote.

It is seen as a potential coalition partner for Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which is looking to govern without the need for an SPD alliance.

With reporting by Reuters, TASS, and The Kyiv Post
Toomaj Salehi's lyrical support for protesters in Iran has landed him behind bars before, but this time the popular rapper's fortune-telling has fans and family members fearing for his life.

Just days before his September 30 arrest, the 32-year-old Salehi released his latest music video, in which he makes foreboding predictions about the future of Iran's clerical regime if it continues its violent crackdown against ongoing anti-government demonstrations.

"I am the predictor, the fortune teller," he raps in the video for Omen, which shows him reading the patterns left in his coffee cup and warning that brute force will not prevail.

"I saw a cage in the coffee grounds -- a lion was hunting a jackal," he explains, alluding to a fairy tale about wisdom defeating physical strength. "We will rise from the bottom and target the top of the pyramid."

Salehi goes on to warn that the regime's protectors -- including the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), the Basij paramilitary forces, the Intelligence Ministry, and the state media -- will all get their day in court.

Salehi followed up on the new video by posting on social media images of him standing alongside protesters and chanting against security forces in his native city in Isfahan Province. The rapper, an ethnic Lur who was arrested last year after releasing other songs critical of the government, offered to turn himself in if protesters detained in his hometown of Shahinshahr were released.

In subsequent posts, he called the provincial authorities "cowardly vermin" and "scum who suppress and arrest [innocent] people."

Shortly afterward, Salehi went missing and has not been heard from since.

State media reported on September 30 that Salehi had been arrested, and a news agency close to the IRGC published a photo of the blindfolded rapper inside a car.

A short video later released by a press club associated with Iran's state broadcaster purports to show the rapper admitting he made a mistake.

But the reports' claims he had been caught while "illegally exiting the western borders of the country" have been fiercely disputed, and the video confession has been labeled a fake by some and a coerced confession by others.

Family members as well as Salehi's official Twitter account have said the rapper was, in fact, arrested in the southwestern Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province, hundreds of kilometers from Iran's western border.

In a statement, Salehi's uncle Eghbal Eghbali said his nephew was in the province's city of Borujen on the morning of September 30 when he wrote saying "suspicious things" were happening outside his home. Soon after, Salehi stopped communicating. Eghbali said he learned from Salehi's neighbors and friends that security personnel had arrived to take the rapper away.

Later on September 30, a prosecutor in nearby Isfahan Province was quoted by the Meezan news agency, which is close to Iran's judiciary, as saying Salehi was arrested "in one of the provinces of the country." The prosecutor alleged the rapper had played a key role in "creating disturbances and inviting and encouraging the recent disturbances in Isfahan Province and in Shahinshahr."

The official IRNA news agency, meanwhile, quoted a judiciary official from Isfahan Province as saying Salehi stood accused of "propagandistic activity against the government, cooperation with hostile governments, and the formation of illegal groups with the intention of creating insecurity in the country."

Thousands of Iranians, many of them from the younger generation, have taken to the streets in recent weeks to protest the September 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died shortly after being arrested for allegedly violating Iran's hijab law requiring that women cover their hair.

As the protests have continued, the authorities have intensified their crackdown, resulting in the deaths of at least 305 people, including 41 children, according to the latest figures released by the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) on November 6.

Salehi is among the hundreds of prominent young voices, including activists, artists, and athletes, who have been arrested for speaking out against the states bloody crackdown on the protests. Overall, activists estimate thousands of people have been arrested by the authorities since the rallies erupted.

Faced with a potential existential threat to Iran's clerical rule, 227 of 290 Iranian lawmakers this week called for even greater force by urging the judiciary to "deal decisively" with those behind the protests.

In recent years, Salehi has gained notoriety for his open opposition to the country's leadership, using his music and social media presence to take on issues that resonate with Iranian youths.

In the song Normal, he highlights the effects of poverty, saying "Our children sleep hungry at night" and asking Iran's leaders how their conscience can let them sleep.

The song Rathole, released in 2021, accuses members of the media and art community both inside and outside Iran of being an "ally of the tyrant," a reference to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In another song, he blasts Tehran's close relationships with Moscow and Beijing, asking: "Haven't you robbed us enough? Now, you want to give away half [of our resources] to China and the rest to Russia."

Salehi was detained in September 2021 after security agents raided his home in Isfahan, with Human Rights Watch decrying the detention of the artist for "exercising his right to freedom of expression."

Salehi was charged with "spreading propaganda against the state," but after more than a week was released on bail. In January, he was sentenced to six months in prison but was released on a suspended sentence in February.

While out, he continued his work and released Omen amid the states increasingly violent crackdown on anti-government protesters.

"Someone's crime was dancing with her hair in the wind," he raps. "Someone's crime was that she was brave and criticized."

Listing a litany of violent acts carried out by the authorities against protesters, Salehi asks, "How many young people did you kill building a tower for yourself?" and predicts that next year, the 44th year of the clerical regime's rule, will be its "year of failure."

Salehi's arrest has led to widespread condemnation inside and outside Iran, and his advocates have spread the #FreeToomaj hashtag on Twitter to shed light on his situation.

His family has said they do not know Salehi's whereabouts or health, leaving them wondering if he is even alive.

But the authorities have shed some light on the fate of another Iranian rapper arrested shortly before Salehi. The judiciary announced on November 7 that Saman Yasin, a rapper from Kermanshah Province -- a northwestern region with a significant Kurdish population and that has been a focus of the government crackdown -- has been accused of waging "warfare" against Iran and acting against the country's security.

Based on reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Farda, with contributions by RFE/RL senior correspondent Michael Scollon
"We felt the readiness of our U.S. colleagues," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Russian journalists on August 6 following bilateral talks with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) forum in the Philippine capital, Manila. "After all, the dialogue continues. I think an alternative to that simply does not exist," Lavrov said after what he described as "a long meeting with Rex Tillerson." (Reuters, Rossia 24)
On June 22, Vladimir Shamanov, the head of the Russian State Duma's Committee on Defense, announced that Russian military officials were holding talks with their colleagues in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan about the potential deployment of Kazakh and Kyrgyz peacekeepers to Syria.

Even though Russian and Turkish officials were cautiously optimistic that Kazakhstan would agree to deploy troops to Syria, Kazakhstan's Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhamov swiftly denied Shamanov's statement, telling reporters on June 23 that "Kazakhstan is not negotiating with anyone about sending its military service personnel to Syria."



Kazakhstan's emphatic refusal to deploy peacekeepers to Syria contrasted markedly with Kyrgyzstan's openness to a potential deployment, and reveals a growing rift between Astana and Moscow over the mandate of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

While Russia has pushed the CSTO in an interventionist direction to bolster its international credibility as a peacekeeping force, Kazakhstan has argued that the CSTO should refrain from military involvement in the Syrian and Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts. Astana's support for a hands-off CSTO can be explained by widespread internal opposition to Kazakh troop deployments in conflict zones and Kazakhstan's desire to assert its foreign policy independence from Russia.



Destabilization Fears



Kazakhstan's refusal to endorse Russia's CSTO military intervention proposal in Syria can be explained by President Nursultan Nazarbaev's concerns that deploying Kazakh troops in conflict zones would cause political instability in Kazakhstan.

Political opposition to Kazakh troop deployments in Syria would likely come from three principal sources: the Kazakh parliament (Mazhilis), Kazakh veterans groups, and Sunni religious leaders.



As public opposition to a CSTO military intervention resulting in Kazakh civilian casualties is so pervasive, Central Asia security expert Uran Botobekov argued in a recent Jamestown Foundation report that parliamentary resistance to military deployments in Syria was possible, even if Nazarbaev acquiesced to Russia's demands.

Although Nazarbaev's Nur Otan party overwhelmingly dominates the Kazakh parliament and can easily quash dissent, last year's anti-Chinese protests over Kazakh land-reform legislation revealed that disregarding public opinion has negative political consequences.

Therefore, deferring to public opinion on military deployments will prevent unrest in Kazakhstan and strengthen Nazarbaev's position by lending symbolic credibility to Astana's January 2017 constitutional reforms, which formally reduced the scope of Nazarbaev's presidential powers.

Afghan War Vets



In addition to the potential for public unrest facilitated by dissenting parliamentary factions, Astana's refusal to deploy troops to Russia's proposed CSTO mission in Syria can be explained by Nazarbaev's concerns about dissent from Kazakh veterans groups.

These concerns are relevant, as Kazakh veterans of the Soviet war in Afghanistan expressed virulent opposition to Kazakhstan's May 2011 decision to deploy troops alongside NATO's ISAF forces in Afghanistan.

In response to Kazakhstan's participation in the Afghanistan war, the Coordination Council of Public Organizations, which represents Kazakh war veterans, declared that the deployment of Kazakh troops to Afghanistan would endanger Kazakh civilians and cause irreconcilable rifts within Kazakhstan's Islamic community.

As Afghan war veterans openly called for the resignation of the Kazakh parliament in 2011, Nazarbaev's desire to prevent unrest amongst this group likely contributed to his decision not to deploy Kazakh troops to Syria.

Salafist Rumblings



Sunni Islamist organizations are the third major opposing faction to Kazakhstan's participation in a CSTO military intervention in Syria.

Cooperation with Russia would overtly align Astana with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's Alawi Shi'ite regime. As Sunni extremists in southern Kazakhstan, like Marat Maulenov, have urged Kazakh Islamists to join the struggle against Assad in Syria, Nazarbaev was concerned that sending Kazakh troops to Syria on Assad's behalf could trigger a counterdeployment of Kazakh Sunni extremists to IS-held regions of Syria.

This retaliatory counterdeployment could empower underground Salafist movements in Kazakhstan, and increase the likelihood of Syria-linked ISIS terror attacks on Kazakh soil.



Foreign Policy Independence



In addition to the political instabilities that could have resulted from deploying troops to Syria, Kazakhstan's tensions with Russia over the CSTO's mandate underscore Nazarbaev's desire to showcase Astana's foreign policy independence from Moscow.

Kazakhstan's responses to regional security crises have consistently emphasized the importance of all-inclusive political settlements and called for a neutral CSTO. This approach differs greatly from Russia's attempts to link the CSTO's mandate to its broader geopolitical interests.

Kazakhstan's approach to CSTO involvement in Nagorno-Karabakh exemplifies Astana's divergence from Russia on the CSTO's mission.

On July 14, Kazakhstan's ambassador to Armenia, Timur Urazaev, stated that the CSTO should refrain from intervening militarily in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Instead of using force, Urazaev argued that the international community should resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict by facilitating diplomatic negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Kazakhstan's strategy contrasts markedly with Russia's stance on Nagorno-Karabakh, which has consistently emphasized the CSTO's commitment to protecting Armenia's sovereignty from Azerbaijani military aggression.

Canceled Visit



Kazakhstan's resistance to CSTO involvement on Armenia's behalf is closely intertwined with its membership in the Turkic Council, an organization that includes Azerbaijan. As journalist Areg Galstyan noted in March, Kazakhstan frequently lobbies for pro-Azerbaijani interests within the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) and successfully convinced Russia to move the location of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council from Armenia to Russia.

Kazakhstan's solidarity with Azerbaijan could also explain Nazarbaev's decision to cancel his visit to Armenia for the October 2016 CSTO meeting. Even though Nazarbaev explained his absence on health grounds, Kazakh political analyst Aidos Sarym told the Reuters news agency on October 11, that Nazarbaev's "illness" was an excuse to avoid meeting with Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian.

Urazaev's statement suggests that Kazakhstan's resistance to the Russia-Armenia alliance has extended to the security sphere, and illustrates how Kazakh policymakers are using their disagreement with Russia over the CSTO's mandate to assert Astana's foreign policy independence from Moscow.

Syria Mediation



Kazakhstan's refusal to deploy troops in a CSTO military campaign on Assad's behalf can also be explained by Astana's desire to demonstrate its outsized influence in world affairs. Even though Kazakhstan maintains diplomatic relations with Syria's Ba'athist regime, Nazarbaev has deviated from Russia's staunch pro-Assad approach by highlighting Astana's role as a neutral mediator in the Syrian conflict.

Since the inception of Russia's military intervention in Syria in September 2015, Kazakhstan has abstained from voting in UN Security Council resolutions condemning the Assad regime's chemical weapons use and established robust diplomatic links with Syrian opposition factions.



If Kazakhstan had contributed to Russia's proposed CSTO peacekeeping mission in Syria, its reputation as a diplomatic arbiter in Syria would have been irreparably compromised and the impartiality of the Astana talks would have been seriously questioned.

However, by openly resisting Russia's proposed CSTO military intervention in Syria on Assad's behalf, Kazakhstan can showcase its effectiveness as a mediator in the Syrian conflict, bolstering Nazarbaev's stature in the international community.



Even though Kazakhstan remains a critical Russian security partner, Nazarbaev's support for a non-interventionist CSTO reveals a growing rift between Astana and Moscow on how best to handle international crises.

As Kazakhstan's refusal to deploy troops in CSTO peacekeeping missions helps prevent antigovernment unrest, and highlights Kazakhstan's foreign policy independence from Russia, the Moscow-Astana rift over the CSTO is likely to be an enduring feature of the bilateral relationship for years to come.

Samuel Ramani is a DPhil candidate in International Relations at St. Antony's College, University of Oxford, specializing in post-1991 Russian foreign policy. He is also a journalist who contributes regularly to The Washington Post, the Huffington Post, and Diplomat magazine. He can be followed on Twitter and on Facebook.

The views expressed in this blog post do not necessarily reflect those of RFE/RL.
Clad in a modern two-piece suit and a tie and surrounded by close family and friends, Furqat Vatanov last month celebrated his wedding with a banquet, a ceremony the confessed former Islamic State (IS) recruit from Dushanbe says he thought would never happen.

Just over a year ago, Vatanov, 24, was arrested in Turkey as he prepared to cross the Syrian border to fight alongside the notorious militant group.

Unlike many traditional Tajik weddings involving hundreds of guests -- some invited and some not -- Vatanov's party was a relatively modest affair. Vatanov attributes it to his past "connection" to IS, saying most of his friends have cut ties with him and the rest treat him warily.

It was Vatanov's father who alerted Tajik and Turkish authorities after his son sent a message in mid-2016 asking for his "blessing to take part in the jihad in Syria."

The father, Amriddin Vatanov, rushed to Turkey, where with the help of the Tajik Embassy and Turkish police he located his Syria-bound son.

Within days, Vatanov, who says he had been brainwashed by IS "through the Internet," was taken into custody, extradited to Tajikistan, and charged with being a mercenary for a foreign militant group.

A Second Chance

"When I was arrested in Syria, I thought my life was over, I thought I was going to spend the rest of my days in prison," Vatanov says.

But he was given a second chance, for which Vatanov says he is grateful to the Tajik authorities.

Tajikistan amended its criminal laws in 2015, allowing authorities to pardon Tajik fighters who voluntarily return home and repent joining foreign militant groups. The government insists that it's not a blanket amnesty and applies only to those who have not taken part in violence.



Some 100 Tajik nationals have since returned from Syria and Iraq, according to the Tajik Interior Ministry, which says a total of 1,141 of its nationals have gone to Syria and Iraq. Nearly 300 of them have been killed in conflicts there, the ministry says.

More than half of those who returned home in the past two years have been pardoned, officials say, while others were convicted of being mercenaries.

Those pardoned remain on a government watch list but are not legally prevented from applying normally for jobs, enrolling in universities, or traveling abroad.

Many of the former fighters are enlisted to appear in government-sponsored campaigns to counter extremism, giving speeches and TV interviews on IS atrocities they say they've witnessed in Iraq and Syria.

Their accounts are virtually impossible to corroborate. However, extensive RFE/RL Tajik Service interviews with the returnees -- frequently in the presence of government minders associated with official deradicalization efforts -- and with family and friends suggest that, while the former IS sympathizers acknowledge having succumbed to radicalism, they now reject the group's ideology and its violent jihadist methods.

However, Tajik society remains deeply suspicious of the returnees and their intentions, according to one man who acknowledged spending eight months in Syria and was "forced to fight" alongside the militants in 2015.



'No One Wants To Marry Me'

Echoing the stories of many of the returnees, Bobojon Qaraboev, a 30-year-old former taxi driver from the southern town of Vahdat, says he realized his "grave mistake" when he witnessed IS's brutalities.

Since his voluntary return early in 2016, and after several months of arrest and interrogation, Qaraboev was cleared of criminal charges and set free to rebuild his life.

He has since found a job at a local factory and renovated his family home in the hope of opening a new chapter in his life as a family man. But no one wants to marry me, Qaraboev laments.

Qaraboev says he has had several marriage proposals turned down because, as he puts it, "families don't want their daughters to marry a guy who has been to Syria."

Twenty-four-year-old Alisher Qodirqulov returned with his wife and two small children to their home in the northern Tajik district of Asht in February.

After a year and a half in IS-controlled territories in Iraq and deeply traumatized by the experience, according to his account, Qodirqulov says he now appreciates living in security, away from war and killings.

Qodirqulov says he went to the Middle East in search of the better life promised by a "Chechen man" he met while working as a migrant laborer in Russia.

Tajik officials say they expect more former militants to return home as IS loses ground in Iraq and Syria. And while the returnees themselves and their families welcome the government's amnesty policy, others express concern.

They argue that there is a difference between someone who voluntarily escaped IS in the past and someone who returns home because they and their fellow militants have been driven out of Iraq and Syria.

"IS is being defeated in the Middle East and the fighters have no choice but to escape," says Faridun Hodizoda, a Dushanbe-based analyst in religious affairs.

Hodizoda warns against potential threats posed by the return of indoctrinated fighters with combat experience.

Reconciliation And Rehabilitation

Tajikistan has considerable experience rehabilitating former fighters, Hodizoda says, citing efforts that followed the nascent post-Soviet state's five-year civil war between the government and an Islamic opposition in the 1990s.



That reconciliation effort has been praised for disarming thousands of former fighters from both sides of the conflict and returning them to civilian life.



Tajik authorities insist they don't offer amnesty to former IS fighters who willingly took up arms.

A Tajik court recently sentenced former IS fighter Mahmad Mahmadiev to 13 years in prison, a sentence his family says they will not appeal.



The 26-year-old former nurse reportedly confessed to working in an IS hospital in Syria before his arrest by Turkish forces in northern Syria and extradition to Tajikistan in December 2016.



Meanwhile in Dushanbe, the family of former IS recruit Vatanov is "happy with the way things have turned out for their son."



"My son has changed completely," his father says. They describe Vatanov as a "kind, normal" young man now -- a far cry from his former self, someone who they say "called others infidels and apostates."



"But it took a lot of effort, a lot of counseling, talking, and patience," the father adds.

The family now hopes Vatanov will concentrate on life as a newlywed and move on, putting his militant Islamist past behind him.

RFE/RL's Tajik Service correspondents Mumin Ahmadi and Masum Muhammadrajab contributed to this report.


Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on August 6 that he believed his American counterpart was ready to continue dialogue with Russia on complex issues despite bilateral tensions and the imposition of fresh U.S. sanctions against Moscow.

"We felt the readiness of our U.S. colleagues to continue dialogue. I think there's no alternative to that," Lavrov said after what he said was a lengthy meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) forum in Manila.

Lavrov told the media that U.S. President Donald Trump's special representative for Ukraine negotiations, Kurt Volker, will soon make his first trip to Moscow.

Lavrov said Volker, who was named in his position last month, will meet with Vladislav Surkov, the Russian envoy for the Ukraine crisis. Volker made his first trip to eastern Ukraine last month.

Lavrov also said that Tillerson agreed to continue a dialogue between U.S. Undersecretary of State Thomas Shannon and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov. That channel was created to address hot spots, but Russia suspended it after the U.S. tightened sanctions on Russia.

The U.S. side did not immediately comment on Lavrov's statements.

Earlier, Lavrov and Tillerson smiled and exchanged pleasantries but made no substantive remarks as journalists were allowed in briefly for the start of their meeting.



Both Tillerson and Lavrov ignored a shouted question about how the new sanctions might affect their discussions.

Trump on August 3 said on Twitter that Washington's "relationship with Russia is at an all-time & very dangerous low."

Those comments came a day after Trump signed new sanctions against Moscow, a move Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said amounted to a "full-scale trade war" against his country.

Trump and Tillerson opposed the sanctions package that Congress passed to make it harder for Trump to ever ease penalties on Russia.

Although Trump ultimately signed the bill, he called it "seriously flawed."

With reporting by Reuters an AP


A senior U.S. official says about 2,000 Islamic State (IS) militants are battling for survival in the Syrian city of Raqqa, the extremists last stronghold in the north of the country.



Brett McGurk, the U.S. special envoy for the international coalition fighting IS in Iraq and Syria, said a U.S.-led Arab-Kurdish alliance has captured about 45 percent of the city from the militants and is poised to move farther.

Separately, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on August 5 said Syrian government forces have captured Al-Sukhna, the last major town in Homs Province, from IS fighters as the military attempts to drive the militants out of the country's eastern regions.

Both developments are further signs of the diminishing fortunes of the militant group, which captured Raqqa, along with wide swathes of Syrian and Iraqi territory, from government forces in 2014 and declared an Islamic "caliphate" over land it controlled.

Offensives by U.S.-backed forces in recent months have reduced IS terrority substantially and led to the liberation of Mosul, the groups self-declared capital in Iraq.

McGurk said the extremists have lost 58% of the territory they held in Syria at their peak and 78% of what they controlled in Iraq.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), made up of Arab and Kurdish fighters and backed by U.S. forces, have been encircling Raqqa and advancing on the city since November. The offensive to take the city was launched on June 6.

"Today in Raqqa, (Islamic State) is fighting for every last block...and fighting for their own survival," McGurk told reporters.

"We estimate that there are about 2,000 ISIS fighters left in Raqqa," he added.

McGurk said the coalition has created a database of nearly 19,000 names of IS fighters by using cellphones, address books, and other documents retrieved on battlefields.

The information is being shared with Interpol, the international police agency, he said.

Figured released on July 16 by the Syrian Observatory show that the six-year civil war in the country has killed more than 330,000 people, including 99,617 civilians.

The United States and Turkey support varying rebel groups fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad, who is backed by Russia and Iran.



With reporting by the BBC, Reuters, and AFP
Tulsa emergency operations officials say they are working through the early morning. Thousands of people lost power. Some heaviest damages occurred near Interstate 44, where several buildings lost portions of their roofs. The interstate was closed for a short period of time due to a fallen sign on the highway. Bishop Kelley High School said the only extensive damage at the school is to the breezeway in front of the schools science and technology center.



Damage in Tulsa, after tornado

On August 6, The National Weather Service in Tulsa has issued a Flood Warning for east central Creek County in northeastern Oklahoma southeastern Tulsa County in northeastern Oklahoma until 815 am CDT Monday. Some locations that may experience flooding include southern Tulsa, Bixby, Jenks, Kiefer, Liberty, Sapulpa, Glenpool, Mounds and Leonard. This includes Interstate 44 between mile markers 215 and 216. Excessive runoff from heavy rainfall will cause flooding of small creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses. Precautionary, a warning was issued for drivers, saying most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Rainfall amounts of 2 to 5 inches have been observed across much of northeast Oklahoma overnight.
A ring-shaped warp-drive device could theoretically transport a football-shaped starship (center) to effective speeds faster than light. The concept was first proposed by Mexican physicist Miguel Alcubierre in 1994.

Scientists, engineers and exploration advocates will gather in central California this week to help plan out humanity's journey to the stars.

The action is happening in Monterey Monday through Wednesday (Aug. 7 through Aug. 9), at a conference called Starship Congress 2017.

"Our question for Starship Congress 2017 is what role the moon can play to catalyze humankind's venturing forth to explore interstellarly," conference organizers wrote in a description of the event. "Furthermore, this year's theme builds on a key take-away from the Starship Congress 2015 summit at Drexel University: In order to make interstellar space exploration interesting to everyone, what must we do to make space accessible for everybody?"

The speakers include physicist Miguel Alcubierre, who in 1994 proposed a type of real-life warp drive that could theoretically enable faster-than-light travel without breaking the laws of physics; planetary scientist Franck Marchis; scientist and sci-fi author David Brin; and Richard Obousy, co-founder and director of Icarus Interstellar, a nonprofit dedicated to helping make interstellar flight a reality by 2100. (Icarus Interstellar is organizing the conference.)

To learn more about Starship Congress 2017, visit the conference page here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/starship-congress-2017-tickets-33352347770

Space.com's Mike Wall will be in attendance, keeping tabs on the most exciting developments.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
P olice are set to play classical music on a notorious housing estate in north London in an attempt to avert trouble.

Adam Weber, 23, a new recruit on a scheme to help drive reforms and innovation in policing, is the constable in charge of law and order on the estate in Tottenham.

He was inspired by the idea of using classical tunes as a crime-fighting tool after a pilot scheme to play music from speakers in 40 London Underground stations to reduce antisocial behaviour.

Mr Weber told The Sunday Times: "Incidents of verbal and physical abuse fell [during the pilot scheme], so I thought, 'let's give this a go'.

When he was assigned to the notorious Broadwater Farm estate, he said his instructor told him: "It's a maze that they know better than you. Good luck."

The relationship between the estates community and the force has been poor for many years.

In 1985, PC Keith Blakelock was murdered in the estate when a riot broke out. The estate was also home to Mark Duggan, whose fatal shooting by police sparked riots in 2011.
A new shopping and dining centre made from shipping containers  inspired by Shoreditchs Boxpark  could be set for south-east London.

Plans have been unveiled to build a community attraction with 14 units surrounding a central communal area in Camberwell.

Rolfe Judd, the planning firm behind the proposal, has likened Camberwell Yards to the trendy Boxparks in Shoreditch and Croydon.

Both of those sites have become immensely popular with young crowds and feature a range of local food vendors and shops.

The Camberwell site, owned by Mumbo Jumbo World ltd, is slated for a small carpark next to Morrisons supermarket and will include one container dedicated to community use.

The plan for Camberwell Yards states: Similar to the successful concepts already established at Shoreditch and Croydon, the proposal for Camberwell will provide opportunities for independent businesses to provide food and drink and local enterprise /commercial facilities to the local area.

Design: an artist's impression of the new Camberwell Yards / Rolfe Judd

Tom Flynn, a Camberwell Green ward councillor, told Southwark News: Im quite excited by the overall concept.

It could be a space for people from all of Camberwell, not just those with a bit of disposable income. For this to work and become a welcome part of the community it should reflect the diversity of Camberwell in terms of whats on offer.

And it could be a good use of the small part of the car park, which is hardly ever even half full.

Camberwell resident Ben Miller, 26, told the Standard he was in favour of the proposals as long as they kept local business as the main focus.

He told the Standard: Camberwell is great at the moment because it isnt just another Shoreditch or Brixton, so Im wary if things start to go in that direction.

However, the concept for Camberwell Yards looks really good and at the end of the day, if its local businesses that benefit then it can only be a good thing. It certainly looks like a good place to meet for a pint or two as well.
A man has been arrested after attempting to storm the Eiffel Tower with a knife.

The world-famous tourist site was evacuated and put on lockdown at around 9.30pm on Saturday after the knifeman brandished a blade and shouted Allahu akbar.

He was quickly mobbed by security officials and detained. No shots were fired and no one was hurt, a Paris police spokesman said.

Police have now opened a counter-terrorism probe after the suspect reportedly told police he had planned to kill a soldier and was in contact with the Islamic State group who had encouraged the attack.

French soldiers patrol in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. / AFP/Getty Images

But the suspect, a French national born in Mauritania in 1998, is thought to have psychiatric problems. He was given temporary permission to leave hospital this weekend.

The entire tower was evacuated so officers could search the tourist spot.

According to Reuters, the suspect did not resist when soldiers told him to put down his weapon.

In an interview published on Sunday, Frances interior minister said the threat of attacks from militants was very high.

French police have had extended powers since the terror attacks in November 2015 which left 130 people dead.


The Rise & Fall of General Motors and the Subjugation of the Industrialized World







How the perfect storm of commercial forces created the worlds largest corporation, enslaved us to gasoline, and ultimately brought the car maker to its knees

By Marc J. Rauch

Exec. Vice President/Co-Publisher

THE AUTO CHANNEL

It was once said "What's good for General Motors, is good for the U.S.A."

 Have you ever wondered why and how General Motors, the world's largest corporation, could fail and go bankrupt?

 Have you ever wondered why gasoline is the primary fuel for passenger cars and trucks for most of the world?

 Have you ever wondered exactly how and why the United States could owe 50% or more of its national debt to oil producing countries?

Read this story and youll learn how and why.

Originally published April 6, 2012

You can also listen to the podcast of this story

Listen to "Rise & Fall of GM" on Spreaker.

Background  The need for speed and power

In the early years of the automobile industry there was uncertainty as to which fuel, and what type of engine would power the new vehicles. There was steam, electric and internal combustion. Although steam power had proven its viability in the first stationary engines and in the first round of land and sea vehicles or vessels, by the late 1800s diesel was already replacing steam because of its ability to produce higher torque (needed to move heavy vehicles/vessels) and because it simplified the process of locomotion by not requiring a team of men to start the coal or wood fires and keep the water boiling. By comparison, diesel allowed faster starting and required less continuous attention to keep the engine running.

Electric motors could also provide high torque, but the motors required a constant flow of electricity, which could only be guaranteed if the vehicle was tethered to an electrical source. This was okay for light and heavy trains that operated along a fixed roadway, but battery technology and affordability was impractical for personal transportation devices that had the ability to travel in all directions and to non-electrified locations.

The internal combustion engine (ICE) was the solution. There were two types available: spark ignited and compressed hot air ignited. Compressed hot air ignited ICE uses diesel fuel. Spark ignited internal combustion engines are today most commonly associated with gasoline, but ethanol, methanol, natural gas and propane can also work.

Diesel engines were heavier, bulkier and more costly to produce. While they could move heavier loads (torque), they couldnt quickly provide higher speeds. Additionally, diesels required a fuel injector technology which at the time was also more costly and less reliable than fuel-air mix carburetors. Consequently spark ignited internal combustion engines became the dominant engine for passenger cars and light trucks.

At this point the two most available fuels for spark ignited ICE were liquid; either alcohol (ethanol or methanol) or gasoline. Alcohol enjoyed wide support from automobile pioneers, such as Henry Ford and General Motors top scientists, because it could be produced almost anywhere by almost anyone (alcohol distillation technology has been in the public domain for hundreds of years). Alcohol fuels also produced superior performance compared to gasoline. Alcohol-powered engines allowed for higher piston compression, which deliver more speed and power. Gasoline caused a knock in high compression engines that would literally knock the engine to destruction. Only low compression, lower speed engines could safely use gasoline. Early on, as speeds were measured against human walking or horse riding, this was acceptable. But as roads were leveled and paved and consumers wanted bigger faster vehicles this was a huge limitation. One of the solutions to gasoline knock was to blend ethanol into every gallon of gasoline. The alcohol quieted the knock, thereby allowing the gasoline-ethanol blend to be used in better performing engines.

Unfortunately alcohol suffered from two major impediments to universal acceptance as a pure engine fuel. The first was cost. Alcohol production has been heavily taxed since the founding of the United States, initially to raise revenues to pay for the War of Independence. As usually happens with taxes imposed to pay for one specific thing, it is nearly impossible to retire the tax even after the initial purpose has been fulfilled. The extra dollars are just too attractive to politicians who need to fund pork-barrel projects to insure re-election, and there was always another war that had to be paid for. (Prior to Congress passing a national individual income tax 100 years ago, tax on alcohol routinely accounted for as much as 40% of the Federal revenue.)

The Federal tax on alcohol reached new heights during the American Civil War, rising to over $2 per gallon. Needless to say this was a devastatingly high tax. Average weekly wages in the 1860s were about $12  considered in respect to todays average wages that would be like a tax of $129 per gallon (in actuality, the current Federal tax on spirits  drinkable alcohol - is $13.50 per gallon).

Kerosene was also taxed to help pay war costs: A paltry 10 cents per gallon!

The alcohol tax was not retired until Theodore Roosevelts presidency about 40 years later, when the Free Alcohol Act brought the price of corn ethanol down to 14 cents per gallon and molasses ethanol to 9.5 cents per gallon (versus gasoline at 22 cents per gallon).

Now youll recall that I said that there were two impediments to universal acceptance of alcohol as a universal engine fuel. The second problem was, ironically, alcohols easy production and ubiquitous availability; it is too simple and easy to make.

By the middle of the 1800s, as the worlds whale population was drastically declining due to over-hunting, and the price of whale oil was sky rocketing, an alcohol-turpentine blend was used as a less expensive replacement for indoor lighting and heating. But with the development of kerosene in the 1850s, followed by the imposition of the much higher alcohol tax in 1862, a new use was found for the sticky, smelly black goo that freely seeped up from the ground in Pennsylvania (areas of Poland and Azerbaijan experienced the same phenomena). This was the start of the petroleum oil boom. Although kerosene has an obnoxious smell and black smoke, at least it was cheap.

As the worlds interest in the new fangled automobiles soared throughout the world it was found that the kerosene could be used as the basis for engine fuel, and after additional refining the oil pioneers developed gasoline. By this time one man and his company rose to world wide prominence  John D. Rockefeller and Standard Oil. His enormous wealth was contingent upon oil and its by-products, and in the time-honored tradition of achieving wealth, he used it to secure political and commercial support of his products.

The political bribes paid by Rockefeller catapulted support for the 18th Amendment to the Constitution (the Volstead Act) over the top, insuring its passage. This Amendment, commonly referred to as Prohibition, outlawed the production of alcohol with almost no exceptions. Consequently, in the crucial period just after World War I, as Americans were adopting a whole new mobile lifestyle, the one fuel that could challenge Rockefellers gasoline on both a cost and performance basis  alcohol  was declared illegal. Ethanol was rendered dead as a competitor on the commercial battlefield.

Before and during Prohibition, Henry Ford expressed his belief that alcohol (ethanol) was the fuel of the future. His Model T, the product that is said to have given birth to moving assembly line production, was designed and built to use ethanol or gasoline by giving the driver adjustable carburetor and spark advance controls that optimized the performance of the fuel used.

Even after Prohibition commenced, General Motorss top scientists, Charles F. Kettering, Thomas A. Midgley and T.A. Boyd, continued their belief that ethanol was the fuel of the future. Considering that it was illegal to even produce the small amounts to conduct tests, alcohol was still being experimented with as the best alternative solution to gasolines knock problem.

However, in 1921, GMs scientists discovered that by adding tetraethyl lead to gasoline that the knock was subdued and the new lead-gasoline fuel could be used in advanced higher compression engines. This was the early days of the Roaring Twenties and in order to really roar, the public needed a fuel to set them free.

The leaded gasoline didnt just give GM the ability to build vehicles with higher performing engines it gave them a unique process that they could patent. GM combined their process with similar processes being tested by DuPont Chemicals and Standard Oil, which gave GM three cents on every gallon of leaded gasoline sold anywhere in the world. They quickly determined that their share of profits in the sale of leaded gasoline would be worth many billions of dollars over the next couple of decades.

The significance to understanding what this meant to General Motors is not just calculated by profits earned, more importantly it explains why General Motors  the worlds largest company and automaker - would come to have no interest in developing vehicles that could get better mileage per gallon of gasoline. It is essentially the same reason why tobacco companies had no desire to lessen the addictive qualities of cigarette smoking. The more gallons of fuel that a vehicle used translated to more profits to GM. In essence, the vehicles could be used as a loss-leader to stimulate gasoline sales.

This new stream of nearly incalculable profits meant that they didnt have to really compete on an even playing field with other auto manufacturers:

 They could undercut competitions products because they didnt need to make profits from their vehicles, thereby driving the competition into bankruptcy.

 They could accept worker demands that they knew the other car companies would not be able to live with on a long term basis.

 Moreover, even if they didnt undercut the price of their competition or permit unrealistic employee compensation packages, the added revenue gave them a marketing war-chest that could not be overcome  also ultimately helping to drive a long list of car makers into obscurity.

Any of the above could have given GM a huge edge over the competition, but together it was impossible for most competitors to withstand.

The Worm Turns

Ironically, however, I believe that it was this exalted position that led to their inconceivable plummet.

The gasoline profits allowed General Motors to become a bloated, inflexible entity, incapable of - and disinterested in - meeting the challenges of new design, technologies, demographic shifts, societal attitudes about the environment, and the up-start band of oil-dictators called OPEC. As the years passed, and as new faces came onboard, the knowledge of this gasoline-profit advantage was lost. They thought they were invinciblethey thought they were successful solely because they built a better car.

Normally a strong market competitor will strive to set a pace via product improvement that catches the competition off guard. Typical marketing thrusts would be to announce new and improved formulations that deliver more for the consumers money, or a longer-lasting ingredient, or better for your health. Up until the mid 1970s, when it was too late, General Motors only promoted bigger or more powerful vehicles. And, of course, bigger and more powerful translated to more gasoline used. American brand competitors followed the lead, tripping over the low bar set by GM. Where GM survived and prospered because of the billions in gasoline profits the other car makers had to try and survive only on product features and benefits, but it wasnt enough for even the most creative auto makers and most innovative efforts.

(The GM team of Kettering and Midgley also invented Freon for refrigeration. Kettering patented a refrigerating apparatus to use the gas; this was issued to Frigidaire, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Motors. In 1930, General Motors and DuPont formed Kinetic Chemicals to produce Freon. This invention and accompanying profits added to GM's financial stability.)

Now, I will agree that most Americans probably wanted bigger and more powerful vehicles in the 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s  much as we still do today during the gasoline-price crisis. However, GM did little or nothing to deliver the bigger, more powerful vehicles while at the same time consuming less fuel. Again, up until the mid 1970s GM mostly scoffed at the smaller more fuel efficient vehicles that were coming from Europe and Japan. If they designed a small sporty car to compete with a foreign import it was still more powerful and it used more gasoline.

At the same time GM filled its executive offices with inept or redundant managers, they allowed the best and brightest new technology or design people to go to foreign manufacturers, they retained for decades the services of advertising and marketing consultants whose only talent was in knowing how to waste more money each new model year, and they built up the walls around themselves until they couldnt see the figurative and literal tsunami that was coming from Japan.

Perhaps, if the 70s gasoline crisis didnt happen, and if the environmental movement failed to take hold, or if the gasoline companies could have continued to lie about the negative effects of leaded-gasoline  and get away with it  then General Motors might have been able to exist without their share of profits from the patents. But the combination of these factors created the perfect storm that set the stage for GMs tumble.

I readily acknowledge that others before me have cited GMs lack of effective action as the cause of their near demise and current shaky existence, but I believe that no one has ever put together and articulated the reason why GM would have permitted itself to fall into this position. Many analysts have opined that GM would be okay if it wasnt for the heavy pension packages that they committed to. Some analysts suggest that as the foreign car makers open factories in the U.S. that they will succumb to the same pension problems and end up struggling like GM. I think that GM might never have survived the competition after WWII if they didnt have those billions of extra dollars. I also believe that Mercedes, BMW, Honda, Toyota, Kia, Hyundai, Nissan and every other foreign brand that establishes a factory here will not go through the same debilitating pension mistakes because they just dont have the extra financial wherewithal to get themselves into the same hot water. They may fail, but its more likely that they would fail from their own original stupid mistakes.

When General Motors rushed to Washington in 2008 to beg for financial assistance Presidents Bush and then Obama, and all of Congress, should have said no; they should have told GM to get the money from their buddies in the oil industry, which had just experienced a record-breaking profit year. In case theres anyone out there who is uncertain of how the oil industry makes most of their money, it is from the sale of gasoline for automobiles. Instead of the American public being threatened with GM is too big for us to lose, the oil industry should have rightly been assigned that responsibility, particularly since we were already paying for the second and third Middle-East oil wars and providing security for the entire worlds ocean-going oil tankers.

Then, as if Washington didnt already mishandle the GM financial collapse by giving away our money, the car maker was allowed to escape any responsibility to common stock shareholders, a know-nothing maybe bond swindler* was appointed Car Czar, and a member of Exxons Board of Directors was named as CEO of the restructured General Motors. The company continues to be deluded into thinking that their tired brand names have any real market value, they have bet their future on becoming a significant player in a giant communist country, theyre chasing an electric technology fantasy that is still decades away from being meaningful, and they have pretty much abandoned the flex-fuel position that they spent several years and untold dollars trying to establish by finally building more powerful cars that used less gasoline. I was present at numerous GM presentations when they pushed and pushed and pushed E85 and flex-fuel vehicles. If it was a wrong direction  and perhaps it was since GM has made so many wrong decisions  then why are many of the executives that were involved still with the company? Why did they bring Bob Lutz back into the fold, again?

Just Good Capitalism

As a devoted capitalist and marketing guy I have to say that the GM action in seeking an inexpensive, exclusive fuel to power the growth of the automobile age was at first blush a great example of what capitalism is about. The problem is that capitalism allowed to run amuck is nearly as bad as unchecked socialism. It may be a convenient inexpensive capitalist idea to dump waste materials from a chemical plant into the river that flows behind the factory, but if the water is also used for drinking by the community down-river who you hope will buy your products, the free-market idea becomes a dead-market reality. In effect, this was the result of General Motors patented process as the legacy of the leaded gasoline process continues to plague us.

Chained to Oil

We in America and in all industrial nations of the world, no longer drink from an unpolluted spring; we havent for more than half a century. We are addicted to using fuel that robs each and every one of us of our hard earned money. Whats more, over-hyped worrisome economic or political news about oil, and the greedy cycle of oil commodity speculation keeps all segments of the financial markets teetering on the brink of disaster. The richest and most wonderful country in the world has become just another debtor-nation. 50% or more of our national debt is owed to other countries to pay for the oil that we helped discover, subsidize, and then protect through two world wars and several regional conflicts. And we are forced to fund terrorist regimes who would like to see us dead.

We willingly support an industry that has given us mass murder billionaires. Every gallon of gasoline or diesel fuel that we buy props up people like Hugo Chavez, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Saddam Hussein, Muammar Gaddafi, Bashar Assad, Osama bin Laden, the so-called Saudi royal family, and even Vladimir Putin. It doesnt matter that three of these men are now dead; the system will continue to churn out new monsters like a well-oiled machine. Their wealth and power is directly derived from our use of gasoline, whether we buy their respective oil or not. The oil and gasoline market is not an open, supply and demand marketplace. It is a tightly closed, tightly controlled fixed enterprise that doesnt permit rogue competitors or independent action. Boycotts or restrictions on the purchase of oil from an especially insidious dictatorship are an irrelevant weapon; to the point that even threatening such action is a joke. If we refuse to buy oil from Iran, for instance, we still have to buy it from someplace. As we pull oil from the new source, a void gets opened that must be filled. So the Iranian oil fills that void, and another country (customer) who doesnt share our sense of moral outrage rushes in to buy the Iranian oil  at the same global market price. The other trick that the oil producers use is to sell and/or ship their oil to a middlemen country, such as Canada or India, where it is re-labeled and invoiced and sent to us. So we, the public, are the only ones negatively affected.

When General Motors lost their way ninety years ago the United States lost its economic and energy independence.

Notes on the story:

*My reason for calling Steven Rattner a no-nothing is best exemplified by the criticism that he recently leveled at Mitt Romney, after Romney criticized the GM bailout. Rattner said, If Mr. Romney disagrees, he should come forward with specific names of willing investors in place of empty rhetoric," Rattner wrote. "I predict that he won't be able to, because there aren't any."

While I agree that there were probably no willing investors to bailout GM  they would have had to be insane to do so  Rattner (Obama) should have forced the oil industry to come to GM and Chryslers rescue. How would he have forced them to do it? Simple, he would have said the following: Either you provide the funds or we withdraw our military and you have to provide your own protection for your oil fields and tanker shipments around the world. In addition, I will give immediate emergency orders to jumpstart a serious alternative fuel program in the U.S. and we will phase gasoline out of use forever.

If this option was ever explored, we should have been told. If the option was explored and the oil industry refused, we should have been told. If Obama appointed someone as Car Czar and he didnt have the imagination to make a suggestion like this, then he never should have been appointed to this position. But then what should we have expected from a president who is without any experience or imagination of his own.
Nissan Canton Employees Reject UAW







CANTON, Miss. August 4, 2017; Nissan employees voted today to reject the United Auto Workers (UAW) effort to unionize the Canton plant by nearly a 2-to-1 margin. The NLRB conducted election tally was 2244 to 1307, opposing the UAW.

With this vote, the voice of Nissan employees has been heard. They have rejected the UAW and chosen to self-represent, continuing the direct relationship they enjoy with the company. Our expectation is that the UAW will respect and abide by their decision and cease their efforts to divide our Nissan family. Now that the election is complete, Nissan will focus on bringing all employees back together as one team, building great vehicles and writing our next chapter in Mississippi.

We appreciate the National Labor Relations Board's role in conducting a fair election, and we believe this outcome positions Nissan to be competitive in the future. We learned a lot during this process, and our work will continue as we strengthen the direct relationship we have with employees. Together, we will build a stronger foundation for Nissan Canton's continued growth.

About Nissan North America In North America, Nissan's operations include automotive styling, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing. Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program and has been recognized annually by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency as an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year since 2010. More information on Nissan in North America and the complete line of Nissan and INFINITI vehicles can be found online at www.nissanusa.com and www.infinitiusa.com, or visit the U.S. media sites nissannews.com and infinitinews.com.

About Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Nissan is a global full-line vehicle manufacturer that sells more than 60 models under the Nissan, INFINITI and Datsun brands. In fiscal year 2016, the company sold 5.63 million vehicles globally, generating revenue of 11.72 trillion yen. Nissan engineers, manufactures and markets the world's best-selling all-electric vehicle in history, the Nissan LEAF. Nissan's global headquarters in Yokohama, Japan, manages operations in six regions: Asia & Oceania; Africa, Middle East & India; China; Europe; Latin America; and North America. Nissan has a global workforce of 247,500 and has been partnered with French manufacturer Renault under the Renault-Nissan Alliance since 1999. In 2016, Nissan acquired a 34% stake in Mitsubishi Motors, which became the third member of the Alliance  a grouping with combined annual sales of almost 10 million units a year.
History of the Biggest Pre-War Hungarian Car Maker







by Paul Negyesi

During the last three decades of the 19th century the capitalist politicalm reached Hungary, the Austrian-Hungarian Monarchy. The government'spolicy to support the smaller and bigger businesses, lead to their blooming.The agriculture also started to develop, the harvest results were on therise. E.g. between 1871-1880 and 1901-1910 the productivity of the wheat rose60 per cent, the corn 60 per cent. But the industrial equipment wasn't enough for this level. Therefore in the 1870s the agricultural industry started to catch up. Especially the alcohol, the sugar and most of all the mill industry. The Hungarian mill industry was among the leaders in Europe. Due to the changes the grinding capacity doubled. The big-scale industrial development required the need for machine accessories, engines and otherparts. Most of the turner workmen were foreigners, Hungarian weren't trained to manufacture these kinds of equipments.

The government tried everything to help: they promised 15 years exemption of taxes to factories which manufacture goods Hungarians never produced before.

History of Podvinecz & Heisler

Among these economical circumstances met two young ambitious enterpreneur,the 25-year-old Daniel Podvinecz and the 24-year-old Vilmos Heisler andopened their showroom in 1884. Both of them came from the countryside andknew the lack of machines and accessories. So first they traded milling andthreshing machines but soon they added bigger machines to their offer. Whilethey traveled throughout the country they saw the possibilities in the millindustry. They supplied accesories to the mill-owners. They also realisedthat repairing these equipments would mean bigger profit. Both Podvinecz andHeisler got their trade licence as iron turners and machine repairers. Theyalso moved to bigger premises. From this moment they manufactured theaccessories themselves. Beside this they were open to repair any brokenmachine. They didn't actually built anything into the mill. This step wastaken in 1895, when the company name change to "Malomepeszet es Gepgyar"(Mill-building and Machine factory). They covered Budapest and the regionaround, but not the whole country. When foreign companies appeared inHungary, they offered cheaper prices, because they were bigger, manufacturedmore etc. So the governent stepped up again and announced a few decrees toprotect the intern industry. Around the turn of the century steam was slowlyreplaced by petrol as the fuel of the engines. Podvinecz&Heisler realized theneed for these engines, bought some lands and built a whole new plant in1901. Here they tooled up to manufacture stationary engines. They did lots ofother goods but in small scale. The company wasn't profitable enough.

There are sources which indicate that they started assembling Leesdorfercars around 1901. Leesdorfer was an Austrian company, making cars underFrench, Amadee Bollee licence.

The first checked car, made by Podvinecz&Heisler was the Phonix. This wasthe German Cudell, made under licence. The Cudell was among the biggestcarmakers in Germany during the pioneer days. First they madevoiturettes after the DeDion pattern and then self-designed machines.They introduced the first OHV engined car in 1905.

As I mentioned before there weren't enough skilled workers available inHungary, but Podvinecz and Heisler managed to go along. The press didn'tdiscover their efforts, although at the 2nd Budapest International Autoshow,in 1905, one of their cars won a prize, the magazines wrote only a few wordsabout them.

Phonix 1906 The following types were taken over from Cudell: - 10/12 bhp, 2-cylinder,sv, aircooled. - 4-cylinder: 12/14 bhp, 16/20 bhp, 20/24 bhp and 35/40 bhp. All of them were equipped with multitubular radiator, skinconed clutch, 3+1speed transmission, chain-drive, semi-elliptic springs and two-wheel brakes.Bodies weren't available, they were built by carriage builders.

After they won a prize at the aforementioned exhibition, the IndustrialCommittee of the Hungarian Automobil Club visited the factory. This meant anofficial approval and contacts to government circles. A report in thecontemporary article mentioned "two cars which are waiting to be transportedto Bukarest to advertise the awaking Hungarian industry". One Phonix won agold medal at the Bukarest International Fair.

But these cars were no match for the likes of Fiat, Mercedes and Benz. Wherethe big guns participated in races, advertised in magazines, the marketing ofPhonix didn't went so smoothly.

And the production was so small scale. To make things worse, economicalrecession raised its ugly head in 1907. The government created a newindustrial law, to save the Hungarian industry.

Looking at the bright future Podvinecz&Heisler asked loan from thePest Bank of Commerce. The Bank promptly provided the necessary fund,after rigorous examination of the company.

This allowed Podvinecz&Heisler to expand. In 1908 Podvinecz died. Heislerbecame the sole managing director.

With Heisler the company survived the problematic years and their carsbegan to be known.

Heisler discovered a new way of promotion:

On 16/20 HP chassis they built buses whose route was around the frequented villas of the Budapest elite. These comfortable and elegant buses guaranteed enough interest and free advertisement for the company.



To transport tourists during the summer holliday season they built a 45 bhpbus. Its capacity was 14 people, but it was only filled with passengersduring the summer. That's why they didn't built any more.

And here's passenger car from the early '10s:



45 HP engine, double-phaeton with American top. Look at the hand-craftedbody. It was kind of baroque and very elegant.

History of MAG

In 1912 the company was transformed, the name was changed toMagyar Altalanos Gepgyar Rt (Hungarian General Machine Factory Ltd). As anabbrevation their cars were called MAGs. Possible orders from the Post,the Army and other organizations promised enough orders to concentracteon cars.

When the Hungarian Post announced a competition to supply postal transportercars in 1912, MAG was a sure winner: the possible competitors,Rock,Raba,MARTA were occupiedwith other orders. And their calculation was right: the Post commissionedthem to supply 200 chassises! They were designed by Janos, Csonka atalented Hungarian designer. Csonka entered one of these small, 10 bhpcars under his own brand to the 1912 Hungarian Small car competition whereit was the smallest car to enter. Despite this fact, it ran the course withoutany mechanical problem.

MAGs, other, bigger model was the 25 bhp type, designed by Jeno (Eugene)Fejes. Fejes studied car-making in France at Westinghouse and thenwas employed at MARTA. Three of his 25 bhp MAG tourers were entered at the1913 Tatra-Adria "Rallye". Two 2nd places and a third proved thedurability of the construction. But the first World War broke out...The MAG cars were later called Magomobils, because a Swiss company, MAGintervened. The Swiss MAG made the Motosacoche motorcycles.

During the first World War the factory prospered: made airplane engines underAustro-Daimler licence and then complete airplanes. This required newbuildings. So they built a very big plant at the outskirts of Budapest,Matyasfold.

After the lost War, MAG was reorganized: ceased the cooperation with Austro-Daimler and concentrated again on cars.

Fejes, the chief-engineer soon left the company and established his owncar-making company.

First the pre-war, small 10 bhp model was re-introduced. In 1923 a totallynew MAG appeared, the 20/25 bhp Magomobil. It was built under Germaninfluence. Later a 6-cylinder engine was also offered and the type wascalled Magosix:

Magosix Magosix Sport 1926

As You can see it broke no new ground in terms of technical innovations,but it was reliable.

Magomobil 1927 Sport The Budapest Taxi Company also employed MAG cars in bigger quantities.These models were offered throughout the years. Smaller developments were made, racing victories happened - but thefactory had a normal, healthy production level - in Hungarian conditions.

Although the government tried everything: asked all official organizations andbigger companies to prefer Hungarian-made vehicles (cars, trucks,motorcycles) they were more expensive than the competing brands from abroad.

MAG and its owner, the Hungarian Loan Bank tried to introduce changes, butthen the economical recession brought the company down.

After and beside MAG there were other companies which tried to make passengercars, like Raba under Praga licence but none were so succesful as MAG(I keep repeating: among Hungarian circumstances). All in all about 2000passenger cars were made (a snack for Ford :-)), 150 trucks and autobusesand 1000 automobile engines. There's no definitive data on war-time airplaneproduction.

There are a few surviving MAG cars, mostly from the mid-'20s. An early,Wohl-MAG from 1919/1921 (it was called so because a batch of cars wereexported to Britain, where a certain Mr. Wohl handled the distribution)now rests in a private collection.
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. owns, operates, and sells advertising displays in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Americas and Europe. The company offers advertising services through billboards, including bulletins and posters; transit displays, which are advertising surfaces on various types of vehicles or within transit systems; street furniture displays, such as advertising surfaces on bus shelters, information kiosks, freestanding units, and other public structures; spectaculars, which are customized display structures that incorporate videos, multidimensional lettering and figures, mechanical devices and moving parts, and other embellishments; wallscape, a display that drapes over or is suspended from the sides of buildings or other structures. It also provides street furniture equipment, cleaning and maintenance services, operation of public bike programs, and production services; and a public bicycle rental program, which offers bicycles for rent to the general public in various municipalities. As of December 31, 2021, it owned or operated approximately 69,000 advertising displays in the Americas; and 430,000 advertising displays in Europe. The company was formerly known as Eller Media Company and changed its name to Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. in August 2005. Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1901 and is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas.
The following companies are subsidiares of American International Group: AGC Life Insurance Company, AIG APAC HOLDINGS PTE. LTD., AIG Aerospace Insurance Services Inc., AIG Asia Pacific Insurance Pte. Ltd., AIG Asset Management (Europe) Limited, AIG Asset Management (U.S.) LLC, AIG Assurance Company, AIG Australia Limited, AIG Brazil Holding I LLC, AIG CIS Investments LLC, AIG Canada Holdings Inc., AIG Capital Corporation, AIG Capital Services Inc., AIG Claims Inc., AIG Credit Management LLC, AIG Egypt Insurance Company S.A.E., AIG Employee Services Inc., AIG Europe Holdings S.a.r.l, AIG Europe S.A., AIG Federal Savings Bank, AIG Financial Products Corp., AIG General Insurance Co. Ltd., AIG Global Asset Management Holdings Corp., AIG Global Operations Inc., AIG Global Real Estate Investment Corp., AIG Global Reinsurance Operations, AIG Holdings Europe Limited, AIG Insurance (Thailand) Public Company Limited, AIG Insurance Company China Limited, AIG Insurance Company JSC, AIG Insurance Company of Canada, AIG Insurance Company-Puerto Rico, AIG Insurance Hong Kong Limited, AIG Insurance Management Services Inc., AIG Insurance New Zealand Limited, AIG International Holdings GmbH, AIG Investments UK Limited, AIG Israel Insurance Company Ltd, AIG Japan Holdings Kabushiki Kaisha, AIG Kenya Insurance Company Limited, AIG Korea Inc., AIG Latin America I.I., AIG Latin America Investments S.L., AIG Lebanon SAL, AIG Life Holdings Inc., AIG Life Limited, AIG Life South Africa Limited, AIG Life of Bermuda Ltd., AIG MEA Holdings Limited, AIG MEA Limited, AIG Malaysia Insurance Berhad, AIG Markets Inc., AIG Matched Funding Corp., AIG PC Global Services Inc., AIG Philippines Insurance Inc., AIG Property Casualty Company, AIG Property Casualty Inc., AIG Property Casualty International LLC, AIG Property Casualty U.S. Inc., AIG Re-Takaful (L) Berhad, AIG Resseguros Brasil S.A., AIG Seguros Brasil S.A., AIG Seguros Mexico S.A. de C.V., AIG South Africa Limited, AIG Specialty Insurance Company, AIG Technologies Inc., AIG Travel Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., AIG Travel Assist Inc., AIG Travel Assist Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., AIG Travel EMEA Limited, AIG Travel Inc., AIG Uganda Limited, AIG Vietnam Insurance Company Limited, AIG WarrantyGuard Inc., AIG-FP Pinestead Holdings Corp., AIG-Metropolitana Cia. de Seguros y Reaseguros S.A., AIGGRE Europe Real Estate Fund I GP S.a r.l., AIGGRE Europe Real Estate Fund II GP S.a r.l., AIGGRE U.S. Real Estate Fund I GP LLC, AIGGRE U.S. Real Estate Fund II GP LLC, AIGGRE U.S. Real Estate Fund III GP LP, AIGGRE U.S. Real Estate Fund IV GP LLC, AIU Insurance Company, AM Holdings LLC, Ageas Protect, AlphaCat Managers Ltd., American General Corporation, American General Life Insurance Company, American Home Assurance Co. Ltd., American Home Assurance Company, American International Group UK Limited, American International Realty LLC, American International Reinsurance Company Ltd., American International Underwriters del Ecuador-Holding S.A. en Liquidacion S.A., Arthur J. Glatfelter Agency Inc., Blackboard Insurance Company, Blackboard Specialty Insurance Company, Blackboard U.S. Holdings Inc., C.A. de Seguros American International, Commerce and Industry Insurance Company, Crop Risk Services Inc., Eaglestone Reinsurance Company, Ellipse, Franklin Life Insurance Company, Fuji Fire and Marine, Glatfelter Insurance Group, Glatfelter Underwriting Services Inc., Globe and Rutgers Insurance Group, Grand Isle SAC Limited, Granite State Insurance Company, Illinois National Insurance Co., Inversiones Segucasai C.A., Johannesburg Insurance Holdings (Proprietary) Limited, Laya Healthcare Limited, Lexington Insurance Company, Lexington Specialty Insurance Agency Inc., National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh Pa., National Union Fire Insurance Company of Vermont, New Hampshire Insurance Company, PCG 2019 Corporate Member Limited, PT AIG Insurance Indonesia, Pine Street Real Estate Holdings Corp., Risk Specialists Companies Insurance Agency Inc., SAFG Capital LLC, SAFG Retirement Services Inc., Service Net Warranty LLC, Stratford Insurance Company, SunAmerica Asset Management LLC, Talbot Holdings Ltd., Talbot Underwriting Holdings Ltd., Talbot Underwriting Ltd., The Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania, The United States Life Insurance Company in the City of New York, The Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company, Travel Guard, Travel Guard Group Canada Inc./Groupe Garde Voyage du Canada Inc., Travel Guard Group Inc., Tudor Insurance Company, VALIC Financial Advisors Inc., Valic Retirement Services Company, Validus Holdings, Validus Holdings (UK) Ltd., Validus Holdings Ltd., Validus Reinsurance (Switzerland) Ltd, Validus Reinsurance Ltd., Validus Ventures Ltd., Volunteer Firemen's Insurance Services Inc., and Western World Insurance Company.

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Telecom Argentina S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services in Argentina and internationally. The company offers telephone services, including local, domestic, and international long-distance telephone services, as well as public telephone services; and other related supplementary services, such as call waiting, call forwarding, conference calls, caller ID, voice mail, itemized billing, and maintenance services. It also provides interconnection services, such as traffic and interconnection resource, dedicated Internet access, video signals transportation in standard and high definitions, audio and video streaming, dedicated links, backhaul links for mobile operators, data center hosting/housing services, dedicated links, layer 2 and layer 3 transport networks, video links, value-added services, and other services. In addition, the company offers mobile telecommunications services, including voice communications, high-speed mobile Internet content and applications download, online streaming, and other services; and sells mobile communication devices, such as handsets, Modems MiFi and wingles, and smart watches under the Personal brand. Further, it provides internet connectivity products, including virtual private network services, traditional Internet protocol links, and other products; data services; and programming and other cable television services. The company was formerly known as Cablevision S.A. and changed its name to Telecom Argentina S.A. in January 2018. Telecom Argentina S.A. was founded in 1979 and is based in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
United Parcel Service, Inc. provides letter and package delivery, transportation, logistics, and related services. It operates through two segments, U.S. Domestic Package and International Package. The U.S. Domestic Package segment offers time-definite delivery of letters, documents, small packages, and palletized freight through air and ground services in the United States. The International Package segment provides guaranteed day and time-definite international shipping services in Europe, the Asia Pacific, Canada and Latin America, the Indian sub-continent, the Middle East, and Africa. This segment offers guaranteed time-definite express options. The company also provides international air and ocean freight forwarding, customs brokerage, distribution and post-sales, and mail and consulting services in approximately 200 countries and territories. In addition, it offers truckload brokerage services; supply chain solutions to the healthcare and life sciences industry; shipping, visibility, and billing technologies; and financial and insurance services. The company operates a fleet of approximately 121,000 package cars, vans, tractors, and motorcycles; and owns 59,000 containers that are used to transport cargo in its aircraft. United Parcel Service, Inc. was founded in 1907 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
BlackRock, Inc. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors including corporate, public, union, and industry pension plans, insurance companies, third-party mutual funds, endowments, public institutions, governments, foundations, charities, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, official institutions, and banks. It also provides global risk management and advisory services. The firm manages separate client-focused equity, fixed income, and balanced portfolios. It also launches and manages open-end and closed-end mutual funds, offshore funds, unit trusts, and alternative investment vehicles including structured funds. The firm launches equity, fixed income, balanced, and real estate mutual funds. It also launches equity, fixed income, balanced, currency, commodity, and multi-asset exchange traded funds. The firm also launches and manages hedge funds. It invests in the public equity, fixed income, real estate, currency, commodity, and alternative markets across the globe. The firm primarily invests in growth and value stocks of small-cap, mid-cap, SMID-cap, large-cap, and multi-cap companies. It also invests in dividend-paying equity securities. The firm invests in investment grade municipal securities, government securities including securities issued or guaranteed by a government or a government agency or instrumentality, corporate bonds, and asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities. It employs fundamental and quantitative analysis with a focus on bottom-up and top-down approach to make its investments. The firm employs liquidity, asset allocation, balanced, real estate, and alternative strategies to make its investments. In real estate sector, it seeks to invest in Poland and Germany. The firm benchmarks the performance of its portfolios against various S&P, Russell, Barclays, MSCI, Citigroup, and Merrill Lynch indices. BlackRock, Inc. was founded in 1988 and is based in New York City with additional offices in Boston, Massachusetts; London, United Kingdom; Gurgaon, India; Hong Kong; Greenwich, Connecticut; Princeton, New Jersey; Edinburgh, United Kingdom; Sydney, Australia; Taipei, Taiwan; Singapore; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Washington, District of Columbia; Toronto, Canada; Wilmington, Delaware; and San Francisco, California.
21:20

US Vice President Mike Pence has denied reports that he will run for president in 2020, calling them "disgraceful and offensive".





"Today's article in the New York Times is disgraceful and offensive to me, my family, and our entire team," he said in a statement. "The allegations in the article are categorically false and represent just the latest attempt by the media to divide this administration."





Pence spoke out in response to a New York Times article detailing his notable political activity in recent months, including the creation of his own political action committee and meetings with Republican donors at his private residence.





The Times reported that multiple Pence advisers had signalled that he would run in 2020 if Donald Trump did not.





The vice president condemned these claims as "laughable and absurd".





"Whatever fake news may come our way, my entire team will continue to focus all our efforts to advance the President's agenda and see him re-elected in 2020," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 00:16:47|Editor: Zhou Xin

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HANOI, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Flash floods in Vietnam's four northern mountainous provinces in the last four days have killed 18 people, and left 18 others missing, Vietnam's Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control told Xinhua on Saturday.

The floods also injured 12 people, swept away 229 houses, and damaged 144 irrigation works, many national road sections and hundreds of hectares of crops, causing property losses of 718.2 billion Vietnamese dong (31.8 million U.S. dollars).

Among the 18 deaths, 10 were from Son La province, three from Yen Bai and Dien Bien each, and two from Lai Chau. Regarding the 18 people listed as missing as of Saturday evening, 11 are from Yen Bai, six from Son La and one from Lai Chau.

Natural disasters, mainly storms and floods, killed 75 people in Vietnam, and injured 77 others in the first seven months of this year, according to the country's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 01:07:08|Editor: Zhou Xin

Rwandan presidential candidate, the incumbent President Paul Kagame (C, Front), addresses supporters in Kigali, capital of Rwanda, on Aug. 5, 2017. The Rwandan National Electoral Commission (NEC) on Saturday declared Paul Kagame as the winner of the presidential elections, citing provisional results. According to the provisional results released, it is clear that Kagame is the winner, said Kalisa Mbanda, the NEC chairperson. Provisional results show that the incumbent president won 98.63 percent of the votes. Over 6.6 million votes cast their ballots in the country. (Xinhua/Office of the President of Rwanda)

KIGALI, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Rwandan National Electoral Commission (NEC) on Saturday declared Paul Kagame as the winner of the presidential elections, citing provisional results.

According to the provisional results released, it is clear that Kagame is the winner, said Kalisa Mbanda, the NEC chairperson.

Provisional results show that the incumbent president won 98.63 percent of the votes. Over 6.6 million votes cast their ballots in the country.

Kagame, who has been seeking the third term, was followed by independent candidate Philippe Mpayimana with 0.73 percent. The Democratic Green Party of Rwanda's candidate, Frank Habineza, came last with 0.47 percent.

Votes from Rwandans living overseas and spoilt votes are still being counted, said Mbanda.

The final results will be released some time soon, he said, adding that observers appreciated high turnout, sound security and organization of the election.

"However, some issues were raised and they will be compiled in the report of the election, including the level of professionalism, where some volunteers were not allowed to get in the rooms," said the chairperson.

Mbanda promised to look into the issues and work on them.

Habineza, the Democratic Green Party candidate, congratulated Kagame on his victory earlier Saturday, when the commission released results for 80 percent of the votes cast, with Kagame winning 98.66 percent.

He called on "all Rwandans who unreservedly supported us to remain calm, united and peaceful as we move forward together as a nation."

The other candiate, Mpayimana, said he was happy with the result, expressing the hope that "our future will be as dynamic as possible."

"I appeal for continued calm in the country," the independent candidate said. "This is the will of the people."

After the release of partial results earlier Saturday, Kagame addressed supporters at the headquarters of the ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), saying his victory is truly the will of the people.

"This victory is yours," Kagame said to wild cheers.

"The history of RPF is to confront challenges," he said. "It confronted many challenges but together we keep going forward up to where we are."

Kagame also complimented the two challengers.

Balloting for the latest Rwandan presidential elections kicked off Friday. The president for the next seven years is elected by universal suffrage in one uninominal round ballot.

Kagame, 59, has been president since 2000 when he was elected by ministers and members of parliament following the resignation of then President Pasteur Bizimungu.

He was re-elected in the 2003 and 2010 presidential elections by winning 95 percent and 93 percent of votes respectively.

Rwanda, which has been recovering since the 1994 genocide, is now considered a model for developing countries, especially African ones.
Photo taken on July 15, 2014 shows the melting ice of Purog Kangri Glacier in Shuanghu County, Nagqu, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. As the highest terrain in the world's mid-latitude regions, China's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is now under negative influence of the global warming. Purog Kangri Glacier, the third largest in the world, has shrunk by 50 meters over the past 30 years. (Xinhua/Tang Zhaoming)

MOSCOW, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Russian Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Sergei Donskoi on Saturday criticized the U.S. decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement as "terrible mistake."

"It is a terrible mistake!!! President Trump will actually pull the United States -- the largest player -- out of the Paris Agreement," Donskoi wrote on Facebook.

"There is nothing unexpected in terms of history: He repeated the U.S. withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol, the first international pact on combating climate change," Donskoi said.

The United States on Friday submitted a notice to the United Nations (UN) formally announcing its intent to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change, after President Donald Trump announced the decision in June, citing concerns about the accord's threat to the U.S. economy.

"The decision by the United States to withdraw from the Paris Agreement is a major disappointment for global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote global security," said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric in a note sent Friday night to correspondents.

Under article 28 of the Paris Agreement, a party may withdraw at any time after three years from the date on which the agreement has entered into force for that party.

The United States accepted the Paris Agreement on Sept. 3, 2016 and the agreement entered into force for it on Nov. 4, 2016. This means that the United States must stay in the pact until at least 2019.

The Paris Agreement aims to tackle climate change by cutting greenhouse gas emissions and sets a global target of keeping the rise in the average temperature no higher than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
Around the US, students are gearing up to head back to school. "First kid" Tiffany Trump, President Trump's youngest daughter, is set to start her first year at Georgetown Law School. And former "first kid" Malia Obama, after taking a gap year, is about to start classes at Harvard. With that in mind, we looked at the college choices of first kids who were teenagers or young adults when their parents lived in the White House, as far back as President John F. Kennedy. Along with Tiffany Trump, we added Trump's other children  the other current first kids  to this list. Take a look below to see where everyone went  as well as who dropped out of college, who failed the bar exam, and whose parents didn't go to their graduation. View As: One Page Slides

Lynda Bird Johnson Robb, University of Texas at Austin, Class of 1966 The oldest daughter of President Lyndon B. Johnson, Lynda Bird Johnson Robb attended the all-girls National Cathedral School in Washington, DC, and the University of Texas at Austin for college. She is the last first daughter to be married in the White House. She is the oldest living child of a president, and serves on the board of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Foundation and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Luci Baines Johnson, Georgetown University School of Nursing and Health Studies, 1966 (did not graduate) The younger daughter of President Johnson, Luci attended Georgetown University School of Nursing and Health Studies, but she was forced to drop out in 1966. She was married that year, and the school prohibited married students. She currently serves on the board of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Foundation.

Tricia Nixon Cox, Boston College, Class of 1968 The oldest daughter of President Richard Nixon, Tricia attended Boston College and earned a degree in English. Her father served as a guest speaker at her graduation. She currently serves on the board of the Richard Nixon Foundation.

Julie Nixon Eisenhower, Smith College, Class of 1970 Julie Nixon, the youngest Nixon daughter, attended Smith College and earned a master's degree in education from The Catholic University of America in 1972. She married David Eisenhower, grandson of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. In 2010 she wrote "Going Home to Glory: A Memoir of Life with Dwight D. Eisenhower."

Caroline Kennedy, Radcliffe, Class of 1980 The oldest child of President Kennedy, Caroline went to Radcliffe College at Harvard University and earned a law degree from Columbia Law School in 1988. She served as US ambassador to Japan from 2013 to 2017.

John F. Kennedy Jr., Brown University, Class of 1983 The younger Kennedy attended Brown University where he majored in history. He graduated with a law degree from NYU School of Law in 1989, though he failed the bar exam twice, before passing on his third try. Kennedy died in a plane crash in 1999.

Amy Carter, Brown University, 1988 (did not graduate) Amy Carter, the youngest daughter of President Jimmy Carter, attended Brown University but was dismissed in 1987 for falling behind in her classes. She graduated with a bachelor of fine arts from the Memphis College of Art in 1992 and earned a master's in art history from Tulane University. She currently serves on the board of the Carter Center.

Chelsea Clinton, Stanford University, Class of 2001 Chelsea could be the first child with the highest educational credentials. The only daughter of President Bill Clinton, she graduated with highest honors from Stanford with a history degree. She then attended University College of the University of Oxford, where she graduated with a master of philosophy in 2003. Clinton earned a graduate degree from Columbia's Mailman School of Public Health in 2010 and a doctorate from Oxford in 2014. She currently serves on the board of the Clinton Foundation.

Barbara Pierce Bush, Yale University, Class of 2004 The older fraternal twin daughter of President George W. Bush, Barbara attended Yale University and graduated with a degree in humanities. She is the CEO and cofounder of public-health nonprofit Global Health Corps.

Jenna Bush Hager, University of Texas at Austin, Class of 2004 Jenna, the younger fraternal twin, attended UT Austin, where she graduated with an English degree. She is an author and an editor-at-large for Southern Living magazine. Her parents did not attend her nor her sister's 2004 graduation, saying they did not want to detract attention from the activities.

Donald Trump Jr., University of Pennsylvania, Class of 2000 The oldest of President Trump's children with his first wife Ivana Trump, Donald Jr. attended The University of Pennsylvania and graduated with a degree in economics. He currently oversees The Trump Organization, which was set up to administer President Trump's assets once he assumed the presidency.

Ivanka Trump, University of Pennsylvania, Class of 2004 Ivanka is Trump's second-born child from his marriage to Ivana. She spent two years at Georgetown before transferring to UPenn where she graduated with a degree in economics. She is currently a senior adviser to her father.

Eric Trump, Georgetown University, Class of 2006 Eric is the youngest child from Trump's marriage to Ivana. The sole Trump child who chose not to attend UPenn, he attended Georgetown and graduated with a degree in finance and management. Along with Donald Jr., Eric oversees The Trump Organization.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 03:28:18|Editor: Zhou Xin

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MOSCOW, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Russian Energy Ministry said Saturday that it is legally groundless for the European Union (EU) to sanction two of its officials over spats around Siemens turbine supply.

"There are no legal grounds for the EU to include the two officials on its sanction list," said the ministry, adding that it was waiting for an explanation from Brussels.

"Interference in disputes between two economic entities is a direct violation of international legal norms," said the ministry in a statement.

On Friday, the EU announced sanctions against three Russian nationals, including a deputy minister and a department head of the energy ministry, and three companies, who will face asset freeze and travel ban in the EU for their responsibility in the allegedly illegal delivery of four gas turbines to Crimea.

The turbines were originally sold by German company Siemens for use in other parts of Russia and were then transferred to Crimea, according to the company.

The EU decision to sanction the two Russian officials is puzzling and based solely on political considerations, said the Russian statement.
A dinner outing turned into a scene from an action movie on Friday night when Toronto man Andreas Katsouris was swarmed in a Nairobi street by men who detained him, took his cell phones and demanded he take them to a colleague.

I was on my way to dinner on Friday night when five or six tough looking guys wearing street clothes surrounded me, and then pretty soon there were a dozen of them, Katsouris said.

I saw one of their cell phones and there was a photo of me on it. They said they had been looking for me.

The men, who identified themselves as police, asked Katsouris to bring them to his American co-worker, John Aristotle Phillips.

He was given only a few minutes to call his wife before his two phones and laptop were taken from him, he told the Star over the phone, from Delft, Netherlands where he has since been reunited with his wife and daughter.

When the officers arrived at Katsouris apartment, they asked him and Phillips to pack their bags. He said when they both protested the officers became aggressive and began pushing and shoving them.

Phillips was then handcuffed.

One guy also grabbed the glasses off my face. Im pretty much blind without my glasses, and then I was like OK we dont have to do things this way, and then he put them back on.

The officers also denied Katsouris and Phillips the chance to contact lawyers or access to consular assistance, he said. Representatives for the Kenyan government did not immediately respond to Canadian Press requests for comment.

Katsouris, who had been working on the opposition campaign for Kenyas presidential election when he was apprehended, packed his belongings and got into the officers vehicle. He said Phillips later told him he was put into the back of another car with a man holding a large machine gun. Phillipss handcuffs were later removed.

The officers would not answer Katsouris questions about where they were going or why they were being held.

Im sitting in the car with four or five guys, and two of them are sitting on either side of me and it is pitch black outside. In terms of kidnapping and if I was going to be killed, it definitely crossed my mind, he said.

After about a half an hour of driving, Katsouris said the tension eased. Five hours later he was at the airport, where he and Phillips were brought into a room and told they were being deported because of a violation of their visas.

Katsouris said officers produced no documentation to justify his detention.

He was put on a connecting flight to Toronto, which first stopped at Frankfurt Airport, where he then took a train to Delft.

It was 23 hours of boredom and about an hour of fear, he said.

Katsouris said he and Phillips both had tourist visas, which are not sufficient for their employment in Kenya, but he believes the deportation was political. Katsouris is senior vice-president of global services at Aristotle Inc., a political consulting firm that provides various services to campaigns, including strategy and data analysis. Phillips is the companys CEO.

Katsouris said he saw multiple reports from Kenyan media that a polling station from his opposition campaign was vandalized while he was detained.

I saw a smashed up office. And there were multiple eye-witnesses that said computers were broken and some of them stolen.

James Orengo, a senior member of the opposition National Super Alliance, told The Associated Press that the detention of Katsouris and Phillips happened around the same time that armed and masked police raided an opposition vote-counting centre, intimidating workers and seizing equipment.

Kenyan police denied allegations that officers broke into political party offices on Friday, saying no report of a burglary has been made to any police station.

The lead-up to Tuesdays election has been contentious.

President Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of Kenyas first president, is up against longtime opposition leader Odinga, the son of the countrys first vice-president.

Katsouris and Phillips have been in Nairobi since June assisting opposition candidate Odinga. They also became involved in the election because they believed it had the potential for irregularities.

Odinga has run unsuccessfully in three previous elections.

Katsouris said before he was deported his two phones, one Canadian and the other he got in Kenya, along with his company laptop, were taken by the officers. He said he saw them reading his messages and emails that were between other campaign employees.

The phones were given back to him, but the Kenyan phone was returned without a SIM card.

Kenyan officials also kept his company laptop, which contains emails and documents from the opposition campaign.

Its completely inappropriate for a supposed democratic election, said Katsouris.

For now he will be spending time with his wife, Jennifer Mary Bell, and his 14-year-old daughter, who wasnt aware of the situation until her father surprised her in Delft.

I made the decision not to tell her even though shes old enough to understand. But I didnt want to tell her anything that I didnt know for sure, Bell said.

Bell said when she got the call from her husband she remained calm and tried to think rationally. This kind of thing is always a possibility with his kind of work.

She then contacted her MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith and global affairs officials who assisted with the deportation process.

The family will be returning to their home in Toronto on Saturday.

With files from the Canadian Press and the Associated Press

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BAKER LAKE, NUNAVUTAltogether it was almost too much to fathom.

Flying over the mammoth delta of the Athabasca and Peace rivers in northeast Alberta. Then seeing hundreds of American white pelicans nesting on the rapids off Fort Smith, N.W.T. Then following up the mighty Mackenzie River with Rob Norwegian to visit the ancestral home of his Rabbitskin tribe. Then flying up the dramatic South Nahanni River, perhaps Canadas most fabled whitewater canoe route. Then flying over the worlds largest concentration of ice fields and glaciers in the Yukon, with Canadas tallest mountain, Mount Logan, towering on the horizon.

Then visiting ancient Haida villages, dating back thousands of years, with weather-beaten totems in front. Then walking the expansive beaches of the Pacific Trail on Vancouver Island. Then winding up by tracking down a herd of muskox, with a few Sandhill cranes along the way, on the stubbly tundra west of Hudson Bay.

All this, and so much more, as I continued my 2017 odyssey to visit as many national parks as possible. To date, I have been to 27 in seven provinces and all three territories.

The latest journey began in Wood Buffalo National Park  at roughly the size of Switzerland, it is the largest national park in all of Canada. Straddling the border between Alberta and the Northwest Territories, it was created in 1922 to protect the continents last surviving herd of wood bison.

In the flight over this immense wooded terrain, piloted by a transplanted Tamil from Scarborough, we saw two small herds of buffalo and a few caribou.

The salt flats, where salt can grow to two metres in height, jumped out of the expansive greenery. The park is also known as the last natural nesting site for whooping cranes, but as it was nesting time, we kept an appropriate distance.

The Nahanni. The very name evokes reverence among canoeists who crave a wild, exotic trek through unparalleled northern majesty.

Two adjoining parks, Nahanni and Naatsihchoh, encompass the entire Nahanni drainage system. And a 10-hour charter flight highlighted the seven different landforms that make these parks the most geologically diverse in Canada. We landed three times  once right on the river to get a close-up of legendary Virginia Falls; once on the highly elevated Glacier Lake, flanked by the astonishing Cirque of Unclimbables, whose cluster of peaks and sheer walls account for its name; and once on the picturesque Little Doctor Lake.

Particularly breathtaking were the three canyons, each more than 1,000 metres in depth, through which the Nahanni snaked.

The total splendour was nothing short of spectacular.

Over the border in the Yukon lies Kluane National Park, home to the worlds largest non-polar ice fields. Up to a kilometre thick, they snake their way around the imposing Saint Elias Mountains, as if pushing them even higher. Seventeen of Canadas 20 highest mountains are in Kluane.

Mount Logan  Canadas highest peak at 5,959 metres  is there, and at 70 kilometres in length, it is also the worlds largest mountain mass.

It is home to a large glacier lake, with freshwater icebergs, said our pilot, a transplant from Thornhill, who added, You dont see that very often.

The next stop was Haida Gwaii, often called the Galapagos of Canada. Formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands, Haida Gwaii is home to the Haida First Nation, renowned for their phenomenal totem poles.

The national park, Gwaii Haanas, is co-managed by Parks Canada and the Haida First Nation with each side having equal power. At a mandatory orientation session, the Haida guides raved about this arrangement. It may well be the future model for other parks.

Serendipitously, I hooked up with friends on their converted lobster boat for a four-day cruise through the southern archipelago of the park.

Passing clusters of sea lions, occasional seals and countless eagles, we were mesmerized by our visits to ancient Haida villages where Haida guides sang and related the hidden meaning of the totems.

Haida Gwaii is famous for this wildness and sense of mystery. It lived up to every inch of its reputation.

The next stop was Vancouver Islands gorgeous national parks  on the Gulf Islands off the shores of Victoria and then along the western beaches around Tofino.

But I decided one more remote northern park was in order. So I headed for Baker Lake, the geographic centre of Canada, to visit the tundra and wild flowers of Ukkusiksalik National Park.

Wager Bay, a large inlet off northern Hudson Bay, is at the centre of this park, and its tide is one of the highest in Canada. The purple saxifrage was blooming in abundance and the rust orange lichen, which takes tens of thousands of years to form, was everywhere.

It has been an amazingly diverse odyssey so far. But memories of this latest northern journey will be embedded forever.

This is one in a series of columns by John Honderich, chairman of the board of Torstar, as he attempts to visit all of Canadas national parks during the country's 150th birthday year.

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So this is what it is like to play cosmic pinball. The worlds move, and sometimes they line up. Then you find yourself staring up the tube of blackness that is the moons shadow, a sudden hole in the sky during a total solar eclipse.

Such moments have left their marks on human consciousness since before history was recorded.

On Aug. 21, the moon will block the sun in the U.S., though viewing it in Canada will be less dramatic. But few eclipses have had more impact on modern history than the one that occurred on May 29, 1919, more than six minutes of darkness sweeping across South America and across the Atlantic to Africa.

It was during that eclipse that British astronomer Arthur Eddington ascertained that the light rays from distant stars had been wrenched off their paths by the gravitational field of the sun.

That affirmed the prediction of Einsteins theory of general relativity, ascribing gravity to a warp in the geometry of space-time, that gravity could bend light beams. Lights All Askew in the Heavens, read a headline in the New York Times.

Eddingtons report made Einstein one of the first celebrities of the new 20th century and ushered in a new dynamic universe, a world in which space and time could jiggle, grow, warp, shrink, rip, collapse into black holes and even disappear. The ramifications of his theory are still unfolding; it was only two years ago that a rippling of space-time  gravitational waves produced by colliding black holes  was discovered.

But the first step was not easy. How it happened illustrates that even the most fundamental advances in science can be hostage to luck and sometimes divine inspiration.

The bending of light by gravity was the most stunning and obvious prediction of Einsteins theory. Astronomers had been trying to detect the effect at solar eclipses since before he had even finished formulating the theory. Nature and politics did not always co-operate.

One of the earliest to try was Erwin Finlay-Freundlich, an astronomer at the Berlin Observatory who was to become a big Einstein booster. Freundlich led an expedition to the Crimea in 1914 to observe an eclipse, but the First World War began and he was arrested as a spy before the eclipse occurred. A team from the Lick Observatory in California did make it to the Crimean eclipse  but it rained.

I must confess that I never before seriously faced the situation of having everything spoiled by clouds, said William W. Campbell, the teams frustrated leader. One wishes that he could come home by the backdoor and not see anybody.

Worse, Licks special eclipse camera was impounded by the Russians and not returned in time for the next eclipse, in Venezuela in 1916.

The next big chance to prove Einstein correct came in 1918, when the moons shadow tracked right up the Columbia River between Washington state and Oregon. Lick sent another team of observers, but their camera was still not back from the Crimea and their improvised optics fell short, leaving the stars looking like fuzzy dumbbells as darkness fell.

So the universe was still up for grabs in March 1919, when Eddington and his colleagues set sail for Africa to observe the next eclipse. Astronomically, the prospects were as good as they could get. During the eclipse, the sun would pass before a big cluster of stars known as the Hyades, so there ought to be plenty of bright lights to see yanked askew.

Eddington was the right man for the job. A math prodigy and professor at Cambridge, he had been an early convert to Einsteins new theory, and an enthusiastic expositor to his colleagues and countrymen.

A story went that he was once complimented on being one of only three people in the world who understood the theory. Admonished for false modesty when he did not respond, Eddington replied that, on the contrary, he was trying to think of who the third person was.

General relativity was so obviously true, he said later, that if it had been up to him he would not have bothered trying to prove it.

But it was not up to him, due to a quirk of history. Eddington was also a Quaker and so had refused to be drafted into the army. His boss, Frank Dyson, the Astronomer Royal of Britain, saved Eddington from jail by promising that he would undertake an important scientific task, namely the expedition to test the Einstein theory.

Eddington also hoped to help reunite European science, which had been badly splintered by the war, Germans having been essentially disinvited from conferences. Now, an Englishman was setting off to prove the theory of a German, Einstein.

According to Einsteins final version of the theory, completed in 1915, as their light rays curved around the sun during an eclipse, stars just grazing the sun should appear deflected from their normal positions by an angle of about 1.75 seconds of arc, about a thousandth of the width of a full moon.

According to old-fashioned Newtonian gravity, starlight would be deflected by only half that amount, 0.86 seconds, as it passed the sun during an eclipse.

A second of arc is about the size of a star as it appears to the eye under the best and calmest of conditions from a mountaintop observatory. But atmospheric turbulence and optical exigencies often smudge the stars into bigger blurs.

So Eddingtons job, as he saw it, was to ascertain whether a bunch of blurs had been nudged off their centres by as much as Einstein had predicted, or half that amount  or none at all. It was Newton versus Einstein.

No pressure there.

Dyson was asked by Edwin Cottingham, one of the astronomers on the expedition: what if Eddington measured twice the Einstein deflection? Then Eddington will go mad and you will come home alone, Dyson answered.

To improve the chances of success, two teams were sent: Eddington and Cottingham to the island of Principe, off the coast of Africa, and Charles Davidson and Andrew Crommelin to Sobral, a city in Brazil. The fail-safe strategy almost didnt work.

In Sobral, the weather was unusually cloudy, but a clearing in the clouds opened up only one minute before totality, the moment the moon fully eclipsed the sun. On Principe, it rained for an hour and a half on the morning of the eclipse, and Eddington took pictures through fleeting clouds, hoping that some stars would show up.

A few blurry stars were visible on a couple of his photographic plates and a preliminary examination convinced Eddington that the positions of the stars had moved during the eclipse. He turned to his colleague and said, Cottingham, you wont have to go home alone.

In the end, there were three sets of plates from which the deflection of starlight could be measured. How Eddington and his colleagues played them off against one another sealed the fate of Einsteins theory.

The best-looking data had come from an Irish telescope in Sobral. The images indicated a deflection of 1.98 seconds of arc  more than Einstein had predicted.

Another Sobral telescope, known as an astrograph, also produced lots of star images, but they were blurred and out of focus, perhaps because heat from the sun had affected the telescope mirror. The images gave a value of 0.86 for the deflection, about in line with Newtons formula, but with large uncertainties.

Finally, there was the Principe telescope, which recorded only a handful of stars, from which Eddington heroically derived a reading of 1.61 seconds of arc.

Which result should Eddington use? If he averaged all three, he would wind up in the unhappy middle ground between Newton and Einstein.

If he just depended on the best telescope, as astronomers and historians John Earman and Clark Glymour pointed out in an influential essay in 1980, the figure of 1.98 would have cast doubt on Einsteins theory of general relativity.

In the end, Eddington wound up throwing out the Sobral astrograph data on the grounds that it was unreliable. Both of the remaining plates point to the full deflection 1.75 of Einsteins generalized relativity theory, Dyson and his colleagues wrote in their official report.

Dear Mother, joyous news today, Einstein wrote when he got wind of the result.

Astronomers and historians have argued ever since about whether Eddingtons belief that he already knew the answer led him to fudge the eclipse analysis by leaving out the warped astrograph.

In 2007, however, Daniel Kennefick, an astrophysicist and historian at the University of Arkansas, concluded after a long study of the records of the eclipse expedition that it was Dyson, the astronomer royal, who had decided to exclude the results from the astrograph. Dyson was well known to be skeptical of Einsteins new theory.

Eddington and Dyson were right. The experiment was repeated during an eclipse in 1922 and at many other eclipses over the years, always with the same Einsteinian result. With improvements in technology, today even small universities can do the requisite observations.

In November 1919, news of Einsteins triumph was announced to the world with all due pomp and circumstance at a joint meeting of Royal Society and the Royal Astronomical Society in London.

Presiding over the meeting, physicist J.J. Thomson called general relativity one of the highest achievements of mankind, describing it as a whole continent of new scientific facts. Black holes and the Big Bang were still in the future.

Indeed, what emerged from the moons shadow that cloud-speckled day in May was an entirely new universe.

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MANILA, PHILIPPINESA global pressure campaign on North Korea propelled by sharp new UN sanctions received a welcome boost Sunday from China, the Norths economic lifeline, as Beijing called on its neighbour to halt its missile and nuclear tests.

The Trump administration cautiously embraced Chinas apparent new-found co-operation, while putting it on notice that the U.S. would be watching closely to ensure it didnt ease up on North Korea if and when the worlds attention is diverted elsewhere. But there were no signs the U.S. would acquiesce to Chinas call for a quick return to negotiations.

The diplomatic wrangling sought to build on the sweeping new North Korea sanctions passed by the UN Security Council a day earlier  the strongest in a generation, the U.S. said.

As diplomats gathered in the Philippines for an annual regional meeting, U.S. President Donald Trump was cheering the move. He cited the very big financial impact of the sanctions and noted optimistically that both China and Russia had joined in the unanimous vote. On Sunday, following a late-night conversation with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, Trump tweeted: Just completed call with President Moon of South Korea. Very happy and impressed with 15-0 United Nations vote on North Korea sanctions.

In characteristically understated fashion, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said, It was a good outcome.

Read more:

UN Security Council approves tough new sanctions on North Korea

U.S. tests unarmed ICBM in California to show ability to defend against attacks

North Korean missile test exposed key flaw, expert says

For the U.S., it was a long-awaited sign of progress for Trumps strategy of trying to enlist Beijings help to squeeze North Korea diplomatically and economically. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, meeting with North Koreas top diplomat during the gathering in Manila, urged the North to maintain calm despite the UN vote.

Do not violate the UNs decision or provoke international societys goodwill by conducting missile launching or nuclear tests, Wang said, in an unusually direct admonition.

Tillerson did not meet with North Koreas envoy, Ri Yong Ho. In fact, on his first day in Manila, Tillerson appeared to go out of his way to avoid crossing paths with Ri.

In remarks to reporters Monday morning, Tillerson said the best signal North Korea could give that it was prepared for negotiations with the U.S. would be to halt its missile launches.

Tillerson, in his most specific outline to date of what preconditions the U.S. had for talks with Pyongyang, said stopping the launches would be the first and strongest signal. But he also said it was not as simple as North Korea stopping launches for a few days or weeks. He wouldnt give a concrete time frame but said that the U.S. would know it when we see it.

The U.S. has other means of communication open to North Korea if the country wants to express to the U.S. a desire to talk, Tillerson said, but didnt offer specifics.

Though Beijing repeated its call for the United States and North Korea to resume talks, the U.S. said that was still premature, and rejected yet again a Chinese call for the U.S. to freeze joint military exercises with South Korea in exchange for the North halting nuclear development. Pyongyang views the military exercises as rehearsals for an invasion.

The U.S. also warned it planned to rigorously monitor Chinas compliance with the new penalties. Susan Thornton, the top U.S. diplomat for Asia, said Beijing had historically co-operated with sanctions after flagrant North Korean violations but then slipped back over time.

We want to make sure China is continuing to implement fully the sanctions regime, Thornton told reporters in Manila. Not this kind of episodic back and forth that weve seen.

Infusing the diplomatic gathering with dramatic intrigue was the presence of Ri, the odd man out at a meeting dominated by concerns about his nations nuclear proliferation. Indeed, the U.S. was floating a proposal to temporarily kick North Korea out of the 27-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum, although other member nations are divided about that idea.

Would Tillerson interact with his North Korean counterpart, even informally, if they crossed paths in Manila? It was a question driving the hallway chatter at the gathering, but the U.S. shot down that prospect and said Tillerson had no plans to interact with Ri.

Tillerson, who was scheduled to attend a gala dinner Sunday, skipped it. Ri did not. The North Korean was spotted at the gala smiling and toasting with the other foreign ministers.

Tillerson aide R.C. Hammond said that after a productive first day, Tillerson spent several hours preparing for Day 2. Instead, the U.S. was represented at the dinner by Thornton, whose official title is acting assistant secretary of State for East Asia and Pacific Affairs.

Though Tillerson has emphasized the Trump administrations willingness to sit down with North Korea for negotiations, hes said that wont happen until the North agrees to abandon its nuclear aspirations. Even with new UN sanctions in place intended to drive Pyongyang back to the table, conditions still arent ripe for talks, U.S. diplomats said.

But Wang, the Chinese envoy, cast Ris presence in Manila as a positive, enabling him to hear the voices from other sides. Speaking in Chinese, Wang said that Ri also has the right to share his opinions.

Ri hasnt spoken publicly since arriving in the Philippines. But a commentary in the ruling partys Rodong Sinmun newspaper said Washington had disregarded the warning the North sent with its intercontinental ballistic missile tests and was pursuing desperate efforts in the form of stepped-up sanctions.

Now the U.S. mainland is on the crossroads of life and death, the commentary warned.

The new sanctions could cut off roughly one-third of North Koreas estimated $3 billion in annual exports, ostensibly denying the nation of funds for its weapons programs. All countries are now banned from importing North Korean coal, iron, lead and seafood products, and from letting in more North Korean labourers whose remittances help fund Kim Jong Uns regime.

The U.S. drafted the sanctions resolution and negotiated it with China following North Koreas unprecedented test of an ICBM in July and a followup test weeks later. Those tests sharply escalated U.S. fears that Pyongyang is a key step closer to mastering the technology needed to strike American soil with a nuclear-tipped missile.

Yet despite deeming North Korea a top security threat, the young Trump administration has struggled to find a strategy that differs significantly from what the U.S. has tried in the past. Aside from calling for more sanctions, Trumps approach has centred on enlisting China  the Norths biggest trading partner  and others to lessen ties to Pyongyang.

Trumps initial optimism about Chinas willingness to help gave way to public exasperation, with Trump saying Chinese President Xi Jinping had tried but that it has not worked out. Trumps administration began floating potential plans to punish China for its trade practices in what was widely perceived as a reaction to Chinas inaction on North Korea.

But in recent days, the two powers have started to paper over some of those differences. Beijing praised Tillerson for declaring the U.S. wasnt seeking regime change in North Korea. Trump has held off, for now, on the trade actions. And China joined the 15-0 vote in the Security Council on the new sanctions.

Who has been carrying out the UN Security Council resolutions concerning North Korea? It is China, Wang, the Chinese foreign minister, said Sunday. Who bore the cost? It is also China.

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Every year in early August, Japanese politicians and peace activists converge on Hiroshima to commemorate the day when the city was devastated by a U.S. atomic bomb. In the famous peace park, the horrors of the Second World War are vividly recounted. Speakers of all political stripes repeat Japans postwar mantra: Never again.

The familiar reaffirmations of peace were there this year, too, on the 72nd anniversary, with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declaring Sunday that Japan, as the only country to be irradiated in war, would firmly advance the movement toward a world without nuclear weapons.

But there was no hiding the tensions straining Japans postwar pacifism, as fears over the fast-advancing nuclear program in neighbouring North Korea  and political disagreements over how to respond  rose jarringly to the surface.

At a news conference after the official memorial ceremony, a forum normally dominated by reflections on the past and appeals for a peaceful future, a reporter prodded Abe about the alarmingly here-and-now problem of the nuclear ambitions of the Norths leader, Kim Jong Un.

Read more:

China calls on North Korea to halt missile tests day after new UN sanctions

UN Security Council approves tough new sanctions on North Korea END

U.S. tests unarmed ICBM in California to show ability to defend against attacks

North Koreas repeated defiance of a ban on testing missiles and nuclear bombs prompted the U.N. Security Council on Saturday to unanimously adopt a resolution imposing the most stringent sanctions yet against the country.

The reporter asked, Should Japan, whose constitution renounces war, acquire the means to strike North Korean missile sites if an attack on Japan appeared imminent?

It is a topic that has occupied policy-makers and defence experts in recent months as Pyongyang, the Norths capital, has stepped up the pace of its missile tests, with pieces of its increasingly sophisticated arsenal splashing down in waters off Japan. But it seemed a remarkable subject for the anniversary in Hiroshima.

Abes answer was hardly a comfort to Japanese pacifists.

Though he responded that his government was not planning to arm Japan to carry out any pre-emptive strikes, at least for now, he stopped well short of rejecting the idea outright.

At the present time, we are not planning any specific deliberations about possessing weapons for a pre-emptive strike, Abe said. He added that Japan needed to strengthen its defences generally, given that the security situation surrounding Japan is becoming increasingly severe.

Although Japan has a military, the Self-Defence Forces, it has forgone certain offence-oriented weapon systems, like long-range missiles and bombers. Such weapons are seen as being incompatible with its constitution, which was created by occupying U.S. forces after the Second World War and has been interpreted as allowing Japan to fight only to fend off attacks.

Several local news outlets noted the contrast between the occasion and Abes remarks, as did supporters of Japans increasingly beleaguered peace movement.

What a thoughtless thing to say in Hiroshima! said one Twitter user, whose handle translated to Peace is Number One.

Many experts have questioned whether pre-emptive strikes on North Korean installations would be effective, given that Pyongyang takes countermeasures like keeping its missiles mobile or hiding them deep underground.

But that has not stopped some Japanese from arguing that their country should at least have the option to try.

As a treaty ally of the United States, Japan relies for its defence on the deterrent power of the United States vast arsenal, including the aircraft carriers, Tomahawk missiles and nuclear weapons that Japan does not possess. That ambivalent stance  rejecting such weapons for itself but approving their deployment by the United States  has also created political friction.

On Sunday, the mayor of Hiroshima, Kazumi Matsui, and survivors groups urged Abe to sign the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, a first-of-its-kind agreement negotiated at a U.N. conference last month.

Abe has declined to support the treaty, arguing that while eliminating nuclear weapons may be desirable, unilateral disarmament by Japanese allies would only aid North Korea and China.

We need a realistic, step-by-step approach, Abe said Sunday, in order to achieve a nuclear-free world.

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MANILA, PHILIPPINESRussias top diplomat said Sunday his country was ready for more engagement with the United States on North Korea, Syria, Ukraine and other pressing matters, even as Moscow braced for new sanctions from the Trump administration.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson for the first since the U.S. imposed the additional penalties, said Russia and the U.S. had agreed to resume a suspended high-level diplomatic channel and Washington would send its Ukraine envoy to Moscow for negotiations.

Lavrovs upbeat assessment came amid what the U.S. has called a diplomatic low point unseen since the end of the Cold War.

It wasnt immediately clear whether the U.S. shared Lavrovs rosy view of the meeting. The U.S. offered no comment about what the diplomats discussed, and Tillerson didnt respond to shouted questions from journalists allowed in briefly for the start of the hour-plus meeting in the Philippines.

We felt that our American counterparts need to keep the dialogue open, Lavrov said. Theres no alternative to that.

Lavrov said Tillerson had asked him for details about Moscows recent move to expel American diplomats and shutter a U.S. recreational facility on the outskirts of Moscow. Lavrov said he explained to Tillerson how Russia will carry out its response, but did not publicly disclose details.

Last month, the Kremlin said the U.S. must cut its embassy and consulate staff in Russia by 755 people, a move that echoed former president Barack Obamas action last year to kick out Russian diplomats in punishment for Moscows meddling in the 2016 American election. The Russian announcement has caused confusion because the U.S. is believed to have far fewer than 755 American employees in the country.

Word that U.S. special representative Kurt Volker plans to visit the Russian capital was the latest sign that Washington is giving fresh attention to resolving Ukraine conflict. The U.S. cut military ties to Russia over Moscows annexation of Crimea and accuses the Kremlin of fomenting unrest in eastern Ukraine by arming, supporting and even directing pro-Russian separatists there who are fighting the Kyiv government.

In recent days, the Trump administration has been considering providing lethal weaponry to Ukraine to help defend itself against Russian aggression.

Lavrov didnt say when Volker, a former NATO ambassador, would go to Moscow.

In their meeting, Lavrov said, Tillerson agreed to continue a dialogue between U.S. Undersecretary of State Thomas Shannon and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov. That channel was created to address what the U.S. calls irritants preventing the two countries from pursuing better ties. Russia had suspended the talks after the U.S. tightened existing sanctions on Russia related to its actions in Ukraine.

Lavrov and Tillerson met on the sidelines of an Asian regional gathering in the Philippines. It was their first face-to-face conversation since Congress passed new legislation in July that makes it harder for Trump to ever ease penalties on Russia. Trump signed the bill last week, but called it seriously flawed.

The White House said Trumps opposition stemmed from the bills failure to grant the president sufficient flexibility on when to lift sanctions. Trumps critics saw his objections as one more sign that he is too eager to pursue closer ties to Russia, or to protect the former Cold War foe from penalties designed to punish Moscow for its actions in Ukraine, election meddling and other troublesome behaviour.

A U.S. Justice Department investigation is moving ahead into Russias election interference and potential Trump campaign collusion. Trump denies any collusion and has repeatedly questioned U.S. intelligence about Moscows involvement.

At the same time, Trumps administration has argued theres good reason for the U.S. to seek a more productive relationship. Tillerson has cited modest signs of progress in Syria, where the U.S. and Russia recently brokered a ceasefire in the war-torn countrys southwest, as a sign theres fertile ground for co-operation.

The Syrian ceasefire reflected a return of U.S.-Russia co-operation to lower violence there. The U.S. had looked warily at a series of safe zones in Syria that Russia had negotiated along with Turkey and Iran  but not the U.S.

Lavrov cited upcoming talks involving Russia, Iran and Turkey about how to ensure the truce in the last safe zone to be established, around the northwestern city of Idlib. He predicted it will be difficult to hammer out the details but that compromise can be reached if all parties  including the U.S.  use their influence in Syria to persuade armed groups there to comply.

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Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 03:33:20|Editor: Zhou Xin

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HOUSTON, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Chemists in Rice University of Texas have produced a catalyst based on laser-induced graphene that splits water into hydrogen on one side and oxygen on the other side.

According to a news release by the Rice University recently, the easily fabricated material developed by the Rice lab of chemist James Tour offers a robust and efficient way to store chemical energy and the inexpensive material may be a practical component in generating the hydrogen for use in future fuel cells.

Tests showed the thin catalyst producing large bubbles of oxygen and hydrogen on either side simultaneously.

The catalyst is another use for versatile laser-induced graphene (LIG), which Rice introduced in 2014. LIG is produced by treating the surface of a sheet of polyimide, an inexpensive plastic, with a laser.

Co-authors are graduate students Chenhao Zhang, Huilong Fei, Yilun Li and Junwei Sha. Sha is also a student at Tianjin University and the Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering, Tianjin, China. Tour is the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry as well as a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering at Rice.

The research was supported by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the National Science Foundation-funded and Rice-based Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment Engineering Research Center and the Chinese Scholarship Council.

The process is the subject of a paper in the American Chemical Society's Applied Materials and Interfaces.
A Sydney suburb has banned the construction of a synagogue because it could be a terrorist target, a decision that has infuriated religious leaders.

The temple was to be built in Bondi, a short walk from Australias famous Bondi Beach. But locals worried that the space would pose a security risk to nearby residents, motorists and pedestrians. As evidence of that threat, the council pointed to the synagogues own design, which included setback buildings and blast walls. They also said the design would have an unacceptable impact on the street and neighbourhood.

A number of residents agreed with the contentions ... and provided additional evidence against the development of the site, the council said in a statement.

Friends of Refugees From Eastern Europe, a Jewish group, immediately appealed that decision to the Land and Environment Court. The protective design, the group said, was not a commentary on the risk the temple faced, but rather a best practice used at lots of synagogues. It also offered to do a redesign.

But the court sided with the council. In its decision, the court explained that western countries are under threat from Daesh, also known as ISIS or ISIL, and that the potential of an attack in Australia is considered probable by government officials. The court also noted that the designs would serve only to protect those inside the building, not those outside.

The announcement comes just days after Australian authorities foiled a major terror plot to blow up an airplane using a homemade explosive device and to release poison gas. But it may reflect something uglier too.

Although there are about 120,000 Jews in Australia, including 50,000 in the Sydney area, an undercurrent of anti-Semitism runs through the country. Attacks on Jews and Jewish property jumped 10 per cent in 2016; Jewish community groups logged a total of 210 incidents. That included physical assaults and harassment, along with vandalism and graffiti. In one instance, a 22-year-old was punched in the neck and called an expletive as he walked home from synagogue. In another, onlookers threw eggs at Jews as they walked home from Friday night services.

Holocaust-denial pamphlets were distributed at several universities, along with neo-Nazi brochures calling for the killing of all Jews. Two vehicles were firebombed, the glass door of a synagogue was broken, and graffiti artists covered the walls of a synagogue with messages like f---ing Jew and die Jeue.

As the Executive Council of Australian Jewry explained:

Although Australia remains a stable, vibrant and tolerant democracy, where Jews face no official discrimination and are free to observe their faith and traditions, anti-Semitism persists. There are segments of Australian society which are not only hostile towards Jews, but actively and publicly express that hatred with words and threatened or actual violent acts. As a result, and by necessity, physical security remains a prime concern for the Jewish community.

Jewish leaders have protested the synagogue decision vociferously, arguing that it stifles their freedom of speech and rewards terrorism.

The decision is unprecedented, Rabbi Yehoram Ulman told news.com.au. Its implications are enormous. It basically implies that no Jewish organization should be allowed to exist in residential areas. It stands to stifle Jewish existence and activity in Sydney and indeed, by creating a precedent, the whole of Australia, and by extension rewarding terrorism.

They have effectively placed in jeopardy the future of Jewish life in Australia, he said.

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WASHINGTONThe cable guy was fussing around in her living room. Her goddaughter was polishing a resume in her dining room. Her 8-year-old was antsy. Christy Judd, a West Virginia high school teacher, had to run out of town.

Her war was calling.

She got Ethan into the back seat of the car. She packed his ventilator and his suction machine and his stroller. And she began the two-hour drive east from Inwood, population 3,000, to Capitol Hill, where she would have an hour to try to convince her Republican senator that her sons life was worth protecting.

Judd, 40, urged students in her government classes to be informed and involved, but she had never taken political action herself. Then came Trumpcare, the Republican health-care proposal that would have slashed funding for the Medicaid program Ethan needs if he is going to thrive with a neuromuscular disease.

Fighting for her kid suddenly meant fighting the United States Congress.

In this fight, she said, we dont have a choice. This is the fight of our lives. We are soldiers at war for our kids.

A mom she knew from a Facebook forum had started an advocacy group, Little Lobbyists, to elevate the profile of kids with complex medical issues like Ethans. On a Tuesday in late June, her 50-pound boy made his debut as a Washington activist.

Judd was furious that Sen. Shelley Moore Capito wouldnt meet with them herself. But her young aide seemed at least mildly moved. A month later, in late July, Capito was one of seven Republican senators to vote against their partys proposals to repeal Obamacare without a replacement.

The next night, three Republican senators voted against the partys last-ditch replacement proposal, and that was that.

In the end, it was an astonishing failure: the party that controls the presidency, the House and the Senate was unable to deliver on its signature campaign promise. And it was an astonishing success: regular people were a big reason why.

Facing odds that seemed insurmountable, thousands of average Americans threw themselves into action to protect Obamacare. Taking cues from the conservative Tea Party movement and from seasoned liberal organizers, the activist resistance helped to make repeal seem riskier than doing nothing at all.

They helped to save the insurance coverage of an estimated 16 million to 32 million people, likely preventing thousands of early deaths. They helped to deal a severe blow to President Donald Trumps young administration. And they created a people-power playbook on how to stop Trump from doing anything significant through legislation.

* * *

This, Ben Wikler thought. This scene from 1989, preserved in grainy news footage on YouTube, was what they had to manufacture in 2017 to save Obamacare.

It did not seem likely.

By the time the Republicans repeal and replace push collapsed last month, the idea was so unpopular that defeat seemed almost inevitable. But in the weeks following Trumps victory in November, when Wikler, Washington director for the progressive group MoveOn.org, began to talk to activist allies about how to challenge the unexpected president on Obamacare, there was a pervasive sense of doom  that maybe this fight wasnt even worth joining.

Because it was so clear that Republicans would be able to repeal the Affordable Care Act, said Wikler, 36. We honestly thought they were going to pull this off in January as they planned to do.

Wikler began looking for cases where activists made the impossible happen. He read about the citizen fury that led to the 1989 repeal of a law that taxed seniors to try to prevent medical bankruptcies. One congressman was caught on video being chased out of his car by a fist-shaking horde of old folks.

Wikler sent the clip around. What activists needed to do, he said, was make repeal so politically toxic that Republicans are literally running away from it.

Their best early chance was the February recess when legislators would be holding town halls. MoveOn made a website, ResistanceRecess.com, to urge supporters to swamp the meetings. Seeking viral moments like the ones that hurt Democratic lawmakers during the 2010 summer recess, the leaders of Indivisible, a network of more than 5,000 local groups founded to oppose Trump, told supporters to film everything.

If it doesnt get recorded, said co-founder Angel Padilla, it doesnt happen.

The footage was dreadful for Republicans. Across the country, they struggled to quiet angry crowds. More importantly, they had no good answers for constituents who confronted them with stories about how Obamacare had helped them with their own problems. The clips rocketed around Facebook, changing the public focus from insurance prices to human suffering.

The longer the process took, activist organizers thought, the more time they would have to get the public riled up, and the more political capital Republicans would have to waste. Pushing for delay, Indivisible briefly turned its sights on one of its key Democratic allies, Senate leader Chuck Schumer, announcing sit-ins to pester him into using a procedural tactic to slow the process. Schumer relented.

As activists fought Republicans, they were also fighting silence. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnells plan to pass the bill in stealth was being aided by the unceasing parade of sensational revelations about Trump and Russia. The liberal drumbeat helped create new news journalists could write about.

We knew that if health care didnt get back to the front pages of the major news outlets, we were going to lose this fight, Padilla, 34, said.

When Republican legislators werent at home to be pummelled, activists flooded them with phone calls using scripts provided by national groups and tailored to each particular state. (This bill would cause 17,200 Alaskans to lose their Medicaid coverage . . . how could Sen. Murkowski support that?) At one point, MoveOn supporters alone were making more than 30 calls every hour to the offices of key undecided senators.

Many of the activists did more than call. Every single Tuesday for seven months, even during snowstorms, the members of RESIST Central Maine, a new anti-Trump group mostly composed of women 55 and older, stood outside the Lewiston office of Republican Sen. Susan Collins, holding messages like Healthcare not wealthcare.

Minutes after Christy and Ethan Judd arrived in Washington, RESIST founder Pat Fogg, a 78-year-old retired psychotherapist, took her spot on the Lewiston sidewalk for their cheekily named Lunch With Susan. Collins was never there, but the activists signed in at the office to make sure she knew they were.

And Maines Planned Parenthood leaders made sure Collins heard from its patients.

The Republican plan would have stripped funding from the popular provider of abortion and reproductive health services for a year. Its response was to confront senators like Collins, a consistent supporter, with the faces of people it has helped.

Collins became the most steadfast Republican voice against Trumpcare. Under attack from the White House and its allies, she was visibly buoyed by the Mainers cheering her for standing strong.

Activists couldnt claim all the credit for the triumph. Also factors: Trumps ineptitude, old Republican divisions, conservative activists indifference. But there was no question, on any side of the debate, that the citizen pressure was essential.

Your voice matters. Your story matters, said Nicole Clegg, vice-president of public policy for Planned Parenthood of Northern New England. Peoples real-life experiences, and talking about them publicly, were incredibly powerful and persuasive.

* * *

Theres a joke Mike Oxford tells about his disability-rights activist group. ADAPT is so ignored, Oxford says, that it would not get media attention if it started a fire on the same street as the White House.

On June 22, to his shock, ADAPT became a media phenomenon.

Led by Oxford, a veteran Kansas rabble-rouser who uses a scooter because of his spinal condition, more than 60 people with disabilities staged a die-in at McConnells Capitol office. Many of them got out of wheelchairs to lie flat on their backs. Then, as news cameras rolled, they were physically dragged away by police officers and arrested.

Their intent was to create a disturbing enough scene to make people pay attention. This time, the attention was national. The wave of coverage was a crucial turning-point moment, Wikler said, that cemented the public perception that Trumpcare would hurt the disabled.

The right thing at the right time at the right moment, Oxford said. We had no reason to believe that was going to happen.

Five days later, McConnell delayed the vote until after the July 4 congressional recess.

Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran was one of the few Republicans to hold a recess town hall. Two weeks after he was detained, Oxford, 58, drove fourhours across Kansas to attend.

Oxford sat in a strategic location by a door. As Moran tried to leave, Oxford grabbed his arm. Moran stopped, then bent down to listen.

Oxford has known Moran for years. He told him why Trumpcares Medicaid cuts would hurt Kansans with disabilities who rely on home and community-based services.

Ten days later, Moran came out publicly in opposition to the replacement plan, sending the effort on the path to ultimate disaster.

* * *

Wikler was five hours into yet another Capitol rally when he got the news by text. They had won. Somehow, they had won.

Senate Republicans cycled through various versions of their plan, each less ambitious than the last, until their last attempt was defeated 51-49. The senator who provided the decisive late-night vote had not been treated by activists as a primary target: Arizonas John McCain, who complained more about the rushed legislative process than the contents of the bill.

Activists success was not total. Collins was a No on every plan, as was Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski. Capito, though, ended up voting Yes on two of the three final versions, as did Moran.

But the activists did enough, just enough. And they believe they have figured out a rough formula for outfoxing Trump. It involves relentless pressure, direct action, human stories, strategic co-ordination, a focus on community activism that might make the local news, and a firmer grasp of policy than this president has.

They are now trying to replicate their Trumpcare success. On Thursday, groups including Indivisible and MoveOn revealed a new Not One Penny campaign against Trumps push for tax reform that would benefit the rich.

This war will be harder. Republican legislators, and donors, are more united in favour of tax cuts. Tax rates do not lend themselves as easily as health insurance to emotional made-for-TV moments.

But the activist base is fired up at a moment when it should have been deflated. As Trump takes a 17-day vacation and Washington takes a much-needed breath, people involved in the Trumpcare fight are still pestering their representatives to keep the proposal dead.

Wednesday was Christy Judds 14th anniversary, and she wanted a pedicure before dinner. Instead, she drove past her house and on to Capitos closest office, asking the senator one more time to meet with Ethan.

One in a series on grassroots activism against the president.

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CARACAS, VENEZUELASoldiers battled for three hours Sunday morning against a small band of anti-government fighters who snuck onto a Venezuelan army base, apparently intent on fomenting an uprising, President Nicolas Maduro said.

Troops killed two of the intruders, wounded another and captured seven, but 10 others got away, the embattled leader announced in his weekly broadcast on state television.

We know where they are headed and all of our military and police force is deployed, Maduro said. He said he would ask for the maximum penalty for those who participated in this terrorist attack.

The incident happened during the early morning hours at the Paramacay base in the central city of Valencia. Residents who live nearby said they heard repeated bursts of gunfire starting around 4:30 a.m.

A video showing more than a dozen men dressed in military fatigues, some carrying rifles, began circulating widely on social media around that time. In the recording, a man who identified himself as Capt. Juan Caguaripano said the men were members of the military who oppose Maduros socialist government and called on military units to declare themselves in open rebellion.

This is not a coup detat, the man said. This is a civic and military action to re-establish the constitutional order.

Twenty men entered the base, catching soldiers on night watch by surprise, Maduro said. The intruders managed to reach the bases weapons depot before an alarm sounded, alerting troops to the incursion. He said 10 of the invaders then escaped, some carrying off arms, while those left behind exchanged gunfire with soldiers until about 8 a.m. before all were either killed or captured.

Today we had to defeat terrorism with bullets, Maduro said.

Residents who live nearby and saw the dissident groups video online gathered around the military base chanting Freedom! Other protests also emerged spontaneously around Valencia into the afternoon.

Troops dispersed the protesters with tear gas and a man was fatally shot at a demonstration less than a mile from the base, said Haydee Franco, co-ordinating secretary of the Progressive Advance party. More than 120 people have been reported killed in unrest that began in early April.

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Venezuelas constitutional assembly removes defiant chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega

Venezuelan president completes power grab as loyalist assembly sworn in

How Nicolas Maduro went from bus driver to reviled Venezuelan president

Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez characterized the attackers as a paramilitary expedition, saying the intruders were civilians dressed in uniforms. He did not identify any of the participants, but said they included a lieutenant who had abandoned his post. He said the man who recorded the video was a former officer dismissed three years ago after being charged with rebellion and betraying the homeland.

In 2014, Caguaripano released a 12-minute video denouncing Maduro during a previous wave of anti-government unrest. He later reportedly sought exile after a military tribunal ordered his arrest, appearing in an interview on CNN en Espanol to draw attention to what he said was discontent within military ranks.

He returned to Venezuela to lead Sundays uprising, said Giomar Flores, a mutinous naval officer now in Bogota, Colombia, who said he is a spokesman for the group.

Padrino Lopez alleged the attackers were recruited by right-wing extremists working with unspecified foreign governments. Maduro said the attack was paid for by Miami and Colombia  cities with large numbers of Venezuelans who oppose his government. Neither provided specific details on how they had come to that conclusion.

Todays terrorist attack is no more than a propaganda show, Padrino Lopez said.

Venezuelas latest bout of political unrest erupted in protest to a Supreme Court decision in late March ordering the opposition-controlled National Assembly dissolved. Although the order was quickly annulled, near-daily demonstrations snowballed into a general protest calling for a new presidential election.

Opposition leaders have urged the military, which historically has served as an arbiter of Venezuelas political disputes, to break with Maduro over what his foes consider violations of the constitution.

But the president is believed to still have the militarys support. He and his predecessor, the late President Hugo Chavez, worked diligently to assure their allegiance.

Like Sundays uprising, most manifestations of dissent among troops have been small and isolated thus far.

Its still very hard to know to what extent there are significant divisions within the military, Michael Shifter, president of the Washington-based Inter-American Dialogue, said recently.

The attack capped an already tense weekend during which a new constitutional assembly that will rule with nearly unlimited powers voted to remove chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz.

Ortega Diaz, a longtime government loyalist who has become one of Maduros most outspoken critics, reiterated her refusal to recognize that decision at a public appearance alongside opposition leaders Sunday.

I am still Venezuelas chief prosecutor, she said to applause.

The assembly ordered her replaced by Ombudsman Tarek William Saab, who was recently sanctioned by Washington for failing to protect protesters from abuses in his role as the nations top human rights official.

In his Sunday address, Maduro defended the constitutional assemblys right to remove Ortega Diaz, comparing it to U.S. President Donald Trumps decision to fire acting Attorney General Sally Yates after she publicly questioned his immigration order shortly after taking office in January.

He also announced that a new truth commission was being installed Sunday, setting up its offices in a historic building in Caracas that also houses the Ministry of Foreign Relations. The commission will have the right to require those it summons to testify and those who lie can be charged with perjury, the president said.

Maduro said the assembly is considering creating a law against hate, intolerance and fascism that would immediately punish those responsible for the current upheaval.

Maduro frequently refers to opposition leaders and protesters as fascists.

The president singled out Julio Borges, the leader of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, warning him, Justice is coming for you and the terrorists youve helped advance.

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Last week the jury at a coroners inquest into the police shooting death of Michael MacIsaac issued thoughtful, important recommendations that should be implemented by all police forces to de-escalate confrontations with people experiencing a mental health crisis.

As sound, sensible and potentially life-saving as they are, though, none of the proposals are new. And that raises the troubling question of why police forces are failing to implement recommendations from other coroners juries, the Ontario Ombudsman and even a former Supreme Court justice.

As Michael MacIsaacs mother, Yvonne MacIsaac, sadly noted: Im sure there have been lots of good recommendations from the inquests that have been had. My son would be alive if even a few of them had been followed.

By now the details of how Michael MacIsaac was shot to death by a Durham Regional Police officer are well known. On Dec. 2, 2013, he had been running through the streets stark naked, banging on car windows.

But instead of trying to calm the obviously distressed man, as has been recommended by so many coroners juries, Constable Brian Taylor shot him twice only 12 seconds after arriving at the scene.

The first time an officer actually tried to soothe MacIsaac was after he had been shot. Thats when Constable Jeffrey Williams told him: Im trying to help you; we have help on the way.

Disturbingly, the incident followed the shooting deaths by Toronto police of three mentally ill people between 2010 and 2012. A coroners inquest into those deaths that reported in February, 2014, advised that when officers are approaching someone who is clearly in a mental health crisis they should drop their commanding voice and instead speak softly, offer help and strive to express understanding.

Most notably it happened after the highly criticized shooting in July, 2013, of Sammy Yatim. Yatim was shot after ignoring police commands to drop a small knife, less than 50 seconds after police arrived on the scene, though he was alone on a streetcar and could easily have been talked to.

Why havent police learned from these mistakes and from the many official recommendations that have followed them?

In June 2016, Ontario Ombudsman Paul Dube issued a report saying he had counted well over 100 coroners jury recommendations calling for improved police training on de-escalation techniques since the Yatim shooting.

De-escalation was also a prominent theme in former Supreme Court Justice Frank Iacobuccis landmark report in 2014 on Yatims death. Among his 84 recommendations: mandatory mental health first aid courses for new constables and expanding the use of mobile crisis intervention teams, in which a veteran officer is paired with a mental health nurse.

Still, in July, 2015, Andrew Loku was shot to death in Toronto only 21 seconds after police arrived on the scene. Again, an officer issued commands, not offers of help, before shooting. On June 30, a jury at a coroners inquest into Lokus shooting recommended exposing officers in training to the perspectives and lived experience of . . . individuals with mental health issues and/or addictions.

The coroners jury examining MacIsaacs death made a similar suggestion. It also recommended that training at the Ontario Police College be extended by one week to focus exclusively on de-escalation, and that officers should be trained on different communication techniques when a person doesnt respond to shouted commands.

It all seems logical. But the message isnt getting through.

While handling people in a mental health crisis can be one of the greatest challenges a police officer faces it is vitally important that officers receive adequate training in it. After all, Toronto police alone respond to more than 23,000 mental health-related calls a year.

Implementing the recommendations made in recent years would go a long way toward avoiding disastrous confrontations that result in a vulnerable persons death, in shattered families, and in police officers wracked by self-doubt and guilt.

Its time police chiefs and the Ontario College of Police got the message and trained their officers in these important de-escalation techniques before one more person in crisis is shot.

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Re: City must wake up to drug crisis, Editorial, Aug. 4

City must wake up to drug crisis, Editorial, Aug. 4

Your editorial perpetuates the misleading notion that giving naloxone immediately to all opioid overdoses is harmless and free from negative consequences.

Paramedics are trained to consider administering naloxone in very specific circumstances as a last resort, when all other attempts at managing the patients airway and breathing have been unsuccessful. Even then, it is given slowly, titrating the administration only to restore adequate breathing.

To rush in and give naloxone without the proper assessment and consideration of differential diagnoses is reckless and dangerous. Overdose patients who have their condition quickly reversed with naloxone often suffer sudden withdrawal symptoms such as seizures, and can be aggressive and violent when they wake up. This poses a grave safety risk for first responders.

Police and firefighters do not have the necessary training, education or experience to decide when it is appropriate to give naloxone, nor are they equipped to handle the fallout of the withdrawal they induce. It can be detrimental to the patient to have first responders wait for the miracle drug to work (which it may not).

Many studies and experts have already shown that routine naloxone administration in cardiac arrest is of little benefit, as the cause of the arrest is hypoxia. Firefighters already have all the tools necessary to manage opioid overdoses, in the most safe and effective way possible, by managing the patients airway and ventilations.

We applaud the decision of Toronto Police to leave the administration of naloxone to paramedics. Continue the data collection to determine how often paramedics are actually administering naloxone in opioid overdose cases, as opposed to basic life support management, before you start giving it to everyone.

Mike Thomas, president, Peel Paramedic Association

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UN under-secretary-general for economic and social affairs Liu Zhenmin receives an interview by Xinhua at the UN headquarters on Aug. 3, 2017. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Anti-globalization will hinder the international community from achieving a set of global goals aiming at eradicating poverty, promoting social equality and combating climate change, said Liu Zhenmin, new UN under-secretary-general for economic and social affairs.

In a recent interview with Xinhua, Liu said that the economic globalization is irreversible due to the establishment of the international division of labor and the volume of international trade. "Countries that question the economic globalization can hardly escape this process."

Noting that a new round of anti-globalization revived since last year, Liu said it will have a huge impact on the implementation of the sustainable development goals agreed by UN member states which pursue the well-beings of every human being on the planet.

In 2015, 193 UN member states adopted the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda which outlined 17 sustainable development goals and 169 specific targets. The agenda has vowed to end poverty in all its forms everywhere, especially to eradicate extreme poverty which measured as people living on less than 1.25 U.S. dollars a day.

Liu, who assumed the office as UN under-secretary-general on Tuesday, said one of his priorities in his tenure is to help UN member states to implement the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

Pointing out that some developing countries, least developed countries, and small island countries, have difficulties in promoting development due to a lack of experience and technology, Liu said helping developing countries with their capacity building will also be an important work in his tenure.

Prior to this position, Liu was vice minister for foreign affairs of China since 2013. He served as China's deputy permanent representative to the UN from 2006 to 2009. He was also deeply involved for 10 years in climate change negotiations including the conclusion of the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement.

Liu said that climate change is a significant challenge facing the international community and is affecting the cause of global development.

"We need to change our lifestyle, change our way of consumption of energy and transform into a low-carbon development pattern to achieve a sustainable development path," he said. "I hope we can promote the establishment of some cooperation mechanisms in this respect."

Speaking of China's role in global development, Liu said the UN is paying attention to China's efforts in promoting global development, especially China's launch of its Belt and Road initiative. "We hope China can play a more active role in the framework of the United Nations in the future."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 05:59:16|Editor: yan

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RAMALLAH, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas slammed Islamic Hamas movement on Saturday for lightening its tunnels in Gaza around the clock despite a severe electricity shortage.

"While there is a severe electricity crisis in Gaza, Hamas lightens its underground tunnels and the homes of its officials around the clock," Abbas told a group of notables from East Jerusalem at his office in Ramallah.

Abbas said he won't end the unprecedented harsh measures taken against Hamas in Gaza a few months ago, unless "Hamas hands over the Gaza Strip to the current consensus Palestinian government."

Hamas, which has been ruling the Gaza Strip since 2007, earlier accused the government and Abbas of turning their backs on the Gazans by helping Israel's more than 10 years of blockade imposed on the impoverished coastal enclave.

In March, Hamas formed an administrative committee to run the daily life of Gaza, a move that has angered Abbas who insists that Hamas should dissolve the committee and hand over ruling the Gaza Strip to his consensus government.

"Some parties are concerned to keep the internal split going on in order to prevent the establishment of any independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital," Abbas said said to his guests from Jerusalem.

"Abbas' insistence to keep punishing the Gazan people means that he insists on isolating Gaza from the West Bank," Hazem Qassem, Hamas spokesman in Gaza, said in an e-mailed press statement.

"The tough measures that he takes against the poor people in Gaza have caused catastrophic consequences on the populations and the details of the populations daily life," Qassem noted.
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Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 07:12:35|Editor: Yamei

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CAIRO, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Egypt signed an agreement with Imperial College London on Saturday to reduce the tuition fees of engineering faculty for Egyptian students by 50 percent, MENA news agency reported.

The Egypt's Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research on Saturday signed an agreement with Imperial College London to reduce the tuition fees of engineering faculty for Egyptian students by 50 percent.

Higher Education Minister Khaled Abdel Ghaffar reviewed a report submitted by his First Assistant for cultural relations and missions Hossam el Mallahy on the activities of the cultural office in London.

A deal with University College London (UCL) has been renewed to cut down tuition fees for Egyptian students by 25 percent, according to the report.

Another agreement with University of Aberdeen to reduce fees for Egyptian students by 10 percent will continue, the report stated.

The minister, meanwhile, reviewed ongoing efforts by Egypt's cultural office in London in the fields of activating cooperation between Egyptian and British universities and promoting Egypt's educational institutions.
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A gazelle grazes on the savannah, unaware of the leopard lurking in the grasses, ready to pounce. As the leopard makes its move, the gazelle tries to escape, but its too late. The leopard has its teeth sunk into the gazelles neck and wont let go. After some minutes of kicking, the gazelle dies  a feast for the leopard.

Its hard to not feel sorry for the gazelle, even though predator/prey relations have been part of the natural world for millennia. But what if prey didnt have to suffer like this?

This is the question posed by philosophers who believe all suffering should be terminated. These philosophers propose that we eradicate predation, so sentient animals never have to feel this pain again.The idea is that to relieve suffering, predators should be genetically altered to no longer be carnivorous.

The Ethics of Human Intervention

This issue probably hits closest to home, literally, with domestic cats, who are estimated to kill up to 3.7 billion birds and 20.7 billion mammals annually in the United States, Joel MacClellan, assistant professor of philosophy at Loyola University New Orleans, told TreeHugger. Be it wild predators or introduced predators such as domesticated cats, the question is whether there is blood on our hands for failing to intervene on preys behalf.

MacClellan's work, and that of other philosophers, has challenged the theories that advocate preventing predation.

In North America and many parts of Europe, the debate on what role humans should play in ending animal suffering has taken shape in protests against slaughter houses, factory farming and animal testing. About 5 percent of Americans consider themselves vegetarian, many motivated by the belief that animals should not be forced to suffer in factory conditions.

Philosophers who believe in predation elimination take that moral stance one step further. They argue that if we dont want animals to suffer in slaughter houses or tight cages, why wouldnt we want to end their suffering in the wild too?

Suffering is bad for anyone, anywhere, anytime, David Pearce, a British philosopher who published a manifesto on the Hedonistic Imperative, the theory that suffering must be eradicated, told us. In the post-genomic era, to confine the relief of suffering to a single person, race or species would express an arbitrary and self-serving bias.

The Consequences

This concept does not always resonate with people. Many argue that we should not interfere with nature, that we should let it run its course.

If predators became herbivorous, they would compete for resources with existing herbivores. This could have negative consequences for plant life and destroy habitats and ecosystems.

Our understanding of the natural world is deeply ingrained in the concept that predators kill prey - think the Lion King and the Circle of Life. We are taught from a young age that natural balance is achieved through this cycle and that we shouldnt interfere. But predation eliminationists disagree.

Humans already interfere - massively - with Nature in diverse ways ranging from uncontrolled habitat destruction to "rewilding", big-cat captive breeding programs, the eradication of blindness-causing parasitic worms, and so forth, added Pearce. Ethically, what's in question is the principles that should govern our interventions.

Critics argue that this is based on the assumption that suffering is inherently bad. Should humans be able to decide whats good and whats bad?

Grand River Conservation/CC BY-NC-ND 3.0

There is also the issue that there is no way of fully grasping the unintended consequences of mass genetic modification on animals and nature. There are concerns that herbivore populations would grow exponentially, though philosophers like Pearce say this could be controlled through fertility regulation. There are also concerns that genetic modification would upset natures balance and result in the deaths of many species. Without large-scale tests, the concept of predation elimination remains theoretical.

Plant-Based Predators Could Mean More Disease

However, there are many studies that look at the effects of removing a top predator from an ecosystem. These studies suggest that ecosystems suffer when predators do not help control populations, and the consequences are vast. For example, the loss of wolves and in some cases coyotes and foxes in the North Eastern United States have led to larger populations of mice, carriers of Lyme disease. Many ecologists believe that this has exacerbated Lyme disease prevalence in the region. The same goes for deer populations. Deer provide a breeding ground for ticks, allowing tick populations to grow.

Elimination Versus Reduction

Not all philosophers who have studied the question believe that predation should be completely eliminated, but many do think it should be reduced.

Peter Vallentyne, professor at the University of Missouri, is one of those philosophers. He argues that there are many forms of suffering in the world. To focus all our money and energy on preventing suffering through predation would be to ignore other moral issues like starvation or child abuse.

I think we have some kind of duty to help other human beings at least when the cost to us is small and the benefit to them is big, said Vallentyne. People say those dont apply to animals and thats where I dont understand why not. They are capable of having good lives or bad lives, of suffering or having joy. Why dont their lives matter just as much as ours do?

But even the reduction of predation has effects on ecosystems. A study in the 70s found that the hunting of sea otters caused kelp forests to collapse. Otters had kept sea urchin populations down, but once their population was drastically reduced, urchins feasted on kelp to the point of over-consumption. Kelp has an important ecological function and can support hundreds of thousands of invertebrates. Though otters dont eat kelp, they played a role in its maintenance.

"The view that we should prevent predation underestimates ecological considerations, as we see from the dire consequences of eliminating keystone predator species, and it is committed to a narrow view of value: only pleasure and pain count," said MacClellan. "If we also value biodiversity or the freedom and independence of wild animals and the rest of nature - or if it is not our place to judge - then we should not prevent predation."

Humanity's Role in Nature

Another big part of the predation elimination plan is the role of humans. Humans are the world's biggest predators--every year we eat 283 million tonnes of meat. The debate about whether to become vegetarian or vegan is already a major discussion in society and a very small percentage of the world's population willingly gives up meat. To spread this globally would be a major challenge.

What do you think?

Should humans phase out predators?

Update: Joel MacClellan is not an advocate of predator elimination - he has studied the ethical debate and challenged it through his work. The original article did not address his stance clearly. His final quote was added later to clarify this. In addition, the headline was changed for further accuracy.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 07:11:43|Editor: Yamei

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NEW DELHI, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- India has been urged to take seriously China's position document on India's border troops' trespass, and to immediately and unconditionally withdraw the troops.

The document titled "The Facts and China's Position Concerning the Indian Border Troops' Crossing of the China-India Boundary in the Sikkim Sector into the Chinese Territory" was issued by Chinese Foreign Ministry on Wednesday.

Liu Jinsong, deputy chief of mission of the Chinese Embassy in India, while introducing the document to reporters from local media at a recent press briefing held at the embassy, called for great attention to be paid to the document.

On June 18, over 270 Indian border troops, carrying weapons and driving two bulldozers, crossed the boundary in the Sikkim Sector and advanced more than 100 meters into Chinese territory to obstruct the road building of the Chinese side, causing tension in the area.

The trespassing Indian troops reached as many as 400 people at one point.

Liu said the document, in real earnest as well as from multiple perspectives concerning history, jurisprudence and international relations, among others, gives a full and authoritative account of the position of the Chinese government on the illegal trespass of the Indian border troops.

The document is aimed at helping the international community, including Indian people from all circles of life, understand the facts and truth of the incident, he said, noting that the Indian side has concocted various excuses to justify its illegal action and mislead the public.

"There are still 48 Indian troops and one bulldozer illegally staying in the Chinese territory more than one and a half months after the outbreak of the incident," the Chinese diplomat said.

He told the reporters who were from The Hindu, The Navodaya Times, The Asian Age, Deccan Herald and the Frontline website that China has to once again urge India to immediately and unconditionally pull back its trespassing troops.

He stressed that India should not underestimate the resolve of the Chinese government and people to defend China's territorial sovereignty, saying that by releasing the document, China aims to uphold the principles of international law and basic norms governing international relations.
- President Uhuru, on Sunday, engaged in prayer sessions at two separate church services

- Uhuru's first attended a service in Umoja before heading to Roysambu for another mass

- Both he and his deputy William Ruto went down on their knees in prayer with the polls less than 48 hours away

President Uhuru Kenyatta and his running mate William Ruto took some moments away from politics in a rare gesture as they engaged in intense prayers a day to the big day.

Uhuru, on Sunday, August 6, attended two separate church services in Nairobi as he sought divine intervention ahead of the August polls.

His first stop was at Deliverance Church in Umoja, Nairobi, in a service that was attended by hundreds of congregants.

Uhuru speaking at the Deliverance Church Umoja. PHOTO:Facebook.com/UhuruKenyatta

READ ALSO: I will throw a party for you at State House next Saturday-Raila tells supporters

Uhuru, alongside DP Ruto then attended a service at the Jesus Winner Ministry in Roysambu, Nairobi.

Scenes from the church service attended by the President. PHOTO:UhuruKenyatta/Facebook

READ ALSO: NASA's elections experts arrested, details

During both church services, Uhuru took shunned away from the usual politics and instead focused on preaching peace ahead of an election that has been tipped as one of the most competitive in Kenyas history.

Congregants at the Deliverance Church Umoja listening to the President. PHOTO:UhuruKenyatta/Facebook

READ ALSO: Another preacher predict Uhuru will win August 8 elections

I thank Kenyans for largely conducting peaceful campaigns and I urge all of us to remain united after August 8, Uhuru spoke in Roysambu.

Uhuru and Ruto praying at the church service. PHOTO: Facebook.com/UhuruKenyatta

READ ALSO: Kenyans exiting the city ahead of highly anticipated polls stranded

Other leaders in attendance were Jubilee gubernatorial and senatorial aspirants Mike Sonko and Johnstone Sakaja.

The President and his deputy then engaged in an intense prayer session where a priest sought to pass blessings unto the leaders as they prepare to take on opposition in less than 48 hours.

Uhuru and DP Ruto kneel downin prayer at Jesus Winner Ministry, Roysambu. PHOTO:Facebook.com/UhuruKenyatta

READ ALSO: Police break silence on NASA tallying centre raid

Only a day ago, both Uhuru and Raila held massive rallies in Nakuru and Nairobi respectively, in what might prove to be their last rallies for presidency.

The August 8 elections will be both Uhuru and Railas last shot at presidency.

Have anything to add to this article or suggestions? Share with us on news@tuko.co.ke

Uhuru speaks on the exiting of Nairobians from the city:

Source: TUKO.co.ke
Prominent Washington correspondents discuss a proposed Senate bill that would limit the number of new legal immigrants to the U.S., along with other top stories this week. Join moderator Barbara Slavin, and panelists Tom DeFrank and Michael Williams for a lively discussion on Issues in the News!
Emmanuel Macron's honeymoon didn't last long.



Less than three months after his election, France's energetic and image-conscious president has seen his popularity drop after announcing budget cuts, launching a divisive labor reform and engaging in a damaging dispute with the military.



A series of opinion polls last week showed the percentage of French citizens who said they were satisfied with Macron's policies and trusted their young leader to deal with the country's problems plunging. The reversal might not affect the visible international profile he has cut since taking office, but it could hurt Macron's ability to secure his ambitious domestic agenda.



France's Ifop polling agency put it bluntly: "Apart from Jacques Chirac in July 1995, a newly elected president has never seen his popularity rate falling as quickly during the summer after the election."



His declining approval is striking given that Macron was being credited two months ago with giving France a boost of much-needed confidence after years of security fears and economic stagnation. Increasingly, he instead is portrayed as power-hungry and inexperienced.



The French media have started calling Macron "Jupiter," a reference to the mythological king of the Roman gods and what is perceived as the president's superior attitude after he upended France's political landscape and shot from relative obscurity to the nation's top post at age 39.



While struggling at home, Macron has succeeded in raising France's diplomatic profile, hosting meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Donald Trump and Libyan peace talks in Paris.

Jean-Daniel Levy, director of the Policy and Opinion Department at the Harris Interactive polling institute, connects the president's popularity slide to the government's plans to reduce housing aid for students and to initiate tax reform. The reform aims to help lower-income employees, but could weigh on retirees.



Macron's image also has taken a hit during his standoff with the French military chief over budget cuts. Gen. Pierre De Villiers resigned and was quickly replaced, but some saw last month's public dispute as evidence of the president's authoritarian tendencies.

Macron has promised to boost defense spending to 2 percent of gross domestic product by 2025 as part of France's commitments to NATO, but the government announced a reduction of 870 million euros in military spending for this year.



The government also launched the labor reforms that were central to Macron's campaign promise to boost France's lagging economy through pro-free market policies. Changes would include capping the potential financial penalties for companies sued for firing employees and giving businesses greater leeway to set workplace rules instead of relying on collective bargaining agreements.



Labor unions and France's far-left parties are fighting the reforms, saying they would weaken hard-won worker protections. Critics also resent the way Macron is trying to speed their approval. The government is invoking a special procedure to avoid a lengthy debate in parliament.



Daniel Fasquelle, a lawmaker from the conservative The Republicans party denounced Macron for what he called the "will to weaken all opposition" and for refusing to give interviews. Except for carefully choreographed photo opportunities, the president has distanced himself from the media. He canceled the traditional Bastille Day television interview.



"These are excesses the French judge more harshly and they are right," Fasquelle said on France's Info radio. "It simply means the president is not up to the task... He's paying for his own lack of experience. Maybe he got too quickly, too soon, high responsibilities that are overwhelming him."



Government spokesman Christophe Castaner acknowledged that Macron has been standoffish with the press, but offered an alternative explanation.



"No one can blame him [Macron] for rarely speaking," Castaner told reporters. "I understand it can irritate a bit. I understand it can be questioned. But I think you and me should get used to it because the president has decided not to be a commentator [of the news], but an actor.''



Macron is expected to return from his August vacation to a tough September, with unions and far-left parties calling for street protests against his proposed labor reforms.
The exhibition I Want Justice! at the Holocaust Museum examines the history of efforts to hold perpetrators of genocide accountable through court proceedings.

We want people to know the truth of what happened during the Khmer Rouges violent reign and to witness the long-delayed search for justice for the victims now, said Greg Naranjo, the museums special exhibition developer and curator of the Cambodia display when it opened in Washington.

The exhibition features interactive video and audio elements and deals with the United Nations tribunal and other ways Cambodians have tried to heal their trauma.

And, although it focuses on the trials in Cambodia of surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge regime, it looks at the Nuremburg trials of Nazi leaders in the aftermath of World War II and the International Criminal Court in The Hague, which was established in 2002.

The tribunal

After lengthy negotiations with the international community, Cambodia and the U.N. established the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC).

It is a special Cambodian court that receives international assistance through the United Nations Assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials (UNAKRT) and is usually referred to as the tribunal.

In 2007, five top Khmer Rouge figures were arrested and charged with war crimes against humanity, but court proceedings have moved very slowly amid disagreements between the Cambodian and international judges and prosecutors that comprise this unique, hybrid court.

The current Hun Sen government, which includes former, midlevel Khmer Rouge leaders who defected, has been accused of interfering in the court in order to limit the number of defendants.

As of 2017, $300 million has been spent and three suspects have been convicted, while two died in custody before being sentenced.

Court proceedings continue.

Cameron Hudson, the director of the museums Simon Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide, said the exhibit on justice for Khmer Rouge victims and other genocide survivors is important because the best ways of seeking redress for such events are still being debated.

Theres no question that international justice is a very expensive proposition. And that the academic research is still rather thin on the degree to which those high-level trials truly help to break the cycle of violence, versus a more grassroots, traditional justice system that tries many more lower-level commanders, he said.

Michael Abramowitz, who was the director of the U.S. Holocaust Museums Levine Institute for Holocaust Education until earlier this year, said the Khmer Rouge tribunals achievement was mixed, yet largely positive.

It seems like a lot of money to spend for a relatively small payoff. On the other hand, it does seem that the people who are most responsible, who are still living, were tried, and I also think that, you know, Cambodians  now have a record in court, he said.

The fact that the Khmer Rouge suspects were jailed after so many years also offers a warning to all those in power, he added.

Its very important to make the point that there is no statute of limitation on crimes against humanity, or on genocide, Abramovitz said. The hope would be that people  would think again and say, I am going to end up in court if I pursue this thinking.

This report originated on VOA Khmer.
China and a group of 10 Southeast Asian nations face tough negotiations on a code of conduct for avoiding mishaps in the contested South China Sea despite the endorsement of a framework for talks.

Experts say Beijing will oppose defining the scope of the sea, making the code binding and any enforcement that would limit its maritime activities, whereas the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will ask for those details as discussions go on. The deal has dragged since 2002, with China resisting for much of the past six years. China and ASEAN foreign ministers approved a framework code in Manila Sunday.



If and when a code of conduct is finalized, we can rest assured that it will be diluted to a point where it does not damage Chinese interests in the South China Sea, said Jonathan Spangler, director of the South China Sea Think Tank in Taipei.



Beijing claims more than 90 percent of the 3.5 million-square-kilometer South China Sea, overlapping smaller tracts that Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines say fall under their own flags. The code of conduct would be aimed at avoiding accidents as the claimant countries fish, explore for oil and gas or develop some of the estimated 500 tiny islets.

Vietnam and China clashed in 1974, 1988 and 2014  the first two fights deadly and the latest case over a Chinese oil rig. The code would aim to prevent more such incidents.

But China, as the strongest most aggressive claimant, may fear that a code of conduct would expose or curb some of its maritime activities. Since 2010 it has alarmed the Southeast Asian states by passing coast guard boats through their waters while using landfill to create artificial islets in the Paracel and Spratly chains, some apparently for military installations such as radar systems and combat aircraft.

We have to see the [code of conducts] specific language on land reclamation, although I truly doubt it will have much teeth, said Yun Sun, East Asia Program senior associate at the Stimson Center think tank in Washington. For one, China will not support anything against its interests.



The framework that serves as a basis for talks shuns specifics that might alarm China and instead covers broad advice about avoiding incidents between vessels or aircraft, said Collin Koh, maritime security research fellow at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. It might serve too as a topic list for future talks over the coming years.



The framework answers diplomatic pressure from ASEAN on China to negotiate without forcing Chinas hand too fast, said Huang Kwei-bo, associate professor of diplomacy with National Cheng Chi University in Taipei.



This counts as one small step. So China can prolong the negotiating process even longer, Huang said. And this way, for China, its a deliverable that it can give ASEAN and say see, were negotiating with you.



ASEAN set out at the start of the year to make the framework a priority under the associations Philippine leadership through 2017, the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said. Just over a year ago the Philippines had won a world court arbitration case against China over its claims in the South China Sea.

Talks on a code of conduct will get tougher, and more drawn out, about a year after the framework signing euphoria wears off, Koh said. At that point ASEAN and China will be divided on what to include in the code itself, he said.



ASEAN members will want a legally binding code, possibly ratified by their respective legislatures, with an enforcement scheme and ways of monitoring any incidents, analysts say. Although the code is not supposed to touch on anyones sovereignty claim, ASEAN may ask that the code include a clear sea boundary.



China is likely to protest any eventual code clauses on enforcement, legal authority and South China Sea boundaries that cover islands, such as the Paracels, that it controls outright, experts believe.

It will also oppose any link to compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, forecasts Sean King, senior vice president of New York political consultancy Park Strategies.



Beijing cites historical usage records as a basis for its claim to the sea extending from its south coast to Borneo.



In the Philippines, which is hosting the ASEAN meetings, foreign affairs spokesman Robespierre Bolivar urged that talks begin soon and said his country wanted a legally binding code in the end. But he told reporters the code should reflect a consensus.
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has met separately in Manila with the foreign ministers of Myanmar, Japan and South Korea as he begins his first official trip to Southeast Asia.

The top U.S. diplomat is taking part in meetings with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum as he seeks to build pressure on North Korea.

On Sunday after meeting with South Koreas foreign minister, Kang Kyung-wha, he called the new sanctions voted by the U.N. Security Council a good outcome. Kang also described the new round of sanctions on North Korea as a very, very good outcome.

Tillerson met later Sunday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

South China Sea

The U.S. also is continuing to call for a legally binding mechanism to prevent conflicting territorial claims in the South China Sea from erupting into violent confrontations.

Foreign ministers from the ASEAN are expected to endorse the framework of a code of conduct on the South China Sea when they meet with Chinese officials Sunday.

While the framework is not legally binding, it commits to cooperation over confrontation and is also seen as bending to Chinas influence.

The U.S. will continue to press for a dispute resolution mechanism and upholding freedom of navigation.

Regional counterterrorism

Besides maritime security and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, regional counterterrorism is said to be also high on the ASEAN agenda.

To begin his visit to the Philippines, Tillerson laid a wreath Sunday at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial to pay tribute to the more than 17,000 U.S. and Philippine service men who died fighting as allies during World War II.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 07:19:33|Editor: Zhou Xin

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UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- The new UN Security Council resolution that imposes tougher sanctions against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is all about preventing chaos and conflict on the Korean Peninsula, said Chinese ambassador to the United Nations Liu Jieyi on Saturday.

The unanimous adoption of Resolution 2371 by the council on Saturday demonstrates that the international community is united in its position regarding the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula, Liu told the Security Council after the voting of the sanctions.

There are three major components in the resolution: further sanctions against the DPRK's nuclear and missile programs; no intention to harm activities that are not prohibited by the resolution, such as economic activities and cooperation, food and economic assistance; a call for the resumption of the six-party talks, commitment to finding a peaceful solution, and the emphasis of the importance of de-escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula by the parties concerned, said Liu.

China is opposed to the DPRK's launching activities that violate Security Council resolutions and are in defiance of the will of the entire international community, he said.

China has always insisted on realizing the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, upholding peace and stability there and seeking a solution through dialogue and consultation. "China has always and firmly been opposed to chaos and conflict on the peninsula," said Liu.

China believes that these form part and parcel of Saturday's resolution and that all of the parties should implement the provisions contained in the resolution fully and earnestly, the ambassador said.

China has been making tireless efforts to promote denuclearization of the peninsula and to uphold peace and stability on the peninsula, he noted.

On July 4, China and Russia issued a joint statement on the issue of the Korean Peninsula. The two countries put forward a roadmap on the basis of Russia's step-by-step approach and China's idea of a dual approach -- parallel efforts to move forward both denuclearization and the establishment of a peaceful mechanism on the peninsula -- and China's initiative of suspension-for-suspension -- which calls for the DPRK to suspend its nuclear and missile activities and for the United States and South Korea to suspend their large-scale war games, said Liu.

The China-Russia initiative, which aims at tackling both the symptoms and the root causes of the problem and seeks a solution through an integrated approach, is realistic and feasible, he said, expressing the hope that the initiative would get the support of the relevant parties.

China has taken note that the United States has recently indicated once again that it is not seeking a "regime change" nor a "regime collapse" in the DPRK and that Washington is in no hurry to push for the reunification of the Korean Peninsula and that its troops will not push through the 38th Parallel, said Liu.

"It is our hope that the U.S. side will translate these four Nos into concrete policies," he noted.

Beefing up military deployment on the peninsula is not helpful in realizing the denuclearization of the peninsula and maintaining regional peace and stability, he added.

The deployment of the THAAD missile defense system in South Korea will not bring a solution to the issue of the DPRK's nuclear testing and missile launching, said the ambassador. "What it will do is to seriously undermine the strategic balance of the region and is detrimental to the strategic security interests of the regional countries, including China."

China strongly urges parties concerned to halt the process of base deployment and to dismantle relevant equipment, he said.

Meanwhile, China urges the DPRK to respect the council resolutions and to stop taking actions that might further escalate tensions on the peninsula, said the ambassador.

"We hope the parties concerned will immediately take effective action to prevent the situation from further escalating, create conditions for the resumption of talks and exert efforts to bring back at an early date the nuclear issue of the peninsula to the right track of seeking a peaceful solution through dialogue and consultation."

The UN Security Council resolution was adopted in response to the DPRK's ballistic missile launches on July 3 and 28, which the country has claimed were of "intercontinental" range. The resolution significantly strengthens the sanctions on the DPRK, imposing a full ban on the export of coal, iron and iron ore from the country.
Authorities in Nigeria said 11 people were killed and 18 others critically wounded in an attack on a church in the southeastern part of the country.

Initially witnesses said the attack was carried out by at least two gunmen, but Garba Umar, police commissioner of Anambra state, said one gunman attacked St. Philip Catholic Church early Sunday.

Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano said the attack stemmed from a feud between members of the local community who were living outside Nigeria.

"We are not going to relent until we bring those that perpetrated this heinous crime to book," he said.

Nigeria's southeast is predominantly Christian and the attack is a rare act of violence at a church.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but police said they do not believe Boko Haram militants were behind it.

Nigeria is wracked by insecurity. The Islamist insurgency Boko Haram has killed more than 20,000 people since 2009, sparking one of the world's largest humanitarian crises.


An Australian man who was detained during raids to disrupt what authorities described as an Islamic State-inspired plot to bomb an Etihad Airways flight has been charged with weapons offenses and released on bail, police said Sunday.

The man was one of four detained during raids by counter-terrorism police in suburbs in Sydney, Australias largest city, a week ago.

Two of the men were charged with terror-related offenses late Thursday. Police allege one of them sent his unsuspecting brother to catch an Etihad Airways flight from Sydney on July 15 carrying a home-made bomb, which was disguised as a meat mincer, built at the direction of a senior commander in the militant Islamic State group.

The fourth man was released without charge after the raids.

On Sunday, police said a 39-year-old man, who had been held under special counter-terror laws, had been charged with possessing a prohibited weapon. He was released on bail to appear in court later this month. The man was identified by his lawyer as Khaled Merhi.

My client Khaled Merhi has also been released. Cleared of any terror allegation, Merhis lawyer, Moustafa Kheir, said via Twitter.

Plot details

On Friday, police detailed what they called one of Australias most sophisticated militant plots and said the two men who had been charged with terror offenses had also planned to build a device to release poisonous gas in a public area.

Both those men have been charged with two counts of planning a terrorist act. The charges carry a maximum punishment of life in prison. Neither applied for bail and they are scheduled to appear in court again Nov. 14.

High-grade military explosives used to build the bomb that was to be taken on the Etihad flight had been sent by air cargo from Turkey as part of a plot inspired and directed by Islamic State, police said.

Islamic State

The bomb never made it past airport security, they said, and the mans brother flew out of Sydney and has not since returned to Australia.

Police allege that one of the two men charged Thursday had been introduced to Islamic State by an unidentified brother, who they said was a senior member of the group in Syria, and communication began around April.

Etihad Airways has said it had been working closely with the Australian investigation.
Authorities in Cameroon are arresting people who they say illegally wear military uniforms in order to deceive the population and commit atrocities. There have been tensions between armed groups in neighboring Central African Republic, with a spill over into Cameroon, and Cameroon thinks rebel fighters are using the uniforms as a disguise.

A dozen military men forcefully open doors in Nyangaza, a popular neighborhood in Bertoua on Cameroon's eastern border with the Central African Republic. Nyangaza is home to hundreds of Central Africans living with host Cameroonian communities. Among the military personnel arresting civilians with military uniforms is staff sergeant Isidore Mbah.

He says they have noticed that the neighborhood is a hideout for bandits, who wear uniforms to trick people into believing they are in the military. He says all those they arrest will answer charges in a military court.

Last Friday military officials arrested 13 people, aged 17 to 37. Among them is 30-year-old Emmanuel Manga from the Central African Republic who has been living in Cameroon for three years.

He says he had been wearing the uniform to keep warm in the early morning cold since his friend offered it to him as a gift. He says he never knew that it was forbidden to wear it and that some military men had been seeing him with the uniform but did no arrests until recently.

Armed groups from CAR have attacked Cameroon on several occasions since the crisis in CAR began in March 2013 when Muslim Seleka rebels overthrew President Francoise Bozize Abuses. That triggered the rise of the Anti Balaka Christian defense groups and a cycle of killings and violence has spilled over into Cameroon.

Cameroon-born general Housseini Djibo, a senior military official in eastern Cameroon says the arrests were ordered because it was discovered that some rebels were disguising themselves as military members and committing atrocities.

He says there is galloping insecurity on Cameroon's eastern border because of its proximity with the troubled Central African Republic. He says they will do everything possible to stop armed rebel groups that regularly carry out incursions on Cameroon's territory and hold especially cattle ranchers and business persons hostage.

About 100 people have been arrested within the past 30 days. A 1982 law forbids civilians from buying, selling and wearing military uniforms and states that anyone caught faces prison time of between 3 months to 2 years and, or fines ranging from $100 to $ 4,000.

Even as the military goes around arresting people and seizing the military uniforms, some shop owners still keep them in stock as Moussa Ahminou of the Bertoua traders trade union told VOA.

He says some of them are still stealthily selling the stocks they had before the government started educating them not to sell military outfit.

Cameroon shares a 900-kilometer long boundary with the landlocked CAR and presently hosts 300,000 refugees from the neighboring state.
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Monday the best step North Korea could take to signal it is ready for dialogue would be to halt its missile tests.

We've not had an extended period of time where they have not taken some type of provocative action by launching ballistic missiles. So I think that would be the first and strongest signal they could send to us is just stop these missile launches, Tillerson said.

He spoke from Manila, where he is taking part in the Regional Forum of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Tillerson said Saturday's U.N. Security Council vote unanimously adopting new sanctions against North Korea for its ballistic missile tests sends a message that the entire international community finds the country's actions unacceptable, and that the clear expectation is a denuclearized Korean peninsula.

We hope again that this ultimately will result in North Korea coming to the conclusion to choose a different pathway, and when the conditions are right then we can sit and have a dialogue around the future of North Korea so that they feel secure and prosper economically, he said.

North Korea denounced the sanctions Monday in a statement carried by state media, pledging to launch thousands-fold revenge on the U.S. and reiterating its stance that sanctions will not force it to negotiate over its nuclear program. North Korea said it will take action of justice, without elaborating, and said the U.S. would be making a mistake if it believed its mainland is safe because an ocean separates the two countries.

The White House says President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in committed in a phone call to fully implement all relevant U.N. resolutions related to North Korea and to "urge the international community to do so as well.

'Grave threat

The statement late Sunday said Trump and Moon also welcomed the new Security Council resolution and reiterated their belief that North Korea "poses a grave threat" to their countries and Japan.

Trump used Twitter to give his own description of the phone call.

Earlier Sunday, China pressed North Korea to halt its missile and nuclear tests, saying Pyongyang should not provoke international society's goodwill.

China delivers warning

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in a blunt show of support for new United Nations sanctions against North Korea, delivered Beijing's warning to his North Korean counterpart Ri Yong Ho on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ministerial meetings in Manila.

The United States cautiously welcomed China's newfound support of sanctions against North Korea, but said that it would closely monitor China's compliance with the penalties intended to deprive North Korea of $1 billion a year to fuel its illicit nuclear and ballistic missile program.

Susan Thornton, the top U.S. diplomat for Asia, told reporters that in the past China, North Korea's economic lifeline, has supported efforts to curb Pyongyang's weapons development, but then slacked off.

We want to make sure China is continuing to implement fully the sanctions regime, Thornton said, not this kind of episodic back and forth that we've seen.

Trump welcomes support

In a Twitter comment Saturday, Trump welcomed that China and Russia had joined the U.S. in the unanimous U.N. Security Council vote for the sanctions targeting North Korean sales of coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, and seafood.

Very big financial impact! Trump said.

Wang said he advised North Korea to take a double suspension approach to easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, an approach calling for the suspension of North Korea's nuclear tests and the suspension of joint military drills by the U.S. and South Korea.

But Thornton said the U.S. is not considering ending its periodic training exercises with South Korea. She said the U.S. rejects any moral equivalency implied in linking the drills with North Korea's nuclear and missile tests. Arms experts say that North Korea's latest intercontinental missile test showed that Pyongyang might be able to strike much of the U.S. mainland.

No comment from North Korea

North Korea's Ri did not make any public statements in Manila. However, the ruling party's Rodong Sinmun newspaper said in a commentary that the U.S. had ignored the warning North Korea sent with its missile tests and was pursuing desperate efforts with the latest United Nations sanctions.

Now the U.S. mainland is on the crossroads of life and death, the commentary warned.

The U.N. sanctions are in response to North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile launches July 3 and 28. The provisions effectively deny Pyongyang one-third of its annual $3 billion in export revenue.

'Prudent defensive measures

UN Ambassador Nikki Haley said the U.S. is taking and will continue to take prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies from the threat posed by North Korea, which she said is rapidly growing more dangerous.



The resolution also prohibits countries from accepting additional guest workers from North Korea. Pyongyang is notorious for sending its citizens to other countries to work and then confiscating much or all of their salaries, effectively making them slave labor.



The resolution also tightens the enforcement of existing sanctions. The council has imposed several rounds of increasingly tougher targeted sanctions on North Korea since 2006 for its nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches.



In addition to the sanctions, the resolution designates nine North Korean individuals and four entities for asset freezes and travel bans.

Ralph Jennings in Manila and Margaret Besheer at the United Nations contributed to this report.
Days after Special Counsel Robert Mueller reportedly impaneled a grand jury in the probe into Russian election interference , the White House on Sunday brushed off questions about whether President Donald Trump intends to fire Mueller.

The president has not even discussed that. The president is not discussing firing Bob Mueller, presidential counselor Kellyanne Conway said on ABCs This Week program.

Before adjourning for a nearly one-month break, the Senate saw bipartisan legislation introduced that would make it harder to fire Mueller or any independent investigator in the future, by mandating a judges review of the dismissal.

It [the bill] provides the president the opportunity to consult with attorney general and the Department of Justice, potentially have one [special counsel] removed, but have that subject to a judicial review so that we make sure its done for proper cause, said North Carolina Republican Senator Thom Tillis, also on This Week.

The president has repeatedly slammed the Russia investigation, which is looking into whether any Trump campaign aides illegally colluded with Russian interests and whether Trump obstructed justice when he fired former FBI chief James Comey, who was leading that agency's Russia probe before Mueller was appointed. However, Mueller continues to enjoy a sterling reputation on Capitol Hill.

Bob Mueller is one of the most respected senior federal law enforcement officials in modern American history. Ill remind you, hes a Republican who was appointed by a Republican, said Democratic Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, speaking on ABC. Its in President Trumps interest, its in the interest of protecting rule of law, for Bob Mueller to be allowed to continue this investigation to its conclusion.

The investigation of Russian meddling remains an unrelenting irritant to the Trump administration.

Conway argued that months of investigations have yielded next to nothing.

We were promised direct evidence of interfering and changing the electoral results, she said. Theres none of that.

The grand jury will examine evidence and testimony collected in the Justice Department probe, an endeavor that may or may not lead to charges being filed.
As a steady flow of visitors slowly made their way through the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum on a recent morning, some contemplated a special exhibition on the Khmer Rouge terror in Cambodia, which wiped out almost a fifth of the population.

Helen Wedgewood, an American tourist, was among those in the museum. After she studied the images and watched a short documentary film, she could not hold back her tears.

I feel very sad that this happened. I cant imagine that when it was happening nobody knew, and if people knew, that they didnt care enough to intervene, the nurse from Apache Junction, Arizona, said.

Ted Nguyen, a Vietnamese tourist visiting the United States with his family, told VOA Khmer, Even though we are neighbors, I dont know well about this. We need to have more of this kind of exhibition to help the new generation to know and remember this history.

More than 1 million visitors

Wedgewood and Nguyen are two of the roughly 1.2 million visitors who will have seen the exhibition Cambodia: 1975-1979 and a linked exhibition, I Want Justice! since they opened in May 2015, according to the museum. The exhibitions websites have been viewed online more than 200,000 times by about 82,000 visitors, officials said.

The Cambodia exhibitions, which appear alongside the museums permanent exhibition on the Jewish Holocaust during World War II, are scheduled to close Sept. 30, museum officials said.

Genocide: a basic lesson

Cameron Hudson, the director of the museums Simon Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide, said the Cambodia exhibitions are helping to inform people that genocide and mass murder occurred throughout the world in the 20th century and could happen again unless actively prevented.

For many Americans who visit the museum, it is the basic lesson of what happened in Cambodia, Hudson told VOA. But most importantly, it delivers a deeper message that genocide did not end with the Holocaust; that the Holocaust was not the only genocide to happen and that we continue to repeat the mistakes of the past.

Part of our museums goal is to highlight  the feeling that governments should prevent and respond, Hudson added.

Greg Naranjo, the museums special exhibition developer and curator of the Cambodia display, agreed that Khmer Rouge-era killings offered an important lesson for Americans and other museum visitors.

Knowledge and awareness is the first and most important thing that we can contribute for the prevention of genocide in general, he said.

Cambodian Americans who visited the exhibitions said they were glad to see a large audience learning their countrys history.

Its a reminder in a good way, for both Cambodians and everyone in the world, said Ben Bao, a 66-year-old Khmer Rouge survivor who is president of Cambodian Community Day, a cultural, educational and social organization in the Washington metropolitan area.

Explaining the terror

Cambodia: 1975-1979 examines the bloodthirsty tactics the Maoist Khmer Rouge forces of Pol Pot used to establish their new state, Democratic Kampuchea, which they envisioned as a self-sustaining, farm-based society.

Soon after the Khmer Rouge took Phnom Penh on April 17, 1975, they forced its 2 million residents into the countryside, where they joined millions of others pressed into forced-labor brigades, building earthworks and rice paddies. The Chinese-backed regime ran dozens of interrogation centers where tens of thousands of people were tortured and killed, often for no clear reason.

About 1.7 million Cambodians are estimated to have died from disease, starvation, exhaustion and murder. Historians continue to struggle to establish a more exact toll  in Cambodia, every family has a story of loved ones who were killed or went missing.

The exhibit I want Justice! examines the efforts to bring the perpetrators to trial. It focuses in large part on attempts in Cambodia to prosecute aging Khmer Rouge leaders at the United Nations-backed tribunal in Phnom Penh, the capital city. It focuses on how survivors have sought justice, be it personal, cultural or historical.

Display organizers

Michael Abramowitz, director until earlier this year of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museums Levine Institute for Holocaust Education, was a key force behind the Cambodia exhibitions.

Abramowitz, the current president of Freedom House, said it was important to have a museum display on the Khmer Rouge horrors.

In terms of the pure numbers, in terms of the percentage of the population, it is really one of the most terrible cases of state-sponsored killings in the 20th century, he told VOA.

I just think it is important for us, with all these cases, to remind ourselves that genocide is always possible, Abramowitz said. We must do everything we can to prevent it in the future by knowing the impacts from the past.

Youk Chhang, the director of the Documentation Center Cambodia (DC-Cam) in Phnom Penh, which provided most of the material for the exhibitions, praised Abramowitzs efforts, adding that former U.S. Ambassador to Cambodia Joseph Mussomeli had also played an important role.

Without [them], I do not think the exhibitions would have taken place, Chhang told VOA.

Mussomeli said he had supported the exhibition because it would educate the U.S. public, adding that Cambodians also benefited from such exhibits and other educational initiatives abroad or at home.

We shouldnt get so distracted by our everyday life that we forget the past, because the past is the foundation of the future, Mussomeli said. Cambodians are so long-suffering, so stoic, that they dont like to dwell on the past.  But it is important as a people to face the terrible things that happened. I think that will help Cambodia to become a better, healthier country.

Remembrance in Cambodia

To that end, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been supporting DC-Cam.

Since 2004, when an endowment was established for the center, USAID has donated almost $10 million. In April, USAID provided the latest round of funding, $5.8 million, to anchor the endowment, which will sustain DC-Cam for about another 20 years, Chhang said.

The center was founded in 1995 with a mission to research and collect documents on the Khmer Rouge era. Museums, schools and other institutions have used its findings, as has the U.N. tribunal.

Chhang said DC-Cams main mission was to educate Cambodians and foster understanding and discussions of the horrors, part of a healing process for the country.

One of the most important activities, Chhang said, is developing a high school curriculum.

All the students who studied about genocide know well about the genocide and have the ability to protect human rights and to prevent it from happening again, he said, adding that survivors should also educate their children.

It will heal the nation and it enhances knowledge, because no one can teach about the genocide better than those who have gone through it, he said. I suggest through VOA that parents should at least talk about the life they went through to their children, nieces and nephews.

Reflecting on US response

The U.S. has been a strong supporter of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, even though there are allegations that the U.S. did little to stop the Khmer Rouge regime when it was in power.

The U.S. and other Western countries agreed to let the Khmer Rouge fill Cambodias seat at the United Nations in order to punish Vietnam, an ally of the Soviet Union, for invading and toppling the regime.

Hudson, of the Simon Skjodt Center, said the exhibition included these U.S. foreign policy decisions from the 1970s, because its also not a proud moment in our history, in terms of the lack of a strong response to try to stop what we knew to be genocide or crimes inside Cambodia.

This report originated on VOA Khmer.
Militants from the so-called Islamic State group are losing their stronghold in Afghanistans eastern Nangarhar province, but the terror group is trying to expand to adjacent regions of the country, according to an Afghan lawmaker.

IS has deployed around 2,000 militants in Kunar, Nuristan and Laghman provinces, where they have started carrying out militant activities, Hazrat Ali told VOA's Afghan service. Ali represents eastern Nangarhar province which borders all three provinces.

The lawmaker told VOA that most of the IS fighters leaving Nangarhar for the adjacent provinces are foreign nationals.

Until now, most of Islamic State's activities in Afghanistan have been in Nangarhar, but the extremists now have established a persistent presence in mountainous parts of Kunar and Nuristan provinces, local authorities said.

IS is active in several districts in Kunar, the provincial police chief, Juma Gul Hemmat, told VOA. The group runs a training base in the Patash valley, where foreign members of IS, including Arabs and Pakistanis, train new fighters and recruits.

IS operations in eastern Afghanistan, which the group calls Khorasan Province after a traditional name for the region, emerged early in 2015 in rugged parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Since then Islamic State has been active mainly in Nangarhar, where its fighters targeted villages in several provincial districts, killing and abducting hundreds of people and setting homes on fire.

The terror group has also been active in northern Jouzjan and Sar-e-Pul provinces, where it fought heavy battles with Afghan security forces and with the rival Taliban group.

Afghan and U.S. forces have carried out counterterrorism operations together against IS in eastern Afghanistan as part of their joint goal of eliminating Islamic State in Afghanistan this year. Hundreds of IS fighters, including several senior commanders, have been killed in recent months.

Abu Sayed, the groups top leader in Afghanistan, was killed in a U.S. airstrike last month. Sayed was the second Islamic State leader in the past four months, and third in the past year, to have been targeted. His tenure was brief: Sayed took over as IS leader in the country in late spring, after the death of Abdul Hasib, his predecessor, who was killed in a U.S.-Afghan security forces raid in Nangarhar's Achin district.

Kunar police chief Hemmat told the Afghan Pajhwok news agency that a drone strike late Sunday killed three IS members, including Abdul Majid, who was in charge of the terror groups prisoners affairs. The strike was not immediately confirmed by U.S. authorities.

Despite its many setbacks, Islamic State has claimed responsibility several recent suicide attacks in major Afghan cities, including the capital, Kabul.

IS said its fighters stormed Iraqs embassy in Kabul last month, and also were behind a suicide attack on a Shi'ite mosque in western Herat province that killed at least 29 worshippers and wounded 40 others.


Israel plans to ban the Al Jazeera news network from the Jewish state, the communications ministry said Sunday.

Communications minister Ayoub Kara said that he wants to revoke press credentials from Al Jazeera reporters, which would prevent them from working in the country.

Kara made the announcement at a news conference Sunday, which Al Jazeera reporters were barred from attending, the news network reported.

Al Jazeera also said that Kara had moved to shut down both English and Arabic operations in the country.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened to shut Al Jazeera offices in Jerusalem last week, accusing the news network of inciting violence in the city, most notably protests of increased security at the al-Asqa Mosque compound which Al Jazeera covered.

Jordan and Saudi Arabia have recently closed local offices of the Qatar-based news network, while the channel and affiliate sites have been blocked in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Bahrain.

The four countries broke off diplomatic ties with Qatar early last month, accusing Doha of funding terrorism in the region and being too close to rival Iran. The Saudi-led group made a list of 13 demands for Qatar to re-establish ties, one of which was shutting down Al Jazeera completely. Qatar has not complied and denies the accusations.
Israel said Sunday it plans to ban Qatar's flagship Al-Jazeera network from operating in the country over allegations it incites violence, joining Arab nations that have shut down the broadcaster amid a separate political dispute. The news organization, in turn, said it will take legal action.

Communications Minister Ayoob Kara said he plans to revoke the press credentials of Al-Jazeera journalists, effectively preventing them from working in Israel.

Kara said he has asked cable and satellite networks to block Al Jazeera transmissions and is seeking legislation to ban them altogether.

The minister, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party, gave no timetable for such measures.

Doha-based Al-Jazeera on its English language website condemned the measures as "undemocratic" and said that it will take legal action. It said it will continue operating in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Walid al-Omari, the broadcaster's bureau chief in Jerusalem, said on air that his office has not been informed by Israeli officials of any possible measures the government might take.

Al-Jazeera, a pan-Arab satellite network funded by the Qatari government, already has been targeted by Arab nations now isolating Qatar as part of a months-long political dispute over Doha's politics and alleged support for extremists.

Jordan and Saudi Arabia have recently closed Al-Jazeera's local offices, while the channel and its affiliate sites have been blocked in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain.

"Lately, almost all countries in our region determined that Al-Jazeera supports terrorism, supports religious radicalization," Kara said. "And when we see that all these countries have determined as fact that Al-Jazeera is a tool of the Islamic State (group), Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, and we are the only one who have not determined that then something delusional is happening here."

Israeli officials have long accused Al-Jazeera of bias against the Jewish state. Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman has likened its coverage to "Nazi Germany-style" propaganda.

Nitzan Chen, director of the Government Press Office, said press credentials are not issued if security officials deem the cards would be "liable to endanger the security of the state." He said "Therefore, I have contacted the security echelon and have requested a professional opinion regarding the Al-Jazeera network."

A decision will be made after receiving that opinion, he said.

The Foreign Press Association, which represents journalists covering Israel and the Palestinian territories for international news organizations, said the move "is certainly a cause for concern." It said it will study the issue and decide how to proceed.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York-based advocacy group, criticized the Israeli proposal.

"Censoring Al-Jazeera or closing its offices will not bring stability to the region, but it would put Israel firmly in the camp of some of the region's worst enemies of press freedom," said Sherif Mansour, the committee's Middle East and North Africa program coordinator. "Israel should abandon these undemocratic plans and allow Al-Jazeera and all journalists to report freely from the country and areas it occupies."

Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules Gaza, condemned the move. "Al-Jazeera had a big role conveying the Palestinian narrative with a high professionalism," said Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesman.

American viewers became familiar with Al-Jazeera after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when its golden-hued Arabic logo became synonymous with video messages by al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. That sparked frequent complaints by then-President George W. Bush's administration. The station defended its policy, saying the messages were newsworthy.

Al-Jazeera was the first Arab satellite news channel to offer a range of views outside of heavily censored state media across the region and extensively covered the 2011 Arab Spring. It also was the first Arab-owned news outlet to host Israeli officials and commentators, which some analysts note coincided with Qatar's ties with Israel at the time.
Burned-out homes in this dry landscape have become a symbol of the tensions around Tuesday's presidential election as Kenyans prepare for the possibility of yet more deadly violence.



For more than a year now, farms and homes in Laikipia County have been under siege.



Farmer Martin Evans inspects one blackened home, the result of an invasion by semi-nomadic herders who say a widespread drought is making them desperate to find grazing land for their animals.



The severe drought affects half of Kenya's 47 counties and has been declared a national disaster. Watering holes and rivers are running dry. Crops are failing and livestock are dying, causing prices of some staple foods to jump by more than 30 percent.



"We don't stay long, we steal and run home,'' said one herder, Gimaru. Other herders refuse to leave, claiming rights to land their ancestors occupied before British colonial rule.

But many farmers say they believe the land invasions are politically motivated. They say some politicians are inciting the hundreds of herders to invade and displace thousands of farmers, both black and white, changing voter demographics to help win local elections.



In late July, Mathew Lempurkel, a member of parliament from Laikipia, was charged in a Nairobi court with inciting his constituents to violence and racial contempt. He is accused of making comments supporting the forceful eviction of white landowners if Kenya's top opposition leader Raila Odinga wins the presidential election. Lempurkel has denied the charges.



The race between Odinga and President Uhuru Kenyatta has narrowed, with one poll in the past week putting Odinga ahead by just 1 percentage point. As tensions rise, some observers are warning of violence and recalling the post-election chaos a decade ago that left more than 1,000 dead.



A government report in 2013 on the violence found that politicians often exploit real or perceived land injustices around election time for personal gain. Complicated grievances can last decades in Kenya where traditional land claims often conflict with those made during the years of British rule.



In Laikipia, Kenya's military and police have been working to disarm and drive hundreds of herders and their animals out of ranches that have been invaded, but the authorities' actions appear to have escalated the violence.



Herders in recent months have killed a British safari guide and conservationist, Tristan Voorspuy, and shot well-known Italian author Kuki Gallman in the stomach. More than 30 people have died since late last year.

Maria Dodds, a livestock breeder, says her property has been attacked every few days for almost a year.



"The damage that has been done to this farm is unbelievable. Boreholes have been destroyed, generators, staff housing, 34 kilometers (21 miles) of electric fence have been destroyed,'' she says. Almost half of her employees have fled.



The attacks are not limited to white ranchers.



In November, Emuria Lorere lost his brother to armed herders. Emathe Nangula was killed and his 42 goats and sheep were stolen.



"He was a very good man. In fact, the family has missed him,'' Lorere says.

Simon Eturen, head of security at the ranch where Voorspuy was killed earlier this year, now walks around with a firearm.



Laikipia is also home to varied wildlife. Eturen has been working at the ranch for 12 years and says he has never seen so many animals killed as in recent months. The executive director of the Laikipia Wildlife Forum, Peter Hetz, has no numbers of wildlife killed but says they have seen "wanton killing'' by herders.



"If you look closely it is just politically instigated,'' Eturen says. "When you meet these people they tell you that politicians have told them that they will get the ranches for free for them to graze their animals'' and claim the land's lease to the "white man'' has ended.
Liu Jieyi (R, front), China's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, votes in favor of a UN Security Council resolution that aims to slash by a third the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's 3 billion U.S. dollars annual export revenue over Pyongyang's two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests in July, at the UN headquarters in New York, Aug. 5, 2017. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- The new UN Security Council resolution that imposes tougher sanctions against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is all about preventing chaos and conflict on the Korean Peninsula, said Chinese ambassador to the United Nations Liu Jieyi on Saturday.

The unanimous adoption of Resolution 2371 by the council on Saturday demonstrates that the international community is united in its position regarding the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula, Liu told the Security Council after the voting of the sanctions.

There are three major components in the resolution: further sanctions against the DPRK's nuclear and missile programs; no intention to harm activities that are not prohibited by the resolution, such as economic activities and cooperation, food and economic assistance; a call for the resumption of the six-party talks, commitment to finding a peaceful solution, and the emphasis of the importance of de-escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula by the parties concerned, said Liu.

China is opposed to the DPRK's launching activities that violate Security Council resolutions and are in defiance of the will of the entire international community, he said.

China has always insisted on realizing the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, upholding peace and stability there and seeking a solution through dialogue and consultation. "China has always and firmly been opposed to chaos and conflict on the peninsula," said Liu.

China believes that these form part and parcel of Saturday's resolution and that all of the parties should implement the provisions contained in the resolution fully and earnestly, the ambassador said.

China has been making tireless efforts to promote denuclearization of the peninsula and to uphold peace and stability on the peninsula, he noted.

On July 4, China and Russia issued a joint statement on the issue of the Korean Peninsula. The two countries put forward a roadmap on the basis of Russia's step-by-step approach and China's idea of a dual approach -- parallel efforts to move forward both denuclearization and the establishment of a peaceful mechanism on the peninsula -- and China's initiative of suspension-for-suspension -- which calls for the DPRK to suspend its nuclear and missile activities and for the United States and South Korea to suspend their large-scale war games, said Liu.

The China-Russia initiative, which aims at tackling both the symptoms and the root causes of the problem and seeks a solution through an integrated approach, is realistic and feasible, he said, expressing the hope that the initiative would get the support of the relevant parties.

China has taken note that the United States has recently indicated once again that it is not seeking a "regime change" nor a "regime collapse" in the DPRK and that Washington is in no hurry to push for the reunification of the Korean Peninsula and that its troops will not push through the 38th Parallel, said Liu.

"It is our hope that the U.S. side will translate these four Nos into concrete policies," he noted.

Beefing up military deployment on the peninsula is not helpful in realizing the denuclearization of the peninsula and maintaining regional peace and stability, he added.

The deployment of the THAAD missile defense system in South Korea will not bring a solution to the issue of the DPRK's nuclear testing and missile launching, said the ambassador. "What it will do is to seriously undermine the strategic balance of the region and is detrimental to the strategic security interests of the regional countries, including China."

China strongly urges parties concerned to halt the process of base deployment and to dismantle relevant equipment, he said.

Meanwhile, China urges the DPRK to respect the council resolutions and to stop taking actions that might further escalate tensions on the peninsula, said the ambassador.

"We hope the parties concerned will immediately take effective action to prevent the situation from further escalating, create conditions for the resumption of talks and exert efforts to bring back at an early date the nuclear issue of the peninsula to the right track of seeking a peaceful solution through dialogue and consultation."

The UN Security Council resolution was adopted in response to the DPRK's ballistic missile launches on July 3 and 28, which the country has claimed were of "intercontinental" range. The resolution significantly strengthens the sanctions on the DPRK, imposing a full ban on the export of coal, iron and iron ore from the country.
Kenyas Rift Valley was the epicenter of the 2007-2008 post-election violence. While there are few concerns of mounting tensions this year over the ongoing local races, residents have held youth marches and a special church service to remember the victims of 2008 Kiambaa church massacre.

Worshipers sang and prayed for peace in Kiambaa Church in Eldoret in the Rift Valley region of Kenya. It was here Kikuyu men and women ran to after armed Kalenjin youth attacked their homes.

The violence followed them to the church. Children, women, and men were burnt. David Irungu, who was eight at the time, is one of the survivors.

In the church, they ordered us to get out. I was with my mother and sister. When we got outside, we were scared because I thought it was death calling us. When we looked at them, they were really armed I was very much happy because I came out alive. They only allowed mothers and children to get out. I came out with my mother but we left our father inside. I dont know how he escaped in the church. He died outside, he said.

Ten years later Irungu knows why his father and many of his neighbors died.

In 2007 I was eight years old I didnt know what war was like and what was going on but now I have come to understand how war is and the consequences of war. I understand those people targeted us because of our ethnicity, said Irungu.



In 2007 a disputed presidential vote, communities turned against each other. More than 1,000 people died, and 600,000 people were displaced.

Since the post-election violence, many things have changed. The two warring communities have reconciled and now support one candidate for the presidency, the incumbent Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto.

In this election that unity will be tested as local races and politics take center stage.

The International Crisis Group has warned of possible violence, saying the creation of new Counties ruled by powerful elected local officials has increased the stakes the political competition.

Twenty-eight-year-old Moses Ndicum a Kikuyu living in Eldoret understands this too well.

We are together up at the top [presidency], but here in the County, we are not together because we have to follow the way they want. It seems we are going to have chaos in our County, he said.

Ndicu was also a victim of 2007 election violence. He lived in an IDP camp for more than two months.

Fred Yego of Mercy Corps says Kenyan politics is about power and resources.

Why the problems are of during election time is because most communities would want to push their people in leadership. The problem we have in Kenya the attitude of winner takes it all. So people believe that whenever somebody from their community is in power, then they are able to access resources and opportunities, he said.

Jackson Mandago is Uasin Gishu County Governor. He says people like Irungu and Ndicu will be safe after Tuesdays vote.

The political temperatures can rise because the competition is stiff, but I want to assure the rest of the world and this country that as a county we are confident we are going to hold our election on Tuesday and the elections are going to be peaceful, he said.

ICG notes the task of reconciling the two communities is not yet complete, and unresolved historical grievances explain the tension that comes with election violence in Rift Valley region.

The call for peace has been growing in this part of the country, and many hope after August 8th polls communities will live in peace.
Former senior members of the White House National Security Council say they are shocked at what they call the rare leak of full transcripts of phone calls between President Donald Trump and the leaders of Australia and Mexico, and are worried about the lasting effects it could have on American diplomacy.

The transcripts, published by The Washington Post, revealed that Trump engaged in candid, disjointed and often contentious discussions with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull during the early days of his administration.

It is the latest in a torrent of embarrassing leaks of Trumps private conversations with foreign leaders. Since becoming president, parts of Trumps talks with the leaders of Russia, Britain, Germany and the Philippines also have been leaked to the media.

In fact, portions of Trumps talks with Pena Nieto and Turnbull were leaked shortly after the calls took place in January. But the release of the complete transcripts represents an escalation, since those documents are highly restricted and accessible only to top officials, former NSC members say.

Its just such a high level of classification that you cant easily forward something like this, said Shamila Chaudhary, NSC director for Pakistan and Afghanistan in 2010-11. It means someone went through a considerable amount of effort to either print it out and hand it to somebody or to print it out and scan it.

VOA Explains:

Presidential calls

Presidential phone calls with foreign leaders are traditionally coordinated with the help of the NSC, which is made up of several hundred national security specialists  mostly career service officers on detail from other agencies  who advise the president on foreign policy and often assist him with practical diplomatic functions.

Typically, a handful of presidential advisers and NSC senior directors sit with the president in the Oval Office during such a phone call. Another one or two NSC staff members transcribe the conversation from downstairs in the White House, in the Situation Room. A translator is also sometimes present, if necessary.

The transcripts are then reviewed and distributed to 10 to 20 top White House leaders, former officials estimated. If relevant, the transcripts also are shared with as many as 20 to 30 senior leaders at other agencies, such as the State Department, Defense Department or CIA.

Its a pretty restricted circulation, Mark Feierstein, former NSC senior director for Western Hemisphere affairs, remembered. Some key people in the White House get to see it, and then it might go to Cabinet members. But in the other departments, its very, very restricted.

Far-reaching impact

Even many former NSC staffers who are critical of Trump view the leaks as a major breach that could have lasting effects on U.S. diplomacy.

One former senior NSC official, speaking on background because of the sensitive nature of the topic, called the leaks deeply concerning, pointing out they could make foreign leaders more reluctant to speak their minds during future conversations.

These are not really conversations that should be debated in a public space, the former official said. The president and other senior administration officials should be able to speak candidly and openly with their foreign counterparts.

It just really sets a bad precedent, the former official added.

Its also illegal to leak classified information, meaning that whoever disclosed the transcripts may not only be risking his or her job and security clearance but also facing prosecution.

I think its an indication of the lack of respect Donald Trumps staff has for him, and the concern, frankly, they have about how he conducts himself on the job, Feierstein said.

Theyre worried weve got this unhinged president whos damaging our relationship with other countries, who doesnt do his job, who doesnt prepare for phone calls, he added.

Crackdown coming?

The Trump administration condemned the leak and promised a sweeping, governmentwide crackdown on unauthorized disclosures.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Friday announced the Department of Justice had more than tripled the number of active leak investigations that were open at the end of the Obama administration.

Sessions: 'Culture of Leaking Must Stop'

We are taking a stand, Sessions said. This culture of leaking must stop.

But if they want to change the culture, they should start with the fierce infighting among different factions within the White House, Feierstein said.

The White House is pretty much a den of leakers, he said. The Kushners leak. The Bannons leak. And they all leak about each other. That just didnt happen in the Obama administration.
Health experts in Pakistans terror-wrecked Northwestern Tribal region say there has been a rise in psychological or psychiatric disorders, depression, anxiety and other forms of mental ailments as a result of frequent terror attacks.

Dealing with militancy and sectarianism on a continued basis results in unavoidable mental stress. Inadequate health facilities add to the problems of locals who have to mostly rely on self-medication, Dr. Talha Rehman, co-trustee of Elaj Trust, a social welfare organization told VOA.

Rehman was part of a team of medical doctors that evaluated the mental health problems of residents of Parachinar. The largest city of Pakistans semiautonomous Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) has seen increasing reports of post traumatic stress disorder, according to health experts in the region.

Every other family in Parachinar has lost their son, brother or father to terrorism. Militancy has damaged the very fabric of this society, it has affected their senses and their mental capabilities, said Rehman.

Parachinar, the administrative headquarters of Kurram Agency of FATA shares a strategic and porous border with Afghanistan and has an estimated population of around 250,000 people.

The city has seen a spike both in militancy and sectarian violence in recent years. In June, Parachinars main market was jolted by two simultaneous bomb blasts that claimed more than 70 lives and left 250 wounded.

I lost my elder brother in bomb blasts in June and went through severe mental trauma that will last with me for the rest of my life, Humayun Toori, a local resident of Parachinar told VOA. My brother had four young daughters, who will take care of them? The decades long militancy and insurgency have made us all pay the price. Our graveyards are full of innocent victims.

Elaj Trust jointly organized a psychological social health assessment workshop in Parachinar recently.

The doctors conducting the study were pleasantly surprised that conversation on mental health is not considered a stigma and tribesmen of Parachinar were open to discuss their psychiatric issues.

Experts believe certain factors such as lack of basic infrastructure, weak government, ongoing militancy and counter insurgency operations have badly impacted the lives and the mental state of those living in the tribal region.

The continued militancy and the aftershocks of Soviet-Afghan War fought in the 80s also contributed towards the mental ailments. Three generations in this region have not seen peace. They have lived in a constant state of war and fear since the 80s, Tahira Abdullah, a prominent human rights activist told VOA. Off course they will develop mental disorders, anyone going through such atrocities will,

Health experts believe terrorism is not the sole reason contributing to the deteriorating mental health of local population  other factors such as lack of proper health facilities and qualified doctors, poor infrastructure, fewer job opportunities and a disconnect with the rest of the country, are adding to the frustration.
Hiroshimas appeal of never again on the anniversary Sunday of the worlds first atomic bomb attack has gained urgency as North Korea moves ever closer to acquiring nuclear weapons, showing its growing prowess with increasingly frequent missile launches.

When the U.S. dropped the bomb Aug. 6, 1945, Toshiki Fujimoris mother was carrying him, then just a year old, piggyback to the hospital. The impact of the explosion threw them both to the ground, nearly killing him.

Obviously tensions are growing as North Korea has been pushing ahead with nuclear tests and development, Fujimori said. Nuclear weapons just are unacceptable for mankind.

Deeper sense of alarm

Many Japanese and others in the region seem resigned to North Koreas apparent newfound capacity to launch missiles capable of reaching much of the continental United States. But the threat lends a deeper sense of alarm in Hiroshima, where 140,000 died in that first A-bomb attack, which was followed Aug. 9, 1945, by another that killed more than 70,000 people in Nagasaki.

This hell is not a thing of the past, Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui said in his peace declaration at Sundays ceremony. As long as nuclear weapons exist and policymakers threaten their use, their horror could leap into our present at any moment. You could find yourself suffering their cruelty.

Today, a single bomb can cause even greater damage than the bombs dropped 72 years ago, he said.

Humankind must never commit such an act, he said, urging nuclear states, as well as Japan, to join the nuclear weapons ban treaty adopted by the United Nations in July.

Fujimori said that each Aug. 6, his late mother, who also survived, insisted on retelling the story of the attack to children in their neighborhood, saying she had to keep reminding them to help prevent the same mistake from happening again. Decades later, 73-year-old Fujimori himself is a leader of Hidankyo, a major organization of atomic bomb survivors.

We must eradicate nuclear weapons from the earth to make the world a safe place to live, he said in an interview. There is still a lot to do, and we must keep working on it.

He said the adoption of the U.N. nuclear weapons ban, which was boycotted by all nuclear-armed nations, shows that most of the world supports that cause.

Dialogue, not threats

Two recent test-firings of Hwasong-14 inter-continental ballistic missiles suggest that major U.S. cities such as Los Angeles and Chicago are within range of North Korean weapons. Such missiles could be armed with nuclear, biological or chemical warheads, although many experts say North Korea hasnt fully mastered miniaturizing nuclear warheads and might not have the technology to ensure a warhead would survive re-entry into the atmosphere from space or even hit an intended target.

Such developments draw mixed feelings from Kim Ji Nho, a pro-Pyongyang ethnic Korean who was born in Hiroshima. Kim, 71, is a hibakusha, or atomic-bomb survivor, who was exposed to radiation when his mother, pregnant with him, went to the ruins of the city to search for a daughter who went missing in the blast. He grew up in a community of ethnic Koreans in the city and has a relative who had since moved to North Korea.

He is critical of the U.S., and says only dialogue, not military actions or threats, can resolve tensions with the erratic leadership in Pyongyang.

Hope and heartbreak of ban

But regarding nuclear weapons, We hibakusha and our groups share a clear goal, which is to abolish nuclear weapons from the world, Kim said. Nuclear weapons should never be used.

Like his father, many Koreans were brought to Hiroshima, a wartime military hub, as forced laborers during Japans colonization of the Korean Peninsula in the first half of the 20th century. They and their descendants have endured outright discrimination by Japanese. So have A-bomb survivors: Kims father had told him to keep mum about his radiation exposure, because being hibakusha could only mean more trouble.

The two survivors said Japans refusal to join the U.N. nuclear treaty, apparently because its protected under the U.S. nuclear umbrella, was heartbreaking.

Hopes that the U.S. and Japan might support the nuclear weapons ban rose during former President Barack Obamas 2016 visit to Hiroshima. But such expectation has dimmed as North Koreas threat has escalated.

Feel the reality of the bomb

What if that young leader (Kim Jong Un) pushes a nuclear weapons launch button? I think neighboring Japan has a risk of being hit, said Tamio Ishida, 59, whose father was a survivor. I think tensions have risen and many people in Hiroshima share a sense of urgency.

Ayaka Kajihara, 18, a college student, says she imagined her late grandmother, also a hibakusha, suffered greatly, though she was reluctant to discuss her past. Even so, she feels it was very important to learn what happened to the grandmother and her hometown 72 years ago.

More than 300,000 of the hibakusha have died since the attack, including 5,530 in the past year. The average age of the survivors is more than 81 years. Many suffer from long lasting effects of radiation.

I hope more people from the rest of Japan and overseas will visit Hiroshima and just see and feel the reality of what the atomic bomb has done, and start from there, she said. Because thats how I started thinking about peace  by meeting hibakusha, including my grandmother and hearing their stories.
Pakistan has dismissed latest U.S. assertions it is selectively fighting terrorist groups or allowing insurgents to use Pakistani soil for plotting attacks against Afghanistan.

U.S. National Security Adviser McMaster told an American news station Saturday that the Trump administration wants regional countries, particularly Pakistan to stop providing safe haven and support bases to the Taliban and Haqqani Network.

"Pakistan has taken action against all the terrorist elements without discrimination. We have never allowed nor will anybody ever be allowed to use Pakistan's soil against any other country, Foreign Ministry spokesman Nafees Zakaria told VOA when asked for his comments on McMasters assertions.

The spokesman went on to say that Pakistan and the United States have been cooperating in counterterrorism such such issues came under discussion when the acting American envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan visited Islamabad last week.

We have clarity in this regard, having suffered unparalleled loss of lives of tens of thousands of our citizens and billions of dollars to Pakistan's economy that we have to eradicate the menace completely and we shall continue to fight the terrorists, irrespective, Zakaria said.



Afghan and U.S. officials have long alleged that Pakistani security forces are fighting anti-state militant groups on their soil but not moving against insurgents plotting cross-border attacks. McMaster in his Saturdays interview reiterated those concerns.

This is, of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but theyve done so really only selectively, he said.

President Trumps administration has not yet announced details of its new Afghan strategy and McMaster also declined to discuss any details, though he asserted the president has taken some important decisions.



The strategy is reportedly also exploring a new approach towards Pakistan that could see more U.S. pressure to address the issue of militant safe havens, expanding drone strikes, reducing aid to Islamabad and downgrading Pakistans status as a major non-NATO ally.

Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman, Dawlat Waziri has welcomed McMaster's comments on safe havens in Pakistan. He told VOA the Afghan government has long maintained that without ending the sanctuaries on the other side of the border, the war in Afghanistan will not end.

"The U.S. review for the region including Pakistan is still ongoing and we shall await its outcome," said Zakaria.
Pakistan's Tehreek-i-Taliban (TTP) has recently published its first women's magazine, urging potential female jihadists to join the ranks of the militant group and to devote themselves to the cause of jihad.

The magazine, Sunnat-e-Khaula (The Way of Khaula), is named after a young female fighter during the time of the Prophet Muhammad, according to local media accounts in Pakistan. The magazine is another effort on part of the country's Taliban to renew their efforts to reach out to millions of Pakistani women and recruit them to their militant cause.

In an advice column of the magazine, the militant group urges women to "distribute literature reflecting on the obligation of jihad, arrange physical training classes for sisters. Learn how to operate simple weapons. Learn the use of grenades."

While the magazine is accessible to only a handful of people, the news of its launch has been widely circulated on social media platforms in Pakistan, amplifying its reach and making its core content available online to a vast number of Pakistani youth.

Power of digital media

Some experts warn that, contrary to popular belief, middle-class students with access to digital media are more prone to radicalization than those of the madrasas.

The Pakistani Taliban, which is losing territory because of various Pakistani military operations, are increasingly resorting to using varied media platforms to promote and propagate their ideology.

"Social media is an effective tool in the hands of extremists. TTP launching of a magazine for women is important in many ways," professor Khadim Hussain, an expert on militancy in the Afghanistan and Pakistan region, told VOA.

"They are using an effective model used by Islamist political party Jamate Islami and extremist outfit Hizbut Tehrir to reach out to the new generation," said Hussain, author of The Militant Discourse: Religious Militancy in Pakistan.

Influence of women

Hussain said he thought TTP's magazine wanted to capitalize on the influence that women have in their households, which he argued is something that is not easily visible.

"It provides an expanded reach without tracing the jihadi footprints easily," he said.

Maria Sultan, a defense analyst in Pakistan, agreed with Hussain's analysis, adding that the Taliban have a reason to target the country's female population.

"Taliban believe by capturing women's attention they can re-establish their network that has been destroyed by the Pakistan army through several military operations in the Northwest region in recent years," Sultan said.

"Pakistan will have to implement [its] National Action Plan fully to stop Taliban's' reach to the masses," she added.

Pakistan's National Action Plan, a comprehensive 20-point strategy devised in 2015 to fight extremism, calls for "strict action to be taken against literature, newspapers and magazines promoting hatred, extremism, sectarianism and intolerance" in the country.

Dangerous to youth

Qibla Ayaz, former dean of the faculty of Islamic and Oriental Studies at the University of Peshawar, called the TTP magazine launch a dangerous development for the youth of the region, "since the new generation is all there on the social media. [The Islamic State] militant outfit has adopted the same social media strategy for its recruitment, and it seems to be a problem here, too."

He said he thought the problem was not limited to Pakistan and called for a counterextremism narrative across the Muslim world to counter it.

"We have not developed a well-constructed counterextremism narrative," he said. "I think all the leading voices around the Muslim world need to come together and come up with a joint strategy against it [extremism]."

The magazine reportedly has articles about prominent Muslim women from the early era of the emergence of Islam, sharing their experiences and advising women of faith to fully implement the code of Islam in their lives.

The magazine interviewed a woman who said she was the wife of TPP leader Fazlullah Khorasani. She advocated for the benefits of early-age marriage and defended her own at age 14 to Khorasani.

Pakistani claims

Since 2014, Pakistan has conducted large-scale counterterrorism operations in its restive Northwest region in an attempt to eradicate Taliban influence and militancy. It claims its troops have successfully eliminated and dismantled terrorism and militant infrastructure in the region.

U.S. and Afghanistan officials, however, have long accused Pakistan of being selective in its crackdown on militants. They claim Islamabad targets only groups, including TTP, that pose a threat to Pakistan's interests and overlook other militants who are using the country's territory to plan attacks on Afghanistan and India. Pakistan has denied those allegations.

In the 2016 edition of its annual Country Reports on Terrorism, the U.S. State Department criticized Pakistan for failing to take action against the Haqqani network and the Afghan Taliban. When reached this week, a department spokesperson declined to comment on the Taliban's new outreach to women.
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Monday that Russian interference in last year's presidential election created serious mistrust, and that he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed a lot of work that has to be done regarding U.S.-Russia relations.

The two top diplomats held talks on the sidelines of a regional forum in the Philippines where Tillerson said he told Lavrov the U.S. will respond by Sept. 1 to Russia's order to remove hundreds of diplomats and other staff from U.S. diplomatic facilities in Russia.

I told the foreign minister that we had not made a decision regarding how we will respond to Russia's request to remove diplomatic personnel, Tillerson said.

First meeting since sanctions announced

The meeting was the first high-level contact between the two countries since U.S. President Donald Trump last week reluctantly signed new sanctions into law to punish Russia for interfering in the 2016 presidential election to help him win.

Lavrov said that despite the latest round of U.S. sanctions, We felt that our American counterparts need to keep the dialogue open. There's no alternative to that.

The U.S. Congress voted overwhelmingly for the sanctions. Trump, faced with the likelihood that Congress would override a veto if he rejected the legislation, approved the sanctions measure even as he called it significantly flawed with clearly unconstitutional provisions.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama, weeks before he left office, expelled 35 Russian diplomats and closed two Russian facilities in the United States after the U.S. intelligence community concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally directed the election interference.

Russia official explains staff cuts

Russia did not retaliate at the time, but with the approval of the new sanctions, Moscow ordered the U.S. to cut 755 diplomats and staff workers, many of them Russians, from its embassy and consulates in Russia. Lavrov said he explained to Tillerson how Moscow would carry out the sharp cuts in the U.S. diplomatic missions, but did not publicly disclose any details.

Trump has been largely dismissive of the investigations in Washington over the Russian election interference, calling them a witch hunt and an excuse by Democrats to explain his upset victory over his Democratic challenger, former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Numerous congressional probes are underway, while Special Counsel Robert Mueller has opened a grand jury investigation into whether Trump campaign aides illegally colluded with Russian interests on Trump's behalf in the election and whether Trump obstructed justice when he fired former Federal Bureau of Investigation chief James Comey, who was leading the agency's Russia probe before Mueller took over.

Volker to meet with Russians

Lavrov also said Sunday that the U.S. is soon sending its envoy for negotiations over unrest in eastern Ukraine to Moscow for talks about the ongoing violence.

He said U.S. diplomat Kurt Volker would meet with Russia's envoy for the Ukraine crisis, Vladislav Surkov. Volker last month visited eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed separatists have been fighting Kyiv's forces for more than three years. It is a conflict during which Moscow annexed Ukraine's Crimean peninsula and more than 10,000 people have been killed.

Tillerson in his comments to reporters said Russia is showing some willingness to start discussing a resolution to the Ukraine crisis. He said the U.S. and Russia have deep differences, but that it's not a good idea to just cut everything off on one single issue.
Rwandan President Paul Kagame has won a third term as president with nearly 99 percent of votes from Fridays election. More than 6.6 million votes were cast for the incumbent president and just over 80,000 cast for the two opposition candidates. Turnout was about 96 percent.

At Rwandas election commission headquarters in downtown Kigali, a Rwandan electoral official reads the results of each district. The commissions executive secretary, Charles Munyaneza, said they were very satisfied with the process of the vote.

"We are satisfied that you can see Rwandans stand up in a very, very high number," he said. "You could see the calmness, you could see the cleanness at the polling stations, you could see people are celebrating."

Indeed, as results started coming in on Friday night, just hours after the polls closed, thousands of Kagame supporters, donors, and fellow party leaders gathered at the national headquarters of the presidents Rwandan Patriotic Front political party. Kagame supporter Ester Kabaera, a 55-year-old businesswoman, said it was obvious he was going to win.

"We came this country when there was nothing and weve made a lot change, weve united Rwandans who have been divided for so many years," she said. "Weve built the nation, weve built the roads, there is infrastructure, schools, university. "

Another Kagame supporter at the event, 30-year-old medical student Fred Namania, said he is extremely happy about the results.

"Of course president Kagame has done a lot of things for this country. He picked this country from ashes. Actually it was a failed state. But now weve seen some progress thats helped all kinds of people, people from all walks of life," he said.



Opposition candidates



Opposition presidential candidate Frank Habineza, of the Green Party, told VOA that some of his partys observers had been denied access to polling stations. At a press conference on Saturday, he admitted the results werent as "pleasing" as he expected but congratulated President Kagame on his victory. He also thanked his supporters.

You demonstrated much love for our manifesto and you believed just like me, that there could be some improvements and changes on what has been done in this country," he said. "You all have given me more courage and confidence to continue a more democratic struggle for our beautiful country.



Jean-Claude Karayenzi, a banker who voted for Kagame, said hes not surprised the opposition fared so poorly.

They had nothing to sell to the country. So maybe thats why people will see the results and maybe thats why people didnt follow them, he said.

International observers



The East African Community sent 45 international observers to monitor the polls. The head of the observer mission, Kenyan Moody Awari, described the election process as really successful.

The elections have been conducted in a peaceful atmosphere within a framework that satisfactorily meets the international, continental, and regional principals of democratic elections, said Awari.

Opposition candidates have until Thursday to contest the election results with the judicial system, before the vote becomes finalized.




U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is defending his efforts to redesign the State Department, but the process has left many of its 36,000 employees in Washington and around the world feeling anxious about their mission.

Tillerson was welcomed warmly to the State Department six months ago. But some current and former ambassadors and foreign policy experts say they are worried about a number of indications that the Trump administration plans to lower the priority of promoting democracy and human rights in U.S. foreign policy.

Unspent engagement money

Take, for example, the $80 million in unused cash designated by Congress for the Global Engagement Center, which works to counteract disinformation campaigns by terrorist groups and foreign countries such as North Korea, China, and Russia.

R.C. Hammond, a top communications official at the State Department, told Politico this week that the money  $60 million in the Pentagon budget and $19.8 million in State Department coffers  has not been distributed because the Global Engagement Center has not submitted a clear plan for how to spend it. Tillerson must request the $60 million from the Pentagon before Sept. 30, but has made no move to do so.

Hammond cited possible budget and staffing cuts as the reason Tillerson has not requested the funds.

Politico also reported that Hammond expressed hesitation about needling the Russians by trying to counteract Russias disinformation campaign while Tillerson has been holding negotiations with his counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, on Syria.

Some Former Diplomats Worry About Planned State Department Changes

Centers mission

At a State Department news briefing Thursday, however, State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said the Global Engagement Center is still hard at work.

The Global Engagement Center continues to execute its mission, Nauert said. There is a process underway to ensure any future funding or programs account for the most appropriate tactics and strategy, especially in countering propaganda from countries such as Russia that have minimal protections for free speech or the media. The Global Engagement Center is already funded in FY [fiscal year] 2017 with $16.3 million.

She added that as a former businessman, Tillerson is looking at how to spend money as effectively as possible.

Former Ambassador Laura Kennedy served the State Department for almost 40 years under Republican and Democratic administrations. She told VOA she is concerned about the State Department not using the funds available.

Countering ISIS propaganda? ... This is at the top, or should be at the top of our priority list, Kennedy said. And Russian disinformation is nothing new  nor are our efforts to project our own messages and counter ones that are antithetical to our own interests. We have always done this.

Senators Rob Portman of Ohio and Chris Murphy of Connecticut co-authored a bill last December that authorized the money in question. This week they released a statement criticizing the State Department for not using it.

Congress has provided substantial resources to combat foreign propaganda, particularly from Russia, Portman, a Republican, said. There is broad agreement that the U.S. government is behind the curve on this threat. ... Countering foreign propaganda should be a top priority, and it is very concerning that progress on combating this problem is being delayed because the State Department isnt tapping into these resources.

Murphy, a Democrat, called the delay indefensible.

Every day, he said, ISIS is spreading terrorist propaganda and Russia is implementing a sophisticated disinformation campaign to undermine the United States and our allies. There should be no doubt these are critical challenges to our national security.

The holdup could be indicative of greater changes ahead.

Human rights

The Washington Post reported this week that a proposed new mission statement for the State Department is circulating. The wording, which is subject to change, would eliminate any mention of human rights or promotion of democracy.

The draft mission statement, as quoted by the Post from an internal memo, read: Lead Americas foreign policy through global advocacy, action, and assistance to shape a safer, more prosperous world.

Gone would be the current language, which stresses shaping a peaceful, prosperous, just, and democratic world and foster conditions for stability and progress for the benefit of the American people and people everywhere.

Experts on diplomacy say this signals a possible change in direction, moving from promotion of democracy and human rights everywhere to a narrower focus on what is good for the United States.

Daniel Runde, director of the Project on U.S. Leadership in Development for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, notes, The Trump administration has every right to rethink our public diplomacy strategy. The United States, the source of public relations and strategic communications, ironically and sadly has great difficulty in persuading fence-sitting publics that need to be persuaded.

Nicholas Rostow of Colgate University is a former legal adviser to the National Security Council. He says removing human rights from the equation makes sense, from a more isolationist standpoint.

However, he says, "Support for human rights has been a theme, albeit not a consistent theme, of American foreign policy for the entire history of the United States. Those favoring Realpolitik or isolationism tend not to think that speaking up for the international rule of law and therefore the just treatment of individuals or groups is an American interest. It nonetheless is American as apple pie. In addition, the existence and proliferation of nuclear weapons make international engagement, working closely with partners and allies, and collective insistence on respect for the most fundamental norms of international life, not a matter of sentiment, but survival."

Foreign policy positions

Others see the changes as dangerous.

Elliott Abrams served in foreign policy positions in the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, specializing in humanitarian affairs and international cooperation. He told The Washington Post, That change is a serious mistake that ought to be corrected. ... If not, the message being sent will be a great comfort to every dictator in the world.

Former Ambassador Kennedy also objects.

It is impossible to divorce our foreign policy with democracy and justice, she said. These are core to who we are as a people. These principles go back to the very founding of our country, the establishment of the State Department, as the first Cabinet ministry. So I find it inexplicable that you would consider removing them.

Kennedy said she and some current State Department colleagues were also troubled that Secretary Tillerson did not personally present the State Departments annual human rights report this year, breaking with tradition.

She said she feels that Tillerson rightly condemned Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro this week for trying to roll back human rights in his country.

But she asked how the United State can criticize other countries for human rights abuses unless it keeps promoting human rights, justice and democracy front and center in its own statements and actions every day.
Pro-government forces captured the Islamic State group's last stronghold in the energy-rich Homs province in central Syria on Sunday, paving the way to advance on the besieged eastern city of Deir el-Zour, state media and a war monitoring group reported.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said 30 IS militants were killed in the last 24 hours of battle for the town of al-Sukhna, in Homs, before it was captured Saturday by pro-government forces. It says the Russian air force provided air support and bombed the town.

Syrian military media reported the town's capture on Sunday. The advance puts pro-government forces 68 miles (110 kilometers) from reaching companion forces trapped in Deir el-Zour in the Euphrates River valley, which have depended on risky supply flights and air drops for relief and weapons. IS militants have held the city under siege since 2015.



Also Sunday, Tourism Minister Beshr Yaziji said 530,000 people visited Syria during the first half of 2017, a 25 percent increase compared to the same period in 2016. His comments were reported on state media on Sunday.



Syria is home to a number of Muslim shrines and holy sites that draw religious pilgrims from across the Middle East. It is especially popular with Shiite worshippers visiting from Lebanon, Iraq, Iran and farther afield.



Pro-government forces, backed by Russian air power, were able to reclaim a number of contested sites from the Syrian opposition in 2016, bringing relative calm to the country's two largest cities, Aleppo and Damascus, this year.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 07:39:37|Editor: Zhou Xin

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SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- A new study provides strong evidence that a hazardous class of flame retardant chemicals, known as polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDE, damages children's intelligence, resulting in loss of IQ points.

Published this week in Environmental Health Perspectives, the study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, goes beyond showing a strong correlation between PBDE's effect and children's intelligence by including the largest meta-analysis performed on flame retardants to date.

Using rigorous epidemiological criteria, the authors considered factors like strength and consistency of the evidence to establish that there was "sufficient evidence" supporting the link between PBDE exposure and intelligence outcomes. They examined data from studies covering nearly 3,000 mother-child pairs, and discovered that every 10-fold increase in a mom's PBDE levels led to a drop of 3.7 IQ points in her child.

Acknowledging that a 3.7-point decrease in IQ might not sound like a lot, lead author Juleen Lam, an Associate Research Scientist at UCSF's Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment (PRHE), noted that on a population-wide level, it means more children who need early interventions.

In addition, the researchers found some evidence of a link between PDBE exposures and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

PBDEs are commonly found in furniture and household products. They first came into widespread use after California, a state on the U.S. West Coast, passed fire safety standards for furniture and certain other products in 1975. Due to the size of the Californian market, flame retardants soon became a standard treatment for furniture sold across the United States.

PBDEs and similar flame retardants are not chemically bonded to the foams they protect. Instead, they are merely mixed in, so can easily leach out from the foam and into house dust, food, and eventually, human bodies. Evidence of PDBEs' danger prompted reconsideration and starting in 2003 California, other states, and international bodies approved bans or phase outs for some of the most common PBDEs.

Less than two weeks before the UCSF study's release, legislation was introduced in the San Francisco Board of Supervisors on July 25 to ban PBDEs and all other flame retardant chemicals from furniture and children's products sold in the City and County of San Francisco.

The UCSF researchers have posted guidelines for avoiding PDBEs during pregnancy on PRHE's website.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Sunday his armed forces crushed a brief attack on a military base led by a rebellious former army officer.

Maduro declared the attack was an act of terrorism financed by the United States and Colombia, but he gave no evidence for that claim in a regular Sunday evening television broadcast.

At least two of the intruders were killed during a firefight early Sunday with military units that overwhelmed the rebels at a base near the city of Valencia, in central Venezuela.

Accounts from Maduro and other Venezuelan officials indicated about 20 people took part in the assault on the Paramacay military base.

Ten of them fled before Venezuelan army units arrived, some carrying off arms, while those left behind exchanged gunfire with soldiers until about 8 a.m. before all were either killed or captured.

Uprising leader turns to social media

Maduro said an active manhunt was underway for those who escaped.

I can't say it another way," Maduro said during his TV appearance. It is an attack against the armed forces. He congratulated army units that responded in a united manner, with ... decisiveness.

An army officer who identified himself as Captain Juan Caguaripano posted a video on social media in which he was surrounded by more than a dozen men in military garb, apparently members of the uprising. He declared himself to be in legitimate rebellion against what he calls Maduro's murderous tyranny.

We clarify this is not a coup d'etat. This is a civilian and military action to restore the constitutional order and, more than that, to save the country from total destruction, Caguaripano declared. He is said to be a deserter from the army who has the support of right-wing extremists.

Police disperse protesters

Some residents of Valencia demonstrated in support of the attackers, but were dispersed by police.

Four months of anti-government protests have killed more than 120 Venezuelans. The country's social and political turmoil worsened last week when Maduro swore in a hugely unpopular constituent assembly to rewrite the constitution. The assembly has already made its first major move, dismissing Attorney General Luisa Ortega, a former Maduro ally turned vociferous opponent.

The government claims 8 million people voted on July 30 to elect the new assembly's 545 members. The opposition, which voters to boycott the election, said turnout was less than half as much as the government claimed. In addition, pre-election opinion polls showed about 70 percent of Venezuelans opposed the assembly.

Changes will bring peace, stability?

Maduro has said a new constitution will bring peace and stability. The opposition said the constituent assembly is packed with Maduro supporters  including his wife and son  and predicted it will try to dissolve the opposition-led national assembly and turn Venezuela into a socialist dictatorship.

Each step by the constituent assembly is a step toward the precipice by this government, the opposition's parliamentary president, Julio Borges, said Sunday. The only thing it has left is brute force. This is not a strong government. It's a rotten government which is failing. The only thing it wants to do is to cling to power.

The United States has already imposed sanctions on Maduro and more could be on the way. The U.S., Canada, the European Union, and nearly all Latin American countries have refused to recognize the new constituent assembly.
Chinas foreign minister Wang Yi held a bilateral meeting with his North Korean counterpart Ri Yong Ho Sunday on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) ministerial meetings in Manila. Wang said he urged Ri to adhere to U.N. resolutions and stop provoking the international communitys goodwill with missile launches and nuclear tests.

Wang also said he advised his North Korean counterpart to take a double suspension approach to easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, an approach calling for the suspension of North Koreas nuclear tests and the suspension of joint military drills by the U.S. and Japan.

A warning to North Korea by foreign ministers from the 10 ASEAN countries is expected to soothe the U.S. government, which the ministers hope will play a stronger role in their region. At the same time they hope to protect their own ties with Pyongyang.

On Saturday, ASEAN ministers expressed grave concern about escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula, including North Koreas intercontinental ballistic missile tests in July and two recent nuclear tests. It asked North Korea to fulfill all U.N. Security Council obligations and stop the tests.

ASEANs foreign ministers want to help improve relations between North and South Korea, the group said in a statement at a meeting in Manila. Each Korea claims the other despite self-rule on each side since the 1950s.

US role suspected

Although the U.S. government has leaned on much of Asia to condemn North Koreas tests of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, a Philippine foreign affairs spokesman declined to make a U.S. connection. The Philippines is ASEAN chair this year.

The statement, the second by ASEAN this year, was born out of Southeast Asias proximity to North Korea and the increase in weapons tests, said the spokesman, Robespierre Bolivar. North Korea has tested missiles, including an ICBM, seven times since April.

The North Koreans have tested more weapons in the past couple of months of 2017 than previously and this is a statement of that concern, Bolivar told a news conference Saturday while declining to answer a question about U.S. pressure. First primarily, geographically the Korean Peninsula is very close to us.

But scholars suspect a U.S. role. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is attending part of the ASEAN ministerial meetings in Manila, and Southeast Asian countries hope to cement relations with Washington under President Donald Trump, as many are unsure how his Asia policy will shape up. Trump has raged against North Koreas weapons tests.

The ASEAN statement plays to U.S. interests while using language thats conciliatory enough to protect its members ties with North Korea. Language in the statement such as urging parties to exercise restraint was to be expected, said Huang Kwei-bo, associate diplomacy professor at National Chengchi University in Taipei.

To encourage peaceful dialogue and then specific settlement disputes, I think ASEAN in principle should do things that way, Huang said.

Diplomatic, financial ties

The 10 ASEAN countries recognize North Korea diplomatically and North Korea has embassies in eight of them, forming an outlet for the hermit states money-making activities abroad. Southeast Asian companies in turn have been allowed to do business in the normally off-limits country.

Some North Korean embassies effectively do business for Kim Jong Uns government, possibly tempering any resolve in Southeast Asia to upset it, said Sean King, senior vice president of New York-based political consultancy Park Strategies.

In addition to supporting ostensibly legitimate businesses like ginseng sales and restaurants, these embassies act as control centers for the Norths regional smuggling networks and other plainly illicit operations, King said.

ASEAN also prides itself on unity despite disputes, and North Korea sent people to this months ASEAN event, one of Pyongyangs few forays abroad.

A North Korea-Southeast Asia connection came to light in February when Kims estranged half-brother was killed in Malaysia.
Some activists linked to the Movement for Democratic Change led by Morgan Tsvangirai on Sunday allegedly beat up party vice president Thokozani Khupe for holding an unsanctioned feedback meeting on the signing of an MDC Alliance by various Zimbabwean opposition political parties.

The youth allegedly beat up Khupe, who stayed away from the MDC Alliance signing ceremony at Zimbabwe Grounds in Harare on Saturday, while she was attending a joint MDC-T National Executive Committee and Provincial Executive Committee meeting in the city attended by delegates from Matabeleland North, Bulawayo and Matabeleland South provinces.

Some party activists told VOA Studio 7 that Khupe was shaken when she was beaten up by the unidentified youth in front of senior MDC-T officials Abednico Bhebhe, Lovemore Moyo and several others.

Video footage posted on various social media platforms shows Khupe lashing out at the assailants, accusing them of being outsiders attending the MDC-T meeting without authorization.

Bhebhe, Moyo and several MDC-T activists are seen talking to the alleged assailants asking them to leave the venue as an angry Khupe urges party activists to kick them out of the party offices.

Studio 7 was unable to ascertain the extent of her injuries, if any, as some video footage shows her throwing arms at the attackers, indicating her high level of disgust over the incident.

One of the MDC activists said, "If at all she was not happy all she needed was to raise her concerns because the whole coalition agenda has not been concluded."

Asked to comment, deputy party spokesperson, Thabitha Khumalo, noted that "we are investigating the issue and the party will issue a statement (concerning the attack).

MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai and Khupe are said to be fighting over the control of the party amid reports that Khupe is still not happy with the appointment of party vice presidents Nelson Chamisa and Elias Mudzuri.

The MDC Alliance comprises the MDC-T, MDC-Ncube, People's Democratic Party led by Tendai Biti and several others.

The parties want to work together ahead of the 2018 general elections.
A North Korean military officer, right, and another North Korean stand behind a pile of coal Dec. 14, 2012, along the banks of the Yalu River in the northeast of the North Korean border town of Siniuju. (Wang Zhao/AFP/Getty Images)

The U.N. Security Councils move to block countries from buying North Korean coal plugs a large loophole that allowed Chinese companies to import more North Korean coal after the first U.N. ban in 2016.

Previous bans have allowed Pyongyang to sell coal for humanitarian trade, but Saturdays vote banned all coal sales in an effort to choke off funding for Kim Jong Uns weapons programs, where much of the money was funneled, according to recent U.S. court filings.

The coal trade cited in the court documents accounted for as much as one-third of North Korean exports and helps explain how North Korea continued to develop its weapons programs despite being impoverished and under trade sanctions. The connections to the military also undermine Chinese claims that their imports were benefiting North Korean civilians.

We considered that to be a very narrow [humanitarian] exception, but it soon became clear that not all others shared our view, a State Department spokesman said before the vote.

In the most recent court filing, unsealed last month, U.S. government attorneys were granted a seizure warrant against the largest Chinese importer of North Korean coal and four related front companies after presenting evidence that the Chinese companys transactions with North Korea were ultimately benefiting sanctioned North Korean end users, including North Korea military and North Korea weapons programs.

The documents cite a defector, deemed reliable, who said the vast majority of the revenue from the countrys coal exports goes toward the military, nuclear missiles and weapons programs.

Those disclosures followed a court case filed in September in which federal attorneys cited a spreadsheet showing a major Chinese coal importer making purchases from various North Korean government agencies.

The Chinese importer was also purchasing from a North Korean company controlled by a secretive government branch believed to be conducting illicit activities and slush funds for political leaders.

What these cases expose is that calling [Chinas] coal business with North Korea humanitarian is a cynical lie, said Joshua Stanton, who runs the site One Free Korea and advises House and Senate staffers on North Korea sanctions law. There is no such thing as truly private industry in North Korea.

Asked last week about the coal imports, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy said in a statement that China has been comprehensively and accurately implementing the UN Security Council resolutions.

Exactly how to rein in North Koreas attempts to build a nuclear missile capable of hitting the United States has been a matter of debate for years, but recent missile launches by the reclusive country, including one last month, have intensified the discussion.

After that missile launch, President Trump tweeted that he is very disappointed in China. Our foolish past leaders have allowed them to make hundreds of billions of dollars a year in trade, yet they do NOTHING for us with North Korea, just talk.

Whats undisputed is the importance of coal exports to the North Korean economy. From 2010 to 2015, coal shipments accounted for about one-third of North Koreas total export revenue, according to figures cited by the Congressional Research Service. The coal exports, which generated more than $1 billion in annual revenue, were mainly purchased by Chinese companies.

While China says its recent coal purchases comply with U.N. rules and benefit North Korean civilians, U.S. officials have reported that at least some of the coal trade is directly profiting the North Korean military.

The Treasury Department last year, for example, said that a significant share of the money for North Koreas nuclear and ballistic missile program was coming from mining that often uses workers in slave-like conditions. Those natural resources, including coal, were sold abroad.

Some North Korean exporters, the Treasury Department said at the time, may be working on behalf of North Korean government or military agencies.

The more recent court filings by U.S. officials assert conclusive evidence of the connections between the North Korean exports and the military, citing business records, and give a better sense of the extent of the magnitude of the trades contribution to the military.

Kim Jong Un puts over 95 percent of North Koreas foreign currency earnings generated from coal exports toward the advancement of . . . North Koreas military and North Koreas nuclear missiles and weapons programs, according to the defector, who is quoted in an affidavit filed by assistant U.S. attorneys for the District of Columbia.

The account of the defector, who is not identifed, was used to support the forfeiture of bank funds from the single largest importer of North Korean coal, a Chinese company known as Dandong Zhicheng Metallic Material.

The Chinese company imported more than $234 million of North Korean coal in 2016, according to Panjiva, a global trade data analytics company. Thats about one-fifth of North Koreas annual coal exports.

An 80-page affidavit filed by the government  but not released to the public  describes numerous transactions among Dandong Zhicheng Metallic Material, its front companies and entities known to conduct business with or on behalf of North Korea. Portions of the governments affidavit became public with the release of a decision by U.S. District Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell.

Another federal forfeiture case against a Chinese company, filed in September, similarly supports the claim that Chinas coal imports have helped finance the North Korean government.

In that case, against Dandong Hongxiang Industrial Development, the U.S. government claims to have had access to business records reflecting coal trade between North Korea and China.

One spreadsheet at the Chinese company was labeled anthracite data. It summarized four months of anthracite coal shipping transactions in 2013 and names several North Korean government agencies and their front companies, according to the governments filing. Among the entries on the anthracite data spreadsheet are North Koreas National Defense Commission, the military portion of the government, and the Reconnaissance General Bureau, North Koreas primary intelligence organization.

In addition, according to the filing, an unnamed Chinese company purchased 439,000 tons of anthracite coal from various North Korean government agencies, including some that had been under trade sanctions. Among the coal purchases made by the unnamed Chinese company was one from a front company for Office 39 of the Korean Workers Party, a secretive group that the U.S. government has said supports the North Korean leadership.

These court filings show that the Chinese  their banks or their government or their companies  are either complicit in sanctions evasion or refusing to ask the right questions, said Anthony Ruggiero, a former official with the Treasury and State departments, now a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Given their relationship with North Korea and the history, the Chinese should have known that the North Korean government only allows profits to go to one of three purposes  the weapons program, the military or luxury goods for the elite.

The U.N. Security Council specifically targeted North Koreas coal industry for sanctions after North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in early 2016.

In March of that year, it required countries to cease importing North Korean coal. At the urging of the Chinese, however, it allowed coal purchases if they were for livelihood purposes.

Trade related to the peoples livelihood in North Korea, especially if it embodies humanitarian principles, should not be affected by sanctions, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said last month.

The U.N. sanctions were hailed for having demonstrated the consensus, commitment and resolution of the international community to curtail North Korean nuclear program, said Yun Sun, a senior associate with the East Asia Program at the Stimson Center, a nonpartisan research group.

But the measure didnt harm exports at all, at least at first, because the humanitarian exception turned out to be very broad.

In the nine months after the U.N. measure  from April to December 2016  China imported 17 million metric tons of coal from North Korea. Thats more than the imports in the corresponding months for each of the previous two years, according to the Congressional Research Service.

For that reason, the United States pushed for stricter limits, and in November, the United Nations added a cap on imports of North Korean coal, with the quota set at less than half the volume of coal trade from previous year.

In mid-February, China announced that it was approaching its annual quota of North Korean coal and suspended the imports.

The volume of Chinas imports of North Korean coal was still well below the quota level, however, according to U.N. statistics. The new resolution, however, blocks the resumption of any coal imports.
In a time when climate change seems an issue more vital than ever  especially as the Trump administration moves to dismantle programs meant to slow global warming and withdraws from global environmental partnerships  it is odd to find oneself in the position of saying this: The new documentary about Al Gores continued climate crusade lacks urgency.

Its not the fault of the former vice president, who continues  with fervor  his campaign to school people about global warming, but a weakness of the film, An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power. A follow-up to Davis Guggenheims Oscar-winning 2006 documentary, the sequel by Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk covers much of the same ground of the first film, but with a tone that feels, at times, midway between a sense of resignation and despair. Those emotions might not be entirely foreign to Gore himself, who speaks, in the film, of his frustration and his struggle to remain hopeful in the face of political inertia (or outright backpedaling).

As in the first film, Cohen and Shenk follow Gore as he takes his climate-education road show around the world, interspersing clips of his public talks about climate science with more private moments in which he speaks of his emotions. More depressing even than the images of ecological disaster that the film traffics in  including scenes of floods in Miami and glacier loss in Greenland  is Gores dismal, but probably accurate, assessment of what needs to be done before we can save the planet:

In order to address the climate crisis, he says, were going to have to fix the democracy crisis.
Daphne Wegner, 11, and sister Amelia, 7, of Kensington, Maryland, traveled to the island of Svalbard in the high Arctic above mainland Norway. On a boat cruise, they saw glaciers and four polar bears, including a mother bear and her two cubs.

Daphne Wegner, 11, and sister Amelia, 7, of Kensington, Maryland, traveled to the island of Svalbard in the high Arctic above mainland Norway. On a boat cruise, they saw glaciers and four polar bears, including a mother bear and her two cubs. Family photo

Bring KidsPost with you wherever you go this summer.

Bring KidsPost with you wherever you go this summer.

The Summer of KidsPost has traveled coast to coast in the United States and all over the world, but this week, our readers took us on a trip to the South.

Anshul Bellamkonda of Potomac, Maryland, learned that everything is bigger in Texas when he visited family in the states capital, Austin. He loved the downtown area, which is home to the countrys largest state capitol building.

Shane Gatens of Silver Spring, Maryland, also traveled to the Lone Star State this summer. He visited San Antonio and saw the Alamo, the site of an 1836 battle in the Texas Revolution, when the state fought for independence from Mexico.

Brothers Trey, JT and Colin Perrell of Gaithersburg, Maryland, visited their grandmothers home town of Louisville, Kentucky, where they went to the races. The boys enjoyed visiting Churchill Downs, which hosts the Kentucky Derby, the most famous horse race in the world.

Would you like to see pictures of your summer adventures featured in KidsPost?

Heres what youll need to do:

Go on a trip (anywhere!) and take along a recent copy of KidsPost.

Have someone take a photo or two of you  and siblings, cousins, etc.  holding KidsPost. Make sure at least one person in the photo is between the ages of 5 and 13.

Then fill out the submission form at wapo.st/summerofkidspost17 and attach your photo or photos. Or mail it to KidsPost, The Washington Post, 1301 K St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071. Include the full name, age and home town of everyone in the photo. We also need your parents phone number and email address. We would love to hear from you about what made the trip memorable.

Families can submit only once, and the photos must have been taken after May 22, 2017. Entries are due by August 30.

At the end of the summer, three randomly selected families who have sent in photos will receive books and KidsPost goodies.
Gen. John Kelly was just joking, of course, when he handed President Trump a saber at a U.S. Coast Guard Academy ceremony in May and offered a suggestion: Use that on the press, sir.

But now, as Trumps new chief of staff, Kelly needs a few weapons of his own  not so much to control wayward reporters but to bring discipline to a White House that often seems uncontrollable, especially when it comes to telling untruths.

So far, so good. Hes fired the potty-mouthed narcissist Anthony Scaramucci as communications director and showed no interest in retaining the hapless Sean Spicer. And he reportedly is forbidding West Wing staff from trotting into the Oval Office with news reports intended to infuriate the president and fire up his tweet machine.

In short, Kelly doesnt mess around  as noted by Late Night host Seth Meyers after Trump predicted a good time with Kelly in charge.

President Trump with then-Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly in May at the Coast Guard Academy commencement ceremonies. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

Im sorry, but John Kelly doesnt look like a guy you bring in to have a good time,  Meyers said. John Kelly looks like a guy who introduces himself by saying, Im not here to have a good time. 

But can the general take on the hardest job of all  hacking through the thicket of lies that the Trump White House produces? You can have all the discipline and efficiency in the world, but it wont do much good without a basis in reality that starts at the top.

The prospects for that are grim.

The Washington Posts Fact Checker has relentlessly catalogued the presidents prevarications. A few months ago, the New York Times produced an astonishingly long list of the lies since he took office, and described the problem:

There is simply no precedent for an American president to spend so much time telling untruths. Every president has shaded the truth or told occasional whoppers. No other president  of either party  has behaved as Trump is behaving. He is trying to create an atmosphere in which reality is irrelevant.

As Kelly, under the presidents direction, looks for a communications director to replace Scaramucci, the truth problem looms large. How do you maintain credibility and, yes, integrity when the boss is wandering through the fields of fantasy?

Spicer, after all, got off to a terrible start when on the first day of his tenure as press secretary he vehemently defended the presidents easily disprovable falsehoods about the size of the inaugural crowds.

Its unclear how Scaramucci would have handled that, but the first signs didnt bode well as he dodged an early question about Trumps false statements on voter fraud. If the president says it, theres usually some level of truth to that, he offered.

The Moochs memo about his new job, published in draft form last week, gave lip service to working toward better media relationships. But he showed his hand when he suggested a broader role for one of the most outrageously truth-averse Trumpsters.

Use Kellyanne Conway more, Scaramucci urged. She has consistently been the Presidents most effective spokesperson, and she provides a direct link to the Presidents historic electoral victory.

Remember the alternative facts episode? That was vintage Conway, defending the president on inaugural crowd size, blissfully unencumbered by the weight of reality.

It never stops. Just days ago, Trump claimed to have received phone calls praising him from the head of the Boy Scouts and the president of Mexico.

His new press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, acknowledged these calls never happened, and condemned lying from the podium or any other place, but stopped short of calling the statements what they are: I wouldnt say it was a lie. Thats a pretty bold accusation.

Kelly, though, is a force to be reckoned with. As The Posts James Hohmann pointed out last week, the former homeland security secretary may have convinced the president he didnt need to build a physical border wall with Mexico; called James B. Comey just after Trump fired him to express his dismay; and reached out to prominent Democrats in preparation for the fight over tax policy.

Kelly may well be Trumps best hope for saving the White House from utter chaos. A grounding in reality  yes, truth  needs to be a part of that salvation.

For inspiration, Kelly could consult a Nixon-era John Lennon song from the year the future general turned 21: Gimme Some Truth. (Ive had enough of watching scenes from schizophrenic egocentric paranoiac prima donnas/All I want is the truth, just give me some truth.)

More realistically, he could turn to the Marine Corps values that presumably guided his decorated military career. The bedrock, they state, is honor: It is the quality that empowers Marines to exemplify the ultimate in ethical and moral behavior: to never lie, cheat, or steal; to abide by an uncompromising code of integrity. . . . 

Its hard to imagine how that admirable ethos and this mendacious White House can coexist for very long. If theres a sword involved, Kelly may have to fall on it.

For more by Margaret Sullivan visit wapo.st/sullivan


Orlando Chase, standing, and John Sullivan, a.k.a. the whale man, panhandle at their usual spot in Georgetown. Passersby increasingly tell them they have no cash. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

John Sullivan wears a giant foam hat in the shape of a whale. It works well as a conversation starter when he panhandles on the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and M Street in Georgetown. But one hot afternoon in July, no one stops to ask Sullivan about the whale. And no one stops to drop a dollar in his pink plastic cup.

Passing by, one young man in sunglasses turns and shrugs. I dont have any cash, he says apologetically.

Thats a refrain Sullivan has heard a lot lately. He has panhandled in the same spot for almost 20 years and has a good rapport with the locals, who call him the whale man. But in the past three years or so, more and more pedestrians have been telling him that they no longer carry paper bills or loose change.

Sullivans good-natured about it: Ill see you next time, he says with a smile if a passerby claims to have nothing but a credit card. Lots of people actually do come back the next day with change, he says  but still, he takes in only half what he once did.

Orlando Chase, who panhandles on the same corner as Sullivan, isnt quite as patient as his friend. They say they got credit cards, he scoffs. I gotta eat. I cant eat with their credit cards. Thats a done deal.

A decade ago, you probably wouldnt have thought to go out without at least a crumpled $5 or $10 bill in your pocket. Nowadays, though, you can use credit cards just about anywhere  and a growing number of smartphone apps are letting us swap clumsy cash for simple swipes when paying a cabdriver, tipping a delivery guy or even splitting a tab with a friend.

Its all very efficient. But for panhandlers and street vendors, all that efficiency just translates into a whole lot less generosity.

Within the next five to 10 years, the United States could become a less-cash or cash-light society. Thats the prediction of Harvard economist Kenneth S. Rogoff, who envisions a day when physical currency will be phased out of most legal transactions. A recent survey by Ipsos found that 38 percent of U.S. respondents would ditch cash completely if they could, while 34 percent report that they already rarely carry it.

For panhandlers, who rely entirely on the real stuff, that means less income, period. In Franklin Square downtown, Carrie Evans hits up passersby for a little change. She gets meals at a womens shelter, but panhandling brings in the money she might need for a bus fare, or a bottle of water. A lot of people say they dont have cash, she says. Everybody carries plastic.

Back in Georgetown, at the corner of 27th and K streets, Nathaniel Bost gets the same song and dance. They say, I got a card,  Bost says. I say I need cash. They say, Cant do it. 

In his book The Curse of Cash, Rogoff suggests that a cashless society could provide heavily subsidized debit-card accounts and perhaps smartphones to low-income individuals. He notes that in Sweden, where less than a fifth of transactions are conducted with cash, some panhandlers already accept donations via mobile phones.

But its hard to imagine some veterans of Washingtons streets adjusting to such a system, which would require a bank account and a Square credit-card processor, not to mention time, Internet access, and technological savvy. Chase is 60 years old and has panhandled with a plastic cup for years: He had never heard of Square.

As for Sullivan, the whale man wouldnt deploy his smartphone in the course of panhandling. If you got a phone, people think, how can a homeless person have that? he says. They think differently of you.



James Davis, right, hawks Street Sense, a newspaper produced by homeless, at a Washington street corner. Davis says that new vendors find it difficult to earn much selling the paper because fewer passersby carry cash. (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post)

In 2003, James Davis was staying at the Central Union Mission shelter when he heard about plans to start a newspaper written and sold by the homeless. He became one of the first staff members of Street Sense, a biweekly newspaper about homelessness and other social issues. The papers vendors  most of whom are homeless  distribute it on the street for a suggested donation of $2.

Davis is no longer homeless, thanks in part to the money he earned writing for and selling Street Sense, and he now trains other vendors.

In recent years, many have complained that theyre just not bringing in any money. The new vendors get discouraged because people dont stop anymore, Davis says. I say, its just because they dont have cash. I know because Ive got three kids. Theyre all millennials, he says, and none carry change.

People would just put their hands up in the air and say, No cash,  says Robert Warren, a part-time vendor who has lately struggled to earn as little as $30 in a seven-hour shift. Warren has mostly quit vending because he was earning so little.

Street Sense editor Eric Falquero brought up the issue at a conference for the International Network of Street Papers last year. He found that street-paper vendors worldwide had experienced a drop in sales, and some had started accepting electronic payments.

Street Sense has worked with software developer Denim & Steel to build an app to let customers purchase the paper digitally. When it launches, a customer who meets a vendor on the street can select that vendors profile and transfer a direct donation electronically. Vendors themselves need not have smartphones.

In Seattle, entrepreneur Jonathan Kumar has developed an app called Samaritan, which equips homeless individuals with Bluetooth-enabled beacons. When someone passes a beacon holder, they can donate via the app. Beacon holders can then use the funds to purchase goods from participating local merchants.

Both apps are interesting solutions to the problem posed by looming cashlessness, but theyre designed to help panhandlers and street vendors already connected to charitable organizations. (Kumar works with local nonprofit organizations to identify homeless individuals who might benefit from the app). But the ones who panhandle are often those who are least likely to connect to established programs, according to Brendan OFlaherty, a Columbia University economist who has studied panhandling and homelessness. Some have mental health or substance abuse problems that make it difficult for them to follow through with resource providers; others enjoy the freedom of living on the streets and distrust those providers.



Though he collects less money these days, John Sullivan still finds a certain joy in panhandling. Its all about the love he gets from his regulars, he says. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Why keep panhandling, when its less lucrative these days?

Sullivan plies his trade just a few blocks from the Georgetown Ministry Centers shelter. He knows the staff, and hell accept a bottle of Gatorade from the shelter director, but never his offer of a place to sleep. He prefers to set his own schedule and earn his own money: Its what hes done for decades, and hes not going to stop now.

Even as panhandling becomes harder, he finds a certain joy in it. People dont owe you nothing, he says. Its all about the love. His regulars, at least, still usually have change for him  or if they dont, they might buy him a sandwich.

For some people, its a social outlet, says Columbias OFlaherty. They have regular customers, relationships that develop all the time.

That could all change with the technologies that enable digital transactions, because they dont just eliminate the need to carry cash. They also reduce the social interactions that come with the exchange of money. Order an Uber, and theres no need to give your driver directions. Split a check down to the penny with Venmo, and theres no reason to debate who ordered what at dinner. Carry nothing but a credit card in your wallet, and you have an excuse not to stop for the panhandler trying to flag you down.

On the other hand, says OFlaherty, technology could end up leaving us craving face-time with familiar folks. So while some may be less willing to stop when a stranger calls out for spare change, they may be more willing to chat with the man they see on the street corner every day.

With any luck, panhandlers regulars, in other words, will stay regulars, Venmo or not.

Thats proved true in the vendor world, or at least for some of Daviss customers. Josh Weinberg, who sees Davis every weekday when he leaves the National Geographic office, has several dollar bills in his wallet. He exchanges two for a copy of Street Sense.

For things like this, he says with a shrug, I like using paper.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 07:54:40|Editor: Zhou Xin

Local residents and enforcement officials attend a seminar in Houston, the United States, Aug. 6, 2017. A public security seminar was held by 23 local organizations on Saturday, the first of its kind, to improve safety and security in Chinatown area of Houston in southern U.S.. (Xinhua/Liu Liwei)

HOUSTON, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- A public security seminar was held by 23 local organizations on Saturday, the first of its kind, to improve safety and security in Chinatown area of Houston in southern U.S.

In the seminar, police officers as well as attorney gave instructions to local residences to protect themselves while building good relationship with others.

Kim K. Ogg, District Attorney of Harris County, where Houston locates, told Xinhua that west side of Houston where the Chinatown is located has to be a focus of law enforcement because it is suffering as the second highest of robbery in the city.

According to Ogg, robbery is the biggest problem in that area. "Killing someone in the course of robbing them...becomes common place in Chinatown. We know how much this community needs help. So we are responding along with the police chief, another law enforcement and the business community to have a coordinated effort to stop these robberies," she said.

When interviewed by Xinhua, lawyer Jessica W. Chen said that in order to maintain security and stability of Chinatown, the government should invest more.

"There needs to be more police patrolling, more lights on the streets. We also need a hot line in Chinese," she explained.

Chinatown is one of the areas with worst security situation in Houston, where robberies are happening on daily basis.


Eighteenth Street NW, the main thoroughfare in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington. (Evelyn Hockstein/For The Washington Post)

A perennial question hovering over a neighborhood at the epicenter of Washington nightlife is not just which bars offer the best beer selections but how to manage the legions of patrons who descend, often in their cars, to find the answer.

Spurred by a recent hit-and-run that injured two police officers and a D.C. Transportation Department officer, an Adams Morgan community leader is offering a remedy: turn a portion of 18th Street NW, the often traffic-choked thoroughfare where the incident occurred, into a car-free zone.

Imagine Europe, and cobblestones, instead of horns blaring, cars double parking and bicyclists swerving as Uber and Lyft drivers stop suddenly to pick up a fare.

I think it would be better off, said Amir Irani, an Advisory Neighborhood Commission member who is pushing the car-free concept. It turns it into more of a neighborhood.

Irani, an entrepreneur who was elected to the ANC in November, first raised the notion of banning cars from 18th Street at a meeting in June.



Advisory Neighborhood Commission member Amir Irani on 18th Street NW in Adams Morgan. (Evelyn Hockstein/For The Washington Post)

A few nights before, he had been at a diner on 18th Street, the neighborhoods bar- and restaurant-lined main corridor, when a pickup driver struck the officers nearby. He described the aftermath as a heck of a scene, with the officers clothing on the ground and bikes toppled over in the middle of the roadway. The driver was arrested and charged with assault with the intent to kill and unlawful possession of a firearm.

[A bicycle upended. A police officer face down on the pavement]

If cars were barred from the strip, Irani said, the collision would not have occurred. The incident, he said, catalyzed discussion about the chronic problems of a street often overwhelmed by weekend traffic.

At least two of Iranis commission colleagues said they support further study of the concept. Neighborhood leaders are also considering the feasibility of designating areas away from 18th Street for hailing taxis and meeting Uber and Lyft drivers.





But the car-free idea is already being dismissed by an array of community leaders and business owners who complain that it would push traffic into streets adjoining 18th Street NW, virtually all of them lined with stately rowhouses and apartment buildings.

Oh for Gods sakes, Val Morgan, the owner of Idle Times Books, an Adams Morgan staple for 31 years, said when told of the idea. Youre living in fantasy land. Where are all the people going to park? It would make it a dead space except for all the drunks. And drunk people dont buy books.

With establishments such as Madams Organ and Club Heaven and Hell, Adams Morgan has been a mainstay of the citys nocturnal life for more than two decades. In more recent years, as bars and clubs in other neighborhoods have flourished, the crowds have eased somewhat. But young professionals and college students still clog the streets Thursday through Sunday nights.

The crowding was one reason the District spent more than $6 million to widen 18th Streets sidewalks five years ago, a project that cost the strip parking spots and resulted in a narrower roadway, which was supposed to make the area more pedestrian-friendly.

Bill Duggan, the owner of Madams Organ, a bar that opened on 18th Street in 1992, said a pedestrian zone on the corridor would help Adams Morgan gain a competitive edge over other areas where nightlife has proliferated in recent years.

From a marketing standpoint, its a beautiful idea, he said. It would be like a revitalization, and I think it would help business.

But Denis James, a 46-year resident of Adams Morgan who is president of the Kalorama Citizens Association, said the change would be terrible for residents on adjoining streets.

Traffic is going to come and people are going to come, a lot of them late at night, he said. And if they cant drive on 18th Street that will mean theyre circulating in the residential neighborhood. Its just going to have an outward ripple effect.

D.C. Council member Brianne K. Nadeau (D-Ward 1), whose district includes Adams Morgan, said in a statement that shes glad the ANC is starting this discussion but wants input from additional agencies and neighborhood groups.



A city employee helps pedestrians cross 18th Street NW in Adams Morgan. (Evelyn Hockstein/For The Washington Post)

Kristen Barden, executive director for the Adams Morgan Partnership Business Improvement District, said the idea has not yet gained sufficient traction in the neighborhood to warrant serious consideration.

Theres no there there until theres a larger discussion, she said, adding that she would consult her organizations board if theres a real proposal on the table.

Wilson Reynolds, an ANC commissioner, said the idea of a car-free zone on 18th Street has come up in the past, only to fizzle out once the panel considered the potential for displacing the traffic to adjoining routes.

But he said he would support a pilot effort if there was a significant demonstration from the public that this is something they would support.

Irani said he is researching the effects of pedestrian zones on neighborhoods outside of the District and hopes to hear from all the stakeholders about the idea.

Im not dropping it, he said. It deserves a thoughtful discussion.
When Anna Connors hears politicians cast doubt on climate change, it frustrates her. The 16-year-old Park School student has seen it up close  at the edge of the Arctic.

Its upsetting because we have the data to prove it does exist, she said. I guess that lights a fire under me to continue this work.

This work is a research project Park students have been conducting for a decade, investigating the melting of permafrost and possible corresponding changes to the lichens, moss and shrubs that cover the tundra of northern Canada.

On Sunday, Connors and classmates left for another round of data gathering. They will spend nearly two weeks visiting research sites along the western shore of the Hudson Bay, measuring how deep the annual summer thaw goes and recording the variety and abundance of vegetation on the surface.

Baltimore students have been embarking on similar trips for a decade, and even more of them could join in the research in the coming years. The school won a $156,000 grant for the project from the Canadian government earlier this year, slightly more than an initial award it landed three years ago, and Park science teacher Julie Rogers said she hopes to convince U.S. government research agencies to chip in, too.

Its a rare chance for the teenagers to conduct science, rather than read about it in a textbook. That, plus the culture shock of being thrown into remote Manitoba, make it a special experience, said Connors, who will be leading the students data collection in her second time on the trip.

Nothing can really prepare you for whats going to be up there, she said. We say the Arctic F word is flexibility. 

The project, dubbed International Student-Led Arctic Monitoring and Research, or ISAMR, partners students from Park as well as the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute with students at Kelvin High School in Winnipeg and from remote parts of Canada participating in the Junior Canadian Rangers program.

Rogers co-founded ISAMR with Canadian colleagues in 2007, and while it takes up a significant time commitment even during the school year, the students involved number almost three dozen.

The notion of climate change really motivates kids to work together, she said.

This year, six Park students are making the 1,500-mile trip. It usually involves flights to Winnipeg and a 36-hour train ride toward the Arctic. But flooding that followed unusually heavy winter snows washed out parts of the tracks  so this years trip will be entirely by air. Once the group reaches the northern Manitoba town of Churchill, helicopters will ferry the students to different areas of Wapusk National Park and other wilderness.

They sleep on camping mats on gym floors and inside a fort that dates to the 1600s, and their wardrobe consists of hiking boots and pants, plus plenty of rain gear. Some years, it has rained nonstop, Rogers said, though this year the forecast looks mostly dry. The students also share three pairs of waders, rubberized boots and pants that hang by suspenders, for their field work.

Though it is the Arctic, temperatures this time of year are generally mild, from the 50s to the 70s. In areas with thin active layers, where the permafrost is close underfoot, it feels colder, but Rogers said she also always packs for some heat.

I love it when I can wear my tank top in the Arctic, she said. Sometimes it gets warmer than it should be.

The grant, from Canadas Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, covers about half of the research trips cost. The cost to each student is $1,000 plus airfare, though Park offers financial assistance to those who need it, Rogers said.

Their research is exploring changes in Arctic permafrost. Each day, data collection will involve driving metal rods into the ground to measure the depth of what is known as the active layer  the top few inches of soil that thaws each summer  and taking stock of herbs, shrubs, lichen and moss on the surface. Sometimes the layer is only about elbow-deep, but in other areas the students have to screw on extension rods to reach depths of about 3 meters.

They will also collect soil samples so they can study the bacteria that live within it  the microbes play a key role in releasing carbon stored within the ground as it thaws, exacerbating global climate change.

Its empowering work, said Matthew Hudes, a 16-year-old who is also making his second trip to Churchill.

This is a lab that adults dont know the answers to, he said. We cant go to Julie and say, Were done; just tell us the answers now. 

The data could help the students find a correlation between the abundance or type of vegetation with the thickness of the active layer, Connors explained. That could answer questions such as, does more vegetation mean more thawing? Can the active layers thickness be predicted based on the vegetation on the surface?

The students venture back to Canada each fall to participate in research to develop a polar bear marking and tracking technique that involves photographing the animals and using software to recognize them by their whisker patterns.

Yet the real work takes place during the school year. Students meet weekly to analyze the data collected during the trips. They already produced one research paper that compared different techniques for gathering data on vegetation cover, and traveled to Vancouver to present it to adult scientists.

Mahey Gheis has been involved in the project since her sophomore year, but said the research always intimidated her  she mostly worked on the project website, isamr.net, where the students share their work and will blog updates on the trip. But this summer was the 17-year-olds last chance to join in the data collection because she graduates next spring, so she couldnt pass it up.

Its this unique opportunity, this once-in-a-lifetime experience. I just wanted to get out of my comfort zone, she said.

As she and her classmates met Friday for some final packing and practice identifying vegetation, she said she felt apprehension because shes heading so far from home, but also excitement for the same reason.

Its nice to get a complete break from everything thats normal.

 The Baltimore Sun

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A student passes through a hallway at Pennsylvanias Wilkinsburg High School in October 2015. The school  which was underenrolled and had one of the worst academic records in the state -- has since closed. (Bonnie Jo Mount/Washington Post)

Two years after Congress scrapped federal formulas for fixing troubled schools, states for the most part are producing only the vaguest of plans to address persistent educational failure.

So far, 16 states and the District of Columbia have submitted proposals for holding schools accountable under the 2015 law known as the Every Student Succeeds Act. With few exceptions, the blueprints offer none of the detailed prescriptions for intervention, such as mass teacher firings or charter-school conversions, that were once standard elements of school reform.

Many in the education world, from state superintendents to teachers unions, applaud this hands-off trend. Each struggling school faces unique circumstances, in their view, and deserves a tailored solution shaped by community input  not a top-down directive from faraway bureaucrats.

But others fear a lack of clear road maps from states is a sign that meaningful change remains unlikely in schools that most need it.

We dont know what to do about chronically low-performing schools. Nothing has worked consistently and at scale, said Michael Petrilli, president of the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute. I suspect well see most states and districts just go through the motions.

[In a disadvantaged district, a parable of American schooling]

On Aug. 1, Delaware became the first state to win federal approval for its plan, even though  according to independent experts  its school turnaround proposals are hazy and unlikely to make a significant difference. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos endorsed the plan, saying she hoped it would give the students, families and educators in the state a strong foundation for a great education. DeVos and President Trump are pushing for far more local control of education, a shift from the stance of their recent predecessors in both parties.

Congress thought it had answers for the problem of low-performing schools when it passed No Child Left Behind in 2001. The bipartisan law, meant to fight what President George W. Bush called the soft bigotry of low expectations, laid out consequences for schools that failed to meet escalating performance targets.

After a school missed targets for two years, students were allowed to transfer out. After three years, schools had to offer free tutoring. After four and five years, there was a menu of options, from replacing the curriculum to firing staff, reopening as a charter school or turning over management to state authorities.

The schools subject to sanctions were not only those with low overall performance, but also those with generally high achievement but poor outcomes among minorities, such as blacks, Latinos, students with disabilities or those from low-income families.

A decade after the law passed, nearly everyone agreed it was broken. Half of the 100,000 public schools were missing performance targets, overwhelming the capacity of states and districts to help those with the most profound need for change. In many places, schools widely acknowledged to be failing were allowed to continue plodding along.

Declaring that the nation had an obligation to do better, President Barack Obama devoted billions of dollars to a push to turn around the bottom 5 percent of schools. To get the money, schools had to agree to one of the Obama administrations favored four strategies  closing, reopening as a charter, firing staff or transforming school culture.

Despite some bright spots and success stories, a federal analysis released this year showed that, on average, test scores, graduation rates and college enrollment were no different in schools that received the money than in those that did not.

[Obama administration spent billions to fix failing schools, and it didnt work]

Those failures helped spur a bipartisan push for a new era of state and local control over education.

Under the 2015 law, states must continue administering standardized tests in grades three through eight and once in high school, and they must continue reporting how groups of students fare on those tests. But they have far more latitude to decide just about everything else about how they judge the success of schools and what they do about those that fail  including not just those with low overall performance, but also those where minority groups are lagging far behind.

This is a real opportunity for states to get out of a one-size-fits-all intervention strategy, said Chris Minnich, executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers. Its still too early in the process to know if were going to be successful.

Civil rights advocates have raised concerns not only about the support states plan to provide poorly performing schools, but also how they identify those schools in the first place. Liz King, an education policy expert with the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said she worries that states are designing rating systems that will overlook the failures of schools where average student performance is high, but certain groups  such as students with disabilities or English language learners  trail far behind.

Of the 17 accountability plans submitted to the U.S. Department of Education, an independent review found only two  from Tennessee and New Mexico  adequately addressed how to help low-performing schools. The review was conducted by Bellwether Education Partners, a Washington consulting group, and the Collaborative for Student Success, an advocacy group that has championed high standards and strong accountability.

[Reconstituting troubled schools has a mixed record in D.C.]

Tennessee, building on its efforts to turn around troubled schools over the past several years, has laid out a set of options that vary depending on how long and how much the school has struggled.

The worst-off schools will be taken over by the state and managed by a charter school operator, while less-needy schools could become a part of a districts innovation zone, which allows schools to extend classroom time, pay teachers more and give principals more autonomy in an effort to improve achievement.

But many other states say little more than they plan to conduct a needs assessment in troubled schools and then craft an improvement plan. Its unclear what such improvement plans might entail, or what will happen if they dont work.

That doesnt inspire confidence, said Dale Chu, an education expert who participated in the independent review. The failure, he said, could continue in perpetuity.

Delaware wants to assess each school and write tailored improvement plans for each. But its not clear what will be in those plans. Susan Bunting, Delawares education chief, said officials are sensitive to the fact that schools in inner-city Wilmington face different challenges than those in impoverished rural hamlets.

We know that our schools all have unique needs, Bunting said.

A group of four outside experts who reviewed plans for the Education Department wrote that Delawares plans for struggling schools do not appear as if they would likely be sufficient to dramatically improve student performance.

Three of those experts concluded that Delawares proposal for intervening in weak schools did not meet legal requirements. DeVos  who has promised deference to states  disagreed.

She will consider the other 16 plans in coming weeks. The Districts plan calls for soliciting proposals for change in cases of chronic school failure, and parents would be asked to help choose the plan that best fits the schools needs.

The remaining 34 states  including Maryland and Virginia  are expected to turn in plans next month.

John King Jr., who was Obamas second education secretary and now heads the advocacy group Education Trust, said the question of what to do with troubled schools deserves more attention from states and the Trump administration.

King said he hopes states will draw on promising strategies for school improvement, such as looking for ways to boost socioeconomic diversity. And he hopes they will learn from places that have managed to succeed in the hard work of school turnaround. King cited Lawrence, Mass., where schools have made tremendous gains since they were placed in state receivership six years ago.

I certainly worry that there may be folks who are using the rhetoric of local control as an excuse for inaction in schools that are struggling or schools that have groups of students that are struggling, he said. The law rightly requires action in those schools ... and it will still be the responsibility of the Education Department to ensure that states follow the law.
From left, Dexter Rawlings, Dominic Paul-Baha and Antwain Nelson put solar panels on Catherine Bennett's home in Woodland, in Southeast Washington. (J. Lawler Duggan/For The Washington Post)

Twane Turnage and Anthony Garner stood at the bottom of a bright orange ladder and carefully guided a solar panel with hooks and ropes attached along the ladder rails toward a pitched roof.

Pull! hollered Turnage, 18.

Pull! echoed Garner, 21.

Above them, their colleagues peered over the edge of the roof, pulling the rope on the rudimentary pulley system to haul the panel up while the ladder kept it from banging against the wall.

Over the next two hours, the team would repeat this process 20 times to transport all 20 solar panels onto the roof.

Turnage and Garner were two of five trainees who recently installed solar panels at the Woodland home of retiree Catherine Bennett, 78.

I knew I needed a little help with the electricity bill, said Bennett, who has lived in the house in Southeast Washington for 41 years. This may help me some.

Decked out in green hard hats, yellow T-shirts, and harnesses, the trainees were supervised by members of GRID Alternatives Mid-Atlantic, the regional branch of a national nonprofit group that helps implement solar power for low- to moderate-income families free.

The trainees are part of the summer cohort of the newly launched Solar Works DC, a low-income solar installation and job-training program jointly developed by the Districts Department of Energy and Environment and the Department of Employment Services. The program will train more than 200 D.C. residents over three years, and GRID Alternatives Mid-Atlantic was awarded a grant to implement the first year of the program. The organization will train about 75 program participants in skills needed for careers in solar and related fields, and install solar panels for 60 to 100 income-qualified District homeowners.

Before homeowners can receive their solar panels, a shade analysis is conducted to make sure the panels will receive sufficient sunlight to make the system viable. Once the panels are installed, any solar energy that is not needed to power the house is transferred to the power grid.

Equitable solar

All of this is part of the Districts larger goal of having 50 percent of its energy supply come from renewable sources by 2032, of which 5 percent would come from local solar power, as outlined in the citys climate and energy plan. And training young residents in solar installation would prepare them to work in the rapidly growing solar industry, which added jobs almost 17 times as fast as the overall U.S. economy last year, according to an International Renewable Energy Agency report.

But installing solar panels isnt cheap, and for many, shelling out thousands of dollars upfront simply isnt affordable. There is a risk of exacerbating the citys economic divide: Wealthier households that can finance solar installations could end up reaping the benefits of energy savings, while poorer households continue to be disproportionately burdened by utility bills.

The District is well aware of the inequality of solar power access and is working to remedy that by targeting poorer households as it seeks to expand the amount of solar energy generated locally. The goal is to help 100,000 low-income households reduce their electricity bills by at least half through solar energy.

Equity needs to be at the forefront of the renewable energy economy, said Nicole Steele, executive director of GRID Alternatives Mid-Atlantic. Unless renewable energy is equally and widely accessible, people will continue to rely on fossil fuels, and the utilities industry will remain stuck in its current model, she said.

Every little bit . . . helps

Rope! said Dexter Rawlings, 24, a Solar Works trainee, as he tossed the rope from the roof back down to the ground, ready to be hooked to the next solar panel.

Next to him stood another trainee, Whitney Jackson, 23, who only weeks before was too afraid of heights to even fathom spending hours working on a roof. Now, she moved about confidently, maneuvering the panels and attaching them to the mounting racks, which they had installed the day before.

The learning curve has been steep, she said, but the work has been challenging and rewarding at the same time, because you know youre making a difference in homeowners lives.

Harold Thomas, 76, is one such homeowner.

GRID Alternatives Mid-Atlantic installed solar panels on the roof of his home in Congress Heights at no cost to him two years ago. Since then, he has made noticeable savings, Thomas said.

His house was the first in the neighborhood to go solar, said Thomas, who lives and works as a community advocate in Henson Ridge, a townhouse development built on the site of two demolished public housing complexes.

$13, $3.33, $33 . . . Thomas said, listing out his substantially lower electricity bills. In his pre-solar days, the bills were about $100 a month.

There have even been a handful of months when his bill came out to zero, he said.

Those savings have added up, and they have gone toward buying more food, buying more clothes, and paying more bills, Thomas said.

Solar panels have also helped ease financial burdens for Kirby York, 30. She and her husband purchased their home near the Congress Heights Metro station in 2014, but within months she had both given birth to a child and lost her job.

It was a very rough time, said York, who now works part-time as an office manager and a Realtor.

She looked for different ways to save money. Through the Department of Energy and Environments Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, she qualified for a solar energy program and was connected with GRID Alternatives Mid-Atlantic, which installed panels on her roof.

If we did not have the solar panels, our electricity bill would be through the roof  like, so high, she said.

Now, with four adults and one child in the house, she pays roughly $85 to $90 a month for electricity. She estimates that the bill would be around $200 without the panels.

Every little bit, as you know, helps, York said. It gives me more breathing room. I dont make a ton of money, and I dont want all of it to go to utilities.
Dozens of ex-offenders have passed through Gregory Carpenters small bakery, where he teaches them how to make buttery pastry dough and flaky pie crusts. He hopes these small tasks will be a foundation for a future career.

Carpenter is one in an army of social justice-change agents that the Baltimore office of the Open Society Institute has deployed across the city for the past 20 years. He says when he returned home in 1994 from two decades in prison, he spent months searching for work before finding a job as a short-order cook at a motel. The 12-week course he offers newly released ex-offenders at his 2AM Bakery is designed to give them an easier path forward.

The OSI community fellowships program allowed Carpenter to test his idea and build a nonprofit that helps the men and women earn food service management certifications, establish work history and acquire skills, such as resume writing and anger management.

The fellowships, aimed at finding on-the-ground solutions to entrenched problems in Baltimore, have spurred the creation of urban farms, youth drop-in centers and a conflict mediation program based on the problem-solving skills of New Zealands indigenous people. Among 180 fellows since 1998 were the founders of Wide Angle Youth Media, The Book Thing and Bikemore.

It has transformed Baltimore in a lot of ways, because you see people and you hear people now having conversations that they wouldnt otherwise be having, Carpenter, 64, said from his Woodlawn kitchen, where he and his staff make sweet potato pies and carrot and red velvet cakes that they sell to HipHop Fish & Chicken and other area vendors.

When we think about the value, we can almost pick any area of the community and you can find an OSI stamp on it, Carpenter said.

The fellows are one arm of OSIs Baltimore office, founded by native Hungarian George Soros, the billionaire philanthropist, liberal activist and hedge fund investor. Soros opened Open Societys first field office in Baltimore in 1997 as a social justice laboratory. The fellows  who receive $60,000 stipends over 18 months, health benefits and financial assistance for graduate school debt and start-up costs  work in a wide array of fields, including mentoring children, preserving green space and violence prevention. Up to 10 fellows are chosen each year.

Diana Morris, who runs OSIs Baltimore office, said initiatives rooted by the program have become go-to resources for the community, with most of the fellows still living and working on social justice causes in the city. They continue to affect dialogue and policy and contribute energy and expertise, she said.

This is an opportunity for us to take some risks and support some of these people who come forward and say, I have a burning idea for change and I want to work with the community,  Morris said. What has happened over 20 years is, weve become a really good talent finder.

Morris said the fellowships are akin to seed money provided by venture capital firms to fledgling businesses.

More than 80 of the fellows continue to work on their original projects. Another 40 are involved in social justice issues in Baltimore, and about 30 of the projects have continued with new leadership after the fellow stepped away from the project or transitioned to a staff or board member. The rest  fewer than 30  are no longer active in related causes or no longer in contact with OSI. Six have died.

OSI works generally in three core areas: lessening the reach of the criminal justice system, improving school performance and attendance, and giving people access to drug addiction treatment. But the fellows have also gone on to establish projects related to immigrant and refugee rights, environmental matters, food access, homelessness and economic development.

Two hundred or more people apply for the fellowships each year. OSI officials say they cast a wide net to find applicants outside of typical channels. Past fellows have been new college graduates, ex-offenders, lawyers, scientists, artists and activists.

Chosen by a committee of OSI board members and local experts, the winners typically have business plans in place or have undertaken basic experimentation to prove their vision beyond an initial concept, said Pamela King, director of the fellowships program. The program has few requirements, but fellows must have the ability to work on the projects full time, which makes high school students generally not eligible. The fellowship cant supplant their salary elsewhere, such as for similar work at an existing nonprofit.

The next group of fellows will start in November.

Were not funding a project for 18 months, were looking for something that can tackle a challenge in the community, said King, adding that the fellows have creative control over their work. Youre not going to hit the core after 18 months. The person has to be committed for the long term. They have to be all in.

Funding for the fellowships program comes from the OSI budget in Baltimore, which includes money from local fundraising efforts and Open Society Foundations.

Kevin Lindamood, an anti-poverty activist and president of Health Care for the Homeless, has helped review the fellowship applicant proposals and select finalists. He has been struck by the diversity of the proposals, and of the applicants. They include people who have spent decades in prison, victims of domestic violence, and men and women who grew up in abject poverty.

Its been a fascinating way to take grass roots ideas about social change and incubate them, Lindamood said. We have seen so many lasting efforts that began as OSI fellowships that continue to this day.

Morris said the fellowship program allowed OSI to move rapidly after the rioting and looting in the city that followed Freddie Grays death in 2015, because the fellows had been entrenched in city neighborhoods, building networks and trust over time. OSI calls the unrest the uprising to put emphasis on long-standing conditions that contributed. OSI immediately dispersed hundreds of thousands of dollars to local causes with an emphasis on improving police and community relationships and aiding people experiencing trauma.

Sarah Tooley, director of 901 Arts, used her 2010 fellowship to help solidify the center after some community elders established it. She said the money gave her the freedom to experiment without being tied to specific approaches that traditional funding sources, such as grants, might have required.

During her 18-month fellowship, the center expanded its hours and programming, set up a website and established internal structures, Tooley said. A small core staff, assisted by 40 regular volunteers, serve about 150 young people who use the center throughout the year for arts and crafts, music lessons and homework help.

On a recent day, children of different ages were working with mentors  some of whom are young adults who grew up coming to the center and now work there part time  melting crayons on canvasses on the first floor of the center, a rowhouse that a supporter bought and continues to pay the mortgage on.

Ten-year-old Zavionne Banks named her creation Colorful Art 2017, a name her younger brother Ziran Banks, 8, found so impressive he pleaded with his sister to name his project the same thing.

Its amazing what you can do with some crayons, a hot glue gun and a canvas, Zavionne said. You can do anything.
Never mind the eight Democrats  and counting  who are competing for the chance to oust Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.) in 2018.

She also faces competition from the right: a former combat pilot and self-described inspirational speaker who has been a bit player in Virginia GOP politics but is trying to galvanize conservative voters in the era of President Trump.

Shak Hill, 52, of Centreville hopes to channel the fervor that helped Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart nearly beat out Ed Gillespie this summer for Virginias GOP gubernatorial nomination.

Hill has hired Stewarts campaign manager as his general consultant and hinted in a Facebook video announcing his campaign that he will run in the mold of Stewart, who championed the Confederate flag and what he called Southern heritage.

I love Virginia, her rich heritage of those who came before us fighting for individual liberty and the freedom to use our God-given talents, Hill says in the video.

Shak Hill is challenging Rep. Barbara Comstock in the GOP primary for Virginias 10th Congressional District. (Courtesy of the Hill campaign)

[Why a programmer from Maryland wants Northern Virginia to Dump Comstock]

Experts say Comstock will be tough to beat given her strong name recognition, relentless campaign style and embrace of some moderate positions that polls show resonate with voters in the closest thing Virginia has to a swing district.

But they also say Hill embodies the possibility that Comstocks efforts to appeal to centrists in the most populated areas of her district could cost her conservative votes.

He gives life to that argument that she has to also worry about her right flank, said Quentin Kidd, a political scientist at Christopher Newport University in Newport News. Shes tried to walk that very fine line. And when you listen to Shak Hills complaints about her, he says shes walked that line a little bit too far to the left.

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton won Comstocks 10th Congressional District by 10 points in November, fueling Democrats hopes that they can unseat Comstock  a former Justice Department public affairs director and political operative  next year.

Comstock did not face a primary challenger in the 2016 campaign. She defeated Democrat LuAnn Bennett by six points, thanks in part to strong vote totals in the western, conservative counties of Clarke and Frederick as well as parts of Prince William and Fairfax counties. Bennett won bellwether Loudoun County by 165 votes.

Hill, a former financial planner and owner of a small publishing company called Guiding Light Books, unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination to challenge Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) in 2014, losing to Gillespie. He has publicly discussed challenging other Virginia politicians, including Sen. Tim Kaine (D).

Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.) at the Apple Blossom Festival in Winchester, Va., in May. (AP)

He graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1988 and flew combat missions in conflicts including the Gulf War. He and his wife speak publicly about her bout with cancer while she was pregnant with one of their sons.

In the Facebook video he posted last week, Hill criticizes Comstocks voting record, especially her opposition to the House GOPs bill that would have repealed the Affordable Care Act. Barbara promised to repeal and replace Obamacare, but she lied to us and voted to keep it, Hill says. Its time to repeal and replace Barbara.

At the time, Comstock said she was uncertain the bill would provide better access to affordable care that covers preexisting conditions without lifetime limits.

The congresswoman is working with her colleagues on finding solutions to make health care more affordable, portable and patient centered, Ken Nunnenkamp, her campaigns political director, said last week.

In an interview, Hill said he voted for Comstock in the past but now considers her a major obstacle and, quite frankly, an embarrassing distraction to Trumps agenda.

Hill said he wants to drain the swamp, echoing a favorite Trump slogan, even though the district he hopes to represent is home to tens of thousands of federal workers.

Comstock has declined to comment on any of her potential Democratic opponents candidacies so far. But her campaign released a statement pushing back against Hills decision to run and questioning his party loyalty.

Last anyone heard from Shak Hill was last October when he was trashing fellow Republicans . . . as he was planning yet another U.S. Senate race, Nunnenkamp said, a reference to critical comments Hill made to a conservative blog about Rep. Dave Brat (R-Va.) and others who were mulling a run for Kaines seat.

Nunnenkamp called Hill a legend in his own mind and a perennial, failed candidate.

Hill is carrying $116,000 in debt from the 2014 Senate race, according to campaign reports. He said he loaned himself those funds and will not raise money to repay himself through his congressional campaign.

Hours after he announced his candidacy, a conservative website wrote a story accusing Hills publishing firm of posting crude articles, written by others, under his name.

In response, Hill said the items came from an automatic reposting service that scans the Internet for stories relevant to his potential customers. He said he has known for months that some unsavory articles can slip through, and failed to catch them all before his campaign launch.


The Twin Days Double Take Parade kicks off the Twin Days Festival 2017 in Twinsburg, Ohio, on Saturday. The annual event draws sets of twins  and triplets and quadruplets  from around the world. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Titina and Elizabeth Gist both donned their twindividual shirts before heading out for their first night here. They do everything together. They often speak in unison. And in Gainesville, Fla., where they share an apartment, theyre used to turning heads.

In our town, we only see us, Elizabeth said. Everyone knows us as The Twins. 

Not here.

These identical 30-year-old twins drove nearly 1,000 miles to Twinsburg for the weekend because they wanted to meet other people who get what their life is like. At the annual Twins Days festival, theres plenty of chances for that, with 1,520 sets of twins, triplets, and quadruplets coming to this small Midwestern town for the largest such gathering in the world.

The Gist twins spoke of the many charms, oddities and irritations that come with twindom, and many twins nearby nodded sympathetically. One is Twin A and one Twin B. Im the first one, Elizabeth explained. Titina expanded: And Im more to-the-point.

When I think about what would happen if we werent together, if something happened to her, I literally start crying, Titina said.

Singletons  code at the event for non-twins  just dont understand.

Thats sort of the point of this weekend, twin siblings say: to celebrate and recognize the unique existence that comes with being a twin. Such as Saturday mornings Double Take Parade, in which costumed twins and their family members walk alongside themed floats as an old calliope plays carnival tunes. Onlookers in lawn chairs line the residential street to watch and wave. Double- and triple-wide strollers cut through the crowds.

Even when thousands of people come to this small town, it feels like home to them, said Kevin McManamon, a 52-year-old Twinsburg resident.



The Twin Days Double Take Parade kicks off the Twin Days Festival. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Joan Poeppelman and Jane Brun celebrate their 60th birthday at Twins Days. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Twinsburgs name is no coincidence. About 25 miles southeast of Cleveland, the town was named for two of its founders, identical twins Moses and Aaron Wilcox, who owned property in what was originally called Millsville. They donated six acres for a public square and cash for a public school. A historical presentation for the towns sesquicentennial, in 1967, recounted stories about the twins communicating by mental telepathy and standing in for each other on dates.

The Wilcox brothers wed a pair of sisters, had an equal number of children  none twins  and later died of the same disease. They also rest in eternity together, having been buried in the same grave at the Locust Grove Cemetery near the citys main square. On Saturday, there were red roses on each side of the twins gravestone and two bouquets of red flowers at its head. Twinsburg also bears homage to their image  two silhouetted male faces  on its flag.

The town of about 19,000 residents is filled with pastel-colored Colonial homes and sits among rolling green hills. Celebrating its 200th anniversary this year, Twinsburg fashioned itself the center of gravity for the nations twins and multiples, reveling in its founders quirks. Twins Days has been celebrated here since 1976, when 37 sets of twins made it to the first event. The festival now draws thousands of twins each year.

And while twin births have been increasing steadily during the past 30 years, now is perhaps the peak for twindom in the United States, partially explaining the festivals surge.



Jeren and Jeron Bonner, 33 of Columbus, Ohio, enjoying the Twin Days Festival, their third year attending the annual event. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

When Twins Days hosted its first event here, the twin birthrate hovered just below 20 sets of twins for every 1,000 live births. From 1980 to 2009, the rate of twin births surged by 76 percent  accounting for 865,000 additional twins above the expected average, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Twin births hit their peak in 2014, with twins accounting for 33.5 of every 1,000 live births in the United States. Twin births in 2015 nearly kept pace.

Which is to say that twins are no longer such a tremendous rarity and dont always cause the early-1980s Doublemint Gum twins double-take. Especially not here in Twinsburg this weekend.

Rose Pacalo and Charlotte Italiano, 85-year-old twin sisters from nearby Youngstown, started coming to Twins Days a decade ago to find more like companions. When they were growing up, Pacalo said, they could easily fool teachers and switch classes. That gusto still stands, with the twins wearing matching red-sequined hats on Saturday as they rode down the parade route in a convertible.

In our family, in the younger generation, we have four sets of twins, Pacalo said.

And one of them was in vitro, Italiano added. Fraternal.



Jean Lacombe and her twin Joan Barney pose in a large group shot with hundreds of twins and multiples. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Theres a host of reasons for why twin births have increased: fertility treatments, women becoming pregnant later in life (twin birthrates are highest for women 40 and older) and the fact that women who are fraternal twins are more likely to become pregnant with fraternal twins themselves.

The main driver of the increase since 1980 is assisted reproductive technologies, most commonly with in vitro fertilization (IVF). Though fertility treatments such as IVF account for 1.6 percent of babies born in the U.S. each year, its estimated that 36 percent of all twin births are a result of IVF and fertility drug treatments.

Christie and Andy Agrawal, of Akron, Ohio, had their 2-year-old twins, Anika and Aidan, in tow Saturday, along with their 4-month-old Abigail. They clustered with other parents to swap tips.

We couldnt have kids, Andy said. We did three rounds of IVF.

The third time was the charm, Christie said. Now that she sees how close Anika and Aidan are, she said she almost wishes she had a twin sibling of her own.



Eli and Dylan McDaniel, 4 of Streetsboro, Ohio, won two medals, one for most alike and the other for group costume. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Twins have long been popular culturally, and the fact that celebrity couples  including Beyonce and Jay-Z and George and Amal Clooney  recently welcomed twins into their families has only boosted their cachet. Unusual stories about twins, triplets and other multiple births tend to make headlines, such as when six sets of twins recently graduated from Rockport High School in Rockport, Mass., or when Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, Minn., delivered 13 sets of twins in July 2016.

But its mostly singletons that do the gawking, said Philip Malm. He and his identical brother, Doug, 60, met their wives, Jena and Jill, 50  also identical twins  at Twins Days in 1991. The brothers later proposed to the women on the Twins Day stage the next year, and the two couples decided to get married at the festival in 1993. They now all live together in Moscow, Idaho.

Its family, Phil said of the festivalgoers. Everyone is on the same wavelength.

The historically high population of twins has been great for researchers. Scientists from hospitals, government agencies and large companies set up shop at Twins Days each year to administer surveys, collect DNA samples and recruit study subjects.

Identical twins are of particular interest because they share the same genetic makeup, giving researchers the opportunity to determine what behaviors or health risks are a factor of their environments rather than inherited DNA.



Ally, Lauren, Claire and Nina Hudson, 10 are quadruplets from Twinsburg, Ohio. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Triplets Moses, Jonas and Noah Allooh, 32, of Cleveland. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

As the rate of twin births has grown, so, too has a push within the medical community to drive down the rate because twins are typically considered to cause higher-risk pregnancies, said James Goldfarb, chief of the division of infertility at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center. Twins are more likely to be born preterm, be admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit and experience birth defects.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine recently released guidelines strongly in favor of single-embryo transfer, both to reduce costs and the rate of twin and multiple births. Alan Penzias, a reproductive endocrinologist at Boston IVF and clinical professor at Harvard Medical School  and a parent of twins  said its likely the rate of twin births will return to near-normal levels before long.

Those at Twins Days dont much care what the birthrate is; they just want to celebrate the phenomenon, and one another.

Sophia and Grace Kiggins, 10-year-old identical twins of Mentor, Ohio, walked back with their parents from a popular photo spot on the festival site  a mirror frame positioned to allow twins to pose on either side, acting out a reflection.

Is there anything particular about being a twin that makes it so great?

Nah, Sophia said.

I can think of something, said their mother, Heather Kiggins. You have each other around every second of the day.

A free friend, Grace agreed.
President Trump greets "victims of Obamacare" after speaking at a White House event about health care in late July. The administrations rhetoric and efforts reflect its contradictory approach to the laws next enrollment season, which begins Nov. 1. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

As the fate of the Affordable Care Act dangled dramatically in the Senate last month, the Trump administration abruptly canceled contracts with two companies that have helped thousands of Americans in 18 cities find health plans under the law.

The suspension of the $22 million contracts, which ends enrollment fairs and insurance sign-ups in public libraries, is one of the few public signs of how an administration eager to kill the law will run the ACAs approaching fifth enrollment season.

With that sign-up period less than three months away, the government appears to be operating on contradictory tracks, according to insurers, state insurance commissioners, health-policy experts and leaders of grass-roots groups that have worked to enroll the roughly 10 million consumers around the country who now have ACA coverage.

President Trump continues to stage photo ops at the White House and on travels with people he terms Obamacare victims. The Department of Health and Human Services is issuing weekly maps showing the few dozen counties that might lack an ACA health plan for next year. And despite the failure of Senate Republicans to abolish much of the law, Trump and his top aides have not entirely relinquished hopes of a victory in Congress this fall.

Yet many layers down in the government, the part of HHS that directly oversees the ACAs insurance marketplaces and the federal HealthCare.gov enrollment website has been carrying out much, if not all, of its regular work  convening its annual meeting in June with navigators who help steer consumers toward ACA health plans and telling them their grants will continue, according to three participants.

Officials provided no assurances at that meeting, however, about whether the administration would continue the governments other usual enrollment activities or promotion. (In January, it had halted most advertising aimed at encouraging consumers to sign up in the final crucial days before the deadline for 2017 coverage.)

Every time the question was brought up . . . the only answer we received is they were working on it, and they hadnt made a final decision about whether they were going to have a marketing campaign this year, said Daniel Bouton, manager of a consortium that helps people enroll across North Texas.

The internal dissonance and information vacuum reflect the profound political shift that occurred in January when the administration of President Barack Obama, which relentlessly championed the sprawling 2010 law, was replaced by its ACA-naysaying successor. While the GOPs recent legislative pyrotechnics have attracted the greatest attention regarding the laws future, the most practical test of the Trump administrations intent is whether it will help or hinder the marketplaces, designed for people who cannot get affordable health benefits through a job.

Just a week ago, HHS Secretary Tom Price twice said during a television interview that our responsibility is to follow the law  before again bad-mouthing it.

[IRS wont withhold tax refunds if Americans ignore ACA insurance requirement]

For now, the largest mystery looming over the upcoming enrollment season is whether the president will carry out his stated resolve to end payments made to insurers on behalf of about 7 million lower-income customers to help them afford their ACA plans deductibles and copays. Without those subsidies  the subject of a federal lawsuit  policy premiums are widely predicted to spike for 2018, and more insurers may defect.

White House aides had said a decision would be made last week, but none was announced. Insurers planning to participate in the marketplaces next year must submit final rates in less than 10 days.

Its entirely opaque to us, said Julie McPeak, Tennessees insurance commissioner and the incoming president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. She said that she and colleagues have contacted officials at HHS, the Justice Department, the White Houses intergovernmental affairs office, and its Office of Management and Budget, trying to learn which part of the government would make the decision about these cost-sharing payments and when.

And we cant get a clear picture, McPeak said. As a result, she noted, Tennessee cannot plan its own outreach efforts because it is impossible to provide consumers accurate information about insurance prices and choices for the coming year.

There are other unknowns that also will shape  or upend  the enrollment period when it begins Nov. 1: Will the government contact the roughly 10 million people with ACA coverage to alert them that sign-ups will last just 45 days, about half as long as in the past three years? Will HHS run call centers for consumers who need help as they look for plans? Will the HealthCare.gov computer system be adjusted to accommodate a possible crush of shoppers given the shorter time frame?

And how will automatic enrollment be handled? In previous years, notices have been sent out in mid-December, informing customers with coverage about price changes for their current health plan and urging them to shop around. This year, Dec. 15 is when enrollment will end.

Federal health officials declined Thursday to answer questions about a half-dozen specific facets of the impending enrollment season. Instead, a spokeswoman for HHSs Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a generic statement: As open enrollment approaches we are evaluating how to best serve the American people who access coverage on HealthCare.gov.

An hour later, the spokeswoman, Jane Norris, requested that the statement be withdrawn, saying that she did not have permission to release it. Asked again for detailed answers, neither she nor anyone else at HHS responded further.

[HealthCare.gov suffers first enrollment decline as GOP works to kill the ACA]

Mike Leavitt, a health-care consultant and former Utah governor who served as HHS secretary under President George W. Bush, considers the Trump administrations handling of the marketplaces a metaphor for its overarching view that government should play a smaller role.

He predicts that the two ACA contracts cut last month  with the Northern Virginia-based companies Cognosante and CSRA  will not be the last to go. The White House is likely to cancel enough contracts . . . to make it very clear the future is going to be very different than the past, he said.

Still, Leavitt predicted the government is unlikely to back away entirely from its role in the marketplaces in the administrations first year. If you are the secretary of health, you dont want to buy yourself a huge mess at the end of the year . . . by creating such an abrupt shift that the administration gets that blame, he said.

At the liberal consumer-health lobby Families USA, the staff grew accustomed over the past four years to frequent meetings with HHS staff members and other consumer groups to talk over eligibility and related issues for open enrollments. There have been no such meetings since Trump took office, and federal officials have sometimes replied to written questions by saying no decision has yet been made, according to Eliot Fishman, the organizations senior director of health policy.

Heather Korbulic, executive director of the Silver State Insurance Exchange in Nevada, is feeling daunted by a similar lack of answers. She has tried to find out whether HHS intends to contact Nevadans with ACA health plans to remind them to enroll  a particularly pressing issue because the state exchange operates under a hybrid system and pays about $5 million to rely on HealthCare.gov. She also has tried to get federal officials to provide a list of currently enrolled residents so the state can notify them directly.

I ask this question every week, Korbulic said. Its verbal, written, and to different levels of management . . . We are desperately seeking answers.
The graphics shows an appendix released in the document titled "The Facts and China's Position Concerning the Indian Border Troops' Crossing of the China-India Boundary in the Sikkim Sector into the Chinese Territory." (Xinhua/Qu Zhendong)

NEW DELHI, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- India has been urged to take seriously China's position document on India's border troops' trespass, and to immediately and unconditionally withdraw the troops.

The document titled "The Facts and China's Position Concerning the Indian Border Troops' Crossing of the China-India Boundary in the Sikkim Sector into the Chinese Territory" was issued by Chinese Foreign Ministry on Wednesday.

Liu Jinsong, deputy chief of mission of the Chinese Embassy in India, while introducing the document to reporters from local media at a recent press briefing held at the embassy, called for great attention to be paid to the document.

The graphics shows an appendix released in the document titled "The Facts and China's Position Concerning the Indian Border Troops' Crossing of the China-India Boundary in the Sikkim Sector into the Chinese Territory." (Xinhua/Qu Zhendong)

On June 18, over 270 Indian border troops, carrying weapons and driving two bulldozers, crossed the boundary in the Sikkim Sector and advanced more than 100 meters into Chinese territory to obstruct the road building of the Chinese side, causing tension in the area.

The trespassing Indian troops reached as many as 400 people at one point.

Liu said the document, in real earnest as well as from multiple perspectives concerning history, jurisprudence and international relations, among others, gives a full and authoritative account of the position of the Chinese government on the illegal trespass of the Indian border troops.

The document is aimed at helping the international community, including Indian people from all circles of life, understand the facts and truth of the incident, he said, noting that the Indian side has concocted various excuses to justify its illegal action and mislead the public.

"There are still 48 Indian troops and one bulldozer illegally staying in the Chinese territory more than one and a half months after the outbreak of the incident," the Chinese diplomat said.

He told the reporters who were from The Hindu, The Navodaya Times, The Asian Age, Deccan Herald and the Frontline website that China has to once again urge India to immediately and unconditionally pull back its trespassing troops.

He stressed that India should not underestimate the resolve of the Chinese government and people to defend China's territorial sovereignty, saying that by releasing the document, China aims to uphold the principles of international law and basic norms governing international relations.
Three years ago, I graduated from college, and after years of occasional all-nighters, skipped meals and serious stress over exams, I was looking forward to a new, calmer life. College in Denton, Tex., had been the time of my life, a place where I evolved from an apathetic, underachieving student to a social-activism-minded honor student. I felt immense pride when I walked across the graduation stage and began the hour-long drive home to Dallas.

And that first week at home felt great. By Week 3, though, something changed. I had a pervasive feeling of loss and, with a knot in my stomach, I stopped eating regularly. Within two months, I was so depressed, I had trouble getting out of bed in the morning. I knew something was wrong, but I didnt believe anyone would understand. What I also didnt know was that my post-graduation emotional distress was not uncommon.

If a students college experience is mostly positive, college provides a cocoon of sorts: a community of friends, teachers and mentors who are mostly readily available to offer support or advice. Graduating symbolizes a leap into adult life, which is a huge transition, said Juli Fraga, a psychologist based in San Francisco.

Although its not an official diagnosis, post-graduation depression is commonly used to describe the extreme sadness and impaired functioning that recent grads report after they leave behind the world they created in college.

Post-graduation depression, therapists say, is understudied and probably underreported.Young adulthood isnt a population that is well studied at all. From a research perspective, its hard to categorize them, said Sheryl Ziegler, a Colorado psychologist and licensed professional counselor who has many young clients.

According to therapists and postings in Internet chat rooms by recent graduates, symptoms of post-graduation depression include an abnormally negative perspective, decreased motivation to get out of bed, a general sense of hopelessness and, occasionally, substance abuse. They often have . . . trouble motivating themselves to get a job, Ziegler said. They are often lonely due to a lack of connection with friends. While young adults are in college, they may have been in an environment that was more accepting of alcohol and recreational drug use, and while depressed its possible this is being used as a coping mechanism.

Post-grad depression is underreported because graduation is like motherhood: culturally seen as a seemingly joyful time, which makes it even more shameful for someone to admit that its not, says Fraga who counseled students during a fellowship at the University of California at Berkeley who now treats young adults in her practice.

While studies about post-graduation depression are hard to find  researchers tend to look at a variety of causes of depression in the 18-to-25 age group, not just leaving college  the Internet is full of personal accounts of the stomach-clenching blues that descend weeks after diplomas are handed out.

I realized I was dealing with post-college depression specifically, because my depression was directly linked to things I had in college that I no longer had: namely, the experience of being a part of a tightknit community, said Alaina Leary of Quincy, Mass. Even though my partner and I are extremely close, I felt suddenly very lonely. I had co-workers, but not the kinds of relationships I had in college, Leary continued.

Depressed millennials

Recent research suggests that millennials have the highest rates of depression and anxiety of any generation, with job concerns high on their list of worries. A study by the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences found an association between high rates of depression and high rates of social media use: People who reported being depressed tended to be active on many social media platforms.

They are following their friends on social media and have this out-of-proportion sense that everyone else has figured it out and is getting jobs, Ziegler said. They have a sense that everyone has it together but them, which causes them to further isolate themselves.

According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, 75 percent of mental-health conditions begin by age 24, which means that both the college years and the abrupt transition when its over can be a particularly challenging time emotionally.

I had had some depression issues in my past, so I was vulnerable. But the biggest contributor to my post-graduation depression was having to adjust to a life that no longer aligned with my passions. In college, I had the freedom to shape my life based on my interests. It wasnt long before I discovered that the real world didnt work that way. The activist identity and experience Id developed in college  staying on top of current events and attending local interest groups  came to a crashing end when I found myself working long days as an insurance claims adjuster, a job I jumped at when it was offered because I was worried I might find nothing else.

Id hoped to find a position at a nonprofit that would allow me to make a difference, but there was a shortage of public service jobs in my area. I had applied for county and state positions such as child advocate, but it can take months to have your application acknowledged. So I found myself alone in a cubicle completing menial tasks such as informing insurance beneficiaries that we had received their claims and enforcing what I found to be some ethically questionable procedures. I was so emotionally exhausted at the end of each day that my ride home was filled with tears. I often just went to sleep without eating.

And to be honest, I was lonely. At my university, my friends were just a few doors down the corridor. We knew each others schedules and would spend countless hours in one anothers rooms. But now they werent around. Most of my friends hadnt graduated; they were in class during my lunch break, and they were in a different city an hour away. I tried to keep up with them, but sometimes weeks passed with only minimal contact. It was a challenge, and many of my friendships didnt survive. Having no one to talk to made it harder to process my feelings.

But my friendships werent the only relationships to change. My family had become accustomed to life without me around, and I often felt forgotten. Moving back home during early adulthood can lead to conflicts about rights, responsibilities, behavior.

I was 22 years old, but living at home made me feel a lot like a child.

Several months after graduation, my longtime boyfriend and I got married, and we arranged to move in with one of my grandparents. (Even as a couple we didnt make enough money to make it on our own.) But my depression prevented me from enjoying newlywed bliss. My husband, a low-ranking airman, and I worked opposing schedules. Soon I was sleeping more than 11 hours a day, and I hardly spoke to my new husband. I was angry and moody. My distance began to hurt him. After less than two months of marriage, we were considering divorce.

I felt immense pressure to find a job that was somehow related to the psychology degree Id gotten in college; I wanted to take a first step in my career and start my life.

But it turns out that a bachelors degree in psychology wasnt going to get me in any doors. I graduated with around $30,000 in debt. How would I ever pay it off if I couldnt find a good job? And more important, why had I spent four years in college if I wouldnt be able to use my degree? I was stuck with the insurance adjuster job.

After three months, I knew that to shake my feelings of sadness, I had to make some significant life decisions. I got a puppy for extra companionship. I made a bigger effort to connect with my best friend back at college. And, with much trepidation, I quit my insurance job with no backup plan. Our living costs were low, but I was nervous. I started a masters program in social work that I hoped would give me the credential to get a job I actually wanted. I also hoped that being back at school would help my mental health.

Maybe all of these steps would have improved things for me on their own, but, oddly, what finally broke my post-graduation depression came from an unexpected source: The military decided to relocate my husband to the Midwest. This meant that I had to start from scratch creating a life for myself. But this time we had our own place, thanks to my husbands position, and I took the opportunity to return to the sorts of things that had made college particularly gratifying: I got involved in my new community, and I met people through nonprofit groups and a church that we joined. And then, almost exactly a year after graduation, I was pregnant, and I didnt have time to focus on me and college days of the past. I was moving on, and impending motherhood gave new meaning to my life.

Its been nearly three years since I graduated from college. I still feel a touch of sadness that that time is over. But I have found ways to transform my campus involvement into community involvement.

The best part of college was having a mission  being involved in mentorship and leadership organizations, and feeling that I was making a difference. I do that now by being a freelance writer who spreads information on the mental health of marginalized groups and by being a mother. In the summer of 2014, I couldnt imagine life feeling good again  but it does.

Looking back, I believe that colleges and universities that value the mental health of their students should offer some sort of transition course. College can be similar to a utopian society: Its inhabitants are not really aware of the struggles that may await when that utopian world vanishes the day after graduation.

We arent told that the mix of emotions that this transition triggers can have negative consequences on our mental health. But when I speak with recent grads, I tell them my story. Perhaps by talking about post-graduation mental health, I am using my degree after all.
Hunter Hinson winds up the propeller on a model airplane at an event called the Charles Hampson Grant Memorial International Mass Launch of Cloud Tramps in Nacogdoches, Tex., on Saturday. A handful of Nacogdoches residents took part in the worldwide event, in which people launch small, rubber-band-powered model airplanes called cloud tramps at the same approximate time. (Tim Monzingo/Daily Sentinel /AP)

MINNESOTA

FBI investigating explosion at mosque

An explosion shook a Minneapolis-area mosque during morning prayers Saturday, and an FBI official said it was caused by an improvised explosive device.

No one was wounded in the blast at Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, Minn., which took place as a small number of worshipers gathered shortly after 5 a.m. Mohamed Omar, the centers executive director, said in an interview that he was inside the mosque preparing for morning prayers when he felt a huge explosion that quickly caused smoke and flames. Omar said another person present later told him he had heard the sound of a window breaking and then a pickup truck fleeing outside.

Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said 15 to 20 worshipers are typically present for morning prayers. The explosion took place inside the imams office, which was next to a prayer area in the mosque, Hussein said. Another overflow prayer area behind the imams office was also empty, he said.

Neither the FBI nor the Bloomington Police Department, which initially responded to the explosion, speculated on a motive for the incident.

 Karin Brulliard and Amy B Wang

CALIFORNIA

Professor, college staffer jailed in slaying

A Northwestern University professor and a University of Oxford finance officer were jailed in the San Francisco area Saturday after eight days as fugitives, sought in the killing of a hairdresser in Chicago who was stabbed repeatedly, police said.

Wyndham Lathem, a microbiologist at Northwestern in Illinois, had a relationship with the victim, although the nature of it wasnt clear, and Lathem had made a video apologizing for what he called the worst mistake of my life, police said.

Lathem, 42, was being held without bail in Alameda County and faced a court appearance in Pleasanton. Andrew Warren, a treasury assistant at one of Oxfords residential colleges in England, was being held at the county jail in San Francisco.

Both men surrendered separately and peacefully in the Bay Area on Friday evening.

They had been fugitives since the body of Trenton James Cornell-Duranleau, 26, was found in Lathems Chicago apartment July 27.

Police said Lathem had a relationship with Cornell-Duranleau. They have not elaborated on how Cornell-Duranleau or Lathem knew Warren, or whether Warren knew them before he arrived in the United States.

 Associated Press

MONTANA

3 dead, curfew in place on Indian reservation

Three people were killed and two others were wounded in a shooting at a residence on the Crow Indian Reservation in southeastern Montana.

The FBI said Saturday that three people were fatally shot Friday afternoon in Lodge Grass. Big Horn County Coroner Terry Bullis said autopsies were planned Saturday.

Officials have not released the names and ages of the victims or the conditions of the wounded. No arrests have been made.

 Associated Press

Prisoner overpowers deputy, steals his gun: A nationwide manhunt was underway for an Ohio rape suspect who overpowered a sheriffs deputy in a transport van and stole his gun. Paulding County Sheriff Jason Landers said Saturday that FBI agents and U.S. Marshals have joined the search for Branden Powell, 32, after his escape at about noon Friday on a trip from a psychiatric hospital in Toledo to the Paulding County Jail in northwest Ohio. Landers said Powell was in restraints when he jumped over the seat and put the deputy in a headlock, causing the van to crash. Powell got the deputys gun during a struggle and ordered the deputy to remove his restraints.

Turbulence hurts 10 on flight: American Airlines said 10 people on a flight from Greece to Philadelphia were injured during severe turbulence Saturday. The airline said Flight 759 was heading to the city from Athens with 287 passengers and a dozen crew members when it encountered turbulence shortly before landing. Three passengers and seven crew members were taken to a hospital for evaluation.

 From news services
Britain

A lowball offer to E.U. for Brexit money

Britain is ready to pay up to 40 billion euros ($47 billion) as part of a deal to leave the European Union, the Sunday Telegraph newspaper reported late Saturday, citing three unnamed government sources.

The newspaper said Britain was prepared to pay the sum only as part of a wider deal that included a trade agreement with the E.U.

We know [the E.U.s] position is 60 billion euros, but the actual bottom line is 50 billion euros. Ours is closer to 30 billion euros, but the actual landing zone is 40 billion euros, even if the public and politicians are not all there yet, the newspaper quoted a senior civil service source as saying.

The British government ministry in charge of E.U. negotiations declined to comment on the report.

 Reuters

Mali

Mass graves found in countrys north

The United Nations peacekeeping mission has uncovered mass graves in a region of northern Mali beset by conflict between rival groups, the mission said Saturday.

Fighting between Tuareg groups has intensified in recent weeks there, threatening to derail a 2015 peace agreement.

The U.N. mission has investigated reports of human rights abuses and had confirmed 34 cases in the area, including enforced disappearances of minors. Minors may have also been involved in the recent fighting, the mission said.

A Tuareg insurrection in 2012 created a power vacuum in northern Mali, once a popular destination for adventurous tourists, that has turned it into a launchpad for Islamist militant attacks across the Sahara.

 Reuters

Syrian government takes last ISIS stronghold in Homs: Syrian government and allied forces have taken the last major town in Homs province from the Islamic State, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, as the army advances toward militant strongholds in the countrys east. The town of al-Sukhnah lies northeast of the government-controlled ancient city of Palmyra and is about 30 miles from the administrative frontier of Deir al-Zour province, which is almost entirely under Islamic State control.

Taliban launches attacks in northern Afghanistan: Taliban insurgents launched coordinated attacks from three different directions on Sayad district in the northern province of Sar-e Pol, killing at least seven security force members. Zabi Amani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said insurgents seized control of the strategic Mirzawalang area in Sayad earlier in the day after two days of intense gun battles with Afghan forces.

Brazilian troops invade slums in northern Rio de Janeiro: More than 3,500 Brazilian soldiers are occupying slum communities in northern Rio de Janeiro as part of efforts to combat a spike in violence. The troops moved into the Complexo do Lins communities and neighboring Camarista Meier in the early hours of Saturday. Last week 8,500 soldiers were deployed in Rio to fight organized gangs, which control many of the slums.

Defendants to wear uniforms in Turkish courts: Suspects of terrorism or coup participation in Turkish courts will be made to wear special uniforms when they appear in court, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said after a defendant showed up for trial last month with a T-shirt that said Hero. Defendants accused of being involved in last years failed military coup will wear jumpsuits, and terrorism suspects will wear specific jackets and pants. More than 50,000 people have been detained and 150,000 people suspended in a crackdown following the coup.

Iranian president reasserts that nation will uphold nuclear deal: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, sworn in for a second term in front of an audience of foreign officials, reiterated that his nation will stand by its obligations in an international nuclear deal. Iran will never be the first country to start violating the accord, Rouhani, 68, said in the Iranian parliament, speaking to officials including E.U. foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini. But we will not sit idle in the face of violations by other countries, he said, adding that his government would respond in proportionate measure.

Marauding monkeys terrorize humans in Java: Indonesia has deployed armed police and soldiers to help villagers on the island of Java fight back against marauding monkeys that have been terrorizing their area, stealing food and even attacking vulnerable elderly residents and a child. The long-tailed macaques have grown increasingly bold in their interactions with humans in the Boyolali district of Central Java, north of the city of Solo.

 From news services
THE SENATE adjourned for its August break on Thursday, closing an unproductive half-year that underscored a fundamental truth about U.S. politics: The country cannot be governed from the fringes. If much is to get done  and there is much to do  compromise must occur.

Republicans unilateral effort to repeal Obamacare dominated Congresss past several months. Even with the GOP holding majorities in both houses, Republican health-care proposals were too cruel and too unpopular, and the procedure congressional leaders used to try to jam them through were too reckless. Only a hard-core base of extreme Obamacare haters wanted Republican lawmakers to proceed. In the Senate, where broad popular opinion is more important than in the heavily gerrymandered House, the repeal effort narrowly failed, and it should have.

Republican leaders face a choice: They can continue trying to force right-wing policy on an unwilling country, or they can work with Democrats to solve problems both parties acknowledge. The path of compromise would diverge sharply from the nasty politics of the recent past. But that is the point: Congresss recent record is abysmal. Heres an alternative to-do list.

Following the collapse of repeal-and-replace, Congress will need to stabilize shaky health-care markets. One solid compromise proposal, from the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, is already on the table. Moderate senators are discussing deals of their own. The contours of a fair bargain are clear: a commitment to fully fund Obamacare programs and reinsurance in exchange for some regulatory reforms and added state flexibility.

Also on the must-do-soon list is raising the federal debt ceiling and funding the government  in time to prevent panic that the United States might default on its obligations.

Meantime, Republicans want to turn to tax reform. Good. The U.S. tax code is complex, distortional and internationally uncompetitive. Members of both parties have spoken for years about lowering tax rates, paid for by ending economically inefficient deductions, and bringing home income that U.S. companies have parked overseas. Passing a bill would be easier if Republicans focused on the corporate tax code rather than monkeying with personal tax rates. Democrats should be willing to work with the GOP as long as Republicans make their plan authentically revenue-neutral, not a stealth tax cut.

President Trump ran on a campaign to improve the nations infrastructure. Democrats share the goal. They should be open to innovative ways of paying for new roads, rails, wires and ports, including marshaling private funds, if Republicans are willing to raise public money, too.

On foreign affairs, Congress has already made some progress, passing a sanctions bill limiting Mr. Trumps ability to bargain with Russia, a geopolitical foe for whom the president has a bizarre affection. In reasserting Congresss prerogatives, lawmakers should also redraft the authorization for the use of military force that provides the legal basis for ongoing military operations against the Islamic State, al-Qaeda and others. Congress has not visited this issue since 2001, and the legal ground for continuing conflict is shaky.

Last week saw the introduction of a couple of immigration bills  but the mainstream, bipartisan compromise looks different, pairing enhanced border protection with a pathway for legal status for people currently in the country.

Finally, lawmakers must stand up for a democratic system under stress. They should stick with their Russia investigation, consider how to harden the nations voting procedures against future attack and continue to give special counsel Robert S. Mueller III the support he needs to complete his inquiry.

Republicans can blow off steam, or they can govern. Time to choose.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, left, and Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein, right, attend a briefing Friday at the Justice Department in Washington on leaks of classified material. (Andrew Harnik/AP)

Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein said Sunday that the expanding investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election is continuing apace, even as President Trump dismissed the probe as a total fabrication.

Rosenstein said special counsel Robert S. Mueller III can investigate any crimes that he might discover within the scope of his probe, but the deputy attorney general would not discuss which individuals are the subject of their inquiry. The interview comes days after Trump said he believes it would be inappropriate for Mueller to dig into Trump family finances.

The special counsel is subject to the rules and regulations of the Department of Justice, and we dont engage in fishing expeditions, Rosenstein said when asked about the probe in an interview on Fox News Sunday.

Rosenstein declined to comment on reports that Mueller is using a grand jury in a court in Washington to aid in his investigation but he said that such a step is a routine part of many investigations.

Its an appropriate way to gather documents, sometimes to bring witnesses in, to make sure that you get their full testimony, Rosenstein said. Its just a tool that we use like any other tool in the course of our investigations. 

(Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post)

Trump and his inner circle have repeatedly dismissed the investigation amid frequent reports that Mueller and his team are digging into broader details on the financial dealings of members of Trumps campaign team. Senior White House counselor Kellyanne Conway called the probe a fabrication in an interview on ABCs This Week. Trump called it the totally made-up Russia story in a campaign-style speech he delivered Thursday in West Virginia.

The attacks have raised concerns among Democrats and some Republicans that Trump may be looking for ways to undermine the investigation. Those fears led Sens. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Christopher A. Coons (D-Del.) to propose legislation that would give a judge the ability to review any decision by the president to fire Muller.

Tillis said Sunday that he does not agree that the investigation is a witch hunt and said the bill is intended to bolster the independence of the Justice Department.

Well let the facts lead us to whether or not it was a hoax or a distraction, Tillis said during a This Week interview. But we are where we are, and I want to see this investigation concluded so that we can get on to doing the good work the president has already started with regulatory reform, health care and tax reform.

Rep. Adam B. Schiff (Calif.), the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, called Muellers impaneling of a D.C. grand jury a significant development, noting that it has been more than a year since former FBI director James B. Comey launched a counterintelligence investigation into Russias meddling in the 2016 election.

That means one year later, rather than turning that investigation off, rather than concluding Weve looked at this for a year; theres really nothing to see here, as the president would claim, instead . . . its moving into a new phase, Schiff said during an appearance on CNNs State of the Union. That wouldnt be taking place if there was really no evidence, no evidentiary basis to move forward.

He said an additional reason to continue investigating was the disclosure of the June 2016 meeting of Donald Trump Jr., campaign officials and a Russian lawyer, which was set up with the advertised purpose of sharing damaging information on Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

(Victoria Walker,Peter Stevenson,Ashleigh Joplin/The Washington Post)

And now you add on the layer of the president, if these allegations are true, helping to fabricate a false statement about what that meeting was about, Schiff said, referring to the White Houses acknowledgment that Trump weighed in on an initial statement issued by Trump Jr. about the meeting that did not mention its pretext.

Schiff also said the House Intelligence Committee and Mueller are looking at some of the same issues related to former national security adviser Michael Flynn, including payments Flynn allegedly received from Turkey during the final months of the presidential campaign and from RT, a Russian government-backed television network.

If General Flynn was shown to have violated the law in other ways, it would be an incentive for him to cooperate more broadly with the Mueller investigation, Schiff said.

During an appearance on the same CNN program, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), an ally of the Trump administration, downplayed the significance of a D.C. grand jury being impaneled by Mueller.

Thats a typical thing to be done in any investigation, said Christie, a former federal prosecutor.

Asked about Trumps concerns that Muellers probe could expand into financial dealings of Trump unrelated to Russia, Christie said that some sometimes special counsels feel the need to produce something in return for their appointment.

But he called Mueller a good man and said he trusts he will not go on a fishing expedition.

Christie also called Trump Jr.s meeting with the Russian lawyer ill-advised. The meeting was also attended by Jared Kushner, the presidents son-in-law and now senior adviser, and Paul Manafort, then Trumps campaign chairman.

This is not something that should have happened, Christie said. Everybody in retrospect knows that this is a bad idea.

But Christie said it remains unclear whether Trump was aware of the email to Trump Jr. ahead of the meeting that said it would be related to Russian information on Clinton.

We dont know that the president knew about those emails or about the content of those emails, Christie said. And so we dont know what his own son told him about that meeting.

On ABC, Conway said Trump had no knowledge of that meeting.

I was never informed of that meeting, she said. I found out about it when you found out about it, when the rest of the public did.

Conway also referenced Kushners contention that he left the meeting a few minutes in when it became clear the Russian lawyer wanted to talk about adoption policy. Kushner has said he had an aide pull him out.

If youre getting dirt on your political opponent, if youre getting the silver bullet and the secret sauce on how to win the election, you dont ask your aide to pull you out of the meeting, Conway said. You say please order lunch. Lets just stay.

Read more at PowerPost
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 10:45:07|Editor: Zhou Xin

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by Raul Menchaca

HAVANA, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Cuba's culinary heritage is alive and well, thanks to award-winning Cuban chef Jorge Luis Mendez and others like him.

"We have succeeded in preserving authentic, traditional Cuban cuisine," said Mendez, who believes national dishes "allow peoples to express who they are."

Mendez said Cuban food combines the culinary influences of the various cultures that have landed on the Caribbean island through centuries, from Spanish conquerors to African slaves.

Cuban cuisine has been enriched over the years by the different voluntary and arrivals of immigrants from other parts of the world, said Mendez, also staff of the tourism faculty at the University of Havana.

"The Africans, the Chinese, even (immigrants from) eastern Europe have contributed to enriching our food," he added.

Imported flavors, combined with Cuba's own native ingredients and culinary staples, have generated such favorite dishes as "ajiaco a la criolla" (a hearty meat stew), "Moors and Christians" (black beans and rice), Cuban tamales (stuffed corn dough wrapped and steamed in corn husk), corn or taro root fritters, "congri oriental" (red beans and rice), and yuca in a garlic sauce.

Cuban chef Ernesto Bello is another proponent of Cuban cuisine.

"At home I primarily make Cuban culinary dishes," said Bello, who has worked at some of Havana's best known restaurants, including El Tocororo, La Finca and La Moraleja.

Cuba's cuisine has great potential "because it is the result of a blend of cultures, which is definitely what we are as a nation," said Bello.

That heritage is reflected in the list of the top 25 popular dishes in Cuba, compiled by Cuba's Federation of Culinary Associations (FAC) based on what locals and foreigners alike order most frequently.

Cuban Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero recently underscored the importance of the national cuisine to the tourism sector.

"It will always be priority number one to continue to diversify and raise the quality of our services in general, but of our gastronomy in particular," Marrero said at the opening of the 9th Varadero Gourmet Festival in early July.

To do that, Marrero called on "each culinary enterprise to create its own signature (dishes), each chef to provide his own special seasoning and each bartender to add his own touch to the cocktail he is preparing."

Cooking instructor Pedro Manuel Serrano, who has been working at a restaurant in Cuba's renowned beach resort of Varadero for 27 years, said visitors enjoy Cuban food.

"Tourists like Cuban cuisine due to the creativity involved in the preparation and the variety of dishes," said Serrano.

Cuban authorities hope to make the Cuban cuisine an additional tourism attraction to foreign visitors.

Some 4.2 million foreign visitors are expected to arrive in the island in 2017, according to official figures.
Afghan presidential candidate Abdul Rashid Dostum climbs on top of a horse and waves at throngs of supporters at a campaign rally in a Kabul stadium Oct. 6, 2004. (Associated Press/David Guttenfelder)

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani likes to say that he has the worlds most difficult job, and no one doubts that he is at least in the running. But amid the plethora of problems he faces, it might come as a surprise that his first vice president, whom he selected, is one of the biggest.

Then again, Abdurrashid Dostums name is synonymous with volatility and brutality. For decades, the former plumber, wrestler and oil refinery worker has led northern Afghanistans ethnic Uzbeks, first as a ruthless  and reckless  militia commander, now as a politician. The U.S. State Department, in cables released by WikiLeaks, once called Dostum a quintessential warlord, and Ghani himself termed him a known killer.

That didnt stop Ghani from making a deal with him. In the last presidential election, Dostum promised and delivered to Ghani the crucial Uzbek vote, propelling the unlikely duo to a narrow victory. But what was convenient a year ago is now quite the opposite. Instead of helping Ghani unite the country, Dostum has revived a sense of indignation toward Afghanistans ethnic Pashtun majority and cobbled together an insurrection in the multiethnic north.

Ghani and Dostums fragile compact began to unravel when the vice president was accused last December of ordering an elderly political rival to be manhandled and sodomized with a Kalashnikov. It was the second time he had been charged with a similar offense. After the first instance in 2008, Dostum went into a long exile at his lavish home in Turkey. Since refusing to cooperate with the attorney general in May, he has been out of Afghanistan, mostly in Turkey again.

Dostum claims the charges are a form of blackmail, aimed at stripping him of his authority. His followers contend that Ghani used Dostum for votes and is consolidating power into a cabal of ethnic Pashtuns. They say the government neglects and even encourages the deterioration of security in the minority-dominated areas in the north where the Taliban and the Islamic States regional affiliate have wrested control of numerous districts and launched a string of suicide bombings and kidnappings.





Last month, Dostum attempted to fly from Turkey to the northern city of Mazar-e Sharif, but the government prevented the plane from landing once it learned who might be on board. At a meeting of Dostums followers in late July, two of his closest aides expressed hope that he would return any day, probably by barging across a nearby land border with either Uzbekistan or Turkmenistan. His return, they said, would mark the beginning of a massive wave of protests.

[Trumps crude view of Afghanistan wont solve U.S.s longest-running war]

Dostums co-conspirators call themselves the Coalition for the Salvation of Afghanistan. They have not always been friendly with each other. Foremost among them is Tajik warlord-turned-provincial-governor Attah Mohammed Noor  against whom Dostum fought vicious battles in the early 1990s. They are joined by Mohammad Mohaqiq, an ethnic Hazara leader and deputy to the governments chief executive, and Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani, a member of Noors Jamaat-e-

Islami party. Together they claim to represent Afghanistans three largest ethnic minorities, although the depth of their support among the public, let alone within their own parties, is yet to be put to the test.

They insist that they are not calling for the collapse of the government, only that Ghani relinquish power to officials and cabinet ministers hailing from various parties and ethnicities, Dostum prime among them. A key demand is that the criminal case against Dostum be dropped and his return to Afghanistan expedited. Their rhetoric is menacing.

We see this as a tyrant government, Noor said in an interview at his opulent office in Mazar-e Sharif. He said that the coalition is negotiating with the government but that if coalition members arent heeded, that could change. We may have to take control of administrative buildings and airports to put pressure on and paralyze the government, he said.

Noor took aim at the U.S. government, too, which coalition supporters see as taking Ghanis side in what should be an internal political dispute.

We were the ones, not Ghani, who helped the U.S. fight the Taliban, he said. It is wrong that the U.S. should use us when they need us and then throw us away like empty Pepsi cans. They shouldnt support a group of five individuals against everyone else, he added, referring to an earlier claim that all government decision-making is channeled through Ghani and four others, all Pashtuns.

[What would happen if the United States totally disengaged from Afghanistan?]

The allegations of unscrupulousness fly both ways. Ghanis office has been dismissive of the coalition, saying that its members outrage stems not from any illiberalism on his part but from the fact that his firm stance on eliminating corruption has cut off strongmen such as Noor and Dostum from systems of patronage. Ghani, a Western-educated former World Bank employee who gave up U.S. citizenship to run for president, has emphasized transparency as a way of shoring up Afghanistans corruption-riddled institutions.

For the first time, powerful people feel that their wrongdoings will be accounted for through a proper apolitical, independent judiciary  and they feel threatened, said Haroon Chakhansuri, a deputy chief of staff in Ghanis office.

The rift risks exacerbating ethnic polarization, especially with coalition leaders claiming that Ghani is brazenly limiting power, not just to Pashtuns, but also to a small group of confidants from his clan  and all under the nose of American advisers who espouse inclusive governance.

On the other side, the lack of any major Pashtun leader in the coalition has made Pashtuns in the north uneasy about the coalitions intentions.

This coalition is nothing but a coalition of killers, said M.W. Matin, a doctor in Mazar-e Sharif who plans to run for office in next years parliamentary elections. But the tragedy is that Ghani had to bring a killer like Dostum into his office just to win.

For some Uzbeks, Dostums violent past is a source of pride. They believe him when he claims to be descended from an ancient line of Uzbek emperors. His face looks out from dozens of giant billboards over Mazar-e Sharifs drab grid of streets.

We say that Ghani has a money bank but Dostum has a people bank,  said Sher Aqah Tataroghla, a 23-year-old student living in a hostel that is mostly Uzbek. In the past we couldnt even speak Uzbek in public, but now youll see it on signs around the city. One hundred percent of us are behind him.

Tajiks in Noors party and Hazaras in Mohaqiqs do not seem to be uniting behind the coalition as uniformly as Uzbeks. Those leaders command more limited cachet in their communities, with followings that pale in intensity compared with Dostums. Stoking that sense of ethnic solidarity  mobilized through voting blocs as well as people in the streets  may well be the crux of the coalitions ultimate strength. Without it, many Afghans may find it difficult to see its leaders as fighting for anything but themselves.

Its not for salvation as they say, it is about their money and their pride  thats how politicians are all over the world, right? said Moqaddas Rahim, 28, who has been unemployed for four years after serving as an interpreter for U.S. forces. He knows how to use a computer and speaks six languages, including fluent English with a distinctly southern twang.

To be a good Afghan, you cant trust your government, he said. Look, Im hopeless, man  not about my God but about my country. Here, the worst criminals become the most powerful people.

Sayed Salahuddin contributed to this report.

Read more:

Behind the front lines in the fight to annihilate ISIS in Afghanistan

Afghan government controls just 57 percent of its territory, U.S. watchdog says

Civilian casualties hit record numbers this year in Afghanistan

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
The Qatar-based news network Al Jazeeras Jerusalem office. Israel plans to shut down the office, accusing the network of incitement. (Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel plans to shut down Al Jazeeras Jerusalem office, stop transmitting its broadcasts and strip the Qatar-based channels journalists of their credentials, the countrys communications minister said Sunday.

Ayoub Kara accused the broadcaster of incitement as he announced the plans for shuttering the stations operations.

Freedom of expression is not freedom to incite, he said, according to a ministry statement. Democracy has limits.

Al Jazeera denounced the decision made by a state that claims to be the only democratic state in the Middle East, and said it was unclear when the Israeli government would act on Karas request.

The broadcaster added that it will fight any attempt to close its office in the courts and would also continue to cover news in the neighboring Palestinian territories.

A legal amendment will need to be made to adopt the measures, the ministry statement said, with the law updated to reflect the current geopolitical reality.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted his support for the move, having publicly vowed to close down Al Jazeeras Jerusalem bureau last month. He has been attempting to rebuild his following among right-wing voters after agreeing to remove metal detectors at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem last month, which was seen by some Israelis as a capitulation to Palestinian worshipers after a two-week-long stand off. He also accused the channel of incitement; however, his office declined to give specific examples of content it deemed to have stoked tensions.

The announcement also came just days after Netanyahus former chief of staff agreed to testify against him in relation to allegations of fraud and breach of trust, throwing his continued tenure into jeopardy.



[The Persian Gulf crisis over Qatar, explained]

Al Jazeera has accused Israel of siding with four Arab states, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, that are imposing an economic blockade on Qatar and have severed diplomatic relations with the country. They accuse Qatar of backing terrorism and have demanded the shutdown of Qatari-funded Al Jazeera.

Saudi Arabia and Jordan have closed Al Jazeera offices in recent months, while the channels signal has been blocked in the United Arab Emirates.

The collusion by Netanyahu with his Arab autocratic neighbors leaves little doubt that free independent media and truth are ready to be sacrificed as collateral damage in the power politics of the region, Al Jazeeras Jerusalem bureau chief, Walid Omary, wrote in an opinion piece in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. Since its inception, Al Jazeera has provided Israel with a rare conduit for airing its viewpoints to Arab and Muslim audiences and participating in dialogue with them.

Although it has never been banned from Israel, the channel has faced similar criticism in the past.

During the 2014 conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, then-Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman also called for the channel to be closed.

Changing the law in order to shut down a media organization for political reasons is a slippery slope, the executive secretary of Israels Foreign Press Association, Glenys Sugarman, told the news agency Reuters.

Read more

Qatar agrees to combat terrorism financing under deal with U.S.

Why wealthy Qatar keeps the money flowing to Gaza

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Monday that North Korea could show it is ready for negotiations by stopping missile launches, and said he told Russian diplomats that the Kremlins meddling in U.S. elections had created serious mistrust of them among Americans.

North Korea, meanwhile, reacted to the U.N. Security Councils new sanctions by threatening a thousands-fold retaliation against the United States and asserting that sanctions would never force the country to abandon its nuclear program. There is no bigger mistake than the United States believing that its land is safe across the ocean, according to the government statement carried by the official media.

Yet in his remarks to reporters at a regional conference in which North Koreas missile and nuclear tests have dominated discussions, Tillerson held out an olive branch to Pyongyang by saying the United States will sit down for talks when conditions are right to discuss denuclearization and steps to ensure North Korea can feel secure and prosperous.

The best signal that North Korea could give us that theyre prepared to talk would be to stop these missile launches, he said. Weve not had any extended period of time where they have not taken some type of provocative action by launching ballistic missiles. I think that would be the first and strongest signal they could send to us, would be to stop these missile launches.

Pressed for a time frame, Tillerson said, Well know it when we see it.

Were not going to give someone a specific number of days or weeks, he added. This is not Give me 30 days and were ready to talk. Its not quite that simple. It is all about how we see their attitude in approaching a dialogue with us.

Tillerson has used the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathering here in the Philippine capital to hold meetings on the sidelines with allies and adversaries.

Following a meeting with his counterparts from Australia and Japan, the three countries issued a statement urging the international community to pressure North Korea to abandon its threatening and provocative actions, urging the new sanctions be strictly implemented.

Tillerson also said that when he met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Sunday, he tried to drive home the point that Russias meddling in the 2016 presidential election had a deep and divisive effect on relations between the two countries.

He described his conversation with Lavrov as trying to help them understand just how serious this incident had been and how seriously it had damaged the relationship between the U.S. and the American people and the Russian people  that this had created serious mistrust between our two countries and that we simply have to find some way to deal with that.

Tillerson said he also told Lavrov the United States has still not decided how to respond to Russias move to expel hundreds of U.S. diplomats. He said a response would come by Sept. 1.

Earlier Sunday, China delivered frank advice to North Korea, its outcast neighbor, telling Pyongyang to make a smart decision and stop conducting missile launches and nuclear tests.

The statement by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi came on the heels of a U.N. Security Council decision to impose additional sanctions on North Korea and its exports, and it suggested that the American push to further isolate the regime of Kim Jong Un is reaping some dividends. But Wang also called on the United States to dial back the tension.

After meeting with North Koreas top diplomat at the ASEAN gathering here, Wang said that the situation on the Korean Peninsula is critical  but that it could be a turning point for negotiations over North Koreas nuclear proliferation.

Do not violate the U.N.s decision or provoke international societys goodwill by conducting missile launching or nuclear tests, Wang said after talks with Ri Yong Ho, North Koreas foreign minister. Wang, however, quickly added, Of course, we would like to urge other parties like the U.S. and South Korea to stop increasing tensions.

Tillerson arrived in Manila on Saturday night in what State Department officials said would be a concerted effort to enlist other countries in the campaign to get North Korea to abandon its missile and nuclear tests. Concern has mounted that North Korea is developing its missile technology more quickly than expected, after tests last month of missiles that experts said are capable of striking the U.S. mainland, perhaps as far inland as Chicago.

Certainly we want to resolve this issue through negotiations, and this pressure campaign, the sanctions, its all about trying to convince the North Koreans that the fast way forward is to come back to the table and talk, said Susan Thornton, assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific affairs.

[Trump warns of severe consequences for N. Korea as Russia, China balk at tough talk]

President Trump, who is at his golf club in New Jersey, tweeted on Sunday night: Just completed call with President Moon of South Korea. Very happy and impressed with 15-0 United Nations vote on North Korea sanctions.

In the hour-long phone call, Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed to cooperate and apply maximum pressure and sanctions on North Korea in a telephone call on Monday, the Souths presidential office said, according to Reuters.

Moon was quoted as saying there is a need to show North Korea that the door to dialogue is still open, should Pyongyang give up its nuclear program.

In Washington, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway reveled in the vote, which took place Saturday. On ABCs This Week, she said Sunday: And then you also just yesterday saw a unanimous rebuke of North Korea. The greatest economic sanctions package ever levied against them, itll cost about $1 billion. Even allies in the region like China, Japan, South Korea, all agreeing with the United States that North Korea and its nuclear capabilities must be stopped.

But Tillerson also has pointedly stated several times that the United States does not seek regime change or a rapid reunification of the Koreas, which have been in a state of suspended hostility since an armistice was declared in 1953.

On Sunday, he declared the latest U.N. sanctions a good outcome. That prompted South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha to correct him slightly. It was a very, very good outcome, she said.

South Korean officials told reporters that Kang and Tillerson had agreed to pursue the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through peaceful measures.

But the diplomatic road ahead is rocky. U.S. officials rejected Beijings call for the North to halt its nuclear program in exchange for the United States and South Korea suspending joint military exercises, which Pyongyang considers a prelude to an invasion and regime change.

This kind of moral equivalency thats implied by the freeze for freeze, which is between the North Koreans shooting off missiles that are prohibited and our reasonably defensive exercises that we undertake in our alliance with the South Koreans to protect them from these launches, is not a reasonable kind of a trade, Thornton said.

Thornton also said the United States would be watchful to ensure that China did not slip from its adherence to the new sanctions, which she characterized as the strongest in a generation.

We want to make sure China is continuing to implement fully the sanctions regime, she said. Not this kind of episodic back and forth that weve seen.

[As concern about North Korea deepens, the U.S. and China are at odds ]

The United States has unsuccessfully lobbied for the 27 members of the ASEAN Regional Forum to suspend North Koreas membership. The response has been polite but noncommittal.

U.S. officials have been adamant that there will be no direct meetings with North Koreans in Manila, even among lower-level officials.

The ASEAN conference also addressed other issues of regional concern.

Delegates are working to establish the framework for a code of conduct in the South China Sea that would reaffirm respect for the freedom of navigation and overflight, and outline how to arbitrate disputes. The demands that China stop expanding and reinforcing man-made islands in the sea, however, have been watered down from a year ago as more pressing demands have risen to the forefront.

[Trump thought China could get North Korea to comply. Its not that easy.]

The United States is particularly concerned about Islamist militants gaining a foothold in the Philippines after being pushed out of Syria and Iraq. In the city of Marawi in the countrys south, Philippine forces are fighting militants who claim to be affiliated with the Islamic State.

Tillerson started the day on a somber note when he visited the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, where 17,000 American and Philippine troops who fought in the Pacific during World War II are buried.

After touring the site and walking past large stone slabs inscribed with the names of more than 36,000 men and women missing in action in the theater between 1941 and 1945, Tillerson signed a visitors book, adding after his signature, Let us never forget  FREEDOM.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 10:45:09|Editor: Zhou Xin

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LOS ANGELES, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- An emergency curfew was implemented by the Crow Tribe for the entirety of the Crow Indian Reservation in the northwest U.S. state of Montana state.

According to reports by local KTVQ news channel Saturday, the curfew was imposed after a shooting incident at a residence there on Friday afternoon, in which three were killed and two others were injured.

The video clips posted on the TV station's website showed policemen holding rifles searched a house in a small village in the area. Officials have not released the names of the victims and no arrests were made, the report said.

Under the tribe's curfew order, all vehicles traveling on roadways within the boundaries of the Crow Reservation during night are subject to being stopped, and those on board must present valid identification upon law enforcement request.

An investigation into the shooting incident is still going on, with the participation of the FBI, the Bureau of Indian Affairs of U.S. Department of Interior, the Montana Highway Patrol and local sheriff's office.
Move over, Baby Groot: The Guardians of the Galaxy have a new adorable recruit  and hes NASA-approved.

NASA recently announced that it has a job opening for a Planetary Protection Officer, someone who can protect Earth from organic-constituent and biological contamination in human and robotic space exploration. (Basically, aliens.) The job posting drew the attention of Jack Davis, a fourth grader from New Jersey, and he sent NASA his application for the gig, signing his letter, Jack Davis, Guardian of the Galaxy, fourth grade.

I may be nine but I think I would be fit for the job, Davis wrote. One of the reasons is my sister says I am an alien. Also, I have seen almost all the space and alien movies I can see. I have also seen the show Marvels Agents of SHIELD and hope to see the movie Men in Black. I am great at video games. I am young, so I can learn to think like an alien.

When 4th grader and self-proclaimed Guardian of the Galaxy, Jack, wrote to us about applying for a job, we replied https://t.co/932pj3Q50B pic.twitter.com/RhcGdnzGAw  NASA (@NASA) August 4, 2017

Davis letter attracted the attention of NASAs planetary science director Jim Green, who sent him a letter thanking him for his interest and encouraging him to keep vigilant. (Davis also received a phone call from NASAs planetary research director, too.)

We are always looking for bright future scientists and engineers to help us, so I hope you will study hard and do well in school, Green wrote. We hope to see you here at NASA one of these days!

Read Davis full letter  and NASAs response  on the NASA website. And hey Jack, if the NASA thing doesnt work out, EWs always looking for someone whos well-versed in space and alien movies.
American Airlines Flight 759 headed from Athens, Greece to Philadelphia experienced extreme, unexpected turbulence that left 10 people (passengers and crew) hospitalized, according to reports.

The flight had almost 300 people on board and eventually landed safely in Philadelphia. Jessica Huseman, a reporter on the flight, tweeted her experience after the plane had safely landed in Philadelphia.

SEE ALSO: American Airlines delayed a flight because the plane smelled like pee

"Turbulence on flight was so insane and unexpected a flight attendant dislocated his shoulder," she tweeted.

"Some passengers are injured as well. We all used our fleece blankets to mop the ceiling of the plane down after drinks went flying," she continued, before praising the American Airlines attendants.

No warning at all. Plane lurched thru the air. Honestly, terrifying.  Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) August 5, 2017

Huseman explained that the flight attendants had just handed out drinks to passengers, which meant when the plane began experiencing turbulence, beverages went flying.

Lol guys there's coffee inside the lights. INSIDE. God I smell terrible. pic.twitter.com/lcQ2GawaR8  Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) August 5, 2017

According to a report from Action News, an Philadelphia ABC affiliate, people also went flying within the aircraft.

"Thirty minutes out. They were giving us our drinks," passenger Ian Smith told Action News. "The flight attendants were in the last couple rows when they said 'fasten your seat belts.' And then they said for the flight attendants to get to their seats, and they didn't even have time. It started shaking, then it took a big drop. Babies screaming, people in front of us hitting the ceiling," Smith said.

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American has already called me, and will be calling everyone on the flight. Impressed again. Hoping for speedy recoveries for the crew.  Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) August 5, 2017

In a statement made to Fox News Travel, American Airlines explained what happened after the "severe turbulence."

"The seat belt sign was on at the time. Three passengers and seven crew members were transported to a local hospital for evaluation. We are taking care of our passengers and our crew members at this time and want to thank our team members for keeping our passengers safe," a statement read.
Martin Shkreli, the eccentric former pharmaceutical CEO notorious for a price-gouging scandal and for his snide "Pharma Bro" persona on social media, was convicted on Friday on federal charges he deceived investors in a pair of failed hedge funds.

A Brooklyn jury deliberated five days before finding Shkreli guilty on three of eight counts. He had been charged with securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Prosecutors had accused Shkreli of repeatedly misleading investors about what he was doing with their money. Mostly, he was blowing it with horrible stock picks, forcing him to cook up a scheme to recover millions in losses, they said.

Martin Shkrelli Credit: Lucas Jackson/Reuters

Shkreli, 34, told "lies upon lies," including claiming he had $40 million in one of his funds at a time when it only had about $300 in the bank, Assistant U.S. Attorney Alixandra Smith said in closing arguments. The trial "has exposed Martin Shkreli for who he really is - a con man who stole millions," added another prosecutor, Jacquelyn Kasulis.

But the case was tricky for the government because investors, some wealthy financiers from Texas, testified at the trial that Shkreli's scheme actually succeeded in making them richer, in some cases doubling or even tripling their money on his company's stock when it went public. The defence portrayed them as spoiled "rich people" who were the ones doing the manipulating.

Ex-pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli leaves after his appearance at the U.S. District Court f Credit: Kevin Hagen/Getty

"Who lost anything? Nobody," defence attorney Ben Brafman said in his closing argument. Some investors had to admit on the witness stand that partnering with Shkreli was "the greatest investment I've ever made," he added.

For the boyish-looking Shkreli, one of the biggest problems was not part of the case - his purchase in 2014 of rights to a life-saving drug that he promptly raised the price from $13.50 to $750 per pill. Several potential jurors were kept off the panel after expressing distain for the defendant, with one calling him a "snake" and another "the face of corporate greed."

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The defendant also came into the trial with a reputation for trolling his critics on social media to a degree that got him kicked off Twitter and for live-streaming himself giving maths lessons or doing nothing more than petting his cat, named Trashy. Among his other antics: boasting about buying a one-of-a-kind Wu-Tang Clan album for $2 million.

During about a month of testimony, Shkreli appeared engaged at times, grinning when his lawyer described him as a misunderstood misfit. Other times he looked bored, staring into space and playing with his hair.

Shkreli, who comes from an Albanian family in Brooklyn, was arrested in 2015 on charges he looted another drug company he founded, Retrophin, of $11 million in stock and cash to pay back the hedge fund investors. Investors took the witness stand to accuse Shkreli of keeping them in the dark as his scheme unfolded.

"I don't think it mattered to him - it was just what he thought he could get away with," said Richard Kocher, a New Jersey construction company owner who invested $200,000 with Shkreli in 2012. "It was insulting."

Shkreli's lawyer agreed his client could be annoying, saying, "In terms of people skills, he's impossible," and referring to him as a "nerd" and a "mad scientist." But he said his hedge fund investors knew what they were getting.

"They found him strange. They found him weird. And they gave him money. Why? Because they recognised genius," Brafman said, adding that they had signed agreements that his client wasn't liable if they lost their money.

Jurors also heard odd vignettes befitting the quirky defendant: how Shkreli slept on the floor of his office in a sleeping bag for two years; how a drug company board member and former American Express executive wrote an email saying he'd meet with Shkreli "only if I can touch your soft skin"; how Shkreli wrote a letter to the wife of an employee threatening to make the family homeless if the man didn't settle a debt.

Shkreli didn't testify. But rather than lay low like his lawyers wanted, he got into the act by using Facebook to bash prosecutors and news organisations covering his case. In one recent post, he wrote, "My case is a silly witch hunt perpetrated by self-serving prosecutors. ... Drain the swamp. Drain the sewer that is the (Department of Justice.)"

The judge ordered Shkreli to keep his mouth shut in and around the courtroom after another rant to new reporters covering the trial.

Prosecutors "blame me for everything," he said. "They blame me for capitalism."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 11:40:20|Editor: Mengjie

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HIROSHIMA, Japan, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Hiroshima, the city that suffered U.S. atomic bombing in 1945 during World War II, commemorated the 72nd anniversary of the tragedy on Sunday at the city's Peace Memorial Park, with its mayor calling for peace and a world free of nuclear weapons.

Over 50,000 people attended the ceremony, including survivors of the attack, their descendants, peace activists and representatives from some 80 countries and regions.

Kazumi Matsui, mayor of the city, made a peace declaration to the audience. He mentioned the loss of lives and culture and the sufferings caused by the atomic bombing and urged the Japanese government to "do all in its power" to facilitate a nuclear weapon-free world.

He also urged the government to give more support to the surviving victims of the 1945 atomic bombings and " many others who also suffered mentally and physically from the effects of radiation."

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe delivered a speech at the ceremony, in which he made no mention of the historical background for the atomic bombings or Japan's aggressive war against its neighbors.

"By firmly maintaining our three non-nuclear principles (of not producing, possessing or allowing nuclear weapons on Japanese territory) and continuing to appeal to both nuclear and non-nuclear states, Japan is determined to lead the international community," he said.

While Abe spoke, shouts of protest rang out from around the park, protesting against the prime minister's long-held ambition of revising the pacifist Constitution and other policies that they say could bring Japan to war, as well as the recent scandals that have plunged Abe's approval rating.

Hundreds of protesters gathered around the park, holding banners and shouting slogans such as "Oppose war and Constitution revision" and "Abe shall step down."

"I'm against Abe attending this ceremony, for his administration only protects the interests of some people and he tries to revise the pacifist Constitution and could drag Japan into war," said Takehiko Matsumoto, a protester from Sendai.

To accelerate Japan's surrender in the WWII, the U.S. forces dropped two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki respectively on Aug. 6 and Aug. 9, 1945. Japan surrendered to the Allied Forces on Aug. 15, 1945, bringing an end to WWII.
The total solar eclipse coming to the United States in just a few weeks is exciting and rare event, but its important to keep safety in mind when planning your viewing experience. The eclipse is going to be extraordinary for the 14 states where it will be visible in totality. But before you step outside and gaze up at the sky make sure you know how to protect your eyes. The experience of viewing the eclipse could easily be hampered by eye damage.

There are certain glasses you can order to wear while viewing the eclipse. But as the hype around the glasses increases some sellers may be looking to just make a sale without ensuring quality. To be sure that your eyes are properly protected, make sure you have authentic glasses.

Read: Solar Eclipse 2017: NASA Wants You To Help Collect Data On Event

According to NASA, the only safe way to look at the eclipsed, or partially eclipsed, sun is through special sun filter glasses of hand-held filters. You should only look at the sun without these glasses or a filter once the moon is covering the sun completely. Keep in mind that the moon will only cover the sun for a short amount of time so as soon as you see bright sun begin to peek out from behind the moon, put your glasses back on.

Total Solar Eclipse 2016

Photo: Reuters

NASA says dont try to look at the sun with normal sunglasses or a home-made filter. Any glasses or filters you buy should have been verified by an accredited testing laboratory to meet the ISO 12312-2 international safety standard for such products, says NASA.

There are a few companies NASA suggests as retailers of reliable glasses and filters that have met the safety standards. There is an entire web page dedicated to the companies that create certified glasses, stores that sell them and websites and physical locations where the glasses can be purchased.

Some of the reliable manufacturers of eclipse glasses include TSE-17, American Paper Optics and Celestron. But you can check NASAs full list of reputable suppliers here. If youre worried about getting the glasses on time for the Aug. 21 eclipse and dont want to place an order online you can check some local stores that carry glasses from these retailers and manufacturers.

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2017 total eclipse

Photo: NASA

Read: Total Solar Eclipse August 2017: What It Is, How And Where To See It

You might not expect it but stores like 7-Eleven, Toys R Us and Walmart actually carry eclipse glasses. Not all of the locations nationwide will have the glasses, so NASA recommends checking your local store or calling to see if they have ISO compliant glasses or filters. But NASA warns, You can confidently buy solar viewers if you find them in their stores  but not necessarily on their websites.

Even if you're not in the path of totality but plan to view the eclipse, you need eye protection. You can check what the eclipse will look like in your location easily online.

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In an unusual stunt, a Boeing plane created an outline of itself in the skies over 22 states in America during a 4,000-mile test flight, inviting appreciation and amusement in equal measure.

After it's 18-hour flight, the pilots of the 787-8 Dreamliner  a long-haul, mid-size wide body, a twin-engine jet airliner  created an outline of their own aircraft that spanned the country from border to border.

"Rather than fly in random patterns, the test team got creative," Boeing said. "The nose of the Dreamliner is pointing at the Puget Sound region, home to Boeing Commercial Airplanes."

The flight-path illustration in the shape of the Dreamliner has wings stretching from Texas to Michigan. The tip of the tail touches Alabama, and the nose is over western Wyoming.

The Dreamliner took off from Boeings Seattle headquarters in Washington D.C. on Tuesday, and aviation fanatics were able to track its unusual route as the flight path began to take shape using Flightradar24.

After taking off, the flight headed east toward Lake Superior and Marquette, Michigan. There it took a more than 180-degree turn that took it back over Beacon, Michigan. Then it changed course again over Paulding, Michigan and began flying southwest. It kept on that course until it was over southeastern South Dakota, where it took an abrupt right. After flying for a bit, it took two lefts and a right.

Eventually the flight path took the crew over 22 states, twisting and turning their way south before reversing and turning back toward the Canadian border.

Interestingly, this is not the first time Boeing pilots have gone creative in the sky during their flights. Pilots take advantage of waypoints and flight paths to spell out certain words or phrases and even draw pictures.

Earlier in February, a Boeing 737-8 MAX took off from the Seattle Boeing Field for a test flight in northwestern United States, and the pilots spelled out MAX during the nine-hour flight.

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Read: What Happened To Flight MH370? Company Offers To Resume Search For Plane

In 2012, after completing 19 hours of flying the 787 Dreamliner  the longest test flight till date  the test pilots displayed their creative streak to mitigate the tedium of the long flight.

According to reports, the flight plan included more than 140 waypoints, and the pilots not only spelled out "787" across the sky but also managed to add the Boeing logo to it. The sky art stretched from Washington to Iowa.

The words, phrases, and images can be viewed by aircraft manufacturers and by people online, using flight tracking programs such as Flightradar24 and FlightAware.

Read: How Much Does Air Force One, Presidential Aircraft, Cost To Operate?

However, few estimates revealed that the 787-8s flight dumped more than 3,00,000 kg of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

The aviation giant got mixed reactions to its stunt on Twitter, with some users gaping in awe and reminiscing about the time it had happened before and others reprimanding Boeing for wasting fuel and causing undue harm to the environment.

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A 20-year-old British model was kidnapped in Italy and was set to be sold on a pornographic website on the dark web, according to the Italian State Police.

A polish citizen, 30-year-old Lukasz Herba, was later arrested and charged with kidnapping for the alleged crime.

Read: Man Who Was Mistakenly Kidnapped By Biker Gang Recalls His Daring Escape

The woman had initially gone to Milan for a July 10 photo shoot that was scheduled for the next day, but when she entered the apartment for the photo shoot, she was attacked by two men, police said.

The model, whom police have not identified, was reportedly drugged, handcuffed, and held inside a suitcase after being taken hostage, police said.

The kidnapper had demanded that the womans agent pay a $300,000 ransom to prevent her from being sold, a police statement said.

She was then taken in the trunk of a car to a remote location and handcuffed to a chest of drawers, reports said.

Investigators believe the 30-year-old Polish citizen had previously organized similar online auctions in which he advertised abducted young women for sale as prey," NYTimes reported. It is not clear whether he has kidnapped others, howebver.

The model was released after six days and was accompanied to the British consulate in Milan, according to police.

Read: Inmates Documented Their Own Escape on Smuggled Cell Phone, and Posed for Photos

Police said a second man was also reportedly implicated in the crime but did not elaborate.

Further investigations are ongoing in order to "identify possible accomplices and clarify the motive, police said.

Watch: Woman Kidnapped As A Newborn 18 Years Ago Finally Meets Her Birth Parents

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A British model has been left traumatised after she was drugged and kidnapped in Milan while her captor sought to auction her on the internet if her agent did not pay $300,000 (230,000), Italian police said Saturday.

Police said the model, who has not been named, was sent by her UK agent to Milan for a photo shoot on July 10 and was brutally kidnapped the following day by a man who posed as a photographer. They are searching for at least one accomplice.

The psychological pressure on the girl has been extreme, said Serena Ferrari, one of the senior police from Milan involved in the investigation. She was very afraid.

Lukasz Pawel Herba, 30, a Polish citizen who lives in the UK, was arrested by police - Polizia Di Stato

When the 20-year-old model arrived at the fake studio near the citys central railway station on July 11, she was injected with the drug ketamine before being undressed and photographed.

Her kidnapper and an accomplice then handcuffed the young woman, taped her mouth shut and stuffed her in a large bag in the boot of their car before driving her more than two and a half hours to a remote house in Borgial, a tiny hamlet 120 miles from Milan close to the French border.

She was kept handcuffed to a wooden chest of drawers inside a rented house for a week. Police said she was not raped.

Images supplied by Italian police showing a simulation of the kidnappingCredit: Polizia Di Stato

Her British agent notified police when she failed to return to London and he received the subsequent ransom demand.

Lukasz Pawel Herba, 30, a Polish national from Szczecin who lives in the UK, was arrested by police and charged with the attack.

Police said he had confessed to the kidnapping, which investigators described as an elaborate plot that involved months of planning.

The model was held in a remote houseCredit: Alberto Cattaneo

Milan prosecutor Paolo Storari described him as "dangerous".

The model was held captive for seven days while her kidnappers sought to auction her through a "dark web" network named as "Black Death", a group that investigators claimed had been previously investigated by Europol.

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Europol found traces of this group on the "dark web" a couple of years ago, the chief of the Milan branch of Italys state police, Lorenzo Bucossi, told the Daily Telegraph.

We dont know if the accused is linked to an organisation or created his own version of Black Death."

Prosecutor Mr Storari said it was unclear whether this organisation really existed or whether it was created by Mr Herba.

However, he added: "We can say the accused was about to create an auction online.

Police allege Mr Herba used a fake passportCredit: Polizia Di Stato

We have evidence he had contact with people who have kidnapped women in the past.

Police alleged there were three other cases of women being auctioned for sexual slavery on the kidnappers computer, but this was the only concrete case of an auction they had found.

The model was released because she was a mother with a young child.

You have a two-year-old child and our rules exclude mothers, the kidnapper allegedly told her, according to a report in the Corriere della Sera newspaper.

When she was finally released, the captor demanded $50,000 and threatened to kill her if she reported the incident to the police. The kidnapper issued a chilling warning in what appears to be a contract taken from the accuseds computer.

You are being released with a warning. You are certainly aware of your value on human slavery market. A mistake was made by capturing you, the document said in English.

Pictures of the handcuffs supplied by Italian policeCredit: Polizia Di Stato

You have agreed to pay outstanding costs of your release of $50,000. We expect that money to be paid in Bitcoin within one month. Any sort of disobedience will result in your elimination.

You have been treated fairly with respect and we expect to hear the same about us in return.

Milan police swooped when the kidnapper accompanied the woman to the UK Consulate in Milan on July 17. It is unclear why he accompanied her.

Italian police said British and Polish investigators had been working with them closely on the investigation.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: "We have been providing consular support to a British woman in Italy and are in touch with local authorities."

Police are now seeking to identify and trace at least one accomplice.

Police believe Mr Herba had spent months planning the attack and had obtained a false Polish passport under the name Daniel Zawada through the internet in May 2017.

He allegedly used it to acquire a legitimate tax file number and rent two properties in Italy.

He is also alleged to have acquired two balaclavas and a Bitcoin device on the web.

Mr Herbas neighbours in Birmingham described him as a loner who had few friends.

The model was held for seven days in a small town outside TurinCredit: Alberto Cattaneo

One man, who lives in the block next to Mr Herba's described how he would come and go, dressed in a cheap suit and driving a "banged up" car.

"I would see him quite a lot, going in and out of the flat. He would always be wearing a suit when he was going to work," he said.

"It wasn't an expensive-looking suit. He would go off to work in the morning, and then every half hour or so he would come back into the flat. It was weird."

Another resident added: You'd see him coming in and going again all of the time, but you could never really chat to him. Nobody ever came back with him."

Police confirmed that a raid was carried out on Mr Herba's flat in the early morning of 18 July.

A neighbour said: "I woke up to the sound of an officer shouting: 'Break the door down'. There was then a massive banging noise, and the door crashed open.

"When I looked out of my window, I could see police officers in their uniforms moving plastic bags out of the flat and into their cars."

One local resident, Sinead Boyce, 23 described Mr Herba as "a strange, strange bloke" who would walk around with rat on his shoulder.

"He would come and go all the time with his brother, I think they were working on something together. They just seemed to use the flat as a bit of a base.

"Every now and then, we'd see him carrying a rat around with him. I don't think he had a name, the rat.

"But during the summer months in particular, he'd have this rat on him. It was bizarre, really strange. One day my mum asked him if she could see it.

"He came up close to her and she had a good look. But even then, he wouldn't speak to us.

"I've never seen him with anyone else, either, other than his brother."

Another resident added: "Yeah, I'd see him with the rat every now and then. I don't know why he had it."
BERLIN (Reuters) - German police on Saturday arrested two Chinese tourists for making illegal "Heil Hitler" salutes in front of the historic Reichstag building that houses the German parliament. Berlin police officers say they detained the two men, aged 36 and 49, after they were seen striking the Nazi-era pose and photographing each other with their mobile phones. They face charges for "using symbols of illegal organizations", the police said in a statement, and were released after posting bail of 500 euros each. Germany has strict laws on hate speech and symbols linked to Hitler and the Nazis, who ruled between 1933 and 1945. The Reichstag is a powerful symbol in Germany. It was destroyed by fire in 1933 by an arsonist thought to have been paid by the Nazis, who then blamed the blaze on the Communists and used it as an excuse to severely restrict civil liberties. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Andrew Bolton)
The proposal seemed modest in todays polarized political climate: The head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee suggested his group might help fund candidates who didnt share the partys support for abortion rights.

The backlash from abortion-rights activists and organizations was quick and harsh. The basic message: Dont go there.

A coalition of progressive groups, including Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America, issued a statement of principles challenging the party to be unwavering in its support for abortion rights. Scores of women who have had abortions made the same point in an open letter to House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, a staunch abortion-rights supporter who nonetheless says theres room in the party for opposing views

The DCCC should not be supporting any politician who does not respect a womans right to control her body, said Karin Roland, of the womens rights group Ultraviolet. There is no future of the Democratic Party without women  so stop betraying them for a misguided idea of whats needed to win elections.

The latest brush fires were sparked this week by the DCCC chairman, Rep. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, when he told The Hill newspaper that the committee is willing to aid candidates who oppose abortion rights. His core argument: Democrats  after a series of dismaying losses in national and state elections  will only reclaim power by winning in GOP-leaning districts and states where the liberal base cant deliver victories on its own.

A DCCC official, Meredith Kelly, said Lujan isnt looking specifically for abortion-rights opponents, even in conservative districts. But, she added, We are working right now to recruit candidates who represent Democratic values and who also fit the districts they are running in.

The current Congress is almost monolithic when it comes to abortion. Only a small handful of Republicans vote in favor of abortion rights; a similarly small number of Democrats support restrictions on abortion.

Story continues

Some Democratic officials suggest the argument over Lujans remarks is overblown  a handful of outliers wont change the agenda if Democrats reclaim congressional majorities.

Abortion-rights leaders have a different view.

Every time the Democrats lose an election, they start casting about in ways that are deeply damaging to the base, NARAL president Ilyse Hogue said. If they go out and start recruiting anti-choice candidates under the Democratic brand, the message is, Were willing to sell out women to win, and politically thats just suicide.

Dawn Laguens, executive vice president of Planned Parenthood, said politicians who personally object to abortion should be welcome in the Democratic Party  as long as they dont vote to impose that view on others.

Supporting candidates who voted that way, said Laguens, would be comparable to supporting candidates who voted against LGBT-rights.

These are fundamental issues that Democrats have staked their world view around, she said.

Stephen Schneck, a longtime political science professor at Catholic University and board member with Democrats for Life of America, contends that the Democratic leadership would benefit from more diverse views on abortion.

Internal tensions are really good for a party, he said, citing polls showing that more than 20 percent of Democratic voters oppose abortion in most cases.

However, Schneck acknowledged that its hard to find common ground on any abortion-related policies, with the possible exception of boosting support for women who carry babies to term. Advocacy groups on each side of the abortion debate tend to scorn the concept of compromise and to base their fundraising campaigns on vows to be unyielding.

A prominent anti-abortion leader, Marjorie Dannenfelser of the Susan B. Anthony List, a group that supports anti-abortion candidates, said she and her allies were proud of working to weaken the influence of abortion-rights supporters in Republican ranks.

When the roles were reversed 10 years ago, and some within the Republican Party were advocating for a big tent on abortion, we worked very hard at the time to keep the GOP pro-life from the top down, she said in an email.

In some respects, Lujans remarks dont represent a new stance for the Democrats campaign apparatus. The Democratic Governors Association in 2015 helped John Bel Edwards, an anti-abortion Catholic, win the Louisiana governors race, an upset in a Republican-dominated state.

The governors group is now eyeing the 2018 race for governor in Kansas. The Democratic field includes former legislator and agriculture commissioner Joshua Svaty, who had an anti-abortion record in the Kansas House.

Laura McQuade, who runs Planned Parenthood Great Plains, warns that anti-abortion governors play a very different role from rank-and-file members of Congress  getting a chance to weigh in on bills that would restrict abortion access.

McQuade, who is critical of Svatys candidacy, notes that Kansas last two-term Democratic governor, Kathleen Sebelius, supported abortion rights and went on to serve as President Barack Obamas health secretary. Democrats dont have to abandon support for full gender equity to win, she said.

Svaty has not made his abortion stance a feature of his campaign, telling journalists it wouldnt be a defining issue of his administration.

Kansas Democratic Chairman Josh Gibson has avoided taking a side, saying, Its up to primary voters to decide where they want to place their emphasis.

In Louisiana, Democrats embraced Edwards candidacy, even as he featured his abortion opposition in campaign ads. The heavily Catholic state is accustomed to Democrats who oppose abortion rights, and the Democratic Governors Association had no qualms embracing Edwards over his GOP opponent, then-Sen. David Vitter.

As governor, Edwards has left it to the Republican attorney general to defend previously adopted abortion restrictions in court. He has signed new abortion regulations, though he did not champion the proposals. Among them: a three-day waiting period for women seeking abortions.

The issue is personal for him, explains Edwards aide Richard Carbo. Edwards and his wife rejected medical advice to abort a baby of theirs whod been diagnosed with spina bifida. Shes now a healthy adult.

Carbo said Edwards called Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez earlier this year when Perez declared it is not negotiable that every Democrat  should support a womans right to abortion services.

He wants this to be a big tent party on this issue, Carbo said.
Moscow (AFP) - Rescuers Saturday helped an injured worker out of a flooded Russian diamond mine but the search continued for eight other still missing in the disaster, mine owners Alrosa said.

Alisher Mirzayev, 36, was in intensive care in a serious but stable condition in hospital suffering from hypothermia, but his life was not in danger, said a statement from the company.

Rescue efforts were continuing for eight other miners reported missing since Friday's flooding at the Mir mine in Russia's vast Sakha region some 4,160 kilometres (2,600 miles) east of Moscow.

The waters broke through into one of the mine's pumping stations out of a flooded disused crater that contained some 300,000 cubic metres of water, the emergency situations ministry said -- the equivalent of 120 Olympic-size swimming pools.

The accident happened at around 4:30pm (0730 GMT) Friday.

It is believed to have been caused by an "uncontrolled increase in the flow of water" out of the mine's abandoned crater into the underground shaft, Alrosa said.

This was caused by sudden geological processes and the washing away of rocks in the crater, it added, but insisted that all of the mine's "equipment has been regularly tested".

The Sakha region's branch of the Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, said in a statement Friday that it was investigating possible safety violations at the mine.

Russian television said the rescue operation at the mine named Mir, or peace in Russian, had been hampered by a power cut that stopped the lift system from working.

Television channels showed footage posted on social media of water flooding into a control room from the ceiling of underground passageways.

Alrosa, which is Russia's largest diamond producer, said Friday that 133 people had been evacuated from the mine. Two were taken to hospital with minor injuries, the region's health ministry said.

- Vast crater -

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who visited Siberia Friday morning, has been briefed about the accident, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS state news agency.

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Alrosa's president Sergei Ivanov flew to the scene on Friday as did the leader of the Sakha region, Yegor Borisov, who brought additional backup including surgeons and doctors specialising in emergency medicine.

Emergency Situations Minister Vladimir Puchkov also travelled to the scene.

Alrosa's president, Sergei Ivanov, is the 36-year-old son of Putin's former chief of staff, also called Sergei Ivanov. He has headed Alrosa since March this year.

Alrosa, based in the Sakha region, made a net profit of 22.7 billion rubles ($376.37 million) in the first quarter of 2017.

The Mir mine was launched in 2009 and produces a million tonnes of diamond ore per year. Last year the diamonds it produced totalled 3.19 million carats, according to the company's website.

Up to 2001, Alrosa used opencast mining at the Mir site, which has been used for diamond production since 1955. The opencast mine is a vast round crater with a diameter of over a kilometre that is one of the largest manmade holes on Earth.

The last major mining accident in Russia saw 36 people killed by methane explosions that ripped through Severnaya coal mine north of the Arctic Circle in February 2016.

In 2010, 91 people died after a methane explosion at the Raspadskaya coal mine in the Siberian region of Kemerovo.
UPDATE: Sunday, 12 a.m. EDT  Fox News host Eric Bolling was suspended Saturday after an investigation into accusations that he sent lewd texts to multiple women colleagues began.

"Eric Bolling has been suspended pending the results of an investigation, which is currently underway," a Fox News spokesperson told the International Business Times via email.

Following a report of Bollings alleged indiscretion, published by Huffington Post on Saturday, the latest episode of Bollings Cashin In, which typically airs on Saturdays, was replaced by a live half hour of news (America's News HQ). He will also be replaced by substitute hosts on The Specialists.

The investigation is being handled by Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, an international law firm headquartered on Sixth Avenue in New York City.

The anonymous, uncorroborated claims are untrue and terribly unfair, Michael Bowe, Bollings Lawyer said, BBC reported. We intend to fully cooperate with the investigation so that it can be concluded and Eric can return to work as quickly as possible.

Original Story:

Eric Bolling, 54, the co-host of a number of shows on the Fox News and Fox Business channel has been accused of sending inappropriate pictures to female colleagues, according to a report by the Huffington Post.

The news of Bollings reported indiscretion comes after former Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes resigned last year following accusations of sexual harassment by former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson. After Ailes was ousted as the networks head, CNN anchor Alisyn Camerota and other Fox News hosts have come forward, accusing him of similar indecencies.

Even though Bolling sent the lewd texts to his colleagues years ago, the news of the same surfaced Friday after the Huffington Post spoke to 14 internal sources at the network.

One of the recipients revealed she had received pictures of male genitalia sent from a number that belonged to Bolling. She reached out to him requesting him to stop sending her such pictures. However, Bolling did not reply back.

Story continues

Fox News

Photo: Getty Images/ Noam Galai

Apart from the recipients themselves, four other people have borne witness to the indecent pictures and eight others said they were aware of the existence of texts.

Read: Fox News Drops 'Fair And Balanced' Slogan To Distance Itself From Roger Ailes

A Fox spokesperson told the Huffington Post that they were unaware of the accusations until now and will be launching an investigation into the same. On the other hand, Bollings lawyer Michael J. Bowe said his client has no recollections of sending any lewd texts to his female colleagues.

Mr. Bolling recalls no such inappropriate communications, does not believe he sent any such communications, and will vigorously pursue his legal remedies for any false and defamatory accusations that are made, Bowe said.

Born March 2, 1963, in Chicago, Bolling graduated from Rollins College in Florida with a degree of Bachelor of Arts in economics. Thereafter, he got a fellowship to study at Dukes University School of Public Policy.

Eric Bolling

Photo: Getty Images/ Noam Galai

Bolling began his career as a commodities trader in the Mercantile Exchange Market in New York. He mainly traded in natural gas, gold, crude oil and other commodities. Following his success, he was one of the masterminds behind the program Fast Money at CNBC, Not Just Rich reported.

Read: Fox News Worries Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman Isn't American

He moved on to work for Fox Business Network in August 2007. He currently hosts the Fox News show Cashin' in. In the past, he has served as a co-host of the evening talk show The Five.

Bolling's newest gig, which premiered on May 1, is The Fox News Specialists where he serves as a co-host along with Katherine Timpf and Eboni Williams. He has also appeared as a guest commentator on Fox News shows such as OReilly Factor, Fox & Friends and Hannity.

Bolling is married to Adrienne Bolling and has a son, Eric Chase Bolling. Eric Bolling has an estimated net worth of $15 million.

When a former New York congressman was accused of sending lewd texts to multiple women in May, Bolling said: He is a sick human being, to continue to do this time and time again, continue to get caught, saying hes not going to do it again, gets caught again.

According to the Huffington Post, Bolling was also caught making misogynistic comments on air. In a September 2014 segment of The Five, Bolling joked regarding Maj Mariam Al Mansouri, the first woman fighter pilot from the United Arab Emirates who bombed the Islamic State group in Aleppo, Syria. He said whether he would be justifying in saying boobs on the ground instead of boots on the ground. Bolling apologized for his offensive joke later on.

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BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany may have to accept Russia's 2014 annexation of the Crimea region of Ukraine as a "permanent provisional arrangement," the head of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) told a newspaper chain in comments published on Saturday. FDP chief Christian Lindner underscored the importance of good ties with Moscow for Germany and the European Union, and said it might be necessary to "encapsulate" the Crimea issue in order to offer Russian President Vladimir Putin face-saving options to change his policies. Germany has condemned Russia's annexation of Crimea and its support for anti-government separatists in eastern Ukraine, leading Europe in maintaining economic sanctions against Moscow. "We have to get out of the dead-end sitution," Lindner told the Funke Mediengruppe newspaper chain. "To break a taboo, I fear that we must see the Crimea as a permanent provisional arrangement, at least for now." The comments drew immediate fire from Germany's Russia policy coordinator, Gernot Erler, a member of the Social Democrats (SPD), and the head of Germany's pro-environment Greens. Pollsters say the FDP is poised to reenter parliament after the Sept. 24 elections after dropping below the requisite five-percent threshold in 2013. It is seen as a possible coalition partner for Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, who want to govern without the current junior partner, the SPD, who also have traditionally favoured a more conciliatory approach to Russia. Erler told Funke Mediengruppe that Europeans had agreed to focus on ending the violence in eastern Ukraine before tackling the issue of Crimea in a political process at a later point. "It would be helpful if Mr. Lindner would also stick to this agreement," he said. "A common European approach is imperative, especially in light of President (Donald) Trump's withdrawal from the previous consensus approach of the West." Lindner said he backed continued support for the NATO alliance and strong ties to the United States, but called for more creativity in relations with Russia given its importance to German and European security and economic well-being. He also called for a more nuanced approach to reducing sanctions against Russia and said even positive interim steps toward implementing the Minsk accords should be rewarded. Erler said there was no way to ease sanctions unless a ceasefire was implemented. Greens co-leader Cem Ozdemir, also seen as a possible coalition partner for Merkel, also blasted Lindner's comments. "This is the wrong path for a responsible and strong German foreign policy," Ozdemir said. The latest polls show Merkel's Christian Democrats with an 15-point lead over the SPD, with the FDP, Greens, far-left Left party and anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany parties all garnering around eight percent support. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Angus MacSwan, Bernard Orr)
The Daily Beast

Marina Tanaka / EyeEm via GettyTwo planes crashed into each other mid-air Saturday during a Dallas air show that was packed with families marking Veterans Day weekend, with both planes plummeting to the ground in a fiery explosion, video footage shows. Six people who were aboard the planes are feared to have died, ABC reported. The collision took place during the Wings Over Dallas World War II Airshow. A spokesperson for the Dallas Fire-Rescue said he didnt know the status of the pilots, but th
She's a super nanny!

A California caregiver is being celebrated for her selfless effort to whisk a little boy to safety after a burglar broke into the child's home.

Read: Mother Fatally Shoots Intruder She Finds Hiding in Child's Bedroom: 'A Very Scary Situation'

Jenna Lee Baker and the 3-year-old boy she takes care of were out running errands when the burglar smashed his way in.

The suspect could be seen on the family's security cameras making his way through the kitchen of the Irvine home shortly after breaking in.

Home security footage shows the prowler finding Baker's purse and dumping its contents onto the kitchen counter. Then he sauntered through the rest of the house, searching for valuables.

He was still in the home when Baker returned with the child, and she could tell something wasnt right.

That's when the burglar came running down the stairs. The nanny took the little boy and jetted out of the home.

Security cameras caught her running to the neighbors house. The spooked intruder ran away seconds later.

It was sheer panic, she recalled to Inside Edition.

Jonathan Lai, the homeowner and the toddlers father, had nothing but praise for his nanny.

He called Baker a rock star, adding, "What she did for my son, [we're] so grateful that she is in our lives."

Read: Semi-Naked Home Intruder is Found Sleeping in Child's Bedroom, Cops Say

Lai also admitted that he feels disturbed about the break-in.

To have him going in to my kids' rooms, it's the most scary thing to me, he said.

The humble nanny doesnt think of herself as a hero and says she loves the family.

The suspect has not been caught and anyone with information about the suspect was asked to call Irvine police at (949) 724-7170.

Watch: Double Tragedy for Dad of Teen Killed in Home Invasion as Wife Died in Same Week

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(This version of the August 5 story corrects identity of French minister in paragraph 13. Minister of State Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne attended the ceremony, not Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian) By Bozorgmehr Sharafedin LONDON (Reuters) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who was sworn-in for a second term on Saturday, has accused the United States of trying to undermine Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers, telling President Donald Trump that it will be his political suicide. Rouhani, who was decisively re-elected in May after promising to open Iran to the world, took the oath of office before parliament in Tehran in the presence of foreign dignitaries including senior European figures. "The U.S. lack of commitment to implementation of the nuclear deal ... proved it to be an unreliable partner to the world and even to its longtime allies," Rouhani said in a ceremony broadcast live on state television. The deal he championed with the United States and five other major powers in 2015 led to the lifting of most sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on its nuclear programme. Rouhani has intensified efforts to protect the deal - the biggest achievement of his first term - against Washington's return to an aggressive Iran policy. In comments aimed at Trump, Rouhani said: "Those who want to tear up the nuclear deal should know that they will be ripping up their own political life." The U.S. Senate voted in late July to impose new sanctions on Iran over its missiles programme and human rights issues. "Iran would not be the first to pull out of the nuclear deal, but it will not remain silent about the U.S. repeated violations of the accord," Rouhani said. PRAISE FOR EUROPEAN PRESENCE In a meeting with European foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini in Tehran in advance of the ceremony, Rouhani said the U.S. stance could hamper implementation of the nuclear deal. Praising the presence of senior European dignitaries at the ceremony, Rouhani said it showed Europe was determined to expand ties with Tehran. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was also quoted as saying by state media in his meeting with Mogherini: "Mr Trump is trying to destroy the nuclear accord at Iran's expense, and Europe should be conscious of this." Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, President of Iraq Fuad Masum, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe were also present at swearing-in ceremony. Among the Western officials present were France's Minister of State attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, State Secretary at the German Foreign Ministry Michael Roth, and British Minister of State Alistair Burt. Security in Tehran was increased to the highest level, the police said, two months after gunmen linked to the Islamic State group attacked parliament and the mausoleum of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, killing 17 people. Rouhani's deputy said on Wednesday that Rouhani would keep on two important ministers for his second term: Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh and Foreign Minister Zarif. The powers of the elected president are limited by those of the unelected Supreme Leader who outranks him, but the scale of Rouhani's victory can give the pragmatist president a strong mandate. However, analysts say Rouhani may struggle to make a significant impact given sharpening divisions in the dual clerical-republican power structure in Iran, and Trump's aggressive policy against Tehran. (Reporting by Bozorgmehr Sharafedin; Editing by Andrew Bolton)
By Ian Graham BELFAST (Reuters) - Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar called on Friday for the European Union and Britain to find "unique solutions" to their Brexit logjam, including a bespoke customs union. That would solve the problem of a hard border in Ireland once Britain has left the EU, something that is of great concern to Dublin. Varadkar, a new face at EU summits since taking office in June, also suggested Brussels may accede to Britain's insistence that a post-Brexit body other than the European Court of Justice oversee bilateral issues, such as citizens rights and aviation regulation. He said, however, that all these "practical solutions" would need to be asked for and would not be offered. Varadkar was speaking in the British province of Northern Ireland as part of a drive to find a compromise that would avoid a hugely damaging hard border being erected across the island of Ireland. Dublin is hoping compromise can be reached ahead of a key Brexit summit in October, which Varadkar described as a "historic meeting for this island." "Time is running out and I fear there will be no extra time allowed," he told students at the Great Hall at Queen's University in Belfast. In a wide-ranging speech during his first visit to Northern Ireland as Irish prime minister, Varadkar made several proposals to try to break the Brexit logjam. He said a bilateral customs union could be based on one the EU currently has with Turkey. "If we have one with Turkey. Surely we can have one with the United Kingdom?" he said. British Prime Minister Theresa May has said Britain will leave the EU's customs union when it leaves the bloc in order to pursue its own trade agreements with countries around the world. A bilateral customs union would appear to imply that both sides would be free to strike deals with third parties, though Varadkar did not provide detail of the proposal. British membership of the European Free Trade Agreement was also an option, or failing that, Britain could remain in the single market and the customs union during a transition phase, he said. Asked about the proposals, a spokeswoman for the British government said Britain had "been clear that we want a deep and special future partnership with the EU, including a bold and ambitious free trade agreement and a customs agreement." IRISH BORDER? Ireland, which after Brexit will have the EU's only land border with the United Kingdom, is widely seen as the EU country most exposed to the fall-out from Britain's leaving. The issue of how the Republic and Northern Ireland will fare is particularly sensitive given the decades of violence in the province over whether it should be part of Britain or Ireland. Around 3,600 people were killed before the 1998 peace agreement. Varadkar last week said his government would oppose any customs posts or immigration checks on the land border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, but he did not say where they should be placed instead. There have been no customs or immigration checks on the 500 km (310 mile) border since the European single market came into effect in 1993. About 30,000 people cross every day without any border checks. The future of that border is one of three issues -- along with EU citizens' rights and British budget payments to the EU -- on which Brussels says there must be "significant progress" before talks can begin on the free-trade deal London wants. Varadkar also suggested that the EU may be considering compromise on its insistence that the European Court of Justice (ECJ) oversee key elements of any future relationship, such as citizens' rights to live in the United Kingdom and the oversight of regulation of sectors like aviation and nuclear power. May's opposition to any oversight by the ECJ has been a key stumbling block in talks. "At the moment the mechanism by which most European agreements are upheld is through the European Court of Justice and the United Kingdom has indicated it no longer wishes to be part of. So we would need to develop some other mechanism," Varadkar said. (Writing by Conor Humphries, Additional reporting by William James in London; editing by Guy Faulconbridge/Jeremy Gaunt)
Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel said on Sunday it planned to close the offices of Al-Jazeera in the Jewish state, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the Arab satellite news broadcaster of incitement.

Netanyahu had said on July 27 that he wanted Al-Jazeera expelled amid tensions over a sensitive Jerusalem holy site.

"Al-Jazeera has become the main tool of Daesh (the Islamic State group), Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran," Communications Minister Ayoob Kara, a member of the Druze community from Netanyahu's Likud party, told a news conference.

He accused the Qatar-based broadcaster of "inciting violence which has provoked losses among the best of our sons", referring to two Druze policemen who were killed in a July 14 attack near the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in east Jerusalem.

Netanyahu tweeted his congratulations to Kara "who on my instructions took concrete steps to end Al-Jazeera's incitement" in Israel.

An official at Al-Jazeera in Doha said the channel "deplores this action from a state that is called the only democratic state in the Middle East" and called the move "dangerous".

The official, who declined to be named, said the broadcaster would "follow up the subject through appropriate legal and judicial procedures".

Israel's communications ministry said "nearly all countries in the region including Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan, have concluded that Al-Jazeera incites terrorism and religious extremism."

It said it had become "ridiculous that the channel continued to broadcast from Israel".

- Credentials revoked -

Regional kingpin Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt broke ties with Qatar on June 5, accusing it of fostering extremism and later issuing 13 demands, including Al-Jazeera's closure.

The Al-Jazeera official said Sunday he was "surprised" at Israel's move, and defended the channel's "professional and objective" coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Story continues

The channel's Jerusalem bureau chief, Walid al-Omari, said his office had not received any official notification that it would be forced to close.

Speaking on Al-Jazeera, he said the move was related to internal Israeli politics.

"Netanyahu wants to distract attention from issues he is facing," he said, in an apparent reference to ongoing investigations into graft cases allegedly involving the premier.

The Israeli ministry said it would cut the channel's cable and satellite connections and demand that Al-Jazeera journalists be stripped of their credentials.

The closure of Al-Jazeera's offices would come under the remit of security officials.

Israeli authorities would also seek to limit access by the Jewish state's Arab citizens to the station's Arabic-language broadcasts, the ministry said without elaborating.

Arab Israelis, the descendants of Palestinians who stayed after the state of Israel was created in 1948, make up 17.5 percent of the country's population.

Israel has regularly accused Al-Jazeera of bias in its coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Netanyahu heads what is seen as the most right-wing government in Israeli history.

He has frequently criticised the news media, accusing outlets of seeking to undermine his government.

- 'Incitement' -

In July, Netanyahu accused the channel of "inciting violence around the Temple Mount," a sensitive Jerusalem holy site known to Muslims as the Haram al-Sharif compound.

The site in east Jerusalem, which Israel captured during the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed, is central to the Israeli-Arab conflict.

Protests erupted there last month after Israel installed new security measures including metal detectors, after the two Israeli policemen were shot by attackers who emerged from the compound.

"I have appealed to law enforcement agencies several times to close the Al-Jazeera office in Jerusalem," Netanyahu said on July 27.

"If this is not possible because of legal interpretation, I am going to seek to have the necessary legislation adopted to expel Al-Jazeera from Israel."

Palestinians refused to enter the site for nearly two weeks over the new security measures imposed after three Israeli Arabs shot dead the policemen nearby.

That triggered protests which left six Palestinians dead. A Palestinian also broke into a home in a Jewish settlement in the West Bank and stabbed four Israelis, killing three of them.

The crisis ended when the Israeli authorities removed the new security measures including the metal detectors.

Palestinians, who viewed the measures as an Israeli attempt to assert further control over the compound which houses the revered Al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock, then ended their boycott of the site.

Under a decades-old agreement, only Muslims may pray inside the compound, although anyone can visit, including Jews.

burs-srm/par
(WASHINGTON)  Attorney General Jeff Sessions has pledged to clamp down on government leaks that he said undermine American security, taking an aggressive public stand after being called weak on the matter by President Donald Trump.

The nations top law enforcement official is citing no current investigations in which disclosures of information had jeopardized the country, but says the number of criminal leak probes had more than tripled in the early months of the Trump administration.

Justice Department officials are reviewing guidelines put in place to make it difficult for the government to subpoena journalists about their sources, and arent ruling out the possibility that a reporter could be prosecuted.

No one is entitled to surreptitiously fight to advance their battles in the media by revealing sensitive government information, Sessions said Friday in an announcement that followed a series of news reports this year on the Trump campaign and White House that have relied on classified information. No government can be effective when its leaders cannot discuss sensitive matters in confidence or talk freely in confidence with foreign leaders.

Media advocacy organizations condemned the announcement, with Bruce Brown, the executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, saying the decision to review existing guidelines was deeply troubling.

Meanwhile, a White House adviser raised the possibility of lie detector tests for the small number of people in the West Wing and elsewhere with access to transcripts of Trumps phone calls. The Washington Post on Thursday published transcripts of his conversations with the leaders of Mexico and Australia.

Trump counselor Kellyanne Conway told Fox & Friends that its easier to figure out whos leaking than the leakers may realize. And might lie detectors be used? She said: Well, they may, they may not.

Trumps outbursts against media organizations he derides as fake news have led to predictions that his administration will more aggressively try to root out leakers, and the timing of the Justice Departments announcement  one week after the president complained on Twitter that Sessions had been weak on intel leakers  raised questions about whether the attorney generals action was aimed at quelling the anger of the man who appointed him.

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Sessions said in his remarks that his department has more than tripled the number of active leaks investigations compared with the number pending when President Barack Obama left office, and the number of referrals to the Justice Department for potential investigation of unauthorized disclosures had exploded. The Justice Department under Sessions is prosecuting a contractor in Georgia accused of leaking a classified government report to a media organization.

This nation must end this culture of leaks. We will investigate and seek to bring criminals to justice. We will not allow rogue anonymous sources with security clearances to sell out our country, Sessions said in his remarks.

Media organizations also had an often-tense relationship with the Obama administration, whose Justice Department brought more leaks cases than during all previous administrations combined and was criticized for maneuvers seen as needlessly aggressive and intrusive.

That included a secret subpoena of phone records of Associated Press reporters and editors following a 2012 story about a foiled bomb plot, and the labeling of a Fox News journalist as a co-conspirator after a report on North Korea. The Justice Department also abandoned a yearslong effort to force a New York Times journalist to reveal his source in the trial of a former CIA officer who was later found guilty of disclosing classified information.

Following consultation with media lawyers, the Justice Department in 2015 revised its guidelines for leak investigations to require additional levels of approval before a reporter could be subpoenaed, including from the attorney general.

But Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said Friday that they were reviewing how the department conducts leak investigations and whether current regulations impose too many hurdles on their work. Rosenstein declined to comment when asked whether the department would rule out prosecuting journalists.

Rosenstein said the department expected to consult with media representatives about possible changes to the regulations, though any efforts to undo protections for journalists or to make it easier to target sources will encounter deep opposition from news organizations.

The current guidelines reflect a great deal of good-faith discussion between the news media and a wide range of interests from within the Department of Justice, including career prosecutors and key nonpolitical personnel, said Brown, of the press freedom group. They carefully balance the need to enforce the law and protect national security with the value of a free press that can hold the government accountable to the people.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 12:20:27|Editor: Mengjie

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CANBERRA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Australia's world-class universities will be hit with almost 1 billion U.S. dollars' worth of funding cuts under the federal government's higher education changes, data revealed on Sunday.

According to Universities Australia, the peak body for higher education, universities will lose around 1.2 billion Australian dollars (950 million U.S. dollars) in funding between 2018 and 2021 if the government's proposals pass through Parliament.

In Australia's two most populous states, New South Wales and Victoria, the cuts would make up around half the total national cuts at 635 million Australian dollars (503 million U.S. dollars) - at 341 million Australian dollars (270 million U.S. dollars) and 294 million Australian dollars (233 million U.S. dollars) respectively.

According to the data, Western Sydney University, the University of Sydney, Melbourne's Monash University and the University of Melbourne would be among the worst off, with cuts ranging from 58 million Australian dollars (46 million U.S. dollars) over four years to 46.5 million Australian dollars (36.87 million U.S. dollars).

The higher education package was revealed by the government in May, but to almost no fanfare as it was released just after the government's controversial high school funding reforms known as Gonski 2.0.

Speaking to Fairfax Media about the figures on Sunday, Universities Australia's chief executive officer Belinda Robinson said the billion-dollar cuts strike "at the heart of higher education legislation."

"As our economy changes and old industries face new threats, Australia needs to keep - not cut - our investment in universities to create new jobs, new industries and new sources of income for Australia," Robinson said.

"And funding cuts that erode quality risk undermining the 24 billion Australian dollars (19 billion U.S. dollars) in export earnings that our universities help to bring into Australia by educating international students."

The federal opposition was also quick to criticize the government's approach to tertiary education, with Labor's education spokesperson Tanya Plibersek declaring the government's priorities "are all wrong."
A new footage showing an American Airlines flight bursting into flames last year in October surfaced online Friday. The American Airlines flight 383 was about to take off from Chicago's O'Hare Airport to Miami when the right side of the aircraft caught fire, causing emergency evacuations.

It is estimated that the flight lost more than 2,000 gallons of fuel at the time due to fire. The video shows the aircraft picking up speed as it rode down the runway at 147 mph, leaving a trail of black smoke behind, before it slowed down and came to a complete stop, according to the Telegraph.

The flight was carrying 161 passengers at the time of the crash. It could have proved to be quite disastrous if the pilots had not taken the split decision of aborting plans of a take-off and follow emergency protocols to ensure the safety of everyone onboard. The crew too acted swiftly and deployed emergency chutes.

Read: American Airlines Crew Forced Passenger To Sit Next To Masturbating Man, Woman Claims

Two minutes and 21 seconds after the plane went up in flames and it came to a halt, all the passengers and the plane crew was back on the land, at a safe distance from the burning aircraft.

One of the flight attendants described the scene inside the plane as chaotic with the panicked passengers jumping over the seats in order to get to the exit, according to an NBC report. The crew member also said that even though she could see the flames cover the right wing of the plane, she failed in communicating the same to the captain, despite several attempts to do so.

American Airlines

Photo: Getty Images/ YAMIL LAGE

It was reported that no one was hurt in the incident.

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Read: American Airlines Flight Reportedly Delayed For Hours Over 'Urine Smell'

According to the Telegraph, the Boeing 767 blew a tire, part of which smashed through fuel lines to one of the engines, which caused the flight to be engulfed in flames in minutes. However, NBC Chicago puts the cause of the fire to a fan disk in the right engine flying apart.

"Immediately, passengers were at the door, pleading to get off the airplane," the NTSB said in a report, New York Daily News reported. "The 4L slide deployed, but was blowing towards the rear of the airplane because the engine was still running."

The video footage shows several fire engines rushing to the scene and trying to put the fire off.

At the time, investigators looked at whether dry bays above the engines, which are designed solely to prevent an incident from metal shards from entering into fuel tanks in the wing, were faulty.

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(WASHINGTON)  President Donald Trumps former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, disclosed a brief advisory role with a firm related to a controversial data analysis company that aided the Trump campaign, according to a filing Flynn submitted to the White House.

The disclosure of Flynns link to Cambridge Analytica came in an amended public financial filing in which the retired U.S. Army lieutenant general also discloses income that includes payments from the Trump transition team. The filing was made public by the White House on Friday in response to an Associated Press reporters request.

Meanwhile, The New York Times reported Friday night that Robert Mueller, the special counsel investigating possible coordination between Russia and the Trump campaign, has asked the White House for documents related to Flynn.

The newspaper says investigators on Muellers team have asked witnesses whether the Turkish government made secret payments to Flynn during the 2016 presidential campaign. The Times cited anonymous sources close to Muellers investigation.

Flynns now-defunct consulting firm, Flynn Intel Group, is under scrutiny by federal authorities and congressional investigators for its role in research and lobbying work for a Turkish businessman tied to the government of Turkey. The AP reported in May about inconsistencies in Flynns disclosures about payments from the Turkish client, Ekim Alptekin.

The amended disclosure filed Friday by Flynn lists him as an adviser to SCL Group, a Virginia-based company related to Cambridge Analytica, the data mining and analysis firm that worked with Trumps campaign.

A person close to Flynn told the AP that just before the end of the campaign, Flynn agreed to do consulting for the firm, but he never performed any work or accepted any payment as part of the agreement with SCL Group. The person spoke to AP on condition of anonymity Thursday to describe details of the filing made to the White House.

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The details of Flynns role with SCL werent fully laid out, the person said, noting that Flynn terminated his involvement shortly after Trump won the presidency.

Cambridge Analytica is backed by the family of Robert Mercer, a hedge fund manager who also supported the campaign and other conservative candidates and causes. Trump administration chief strategist Steve Bannon was a vice president of Cambridge Analytica before he joined the Trump campaign.

Media reports in Britain and some statements by leaders involved in the pro-Brexit campaign had linked Cambridge Analytica to the successful effort in 2016 to pull Britain out of the European Union. But the company said in a statement Friday that it did not work on the referendum campaign.

Democratic lawmakers and Trump critics have seized on Cambridge Analyticas role as theyve pushed congressional investigators to scrutinize the Trump campaigns data operation as part of probes into Russias interference in the 2016 election. But the Trump campaign has played down the firms involvement. Campaign officials have said they used the company only for a short time for television advertising and paid some of the firms talented data employees, as the AP previously reported .

Flynns previous filing, submitted to the White House and Office of Government Ethics in March, listed at least $1.3 million in earnings, including between $50,000 and $100,000 from his consulting company, Flynn Intel Group Inc. The latest filing lists at least $1.8 million in income.

Flynns amended filing comes some six months after he was ousted from the White House for misleading the vice president about conversations he had with the then-Russian ambassador to the U.S. It also comes as Special Counsel Robert Mueller and congressional committees are scrutinizing Flynns business deals and foreign connections.

The person close to Flynn said he disclosed the information in an amended filing to make sure the public record is accurate and transparent. The person noted that Flynn and his legal team have spent months piecing together the information necessary for the filing without the assistance of the White House counsels office or the Office of Government Ethics.

In the filing, Flynn reports earning about $28,000 from the Trump presidential transition and more than $5,000 as a consultant to an aborted plan to build nuclear power plants across the Middle East. The consulting connection with a group of companies involved in the power plant proposal had been disclosed in Flynns previous filing, but it had not indicated that he had received payment.

Flynns new filing also provided more details about his consulting work for NJK Holding Corporation, a firm headed by Iranian-American multi-millionaire Nasser Kazeminy. The filing shows that Flynn was paid more than $140,000 for his roles as adviser and consultant to Minneapolis-based NJK.

Flynn also served as vice chairman at GreenZone Systems, a tech firm funded by NJK and headed by Bijan Kian, who was Flynns business partner in Flynn Intel.

In a statement to the AP, NJK said Flynn played an advisory role to NJK Holding relative to its investment interests in security. The firm added that in his roles with NJK and GreenZone, Flynn provided his counsel and guidance on public sector business opportunities for secure communications technology within the U.S. Department of Defense and with other agencies.

NJK said Kian has no current involvement with NJK or GreenZone.

Earlier Thursday, Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., the ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, asked Kian for documents detailing Flynns foreign business contacts and travel. Flynn listed Kian as a personal reference in 2016 during his effort to renew his military security clearance. Kian told military investigators that Flynn had several foreign business contacts, but Flynn did not provide any of those contacts to investigators, Cummings said.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama's family sure has come a long way in five generations.

American filmmaker and Selma director Ava DuVernay shared a compelling tweet paying tribute to the former First Lady's great-great-great grandmother, Melvinia "Mattie" Shields McGruder, who was born a slave in South Carolina in 1844.

SEE ALSO: Michelle Obama wished Barack Obama a happy birthday with some absolutely adorable throwback pics

Become your ancestor's wildest dream. pic.twitter.com/4xvyBZauwY  Ava DuVernay (@ava) August 5, 2017

DuVernay tweeted: "Become your ancestor's wildest dreams." The inscription on the tombstone states that, at age six, Mattie was brought to the Shields farm, located in what is now the community of Rex, in Georgia's Clayton County.

Decades later, Mattie's great-great-great granddaughter, Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama, not only went to Princeton University but also earned her law degree from Harvard University before going on to become the 44th First Lady of the United States of America.

The story of Black America is one of strength, faith, and constant endurance. Still striving, but we have a lot to be proud of.  https://t.co/fUhx0HnmhS  Erica Bennett (@EricaANjax) August 5, 2017

DuVerney's tweet even inspired a Columbia University faculty member to share how far his own lineage has come since the days of slavery.

My great-grandfather William Johnson Moore was a slave in Tennessee. I am now the head of @nycpublicdesign and on the faculty at @Columbia. pic.twitter.com/y8azy1TReI  Justin Garrett Moore (@jgmoore) August 5, 2017

No doubt, it's a true testament to recognize how far black America has come since the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery was adopted into the U.S. Constitution in 1865, 21 years after Shields was born.

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What a wonderful testimony of what is possible in the USA! https://t.co/IGNQpN85aU  John London (@jlondon8932) August 5, 2017

It's only a matter of time before Malia and Sasha Obama continue to hold up this upward line of endurance and success, and make their great-great-great-great grandma Shields a proud lady. No pressure, girls.
UNs migration agency shows 232 people died in first seven months of 2017

July saw highest number of deaths of any month this year

At least four people died trying to cross the River Grande in July. Photograph: Rodrigo Abd/AP

More people have died crossing the border from Mexico to the US in the first seven months of 2017 compared to the year before, even though significantly fewer people seem to be attempting the journey, according to the United Nations migration agency.

The number of migrant deaths tallied at the border jumped 17% from 204 in the first seven months of 2016 to 232 migrant fatalities in 2017, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said.

Meanwhile, the US Border Patrol has reported that about half as many migrants were apprehended during border crossings in the first six months of 2016 compared to the first six months of 2017  down from 267,746 people to 140,024 people.

Adam Isacson, senior associate for defense oversight at the Washington Office on Latin America, said the increase was shocking because of the drop in apprehensions, which indicate fewer people migrating overall. The ratio to people dying to people trying has to be way higher than 17%, Isacson told the Guardian.

The report does not identify what could be causing the change, but historically, stricter immigration policies in the US have driven people to take more dangerous routes. This is partially because these policies dont mitigate the factors that drive people to leave, such as the threat of gang violence, crime and lack of economic opportunity.

July saw the highest number of deaths of any month this year, with 50 bodies discovered, including those of the 10 people who died while being smuggled across the border in a sweltering 18-wheel truck. Days later, at least four people, including two children, died trying to cross the Rio Grande.

Isacson said people in Texas are also reporting an especially hot summer, which would cause more dangerous border crossing conditions, and that it was possible increasing violence in border towns could have an impact on the fatality rate.

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There is also a concern that more women and children could be attempting more dangerous border crossings, instead of seeking asylum, because of a reported uptick in cases in which immigration officials have illegally turned back asylum seekers at the southern border since Trump was elected in November 2016.

A lawsuit filed last month accuses US border officials of putting asylum seekers in danger by systemically threatening, misleading or rejecting them.

It would be a nightmare if you have more women and children among those [fatalities]  hopefully that is just a hypothesis that is completely way out there and wrong, Isacson said.

The IOM report notes that the fatality calculation is likely to be an underestimate because migrant fatalities often occur while people are crossing a vast, remote desert or a large, swift body of water.
A group of women take part in afternoon prayers led by Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center Executive Director Mohamed Omar outside the police tape surrounding the center: Aaron Lavinsky/Star Tribune via AP

The FBI is looking for suspects in an explosion at a Minnesota mosque where worshippers had assembled for morning prayers. Officials are investigating whether the explosion was a hate crime.

The blast went off early Saturday morning at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, according to Bloomington Police Chief Jeff Potts. A room in the mosque was damaged, but no people were harmed.

Richard Thornton, special agent in charge of the FBI's Minneapolis Division, said the blast appeared to have been caused by an improvised explosive device. The FBI recovered pieces of the device from the scene.

The agency is now looking for the person responsible for the explosion, and seeking to determine whether it was a hate crime.

At this point, our focus is to determine who and why, Mr Thornton said at a press conference. Is it a hate crime? Is it an act of terror?"

They FBI have so far interviewed witnesses, sent evidence to labs, and collected video and cellphone data for analysis.

The Bloomington Police thanked the FBI and the community as a whole for their help, tweeting: "Thank you Bloomington community for your kind words & support today. We will always be here for you & will serve to the best of our ability."

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke is also aware of the situation, and is in contact with federal and local authorities.

The Department of Homeland Security fully supports the rights of all to freely and safely worship the faith of their choosing and we vigorously condemn such attacks on any religious institution, the DHS said in a statement. We are thankful that there were no injuries, but that does not diminish the serious nature of this act.

Police, federal authorities investigating early morning explosion at Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington. Report came in at 5:05 AM pic.twitter.com/qReNf0NIrh  Stephen Montemayor (@smontemayor) August 5, 2017

Neighbours in the sleepy suburb reported waking up to a loud bang on Saturday morning. Windows in the imam's office at the mosque were shattered, and smoke poured through the building. Asad Zaman, director of the local Muslim American Society, described the attack as a "firebombing".

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Mohamed Omar, the centre's executive director, said one member saw a pickup truck speeding away from the scene shortly after the explosion. He added that the mosque has received threatening phone calls and emails in the past.

The number of anti-Muslim hate crimes has almost doubled this year compared to the same time period in 2016, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. The Council documented 35 attacks on mosques in the first three months of this year.

One regular worshipper at Dar Al-Farooq condemned Saturday's attacks in an interview with the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

We came to this country for the same reason everyone else came here  freedom to worship, said Yasir Abdalrahman. And that freedom is under threat. Every other American should be insulted by this.
India's main opposition Congress Party staged angry nationwide protests Saturday, blaming supporters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for pelting stones at the car of its leader Rahul Gandhi.

Congress workers shouted slogans outside the headquarters of Modi's ruling right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in New Delhi and held street protests in other states.

Gandhi was travelling to a flood-hit area in western Gujarat state Friday when a mob carrying black flags pelted stones at his convoy.

Although Gandhi was unhurt in the attack, the windows of his car were smashed, television channels showed.

"BJP workers threw stones at me, it hit my PSO (personal security officer). It is their style of politics, what can I say," said Gandhi, the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty that ruled India for decades through the Congress party.

Gandhi, 47, has been seeking to revive the party's fortunes after the BJP ousted it from power in 2014 general elections.

Gujarat, Modi's home state, goes to the polls in December with the BJP seeking to retain power.

"Windowpanes of Cong VP's car broken in an organised attack by goons, security staff injured. BJP must know truth can't be silenced," tweeted Randeep Surjewla, a Congress spokesman.

The Congress also lodged a police complaint of "murderous assault" against four BJP workers.

Police have detained one man and are investigating the incident, the Press Trust of India reported.

Gandhi said he was undeterred by the attack.

"Narendra Modi ji, slogans, black flags and stones will not deter us... We will put in all our might into the service of people," he tweeted Friday.

Gandhi later met flood victims in Banaskantha district of Gujarat where severe monsoon flooding has killed more than 200 people so far.
By Wa Lone YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar on Sunday rejected allegations of crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing during a crackdown against Rohingya Muslims last year, accusing the United Nations of making exaggerated claims in its report on the issue. Rohingya militants killed nine border guards in October, sparking a response in which the army was accused of raping Rohingya women, shooting villagers on sight and burning down homes, sending an estimated 75,000 people fleeing to Bangladesh. A U.N. report in February said security forces instigated a campaign that "very likely" amounted to crimes against humanity and possibly ethnic cleansing. This led to the establishment of a U.N. probe which is being blocked by Myanmar. The country's own 13-member investigation team - led by former head of military intelligence and now Vice President, Myint Swe - has been dismissed by human rights monitors as lacking independence to produce a credible report. Speaking to reporters gathered in Yangon to conclude its 8-month-long probe, Myint Swe said the U.N. report exaggerated the claims and created misunderstanding for the international community. "There is no possibility of crimes against humanity, no evidence of ethnic cleansing, as per U.N. accusations," said Myint Swe. He added that, "some people from abroad have fabricated news claiming genocide had occurred, but we haven't found any evidence." The panel said that the U.N. report did not take into consideration "violent acts" committed by the insurgents, instead focusing on the activities of the security forces. The U.N. did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Myanmar commission had received 21 reports from villagers of incidents of murder, rape, arson and torture by the security forces, but, unable to verify their veracity, it referred them to the authorities. "We opened doors for them to complain to the courts if they have evidence that they suffered human rights abuses, but no one came to open a lawsuit until now," Zaw Myint Pe, the secretary of the panel said. The commission blamed the violence on the insurgents, accusing them of links to organizations abroad, "set up to destabilize and harm Myanmar". The treatment of the roughly one million Muslim Rohingya has emerged as majority Buddhist Myanmar's most contentious rights issue as it makes a transition from decades of harsh military rule. The Rohingya are denied citizenship and classified as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, despite claiming roots in the region that go back centuries, with communities marginalized and occasionally subjected to communal violence. (Editing by Antoni Slodkowski and Muralikumar Anantharaman)
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) issued a travel advisory Wednesday for the state of Missouri. The advisory comes in reaction to a new state law that makes it harder to prove discrimination in lawsuits, and to troubling statistics about how much more often black drivers get pulled over compared to white drivers in Missouri.

We felt like we had no other recourse but to warn people, Missouri NAACP President Rod Chapel told International Business Times in a phone interview Friday. [The Missouri Congress] was unwilling to listen or change their position What else could we do?

This is the first time the NAACP has issued such a warning. The NAACP Travel Advisory for the state of Missouri, effective through Aug. 28, 2017, calls for African American travelers, visitors and Missourians to pay special attention and exercise extreme caution when traveling throughout the state given the series of questionable, race-based incidents occurring statewide recently, said the NAACP in a statement about the travel advisory.

READ: Airbnb Partners With NAACP To Encourage Members To Sign Up

The state bill, SB 43, was signed into law June 30 by Republican Gov. Eric Greitens. The law requires people suing for housing or employment discrimination to prove race was the determining factor for the discrimination  not just a contributing factor.

This makes it harder to win discrimination suits, and Chapel called the law a new Jim Crow Bill.

The bill also sets caps for amount a company or organization will be forced to pay for discrimination lawsuits, and it prohibits suing individuals such as a supervisor at a place of employment.

The NAACP hopes that the warning will draw attention to the bill nationally, but also to a troubling statistic cited in the warning.

A June report issued by Attorney General Josh Hawleys office found that black drivers in Missouri were 75 percent more likely to be pulled over than white drivers.

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As we look at the statistics for black drivers being pulled over  its crazy, Lecia Brooks, Outreach Director for the Southern Poverty Law Center, told IBT. Theyre trying to save lives and bring attention [to the issues]  [It] encourages other states to pay attention.

Hawley said that all people should feel welcome in Missouri.

There is no place for racial discrimination in Missouri, said Hawley in a statement. Every law-abiding citizen, no matter their race, should feel welcomed and safe in our state.

The NAACP has never issued a warning for a state before and likens it to State Department travel advisories for other countries. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has issued similar warnings for the states of Arizona and Texas over laws that it felt were anti-immigrant and created situations for peoples constitutional rights to be violated. Edgar Saldivar, senior staff attorney with the ALCU of Texas, talked about their advisory warning people about a Texas law that allows law enforcement to question the citizenship status of detained or arrested people.

The (Texas) travel advisory serves to warn people outside the state of what could potentially occur, under this law, it could essentially become a show me your papers state, said Saldivar. We dont issue these advisories lightly so it is going to generate some publicity, but more than anything its ensuring people of whats going on in the state of Texas.

Chapel echoed the sentiment, saying that people traveling through Missouri might not know about some of the laws affecting people while theyre there.

Attention should be paid to these issues for people not receiving their civil rights, said Chapel.

Chapel has said that while the NAACP had seen progress in some municipalities over black drivers facing a harsher reality with law enforcement than white drivers, they arent seeing the kind of progress they want. He said that he hopes the advisory will help change that.

Supporters of the bill, which goes into effect Aug. 28, like the Missouri Chamber of Commerce said that companies were too vulnerable to lawsuits and that this measure adds protections against frivolous lawsuits.

Trial lawyers profited by exploiting this situation, which forced businesses into a defensive posture and stunted their ability to make necessary personnel decisions to address workplace problems, said the chamber in a statement.

READ: Gays, Transgenders Face More Housing Discrimination Than Lesbians, Pilot Study Finds

Missouri State Sen. Gary Romine, who sponsored the bill, is being sued in a discrimination suit by an employee of a rent-to-own business the politician owns. Though the law wont affect his current suit, it would change how the situation he faces is litigated in the future.

The governors office did not return multiple calls and emails for this story.

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US ambassador Nikki Haley and Matthew Rycroft, the British ambassador to the UN, vote for an export ban on North Korea on Saturday - Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

The United Nations security council has approved new sanctions on North Korea, placing a $1 billion ban on the countrys exports which will cut the countrys revenues by a third.

The resolution was approved unanimously on Saturday, meaning that China and Russia abandoned their traditional support for North Korea and joined in a rare united show of force.

Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, said that the resolution was "the single largest economic package ever levelled against the North Korean regime."

It is also the largest reprimand ever issued by the UN for a ballistic missile test.

North Korea shows off its missiles in April 2017

Britain welcomed the sanctions, with Lord Ahmad, the minister for commonwealth and the UN, calling on all countries to implement the new measures fully and robustly.

The UK and our international partners are united in opposing and standing firm against the threat posed by North Korea, he said.

This resolution will cut the resources that North Korea is abusing to fund its reckless and illegal pursuit of nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.

North Korea has chosen this extremely dangerous and destabilising path. The regime is prioritising the pursuit of these weapons over and above its people, peace and stability in the region. The North Korean regime needs to change its course immediately.

Kim Jong-un celebrates his first successful test of a ICBM, on July 4. A second test was carried out on July 28

Coal exports  North Koreas largest source of income  will now be banned, costing the regime over $401 million in revenues per year.

Export of iron and iron ore, worth roughly $250 million per year, will be halted, as will exports of seafood worth $300 million and lead and lead ore, worth $110 million.

The resolution also bans countries from giving any additional permits to North Korean labourers - another source of money for Kim Jong-un's regime. It prohibits all new joint ventures with North Korean companies and bans new foreign investment in existing ones.

The security council has already imposed six rounds of sanctions that have failed to halt North Korea's drive to improve its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons capabilities.

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But it is hoped that Saturdays sanctions, the text of which was jointly drafted by the US and China, may make Mr Kim think twice about his weapons programme.

Matthew Rycroft, the British ambassador to the UN, denied that previous sanctions had failed.

"We are gradually tightening the control over the North Korean regime," said Mr Rycroft.

"Sanctions take time to work. So Im not pretending that tomorrow there will be a radically different position in relation to North Korea, but over time the sanctions demonstrate the unity of the international community, particularly if they are well implemented."

Graphic: North Korea missile launch

Twice last month the country successfully tested intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) capable of reaching the US.

"All of this ICBM and nuclear irresponsibility has to stop," said Mrs Haley.

The resolution condemns the launches "in the strongest terms" and reiterates previous calls for North Korea to suspend all ballistic missile launches and abandon its nuclear weapons and nuclear programme "in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner."

In addition, the security council text condemned Pyongyang for spending money on missiles while its people suffered. Well over half the population lacks sufficient food and medical care, while a quarter suffers from chronic malnutrition, according to the UN.

Nine North Koreans, mainly officials or representatives of companies and banks, were added to the UN sanctions blacklist, banning their travel and freezing their assets. It also imposes an asset freeze on two companies and two banks.

Yet, although the economic sanctions have teeth, Washington did not get everything it wanted.

South Korea tests its missile defence systems

In early July, Mrs Haley told the security council that the international community could cut off major sources of hard currency to North Korea, restrict oil to its military and weapons programmes, increase air and maritime restrictions and hold senior officials accountable. Neither oil nor new air restrictions are included in the resolution.

Its adoption follows

United Nations Resolution is the single largest economic sanctions package ever on North Korea. Over one billion dollars in cost to N.K.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2017

reassurance from Rex Tillerson, the secretary of state, on Wednesday that Washington is not seeking regime change or an accelerated reunification of the Korean Peninsula - comments welcomed by China's foreign minister.

Mr Tillerson also said the United States wants to talk eventually with North Korea but thinks discussions would not be productive if the Pyongyang comes with the intention of maintaining its nuclear weapons.

The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2017

North Korea has repeatedly said it will never give up its nuclear arsenal, which it sees as a guarantee of its security.

The unanimous vote was welcomed on Twitter by Donald Trump, who hailed the support the US had received from China and Russia.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 14:10:47|Editor: Mengjie

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KHARTOUM, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Two copters of the China's first peacekeeping helicopter unit air transport advance team arrived safely at the EI Fasher Airport of the Darfur area in western Sudan.

The helicopters, carrying 15 soldiers and some two tons of cargo, took off from the Khartoum International Airport and flew four hours to the destination area over a distance of 900 km.

Chen wenlong, the commander of the unit, told Xinhua that they have the determination and confidence to fulfil the duty and complete the peacekeeping mission.

Sheng ming, a pilot of the helicopter unit, said the harsh weather conditions and the recent ongoing high-pressure working performance has further strengthened their fighting morale and ability. They all wish to win honor for China.

China's first helicopter unit air transport advance team containing 24 people arrived in Sudanese capital Khartoum in two batches to join the UNAMID in June. The rest of the soldiers as planned will take another two helicopters to the area soon.

Once the air transport advance team have joined the construction advance team, they will be put under the United Nations African Union Mission in Darfur's (UNAMID) command and carry out missions including air patrol, transport of peacekeeping forces, evacuation of rescued personnel and air supplies.

The regional situation in Darfur area has been turbulent since 2003. The conflicts have caused 300,000 deaths and displaced over 2 million people, according to the UN.

The UNAMID was deployed in Darfur to protect the civilians and secure the safety there in July 2007. In the same year, China sent the first peacekeeping force to Darfur region of Sudan, becoming the very first peacekeeping force apart from the African Union countries into the area.

China has been actively involved in the UN peacekeeping operations for over 25 years.

There are now total 2,515 Chinese peacekeepers putting their lives at risk in restive regions around the world, according to a UN statistics published in June 2017.
Andrew Warren, - Facebook

Andrew Warren, an Oxford University employee has been arrested in connection with the killing of a 26-year old man in Chicago.

Police have also arrested Wyndham Lathem, an associate professor of microbiology and immunology a Northwestern University in Chicago and expert in the bubonic plague.

Mr Warren, 56, and Prof Lathem, 42 were sought by police after a hair stylist, Trenton Cornell-Duranleau, 26, was found stabbed to death in an upmarket high-rise flat in Chicago. . Chicago Police said the two men are believed to be in custody in Oakland California. by the US Marshals Service.

News that the men were being held was announced by Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesman for Chicago police department on Twitter.

Wyndham Lathem Credit: Chicago Police Department/PA

A senior treasury assistant at Somerville College, Oxford, Mr Warren left the home he shared with his sister in Faringdon, Oxfordshire on June 24.

He was reported missing to Thames Valley Police by Mr Warren's sister, Tracey, and his partner, Martin Grant.

It is believed Mr Warren left the UK the day before, travelling to the United States without telling his boyfriend or family.

Authorities haven't detailed the relationship between Mr Warren and Prof Lathem, who moved to Chicago from the Grand Rapids, Michigan.

.
By Susan Cornwell WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence on Sunday denied that he is preparing for a presidential election run in 2020, saying the suggestion is "disgraceful and offensive." Pence was responding to a New York Times report that some Republicans were moving to form a "shadow campaign" as though President Donald Trump were not involved. It said multiple advisers to Pence "have already intimated to party donors that he would plan to run if Mr. Trump did not." The report said Pence had not only kept a full political calendar but also had created his own independent power base, including a political fund-raising group called the "Great America Committee." But Pence called the article "fake news" and said his entire team was focused on advancing Trump's agenda and seeing him re-elected in 2020. "The allegations in this article are categorically false and represent just the latest attempt by the media to divide this Administration," Pence said in a statement. The Times stood by its coverage. "We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting and will let the story speak for itself," New York Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha said in an email. Pence has good relations with conservative political groups and some of the Republican Party's big donors, including billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch. He is also a Trump loyalist, and there is typically little distinction between his public statements and the policies of the president. But as investigations deepen into Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. election and possible ties to members of Trump's campaign, Pence has put some distance between himself and the president on the best way to approach Moscow. On a trip to Eastern Europe last week, Pence condemned Russia's presence in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, with which Moscow fought a brief war in 2008. He also said ties with Russia would not improve until Moscow changed its stance on Ukraine and withdrew support for countries like Iran, Syria and North Korea. The U.S. Congress recently passed a bill imposing new sanctions on Russia with overwhelming bipartisan support, but Trump signed it into law last week with reluctance. "Our relationship with Russia is at an all-time & very dangerous low," Trump wrote on Twitter after signing the bill. "You can thank Congress." Trump has described probes into his campaign's ties to Russia, including those under way in Congress and a Justice Department investigation headed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, as a "witch hunt." The president has also sent mixed messages on whether he agrees with U.S. intelligence agencies' conclusions that Russia tried to intervene in the 2016 election to boost his chances of beating Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. White House senior counselor Kellyanne Conway on Sunday also dismissed the idea that Pence was looking at running for president in 2020. "It is absolutely true that the vice president is getting ready for 2020 - for re-election as vice president," Conway told ABC's "This Week" on Sunday. "Vice President Pence is a very loyal, very dutiful, but also incredibly effective vice president, and active vice president," said Conway, adding that she had worked for Pence for a decade as his pollster and senior adviser. (Reporting by Susan Cornwell; Additional reporting by Pete Schroeder; Writing by Amanda Becker; Editing by Kieran Murray and Lisa Von Ahn)
Manila (AFP) - The Philippines said Friday it would tell visiting US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson his concerns over its drug war that has claimed thousands of lives were due to "exaggerated media reports".

Tillerson is due to meet President Rodrigo Duterte on the sidelines of a regional security forum that begins on the weekend, and both sides have flagged that the human rights debate over the drug war would be on the agenda.

"We welcome the opportunity to address their concerns and correct the perceptions they may have gleaned from exaggerated media reports," a Philippine foreign department statement said on Friday.

The statement was released after acting US assistant secretary of state Susan Thornton said in Washington that Tillerson would discuss human rights issues in Manila.

Duterte easily won presidential elections last year after promising an unprecented war on drugs in which tens of thousands of people would be killed.

Since he took office in the middle of last year, police have confirmed killing more than 3,400 people in anti-drug operations.

More than 2,000 other people have been killed in drug-related crimes and thousands more murdered in unexplained circumstances, according to police data.

Rights groups say many of those victims have been killed by vigilante death squads linked to the government.

Rights groups have said that Duterte, who has said he would be "happy to slaughter" three million drug addicts, may be overseeing a crime against humanity.

Former US president Barack Obama was among the many international critics of the drug war.

Duterte, who frequently uses coarse language against his critics, responded by branding Obama a "son of a whore" last year.

Duterte also used the criticism as justification for loosening the Philippines' decades-long alliance with the United States in favour of warmer ties with China.

Duterte has boasted repeatedly that US President Donald Trump praised the drug war, although he still frequently rails against the US State Department and American politicians who criticise the killings.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano on Friday confirmed Duterte and Tillerson would hold talks in Manila, and that the meeting would be a step towards improving bilateral relations.

"I expect the call to be frank, honest but to discuss also the way forward in our relationship and also to repair some twists and turns or some valleys in our relationship," Cayetano said.
President Rodrigo Duterte has signed a law making education at all state universities free, a palace official said Friday, despite warnings from his economic advisors that the Philippines cannot afford it.

Duterte, who is known for his populist leanings, believes the long-term benefits of the measure outweigh the short-term budgetary challenges, said deputy presidential executive secretary Menardo Guevarra.

"Free tertiary education in state universities and colleges is a very strong pillar or cornerstone of the presidents social development policy," he told reporters.

The bill, signed late Thursday, will spare all students at government-run colleges and universities from paying tuition and other fees, he added.

Economic officials had warned Duterte not to approve the measure, which they argue will cost 100 billion pesos (some USD $2 billion) a year and will mainly benefit wealthier students.

Guevarra said that now the measure had been signed, everyone needed to work together to solve the key problem facing the new bill: funding.

"Everyone including the economic managers will have to focus their attention on this particular aspect: funding for this programme," he added.

Congressman Salvador Belaro, one of the authors of the bill for free state college tuition, warned it could cost some 500 billion pesos to fund the program through to 2022.

The Philippines has 114 state universities and colleges. Under Duterte's proposed budget for 2018, these institutions have a total allocation of 64.6 billion pesos.

This is out of a total education budget of 691.1 billion pesos, budget department documents showed.

The Duterte government is already scrambling to cover its proposed 3.767 trillion peso budget for 2018, which includes heavy spending on infrastructure.
Montreal (AFP) - Quebec's mayor announced Friday that the city's Muslim community will have their own cemetery, despite objections from right-wing groups and rising anti-Muslim sentiment.

The city had promised a separate Muslim graveyard after a shooting attack by a white supremacist at a mosque in January that left six people dead.

The Muslim cemetery will be set up on land adjoining one of the city's main cemeteries.

"The city of Quebec has accepted, subject to the approval by City Council, an offer submitted by the Islamic Cultural Center of Quebec to purchase municipal land that will allow the construction of a cemetery for the Muslim community in the greater Quebec City region," City Hall said in a statement.

"For over 400 years, Quebec has been a welcoming city for all cultures, languages and religions," said Quebec's mayor Regis Labeaume.

Negotiations over a possible Muslim cemetery had been dragging on for more than a decade, but the debate became more heated after the mosque shooting. The Muslim community was outraged that the remains of some of the victims had to be to be taken to Montreal, 150 miles away, to be buried in a Muslim cemetery.

Last month, plans to build a Muslim graveyard in a small town just outside the city had to be scrapped when local residents rejected the idea in a referendum. Local media said far-right groups had lobbied in favor of a "no" vote.

Several days after that local poll, the Quebec Muslim center received a package containing a desecrated Koran and a hate message.

Anti-immigration and anti-Muslim messages have been on the rise in towns across Quebec province and on nationalist websites.

A spokesman for a right-wing nationalist group, The Federation of Native Quebecers (FQS), in July called on the airwaves of Radio-Canada for a poster campaign against what he called "massive immigration" which he said Quebecers did not want.
Washington (AFP) - The US trade gap in June fell to its lowest level in eight months, driven by a surge in exports, official figures showed Friday.

Big jumps in international sales of crude oil and soy beans helped drive American exports to their highest level in nearly three years, the Commerce Department reported.

Meanwhile, imports fell slightly in tandem with a weakening US dollar.

The narrowing deficit could bode well for economic growth in the third quarter of the year, reducing drag on calculations of GDP.

The trade gap fell 5.9 percent for the month to $43.6 billion, the largest monthly decrease in four months, surpassing an analyst forecast which had called for only a 3.2 percent decrease.

Year-to-date, however, the deficit in US trade in goods and services was still up 10.7 percent over the same period last year.

The Trump administration has made shrinking overall US trade deficits a central goal of its economic agenda, including negotiating with countries individually to reduce bilateral deficits, an effort economists dismiss as pointless and potentially harmful.

Talks on renegotiating the landmark North American Free Trade Agreement are due to begin this month in Washington, but economists say using that process to reduce the trade deficit with Mexico could prove an elusive goal.

US exports of goods and services rose 1.2 percent to $194.4 billion in June, their highest level since December of 2014.

US goods exports also were at their highest level since April 2015, at $129.7 billion.

The goods deficit with China, the largest US trading partner, rose 3.1 percent for the month to $32.6 billion.

But deficits in goods trade fell with Mexico, decreasing $1.2 billion to $5.5 billion, and with Canada, where it shrank $1.2 billion to $1 billion.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 14:40:36|Editor: Zhou Xin

Crowds watch street dance during the 6th annual Vancouver Street Dance Festival in Vancouver, Canada, Aug. 5, 2017. Over 400 street dancers compete head-to-head in different dance styles during the three-day Vancouver Street Dance Festival. (Xinhua/Liang Sen)
Sergei Kislyak with Donald Trump in the White House on May 10. His meetings with Trump campaign officials have been the source of much intrigue - www.alamy.com

The former Russian ambassador to the US has insisted that he discussed merely the most simple things in his conversation with Michael Flynn, Mr Trumps former national security adviser, as reports in the US suggested federal investigators were tightening their noose on Mr Flynn.

Mr Flynn was forced to resign in February, becoming the shortest-lived national security adviser in history, after it emerged that he had misled Mike Pence, the vice president, about his discussions with Sergei Kislyak, the Russian ambassador.

Profile | Sergey Kislyak

Senior officials who have reviewed the phone call between the two men told The Washington Post they thought Mr Flynns statements to Mr Kislyak were inappropriate, if not illegal, because he suggested that the Kremlin could expect a reprieve from the sanctions.

Mr Flynn, now being investigated as part of Robert Muellers investigation into Russias involvement in the US election, has always insisted he did not discuss sanctions.

And on Saturday Mr Kislyak, speaking for the first time about his conversations with the former army lieutenant general, denied anything improper had taken place.

"We only spoke about the most simple things, but the communication was completely correct, calm, absolutely transparent, said Mr Kislyak, in a panel discussion on Russian television.

In any case, there were no secrets on our side.

He said they only discussed matters of mutual importance.

"There are a number of issues which are important for cooperation between Russia and the United States - most of all, terrorism. And that was one of the things we discussed," he added.

Profile | General Michael Flynn

Mr Kislyak left Washington in July, ending his tenure as ambassador.

Mr Kislyak said he did not believe it was right to speak of a new Cold War between the US and Russia.

"Ideology is not the problem in our relationship," he said. "The problem in our relationship is the Americans' sense of absolute exceptionalism and their supposed right to tell everyone else what is good and what's bad."

Story continues

Mr Kislyak has been at the centre of numerous controversial meetings involving senior Trump administration officials.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions removed himself from the FBI's investigation into alleged Russian election interference after failing to disclose two meetings with Mr Kislyak at his confirmation hearings.

Mr Sessions has said the pair did not discuss anything related to the campaign, but the Washington Post reported last month that they did indeed discuss campaign-related issues. The newspaper cited current and former US officials who said intelligence agencies monitored subsequent conversations between Mr Kislyak and his superiors in Russia about the meetings with Mr Sessions.

Mr Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner also met Mr Kislyak in early December in Trump Tower, with Mr Flynn present. He insists he did not suggest a "secret back channel" for communications, as has been reported, or discuss sanctions.

Jared Kushner failed to disclose his own meeting with Sergei Kislyak

On Friday the New York Times reported that Mr Mueller, the special counsel now leading the Russia investigation, had asked the White House to hand over documents linked to Mr Flynn.

The request is not a subpoena, but is the first known instance of Mr Muellers investigators having asked the White House for documents, and reflects an expansion of the investigation into Mr Flynn.

The paper reported that Mr Muellers team want to know if work Mr Flynn did with a Turkish-American businessman last year was paid for by the Turkish government, and whether or not that pay was laundered to avoid detection.

Preet Bharara, the former New York prosecutor fired by Mr Trump, commented on Twitter that, if the report was true, the news was much more significant than Thursdays reports about Mr Muellers team convening a grand jury for the investigation.

If true, request for WH documents re: Flynn's work for Turkey is much more significant than breathless reporting about GJ yesterday. Much. https://t.co/WdWLeD78PZ  Preet Bharara (@PreetBharara) August 5, 2017

Asked why, a Twitter user commented: "Direct evidence of a crime is being sought, not the mere setting up of an investigative body."

Mr Bharara replied: "Precisely."
Manila (AFP) - South Korea's foreign minister said Saturday she was open to rare discussions with her North Korean counterpart at a security forum in the Philippines in a bid to rein in Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme.

The diplomatic olive branch came as the isolated regime faces increasing global pressure following its second intercontinental ballistic missile test on July 28, with the United Nations Security Council set to vote this weekend on new sanctions.

"If there is an opportunity that naturally occurs, we should talk," Kang Kyung-Wha told reporters as she landed in Manila on Saturday, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency.

North Korea's top diplomat, Ri Hong-Yo, is also attending the regional summit, which is hosted by the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Kang, South Korea's first female foreign minister, said any meeting with Ri would be an opportunity "to deliver our desire for the North to stop its provocations and positively respond to our recent special offers (for talks) aimed at establishing a peace regime".

Seoul last month proposed military talks with Pyongyang but the North refused to respond. Had they gone ahead, they would have been the first official inter-Korean talks since 2015.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has defied international pressure to accelerate his country's nuclear weapons capabilities, and boasted after the second intercontinental ballistic missile test that he could strike any target in the United States.

In response, Washington drafted the planned UN resolution to toughen sanctions against Pyongyang.

The United States also said it hoped to build unified pressure on the North at the Manila event, known as the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), which US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is attending.

- 'Seriously threaten' peace -

In the run up to this year's gathering, Washington lobbied to have Pyongyang kicked out of the ARF. But there is limited appetite among Asian countries to shut North Korea out of one of the few diplomatic gatherings it attends.

Story continues

The newly elected South Korean government of President Moon Jae-In is also more open to negotiations than the previous administration of conservative Park Geun-Hye.

Tensions on the Korean peninsula often dominate the ARF because it is one of the few annual diplomatic gatherings attended by the key stakeholders: South Korea, North Korea, the United States, Russia, China and Japan.

On Saturday ASEAN released a joint statement following a meeting of its own foreign ministers saying the North's missile tests "seriously threaten" global peace, but they stopped short of any moves to isolate Pyongyang.

The UN resolution proposes a ban on certain exports that could deprive Pyongyang of $1 billion in annual revenue.

It comes after a month of negotiations with China, the North's main trading partner and ally, to shore up their support for fresh punitive measures.

The draft resolution calls for a ban on all exports of coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, as well as fish and seafood by the cash-starved state, according to the text seen by AFP.

The new raft of measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006, but these have failed to compel Pyongyang to give up its missile programme.

China and Russia have insisted that sanctions alone will not change Pyongyang's behaviour and that talks are needed to address the crisis.
Former national security adviser Michael Flynn - AP

Robert Mueller, the special counsel investigating allegations of Russian interference in last year's presidential election, has asked for documents on Michael Flynn, the president's former national security adviser.

The request, which was reported in the New York Times, is the first direct request from Mr Mueller's team for White House material.

Details emerged a day after reports that Mr Mueller has convened a grand jury in Washington to participate in the probe, signalling the possibility that the inquiry could result in criminal charges.

While Mr Mueller steps up his investigation, Donald Trump has again angrily denied that his campaign team colluded with the Kremlin.

At a campaign rally in West Virginia on Friday, he dismissed the allegations and investigation as "fake news".

Mr Flynn, a vociferous supporter of Mr Trump during the campaign, was appointed national security adviser before quitting within weeks after it emerged he had misled vice president, Mike Pence about the extent of his contacts with Sergey Kislyak, Russia's ambassador to the US.

In March Mr Flynn confirmed his lobbying firm carried out $530,000 worth of work that may have helped the Turkish government in the run-up to the US election.

Investigators, who have been studying details of Mr Flynn's Turkish activities, want to know if the Ankara government was behind the payments made to Mr Flynn's business, the Flynn Intel Group.

Mr Flynn has declined to comment on the latest report.

Ty Cobb, Mr Trump's special counsel, told the newspaper, Weve said before were collaborating with the special counsel on an ongoing basis.

Its full cooperation mode as far as we are concerned, he said.
After two fatal shootings at a Florida beach resort, authorities have found surveillance footage that seems to show the suspect making a throat-slashing motion.

The night front desk manager and a security guard at the Zota Beach Resort were shot to death early Friday morning, according to the Associated Press.

The killing is believed to be a robbery gone wrong. Longboat Key Police told a local Fox news station that the suspect took $900.

Surveillance video of the night appears to show the suspect making a throat-slashing motion before walking away, according to Fox 13. The network said police think there may a second suspect that the first was gesturing to.

Authorities are still looking for the suspect or suspects, though they believe this is an isolated incident and have no concerns for residents or visitors on the island, according to AP.

There is a $18,000 reward for anyone with information about the crime that leads to an arrest.
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian government and allied forces have taken the last major town in Homs province from Islamic State, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Saturday, as the army advances toward militant strongholds in the east of the country. The town of al-Sukhna lies some 50 km (30 miles) northeast of the ancient city of Palmyra, which was captured by government forces in March. al-Sukhna is some 50 km from the administrative frontier of Deir al-Zor province, which is almost entirely under Islamic State control. A Hezbollah media unit said government and allied forces were making considerable progress inside the city of Sukhna. Lebanon's Hezbollah group fights on the side of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian conflict. Syrian state news agency SANA reported earlier on Saturday that the army was advancing into al-Sukhna from three directions. Islamic State is losing ground fast in Syria to separate campaigns waged by the Russian-backed Syrian government on the one hand, and to U.S.-backed Kurdish forces and their allies on the other. Government forces, backed by the Russian air force and Iran-backed militias, have also been advancing against IS in Hama province and in southern areas of Raqqa province. U.S.-led operations against IS are currently focused on taking Raqqa city in northern Syria. (Reporting by Lisa Barrington; editing by Jason Neely, Bernard Orr)
Caracas (AFP) - Venezuela's military was on Monday hunting an ex-officer and a lieutenant who led uniformed rebels on a weekend raid to grab weapons from an army base, fueling fears the country's worsening crisis could tip into armed conflict.

The defense minister and head of the armed forces, General Vladimir Padrino, said the ex-National Guard captain, Juan Carlos Caguaripano, and the lieutenant, Jefferson Gabriel Garcia, were behind Sunday's attack on the base in the northwestern city of Valencia by 20 men in uniform.

They are "enemies of the nation," Padrino said.

Just before the raid, Caguaripano posted a video online declaring it part of a "legitimate rebellion... to reject the murderous tyranny of (President) Nicolas Maduro."

Appearing with more than a dozen uniformed men, some armed, he demanded a transitional government and "free elections."

Maduro said on state television Sunday that the attack saw a three-hour firefight in which two of the rebels died and eight were captured, including another lieutenant who was involved.

Ten other attackers made off with an unspecified arsenal.

Caguaripano and Garcia "managed to flee and a special operation has been deployed to find and capture them" and recover the weapons, Padrino said.

He said Garcia had been in charge of the base's weapons depot and acted as an accomplice from the inside, while Caguaripano had been discharged from the army in 2014 after multiple disciplinary offenses.

Padrino said most of the rebels were civilians with criminal records, contracted in Venezuela by people with links to pro-opposition sympathizers in Colombia and the United States.

He and Maduro described the attackers as "terrorists" and "mercenaries" and insisted they did not signify any fracturing of the army.

"This group was not acting for ideals or nationalist principles. They were paid from Miami by extreme-right groups linked to the Venezuelan opposition as well as foreign governments that maintain a hostile and interfering attitude against the country," Padrino said.

Story continues

- Loyal brass -

The defense minister insisted the military's loyalty to Maduro's government -- a third of which is controlled by current or former officers -- was unshakable.

Questions were being asked, however, whether lower ranks in Venezuela's military could rebel.

The opposition coalition, the Democratic Unity Roundtable, said the country's crisis dividing Venezuela's society "is being seen... in the barracks of our armed forces."

The head of the opposition-controlled congress, Julio Borges, has demanded the "truth" from the government about what happened on Sunday.

Analysts said discord could be seen in the lower ranks of the security forces.

"There are indications of growing discontent in the middle ranks of the police and soldiers, even though military commanders remain allied to the government," said Diego Moya-Ocampos, of IHS Markit Country Risk in London.

"You can expect new incidents to occur as this unease grows," he said.

On Monday, hackers calling themselves The Binary Guardians hijacked the home pages of several government bodies and private companies in support of the rebel raid. In several websites, they posted excerpts from Charlie Chaplin's movie "The Great Dictator."

- Venezuela isolated -

Venezuela's opposition has repeatedly urged the military to abandon Maduro, so far to no avail.

The crisis in the oil-rich country is rooted in large part in the collapse of its economy due to a plunge in global oil prices. Public anger is spreading as people struggle for basics like food and medicine.

Maduro, however, blames an economic "war" that he says is fomented by the right-wing opposition in cahoots with the United States.

Venezuela has become increasingly isolated internationally as Maduro tightens his hold on power through a contested loyalist assembly that started work last week.

Opposition leaders are under increased threat of arrest after protests -- fiercely countered by security forces -- left 125 people dead in the past four months.

The new "Constituent Assembly" has moved quickly to clamp down on dissent. Its first act was to dismiss the attorney general, Luisa Ortega, who had broken ranks with Maduro to become one of his most vociferous critics.

It has also created a "truth commission" that Maduro wants to use to prosecute opposition lawmakers and leaders for alleged "crimes."

Then, lawmakers in the opposition-controlled legislature said late Monday their chamber was stormed by officials from the rival assembly loyal to Maduro with the backing of soldiers.

The legislature posted photos on its Twitter account of a group of people in the chamber it uses in the Legislative Palace in Caracas.

The people who invaded its chamber, it said, included the leader of the Constituent Assembly, Maduro's former foreign minister Delcy Rodriguez.

The United States accuses Maduro of installing an "authoritarian dictatorship" that has turned Venezuela into an international pariah.

The United States, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Peru have slammed the "illegal" sacking of Ortega.

Foreign ministers from across Latin America were to meet in Peru on Tuesday to decide what joint action they could take over Venezuela.
Top adviser refuses to say president will rule out firing special counsel

This is like medicine to him: why Trump still needs love of the crowd

Robert Mueller stands for the national anthem during a ceremony at the justice department in Washington in 2013. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Senior White House adviser Kellyanne Conway refused on Sunday to say if Donald Trump will commit to not firing Robert Mueller, the special counsel investigating links between Trump aides and Russia who has empanelled a grand jury in Washington.

One of four senators who have introduced legislation to protect the former FBI director, meanwhile, said his firing would be crossing a big line and would likely see his immediate reinstatement by Congress.

Conway appeared on ABCs This Week. The president has not even discussed that, she said. Hes not discussing firing Bob Mueller. We are complying and cooperating ...

Host George Stephanopoulos then interjected: But will he commit not to fire him?

Hes not discussed firing Bob Mueller, Conway said.

Thats not what Im asking, Stephanopoulos said.

Hold on, said Conway, Im not the presidents lawyer here. But I will tell you as his counsellor he is not discussing that.

You have to listen to his special counsel Ty Cobb who works in the White House now, and he said very clear this week that we will continue to cooperate with Bob Mueller and his investigation even though  many of [Muellers team] are Democratic donors, but well continue to co-operate and comply.

In June a close associate of Trump, Newsmax chief executive Chris Ruddy, told PBS the president was considering firing Mueller.

Conway also said investigations into Trump and Russia were a completely false and fabricated lie and said: But so far youve got  no collusion. And anybody who denies that is lying.

On Thursday night in West Virginia, Trump disparaged Muellers work, telling supporters the Russia investigations were part of an effort to cheat you out of the leadership that you want with a fake story.

Among other matters, Mueller is investigating a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower in New York City between Donald Trump Jr, Trumps son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner, then campaign manager Paul Manafort and a Russian lawyer. Other Russians were also in the room, one of them with ties to Soviet counter-intelligence.

Story continues

According to emails he published himself, Trump Jr believed the lawyer would offer damaging material about Hillary Clinton, his fathers opponent in an election US intelligence agencies agree Russia sought to influence on Trumps behalf. Kushner and Manafort have denied collusion.

On Sunday, Trump surrogate and governor of New Jersey Chris Christie told CNNs State of the Union the meeting was ill-advised. It was not clear if Trump himself had known about the meeting at the time, Christie said.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders admitted this week that the president played a role in drafting the first and misleading official statement about the meeting, as any father would. That contradicted another of the presidents lawyers, Jay Sekulow, who said Trump had not been involved in the statement.

The existence of the Washington grand jury was reported by the Wall Street Journal on Thursday. Most observers agreed it was bad news for Trump, who could be called to give evidence. The panel, formed in a heavily Democratic city, is empowered to look into the Republican presidents financial history.

Muellers investigative team, which is considering whether Trump obstructed justice when he fired FBI director James Comey in May because of this Russia thing, is staffed with experts in financial crime.

Christie, a former US attorney, told CNN a grand jury was a normal step taken by a careful prosecutor who is doing a thorough investigation. And I think thats exactly what Bob Mueller is doing. You cant issue subpoenas without a grand jury. Its the grand jury that actually issues the subpoenas.

On Friday the New York Times reported that Muellers team asked the White House for documents related to Michael Flynn, the retired general who resigned as Trumps first national security adviser after he was found to have misled Vice-President Mike Pence over meetings with the then Russian ambassador.

Before the Senate left Washington for its summer recess this week, two pairs of senators introduced legislation to protect Mueller from being fired by Trump. One of those senators, the Delaware Democrat Chris Coons, told ABC on Sunday: I think if the president should fire Robert Mueller abruptly, that would be crossing a big line.

I think you would see strong bipartisan action from the Senate, which might include our reinstating him or our hiring him to continue to conduct that investigation on behalf of Congress.

Speaking to CBSs Face the Nation, the Arkansas Republican senator Tom Cotton said he did not think such legislation would go very far.

But he indicated a willingness to stand up to the Trump White House, adding: For decades, Congress has ceded too much authority to the executive branch. And we should exercise our constitutional responsibilities seriously and with vigor.

In the Philippines, meanwhile, Trumps secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, had his first meeting with Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov since the president signed  and criticised  new sanctions on Russia.

Despite the Putin regime retaliating with measures against US diplomats in Russia, Lavrov told reporters he felt the readiness of our US colleagues to continue dialogue.

I think theres no alternative to that, he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 15:31:15|Editor: ying

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RIYADH, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Saudi security forces killed a terrorist and arrested 2 others in a raid in Saihat in Qatif region in the Eastern Province, Saudi online news reported on Sunday.

The incident was part of various raids and security operations that the police carry on regular basis in the region to stop the frequent attacks against policemen and civilians by violent Shiite youths who demand more rights in the Sunni conservative state.

The report said that the terrorist attacked the police by guns to resist their arrest and one of them was killed when the police shot back.
ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey has sent military reinforcements to its southern border with Syria, dispatching artillery and tanks to the area overnight, Dogan news agency said on Saturday. It said six howitzers and tanks with military vehicles were sent to Kilis province across the border from the Kurdish-controlled Syrian region of Afrin. The Turkish army has clashed with Kurdish forces and their allies in the area in recent weeks, exchanging artillery and rocket fire, according to Kurdish officials. The mounting tensions between two U.S. allies in northwest Syria raised fears last month of another major front in the multi-sided Syrian war. Turkey sees the Kurdish YPG militia - which has established autonomy in areas along Syria's northern border with Turkey - as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has fought an insurgency against the Turkish state for decades. There was no immediate comment from Turkish officials. Ankara has said it has no plan to launch a war against the YPG but that its forces would be ready to respond to any hostile move from across the border. (Reporting by Dirimcan Barut; Writing by Dominic Evans; Editing by Dale Hudson)
By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions on North Korea on Saturday that could slash by a third the Asian state's $3 billion annual export revenue over Pyongyang's two July intercontinental ballistic missile tests. The U.S.-drafted resolution bans North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It also prohibits countries from increasing the current numbers of North Korean laborers working abroad, bans new joint ventures with North Korea and any new investment in current joint ventures. "We should not fool ourselves into thinking we have solved the problem. Not even close. The North Korean threat has not left us, it is rapidly growing more dangerous," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told the council. "Further action is required. The United States is taking and will continue to take prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies," she said, adding that Washington would continue annual joint military exercises with South Korea. North Korea has accused the United States and South Korea of escalating tensions by conducting military drills. China and Russia slammed U.S. deployment of the THAAD anti-missile defense system in South Korea. China's U.N. Ambassador Liu Jieyi called for a halt to the deployment and for any equipment in place to be dismantled. Liu also urged North Korea to "cease taking actions that might further escalate tensions." U.S. President Donald Trump hailed the vote in a Twitter message on Saturday evening. "The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!" Trump wrote. U.S. PRESSURE ON CHINA Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said he hoped recent remarks by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson "were sincere - that the U.S. is not seeking to dismantle the existing situation or to forcibly unite the peninsula or to militarily intervene in the country." While the Security Council has been divided on how to deal with other international crises like Syria, the 15-member body has remained relatively united on North Korea. Still, negotiating new measures typically takes months, not weeks. North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006 over its ballistic missile and nuclear programs. The new measures came in response to five nuclear weapons tests and four long-range missile launches. The United States negotiated with China for a month on the resolution, then expanded negotiations to the full council on Friday. Washington, frustrated that China has not done more to rein in North Korea, has threatened to exert trade pressure on Beijing and impose sanctions on Chinese firms doing business with Pyongyang. "We had tough negotiations this week," Haley told reporters. "I think that the Chinese realized that the United States was going to push, but they responded and we appreciate how they cooperated with us during these negotiations." Liu, asked about U.S. negotiating pressure, said China has been consistent on trying to achieve denuclearization, peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and "to re-launch negotiations to achieve this end." He told reporters China was "opposed to any unilateral sanctions outside the agreed framework set by the U.N. Security Council resolutions." RUSSIA/U.S. COOPERATION It had been unclear whether strained U.S.-Russia relations would hamper negotiations on North Korean sanctions. On Wednesday, Washington imposed unilateral sanctions on Moscow to punish Russia over accusations of interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and annexation of Ukraine's Crimea. "We are not hostages to our relations when we have to work together on issues which are far more important," Nebenzia told Reuters. The new U.N. resolution adds nine individuals and four entities to the U.N. blacklist, including North Korea's primary foreign exchange bank, subjecting them to a global asset freeze and travel ban. "I would think China and Russia signed on the sanctions hoping that they would force North Korea back to the negotiating table," said Thomas Byrne, president of the New York-based Korea Society. "However, North Korea will try to evade the new sanctions." The new resolution completely bans North Korean exports of coal. In November the Security Council capped the country's coal exports at $400 million annually. China, its largest buyer, halted imports in February. A U.N. diplomat said North Korea had been expected to earn an estimated $251 million from iron and iron ore in 2017, $113 million from lead and lead ore and $295 million from seafood. The diplomat said it was difficult to estimate how much North Korea was earning from sending workers abroad. A United Nations human rights investigator said in 2015 that North Korea has forced more than 50,000 people to work abroad, mainly in Russia and China, earning between $1.2 billion and $2.3 billion a year for the country's government. Joseph DeThomas, a former State Department official who worked as an adviser on Iran sanctions and previous rounds of North Korea sanctions, said freezing foreign labor will be difficult to enforce. "Overall I doubt that $1 billion number. I doubt it will hit that hard in terms of economic damage," he said. "You cannot expect North Korea to buckle for anything less than the sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990." These sanctions, he said, remain "a very long way" from there. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols,; addtional reporting by David Brunnstrom and Valerie Volcovici; Editing by David Gregorio)
British Ambassador to the United Nations Matthew Rycroft, left, and American Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley vote during a Security Council meeting on a new sanctions resolution that would increase economic pressure on North Korea to return to negotiations on its missile program. - Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

The United Nations Security Council unanimously approved new sanctions on North Korea on Saturday which include banning exports worth over $1billion.

The move to reduce its export revenue by a third is in response to Pyongyang's two intercontinental ballistic missile tests last month.

The resolution adopted Saturday afternoon will also ban countries from giving any additional permits to North Korean laborers - another source of money for Kim Jong Un's regime.

The US drafted measure, negotiated with North Korea's neighbor and ally China, is aimed at increasing economic pressure on Pyongyang to return to negotiations on its nuclear and missile programs.

It follows North Korea's first successful tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the United States.

The resolution bans North Korea from exporting coal, iron, lead and seafood products estimated to be worth over $1billion.

This represents one-third of its total exports last year, estimated at $3 billion.

The United States "is taking and will continue to take prudent defensive measures to protect ourselves and our allies" from the threat posed by North Korea, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said yesterday evening.

"The North Korean threat ... is rapidly growing more dangerous," she told the UN Security Council after the 15-member body unanimously voted to impose new sanctions.

"Further action is required," she added.

The resolution also adds nine individuals and four entities to the UN blacklist, including North Korea's primary foreign exchange bank, subjecting them to a global asset freeze and travel ban.

The sweeping measures are the first of that scope to be imposed on North Korea since US President Donald Trump took office and highlighted China's willingness to punish its ally.

The United States entered into negotiations with China a month ago on the new resolution after North Korea launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile on July 4 which was followed by a second test on July 28.

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But the measure does not provide for cuts to oil deliveries to North Korea as initially proposed by the United States - a move that would have dealt a serious blow to the economy.

The new raft of measures are the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006, but these have failed to compel Pyongyang to change its behaviour.

The United States has put heavy pressure on China, which accounts for 90 percent of trade with North Korea, to enforce the sanctions and the fate of these measures largely hinges on Beijing's cooperation.

China and Russia had resisted the US push for sanctions, arguing that dialogue with North Korea was the way to persuade Pyongyang to halt its military programs.
Chicago (AFP) - US authorities have arrested employees of two prestigious universities accused in the grisly stabbing death of a Chicago hairstylist, following Friday's nationwide manhunt.

Wyndham Lathem, 42, of Northwestern University in Chicago and Andrew Warren, 56, of Oxford University in England, were in police custody in Oakland, California, according to a tweet from a Chicago police spokesman.

The pair had been named as suspects in the attack that was so brutal the blade of the knife used in the murder had broken off, police said.

Trenton Cornell-Duranleau, a 26-year-old hairstylist, was found dead in a Chicago apartment last week with multiple stab wounds.

Authorities revealed Friday that Lathem had sent a video message to friends and family members apologizing for the crime.

Officials have not disclosed the connection between the two suspects or their relationship with the victim.

Lathem is a medical researcher and associate professor at Northwestern University's downtown Chicago campus. He has been employed by the university for 10 years.

Northwestern said in a statement that Lathem was "placed on administrative leave and banned from entering the Northwestern University campuses."

On a university web page that has since been deleted, Warren was listed as a senior treasury assistant at Oxford's Somerville College.

Among the unanswered questions was why Warren suddenly left Britain for his first trip to Chicago on July 24, according to the Chicago Tribune newspaper.

Another mystery is a $1,000 donation to a library in the neighboring state of Wisconsin made after the attack in the victim's name, according to the newspaper.
A protester holds up a sign during a rally against the United States backing out of the Paris Climate accord - AFP

The US State Department has officially informed the United Nations it will withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement, but has left the door open to re-engaging if the terms improved for the United States.

The State Department said in a press release the United States would continue to participate in United Nations climate change meetings during the withdrawal process, which is expected to take at least three years.

"The United States supports a balanced approach to climate policy that lowers emissions while promoting economic growth and ensuring energy security," the department said in the release.

President Donald Trump announced his decision to withdraw from the Paris deal in June, saying the accord would have cost America trillions of dollars, killed jobs, and hindered the oil, gas, coal and manufacturing industries.

But he also, at the time, said he would be open to renegotiating the deal, which was agreed by nearly 200 nations over the course of years - drawing ridicule from world and business leaders who said that would be impossible.

During a visit last month to Paris to meet French President Emmanuel Macron, the two discussed the deal and Mr Trump told reporters "Something could happen with respect to the Paris accords, let's see what happens."

"As the President indicated in his June 1 announcement and subsequently, he is open to re-engaging in the Paris Agreement if the United States can identify terms that are more favorable to it, its businesses, its workers, its people, and its taxpayers," the State Department said in its press release about the formal notice of withdrawal.

Republican US congressional leaders have backed Mr Trump's move to exit the accord. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, for example, said it was "another significant blow to the Obama administration's assault on domestic energy production and jobs".

US President Donald Trump (R) and French President Emmanuel Macron shake hands at the end of the annual Bastille Day military parade on the Champs-Elysees Credit: Alain Jocard/AFP

But numerous business leaders have called the move a blow to international efforts to combat climate change, and a missed opportunity to capture growth in the emerging clean energy industry.

The United States, under former President Barack Obama, had pledged as part of the Paris accord to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 28 percent from 2005 levels by 2025 to help slow global warming.

The earliest date for the United States to completely withdraw from the agreement is Nov. 4, 2020, around the time of the next US presidential election.
Washington (AFP) - The United States announced Friday it would still take part in international climate change negotiations in order to protect its interests, despite its planned withdrawal from the Paris accord on global warming.

Two months after President Donald Trump announced the United States would abandon the 2015 global pact, his administration confirmed it had informed the United Nations of its "intent to withdraw from the Paris Agreement" -- a process that will take at least until 2020.

But in a statement, the State Department said Washington was still committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and engaging with the international community on combating climate change.

"We will continue to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions through innovation and technology breakthroughs, and work with other countries to help them access and use fossil fuels more cleanly and efficiently and deploy renewable and other clean energy sources," said the statement.

It added: "The United States will continue to participate in international climate change negotiations and meetings... to protect US interests and ensure all future policy options remain open to the administration.

"Such participation will include ongoing negotiations related to guidance for implementing the Paris Agreement."

Trump sparked widespread international criticism when he announced on June 1 that he had decided to pull the world's largest economy out of the painstakingly-negotiated accord, in line with his pledge to voters in last year's election.

- Open to re-engaging? -

While Trump said he was open to a renegotiation of the pact, the suggestion was swiftly shot down by fellow world leaders who said it was non-negotiable.

Speaking on a visit to Paris last month, Trump again raised the prospect of a change in policy by saying "something could happen" regarding US participation in the accord but gave no details.

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Friday's statement reiterated that Trump was "open to re-engaging" in the pact if the US could "identify terms that are more favorable to it, its businesses, its workers, its people, and its taxpayers."

Andrew Steer, president of the US non-profit World Resources Institute, said the letter implied a level of ambiguity that could indicate a desire to remain engaged.

"The United States could engage constructively in those negotiations on an issue such as transparency," he said.

"But a climate loner that is intent on withdrawing from the Paris Agreement will not be listened to if it aims to weaken or undermine the accord in any way."

The United States is the world's second biggest producer of greenhouse gases after China and its withdrawal was a seen as a body blow to the Paris agreement.

The accord commits signatories to efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming, which is blamed for melting ice caps and glaciers, rising sea levels and more violent weather events.

They vowed steps to keep the worldwide rise in temperatures "well below" two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) from pre-industrial times and to "pursue efforts" to hold the increase under 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Despite notifying the UN of its intention to withdraw, the United States will not be able to formally pull out of the accord until 2020 at the earliest.

However, Trump has previously said his country would cease implementation immediately.
UPDATE: Sunday, 7 a.m. EDT  The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps suspended the rescue operation to locate the three missing marine soldiers, launched after MV-22 Osprey crashed near Rockhampton, off the Queensland coast, Australia, on Saturday afternoon.

The rescue operation included the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group who worked with local boatmen to help locate the missing people. The rescuers could only locate 23 of 26 people onboard the helicopter.

The military confirmed in a statement Sunday they do not hope to find the rest of the missing soldiers alive. Hence, instead of a rescue mission, a recovery operation has been initiated.

"Recovery and salvage operations can take several months to complete, but can be extended based on several environmental factors," Marine Corps Base Camp Butler's statement said, ABC News reported. "The circumstances of the mishap are currently under investigation, and there is no additional information available at this time."

Australia's defense force is assisting the U.S. with the recovery effort. In the meantime, the kin of the missing marines have been informed.

UPDATE: Saturday, 9.15 a.m. EDT  According to the military sources, the Osprey MV-22 helicopter carrying members of the U.S. Marine Corps crashed when it was attempting to land at USS Ronald Reagan, a Nimitz-class, nuclear-powered supercarrier in the service of the United States Navy near the coast of Shoalwater Bay.

At least one marine has been seriously injured and is taken to Rockhampton Hospital, The Courier Mail reported. The people who have already been rescued are said to have sustained serious injuries. No Australian Defence Force personnel were aboard the helicopter at the time of the crash.

I have been advised of an incident involving a United States Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey helicopter off the coast of Shoalwater Bay today, Australian federal Defence Minister Marise Payne said. "The United States is leading the search and recovery effort. I have briefed Prime Minister Turnbull and spoken with Secretary Mattis this evening to offer Australias support in any way that can be of assistance. Our thoughts are with the crew and the families affected," she added.

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Original Story:

An Osprey MV-22 helicopter carrying members of the U.S. Marine Corps crashed near Rockhampton off the Queensland coast, Australia, on Saturday afternoon, the military said in statement

The United States Marine Corps confirms there is an active search and rescue operation ongoing for service members involved in an MV-22 mishap off the east coast of Australia, the U.S. military said in a statement, 9News reported. Ship's small boats and aircraft from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group are conducting the search and rescue operations. We will provide more details as they become available, the statement added.

Read: WATCH: Marine Corps KC-130 Crashes In Mississippi, 16 Dead

MV-22 Osprey helicopter

Photo: Getty Images/ Saul Loeb

According to Sky News, 20 people have been rescued, while three are still missing and are feared dead. A search and rescue operation has been launched for the same. "There is an active search and rescue operation ongoing for service members involved in an MV-22 mishap," US Marine Corps confirmed in a statement.

Aircraft with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group are collaborating with the local boatmen to help locate the missing people.

It is believed that 26 people were on board the helicopter at the time of the crash, including four people who were manning it at the time. The helicopter has a capacity of 32 people.

The tiltrotor helicopter has taken part in the Australian-US military exercise Talisman Sabre, which has just concluded in Queensland. It has entered the coast of Shoalwater Bay when it crashed.

Read: All 25 Aboard US Marine Aircraft Crashing In Gulf Of Aden Safely Recovered

This is not the first time that an MV-22 aircraft has caused problems, according to the Daily Telegraph. Even when it was in its testing phase from 1991 to 2000, it had caused four crashes killing 30 people. After that, it became operational in 2007 and has since been involved five more crashes, resulting in the death of nine more.

Tiltrotor helicopters are used by the marines because they are a cross between airplane and helicopters. They are much faster than helicopters and have the capability to move vertically. Four Bell-Boeing MV-22 Osprey aircraft arrived in Australia at the end of April from the U.S. Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 268.

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The US Marine Corps said Saturday that a major search and rescue operation was underway for three missing service members following a "mishap" involving an American military aircraft off the Australian coast.

US Marines based in Japan said "search and rescue operations continue for three U.S. Marines that were aboard an MV-22 Osprey involved in a mishap off of the east coast of Australia".

"Twenty-three of 26 personnel aboard have been rescued," they added in a statement.

The MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor is the primary assault support aircraft for the Marines, with two engines positioned on fixed wing tips that allow it to land and take off vertically. It also has the ability to travel much faster than a helicopter.

"The aircraft involved in the mishap had launched from the USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) and was conducting regularly scheduled operations when the aircraft entered the water," the statement said.

The ship's small boats and aircraft are involved in the search off Shoalwater Bay in Queensland state.

"The circumstances of the mishap are currently under investigation," it added.

Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne said she had spoken to Pentagon chief Jim Mattis to offer help.

"I can confirm no Australian Defence Force Personnel were on board the aircraft," she said.

"The United States are leading the search and recovery effort.

"I have briefed Prime Minister (Malcolm) Turnbull and spoken with Secretary Mattis this evening to offer Australia's support in any way that can be of assistance."

The Osprey was in the region as part of the Australian-US joint military exercise Talisman Sabre, which has just concluded in Queensland.

In December last year an MV-22 Osprey made what the Marines called a "controlled landing" just off the coast of Okinawa during a night training flight that left the aircraft in pieces. No one was killed but the accident sparked anger on the Japanese island -- a strategic outpost of US military power.

A series of deadly accidents, mostly in the United States, prompted frequent protests in Okinawa against the deployment of the aircraft to the island.

In April 2000, 19 people were killed in the crash of one in the US.
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The UN Security Council will vote Saturday on a US-drafted resolution toughening sanctions on North Korea, diplomats said Friday, a proposed ban on certain exports that could deprive Pyongyang of $1 billion in annual revenue.

After a month of negotiations, the United States reached a deal with China, North Korea's main trading partner and ally, on the measures aimed at ratcheting up pressure on Pyongyang to halt its missile and nuclear tests.

The Security Council was scheduled to vote at 3 pm (1900 GMT) Saturday on the new raft of sanctions, diplomats confirmed.

The draft resolution calls for a ban on all exports of coal, iron and iron ore, lead and lead ore, as well as fish and seafood by the cash-starved state, according to the text seen by AFP.

If implemented by all countries, the ban would strip Pyongyang of roughly a third of its export earnings estimated at $3 billion per year, according to a diplomat familiar with the negotiations.

The diplomat, who briefed reporters on the content of the draft, said he had "high confidence" that China and Russia would support the proposed sanctions.

Backed by its European allies, Japan and South Korea, the United States has been leading the push at the United Nations for tougher sanctions in response to North Korea's launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile on July 4.

A second test on July 28 further raised alarm about Pyongyang's drive to develop a missile capable of hitting the US mainland.

The draft text would also prevent North Korea from increasing the number of workers it sends abroad, prohibit all new joint ventures and ban new investment in the current joint companies.

North Korea is blamed for a "massive diversion of its scarce resources" toward the development of "nuclear weapons and a number of expensive ballistic missile programs," the draft resolution said.

The new raft of measures would be the seventh set of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea since it first carried out a nuclear test in 2006, but these have failed to compel Pyongyang to change its behavior.

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Two resolutions adopted last year however have introduced economic sanctions with more bite.

The United States has put heavy pressure on China, which accounts for 90 percent of trade with North Korea, to enforce the sanctions.

- No ban on oil -

The proposed resolution would add North Korea's Foreign Trade Bank, the primary foreign exchange bank, to a UN sanctions blacklist, which provides for an assets freeze.

It would also tighten trade restrictions on technology to prevent North Korea from acquiring items that could be used for its military programs.

Under the proposed measure, North Korean vessels caught violating UN resolutions would be banned from entering ports in all countries.

The draft resolution however does not provide for cuts to oil deliveries to North Korea -- a move that would have dealt a serious blow to the economy.

Russia, which like China is a veto-wielding council member, had warned that it would not support sanctions that would worsen North Korea's humanitarian crisis.

The United States and its allies have argued that tougher sanctions are needed to force North Korea to come to the negotiating table to discuss a halt to its military programs.

China and Russia have meanwhile insisted that sanctions alone will not change Pyongyang's behavior and that talks are needed to address the crisis.

As negotiations at the United Nations entered the final stretch, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson declared that Washington was not seeking regime change in North Korea and was willing to talk to Pyongyang.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 15:36:23|Editor: Lu Hui

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks to the media on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings, in Manila, the Philippines, Aug. 6, 2017. Both sanctions against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) nuclear and missile programs and resumption of the six-party talks are important and neither should be neglected, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Sunday. (Xinhua/Wang Shen)

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Both sanctions against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) nuclear and missile programs and resumption of the six-party talks are important and neither should be neglected, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Sunday.

Wang made the remarks here on the sidelines of a series of foreign ministers' meetings, in response to a question regarding the new UN Security Council resolution over the DPRK's test launch of intercontinental ballistic missiles in July.

China, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, upheld an impartial and objective position and played a responsible and constructive role in the process of the adoption of the resolution, he said.

According to Wang, there are two major components in the resolution: one is to make a necessary response to the DPRK's constant missile launch activities which have violated UN Security Council resolutions in a bid to effectively check DPRK's nuclear and missile development programs.

The other is to call for the resumption of the six-party talks, stressing the peaceful settlement of the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue by diplomatic and political means, in order to avoid escalation of the tension on the peninsula.

The six-party talks, which involve the DPRK, South Korea, the United States, China, Russia and Japan, were initiated in Beijing in August 2003, but have been stalled since December 2008. DPRK dropped out of the talks in April 2009.

Noting that sanctions are necessary but not the ultimate goal, the Chinese minister said the measure aims to bring parties concerned back to the negotiating table so as to seek a peaceful solution to the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue and realize denuclearization as well as lasting peace and stability on the peninsula.

Following the adoption of the resolution, the situation on the Korean Peninsula has entered into a critical juncture, Wang said, urging all parties concerned to make judgement and decisions in a responsible way in order to avoid constant escalation of the situation on the peninsula.

Wang also expressed the hope that all parties concerned can earnestly take into account and accept China's "double suspension" proposal which requires the DPRK to suspend its missile and nuclear activities in exchange for the suspension of large-scale U.S.-South Korean military drills.

At present, the proposal is the most practical, viable and reasonable solution, he said, adding that it can not only deescalate the tension of the peninsula, but also address various parties' urgent safety concerns, and provide a way out for the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue.

Related:

U.N. Security Council unanimously adopts new sanctions against DPRK
Luisa Ortega, Venezuela's attorney general, turned against Nicolas Maduro in March and now finds herself the focus of government anger - AP

Venezuela's contested new assembly fired the country's dissident attorney general, Luisa Ortega, on Saturday, and ordered she stand trial, in a move certain to provoke greater international criticism.

The body, which made the sacking its first order of business, also said it planned to operate as Venezuela's supreme power for up to two years.

Troops surrounded the office of Ms Ortega on Saturday ahead of the move, as the newly installed constituent assembly began the session aimed at removing her from power.

Ms Ortega was suspended by the supreme court on Friday evening, hours after the assembly - derided by government critics as an illegitimate power grab - convened for the first time.

On Saturday morning she tweeted a photo of the soldiers outside her office, saying: "I reject this siege by the public ministry. I denounce before the national and international community this arbitrariness."

Rechazo asedio al @MPvenezolano. Denuncio esta arbitrariedad ante la comunidad nacional e internacional #5Agpic.twitter.com/un7QWGBGJ7  Luisa Ortega Diaz (@lortegadiaz) August 5, 2017

She told reporters she was roughed up as she tried to enter her office, claiming that one officer hit her with his body shield. She left on a motor bike amid the chaos.

Later, in a statement, released by the public prosecutor's office, she accused Mr Maduro's government of leading a "coup against the constitution".

She added: "I do not recognize the decision."

Her dismissal was, she said, "just a tiny example of what's coming for everyone that dares to oppose this totalitarian form of ruling."

The constituent assembly replaced Ms Ortega with President Nicolas Maduro's human rights ombudsman, Tarek Saab, a government ally who the opposition says has turned a blind eye to state abuses.

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Ms Ortega, 59, has become a lightning rod for government fury after she turned against Mr Maduro, speaking out against what she saw as an erosion of democracy. On Thursday she filed legal proceedings to attempt to block the constituent assembly from convening.

On Friday, when her attempt failed, Delcy Rodriguez, the former foreign minister and Maduro confidant who heads the assembly, said they would prioritise punishing opponents.

Delcy Rodriguez, in red, listens in as Diosdado Cabello, head of the ruling socialist party, addresses the constituent assembly on Friday

Dont think were going to wait weeks, months or years, she said, after she was voted unanimously by all the pro-government delegates who make up the assembly to lead.

Tomorrow we start to act. The violent fascists, those who wage economic war on the people, those who wage psychological war, justice is coming for you.

Before the assembly convened, Mr Maduro said it would be used to strip opposition politicians of their immunity, and described the body as "a super power".

It will have sweeping powers to upend institutions, rewrite the constitution and in theory could even remove Mr Maduro. One of its first tasks could be the closure of the opposition-controlled congress and the removal of Ms Ortega, a long-time supporter of late president Hugo Chavez.

The constitutional assembly was seated despite strong criticism from the United States, other countries and the Venezuelan opposition, which fear the assembly will be a tool for imposing dictatorship. Supporters say it will pacify a country rocked by violent protests.

Protests in Venezuela on July 30

But the opposition is struggling to regain its footing in the face of the governments strong-arm tactics and the re-emergence of old, internal divisions.

Several opposition activists have been jailed in recent days, others are rumoured to be seeking exile and one leader has broken ranks with the opposition alliance to say his party will field candidates in regional elections in December, despite widespread mistrust of Venezuelas electoral system.

In a sign of its apparent demoralised state, only a few hundred demonstrators showed up for a Friday protest against the constitutional assembly - one of the smallest turnouts in months.

But an increasing number of foreign governments have sided with the opposition, refusing to recognise the constitutional assembly and further isolating Mr Maduros government.

On Friday, the Vatican urged Mr Maduro to suspend the new body, expressing deep worry for the radicalization and worsening of the turmoil in Venezuela.

Strongly condemn removal of #Venezuelan Prosecutor General on first day of Constituent Assembly. Independent powers must be protected. pic.twitter.com/NaSMJTnNzr  Sir Alan Duncan MP (@AlanDuncanMP) August 5, 2017

Foreign ministers from several South American nations said they would gather on Saturday in Brazil for an emergency meeting to decide whether to expel Venezuela from the Mercosur trade bloc for violating its democratic norms. Venezuela was suspended from the group in December.

Ms Ortega's removal was condemned by Sir Alan Duncan, Britain's minister for Europe and the America's on Twitter as he called for her independent powers to be protected.
Donald Trump's adviser Steve Bannon is said to be concerned about a "deep state conspiracy" against the President: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Top White House officials have been photographed with conservative author Dinesh DSouza and his new book which argues that the Democratic Party practises tactics and methods that were promoted by fascist leaders like Hitler and Mussolini.

But, while the West Wing officials and Mr DSouza are seen smiling with the book in hand, the author later deleted the pictures from his Twitter feed.

The staffers in question were Chief White House Strategist Steve Bannon, the former Breitbart News executive who is known for promoting nationalist, anti-globalist ideas. The other was Sebastian Gorka, a deputy assistant to the President who reportedly has ties to ultra-nationalist groups in Hungary that have been accused of anti-Semitism.

Mr DSouza reportedly took the image down because it also showed Mr Bannons office white board, which is known to have strategy plans written out on it.

The new book is titled, The Big Lie: Exposing the Nazi Roots of the American Left. Promotional material for it reads, The Democratic left has an ideology virtually identical with fascism and routinely borrows tactics of intimidation and political terror from the Nazi Brownshirts.

Federal employees are barred by law from using their public offices to endorse a product that costs $20 or more, however the book does sell for less than that.

Dinesh DSouza just deleted his tweets with photos from Steve Bannons office. Here are the screenshots: pic.twitter.com/F77C3cjWXY  Christina Wilkie (@christinawilkie) August 4, 2017

Larry Noble, a senior director and general counsel of the Campaign Legal Centre, told Talking Points Memo that the pictures raise serious issues about whether the two officials endorse the book, or if that was their intention in taking the pictures.

Gorka and Bannon each posing for a picture in their office with DSouza while holding his book raises a serious issues of whether they violated the ban, Mr Noble said. I think a reasonable person would assume that the picture would be used to publicly suggest endorsement of the book.

This isnt the first time a White House official has run into potential issues for endorsing a product. Earlier this year, White House Counsel Kellyanne Conway was counselled for promoting Ivanka Trumps clothing line on national television in the White House briefing room.
The husband of a Texas doctor said Thursday that she died at the bottom of the Grand Canyon after she ran out of water and grew dizzy from heat exhaustion on a hike with their daughter and a nephew.

Scott Beadle said in a Facebook post that Dr. Sarah Beadle, 38, died Wednesday afternoon while hiking with the two school-aged children who were later found safe. He said authorities contacted him early Thursday to report the discovery of the body in an area of 100-degree heat and no drinking water.

The body was discovered on the north side of the Colorado River, about three-quarters of a mile (1.2 kilometers) from the Phantom Ranch lodge at the bottom of the canyon, said park spokeswoman Emily Davis. The cause of death was not immediately known but there was no indication of foul play, she added.

Sarah Beadle, of Fort Worth, was reported missing on Tuesday after she hiked into the canyon along South Kaibab Trail with the two children, ages 10 and 11.

Davis said circumstances of the incident, including how the woman and the children were separated, is being investigated by the National Park Service and the Coconino County Medical Examiner.

Sarah Beadle left the children in a safe place while she went ahead to get water and some help, wrote her husband, who is a pilot for an emergency rescue service. Somewhere along the trail she made a wrong turn and got lost. The park rangers suspect she died of heat exhaustion.

The husband said another hiker found the children, gave them water and took them to a camp. He said the kids were unharmed.

Sarah loved traveling with her family and sharing so many wonderful experiences with all of us, he wrote. I thank you all for your continued prayers and support.

Hundreds of co-workers, friends and relatives of the couple responded to Scott Beadles post with prayers and condolences, and shared their memories of the emergency room physician who worked at Baylor Emergency Medical Center in Keller, a Fort Worth suburb.

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Sarah Beadle was described repeatedly as a loving mother, as well as an adventurer who enjoyed hiking, camping and exploring caves.

Her older brother Charles Lawrence Springer told The Associated Press in a telephone interview his sister had been on a trip to take the children to several national parks and they had also visited Yellowstone in Wyoming.

Her husbands post included a link to her Facebook page, which showed her skydiving.

Park officials described Sarah Beadle as an experienced hiker who had trekked in the Grand Canyon previously.

But hiking there can be dangerous, with high temperatures at the canyon bottom routinely topping 100 degrees during the summer. There is no potable water available along the South Kaibab Trail between the South Rim trailhead and Phantom Ranch or even creek water to use for cooling, said Jeff Schwartz, a ranger who works in the inner canyon.

Schwartz said rangers advise hikers to hike in the morning or evening when temperatures are milder and theres more shade.

Still, its not uncommon to have one or two deaths a year primarily due to heat or dehydration, said Schwartz.

The environment down there is much less forgiving during the summertime, he said.
While the name may conjure up a mental image of a moon decorated with caviar craters, the full moon in the month of August actually got its name from Native American tribes along the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain.

It was around August that sturgeon were most plentiful and easily caught. But different tribes had different names for the moon based on their agriculture. Some call it the Full Green Corn Moon, the Wheat Cut Moon, Moon When All Things Ripen or the Blueberry Moon.

Related: 25 Perfect Spots for Watching the Total Solar Eclipse Crossing the U.S.

The moon will actually reach its perfect peak at 1:11 p.m. ET on Monday, so technically once the moon rises, viewers in the U.S. will actually see an almost-full waning gibbous moon. However, most people will not be able to spot the difference when it appears in the eastern sky, starting August 6.

Although the moon wont appear all that spectacular or unusual to those in the U.S., travelers to Africa, Asia or Australia will be able to catch a glimpse of a partial lunar eclipse, ahead of the total solar eclipse on August 21.

A lunar eclipse happens when the moon passes through some of the Earths shadow. They happen between two to four times a year and always come paired with a solar eclipse. (Theyre usually within two weeks of each other.)
Long-range aircraft testing must be an incredibly tiring job. I mean, imagine cruising around in a plane for 17 hours at a time, putting fancy new jet engines to the test and ensuring that they can endure intercontinental flights on a regular basis. Boeings glorious 787 Dreamliner needed to do just that, equipped with a pair of shiny Rolls-Royce engines which needed to put through their paces. So, how do you make a day-long flight interesting? By drawing a huge picture with your flight path, of course!

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Originally captured and shown by the flight-tracking app Flightradar24, the 17-hour test saw the Boeing jet cruise over 22 different states, drawing an absolutely spot-on outline of itself thanks to timely turns. The trip both began and ended in Seattle, but the actual drawing only began once the plane had reached the upper peninsula of Michigan. The aerial doodle ended in the same place, and then the jet made its way back to the West Coast.

Whats even more perfect about the drawing is that the nose of the aircraft outline actually points directly to the departure point, which is a really stellar nod to Boeings home state. Boeing has made a habit out of GPS sky art in recent years, famously drawing a huge number 12 in honor of the Seahawks, as well as other aircraft imagery.

As far as this particular test goes, it seems everything quite well, and if the artistic skills of the pilot  or autopilot  are any indication, the Dreamliners new engines are worthy of Bob Ross himself.

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Researcher Anita Quiles (C) and local staff at a dating laboratory in the French Institute of Eastern Archaeology (IFAO) in Cairo.

From the Giza pyramids to the pharaonic tombs of Luxor, Egypt's ancient monuments are holding onto mysteries which researchers now aim to unravel with cutting edge technology.

For more than 200 years since Napoleon Bonaparte landed in Egypt with a retinue of scholars who laid the groundwork for modern Egyptology, experts have used science to unlock the secrets of the country's ancient treasures.

In the 21st century, the scientists have been using electronic devices and chemical testing to date artefacts.

Chemical testing still requires small samples, but advanced techniques coming into use are meant to be non-invasive so as not to damage the ancient relics.

ScanPyramids is among the most ambitious of the projects to demystify the Khufu Pyramid near Cairo, the only surviving monument from the ancient Seven Wonders of the World.

It has employed infrared thermography and muography -- a technique that records images using muon particles -- in its quest.

The project had announced last October that the massive pyramid may contain undiscovered recesses.

"All the devices we put in place are designed to find where the cavity is located. We know there is one, but we're trying to find out where," said Mehdi Tayoubi, president of the HIP Institute heading the ScanPyramids project.

The muon devices include chemical emulsion instruments from Japan's University of Nagoya, electronic sensors from the KEK Japanese Research Laboratory, and muon telescopes from the French Atomic Energy Commission.

The results are then compared with infrared and 3D images.

Some archaeologists have pinned hopes on the sophisticated technology to locate the burial place of the legendary queen Nefertiti.

The wife of King Akhenaten, who initiated a monotheistic cult in ancient Egypt, Nefertiti remains an enigma, best known for a bust depicting her that is now on exhibition in Berlin's Neues Museum.

A British Egyptologist, Nicholas Reeves, believed her remains were hidden in a secret chamber in the tomb of Tutankhamun, in the southern Valley of the Kings.

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In 2015, archaeologists scanned the tomb with radar hoping for clues.

Both Reeves's theory and the inconclusive results have been dismissed by other Egyptologists.

One of them, former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass, said that an adept of the sun god Aton would never have been allowed to be buried in the Valley of the Kings.

- Mapping out ancient dynasties -

The excitement over the possible discovery has died down since the inconclusive results, but a team from Politecnico University in Turin, Italy, intends to give it another shot.

This time they will employ tomography -- a method used in medical scans -- and magnetometry, which measures magnetic fields.

Neither the Politecnico team nor the antiquities ministry has been inclined to discuss the fresh attempt, possibly put off by the anticlimactic media frenzy over the previous bid.

Elsewhere, Egyptologists are undertaking a project to nail down the chronology of Egypt's ancient dynasties more precisely.

The French Institute of Eastern Archaeology (IFAO) in Cairo has a dating laboratory that the researchers are putting to use for the project.

"The chronology of ancient Egypt is not clearly defined. We use a relative chronology," said Anita Quiles, head of research at the IFAO.

"We refer to reigns and dynasties but we do not know exactly the dates," she said.

The investigation, which involves chemical testing, is expected to take several years.

But Egyptologists say that science cannot replace archaeologists and their work on the ground.

"It is important to have science in archaeology," said Hawass.

"But it is very important not to let scientists announce any details about what they found unless it has been seen by Egyptologists."
Apple Inc. is planning to release a version of its smartwatch later this year that can connect directly to cellular networks, a move designed to reduce the devices reliance on the iPhone, people familiar with the matter said.

Currently, Apple requires its smartwatch to be connected wirelessly to an iPhone to stream music, download directions in maps, and send messages while on the go. Equipped with LTE chips, at least some new Apple Watch models, planned for release by the end of the year, will be able to conduct many tasks without an iPhone in range, the people said. For example, a user would be able to download new songs and use apps and leave their smartphone at home.

Intel Corp. will supply the LTE modems for the new Watch, according to another person familiar with the situation. Thats a big win for the chipmaker, which has been trying for years to get its components into more Apple mobile devices. Qualcomm Inc. has been the main modem supplier for iPhones and other Apple mobile gadgets, but the two companies are embroiled in a bitter legal dispute. Apple added Intel as a modem supplier for some iPhones last year.

Apple is already in talks with carriers in the U.S. and Europe about offering the cellular version, the people added. The carriers supporting the LTE Apple Watch, at least at launch, may be a limited subset of those that carry the iPhone, one of the people said. However, AT&T Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and T-Mobile US Inc. in the U.S. plan to sell the device, according to other people familiar with the matter. The new device could still be delayed beyond 2017  indeed, the company had already postponed a cellular-capable smartwatch last year. Apple declined to comment.

While the Apple Watch remains a small part of Apples overall revenue, Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said earlier this week its the best-selling smartwatch by a very wide margin. Sales of the device grew more than 50 percent in the third quarter, Cook added. In the larger wearables category, which includes cheaper fitness bands, Apple ranks third behind Xiaomi Corp. and Fitbit Inc., according to research firm Strategy Analytics. Apple does not break out sales numbers for the Watch like it does for iPhones, iPads, and Macs.

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Making the Apple Watch more of a standalone device may boost sales of the product. It would be a game changer, said Gene Munster, co-founder of Loup Ventures and a long-time Apple analyst. If they could deliver an experience that isnt tethered to an iPhone, it could kick start a new direction for the business. Still, hes concerned about battery life in such a device.

Last year, Apple took a step toward making the Apple Watch a more independent device by selling some new models with a GPS chip. This allows the device to accurately track distance traveled by wearers when they leave their iPhones behind on walks or runs. The company had planned to release an LTE-capable model last year, but chose to hold off due to battery life issues, Bloomberg News reported at the time. Cramming an LTE radio into a device as small as a watch remains a challenge, but Apple has been exploring ways to improve battery life, people familiar with the companys work said.

In addition to adding a cellular chip to the Apple Watch, the Cupertino, California-based company is planning software changes for the device. WatchOS 4 is coming in the fall with more Siri voice-enabled features, the ability to connect to gym equipment, send payments in iMessage and display news stories, Apple said in June at its Worldwide Developers Conference.

Apple announced the Apple Watch Series 2 alongside the iPhone 7 line in September. The company plans to debut three new iPhone models this fall, including one with a revamped design and a 3-D facial recognition scanner for unlocking the device, Bloomberg News has reported. Apple could choose to debut its new Watch models alongside the new iPhone like it did last year. Apple also plans to release its Siri-driven HomePod speaker and the iMac Pro desktop computer in December, the company said in June.
HMD Global will soon launch its first Nokia-branded flagship Android handset. The Nokia 8 is supposed to compete directly against the best Android devices out there and the iPhone 8, reports have shown. The handset will have high-end specs, but it wont carry a budget-breaking price. And if the following rumor pans out, the Nokia 8 might pull off a trick that only Googles phones can deliver.

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HMD said when it introduced its first Nokia handsets a few months ago that its devices will run a near-vanilla version of Android, which should guarantee speedy and steady Android updates. Thats great news for any Android user looking for handsets that would run Googles latest Android version as soon as possible.

But a new Geekbench listing suggests the Nokia 8 might go a step further. Theres a chance the phone will run Android 8.0 out of the gate, according to this newly discovered Geekbench entry.

The listing for this Unknown Heart device says the handset is packing a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip and 4GB of RAM. It also runs Android O, which is unexpected for a phone thats not even official.

Its unclear whether the Nokia 8 will run Android O out of the box, or whether Nokia engineers are simply testing Googles upcoming Android update to prepare a swift upgrade for the next handset. Whatever the case, the Nokia 8 already looks even more exciting. Should it run Android 8.0 out of the box when it launches, it would become the first non-Google phone to run the latest Android version available days after its launched.

Remember, the Nokia 8 should be unveiled on August 16th, while Android O will likely release around the same time. Comparatively, the Galaxy Note 8 will probably launch with Android Nougat.

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Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 15:46:28|Editor: Xiang Bo

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ISLAMABAD, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The ethnic policies adopted by the Chinese central government has helped the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in north China to achieve economic prosperity and unity, a Paskistani expert has commented.

China's "Inner Mongolia has been achieving great and speedy economic achievements," Wiqar Ali Shah, a professor of social sciences at the Islambad-based Quaid-i-Azam University, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

"In my view, Inner Mongolia and other autonomous regions have witnessed faster economic growth than the country as a whole," said the Pakistani expert.

He cited Inner Mongolia's regional per capita gross domestic product (GDP), which amounted to over 11,000 U.S. dollars, ranking the sixth in China, as an achievement "due to the constructive and long-term economic and development policies by the Chinese government."

The policies have enabled development in various sectors to create more jobs to help lift a big portion of the local population including minorities out of poverty, according to him.

Thanks to China's ethnic policies, "Inner Mongolia has become more independent in implementing its own economic roadmap," he noted.

"The pillar of China's ethnic policies is regional autonomy for ethnic minorities, and every leadership has been pushing it," he said.

Shah described as "ideal" the policies made and adopted by the central government under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which has also helped promote unity "not only at the local level but also at the national level."

"Because of the ideal policies by the Chinese leadership, minorities have started feeling comfortable and proudly consider themselves as part of the Chinese nation," he said.

"The leadership of the Communist Party of China, along with the passage of time, has been developing and improving its ethnic policy since the 1950s in accordance with the needs at the ground level," he added.

Shah also noticed an increase in the population of local ethnic Mongolians thanks to different and favorable population policies the Chinese central government has adopted, which allows ethnic minorities to give birth to more children than Han Chinese.

The total population currently exceeds 250 million in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region that was set up in 1947, with an life expectancy up to 75.8 years from less than 35 years over the past seven decades.

Shah thinks the Chinese government and leadership have attached great importance to ethnic issues, inter-ethnic relations and national unity. "Chinese ethnic policies and systems have already become exemplary in the world," he said.
- Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

The British security expert hailed a hero for helping shut down a global cyber attack admitted in a police interview he created a code which harvests bank details and "indicated" that he sold it, a prosecutor told his US court hearing.

But Marcus Hutchins, from Ilfracombe, Devon, plans to plead not guilty to all six counts of creating and distributing the Kronos malware, his lawyer said after his hearing in Las Vegas on Friday.

The 23-year-old, who found a "kill-switch" that derailed the attack that crippled the NHS in May, was granted bail under strict conditions that he pay 30,000 dollars (23,000) and remain in the US.

Dan Cowhig, prosecuting, told the federal court Hutchins should not be freed because he is a "danger to the public".

"He admitted he was the author of the code of Kronos malware and indicated he sold it," Mr Cowhig said.

Hutchins and his unnamed co-defendant, who is still at large, were caught in a sting operation when undercover officers brought the code, the prosecutor added.

Other evidence comes from chat logs between him and a co-defendant during which Hutchins complains about the money he received for the sale, Mr Cowhig said.

High-profile hacks

After the hearing, Hutchins' lawyer Adrian Lobo denied he is the author and said he would be pleading not guilty to all of the charges, which date between July 2014 and July 2015.

She said: "He fights the charges and we intend to fight the case.

"He has dedicated his life to researching malware, not trying to harm people. Use the internet for good is what he has done."

Hutchins spoke softly as he answered procedural questions and confirmed his identity while wearing a prison-issued yellow jumpsuit with "detainee" stamped on the back, and bright orange Crocs shoes.

District judge Nancy Koppe ordered his release on bail considering he has no criminal history and because the allegations date back to two years ago.

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Marcus Hutchins Credit: Frank Augstein/AP

He cannot access the internet, must be monitored by GPS, surrender his passport and only reside in Clark County, Nevada, and within the Eastern District of Wisconsin where he will appear in court on Tuesday.

At that hearing he is expected to formally enter his pleas.

Hutchins, also known as MalwareTech, was indicted alongside an unidentified co-defendant by a grand jury over allegations unrelated to his work halting the attack by the WannaCry ransomware that hit more than 300,000 computers in 150 countries.

The indictment claims Hutchins created the malware that can side-step anti-virus software to steal banking usernames and passwords before conspiring with the co-defendant to sell it on internet forums.

Prosecutors claim the co-defendant successfully sold the software for 2,000 dollars (1,522) in digital currency in June 2015.

Janet Hutchins, the researcher's mother, has said it is "hugely unlikely" he is involved because he has dedicated "enormous amounts of time and even his free time" combating such software.

The FBI arrested on Hutchins at McCarran International Airport where he was trying to fly back to Briton from the Def Con hacking conference, a friend said.

Hutchins, who works for Los Angeles-based computer security firm Kryptos Logic, was expected to be released later on Friday.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 15:46:30|Editor: ying

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TUNIS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Frequent fires amid heat waves erupted across eight provinces in Tunisia, crushing 2,000 hectares of land, local media reported on Sunday.

The Secretary of State for Agriculture Omar Bahi said that the figure is hitting a record as "anxious and exceptional," with the average annual damage caused by fires stays at about 1,300 hectares.

Almost all the fires were controlled except for four provinces, namely Bizerte in the north, Beja and Jendouba in the northwest, and Kasserine in the centerwest, said Bahi during a joint press briefing with representatives of the National Guard and Civil Protection.

The official spokesman of the Tunisian National Guard Khalifa Chibani confirmed the evidence of natural causes referring to the over-week-long heat wave in Tunisia, with 47 degrees Celsius in the shade and 59 degrees Celsius under the sun.

Chibani also announced the arrest of a dozen individuals who triggered many of the fires.

"The majority of these people suspected of firing in some forest areas are former employees in the public sector or citizens with personal motives," he said.

Since 2011, the recurrence of fires in Tunisia, especially during the summer season, is steadily increasing.

In 2014, around 400 fires ravaged 4,700 hectares of land before resuming in the last years a relatively normal rhythm, according to Habib Abid, general director of forests in the Tunisian Ministry of Agriculture.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 16:56:48|Editor: Xiang Bo

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By Xinhua writers Lou Chen, Li Renhu, Zhang Lina

HOHHOT, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Over half a century ago, Huang Zhigang was a starving orphan in Shanghai. Along with 3,000 other orphans, he only was saved when he was taken to Inner Mongolia.

It is not customary for Mongolians to have a tombstone, but Huang, his brothers and sisters set one up for their foster parents Dowge and Zhang Fengxian in the Xianghuang Banner of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Every year in July, Huang, who has retired from his government post, and his wife visit the tombstone to honor their late parents, bringing peaches, liquor and flowers.

"If it were not for my parents, I would have died of starvation during the three years of difficulties," said Huang, kowtowing before the monument.

From 1959 to 1961, natural disasters and famine claimed staggering death tolls in China. In Shanghai, orphanages were crowded and welfare institutions could not feed the huge numbers of children.

Zhou Enlai, then Chinese Premier, met with Ulanhu, secretary of Communist Party of China Inner Mongolia Committee and decided to send the children to the grasslands where there was enough milk and meat to feed them.

From 1959, over 3,000 orphans from Anhui, Jiangsu, Shanghai and Zhejiang were put on trains and taken 1,400 kilometers to Inner Mongolia.

"We had no names when we left Shanghai. Each of us had a piece cloth sewn on to our clothes with a number on it," said Huang Zhigang, who was five when he was brought to Xianghuang Banner.

The birth rate in Inner Mongolia was low in the 1960s. Many ethnic Mongolian couples wanted to adopt children, said Yun Shubi, daughter of Ulanhu, who also took part in the mass salvation plan.

"My father said, herdsmen like children, no matter where they come from," Yun told Xinhua, ahead of the 70th anniversary of the autonomous region. Ulanhu promised Zhou that he would make arrangements for the mass transfer.

In general, the government allowed each a couple to take only one child. Many newly-weds and even old grannies rode or walked hundreds of miles to apply to adopt, she said.

Some children in the poorest of health were put in clinics before being adopted, Yun said.

THE RED-FACED AUNT

In 1961, Zhang Fengxian was a nurse at a commune in Xianghuang Banner. Six orphans from Shanghai, including Huang Zhigang, were staying at a school next door.

"We were all about the same age, four, or five at the time. We called each other sisters and brothers, and we refused to be separated. When our prospective parents came, we hid so they couldn't find us," said Huang.

Zhang liked the children. "She wore khaki clothes, seemed plain and nice. She came from next door to see us, helped us wash our faces and hair. Sometimes she brought candy. We grew to like her," said Huang.

The children called Zhang the "red-faced aunt" - her face was tanned due to exposure to the sun. The four boys and two girls stayed at the school for months, but when winter came they needed to be put in private homes with stoves.

Zhang had no children of her own, and when she offered to adopt all six kids together, the local government agreed because both she and her husband had stable jobs.

Zhang raised them with her husband Dowge, but she passed away in 1991. One of the sons died while serving in the army. The rest went to university and found decent government jobs.

"Mother gave us different names. She named me after the banner, my given name meant "steely mind." One of my brothers was named Mao, or 'the kitten' because he was frail. The three others had Mongolian names," said Huang.

One of Huang's sisters Gaowa now works in Beijing. His brother Mao Shiyong, who used to be called kitten, works in Shanghai where his son attends college, but the others have stayed in Inner Mongolia.

Mao Shiyong remembers their mother got exceedingly angry once. "We four boys pushed a cow's feed container to the lake. Mom seized us and spanked us. She cried, "The lake is so deep! What if you had drowned? What if you were all drowned?"

"She worried about our safety through all her life. She said we are her children, but we are also a mission for her from the State," Mao said.

THE STATE'S CHILDREN

Though it is hard to track down of all 3,000 children, most of them have survived, Yun Shubi said.

In the 1960s, government made welfare payments to families who had adopted the children. When the country was in extreme shortage of food, the regional government gave 2.5 kilograms of rice for every child. The children received living expenses up until they attended university.

Doguima, 75, a highly venerated woman in Inner Mongolia, is one of the few surviving carers of the orphans. She fostered 28 children, aged up to six years old, before they were taken by their adoptive parents. To this day, Doguima is often visited by the orphans she took care of 50 years ago.

"I knew nothing of being a mother in 1961 at the age of 19 when I received the orphans. I remembered one of the toddlers, Huhe, came and called me Mama. My heart pounded, and my face turned red. I took him into my arms and cuddled him till he slept," said Doguima.

"I looked after the kids until they were strong enough for adoption. They left one after another, but I believe they were in good hands," she said.

When China endured the Cultural Revolution, dedication and an unrelenting sense of responsibility bonded the children and their new parents together, helping them survive the harshest of hardships.

Aogen already had a 6-year-old daughter when she adopted Chakto, who was three when he was taken to Xilingol in the winter of 1960. The boy suffered from polio.

The year 1969 was the hardest of all for Aogen. During the day, she was made to do heavy chores and carried stones to build a water sluice. At night, she was scolded and abused by class struggle leaders, said Narilato, a local official who was close to their family. Both Aogen and Chakto have since passed away.

"One day, Aogen could not bear it and she took a knife and walked out of the yurt. She fainted before she could attempt suicide. When she woke up, Chakto was trying to break the knife with a rock. She realized then that she could never let go of her own life, or the boy," said Narilato.

The orphans from south China had no Mongolian lineage, but years of living on the grassland have bonded them with the land and the people.

Tongalaga, a Shanghai orphan in her 60s, runs a shop making Mongolian robes. "My mother wanted me to learn Mandarin. She said one day I may want to go back to Shanghai and look for my birth parents. I said there is no meaning in doing so. I learnt Mongolian, and will stay forever on the prairie," she said.

Shanghai orphan Danlaga grew up and worked as a township-level government employee. He married a Mongolian wife, and carried on his foster parents credo of good deeds. He took care of an aged neighbor for ten years before the woman passed away.

In 2002, ten of the orphans returned to the Shanghai city orphanage. "The train to Inner Mongolia 56 years ago changed the fate for thousands of us, but only for the better," said Chagan Chaolu, one of the orphans.

They threw the salt from Inner Mongolia to the Huangpu River and took back bottled water from Shanghai to their home.

"We will never forget how we left Shanghai, and we will never forget the people and the land which brought us up to be who we are today," Huang said.

(Additional reporting by Ren Junchuan, Wang Chunyan)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 17:16:54|Editor: Yurou Liang

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ANKARA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- A Turkish police officer was killed during clashes between security forces and Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants in the southeastern Hakkari province, the governor's office said Sunday.

The clash in Semdinli district also injured a police officer, who has been hospitalized without life-threatening injuries.

A helicopter-backed operation has been launched against the PKK in the region, the statement added.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the EU, resumed its armed campaign against the Turkish government in July 2015.

Since then, some 1,200 Turkish security personnel and civilians were killed in PKK attacks, while more than 7,000 PKK members were killed during government operations across Turkey and northern Iraq.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 17:26:57|Editor: Yurou Liang

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KUNMING, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- A rare wild monkey has recently become a trouble-maker by attacking a villager, pigs and stealing fruit in southwest China's Yunnan Province.

Dai Yongcui, a resident of Galabo Village in Gongshan Dulong and Nu Autonomous County, was attacked by an Assam macaque, a Class I protected wild animal in China, on her way home on Thursday. The monkey bit her thighs and ears.

"I did not see clearly what it was, and I thought I was bitten by a dog," Dai said. She later had stitches and rabies vaccination.

On Friday, another villager said he saw the monkey stealing pig fodder and peaches. It also bit five pigs a villager raised.

Police used a tranquilizer to catch the monkey when it came back to the village for food on Saturday.

The wild animal has been sent to a nature reserve for treatment and observation. It is in stable condition.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 17:31:59|Editor: Xiang Bo

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) meets with his Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) counterpart Ri Yong-ho on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings, in Manila, the Philippines, Aug. 6, 2017. (Xinhua/Wang Shen)

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday called on both the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), and the United States and South Korea to exercise restraint and make right choices.

They should be accountable to their people and regional peace in making such choices, he noted.

Wang made the remarks while meeting his DPRK counterpart Ri Yong-ho on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings in the Philippines.

Wang expounded on China's principles and position on the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula, noting that the situation on the peninsula is highly sensitive and complex, which has affected the China-DPRK relations.

While stressing that the situation of the Korean Peninsula is currently getting close to the critical point of crisis, the Chinese minister said it is also at a turning point to make a decision to resume peace talks.

He called on the DPRK not to violate UN Security Council resolutions any more, while urging the United States and South Korea not to escalate tension on the peninsula.

The parties concerned should exercise restraint and take positive signals released by related parties, Wang said.

Ri reiterated the DPRK's stance on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, saying Pyongyang is willing to maintain communication with China in this aspect.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 17:52:05|Editor: Yurou Liang

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JAKARTA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- A festival showcasing tradition and daily life of indigenous tribes in Indonesia's easternmost province of Papua is scheduled to resume on Aug. 8-11 in the province's Jayawijaya regency.

The festival which initially started in 1989, called Baliem Valley Festival, would be held in greater events this year compared to those in the previous years, Indonesian Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said.

"Come to the Baliem Valley Festival, the event would enable you to see the Papuan tribes' unique cultural and traditions since hundreds of years ago, and feel the province's natural beauty," the minister said.

During the festival themed "Art of Dance and War" held in the regency's capital of Wamena, visitors would see the tribal war attraction between tribes in the province, including its traditional rites and traditional dancing performed by performers from each of the tribe, he added.

The minister's deputy for domestic tourism development Esthy Reko Astuti said various tribes around the regency, among others the Dani, Yali and Lani tribes, would send their cultural teams to take part in the event.

Esthy said the festival would also feature several traditional tribal dances related to the tribal war attraction that resemble fertility and prosperity.

Besides the traditional dance, the festival would also include archery and spear competitions, demonstration of traditional cookery, pig racing, theatrical performance, local Sikoko and Puradaan games and the display of local mummies.

The mummies were of the bodies of Papuan tribal chiefs and respected figures, embalmed by Papuan tribes with their own traditional methods.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 18:07:07|Editor: Xiang Bo

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (3rd R) meets with Lao Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith (2nd L) on the sidelines of a series of the foreign ministers' meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), in Manila, the Philippines, Aug. 6, 2017. (Xinhua/Wang Shen)

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- China is satisfied with the achievements in relations between China and ASEAN and the situation in the South China Sea has "stabilized remarkably" in the past year, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Sunday.

Wang made the remarks while meeting with his Lao and Brunei counterparts separately on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings in Manila.

China and ASEAN countries agreed on a framework of the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea before schedule, and it indicates China and ASEAN countries are confident, capable and wise enough to manage divergences and maintain regional peace and stability, Wang told Lao Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith.

Wang said he hoped key achievements made in China-ASEAN relations, including the South China Sea issue, in the past year, can be demonstrated objectively in the foreign ministers' meetings held here.

In the past year, China and Laos have cooperated closely and overcome interference to push ahead bilateral relations and China-ASEAN relations, Wang said.

He called Laos a friendly and close neighbor of China, saying the two countries have always understood, trusted and supported each other and China is willing to support Laos in speeding up development, boosting national power and improving people's livelihood.

Saleumxay said China and Laos have been long-term strategic partners, maintaining frequent contacts on high levels and Laos appreciates China for its assistance and support in Laos' development.

Both ASEAN and Laos consider China as an important partner and are committed to strengthening cooperation with China, the Lao minister said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 18:12:11|Editor: Xiang Bo

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (4th R) meets with Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishan (1st L) on the sidelines of a series of the foreign ministers' meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Manila, the Philippines, Aug. 6, 2017. (Xinhua/Wang Shen)

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has highlighted trust-building and cooperation in meetings with his Singaporean and Cambodian counterparts here on Sunday.

"Relations between China and Singapore have experienced ups and downs. But close exchanges between the two countries' leaders recently have enhanced mutual trust of the two countries, which is essential to healthy bilateral relations between China and Singapore," Wang said while meeting with Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishan on the sidelines of a series of the foreign ministers' meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

He spoke highly of Singapore's role as a coordinator of China-ASEAN ties, praising Singapore for its efforts in promoting ASEAN community building and advancing relations between China and ASEAN.

"Singapore will be the chair of ASEAN next year. We believe Singapore will play a more constructive role in promoting ASEAN community building and advancing China-ASEAN relations," Wang said.

He stressed that China and ASEAN must work together to enhance trust, dispel unnecessary misgivings and focus on mutual beneficial cooperation, which is line with the common interests of all the countries in the region.

For his part, Balakrishan said Singapore is full of confidence and expectations in Singapore-China relationship, expecting to strengthen and deepen the bilateral ties through cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative.

He said ASEAN-China relations have seen important and positive progress over the past year and the situation in the South China Sea has stabilized. Singapore will continue to do its best and play its due role as a coordinator.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 18:32:16|Editor: Xiang Bo

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LUSAKA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese enterprises have taken advantage of Zambia's premier agriculture and commercial show to market their products.

The Chinese enterprises are among 95 foreign firms and 718 local firms exhibiting at the 91st Agriculture and Commercial Show in Lusaka, the country's capital which opened its doors to the public on August 2.

It is being held under the theme "Promoting Green Economy."

With the ever-improving bilateral relations between Zambia and China, a number of Chinese enterprises have invested in various sectors of the southern African country's economy.

However, competition is stiff and the Chinese enterprises are devising various ways of cementing their presence such as advertising as well as using events like trade fairs and shows to market their products.

There is no doubt that Chinese investment is having a positive impact on the Zambian economy as seen in the number of Chinese enterprises that have invested in various sectors.

According to Chinese Ambassador to Zambia, the two countries have expanded economic cooperation with an increased investment of close to 4 billion US dollars and an annual trade volume of around 3 billion dollars.

There are over 500 Chinese firms operating in Zambia.

"Of course we are here to market our products. We want the Zambia public to know our products and we are taking advantage of this event to help local people know about our bank," Zhu Wenlong, Bank of China (Zambia) Deputy Managing Director told Xinhua in an interview.

Driven by its mission of "Serving Society, Delivering Excellence", the official said the bank was geared toward providing efficient and unmatched services to the Zambian people.

Established in 1997, the Bank of China Zambia is the first wholly owned subsidiary of the Bank of China and also the first Chinese financial institution in Africa.

It provides both corporate and personal services, including credit facility, account services, international settlement, exchange services and Chinese currency services. It launched its RMB notes business in 2011.

Zambian Jihai Agriculture Company Limited, which is involved in all-year round production of mushroom is another firm exhibiting at the event to market various products it was producing in Zambia.

Since its establishment five years ago, the firm has expanded its line of operations and apart from mushroom growing, the firm has opened other ventures such as the JCS Food Town, a center where various agricultural products are being sold not only to the Chinese nationals but local people as well.

The food market has about 79 small scale traders operating there.

According to Faith Mwale, assistant manager in charge of business development and administration, the firm has established a firm print on the Zambian market and was ready to offer various products and services to the people.

Camco Equipment Zambia Limited, a company that markets agricultural and other machinery made by various Chinese firms, is also exhibiting at the event, with the purpose of cementing its footprint on the market.

The firm, that has been in existence in Zambia since 1998, expressed happiness over the response the equipment has received in the country.

"The response has been overwhelming and we are here to ensure that we capture more customers," Josephat Ntolombita, the firm's sales and marketing officer said.

Confucius Institute is also participating at the event as it tries to capture more local people to learn the Chinese language and culture.

According to Professor Li Qingjun, the director of the institute, the growing relations between the two countries was enough reason to help the local people understand the Chinese culture and language.

She said local people who were learning the Chinese language have a greater chance of working for Chinese firm as well as enable easy communication when they go to China for business.

Since its launch in 2010, over 8,000 local people have registered at 18 teaching centers dotted in various parts of the country.

"We hope we can capture more people and entice them to enroll and learn Chinese," she said.

Other companies seen at the event included Chingases Company Limited which has been operating in Zambia since 2007 and is involved in the manufacture of gases such as oxygen, and Topstar, the Chinese firm engaged to provide digital broadcasting migration services.
Summertime means fair time throughout Montana and the country.

Adults and kids enjoy frosty lemonade and hot musical acts, visit the livestock barns, take in a rodeo and try out a variety of wild and tame rides.

But some people might be having second thoughts about climbing on a ride this summer after the July 26 death of a rider at the Ohio State Fair. Seven other people were injured when the thrill ride flew apart.

A lot of people have asked us about this, said Tom Aldrich, events manager for the Missoula Fairgrounds and the Western Montana Fair.

Aldrich said the staff of the Missoula-based fair, which will run Aug. 8-13 this year, does everything it can to ensure riders are safe.

Its very safe and family-friendly, from our point of view, he said.

Across Montana that seems to be the case. Statistics supplied by the Montana Department of Health and Human Services show that between 2003 and 2015, there were no deaths due to carnival rides.

From 2010 until now there have been five hospital admissions in the state due to riding roller coasters and no emergency room visits. Riding roller coasters is a catch-all phrase covering carnival rides.

According to Safeparks, a California group that works to improve the safety of amusement park rides and attractions, roller coasters are by far the most commonly cited ride in accident and injury reports for people older than 6. Spinning rides are the second-most frequently mentioned type.

Nationally, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said there were an estimated 30,000 injuries associated with amusement attractions seen in hospital emergency departments in 2016. CPSC also is aware of 22 fatalities associated with amusement attractions, including rides, since 2010.

While the CPSC regulates how amusement rides are manufactured, there is no federal oversight regarding how they are set up, maintained and operated. That responsibility is left to states.

States

An analysis by Safeparks shows that 20 states offer comprehensive government oversight, 12 have partial government oversight, eight rely on private-sector oversight and one requires only electrical inspections.

Nine states, including Montana, have no regulations concerning amusement rides. The other states include North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, Alabama, Arizona and Mississippi.

Montana is also one of seven states that don't require amusement carnival owners to carry liability insurance. That puts the onus on the venues that sponsor fairs and similar events, and the companies they contract with that provide the rides.

Retrospective: Carnies at the fair Carnival workers are known for their distinct culture and sense of camaraderie. Take a behind-the-scenes look at carnies in these photos as th

Aldrich said this spring the Western Montana Fair invited carnival companies to submit contract proposals for the 2018-21 fairs. In those proposals, the companies submit their safety record, letters of reference and a list of their rides, which includes the rides' ages and manufacturers. Companies provide their safety procedures and protocols and submit a fresh insurance policy each spring, which the countys risk manager reviews.

One thing Aldrich learned in the process is some companies dont have enough of their own rides and subcontract with other, smaller firms.

To me that seems like a safety issue, he said. If the contractor doesnt own all the rides, theyre not as familiar with them.

Thats part of why the fair officials chose North Star Amusements, which owns all of its own rides. North Star also brings its own mechanics and spare parts, which Aldrich calls a big plus for both safety and service.

MontanaFair

MetraPark General Manager Bill Dutcher, who oversees MontanaFair, this year Aug. 11-19, said that its up to the fair manager to do the investigating.

And it would be very highly recommended to do background checks and reputation checks within the industry, he said.

As part of its contract, MetraPark requires the carnival operator to carry liability insurance of at least $2 million. And the company has to provide a copy of its most recent insurance inspection report.

Dutcher, who has been involved with the fair for 36 years, just completed a term as president of the Midwest Fairs Association and will soon take the reins as president of the Southern Rocky Mountain Association of Fairs. Safety in terms of rides, food and weather is forefront in the minds of fair managers around the country, he said.

With the many possible events, be it weather, be it security, be it ride safety, be it E.coli, (managers) need to be up on the latest information to make it a successful event, he said. The carnival is a big part of the fair, and that puts everyones reputations on the line.

Retrospective: Fairs in Yellowstone County Though Yellowstone County held county fairs not long after becoming a county, the current fairgrounds were first used in 1916. Take a look bac

Robert Bob Johnson, president of the Outdoor Amusement Business Association, agrees that safety starts with the carnival owners. The OABA represents more than 2,000 members that include carnival companies, individuals, ride manufacturers and food and game concessionaires.

The person with the most at stake is the ride owner, Johnson said. Then their insurance company that insures them, who do annual inspections of their clients, in addition to state inspections.

Anyone who owns an amusement-ride company is going to have insurance, he said. Those companies cant afford to have liability of that magnitude.

And the insurance company is going to make sure before they insure that ride operator that they have trained and certified their own employees, he said. Every day before that ride opens to the public, there are safety checks and records kept to ensure safety.

Saying customers also play a part, Johnson quoted Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who said people assume a risk when they ride certain rides.

"I thought that was right on," he said. "But it's rare this type of catastrophic failure would occur and even more so a fatality."

Nationwide

Carnival owners must be on top of the regulations that vary from state to state. John Hanschen, president and primary stockholder of Thomas Carnival, who will return to MontanaFair for the 38th year, is well aware of that.

Thomas Carnival operates in 12 states, including four stops in Montana. In an interview he ticked off requirements for several states.

In Texas, the Department of Insurance requires an annual filing from the carnivals insurance company stating the rides have had an annual inspection by the insurance company or a third-party inspector.

Louisiana requires a third-party inspector to file a statement that the rides have been inspected. Then the Louisiana state fire marshal inspects the rides.

In Nebraska, the Department of Labor does an inspection. "The first time you come into the state, they do a mechanical and electrical inspection," Hanschen said.

North Dakota and Utah, like Montana, dont have state regulations.

Montana probably to a degree gets some benefit from the other states doing inspections as we travel, Hanschen said.

Beyond the requirements, it only makes sense that a business would want to have a safe operation, even though it's not always easy, Hanschen said.

Ive been in this industry for 42 years now and its always a challenge, he said. You do your best to manage safety keeping all that in mind, mechanical equipment, human beings running the rides  there are a lot of variables there.

Hanschen, who is based in Austin, Texas, is a certified inspector. And he has taken safety to another level, meeting the standards for entry into the prestigious Circle of Excellence, offered by the OABA.

Johnson calls Thomas Carnival one of the finest carnivals in the country who takes safety very, very seriously.

Hanschen, who is involved in the trade organization, is in frequent contact with other carnival companies around the country.

Every single person Ive ever met in this industry is worried about public safety, he said. They dont take it lightly.

Retrospective: Rides at the fair
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 18:47:24|Editor: Lu Hui

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LAGOS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Scores of worshippers were killed in the early hours of Sunday after unidentified gunmen opened fire inside a Catholic church in southeast Nigeria's Anambra State, an eyewitness said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:02:30|Editor: ying

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LONDON, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- A new generation of internet-connected cars will have to be better protected from hackers, under tough new government rules issued Sunday by Britain's Department for Transport (DfT).

Smart vehicles are increasingly becoming the norm on British roads, enabling drivers to access maps, travel information and new digital radio services from the driving seat.

But the DfT fears would-be hackers could target vehicles to access personal data, steal cars that use keyless entry, or even take control of technology for malicious reasons.

New government guidance issued by the DfT will ensure engineers developing smart vehicles will have to toughen up cyber protections and help design out hacking.

The government is looking at a broader program of work under a landmark Autonomous and Electric Vehicles Bill that aims to create a new framework for self-driving vehicle insurance.

The DfT says the legislation will put Britain at the center of new technological developments in smart and autonomous vehicles in what is still an emerging industry.

Manufacturers will have to design out cyber security threats as part of their development work.

"This will cement Britain as a world-leading location for research and development for the next generation of vehicles. And it forms part of the government's drive to ensure the country harnesses the economic and job-creating potential of new tech industries," said a spokesman for the DfT

Transport Minister Lord Callanan said: "Our cars are becoming smarter and self-driving technology will revolutionise the way in which we travel. Risks of people hacking into the technology might be low, but we must make sure the public is protected. Whether we're turning vehicles into wifi connected hotspots or equipping them with millions of lines of code to become fully automated, it is important that they are protected against cyber-attacks."

Mike Hawes, CEO of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said: "We're pleased that government is taking action now it is championing cyber security at an international level. These vehicles will transform our roads and society, dramatically reducing accidents and saving thousands of lives. A consistent set of guidelines is an important step towards ensuring Britain can be among the first -- and safest -- of international markets to grasp the benefits of this exciting new technology."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:07:33|Editor: Xiang Bo

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MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreed on Sunday to China's proposed initiatives that will pave the way for launching formal negotiations on an actual Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, a spokesman of the Philippines said.

Robespierre Bolivar, spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), said the foreign ministers of ASEAN and China support the "steps" that both sides will take to kick off the formal negotiations on the COC.

"There is a consensus between ASEAN and China," he told a news conference at the end of the ASEAN - China ministerial meeting.

Bolivar said the leaders of ASEAN and China are expected to announce at their November summit the start of the formal negotiations for the COC.

"The adoption of the framework at this (ministerial meeting) is a symbol of commitment by ASEAN and China to really push forward (an) effective and substantive code of conduct," he said.

Bolivar said the framework will be the basis for the negotiations on the actual Code of Conduct.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:07:34|Editor: ying

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BAGHDAD, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- More than 170 suspected Islamic State (IS) militants were killed in a series of airstrikes near the town of Shirqat in Iraq's northern central province of Salahudin, the Iraqi military said on Sunday.

"The Iraqi army's helicopter gunships, in coordination with Salahudin's Operations Command (SOC), carried out effective airstrikes on Daesh terrorist gangs (IS group) in Tasnei' Askari area in southwest of Shirqat, some 280 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, leaving a total of 170 terrorists killed," the defense ministry said in a statement.

The airstrikes also hit eight posts with heavy machine guns, two trucks carrying machine guns and 11 vehicles carrying weapons and militants, the statement said.

Meanwhile, an SOC force conducted a search campaign in the areas of Ayn al-Faras and E'eiwij in northwestern part of the province and destroyed two IS hideouts and four of their motorcycles, along with arresting an IS member driving a truck for the terrorist group, according to the statement.

The helicopter gunships and the troops targeted IS militants who infiltrated into the opened areas near the western bank of Shirqat from the IS-held eastern bank of the town across the Tigris River, which bisects the town.

In September 2016, the Iraqi forces recaptured the western bank of Shirqat from IS militants during the troops advance northward to dislodge IS militants from the northern province of Nineveh and its capital Mosul, some 400 km north of Baghdad.

On July 10, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi officially declared Mosul's liberation from IS after nearly nine months of fierce fighting to dislodge the extremist militants from their last major stronghold in Iraq.

Abadi has declared a new plan to be implemented soon to liberate the IS-held town of Tal Afar, some 70 km west of Mosul, from the extremist militants, which will include the participation of the predominantly Shiite paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units and Sunni tribal fighters.

The Iraqi forces still have to wage more offensives to drive out IS militants from their redoubts in eastern bank of Shirqat, Hawijah in southwestern Kirkuk and the adjacent sprawling rugged areas in eastern Salahudin province, in addition to the remaining IS strongholds in the border towns with Syria in western Anbar province.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:12:37|Editor: ying

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SANAA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- At least 17 Yemeni soldiers and 31 Houthi rebels were killed during clashes and airstrikes over the past three days near the Yemeni-Saudi western border, a government military source told Xinhua on Sunday.

The casualties took place when the government troops backed by warplanes from a Saudi-led military coalition launched a major offensive against Houthi positions in the Red Sea port city of Medi and nearby Haradh district off Saudi southwestern border region of Jizan.

The attack, began Thursday, was launched by the Yemeni government forces backed by Saudi border artillery forces and more than 20 air strikes against Houthi positions in al-Kadif areas in southern Medi and in al-Hajawirah area and al-Majbar area in southern Haradh, according to the source.

"Bodies of Houthis were still lying on some of the targeted positions, while several other injured were taken as war prisoners," the source said on condition of anonymity as he declined to identify the numbers of Houthi prisoners.

He said the attack aimed to recapture Houthi-held areas and advance towards the coasts north of the strategic Red Sea port city of Hodeidah.

"The government troops reached and seized control over some Houthi-held positions, but slowed their advances because of heavily mined desert," he said, adding that many Houthi weapons depots were bombed by the warplanes.

A Houthi spokesman could not be reached for comment, but Houthi official media reported around 20 coalition's air strikes on Medi and Haradh over the past 72 hours and mentioned no casualties.

Also, Houthi-controlled Saba news agency reported late on Saturday that Houthi fighters fired two ballistic missiles on the coalition troops in Medi and Haradh, "inflicting heavy losses upon the troops."

Yemen's internationally-backed government, allied with the Saudi-led Arab military coalition, has for more than two years been battling Iran-backed Shiite Houthi rebels over control of the country.

The coalition began a military air campaign in March 2015 to roll back Houthi gains and reinstate exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and his government to the power.

The coalition also imposed air and sea blockade to prevent weapons from reaching Houthis, who had invaded the capital Sanaa militarily and seized most of the northern Yemeni provinces.

UN statistics show more than 10,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed since the coalition intervened in the Yemeni civil war that also displaced around three million.

The impoverished Arab country is also suffering the world's largest cholera epidemic since April, with about 5,000 cases reported every day.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:12:38|Editor: ying

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LAGOS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Scores of worshipers were killed in the early hours of Sunday after unidentified gunmen opened fire inside a Catholic church in southeast Nigeria's Anambra State, an eyewitness said.

The witness told Xinhua by phone that the gunmen entered the St. Philips Catholic Church in Ozubulu area of the state during the 5:45 a.m. (loal time) mass, identified a particular man, and shot him.

He said the gunmen later went on rampage and shot at the remaining worshipers numbering over 100, noting that scores of people were killed in the church while other critically injured worshipers died on the way to the Nnamdi Azikiwe Teaching Hospital located in Nnewi, the second largest city in the state.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:32:42|Editor: ying

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LAGOS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Scores of worshipers were killed in the early hours of Sunday after unidentified gunmen opened fire inside a Catholic church in southeast Nigeria's Anambra State, an eyewitness said.

The witness told Xinhua by phone that the gunmen entered the St. Philips Catholic Church in Ozubulu area of the state during the 5:45 a.m. (loal time) mass, identified a particular man, and shot him.

He said the gunmen later went on rampage and shot at the remaining worshipers numbering over 100, noting that scores of people were killed in the church while other critically injured worshipers died on the way to the Nnamdi Azikiwe Teaching Hospital located in Nnewi, the second largest city in the state.

Confirming the attack, Garba Umar, police chief in charge of the state told reporters that more details would be given after investigations, without revealing the exact number of people killed in the incident.

A Xinhua reporter in the state said the identity of the attackers and their motive have not been established as an investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, State Governor Willie Obiano has called for calm when he visited the scene of the attack to commiserate with the parishioners.

Obiano condemned the attack and promised to ensure that the culprits are brought to justice.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:42:48|Editor: ying

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ZAGREB, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The tropical heatwave that ravaged Croatia in the past week and brought the hottest weather in Europe will be followed by temperature drop and possible storms, local meteorologic service has warned of a series of extreme weather conditions.

Although the temperature on Sunday is still over 35 degrees Celsius, Croatian Meteorological, and Hydrological Service forecast dramatic temperature drop on Monday, and also possible very strong storms that could cause a big trouble for Croatian farmers.

Last week, the temperature has risen above 40 degrees Celsius, breaking previous records and causing numerous medical interventions. A red alert has been issued around the country.

On Wednesday, Croatia's second-biggest city Split was the hottest place in Europe, with the temperature hitting 42.3 degrees Celsius, the third highest temperature in Croatian history. A higher temperature was recorded only in 1981 and 1950.

Due to the high temperatures, the number of medical interventions in some parts of Croatia have tripled. Daily paper Jutarnji list reported that Emergency Rescue Team in Zagreb, Croatia's capital, had 130-140 interventions a day in the past month, in addition to 80-90 during the night.

The heat wave and a peak of a tourist season caused a record electricity consumption in the country. Hot temperatures and strong wind have triggered unprecedented forest fires in Croatia, along the Adriatic coast.

During the previous heatwave, a wildfire from July 17 to 19 once threatened the city of Split, the second-largest city and a famous tourist destination in the southeastern European country.

The country's defense minister offered to resign after the president questioned the efficiency of military response to the fire, but later withdrew his resignation.

European weather hub Meteoalarm has issued its highest grade "red" warnings for 10 countries battling with extreme heat wave nicknamed Lucifer. People were asked to stay indoors and drink enough fluids.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:42:49|Editor: ying

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CAIRO, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Egypt's President Sisi on Sunday honored a number of scientists who received the Nile and State appreciation awards, MENA news agency reported.

The scientists honored were those who received rewards in science and technology over the past three years in recognition of their efforts in serving scientific research in Egypt, it said.

The honored scientists include three university professors who have won the Science and Art Awards of the First Class.

The scientists are Ahmed Sami Abdel Shakour, Professor of Science at the University of Cairo, Mostafa Awadi, Professor of Advanced Technology at the National Research Institute and Professor Mohammad Nabil al Balqimi of the National Tumors Institute of Cairo University.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:47:52|Editor: ying

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LONDON, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The radio astronomy site in Britain that helped revolutionise the understanding of the universe has been given the highest level of national heritage protection.

Six structures at the Jodrell Bank Observatory, run by the University of Manchester, have been granted listed status by Historic England.

The listing means the installation has to be cared for and protected for future generations.

The main radio telescope which dominates the countryside to the south of Manchester is already a Grade I listed structure.

To mark a landmark anniversary this week for the main telescope, its sister telescope, known as the Mark II Telescope, has won the same accolade. Five original buildings and structures, including the telescope control rooms, have also won protected status.

The observatory at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire is one of the earliest sites for radio-telescopes in the world, dating from when radio astronomy started immediately after the Second World War.

It had a pivotal role in the development of the new science of radio astronomy, which was one of the first steps towards modern Astrophysics, revolutionising the understanding of the universe.

The main dish at the site is known as the Lovell Telescope, named in honor of Sir Bernard Lovell, the Manchester academic who developed the observatory, using at first ex-military radar equipment.

The government's Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has now approved the six new listings to mark the 60th anniversary of the Lovell Telescope's "first light", the point at which it was first used to collect radio signals from the universe. In October it also celebrate 60 years since it was used to track Sputnik I at the dawn of the space age.

Professor Teresa Anderson, director of the visitor center at the observatory, said : "Jodrell Bank has welcomed millions of visitors, drawn by its landmark scientific structures. Science is a hugely important part of our cultural heritage and we are very pleased to see that recognised and protected with these new designations."

Heritage Minister John Glen said: "Jodrell Bank has been at the forefront of scientific research and is known around the world for its important role in developing our understanding of the Universe. These listings will protect and celebrate the heritage of this significant site and help inspire the next generation of scientists and astronomers."

Crispin Edwards from Historic England, said: "Jodrell Bank is a remarkable place where globally important discoveries were made that transformed radio astronomy and our understanding of the Universe.

We are celebrating the history of the site and its impact on the world by increasing its recognition on the National Heritage List for England."

The Mark II telescope was designed by Lovell and structural engineer Henry Charles Husband who had both worked on the design of the Lovell telescope. Their prototype design for Mark II, using pre-stressed concrete mounts, was internationally adopted and is now synonymous with modern satellite telecommunications. Despite their age the Lovell Telescope, now the third largest in the world, and Mark II, continue to be at the forefront of scientific discovery.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:52:55|Editor: ying

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RABAT, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- After a slight growth last year amid security challenges, Morocco's key tourism sector sees a promising surge of tourists from around the globe.

In 2016, visitor arrivals barely raised by 1.5 percent from 2015 to stood at 10.3 million tourists, falling far short of the expected increase to reach an ambitious official target of 20 million per year by 2020.

According to data from the Moroccan Tourism Ministry, some 4.6 million tourists visited Morocco between January and June 2017, a 9 percent increase year on year.

Tourists from the United States grew by 27 percent, Germany by 12 percent, the Netherlands 8 percent, Spain 7 percent and France 5 percent, which represent growth in visitor numbers from key markets of Moroccan tourism.

The increase was also driven by the surge in Morocco's emerging tourist markets, especially China and Japan. China arrivals jumped by 565 percent, and Japanese visitors grew by 46 percent.

South Korean visitors also increased by 42 percent and Brazilian tourists by 41 percent.

The surge in Chinese visitors relates to Morocco's new visa-free travel policy for Chinese nationals, started on June 1 of 2016. The air connectivity is also improved between the two countries.

"Growth is expected to continue through 2017, with 100,000 Chinese tourists forecast to visit Morocco throughout the year, up from 42,000 in 2016," a recent report by the Oxford Business Group (OBG) said.

"A stable and secure political environment, combined with incentives and infrastructural development, has helped Morocco to create an attractive investment climate, resulting in a raft of new hotel projects," the report added.

Positive performance is also seen in various tourist destinations in the north African kingdom, many of which registered two digit growth. Visitors to Fez increased by 38 percent, Tangier by 29 percent and Marrakech by 19 percent.

Morocco expects tourist arrivals to grow by 6 percent in 2017. Official Tourism observatory director Said Mouhid said earlier the kingdom could reach a record of 11 million tourists by the end of this year.

However, the rise in the number of tourists have not translated into a parallel increase in revenues. At the end of June 2017, Morocco's tourism revenue totaled 2.77 billion U.S. dollars, a 0.7 percent decrease year on year, according to the Foreign Exchange Office's preliminary financial flow indicators for the first half of 2017.

Tourism remains a vital pillar of the Moroccan economy and the country's second biggest employer, after agriculture. The sector accounts for 10 percent of national income and, along with exports and remittances from Moroccans living abroad, it is one of the country's main sources of foreign currency.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 19:57:57|Editor: ying

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NEW DELHI, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- At least five people were killed and three others injured after a speeding train ran them down Sunday in India's western state of Rajasthan, police said.

The accident took place at a railway station in Sawi Madhopur, about 161 km southeast of Jaipur city, the capital of Rajasthan.

Reports said the passengers were travelling on the top of the train due to excessive rush.

The sight of blood-soaked bodies on the railway tracks triggered panic among bystanders and passengers.

India's sprawling railway system is the world's third largest network, ferrying around 23 million people each day. As one of the oldest train networks in the world, it is often criticized for being inefficient, overburdened and unsafe.

The Indian government in 2015 announced an investment of over 137 billion U.S. dollars over a period of five years to improve its railway system.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 20:23:09|Editor: ying

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LAGOS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The police in Nigeria on Sunday confirmed that eight worshipers were killed and 18 others injured in an early morning attack on St. Philip Catholic Church in Ozubulu area of the southeast Anambra State.

State police chief Garba Umar told reporters in Awka, the state capital that the remains of the dead had been deposited at Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital.

Umar also said the injured were taken to the hospital in Nnamdi, the state's second largest city.

He said that so far no arrest has been made and preliminary investigations by the police revealed that the attack was carried out by natives of the area.

The motives behind the shooting tragedy remains unclear.

Earlier, an eyewitness who requested anonymity, had said that scores of worshipers were killed during the incident after gunmen entered the St. Philips Catholic Church in Ozubulu area of the state during the 5:45 a.m. (loal time) mass, identified a particular man, and shot him.

He said the gunmen later went on rampage and shot at the remaining worshipers numbering over 100, noting that scores of people were killed in the church while other critically injured worshipers died on the way to the Nnamdi Azikiwe Teaching Hospital.

Describing the act as sacrilegious, the commissioner of police said it was wrong for the perpetrators of the act to extend their quarrel into the church.

He said the police had launched a manhunt on those behind the act and gave an assurance that everybody behind the act would be brought to justice.

Umar described any insinuation that the attack was carried out by Boko Haram elements as false and urged the people to go about their normal businesses. He said the police were on top of the situation.
Tanzanian President John Magufuli (R) shakes hands with his Ugandan counterpart, Yoweri Museveni after laying the foundation stone for the construction of the world's longest electrically heated crude oil export pipeline from Hoima to Tanga Port on Aug. 5, 2017. (Xinhua)

ARUSHA, Tanzania, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian President John Magufuli and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni on Saturday laid the foundation stone for the construction of a crude oil pipeline from Hoima in Uganda to Tanzania's Indian Ocean seaport of Tanga.

The 1,443-kilometer East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) worth 3.55 billion U.S. dollars will be able to transport 200,000 liters of oil per day once the project starts its operation. It will be the world's longest electrically heated crude oil pipeline.

Authorities said construction of the EACOP is expected to commence early 2018, and is projected to take 36 months with the prospect of creating between 6,000 and 10,000 jobs.

Uganda's current oil reserves stand at 6.5 billion barrels with 1.7 billion recoverable from the ground.

The event was witnessed by high-ranking officials, ministers, senior government officials from different institutions which are involved in the project.

Speaking at the historical event, which brought on board thousands of people from the two east African nations, Magufuli described the project as a landmark for swift development of the two countries and east African region at large.

In Tanga region alone, Magufuli said that more than 45,000 youth will benefit directly and indirectly with the implementation of the giant project, which upon completion is to completely change the outlook of the northerly seaport city of Tanzania.

He however challenged Tanzanian youth to explore opportunities available in the project, which touches on almost every sector.

"It is high time Tanzanians chipped in and benefited from the regional project, which has countless benefits," he said.

Magufuli further lauded Uganda for choosing Tanga route for the crude oil pipeline, which will also be a source of revenue for the two east African nations.

Museveni described Tanga Port as key because of its geographical location and security.

He said that the project will also make fuel cheaper hence foster aviation industry, whereby regional airlines will get cheaper jet fuel.

Museveni further stated that the pipeline shows the importance of integrated decision-making for the two states.

Medard Kalemani, Tanzania's Deputy Minister for Energy and Minerals, said the construction will be carried out by three firms, two from France and one from the United Kingdom.

According to Kalemani, on the Tanzanian side, the pipeline will pass into 8 regions namely Kagera, Geita Shinyanga, Tabora, Singida, Dodoma, Manyara and Tanga. It will also cover 24 districts and 184 villages.

Construction of the three-year project will commence next January, the deputy minister said.

According to feasibility studies, the Tanga route was deemed the cheapest for Uganda to transport its oil from the production point in Hoima to the international market.

Tanga route has convenient flat terrain, not interrupted by other activities, has lowest environmental challenges, and provides the shortest schedule for Uganda to see the first oil exports around mid 2020.
Photo taken on July 16, 2015 shows a section of Mombasa Road undergoing beautification in Nairobi, capital of Kenya. (Xinhua/John Okoyo)

NAIROBI, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The upgrading of Nairobi's Outer Ring Road into a dual carriageway by China's Sinohydro Corporation is set to revolutionize urban transport and unleash new economic benefits in densely populated sections of the Kenyan capital, an official said on Friday.

Silas Kinoti, the Acting Director General of Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), said in a commentary published by the Standard daily the 13-kilometer dual carriageway will ease traffic congestion and stimulate investments in Nairobi's Eastlands region where majority of low income people reside.

"Outer Ring Road is expected to improve accessibility to the Eastlands area, reduce travel time for commuters and increase property value besides boosting the general business environment for informal traders," said Kinoti.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) funded the upgrading of Outer Ring Road into a four lane dual carriageway to the tune of 80 million U.S. dollars.

Construction works on the major transport artery for Nairobi kicked off in late 2014 and will be completed in September.

Kinoti said the China-built dual carriageway and other major urban infrastructure projects like Thika superhighway and bypasses will elevate Nairobi's status as a regional transport and trade logistics hub.

He added that an upgraded Outer Ring Road will offer durable solution to traffic gridlock in Nairobi's low income and industrial heartland, reduce air pollution and boost workers' productivity.

"It is estimated that by improving the existing road, the annual vehicular green house gas emission rates would drop by at least 70 percent due to improved average traffic operating speeds along the project corridor particularly with the integration of the Bus Rapid Transit System as envisioned by the year 2022," said Kinoti.

He noted that construction of non-motorized walkways, cycle tracks and relocation of informal traders along the dual carriageway to designated markets will enhance movement of vehicles and pedestrians.

The upgrading of Outer Ring Road has created new jobs for the youth while improving their mastery of diverse technical skills like masonry, plumbing and welding.

Kinoti said that investments in retail and manufacturing sectors that will accompany the launch of an upgraded Outer Ring road will unleash new job opportunities for youth in Nairobi's low income settlements.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 20:53:15|Editor: Xiang Bo

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BEIJING, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- China is working to make itself more appealing to foreign investors.

In the past month, commitments have been made by the Chinese government on further opening up.

China should create "a stable, fair, transparent and predictable business environment," and speed up efforts to build an open economy to promote the sustainable and healthy development of the Chinese economy, according to a meeting of the Central Leading Group on Finance and Economic Affairs in July.

GROWING APPEAL

"Foreign investors used to be attracted by the cheap land and labor to China, but now we are more interested in the vast market and good business environment," said Jin Youhua, chairman and president of Whirlpool (China).

The U.S. appliance-maker is expecting its China headquarter and global R&D center, which is now under construction in east China's Anhui Province, to be put into operation in 2018, Jin told Xinhua.

Inbound foreign direct investment (FDI) fell by 0.1 percent year on year to 441 billion yuan (66 billion U.S. dollars) in the first half of this year, but the number of new foreign enterprises in China was up by 12.3 percent, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

Meanwhile, a survey from the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai showed that 77 percent of U.S. companies in China remained profitable last year, up 6 percentage points from 2015, and 73.5 percent reported revenue growth, up 12 percentage points from 2015.

Behind the growing appeal from the Chinese market was China's stable economic development and government efforts in opening up more sectors and relaxing restrictions for foreign businesses.

Starting on July 28, China implemented a revised foreign investment catalogue, which includes a "negative list" approach that identifies sectors and businesses that are off-limits or restricted for investment, as well as sectors and industries that the government wants to encourage foreign companies to invest in.

The catalogue shortens the list of sectors that are completely off-limits for foreign investment from 36 to 28.

In the southwestern province of Sichuan, where a free trade zone was launched this April, instead of lining up to submit paperwork, foreign investors now only need to upload files online to establish a company or make alterations on existing ones.

Today, over 95 percent of new foreign enterprises in China do not need government approval before they are set up, and the registry procedures take less than three days, compared with more than 20 days previously.

A WIN-WIN PROCESS

Just as a more open China means opportunities for the rest of the world, China is expecting inbound investment to play a larger role in its economic development, promoting the growth of new sectors and driving supply-side structural reform.

The FDI inflow into high-end sectors has been robust, official data showed. In the first half of this year, the high-tech manufacturing sector saw FDI up 11.1 percent to 34.97 billion yuan, while foreign investment in high-tech services rose 20.4 percent to 64.72 billion yuan.

Compared with the initial stage of China's reform and opening-up nearly 40 years ago, China is more consciously choosing the types of "investment" or "professionals" it wants to attract, said Zhang Jianping, a researcher with the commerce ministry.

"As an economy going through transition, China wants to bring in advanced technologies, professional personnel, brands and management by luring foreign investment, so it can increase its competitiveness and improve the quality and efficiency of growth," said Zhang.

To make China more appealing to talented people outside the country, the government will put in place a work permit system for foreigners working in China to streamline their working permit application procedures, expand visa issuance and extend visa expiration dates.

The introduction of the new system, together with a number of other measures, is expected to be implemented by the end of September in principle, according to a State Council meeting late last month.

"The inflow of foreign capital has been pivotal for China to maintain a relatively quick growth rate. Our industries are in general at the lower end of the global value chain. We must send a strong message of welcome to foreign investment," Premier Li Keqiang told the meeting.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 21:43:29|Editor: An

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (6th L) attends the signing ceremony of the amended version of the Memorandum of Understanding on Establishing China-ASEAN Center in Manila, the Philippines, Aug. 6, 2017. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- China and ASEAN nations on Sunday expressed satisfaction with the achievements made in their strategic partnership during the last 15 years and agreed to further enhance cooperation.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) made the pledge at a meeting in Manila.

Wang congratulated ASEAN for its 50th anniversary, saying China is happy for ASEAN's development and achievements while expressing best wishes for ASEAN's better and faster development in the next 50 years.

As an important regional organization, ASEAN has become a major force in promoting regional integration and maintaining regional peace and stability, Wang said.

China has always taken ASEAN as a priority in its foreign diplomacy and has always supported ASEAN in taking a central role in regional cooperation and a bigger role in dealing with international and regional affairs, Wang said.

As China and ASEAN celebrate the 15th anniversary of strategic partnership next year, both sides are also facing a critical point to bring the ties to a higher level, Wang said, calling for future actions to build a higher level China-ASEAN strategic partnership and a closer community of common destiny of China and ASEAN.

Wang outlined a seven-point proposal on future China-ASEAN cooperation put forward by the Chinese side.

First, to formulate a 2030 Vision for China-ASEAN Strategic Partnership as a blueprint to guide future relations.

Second, to synergize the Belt and Road Initiative and the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity, and further expand the scope and dimension for bilateral cooperation.

Third, to designate 2018 as China-ASEAN Year of Innovation, give full play to the complementarity of innovation-driven development of China and innovation-driven growth of ASEAN, and launch the upgrading of China-ASEAN cooperation.

Fourth, to accelerate the implementation of the outcomes on upgrading China-ASEAN Free Trade Area and jointly safeguard the global free trade regime.

Fifth, to fully implement the China-ASEAN Joint Statement on Production Capacity Cooperation and boost each other's industrialization process.

Sixth, to build new pillars for people-to-people exchanges and cooperation, ensure the success of the China-ASEAN Tourism Cooperation Year, and issue a joint statement on tourism cooperation so as to consolidate public support and social foundation for bilateral relations.

Seventh, to expedite negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and lead the process of regional integration together.

Foreign ministers of ASEAN nations congratulated China on the success of the recent Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, thanked China for its support on ASEAN's community building, recognized the positive progress of ASEAN-China ties in the past year and agreed with the depth and achievements of the China-ASEAN relations.

The foreign ministers also expressed the anticipation that as China and ASEAN celebrate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of strategic partnership next year, the two sides would strengthen strategic synergy, deepen cooperation in economy, trade, innovation, connectivity, tourism and other areas so as to bring the strategic partnership to a new level.

On the South China Sea disputes, the foreign ministers fully acknowledged the positive momentum in the past year, welcomed the approval of the framework of the Code of Conduct (COC), and looked forward to further consultations on the COC under the framework of a full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).

Before the meeting, 10+1 foreign ministers also signed the amended version of the Memorandum of Understanding on Establishing China-ASEAN Center.

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China proposes three-step vision for COC consultation: FM

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- China has proposed a three-step vision to step up consultations on the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Sunday after he and his counterparts from ASEAN nations approved the framework of the COC. Full story
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 21:48:32|Editor: ying

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TIRANA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The crediting activity to Albanian economy registered a drop in the first six months of 2017, official statistics released by the Albanian central bank showed Sunday.

The total loan portfolio in the end of June was worth 543.5 billion lek (4.8 bln U.S. dollars) or nearly 1 billion lek less than the same period of a year ago, according to data.

Economy experts here told local media Sunday that the decline in value of total crediting portfolio showed that a large part of new loans were actually renovation of overdraft or existing loans' restructuring.

They added that the total value of loans used by private sector in the country was not growing while they noted that businesses remained more problematic in terms of loan payment.

However, experts said that the drop in crediting during H1 was also related to the pre-election period. According to them, before elections the businesses are reluctant to undertake new investments and take new loans to finance their projects.

Since several months, the Bank of Albania has constantly urged the second-tier banks operating in Albania to boost their support to country's economy by providing more loans to businesses and households.

But such calls have been more effective in terms of households category as the banks here reported higher value of loans issued to households during H1.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 21:48:33|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (1st R) meets with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov (1st L) on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings in Manila, the Philippines, Aug. 6, 2017. (Xinhua/Wang Shen)

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- China and Russia vowed on Sunday to maintain close communications with each other on the Korean Peninsula issue, saying the two countries hold highly consistent attitudes toward it.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said he and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov held an extensive and profound exchange of views over the current situation in the Korean Peninsula, especially the new resolution passed by the UN Security Council.

Wang and Lavrov met on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers' Meeting and a series of other meetings which are being held in the Philippine capital city of Manila.

"We think the most important thing is to prevent the further escalation of the tensions on the Korean Peninsula and follow the proposal of 'double suspension' and 'double-track' approach to return to the right track of solving the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue through peaceful talks," Wang said.

Wang said China and Russia are enjoying strong bilateral relations with both sides agreeing, no matter how the world changes, to view each other as diplomatic priority, deepen strategic mutual trust, enhance mutual support and strengthen comprehensive cooperation.

Lavrov agreed with Wang's positive evaluations of bilateral relations, saying that Russian President Vladimir Putin is looking forward to attending the BRICS summit to be held in Xiamen in China's Fujian Province in September and that Russia is willing to give full support to the summit.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 21:53:39|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) meets with his Malaysian counterpart Anifah Aman on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings in Manila, the Philippines, Aug. 6, 2017. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- China enjoys good relations with Malaysia and Australia and hopes to expand cooperation with them in all aspects in the future, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Sunday.

Wang made the remarks while meeting with his Malaysian and Australian counterparts separately on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings in Manila.

Wang said that the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (B&R) is a historical opportunity for China and Malaysia to build better relations as some projects they agreed under the framework of B&R have made progress.

Wang said China will continue to encourage and support Chinese enterprises to invest in Malaysia and cooperate with Malaysian enterprises.

China hopes to enhance cooperation in defense and law enforcement and other areas with Malaysia and help implement the East Coast Rail Link and other big projects smoothly, Wang said.

For his part, Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said taking China as a close friend, Malaysia appreciates and cherish its friendship with China.

He also hopes to further strengthen the two countries' cooperation in every aspect and deal with any problem properly in their relations.

When meeting with Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, Wang pointed out that Australia can be China's lasting, stable and expectable partner as both of them belong to a big family of Asia-Pacific countries.

China is willing to expand cooperation in all areas that are beneficial to each other and make sure the China-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership can make improvements along a right track, he said.

Bishop said Australia-China relationships have developed to a new level as they are close partners in many aspects and have more interactions between their high-level officials recently.

She emphasized that Australia is committed to strengthening constructive cooperation and promoting free trade globally with China.

Related:

China proposes three-step vision for COC consultation: FM

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- China has proposed a three-step vision to step up consultations on the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Sunday after he and his counterparts from ASEAN nations approved the framework of the COC. Full story
GREAT FALLS  Alaina Browning's pickup truck slowly rumbles down the dirt road to her home at the convergence of the Musselshell River and Calf Creek.

Progress is slow because the innumerable amount of trucks and traffic that have traveled the normally lazy road have churned up sharp rocks and dug sand pits deep enough to bottom out low-riding cars.

Then she hits the brakes.

Out of the passenger window, she sees three rebellious cows she thought she lost in the fire.

"Out of the ashes, girls," Alaina said. "You made it."

Alaina is calm and matter-of-fact as she cruises the dusty road. It's hard to imagine that less than a week earlier, she and her husband Travis were racing through walls of flames down the same path to make sure their daughters and home weren't taken by the 270,200-acre Lodgepole Complex Fire.

"Travis was sent to the Square Butte Fire and then to the South Breaks Fire (two of the fires in what has been called the Lodgepole Complex)," Alaina said. "I was with him to provide support from our fuel truck. We heard radio traffic saying a local was injured at Calf Creek, and they were being taken by ambulance. We didn't know if it was one of our kids."

The Brownings have six daughters: Tristany, Tierany, Tory, Tylee, Tawny and Tinley and a 17-month-old grandson named Reid. All but Tristany were at the house as the flames poured over ridges and toward the Browning Ranch.

Alaina said she climbed to the top of Square Butte to get cell reception, but the smoke was so thick that she couldn't get a signal.

After radio chatter reported incoming high winds, Alaina and Travis jumped into the fuel truck and raced to their ranch.

Fire climbed the ponderosa and pines beside the road; the grass and sagebrush were blazing. Flames jumped across road and around the fuel truck.

"There were flames and embers shooting over the hill," Alaina said. "It only took the fire three minutes to get from one ridge to another. There were fire tornadoes. The fire was so hot, it was making its own lightning...The word I kept thinking was 'Armageddon.' There was black and fire everywhere."

Travis said it sounded like a freight train. Their home was being closed in on by the Barker and Bridge Coulee portions of the fire complex.

As they drove, Alaina said they eventually received word that the ambulance was actually sent to their neighbor's house. It was only a small relief. The call was for the mother of Tinley's best friend and the only other child to attend the one-room Old Ross School house.

Alaina said her daughters all know about fire. They knew when they saw lightning striking all around that they needed to be on alert.

"We were moving cows, and we got into the bottoms and there were flames coming over the ridge," Tory said. "We rode over to the neighbor's house. It was scary."

Tinley said she was at the house when it all started.

"It was really scary because you saw a few flames, and then it was all there," Tinley said. "It was really fast like it was smoke and then it was fire."

When Travis and Alaina arrived at the house, it was still standing and the girls and grandson were spooked but OK.

The Brownings are no stangers to fire. Given Travis' line of work, their house and property were as prepared as it could have been for such an event.

"There hasn't been a big fire out here in a long period of time," Alaina said. "We had mitigating crews come in for years and space out the trees and clearing brush. Other people didn't want their properties mitigated. They moved out here for all of the trees, so they wanted to keep them. Those buildings were just a recipe for disaster."

Stopping the spread

Crews from the fire camp report 16 total structures were lost during the fire. These structures refer to primary residences and secondary residences, simply meaning that people could be living in them at any time.

Luckily, Alaina said the destroyed structures she's aware of were largely seasonal homes and hunting cabins. Though she couldn't say with certainty, she believed only one person lost their primary home, but they had a secondary home they could move into.

Alaina said there are things that should be done in those parts to help fend off fire, but some things are out of one's control.

"There's not one single thing that you could do to keep this from happening," Alaina said. "It's just a natural thing that happens now and then."

The Brownings designed their home to sit inside a large perimeter of gravel, and there are no trees near any of the buildings. They believe that's part of what saved them.

After arriving at their home and getting the all-clear from their daughters, they set out into the smoke. They had a fire to fight.

Travis was immediately back out creating dozer lines to stop the spread of the flames. Even the older Browning daughters were doing what they could to help out.

For those first few days, the Brownings hardly slept. It was only when the Bureau of Land Managment arrived that she said she could lie down and get two hours of sleep.

"The BLM crew stood outside my house and kept watch for spot fires," Alaina said. "I have so much gratitude for them."

The fire blazed across the Brownings' property on a Thursday evening. By the next day, it had jumped across Highway 200 just under 20 miles away.

"It was huge and very quick," Alaina said.

On Wednesday, July 26, Alaina drove out to Highway 200 to collect donations from a Red Cross volunteer to bring back to the house. It was the only the second time Alaina has been able to leave the house.

She and her daughters have been busy at home answering phone calls, rounding up cattle and making hundreds of sandwiches for the firefighters. They're taking good care of the people who showed up to help them.

"I've heard some of the guys saying this is the best fire they've ever worked," Travis said.

The reigning feeling around Garfield and Petroleum counties and from the crews who traveled from across the nation is that the credit for getting the fire under control goes to the locals.

Lessons for the future

East of the Brownings in the heart of the Barker Fire portion of the complex, Matt Bliss is grateful for the support he received while fighting the fire on his and his neighbor's land, but he hopes there are lessons that can be learned for the future.

"They were too late," Bliss said. "The Type II team came in too late."

After 11 separate fires were sparked by lightning on the evening of Wednesday, July 19, locals were able to extinguish seven. The remaining fires grew beyond the means of the ranchers and volunteer firefighters.

Governor Steve Bullock declared a state of emergency the following Sunday.

"It took them so long to set up a camp when they should have already been up here," Bliss said. "The local BLM had all of their resources up here, but that wasn't enough for how enormous this is."

Until the Type II team could get itself established in the area, the ranchers and local residents were doing all they could to stop the fire themselves. It became a community effort of neighbor helping neighbor to redirect and save as much land and cattle as they could.

Even after the Type II team arrived, Bliss said he was dissatisfied with the hierarchy put in place. The fire was raging across his property and Matt said he kept wondering why the team wasn't jumping to help.

The entire process took too much time, in Bliss' opinion. He couldn't handle watching the fire burn while men traveled from the base camp to the fire, situated themselves, called back for engines and crew and then waited for okays from supervisors. On top of the chain of command, the crews were unfamiliar with the dusty backroads and were often lost.

"It took two days for the head guys, the supervisors, to know exactly where to go, and they got lost," Bliss said. "Dalton (Bliss' 14-year-old son) had to lead one of the head guys of this division all the way to the fire while we were trying to fight it, and that took three hours."

Part of the reason Bliss said this fire became so out of control is that the extreme drought conditions and sheer magnitude of the fire were near impossible for the local forces to control. There's no doubt that they needed the Type II team, Bliss said they just needed them to recognize the severity of the situation earlier.

"They need to let the local offices, the Miles City BLM needs to control the whole thing and have those people work for them and have the different heads run these crews instead of bringing in a supervisor from California, from North Carolina, from different states that have no clue what the terrain is," Matt said. "They think they do, but they don't. They just need to get better communication with the people and the landowners and say, 'Here's five engines. Take them and do what you need to with them.' But they can't, because their hands are tied and that's the way the system works."

Controlling the chaos

Rick Connell, incident commander for the Lodgepole Complex fire, said he knew it would take two days to really get the crews going on the fire. When he arrived on scene and delivered a brief on the situation, Connell said it would take some time to meet everybody, understand the dynamics and the individuals at play and find out where everyone was located inside the massive fire area.

"One of the things everybody needs to know is what an incident management team brings to these kinds of events: organization to chaos," Connell said. "No matter what's going on, it's a lot of different people. In this case, it's a lot of ranchers and crews from around the country. Because the fire grew so fast, everybody's kind of taking bits and pieces of the fire and the team comes in, and we organize that and get everybody moving in the same direction."

When Connell arrived on the scene, he said he was blown away by the efforts of the locals and the progress they were able to make on the fire.

"I really want to thank the amazing effort that was put out by the local folks," Connell said. "We came in and we were supporting the local folks who really did the heavy lifting on this fire. We just came in and gave them the relief so that they could go back and get some good rest because they had been working 24/7 for five, six days straight. Our hats literally go off to those folks."

No matter how it was handled, at this point the focus has turned to mopping up the remaining hot spots and figuring out how the ranchers will move forward.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency accepted the state's appeal of their decision to deny Montana's request for a Fire Management Assitance Grant.

The grant will cover 75 percent of the costs associated with the fire, including equipment, supplies, evacuation and sheltering.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 22:03:43|Editor: ying

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NEW DELHI, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has expressed fears that the damage caused to the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) in India's West Bengal due to the ongoing Gorkhaland agitation may put in peril its World Heritage tag.

The DHR earned the distinction from the international conservation body in 1999.

Two prime stations Gayabari and Sonada were torched while an arson attempt was made on Elysia Building, the headquarters of the DHR, during the pro-Gorkhaland bandh in the eastern Indian state.

"Because of the damage caused to DHR during the strike, the World Heritage status enjoyed by it, may come up for review in the next World Heritage Committee meeting in 2018," Moe Chiba, a UNESCO official in New Delhi said.

"The DHR heritage toy train is already very vulnerable given the natural environmental surrounding and landslide and other disaster threats it faces. Now this social turmoil has added another layer of vulnerability to it."

An indefinite shutdown and protest called by Gorkha Janmukti Morcha or GJM (Gorkha Peoples Liberation Front) has been affecting normal life in the tourist hill resort since June.

Markets, shops, hotels and other business establishments are shut down and public transport is off the roads. The ongoing agitation has crippled tourism in the hills.

Officials have also suspended the iconic toy train service in wake of the shutdown.

The agitation in the town began against imposition of Bengali language in schools across the hills. Though local government has clarified that the new rule to impose Bengali would not be enforced in the hill districts, the protesters led by GJM now have started a decades-old demand of a separate state of Gorkhaland.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 22:03:45|Editor: Xiang Bo

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BRUSSELS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) is currently calling for 20 young farmers to join an exchange program to share knowledge and farming experience with Chinese young farmers, said a press release published on EU's official website.

The scheme is open to any EU-based farmer aged under 40, and the deadline for applications is Sept. 10 for two study trips to China in November 2017 and June 2018.

Besides the maximum age limit, applicants should also have good knowledge of English, high level of experience and interest in sustainable agriculture and high level of interest in Chinese agriculture, said the EU.

The joint program was announced by EU agriculture and rural development commissioner Phil Hogan and Han Changfu, Chinese minister of agriculture, on April 21, in EU headquarters and is designed to help young farmers on both sides deal with their common challenges by sharing knowledge and information.

In the framework of this program, study visits for young professional farmers and agricultural professionals from both sides will be carried out. The idea is to conduct exchanges and trainings in agri-businesses, innovative farms, governmental entities and local agencies, research institutes and universities, cooperatives, etc. in EU member states and Chinese provinces, said the Prospect Consulting and Services, a Brussels-based consultancy helping EU run the selection, on its website.

The project is co-funded by EU and China, and will last for 18 months. It will comprise two study tours in China for European young farmers and two study tours in Europe for Chinese young farmers and young professionals in agriculture, said the consultancy.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 22:13:51|Editor: ying

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TOKYO, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Japan said on Sunday that it has asked the United States to refrain from flying the contentious Osprey aircraft in Japan, following an accident of the tilt-rotor aircraft off Australia a day earlier which left three U.S. Marines missing.

Japan's new Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera told reporters that Japan has urged the U.S. to disclose information about the accident and to take measures to prevent such accidents from recurrence.

"We will continue to ask the U.S. (to refrain from flying Ospreys) until we receive a solid explanation" about the accident, said Onodera.

He also said that Japan plans to discuss with the U.S. whether it would be appropriate for Ospreys to take part in joint training between the two countries scheduled between Aug. 10 and Aug. 28 in Hokkaido.

The U.S. military has deployed dozens of Osprey aircraft in its Futenma base in Okinawa, which has caused serious concerns from local people for a long time due to the American military tilt-rotor aircraft's record of fatal accidents.

A U.S. Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey aircraft belonging to the Futenma base in the city of Ginowan made a water crash-landing off Okinawa in December 2016, leaving two crew members injured.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 22:23:54|Editor: ying

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PARIS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- French prosecutors opened on Sunday counter-terrorism investigations into an incident in which a man armed with a knife was arrested and detained while trying to force entry into a security barrage at the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

According to the website of the newspaper "Le Parisien", the man carrying a knife was arrested while trying to force entry into one of the security checks on the Eiffel Tower on Saturday around 11:30 pm local time, shouting "Allah Akbar" when he acted.

The man, a Frenchman born in 1998 in Mauritania living in the Val-d'Oise (northern suburbs of Paris), was "very quickly mastered and arrested" without causing any injuries, the report said.

Investigations have been opened to the Anti-Terrorist Section of the Criminal Brigade (SAT) and to the Directorate General of Internal Security (DGSI) and the charges are "terrorist criminal association for the commission of crimes of genocide, attacks on persons" and "attempted assassination of persons holding public authority in connection with a terrorist enterprise", added the report.

According to the operating company of the Eiffel Tower (SETE), "the local police forces carried out a complete verification of the site and asked for its evacuation around 00:30". On Sunday morning, the Eiffel Tower opened on its usual schedule.

Security source said the man wanted to harm soldiers.
Photo credits: Jodrell 2 A Holloway/University of Manchester.

LONDON, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The radio astronomy site in Britain that helped revolutionise the understanding of the universe has been given the highest level of national heritage protection.

Six structures at the Jodrell Bank Observatory, run by the University of Manchester, have been granted listed status by Historic England.

The listing means the installation has to be cared for and protected for future generations.

The main radio telescope which dominates the countryside to the south of Manchester is already a Grade I listed structure.

To mark a landmark anniversary this week for the main telescope, its sister telescope, known as the Mark II Telescope, has won the same accolade. Five original buildings and structures, including the telescope control rooms, have also won protected status.

The observatory at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire is one of the earliest sites for radio-telescopes in the world, dating from when radio astronomy started immediately after the Second World War.

It had a pivotal role in the development of the new science of radio astronomy, which was one of the first steps towards modern Astrophysics, revolutionising the understanding of the universe.

The main dish at the site is known as the Lovell Telescope, named in honor of Sir Bernard Lovell, the Manchester academic who developed the observatory, using at first ex-military radar equipment.

The government's Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has now approved the six new listings to mark the 60th anniversary of the Lovell Telescope's "first light", the point at which it was first used to collect radio signals from the universe. In October it also celebrate 60 years since it was used to track Sputnik I at the dawn of the space age.

Photo Credits: Jodrell 3 lan Morison/University of Manchester.

Professor Teresa Anderson, director of the visitor center at the observatory, said : "Jodrell Bank has welcomed millions of visitors, drawn by its landmark scientific structures. Science is a hugely important part of our cultural heritage and we are very pleased to see that recognised and protected with these new designations."

Heritage Minister John Glen said: "Jodrell Bank has been at the forefront of scientific research and is known around the world for its important role in developing our understanding of the Universe. These listings will protect and celebrate the heritage of this significant site and help inspire the next generation of scientists and astronomers."

Crispin Edwards from Historic England, said: "Jodrell Bank is a remarkable place where globally important discoveries were made that transformed radio astronomy and our understanding of the Universe.

We are celebrating the history of the site and its impact on the world by increasing its recognition on the National Heritage List for England."

The Mark II telescope was designed by Lovell and structural engineer Henry Charles Husband who had both worked on the design of the Lovell telescope. Their prototype design for Mark II, using pre-stressed concrete mounts, was internationally adopted and is now synonymous with modern satellite telecommunications. Despite their age the Lovell Telescope, now the third largest in the world, and Mark II, continue to be at the forefront of scientific discovery.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 22:54:00|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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DUBAI, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The United Arab Emirates said Sunday the crash of Emirates Airline Boeing 777-300 plane a year ago was not due to mechanical failure, local daily Gulf News reported.

The United Arab Emirates' (UAE) General Civil Aviation Authority said Sunday that "there were no aircraft systems or engine abnormalities up to the time of the accident," said the report.

It added that investigations were going on to "to determine and analyze the human performance factors that influence flight crew actions."

On August 3, 2016, a Boeing 777 of Emirates Airline flight EK521, flying from Thiruvananthapuram of India to Dubai, made an emergency landing at Dubai International Airport.

Altogether 300 people from 20 countries, including 18 crew members, were on board. Twenty-one passengers, one flight crew member, and four flight attendants sustained minor injuries.

One Emirati firefighter died during rescue operations when the aircraft partially exploded.

An Emirates spokesperson was quoted as saying that the UAE international carrier's internal investigation is ongoing which includes a thorough review of all training and operational processes and procedures.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 22:54:01|Editor: Song Lifang

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PHNOM PENH, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The adoption of a framework for the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea reflected deepening trust among claimant states and will lay a foundation for longterm peace and stability in the region, Cambodian official and scholars said on Sunday.

Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)and China adopted the COC framework during a meeting in Manila, the Philippines on Sunday.

The adoption of the COC framework is a historical event which demonstrated increased cooperation between ASEAN and China in resolving the dispute peacefully, said Phay Siphan, secretary of state and spokesman for the Council of Ministers of Cambodia.

"The COC is crucial to ensuring longterm peace, stability and development in the South China Sea," he said, adding that the adoption of the COC framework reflected enhanced mutual trust between ASEAN and China, which creates a favorable atmosphere for eventual settlement of disputes.p Chheang Vannarith, senior fellow at the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace, said the adoption of the framework was a critical step towards further talks over a final COC.

China and ASEAN are committed to reaching a final COC 15 years ago. The framework was agreed upon in May during a senior officials' meeting on the implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of the Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) in Guiyang, the capital city of southwest China's Guizhou Province.

"It marks significant progress of the China-ASEAN negotiation process and reflects deepening trust among the claimant states," he said.

"The COC not only serves regional trust-building, but also sets a foundation for longterm peace and stability in the South China Sea."

Joseph Matthews, director of the ASEAN Education Center, said the adoption of the framework would pave the way for negotiations on the actual COC in the future.

"This framework will help all parties involved in the South China Sea issue to resolve their disputes through bilateral negotiations without any interference from a third party," he said.

The adoption of the framework is regarded as a new milestone in the relationship between ASEAN and China, which was rooted deeply in their geopolitical proximity and economic cooperation and partnership.

"I personally believe that this is a result of the win-win policy and success of ASEAN-China prudent and lasting relationship," Matthews said.

"Both sides deserve congratulations for the adoption of the framework which ultimately will help ease tensions in the region," he added.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 23:04:06|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RIYADH, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- A Saudi Arabian court on Sunday has sentenced a member of the Islamic State (IS) militant group to 20 years in prison for plotting terror attacks, local Alyaum online news reported.

The person was accused by the court in Riyadh of planning terror attacks targeting foreign embassies, officials and the Arar airport in the northern border of Saudi.

The person has taken part in IS camps in Syria and Iraq, before returning to Saudi for terror acts.

The court also issued a 20-year-travel ban on him.

The tough sentence is part of the measures taken by the Saudi government to punish extremists and terrorists, following a number of bloody blasts that erupted in various parts of the country in recent years.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 23:04:08|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BAGHDAD, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Three people were killed on Sunday in separate bomb explosions and gunfire in northern Iraq, security sources said.

A member of a Kurdish security force, known as Peshmerga, was killed and three others wounded when a roadside bomb detonated near their vehicle west of the town of Daqouq, some 210 km north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, a local police source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

In a separate incident, a civilian was killed and another wounded when a bomb left by Islamic State (IS) militants in the house of a family, in the western side of Mosul, went off while the family members were cleaning their house, a security source from Mosul told Xinhua.

Also in Mosul, members of a paramilitary Hashd Shaabi unit, shot dead a would-be suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest before he blew himself up at a crowd of people in the western side of Mosul, locally known as the right bank of the Tigris River, which bisects the city, according to the source.

On July 10, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi officially declared the liberation of Mosul, some 400 km north of Baghdad, from IS, after nearly nine months of fierce fighting to dislodge the extremist militants from their last major stronghold in Iraq.

Many blame the current chronic instability, cycle of violence, and the emergence of extremist groups, such as the IS, on the United States, which invaded and occupied Iraq in March 2003, under the pretext of seeking to destroy weapons of mass destruction in the country.

The war led to the ouster and eventual execution of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, but no such weapons have been found.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 23:19:13|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ISTANBUL, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Turkish women staged a demonstration in the country's biggest city Istanbul on Sunday to protest against violence and the social restrictions on their dressings.

The crowd gathered at Central Macka Park, shouting slogans and carrying banners which read "Don't Mess with My Outfit" and "Justice for Women."

"I have enough of hearing people telling women what to wear and not to wear," 23-year-old Sevval told Xinhua.

Sevval, wearing a headscarf herself, noted that women can decide their own outfit and said "We can put on whatever we want."

Protesters mentioned that the verbal and physical attacks against women for their dressings have been on the rise lately across the city.

A 24-year-old young woman was recently warned by a private security guard at Macka Park for her "inappropriate" outfit, according to local media.

"I can not allow you to walk around in this park dressing like this," the guard was quoted as saying.

In June, another young woman was attacked by a man on a bus in Istanbul for wearing short clothes during the Muslim's holy month of Ramadan, according to Turkish media.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 23:29:15|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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CAIRO, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian and Kuwaiti air forces started on Sunday their joint military exercise that will last for several days in Egypt, Egypt's state news agency MENA reported.

The exercise, named Al-Yarmouk 3, will include carrying out offensive and defensive air operations, aerial reconnaissance missions against hostile targets as well as various air formations.

The exercise comes within the framework of enhancing the capacity of operating joint air activities and boosting military cooperation between the two sides, said the report.

Egypt and Kuwait carried out similar joint air force trainings Al-Yarmouk 1 and Al-Yarmouk 2 in December 2010 and April 2016 respectively.

Every year, Egypt holds several military exercises with Arab, African and Western countries to boost military cooperation and exchange military expertise with friendly states.

Earlier in August, the Egyptian and Greek armed forces put on a joint air, naval military exercise, named Medusa 2017, on the Mediterranean Sea shores.

In mid-July, Egypt and France held joint naval military exercise named Cleopatra 2017 in the Egyptian territorial waters in the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-06 23:49:26|Editor: Song Lifang

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MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Sunday that Moscow "is ready to normalize its dialogue" with Washington if Washington abandons its "confrontational approach" with Moscow.

Lavrov met with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Sunday on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN ministers' meetings in the Philippine capital.

Both sides discussed Russia's countermeasures to U.S. sanctions.

"Naturally, such actions (the U.S. sanctions), including the illegal seizure of our diplomatic property since December last year, could not be left unanswered," Lavrov said in a statement issued through the TASS Russian News Agency.

"This will be in this way from now on. At the same time, we are ready to normalize the dialogue, if Washington gives up the confrontational line," he added.

In the same statement, Lavrov said he "had a lengthy meeting with Rex Tillerson."

"He (Tillerson) wanted to know, first of all, and he started with this, the details of those decisions, which we had to take in response to the law on anti-Russian sanctions adopted in the U.S. Congress. We gave these explanations," Lavrov said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 00:09:33|Editor: Song Lifang

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By Xinhua Writers Tian Ying, Ren Ke

BERLIN, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The verdict to an eye-catching case that involves brutal killing of a Chinese student in Germany delivered on Friday triggered mixed reactions among local Chinese students.

Although they held different views on the verdict, they all believed that raising safety awareness is very important in the future.

Li Yangjie, 25, a Chinese architecture student, went missing while jogging on the evening of May 11, 2016 in the city of Dessau-Rosslau, the third largest city in the Saxony-Anhalt region of Germany.

Her disfigured body was found abandoned in brush near the crime scene two days later before the police identified the then both 20-year-old male and female suspects.

On Friday, the local court of Dessau-Rosslau sentenced the rapist and murderer, Sebastian F. to lifelong imprisonment, and his accomplice Xenia I. to a youth penalty of five years and six months for sexual coercion.

According to investigators, the two lured Li to an empty apartment and then sexually assaulted and physically abused her. When they found Li was still alive, they carried the severely wounded victim away and abandoned her outside.

Li's attorney Peitzner condemned the perpetrators in an interview with Xinhua, "It's quite bad of what they did because they pretended to need help and Li just wanted to help them. She was a nice girl, and that's what they exploited, which makes it very bad."

JUSTICE SERVED, BUT NOT COMPLETE

While most Chinese students in Germany deemed justice is served in terms of the lifelong sentence handed out to Sebastian F., they were also confused about the light punishment to his accomplice Xenia I..

"Justice is finally served, I feel my pent-up anger over the murderer relieved a bit," said Yang Xiaojuan, a doctorate student of Free University of Berlin, commenting the culprit's penalty.

Chen Cheng, a doctorate student of Humboldt University in Berlin, told Xinhua he believed a light punishment to the accomplice fell short of an effective admonishment and deterrence.

His opinion was also echoed by Lu Xiaozheng, head of the association of Chinese students and scholars of Technical University of Berlin, who couldn't understand the court's sentencing the accomplice according to juvenile penalty code, "despite her young age, she's rather grown up mentally, and should be fully able to take responsibility of what she does."

Peitzner said he was not satisfied with the court judgement that Xenia was not guilty concerning the murder. However, "we are convinced that Xenia did more than the court believes," said Peitzner, adding there was proof that the woman also took part in murder and they will appeal against the woman's verdict.

BE MORE VIGILANT

Chen Cheng said the case indeed caused panic to some extent among Chinese students in Germany. Many Chinese girls he knew bought pepper sprays and whistles upon hearing the horrifying case.

Yang Xiaojuan quitted jogging after she heard the news, instead went only to gym for exercises ever since.

Li's case was followed by a similar case this year in the United States. Zhang Yingying, a female Chinese visiting scholar at the U.S. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), was last seen entering a black Saturn Astra car driven by a 28-year-old white man in June. Zhang, 26, was presumed deceased by the FBI. The case sent a renewed shock wave to Chinese overseas students.

Chen Cheng said, following the two cases, Chinese students became more vigilant, and their parents back home were also worried about their safety.

According to a report by the Center for China and Globalization, a Beijing-based think-tank, a total of 1.26 million Chinese students, or one-fourth of international students all over the world, were studying abroad in 2015. The figure was expected to rise further.

The Chinese Embassy in Germany estimated that there are about 50,000 Chinese scholars and students in Germany.

"Raising safety awareness of Chinese scholars and students has topped our working agenda", said Fang Qiang, first secretary of education division of Chinese Embassy in Germany, adding they organise public education sessions on personal safety each year as part of the orientation for new comers.

On the other hand, he also wanted students and parents to understand that cases like Li's was extremely rare in Germany.

To Lu Xiaozheng, the same degree of sense of security as in China is elusive because after all, "it is an unfamiliar environment," but she gave her advice to those who consider studying overseas, "Don't give up your plan for safety concern, but higher vigilance is needed."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 00:19:41|Editor: Song Lifang

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ISLAMABAD, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- At least four militants were killed and a soldier was injured when the Pakistani army lunched an operation in the country's southwest Balochistan province on Sunday.

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the mouthpiece of Pakistani army, said in a statement that the forces conducted the armed offensive in Kohlu and Dera Bugti areas of the province.

The troops also destroyed several hideouts of the militants during the operation.

The ISPR said that the killed militants were involved in in extortion, kidnapping for ransom, attacks on security forces and other terrorist activities in the province.

The recent offensive was a continuation of Operation "Radd ul Fasaad," going on in various parts of the country since February this year.

The joint operation by army and other law enforcement agencies aims to eradicate the hidden sleeper cells of militants across the country.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 00:19:42|Editor: Song Lifang

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) meets with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi on the sidelines of a series of ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings, in Manila, the Philippines, Aug. 6, 2017. (Xinhua/Wang Shen)

MANILA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi here on Sunday as the two sides agreed to enhance cooperation for better bilateral ties.

Relations between China and Indonesia have been on a good momentum, Wang said. In May, Indonesian President Joko Widodo attended the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in China, and next month the two sides will hold deputy premier level meetings in Beijing.

China is willing to promote synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and Indonesia's Global Maritime Axis vision, and is positively considering participation in the building of Indonesia's three corridors, Wang said.

China is ready to deepen cooperation with Indonesia in anti-terrorism and fight against cross-border crimes while strengthening collaboration and cooperation in regional and international affairs to maintain peace and stability in the region, Wang said.

For her part, Retno said Indonesia attaches great importance to the relations with China, hopes to maintain high-level contacts and exchange in various areas, strengthen synergy between Indonesia's inter-connectivity strategy and the Belt and Road Initiative, especially in the practical cooperation in building the three corridors.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 00:49:48|Editor: Song Lifang

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LONDON, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Britain has been dominated for years by a so-called "north-south divide", but a leading politician opened up a new frontier Sunday, creating a "young-old" divide.

Sir Vince Cable, the recently elected leader of the minority Liberal Democrat party, described British pensioners who backed Brexit of being "self-declared martyrs" accusing the old of comprehensively shafting the young.

Cable cited figures showing that in last year's European Union referendum the vast majority of young people voted to remain in the bloc, but the majority older people backed leaving.

Cable's comment, which appeared in an article he wrote in the Mail on Sunday newspaper, have provoked a war of words on social media sites, with many people attacking the 74-year old veteran politician who served as Business Secretary in the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition government.

Cable expressed a concern that the self-declared martyrs may be planning to sacrifice other people rather than themselves.

He said: "It is striking that the martyrs appear predominantly elderly. This is unsurprising since 64 percent of over-65s voted Brexit in the referendum and 71 percent of under-25s voted Remain.

"In the campaign, I was struck by the heavily remain sentiment in colleges and schools and the heavily Brexit mood of church-hall meetings packed with retired people.

"The martyrdom of the old comes cheap, since few have jobs to lose. And even if the country were to become poorer, their living standards are largely protected by the 'triple lock' on the state pension and many can rely on occupational, final salary, pensions which are closed to younger people."

And the old, said Cable, have had the last word about Brexit, imposing a world view colored by nostalgia for an imperial past on a younger generation who are much more comfortable with a modern Europe.

Cable said when he joined the Coalition Cabinet in 2010, "we took pride in the triple lock to banish the scourge of pensioner poverty".

But one of its unintended consequences has been a growing rift between generations, said Cable adding that British pensioners have suffered relatively little from the aftermath of the financial crisis.

Labour MP, Frank Field, chairman of the parliamentary Pensions Select Committee accused Cable of patronising older voters.

Field told the Sunday Telegraph: "Not only is he patronising he is undermining his own base because he must have been elected by older voters.

"Should the minority in Twickenham (Cable's constituency) who voted against him now have the right to a new vote? Here we see the birth of Britain's Donald Trump to lead the Remainers."

Cable claimed in his article that more Brexiteers are embracing economic pain as a price worth paying for 'taking back control', almost as a badge of honour.

"We haven't yet heard about 'Brexit jihadis' but there is an undercurrent of violence in the language which is troubling. We have already had the most fervent of Brexiteers, such as Nigel Farage (former leader of UKIP) warning of civil unrest if the will of the people is frustrated," said Cable.

"Brexiteers may well be frustrated since the practical difficulties of Brexit, as well as the costs, could result in Brexit never happening."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 02:15:11|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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KIGALI, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Leaders of African Election Observer Missions (EOM) in Rwanda on Sunday commended Friday's presidential elections, saying it followed democratic principles.

The heads of mission from the East African Community (EAC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and the International Conference of the Great Lakes (ICGLR) isued a preliminary report based on their observation during campaigns, elections and ballot counting.

The COMESA commended the professional conduct of electoral commission officials who have facilitated smooth elections.

But Bishop Mary Nkosi, who headed the COMESA observer mission, called for more budgetary allocation to the National Electoral Commission to facilitate more civic education.

Provisional results released by the National Electoral Commission released on Saturday showed that Paul Kagame garnered 98.63 percent of the votes, winning a third term as president.

Kagame, 59, won over 6.6 million votes in the election.

Independent candidate Philippe Mpayimana got 0.73 percent and Frank Habineza, candidate for the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda, trailed with 0.47 percent.

The East African Community observers' report concluded that the election was conducted in a calm atmosphere following regional, and international democratic principles, according to former Kenyan vice president Moody Awori, who headed the EAC observer mission.

The team, however, called for reforms in the electoral law to further empower the electoral commission and better facilitate candidates.

Their report also commended security organs for their role in ensuring a peaceful election and security of electoral materials.

Arinaitwe Rwakajara, who headed the ICGLR observer team, noted that election officials showed commitment in their work with required capacity in handling election matters.

The team appreciated voter turnout as well as preparation of voting rooms. Voter turnout was over 96 percent, according to Rwanda's National Electoral Commission.

The exercise was free and fair, including ballot counting, in compliance with international standards and especially ICGLR democracy and good governance principles, he said.

Kagame, who is also the chairman of the ruling party Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), has been president since 2000 when he was elected by ministers and members of parliament following the resignation of then President Pasteur Bizimungu.

He was re-elected in the 2003 and 2010 presidential elections by winning 95 percent and 93 percent of votes respectively.

Rwanda, which has been recovering since the 1994 genocide, is now considered a model for developing countries, especially African ones.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 02:25:43|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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TEHRAN, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Iran Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) have dismantled a terrorist group in Iran's northwest province of West Azarbaijan, semi-official Mehr news agency reported on Sunday.

"The anti-revolution group which intended to penetrate into the country for terroristic operation, was dismantled by the IRGC ground forces in the border region of the West Azarbaijan," Mohammad Pakpoor, the commander of the ground forces of the IRGC, said.

In the operation, two terrorists were killed and four others were injured, Pakpoor said without detailing on the time of operations.

The IRGC confiscated amounts of military hardware and ammunition from the militants, the report said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 02:50:55|Editor: Song Lifang

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DAMASCUS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian Foreign Ministry on Sunday renewed calls on the UN to dissolve the U.S.-led anti-terror coalition over crimes against civilians in Syria, according to the state news agency SANA.

"The U.S. systematic massacres against Syrian civilians constitutes a flagrant violation of the International law," the ministry said, urging for "the immediate dismantling of the coalition that has been formed without the request of the Syrian government and outside the framework of the UN."

The ministry referred to several incidents where civilian casualties were caused by the airstrikes of the U.S.-led coalition, saying the U.S. has used white phosphorus in its attacks on civilians in the northern city of Raqqa.

It also said the attacks destroyed houses and hospitals in Raqqa, the de facto capital of the Islamic State (IS) group.

The ministry noted that the coalition's "crimes" were repeated in the provinces of Hasakah, Aleppo and Deir al-Zour.

The condemnation comes a day after U.S.-led airstrikes killed 43 civilians in the several areas in Raqqa.

Over the past two months, the U.S. coalition has upped its attacks on Raqqa, coupled with the ground offensive of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, which captured half of Raqqa from IS.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 03:36:28|Editor: An

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a joint press conference with visiting Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri (not in the picture) at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, on July 25, 2017. U.S. President Donald Trump said at the joint press conference Tuesday that he won't let Syrian President Bashar al-Assad get away with the "horrible" actions he has done. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

by Xinhua writer Yang Shilong

NEW YORK, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Americans are weighing new immigration policy proposals endorsed by President Donald Trump last week that would reduce the number of people eligible for family visas and cut overall immigration by 50 percent within 10 years.

The Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment (RAISE) Act, sponsored by Republican Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas and David Perdue of Georgia, would give preference to English speakers, educated immigrants, and high-wage earners by unveiling a "merit-based" system.

Many Chinese Americans, who have strong traditional family values, are concerned mostly about the bill's elimination of the prioritization of green cards for adult children and extended family of those already in the states.

"The bill prevents parents from uniting with their children here, and that makes them more vulnerable as they already have difficulties in adapting to the adopted country, this is what I worry about the bill," Wuchen Yihui, who immigrated to the states four years ago, told Xinhua in a recent interview in Chinatown, New York City.

Alice could agree no more with Wuchen. The young lady from Los Angeles felt very frustrated with the proposed policy changes.

"I think it's unfair to most people. if the bill is passed by the Congress, it would be difficult for my parents to come, and we can hardly go back to see them often, it's unreasonable," she said.

"I think to a certain degree the grading system is necessary, I can understand that. But the union of families must be considered, which is very, very important. The United States is an immigrant country, it can't be too interest-oriented on all kinds of issues," said a teacher surnamed Chen from Chicago.

The overwhelming majority of Asian immigrants come to the U.S. through the family-based system and those who come to the country on employment-based visas often rely on the family-based system to reunite with other family members, according to a report by HuffPost.

However the bill would cut family-based immigrant visas to 88,000 each year -- compare that to the 673,000 people who received green cards through the family based system during the 2015 fiscal year alone.

As to the language component and the "merit-based" system of the RAISE Act, quite a few Chinese Americans interviewed by Xinhua found them not a problem.

"Overall Trump's immigration reform has its own logic," said Huang Xingqun, a middle-aged man living in Los Angeles, "He wants to make America great again, he is right from the point view of a businessman, if too many immigrants come, some of them are too old to work, and just rely on welfare, it's unaffordable for any country."

"I think (Trump's) policy would be better, because all parties would get what they want, which means if you have a specialty you will be more recognized," said a white-collar worker from Chicago, surnamed Zheng.

Zhen Miaozheng, who immigrated to the U.S. with family visa, believed the policy changes make sense too.

"You have to speak English relatively well. You should not live on just welfare. You have to contribute to the country. All the new immigrants should work hard to make a decent living here, there is no such easy thing like only bending down to pick up money."

According to figures from the Department of Homeland Security, over one million immigrants were accepted into the United States for legal permanent residency last year; many are low or unskilled workers or working in low-skilled jobs.

More than 50 percent of all immigrant households receive welfare benefits, compared with only 30 percent of native households in the United States that receive welfare benefits, according to the White House. (Xinhua correspondents Huang Hexun in New York City, Miao Zhuang in Chicago, Huang Chao in Los Angeles contributed to the story)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 04:26:42|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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CARACAS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela's armed forces on Sunday condemned an early morning raid on a battalion that left one man dead and another seriously wounded.

Venezuela's National Bolivarian Armed Forces (FANB) issued a statement condemning the attack against the 41st Armored Brigade stationed at the Paramacay Fort in the northern state of Carabobo.

"We strongly reiterate our condemnation of this attack," the military said, adding "it was executed by a group of civilian criminals wearing military clothes and a first lieutenant that has deserted."

The commander of the Strategic Operational Command, Remigio Ceballo, posted to Twitter that the FANB "successfully repelled the criminal paramilitary terrorist."

However, members of the group managed to steal some weapons before fleeing and are being searched for by authorities, the military said.

Seven others were captured and admitted to having been hired "by Venezuelan extreme right-wing activists, in connection with foreign governments," added the military.

"Today's attack is nothing more than a propaganda show ... a desperate move that forms part of plans to destabilize" the country, said the FANB.

In conjunction with the attack, a video was released by a former military official who had been stripped of his job on charges of treason and rebellion, and later fled to the United States, where he is living under a protection program, according to the military.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 04:36:52|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RIYADH, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia denied on Sunday news reports that quoted its foreign minister's remarks on Syrian crisis, Saudi News Agency reported.

Earlier, reports based on content from Russia Today have quoted a source from the Syrian opposition, saying that Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir had stressed that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would remain in power.

A source from Saudi foreign ministry denied such reports and reiterated the country's firm position regarding the Syrian crisis.

The source said that Saudi agrees to a solution in line with Geneva I Declaration and UN Security Council Resolution 2254 to establish a transitional entity, to draft a new constitution for Syria, and to prepare elections for a new future in Syria without al-Assad.

The official source also reaffirms Saudi's support for the Syrian opposition's High Negotiations Committee and the procedures it is considering in order to increase participation of its members and achieve a unified front among the opposition.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 05:07:06|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Nearly nine in ten U.S. families always knew their child would go to college, but fewer than four in ten families ever created a plan for how to pay the bills, according to How America Pays for College 2017 report.

The average amount U.S. families spent nationwide in the 2016-17 school year for college was 23,757 dollars, the survey shows.

However, for U.S. parents, it seems that saving money for college is not the last solution, since searching for scholarships and studying what is affordable can be tackled at any time, said a USA daily report Sunday.

U.S. parents needn't pay every dime for the college bill, whose largest chunk, as many as 8,390 dollars on the average, came from variously scholarships and grants.

American parents only contributed 5,527 dollars from their own savings and income, while students ponied up 2,569 dollars from their savings and income.

As for borrowing, U.S. parents on average borrowed 1,819 dollars for the 2016-17 school year and students borrowed 4,551 dollars. The rest of the money, less than 1,000 dollars, came from friends and relatives.

However, 69 percent of the U.S. families surveyed said they had eliminated some colleges due to cost, up from some 58 percent in 2008.

The survey report, released by Sallie Mae and Ipsos, is based on a telephone survey of 800 parents and 800 undergraduate students ages from 18 to 24.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-07 05:42:49|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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DAMASCUS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- After two months of battles, the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have captured 55 percent of Syria's northern city of Raqqa, the main stronghold of the Islamic State (IS) in Syria, a monitor group reported on Sunday.

Heavily backed by the U.S.-led anti-terror coalition, the SDF, an alliance of Kurdish, Arab and Assyrian fighters led by the Kurdish YPG, succeeded in maintaining a progress against the IS militants in the city of Raqqa, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The UK-based watchdog group said many of the IS militants, particularly the Syrian ones, want to leave Raqqa as a result of the intensified battles. However, those militants are afraid they could be executed by their commanders if they were caught fleeing the city.

Other foreign militants, mainly the Asian ones, refuse to leave, saying they will either be victorious or die in Raqqa, according to the Observatory.

Now, the IS militants are trying to foil the progress of the SDF by deploying large number of snipers and planting explosive devices.

Meanwhile, the Observatory said that 1,500 people, one third of who civilians, have been killed during the battles since the war on Raqqa began two months ago.

Around 180 women and children were among those killed during the battles and the intensified airstrikes of the U.S.-led coalition, the Observatory added.
I would like to consider possible drawbacks of Once Big Sky Center. The center would significantly depress the downtown real estate market, especially for office space. Existing lessors would be competing with a boom of space. If too many local businesses move into the center, existing downtown buildings couldnt attract new tenants. Thus, the center would create more empty space in other buildings.

Alternatively, the center probably wouldnt fill itself quickly enough, and Billings would become more overbuilt. Billings currently does not have the infrastructure and local tenant demand to support the center. Is Billings willing to pay for widening downtown streets, and more EMS, police and firefighters to support the center? If the center cant find enough local businesses, it would likely try to attract numerous businesses from other states. This would make it more difficult for local businesses to stay open.

The center may not be practical in terms of local water use, especially in future drought years. It would ignore Billings homeless population and may cause an increase in downtown homelessness by taking up space from shelters.

The center would significantly change Billings aesthetic identity in southeastern Montana. It would demolish historic buildings and impair the natural view of the Beartooth and Pryor Mountains. Basically, the center would shrink the actual Big Sky view.

The proposals circumstances and lack of identity of financial supporters requires caution. I respectfully urge each council member to carefully consider potential consequences of the center. Downtown Billings can improve its identity without overbuilding.

Dan Eakin

Billings
Sen. Steve Daines, please recognize you have taken an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution. To not only acquiesce, but to stand proudly next to Donald Trump as he attacks the very institutions upon which a democratic republic is based is not only shameful, but also a violation of your oath of office. And each day, as you and your colleagues support the manner in which he is demeaning the office of the presidency and this nation, you are fostering greater cynicism and divisions at a time that we need to be finding common ground and solutions.
It is time for POTUS Trump to get off his private agenda and get busy with the needs of the country. He is acting as though the office and authority are his private play thing with no consideration of the responsibility that comes with that office.

Members of Congress should look to those members who exhibit statesmanship, like Sen. Jon Tester and John McCain, and follow their example. Mike Mansfield would be an outstanding example of statesmanship as well. Concerns and needs of the nation must be the priority of our elected representation.

The citizens of the U.S. have the duty to send officials to Washington who would realize their duty and carry it out. It is up to all of us voters to cause that to happen. After all, we are the determining factor in what happens in Washington. We can only look to ourselves in placing blame for what is going on in D.C.

Brian Roat

Red Lodge
Healthy air is a profoundly personal issue to me, as air quality directly impacts my familys health and well-being. Yet the U.S. House of Representatives just passed H.R. 806, also known as the Smoggy Skies Act, a harmful bill that would delay life-saving pollution standards. It is critical that Montanas senators oppose this dangerous legislation.

H.R. 806 would systematically weaken one of the nations strongest public health laws, the Clean Air Act, and would make it harder to protect people from asthma attacks, emergency room visits, and premature deaths from a whole host of dangerous air pollutants.

H.R. 806 not only significantly delays implementation of the health-based 2015 ozone standards, it permanently weakens the Clean Air Act and future air pollution health standards for six key pollutants: carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen oxides, ozone, particulate matter and sulfur dioxide. These delays and other sweeping changes will threaten health, particularly the health of children, seniors and people with chronic disease.

Thanks to the Clean Air Act, our nation has made great progress in cleaning up harmful air pollutants like particle pollution and ozone. Still, millions of Americans live where the air is unhealthy to breathe and, literally, can threaten their lives. Weakening their protection is simply wrong.

I am disappointed that Rep. Greg Gianforte voted to pass this harmful bill. I call on Sens. Jon Tester and Steve Daines to protect childrens lungs and the health of all Montanans, and oppose H.R. 806 in the Senate.

Kat Quinn Porco, MS

Red Lodge
Barrackpore couple tied up, robbed

Pensioner Harold Ramnarine,75, and his common-law wife Sundra Watie, 65, were asleep when four men smashed the front door of their home at about 2 am yesterday.

They live at Ramsabad Trace, Barrackpore, and, according to a police report, the masked men used a hacksaw to prise open a lock of the familys front door. Two of the men were armed with guns and the other two with knives.

The report said Ramnarine and Watie were awoken by the noise to be confronted by the men who demanded they hand over all their money.

Speaking to Sunday Newsday at their home yesterday, a traumatised Ramnarine said he was still in a state of shock.

I keep getting flashes of what occurred and I am so deeply hurt and shocked but I am also lucky to be alive, said Ramnarine. My wife and I were spared because of prayers. They said they were going to kill us before they left, I believed they were really going to kill us. Ramnarine lives in Canada but had returned to Trinidad only hours before and retired to bed with his wife.

Would you imagine this is what I came back to? Ramnarine asked.

I see myself as a brave man but this place is a scary to live. Ramnarine said that at about 1.30 am he was awoken by noises coming from the front of his house and the sounds of his dogs barking repeatedly. He said, It was only within a few seconds these four men barged into our bedroom and demanded that we hand over money.

They pointed the guns to our heads and shouted, We come for both of you today, give us all your money, we will kill you! One of them had his arms around my neck and another one had his hands around my wifes neck. My wife was crying hysterically, I could do nothing to help her. All I could do was pray. The burglars then used the duct tape to seal the couples mouths and tie their hands and legs together before they forced them to lie on the ground.

The four men then ransacked all the rooms. After they took all the money I had in my possession, they returned to the bedroom and threatened to rape my wife, Ramnarine said. They said they had got what they wanted and now it was their time to have fun with my wife. He said his eyes were closed and he continued praying. I knew their was an angel right in the room with us, because the men left suddenly in a haste. Tears also came to my eyes. I think about what happened and I still I am fearful. Ramnarine said that when the men ran out of the bedroom he could hear the engine start to his green B14 which was parked in the yard of the home. I knew they had also stolen my car but I just wanted them out and out of our lives, a traumatised Ramnarine said.

The burglars also escaped with $2,000, two bottles of Scotch Whisky and CAN$1,000. Barrackpore police officers are investigating.
Venezuelan captains fined for illegal fishing

According to the Coast Guard, a magistrate also ordered the captains to distribute the catch to homes and other places but unfortunately some of the catch had begun to spoil. The vessels were escorted back to Venezuela by the Coast Guard on Friday afternoon.

On Wednesday, 23 Venezuelans were detained by the Coast Guard in two separate interceptions, one for illegal fishing and the second for lack of documentation.

In the first interception, which occurred at 3.25 pm, 16 Venezuelans on two Venezuelan registered fishing vessels were seen illegally fishing four nautical miles north west of the Toucan Platform, approximately 68 km east of Manzanilla.

The Coast Guard said communication with workers of the platform confirmed the vessels had been fishing under the structure from 8 am until about noon that day, after which they proceeded north westward. The Coast Guard patrol observed the Venezuelan boats engaged in fishing and on approach they began hauling in their lines.

The vessels were subsequently boarded and searched and a quantity of fish was found in the cargo hold of both vessels.

The vessels were escorted into Scarborough for processing by the Police Service, the Customs and Excise Division and the Immigration Division.

The second interception occurred at about 8.20 pm and involved a blue and white Venezuelan registered vessel with seven occupants on board which was detained approximately seven kilometres west of Cabriese Point on Chacachacare Island.

The Coast Guard reported warning shots were fired to stop the vessel. Searches were conducted but nothing illegal was found except for groceries and other miscellaneous items.

However, none of the occupants on board the boat carried any documentation for the legal entry into Trinidad and Tobago.

As such, the vessel with its occupants and contents on board was escorted to Staubles Bay. The police, Customs and Excise Division and the Immigration Division were called to process the detained Venezuelans.
CHEAP CHINESE LABOUR

This is how businessman Emile Elias described the discovery of eight Chinese men at an unfinished building on Charlotte Street, Port-of-Spain, on Monday.

He also said the people responsible for the mens illegal presence in Trinidad and Tobago, presumably to perform menial tasks, should be arrested.

Speaking in his capacity as a founding member of the TT Contractors Association, an outspoken Elias said the trafficking of Chinese labour has been an ongoing problem for many years, one which he contends is obviously supported by certain persons at a high level. These men were found in a building so the owner of the building should have been arrested. The alleged contractor who was using them should have been arrested.

The person who met them at the airport when they landed - and there is always someone meeting them at the airport because they cannot speak a word of English.

They (Chinese) lie on the form and say that they have come for the allowed 90 days, and then they do not go back. Elias, who is also executive chairman of NH International (Caribbean) Limited, called on the authorities to quickly implement the laws that were already in place.

We have labour laws. We have the OSH Act. We have immigration laws. How come all these people are being allowed into this country? he asked.

Who is the human trafficker? Who is the contractor of the job and who is the owner of the building? Lets name and shame them. Elias claimed the men are made to work and break every labour law in the country. He told Sunday Newsday: They break the OSH and labour laws in respect of hours of work. They break every law regarding the payment of taxes, no PAYE. All of these laws are being broken and the persons are known and we have to go to the source of who exactly recruited these people in China. Currently detained at the Immigration Detention Centre, Aripo, the eight Chinese men were reportedly brought into the country to do menial, contract labour.

They were held on Monday by officers of the Port-of-Spain City Police and Immigration Division during an exercise on Charlotte Street.

Saying the Chinese were taking food out of the mouths of citizens, Elias said those jobs could have easily gone to locals so they could feed their children. And the authorities should be ashamed of themselves that they talk about arresting these people.

But they didnt arrest the person who is feeding them, who was employing them, who was paying them? On whose property they were living - all illegal acts. He added: This is human trafficking at its worst because what they are doing is bringing these people here. They work 60 hours a week without overtime. They dont pay local taxes.

They are fed (sic) meagre amounts of money at the job site.

They sleep and live on the job site in filthy conditions and then they are sent back to China. The reason they do this is that they perceive that this is cheaper than using local labour. Elias said the law enforcement agencies, including the Immigration Division, should have been more proactive in addressing the problem of illegal immigrants over the years.

Dont tell me you are investigating.

Fifty per cent of the issue with them is that they are victims. So they are also breaking the law and they are victims, he said.

But the culprit is the human trafficker who brought them to Piarco in the first place. All of them should be arrested without any delay and charged with harbouring illegal immigrants and bringing them into the country, because none of them have a work permit. Elias asked: How could they get a work permit for construction skills that we have in surplus in Trinidad and Tobago? We are already in a recession. Plenty of people are looking for work.

This criminal behaviour has to be stopped with some urgent arrests.

Otherwise, it will continue as it has in the past. Now is the time. Elias also said the conditions at the detention centre were like the Hilton Trinidad compared to the environment in which the Chinese nationals lived on the building site.

It cant be difficult to know who is the building owner, the contractor in charge and who met them at Piarco and met them inside with landing cards. Who is the immigration officer who allowed these people in? he asked.

We stop Jamaican from landing and there is always a lot of publicity when that happens. How come we did not stop them (Chinese)? Former president of the TT Contractors Association Mikey Joseph echoed Elias views, saying the owner of the Charlotte Street building and the contractor who brought the Chinese men into the country, in the first place, should be investigated and charged.

The fact that you have illegal immigrants found on a construction site, they have to be working for somebody, he told Sunday Newsday.

And the police should have continued their investigations and charged the owner and the contractor who would have had these people there and have them account for the illegal migrants and how they came into contact with them.

I think they (police) have a very good foundation to start with because they are working on a project and it must have had a main contractor. Regarding the apparent difficulties in bringing such perpetrators to justice, Joseph said: Sometimes, you have the culture of the brown paper bag. So that people who might have been influenced improperly, would want to cover their tracks. That is why the action of the police in charging the individuals heading up the line will reveal all of the players. Saying the police and immigration did a good job in unearthing the Chinese immigrants, Joseph reasoned that the next course of action should be to determine the basis upon which they arrived in the country. He said the media had a pivotal role to play in keeping this issue on the front burner.

There are deeper and more fundamental issues that we must follow up on to call people to account.

If you drop it and look for the next sensational story, nothing will not happen. Joseph said the police too must must continue their probe.

Charging the illegal immigrants themselves is not good enough.

The police has to follow through and bring to book all who facilitate them (Chinese) in being here. Counter Trafficking Unit deputy director Alana Wheeler said she was not in office and was unable to answer Sunday Newsdays questions when contacted on the issue yesterday.

Over the past decade, Chinese workers have been employed on major multi-million dollar State construction projects, such as the National Academies for the Performing Arts in Port of Spain and San Fernando, which were awarded to Chinese firms. Their hiring were also conditions of government- to-government loans from China
Taking food out locals mouth

And, with the thrust toward diversification, it also has placed renewed focus on the jobs that would enable this country to emerge from the current economic crunch and along a path to sustained growth.

Specifically, the advertisement sought foreign nationals who could speak English and work legally in Trinidad to fill positions such as passenger service agents, airport baggage and ramp handling agents, cargo agents and handlers, aviation security agents, wheelchair assistance, gas and diesel mechanics, supervisors and managers.

Duke, who also accused the company of violating the countrys labour laws, argued that these positions could easily have been filled by locals.

Why are they allowed to box food out of ones mouth and say it is for foreign nationals only? he asked. Why is it that this company is recruiting foreign nationals when there are people here who can do the same work? Swissport Trinidad and Tobago has issued a statement, saying the company has been compliant with the countrys labour laws and regulations.

However, the company did not address specific concerns about its desire for foreign nationals to fill positions at the two airports.

The company said it was a responsible employer which prided itself on its longstanding reputation as a competent and efficient provider in the service of the aeronautical industry of Trinidad and Tobago. But president of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions (FITUN) Joseph Remy said he supported Dukes concerns.

He described the ad as insensitive, saying it was published at a time when the PSA started to raise particular issues relating to the terms and conditions under which locals are working and the threat of job security.

And in the face of that, you see this ad inviting foreign persons to apply for jobs in Trinidad and Tobago when there are competent local persons available to do the same jobs. Remy said the labour movement was not against foreigners working in TT but there has to be a policy position relative to how that is done and that policy cannot be one that will infringe on ones constitutional rights for access to what the local economy provides. And, as such, we believe it was insensitive of that company to place that ad at a time when the PSA was raising some industrial relations issues because it says to us directly that the ad is in response to the concerns raised by the PSA and it is their response to the threat to withhold their labour for improved terms and conditions of employment, he added.

Saying FITUN totally condemned the ad, Remy said the Ministries of Labour and National Security must carefully scrutinise the process for work permits in cases where foreigners have applied.

They must note the impact it is going to have on the local labour market and the impact on the wider economy. Remy said the jobs for which Swissport International was seeking foreigners could be accessed locally.

There is a supply of labour for those jobs and as such, we should tap into that supply source instead of going foreign. And we believe that this is a real indictment against a sovereign nation, he said.

It says to us that they have no care for government policy and they feel they could come here and do what they want. And they believe that because the country is in an economically challenging time and we are looking for direct foreign investment, that they could do what they want and get away with it. Urging the Government to stand firm on the issue, Remy said the fact that the company has placed an ad for jobs on the local market suggests, too, that educational institutions are not churning out what the local demand requires.

That means we have a supply side situation and that is something that has to be corrected. We cant be giving so many people tertiary education and we still have a shortage of skills sets throughout the country. Something is wrong. According to Remy, TT s labour market is in a very precarious state because no one can put their finger on the real status of where we are in terms of what are our absolute needs and what is our supply situation. He added: So, we dont know what are the key skills sets and jobs that are required to carry the economy forward and we dont know what is the supply side of it, whether we are churning out from our secondary schools, trade schools and tertiary institutions, the requisite skills sets to match the demand of the labour market. Remy claimed such information has not been readily available from the Ministries of Labour and Planning and Development.

Claiming that unemployment rates were increasing rapidly, the veteran trade union leader wondered what would become of graduates of secondary and tertiary institutions given the ongoing retrenchment in several sectors.

But then you are seeing vacancies being advertised for foreigners to come in the country. That to us says that something is fundamentally wrong.

Our planning is really atrocious. President of the Banking, Insurance and General Workers Union Vincent Cabrera claimed on Thursday that an estimated 4,000 workers have been put on the breadline since September 2016, far surpassing the period 1985 to 1993 in which close to 7,000 people were retrenched.

He feared that the rising unemployment could lead to increased criminal activity.

Remy said there was no apparent nexus between the Ministries of Labour and Planning and Development in terms of conducting a manpower analysis.

We are in an absolute mess and nobody is taking a handle of the situation. Remy said the National Tripartite Advisory Council, from which union leaders have temporarily suspended their involvement over the Tourism Development Company issue, would have been the think-tank to address critical labour and economic issues.

We would have been able to provide the government with certain outputs that would have allowed them to do certain things differently. But the politicians continue to do things wrong and expect to get different results. Technology jobs of the future But Planning and Development Minister Camille Robinson-Regis, responding to Remys claims, yesterday said her ministry was already carrying out an analysis of the jobs that are required to take TT out of its economic slump.

She said the research, thus far, has shown that information communication technology, artificial intelligence and other technology-related fields will be the areas of opportunity of the future.

Robinson-Regis said jobs in the areas of human organ engineering, climate change and memory augmentation (the process by which ones ability to retain information is increased) also will be in demand by the year 2030. This is in the context of not only what is happening currently nationally, regionally and internationally, but what future trends indicate, she told Sunday Newsday.

Robinson-Regis said an analysis was being carried out against the backdrop of the Governments National Development Strategy Plan (2016- 2030) with research undertaken by the Central Statistical Office as well as through a technical cooperation agreement with the Inter-American Development Bank to conduct a Manpower Strategy for Trinidad and Tobago, part of which has already been initiated through the Global Services Promotion Programme of her ministry. Robinson- Regis said the Ministry of Labour and Small Enterprise was a key partner in this exercise.

She said Government was also involved in the development of a manpower strategy at two levels  sector- specific and aggregate.

The minister said the strategy entailed relevant research and was intended to identify human capital requirements, implement actions to develop required skills and, ultimately, support the achievement of the countrys economic goals through a clear direction for the human resources of TT moving into the future.

Robinson-Regis said another IDB project, specifically targeting the youth, also was among the ministrys plans to support the labour sector.

The IDB has approved a regional technical cooperation (plan) called Support for Productivity and Youth Employment Initiatives in the Caribbean with the aim of addressing low productivity and youth unemployment, she said.

It is also intended to improve skills building, the labour market and will identify potential public private partnerships for youth employment. Robinson-Regis said TT , Jamaica, Barbados and the Bahamas have been invited to participate in the IDB-executed initiative.

She said the IDB and Ministries of Labour and Planning will be partners in this collaboration once full approval has been obtained.
Lets work together

Speaking in the wake of Fridays Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) mass rally in Port-of-Spain, Rowley gave no response to the labour leaders call for an audience with him within the next two weeks but appealed for their re-commitment to the council.

The Government, with a wider responsibility for the entire population, would hope that the workers representatives would acknowledge the reality and outcomes of our strained circumstances and return to the tripartite approach enabled by the Government, rather than rely on threats, bombast, finger pointing and insults, since these invectives would do little to assist us in treating with the harsh realities of our current circumstances as a nation in the midst of an economic downturn which is driven largely by our location in external markets beyond our control, he said in a statement from the Office of the Prime Minister. The Government is confident that if we air and address the difficulties together so that the burden is equitably shared by all, we would give ourselves the best chance to overcome the pressures and build the bright future that we all want for ourselves and as well as all others in the nation of Trinidad and Tobago which we so love, in good times and in periods of hardship.  The trade union movement suspended its involvement from the tripartite council over the Governments decision to dismantle the Tourism Development Company and create a regulatory body.

The council, comprising representatives from the Government and private sector, was established in March 2016, to devise solutions to the economic challenges plaguing the country.

Contrary to the views of the trade union leaders, Rowley said Government respected the labour movement as it seeks to highlight the plight of workers and the unemployed under the current difficult circumstances.

He added: It is against this background and with this commitment to all workers and the wider national community that very early in the life of this administration, the Government took immediate steps to open the door to a collaborative platform of discussion and dialogue between Government, labour and the business sector. Rowley said the tripartite, civil approach, through the genuine efforts of the council, should provide the most meaningful forum to address the myriad challenges which all parties must face as we seek to overcome and survive the current economic crisis to which we have been exposed since 2015 and which is very likely to remain a factor in our circumstances well into the medium term. The Prime Minister said Government was not unmindful of the stresses and strains exerted on the national population, especially those who face inadequate income earnings or who encounter the prospect of reduction in employment opportunities.

It is, by now, common knowledge that these unfortunate circumstances are largely the effects and results of our countrys loss of very significant oil and gas revenues which the market no longer afford us at this time and until such time as we can make alternative arrangements for increased revenue growth or the market situation is reversed we will be required to act responsibly and try to do more with less than we have been accustomed to.
While I am grateful for anything that slows down Interior Secretary Zinkes greedy rush to exploit our public lands for the profit of a few energy companies, I still find it appalling that he rolled over for Trump in such an obsequious, bootlicking manner  I wont call Zinke a lapdog because I know lapdogs, I love lapdogs and you, Zinke, are no lapdog.

Instructed by the tweeter-in-chief to threaten Sen. Murkowski into changing her vote on the ACA repeal, Zinke forgot  or maybe he just didnt read the fine print, or any print, like Trump  that Murkowski holds the purse strings to his department. He tried to strongarm her in a patently ignorant and possibly illegal manner because, you know, thats how Boy Scouts do it, and he did make sure to get a photo of himself giving the Boy Scout salute while he was standing behind Trump. Pretty soon, I suspect, hell be relegated to bringing Trump cheeseburgers, like Trumps previous over-eager errand boy. Come on, we raise em better than that in Montana.
Stress levels high among Trinis

Harriott was one of several people Sunday Newsday spoke to find out how stressed the public is, their coping mechanism and level of awareness on the topic of mental illness after yesterdays lead story about 11,000 cases of mental illness as reported by the South West Regional Health Authority.

Harriott has had to overcome many stressful moments, much greater than worry about the cost of school books. Her father committed suicide 13 years ago. Although he was a very active person he went into a deep state of depression which led to him ingesting poison.

I remember asking my father why he drank the poison but he could not give me a logical answer, he had dementia.

I am aware of how serious mental illness is and on occasions I feel depressed due to financial constraints but I hold myself together for my children. I dont want them to suffer. I also know about Baratarias Mental Health and Wellness Centre as being a good facility to help persons as well, Harriott told Sunday Newsday.

A teenager also spoke about losing someone to suicide.

I had a friend who committed suicide. She was quite reserved and never socialised much but we never suspected things were so bad until she died, said 17-yearold Nickell Lewis. He also deals with anger issues and finds prayer to be a great outlet to calm himself. While his friend, Joseph Rogers, also 17, said he believes mental illness has a lot to do with a persons mentality, as such he tries his best to remain calm or walk away from hostile situations.

Mahaylia Richardson, who also spoke frankly, tries to not get stressed out by the state of the economy and crime.

It is frightening when I look at the crime situation in our country and the fact that I recently graduated, so getting a decent job is also something I think about, I dont let it get to me, as life goes on. Norine Bazie, another interviewee, said she is aware of the many forms of mental illnessanxiety, depression, insomnia and dementia but manages her stress by being active and involved in different activities.

While the stresses of daily life can take many forms, the way people cope with it affects the quality of their lives.

Mental health issues remain a worldwide phenomenon and the challenges of dealing with mental health is growing, South West Regional Health Authority acting chief executive officer Gail Miller Meade had said during Fridays launch of the TT Association for the Improvement of Mental Health in San Fernando.
Diego woman dies in car accident

According to police Trina Khan, 36, of Blue Basin Road, Diego Martin, was driving a black Toyota Hilux with her mother Lynette Christine Khan.

Around 6.45 pm, they were proceeding south on the Diego Martin Road near the Water and Sewerage Authority pumping station when her vehicle came into contact with another vehicle, a silver Nissan Almera, driven by Adrian Alexander of Diego Martin.

Both drivers lost control of their vehiclesAlexanders Almera crashed into guard rails while Khans Hilux spun and landed on the hood. Khan and her mother were injured in the incident while Alexander received minor injuries.

Emergency medical services arrived on the scene and rendered assistance to the injured.

Khan and her mother were taken to St James Medical Centre where Khan was pronounced dead. Her mother remained warded at the Port of Spain General Hospital.

Officers visited the scene of the accident and Ag Corporal Henry is continuing enquiries.
Arima focuses on the less fortunate

Kailah, a national volunteer coordinator, was speaking at the event that was attended by Member of Parliament for Arima Anthony Garcia and Arima Mayor Lisa Morris-Julian.

Starting with a multi-faith prayer, yesterdays event, dubbed as a Day of Care, was held at the Arima Borough Corporation Carpark on Hollis Avenue, Arima, and saw the distribution of clothing items as well as lunches to the lesser fortunate burgesses of the borough.

In addition to the acts of goodwill, patrons were treated to free medical checks, haircuts, pedicures and manicures.

Reflecting on the volunteer initiative, Mayor Morris-Julian urged people to view the Day of Care and volunteerism as a daily necessity as opposed to a one-off event.

Noting that the boroughs festivities are heavily known for parties, Morris-Julian decided that it was time for a give-back initiative to hopefully inspire burgesses to look out for one another, especially the vulnerable. The event, which was a collaborative effort between Morris-Julians office, the Arima Borough Council and Garcia, featured a wide range of NGOs and non-profit organisations which Morris-Julian said had committed to serving Arimas burgesses through long-term volunteerism.

To ensure longevity, the Arima Volunteer Network will undertake various training programmes, one of which will be a disaster management training and homework programme for students who may not have the opportunity to attend lessons. While addressing members of his constituency, MP Garcia expressed his desire to see Arimians acting in a manner that would make life easier for those experiencing hardships. Garcia also took the opportunity to remind those present that the Government could not do it all alone and encouraged people to come on board in helping, through outlets such as volunteerism.

Councilor Brennan Patterson, a key member of the events planning committee, said the Day of Care would become a continuous fixture in Arimas annual Borough Day Celebrations and be extended outside the period.

Echoing similar sentiments, Morris-Julien said she was willing to give any support moving forward to ensure that the Boroughs volunteer projects continued to be supported through private and public support.
IMF: Economy may turn a corner

The findings come from an IMF staff team, led by Elie Canetti, which visited this country during July 20 to August 2 to conduct the annual Article IV consultation.

Canetti in a statement said: Trinidad and Tobago continues to face economic challenges stemming primarily from the sharp declines in global energy prices since 2014, combined with a fall in natural gas and oil production in recent years.

These, along with the prolonged economic stagnation, capital allowances, and challenges with tax administration have continued to contribute to weak revenue collections, leading to still significant fiscal deficits and rising public debt levels. He said that although preliminary data showed the economy contracted in the first half of the year on weak energy production and spillovers to the non-energy sector, the economy may be starting to turn a corner as a result of a projected recovery in gas output, though growth may still be flat or somewhat negative for the year as a whole. He said the economic improvement that is now beginning is projected to continue into the medium- term, notably given a pipeline of projects that will improve the supply of natural gas to the downstream energy sector. He also said oil output is growing due to Stateowned Petrotrins recent exploration efforts and refinery upgrade.

As the energy sector recovers, the non-energy sector is expected to rebound due to positive energy-related spillovers, and as implementation of the Public-Sector Investment Programme picks up. Canetti said the team welcomed ongoing fiscal policy adjustments, including the Governments efforts to reform the energy tax regime and to boost domestic revenues.

Nonetheless, it cautioned that sustainable fiscal adjustment will require additional measures (including containment of current expenditure) to rebalance the public finances, especially as one-off, non-debt creating financing options such as asset sales will diminish over time. The team urged the authorities to undertake a medium-term, modestly front-loaded fiscal adjustment to rebalance the public finances and put debt on a sustainable path.
All disabled not the same

According to the ministry, the national policy will also provide a holistic framework for achieving equal opportunity for all citizens with disabilities. The ministry said it is in keeping with its mandate and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which was ratified in 2015 as well as the 2030 development agenda.

Qushiba La Fleur, president of WeCare Deaf Support Network and acting executive officer for TT Association for the Hearing Impaired, told Sunday Newsday that she attended two consultations for the new draft policy.

She said at the consultations participants called for education and employment of persons with disabilities to be areas of focus. She also recalled one participant complaining that while ministry officials would say what they want to do implementation takes a long time or never happens at all.

La Fleur said they want companies to have their buildings suit the needs of persons with disabilities as employees but some were saying it is too expensive to make their buildings disabled friendly and prefer not to hire or engage with them. She said this was especially the case for deaf people as companies believe it will take time and cost them money.

In our country we not seeing the importance of ensuring things are implemented. The fact is we should not be asking for it to happen but it should be mandatory. In terms of education, La Fleur said there should be specialised curriculum for children with disabilities and trained teachers. She said that it should not just be an overall course for special education because a teacher of the deaf, for example, would not be able to teach a child with Down syndrome or autism.

She said for deaf children they are not as successful academically as they could be because the resources are too limited to ensure they more have access to schools and there is no curriculum designed for the deaf and hard of hearing.

La Fleur pointed out that despite Trinidad and Tobago signing on to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities the challenge was implementation and following through.

On the draft national policy she said her concern was that it was not specific. She gave the example of education and training and said that you cannot just say you will provide these things without specifying the appropriate support services and teaching aides.

With disability you need to be specific. She said the policy did not mention specialised curriculum geared towards children with disabilities.

She said the association can provide sign language interpreters for students but deaf students need additional technology as well as special education teachers.

She pointed out that the policy mentioned providing sign language training for parents and communities which was fine but this would not help deaf children when it comes to education.

La Fleur said most of the policy had been discussed before but reiterated that it does not address specifics.

You have to break it up and be specific. Children with cerebral palsy, various disabilities, Down syndrome, how do you facilitate their needs? What are the necessary things they would need? She said there is much information online regarding the UN convention so locally there is no need to reinvent wheel as some of their codes which are suitable for this country can be used.

Blind Welfare Association executive officer Kenneth Suratt told Sunday Newsday that he read the draft policy and made comments.

He recalled a disability policy being discussed 25 years ago but there are still no laws for the disabled. He said the United States has celebrated more than 25 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

Suratt said TT should have had a national policy but is way behind time and needs to move quickly towards legislation.

If you do not have laws a person who is blind cannot challenge the system. A policy is just expressing an intention. We need laws to protect the disabled and we going on almost two years to sign off on the charter. He said the process has been too long at the draft stage, consultation and moving from green paper to white paper.

I am tired of it. Suratt said there is a draft building code to accommodate the disabled and a policy for housing but they are not law so people are not compelled to implement them and there is no way to challenge the situation. He said the Equal Opportunities Commission was the only body that had laws which speaks for the disabled.

He said the Ministry of Education has a policy for the disabled but again it is not law. Suratt said blind children were being refused entry to schools because they had no aide, there was no braille or large print.

We must move swiftly into law.

If you dont do (something) the disabled person take you to court and straight to Privy Council. He said he was happy that child marriage laws were amended but questioned when there was going to be laws to deal with the disabled.

I tired of policy. Too much of talk. I ask them when we going to see draft legislation. And that is what the conversation should be.

Not policy. Suratt said the association would like to know when Government will draft laws before their five years are up.
Garcia mad over school drug trade claims

Speaking at yesterdays launch of the Arima Volunteer Network initiative, Garcia said he was disturbed by Arjoons statements which were quoted in a Guardian article last Thursday.

Echoing the information communicated in a press release sent out on Friday following the publication of Arjoons statements, Garcia reiterated that the Ministry of Education has never been informed of any drug trade in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) centres and primary schools.

Garcia said the statements were too severe and it was only right that the ministry took immediate action. Acknowledging that from time to time there were problems with marijuana usage in secondary schools, Garcia made it known that there were also no reports of a drug trade in the secondary school system. With discussions ongoing amongst the Education Ministrys legal departments, Garcia would only comment that if there was a breach of the law in Arjoons erroneous statements, then the ministry would determine the most appropriate action moving forward.

He insisted the current systems of authority in schools were fully capable of monitoring the behaviour of students. Noting that the ministry was doing what it could to provide a quality education for students, Garcia stated, I want to caution persons against making such statements that would only help to harm the education system. Sunday Newsday was unable to contact Arjoon for comment via email yesterday.

On a lighter note, when questioned about the readiness of schools to open for the upcoming academic year, Garcia said, to his knowledge, all schools were prepared for the intake of students in September
Thanks to its increasing diplomatic and economic clout, Morocco is best placed to serve as Indias bridge to French speaking Africa, Indian paper, the Business Standard, commented.

Morocco, a North African nation almost touching Europe, has emerged as an island of stability in a volatile region, adds the paper quoting Moroccos Ambassador to New Delhi Mohamed Malki.

Morocco has access to more than 1.2 billion consumers free of customs duties, Maliki said, explaining that Morocco has freight rate agreements with West African nations.

The Moroccan diplomat underscored the investment opportunities offered in Morocco to Indian businessmen notably in light of Moroccos unique geographic location, 15km south of European shores.

He said India and Morocco are equipped to attract more investments in areas such as renewable energy, maritime issues and the blue economy as well as agriculture, e-governance and education.

The Ambassador welcomed that the two countries celebrate this year the 60th anniversary of their diplomatic relations, which can be fostered into a strategic partnership that will add the security component into their bilateral cooperation.

In this respect, Malki shed light on Moroccos three-pillar counterterrorism strategy with the first component consisting of social and economic development to address the root causes of radicalization.

The second component is the reform of the religious sphere, while the third comprises security and intelligence action against terrorist cells.
The Algeria-backed Polisario separatists have once again failed to practice their political piracy as they did in South Africa last May.

Last week, it was in Latin America, precisely in Uruguay, that the Polisario attempted to incite a Uruguayan court to order the seizure of a 300-ton shipment of Moroccan phosphate. But, although Uruguay backs the Polisarios separatist thesis, it turned down the request to seize the shipment as Panama rejected a similar demand early June.

The Panama Maritime Court had then rejected the Polisarios request to seize the Ultra Innovation ship that had left the Moroccan port of Laayoune with a shipment of phosphate from the Phosboucraa deposits in the Sahara.

The Panamanian court ruled that the separatists request was unfounded and that a Panamanian national court is not competent to rule on a matter of international politics.

The decisions of both Panama and Uruguay render justice to Morocco, which acts in strict compliance with international law. Meanwhile, the decisions embarrass South Africa, which had seized Cherry Blossom, a ship carrying a 55,000 ton-cargo of Moroccan phosphate destined to New Zealand, and show that Pretorias move was dictated by political considerations, underpinned by its unconditional support for the separatists.

Moroccos phosphates company, OCP, had denounced the South African decision as a political piracy and a hostile act revealing the striking partiality of Pretorias justice system.

The OCP and its Sahara subsidiary, Phosboucraa, had decried in the strongest terms the biased decision of the South African justice in maintaining the ship held in Port Elizabeth. The OCP argued that the South African judiciary has no legitimacy to rule on the core of the case and that it made an eminently political decision and committed a gross abuse of power.

Panama and Uruguay did not fall in the Polisarios trap and spared their justice a blunder.
The former Marine general isnt the first to this fight, and probably wont be the last. Photo: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

New White House Chief of Staff John Kelly is not only trying to dampen the trademark chaos within the White House, but is also attempting to restrict the flow of ideas to the president and, when and where he can, moderate some of Trumps more destructive Twitter impulses. On Sunday, Bloomberg reported that, though the president has apparently reserved his right to ignore Kellys Twitter guidance, the new chief of staff has been mostly successful at calming Trumps tweets down for the time being. According to three Bloomberg sources, Kelly has even temporarily convinced President Trump to consult him before tweeting about specific subjects which could lead to administration-wide headaches.

Only the Fake News Media and Trump enemies want me to stop using Social Media (110 million people). Only way for me to get the truth out!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 1, 2017

Kelly is additionally working to restrict access to the president  eliminating casual walk-ins to the Oval Office, for instance  and trying to limit or at least filter what information makes it to Trump, assigning White House staff secretary Rob Porter to be the point man on that task. In a meeting with some 200 White House staffers on Friday, Kelly reportedly told the assembled that he expected them to put country first, the president second, and themselves and their priorities last.

Of course, unless you took away Trumps digital devices, friends, and television time, no one will ever be able to prevent the president from getting his own bad information, which he seems to regularly receive from Twitter and from cable-news shows. Kellys efforts, which also include restricting who is able to brief the president, may reduce at least some of the fuel for Trumps impulsive fires. This is obviously not the first time that somebody has tried to limit Trumps unforced errors on Twitter, but any progress would probably come as a welcome change within the White House, considering the serial damage that Trump has done to his administration with his @-bully-pulpit.

Indeed, a Politico report on Friday indicated that Trumps tendency to rule by random tweet is probably even worse than most had realized.

We already knew that Trumps July 26 tweet announcing a full ban of transgender servicemembers came as a total surprise to both the Department of Defense and the rest of the White House. But Politico reports that Trump actually sent the tweet because he was tired of being told that he couldnt order the ban. Trump thus deliberately ignored the advice of White House and DOD lawyers, disregarded the potential legal ramifications and backlash his advisers had warned him about, and blindsided basically everyone in the federal government  just because he wanted to end a tiresome debate and get his way.

Trump then reportedly told his administration that they would have to get in gear and come up with a plan now that he had publicly ordered the policy change. However, the Defense Department later said that they would not, in fact, be implementing the ban until they received official guidance from the White House, and it seems that still hasnt happened.

The exact same thing apparently happened on June 7 when Trump nominated Christopher Wray to replace fired FBI director James Comey. Politico reports that Trumps advisers believed the president would be picking John Pistole for the job, but after a conversation with New Jersey governor Chris Christie, Trump had suddenly decided to pick Wray. Trumps advisers hadnt considered or recommended Wray at that point, and the White House only found about the pick when Trump tweeted it out that morning. According to Politicos sources, Trump was just tired of the search and so he ended it with a sudden choice that no one saw coming.

Another of the many bizarre tweets the president has sent was when he wrote on June 20 that, While I greatly appreciate the efforts of President Xi & China to help with North Korea, it has not worked out. At least I know China tried! Politico reports that U.S. officials were meeting with Chinese diplomats when Trump hit send, and for hours no one had any idea what he was even talking about. Only later did they learn that Trump, rather than having made some kind of random foreign policy announcement, was just letting off some steam after becoming upset over the death of Otto Warmbier, an American student who was critically injured while being held by the North Korean government.

Politico adds that, according to a White House official, even if Kelly cant prevent Trumps tweets, he is trying to to push them in the right direction by limiting who is able to encourage Trump to tweet things out in the first place. To that end, the tall order that the former four-star Marine general has given himself is to try to be aware of what Trump is planning to tweet beforehand, and to put together a system in which top aides dont learn of decisions on Twitter, one where policy and personnel decisions are not first tweeted without having procedures in place to make them happen.

My use of social media is not Presidential - its MODERN DAY PRESIDENTIAL. Make America Great Again!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 1, 2017

Best of luck.
Jeff Sessions. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

It would not be surprising if Jeff Sessions wants to get rid of affirmative action in college admissions for good. This is the same attorney general who is bent on taking us back to the drug war of the 1980s, who doesnt prioritize curbing police brutality or voter suppression, and who holds the view that existing law doesnt protect gay workers from employment discrimination. Killing affirmative action in higher education would seem like the next logical step.

But historically, the federal governments role in race-sensitive admissions policies has been limited. The battle over affirmative action has been waged in large measure by private individuals against state universities  typically aggrieved white students with decent grades who nonetheless failed to make the cut at the school of their choice and then took it to court. Their claim has been, and continues to be, that the Constitution doesnt tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, and thus any consideration given to skin color during the admissions process, no matter how minor or holistic, means the admissions program itself is unconstitutional.

So the Department of Justice inserting itself into this debate would represent a dramatic break with prior practices, even for a department that does have a section dedicated to education equality. And yet, when the New York Times reported that the department was looking for lawyers to help it spearhead a new initiative to pursue investigations and possible litigation related to intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions, the Trump administration stopped short of calling the latest outrage fake news. Instead, a spokesperson clarified the initial Times report, noting that the goal wasnt to fight discrimination against the likes of Abigail Fisher across the land, but only to get involved in one administrative case involving a different kind of plaintiff: Asian-Americans.

The DOJ didnt mention Harvard, but the description of the pending 2015 complaint as one that alleges racial discrimination against Asian-Americans in a universitys admission policy and practices sounds a lot like a similar lawsuit Harvard has been defending in federal court since late 2014, filed by Students for Fair Admissions, a front group by Edward Blum.

Blum is a tireless conservative legal impresario who has a remarkable success rate at getting the Supreme Court to pay attention to his lawsuits, even though hes not a lawyer. And all of his cases are designed to make America and its Constitution color-blind again. You may remember Shelby County v. Holder, the 2013 case that dealt a blow to the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Thats a Blum case. Or the two iterations of Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, his failed attempt at destroying affirmative action at Texass flagship state university, and perhaps even nationwide. He was also behind the more obscure Evenwel v. Abbott, which couldve done away with the constitutional principle of one person, one vote. (It didnt.)

The Harvard lawsuit had been on hold while the second Fisher case was being decided, but the case has picked up steam since. Blums legal team has pulled out all the stops: His lawyers are on a quest to prove that Harvards diversity efforts actually harm admitted minority students  the so-called mismatch theory that even the late Justice Antonin Scalia once had the temerity to float from the Supreme Court bench, when he suggested that black students might be better served by attending a slower-track school where they do well.

As part of the discovery process, Blums team has even sought subpoenas for four top-ranking high schools, among them New Yorks Stuyvesant High School, which enrolls a sizable percentage of Asian-American students, as it seeks to prove that some of those graduates may have been unduly rebuffed by the Ivy League. Over its objections, Harvard also had to turn over six years of enrollment data. Things are heating up in the case.

Where does this leave the Department of Justice? Thats anyones guess. The legwork so far has all been done in litigation by someone else. The team of government lawyers that the department is seeking to look into the Harvard complaint could very well intervene formally in the case and piggyback on whatever Blums lawyers have uncovered so far. Or they could take a more formalistic role by filing a statement of interest  a document whereby Sessions might let the court and the parties know the considered views of the United States. This might consist of a harder stance against affirmative action: that the limited use of race at even private institutions like Harvard needs to be reined in or abolished altogether, the Supreme Courts recent ruling in Fisher notwithstanding.

That, of course, would be unprecedented, and not just because the DOJ doesnt typically weigh in on constitutional litigation where no state actors are involved. But also because fighting affirmative action is a few steps removed from other prerogatives of federal civil-rights enforcement. Micromanaging Harvards admissions process doesnt at all resemble the DOJs past fights for equality, like protesting Texass discriminatory voter-ID law or unconstitutional policing in Baltimore or Chicago. But for Donald Trumps Department of Justice, these are no longer top priorities.
Giggles and hearty laughter welcome me as I walk into Parliaments breastfeeding facility, located at the Office of the Prime Minister.

The Shs 80m-breastfeeding centre for MPs and Parliament staffers was launched by Speaker Rebecca Kadaga in November 2015, and The Observer was curious about how it was changing parenting and effectiveness in the august House.

After going through the gates dotted with tough-looking security personnel, it is a relief to escape into a more calm and serene environment, only interrupted by the sound of children playing.

Outside the enclosed facility is a small compound dotted with baby swings, two slides and a plastic swimming pool, placed around the space fitted with an artificial grass turf.

One of the nannies, Irene Nawaho, ushers me inside the reception area, where three children are seated on a playing mat. A number of toys are strewn around them as they babble in baby language. They are the only babies around, given that it is Holy Thursday and other parents are possibly already on Easter break.

Nevertheless, it does not deter the nannies from pampering them. I am drawn by the clean and airy environment, the bright cartoon characters adorning the white walls, Winnie the Pooh curtains and the sparklingly clean, tiled floors.

Irene Nwaho with kids

The reception area is adorned with sofas where the honourable mothers can relax on arrival with their tots.



FACILITIES

Nawaho, a graduate of early childhood development at Young Mens Christian Association (YMCA), gives me a guided tour of the facility, which has a kitchen, toilet, bathroom and three separate breastfeeding rooms.

The nannies have a separate toilet and bathroom. In the kitchen is a fridge, where fresh milk, fruits and feeding bottles with expressed milk for the babies are kept.

Belinda Kyalisiima, the other nanny, also manages the kitchen area, where she prepares food for the toddlers.

I am in charge of cooking for the children, particularly those from six months and above. I prepare their meals on a daily basis and also, with instructions from some of the parents, make special meals for those who probably have allergies and dont eat certain foods, Kyalisiima, who studied early childhood development and nutrition at Kingfisher Training School Muyenga, says.

The kitchen cabinets are stocked with different types of cereal, including soya and millet flour. Below the cabinets is a microwave, cooker, more baby bottles, two sterilizing units, a food steamer and a number of flasks brought by the parents.

Parliament has a monthly budget for the facility and buys basic meals including cereals, milk and fruits for the toddlers. The facilitys coordinator and human resource officer at Parliament, Lillian Iculet, says while small meals are provided for the babies, the bulk comes from the mothers; they pool resources and stock up for the children.

Nanny Belinda inside the cosy breastfeeding room

A chart is plastered on the corridor wall, detailing a daily order of activities. Between 8am and 9am, mothers come in with their babies. They are bathed and breastfed or given porridge and drinking water, before their busy mummies hurry off to different departments of Parliament for work.

From 9am to 10:30am, this period is dedicated to indoor activities such as sleeping and breastfeeding. At about 10:30am, the children are guided outside to the play area; however, when the weather is unfriendly, they engage in indoor games. A fruit snack is also given.

Midday comes with lunch, when the children are fed milk and porridge and are also given drinking water. For those above six months, meals comprising steamed food are served.

We make sure they are fed on steamed food in order to retain the nutrients, Kyalisiima says.

Between 1 and 3pm, the children are bathed, while others splash around in the pool. A glass of juice and expressed milk are also served then. From 3pm to 5pm, when the centre closes, children listen to rhymes and also watch cartoons, before their mothers pick them up for the journey home.

This routine is, however, not cast in stone. We usually alter it depending on the number of children around and the weather, Nawaho says.

As we head towards the breastfeeding rooms, one-year-old Felicia Kusiima, whose mother is a librarian at Parliament, runs past us mumbling in baby talk, before pushing the door to one of the breastfeeding rooms open.

In the room are four beds with brightly coloured, cartoon-character blankets arranged in a straight line. Nawaho says this is where toddlers between 15 and 36 months take their naps. We move to breastfeeding room 2, where babies between two months and 14 months sleep. It also has a changing table for babies who have soiled themselves.

Inside the third breastfeeding room, only mothers are allowed in to attend to their young ones. Four comfortable chairs are placed in the room, with each seat separated by a plastic curtain for privacy.

Once a mother is ready to breastfeed her child, she can draw the curtain and create a private space, as slow music is played in the background to create a relaxed environment for her and the baby.



HISTORY

When Parliament first opened the facility for its female legislators and staff, many thought it was a daycare center. Iculet insists the facility was created to provide a space for lactating mothers working at the institution to breastfeed their children and return to office, a stones throw away.

The facility did not come out of the blue. The idea was conceived in 2011 by former Parliament director of human resource, Victoria Kaddu, and Hellen Kawesa, the assistant director of communications and public affairs (CPA), after they returned from an internship partnership programme at the New York State Legislature in the United States.

Kawesa recalls their visit, where they were struck by the presence of a well-furnished breastfeeding room on each floor of the three-storied building, and on different wings, where female staff and members of the legislature worked.

The beds the toddler use for nap time

The mothers who were working there would come out of committee meetings or offices and take time off to nurse their children. It impressed us so much and we were told that since this was introduced, the number of female staff had grown drastically and performance was enhanced, Kawesa says.

Upon return, Kawesa and Kaddu highlighted this aspect to the Speaker and Clerk to Parliament, with recommendations that the Parliamentary Commission considers the idea. While it took four years to be set up due to limited space, Kaweesa is elated the idea was eventually implemented.

I remember MPs used to come with their babies and nannies to attend committee and plenary sittings and they [babies] had to wait in their vehicles, she says.

Parliaments Human Resource regulations stipulate that upon return from maternity leave, a mother is allowed to work for six hours a day and return home to look after the child.

While this is for a period of six months, Iculet says it was not feasible, as it grew tedious for mothers.

Mothers were still not at peace, leaving their little ones home, that is why we pushed for the facility, Iculet says, with the greater goal to encourage exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life as recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

While many working mothers wish to adhere to the WHO guidelines, private companies offer no more than two months maternity leave; in the absence of a facility like Parliaments, a two-month-old baby is forced to start on formula feeds.



BENEFICIARIES SPEAK

While the facility plays host to 12 children who are not brought in at a go, Iculet says the initial target was for eight children. The assumption was that on a rather busy day, eight children would be brought in at a go.

Harriet Nalusiba, a principal librarian at Parliament, is one of the beneficiaries of the facility. Having had trouble with maids with her now 10-year-old daughter, Nalusiba decided to bring her younger one, Felicia, to the centre when her three-month maternity leave ended.

It is nice for any woman to have an option to leave your baby at a place where you can walk in any time and breastfeed. I am not worried about rushing home to my child in Matugga, Nalusiba says.

Those things affect womens work so badly and also have a bearing on how men think about women at work. Even when men interview staff, they have at the back of their minds [a womans future preoccupation with motherhood].

Nalusibas sentiments are shared by Agago Woman MP, Franca Judith Akello, whose two-and-half-year-old daughter, Mary Akidi, stayed at the centre when mummy had to work. Akello, a mother-of-four, had two children during her first five-year term in the 8th Parliament.

Whenever I had my babies, I would not settle at Parliament. I would come very late for committee meetings and within an hour, I would be called from home all the time that the baby was crying incessantly and needed to be breastfed. At some point, I got discouraged to have more babies, the MP recalls.

Now, the convenience of being closer to her child while she represents her people in the House is something Akello does not take for granted.

I have really enjoyed working at Parliament because I bring her to the centre, then head to work. I would walk there and breastfeed and return at my own convenience. She has also turned out to be a very social daughter because she grew up with other children, the MP muses.

Bugiri Woman MP, Agnes Taaka Wejuli, is also a beneficiary of the facility, where she takes her seven-month-old son, where he meets Evans Behanganas baby; Behangana is a police officer attached to the surveillance team at Parliament.



FUTURE PLANS

The demand for daycare centres in the country has grown over the years, majorly due to the unreliability of housemaids and scarcity of professional nannies for homes.

In 2014, First Lady Janet Museveni made a herald call, urging bosses countrywide to consider setting up daycare centres at the workplace to level the ground a bit for working mothers.

While the initial plan of Parliaments breastfeeding facility was to allow mothers to breastfeed their young ones, Iculet hints that in the future, the institution may set up a daycare centre to allow MPs and staff to drop off their children even after weaning them. This, she says, will happen once the construction of the new chambers of Parliament is complete.

There is a lot of demand for daycare services; so, we could have a wing for that so that even the male staff and MPs can bring their children. For now, our focus is on breastfeeding, Iculet says.

While the concept at Parliament may seem expensive, Iculet gives assurance to employers who would like to adopt the idea that one can set up a facility in one room at a much lower cost.



eyotaru@gmail.com
South Africas crime rates and xenophobia tend to ring loud to an outsiders ears, but the two times I have visited this beautiful country, I have left unscathed and with only beautiful memories.

I was in South Africa last month for the famous Indaba, Africas largest travel trade show. From visiting revered nationalist Nelson Mandelas house in Soweto to taking a tour around Johannesburg and the lifetime experience of an abseiling and canopy tour in Limpopo province bordering Botswana, South Africa once again left me in awe.

The Indaba show attracts people from across the globe. I went with two other journalists from Uganda and after landing at Oliver Tambo international airport, we were welcomed by Fathimah Adam, the manager Marketing and Communications, South Africa Tourism. We spent our night at Southern Sun hotel near the airport.

Some Ugandan exhibitors during Indaba expo in Durban

The following morning, we started our tour with Limpopo province, visiting the interesting Balobedu of Modjadji kingdom. We had an abseiling and canopy tour, which almost all the journalists in attendance could not stop raving about afterwards.

Abseiling involves using ropes to descend mountain surfaces or rocks, backwards. It is an exciting adventure sport popular with thrill seekers. I decided to try it out and the best trick is to avoid looking down as you make your descent.

Since it was my first time to abseil, I was very nervous standing at the top of the rock at about 30m, although with all the ropes and harnesses, I managed to control my movements and descend steadily onto the floating platform at Magaliesberg Adventure. It is an unforgettable experience, but definitely only for the brave, considering that one is abseiling from a rock top with a waterfall beneath.

No wonder when my nine-year-old daughter Princess Nimrah saw my WhatsApp video of my abseiling achievement, she wept and told my sister Madinah how unfair I was being, abseiling over waterfalls; What if shed died?!

Elvis Ntale of Radio One, who was also on this trip refused to abseil after googling it and finding it rather challenging.

I cant risk my life with abseiling; its so scary at least I have done canopy, he said. Well, he will never know now.

After landing, we sailed a few meters on Letaba River and later climbed to the other side of the mountain using a very tall ladder to return to the top, where we had left our belongings before abseiling.



Then came Canopy

It was a day of many firsts for me, for as I was catching my breath from the abseiling, I was introduced to Canopy tour or zip lining. On arrival at Magaliesberg canopy tour, we were given a thorough safety briefing by the guides, before being fitted with safety helmets and into harnesses. We toured 10 zip lines running over trees, stopping on wooden platforms to change to the next one.

I flew over the beautiful, green forest, but it was mind-blowing in a scary way too, seeing as we were hanging and zooming above roaring waterfalls. If you are scared of heights, this is a fun way to conquer your phobia. The guides are incredibly helpful and safety conscious.

The tour lasted two hours for the group of 10, moving between platforms built high within the upper level of natural forests and between ancient mountain cliffs.

Now I know why people travel thousands of miles and pay their distances equivalent in dollars, just to experience some of these things. Fellow journalist Edgar Battes heart could not stomach the canopy tour after being intimidated by the waterfalls below the zip lines we were swinging from.

I had to travel to South Africa first and learn from a Ugandan based there, Rashidah Kagimu, that canopy tours and abseiling actually exist in Uganda; abseiling happens at Sipi falls in Kapchorwa , while canopy tours are available in Mabira forest.



Mandelas House

If you go to South Africa and dont visit former president and freedom fighter Nelson Mandelas house in Soweto, you will have missed a great opportunity to get insight into the man himself. It is a big center of attraction, preservation, research and heritage for the Mandela family and people of South Africa.

The tiny house is very popular to tourists and hundreds flock to the place daily to recall Madibas life during the oppressive years of apartheid. The former South African president, who was incarcerated for 27 years on Robben Island, referred to his house as the centre point of my world.

Tourists pose for pictures at Mandela's house

Mandelas house 8115, Orlando West, Vilakazi street in Soweto is located in the Johannesburg township that once was the hub of the anti-apartheid struggle. The South African government is trying to rebuild the matchbox houses that characterise the township, to improve standards of living.

Sphelo, the guide at Mandelas house says in 1946 Mandela, his first wife Evelyn Ntoko Mase and their four children moved into this house from Eastern Cape where Mandela was born.

The house is mainly a museum today and features quotes from Mandela and his children. From the mid-1990s ownership of the house was transferred to Soweto Heritage Trust, who were entrusted with preserving the house and its history, as a national asset and it was renamed the Mandela Family Museum.

Sphelo says Mandela was the first in his family to go to school and his teacher gave him the name Nelson because those days they were given English names; his original name was Rolihlahla.



Rich Culture

South Africa is the continents most developed country, but their cultural side is just as fascinating. As we entered the palace at Balobedu of Modjadji kingdom, we were all ordered to remove our shoes according to cultural norms as the royal dancers welcomed us with songs.

We were taken on a tour of the Thokola ya Masopha shrine in Polokwane, Limpopo province. The cultural tour guide took us through the palace for about two hours, sharing with us the origin of this kingdom and some of the rituals they do annually such as praying for rain since their province is always dry.

In Durban we visited uShaka Marine World, a 16-hectare theme park. It comprises five sections that include uShaka Sea World, uShaka Wet and Wild, uShaka Beach, uShaka Village Walk and, uShaka Kids World.

This tour includes an unforgettable dolphin show, audio-visual presentation at Natal Sharks Board and a visit to uShaka Marine World - the largest marine aquarium on the African continent and the fifth largest in the world.

The unique design of marine aquarium offers the visitor an underwater exploration as one traverses through lower tunnels. For a Ugandan whose country is landlocked and thus does not boast the salt-water creatures countries such as South Africa have in abundance, it was a memorable experience.

Minister of Tourism Prof Ephraim Kamuntu, who was also in South Africa for Indaba, must have been taking notes the entire time. He said government ought to invest more in tourism as other countries including South Africa do.

Stephen Asiimwe, the Uganda Tourism Board chief executive officer said their marketing and publicity are going to improve and that since South African president Jacob Zuma recently praised Ugandas beauty, tourists booking to see that beauty have increased.



zurah@observer.ug
Two years ago, Royal Dutch Shell gave up drilling in the Arctic. It came across a dry hole and decided the enormous risks and expense werent justified. Someone wasnt listening.

In July, the Trump administration approved Eni SpAs plans to start drilling in the Arctic Ocean north of Alaska. Eni proposed to the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management that starting on 10th December 2017 it develop four exploratory wells drilled from Spy Island. They would be the longest extended-reach wells in Alaska, going for six miles horizontally. Reuters and other news agencies were unable to get Eni to comment on the story and there is no mention of it on the companys website.

Its not the complete end of President Obamas ban on Arctic drilling introduced last year he had decreed no new leases would be issued but Eni was exempt, having already had this lease in place  for a decade. It would have expired at the end of this year had they not been acted on.

But many see it as the beginning of the end. As we know, President Trump has vowed to make America energy-secure and hes pursuing this through renewed commitments to fossil fuels over renewables.

There was a 21-day period for the public to review and comment on the plans and 10 to submit comments on the environmental impacts. Environmentalists say this was insufficient. Nonetheless the Center for Biological Diversity and a dozen other stakeholders including Greenpeace and the WWF submitted their opinions. The group raised alarms to BOEM that they felt Eni hadnt planned adequately in the case of an oil spill. BOEM disagreed, and said the project would have no significant impact. Eni brought to us a solid, well-considered plan, said its Acting Director Walter Cruickshank. We know there are vast oil and gas resources under the Beaufort Sea, and we look forward to working with Eni in their efforts to tap into this energy potential. Related: Barclays: Oil Prices To Drop This Quarter

"Approving this Arctic drilling plan at the 11th hour makes a dangerous project even riskier," said Kristen Monsell, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity. "An oil spill here would do incredible damage, and it'd be impossible to clean up. The Trump administration clearly cares only about appeasing oil companies, no matter its legal obligations or the threats to polar bears or our planet."

A 2013 BOEM report looked into oil spills in the Arctic from 1971 to 2011. In total, there were 1577 spills larger than one barrel. More than 80 percent of the spills were between 1  10 bbl, while there were 10 spills larger than 500 bbl and two spills larger than 1,000 bbl. It says: Spills larger than 500 bbl are rare and appear to be random events with respect to oil production volume. The best approach to estimating their occurrence was a simple return rate that predicts between zero and two spills of more than 500 bbl will occur for every one billion barrels of production. The current Eni Nikaitchuq production is approximately 25,000 bpd from 70 wellbores.

In its project submission plans, Eni said that while an oil spill is unlikely, it is committed to conducting safe and environmentally responsible operations in Nikaitchuq. To achieve this goal, oil spill prevention is a priority in all operations. Eni has said it will only drill in the winter when a potential oil spill would be easier to clean up and when whales are not migrating in the area.

Before drilling can get started, Eni must secure additional approval from the State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Federal Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, though historically this is merely a rubber-stamping stage.

By Precise Consultants

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Iraqi oil exports topped 100 million barrels in July, but thats still lower than the 3.93 million barrels per day rate Baghdad boasted back in May.

The latest figures from the Iraqi Oil Ministry do not include exports from Kurdistan, which reach international markets via the controversial Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline. SOMO, the national oil distribution company, said all the exported oil had originated from central and southern oilfields.

June data shows Kirkuk exporting 677,413 barrels, or 22,000 bpd. It remains unclear whether shipments from the area, formally under the control of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), have been affected in July.

Each month, the United States accepts a larger share of Iraqs total exports in a bid to replace the high sulphur, heavy grades of crude that Saudi Arabia used to supply. Riyadh has made lowering its exports to the U.S. a cornerstone of its strategy to lower crude inventories in the North American nation. Bloated reserves discourage American buyers from purchasing large shipments of crude from glutted international markets.

Revenues to Baghdad totaled US$4.3 billion last month. The funds should be funneled into paying for the reconstruction of Mosul and other cities formerly held by ISIS, but corruption makes it hard to tell where the they will end up in reality. Earlier in July, the government announced its victory over the illicit caliphate, which controlled Fallujah and other notable cities in Syria and Iraq at different points over the past three years. Related: Did The Arab Spring Disarm OPEC?

The war against the Islamic State overlapped with the oil price crisis, which began with the market crash in September 2014. Still, ISIS was able to build its caliphate and military from stolen fossil fuel facilities in conquered territories. At the peak of the groups oil program, Iraqi and U.S. intelligence forces estimated that the group earned $50 million a month off of fields under its control.

Now that Iraqs territorial integrity has returned, so has the vigor of the national oil ministry and its ambitions. As OPECs No. 2 producer, its reserves act as political capital in the international energy arena. Oil Minister Jabar Al Luaibis short tenure has been characterized by a push to produce as much oil as possible to revive the golden age of Iraqi oil wealth.

Under the banner Arab oil for the Arabs, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) produced roughly 1.5 million bpd prior to the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 that led to the toppling of Saddam Hussains Baathist regime. This figure seems low, but a series of United Nations sanctions levied against Baghdad for its invasion of Kuwait in 1990 permanently lowered output from the 3.5 million-bpd level it enjoyed before the standoff with the fellow Gulf nation. Related: Who Should Pick Up The Tab For Abandoned Oil Wells?

Oil facilities fell into deep disrepair even after the oil for food initiative allowed Iraq to sell small amounts of its oil to purchase humanitarian goods.

Though Baghdads new leadership has its faults, the nationalized oil sector has managed to approach a 4.7 million bpd output as of June. Five million barrels per day should be manageable by the end of the year, but the ongoing OPEC quotas will likely prevent any such developments.

Though the 100 million bpd July export figure for Iraq makes for punchy headlines, the overall trajectory of the countrys oil agenda in 2017 depicts a booming oil industry winding down to meet the needs of global markets.

Baghdad has come a long way since its run-in with Kuwait. Once an international pariah, Iraq has become one of the economic and industrial leaders of the post-dictatorial face of the Arab world. The end of OPEC quotas in March will only add to the nations ascent.

By Zainab Calcuttawala for Oilprice.com

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Pierce with Spherion

Mickala Pierce has been hired as a client service supervisor in the Bismarck office of Spherion Staffing.

Pierce earned a bachelor of science degree in business administration from Dickinson State University.

Miller joins staff

Megan Miller has joined Braun Intertec as an environmental technician in the Bismarck office.

Miller has a bachelor's degree in geology from the University of North Dakota and more than four years of experience in environmental site assessments and remediation.

Eide is director

Thomas Eide, Fargo, has been hired as director of field services at the North Dakota Department of Human Services.

Eide will lead operational, financial and administrative areas of the North Dakota State Hospital in Jamestown, the Life Skills and Transition Center in Grafton and the eight regional human service centers.

Eide most recently was chief financial officer of Prairie St. Johns, Fargo.

He has a masters degree in business administration from the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minn., and a bachelors degree in business and computer science from Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn.

Hired, promoted

Amy Madsen has been hired by the North Dakota Farm Bureau in Bismarck and Lisa Hauf has been promoted.

Also, Dawn Smith-Pfeifer has been named director of content and communications.

Madsen is an administrative specialist, a new position. She has almost 20 years of administrative experience.

Hauf is now the director of public relations. Hauf has worked for NDFB over 11 years and has assisted the communication and public policy divisions.

Smith-Pfeifer has worked at NDFB for 32 years, most recently as director of communications.

Pierce with division

LaTosha Pierce has been hired as a HOME program specialist in the state Commerce Departments Division of Community Services.

A native of Colonial Beach, Va., Pierce previously was a program specialist for the Agricultural Products Utilization Commission. Pierce holds an associate in arts degree in business administration from Bismarck State College.

Wald recognized

David Wald, a representative in Mandan, has been named adviser of the month for July by Securian Financial Advisors of N.D. Inc. based on production and client service.

Suko with Werner

Shane Suko has been hired as an industrial automation specialist at Werner Electric Supply, Bismarck and Fargo.

Suko has 23 years of experience.

He holds a degree in electrical construction from Northwest Technical College, Wadena, Minn., an associate of applied science degree in technical studies from North Dakota State College of Science and a bachelor of science in career and technical education from Valley City State University. Suko also earned a Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee certificate from the U.S. Department of Labors apprenticeship program.
Is Venezuelas 2017 transformation symptomatic of the growing global polarization? And does it show how the collapse of globalism is resulting in the re-emergence of a range of governmental forms which no longer even need to acknowledge Western-style democracy?

Are we seeing the revival of a bloc of pre-Westphalian nation-states[1] with major power support?

Some trends are emerging which show how different the 21st Century global strategic architecture will be from the 20th. The present Venezuelan Government has abandoned even a pretense of adherence to what the West calls democracy. For some states, a return to autocracy is seen as the only avenue to escape total loss of power by governing elites, even though history has demonstrated how fragile and vulnerable such power structures can quickly become.

Venezuelan Pres. Nicolas Maduros stage-managed July 30, 2017, election of a new National Constituent Assembly may have set the paradigm for how governments in the emerging post-democratic world can sustain nation-states which owe nothing to the global order. It is not a new model, and it may not endure. But it is a model which has some chance of survival (with little economic success) in a world in which major powers find it inconvenient or difficult to intervene against such states. Or if there are no pressures to overturn major power disinterest.

In this instance, the declining power of Venezuelas petroleum exports not only damage the internal economy (given that 95 percent of the nations foreign exchange is earned from oil), it limits Venezuelas importance as either partner or target for foreign powers.

The Venezuelan election swept away any pretense that Mr. Maduros Government would now be recognized internationally on any other grounds than the fact that it physically controlled the territory of the Venezuelan State.

The July 30, 2017, election  the near-final act in dispensing with a National Assembly controlled by opponents of Pres. Maduros United Socialist Party (PSUV: Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela)  was contrived to return all power, but not necessarily legitimacy, to the PSUV. This was foreseeable when the Supreme Court announced on March 29, 2017, that it was assuming the functions of the National

Related: How Will The EU Respond To Fresh US Sanctions On Russia?

Assembly. The Court reversed that finding three days later, but the process of bypassing the Assembly had begun to take root in Mr Maduros mind.

The imposition of top-down control  suppression  of a society is, however, expensive, and requires an effective system to remove weapons and opportunity for dissent from internal opponents. Pres. Maduro is yet to demonstrate that he has achieved that level of control.

Arguably, in the United States of America, the attempts by the Administration of Pres. Barack Obama (2009-17) to remove weapons and ammunition from the general public actually stimulated the voter base to reject his ideals and those of his chosen successor in the 2016 Presidential election.

It is probable that the Venezuelan opposition, already restive and growing in confidence before the July 30, 2017, election, would become further emboldened and could act with a greater sense of urgency than before. US Government-imposed sanctions on key PSUV leaders further strengthened opposition resolve. Opposition groups not only challenged the legitimacy of replacing the National Assembly without a mandate to do so, but became emboldened by plausible allegations that the voting was rigged on July 30, apart from the opposition boycott of the event.

UK-based Smartmatic, a software company which had set up voting systems in Venezuela, said in a company statement on August 1, 2017, that without any doubt the voting results had been altered by at least a million votes. Moreover, voters were never given the option of rejecting the plan to replace the National Assembly with the Constituent Assembly. The new Assembly theoretically has the power to dismiss any branch of government, including the National Assembly. The National Electoral Councils claim that almost 8.1-million people (more than 40 percent of the electorate) had voted was rejected not only by Smartmatic, but by Venezuelan opposition leaders. There was no international monitoring in place.

Smartmatic was the voting machine company established by Venezuelans under the late Pres. Hugo Chavez to provide the Chavez Government with its own sense of confidence that it could control the outcome of elections. And now Smartmatic has turned on Pres. Chavez designated successor. Smartmatic will now need to distance itself from its Venezuelan roots.

The voter count discrepancy may only be relevant to the degree that it fuels internal and external indignation and action.

At a broader level, several outcomes and indicators are significant:

 Venezuelas economy will continue its downward spiral, fueling population outflow and the ac-tivities of major armed insurrectionist factions internally, probably with external sponsors;

 International recognition of and trade with Venezuela will contract, but some governments (Peoples Republic of China, Iran, Cuba, Turkey, etc.) may take the opportunity to develop a separate trading framework to include Venezuela. This could include a number of Caribbean states which have been induced to work closely with the PRC and against the US. This will gal-vanize US attention to act against some of the smaller PRC allies in the area, particularly Domi-nica;

 The creation of a non-Western trading system will be significantly influenced by the degree of success Venezuela has in surviving internal dissent and US-led Western sanctions. Related: Qatar Dispute Back To Square One

Venezuelas situation highlights the degree to which the US has lost influence in the Americas. So this is where it is being challenged, and why Venezuela is a significant test case.

[1] That is, societies which are not based on the balanced, nation-state concept which evolved from the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. Westphalian-style states have come to mean nation-states which married entire societies and leaderships to their geography and were imbued with legitimacy because of the relationships  tacit, historical, or electoral  between the societies and their governance. In shorthand terms: Westphalianism implies sovereignty underpinned by legitimacy. The term pre-Westphalian, used here for the first time, implies a form of despotism (control of a population without its consent); a lack of the rule of laws agreed by the society, and therefore a lack of structure (and therefore sovereignty) as recognized by its own population.

By Gregory Copley via GIS/Defense & Foreign Affairs

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This blog will focus on political images I have found all around the Internet, though I will intersperse some commentary and quotes that I find interesting.
QUEENSBURY  Edward F. Allard, 73, died July 27 at Swedish Hospital in Seattle, Washington, surrounded by his loving family. He was the devoted husband of Gloria (Perron) Allard, with whom he recently celebrated a 50th anniversary.

Edward was born in Cranston, Rhode Island, son of the late Edward Joseph and Agnes (Baxter) Allard. After graduating from Lowell Technological Institute, he worked in the pulp and paper industry at Kamyr for 26 years. He went on to pursue other interests in business, banking and technology.

Ed had close ties throughout the community in Queensbury, New York, where he worked and resided with his family for more than 30 years. He loved to spend time on Lake Winnipesaukee with family and his friends in Lake Shore Park. He recently moved to Seattle, Washington, to spend more time with his children and grandchildren.

Besides his loving wife, Edward is survived by his brother, Robert and his children, James, Edward, Christine and their families.

In addition to his father and mother, he was predeceased by his sister, Phyllis (Allard) Oneil.

Private services were held with close family members in Seattle, Washington on Aug. 4. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Double H Ranch in Lake Luzerne, www.doublehranch.org/donate/.
FORT EDWARD  A Granville man who was arrested in April as part of a regional drug sweep pleaded guilty Friday in Washington County Court to selling heroin.

Brian James, 47, pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, a felony, in connection with a State Police investigation that led to his arrest in April.

Eight people were arrested in all for selling various narcotics and marijuana.

James faces 3 years in state prison and 2 years on parole when sentenced Aug. 17 by Washington County Judge John Hall.
QUEENSBURY  Jason Crossley was determined.

The 5-year-old waited in line patiently to attack the rope ladder that was suspended over a pit of foam blocks at Sky Zone, the trampoline park in Queensbury.

He grabbed the first rung, but fell off and wriggled around in the blue and gray colored foam blocks with a huge smile on his little face.

His dad, also named Jason, extended his long, capable arm and pulled the boy out of the foamy pit.

Then he got in line again.

Jason  along with about 30 friends and family members  were at Sky Zone on July 27 to celebrate a year-and-a-half-long battle for the soon-to-be first-grader, who suffers from a debilitating disease called Perthes.

Perthes disease is a rare childhood condition that affects the hip. The blood supply to the rounded head of the femur is temporarily disrupted. Without an adequate blood supply, the bone cells die, a process called avascular necrosis.

Jason spent most of kindergarten at Queensbury Elementary School confined to a wheelchair. But doctors just gave Jason the green light to participate in all normal 5-year-old boy activities, and to celebrate his parents threw a party for him at the trampoline park.

Ive seen him suffer so much, Jessica Crossley said as she watched her son bounce around. Just the normal kid things like not being able to do field day, not being able to do gym class, the field trips going in the wheelchair. All of it. It just kind of broke my heart. He was such a trooper.

Jessica Crossley, a nurse at Glens Falls Hospital, had never heard of the disease, but the family became very familiar with it after Jason left his room one morning and couldnt walk.

Jason did a soldier crawl out of his bedroom.

I knew something was wrong, Crossley said. He couldnt walk at all.

After many trips to doctors and specialists with no answers, and a misdiagnosis of inflammation in the knee, Jessica decided to research it herself.

I just kept bringing him to all these specialists and they kept saying it was nothing, she said.

Through her research, Crossley discovered Perthes and suggested it to the doctors.

I was doing my own research because Im a nurse, the mother said. So, I was digging. I honestly found Perthes, and it fit all the symptoms.

Perthes is really a complex process of stages that can last several years. As the condition progresses, the weakened bone of the head of the femur  or the ball of the ball-and-socket joint of the hip  gradually begins to break apart.

Typical symptoms include limping, pain or stiffness in the hip, groin, thigh, or knee, or limited range of motion in the hip joint. There is no known cause, but the disease affects more boys than girls.

She pushed forward with the diagnosis until doctors confirmed it in November 2015. The disease couldnt be treated locally, so Jasons three surgeries took place at Columbia Orthopedics in New York City.

Jason rarely complained of the chronic pain he endured, his mom said.

It was a rough year for Jason and for the family as a whole, Jessica said, which is why they decided to commemorate Jasons clean bill of health at Sky Zone.

We just wanted to celebrate, Crossley said. Hell remember this and he doesnt have to think of Perthes of being pain and scary.

Jason doesnt have to go back to the doctor for another six months.

Although she thought twice about the safety of a trampoline park, Crossley got permission from Jasons doctors to take him. By the look on Jasons face, it was the right decision.

I want to go do that! Jason said, pointing to the rope ladder.

Jase, you can do anything you want, his mom said. Go for it.
LAKE GEORGE  Sometimes the best comes last. And for 7-year-old Ariana Rubin, getting to ride a horse at the fifth annual S.A.V.E. the Lake Festival on Saturday afternoon was the best part of her family vacation that ends today.

The horse was the best, she said on Saturday after her quadruple loop around Shepard Park in Lake George Village.

Arianas Mom said the family makes an annual trip from Long Island to the lake. But when their vacation ends, Ariana gets one more chance at riding a horse before going home when they travel to visit her grandfather in Madrid.

He just got a horse, she said.

Along with Ariana and her family, hundreds of vacationers and locals were enjoying all the annual three-day festival had to offer, including live bands, arts and crafts vendors, pony rides, a bouncy house and a petting zoo. And like most festivals, foods and drinks like beef barbecue, funnel cakes, old fashioned candy apples, chili dogs, draft beers and fresh lemonade topped the list.

After a torrential morning rain, blue skies and loads of sun made for a near perfect Saturday at the lake. A lake that festival organizers want to be certain remains the beauty of the Adirondacks.

And a $10 donation earned the donor a S.A.V.E. the Lake T-shirt, with the lake project getting the proceeds that will help fund the Lake George Park Commission mandatory boat inspection program and equipment to reduce the use of toxic road salt within the watershed.

At an early July meeting at The Sagamore resort in Bolton Landing, scientists talked about the the health of Lake George, saying it is more resilient than they had previously believed. And Dr. John E. Kelly III, a senior vice president at IBM who is a member of the board of directors for The FUND for Lake George said that their lake sensors have been tracking the lakes health.

The deep water is OK, he said at the meeting, adding that salt from snow removal and invasive species is affecting the shallower water.

At the festival, Cyndie Ruggiero, who owns Adirondack Dream Catcher Farm in Corinth, was cradling a four-week old pot belly pig named Blackberry as several young people waited for a turn to pet Blackberry. For $3 they could interact with Blackberry, a couple silky chickens, goats and a bunny.

Six-year-old Lillian Comers Dad said she could stay in there with the animals all day. And Lillian and Ariana were both fascinated with the long-feathered chickens.

Ruggiero has had the animals on-the-road this summer, sharing them and two of her horses with others. Shell be at The Shirt Factory in Glens Falls in late August.

Several bands were on tap each day and mid-afternoon on Saturday, Dashboard Anthem drew hoots and cheers for their classic rock songs like the Eagles 1976 hit, Hotel California.

The S.A.V.E. the Lake festivals partially supports mandatory boat inspections that have already stopped thousands of invasive species from entering the lake on algae trapped on the side of a boat. Since 2015, there have been 112,000 boat inspections at 71 locations. Of those inspections, 3,700 boats were intercepted and 1,300 decontaminated at 17 decontamination stations.

The festival continues on Sunday at Shepard Park. Sundays band line-up includes the Stony Creek Band at 12:30 p.m. and the Refrigerators at 2:30 p.m.
Meme wins prize

Three members of Students Against Destructive Decisions at Century High School in Bismarck earned top honors in the 2017 SADD National Distracted Driving Video and Meme Contest sponsored by End Distracted Driving.

Chloe Lambrecht, Adam Foerderer and Jacob Ochs submitted six pop-culture-inspired images/graphics that can be shared online, known as memes, to the contest.

One entry took the top honor, winning a $5,000 prize for their SADD chapter and tickets to a 2017 concert of their choice.The contest received 170 individual entries from more than 500 students representing 18 states.

The Century students winning meme design shows a view of the North Dakota prairie through the window of a vehicle, with the side mirror filled with representations of various distractions, such as music, phone apps and text messaging. Obscured behind those distractions is a semi-truck approaching the vehicle.

Their inspiration came from not only what theyve learned through involvement in SADD, but through real-life experiences. We were heading to a national competition in 2016 and on a five-lane highway, we saw so many people looking down. One person was even steering with their knees and using both hands to text, said Adam Foerderer.

Adviser Laurie Foerderer said the money won in the contest was used to bring in special programming at Century and offset costs of attending the national SADD conference.
SOUTH GLENS FALLS  The village is looking for help to enter the 21st Century.

After searching minutes by hand to try to figure out if the village had ever voted on an employee handbook, Mayor Harry Gutheil wants a better way.

I think we need to digitize our records, so they can be searched easily, he said.

Hes hoping the New York State Archives will help. He also plans to apply for grants to get digitized. Interns might be available to scan in file cabinets filled with documents.

The villages records system has not been able to keep up with Gutheils demands. Most recently, on Wednesday, village officials could not immediately figure out how many local laws had been passed in 2017. They had to vote on draft legislation without that detail. The law was labeled local law number will be determined at a later date.

Village Clerk Dannae Bock, who takes the minutes, was asked to leave the room to try to track down a number before the board voted. It was not added to the legislation prior to the vote.

Were not where we should be on records, Gutheil said.

The issue began when Public Works Superintendent Brian Abare resigned in May.

He asked to be paid about $20,000 for his unused sick time, citing an old employee handbook. At least one version of the handbook promised that those who worked for more than 10 years would get their unused sick time paid out upon separation.

But this came as a surprise to the village board. They had not saved up money for Abares extensive number of unused days. They hadnt set a limit on how many days could be saved, either, but office workers believed there was some limit.

It turned out the board had never acted on many other perks offered in the handbook. It was routinely changed by the mayor without informing the board, and no copy of the older versions was saved, Bock told the board.

The benefits were only legal if the board approved them, so village officials spent more than a month searching through board minutes to find any record of a vote on the sick days payout. They did find one vote about a handbook, but the handbook was not attached. They put out an appeal for handbooks and discovered the village used to print a new one every year without dating them.

In the end, the board decided there was no proof theyd ever approved the benefit.

They passed a resolution saying the entire handbook has never been approved by the board and which is not binding upon the board.

Instead of offering the perk in the future, they tightened the rules, getting rid of another sick-day perk in which employees got 20 sick days upon starting their jobs. Now they earn one sick day a month, must work at least half of the month to get a sick day, and must get a note from a doctor if they are out sick for three days or more.

And no one will get a sick day payout, including Abare.

We rejected the claim, Gutheil said.
Editor:

Every child should start the school day properly nourished, but many children in the Tri-County Region do not.

Studies show that children who face hunger are at a physical, academic and social disadvantage compared to their well-nourished peers. Students who eat a healthy breakfast are more attentive, have better memory recall, and perform better on standardized tests.

Children may not eat breakfast at home due to a hectic schedule, a strained family food budget, or a lack of desire to eat first thing in the morning. Whatever the reason, school breakfast can be a great solution.

The School Breakfast Program is designed to ensure that each child starts the day free from hunger, properly nourished, and prepared for a day of learning. School districts offer an inexpensive, well balanced breakfast to all students that includes fruit, whole grains and milk.

If a child already receives free or reduced-price school lunches, they are also eligible to eat school breakfast for free or at a reduced price. If a family receives Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, their children automatically qualify for both free school breakfast and lunch.

You can learn more about the School Breakfast Program as well as SNAP, formerly called food stamps, from your local Nutrition Outreach and Education Program coordinator by contacting Ben Driscoll in Warren County at 793-6212; Teresa DePaul in Washington County at 587-5188 ext. 408; and Deb DeLosa in Saratoga County at 587-5188 ext. 412.

Bennet F. Driscoll Jr., Catholic Charities of Warren County, Glens Falls
Bismarck police arrested a 24-year-old Oklahoma man on a first-degree murder extradition warrant Saturday night.

The warrant was one of nine issued for the man out of Tulsa County, Okla. Other warrants included shooting with intent to kill, possession of a stolen vehicle and a number of other minor crimes.

Bismarck police served the warrant in southwest Bismarck around 10 p.m. How police became aware of the mans presence in Bismarck was not included in the responding officers initial report.

The initial report indicates the arrest went without incident as no SWAT assistance was needed.
Cathy Switzer celebrated a grand opening of her part-retail store, part-consignment shop, The Attic Addict, in grand style last week at 8000 Black Hawk Road in the Steele Horse Plaza.

Her more than week-long grand opening event started on July 28. That Thursday was busy and Friday was really good, she said.

Switzer keys on a variety of new retail items and gently-used name-brand merchandise. A sampling of labels in her shop includes pre-owned clothing from Duluth Trading Co., L.L. Bean, North Face, Victorias Secret and Under Armour and shoes from Ariat and Spring Step.

She also offers new home decor, jewelry and pottery items, with more items coming in daily, she said.

Ive always wanted to own my own little store, and Ive always had a lot of things to sell. I thought it was a good idea especially to have the high-end stuff. People could come and shop and it would all be in one spot, she said.

Switzer, whose family moved here four years ago to escape what she called the congestion and pollution of central California, said she shopped around for a location, looking at available spaces in Rapid City and Hill City but settled on Black Hawk.

Her neighbors at the Steele Horse Plaza, easily recognized by a sculpture of an equine figure fashioned from chrome automobile bumpers out front, have been supportive, sending her customer referrals, she said.

Her grand-opening hours through the end of the Sturgis motorcycle rally are 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

After the rally, the story will be open Wednesday through Saturday, she said.

Call The Attic Addict at 605-545-6717, check out her website, theattic-addict.com, or see her Facebook page for more information. Her consignment contract is on the website, she said.

Gallery changes hands

Joe and Wendy Lowe have owned and operated Reflections of South Dakota, a fine art gallery featuring Joes landscape photography and the work of other local artists since 2007.

They have decided to take another step toward retirement with the sale of the gallery to Rae Carlson of Rapid City, effective Aug. 1.

Joe Lowe came to South Dakota from California in 2001 to direct the states new wildfire agency. When he wasnt battling to keep landscapes from going up in flames, he was photographing them as a sideline.

Wendy operated the gallery from 2007 until Joe retired from fighting wildfires in 2012. In 2013, Joe ran for the Democratic nomination for governor.

Wendy said Joe will continue his photography, with his work still featured in the gallery.

We just wont have the day-to-day of running the gallery, she said.

Carlson worked as a mortgage broker for several years. Her interest in the arts swings more toward the musical side, she said.

I needed a creative outlet and this popped up, she said of the gallery. The stars aligned.

The Lowes originally opened Reflections of South Dakota on Sixth Street, but they moved the gallery to 605 Main St. in November 2012.

Carlson will take some time to get settled, but she isnt planning to make many immediate changes to a successful venue.

I love all of the artists that are here, she said. Im hoping to add a few more as I make space for them.

Another Sonic coming

Those hungering for, say, a bacon cheeseburger toaster, onion rings and a cherry limeade will have a third Rapid City location of Sonic Drive-In to choose from before long.

According to a release from the city, the planning commission approved a final planned development application last week for a third Sonic Drive-In Restaurant at 502 Century Road in the Vista Ridge subdivision.

The new Sonic will join other Rapid City locations on Mount Rushmore Road and Jackson Boulevard.

According to the company website, Sonics history can be traced back to the Top Hat Root Beer Stand, which opened in 1953 in Shawnee, Okla.

In 1959, partners Troy Smith and Charles Pappe renamed their expanding number of Top Hat stands as Sonic Drive-Ins to match their slogan: Service at the Speed of Sound.

New apartments in Sturgis

A release from the Sturgis Economic Development Corp. said the homes, to be built around the former Francis Case School on Fulton Street between Shepherd Street and Boulevard Street, will also feature attached garages with off-street parking and include lawn care, snow removal and external building maintenance as part of the lease.

Owners and developers Tim and Peggy Heuston will host an informal public open house on Friday, Aug. 18, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Sturgis Area Chamber of Commerce. Development plans, to finalized over the winter, will be available for viewing.

City Manager Daniel Ainslie said the Sturgis City Council considered several options for housing on the site, which was obtained in a land swap with the Meade School District. The school district in turn received a plot of city land next to Bear Butte Elementary School.

In addition to filling a niche in a growing community, its design and the Heustons professional management will complement the neighborhood aesthetics, Ainslie said in a release.

More Dollar General stores

With other major brick-and-mortar retailers scaling back, Dollar General just keeps on building.

Add two more Dollar General locations to the area, one at 2101 University Ave. in Hot Springs and another at 905 Mount Rushmore Road in Custer.

Both stores are tentatively set to open mid-fall, according to company spokesperson Laura Somerville.

The retailer will have seven stores in the area when the latest locations open, joining existing stores in Rapid Valley and Box Elder and soon-to-be open stores on St. Patrick Street in Rapid City, on Lazelle Street in Sturgis and a recently opened location along Sturgis Road in Summerset.
A crew from the 28th Bomb Wing is scheduled to conduct a B-1 flyover above Main Street in Sturgis at 3 p.m. Tuesday as part of the 17th annual Veterans Recognition Ceremony.

The flyover will cap off an event recognizing Rapid City veteran Stan Lieberman, who is one of two remaining Pearl Harbor attack survivors living in South Dakota. He entered the military Sept. 20, 1940, and was attending training as a photographer at Wheeler Army Airfield in Wahiawa, Hawaii, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.

The event honoring Lieberman will begin at Ellsworth Air Force Base with the Dakota Thunder Motorcycle Ride hosted by the Green Knights Dakota Thunder Motorcycle Association, an international group for all military members.

For more information, call 385-5056 or email 28bw.pa@us.af.mil.
The countdown to the Great American Solar Eclipse has reached the 2-1/2 week point, and cities across Nebraska are making final preparations for an influx of visitors from around the world.

On Aug. 21, 14 states will experience a total solar eclipse when the moon passes between the sun and the Earth, completely blocking the suns light. The rest of the country will see a partial eclipse, in which only part of the sun is blocked. The event is the first total solar eclipse to be visible in the U.S. in more than two decades, and the first in the contiguous 48 states in more than three decades.

The path of the total solar eclipse will travel from coast to coast, the first such occurrence since 1918. Visitors from around the world are traveling to the U.S. to view the event, as no other continent will experience it. The upcoming total eclipse is the first time a total eclipse has been visible only in America since before the nations founding.

The state of Nebraska is expecting 100,000-400,000 visitors, and with western Nebraskas relatively predictable sunny weather, many of those travelers will be in the Panhandle.

Alliance is planning on hosting 10,000-15,000 visitors for the eclipse, as it sits directly in line with the path of totality.

Dawes County Travel Director Kristina Harter is expecting similar figures in Chadron, even though the city will see only a partial eclipse.

We wont have them (travelers) all during the eclipse, but were going to see that traffic come through over the weekend, she said.

Chadron will experience 99.38 percent totality during the eclipse, so many individuals may well choose to stay in the area for the event, while others will overnight here before heading south to be more directly in the path of the eclipse. Agate Fossil Beds is also likely to be another popular viewing spot, particularly for its lack of light pollution.

I visited all the hotels (last) week, and all of them are full, Harter said. The area state parks are also booked, and several area residents are renting rooms in their homes or camping space in their yards. All of that information can be found on the solar eclipse page at discovernwnebraska.com, the areas tourism website.

Since that is the weekend Chadron State College students return to campus, Harter said families may want to check out available rentals, too, if they are having difficulty finding accommodations.

The U.S. Forest Service is also preparing for an influx of visitors to its campgrounds. District Ranger Tim Buskirk said the agency is working to provide additional law enforcement and a recreational support group that will focus on campground maintenance and regulation enforcement during the weekend and through the eclipse. Hudson-Meng and Toadstool parks will have extra staff on duty, and additional fire units have been requested.

The U.S. Forest Service grounds have been under Stage 1 fire restrictions since mid-July, which means campfires and stove fires, including grills, are prohibited except in developed recreation sites. Smoking, except in an enclosed vehicle or building, or in a developed recreational site, is also prohibited.

Law enforcement reminds those out traveling not to stop in the middle of the roadway, and to respect private property while viewing the eclipse.

Eye safety is also a concern, and residents and visitors to the area are reminded not to view the eclipse without special solar glasses. The Chadron Record has a limited supply of the glasses, and the Chadron Chamber of Commerce also has them in stock on a first come-first serve basis. The Chadron Public Library is distributing them during several events it is hosting between now and the eclipse, as well.

Viewing the eclipse without the glasses can cause permanent eye damage. In addition, photographers need to have a special solar filter for their camera lenses, lest they ruin their camera, too.
PIERRE | Its hard to know what state governments Board of Regents covered in so many executive sessions during past decades.

What could be seen, however, was how regents routinely spent as many hours behind closed doors as in public session.

The regents have enormous duties. They are governor appointees who spend their spare time managing nine university campuses in eight cities.

Three are university centers that, at least in Sioux Falls and Pierre, now stand as brick and mortar white elephants.

As the centers came on line, starting with Sioux Falls in January 2001, thousands of students also discovered the trend of college courses delivered through the Internet.

Enrollments that started strong have now plunged, according to a recent report to legislators.

The regents decided recently to give Capitol University Center to the communities of Pierre and Fort Pierre.

They are assigning management of University Center in Sioux Falls to the University of South Dakota.

USD is in Vermillion, farther than South Dakota State University at Brookings, or Dakota State University at Madison.

The regents also are switching the Sioux Falls emphasis to two-year associate degrees.

Black Hills State University at Spearfish manages the University Center in eastern Rapid City, not far from Elk Vale Road.

The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology already was across town. Its reputation for educating many of the worlds top math and science students evidently didnt let SDSMT take responsibility for the University Center campus.

As the university center approach gained hold two decades ago, Tad Perry was executive director for the regents in the Pierre central office. The regents at the time publicly endorsed the strategy.

Perry left a post at Ball State University in Indiana to oversee South Dakotas public universities in 1994. He retired in 2009.

It was his second retirement since arriving in South Dakota. The first came in 2005. The regents immediately rehired him, despite division on the board.

After his second retirement, Perry won election in 2010 to a seat in the state House of Representatives. He lost in a Republican primary for the state Senate in 2012.

His first retirement and immediate re-hiring meant he could keep his everyday job while drawing retirement benefits too. Double dipping was one reason Jeff Monroe of Pierre, a former House member, won the Republican nomination for the Senate in 2012.

The South Dakota Retirement System trustees meanwhile realized, eventually, they needed to hit the brakes.

Return to work was open to all member governments employees, provided their employers agreed. But there wasnt uniformity, even within state governments executive branch during the Rounds administration.

The SDRS board endorsed restrictions. The Legislature approved. But retirement benefits still flowed to hundreds of public employees who had taken advantage while return to work was still an accepted policy.

The future of the University Center at Sioux Falls is up for discussion when regents hold their annual planning session Tuesday through Thursday in Pierre.

The current board and executive director Mike Rush are trying to solve situations they didnt create. And, evidently, no one seemed to foresee.
American campaigns were not always, I can testify from personal witness, about the politics of personal destruction. Your political adversary was your opponent, not your enemy. Just 10 years ago, at the funeral of a former Republican president, the eulogy, at the personal request of the deceased, was given by the Democratic president who had defeated him in a race so close that with a switch of only 12,785 votes in two states  Ohio and Mississippi  Republican Gerald Ford would have won instead of Democrat Jimmy Carter.

Honoring the national reconciliation Jerry Ford had, by the strength of his own decency, personally brought to a divided and disillusioned country after Watergate and President Richard Nixon's resignation in disgrace, Carter began by quoting himself: "For myself and for our nation, I want to thank my predecessor for all he has done to heal our land." He then self-deprecatingly explained, "Those were the first words I spoke as president, and I still hate to admit that they received more applause than any other words in my inaugural address."

Of Ford's succeeding Nixon as president, Ford's good personal Democratic friend Tip O'Neill, who was the speaker of the House when Carter was inaugurated, had this to say: "God has been good to America, especially during difficult times. At the time of the Civil War, he gave us Abraham Lincoln. And at the time of Watergate, he gave us Gerald Ford  the right man at the right time who was able to put our nation back together again."

A month after taking office, Ford almost certainly doomed his own chances for re-election by pardoning Nixon. The pardon was an act of character and of conscience that, while almost universally unpopular at the time, we know some four decades later undoubtedly spared the country from a sustained epidemic of poisonous recrimination. A quarter-century after he lost the presidency, Ford's statesmanship was recognized when he was honored by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library with its Profile in Courage Award. A vindicated and appreciative Ford said simply on that occasion, "In the age-old contest between popularity and principle, only those willing to lose for their convictions are deserving of posterity's approval."

Ford was a total stranger to self-importance, a confident leader who never mistook political compromise for surrender. He had no enemies list, no lust for vengeance, no dark side. Not unlike the case with Harry Truman, another vice president from the Midwest who assumed the office of the president and never assumed airs, it can be said of Jerry Ford that he liked being Jerry Ford and he was comfortable being Jerry Ford. He never thought of being anybody but Jerry Ford.

And let it be noted that Ford, in losing, won 48 percent of the votes cast, an almost identical percentage to the one Hillary Clinton received when carrying the national popular vote by nearly 3 million in 2016.

It is frankly impossible to imagine the 2016 presidential nominees ever personally asking their opponent to offer a eulogy at their funeral. But there really was a time, a better time, when we had campaigns that were not emotional train wrecks, when America and the Republican Party had a Jerry Ford.
HAMILTON  The agency Montana tasked with making sure students get the best education possible is making it harder for people in Ravalli County to get the education that they need and some believe that the changes may be against the law.

The Ravalli County commissioners heard from supporters of Literacy Bitterroot Thursday. They explained how changes in the funding rules by the Office of Public Instruction in Helena prevented them from applying for a grant.

Literacy Bitterroot led by executive director Dixie Stark teaches adults to improve their skills in reading, writing and math with a goal of passing a High School Equivalency Test (HiSET) that replaced the General Educational Development (GED) in Montana.

To say the program is successful is an understatement.

The program has been serving Ravalli County students for over 26 years, typically serves around 200 students and graduates an average of 47 students each year.

That number is more than Darby and Victor high schools combined.

On Thursday, Terry Ryan told commissioners the OPI office had changed the funding requirements and regionalized the grant to require the program awarded the funding responsible to serve other counties in the Montana Association of Counties (MACO) districts.

If we had applied and received the funds we would have been responsible to serve other counties, Ryan said. In the past the grants had been awarded along workforce lines and now along MACO lines. In those Ravalli County is combined with Missoula and Mineral counties. Knowing they couldnt fulfill the grant requirements, they knew they couldnt apply.

Stark, in a July interview, said she believes the change is illegal.

I dont believe school districts can spend their funds outside their districts, she said. I told OPI they are making school districts violate state laws. They said they arent doing anything wrong.

She explained that Literacy Bitterroot has been funded by the federal block grant to Montana OPI and for every $75 of federal money the state has to match $25.

The local program, to receive federal or state funds, has to use local funds to match, she said. If Missoula was to use their local mil levy to match that grant and then spend it in the Bitterroot they would be in violation of state law.

Ryan said she believes OPI is trying to move control from rural areas to larger cities.

Ravalli County Commissioners agreed to send a letter to OPI Superintendent Elsie Arntzen asking for clarity.

Since you campaigned on the issue of Local Control, please spell out, step-by-step, what conditions must be satisfied for our local program to regain the State/Federal grant administered by OPI, the letter stated. We do not want to lose local control over this essential Program. We strongly protest this loss of local control and ask the grant to be revised to allow Ravallis Program to apply for funds to serve Ravalli County exclusively.

Stark assures that Literacy Bitterroot will still be providing services as usual.

Well just be doing it without any federal or state grants, she said. It is going to be more challenging and there will competition from Missoula who will be trying to fulfill their grant by spending money in the Bitterroot. I have no idea on how they plan to do that.
"Are there any Russians here?"

With that mocking cry, delivered from the bosom of an adoring West Virginia crowd, President Donald Trump offered the most explicit glimpse yet of how he plans to cope with the spreading net of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation.

"Most people know there were no Russians in our campaign, there never were. We didn't win because of Russia, we won because of you," Trump said at a raucous campaign rally.

The President offered a political argument -- not a legal one -- for why the Russia story was "a total fabrication" on a day of dizzying revelations about the probe, that heaped fresh pressure on his beleaguered White House.

Trump's rhetoric and behavior have often defied prediction and logic, and history suggests his comparatively moderate approach on Thursday night could yet be followed by a scorching tweet storm or an assault on Mueller's character and position.

But Trump's apparently scripted remarks in a context when he has often careened into improvisation and off the political reservation, may also be a hint that he just may be ready to take care of the politics, and let his legal team handle his defense in a case in which he insists he has nothing to hide.

Trump's defiant yet calibrated message followed significant breaking news on Thursday over Mueller's probe into allegations of collusion between Trump campaign aides and Moscow, that once again electrified Washington.

First came a report by The Wall Street Journal that Mueller had convened a grand jury in a sign that his panel is expanding and making progress.

CNN then weighed in with a special report, detailing how Mueller's team had seized on financial ties between Trump and associates and Russia as one of the best ways to drive the investigation forward.

Trump had previously warned in an interview with the New York Times that Mueller would cross a red line if he delved into his family's financial records.

Then, capping a frenzied afternoon, Reuters reported that Mueller's team had issued subpoenas in connection with the June 2016 meeting between Donald Trump Jr., top campaign aides and a Russian lawyer.

Convening a grand jury does not signal that indictments are imminent or that Mueller has concluded there has been wrongdoing. The move is often simply a tool to allow a prosecutor to subpoena evidence or testimony.

But Thursday's revelations were a sign that the former FBI director's investigation is serious, expanding and gathering pace, and will mean more complications for West Wing staff and the President himself.

Trump's answer was clear, as he previewed a political strategy designed to question Mueller's legitimacy, suggesting his investigation was a tool of the establishment that is still smarting from Hillary Clinton's election loss.

Mueller is investigating whether there was any collusion between Moscow's spies and the Trump campaign -- allegations that, if proven true, could represent an abrogation of American democracy.

But Trump, admittedly before a receptive audience, implied that any outcome of the probe that did not favor him or his associates would in itself represent a flouting of democratic norms.

"They can't beat us at the voting booths so they are trying to cheat you out of the future and the future that you want," the President told the crowd, during a vintage performance in the heart of Trump country, Huntington, West Virginia.

"I just hope that the final determination is a truly honest one which is what the millions of people who gave us our big win in November deserve and what all Americans who want a better future want and deserve."

It was not that Trump softened his stance -- his tone was caustic and highly partisan, suggesting "the prosecutors" should be investigating Clinton's missing emails. But in an unusually nuanced approach, he attacked Democrats rather than taking on Mueller head on. And he managed to make his political case in a way that did not immediately dismember and detract from the arguments of his lawyers -- a feat that he has not always achieved.

Trump's response to the day of drama was highly anticipated since it represented a first test for the new high powered political and legal team that he has assembled to defend him and relaunch his struggling presidency.

The arrivals of veteran Washington lawyer Ty Cobb as Trump's top legal counsel and new chief of staff John Kelly have been hailed by supporters as a way for Trump to steady a chaotic White House and an inconsistent legal team.

It may be significant, that while his remarks about the Russia probe on Thursday night were scathing and scornful, they did not specifically focus on Mueller himself.

And so far there have not been the kind of personal assaults against the prosecutor and others on Twitter, that often have deepened his political peril and even his legal position.

As new revelations on the Russia probe emerge, the question now is: how long Trump can keep his discipline (hold his tongue and his tweets) and will he deviate from Thursday's message or stick to its confines?

Trump's legal team responded to Thursday's reports exactly in the way that might be expected of a conventional White House, with a sense of professionalism that has often been lacking from the administration.

"Grand jury matters are typically secret. The White House favors anything that accelerates the conclusion of his work fairly ... The White House is committed to fully cooperating with Mr. Mueller," Cobb said.

Republican strategist Alice Stewart said on AC360 that the approach from Trump's lawyers was the correct one.

"I was encouraged by the president's attorney saying 'we will fully cooperate' ... which I think is a far cry and a welcome direction from calling this a witch hunt," she said.

One White House source told CNN's Gloria Borger that the President's lawyers were "highly content" to hear about the grand jury, adding that the move was "not causing any anxiety" among the legal team.

Such a cool response is consistent with the team's line that Trump not only has nothing to hide, but wants to get the entire case behind him as soon as possible. And it may not account for rising personal angst that members of Trump's political team may feel at the prospect of being drawn into protracted and costly legal proceedings.

Legal observers agreed that the arrival of a grand jury itself did not necessarily mean Mueller believed that he had found fruitful ground for his investigation.

"It is the end of the beginning," said CNN's Senior Legal Analyst Jeffrey Toobin on CNN's "Erin Burnett Out Front."

Another CNN legal commentator, former Watergate prosecutor Richard Ben-Veniste, said, "It is not at all surprising that we have reached a point involving a grand jury."

But equally, it was clearly a significant step.

Former CIA analyst and FBI official Phil Mudd said he didn't buy the White House message that no one was rattled.

"The White House is obviously going to be anxious about this. I don't believe a word they are saying. I think this suggests Robert Mueller has some smoke," said Mudd, a senior CNN analyst.

In West Virginia, Trump concluded a five-minute riff on Russia with a caustic jab at Democrats who allege that he had an unfair leg up -- from a US enemy -- to defeat Clinton in last year's presidential election.

"Try winning at the voter booth. Not going to be easy, but that is the way you are supposed to do it."
Cowbells ushered in runners who braved the smoky air to particpate in the milk run at the 105th annual Stevensville Creamery Picnic, Saturday.

The 30 runners who participated in the 5k or 10k race kicked off the events for the day, earning a medal depicting a cow. After the run, families lined up along main street for the Grand Parade. Children held their hands high, hoping to catch candy thrown their way. Throughout the parade, the occasionally lonely balloon would disappear into the smoky skies.

The Stevensville Hometown Heroes all participated in the parade. Most rode through town in classic cars.

Numerous parade participants rode through town on horseback and County Attorney Bill Fullbright followed with a shovel picking up horse droppings.

After the parade, the crowd filed into Lewis and Clark Park to browse through vendors offering everything from Native American-made jewelry to hunting knives. The Vietnam Veterans of America offered a chance to enter to win an AR-15, a concealed carry purse or a practical carry course.

But at the park, the event drawing the most attention was the barbecue competition. Lines 50 people deep appeared in front of the barbecue booths as people waited to try one of the seven competitors.

Christene James is the lead judge for this Pacific Northwest Barbecue Association event. To become a judge for the association, you have to take an official class and learn the different types of barbecue by state.

James has offered a judging class in Stevensville before.

Oh yeah weve had lots of people attend, James said. We always tell people to eat a light breakfast before they judge.

The judges are only supposed to sample one or two bites of each dish. The four meats are pork shoulder, brisket, chicken, and ribs. James said judges could eat up to two pounds of meat at a competition.

Competition food is really bold, James said. Chefs try to really catch your attention.

Russ Radliff and Pat Calnan run the Mountain Smoke barbecue stand. They compete around the state in different competitions.

Its fun to get out and visit new places, Radliff said. Its something to do with the kids.

Radliff expects to do well this year because of accumulated experience.

A lot of it is prep work. Radliff said. We also use a lot of high-end, local meat.

Radliff and Calnan took second place in chicken and third place in brisket out of a competition of 35 teams at the Montana BBQ Cook-off in Absarokee, Montana. Friday night, Radliffs wife displayed their creativity in the Anything But competition, where barbecue chefs can cook anything but chicken, brisket, ribs or pork shoulder.

She cooked pork belly burnt ends with goat cheese and Flathead cherries, Radliff said.

Mountain Smoke barbecue is still a start-up operation, but some of the other barbecue stands were more established.

Mick and Katie McCawley attend the Creamery Picnic every year for the barbecue.

We went to the one with all the trophies, McCawley said. Smokin Pups.

Katie McCawley said the pulled pork and beans were incredible.

Im an antique dealer so Saturdays are usually busy days, McCawley said. But we decided to take it off and have some fun. Its a nice little Saturday.
NASA has officially recognized Bitterroot College as an eclipse event viewing site - one of only three in Montana - for the solar eclipse that will be seen across the Unites States on Aug. 21.

It is really exciting, said Victoria Clark, director. We were thrilled to be approved by NASA and were among the last sites to be approved.

The college is pulling out all stops to make the Great Eclipse Caper Event educational, safe and loads of fun. With the NASA designation comes posters, 1,000 safety viewing glasses, brochures, banners and an encyclopedia of educational options to do during the solar event.

The Bitterroot College Eclipse Event team has safe viewing options planned as part of the celebration.

At the college event, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., on Monday, Aug. 21, there will be large viewing screens with live streaming from NASA, multiple telescopes with safety filters set up for public viewing (or bring your own), NASA solar glasses, and Thomas Engelmann (Ph.D, Physics, Carnegie-Mellon) will be on-site as the colleges subject matter expert providing information sessions the morning of the event.

If you are unable to get to the college you can watch the live streaming on the Bitterroot College Facebook page.

Even if it is smoky or cloudy the eclipse will happen and safety is the number one goal.

Cloud cover and smoke still allow the UV rays to come through and cause damage to your eyes, said Jennifer Johnson, safety officer for the event. We talk about the use of safety glasses, filters and pinhole projectors as media for viewing the eclipse safely.

Permanent damage can occur just from glancing at the sun.

The thing about sunglasses or transition lenses is, yes, there is UV protection but it is only for angular rays, she said. It is not for direct sight and eye damages wont be noticed right away.

She said welding shield numbers 14 or higher are safe to use, but hot and heavy.

Johnson said telescope viewers need a solar filter on the objective end of telescopes  not on the eyepiece.

A lot of people think they can just use a filter on the eye-piece of their telescope but when the light comes through your telescope it will burn out of the guts and literally light them on fire, she said. Then it will focus on your eye and burn your eye.

Hamilton is not in the path to see a total eclipse, but will see the sun about 95 percent covered. The peak time will be at 11:31 a.m.

Johnsons said people should prepare their animals.

It wont be total darkness but it will be twilight here, she said.

The Great Eclipse Caper Event at Bitterroot College will have educational stations, eclipse viewing, fun theme music and snacks, tours of the college, and activities for all ages.

Eclipse event team member Jaime Middleton said she is proud the college is a designated NASA viewing site.

Im surprised at how few Montana sites there are, she said. Were one of three in Montana, well, actually one of two in Montana because the third is a balloon. What a great educational opportunity it is for our local school districts, science teachers and students.

Along the direct path of the eclipse hotels are booked, some for $2,000 a night in Idaho Falls. But local hotels said they are already mostly full due to Kevin Costner crew coming to film.

Ron Scroggins, temporary general manager of Quality Inn of Hamilton (formerly Townhouse Inn) said the hotel is not booked at this point.

We still have 15 Rooms available for Aug. 20, he said. The Kevin Costner production crew is coming and they want more rooms than I can give them. The town will fill up and people need to book early.

Lynn Reynoso, front desk clerk at the Bitterroot River Inn and Conference Center, said they have a few rooms available Aug. 20.

Were usually booked in August and I dont know if these bookings are related to the eclipse, she said.

Middleton said the eclipse event is a big project.

I was really excited that we were willing to take on a project this big, she said. It is un known how many people will attend. It is a big undertaking and a huge need in our community for the education.

The event team asked people planning to attend the free event to register.
Kathmandu, Nepal: Embarking state visit to India rightly after appointing as Prime Minister (PM) in Nepal is developed as an established culture in Nepal. Continuing the tradition, PM Sher Bahadur Deuba is also going for state visit to India.

As embarking the state visit to India is a common phenomenon in the context of Nepal, the people in general do not care much to such a visit. But to be held state visit of PM Deuba to India it taken importantly from different sectors, particularly in the diplomatic levels.

Though exact date is not disclosed yet, it is likely that PM Deuba would embark on a five-day state visit to India on third week of August at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi. It is said that officials from both the countries are making necessary preparations to fix the date and agendas to make success the visit.

However, Nepali officials have said that Prime Minister Deuba would not sign in any important agreements during his upcoming state visit to India. According to the officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), PM Deubas visit to India will focus just on the issues of implementing the past accords that were already signed between the two countries.

As many commitments made by Indian on the name of supporting Nepal are not reflected in the practice, PM Deuba would also raise the issue during his visit to India; the officials at MoFA said preferring anonymity.

According to the MoFA officials, not only the accords signed in the past by Prime by PM Deuba himself in the capacity of Prime Minister and the commitments made for support during the devastating earthquake are also not fulfilled by the India.

Though the upcoming state visit of PM Deuba is not taken importantly in Nepal, it seems that northern neighbor China has viewed the visit importantly. According to the officials at Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Chinese vice Premier Wang Yang is arriving here in Nepal on a four-day official visit on August 14.

As Chinese vice premier Wang, who is considered as one of the main point men in the Communist Party of China (CPC), his scheduled visit to Nepal is taken importantly in the diplomatic level as it is going to happen just about a week ahead of Prime Minister Deubas scheduled state visit to India.

Though, it would be coincidence, another interesting fact is that Indian Foreign Minister Susma Swaraj is also arriving in Nepal on August 10 to take part in the meeting of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), which is being commenced on August 10 in Kathmandu.

The diplomats in Nepal have do not agree to term that the Chinese vice premier Wang and Indian Foreign Minister Swaraj scheduled visit to Nepal just ahead of Prime Minister Deubas state visit to India is merely a coincidence.

As high ranking politicians from both the countries are coming here in Nepal, it is obvious that discussions will be held on bilateral and trilateral issues, which would influence the scheduled state visit of PM Deuba to India, an official at the MoFA said preferring anonymity.

It is said that Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Krishna Bahadur Mahara is going to visit China just after Deubas India visit.

India has raised concerns over the issue of framework agreement on the Belt and Road Initiative signed between Nepal, China and other Asian countries.

It is said that Chinese vice premier Wangs scheduled visit to Nepal would focus on implementation of the understanding reached between Nepal and China.

As Wang is considered as a well known Nepal hand in the Chinese establishment, his visit to India is taken importantly even in the diplomatic levels.
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This is Massimo Bottura. If youre reading this, you probably know that his small restaurant in Modena, Osteria Francescana, has three Michelin stars and was voted the best restaurant in the world on the Pellegrino scale. You might also know that hes a chef with an extremely interesting mind and a huge heart, who is deeply involved with feeding the hungry of the world.

Ive known (and admired) both Massimo and his elegant American wife Lara Gilmore for a while now, but somehow Ive never made it to Modena. Until yesterday.

Leave it to me to go to a four hour lunch on a day of such intense heat the newspaper headlines all read Dangerous even for the animals. (For the record, it hit 107 degrees.) And this is not, I might mention, a restaurant you drive to; Modena is an ancient city and cars are not allowed inside the city walls (unless you live there). So we arrived parched and almost dizzy with heat.

Within seconds, wed forgotten everything but the pure pleasure of listening to Massimo and Lara discuss their various projects (a refettorio in London, another in Burkina Faso and a gelateria in a refugee camp in Greece)  and the meal they were about to serve us.

Blown away. Thats my instant review. If you want more, keep reading.

These were just the tiny starting amuses bouches: This first is called, in homage to Magritte, ceci nest pas une sardine.

But of course, it is, at least partly, a sardine sandwich all crunch, crackle and salt.

Corn stuffed with ceviche. Except, the corn is actually meringue, so you eat it first with shock, and then delight. To be a cook, says Massimo, you have to travel. Taste. Remember.

There were six or seven other tiny tastes  all deeply textured, each a single, powerful bite that resonated in your mind. And then the show really began with Massimos version of insalata di mare.

Hidden inside the tiny head of lettuce were more leaves; biting in you discovered that each was a crisp little cracker made of a traditional dish like impepata di cozze (peppered mussels). Tender little bits of seafood were tucked between the layers of cracker, hidden away to make each bite a new delight.

Another surprise: instead of wine, we drank a Japanese limoncello with this: Tsuruume Yuzu. Best version Ive ever encountered.

Perhaps the most traditional dish of the day  cool spaghetti cooked like risotto. The pasta itself has been transformed until it is no longer a mere vehicle for sauce. In the cooking each strand has absorbed the liquid, becoming one with the sauce and forcing you to experience pasta in a whole new way.



Fontana, says Massimo  who obviously has great affection for the next dish, was cutting and Burri was burning.  (He is talking about the two greatest artists of the arte povera movement of the fifties and sixties.)  I had it in mind to make sole, and I thought about both of them. So I made edible paper out of dehydrated sea water, and then burned it. This result is this explosion of whiteness.

It is even more delicious than it looks. So delicious that a Japanese artist insisted on creating the perfect plate. This is the result.

I regret to tell you that I liked the eel course that arrived next so much that Id inhaled it before giving it a chance to pose for its portrait. The slim filet of eel was surrounded by a cool green puddle of concentrated apple on one side and a little beige pool of gently burnt polenta on the other; a pile of ashes huddled at the bottom of the eel. In my idea, said Massimo, it is the story of the Este family who in 1594 moved the capital from Ferrara to Modena. A wild animal is surrounded by all the foods of the region  but theyve been moved, manipulated, transformed. The sweet tart concentrated apple cut through the richness of the fish while the slight graininess of polenta anchored it to the earth and the bitter char of the burnt vegetables hovered above like an angry angel.

Massimo is back, gesturing with his hands as he tells us how he conceived the next dish. My mind is mixing Piero della Francesca  beautiful gold leaves  and Pistoletto seven hundred years later. But Im also thinking of stainless steel in the sixties, and how people use tin foil.

Okay  fine explanation  but who else would think that and serve this?

Hidden beneath that edible gold foil is the most extraordinary melange: minuscule rounds of turned potatoes intertwined with sweet, briny, tiny oysters swimming in a deep beurre blanc. It becomes a dance of textures as the softness of the oysters twirl up against the crispness of the potato.

This next dish has a completely different artist godfather. This time it is Warhol and his camouflage.

I put together green and black risotto, but then I thought what is missing? Massimo muses. We have the sea and the flatland, but where are the tawny hills?

Think of this as an edible landscape  all the elements of the earth turned into three risottos. Eat them all at once! Massimo cries. How boring it will be, from now on, to eat a single risotto on its own.

Wed been drinking wine  cool Trebiannos, a Provencal rose, even a sauternes for the rich oyster dish  but with the risotto another surprise appears: an herbal drink with a serious kick. This is what I thought: in this bitterness, delight.

Massimo calls his next little masterpiece Autumn in New York, Spring in Kyoto, Summer in Modena.

In trying to express the place where he is  right this moment  Massimo strolls through farmers markets of the world, meeting chefs, reveling in produce, living in the moment. And somehow this dish  intense tomatoes, almost burnt eggplants, a dashi made of local vegetables, evolves.

Modena is a city devoted to tortellini. The tiny, excruciatingly difficult to construct little dumplings are everywhere. Massimo fills his with bone marrow, mortadella and veal before bathing them in a rich parmesan cream. Im having a contest with David Chang, he exults, dumpling versus tortellini. I wont say who won. He chuckles wickedly. And no wonder: it is hard to imagine anything more delicious than this.

The main course, perhaps most playful of all, is a duck that flies across the world, stopping along the journey to forage for food. So many flavors represented here  a touch of corn, a bit of horseradish, a hint of ginger, a whisper of rose. The leg is deconstructed and made into a meatball.

Cherry season in Modena. Here are three different kinds ranging from sweet to sour, along with ricotta cheese. Cherry pie is very jealous.

Massimo makes popcorn!

And finally, Italys most famous dessert turned into a souffle. Tiramisu, reconsidered, reconstructed, reinvented. So good.

The final flavor is the best version of chocolate covered cherries the world has ever known. Each bite detonates in your mouth, delivering a burst of fresh, tart cherry juice. The complex flavor resonates on and on, like a bell that you feel to the bottom of your toes, even when you are back outside in the blazing sun, winding your way through the ancient streets of this beautiful city.

Its been quite a journey.

Categorised in: restaurants
Deccan Chronicle, July 27, 2017

Many argue that since most Indians, including quite a few scientists, believe in astrology, there is nothing wrong in promoting it.

Madhya Pradesh is by no means the only state where the government promotes astrology education. (Representational image)

Professor Yash Pal, Indiaas grand old man of science, died this week. Fond tributes are pouring in for the scientist, educationalist and institution builder.

What resonates with me today is something he said on his 80th birthday. The year was 2006. The renowned scientist, whose interests ranged from the weight of school bags to cosmic rays, was to receive a special felicitation from the then President of India, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, at a conference organised by the Indian National Science Academy. The countryas top scientists were there. So were many journalists.

Prof. Pal had devoted his entire life to science, had won accolades within the country and beyond its borders. But he was unhappy. The reason? aWhile science and technology is flourishing, the scientific temper is going down. Thatas why all kinds of stupid things like astrology are becoming popular,a he told a reporter.

The good professor is no more. But his message is hugely relevant today. Can we promote scientific temper while wilfully overlooking everything that mitigates against it?

Take the case of the brouhaha over aastrology OPDsa in Madhya Pradesh.

The state hit the headlines some days ago when media carried reports about the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led governmentas proposal to foist astrologers in outpatient departments in hospitals. The national media ran with the story. Soon the BJP-ruled stateas health minister Rustam Singh had stepped in to inform journalists that his government had made no such decision.

The original controversy had been triggered by a statement of an official working for the government-run Maharishi Patanjali Sanskrit Sansthan. The gentleman had reportedly said aastrologers and soothsayersa would consult with patients suffering from various diseases in hospital OPDs or outpatient department.

The state government trashed the media reports as baseless and said that the proposed scheme was limited to astrology consultations at a yoga centre in Bhopal where people could consult astrologers and vaastu experts. The consultations may not be related to health but to issues such as marriage, education, jobs and so on.

As controversies go, this one had a short shelf life. And it is good to know that the Madhya Pradesh government does not have any plans to wheel in astrologers into health facilities to advise patients.

But a niggling question remains. Should the government be in the business of promoting astrology at all? The Sansthan comes under the stateas department of education. One media report said the Sansthan, which has been administering teaching of Sanskrit in over 140 government schools in the state, has plans to offer a diploma course in astrology from later this year. How will this official push a for stargazing impact a scientific temper among young people?

Madhya Pradesh is by no means the only state where the government promotes astrology education.

In New Delhi, there is the Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth, a deemed university, under the ministry of human resources development. It offers a variety of courses on astrology, including amedical astrologya besides its regular fare. There are others.

Nor did the phenomenon start with the Narendra Modi government. In a 2009 magazine article, Meera Nanda, author of The God Market: How Globalisation is Making India More Hindu, pointed out how teaching of astrology got its real push with the University Grants Commissionas (UGC) infamous decision in 2001 to introduce ajyotir vigyana (vedic astrology) and akarma kandaa into post-secondary education.

With this, says Ms Nanda, the previous BJP-led NDA government created a new network of deemed universities, which continue to provide direct and indirect support for training Hindu ritualists. The Union human resource development ministry, headed by Murli Manohar Joshi at that time, first proposed the idea. It was eagerly picked up by the UGC.

UGCas decision triggered a rumpus among many of Indiaas senior academics, particularly in the sciences. More than 100 scientists and 300 political and social scientists wrote a protest letter to the government, to no avail.That was the start.

A 2008 newspaper report also refers to a study funded by the UGC that comes up with this breath-taking claim a planetary positions do affect your health. The UGC-funded study was done by the medical astrology department of the Lal Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth. The UGC, as everyone knows, is a statutory body set up by the Indian government and is tasked with coordination, determination and maintenance of standards of higher education.

No one has any quarrel with promotion of yoga or Sanskrit. But astrology is a different cup of tea.

As Ms Nanda points out in a 2009 magazine article, while it is true that Sanskrit education is deeply intertwined with the ritualistic aspects of Hinduism and the two are often hard to tease apart, learning to perform a yagna or puja is only the practical, hands-on aspect of mastering Yajurveda for a degree in Sanskrit. aBut rather than try to draw lines between teaching the religious literature written in Sanskrit and teaching rituals, the Indian educational establishment has gone the other way: it is using the cover of teaching Sanskrit and Hindu philosophy to use public money and resources to promote Hindu rituals.a

Many argue that since most Indians, including quite a few scientists, believe in astrology, there is nothing wrong in promoting it. Many people I know also believe in ghosts. Children believe in wizards and the tooth fairy. So, should we institutionalise the study of ghosts, wizards and tooth fairy?

Astrology and palmistry are not unique to India. Many institutions around the world offer courses in such subjects. But few of those bodies abroad enjoy state support.

In a country where most government schools donat have laboratories and basic equipment, should the government be spending scarce resources promoting astrology? In a country with an abysmal public healthcare system and widespread superstition and quackery, can we afford to officially promote stargazing?

As we mourn the passing away of Prof. Pal, these are questions to think about.

Patralekha Chatterjee focuses on development issues in India and emerging economies. She can be reached at patralekha.chatterjee[at]gmail.com
sacw.net - 7 August 2017

aAt the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedoma - Nehruas words at Indian independence. Hence, aMidnightas Childrena, a novel about those born at that time, None, though, of the fictional variety was as deeply imbued with Jawaharlal Nehruas noble vision as Nirupam Sen, born that year, 1947, in Allahabad on 15th February, and dying in New Delhi, on 1st July, 70 years on. Throughout his career, he served his country and, as Nehru would have had it, the human community, with exceptional courage and distinction.

His parents, a cultured partnership, moved to New Delhi, where his father became Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation Nirupam had his secondary schooling at a Catholic school known for its severe regime. From there he moved to the prestigious St Stephenas College, an Anglican foundation, where he took a first in English. His love of English (and Scottish) literature and extraordinary retentive powers enriched his writing and public speaking thereafter. A first-class B.A. in English was a rarity at that time; it was even more exceptional to proceed from that to a first in M.A. history, both indications of Senas prodigious intellect. It was a time in the late 1960s when political turbulence swept through Indiaas universities, a number of his contemporaries at St Stephenas going underground in the Maoist movement. There were other options in Delhi University, and Nirupam became a convinced leftist, though, with an eye to Russian history, equating his revolutionary contemporaries with the Narodniks. Interestingly, he never, as some have done, disavowed his education in missionary institutions, and, indeed, throughout his life, with a special enthusiasm for the work of G.K.Chesterton, gave quiet testimony to their Christian heritage.

Disappointing some by his decision not to go for an academic career, and in fact half-contemplating one in politics, he entered the Foreign Service in July 1969, his first appointment to Moscow. With occasional home-postings to New Delhi and at the National Defence College, he served thereafter as Charge daAffaires in Hungary and then as Political Counsellor in London, at which time he made a number of friendships in the U.K. Labour Party, later initiating a joint project with Gordon Brown on education in Africa. As Deputy High Commissioner, and, at a later stage, High Commissioner in Colombo, his reputation was honed for principled questioning of his seniors in the Foreign Service. During a senior posting in Warsaw, and with the blessing of Cardinal Glemp, he married Grazyna Wallonis in 1980. He was serving in Moscow again at the time of the coup against Gorbachev and the collapse of the Soviet Union, proceeding thence to ambassadorial appointments to Bulgaria, Norway and Sri Lanka, and, in 2004, to New York as Indiaas Permanent Representative at the United Nations. In this last, he made many substantial contributions on poverty, terrorism, on the organisational problems of the UN (challenging the Secretary Generalas misunderstanding of his role), and on a reformed and enlarged Security Council.

His many public presentations were courageously unambiguous, enriched by his vast knowledge of history and literature and by his grasp of economics, remarkable in one without a formal economics background. He was disappointed at the dire literary limitations of his UK counterpart.

Senas five years as Ambassador, upholding the Nehruvian non-alignment with conviction, earned him immense respect and affection especially among African and Latin American colleagues, but even also among some of his western colleagues. It was wholly appropriate that, on retirement, he was invited to be Special Senior Advisor to the President of the General Assembly. Ironically perhaps, he and Grazyna were housed in one of Trumpas towers opposite the UN building, though living, as friends noted, in marked simplicity. In this advisory role, as the world financial crash took off, the President, Father Miguel Brockman, recruited Senas guidance in confronting the looming crisis. Anything that might have been achieved, however, was already being undermined by the UK, the USA, and even some of his right-wing Indian colleagues. The Presidentas plan included a high-level conference in June 2009, summoned to ensure, as Brockman put it, that neither the G7 nor the G20 but a aG192a of the United Nationsa member-states should take in hand the construction of a new world economic order. Nobel economist, Joseph Stiglitz was to be involved in the conference, and another of Nirupamas friends, his old St Stephenas College senior, Prabhat Patnaik. Gordon Brown, on Nirupamas recommendation, was to give a keynote address on the opening day. By this time, however, Brown was confronted with more immediate domestic problems, but, in any case, the conference, and the entire vision behind it were being effectively scuppered by liberalising elements in India and their smooth-tongued diplomatic friends, by the United States and the United Kingdom. It was a sobering finale to Senas brilliant and noble career.

On retirement, the Sens settled in New Delhi, not least to make a secure home for their disabled elder son. During his sadly short retirement, Nirupam participated in gatherings of left-wing thinkers in Delhi. Among a number of interventions was a brilliant contribution, published in the journal Mainstream, entitled aNehruas Vision, its Development and Dismantlinga . The avisiona, with a tribute to Robert Burns, was of a socialism focussed unwaveringly on Indiaas vast poor majority and always consistent with democratic principles - the alife and freedoma that was the heritage of aMidnightas Children.a. Its adismantlinga proceeded from the liberalisation introduced in India in 1991, unlocking the floodgates of greed and corruption and leading on to todayas communal-fascism, a totally un-Indian development in Nirupam Senas judgement.

Many friends worldwide, admiring his dedicated, principled and courageous life, will share something of Grazynaas and their two sons, Devrupam and Devavratas deep sense of loss.

Dan OaConnor
sacw.net - 6 August 2017

Death of a freedom fighter normally evokes mixed emotions.

For a section of people - whose number is diminishing fast - it is a moment of nostalgia when idealism was in air and sacrificing oneself for the cause of emancipation of humanity was looked at with respect, whereas for a larger section which is being intoxicated with glories of our ancient past, there is a feeling of indifference to say the least.

Bhiku Daji Bhilare (Born on November 26, 1919) who died at the age of 98 years rather proved to be an exception. Not only thousands of people from all walks of life and various political streams participated in his cremation, the mainstream media also reported about it. It may be mainly because of this member of the Rashtra Seva Dal in his youth, who was active in the "parallel government" movement in Satara district run by revolutionary Nana Patil and others, had mainly devoted himself to social-political service, after representing Jawali assembly constituency in the state legislature for 18 years.

Of course, not very many people know one of his brave acts - saving Gandhis life, at a very crucial juncture in the nations history when independence was approaching and Gandhi was to play an important role in the unfolding developments. It was the year 1944 when Gandhi was visiting Panchagani, a hill station near Pune (May 1944), where a young crowd of 15-20 young people came in a chartered bus. They had organised a daylong protest demonstration against him but refused to talk when Gandhi invited them when the said attack occurred.

Gandhis great grandson Tushar Gandhi, in his book, Lets Kill Gandhi, has mentioned the incident. He tells us how during that prayer meeting, Nathuram Godse dressed in Nehru shirt, pajama and jacket, brandishing a dagger had rushed towards Gandhi.

aGodse was overpowered by Bhilare Guruji and Manishankar Purohit. Two youths accompanying Godse ran away,a ..

..a(In) July 1944, after his release from Aga Khan Prison Camp in May 1944, Gandhi contracted malaria and was advised to rest by Physician.a

.. aHe retired to Panchgani, a mountain resort near Poona (now Pune), where he stayed at Dilkhush Bunglow. A group of 18 and 20 men reached Panchgani and held a day-long protest against Gandhi.a

..aWhen Gandhi was informed about the demonstration, he contacted the leader of the group, Nathuram Vinayak Godse, for discussion. Nathuram rejected the invitation and continued the protest,a

(http://www.newsnation.in/india-news/bhialre-guruji-man-who-saved-mahatma-gandhi-in-1944-dies-at-98-article-177398.html)

The incident was rather engraved in Bhilare Gurujis memory- as he was affectionately called later - who had talked about it and written about it at many places :

"Everyone was allowed to attend Mahatma Gandhis prayer meetings in Panchgani. That day, his associates Usha Mehta, Pyarelal, Aruna Asaf Ali and others were present for the prayers. Godse rushed up to Gandhiji with a knife saying that he had some questions. I stopped him, twisted his hand and snatched the knife. But Gandhiji let him go."

(http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/man-who-saved-gandhi-in-1944-dies-at-98/articleshow/59673840.cms)

The transformation of Bhilare Guruji in a youth icon finds mention in the reminiscences of senior freedom fighters as well. N D Patil, a freedom fighter himself and who led the Peasants and Workers Party - who himself is in his 90s, - told in an interview to a leading daily how

"The news of Guruji saving Gandhiji from Godse spread everywhere in Satara. I was 15 then. Many of us students went on our cycles to meet Guruji. He had become an icon for us. He lived a simple life throughout and followed Gandhian principles," he said. (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/man-who-saved-gandhi-in-1944-dies-at-98/articleshow/59673840.cms)

Perhaps it may be sign of fatigue or the changed political ambience in the country, while the media did provide details about Bhilare Guruji and his later life, it did not deem it necessary to elaborate further on the assassination attempt of the Mahatma undertaken by the Hindutva Supremacists.

Question remains why did Nathuram Godse and his gang of fanatics tried to attack Gandhi ?

2.

a... our reports do confirm that, as a result of the activities of these two bodies, particularly the former (the RSS), an atmosphere was created in the country in which such a ghastly tragedy (Gandhijis assassination) became possible. There is no doubt in my mind that the extreme section of the Hindu Mahasabha was involved in this conspiracy. The activities of the RSS constituted a clear threat to the existence of the government and the state. Our reports show that those activities, despite the ban, have not died down. Indeed, as time has marched on, the RSS circles are becoming more defiant and are indulging in their subversive activities in an increasing measure.a

(Sardar Patels letter to Shyama Prasad Mookerjee, July 18, 1948):)

Very few people know the animosity of the Hindutva fanatics towards Gandhi which was evident in the four attempts on his life before Nathuram Godses final attempt. (Chunibhai Vaidya, a leading Gandhian from Gujarat, talked about a total of six attempts. Apart from the details of various attempts mentioned below he talks about an attempt on his life in September 1946 too.)

In fact, the attack in Panchgani was not the first time that they had tried to kill him.

The first one had happened in Pune (June 25, 1934) when Mahatma Gandhi was going to the Corporation Auditorium to deliver a speech. Kasturba Gandhi, his wife, was also accompanying him. Incidentally the car in which the Gandhis were travelling developed some snag and was delayed whereas the other car which was in their motorcade reached the venue on time when a bomb was thrown at the car. The explosion caused injuries to some policemen and ordinary people.

On closer scrutiny one finds that the attack in Panchagani was the second attempt on Gandhis life.

The third attempt happened when Gandhis talks with Jinnah started in September 1944. When Gandhi was leaving for Mumbai from Sevagram Ashram, a group of fanatic Hindu youth led by Nathuram Godse tried to stop him. Their contention was that Gandhi should not travel to Mumbai to hold talks with Jinnah. Nathuram was again found in possession of a dagger.

The fourth attempt on Gandhis life (January 20, 1948) involved roughly the same group, namely, Madanlal Pahwa, Shankar Kistaiya, Digambar Badge, Vishnu Karkare, Gopal Godse, Nathuram Godse, and Narayan Apte. The plan was to attack Mahatma Gandhi and Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. In this failed attempt Madanlal Pahwa placed a cotton ball enclosing a bomb on the wall behind the podium in Birla Bhavan, where Gandhi was staying. The bomb went off without creating any panic, although Madanlal Pahwa was caught. Other members of the group who were assigned to shoot Gandhi in the ensuing melee developed cold feet and did not act.

And the last one happened on January 30 at 5:17 pm when Nathuram Godse approached him and shot him three times in his chest at point-blank range. All those involved in the crime were arrested and tried in a court which attracted a lot of media attention. Nathuram Godse and Narayan Apte were sentenced to death by the courts and others were awarded life imprisonment. As far as Savarkar was concerned, he was acquitted and set free due to lack of evidence. It was worth noting that Jawaharlal Nehru as well as Gandhis two sons, who felt that the two men were merely pawns of the top Hindutva leaders, demanded commutation of their death sentence as they sincerely felt that executing the assassins would in fact dishonour their fathers legacy who was a staunch opponent of death penalty. Nathuram Godse as well as the other conspirator, Narayan Apte, were hanged at Ambala Jail on November 15, 1949.

3.

a ...Government have, however, noticed with regret that in practice members of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh have not adhered to their professed ideals.

aUndesirable and even dangerous activities have been carried on by the members of the Sangh. It has been found that in several parts of the country individual members of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh have indulged in acts of violence involving arson, robbery, dacoity and murder and have collected illicit arms and ammunitions. They have been found circulating leaflets, exhorting people to resort to terrorist methods, to collect firearms, to create disaffection against the government and suborn the police and military.a

(The government communique of February 4, 1948, announcing the ban on RSS after Gandhis assassination)

How did the killers of Gandhi tried [try] to rationalise their criminal act?

According to them, Gandhiji supported the idea of a separate state for Muslims; thus in a sense he was responsible for the creation of Pakistan. Secondly, the belligerence of Muslims was a result of Gandhijis policy of appeasement. Thirdly, in spite of the Pakistani aggression in Kashmir, Gandhiji fasted to compel the Government of India to release an amount of Rs 55 crores due to Pakistan.

Anyone familiar with that period of history can decipher that all these allegations are malicious and factually incorrect also. In fact, the idea of communal amity which Gandhi upheld all his life was a complete anathema to the exclusivist, Hindu supremacist world view of the members of the RSS, Hindu Mahasabha. And while the nation was a racial/religious construct in the imagination of the Hindutva forces, for Gandhi and the rest of the nationalists it was a territorial construct or a bounded territory comprising different communities, collectivities living there.

Looking at the fourteen-year-old history of unsuccessful attempts on Gandhis life - which stretched from 1934 to 1948 -A it becomes clear that the conspiracy to eliminate Gandhiji was conceived much earlier than the successful accomplishment thereof. The grounds advanced for such a heinous crime could be seen as clever rationalisation to hoodwink the gullible.

And Bhilare guruji was a living testimony to the fact that all the rationalisations propagated by the Hindutva Supremacists about Gandhis assassination were humbug.

Glory to his memory.
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Two middle-aged men, one a university professor from Chicago and the other a university employee from England, appear to have taken a long road trip to the Bay Area after they were both suspected in the stabbing death of a younger man in Chicago.

The body of 26-year-old Trenton James Cornell-Duranleau was found stabbed multiple times on July 27 in the apartment of one of the men, 42-year-old Wyndham Lathem, an associate professor of microbiology and immunology at Northwestern University Medical School. As the Associated Press reports, surveillance footage at the building in Chicago's River North neighborhood shows Lathem leaving the building the day of the murder with another man, 56-year-old Andrew Warren, an employee of Somerville College at the University of Oxford who had just arrived in the U.S. three days before the stabbing. The two then drove 80 miles that same day and according to authorities they stopped in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin where one of them, likely Lathem, made a $1,000 cash donation in Cornell-Duranleau's name to the public library there.

Cornell-Duranleau's body was found after an anonymous call came in to the front desk of the building where Lathem lived, saying that a crime had been committed in his apartment. Police found the body at 8:30 p.m. on July 27, and concluded it had already been there for 12 to 15 hours. NBC Bay Area reports via Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi that the scene was "gruesome and the victim was savagely murdered." Per the AP, the stabbing was violent enough that the knife broke.

Authorities say that Lathem had a personal relationship with Cornell-Duranleau, who had moved to Chicago from Michigan to attend cosmetology school  Chicagoist earlier reported that Lathem and Cornell-Duranleau had "some type of falling out." It's so far unclear how Lathem knew Warren or why he had come to the U.S. The pair did not turn themselves in together, but had come to the Bay Area to seek refuge with friends and colleagues here. It's also unclear what they did over the course of the last week, but as the AP reports, Lathem sent a video to family and friends apparently admitting to the stabbing and calling it "the biggest mistake of my life." There was then concern that Lathem may try to take his own life, and he is currently "under intensive observation" at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, according to Sgt. Ray Kelly with the Alameda County Sheriffs Office, speaking to the SF Chronicle.

Frank Conroy, a supervising deputy with the U.S. Marshals Service who helped arrange Lathem's safe surrender, tells the Chronicle, "These guys ... have had no criminal history. People panic when they were in a situation like they were in, and they reach out to people they might not have reached out to in years, just to try to hide."

Lathem turned himself in around 7 p.m. Friday outside the Alameda County Courthouse in Oakland, and was booked into Santa Rita on felony fugitive charges at 11:40 p.m. Warren turned himself in around the same time at Park Station in San Francisco. Both are expected to appear in court on Monday morning, and they are likely going to be extradited back to Chicago in the coming days to face the investigation there.

The Chronicle spoke to a representative from Somerville College to confirm that Warren was not in Chicago on university business, and they said they were not aware of the case until they were contacted, calling it "upsetting news."

The Chicago Tribune reported last week that this was Warren's first trip to the U.S., one that he took without even telling his boyfriend or his sister. He was reportedly depressed and still grieving following the death of his father eight months ago.




As of the afternoon on August 5, provinces such as Yen Bai, Son La, Lai Chau and Dien Bien found dead bodies of 18 people, 18 people were still missing. Total damage caused by the flash flood has totaled VND718 billion (US$32 million).

In Mu Cang Chai district, Yen Bai, authorized agencies continued searching for missing victims and helping residents to remedy flood consequences. Yesterday they just found dead bodies of four victims and the destiny of 10 others were unclear.

Kim Noi commune reported most dead and missing number in the upper reaches of Nam Kim spring while Mu Cang Chai town was devastated with floodwaters and stones in the lower reaches.

Rescue workers have broken up stones for removal at collapsed houses and together with locals travelled to area near Khao Mang hydropower reservoirs, three kilometers from Mu Cang Chai town, to find missing ones.

Mr. Le Trong Khang, deputy chairman of the district Peoples Committee, said that residents in Mu Cang Chai district faced many difficulties after the flood as their houses and assets had been washed away or buried under debris of soil and stone.

Mr. Mu A Qua in Mu Cang Chai town said that when flood occurred, his family just ran away and could not take any asset with them. The old motorbike which was means of livelihood of his five member family has been crushed under stone.

The most concern is that six public works comprising schools have been devastated. Mr. Vu Van Tien, principle of Mu Cang Chai secondary and high school, said that the first storey of the school has been punctured with big broken holes on the walls. Canteen, sanitary block, fencing, gate and fresh water work have also collapsed. Total damage is estimated to reach VND2 billion. Fortunately, the flash flood rolled in when students were on summer holidays.

On the afternoon on August 5, about 100 people including local residents, militia personnel and activists concentrated to help clean up mud and soil so that the school can start new academic year on August 15.

Many relief teams from the central Government and other provinces and cities have come to Yen Bai and Lao Cai provinces to give local people financial assistances, food and clothes and visited families with dead or missing relatives.

The Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, the Central Relief Committee donated VND300 million while the Peoples Committee of Lao Cai province gave VND500 million to assist Mu Cang Chai residents.

The Vietnam Fatherland Front in Yen Bai province organized a ceremony to call on businesses and benefactors to help damaged families. Right after the ceremony, VND550 million and 2,000 kilograms of rice were raised for the purpose.

Yen Bai said that it has arranged accommodations for families losing houses and treated injured people.

Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha surveyed flood hit area in Yen Bai, sent condolences to victims families and gave VND800 million in financial assistance raised by the ministry to locals.

In Son La, Vietnam Shipping Line (Vinalines) provided VND3 billion for building a health clinic in Nam Pam commune, Muong La district and assisted families with collapsed or swept away houses with VND150 million.

The Central Committee of Vietnam Red Cross Society handed over money and commodities worth VND1.5 billion to Yen Bai, Son La and Lai Chau.

By VAN PHUC  Translated by Hai Mien
125 Years Ago

Unexpected bath: Arthur Swazey, while crossing the Missouri River, fell from the stern of a skiff and was with great difficulty rescued by the man who was rowing him over. Swazey was taken to a saloon on Pearl Street where a dose of brandy seemed to revive him.

Evangelist here: Since his recent arrival in Sioux City, evangelist Dan Shields declared that he has stirred up everybody from the saloon men to the lawyers, the businessmen, the politicians and high-toned preachers. He said Sioux City needs less religion, less churches and more of the genuine gospel of Jesus Christ.

Parks proponent: E. C. Peters is a believer in parks. He has never platted an addition or laid out a piece of ground for any purpose that he did not make provision for a park. I own five little parks in Morning Side, Peters said. When the city gets ready for a system of parks, I will turn those over to the city provided they remain parks and are taken care of.

100 Years Ago

Booze news: The Nebraska governors appointment of Judge R. E. Evans as a special prosecutor of the prohibitory law in Dakota County is resented by county attorney George Leamer, who has not yet lost a single case under the new prohibition statute. It is probable that Judge Evans will take a silent part in prosecutions which are pending before Judge Sherman McKinley.

In social news: Mrs. T. S. Martin entertained a number of guests at the Country Club to meet two ladies from Chicago who are visiting relatives here and to visit with a lady from Detroit who is a guest in the Jules Martin home. The Womens Club Auxiliary and past matrons of Isis Chapter spent Monday at the Red Cross headquarters knitting and sewing. Rev. Wallace Short, pastor of the Central Church, will preach on The Life That Is Different Sunday afternoon in Riverside Park.

Colorful rainbow: A rainbow of unusual radiance appeared in the eastern sky Monday night at about 7 oclock. It appeared shortly after the downpour of rain and remained for 15 minutes. The rainbows brightness was sufficient to cast another reflection into the sky above it.

50 Years Ago

Officers bail out: Iowa Adj. Gen. Junior F. Miller and Col. Donald Forney, commander of Sioux Citys 185th Air National Guard Tactical Fighter Group, parachuted to safety 3  miles north of here shortly before noon Wednesday when the jet plane they were in flamed out. They landed in a pasture on the Lawrence Carstensen farm. The F100F jet fighter exploded after crashing. Gen. Miller, 60, of Des Moines, suffered a bruised leg and was taken to Crawford County Hospital. Col. Forner, 47, the pilot, was uninjured. They were en route from Sioux City to Washington, D.C. where Gen. Miller was scheduled to attend a conference at the Pentagon.

Employing youth: Sioux City business leaders have formed a non-profit corporation to raise funds for summer and after-school employment of low- income youth. Mayor Don Mullin said the jobs will give the young people some spending money, as well as alleviate problems such as vandalism by keeping kids gainfully occupied. They created an 11-member board of directors and pledged an initial $25,000.

Singing contract: Since they were 2 years old, twins Karen and Kay Klinger of Estherville, Iowa, have been singing and giving concerts. By age 4 they were playing their own piano accompaniments. Now students at Morningside College, they tried out and were offered a contract to sing with Fred Warings famous Pennsylvanians. They will join the tour for a year including recording a concert that will be broadcast on ABC in October. They will sing a solo in that concert.

25 Years Ago

Air show: The night-flying F-117A stealth fighter, famous for its deadly work over Iraq during the Persian Gulf War, is the big star at Sioux Gateway Airports Siouxland Aviation Days this weekend. The show also will feature 30 military aircraft open for public tours, flight demonstrations by military aircraft and aerobatic acts by civilian pilots.

Making news: Jennifer Heck, 17, a student at Sergeant Bluff-Luton High School, was chosen Woodbury County Fair Queen. Jerry Rousseau, of Scottsdale, Ax., and a descendent of Chief War Eagle, has been elected president of the War Eagle Commission, a private group working to preserve the memories and monument of the Santee Sioux chief and his family. Gov. Terry Branstad has appointed Sioux Cityan Kathleen Hoffman to a three-year term on the State Historical Society of Iowa board of trustees.

Former Iowa lawmaker killed: Former Iowa state legislator and Sioux City lobbyist Kevin Kelly and his girlfriend Barbara Lund were found shot to death Thursday evening at the home of Lunds estranged husband, Russell Lund, Jr., in Minnetonka, Minn., a suburb of Minneapolis. Russell Lunds family founded a Minnesota grocery chain. Police said he asked his estranged wife, Barbara Lund, 55, to look over some legal papers at his home and told her to bring Kelly, 49, because as an attorney he could help her review the documents. Police are looking for Russell Lund, Jr., who is a suspect in the shootings. Kelly served from 1971-1972 in the Iowa House and in the Iowa Senate from 1973-1978. For the past four years he has been a lobbyist representing the city of Sioux City and other clients and was in private practice.

These items were published in The Journal Aug. 6-12, 1892, 1917, 1967 and 1992
The Trump administration is certainly giving us an education in the varieties of wannabe manliness.

There is the slovenly I dont care what you think manliness of Steve Bannon. Theres the look-at-me-I-can-curse manliness that Anthony Scaramucci learned from Glengarry Glen Ross. There is the affirmation-hungry I long to be the man my father was parody of manliness performed by Donald Trump. There are all those authentically manly Marine generals Trump hires to supplement his own. Theres Trumps man-crush on Vladimir Putin and the firing of insufficiently manly Reince Priebus.

With this crowd, its man-craving all the way down.

Its worth remembering, when we are surrounded by all this thrusting masculinity, what substantive manliness once looked like. For example, 2,400 years ago the Greeks had a more fully developed vision of manliness than anything we see in or around the White House today.

Greek manliness started from a different place than ours does now. For the ancient Greeks, it would have been incomprehensible to count yourself an alpha male simply because you can run a trading floor or sell an apartment because you gilded a faucet handle.

For them, real men defended or served their city, or performed some noble public service. Braying after money was the opposite of manliness. For the Greeks, that was just avariciousness, an activity that shrunk you down into a people-pleasing marketer or hollowed you out because you pursued hollow things.

The Greeks admired what you might call spiritedness. The spirited man defies death in battle, performs deeds of honor and is respected by those whose esteem is worth having.

The classical Greek concept of manliness emphasizes certain traits. The bedrock virtue is courage. The manly man puts himself on the line and risks death and criticism. The manly man is assertive. He does not hang back but instead wades into any fray. The manly man is competitive. He looks for ways to compete with others, to demonstrate his prowess and to be the best. The manly man is self-confident. He knows his own worth. But he is also touchy. He is outraged if others do not grant him the honor that is his due.

That version of manliness gave Greece its dynamism. But the Greeks came to understand the problem with manly men. They are hard to live with. They are constantly picking fights and engaging in peacock displays.

Take the savage feuding that marks the Trump White House and put it on steroids and you get some idea of Greek culture. The Greek tragedies describe cycles of revenge and counter-revenge as manly men and women wreak death and destruction on each other.

So the Greeks took manliness to the next level. On top of the honor code, they gave us the concept of magnanimity. Pericles is the perfect magnanimous man (and in America, George Washington and George Marshall were his heirs). The magnanimous leader possesses all the spirited traits described above, but he uses his traits not just to puff himself up but to create a just political order.

The magnanimous man tries to master the profession of statecraft because he believes, with the Athenian ruler Solon, that the well-governed city makes all things wise and perfect in the world of men. The magnanimous leader tries to beautify his city, to arouse peoples pride in and love for it. He encourages citizens to get involved in great civic projects that will give their lives meaning and allow everybody to partake in the heroic action that was once reserved for the aristocratic few.

The magnanimous man has a certain style. He is a bit aloof, marked more by gravitas than familiarity. He shows perfect self-control because he has mastered his passions. He does not show his vulnerability. His relationships are not reciprocal. He is eager to grant favors but is ashamed of receiving them. His personal life can wither because he has devoted himself to disinterested public service.

The magnanimous man believes that politics practiced well is the noblest of all professions. No other arena requires as much wisdom, tenacity, foresight and empathy. No other field places such stress on conversation and persuasion. The English word idiot comes from the ancient Greek word for the person who is uninterested in politics but capable only of running his or her own private affairs.

Today, were in a crisis of masculinity. Some men are unable to compete in schools and in labor markets because the stereotype of what is considered mans work is so narrow. In the White House, we have phony manliness run amok.

But we still have all these older models to draw from. Of all the politicians Ive covered, John McCain comes closest to the old magnanimous ideal. When he went to the Senate and flipped his thumb down on the pretzeled-up health care bill, we saw one version of manliness trumping another. When John Kelly elbowed out Anthony Scaramucci, one version of manliness replaced another.

The old virtues arent totally lost. So theres hope.
SIOUX CITY  If you live outside of the Sioux City metro and have read a print edition of the Journal in the last 15 years, theres a high likelihood that Dan Bradley is the reason why.

The 63-year-old has served as the Journals State Circulation Manager for the last 15 years. He retired Friday after a 33-year career with the paper. He has also managed a state district for the paper over the last decade.

His career with the Journal began in 1984 on a part-time basis when he worked as a weekend service driver covering Sioux City's Morningside neighborhood and other areas when necessary.

If a subscriber didnt receive a paper from their normal delivery person, Bradley went out and delivered it to them.

So I just worked Saturday and Sundays part-time  five in the morning until 10 in the morning  but if anybody during the week wanted time off I filled in for them; didnt matter what side of town, he said.

For about 18 months, Bradley worked part-time at the Journal while also serving as the manager for Audio Vision back when it had two locations.

Additionally, Bradley started working maintenance part-time at the Journal and bided his time for a different position at the paper.

I knew there was a city district manager that was going to retire  he was here for 35 years, Norman Hoopingarner, he said.

From that opening, Bradley took on a variety of roles at the Journal over the years, including several stints as interim Circulation Director.

As the State Circulation Manager, which covers an extensive radius of Sioux City encompassing 135 communities in three states, Bradley oversaw truckers, managers, single copy outlets and mail delivery.

One of the more favorable aspects of his career at the Journal was working with youth carriers.

Bradley said delivering the Journal was often the first job for most of the kids he worked with and he loves running into them as adults and having them recognize him and share memories of those experiences.

Before the Journals Central Distribution Hub was built in 2005, Bradley noted most delivery people were minors and there were few adults doing the job, but that dynamic has since flipped.

Although he really liked giving young people their first opportunity to work, Bradley still enjoyed the interactions with his adult delivery people and said he will miss them in addition to the people around the office.

In his retirement, Bradley and his wife, Jacqueline  also a former Journal employee  plan on traveling. The duo have already visited all 48 contiguous states and have their sights set on Alaska next year and a trip following the Continental Divide this summer.

Bradley, who worked seven days a week and was always on call, is looking forward to being able to sleep more than a few hours a night. '

He also is ready to partake in some of the simpler pleasures of life that have eluded in recent years him due to his hectic schedule.

We love to fish, but Ive been so busy over the last three or four years I havent had a fishing license, he said. So I finally bought one.
Ebel was able to purchase the business thanks to an O'Brien County Intermediary Relending Program Revolving Fund Loan from the O'Brien County Economic Development Corporation.

H & N Services provides repair and maintenance service for cars and light trucks in Paullina and the surrounding area. In addition to the services that H & N has traditionally provided over the past 25 years, Ebel plans to expand into utility task vehicle repair and maintenance as well as providing some fabrication and repair services for the agricultural sector.
SIOUX CITY -- Sioux City Fire Rescue promoted two of its members following the retirement of two officers.

Master Firefighter Jon Steinhoff was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. Steinhoff is an 18-year veteran of the department. He is a paramedic for the department and is certified Fire Fighter I, II, Instructor I, Driver Operator certified in Pumper and Aerial. He is also a Structural Collapse Technician I, II and a member of Iowa Task Force One, which is Iowas Urban Search and Rescue Team.

The promotion was announced to fill a Lieutenant Officer vacancy created after the retirement of Lieutenant Darwin Blanford. Blanford retired in July after serving more than 32 years on the department. Blanford was hired by the department on March 27, 1985.

Master Firefighter Larry Schlines Jr. was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. Schlines is a 14-year veteran of the department. He is a paramedic for the department and is certified Fire Fighter I, II, Instructor I. He is also a Structural Collapse Technician I,II, Rope Tech I, Confined Space Tech I, and a member of Iowa Task Force One, which is Iowas Urban Search and Rescue Team.

The promotion was announced to fill a Lieutenant Officer vacancy that will be created after the retirement of Lieutenant Troy Sonichsen. Sonichsen will retire in August after serving close to 29 years in the department. Sonichsen was hired by the department on Aug. 22, 1988.

Additionally, Master Firefighter Paul Johnson and Firefighter John Nelson completed training and obtained their paramedic level certification.

Other recent department member accomplishments include OAC Dan Cougill receiving his Blue Card Command Training Certification, and Lieutenant Scott Kovarna graduating with honors, Magna Cum Laude, with his Bachelor of Science degree in Fire Science Administration from Waldorf University. Kovarna also was the first firefighter from the state of Iowa to be accepted and finish the Managing officer Program at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland.
Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn make a great comedy team. It's just too bad there's not more to "Snatched."

Schumer, in full millennial mode, gets most of the laughs largely because shes willing to poke fun at herself and the self-centered way her character views life.

Fired from a low-level job and dumped by her boyfriend, she decides to go ahead with a vacation to Ecuador, largely because she has two non-refundable tickets. When no friends want in, she offers the second to mom (Hawn) whos everything she isnt.

Afraid to leave the house, afraid to soak in the sun, afraid to view anything in less than skeptical terms, mom agrees, then sets up warning signals at the resort.

Surprisingly, shes not the only one. Wanda Sykes ambles over at the pool and cautions Schumer about venturing too far away into town.

Schumer doesnt listen and, that night, picks up with a handsome, sweet-talking Roger Federer type who somehow convinces her (and mom) to go off the beaten path. As you might guess, theyre kidnapped by drug dealers and forced into a prison of sorts.

While it would be easy to pretend this is all a nightmare, director Jonathan Levine plays it out, putting the two in the hands of a crazy adventurer (Christopher Meloni in full African Queen dress), a community of friendly villagers and Sykes and her travel companion (nicely played by Joan Cusack). Back home, Schumers agoraphobic brother (Ike Barinholtz) tries to get U.S. consulate folks to help him out.

Its all a mish-mash of half-baked ideas but some of Schumers lines are so, so funny (and raunchy), youll be hard-pressed to suppress a smile.

Snatched doesnt give Hawn as much to do as it should and Sykes and Cusack, easily, could have been counted on for 15 more minutes of laughs. But, actors aside, Snatched is what it is  a cheaply made comedy that feeds off stereotypes and lets Schumer show shes still game for anything.

When shes just struggling with that boyfriend (Randall Park, the dad on Fresh Off the Boat), theres plenty of promise. Its dashed somewhere between Ecuador and Colombia, then regained after the two women figure out what matters most.

Beautiful photography might have helped the film immensely. But one more run through the typewriter could have been better than an all-you-can-drink buffet.
SEATTLE  Each week in his Bellevue counseling office, Bill Lennon sees 13 groups of eight men, all seeking help for compulsive sexual behavior. Such behavior can range from obsessively viewing pornography to answering Craigslist ads for minors selling themselves at cheap motels.

He said that none of the men are there voluntarily. Instead, they got busted in a police sting, or were caught by their wives or their employers and forced to confront their conduct.

And most, Lennon insists, are nice guys.

These are doctors, lawyers, pastors, professional athletes, your neighbor. Sex is an equal-opportunity addiction, he said.

As many as 12 million Americans suffer from sex addiction, according to the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Lennon and a growing number of sex-addiction therapists argue it is a highly treatable disease that affects the brain in ways similar to drug or alcohol addiction, etching in neural pathways a powerful drive for pleasure and an increasingly compromised ability to exert control.

These therapists say that the explosion of online pornography and internet sites for escorts and hookups has meant that men who would never have considered picking up a prostitute can now make a date for sex with ease and anonymity on their cellphone or computer.

When you give people immediate access to highly stimulating, highly pleasurable content or experiences, the likelihood that addiction will appear goes up, said Rob Weiss, a California-based sex-addiction therapist and the author of Always Turned On: Sex Addiction in the Digital Age.

Weiss divides sexual activity into three categories: casual, at-risk and addictive.

Addicted users, he said, compulsively seek non-intimate sexual encounters or experiences regardless of the consequences, often as an escape from their own problems. They are unable to quit and typically lead a double life, telling lies, keeping secrets and justifying the behavior to themselves.

The people I work with get lost in the pursuit of sex, he said. They lose their wives, their kids, their jobs and they keep doing it. They return to the same behavior again and again, expecting a dazzling new experience. But over time, it isnt that dazzling a new experience. It isnt fun to be caught in a prostitution sting.

Stefanie Carnes, president of the International Institute for Trauma and Addiction Professionals (IITAP), which trains and certifies addiction therapists, said the past few years have seen a surge in research on neuroscience and sex addiction. In one study, she said, the brain scans of sex addicts exposed to stimuli such as pornography mirrored the brain scans of cocaine addicts when shown a line of cocaine.

Theres a convergence of evidence that sex addiction looks like other addictions in the brain, she said.

Carnes said a very primitive part of the brain is triggered by basic drives, including mating and food. The area, known as the reward pathway, is activated with the anticipation of pleasure and accompanied by a release of dopamine, which creates an intense high.

Orgasm is a powerful release of dopamine in the brain, she said, explaining why, biologically, sex can become addictive.

But over time, she said, the brain reduces the number of dopamine receptors, which makes it harder to experience pleasure. That accounts for the familiar pattern of addicts seeking more frequent or novel experiences and engaging in increasingly risky behavior to attain the same high.

At the same time, Carnes said, the brains frontal lobes, which are responsible for judgment, decision making and impulse control, get sluggish and less effective.

This is what we mean when we say the brain is hijacked by addiction, she said. The reptilian part of the brain seeking these pleasurable responses is highly activated and the critical thinking part of the brain is not. And thats how you start having people make really bad decisions.

In King County, men convicted of soliciting or promoting prostitution are sent to a 10-week class on sexual exploitation that seeks to hold them accountable for the harm caused by the sex trade. Topics include how men are socialized toward women and sex, the relationship between power and violence against women and mutuality in relationships.

Peter Qualliotine, who teaches the class and co-founded the Seattle-based Organization for Prostitution Survivors, said that while the class is not treatment, it encourages self-reflection and critical analysis about the mens decision to buy sex. He sees patronizing prostitutes as part of a continuum of what he calls toxic masculinity, behavior that includes sexual harassment, domestic violence and rape.

Lennon, the Bellevue sex-addiction therapist, says the diagnosis of addiction is an explanation, not an excuse. Many of his clients are educated professionals who have never talked about their compulsive sexual activity with anyone before seeking treatment.

Some tell him that online encounters or prostitutes are less trouble than real relationships, that they can be scheduled into busy and stressful work lives and that its an activity between consenting adults.

Its a lot more work to be in a relationship thats mutually, sexually satisfying, he said. Its so much easier to use the internet.
JACKSON, Neb. | Five people are in jail after an early-morning high-speed chase through Northeastern Nebraska.

The pursuit began around 1:11 a.m. Saturday morning, when a South Sioux City police officer attempted to pull over a white 2007 Dodge Dakota between South Sioux City and Dakota City, Nebraska State Patrol Sergeant John Mobley said.

The vehicle, which was westbound on Highway 20, did not stop, and soon the Dakota County Sheriff's Department and the Nebraska State Patrol gave chase along with the South Sioux City police.

The pickup, Mobley said, "was traveling at a high rate of speed, and very reckless," westbound on Highway 20. At times, the truck's speed exceeded 100 miles per hour, and it continued speeding even through the construction zone near Jackson, Nebraska.

"During the pursuit we discovered that the vehicle was stolen," from Union County, South Dakota, Mobley said.

The vehicle later turned off-road, traveling through a bean field before crashing into a creek bottom, Mobley said.

Five individuals fled into the beanfield after crashing and were apprehended, including Zallie Moniz, of Sioux City; Waylon Blackbird, of Macy, Nebraska; Brenda Gilpin, of Sioux City; and Vincent Harlan, of Thurston County Nebraska. Mobley declined to identify the fifth, who is a juvenile.

The incident remains under investigation, Mobley said, and which of the vehicle occupants was the driver is unknown at this time.

"We have five people giving us five different stories," he said. "We're receiving some conflicting stories."

Charges are pending the findings of the investigation.

"We believe drugs were a factor," he said.
SIOUX CITY | Fifty-three city employees received $100,000 or more in gross earnings during the budget year ending June 30, nearly double the number who received six-digit earnings the previous year.

The rise came as an extra pay period, additional positions and employee raises caused gross earnings for city employees to spike by $4.2 million -- nearly 9 percent -- during the 2017 fiscal year.

The number is a significantly steeper increase than the .25-percent rise between the two preceding fiscal years. Just under half of the increase results from the budget year's extra pay period, while city officials say the remainder reflects a combination of added positions -- including two police officers -- and higher pay raises for non-union employees.

According to city data, total gross earnings totaled more than $51.5 million, up from $47.29 million in fiscal 2016 and $47.17 in fiscal 2015. Gross earnings represent salaries and added pay -- such as vehicle, clothing and cell phone allowances -- but not health insurance or retirement benefits.

The occurrence of an extra pay period, a payroll peculiarity that rolls around once every 11 years, added an estimated $1.9 million to the gross earnings. City Finance Director Donna Forker said the city keeps funding on hand to prepare for that occurrence well in advance.

"I put money aside in reserve every year for that," she said.

In addition, several of the city's highest-paid non-union employees received raises of up to 5.3 percent. City manager Bob Padmore said this was the first year of a three-year pay-for-performance system that is allowing non-union employees to receive the larger raises to catch up after years of previous wage freezes.

"We were trying to make up for a few years with frozen salaries," Padmore said. "With non-union contracts being frozen for a few years, our union contracts continued to increase -- so if you were at the top of a union scale, you started to out-earn your non-union supervisor."

The fiscal year also marked the beginning of new contracts with several city unions, which included pay raises between 2 percent and 2.5 percent and concessions on health care benefits.

The city employees with the highest salaries at the end of the year were Padmore with $175,750, City Attorney Nicole DuBois ($132,596), Assistant City Manager Mike Collett ($128,487), Public Works Director Dave Carney ($128,487), and Information Technology Director John Malloy ($127,406).

The City Council awarded Padmore a 8.7 percent pay raise in November, while DuBois received about a 2 percent raise in January. Collett, Carney, Malloy and others received the maximum 5.3 percent raises during the most recent budget year.

While Padmore received a substantial pay raise, his salary still ranks on the lower end among Iowa's city managers and administrators. In terms of total compensation, he ranked ninth, according to statistics compiled by the city of Sioux City. Sioux City is Iowa's fourth-largest city.

Fire Chief Tom Everett was the sixth-highest paid city employee at $126,380, and Police Chief Doug Young was seventh at $125,459. The two received 5.3 and 4.5 percent raises, respectively.

Young will retire at the end of the month, and the city has advertised that his replacement will earn between $99,468 and $139,284 per year. The four finalists for the position include two internal candidates -- Capt. Lisa Claeys and Capt. Rex Mueller -- who both received more than $100,000 in gross earnings during fiscal 2017.

EXPANDED PAYROLL

The city also added a net increase of nine full-time-equivalent positions during the 2017 fiscal year, bringing the total number of full-time equivalent positions to 774. A "full-time equivalent" combines the work of multiple part-time employees to equal the equivalent work of a full-time, 40-hour employee.

The city employed 650 full-time workers and 124 full-time equivalents of seasonal or part-time workers in fiscal 2017. It represented the first time the city had a net increase in staff positions since fiscal 2013.

Two of those positions were new police officers, which Forker said adds up to about $100,000 apiece.

The city has reduced the number of its employees by 85 full-time-equivalents since 1997, according to city data.

The increase in gross earnings comes as overall personnel expenses continue to rise. Fiscal 2017 saw a steep $10.5 million increase -- or 12.4 percent-- in total employee compensation. Along with gross earnings, total compensation includes health insurance, retirement contributions and other benefits.

Employee compensation represented about 36 percent of the city's total budgeted expenditures.

"Payroll is the largest part of our budget to begin with, and it continues to grow," Padmore said.

Forker said much of the rise in total compensation is due to health insurance costs.

"Premiums are rising more than the salaries are rising," she said.

In the fiscal year that started July 1, the city has budgeted more than $100 million for employee compensation.
SIOUX CITY | On Saturday afternoon, shoppers at Rudolph's Shoe Mart on Southern Hills Drive ambled through the store, inspecting shoes, trying on various styles and making purchases.

This wasn't any old day of shoe-shopping at Rudolph's: this was Iowa's sales tax holiday, in which the state does not levy sales tax on articles of clothing priced less than $100. The no-tax savings amount to seven percent, meaning on a $99 purchase, the savings would be about $7.

Rae Pendergast, the general manager at Rudolph's, said the store sees a lot of non-Siouxlanders come in to the shop during the tax holiday.

"I think we've probably seen a lot more out-of-town traffic that comes in for it (the tax holiday), like from Omaha," Pendergast said. "I had a lady yesterday from Council Bluffs, says she waits every year for this weekend, to come up and buy six or seven pairs of shoes."

Although Pendergast admitted the sales tax holiday can't hold a candle to shopping levels at Christmastime or Black Friday, she said the store still benefits from the two days of no taxes.

Though some of Rudolph's shoes cost more than $100, making them not tax-exempt, Pendergast said people still buy them up during the holiday.

"We sell a lot of work boots, and those are all over that $100, and nobody complains about it, you know, they still buy them," she said. "Some of them, we'll give a $10 break you know, just because we can't give them the tax break."

Pendergast also appreciated the fact that this year's tax holiday was well-publicized.

"I used to think they didn't advertise enough for the no-tax weekend," she said. "And at least this year, I heard like a week in advance of it, that it was advertised."

LeAnn Moser drove from Vermillion, South Dakota, to do some shopping at the Gordon Drive Bomgaar's on Saturday. She said she purchased some shoes this weekend because they were tax-free.

Not having to pay taxes on shoes, she said, is nice because footwear tends to be pricey.

"We hit up the shoe stores, or any clothing, Kohl's, Target," Moser said.

Emily Elgersma and her mother, Helen, came to Sioux City from their rural Iowa home to browse through the racks at Bomgaar's. The pair planned to make the rounds at other clothing shops as well.

"I think we're going to go to the mall and hit up a few places," Emily said.

The Elgersmas said they had held off on a few purchases in anticipation of the tax holiday. At Bomgaar's, there was a 15 percent discount in addition to the seven percent saved by not paying taxes.

"You know, 15 percent off plus no tax, makes it about 22 percent off," Helen said.

Chuck Littsen, the assistant manager at Bomgaar's, said that Saturday, the second day of the tax holiday, was busier than Friday.

"Today we have been pretty solid," Littsen said.

Littsen said that tax-holiday shoppers seem to be pretty astute when making purchases, mostly sticking with tax-exempt clothing rather than buying food or other items that aren't tax exempt.

"It's been more clothing, I've seen a lot of clothing going through," he said.

Shara Becker, an associate at E & Co., a boutique on Hamilton Boulevard, said the store did a swift business on Friday. The store was quiet on Saturday, which she said may have been due to the rain.

"Yesterday was insane, it was ridiculous, we did an amazing day yesterday," Becker said.
DAKOTA CITY, Neb. | Six people were taken to Sioux City hospitals following a two-vehicle accident Friday night in Dakota County, Neb.

According to a press release from the Dakota County Sheriff's Office, officers responded to the accident at approximately 10:59 p.m. Friday in the area of mile marker 0 on I-129 in Dakota County, Nebraska.

A 2008 red Chevy Impala driven by Ahmed Hassan, 23, of Minnesota, was traveling eastbound in the westbound lanes and collided with a 2017 silver Nissan Rogue driven by Shellie Nelson, 36, of Rosalie, Nebraska. Rescue units from South Sioux City, Dakota City, and Homer responded to the scene, according to the press release.

All five occupants in the Chevy Impala including the driver were transported to Mercy Medical Center in Sioux City with injuries. Those subjects were identified as 35-year-old Abdi Saeed, 35-year-old Abshir Ibrahim, 34-year-old Connie Vanginkel of Rock Valley, Iowa, and another unidentified female.

The driver of the Nissan Rogue was also transported to UnityPoint Health-St. Luke's in Sioux City with injuries. The conditions of the injured persons have not been released.

The Nebraska State Patrol and South Sioux City Police Department also assisted at the scene. The accident is still under investigation at this time.
One month after the election, President-elect Donald Trump made a "victory tour" of states that had helped deliver his surprise win.

In Fayetteville, North Carolina, Trump introduced his choice for Secretary of Defense, Gen. James Mattis, and pledged the following: "We will stop racing to topple foreign regimes that we know nothing about, that we shouldn't be involved with. Instead, our focus must be on defeating terrorism and destroying ISIS, and we will."

He appears to be fulfilling the second part of that pledge, less so the first. Think North Korea, Iran, Russia, and now even Venezuela, which has had new sanctions placed on it following fraudulent elections giving dictatorial power to President Nicolas Maduro.

While Venezuela is no threat to America and Russia is a major headache, North Korea and Iran are clear and present dangers. These two rogue regimes are committed to developing nuclear weapons capable of reaching U.S. cities no matter what we do.

Clearly this cannot be allowed to happen, but the question is how to stop them short of all-out war that has the potential to kill millions and create a doomsday scenario reminiscent of Cold War movies like "Fail Safe," "Dr. Strangelove" and "On the Beach."

The best offense really is a good defense. When Ronald Reagan proposed his "Strategic Defense Initiative" (SDI) in a nationally televised address on March 23, 1983, many on the left mocked him. They called his proposal science fiction and unworkable, derisively labeling it "Star Wars."

They're not mocking that proposal now. The Defense Department has had several successes with its Terminal High Altitude Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system, but only at targets that represent medium-range missiles. In May, the U.S. Missile Defense Agency also "'successfully intercepted an intercontinental ballistic missile during the first test of its ground-based intercept system." That's not science fiction.

Readers should revisit Reagan's speech as a template for dealing with modern threats. In that address from the Oval Office, Reagan said the risk of war is lessened when the U.S. has a strong deterrence, which he defined as "making sure any adversary who thinks about attacking the United States, or our allies, or our vital interests, concludes that the risks to him outweigh any potential gains. Once he understands that, he won't attack. We maintain the peace through our strength; weakness only invites aggression."

Reagan said the strategy of deterrence had not changed, but what it takes to deter had changed. While acknowledging it might take decades to achieve his Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), Reagan said he wanted to take the first step. He concluded his address: "I am directing a comprehensive and intensive effort to define a long-term research and development program to begin to achieve our ultimate goal of eliminating the threat posed by strategic nuclear missiles. This could pave the way for arms control measures to eliminate the weapons themselves. We seek neither military superiority nor political advantage. Our only purpose -- one all people share -- is to search for ways to reduce the danger of nuclear war.

"My fellow Americans, tonight we're launching an effort which holds the promise of changing the course of human history. There will be risks, and results take time. But I believe we can do it. As we cross this threshold, I ask for your prayers and your support."

President Trump should emulate his predecessor, making his first televised address from the Oval Office during which he explains to Americans why North Korea and Iran pose an immediate, or ultimate, threat to the United States. He should announce a fast-track effort to escalate THAAD so it can destroy ICBMs. A space-based, anti-missile system should then complement our defenses in order to protect America and our allies from nuclear attack.

As Reagan noted, weakness encourages tyrants. Tehran and Pyongyang must be encouraged at what appears to be instability in the Trump administration. A credible missile defense system would send them a message more powerful than words.
WASHINGTON -- John Kelly, President Trump's new chief of staff, is focused on ending chaos in the White House. Given that his boss is the self-disrupter in chief, good luck with that.

And Trump world's vicious backstabbing is not, in any event, the administration's most important problem. A devotion to lying is a far graver danger to this presidency, and military efficiency will not dispel it.

The Washington Post's report, essentially confirmed by the White House, that the president was the prime mover behind Donald Trump Jr.'s misleading statement about his meeting with a Russian lawyer peddling derogatory information about Hillary Clinton ratifies the pattern of deceit and misdirection on all matters Russian. Behaving as if you are guilty won't persuade others that you are innocent.

The president seems persuaded that he can survive whatever comes his way as long as he keeps his much celebrated political base with him. But this is not as easy as it sounds for either Trump or his party because his base is fundamentally divided.

Nothing illustrated this more dramatically than the health care showdown. Trump's rhetoric about the Affordable Care Act during last year's campaign should have been a tipoff to the dilemma both he and conservative politicians confront now. On the one hand, he roundly denounced Obamacare, which made right-wing ideologues happy. But he also regularly promised an alternative that would be more, not less, generous in helping Americans of modest means.

His position was incoherent but very shrewd. To pull off his Electoral College victory in 2016, Trump needed the votes of traditional Republican conservatives, but he also had to add on non-ideological working-class voters, many of whom found Mitt Romney unappealing in 2012.

For clues about the political turmoil and coalition-management challenges the president and the GOP face, consult "The Five Types of Trump Voters" by Emily Ekins, the director of polling at the Cato Institute. The bottom line of her research is that Trump and his party can't win without the conservative faithful, but the conventional right alone cannot guarantee victory.

A narrow majority of Trump's voters, Ekins found, fell into two traditionally Republican groups, "Staunch Conservatives," who made up 31 percent of his backers, and "Free Marketeers," who constituted 25 percent. She also identifies a smaller, less loyally Republican faction, "The Disengaged," who amounted to 5 percent of his supporters.

But two other large Trump groups, whom Ekins labeled "American Preservationists" (20 percent of Trumpists) and "Anti-Elites" (19 percent), are quite different from regular conservatives. In particular, Ekins notes, both "lean economically progressive," which is why the health care issue is so problematic for Trump.

The preservationists might be seen as White House adviser Steve Bannon's people. They "have nativist immigration views, and a nativist and ethnocultural conception of American identity." The Anti-Elites are more moderate on these issues and the "most likely" of the Trump supporters "to favor political compromise." This group was never as strongly pro-Trump as the others, and seems most ripe for defection to the Democrats.

Trump is so hungry for "wins" that he is still pushing the Senate to pass any bill to repeal Obamacare. But enacting proposals along the lines of those that failed recently would be the worst possible outcome for Trump because they effectively break the promises he made to nearly 40 percent of his own sympathizers.

Senate Republicans who want to back away from repeal, at least for now, seem more attuned to how disruptive this issue is. But the looming battle over deep tax cuts tilted toward the wealthy will also split the alliance Trump is counting on for survival.

As Ekins concludes, Trump voters "hold different perceptions of justice in the political and economic systems."

Trump's coalition is by no means unique historically in bringing together constituencies with widely divergent views. Franklin D. Roosevelt, after all, won votes from Northern African-Americans and Southern white segregationists. On the other hand, the New Deal alignment was shattered when civil rights became a driving national issue.

Still, political leaders trying to hold diverse groups together need to demonstrate finesse and both the appearance and reality of successful governance. Finesse, needless to say, is not a Trump long suit. And every day that brings a new Trump revelation, new questions about Russia or sheer craziness (the Mooch interlude or the president's description of the White House as "a real dump") puts increased pressure on a rickety alliance that can only bear so much. When Trump most needs that base of his, it may no longer be there.
Each day our civil society continues a downward spiral characterized by coarseness of language and vulgarity. Insults, bullying, vicious personal attacks and refusal to listen to differing viewpoints have become the norm rather than the exception.

Our leaders have betrayed the values we hold dear. But, in my opinion, we have only ourselves to blame for allowing this to happen and the danger is that this assault on the values that have made this country great will only grow worse if we stand idly by and hope it will disappear. So today, I wish to praise four individuals who manifest the courage, commitment to truth and compassion that we need to cherish and imitate in our daily lives. By doing so, we can begin to get our beloved country back on the right course.

- Locally, I praise Dave Drew, Woodbury County sheriff, for following the direction of Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady and refusing to allow guns in the courthouse. Of all places, it makes absolutely no sense for citizens to be allowed to enter a courthouse with a weapon. This has nothing whatsoever to do with the Second Amendment or the right to bear arms. All freedoms have limits to protect the common good. Some people who are licensed to carry a firearm do kill people in a rage or for revenge. As a recent letter writer to this paper mentioned, I do not want to be caught in a crossfire of gunfire when I walk into the courthouse to transact business. And we do need to protect our judges. Thank you, Sheriff Drew.

- Statewide, I praise U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst who raised her voice in defense of transgender individuals in the armed forces. Senator Ernst has a distinguished military care and has been outspoken in insisting that our veterans receive quality health care, including mental health services. Nothing less should be tolerated by any of us. Senator Ernst stated that we need to appreciate the service that our military personnel give to our country with great sacrifice, and that anyone qualified should be allowed to serve. Thank you, Senator Ernst.

- On a national basis, I praise Sen. John McCain. Already a hero for the courage he showed and the suffering he endured as a POW in Vietnam, he once again rose to the occasion and acted in heroic fashion despite unrelenting political pressure and voted his conscience by refusing to vote for the effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act without a clearly debated and thought-out alternative. Make no mistake, Sen. McCain is no fan of that act (Obamacare, as it is called), but he understood that the process that was being followed was not in keeping with the history and tradition of the U.S. Senate in the creation and passage of significant legislation and, given the enormous consequences of this legislative action, he did the right thing. Thank you, Sen. McCain.

- And in closing, I return to our local community and I offer praise for Dr. Herb Kuehne, who died just a few weeks ago. Herb was a professor at Briar Cliff University who shared his knowledge and wisdom with countless students over the years. He was incredibly active in the community as a volunteer in a host of community organizations, including serving as a board member of the Siouxland Mental Health Center when I was the director.

Let me share Herbs own words about being a volunteer: Volunteering definitely gives back to the community. But it also gives to the volunteer, volunteering keeps us in contact with real people, with their needs, joys, aches and pains, fears and problems, and that keeps us volunteers much more human, much more alive, alert, caring and loving."

Herb was a true gentleman: kind, considerate and respectful with the language he used, no matter how controversial the topic might be. A man of deep, passionate convictions, Herb clearly understood the value of dialogue versus confrontation. What a rare and wonderful example to all of us in this time and place. Thank you, Herb, and may you rest in peace.

Reflect on these individuals and perhaps try to imitate in your daily lives the path that they have made for us. We need to transcend partisan differences, listen to one another and do the right thing for our community and country. For my part, you may notice that, as a lifelong progressive Democrat, I have chosen three Republicans and one Democrat as the role models for this article.

Next week: Jim Wharton

A Sioux City resident, Jim Rixner is the retired executive director of the Siouxland Mental Health Center and a former member of the City Council. He and his wife, Bernadette, are the parents of three adult sons and the grandparents of seven.
In light of two significant new developments this summer, we return today to a favorite topic - our metro region's growing network of trails.

In July:

- The City Council approved the low bid of $1.23 million from Dixon Construction Co. of Correctionville, Iowa, to build a connection between the Floyd and Outer Drive Trails.

This .43-mile trail, which will begin sometime this year, is primarily an overpass bridge over railroad tracks with a small trail segment from the current Floyd Trail to the corner of Outer Drive.

"This is one of the most crucial trail connections that we have in our city," Parks and Reaction Director Matt Salvatore said in a July 10 Journal story. "The project is long overdue."

- The city of Sergeant Bluff approved an application to the Iowa Department of Transportation's State Recreational Trails Program for the $1.2 million first phase of the proposed Loess Hills Scenic Trail. When finished, the trail will connect Baker Park in Sergeant Bluff to the Singing Hills Trail in Sioux City.

"The trail route itself has the potential to be the most scenic route in all of Siouxland," Salvatore told The Journal.

This, in addition to millions of dollars in additional work planned for this year and next year to add several miles of new local trail for use by walkers, runners, and bikers. These projects include:

* Sertoma Park Trail - This 1.25-mile trail, which will finish by the end of August, will create a loop between Sertoma and Cone Parks.

* Clark School Connector Trail - This .2-mile trail, which will be completed by the end of the year, will connect residents in the Country Club neighborhood to the Outer Drive Trail through a trail on Clark School property.

* Big Sioux River Dike Trail Phase II - This .75-mile stretch of trail, which will begin in 2018 pending approval of permits by the Army Corps of Engineers, starts at the Riverside Pool and runs along the Big Sioux River, ending at Florence Avenue where the Big Sioux River Dike Trail Phase I was completed in 2015 (this is another 1.25 miles).

* Riverfront Trail - This 1.5-mile section of trail, which will begin in 2018 pending approval of permits by the Corps, will connect Chautauqua Park to Chris Larsen Park. From Chris Larsen Park, the trail will go under the interstate, cross the Floyd River and stay east of the interstate until it reaches Bacon Creek. The trail will cross the creek, travel back under the interstate, then stay on the west side of I-29 until it connects to Chautauqua Park.

Meanwhile, a volunteer committee of supporters pursues its dream for creation of a $10 million, 16-mile trail, called PlyWood, between Sioux City and Le Mars.

We support growing emphasis on and share growing enthusiasm for trail construction, with a focus on connectivity, evident throughout our metro region. We commend leaders, both public and private, for elevating trails to the high level of priority they deserve and urge them to remain dogged in their commitment to trails. One day, we hope all community trails will tie together to form one uninterrupted, comprehensive system second to none, including a seamless link between Sergeant Bluff and Le Mars.

Trails speak to the many benefits of living healthier lives. Trails speak to overall community quality of life and quality of life is a crucial ingredient for economic growth and prosperity.

As we have said before in this space, money invested in trails is money well spent.
Regardless of my stance on "guns in the courthouse," I commend Woodbury County Board of Supervisors Chairman Matthew Ung and the supporting supervisors for standing for a law passed by this state's legislators and signed into effect by the then governor. Since when do judges of any court level make rulings that supersede a law unless that law was challenged in their courtroom? This makes me wonder where the separation of powers begins and ends if a judge who doesn't like a law can simply issue a ruling and that then, in essence, the ruling becomes the law. This is more "wild West" than allowing permit owners to carry.
The prosperous little town where I live was founded by Dutch immigrants who didn't speak English when they arrived (including my great, great grandparents). Many other small towns in the Midwest were founded by people from other ethnicities with a similar lack of English language skills. Many had only a basic education with few marketable skills. Yet these were the people who created the infrastructure that made the Midwest what it is today.
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.
GRAND FORKS -- A North Dakota law that went into effect this month is giving a boost to childrens car safety.

Carma Hanson, coordinator for Safe Kids Grand Forks, says the change extends from 7 to 8 the age at which older children must use a car seat or booster seat.

Safe Kids Worldwide and the American Academy of Pediatrics both recommend children use the extra devices until they are big enough for a seat belt to fit properly. Hanson said that usually doesnt occur until sometime between the ages of 8 and 12.

We wanted North Dakotas law to reflect best practices because parents look to the law for guidance on whats safe, she said. If we say 7 looks like the age children are safe to come out of car booster seats, they simply arent.

The age alone really doesnt determine safety, she said. Standard vehicle seat belts are designed for adults, and many children dont have the physical stature necessary to make them fit properly. If they are poorly fitted, children lose protection when they become uncomfortable and tuck the shoulder belts behind their backs or under their arms.

The new law also drops the former weight guidelines, Hanson said, because weight is not considered a good indicator of fit. However, the same height restrictions remain. A child must be 4 feet 9 inches tall before using standard seat belts.

Hanson says its important for parents to carefully consider fit because it also can vary depending on the vehicle. The seat belt may fit a 9-year-old in a smaller car with a narrow seat thats low to the floor but not fit the same child until age 12 when riding in in a larger vehicle with wider, higher seats.

While the law says they need to be in a car booster seat to age 8, we know the law really is the minimum standard, she said.

Drivers violating the law can be fined $25 and lose a point off their license.
Its an interesting question: How exactly does one stand out at the Terry-Taylor Garage Sale?

About half of the Terry-Taylor-Northlake neighborhoods 260 households participated in the annual event Saturday, now in its 37th year.

The sale originally began as a way to save gas in the wake of the 1979 oil crisis; instead of driving around town, the neighborhood hosted its own big sale for everyone to attend.

Over the years the sale has become a bonanza for bargain hunters in the Lower Columbia region, many of whom are drawn to the promise of rock-bottom prices like moths to a flame.

But it can be hard for sellers to distinguish themselves when almost everyone is following the same basic blueprint.

The secret is having good junk, said Jim Schraeder of Castle Rock.

Schraeder was selling various collectibles neatly organized on a blanket on the lawn as part of a four-family operation on Terry Avenue. He said this will be his fourth year participating in the Terry-Taylor sale.

Thousands of people have flocked to the event in years past, making it difficult for pedestrians to navigate the sidewalks. The streets become one-way on Terry, Taylor and Northlake avenues to accommodate parking on both sides of the roads. The event has grown so large that some neighborhood residents leave town for the day to avoid the crowds.

But this year the turnout was a bit thinner than in recent years, according to Schraeder.

I dont think theyre coming out like they used to, he said as people wandered by.

That could be due to the rise of mobile apps like OfferUp and Facebook Marketplace, Schraeder remarked, which allow users to easily buy and sell items once traditionally sold at garage sales.

Everything used to be gone by noon, he said, gesturing at a yard with plenty of items left for sale. Were still selling stuff, just not as quickly as before.

Another way to stand out at the Terry-Taylor sale is to go digital.

Credit Cards Accepted read a sign outside of Mikala Zytniowskis tent. Zytniowski is a small business owner in Longview who uses Square Cash, a mobile cash app, to accept credit and debit card payments from her customers.

Zytniowski said this was her first year participating in the sale.

Her friend, Janessa Kell, said its also a good idea to avoid selling too many clothes.

Kell said shes had more luck selling small pieces of furniture and other items that can be refurbished.

I think a lot of people like stuff they can redo because of Pinterest, she said, referring to the popular web and mobile application millions of people use for design inspiration.

Yet another way to get noticed: Hang up a wedding dress outside.

As is the case with most wedding dresses, Northlake resident Kelly Gastons has a story.

Gaston said the dress belongs to her 33-year-old daughter, Liddia, who has been engaged three different times.

Her first fiance was gay, the second one cheated on her and the third was a mommas boy, she said.

Gaston said her daughter blames the dress for her misfortune and wont date again until she gets rid of it.

Last year, the garment  originally purchased for $1,000  failed to attract any buyers with an asking price of $250.

This year Gaston dropped the price by $100, but as of 11:07 a.m. the garment was still hanging in her driveway.

Its destroying her love life, Gaston joked. We just want to get rid of it.

Its stories like these that keep shoppers like Longview resident Garnette Hageman, whos attended every Terry-Taylor sale, coming back for more.

Its fun, she said. We always find some treasure. Some years more than others, but we always find some treasure.
A pedestrian attempting to cross N. Pacific Avenue near the intersection of Redpath Street in Kelso was injured at around 8:45 p.m. Friday when he was struck by a motorcycle.

The motorcycle, ridden by Matthew Ferguson of Longview, was traveling southbound on Pacific Avenue. Kelso police said the victim, Kevin Calvert, 20, of Kelso, walked out into the roadway from the west side without looking for traffic, according to a witness.

Calvert, 20, of Kelso, suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was taken by LifeFlight helicopter to Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver with a severely fractured leg. Kelso police said Calvert was intoxicated at the time of the accident.

Pacific Avenue remained closed late into the evening as Kelso police and emergency crews worked to clear the accident site.
A bi-partisan backed bill aimed at strengthening and protecting the states crab fishing industry could soon become law.

Legislation led by U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.) was passed by the House last January and late on Thursday finally passed the Senate. The bill now heads to President Donald Trumps desk to be signed.

The bill extends and makes permanent a decades-long fishery management agreement that Washington, Oregon, Alaska and California lawmakers contend has been vital to the regions Dungeness crab fishery. Without the agreement in place, Cantwell said Pacific Northwest crab fishing would face an uncertain future.

Its vital to our crab fishermen and the tens of thousands of maritime jobs that depend on proper management of our Dungeness fisheries that this tri-state agreement becomes permanent, Herrera Beutler said Friday in a separate press release.

Herrera Beutler called the bill an important win for West Coast crab fishermen.

Washingtons Dungeness crab industry brings about $61 million into the states economy each year, with crab fishermen harvesting an average of 9.5 million pounds of crab a year and supporting more than 60,000 maritime jobs. Across the West Coast, commercial Dungeness crab fishing brings in some $220 million.

While crab populations can vary greatly by year, a study published earlier this year predicted increasing ocean acidification would like impact crab fisheries in the next few decades.

The study published in Global Change Biology, which used computer modelling, found that seawater is growing more acidic due to carbon-dioxide emissions. While most of this carbon dioxide goes into the atmosphere, about a third of it is absorbed by the oceans. As this acidity rises, the water can be more corrosive on some animals shells or skeletons.

To help manage the fishery appropriately, Cantwell said states must work together to ensure management and conservation goals are met.

The future of West Coast Commercial Fishing is anchored by Dungeness crab, which has added stability and vitality to coastal fish-dependent communities in the face of other struggling fisheries, said Dale Beasley, president of the Columbia River Crab Fishermans Association in the press release.

The tri-state agreement was first passed by Congress in 1998, but it expired without a replacement in 2016.

Fellow Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.), along with Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.) co-sponsored the legislation.
Editors note: Todays editorial originally appeared in The Wenatchee World. Editorial content from other publications is provided to give readers a sampling of regional and national opinion and does not necessarily reflect positions endorsed by the Editorial Board of The Daily News.

What are we to do in all this heat and smoke? Canadian wildfire smoke is mucking up the air on both sides of the Cascades, all the way down to Oregon. The Department of Ecology tells us the air quality is terrible, which we already know because we feel it in our lungs. The smoke has forced the AppleSox to postpone games. Our valleys gorgeous hills and lakes taunt us. We, a community of active, outdoorsy adventurers peer out of windows at all that nature laying gray under a thick blanket of smoke, off limits.

Where do we find relief? Indoors, thats where, preferably set up with shades drawn, iced tea in hand and an air conditioner humming nearby.

And so we wait, holed up in our homes. But this I do not mind. Not even a little bit.

My familys new house is just finished, still a mess of unpacked boxes and construction dust, but already buzzing like a good home should, with family meals at the kitchen table and shoes piled by the door and chapter books in the big chair before bedtime. When I hear my daughters giggling madly from their rooms, or when I sit for whole hours just staring at books on shelves, this is what I feel: Gratitude. Gratitude. Gratitude. Waves of it rolling over me. It catches my breath. It overwhelms me.

I am grateful for the firefighters who worked all the night of June 28, 2015, in the heat and smoke. From the career firefighters to the volunteer departments trucked in from all around the region that night, I know they tried to save my home. I know for certain they saved the rest of this town. Whenever I see a group of firefighters in uniform walk down the street or into a cafe, I get a little teary. Thank you.

I am grateful for my neighbors. I am including the entire town here  local businesses, the Community Foundation, my childrens incredible pre-school, my friends at The World, a church congregation who gave books and toys, the woman I did not know (and never did meet) who dropped off dolls for my girls when she read about the fire in the newspaper.

To my neighbors in Broadview  to my fire friends who lost, and to those who did not, but who grieved right along with us  I dont have enough words for you. Not yet. You have taught me what it means to love thy neighbor. You have taught me about community. Not community in the way we often hear about it. Not some faceless government program or benevolent rhetoric trotted out by politicians and PR people. But real, empathetic, love-in-action, boots-on-the-ground and casseroles-in-the-oven community. You took care of many of us when we were hurting, and in doing so, you created community.

Fire will come to this place again. We will be ready. We will gather clothes to donate, organize meals, offer up prayers and guest bedrooms. We will sit with our neighbors through their pain until they find their way home again. If you wonder whether these gestures matter to fire victims, I promise you they do.

That damn fire humbled me. It taught me how to walk in true gratitude. Since being in the new house, I am practically swimming in it. Gratitude and peace. Its a peace I have not felt for more than two years. I did not realize how much I missed the peace of having a home of my own  and for my kids  until I found it again this week. The world suddenly seems less fuzzy, less smoky. I breathe deeply, finally. I do not mind staying home.
Controversy over cloud seeding is intensifying in western North Dakota as farmers and ranchers coping with extreme drought question whether the program that's supposed to increase rainfall could be making their problems worse.

Residents of Hettinger County  one of the areas hardest hit by drought this summer are circulating a petition that seeks to end the weather modification program statewide.

Our fight is just to return to natural weather again, said Jamie Kouba, a farmer from Regent.

In response to the increased controversy this year, Darin Langerud, director of the North Dakota Atmospheric Resource Board, points to studies that have shown North Dakotas program has suppressed hail by 45 percent and increased rainfall by 5 to 10 percent.

Six North Dakota counties  Bowman, Burke, McKenzie, Mountrail, Ward, Williams  as well as a portion of a Slope County, participate in the North Dakota Cloud Modification Project, which aims to reduce hail and enhance rainfall.

Pilots seed clouds with silver iodide and dry ice to improve a clouds ability to produce precipitation. The program is managed and regulated by the North Dakota Atmospheric Resource Board, a division of the State Water Commission, with a budget of about $1 million this year from state and county funding.

Langerud describes the process like this: Were not making it rain, were working around the margins of clouds to help increase rainfall a little bit.

State officials have been getting more questions about cloud seeding this year, including during meetings hosted by Gov. Doug Burgum in drought-stricken areas. Opponents of cloud seeding said they plan to raise their concerns again Monday night during a meeting with Burgum in Mott.

There certainly is a lot of emotion around this topic, Burgum said recently while leading an emergency meeting of the State Water Commission to discuss the drought.

Neil Brackin, president of Fargo-based Weather Modification Inc., the contractor for the state program, said he welcomes questions on cloud seeding, which he gets more frequently when weather conditions are extreme.

The facts are that cloud seeding does not and is not able to impact large-scale impacts such as the drought, Brackin said.

But some farmers and ranchers question the studies the State Water Commission points to, including Jon Wert of New England who has compiled his own research using historic rainfall totals.

Wert was once a supporter of cloud seeding but over the past 15 years has come to believe that his hometown in Hettinger County receives less rainfall because of weather modification.

Im not blaming the drought on it, but its contributing to it, Wert said. I see that every single year. Were always looking for more rain.

Local counties opt to participate in weather modification, which dates back to the 1950s in North Dakota. At one time, 36 of North Dakotas 53 counties participated in some sort of cloud seeding program, though many of those programs were short-lived, Langerud said.

The program has been most persistent in western North Dakota, where the climate is more arid and hail damage tends to be worse, Langerud said.

Hettinger County stopped participating in the program in 1988 after residents voted against it. But residents there believe cloud seeding in neighboring Bowman County is having an impact on their rainfall.

Were still affected by it even though we dont want it, Wert said.

Residents of Hettinger County are circulating a petition that will be presented to their county commissioners this week, seeking to to put an end to weather modification, said Kouba.

Our goal is to end weather modification in North Dakota all together, Kouba said. Its a waste of taxpayer dollars and its causing harm to the citizens.

But Langerud said theres no evidence that communities downwind from cloud seeding areas will receive less rain.

On the contrary, the studies indicate that if youre increasing rainfall in the target area, that increase in rainfall persists into the downwind areas, Langerud said.

Residents of Bowman County put the issue to a vote last year, with 70 percent of voters supporting cloud seeding. The program was on the ballot in Williams County in 2000 after a four-year trial period and 80 percent of voters supported it, Langerud said.

The last countywide votes on this program have been very positive, he said.

The Ward County Commission recently voted to suspend cloud seeding. But the Ward County Weather Modification Board has the authority to decide whether to abide by that or not, said state's attorney Roza Larson.

After receiving many comments on cloud seeding, Burgum directed State Engineer Garland Erbele to compile research on weather modification and present at the next State Water Commission meeting, scheduled for Aug. 23.

During the commission's emergency meeting, Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring also said it will be good to have more discussion on the program.

There is some misconception out there and there might be some validity of some of the concerns, Goehring said.
How do we change the world? One random act of kindness at a time. Kindness is a gateway for all of us to connect and care for each other.  Morgan Freeman Whether its a supporting...

MAKING CONNECTIONS Editors note: The following random acts of kindness were emailed or called into County Press editor Jeff Hogan at jhogan@mihomepaper.com. The following acts of kindness experienced by County Press readers...

Ed-Tech students connect with community ATTICA TWP.  The Lapeer County Education and Technology Center (Ed-Tech) is a place where students can get a taste of the career opportunities that exist in their field of...
Speaker off to Singapore



Jatiya Sangsad Speaker and Chairperson of Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury left Dhaka on Sunday for Singapore to attend different programmes of the CPA.

"The speaker will join different CPA programmes from August 7 to 12 organised by CPA branch in Singapore," said an official release, adding that she will also meet with veteran parliamentarians of Singapore during her visit.

Senior Secretary of the Parliament Secretariat Dr M Abdur Rab Hawlader and other senior officials saw the speaker off at Hazrat Shahjalal  International Airport.
Ambassador of European Union Pierre Mayaudon makes a courtesy call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office on Sunday. PID photo
Rouhani, embarking on second term, accuses Trump over nuclear deal

Reuters, London :

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who was sworn-in for a second term on Saturday, has accused the United States of trying to undermine Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers, telling President Donald Trump that it will be his political suicide.

Rouhani, who was decisively re-elected in May after promising to open Iran to the world, took the oath of office before parliament in Tehran in the presence of foreign dignitaries including senior European figures.

"The U.S. lack of commitment to implementation of the nuclear deal ... proved it to be an unreliable partner to the world and even to its longtime allies," Rouhani said in a ceremony broadcast live on state television.

The deal he championed with the United States and five other major powers in 2015 led to the lifting of most sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

Rouhani has intensified efforts to protect the deal - the biggest achievement of his first term - against Washington's return to an aggressive Iran policy.

In comments aimed at Trump, Rouhani said: "Those who want to tear up the nuclear deal should know that they will be ripping up their own political life."

The U.S. Senate voted in late July to impose new sanctions on Iran over its missiles programme and human rights issues.

"Iran would not be the first to pull out of the nuclear deal, but it will not remain silent about the U.S. repeated violations of the accord," Rouhani said.




Make better use of water

This very fact has been clearly stated in the Valuing Water Preamble and principles that have been on the table of the fifth round of meetings of the High Level Panel on Water (HLPW), which took place in Bangladesh on 31 July.

The HLPW has been convened by both UN Secretary-General and World Bank Group President, to accelerate a change in the way governments, societies, and the private sector use and manage water.

Bangladesh has been chosen as one of the several countries to host a HLPW consultation meeting that aims at providing the leadership required championing a comprehensive, inclusive, and collaborative way of developing and managing water resources, and improving water and sanitation related services, reports the Global Water Partnership (GWP), which participated in the meeting.

GWP is a global action network with over 3,000 Partner organisations in 183 countries. The network has 86 Country Water Partnerships and 13 Regional Water Partnerships.

The purpose of the consultations is to obtain views from a wide array of country level stakeholders on the proposals from the HLPW on the Valuing Water Preamble and principles. As well, the Consultations aims to build awareness and examine the regional/country level relevance of global perspectives, and provide inputs, options and recommendations that will enhance resolutions from the HLPW.

The HLPW is aimed at developing a set of shared principles to motivate and encourage governments, business and civil society to consider water's multiple values and to guide the transparent incorporation of these values into decision-making by policymakers, communities, and businesses.

Members of the HLPW are Heads of State from Australia, Bangladesh, Hungary, Jordan, Mauritius (co-chair), Mexico (co-chair), Netherlands, Peru, Senegal, South Africa, and Tajikistan.

Water, more than a substance

The Valuing Water Preamble include eight key values and facts:

1. Water is precious, fragile, and dangerous. It can sustain or destroy. Water in combination with land, air, and energy is the foundation of life, societies and economies.

Water is more than a substance. It carries multiple values and meanings. These are expressed in spiritual, cultural and emotional terms and found in the heritage of water language, norms and artefacts.

These reflect the deep perceptions, need for connections and participation of all of society.

Making water available for its many uses and users requires tools and institutions to transform it from a natural resource to one providing services and then to recover and return it safely back to nature.

Water and its sources must be respected, because if neglected it has the power to harm, divide or even destroy societies.

2. Making all the values of water explicit gives recognition and a voice to dimensions that

This is more than a cost-benefit analysis and is necessary to make collective decisions and trade-offs. It is important to lead towards sustainable solutions that overcome inequalities and strengthen institutions and infrastructure.

3. The Valuing Water Initiative of the High Level Panel on Water is a collaborative process aimed at building champions and ownership at all levels. It presents a unique and mutually reinforcing opportunity to meet all 17 of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Access to water services is necessary for equitable and inclusive human development.

This is why the United Nations has recognized universal access to clean, safe drinking water and sanitation as a fundamental human right. Increasingly countries and communities have also recognized the rights of nature.

4. Water resources are finite and are under threat from multiple pressures.

History has been defined by people working together to manage water resources and deliver their services to growing populations.

Today, the world's freshwater systems are facing a growing crisis, these challenges are compounded by extreme events, droughts and floods. Demands are growing from a rising population.

Water sources are threatened by overuse, pollution and climate change.

Billions of people lack access to safe water and sanitation services. Water is essential for human health, food security, energy supplies, sustaining cities and the environment.

5. Valuing water means recognising and considering all the benefits provided by water that encompass economic, social and ecological dimensions.

It takes many forms appropriate to local circumstances and cultures. Safeguarding the poor, the vulnerable and the environment is required in all instances.

6. Valuing water can help balance the multiple uses and services provided by water and inform decisions about allocating water across uses and services to maximise well-being.

Allocation can take different forms, such as regulation and economic instruments that signal scarcity, avoid waste and promote conservation. Valuing water can make the cost of pollution and waste apparent and promote greater efficiency and better practices.

Any use of water relies on infrastructure, green or grey. Pricing is not synonymous with value but is one way of covering costs, reflecting part of the value of these uses, and ensuring adequate resources and finance for related infrastructure services.

7. Effective water management presents a transformative opportunity to convert risk to resilience, poverty to well-being, and degrading ecosystems to sustainable ones. This requires finding ways to collaborate across sectors, communities and nations to manage water more effectively.

8. There is an urgent need for action at scale.

We live in a time of tremendous change and innovation, opening a world of possibilities: ending poverty, managing risks, boosting shared prosperity, and underpinning ecological, economic and social well-being.

Bellagio Principles on Valuing Water

The Bellagio Principles on Valuing Water set the following five main principles:

Recognise Water's Multiple Values

Principle 1. Consider the multiple values to different stakeholders in all decisions affecting water.

There are deep interconnections between human needs, economic well-being, and spirituality and the viability of freshwater ecosystems that must be considered by all

Build trust

Principle 2. Conduct all processes to reconcile values in ways that are equitable, transparent, and inclusive of multiple values.

Trade-offs will be inevitable, especially when water is scarce.

Inaction may also have costs that involve steeper trade-offs. These processes need to be adaptive in the face of local and global changes.

Protect the sources

Principle 3. Value and protect all sources of water, including watersheds, rivers, aquifers and associated ecosystems for current and future generations.

There is growing scarcity of water. Protecting sources and controlling pollutants and other pressures are necessary for sustainable development.

Educate to empower

Principle 4. Promote education and public awareness about the essential role of water and its intrinsic value.

This will facilitate better-informed decision-making and more sustainable water consumption patterns.

Invest and innovate

Principle 5. Increase investment in institutions, infrastructure, information and innovation to realize the full potential and values of water.

The complexity of the water challenges should spur concerted action, innovation, institutional strengthening and re-alignment.

These should harness new ideas, tools and solutions while drawing on existing and indigenous knowledge and practices in ways that nurture the leaders of tomorrow.

The High Level Panel on Water (HLPW) held its previous meetings in South Africa on 30 May; in Tajikistan on 6 July; in Mexico on 24 July, and in Bangladesh on 31 July. Peru will be the venue for the sixth session to be held on 16 August.

The Global Water Partnership is set to plays an active role during the Stockholm World Water Week (27 August to 1 September). This year's theme is "water and waste - reduce and reuse".



- IPS World Desk
The world will now have to combat climate change without America

AT long last, the worst in tackling global climate change is happening. The Trump administration has formally notified withdrawal from the 2015 Paris climate agreement. However, the US State Department has said the US will still take part in international climate negotiations until the final withdrawal in a process that will continue at least 2010.



America's pullout from the Paris deal is definitely a bad news for countries in the firing line or directly being the victim of global warming and climate change. Bangladesh is one such country experiencing severe negative changes in its climactic patterns. As one of the largest recipients of global climate fund Bangladesh is now likely to suffer from funding shortage of climate change related projects. America was so far leading the global consortium engaged in addressing climate change issues and funding.



The US notification of leaving Paris climate agreement came at a time when vast areas of southern Europe sweltered in a heat wave early this weak claiming several lives and damaging billions of dollars worth of crops to foretaste the worse in coming decades. Scientists warned deaths due to extreme weather in Europe could increase fifty-fold from an estimated 3,000 per year recently to 152,000 by the end of this century - if global warming are not reined in. The State Department however said the US was still committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and remain engaged with the international community in combating climate threats.



Climate experts however fear America's pulling-out would artificially create a polarisation between the USA and the rest of the world. Domestically it is already creating divisions and disruptions within America. Nevertheless, the ray of optimism now lies with American people, not in the hands of their whimsical president. Americans still believe despite the withdrawal, US carbon emissions will continue to drop as the bulk of its energy production is now powered by gas, not by coal.



From a corporate perspective, Mr. Trump action is poised to isolate many American run global business houses. So one of the strongest voices in favour in the Paris deal is undeniably coming from corporate America. What is heartening, leaders of big US business houses such as Google, Apple and major fossil fuel producers are calling on Mr. Trump to stick to the Paris climate deal but like many of his ignorant refusals he is continuing to ignore them.



The picture, however, is not all too bleak since China has rapidly re-affirmed its commitment to the Paris accord with a fresh pledge of cooperation to work with EU leaders to cut carbon emissions. India too. So more than getting frustrated it is important for world leaders to collectively gather for battling the menaces of climate change without the US. That said - it is least likely that Mr. Trump would come to his good senses any time soon.
LITTLE FALLS, Minn. -- Charles Kapsners art studio is impressive with walls covered in portraits and elegant nudes.

His seven years of training in Italy -- including at the Universita Internazionale dell Arte in Florence -- is readily apparent while looking at his work. Moving away from the walls, one can see shelves full of books on the old masters, expensive tubes of paint and an M16 assault rifle balanced on the arms of a chair.

Kapsner is working on the fourth of five 8-foot-by-10-foot paintings honoring each major branches of the U.S. armed forces, to be placed in the rotunda of the committal hall at the Minnesota Veterans Cemetery at Camp Ripley. The painting in progress honors the U.S. Marine Corps, and like the earlier paintings in the series that depict the Army, Navy and Coast Guard, its composition combines three major elements: symbolism, the unique history of the particular branch, and contemporary real-life faces of service. In order to do justice to each branchs identity, Kapsner took pains to complete each painting one at a time, researching each of the branches in consultation with historians.

You have five very distinct cultures, Kapnser said.

All five of the paintings were sketched out in 2009, but the final products have varied significantly from the initial ideas.

Kapsner integrated his artistic speciality of classical portraits into the project, depicting models who posed for him in his studio while clad in military uniforms. One area that would otherwise have shown a Marine kicking in a door will now instead show a portrait of Maj. Holly Zabinski, a Marine aviator that Kapsner met in Quantico, Va. Zabinski is now training to fly the V-22 Osprey, the militarys plane/helicopter combination that is also depicted on the painting.

On Monday, ex-Marine reservist Cory Engen was modeling for Kapsner while dressed in battle dress uniform and the classic jarhead uniform cover, or hat. Currently, he works at the cemetery, helping to inter the very same veterans who will rest near the paintings. The painting will help the public understand the Marine Corps history, which often goes unnoticed when the group is discussed, he said.

Theyre first to fight, he said of the Marines identity.

Modeling is all right, Engen said, although his leg did fall asleep at one point.

Historic photos of USMC soldiers in action provided a solid grounding for the artwork, in moments Marines actually experienced. The vignettes include a group of Marines marching while facing away from the viewer, and the flag raising on Mount Suribachi during World War II. Kapsner plans to use soil taken from Mount Suribachi itself and mix in the paint when he creates the Iwo Jima flag raising portion of the painting.

The USMC painting also exemplifies Kapsners objective of incorporating the issues that face veterans into the artwork. A skull with a separated jaw bone symbolizes missing in action soldiers whose remains are still unaccounted for. A handgun lying in the foreground of the painting with a discharged shell casing is intended to symbolize military suicides, he said.

Kapsner is in the sepia underpainting stage on the Marine painting, where he takes the grid established in his sketch and then transfers it onto the larger Belgian linen canvas on which the painting itself will go. He uses charcoal to form the outline of the images and then covers it in turpentine to seal the charcoal dust. This stage allows Kapsner to see how the light source in the painting affects the images: how each part of the painting will be illuminated by the light from the upper left-hand corner.

The Coast Guard painting was installed in January 2016, and Kapsner anticipates completing the Marine painting next spring. Commissioned by the Minnesota Veterans Cemetery, the cost of Kapsners work was projected at the outset of the series in 2009 as nearly a half-million dollars. The paintings are funded not by public state dollars, but by private donations from nonprofit groups, corporations and individuals.
12 gold bars recovered in Ctg Airport

Chittagong Bureau :

Officials of Customs Intelligence Department , Chittagong recovered 12 gold bars from a Dubai returned passenger at Chittagong shah amanat international airport on Friday. The approximate cost of the gold bar is about Tk.70lakh. Customs Intelligence officer g Wahiduzzaman Khan told that passenger Abdur Rahim arrived Chittagong airport on Friday in a Air Arfabia flight.

After searching the baggage of the said passenger , these gold bars of 1.400 kgs recovered . But the owner the baggage fled away mysteriously , sources said.




Ex-CMCH official sued

Chittagong Bureau :

The Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH) authority filed a case against its recently retired Assistant Director Dr Sheikh Mohammed Jamal Chowdhury for giving opportunity to the prime accused of the most sensational cocaine case Nur Mohammed to stay at the VIP cabin.

The Administrative Officer of CMCH Pronob Kumar Hawladar, on behalf of the authority, filed the case with Panchlaish thana on Thursday evening. The FIR mentioned that "the then Assistant Director Dr Sheikh Mohammed Jamal Chowdhury directed the people concerned for allocating the 22 number VIP cabin of Ward number 29 of Chittagong Medical College Hospital for the prime accused of the most sensational cocaine case Nur Mohammed."

Officer in Charge of Panchlaish thana Mohiuddin Mahmud said, "The case was filed under Anti Corruption Act. So, I have to send the case to Anti Corruption Commission for investigation."

The Joint Secretary of Health and Family Welfare Ministry A K Fazlul Haque sent a letter on July 10 to the Director of CMCH. In the letter, Fazlul Haque wrote that Dr Chowdhury intentionally provided the cabin of CMCH to the accused, which is a criminal offence. So, legal step should be taken against him."

Following the letter, Director of CMCH Brigadier General Mohammed Jalal Uddin issued another letter on July 26 last to file the case against Dr Chowdhury in this regard.

Sources said , Nur Mohammed was staying at the VIP cabin from May 14, 2016 to February last by the assistance of some physicians and one incumbent leader of Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA).

Despite the request by the Chittagong Central Jail authority, the influential BMA leader and concerned medical officers did not release him. Instead, violating government rule they provided all support to Nur Mohammed. Sources said, meanwhile, the ministry has made four officials, including the Deputy Director of Chittagong Medical College Hospital, Officer on Special Duty (OSD) on July 27 after further investigation into it.

The officials were Deputy Director Dr Muhammed Didar Ul Islam, Medical Officer of Outdoor Dr Mohammed Enamul Hasan, Medical Officer of Medicine Outdoor Dr Rajubul Hasan and Register of Neuron Medicine Dr Jaman Ahamod. The Joint Secretary of Health Ministry A K M Fajlul Haque sent a letter of transfer to the said four physicians at the Health Department at Mohakhali in Dhaka.
Sixty BD nat`ls held in KL

Staff Reporter :

More than 700 illegal workers including Bangladeshi men were held in Malaysia in last two days. The actual number of detained Bangladeshi workers could not be known yet, sources said.

The Malaysian immigration department conducted the raids on Saturday and Sunday against illegal foreign workers at Kotaraya Bangla Market and Masjid India in Kuala Lumpur.

On Saturday, the immigration department picked up more than 500 foreigners working illegally there.

The police also detained over 200 illegal workers on Sunday.

Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali, the Director General of the Immigration Department of the country led the raids.

Police and other law enforcers agencies also propelled the raids on Sunday at 12:00pm.

"Few employers violating laws appointed illegal foreign workers in their companies for cheap wages. It was clear violation of rules. We have conducted drives against those illegal workers as a routine work," Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali said.

He said, "Some miscreants are involved with illegal activities using foreign workers. The country never allowed it in the past. We will continue such raids."



He warned those who are behind illegal activities.

Witnesses said the police and other law enforces have strengthened surveillances against the foreign workers suddenly. After 12:00pm, the officials started the raids.

Police and immigration officials said that there were Bangladeshi, Nepalese, Indian, Sri Lankan, Vietnamese and other nationals, including the detained workers.
Govt gets 2 more weeks to publish gazette notification

The Supreme Court on Sunday gave the government two weeks' more to publish the gazette notification on the rules determining discipline and conduct of lower court judges.

The 6-member bench of the Appellate Division, led by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha, passed the order following a time petition filed by Attorney General Mahbubey Alam in the morning.

The attorney general sought four weeks time before the court to publish the gazette notification.

On July 30, the apex court declined to accept the draft of the disciplinary rules and code of conduct for lower court judges which was earlier submitted by the Law Minister to the Chief Justice, and proposed a meeting with the government to settle the issue.

Earlier on several occasions, the apex court expressed dissatisfaction at the government's failure to issue the gazette notification.

On July 2 the SC gave two more weeks to issue the gazette.

On May 29, the apex court gave two more weeks to issue the gazette.

On May 15, the SC gave two more weeks to issue the gazette.

On May 8, the SC gave one more week to issue the gazette.

On April 4, the SC extended time up to May 8 in this connection.

On March 14, it extended the time by two weeks for issuing the gazette.

Before that, the court, on February 27, gave the government two weeks to publish the gazette as it failed to publish it in time.

On February 5, the court ordered the authorities concerned to issue the gazette notification by February 12.

On November 24, 2016, it gave the government one week to publish the gazette notification.

The lower judiciary was officially separated in November 2007 but the disciplinary rules for lower court judges are yet to be formulated.

On December 2, 1999, the Supreme Court in the Masdar Hossain case issued a seven-point directive, including formulating separate disciplinary rules, for the lower court judges.

The Law Ministry on May 7, 2015 sent a draft of the rules to the Supreme Court which is similar to the Government Servants (Discipline and Appeal) Rules 1985.
Big gold haul at HSIA

Customs officials at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport busted a 31 gold consignment from a man who arrived from Singapore on a wheelchair on Sunday.

Staff Reporter :

Customs officials in separate drives seized 256 gold bars weighing 31 kg at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) in nine hours since Saturday night.

The seized gold bars are worth about Tk 15.5 crore.

They detained Jamil Aktar, 48, who hailed from Nilphamari district, customs official said.

Acting on a tip-off, the preventive team of Customs House detained Jamil Aktar with 250 pieces of gold bars weighing around 25 kg when he arrived from Singapore by a Singapore airways flight around 11:00 pm on Saturday, said HM Ahsanul Kabir, Assistant Commissioner of customs department.

The customs officials detained Jamil while he was passing through green channel at the airport on a wheel chair with the gold bars worth around Tk 12.5 crore, the customs official said.

Jamil is being interrogated in this connection, he said.

Meanwhile, the custom officials also recovered six kg of gold from the toilet of an aircraft in an abandoned condition at the same airport this morning.

Tipped off, the preventive team conducted a drive in the flight of US Bangla Airlines and recovered the six gold bars, weighing 1 kg each, soon after it was landed at the airport around 7:45am on Sunday, said Ahsanul Kabir.

The gold was in the toilet in three bundles wrapping with black colored tape. However, there is no arrest in this connection, he said.


9 warehouses, 7 rice, flour mills burn to ashes

A devastating fire gutted atleast nine warehouses, three rice mills, four flourmills including grocery shops, traders\' cash money at Chaktai wholesale market in the Port city Chittagong early Sunday.

Staff Reporter :

At least nine rice warehouses, stocks of three rice mills and four flour mills were burned to ashes at Chaktai wholesale market in the port city Chittagong early Sunday.

According local fire service and civil defence, a total of its 12 fire fighting units brought the devastating fire under control after seven hours of frantic efforts around 11:30am.

Meanwhile, a three-member committee has been formed to find out the reasons behind the fire and assess the damage caused by it, Deputy Director Chittagong Fire Service Mohammads Jasim Uddin told the media.

The fire was originated from a shop of the wholesale market and started engulfing one shop after another and also other establishments within moment, fire service sources said.

"We are ruined as the fire burned to ashes our cash money worth Tk 60 lakh, 20,000 sacks of rice, goods of seven rice and flour mills, and other valuables. Our all business establishments were also burned to ashes," Omar Azam, General Secretary of Chittagong Rice Traders Association, told journalists yesterday morning.

He said, "We do not know how we will be able to stand. We can only see a dark future ahead. How we will survive." Around 20,000 sacks of rice were burned to ashes. Of them, Satota Store had 500 sacks of rice, Shahnu Store 800 sacks of rice, Modina Rice Mill 2000 sacks of rice, New Azmeri Rice Mill 4000 sacks of rice, Mohammadia Trading 2000 sacks of rice, Harun Brothers 3000 sacks of rice and Zilani Rice Mills 4000 sacks of rice.

As Friday and Saturday are weekend days, the traders could not deposit their cash money to the banks. They had kept the cash money under lock and key at their respective iron lockers.

New Azmeri Rice Mill had kept Tk 15.70 lakh, Noor Store Tk 2.37 lakh, Haji B Zaman Traders Tk 45 thousand, Mohammadia Trading Tk 3.65 lakh, Harun Brothers Tk 3.50 lakh and Arafat Traders Tk 4.50 lakh.

Talking to the journalists Osman Goni, owner of Harun Brothers, said the wholesale market remained closed on Friday.

"We have collected our dues from the retailers of different hats and bazaars of all upazilas on Saturday to deposit those to the bank on Sunday. All cash money and important papers had been kept under lock and key at our iron lockers. The fire took away everything. As the fire also gutted our important papers into ashes, we will have to face serious difficulties. Actually, we are ruined now," he said.
Myanmar mainly permits eco-friendly, job-creating investments in Thilawa SEZ: official media

Xinhua, Yangon :

Myanmar said it mainly permitted investment which is eco-friendly and creates better job opportunities to local people in Thilawa Special Economic Zone (SEZ) which has 5,000 employees on the outskirts of Yangon, official media reported Saturday.

To date 84 companies have been permitted to invest in Zone A and the first phase of Zone B.

Of the Thilawa SEZ's total area of 2,400 hectares, 400 hectares, which represents Zone A, has been put into operation in September 2015.

Zone B with 101 hectares is set to be leased this year and is scheduled for completion next year.

Thilawa SEZ represents the first of its kind being developed in Myanmar with the other two-Dawei and Kyaukphyu SEZs being in progress.

Myanmar and Japan signed an agreement on Oct. 29, 2013 to set up the Thilawa SEZ which is operated by Myanmar-Japan Thilawa Development Company, a joint venture between Myanmar and Japan formed by two Myanmar companies and two Japanese companies sharing a ratio of 51 to 49. Foreign investment in the zone hit 1.7 billion U.S. dollars so far since the zone was launched four years ago.
Trump praises UN sanctions on N Korea over IBM tests

ABC News :

The Security Council unanimously approved the sanctions on North Korea, including banning coal and other exports worth over $1 billion.

The US-drafted measure, negotiated with North Korea's neighbour and ally China, is aimed at increasing economic pressure on Pyongyang to return to negotiations on its nuclear and missile programs.

Mr Trump wrote on Twitter that China and Russia voted with the US to pass what he called "the single largest economic sanctions package ever" on North Korea.

Mr Trump's national security adviser, HR McMaster, stressed in an interview that aired earlier in the day that it is "impossible to overstate the danger" posed by North Korea.

In an interview with MSNBC's Hugh Hewitt, Mr McMaster said Mr Trump has been "deeply briefed" on the strategy on North Korea.

Tensions have mounted with Pyongyang's two recent successful tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Mr McMaster reiterated the administration's position that all options, including a targeted military strike, are on the table.

Still, he acknowledged this "would be a very costly war, in terms of  terms of the suffering of mainly the South Korean people".

McMaster continued: "So what we have to do is - is everything we can to - to pressure this regime, to pressure Kim Jong Un and those around him such that they conclude it is in their interest to denuclearise."

The comments came as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was in the Philippines for a regional summit expected to focus heavily on concerns with North Korea.
AL leader killed in Jhenaidah

bdnews24.com :

A leader of the ruling party's affiliate body in Jhenaidah has been murdered in broad daylight.

Police said 30-year-old Firoz Hossain was attacked by unidentified men armed with sharp weapons.

Hossain served as the organising secretary of a ward unit of the Jhenaidah municipality Swechhasebok League.

Swechhasebok League is the volunteers' front of the Awami League.

Additional Superintendent of Police Sheikh Akbar Ali said that Hossain was attacked around 12pm on Sunday at the town's Tanpara neighbourhood.

"He was on his motorcycle, when five to six men attacked him with sharp weapons and fled. Locals rushed him to the hospital, where doctors declared him dead."
ACC helpless

City's canals, wetlands grabbed by influential quarters

The Anti-Corruption Commission [ACC] seems helpless in conducting drive against the influential persons who have encroached citys canals and wetlands to construct their projects, especially the housing, making the capital apparently waterlogged.

The ACC earlier had taken an initiative to collect detail information about the grabbers, but it failed due to severe obstacles from the politically influential persons. The anti-graft watchdog even did not get enough information as it had to depend on the officials of Dhaka district administration, Land Record and Survey Department and related ministries, sources said.

At present, I dont see any activity over such programme. I cant tell the exact condition of the initiative, ACC Deputy Director [Public Relations] Pranab Bhattachariya told The New Nation on Sunday.

Sources close to the ACC said that a three-member committee led by Deputy Director Saiful Islam was formed about three years ago to collect information in this regard. Later, another Deputy Director Md Zahangir Hossain was given charge as the chief of the committee to gear up the investigation. But this time also the committee failed to proceed.

Not only that, another high-powered six-member committee headed by a Joint Secretary of the Land Ministry was formed in 2010 to identify the grabbers who encroached canals and wetlands in the capital and its adjacent areas. The committee was also asked to identify the dishonest officials of the ministries concerned who leased and recorded the government khas land in the names of private owners.

The committee had indentified 212 officials of different ministries and departments allegedly involved in the land grabbing. But significantly, no action was taken in line with the committees findings.

ACC Chairman, Iqbal Mahmood, however refrained from making any comment over the issue despite repeated attempts last night.

But requesting anonymity a senior ACC official told The New Nation, Most of the canals in the capital are now grabbed by the influential quarters. These grabbers are directly or indirectly get patronization from the ruling party stalwarts. For that reason, it becomes hard to take tough action against the illegal grabbers.

In some areas, the government organizations, including RAJUK, WASA and BIWTA, took initiatives to get back the encroached canals by conducting drives. But all of their efforts went in vain as 60 percent to 80 percent of the canals were grabbed again just within a few months, the official said.

According to a survey conducted by Dhaka South and Dhaka North City Corporations, out of total 44 canals in the city, 35 have fully dried and encroached by the influential quarters.

In another report prepared by Dhaka District Administration and Dhaka Water and Sewerage Authority, only 13 canals now exist and these are also reducing in size day by day due to illegal grabbing. The canals are at Basabo, Begunbarai, Mohakhali, Kalyanpur [ka and kha], Abdullahpur, Ramchandrapur, Gulshan, Banani, Katasur, Ibrahimpur, Baunia, Diabari and Shahjadpur. But the land grabbers have encroached major portion of these canals in the meantime, officials said.

Meanwhile, the ACC has formed three special teams to take instant action after getting huge number of complaints about corruption.

Immediate actions will be taken against some disposable issues. We have formed three special teams.We want to work against corruption jointly according to the demand of the people, the ACC Chairman Iqbal Mahmud told the media recently.
3 pro-AL lawyers hold meeting with CJ

risingbd.com:

Three pro-Awami League (AL) lawyers have held meeting with the Chief Justice (CJ) Surendra Kumar Sinha.The hour-long meeting was held at the office of Chief Justice on Sunday noon.

Former Law Minister Barrister Shafique Ahmed, Former Law Minister and AL presidium member Abdul Matin Khasru and Advocate Yusuf Hossain Humayun, former President of the Bangladesh Supreme Court Bar Association were present in the meeting.

The Chief Justice urged the lawyers to keep role to remove the gap recently created between the Judiciary and the Executive Division. Shafique Ahmed said there should have not been any gap between the Judiciary and the Executive Division. The divisions should perform their works in compliance with the law and the constitution respectively.
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CAIRO  Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson said he plans to visit Cairo on Tuesday with an open mind because he wants to see for himself if theres anything that can be done to really salvage the situation.

You know, in medicine, many times I was confronted with a patient who was dying. We didnt just give up because the patient was dying, Carson told The Southern Illinoisan in a phone interview Thursday.

We did everything we could but we had to study the situation carefully and look and see if there were any alternatives, if there were things that could be done. Sometimes they would not be traditional things but they got done and in some cases we were able to save the patient and we need to look at it that way.

Carson, who ran unsuccessfully in the Republican presidential primary, spent his career working as a pediatric neurosurgeon prior to being tapped by President Donald Trump to oversee HUD.

An aide to Carson said he plans to travel to Cairo on Tuesday following a visit on Monday to East Chicago, where residents of a housing complex were relocated this past summer due to lead and arsenic contamination of the complex where they resided.

In Cairo, on April 10, HUD officials overseeing the Alexander County Housing Authority in administrative receivership announced that they would begin moving about 185 families  close to 200 people, about half of them children  from the 1940s era Elmwood and McBride housing complexes because they have fallen into extreme disrepair.

Many residents were taken aback by the decision. Some yelled and others cried at the town hall style meeting that lasted for several hours. Carson was not at the meeting, but other HUD officials told the residents that while they sympathized with their anger, sadness and frustrations, the decision was based on the fact that there is an extreme shortage of affordable housing options in the city, and that attempts to secure a private developer to partner with the government for new housing was unsuccessful because of Cairos devastated economy.

Carson said that concerning the housing situation in Cairo, which is unique from other housing crises in that the relocation of residents threatens to dismantle an entire city, he wanted to put his own eyes on the situation and hear directly from the people affected.

In addition to seeing if there are ways the situation can be salvaged, Carson said he also sees Cairo as a place that can serve as a learning tool for other similarly situated communities throughout the country.

Ive gotten a lot of second hand reports, seen a lot of pictures, read a lot of stories, and I want to see for myself whats going on because, you know, this could be an experience that will help us to be able to predict when things like this are going to happen, when communities are going to be placed into jeopardy, he said. And if we can learn some things there that will prevent that from happening to others that will be great.

Carson indicated that he is well aware of the strong desire expressed by some residents to stay put.

I think we need to be cognizant and respectful of the desire to stay, because some people, thats the only thing theyve ever known. The concept of moving away is a bit much for them to handle at this point, he said.

But his staff has said repeatedly that they studied this issue for more than a year, and explored all possible options. Maren Kasper, Carsons senior adviser on Cairo, also was on the phone call with the newspaper Thursday, and said that there has been some movement to provide additional housing in Alexander County. She said the ACHA, under HUDs control, desires to renovate several family units in nearby Thebes.

She said the ACHA has sent a letter to Alexander County Board Chairman Chalen Tatum asking for the board to consider turning over $400,000 in HUD Community Development Block Grants the county is sitting on to help the housing authority redevelop the Thebes complex. Reached on Friday, Tatum declined comment on the letter. It was unclear to the newspaper at deadline what options the ACHA had for renovating the Thebes complex if the county chooses not to partner in this endeavor. Further, while Thebes is in the county, the children who live there attend the neighboring Egyptian Community Unit School District 5 in Tamms.

I think one thing I would add is we are continuing to look at all the options we can and we are always willing to talk to partners that are looking to come to town, Kasper said. She also said that the ACHA is attempted to secure a buyer for a 10-unit complex HUD owns that was formerly known as the Ralph T. Stenger apartment complex. The Stenger complex had provided housing for people with mental disabilities, but they were evicted when the Delta Center closed in the fall of 2015. It has sat vacant since. The building's units would most likely be made available to seniors as none of the units are large enough to accommodate large families.

Asked if there was still the potential to provide for other more extensive housing options, particularly for families that include several children, Carson said, Theres always potential.

As Winston Churchill said, never give up.

Carson said hes looking forward to hearing from town leaders and others who may have outside-the-box ideas. Well you always keep an open mind, and you know, I would be interested in hearing from some of the people there too. If they have some good ideas, I want to hear them.

But he also said he is aware of the harsh economic realities facing Cairo and Alexander County. Youre looking at a community that has been going downhill economically not for just a few years. This has been going on for decades, he said.

He said the bottom line is you have to temper compassion with logic and common sense.

If you allow all of your decisions to be driven just by compassion, youre going to end up on the short end of the stick, he said. And if you allow everything to be driven by just logic, youre going to end up on the wrong end of the stick as well. So you have to merge those two things together. And thats what causes you to really want to look at all the possibilities  not simply to exclude something.
CARBONDALE  Three-year-old Maleah Meneses entered the mobile dental station, a toothbrush mirror in hand, trying to maneuver it just so, so she could see her mouth. She had no problems climbing into the dentist's chair, where Dr. Dennis Fredrickson examined her mouth and teeth, then sliding down and moving over to one of the dental hygienist's chairs, where her teeth were polished.

She was all smiles when she slid back off the high seat, small straight teeth all polished and ready for school, too.

"She's too excited," her mother, Ademi Meneses said. "She says, 'I'm going to school, I'm going to school.' Yes you are."

Little Maleah was among at least 70 children who, two hours into the event, had teeth examined and cleaned or polish and sealant applied during the dental clinic provided by Dental Safari Co. at the Carbondale Community Back to School Bash. The bash was co-hosted by Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church  where it was held  Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and The Women's Center, with support from several other organizations and individuals.

Dr. Fredrickson, a dentist at Dental Safari, oversaw Saturday's mobile dental clinic at the backpack giveaway, where estimates are that at least 1,000 children and their parents and others came for back-to-school supplies. In addition to tangible school supplies and dental exams, some youth walked away physical exams, and some parents, a sense of well-being.

In Illinois, students in kindergarten, second and sixth grades are required to have oral health exams by a licensed dentist, according to the Illinois State Board of Education. Pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and sixth- and ninth-graders in the state are also required to have physicals.

Kim Evans, who works with insurance processing for Dental Safari, said an exam, cleaning and fluoride treatment could cost around $155, with the cost of sealants application varying.

Oral health wasn't the only health being examined on Saturday.

One SIU Medical School staff member said this was the first time that doctors from SIU's School of Medicine offered physicals for free to youth. Offering the physicals, in two back rooms of the church, were Drs. Greg DeSimone, Kate Ehlbeck, Anwar Cameron, Jennifer Rose and Gritz Pierre.

Two rooms down, child-identification kits were made by Randy Mathis, the Community Resource Officer for the Carbondale Police Department.

Other groups also showcased their services and support, including The Women's Center, Shawnee Health Services, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority.

Dutifully crushing ice and scooping it into snow-cone cups and dousing that with a fruit-flavored syrup were pastor John Annable and a handful of members of University Baptist Church in Carbondale.

"Today is true community," said Tasha Rhymes, one of the event's organizers. "What you see before you is the true meaning of community, meaning when it takes a village to raise a child, the community has come together with supplies, their time, their talent financial backing. All of this is what it really boils down to when the community come together. I would definitely say God is well-pleased with today."
Pride honored by DSS

COLUMBIA -- The South Carolina Department of Social Services established a program to recognize staff members who perform their jobs exceptionally well, go above and beyond what is expected of them, and in doing so, demonstrates our core principles of competence, courage, and compassion. Eval Pride, administrative coordinator for economic services in Bamberg County, was one of four employees selected for July.

Pride is the business manager and human resources liaison for Bamberg County DSS. Her goal is to ensure the office runs effectively on a day to day basis and address any HR concerns that coworkers may have.

I make sure that my coworkers have what they need to provide services to the citizens of Bamberg County, she said. What is a typical day is for me? I remember asking that question in my interview and the management staff kind of chuckled. Now I know why. There is no such day as a typical work day or week for me. I normally come in and make my to-do list. Sometimes Im able to get everything done on my list and there are days when Im not able to complete anything on that list. But thats okay because at the end of the day if we have taken care of our clients my day has been a success. Being flexible has allowed me to be successful in my current position.

She has been with the Department more than 3-1/2 years. She resides in St. George.

Murph leads Science Academy

COLUMBIA -- The board of trustees of S.C. Science Academy announced Dr. Tim Murph as the new executive director/CEO for the 2017-18 school year. The board unanimously approved Murph.

Murph came to S.C. Science Academy in July 2016 as the schools director of instructional and operational Innovations. He earned his doctorate from South Carolina State University in 2006 and his education specialist and masters degrees from the University of South Carolina in 2004 and 2003 respectively.

SCSA is a middle/high charter school focused on a STEM-centered educational model and sponsored by the South Carolina Public Charter School District. The school is free to any S.C. resident between grades 6-12. The school is to open the 2017-18 on Aug 21. For more information visit www.scscienceacademy.org.

McMaster to deliver keynote

COLUMBIA -- The fourth annual South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo, which will be held on Aug. 29-31, at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center will feature a keynote address by Gov. Henry McMaster.

Designed to connect leaders from the private sector, academia and government, the three-day South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo features a business and workforce development track, a B2B matchmaking event, the ACE '17 technical symposium, an exhibit all with company and student presentations, and a variety of tours and workshops.

The South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo is organized by the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness and its SC Aerospace initiative; the USC College of Engineering and Computing and its McNAIR Center for Aerospace Innovation and Research; the South Carolina Department of Commerce; the South Carolina Aeronautics Commission; and the South Carolina Aviation Association.
Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.  Philippians 2:4-5.

Willie Mae Pauling says it was that mind which has helped her to live nearly a century. A life spent giving back to others and not simply looking out for her own self-interests is what has allowed God to bless her, she says.

Pauling, who will turn 100 on Aug. 21, reveres God and his impact on her life with a heart of thankfulness.

Im glad the good Lord spared my life to live that long. Hes my all in all. Hes brought me through the thick and thin, said Pauling, who resides at Pruitt Nursing Home on Whitman Street in Orangeburg.

She says she feels good and while she has a few aches and pains every now and then, its not bad.

Pauling recalls growing up in St. Matthews, where she and her siblings worked hard and were reared in a loving home. Their parents were the late Sam and Rachel Major.

My father was a farmer and worked on the farm. He did everything. When my mother was alive, she helped my father do things. Everything was good. We worked hard, but everything was good, Pauling said.

We chopped cotton, we picked cotton, picked peas. Everything you can name, we did, she says, smiling.

Pauling had eight siblings, four of whom are still living -- Robert Lee, Benjamin Franklin, Tinnie and Clottie. Her sister, Pearline, and brothers Arthur, Joseph and Fred Douglas are deceased.

While her mother died at an early age, she says her loving father provided for the family. While he was not a very strict disciplinarian, he kept things in order, she notes.

My mother died when we were young. My father took care of us. He was a young man, and anytime hed go out, hed tell us, Dont open the door for nobody. He was good to us. My father was a man who never beat his children, but he quarreled  he called it quarreling, Pauling says.

She adds, He never would beat us much but when he did beat you, you got a good one. He used to fuss, but he was good to his children. We worked hard. We had plenty to eat, a well in the yard, water to drink. My father would go to town and bring things back sometimes. He was good to us, but you had to do right.

She says her father often said he had no money when she and her siblings would ask him to bring them something back from town. She shared a story of how she and her sister, Tinnie, would investigate his claim.

When hed go to bed in the night, he had a little sack. He had money in his sack. And at night when hed go to sleep, Id say, Tinnie, go look for Papa sack and see if he got any money. And shed go get his sack.  It wasnt much, but we found it. Then shed put it back in his pants' pocket, Pauling recalls, laughing.

She also remembers walking miles to church and having to complete the housework her father expected to be done, including gathering water.

What has contributed to her longevity? Pauling attributes it to giving back to others throughout her life, including her mothers sister, who lived near her family in St. Matthews.

I did good things when I was growing up for different people. I helped my family. One of my aunts was living close to us. We helped her do things. Everybody would come by and ask us to do something for like the older people, and we did it, she says. We were always doing something for somebody.

Pauling recalls relocating to New York in the early 1940s, where she worked in housekeeping and at a paper factory. She says she made it her business to work and provide as much as she could for her family in the South.

When I went to New York, I helped my sisters and brothers do everything. When I wanted to get something for myself, I thought about them. I sent them money. All I wanted to do was help my family. I didnt send money for just one, but I waited until I could send to all, Pauling says. It wasnt much because it was so many. I had a large family.

She is the widow of the late Samuel Pauling, with whom she enjoyed traveling to such places as the Grand Canyon, Disney World, Hawaii, California, Canada and Atlanta, Georgia.

After I retired and wasnt working, I decided to come back home (to St. Matthews). I had two brothers still here and two sisters. They stayed there with my father for a while, then they went out on their own. Later on I moved to Orangeburg, Pauling notes.

She says she enjoys spending time with her family, including her church family at Bethlehem United Methodist Church in St. Matthews. She also enjoys other activities in her spare time.

I read my Bible and I read the paper, Pauling says, adding that she basically takes one day at a time.

I try to take care of myself. I really helped my brothers and sisters because we love each other. We still love each other, she says, tears streaming down her face.

Her sister-in-law, Mildred Major, says a pre-birthday celebration will be held for Pauling on Aug. 19 at the nursing home where she resides. She adds that appreciation will be shown for Pauling, who has given so much of her life to others.

We are so happy. Just like she said, she has helped a lot of people. Im an in-law, but she treats me like Im a sister or a daughter, and thats why Im sticking by her side," Major said. "She has been so good to us so she deserves people to be good to her."
CLEMSON  Hartsville High School junior Kerlyn Mondesir Jr. returned home ready to lead after a week on Clemson Universitys campus for the South Carolina 4-H Clementa Pinckney Leadership Conference.

The 16-year-old plans to pursue a career in government and work to improve the quality of life in disadvantaged communities. The Pinckney Conference was his first experience with 4-H.

I thought it was about farming, but its not. Its about improving yourself for the future, Mondesir said. Ive learned a lot about myself. Ive made a few good friends, also. I wish it was longer. I had a ball.

The weeklong 4-H Pinckney Leadership Conference brought 30 high school sophomores and juniors from across South Carolina to Clemsons campus to participate in numerous activities designed to promote teamwork, leadership and citizenship. They spent a morning whitewater rafting and an evening playing capture the flag. Educational sessions at the conference focus on understanding various leadership styles and getting to know themselves better. Each participant leaves the conference with a vision board, a plan to have a positive impact on their community.

South Carolina 4-H created the conference last year to honor the late Clementa Pinckney, the pastor and state senator who was among nine churchgoers killed in June 2015 during a Bible study group meeting at Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston. Pinckney was a strong advocate for 4-H, the youth development arm of Clemson University Cooperative Extension. Hes one of the organizations most notable South Carolina alumni. He received the 4-H Distinguished Alumni Medallion from the National 4-H Council last year.

Mondesir plans to join 4-H in Hartsville and continue to craft his skills in leadership and citizenship.

Fellow conference attendee Anaiya Whaley does as well. The 15-year-old sophomore at High School for Health Professions in Orangeburg said she aspires to be a government attorney.

I want to make a difference in my community so I came here, she said. I have learned so much about self-awareness, integrity, respect, teamwork and patience.

Mondesir and Whaley were named Most Valuable Leaders by conference counselors. Barbara Skipper of Columbia and Benjamin McIntosh of Darlington received the conferences character awards and Jasmine Blair of Lancaster was named most improved.

The weeklong conference culminated July 29 with a breakfast featuring keynote speaker Sen. Vincent Sheheen, Sen. Pinckneys desk-mate in the S.C. Senate. Sheheen told the students that true leaders cannot live in fear or hatred.

South Carolina 4-H offers the Pinckney Leadership Conference annually to rising South Carolina sophomores and juniors. Applications for the 2018 conference will be due in April.
CLEMSON  Several South Carolina high school students have earned scholarships and trips to Atlanta and Washington, D.C., for their hard work in South Carolina 4-H, which recognized members and volunteers at the 55th annual 4-H State Congress held at Clemson University.

More than 175 young people and their family members, Clemson Cooperate Extension agents and volunteers attended the event to celebrate 4-Hs dedication to learning, leadership and citizenship.

We are so proud of all of our 4-H members and thankful for the many county Extension agents and volunteers who bring 4-H programing to every county of the state, said Pamela Ardern, state 4-H program leader. State Congress is an opportunity to recognize all of that hard work over the past year, while offering 4-H members unique opportunities to continue their educational endeavors at National 4-H Congress and National 4-H Conference.

Carey Herndon of Bamberg County, Morgan McManus of Darlington County, MacKenzie Riley of Saluda County and Geneffer Sweatman of Colleton County received the organizations highest honor, the 4-H Presidential Tray. The Presidential Tray recognizes the top four senior 4-H members who are National 4-H Congress or National 4-H Conference alumni with outstanding accomplishments in 4-H leadership, citizenship and project work. The award includes a $1,500 educational scholarship.

National 4-H Conference winners recognized for outstanding achievement in leadership and citizenship are Savanna Hill of Florence County, Nikole Rivers of Dorchester County and Lindsey Scott and Sarah Shore of Saluda County. They will receive a $500 educational scholarship and attend the National 4-H Conference next April in Washington. The weeklong conference features numerous workshops and activities focused on personal development and encourages young people to connect, learn, engage, lead and impact their communities.

South Carolina 4-H State winners recognized for outstanding achievements in 4-H projects and activities are Stephanie Aull of Lexington County, Junelle Gray Johnson of Charleston County, Lindsey Scott of Saluda County, Meghan Sheets of Charleston County, Sarah Shore of Saluda County and Faith Whittemore of Charleston County. Each winner receives of $500 scholarship and will attend the National 4-H Congress in November in Atlanta, where theyll participate in educational workshops, team-building activities and community service projects.

Wilson Pressley of Spartanburg County received the Spirit of 4-H award, which recognizes a 4-H members commitment to the 4-H pledge: I pledge my head to clearer thinking, my heart to greater loyalty, my hands to larger service, and my health to better living, for my club, my community, my country, and my world. Pressley received a $500 scholarship.

Recipients of the Glen Krohn Volunteer Award are Melissa Brundage of Lee County and Edwin Terry of Laurens County.

South Carolina 4-H is the youth-development arm of Clemson University Cooperative Extension. Programs cover animal science, agriculture, science, engineering, natural resources, healthy living, leadership and much more. Participation in South Carolina 4-H has grown more than 20 percent over the past two years. Last year, more than 104,400 young people in kindergarten through 12th grades participated in 4-H programming, and more than 4,000 volunteers committed their time to support 4-H programs and events.
For the 30th consecutive year, the Regional Medical Center offered area students the opportunity to gain practical experience in a hospital setting through the Summer Enrichment Program sponsored by the RMC Auxiliary.

The Summer Enrichment Program would not be possible without the RMC Auxiliary and their support. We are grateful that the Auxiliary continues to provide this wonderful opportunity for young people in the community to pursue their interests in healthcare and create a valuable learning experience that will stay with them for the rest of their lives, said RMC Vice President of Strategy and Compliance Brenda Williams, MHA, FACHE.

For six weeks, each student works 20 hours a week and receives a stipend of $900 for the program duration. Students receive the opportunity to experience direct patient care, interact with physicians and nurses, learn about the many hospital departments, and are encouraged to focus on specific disciplines of healthcare that interest them during the program. Students must meet academic criteria to be accepted and must have declared a healthcare or healthcare-related major.

Two recent graduates of RMC's Summer Enrichment Program received scholarships toward pursuing healthcare careers. Jessica Ritter was awarded the 2017 Dr. Irene Myers Scholarship for $1,500. A graduate of Edisto High School, Ritter will attend the Clemson University Bridge Program with plans to major in biology and become an obstetrician/gynecologist. Lindsey Ott was awarded the 2017 H. Filmore Mabry Scholarship for $1,500. A graduate of Branchville High School, Ott attends Winthrop University where she majors in exercise science and plans to become an occupational therapist.

All participants of the SEP were eligible to apply for the Mabry Scholarship and the Myers Scholarship. The scholarships were awarded to the two students who best met established criteria and completed the 2017 Summer Enrichment Program.
Efforts to put a crimp in the growing risk of the spotted lanternfly to Pennsylvania's fruit and hardwood industry have gotten a boost from the federal government.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently awarded the state more than $1.86 million for activities to control the spotted lanternfly, and another $25,000 for public outreach. Control work began July 1, according to Shannon Powers of the state's Department of Agriculture. "USDA has since added $1 million for control efforts, as well as lending staff for control work at USDA expense," she wrote in an email Friday.

In addition to the control efforts, she said that the state ag department "has launched a social media campaign targeted at counties outside the quarantined area. Other public outreach is also underway," she said.

Here's a link to the Penn State Extension website on the insect.

The state's ag department held two meetings last week with various parties, according to Bonnie McCann, its communications director. About 20 people attended the training session on Tuesday, Aug. 1, she said. They were state employees from the Department of Agriculture, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and PennDOT, "who learned how to recognize spotted lanternflies, their biology, and mitigation treatment."

The session on Aug. 2 in Berks County attracted 15 participants from USDA-APHIS and a variety of state-level affiliates, colleges and universities, and a few ag commodity groups whose products could be impacted by the invasive pests. Larry Kennel from The Vineyard at Grandview in Mount Joy, Lancaster County, a member of the Pennsylvania Wine Association's board of directors, also attended because of the bug's risk to the state's nearly 14,000 acres of vineyards. Like the previous day, McCann said, "this session was an introductory workshop designed to train commodity specialists and regulatory officials from other states on recognition, damage, survey pathways, control techniques, outreach, and preparedness."

While the insect has been found in vineyards in six Eastern Pa. counties, the most serious concentration has occurred in Berks County. It's native to China, Vietnam and India and was first seen in the state in Berks County in September 2014, according to the state Department of Agriculture.

The insect feeds on the leaves and produces a clear, sugary waste product called honeydew. A sticky excretion, it can lead to the growth of what is known as sooty mold on grapevines and other plants, eventually killing them.

Jef Stebben is the winemaker at Maple Spring Vineyards in Bechtelsville, which recently won an award in a PWA competition judgeds by sommeliers for its Albarino, a dry white wine. Bechtelsville is in Berks County, about a half-hour east of Reading. He said the winery and its vineyards "are basically at Ground Zero" for the insect. "The original infection occurred about two miles from our vineyard, as the crow flies," he wrote in an email Friday. "Various universities have come out to examine our vineyard and assess the level of threat to Agriculture. Needless to say, we have a large population of the bugs. We are finding that our normal spray program does a fair job at taking care of the lanternfles in our vineyard, however, we end up having large populations in the vineyard because we can't control what happens in the woods around our property. There are a lot of wild Ailanthus trees and wild grapes in the area surrounding the vineyard [and all over the state, for that matter] that provide a nice habitat for the insect."

READ MORE: Little-known Pa. winery wins 'best white' award with - surprise - Albarino

Joanne Levengood, the winemaker and one of the owners at Manatawny Creek Winery, near Douglassville, said there's no shortage of the insect in their vineyards either. "I think the jury is still out on how big of a threat they are going to be to vineyards," she said.

Kennel's winery and vineyards are in Lancaster County, but certainly close enough to understand the proximity and its risk. He said that "researchers so far have not developed protocols to combat this invasive pest," making vineyards susceptible to serious damage. "One of the problems is that it can cause damage during the entire growing season since all stages of development feed on vines and a wide variety of other plants. Tests are just now being instituted to determine what insecticides are effective in treating the pest. We need to find an insecticide that kills the lanternfly without destroying the beneficial insects in the vine canopy." he said.

Levengood noted they have hesitated using the spray they have been advised to employ. "it's a pretty nasty pesticide - we don't want to use it," she said.

Another of the other Berks County wineries affected belongs to Blair Vineyards, outside Kutztown. "I am seeing them in my Stonehedge Vineyard in Rockland Township - they are starting to change from nymph to mature adults- meaning they are starting to fly around," owner and winemaker Rich Blair said in an email Friday. "I have not yet figured out to take care of them, except on a temporary basis - by spraying a insecticide. They will be a problem as we move into harvest - as we have to make sure we don't spread them into our Greenwich Township vineyard."

Stebben, at Maple Springs, said the agriculture department and Penn State Extension have come up with a method of using "bait" trees, where the majority of the Ailanthus trees are eliminated and the remaining treas are treated with a chemical that is poisonous to the insects but not to the tree. "This was somewhat successful, but, in my opinion, the population of the lanternflies seems to be growing much faster than the rate that they are affected by the bait trees."

The state Department of Agriculture has said in a press release that "this pest poses a significant threat to the state's more than $20.5 million grape, nearly $134 million apple, and more than $24 million stone fruit industries, as well as the hardwood industry in Pennsylvania which accounts for $12 billion in sales."

Kelly Murman, a graduate student in biology at East Stroudsburg University, volunteers with a collaborative effort by the U.S. and state departments of agriculture to study plants that the spotted lanternfly feeds on, according to a story last month on post-gazette.com.

The story noted she was "sampling black walnuts, hops, wild grapes and blueberries, all of which have economical and agricultural significance in the state."

The ag department has asked sighting of the bug to be reported either by email (badbug@pa.gov) or hotline at (1.866.253.7189).
Editor's note -- This column was originally published in the Aug. 31, 2014 edition of The Times and Democrat.

I had the opportunity to teach several classes on our campus, classes that focus on setting a course for your life, learning organizational skills, developing a purpose in life and establishing core values. I was there to demonstrate how students can find specific resources online and through the colleges electronic databases that will assist them in these tasks.

As usual, these classes tend to bring out the storyteller in me  relating personal stories to demonstrate that all successful people learn to do the very things these students are learning. As we have large numbers of what are referred to as non-traditional students, one of the stories I share is the decision I made to return to college at age 34 to pursue a masters degree.

I tell them, I finally realized, at 34, what I wanted to be when I grew up. This usually generates a little laughter from the class, but it also helps them know that not every person who looks successful always had it together  that most people travel different pathways to get where they finally end up, doing what they enjoy, and enjoying what they do.

I also challenge the students in these classes to seriously consider the dash in their lives. Each student has a personal identification number, which is two sets of numbers separated by a dash. The dash is important and must be included when students want to access electronic resources when they are off campus.

From this concrete example, I write on the board 1955-2055. I tell them if I live to be 100, these dates will be on my gravestone. The question then follows, What is the most important part of what you see on the board?

They take several attempts to answer until one of them finally says, the dash. But I dont leave it there with the right answer; I follow up with that age-old question, Why? Thats when they have to think, and thats when they have to dig deep to discover what the dash in their life span means and why it is so important.

When they come close to the concept, I take it from there and explain that the dash is symbolic of what they do with their life while they are on this earth. I ask them when George Washington was born. No one knows. I ask them when Martin Luther King Jr. was born. No one knows. I ask them why these men were important, and they know.

Building on my example, one of the teachers whose class I taught followed up by giving her students an assignment for their required journals.

Write down in your journal your birth year. Then write a dash. Then put todays date excluding the year, she instructed them. And for your journal assignment, I want you to think about what people would say about you if your life ended on Aug. 26 of any given year. Then I want you to record those thoughts in your journal.

I wish you could have seen the looks on those students faces. There were looks of anxiety and uncertainty. The younger, more traditional students have probably never considered that they are going to die. The older, non-traditional students appeared to have a better understanding but still looked pensive.

What a great assignment. What a great teaching and learning opportunity.

Have you considered your dash lately? What will they say about you?
State Sen. John W. Matthews says a key to economic growth in the African-American community includes using its resources to help the community.

Thats kind of a new strategy, to assess our communities and determine what we can do to improve the condition within our own community ourselves and better make the capital that we spend work better for us, the Bowman Democrat said.

Matthews was the keynote speaker at the 2017 African American Economic Summit held at Claflin University on Saturday.

The state chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People hosted the free event in partnership with the Claflin Business School. It was held under the theme Preparing African Americans for Todays Global Market.

Matthews said, The buying and spending power of African-Americans in the United States is greater than 75 of those countries that are in the United Nations. So capital is there. How do we figure out how to leverage and use our buying and spending power to improve the economic conditions in our community?

A report from the University of Georgias Center for Economic Growth reported that African-Americans buying power in the United States totaled approximately $1.3 trillion, but there is the potential for it to be as high as $7.4 trillion and create 7.1 million new jobs within their own community.

"If we really want to grow and sustain that growth, it has to be from within. We have to create that opportunity within our community based on the existing opportunities. We fail to do that," he said. "We're easy to fool and quick to follow and refuse to give our best back to our own communities.

When you look at this state, we only have about 44,000 minority businesses in this state. Most of those businesses are small businesses, he said.

The quality of service is the number one reason why they don't have repeat business, Matthews said. "Service has become a major issue."

He said a project to deepen the Charleston Harbor will help the states economic growth continue and the black community could tap into it for job gains.

Matthews said, "The other issue on the deep water port is where weve tried to develop a joint venture between Georgia and South Carolina to develop the Jasper Port, a project that is expected to create one million new jobs in the region.

When that happens, there will be five ports on the East Coast. To make that work, were going to create something called a freight corridor standing from Georgia to I-26 interchange and from Charleston to I-77. Thats where growth is going to be. And so as African-American entrepreneurs, we need to be able to look down the road and see where the jobs are coming from, where the economy is going and how you can benefit from it."

He said, But to do that, weve got to be able to strengthen black businesses, weve got to create real businesses that have bonding capacity, insurance on workers  and so far in our county weve only identified five contractors that meet that threshold.

And so part of that incubator responsibility is to begin to educate and make sure that black businesses have those resources, know where the jobs are and know what they've got to have in order to compete in that job market. And so growing our community is about understanding where we are, where the economys going and how we can fit into that economy, the senator said.

He said education also matters in the plan to grow the states economy and in order to create a competitive workforce, weve got to increase the number of African-Americans with a terminal degree by three fold and you dont have long to do that.

Part of our responsibility as African-American leaders is to understand the (educational) system and try to get our community to address those deficiencies in the system to make it work, he said, noting that poverty remains a major impediment in the black community.

He said the Orangeburg Regional Education and Economic CDC created a small business incubator that focuses on developing businesses in its service region.

The entity received a grant from the state Department of Commerce to create a Center of Innovation and Economic Development to see how we can best position our workforce for economic opportunities coming into the region.

To bring about changes in your community requires work. Showing up to the summit is good, but if you go back home and do nothing with it, youve not only have wasted your time, but youve wasted mine, he said.
Canada is facing an "unprecedented" number of asylum seekers, who have crossed the border from the United States, officials said.

"We've never seen those numbers," said Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) spokesman Claude Castonguay. "Even though our officers are patrolling 24 hours a day all year long, we've never seen such numbers coming in."

RCMP intercepted almost 7,000 asylums seekers in the last six weeks in Quebec.

Officials stressed that the influx can be handled and at no time has the security of the country been compromised.

But they cautioned that while Canada remains an open, welcoming country, crossing into it is not "a ticket for permanent residence."

"Coming to Canada, asking for asylum in Canada is not a guarantee for permanent residence in Canada," said Louis Dumas, spokesman for the immigration ministry in a Thursday press conference.

About 80 to 85% of the asylum seekers are of Haitian descent, according to RCMP.

The number of people intercepted in Quebec has soared in recent months from 781 in June and 2,996 in July to 3,800 as of August 15, according to RCMP.

Dispelling misleading information

Officials also tried to clear up misinformation spreading through social media and WhatsApp that claimed Canada is inviting people to claim asylum, reported CNN's partner CBC.

"It is not a message from the government of Canada," Dumas said. "Strict processes are in place for all people claiming asylum, regardless of how they enter into Canada."

He said 50% of Haitians who requested asylum in 2016 had their claims rejected.

Quebec's premier Philippe Couillard had posted on his Facebook last week that it was a "very delicate situation."

"It is unfortunate that these very vulnerable people were convinced that admission as a refugee in Canada and here in Quebec would be simple, even automatic. That's not the case at all. There is no guarantee that asylum applications will be accepted, given the strict rules that govern them."

Why Haitians are leaving the US

Many Haitians have headed to Canada over concerns that they'll lose their temporary protected status or TPS, in the US.

Shortly after the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti, the Obama administration granted Haitian immigrants -- who had already been living in the US -- with temporary protected status.

The program allowed them to work and shielded them from deportation. It also provided them temporary refuge considering that Haiti had suffered one of the deadliest earthquakes in history, and the country was seen as too unstable for people to return.

The program had since been repeatedly renewed. But earlier this year, Department of Homeland Security officials said conditions in Haiti were improving since the earthquake -- and that the program could be terminated next year.

DHS officials urged Haitian recipients to prepare for the program's potential expiration in January 2018.

This has sent a wave of Haitians across the northern border. Many of them have expressed concerns they'll be deported if they stay in the US.

But Canada ended its version of a program that was similar to the TPS for Haitians last year, the CBC reported. This means Haitians without status can be deported from Canada.

Many asylum seekers have headed for Quebec where Montreal has a large Haitian community.

Amid the influx, asylum seekers are being sheltered at Olympic Stadium, where Montreal had hosted the summer games in 1976.

Taking their chances

Experts have cautioned that it's not so easy to meet government requirements under Canadian asylum laws. They have said the fear of deportation from the United States isn't enough to make an asylum case in Canada. The process of making a case through the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada can take months and end in rejection.

But hundreds of people are taking their chances.

In the border town of Champlain, New York, taxis arrive continuously as asylum seekers haul their belongings and help their children cross into Canada.

Just footsteps away, the Canadian Border Services Agency have sent up tents where officers process the new arrivals, reported CNN affiliate WPTZ. The number of people arriving has created a bottleneck at the border with more than 1,000 people waiting to be processed, according to the RCMP.

As of July, Canada processed 21,695 refugee claimants, according to government figures. It's already 90% of the total number that officials registered last year.

CNN's Julian Cummings and Jethro Mullen contributed to this report.
Cindi Ross Scoppe is one of the most important people in South Carolina. And she has recently put forward one of the most important ideas for this state  perhaps the most important  for the last generation or so.

Now I know that sounds like extreme hyperbole, but bear with me on this one, I think Im right.

First, about Scoppe and her idea.

She is the editorial writer for The State newspaper in Columbia. On a personal level, I dont really know her very well. Over the years we have had a lunch or two and talked on the phone some. She has been kind enough to publish some of my columns  but thats about it.

When I googled her, I learned that she grew up on a tobacco farm outside of Burlington, N.C., went to UNC at Chapel Hill and worked on a couple of newspapers in North Carolina. She has won a boatload of journalism and civic awards from state and national organizations for her work.

Her bio on The State website says She is a lover of cats and a baker of cakes and volunteers with the (Episcopal Church) parishs annual mission work trip to Appalachia.

But most importantly, she has covered state government and the General Assembly since 1988, first as a reporter and now as an editorial writer. She focuses on tax policy, public education, election and campaign finance law, the relationship between state and local government, the relationship between the people and their government, the judiciary and the executive branch of government.

In short, she knows more about state government, politics, politicians and policy than just about anyone in South Carolina.

I dont always agree with Scoppe, but I always read her as she is insightful, poignant and from my perspective most importantly, her heart is in the right place and she has the right values.

Now, about her idea.

A few weeks ago, Scoppe wrote a column with this headline, Imagine if we built a brand-new school system for South Carolina. The first paragraph read, LETS TRY an experiment: Let your guard down, pretend everyone is acting in good faith, and imagine were creating a brand-new public school system  using all of our knowledge and experience but no allegiance to the existing system.

She then walked through each of the major issues that have crippled education in this state for the last generation  lack of funding, too many school districts, teacher quality and pay, inequality based on race and geography, course offerings and administrative structures, etc. In each area, she identified the problem and in broad terms outlined the solution.

The overarching theme  and the essence of its radicalism (and it is radical) is the first word of her columns title  imagine.

In that one simple word, imagine, Scoppe has identified the problem and the solution. It is a lack of imagination on the part of lawmakers and educators and the great potential of what we could do if we set aside all the problems of what is and simply imagine what could be.

Robert Kennedy expressed the same idea in a different way when he often quoted George Bernard Shaw, Some men see things as they are and ask why, I dream things that never were and ask why not.

We in South Carolina have suffered from an utter lack of imagination.

Scoppes thesis is that we should identify the problems, develop the best possible solutions and then do it  whatever it takes, no matter what the cost.

Instead, today we begin with a broken system, suffer from a General Assembly that is dominated by small-think and refuses to act  and then they force us to settle for continuing poor schools and uneducated children. And we have.

All across the country, other states are improving their educational system but not in South Carolina. Were not even close. We are at the bottom and heading in the wrong direction.

Scoppes idea is truly big, bold and radical.

Some would argue its too big, too bold and too radical and we should not take the risk. My response is to ask what do we have to lose? If our schools are rated the worst in the country  and they are  then why not try something big, bold and radical.

To return to Scoppes inspiration  imagine.

Imagine  that there was a grassroots, bottom up reinvent education movement that produced a plan developed by the people and then they demanded that the so-called political and education leaders do it.

Imagine  how we could transform education if everyone  students, parents, teachers, community  got really, really excited about this big and bold initiative and then they went to work in their local schools to make it happen.

Imagine  that the business community got involved and provided resources and created apprentices and connections and pathways for a smooth transition for students from schools to careers.

Imagine  that South Carolina became known nationally and even globally not for having the worst schools in the country but as the state with the biggest and boldest ideas to reinvent education in the globally connected, digital world of the 21st Century.

While I breathe I hope.
Lake Marion High School graduate Ehime Ohue attends Duke University on a full ROTC scholarship.

That alone might be enough to say she is a top student, but she says not  and in a national forum states she feels unprepared compared to other students at Duke.

While some students being ahead of others is expected in any educational setting, Ohues assessment of her situation gained a high profile via The Washington Post because she points to inferiority in her education.

Ohue of Sumter, a rising sophomore at Duke, originally wrote a paper for her "Introduction to Human Rights" class. When it appeared in the Washington newspaper on July 6, the article was headlined "At Duke, I realized how badly many South Carolina schools are failing students like me.

She opens by saying she heard from other students at her high school homecoming that Lake Marion does not prepare you for college!

She agrees.

This failure does not fall solely on my alma mater, Lake Marion High. The state of South Carolina perpetuates whats called the Corridor of Shame, a string of rural school districts where students receive inferior educational opportunities.

 I now see what the phrase means. I was educated in one of those districts from Head Start to 12th grade. I know firsthand the issues these students face.

She cites deficiencies beginning in kindergarten, where her teacher quit. She does not blame other teachers for quitting along the way as well, citing a disparity in pay from $3,000 to $12,000 a year compared to other districts.

She continues: High school was where I really noticed the disparities. We didnt have enough math teachers and barely enough working calculators. When the school added the International Baccalaureate program, the first class of students completed the program, but none were awarded the diploma. I enrolled the second year the program was offered, and our math teacher was still undergoing training. When he announced he would not be returning, training had to start again for another teacher.

Two AP classes were announced my senior year, but were scheduled at the same time. We were considered a technology center, but our computers were always down. Many of my peers ended up dropping out or flunking out of college. And my school is considered one of the best in the region.

Lake Marion High is in Orangeburg County Consolidated School District Three, one of the eight districts in the so-called Corridor of Shame that filed suit in 1993 claiming the state discriminates against poor, rural districts and has failed to provide the minimally adequate education promised under law. The 36 districts generally referenced are situated along Interstate 95.

More than two decades after the suit was filed, the S.C. Supreme Court agreed by ruling in the Abbeville case that lawmakers must act to equalize educational opportunity around the state.

Writing in response to Ohues article in a July 18 piece also published by The Post, 6th Congressman James Clyburn agrees the state has failed students in District Three and others around the state.

And he makes a pitch for an aspect of the Supreme Court opinion that gets comparatively little focus: consolidation of school districts.

To help reach the minimally adequate requirements the court suggested that, among other things, South Carolina should consider consolidating its 81 school districts into either one per county or even cross-county districts.

The resistance to that suggestion has been visceral in some instances, and rather nonchalant in others. I do not pretend that it would cure the funding inequities that have shortchanged Ms. Ohue and thousands of others in South Carolina, but it might be a good start. 

While the General Assembly has been slow to embrace such consolidations, Orangeburg County lawmakers have done so in obtaining approval of legislation that would merge District Three with the two others in the county.

The move is seen as a key step in reducing administrative costs and putting more money toward students, notably in the form of improved teaching and technology.

Critics say consolidation guarantees nothing and threatens local schools, but the present setup in rural South Carolina with its multiplicity of small districts is not working.

Doing nothing is not an option, both legally in terms of the court ruling and morally in the name of providing needed opportunities for students.

In Clyburns words, I join Ms. Ohue in urging our home state to meet its constitutional, legal and moral obligations to provide adequate educational experiences to ALL its children, in ALL its schools, in ALL its districts.
Bedaya Center for Entrepreneurship and Career Development, a joint initiative by Qatar Development Bank and Silatech, has launched its Career Development Programme for the second consecutive year.



The monthlong event which began on July 23 will run till August 23, and will look to train graduates, said a statement.



The objective of this programme is to provide graduates with practical work-related experiences and skills that will help them identify their professional interests, build self-confidence, learn about workplace culture and apply what they have learned in real life, it said.



Entitled "Practice ... Work ... Develop", these workshops are taking place Doha Institute for Postgraduate Studies, the strategic partner for the programme, from 9 am to 2 pm, it added.



The professional development programme includes diverse training sessions in addition to a managerial skills training programme, a computer training programme and a field training programme in various state departments comprising their specialties.



The workshops will include leadership, customer service, teamwork, biography and art of etiquette.



The workshop will be conducted by a number of accredited trainers such as Yousef Al Haddad, Mohammed Iraqi, Mohammed Al-Kubaisi, Al-kubaisi, Rowda Al Qubaisi, and Mohammad Shaheen.



The programme will also be represented by a group of visionaries in all sectors such as Dur Al Dusari, Abdul Aziz Dulol, Naser Al-Mughaseeb, Ahmad Taha and Abdullah Al-Buainain, said a statement.



The managerial skills development programme includes English, the skill of writing official correspondence, e-mails, and reporting.



The computer programme course includes teaching the principles of using Microsoft Office Advanced Level program and the ICDL course.



The pre-event was hosted by government and institutional bodies to familiarise them with the programmes prepared by the centre and identify the training specialties and services available to the students.



Reem Al Suwaidi, director general, Bedaya, said: We always strive to expand the horizons of high school graduates and inform them of the many paths they can follow after the compulsory education period.



The diversification of the program outputs achieves the vision of human development and the concept of knowledge economy in Qatar, she said.



We have been keen to hold professional development programme for high school graduates to take advantage of the summer period, before starting their next academic or professional careers with the help of a number of accredited trainers and inspirational personalities in various sectors, she added.



It is a combination of workshops and training sessions to help young people launch and refine their skills and enhance their potential to help them in their future lives by providing a platform for participants and mentors in the community, including self-employed entrepreneurs who have become role models, Al Suwaidi concluded.  TradeArabia News Service
CORONADO, California  A Chief Warrant Officer (CWO4) SEAL, born and raised in Casper, retired May 31, 2017, after more than 30 years of honorable active-duty service.

Thomas A. McAtee, 57, joined the United States Navy March 12, 1987, graduated Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training and became an elite U.S. Navy SEAL operator in February of 1991.

Sea, Air, and Land Teams, commonly abbreviated as the Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navys primary special operations force and a component of the Naval Special Warfare Command.

Upon graduating SEAL qualification training, McAtee dedicated 21 years of his life to overseas service and completed multiple operational deployments throughout the Middle East. His last tour of duty was at the Naval Special Warfare Advanced Training Command in Coronado, California, where he served as the training officer.

McAtee and his wife, Jana, will be retiring to their home in Cody.

Lockhart retires from Reserves: Army Reserve Col. Theodore C. Lockhart Sr. has retired from the U.S. Army Reserve after serving honorably for 30 years. Lockhart was last serving as information operations division director with United States Strategic Command, Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska.

Lockhart is the son of Thomas A. Lockhart of Casper; husband of Elizabeth A. Lockhart of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and father of Madelynne D. Lockhart of Lawrence, Kansas, Nicholas P. Lockhart of Overland Park, Kansas, Annabella E. Lockhart of Kansas City, Missouri, and Theodore C. Lockhart of Downers Grove, Illinois.

He is a 1983 graduate of Stevens High School, Rapid City, South Dakota. He earned a masters degree in 2017 from the University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas.

Graduate from basic: U.S. Air Force Airman Layne M. Ring graduated from basic military training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, San Antonio, Texas.

The airman completed an intensive, eight-week program that included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness, and basic warfare principles and skills.

Airmen who complete basic training also earn four credits toward an associate in applied science degree through the Community College of the Air Force.

Ring is the son of Tricia Held, brother of Shayna Held, grandson of Patricia Ring, husband of Jamie Ring, and son-in-law of Leanne and Dan Debruyn, all of Pine Bluffs. He is a 2012 graduate of Mattoon High School, Mattoon, Illinois.

U.S. Air Force Airman Christoper J. Moore graduated from basic military training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, San Antonio, Texas. Moore is the son of Brad L. Moore of Casper, and Karen S. Moore of Buffalo. He is a 2010 graduate of Natrona County High School.
Genres : Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Starring : Florinda Bolkan, Barbara Bouchet, Tomas Milian, Irene Papas, Marc Porel, Georges Wilson

Director : Lucio Fulci

Plot Synopsis

From Lucio Fulci, the godfather of gore (The Psychic, The Beyond), comes one of the most powerful and unsettling giallo thrillers ever produced: his 1972 masterpiece Don t Torture a Duckling.

When the sleepy rural village of Accendura is rocked by a series of murders of young boys, the superstitious locals are quick to apportion blame, with the suspects including the local witch , Maciara (Florinda Bolkan, A Lizard in a Woman s Skin). With the bodies piling up and the community gripped by panic and a thirst for bloody vengeance, two outsiders city journalist Andrea (Tomas Milian, The Four of the Apocalypse) and spoilt rich girl Patrizia (Barbara Bouchet, The Red Queen Kills Seven Times) team up to crack the case. But before the mystery is solved, more blood will have been spilled, and not all of it belonging to innocents...

Deemed shocking at the time for its brutal violence, depiction of the Catholic Church and themes of child murder and paedophilia, Don t Torture a Duckling is widely regarded today as Fulci's greatest film, rivalling the best of his close rival Dario Argento. Arrow Video is proud to present this uniquely chilling film in its North American high definition debut.
Dove Award-winning contemporary Christian group Sidewalk Prophets headline the 2017 Uprising Music Festival on Sunday at Mike Lansing Field. The popular band returns to the festival with six other regional and national Christian artists, along with an after party hosted by Transform DJs.

The event begins with a Community Worship Service at noon with the bands taking the stage at 1:30 p.m. and wrapping up at 10 p.m. The event is free. Food and merchandise vendors will be available.

The band line-up includes Sidewalk Prophets, Anthem Lights, Seth & Nirva, Bread of Stone, Transform DJ's, Skylar Kaylyn from Wheatland, and Foreverlin, Wyoming-grown.

The Kalinowski family will share testimony about faith through their recent tragedy just prior to Anthem Lights taking the stage.
Steve Clark has learned that roadkill can be as delicious as the fresh deer and elk he hunts.

The Spokane man accounts for two of some 1,600 salvage permits issued in the first 12 months of Washingtons program for picking up deer and elk killed in vehicle collisions.

The animals I collected were in good shape and meat was excellent, he said.

Anyone can participate in the program put into effect last July by the state Fish and Wildlife Commission. Washington is one of about 20 states, including Idaho, that allows the public to put edible meat in their freezers rather than letting it go to waste along a road. Oregons salvage program will debut next year.

The funny thing is that I was going hunting when I saw one of the deer get hit by a vehicle in front of me, he said. That vehicle just kept going, which is the case with most roadkill, so I pulled over. The doe was dead and looked to be in good shape so I loaded it up.

He said he drove to public land off a secluded road and field dressed the deer, checking for internal damage. The rules say you cant gut it along a road, he said.

Rules require the entire carcass, including entrails, to be removed from any road right of way.

Being a hunter, it was a very strange feeling having an untagged deer in my vehicle, especially a doe, he said.

Clark had a $45 deer hunting tag in his pocket, but that wasnt necessary or even legal to use on a deer killed by a vehicle.

Instead, he drove home, hung the deer in his garage, skinned it and then went to his computer and printed a free salvage permit from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife website well within the required 24 hours.

Permits also can be obtained at department regional offices. Smartphone apps are not available for the process.

I taped the permit on the freezer door until the meat was gone and we were legal, he said.

Being a hunter is an advantage in salvaging roadkill. Collecting a carcass can be bloody and messy and, in the case of an elk, a big and heavy load.

Roadkill gleaners who dont have a pickup should have a waterproof tarp to prevent blood and hair from getting into the vehicle.

People who collect roadkill must know how and where to remove the entrails and remove the skin  jobs that must be done as quickly as possible to release the heat from the meat to prevent spoiling.

If the collision isnt observed, roadkill must be scrutinized for salvage. Bloating, offensive odor and rigor mortis are clues that the meat may not be safe to eat. Trauma to the intestines can spread bacteria from the gut into the meat.

In summer heat, even a cleanly-killed carcass could begin spoiling within two hours.

Individuals salvaging and consuming this meat do so at their own risk, the Fish and Wildlife website says. The department makes no guarantee as to the fitness for consumption of deer or elk collected under a salvage permit.

Most of Washingtons roadkill permits were issued in November and December, when cold weather offered more time for recovering edible meat.

Being a hunter, Clark was set up to butcher, wrap and freeze his venison at home. He also knew how to cook the lean, unmarbled meat.

I cut away and discarded any bloodshot (bruised) meat, he said. I lost some off of one quarter, but overall there wasnt much waste on the two deer I collected.

People not set up to butcher at home can take a clean, skinned carcass along with the salvage permit to a butcher certified to handle wild game, such as Crown Foods on Northwest Boulevard in Spokane.

But the meat has to be clean, said Crown owner Scott Byers. We cant bring any hair into our facilities with all the local, state and federal inspections we have.

He said several people have brought in roadkilled carcasses during the first year of the program in Washington. The meat can be cut into steaks and roasts, ground into hamburger or made into a variety of sausages or jerky, Byers said.

Even though Clark had a rifle and a deer hunting tag in his vehicle when he encountered the doe that collided with an other vehicle, he would not have been able to dispatch the deer if it had not already been dead.

Only a law enforcement officer or individuals authorized by the Fish and Wildlife Department can euthanize an animal injured in a motor vehicle collision, according to state law.

If the animal is not dead, a passerby must let nature take its course or call 911 and see if a trooper or deputy is available to come and put it out of its misery. At that time, the animal would be available for salvage.

That seems like a weakness (in the program), Byers said. A lot of deer and elk hit by vehicles dont die immediately.

The law also prohibits the public from collecting roadkill thats off the road right-of-way and on private property unless permission is obtained from the landowner.

The salvage program is focused on reducing waste.

An average of 2,994 deer and 83 elk died in automobile collisions on state highways each year from 2000-04, according to a Fish and Wildlife Department survey. However, Kelly McAllister, a state Department of Transportation wildlife biologist who tracks where animals are hit by vehicles, said maintenance crews pick up between 5,000 and 6,000 deer and elk a year from state-maintained roadways.

Big game that runs a distance from the roadway before succumbing to injuries from a collision likely would not be detected and would remain available to feed coyotes, ravens, eagles and other scavengers.

Carcasses collected by Department of Transportation crews are usually hauled to dump sites.

The salvage program allows the public to pick up carcasses that arent severely damaged.

Fish and Wildlife officials say data reported by salvagers in getting their permits will be used to help the state work to reduce roadkill and improve highway safety. For example, wildlife underpasses or overpasses have been constructed in the I-90 corridor and in northeastern Washington.

North of Moscow, Idaho, a moose alert sign flashes when an animal is sensed crossing US 95.

Theres plenty of room for improvement. State Farm Insurance estimates that 17,612 insurance claims were made for deer, elk and moose collisions in Washington state from July 1, 2015, through June 30, 2016.

Washingtons salvage program was proposed by Jay Kehne, a WDFW commissioner from Omak who lives near an Okanogan County stretch of US 97 that is notorious for high numbers of deer-vehicle collisions.

Cities from which the most salvage permit applications have been filed are Olympia, Spokane and Port Angeles, but the greater Puget Sound area is the top region for salvage.

Most of the 1,600 animals salvaged in the first 12 months of the program were deer along with fewer than 200 elk.

Out-of-staters relished the chance for game meat, too. Salvage permits for Washington deer or elk were secured by five Oregonians, two Idahoans, one Californian and a New Yorker.

Details provided online by permit applicants show that roadkill was salvaged in towns as well as on rural roads.

Male & female elk killed on 452nd St North Bend, one applicant said. Deer was hit right after the 35 mph sign going into Electric City from Grand Coulee, wrote another.

One applicants roadkill location indicated that game-crossing signs on highways might indicate good stretches to scout for roadkill: I-90 East Bound, South Side of highway, about 2 miles past the WSDOT Elk Ahead Readerboard.

Enforcement hasnt been a significant issue so far, officials say.

Im not aware of any major problems with the roadkill salvage program across the state, said Fish and Wildlife police Sgt. Dan Rahn in Spokane.

Some people capable of handling roadkill are telling friends to contact them immediately by mobile phone or social media if they see a freshly-killed deer or elk along a road.

That tactic helped Whatcom County resident Tim Bento collect at least four free roadkills in the first year of Washingtons program, the Seattle Times reports.

Hunters, even with $90 of licenses, tags and a special lottery drawn permit, would be allowed to take no more than two deer a season.
Tears clouded Tamara Macnaughtons vision as she read the online comments on recent news stories  strangers on the internet lobbing insults toward a young woman who had reported shed been raped by a prominent businessman.

They called the woman a liar, or insinuated she was plotting to take his money. They said the 20-year-old shouldnt have been drinking or that her friends shouldnt have left her alone. That women as a whole lie and abuse the criminal justice system to destroy mens reputations.

The comments reminded Macnaughton of the reactions she encountered when she was sexually assaulted years ago. People then said she was only trying to undermine her assailants career. That she just wanted attention.

Those statements stick, the health care administrator said. People dont realize the impact those comments make.

For survivors of sexual assault, highly publicized cases and the public reaction to them can stir painful memories. But in Casper, a number of women have found solace in a community of peers who also know those wounds. In that group, theyve found advocacy and purpose.

For months, the women have worked to better Caspers resources for sexual assault victims. They were making progress in a series of small steps, Macnaughton said.

Then law enforcement arrested Tony Cercy on charges alleging he raped the young woman. Cercy appeared in court Monday but has not yet answered a plea. His lawyers have not responded to calls seeking comment.

The news spread quickly through Caspers social media circles. The reactions varied, but many seemed to place the blame for the reported assault on the woman or doubt the veracity of the investigation.

Seeing those reactions is hard for Macnaughton and other survivors and complicates their work.

So many of us have heard those comments said to us, she said.

Long-term trauma

The social media comments on news articles prove how much work there is to be done educating Casper residents about sexual assault, said Jennifer Dyer, executive director of the Self Help Center. The Casper nonprofit provides services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and child and elder abuse as well as substance abuse treatment.

Not only do comments shaming victims affect survivors, but they also keep others from coming forward to report sexual assault, Dyer said. Only about a third of sexual assaults are ever reported to law enforcement, according to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. It doesnt matter if the victim had been drinking or if they were wearing revealing clothes  that does not give another person the right to assault them, she said.

Such comments and even news articles themselves can deeply affect survivors. The trauma of an assault manifests itself differently in every person and can be brought to the surface again, Dyer said. For some, it increases anxiety levels. Others become depressed.

The National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma and Mental Health defines retraumatization as the moment when any situation, interaction, or environmental factor replicates events or dynamics of prior traumas and evokes feelings and reactions associated with the original traumatic experiences.

Basically, its like going back to when that assault just took place, Dyer said.

As the news spread, women started reaching out to Casper City Councilwoman Amanda Huckabay, a survivor who has been a vocal advocate for others.

When a story like this breaks in the news, were taken back to our own situations and experiences, she said. We feel every bit of this as if it were happening again.

The communitys reaction to this case has caused Huckabay to have insomnia and nightmares. Its caused her anxiety levels to skyrocket.

So she decided to make a statement at Tuesdays Council meeting. She shook as she described one Facebook comment that claimed that Caspers culture glorifies victimhood. That women feel left out or undesirable if they havent been assaulted.

She shot down that notion. Being a victim is neither glamorous nor fun, she said. She said the assaults committed against her affect her every day.

Then she spoke to other survivors, anybody who might be listening:

I hope that all victims can know that you are not alone and there is a group of us that you can reach out to and we will hold space with you with light and love, she said. There are always going to be people who will criticize you and claim that you are a liar. But know that our voices will be louder.

Not invisible

Both Huckabay and Macnaughton have found strength in a community of women survivors that has grown organically over the past year.

It started as a few women who approached City Council to criticize how local police were handling sexual assault cases. Then others joined. Soon there were six women, then 12, then even more. The group members support each other and work to make positive change in Casper. They created an official Facebook group this week  Wyoming Women Warriors  that quickly grew to include more than 120 women.

For Macnaughton, the community has validated her experiences and helped her realize she is not alone. Huckabay said she and the others felt a responsibility to reach out to women who might be struggling with a recent assault and to prevent more assaults from happening. Through that work, many of the women have felt empowered again.

In that process, things are restored that had been taken from us, she said.

But the work of education and prevention cant be left to just a select few  it must be a community-wide effort, said Dyer, the director of the Self Help Center. Together, the community needs to support victims and have conversations about assault, like those hosted by the Casper Police Department over the past few months.

Our juries, our community members who are going to be making these decisions, need to be educated, she said.

Despite the difficult past week, the women will keep working. And they invite other survivors to join them.

Whoever you are, there are people and there are resources, Macnaughton. Yes, it is scary, and it is humiliating. But there are people who are standing with you and will lift you up when you feel like you cant do anything but fall.
A Cody couple died Friday when their ATV tumbled from the Morrison Jeep Trail in the Clarks Fork Canyon, according to the Park County Sheriffs Office.

Allen Heald Phillips, 69, and his wife, Annette, 66, were ascending the trail at about 2 p.m. with friends when the crash occurred, a news release said.

The trail, which was closed until further notice after the incident, is a steep set of narrow switchbacks that climbs about 5,700 feet to the Beartooth Plateau, according to the sheriffs office. There were no witnesses to the crash, but statements and evidence indicate that the two had tried to negotiate a hairpin turn but took the switchback too wide, the release said. They then attempted to find a better angle but accidentally backed over the edge and fell down four levels of the trail before the side-by-side came to rest on its top in the middle of the trail below.

The call reporting the crash came into the Park County 911 Communications Center at 2:47 p.m. Initial reports said that one person was dead, while another was critically injured. A Park County deputy was dispatched to the canyon along with members of the countys search and rescue unit, Clark Fire, Clark First Responders and an ambulance from Powell Valley Hospital and a helicopter from REACH Air Medical Services, the release said.

The helicopter was able to land in the canyon about half a mile from the crash site. Medical personnel hiked up to the scene and pronounced both victims dead.

Both victims were recovered by members of the Park County Search and Rescue Unit with help from Clark Fire. That evening, they were taken out of the canyon and turned over to representatives of the Park County Coroners Office.
Hot, dry conditions have pushed the fire danger rating to high in Bridger-Teton National Forest, weeks before thousands of eclipse visitors are expected to swell an already busy tourist season, officials announced Friday.

The Teton Interagency fire managers have also designated Grand Teton National Park, the National Elk Refuge and Teton Interagency Dispatch Area as high-risk areas.

As summer temperatures sap moisture from spring greenery, those dry bushes, trees and grasses become fuel for fires that can start easily and spread quickly, officials said.

Fire managers look at a number of factors when designating fire risk, including moisture content, heat and wind conditions, the likelihood of rapid spreading and the number of firefighters available to quell the flames should large fires erupt in Wyoming.

Officials say 56 campfires were abandoned in the Bridger-Teton and Grand Teton so far this summer and remind visitors that they may have to pay for fire suppression if found responsible for starting a wildfire.

The solar eclipse on Aug. 21, projected to bring a potential 35,000 visitors to Casper alone, falls dead center in Wyomings fire season.

The state has already experienced a few large blazes so far this year.

Firefighters continue to monitor the perimeter of the Keystone Fire, which burned across 2,527 acres in the Medicine Bow National Forest. Ignited by a lightning strike in heavy timber, the fire is 80 percent contained. The June Fire outside of Cody is 70 percent contained but still smoldering in the rugged hills of dead and dried-out timber.
Before Jamie Rhodine even graduated from the University of Wyoming, she already knew there was a shortage of nurses in her home state.

It was in every class in school, she said.

Rhodine, now a nurse at Wyoming Medical Center, has theories: Nurses who work longer shifts and care for more patients burn out, which forces other nurses to pick up more hours and care for even more people. Plus, the pay could be better. Doctors and supervisors can be frustrating. Being on call is stressful.

Whatever the reason, there are fewer nurses. And fewer nurses affects patient care.

In (Gillette), we had to stop taking patients, she said. She worked at Campbell County Memorial Hospital before earning her degree. We had to ship patients, and they had to pay for that because we did not have enough nurses staffed to open more rooms. That was huge. They were from the town we were in, but we couldnt keep them there.

Fewer nurses means more hours for those who are there. That increases stress and the likelihood of errors, Rhodine and others explained. Rhodine, who works in the neurological unit at WMC, said she cant give every one of the patients the care shed like.

I do not have time to make sure they have their hair brushed or their teeth brushed, she said. All that little stuff that makes a person sane, we dont always get the time to do. And that drives us insane.

Though some nursing officials said Wyoming is in the midst of a shortage now, every person who spoke to the Star-Tribune for this story said the situation will likely grow worse in the coming years. As baby boomers age and retire, more nurses will be needed to care for the influx of elderly Americans. Among the wave of retirees will be older, more experienced nurses, leaving an even larger gap.

By 2024, theres going to be 3.2 million nurses, said David Gardner, the chief nursing officer at the Wyoming Medical Center. Thats about 440,000 more than there were in 2014. But to simultaneously care for the aging population and make up for the number of nurses who will retire, we would need 1.1 million more trained in the next seven years.

Wyoming, a rural state with 26 scattered hospitals, has been proactive in building its nursing workforce, officials said. The Legislature has funded scholarships and approved a system that allows nurses in other states to come here without obtaining a new license. Residency programs, like the one Rhodine is enrolled in at WMC, have popped up throughout the state. The states colleges have worked to streamline nursing education.

Instituting those programs before more baby boomers retire is vital.

Its only going to get worse, said Dee Gilson, the president of the Wyoming Nurses Association and operating room director at Sheridan Memorial Hospital, which she said has a shortage of specialty nurses. We dont have a replacement plan.

The source of the shortage

Gardner believes that the lack of nurses will be most pronounced in the coming years. But Cynthia LeBonde, the executive director of the state Board of Nursing, believes Wyoming and the United States are already in the midst of a shortage.

The need to fill nursing positions is now, she said.

Its difficult to pin the dearth of nurses on one singular factor. LeBonde ticked off salaries, the challenge of the work and the long hours as contributors.

Education likely plays a role as well. A report by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing said that more than 64,000 qualified applicants were turned away by collegiate nursing programs last year because of faculty shortages. Gardner and LeBonde said nurses returning to the classroom to teach full-time often take a pay cut to do so.

On top of that, theres the issue of recruiting nurses to Wyoming. Gardner said WMC  where 17 percent of nursing positions are currently vacant  has to sell applicants on moving to Casper.

Were a very rural state. Its hard to recruit, LeBonde said. You can recruit a nurse to Riverton, but whats a spouse going to do? How do we provide a living to both spouses? How do we get them to buy into where theyre living?

There are other factors as well, officials said, but older nurses retiring is the biggest contributor to the shortage. Gilson, the nursing association president, said the problem isnt just a nurse leaving the workforce. When those workers retire, they take with them years of experience.

Its not just body for body, but its experience and training level, she explained. Even if you fill new positions with a bunch of baby nurses, you still might have a deficit.

Marjory Christiansen, the director of nursing at Casper College and a member of the state board, said as boomers retire, there will be three times as many elderly Americans as there are now.

As a state, we really are working hard to try to help the future of nursing, she said.

Bridging the gap

Christiansen said the nursing board has been proactive for years in trying to avoid a shortage  or at least lessen the impact. For instance, the board has worked to respond to license applications more quickly.

Last year, the Legislature approved the enhanced nurse compact. That allows nurses who are licensed in 25 other compact states to practice here without obtaining a new license. The board hopes that program will make it easier to recruit nurses from out of state.

The state has also worked on improving the educational side of nursing, she said: The University of Wyoming and the states community colleges have been working for seven years to create a uniform nursing curriculum, called ReNew  or revolutionizing nursing education in Wyoming.

You can be licensed as a (registered nurse) when you graduate community college, Christiansen explained. Then its seamless to go to the University of Wyoming to get your bachelors of nursing in a year, if you have your prerequisites.

Its pretty exciting, she added, and we think were going to produce better nurses. Better, smarter nurses.

Years ago, the Legislature approved funding for the WyIN  Wyoming Investment in Nursing  scholarship, which helps pay for students here on the condition that they stay and work in the Equality State. The program also helps pay for colleges nursing faculty.

Christiansen said Casper Colleges nursing program has 12 full-time faculty  one of which is paid for by WyIN money  teaching more than 300 nursing and pre-nursing students. In her 10 years at the school, the program has never had to turn away a student.

Several hospitals, including Caspers WMC and Sheridan Memorial Hospital, have also started nurse residency programs for recent graduates. Gardner said the hope is that the new nurses learn together, gain experience and stay at the hospital.

Rhodine, who started at WMCs program in mid-July, said its helping her continue her education and become accustomed to the nursing world. After graduation in May, she wasnt prepared to jump in feet-first, she said.

She had planned on leaving Wyoming and going to work at a major hospital  gunshots and all that  but decided she wasnt ready. The graduate program offered an opportunity to work in the state she grew up in and gain experience early in her career.

Transitioning from a student nurse to a (registered nurse) is very difficult, Rhodine explained. I never thought I would end up here.
Genres : Action, Adventure, Comedy

Starring : Jackie Chan, Amyra Dastur, Sonu Sood, Disha Patani, Yixing Zhang, Eric Tsang

Director : Stanley Tong

Plot Synopsis

Chinese archeology professor Jack teams up with beautiful Indian professor Ashmita and assistant Kyra to locate lost Magadha treasure. In a Tibetan ice cave, they find the remains of the royal army that had vanished together with the treasure, only to be ambushed by Randall, the descendent of a rebel army leader. When they free themselves, their next stop is Dubai where a diamond from the ice cave is to be auctioned. After a series of double-crosses and revelations about their past, Jack and his team travel to a mountain temple in India, using the diamond as a key to unlock the real treasure.
As talks about revisiting the North American Free Trade Agreement approach, Mexico is aggressively promoting a message of wanting to preserve and enhance the 23-year-old treaty.

But rolling back any provisions that Mexico views as favorable to all three countries is not negotiable, Kenneth Smith Ramos, head of the Trade and NAFTA office at the Embassy of Mexico, said during a recent visit to Southern Arizona.

We want to be sure that, first, we do no harm by re-establishing tariffs, he said during an interview with the Star.

Logistical discussions should focus around enhancing the use of rail to move trade between the three countries, Smith Ramos said. And, a controversial provision that allows truckers from Canada, the U.S. and Mexico to travel into each others countries must remain an option, he added.

Despite the fact that few companies have applied for such access, Smith Ramos believes the option should remain in the renegotiated agreement.

Its important to have cross-border trucking, he said. We think it is essential.

To modernize NAFTA, language should be added that includes intellectual property rights and digital trade  something that has grown substantially since the agreement went into effect in 1994.

Our countries should combat piracy, Smith Ramos said. We cant see each other as rivals.

Also, Mexico opening its oil, gas and power sectors should be reflected in any update.

Were in a new generation, Smith Ramos said.

During his visit to Arizona, Smith Ramos met with business leaders and emphasized the impact NAFTA has had specifically on Arizona.

Mexico is Arizonas largest export market. In 2016, trade between Arizona and Mexico surpassed $15.7 billion.

Exports from Arizona have increased 332 percent since NAFTA was implemented.

In his new book, Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake touched on NAFTA, saying if the U.S. were to rip up the treaty it would have a seismic effect on the U.S.

Flake warned that the U.S. wont create the jobs and industries of tomorrow and that China is prepared to step in and do trade deals with Mexico if the United States wont.

Revisiting NAFTA talks are expected to begin in Washington on Aug. 16, to be kicked off with dinner, then seven rounds of negotiations before the end of the year in all three countries.
Tucson International Airport has lost nonstop flights to New York after what was supposed to be a temporary suspension.

But that isnt stopping local business leaders from continuing to vie for new flights to the Big Apple  despite the loss of $3 million in revenue guarantees pledged to entice American Airlines to launch its flights to John F. Kennedy International Airport.

American suspended its Tucson-JFK flights in May, after nearly seven months during which the airline failed to fill enough seats to turn a profit. The suspension of the JFK flights was announced in January as a way to preserve the guarantee fund after the Tucson route burned through more than $1 million in funding in the first few months.

American initially planned to resume the route in mid-December and possibly continue the flights seasonally.

Though in some months the route nearly reached its nominal goal of 80 percent of seats filled, the passenger shortfall persisted and ate up the rest of the guarantee by the time flights ended in May.

We are not going to be returning to Tucson from JFK, and that is basically due to market demand, said Nichelle Tait, an airline spokeswoman.

Tait was noncommittal about a return of the JFK flights by American, which still flies nonstop from Tucson to Chicago OHare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles and Phoenix.

Theres a constant evaluation of our international and domestic networks, kind of just seeing what works and what doesnt work, she said. You can never say never, but were always evaluating our networks.

Local businessman Bill Assenmacher and Tucson Metro Chamber CEO Mike Varney led an air-service task force to entice American to launch the JFK flights.

Assenmacher says he believes the JFK route could have reached the break-even point given more time to raise public awareness of the flights.

Other factors included keen price competition from other carriers in direct response to Americans launch and the size of the airplanes American flew on the Tucson-JFK route.

I think weve learned a lot with the American Airlines situation. The greatest thing is that we cannot control the price of airfare being sold on the open market, Assenmacher said at a Tucson Airport Authority board meeting last Wednesday.

Theres tremendous competition, Assenmacher said. Some of the airlines kind of pick on each other to try to make someone pay for the fact theyre picking up new service.

American had expected to be able to charge a small premium on its JFK fare for the luxury of nonstop service, Assenmacher said.

But he said not enough passengers were willing to pay that premium  though in some cases it was only $15 or $20  amid lower fares with one-stop service through Phoenix, for example.

Compared with a decade ago, passengers are more focused on finding the cheapest possible fare they find online.

The use of somewhat smaller planes would have also helped, Assenmacher said.

American was flying the 160-seat Boeing 737-800 on the flights over the winter, and there were plans to switch to the 128-seat Airbus 319 from June to September, according to details of the air-service revenue agreement provided by Pima County in response to a Star public-records request.

The data proves we can run a flight 70 to 80 percent full, and I think if we were to have a crack at a more-efficient plane, which is maybe a slightly smaller plane and maybe a slightly lower-cost target, we think we will be able to pick up a new carrier fairly easily, Assenmacher said.

Americans revenue guarantee was strongly supported by local business leaders and organizations, including Visit Tucson, the areas main convention and visitors bureau, and major hotels and resorts.

The Hilton El Conquistador and other entities owned by Humberto Lopez and his HSL properties committed a total of $250,000, and Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, JW Marriot Starr Pass Resort & Spa, Westin La Paloma and several other hotels kicked in another $250,000 combined, according to documents obtained from the county.

New York was a top target for new nonstop air service because of its importance as a gateway for the East Coast convention market.

Visit Tucson kicked in $250,000 for the revenue guarantee and spent $350,000 on marketing and advertising in the New York market to kick-start the flights, CEO Brent DeRaad said.

N.Y. visitors spend most

The stakes are high, DeRaad said, because New York visitors stay longer and spend more than visitors from anyplace else.

New York is Tucsons top market for visitor spending in revenue per night at about $864 and revenue per stay of nearly $3,400, according to a visitor analysis conducted last year.

I certainly wish we had a little more time for the flight to prove itself, DeRaad said. We were starting to see a little bit of traction within the meetings market, which really excited us.

The Tucson Airport Authority, which operates TIA, is unable to provide revenue guarantees under federal rules.

But the Airport Authority offers other incentives to any airline offering new flights on an unserved route, said David Hatfield, senior director of air service development and marketing for the Airport Authority.

The Airport Authority gave American $150,000 for marketing, and the airline was eligible for up to $200,000 in landing fee waivers and $200,000 in terminal rental credits over the two-year deal. The Airport Authority bought billboards and other ads locally.

Similar incentives helped TIA attract a new Alaska Airlines nonstop to Portland, Oregon, in 2013 and a new Alaska route to San Jose, California, that starts later this month.

But overall, its a tough sell.

Basically, the airlines because of the position theyre in, are more risk-averse than ever, Hatfield said.

We know enough about what happened with this flight that this can be successful, but its just going to take some time.

BUYing IN

A number of local business leaders pledged their own money, including Assenmacher, who committed $750,000 and said hed make up any shortfall as he collects on the other pledges.

Pima County pledged $100,000 and the city of Tucson promised $75,000, or about 6 percent of the overall guarantee fund, according to documents provided by the county.

Some of that money is being paid through a reallocation of bed-tax money that funds about 85 percent of Visit Tucsons $9 million annual budget through the city and county.

Tucsons revenue guarantee was similar to others around the nation, Assenmacher and other supporters said.

Examples include Albuquerque, which amassed a $6 million air-service revenue guarantee fund that helped the city attract a JetBlue nonstop to New York a few years ago that is still flying today.

Assenmacher said the American air-service and revenue-guarantee contract is similar to others in the industry and was reviewed and negotiated by the Sixel Consulting Group, which had been consultant to TIA when it was hired by the Chamber.

The JFK setback comes as Mexican startup carrier Aeromar abruptly decided to end service to Tucson last week after a seven-month run.

But local airport, tourism and business leaders arent giving up.

Assenmacher said the Chamber is forming a new air-service task force and airport officials are is still in talks with several airlines, including JetBlue, which offered overnight red-eye flights between Tucson and JFK that ended in 2008.

Talks also are underway to establish a new air-service guarantee fund using proceeds of bed taxes or other taxes on visitor services, Assenmacher said.

Such an arrangement is used in other communities to help boost tourism without raising general taxes, he said, adding that it could take the form of a new improvement district or piggyback on the current bed-tax system to provide $2 million to $3 million annually for air-service improvements.

The goal is to create a new task force this fall to study the final JFK data and formulate a sustainable new air-service fund, he said.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is readying a fraud prevention initiative that removes Social Security numbers from Medicare cards to help combat identity theft, and safeguard taxpayer dollars.

The new cards will use a unique, randomly-assigned number called a Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI), to replace the Social Security-based Health Insurance Claim Number (HICN) currently used on the Medicare card.

CMS will begin mailing new cards in April 2018 and will meet the congressional deadline for replacing all Medicare cards by April 2019. Now, CMS kicks-off a multi-faceted outreach campaign to help providers get ready for the new MBI.

Were taking this step to protect our seniors from fraudulent use of Social Security numbers which can lead to identity theft and illegal use of Medicare benefits, said CMS Administrator Seema Verma. We want to be sure that Medicare beneficiaries and healthcare providers know about these changes well in advance and have the information they need to make a seamless transition.

Providers and beneficiaries will both be able to use secure look up tools that will support quick access to MBIs when they need them. There will also be a 21-month transition period where providers will be able to use either the MBI or the HICN further easing the transition

CMS testified last month before the U.S. House Committee on Ways & Means Subcommittee on Social Security and U.S. House Committee on Oversight & Government Reform Subcommittee on Information Technology, addressing CMSs comprehensive plan for the removal of Social Security numbers and transition to MBIs.

Personal identity theft affects a large and growing number of seniors. People age 65 or older are increasingly the victims of this type of crime. Incidents among seniors increased to 2.6 million from 2.1 million between 2012 and 2014, according to the most current statistics from the Department of Justice.

Identity theft can take not only an emotional toll on those who experience it, but also a financial one: two-thirds of all identity theft victims reported a direct financial loss. It can also disrupt lives, damage credit ratings and result in inaccuracies in medical records and costly false claims.

Work on this important initiative began many years ago, and was accelerated following passage of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA). CMS will assign all Medicare beneficiaries a new, unique MBI number which will contain a combination of numbers and uppercase letters. Beneficiaries will be instructed to safely and securely destroy their current Medicare cards and keep the new MBI confidential. Issuance of the new MBI will not change the benefits a Medicare beneficiary receives.

CMS is committed to a successful transition to the MBI for people with Medicare and for the health care provider community. CMS has a website dedicated to the Social Security Removal Initiative (SSNRI) where providers can find the latest information and sign-up for newsletters. CMS is also planning regular calls as a way to share updates and answer provider questions before and after new cards are mailed beginning in April 2018.
PHOENIX  Got one of those plastic covers on your license plate to thwart photo radar?

Get out your screwdriver. As of Wednesday, Aug. 9, theyre going to be illegal.

Its one of several hundred new laws that kick in that day, the fruits of this years 122-day legislative session.

Others range from expanding who can teach in Arizona classrooms, to when police need warrants to track cell phones, to exactly how much of someones foot a podiatrist can amputate. For the record, its a toe  not the whole foot.

There also are some odd new statutes including one that specifically allows counties to put up signs that say Enter or proceed with caution. Use at your own risk. This surface is not maintained by the county.

The new laws, in general, fall into several areas.

Law and order

The measure on license plate covers culminates years of efforts by Sen. Steve Farley, D-Tucson.

Farley did not present it as a method of helping police catch more speeding motorists with photo radar, a technology that has proven unpopular with many lawmakers. Instead, he sold it as a law-and-order measure, saying that bad guys get away because police and witnesses to crimes cant read the license plates of all vehicles.

Legislators also voted to curb the ability of police and prosecutors to seize property, requiring they prove by clear and convincing evidence that the items they want to confiscate were involved in criminal activity.

Thats not as stringent as required to gain a criminal conviction where a judge or jury must find someone is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

But it is more than required now, when a prosecutor can prove by a preponderance of evidence theres a link between the property and a crime. That is basically a balancing test, meaning all a judge need find is that the evidence show its more likely than not there is a link.

The change is important because police and prosecutors can seize property without ever charging the owner with a crime, much less getting a conviction.

Other new laws include:

Requiring police to get warrants when tracking the location of cellphones.

Expanding the definition of terrorism to include acts intended to coerce civilians and further the goals, desires, aims, public pronouncements, manifestos or political objectives of any terrorist organization.

Allowing for an enhanced sentence if the defendant acted because the victim was a peace officer, whether or not that officer was on duty.

Requiring the Department of Corrections to provide notice to area residents when locating a correctional facility nearby.

Allowing community notification of registered sex offenders to be done electronically.

Guns

It wouldnt be a legislative session if lawmakers did not enact some measure under the banner of protecting Second Amendment rights.

The 2017 measure with the broadest implications doesnt even mention firearms. Instead, it bars state and local governments from mandating that anyone who sells any property must get a background check on the buyer.

The effect, though, would be to preclude Arizona or local governments from closing whats been called the gun-show loophole in federal law, which says background checks are not required for sales by individuals, including at gun shows, no matter how many weapons they sell.

Rep. Randall Friese, D-Tucson, derided contentions the measure is not about guns.

No one is talking about background checks for refrigerator sales or microwave sales or dining room furniture sales, he said during floor debate. Lets just be serious.

Other bills include:

Prohibiting local governments from telling employees or independent contractors they cannot have a weapon that is on their own property or in their own vehicle.

Barring any laws saying the only guns that can be sold are those thart are smart and can fire only if held by an authorized person.

Carving out an an exception from laws that require $600,000 in reserves for insurers who offer prepaid legal services: It is now $50,000  but only for those who specialize in lawful use of firearms.

Education

Lawmakers adopted several measures that could have sweeping impact.

One of the biggest would expand eligibility for who can get a voucher of public funds to attend private or parochial schools.

Started in 2011, what are formally known as education scholarship accounts were designed for students with special needs. But proponents have incrementally expanded it to where it now also includes foster children, reservation residents and children attending schools rated D and F.

The new law removes all those conditions. But backers had to agree on a cap of enrollment of 30,000 by 2023.

Whether it becomes law, however, is another question.

Foes have until close of business Tuesday to submit at least 75,321 valid signatures on referendum petitions. If theyre successful, the law would remain on hold until November 2018, when voters would get the last word on whether to ratify or veto the change.

Other education bills include:

Easing requirements for people from other states to be able to teach in Arizona and allowing local school districts to decide whom to certify as teachers through a classroom-based preparation program.

Imposing new requirements on school districts to make new high school textbooks available for public review for at least 60 days.

Allowing children at public schools and childrens camps to use sunscreen with a note or prescription from a doctor.

Requiring schools to report on suspensions and expulsions involving illegal substances.

Health and welfare

Arizona now will have what may be the most comprehensive requirements in the country on what doctors have to do if a baby is born alive during an abortion.

Until now the law has said if there is a live birth, it is the duty of doctors in attendance to see that all available means and medical skills are used to preserve and maintain the life of such fetus or embryo.

The new law provides the first-ever definition in Arizona of delivered alive. That covers any fetus or embryo, no matter how premature, who shows breathing, a heartbeat, umbilical cord pulsation or definite movement of voluntary muscles.

At that point, medical professionals must do everything possible to keep the baby alive. A separate provision says any clinic that does abortions on women beyond the 20th week of pregnancy must have someone available with neonatal skills to care for the child if born alive.

Separately, lawmakers agreed to restore the two-year lifetime limit on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families the state had previously cut in half. But they added some new restrictions that will prevent everyone from being eligible for that second year.

Lawmakers also approved:

Expanding existing laws designed to protect health-care providers and institutions against discrimination for refusing to facilitate in someone ending his or her own life.

Repealing a requirement for fingerprints for welfare and food stamp recipients after it was determined the cost to administer it exceeded any fraud that was prevented.

Requiring the Department of Economic Security to post information online about those who have not made child support payments in at least 12 months.

Permitting judges to create exemptions from laws that suspend the drivers license of those who are in arrears on child support, a move designed to ensure they keep their jobs and can start making payments.

Elections

Lawmakers moved on two fronts to impose new hurdles on the ability of individuals to propose and enact their own laws through initiatives.

Until now judges have said that initiatives can be on the ballot if they are in substantial compliance with election laws. HB 2244 says there has to be strict compliance, disqualifying petition drives for what could be minor violations.

A judge is set to decide Monday whether the change is unconstitutional. But that is unlikely to be the last word, as an appeal is expected.

Another new restriction eliminates the ability of groups hoping to put measures on the ballot to pay circulators based on the number of signatures they gather.

But this measure is subject to a referendum campaign, with opponents hoping to get enough signatures by the end of the day Tuesday to give voters the last word.

Other ways election laws are being changed:

Stipulating that envelopes used for early ballots have to be designed so no one can see through them.

Making it illegal to vote in more than one state in elections featuring federal offices that are held on the same day.

Allowing voters to opt to get the legally required publicity pamphlet about issues on the election ballot by email rather than snail mail.

Imposing new requirements for meetings and voting by homeowners associations.

Odds and ends

Exempting those who break into a locked vehicle to rescue a child or pet in imminent danger from civil liability.

Putting new limits on who can file lawsuits over issues of disability access.

Barring people from calling themselves art therapists unless they are registered with the Art Therapy Credentials Board.

Repealing limits on how much landlords can pay in finder fees to those who locate prospective tenants.

Enacting new regulations on intrastate movers, including prohibition against refusing to deliver goods, while asking for a higher fee, if the customer pays the price agreed upon before the move.

Imposing new limits on the ability of counties to regulate home-based businesses regarding things like traffic, parking and delivery.

Increasing the number of licenses to sell beer and wine.
It was December 1983 when Frank O. Sotomayor, a Tucson native working at the Los Angeles Times, went to see the newspapers editor, along with two newsroom colleagues. They had previously met twice with the editor with a major request but were denied both times.

The three, including columnist Frank del Olmo and reporter George Ramos, would not be denied this time.

While this is a story about journalism, its more than that. Its about the contributions in everyday life made by Latinos and the historic challenges Latinos have and continue to face. This is a story about doing whats right against the odds and the pushback by the privileged status quo.

The three had been part of a groundbreaking reporting project that the Times  one of the top five newspapers in the country  had ever conducted at the time. In a 27-part series, 17 L.A. Times journalists and photographers had produced a sweeping examination of Latinos in the Los Angeles metro area.

Sotomayor, who was raised in Barrio Hollywood and is a graduate of the University of Arizona, was one of three team members with strong Tucson roots and connections. The others were Jose Galvez, who was born and raised in Barrio El Hoyo and was a photographer for the Arizona Daily Star before becoming the first Chicano photographer at the Times; and Virginia Escalante, an Eloy native who spent her summers harvesting crops in California and is a UA graduate. A fourth reporter, Louis Sahagun, worked for several years at the former Tucson Citizen before joining the L.A. Times.

Sotomayor, who was co-editor of the project and who is now retired and living in Tucson, has laid out the story in The Pulitzer Long Shot: How Our 1983 Latino Stories for L.A. Times Won Journalisms Top Prize (http://jourviz.com/long-shot/index.html). He documents how a small group of journalists, all Mexican-American, stunning the elite world of journalism, gave birth, developed and pushed through the historic project, which earned the Pulitzers most honored recognition for Public Service in 1984. It was the first Pulitzer awarded to Chicano journalists.

To me the series underscored the value of in-depth news coverage of underreported communities, Sotomayor wrote in his account. Until publication of our series, such coverage had often been undervalued and derided as the taco beat. Our series signaled to the journalism world the rich value of explanatory journalism about all the people in our communities.

Latinos was a massive, unprecedented in-depth exploration of a significant portion of Los Angeles population, which historically had been ignored, at best, or at worst stereotyped and maligned in the newspapers coverage by white male journalists. The landmark series, and a subsequent book containing all the stories and a trove of photographs, was welcomed by a large share of Angelinos, and lauded by journalists and community leaders outside of Southern California.

However, when the Los Angeles Times editors submitted 27 nominations to the Pulitzer Prize committee that year, Latinos was not included. The Times editor said the project was good but not the type that wins a Pulitzer. Even within the Times newsroom, some fellow journalists were hostile and resentful of their Chicano colleagues.

All of us on the team placed enormous pressure on ourselves to produce journalism that was not only good but extraordinary. We regularly worked six days a week and sometimes seven. We all felt the strain and made personal sacrifices, wrote Sotomayor.

In Sotomayors publication, Escalante recalled, The pressure was heavy, intense, and the atmosphere in the newsroom felt as if the rest of the staff expected us to fail. They were subjected to racist and other insults through much of 1983 when the team conducted more than 1,000 interviews and wrote their stories.

After the third meeting on Dec. 30, the Times editor gave Sotomayor, Ramos and del Olmo the green light to submit their project to the Pulitzer committee. The three crammed into an office, wrote the nomination letter, selected 10 stories and the book and several days later sent the nomination to Columbia University in New York.

One of the legacies of the series and the 17 journalists is that daily journalism began to examine its failings in covering communities that had been excluded from balanced and in-depth reporting. Newsrooms, which had been the domain of white males, were slowly opening their doors to ethnic minorities and women. As diversity slowly grew in the newsrooms, so did stories examining the wider and deeper breadth of Latinos across the country.

Galvez, who left the Times in 1992, is now living in North Carolina, from where he photo-documents Latinos in the Southeast and on the Eastern Seaboard. He observed that his local newspaper has focused more attention on Latinos. Still, there remains a wide gap in local coverage, he wrote in an email.

I do think the mainstream media has lost focus on covering the communities in this day of Trump ... that theyre all too often not reporting on the everyday issues like we did with the project, wrote Galvez.

Several of the projects members remain in daily journalism. Several, including del Olmo and Ramos, both of whom were major voices in Los Angeles, have passed away. Others went into academia.

The legacy of the 17 journalists is cemented in American journalism history. But their efforts and that of the many Latino journalists who have followed have not ended.

There is more to do.
A new wine bar is slated to open on North Sixth Avenue by the end of September, around the corner from Crooked Tooth Brewing and up the street from Tap & Bottle.

The Royal Room will hold court at 450 N. Sixth Ave. in an area north of downtown that is quickly becoming a hub for food and drink beyond the East Congress Street and North Fourth Avenue corridors.

The space, which will be located in the same building as the nonprofit PSA Art Awakenings, will offer a rotating list of wines from around the world, including a healthy selection from Arizona, that will be available by the glass or in flights.

We want to help start the conversation about wine in Tucson, said Royal Room co-owner Ian Stupar, who owns two Pita Jungle franchises in the Phoenix area with his business partners. It seemed like an exciting time and opportunity to do something like this. We wanted to add to the community.

Stupar is graduate of the Scottsdale Culinary Institute. In recent years has shifted his focus to wine, enrolling in the University of California, Davis viticulture and enology program and most recently serving as an intern for Dos Cabezas Wineworks in Sonoita.

I moved down here to be closer to that stuff, Stupar said.

In addition to wine, The Royal Room will feature craft beer options and a food menu that will include items meant to complement the wines being offered at any given time, things like charcuterie plates, house sandwiches and bruschetta.

The menu will be small, but there will be the option to build your own with a lot of the items, so youll have variety," Stupar said.

Sizing up at 1,500 square feet, The Royal Room will be the latest addition to the area, which already has Tap & Bottle, Crooked Tooth, Exo Roast Co. and soon Anello, a pizza spot being opened by Scott Girod, a protege of Phoenix-based pizza guru Chris Bianco.

If you want a different pace and feel from Fourth Avenue or Congress, we will be right down the street, Stupar said.

Follow The Royal Room's progress on its Facebook page.
The Pima County Health Department has not been formally inspecting a number of public splash pads because they were either improperly permitted or not permitted at all.

The department has identified seven such splash pads, including four with no permit. Some have never received an official health inspection from the Health Department, including the countys popular Brandi Fenton splash pad on River Road.

While the Health Department doesnt inspect any facility that doesnt have a permit, these splash pads do have regular on-site safety procedures in place and are often informally checked by inspectors during regularly scheduled visits to facilities that have permitted pools as well.

David Ludwig, county health inspections chief, said the department is working with splash pad operators to resolve the permit issue and create a schedule of regular inspections, something he hopes to have finished in coming weeks.

The aquatic directors have been very cooperative and they have assured me they can meet these timelines, he said. They are very concerned and want to get this done. Its positive they are out there protecting the public.

All locations will be required to submit plans and applications for separate splash-pad permits by Aug. 7, and inspections will begin after that. Any locations that fail to meet this deadline could face a court order to obtain a permit or be forced to close.

According to Ludwig, splash pads are a relatively new recreation trend, arriving in Pima County about 10 years ago as a more sustainable alternative to wading pools. Previously, there was no specific permit for a splash pad, and state and county codes do not address them directly.

Several of the facilities on the list  most of which have pools as well  submitted plans including their splash pads when they first applied for permits. However, permits were either denied because they didnt meet requirements of a pool or they were granted special-use pool permits, which the county now deems insufficient.

When we got plans for them (splash pads), we didnt turn them away, Ludwig said. We put them under a special-use pool and I can see why previous administrators looked at this as, well, this isnt a pool because there is no pooling of water.

Brandi Fenton is one such facility, and its plans were submitted in 2006. At the time, it was determined by Health Department management that a permit was not necessary prior to construction, according to Ludwig.

As a result, the pad has never received a county inspection in the 10 years it has been open.

Grant Bourguet, recreation program manager at Pima County, said that while the county-owned facility has not received a formal Health Department inspection, the public has nothing to be concerned about. The splash pad goes through daily procedures and follows the same safety standards as public pools.

Though I feel like its unfortunate this was not determined from the get-go, we are working with them to fix this paperwork situation and make sure we do have proper permitting, Bourguet said. I dont feel like we are doing anything less than exceeding or meeting the Health Department requirements for such a splash pad.

Brandi Fenton has a two-tiered sanitization system that keeps chlorine levels balanced. It also has an ultraviolet ray sanitizer where the bulb is replaced every year, though it is only required to do so every four years.

All splash pads are required to have a water recirculation system in place that filters water hourly before it exits the many hoses and nozzles.

Bourguet said the county-owned Picture Rocks splash pad, which is much smaller, has its recirculation tied into the swimming pool at the facility. Water from the pool, which is regularly tested and inspected, goes into a drain and is filtered before reaching the pad.

City of Tucson aquatics manager Billy Sassi said city pools and splash pads have daily safety and water quality procedures in place, including a two-tiered disinfectant system.

Our pads are set up where if their chemicals are below or above the proper levels, then the whole system wont activate at all, Sassi said. So, no one would be able to use the pad.

The city additionally tests pad and pool water quality hourly and ensures that gates surrounding them are up to code.

My main concern would be a splash pad out in the middle of nowhere that may not get regularly get checked  something like that, Sassi said.

The city will need to resubmit plans for its Naida Jane Baker splash pad, and pay a fee and submit a permit application.

The citys pads previously listed as special-use pools, including pads at Jacobs pool and Quincie Douglas pool, will need to obtain their own separate splash-pad permits, a process already underway.

Paul Keesler, Oro Valley public works director, said the towns Oro Valley Aquatic Center originally submitted plans including its pad to the county in about 2013, and was given a permit to cover the facility. Its recirculation system is tied to its two recreational pools, which receive regular inspections by the county, as well as hourly water tests.

An inspector found that the center may need an additional permit, and Keesler said they are going over new requirements emailed to the aquatics managers July 26.

Another location that will need to obtain a separate splash pad permit is Breakers Water Park on the northwest side.

Manager Steve Miklosi said that ever since the Captain Kidds Surfari pad has been at the park, it has received regular quality tests and inspections.

Our system is monitored like all the other attractions at the park, he said. We take hourly readings and keep a log of the water chemistry thats being circulated in the splash pad.

In addition to local efforts, there is a state effort underway to regulate and inspect Arizonas splash pads.

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality is working to update its review process for splash pads and establish a robust inspection procedure.

If its changes are approved in August, the county will incorporate them into its code.

This addition will add splash-pad designation and design requirements into the current State Administrative Code by adopting the national Model Aquatic Health Code, Ludwig said.

The new code will require splash pads to have the two-tiered chemical balance system, recirculation, proper fencing to keep out animals, UV or ozone sanitization, and will be inspected for any other fall hazards or potential dangers to children, according to Ludwig.
In case you havent figured it out yet, there will be no wall built along the length of the Mexican border.

And of course, there being no wall, Mexico wont pay for it.

That much became clear last week with the publication of a leaked transcript of a call between President Trump and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto. The call occurred in January, but it showed Trump long ago knew the idea was less of a proposal than a political tactic  something to cynically keep his supporters fired up.

You cannot say anymore that the United States is going to pay for the wall, Trump beseeched Pena Nieto. I am just going to say that we are working it out. Believe it or not, this is the least important thing that we are talking about, but politically this might be the most important (thing to) talk about.

A few members of Congress might still believe in Trumps big, beautiful wall  last week House Speaker Paul Ryan hilariously tried to jump on the caboose of the border-wall train just as it went off the tracks. But most have left the idea behind  even Republicans from border states.

Take the comments of John Cornyn, a U.S. senator from Texas, when he introduced a border security bill last week that would spread money across a variety of border-security pursuits but didnt throw much cash after fences.

There are parts of our border in which it makes absolutely no sense, Cornyn, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, told a San Antonio TV station. But what is helpful (is) to have fencing, for example, in places like San Diego, its a large urban area.

Or consider the position of all of the members of the U.S. House representing districts along the Mexican border: None of them, Democrats or Republicans, want a wall across the length of the border. They recognize the waste of money that would be and prefer smarter security strategies.

Rep. Martha McSally put out a press release July 27 celebrating the highlights of the defense authorization bill the House had passed, highlights that included, for example, $1.2 billion allocated to the Bureau of Reclamation. The Tucson Republican didnt even mention the $1.6 billion included in the bill for certain stretches of border barrier.

McSally, instead, recently held a hearing on other technological solutions to the border-security problem.

Even the National Border Patrol Council, the union for border agents that crucially supported Trumps campaign for president, doesnt support building border-long walls and barriers, in part because they have to be manned to be of any use.

The NBPC disagrees with wasting taxpayer money on building fences and walls along the border as a means of curtailing illegal entries into the United States, the union says on its website. Walls and fences are only a speed bump. People who want to come to the United States to obtain employment will continue to go over, under, and around the walls and fences that are constructed.

Nobody except a few million hardcore Trump supporters still seem to believe the border wall is a good idea and that Mexico might pay for it.

Now we know that Trump doesnt even believe in the idea. He acknowledged in the call with Pena Nieto that a border wall paid for by Mexico was always just a toss-off line. And it had trapped him.

The only thing I will ask you though is on the wall, you and I both have a political problem, Trump said. My people stand up and say, Mexico will pay for the wall, and your people probably say something in a similar but slightly different language. But the fact is we are both in a little bit of a political bind because I have to have Mexico pay for the wall  I have to.

Later, Pena Nieto suggests, Let us stop talking about the wall. I have recognized the right of any government to protect its borders as it deems necessary and convenient. But my position has been and will continue to be very firm saying that Mexico cannot pay for that wall.

Almost pitifully, Trump replied, But you cannot say that to the press. The press is going to go with that and I cannot live with that. You cannot say that to the press because I cannot negotiate under those circumstances.

The fact is, Trumps ability to negotiate a border wall with Congress had highly deteriorated even before the Washington Post published the leaked transcript Thursday. Now the prospects of a wall, and of Mexico paying for it, are gone, whether Trumps hardcore supporters know it or not.

And no matter what Paul Ryan says. With unerring bad timing, the House Speaker put out a flashy video on Tuesday proclaiming, Its time for the wall.

He was exactly wrong. Last week was the time when the idea of the wall collapsed, thank goodness. Now we can leave it behind and move on to more pragmatic ideas for border security.
With the fifth-highest incarceration rate in the nation, Arizona is spending nearly $600,000 a day to house drug offenders in prison, according to a new study.

The American Friends Service Committee, a Quaker organization that works toward social justice and prison reform, found critical problems through its study Drug Sentencing in Arizona: A Prescription for Failure, which was released Thursday.

Because the state doesnt collect aggregate data related to actual sentencing laws for any category of crime, the organization collaborated with the Public Welfare Foundation to collect court-level data on drug arrests, prosecutions and sentencing practices.

Researchers gathered data from court cases of people who were sentenced to prison for drug crimes in Maricopa, Pima and Yavapai counties from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2015.

The study determined that incarceration as a response to drug addiction is a failed strategy that researchers say is based on faulty logic and assumptions.

Drug arrests made up the single-largest category of offenses in the states prison system, with 21.3 percent of prisoners having a drug crime as their highest charge, the study showed.

The state is spending $588,655 per day to house people with a drug offense, averaging $24,229 per person, per year.

In addition to the fifth-highest incarceration rate in the country, Arizona also has a 49 percent recidivism rate, which shows that the threat of a harsher sentence for a subsequent conviction does nothing to make people clean and sober, the study says.

Although 75 percent of people in Arizona prisons were assessed by the Department of Corrections as having significant substance-abuse histories, only 1.7 percent of prisoners in December 2015 were receiving treatment.

I think this is definitely a good start for us to understand the sentencing practices related to drug crimes, as well as patterns of arrests and the need for rehabilitation programs while incarcerated, said Shi Yan, an assistant professor at Arizona State Universitys School of Criminology and Criminal Justice.

The study also found evidence of racial disparities in sentencing in the state. African-Americans make up only 4.8 percent of the total general population, but make up 11.5 percent of the population of people who are arrested and 13.8 percent of the prison population.

The sentence disparity isnt very surprising, because research in multiple jurisdictions has found that there has been some unexplained disparity between the sentence received by African-Americans and white, and in this case, Hispanic defendants, Yan said.

While the numbers are a good place to start, more research on the subject of racial disparity in sentencing is needed, since information about criminal records or severity of crimes wasnt taken into consideration in this particular study, Yan said.

Arizona also has the fourth-highest female incarceration rate in the country, with 32 percent of female inmates serving time for drug offenses, the study said.

Its also interesting to see the sentence differences between those who pleaded guilty and those who were found guilty at trial, Yan said. The findings have been generally consistent with the existing research that there is a difference in sentence depending on the mode of conviction (whether the person was convicted at trial or pleaded guilty).

The study showed that for people convicted of drug crimes, there was a 96 percent increase in time sentenced if the person went to trial, rather than accepted a plea.

Local drug arrests up

In a May meeting of the Pima County Board of Supervisors, Sharon Bronson asked the justice and law enforcement agencies to provide assessments of whats driving the ever-increasing costs associated with the countys criminal justice system.

Last month, Pima County Public Defender Joel Feinman sent a memo to the board citing data collected from Pima County Superior Court and the Tucson Police Department, which he says could potentially show that prosecution and incarceration of drug offenders is a very large driver of those escalating costs.

Between 2012 and 2016, the number of people arrested by TPD on felony drug charges increased by 30 percent, according to the memo.

Pima County is arresting vastly more people for narcotics-related offenses than ever before, Feinman wrote in the memo.

While some of these offenses involve serious drug trafficking charges and large amounts of illegal drugs, most do not.

The Public Defenders Office recently began tracking the aggregate amount of drugs involved in each felony arrest, as well as the bond amounts the county attorney requests in each case.

For the week of June 26 through July 3, the County Attorneys Office filed initial felony charges against 263 people.

Forty percent of those cases involved only narcotics offenses, Feinman wrote in the memo.

The office requested that 61 of the 105 drug offenders be held in jail on bond, and the median bond amount for the cases was $1,000, the memo said.

The median aggregate drug amount involved in those 105 cases was 0.495 grams  half a sugar packet, Feinman wrote in the memo.

Because the Public Defenders Office hasnt been tracking cases until recently, Feinman said it would take time to generate a larger sample size for the Board of Supervisors and county administrators to consider when implementing policy changes.

On Tuesday, the supervisors approved a $65,000 contract extension with The Primavera Foundation to implement enhancements to the Pima County Drug Court program and establish a drug treatment alternative ro prison program, funded by the countys Behavioral Health Treatment Court.

Last April, the county received a $1.5 million grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to participate in the Safety and Justice Challenge, which aims to reduce the jail population by addressing misuse and overuse.

One of the components of the challenge is to screen people coming into jail for substance-abuse and mental-health issues and offer treatment alternatives to incarceration.

As changes are made, a community group is holding regular meetings to review data, monitor results and suggest changes to the strategies for the county to implement.
Courtesy Brent Warfield(AUBURN, Ind.) -- Eleven-year-old Phil Mick was nervous to start his first day of sixth grade.



According to his mom, Tammy Mick of Auburn, Indiana, Phil had confessed that he didn't want to return to class after being bullied during his final year of elementary school.



"He was hiding it," Tammy Mick told ABC News. "He came home with bumps and bruises. He said he wanted to end his life and I stepped up as parent and tried to get things taken care of."



On Tuesday, Phil showed up for class with 50 bikers on motorcycles behind him.



Brent Warfield, sales manager of KDZ Motorcycle Sales & Service and a mutual friend of the Mick family, decided to step in and help after hearing about Phil's situation.



"I met Phil and I met Tammy and she had told be about him getting bullied," Warfield told ABC News. "I said, 'Well next year get a hold of me and we can give him an escorted ride to school.'"



"When you hear an 11-year-old-kid talking about getting kicked and picked on all because they don't have as much money or wear nice clothes, being overweight and then having an 11-year-old son myself, it reached down deep and hit me," he said.



Warfield put a call out on Facebook for bikers to join him in escorting Phil to school on Aug. 1.



That morning, a total of 50 bikers arrived at Phil's house, bringing with them new clothes and school supplies, Warfield said.



"It gave him confidence," he explained. "The middle school is a fresh start for him. I've talked to him several days since. He goes to school happy, comes home happy."



Mick said the special day left her son ecstatic.



I wanted to cry, it was so heartwarming," she added. "Every day, he talks about that ride. He said it was amazing. [To] Brent and all the riders who came, from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank them. They made my son very happy."



Mick said she'd like to encourage kids who are being bullied to share it with a loved one.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Momis Congratulates ONeill



Anthony Kaybing



070817



President John Momis of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville has formally written to the Prime Minister, the Hon. Peter ONeill to congratulate him on his re-appointment to the Office of Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea.



In his letter, President Momis emphasised the need for continued cooperation and for both governments to work together to jointly address challenges. His letter emphasised the need for continued close engagement in relation to the forthcoming referendum, and the importance of ensuring that autonomy arrangements work effectively.



The formation of the tenth Parliament of Papua New Guinea will play an important role in the Autonomous Region of Bougainvilles drive towards self-determination.



Bougainvilles referendum will be held during the term of this current parliament and it is vitally important that preparation are undertaken to ensure that both the National Government and Autonomous Bougainville Government are ready to face the task ahead.



It is equally important that Bougainvilles autonomy arrangements operate effectively as intended by the PNG Constitution, Momis said.



Amongst other things, this will be essential if Bougainvilleans are to have a real alternative to independence to consider when the referendum is held, President Momis stated.



President Momis also outlined several concerns of the ABG that must be addressed; this includes outstanding funding from the Restoration and Development Grant that are needed for the autonomy arrangements to function and has requested the intervention of the Prime Minister, Peter ONeill on the issue.



Another issue that President Momis highlighted was the reconvening of the Joint Supervisory Body meeting as soon as possible.



The last JSB meeting was supposed to happen in March of this year but the meeting was deferred as the national government were preparing for the National General Elections.



In advance of the JSB meeting the Governor General is expected to sign the Charter to establish the Bougainville Referendum Commission; officers from the two governments have been developing the draft Charter for some months now.



President Momis revealed that the ABG has already given attention to the question of the persons that it will be nominate as members of the commission and hopes that national government side will also make its nomination by the time the JSB meets.



Another prominent issue that President Momis hopes the Prime Minister will pay regard to is Bougainville Copper Limited shares divested by BCL to the national government in July 2016.



President Momis said he was looking forward to be working closely with the Prime Minister and his ministers to implement the Bougainville



Peace Agreement and ensure that the people of Bougainville exercise their right to self-determination.



Ends////
Where do people get the idea that school districts can control hundreds of students that have cell phones? Most schools have hundreds or more students and only a few dozen faculty members. Teachers have taken phones away only to end up paying for a broken phone. With the price of phones that could get expensive. How does anyone think a school district is going to monitor such a large number of phones? Maybe phones should be banned from school.
Sen. John McCains voted last week against repeal of Obamacare, though he had voted for that very thing just two years ago. His votes were an absolute abandonment of promises he had made in his last campaign for re-election and were particularly jarring to conservatives who voted him into office on the promise that he would support a new vote to repeal once it was brought back to the Senate floor.

Throughout the 2016 campaign, McCain ran ads that explicitly painted him as leading the fight for repeal of Obamacare, specifically referencing his 2015 vote for repeal, in what appears to have been a sham vote now for McCain, since he knew then-President Obama would veto it.

At the time, the senator told his constituency that he was proud of his vote to repeal the onerous law, specifically referencing many of the issues faced by Arizonans as a result of its passage. He said:

Today, I was proud to join my colleagues in Congress to continue the fight to repeal and replace Obamacare. Since its enactment, Obamacare has been full of empty promises that have only made our nations health-care problems worse. I hear from Arizonans every day who have been saddled by rising premiums, increased health-care costs, and reduced access to doctors and hospitals.

Things havent improved any since McCain uttered those words, and yet he voted against repeal this time around. This despite the fact Sen. Rand Pauls bill, which was the first one shot down, was identical to the one McCain supported, with the extra caveat that Obamacare would remain law for another two years, while legislators worked out a replacement. McCain added insult to injury after this by casting the deciding vote against what was deemed a skinny repeal bill, since it only removed the most onerous Obamacare taxes, leaving most of the law intact.

In point of fact, none of the repeal bills that McCain voted against would have fully repealed Obamacare, since that would not be possible through the reconciliation process.

I reached out to the senators office for an explanation as to why he voted the way he did and was sent an invoice of amendment proposals that Gov. Doug Duceys office had sent the senator, which wanted him to fight for considerations regarding the proposed Medicaid expansion cuts because they would adversely affect Arizonas state budget.

McCains staff did not make any other comments, other than refer to what he said publicly. In those statements he argued for a return to bipartisan legislation, while acknowledging the failures of Obamacare saying, We should not make the mistakes of the past that has led to Obamacares collapse, including in my home state of Arizona where premiums are skyrocketing and health-care providers are fleeing the marketplace.

While all of those official reasons sound wonderful, it doesnt change the fact that the Democrats, who voted on a purely party line vote to pass Obamacare, with many of them not having even read the bill at the time, refused to work with Republicans to repeal any portion of this bill.

Neither does it change or explain McCains original vote for repeal in 2015, or his promises to do the same if re-elected.

He maintains that there must be a viable replacement in place before he votes to repeal, but that too rings hollow in light of the fact that repealing the Obamacare taxes can be done without the need for an overarching plan in place, and again, the Republicans didnt have a replacement plan in place when he voted in 2015 for repeal.
Hundreds of people in a mountainous province of northern Vietnam are now struggling to continue their lives following a devastating flash flood that hit the locality earlier this week.

The disaster struck Mu Cang Chai Town in Yen Bai Province on Wednesday night and Thursday morning, killing at least two people, injuring eight, and causing 13 others to go missing.

Four schools were destroyed while 32 houses were swept away and 15 more damaged, bringing the total estimated damage to a whopping VND150 billion (US$6.6 million).

Many residents who managed to survive are now left empty-handed as the flash flood had taken away their homes.

Mu A Anh sorts out the belongings that were left behind following the flash flood. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The family of Mu A Tong is among those suffering the heaviest damage as his house and other belongings were completely lost in the disaster.

Tong said he had had to borrow money from all sources to build the house three years ago, adding that he has yet to pay up all the debt.

Tong, his wife, and their two children are now staying in a small room recently built at the home of his eldest brother.

Mu A Anh, another brother of Tongs, also suffered a similar fate.

Several bags of rice that were not swept away are unusable as they were soaked in mud and water.

Mu A Anh shows his bag of rice that were soaked in water and mud. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Several other residents who lost their houses are taking shelter in the classrooms of a local high school.

Staying at the facility, Giang A Lau recounted that his house and money had been swept away by the flood.

Lau and his family members have been relying on local authorities to carry on with their livelihoods.

The Peoples Committee in Yen Bai has provided rice and instant noodles for the affected residents during the hardship.

Residents take shelter in some high school classrooms in Mu Cang Chai. Photo: Tuoi Tre

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Help India!

By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter

All India Union Democratic Front (AIUDF) chief and MP Badruddin Ajmal during a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanded CBI inquiry into the murder of youth leader Lafikul Islam Ahmed, president of the All Bodoland Minority Students Union (ABMSU).

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Ajmal also demanded that permanent solution to the ravaging floods in Assam should be worked out besides providing relief to the victims. Ajmal along with his party MP Sirajuddin Ajmal during his meeting with Modi on Friday also donated Rs 30 lakh to the Prime Ministers Relief Fund as an aid towards Assam floods.

Ajmal, requested the PM to look into the murder of Lafikul Ahmed, who was murdered near Gosaigaon on August 1. After 2012 ethnic violence, there has been a peaceful atmosphere in BTAD for which late Lafikul played a very important role. In view of the above, this murder is likely to be a very calculated attempt to disturb Peace. Therefore, we request you for CBI enquiry regarding the incident and also give Rs 25 lakh as exgratia assistance to the bereaved family of Lafikul Islam, says the memorandum which was handed over PM by Ajmal.

Ajmal also said the state had been severely ravaged by floods and loss of land. We have been demanding and today once again we request you to declare flood and erosion in Assam as national calamities and find out permanent solutions of the problem in order to protect the people of Assam from this disaster, the memorandum reads. Ajmal has, in the past also asked Central government to pay more attention to floods in Assam that have become a yearly event and affect millions of lives. In 2016, he had sought a relief package of Rs 1,000 crore for the state. This year more than 80 people have died across various districts of Assam with Lakhimpur district the worst affected.

Ajmal also raised the issue of wrongful detention of Marzana Bibi over charges that she is an illegal immigrant and the issue of re-opening Cachar Paper Mills and Nagaon Paper mills, two units of Hindustan Paper Mills, which stopped production in 2015 and 2016 respectively. Ajmal reminded that Modi during the election campaign last year in Assam had promised to restart the mills, which provided direct and indirect employment to over 4 lakh people. Ajmal also requested the PM to start an AMU branch in Dhubri on the lines of Kerala, Bihar and West Bengal along with starting the construction of Dhubri-Phulbari bridge over the Brahmaputra among other issues.
Help India!

By Raqib Hameed Naik, TwoCircles.net

Jammu: Family of a Doda-based lawyer and social activist Babur-ul-Islam Nehru has alleged illegal detaining of Nehru by Jammu and Kashmir police since July 22.

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Family members claimed that Nehru was picked by the J&K police in Jammu district as he was coming out of the mosque in Christian Colony after offering morning prayers.

He was picked outside the mosque and was first taken to Gandhi Nagar police station. Later, he was shifted to another police station and now he is presently lodged in Akhnoor police station, Baburs brother Abdul Mateen Nehru told TwoCircles.net.

The family has claimed that in last two weeks, Babar has been shifted to three different police stations.

When I went to meet him at the police station, he told me that a senior police officer had visited him and told him that he is a threat to peace and can become militant commander of some militant organisation in Chenab Valley in the next two years. I dont know how he is a threat when he was doing his regular job and social work, Mateen informed.

The family is presently camping in Jammu to seek the release of their son and has alleged police of fabricating false case and putting him in jail on one pretext or the other.

Importantly, Babur had resigned from the post of Legal Assistant in J&K government on June 29, earlier this year and had resumed his regular practice at Doda court.

When TCN contacted the Akhnoor Police Station, the officer on the line confirmed his presence in their lockup and said, Yes, he is in our police station. When asked about the charges he has been put in jail, he told that it is confidential and cant tell it over the phone.

Doda-based lawyer and bar association member S Mudassir Hassan while briefing about the case said, The problem with this case is that they arent communicating the charges under which he has been put in the jail and further, I came to know yesterday that the magistrate has extended his police remand by another 14 days despite the fact that DIG Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban range has given him a clean chit.

Kashmir-based human rights activist and chairperson of Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances Khurram Parvez condemned the detention of Babur and asked for his immediate release.

These kind of illegal detentions are happening across the valley since last 27 years and happening every day in different police stations of the state. It doesnt matter for the government either the person being detained is a lawyer or a common man, he said.

Here is a sad situation and fear due to which families dont take legal recourse to challenge the illegal detentions because the government can then take extra legal recourse and book the concerned persons under Public Safety Act, he added.

Last year also on August 27, the said advocate was arrested and booked under the draconian Public Safety Act (PSA) for organizing protests against the use of force in Kashmir leading to killings.

Babur is also the founder of Ababeel, an NGO actively participating in social initiatives. In 2014 floods, he and his group mobilised resources from Chenab Valley to help the flood-affected people in Kashmir. His organisation has also worked in health and education sector in the erstwhile districts.
The last Week In Politics has been quiet in comparison with a year ago but a lot has still happened, firstly, a spokesperson for Theresa May directly contradicted Phillip Hammonds statement on a post-Brexit transitional period, Arsenal FCs owner Stan Kroenke has come under fire after launch of hunting TV channel in the UK, think tank suggests farmers food subsidies should end, the truth of inequality has been unveiled by the Mirror, Jeremy Hunt promised an extra 21,000 new mental health jobs and the Conservatives have U-turned on their energy price cap manifesto pledge.

Meanwhile in the US, Donald Trump has sacked Anthony Scaramucci after just 10 days, revealed he dictated his sons press statement over Russia meeting and reluctantly passed sanctions against Russia.

Elsewhere,

UK Politics

Jeremy Hunt has promised an extra 21,000 mental health jobs by 2021, however, the aim sets out to treat an extra million patients by that time. The promise has been branded unrealistic by the nurses union. The money is coming from an extra 1.3 billion, although it is unclear where this has come from and the Royal College of Nursing has said that if the nurses were to be ready in time then they would have to be starting training next month, however, they further stated that since the nurses bursary has been cut they have seen a sharp fall in university applicants. These extra 21,000 jobs will also be placed on top of the current 40,000 needed to cover mental health needs in the NHS.

British Gas meanwhile hiked their bills by 12.5% and government ministers asked not to be blamed on policy, despite the fact it was in the Conservative manifesto as a pledge to cap energy prices. British Gas posted profits of 639 million in just six months, with British Gas Chief, Iain Conn, raising his own annual salary to 4.15 million.

A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) said: Energy firms should treat all their customers fairly and were concerned this price rise will hit many people already on poor-value tariffs. Further adding that they are not ruling anything out, event though they already promised to cap energy prices.

Recently a study by the High Pay Centre think tank and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) revealed that it would take an average worker over a century and a half to earn the average annual salary of a company chief. An analysis of FTSE 100 chief executives revealed that the average salary is 4.6 million and is dominated by men with just 6 women on the list who earn an average 2.6 million, further highlighting gender inequality and wealth inequality. The pay ratio between FTSE 100 CEOs and the average pay of their employers is 129:1 and on median pay (28,000 annually) it would take 160 years for employees to earn what The CEOs earn in a year.

World News

In the US, Donald Trump chaotic reign as president continues as he hired military general John F.

Kelly as chief of staff, after sacking Reince Priebus. When Anthony Scaramucci, head of communications went on an expletive rant about how he thought Priebus was behind the leaks from the White House, subsequently, Kellys first action was to recommend firing Scaramucci after just 10 days in the job. Trump also failed in his bid to repeal Obamacare with John McCain casting the final vote and signed a bill reluctantly placing sanctions on Russia, he described it as seriously flawed.

Turkey are beginning their largest trial of 490 individuals suspected of orchestrating the failed coup attempt last year from an air base outside Ankara. Following Macrons nationalisation of a shipyard that was due to be bought by Italians, this has caused the relationship between the two nations to hit a low ebb, each nations finance ministers met and gave themselves until September to resolve it.

Finally, Venezuelas problems deepen after a leaked document refuted the government claims of a 8m voter turnout to give the constitute assembly near absolute power, the document claimed 3.7m turned out. The voting machine were said to be tampered with and the opposition boycotted the vote with ten people dying in subsequent protests.
The UK think tank, the Policy Exchange, has issues a report recommending that ministers should end farmer Food Production subsidies. Stating the freeing up of funds could be spent elsewhere, such as the NHS. The report also suggests that the UK should lower tariffs on agricultural products post-Brexit from countries all over the world, not just the EU. Currently as a member of the EU, the UK is obliged to levy the same tariffs as other EU nations.

What could this mean for UK farming and what direction does the report from the think tank suggest going?

Farming is a traditional industry for the UK and it is vital that we continue to improve our standards.

Phasing out food subsidies

The issue with the think tanks idea is that it would mean the UK would become almost entirely dependent on imported meat and lowering of tariffs could see the lowering of standards. Reports have already been made about chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-treated beef, which are currently banned under EU regulation. The think tank suggested that the government should pay them for other activities, such as protecting the environment.

This follows Michael Goves first big speech as environment minister, where he confirmed that farmers are guaranteed the 3 billion annual subsidies post-Brexit until at least 2022.

Furthermore, he also said that future subsidies would be dependent on the wider benefits offered to the public from farmers, such as environmental protection.

The report says that from 2020 all food production subsidies should be phased out and gone by 2025. The problem is that the think tank, the Policy Exchange, Gove was one of the founders and the report suggests that we cannot keep up with farming standards in New Zealand and elsewhere.

However, New Zealand is bad comparison because after they cut food production subsidies, 70% of farmers went out of business and whilst it is reported that their industry is thriving, those reports come from the big business that can afford to set up.

More than meets the eye?

Either way, if the reports are correct and New Zealand farming is at its height, it took a long time to get there and real investment into other areas of farming such as environmental protections.

The government would need to ensure that significant costs for environmental protection infrastructure would be either subsidised entirely or at least partly.

Except there is one part of the report that suggests something else could be at play here. The report says that if removing the subsidies caused farmers to give up farming, there should be a mechanism in lace for redesigning agricultural land for other purposes such as housing. This suggests that land that would have previously been used by a business that has been contributing to the UK economy be sold off to build housing, the issue is that the report implies that it should go to the private sector.

The centre-right think tank could possibly be suggesting that the UK purposefully forces farmers out of business to then sell off the land to the private sector and share some of the land-value gains with the farmers, not all or even most, just some of the gains. However, that interpretation is entirely up to you.
Momis on AROB National MPs

070817Anthony Kaybing

The four national MPs of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville must present a unified front in parliament to ensure the autonomous arrangements on Bougainville are implemented through the Bougainville Peace Agreement.

ABG President Chief Dr John Momis made this remark following the dismal failure of Bougainvillean MPs in the previous government to advocate the full implementation of the Bougainville Peace Agreement.

The President was particularly frustrated by the Regional Member, Joe Leras statement in Alotau last week that the ABG had neglected to consult with Mr Lera on matters pertaining to Bougainville when he was Minister for Bougainville Affairs.

As the Minister for Bougainville affairs Mr. Lera at that time he should have been proactively pursuing the Bougainville agenda on behalf of the people and not maintain the neutral stand that he opted for, President Momis remarked.

The President said that the National Coordination Office for Bougainville Affairs (NCOBA) which comes under the Bougainville Affairs ministry is the avenue where the national MPs should be raising the issues that affect the autonomous arrangement on Bougainville.

These issues include the outstanding Restoration Development Grant funds which is in access of K1 billion, implementing the resolutions of the Joint Supervisory Body and implementation of the Bougainville Peace Agreement.

Politicians must understand that their roles are not that of fund distributors through the PSIP and DISP, their roles are foremost lawmakers who must ensure that there is equitable distribution of services and that they create laws that govern the people in a democratised fashion, Momis said

Momis said that the PSIP and DSIP funds have been largely used to create a dependency syndrome amongst the people instead of letting them participate meaningfully in development.

While we recognise the importance of having development in Bougainville the national MPs must advocate on behalf of the ABG which is the legitimate government on Bougainville; they must not shy away from standing up for our people, they must work with the ABG and ensure self-determination for our people is not compromised, Momis said.

President Momis has stated that the referendum is fast approaching and there is a need for all the leaders at the political level to unite to ensure that this process is not jeopardized by leaders self-interests.

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Canton-based Massachusetts own Dunkin Brands says that it will be giving one new location of its chain the sole name Dunkin and eliminate the Donuts part from the title. According to the company, some other locations could receive the new name as well. The initial Test location is Pasadena, California.

A Place to Buy Coffee

The name alteration is meant to cause people to think about Dunkin as a place to buy coffee, although donuts will still be featured at the store. The company revealed that it does not plan to make a solid decision about the name modification until late in 2018.

That is when the company reportedly will begin revamping the looks of its stores. Nations Restaurant News first reported the test for the name change.

A Move to Support Current Branding

The restaurant chain has claimed for the last ten years that "America Runs on Dunkin." Now, the number one donut chain is seeing if changing the name will support its advertising message. Therefore, the company does not consider the move as one that does not complement current branding.

An On-the-Go Beverage-endorsed Brand

The planned name test solidifies remarks made by Dunkin Brands CEO, Nigel Travis. During a Q2 earnings call, Mr. Travis spoke about the companys efforts to design a new layout of the stores as well as efforts toward streamlining menu options.

The idea is to enhance the companys influence as an on-the-go and beverage-endorsed type of brand. Currently, the donut chain features 12,300 locations internationally. Therefore, the name change is one that can have a large impact on the companys bottom line.

Raising the Bar

This move evidently will keep Dunkin Brands and Starbucks competitive as the two chains are the two largest in the U.S.

that features coffee. Although both companies highlight many of the same features in their menus and methods of operation, key differences remain in their business models. Therefore, a name change focuses on Dunkin branding, one of the elements that make the two large coffee retailers different.

While Dunkin Brands has primarily featured itself as a coffee retailer that offers donuts and other foods, Starbucks portrays itself as a beverage provider that supplies more of a coffee house type of experience.

Therefore, the name change for Dunkin will narrow the variance in this respect. Currently, Starbucks is thought to be a more upscale brand as the coffee retailer offers a broader menu and personalized experience. This personalization is supported by writing a customers name on his or her cup. Socialization is also encouraged as customers can enjoy free wireless access.
Rex Tillerson will on Sunday takes his campaign to pressure North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program to Asia. The move is to intensify US efforts to isolate the regime.

Pyongyang is one of Trump administrations top priorities. In April, Tillerson launched a global pressure campaign to isolate the country over its nuclear activities further.

Pyongyang under pressure to abandon its missile program

The main effort is aimed at China, the source of about 90 percent of North Koreas trade, but the campaign also targets nations that buy Pyongyangs military hardware, hire its workforce, host its firms and consulates and allow the transition or landing of its planes on their territory.

US officials say nations are responding the pressure campaign, by reducing the number North Korean guest workers and cutting flight and diplomatic missions. India, which is the third largest trade partner the reclusive state, is severing all trade agreements except medicine and food. Malaysia among other countries is also making it difficult for North Korean citizens from entering the country, the officials said.

The US has drafted a new UN resolution that could slash up to $1 billion from Pyongyangs export which diplomats say could be presented any moment before the Security Council for a vote.

Susan Thornton of the Department of State Pacific affairs and East Asia said the US is continuing its campaign to intensify pressure on the regime.

The move aims to increase the feeling of isolation. She added that countries are being asked to implement the Security Council resolutions and to take a step in reducing their interactions with North Korea.

US effort to isolate North Korean from ASEAN nations

Thornton further stated that Tillerson would on Sunday ask the 27-member forum of the Association of East Asian Nations, taking place in the Philippines, to consider expelling North Korea from the group.

Despite the pressure, the US top diplomat still maintains the United States willingness to dialogue with North Korea. On Tuesday, Tillerson told journalists that the time would come when Pyongyang will begin to realize the need to sit down and have a dialogue about the future that will usher in the needed security they are seeking.

The US Secretary of State said the pressure on the regime continue until they understand the need for dialogue because the other options on the table are particularly unattractive.
The Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with his North Korean counterpart yesterday in the Philippines and requested North Korea not to escalate tensions by conducting more rocket and missile tests. It has not been mentioned whether the Chinese foreign minister also threatened to stop all trade with North Korea. There is also no news available as to what the North Korean reaction was to the Chinese request. Did they agree to the request or did they decide to ignore whatever the Chinese foreign minister had said?

According to the BBC, China has long been a backer of North Korea.

Many political observers have opined that all the actions taken by the North are in reality a proxy for China, as the North could never have reached this stage if China was serious about stopping the nuclear and missile program. The United States and the UN Security Council have put pressure on China and the result is that China has been forced to make a cosmetic show after the Security Council approved the harshest sanctions ever against North Korea.

US saber rattling

China has been against any stringent action against North Korea and wants the USA to stop its saber rattling on the Korean Peninsula. It is also concerned about the deployment of the THAAD Missile system as it feels is a threat to their security.

The Russians are also not happy with the deployment of the missile system in South Korea. However, both the countries, China and Russia did not veto the UN resolution on further stringent sanctions against North Korea.

China and the North

Before the resolution was adopted by the UN Security Council there were tough negotiations between China and the USA.

It has to be seen how serious China is about tightening the screws on its long time ally. China intervened on the side of the North Korean army during the Korean War and the Americans failed to win a decisive victory.

Asean regional forum

Tillerson, the Secretary of State will be attending the 27 Nation Asean Regional Forum and North Korea will also be represented there by Ri Yong-Ho.

It will be interesting to watch what action the other Southeast Asian countries take against North Korea. Many of them are of the opinion that war is not an option and they would like diplomacy to be the tool to go ahead.

South Korea cannot toe the U.S. line of attacking the North because it will lose terribly and millions of its citizens will be killed. President Moon has already indicated that he is willing to talk to North Korea. In the ultimate analysis, there is very slim hope that North Korea will suspend its nuclear and missile program.

Reality

The world may have to come to reality and accept North Korea as a nuclear power. One should not forget that a similar scenario was played out in 1962 when China went nuclear, yet the USA accepted China as a nuclear power so why not North Korea?
"Big Brother 19" was tense tonight. Going into the live eviction, the houseguests were on pins and needles. Now, the cat is out of the bag. Cody believed his alliance members were all on the same page, and up until right before the votes, so did America. As it turns out, the "Big Brother" alliance wasn't intact. Jillian and Christmas were nominated for eviction, and once the votes fell, the unexpected happened.

Who was evicted from "Big Brother 19"?

At the end of the night, Jillian was sent packing. Most of Cody's alliance voted to keep Christmas in the house.

After Jillian walked out the door, tensions rose. Paul Abrahamian pulled out his Power of Protection and shook up the house a few days ago and now, the eviction put them all on high alert. With Cody not able to play for the Head Of Household, Jessica was having a fit.

As the show closed, the new Head of Household competition was starting. Viewers were watching the competition on the live feeds, and within the hour, the new Head of Household was crowned. Paul Abrahamian won the prize, placing himself in a good spot moving forward. He is protected for two more evictions, and this week, he calls the shots. Next week he is ineligible for the Head of Household competition, but he is still safe from being nominated.

This buys him plenty of time to form a solid alliance and almost guarantees him a spot in the Jury House.

Paul's Head of Household is going to shake things up

Cody is bent out of shape over how the votes fell. Jessica got upset and in Christmas' face after the votes were cast. Apparently, there has been some serious confrontations happening in the house, and which has lead to fish being seen on the live feeds.

Production had to warn the houseguests about getting too close to one another when arguing. Tonight, things are heated, and once the nominations are made, it could get worse.

Speculations are flying that Paul is going to place Cody and Jessica on the block against one another. Cody is a beast, and he could easily win the Power of Veto competition, leaving Jessica on the block.

Ramses needs to offer himself up to be nominated at least once in the next three weeks, and this could be his ticket to stay while also taking his punishment. There are several possibilities for how this will play out, all of which are going to cause some serious drama in the "Big Brother 19" house. Fans are excited to see who Paul nominates tomorrow, especially because they know it will make waves.
"General Hospital" spoilers are teasing another week featuring "CarSon" (Carly and Sonny) and their connections. Friday's episode left off with Olivia's (Lisa LoCicero) wedding where the who's who of Port Charles ended up. Carly (Laura Wright) got her first glimpse of Michael (Chad Duell) and Nelle (Chloe Lanier) as a couple. While it went over better than expected, things during the upcoming week are going to take a turn for the worst.

Carly deals with Joss

Josslyn (Eden McCoy) is about to give her mother a run for her money. If "General Hospital" fans thought Carly was bad when she rolled into Port Charles, they haven't seen anything yet.

With her budding romance with Oscar, things are going to amplify. Sonny (Maurice Benard) is Joss' main hang up, and now, she wants to teach her mom a lesson. Oscar is going to help her and when Josslyn attempts to lie to her mom, Carly is going to lose it. Bobbie (Jacklyn Zeman) is going to warn her daughter and give her some advice on how to handle the situation.

Dante (Dominic Zamprogna) is going to be able to have a moment with his step-daughter on "General Hospital." Charlotte (Scarlett Fernandez) isn't his biological child, but he is going to be raising her. With Emme Rylan just giving birth to her daughter, there is some speculation about how the writers are going to handle it. Right now, they are focusing on building the family unit, and Dante's dance with Charlotte is going to evoke viewer emotion.

Nathan goes rogue?

"General Hospital" spoilers are giving some interesting tidbits about Nathan (Ryan Paevey). According to She Knows Soaps, Nathan is going to go rogue. Does this have something to do with the phone call he receives from Amy (Ria Dorken) or is this Maxie (Kirsten Storms) related? She is due to return to the show on Jul 24th as she had already resumed filming before the three-week summer hiatus the show takes.

This is probably the most puzzling spoiler reveal because as of Friday's show, things seemed to be normal for him.

The next few months are going to be complicated on "General Hospital." There will be several cast changes including the exit of Rebecca Budig and William deVry. Hayden and Julian are leaving Port Charles. Steve Burton is returning to the soap at some point soon, which is going to be something for the books. Fans have a lot to look forward to with the changes, both good and bad. "General Hospital" is definitely something you don't want to miss going forward.
Today Blasting News got the chance to talk to Stephanie Hollman of "The Real Housewives of Dallas" in an exclusive interview. Stephanie recently did something amazing as she donated Bone Marrow to a stranger. It was great to get to talk to her about her experience.

How did Stephanie end up being matched?

Stephanie Hollman actually went to a cancer walk along with her son and also her friend. This was a fun time, and they had a place where you could get a swab and sign up to be on the bone marrow registry. Stephanie went for it, but then didn't think much about it after that until she got a call that she was a match.

Right before Easter of 2017, Stephanie Hollman got the call, and she was the only match on the entire registry for a woman who needed a transplant. She went for it and did the bone marrow transplant for the woman.

Stephanie reveals how it works

Stephanie Hollman shared that she was able to give the woman her plasma and bone marrow. She loved the way that this worked out and she would do it again if ever given a chance. She was a bit sore from the process, but she also was able to still do things with her children and function during this time.

Right now, Stephanie Hollman is unable to meet the woman that she helped. She gets a monthly update from the from the agency that she did the bone marrow transplant through.

When it all happened, Stephanie was able to send a letter to the woman. After one year has passed, they will be able to make a decision and meet up if that is something that they decide they want to do.

Stephanie Hollman is very active in her community, and honestly, it isn't shocking at all that she would donate bone marrow to a strange.

Stephanie is also very involved in Big Brother/Big Sister. She has been doing this for nine years and shared that her little is actually about to be the first person in her family to head to college. It was obvious talking to Stephanie that she was very proud of this young lady.

Have you ever thought of donating bone marrow to a stranger?

Stephanie was able to change someone's life with this big decision and you could too. Don't miss new episodes of "The Real Housewives of Dallas" when it returns to Bravo. Stephanie will be on Season 2 of "RHOD" and shared that she doesn't know anything about Season 3 at this time, but would have to see how Season 2 goes before making any kind of decision. She said she would never sign on to something without seeing how it all played out first.
Avid followers of the Alaskan Bush People Season 7 would not be seeing the show in the next two weeks after the series took a short break. However, spoilers suggested TV viewers to brace themselves as the upcoming episodes of the popular Discovery Channel series are going to be darker than ever.

Will the upcoming new episodes feature more about Ami Browns health condition?

TV Overmind reported that Ami Brown is going to be the focus of the imminent episodes of the seventh season. According to the news outlet, this could be the networks way of granting the constant requests of fans to know more about the medical condition of the Brown familys matriarch.

Thousands of viewers reportedly complained about the show for featuring repeated clips from the previous installments. However, the people behind the series explained that they have to do it since they need to film more recent scenes so fans could keep up with Amis failing health.

The publication added that TV viewers would also be witnessing more emotional moments as it will also tackle how Amis cancer has affected the Brown family in general. Aside from that, the new set of episodes of Alaskan Bush People Season 7 is set to feature how the Brown siblings have been adjusting to their lives since they started living apart from one another.

Additionally, the real status between Noah Brown and his girlfriend is also expected to be discussed in the show.

To recall, Noah was the only one who took care of the Browntown during the shows first season.

While some fans think that Ami's health condition is going to worsen in the forthcoming episodes, spoilers suggest that everything is going to be better especially after the family decided to leave their homestead to focus more on their matriarch's medications.

Hence, fans should take these theories lightly.

Brown matriarch looking good despite having advanced lung cancer

Meanwhile, The Inquisitr reported that a recent photo of Ami and Billy Brown together was shared on the latters Facebook fan page. Taken last Thursday, July 27, 2017, the said photograph featured the couple looking happy around each other.

Most fans can recall how the entire clan got devastated after learning that Ami has a stage 3B lung cancer. Following the diagnosis, the Brown family had shared the treatment plan for their matriarch in the latest Alaskan Bush People Season 7 episode, a previous Blasting News report shared.

Shelia McCormack has divulged that Ami Brown is going to undergo a four-hour chemotherapy once a week. Aside from that, she will also have to see the doctor for five days a week in the next six weeks for his radiation treatment.

The Alaskan Bush People Season 7 is scheduled to return to a small screen on August 9, 2017, via the Discovery Channel. Stay tuned for more spoilers and updates.
Botswana- Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were photographed on the airport's tarmac on Friday, by the Sun. The couple is spending a romantic weekend on the African continent, to celebrate Markle's 36th birthday. Of course, it could be just that. A birthday celebration for the American "Suits" star. However, rumors about a possible proposal are also spreading like wildfire. And the best part? Prince Harry was allegedly spotted earlier this year, designing an engagement ring with the Queen's jeweler, Harry Collins.

Why Botswana?

Prince Harry has oft spoken of his love for the African continent.

And while he has many charity organizations, such as Sentebale in South Africa, he claims that Botswana is one of his favorite destinations. He has mentioned that he has several friends and acquaintances there that help him avoid the paparazzi and have a bit more privacy than usual.

Furthermore, Harry has spoken of his wish to one day expose his children to Africa, in the hopes that they will share his love for the wild continent. It is therefore fitting that Harry take his potential wife-to-be to visit what he describes as his "second home." Harry and Markle have been getting more and more serious of late, and it has been speculated that Harry needs Africa's privacy so that he can finally pop the question.

After all, Prince William chose to propose to Kate Middleton atop the solitary Mount Kenya, according to ABC News.

What would the wedding look like?

Of course, a wedding for a royal is nothing simple. Prince Harry, who is fourth in line to the throne, would have first to ask the Queen's permission. Another obstacle would perhaps be that Markle was once married to Trevor Engelson, a film producer.

The Royals aren't so keen on marrying divorcees, but then again, Prince Charles was allowed to marry Camilla Parker-Bowles, who had also been married before, so perhaps this won't be much of a problem for Prince Harry.

And the best part? Harry was already spotted designing an emerald and diamond engagement ring from one of Diana's bracelets, according to several British newspapers.

So, perhaps the Prince already has the Queen's blessing. Prince Harry and Markle's wedding would inevitably turn out to be every bit as glamorous as all the other royal weddings of late. According to the Mirror, the ceremony would have to take place in one of Britain's most prominent cathedrals. It is likely that Prince William would be Harry's best man and that some of the notable guests would include Serena Williams and Meghan's stylist and close friend, Jessica Mulroney.

A royal engagement would be some of the best news this year!
Kylie Jenner's new show "Life With Kylie" is premiering tonight and the fans couldn't be more excited about it. Now Kylie is speaking out and saying that she felt like an outsider as she was Growing up. Things were not normal for Kylie seeing that she didn't always go to school like other kids and was home schooled. She has had a great life, but it was not the kind that everyone else had considering that she was famous and was treated differently.

Kylie talks about the way she grew up

Kylie Jenner recently went to prom with a fan named Albert from Sacramento, California.

She never actually got to go to her own prom. Kylie reveals that she has a soft spot for the outcast and actually feels like a bit of one herself. Kylie explained her thoughts saying, "And I still feel like an outcast in different ways now because I can't relate to a lot of people, so it's like this little world. I do feel like an outcast." Most people wouldn't expect to hear this from Kylie.

In a clip from tonight's show of "Life With Kylie," she is seen with her best friend Jordyn Woods are FaceTiming Alberts mother. She is explaining to them that nobody wanted to take Albert to prom at all. Kylie explains that it is not cool to treat people like that and she feels like kids are mean nowadays.

You know that he is going to be thrilled to have Kylie Jenner as his prom date. After listening to Albert's mom talk, there was no way that she could say no and not go with him to his prom.

Kylie reveals about her own prom

Kylie Jenner is speaking out about her own prom and she never even went to one. This prom that she is going to with Albert is actually her first prom to ever go to.

She said that she actually had to unfollow some of her friends because it really upset her watching them all going to prom. Kylie decided that it was best to just not watch them on their timelines posting all about the fun that they were having without her. She said it was hard on her to watch them having fun at prom when she wasn't able to go there at all.

Are you shocked to hear that Kylie Jenner says she felt like an outsider while growing up? Do you think that this makes sense? Sound off in the comments section below on your thoughts, and don't miss new episodes of "Life With Kylie" on Sunday nights on E!. This new series with Kylie is going to be all about her life. This is her first series that didn't have her sisters or the rest of her family on it and everyone is excited to see how Kylie lives and what is going on with her.
All of us learn a lot of stuff through online reports. The Internet is a big source of news and people can instantly access the Web to find any hot stuff thats worthy of reporting. It could be highly unlikely that movie stars learn about new roles through the Web, but thats what happened to Samuel L. Jackson.

Online reports gave him the news

In an interview with Fandango, as reported by CBR, Samuel L. Jackson revealed that he found out that he was returning as Nick Fury in "Captain Marvel" when he read reports run by the media. He also added that this time, Fury will be returning with two eyes fully functional.

Jackson revealed that he had difficulty memorizing his lines with the eye patch when he acted in the earlier films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

It will be easier to learn my lines. Its one of those weird things I figured out. The first day I shot as Nick Fury, with one eye, I couldnt remember my lines, Samuel L. Jackson revealed.

Jackson then added that he improvised in order to learn the lines. He started to cover one of his eyes when reading the script, and it worked. [I]ts a stupid kind of thing, but it totally works, the actor said in a Screen Rant article.

Fury was last seen commanding a newly built Helicarrier to rescue the Avengers in Sokovia, in the events of 2015s "Avengers: Age of Ultron." Before that, Jacksons character was thought dead after he was fatally shot in the events of 2014s "Captain America: The Winter Soldier." Fans can now see him in the same role in 2019, when the film is released.

While Marvel has revealed Jackson's casting, there were no other details revealed for the character. According to Deadline, Larsons character will be facing off against the Skrulls, and that the film will take place in a timeline that precedes all the other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This explains why Fury has two eyes functioning and could reveal why he lost the use of one in the first place.

Brie Larson is excited for the role

Jackson will be joining Brie Larson, who was confirmed last year by none other than Marvels Kevin Feige to be playing the titular role. Ronda Rousey had expressed interest in playing various female superhero roles even to the point of posting pictures in Twitter wearing costumes. However, she found no success.

Larson indicated her excitement for the role. According to the actress, playing Captain Marvel gives her the opportunity to prove that female superheroes are more complex than but equally powerful as their male counterparts. The role, she added, lets her play that complexity in a scale larger than she had done before in other roles. "Captain Marvel" is set to start shooting in February 2018, with a release date set for 2019.
The United States could soon broaden discussions in its push to get the United Nations to impose stronger sanctions on North Korea. The U.S. wants the talks to include all the fifteen members of the UN Security Council, in a move that could be a signal that a deal could be struck with china over the thorny North Korean issue, Reuters reported this week.

Fresh sanctions on North Korea

Since Pyongyang's decision to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on the fourth of July this year, the US has been discussing a draft resolution with China.

The resolution seeks to impose a round of new sanctions on North Korea.

Speaking to Reuters, Liu Jieyi, China's ambassador to the United Nations, said that the two countries have been having discussions for some time and that there is hope that a consensus resolution could be reached. According to some diplomats, the US could present the draft resolution as early as Thursday to all the fifteen security council members.

In the past, the U.S. and China have agreed on sanctions against North Korea, before inviting the other members of the security council to scrutinize them. For a resolution to be adopted, it requires nine votes in favor, and no vetoes by China, the United States, France, Russia, or Britain.

Washington has been keeping France and the UK in the loop. The United States top diplomat at the UN Nikki Haley said that China has been sharing details of, and negotiating the draft proposal, with China.

Russian involvement

On Sunday, Ambassador Hailey stated that the United States was growing tired of discussing North Korea and that now it is up to China to decide whether it is willing to support stronger United Nations sanctions.

However, Moscow pointed out on Sunday that the five permanent members of the UN Security Council have not held formal talks on the draft.

It is not yet clear whether the worsening relations between Russia and the US would prove a stumbling block during the negotiations. Russia is still smarting from Washington's decision on Wednesday to impose new sanctions against President Vladimir Putin's government.

\

Vassily Nebenzia, Russia's Ambassador to the UN, said that even if the US and China reach an agreement, it does not mean the five permanent members of the council will agree to it. He added that although he was aware of what might be contained in the resolution, he was yet to see the draft in its current form.

Last week, Ms. Haley stated that Russia's involvement on the draft would be the real test to any possible action. Russia has disputed the U.S. claims that North Korea has launched two long-range missiles, arguing that the missiles were mid-range.
Shanghai is typically never this warm in the summer and the ongoing heatwave has compelled people to find unusual ways of beating the heat  this year, dozens of residents have resorted to napping on the Bund in a bid to catch the occasional sea breeze.

The 40.9 C recorded on July 21 was the highest since Shanghai started meteorological records 145 years ago. The highest temperature for 11 consecutive days (from July 18 to 28) was over 37 C, another historical record.

The Shanghai Meteorological Center issued at least 16 orange heat-wave alerts (for temperatures over 37 C) and three red ones (over 40 C) in July. The extreme weather has caused at least four deaths and numerous reports of heatstroke and other illnesses in the city.

Air conditioning units have naturally been working in overdrive. According to the authorities, electricity usage spiked to 32.7 million kilowatts, the highest level in the city since it began keeping records. In a bid to curb energy usage, authorities have resorted to switching off the lights of iconic buildings, such as the Oriental Pearl Tower and Shanghai Tower, after 7:30 pm.

Orders for food deliveries have also grown exponentially. Ele.me, a Chinese food delivery company, has seen a 204 percent rise in deliveries from June to July compared to the same period last year. The sale of watermelons in July, a fruit favored for its thirst-quenching properties, hit a staggering 300,000 tons, a 40 percent increase from June.

During summers, residents who do not have air conditioners typically gather outside their homes to chat or play a game of mahjong, chess or cards with a small fan in hand. It has become a way of life for many and it is one that dates back to the days when most of the population lived in shikumen and did not own air conditioners.

Back during those simpler times, residents turned to different foods to beat the heat. Ice-lollies made with salt water were a cheap but effective snack. Watermelons chilled with freshly drawn water from the well were also popular.
Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) Hwasong-14 is pictured during its second test-fire in this undated picture provided by KCNA in Pyongyang on July 29, 2017. KCNA via Agencies

UN Security Council on Saturday imposed new sanctions on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea over its recent two missile tests, cutting one third of its $3 billion annual export revenues.

The US-drafted resolution was adopted unanimously by the 15-member Security Council. It bans all exports of DPRK's coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. It prohibits new joint ventures or cooperative commercial entities with DPRK and additional investment in existing ones. It also bans countries from allowing in additional numbers of laborers from DPRK.

The sanction also blacklisted nine DPRK individuals operating abroad as representatives of designated entities (asset freeze and travel ban) and four DPRK commercial entities designated for an asset freeze.

DPRK conducted two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests on July 3 and July 28, respectively.

China opposed the DPRK's missile launches in violation of UN Security Council resolutions and against the will of the international community, said China's Ambassador to the UN Liu Jieyi after the vote.

"China has always insisted on realizing the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, maintaining peace and stability on the Peninsula and seeking a solution through dialogue and consultation," Liu said.

He said China believes these are the purposes of the new resolution.
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News / National

by Staff Reporter

Zanu-PF has set an ambitious target to mobilise over five million supporters to register to vote and seal emphatic victory for the party in the 2018 harmonised elections.The revolutionary outfit has already activated its expansive mobilisation systems, with a nationwide headcount of members from cell to national levels underway.Each provincial executive has been mandated to gather 500 000 supporters to bring the ultimate tally of potential Zanu-PF votes to five million-plus.The party is also ramping up campaigns in urban areas, particularly Harare and Bulawayo  the beleaguered opposition MDC-T's perceived strongholds.In addition, district and provincial structures are being organised and attuned to the envisaged grand ballot harvest.Zanu-PF Secretary for Administration Dr Ignatius Chombo last week confirmed that the party was oiling its election machinery, before referring further enquiries to the Commissariat.National Political Commissar Saviour Kasukuwere told The Sunday Mail, "We have started our mobilisation campaign, and all provinces are hard at work; restructuring our structures from cell level. From a national perspective, we are targeting to have more votes than those we had in 2013."We had 2,1 million voters then, so the target is to beat that number. It is public knowledge that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has announced its plan to register seven million prospective voters for the polls."Therefore, what we have said is that if seven million people are registering, then five million of those people should be our supporters. Initially, we were looking at figures like three million, but we are not taking anything to chance."Kasukuwere continued: "We are not taking anything to chance, so we are schooling all our structures so that they understand what polling station-based voting is all about."So, look at it this way: In every ward, we should know our supporters. This is a comprehensive exercise. Our plan is that by the time voter registration starts, we will have our figures at hand."On demographic dynamics, Kasukuwere said, "We feel that youths are going to be crucial in next year's elections, and we need to speak to their aspirations. We have our traditional voters, but we need to do more to woo youths because previous elections have witnessed a lot of voter apathy from young people."I want to warn the opposition on urban areas: We have made a lot of headway there. The opposition did themselves a great disservice when they decided not to take part in by-elections. The party has vowed not to lose any urban seat that it is holding now. The electorate is not stupid. People have seen that they are getting nothing from sitting MDC legislators in urban areas."Political analyst Mr Godwine Mureriwa said, "If Zec is saying it will register seven million, then I venture to say that 60 percent of that figure will go to Zanu-PF. The numbers show that since 2008, Zanu-PF has been exponentially growing its voter population."(This is because) the opposition, really, has nothing to sell to the electorate apart from looking forward to a protest vote. The protest vote worked in 2008, but it looks unlikely that it will work again 10 years later."Mr Mureriwa added, "The youthful voters are going to be the catch in 2018, and this will obviously contribute the biggest chunk of the new voters that political parties need to capture. With its empowerment programmes aimed at freeing up sectors of the economy such as small scale mining and agriculture, Zanu-PF is better-positioned."A scholar who preferred anonymity said: "The voter demographics are not likely to change in 2018. We are going to see the rural population being the majority of the voters because they constitute the bulk of voters anyway."So, on that basis, I see Zanu-PF having the upper hand because the opposition has totally failed to make any headway in these crucial rural areas."Regarding the opposition coalition, the scholar said: "What the coalition means is that you are going to see new faces from different political parties and these characters may not be known to the electorate."Zimbabwe goes to harmonised polls in 2018, with the main political players already gearing up.The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission will roll out Biometric Voter Registration in late 2017 using technology that can capture details of up to 16 million prospective voters.Figures from the Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency and the United Nations indicate the country's population has leapt from 13, 061 239 in 2012 to between 14 to 16 million.About 5 874 115 people registered to vote in the 2013 plebiscite.Of these, 3 480 047 cast ballots in the Presidential poll, while 3 377, 276 participated in parliamentary elections.The number of registered voters in 2008 was 5,934,768.
ASEAN @ 50 series

The giant of telecom in Viet Nam, Viettel, has achieved major success after 10 years of investment in foreign countries, including ASEAN. On the occasion of ASEANs 50th anniversary, Le ang Dung, Viettels Deputy General Director talks with Viet Nam News reporter Vu Hoa about the groups contributions to their overseas markets in general and the regional community in particular.

Could you tell us about Viettels achievements after 10 years of overseas investment, especially in markets in the ASEAN region?

After a decade of investing in foreign countries, Viettel has 10 markets with a total population of around 230 million. Viettel has built the biggest telecommunication infrastructure in every country it has entered. The total number of subscribers in the 10 markets is about 36 million. Viettel Global  a subsidiary of Viettel  brings an annual revenue of US$1.4 billion to the group from overseas investment.

Viettel has been confident in opening new spaces and markets for the groups development thanks to its expansion in foreign countries over the last decade. The Vietnamese telecom market has been saturated. If Viettel focused only on the local market, its growth rate would not have been high. When we joined the market in 2004, only 4 per cent of the Vietnamese population had mobile phones. However, we forecasted the saturation of the countrys telecom market after four years of our operation. This urged Viettel to find new roads despite the fact that there was no local telecom provider investing overseas at that time.

Currently, the average growth rate of Viettels overseas markets is 30 per cent annually, which would be hard to achieve in the domestic market. The overseas investment has brought meaning in terms of geopolitics as it has well implemented the party and the governments undertakings in foreign economic relations. Viettel has been the pioneer in promoting Viet Nams image to the world. It has also been the leading group for other local firms to invest in foreign markets.

Laos and Cambodia were the first two countries in which Viettel had invested. The two markets were officially inaugurated in 2009 after three years of preparation. There are many criteria to evaluate whether a market has potential or not, including a stable political environment. Laos and Cambodia have a close relationship with Viet Nam. We also received support from their governments. The most important factor is the market. When we entered into the two countries, their telecom infrastructure was poor, resulting in expensive service costs. We were confident that we could build a better network, and we did.

The biggest achievement was that Viettel became the number one telecom provider in the two markets with Metfone in Cambodia and Unitel in Laos. The two markets recouped investments after three years of operation. We are proud to build a network, which ranked first in the ASEAN region and even on the global level.

Another success was the enhancement of friendship among the three countries. Recently, Viettel has applied the roaming charge among three countries equivalent to the domestic charge.

What contributions has Viettel made for the development of the telecom infrastructure in particular and socio-economic in general, in overseas markets?

Our vision is to build a telecom infrastructure, which meets with the regional standards of the country where we make investments. Viettel has always ensured that. For example, when we ventured into the Cambodian telecom market, the country had only a few hundred kilometres of fibre optic cable. We built more than 20,000 kilometres of fibre optic cable for Cambodia, covering the whole country.

A staff of Viettel installs a 4G base transceiver station (BTS) in severe weather in Fansipan Mountain in the northern Lao Cai Province.  Photo courtesy of Viettel

In Mozambique  the first country we entered in Africa  we built a nearly 28.000-kilometre fibre optic cable system from zero. We are proud that the telecom infrastructure we built in Mozambique is equal to South Africa  the most developed country in the continent.

Viettel has yielded many awards, which was the worlds recognition of our contributions to the telecommunication and socio-economic development in our foreign markets. After building the telecom infrastructure, Viettel helped overseas markets to build public services.

Viettel has always been determined to build a network for countries where it makes investments. Even brand names in foreign markets were decided based on their culture and desire. Viettel has been well-known both inside and outside Viet Nam for its corporate social responsibility activities.

We built Internet networks for schools, healthcare networks for the underprivileged and special preferential packages for students. We have also supported governments in building public services and providing free heart and eye surgery.

Viettel has provided remote and mountainous areas with Internet services. Several places have Viettels networks despite having no electricity. We have also deployed 4G. For example, Viettel has covered all the cities of Laos and Cambodia with 4G service.

Last week, we became the first mobile service provider to operate a 4G network in Timor-Leste. The 4G network, designed and built by Viettel, is now available in all 13 cities and provinces in this country.

In Myanmar, where we received the licence to become the fourth network provider in the country, we will directly offer 4G service. We have been rushing to build the infrastructure and officially inaugurate by the beginning of 2018  only one year after receiving the licence. We saw a lot of potential in Myanmar as the economy has been growing rapidly.

Unitel - the brand name of Viettel in Laos - is a hugely popular telecom service provider in Laos.  Photo courtesy of Viettel

Could you talk about Viettels business plans in the country and the region? What are your assessments about the local firms competitiveness in the deep integration into the region, especially with the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community, AEC?

Viettel will continue to maintain its leading position in the telecom market in Viet Nam. We have already built a wide network nationwide. We would further develop applications based on the foundation, smart city and Internet of Things.

We have been the pioneer in leading the development of applications and digitalisation. When talking about the AEC, most people worry about the disadvantages. We should look at the issue in two dimensions  both advantage and disadvantage. It was hard to enter into the Indonesian telecom market. However, when the door is open with equal tax policies, Viettel will have opportunities to penetrate into bigger markets such as Indonesia with over 200 million people, the Philippines with 100 million people, or even compete with Singtel in Singapore.

The average revenue per user, ARPU, in Viet Nam was $4-5 per person while in Singapore it was $40 to $50 per person. We welcome other rivals and are ready to seek foreign markets for fair competition. I think it would be a great opportunity for all Vietnamese firms. The issue is how to capitalise on it.

There has been a lot of talk about the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It would be suitable for the Vietnamese people who are professionally at par with other countries. The government should look into what we should do and where we should do it.

ASEAN was established 50 years ago. However, till today we talk about AEC while Viettel has had multinational companies in foreign countries for years. What are Viettels advantages as the forerunner?

Profit is the most important factor for all businesses. We must venture first if we see opportunities. When governments sit together, we would be strengthened by their support. Businesses have to always move forward on their own.

We would have advantages if we do business early. Regarding the story of opening the market, we would surely face more fierce competition from rivals. The ASEAN telecom market has been saturated with services as almost 100 per cent of the population in all ASEAN countries use mobile phones. The business, therefore, would be difficult. However, there are still plenty of opportunities for us and we have to look for them.

We have been investing in markets, both near and far away, from Viet Nam. We realised that the nearby markets have more advantages due to similarities in culture, tax system and support from governments.  VNS
Viet Nam News

ASEAN @50 series

Ambassadors in Viet Nam share their thoughts on ASEAN on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the regional grouping (August 8, 2017) and their visions for its development:

ASEAN the constant cornerstone of Indonesian foreign policy

Ibnu Hadi, ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Viet Nam

For the past 50 years, ASEAN has undergone significant development in a positive way. Since its establishment on August 8, 1967, ASEAN has played a strategic role not only in maintaining security and stability, but also in supporting regional economic growth in the Southeast Asian region. For Indonesia, ASEAN is always the cornerstone of its foreign policy.

ASEAN is now moving towards a more integrative and forward-looking stage with the establishment of the ASEAN Community on December, 31 2015. This significant step has brought the region opportunities to become a single market, to become an attractive and competitive single production base area, and to become an area without borders where people easily move around for productive activities.

One of the main challenges is how ASEAN as a people-centered organisation can deliver benefits for its 650 million citizens. Indonesia, as one of the founding fathers of ASEAN, will always play a central role in ensuring progress towards achieving the ASEAN Community Vision 2025. It will also strengthen its contribution to ensuring that ASEAN brings concrete benefits to its people. In order for ASEAN to continuously progress as a region, development must be experienced by all its members.

In its journey of 50 years as a regional organisation, the people of ASEAN have enjoyed a harmonious and relatively stable region, but this should not be taken for granted. Consequently, the region has been able to pursue various initiatives in order to develop together and ensure that its people would receive utmost benefits from the regional co-operation. The ASEAN region has been able to withstand the global economic downturn in recent years, continuously recording positive economic growth, 4.7 per cent in 2016, while the global economy remains unpredictable. This shows that the ASEAN integration process has been able to bring opportunities for further economic development in the region. ASEAN is also moving forward to playing a role in the wider regional architecture, like the ongoing Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which will have further economic potential and benefits for ASEAN and its six dialogue partners.

The unity of ASEAN is very crucial for ensuring progressive development of regional co-operation, and this goes as well for bilateral relations among ASEAN member states, including Indonesia and Viet Nam.

The relations between Indonesia and Viet Nam had entered a new phase in 2013, before the ASEAN Community was established, when the Indonesia-Viet Nam Strategic Partnership was signed. In line with ASEAN economic integration, Indonesia sees Viet Nam as strategically positioned to enhance mutually beneficial economic co-operation between the two countries.(top)

Unity in diversity is the ASEAN Way

Thongsavanh Phomvihane, ambassador of the Lao Peoples Democratic Republic to Viet Nam

2017 marks the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on July 8 and the 20th anniversary of the Lao Peoples Democratic Republics accession to the ASEAN (July 23, 1997 - 2017). We are proud to be part of the ASEAN family. Since its accession to the Association, ASEAN has been an important pillar of the LPDRs foreign policy.

Over the past 20 years, Laos has actively participated in and contributed to all areas of co-operation under the three community pillars as well as ASEANs external relations. It has also been fulfilling its obligations, bringing in benefits to the country and the Lao people. Most importantly, the LPDR has successfully chaired ASEAN twice, the first time in 2004-2005 under the theme of Advancing a Secure and Dynamic ASEAN Family Through Greater Solidarity and the second time in 2016 under the theme of Turning Vision into Reality for a Dynamic ASEAN Community.

During Laos last tenure as ASEAN Chair, many important documents adopted have served as a basis for further ASEAN co-operation under the three community pillars and for co-operation between ASEAN and external partners.

Over the last 20 years, Laos has actively participated in ASEAN activities and has received support and assistance in various areas from ASEAN Member States, its Dialogue Partners and other external parties through bilateral and multilateral frameworks, helping advance Laos efforts in regional and international economic integration.

Internally, many areas in the country have experienced improvements, including domestic laws and regulations, people-to-people connectivity, tourism and culture exchanges, and human resources.

Laos is a new member of the association. We still have to do a lot of work to improve and develop. For instance we have to achieve greater awareness of the ASEAN Community among the Lao people, enhance our internal co-ordination mechanisms, make our production sector more competitive, further improve laws and regulations and develop our human resources.

As Ambassador of the LPDR to Viet Nam, and a fellow member of ASEAN, I look forwards to deeper co-operation that will benefit both ASEAN and our two countries and peoples.

We have been witnessing the achievements of ASEAN through five decades, mainly its steady growth maintaining peace and basic stability. There are many factors behind ASEANs achievements, one of which is the ASEAN Way, based on the particularities and unique characteristics of the ASEAN region, exemplified by diversity, mutual understanding, and adherence to ASEANs fundamental principles as stated in the Treaty of Amity and Co-operation, ASEAN Charter and other ASEAN instruments.(top)

Development gap the main challenge for ASEAN

M. Zamruni Khalid, ambassador of Malaysia to Viet Nam

ASEAN has always been close to my heart. Before coming to Viet Nam, I was the Deputy Director-General of ASEAN-Malaysia in charge of Political-Security Community. During my time doing ASEAN issues, especially during Malaysias Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2015, I saw among others, the declaration of the establishment of ASEAN Community and the adoption of the ASEAN 2025 vision.

To me, these two achievements are some of the most important milestones in ASEAN history. Not many people appreciate the large diversity within ASEAN. We are not only different in terms of culture, language, religion and history, but also with regard to political and economic systems. More importantly, we are divided by the level of economic development. With these differences, the fact that ASEAN countries agree on anything at all is already an accomplishment, what more on ambitious undertakings such as the establishment of a community or the adoption of a common vision.

Of the differences among ASEAN nations, I think the development gap among members remains one of the major challenges. It is always difficult to make common decisions when someone in the group is hungrier than others as that particular person might start looking into the confine of his/her immediate need and interest.

ASEAN 2025 vision and its related documents are focused on addressing the issue of development gaps and other challenges faced by the members. Basically, the vision charts the path for ASEAN Community building until 2025 by articulating ASEAN goals and aspirations to realise further consolidation, integration and stronger cohesiveness of ASEAN as a community.

ASEAN also needs to focus more on creating and deepening ASEAN consciousness. Having a sense of belonging to ASEAN is vital for the future of the community. We need ordinary ASEAN citizens to feel that ASEAN is relevant to them and can contribute to better lives for them in tandem with the focus on a people-centric ASEAN and an emphasis on inclusive development.

Malaysia will continue to work with Viet Nam and the rest of ASEAN partners to ensure that these goals and aspirations are achieved.(top)

Myanmar looks to bridge development gap

Kyaw Soe Win, Myanmar Ambassador to Viet Nam

Myanmar was admitted as a full member of ASEAN in 1997; and as it practises an independent, active and non-aligned foreign policy, it also actively implements the purposes and principles of ASEAN. Myanmar has made notable progress in the grouping through participation in these ASEAN-led mechanisms, interacting with fellow ASEAN members and dialogue partners, giving it the opportunity to state its stand and position on regional and international issues.

Myanmar is participating in ASEAN political and security mechanisms within the frameworks of the Declaration on the Zone of Peace, Freedom and Neutrality, Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, and the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty.

The ASEAN Economic Community will establish the bloc as a single market and production-base, making ASEAN more dynamic and competitive with new mechanisms and measures to strengthen implementation of existing economic initiatives.

The Initiative for ASEAN (IAI) was launched during ASEAN Summit in November 2000 and it aims to narrow the development gap and accelerate economic integration between the original member countries and new members, the CLMV group. Myanmar looks forward to working together to realizing equitable development and a prosperous community through effective implementation of the IAI Work Plan III.

Under the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community, member countries are co-operating in education, healthcare, culture, disease prevention, and information technology. Relevant Myanmar agencies are participating in its activities.

ASEAN has been engaging and co-operating well with dialogue partners, UN organisations, regional and international organisations. Myanmar is also cooperating with ASEAN dialogue partners and other regional and international organisations to establish the ASEAN Community and uphold ASEANs centrality in the regional architecture and international arena.

Under the ASEAN framework, Myanmar and Viet Nam are cooperating in ASEAN Integration in ASEAN Community Building efforts and CLMV related matters in all areas including education, culture and economy.(top)

Delivering a people-oriented and people-centred ASEAN

Noel Servigon, ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines to Viet Nam

The last 50 years have witnessed the evolution of ASEAN into a model of regionalism and a global player. Starting from five founding member states in 1967, it has grown into a cohesive 10 member regional bloc.

To be relevant and responsive to challenges, the member states envision one ASEAN community that is integrated, peaceful, stable and resilient. It is a community that takes a leading role as a regional and global player in advancing political-security co-operation, sustainable economic growth and socio-cultural development in Southeast Asia and the world.

In 2017, it is important to focus on the following six priorities which the Philippines has identified as ASEANs main deliverables for the year:

(a) A people-oriented and people-centered ASEAN,

(b) Peace and stability in the region,

(c) Maritime security and co-operation,

(d) Inclusive, innovation-led growth,

(e) ASEANs resiliency,

(f) ASEAN: a model of regionalism, a global player.

These priorities will contribute to achieving the goals of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025.

With respect to inter-State relations in the region, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), as the key code of conduct governing the ASEAN community since 1976, has seen an increase in its membership.

It is encouraging to note that the number of non-ASEAN contracting parties to the TAC has reached 25, with the recent accessions by Chile, Egypt and Morocco. Iran is poised to formally accede to the Treaty upon completion of its internal procedures.

The increasing number of non-ASEAN contracting parties to the TAC shows growing support from the international community for ASEANs commitment to resolve all differences, disputes and conflicts peacefully.

As a global player, the ASEAN community recognises the importance of productive relations with Strategic Partners, Dialogue Partners, Sectoral Dialogue Partners, Development and other external partners to ASEANs engagement with the global community and to reinforcing the ASEAN-centered regional architecture. The effective implementation of various plans of action has reinforced ASEANs relations with Dialogue Partners.

Unwavering in its commitment to working together as partners for change and engaging the world, the ASEAN member states will definitely achieve an integrated, peaceful, stable and resilient community that will benefit its peoples.(top)

ASEAN Community will deliver practical benefits to its people

Manopchai Vongphakdi, ambassador of Thailand to Viet Nam

Sawasdee krub, Xin chao,

The year 2017 is a landmark year as ASEAN commemorates its 50th anniversary. Over the last five decades, ASEAN has been a platform for its members to foster friendship, accelerate economic integration and tackle common challenges. From a loose organisation in 1967 to a rules-based, people-oriented, and more integrated entity, ASEAN has come a long way. It has been an important facilitator and promoter of peace, prosperity and security, not just for ASEAN members, but for the Asia-Pacific region as a whole. Therefore, it is my great pleasure to witness and be a part of the celebration of this historic occasion.

With ASEAN Community implementing and strengthening its three pillars, the ASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC), the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), and the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC), there is no doubt that establishment of the Community will deliver practical benefits to the people. The results are evident: the region and each member nation have never been this stable; the economy as a whole continues to grow; and people within ASEAN are connected like never before.

As a founding member of ASEAN and the place where the Bangkok Declaration was signed, Thailand is proud of the progress it has made and the role ASEAN has been playing. Contributions to ASEAN have always been at the forefront of Thailands foreign policy. We are committed to ASEAN and will continue to work closely with ASEAN members and the ASEAN Secretariat in achieving our common goals and objectives.

It is also my great pleasure to learn and witness that Viet Nam has been working actively and enthusiastically in promoting co-operation within ASEAN, ranging from active participation in all forums and dialogues, to promoting and organising cultural events to bring the people of ASEAN together, not just to celebrate this 50th anniversary. Viet Nam has always been an active and valuable member of ASEAN since joining the association in 1995.

I, on behalf of the Royal Thai Government, stand ready to work closely with Viet Nam and all members to ensure that ASEAN will continue to thrive and advance our common interests of peace and prosperity.(top) VNS
ASEAN @50 series

by Vo Tri Thanh*

The year 2017 marks an important milestone for the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN): the 50th anniversary of its establishment. For half a century, ASEAN has being growing strongly, recording significant achievements on the way.

Economically, ASEAN has moved from a less developed region to a much more prosperous and dynamic region and become a global trade and investment hub. This is reflected in the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) at the end of 2015 as one of three key pillars of the grouping.

The AEC is an initiative to transform ASEAN into a single market and production base, allowing free movement of goods, services, investment, skilled labour, and a freer flow of capital. It will help promote member nations presence in the global production and value chain, and allow them to enjoy more benefits from regional trade and investment.

In general, the implementation of commitments to build the AEC has brought about many benefits to the Vietnamese economy.

Opportunities

The creation of a single market of 630 million consumers - half of them under 30, presents a huge economic opportunity. ASEAN General Secretary Le Luong Minh said that the group has a combined gross domestic product of nearly US$2.6 trillion, which makes it the sixth largest economy in the world and the third in Asia, only after China and India.

Since Viet Nam signed the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (AFTA), ASEAN has become Viet Nams second trading partner, with an average growth rate of 14.5 per cent over the past decade. Two-way trade between Viet Nam and ASEAN has grown from about US$19 billion in 2006 to $41.36 billion in 2016.

As a result, ASEAN is Viet Nams third largest market and also the third largest supplier of goods and raw materials for production of Vietnamese businesses.

ASEAN is also an important source of FDI in Viet Nam with total registered capital rising by 116 per cent in the 2006-2016 period to $64 billion, accounting for 18 per cent of total FDI inflow. ASEAN is also the bridge for many investments from multinational companies located in the region.

Still, the opportunity brought by the AEC is not just the ability to access ASEAN markets, but also the markets outside the grouping, like China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand, through separate free trade agreements (FTAs) between ASEAN and each of these partners. The market will be much larger and more attractive when the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), under negotiation now, is established in near future. Trade and investment flows between ASEAN and EU and the United States are also crucial for both sides.

The removal of tariffs and non-tariff barriers under the free trade agreements will enable businesses to cut cost of imports, lower production costs, increase competitiveness, and boost exports.

In addition, with the advent of the AEC, the grouping, including Viet Nam, has become an attractive destination for foreign direct investment. Vietnamese businesses with large financial capacities also have a chance to expand their investment to other ASEAN member states. Over the past few years, Viet Nam has witnessed large national corporations venturing abroad, like Viettel, Vinamilk, BIDV and FPT.

Challenges

However, it should be noted that the establishment of the AEC at the end of 2015 does not mark an end to the ASEAN integration process. ASEANs AEC Blueprint 2025 sets out broad, extensive economic directions and strategic measures to be taken over the next decade, with a focus on economic integration. It wont be an easy task. Deeper and wider integration into the AEC in the coming period means more challenges for Viet Nam. It means more work needs to be done.

Challenges first come from the awareness of Vietnamese business communities. In a recent conference on the AEC and opportunities for Vietnamese businesses, a representative of Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) said that some surveys showed that only about 16 per cent of enterprises actually understood the AEC.

Businesses can only take advantage of the AEC when they actually join the ASEAN market and become real players, according to the representative. Businesses are not just beneficiaries but also participants who set the rules and take the initiative to play a greater role in shaping ASEAN and the AEC for their own benefit.

More importantly, Vietnamese firms may lose their competitiveness against rivals in the bloc in terms of product quality and market size due to the economy being based on cheap labour, exploitation of natural resources and low technology.

A single market and production base means that other ASEAN companies also have the same opportunities to access the huge market, not to mention the fact that ASEAN countries have comparative advantages similar to those of Viet Nam, leading to similarities in the export structure of many ASEAN members.

Therefore, without investment in human resources and innovation to produce high-quality products and services, Vietnamese firms will lag behind in competition with regional rivals in not only the domestic market, but also in the markets of fellow ASEAN members.

In fact, only 25 per cent of Vietnamese exports to ASEAN market can get the important certificate of origin (C/O) under AFTA requirements, which leads to low utilisation of the Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT) regime. The percentage has increased from 8 per cent in 2007, but remains low. The CEPT is the mechanism by which tariffs on goods traded within the ASEAN region, which meet a 40 per cent of ASEAN content requirement, will be reduced to 0-5 per cent.

Looking forward

To adopt a positive perspective, the pressures mentioned will force the Vietnamese Government and businesses to change their mindsets and enhance their performance.

Vietnamese firms should shift from price competition to non-price competition, taking into serious account factors like quality, brand name and supporting services to produce more value-added complementary goods and differentiated goods.

They should increase awareness of international agreements and commitments as well as Governments policies so that they can make timely adjustments to production and business plans.

ASEAN commitments demand Viet Nam to improve its own market institutions in compliance with international economic integration, minimise adjustment costs, macroeconomic instability and social risks during integration process.

Integration is more than just eliminating all barriers. As it eventually seeks to enhance socio-economic development, the integration process should incorporate adjustment in a way that improves peoples participation.

ASEAN has proved its vital importance to Viet Nam and the AEC is a work-in-progress. Still, Viet Nam also has to confront several common issues in the region to further economic integration while addressing its own problems as a low middle-income economy. These problems have persisted for quite some time. In this regard, the successful integration experience over the past several years is just a start. The country has room for more meaningful integration.

Viet Nam is at a decisive point in time when it comes to transforming its development patterns and accelerating its transition to a market-oriented economy. Completing AEC tasks can be seen as a catalyst for needed reforms.  VNS

* Vo Tri Thanh is a senior economist at the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) and a member of the National Financial and Monetary Policy Advisory Council. A doctorate holder in economics from the Australian National University, Thanh mainly undertakes research and provides consultation on issues related to macroeconomic policies, trade liberalisation and international economic integration. Other areas of interest include institutional reforms and financial systems.
For women, only by men

Male bastion: For a very long time, only men were taught and allowed to make an ao dai in Trach Xa Village.--VNS PHoto oan Tung

Around 60km from downtown of capital Ha Noi, Trach Xa Village in Ung Hoa District has been known for making tradional long dress ao dai for centuries.

A strange feature of this fame, however, has been the fact that the iconic national dress for women was made exclusively by men.

To this day, 90 per cent of the local tailors are men, owing to a long-standing rule in the region: the job was taught only to men.

Explaining the special rule, Nguyen Van Nhien, 84, who has been an ao dai maker for 65 years, said that in the old days, local inhabitants had to go far away to work as dress makers to earn their living. Only men could travel thus. Women were not believed strong enough to travel so often and so far, so they stayed at home to do housework and farm work.

Locals also believed that the ao dai designed and tailored by men was more beautiful than those done by women!

However, the craft was first taught to the villages inhabitants by a woman.

Nguyen Thi Sen, a concubine of King inh Tien Hoang (AD924 - 979) became the first dress maker in Trach Xa after learning the craft from the Kings Palace in the northern province of Ninh Binh. She also taught tailoring to imperial maids. After leaving the Palace with her children, she returned to her nativeland, Trach Xa, and taught the villagers how to sew. The reputation of the village travelled far.

A local man, Ta Van Khuat, had the honour of making a long dress for Queen Nam Phuong, queen of the last feudal dynasty in Viet Nam.

Today, villagers do not have to travel to different regions to look for clients. Women also help their husbands do the job. Many clients go to the village to look for talented artisans who can make them the most beautiful ao dai.

Many villagers have also opened tailoring shops in Ha Noi. However, they include Trach in the name of their shop, as tribute and advertisement for their native villages craft.

The group with the fewest people in VN

Risk of extinction: Si La people enjoy a traditional festival. VNS Photo Xuan Tu

The Si La ethnic group is among the smallest in number in Viet Nam. With a total population of fewer than 1,000, the Si La live mostly in Muong Te District in the northen province of Lai Chau and in Muong Nhe District in the neighbouring province of ien Bien.

The Si Las language belongs to the Sino-Tibetan language family. But the language is spoken less and less and there is no written language.

Si La people say that hundreds of years ago, before settling down in Viet Nam, their ancestors lived in Lhasa, the capital of todays Tibet Autonomous Region of China. They then migrated to Laos before coming to Viet Nam. They still remember a saying about their origin: "born in Lhasa, set up village in Laos".

Men in the group used to dye their teeth red, while women dyed their teeth black, but that custom has died out. The costumes of Si La women are made with metal coins attached to the chest. Their headscarves indicate their ages and marital status. Si La people customarily marry twice. The second ceremony is held one year after the first.

The group is at risk due to inter-marriage. Their bodies have become smaller over the generations. Average men weigh 40-45kg and stands 1.45-1.60m tall.

To confron the risk of extinction, in 2005 the Government implemented a five-year project to support the development of five ethnic minority groups with the smallest populations in Viet Nam, including the Brau, Ro Mam, Pu Peo and Si La.

Lai Chau and ien Bien provinces have upgraded local roads, provided clean water supply, opened schools, facilitated farming and health care, encourage traditional cutlure development like preserving language, costumes, musical instruments and belief of the Si La people.

The Si Las lives have improved as a result, with roads linking their villages to larger population centres. All the houses have been roofed with sheet metal and the villages have been equipped with electricity to power lights, TVs and radios.

A unique place of worship in the north

Rare space: The only mosque in northern Viet Nam, Al-Noor Masjid (The Mosque of Light) stands at 12 Hang Luoc Street in Ha Nois Hoan Kiem District.  VNS Photo oan Tung

The only mosque in northern Viet Nam, named Al-Noor Masjid (The Mosque of Light), is located at 12 Hang Luoc Street in capital Ha Nois Hoan Kiem District.

Over the past 100 years, the mosque has been the destination for Vietnamese and foreign Muslim worshippers. At the beginning of the 19th century, Indian businessmen came to Viet Nam on business, and some settled here. In 1885 they started to build the Al-Noor mosque, which is therefore deeply influenced by Indian architecture and culture.

The mosque was officially inaugirated in 1890.

The main gate of the mosque faces West, in the direction of Islams holiest site in Mecca. It covers 400 square metres, with the decorations reminiscent of other mosques in the world. Prayers are held five times a day.

The mosques Imam (who leads the prayers) is Mieu Abbas, who comes from the central province of Ninh Thuan. He is also the manager of the mosque.

oan Hong Cuong, 60, the mosques caretaker, said he cleans and tidies it up every day to provide the Vietnamese Muslim community and foreigner visitors with a place to pray. This 114 years-old mosque has witnessed the many ups and downs of Ha Noi, he says.

Ca Mau: the only place you can get enjoy squid eggs

Provincial specialty: Cha trung muc (fried patties with squid eggs) is only available in the southernmost province of Viet Nam. Photo savitour.vn

Every coastal locality in Viet Nam offers visitors many culinary gifts from the sea, but the southernmost province of Ca Mau has a monopoly on squid eggs.

Cha trung muc (fried patties made with squid eggs) has been a specialty of the province for a long time.

An old saying goes: Cau muc tuy cuc ma vui/ Khoai an trung muc, lui cui cau hoai. Roughly translated, it means: Catching squid is hard yet amusing/ Keen on squid eggs, then get hooked on catching squid.

The provinces fishermen search for squid at night. The catch is put in ice to keep it fresh. Next morning, baskets of squid egg are taken out while squid flesh is dried in the sun.

A popular squid egg dish involves mixing it with duck eggs, minced pork and pigs liver. The mixture is flattened out into small patties, which are sun dried and taken home.

Squid eggs are a luxury because for every 10 to 12kg of fresh squid, you can only get 1kg of eggs.

The squid patties are deep fried or grilled. The creamy patty is perfectly paired with fresh herbs and rolled in banh trang (rice paper), and dipped in fish sauce seasoned with lime juice and hot pepper.

iep Son  the only island with a sandy path in the ocean

Unique feature: Tourists wade over the undersea path connecting two islets in iep Son Island. VNS Photo Thuy Hang

Located in Van Phong Bay (60km from Nha Trang City in the central province of Khanh Hoa), iep Son Island is an increasingly attractive destination for many visitors, drawn by its beaches and especially a beautiful underwater sea path connecting two islets.

Depending on the time of the visit, the path is either partially submerged in the crystal waters (in the morning during high tide) or completely dry and visible (in the afternoon during low tide).

The rustic island consists of three small separated islets and is home to about 100 households who use it as a base for fishing trips.

There are also many hidden coves and caves scattered across the island that are perfect for exploration by curious and determined visitors. VNS
A welcome addition to Ha Nois international culinary scene is a restaurant serving Lao food, which has distinct flavours despite its similarity to Thai cuisine. Ha Hang explains.

Over the years, major cities in Viet Nam have been reflecting their cosmopolitan nature in the culinary field, serving a variety of cuisines, but most of these are well-known ones.

French, Italian, Indian, Japanese and Thai food have become quite popular among Vietnamese foodies, but they do not get much opportunity to try lesser-known cuisines.

So, when Khao Lao  a Lao restaurant  opened its door a few weeks ago with an interesting promotion, it piqued the interest of many locals.

When I googled the restaurants number to book a table, I found out that anyone who reserves table online will get a complimentary portion of duck larb  a Lao meat salad said to be a must-try dish. A small portion of steamed sticky rice also accompanies this duck meat salad.

It was peak lunch time, just after noon, when our group of three arrived at the restaurant. As we entered it, some waiters at the entrance greeted us in chorus, saying Sabaidi, which means Hello in Lao.

Fishy, spicy: Tham mak hoong or Lao green papaya salad, which has a key ingredient that sets it apart from the Thai version. VNS Photo Thuy Hang

Khao Lao is a casual dining restaurant with typical faux leather chairs, benches and booth seatings, and some large-sized photos depicting its dishes decorating the wall.

Running my eyes over the room, I saw all the tables were occupied by hungry visitors, except the one that was reserved for us.

Alongside the duck meat salad and sticky rice, we also got another complementary serving of tham mak hoong or Lao green papaya salad thanks to my friend having a membership card.

We ordered grilled pork skewers served with sticky rice, stir-fried morning glory, and three kinds of mushrooms soup.

We were a bit disappointed when another dish that we wanted to try  dried moss  was not available, although it was listed in the menu.

Lao cuisine is quite similar to that of its Thai neighbour, so it is not surprising that the menu mentions famous Thai dishes like tom yum soup, pad Thai or the famous dessert, sticky rice with mango.

When the first dish  duck meat salad and sticky rice  was brought to our table, the restaurants manager also came to say hello. He said the restaurants name, Khao Lao, simply meant Lao food or Lao cuisine.

Dubbed the "unofficial" national dish of Laos, the duck meat salad is spicy and sour, which is typical of Lao and Thai cuisine. The tiny cubes of duck meat, well marinated with lime juice and fish sauce, and the addition of several other seasonings and herbs like dried chilli, ground roasted sticky rice, spring onions, shallots, coriander and lemongrass, made this an enjoyable dish, one that we would order again.

Flavourful chunks: Duck larb or duck meat salad  an "unofficial" national dish of Laos. VNS Photo Thuy Hang

The green papaya salad, another popular Lao dish, is similar to the Thai version  thin papaya strips, long beans and Thai eggplant, was spicy, but there was a seasoning ingredient that set it apart from the Thai version  padaek or fermented fish sauce.

Those with sensitive noses can find this salad a bit too pungent, but the one served at Khao Lao was, understandably, less fishy, salty and spicy than the ones Id had before in Laos.

The fermented fish sauce was also used in the three kinds of mushrooms soup  our third dish. Compared with previous dishes, which hit our tongues with a sharp combination of spicy, sour, and salty tastes, this clear soup was a serene break. The soup, using wooden ear, straw mushrooms and white crab mushrooms, also contains chilli and lemongrass.

As a meat lover I was really excited about the grilled pork skewers served with a small basket of sticky rice and some slices of cucumbers. But the meat looked dried and I think it was a bit over-cooked as the cooks were too busy meeting the demands of many customers at lunch time. The caramelised pork was also marinated with more sugar than needed, so it was a bit too sweet for me. However, the sweet, sour and spicy sauce served with the skewers was a saviour. It was a harmony of sugar, fish sauce, hot chilies and lemon juice. It was also fragrant with different kinds of dried herbs. It paired perfectly with the pork and sticky rice. I also tested the tangy sauce with other dishes on the table. It went well with everything, the duck, the stir-fried water morning glory, and even the sticky rice.

We ended our lunch with some dessert: tapioca sweet pudding and sweet sticky rice with mango. The latter has been favourite of mine for a long time, and I was very happy with the soft and glutinous rice, the ripened, sweet mango, and the creamy coconut milk. Definitely a happy ending.  VNS

Khao Lao Restaurant

Address: 91 Nguyen Chi Thanh St, ong a Dist, Ha Noi

Tel: +84 24 71068333

Comment: Casual dining restaurant; pleasant tasting food; small portions; attentive service.

The promotion, complementary duck larb and sticky rice for those who book their tables online, is valid until August 8.
ASEAN @50 series

By Ong Keng Yong *

Executive Deputy Chairman, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies



Asean has enjoyed a relatively successful and prosperous first 50 years. A key milestone is the establishment of the Asean Free Trade Area (AFTA) which laid the foundation for the Asean Economic Community (AEC), one of the three pillars of the Asean Community. With 2017 marking the 50th anniversary of Asean, it is apt to chart out a roadmap of key issues of regional importance for the next five decades. To ensure continued success, Asean needs to further consolidate economic integration, capitalise on favourable demographic factors and channel the skills of todays tech-savvy youth to harness the digital revolution.

Against the backdrop of growing anti-globalisation and protectionist sentiments across the world and an unpredictable US Trump administration, it has become an imperative to maintain economic growth for continued stability and prosperity in the region.

As such, intra-Asean initiatives like the AEC as well as regional initiatives such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will be the cornerstone in making Asean the bulwark of an outward-looking Southeast Asia, championing trade liberalisation and engaging the rest of the world.

The successful completion of RCEP will link Asean, a market of 630 million people, to its six partner countries (China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand) creating a bigger market of 3.5 billion people.

In recent years, Asean has been growing by around 5 per cent a year, ushering the rise of a huge middle class.

The Asian Development Bank estimated that by 2030, nearly half a billion of population in Asean will be classified as middle income class. Asean can perform better, with a potential growth rate of 7 per cent if member states align their interests with the Asean community agenda. At the start of 2016, Asean was the seventh largest economy in the world; by the start of 2017, that rank had improved to sixth, and by 2020 it is predicted to be fifth.

Coupled with stable economic growth, Asean currently enjoys a demographic sweet spot and governments of Asean member states must take the right measures today, such as restructuring the educational curriculum to ensure the youth are better prepared to take on jobs of the future, before the population starts to age by 2025.

The 630 million citizens of Asean are still very young (although Singapore and Thailand are already ageing). As the working-age population grows in number, it will not only boost the regions spending but also increase its savings and hence its capacity to invest. Investment should be made in human capital. To maintain dynamic growth, we cannot rely on natural resources and unskilled labour but have to aim for sustainable development and equitable growth, through increased productivity and innovation, in order to move up the value chain.

Aseans rapidly growing economy and population needs to be accompanied by a strong strategy for sustainable development. The region is already facing a myriad of transboundary environmental issues such as haze, water and land pollution, along with dwindling forest cover. However, Aseans balancing act between environmental sustainability and economic development will be made more challenging because of existing region-wide social inequities as Asean member states are in varying stages of national development and the growing middle class only adds to the increasing consumption of resources and de-generation of the environment and bio-diversity.

As Asean goes into its sixth decade, the world stands on the cusp of a digital revolution, driven by technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, autonomous vehicles, ubiquitous mobile internet, and accelerating progress in genetics, materials science, and ultra-cheap automation. Asean has the potential to enter the top five digital economies in the world by 2025. Moreover, implementation of a radical digital agenda could add US$1 trillion to the regions GDP over the next 10 years. With a large and youthful population increasingly equipped with smartphones, Asean has an opportunity to pioneer the development of new digital services, especially advanced mobile financial services and e-commerce. A recent report from Google and Temasek calculates that the regions online population is expanding by 124,000 new users every day  and will continue at this pace for the next five years.

With the digital economy comes tough questions about how to navigate the accelerating pace of technological change and digital disruption. In terms of job creation, we have to ensure that the Asean population is equipped with the right skills in the digital age. To this end, there is an urgent need to update educational curriculum, retrain teachers, bring computer and internet not only to rural areas but also to urban lower middle class and below for more digital inclusion.

With digital inclusion and the right skill sets, internet and social media will strengthen the basis of governance. An important dimension is the issue of transparency. As it becomes increasingly easy to expose corruption in the digital age, there is also a simultaneous need for more engagement with citizens and more measures to deal with those who are corrupted.

As we see education, skill sets and technological transparency increase, we also have a situation where people in northern Laos and the far-flung eastern provinces of Indonesia becoming more aware of job opportunities in other parts of Asean, leading to intensified migration of people across the region. The dynamic movement of people in Asean will also attract increased drug and human trafficking, and other kinds of transnational crime will rise. Looking ahead, Asean security and police authorities will require a stronger framework of cooperation in managing the consequences of this movement of people.

What are the applicable legal regimes? We do not have them yet. Asean member states are still caught up with arguing about sovereignty issues. The problem is getting acute. Extremism and terrorist activities needed to be checked and threats eradicated. This requires enhanced cross-border cooperation and effective legal measures. Considering the geography of the region and the fact that we are now equipped with increasingly sophisticated technology, only a concerted Asean agenda will prevent Asean from imploding in the next 50 years.

Apart from these internal challenges, there are the geopolitics and prevailing strategic and security circumstances as well. The diversity of Asean culture, history and society is legendary. Going forward, how the ten member states manage external relations for Asean will decide its enduring qualities and effectiveness. Will it be a regionalism revolving around a risen China or harking back to the principles underlying Aseans ZOPFAN (Zone of Peace, Freedom and Neutrality) initiative of the 1970s? Or could it be an orientation to preserve the international order as we know it today with Asean able to play a balancing role?

Asean is not perfect. Community-building is an ongoing learning process. There is no alternative to this inter-governmental regional grouping to enable the Southeast Asian nations to engage external powers and states beyond the immediate neighbourhood. We need to accelerate Aseans visionary plans to realise an open, inclusive and peaceful region to secure its future. Leaders matter in this endeavour.

Much will depend on the leaders of member states going beyond parochial and national considerations to exert the regional ego to develop a resilience for Asean to stay in business and for the Asean Community to flourish.



*The writer served as Asean Secretary-General from January 2003 to January 2008. The Ambassador-at-Large with Singapore Foreign Ministry was High Commissioner of Singapore to Malaysia from 2011 to 2014 and to India from 1996 to 1998. This is a special series of articles to mark the 50th anniversary of the regional grouping by the Asean members of the Asia News Network, an alliance of 23 regional media entities.
ASEAN @50 series

Retno L. P. Marsudi*

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Indonesia



As Asean celebrates its 50th anniversary in August, there is much to cherish. Despite its imperfections, as the Economist puts it, the association is the only game in Asia whose networks also provide a rare opportunity for global leaders to build trust.

Although Asean has much to rejoice, there is even more to reflect upon. What does the future hold for Asean? What would its next chapter look like?

As a proud daughter of Asean, I passionately share its story in various international fora, from the recent Oslo Forum to the G20. I learned that the international community holds Asean in high regard, and they have plenty of good reasons to do so.

The saying that we do not know what we have until its gone also goes for Asean. It is tempting to criticise Asean for its shortcomings, but let us imagine our region and our world without Asean. A region where disputes easily transform into full-fledged wars, where each country only competes and forsakes collaboration, and a world where Southeast Asia is just an arena for major powers to flex their muscles.

Instead of that, thanks to Asean we have a region that has been relatively free from any major intra-state armed conflicts since the Vietnam War; a region where the 1992 free trade agreement has enabled intra-regional trade to soar from US$80 billion (S$ billion) in 1993 to almost US$550 billion in 2015, propelling Asean to be the worlds sixth-largest economy; and a world where Southeast Asia is one of the engines of peace and prosperity.

In short, Asean has succeeded in building an ecosystem of peace and prosperity for the region.

Furthermore, Asean has also evolved from a somewhat loose association to a more robust Asean community in 2015 that seeks to serve its people better. Not to mention that today when regionalism seems to take a hit elsewhere from Brexit in Europe to the diplomatic crisis in the Gulf, Asean continues to display unity and stability.

These accomplishments by no means imply that we should be complacent. Putting extra efforts is the trait here, as reflected in the successful conclusion of the Framework of Code of Conduct (COC) by Asean and China.

Nonetheless, we are constantly reminded that, we are made wise not only by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future. As the benefactors that inherit a more peaceful and prosperous Southeast Asia, our generation is responsible for shaping a better future of Asean.

Future directions: The people

Having said all this, I remain very excited about what the future to which Asean is heading. But I am convinced that the best is yet to come.

The best that I mention refers to the people.

The future of Asean is one that is not only peaceful and prosperous, but also a future where the people are at the heart of it all. Aseans next chapter should be more people-oriented and people-driven where its endeavours are dedicated to catering to the peoples needs in all areas.

To that end, in concrete terms there are three issues that Asean should concentrate on, if the association wants to secure its premiere place in the future.

First, Asean needs to focus on fostering an inclusive and competitive economy that works for all of its people. As GDP per capita of an Asean member is 40 times smaller than another member, inequality between and within states remains a formidable challenge. Asean must embrace the rapid digital transformation in the globalised world while ensuring that nobody gets left behind.

Platforms to reduce inequality such as the initiative for Asean integration must be strengthened.

Asean should boost its connectivity in accordance with its connectivity master plan in order to galvanise trade and investment in all corners of the region. Moreover, Asean should also work on trade agreements such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that delivers benefits for all of its people.

Second, Asean should also tap into the tremendous potential of low-skilled migrant workers. Asean has made great headway for the movement of high-skilled professionals through the Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRA). However, the overwhelming majority of migrant workers in the region are not skilled professionals. For instance, the MRA only covers less than one per cent of the total workforces in Thailand and Indonesia.

More should be done to ensure the protection of low-and medium-skilled migrant workers in a way that safeguards the interests of both countries of origin and destination.

Third, Asean has no other alternative but to continue to stay in unity while redoubling efforts in strengthening its institutional capacity. This has been especially pertinent against proliferated challenges the association must tackle, widely ranging from traditional and non-traditional security issues to an urgency for a strengthened Asean Secretariat.

As outlined in my article in The Jakarta Post (July 21), the future of Asean will be marked, by, among other things, the exigency to address its external relations especially with major powers in the context of geo-political rivalries, the threats of terrorism and how Asean can stay relevant amid the rapidly changing regional and global strategic landscapes.

Coping with all these would require a greater sense of unity as well as fresher and more inclusive outlooks that would keep Asean relevant, up and running.

With its revived focus on the people and their needs, in the next 50 years Asean will not only grow to be an even greater powerhouse in the world but more importantly it will instill a more profound sense of belonging and ownership among all of its people, not just the diplomats or corporate moguls.

Today, many of our people might be puzzled when asked what Asean is or what it means to them, but in the next 50 years it is not far-fetched to conceive a future where the people say that in addition to being Indonesian or Vietnamese or Filipino, they will say that I am also Asean.



*The writer was Indonesias former Ambassador to Norway and Iceland. This is a special series of articles to mark the 50th anniversary of the regional grouping, by the Asean members of the Asia News Network, an alliance of 23 regional media entities.
by Thu Van

MANILA  Other countries should put themselves in Filipino shoes while considering the nations foreign policy twists and turns, says Alan Cayetano, Foreign Secretary of the Philippines.

He was responding to a media query about the nations perceived about-face after getting a favourable ruling from an arbitration court last year in the South China Sea (East Sea in Viet Nam) dispute with China.

Cayetano met with journalists gathered for the ASEAN Media Forum last Friday in Manila, an event on the sidelines of the ASEAN Ministers Meeting and other related events being held from August 2 to 8 in the Philippines.

Cayetano said that as a member of the national security council that decided to launch the arbitration case against China, he was privy to the formulation of former and current strategies.

In both strategies, the objectives were to stop China, stop the Philippines and stop other claimants from building more features (in the contested South China Sea), and stop before it became an armed race with militarisation, he said.

But the first strategy - going hard on China and confronting it would only cause distrust and instability in the region. While the arbitration courts ruling that was in favour of the Philippines, it was nothing like in local courts.

In the local court, you have a sheriff, you have the police, you have enforcement measures. Thats not the case in the West Philippines South China Sea, he said.

Instead, the country adopted its latest strategy - talking bilaterally with China, while not forgetting the arbitration award.

Last year, what the President did was saying that heres the arbitration award, Im going to keep it, there will be a time when I take it out. But it will be between China and the Philippines. And in the meantime well talk bilaterally.

Cayetano said the strategy had actually proved beneficial - Filipino fishermen were now free to fish in their traditional water areas.

"We believe the Duterte strategy, without judging past strategies, is working not just bilaterally for China and the Philippines, but for the whole region.

Talking about outside powers and superpowers who have interest in the region, Cayetano said the Philippines shared some interests as the ASEAN member, some as the Filipino, and there were some areas that it would differ.

There are four features outside the 200 nautical miles thats recognised. The Philippines claims these four features, China claims some features, the US does not claim any but claims that its international and does not belong to the Philippines.

Thus, from the Filipino point of view, there was not much difference between China and the US.

"Put yourself in Filipino shoes. Does it make a difference that you arent claiming this for yourself but for international waters? The point is, you are not recognising our claims. So, it is normal that Filipinos have to find a foreign policy that forwards our national interests. Our national interests are served if there is peace and stability in the West Philippine Sea-South China Sea."

The Foreign Secretar stressed that Dutertes independent foreign policy doesn't pitch the country against the US.

Dont get me wrong. Our alliance with the US is very strong. We dont hold it against them that our interests are not identical. We think its wise of the US for their sake not to get involved, to not recognise Viet Nam or the Philippines claims since they are all friends of the US, he said.

Code of Conduct on South China Sea

Regarding the framework for the Code of Conduct for the South China Sea (called East Sea by Viet Nam) drafted by ASEAN members and China in May, Cayetano said that as the ASEAN Chair, the Philippines of course wanted a joint communique on it. But whether the wording of the document was weak or strong depended on ones point of view.

We do not make statements for the sake of making a statement, we do not make a joint communique so that we can say oh we did that together. The wording must reflect what is on the ground, he said.

As ASEAN chair, the biggest challenge for the Philippines was to come up with language for the communique that will be acceptable to all.

Each country has its advocacy and its passionate, strong feelings about certain words and content, but again the challenge for the whole is really to balance all of this. So what will it do if it has strong language but then on the ground we will regress?

Cayetano said there were more of areas or facets of the South China Sea that ASEAN may discuss without discussing the territorial claims.

Why cant all the claimants talk about protecting marine sources and protecting the environment, and doing more? Much is said about whats under the water and how much oil resources or gas or other natural resources there are, but have we done all the studies possible including joint exploration? he said.

Not alcohol or cigarettes

Cateyano also explained his countrys controversial drugs policy that has been criticized for human rights violations.

"We want to discuss this and we want a common stand on drugs in the context of protecting our community, our children, the public. Its not like alcohol or cigarettes, he said.

Illegal drugs are related to organised crimes, which are many times related to terrorism or insurgencies in different countries. The manufacture and sales of drugs and headquarters of drugs can easily be found in the areas of rebels or extremists because it hides behind the violent extremism.

The Foreign Secretary said he thinks the bigger question is the human rights aspect, but added that there was a context particular to the Philippines.

In the Philippines we have 16 to 17 million families, one fifth of whom has a member who is drug addict, and unlike in Western country where you dont stay with your family when youre 18, in Asian countries, if you have a drug addict in your home, poverty strikes the family. If he steals what do you do with him? You can not put him in jail because hes not a criminal, hes also a victim. If you dont stop him it only gets worse and worse, he said.

Cayetano defended Dutertes tough ways of dealing with drug addicts.

No one has a perfect answer but in the Philippines we do not give up. We cant say lets just legalise it to make it better or to have a better situation,

In my talk to some Western countries, I said: You invented that system to deal with drugs and now were dealing with drugs and you put human rights to our face. But its really up to you because we need you more now. But 20 years from now as ASEAN grows and Asia grows, youll need us more than we need you, he said.

Finally, he said his President is actually a peacemaker.

"To many Filipinos he is the epitome of a father who is very protective of his children. VNS

VNS
DIKE  In order to grow the next top-performing soybean seed, farmers and seed companies must work together with an eye for detail to be successful.

Grundy County farmer Eric Andersen and Travis Williamson, production lead for Monsantos Asgrow soybean processing facility in Beaman, surveyed a 65-acre field of pre-commercial Asgrow brand Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans July 17.

Andersen is growing the pre-commercial soybeans with exclusive genetics under contract for Asgrow. If they perform well, farmers in similar maturity regions across Iowa, Minnesota and Illinois could be planting the progeny of these beans in a couple years.

For Andersen, growing pre-commercial seed beans is a value-added enterprise that comes with added care and responsibility.

The process begins each winter as Monsanto employees decide how much of each new soybean varieties to grow.

We usually start the conversation in the middle of winter, January or February, Williamson said.

Often the company turns to growers with experience growing seed beans for pre-commercial contracts.

We understand the importance of seed in the process, Williamson said.

From Monsantos perspective, pre-commercial soybeans are all about verification, said Caleb Dohrman, Iowa soybean site lead at Monsanto.

Traits and characteristics are tested in the breeding programs. Pre-commercial soybeans are grown to verify yield and other desired agronomic characteristics selected in the breeding process.

In the pre-commercial process, farmers will typically grow between 40 to 160 units of soybean seed. After pre-commercial production, commercial seed bean growers further multiply the chosen elite varieties.

But growing pre-commercial soybeans is not as simple as raising soybeans for commodity markets.

Andersen, an Iowa State University ag business graduate, and his wife, Darla, are both former Asgrow employees and understand the nuances of producing quality pre-commercial seed.

Andersen has been growing seed beans for pre-commercial production and the later commercial stage since he returned to his familys farm in 1992.

We need to keep all the equipment clean, Andersen said.

At planting, that means stopping and cleaning out Andersens bulk fill planter after planting earlier commercial varieties. This includes draining the tank and taking apart each row unit.

Just to be safe, he drives it empty across the yard before loading up with the pre-commercial seed.

During the growing season, weed control and plant health applications are similar to commodity bean production.

However, it is especially critical that we get that right for pre-commercial production, Andersen said. We do take extra steps that we may not do for commodity bean production.

Theres no shortage of work during the summer, as bins need to be cleaned out carefully.

They need to be clean. Not just kind of good enough, he said.

Monsanto employees also visit the field regularly during the summer to check visually for phenotypic performance.

I think the thing that is the most unique is the amount of communication, Williamson said.

With regular communication, everyone is kept in the know  and thats what it takes to grow the best seed possible, Williamson said.

This relationship between the seed company and the farmer is also a good for Monsanto, Dohrman said.

You are partnering with them, Dohrman said. We want to make sure (farmers) have a good experience. Neighbors and others see that.

Ive been doing it for 25 years, so Id say it has worked, Andersen said.

Once harvest begins, Andersen, with help from Darla, his dad, Arlan, and friend Scott Griffith, takes extra care to keep the pre-commercial soybeans separate from any other beans.

The pre-commercial soybeans take priority, so once the moisture is right, Andersen stops combining the rest of his beans and cleans out the combine.

It slows things down, he said. He estimates they lose three to four hours during the switch now  after doing it about 100 times over the years.

When combining, Andersen adjusts rotor speed to avoid cracking beans.

We dont like splits with cracked seed coats or any of that, he said.

The first 100 to 200 bushels go to town to ensure no commercial soybeans are mixed in with the pre-commercial seed beans.

Once harvested, the pre-commercial soybeans are hauled to their designated bin and a field marker is placed on the bin, identifying the variety.

Monsanto employees keep an eye on the soybeans throughout the winter to ensure optimal moisture levels are maintained.

Williamson said its pretty cool to think the soybeans Andersen is growing this summer could one day be million-unit sellers.

Anderson agreed but also feels a sense of responsibility with the process.

I really dont cut corners, he said. At harvest time, when the bullets are flying, you want to go, go, go, but this is part of the gig. We have to be sure to get this right.
News / National

by Simbarashe Sithole

Five illegal miners in Battlefields Kwekwe were on an alleged raping spree on Thursday night after a beer binge at Mutamba bar.The five who are only identified as Marshal, Admire, Prince ,Keda and Amos are reported to have raped two sex workers and one married woman in the presence of her husband.In the video below that has since gone viral three culprits are admitting to the grave sin saying they used empty bottles to intimidate the victims."We were drinking beer at Mutamba and after the drinks we convinced each other to go and rape sex workers in the next compound threatening them bottles."We entered a cabin occupied by two girls, removed them their under wears and had unprotected sex with them under duress."They further allege that they went to a next compound where they unlawfully entered in another room where they met an elderly woman together with her husband whom they covered with a blanket before raping his wife."We proceeded to the next compound were we found a married woman with her husband and we threatened to slice them with bottles if they made noise and they complied."We pounced on the woman with unprotected sex and somehow she sneaked and sought for help next door."Upon sensing danger we fled home and two of our guys remained behind."We were tracked and finally caught but we never used machetes we used bottles to intimidate our victims."Meanwhile, the suspects are reported to have had torrid time with the military before being surrender to the police.
WATERLOO  The Waterloo Homecoming Association is proud to announce their five 2017 scholarship recipients.

Bianca Frazier, a West High School graduate, will be attending Iowa State University. Tyus Phillips, an East High School graduate, will attend Iowa Western Community College.

Aurion Redding, a Cedar Falls High School graduate, will attend Wartburg College. Ayanna Wallican-Green is a first-year transfer student from the University of Iowa and will be attending the University of Northern Iowa.

Dawntrese Wilson, an East High School graduate, will attend Iowa Central Community College.

The Waterloo Homecoming Association is celebrating its fifth bi-annual celebration.

The mission of the Waterloo Homecoming Association is to provide educational resources and guidance for the minority youth of Cedar Valley.
CEDAR FALLS  With her tart tongue, Texas twang and quick-witted quips, Ann Richards burst onto the national stage as the keynote speaker at the 1988 Democratic National Convention. The state treasurer of Texas later became the states 45th governor, serving one term. Throughout her life, she was an outspoken advocate for women and minorities and gay rights.

When Richards turned 60, she got a motorcycle license. Texas Monthly commemorated the event with a cover photo superimposing Richards head on the body of a woman wearing a fringed jacket riding a Harley-Davidson. White Hot Mama was the headline.

A poster of that magazine cover inspired Rebecca Burkhardt and Cynthia Goatley to write a new musical, Just Ann: A New Musical about the Life and Times of Texas Governor Ann Richards.

The musicals premiere is Thursday through Sunday at the Oster Regent Theatre, produced by Cedar Falls Community Theater. The show is being directed by Mitra M. Sadeghpour, University of Northern Iowa associate professor of music and opera.

I thought it would be fun to write a show about her. Id heard Richards speech, but I had no idea she was so funny, says Burkhardt, a UNI music professor and conductor of the Northern Iowa Symphony Orchestra.

Goatley describes Richards as large-than-life.

Beyond what has been published about Richards in the national media, the pair decided to explore Richards archives, traveling to University of Texas at Austin in 2008. About that time, they discovered that actress Holland Taylor was working on a one-woman show about the governor, who died in 2006.

Undeterred, Goatley and Burkhardt kept working. We knew our show was going to be a musical and very different than a play. Richards left reams of material in her archives  her childrens baby pictures, letters from high school boyfriends, all kinds of personal and professional correspondence, travel journals that she began and never finished, essays, speeches and Post-it notes attached to correspondence. Those Post-it notes, thats where she jotted down funny things, says Goatley, professor of theater at the University of Northern Iowa.

In the musical, Richards tells her story as a legendary campfire cook, a beautiful ballroom dancer, a bossy momma, just as good at at-the-moment quips as at telling great stories, a reluctant hunter, great laugher, fine canoeist and former drunk.

Rather than telling the story in strict chronological order, it flows more organically with Richards represented at three different ages, and sometimes fluidly moving back and forth between the Anns. Kristin Teig Torres plays Richards in later life. In total, there are 13 cast members playing multiple roles.

Burkhardt composed the music. Songs pop up in the show and have to fit into scenes. I knew there would be funny or tender moments that would be revealed in song, so I built it from the inside out.

The musical has undergone several rewritings and revisions. Its had two readings at UNI and a third in Santa Fe, N.M.

Choreographer is Mandy Masmar of Orchesis Dance Company. Sound and lights are being set by Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center designers. Burkhardt will lead a five-piece combo on stage that has a musical theater sound with a country kick.

This isnt just a historical or biographical story. Ann Richards was an inspiring person, and man, she had guts. We wanted to make her real and expand on what inspired us, explains Goatley.

Both Goatley and Burkhardt praise the support theyve received from Cedar Falls Community Theatre, the Oster Regent Theatre, UNI and the community.

Plans are to begin taking the musical into regional theaters, particularly throughout the Southwest.
WATERLOO  City Council members are expected this week to consider the final reading of an ordinance allowing the use of cameras to ticket motorists running red lights and speeding.

Public hearings on development agreements for a new downtown grocery store and a construction company office on Martin Road are also on tap when the council meets at 5:30 p.m. Monday in the council chamber on the second floor of City Hall.

Council members have unanimously approved the first two readings of the automated traffic enforcement ordinance, which would allow cameras to capture traffic violations that police can use to mail citations.

Police Chief Dan Trelka has pushed for the cameras to be installed initially at six intersections with high crash rates. A proposed three-year agreement with Gatso USA, of Beverly, Mass., also would include a speed camera trailer and handheld speed cameras.

The ordinance requires someone designated by the police chief to review images captured by the cameras before a citation is issued. The citation goes to the owner of the vehicle, whether or not they were the driver, and is a municipal infraction that does not count against a persons state driving record.

Some cities using the cameras, including Cedar Rapids, have seen collections drop after the Iowa Attorney Generals Office said unpaid fines cannot be used to lower credit ratings.

In other business, council members will consider a development agreement with Central Holdings LCC, which is planning to construct a 26,077-square-foot Franklin Street Supermarket near the CVS Pharmacy at U.S. Highway 63 and Franklin Street.

The city would provide a $400,000 grant, 10 years of 80 percent property tax rebates and attempt to buy, demolish and convey the current House of Hope building at 222 Walnut St. and a parking lot to the developers.

The council will consider a purchase contract Monday to buy the House of Hope property for $354,000.

Central Holdings would need to maintain at least a $2.5 million assessed value on the building for the next 20 years.

An unrelated development agreement with Cardinal Construction Inc. covers the companys plans for a new 5,000-square-foot office and 15,000-square-foot industrial building on a 12-acre site west of ONeal Metals on Martin Road.

The city would provide the land at no cost and five years of 50 percent tax rebates in return for the estimated $1.1 million development.
WATERLOO -- Festivities got underway early Sunday at Iowa Irish Fest after a raucous late night with double-headlining acts of crowd favorites Gaelic Storm and Scythian.

People were passing cans to each other as the music played. Lawn chairs were set out in front the of the main stage and filled all the way back to the beer tents. There was the familiar and familial sense of revelry.

Of course, the cans were vegetables for donations to the Northeast Iowa Food Bank, and the music was hymns performed by Agnus Dei Music Ministry. The attendees in those lawn chairs were ready for another important tradition in Irish Fests 11-year history, Sunday mass.

The mass is a place where we can bring the community together and everyone gets an opportunity to be in a place they may be comfortable in, said Chad Shipman, director of the Iowa Irish Fest.

The priest who offered the mass, the Rev. Tom McDermott, had a few different plans, however. He said Saturday that its nerve-wracking speaking before a crowd of around 2,000 people not just due to the sheer size but also because spreading the word of God is about afflicting the comfortable and comforting the afflicted.

He planned to challenge and encourage those present with his homily, and proved true to his word when he challenged the notion of Iowa nice and encouraged Christian attendees to do more to bridge divides.

Iowa nice is a start, but we as Christians are called to more and empowered to more, McDermott said to close out his sermon. We can go behind niceness and be working on the challenges to bring forth the beauty of Christian love.

McDermott, who is in his second year of performing the Irish Fest mass but whose Irish heritage dates back generations, also made clear he had been among those enjoying the annual event by bringing in references to Gaelic Storms Saturday performance and even singing a few bars of Irish Fest staple Finnegans Wake.

He noted in his brief retelling of Finnegans Wake how there was a niceness on the surface at the outset of the wake before Shillelagh law was all the rage and a row and a ruction soon began.

We need to know that Gods power is here to make that difference into something we can celebrate and enjoy rather than something that divides us, McDermott said.

His sermon also reminded of the spirit of Irish Fest, that it offers something for everyone and is open to everyone, a phrase that can be heard repeated by staff and attendees alike.

Irish Fest just seems to be for everybody; theres something for everybody, said Dick Kester, who with his wife, Jeanette Kester, was on the planning committee for Sundays mass.

He said the mass in general is a popular event for the public and is well received not just by Catholics but by different denominations who come out for the chance to hear a sermon outdoors before other festivities begin.

The mass also is a chance to give to charities in the community. Food items could be donated as a way to enter the festival grounds free of charge during the mass. Those items will be donated to the Northeast Iowa Food Bank, and monetary donations collected during the mass will be given to the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

The mass concluded with a special performance by Deacon Rick Lynch, from St. Edwards Catholic Church in Waterloo, who sang the traditional Irish lilt Danny Boy in remembrance of those past Irish Fest attendees who have since passed.
The topic of diversity in todays society tends to be a hot-button issue. While the conversation frequently addresses the importance of inclusion and representation, not everyone is open and willing to face this major issue.

Born and raised in Cedar Falls, my experiences with diversity and people of color were rather few and far between when I was in school. Yes, there were students of color who attended Cedar Falls Community Schools, but due to being involved in different activities, the exposure to these individuals was slim, all while still having the utmost respect for them.

Fast forward four years, and I found myself walking across the stage receiving my bachelors degree from the University of Northern Iowa and graduating with a degree in family services. I had, and continue to have, a passion for helping and serving underprivileged individuals. I absolutely love working with others to help make a difference in their lives. My dream was always to work for the University of Northern Iowa, and in November 2015, I was honored when they offered me the assistant director position at the UNI Center for Urban Education. I work in a diverse and inclusive environment, all while doing what I love to do. I honestly have the best of both worlds.

In addition to being the assistant director for UNI-CUE, I have the privilege of being the director for the Summer Leadership Academy, which has been a successful four-week summer program since it began in 2009. The Leadership Academy is a program through UNI-CUE that prepares fifth-grade students of all races for the transition into sixth grade and the daily rigors they may encounter in middle school. I have been given the opportunity to grow as an individual and leader within UNI-CUE and the university, and also to learn what it looks like to run a successful organization that is completely intentional about creating a diverse and inclusive environment.

Each summer, I have to interview all students who have been nominated for the program by their fifth-grade teachers. Through this process, I was able to completely look past their differences and choose the top 24 students that best fit the mission of the program. At the end of the day, I enthusiastically and intentionally chose 12 African-American students, seven Hispanic/Latino students and five Caucasian students to participate in our program along with one African-American male to be a part of our staff. Yes, I could have chosen 24 students and five staff with the same race. Unfortunately in todays society, many individuals get too wrapped up into the skin color rather then what the individual brings to the table. I believe it is important to have staff that resembles the same race as some of our students to show them everyone can be successful no matter what race he or she is.

Whether it is working with the Leadership Academy or dealing with the other duties affiliated with my position I have one goal to attain, and that is to provide a positive environment for lifetime learning in which individuals may pursue and continue their educational goals no matter their age, gender, race, ethnicity, generation or sexual orientation. If I am unable to do this with all individuals from all different walks of life, then I believe I have failed as an educator and professional.

Finally, the most important thing is to challenge yourself to step outside of your comfort zone and intentionally create a relationship with an individual from a different race. Place obvious differences aside, and see what you are truly missing. There is truly so much good in people if we would just remove those race walls and give them a chance. So, as a member of our wonderful community, lets try to work together in accepting diversity and inclusion into our daily culture. I challenge you to give people of a different race an opportunity to show you what they can bring to the table, as I am sure you wont be disappointed.
While failing thus far, the Republican effort to reform Obamacare isnt over. And Republicans will reject anything thats a mere fix, while Democrats wont consider anything that smacks of repeal/replace.

Recalling two important representations may help explain the Republicans repeal/replace strategy. Former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius was responsible for implementing the ACA legislation. After she spoke in Kansas City two years ago, a news report was headlined Sebelius Says ACA Is Here to Stay. She indicated confidence ACA was so intimately entwined into our health care payment system no one could destroy it.

Echoing Sebelius, Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman recently wrote a New York Times article titled Three Legs Good, No Legs Bad. Quoting Krugman: you cant change any major element of the (ACA) without destroying the whole thing. ... Take away any one (of the three legs), and the program cant work.

According to those experts, ACA is not fixable. Its booby-trapped! Repeal/replace may be the only solution.

If I were king, Id bring congressional leaders together with these objectives:

Create a basic structure for making our health-care payment system work.

Forbid the use of the terms fix, repeal/replace, ACA and Obamacare.

Allow no measurement or discussion of costs. Discussing who pays what would get in the way of creating a vision for a workable structure. The discussion of costs and would come later.

In my role as king, Id work to generate the following:

Policies that directly reduce costs through transparency, competition and the free market.

Individual and family ownership of major medical insurance policies. People could purchase what they want and need.

Health savings accounts (HSAs) for routine care up to the major medical kick-in.

Enhance insurance company competition by selling across state lines.

Reduce the cost of defensive medicine through tort reform.

Publish prices.

Aggressively attack waste, fraud and abuse.

Coverage would be available to all.

Insurance companies would underwrite actual risk.

Pre-existing conditions or lifetime limits wouldnt block insurance coverage.

There would be no mandates or mandated coverage goodies that might be good personal regimen but should not be part of a health care payment system.

At this point we would determine:

The cost structure.

How the tax system could be used to give favorable/equitable treatment based on income.

How best to determine, based on income, when medical deductions would apply, how much tax benefit would be allowed and how refundable tax credits might apply.

How to return Medicaid to providing care to the poor and elderly.

How to use Medicaid to provide a safety net covering excess costs to those with pre-existing conditions or who are otherwise uninsurable.

There would be initial transition costs, and this system should be adjusted over time to obtain a more ideal tax treatment and to find free market incentives to eliminate the temptation to reject buying coverage. We would learn from experience, and not try to finalize the system in the first try.

Thats one approach. Im sure well hear many more.
The Grout Museum District and The Courier have teamed up once again to get folks to remember American heroes like Glen Spooner.

Hes not a name local people recall as readily as the five Sullivan Brothers, killed during World War II. Or Robert Hibbs of Cedar Falls, the first Black Hawk County resident to die in Vietnam, who won the Medal of Honor.

Both the Sullivans and Hibbs have public structures and veterans posts named for them. Spooner does not. Yet his sacrifice is just at poig- nant and gallant.

He was a soldier of The Forgotten War, the Korean War, from 1950-53. He was also the first Black Hawk County resident killed in that war  on July 12, 1950, about three weeks after the war began, serving with the 21st Regiment of the U.S. Armys 24th Infantry Division.

He was killed four days into a battle at the village of Chonui or the crossroads of Chochiwon, near the Kum River north of Taejon. Spooners division took a stand and delayed two of the best divisions of the North Korean Army for two days in the initial enemy offensive of the war.

Spooner and all his Iowa comrades who served, fought or died in Korea are honored by the Grouts year-long exhibit, The Cold War Ablaze: Iowans in the Korean War. It opened last month. Part of the expansive exhibit is a Faces of the Fallen display, highlighting Spooner and other Iowans killed in the war. Also, replica military dogtags displaying each of their names hang along a timeline of events during the war. It is similar to the Grouts Vietnam War exhibit in 2015-16.

Concurrent with that, The Courier published a special section July 27  the 64th anniversary of the wars armistice, highlighting more than 30 Korean War veterans living and deceased, many of whom provided oral history interviews to the Grout and whose stories are available at the museum. Excerpts from those interviews appear on the Courier website with their stories. We similarly featured Vietnam veterans during the related Grout exhibit.

The Korean War is known as The Forgotten War. Sandwiched between the victory of World War II and the turbulence and division that marked the Vietnam War, it is a conflict that, to many, was lost in the sands of time  even though it still has no formal end.

The fact that conflict is still unresolved has been made starkly clear to the United States and surrounding nations with current tensions over North Koreas ongoing nuclear weapons program.

The Courier and the Grout felt it was timely and significant to remember the fighting that occurred on the Korean peninsula in 1950-53, in which thousands of Americans and their United Nations allies  and millions of Koreans  risked and sacrificed life and limb to preserve freedom in South Korea from the communist dictatorship of the North.

We encourage everyone to visit the Grout exhibit. Copies of our July 27 special edition also are still available for purchase. If you are, knew, are related to or loved a Korean War veteran youll want to do both.

For us, like so many who had loved ones in Korea, the war was personal. Our dear former colleague Bob Case, one of Iowas premier political reporters, who died in 1984 and also fought in World War II, was a member of the Waterloo Marine Reserve Unit that served at the frozen bloody battle of Chosin Reservoir during the war and sent the paper a first-person account from the front. Also, Alfred Martin, uncle of retired Courier copy desk chief Dave Martin, served with the U.S. Army and was killed as a prisoner of war Nov. 30, 1950.

We wont forget Glen Spooner, Bob Case, Alfred Martin or any of the other brave men and women from our midst who served, fought and died in Korea. We encourage all our neighbors in the Cedar Valley to remember them as well  at the Grout, in the pages of The Couriers special edition and maybe in a quiet moment of contemplation or prayer. Freedom is not free.
News / National

by Stephen Jakes

Zimbabwe Peace Project has reported that there has been nearly 50% increase in the number of human rights violations from 150 in June to 223 in July, as reported by Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP).This is owing to a wide array of human rights violations ranging from the right to life, political rights, right to personal security, freedom of association, freedom from arbitrary eviction, property rights and the right to food among others."Cases of theft and looting reached their highest in April when 26 cases were recorded. The numbers dropped to 18 in May, 10 in June and this month they rose notably to 23," said ZPP."The violations reported in July stand out in that it is reported 10 artisanal miners lost their lives in clashes with security agents and security guards. In Mutare West and Chiadzwa conflict around the extraction of diamonds and gold has been brewing for a long time and continues to take a toll on human life. High unemployment has resulted in conflicts worsening as more people resort to artisanal mining as a means of making a living."ZPP said ZanuPF persists as the party with the highest number of perpetrators of violence."In June ZanuPF was responsible for 72.5 % of violations and the percentage reduced to 61.1 in July Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) is second and responsible for 24.2% of violations compared to 18.5% in June. The total number of victims reduced from 1392 (597 females and 795 males) to 1184 (438 females, 708 males and 38 unknown). However, it is the adverse with perpetrators as the numbers increased. There were 342 perpetrators in June and the number has inclined upwards to 435 in July," said ZPP."The period under review was dominated by violations that rooted partly from the presidential youth interface rallies and preparations for Heroes Day commemorations. Heroes Day is one of the events that has been highly politicised with ZanuPF supporters taking responsibility of mobilising people and resources for the day. Heroes Day is commemorated in August annually and in weeks leading ZanuPF party members and lower level office bearers have been known to coerce citizens to pool resources in their different localities. Presidential youth interface rallies and preparations for Heroes Day commemorations led to a sharp hike of cases of intimidation and harassment from 85 in June to 141 in July."The ZPP said this month it received reports that government employees and business people were forced to contribute money from 50 cents upwards."In a circular that ZPP is in possession of, information was disseminated to different government stakeholders. On 21 July, Guruve District Schools Inspector, Phineas Dambudzo, convened a meeting with 86 school heads and instructed them to contribute money towards Heroes Day commemorations. See Annexure 1 for the circular sent to teachers," ZPP said."Fundraising is an ongoing exercise for presidential youth interface rallies. Citizens who have been coerced to contribute $1 in Chakari and Sanyati have been told that the money is meant for transporting people to and from the presidential youth interface rally slated for Chinhoyi."ZPP said in previous rallies, for instance in Marondera and Lupane, those that went against their will have reported that no food was served; they were deserted and left to find their own way back home after the rally.
Global education

AJA R. WITT

WATERLOO  Theres been a lot of media coverage about the education budget, funding and cuts. But these policies arent just decisions in Washington. They affect the lives of people around the world. They affect the likelihood a young girl in Somalia will contract HIV, that she will fall victim to sex trafficking or that she will be raped. A basic education, a quality education, has been found to decrease the likelihood girls in the most poverty-stricken, conflict areas in the world will experience the absolute worst of societal ills.

There are more than 263 million children around the world who are not in school who should be. As the greatest country in the world, it is our responsibility to fight for the education of every child around the globe, especially those most vulnerable.

The Global Partnership for Education, with continued support from the United States, is positioned to help more than 25 million children in developing countries begin their education by 2020. This is not a foreign issue. This is bipartisan, human interest, and our Iowa representatives and senators must take action.

Summer music

LUCINDA M. LEAR

president, Cedar Valley Chamber Music

WATERLOO  For two weeks in July, the Cedar Valley Chamber Music Festival provides concerts in Waterloo, Cedar Falls and neighboring communities. These talented musicians, all with Iowa connections, travel from across the U.S. and Canada to share music with the Cedar Valley at places such as the Cedar Falls Farmers Market, area ESL programs, libraries, elementary schools and local retirement centers. Chamber music musicians, with the help of Bryans on 4th, were also able to raise money to sponsor music programs at the Cedar Valley Boys and Girls Club. Artistic Director Hunter Capoccioni always has an exciting array of music and musicians who love performing for Iowa audiences.

What a treasure trove of music to take advantage of. Every week in June and July Waterloo and Cedar Falls summer bands perform, and two weeks in July lovers of chamber music enjoy concerts at a variety of intimate venues.

Many take advantage of these unique opportunities, but I would like to encourage many more to do so. We are at the end of the summer season for these performances, so I urge you to plan ahead for next summers music events. Hope to see you there.

Column response

CHRIS SIMENSON

DUNKERTON  In response to Gary Kroegers July 30 column, I have met Gary in person and he is a likable guy. His latest column concerning Why we disagree on truth exemplifies why liberals and conservatives see things differently. A random check of his column resulted in a Fog Factor of about 14.8. In plain English this means a junior standing in college is necessary to understand its content. Then there is the obligatory patronizing in trying to explain its meaning to the unclean masses: I am well-read, you arent. Let me explain this to you.

True conservatives believe in plain talk. They also believe there are some absolutes. For example, open borders and state sovereignty are incompatible, or you shouldnt spend your country into bankruptcy by raising the debt ceiling and borrowing from our children.

With respect to liberal banality (like this better than platitudes) cut costs (mean) reduce taxes (millionaires and billionaires), welfare reform (heartless), Kates law (attack on immigrants).

Liberals should love math. It is what climate change is based on. Once we agree we cannot spend from a bottomless well we can move on to how we improve our nation. 2+2=4 is something we can all agree on, right?

Main Street

JIM OLOUGHLIN

CEDAR FALLS  In a guest column (Time for C.F. taxpayers to put their foot down July 30), Tom Hagarty argues for making no changes to the configuration of Main Street in Cedar Falls.

If the issue is just how quickly cars can get from one place to another, then that argument makes sense. The problem is Main Street was designed before Route 58 was built. It is now the central corridor of a residential neighborhood with many walkers and bikers rather than the primary route for fast-car traffic cutting through town. Unfortunately, the current design encourages fast driving and little else.

As someone who is a bike commuter and whose children regularly have to cross Main Street to get to school, I fully support the innovative designs that will make our neighborhood a more attractive place to live and a safer place to walk and bike. If Cedar Falls just kept doing what had been done in the past, there would be no downtown Parkade and no new Lincoln School. Lets not miss this opportunity to make Main Street a showplace rather than a shortcut.

Traffic cameras

ROBERT SIEBRANDS

HUDSON  Waterloo is considering red light cameras using the same song and dance as every other city with them  public safety. I would simply like one city to be honest and admit its about the money. If its not, then make the ticket count against the drivers license. The ticket is mailed to the vehicle owner and not the person driving the vehicle.

The owner could be out of the country and still get the ticket and be required to pay it. If the city feels its that important and apparently believes the sales pitch from the company that will own and operate the cameras, then there should be enough money to hire officers to sit full-time 24/7 at those camera locations and write tickets and still come out ahead.

We dine out in Waterloo twice a week. Install the cameras and we shop exclusively in Cedar Falls, never Waterloo again.

The Iowa Legislature can OK fireworks but not increase the speed limit on rural two-lane roads to where it was prior to 1974  70 mph. They also cannot eliminate red light cameras in the entire state. Maybe its time for a change.
INDEPENDENCE  A January trial date has been set for reality television star Chris Soules in connection with a fatal tractor accident near Aurora.

The 35-year-old rural Arlington man is charged with leaving the scene of a fatal accident in the April crash that killed 66-year-old Kenneth Mosher.

On Friday, Judge Kellyann Lekar announced she has scheduled Soules trial for 9:30 a.m. Jan. 18 in Buchanan County District Court. A pretrial conference has been scheduled for Jan. 4.

After overseeing the case on a preliminary basis to deal with media, security and scheduling issues, Lekar assigned the case to Judge Andrea Dryer. In her order, Lekar said she may from time to time still be involved with administrative issues on the matter.

The Bachelor star and Dancing with the Stars contestant was arrested following the April 24 crash. Prosecutors allege after Soules rear-ended Moshers tractor with his pickup, he left the scene before law enforcement arrived and refused to come out of his house until authorities had obtained a search warrant. In May, Soules filed a not guilty plea to the charge, a felony that carries up to five years in prison upon conviction.

A 1:30 p.m. hearing will be held Sept. 14 on a motion the defense filed in May asking the state to provide specific details about the prosecutions evidence in order to prepare for trial. In anticipation of a defense motion to dismiss the charges, a 1:30 p.m. hearing has been set for Oct. 10. An initial pretrial conference is planned for 1:30 p.m. Nov. 16.

Baby killed in

crash identified

WATERLOO  A car crash Wednesday night took the life of Liam Mwanje, whose name was released Friday by Hagarty-Waychoff-Grarup Funeral Service.

The 7-month-old died Wednesday at the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics of injuries suffered in a horrific crash at East First and Sycamore streets earlier in the evening. He was the only child of Anderson and Violet Mwanje from Kampala, Uganda. Violet Mwanje is a medical doctor currently serving as a resident physician at Northeast Iowa Family Medicine Education in Waterloo.

Liam was riding in a minivan with eight other people when it was involved in a crash with a pickup truck around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. The van rolled over several times in the crash. Waterloo Police on Friday afternoon still had not released any of the names of those involved in the crash or the crash report. The crash is in the midst of the U.S. Highway 63 renovations and heavy traffic can occur in the area.

Police confirmed Thursday all nine people in the minivan were taken to the hospital, as well as the driver of the pickup, who was the only occupant of that vehicle.

Eldora mayor

suspends chief

ELDORA  The police chief of Eldora was suspended Friday by Eldora Mayor Bob Jeske.

Police Chief Mike Ludwig received a week-long suspension from his job because of an incident in Eldora in the previous 24 hours, according to Jeske. Ludwig was not on duty during the incident but was in uniform. He would not elaborate.

He just got out of line a little bit, and I think it was way out of line, so he got sent home for a week at this point, and well try to decide what happens when he comes back on the 15th, Jeske said.

Although the mayor would not describe the incident, he said it was because of the way Ludwig handled a situation.

We cant have that, let alone a police officer. ... Hes got to think about it, Jeske said.

Capt. Anthony Shrad will take over police chief duties at least until the 15th, according to Jeske.

Girls accused of Oelwein vandalism

OELWEIN  Oelwein Police on July 21 received reports of numerous buildings that had been vandalized with spray paint.

During the course of the investigation, officers were able to determine the criminal acts were committed by three juvenile females ages 11, 12 and 13. All were referred to juvenile court services for charges of fourth-degree criminal mischief, a serious misdemeanor.

Motorcycle crash

injures one

EVANSDALE  A Minnesota man was injured in a motorcycle crash Saturday in Black Hawk County.

Black Hawk County sheriffs deputies said the crash was reported about 12:15 p.m. on Interstate 380 at mile marker 64.

Deputies said a yellow 2004 Yamaha motorcycle was found lying in the east ditch next to the driver, who was identified as Carlo Rozumny, 20, of Eagan, Minn. Rozumny was northbound on I-380 at the time of the accident when he lost control and entered the ditch.

Rozumny was transported to Covenant Medical Center in Waterloo by Evansdale Ambulance with minor injuries. His condition has not been released.

The accident remains under investigation.
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Foreground: The beginning of what is happening now



US strength as we know it know was built on technological innovation, some procured from within her borders and much more than we contemplate, procured from without her borders; US leadership was built on great institutions (but institutions not necessarily rooted in truth and honesty. But the implication was there and the desire was met by many of us, we thought honesty was part of our heritage). This strength of technological as a base has been shifting to Asia for quiet some time. Some 75 percent of that shift is nearly entailed in full. Thus, what goes up must come down. Whether it falls quietly or not, is the question?

All that was great about US institutions has all been destroyed by cronyism, ethnic politics, and (worst) by illegal banking practices. The footprints of generations (with both good and bad intentions) that built those USA institutions are by now far out of sight, and the new generations far removed from the high principles of the old in thought and in action. Fact is the new generations have been railed in the wrong direction, due to fear from the old powers that new powers would rise and derail them as the proclaimed false gods. Therefore, the connection between the old and new has almost been severed and nothing exists between the two to have a commonality

It seems that we lost the old adage, always Train your replacement with honesty and morals!

At least it is a form of an adage that I used exclusively in training my managers, time and time again. (I watched such training be devoured, when McDonalds trained managers to worship the bottom line and forsake the human parts of business as important. To McDonalds people are expendable and the infiltration of such trained managers hurt the management industry to a vast extent. Then, since McDonalds was the new desire, all others followed in the footsteps of greatness)

Thus, as in all great civilizations that come into existence, from the beginning of such Empires, when a critical mass of great thinkers and philosophers, statesmen and warriors is formed, you have the creation of greatness. It cannot be ordered at will. It happens because of a need, an idea, a rooted moral base and vision for the future

America (USA) had that, but its all been destroyed by greed of a very few. In fact so few that they moved unobserved among us unsuspecting sheep, just as an assassin does to exterminate his prey. The few are still protecting their past endeavors and are scared of losing their power, even as they wither and die from old age

Contemplate this; If a man could live forever and that fountain of youth was a reality, these men would have discovered it and allowed themselves to retain power for ever and ever

Russians are deep thinkers, intellects and patient.

What is happening right now and being orchestrated by the USA. Is nothing new to Russia and is only a saddness because Russia really wants to be friends with the US! Really they do, we are the same people, the same mindset and we are one. But we are constantly being driven apart

Russians understand this happening, within the Western Empire. And so they would know that no action is required. Action is what you do when they attack within the borders of your country. When the tanks come rolling inward? Then defend the Motherland is the cry. Until then, leave the jerks alone. Never Interfere With an Enemy While Hes in the Process of Destroying Himself

Ascending to the throne is when the cream on the fresh milk rises to the surface; curdled, when the scum on top does stagnate, grows old. This happens when a base under the pillar of strength becomes corroded with degradation

Russia has no need to strike back fully with all options, against US sanctions.

They are successfully playing the waiting game. Whats the hurry? When your adversary is making mistakes, why correct them?

The order for the US to withdraw 755 diplomats and employees from Russia, was not retaliation for Congresss new sanctions. It was retaliation for Obamas declaring 35 Russian diplomats Non Grata and seizing Russian property illegally. Russia just evened out the numbers of both US and Russian diplomats to 455. Maybe there will be more evening out by Russia for sanctions, maybe not. Perhaps no more NASA astronauts will be ferried up to the ISS. Putin could have done that in 2014 Who knows and really, Who cares?

But why retaliate? When the cream is curdling at such a fast pace! Cream must be enjoyed when it is fresh. It makes coffee the finest there is. That my friend is part of the issue; we have lost the ability to enjoy coffee as it should be and have flavored coffee into oblivion, with variety and chemicals

Alas you say, But why use real cream, when we have such wonderful fake stuff?

You should try a real cup of fresh brewed coffee

And Starbucks does not have such a coffee. Not a coffee percolated over a fire and enjoyed as it was mean to be enjoyed. Somethings cannot be improved upon and real coffee has to be lovingly made with emphasis upon your, not theirs, desires. You must build you perfect cup of coffee how you want, not how you are told

This is as in all aspects of life and that has been lost to the wayside, as we dance to others tunes

Well have to learn to wait and see. We must absorb and assimilate the things happening and we must garner our roots. Water those roots and society, individuals and even countries will flourish

Russia waits and watches her foe

* * * * *

Interesting read

[contentcards url=http://johnhelmer.net/us-senate-strikes-for-russian-equality-the-oligarchs-targeted-in-new-sanctions-bill/]

WtR
Updates throughout the day at http://calevbenyefuneh.blog spot.com. If you enjoy "Love of the Land", please be a subscriber. Just put your email address in the "Subscribe" box on the upper right-hand corner of the page.Twitter updates at LoveoftheLand as well as our Love of the Land page at Facebook which has additional pieces of interest besides that which is posted on the blog. Also check-out This Ongoing War by Frimet and Arnold Roth. An excellent blog, very important work.

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..Algemeiner.com..05 August '17..Just when you may have thought that thecouldnt possibly sink any lower when it comes to Israel or Jewish issues, along comes one Jason Farago, an art critic for the newspaper, who manages to review an exhibit about the murderous Nazi Adolf Eichmann and fault it for being, of all things, insufficiently sympathetic to Eichmann.Farago complains: The trial was transformative, but whether it was entirely just is not a question raised by this exhibition, which prefers the relics of James Bond-like spycraft to moral and legal dilemmas.Perhaps the reason the exhibit doesnt dwell on these so-called moral and legal dilemmas is because they werent truly dilemmas at all.
Staying out of debt is easier said than done, I know. However, its something you can do, and its something you should be practicing everyday. As Christians, we are in this world, but we are
A startup needs to test an idea quickly. For this, an MVP is created. MVP, Minimal Viable Product  a test version of a product or service with a minimum set of functions (up to one or two), which allows you to see the product's value for consumers and the market. MVP is created to test hypotheses and check the viability of the intended product: is it worth developing the project further, what changes should be made? The sooner a startup brings its MVP to market and tests the idea, the better. This article will look at how no-code technology can help founders achieve their business goals.

This article will try to cover everything that a founder needs to know about no-code at the initial stage of creating a startup.

What is no-code?

No-code, zero-code platform is a tool for creating websites, applications, chatbots, and other programs without the need for direct code writing by programmers. No-code is a valuable alternative to traditional development.

No-code is confused with low-code, but there is a difference in these terms. Low-code includes no-code and the ability to "finish code", add parts of code and the functionality.

A user of a no-code platform usually does not need to know layout, programming languages, or hire a team of programmers. The user of the no-code tool creates an application using a visual block constructor, which he fills with the necessary content and functions, and the no-code platform itself does the processing of requests, compiling the application and other "magic." It generates code using AI and/or contains blocks of code pre-written by programmers.

No-code allows the startup founder to create an MVP himself, entrust it to his employee with basic technical literacy and understanding of the project, or hire a no-code developer. Even in the case of hiring a no-code developer, the cost of creating an MVP will be significantly lower than with classical development with programmers. For example, you can read the interview of a startup and no-code developer on our website, who initially worked as a Product Manager and was able to master no-code for his project himself.

Benefits of no-code for a startup founder

There are the following key advantages for a startup founder in using no-code technology:

a large selection of no-code tools, platforms, and their integrations at the moment  already in 2022, there are many tools and platforms for creating an MVP, a larger project, or even a finished product on no-code, but few people still know about them, and others are far from all startups and founders use their potential;

cost  no-code development saves the money by speeding up the development process, not hiring professional programmers or no need to maintain a developer department, monitoring functions and quick bug fixes, avoiding or reducing the growth of technical debt;

speed is the main advantage over classical development  no-code allows you to build a simple application in a weekend, and a more complex one can be built in a month. In this way, you can test an MVP and even several versions of an MVP very quickly;

low entry threshold  to master a no-code platform, you often do not need technical education at all, but only an understanding of a company's business processes or product from the inside. In the case of pro-level no-code platforms, technical education is required, but you can get used to it hundreds of times faster than with any programming language. This makes no-code available to almost everyone who wants to work with technology;

ease of use  no need to write hundreds of code lines  just move the blocks and assign links between them. Work on a project can be entrusted to your employee without communicating with a team of third-party developers. You can speak "in your language" without the need to understand the "inner kitchen" of developers;

flexibility  with the help of no-code, it is easy for a startup founder to add new functionality and new features right during a project or a MVP testing without a significant increase in development costs.

Possible disadvantages of no-code for a startup founder

As often, any property can be, under certain conditions, both a disadvantage and an advantage. In no-code, many of the benefits with the wrong choice of tool can turn into disadvantages:

no-code is not always a budget solution for a project. Sometimes in a no-code development package, you get unnecessary functions and additions (on AppMaster.io you can separately connect the frontend and pay only for the backend or only for those functions that you are using); if you do not understand the needs of your project, then you can make a mistake with the choice of a no-code tool and not be able to implement the necessary functions on it, or it will be too difficult to implement them; often, no-code tools fail to ensure proper data security and contribute to data leakage (but AppMaster.io allows you to host a finished application on any server); no-code tools often do not provide the ability to upload source code or provide uploading in an inconvenient format, which makes it difficult to move to another tool or to your development. You have to choose a no-code tool "once and forever immediately" (AppMaster. io gives you the ability to download the source code. Also, we generate human-readable code and you will not have any difficulties with its transportation); most no-code tools on the market are not suitable for creating a finished product, and there are significant difficulties with scaling the project if the MVP is successful (AppMaster.io is a professional no-code platform and our capabilities allow us to implement and support the finished product and scale it in the future).

Forewarned is forearmed. Choose your no-code tool wisely and take full advantage of your choice.

Types of no-code platforms

Conventionally, all no-code tools can be divided into several types: no-code devices with a low entry threshold (you can create frontend and not very powerful backend on them), integrators that help connect applications and services, and professional no-code platforms (they strive to replace the code completely, provide the ability to create a robust backend and high bandwidth).

The basic principle of operation of your MVP and the choice of a no-code platform depend on such a conditional division into types. For example, if you make a simple application like a diary, you can limit yourself to a no-code tool with a low entry threshold and a beautiful design.

If your application has powerful potential, high bandwidth, multi-user interface, and works with large amounts of data or real-time data, it is better to choose a professional no-code platform like AppMaster.io or Direcual.

If you use several services at once, link them on integrators like Integromat and Zapier.

Adalo

An easy-to-learn designer with a relatively user-friendly interface. The free version is helpful for learning. The free version contains Adalo watermarks and does not allow you to upload your applications to GooglePlayMarket and AppStore. Beginners often choose this no-code platform to create their first applications with simple logic.

Bubble

It will take more time to learn Bubble , but the platform allows you to work with the backend, databases, business processes, and layout. There are many plugins. The free plan allows you to master the tool, and you can start developing at the middle rate. The price increase is due to the rise in the number of users.

Integromat

It is an integrator. Experts talk about it as a simple and affordable platform for linking applications and services. Scenarios can be created personally, or you can use templates. If you need to connect an application with a service not from the Integromat database, fill out the form and connect to its API via HTTP.

Zapier

This is an integrator for linking applications with each other or with other external services. You can transfer data between thousands of applications. There is a script constructor (one event starts a chain of necessary actions).

Directual

The no-code platform positions itself for creating MVP applications (Minimal Viable Product, minimum viable product) and full-fledged applications of finished products. Scenarios are the backbone of the platform. Using scripts, you can automate the backend logic of the application, create and combine workflows. The Directual catalog includes out-of-the-box connectors, HTTP requests, webhooks, database listeners, and integration with popular services.

AppMaster.io

No-code next-generation platform for creating native and web applications on a real backend. Visual drag-and-drop designer, user-friendly business process designer, one-click app publishing to AppMaster Cloud, or integration with any cloud platform. Push notifications, authorization using social networks. Networks, email, and more. Connect applications to hundreds of services or programmatically access them using APIs. The ability to upload source code and documentation in a human-readable format and transfer it to your servers. Documentation auto-generation. Modern and fast language GoLang at the core.

No-code perspectives for startups

No-code development is gradually gaining popularity around the world. There are already more than 500 no-code tools for creating websites and various types of applications.

According to the forecasts of IT world experts, no-code will develop more and more actively and capture parts of the market responsible for medicine, small online business, small business, and all niches where it is possibly necessary to optimize and automate development processes.

The mass shift of businesses and their customers online and to gadgets has increased the demand for the fast and inexpensive creation of mobile applications that would work according to a single quality standard and have a simple, understandable, user-friendly interface.

Conclusion

No-code is visual programming in the form of a constructor without directly writing code. Usually, basic knowledge in development is enough to build applications on no-code.

The logic of no-code constructors is intuitive: the application interface is assembled from blocks, icons, buttons, and text which are connected to the database. Usually, you can choose a suitable template or do everything from scratch. Speed and economy are the main advantages of no-code tools.

No-code is suitable for creating an MVP, testing an idea or new features in a product, saving time for solving standard tasks. PRO level no-code platforms can provide you with a finished product, an application.

If you don't have an account on AppMaster.io yet, join us. After registration, you will be given a free trial period for 14 days, in which all the basic functionality of the platform is available. It will allow you to learn the intricacies of working with a professional-level no-code platform and understand its potential.




Day 5, full day in #fez #thesevengates # palace #gate #morocco #travelaroundtheworld #architecture A post shared by Maria Roy (@airam94564) on Apr 15, 2017 at 10:43am PDT

$5 meal in #fez is mixed beef and chicken skewers and everything you see. #5bucks #realdeal #foodadventures #foodanddrink #travelaroundtheworld #eatingout A post shared by Maria Roy (@airam94564) on Apr 18, 2017 at 10:10am PDT

This whole day in Fez is so jam-packed. We had seen amazing architecture and incredible artistry in tile work, the colorful vats of the tanneries and the craftsmanship of their leather goods. We have been educated in the process of making rugs and carpets and what to look for including carpet designs. We have experienced gastronomic delight in the lunch offerings and so many little things we have been exposed to and yet the day has more to offer. This optional tour costing $39 is well worth the price.The next item on our itinerary is a visit to see the palace gates, also called the 7 Gates, because well, there are 7 gates in all. The palace gate was a short bus ride from the medina. It is quite a sight. The royal family has palaces all over the country and this is their palace here in Fez. It is selfie-worthy with all the gilding. The only thing to look out for is make sure you never take any photos of the guards. Thats a big no-no in Morocco. This is easy to accomplish. The guards are not guarding these doors. They are guarding the side door a few yards to the left, so there really is no excuse.Well, theres more! We again went on the bus and it traveled a short distance. We arrived at the Jewish Quarter. The only spot we were slated to visit here was the synagogue. I havent been to a synagogue before and so I was quite curious.The visit to the synagogue was the end of this days tour.Afterwards when we all got a little rest in the hotel, the question of where to eat arose. Earlier in the day we asked for recommendations on where to eat. Several restaurants were highly recommended.A group of us, the usual dining mates, picked one that was a local favorite. A twenty-minute walk was what we were told, but it seemed a lot longer than that. Along the way we passed by many eateries, but we were keen on going to this restaurant La Piscope. Its a casual dining place. The food is good and relatively cheap, but the company was so much better. We took our time with dinner and as if we never wanted our time to end we stopped for a dessert at another creamery/ice cream shop.
Aug 6, 2017 | By Julia

Levis denim company is sharply redefining its tried and true branding, with a new turn towards 3D printing technology. Back in February, the classic denim company made headlines with a spotlight in Fast Company: sustainability was the companys new philosophy, though this was not without its challenges. Revitalizing production is not an easy feat for the producers of a garment thats remained essentially unchanged for 150 years.



Now, the popular denim brand is keen to show that its still taking this commitment seriously, with a new interest in 3D printing. Levis Head of Global Product Innovation Paul Dillinger recently paid a visit to the Autodesk Pier 9 workshop in San Francisco, giving Fast Company another look into the brands progress.



So far, Levis has been focused primarily on experimenting with digital renderings, and exploring what a 3D printed denim jacket would actually look like. Its only a shell of the real thing for now, but one that holds promise in Dillingers eyes.



The Head of Global Product Innovation, whos spearheading the innovative project, is enthusiastic about the classic brands growing ability to capture the real essence of a pair of Levis and convert it into digital collateral. By doing so, Dillinger is confident that the brand could cut back exponentially on both material and manufacturing costs. Its an established benefit of additive manufacturing technology, but one that most clothing producers have been reluctant to accept.



Of course, Levis is still a long way off from 3D printing a functional denim jacket. All of the fine details included on Dillingers printed denim remain only impressions for the time being. Everything that we recognize from this garment is captured in a topography scan, explains Dillinger. But this pre-prototype is certainly a move in the right direction.



More importantly, its a solid attempt by the brand to think outside the box, and conceptualize their newfound philosophy of sustainability. It challenges us, and our design team, to think about design differently, and to think about design strategies to accommodate an uncertain future, Paul told Fast Company.

Dillinger is quick to note that a 3D printed Levis jacket likely wont hit retail outlets directly. Rather, the digital rendering project will be put to use for elevating the brand towards more long-term, forward-looking thinking. Progress may be slow, but for a company boasting over 150 years in the denim business, time is on their side.

Posted in 3D Printing Application

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Aug 6, 2017 | By Julia

Houston-based designer Maria Alejandra Mora-Sanchez is paving the way for 3D printed textiles with the launch of a new fashion garment in partnership with Cosine Additive. Mora-Sanchez may be new to the world of 3D printed fashion  the young maker is currently in the midst of an industrial design degree at the University of Houston, alongside an internship at Cosine  but shes already proven herself as a force to be reckoned with. Her expandable 3D printed dress Loom is already making waves across the textile and additive manufacturing industries, recently securing Mora-Sanchez a Red Dot Design Award | Design Concept 2017. The dress is also being considered for the James Dyson Award and has been entered into the RESHAPE competition for wearable technology. Winners are set to be announced this September.

I believe that 3D printing is the future of fashion, says Mora-Sanchez. With the current developments we are experiencing in this technology there are a great number of opportunities to create amazing new products and materials. But the industry is lagging: 3D printing has mainly been used for accessories and conceptual sculptural pieces, Mora-Sanchez explains. While fascinating, these developments arent functional garments that can be comfortably worn and moved around in.

With this as her starting point, Mora-Sanchez devoted her final thesis to creating a truly wearable textile. Pattern-wise, the industrial designer drew inspiration from the Wayuu tribe, an Indigenous community of the Guajira Peninsula in northern Colombia and northwest Venezuela whose textiles are influenced by nature and the tribes surrounding environment.

The design process itself was punctuated by experimentation and unorthodox thinking. Mora-Sanchez explains that, although her initial method of fabrication was Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) printing, Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) eventually proved to be the best route.

Likewise, Mora-Sanchez tested several different materials to observe how her auxetic patterns behaved and interacted, ultimately settling on Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU) as her final decision. The Houston designer says this specialized plastic displayed the best combination of high abrasion resistance, low-temperature performance, high elasticity and strength, and the added benefit of resistance to oil and grease. After months of testing, the final garment was printed on Cosine Additives AM1 system.

The result is an innovative creation from both a fashion and additive manufacturing perspective. Mora Sanchezs Loom combines textiles and additive manufacturing by applying materials and auxetic structures that consider function and the human body. As an expandable, adaptive, flexible, and above all wearable 3D printed dress, Loom could well represent the future of functional 3D printed textiles. Congratulations to Mora-Sanchez on an outstanding final thesis, and a laudable entry point into 3D printed fashion.

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Anthony Tran wrote at 8/10/2017 2:30:56 PM:Hi Yesplz! My name is Anthony Tran, and I work with Cosine Additive. We can most definitely ask Maria if we can publish her .STL. It's still just at its fruition. Ive seen her around the shop working with our engineers to constantly update and refine her design. If we can post it, It will most definitely be on our blog. Come check it out!Yesplz wrote at 8/7/2017 8:23:36 PM:Can i get the STL plz?




Kienholz does it all to lead Pierre to sixth-straight 11AA title

Pierre quarterback Lincoln Kienholz had an interception and scored the game-winning touchdown on consecutive drives to seal Pierre's sixth-straight 11AA title.
Asserting that President Donald Trump will no longer tolerate any support to militants, US National Security Adviser Gen HR McMaster on Sunday asked Pakistan to change its paradoxical policy of supporting selective terror groups.

US officials have often accused Pakistan of helping the militants, a charge Islamabad denies.

The president has also made clear that he, that we need to see a change in behaviour of those in the region, which includes those who are providing safe haven and support bases for the Taliban, Haqqani Network and others, the National Security Advisor, McMaster, was quoted by MSNBC as saying.

This is Pakistan in particular that we want to really see a change in and a reduction of their support for these groups, he said, in response to a question on Afghanistan and terrorism in the region.

He said that Trump is making clear that the US will no longer tolerate any support for the Taliban or related groups.

Of course, you know, a very paradoxical situation, right, where Pakistan is taking great losses. They have fought very hard against these groups, but theyve done so really only selectively, he said.

Pakistans two neighbours  both India and Afghanistan  have accused it of being selective in its war against terrorism.

McMaster said that Trump has lifted restrictions on US armed forces in Afghanistan.

He also defended Trumps strategy on winning the war in Afghanistan by giving unrestricted powers to the US military based in the war-torn country.

The president has said that, He does not want to place restrictions on the military that undermine our ability to win battles in combat.

He has lifted those restrictions, and you are beginning to see the payoff of that as well, the top US national security advisor said.
Im seeing talk about shots in several groups that are medical- or vaccine-related and in typical parenting groups, too. People are asking if its true that their child must be vaccinated. I heard they dont have to be but my district just sent me a notice. If I dont get her the vaccine, she wont get her schedule. Most whove chimed in to answer know quite a bit about vaccine law and about their rights. But, since not every member of the group is vaccine savvy yet, theyre gently reminding the newer folks that what some of the schools and health departments are saying about school shots is misleading. Once that newbie parent is provided the accurate information, that yes, their child can still go to school without getting that Tdap vaccine or that booster, some of the parents band together to set the district straight.

I belong to a lot more parenting groups now than I did when my children were younger. The people in these groups, many who have become personal friends, are a lifeline for me. From the old timers to the youngins, many of whom are more in tune with their parental rights than I ever was at their age, we have a safe place to talk, vent, and collaborate. From poop talk to getting the skinny on whos an autism friendly doctor or therapist, Im drawn in to several conversations throughout the year. Since the start of school is right around the corner, some of the latest convos have been about school shots.

Back to school. I love this time of year. New supplies and new academic adventures await. My kids are somewhat excited to return to school but more so for the social aspect. They cannot wait to see their friends again. Friends are a good thing to have in life. Im grateful for the ones I have, especially for the friends Ive made online.

And off they go to politely tell the district, or the health department, or the school administrator that theyve forgotten something very important. Where a district shares only part of the law, the parents include whats been left out  that all 50 states offer at least one type of vaccine exemption.

If youve learned that your local district or health department is keeping information from you and other parents of school age children, do you chime in? Do you let that district representative, or administrator, or health department employee, or school nurse know what theyve done? I have. One nurse was very receptive. She even went so far as to apologize for neglecting to add that exemptions were indeed still a valid option. Another time, a different nurse was not as receptive. I already knew the information, but tested her by asking if I could turn in an exemption instead. Begrudgingly, she said yes. I then requested that she please consider citing the entire law  to include that exemptions existed  when she made future announcements about vaccines. She was miffed and let me know just how angry Id made her. Why was she angry? Because I asked her to be honest with the parents and children she was being paid to serve?

Honesty will always be the best policy, especially when risks are involved.

Unfortunately, many parents are still unaware that the law (in most states) includes being able to opt out of school shots. Unless someone knows how to search for it, though, that information may not be easily found. Not sure about what your states vaccine exemptions include? Check out this map:









Photo credit: NVIC.org

The NVIC website has more detailed information which Id encourage parents to read. Another great resource is Vaxtruth. Each of those websites lists other vaccine topics that I believe are worth reading to include legislation alerts. The online alerts can, and have, very quickly notified the people that its time to rally in person.

Because our childrens health rights are worth fighting for, scores of parents across the US made a point to be in their home states capital during vaccine legislative meetings and hearings. They did everything they could to be heard and seen and to help kill several vaccine bills. Not every state representative listened to nor appreciated the presence of the concerned parents, but that hasnt stopped these parents from continuing to work together. I see that in the online groups that I currently belong to.

Moms and dads take time to help each other. They take time to layout the facts, all of the facts. They having lengthy conversations about vaccines, vaccine exemptions, and vaccine choice, something that vaccine advocates dont seem to care to bring up. I encourage the talking and sharing thats going on parent-to-parent. The more parents know, the better able they are to make not just a good decision but an informed one.

Cathy Jameson is a Contributing Editor for Age of Autism.

--

Other posts from Cathy about vaccine exemptions can be found here:

Back-to-School Shots

Back-to-School Shots: You Have Exemptions
End-of-life planning is morbid to some, but for those who want to protect and properly distribute their assets, such planning is imperative.

Consulting with a lawyer who has expertise in estate planning is vital to handling hard-earned assets. The Womens Council of the Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of Commerce will help interested individuals become the boss of their legal affairs on Monday, Aug. 21, at noon in its conference center.

Marcia McMurray, attorney for McMurray Law Office PLLC since 1997, has as her primary areas of practice estate planning and administration and business organizations. She will focus on estate planning matters such as wills, trust guardianships for children, financial powers of attorney, healthcare powers of attorney and living wills during the luncheon.

Prior to joining the McMurray Law Office, she was an attorney with Bell and Associates PC from May 1988 to Mary 1997. She earned her JD degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law. There she became a member of the Order of the Coif, an honorary scholastic society that encourages excellence in legal education by fostering a spirit of careful study, recognizes those law students who attained a high grade of scholarship, and honors those who as lawyers, judges and teachers attained high distinction for their scholarly or professional accomplishments.

At Vanderbilt, Ms. McMurray was also an Andrew Ewing Scholar and associate editor of Vanderbilt Law Review, for which she earned recognition. She also received American Jurisprudence Awards for Torts I, Federal Taxation, and State and Local Taxation.

In addition to her JD degree, the local attorney holds a masters degree in psychology from Tulane University in New Orleans, a bachelors degree in psychology from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, and attended Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Ga.

Ms. McMurray is past chairperson of the board for the Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of Commerce. She holds professional memberships in the American Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association (current delegate to and past Speaker of the House of Delegates), Bradley County Bar Association (past president), Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women (past president), The Estate Planning Council of Chattanooga, Tennessee, Inc., Fellow of American Bar Foundation and Fellow of Tennessee Bar Foundation.

Womens Council is a quarterly program of the Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of Commerce.

This program is open to women and men, Womens Council Chairperson Ann Marie Brewer said. The content is important, and we want to encourage you to attend the luncheon to get answers from an estate-planning expert about how to handle your hard-earned assets and protect your family.

The cost for Be the Boss of Your Legal Affairs is $15 for chamber members and $25 for nonmembers and includes a buffet luncheon. Chamber members may use admission credits from their tiered investment if available.

To register, call 423-472-6587 by noon on Thursday, Aug. 17. Chamber members also may register online at the community calendar at www.clevelandchamber.com.
All residents who will vote in the Republican primary for two Aiken City Council district seats will cast their ballots at the H. Odell Weeks 
Aiken, SC (29801)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Low 42F. Winds WNW at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Low 42F. Winds WNW at 10 to 15 mph.
Second Assyrian Mayor Illegally Removed By Kurdish Authorities

Basem Bello (center), the Assyrian mayor of Tel Kepe, north Iraq, was illegally removed from his office by the Kurdish authorities on August 3. Tel Kepe, North Iraq (AINA) -- The mayor of Tel Kepe, Basim Bello, was removed from his office on August 3 by the Nineveh Provincial Council. Mr. Bello is the second Assyrian mayor in three weeks to be illegally removed from his office by the Kurdish authorities. The Assyrian Mayor of Alqosh, Fayez Abed Jawahreh, was removed from his office three weeks ago (AINA 2017-07-21, 2017-07-28).

Tel Kepe and Alqosh are Assyrian towns in north Iraq, in the Nineveh Plains, an area inhabited predominantly by Assyrians and outside the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) territory. The Nineveh Plains are under the jurisdiction of the central government.

Both mayor Bello and mayor Jawahreh were removed by Basil al-Keke, the Kurdish head of the Nineveh Provincial Council, which is controlled by the KRG.

Mayor Jawahreh was replaced by Lara Yousif, an Assyrian, but she was rejected by the majority of the residents Alqosh because she is a member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and perceived to be loyal to that party, which does not represent Assyrian interests.

No replacement has been appointed for Mayor Bello.

Mr. Bello, who is a member of the Abnaa al-Nahrain Assyrian Party, has been an outspoken critic of the KDP and KRG, and has received death threats from KRG officials and high ranking KDP members, according to Wikileaks documents (here and here).
Cops Arrested A Thief Who Stole 60 Cellphones At Lollapalooza, Police Say

By Stephen Gossett in News on Aug 6, 2017 2:02PM



Photo: Annie Lesser

If you're going to Lollapalooza Day Four on Sunday, be sure to keep a hand on your phone. Chicago police said they arrested a suspect who was involved in the theft of a whopping 60 cellphones at Lollapalooza. All the phones were recovered, police said.



Sounds like the cops got an assist from some of their festy besties. Great work by officers & concert-goers, CPD tweeted.

Twelve people have been arrested through the first three days of Lollapalooza, and 16 people have been citedmostly for fence-hopping attempts, according to the Office of Emergency Management and Communications. Head to the festivals Lost & Found if you were one of the unlucky many who was separated from his or her device. And look out for each other out there.
August 6, 2017

TEHRAN, Iran  When Hassan Rouhani first became president in 2013, he had a mentor: two-time President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. At the time, Rouhani's rivals hinted that the real president would be Rafsanjani, despite the fact that Rouhani had an unrivaled experience in diplomacy and security affairs, alongside his extensive experience in the parliament and his standing as a senior cleric.

Now that Rouhani is starting his second term, and Rafsanjani has died, Rouhani seems ready to start a new chapter that could differ from the previous one, given the achievements, failures and changes that took place in his first term, including reaching a nuclear deal with world powers and the emergence of US President Donald Trump, who has expressed his dismay over the deal.

This time, Rouhani seems to be very capable of absorbing differences under the umbrella of the Islamic Republics establishment, and some of what he said during the election campaign that stirred controversy he did not mention in his Aug. 3 speech at the supreme leaders residence or on Aug. 5 in the parliament, were he was sworn in as president for his second term.

In the grand plenary chamber of the Iranian parliament, dignitaries from all over the world watched Rouhani take the oath. Representatives of Hamas, Hezbollah and the Islamic Jihad sat with delegations from the European Union, the United Kingdom, France and other Western states. Gulf state representation from Qatar, Kuwait and Oman boosted the Iranian goal of the gathering, which clearly showed that the Islamic Republic  despite all the attempts by rival states  is neither isolated nor on bad terms with most of the world. The Iranian show of diplomatic power saw around 10 heads of state and a similar number of foreign ministers, with a special appearance from EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, who seemed to be the special guest. On Aug. 5, Mogherini met with Rouhani, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, the supreme leaders foreign policy adviser Ali Akbar Velayati and Kamal Kharrazi, the head of Irans Strategic Council on Foreign Relations; upon her arrival in the parliament the media and even Iranian officials took pictures of her.

Rouhanis speech in the parliament was in effect the second part of his speech two days before at the supreme leaders residence, where the endorsement ceremony was conducted. Given its content and the words the president used, it is fair to say the inauguration speech was carefully crafted, very moderate and did not intimidate his rivals nor gave high expectations to his allies. Rouhani walked between mines, offered a hand for peace and raised other issues including a strong response to any violation of the nuclear deal.

On behalf of the Iranian people and authorities, I explicitly announce that the Islamic Republic of Iran will not start violating the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action] but will not remain quiet against the United States' continuing to wriggle out of its commitments, said Rouhani, who addressed Trump without naming him. We have no business with novice politicians, but we announce to those more experienced that the process of the JCPOA can be used as a model for relations and international law.

Rouhani explained that his government is a peace-seeking administration in domestic and foreign affairs and prefers peace over war and reform over the status quo. He said, We stretch a hand of friendship to our neighboring countries.

While three of the six Gulf Cooperation Council [GCC] countries were present at the ceremony  the aforementioned Kuwait, Oman and Qatar  the remaining three GCC members  mainly Saudi Arabia  were nonetheless indirectly present in Rouhanis speech. When Rouhani noted that foreign powers intensify instability and chaos in the region by selling billions of dollars of weapons, he implied that there are no real problems among the regions states and all that is happening is because of foreign hands. It was significant that Rouhani preserved a moderate rhetoric in tackling regional issues; even when he spoke of Syria and Yemen, he clearly indicated that the war on terror should continue, yet the best tool to combat terrorism is democratic governance  a message that could have several meanings. He also stressed that intra-Syrian dialogue and similarly dialogue between the parties in Yemen are the only way out of those crises.

Rouhanis mentioning of the armed forces and support of defensive capabilities for the second time in just a few days could be read as an attempt by the president to cool down his row with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and might be the result of the July 24 meeting that brought together IRGC commander Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari, Quds Force commander Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, and others at the presidents office. Rouhani was accused during his election campaign of aiming at the powerful revolutionary forces on various occasions, which sparked several rows, including one over who ordered the launching of a missile attack on the Islamic State in Deir ez-Zor in Syria.

Rouhanis second term is his chance to officially inherit the political legacy of his late mentor Rafsanjani and be seen as even more of a main player whose voice is heard. To accomplish this, he will have to master the equilibrium game and gain more confidence from other leaders without giving up his red lines. In addition, he must reinvigorate the diplomatic skills that made him the countrys top negotiator while letting go of issues that might stir unnecessary confrontations that could block his ultimate goals. It seems Rouhani is doing well on this for now.
Saturday began as a drencher.

The Alabama Gulf Coast got hammered with an August rain storm that dumped about an inch of rain before noon. For those who held tickets to the Kenny Chesney concert on Saturday night at The Amphitheater in Orange Beach likely felt like there would be no show at the outdoor venue, but by late afternoon the rain had let up and the sun steamed up the day.

And by 5 p.m., thousands had taken to the muddy parking lot outside of The Amphitheater before the start of the Chesney concert. The "No Shoe Nation" country star took the stage after 8 p.m. to a sold-out concert of more than 10,000.
A 2-year-old boy was shot in the head and killed in Avondale late Saturday night while he was in a vehicle with his parents and another man.

Family identified the boy as Ron'Narius "Duke" Austin, who just turned 2 last month. "He went to sleep, but baby when he woke up, he was in paradise,'' one of his cousins posted on Facebook. "God has a reason for allowing things to happen. We may never understand His wisdom, but we simply have to trust His will."

"This is another tragic incident where a child has died due to the recklessness of adults with no regard for life,'' said Birmingham Police Chief A.C. Roper. "Our investigators are working hard to solve this case but it begins with figuring out what happened to start this shootout between the two vehicles. Hopefully, everyone will be forthcoming with truthful information so we can get to the bottom of it and bring the perpetrators to justice."

Birmingham police responded to the Avondale district just before 11:30 p.m. where they found the three wounded victims.

The boy, his mother and an adult male were all hit by the gunfire. They were found injured about 11:26 p.m. in the 4100 block of Third Avenue South. Birmingham police Sgt. Bryan Shelton Sunday afternoon said the male victim who was shot in the back was the driver of the vehicle. Duke's mother was in the front seat and shot multiple times in the arm.

Duke was in the back seat with his father, who was not injured.

The shooting happened at least a block away but they stopped next to the Chevron across the street from Avondale Common House. Officers patrolling the area- a popular night spot - heard what they described as multiple, rapid shots fired and rushed to the scene.

The two adult victims went to UAB, and Duke went to Children's of Alabama. The boy's father was on the scene holding his son when police arrived. Police said a gun was found in the backseat of the victims' vehicle.

Shelton said the actual gunfire erupted in the alley in the 4200 block of Fourth Avenue South. A vehicle with at least four people in it was at some point involved in a shootout with someone inside the victims' vehicle. After the shooting, he said, the suspect vehicle left the scene.

"It is not clear at this time what started the exchange of gunfire," Shelton said. "Information is still coming in, and at this time, we have no suspects or motive."

About two dozen family members kept vigil outside of Children's of Alabama. They said they had all been together at a family gathering just before the shooting.

About 1:30 a.m. Sunday, the boy's mother was brought from UAB's ER to see her son. Police and family said he was pronounced dead, but later said he remained on life support. At 5:30 a.m., Birmingham police said the boy had died.

"Our children, particularly at that age, are really vulnerable. Right now, a family is mourning and has to bury a toddler because of gun violence,'' Shelton said. "A big part of the investigation is to find out what happened in that alleyway that causes the exchange of gunfire between the two vehicles."

Duke is Birmingham's 62nd homicide this year. Of those, at least five have been ruled justifiable and therefore aren't deemed criminal. In all of Jefferson County, there have been 94 homicides including the 62 in Birmingham.

Just hours before Duke was killed, a man was shot to death in a Bessemer apartment. Police said there were at least four children in the apartment when the gunfire erupted, but none of the children were injured. A suspect was taken into custody. Bessemer police said they will not be releasing any additional information on that slaying until at least Monday.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Anyone with information in the Avondale shooting is asked to call Birmingham police at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. Tipsters to Crime Stoppers can remain anonymous and are eligible for a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest and conviction.
A 16-year-old injured in a shooting Saturday night near Cinemark Monaco at Bridge Street Town Centre is expected to survive, Huntsville police said Sunday morning.

'The victim from The shooting is expected to survive. The suspect turned himself in shortly after the shooting. The victim was 16 and the offender is 15. They were in an altercation that resulted in the shooting. Names will not be released because they are juveniles," Lt. Stacy Bates wrote in an email to reporters.

"We are investigating a shooting that happened outside the Monaco theater. Still early but looks like an altercation that resulted in one person being shot. They are in serious condition. I don't have any suspect info yet, but was told the victim and suspect knew each other. Wanted to make sure everyone knew it was not an "active shooter," a statement from police Lt. Bates late Saturday night read.

Don Webster, Chief Operating Officer of HEMSI, told WHNT Saturday night that crews took one male to the Huntsville Hospital trauma center in critical condition.

This is a developing story and will be updated.
Netanyahu has reportedly proposed to transfer some Arab villages to PA control and to annex Jewish settlements.

Palestinian politicians and rights groups have condemned a proposal by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to transfer some Arab-populated villages to the Palestinian Authoritys control and strip residents of their citizenship.

The plan, which was first reported last week by Israels Channel Two News, was supposedly relayed to American officials. It would also permit Israel to annex Jewish-only settlements in the occupied West Bank as part of a final agreement with the Palestinian leadership.

The issue didnt come up as a separate proposal, but as part of a proposal for a comprehensive arrangement with the Palestinians, one official told Channel Two, as reported by the Israeli daily Haaretz.





Yousef Jabareen, a legislator in Israels Knesset, described both the forced population transfer and the annexation of settlements  considered illegal under international law  as war crimes.

Arab citizens of Israel were not granted citizenship by grace, but by the fact that they live in their historical homeland, he told Al Jazeera.

This is in stark contrast to the settlers of the West Bank, who are illegally occupying lands they stole by force from their Palestinian owners.

An estimated 1.7 million Palestinians live in cities, towns and villages across Israel and carry Israeli citizenship. They are subject to dozens of laws that limit their political expression and access to state resources, according to the Haifa-based Adalah Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights.

In a statement emailed to Al Jazeera, Adalah denounced Netanyahus proposal.

Talk of such plans or negotiations  particularly without the consent of those citizens who would be directly impacted  is racist as it makes their citizenship inherently inferior, temporary, vulnerable, and subject to the whims of political negotiation, the statement said.

READ MORE: We are not citizens with equal rights

Netanyahu is not the first Israeli official to advocate transferring Palestinian citizens of Israel to the West Bank.

Ofer Zalzberg, a senior analyst on Israel and Palestine at the International Crisis Group, argued that the report should be taken with a grain of salt. He noted that Netanyahu has faced a groundswell of pressure from the Israeli right since a recent surge of unrest gripped occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the West Bank.

Zalzberg said it was doubtful that the proposal would gain traction under the administration of US President Donald Trump. This modality has no partner in Ramallah and will face such strong resistance from Israels Palestinian population, so it would be a major error for the Trump administration to back this, he told Al Jazeera.

In recent years, hardline Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman has called for the countrys Palestinian minority to be expelled, specifically proposing the removal of residents of The Triangle, a region primarily populated by Palestinians and situated on the boundary line between present-day Israel and the West Bank.

After the news broke of Netanyahus proposal, Lieberman welcomed the news in a Twitter post on Thursday night: Mr Prime Minister, welcome to the club.

   @netanyahu

Welcome to the club https://t.co/i5weRN8VR6    (@AvigdorLiberman) July 27, 2017

Tzipi Livni, the countrys former minister of foreign affairs and a high-ranking member of the centre-left Zionist Union, pushed for Palestinian negotiators to accept a land swap that would see several Palestinian communities in Israel transferred to PA control, according to the Palestine Papers leaked to Al Jazeera.

Under that version of the deal, Palestinian citizens of Israel would ostensibly be given the option of remaining in their towns and villages or retaining their citizenship.

READ MORE: Palestinians in Israel accuse Netanyahu of incitement

Diana Buttu, a policy adviser at Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network and a former negotiator for the Palestine Liberation Organisation, said the idea of transferring Palestinians from present-day Israel is a recurring theme across the Israeli political spectrum.

Netanyahu seems to think that Israels above the law, and sadly, due to the worlds lack of a reaction, he may be right, she told Al Jazeera, noting that the plan would violate international law.

Netanyahu seems to think that Israel's above the law, and sadly, due to the world's lack of a reaction, he may be right. by Diana Buttu, former PLO negotiator and policy adviser at Al-Shabaka

The idea is that they want to get rid of Palestinians, and Palestinian citizens of Israel are the demographic state that prevents Israel from being a purely Jewish state.

With upwards of 1.7 million Palestinians in the country, however, the Israeli government has often instead opted to implement policies and measures aimed at discouraging Palestinian identity among the Druze, Christians and Muslims who make up the Arab minority.

Last month, an angry debate erupted in a Knesset session over a bill proposing to officially designate Israel as a Jewish nation-state. The Israeli government has also attempted to push military recruitment among Palestinian Christians in Israel  part of what critics decry as a divide-and-conquer strategy.

In recent years, several draft bills have sought to remove Arabic from the countrys official languages, though none have been cemented into law yet.

Theyve tried for years to turn us into good Israelis, but people havent taken the bait, Buttu said.

Dahlia Scheindlin, a policy analyst who writes for 972 Magazine, argued that land swaps is a misleading characterisation of the latest proposal, which she says is more aptly described as forced de-patriation.

Many Israelis would not see any problem with land swaps  To the Israeli ear, it sounds like a neat, logical approach, Scheindlin told Al Jazeera.

READ MORE: Palestinian lives dont count here

While Scheindlin stressed that polling data is scarce when it comes to Israeli public opinion about land swaps and expulsion of the Palestinian minority, support for a two-state solution decreased significantly between 2010 and 2017, from 71 percent to 51 percent.

Last year, the Washington-based Pew Research Center found that nearly half of Jewish Israelis thought Arabs should be expelled or transferred from Israel, although it did not specify whether the interviewees perceived the occupied West Bank as part of the country or as a distinct entity.

Arguing that Palestinians in Israel have no intention of leaving their lands and homes, Buttu noted that proposals such as Netanyahus present Palestinians with an unlivable reality: We are constant reminders of Israels settler colonialism.

Follow Patrick Strickland on Twitter: @P_Strickland_
Voters from Kenyas various tribes say they will vote for candidate of their own ethnic group because they trust him.

Nairobi, Kenya  A convoy of pick-up trucks wrapped in shiny touched-up photos of candidates and mounted with huge speakers drive slowly in front of Anne Wanjiru Kamaus food stall in Nairobis Pangani area, blasting campaign speeches by politicians from Kenyas opposition coalition. On August 8, Kamau and millions of Kenyan voters will cast their ballots in the countrys general election, but today, Kamau is not paying much attention to the campaign slogans passing by, nor are her customers.

I will vote for Kenyatta. He is our son. They are wasting their time, Kamau tells Al Jazeera as she weighs a kilo of red beans for a customer.

Kamau, like President Uhuru Kenyatta, comes from the Kikuyu tribe  the countrys biggest ethnic group.

Ethnicity plays a big role in who makes it to the presidency in this East African country. Kenya is home to more than 40 tribes and competition for political seats has never been more serious, with most Kenyans getting behind candidates from their ethnic groups.

The five largest ethnic groups  the Kikuyu, Luhya, Kalenjin, Luo and Kamba  make up nearly 70 percent of the countrys 48 million population, according to countrys last population census in 2009. Most of the leaders playing an important role in deciding the outcome of the election come from these tribes.





Voting for one of their own

The opposition coalition is led by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga from the Luo tribe  Kenyas fourth-largest group. His running mates are from the Luhya and Kamba group. Kenyattas running mate is from the countrys third-biggest tribe.

This is going to be my third time voting and I have never voted for someone from another tribe, Kamau says.

In 2007, I voted for Kibaki [a Kikuyu] and in 2013, I supported Kenyatta, the 38-year-old added.

Almost all the voters who spoke to Al Jazeera in the Kenyan capital said they are voting for candidates from their own tribe out of fear of someone other than their own taking office and lack of trust in candidates from other ethnic groups.

Dorothy Makungus shop is located not far from Kamaus stall across the traffic-congested road. She sells fruits and fresh juices to passing traffic and pedestrians. Makungu says she is not excited about the elections but knows for which candidate she will vote.

There is nothing Kenyatta can say to make me vote for him. Last election, I voted for Raila and this time I will vote for him, she says.

Makungu is from Kenyas second biggest tribe, the Luhya. Moses Wetangula and Musalia Mudavadi, the leaders of the tribe, are in a coalition with Odinga.

I support Wetangula as our leader and he is with Odinga, 32-year-old Makungu says.

Ten minutes drive from Makungus shop towards downtown Nairobi, a group of young Boda Boda, motorcycle taxis, gather to wait for passengers as the citys commuters leave work.

Most of the young men are wearing colourful jackets donned with images of the different parties and candidates running for office.

David Mawira Njeru, 29, is a third-time voter and it is clear from the stickers on his motorbike where his loyalty lies.

Im Uhuru. He is the only one I trust. To me, he is the only candidate I feel safe with, says Njeru. It is not tribalism. It is just preferring your own people.

Titus Otieno from the Luo tribe, a university student and a supporter of Raila Odinga stands a short distance away in apparent hurry to join an opposition event. We must back our own. Only our own will bring us development. And thats why Im going to vote Raila, Otieno says rushing away.

Read more about who people will vote for in the Kenya elections

Winning 50 percent of votes

Politics in Kenya is fluid and ethnicity plays a huge part. To win the presidency, a candidate must win more than 50 percent and no single tribe has that number on its own. Candidates form tribal alliances to get themselves and their ethnic group a seat at the top table. Although, tribal coalitions are also easily broken up if a better offer comes along.

Mwai Kibaki, Raila Odinga, William Ruto were in a coalition against Uhuru Kenyatta in the 2002 election, which Kibaki won.

Then, the following election in 2007, Odinga and Ruto formed a coalition to oppose Kibaki and Kenyatta who were on the same side the next time around.

Kibaki was announced the winner, but the results were disputed by the opposition leading to deadly violence. More than 1,000 people were killed and over a half-million displaced. The violence only stopped after Kibaki and Odinga formed a coalition government. Kibaki left office in 2012 after he served two terms in office.

In the 2012 general election, Kenyatta formed a coalition with Ruto and contested against Odinga.

Joshua Ndongo Onono was a running mate of a presidential candidate in the 2012 election. Onono says politics in Kenya is not much different from politics in other parts of the world.

In the West, many people vote certain way depending on whether they are working class or well-off. Some have conservative views and will vote for candidates on the right of the political spectrum. In Kenya, it is ethnicity, Onono tells Al Jazeera.

In 10 to 30 years, we will move on from this. We will base our decisions on what the candidates offer, for example, tax breaks or better and cheaper healthcare, Onono adds.

But as campaigning comes to and end and candidates eagerly wait to see if their campaign rhetoric has convinced voters, Kenyans say they dont expect their life to change no matter who wins.

They are all the same. They are there for their own interest. The only difference between them is the tribe they belong to, Kamau, the food stall owner, says.
Three young men died last month on a day of heightened violence between Palestinians and Israelis in the West Bank.

Occupied East Jerusalem  From the main street that runs through Wadi Qadum in occupied East Jerusalem, the Sharaf family home is hidden by a primary school and the bright, multicoloured stone wall of its playground.

Tied to the wire mesh above the painted wall, a single poster shows a young man wearing a black suit, bow tie and graduation cap. Clean shaven and with a sash draped over his left shoulder, the young man looks straight ahead.

Taken in mid-July, the photograph shows Mohammed Sharaf on his 18th birthday at his high school graduation ceremony. His parents, Mahmoud and Nimeh Sharaf, set up a tent outside their home for Mohammed to celebrate with friends and relatives.

But a week after the festivities, Mohammed was killed during violent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces that spread throughout occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank on July 21. Two other young men were killed the same afternoon.

The tent became a mourning space, where Mohammeds parents greeted family members and friends who came to express their condolences. The graduation photograph was used on the martyr posters pasted to walls across the West Bank.

Nimeh described Mohammed as a popular, ambitious young man who studied hard and wanted to work in the medical field. Mohammed was preparing to go to university in the autumn, she told Al Jazeera. He was trying to decide between studying medicine and nursing. His teacher was helping him to choose which university to attend.

READ MORE: They killed him because he was an Arab

The Sharaf family usually attended Friday prayers at al-Aqsa Mosque, but on July 21, religious leaders in the city had ordered mosques closed and called for worshippers to pray in the streets near al-Aqsa, amid protests over Israels decision to install metal detectors and security cameras outside the entrances to the holy site. The move followed a deadly attack on July 14 that killed two Israeli policemen and the three attackers, all Palestinian citizens of Israel.

Amid ensuing clashes on July 21, Mohammed and two other young Palestinian men were killed: Mohammed Khalaf, 17, and Mohammed Abu Ghannem, 20. The Palestinian Red Crescent also reported hundreds of injuries.

That day, Nimeh said, the family had gone to pray in the Ras al-Amud neighbourhood, but they were separated when clashes broke out between worshippers and Israeli forces.

The clashes started straightaway after the prayer, she said. We were separated, so we all headed for home separately.

Mahmoud said that he returned home and was preparing to rest when he received a phone call.





A young man called me and said that my son was dead, he told Al Jazeera. He was taken to the medical centre and the young men took him from there to be buried immediately. We were not able to bring him home to say goodbye.

The exact sequence of events that led to his death remains murky. According to the Palestinian health ministry, Mohammed died from gunshot wounds. Initial reports on local news sites stated that the teenager was shot by an Israeli settler, but after questioning a suspect, Israeli police did not lay charges.

I dont think there is any chance of justice, Mahmoud said. We know that if we want to claim justice, the Israelis will demand that he is removed from the ground to be examined. We do not want this.

He blamed the Israeli decision to install new security measures around al-Aqsa for the deaths of all three men in Jerusalem that Friday, arguing that Palestinians had no choice but to boycott the measures and pray outside the compound.

If al-Aqsa was open, we would have prayed inside and none of this would have happened, Mahmoud said.

Like the Sharafs, the Abu Ghannem family feels a deep connection to the holy site. Their home in at-Tur, a Palestinian neighbourhood on the Mount of Olives in occupied East Jerusalem, is around a kilometre from al-Aqsa.

Mohammed Abu Ghannem had recently completed his second year of a computer science degree at Birzeit University. He had attended evening prayers on the streets outside of al-Aqsa with his mother, Suzan, the week before he was killed.

READ MORE: Has Israels security apparatus failed?

In his final days, it was all he talked about, Suzan told Al Jazeera. He was very touched by what was happening at al-Aqsa.

On July 21, Suzan went to pray in the streets of the Old City with thousands of other worshippers, while her son prayed outside the Old City in Wadi al-Joz. As she headed back home, she heard the sound of gunfire in her neighbourhood.

I called my sister because she was closer to the area, she said. While I was talking to her, I heard the young men in the background saying that Mohammed had been killed. That is how I heard.

Around the same time, Mohammeds father, Hassan, also received a phone call from the young men who had taken him to a nearby hospital.

I went straight to the hospital, Hassan told Al Jazeera. I saw him at the hospital and said goodbye. I gave the young men permission to bury him but then the soldiers tried to take him. I tried to prevent them, I ran to stop them, but I could not continue any more  I could not walk. The guys took him to the cemetery and buried him.

Part of the incident was captured on video, showing a chaotic scene outside the hospital as young Palestinian men tried to lift a lifeless body over a wall in order to prevent it being confiscated by Israeli authorities. The footage was widely shared on local news and social media, heightening outrage among Palestinians.

It was very, very hard to watch this video, Suzan said. You cant imagine how hard it is to see his body being taken away like this. But it is still better than having the soldiers taking his body or his body being confiscated.

Mohammeds parents described their son as a popular young man  polite, funny and religious. The eldest of five children, his nickname in the neighbourhood was the prince because of his generosity. When his grandfather died last year, he began sleeping in his grandmothers house because he did not want her to feel lonely.

Following Mohammeds death, Hassan said that he was harassed by Israeli intelligence services, who warned him to stop speaking to the press about his son.

I spoke to the media and said I was proud that my son was a martyr, he said. The intelligence called me and threatened me to stop saying things that I would regret later.

On July 24, police arrived at the family home and detained Hassan, along with his cousin, Ismael. He said he was accused of encouraging young men to attack Israeli forces in East Jerusalem, which he denied. He was released later the same day without charge.

It was very hard, not because of the interrogation, he said. It was hard because I had just lost a loved one, my son, my best friend.